#wanted to write these up properly and post them yesterday but wasn't able to
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hey, i hope life's treating ya well this week! i finished y6 yesterday and came to share some thoughts if you don't mind :)
i think kiryu tried to project on his kids what he wanted kazama to be like as a father, but ultimately kazama'ed all of them, especially daigo. i found the ending of y6 very touching, but that's because i like daigo in all of his bland npc glory, and i agree with a lot of criticism of that ending being somewhat weird, especially when we had so little interaction with haruka, who just. you know. woke up from a coma. i wrote this already in my blog, but i'll repeat myself: that ending would've made much more sense if we had just more of daigo in general amd/or saw his transition from his y2 version to his version later in the series. like, we know haruka and kiryu are close, and we assume daigo and kiryu are close too, but i'd love to see more evidence of it in the actual text. that one substory in y0 clearly wasn't enough. i wish we could have more of haruka, MUCH more of haruka, too. the lack of her agency in y6 after y5 felt frustrating
i did enjoy the game, though. i really liked the callbacks to the previous games. as for side activities, it never seizes to amaze me how the eroge minigames are become just more and more unhinged. but all the missed storytelling opportunities, man
(it's also v funny that daigo's sr card code in clan creator is kiryusavemepleaz. i don't speak japanese and therefore haven't played rggo, but i know about a story where majima lets daigo win him on purpose or something? also the situations daigo's often put in (which are mostly near death experiences), him never getting any kind of resolve with ryuji as well... i think yokoyama kinda hates daigo lmao)
Heya! I sure love thoughts and I sure love talking about Daigo :]
On the note about 'Kazama'ing his kids, I'm going to be ugly and take a minute to interpret what that means if you don't mind.
When it comes to what Kazama did to his kids, he allowed Nishiki and Kiryu to join the yakuza despite knowing the dangers of it at their insistence. Ergo, we see Kazama prioritize the yakuza, telling Kiryu to leave the Dojima situation in Y1 alone. Moreover, despite Kazama lacking faith in Nishiki's abilities as a yakuza, he still expected him to be able to lead a family by himself while he took care of Yumi in hiding.
As for Kiryu and his kids, it was evident Kiryu wanted to be able to parent the kids at Morning Glory- to speculate, maybe as a way to atone of Kazama's messy paretning without outright admitting Kazama had faults. However, his bond with those in the yakuza inevitably kept him coming back, especially in regards to Daigo (who, of course, we find out he sees as a son. In this, it's a case of Kiryu still wanting to be a good parent, but the priorities aren't exactly there). In this (and I've discussed this in a post prior), Kiryu's attempting to spread himself thin when it comes to his family: he wants to help the Tojo, if not predominantly due to Daigo's presence there, but he also wants to father the orphans at Morning Glory. Unfortunately, since Kiryu can justify leaving the kids as Okinawa's a safer setting and he's admittedly at his best in a fight, he ends up leaving for Tokyo every time action's needed.
It's actually Kiryu's constant leaving that had me assume he was writing his letter to Haruka at first during Y6's ending, specifically when he was talking about how he lamented not spending more time with her. On the subject of Haruka, Y6 really did her disgustingly: as soon as she was of age, she becomes a mother and, on top of that, she gets hit by a car and is in a coma the majority of the game and doesn't even get to properly spend time with Kiryu before he vanishes. I genuinely wish and- foolishly- hope one day Haruka can actually get the respect she deserves after having been such an important, prominent, and interesting character throughout this franchise.
To talk about Daigo and Kiryu, the main subject of this ask I feel, I think RGG did as much as they could when it came to demonstrating Kiryu and Daigo's relationship. In Y5, it's revealed that Kiryu believes that people who become close to him suffer (and in this scene in particular, he's referring to Daigo after he gets shot on the roof)- how long he's had this mentality I couldn't definitively tell you, but I wouldn't be surprised if this has been a thought since everyone's deaths in Y1. Because of Kiryu's fear for others' well-being, it can be reasoned that Kiryu might have wanted to keep his distance from Daigo as much as he could lest something go wrong (but of course, he also feels responsible for protecting others, leading him to take action where he should probably leave things be). In Y4, we can see the buds of Kiryu regretting not being there for Daigo when he needed him most, outright apologizing to him for putting him in the position of chairman without any proper training or time. Considering all of this, Kiryu's letter to Daigo aligns with what we've seen: even if Kiryu wasn't able to be close to Daigo and properly guide him like he should have, he still confesses that Daigo was incredibly important to him and he regrets letting that fear stop their bond from deepening.
Daigo on the flip side, we become very aware that he values Kiryu immensely. To return to Y5, at the end of his taxi ride he tries to reassure Kiryu that he's able to carry himself without his help (i.e. 'I'm trying my best to walk this path' after Kiryu kicks him out of the car). Daigo's need for Kiryu's approval is also evident in RGGO: the story with Majima you're talking about is one of his character stories where he first becomes chairman. In this story, Daigo struggles to understand what Kiryu's intention was entrusting him to the Tojo Clan, but once he realizes it, this is his turning point to stop being the brute he was in Y2. To extend on RGGO shining light on Daigo's feelings for Kiryu, during his initial meeting with Mine in Mine's story, he lets Mine know he was so ardent in watching the Tojo at first so he could make 'the man' who put him in that position proud, and later during their bar conversation in another one of Mine's stories, he lets Mine know that while he doesn't consider Kiryu family at this point, he still considers him someone incredibly close to him (and as we see in Y6, Daigo will do a hard 180 on this and proudly call Kiryu his father). To jump back to Kiryu for a second, we can argue that Mine's whole 'what could Daigo see in a man like you' line could have contributed to Kiryu's want to distance himself from Daigo. Because what if Mine had a point: what WAS there to admire in Kiryu? What could Daigo POSSIBLY like about Kiryu, and would it not just be better if he wasn't in his life after- inadvertently- getting him put in a coma? To end this segment on a goofy note, Daigo's clan code being 'kiryuhelpmeplz' is super funny with the father/son lens: Daigo's gotta call his dad to help him out </3
EDIT: In regards to the RGGO story I mentioned here, I misremembered the exact quote and that drastically changes the scene and meaning I'm referencing, and significantly portrays the relationship between Daigo and Kiryu differently from what I've said. For the correct quote and sentiment, please refer to this ask here (x)
In all of this, it's reasonable that RGG couldn't expand on Kiryu and Daigo's relationship, but that's what makes Kiryu's letter so significant. We see from Kiryu and Daigo's sides individually that they saw each other as family, but neither of them were able to confront that fact directly for one reason or another (Kiryu, again, with is fear of hurting those he loves and his general inability to express his emotions perfectly. Daigo might have thought seeing Kiryu as his dad was inappropriate, especially after having had to believe he killed his actual dad). Kiryu lamenting the bond they could have had wouldn't have had the same merit if Kiryu and Daigo were actually able to bond more, but because they didn't and we see they still cherish each other, the impact's there.
My long ugly ramble aside, I'm glad you still enjoyed the game! I don't know if you have any more of the games left to play, but if you ever get around to them I hope you enjoy them!
#long post#snap chats#if you guys ever want any of daigo or mine's RGGO stories i do have them bookmarked and saved so ! ask away and ill link em to you :)#this is a lot of disjointed rambling forgive me i just have a lot of thoughts about daigo and kiryu and daigo and kiryu#yokohama hates daigos ass fr LMAO
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What happened? You okay?
Thanks. I'm okay.
OK. So I tried to write a kind, thoughtful response to this and my phone deleted almost the entire thing. So I'm going to try again, not sure how well I will do.
I had a friend on the Internet. I liked that friend. But it turns out we were probably incompatible. This friend is somebody who seemed to need a lot of external validation. I am a person who is happy to offer support, but if you ask me for my opinion, I am going to be honest. Not to be mean, but because I'm really bad at lying.
Anyway, this person did something that I thought was rude. Initially, I said nothing about it. But this person came to me looking for support. They suspected that I had thought they'd been rude, because I had unfollowed their tumblog, and they asked me about it. They wanted me to tell them that really they hadn't been rude, that what they had done was totally understandable, and that if I had been upset by their behavior, I was wrong to have been upset.
(Keep in mind throughout this whole thing that I am not a mind reader. When I say that this person wanted something or thought something or said something, it's all my perceptions. They likely perceive the situation otherwise.)
Anyway, I did not say or do the things that this person wanted me to say or do. This person felt betrayed. They said they did not feel that they could trust me any longer, and they did not want to continue our friendship. They blocked me on Tumblr, which I wasn't thrilled with, but fine. I am nothing if not loud about people being free to curate their own Tumblr experience, and if this person needed to block me to feel OK on Tumblr? Then that's what they needed to do.
The thing is, it should have ended there. But it didn't. Because, on and off in the weeks/months since, I would get messages from other friends. “so and so seems really angry with you. What happened?” “So and so says you betrayed them/have it out for them, and I want to get your side of the story.” and finally, the one that bewildered me: “so and so says you are stalking them on [other platform].”
first, let me say that whenever this happened, my response was something like, “thanks, I appreciate your concern, here's my side of the story, but also, in the future when this person says negative stuff about me, I'd rather not know about it.” because really. I have enough problems. This world has enough problems. I don't need this on top of it.
Second, the first two questions did not shock me, but the last one? That was a little bewildering. So I did some thinking and maybe I figured it out?
In addition to both being on Tumblr, this person and I are also on at least one other platform. On one of these other platforms, when you log in or have the platform open in your browser, other people who you are “friends” with or in a group with can see that you are there. You don't have to interact with them, you don't have to be checked into the group that you share with them; but if they look, they will see your icon.
So I guess, every time I went to this other platform, this person thought that I was there to see what they were doing?
This is how illiterate I am on this other platform: When I initially signed up, I somehow was able to figure out how to post and reply, but then I went away for a while, and when I came back I couldn't figure out how to do it anymore. I don't know if it was just me forgetting or the platform changing. Anyway, I literally didn't figure out how to do it properly again until last week.
Yesterday, I went into a group where we are both members. I reacted to a noncontroversial, neutral-type post there with a pretty neutral reaction on my part (I think it was a thumbs up or a smiley face?). To be clear, the post was not by this person. I am not stupid. This person blocked me on Tumblr, I'm not going to go try to interact with them directly on other forums.
Anyway, this was the first time I had interacted on that forum in a while, due to just having overcome my platform illiteracy. Sometime later in the day, when I went back to this platform, I noticed that the group where I had reacted had disappeared from my groups. Had the group been shut down? I asked around. Nope. I had been kicked out of this group.
Oh well. Was I miffed to be kicked out of a public forum (because it had been public up until then, hadn't even required an invitation or an e-mail address to participate) without any warning? Sure, for a while. Hence my flailing of last night.
But look. It’s not going to kill me. It’s an internet forum. Sure, I like chatting and listening on the Internet as much as the next person, but I also survived the first two decades of my life without ever doing that once, so again, it's not going to kill me.
Is it shitty? Yeah, I guess. But honestly, most of the shitty feelings I feel in relationship to this whole debacle are probably my past traumas being dragged up by this, as much as the situation itself.
The 12 step group I used to belong to has a saying: “detach with love.” Here's how I interpret that. Sometimes, people I care about are going to have strong feelings. It's up to me whether I want to share in those feelings or not. Someone can be angry at me, lash out at me, whatever. It's up to me to decide whether that anger is justified. It's up to me to decide whether or not to also be angry at myself.
And it's also up to me whether to be angry back. Like, maybe the initial flood of adrenaline etc. isn't up to me, but the decision to stay in that anger and brooding is up to me.
And I don't want to stay there.
So my focus right now needs to be just about anything but this situation lol. Sure, I can grieve it. But I can’t live in it.
With that in mind, if anyone reading this thinks they know who I'm talking about, I have the same request that I have shared privately with people: Please don't share with me what this person is saying about me unless it is truly a need-to-know situation, e.g. they have doxxed me, they are threatening me in a way that is truly concerning, or, conversely, they have gained a completely different outlook on the situation and want to reconcile.
Thanks.
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I saw your post explaining why you see Dionysus as Hades and Persephone's son, and I don't really think Hades wouldn't have cared about him *personally*, but I do like the idea of Persephone being a stable mother for him because of his usual mythological background.
it's your blog, though, so you're totally free to tell me I'm wrong, but thank you for supporting mom Persephone rights!! 💜
Oh no, you're not wrong at all ! <3 in my case, have to apologize tho, i'm pretty sure i didn't work much that answer ( if you're refering to the last anon's ask ), i was very tired last night, i would prefer to one day post a good essay of how i see Hades' relationship with Dionysus ( as father-son, of course ).
Hope i didn't give an idea of hating Hades either, when i said HadesxPersephone was boring to me i meant it when writing a modern story, the discussion of the "modern reinterpretations" has appeared, say it with me, ONCE AGAIN, and i really don't get why people can't move on and write about Orpheus and Eurydice instead of writing about two ancient deities they haven't even looked for sources about.
[ Just re-read my own answer and yeah, sorry- i said he "doesn't care" and that really wasn't my point, yesterday wasn't really my day huh. i apologize for that again. ]
Well, i'll explain it properly someday, but for now i'll say this: i don't think he 100% didn't care, neither that he wasn't a stable parent like Persephone, but he had some trouble with having a son, just like his wife; i consider Hades to not be ready since he never expected to have a son, not only that, but Persephone never talked about it with him before, so he at first didn't feel very well about Dionysus revealing him that he's his father. But that's just at first ! And i even wanted to give that impression with my quotes, as you've seen, they don't look like they have the best relationship with eachother- but that's just the first part of it, i like to think that, with time, they were able to setle up their differences ( along with Persephone ), have a small family talk and ended up being able to appreciate eachother and actually have some wholesome family moments. i'll write about that as well !!
For now, have this quick summary of events, i promise to give a proper point later, right now isn't the best time and most of my posts are actually programmed xD but you can share your point of how you view them whenever you like to, you and anyone else, anon ! 🧡 Glad you're a defender of Persephone being a mom as well !
#stay tuned for the day i'll be able to give you all a proper essay. that day is not today :/#i hope that by the end of june things will get better and i'll show an actual essay#you all may send me via asks or DM your own interpretations as well !!#also anon. your ask has earned to be in these tags#ram mom#ram dad#dionysus lore#dionysus#persephone#hades#answered#anon
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A letter arrives in the post addressed to Chan, the return address is somewhere in Olympus and is scribbled on the back of the pretty light blue envelope. The handwriting on the front is neat and pretty, written in sparkly silver ink. The letter inside isn't nearly as elegant as the enevlope. The sides and backs of the paper are covered in crayon doodles and scribbles, all colourful and a bit janky looking.
"Dear Moonbaby,
It's Haneullie here! It's been a long time since I got in touch with you and wanted to.
Life is good up here in Olympus. Beanie has started school and absolutely loves it. My afternoons are filled with her ramblings about her friends and what they learnt at school that day. You know, they've been teaching them about plants and Yeseul has been growing her own little pea plant. It's so cute, it's the first thing she's responsible for and she's doing a super good job! The little pea shoot just made its appearance yesterday!
When I told her I'd be writing a letter to you she demanded that she show you her art skills, hence the little scribblings on the front and back of this paper. She said "want uncle Chan to have colour in his house and something to remember seullie with" so she wants her art to be displayed.
I've been able to work on my art too! I'm now running courses for the people here to learn in their free time! It's been so rewarding and people are having fun with it so it makes me happy!
How are you doing? I've been checking on you when I can, I hope you don't mind. I felt bad about leaving so abruptly and worry about you. I'm so sorry I wasn't able to tell you properly... You deserved better from me.
I want you to know that I'm here for you, I might not be reachable like before but I'm still gonna look after you as much as I can okay?
I hope that this letter reaches you safely. And I really hope you'll write back, it would be wonderful to hear back from you after so long. It's okay if you don't want to though! No pressure hehe.
I love you lots Moonbaby. Stay healthy and happy okay?
Love,
Haneul"
Attached are some instructions on how to get mail to Olympus with a small post it note which reads "just in case you want to write back <3"
Chan looks out the window curiously at the sudden change around, almost as if a burst of something had made it through the property in a flash, the air feeling lighter, different. It's not a change strong enough for humans to notice probably, which explains why he's the only one heading out, but the boy just knows something's up.
Thinking it could've been the fox playing around the wolf steps out, expecting to find her hiding, but is only met with a perfume he knows all too well.
There's a sudden ache in his heart, a burn almost as he follows the scent, hesitantly, to his mailbox. The envelope sticks out the side of the box slightly, the blue paper too easy to recognize even before he takes it out.
Staring at the name, her name, Chan takes a deep breath before walking back inside, straight to his bedroom.
Not today.
Maybe someday Chan will have the strength to read through another heart-shattering letter from someone he loves dearly. Maybe someday he will be healed enough to not feel the ground opening beneath his feet as the earth tries to eat him alive. Maybe someday, hopefully even, Chan will be at peace enough with himself to not feel the whole weight of the universe on his shoulders at the simple thought of those he's obviously failed–. Otherwise, why would they leave?
But it's not today.
Placing the closed envelope inside his bedside drawer, he traces the name softly with his finger. God, he misses her. He misses her terribly, he's dying to open the letter and know what it says. What she says. There's not a thing he wouldn't have done for her to stay, she just had to ask and he would've provided, but this is just how things were supposed to be if this is how they happened.
The doorbell brings Chan back to reality, hand pushing the small furniture closed before he walks out of the room without looking back again.
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DA4 Lead Producer Scylla Costa’s BIG Festival talk, “Challenges of Dragon Age production during the pandemic”, can currently be rewatched on YouTube here starting roughly at timestamp 8:57:02 after a lil presenter blurb/intro. It’s 1 hour long. When it was streamed live, there was an English translation ‘voiceover’. There isn’t in this vid, however I want to post the link for Portuguese speakers, and also it’s neat for everyone to be able to see all the slides he presented with for themselves in context.
I don’t know if an English-language version will get put up so I’m sharing the notes I took during the talk below, in case anyone’s interested and because I might as well since I wrote them. The rest of this post is under a cut due to length.
Edit: Found a place to re-watch the English version of the talk
(Quick note: I didn’t note down everything, mostly things that caught my interest, so this isn’t exhaustive, and when I was watching I was real tired, so pls bear that in mind and don’t take these notes as bullet-proof 100% accurate gospel or direct quotes. If you watched it and think I’ve written down something wrong/misunderstood, let me know and I’ll fix. Also if you’re a Portuguese speaker and I’ve gotten something incorrect or missed something important etc, again just let me know.) **
** Edit: I’ve now gone through my notes while watching the talk again. I’ve filled in some of the gaps (although they still don’t cover everything said) and so forth, and now I’m no longer worried about there being possible errors in this post.
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For some context, this slide contained the breakdown of the talk’s structure. Bear in mind there are other slides present in the talk than the ones I’ve posted here, I didn’t include caps of all of them, just ones which were of note to me.
In the talk, chief Producer Scylla goes over challenges of DA4 production during the pandemic. He discusses the adaptations - necessary skills and learning from remote work - and he ponders on the future of teamwork.
After the launch of ME3 he became a producer, all his MMO and other experience helped a lot. He was on DAI for 3 years and MEA for 9 months, then Anthem. Today, on DA4, Scylla and another Lead Producer were the heads of the whole project, and there is his boss is the Executive Producer Christian Dailey.
^ the usual AAA game development cycle (brief introduction)
AAA games are games that are launched for several platforms simultaneously.
In BioWare’s case, the pre-production phase of the game development cycle can have from 5 - 30 people, and up to almost 60 people when they’re just about to go through the gate to production.
In the pre-production phase, they go through the game’s concepts and prototypes and start developing systems. They seek the game’s concept and focus, and its key features. They do lots of market research. In the case of BioWare, all their games are strong in narrative, so they have lots of tools related to game narratives and supporting the development of a narrative (cinematic design, dialogue system etc) that get focused on in this phase. Other parts of the team such as writers and cinematic design need these systems to do their own roles.
In BioWare’s case, the pre-production phase through to launch can take 4 - 6 years, but it does depend on the size of the team during development.
With regards to Dragon Age 4, they were coming close to the time when they would shift from pre-production to the production stage when the pandemic hit.
During the production phase is when the development of content and features takes place, with the systems mostly already existing from the pre-production phase. A few new systems may be developed in this phase. In the production phase is when things start escalating, and the team really starts growing, to like 2- or 3-fold the prior pre-production phase size.
(DA4 is currently in the production phase.)
In the alpha phase, features have to be fully implemented and systems all have to be running / working. All the game features should already be in the game by now. They test from pre-production onwards, but this phase is when they run heavy technical tests with lots of players trying to play at the same time. In the beta phase, the idea is that you should now have full content and that now you’re balancing it and running more and lots of different tests with players before launch. There are final tweaks and then the final launch, when in the weeks prior to launch, all the different business units and areas e.g. marketing team, technology team, publishing team, get together once a day and all of the game’s issues are reported and brought to the table to be prioritized. Then they decide the next steps re: these issues (this is known as ‘the war room’).
After the launch there are usually patches like day zero patches and other patches, this being standard industry practise. The last stage is the new content stage where there are DLCs and a game with more content.
On March 12th 2020, the team gathered to review the DA4 story in the new office. Everyone was very excited. (They had spent over 10 years in their last building and had noticed that with the team growing they needed more space. In August 2019 they found the new studio in the city center.)
Anyway that evening, they got an email from the CEO which contained instructions and said that due to the pandemic, they should from now all start working remotely. They had known that this happening was a possibility so they had been planning on how to have all the devs working from home, but initially less than 50% of the devs were able to work from home successfully/efficiently due to various issues e.g. you need a VPN to be able to log in remotely to do your job normally, varying home office setups. The day after this, the office was basically deserted, except for Scylla, the IT infrastructure people and one or two odd devs.
Scylla was part of the team that was working on allowing the devs to work from home. They first started looking at the short-term changes they needed to make to allow this.
“First, take care of our developers”.
When the pandemic first hit, their and Scylla’s [as Lead Producer] first priority was to look after the devs. Many of them are parents (schools and day-cares were shut, children were studying from home), others have relatives living with them, others have other personal circumstances which of course need to be taken into account when it comes to assessing what needs to be taken into consideration for this new scenario. So, they looked at each dev on a case-by-case basis in order to evaluate, speaking to each one and asking them what they could do to support them.
One of the first changes/adaptations they could implement was flexible working hours and flexibility around deadlines. Generally speaking the devs got a lot of support, EA was really good and really supported the devs especially in the first months of the pandemic (and they are still supporting them). Initially not all devs had suitable office spaces at home, some were working from the living room from laptops or at the kitchen table. The whole covid situation basically just happened over night and nobody was really ready to deal with that change. So their first step was to enable their devs to work remotely. As a producer, Scylla’s main task is to communicate with the team such as via a number of daily meetings. He doesn’t depend so much on powerful hardware.
“Enable developers to work remotely”.
This slide shows some of a BioWare audio team. Different teams have varying and specific needs in order to do their jobs and therefore in order to do them remotely. For example, the audio team need good-quality speakers and amplifiers, while the lighting and art teams need other specific equipment such as tablets and large screens. So there was a lot of work they had to do to go through each dev to understand their individual needs and what needed to be done for them. ‘Could they download the builds? Did they have the right performance [tech-wise]? Could they submit their changelists, their codes to the server?’
Some devs needed a more powerful internet connection as it would take 6-8 hours to download a build (some devs live rurally). Some needed a lot of cable, as they were working far away from their routers (sometimes up to 50m). As time went by things got better and better.
The chair devs work from is also important; a kitchen able chair etc is not suitable to sit in for long-term desk work, possibly leading to health issues like back ache and blood circulation problems in the legs.
Every 3 months they had money given to help devs buy new mice, keyboards, monitors - anything they needed really in order for their office setting at home to be improved. For a while, because lots of people [generally, in society] were needing and buying them, it was quite hard to buy things like webcams and microphones.
On mid- and long-term changes:
In terms of DA, we have to look at this from 2 perspectives, the change in the personal and the professional environments.
As a consequence of working from home, people tend to be less active during the day (even in an office, you go between meeting rooms, up and down stairs etc). Physical activity supports life quality and therefore work quality. Scylla noticed that he began to feel listless and such, and found that he needed to change his routine that he had initially developed when he started working from home, for example; having a normal start time (as in, have a semblance of structure in your day as if you were still working in the office site), get dressed at the normal time, not having meetings over lunch etc. This wasn’t just him, lots of other devs encountered this and had this experience too. Devs which adapted faster had better productivity and became more productive faster.
Scylla bought a stand-up desk which he can raise up and down, and at meetings he would be delivering a talk while standing or even while walking on a treadmill. Other devs also got stand-up desks. He tracked his body’s data on a Fitbit. These sorts of things helped improve physical and mental wellbeing. Other devs did similar things, like starting going out for jogs or began practising yoga. Essentially, everyone needed to make changes to their daily routine in comparison to what they had been doing prior to the pandemic.
The pandemic has been a thing for over a year now. In their location, every couple of weeks a new restriction is put into place or a rule is changed, and every two weeks there’s a new thing that you can and can’t do. Scylla also started moving around his property. He worked on his desk, fixed it up and painted - taking up a new hobby. Other devs picked up new hobbies too. These are good ways to be active and also to be somewhere else, i.e. to break up the working day and not be spending it all in one home office-type location. Scylla found that when he made these sorts of changes to his routine to improve his lifestyle, the data output by his Fitbit as indicators of his health/wellbeing etc improved, e.g. number of steps taken in a day, heartbeats per minute while at rest. As stated many of the other devs went through a similar process.
On the professional side of things:
They had to improve remote delivery of builds. Accessing things from home as a dev requires a VPN. They need to download a build every day and then upload it to the server after making their changes to the game. They had to work with infrastructure and research other tech, such as streaming tech to allow remote console access, in order to better facilitate this process. For remote access, they also had to work on adapting communications channels.
“Adapting channels of communication.”
In this slide, the team are working on the storyboards. Before you can implement motion capture & performance capture, you have to ‘run the storyboards’ like this. These are small illustrating drawings which reflect the drafts and are meant to quickly reflect the intention of the scenes that are to be built. Before the pandemic, the team would go to meeting rooms like this, sit down, talk and interact in person. After the pandemic, the question became ‘How do you do this over Zoom?’ You can, but it’s not quite the same; it’s harder to see peoples’ expressions, some people are embarrassed speaking over Zoom etc. Therefore they had to adapt their communications systems, and unlearn the ways in which they developed before in order to relearn and learn new ways of communicating.
Slack was a tool that they adopted on this front. Communications channels can be confusing on Slack, so there was a need to develop structure. For example, how quickly should someone reply (as a recommended convention for the purposes of work)? They had to define the process/procedures for the channels so it was clear for the team as a whole how it would all flow (this is important especially if you have a team with say 30 people or as a whole hundreds of people). Before the pandemic, they had stand-up meetings where they’d go around in a circle every morning and talk about their activities - what they’re going to be working on, any roadblocks they had encountered etc. The question arose ‘How do you replace these?’ They ended up doing Slack messages at a certain time of day and updating their statuses with some details on what they’re working on and color-coding (green - fine, yellow - need help, red - busy/blocked out).
Another issue that they faced was unforeseen - the number of meetings that devs were having really shot through the roof. When there wasn’t a good structure of communications channels, any conversation would become a meeting. Everybody began scheduling meetings left and right, and at the end of the day they would have little time left in which to actually work on their to-do lists. Hence, they had to work with the team to really analyze and be very pragmatic. ‘Which meetings needed to happen? Which didn’t? Is a specific meeting really necessary? Which meetings should be recurring? What can be done over Slack?’ This guideline had to be given to the team to help, and it improved things a lot. The number of meetings decreased a lot and they got more effective. For example, by making sure to set an agenda for meetings beforehand, and by having meeting notes (then a dev who didn’t really need to be at a meeting could skip attending and just quickly review the notes output after instead). They also decreased the standard length of meeting times from the default Outlook blocks of 1 hour and 30 mins to 55 mins and 25 mins respectively. This 5 minute change gave devs time for things like bio breaks (also 4 hours in a row at a computer in a home office with one meeting after another just isn’t good for a person).
“Adapting p-cap and mocap”.
On content:
From a content point of view, the most difficult thing in terms of the pandemic was adapting p-cap and mocap (performance capture and motion capture). They hire actors and it’s a large studio. The pandemic meant big limits to what they could and couldn’t do. The actors had to be masked and 5 meters apart in distance (although it doesn’t look like it in some of these shots due to angles). Also there could be no other person around in the studio - only the actors. The directors instead would ‘patch’ in remotely on big screens (you can see this in the second photo in the top right).
Before the pandemic, they felt that they wouldn’t be able to do p-cap or mocap properly remotely, as the directors would usually stand right next to actors giving guidance on their performance. The techs would also usually be near. But they adapted! The keyword is adapting, changing process. It’s harder and it’s different, but it is possible, and people start rethinking what is possible. What was said to be impossible before now is possible.
P-cap differs to mocap in that it also captures voice and facial expressions.
On the future of work after covid:
There will probably be more working from home and more flexibility for workers e.g. being able to work say 3 out of 5 days from home. It does depend on what a dev’s specific job is however. For example, the audio engineers require lots of specialist equipment and said equipment is of higher quality and quantity in the office. So, depending on role, devs might be working more often or less often from home.
Another development is that lots of devs are moving house. In lockdown etc people started reassessing what’s most important in life. Some are moving further away from the studio to get a cheaper rent or for example couples who both needed an office space to work from home from but their current place only had one area. Others are moving closer to nature for a better quality of life, and still others have other different reasons for doing so. Over 10 devs that he knows in fact have recently moved, including Scylla himself.
The pandemic changed certain skills being used by people on a daily basis. Scylla used as an example of this one of his soft skills, being able to tell from looking/interacting in-person with someone if they are stressed out. Obviously it’s less easy to tell if someone is stressed out when you’re remote, so you adapt different ways of checking in with people in the new situation. To continue carrying out his role as Lead Producer, he began checking in with his team pro-actively on the new comms channels and asking how they were doing.
Also, now that companies are more open to working remotely, there is going to be increased competition for hiring devs. They saw both sides of this coin at BioWare. They were able to hire devs from many places that they couldn’t hire from before e.g. Montreal, Vancouver, the US, as there’s less need for devs to relocate to Edmonton or Austin. This opens up opportunities to hire really intelligent and skilled people that they would not have had access to before.
Question and answer segment:
The pre-production phase has been concluded. They’re in the production phase.
They are not giving out a lot of details yet but Scylla is really excited as a big fan of the whole series. He thinks that with DA4, they will have the opportunity/possibility to launch the best story out of all DA games. He feels that the characters they’re making are amazing. He’s dying to say more but can’t.
When you work from home you need to keep your team as productive as possible. During the pandemic, when people started working from home, they noticed that some people became more productive and some people became less productive. They were analyzing it on a case-by-case basis so as not to make assumptions. They were interested in seeing what they could do to help. At the beginning of the pandemic, they were looking at the devs as people and seeing what they needed.
Production of DA4 still needed to continue during the pandemic because they want to be able to launch the game.
This slide shows a writer. Writing is an example of a role which is more able to work from home easily.
Their productivity did go down in the first month of the pandemic. After adaptations, some people then became more productive than they were before (this was role and personal situation-dependent, examples of this being artists and coders who were able to art and code at home without being interrupted, thereby being able to produce more). Covid has affected productivity in general, but this is part of our new reality. They have adapted and adjusted some deadlines. They have enough data (Scylla LOVES data) now to understand how long it will take them/how long they’ll need to launch the game. They have always had historical data for this purpose, but they’re doing more of this sort of thing now to ensure that they are doing things at the right time.
Remote hiring opens up the door to more talent joining, so if someone has talent geography will hold them back less. Some companies though may choose not to hire people from other countries due to labor issues, cumbersome legal aspects, time zones. But even in such cases there are activities for example that can be carried out while the rest of the team is asleep such as testing or working on the build, or there are cases where those companies still will want to hire a specifically/highly talented person even in spite of the potential legal aspects and so on.
On mental health: People were affected. There is the mental, physical and social impacts of the pandemic situation on people. EA supported them during the pandemic in terms of their mental wellbeing, there are specific companies (services offered, speaking to a therapist) that they can contact if they need something or help. EA had always been good at supporting them with this sort of thing but this has improved further during the pandemic. Another change was that they could/can take a couple of days off if they needed/need to because of the pandemic e.g. to take care of children, who were obviously not at school at the time. As a producer he had to be very mindful of all of this. How much they were monitoring peoples’ wellbeing really went up during the pandemic.
A question that was asked - in terms of DA4′s storybeats, is there anything in there that they decided to change due to the pandemic as it wouldn’t be sensitive or appropriate to include anymore, for example a plague plotline or something? Scylla’s answer is that DA and ME are games in which they try to have narratives that are relatable, which include things which people will identify with, so that players understand what characters are going through etc. Nothing in DA4′s plotline/storybeats has been changed (in the frame of this question, relating to the pandemic), as it didn’t have anything in it that could be specifically or a directly connected to a pandemic-type situation or anything. Of course the DA story has Blights and the Taint, but these are different & fantastical things and existed long before the pandemic situation. So this wasn’t the case with DA4 and there was no need to change anything, but this has happened to other games where they decided to change a storyline due to a strong correlation with something in the real world.
There were then concluding/closing remarks. The message he wants to send is that a crisis will always spark opportunities. Look at a crisis and try to see how you can grow.
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[☕ found this post interesting or useful? my ko-fi is here if you feel inclined. thank you 🙏]
#dragon age 4#the dread wolf rises#da4#dragon age#bioware#video games#covid mention#long post#longpost#wanted to write these up properly and post them yesterday but wasn't able to#mass effect#anthem
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OKAY. I watched the latest season of The Witcher and.. WHAT THE FUCK. Excuse me, but I will cry for years over it. HOW DID THEY DARE. HOW COULD THEY DO THIS TO ME.
The Witcher series are my childhood books! I grew up with those stories, with Geralt and rest of Wolves. I was waiting for this season! And what did I get I am asking??! A freaking sci-fi series without any logic.
Kacey, I don’t know what to say.. Geralt? Okay, I liked him way more than in the first season. I loved Vesemir, because he was like he should be. But Lambert and Eskel? WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM?? Where is my asshole Lambert? Where is my sweet and gentle Eskel? I mean.. netflix!Lambert and netflix!Eskel were good, I liked them. But not as Lambert and Eskel but as totally different characters. I liked Eskel’s aggressiveness and boldness, not gonna lie. I also liked Lambert’s sarcasm, I liked how he trained Ciri.
I loved Jaskier's character and his relationship with Yennefer. However I didn’t like what scenario they prepared for her.
My heart and soul hurt and I dont know what to do with myself now. I am looking forward to your stories with their netflix!personalities, but I think it will be really hard to change their personalities and behavior. What do you think?
Sorry for chaotic message, but I ended watching this yesterday and I cant get over it so I am not able to think and write properly.
🌻
Hi babe!! So glad to hear from you<3
I'm going to put a keep reading thing here cause this is a long post and has some spoilers for season 2 of the Witcher :)
This season..... I am still very, very upset with how Eskel was portrayed. But I have tried to keep to the positive side of things.
I do think that Lambert didn't get enough show time so therefore we didn't get to truly see him. What we did see was good in my opinion. Was it the jerk with a soft side that we know and love here? Of course not, but I do think we got to see him being their version of Lambert and it wasn't terrible. It is managable and I, as a writer, can definitely work with it and make netflix!Lambert content easily without (hopefully) changing too much of his persona that we see on the show.
I think Vesemir was done pretty good! And Jaskier and Yennefer's friendship was the absolute highlight of the entire season. I love them so much!!! They're such a power couple but not even in a romantic way! Just ugh they're perfect. I'm still undecided if I ship them romantically or just platonically.
Geralt.... I have some issues with him. While I do whole heartedly love how he is with Ciri and this season he was everything my dad!Geralt writing self could ever want, I would have liked to see more conflict between him and Ciri. I haven't read the books, but from what I have heard and seen and done some research on, they don't get along perfectly at first and that makes sense! Just because they are bound by destiny does not mean they need to get along 24/7. I would have preferred to see conflict in their relationship and to see Geralt struggle to make the right decision, and even to see him make the wrong decision at times because I absolutely love the angst. But in the end, I do love dad!Geralt so much and I love how he is with Ciri.
And that brings me to Tree Man. I had this gut feeling that they were going to fuck Eskel's character up the second I saw that Basil was going to be the new actor. And that isn't because of Basil at all! I know he most likely had nothing to do with how Eskel was written as a character and he just did what he was told. I am in no way shitting on Basil. But I knew from the moment Thue was no longer Eskel that we were going to lose any potential of a good Netflix!Eskel. Thue was perfect for the role. Absolutely perfect. And call me dramatic but it breaks my heart when I look back at Eskel fan art made with Thue's face.
I do agree with you that I do like Basil's aggressiveness but that's another story for another post. I think that there was potential for Basil!Eskel but they shattered that with shitty writing. I've seriously started to think of Netflix!Eskel and game/book!Eskel as two different characters so that I can begin to write for Netflix!Eskel because I do feel that there's potential for him. He just needs to have some.... alterations done to his character.
As a character across the entire board, Eskel deserved better than what he got. I intend on making Netflix Eskel better.
#eskel is my favorite witcher#hissrich and co can fucking fight me#the witcher s2#twn s2 spoilers#kacey answers#🌻anon
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Hi! I just wanted to pop by and let you know that I have read your dragon rider fic at least two or three tomes a month since you posted it. I randomly think about the beautiful world you created and have to go back and read it. I always know what's coming, but every damn time Pero talks to Brac that first time it makes me grin like a fool and do a little happy dance. I just want all the good things for Pero and jinete. 🥺 I have literally caught myself daydreaming about them and their "babies" the few days after I reread the story. If you have any HCs about their life on the farm/reservation I would be forever grateful. Also what do you see happening to Wyrm? Does he continue to be a demonic presence or does he eventally let go a bit to where he can be rehabbed and released? I feel like he and Pero could really relate to each other. Okay, I'm done (for now). Thank you for sharing this story with us. 🥰
Ok so first off, I wanna say how big of an uplift this was for me yesterday. I was having a rough night, and reading this made me so happy I almost cried. I loved writing that story so much, so I'm so so so glad that it's loved so much. <3
So, for Wyrm, he never really mellows out, but Pero manages to be able to work with him, and under Jinete's guidance, he's able to rehab the little dragon and get him flying properly before he's released again. Occasionally, Wyrm comes back by to see the two. He never loses that orneriness, but at least he isn't trying to snap at Jinete anymore.
As far as HCs for the farm, I have a few!
It's established that Pero took to helping Jinete like a duck takes to water. He's a natural. And that makes Jinete super proud as she teaches him how to take care of different dragons and different types of injuries. He soaks it all up, asking for basically little lessons when the days are quiet. Jinete shows him her notebook that she's amassed over the years comprised of notes from the generations before her, as well as he own discoveries running the sanctuary. Sometimes she'll come in from a flight or feeding Nerris and she'll find him by the fireplace just reading through the notes, full of questions to ask her.
Occasionally, an injured dragon comes through that Pero can't really connect with. Be it simply refusing to listen to him, or snapping at him the way Wyrm would snap at Jinete. The first time this happens, it really upsets Pero, and he kinda spends the rest of the day quietly sulking. You find it a little cute at first, but when he's still grumpy and pouting when he comes to bed, you spend the rest of the night comforting him, telling him that sometimes it happens, and that not every dragon is gonna like him, no matter how much he wants them to. He just sort of grumbles at that and clings to you until he falls asleep with his face pressed against your chest, and feels better in the morning, electing to let you take care of the newest problem patient.
The first time he went flying was an ordeal. Turns out, Pero wasn't a fan of heights. At all. he spent the whole flight with his eyes clenched closed, clinging on for dear life. Seraphis tried the whole time to get him to open his eyes and relax, but he refused until his companion's feet were firmly on the ground. It took a very long time for him to even open his eyes when they were in the sky. But when he finally gets the hang of it, it's hard to keep him out of the sky. he prefers flying with you, but if you're busy, he's content to go on his own. He calls it recon, but you know he just wants to be in the sky.
Having a second pair of hands to help out is the best thing you never asked for. Things around the reserve get fixed without really needing to ask. The creaky door on the flight pen? it doesn’t creak anymore. The draft that came through the kitchen window? Taken care of. The wear and tear on your riding gear? Patched and cared for. Little things that were more just minor annoyances slowly disappear, and every time your go to thank your new companion for help, he just smiles and shrugs, saying it’s nothing.
I may do a companion piece to La Jinete at some point. A “down the road” slice of life type story if the inspiration strikes me! adventures with poachers, and how the Jinetes take care of them in the area.
Thank you again so much for all of your kind words. I’m so so glad that I’ve been able to give you something that makes you happy like this.
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What happened next to Gil-galad the time travelling king?
Referencing this post.
I haven't thought about the AU much; it was mostly a self-indulgent idea I thought of due to my desperate need for more Elrond & Gil-galad content.
But you bet I am willing to ramble about it. Also, sorry it took me this long to answer - originally, I started writing it in the more story-telling way the OG post was in, then read it, disliked it strongly, tried again, was interrupted by having to study, forgot about it, remembered when I had no free time and finally got to it yesterday. Oh well.
So of the things I had thought of, we have several points:
1. His time in the Third Age
2. Did he keep his memories after returning to the First Age?
3. How does the time travel here work?
1. He was mostly trying to cope with the idea that he time travelled. Gil-galad isn't dumb - sooner or later he would realise that in the Third Age, he is dead. More angst ensues. He would probably spend the largest amount of time with Círdan - someone who stayed similar to what he remembered him like in the ages past unlike Elrond who is suddenly an old wise lord rather than a kidnapped baby, but Gil-galad still befriends him. In a way. Elrond is up for an emotional rollercoaster, but then again, so is everyone else. At this point in time, Elladan and Elrohir are already on their vengeance highway and spending much of their time with rangers - not much opportunity for Gil-galad, who is barely into his adulthood, to befriend them. Arwen would be a good choice, but I don't know if she is in Rivendell or Lothlórien; Glorfindel is a dead hero out of a legend and young Gil-galad is way too awed. Other than them, we know next to nothing about the other elves of Rivendell, so depends on what one's headcanons are.
He wouldn't do much in the Third Age in general - he is a time traveller, he isn't supposed to be there, he can't suddenly walk around and announce his presence to the world. He stays in Rivendell. He probably doesn't learn about the past - his future - much because I doubt someone would tell him everything when they don't know what will happen once he gets back. He feels very out of place since his mind is still toned to a different age, although everyone tries to make him feel welcome.
2. Two scenarios here;
A/ He forgets everything, but is left with feelings of deja vu way too often afterwards. He thinks it's foresight - he knew things he wasn't supposed to, things that he shouldn't be able to know. But he does, and when he marches to his last battle, he knows how he will die before he even stands against Sauron. He doesn't back out of the fight.
Kind of like Halbarad during Pelennor.
B/ He keeps his memories and spends the following age in despair over how he is afraid to change the timeline, but wants to change the timeline; but once he tries, the timeline stays the same. Otherwise, it would create a paradox - he can't prevent something that he knows will happen if he knows it because he learned it after it happened. He wouldn't be able to learn it in the first place otherwise. *did I make sense?* More angst. Death feels like an end to the endless loop of being trapped in a life he can't properly control.
3. My idea was related to Ainulindalë, in a way similar to the one Melkor took when trying to change the melody to his own tune. For Gil-galad to time travel, someone would have to attempt something similar - add their own tune to the song of creation. To explain it in a very simplistic way:
The first pic: four E2 quarter notes
The second pic: four E2 quarter notes, with an added C1 whole note
Also shown here in the video for comparison (in case someone has no idea about sheet music and also because I am a dumbass) - includes both pics; as well as a simple D major chord (and after that, D major with an added G2)
If you play a song, the song stays the same even if you add your own touch to it - you don't change the tone of the whole song by adding a tone or two. If you change too much, it's not the same song.
We know songs have power in Middle Earth. Finrod who sung an orcish disguise on himself, Beren and their companions, battled Sauron with a song; Lúthien in pretty much half of her scenes. In my headcanons, they are able to do that because they blend their own song with the song of creation - enough change that Lúthien can pull a Rapunzel with her hair, but not enough to change the course and nature of the world for the rest of eternity *glances at Melkor*
In that case, that would be the way Gil-galad time travelled in the first place - I have yet to think of why (maybe a failed attempt of one of his Morgoth's servants to get rid of him? Idk), but that was also the way he got back - probably with the help of elves such as Elrond, Círdan, whichever minstrel of old was hanging out around Rivendell.
He gets back to the very hour he time travelled from. No one has noticed he was gone. Now he just has to deal with deja vu and foresight or memories.
And win a war or two.
#thanks for the ask! ❤️#again apologies it took me so long#i love talking about this but i am a dumbass#gil galad#time travel#no proofreading we die like noldor#i am tired so also apologies if i am not making sense or went off topic way too much lol
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The Curses We Inherit- Chapter 8
Original Work
Date Posted: July 14, 2021 (Tumblr)
Word count: 1, 097 words
A/N: Work is unbeta'd but I do hope you'll still enjoy reading it. Comments are always appreciated! And if you can't wait to read what happens next, this story is also up on Wattpad (under the username ChosenKeeper0971) but with way more chapters, I appreciate your support there too!
Thank you so much, I hope everyone is having an awesome day and happy reading :)
Masterlist / Part 7
Danika sunk into her seat apprehensively turning her head back and forth as Krysa and Jac argued.
"Are you insane? We're more likely to get lost, we should stick to the main road"
"The main road takes way too long" Jac exclaimed "Going off road would get us there faster because there are less people and honestly the view would be way better"
Jac and Krysa had taken up the driver seat and passenger seat respectively but it did not take long for both girls to start arguing on what path to take.
"The main road is safer" Krysa argued
"We're on a spontaneous trip, we might as well take a spontaneous path" Jac shot back
Krys sighed, shaking her head. She glanced at Danika, who still felt awkward, sitting uncomfortably in the back. The curly blonde's face softened. "We're sorry about the arguing, it happens a lot when we travel together."
"It's true, unfortunately" Jac said, glancing back through the rearview mirror "We'll tone it down, I promise and I'm sorry" she did sound contrite.
The tension in Danika's body slowly left, she gave a small smile "Thanks. So which road are we taking?" she asked leaning forward between the two seats.
Jac and Krysa shared a look before Krysa reached back to hand Danika their map.
"Up to you, girl," Jac said, settling into her seat.
She stared at them quizzically "You guys still use maps?"
"It's Krysa's preference" Jac giggled "She's not too good with technology"
"I'm old fashioned" Krysa laughed "Which is it Dan?"
"Jac" Dan said slowly "How well do you know the spontaneous road?"
Their eyes met in the rearview, Jacqueline grinned widely "I am so glad you asked"
It turns out Jacqueline had not memorized the off-roads as well as Danika thought, but Jac knew it well enough not to take any wrong turns. Krysanthe, despite trusting Jacqueline's sense of direction, was still slightly apprehensive about the road itself.
So the driver at least has some idea on where they were going, the road may not be completely safe but Jacqueline was right about the view. The road they took had a wonderful view of the surrounding nature, in the distance Danika could see the patches of fields and meadows. The road they were on was in a slightly higher area so they could see more small towns in the lower plains.
"Despite how it looks, the island is pretty big" Krysanthe explained, her eyes lighting up "A lot of families have been living on this island for centuries, the original founders started with one kingdom, but the people eventually revolted against the royal family"
"How come?"
"According to the history books, the people were treated horribly, citizens from other kingdoms were treated better and the king at the time was practically a man-child"
"What about the other explanation?" Jac chimed in
Krysa rolled her eyes "I find the alternative absolutely ridiculous" she said "A bedtime story for children"
Danika straightened in her seat "I would like to hear this ridiculous alternative to history" it was probably just a coincidence, right? There was no way it was the same story.
"A witch supposedly cursed the royal family, causing family members to die. Grief and sorrow was constant within the castle, eventually the royal family became negligent, they stopped caring about their people and the more responsible and experienced heirs died off leaving the youngest one to take over so..." Krysa trailed off, leaving Danika to piece together what most likely happened. "I personally don't believe in any of that"
Jacqueline shot a glance at her "What about all that stuff that happened to you as a kid?"
"I was child, I probably just imagined all of it" Krysa replied, waving her hand dismissively
"You mean that's what Rhian told you"
Danika scooted closer, sticking her head between the two seats "Who's Rhian?"
"I'll tell you if you sit properly," Kyrsa said pointedly.
The heiress did as she was told then smiled innocently.
Kyrsanthe rolled her eyes, smiling but complied "Rhian is the closest person I would consider to be my parent. The first few years of my childhood wasn't what one would consider ideal but when Rhian took me in I just knew things would get better. I owe her a lot" Krysa mused "Ironic, considering a lot of what I did yesterday and this morning feels like I've taken advantage of her trust"
"I think you're being too hard on yourself, besides when was the last time you did something on a whim? In university? Three years ago with that guy-"
"We are not going to talk about him!" Danika flinched at the tone of Krysanthe's voice, she never thought the small woman would be capable of producing it. In the short time that the youngest O'Brien knew her Krysa had been professional, a touch too much in Danika's opinion, and controlled but hospitable and kind. Whoever this guy was must really hit a sore spot.
The car fell silent after Krysa's outburst, Jacqueline was uncharacteristically silent, Krysa had worn her sunglasses and put on earphones while Danika continued staring out into their surroundings, distracting herself with the beautiful yet distant sights.
******************
A gas station out in the backroads was not something Danika had expected to find. Yet here they were at-Danika raised her head to read the sign again Stone's Stop.
Jacqueline had claimed that this was the best place to rest up before going on with their trip despite Krysa's look of incredulity. Danika had a few reservations about this place, mainly because the fact that it's in the middle of nowhere and is surrounded by a lot of trees making it look way more sinister than Jac claims. But to be fair, the place was clean and had a decent looking convenience store.
There was a tall and burly man coming out from another building beside the convenience store, wiping his hands on a cloth.
Jacqueline parked the truck beside one of the fuel pumps, the girls got out of the car and Jac grinned as she came forward while the other two lingered behind.
Danika didn't hear what Jacqueline or the man were saying but she could see that they were glad to see each other, both girls began to slowly relax seeing the stranger grin and laugh while talking to their friend.
"I take it you don't know him" the heiress whispered.
Kyrsa shook her head "Jac likes to roam, which usually results into some unusual friendships" she smiled suddenly "It's a lovely of hers, being able to make friends wherever you go"
"Listen I'm sorry for snapping earlier. That topic is particularly-" Krysa paused "difficult to talk about"
"You know it's okay if you don't want to talk about something that you aren't comfortable with" Danika said as she squeezed Krysa's arm "But Jac deserves the apology, not really me"
Krysa squeezed Danika back.
Jac walked back to them still smiling "Alrighty ladies get whatever you need from the store. I'll fill her up then we'll get going"
"I'll catch up," Krysa told Danika.
Danika grinned as the florist turned to speak with their friend then to make her way to the convenience store.
Taglist: @mel-writes-with-her-dragons @woodhousejay @dustylovelyrun
#writeblr#original story#original writing#creative writing#writing wip#unbeta'd#The Curses We Inherit#The Curses We Inherit Ch 8
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Today's update 21/01/2022
The update today might be shorter than yesterday. I didn't make a huge amount of progress with the thesis today because I had to go into the Jewellery Quarter to sort out a key and a few other bits...like making sure any wooden snowflakes left from Christmas got removed from the cemetery! There were about 30 left from of over 200 - that means nearly all of them went home to people's Christmas trees. That made me smile. Of course when I was there I bumped into everyone and couldn't help but stick around for a bit to catch up. It really feels like home, and it's hard to be away, especially with the uncertainty if I'll get to come back or not.
I also did some of the project things that are still outstanding. A few emails, a couple of quick tasks - like fixing a blog post which had broken images so hadn't been published. I also made a simple 10 minute video for a university group about the cemeteries - and putting it together felt really smooth and also took less time than I expected. Which is lucky really because the deadline for it was today... It's frustrating that I can do something like that and feel pretty competent and confident, but when I'm working on my thesis, I feel so out of my depth 50% of the time (when reading, writing etc.) and practically brain dead the other 50% (when I'm doing endless data entry).
This evening I finally finished sorting out all the photos I took at Highgate recently, and discovered I totally failed to get new pictures of the inscriptions on the side of one of the mausoleums which is really annoying. I might email the cemetery and beg the team to take some for me? Maybe one of the volunteers would be happy to wrestle their way through the hedge with a camera? Other than that, I've got them all sorted out now, which should up the speed of the rest of the data entry. I think I'll take my laptop to the Coffin Works tomorrow and see if I can get anything done in quiet moments. I think I'll probably be OK as long as I don't try to drink a cup of tea while it's hot - that always seemed to be the cue for everything to go wrong at once when I worked there before.
I'm really looking forward to being back at the Coffin Works - even though I also feel a bit like it's my 1st day all over again! I don't know some of the newer volunteers yet and all the tech has had an upgrade!! Both exciting and terrifying! I just keep reminding myself that even though it was 2 years since I worked there properly, I've had my keys the whole time and have actually done quite a few tours and events! The most dangerous thing is operating the drop stamps and I did that before Christmas. You can clock out, but you can never leave.
Our builder came round today to prep for the work we are having done of the kitchen too - it's just a couple of minor updates really. The worktop has been badly scratched since before we moved in, and the work we had done to box in the pipes wasn't finished properly because of lockdown. I'm being restrained and getting slate effect rather than real slate for the worktop, and reusing the sink which is in ok condition. I did fancy an expensive ceramic one, but Mom pointed out the high likelihood of me chipping it when I'm flailing around and dropping pans. But I will be treating us to a new tap - oooh! It even has Victorian in the name!! I'm forever a cliche. We want to do a lot more work on this flat but the reality is, because it's a tiny one bed, none of it will add to the value very much. There's only so much anyone will pay for world tiniest maisonette. On a main road. In Warstock. Also, feels very risky when I'm unemployed, even though we have been saving up. I'm looking forward to having the kitchen look nicer though - it's the only room we didn't decorate when we moved in. I might even buy some paint next week and do the decorating in small bits when my brain melts from too much PhDing. Each wall in there is tiny, so 1 coat won't take long!! Maybe I'll even be able to cover the soy sauce stain the previous owners left on the ceiling for us...
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✨Productive morning journal✨
It's been a little while, but I'm ready to get back in the swing of things now that I'm mostly recovered from AWA!
Thanks to daylight savings time ending, this morning I:
✨ got woken up a little early by my roommate's alarm, but then woke up again a bit before 7:00 am, netting me over eight hours of sleep after falling asleep around 11:00 pm last night with the time change giving me that extra bit I needed!
✨ sort of stretched and dozed, so I got out of bed by 7:30 am
✨ I wasn't keeping particularly good track and definitely took longer than usual, so I was dressed and had my breakfast of brown sugar oatmeal with the last two sliced bananas and tea ready by 8:30 am
✨ I didn't want to get sucked into watching yt for too long, so I looked up how to wash my mouse pad and then tried to do a bit of online shopping; I discovered I really hate online shopping! doesn't matter which site, all are equally hard to find what you actually want and feel like endless clicking with none of the fun of actual shopping; I gave up on that (and mostly finished my breakfast) around 9:00 am
✨ I have one assignment due this week, which I started yesterday but didn't start early enough to properly finish, so I opened that up and got to work; it's supposed to be the first 15 minutes of three different assigned lesson topics, so I knew I shouldn't struggle with it; still, I lost focus around 9:30 am and checked social media for a bit
✨ I was back on track around 9:50 am and done by 10:30 am! really, I ought to have been able to do that easily yesterday, but I didn't get moving until too late which, because I didn't have food in my system, through me off entirely
✨ then I got sucked into social media :facepalm: I meant to only text my roommate to let me know when they woke up and read the latest post from the one political blog I follow, but I got side tracked by opening up tumblr to type this, following a mini yt rabbit hole, reading fanfiction, and scrolling fb; I finally got started on writing this at 11:30 am
I spent last weekend at AWA with two of my friends I never get to see and went to an additional concert with one of them Sunday night, so it was a good thing I had worked so far ahead on my school work, because I felt almost useless the whole week!
I delivered my lesson presentation, but our professor almost exclusively gives feedback to the guys in our group because he "has granddaughters" and thus somehow can't get too intense with his critiques of non-dude students??? which, he almost exclusively gives critiques and not compliments so I honestly have no idea how he felt about my presentation, and I made a pretty huge math error in part of it that a classmate had to catch, so I wish he had just said anything about how I did so I could stop obsessing over it; he's a good teacher, but "soft" sexism is still sexism, and I'm not going to get better if he doesn't tell me what I did well or could improve on
the writing team for an academic paper I'm involved with held an emergency meeting Tuesday instead of Thursday because of schedule conflicts, but it meant I could make requested changes ASAP and have the draft ready for submission by Friday when it was due, and then the conference offered a week extension to everyone anyways!
Wednesday was the second test for my hardest class, fortunately moved from Monday because our professor forgot about it; he hadn't handed back the homework relating to the section by the time of the test, so I don't think I did all that great on it
by Thursday I was doing pretty alright, especially since I could nap instead of going to our usual writing team meeting; I actually had a student show up to my online office hours, but he struggled so much with the technology that we hadn't managed to answer a single question by the time he left 45 minutes after he joined; this is particularly concerning because we've been doing classes and office hours online for over a year now, and he's a substitute teacher responsible for working with students himself!
on Friday I actually got up and ate a cooked breakfast before noon (breakfast burger, made breakfast-y by omitting the pickles and adding a fried egg), and then spent that day cleaning up from AWA, which involved laundry and reorganizing the hall closet to fit the cleaning supplies my friend hadn't wanted to keep, and also got the litter boxes cleaned, sink completely empty of dishes, and a few things set aside for donation
Saturday was a bit of a haze, probably because of all my activity the day before, where I didn't get out of bed until noon and spent five hours barely managing to get a third of my homework assignment done before I made dinner (microwave baked potatoes with cheese) and went to bed
✨ it's just after noon now, so I want to finish this by 12:15 pm, then make lunch (fish maybe???) and take the recycling to the center, drop off the donations, and do a bit of grocery shopping with my roommate
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Hiya! You know all the cute romione things we get only a glimpse of in Deathly Hallows, like the fact Harry thinks they fell asleep holding hands? Could you do a short fic of what you think might've been going on when Harry wasn't around?
I finally got around to finishing this! Yay for holidays! Thanks for bearing with me! x
I think SO much happened that Harry missed. In fact, therewas a post going round a while back that had really convincing arguments forthe theory that they’d actually gotten together much earlier on than we’dthought and it inspired me enough to want to write that. But time is a luxury Idon’t really have these days :( However, going off of your suggestion about theholding hands, I like to think that this is something that maybe had the chanceof happening? (And maybe if this is uploaded onto fanfic . net someday, I might continue this with more of the moments you -and I- were wondering about.)
[Also, I must confess this headcanon of mine of Ron and Hermione sleeping together in Grimmauld Place comes from Ann Margaret’s Hermione Granger and the Deathly Hallows. Go read it (and all her work!) if you haven’t yet!]
They’d moved into real bedrooms today. The adrenaline, fuelled byfear after escaping the Death Eaters in the cafe, had left them, and they didn’tneed to stay in the same room, lying on the cold, hard floor. They were readyto settle into Grimmauld Place, their new home for the foreseeable future.
Ron found himself staring at the bedroom he’d stayed in thesummer before fifth year. Fred and George’s much larger room was obviously freenow, but it felt a bit wrong to take it. Harry’d gone with Sirius’ room, andRon reckoned he’d better leave him the privacy he needed. Hermione was a floorup, probably poring over one of the billions of books she’d brought with her.She’d gone to hers and Ginny’s room, though after last night, Ron really wishedshe’d stay in the same room as him. There was something very comforting abouthaving her next to him, being able to see for himself that she was safe, havingthat warm hand of hers resting in his.
Hereckoned he was coming way too close to telling her everything. Dancing withher at Bill’s wedding yesterday, holding her close… he finally felt that hecould actually do it. Tell her. Show her. It was probably that brilliant book -its advice was fantastic,and he’s actually felt a difference between him and her, like something couldreally happen, like she could actually feel the same way, that he couldactually start–
“Ron?”
He whirled around to face the doorway, to find Hermione staringat him nervously.
Yeah,no. He wasn’t going to tell her anything.
“Hermione,” he croaked out, rubbing the back of his neck nervouslyas he realised his voice was a pitch higher than it should be. “What’sgoing on?”
“Nothing,” Hermione exclaimed quickly, and he noticed that hewasn’t the only one who sounded like they’d inhaled too muchhelium. “Just, uh, wanted to check in.”
He raised an eyebrow at her. “With what?”
“Just, uh, see how you’re going, here, in this new room,” sheclutched her book closer to her chest, almost protectively. “So, how are you?”
“I’m alright,” he said slowly. “What’s up?”
“Oh, nothing,” she repeated, and Ron felt like they were goinground in circles. But he supposed they’d always been like that, really. “Justthought I could use a break and have a chat.”
“Go ahead,” he acquiesced, extending his hand out welcomingly,inviting her to have a seat on his bed. It was only then that he’d realised howbold the gesture actually was. His ears flushed red, but this only worsenedwhen Hermione took up the offer and sat down at the foot of his bed.
As soon as her rather nice bottom sank into the mattress, Ronrealised, goosebumps appearing on his skin and breath catching in his throat,that she was wearing her nightgown. Sure, he’d seen her in pyjamas before. She had stayed at the Burrow over the summerfor the last few years. And just last night, when they’d stayed in the sittingroom together, with Harry. They’d slept together,really.
But that was the point – withHarry.
Any interaction they’d had in their bed clothes was either in asitting room or with other people or both. Here…
She was on his bed. With him. Alone.
Ron’s mind began to race as Hermione delicately adjusted hergown. He wondered if she too had realised the implications of the position theywere in.
If she had, she wasn’t focusing on it. “So, what were you doing?Before I came in?”
“Uh…” Ron didn’t have an answer. What was he doing? “Taking it all in, I guess. Just thinking.”
It was a vague answer, but Hermione nodded knowingly. “It’s allreally starting, isn’t it? Properly?”
“Yeah,” Ron said, shrugging his shoulders and staring at a loosethread on the quilt. “Looks like it.”
“I hope your family’s alright, after the wedding…”
Ron felt himself stiffen, as he gripped the thread tightly inhis hand. He hoped so too, but he didn’t want to think about the alternative…
It killed him that he was stuck here and couldn’t find out forhimself.
“I’m sure they are, your father said so,” Hermione addedreassuringly, realising that the conversation probably wasn’t the best choice.Ron remained silent, unable to look at her. But from the corner of his eye, hecould see Hermione’s face crumble. “I’m really scared, Ron.”
It was the quiver in her voice that made him look up at hersharply. She bit her lip, closing her eyes briefly to try to stop the tears.Ron felt his stomach twist with nerves at the thought of her crying. Not onlydid it make him want to tear his insides outs that something upset her, but hestill wasn’t quite sure what to do when she cried.
Whenshe’s upset, and allows herself to be in front of you, comfort her. It’s whatyou both want. Put an arm around her. Tell her it’s okay. Make her feel safeand loved. If she’s being vulnerable in front of you, you need to show her she’sdoing the right thing and that it’s okay.
It was alarming how easily he’d been able to memorise thatbloody book. He wondered if this is how Hermione had functioned her whole life.
Nevertheless, eyes wide, brain spinning with the words fromthose pages, he sat up and placed a hand on her shoulder. Hermione raised adelicate hand to wipe her eye, ignoring him.
“Hey,” he said, rubbing her shoulder. Then he wondered if thatwas too rough, too much like the way he’d clap Harry on the back if he washaving a hard day, and so he relaxed his grip, just slightly, and, withoutreally thinking, pulled her towards him.
It was amazing, really, just how easily she fell into him. Herhead nestled into the crook of his neck and she sniffed, breathing out and intohis chest. Ron, meanwhile, breathed her in, feeling all-consumed by her verypresence, so close to him… this was a bad idea…
“I just don’t know…” Hermione began, but when her voice trailedoff, she didn’t continue. “I just don’t know,” she repeated.
“We’ll sort it out together,” Ron said quietly to her, holdingher closer. “I’m—I’m scared too, you know?”
She bobbed against him as she swallowed thickly, holding backher tears. As nervous as he’d been about confessing that to her, he had afeeling it was the right thing, because she looked quite comforted by that.
But of course, he couldn’t be sure, so he had to check:
“Does that… does that help?”
She let out a soft laugh, and her warm breath against his chestsent a shiver through his body. “I can’t imagine you scared, though,” she saidcalmly. “You’re always the one that runs straight into these messes, without asecond thought.”
“Scared shitless every time,” Ron confessed, chuckling.
Hermione glanced up at him, and there was a wonder in her eyesthat almost felt like she was… gazing athim? In almost-awe?
It was a foreign feeling, but very welcome.
“You’re very brave, Ron,” she whispered, as though afraid to letthe words come out. Indeed, Ron felt that they’d never come even close toa conversation like this ever in their friendship.
He wasn’t quite sure what to say to that, but she closed hereyes and leaned further into him, and he felt like that movement was enough tojustify him leaning back against the bedhead and pillows. She seemed all toohappy to follow.
He smoothed his hand over her hair, slowly, hesitantly. Thewords of the book echoing in his mind, he repeated, “You’re okay, you’re okay…”
Whether this was working or not, he wasn’t sure, until she whisperedso softly that he could have pretended that he hadn’t heard it, if it weren’tfor the fact that he’d desperately wanted her to have said those words: “Can Istay here tonight?”
And there was no way she could have meant it any other way,apart from here, in his bed, with him. There was no other mattress, no chair,and no reason for him to go on the floor here when she had her own room withher own bed.
But this was Hermione,and he couldn’t mess this up, so of course, he had to check. “W-with me?”
“Yes,” she answered, almost breathlessly, rushing through thatone word that meant so much.
“Yes,” he answered straight away, licking his lips nervously.While he had the courage, he let her go and got off the bed hurriedly, flippingthe covers back on his half. She stared at him from the bed, her eyes wide anduncertain, but after a moment, she lifted her feet up and wriggled them overand into the covers. Settling in, she glanced up at Ron, waiting for him tomove.
He allowed himself a moment to stare at this sight. HermioneGranger was in his bed. This was such abad idea.
But it was everything he’d ever wanted.
Again, allowing a burst of courage to take over him, he quicklycrept under the covers too, but couldn’t bring himself to touch her. Hiscourage couldn’t go that far.
He lay flat on his back, arms either side, staring up at theceiling. He wanted to shut his eyes, go to sleep, but he felt uncomfortablyaware of every single inch of his skin, and his brain felt far too alert topossibly relax into sleep.
His state of alertness meant that he nearly jumped when he feltHermione’s hand gently graze over his. He twisted his head to look at her, andshe looked back at him, nervously.
“It feels safer with you,” she whispered into the darkness.
He grasped her hand tightly in his, and felt she’d done morethan enough tonight to indicate it was alright for him to turn on his side toface her, and to reach out and touch her other shoulder with his free hand.
“Good,” he said, his voice low. “You know I’m not going to letanything happen to you.”
She smiled and shifted closer to him. His hand guided her backonto his chest, but she didn’t really need much help. He smiled as she settledinto him, wondering if she could feel how fast his heart was racing.
“Thank you, Ron,” she said quietly, closing her eyes.
“Anytime,” he replied, breathing out deeply to try to calmhimself. He probably wouldn’t get to sleep for quite some time tonight, but hereckoned that didn’t really matter.
And she seemed to take his reply quite literally, because thenext night she was back again. And the night after that.
And he reckoned, he wouldn’t mind doing this for the rest of hislife.
And maybe, perhaps, if he let himself hope enough, she wouldn’tmind it either.
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