#last time I criticized Imogen I got people telling me that I’m not watching the campaign right
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It’s wild to me how many people are angry at Orym for “letting” Laudna lose control and for telling Keyleth about Imogen’s mom. It feels like people are conveniently forgetting everything he’s been through in favor of coddling Imogen and Laudna. Don’t get me wrong, I love Imogen and Laudna and think they’re great characters, but they aren’t the only ones with trauma.
Sure Orym could have stepped in and stopped Laudna from killing Bor’Dor, but Liam confirmed on 4SD that Orym was going to kill him regardless. All of the pain and anger that Laudna felt from Bor’Dor’s betrayal was also felt by Orym, coupled with the fact that he was facing a member of the group that killed his husband and father. To say that Orym is blinded by his anger and not capable of seeing the situation objectively is saying that there are two sides to consider. The Ruby Vanguard are killing people indiscriminately and everyone knows that Ludinus can’t be trusted. Was it selfish if Orym to want Delilah back? Yes, but you also can’t ignore his very valid reason for wanting the power to stop Ludinus.
On the Imogen issue, Keyleth has every right to know about the people she’s trusting to help her and her people. A lot of people have already pointed this out, but her reaction would have been so much worse if she found out about Imogen’s connection to the Liliana from an outside source. It’s completely valid for Imogen to want her mom to be good and to try to justify her actions, but doing so in front of Keyleth and Orym, two people who have lost loved ones to the Ruby Vanguard, wasn’t the smartest choice. You can’t defend your enemy and then be surprised when your allies don’t fully trust you. Orym has very clear in the past that he doesn’t want to hear Imogen offer excuses for the Ruby Vanguard or defend their actions. He can love and care about Imogen while also holding her at an arms length in case she does turn on them.
These characters are complex, flawed, and deeply traumatized. They’re not always going to make the morally correct decision, but their choices almost always have a reasonable explanation behind them. You don’t have to agree with every decision they make, but a lot of people conveniently ignore very valid character motivations whenever those characters do something that hurts or upsets their favorite character.
#cr discourse#critical role#other people have said similar things more sicintly than me but I wanted to shout in the void too#this is a issue that’s come up in every campaign#like in campaign 2 if a character challenged or upset Caleb then they were bad and selfish and not thinking about his trauma#but all of these characters are traumatized which sometimes causes them to not make optimal or morally right decisions#I love Imogen and Laudna but so many people are coddling them and treating them like the main characters#let them be angry and wrong and flawed and complicated#I also don’t think that Orym is right all the either!!!#but I understand his motivations and they a lot of sense to me#plus I don’t think that wanting justice for your dead husband is selfish#last time I criticized Imogen I got people telling me that I’m not watching the campaign right#can’t wait to see what happens after this post lol
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Fun Scary - Laudna and Prism
Critical Role - Laudna & Prism
Rated General, 970 words
For Day 2 of @critter-genfic-events's gen week: Long Rest
(you can see the rest of the days here)
Prism doesn’t really need company on her watch. She could take all the watches by herself, since she doesn’t need to sleep, and she has mother and Dynios to help keep watch for her, so that’s three sets of eyes. Or maybe just two sets of eyes and then another consciousness magically bound to the prime material plane. The point stands.
But she’s got the chance for company, and experience has told her that the best way of making friends is to force them to hang out with her until they get kind of used to her.
Laudna’s not that different from a lot of other people she had known in the Shadow Realm, at least on the surface. It makes her kind of homesick, even though she doesn’t remember the other shades being this peppy. She’s good company.
But boy is she talkative.
Prism is out of practice with people wanting to talk to her this much - was never in practice, really. She keeps on losing the thread of conversation. It’s work, to keep concentrating on what someone else is saying for so long. Not that whatever she’s talking about isn’t interesting - Laudna is clearly invested in what she’s saying - it’s just that Prism has no frame of reference for whatever is going on, and Laudna keeps on forgetting that. Part of it reminds Prism of when she first got to the Cobalt Soul from the Shadow Realm, and she didn’t have any concept of things like ‘Tal’dorei’ or ‘apples’.
She had hated that feeling.
Picking up the frame of conversation is easier if she treats it like a book written in a language she barely understands - make some inferences, cross reference some of the weirder statements from other conversations, and see if you can make something make a little sense. If that fails, assume it’s about Imogen.
“So you met Imogen when she was young?” Prism asks when Laudna is momentarily distracted by a squirrel that reminded her of Pate. You’re supposed to ask questions to prove that you’re engaged, plus Prism wants to test her ability to figure out the conversation on someone besides Dynios.
“Hmm? Oh, no, Imogen was much older, and it was much later.”
Drat. Well, at least Laudna doesn’t look angry or insulted by the mistake.
“So what happened with this friend?” she asks, to prove engagement.
Laudna goes quiet for a little while, and Prism has a sinking feeling. “Their parents found out. They called a cleric, which didn’t really do much, but then they also called a hunter, and … I’m much stronger these days. So I moved on.”
Yep. There it is. Just stumble right into those painful memories, Prism.
“You know, when I first game from the Shadow Realm, people tried turning me a lot. It became a thing with Ioun’s initiates in the Cobalt Soul,” Prism offers.
“Oh! That sounds unpleasant! Did it do anything?”
“No, but the chanting was really annoying,” Prism says, and then grimaces. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to one up you or anything.”
“Oh don’t worry about that, I think I had it worse,” Laudna laughs, and Prism tries to brush off the irritation. She doesn’t have to get into a fight about this.
Her willpower lasts about thirty seconds. “At least you had a friend for a little while. I didn’t have anyone. Not in this plane of existence, I had a clique in the Shadow Realm for a little while. On Whelsen we’d wear gray. And every other day. Not a lot of other fashion in the Shadow Realm.” They’d stopped talking to her after that time they’d all ended up in jail, the cowards.
“Oh, well, I guess that’s fine then, what’s a little light murder attempt?” Laudna is saying, and Prism can’t tell if she is angry or not. Something about the accent. “What’s the story of your first friends on this plane?”
The problem, as much as Prism can figure out, is that it is hard to tell when you’re actually friends with someone. She thinks she might be friends with Laudna, despite her not having to do anything for her powers besides maybe die for them. But that’d be weird to admit if Laudna doesn’t think they are friends. There is Bor’dor, even though he had the same magic nepotism problem and it’d be weird to say Bor’dor if Laudna thinks they were friends. And then there is Orym, who had abs almost as good as hers and had to work for them - but she suspects Orym is just kind of nice to everyone.
“I never really had any,” she says, finally.
This seems to surprise Laudna, for some reason. “Not even your book? Or Mother?”
“I am not a being for friendship,” Dynios proclaims loudly, making Deni$e and Orym stir.
“Mother’s from the Shadow Realm. And a poor conversationalist.”
“Why not?”
It takes Prism a second to figure out she is talking about Prism’s inability to make friends (which always seemed self evident) and not Mother’s conversation skills (which also seemed self evident, but then Laudna talks to Pate a lot).
“My whole vibes are apparently off. And creepy.” She explains to the friendly eldritch horror.
A look of understanding crosses Laudna’s face. “Well, you’ve got us now. We can be fun scary together.”
“Nobody has ever called me fun before!” Prism says without thinking about it. It’s true, though. She’s always been too intense.
Laudna smiles as if she had just passed a test with flying colors, and then they lapse into almost-silence, Laudna humming to herself in time with Deni$e’s snores.
At the end of the watch, Laudna presents Prism with a friendship bracelet made with some red yarn and some of Laudna’s hair, and Prism convinces herself it’s not too creepy at all.
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I would like to thank @leaalda for making these amazing banners.
This is an effort to spread the word about all fan fiction writers in our little fandom. If you would like to be featured or nominate a writer, please contact me. Please reblog this post if you can and check out some of @ficmuse work!
1. First things first, if someone wanted to read your stories where can they find them.
I post all of my work on AO3
2. Tell us a little about yourself.
I’ve been a writer and a poet since childhood. Professionally, I’ve worked for a major Internet service provider, been an executive secretary, made collections calls and even sold windows door to door. I just completed an art history Capstone in Roman and Greek art and am contemplating graduate school. I’m also a mom and a wife. I’ve worn a whole lot of hats in my life.
3. What do you never leave home without?
Something to read. I carry my Kindle in my purse. I read a lot of romance, mystery, and historical fiction.
4. Are you an early bird or a night owl?
Depends. If I’m really immersed in something I’m writing, I’ll pound the keys until 2 am or later. Ideally, I’m in bed by eleven.
5. If you could live in any fictional world which one would you choose and why?
Westeros! Ice zombies? Dragons? Bring it on.
6. Who is the most famous person you’ve ever met.
I’m a fangirl with a travel budget, so I’ve met some actors from my various fandoms, including James Marsters from Buffy and William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy from Star Trek. I like attending conventions. I’ve met Charlaine Harris, one of my favorite authors. That was a big thrill, too.
7. What are some of your favorite movies/TV?
TV: X-Files; Buffy the Vampire Slayer; Friends. Movies: While You Were Sleeping; Fifth Elements; Pride and Prejudice (2005).
8. What are some of your favorite bands/musicians?
Music is a really important element of my life. I need music while writing, cooking, driving, you name it. My all time favorite bands include Coldplay, Depeche Mode, Garbage, and Muse. Musicians? Jeff Buckley, Leonard Cohen, Tori Amos, Sarah McLachlan.
9. Favorite Books?
Jane Austen; I waffle between Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion. Charlaine Harris’ Southern Vampire Mysteries. Dorothy Dunnett’s Lymond Chronicles. Dorothy Sayer’s Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries.
10. Favorite Food?
Any configuration of a potato. Baked; fried; mashed. I’m a potato fan.
11. Biggest pet peeve?
Passive aggressive people. Just tell me what I’ve done to piss you off and I’ll try to make it right. If you can’t do that, we’re at an impasse.
12. What did you want to be when you were little? What do you want to be now?
I’ve always wanted to be a published author and that’s still my dream.
13. What are your biggest fears? Do you have any strange fears?
Oh, boy. I have a phobia about driving on the highway. It’s very weird. I’ve gone way the hell out of my way to take side roads instead of highways.
14. When you are on your deathbed what would be the one you’d regret not doing?
When I was fifteen, I had the choice to go to boarding school in England. At the last minute, I backed out and went to a school in Pennsylvania instead. I really regret that; my whole life would have been on a different path.
Okay… lets talk about your writing!
15. Which is your favorite of the fics you've written for the Bughead fandom?
I’ve only written a few, but the BLT universe (Bizarre Love Triangle, Long Live Rock) is my baby. That’s my blood, sweat and tears, right there.
16. Which was the hardest to write, in terms of plot?
Fugue. The idea of Jughead as a murderer was so preposterous, I had to figure out a way to make it real and believable.
17. How do you come up with the ideas for you fic(s)? Do you people watch? Listen to music? Get inspired by TV/movies?
I get inspired by music more than anything else. Usually, finding the right song is the key to unlocking a story for me. But it can be other things. I eavesdrop like crazy and I also am very moved by neon signs and photography. I often look at moodboards and listen to a fic specific soundtrack while I’m writing.
18. Idea that you always wanted to write but could never make work?
I’ve been writing a fic with Betty as the POV character. The plot is inspired by the movie Groundhog Day. She keeps repeating the same night over and over. It’s funny on film, but I think it’s too repetitive as a story. I haven’t given up on it yet, but it is really kicking my butt.
19. Least favorite plot point/chapter/moment you’ve written?
Archie and Betty hooking up in Long Live Rock was just such a bummer.
20. Favorite plot point/chapter/moment you’ve written?
Jughead’s backstory about how he got his beanie in Bizarre Love Triangle.
21.Favorite character to write?
Jughead, for sure.
22. Favorite line or lines of dialogue that you've written?
For Long Live Rock, I had to write a lot of song lyrics. I’m particularly fond of some I wrote for Jughead: Fortunes have been made and fortunes have been lost /Princes earning money by moving rocks Princesses waiting tables in a neon glow/What we had we'll find again and never let it go.
23. Best comment/review you’ve ever received?
I really love it when people just get so flipped out that they can’t even articulate their feelings and it’s a lot of capital letters and exclamation marks.
24. How do you handle bad reviews or comments?
Unfortunately, I have a thin skin. I can handle the occasional nasty comment, but when it’s message after message of people hating what you do, it’s demoralizing. My husband has repeatedly suggested not reading the comments on Ao3, but I feel an obligation to respond to each reader unless they are being a complete and utter asshat. The hate mail I received on Tumblr for parts of Long Live Rock was just unbelievable. That stuff, I just delete and try to ignore. That being said, constructive criticism is great. But that’s rare and far between. I get a lot of “this is great” or “I hate this with the fire of a thousand suns” and not much in the middle.
25. If you could change anything in any of your stories, what would it be?
The inevitable typos that I can only notice after I post them. Each one causes me physical pain.
26. What is your favorite story you’ve ever written? Any fandom?
My first real labor of love was a story called The Countess which was based on the BBC TV show of Robin Hood. I had a massive fangirl crush on the bad guy, Sir Guy of Gisborne. I shipped him with Maid Marian and despite the fact that she DIED, I still wanted a happy ending for my OTP. Did I mention that he killed her? Because that was the canon ending of that ship! So, I literally resurrected her, made the hero of the canon story the villain, and gave the full monty love story and a happy ending to Marian and Guy. It made my heart happy. It still does, because that canon just pissed me off to no end. One of the great joys of fan fiction is the ability to tell canon to go screw itself.
27. What are you reading right now? Both fan fiction and general fiction?
I haven’t read much Bughead fic because it lessens my ability to get into the headspace of my own AU. However, I am fortunate to have a plethora of fic recommendations from my dear @jandjsalmon waiting for me. As for fiction, I am currently reading a historical mystery called Instruments of Darkness by Imogen Robertson.
28. Do you have an advice for writers that want to get into this fandom but might be scared?
Don’t be afraid that your work isn’t good enough. Your work is always better than you think it is! You are your own worst critic. Trust that there is an audience for every story. We are a very welcoming community and you are guaranteed to find someone who will appreciate the work of your imagination.
#bughead author spotlight#fan fiction#fan fiction writers#bughead fanfiction#Bughead#ao3#betty cooper#jughead jones#jughead x betty#betty x jughead#riverdale#bizarre love triangle#long live rock#fugue#ficmuse
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Mel Brooks discusses career, HBO special, Anne Bancroft films
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Mel Brooks, seen here at he 2017 BAFTA Awards in London, is the subject of a new HBO special, ‘Mel Brooks: Unwrapped.’ (Photo: Facundo Arrizabalaga, EPA)
Mel Brooks has had an amazing entertainment career – from “Your Show of Shows” to “The Producers” to “Blazing Saddles” to “Young Frankenstein” – and he’s got the rare EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony wins) to prove it.
The writer-director-actor-producer discusses his life and legendary career in HBO’s “Mel Brooks: Unwrapped” (Friday, 9 EST/PST), a selection of interviews conducted over four decades with friend and former BBC creative director Alan Yentob.
Brooks, 93, a U.S. Army veteran who served in Europe during World War II, also curated a newly released selection of his wife’s films, “The Anne Bancroft Collection” (Shout! Factory), including her Oscar-winning role in 1962’s “The Miracle Worker” and her unforgettable appearance in 1967’s “The Graduate.” Brooks and Bancroft had been married for nearly 41 years when she died in 2005.
Brooks, who voices Melephant Brooks in “Toy Story 4” and Disney+’s “Forky Asks a Question,” spoke to USA TODAY about both projects, some daring film choices and his lifelong friendship with Carl Reiner.
HBO’s ‘Mel Brooks: Unwrapped’ features numerous interviews Brooks, left, has given to Alan Yentob, going back to 1981. (Photo: HBO)
Question: What will viewers learn about you in “Unwrapped”?
Mel Brooks: That there’s many Mel Brooks. There’s not just the devil-may-care, funny Mel Brooks, but there’s the feeling Mel Brooks, the touching Mel Brooks, the Mel Brooks who actually thinks about the world he’s living in and has some thought about how to behave in that world. That could be surprising because I rarely relax and actually become myself and in this one I do on several occasions. I’m happy that I was able to��not just be funny all the time.
Funny friends: Carl Reiner: Why Van Dyke is the best, Trump the worst and Mel Brooks is a savvy movie critic
Q: You’ve used comedy and satire to discuss serious topics, but it doesn’t come without risk. What reaction did you get in 1967 to “The Producers,” the satirifc film that features the “Springtime for Hitler” fictional musical?
Brooks: Maybe over a thousand rabbis wrote to me. I was very careful about writing back to everybody who wrote about (it) being in such terrible taste for a Jewish kid. And I said if we get on a soapbox and try to orate like Hitler, we lose because he sweeps the lowest common denominator in feelings and intelligence. But if we can humiliate him with comedy, we win. Funny always wins.
Melephant Brooks: ‘Toy Story 4’ exclusive: Check out the four comedy legends joining Woody, Buzz and the gang
Nathan Lane, left, and Matthew Broderick starred in “The Producers,” a hit stage musical adaptation of Mel Brooks’ 1967 film of the same name. (Photo: Paul Kolnick)
Q: Along those lines, have you seen “Jojo Rabbit,” a comedy in which a young boy in Nazi Germany fantasizes a buffoonish Adolf Hitler (director Taika Waititi) as his imaginary best friend?
Brooks: I loved it. It was a wonderful movie. Perfectly plausible that the kid would be seduced by this larger-than-life character.
Q: Did you find the depiction offensive, as some critics have?
Brooks: Not at all. I thought it was terrific. There’s always those people who walk the line strictly and those who dare to cross the line. I was one who crossed the line as far as making fun of Nazis. I think I’m going to send (Waititi) a note to tell him, “Good job. Well done.”
Cleavon Little, left, and Gene Wilder starred in “Blazing Saddles,” a 1974 film directed by Mel Brooks. (Photo: Warner Bros.)
Q: You commented on the evils of racism in the 1974 Western parody, “Blazing Saddles,” but did you have concerns about using the n-word?
Brooks: I wouldn’t have been brave enough to use the n-word so many times, but Richard Pryor, one of our writers on the movie, insisted we just tell the truth. He said, “Don’t worry about it, Mel. You’re on the side of right. These are the bad guys using the word. Never the good guys.” That made a lot of sense.
Q: Why did you want to put together “The Anne Bancroft Collection,” which includes some of her less well-known films, including 1985’s “Agnes of God” and 1987’s “84 Charing Cross Road”?
Brooks: She was a great artist. I thought we should show more of her work. We don’t see it enough. “The Pumpkin Eater” (1964) is a wonderful movie. She plays a woman suffering the breakup of her marriage. Nobody has really seen it and her work is astonishing.
Q: The collection includes 1983’s “To Be or Not to Be,” a remake of director Ernst Lubitsch’s 1942 classic that you co-starred in and produced. Why did you make that film?
Brooks: I never really found a great vehicle for my wife and I. And I said, what about “To Be or Not To Be”? Let’s salute Lubitsch, Jack Benny and Carole Lombard. Can you believe that was made (during WWII)? Talk about the courage of making fun of Nazis then. They could have killed them.
Anne Bancroft, left, created a legendary film character, Mrs. Robinson, in 1967’s “The Graduate,” which starred Dustin Hoffman. (Photo: Embassy Pictures)
Q: After “The Producers” and “Young Frankenstein,” would you like to adapt any other films as stage musicals?
Brooks: I did a movie that a lot of people didn’t see called “Life Stinks” (1991). It was kind of prescient (about homelessness). There were people sleeping on sidewalks. These are human beings, cold and hungry. I think we did a good job pointing it out. I’m thinking that could be an au courant musical on Broadway and it could do what I do: Make it funny but make a point of saying something about the human condition.
Q: Why did you produce 1982’s “My Favorite Year”?
Brooks: To salute Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca and “Your Show of Shows,” which I wrote for nine years together with Larry Gelbart and Neil Simon, to mention a few heroes. That’s where we started The 2000 Year Old Man. (Reiner) came into the writers room with a tape recorder and started asking me questions: “I understand you knew Jesus. That you’re 2000 years old.” I became The 2000 Year Old Man and then suddenly there’s this incredible (album).
Q: In “Unwrapped,” you stop by Reiner’s house? Do you visit your friend, who is 97, often?
Brooks: I see Carl two, three times a week. (Often) what happens is we watch a movie. And, we’re in the middle, it’s very exciting, right? And then he stops because it’s a commercial. He doesn’t want to hear it. Then he goes back and pushes the wrong button and we’re in a game show. But the funny part is that he goes right along with it. He says, “Come on!” He’s rooting for the game show! I say, “Carl, we were in the middle of ‘The Bourne Identity.'” He says, “Oh yeah, that’s right.” Then he goes back to the movie. But for a while, he just swings along with whatever’s on TV. Every day with him is a great gift and I appreciate it.
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Lay Here In My Arms (4/14): History Lessons
Summary: Roxanne has a habit of putting her foot in her mouth. Luckily, she's met someone who has the right words. For @harryjamesheadcanons
Pairing: Roxanne Weasley/ Nat Blythe (Fading Scars)
Read it on AO3
Roxanne spent much of her time in the library, so she got to know the other regulars. Not by talking; all of them were quiet. But she recognized the blond Slytherin who was always reading about Transfiguration, the Hufflepuff with hair as dark as his skin and bright blue eyes that never seemed to finish a book, and the Gryffindor who murmured in frustrated Vietnamese under their breath.
And she noticed Nat Blythe.
Nat was a year behind her, but Ravenclaws were a close bunch. Roxanne knew the favourite colours, work habits and family history about almost member of her House. Except Nat.Oh, if you asked Nat about herself, she would answer you truthfully. And she wasn’t alone that often; indeed, she had many friends. But when people really tried to pin her down, it was the work she did that people remembered.
The Ravenclaw common room had its own little library of commonplace books, which were free to use by anybody. It was a longstanding tradition that the first-years would take one and keep it with them, writing whatever they liked in them. When they were full, they would put them in the library for the others to read (categorized by subject, of course). There was no rule about only having one, but very few people had more than two kinds of thoughts that they would share with the others.
Nat Blythe took three.
One of her books found a home on the poetry shelf, and it was read a lot. Roxanne was one of the first, ready with her blue ink to offer constructive criticism (that had been drummed into their heads quickly, you don’t tear down other people’s work). Instead, she found herself underlining passages, and cooing out loud at the phrasing. She wasn’t the only one. Nat’s book was one of the most frequent read-alouds in the common room, and Nat would always just smile and say she was happy people got so much good from her writing, but had they read this other notebook, because there was so much cleverness there she could burst.
The second book was a collection of stories. They were charming, short and poignant. There were a few pages at the back of that one left blank, with a note from Nat saying that if anyone wanted to continue the stories, they were welcome to do so.
The third hadn’t been returned yet. Whenever Roxanne saw Nat, she had it tucked in her bag, just peeking out, like it was demanding new words. When Roxanne sat to do her homework in the library (which wasn’t often—the shelves themselves were too distracting, and she’d gotten more than one poor mark because she’d read something fascinating instead of the assignment), she would see Nat with a stack of books, reading carefully, and adding just one or two notations to the book. Once or twice Roxanne caught a glimpse of tiny handwriting, but she didn’t pry. Until it was on the shelf, it was private work.
When Roxanne was relaxing after her OWLs (done at last, no more nonsense, she was free from Potions forever!), she realized that she and Nat were the only two in this section of the library. Nat was deep in her research, and maybe because she was tired, maybe because she was happy, Roxanne spoke up at last.
“Your hair keeps falling in your face.”
Merlin, what had she just said?
Nat looked up. “I know. No matter what my stupid hair won’t stay.”
“I could help you,” Roxanne offered, trying to offer a reason for her ridiculous observation. She’d inherited her mother’s hair (in her father’s shade) but not her patience for braiding, and her curls would fall every which way if not for charmed ponytail holders and quite a bit of experimentation.
“Um…sure.”
Roxanne got up and stood behind Nat. She took soft brown hair in her hands, making sure to gather the long front hair, and twisted it carefully into a knot. Retrieving one of her ponytail holders from around her wrists, she wound it around the knot twice. Satisfied, she stepped away. “How’s that?”
Nat felt the knot. “It’s not coming out! It always does.”
“I have a gift. And a couple of Charms mixed together that my Uncle Lee taught me.”
“Can I borrow your Uncle Lee?”
“I can just make you some ponytail holders. They’re dead easy, and I have loads already.”
“Thanks. You’re Roxanne, right?”
“Yes. Nat?” It was odd, really odd to do introductions after sharing a common room, sharing words with someone for four years.
Nat grinned. “That’s me.”
“What are you working on?”
Roxanne, shut up! You’re not supposed to ask.
“I’m working on profiles.”
“Profiles? What do you mean?”
Nat showed her the book. There were short notes, about someone named Imogene Price.
“Who is she?”
“She was Voldemort’s maternal grandmother.”
Roxanne looked up. “Why?”
“I’m trying to…” Nat blushed. “I’m working on a big project, about the last two Wizarding Wars. Only I want to get the whole picture, tell everyone’s story. The dead, the living…it takes a long time, I’ve been working on it as long as I’ve been here.”
The notebook was only half-full.
“I was born after the war,” Nat said. “Of course I was. But my mother…she lost her cousins and her aunt and uncle. And there are so many questions, and I wanted to try and remember everyone, everyone that died and lived…all those stories. I don’t want them to get lost.”
Roxanne studied her for a minute. “How have you been doing this?”
“I look through history books for names, and then I start combing through records. There’s all sorts of stuff in here—old letters, even some diaries people donated. I’ve gotten all sorts of information.”
“You’ve never asked me,” Roxanne pointed out. “Or my cousins. Our family went through both Wars.”
Nat looked horrified. “Of course not! I would never ask that.”
“Why not? They do talk about the wars sometimes.”
“Yes, but…this is me trying to do a project. I would feel terrible asking a person to relive that.”
“How are you ever going to get the full story?”
“I don’t want to make anyone relive their losses,” Nat said stubbornly. “Not for curiosity.”
“You just said you wanted to make sure the stories don’t get lost,” Roxanne replied. “I’m sure they don’t want to either. They might ask you if you could wait to publish or something, but I think most of them would want you to tell the story as well as possible. And Nat, you can. You have beautiful writing.” She thought for a minute. “Could you write a profile of my Uncle Fred? I know my Dad would love it.”
Nat looked scared, but she swallowed hard. “Do you really think I’m good enough to do this?”
Roxanne thought of Nat’s poetry, the gentle way she treated heartbreak, and thought of her father’s grieving face each April 1st. “I think you just might be perfect.”
They met a few more times in the library before the end of term. Roxanne relayed every story she could remember about her uncle, and the last time they met invited Nat to her house. “Come and meet my family,” she urged her. “Dad knew him best.”
Nat was a little overawed by their house and the large assortment of family who traipsed through, but Roxanne’s Mum and Dad did their best to put her at ease.
When Nat brought up the profile Dad thought about it for a long moment. “I don’t want anyone to forget Fred,” he said at last. “And if Roxy says you’re the best one to do it, I believe her.”
They talked for three hours. Roxanne’s Mum went in at one point, and Roxanne heard the Floo crackling a couple of times, but she didn’t see who came. Nat stumbled out at the end, eyes swollen, and fell into Roxanne’s arms. Roxanne hugged her tight, hands going automatically to put Nat’s hair up in a bun.
When she pulled away, Nat’s eyes were feverish. “I need to write,” was all she said.
Roxanne went to get her tea (an advantage of not working in the library), and she kept Nat company while she wrote. Nat didn’t speak, and she crossed a lot of things out and muttered to herself, but she laid her free hand in Roxanne’s, tracing her knuckles with her thumb when she stopped to think.
When Nat presented Roxanne’s parents with her profile of Fred Weasley the first, they both cried. “You captured him,” George whispered. “Thank you, thank you so much…”
Angelina hugged Nat. “Your girlfriend is brilliant, Roxy,” she whispered, eyes overbright.
“Girlfriend?” Roxanne asked, stunned. “She’s not my girlfriend.”
This time she was quicker to understand, and before Nat’s face became too heartbroken, she continued quickly, “would you like to be?”
Nat ended up spending half the summer at Roxanne’s. Dad started talking to the rest of the family about Nat’s writing, and slowly people started coming over. At first they would talk about the dead—family, friends, classmates, neighbours. Nat’s commonplace book was nearly full when they started at last to speak about themselves.
When they went back to school, Roxanne was proud to hold Nat’s hand (her left one, always her left one), and they did spend some time together outside. They picnicked by the lake, traipsed through Hogsmeade together, and even explored the Forbidden Forest on a wintry night and saw three unicorns with a baby.
Most of their time together, though, was at the library. Roxanne would help Nat find the books she needed and organize the sources people owled her. Uncle Harry and Aunt Luna came one night and, very seriously, gave them several vials of crystal liquid, and pulled out the Pensieve from Professor McGonagall’s closet.
“We couldn’t find the proper words for these memories,” Uncle Harry said. “But they’re part of the story too. Watch them if you like.”
Roxanne cried during the memory of the celebration of Uncle Harry finishing the first Triwizard Task. “I’ve never seen Uncle Fred like this,” she sobbed. “Oh God, they were so young! Damn it, damn it…”
One commonplace notebook quickly became three, and then four, and then five. The school years flew by, as if they both couldn’t wait to be finished. In some ways, they couldn’t. Madam Pince had already informed Roxanne that she would be taking over the Hogwarts librarian position when she was finished, and she was planning how to change some parts of the library, to incorporate some new ways to find material (they needed an upgrade, and if they couldn’t have Google they would have the next best thing). Nat was ready, at last, to turn all of her profiles into a book, and try and publish it.
“And I’ll have a very good looking librarian to help me finish my research,” Nat added.
As busy as they were, Nat made sure that Roxanne took time to finish her own commonplace book. Roxanne hadn’t shared it with anyone until Nat, always making up stories about what was inside it (“murder plots”, “dragon patterns”, and “Nunya” were the top answers).
When Roxanne opened it, most of the pages were filled. “It’s code,” she blushed. “I like playing with letters and numbers, and I’m trying to develop one that’s easy to remember, quick, and difficult to crack.”
“Not impossible?”
“Nothing’s impossible. My Uncle Ron hasn’t been jinxed to death by Aunt Ginny yet.”
Nat laughed.
Roxanne never did find a perfect code, but the one she developed that Nat couldn’t crack (“c’mon, Roxy, I know you better than anyone!”) she wrote outside of the notebook. She gave it to her cousin Teddy, who was starting at the Aurors.
When Nat graduated, she still spent most of her time at the Hogwarts library. She and Roxanne lived together in the little librarian’s room, which turned out to be right off the Restricted Section. Uncle Harry was indignant when he found out.
“Nobody’s ever mapped this place!”
“Uncle Harry, do you really think the Marauders would have been in Madam Pince’s bedroom?” Roxanne asked.
She’d never seen her uncle go quite that shade of red.
Nat’s book was published two years later. It was called Lives in War, stretched to two volumes, and kept selling out so fast bookstores couldn’t keep it in stock.
Everyone loved it, which didn’t surprise Roxanne at all. Nat got several owls from people who hadn’t come forward during the writing, asking if she wouldn’t mind writing something about a family member, about a story they knew, a friend they had lost. Nat said yes to all of them, but she was about to have two new demands on her time (she still managed to write a sequel a few years later, which technically took less time than the first).
The first was a teaching appointment. Professor Binns wanted to retire at last, and Nat and Roxanne moved to the History of Magic quarters (better windows, and less mumbling books).
The second was their wedding, the first since Teddy and Victoire, and the whole family got in on it. They had to hold their wedding at Hogwarts getting married (where else?) in the library, before going outside for a picnic lunch with all the guests. It was the only place where there was room for everyone who wanted to come.
A year later, they took their third time demand on by themselves. A little girl, three years old, whose mother had died before she could get to Dean and Parvati’s shelter. She was darker than Roxanne and bubblier than Nat, once she got used to her new mummies.
They raised Kitty at Hogwarts, and she spent most of the time Nat was teaching in the library with Roxanne, looking at history books.
After all, what else?
#harry potter fanfiction#harry potter au#roxanne weasley#fading scars verse#wizarding history#nat blythe (fading scars)#library nerds#acme146 fanfiction#lay here in my arms#crosspost from AO3
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