#gw.text

Then another thought occurred to me: what if "better" was Beverly Crusher?

Hear me out.

For starters, they have so much in common. They've both lost husbands. They're both badasses who've been around the galaxy a few times and seen some shit. They're both healers/nurturers at heart. And they've both been personally victimized by shitty boyfriend Jean-Luc Picard.

There's a tiny bit of tension when they first meet (don't ask me how or when they meet, I haven't figured that out yet), since Beverly is kind of unintentionally the reason Jean-Luc left Laris the last time. Beverly feels bad about it, but Laris is like, I told him to go, and pretty soon they get over that.

They initially bond over some of the things I mentioned earlier - starting with their experiences with Picard, and quickly moving to sharing cool or weird or dangerous stuff they saw out in space that one time. They drink and laugh and bond, and at the end they decide, hey, we should do this again sometime.

Beverly gets back into dance or theater (or both), and Laris takes up some hobby that isn't cleaning up after Picard. They get together for drinks or lunch a few times before Beverly mentions a show, and Laris asks if she can come see it. Beverly is delighted, and manages to get Laris one of the best seats in the house. This soon becomes a regular thing.

(Deanna comes for a girls' weekend one time, and Beverly invites Laris along, and boy does Deanna notice the feelings emanating off of Beverly every time Laris walks into the room. Deanna says nothing at the time, because it's not her business - though she of course spills the tea to Will the second she gets home.)

Beverly and Laris are stargazing and laughing and sipping wine together one evening when Beverly is finally able to recognize the feelings she's been developing for Laris. This takes her aback for a moment, but then she decides, fuck it, I'm not a young woman anymore, I don't have the time or patience to be scared of this. So she kisses Laris. And to no one's surprise, Laris kisses her back.

At first they pretend that this is a no pressure sort of situation. Beverly has her son and her work, and Laris has... something that's also important (seriously, why didn't they give us more for Laris?). But pretty soon they realize that they both want the pressure. They both want the commitment. That's precisely the thing they always wanted from Picard but never got.

Nothing changes drastically between them at first. They were already basically a couple - always spending their free time together, showing up at events together, etc. Now there's just more kissing involved. (Also the sex is incredible.)

They don't try to hide anything, either, because at this point in their lives, what's the point? Most everyone is thrilled for them. It throws Jean-Luc for a bit, to see his two exes dating each other. But it doesn't take that long before he, too, is happy for them.

At some point they decide to get married. It's a quiet and simple affair, with mostly the crew of the Enterprise-D in attendance. To Beverly's delight, even Wesley manages to find the time to show up for his mother's wedding, so she has both her sons there with her. Will Riker officiates, and Data insists on a dance with Beverly during the reception.

Beverly stays at Starfleet for a while, using her new admiralty to pioneer medical relief efforts for the people and planets who need it most - even those outside Starfleet jurisdiction. Sometimes she gets to go off-world to help directly, and usually Laris comes along as well. Laris has a job, too, not with Chateau Picard (somebody come up with something for Laris, I'm begging you). They keep busy with their hobbies, and spending time with friends, and traveling to see all the best parts of Earth.

And sometimes, they just enjoy the peace and quiet of their house in the countryside somewhere. They've been through enough, and sometimes all they need is just to be together.

I do want to say, though, how much I'm enjoying ILW so far. For various reasons, the other It Lives books never hooked me. But with ILW, I'm already feeling hooked. I'm having a really hard time choosing between the LIs, which is a good thing. The plot choices also feel weighty and meaningful, which is how Choices should be. Kudos to you, @itlivesproject , for your outstanding work.

imagine myka as an aes sedai in her thirties or forties, a decade or two after becoming a full sister. she's a blue, of course (though you can bet the browns, reds, and greens were all after her). she's skilled with the one power, but also insanely smart. she's not quite as good at tower politics as some, so she's happy to be out in the field, doing some good work. myka is bonded to pete - she never would have guessed he would be a good warder for her, but he brings out her optimism and makes her smile, and he would do anything to keep her safe. (possibly she had a previous bond to sam before he died, and she's still a little bit healing from that.)

imagine claudia as a brand-new blue sister, maybe less than a year after taking the oaths. she was probably discovered by this group during one of their trips, years ago, and now she's determined to become one of their number. her strength in the power is incredible - she's probably the strongest of all of them - but she has the least experience. she has not bonded a warder yet, but when she does, it will probably be a blonde, blue-eyed boy who can tell when people are lying (a talent that's a bit irrelevant when aes sedai can't lie, but other people definitely can).

imagine vanessa as an older blue sister who's been doing this for a while. yes, she's blue, not yellow. she's a skilled healer, to be sure, but her passion was always for justice and doing good in the world, not just for healing the sick and injured, so she ended up going blue (much to the chagrin of the yellows). her overall strength in the power is less than myka's or claudia's, but they still defer to her as their leader. vanessa is by far the most adept at navigating the treacherous politics of the tower, and she also has a way with ordinary people that myka tries to emulate. she has been bonded to artie to decades. he's the very definition of the stoic (grumpy) warder stereotype.

imagine leena as the brown sister who actually takes care of the objects once they make it back to the tower. she's the only non-blue sister who has access to exactly what the group is doing. (not that their mission is a secret, per se - obviously the other aes sedai know these blue sisters are bringing back ter'angreal and such, but they don't know the details, you know.) leena rarely leaves the tower to travel with them, but once in a while she'll tag along. she does not have a warder, and isn't really looking for one. she's more concerned with taking care of her sisters, and the powerful objects they find.

imagine helena as a green sister who ingratiates herself into the group from time to time, because she feels like it. though artie is convinced helena is there to spy on them, most of the group gets along with her well enough. her cunning and charm has helped them secure targeted objects on a few occasions. she currently has two warders, wolly and liam, who both somehow put up with helena's antics. unlike some of her green sisters, helena is not romantically involved with either of her warders. instead, her interest appears to lie with myka - and that's probably half the reason she spends time with the group at all.

I recently decided to do a new playthrough of the Dragon Age series, but I didn't want to just play the same way I always do. So I decided to let the dice decide for me.

The results turned out interesting enough that I decided to create a Google Doc to help other people set up randomized playthroughs for themselves.

Basically, if you want to roll dice to determine what your playthrough will look like (gender, race, class, specializations, romance, party, decisions, etc.), then feel free to check out my document, and go nuts.

The Google Doc can be found here.

If you want to see my results, look under the read more. Otherwise, have fun!

I've done something like this before, but it was nearly three years ago, so it's time for an update. (Plus, I saw this floating around, and I was bored, so why not?)

Books with a single LI: I tend to default to the female version of any customizable LI, especially on a first playthrough. I'll sometimes romance a male LI with a male MC, but I rarely do m/f romances. The exception is A Very Scandalous Proposal; I don't like the Ava sprites, so I almost always choose Simon instead.

In this category, I like Trystan Thorne, Kieran, Dakota Winchester, Simon Montjoy, Manu Nakeli, and Kit Jackson. I feel pretty neutral toward Cassian Keane, Clarke, and Jacqueline Monroe. I don't like Sam Dalton. And the entire book Surrender can kindly fuck off.

Across the Void: Gonna be honest, despite having read this through at least twice, I wouldn't be able to tell you a thing about the LIs or their personalities. I think I went for Titania my first playthrough - or was it Kepler?

America's Most Eligible: Jen's my favorite here, though I'd like to try a run where I dump someone for Bianca.

Baby Bump: Myra.

Bachelorette Party: Aisha.

Big Sky Country: I love Juliette dearly, but sometimes my Hallmark-loving brain kicks in and I have to pick Sawyer.

Blades of Light and Shadow: All four are amazing and I love them. I love my ladies the best, but I have a soft spot for Tyril as well. I'd love a big polycule here.

Bloodbound: Kamilah takes the top spot, but Lily's a close second.

A Courtesan of Rome: Sabina and Syphax are tied as my favorites, and I'm becoming more fond of Cassius the more I play. I'd like Antony to go away forever, please.

The Crown and the Flame: For Kenna, I alternate between Val and Annelyse. For Dom, I prefer Sei.

Desire and Decorum: Annabelle, always.

Distant Shores: I actually tend to go for Edward here, surprisingly. Almost always with a male MC, though.

The Elementalists: Shreya or Aster.

Endless Summer: I've tried all four. With female MCs, I tend to lean toward Quinn. With male MCs, I like Estela or Sean.

Foreign Affairs: Either Tatum or Ayna.

The Freshman: Becca is my queen. I also like Kaitlyn and Zig, but it's hard to pass up Becca's route.

The Haunting of Braidwood Manor: Eleanor. Is there even really a choice here?

The Heist: Monaco: Sonia. This is one of the few instances where a guaranteed female character is written as the "main" love interest, and she's amazing and I love her romance route.

Hero: Eva.

High School Story: Emma or Maria.

High School Story: Class Act: Skye.

Home for the Holidays: Holly.

Hot Couture: Luz.

Immortal Desires: Both. Both is good.

It Lives Beneath: Probably Imogen or Tom.

It Lives in the Woods: Andy or Ava.

Laws of Attraction: Aislinn.

LoveHacks: Ben.

Mother of the Year: I love all three equally. I literally cycle through them each time I play.

My Two First Loves: I went for Ava the first time, but I really love Noah as well.

Nightbound: Vera or Cal.

Open Heart: Jackie and Rafael are my favorites, but I think Bryce is awesome as well. I can't stand the other guy.

Passport to Romance: Um... Marisa, I suppose?

Perfect Match: Hayden, Sloane, and Alana. Though sometimes I'll go for the entire polycule, because I can.

Platinum: No strong preference here. Maybe Raleigh? Though I like Shane's vibes as well.

Queen B: Zoey, with a dose of flirting with Poppy.

Red Carpet Diaries: Teja, I guess, though the whole series is sort of meh for me.

Ride or Die: Probably Mona's at the top, though I have enjoyed doing Colt and Logan runs before.

Rising Tides: No preference. Honestly, I don't even remember who I chose the first time.

The Royal Masquerade: Kayden. Mostly because of the looks thing, honestly.

The Royal Romance: Hana. Though if I could choose Olivia, I'd be all over that.

Rules of Engagement: Dean for the MC, and Mira for the Party Twin.

Save the Date: Lindsay or Simon.

Slow Burn: Still playing for the first time, but so far I think I prefer Julia.

Sunkissed: Eliana.

The Unexpected Heiress: Gemma.

Veil of Secrets: Kate and Naomi.

Wishful Thinking: Jaime.

I'm working on a collection of sentence-fics, inspired by the prompts from 1Sentence on Livejournal. The collection is Moiraine-centric, with lots of romantic Moiraine/Siuan and platonic Moiraine/Lan. I've got about 130 out of 250 done at the moment. Here's a quick sampling.

α :: Comfort :: “I’m here,” Lan reassures her, and later Siuan will whisper the same thing – strange how they both seem to know what words will bring Moiraine the most comfort.

α :: Rain :: They get caught in a downpour while relaxing in the gardens, and by the time they make it inside, their clothes are completely soaked through; Moiraine tries very hard not to notice the way Siuan’s dress clings to her curves – or the way Siuan’s eyes linger on her.

β :: Jousting :: The other novices sometimes drag Moiraine and Siuan along when they go out to watch the Warder apprentices sparring; Moiraine has little more than a vague appreciation for the young men, but one of them soon takes an interest in her – which is flattering, certainly, and makes the other novices giggle, but Moiraine is more amused by Siuan, who looks ready to pick up a staff and beat the poor boy senseless.

γ :: Candle :: Candlelight fills the room, its soft light reflected in Siuan’s eyes, and Moiraine has never seen anything more beautiful than this.