maplemood | Work & Solo & Dreams

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Work & Solo & Dreams

Only just started it, really, (I go in for my third shift tomorrow) but the summer job has been going well so far; a little stressful, and much more fast-paced than any other job I've had before, but not unbearable and time usually passes pretty quickly. So, yeah, I can't complain. And I have made a couple of dumb mistakes, but not as many as I worried I would.

Another perk is that so far I'm usually only scheduled for one or two days a week--I'm sure that will change once the summer picks up, and I could use the extra cash, but for now it's nice to have time to do other things without always feeling rushed or exhausted. My sister and I even had time to make a very spur-of-the moment decision to watch Solo last weekend. It's not my favorite Star Wars movie, not by a long shot, but I walked away much more in love with certain characters (read: Qi'ra) than I expected to be, plus there was a lovely soundtrack and space pirates!(And, even more importantly, girl space pirates!) The ending seems to kinda-sorta-maybe be hooking in for a sequel, too--even though I wasn't especially interested in Han himself, I would like to see more of Qi'ra and Enfys, especially. So who knows.

(Also, some Star Wars-related weirdness: Last night I had a dream that morphed into an hours-long, super-detailed Kylo/Rose epic featuring much bickering and UST and we-care-about-each-other-even-if-we-don't-like-each-other feelings, which was just...very interesting, and I wish I could remember more of the details beyond that, but I'm also wondering if I'm more obsessed with them as a crack pairing than I first realized, if they've literally started showing up in my dreams.)

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I'm glad your job seems to be going well!

I saw Solo on Tuesday and I enjoyed it. It wasn't great, really, but it was a fun little romp if nothing else.

I feel like it's one of those movies that has the potential to be great without actually being great, but I honestly didn't mind because, like you said, it was a lot of fun, and there are a couple of really interesting bits of worldbuilding and cool characters thrown in, too.

Thanks! I hope you're doing well/better, too. :)

Congratulations on the job front!

Your comment about Qi'ra is increasing my desire to watch Solo, I have to admit. It's interesting, though; as I was watching a trailer for it, I couldn't help but think, in some ways this is a tragedy. We know exactly how this guy dies: killed by his son, trying to save him from the Dark Side. :(

...oh my god, Kylo/Rose. Okay, this I have to hear. Sell me on it, please :D

Thank you! I've never worked in fast food before, so it's definitely been (and still is) a learning process, but so far it's been working out okay, which I'm enormously grateful for.

Oh, yeah. There is a definite bittersweet edge to the movie because of that, even if it's mostly a fun heist with a cool character twist or two thrown in. There's even a little bit of a nod to TLJ thrown in, and I loved it, even though, again, it puts a tragic spin on the whole thing.

Oh, okay! Hoo, well. I'll do my best. :)

First of all, it's maybe one of the crackiest crack pairings I've ever shipped? Absolutely no chance of it ever happening in canon, obviously, but that's kind of what makes it work for me, because once you get past the bizarre first impression it's like your brain goes, "Okay, that's really weird. But what if..."

Rose hates the First Order; that's pretty well established in TLJ, so this definitely wouldn't be a love-at-first-sight kind of deal. HOWEVER, Rose is also very perceptive, and tries her best to live a life centered around love, not hate (i.e. "it's about saving the things we love"), and so I feel like, should they ever meet, and in the right circumstances, she'd eventually come to see Kylo/Ben as more of a person than just a figurehead for the First Order. And, eventually (and very slowly) she might start to have some sympathy for the conflict that's in him. Basically, I'm in love with any scenario that would cause her to get to know Ben on a personal level, whether it ends in romance or not. They're two incredibly different people, but idealists at their cores--the difference being that Ben's idealism is completely warped and misplaced. But that would provide interesting source of conflict, I think. Rose also isn't "in tune", necessarily, with the Force; I can see her as the sort of more practical, grounded counterpart to Ben's lofty ways of thinking.

Looking at it from Ben's point of view, I feel like the guy just needs somebody to be loyal to, somebody who he can believe in. That obviously led him down a really dark path with Snoke, and with Snoke out of the picture, I don't think Ben would automatically just snap back into independence--I don't think he could. By nature, he's in some ways more of a follower than a leader. He needs something (or someone) whom he can see as greater than or better than himself to look up to. In canon, that person might end up being Rey (if anyone), but in fanon it's fun to think that he could find that in Rose. Also because she'd start out treating him comparatively better than other rebels might not because she feels sympathy for him but because she hates him and wants to shame him by being the better person--which I think would be attractive to Ben, in a way? He'd see it as honesty. Also, the guy's nothing if not a glutton for punishment.

Whew! Sorry, that got super long (and probably incoherent)! But, yep, in case you can't tell, I'm deeply in love with this ridiculous little pairing.

I hope your job continues to go well!

Rose hates the First Order; that's pretty well established in TLJ, so this definitely wouldn't be a love-at-first-sight kind of deal. HOWEVER, Rose is also very perceptive, and tries her best to live a life centered around love, not hate Oh, that does make sense, and I think it's something KR could really use.

Also because she'd start out treating him comparatively better than other rebels might not because she feels sympathy for him but because she hates him and wants to shame him by being the better person--which I think would be attractive to Ben, in a way? He'd see it as honesty. Also, the guy's nothing if not a glutton for punishment. Hee! This is all true :D

Thank you very much for the rant! I don't ship it myself because I'm usually fairly monoshippish, but I can definitely see it now. I want a story where...somehow KR's blocked off from the force temporarily, and Rose is like...the bounty hunter bringing him home, or something, and they have to work together? This is not a super well-formed idea but I can see it coming together that way.

(Also thinking about this made me realize that "It's about saving the things we love, not destroying the things we hate" is actually very thematic for the entire story, not just Rose knocking Finn out of the sky--this is the mistake in Luke's instinct, for instance, that had him drawing his sword--however momentarily--on his nephew in his horror, and even in the TFA, it's Kylo's error in trying to save himself from the light by killing his dad... And then that's kind of, ow, horrifying when you think how he might have absorbed it... Clearly he could really use Rose's lesson.)

Wow, I'd never really put two and two together that "it's about saving the things we love" is kind of the bedrock of the entire sequel trilogy? It makes so much sense though, like you said, and puts both Luke and Kylo/Ben's errors in thinking in a whole new light and it's just so good...thanks for sharing it with me!

Hah, yeah, I'm kind of an incurable multishipper, even with pairings that, frankly, don't make a whole ton of sense. And I like your idea a lot--it definitely sets up a pretty solid reason for Rose and Kylo to meet (something that I think would be very hard to pull off in the canon we've got now, though who knows). Plus bounty hunter!Rose is an idea that has a ton of cool possibilities beyond a tiny rarepair ship. Imagining it as an alternative path she and Paige might have taken, instead of joining the Resistance, is so cool. It could even pave the way for a great fixit AU where Paige lives.

Oh, and thanks about the job! I'm getting better at it and faster, I think, which helps a lot.

Hee, thanks! :) I only thought of it now because of thinking about what you said about Kylo and Rose, so I think you get some of the credit too :)

Sometimes I'm a complete multi-shipper but most of the time I get fixated on specific pairings and have trouble getting my head around other ones, at least while I'm reading the first one. Although sometimes this attaches more strongly to one person in a ship than the other--for Reese/Finch, fr'ex, I have a much harder time shipping Reese with other people than I do Finch. (And of course almost no one actually writes my Merlin ship the way I like it, so I settle Merlin/Arthur as a decent approximation...)

And thank you! Oooh, maybe Kylo saves her life sort of accidentally/instinctively after reluctantly bonding with Rose some, and it's a turning point in their relationship?

--I've got to ask--do you have any more offbeat ships than this? Now I'm curious! There's a whole world of ships I might be missing out on ^_^

I totally get you on being able to multiship with one character much more easily vs. another--like, in Daredevil and The Punisher I can see Frank Castle as being shippable with a couple people, but Karen...I just have the hardest time shipping her with anyone other than Frank. Somewhat the same with Matt/Elektra, as I can think of a couple other possibilities for Matt but nowhere near as many for Elektra. (Btw, what's your preferred Merlin ship that you just don't see done right? I'd love to know!)

Yes!! And then Rose could grudgingly admit that maybe he's not all bad, after all? And be slightly upset that she now kind of owes him one, but also happy for reasons she'd prefer not to examine too closely?

Oh, so many! Like, I have this headcanon that Leia must have tried to set up Amilyn and Luke on a date together at least once (her best friend and her brother--what could possibly go wrong?). Also Poe/Kaydel, Poe/Amilyn, and Poe/Paige are big favorites. Those are the most offbeat ones I can think of in the SW universe, but in pretty much every fandom I've ever been in I end up collecting a bunch of rarepairs.

Hmm, that makes sense! Right now my Daredevil ship is mostly Matt/Foggy, but *coughs* I /still/ haven't gotten around to watching season 2, so...

The Merlin ship is (Arthur/Gwen)&Merlin. The problem is... I like Arthur and Gwen's relationship, and I love Gwen as Queen, and I really don't read Merlin's devotion to Arthur is romantic--I think he did feel romantically for Freya, though if he had actually left with her I give it about a week before he raced back to save Arthur--nor do I read Arthur's faith in and reliance on Merlin romantically. (It's actually kind of interesting, because I think from Arthur side the relationship is actually mostly healthy? Whereas from Merlin's side... part of what I'm fascinated by is the sheer depth and obsessiveness of his devotion, and it's definitely not healthy.) And, Merlin really ships Arthur/Gwen!!! So basically what I want is...a fix with Arthur/Gwen where Merlin's unsettling devotion has expanded a little to include Gwen, and in which Merlin's relationship with Arthur and, separately, with Gwen, is given just as much narrative weight and attention as it would be if this were a romantic triad. Does that make sense? (There is some good platonic Arthur-and-Merlin out there, and I've appreciated it, and even some that's got Arthur/Gwen--Virtues, Chickens, and Destiny comes to mind, and it's absolutely one of my favourites--but I haven't found anything that al"so puts weight on the Gwen&Merlin branch, you see. Sigh.)

Oooh, yes! And then, wait, and then something happens and they discover Leia is in trouble somehow. And KR's not entirely sure what to do/what's going to happen with the bounty hunters but Rose is just like "of course we'll go!" and he's kind of annoyed but also deeply relieved?

Oh, man, Poe/Amilyn! That would be great :D I can absolutely see Poe/Kaydel, and Poe/Paige definitely makes sense. Poe/Finn was my OTP before TLJ, but given that TLJ makes it clear his devotion to Rey surmpuhts his feelings about anyone else... Still, though, I want to believe. But honestly, in terms of weirdass Poe ships, I...kind of left TLJ shipping Poe/Leia? Just a bit?

Matt/Foggy is the brotp of my heart, and I also see why people ship them--they're almost a bit codependent on one another, especially in s1, and I feel like a lot of the fallout in it and later seasons comes from that? It's both really interesting and really painful-yet-emotionally-satisfying to watch.

Oh, I so get having this super specific romantic-and-platonic ship combo that has barely any fic to its name! Going back to Daredevil, I don't mind Matt/Foggy at all, but what I'd really love to see is more Marci/Foggy fic with a nice side order of Marci & Matt (I love Marci, and I love the headcanon I once found floating around Tumblr that she and Matt could have very well been academic rivals/frenemies in law school), and off the top of my head, I can think of only two fics that do this? Luckily, they're both wonderfully written, but it's still a little sad that there's not more of it out there. So I totally see the appeal of a really strong romance that also ties into a really strong friendship, and I'll have to check that Merlin fic out! Those sound like character combos I'd definitely be interested in.

Right! Because of course Rose would go, and of course Kylo would growl and brood but also completely cave to her reasoning...but not because he likes her or anything. Because he absolutely doesn't. :)

I really like Poe/Leia too! In fact, there are a couple of Poe/Leia fics that I've been meaning to read but haven't found the time to yet...I think Poe's devotion to Leia is so interesting, especially when it clashes with his own ideas of how they should be taking the First Order down, and so there's almost this push-pull dynamic going on in TLJ, which I always love when it comes to ships. Plus, c'mon...of course he'd be a little in love with Princess Leia. Who isn't? :)

It's both really interesting and really painful-yet-emotionally-satisfying to watch uggghh, I just want them to be happy lawyers together, this show is going to break my heart :( (But I do really want to see Frank/Karen, dammit. Blarg.)

If you do check the Merlin fic out If Hope you let me know how you like it! No pressure, though :) God knows my own to-read list is about infinite in length, and that's without rereading on my favorites... (I'm about to start a reread of Girl Genius, so I can catch up on the latest stuff that's happened since I last checked it out. God I love that story. And of course I've been reading some of my favorite fic there, too...) I think I've read the two fic you mention, top :P I ship Matt/Foggy but it's less important to me that they be romantically together than that they be #foreverpartners. (Also, I am perpetually amused by the idea of Matt and Marci mutually jealous about Foggy's attention.)

but not because he likes her or anything. Because he absolutely doesn't. :) Haha, no, of course not, don't be ridiculous ;) But I was also thinking that he probably wants to help his mother, but thinks he shouldn't want to help his mother, so when Rose is like "of course we're going to go" he's annoyed but also secretly grateful? And he's probably attracted a lot to her "of course, if we can save someone, of course we're going to," at least in part because I think he's never felt that certain of anything in his entire life...

Frank/Karen is balm to the soul. And also really angsty in its own way, of course, but they develop a mutual understanding that's really beautiful to watch. Plus it looks like s3 is coming out soonish(?), so hopefully that'll resolve some of the plot threads s2 left hanging.

My to-read list (both fic and "real" books) is so ridiculously long at this point that I wonder if I'll ever get to the end of it, but I'll definitely let you know what I think when I check that story out! Girl Genius is actually on my list too, now that you mention it! And oh, was it the "Marci Stahl Is Better Than You" series? I LOVE those fics with all my heart. (Plus, yeas, Matt and Marci are both constantly jealous of/scheming for Foggy's attention, this is just canon.)

Yes!! And so, along with really admiring her steadfastness and goodness, Ben also has a convenient scapegoat for all the good (or good-ish) things he's suddenly doing: "Look, she's the one who really wants to do all this."

I'm sure I'll get around to season three... eventually...sometime after I get around to season two... ho boy. But I hope you enjoy it! :)

Oh, man, I know exactly what you mean about the infinite to-read list. (And I love Girl Genius but I can't say it's not /long/, because it really, really, is. Turn it into a skein of yarn and you could knit a sweater for Hagrid :P) And yes, there was definitely that one, but I think there was something else, too...? Let me see... Oh, no, it was actually pre-OT3, never mind.)

Hee, yes, absolutely!! Hmm, I feel like this has to culminate in him doing the right thing independently of Rose somehow? Preferably in a way that ties in with he theme "saving what you love, not destroying what you hate," but it's hard to see what, exactly...

Ooh! What if in this verse he hasn't killed Han yet, and he has to choose between getting revenge on someone (maybe someone who hurt Rose!!) and saving his dad? And it's not that it means he doesn't still have complicated feelings about him, it doesn't mean that everything is settled and forgiven, but... "saving what we love, not destroying what we hate" can apply to just one person, you know?

And then Rose is very very proud of him :D

Yes!! I love that! And then they can all be a disreputable family of space smugglers/pirates working together to dismantle the First Order. (At least, that's Rose's ultimate goal. Han is still Han and Ben has somewhat mixed feelings about the First Order, still.)

Hee, yes, that's perfect! And it occurs to me you'd probably be able to play some with Rose and /Leia's/ relationship, too... Oh, man, this would be a really interesting fic.

...of course, now we just need to get someone to write it... :P

The eternal struggle of "I want this very specific fic catered to my very specific interests, but someone else needs to write it because I don't have the time/energy/willpower to." :D

Oh, man, I hadn't even thought about Leia and Rose! But they could end up with SUCH a cool dynamic, and maybe even a bit of a mother-daughter relationship?

Oh, man, no kidding :P

Yes, I think so! And Leia would especially be interested in/grateful to the person who saved her son, I think she'd really seek her out and try to get to know her? And Rose would be interested too, in part because *General Organa* holy shit, but I think she'd also be curious about the bits of Leia-as-mother she picked up from Kylo...

Exactly! And by the same token, I think Kylo would be really interested in Rose & Paige, because he never had siblings, but I'm sure he was the type of kid who felt very isolated and lonely most of the time and would have appreciated a brother or sister. So they're both curious/ a bit envious of different aspects of each other's families.

Oh, I never thought of that, but you're definitely right! Hmm--I was wondering about whether he'd compare them to Luke/Leia but actually I think he wouldn't really think of them as siblings until one of Rose or Paige said something that pointed it out--I mean, he knows it, of course, but to him they're his mother and his uncle, you know?

God--they'd have to be an original character, I suppose, but now I really want a story where Kylo has a sibling himself. That dynamic would be absolutely fascinating, I think, whether they went to the darkside with him, or refused to recognize him as their brother, or wanted to redeem him to the light... Also interesting to think of the effect it might have had on Han and Leia's relationship. I love sibling stories/relationships (I really loved Thor Ragnarok, forex.) Damn, that'd be really interesting. It might even be a point in for the Rose relationship, too, or for humanizing Kylo to himself, as he watches Rose and Paige and is reminded, against his will, of what he used to have...

Now all I can think of is little Ben reacting to Leia telling him that Uncle Luke is her brother like ????--kind of like when you're a kid and you're told your grandparents are your parents' parents, and it just doesn't compute AT ALL because, no, they're just Grandma and Grandpa, they're nobody's parents. Or maybe that was just me. :)

There are three Solo kids instead of one in the EU, and I'd just love the possible dynamics you could get with another Solo sibling in the movie universe...my first thought would be a sister, and her either staying with the light or following him would both be such interesting options. I'm kind of leaning towards her going darkside as well, though? Because then they could have this super-interesting dynamic, because, say, she was younger than him, and her following him after the debacle at Luke's temple was one part believing the message and one part just being a scared little kid who's going to follow her brother because he's her brother, where else is she going to go? So in that way she's more of a survivalist than an idealist, and grows up much less devoted to the cause than he is. And Ben killing Han could also really up the tension between them.

Glad your summer job is going well!
I'm excited to see Solo myself. I am trying to ignore the bad press and enjoy it when I get the chance to see it.

I think Kylo/Rose would be very interesting! I think sometimes dreams are a good nudge for writing and inspiration. :)

Thanks! It's been a little stressful but very manageable so far, and that's good enough for me.

Do try to ignore all the negative stuff, because even though it isn't perfect (what movie is?) it was so enjoyable and I'm really glad that I didn't go there either expecting to be blown away or ripped off--I was hoping for an interesting, fun movie and that was exactly what I got.

It's a pairing with a lot of cool possibilities, I think! And yeah, who knows? :)

(Btw, I love your icon!)

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Work & Solo & Dreams

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