#trr asks

Queens of Vale but with Elderburn instead of Freezerburn

Hmmm, not sure if this means rewrite the QoV setting for Elderburn or just do an arranged marriage AU with Elderburn, but for the former, I'd need to have Jacques double down on the invasion by sending Winter to lead it in a bid to weaken her standing among the Atlesian nobles and/or use her as a martyr to further his own ends. This would put Winter and Yang in opposition during the battle where Yang earns her Dragon of Patch moniker and Winter would likely realize the losing fight and order a retreat to save what ships she could. Realizing that invading Vale is a lost cause, Winter would propose the marriage as a political alliance with the only collateral she, as heiress apparent, has: herself.

A lot of QoV is focused on how Yang and Weiss establish their relationship, how they work through cultural misunderstandings, and how they teach and learn from each other to grow into their positions as the Queens of Vale. A QoV with Yang and Winter would come from a different angle- as an active participant in the war, Winter wouldn't have the cultural blindspots Weiss has, but would consider herself effectively a prisoner of war. Meanwhile, Yang would respect that Winter fought in the war herself (even if she wasn't a particularly talented warrior by Valen standards) and try to connect with her via combat. That would probably frustrate both of them and the tension would ratchet up until they reached a breaking point where Winter accepts that Yang isn't looking down on her and Yang starts really connecting with Winter outside of what she thinks is their one thing in common.

9. Favorite pairing you wrote for this year? Elderburn, though I had a lot of fun branching out into other ships/fandoms this year.

12. How many WIP’s do you have in your docs for next year? Um... well... technically... 25ish...

29. Favorite line/passage you wrote this year?

“I was confronted by one of our more… belligerent courtiers. It touched on some sore spots. Mainly, if nothing between us can change, if we can be nothing more than friends… does it make me a fool to keep seeking you out anyway? To look forward to our trips to market, to any moment I can spend with you… to let it motivate me. Is it wrong?” “My Dearest Princess, do not begrudge me that I must speak plainly, but yes. Yes, it does make you a fool, but so am I, for between us, I am even more aware of how futile this is and, yet, I miss you when you’re gone. Knowing as I do that we can never be more than this, I allow myself to yearn, to hope, to dream- so we’re a pair of fools, you and I, and all the more foolish for being in this together.” Somehow, it didn’t hurt, being called a fool. Weiss had a point. They both seemed aware of the situation and, while Blake lacked the specifics, her mother wasn’t wrong- Weiss was stubborn and true, and Blake believed that with her whole heart. She may never be able to understand the specifics without all the details but that didn’t make her less aware of the outcome. Her gaze shifted from the ocean in front of them to watch the woman as she frowned severely. “However… in my heart, I can’t call you wrong. In my head you are- how can you be so careless with your heart, Blake, to give it to someone like me? To put yourself in this position- damn your honor and your pride, to take over my shopping as an apology, because you put yourself in this awful position and I- damn me, too, for not stopping you, for not turning away from your kindness and your smile and your playful eyes. For seeing you up on that wall and being weak. Damn us both for not being able to resist what we have known to be foolishness since the beginning.” Her voice shook at the end but Weiss clung to that same pride that had fueled her since the beginning, the sharp look in blue eyes dulling ever so slightly as tears threatened to fall. Blake couldn’t help the sad curl to her lips. “I think I would rather be damned for all eternity than to live a peaceful life never knowing you, Weiss.” “And damn your romantic words and what they do to me.” She turned and curled forward, into Blake’s chest, and she didn’t hesitate in enveloping the woman in her arms, burying her nose in moonlight locks and relishing the sensation. To hold her, even for a moment…  “I’m sorry,” she said softly, placing the words gently beside Weiss’ ear. “Don’t be. Damn me, again and again, for being so thankful that I’ve gotten this much, for now that I understand how powerful love can be, I wonder how I’ve lived so long without it, and I wonder how I can stand by and watch as you one day marry someone else.”

-My Love, My Heart, Chapter 3

As that's a few, please do pick and choose from among them.

4. Where do you find inspiration for new ideas?

Oh, absolutely everywhere. AUs based on other properties are easy- I just pick the scenes or characters that mean the most to me and rearrange things until they work- but for the most part I'm just constantly thinking of things or reimagining them.

15. How do you write smut scenes? Do you get very visual or detailed? How important is it to be realistic?

Smut's extremely difficult to write for me. A personal reading pet peeve of mine is trying to figure out how characters get from one position to another or reach certain places in a given position, so I spend a lot of time thinking about the details and mechanics of it. However, that's not why I write smut; I, as an author and even as a reader, care more about the emotional significance than the act itself (granted, not always true, but usually). I don't really want to focus on the details or visuals as much as the significance and emotions... but, damnit, sometimes, it's unavoidable! As for realism, as long as the underlining mechanics make sense, I could care less.

24. Worst writing advice anyone ever gave you?

There was a whole Twitter thread filled with shit writing advice that I reblogged once but the one that sticks with me was "if all you're ever going to write is fanfic, you should quit". I ignored it.

46. How would you describe your style? (Character/emotion/action-driven, etc)

I really try to focus on characters and their emotions, so I would hope my writing is seen as character driven and emotional. Not that I want anyone losing sleep over my fics or anything but I do hope that they resonate and stick in the mind for a bit, either for humor or relatability.

66. How do you deal with writing pressure (ie. pressure to update, negative comments, deadlines, etc.)?

I am so excited to read Queens of Vale again and able to read it in its entirety. I was sad when I read that update saying you were shelving it but I defenitly understood why you did.

But, with its this re-release, I'm so excited to read your story again. I hope this means you're going to he going back to a few of your other stories (after a well deserved break) I've been a huge fan of your work and always love the settings, writing and pairings your written about. Always exciting and fresh setting when it comes to your work.

I apologize for the lengthy non-ask but I've been trying to get better at leaving comments and sending love to stories and artwork.

Thank you. I do hope, with the benefit of hindsight, people are more understanding of my decision to shelve it publicly. Realizing how long it would be, and how belligerent people were being regarding updates, it was just the most sensible option to preserve the integrity of the work. As @jsnhlbr5 can attest, having the freedom to work on it at my own pace gave me the ability to be a bit more critical than I might've otherwise been regarding the pacing and scope of the story, to its benefit. (That being said, I definitely didn't proofread it as good as I thought, lol.)

I do hope to finish a few more WIPs sometime in the future, though I doubt any will reach the length of QoV.

See, I've debated rewriting Symphony of Souls multiple times, if only because I think the pacing is atrocious. However, I'm not convinced the pacing is so bad it requires a rewrite instead of 'heads up, just go with it' tacked on the beginning.

Darkness and pain. That's what she awoke to, despite the sensation of the sun on her skin. A strangled groan of agony wrenched from her lips as she tried to move, the weight of something bearing down on her, but she could neither dislodge it nor even open her eyes to see what it was.

How long had she been out? Was it that very morning that she'd stepped into her chariot, prepared to lead the charge against the enemy, or was it a week past? More?

She couldn't be sure. Couldn't feel anything aside from the pressure and pain, the heat of the sun and the cool kissing breeze of early evening, and Winter Schnee understood very well the traditions of her people. To die on the battlefield- the ultimate honor, not sullied by being removed from the field, left to stand vigil over the sites of bloodshed, and without the sounds of the war drums pounding, she'd been counted among the fallen and left behind.

Of course, given her present situation, she would likely die anyway, but it chaffed at her that she hadn't fallen in combat outright, left instead to succumb to her wounds after the fact.

"Gods, grant me mercy." She coughed, choking on the words and only then becoming aware that she ached for water, for food, on top of everything else.

"Is someone alive out here?" A voice she'd never heard before- curious, surprised, but speaking a language she knew- called out and drew closer. "Or was I just hearing things?"

“Do you have a favorite memory?”

Winter blinked, turning her head to look at her wife. They sat side-by-side in the waiting room, having lost track of time as they waited for news. “Come again?”

“Do you have a favorite memory?” Yang had that look in her eyes, the one that said she’d been awake for far too long and floating through the moment, trying to keep her head above water and nothing more. She empathized even if years of service had made the state of mind almost second nature to her. “Like, something you think about, remember, just to make a bad day good again?”

“Usually, I think of you or the kids,” she replied, realizing her wife’s exhaustion had reached a new level when Yang neither smiled nor seemed to register her response.

“But, like... specific...”

Winter sighed and slumped slightly in her chair, shifting her left hand to rest on her wife’s prosthetic. “I’m not sure if I’d say it’s my favorite but... do you remember when I texted you in the middle of the night after our first big fight? And you immediately called me to very politely chew me out for doing that?”

That seemed to bring her wife back to reality somewhat. “You mean when we almost broke up?”

“Yes.” A small smile curled her lips. “Perhaps it’s foolish but I reflect on that night often. You had every reason to ignore me entirely or end our relationship right then. I was entirely in the wrong.” Winter leaned towards her wife, tilting her head to rest against Yang’s. “But... you gave me a second chance and I don’t want to imagine how my life might’ve turned out otherwise. It’s a good reminder to be thankful for every moment, even the ones that aren’t perfect.”

“Huh.”

“And you?”

Her wife was silent for a moment before sighing deeply. “The night I tried giving up... but you wouldn’t let me. Not so much the arguing but when you got the kids together and we all went back to bed... always reminds me how lucky I am.”

“We really are a pair,” she said with a wry smile. “Turning our scars into badges of pride and affection.” A moment of silence passed as her wife turned her prosthetic arm, beckoning Winter to intertwine their fingers. “But if I had to pick a favorite, as in one I enjoy thinking about when I’m already in a good mood...”

“Yeah?”

“You first.”

A chuckle as Yang leaned into her as well. The arms of the waiting room chairs dug into their sides uncomfortably but it didn’t matter. They were both exhausted and that didn’t matter either. “Every new moment with you is my new favorite moment.”

“That’s delightfully cheesy,” she replied. “I love it.”

“I have my moments.”

“Mom! Momma!” They both straightened up, looking over to see their son hurrying towards them with a wide smile on his lips. “There you two are! Come meet your new granddaughter!”