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bard_linnBard Linn: Hello all! We hope you are enjoying the summer time. And those of you in flooded areas or fires or some other natural disaster - we hope things get better for you! The weather has been so crazy lately.
Kiraya: Everything's been crazy lately.
Bard Linn: Yup.
Bard Linn: Anyway, you are seeing a greatly overhauled version of this chapter.
Kiraya: Which is why it's been so long since we've posted.
Kiraya: But hey, we got about a whole additional chapter of content out of this massive multi-part revision, so. :)
Bard Linn: Yeah. And a lot of the stuff wasn't in the original plans at ALL and some of it is a bit awkward for the characters (Tifa did not WANT to have that conversation. Cloud wasn't so happy about it either but he wants to protect his friends.)
Kiraya: That's one of the coolest things about doing this, though.
Kiraya: Working on stuff and having new stuff crop up to be woven in all the time...
Bard Linn: Yeah - and the characters have to have the awkward conversations too, not just the happy ones.
Kiraya: But it's times like this revision that I'm glad we work several chapters ahead of posting.
Kiraya: Makes smoothing out the flow of things a lot easier.
Bard Linn: Yup.
Bard Linn: So, besides the whole TON of relationship stuff - YAY DESTRUCTION!!!!
Bard Linn: REACTOR GO BOOM!
Bard Linn: My inner love of fictional destruction has been encouraged by all the anime I've been watching.
Kiraya: o..O
Kiraya: >...>
Kiraya: Hooray for Avalanche showing up finally!
Bard Linn: They haven't really shown up YET.
Kiraya: They're waiting in the wings, at least.
Bard Linn: True. Still...the beginning of the board scene is my favoritest thing this chapter. I love it. <3
Bard Linn: I am very easily amused, sadly.
Kiraya: Yes, but we love you anyway.
Bard Linn: I should hope so!
Bard Linn: Anyway, as far as future story goes, the muses are actually speaking to us/me about the next to-be-written chapter, though that will be somewhat delayed by the fact we're making three costumes for Otakon
Kiraya: *still feels useless in that endeavor*
Bard Linn: Well, I'm going to to have to detach your arms so we can make your gloves.
Kiraya: Oh dear.
Kiraya: But how will I type, then?
Bard Linn: Automail.
Kiraya: But I hear that hurts a lot going on, and I HATE pain. ;_;
Bard Linn: We, along with my sister, are going to be Urd, Belldandy and Skuld for the con, so if anyone is coming and sees us, make sure you say 'hi!'
Bard Linn: Anyway, I don't think we have anything terribly important to say, other than THANK YOU for all the helpful feed back on some of the relationship issues - you'll be seeing fruit for them in the next few chapters.
Kiraya: Your helpful feedback is always awesome to read. :)
Kiraya: Until next time, then -- enjoy your summer!
Bard Linn: Indeed!
Bard Linn: *dives back into sewing*
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Date: 2008-06-30 10:19 pm (UTC)Will there be pictures of the finished costumes?
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Date: 2008-07-01 05:28 pm (UTC)We are trying to have some relationships that work out, some that don't and some that aren't 'luuuuuuuuuv' based at at all.
Will depend on when we get them finished. ^^;; The first one is only about halfway done.
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Date: 2008-07-02 01:42 am (UTC)Nice going with Cloud disarming Rogers with the lights out.
So, I'm guessing we get to meet AVALANCHE next? ^_^ Awesome and win, I can't wait for the next chapter
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Date: 2008-07-03 03:05 pm (UTC)Next chapter is fuuuuuuuuuun. When we get there. Which will probably be after sewing.....
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Date: 2008-07-04 02:38 am (UTC)Sweet! Good luck with the sewing, then.
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Date: 2008-07-02 10:14 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-07-03 03:05 pm (UTC)Thoughts on Chapter 34
Date: 2008-07-03 12:18 pm (UTC)Initially I was surprised to read Zack talking so cheerfully with Reno; I wasn't certain he'd forgive Reno's comments about the potential for Cloud returning from his previous mission in a body-bag (or whatever the Midgar equivalent may be), but the way you wrote it with the two of them having reached an unspoken agreement about what will and will not be discussed was elegantly done. It kept them both in character, and contributed to the ongoing development of the story while also very neatly slipping in a few extra weeks - and Tifa-Cloud dates - to allow tempers to cool. (I for one had been surreptitiously mourning the demotion of Reno from prank-buddy to one-of-the-turks, which I feared would be the outcome of the combination of the attempted kiss and the meeting with Rufus, so I was thrilled to have my favourite red-headed Mobile Disaster Zone still in the thick of it). What can I say? I love the way you write Reno, and I delight in watching him banter and bounce (ricochet?) off Cloud and Zack. This chapter wasn't an exception; his efforts towards Tifa were so very Reno-esque with just the right overtones of pure 'Turk' that I scarcely realised that it would sergue so well into Tifa and Cloud having *that* talk, and then later The Talk.
Speaking of which; again kudos on your handling of that not-relationship. Having Cloud sulk made him flawed and human, which just makes me like him even more as a character. Having him come good as a friend, particularly over something Tifa is so obviously clueless about (namely basic sexual education) was simply sterling. True to Vincent's prediction many chapters ago - when Zack first explained the concept of same-sex pairings - Cloud has gotten his head around many paradigm-shifting ideas and concepts in his life, and to have him display his maturing comfort with the idea speaks volumes for his adaptability. Go Cloud! That's the flexible and inquisitive - and above all, non-judgmental - kid that found Vincent so many years ago. He is growing and developing, and as you have allowed the character to mature, rather than clumsily forced him to it, you've ensured that I as a reader have thoroughly enjoyed the journey along the way as you explore the extra layers and facets to his personality while still remaining true to that core of seven year-old.
The hints about the three-way sparring matches were tantalising, though I must say I grinned when, true to form, Cloud had no problems at all prioritising between Tifa and training.
I can't help but wonder with those matches, if, now that post-augmentation Cloud has also been in proximity to Jenova (courtesy of the second mission to Nibelheim) has he become like Zack and Sephiroth with actively replicating Jenova cells? And what is the significance of his spike in Mako scores? The ground-work for this particular sub-plot was set some time ago, and while I thoroughly enjoy the subtlety with which you're allowing it to build, I also can't wait to see where you go with this.
The way you ended the chapter with the lights-out sparring match, the great big boom, and the start of a new mission was just the perfect booster; intimating a return to the action-packed sequences that form the perfect counterbalance to the in-depth character development. Really, it is this combination that you've perfected to make this fic such a readable story.
Thank you for improving my week out of sight; I await the next chapter with gleeful anticipation.
Nik.
Re: Thoughts on Chapter 34
Date: 2008-07-03 03:18 pm (UTC)Well, Reno and Zack aren't exactly prank buddies, but they do understand each other, especially since they deal with very similar minded bosses. Zack is just very protective of Cloud (not that he NEEDS to be).
I'm glad everyone has liked The Talk and the way Cloud handled it! That was probably the part of this chapter I was most concerned about.
Yeah, that line got inserted in rewrite 2 or 3. As for the Jenove thing, Cloud is just a normal SOLDIER in that regard. You only get active Jenny-cells in this verse if she basically takes an interest in you. Her energy crashes in and wakes everything up. When Cloud was around her she was totally going MY SHINY SON SEPHIROTH and ignoring the 'insignificant human'.
As the mako thing - that's actually not a big secret, its just something hard to explain in story line without making a character sound like they've been possessed by Gast's ghost. The thing with mako is because it is spiritually related, your results are going to be affected by self-esteem, sense of self, positive emotions/outlook on life, etc. First time Cloud took the test he was incredibly nervous, still somewhat hurt/unsure over the Vincent thing and going through usual 16 year old body issues. Second time he was older, more self assured, had Vincent's approval (more or less) and had grown into his skin. The best analogy I can make is mako is like the ocean. When you're unsure of yourself you're a poor swimmer. The more confident you get the better you are able to survive the rip tides.
In-depth character interaction/romantic developments were tiring to write, and the parts needed the most revision. The action was a relief after that!
I'm glad we made your week better. I'm hoping we can get another chapter out before the end of the summer, but it'll depend on how much we get written between now and then.
Re: Thoughts on Chapter 34
Date: 2008-07-04 11:37 am (UTC)Zack being protective (of Cloud, of Sephiroth) is one of his more rock-steady (and endearing) traits, and I couldn't really see how he'd work as such an intricate and multifacted character if he lost that particular underpinning to his personality. It certainly makes his humour more appealing on a human level, and I'd probably find him a bit shallow without your efforts in this regard. As it is, I think he's delightful, and complicated enough to make reading about him one of the many rewards of this fic.
Thanks for clearing up my questions about Jenova and the Mako treatments (as a non-gamer,I'm a few steps behind the eightball with some of this). I had figured that the meditation must have had *something* to do with Cloud's 'highest jump in Mako scores in history', and no channelling of any ghosts required. It certainly served a purpose in chilling me utterly when Hojo announced his pleasure at Sephiroth's 'gift' in the Shinra Mansion. He is Not A Nice Man, and the fact that he'd wanted Cloud for a while made my blood curdle. Which, now I think of it, is the trademark of a singularly exceptional villain. Kudos to you for that.
I look forward to your next chapter! Enjoy your summer break.
Re: Thoughts on Chapter 34
Date: 2008-07-04 11:40 am (UTC)