#tnucon

I was TERRIFIED that something was going to go wrong, flight delayed, luggage lost, anything that may made me miss only a second of the most awaited weekend since SFRoP! 

BUT… nothing happened. It all went smooth as fuck; and the most wonderful was that I did not only meet one but THREE fellow pirates at my starting airport!!! 

I was going through security and suddenly there was a #CrewForLife shirt on a person a bit further away!!! I made noises!! NEVER before have I met anyone (although I had hoped to see some people) But then they went away again, but I KNEW they only could go to TNUC as well. Went through security, kept an eye out and then ran into somebody I’ve met at SFRoP and didn't know was coming! There was a big hello and hug fest, then the person with the shirt came in and we waved them over (rather enthusiastically; people might’ve looked) and then only a few moments later, ANOTHER person with the very obvious Gatwick destination wandered in!!! 

And the best is, they’re all from around MY AREA, which means I FINALLY have some close-by pirates in my life!!!!! 

So yeah, that was already a pretty damn great start. Flight was uneventful, R picked me/us up at the airport as she arrived much earlier that morning and we wandered over to the hotel. She’d already checked in, so we could get ready for registration and then find something to eat. 

There was lots of squealing happening, familiar faces spied, new faces greeted and hugs distributed. 

And then it was already time for the opening! 

Reader, I was nervous. I was about to FINALLY come face to face (well, sort of!) with the creator, the fucking genius that made all this happen, the one and only David Jenkins!!! GUH!! My heart was going insane, my face was NOT in control and S was highly amused about me losing my shit before anything was even happening! 

And then they came on stage, one by one, Jenkins last and what does that insane man do? RUN into the audience to greet us!! DUDE!! (And yes, this is me, being stupidly happy!) 

So yeah, opening was lovely (not gonna go over all that, those with VOD have that, or the summaries from AOC) and after that there was time for the M&G - coming even closer face to face with my beloved creator (and the rest of the cast!). 

[Quick thing aside: we were standing in the hallway, waiting. I was chatting to S when David Fane walked past and my brain just went offline. I was saying something and the words just became 'AAAAAAAAAAAHHHH' in the middle of the sentence (not loud enough for him to hear but still). S was laughing so hard at  my … well, everything! It was just so unexpected!]

As I always do in things like these (*she says as if she’s done a dozen and not only 4 or so*) I had four bags of sweets for the table - mainly for us, to pass the time between guests. (And guests were supposed to NOT eat anything offered to them that’s not sealed… but if they want to, they CAN take something, of course!) 

What with it being this small, there wasn’t much waiting tho. R opened the first two bags and just strew them over the (clean) table cloth.

Well, I cant for the life of me remember who we got first, might be Con, might be Nathan, Im pretty sure it was one of them.

And good lord, bringing sweets is such a wonderful ice-breaker! Con was very happy about the licorice bits of them, and spent a few moments picking through them. (There’s a fabulous photo from con-photographer Jace of him being silly. He basically FORCED them to take a picture before he even thought about continuing the convo. Dork!) 

Then we had the lovely and VERY jetlagged Ruibo (just flown in at 3 am the night before O_O) (same as David Fane who could hide it better). It was Ruibo’s very first con and it showed a little. We tried our best to ease them into it all. 

David Fane is a fucking SWEETHEART (sooo much more about that throughout the whole damn thing!!! THAT MAN!! GUH!!) He shook everyone’s hand, asked for names (and fucking REMEMBERED THEM THROUGHOUT THE WEEKEND!). We chatted a bit as well and then it was time. 

David Jenkins. ARGH! That man! THOSE EYES! *swoons all over again* 

He took sweets as well, and asked what we were up to. The thing about that man: when he talks to you, HE NEVER BREAKS EYE CONTACT!!! He keeps looking at you (barely blinking) and LISTENS SO FUCKING INTENTLY its insane!!!! 

We talked a bit about writing but my brain just went offline a little!!! 

It was just so nice, to finally being able to TALK to him, having him in the same room, seeing that adorable nose crunch he does up close. (and yes, he is fucking gorgeous!!) 

Eventually our time was up and the M&G over. The sweets were all gone apart from a handful which we quickly dedicated to Con and Con alone (according to Amy he did get them). 

After that I needed some fresh air so we went outside. AND WHO WAS STANDING THERE, VAPING LIKE A TOTALLY NORMAL PERSON??? David freaking Fane. [This must've been after the 2nd M&G, not directly after ours... time was VERY weird that weekend!]

But as good fans, we only nodded at him, and walked past him to leave him alone. 

Well, that man does NOT want to be left alone!!! 

He came over, asked about my OFMD earrings, asked how we were doing and we just CHATTED! We did warn him that probably everyone would want a hug from him over the weekend, for photos and things. He only nodded, didn’t seem thrown by it. In general he’s the most thoughtful, most lovely human. 

After that he also seemed a bit calmer, less nervous. Probably didn’t know what to expect but everything around him seemed to put him at ease. 

They all left shortly after to their hotel, we went to the party and then bed - it had been a day!!! 

Saturday morning started with breakfast and the first photo session of the day. 

THAT PHOTOGRAPHER was FABULOUS!!! Not only did she make sure you stood tall and held your head high, she SUGGESTED poses!!! WHO DOES THAT?!?! (Yes, you can only do that when it’s a small event but still!!!) I had two ops with DJ, knew I wanted at least one hug pic so I let her suggest that one and it came out good (wasn’t too happy at first but only because he’s so small compared to me but it grew on me). 

Fane saw me, opened his arms and pulled me in a BEAR HUG ‘Hello, vaping buddy’ he said before letting me go again. That man *heart eyes* The fucking SWEETEST!! 

Told him in wanted a hug pic which he VERY happily obliged to!!! (Everyone who didn’t actively object got one in that session, and in every others as well from what I’ve seen!!! And he gives AMAZING hugs!!!) 

We met a bit later outside again, before the panels, in between photos, and even though I tried to leave him be, he just didn’t want to. So yeah, him, F and me were basically best buds 😆 He always smiled when I came out and he was already there, he asked how we do such long days, it was all a bit overwhelming for him but he managed wonderfully. 

We had incredible panels from Con (solo), Dave and Ruibo (together), Dave, Nathan and Con (together) and in the afternoon the solo Jenkins panel!  (S asked me after: ‘how many pics did you take?’ Me: ‘YES!’) 

DJ teared up during a q in his panel which made me choke as well and yet made my heart soar. That man (and everyone else) just love that show and the fandom sooooo very much and it keeps showing with every con, every interview!!! 

Hell, Con said during his panel (or the joint one, not sure) that the show made him realise that people need more representation which is why he speaks openly about being queer now! I mean… WHAT??!? GUH!! These beautiful amazing gorgeous people!!! 

In the evening there was a cosplay competition and a talent show after. I may have teared up more than once. This fandom is just fucking outstanding!!! 

The cast judged the talent show, and even tho The Coat (™) was there, it wasn’t running (which fair, Z did win at SFRop, deservedly so!) Still, watching DJ’s jaw hit the floor when he saw Z showing it off… thing of fucking beauty!! It’s nice to see they all still can be amazed by their own (inspired) creations!! 

Sunday morning. Little sleep was had, but ONE MORE DAY, we could do that! 

After breakfast there was one more pic with DJ for me, and a special auto session in the afternoon - well, special for me as I had gifts for the man!!! (which I wasn’t sure about but R convinced me to still do it!) Things got moved tho, so there was the most wonderful Dave panel first - and it was soo lovely to see how much more confident he seemed. Being alone on that stage doesn’t come easy but he seemed to enjoy himself; and Bluesky told me how VERY enchanted people were by him! Rightfully so! He’s incredible! 

Somewhat in between that, S came over, very excited and said there’d be photos from the shoots that day that you’d get if you buy another auto. I went and had a look and OF COURSE I bought one of DJ - that pic was just too damn beautiful to NOT to!! 

And the more reasons to see the man later in the afternoon. 

There was a virtual Gypsy panel (which I missed a lot due to other things happening at the same time), when suddenly a rogue Con popped up to say hi, and tell her he was supposed to be in the other room (group photos) but he got bored! 

That was also a thing over the weekend: Con O’Neill escaping his handler, running around places he had no business to be, shocking us with his unexpected presence. It was hilarious. At least with Dave, who kept showing up outside, his handler KNEW where he was; Con was that Chaos Gremlin that did what he wanted, cackling evilish to himself. 

He (Con) did wander over in the afternoon while we were outside, joining the little group we had, mainly because he wanted a Dave hug which AWWWW, my heart!!! I LOVE that those male presenting humans are sooooooo very un-toxic and not shy about saying when they want a hug!! He then spent about 10 minutes standing on a small step (to be as tall as Dave) to chat about numbers (which according to him, hate ME! [which TRUE]), German language (he does in fact have a lovely pronunciation) vaping and addictions i general! I mean, WHAT IS MY LIFE! Standing outside, having a casual chat with two people I’ve paid good money to see!! How fucking AWESOME is that!!!! It’s funny tho, Con can be sooo intimidating when you don’t ‘know’ him, yet I think he knows that and dials it down when he feels it'S too much. Dave on the other hand is the openest book there is, so very gentle and kind; and these two are soo close and lovely together! It’s soo fucking beautiful!!!  In general, it was all very surreal! Still is.

And then it was time for my second photo op with DJ: I finally got my hug! Asked if it was okay, and he was like ‘Yeah, sure, come here!’ He’s got NO issues with that, thankfully; and having him hold on for a bit as the photographer corrected our pose - there’s worse things in the world thank being smushed against the one and only David Jenkins, all warm and lean, just holding you… GUH!! 

And I LOVE LOVE LOVE that photo sooooo very much!! 

Well, there were more panels to be had: Ruibo (which was very interesting) and then the one I was expecting to be utter chaos! DJ and Con together! (There was a Nathan panel after that, but I knew I’d be missing out on that due to the DJ coffee break at the same time.) 

Once again, these two utterly surprised me. That panel was the most in-depth conversation about tv making and everything that goes into it! It was fascinating to watch and listen. 

(Yet, ‘Have you met us!’ as reply to how unsexy sweaty leather-wearing pirates are topped the whole damn thing -they both LOST it, it was hilarious!) 

DJ coffee break: I cannot remember much; it was lovely, I didn't feel the need to ask any of the MANY q's on my list for DJ, he was chatting away about everything and nothing; once again, kept eye contact with everyone he talked to. He teared up a little as he told us about the origins of the Bluesky fic from Christmas (his daughter was in NICU and he basically wrote it to keep himself occupied and less worried; the little one is fine now but I can't even imagine how scary that must've been.)

And then it was time for autos aka giving my gift to DJ! As I sometimes do, I had bought a children’s book from my city for his daughter. I grew up with it and I love to give it to kids in my circles as it’s unique AND a true story. Well, I had gotten the English version (obviously, as it’s in German) and had added a small version of the book in his wife’s first language. Also, some more sweets. 

When it was time I went up to him, gave him my pictures to sign which he took great care in, writing legibly which still blows my mind. (and I will treasure my hug signature for years to come!). When he was done, he looked up expectantly (as I didn't say anything while he was signing: he looked rather concentrated and I didn't wanna break that!); I briefly told him about the gifts I had for him/his family. He listened intently, and when I said I had the version for his wife as well, he got up, walked around the table and hugged me. Long and hard, not letting go for a good long while. He thanked me -right into my freaking EAR- before he squished me again before letting go (no fucking clue how I was still standing after, sheer will power I guess). 

I thanked him again for coming and how amazing it was to finally meet him and that he hopefully would come back. He took my hand again and squeezed and smiled and said something, even if not, we have this or something, which TRUE!! Then he let go, I said goodbye and basically FLOATED out of the room. I had to sit down outside and try that breathing thing again. 

This fabulous human being is just not from this world!!! He's just outstanding and I'll FOREVER be grateful to Amy that she made this happen!!! For that alone it was worth every damn penny I've spent that weekend!!

I was basically toast after that and just went around like in trance for a while.

Then it was already time for the closing panel. I didn't want it to be over, but they made it easier for everyone.

They all seemed to have had a BLAST at the con, they were so at ease with each other and with Amy; Dave teared up talking about us as a fandom which UGH, MY HEART!!! The still INCREDIBLE amount of love and care and joy that cast has for our little show - it’s still something that blows my mind! They love it just as much as we do and it shows time and time again which I’ll NEVER take for granted because it rarely happens like this!

And once again, the very best thing is this fandom. I can’t say enough how fucking amazing we all are. The sheer fucking talent on this ship is indeed insane!! I’ve met so many wonderful new people, hugged so many of you and KNOW I will see some of you again very soon (hopefully). The things y’all made and did are stunning and I will forever be in awe about the creativity all around me!

And then it was over; we went outside for hopefully one last vape with DF but he had dinner with some of the others and we needed to eat too so sadly we didn't get to say goodbye personally which is a shame as I think he would've loved that! Ah well.

Then in the evening there was the pub quiz where we did okay enough (not last but also not first, good middle, I'd say), then some karaoke happened which was amazing, R won a thing in the raffle and we went to bed before the party was over as she had to leave super early. We had an early breakfast with another fellow pirate, I took R to the airport, went back, packed, met up with some more folks for a second breakfast, said goodbye to some other folks and eventually left for the airport. And for the very first time I WASNT ON MY OWN. My fellow pirates I arrived with, left with me!! Gosh, it's sooo nice to NOT have to say goodbye in my own but have some company on the way home.

But eventually I had to leave them as well and made the long way home. And yet, coming back and being able to rewatch instantly, revel in the memories again, giggle and tear up equally and NOT having to rely on somebody else's write up or my own very fleeting memories may possibly be the best damn thing post-con!!!

Im still not really in that DEEP con-blues hole - yes, I miss everyone and I would love to do it all over again (with enough time to save up the funds for it all!) but I have all those videos to rewatch (plus my own photos), to enjoy and love and my heart is still happy.

I love this show, I love the people I've met because of it,... and now Im tearing up after all so I'll stop here!

Once again, this is basically just for me, a diary entry if you will, and if you've read it all, Dude, what's wrong with you!?!? *giggles*

BEST DAMN CONVENTION EVER! Period. Here's hope we CAN do it again some day. There's still some pokem... pirates to meet, to talk to, to have the most wonderful time with.

We are truly blessed. *sighs happily*