#duchessoforange

[veliseraptor]

You’re one of my favourite writers on AO3. I like how you characterise Xue Yang especially. Sorry to hear you’re having a bad day. How do you think a happy ending between the yi city crew would’ve worked out?

I waltzed into this fandom and wholeheartedly adopted Xue Yang and I’ve decided to try to give up feeling bad about it for my August resolution. You know what he’s perfect and did nothing wrong actually.

So! Happy ending for the Yi City Crew aka the thing I’m deeply invested in and am continually trying to figure out ways to make it work, which is not easy. I mean, for one I will go ahead and link to Red Azalea by @cenedrariva which is making a nice long meaty go of it. Xiao Xingchen survives his suicide attempt and things go from there. 

The one I’m currently working on which I feel like only sort of counts as a “fix it” is the one where Xue Yang invites Song Lan in for lunch and by that I mean is like “so okay we can either fight or you can come and play houses and not have Xiao Xingchen finding out about some things he’d really rather not know, how good of a liar are you buddy” and Song Lan is like. well, guess I’m compromising my moral standards now, at least maybe I can keep Xue Yang from killing more people and protect Xiao Xingchen?

and threesome ensues from there. The problem here is that Xiao Xingchen is still not aware that he’s living with Xue Yang. But you know, at least everyone is still alive.

There’s also this idea I wrote down, which is basically “Xue Yang made sure Xiao Xingchen’s soul couldn’t escape by earlier talisman methods, awkward road trip ensues with a semi-undead boyfriend, the semi-undead boyfriend’s ex-boyfriend, a teenage con artist, and the (indirect) murderer of the first two people. Which again, is like. “happy ending??” but you know, I think it can work out. 

Those are the thoughts I have at the moment though I feel like there are other “Xiao Xingchen survives suicide attempt and things get better afterwards???” ideas kicking around in my head  involving undead Song Lan and (of course) a-Qing living. Sometimes I think my whole brain these days is just constant “yi city fix its now please, how do I get all four of these idiots out of it alive or at least undead.”

the answer is probably mostly “reincarnation AUs” which I’m very here for, but I’m invested in trying for it in canonverse too. Rooting for these crazy kids!

[sinistercakes]

I’ve changed my username!!!

duchessoforange >>>>> yumingyesfairy

[not-poignant]

Do you have a birth-name for the Raven Prince? I’m not asking that you divulge it if you do, I just wondered if you came up with one as you created and fleshed out his character?

I do not!

I came up with one years ago, but it didn’t fit and it didn’t seem right. After really sitting and thinking about it, I realised I was trying to force the issue, and that iif he ever wants me to know his birth name, he will tell me.

So far, he doesn’t want me to, and it hasn’t been relevant to the story which helps!

[markedasinfernal]

duchessoforange replied to your post “Why did Mairon pick rings, do you think? Was he fond of jewelry...”

Tolkien basically plagiarised the Norse sagas. The Dwarves, Bilbo and Smaug is basically the story of Sigurd and Fafnir. He didn't even bother changing most of the dwarves names. Rings are significant is many of the sagas, as @markedasinfernal said, but also, the circle shape of the ring signifies infinity - no beginning, no end, a continuous shape.

Spoken as a true Norse-woman! And very true all round. I do love the blatant lifting of the Dwarves’ names though. It’s not even disguised with a little letter change here or there. Nope, just straight up stole them :P

[guqin-and-flute]

duchessoforange replied to your photo “Tagged by @duchessoforange ahh thank you, dearie! Tag: describe...”

Ooh that looks like a stag beetle

@duchessoforange :O I thought it might be but I had convinced myself we didn’t have them in my area! (I suppose I could have googled it BUT)

[tomblr-in-action]

duchessoforange replied to your post “Kind of related (though on the anti-feminist side): I remember a guy...”

Icelandic Vikings didn't allow women to fight - it was against their laws for a women to have a knife if she wasn't using it at that moment, but there is a bit of evidence that some Scandinavian Viking women fought in wars, and most knew how to fight in order to defend their village and themselves whilst the usual fighting force was away. Where I come from in Norway, a female skeleton has been found with all the regalia of a warrior, but it could be to signify that she was an important woman.

Very interesting. Thanks for the info!

[psych2go]

For the anon who asked, fear of bathing, washing and cleanliness is called "ablutophobia".

Thanks for sharing!

[hockeysaurus]

Good luck with your surgery. I've had a lot of operations, and performed a lot as a veterinary surgeon. Coming around from the anaesthetic is the worst bit, your nose will get so itchy and you'll be a bit confused and emotional. You feel ten times better after having something to eat and drink. You might get a bit sad in the days after your op. It happens a lot to people, it's called "post-op blues", and you'll be really stiff and sore, but you will be feeling a lot better after a few days.

thanks so much for this. <3 i wonder why your nose gets itchy, that seems very random? but yeah, this is helpful in terms of what to expect, so...thank you again! <3