whatever a moon has always meant

And sometimes, you have a string of fandoms that are Actually Pretty Good. And the danger of this—the very great danger—is that when you have a string of Actually Pretty Good and even Actually Amazing obsessions, you start to believe that maybe you have taste. Perhaps you are now immune to the indignities of losing it over something mostly bad.

And frankly, it’s starting to really get on my nerves when people read “I think this thing is good. I wouldn’t change a thing about it and frankly I don’t even think there should be more canon added to it, but I am still going to write thousands of words of fic, make a cosplay, and draw fanart” and then completely misunderstand and respond with “yes I agree—I like things that are good too. But I never feel the transformative/creative fandom instinct for them because they are too good.”

compelling worldbuilding (invites interaction with the setting)

interesting gimmick (see: daemons, drift compatibility. subcategory of compelling worldbuilding)

shipping bait (duh)

original character bait (in-universe categories/factions and design elements that make it fun for people to create their own characters)

compelling narrative (invites interaction and tweaks to the storyline: AUs and fixits and so on)

basically anything that invites interaction and recombination. but fandom also has a sort of multiplying effect: the larger the interactive audience of fandom is, the more likely it is to generate ideas and works that draw in more participants. so:

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: 原神 | Genshin Impact (Video Game) Rating: Mature Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Il Dottore & Flins (Genshin Impact) Characters: Flins (Genshin Impact), Il Dottore (Genshin Impact) Additional Tags: whatever the fuck it is these two have going on, wound-tending as not-quite metaphor for sex, a certain degree of gore Series: Part 13 of Paradise For The Eccentric And Monstrous Summary:

Unfortunately, Flins takes a bad hit when out fighting the Wild Hunt. Fortunately he knows a Doctor who resides not too far away. Maybe he will even be willing to lend a hand.

—–

“Who’s there?” a familiar voice inquires, sharp enough to cut despite the vestiges of sleep clinging to it.

“A poor Ratnik caught in the storm on a rainy night,” he responds. “Might we speak face to face? I fear I have a favour to ask, and it would be quite unmannerly to do so through a closed door.”

Another quiet heartbeat, then the click of a lock and the door opens. A scavenger bird awaits within, cocking his head, taking in the state of him.

“I was wondering what might bring you here at such a late hour,” the Doctor says, unsurprisingly unmoved by the crimson rivulets drenching his doorstep. “Quite outside your usual routine. Did you get careless out there in the night, Lightkeeper?”

Flins spreads his free hand in a morose little shrug.

“Everyone’s luck runs out sooner or later. Tonight, fortune was not on my side.”

—–

I accidentally wrote this last night instead of sleeping. Oops.