rodo's journal

Fic: Web of Fate, Chapter 15

2026-08-30T11:31:28Z

Title: Web of Fate
Fandom: Carnival Row
Author: rodo
Chapter: 15/17+E
Length: 4,509 words (77,000 in total)
Rating: 16+
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Worldbuilding, Adventure
Characters: Rycroft Philostrate, Jonah Breakspear, Vignette Stonemoss, Runyan Millworthy, Darius Prowell, Absalom Breakspear
Pairing: Philo/Vignette
Warnings/Labels: war, and mentions/occasional depictions of associated atrocities; canon-typical fantasy racism
Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Amazon, of course
A/N: I started this story in August 2021, and I finished the draft in 2022, so this was all written prior to the second season. So some of the worldbuilding contradicts what was shown in season 2. Still, I had so much fun re-reading this lately that I thought I’d polish it up some more and post it anyway, in case some of you will like it as well. Since it’s an AU, the plot of the second season is not that relevant anyway.

Summary: A year after the attempted assassination of Chancellor Absalom Breakspear, The Burgue is at war, and it’s not going well. In order to break the stalemate at the front, some unlikely soldiers are recruited to fight in a place nobody expected, and Philo and Jonah find themselves caught up in it against their expectations.

( “Ah, Rycroft, can’t sleep?” Costin Finch asked. He sat bent over his ledgers. )

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Fic: Web of Fate, Chapter 14

2026-08-23T14:01:41Z

Title: Web of Fate
Fandom: Carnival Row
Author: rodo
Chapter: 14/17+E
Length: 4,742 words (77,000 in total)
Rating: 16+
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Worldbuilding, Adventure
Characters: Rycroft Philostrate, Jonah Breakspear, Vignette Stonemoss, Runyan Millworthy, Darius Prowell, Absalom Breakspear
Pairing: Philo/Vignette
Warnings/Labels: war, and mentions/occasional depictions of associated atrocities; canon-typical fantasy racism
Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Amazon, of course
A/N: I started this story in August 2021, and I finished the draft in 2022, so this was all written prior to the second season. So some of the worldbuilding contradicts what was shown in season 2. Still, I had so much fun re-reading this lately that I thought I’d polish it up some more and post it anyway, in case some of you will like it as well. Since it’s an AU, the plot of the second season is not that relevant anyway.

Summary: A year after the attempted assassination of Chancellor Absalom Breakspear, The Burgue is at war, and it’s not going well. In order to break the stalemate at the front, some unlikely soldiers are recruited to fight in a place nobody expected, and Philo and Jonah find themselves caught up in it against their expectations.

( The man reclining on the bed seemed diminished, somehow. )

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Fic: Web of Fate, Chapter 13

2026-08-16T13:14:34Z

Title: Web of Fate
Fandom: Carnival Row
Author: rodo
Chapter: 13/17+E
Length: 4,950 words (77,000 in total)
Rating: 16+
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Worldbuilding, Adventure
Characters: Rycroft Philostrate, Jonah Breakspear, Vignette Stonemoss, Runyan Millworthy, Darius Prowell, Absalom Breakspear
Pairing: Philo/Vignette
Warnings/Labels: war, and mentions/occasional depictions of associated atrocities; canon-typical fantasy racism
Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Amazon, of course
A/N: I started this story in August 2021, and I finished the draft in 2022, so this was all written prior to the second season. So some of the worldbuilding contradicts what was shown in season 2. Still, I had so much fun re-reading this lately that I thought I’d polish it up some more and post it anyway, in case some of you will like it as well. Since it’s an AU, the plot of the second season is not that relevant anyway.

Summary: A year after the attempted assassination of Chancellor Absalom Breakspear, The Burgue is at war, and it’s not going well. In order to break the stalemate at the front, some unlikely soldiers are recruited to fight in a place nobody expected, and Philo and Jonah find themselves caught up in it against their expectations.

( “I have no idea what you’re planning to do, but I can tell it’s the worst idea you’ve ever had.” )

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Fic: Woman in an Anthracite Dress, Holding a Bishop

2026-08-16T13:04:43Z

Title: Woman in an Anthracite Dress, Holding a Bishop
Fandom: Bridgerton
Author: rodo
Length: 6,398 words
Rating: 12+
Pairing/Characters: Sophie/Benedict, Queen Charlotte
Disclaimer: everything belongs to Netflix, of course
A/N: written for isevsianne for the last round of fandom5k

Summary: Life at My Cottage is cozy and comfortable – but it is not something that Sophie Bridgerton can stomach for months on end with no reprieve. Not when she has nothing to do. So Benedict takes her back to London, and Sophie gains something she hadn't counted on: new friends.

( There was no torture quite as gnawing and stale as sitting still. )

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Fic: Web of Fate, Chapter 12

2026-08-09T17:48:24Z

Title: Web of Fate
Fandom: Carnival Row
Author: rodo
Chapter: 12/17+E
Length: 4,712 words (77,000 in total)
Rating: 16+
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Worldbuilding, Adventure
Characters: Rycroft Philostrate, Jonah Breakspear, Vignette Stonemoss, Runyan Millworthy, Darius Prowell, Absalom Breakspear
Pairing: Philo/Vignette
Warnings/Labels: war, and mentions/occasional depictions of associated atrocities; canon-typical fantasy racism
Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Amazon, of course
A/N: I started this story in August 2021, and I finished the draft in 2022, so this was all written prior to the second season. So some of the worldbuilding contradicts what was shown in season 2. Still, I had so much fun re-reading this lately that I thought I’d polish it up some more and post it anyway, in case some of you will like it as well. Since it’s an AU, the plot of the second season is not that relevant anyway.

Summary: A year after the attempted assassination of Chancellor Absalom Breakspear, The Burgue is at war, and it’s not going well. In order to break the stalemate at the front, some unlikely soldiers are recruited to fight in a place nobody expected, and Philo and Jonah find themselves caught up in it against their expectations.

( Numbers and equations were flashing through Jonah’s brain. )

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AFK Notice

2026-08-01T17:11:24Z

If you’re my Fandom 5K author and worried about not having received a comment yet: don’t worry! I’m on holiday for a couple of days and I’ll get to it once I’m back, probably next weekend.

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Fic: Web of Fate, Chapter 11

2026-08-01T11:08:10Z

Title: Web of Fate
Fandom: Carnival Row
Author: rodo
Chapter: 11/17+E
Length: 4,729 words (77,000 in total)
Rating: 16+
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Worldbuilding, Adventure
Characters: Rycroft Philostrate, Jonah Breakspear, Vignette Stonemoss, Runyan Millworthy, Darius Prowell, Absalom Breakspear
Pairing: Philo/Vignette
Warnings/Labels: war, and mentions/occasional depictions of associated atrocities; canon-typical fantasy racism
Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Amazon, of course
A/N: I started this story in August 2021, and I finished the draft in 2022, so this was all written prior to the second season. So some of the worldbuilding contradicts what was shown in season 2. Still, I had so much fun re-reading this lately that I thought I’d polish it up some more and post it anyway, in case some of you will like it as well. Since it’s an AU, the plot of the second season is not that relevant anyway.

Summary: A year after the attempted assassination of Chancellor Absalom Breakspear, The Burgue is at war, and it’s not going well. In order to break the stalemate at the front, some unlikely soldiers are recruited to fight in a place nobody expected, and Philo and Jonah find themselves caught up in it against their expectations.

( “So, have you made up your mind?” Darius asked as he casually leaned against the brick wall that separated the yard of the orphanage from the real world that they would soon have to join. )

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Fic: Web of Fate, Chapter 10

2026-07-26T11:36:56Z

Title: Web of Fate
Fandom: Carnival Row
Author: rodo
Chapter: 10/17+E
Length: 4,223 words (77,000 in total)
Rating: 16+
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Worldbuilding, Adventure
Characters: Rycroft Philostrate, Jonah Breakspear, Vignette Stonemoss, Runyan Millworthy, Darius Prowell, Absalom Breakspear
Pairing: Philo/Vignette
Warnings/Labels: war, and mentions/occasional depictions of associated atrocities; canon-typical fantasy racism
Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Amazon, of course
A/N: I started this story in August 2021, and I finished the draft in 2022, so this was all written prior to the second season. So some of the worldbuilding contradicts what was shown in season 2. Still, I had so much fun re-reading this lately that I thought I’d polish it up some more and post it anyway, in case some of you will like it as well. Since it’s an AU, the plot of the second season is not that relevant anyway.

Summary: A year after the attempted assassination of Chancellor Absalom Breakspear, The Burgue is at war, and it’s not going well. In order to break the stalemate at the front, some unlikely soldiers are recruited to fight in a place nobody expected, and Philo and Jonah find themselves caught up in it against their expectations.

( “Jonah! What a surprise,” Sophie purred. )

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Some Updates, Fandom and Otherwise

2026-07-25T14:27:30Z

All through June, I was too busy with Rough Draft Month to do much of anything – it was fun, and I hit my word count, but I needed some mental rest after that, so I did what you do in those circumstances: watch a lot of dramas. Or rather, starting a lot of them and then failing to finish half of them until later. You know how it is. In other news:

I finished Ghost of Yotei, and I liked it, although not as much as Ghost of Tsushima. That’s not to say it’s not a perfectly good game or anything, and I really liked some aspects more (namely Atsu’s relationship with Oyuki and Jubei), but I think the character journey of Jin Sakai worked better for me. It’s really one of my favourite character developments in a video game though, so that’d have been hard to beat either way.

Our neighbourhood drama continues. Not the bunny one, though, but one neighbour got reported to the police/sued for insulting, injuring and threatening her other neighbours (within two weeks) and there was police and all that and there’s going to be a court case in early August. She’s not entirely innocent, but personally, I wouldn’t go to the police about being called (the equivalent of) an idiot. Since my mother and our neighbour are comparatively close, we kind of get sucked into all of it by proxy. Bunny guy is convinced neighbour’s neighbours are the ones who ratted him out to the bunny police, by the way. I am so lucky I get to miss the court case drama, since:

I’ll be off work at the beginning of August, and I’m taking the chance to take a short trip abroad. On the one hand, I get to miss the drama and possibly see a beautiful city (Colmar). On the other hand, it’s going to be during the later half of a heatwave with temperatures that are higher than my body’s temperature, and the place I’m going to is more continental than my area, so yeah. I hope the hotel has good AC and that I can see something of the city regardless of that. Any tips on doing sightseeing at above-body-temperature temperatures? I already plan on drinking American amounts of water and bathing in sunscreen.

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Fic: Web of Fate, Chapter 9

2026-07-19T09:07:40Z

Title: Web of Fate
Fandom: Carnival Row
Author: rodo
Chapter: 9/17+E
Length: 4,847 words (77,000 in total)
Rating: 16+
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Worldbuilding, Adventure
Characters: Rycroft Philostrate, Jonah Breakspear, Vignette Stonemoss, Runyan Millworthy, Darius Prowell, Absalom Breakspear
Pairing: Philo/Vignette
Warnings/Labels: war, and mentions/occasional depictions of associated atrocities; canon-typical fantasy racism
Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Amazon, of course
A/N: I started this story in August 2021, and I finished the draft in 2022, so this was all written prior to the second season. So some of the worldbuilding contradicts what was shown in season 2. Still, I had so much fun re-reading this lately that I thought I’d polish it up some more and post it anyway, in case some of you will like it as well. Since it’s an AU, the plot of the second season is not that relevant anyway.

Summary: A year after the attempted assassination of Chancellor Absalom Breakspear, The Burgue is at war, and it’s not going well. In order to break the stalemate at the front, some unlikely soldiers are recruited to fight in a place nobody expected, and Philo and Jonah find themselves caught up in it against their expectations.

( “God’s noose, doesn’t this place make you feel homesick?” )

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Fic: Web of Fate, Chapter 8

2026-07-12T11:12:09Z

Title: Web of Fate
Fandom: Carnival Row
Author: rodo
Chapter: 8/17+E
Length: 4,559 words (77,000 in total)
Rating: 16+
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Worldbuilding, Adventure
Characters: Rycroft Philostrate, Jonah Breakspear, Vignette Stonemoss, Runyan Millworthy, Darius Prowell, Absalom Breakspear
Pairing: Philo/Vignette
Warnings/Labels: war, and mentions/occasional depictions of associated atrocities; canon-typical fantasy racism
Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Amazon, of course
A/N: I started this story in August 2021, and I finished the draft in 2022, so this was all written prior to the second season. So some of the worldbuilding contradicts what was shown in season 2. Still, I had so much fun re-reading this lately that I thought I’d polish it up some more and post it anyway, in case some of you will like it as well. Since it’s an AU, the plot of the second season is not that relevant anyway.

Summary: A year after the attempted assassination of Chancellor Absalom Breakspear, The Burgue is at war, and it’s not going well. In order to break the stalemate at the front, some unlikely soldiers are recruited to fight in a place nobody expected, and Philo and Jonah find themselves caught up in it against their expectations.

( There were many things Jonah loved: )

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Fic: Web of Fate, Chapter 7

2026-07-05T10:46:17Z

Title: Web of Fate
Fandom: Carnival Row
Author: rodo
Chapter: 7/17+E
Length: 4,420 words (77,000 in total)
Rating: 16+
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Worldbuilding, Adventure
Characters: Rycroft Philostrate, Jonah Breakspear, Vignette Stonemoss, Runyan Millworthy, Darius Prowell, Absalom Breakspear
Pairing: Philo/Vignette
Warnings/Labels: war, and mentions/occasional depictions of associated atrocities; canon-typical fantasy racism
Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Amazon, of course
A/N: I started this story in August 2021, and I finished the draft in 2022, so this was all written prior to the second season. So some of the worldbuilding contradicts what was shown in season 2. Still, I had so much fun re-reading this lately that I thought I’d polish it up some more and post it anyway, in case some of you will like it as well. Since it’s an AU, the plot of the second season is not that relevant anyway.

Summary: A year after the attempted assassination of Chancellor Absalom Breakspear, The Burgue is at war, and it’s not going well. In order to break the stalemate at the front, some unlikely soldiers are recruited to fight in a place nobody expected, and Philo and Jonah find themselves caught up in it against their expectations.

( Their second meeting was even more awkward than the first, if anything. )

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Fic: Web of Fate, Chapter 6

2026-06-28T10:03:41Z

Title: Web of Fate
Fandom: Carnival Row
Author: rodo
Chapter: 6/17+E
Length: 4,341 words (77,000 in total)
Rating: 16+
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Worldbuilding, Adventure
Characters: Rycroft Philostrate, Jonah Breakspear, Vignette Stonemoss, Runyan Millworthy, Darius Prowell, Absalom Breakspear
Pairing: Philo/Vignette
Warnings/Labels: war, and mentions/occasional depictions of associated atrocities; canon-typical fantasy racism
Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Amazon, of course
A/N: I started this story in August 2021, and I finished the draft in 2022, so this was all written prior to the second season. So some of the worldbuilding contradicts what was shown in season 2. Still, I had so much fun re-reading this lately that I thought I’d polish it up some more and post it anyway, in case some of you will like it as well. Since it’s an AU, the plot of the second season is not that relevant anyway.

Summary: A year after the attempted assassination of Chancellor Absalom Breakspear, The Burgue is at war, and it’s not going well. In order to break the stalemate at the front, some unlikely soldiers are recruited to fight in a place nobody expected, and Philo and Jonah find themselves caught up in it against their expectations.

( “The cushy job with command, I see,” Malthus said. )

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Fic: Web of Fate, Chapter 5

2026-06-21T11:19:35Z

Title: Web of Fate
Fandom: Carnival Row
Author: rodo
Chapter: 5/17+E
Length: 4,691 words (77,000 in total)
Rating: 16+
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Worldbuilding, Adventure
Characters: Rycroft Philostrate, Jonah Breakspear, Vignette Stonemoss, Runyan Millworthy, Darius Prowell, Absalom Breakspear
Pairing: Philo/Vignette
Warnings/Labels: war, and mentions/occasional depictions of associated atrocities; canon-typical fantasy racism
Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Amazon, of course
A/N: I started this story in August 2021, and I finished the draft in 2022, so this was all written prior to the second season. So some of the worldbuilding contradicts what was shown in season 2. Still, I had so much fun re-reading this lately that I thought I’d polish it up some more and post it anyway, in case some of you will like it as well. Since it’s an AU, the plot of the second season is not that relevant anyway.

Summary: A year after the attempted assassination of Chancellor Absalom Breakspear, The Burgue is at war, and it’s not going well. In order to break the stalemate at the front, some unlikely soldiers are recruited to fight in a place nobody expected, and Philo and Jonah find themselves caught up in it against their expectations.

( “If you don’t stop pacing, I’m going to hit you. Hard,” Tourmaline said. )

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Fic: Web of Fate, Chapter 4

2026-06-14T10:46:20Z

Title: Web of Fate
Fandom: Carnival Row
Author: rodo
Chapter: 4/17+E
Length: 4,238 words (77,000 in total)
Rating: 16+
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Worldbuilding, Adventure
Characters: Rycroft Philostrate, Jonah Breakspear, Vignette Stonemoss, Runyan Millworthy, Darius Prowell, Absalom Breakspear
Pairing: Philo/Vignette
Warnings/Labels: war, and mentions/occasional depictions of associated atrocities; canon-typical fantasy racism
Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Amazon, of course
A/N: I started this story in August 2021, and I finished the draft in 2022, so this was all written prior to the second season. So some of the worldbuilding contradicts what was shown in season 2. Still, I had so much fun re-reading this lately that I thought I’d polish it up some more and post it anyway, in case some of you will like it as well. Since it’s an AU, the plot of the second season is not that relevant anyway.

Summary: A year after the attempted assassination of Chancellor Absalom Breakspear, The Burgue is at war, and it’s not going well. In order to break the stalemate at the front, some unlikely soldiers are recruited to fight in a place nobody expected, and Philo and Jonah find themselves caught up in it against their expectations.

( Eavesdropping had become a bad habit that proved difficult to shake for Jonah Breakspear, if only because most of his usual entertainments had fallen by the wayside of late. )

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Fic: Web of Fate, Chapter 3

2026-06-07T13:15:13Z

Title: Web of Fate
Fandom: Carnival Row
Author: rodo
Chapter: 3/17+E
Length: 4,551 words (77,000 in total)
Rating: 16+
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Worldbuilding, Adventure
Characters: Rycroft Philostrate, Jonah Breakspear, Vignette Stonemoss, Runyan Millworthy, Darius Prowell, Absalom Breakspear
Pairing: Philo/Vignette
Warnings/Labels: war, and mentions/occasional depictions of associated atrocities; canon-typical fantasy racism
Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Amazon, of course
A/N: I started this story in August 2021, and I finished the draft in 2022, so this was all written prior to the second season. So some of the worldbuilding contradicts what was shown in season 2. Still, I had so much fun re-reading this lately that I thought I’d polish it up some more and post it anyway, in case some of you will like it as well. Since it’s an AU, the plot of the second season is not that relevant anyway.

Summary: A year after the attempted assassination of Chancellor Absalom Breakspear, The Burgue is at war, and it’s not going well. In order to break the stalemate at the front, some unlikely soldiers are recruited to fight in a place nobody expected, and Philo and Jonah find themselves caught up in it against their expectations.

( The headline – and others like it – were everywhere. )

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Fic: Web of Fate, Chapter 2

2026-05-31T09:20:14Z

Title: Web of Fate
Fandom: Carnival Row
Author: rodo
Chapter: 2/17+E
Length: 4,160 words (77,000 in total)
Rating: 16+
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Worldbuilding, Adventure
Characters: Rycroft Philostrate, Jonah Breakspear, Vignette Stonemoss, Runyan Millworthy, Darius Prowell, Absalom Breakspear
Pairing: Philo/Vignette
Warnings/Labels: war, and mentions/occasional depictions of associated atrocities; canon-typical fantasy racism
Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Amazon, of course
A/N: I started this story in August 2021, and I finished the draft in 2022, so this was all written prior to the second season. So some of the worldbuilding contradicts what was shown in season 2. Still, I had so much fun re-reading this lately that I thought I’d polish it up some more and post it anyway, in case some of you will like it as well. Since it’s an AU, the plot of the second season is not that relevant anyway.

Summary: A year after the attempted assassination of Chancellor Absalom Breakspear, The Burgue is at war, and it’s not going well. In order to break the stalemate at the front, some unlikely soldiers are recruited to fight in a place nobody expected, and Philo and Jonah find themselves caught up in it against their expectations.

( The entire city was abuzz with rumours. )

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Fic: Web of Fate, Chapter 1

2026-05-25T15:59:48Z

Title: Web of Fate
Fandom: Carnival Row
Author: rodo
Chapter: 1/17+E
Length: 4,459 words (77,000 in total)
Rating: 16+
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Worldbuilding, Adventure
Characters: Rycroft Philostrate, Jonah Breakspear, Vignette Stonemoss, Runyan Millworthy, Darius Prowell, Absalom Breakspear
Pairing: Philo/Vignette
Warnings/Labels: war, and mentions/occasional depictions of associated atrocities; canon-typical fantasy racism
Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Amazon, of course
A/N: I started this story in August 2021, and I finished the draft in 2022, so this was all written prior to the second season. So some of the worldbuilding contradicts what was shown in season 2. Still, I had so much fun re-reading this lately that I thought I’d polish it up some more and post it anyway, in case some of you will like it as well. Since it’s an AU, the plot of the second season is not that relevant anyway.

Summary: A year after the attempted assassination of Chancellor Absalom Breakspear, The Burgue is at war, and it’s not going well. In order to break the stalemate at the front, some unlikely soldiers are recruited to fight in a place nobody expected, and Philo and Jonah find themselves caught up in it against their expectations.

( The scene was a gruesome one; it would remain seared into his brain until the day he died. )

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Fic: Web of Fate, Prologue

2026-05-25T15:55:07Z

Title: Web of Fate
Fandom: Carnival Row
Author: rodo
Chapter: prologue/17+E
Length: 558 words (77,000 in total)
Rating: 16+
Genre: Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Worldbuilding, Adventure
Characters: Rycroft Philostrate, Jonah Breakspear, Vignette Stonemoss, Runyan Millworthy, Darius Prowell, Absalom Breakspear
Pairing: Philo/Vignette
Warnings/Labels: war, and mentions/occasional depictions of associated atrocities; canon-typical fantasy racism
Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Amazon, of course
A/N: I started this story in August 2021, and I finished the draft in 2022, so this was all written prior to the second season. So some of the worldbuilding contradicts what was shown in season 2. Still, I had so much fun re-reading this lately that I thought I’d polish it up some more and post it anyway, in case some of you will like it as well. Since it’s an AU, the plot of the second season is not that relevant anyway.

Summary: A year after the attempted assassination of Chancellor Absalom Breakspear, The Burgue is at war, and it’s not going well. In order to break the stalemate at the front, some unlikely soldiers are recruited to fight in a place nobody expected, and Philo and Jonah find themselves caught up in it against their expectations.

( “Mister Winetrout, sir?” a feeble voice asked. )

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Finally, Somewhat Rested

2026-05-24T17:44:11Z

Tomorrow is the final day of rest before I’m going back to work. Not happy about that, but mostly because I still feel incredibly out of my depth and overwhelmed with this one work thing, but I have no idea how much of that is hormones. I do so envy people who don’t have to do complex emotional math and analysing of their feelings for half of every month… but in other news:

My mother’s first cataract surgery went okay so far, but she’s uncharacteristically reliant on me at the moment. I always have to do the eye drops, even though she’s perfectly capable of it herself. Next one is on the first, and hopefully it’ll go just as well.

I visited sevilemar for the first time in ages and it was great to see them again. We didn’t do much because we’re both lazy af, but we talked a lot, and we (re)watched the first season of Carnival Row together. I still love it to pieces, so I re-read my two drafts that I never managed to get betaed and still liked them. I’m working up the courage to post them anyway, even though I know a lot of people are going to not like the long one – but it’s still basically the fic I wanted to read for the fandom. I really loved the first read-through last week, but I got doubts in the final editing round these past two days… (Hormones? Who knows.) Anyway, brace yourselves for me posting some stories you’ll never read ^_^°

On the topic of getting a beta: when did that become a total impossibility? Like, I have this fic in a not-small fandom that I wrote ages ago. I found someone who wanted to beta it and who then never did it, despite getting poked. Started looking for someone else, since it’s the only of my WIPs waiting for a beta where there’s actually people to be found. No replies on ff.net, but I’m not surprised. I don’t remember the last time I got a non-spammy PM there. Then there’s the giant beta spreadsheet… yeah. I’m not on Tumblr or Twitter or Bluesky. People don’t offer an e-mail (understandable, but inconvenient when you don’t share any platforms). I tried contacting people on Discord, despite that not being a fandom thing for me. It went about as well as you imagine, since it’s basically impossible to contact strangers there. I just wish there was a better way, and I even started to work on one, but I have a full-time job now and have other hobbies as well… T.T If any of you have any tips, I’m all ears (tried the DW comm once too, crickets.)

The bunny was back. Rumour has it that she’s contained for now, but rumour also had it that our neighbour had given up on keeping bunnies, and yeah, that obviously wasn’t true. Last year she was in our garden until November. The onions had poked their green bits out after getting decimated several times last year, but take a wild guess what she ate pretty much immediately. At least someone ratted the neighbour out to the authorities and he’s already had to pay a fine for improper bunny keeping. I’d love to send flowers, but I have no idea who it was.

Still have to decide if I want to do Rough Draft Month again this June. So far, I’m on the fence. Should have the Fandom 5K draft done by then, at least.

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Still Here

2026-05-10T20:07:50Z

So, I’m feeling a bit better, but it appears all that stress led to me regulating my emotions so much that I kind of crashed when everything was done and dusted and my brain chemistry just went… weird. I had anxiety like I haven’t had since my teens, and felt kind of like I didn’t really feel anything much because I clamped down on everything, and now it’s slowly coming back in unexpected ways. Hope it’ll get better in summer, once my mother’s cataract surgeries are behind us.

As for work: I now appear to be the person in charge of infrastructure related stuff on the developer side, which is so not my cup of tea, but since I’m the one who has the time to try to figure things out, I’m the one doing it. I hate it, but someone has to do it, and I guess it’ll end up being useful someday.

I’ve got a small holiday between Ascension Day and Pentecost (to maximize my free time per holidays taken). If nothing goes terribly wrong with the first of my mother’s surgeries tomorrow, I’ll visit an old friend I haven’t seen in nearly three(!) years next weekend, so fingers crossed.

In other real life news: I did my taxes for the first time, and it was nerve-racking, but also exciting because I finally get to adult at 40+. It wasn’t mandatory for me, but my mother suggested I do it, and it was kind of exciting to be able to to it anyway, so I did it. I got my preliminary result in the mail yesterday, and it seems my mother had a point.

And last but not least: I started writing my last Fandom 5K story ever. I’m going to miss this exchange so much, since it’s pretty much the only one of its kind that I know of. I’m not confident enough for a 10k minimum yet, and I need a longer writing period and a general theme, so it’s my favorite after Yuletide.

... and now my cat came in to remind me that it's time for bed. Good night, y'all!

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Dear Fandom 5K Writer

2026-04-05T17:29:46Z

First off, I hope you’re going to have fun writing for me and that this letter helps you. I’d also like to say that I’d like fic for all the characters/pairings/fandoms I’m requesting here, whether it follows my prompts or not. If you have an idea that you absolutely want to write about these characters and it doesn’t go against my DNWs, feel free to write it. And if you think you have a better idea than me (which is quite likely) the same applies.

( General information, DNWs and Likes )

Now for the canons:

Gran Hotel (TV)
무빙 | Moving (TV)
설강화 | Snowdrop (TV)

( Gran Hotel (TV) )

( 무빙 | Moving (TV) )

( 설강화 | Snowdrop (TV) )

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What Happened Since I Last Updated and Some Stuff I Watched

2026-03-13T18:14:04Z

( Real Life Stuff You Might Want To Skip )

In more positive news: I completely missed that there were new seasons of School Spirits until midway through the third season. I recced it two years ago and I really enjoyed seasons two and three as well and I so hope there’s going to be a fourth.

I also rewatched some comfort series due to above-mentioned stuff. Among them My Lady Jane, which I don’t think I’ve talked about before. It’s awesome. Just pure, unadulterated fun. Everyone should watch it, even though it got cancelled after one season. That season is so worth it: Jane’s playboy husband is a horse, her brother-in-law is a himbo with a thing for scheming MILFs (that MILF being Jane’s mom AKA Anna Chancellor), Dominic Cooper seems to be having the time of his life playing a scheming vizier-type, Princess Mary is enjoyably unhinged, and King Edward gets a cat boyfriend. Also: the narrator rocks.

I also really enjoyed the fourth season of Bridgerton. Not as much as the second, mostly because I still think Benedict is incredibly bland and boring, but Sophie was soooo good. Perfection, really. And Katie Leung should play scenery-chewing villains for the next ten years, she’s such a pleasure to watch.

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Fic: Out of the Shadows

2026-02-22T11:59:19Z

Title: Out of the Shadows
Fandom: The Hobbit (2012-2014)
Author: rodo
Length: 2,398 words
Rating: 6+
Characters: Legolas & Tauriel
Disclaimer: Everything belongs to Warner Bros. et al.
Beta: starsprightly
A/N: written for Nicky_Gabriel during 2026’s candyheartsex

Summary: To Tauriel, Legolas was barely more than a stranger – until the day she stumbled into saving his life.

( “Have any of you seen Prince Legolas? The king is looking for him,” Tauriel’s captain asked. )

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That I’ve lived to see the day…

2026-01-25T18:22:44Z

It’s official: it’s winter. Like, for real, for the first time in years. We had a snowstorm (well, what passes for one in these parts), public transport broke down completely for two days and I had to go out three times in one day to shovel snow. It was like thirty centimetres total, maybe forty, but the snowdrifts were a lot. Also, thirty centimetres is quite a bit when two are enough to bring everything to a standstill. Of course, our heating broke that Sunday, at -15°C. (Thank God for speedy emergency repair services, even if they're pricey.)

For tomorrow, it’s supposed to be ten centimetres, and my boss was nice enough to tell me to work from home. Not that the chances of me making it to work are high: I had to stay home two days last week because the trains were so late I would have missed my meetings.

Also, another tanka, this time even with a serviceable translation.

Ein Chor aus Kratzen A choir of scratches
erklingt am kalten Morgen echoes one cold morning, in
bei stetem Rieseln. a steady flurry.
Schlappe Gestalten schaufeln Tired figures shovel snow,
endlos Schnee, Sisyphus gleich. ceaselessly, like Sisyphus.

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Ein Chor aus Kratzen		A choir of scratches
erklingt am kalten Morgen		echoes one cold morning, in
bei stetem Rieseln.		a steady flurry.
Schlappe Gestalten schaufeln		Tired figures shovel snow,
endlos Schnee, Sisyphus gleich.		ceaselessly, like Sisyphus.