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lunasarielMy T-Day was relatively quiet. My dad braved night-before-Thanksgiving traffic to come and pick me up at Berkeley, and took me to see his new house before dropping me off at my usual digs. And I gotta say, it's nice. His previous house wasn't in a bad neighborhood, but in an inconvenient one, and it was way, waaaay too small to fit him, my stepmom, and us six kids, plus the various family members and guests who come around frequently. The new place is way out in the country (actually, it's only 5 minutes' drive/20 minutes' walk away from my mom's house), and definitely big enough to hold the enormous dinner parties that my dad and stepmom like to give. Moving is an ongoing process (I spent a good chunk of yesterday helping with that, and I might do so again sometime this weekend), but is slowly but surely getting done.
Thanksgiving dinner itself was okay. My stepmom was using my grandmother's recipe for stuffing, which calls for, among other things, yams, oysters, and raisins (or possibly currants; I couldn't tell), and isn't my favorite thing ever. The turkey and gravy were absolutely delish, as always, though. To top things off, we had both apple and pumpkin pie. I've been an avowed hater of pumpkin anything, but especially pumpkin pie, for years, but I have now raised my opinion of it from "categorically inedible" to "mild distaste". In non-food news, though, things were kinda tense. None of my stepsiblings were there, for various good or not-so-good reasons. My stepsister H is still dating a guy that my dad absolutely despises, so I guess it's good that she stayed away rather than bring him and make a scene. We also had my stepmom's dad's cousin, who is 94, blind, mostly deaf, and just lost his wife, so taking care of him is a job and a half, made worse by the fact that none of his own kids wanted him with them, and I think he knew it. So there was that hanging over us. But honestly, given that this was the first Thanksgiving since my grandparents died, there was a lot less angst/drama than I'd expected.
Yesterday was mostly taken up with visiting old friends, an activity that looks like it's going to spill over into tonight, as well. Last night C, H, J, J's cousin D (visiting from Lompoke), and I went out for a drink or three (well, they drank, I drove). We went to two bars: the Main Street Saloon and Aubergine. Main Street had a nice, old-timey, wood-paneled feel to it, and we spent most of the evening there, where we discovered that D slips into a more-or-less permanent John Lennon-esque British accent after his fourth drink. J kept complaining that he couldn't get buzzed, but he's something like 6'5", so it eventually hit him, it just took him a bit longer. Overall, it was a nice place, and I'd definitely like to go back.
Later on in the evening, people got bored with Main Street, so we headed off to Aubergine, a relatively new place that shares building space with a vintage shop of the same name. I love Aubergine-the-store; I've gotten more than one big floofy skirt there, in addition to my trusty (and reasonably-priced!) leather jacket. Aubergine-the-club, though, it turns out, I'm not such a big fan of. I went in feeling kind of claustrophobic and nervous and out of place, but (and this is incredibly unusual for me) I had a full-on panic attack after about half an hour. Shaking, hyperventilating, the whole nine yards. And we were there for two hours. I really, really wanted to get out of there, but the people I was with, H especially, know that I'm not crazy about big groups of people (especially all crushed together and dancing like they were at Aubergine) and would insist on going home, but everybody else was having a great time (especially J, who had hit it off with the band's fiddler), and damned if I was going to make them all leave. Although, TBH, that almost made it worse, since everyone around me was having so much fun, and there's no logical reason why I shouldn't, too, and yet I was still freaking out. It was dark, and like I said, noisy and crowded, so I don't think anybody noticed (at least, I hope they didn't, and nobody said anything). Even so, this was unexpected, and really weird. Like I said, I'm not a big party person, and I avoid large groups, but I've never lost my cool like that before. After we finally left, I dropped everyone else off at J's house, which was nearby and where they had all planned to crash. I'm not to proud to admit that I kinda broke down after everyone else was gone, but after having myself a good cry, the shakes subsided enough for me to drive home.
I'm annoyed with myself for forgetting my slippers and big warm fluffy robe back in Berkeley (I'd forgotten how cold my room can get!), but at least I remembered my books. I fully intended to finish Mistborn, which I fear that I've been neglecting in favor of Temeraire, but my weekend is filling up pretty fast, so it looks like that might not happen. I also brought Lords and Ladies, which I'm really pacing myself on, since I usually devour Discworld books in a matter of days, if not hours, no matter how many times I've already read them. Of course I brought The Fellowship of the Ring; I'm just past the Hall of Fire now, and reading it calmed me down wonderfully after last night's mess.
Last, but definitely not least, I brought Tongues of Serpents, which I actually finished a few days ago, and I've been delving into the fan-community at long last ever since. Not gonna lie, I grinned to see a book set in colonial Australia. I lived in Australia for a while when I was a tot, so books set there are almost guaranteed to please. I loved the addition of bunyips as actual creatures (and quasi-sentient ones, no less), but I would've loved to see how Naomi Novik handled drop-bears, one of my favorite Australian bugaboos.
As far as characters go, I'm glad that Laurence seems to be forming a second Power Trio with Granby and Tharkay, after being parted from his original Trio of Berkley and Harcourt. I miss the rest of the aviators and dragons, of course. It seems that Naomi is falling into that trap that sucked in Simon R. Green of creating an awesome character, and then having them appear in only one book. I'm sure that The Gang will get back to England sooner or later, but in the meantime, I wish we could hear more of *deep breath* Perscitia/Gentius/Minnow/Moncey/Jane/Arkady/Maximus/Lily/Berkley/Harcourt/Hollin/Chenery/Sutton/Little/[insert name of other awesome character(s) that I'm almost certainly forgetting here] than letters. Dammit, Naomi, stop teasing us! XD
Of course, the one character re-introduced had to be Rankin. He's developing into an eminently enjoyable rich bitch of a Draco Malfoy-esque antagonist (I can't stop comparing Temeraire to Harry Potter! WHY?!?!), so it was fun to have him along, even if it was only so that we could hate his guts more with every mile. I mean, our hatred of him was pretty much cemented with poor Levitas' death, but when he decided to kill baby Kulingile, pretty much the only thing he could do to make us hate him more is to eat a puppy, a kitten, and a baby seal all at once. So I hope that something humbling/embarrassing, but not necessarily lethal, happens to him in the near future. For example, I would have been entirely satisfied with him getting sprayed with the rotting fish they used to feed the sea serpents (although sans the sea serpents themselves; I want the guy humiliated, not messily eaten).
I like that the issue of Emily actually looking like a girl is being addressed. I know, during the invasion people had bigger things to worry about, but now, I like the variety of reactions to people actually figuring out what the deal is. In addition, it looks like Emily might be developing a bit of a romance with Demane, which is all kinds of adorable. Part of me can't stop seeing her as the squeaky little 11-year-old who got all googly-eyed and "I iz helping!!! :D" over Temeraire way back in HMD, but in the ensuing four years (five? I'm having some trouble remembering the exact chronology), she definitely has developed into her mother's daughter. If she and Demane do get together, and he relaxes a bit, they're going to make one hell of a couple.
Speaking of which, while digging around the fandom, I came across the lovely and talented![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
dorkorific, whose character sketches are EXACTLY what the characters look like in my head. For example, her Laurence, Jane, and Tharkay (separately, not together, sadly) are nothing short of amazing, especially Jane, who looks like she's about to tip over from "amused" to "exasperated/headdesk" mode. I imagine she's trying to explain something Corps-related and highly irregular to Laurence. Also, her Tharkay is appropriately sardonic, and has that perpetual look of barely restraining himself from saying something snarky that I always imagine him wearing. Her Granby (with bonus Granby/Laurence/Tharkay boozing!, which is awesome), however, is a little too short-haired and freckly for my headcanon, although his "WTF" expression is spot on.
Speaking of a certain beleaguered lieutenant/captain, I think I'm going to have to declare Granby my favorite. It's become kinda funny how everything bad happens to him. Everything. He spends the first three books getting shot, stabbed, shoved off of dragons, and otherwise concussed/injured. But after Iskierka is hatched, the universe seems to have traded physical injury for having him be the captain of an uncontrollable quasi-pirate. An uncontrollable quasi-pirate who loves him to pieces, of course, and he her, but an uncontrollable quasi-pirate nonetheless. Of course, the whole "trading physical peril for inability to control dragon" thing fell by the wayside when he was the only officer in the entire Corps (and possibly the entire British military, since we didn't hear about anybody else getting caught) to get captured by Napoleon.
But it's not just that Granby is, in some respects, the universe's chew toy. I also like that he's the responsible one, the one in charge of getting shit done, leaving certain other people free to be dramatic (this was especially evident in ToJ and BPW), and that nothing much fazes him. I love that he is both the rescuer (srsly, keeping Laurence from doing anythingstupid heroic is a full-time job) and the rescuee (I was totally prepared for some Granby!whump when Laurence and Tharkay went to rescue him). I can't stand damsel-in-distress/load characters who do nothing but get into trouble, requiring the team to save them, every five minutes, especially when said character is touted as a badass, or at least competent, so I'm glad that Granby's rescuer-to-rescuee ratio is about even.
As far as shipping goes, it seems that it's the platonic dragon/captain pairings that form the majority of emotional bonds, so human romantic pairings are somewhat thin on the ground. Like I said earlier, Emily/Demane looks to be developing into one hell of a power couple. Laurence/Jane I actually wasn't that into; it seemed very much like an acknowledged friends-with-benefits thing to her, while he was always trying to make it into some sort of Epic Twu Wuv thing, which was especially weird given that his first attachment has always been to Temeraire. Jane/Wellington, while not strictly canon, appeals to me a lot more. I mean, it's two grumpy, cynical, sharp-tongued badass authority figures; what's not to love? I can see them "discussing tactics" (read: arguing until they're blue in the face), and then having some good old-fashioned stress-relief sex to top things off.
The two main fan-pairings for Laurence seem to be Laurence/Tharkay and Laurence/Granby, and I'm inclined more towards the latter than the former, although it's undeniable that the three of them are unusually close. Normally I'm massively not into OT3s, but here, I could almost ship Granby/Laurence/Tharkay. Not completely, but almost. I can see both Granby and Tharkay having massive crushes on Laurence, but Granby ending up with him via First Girl Wins, to use TVTropes' wording. Both Laurence and Granby understand that a captain is always really really attached to his dragon, and neither of them will take it the wrong way if the other guy puts his dragon first, because he would almost certainly do the same. I just don't see Tharkay getting the dragon/human bond, and the attendant complications/conflicts of interest, the same way.
Most of my plot bunnies in this fandom have coalesced into a loose series of crossovers with the Aubreyad, which might as well be titled "Granby Gets Whumped On, Stephen is a Ninja." (Actually, I don't know whether calling it a crossover is the right word, since Stephen and the Sophie [and so presumably Jack] technically already exist [or at least, have been strongly hinted to exist] in the Temeraire-verse. Call it an Aubreyad fusion-on-very-flimsy-grounds.) In this little quasi-AU, Laurence was unwilling to admit his attraction to his lieutenant because THAT WOULD BE IMPROPER AND IMMORAL (and illegal), while still being super-duper protective of him (and not without cause, given Granby's injury rate) until they get back to England, wee!Iskierka in tow, when Granby, who returns his affections, exasperatedly points out that, not only are Chenery and Little practically married, but he's been dating a woman who dresses like a man for several years now. (Roland, being Roland, is perplexed only that Laurence asks her permission to see Granby as well. Also, with the Dragon Plague in full swing, she has other things to worry about.) Then there are a few comparatively light pieces, most having to do with Laurence worrying, and not entirely unjustly, what people will think, and their various friends' reactions to the completely obvious news (my favorite is the dragons, who try to use some of the soppy novels of sentiment that Catherine read while pregnant and slightly hormonal to give them relationship advice, and are rather put out when neither of them has a father around to forbid the relationship or a dastardly rival suitor to duel for one another's honor, and that if said dastardly rival suitor were to attempt to kidnap and ravish either one of them, he'd probably get shot), and to one of the Corps' political enemies getting wind of things and trying to expose them.
What I'm having the most fun with, overall, is the villains. Lien is still out for REVENGE!!!11!, of course. As for everyone's favorite Corsican, I'm flip-flopping back and forth, characterization-wise, between the affably evil type who doesn't let Lien kill important prisoners, but looks the other way when she wants to take out some frustration on someone whose gruesome death/maiming won't cause an international incident, and an anti-villain who knows both how useful and how nuts Lien is, and tries his best to stop her from doing any more damage than would be strictly necessary. The other two villains are imports from the Aubreyad, Andrew "Disproportionate Vengance" Wray and Edward "Laugh At My Name And Die" Ledward. Wray and Ledward are a canon couple, and act as double agents and both Jack's and Stephen's nemeses. In the Aubreyad, after Jack accuses Wray of cheating at cards, Wray apparently decides to become his archnemesis. In addition, Wray is a Naval Intelligence agent, and so comes into frequent contact with Stephen. After trying and failing to ruin both Jack's and Stephen's marriages and careers, Wray and Stephen get into a showdown over sneaky spy stuff, Stephen kills both him and Ledward, and then dissects them out of curiosity. He's just that kind of guy: stab-you-in-the-face secret agent one minute, mild-mannered (if slightly creepy) natural philosopher the next.
Getting back on topic...The main point where my little AU deviates from canon is the Battle of Shoeburyness, where, instead of hanging back for most of the battle, when things start to go south, Lien uses Minnow's (or was it Moncey's? I forget) trick of swooping down to pluck captains right off their dragons' backs to capture most of Our Heroes (Lily's formation, plus Granby; she tries for Demane and Tharkay, who are in charge of the ferals, but fails), at which point her crew subdues and imprisons them, and Lien heads back to France, half a dozen British dragons, including a Longwing and Britain's only Celestial and only fire-breather effectively under her control.
When they all arrive in France, Lien doesn't immediately eat Laurence, to the surprise of all. Napoleon still lost the battle (although he got out okay himself), and the French have been more or less completely kicked out of England, so Lien is still set on the "making Temeraire watch the destruction of all he holds dear" plan, which Napoleon is cool with, since that gives him a chance to interrogate his sudden surefit of well-informed British officers (plus Temeraire, the only one of the captured dragons who knows more of the overall British strategy than "Frenchmen are bad"). Cue whump.
MEANWHILE, back in Britain, people are understandably displeased. Tharkay, who has done the odd job or two for Naval Intelligence, is contacted by Sir Joseph Blaine, NI's chief, who has a Cunning Plan. Sir Joseph puts Tharkay, Jane, and Demane in touch with Cpt. John "Lucky Jack" Aubrey, captain of HMS Surprise, a small and *very* fast ship of French origin. Surprise's surgeon, Stephen Maturin, does double duty as one of Sir Joseph's best agents, and he, Jack, and Surprise are recruited to effect a rescue ASAP. Tharkay, the only aviator with anything like espionage experience, accompanies him, Jane (too valuable) and Demane (too distinctive) staying behind. The rescue crew is, however, accompanied by James and Volly, who will act as couriers and, if necessary, a means of emergency escape. On the journey over, Stephen and Tharkay bond over their many similarities: they're both biracial (and thus discriminated against both because of their mixed parentage and their nationalities themselves), both...um...independent-minded (much to Jack's horror), and it turns out that they have some mutual acquaintances/contacts in Turkey.
They make the crossing alright, slipping the blockade with a minimum of heart attacks. They put in near Le Harve, at the secluded home of a Royalist, who hides the Surprise and dragons. Tharkay and Maturin ride to Paris, where Stephen is able to get ahold of one of his contacts, a double agent clerk who is able to tell them that an awful lot of extra cows are being sent to the large covert attached to Paris itself. This leads Maturin and Tharkay to a State-owned, although previously disused barracks near the covert, where the cows are going to feed the British dragons (apparently, it takes an awful lot of firepower [pun not intended] to control eight angry draconic prisoners, especially when a certain few of those prisoners tend towards...impetuousness *cough*Iskierka*cough*).
From there on out, I freely admit that the plot is pretty much just a series of excuses to showcase various characters and their talents. Stephen and Tharkay will infiltrate the barracks where the humans are being held, and sneak and snark to their hearts' content. Laurence will angst because "IT'S ALL MY FAULT," which it kinda is, and because his super-seekrit BF is getting the snot pounded out of him, at least partially because Lien, who is in charge of the prisoners, Does Not Get On with Iskierka. Granby will be a danger/whump magnet. Wray and Ledward (who, as is compliant with Aubreyad canon [I'm pretty sure] will be openly working for the French now) will be a sweet, healthy, supportive, and affectionate couple, in an evil, creepy way (i.e. the couple that slays together, stays together). The two of them will play cat-and-mouse with Stephen (who, of course, is getting assists from Tharkay). Temeraire will plot and have many, many conversations with Lien, which will flesh out both their characters, hers especially, a little more. Iskierka will freak the hell out, at least once (she also may or may not actually get under Lien's skin). Napoleon will make an affable cameo. Lien will make several less-affable ones. And then there will be a Thrilling Conclusion where poison and/or scalpels feature prominently in incapacitating the guards. Stephen will kill Ledward, causing Wray to go into a grief-stricken rage until he is killed as well. Temeraire will have an aborted showdown with Lien on their way out, but fleeing for one's life (and one's captain's life) doesn't tend to leave much time for grudge matches. The dragons will bull their way out (expect some pent-up frustration to be taken out here), while the humans take a much more roundabout, and less obvious, route back to the Surprise. Everyone will meet up back in Dover, and there will be much rejoicing.
So, yeah, this will never get written. XD It's a good thing that there's so much great fanfic already out there!
Thanksgiving dinner itself was okay. My stepmom was using my grandmother's recipe for stuffing, which calls for, among other things, yams, oysters, and raisins (or possibly currants; I couldn't tell), and isn't my favorite thing ever. The turkey and gravy were absolutely delish, as always, though. To top things off, we had both apple and pumpkin pie. I've been an avowed hater of pumpkin anything, but especially pumpkin pie, for years, but I have now raised my opinion of it from "categorically inedible" to "mild distaste". In non-food news, though, things were kinda tense. None of my stepsiblings were there, for various good or not-so-good reasons. My stepsister H is still dating a guy that my dad absolutely despises, so I guess it's good that she stayed away rather than bring him and make a scene. We also had my stepmom's dad's cousin, who is 94, blind, mostly deaf, and just lost his wife, so taking care of him is a job and a half, made worse by the fact that none of his own kids wanted him with them, and I think he knew it. So there was that hanging over us. But honestly, given that this was the first Thanksgiving since my grandparents died, there was a lot less angst/drama than I'd expected.
Yesterday was mostly taken up with visiting old friends, an activity that looks like it's going to spill over into tonight, as well. Last night C, H, J, J's cousin D (visiting from Lompoke), and I went out for a drink or three (well, they drank, I drove). We went to two bars: the Main Street Saloon and Aubergine. Main Street had a nice, old-timey, wood-paneled feel to it, and we spent most of the evening there, where we discovered that D slips into a more-or-less permanent John Lennon-esque British accent after his fourth drink. J kept complaining that he couldn't get buzzed, but he's something like 6'5", so it eventually hit him, it just took him a bit longer. Overall, it was a nice place, and I'd definitely like to go back.
Later on in the evening, people got bored with Main Street, so we headed off to Aubergine, a relatively new place that shares building space with a vintage shop of the same name. I love Aubergine-the-store; I've gotten more than one big floofy skirt there, in addition to my trusty (and reasonably-priced!) leather jacket. Aubergine-the-club, though, it turns out, I'm not such a big fan of. I went in feeling kind of claustrophobic and nervous and out of place, but (and this is incredibly unusual for me) I had a full-on panic attack after about half an hour. Shaking, hyperventilating, the whole nine yards. And we were there for two hours. I really, really wanted to get out of there, but the people I was with, H especially, know that I'm not crazy about big groups of people (especially all crushed together and dancing like they were at Aubergine) and would insist on going home, but everybody else was having a great time (especially J, who had hit it off with the band's fiddler), and damned if I was going to make them all leave. Although, TBH, that almost made it worse, since everyone around me was having so much fun, and there's no logical reason why I shouldn't, too, and yet I was still freaking out. It was dark, and like I said, noisy and crowded, so I don't think anybody noticed (at least, I hope they didn't, and nobody said anything). Even so, this was unexpected, and really weird. Like I said, I'm not a big party person, and I avoid large groups, but I've never lost my cool like that before. After we finally left, I dropped everyone else off at J's house, which was nearby and where they had all planned to crash. I'm not to proud to admit that I kinda broke down after everyone else was gone, but after having myself a good cry, the shakes subsided enough for me to drive home.
I'm annoyed with myself for forgetting my slippers and big warm fluffy robe back in Berkeley (I'd forgotten how cold my room can get!), but at least I remembered my books. I fully intended to finish Mistborn, which I fear that I've been neglecting in favor of Temeraire, but my weekend is filling up pretty fast, so it looks like that might not happen. I also brought Lords and Ladies, which I'm really pacing myself on, since I usually devour Discworld books in a matter of days, if not hours, no matter how many times I've already read them. Of course I brought The Fellowship of the Ring; I'm just past the Hall of Fire now, and reading it calmed me down wonderfully after last night's mess.
Last, but definitely not least, I brought Tongues of Serpents, which I actually finished a few days ago, and I've been delving into the fan-community at long last ever since. Not gonna lie, I grinned to see a book set in colonial Australia. I lived in Australia for a while when I was a tot, so books set there are almost guaranteed to please. I loved the addition of bunyips as actual creatures (and quasi-sentient ones, no less), but I would've loved to see how Naomi Novik handled drop-bears, one of my favorite Australian bugaboos.
As far as characters go, I'm glad that Laurence seems to be forming a second Power Trio with Granby and Tharkay, after being parted from his original Trio of Berkley and Harcourt. I miss the rest of the aviators and dragons, of course. It seems that Naomi is falling into that trap that sucked in Simon R. Green of creating an awesome character, and then having them appear in only one book. I'm sure that The Gang will get back to England sooner or later, but in the meantime, I wish we could hear more of *deep breath* Perscitia/Gentius/Minnow/Moncey/Jane/Arkady/Maximus/Lily/Berkley/Harcourt/Hollin/Chenery/Sutton/Little/[insert name of other awesome character(s) that I'm almost certainly forgetting here] than letters. Dammit, Naomi, stop teasing us! XD
Of course, the one character re-introduced had to be Rankin. He's developing into an eminently enjoyable rich bitch of a Draco Malfoy-esque antagonist (I can't stop comparing Temeraire to Harry Potter! WHY?!?!), so it was fun to have him along, even if it was only so that we could hate his guts more with every mile. I mean, our hatred of him was pretty much cemented with poor Levitas' death, but when he decided to kill baby Kulingile, pretty much the only thing he could do to make us hate him more is to eat a puppy, a kitten, and a baby seal all at once. So I hope that something humbling/embarrassing, but not necessarily lethal, happens to him in the near future. For example, I would have been entirely satisfied with him getting sprayed with the rotting fish they used to feed the sea serpents (although sans the sea serpents themselves; I want the guy humiliated, not messily eaten).
I like that the issue of Emily actually looking like a girl is being addressed. I know, during the invasion people had bigger things to worry about, but now, I like the variety of reactions to people actually figuring out what the deal is. In addition, it looks like Emily might be developing a bit of a romance with Demane, which is all kinds of adorable. Part of me can't stop seeing her as the squeaky little 11-year-old who got all googly-eyed and "I iz helping!!! :D" over Temeraire way back in HMD, but in the ensuing four years (five? I'm having some trouble remembering the exact chronology), she definitely has developed into her mother's daughter. If she and Demane do get together, and he relaxes a bit, they're going to make one hell of a couple.
Speaking of which, while digging around the fandom, I came across the lovely and talented
dorkorific, whose character sketches are EXACTLY what the characters look like in my head. For example, her Laurence, Jane, and Tharkay (separately, not together, sadly) are nothing short of amazing, especially Jane, who looks like she's about to tip over from "amused" to "exasperated/headdesk" mode. I imagine she's trying to explain something Corps-related and highly irregular to Laurence. Also, her Tharkay is appropriately sardonic, and has that perpetual look of barely restraining himself from saying something snarky that I always imagine him wearing. Her Granby (with bonus Granby/Laurence/Tharkay boozing!, which is awesome), however, is a little too short-haired and freckly for my headcanon, although his "WTF" expression is spot on.Speaking of a certain beleaguered lieutenant/captain, I think I'm going to have to declare Granby my favorite. It's become kinda funny how everything bad happens to him. Everything. He spends the first three books getting shot, stabbed, shoved off of dragons, and otherwise concussed/injured. But after Iskierka is hatched, the universe seems to have traded physical injury for having him be the captain of an uncontrollable quasi-pirate. An uncontrollable quasi-pirate who loves him to pieces, of course, and he her, but an uncontrollable quasi-pirate nonetheless. Of course, the whole "trading physical peril for inability to control dragon" thing fell by the wayside when he was the only officer in the entire Corps (and possibly the entire British military, since we didn't hear about anybody else getting caught) to get captured by Napoleon.
But it's not just that Granby is, in some respects, the universe's chew toy. I also like that he's the responsible one, the one in charge of getting shit done, leaving certain other people free to be dramatic (this was especially evident in ToJ and BPW), and that nothing much fazes him. I love that he is both the rescuer (srsly, keeping Laurence from doing anything
As far as shipping goes, it seems that it's the platonic dragon/captain pairings that form the majority of emotional bonds, so human romantic pairings are somewhat thin on the ground. Like I said earlier, Emily/Demane looks to be developing into one hell of a power couple. Laurence/Jane I actually wasn't that into; it seemed very much like an acknowledged friends-with-benefits thing to her, while he was always trying to make it into some sort of Epic Twu Wuv thing, which was especially weird given that his first attachment has always been to Temeraire. Jane/Wellington, while not strictly canon, appeals to me a lot more. I mean, it's two grumpy, cynical, sharp-tongued badass authority figures; what's not to love? I can see them "discussing tactics" (read: arguing until they're blue in the face), and then having some good old-fashioned stress-relief sex to top things off.
The two main fan-pairings for Laurence seem to be Laurence/Tharkay and Laurence/Granby, and I'm inclined more towards the latter than the former, although it's undeniable that the three of them are unusually close. Normally I'm massively not into OT3s, but here, I could almost ship Granby/Laurence/Tharkay. Not completely, but almost. I can see both Granby and Tharkay having massive crushes on Laurence, but Granby ending up with him via First Girl Wins, to use TVTropes' wording. Both Laurence and Granby understand that a captain is always really really attached to his dragon, and neither of them will take it the wrong way if the other guy puts his dragon first, because he would almost certainly do the same. I just don't see Tharkay getting the dragon/human bond, and the attendant complications/conflicts of interest, the same way.
Most of my plot bunnies in this fandom have coalesced into a loose series of crossovers with the Aubreyad, which might as well be titled "Granby Gets Whumped On, Stephen is a Ninja." (Actually, I don't know whether calling it a crossover is the right word, since Stephen and the Sophie [and so presumably Jack] technically already exist [or at least, have been strongly hinted to exist] in the Temeraire-verse. Call it an Aubreyad fusion-on-very-flimsy-grounds.) In this little quasi-AU, Laurence was unwilling to admit his attraction to his lieutenant because THAT WOULD BE IMPROPER AND IMMORAL (and illegal), while still being super-duper protective of him (and not without cause, given Granby's injury rate) until they get back to England, wee!Iskierka in tow, when Granby, who returns his affections, exasperatedly points out that, not only are Chenery and Little practically married, but he's been dating a woman who dresses like a man for several years now. (Roland, being Roland, is perplexed only that Laurence asks her permission to see Granby as well. Also, with the Dragon Plague in full swing, she has other things to worry about.) Then there are a few comparatively light pieces, most having to do with Laurence worrying, and not entirely unjustly, what people will think, and their various friends' reactions to the completely obvious news (my favorite is the dragons, who try to use some of the soppy novels of sentiment that Catherine read while pregnant and slightly hormonal to give them relationship advice, and are rather put out when neither of them has a father around to forbid the relationship or a dastardly rival suitor to duel for one another's honor, and that if said dastardly rival suitor were to attempt to kidnap and ravish either one of them, he'd probably get shot), and to one of the Corps' political enemies getting wind of things and trying to expose them.
What I'm having the most fun with, overall, is the villains. Lien is still out for REVENGE!!!11!, of course. As for everyone's favorite Corsican, I'm flip-flopping back and forth, characterization-wise, between the affably evil type who doesn't let Lien kill important prisoners, but looks the other way when she wants to take out some frustration on someone whose gruesome death/maiming won't cause an international incident, and an anti-villain who knows both how useful and how nuts Lien is, and tries his best to stop her from doing any more damage than would be strictly necessary. The other two villains are imports from the Aubreyad, Andrew "Disproportionate Vengance" Wray and Edward "Laugh At My Name And Die" Ledward. Wray and Ledward are a canon couple, and act as double agents and both Jack's and Stephen's nemeses. In the Aubreyad, after Jack accuses Wray of cheating at cards, Wray apparently decides to become his archnemesis. In addition, Wray is a Naval Intelligence agent, and so comes into frequent contact with Stephen. After trying and failing to ruin both Jack's and Stephen's marriages and careers, Wray and Stephen get into a showdown over sneaky spy stuff, Stephen kills both him and Ledward, and then dissects them out of curiosity. He's just that kind of guy: stab-you-in-the-face secret agent one minute, mild-mannered (if slightly creepy) natural philosopher the next.
Getting back on topic...The main point where my little AU deviates from canon is the Battle of Shoeburyness, where, instead of hanging back for most of the battle, when things start to go south, Lien uses Minnow's (or was it Moncey's? I forget) trick of swooping down to pluck captains right off their dragons' backs to capture most of Our Heroes (Lily's formation, plus Granby; she tries for Demane and Tharkay, who are in charge of the ferals, but fails), at which point her crew subdues and imprisons them, and Lien heads back to France, half a dozen British dragons, including a Longwing and Britain's only Celestial and only fire-breather effectively under her control.
When they all arrive in France, Lien doesn't immediately eat Laurence, to the surprise of all. Napoleon still lost the battle (although he got out okay himself), and the French have been more or less completely kicked out of England, so Lien is still set on the "making Temeraire watch the destruction of all he holds dear" plan, which Napoleon is cool with, since that gives him a chance to interrogate his sudden surefit of well-informed British officers (plus Temeraire, the only one of the captured dragons who knows more of the overall British strategy than "Frenchmen are bad"). Cue whump.
MEANWHILE, back in Britain, people are understandably displeased. Tharkay, who has done the odd job or two for Naval Intelligence, is contacted by Sir Joseph Blaine, NI's chief, who has a Cunning Plan. Sir Joseph puts Tharkay, Jane, and Demane in touch with Cpt. John "Lucky Jack" Aubrey, captain of HMS Surprise, a small and *very* fast ship of French origin. Surprise's surgeon, Stephen Maturin, does double duty as one of Sir Joseph's best agents, and he, Jack, and Surprise are recruited to effect a rescue ASAP. Tharkay, the only aviator with anything like espionage experience, accompanies him, Jane (too valuable) and Demane (too distinctive) staying behind. The rescue crew is, however, accompanied by James and Volly, who will act as couriers and, if necessary, a means of emergency escape. On the journey over, Stephen and Tharkay bond over their many similarities: they're both biracial (and thus discriminated against both because of their mixed parentage and their nationalities themselves), both...um...independent-minded (much to Jack's horror), and it turns out that they have some mutual acquaintances/contacts in Turkey.
They make the crossing alright, slipping the blockade with a minimum of heart attacks. They put in near Le Harve, at the secluded home of a Royalist, who hides the Surprise and dragons. Tharkay and Maturin ride to Paris, where Stephen is able to get ahold of one of his contacts, a double agent clerk who is able to tell them that an awful lot of extra cows are being sent to the large covert attached to Paris itself. This leads Maturin and Tharkay to a State-owned, although previously disused barracks near the covert, where the cows are going to feed the British dragons (apparently, it takes an awful lot of firepower [pun not intended] to control eight angry draconic prisoners, especially when a certain few of those prisoners tend towards...impetuousness *cough*Iskierka*cough*).
From there on out, I freely admit that the plot is pretty much just a series of excuses to showcase various characters and their talents. Stephen and Tharkay will infiltrate the barracks where the humans are being held, and sneak and snark to their hearts' content. Laurence will angst because "IT'S ALL MY FAULT," which it kinda is, and because his super-seekrit BF is getting the snot pounded out of him, at least partially because Lien, who is in charge of the prisoners, Does Not Get On with Iskierka. Granby will be a danger/whump magnet. Wray and Ledward (who, as is compliant with Aubreyad canon [I'm pretty sure] will be openly working for the French now) will be a sweet, healthy, supportive, and affectionate couple, in an evil, creepy way (i.e. the couple that slays together, stays together). The two of them will play cat-and-mouse with Stephen (who, of course, is getting assists from Tharkay). Temeraire will plot and have many, many conversations with Lien, which will flesh out both their characters, hers especially, a little more. Iskierka will freak the hell out, at least once (she also may or may not actually get under Lien's skin). Napoleon will make an affable cameo. Lien will make several less-affable ones. And then there will be a Thrilling Conclusion where poison and/or scalpels feature prominently in incapacitating the guards. Stephen will kill Ledward, causing Wray to go into a grief-stricken rage until he is killed as well. Temeraire will have an aborted showdown with Lien on their way out, but fleeing for one's life (and one's captain's life) doesn't tend to leave much time for grudge matches. The dragons will bull their way out (expect some pent-up frustration to be taken out here), while the humans take a much more roundabout, and less obvious, route back to the Surprise. Everyone will meet up back in Dover, and there will be much rejoicing.
So, yeah, this will never get written. XD It's a good thing that there's so much great fanfic already out there!
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Date: 2011-11-27 04:45 am (UTC)Pumpkin anything: I'd rather not. Even if it's free.
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Date: 2011-11-27 06:17 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-11-27 05:41 am (UTC)I was actually surprised by Rankin growing on me a little bit in this book. Not in any way that would make me forgive him for Levitas, but I thought he was more love-to-hate in ToS than just hate-hate as in the original.
Also, regarding putting Kulingile out of his misery -- I really liked the fact that while we the reader, along with Laurence, are horrified at the thought, that it's not only Rankin who advocates it but basically everybody else in the Corps. Or, rather, they're not advocating it, but only because Rankin does and Laurence is against it -- they do still think it the right, normal thing to do.
Ooh, I've seen (and love!) the Jane art, but not the Laurence or Tharkay or Granby, so thank you for those links!
it seemed very much like an acknowledged friends-with-benefits thing to her, while he was always trying to make it into some sort of Epic Twu Wuv thing
See, this is why I find Jane/Laurence wonderful and hilarious! :D (I can also very readily see Laurence/Tharkay and Laurence/Granby and Laurence/Granby/Tharkay -- actually, I kind of thought that early scene in ToS where they all three get in a fight was pretty much made for hurt/comfort outtake OT3-fic :P I could also readily get behing Jane/Wellington, because I do adore them both
my favorite is the dragons, who try to use some of the soppy novels of sentiment that Catherine read while pregnant and slightly hormonal to give them relationship advice, and are rather put out when neither of them has a father around to forbid the relationship or a dastardly rival suitor to duel for one another's honor
OMG! Not only is this brilliant, but, for reasons that have to do with Naomi Novik's fannish identity, I have no choice to but basically accept this as canon XD
In other mattares, WHAT, pumpkin pie is delicious! O.o
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Date: 2011-11-27 06:44 pm (UTC)Yup! I was really, really little, so I have very few memories of it, but we went back there a few years ago, which I remember much better. XD So I can attest Naomi isn't exaggerating when she describes the entire continent as trying to kill people. I once left a sparerib on a fire-ant hill, and they stripped it to the bone in about 15 minutes...
I thought he was more love-to-hate in ToS than just hate-hate as in the original.
Oh, definitely! Maybe it's the addition of Caesar to puff him up that extra little bit, but he's just so perfectly conceited and slimy!
actually, I kind of thought that early scene in ToS where they all three get in a fight was pretty much made for hurt/comfort outtake OT3-fic
Y'know, I wouldn't put it past Naomi to do that on purpose. I'm learning that she looooves to shiptease, especially with G/L/T, or any combination thereof. ^.^
for reasons that have to do with Naomi Novik's fannish identity, I have no choice to but basically accept this as canon XD
Headcanon ahoy! I can see Laurence going all "...uh-oh" when Temeraire demands that they switch from Principia Mathamatica to some Gothic romance, and all the other dragons come to listen in. And plot.
In other mattares, WHAT, pumpkin pie is delicious! O.o
HEATHEN! XD I'm actually not a huge pie person; I like most fruit pies okay, but I fear pecan pies and meat pies (CMOT Dibbler might have something to do with this one). I freely admit that my distate for pumpkin pie comes, at least in part, from my early attempts to make them, which invariably came out looking like kitty litter (don't ask me why). XD
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Date: 2011-11-27 07:12 pm (UTC)That is terrifying. O.o
Speaking of Caesar,
Y'know, I wouldn't put it past Naomi to do that on purpose. I'm learning that she looooves to shiptease, especially with G/L/T, or any combination thereof. ^.^
Yeah... Reading a book by an author who I know came out of fandom, I'm always scrutinizing the ship-tease-y bits, wondering if they were put in on purpose. I mean, all of the G/L/T stuff absoultely feels like valid plot and/or character development, not gratuitous fanservice, but I do still wonder if some of those things that feel like the perfect fanfic hooks were actually put in on purpose.
can see Laurence going all "...uh-oh" when Temeraire demands that they switch from Principia Mathamatica to some Gothic romance, and all the other dragons come to listen in.
Man, I really want fic of this now! Or, you know, canon.
but I fear pecan pies and meat pies (CMOT Dibbler might have something to do with this one).
LOL, OK, I have been a little suspicious of meat pies not made by people I know and trust. But pumpkin and pecan pies are some of my favorites. Basically, the best thing about Thanksgiving for me, along with candied yams and stuffing.
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Date: 2011-11-29 05:41 am (UTC)The worst thing is, that wasn't the worst insect encounter I had there. The entire continent is pretty much designed to straight-up kill you.
Speaking of Caesar, esc_key and I decided he'd be the perfect dragon for Joffrey.
Perfect! They deserve each other.
Man, I really want fic of this now! Or, you know, canon.
It may be because I'm reading a bit too much Jane Austen at the moment, but I just might be compelled to do this... *scampers off to library* GEEKERY-I MEAN, RESEARCH AWAY!
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Date: 2011-11-29 05:56 am (UTC)(This whole conversation -- probably helped along by your icon, admittedly -- is reminding me of Tolkien's childhood in South Africa and his spider encounter there, which may or may not have contributed to Shelob et al.)
but I just might be compelled to do this...
Oh, I hope you do! It's such a perfect idea! :D
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Date: 2011-11-29 08:03 am (UTC)Centipede nearly as long as my (15-year-old) arm and as thick around as a pencil. Forgot to check my shoes before putting them on. The rest is (shrieky) history. OK, objectively the fire ants are worse, since they pose a serious threat and whatnot, but there's really nothing that compares to putting on one's sneakers while half awake and feeling a simultaneous *squish*, *crunch*, and *wriggle*. And given the ratio of poisonous to non-poisonous insects in Australia, that sucker would have probably at least given me an itchy bump.
Tolkien's childhood in South Africa and his spider encounter there, which may or may not have contributed to Shelob et al.
I seem to remember him avowing that the spider incident didn't contribute to his perchance for giant spiders as creepifying villains, but I don't quiiiite believe him. Hell, I wasn't menaced by a spider the size of my head as a child, and I still think they're scary!
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Date: 2011-11-29 08:33 am (UTC)I seem to remember him avowing that the spider incident didn't contribute to his perchance for giant spiders as creepifying villains, but I don't quiiiite believe him.
Heh, I feel the same. I know he said he rescued them from the bathtub and stuff (which I admire! especially as I really love spiders), but Ungoliant *and* Shelob *and* those spiders in Mirkwood? I think there's more than just coincidence at work here.