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jjk-biased · 4 years

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jungkook x reader

requested by @atulipandarose (oooh soulmate/jungkook/one shot!! it's been big missing jk hours over here)

genre: fluff, soulmate au

words: 2.5k of dumb jungkook pining

warnings: none >< cussing here and there, also my first time writing just fluff so please be kind. unedited!!!

synopsis: jungkook never loved the idea of soulmates because he liked you and he wanted only you.

masterlist | events masterlist

There it was, the panging he felt in his heart even if he wasn’t the person in pain. As his chest throbbed, it was emotional pain he supposed, the song began to play in his head. He gritted his teeth, upset to have been reminded once again of the world he lived in.

The world had to be so stupid to believe in such nonsense. It was idiotic. They had to be so naive to rely on this whole scam - to the point where they even revolve their lives around it.

It isn’t true. It’s far-fetched. This whole soulmate system wasn’t reliable.

He lived in a world where the universe decided who each person’s other was. Soulmates existed. It was everywhere. And he didn’t like it one bit.

Whoever made the world like this had to be an utter idiot. Why would anyone allow something like this to take over people’s lives? This bullshit soulmate system gave people a false sense of hope that someone out of the millions and millions of people would be the only right person for you. That somehow, out of 7.5 billion people, someone would be the perfect yin to your yang.

It shouldn’t exist. Soulmates shouldn’t exist.

Come to think of it, how can the universe even be so sure that the person they have “destined” for him is the right one? And, honestly, who even gave the universe the right to choose for him?

Fuck the universe, Jeon Jungkook wanted to pick for himself.

He thought this whole sham was an inconvenience. Unlike almost every love-crazed and soulmate-addict person, he thought otherwise. Jungkook felt suffocated at the thought of being tied down to someone who he probably didn’t even like. He didn’t need whoever they had for him. He didn’t have to meet this so-called pre-destined love of his life to live happily.

Actually, he did. Or else he would forever be haunted by it. He’d go crazy.

People had different “soulmate indicators” -- basically something in their body that gave them a hint on whoever they were destined for. Namjoon, his writer friend, had a tattoo of his soulmate’s name on his collarbone. Jimin, the short friend, had a ring on his finger with the initials of his soulmate and would even change colors depending on the mood of his other. One part of Taehyung's hair is the same color as his soulmate’s, regardless if he tried to dye it along with his locks.

To say the least, theirs were easy to find, to discover - much more convenient than what the universe had in store for dear Jeon Jungkook. His had to be the most vague indicator of this whole scam.

A song.

The universe gave Jungkook one specific song that only he and his soulmate knew. Not a name, not a ring, not even a hair color. Just one fucking song.

Jeon Jungkook didn’t want to believe in this obviously fraudulent scheme that the universe set up. Despite his woes and resentment towards the system, Jungkook couldn’t exactly ignore it. The song, somehow sung by both him and the soulmate, always played in his head whenever he or the other would feel down. Somehow, it only played when any of them were sad. Not when they’re happy. Not when they’re angry. Not when they’re bored. Only when one or the other wasn’t feeling well.

But hey, at least he knew when it would start.

There would always be a pang in his chest before it began. It was akin to when the dog dies in the movie, or when someone relayed bad news, or when the character in a book had to leave. The weird feeling would be eased immediately as soon as the song played in their head. It would lull him to sleep, he guessed it held the same effect for whoever was on the other side, and would make him feel at home.

But he did not like this soulmate bullshit.

Not one bit.

Even if the song brought him great comfort. Even if it was the only thing he looked forward to when he had a bad day. Even if his soulmate’s honey-like voice blended well with his.

Wait shit, he should be hating this nonsense. Why did he just think that his soulmate sang nicely?

Fuck it. Forget what he thought. It didn’t matter anyway.

He had other things to think about anyway, especially how to gain the courage to ask his friend out.

Jungkook is currently and sadly a college student, who, aside from drowning in student debt, studies fine arts. He hopes to become a renowned artist someday, and in pursuing so, had to disobey his typical Asian parents’ wish for him to be called Dr. or Atty. someday.

Soulmate hatred aside, art had always been his passion. Despite growing into a family full of doctors, lawyers, and judges, he knew his heart belonged in fine arts. When his brother would play with the toy syringes and stethoscopes, he would be seen getting himself dirty with the washable markers. That love for coloring grew into something more, and so Jungkook decided he would become an artist in the future.

It was always so freeing for him to dabble in the blues and greens and create whatever he visualized in his mind. The pencil in his hand could easily convey the emotions he had trouble vocalizing. All of his troubles would go away faster than you can say worldwide handsome Jin-hyung with the aid of his drawing tablet. Everything about art just intrigued him. Art was easy. Art was comforting.

Art is where he felt free.

It wasn’t suffocating. Unlike his family that wanted him to be someone he couldn’t become and this soulmate shit that wanted to cuff him down to one specific person he doubts would even go well with him.

He wanted the soulmate system gone. For reasons that seemed justified to him and only him.

He could live without the incessant nagging of his very traditional family who wanted to sped things up. Jungkook would finally stop seeing some of his soulmate-less acquaintances miserable. He could finally go on with his sad day without the song that would automatically play in his head.

Wait… that last thought made him feel sad. Perhaps he would miss the song after all.

Anyway, and above all, he could finally court his cute friend without having to worry of the soulmate shabang.

Jungkook didn’t want whoever the universe paired him with. He wanted his cute seatmate and friend, Y/N Y/L/N.

Y/N Y/L/N. Your name was perfect.

The way your name rolled off his tongue felt just right. The way your nose would scrunch as you focused on sketching the naked dude who had to pose in front of everyone. The way you would tilt your head when the professor never made sense with his discussions.

Everything about you was just so… perfect.

You were kind-hearted, considerate, and intelligent. Your humor was unmatched and you were very enthusiastic when you conversed with Jungkook. From a small crush, his liking towards you grew into something he couldn’t exactly ignore. He liked you more than he liked to listen to the duet in his head.

Okay… scratch that. Maybe he did like his significant other’s singing voice. It eased his worries after a troublesome day. Admittedly, he had found comfort in it.

If only the universe allowed him to converse with whoever was on the other side, then maybe he didn’t have to loathe this system so much. He could’ve gotten a friend out of it, not a soulmate… but a friend.

Somehow, his thoughts wandered back to you. God, imagine if you were his soulmate. Jungkook would be more than happy if that happened. But he didn’t need the universe to act on his feelings for you. Jungkook will do something… He knew he had to do something about it. He just didn’t know when.

All of his thinking made Jungkook revert to airplane mode, so it was only then that he noticed you concernedly waving your hand in front of his face for a sign of consciousness. He found your scrunched up face painstakingly cute but holy shit… why are you so close? Please don’t be so close. Jungkook would malfunction if you decreased the space between you two even more.

“Are you okay, kook?” You luckily stepped back once he locked eyes with you.

Ah… that sweet voice of yours that could rival the comforting honey-like singing in his head.

“Y-yeah! Sorry, was spacing out,” Jungkook’s words were jumbled as he noticed he was staring at you like a gaping goldfish instead of answering like a normal person.

Your giggles rang throughout the room at his predicament. He crookedly grinned then laughed along. This must be heaven. Your happiness was always contagious and he’d often mirror the smile on your face whenever you were happy.

You made him feel giddy as much as he did on the days he finished his artworks. You made him complete.

But that damn soulmate thing had to ruin it.

How he wished you were his soulmate.

“I thought something happened to you, kook! Mr. Kang dismissed us some time ago but you were still frozen in your seat when everyone left. I was so… worried,” You chuckled, though quite red and hesitant at the end.

Well did that instigate the butterflies in Jungkook’s tummy.

“Concerned for me?” Jungkook teased, it was his go-to response because he couldn’t exactly flirt in straight sentences.

Your eyebrows furrowed but the pink hue became much more evident. Jungkook didn’t even mind the kick you gave him because he made you feel a bit flustered. Success :D

“Taehyungie’s been busy, hasn’t he?” You said, trying to change the subject so everyone could forget the embarrassment.

Taehyung, the theater kid and drama major, was friends with the both of you. He had been busy for the past month because their project was to create a series of plays to showcase to the school. Their show will be on Tuesday, days away from now.

Right! He could invite you to the play.

“He is… Hey,” You tilted your head and hummed when Jungkook’s voice sounded a bit unsure.

“Do you wanna go with me to the play?”

The red on your face and the shy nod you did made him swell in accomplishment. He can’t wait for Tuesday to come.

Fuck. He should’ve waited for Tuesday to come. Now it is Tuesday and he was too nervous to even stand in a five-meter radius near you. Slapping himself to forget the momentary faltering of his confidence, he shakily waited at the foot of your doorstep with an album in his hand.

You two bonded on music and he knew you well enough to know you’d rather have the CD of your favorite artist than some flower that would wilt after awhile. He was right. The beam on your face when he handed over the gift made him so happy that all his nerves were washed away. You always had a way to ease him, even if you weren’t aware.

“M’lady,” He jokingly tried to replicate a british accent as he offered his arm, waiting for you. And as you always would, you took his arm along with an accent-laced, “M’lord,”

Jungkook forgot his worries for a moment and it was always because of you.

You two sat near the stage to support Taehyung with his play. You two remembered him sharing that their play was about a soulmate-driven world with much more darker consequences. It was about the fictional hanahaki disease, he said.

And boy did it feel so sad. Taehyung acted so well, as if he was really losing his character’s best friend onstage. Jungkook peered at you for a moment and saw your eyes glisten as Taehyung’s cries grew louder and louder.

The story was really heartbreaking.

To the point where Jungkook felt the familiar pang on his chest and the song began to play in his head.

How peculiar. His soulmate was sad just as Taehyung’s scene played out. Perhaps they were in the same auditorium as well. But that was impossible. His soulmate was probably watching some soap opera.

Not that he minded. Jungkook had other things to think about, especially how to comfort you as your tears flowed down from the actors’ amazing performance. As slick as he could, he draped an arm around you and let you rest your head on his shoulder. His heart was beating faster than he could comprehend. Even more so, when you scooted closer to him.

Fuck. You were cuddling. Oh my god. Jungkook is gonna die out of happiness.

He had to play it cool though. Jungkook ignored the warmth in his chest and face as he rubbed your arm in consolation. He was surprised you reacted well. Nothing prepared him for what happened next.

You were humming.

You were humming his song.

hOLY SHIT. HOLY SHIT YOU WERE HUMMING HIS SONG.

You… were his soulmate.

Okay universe… Unfuck you, Jungkook guessed. Apparently the universe was on his side after all… All he had to do was somehow tell you…

Jungkook, his face now an uncontrollable red, nervously turned towards you and successfully got your undivided attention. God, he could die then and there. Gathering courage from glob knows where, he smiled and sang the first line of the song.

Universe might have been laughing at him for suddenly changing his views. Jungkook would’ve laughed at himself if he found out the double-back on his opinion. But this was you.

You and your cute nose scrunch, you and your adorable head tilt, you and your witty comebacks.

This was you.

Everything about you was perfect, and he couldn’t believe that the universe liked him enough to grace him with you as his soulmate.

何故こんなにも涙が溢れるの

[Naze, konna ni mo namida ga afureru no]

Your eyes widened as he sang the song that felt like home to the both of you.

ねぇ側にいてそして笑ってよ

[Nee, soba ni ite soshite waratte yo]

You joined in on the singing and everything just made sense. None of the leaving people in the auditorium mattered at the moment.

君のいない未来は色のない世界

[Kimi no inai mirai wa iro no nai sekai]

Jungkook was so happy. It seemed like the world was brighter than before.

モノクロで冷たい

[Monokuro de tsumetai]

He shouldn’t have doubted the universe’s plan. Everything was better with you.

見つめてる暗闇さえも so beautiful

[Mitsumeteru kurayami sae mo so beautiful]

You smiled shyly as your soft honey-like voice harmonized with him.

僕を信じてほしい

[Boku wo shinjite hoshii]

Jungkook’s smile grew wider, encasing your delicate hand in his.

まっすぐに君だけを見て

[Massugu ni kimi dake wo mite]

For once in his life, he was happy and it was better because he was happy with you.

どこにも行かないように

[Doko ni mo ikanai you ni]

You two shared a kiss that afternoon, on a Tuesday, at the university’s auditorium.

permanent taglist: @luvinseokjinnie @97faerie @amoreguk @bbyjoonies @borednia @tanumiki @taescake

[Extra]

Jungkook: Hey Taehyung! Congrats, that play was amazing

Taehyung: ...yeah… but why did you two make out when I died onstage?

You: ahahaha bye.

#bts x reader #bts #jungkook x female reader #jungkook x reader #jeon jungkook #soulmate au #jungkook fluff #jungkook x you #jungkook imagine #your eyes they tell

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mirrinbelde-shitposts · 3 years

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Hello ma'am I'm D and idk if I'm guessing it right or not but i really have noticed that you don't use that much emojis, so from my experience i guess MAY BE MAY BE IF POSSIBLE you might have an earth mercury (like virgo mercury something like that). I'm really sorry if my guess was wrong. And this is my birth chart.

Thankyousosomuch🥂💕🌼

Oh hello! I do have an Earth Mercury, although it is Capricorn instead of Virgo, but good guess! No need to be sorry :)

Welcome to your reading. Please remember to send feedback.

First impressions when looking at your chart: you almost have a mystic rectangle, only Pluto is too close to the beginning of Sagittarius

SUN IN CANCER

The first thing that comes to mind when I think about this sign is intuitive. You are probably rather intuitive, even if you don't pay much attention to it. You are, of course, calm, caring and loving, especially toward your family. There's a significant connection to your family, as well as to your home. These aspects allow you to feel emotional security, which is something that you crave very much. You are probably shy with people that you don't know. You much prefer to be surrounded by the people you know and love. You need to feel loved and cherished every day in order to feel well. However, Cancer Suns are known to be manipulative. With your unaspected Sun, Pisces degree and Gemini Mercury, I think this can be especially true.

SUN IN THE 6TH HOUSE

Here, the Sun is in the house of Virgo. This means that you can find your sense of self-worth through things and activities associated with this sign, like career, routine and health. Firstly, you may feel accomplished through your job, especially if it is a profession related to the direct service of others. Being useful makes you feel good. You're not one to just sit around all day doing nothing. Then, you may prize your daily routines because they allow your life to continue running smoothly. It may very much upset you if things don't go like they are used to happen. Lastly, health is very important to you. It is crucial that you connect mind and body and secure the well-being of both because you can be prone to diseases, from which it may not always be easy to recover.

MOON IN TAURUS

The Moon is exalted in Taurus. Placed here, the Moon is quite happy, for this sign goes nicely with its characteristics: family-oriented, home, comfort, calm, familiar things, loving and caring. You may place a big importance on material things and develop an emotional attachment to some belongings of yours, perhaps because they provide you security. You’re the kind of person to stay home and enjoy a hearty meal, cuddle in front of the fireplace and enjoy sleeping in a comfy bed. You’re quite calm and caring; however, expressing your emotions may not be your strong suit. You should work on your deep attachment issues because they can destroy you if the object of that attachment abandons you.

MOON IN THE 3RD HOUSE

This placement allows the Moon, or your emotions, to connect to Gemini, the thoughts of yourself and others. You may have a tendency to be quieter because you prefer to observe and ascertain what other people are thinking and feeling. The placement adds to the intuitiveness of the Moon. However, what you gather from your observation and rationalization may be affected by your emotions because this is the Moon we're talking about, not Mercury. Whereas Mercury is objective, the Moon is subjective. You should approach the situation with a clear head and try not to let your emotions cloud your judgement. Also, you may have a not-very-motherly relationship with your mother, since the 3H represents siblings. She may act more like a sister to you than a mother; or, you may have had to be a mother to your siblings.

MERCURY IN GEMINI

This is one of the two signs ruled by Mercury. Gemini embodies the more chatty, talkative side of Mercury. You are curious, intelligent and love to possess and acquire knowledge of every kind. You are good at both writing and speaking; however, speaking is probably the thing for which you are known. Gemini is known as the sign that never shuts up; this is particularly true in your case, with Mercury in this sign. However, since your mind is always racing, you may lack an attention span, always going from one thing to the other. Staying committed to tasks and goals may be a problem for you because you get tired of things quickly. You are good with words and love to socialize. Emotions may be rationalized.

MERCURY IN THE 5TH HOUSE

This is a great placement for artists, especially those whose fields are ruled by Mercury, such as writers. It allows you to pour all your creativity and originality into your craft. Your many ideas are expressed in fun ways and your show a jovial way of seeing things. You may enjoy puzzles or other activities that involve strategy, as well as sports (yes, because sports also require tactics). Basketball, for example, would be a good sport for someone with this placement. Additionally, it’s a good Mercury position for someone who works with kids or teenagers, as well as parents. You are creative and fun and it shows.

LEO VENUS

Venus feels well here. You are showy with your emotions and you probably go for people who admire and adore you. You are like that yourself as well, of course: your partner is your whole world to you. You love gifts, both giving and receiving, as well as surprises. You're dramatic in the way you show your feelings and you probably like it when your relationship is in the spotlight. Other than that, you are quite creative and artistic. You shine brightly and you embrace those vibes. Venus also gives you a good taste in art and fashion and a natural charm that makes people look up to you. However, like Leo in general, you may value your opinion too much and other people's too little. This is all well and good, but it can cause a lot of problems with your partner. Relationships are all about compromise; if you're unable to do so, they won't last.

VENUS IN THE 7TH HOUSE

The 7th is the house of Libra, which falls under the rulership of Venus. This placement places a great emphasis on relationships, namely romantic ones. These can serve as a means to acquire greater self-value and self-esteem. You may seek the “perfect” partner and have quite a lot of thoughts regarding your idea of perfection. Beware of this, because all your fantasies and expectations will probably fall short and nothing is perfect in life. The saying “Love is blind” very much applies to this placement. Venus actively seeks “the one”, but they may not be who you imagine. You may also have too great a rose-coloured glasses idea of relationships and may struggle when they struggle too. You need to learn that they require hard work. This placement favours unions but also enhances jealous tendencies.

CANCER MARS

Mars is in Fall in Cancer. This means that you may struggle to take action, perhaps due to the shyness associated with this sign. You may remain neutral in a lot of situations for fear of taking one side. However, your moods can change often and your emotions are felt intensely, so, if you are on a bad day, you may attack and have ugly outbursts. You have a fear of being hurt by those closest to you. This is also a placement that can lead to emotional manipulation, as well as feelings of neediness and jealousy. You probably hold grudges and have a hard time forgiving and forgetting those who've wronged you in the past.

MARS IN THE 6TH HOUSE

The planet of action has its joy in this house, according to the principles of Hellenistic Astrology. Mars strongly wants to take action, but the 6th house forces it to be more methodical and less impulsive. Your workplace may become your figurative battlefield. You need to be active in everyday life, but you also want to feel that what you’re doing is meaningful and makes you feel useful. Mars here acts strongly and concretely in areas of life that are related to work, mainly career, as I mentioned. This seems to be a good position for a leader in the workplace. 6H Mars may worry a lot about the body. A great deal of your energy may be directed into taking care of it, perhaps going to the gym is an activity you enjoy.

JUPITER IN CANCER

Jupiter is exalted in this sign. The planet of expansion and luck finds in Cancer a good means of expressing its energy, for the sign is a sensitive one. Whilst Cancer is already sweet and caring, Jupiter expands these traits even more. You are generally a calm person, who empathizes with people’s feelings and has a need to both listen and talk to others. However, you can become very fierce when someone messes with those you love. You probably have a very motherly side to you that draws people in. Additionally, I have said that Cancer is the most intuitive sign: Jupiter in Cancer only makes this even more so. Listen to your intuition, which is quite accurate; learn to trust your gut feelings.

JUPITER IN THE 6TH HOUSE

This placement may seem, at first, difficult, because this is the house of Virgo, in which sign Jupiter has its Detriment. Whilst Jupiter is all about the higher mysteries, philosophy and the bigger picture, Virgo prefers hard work, concrete aspects and attention to detail. You should seek to find meaning in life through your job, as well as acts of service. Also, this placement may manifest in more ways than one: you may be able to take on the Virgo traits by achieving focus in one thing, or, on the opposite, you can move from one thing to the next, in a bid to help everyone and achieve everything. Jupiter here needs to find a middle ground between the mundane and the mystical.

SATURN IN GEMINI

Saturn here may cause you to be unsure about the themes of Gemini: communication, thinking and expressing yourself. This can cause you to be afraid to speak in public or to withhold voicing your true opinions. You may delve into the study of every area of life or, on the contrary, avoid it at all costs. You probably ponder your words before you speak them. You may have a tendency to be introverted due to this. In a past life, you may have misused your voice, so your purpose in this life is to learn the power of your words. Also, you probably struggle with order, discipline and setting realistic goals. Saturns wants you to learn how to deal with these topics in this lifetime. You may have a lack of self-esteem due to the problems aforementioned. It is important that you work on these blockages.

SATURN IN THE 5TH HOUSE

Saturn here prevents a positive expression of your creativity and expression. Perhaps in past lives, these aspects of yours yielded bad results, so, in this lifetime, you struggle with them. As a child, you may have felt trouble expressing who you truly were (maybe your parents didn't accept that, or your teachers), so you felt better off repressing those parts of yourself that caused problems. Now, later in life, you may completely disregard having fun and dedicating your time and energy to hobbies and fun activities. You probably, instead, commit yourself to your work and don't allow yourself any time to relax and unwind. This can cause you to maintain a harsh, stiff approach to life even now, showing only what you think society will accept. Your challenge in this life is to free yourself by embracing and allowing others to see who you truly are and how unique and special you are as a person. ⬛

#astrology #game ask #my stuff

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trassellynn · 4 years

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ABOUT THAT WRONG THING

Here’s the analysis I promised. *** CROOKED KINGDOM SPOILERS *** WHY WAS MATTHIAS HELVAR’S DEATH JUST WRONG? 1. THE WAY IT HAPPENED 1.1. The Hand of the Author “The Hand of the Author” is an expression that indicates how much we feel the presence of the author into the story, the moments in which they intervene to manipulate the events in a forced and unrealistic way instead of following the coherency of their own plots. Now, let’s think about the sequence of the scene: a) Matthias if left alone and unarmed at job done; b) the boy has been able to follow him despite the messy situation; c) Matthias decides not to defend himself and talks to him in a kind and totally reasonable manner; d) the boy shoots him anyway. This death is absolutely anti-climatic, forced and disrespectful for such a character and the scenes from chapter 38 to 40 seem to be completely disconnected from the rest of the story. It looks like the author (despite her statements) was going to finish the book and said : “Oh, no, I cannot end this story without killing at least one main character, let’s kill the one I think the readers like less!” Even though Matthias was the worst character to kill off, as I’m going to explain in Chapter 2, if the author desperately wanted to kill him, she could at least give him a more decent death, like, for example, making him sacrifice to save someone. 1.2. Confusing sequences Matthias is shot by the young drüskelle, but he is still able to run to Nina. What does this mean? Why does the boy let him go, after shooting him? I honestly doubt Matthias has killed him to escape. Maybe he has knocked him down, but that wouldn’t make more sense to the entire context. 1.3. Fjerdan mentality Matthias gives the young drüskelle valid reasons to put his gun down: he has no weapons and cannot go anywhere. Do Fjerdans, filled with hatred but also obsessed with honour and discipline, really teach their young soldiers to be blinded by anger and kill a wanted man (“Dead OR ALIVE”) who is unarmed and willing to cooperate? The boy could have become a Fjerdan hero, if he had brought Matthias as a prisoner to his companions, rather than shooting him for no reasons and then being also unable to prove he killed him. 1.4. Double standards An author cannot build an unrealistic plot armor to some characters (for example, Kaz, a limping boy, who defeats all the Dregs alone) and kill others in a totally “random” and anti-climatic way, at job done. As I say in my small guide “Five simple rules every author should know about characters’ deaths”, double standards compromise the logic and the coherency of the story. 2. THE WAY IT BREAKS BASIC NARRATIVE RULES 2. 1. Character development Matthias’ storyline is mainly focused on two topics: his relationship with Nina and his character development. He literally spends two books to work on himself, unlearning everything he was taught since he was a child and finding a new purpose based on his change of heart. When characters are made to evolve during the story, the most logical choice is to give them an opportunity to make their development useful and significant outside of their safe zone (for example, their group of friends). And, most important thing, an author should never kill their characters if they haven’t complete their development. And that’s why Matthias was the worst character to kill off at the end of Crooked Kingdom: first of all, he hadn’t fully complete his development (he was still very insecure during social interactions and was still fighting against crumbles of Fjerdan mentality); secondly, no one out of the Crows has seen his development, since the author made him fail during his first real attempt to demonstrate something. I think people would need practical demonstrations to make a change possible, it can’t really be enough for them to hear his story from Nina. It’s just not realistic. Killing Matthias in that way and in that moment, made the character uncompleted and his entire development vain. I’ll conclude the subchapter with a simple example: why do you think it was Jack to die in Titanic, instead of Rose? Because Jack was a complete character, while Rose was still completing her development and had to put it into practice. The criterion is the same. 2.2. Characters’ deaths and their impact on the story Authors owe respect to their characters and have to build their paths properly from the beginning to the end, to guarantee quality to the story. Unless they’re writing a story about random events of human life, they should kill characters only when their deaths make sense to the plot and can give a valuable contribute to other characters’ storylines. A story lacks of quality when characters (especially main characters) are killed just for shock value, to add unnecessary angst and suffering to other characters or because “I cannot give a happy ending to everyone, happy endings are for children”. Matthias’ death was anti-climatic, useless and has so little impact that, if a reader jumps chapters from 38 to 41, it almost seems nothing has changed. 2.3. The failure After everything Matthias did to change and evolve, the author made his first attempt to put in practice what he learnt a huge, undeserving failure. First of all, even though he is unarmed, Matthias is fully able to defeat the boy but he doesn’t do that, that means he chooses not to defend himself. He wants to give the boy a possibility, he wants to demonstrate that there’s still hope for Fjerda. And his faith is repaid with death. These kind of plot choices SOMETIMES (and not in this case) can make sense if written at the beginning or in the middle of a story, not at the ending, when everything seems to be resolved. What is the author trying to suggest us? Fjerdan people are hopeless? If Matthias hasn’t been able to persuade a young boy, who, despite his anger and hatred, should have a more “elastic” mind, how could it be possible to convince older people in Fjerda, who have lived with their beliefs for decades? Does the author really think it is realistic that Nina’s words will be heard by Fjerdans? I’m starting to think her and Matthias’ dream is just destined to fail… * SPOILER FROM NIKOLAI DUOLOGY * (Please, don’t mention me the Nikolai Duology, which I tried to read but I abandoned due to several reasons, one of them, I consider the Crows’ arc closed, after that ending, and I don't like the idea of using the group only as a "passage moment" for both a character and a major plot. And to be honest, I think it’s just not fair that the work Matthias started to change Fjerdans’ mentality would be finished by a character who is just similar to him (well, even too much similar) but hasn’t faced everything he went through with Nina. It sounds like Bardugo is trying to replace him and this is bad. 3. THE AUTHOR’S STATEMENTS And now, in the third and final part of my work, I’m going to report some statements the author said during interviews about this choice and explain why I cannot help but strongly disagree with her. 1. “Matthias didn’t deserve a happy ending because he spread too much hate, he had to pay.” Okay, first of all, Matthias didn’t just wake up one morning, deciding to spread hate for no reasons. Do we need to think about his background? 1. He had always been taught to fear Grishas and see them as monsters; 2. A group of those monsters killed his family and he has been taken by a man who took advantage of his trauma to turn him into a weapon. He received bad teachings (and not only from Jarl Brum, but also from Grisha people who burnt his family alive), he has also been able to unlearn those teaching and decide to do something to repair and make things better. About the “he had to pay” stuff, excuse me, but he has been tortured in Hellgate for a year, being forced to kill wolves, that were not only sacred to him, but also reminded him of his own pet wolf, and living with the belief that the girl he fell in love with had betrayed him. Wasn’t that enough? And, last but not less important, here we go again with double standards: Matthias, who understood his mistakes and was determined to fix them “didn’t deserve a happy ending,” but Kaz Brekker did? Kaz is a great character, but he also did terrible things and I’m sure he’ll never do anything to fix them because he’s too broken and rotten inside. That’s okay, not all the characters are made to have a great development, but statements like this, when we compare the two characters, just sound a bit incoherent. 2. “He has been killed by the younger version of himself” Does the author really think this is a great symbolism? Doesn’t she know that being killed by a younger version of yourself, especially after you went through a great redemption arc, just means “Regression”? She’s basically saying that it doesn’t matter if you worked hard to change and to fix your mistakes, you don’t deserve to be forgiven, you are your past and you’re destined to be destroyed by it (unless your name is Kaz Brekker). Past is a part of us, of course, we cannot change it and we can be hurt by it, but we cannot let it “kill” us. The message the author gave is just wrong and filled with extremist, unnecessary moralism. It definitely doesn’t fit the atmosphere of a Young Adult novel, which should promote progression, instead of regression. As I said, she also seems to be willing to demonstrate that Fjerdans are just evil and will never change. I wonder if Bardugo has ever seen “The Lion King”, because Rafiki would be very disappointed by all of this. 3. “I knew from the beginning I would have killed him off” Even though the way she killed him seems to demonstrate something different, Bardugo has always stated that she wanted to kill Matthias by the moment she created him. Okay, we can believe it, but I can still speak against this statement. How? I’m sure this thing has happened to many writers: we create characters and decidespecific endings for their storylines, but, while we’re writing, those characters “come to life” into our hands and they sometimes evolve out of our control and start to lead us to a different path. Since the story is made by our characters, we should follow the directions they take, for the sake of the plot: we shouldn’t listen to fanservice or to old plans, we should listen to our characters. That’s why it can happen we end up saving a character we were meant to kill of at the beginning, as well as killing a character we hadn’t plan to kill off. It is just wrong to stubbornly follow an old idea that doesn’t fit the story anymore, that’s why authors cannot use it as an excuse to justify their mistakes. (The finale of “How I Met Your Mother” is a great example to explain this concept). 4. CONCLUSIONS “Geez, what was that for?” - It doesn’t matter. It’s in the past. “Yeah, but it still hurts!” - Ah, yes, the past can hurt. But the way I see it, you can either run from it, or… learn from it. (“The Lion King”, 1994) Matthias wasn’t even running away from his past. He faced it. He wanted to do something about it. He was ready to rise from the ashes of his past and work for a better future. And those are all the reasons his death is just wrong from every kind of perspective: narrative, logic, symbolism. Matthias Helvar deserved better. Not only from his life, but also, and especially, from the author who created him. *** Hope you agree with me. Haters stay away, I won’t change my mind. Don’t make flame under my post. If you agree with me and like my work, feel free to share. Thanks for reading!

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suitofvibraniumarmor · 4 years

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Boston Boys [Part Twenty]

Summary: The aftermath of the shooting at Downey’s house. Pairing: Chris Evans x OFC, John Krasinski x OFC Word Count: 1436 Chapter Warnings: Angst, language, character death, pregnancy. A/N: This story contains a character who lost her hearing as she got older. I do work closely and regularly with the D/deaf community (I’m a sign language interpreter), but my own hearing problems do not involve significant hearing loss. It is not my intention to offend anyone, only to bring in a character with a quality I don’t see often in other fics. If you have questions about her, feel free to ask :)

This is it, friends! Thank you so much to everyone who came along on this ride with me. Thank you to @captain-s-rogers for encouraging me to write this story in the first place, and then agreeing that the rest of the world needed to read this fic. (Fun Fact: It wasn’t originally planned for this to go beyond Google Docs.) To everyone who has read, commented, liked, reblogged, asked to be on the tag list ... the love always seems extra special when people will come along for the ride with a writer’s OCs. Without further ado ... the finale!

Boston Boys Masterlist

A few cloudy mornings later, John rolled to his side to see Aurelie sleeping soundly next to him. Her cheeks were tear-stained. He knew from the tossing and turning and the whimpering in her sleep that the events of Downey’s house were not far from her thoughts, even as she slept. He had done his best to comfort her, but there was only so much he could do.

Though he didn’t want to wake her, they had somewhere to be that morning. He decided he would shower first, then wake her. He would do what he could to help her get ready, to make the day as easy as possible for her.

With the towel still wrapped around his waist, John sat next to her on the bed. The smell of his soap and aftershave roused her a little, but it took his fingers in her hair to get her to open her eyes.

“It’s time,” John signed.

Aurelie closed her eyes and let out a deep sigh. She squeezed her eyes shut even tighter, but it was to no avail.

“I keep thinking I’m imagining this. That it was a dream. But I wake up and it’s too real.”

“I know. What can I do to help you get ready?”

She sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She looked at him, caressing his face. With a soft kiss, she shook her head. “Nothing. I’m going to get in the shower. What time is the car coming?”

“Hour and a half.”

Kissing him again, she pushed out of bed on the other side of the mattress. This was the most he had been allowed to touch her since the hospital had cleared her to come home after the ordeal, and John felt irrationally cold in her absence.

Brie and Ben had offered to come down for the funeral, but Elsa had assured them she would be fine on her own. The one night with Chris in New York had been enough for Elsa to know that an entire funeral with her Boston people would be far too much for her New York friends to handle.

She decided to wear the pearl earrings her father had gifted her for her high school graduation. Once they were secure in her ears, she realized that having her hair entirely pulled back would be one less thing she had to think about at the event.

As she worked her hair into a pretty French twist, the reality of the situation hit her all over again. Her chest tightened and a lump rose in her throat. A deep breath stopped the tears in their tracks and she was able to finish readying herself to leave the apartment.

“Turn around.”

Scarlett did as the prison guard instructed, rubbing her wrists when the handcuffs were removed. She walked to the window the guard had indicated, sitting on the other side of the plexiglass from Seb. He picked up the phone; she did the same.

“Didn’t expect you to come see me. Especially not today.”

Seb gave a single nod. “It won’t be more than this once. I need some answers from you, Scar.”

She looked around, shifting uncomfortably in her seat. “What kind of answers? Why I turned to Downey while you and I were still together? Why I kidnapped Aurelie from the hospital?”

Sebastian’s lips pursed into a thin line and his chest heaved with angry breaths. “I mean, those would be great answers, but how about you tell me what it is that Chris did that made you so angry you were willing to kill him? That you could make yourself actually pull the trigger?”

She sat up a little straighter in an attempt to keep what little dignity she had left. “He threatened all of our lives when he decided he was going to pull out of the life. When he decided to date that woman. Downey wasn’t going to stand for it, and I wasn’t going to be on the side that lost.”

“There were no winners here. Chris is dead. Downey is dead. You’re here.”

“So what?” she challenged.

Sebastian tipped his head. “One last question. Was anything between you and I real?”

She thought for a moment, then leaned forward with a sardonic smile. “The orgasms.”

With a disgusted scoff, Sebastian slammed the phone back onto its hook. He stood and turned his back on Scarlett. He was certain this would be the last time he ever saw her.

The service was small. Most of Boston, still under the impression that Downey had been a philanthropist who enriched their community, were attending that man’s funeral. Aurelie decided it was better that way. Fewer people to see that she and John sat in the front pew, Scotty sat at the far end, and her stepsisters and mother chose to take the pew behind her. As if their blame for Robbie’s imprisonment wasn’t enough, her presence at the scene of Chris’s murder only served to distance her farther from her family. Scotty remained on the fence, but the rest of them refused to speak with her or otherwise acknowledge her.

After the burial, Aurelie took a moment to herself to step away from the short line of guests offering their condolences to look out over the pond in the middle of the cemetery. She wasn’t aware that anyone had joined her until Elsa spoke up beside her.

“You lied to me.”

It wasn’t a question, and Aurelie didn’t treat it as such. She nodded “I did. I’m sorry. I was protecting my brother. I wasn’t trying to hurt you.”

Elsa gave a single nod. “Scotty’s taking over the shop, I hear.”

“He is.”

“And the rest of the family business?”

“I don’t know,” Aurelie lied. “My involvement now is … it’s different.”

Elsa shook her head. “That’s right. Downey left everything to John, and you’re engaged to him.”

Aurelie wanted to tell Elsa more. She wanted to tell Elsa that the same night Aurelie had told John she was pregnant, he had confessed to her that he was an informant for the Boston Police Department. He picked and chose what he shared, and that would continue on -- as would Downey’s ‘philanthropy’ work, through John and Aurelie. Instead, she kept quiet.

“I’m pregnant.”

Elsa’s words finally pulled Aurelie’s gaze directly at the other woman. “You’re pregnant? Elsa, that’s -- Chris would be elated. I know that he hurt you and lied to you, too, but my brother loved you. More than you can understand.”

“I know,” Elsa whispered. “That’s why I’m keeping the baby. I can’t say that I want to be involved in any of the other business, ever again, and I certainly don’t want my child anywhere near it. But this baby does have a cousin coming, too. Maybe we can get them together every now and then.”

Tears stung the back of Aurelie’s eyes as the words pierced her heart. “Yes, we should do that.”

Several yards behind them, John called for Aurelie. When she didn’t turn around, Elsa nudged her, then pointed to John. Again, he signed to her that it was time. Aurelie nodded and asked for just one more minute with Elsa. She took the other woman’s hand.

“I know that you’re hurting. That Chris hurt you, that I hurt you. I know you have a hard road ahead, but you don’t have to face it alone. If Chris had known about the baby, Elsa, he would have provided for that child beyond what you can even imagine. I’d like to do that, in his place. Whatever you need, please, don’t hesitate to ask.”

Elsa showed a sad smile and gave Aurelie’s hand a single squeeze before withdrawing her own hand. “I wish the best for you, Aurelie.”

“Same to you.”

As the women parted, neither of them looked back over their shoulders at each other. They had crossed paths for such a short time, but there was now a thread that would forever link them together. Elsa could only hope that her child would never know the burden of family responsibility its father had known. Aurelie hoped with all of her heart that Elsa would reach out if she was ever in need, so that Chris’s legacy of giving and caring would live on. She hoped that she would be enough to carry out that legacy on her own.

As John took her hand, he asked what she wanted to do now. Aurelie glanced at her brother’s gravesite, then looked back to her fiance.

“Home,” she signed. “I want to go home.”

AlloftheThings: @captain-s-rogers @star-spangled-man-with-a-plan @letsgetfuckingsuperwholocked @hurricanerin @horsesandbandsforlife @im-not-an-armrest-im-short @captain-rogers-beard @shynara51 @sea040561 @pinknerdpanda @xtina2191 @jackryanplz @beakami @heartsaved @fullprunerebelstatesman @blackwidowismyhomegirl @averyrogers83

Boston Boys: @the-murder-strut-murdered-me @becs-bunker @shield-agent78 @patzammit @crazyandanonymous4u @ntlmundy @jennmurawski13 @okay-maybe-i-like-marvel-too

#chris evans #john krasinski #fanfiction #crossover #criminal!au #boston boys #finale

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askmalal · 4 years

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A few points of order.. these may offend some of you. That is not my intent. But as a long time lover of the IP, the sheer hate being shown to converters and kitbashers, as well as their suppliers, is baffling to me lately, especially given that these people -made Rogue Trader what it was-.

I’m not speaking of recasters here, incidentally.

This shouldn’t be seen as an attack on GW either, so none of that nonsense. I have good friends who work for GW, and have longed to write for them for years.

1. GW did not innovate Space Marines, Space Orks, Space Dwarves, Squats, Dark Gods, the Chaos Gods. or, incidentally, Emperors on the edge of death prolonged indefinitely by arcane machinery.

For the record, it didn’t invent miniatures gaming, let alone fantasy and sci-fi miniatures gaming, either.

2. GW has lost several cases to that effect in recent court decisions.

3. One of my mortal forms operates a small miniatures company. He knows how much it costs to sculpt, mold, and produce a miniature in terms of time and money. The markup on GW products can be upwards of 500% or more. Standard industry markup is about half that at most.

4. If you speak to most in the industry, GW’s problems with costs occur for four (4) principle reasons.

A) Greed (They are not by any means unique or even the most egregious in this regard in miniatures wargames. Think GW is bad? 1990s era Foundry, early 2000s Mongoose and Rackham; Battlefront and Knight Models would like a word with you.)

B) Admission by GW’s own official documents that it does “no market research,” which may explain why GW is operating with a pricing model that assumes there are no direct competitors.

C) Planned obsolescence in miniatures rules. Deliberate relaunch of games even when promises and assurance that this will not be the case. Modern hobbyists simply do not have the funds or the patience to contend with this.

D) Limited production facilities. GW essentially uses a single facility for most manufacturing. (this is why there are shortages of everything right now) This factory switches between GW and Forge World models (they are the same company) to make best use of facilities. This is why, for example, FW will often pull popular sets. GW has realized that if a FW model sells too well, it will require a larger amount of factory time and, hence, greatly limit the “core ranges” in production. It seems nonsensical, but for their cash poor/profit rich production model to succeed, maximum production must squeezed out of every “mainstream” mold. For example: Betrayal at Calth was the most popular GW boxed set ever, but there was never any long term plan for mass production of the Horus Heresy stuff in plastic. Nobody expected it to do so well (no market research, remember) and so most of that endeavor has been sidelined.

5. Third Party Model manufacturers exist for virtually every aspect of the miniatures hobby. They thrive in GW proxy sense because:

a) Demand exceeds supply.

b) Costs exceed most gamer budgets.

c) Paradoxically, making the game less conversion friendly in order to combat both legitimate third party options and recasters has actually increased demand.

6. GW did the right thing shutting down for the pandemic. But the shutdown did its robbing Peter to pay Paul production system no favors. The costs you pay are not because of third party alternatives; they are because of poor pricing strategy by GW as well as generally bad decisions regarding the withdrawal of popular models in order to spite competitors. Which is quite literally cutting off one’s nose to spite one’s face.

7. A final point. Some GW employees have exacerbated the problems because after the “dark period” of the late 90s and early 2000s, GW has gone to great lengths to improve employee rights. As a socialist, I laud this. But it also complicates matters. Consider these issues:

- Black Library and FW have very little communication. They often contradict each other. Any Horus Heresy player can tell you this. For example: according to BL... Post Istvaan Nathaniel Garro’s armor has no “bling” ; there are loyalists and traitors in -every- Legion, etc.

- There is no “plot bible”: not for the novels (GW has -never-, for example, said that the Chaos Dwarves are extinct or that there are no loyalist chapters descended from traitor Legion loyalists, no matter what your favorite author’s personal social media account might say); and not for the miniatures: Mk. IV armor is described different ways by different writers and interpreted differently by different sculptors. This is actually a more significant problem for the tabletop gamer than you might think (to say nothing of the role player or users of other licensed products such as board games)

- GW tries to be very open minded, officially, with regards to players and their armies. The so-called “your dudes” approach works well. This does not stop employees from making absurd statements or contradicting rules clarifications.

Let us not even begin with the absurd assumptions made by tournament players about the rest of the community, or vice versa. These complicate matters regarding all of the aforesaid issues ever more.

That’s my tuppence. Now back to your regularly scheduled being a bad guy. (Don’t get me started on -Malal’s- IP issues....)

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lostinthewinterwood · 3 years

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Worldbuilding Exchange 2021

Hey there friend!

Apparently you share some of my taste in obscure novels with gaps in their worldbuilding—impeccable, truly. I’ve got some expansion on all the tags I’ve requested below, though if you want to just get started feel free to ignore all that; some of them are distinctly longer than others, but don’t worry, just because I didn’t use as many words for any given prompt doesn’t mean I want it any less!

Anyway, thanks for writing for me! And if any of you lovely people are inclined towards treating, I will happily accept treats in any medium for any of the fandoms, including media I didn’t actually request there :D

General DNW

· non-con/dub-con;

· explicit sexual content;

· incest (incl. adoptive/chosen family);

· a/b/o;

· mpreg;

· non-canonical permanent major character death;

· complete downer endings;

· hurt no comfort;

· heavy angst;

· on-page deliberate self-harm*;

· on-page suicide;

· gore;

· graphic physical trauma;

· character bashing;

· cringe comedy;

· fic-as-writer-soapbox;

· setting AUs**;

· unrequested identity headcanons;

· romance as the main plot.

*I don’t include things like, say, punching a wall in a fit of emotion under this. However, something like cutting would not be appreciated.

**This doesn't mean that I'd expect you to hew very narrowly to what we know for sure in canon; after all, this exchange is for worldbuilding. However, for this exchange I'd prefer not to have anything that fundamentally alters the character of the world--eg elements like a/b/o, or things like a post-canon zombie apocalypse in a canon where that doesn't really fit in with the established tone/genre/world, that sort of thing.

General Likes

– I really like plotty fics

– A focus on family and/or friendship, especially characters realizing they’re not nearly as alone as they think they are, and just generally characters who like each other and enjoy spending time together

– Found family; families of choice

– Character studies

– Worldbuilding (obviously lol)

– Canon-divergence AUs and missing scenes; things set pre- or post-canon; wriggling into canon and poking at it to see what it spits back at you, if that description makes any sense at all.

- for a list of unconventional media/formats I’ve requested before, along with some commentary on them, please see my fic in a box letter.

Mother of Learning - nobody103 – in-universe meta

Any or No Characters (Mother of Learning)

Kirielle Kazinski (Mother of Learning)

Original Character(s) (Mother of Learning)

Original Eagle Shifter Character(s) (Mother of Learning)

Xvim Chao (Mother of Learning)

Zenomir Olgai (Mother of Learning)

fandom-specific dnw: romantic and/or sexual Zach/Zorian; physical parental abuse within the Kazinski family; significant exaggeration of canonical emotional neglect/abuse/general family dysfunction

WB: aranean languages (Mother of Learning)

So, we get at best a very vague description of the aranean language in canon; I’d love something that somehow expands on this! A brief grammar? Some other kind of profile? An attempt to turn their idea-morphemes into words, or outline what they are more explicitly? Up to you!

WB: Folklore and Literature (Mother of Learning)

Over the course of the story we learn plenty of things about the world and about their magic system; we learn a lot less about specific cultural things that aren’t directly relevant to the plot, and that includes folklore and literature—they have novels, we know that much, but that’s about it. So tell me more!

WB: how language and gesture and mana interact to form spells (Mother of Learning)

For all that the novel tells us about many different spells, we never really get to see the mechanics of spellcasting, or the underlying form of the mana—tell me how it works! And there’s also the fact that when you know the spell better you can cut parts out; how does that work in combination with all of this?

WB: Ikosian as spell language: how comprehension affects outcome (Mother of Learning)

Unless I’ve embarrassingly forgotten how canon actually goes, they use Ikosian (possibly a more specific dialect? I don’t remember, I’m sorry) for their incantations, but iirc they don’t speak that day to day, and even if they do not everyone does—so, you know, how does comprehension of the incantation affect the outcome of the spell?

WB: Oral Traditions (Mother of Learning)

If we don’t get much of literature, we get less of the oral traditions of… well, anywhere, tbh. So tell me more there! If you’re looking for something more specific, I’d love to hear about witch, Khusky, morlock, or shifter traditions, but really anything would be great.

WB: the development of unstructured magic and shaping exercises (Mother of Learning)

We know that way back in the past, human magic users were less adept with unstructured magic; now, if they want to be, they can be very good indeed with it. How did we get from Point A to Point B? How did that develop, who discovered all this?

WB: the Winter Mountains (Mother of Learning)

There’s very little to be heard about the Winter Mountains in canon; all we really know is that the eagle shifters flew off there, and the place is Very Dangerous. So… what are they like? How are the eagle shifters doing out there? What else lives there?

Mother of Learning - nobody103 – in-universe meta, fanart

Any or No Characters (Mother of Learning)

Kirielle Kazinski (Mother of Learning)

Original Character(s) (Mother of Learning)

Zenomir Olgai (Mother of Learning)

fandom-specific dnw: romantic and/or sexual Zach/Zorian; physical parental abuse within the Kazinski family; significant exaggeration of canonical emotional neglect/abuse/general family dysfunction

WB: Architecture (Mother of Learning)

We get a little bit of the architecture in Eldemar, mostly in Knyazov Dveri, but not too much of it; I’d like to see more of it, and from anywhere in their world really.

WB: Artistic Traditions (Mother of Learning)

If we only get a little bit of the architecture, we get less of the art—we know that they have carved doors and Kiri does pencil sketches, and realism is a style they have (or Zorian wouldn’t be thinking about how realistic her drawings were without any hint of that being unusual were she not nine) but what else can you tell me? What does their art look like; where do these traditions come from; is there some art that’s respectable and other art that isn’t?

WB: Clothing and Fashion (Mother of Learning)

Now. We get a bit of architecture, less of art, and approximately three lines in the whole 800k about clothing, and none of it very specific, so you’ve got pretty much total freedom here—show me what’s going on!

WB: how language and gesture and mana interact to form spells (Mother of Learning)

See above section—I just thought this would lend itself well to art as well as meta!

The Rhianna Chronicles - Dave Luckett – in-universe meta, fanfic

Antheus Northstar | Serenir (Rhianna Chronicles)

Any or No Characters (Rhianna Chronicles)

Arwenna Songsinger | Arwenna the Wise (Rhianna Chronicles)

Eriseth Arwensgrove (Rhianna Chronicles)

Original Character(s) (Rhianna Chronicles)

Original Male Eldra Character(s) (Rhianna Chronicles)

Rhianna Wildwood (Rhianna Chronicles)

Worldbuilding tags:

WB: academic magic and spellcasting techniques (Rhianna Chronicles)

We don’t see a whole lot of traditional spellcasting that actually works—mostly we see Rhianna’s attempts, which tend not to go all that well, lol. Other magic we see is primarily from people who know what they’re doing and aren’t explaining things in detail. Show me some that actually works! How is it different for schoolchildren and old archmages? What are the rules and mechanics—they don’t make sense to Rhianna, but clearly some things work and some things don’t, so there’s something going on there at least.

WB: Eldra magic (Rhianna Chronicles)

Since our main Eldra character is Eriseth, we don’t see much of their magic—tell me about it! How does it work? How do they channel it, what do they use it for?

WB: Eldra society (Rhianna Chronicles)

Again, we don’t see a lot of Eldra society—we see a few characters outside of their social group, and the one meeting thing, but not a whole lot of their day- to-day life. What’s it like? What’s the role of men in their society; we know they don’t do magic, so what do they do?

WB: Wild Talents and wild magic (Rhianna Chronicles)

To be fair, we do know a fair amount about how wild magic is worked from canon; I’m interested in going farther—go deeper into things! What can or can’t be done? Why are some people wild talents—how does this happen?

WB: Wizardly College (Rhianna Chronicles)

We only see Wizardly College through Rhianna’s eyes; she doesn’t get all that much of a look at it, either. So tell me more about it! What’s it like if you’re actually involved, not just a visitor?

The Farwalker's Quest - Joni Sensel – in-universe meta, fanfic

Any or No Characters (Farwalker's Quest)

Any Storian(s) (Farwalker's Quest)

Ariel Farwalker (Farwalker's Quest)

Ezekiel Stone-Singer (Farwalker's Quest)

Misha (Farwalker's Quest)

Original Character(s) (Farwalker's Quest)

Scarl Finder (Farwalker's Quest)

fandom-specific dnw: works that rely on knowledge of later books in order to make sense--i'm not gonna care all that much about spoilers? but i haven't read 'em, so.

WB: Essence and the Trades (Farwalker's Quest)

In some ways, Essence—or at least how it’s presented in relation to humans—seems kind of like an inborn specific magical talent, but in other ways it isn’t; Zeke’s tree talks to him, and then later the stones, but the tree talks to Ariel too, if only a little. Scarl was a Storian before he was a Finder; Ariel’s feet drag her where she needs to go, but she can also learn the basics of Finding and could have been a Healtouch if she’d not messed up the plants. So how closely are they tied together, Essence and the Trades? How much of an affinity do you need? How much can you make up for lack of affinity with desire and skill?

WB: Folklore and Fairytales (Farwalker's Quest)

We know a fair amount about the history of this world as people know it, but less about their folklore and fairytales—they have trees that talk and telling darts and Essence and ghosts, they definitely have folklore about those, or other things too. Do they tell children stories of what lies outside the village? Do they have spirits or Good People who may or may not actually exist? Who tells these stories—is this still a Storian’s job, or is it the purview of anyone who knows them? Did there used to be more, before the Forgetting?

WB: ghosts and how they work (Farwalker's Quest)

Misha’s dead, has clearly been dead for quite some time, and he can do a weird assortment of things—can other ghosts do them? He’s the only one we really see, so we don’t know if he’s special or not. And how common are ghosts anyway—how do they come to be? What’s up with them, overall?

WB: how Tree-Singer Abbey came to be (Farwalker's Quest)

Clearly, Tree-Singer Abbey is very old. If I had to guess, I would say it must have been made either before the Blind War or right after the sight came back—but most likely, given that it contains the Vault, it’s from before. But Essence, as far as the characters know, wasn’t discovered until afterwards; nor were the Trades. So who built this abbey, up there in the mountains, with all the trees? Why build it there in the way they did? Was it never widely known that it was also the Vault, or was that forgotten somewhere along the way?

WB: the nature of trees (Farwalker's Quest)

…so. What is up with the trees, anyway, and have they always been this way, or did the used to be normal trees? How sentient are they; how much can they move; what are they like, especially among each other? Zeke’s tree tries to catch him, so we know they can move on their own; is that typical? Can they do it whenever they want, or only under duress? Idk man, I just want to know more about the trees, y’know?

Star Split - Kathryn Lasky – in-universe meta, fanfic

Any or No Characters (Star Split)

Darci Murlowe (Star Split)

Lana | The Prima (Star Split)

Max Lasovetch (Star Split)

Original Character(s) (Star Split)

Original Umbula Character (Star Split)

Vivian (Star Split)

fandom-specific dnw--all of this is for the narrative level (not addressing it is fine; having characters who believe or do these things is fine): eugenics apologetics; segregation portrayed as good for society/the people living under it; infantilization of disabled characters; portrayal of low-prestige dialects as being "bad grammar" versions of higher-prestige dialects

fandom-specific note: the “setting AU” dnw is here amended to “surface-level setting AUs” and is expanded on as follows: This is a pretty loose dnw for this fandom, given that the canon leans very hard on the line between straight scifi and science fantasy; it acts like it's grounded future dystopia, speculative but not fantastic, but... well. Based on canon events, I can't fully consider it as such--so as long as you keep the surface elements more or less the same, no matter what the underlying justification for them is we'll be good. Is your explanation Aliens Did It? sweet, go for it. or anything else in that vein. this world is your oyster.

WB: "tears in the mind"/ancient word memories in masked chimeras (Star Split)

Okay. Okay. So. Most of this book’s worldbuilding is plausible, you know? If not real-world plausible, at least future scifi dystopia plausible, right? But. The word thing. There is no reasonable connection as far as I can see between the genetic condition of masked chimeras and having sudden, unexplained epiphanies about the meanings of words—since the relevant aspects of language are arbitrary, and Darci doesn’t have any particularly detailed knowledge of Modern English (being herself presumably a speaker of Future English, although I have to assume that Future English is surprisingly similar to Modern English given the time scale since the poetry fragments she’s reading don’t seem to have needed any translation for her to understand them, which would generally not be the case with Modern vs Old English—and that is the time scale we’re dealing with here—anyway, let’s move on), there’s no way for her to come up with this? So please, just, explain how all this works to me?

Really don’t feel you need to stay within the scifi world conventions here lol, especially since this element pretty much… doesn’t.

WB: disability in the Bio Union (Star Split)

We don’t see much of how disability works here—Darci doesn’t seem to consider herself disabled, and there’s no other character who could really be interpreted as such. Given how very eugenicist the Bio Union is, I have to wonder how they deal with disabilities they can’t engineer out of existence—tell me how it works!

WB: divergence/difference between Genhant and Original dialects and mannerisms (Star Split)

So we can see the effects of a long-term social separation here; the dialects used by Genhants and Originals seem fairly different. Darci observes that Originals’ grammar “might not be as good” but obviously that’s her perspective, being a kid who speaks the prestige dialect; the grammar within their dialect would be no better or worse than Genhant grammar in their speech. And the Original dialect seems to also include more specific nonverbal communication; if they’re talking less, but (presumably) communicating similar amounts, then they must either be able to convey more information in the same amount of time through their speech, or their dialect includes informal signed elements—Vivian doesn’t seem to parse it as such, but although Darci observes less dialogue from the Original kids, Vivian’s conversations with her uncle aren’t presented any differently than Darci’s conversations with other Genhants. A tragically unused opportunity, in my opinion.

Show me how these two dialects differ, in more specific ways, rather than just telling me they do! Tell me about potential miscommunications! Is there a lack of documentation of the Originals’ dialect due to its low status? How does this affect scholarship on it? Are the hand gestures elements of the language in some way, or are they nonlinguistic?

WB: growing up as a Laureate's umbula (Star Split)

So… how does this work? They try to replicate the childhood as closely as possible, but obviously it can’t be perfectly done. Do the kids grow up knowing they’re clones, that they’re meant to be Important Person The Second, Just The Same, or is that hidden from them? What happens if a Laureate’s umbula decides they don’t want to follow in their predecessor’s footsteps; what if they want to forge their own path in life? Is that allowed? No one forced the Laureate into being what they became, after all.

WB: growing up as an Original (Star Split)

Things that are not entirely clear in this book include the answer to the question of how much of the high degree of segregation we see is socially and economically enforced, and how much of it is legally enforced. This is interesting—clearly, the original divergence was economic, with the wealthy being able to afford genetic enhancements and the poor not being able to afford them; however, it strikes me as slightly unrealistic that there would be no Originals in Genhant schools or at non-scholarship Genhant summer camps, etc, if there was no segregation on a legal level. Of course it would be more difficult for Originals to become wealthy enough to afford these, but the fact that none of them seem to have reached that level is very revealing; that tells me there’s far less social mobility than we have in our modern society (which isn’t very mobile, much as we may like to think otherwise) or there’s legal discrimination and segregation keeping things this way or both.

…and with all that being said, I’d love to hear something about what it’s like to grow up in the underclass of this society. We see most things from Darci’s point of view, and she, being a thirteen-year-old who’s basically comfortable in her own life, doesn’t really see that much. What’s it like, being raised as an Original? What sort of expectations do Original parents and schools have for their children? What sorts of jobs do they typically do? Do they go to university? Can they go to university? Are there summer camps for them, or do they only get to do things like that on scholarships? What’s it like, being the Scholarship Kid due not only to your family’s finances but also your very genetics? How does that change your dynamic with your other Original friends, when you got a scholarship and they didn’t—what do they think about that? I’d assume they have less obsession with Genetic Predetermination, since they don’t get a map of their probable life at conception… how does that work, in this society that runs on genetic predetermination for so many things?

#exchange letters #worldbuilding exchange #requested: mother of learning #requested: the rhianna chronicles #requested: the farwalker's quest #requested: star split #requested: art #requested: fic

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lullabieswrappedinlies · 4 years

Text

Boston Boys [Part Twenty]

Boston Boys Masterlist

“It’s time,” John signed.

Aurelie closed her eyes and let out a deep sigh. She squeezed her eyes shut even tighter, but it was to no avail.

“I keep thinking I’m imagining this. That it was a dream. But I wake up and it’s too real.”

“I know. What can I do to help you get ready?”

She sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She looked at him, caressing his face. With a soft kiss, she shook her head. “Nothing. I’m going to get in the shower. What time is the car coming?”

“Hour and a half.”

“Turn around.”

“Didn’t expect you to come see me. Especially not today.”

Seb gave a single nod. “It won’t be more than this once. I need some answers from you, Scar.”

She looked around, shifting uncomfortably in her seat. “What kind of answers? Why I turned to Downey while you and I were still together? Why I kidnapped Aurelie from the hospital?”

“There were no winners here. Chris is dead. Downey is dead. You’re here.”

“So what?” she challenged.

Sebastian tipped his head. “One last question. Was anything between you and I real?”

She thought for a moment, then leaned forward with a sardonic smile. “The orgasms.”

With a disgusted scoff, Sebastian slammed the phone back onto its hook. He stood and turned his back on Scarlett. He was certain this would be the last time he ever saw her.

“You lied to me.”

It wasn’t a question, and Aurelie didn’t treat it as such. She nodded “I did. I’m sorry. I was protecting my brother. I wasn’t trying to hurt you.”

Elsa gave a single nod. “Scotty’s taking over the shop, I hear.”

“He is.”

“And the rest of the family business?”

“I don’t know,” Aurelie lied. “My involvement now is … it’s different.”

Elsa shook her head. “That’s right. Downey left everything to John, and you’re engaged to him.”

“I’m pregnant.”

Tears stung the back of Aurelie’s eyes as the words pierced her heart. “Yes, we should do that.”

Elsa showed a sad smile and gave Aurelie’s hand a single squeeze before withdrawing her own hand. “I wish the best for you, Aurelie.”

“Same to you.”

As John took her hand, he asked what she wanted to do now. Aurelie glanced at her brother’s gravesite, then looked back to her fiance.

“Home,” she signed. “I want to go home.”

Tags: @themtbmbgirl @keithseabrook27 @ulovemelightsout @rosie2801 @professorkrasinski

#john krasinski #chris evans #fanfiction #crossover #criminal!au #boston boys #finale

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twdmusicboxmystery · 4 years

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Still Re-Watch and Review by @wdway

The wonderful @wdway recently did a rewatch of Still and shared it with me and @frangipanilove. I’ve gotten her permission to repost her very insightful observations. I hope you both enjoy it!

@wdway:

My review of s4e12 Still, written by Angela Kang, directed by Julius Ransay. I watched this episode with the commentary by Emily and Julius (E/J) and then the one with Norman and Angela (N/A), as I go through I'll talk about certain things including either one of these couples’ comments rather than go through the episode twice.

Even though I've seen this episode once or twice (that's me being funny) I did have a couple of ummmm moments that were interesting. The episode opens with a view of an abandoned car and the long road all lit by a full moon.

Am I the only one that has always wondered about the lone figure crossing the road? The way it moves makes it obvious that it's not a walker, maybe it's just a nod to the fact that there are people nearby that our characters are never aware of.

Now for the car I'm going to show you two shots, the first is the car as B/D comes upon it. The second when they are climbing out of the trunk.

In the first one we see that both the engine hood and the trunk are slightly ajar but basically closed

and in the second where we see B/D getting out from the trunk both the front and back of the car are completely opened.

I had never really noticed that before and this time I realized that it must mean something, because everything has a meaning and it seems very deliberate now that I'm aware of it, I just not sure what that meaning is. Any thoughts?

After B/D strips the car Daryl looks at Beth in a dead stare. I have always thought that was him looking at her like "a dead girl.” He turns without a word (because she's dead) and walks down the road. Beth pauses and then follows, foreshadowing Daryl thinking she's dead and leaving her and her later moving down the road basically by herself and Daryl unaware that she's following.

We next see Daryl hunting and his arrow breaks, and he then kills a snake with his knife (not really Norman). You'll especially like this part @Frangi. Norman and Angela's discussion here, Norman mentions that the snake that was killed actually had a rat in it that it had eaten. We see Beth setting up camp and E/J laughingly talk about how during the shooting this scene Beth was refer to as MacGyver Beth.

We are then shown Daryl skinning the snake (that sounded dirty) Beth watching from afar. I don't know how many times I've watched this episode before I realize that this was again a possible foreshadowing of Daryl (TF) being watched.

B/D eating the snake, both E/J & N /A talk about how it was eel with teriyaki sauce and how Norman almost got sick from eating so much of it. We see Beth take Daryl's knife, this is the second time we see her take his knife, the first was in Inmates. She goes off alone and we see her hide from a group of walkers and mislead them with noise from throwing a stone (hear no evil) turning around Beth sees Daryl who has been watching from afar, again foreshadowing anyone? Another little note I missed above was that AK at one point talked about how it was Gimple's idea coming into the writing room for season 4 about the groupings after the prison fell to put Daryl and Beth together and how surprised the other writers were. To me, just emphasizing that Gimple had Beth and Daryl paired from the very beginning and knew exactly where he was taking the storyline with them. He left clues, eggs, hints behind so that when we went back and re-watched they would stand out to us, just like this shot of Beth where she has a dirty little smudge exactly where she is shot in 5e8 Coda, you know the one where her being shot was a last-minute decision. (Me being funny again.)

@frangipanilove:

Wow, I never noticed the figure moving across the street in the beginning of still. I had to go and see for myself, and you’re right, there is something there. No way to tell what it is though. I really have no idea. The part about the hood of the car being open is something I’ve noticed, and I don’t have a great explanation of it. Also, the dead body by the car has changed position during the night. I don’t know what tptb mean to communicate by doing so, but I feel that it’s sort of then underlining that this sequence is symbolic, that it’s sort of detached from realism. Sort of them saying that Beth and Daryl’s journey together is something out of the ordinary.

Oh, and something I came to realize while I was doing the tree/three/trunk post; the name of the golf club is “Pine Vista”. Pine is a type of tree, and vista means view, or looking at something. It’s an eye/vision reference combined with a tree reference. I thought that was interesting. I didn’t include it in the post because it was already long enough, but it shows how tptb consistently uses this type of symbolism around her.

It’s something I’ve thought about because in 6x15(?) Eugene mentions golf clubs when discussing the route to hilltop. Then a few moments later he says “serious as a coronary thrombosis”. So, a Sirius mention near a golf club mention. In my opinion it qualifies as a nod to “still” in combination with a Sirius mention, which means return/coming back. Also, the choice of the words “coronary thrombosis” is interesting, because 1) it could be a nod to “slabtown”, where we saw a machine that treats deep vein thrombosis 2) corona is one of the most well known brads of beer in the world 3) someone suffering from thrombosis/blood clots would be treated with heparin, right?

@twdmusicboxmystery: I’d noticed the figure crossing the road before, but I guess I always assumed it was a walker. Obviously, I never paid much attention to the movements. Now, it’s being coupled with a half moon. The open car hood strikes me less as an open trunk reference and more as perhaps a battery reference. I’m not sure about the movement of things either. I’ve never studied it in depth. I know when the camera first pans over the bodies, there are some obvious forehead injuries, and isn’t one of them laying with their arm out, the way Beth’s fell in Coda? But that’s all pretty obvious foreshadowing. I’m just now thinking that, plot wise, it’s the walker horde that moved everything around as they passed through and around the car. So maybe that has to do with what they’re trying to symbolize. Like, TF left her behind and when they went back after the horde had gone, her body had moved. Meanwhile, car, trunk, and hood open. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I always love when you bring up Eugene’s line from that episode, @Frangi. And I agree: no way the coronary thrombosis thing isn’t connected to Slabtown. That’s just too specific. @frangipanilove: There was that Sirius mention when Beth and Daryl play the drinking game. I had somehow erased it from my memory, and had a real facepalm moment when that clip was released on social media the other day. It comes when Beth suggests that Daryl has been in jail. Then she says “I don’t mean anything serious”. It comes in combination with a mention of “jail” which actually qualifies as a cop/police reference (making it a “blue clue”), and that whole sequence became even more filled with symbolism. I already knew it was an important sequence, with the mention of pet ponies, frozen yoghurt, Santa clause etc. And with a Sirius mention in the middle of it, it just got more significant!

@wdway:

Episode Still continued. Moving on to the clubhouse E/J talked about the scene that was cut out and how Beth didn't drink because of Hershel and the mention of the red cups. B/D goes into the clubhouse dining room, there are 3 people hanging. The fact that there is three now seems significant especially since I believe that there are 3 bodies in the dog Trot room floor.

Of the two women hanging one is in a green flowered shirt (Alpha green dress) the other has on pearls, which is odd since she's wearing very casual clothes. We will see pearls again with the rich bitch, I think these may be an ocean/water symbol since pearls are found in oysters in the ocean. I also want to note in the shot of the dogtrot room to the right a green bean can and towards the center on the top shelf is a tomato can.

Did I ever tell you that it was the clubhouse scene that made me realize water was a Beth symbol? We were discussing fire and how we believed that was a symbol for Daryl and the question was, was it also a symbol for Beth? I was thinking about all the fire extinguishers, the fire pulls in the clubhouse that were around Beth, when the light bulb came on that these are actually water or coolant symbols. Even though Beth is a water symbol, I believe she is also a single flame symbol, a small fire that can light a large fire. She is the candle flame at the end of a long dark tunnel, the single match that starts a shack a blaze in fire.

The reason that I bring up the fire pulls and the fire extinguisher is that I consciously went through and counted them in the clubhouse segment. At first glance, they don't appear to be a large number, but when you think in terms of for each one, they were seen multiple times in different angles with either one or both characters within a scene. There are 5 fire pulls, there are 3 fire extinguishers (one silver two red) a total of 8 (these numbers look very familiar) this is a large number when you realize that the club house scenes couldn't have been more than 10 minutes (another familiar number).

There's two other items that I watched for and counted in the clubhouse. We have seen them in the seasons after Still, but I don't think we saw them before. Tomato sauce cans and green bean cans. As far as tomato sauce, we see them instead of actual tomatoes because there wouldn't be a feasible reason to see tomatoes in this abandoned club house, but we can see a picture of tomatoes on the label.

Years ago, I followed a wonderful TD'er weburythedead (unfortunately he no longer posts) but back in the day he wrote about Beth and Daryl and tomatoes. He felt that we could group tomatoes and strawberries together as a symbol for Beth and Daryl because of the color, also their abundance of seeds a fertility symbol also both are quite sensual and juicy.

The green bean cans well what better remind than the white and green can with the word GREEN on it to help people to think of Beth Greene and we even heard and we Daryl refer to her as Greene later in this episode. Throughout the seasons, we're reminded that Maggie is a Rhee and that Beth is the only remaining Greene.

We see 4 cans of tomatoes and 5 green beans cans. There are also 5 cans where we cannot see the label but let's look at one of these that speaks to me and made me quite excited when I realized what I was seeing.

Daryl with a can with a green rim at the top and a red rim at the bottom. A can of Greene and Dixon haha.

In the closet where Beth reaches for a bottle of cooking wine there are 7 cans alone. 2 clearly are tomatoes, 3 visible green labels and 2 labels not readable because there at odd angles. Along with cans in the kitchen area and also remember there is a green bean and a tomato can in the dogtrot room.

We have seen a lot of tomatoes and green bean cans through the seasons. We've seen them in the AZ pantry. The last time I remember seeing the green and white can the label read, Chunk, but it's similar to the green can so much so that I don't believe it's a coincidence, especially since there is a grouping of candles on top with a single flame burning from each remember Beth = single flame. This was s8e7 How It's Gotta Be.

I have a few things to add before I close out the clubhouse review. These are things mentioned in the commentary that I want to point out. I will have a ramble about the commentary in general when I do part 3 of Still, that will cover the shack. AK said that Gimple is the one that wanted the dog Trot on the wall in the clubhouse. Julius said a lot of was discussed with the grandfather clock, the time and the correct number of chimes.

Something I forgot to mention the other day that happened at the beginning of the Still re-watch, Julius the director said the car that they used was a Lincoln Continental. @Frangi, it proves your car model skills are awesome! I also remember in the after bonus scene of TTD the director came on and mentioned it then also. Imo emphasizes that tptb wanted us to be aware of that car model.

This is in the shack I want you to notice the can on the shelf above /next to Daryl. I talked so much about cans last time I just want to point this one out, we don't see a label on it but since it's red it could be several things, another type of tomato, cherries, strawberry filling?

Then we have these two cans on the table. One we definitely know is a dog food can because that particular label has been seen other times and then the other the label appears to be torn off so we just don't know, but I want to emphasize the fact that in the shack there are 3 cans.

For this last segment I'm not going through the episode because we all know it's so well, instead I'm going on a long ramble about the commentaries. This was the first time in the series that tptb had dual commentaries for a single episode and we could talk about the importance of that, but I'll leave it for another day. I went into this moonshine shack segment review with a couple of questions I wanted to take a close look at and ended up finding side tunnels to my delight. Listening to both EK/JR and NR/AK commentaries back-to-back was the key to the main points I found. 1) that there were certain dialogue moments tptb wanted us to hear. 2) things they wanted reinforced by talking about them with their paired partners. I even wonder if part of NR/AK's commentary was stopped and later sound mixed in order that we would hear the dialogue in a scene. I first want to go over some of my notes from EK/JR that doesn't overlap NR/AK. JR talked about during the argument, it seemed that other members of TF were intimidated by Daryl but Beth didn't seem to understand that she should be intimidated. She was standing up for herself and calling Daryl out on his bad behavior and his feelings. JR talked about how 4 of the producers were crying during the porch scene. In particular, the part where Beth talks about her wish, her hope for how her dad would live out the rest of his life. Sometimes it felt as if JR was checking off a list of things he was meant to mention especially at the end when he said that there was a toy cycle and a real motorcycle somewhere in the yard and was a nod to Daryl's motorcycle. It just seemed as if he was trying to just get that mentioned and it came out a bit odd. JR talked about how Beth almost seemed resigned/come to terms to her death. This was when Beth says "I'll be gone someday," he used the word die or death I can't remember which. Both NR/AK and EK/JR had several mentions that were so similar to each other but I want to point out a few. I first watched EK /JR commentary, a reminder that we hear them but see the episode play without sound unless the commentary stops and then we both hear and see the episode. When it got to the part where Beth hesitates to take a drink of the moonshine, EK/JR stop talking. I paused the DVD to take a note and when I continued it was so long that I wondered if I had somehow turned the commentary off when suddenly they started talking again. I went back to check and it was a full minute and 29 seconds of dialogue that included, going blind, Daryl telling her to drink lots of water, (a water reference) the pink bra, and Daryl's old man's dumpster chair (a dumpster reference). Both the mention of water and dumpster never meant anything to me until I watched it this time.

[@twdmusicboxmystery: I have to insert here that I totally never caught that “dumpster” reference before. Linked to Glenn’s dumpster and how he survived his fake out, if you’re confused. Awesome catch! ;D Okay, back to @wdway.] If you are wondering if we heard the dialogue about moonshine making you go blind during NR/AK's commentary the answer is kind of. AK was talking and NR started to speak, and it just trailed off as Beth said her line and Daryl mentions "drink lots of water," and then Norman finishes his thought. This is what I'm mentioned earlier about maybe there was a sound mix by tptb because the way it trailed off just seemed suspicious if you realize that if he had continued his train of thought we would have not heard the comment about "moonshine making you go blind."

NR then talked about taking the turtle shell for Emily, which is strange because this is where Daryl is talking about his dad's place and how similar it is to this shack. The turtle shell story, while being very nice, just kind of came out of nowhere. I think he got ahead of his to-mention list. AK ask Norman if he had heard of Bethyl and he said yes, Bethyl, Caryl and Rickyl. On both commentaries the couple's stop talking in time for us to hear Beth say "serious." When B/D have their argument outside we hear the Michonne, Carol, Maggie speech. NR talks about the hug from behind and how it must have meant for Daryl to fill her supporting him. When the porch scene starts, Emily mentions the turtle shell and tells a short version of the story. During the NR commentary he again notes the turtle shell in the scene, which makes sense of mentioning it then because we can actually see the shell. A couple of things that EK mentions, we will hear mentioned again by either or both NR / AK. Emily says she loved the porch scene. Just 2 people talking. She spoke about that B/D were being honest during their talk. During EK/JR commentary we do hear Beth says, "I'm not blind." We don't hear it in the other commentary, but I think it was because of what AK was talking about ended up being more important.

Next, I'll jump in with what a AK's response to Norman's honesty statement (below). Just know that this takes up quite a bit of the scene of D/B including when Beth says "I'm not blind.” It really would have been noticeable if AK had stopped abruptly in the middle in order to hear Beth.

AK: "It's not comfortable for Daryl to be intimate with someone, not even romantically but in terms of sharing who he is because there is so much shame. Not so much what you bring to the character or how you've played him. Shame about who he was. There's something about Daryl that's so real and honest. He just is who he is and Beth is kind of the same way, so that even though they're different characters, there's sort of a core kindness and sweetness about them that they can just talk about their real feelings in this moment."

I just love this so much. This is AK defining Daryl's character and I feel she has held true to it through the seasons. We've seen and heard a restating of this especially the last two seasons. But this explains why Daryl will always love his friend Carol but that need of being who he is at his core, honest and kind doesn't align with Carol's guarded, driven way of being and I don't see his qualities being things that Carol admirers or truly understands. I think she sees these as weaknesses and not admirable. Bottom line is she cannot be honest with him. How many times have we heard him this season state that very fact? This speaks to his core, being honest with yourself and the people you care most about.

Connie has many of the same qualities as Daryl but we saw early in the season her asking him to lie for her group or at least not tell. It may seem on the surface to be a small thing but for Daryl, I think he would question if it is a one-time thing or not. It speaks of him not really knowing her Is he drawn to her for who she may remind him of or who she truly is?

I do want to point out that in both commentaries, they talk about the song that Gimple wanted at the end of episode. Norman tells the story of wanting a different song but doesn't go into why he wanted the song that he did. This review has taken much longer than I thought it would, but I hope I was able to uncover a few things that helps in our understanding of tptb and the characters we love so much.

@frangipanilove

Loved your ramble! Totally agree with you, Daryl is honest to the core, wears his heart on his sleeve. And I think you articulated it beautifully when you said he doesn’t know if he’s drawn to Connie because of who she is, or if it’s who she reminds him of. And we sometimes disagree on Carol, but we’re in complete agreement when it comes to how awfully mismatched they would be as a romantic couple. It is only Beth that has been a romantic love interest for him. I am unsure of how far tptb will go in exploring the relationship with Connie.

However, no matter how they write it, I believe it will always be Beth for Daryl. The Connie situation is interesting though, because tptb HAS written a close relation between Daryl and Connie, and they have written it in a way that the GA will recognize as “potentially romantic”. Of course we, TD, also recognize that they have written Connie as a Beth proxy, so it’s all very interesting I think. But I’ve had enough of “interesting.” I’m ready for Beth now.

@twdmusicboxmystery:

Thanks so much to @wdway for doing a re-watch for us and pointing out so many great insights. There were lots of things here I’d never considered before, or simply hadn’t thought about in years. Hope you all found something interesting in here!

#beth greene #beth greene lives #beth is alive #beth is coming #td theory #td theories #team delusional #team defiance #beth is almost here #bethyl

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sabine-leo · 5 years

Text

Adaptation

Author: @sabine-leo

Pairing: Tom Hiddleston / ofc (You) special guest Benedict Cumberbatch

Wordcount: 4980

Warnings: none. Maybe just watch out for cavity ;)

Summary: Your first novel became a bestseller and will be adapted to the big screen. Slightly out of your comfort zone you try to do your best as a 27 year old writer who is not accustomed to being the centre of attention.

Note: This was a whish from @anchored-in-high-tide for her win in my 1k follower raffle! I do hope I did your idea justice !! Thank you for your trust!!!

Feeling totally out of your comfort zone you stepped into the room anyway. Your book and a notepad tightly held against your chest in which your heart hammered slightly out of beat you took a seat and tried to calm yourself down with a deep breath. This was not your natural place to be. You liked closed rooms, not that you were claustrophobic but you preferred them with less…people. If someone had told you about a good year and a half ago how your life would change in just a month time and at the age of 27 you would have laughed and asked which meds they´d taken… But here you were, in a room full of important people whom had bought the rights to your FIRST published book that had become a phenomenon in weeks. Gladly you´d had the wits to demand to be included in every decision and get a veto on everything regarding the storyline and possible changes. It was not easy to negotiate with them but in the end, they really did want to adept your book for the big screen and said yes to your proposal. You got to work on the script with some very talented writers and actually had a lot of fun doing that. NOW the part started where you were a lot more uncomfortable or better put nervous about.

“Let´s put faces to the characters you envisioned, shall we?”

The casting director said and smiled at you.

Here we go… you thought and took a last calming breath.

In your head it was easy to envision the needed characters but in real life, not so much. You had seen some great actors for different roles and you knew that with cosmetics and wigs there could be done a lot to make sure they fit the bill but you wanted it to feel right. There was just one last role to cast and it was the most significant one to you. The actors you had seen so far did a good job but the spark was missing; The feeling of them getting the essence of the character and being able to add depth to it and not just perfectly saying the words in the script.

The door opened again as you were doodling something onto your notepad

“Hello…” a deep voice resonated through the room.

“…My name is Tom and I would like to audition for the role of Matthew. “

You looked up and…did a double take. A soft chuckle came your way and he smilingly corrected the placement of his glasses. The casting director got her wits back together faster than you and asked.

“Mr. Hiddleston, we are honoured to meet you but you want WHAT?”

Tom grinned and repeated himself. “I want to audition for the role of Matthew.”

Looking around you were the only one who still was starstruck. The other faces were just looking flabbergasted at TOM HIDDLESTON who wanted to AUDITION.

“Frankly put, I think we are not able to meet your normal payroll…” The director said with a little blush on his face. Tom smiled and pointed to an empty chair. “May I?” He asked politely and sat down as he saw a silent nod coming from you.

“I know this is an independent film and a smaller studio but that should not be the problem. I am deeply in love with this book and especially how Matthew is portrait. I´d love to take him on and if I may be frank as well. I´d be willing to co-produce and work some of my contacts to get us what we need to do justice to the book.” Tom looked at you and smiled. God, you wanted to hide behind your notepad as you felt a blush coming up. He met all the things you wanted for Matthew. He was tall, handsome and his eyes could say what words often could not. This man in front of you was able to tell a story with his body language and eyes alone.

NO. WORDS. NEEDED!

You loved the movies he had made so far and had seen him on stage too. Besides his -no doubt- very good looks he had a sharp mind and was well read and eloquent. A deadly combination if you were concerned.

Tom took another breath. “I know you probably have to discuss my second proposal first. But please, let me at least audition and show you what I have prepared.” His charming smile hit you again. Jesus, one could think you were a writer that put all her words on paper and was not able to form a single coherent sentence out loud.

Get a grip! You ordered yourself and cleared your throat.

“I… I´m sorry. Hi, my name is (Y/N)…”

Tom stood to take your outstretched hand.

“I know who you are (Y/N)…you are the Author to this delightful book.”

The both of you shook hands and Tom looked at you as you tried to get your mouth to form more words while your brain was sending out misleading impulses. For one it sent out shock that HE KNEW YOU. Then it sent out a tingle up your arm because of you and him shaking hands. You were pretty sure your brain went haywire inside your skull screaming THAT`S TOM HIDDLESTON!!!

You really needed to get a grip NOW! Telling yourself that he might run any second if you would continue to look dumbfounded at him and somebody else had to play Matthew did the trick.

“Please, it would be my pleasure to hear you speak Matthew´s words.”

Well, that went rather well after the clusterfuck inside your head.

Tom smiled and nodded. He stepped away from the chair and closed his eyes for a second. You could see his shoulders slumping, his posture getting more sunk in and less easy going. He started to pace the room in slow and not forceful small steps, ruffling his hair and looking out a non-existent window. His eyes watered as he gulped and began to talk.

Hearing his voice break and sound so vulnerable alone made you choke up yourself.

“How long do I have to continue to walk the earth? For how much longer will I be my broken, incomplete self? I was promised that the part of my soul I gave up would come back to me…” He sat down and rested his head in his hands. “I am tired of feeling half empty, of needing to try to fill this…void inside my chest.” Abruptly he stood up and the chair fell over. You saw his face changing from sad to angry in a split-second. “I`M DONE YOU HEAR ME!” He yelled, then repeated the same sentence in a low, menacing voice. “I am done….you hear me!”

It was not only you who sat there, staring at Tom as he changed back from Matthew to himself and smiled a little nervous. He picked up the chair and sat down again, awaiting a response. It surprisingly was you that found her voice again first. “Wow, I mean…” You cleared your throat. “…why did you choose THIS scene out of all you could have prepared?” Tom smiled and wet his lips while pushing up his glasses another time. “I picked that scene in particular because It…to me…shows the emotional uproar of Matthew and his feelings in a very short amount of time. He is lonely and sad but also very angry to the core of his being. In this scene he lets it all out in the safeness of a room bereft of people before walking out and playing a role in his own life that he wants everybody to see.”

His words resonated so deeply inside you that you wanted to hug him for getting the essence of who Matthew really was and saying it out loud! But all you got out was “Thank you!”

Tom smiled at you and inclined his head. “No, thank you for writing such an intriguing story.”

The casting director laughed still a little awestruck. There were glances thrown at each other with smiles and enthusiastic nods. “Well, I guess that settles it then. There will be nobody that can top what we have seen just now. I think I do speak for everybody at this table when I say. Welcome on board Mr. Hiddleston!” Toms eyes lit up. “Just Tom, please!”

He seemed genuinely happy to be able to give life to this character.

“As producer of this film…” Josh stood up and held out his hand “…I´d say I would be dumb not to let you co-produce. So, buckle up you are in for a ride!” Tom grinned and shook hands with Josh.

“Let´s meet tomorrow to go over everything you have scheduled so far and get into details.” Tom suggested and they exchanged numbers. You stood, ready to get out of this room and breathe some fresh air after a long day.

“(Y/N)…” Tom said and stopped you with his hand reaching out to touch your arm. You looked into his soft blue eyes and smiled. “…If you´d be willing to let me pick your brain about Matthew over dinner- I´d love to treat you to it. I do have one or two questions…” Your stomach gave a little rumble and you and Tom started to laugh. “I take that as a yes…”

He opened the door and bowed a little. “After you!”

God damn, that charming smile again. Well, you´d just need to think of it as a work meeting like the ones you had had before with the script writers.

An hour later Tom and you sat in a little restaurant he had recommended, not far from the West-End Theatres you loved so dearly. Central London was still busy but inside this restaurant and engulfed in a lively discussion about the characters in your book you were oblivious to it. After overcoming your first shocked state at seeing him you found him very easy to talk to. It was no hardship to keep the conversation flowing, even as it drifted away from Matthew and got a little more personal. Tom asked what had inspired you to write the book, what gave you the idea.

“If I say it came to me in a dream, I would sound so stereotypical…” You laughed and took a sip of your sparkling water. Tom chuckled and shrugged.

“If I order tea after dinner, I am stereotypical too. I don´t think it´s necessarily a bad thing.”

The food was amazing and tasted very good. Tom smiled as he saw you close your eyes at the first taste. “Walking into that room I thought I lost you for a second!” He grinned teasingly.

“Well, have you seen yourself walking into that room? I am a little bookaholic who is not accustomed to meet actors whose work I adored for a long time now.” Tom grinned at your words and took another bite of his meal to hide his own blush after your compliment.

“Plus…” you said “…I am rather out of my comfort zone doing all this.”

Tom tilted his head. “What exactly is your comfort zone then?”

Thinking about it for a moment you answered him.

“My desk where I wrote half of the book you are now co-producing…or that one tree in Regents Park where I wrote the other half…” you laughed. Tom leaned back in his chair.

“Did you sit in the tree while writing or leaned against it? I am just asking because I frequently run through this park and need to know if I need to be aware of you threatening to drop onto me when I don´t do your character justice or if you just stick out your leg and let me trip.” A snorted out laugh escaped you and you clutched your hand over your mouth afterwards. Tom laughed as well and all the tension you might have felt somewhere inside depleted in favour of enjoying a dinner with him, talking about what made him and you tick.

Later, as you lay in bed you couldn´t help but wonder if this day really had happened. Gasping out a laugh you closed your eyes and shook your head. “Some day” you said to yourself before drifting off into your colourful dreamworld.

The next weeks you were busy starting to write your new novel and only kept track of some things in pre-production that needed your attention. It wasn´t until 4 weeks after the casting that you met Tom again as you walked into the first round table meeting to discuss the first week of filming. Starting in 3 days’ time, there were still some things to discuss and you needed to go over some monologue / dialog changes Tom had requested. Tom stood from his chair and pulled back the one next to him. “(Y/N), so good to see you again.” You smiled and dropped your bag onto the table before Tom pulled you in for a friendly hug. Near your ear he said

“I found myself running a lot more through Regents Park lately…but sadly I haven´t been able to find your tree!” Grinning he pulled back and looked into your eyes.

“I might need a map or a big red X on the spot please.” You laughed and sat down with a little blush but before you could answer the door opened and it was like history repeating itself. There you were, doing a double take, staring at a tall and handsome men who smiled at you. Tom leaned in a little. “Am I losing you again?” a deep chuckle before he stood and hugged the man who just had walked in. “Ben, meet (Y/N).” Benedict Cumberbatch held out his hand and grinned as he saw your still stunned face. “Hi (Y/N), I´m Ben. My friend Tom here told me you needed a narrator for some parts of the movie. I loved the book!” You shook hands with Benedict and Tom laughed.

“You loved the book after I practically forced you to read it.”

Ben huffed. “Doesn´t mean I don´t love it!” Ben looked at you. “And to be honest, he really was resilient. I was reading 4 scripts at the time and had no desire to read a book in between. Tom read some parts to me while we were on a press tour together and I was intrigued.” Ben took the seat to your other side and smiled. “So, here I am!”

Yeah, there he was….and there YOU were, sitting in the middle of Tom Hiddleston and Benedict Cumberbatch watching them bicker with each other like one would watch a tennis game. You probably had whiplash by the end of the day.

3 hours later you had not only a dooming whiplash lurking for you around the corner but also a skin that felt to tight for all the feelings 2 of the most beautiful voices on earth made you feel by speaking out words you had written. You blew out a breath and stood.

“Can we catch a short break, please?!” Not awaiting an answer, you walked out into the little garden and took a deep breath. Leaning against a tree you closed your eyes and tried to calm your senses.

Not ready for the “Everything alright (Y/N)?” That hit your system like a wildfire and made goose bumps rise on your arms. The soft touch to your hand shot another jolt through it. Opening your eyes to look into purest blue with a hint of concern in them you mustered a nod.

“Just needed some fresh air….” Tom raised a brow and looked inquiringly at you. “Try again!” He said. Closing your eyes and sliding down the tree trunk you sat in the grass.

“I was not prepared to hear my words coming out of your mouth like that!”

Tom looked confused but sat down next to you with less space you were equipped to handle just now. “Did I get the words wrong?” He asked and continued to look at you. You instantly shook your head. “No! NO! You got them right! Very, very right. It hit me right here!” You put your hand above your heart and looked into his eyes. Tom began to smile. Slowly he took hold of your hand and guided it onto his chest. “Your book hit me right here too, so it is my duty to get the words out in a way that makes you feel them like I felt reading them!” His warm hand captured your hand between his and his chest. You felt his heart beating in a steady rhythm that was soothing and thrilling at the same time. His eyes held yours in a soft but deep gaze before you had to look away, fixing your stare onto your touching hands. Tom smiled to himself and put a wayward strand of hair behind your ear with his fingertips. “Should I mess up for the last pages?” He asked with a little laugh in his voice.

Your gaze shot up and you narrowed your eyes. “Are you trying to mock me?” Tom grinned and held up both his hands which made your hand slide down his chest a little before you retreated it.

“Actually, I have something else on my mind entirely…”

Now it was you looking inquiringly at him but Tom only grinned and stood up, holding out his hands to help you to your feet. “Let´s get back inside…” You took his hands and Tom tugged a little to hard. By the way he grinned it was very much deliberately done as he grabbed you with one arm to steady you after you hit his chest with yours. “Oops…”

You had no control over your reaction to it, you just acted and pinched his side. “Ooops!” You said too and walked back inside for another hour of sensual voice torture! Tom stared after you and grinned. Yes, there was chemistry between the both of you. Very much so! He had not only imagined it after the dinner the both of you had shared some weeks ago.

The rest of the meeting went by with him trying to rill you up with his voice and seemingly accidentally touching your hand, back, leg whenever he got the chance and you throwing him glares and pinching his leg under the table. Ben was trying his best not to grin when he made you lean more towards Tom by grabbing Toms bottle of water. “Sorry. Mines empty!”

Damn them!

In the evening of this day your phone signalled a message.

Tom: Good evening Darling! Just a warning: Voice message incoming. Tom

You: How did you get my number?

Tom: Darling, I am the co-producer *wink*

The next incoming message was the voice message. You hit play and a soft, warm and very sexy voice read a passage of monologue from Matthew where he had written a letter to the missing part of his soul. God, his voice was heavenly. Bolder because of the physical distance between him and you you wrote.

You: Are you trying to torture me?

Tom: Absolutely not! I just wanted your input on how to express that part of the script!

You could not help but visualize his smug grin while he typed that answer. Writing back, you to smiled.

You: Was alright…

Tom: Just alright?! One moment…

4 minutes later another voice message came in. Same text spoken with a little more desperateness in the right spots.

Tom: That better?

You: a little…

Tom: Are you trying to torture me?!

You: Absolutely not! I just wanted to give you input on how to express that part of the script!

Another voice message came in.

“Darling, I think you are paying me back for this afternoon.” His voice got a little deeper.

“I like your feistiness. For now, sleep well…” When you thought his voice could not get any sexier, he said “…be prepared for a one on one training tomorrow! Meet me in Regents Park, Queen Mary´s Rose Garden at 10am…” He had the audacity to chuckle low at the end of his message.

God, you were falling head first into the deep end!!

The next morning you found yourself marvel at the beautiful flowers inside the garden when 2 big hands came around your back to enclose over your eyes.

“Hello Darling!” He said near your ear and you felt his heat radiating from his chest onto your back. Toms hands came to rest on your shoulders and softly turned you into a hug.

“Hey Tom!” You said and smiled up to him with a soft blush reddening your cheeks. Tom only slowly let go of you and took a deep breath.

“You gave me a sleepless night!”

He said with what should have been a stern look but ended in a grin.

“Serves you right for the stunts you pulled on me yesterday!” Tom laughed and shrugged innocently. “I do not know what you are talking about!”

“Well, then I too don´t know what you are implying!” You started to walk before adding.

“You needed private teaching for Matthews letters to the lost part of his soul?”

Tom watched you and said under his breath “I need private teaching in a lot of things where you are concerned!” before saying loud enough for you to hear. “Yes…I do hope you have cleared your schedule for today!” Smiling you walked the gardens and Tom and you eased into a conversation about Matthew and his letters for starters. Somewhere in between Tom had softly taken your hand into his while walking deeper into the vibrant flowers to find a hidden bench that was in the heart of the garden. You could not recall how long the both of you sat on that bench, but it was a while. Your conversation all about work, but your body language was talking about something else entirely. Tom flung one of his long legs behind you, resting it on the bench to tug you in between and against his chest. “Ok?” He asked softly and stroked down one arm to let it come to rest against your belly. You nodded and slowly got comfortable in his arms while he continued the conversation as if nothing personal was happening just now. After a while Tom took a deeper breath and asked.

“Will you be on set for the whole leg of filming?”

You turned your head slightly to be able to look at him.

“I don´t know yet, why?”

Tom smiled a little and said. “I do like your company…” A soft laugh escaped you before you answered. “Well, they way we are sitting on this bench does not allow me to differ with your statement!” Tom chuckled and winked playfully before tugging you even closer against his chest.

The next 3 weeks passed in much the same manner. Tom, whenever he was between filming scenes, found you wherever you where on set (mostly not far from him because it was wonderful to watch him act) to talk to you and share some physical contact. It differed between hugs, closeness in general and holding hands while walking to a different set. The two of you growing close and getting to know each other better and better. The way he brought Matthew to live was phenomenal. He carried the scenes with such ease and deep knowing of the character that you only could watch in awe. Never did he struggle to give the emotional depth needed, he literally poured his heart into this film as you had poured your heart into the book.

The last day of filming started pretty early as you needed to be in a particular street in London. This was the last big scene. The scene where Matthew found the missing part of his soul, the one he had given up a lifetime ago. The frame was set to see Tom walking towards the camera with an intense gaze, the closer he came the more you could see that he was watching something with tears in his eyes, with a sense of understanding that THIS had kept on drawing him closer and closer. His stare made place for a slow spreading smile that lit up his whole face before he stepped out of the shot and towards the part of his soul.

Tom watched the material shot so far and was in a deep discussion with the director as you entered the tent that was set up to watch the screens. “I don´t think that this is the ending this film needs. The book gives away what he has been searching for the whole time…” Tom said and the director considered his words carefully. “I thought it would be better to leave it open for interpretation, but I do get what you are saying. Let´s do an alternate version with your ideas!”

Tom nodded and grinned as he saw you coming closer. “There you are. I need your help!”

He grabbed your hand and tugged you to the make-up section and sat you down in a chair.

“I need you to act as my counterpart. The part I walk towards to.”

You stared at him with wide open eyes. “I can´t act! I am a writer!”

Tom smiled. “Just concentrate on me, look into my eyes the whole time. You know the characters better than anyone. You can do it!”

Before you could say anything else you got prepped and pampered. Half an hour later Tom walked with you onto set. “See this red X? That´s your comfort zone!” He grinned as you shot him a dirty look. “Just stay there and think about her and Matthew finally finding each other again.”

Tom walked back to his spot and concentrated for a moment before nodding to the director. This scene was shot from to sides. Toms and yours. Tom walked towards you with wonder and emotion in his gaze. You could feel your own throat close up as you thought about the characters that you knew so well, how they finally got to be together again. Matthew gave up a part of his soul to keep her alive, his soulmate, only to lose all knowledge of her until their paths crossed again and he would FEEL deep inside himself that she was it!

Tom stood now directly before you. A tear dropped out of his eyes but the smile he gave you was the brightest you have ever seen on a human. A shaking hand touched your cheek while you stared up into his eyes. The breath he took in was trembling. He closed his eyes and rested his forehead against yours while your arms came around his waist. Tom opened his eyes and smiled before his head tilted to the side and slowly closed the distance to find your lips with his. The director yelled cut.

Tom took in a sharp breath and looked into your eyes intensely.

“That was brilliant, the both of you did great!” The director said but Tom held up his hand and said

“Give us a moment please!” His eyes never let go of yours. Your hands fisted in his shirt as your whole body tingled because of his gaze, his touch, his nearness.

“Darling, I need to do this again…as me, as Tom!” He breathed and dipped his head again.

Your lips met and the same tingling sensation now started where your lips met and shot like a lightning strike through your system. Toms hand waved itself through your hair to the back of your head. He pressed you closer and your lips parted in a soft gasp. He took it as an invitation and let his tongue slip in to play with yours in a soft tangle of wet strokes and playful teases before he gaspingly broke loose. “I have wanted to do that for weeks!” he rasped and grinned. You started to chuckle and rested your head against his chest to hide your blush. But yeah, you felt the same!!

Weeks later you nervously walked the red carpet at the premier of the movie. Ben had accompanied you for a little part of it as well as the director. Some meters ahead you saw Tom giving an interview. He looked so good in his suit. Your attention on him before a reporter started to bombard you with questions. “It must be wonderful to see your vision come to life on screen! How do you feel? Is this film doing justice to your book?”

Smiling because you finally knew an answer to a question you laughed.

“I am very happy with the result, the director and the producers as well as the whole cast did an amazing job staying true to the book and adapting it without much loss of its essence.”

Tom joined you and gave you a bright smile as you praised the work.

“Let me tell you, without (Y/N) being involved in writing the script we probably would have done a lot worse.” You laughed out loud but rolled your eyes. “He´s to damn modest!”

The interviewer grinned and shot another question at you.

“You have a tip for any aspiring writer out there?”

Thinking for a moment you said.

“Never give up…and put your heart into your work! I poured my heart into this book”

Tom grinned and said while turning you into his arms.

“And I was the one who picked it up!”

Before everybody, every camera, every person who was watching you he tilted you back and gave you a kiss that left no question about who you were to him!

Whispering against your lips he grinned.

“I intend to keep it. Not only Matthew got his happy end…I did too!”

Tags: @archy3001 @itscalledfandomsweetielookitup @faeriedelalune-blog @amazinggraces-world @tanishahka @coniumalces @emomemelordess @devilbat @drakesfiance @confessionsofastrugglingteen @inlovewithfreyamikaelson @heart-shaped-hell @theoneanna @marikochi @xxxeatyourh3artoutxxx @awkwardfangirl2014 @rainbowsinthestorm @anchored-in-high-tide @mylovelycrazyworld

327 notes · View notes

abeautifulblog · 4 years

Note

Hi! Enemy Mine anon again :D Thank you for the detailed answer! A whole new fandom at the tip of my fingers? with recs on top too??? Aww yiss. You can bet I'll be reading those summaries. the subreddit has surprisingly good ones. Your description of Marcone has me too intrigued now, there's no going back. The Marcone/Dresden ship sounds right up my alley. Thanks! :)))

OH BOY OH BOY!

Marcone is indeed a ton of fun, the kind of character that straddles the line between good-guy and bad-guy, because he’s frequently on the same side as the good guys, but he’s willing to go way further than they are to achieve his ends. He’s a type A control freak, ruthlessly pragmatic, and doesn’t allow himself a lot of illusions in terms of morality and culpability—the kind of guy who could do the math on the trolley problem and then shove you onto the tracks with a shrug of an apology. (And then Harry “agent of chaos” Dresden, who clings to his cherished illusions and who lies to himself like a rug, comes bulldozing into Marcone’s carefully-ordered world. Good times and character growth for everyone!)

SO LET’S GET SOME McFUCKIN’ RECS, SHALL WE? :D

Notes:

1) Not-appearing on this list are complete AUs—it’s just not my thing. I really enjoy canon AUs, where you change a variable and see how the story would have played out differently, but “what if they were power rangers?” etc is not my jam.

2) Marcone has been trying to recruit Harry since literally the first book in the series, and so a popular genre that emerged in Harry/Marcone fic is what I’ll call “Harry says yes”–that he’s finally in desperate enough straits to accept Marcone’s aid and protection, even knowing it’s got permanent, life-changing strings attached.

3) The book Changes (which was… book 12?) introduced some massive, well, changes to the series; up to that point it had been the adventures of Harry the lovably scruffy wizard-detective, monster-of-the-week style, with the baseline staying pretty much the same from book to book. (Enemy Mine reads like one of those books.) In Changes, however, Harry’s entire life goes up in flames and (under extreme duress) he agrees to serve in one of the faerie courts (and this is a very very bad thing). There is no going back to boys-adventures after that, and fics written pre- and post-Changes are telling very different stories.

4) These recommendations are only from the fics that I found back when I was active in the Dresden Files fandom 2011~2012. I’m sure more good ones have come out since, I just haven’t read them. And for the most part, this is only fics that are over 20k words long—there are tons of shorter fics that are also great fun, but they tend to blur together so they didn’t make the list.

So, in a good order for reading:

Fair’s Fair, Frenemy, Chacun à son goût, Please Hang Up And Try Again, by thehoyden (3k~8k) – Short, cute, funny little fics featuring Dresden and Marcone and their romcom dynamic. It was actually thehoyden’s fics that got me into Dresden Files fandom (before that, I’d read one book, out of order, and been unimpressed) and it’s not a coincidence that the early sequences in Enemy Mine are very similar; that’s what I was being influenced by when I started it.

Enemy Mine (124k) – (What, you thought I wasn’t going to list my own fic? XD) So after thehoyden’s fics have whetted your appetite but left you craving MOAR to the story, enter Enemy Mine, which starts out like a hoyden fic but then grew a plot and turned into a full novel. Or as I summarized it on AO3: Harry gets invited on a date by everyone’s favorite mob boss, and then things get weird.

Near Miss by binz & shiplizard (42k) – A canon AU in which Marcone gets (forcibly) removed from the mob long before his rise to power, so he’s but a humble mechanic when he meets Harry. Fun, slow burn, and they write an excellent Marcone-who-never-became-the-kingpin—how he can be not rich, not powerful, not polished, but somehow still very much the same man.

Not Even Silence in the Mountains by binz and shiplizard (112k) – Post-apocalyptic canon AU, hoowah! After the end of the world as they know it, Harry is still a wizard trying to protect people from the things that go bump in the night, and Marcone is still the de facto ruler of Chicago, just with more dirt and less law and order.

The Spirit and the Letter by lightgetsin (20k) – post-Changes, Harry pisses off a faerie queen and gets himself turned into a woman for a while. (And this is body dysphoria, not comedy.) lightgetsin is an excellent writer at diving deep into the emotional landscape of characters who are not in a good place, and post-Changes Harry is definitely that. The sequels are much less fraught, as Harry gets better (in more ways than one) and it explores how they learn to live with each other.

Choices by kethrua (28k) – One of the darker “Harry says yes” fics. I’m not interested in non-con stuff, but intelligent explorations of dubious consent are my jam. They can be so marvelously complex and nuanced, with so much potential for heightened drama, and this fic does dub-con as only magic can.

Cross by lightgetsin (33k) – Set between Changes and Ghost Story, after Dresden dies (canon) and Marcone does not cope with it well. I recommend reading this one after you’ve read a number of other fics, because Marcone’s characterization is kind of atypical in this one—he’s not his usual cool and clear-headed self, he is low-key falling the fuck apart. Powerful, sometimes uncomfortable reading, because she does not write a sanitized Marcone.

other things the road to hell is paved with by LuciaZephyr (150k) – Another “Harry says yes” fic—I haven’t read this one in like eight years, but I remember it being good and meaty, with 150k to spin out the ramifications of that choice and develop that relationship.

And I can’t shake the feeling there are some significant ones I missed, but when I was in Dresden Files fandom it was on LJ, and that was all I could find on AO3.

HAPPY READING, FRIENDS!

#dresden files #marcone #harry dresden #recs #enemy mine

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philcon-programming · 5 years

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Philcon Programming: Craft of Writing & Business of Writing panels and workshops

PHILCON IS ONE WEEK AWAY! Philcon.org Nov 08 - 10, 2019 Cherry Hill, New Jersey Our listing on Sched.com will be live soon, but in the meantime, here’s an overview of the weekend.

And here are the items aimed specifically at those looking to improve their writing, and those who are looking to get published or who are already published and looking to up their book-creating and book-selling game: Friday, 6pm Intro to NaNoWriMo & Flash Fiction Challenge National Novel Writing Month is an annual event designed to push both original fiction and fanfic writers past their doubts and all the way to a goal of 50,000 words in 30 days. Learn how to tackle the dreaded writer's block and try your hand at some wacky writing prompts to get your imagination going! [Presented by Katrina S. Forest] Friday, 7pm Genre Publications in 2019 How has the nature of SF&F magazines evolved to survive in the era of the internet? Friday, 8pm Will My Publisher Expect Me To Go On Tour? We talk a lot about ways to sell your first novel, but what happens after your novel sells? A discussion of debut author questions, issues, opportunities, and challenges. Friday, 10pm Workshop: Plot Planning with StoryForge and Tarot Cards ~ 90 min How do you go from story idea to outline? What motivates your characters? Who are their antagonists? Discover how to use StoryForge cards and classic Tarot layouts to build a bridge from vague concept to finished narrative. [Presented by D.L. Carter] * Saturday, 10am Games as Character Builders Writers often think of games as distractions, but they can also be a great source of inspiration. We'll explore how we can use creative games (both board and video) to help springboard ideas and flesh out new characters. [Presented by Katrina S. Forest] Saturday, 10am Workshop: Performing a Reading You may write the best dialogue, descriptions, or sentences ever to see print, but the art of presenting your work orally presents a different set of challenges. Let's go over what they are, and how to overcome them. [Presented by Gordon Linzner] Saturday, 11am How To NOT Sell Your Book Common (and not-so-common) mistakes to avoid while approaching publishers. Saturday, Noon Ask a Small Publisher What do you want to know about getting into the world of publishing? Here’s a chance to ask the pros what they suggest. Saturday, Noon I Want To Do Better How to write non-European fantasy settings without resorting to stereotypes and offensive tropes. Saturday, 1pm How to Establish Your Own Imprint How to legally establish your imprint, obtain ISBNs, what distribution options are available, what you need to know about formatting for the digital age, and how to design (or find a designer for) a good logo. Saturday, 3pm Building Your Own Anthology What goes into the creation of an anthology? Is it better to have a broad topic for it or a narrow one? How do you solicit works? And who can you get to publish it? Saturday, 3pm Adapting Novels Into Screenplays Is there still room for the subplots? Does the pacing need to change? Should certain characters be given a smaller- or larger- part? How do you discern which elements can easily be portrayed in visuals, and how do you handle the ones which can't? Saturday, 4pm Borrowing From Literary Fiction There's been a spate of genre-blending novels and films lately; think Annihilation Station Eleven, and The Magicians. These stories borrow elements of literary fiction and mix them with sci-fi, fantasy, and horror. What benefits arise from blending them together? What are the complications? And what can writers learn from these works to better their own style? [Presented by the Phoenixville Writer's Group] Saturday, 5pm Building Your Readership with Libraries The ebook landscape is in flux and there’s no better time to get your self-published books into libraries and in front of millions of readers. Learn how to make your ebooks available to libraries via Overdrive- and how to make your print books orderable as well. Explore different lending models as well as how to connect personally with your local librarians to further your visibility. [Presented by Dena Heilik of the Philadelphia Free Library] Saturday, 5pm Workshop: Writing Knockout Fight Scenes! How do you write a fight scene that feels immersive to your reader, rather than just a recounting of its choreography? [Presented by Christopher D. Ochs] Saturday, 7pm What Kind of Editor Do I Need? Yes, there's more than one kind! There are developmental editors, line editors, copy editors, proofreaders... We'll explain the difference between them, how to tell which you want, and where to find reliable ones. Saturday, 7pm Workshop: Getting Real About Fantasy Writing ~ 2 Hours Bring your stories! This workshop will focus on writers reading from their work, and getting feedback about what elements are strong and how others might be improved. [Presented by Charles Barouch and Ann Stolinsky] Saturday, 10pm Meet the Editors! Magazine and small press editors discuss what goes into creating their publications, from the economics of staying viable in the electronic age to getting appropriate submissions. * Sunday, 10am Self-Publishing for [Error - No Longer Exists] You've selected your self-publishing venue, submitted your work, but then the platform shuts down or changes their rules in a significant way. What are your options? Sunday, 10am Workshop: How To Give an Interview Once you've reached a certain level of success as a writer, editor or expert in a field, you ought to be prepared for journalist interviews. After all, the better you can present yourself and your work, the more likely you are to receive future publicity! [Presented by Randee Dawn] Sunday, 11am Your Story Doesn't Start Until Page Eleven? ...and that's a problem. How does a writer recognize when a narrative needs major surgery? Sunday, 11am Non-fiction Books that Fiction Writers Should Read Panelists discuss books they find important, and why. Sunday, Noon Rituals for Conjuring Novel Titles Is an actual summoning circle required to find the perfect name for your book, or are there other methods you can use? Sunday, 1pm The Art of the Pitch Whether it’s a novel or a TV show, how you present your product will make or break a potential publisher’s interest. What are the do’s and the do-not’s for different media types? When is less “more?” How do you decide what needs to be removed versus what should remain? Sunday, 1pm Book Layout and Design for Beginners [Presented by Danielle Ackley-McPhail] Sunday, 1pm Elements of Cover Design [Presented by Christopher D. Ochs] # Stay tuned for updates about our other content tracks for the weekend!

#Philcon #Philcon 2019 #Philcon 2019 Programming #Philcon Programming

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froggonoboggo · 4 years

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Answer all the OC questions Erika. D O I T

Alright then! lol I’ll do Persedimun Rigas as he is currently in the rp thread I have with my friends🌹 Where in the world does your OC feel most at home? Is there any reason why? If it’s not the place they were born, where were they born? Is there a certain somebody that makes them feel at home where ever they may be? What does home mean to them?

Percy feels most at home on his farm and anywhere in the ocean. He made the farm his own after he had been in hiding for centuries, and as a water dragon, he and the ocean are one. Percy was born up north somewhere deep in the ocean but left when he was old enough to separate from his family. There is absolutely someone who makes him feel at home, and home to him means somewhere he feels safe, happy, and can just be himself without holding anything back.🍄 What are your OCs favourite snacks? Their favourite comfort food which always cheers them up when they’re down? Favourite meal to make? Do they enjoy baking and cooking and are they any good in the kitchen?Percy has a sweet tooth and he’s not picky either, the man will eat about anything you give him. He’s also a big fan of soup, and any soup he can fix up is his go to in order to cheer him up, the same goes for favorite meal to make. He adores baking and cooking and he’ll tell you that he’s alright in the kitchen.

🍁 Where does your OC go when they need to have some time to themself? Would they ever have their own “comfort corner” filled with all the things they like? Do they have a favourite spot outside that feels like its theirs and theirs alone?

Percy doesn’t have many places to escape to, due to needing to keep himself inconspicuous from higher beings, and he doesn’t need to for the most part because his safe place is on the farm. If that place is compromised he disappears into the ocean for awhile.

🍂 Does your OC enjoy hugs? What do they do as a show of affection for: their friends, their family, their significant other(s) or for strangers? Over all what are they like with recieving affection from others?

He adores hugs and will readily give them out whenever it is needed. For friends and family he shows the same type of affection for both. He’s a very touchy guy, lots of pats and jokes, always ready to do something for them. The same goes for significant others actually, but more kisses involved, hand holding, and lingering touches. Does not hold back from PDA. For strangers he’s less involved with the touches. Percy loves receiving affection, and depending on what it is, may become bashful.

🌻 What little things do they notice about people or the world around them that make them happy? What tiny little treasures do they find in the normal every day that makes the world seem a little brighter for them?

Percy is a bit of a cheesy sap, and smiles and laughter really brings him in. The sounds of happiness really strikes him. The soft eyes of his cows, his dog, and the soft pattering of rain calms him.

🌾 Describe your OC through the eyes of someone absolutely head-over-heels in love with them

Persedimun is warm and soft, as well as a big boy who’s chest serves as the best pillow. He’s super goofy, adventurous, caring, and has incredibly kind eyes and gives the best hugs. Percy is a cheesy romantic and its adorable, his hands are rough but they hold what they cherish so delicately and tenderly, with every ounce of love and admiration he has to offer. He’ll hang on to every word you say and will say your voice is one of his favorite sounds.

💐 How does your OC handle being unwell or forced to rest in bed? Who cares for them and in what ways? Does your OC enjoy being doted on or are they a terrible patient? Reversed: is your OC good at taking care of others who are ill or in need?

He’s not particularly a fan of being sick and he’s usually the one who takes care of himself, since he was a rogue dragon for a long time and he’s also by himself for the most part. He does, to an extent, like to be doted on, though he’d rather do the doting to the ones he cares about himself. He’s an excellent caretaker and usually stays by their side unless asked otherwise.

🌿 What way does your OC show that they care without using words? What way do others show your OC that they’re cared about without using speech?

As stated above, he shows that he cares about someone by always being willing to help them out, no matter what he’s doing or may want to do. Percy likes to take care of people. He also likes to give gifts, things that remind them of someone or he creates something.

🌳 What is your OC’s favourite way to relax after a stressful day? Do they have a favourite book to curl up with? A hobby? Or do they have a nice bubble bath and have an early night to bed?

He draws, paints, or naps, for the most part. If he could, he’d morph into his dragon form, hop into the ocean and sun himself on the surface like crocodiles do. Or he sits under a tree in the field, surrounded by cows and sheep and just looks out across the moors and into the trees, perhaps doodling. Percy’s an artist, and likes creating paintings or sketching, perhaps writing as well.

🌲 How deeply does your OC feel? Are they typically empathetic or do they have a hard time connecting with others in this way? What are they like when offering support and comfort to someone they care for?

Persedimun cares perhaps too much, sometimes. He’s incredibly empathetic and sympathetic, always available to lend a hand and help someone, whether it be an innocent bystander or someone they care about. Him caring about the wellbeing of his people led him to where he is now, shamed and hiding in the middle of Scotland by himself.

🌺 What does your OC do to calm down when they’re scared or after a nightmare? Do they have any special comfort items or need to be reassured by a specific person? How do they handle this if they’re alone?

He usually stays up, gets out of bed and just looks outside and thinks to himself. Or he’ll go outside and listen to the sounds of the night, sit on the porch and just contemplate. He’s not too keen on asking other for help in this situation, and usually deals with it by himself unless they find out. He will accept help at that point, and contact is great at calming him down.

🌸 What are some of their favourite things and why? List as many as you can think of!

Naps, eating, shiny and pretty things, painting, the ocean, rain and storms, cows, being cozy and warm, sweaters, animals in general actually, flowers (specifically gladiolus).

🥀 How would your OC decorate a notebook or journal? What kind of things are written in there? Could you give an example of a nice entry?

If he can, will doodle on the cover and within as well. Would write about random thoughts and rambling, notes about what he’s learned about his curse, notes about his art, things for him to remember and things he does remember because if he’s not careful with his protection spells or forgets to bring his charm, he’ll slowly forget things that he should remember. An example of a nice entry would just be him rambling some random fact he learned today from one of his friends and a silly doodle at the end.

🌼 Who are this characters friends and found family? How did they meet, how long have they been friends for, could they ever be something more than just friends? What do they look for in a friend or a romantic partner?

Percy’s new friends would be Matteo, Artemis, and Killian, who belong to @sanguinemori @cacticouture and @technologicalnoiz respectively. As it currently stands in the thread, the closest Percy is to any of them is Matteo. They technically first encountered each other in a seedy bar when some werewolf decided to insult Matteo’s sister and Matteo pulled a sword on him. Percy interceded before things got too crazy, as well as the other two. They haven’t known each other for long, but their chemistry is perfect, and there is definitely a chance that they could be more than just friends.

What he looks for in a partner and in a friend is not much different from each other. He loves to hang out with adventurous people, people who know how to get rowdy and have fun, people who can be as goofy as him and don’t mind that he tends to ramble about things that sometimes don’t matter. And people who care, who are warm.

💫What is your favourite fact about this character and why?

My favorite fact about Percy is that when he became a god he was like “fuck hanging out and hiding in the clouds, I’m staying right here and interacting with my worshippers as if they were family and helping them directly” and I love that because how easy would it be if you were some guy in ancient Greece and you could just walk over and ask your local dragon god if he could make it rain since your crops aren’t getting enough water and he’s like “yeah no problem dude” and then it just happens. No middleman, no catch, nothing, just straight up answered.

☄️ Does this OC deserve better treatment from you? Do you make them suffer just a little bit too much? Be nice to them!

As of right now, his backstory takes the brunt of the suffering, but hey, there’s always room for more >:)

🌠 On a scale of 1 - 10 how Baby is your OC?

on a scale of 1-10, Percy falls on a 6. He is baby to me, but I’m not actually sure how much baby.

💦 If you as the writer could erase one traumatic event from this OC’s life what would it be and why?

His rebellion caused a whole string of traumatic events, just one after another, but I’d take away him losing his first friends, where they were captured, stripped of their godhood and are now being tormented. Percy didn’t deserve to lose them, and there could’ve been a very high chance they all made it out alive. The man would probably be in a better place if he still had their support.

God this is a lot, sorry about this but those are all the asks Aary XDD as you requested! I had a lot of fun doing this!

#oc stuff #long post #aaryvark #asks

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theouterdark · 5 years

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Tag: 11/11/11 III

Thanks for the tag, @dotr-rose-love. I’ll do my best to answer these questions. I’ll be doing this for The Devil from the Outer Dark.

Rules: Answer 11 questions, write your own 11, tag 11 people.

1. Did you have alternate ideas for a WIP that eventually didn’t make it in the story or were exchanged with a better scene or sth? If yes, tell us one or a few that you left out (could be just a character too, or a name)

Yes, there are always concepts that don’t mesh with the story as I’m putting it together. I have a “Scraps” folder where these ideas go until I either find a place for them, or decide they are extraneous. It’s a way to kill my darlings without getting their blood on my hands.

Some scrapped ideas for The Devil from the Outer Dark:

No bishop, no nun, and no Christian boarding school as mentioned in my outline. Less religious iconography in general.

There’s no particular reason for this, but I think it distracts from what I’m trying to accomplish thematically.

There IS a monastery I wanted to feature in the climax, but it may end up being cut as I go forward.

There’s a smattering of supernatural goings-on based on French folklore that will have to be cut in order to narrow focus onto the ones that best serve the story.

There’s an auction scene in the outline that never made it to the page, and I’m still unsure if I’m going to write it.

The climax will be rewritten, almost certainly. It accomplished what I wanted to emotionally, but it shifts too far into schlock and pulp territory.

2. Do you have a specific audience in mind for your WIP?

I’m operating in an alley at the end of a boulevard in a niche genre. I’m hoping my characters and style help transcend that though. There’s a part of me writing these stories for myself, but at the end of the day, I write with the intent to sell. So yeah, my audience is specific, and on my mind more often than not.

3. Is it important to you that your WIP has a moral or a message?

I don’t particularly enjoy stories that can’t stand on their own without allegorical interpretations, but I have biases, sure. Will they come through? Probably. I have blind-spots. All I want is for my work to resonate true.

4. What kinds of relationships do you like writing the most (romantic, platonic, familial, etc)?

Unrequited and unrealized love are fun to write. I enjoy writing platonic friendships and familial relationships too. I don’t think there are any I don’t like? If there are, I haven’t found them.

5. What kind of research have you done for your WIP? What have you learned?

I did a lot of period research for this book. And a lot regarding both southern France and Céret. I also had to dig deep into art history, particularly that of art restoration. I wasn’t clear on the methods used today, much less in the 1920s for repairing damaged paintings. There are a a lot of clever tricks restorers use. Talented folks.

I think the most anecdotal discovery was regarding the format of the 1928 Tour de France having been changed to the dismay of several participants. Also, some participants doped with strychnine and ether to cope with the pain in their legs.

6. If your WIP became very successful, would you want to make a movie adaptation? Why or why not?

I haven’t given up on my film aspirations, so it would be great to adapt my own work one day, but I don’t think film is the best medium for this work. I could see the Blake Livingston Mysteries being a streaming series, perhaps. But I’m not likely to give the rights away unless I retain some modicum of control over the adaptation. Specifically, all of it, I want all of the control.

7. Did you have any alternate title ideas for your WIP? If so, what are they?

The Devil from the Outer Dark had a few before I settled on the current one:

An Occurrence at Pont du Diable

Night of the Meek

Shadow of the Outer Dark

The Gloaming

8. What has been the hardest part about writing your WIP so far?

Getting people to read it. Honestly, this book was probably the easiest writing experience I ever had. While I did a lot of research and note-taking for about a year before I wrote a single word, I ended up finishing the draft in a single twelve-day streak. If only I could write all my works like this.

But in the spirit of the question, I think portraying an evil you don’t necessarily see is difficult. I didn’t get the ending quite right.

9. Do you prefer writing action or description?

My preferences change moment-to-moment. I enjoy plotting and constructing scenes more than any specific aspect.

10. What do you want your readers to come away with after reading your story?

A desire to buy my next book.

I want them to feel complete, but empty. I want them to want to read more.

It might sound silly, but it’s true.

11. What’s your favorite part about your WIP? What makes you excited to write it?

I love Blake’s arc in this book. I’m honestly just proud of this work as a whole. It’s probably my favorite so far.

Tag List: @writingmyassoff, @erinisawriter, @midnightstreetwanderings, @bethwrotethis, @doux-ciel, @hilunawrites, @ghost-possum, @zmlorenz, @doubleviewfinder, @veronicadent, @els-writes, @dantedevereaux, @tlbodine, @hypotheticalwriterquestions, @hazeywrites, @reeseweston, @withered-rose-unbreakable-lotus, @katabasiss, @dotr-rose-love, and @byjillianmaria. (Let me know if you’d like to be added or removed from tags future tags).

If any of you want to do this, there are some questions for you below. Mostly tagging you all so you can get to know my work a little better. If I didn’t tag you, and you want to answer any of these questions, don’t let anyone stop you.

What is the significance of your WIP’s title?

What is the setting of your WIP, and why did you choose it?

What is the next step for you and your WIP?

How have you changed as a writer in the last year? Where have you improved? Where have you faltered? Where do you intend to go in the year to come?

How do you organize your thoughts when you’re creating something new?

How do you deal with the emotional impact of a book (on yourself) as you are writing the story?

How do you feel about fan-fiction?

Do you wait for your muse to inspire you or forge your own path through discipline?

Which genre are you curious about, but haven’t tried writing yet?

What, in your opinion, are the most important elements of good writing?

Do you have a story you’re not ready to tell? Or a book you’re not ready to write?

#writeblr #writeblr community #tag game #11/11/11 tag #Dylan speaks #get to know me #get to know the writer #the devil from the outer dark #p:tdftod

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theron-darksunder · 5 years

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A plain letter arrived, its writing curt, all business, lacking the formalities of high courts and flowery speech: "Darksunder, I hope you're well, and that there's been progress with our little 'puzzle', if I can help in anyway, use the return address, I check it once every three days. -N" Said address was to a commonly used box located in the Row of all places.

Days had passed. Weeks had come and gone. Was it up to months now? The passage of time was minute to him, seen only when he looked upon others. The encounter with the Nethermancer of Silvermoon seemed but a heart-beat ago yet the letter had arrived so long ago. Had it truly been that long? It was with a strange fondness he recalled the encounter, curiosity piqued entirely by the flamboyant if not bold approach Nixalegos had. Despite his innate need to dislike most people, Theron found himself being lured by the beguiling warlock. Perhaps he was getting soft in his old age, letting Nixalegos entice him only because he had shown a delightful charm and careful regard to a person of Theron’s caliber. Or maybe he was just old fashioned and a sour old codger ready to berate the ineptitude of the younger generation.

Instead, he had fondled the vial Lord Felscythe had given him several times, thinking not upon the task that had been set before him but the complexity and intent of the creature, Nixalegos Felscythe. He sought to catch a glimpse of the Nethermancer through the eyes of his ravenwatch or perhaps a careless whisper caught by the spirits. Alas, there was more chatter on other matters than what he needed to sate his curiosity. Lord Felscythe had done his due diligence somehow as not many wooed Theron with careful praise on the blood magic he oft shrouded in secrecy and shared with very few.

It had only worked too well.

Distractions aside, Theron puzzled over the vial, finally paying it due mind when the frustration of keeping tabs on the Nethermancer was rendered moot and his specimens had been gathered. It was true, the charismatic lord found his way to a mailbox every third day, checking it religiously as he had stated. In hopes Theron would deliver something? Eager to find the words of his ally in this endeavor?

Perhaps.

“They are ready, Master.” The raspy voice of a raven horror was accompanied with the soft clicks of its beak, trying hard to wrap its throat and beak around the common language despite the fact Theron could understand ravenspeak. Silently, Theron followed his minion through the snaking halls of his Sanctum, idly playing with the vial in his hands as he came upon the scene he had tasked his minions to prepare.

His obsession with Nixalegos had made him tarry long enough. Realizing that he had wasted time trying to decipher an elf that might prove just as much as an enigma as The Sanguine Sorceress, Theron delved into the project at hand. Instead of questioning the motives, he dove into what he could learn from Nixalegos’ little project itself. After all, he held in his hand the ability to either thwart or aid the Nethermancer.

But one could lure more flies with honey than vinegar.

Theron followed his raven minion into one of three larger spaces in his underground sanctum. Four figures were blindfolded, bound, gagged and hung upside down from meat hooks against the far wall. Two raven horrors stood in each corner as sentinels, silent and attentive. “A Ren’dorei warrior and shadow priest. A Lightforged paladin and a Kal’dorei priestess. Very well. Take notes and let us begin.”

“The goal is Ren’dorei blood that will remain mobile yet be tame enough to be used as ink. The second goal is to keep the very same blood in a pseudo fluid state so that it is able to run. It is too unruly in its natural state to be forced into the wiles of the writer and faces the issue, as most blood is wont, to dry. It is unknown what the end result will be used for but I can only surmise Lord Felscythe has much in store for such a … sanguine tool. Perhaps a way to hide secrets within false documents? To present a message that reads one way to one and different to another?” The slight scratching of a quill against parchment could be heard as Theron worked, drawing blood from all four of his subjects.

“My attention was drawn to the issue by Lord Felscythe himself, showing interest in my expertise in the subject matter of blood magic. How and when and from whom he discovered I practiced such is unknown. Another enigmatic persona as the Sorceress though far more pleasant, so far.”

“Subject 1 was chosen for his inability to display any particularly large feat of magical use. He is of typical appearance of a Ren’dorei with darkening of the skin, blue eyes and emerging appendages from the crown of the head. Subject appears to be in great physical condition, breathing and struggling. Blood was drawn from the arm without any significant incident. Subject’s blood is to be used as the control and be labeled as Sample A and B.”

“Subject 2 is a Ren’dorei with a class of shadow priest. Typical of appearance. Darker in appearance than subject 1 with multiple tentacle growths. Capture revealed that he is able to wield four more tentacles in combat. Subject 2 has been subdued not only with binds but with a special collar of my own design to nullify magical ability. The subject appears in good physical condition, breathing but a bit lethargic. No other extraordinary observations found. Subject 2’s blood is to be Sample C and D, a more concentrated form of void magic.”

“Subject 3 is a Lightforged draenei. Typical of appearance. Twin horns with Lightforged tattoos etched into the skin. Capture revealed an innate ability to channel the Light both as offensive and defensive. Subject 3 has been fitted with a collar similar to Subject 2’s for restraint and nullification. Subject is in great physical condition and has broken her bindings twice, displaying exceptional strength. No other extraordinary observations are reported. It is worthy to note that the idea of a holy priest of the Lightforged draenei might have been a better subject but an argument can be made against such usage. Priests can be tainted with shadow magic. It is my understanding that paladins are graced by the Light, favored if one will believe the farce of the Naaru, and thus dependent on the Light alone. To date, I have not seen a shadow paladin but have encountered many a shadow priest. It stands to be understood that while priests may wield the Light just as paladins do, priests are able and therefore more prone to be tainted by the shadows and the Void itself. There are indeed more creatures of the Void than we are led to believe, perhaps an endeavor for another time. Subject 3’s blood is to be used in Experiment 1 and added to both Sample A and C.”

“Subject 4 is a Kaldorei priestess. Subject presents to be typical in appearance. No extraordinary deformities with pale violet skin and silver eyes. It is important to note that she appears to be older of age and female given the history of night elves and their recent lift of sex restrictions for some classes. She has been fitted with a nullification collar as well. Capture revealed holy magic as both offensive and defensive similar to the paladin. She was very adept with a glaive and various weapons, dispatching two of my raven minions in the scuffle. I resort to a small explanation as to why the exception has been made for this particular priestess in the usage of this experiment. Subject 4 was extensively followed, researched, and witnessed to only be using the power of her Goddess. While there are instances of Kaldorei shadow priests, they are far less numerous than priests in other races. It is therefore reasonable to believe that this priestess is untainted by the call and whisper of the Void. Well, as virginal to the Void as can be found and versed in Elune graced holy magic as can be achieved without delving into more taboo subjects. Subject 4’s blood is to be used in Experiment 2 and added to Sample B and D.”

“There was a definitive exclusion of druids given that there are no Ren’dorei druids. Nature magic tends to have a very inert and neutral reaction to Void and Light magic combined. Let me further explain the fact that while some can wield both Shadow and Light magic, it is very difficult and often described as painful. Holy healing magic has been experienced as excruciating, yet reparative if the patient can stand it, to those whose disciplines lay in Void and darker magic. Nature magic, on the other hand, has been found to be able to heal both those who wield the Light or the Void without extensive and recursive side effects. Perhaps an avenue to delve into if this experiment wields no favorable results.”

“Tauren paladins and priests were also excluded given their heavy involvement with nature magic. Their worship of An’she could be compared to the Kaldorei’s Elune and thus similar to Subject 4. The paladin is easily discounted given their most recent manifestation of the discipline. The priest was discounted given the possibility of the shadow taint. Their involvement for the purposes of this experiment is therefore rendered moot.”

“Forsaken were never remotely considered given that blood, a life source, is the subject matter. While some necromantic energy may be able to make blood flow it is still undead blood. The logistics of such are ... astounding as to how certain Forsaken wield Holy magic. It would add an element that may be unfavorable but worth looking into if curiosity allows.”

“Shal’dorei could be deemed a logical addition to this experiment but their heavy involvement with the arcane and possible involvement with demonic forces of the Legion would add factors that could produce tainted results. Nonetheless, it is a path that will be explored at a later time.”

“The four subjects for this experiment were carefully chosen but the possibility of other elements adding or detracting from the experiment itself cannot be discounted. Such a large endeavor could be taken on with larger samples but would require a lengthier amount of time given the size that the experiment would evolve into. Certainly a project to be taken under my wing … for personal reasons.”

“Nevertheless, the results of this experiment will be revealed to Lord Felscythe in his venture to use Ren’dorei blood as a magical ink. The process itself, may need a bit more convincing to be divulged but given the direction and request of Lord Felscythe, the end results should be tamed Ren’dorei blood. As it stands now, the very mutations that manifest themselves within the host appear to be part of the blood. It is curious that not all Ren’dorei have extra appendages though it may be true that they may manifest in battle instead of being openly seen on their person.”

“Felscythe described the blood as an ‘unruly beast’ but blood manipulation is easily achieved by a Sangromancer. The ability is the first for any tender blood mage to master though difficult to perfect. The purpose, therefore being, to render the blood into a permanent stage of obedience for any to use.”

“On the matter of keeping it … mobile and liquid, my adept skills have kept blood in a liquid state until I no longer needed it. It would appear that a simple spell should keep it from clotting along with a few choice ingredients from Nazmir. One man’s loss is another’s gain. Forbidden to go to Nazmir.” Theron laughed, thoroughly amused at the restriction that had been placed upon him once. Hearing the scratching of the quill on parchment, Theron stormed to his raven minion’s side and read over his feathery shoulder. “No. Strike the last from the record. No one forbids me.”

In the very mailbox that Lord Felscythe checked every three days, there would arrive a package. After the non-descript brown wrapping had been peeled back, a letter was enclosed. A bluish-violet ink held the name Lord Felscythe on the outside of the envelope. The letter inside was written in the same, un-dried ink and read as follows:

Lord Felscythe,

As agreed, Lord Felscythe. These are but samples of what I have achieved. If they are to your liking, we can speak on the logistics in person.

Enclosure: One oak box

It was not signed but the seal of a raven in flight was carved into the top of the box. The product needed no explanation. Within the box, tucked amongst black velvet and silk as if they were two delicate pieces of jewelry, Nixalegos would find two clear ink wells. They both held a thicker liquid of purplish-blue. One was a lighter color of violet than the vial that had been handed to Theron ages ago and held a small label with an A on it. The other, labeled with a simple B, held the same color of violet that had been in the gift that Nixalegos had given to Theron except it held a silvery glint. It almost appeared like stars were winking back at Felscythe.

Upon looking at the letter once more, the words and letters on the letter itself seemed to pull themselves apart and wriggle their way over the parchment to create yet another message in Theron’s fancy writing:

For Lord Felscythe’s eyes only –

Only under the eyes of the Moon will the words dance again.

Indeed, once night fell, words whispered across the parchment again given that the moon was present even by a sliver. As if absorbing the very rays of the moon, the words disappeared off the parchment and reformed another message. This time, the words were outlined in silver.

You have my full attention, Lord Felscythe. There is much more from where this all came from.

The words remained for a moment before reforming back to the original cryptic message, glistening malevolently against the brown of the parchment.

#aaaaahh #sorry it took so long!#ty for this moment #to delve into #madscientist!Theron #nixalegos #lord felscythe #blood magic

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