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the best fanfiction you've ever read was written by a woman in her 40s before she made dinner for her kids. it was written by a teenager after school when they should've been studying for a history test. and a barista came up with the idea while they cleaned the espresso machine and busser fact-checked it on their break and the post-doc edited between writing grant proposals and the nurse apologized for typos in the notes after a long shift and behind every drabble and one-shot and multi-chapter fic there is a person with a wonderful and interesting and chaotic life and it is such a privilege that we get to be a part of it because they decided to do this thing we all share, for fun.
Ki i te tau e tangi atu nei
The last leg of their journey to Erid is filled with despair; Grace's health deteriorates and Rocky' own trauma flares up drastically. Prolonged space travel with only an alien for company changes a person, maybe even beyond recognition. The one returning home might not be the one you knew before it all began. How do you bring someone home who got lost among the stars?
Stories about love, desperation, codependency, trauma and hope. About people you'd die for. And people you'd live for. And most of all, about people you love to the point of invention.
Main Tags: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Sick Ryland Grace, Worried and Protective Rocky, Journey to Erid, Malnutrition, Psychological Trauma, Codependency, Decompression Sickness, Threeworld, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, Eridian Science Thrum
PART 1: ROCHE LIMIT
Roche limit: the distance from a celestial body within which a second celestial body, held together only by its own force of gravity, will disintegrate because the first body's tidal forces exceed the second body's self-gravitation.
As the distance between the Hail Mary and Erid shrinks, as the language and cultural barriers disappear, Grace's health deteriorates and Rocky's worries skyrocket. Scurvy, cabin fever, malnutrition, tension and arguments – their friendship is put to the test when they are faced with challenges they cannot science their way out of. When a sudden Taumoeba emergency disrupts their journey just as they are about to reach Erid's radio range, they are forced to take a detour to Threeworld's Petrova-line to prevent Grace from starving to death. It's one thing to complete a mission when at full capacity… but how do you tackle obstacles you cannot fix with math and engineering?
PART 2: TWO-BODY PROBLEM
Two-body problem: A problem of classical mechanics to calculate and predict the motion of two massive bodies that are orbiting each other in space.
“Adrian, just a small warning: the Rocky that came back might not be the Rocky you know. It’s classified, but my friend is one of the comms specialist on the space elevator. They told me things. He acts… weird. He doesn’t sleep, and neglects the medical and psychological exams. I’m not sure he’s here, if you know what I mean."
“Where is he, then?” Adrian’s musical notes come out discordant.
“Wherever his human companion is stuck. If the alien dies, Rocky might never come down from the stars.”
THEMES my fanfics (try to) explore detailed under the cut:
The last leg of their journey to Erid: Both the movie and the book gloss over this part, even though it has so much heavy angst and whump and trauma bonding potential. I didn't plan to explore every single year because it would've been redundant, but I'm tapping into the heaviest period, in which Grace gets dangerously close to starving to death, while all of Erid works feverishly to save their savior. Definitely an eventful period.
Rocky's trauma: He watched 22 crew members die a tragic and mysterious death. And the proceeded to spend 46 human years alone, never giving up on his mission. The guy's traumatized to hell and back. So, when Grace might face the very same fate… Rocky's trauma response might not be such a pretty sight.
Codependency: Bordering on the very toxic kind. Yes, they are soulmates, your honor, but they also underwent an extremely heavy and traumatizing period. And as a response to that… some heavy-hitting codependency happens. And they have to be pulled out of this state before it consumes them.
Space changes you: Or the homecoming. Rocky might not be the same Eridian he was before the departure. Adrian tries to cope with the fact that an alien might know his mate of 183 years better than them. Because the Rocky that returns is so familiar but so foreign at the same time.
Pre-mission Rocky: We got to see who Grace was before his ass got sent into space. But what about Rocky? Who was Rocky before the weight of the universe morphed him into the person he is now?
Fishing 2.0: We are in space! We need more dangerous space action! Risky EVAs and maybe some decompression sickness as a result…?
When cultures collide: Grace and Rocky spend so much time together it's impossible not to influence the other in good (and bad) ways. It's more than just bridging cultural and language barriers. They bring two species together; customs, mannerisms, culture. If mimicry and mathematics are the way to connect, you bet these two have developed a language and habits only the two of them can depict. It's especially amusing from an outsider POV.
Recommended song to listen to: <Obstacles> by Syd Matters
First off, GIGANTIC CREDIT to @intrstellarisms and their BOMBASTICALLY FANTASTIC Coltland fic <based on a true story>. This mini-comic exists because of it and it is specifically based on chapter 2 <The buoy>. Please check out the fic here!!
really worked my ass off this(literally, I got rashes from sitting too long in a humid and hot environment) but I am just so obsessed with the fic that I feel compelled to create something for it. I really want to capture that constant melancholy and hurt present in the Coltland twins dynamic when grace is sent away. A perpetual hollow in Colt's heart where it makes all his memory with Ryland dreamy and fairy-tale like.
The recommended song <obstacles> by Syd Matters is also from the recommendation in the original fic. (Honestly the fic is like the age of enlightenment for me)
sorry if this doesn't rly have a nice flow and if the arrangements are a bit hard to read(My friend beta read this for me and that's her feedback), it's my first time trying to draw comic and I think I'm still a bit stuck on the static fanart mindset. (oh and i'm gonna add this into the 100 days drawing challenge hehe(13/100) Pls feel free to throw in any feedback on it as well!!
Lastly, huge thanks again for @intrstellarisms for giving me the opportunity to create this. And for being such a sweet author(did you know the comment you replied is my first ever comment on AO3?) That really made my day!