Haha

it's never over, she's the tear that hangs inside my soul forever

inspo credits to "Veil" by @/_K0TTERl_

ochako ver

ideal ship dynamic: autism x the most severe psychological issues you've ever seen on a person

Any recommendations that have similar vibes to Venom or Valor?

About to humiliate my self because I'm about to list a very limited range of fics that are significantly better than mine with very different styles from mine. But you need this information

I started writing Venom or Valor specifically because of:

Bookbinding by Asenora/ @saintsenara, tom/myrtle - at the time I was only just barely sketching out why I was so fascinated with Tom and piecing together how his grandiosity and drama and mood swings spoke to a primal longing within him and this fic didn't press my buttons so much as smack me up the skull with a 2x4.

A Learning Experience by Laeveteinn, mostly gen - incredible character study of Tom's 10 years at Borgin and Burkes. Ending made my toes curl.

yes I realize the humour that neither of these are tomarry. Sorry I only ship it because I think Harry would make Tom happy like I'm indulging my favourite child

Some other stuff I think contributed:

Strings of Fate, by dizzydreamer, Tomarry - Every chapter has me absolutely screaming in laughter because Tom doesn't know how to act. Just an INCREDIBLE parade of deranged behaviour, really unfolding his worst tendencies like a beautiful flower. Babe you gotta stop licking the book

Consumption by Laeveteinn, Tomarry - quite possibly my favourite tomarry fanfic in the whole wide world. I want to hand-feed this to squeamish newcomers. If you like my Tom Laeveteinn is basically mandatory reading

Innocent (until proven guilty) by Laeveteinn, Tom/Grindelwald - pointing this one out specifically because this fic is activating villain apologia of the likes never before seen within me. Dumbledore bashers don't have the range to write this specific texture of child neglect. I feel like I am witnessing actual family drama. Grindelwald genuinely anguished and trying to find direction in his life grooming Tom is like something my mom would tell me about my cousin. I feel like I got to drive out to see him. I got to drive out across Canada to see Tom and tell him. I got to tell him that he should probably find himself before shacking up with a 60-year-old man famous for manipulating his way out of anything. My baby cousin Tom

Lover's Spit by amelinda and k3u, Tomarry - I keep calling this unrecommendable and then keep recommending it. Cannot repeat enough times that it is about Tom Riddle being inadvertently groomed by 4chan to be an edgelord stalking and threatening to rape the boy he has a crush on in a manner so grotesque he becomes a media sensation as a figurehead of horrifying internet depravity corrupting our children. That all being said. I've never read a fic with such loving worldbuilding it makes me think "should I stop reading fanfic and get back into literary fiction". I absolutely love the cadence of Tom's thoughts and the way he code-switches to slur-regurgitating 4channer. Most importantly: good face-tearing slowburn

dum spiro spero by Asenora/Saintsenara, Tom/Rookwood - Another pseudo-hanahaki, really concretely cemented my desire to ship Tom with anyone who can make him happy. The way Rookwood talks about Tom is truly incredible. The humour is impeccable. The monologue. You know the fic is good when it makes you wail IRL. Asenora a fantastic author, not just for Tom but for character studies in general. 10/10 Merope fics

Sorry this is almost entirely two authors. As always, I am a slow reader of the likes never before seen AND I'm picky. Nothing else has contributed to how VoV reads. It really is just these fics and Thor Ragnarok.

wish this was how it worked so bad but i read somewhere once "good fanfic is a love/hate letter to canon" and now all my fics are inexorably linked to and cant be read without knowledge of the source material🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️ copyright who im referencing exact scenes from the 17th chap of the 6th book rn as a pivotal plot pt

Begging people to stop with the "wow that's so cool you wrote such a long story! Now you just gotta change the names and publish it as an original fiction" do not. That's not how this works.

at the risk of sounding like i think ron's only likeable bc he's "special" in some way (untrue): this dude doesnt understand ron's sokka-from-atla and lance-from-vld coded 😨 (team's strategist and heart)

also

Why do people who dont like Ron and Ginny automatically get accused of classicism and anti poor bigotry? I am not saying there are no people who hate Weasleys for being poor, the fandom is huge and all stripes of folks can be found here even the most despicable.

Most people I know who don't like Ron and Gin Gin also have Weasleys they do like such as : Fred, George, Percy, Bill, Arthur and Molly. (Yeah I don't get Molly bashing. She gave Harry his 1st motherly hug, loves her family and defeated Bellatrix. What's not to love? )

I personally don't like Ron, not coz he's poor and red head and all that shite. But coz he's very unremarkable, insecure, not too bright and not charismatic.

He's a good egg but have a distinct sidekick energy and not main character vibe like Harry, Hermione, Tom, Severus, Albus, Sirius, James, does.

And he's not brilliant like Percy, enterprising like the twins or cool like Bill.

He's like the characters Jonah Hill played once upon a time: Good hearted but ordinary, goofy guys.

These characters are good in comic scenes or slice of life dramas but not as the Main Male character or love interest in epic, larger than life romantic fics.

He's good. But he's not love interest material for most straight/bi women and gay/bi men.

I am sure in real life many of us would be happy to date a guy like Ron. But when it comes to reading fics, he's just not that guy you feel interested in.

He's that good, stable, nice guy your parents hope you end up with and they are right too.

But not the type of guy you fantasize about or want to read as MC or love interest.

He's too much of an every man, he reminds many of us too much of ordinary blokes we know to read him as MC or love interest.

each day feels like another scene in a tired play

lifeless marionettes moving around on taught strings

cruel hands making them dance and sing

for the silent audience's amusement

but nothing is ever enough

nothing ever makes them stop

it goes on and on and on

draco @ harry & mione as they're having a mild disagreement, post dron-relationship-reveal:

(ron is watching the interaction like a hawk and gives draco approving shoulder-pats for his self-restraint)

released ch5 of inspiral from its cage 😌 at long last:

In which Ron is consulted on his opinions on aesthetics for some reason,,,,,,

comedic highlights in this post! this is the most sitcom-y chapter so far, and can honestly be read alone if you rlly like the trio + nev + patil twins and their chaotic friendship! also for chess players, hairstyling enjoyers, and lee jordan appreciators

nyctophilia -- finding relaxation or comfort in the darkness. 

Sometimes I refuse to sleep, because at 3am is the calmest I ever feel. Not that my body isn’t dying of anxiety. But the world is silent. No one expects anything of you. No one in that moment can make you feel terrible. Only you can. And there’s a weird power in that.