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olderthannetfic · 2 months

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I found AO3 pretty intuitive. Took me like 5 minutes to realize how all the little buttons work. They're pretty straightforward. Apart from the AND filters - took me a while to realize what type of filters AO3 used. Beyond that, I'm not sure why people have a hard time? Wattpad and FFnet are way more of a pain in the ass.

It's all about familiarity.

I mean, look, AO3 works how my brain works. When we first set it up, it was what we were all used to, more or less, but an upgrade. It was hard to even see how it could ever be unintuitive because this was just How Things Were. From the style of trope tags to the fact that there's an index of fandoms by media type, it was all familiar.

But that thinking is a trap.

It's easy to say "Oh, well, that person's just an idiot", and sometimes, the problem really is laziness or sleep deprivation, but a lot of the time, it's different cultural context.

By the time we were designing AO3, I'd had many rounds of formal instruction in how to use library catalogues of various sorts, familiarity with Delicious, years in LJ slash fandom whose assumptions form the metadata structures of AO3, etc.

There's nothing strange about going "Why are ship types a top level system of organization?" or "How do I search for genre X in any anime fandom but not in non-anime fandoms?"

It's strange to me, but it's not strange in the context of people who read fanfic overall.

It's not just about learning the search features that do exist: it's about unconscious assumptions about what metadata must exist.

If you don't know to look for something and you aren't coming from a culture where poking buttons is encouraged, you're going to take a lot longer to find things than if you already have a good idea of what's probably there somewhere.

To pick two very obvious examples:

If I were designing a gen-focused archive, I'd make genre a top-level organization system, like on FFN.

If I were designing a more x-reader-focused or One True Character-focused archive, I'd make the ship searches work like Character X/Anyone instead of having to click on each ship of your blorbo or each ship with Reader.

If someone has years of experience searching for some bullshit 'trickyfish' style nonsense ship name because they're on sites with garbage searches, they'll go to AO3, plug some words into the search bar at the top, and then feel like they can't find any relevant results because everything that turns up is just that word in author's notes on an irrelevant fic. They might even go to advanced search...

...and then totally miss that the sidebar filters are the best part of AO3, and they don't appear when you do a search search as opposed to starting from a tag.

Isn't Advanced Search the most... well... advanced search? On every other website, it is, but not on AO3.

Each new site/technology/culture/etc. a person has to learn takes time and attention. If you're exhausted and burnt out, that's hard. Even if you're not, it takes at least some effort. It doesn't Just Happen, not for every person and every new thing.

We should tell people to read the damn FAQ, yes.

But I can't say I always do that myself on every site unless I'm both having a problem and invested enough to care about solving it.

On an average day, most of us don't need to care why some people have a hard time figuring out AO3.

But if anyone is planning to design a site or needs to teach a bunch of kids how to use the library or something, it's worth keeping in mind just how many unconscious assumptions are hiding behind the idea of something—literally anything—being "intuitive".

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nassilove · 1 year

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Comfort after S/O dies

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Relationship status: Best friends

Age group: 30’s

Setting: Tetsuo visiting Arumi

Friends location: In Japan (Mitsuaki), in Britain (Goldie & Chihiro)

POV: Arumi

Word count: 2,4k

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(NOTE: Nihonshu means “Japanese sake”, since “sake” is an umbrella term for alcohol.)

The news shook her, he could easily tell. She has been so quiet lately. It reminds him of the first few days after their meeting.

It's not like it didn't affect him either, he was friends with Leon too, it was pretty much mandatory. He was so charming and friendly, reminding him of another friend they have. That must've helped them get along.

It wasn't like everyone didn't know it could happen, everyone just tried to ignore it and hope for the best. He isn't a stranger to that. Far from it. Thankfully, Arumi seems to be in decent condition considering the circumstances. It's hard to gauge much considering her hand is halfway blocking his view of her face and her eyes are closed. Her body isn't blocked. It looks slack at first glance but is rigid in actuality. She seems tired but not that sleep deprived, she still eats, even if just a little, since there's a bowl of something on the counter.

All he needs to do is lift her mood. He isn't… good at this. He knows more than anyone how bad he is at this part. He's not bad at normal comfort but this is trying to help someone get over loss. He's not used to it.

“Hey Rumi,” At his voice, her eyes open to look at him with that blank judgemental gaze, he could feel the hairs on the nape of his neck rising. Remembering some of the worst mistakes he's ever made. He tries to shake it off and get his head together, it doesn't matter. It's in the past, can't change it now.

She must be in worse condition emotionally than he initially thought, normally she had control over that stare, only doing it as an intimidation tactic, he's surprised he can think about that, normally even people with more resolve than he's ever seen in his life ends up crumbling, but he's… Mostly fine. Maybe. Still a little shaky but okay. She must still have some control.

Tilting her head at him, her eyes widen in realization, “Ah…” she closes her eyes. “Sorry.”

Shaking his head, both to clear his mind but also to say that the apology was unnecessary, he goes over to sit in the chair across from her, just to see her face clearly. She's looking at him with her head tilted, eyes going back to normal.

Now that she isn't looking at him with the hair raising gaze and her hand isn't in the way, he can see how red her eyes are, her iris was already a deep red but now her sclera is too. Her breathing is normal but she looks so sad. Her head tilting, mouth partly open as she looks at him with wide puffy eyes and furrowed brows.

“Hello Tetsu… How are you?”

“I think I should be asking you that, Rumi.”

She laughs a little, “I'm sure it's obvious, I've never been good at hiding my feelings.”

“Well yes,” he pats her head, “but I’d like to hear it from you.”

Sighing, she lays her head on the table, his hand following to give her more headpats.

“I wish I could lie and say I’m fine, but to be honest I feel like shit. Been craving some nihonshu. I don't care which type currently but any of the Ginjo-shu or Daiginjo-shu ones would be great.”

“Maybe we’ll find some, not as good as the ones at home, but there might be some somewhere.” as he continues to subconsciously pat her head.

“Gasp!” She says dramatically, lifting her head while grabbing his wrist to stop the pats, “Are you trying to get me to drink when I have two children to take care of?” She smiles, letting go, “How dare you!”

Ruffling her hair, he pulls away, “Your alcohol tolerance is higher than anyone I’ve seen, one bottle isn't going to do anything. Especially if you drink it slowly.”

“You know I don't drink slowly.”

“I said especially. You do fine even on five bottles.”

“I was a young adult back then! I'm like… Almost 37 now!”

He pokes her cheek, “You don't look older than 20. Plus, didn’t you just drink 3 bottles worth at that party a month ago?”

She pouts, batting his hand away, and says sarcastically, “I’m asian, if I looked my age I’d be very sad.”

She's starting to act like usual. He’d leave it at that, but he's read that it's sometimes best to talk about it, plus he's no stranger to pretending and she isn't either, even if she sure makes for a convincing fool, he knows she can easily lie if she wanted to.

“Hey Rumi. You know what I’m here for right?”

She sighs, smiling sadly, “Yeah, I mean I did do the same thing with you, though hopefully I don't look as dead as you did.”

“I'm going to ignore that comment because I care about you.” Shifting his position to mimic hers, except his right hand is casually placed in the middle of the table, he continues, “We should probably talk about it.”

She sighs, looking to the side and grabbing his hand subconsciously, “We should, but…”

“It hurts?”

“Yeah.”

Squeezing her hand in reassurance, he spoke in a soft voice, “He was a friend of mine too, I still remember when he excitedly told everyone that he got a perfect shot 20 times in a row while training.”

She snickers, “pft, he was like a child showing you the gold star they got from the teacher. Actually I think that's exactly what he was.”

She smiles wider now, squeezing his hand back, “He's such a kid on the inside, it was so cute. This big buff demon is more innocent than me.”

“I still can't believe you're half Japanese dragon, you sure you're not mostly European?”

She pouts, “Hey! Only my mom was, and just a little! My dad was a full Japanese dragon.”

“Guess your personality took after your mom then huh? Your older sister said you were a pain to take care of and teach manners to.”

She lets out a squeak, squeezing her hand into fists, or she would if she wasn't holding onto his. Instead, she grabbed his hands with both of hers, “My sister said that!? Why? When?”

“A few years ago on one of our visits, she said she was lucky you didn't inherit the hoarding instincts your mom had.”

“My mom has kept everything anyone has given her, we’re lucky we’re well off and have enough space for it all.” She rolled her eyes, remembering that her mom would even be uncomfortable having her around ‘the hoard’.

She pouts at him again, “Still don’t know how you managed to get it out of her though.”

He only winks, “A detective never reveals his secrets.”

She pulls her arms back and crosses them, “You only count as a detective if you work for the police. Until then you’re a private investigator.”

He pokes her again, “You understand what I mean. Plus it rolls off the tongue better.”

He hums, “speaking of which, how did your parents feel when you introduced your husband?”

She leans back on the chair, right hand cupping her cheek and flushing in embarrassment, “Oh I was so scared you don't even know.”

“I did.”

“What?”

“Don't you remember? You were shaking and clinging onto me, babbling about how nervous you were.”

“I did no such thing!”

“Pretty sure you even began flying subconsciously, I had to call your husband to pull you down since I couldn't reach you myself.”

“He didn't hear it did he?”

“We might’ve stood and listened for a minute or two.”

“I hate you both.”

“And we both love you. You should remember that.”

Her eyes widen in surprise, arms uncrossing, putting her hand on the counter again, “Oh, you did not just use the opportunity to say that.” she tries to pout in a playfully annoyed way.

“I did, and it's true. I love you and I can tell your husband does too.” He grabs her hands, they're trembling, and looks into her eyes, “I’m here for you. I don't know how difficult it is, but loss is never easy. That much I know. Take your time to grieve. There's no rush.”

He would've been surprised at the wetness hitting his hands if he wasn't already staring at her. Her trembling has increased tenfold. When was the last time he saw her upset? When was the last time he saw her cry? If there wasn't a table in the way, he would've pulled her into a hug, she needs it.

He would say something, but it doesn't feel like it's the time.

She starts sobbing, hands gripping his like iron vices, body curling into itself. “I- I always had a feeling… it… I just didn’t want to…”

She tugs his hand closer, practically crying into them. Table or not, he’s giving her a hug. It doesn’t seem like she wants to, or even can, talk right now.

Klggh

The chair clatters as he stands abruptly, Arumi looking up in surprise and softening her grip on his hands. He uses one of them to lift himself up on the table and keeps the other in her hand.

Sitting on the edge of the table, he pulls her into a hug. Normally she’s the one engulfing him since she’s taller, but when sitting like this, he can do the same to her.

She nearly crushes him with the strength of her hug, as she clings onto him and cries.

No one talks as they both sit there. The only sounds are her sobs, which has now died down to hiccups, and his breathing.

“I… I tho- thought I’d b-be ready…”

She could barely finish a word before her hiccuping starts up, still trembling in his hold.

“You’re doing great Arumi… It hurts a lot. You’re doing so well. It’s okay. Take all the time you need. There’s no time limit to grief.”

He hears a whimper, feeling hands tightening on his clothes as she looks up into his eyes, her own red and glossy. “Ho-ow did yo-u s-stop griev-ving?”

He frowns, pulling her head back into his chest. “I didn't.” She tries to take deep breaths, hiccups interrupting her, but she's slowly calming down, her hiccups lessening and her trembling stopping.

Wiping at her eyes, she notices that his shirt is practically doused in tears. “Ha-haha! S-Sorry Tetsu. That shirt has drowned.”

He shrugs, smiling playfully, “It's been through worse. I fell into the river with it once.”

“Oh right!” She giggles and looks down with lidded eyes, “Leon dragged you with him to swim right? He thought you had already changed.”

Huffing, he crosses his arms, careful not to touch the tear stains on his shirt, which was difficult, “Just because I wore shorts and a t-shirt doesn't mean it's fit for swimming!”

She giggles at this, “I don't think he knows the difference at this point, people can swim in anything!”

Her giggles slowly die down as she sighs softly, looking up at him, hopeful, but with hints of sorrow and… Happiness?

“Can we talk more about him…?”

He feels his eyes widening, before he closes them and smiles sadly, “Of course.”

You took it so well, you seem happier now.

If only I had the strength to do the same.

#Tetsuo #Arumi #Oneshot #tw mentions of death

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nikikyuuun · 3 years

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Hello! May you write Souma and Madara(separate) with an s/o who is super sleep deprived but tends to overwork themselves? Thank you!!

my first request! 💕 thank you kindly for sending one in, anon~ i'm not suuuper familiar with madara yet, so i'm sorry if he might be a little ooc! i do hope you enjoy, though!

❧ souma and madara with a sleep-deprived, overworking s/o

content warnings: none

❧ souma himself is a hard worker as well—after all, he needs to give it his all to catch up to kiryu-dono and hasumi-dono! your hardworking nature is likely one of the many things he admires about you, if it isn't what initially drew him to you in the first place. he's definitely had moments where he's almost been caught watching you while you work. he can't help it. save this man.

❧ he'd definitely take issue with it once it starts affecting your health, though! souma's incredibly perceptive when it comes to you; once he takes notice of the bags under your eyes, or the way you drag your feet as you walk, he's already gently pulling you to the side and asking if you've been getting enough rest, dearest?

❧ he's the type to do whatever he can to alleviate your workload so you can catch up on sleep! having trouble with schoolwork? souma's already peering at it from over your shoulder to help you with it. your club is giving you a lot of extra things to do? he's already asking for any instructions they might've given you. it's painfully obvious to just about everyone that he cares for you a lot, you see! if something is giving you trouble, he'll do anything in his power to help you.

❧ that being said, if your work is something he can't quite help with—it's regrettable, but he understands—he'll still try to make your work process a bit less bumpy, and remind you to sleep before it gets too late. he'll pull you away from your desk by ten at night at the latest and brew you a cup of tea to help you wind down—"you did well today, my love," he'd say, a small little smile on his face as he regards you, "but let us rest now, before it gets too late."

❧ just like souma, madara really admires how hardworking you are! he's incredibly supportive about it, too: he has just about no shame when it comes to encouraging or cheering you on. if he can't be there in person, he's definitely the type to leave cute little sticky-notes for you. or blow up your phone. probably both, depending on the day!

❧ since he hangs around you so much while you're working, he's no stranger to your tendencies to overwork. he knows habits die hard, but madara's naturally inclined to worry about you and your health in particular. maybe he's a little biased, but it's you! it's kind of hard to deny him when he says it like that, isn't it?

❧ madara really wants you to depend on him, to the point that he'd even outright do some of your work for you, if he's allowed to and you'll let him. if not, he'll still pitch in where he can. errand runs? check. printer runs? also check. he'll bring you some food and a drink and a little kiss on the forehead, while he's at it! the last thing he wants is for you to get burnt out, after all.

❧ that being said, he's not above outright carrying you right out of your chair and straight into bed if that's what it takes to get you to rest for the night. it's great that you're working hard! he's sure that you're doing an amazing job! but he doesn't want you to sacrifice your health for it—and he'll make sure he tells you so, and (lovingly) drag you into bed as much as he needs to.

#ensemble stars x reader #enstars x reader #souma kanzaki x reader #madara mikejima x reader #bee.writes

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