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mostlymaudlin · 1 year

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An Attempted Explanation of Andrew’s “Manic Pills”

One of the things that bothers me about AFTG is Andrew’s medicine. The way most of the characters talk about court-mandated psychiatry and sobriety and mania is a questionable and often harmful representation of what it’s like to experience mania/hypomania — which like, it’s fiction, that’s fine, but it’s also something that I take a lil personally. So I’ve decided to try to legitimize the whole thing for myself, just because I can!

Necessary to note: I’m not a medical professional, a lawyer, etc. I’m usually a pretty good fact-checker, but I could definitely be wrong abt stuff, and I’d love for you to tell me if I am. I ran a lot of this by the lovely @the-greater-grief, who does have a medical background and also inspired me with this analysis they did on Andrew’s mental health. They were really helpful in explaining a lot of the more technical drug information, so they’re largely responsible for most of the theory that makes sense lol. But, they are also not responsible for me saying things that are wrong, lol! Alsooooo, I’ve been in the fandom for less than a year so it’s possible I’m saying stuff people have said before. Idc. I’m having fun reinventing the wheel lmfao. Okay, onwards!

The post has two parts:

Lovingly dismantling a lot of the bullshit Neil tells us in the books

Setting up a more realistic version of Andrew’s mental health situation

Apologies in advance, this got long-winded. Let’s do this!

Dismissing Neil’s framing

AFTG is told from Neil’s perspective, so we as readers are limited to the things he knows and understands. We know that Neil is often unreliable, and as perceptive as he can be, he makes a lot of questionable assumptions that he internalizes as fact.

This is what he tells us, rather crudely:

Andrew tried to kill some guys, because he might be a psychopath/sociopath.

Rather than being sent to prison, he was court-mandated to take drugs that make him “manic”/less likely to kill other people.

The manic pills make him crazy and also make him sick, to the point where the characters refer to him as “sober” when he is unmedicated.

The withdrawal is severe enough that his psych wants him to be hospitalized to come off them.

We learn all this about Andrew’s treatment from three sources: Information Neil read before he even joined the Foxes, Nicky’s exposition dumps, and Andrew’s actual behavior. The bullshit mostly comes from the first two items on this list, because Andrew never cares to explain much of his situation to Neil. And we can actually brush all of it off pretty easily.

Neil builds most of his perception of Andrew’s treatment on top of information from articles he read about Kevin’s transfer to Palmetto State. These articles were unkind — the Exy world was upset that Kevin was leaving the Ravens, and Andrew was painted in a cruel and probably inaccurate way. Neil mentions an article headlined “The Prince & the Pauper”... I personally would not take anything from that article seriously.

Some of this bullshit is corroborated by Nicky, a 20-something year old jock majoring in marketing. When Andrew was sentenced, we can guess that Nicky (still basically a teenager himself) was very scared that his cousin, who he is responsible for, was going to get sent to prison. Based on the way he talks about mental health in general, I wouldn’t consider him to be an expert on the nitty-gritty of psychiatry. He just saw the outcome of the trial, which was not prison, yay! and instead involved some kind of pills that made Andrew way more social. Also, as much as I think Nicky tries, he doesn’t really get Andrew — he thought Andrew was straight, and then he thought he was hate-fucking Neil. He’s not a reliable source when it comes to judging how Andrew’s brain works/how he is affected by his treatment.

This leaves Andrew’s behavior, because he never talks about his mental health except to say that he’s “crazy” and that he is not a sociopath. When he’s on the medicine, his behavior includes an elevated mood, a short attention span, and trouble curbing his impulses. When he doesn’t take his medicine on time, he experiences withdrawal (nausea, fatigue, etc), and feeling ill seems to curb some of his mood elevation enough to let him think with more clarity. When he’s off it, he is able to shut down his emotional reactions to things, though he still exhibits flashes of the rage, depression, and zingy one-liners from his behavior in the first two books.

Also, the only people who actually seem to understand Andrew’s mental health treatment are Andrew himself, Bee, and probably Wymack. Aaron might also have a better handle on it all because he’s pre-med, and also he understands Andrew enough to clock that he is gaga for Neil lol.

Okay. Bullshit? Gone.

A proposed alternate story

Once upon a time, some homophobes started beating up Andrew’s cousin and the only legal guardian that didn’t treat him like utter shit, so he went feral on them.

He gets arrested, and somewhere along the line the courts determine that his violence stems from mental illness. Rather than being sentenced to prison, he gets some kind of probation that mandates he engage in mental health treatment. The psychiatrist he sees at the time determines that he has depression — which, like, they’ve definitely seen his self-harm scars, so this is a fair assumption — and he is prescribed an antidepressant.

Now’s a good time to mention that no one would ever intentionally prescribe something to induce mania in a patient. Mania is a supremely dangerous state. People get hospitalized to get out of a manic episode. Whenever I even inch toward it, my therapist and psych are like, “CALL ME!!!!” It also would do nothing to curb violence — the opposite, actually, if the manic person often has a hard time holding themselves back from hurting themselves and others. If you look at Andrew’s behavior in the first two books, I don’t think it would even qualify as full-blown mania. He sleeps, he fulfills his responsibilities, he doesn’t seem to have any delusions of grandeur. His symptoms align better with hypomania, which is less severe and accounts for the things we noted before (mood elevation, short attention span, irritability, impulsiveness). I also think a lot of the stuff Andrew does that is attributed to his medicine is probably just Andrew being Andrew — because as Aaron once said, “it wasn’t the drugs that made him crazy.” (I wrote more about this once in an Andrew character study I did.)

So, the antidepressants would’ve been prescribed to treat the depression, which hypothetically could’ve made Andrew so hopeless and full of rage that he was constantly on the verge of flipping his shit on people. There are plenty of antidepressants that will make you sick/be less effective if you fuck with your dosing schedule, and all the alcohol he drinks probably doesn’t help either. Still, the medicine would just treat depression. HOWEVER! If Andrew actually has bipolar disorder (:D!!!), then some antidepressants do have a risk of inducing mania/hypomania!

It should’ve been obvious that Andrew’s antidepressant was not working as intended. But I doubt Nicky, Andrew, and Aaron had great health insurance before they enrolled at Palmetto, so Andrew’s court-mandated mental health provider was probably like, “cool, not trying to kill people anymore, we’re good.” A good provider like Bee would clock that Andrew had been misdiagnosed, and she’d want to adjust his medicine. But this leads to the final part of the theory — actually suggested by the brilliant Grimm — which also could explain how Andrew came to trust Bee.

If Bee diagnosed Andrew with bipolar, she would want to switch him over to lithium, which is the most common bipolar medicine. I’ve never actually been on lithium, and while I’ve heard it can be really effective, it definitely has a bad reputation — some people say it makes them feel like a “zombie.” Fatigue/dizziness/drowsiness are known potential side effects, especially when you’re adjusting to changed doses — and anyone who’s ever been on a psych med knows that it takes a while to get the dose right. I’m guessing (justified) control freak Andrew Minyard would not be down to risk feeling like a zombie.

(Sidenote: people with bipolar II also get put on lamotrigine, which specifically manages low moods, but from what I can tell it wouldn’t have been common in the mid-2000s. it was only approved for bipolar treatment in 2003.)

Maybe Bee made him a deal: He can stay on the antidepressant, which is not working but is also not the most dangerous thing, as long as he fully commits to their talk therapy sessions so that he can learn how to cope with his symptoms. This is similar to the deal Wymack struck with Andrew. He tends to trust the small handful of people who have given him agency.

Alright, that’s the theory! Andrew has bipolar disorder. He’s not on the right meds. The courts are not doing silly illegal things (well, not in this case anyway), and the jocks of PSU are the real stereotypes here.

Because at the end of the day, this is a tale as old as time: People with mental illness are easily made out to be the villain.

#aftg #my writing

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emry-stars-art · 9 months

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please can u tell us more of ur thoughts on branding.

can u tell us ALL ur thoughts on branding.

can u tell us all your thoughts.

ANGST ANGST ANGST ANGST

Why yes I CAN tell you my thoughts! but this post will stay pretty much about the branding, even tho there will be other points you can notice below; unfortunately I have limited space and time on these posts. One thing at a time for my brainnn 🙏

Also. This is another “there’s too much going on here for me to cover it all” concept, so this is actually in two parts just to make sure it doesn’t get too ungodly long 😂 and one day there’s a bunch of stuff I want so badly to write about it! For now, I’ll put the link to the second post [here] as well as at the very end for your reading convenience

Find the royal au writing masterpost here 💕

(This was supposed to be for showing the brands; it turned into an explanation of some of the physical effects of things that happened in Evermore and the direct aftermath.)

Ahem. So Riko’s pretty determined to make it as difficult as possible for Abram to sneak away again, blend into other places. The best way to do that, obviously, is to brand him to his court as he had the rest.

Abram expects that. He’s completely prepared to have this done, it’s all but inevitable. He’d been dodging his number III for far too long now. Even Day has the II still on his own cheek - Abram can deal with it. Riko’s too proud not to let it heal nicely. He needs his court to look as neat and uniform as possible.

Still hurts like hell.

But after, when Abram wants nothing more than to be completely alone until he can see properly out of that eye, Riko orders him to strip down. Abram doesn’t - his time in Palmetto and with Prince Andrew took away Abram’s only survival technique. He’s known good people now, he knows how a person is supposed to be treated and he’s learned at least some degree of self-respect. Nathaniel relied on a day-to-day understanding that he could die in any terrible, inhuman way at another’s whim. Abram knows better. (It ruins him.)

Of course, Riko gets his demands met anyway. They have to hold Nathaniel down to get the second brand on him. This one isn’t for show, though perhaps that was a thought in Riko’s mind - branded cattle is hard to steal and easy to identify. Mostly it’s the beginning of pushing onto Abram that he isn’t more than property, he’s a work animal and he’s expected to act like it. And Riko doesn’t care that this one heals as neatly. Since it’s not going to be for the public eye, Riko can let it fester and infect as long as it stays recognizable. As long as Abram can look at it and remember what it is and what it’s there for.

When Abram is brought back, when Day is with him in that cart, it’s another thing he begs for the prince not to see. The muzzle and the brand. At first Day is confused; “The prince will want to see your face, Abram. You know he won’t care. It’s just like mine.”

But Abram shakes his head. Says no. No, the other one. Please don’t let him see.

Maybe Day doesn’t fully realize what that means until he forces that bath on Abram. Abram doesn’t try to hide it; he’s already told Day about it, and if there’s anyone that will take Evermore cruelty in stride it will be Day. (That doesn’t mean Day isn’t enraged to see it. Healed ugly, even still a little inflamed from rough fabrics and no care. He knew Riko was always mad with power; this was something else entirely.)

So Day heeds Abram’s pleas and doesn’t let Andrew see the brand. It’s always covered in bandages. When Andrew begins to help with Abram’s care, Day tells him he shouldn’t remove that bandage. It would cause Abram a lot of pain. Andrew tries to ask about it, but Day gives him the same answer as with the strange little punctures in Abram’s face: he will tell you if and when he wants to. And again, Andrew cannot argue.

By this point I think Andrew and Day have reached an agreement. Abram’s eyesight is getting clearer by the day, and Andrew understands how serious Day is about both his and Abram’s safety. But Day agreed that as long as Abram can confirm he recognizes Andrew, Andrew is allowed to help when Day is unavailable.

So when Andrew is sent for, told that Abram has reopened some wounds or torn some bandages and won’t let any of the medics touch him, Andrew goes.

Abram is calm enough by the time he arrives. He lets the prince check the wounds, nodding allowances between each article of clothing and bandage that Andrew removes. And by then they may as well shower too, while Andrew is there. He’d like to try and do what he can for Abram’s hair.

Even then Andrew doesn’t remove the bandage. It falls off on its own under the stream of water. Andrew feels the slight tensing of Abram’s stomach, the way he pauses. For a second, Andrew can only stare, struck dumb with anger. Then, slowly and very carefully, he pushes the bandage back over the brand. Hardly breathing.

“Abram. What is that.”

And Abram tenses more. He can see enough now to place a good guess as to where Andrew’s eyes would be, himself wide eyed and suddenly fearful. (For a moment, the prince’s apparent calm response made Abram think that he’d somehow already seen the brand, which wasn’t impossible considering the circumstances. But his tone now, the ice in his voice as he confronts Abram on it - it feels like all of Abram’s worst fears have materialized there in front of him. Of course Andrew would be disgusted. Princes deserve better than damaged goods. Andrew deserves better.)

“I’m sorry,” Abram says automatically, which is the last thing Andrew wants to hear. “I’ll - you don’t have to anymore, just get Day -”

“Abram,” Andrew says again sharply, which is not the right thing because Abram flinches and pushes Andrew’s hands from him. He’s up and away from the hole-riddled bucket that serves as the infirmary’s makeshift shower almost immediately and finds his things half by memory and half blurry sight. Andrew wouldn’t want someone like him around, even as a guard. Especially in this state, when he can’t perform his duties at all.

Abram finds his way to Day’s room. Even with Andrew’s voice after him as he leaves the bath and infirmary altogether. Thankfully, it isn’t long before Day has returned from a routine check of the outer walls - Abram cannot handle being seen by the prince again, he’s shaking and slipping further from reality by the minute. Day takes one look at Abram in the hall and brings him into his room, trying to calm Abram enough to tell him what’s happened. Eventually, he pieces it together when Abram apologizes for making Day’s work for naught. You kept it from him this long time and I ruined it. Don’t let him be angry with you, it was my fault, just let him do what he wants and -

But Day won’t hear it. He figures out what it’s about, he tries to reassure Abram that it was a misunderstanding. Day knows for a fact, like any sane person and then as a person that knows Andrew, that the prince is not angry with Abram for having a brand or anything it was supposed to represent. He had been angry like anyone was angry to see it. Like Day had been. Day had just been much better about hiding it.

Abram isn’t in a state for rational thought or explanations. The panic and crying exhausts him, but nothing Day offers can comfort him. He won’t take the bed or couch or even the chair, too far in his head about Andrew finally seeing him for an animal. He ends up curled on the carpet near the fireplace, asleep by the time Andrew manages to find him. (He’d gone looking out by the gate, along any path Abram might have taken to run. It was either good or very bad that he didn’t find him there.)

Day answers the door and Andrew opens his mouth at the same time he scans the room, then stops. He sees Abram and tries to come in, but Day stands firmly in his way.

“Is he all right?” Andrew asks before he can stop himself. He messed up, this is his fault. He needs to be sure he hasn’t caused any real harm.

“Physically, yes,” Day says tersely. “But he’s asleep, and I will not be waking him yet. Out, in the hall. I need to speak with you.”

[part2 here]

#BIG BROTHER KEVIN DAY #he gave Andrew the wildest most unexpected ‘if you hurt my brother I’ll destroy you’ talk in history #and I love that for everyone involved #(even tho it was mostly Kevin doing some culture translation re: brands)#(and what abram is and isn’t apparently comfortable with and scared of)#I just think usually Andrew would be INCREDIBLY unimpressed and bored with Kevin’s long talks #but when it comes to Abram at this exact moment #he has no choice but to listen to whatever Kevin says #it’s not like Andrew is the person abram first thinks of when he needs comfort about evermore (yet at least)#day still knows better than anyone else in palmetto #hm are my strong emotions about kevin and Neil sibling vibes coming through yet #nah I’d better do more with it #ANYWAY #fan art #my art #aftg #all for the game #neil josten #andrew minyard #kevin day #royal au #asks #anon #my writing #hmm might have to make the brand bigger in consequent drawings #cows beeg #Abram is small

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dayurno · 5 months

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any trans kevin thoughts and feelings to indulge on ur royal subjects currently cause i’m brainrotting abt him rn

YEAH ABSOLUTELY for my royal advisors who whisper in my ear (send me asks) during court. sorry these are a little sad but it's just me trying to logic it into the canon timeline :-) kevin will experience trans joy i promise

i think a few months back someone sent me an ask about trans kevin and how funny it'd be if tetsuji just drew the line at transphobia but i'm always of the opinion that the only reason tetsuji would agree with it is because it's easier to be a man in sports, so in that sense a lot of kevin's transition would be almost entirely beyond him. i don't think he'd have a say in even something as small as the dosage of his hormones, because the goal is always to make him pass as a cisgender man beyond the shadow of a doubt, his already limited bodily autonomy growing less and less as the years go by

which is why i think palmetto would be crazy for him. can you imagine? i think he'd be swallowing down that secret even looking straight into the barrel of a gun, so can you imagine how scary it'd be to suddenly have abby know? the doctors back in the nest were always threatened by tetsuji to keep their mouths shut, but she wasnt. i think in that sense kevin would need a lot of time to adjust, especially because abby would ask him details about his transition and kevin would realize he doesn't know them. what hormones do you take? did you take puberty blockers? who did your top surgery? and he'd have no idea. so it's eh. a rough few weeks and a LOT of unwanted medical attention

also re: kevin's insane intimacy issues, i think these would be exacerbated in this situation because tetsuji would be So Strict about the no sex rule. he couldn't trust anyone he's ever slept with to not out him as soon as possible, so it was easier for tetsuji to create terrible associations with sex since he was young than to actually control kevin's sex life down the line. eventually this task would be passed down to riko, and at that point i'm not sure how it'd go, but i think we'd meet a very repressed and aggressively chaste kevin in that situation. fascinates me. i love him

#trans kevins no good very bad transition LOL but as you expect hes conflicted about it in the end #yes its how he wanted to be. but the methods werent necessary #i dont think hed ever Regret any part of it but its still hard to deal with the truth that he had no say in anything #I THINK ABOUT THIS A LOT OBVIOUSLY. i need to write transkev i need to #writing this im like do i even think jean would know. would kevin tell him?#im not sure. maybe. i think eventually jean would notice #he gets the closest out of everyone except maybe riko so. i dont know #tetsuji: if you have sex you will get pregnant and die 15 year old kevin cowering in fear:#ahhh its ok birdie. its ok. one day you'll see #asks #kevin

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bigtimesinsmallspaces · 21 days

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Big Times in Small Spaces: The Big Train Adventure

So this is it, this is the day it all begins-- the BIG train adventure. That's me getting on the Palmetto Amtrak train in the early morning in North Charleston. By the end of this adventure I will have traveled across the country on the California Zephyr, north on the Coast Starlight to Portland OR, back east on the Empire Builder, south on the Capital Limited, and right back to Charleston.

A few years ago I had a blog called "Living Large in Small Spaces". It was about my retirement and downsizing from a suburban home where a family was raised and a life was lived and moving south to a little place called Folly Beach. I guess we're still building on that concept. By that I mean we are still trying to simplify and actively seeking to divest of stuff/things and clothes that we never should have owned--while also declaring a formal divorce from Dollar Tree. With that said, I don't think you can find many smaller spaces than a coach seat on the train.

So I'm here to share this adventure with you, in case you, like me, find yourself waking up in the middle of the night longing to be on a train. And not just any train, but the big one-- The California Zephyr. The one that is crowded and never on time and transverses hundreds of miles of old track but nonetheless captures the Rockies and the Sierras like nothing else.

No, I'm not in a fancy schmancy sleeper. I'm going coach and eating Amtrak cafe car food and looking forward to sleeping sitting up for oh so many nights with oh so many strangers. But I'm on and off the train and ready for adventure.

One big surprise-- remember PG? That's Philly Girl and she's going to join me on this 13, or 15 or 16 day test of endurance and she will be helping me write this blog.

First stop, Philadelphia tonight at 9:30--if all goes well. I'll meet up with PG, we will finalize our packing (which really means deciding on the proper haul of snacks) and I'll have a big sleep in a real bed before entering herd mentality.

I'm already settling in, the rocking of the train is hypnotic, and scenes of the low country are floating by as the sun rises. In true Amtrak form, my departure time was changed to be three hours earlier than the original 9 am departure. But then the train was an hour late, making me only two hours earlier. Or something like that.

This coach seat might be small, but it's got a big window that looks out to an even bigger world. I invite you to join PG and I on the rails. Sometimes the biggest times are from the smallest spaces. And thus the great train adventure begins.

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capcavan · 7 months

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Since I started personal writing challenge (1k words a day Ash invited me to play the ww uvu ) game by @/ kedreeva's

It’s WIP Wednesday (except it's Sunday bc I need headstart and to see what to focus on), time for a little accountability, sharing your work, and getting a kick in the pants.

Here’s how it works:

In a reblog of this post (so people can find you in the notes) or new thread (w/ rules attached) if you want to play on your own, post up to five (5) filenames of your WIPs; not titles, file names.

Post a snippet from one of them. Snippet must be words you wrote in the last 7 days. We’re posting progress here. If you haven’t made any, go make some and come back to play!

After you’ve posted, people can send you an ask with one of your file names. You must then write 3 sentences in that file. If the filename is one you can't share from (for example, an event or gift fic), write 3 sentences on it anyway, and then 3 more on another to share.

That’s it! You can invite others to join in, or just post. I’ll be searching the reblogs to find people to send asks to!

If you’re reading this, you’re invited! If you see someone posting a WIP Wednesday Game snippet, send them an ask! Make them write. Feel free to sent multiple asks All of them contain Riko as centrepiece

1. Roadkill canon divergence riko does not get shot/ canon typical TW's 2. Ship of Theseus AU in which riko left the nest at age of 18 and regretted it ever since /topics of self harm suicide grooming / slow burn recovery , very miserable but hopeful 3. Andreil foster home for peculiar charity cases slow burn recovery 4. Badger in fox den in which neil regrets not shutting up

big thanks to @noomyart for being my beta bc my english sucks and @jtl-fics for writing advice and creative support and any support I ever need

Snippet from Badger in fox den Riko was a fox now. Only by name though. Really, he was just a badger wanting to wait out the winter in their den. But even that wasn’t true, because the Fox Tower was off limits to him. After allegedly murdering Seth, supposedly breaking Kevin's hand and serving Andrew few weeks worth of psychological torture, he didn’t expect anything else. What confused him more, was his brother. His brother who looked much taller in person, more so because Riko never before felt so small and exposed, as he sat on the chair in the middle of the room. His arm ached as the drugs he was given wore off by now. He held onto the pain to keep himself whole, much more used to its presence than absence. “Ichirou,” he choked out with glossy eyes. Because his brother finally came to save him, the culmination of a lifetime of dreams shattered though with the press of cold metal to his temple. But the shot did not come, because in that moment the money and resources Riko sunk over the years for his senseless power plays were outweighed by the possibility that some of his blood could find a way on Ichirou’s pristine suit. Neil looked disappointed, even before Riko took another underserved breath, or Ichirou made a motion to pull the gun away. Neil could tell that the man who held their lives in his palm never killed someone with his hands, never saw the gruesome display The Butcher had forced them to witness. No, the Lord specialized in different kinds of pain. The disappointment turned into regret when Lord Moriyama looked back at him. Because now Riko was thrown to the Foxes, the Nest was closed, and Palmetto became the new patronage project of the Moriyamas.

#aftg #all for the game #riko moriyama #neil josten #ichirou moriyama #badger in fox den #cavanww #writting #mywritting #foxrikoau #fox riko

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moondal514 · 1 year

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Some fic reading numbers to wrap up 2022

In 2022 I bookmarked on ao3 1610 new fics (though only about 500 of those are in my public bookmarks). The fandom I read the most for was AFTG, accounting for a whopping 1271 of those new bookmarks

Here’s a multi-fandom list of 10 of my favorites of all the fics I read in 2022. I limited myself to only choosing from fics that aren’t a part of series or WIPs cuz otherwise I prob wouldn’t be able to limit it to only 10.

In no particular order:

Fandom: Alice in Wonderland

The Red Country by jibrailis

Before Alice ever fell down the rabbit-hole, there were two girls who found Wonderland first and who became, respectively, the White Queen and the Queen of Hearts. [Alice in Wonderland prequel].

One of the best wlw stories I’ve ever read

Fandom: The Book Thief/The Hunger Games

Pistol for a Mouth (the Perpetual Survivor Remix) by antistar_e/ @kaikamahine

”Well? How do I look?” He stood in front of her and fisted his hands atop his hips, and Liesel immediately covered her mouth.

Coal dust smeared him black head-to-toe, except for a bare patch that shaped the number “12” on his chest. She drew closer, whispering, “Rudy, it’s even in your ears!” [Hunger Games AU.]

Lovely but incredibly sad reintroduction to 2 books I hadn’t thought about since middle school

Fandom: Star Wars

those immortal dead by notbecauseofvictories/ @notbecauseofvictories

I care more for that long age which I shall never see than for the little of Time that I hold

Padmé Amidala is forgotten, not gone.

Lovely revisit of my favorite Star Wars character

Fandom: Coco

Work of All Saints by antistar_e

Her mother sends her a letter, after. We cannot help you, Imelda, it says. You are the consequence of your actions.

"This is not my fault!" Imelda shouts.

Imelda Rivera (b. 1899 - d. 1969), a story that includes but is not limited to: the finest music school this side of the Santo Domingo, three traveling musicians and the mess they made of love, the twice-cursed assassination of Venustiano Carranza, all the patron saints, and ninety-six ways a man can try to cross a bridge.

Best piece of historical fiction I read this year

Fandom: All For the Game

We Can Live Forever by mostly_maudlin/ @mostlymaudlin

PALMETTO HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETIC FUNDRAISER

WINTER SERENADES - $5 EACH

On sale Dec. 15-17 during lunch blocks. Support our teams, and let them show your friends how much you care through choreographed song and dance!

Participation in the fundraiser is mandatory for all student-athletes. Maybe none of this would have happened if they weren't pushed out of their comfort zones. (But honestly, maybe it was always going to end this way.)

A story about the joys of competition, the people in your corner, and, of course, the misfortune of being a teenager in love with your best friend.

Fic that cheered me up immensely during my lowest days of this year

Spark like empty lighters by butallmystars/ @butallmystars

Honestly, Andrew is just glad his number isn’t blocked. He thumbs at the lighter in his back pocket. Weighs the risk of numb fingers if he smokes with his free hand. And stops thinking entirely when the call connects.

There’s rustling—silence, and then: “Didn’t I get rid of you?”

3rd ever fic to make me physically cry

hold my hand, hold it tight by jingerhead/ @jingerhead

Neil sat alone in the kitchen and wasn’t sure if he could stomach the tea anymore. He’d had over six months to learn that Andrew was very much off-limits, but knowing that didn’t stop the clusterfuck happening in his brain. Because although Neil had never had a crush before he wasn’t stupid, alright? He knows that being jealous of someone else’s relationship has to at least mean something.

So, yeah. Neil has a crush on his roommate, Andrew Minyard, who just so happens to be dating his other roommate, Kevin Day. The whole thing sounds like the setup to a bad romcom.

1st ever fic gifted to me, won at my 1st ever fic giveaway

glass in the trees (objects in the rearview) by Major_816

Sometimes, Andrew thinks in ichor, and sometimes Andrew thinks in a mausoleum of god worship and tragedy.

2nd ever fic to make me physically cry

it takes two (but you and I are one) by kairospy/ @kairospy

Sometimes, not often — not enough for it to be concerning — he felt too much like him.

Andrew noticed the very moment Nathaniel walked into the locker room.

:*:*:

Nathaniel Wesninski had been dormant for too long.

Absolutely fascinating take on Nathaniel vs. Neil and just mind-boggling amazing prose

Hush, Don’t Say a Word by waterwings/ @amywaterwings

Excerpt from local newspaper, January 10, 2016

A Killer Is on the Loose at Palmetto State. Are You Safe?

For a detailed re-telling of the gruesome events that gripped the Palmetto State campus over the past eight months, please see the pages below. But I beg you, dear reader, tread lightly. You don’t know what’s waiting for you, out there in the dark.

~Katelyn Golightly, Student Journalist

Probably one of my favorite pieces of writing ever period

Thank you so much to all you fic writers out there. You guys make life that much more bearable

Here’s to 2023 being a year of lots of more lovely fic reading 😊

#fanfiction wrapped #fic rec #aftg #star wars #thg #the book thief #alice in wonderland #coco #fic rec list

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lemonboyjosten · 2 years

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andrew hates putting his desires into words,sometimes he wants to be blunt just for the sake of it but internally he is trying his best to hide his vulnerability. that being said, if neil is as oblivious as they come, then andrew would express himself with as many words as neil needs to make him understand that andrew is infatuated with him through and through.

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the-s-exy-squad · 10 months

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I have so many headcanons about all for the game and the parts of everyone’s lives that weren’t discussed in depth. Also a few oc/canon character interactions yk. (Another post bc I am not adding it to this today)

To start off, things about canon characters.

I don’t think the entire reason Neil stayed was bc Andrew and Exy. I think he decided at some point whether it be subconsciously or not that even if it results in death, he wanted to help the people who treated him the best. He wanted to make sure that they were better so that he’d have the comfort of knowing that in his last moments when his dad finally caught up to him. He was the foxes team captain and lead most of the practices until he left palmetto and got signed to a pro team with Andrew. They lived together and everything.

Nicky still have spurts of depressive episodes around thanksgiving for sure and during random times bc he feels guilty. Andrew wouldn’t have been there if he didn’t ask Neil to get him to go. Andrew snaps at him once about how it isn’t his fault and he didn’t hand him on a silver plater to drake and that even though he wanted him to go, it wasn’t like he KNEW. Which would also mark the first time Andrew openly talks about the shit drake did to him. He eventually goes back to Germany but makes sure to stay in contact with everyone so he doesn’t miss them too much and can make sure they’re staying out of trouble.

Andrew gets better. He still struggles with his feeling and emotional control but it’s gotten to where he knows his limits and the little tells that his body gives him in regards to what he needs to do to calm down. Mostly includes alone time with Neil and Neil touching his shoulders or hair. I also like to believe that one day he forces himself to budge on his touch boundaries. They start off small like one of Neil’s hands on his arm and when he gains a positive association (Neil) with that touch they do another. I also like to think that he goes back to criminal Justice and gets a career as a social services worker or juvenile court lawyer. He wouldn’t want any kid to get some shitty ruling like he had with the meds and he’d be trying everything he can to ensure it doesn’t go that way bc fuck he knows those meds didn’t do shit but make him find stupid shit funny.

Kevin goes to pro obviously and that’s his entire life. He gets traded to a team and agrees to go because it’s the same city Aaron is a doctor in. He missed his college team and despite how he disregarded their well-being over exy, he hopes they’re doing good. He and Neil still stay in contact and occasionally taunt each other on social media that the fans go WILD for. Andrew rarely pops in with some embarrassingly clumsy thing Kevin did in college or a picture of him half asleep during a practice HE scheduled and the fans eat it up.

Aaron leaves the state and goes to a city that was hiring for doctors. During his intern/probationary period, he would work 3- 12 hour shifts a week and usually pick some up as well because he didn’t like having entirely empty days. When Kevin moved to that city to play exy Asron debated letting him stay in his apartment bc he’d have social interaction and he closer to someone on the team again. I read in a fic once and I absolutely love this idea: Neil is still working on fixing their relationship by making them have calls. I edited it a little to be at least 10 minutes once a week instead of however long once a month.

I think Matt would (since he majored in business administration) just go get a job at some big corporate business of some sort. He’d be the funny work friend guy and a lot of people would ask questions about college and how he and the team get during the whole thing with the ravens to which he’d laugh and say something light hearted about the situation. Even though they asked, they still treated him great and never brought up his life before palmetto.

Renee on god I love this so much. Since she’s adopted, I think she’d start a summer camp for kids in foster care and adopted kids so they didn’t feel alone. I feel like it would be the same way a Christian summer camp is but that wouldn’t be the priority at all. She’d mention it a few times as camp Dean and they’d pray before meals (if kids didn’t want to partake that was entirely fine), but the main thing for the camp is to be able to feel less alone and gain some friendships through exy and religion just like she was. I love this idea sm and it is entirely based off a camp I went to when my dad got full custody of me that was entirely for kids in bad homes or in distaste/was in distaste and adopted.

I think Dan starts her own little league exy team and would take the team to the camp. I just don’t see her slipping out on letting her team go to a camp that’s p much CENTERED around Exy but also super fun and nice and also missing out of her friends.

I believe Allison would also work at camp with Renee bc she thinks that if there’s support at a younger age, kids won’t turn to drugs. When the camp isn’t open, She runs a non profit organization for helping families with struggling kids to work through finding ways to support them. (She would very clearly state she is not a psychologist but she does have a thing for helping people see things through their kids eyes and emotions) she runs a small fashion and clothes/accessories business that she uses for funding the non profit that allows for more people to have a chance at getting assistance through her or other programs. A lot of the kids she works with through her non profit go to Renee’s camp since she can send a majority of them through her business profit. The ones she doesn’t send have stated their stance on it and would rather not go. (Usually it was for it being too overstimulated and/or anxiety about being away from home or with a bunch of strangers).

I DEFINITELY want to believe that since Exy is one of the main topics of this camp, Kevin, Neil and the rest of team go visit for a few summers when they can. Matt would even save up his vacation days so he could go. It’s like a annual reunion with the team (Nicky would call and be on call with them every second he isn’t working or something if he can’t go back to the states to actually be there). All the kids that knew of exy previously would be jaw dropped that the entire team that beat the ravens were standing in front of them.

As for Seth, I think he didn’t cross over yk. I think he decided to stick it out until his found family was happy so he can say he’s seen them happy before he goes to the after life. I think he’s been with them since his death and the beginning broke him. Seeing Allison miserable and so broken. I guess he just wanted closure on their closure. Seeing everyone together and smiling as they played Exy with kids left him feeling genuine joy her never thought he would. They were still foxes, the disfunctional, and emotionally stunted college kids that he knew, but they were happy.

This doesn’t really fit into the the previously stated ones but I think when his old teammates going to interviews he fucks around behind them bc cmon. He would. He’s dead nobody’s gonna see him 😂 and always adds in his own two sense about the situation. He’s also joked several times about his death bc what’s gonna happen? Ghost therapy?

#yes these were thought abt for MONTHS #I think Neil and Andrew would also brin King and Sir as esa/mascots for the camp #I refuse to accept anything that counters these in canon as canon #aftg headcanons #After canon aftg #aftg #aftg foxes

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laresearchette · 6 months

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Thursday, November 09, 2023 Canadian TV Listings (Times Eastern)

WHERE CAN I FIND THOSE PREMIERES?: COLIN FROM ACCOUNTS (City TV +) MYSTERY ON MISTLETOE LANE (W Network) 8:00pm RAP SH!T (Crave) 10:00pm

WHAT IS NOT PREMIERING IN CANADA TONIGHT: THE CROODS: FAMILY TREE (Premiering on November 11 on YTV at 10:30am) MOUNTAIN MEN (TBD - History Channel Canada) MURDER RUNS IN THE FAMILY (TBD - Lifetime Canada)

NEW TO AMAZON PRIME CANADA/CBC GEM/CRAVE TV/DISNEY + STAR/NETFLIX CANADA:

AMAZON PRIME CANADA BTS: YET TO COME TO CINEMAS COMEDY ISLAND (Season 1)

CBC GEM BLACKBERRY (all three episodes streaming)

CRAVE TV RAP SH!T (Season 2, Episodes 1-2)

NETFLIX CANADA AKUMA KUN (JP) TEMPLE OF FILM: 100 YEARS OF THE EGYPTIAN THEATRE

BILLIE JEAN KING CUP (SN1) 10:00am: Canada vs. Poland

GRAND SLAM OF CURLING (SN) 11:00am: National - Draw 10 (SN) 3:00pm: National - Draw 11 (SN1) 7:00pm: National - Draw 12

NHL HOCKEY (SN) 7:00pm: Islanders vs. Bruins (SNPacific/TSN5) 7:00pm: Canucks vs. Sens (TSN2) 7:00pm: Habs vs. Red Wings (TSN3) 8:00pm: Predators vs. Jets (SN/SN1) 10:30pm: Penguins vs. Kings (SNWest) 10:30pm: Oilers vs. Sharks

DRAGONS' DEN (CBC) 8:00pm

NFL FOOTBALL (TSN/TSN4) 8:15pm: Panthers vs. Bears

BLACKBERRY: THE LIMITED SERIES (CBC) 9:00pm (PREMIERE): Mike Lazaridis and Doug Fregin pitch their idea of combining a computer with a cellphone to Jim Balsillie; Jim comes on board, and they try to sell their idea.

AUSSIE GOLD HUNTERS (Discovery Canada) 9:00pm: In flooded Victoria, the Poseidon Crew are forced back onto an old lease; Shane and Kate call in some vintage help in Western Australia; Jacqui and Andrew get separated at night in far north Queensland.

KILLING IT (Showcase) 9:00pm (SEASON PREMIERE): Craig and Jillian prepare for the farm's first shipment of saw palmetto berries, but a series of unexpected visitors puts everything they've worked for in jeopardy; a new employee is a thorn in their side. In Episode Two, the Boones make their demands; Craig tries to reconnect with Isaiah; Jillian must decide whether to sacrifice her prized possession to save the farm.

HEARTLAND DOCS, DVM (Nat Geo Canada) 10:00pm (SEASON PREMIERE): The Schroeders reel in an unexpected catch during a family boating trip.

OUTBACK OPAL HUNTERS (Discovery Canada) 10:00pm: The Bushmen find a hidden shaft by falling into it and the Blacklighters brand-new investment is dead in the water; a busted jackhammer forces JC and the Young Guns to make emergency repairs halfway down the mine shaft.

CANADIAN REFLECTIONS (CBC) 11:30pm: Play It Again; Hall of Mirrors

#cdntv #cancon #canadian tv #canadian tv listings #dragons den #blackberry #aussie gold hunters #outback opal hunters #canadian reflections #tennis #curling #nhl hockey #nfl football

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recoiloperated · 1 year

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So, we all know the turbo poverty pony: palmetto State lower and Bear Creek upper. But I kind of wonder what the actual limit is? What is the cheapest possible AR-15 you can build?

Can anyone get under $330?

Rules:

It can be pre-assembled.

It does not include any optics or accessories. It just has to have all the mechanical parts to go bang.

All the parts must be store-bought, no 3D printing, no hand making.

Does not include any taxes, shipping, or fees.

And it can't be an NFA item.

THE GOAL OF THIS EXERCISE IS NOT TO BUILD A "GOOD" AR-15. IT IS TO BUILD THE CHEAPEST AR-15 POSSIBLE WITH THE FULL EXPECTATION THAT IT WILL BE THE MOST UNHOLY, QUESTIONABLY RELIABLE, PROBABLY INACCURATE, FORSAKEN BY HEAVEN ABOMINATION EVER CRAFTED TO FIRE 5.56.

The goal is to make an ""AR-15"" for under $330 If it's possible. I'm crowdsourcing my curiosity.

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aftgficrec · 2 years

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Staff Recs - Foxes give back

For the month of May 2022 we’ve decided to look into fics that show the Foxes in a giving mood, be that as social workers, lawyers, volunteers, foster carers or taking part in fundraising events. We hope you enjoy these fics with their display of generosity and social conscience! - AFTG Fic Rec Fam

Previously recommended:

Andreil fostering/adopting here (includes ‘Blame It On My Youth’, since updated)

(K)andreil fostering here

‘Meow Meow Lullaby’ here

‘Bleeding Hearts’ here

‘where the heart is’ series, ‘Forming a Family; Forging a Future’ and ‘We Are Survivors’ here

‘Whisker Me Away’ here

‘Better Than His Word’ here

‘All I really wanna do is love you’ here

‘Stay Home With Me’ here

‘Spell it Out’ here

‘Something Good’ and ‘...(The Happy Paws Remix)’ here

‘N for nebulous’ here (complete)

Two worlds collide by pandaseek [Rated T, 30345 words, incomplete, last updated Nov 2021]

A waiter showed another couple to the table beside them; Neil was grateful that the interruption seemed to remind his date to lower her voice with the tables being so close. He looked up when the man diagonally from him failed to sit when his date did. The blond man from the bar stood behind the seat staring openly at Neil and ignoring his dates nervous gesture to sit. Up close, he was far shorter than Neil had given him credit for across the bar. Well-groomed and confident enough to draw the attention of everyone in the room. Neil deliberately averted his gaze, hoping the guy would understand that he had no intention of dealing with people ogling at his scars.

Miranda went quiet watching the man out of the corner of her eyes, uncomfortable with the obvious attention that he was paying them. The man sat down but didn’t stop his staring as his date tried to reclaim his attention. Neil tried to shake it off, but his limited patience was already being pushed.

“Do I know you?” Neil snapped at him when he could no longer bite his tongue.

The blonde looked him in the eyes blandly, unimpressed with his outburst. “I don’t know, do you?”

tw: implied/referenced torture, tw: implied/referenced abuse, tw: involuntary outing, tw: homophobia

sway by PoolToast22 [Rated G, 3991 words, complete, 2021]

Jeremy Knox had a handful of things. Firstly, he had a fake boyfriend. Part of a ploy to make the USC Exy fundraising dance sell tickets after a mistimed break-up. Secondly, he had a crush. On said fake boyfriend. Lastly, he had two hours to get ready to pretend to be entirely neutral and professional to his fake boyfriend/teammate so he won’t guess just how okay he is with this whole situation.

---

AKA an AU where Jean can dance, Jeremy can't- and that just won't stand.

Rainy Day Daydream by rooftopkisses [Rated G, 2538 words, complete, 2020]

Andrew works at the Palmetto Animal Rescue. Neil often volunteers to read to the Cats.

This is the origin story of how Neil and Andrew get Sir and King.

Visiting Hours by fuzzballsheltiepants [Rated G, 2179 words, complete, 2018]

Neil and Andrew visit Dan and Matt in the hospital. Sweet mayhem ensues.

tw: scars

Let Nothing You Dismay by imagined_melody [Rated G, 1717 words, complete, 2018]

The thing about Andrew is, he hates hospitals.

A pro-team publicity visit to the children's hospital hits Andrew closer to home than he expects. (Written for the 2018 AFTG Holiday/Winter Fanzine.)

Breakfast with Champions by belncaz [Rated T, 1531 words, complete, 2017]

Wymack signs the Foxes up for a charity breakfast for kids. Things don’t go quite to plan, until they do - pretty much how the Foxes roll with anything.

It's Always You by justdk [Rated T, 6985 words, incomplete, last updated Aug 2017]

Part 1 of the It's Always You series; part 5 previously rec'd here

In which Neil Josten, rising high school senior, participates in a car wash fundraiser and meets the infamous Andrew Minyard.

The Morning AUs - A Compilation by scribbleb_red [Rated T/M/E, Collection, last updated May 2021]

Chapter 50: The Ultramarathon AU [T, 2531 Words]

Neil has been training for the Wadi Rum Ultramarathon for almost a year. It's a charity race, raising money for families escaping domestic violence. But injury means Andrew is the one who has to do most of the hard work.

Afterthoughts by wesawbears [Rated T, collection, complete, 2017]

Chapter 73: Kevin- Retirement [465 Words]

When Kevin imagined his future, Exy was predictably a prominent feature. He imagined playing well into his 40s- not out of arrogance, necessarily, but because the idea of not playing was simply incomprehensible.

together by badacts [Rated T, collection, complete, 2017, locked]

Chapter 9: Philanthropy [1717 Words]

Prompt: I was wondering if you could write some andreil angst/comfort (since its your forte) about Neil sneaking around and Andrew assuming maybe he's cheating (or the non-relationship

Andreil later in life by @haletostilinski [tumblr, 2016]

Neil plays professional Exy for as long as he can, until he’s like 38, 39 years old, maybe he even pushes it to 40, just one more year, and maybe he gets injured because of it

tw: implied/referenced child abuse

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syngoniums · 1 year

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Ok versatile plant lady do you know much about palms?

best for cold weather?

Depends how cold you're talking, and how much humidity/annual rainfall you see. But in Texas, the following are pretty reliable. Hardiness data is for mature palms, immature plants should be assumed to be less hardy in general. Most suffer leaf damage/defoliation when exposed to their limit.

Most Sabal species (known collectively as palmettos) - mexicana, minor, palmetto, plus hybrids like brazoriensis and 'Birmingham'. Significant differences in size and appearance, but all hardy through at least zone 8a, and some (mostly the smaller kinds) all the way down to 6b.

Serenoa repens (saw palmetto) - fairly reliable through zone 8, iffy below that.

Trachycarpus fortunei (windmill palm), solid to 7b in most cases. Most trachycarpus species are very cold hardy by palm standards, but some can be heat sensitive, especially when young.

Washingtonia filifera (California fan palm). Washingtonias in cultivation are mostly hybrids between robusta (not reliably cold hardy past 9a) and filifera (some strains cold hardy all the way to 6b, though 7b is more typical), so nursery-grown plants are a crapshoot as to which parent they'll take after. If you can find someone selling pure filifera or only propagating from proven cold hardy plants, that's your best bet.

Phoenix canariensis (Canary Island date palm) is usually listed as only hardy to zone 9, but quite a few of them do okay here in 8b, and they had decent survival after the 2021 winter storm.

Butia capitata (pindo palm) - solid in 8b, and quite a few survived 2021 in the Austin area. Probably best in a protected site, however.

Chamaerops humilis (Mediterranean fan palm) - 8, spiny. Seem to be very hit or miss unless you have a protected spot for them.

Rhapidophyllum hystrix (needle palm) - very hardy (allegedly to 6a when established), but also covered in long, needle-like spines. Probably best in part to full shade in hotter areas, and might struggle in dry climates.

Nannorrhops ritchiana (Mazari palm) - this one is not very common, but I think it's well worth a try if you can find it, especially if you're in a less humid area. Reportedly hardy to 6b when mature. I'm currently growing some from seed, and they're a very nice blue color, though there is also a green form.

#i'm growing a number of species not listed here from seed and have ahd good survival #but they're still very young #need to make a separate post #plantblr #gardeners on tumblr #arecaceae

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