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lurkingshan · 7 months

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Hi Shan!

I hope you're doing well and thank you for all your metas and recs. They are always such a great read!

I have realised that I am quite anxious about currently airing shows not sticking the landing (IFYLITA mostly, I only seem to care about this one recently). You may have previously written about it(?), but which dramas (BL or otherwise), do you think have the most satisfying endings?

Oh, and bonus question, do you have an ending that you approve of, was really good and all, but you would never ever rewatch it because of *too many feels*?

Hey Kat! Thanks for the ask. I totally get the fear of a bad ending, it has soured many a drama experience, and sometimes it really does take you off guard. I feel like when most dramas end I'm just happy if the ending doesn't retroactively ruin anything, let alone it actually being meaningfully good. I had to think about this for a minute, but I do think there are some dramas where the ending is so good it actually enhances the overall story and watch experience.

First, a few that I would classify as having really lovely happy endings that feel very well-earned after lots of pain and strife

My Lovely Sam Soon

This drama is a classic from 2005, and it caught me off guard with how invested I got. It's a pretty standard romcom about a quirky "fat" (*stares into the camera*) woman who gets hired by a chaebol restaurant owner. They start out adversarial before eventually falling in love, with the hero working through his surprising feelings for this woman who does not fit his image of his ideal partner and the heroine overcoming her own body image and self-esteem issues. Sounds basic, right? But something about it just works. At the end, the heroine sings a love song to her beau with her terrible singing voice while he looks on adoringly, and something about it was just so touching that I actually burst into tears.

My Mister

One of my favorite endings of any drama ever. Our heroine Ji An has been through it, and via a platonic relationship with her older boss, she gets the support she needs to turn her life around. I spent half of this drama white knuckling in fear that they would try to turn the relationship romantic, but they stayed true to the purpose of this narrative. Instead of a romance, we end with the two of them running into each other on the street after a time skip. They meet eyes, he sees that she is happy and well and they just smile gently at each other. Perfection.

The Untamed

Possibly a controversial pick, given that this is significantly altered from the novel, which has a much better resolution to the romance. But given the constraints this adaptation was under and the need to keep the relationship ambiguous for censorship reasons, I think this show did a remarkable job of getting the romance across. This ending where they meet again on a hillside, Lan Wangji calls his name, Wei Wuxian turns and we see a smile slowly light his face up is absolutely beautiful and a very romantic note to leave us on.

This second group of endings are more bittersweet resolutions, but ones I thought really added to the poignancy of the stories and made the relationships feel all the more epic

Bad Buddy

Something that always surprises me about the way people talk about BBS is they often seem to...forget that the ending is actually really fucking sad? I guess because the couple is together and still happy with each other, folks overlook the deep melancholy of the circumstances under which they are able to maintain their relationship. So let me remind you! Pat and Pran are in a long distance relationship, they are still not out to anyone but their closest friends, and they are forced to put on a charade in front of their families so everyone can carry on pretending. They are still hiding, their family relationships are irreparably altered, and we know it's a constant strain on them. It's a perfect bittersweet note to drive home the serious sacrifices they are making in the name of filial piety even as they refuse to give each other up.

Crash Landing on You

Switzerland, the true MVP of this story. Se Ri and Jung Hyeok do not have the option of simply choosing one of their home countries to live in together, and both have obligations they cannot abandon at home. And so in the end they settle for being mostly apart, taking time together in neutral territory as often as they can manage. Is it enough? No, but it's better than moving on from each other.

Goblin

This story is a tragedy and it stuck to its guns on that while also finding a way to give the characters (and the viewers) some kind of happiness to hang onto. Shin is doomed to live forever and watch Eun Tak die over and over again, but at least he also gets to meet and be with her before each death. Him meeting her again in her second life, with the looming knowledge that he will outlive her again and be left alone, is a perfect combination of joyful and mournful, very appropriate for this story.

I Promised You the Moon

One of my favorite romance endings ever, because it does what the genre rarely allows in acknowledging that the couple may not, in fact, stay together forever, and that's okay. Oh-Aew decides to take Teh back because he wants to be with him and he hopes they may be better equipped to deal with their issues in the future, not because he feels confident things will not go wrong again. In fact, he directly acknowledges that they probably will. It's a very mature resolution and a fitting end to a coming of age story.

Someday or One Day

This time travel story ends with the leads deciding to break the loop they have been living in, sacrificing their romantic relationship in the process. It's a brave and selfless choice made to protect others, and the narrative rewards them by giving them some hope of another path to each other in the future. We leave them meeting again at a different time with a significant age gap and no memory of each other, and a hope that they will find a way to each other in this new reality.

These next two kind of stand on their own as unique, as I have not seen other dramas that pull off what their endings do

The Glory

The best thing about this drama is that it's a revenge story where the revenge is fully carried out, no one is given unearned redemption, and every character gets exactly what they deserve. That probably shouldn't be revelatory, but in my experience, it is! Asian dramas love to hand out unearned redemption to villainous characters, but this drama was simply Not. Having. It. It was such a satisfying watch.

Utsukushii Kare

The ending of this one pulled off the neat trick of reframing everything that came before it, flipping the perspective so that nothing about previous events actually changed, but our understanding of what it all meant was turned on its head. This is a difficult writing trick that requires deep understanding of your characters' psychology and full command of every detail of your story, and it was incredibly impressive. It instantly turned it into one of my all-time favorites.

Bonus question: Dramas with endings that were fantastic, but that made me never want to watch again because of the feels

I had to think on this one a bit because I actually really enjoy getting into my feelings over dramas and regularly torture myself by rewatching sad shit. But I did come up with two dramas that I probably won't ever watch again for different reasons: The Red Sleeve and Secret Love Affair. With TRS, it's rooted in a specific kind of pain that I found quite brutal as a viewer: the total denial of any moment of happy catharsis, which was an intentional and appropriate choice to underline its message. This is a love story that the heroine did not want or choose, and so she never gives in and embraces it, and neither can we. The show refuses to romanticize the concubine life and I respect it, but boy was it hard to watch.

With SLA, it's more a matter of the anxiety it provokes. That drama was, hands down, the most stressful watch experience of my life, even more than thrillers that are intentionally trying to stress me out! The romance is actually super compelling but you can't relax for a moment because everything is on a knife's edge. And the ending was not at all happy, but somehow still managed to feel like a breath of fresh air for both the heroine and us, because we finally escaped that confining dynamic she was trapped in. A perfect ending to a brilliant drama and also a watch experience I am not looking to repeat.

#bad buddy #crash landing on you #the untamed #goblin #the glory #utsukushii kare #i promised you the moon #someday or one day #drama recs #drama endings #thanks again for the ask!#i do love an excuse to ramble about my favorite dramas #shan answers #shan recommends

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shuploc · 8 months

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How long does a typical piece take you?

I'm honestly not too sure anymore in terms of pure work hours, but if it's just a "regular" portrait and not something super elaborate, it's about 2½, perhaps just 2 days. I'll start working on a drawing one night before bed, draw the majority of it the next day, and then polish it on the third day, if I don't have anything else I need to do.

I could probably finish a drawing in one day, but I don't think I would be very happy with it. If I sit and look at the same thing for hours, I'll start to "become blind" to it and no longer notice the mistakes. I spend a lot of time just sitting and looking at the drawing too, flipping the canvas, zooming in and out. I've honestly saved so many drawings from being terrible, just by taking a break, coming back, and fixing all the mistakes I would notice right away.

If I had to give you an exact number, probably between 8-12 hours, and that's including me sitting and starring at the drawing too. This very much doesn't include all the time I have to spend getting inspired and motivated to draw and all the hours I spend finding the correct reference photos and such. But yeah, each piece take a long time! Thank you so much for the ask though, I hope this answered your question! 🤗

#-and hope the answer wasn't too long lmao #but yeah' I used to spend about 6-8 hours on drawings for the longest time #but now it takes way longer #...they do also turn out better' so I guess it makes sense 😅#thanks again for the ask!

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chaotic-goodsir · 3 months

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Your curtwen drabbles get me everytime you write them so well!! Thank you so much for writing them 😭 If you’re up for it, how about 95 for curtwen or lautski

Aw, thank you!! You're absolutely welcome - I've had a lot of fun writing these and I'm glad you enjoyed them! This is maybe not quite what you expected for this prompt, but I hope you like it anyway. It's also the longest so far I think, so uh, so much for drabbles. I really need to learn to write shorter things.

(I went for Curtwen again, because I am predictable 😅)

Ms Mega has a plan.

The inspiration first struck couple of days ago. Curtis was away on agency business - some kind of important meeting - and she was in the living room, sorting through old photo albums. She'd almost forgotten she wasn’t alone in the house when a hesitant voice spoke up from the doorway.

'Um, good morning, Ms Mega. Could I… can I help you with that, at all?'

The voice's owner looked, as usual, in dire need of a decent night's sleep. He leant against the doorway as though it was the only thing keeping him standing, one hand anxiously twisting the tie on that blue plaid dressing gown she’d given him to borrow.

She shuffled over and patted the couch beside her.

‘Well of course! Come and sit down. I was just trying to get these photos organised. You know, I can never get Curtis to help me with things like this. You wait here and I’ll get us some coffee – or tea, if you want?’

Owen sat down like someone half in a dream, picked up an envelope of unsorted photos and stared at it like he wasn't sure exactly what to do.

‘Tea or coffee, honey?’ she asked again.

'Oh, um, tea would be excellent, thank you.'

‘I haven’t started on that envelope yet – how about you have a look through them and we’ll pick the best ones for this album? I’ll be right back.’

When she glanced back from the door as she left, Owen had barely moved. He sat staring straight ahead at the fireplace, absent-mindedly turning the envelope over and over, in a way that made Ms Mega think of her cousin Jack after the Great War. Not for the first time, she found herself worrying about her son's English friend.

By the time she came back with the drinks, he'd at least opened the envelope and was flicking through some of the photos. He paused on one that showed Curtis, aged maybe about twelve, dressed up all fancy with his arm around that lovely girl from next door, whose name she found she couldn’t recall.

'Ah, that's from the dancing competition!' she explained as Owen studied the photo. 'He used to be very good, you know. Takes after his mama.'

'Dancing?'

'Ballroom,' she said proudly. 'He used to love dancing with me when he was little, so I sent him to classes when I could afford it. That girl lived next door to us - she was his partner. They were such good friends. Like peas in a pod. I used to think they might get married one day! Well, I suppose he doesn't do much dancing now, with all the spying and everything. It's a shame. He had a real a talent for it.'

'So you'll want to keep this one, then?' Owen asked, looking at the chaotic pile of albums on the coffee table as though wondering where to start.

'Keep it? Maybe I oughta frame it! Curtis would be so embarrassed to see it again.'

Owen smiled a little at that. He put the photo aside and picked up the mug of hot tea, clasping it tightly in both hands. She couldn't help but notice the mug shaking a little.

'Are you feeling alright, honey?’ she asked, sitting back down beside him.

‘Mm? Yes, sorry. I’m fine. Thank you.’

She’d have thought a secret agent would be a better liar.

‘There’s no need to help me if you’re not feeling so good. You just watch if you like. It’s nice to have someone to talk to. Curtis will tell you, I can talk anyone’s ear off.'

So she carried on with her sorting, and Owen listened while she talked about vacations and school awards and weddings and christenings and relatives he had no reason to be interested in. It was strange - she'd done the same with Tatiana, but as sweet as the Russian girl was, she'd never shown the kind of interest Ms Mega would have expected from her son's future fiancée. Maybe Tati just wasn't the nostalgia type.

Owen, on the other hand - once he finished the tea and relaxed a little - seemed to have a million questions. What did Curt win that award for? (Dancing, again. He and his partner were first in the county!) Where were they in that photo by the sea? (California, the furthest they'd ever travelled before Curtis got his spy job and the house in Guadeloupe). Who was the man in some of the older photos? (Curtis's father. He left when he was a baby, and good riddance. By that time he wasn't a very nice man to be around…)

Something about the interest Owen took in her son’s life only increased Ms Mega’s suspicions – the ones she’d been harbouring ever since Curtis first brought this stray to her door. She knew her son must have his reasons for bringing Owen here, and for jumping through what seemed like endless agency hoops to help him after whatever it was that happened in Europe. Before he left for this particular meeting, he’d asked her to take care of Owen while he was gone - which, of course, she would have done anyway, but there was something in his tone she’d never heard him use for anyone else. Not even for Tati.

Ms Mega is nothing if not both nosy and resourceful, and so, after the photos reminded her of her son's talent for dancing, she started to hatch her plan.

Now, a few days later, she's waiting in the living room holding a record she found in the attic, grinning to herself at her own mischief. She’s pushed the coffee table to one side to make space for a dancefloor, and strategically left the album with the photos from her son’s dancing career open on top of it. Dinner is in the oven, and now all that’s left to set the plan in motion is for Curtis and Owen to return.

Curtis got home last night, and she chased the two of them out of the house this morning with ‘spring cleaning’ as an excuse. Of course they (or, well, Owen) offered to help, but she pushed them out of the door all the same.

'Don't be silly! Now off you go for a walk, or whatever it is you boys do for fun. It'll do you some good to get out of the house.'

Officially, Owen is not supposed to leave the house at all. But a guest in Ms Mega's house lives by Ms Mega's rules - not those of any spy agency, even one that pays the rent.

The boys should be back soon, now. She dusts off the record and sets it on the battered old record player, and once she’s sure it isn’t too scratched to play properly, she starts to dance.

She pretends she doesn’t hear Curt call out as he walks in the door. Best not to look as though any of this was prepared.

Curtis and Owen appear in the doorway just as she's twirling under the arm of an imaginary partner, her skirt and apron spinning. She can tell Owen is politely trying to hide a smirk. Curtis just looks mortified.

'Mom? What are you doing?'

She grins.

'Oh, don't mind me! Just reliving my younger days. Curtis, I found some old photos of when you used to go do dancing lessons with that girl from next door. Do you remember that? She was such a nice girl, what was her name?'

‘…Sadie?’

'That’s it! You know, I was telling Owen the other day what a good dancer you used to be. You had a real talent, ever since you used to dance with me as a baby.' She grabs his wrist, trying to drag him into a dance with her, but he pulls away, face scarlet.

‘Mom!’

'What? Too embarrassed to dance with your old mother? Jeez. I guess I’ll just go and get dinner ready then. Honestly, a mother can’t have any fun.’

She winks at Owen as she passes him in the doorway, and enjoys the slightly baffled look on his face. Plan stage one: complete.

She tries her best to listen in from the kitchen as she takes the pie out of the oven and prepares the potatoes. The record stops playing abruptly, and for a moment she’s disappointed, but then it starts up again. There’s muffled talking as she sets the table, the sound of Curt groaning in embarrassment and Owen making fun of him. And then - and then - the talking stops altogether.

And that’s her cue to slowly make her way back through the hall, treading as quietly as possible. Little do those boys know, they aren’t the only spies in this household.

She peers around the doorway, and watches silently for a moment.

Plan stage two: success.

Curtis spins his partner around the room, a little shorter than Owen but still managing to lead. It doesn't surprise her that Owen knows how to dance. After all, the Brits have all those fancy pride and prejudice balls, don't they? But she’s proud to see Curtis is clearly the better dancer of the two. Maybe that's a little unfair of her - she knows Owen injured himself quite badly at some point, and that must make things more difficult. But still. Her son is in his element here, maybe more so than when he ever danced with a girl.

Sometimes, Curtis reminds her so much of his father. Before Curtis was born, before Mr Mega started drinking more than he ought to and getting angrier than he ought to afterwards, they used to go out dancing on weekends. As they spun around the dancefloor, she'd look up at the man she would one day marry and feel as if they were the only two people on earth. And she can see that same look in Curtis's eyes now - like nothing in the world could possibly matter more than the person he's dancing with.

Than Owen.

It's really no wonder they haven’t noticed her in the doorway.

Smiling to herself, she slips back behind the doorframe and executes the final stage of her plan.

'Alright you lovebirds, dinner's ready!'

Immediately, there's panic in the living room. Incredibly efficient panic. In the seconds it takes her to round the door, the record has stopped, Owen is sitting on the sofa, and Curtis is leaning against the fireplace, nervously fixing his hair in a way that might look casual to anyone but his own mother.

She wags a finger at him.

'Don't think I didn't see what you were doing, Curtis Mega.'

Her son's eyes go wide. He moves away from the fireplace, raising his arms in defence.

'Mom, I can explain, I -'

‘Did you really think I wouldn’t figure this out? I'm an old woman, not an idiot. Your friend has been here for more than four months now, and a mother notices these things! I mean, really - '

But then she stops, because Curtis is staring at her now with genuine fear, and Owen isn’t looking at her at all, just sitting with his head in his hands. It occurs to her, too late, that the motives for her plan might have been misunderstood. That maybe she should have asked, instead of plotting all this just to surprise them.

But then, if she did ask, would Curtis have been too afraid to tell her the truth?

'Please, Mom,' he says, his voice urgent. 'I know you’re upset, but please, you can't kick him out. Cynthia's trying to arrange something, but that won't be for months yet, and this is the only place where Chi… Look, there are bad people looking for him. Here is the only place that’s safe. And I know we lied and hid this from you, and I know it’s wrong-'

She holds up a hand to shush him, then crosses the room and throws her arms around him, squeezing tight. She pulls away, smoothing down the sleeves of his sweater, and looks up at the boy who used to be small enough to hide behind her skirts.

'Oh, sweetheart, nothing is wrong, and no one is kicking anyone out of anywhere. What kind of mother do you think I am? Owen can stay as long as he needs to. I'm just sad that you two thought you had to keep this from me. But I understand. I do. I shouldn’t have scared you both. And I want you to know you don't have to hide anymore. Okay?'

Curtis looks as though he might cry, so she hugs him again. She thinks for a moment, then fixes him with a stern look.

'I do think you oughta apologise to Tatiana, though.’

There’s a pause as her son frowns down at her, confused. ‘To… Tati?’

‘Of course! Poor thing. She'll be so upset that you have to call off the wedding.'

Somewhere behind her, maybe a little manically, she hears Owen start to laugh.

#in case anyone was wondering if mrs mega knew owen and curt were sharing a room in that earlier prompt fill #now you know #this is a sort of prequel to that i guess #extremely cheesy but why not #safehouse era owen lives AU my beloved #thanks again for the ask!#spies are forever #tin can bros #curtwen #writing prompt ask #my writing

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bluespring864 · 6 days

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would love to hear about that western au...

thanks for this, i love chatting about the WiPs I'm neglecting 🤭

Okay, so it's probably the closest i've come so far to writing a crack fic and it came from taking this picture of Holger earlier in the year that for some reason made me imagine him nonchalantly drawing a colt (don't ask me how my mind works, i don't understand it either :D)

So i thought - hm, if Holger was in a Western he would obviously have to be the (not very bad) baddie, so Casper could be the bored and slightly inept sheriff, and... and off i went, putting all of our tennis idiots in a Wild West setting! It's a Casper POV, and he's constantly exasperated by his clever horse Don Bajas, and wondering why Señor Nadal has sent him to such a godforsaken outpost, and then someone steals sheep from the Djoker family and he suddenly has an actual case on his hands. Seeing as I am starting to put way too many tennis players into this fic it will probably get much longer than originally intended but i hope i can finish it at some point this year!

#tennis rpf #tennis fic #tennis wip #my writing #thanks again for the ask!#if you want to read the first few paragraphs i'll dm them to you :)

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majorpatheticcas · 7 months

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Hi, sorry to bother you but do you have a reference sheet of Kas? (I'm curious how she actually looks like)

Thankies for the ask! And here you go, our little dragon ball!

#oc art #oc ref sheet #oc design #reference sheet #thanks again for the ask!#majorpatheticcas #majorpatheticcas asks #anon ask

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gonzoclock · 13 days

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Hi! I'm a huge fan of all of your works (but speaking as a fan of Ron the TWWW is my fave), and I was wondering if you planned on writing another story? I understand wanting to take a break from TWWW and your full-length AU (HPEGCF), but I was just wondering if you planned on starting a new one instead of returning to those especially if you simply don't have any more inspiration, and if so what kind of plot you have imagined?

Aw, thanks! I'm so happy you enjoy :D

So, I actually have tons of ideas I'd like to explore at some point. Argus Filch Private Investigator, Severus Snape reluctant baby sitter for a bunch of baby Weasleys+one horrible little gremlin (baby Luna), Kreacher kidnaps Harry and coparents him with a dementor... you get the idea. In fact, I'm like, seventy pages into a time travel fic as we speak. Not to mention wanting desperately to finish up TWWW and my Merlin Potter series. (Both of which I have tons of ideas for)

To be honest, the real problem isn't lack of inspo, it's lack of time and energy. I'm really prone to burning out, and thanks to my full time job I pretty much only have the bandwidth for one project at a time, if that. And the one that has my brain in a chokehold right now is actually an original novel (trilogy). So until I finish that up, or get bored and want to go back to a fic, or win the lottery and can spend all my waking hours writing, that's kind of where I'm at as far as stories go.

Honestly the dream at this point is writing a novel, selling it for a million dollars, and then going back to fics once I'm a professional writer. (Super realistic goal, I know.)

Thanks for the ask!

#hp fanfic #ao3 harry potter #hp and the philosopher's snake #the w in weasley stands for werewolf #thanks again for the ask!

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tixdixl · 15 days

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30 and 16/17 for your oc of choise!

Thank you for the ask!!! This is definitely interesting for sure. Hmm... I think I am going to go with Emil for these, if that's ok?

30 - Does your OC believe in an afterlife?

It's complicated. I would say in the sense that most people think of an "afterlife", where your soul goes after death/the existence of life after death, Emil does not believe in an afterlife. Emil doesn't believe in the need for an afterlife.

But in the idea that life through spirit and memory exist on Earth/in Twisted Wonderland after passing, I think they believe in that. After all, Ramshackle DOES have ghosts! And our personal legacies don't end after we pass.

For example: Emil believes that his sibling Riv is still with him even after they pass. Riv is not gone just because their corporeal body is gone.

17 - When is violence justifiable?

Self-defense or intervention. If someone is openly hostile or force is absolutely necessary in order to prevent irreparable harm, then violence can be necessary. Otherwise, if there are other methods of solutions, then violence shouldn't be used.

Prompt List

Tag list: @cyanide-latte @simons-twsted-children @ramshacklerumble @rainesol @elenauaurs @inmateofthemind (lemme know if you wanna be added!)

#thanks again for the ask!#twst ocs #oc ask game #my ocs #Emil Lehr #Seris talks

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ubejamjar · 2 months

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♥ (07) How successful is your OC at flirting with others?

"This is Ajisai, Warrior of Light, rizzless loser." -- Thancred Waters, probably

I think during her pirate days she loved to flirt and be flirted with, so she was definitely successful back then.

She’s gone out of practice since becoming Warrior of Light, so I’m gonna go with a hard ‘hopelessly unsuccessful’.

Thank you so much for the ask! ❤️ I adore you and Estelle!

#i was plotting out writing their romance earlier #and it dawned on me that ajjisai x aymeric is a slow burn with literally no end in sight #maybe they'll make it to first base (admitting they're more than just friends) by 7.0 #thanks again for the ask!#ffxiv #ajisaijar #ajisaiaskjar #ffxiv oc #ffxiv gpose #gposejar

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withthewindinherfootsteps · 2 years

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I love your mdzs metas, especally the one where you say MDZS is not a hopeful universe and you can't fix it by just saying the Jin Sect is evil because the real problem is the powerful society.

And that post inspired my ask here.

I'd like to hear your thoughts about Lan Wangji deciding to remain in Gusu Lan Sect after wei ying's death. It's clear to me that his strong moral compass doesn't coincide anymore with the sect who was accomplice in the siege at burial mounds. Yeah his family wasn't the direct responsible of Wei Ying and the Wens' deaths, but still involved. I think his relationship with his family after Nightless city was deeply broken, not just emotionally but also morally. I think it would have been wiser leaving his seft after recovering from the wounds and being a rogue cultivator. Or living as a common with a-yuan, because I don't see how they could cohabit together after what happened. Or maybe lwj decided he was guilty as well for not being able to protect wei ying (and the wens), so he lived in remorse and guilt in the sect that allowed that crime? I'm curious about this dilemma because the novel doesn't explain fully in details that period of time. I was just thinking: "why lwj couldn't just live away from the sect after witnessing that their values were no longer compatible and the corrupted cultivation society could no longer be his home". It would have been more coherent and right for him, I think. No one could blame him. Or maybe the punishment hurt him so deeply that he grow to think he deserved it... surely living there in gusu lan sect is not the healthiest option for his state of mind (we could agree that lwj doesn't care about money and privilege). So... why did he stay there and didn't choose another road?

Sorry for the long post!

Thank you for the ask, and for your kind words!

There are factors we have to consider in this – practical, emotional, and thematic.

Firstly, there are the logistical (and most boring) reasons. After Lan Wangji brings A-Yuan back from the Burial Mounds, he’s responsible for him – and while he could take A-Yuan with him when leaving the sect, A-Yuan would have a much harder (and lonelier) childhood growing up as the child of a rogue cultivator, than he would growing up in the security of a prosperous sect with other disciples of the same age around him. We have an example of the former with Wei Wuxian himself, actually! And though he seemed to have a happy childhood, it certainly wasn’t secure, and at the age of five his parents, who were also very capable cultivators, died on a night-hunt while he was left at an inn (which probably happened regularly, because I can’t see his parents bringing him with them while on a night-hunt). If being raised in the Lan sect was an option, I don’t think Lan Wangji would choose to give A-Yuan that sort of very insecure childhood. I can’t really see him leaving A-Yuan at Gusu and defecting by himself either, especially with how reluctant his family was to accept a Wen into Gusu Lan anyway*.

Additionally, it’s important to remember that when Wei Wuxian dies, Lan Wangji is heavily injured from the disciple whip, and has to spend years recovering – he wouldn’t physically be able to become a rogue cultivator in that condition, even if he wanted to! And after he’s recovered, Lan Sizhui has already been a member of the sect for some time – again, I can’t see Lan Wangji taking him away from that.

Lastly, and very importantly, he holds a lot more influence as the second young master and Twin Jade of the Lan Clan (to the cultivation world at least – his reputation to the common people was made on his own merits!) than he would as a rogue cultivator... and that brings us to the second idea: Lan Wangji’s feelings and motivations.

Because I agree with the fact that the majority of the Lan sect, at the time of the siege, wasn't morally compatible with Lan Wangji's own ideals. But instead of leaving the sect and letting that corruption and hypocrisy stay and fester, he chooses to stay and work towards making a difference – to make it compatible, to shape it into the righteous sect it claims to be. He uses his position to teach an entire generation of juniors to be open-minded, compassionate and brave, and to not let the rules stop you from doing so (with Lan Sizhui as the primary example, but you see that in the others, too – he didn't spend all his time raising just A-Yuan). So that if or when another situation like the Siege or the Wen camps arises, they'll have the forethought to think about the situation and not be driven by mob mentality, the understanding to not fall victim to prejudice, and the courage to stand up and do the right thing, even if that means breaking some rules, because certain things are more important.

He teaches that to the people who he knows are the future of the Lan Sect, and when they take over, Gusu Lan can become the righteous sect it claims to be.

That's what he chooses to do, and chooses to do again and again – to take the initiative to make the world into a good place, when it isn't one. He didn't gain a reputation as Hanguang-Jun, for going wherever the chaos is and spending his time helping people rather than chasing acclaim, for nothing. If the sects aren't going to help, he's going to do something about it, and time and time again he does.

And that's infinitely more powerful than just walking away.

As we’re talking about Lan Wangji’s emotions and decisions, let’s consider your other thought, too: that Lan Wangji perhaps stayed because he thought he deserved it as a punishment. I don’t really believe that’s the case – not because Lan WangJi doesn’t have any turbulent feelings of guilt and regret, but because punishing himself is simply not the way he chooses to act on them. There is the scenario with the Wen brand, but it’s crucial to note that he’s drunk during that scene! It may show us his subconscious thoughts and feelings, but it doesn’t show how he’d act on them, because he doesn’t actually have the power to make conscious, meaningful decisions. However, when he does have that power, he consistently chooses to channel his grief into the inspiration and drive to not make those same mistakes, instead of channeling it into self-loathing, or even resentment for others. Instead of punishing himself for what he couldn’t do then, he focuses on what he can do now – raising A-Yuan and teaching the Lan Juniors are some examples of that.

He and Wei Wuxian are quite similar in that aspect (another way they’re alike), and both actually have very healthy ways of coping with what happened in the past! Neither of them punish themselves over what they did wrong and can’t change, but instead focus on the present moment – and likewise, neither of them unhealthily fixate on those they’ve lost and get stuck in the past, but instead carry them with them and keep their memory alive, while accepting they’ve passed on**. However, I do think that Lan Wangji uses the past, and more specifically his grief, a lot more than Wei Wuxian, and actively channels it into not repeating the same mistakes he did. Meanwhile, Wei Wuxian simply lets the past be (while still acknowledging it) and focuses on the present. Both are very healthy ways of treating grief!

Finally, Lan Wangji choosing this path also makes the most sense thematically. One of the main themes of the novel is the idea of moving on from resentment – the most obvious example of this is Wei Wuxian himself, but it appears in so many other characters, too. Wen Ning, for example, who decides to save Jiang Cheng from Nie Mingjue’s corpse, even after everything Jiang Cheng did to his family at the Burial Mounds. The rest of the Wen remnants, who, when they emerge from the blood pool, choose to channel their power into protecting people rather than doing something harmful (which sounds a little familiar, no?); Lan Sizhui, who after finding out about his heritage continues to be kind and compassionate even to the members of sects who were responsible for what happened; Jin Ling, who’s been brought up in an atmosphere of resentment his whole life, but learns to let go of that and has a breakdown because he realised he simply couldn’t hate anyone for the deaths of his parents!

Alternatively, if you look at the antagonists, all of them (apart from Jin Guangshan, who was driven by greed) held on to resentment in some way, and let it fester. Regardless of what people think of him, Jiang Cheng plays an antagonist’s role in the present storyline, and a big part of his character is that he let his resentment for Wei Wuxian fester instead of letting it go, and that leads him to convince himself that Wei Wuxian is still alive somewhere and therefore to him torturing demonic cultivators – and that resentment (along with poorly expressed care for Jin Ling) pretty much drives all his actions in the present timeline. Jin Guangyao’s driven by resentment for people disrespecting him and his mother because of their heritage/job, Su She is driven by resentment of Lan Wangji. Xue Yang is driven by resentment for Xiao Xingchen, and holds onto that motivation, convinces himself of it, even when his feelings get more complicated – and ultimately chooses to act in accordance with that. Even Nie Huaisang, whose role in the narrative is admittedly dubious, is driven by resentment for his brother’s death, and that is not presented as right.

Neither group of characters has suffered more than the others, and you could even argue that the first group suffered more. However, the thing that sets them apart is the way they deal with resentment. And so we come to Lan Wangji.

Like so many other characters, he has ample reason to turn his back on the cultivation world, to not forgive and to place more importance on his negative feelings towards others than on anything positive. But just like so many other people – like Wei WuXian, like Wen Ning and Lan Sizhui, like Jin Ling – he chooses to not focus on his resentment. He gives his sect a chance, while still preserving Wei Wuxian’s memory, while still accepting they did something wrong. Lan Wangji is not somebody driven by resentment, and not someone to hold onto it; he’s someone driven by love***.

And being a member of the Lan clan won’t constrain him from that.

Thanks for the discussion, it was really interesting!

––

*Edit: Apparently it’s only Lan Qiren who was reluctant to accept him until he saw Lan Wangji’s behaviour! But with the general prejudice against the Wens, I feel like that (not necessarily the family, but other people) was still a factor in him not wanting to leave A-Yuan alone. They didn’t tell anyone, but if anyone somehow found out, that was a risk. Thanks to kimalysomg for catching that!

**Which is part of the reason takes that say Lan Wangji spent the thirteen years searching for and waiting for Wei Wuxian bother me, actually! It very much undermines Lan Wangji’s healthy coping of with grief, and diminishes his character and character arc a lot, too.

***And not just for Wei Wuxian!

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thebigolbee · 1 year

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i don't follow you but ive seen tons of your (awesome) stuff in the fallout tags and i uh. didn't realise marlow was your oc. seeing other blogs make fanart of him made me think he was a canon character... anyway i love him

Hahaha thank you so much, I’m really happy that you like him! And it makes me smile when people say they thought he was real! He’s just my funny little ghoulie and I’m so grateful to the kind folks who draw him.

Thought I’d share this little thing I made to see how much he’s changed in the past year, since his anniversary was in January. The differences are so crazy to me! He certainly got… bigger… with much fuller hair lol. It was surprisingly difficult to get his proportions down but drawing him now has become second nature.

I’m really happy with the overhaul of his story and his shift from a flimsy mad scientist to a goth jock with a lot of heart (and attitude…) He’s very special to me and I hold him close to my heart. Couldn’t imagine what this past year would have been like without Marlow and my sweet Tumblr pals, thanks again :)

#fallout #fallout new vegas #fnv #fallout oc #fallout ghoul #dick marlow #asks #my art #thanks again for the ask!#I was realizing I never really shared much of his new story either #oof...#I will get around to it

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hephaestuscrew · 9 months

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Hey, not sure if this is something you’ve realized but since you are The Minkowski Poster in my brain now, I thought you’d be interested to know that Victor Uniform Lima Charlie Alpha November spells vulcan. This means either minkowski is a trekkie or (the boring answer) some Goddard futuristics lackey thought it was funny. Assuming the former, I’m curious to know what this says about her character - I’ve never watched an episode of star trek in my life xD

Hi, thanks for the ask! I'm very honoured to be The Minkowski Poster in your brain!! 😊 I'm afraid that my view is closer to what you've termed the boring answer here. I'm pretty certain that Minkowski didn't come up with that authentication code herself. I assume you were thinking of its use in the finale, when Eiffel uses it to convince the Sol that he's Minkowski. But when Lovelace shows up for the first time in Episode 22, she also knows this as a confirmation code:

This implies that Lovelace received this code before her Hephaestus mission, which was roughly three years before Minkowski's. Jacobi also gives this authentication code in Sécurité as the Urania approaches the Hephaestus. It seems like it's not a code that's associated with Minkowski specifically, but more generally with "Command-level" personnel on Goddard space missions (or perhaps just on the Hephaestus).

Personally I'm not convinced that it's primarily intended to be a Star Trek reference on Goddard's part either. Vulcan is the Roman god of fire and his Greek counterpart is named Hephaestus. We know that Goddard Futuristics is fond of taking names from mythology; they use mythological names for their AIs (Hera, Rhea, and Eris = Greek gods, Enlil = Mesopotamian god) and their space stations (Hephaestus & Hermes = Greek gods, Tiamat = Mesopotamian goddess). I think the Vulcan-Hephaestus connection is probably the primary reason behind this confirmation code. But the Star Trek link could add a fun extra layer to it!

There's other evidence that Minkowski is not a Star Trek fan; she doesn't seem to understand what Eiffel means by "the Kirk to my Uhura" in their first meeting (although I suppose she could just be confused by his reference-based mode of speech). I don't think Minkowski is really into science fiction media at all to be honest, given her reactions to Eiffel's whole thing. I've got a feeling that sci-fi doesn't really gel with her serious real-life-focused approach to space travel. But other people are of course free to headcanon differently!

#Thanks again for the ask!#Sorry if this isn't the answer you were hoping for #People are always free to send me asks! I enjoy getting them 😊#Tbh I have never watched an episode of Star Trek either #but I've seen people who are fans of both Star Trek and Wolf 359 say that there are surprisingly few Star Trek references in Wolf 359 #especially considering that the star Wolf 359 also plays a significant role in Star Trek #which suggests that the writers aren't really big Star Trek fans either #Anyway I do love the mythology names in Wolf 359 #Catering to the 'mythology kid to fiction podcast lover' pipeline...?#I guess I will chuck this in the tags #Wolf 359 #w359 #the empty man posteth #Asks

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wandering-words · 1 month

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“It isn’t him I want, Ava.”

(I spent like 5 mins tryna think of this😭)

It was a great sentence! Very hard to keep to 5 sentences, but challenge accepted :)

~~~

“It isn’t him I want, Ava.”

Janine stood over Ava’s desk, the two of them arguing relentlessly for the first time in a long time after Ava forced the after school crew to work on the Willard R. Abbott debacle together and then pointed out the tension lingering between Janine and Gregory.

“I’m not fucking stupid, Janine,” Ava spat, not registering the curse word and possibility of cameras lingering around the corner until it was already out of her mouth.

The frustrated huff and tears gathering in Janine’s eyes indicated that Janine wasn’t going to ignore it. “Well, after Gregory said that we were done, which I know you caught on camera by the way,” Janine said, raising an eyebrow as if daring Ava to challenge her, “I realized that I wanted… you, as weird as that is to admit.”

Ava really, really wanted to be cool about this situation, but she couldn’t stop a small smile from gracing her lips.

#abbott elementary #avanine #ava coleman #janine teagues #ava x janine #abbott elementary spoilers #thanks again for the ask!#I love angst #and avanine is so so perfect for angst #Ava is just so suppressed and in love #and Janine doesn’t know how to act around them sometimes #but they’re cute or whatever

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changeling-fae · 2 months

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random OC ask: what is the most unique thing about your OC? what is the most mundane thing about them?

how do they feel about those two aspects?

Thanks for the asks! I found this one a bit challenging which is always a treat. <3

Nym:

Her most unique thing is probably her convoluted conception/lineage. The granddaughter of Graz'zt through a cambion mother who stole Bhaal essence and combined it with her reproduction with a divine soul sorcerer of Eilistraee drow man. So she's got ridiculously powerful blood as a strange little godling of chaos, evil, and good divinity.

Her most mundane thing is she spends a portion of everyday tending to her body. She's got extreme scar tissue (both old and fresh) on her shoulder blades that cause her pain frequently that she has to tend to every morning with a salve to help with stiffness. She's also a dancer and acrobat and tries to keep herself limber. She was trained as an assassin but she has genuine enjoyment in performance arts and that means keeping her body in shape through cardiovascular and flexibility exercises and resistance training. And then of course rest so as not to damage anything.

How she feels about these two aspects is she loathes her abyssal blood (specifically about her mother), has contempt for Bhaal (though it's hard to differentiate her violent urges being from him or her demonic influence; it's both through amplifying each other), and has very complicated feelings around the spark of Eilistraeen divinity passed on from her father. The spark of divinity and her abyssal blood are constantly at war inside her so anytime she uses magic, it hurts her to some degree.

Pain is just a part of her life and she's learned to cope with it (both healthily and unhealthily depending on the cope).

Flint:

His most unique thing is being a tiefling born in the hells and being a former spy of Glasya who has survived being a prisoner of war in Zariel's domain for over a decade.

His most mundane thing is he likes to smoke a tobacco pipe and knit. The smoking is a vice but he finds comfort in the smell (my grandpa was a pipe smoker, smells so much better than cigarette smoke), and he finds knitting meditative.

He's a very... in the moment kind of person. His history doesn't cause him much pain or anything, just how the chips fell. If anything he's proud about his ability to not crack after the literal hell he endured and lived through.

Being on the MP means he has much easier access to tobacco pipe goods (not an expensive import like in the hells markets), he totally bought from Arron immediately when he saw it and had the best smoke of his life after a decade of imprisonment. And again, knitting is just meditative for him.

Trinket:

Most unique thing is being the daughter of an archfey but technically a tiefling because her mortal mother was tricked by a night hag.

Her most mundane thing is she plays fantasy solitaire with herself often. Or plays against herself in lanceboard, just to keep her mind sharp.

Her thoughts on these aspects are pretty straightforward. Her father is her patron to help her get out of the night hag's contract and while she's naturally clever, she's had to work her whole life to keep ahead of both the marks she's forced to deceive and to survive the hag's hagspawn son who was holding her reigns before her abduction. So she's a survivor first and foremost and keeps her mind sharp for adaptability.

Jen:

Most unique thing about him is he's draconic sorcerer half-drow part of a prophecy which he's actively rejecting.

Most mundane thing is he's very knowledgeable about wool quality as a resource.

How he feels about those aspects is he's spent over two decades running from the prophecy he overheard about how he has to destroy himself to save the world, something he very much doesn't want to do. And with the wool quality thing, he feels nostalgic and melancholic mostly, given that he was born and raised on a sheep farm before he ran away. He'll judge the quality of wool with both a hidden pride and feelings regret towards his mother (and sisters), who he never said goodbye to.

Ellywick:

Most unique thing about her is she's a drow adopted and raised by gnomes in Baldur's Gate (deep gnome father and forest gnome mother) who has made a career in underdark cartography.

Most mundane thing about her is she loves to read, draw, and cook. Just does really well in domestic settings and is a real homebody, despite her hands on approach to underdark exploration.

How she feels about these aspects is she's very happy and proud of her family and is very close to both her immediate family and her extended family (she has so many cousins and nieces and nephews). No one in her family treats her any differently for being adopted or drow (her father found her abandoned in the underdark and brought her home) and they're all supportive of her career, which she initially started to help with designing maps to show the safe routes for her family's frequent expeditions for their jewelry shop in the city.

Her family is the most important thing in her life.

Maeve:

Most unique thing about her is she's fey-like creature that can naturally shrink to the size of a thumb thanks to her mother being a feylost mortal who had been stuck and pregnant in the feywild for a number of years (not that she knows this, she never knew her mother).

Most mundane thing about her is she likes to whistle to herself. She can carry complex tunes and can be caught whistling little ditties to herself.

How she feels about these aspects is a sort of "it is what it is" attitude to her abilities. It was harder on her sense of self as an orphan child on the streets but it also gave her an edge once she started thieving for survival pretty early. Now it's just who she is.

As far as the whistling, it's like someone who crackles their knuckles a lot, doesn't really notice or pay much attention unless given a reason to.

#bg3 #bg3 tav #bg3 durge #oc ask prompts #oc: nymurra auvry'val #oc: flint #oc: trinket #oc: jen #oc: ellywick glitterfoot #oc: maeve #trying to rotate through some of my ocs with these asks #I have so many ocs #gonna work on the rest when I wake up #thanks again for the ask!

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chaotic-goodsir · 3 months

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For the compliment drabble thing, 50 curtwen?

Thanks! Here you go - a bit shorter than the last one but once again not really a drabble 😅 I hope you like it!

Curt is sitting by the window of his Paris hotel room, listening to the traffic outside and trying to read over the briefing notes for tomorrow's mission. He's meant to be infiltrating some political function - something to do with the Russian ambassador and alleged mafia money. There's a lot of information in the file that's probably very important, but none of it is going in. He finds himself reading the same paragraph over and over, taking in exactly none of the words.

All he can think about is the call he got from Cynthia a few hours ago: 'Congratulations, Mega. Somehow despite your tendency for collosal fuck-ups you've managed to pass your assessment. Consider yourself a 'Special' Agent now. Just don't get too drunk celebrating - I need you at your best for this mission, understand?'

He should have been over the moon at the news. Special Agent is the highest rank you can reach without ending up behind a desk telling other people want to do. It's been Curt's ambition since he first became a spy. It's a badge of honour that means he's good at what he does, and recognised for it.

So why does he feel like he doesn't deserve it at all?

He knows he messed up on his last mission, and that wasn't the first time either. He tends to rush things and take unnecessary risks, or end up having to bluff because he's forgotten key information. Sure, he always finds a way out of it, but he gets himself captured far too much. Not exactly the habits of a world class spy. He has no idea how he passed this assessment, really. Maybe Cynthia likes him more than she lets on, beneath all the swearing and surprise poison drills. Maybe she pulled some strings.

She'll expect more from him now, though, with that extra word in his title. He's not sure he's ready for that kind of pressure. It's making him more nervous for tomorrow than he should be, which is why it's even harder than usual to focus on the briefing. He should be out celebrating, probably, but he's left this until the last minute yet again and he doesn't have the time - and anyway, he's working alone for this one. There's no one around to celebrate with.

He's reading that same paragraph for maybe the twentieth time when there's a knock at the door.

Quickly, he files the briefing notes away and hides them in the sideboard drawer. Cynthia gave strict instructions not to expect any visitors this evening, and to test anyone who did show up with a code phrase, so that's what he does.

'Sorry,' he calls in French. 'I don't take room service on a Friday.'

'Ah,' replies the visitor. 'But the complimentary drinks menu is excellent, monsieur. '

Even in a second language, with almost perfect pronunciation, he recognises that voice.

He answers the door to find none other than Owen Carvour waiting in the hallway, holding a bottle of champagne.

'Félicitations, old boy.' Owen says with a smile.

'Owen? What are you doing here?'

'Surprising you, obviously. May I come in?'

'Uh, yeah, sure.' Curt says, suddenly embarrassed by the half unpacked suitcase and clothes strewn over the bed. He hurries to pack them away, shoving the suitcase into a corner. 'I didn't know you were-' he almost says on this mission too, before catching himself. He shouldn't be giving out his reasons for being here so casually to someone from another agency, even if it is Owen. That's the kind of slip-up a Special Agent doesn't make. 'I didn't know you were in Paris.'

'Yes, well, that is how a surprise usually works.' Owen closes the door behind him, and sets the champagne down on the sideboard. 'Get dressed, love. We're going out for dinner.'

Curt blinks at him, confused. 'What? I can't. I have... work to do. Tomorrow.'

Owen grins, then pulls a piece of paper from his pocket. 'Sorry, I almost forgot. I'm to give you this - Cynthia's orders.'

Curt takes the note. It's in Cynthia's handwriting, and all it says is:

Mission's off.

Have fun, Special Agent.

As always, don't fuck this up.

- C

Curt stares at it. Reads it again, in case he's somehow misunderstood. 'What?'

Owen laughs.

'You passed that assessment a month ago, love.'

'I- what?' Curt says again, aware that he sounds like a broken record.

'Cynthia got in touch. Said she wanted to arrange something. Not every day you graduate to Special Agent.'

'Cynthia got in touch with you?' Curt says. He should be happy to see Owen - he is happy to see him - but this is all just a bit too weird.

'Wait. Does she know? About-'

'Us? Now, I believe her exact words were: 'I don't care what you two get up to, Carvour, just do not get caught. I will personally murder you both before I deal with that kind of scandal.''

Curt sits down on the bed, shaking his head at the note in disbelief. Then he folds the paper and tucks it into his trouser pocket, looking up at Owen.

'This is insane. Paris, a fake mission, you... why would she arrange all that for me? This has to be some kind of test. Is that champagne poisoned? Shit, you're not gonna pull a gun, are you? My bulletproof vest's in the case, I swear I was gonna-'

Owen sits down on the bed beside him, sliding an arm around his shoulder. 'Calm down, love. I may be wrong, but I believe she simply thinks you should be proud of yourself. Celebrate your promotion. It was well deserved, after all.'

'Sure, but... really?'

'Yes, really,' Owen says, pulling him closer. 'I think so too. So, if you're done gaping like a fish, do hurry up and put something nice on. J'ai un reservation à vingt heures and I'd rather not arrive late.'

#thanks again for the ask!#i really love writing for these two #cynthia houston cares about her disaster surrogate son and her favourite surrogate son in law #spies are forever #tin can bros #curtwen #writing prompt ask #my writing

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