Another intriguing chapter. I agree with DbzOrDie - I love how you portray Dash's supportive side. I find certain fanworks and even the show occasionally (cough Maredowell cough) sometimes toss Dash's connection with Loyalty out the window in favor of showing her as completely tactless, but you keep that part of her personality intact and in cooperation with her other characteristics. I'm no expert or anything, but I think you're handling this topic really well. AJ's guilt and desire to keep everything as secret as possible, as well as her determination to regain mastery over her own life is really spot on for how many victims seem to feel about these types of traumatic events. As always, eager to read more and see where you take this
I'm bein' tossed back and forth here. I love how Dash and AJ interact but I hate how AJ feels about the whole thing. She just keeps tearing herself apart.
Supportive Dash... that's a rare sight in and of itself. And I love it. AJ blaming herself is also a nice touch of realism. You're really doing an excellent job with this!
Right, sorry, but I can't read any further than this...
Any sense of realism was lost when: 1. AJ came right out and said what happened to her without a lot of false starts and more panic. 2. Dash quieted down and didn't speak of it anymore after the fact. 3. AJ not telling her family, now that it's out in the open. 4. AJ not taking any action whatsoever after she finds out it might have happened to others, "If it happened to Fluttershy I'd just lay down and die" ? no, she'd stomp the face of whoever did that in.
The prologue was almost scarily realistic, but that was quickly lost sadly enough...
1. AJ came right out and said what happened to her without a lot of false starts and more panic.
Every CSA survivor is different. To say 'this is unrealistic because she didn't act xyz way when she told people' is silly.
2. Dash quieted down and didn't speak of it anymore after the fact.
Dash clearly wanted to, though. In the previous chapter she didn't understand how AJ could just 'go on living' like that, and she is the one who has to be persuaded to 'go back to normal'. AJ is the one who pushes her to race to Sugarcube Corner, and Dash is shown to be preoccupied with what she's learnt over the next few days. If Dash isn't speaking about it, it's only because she's respecting her marefriend's wishes.
3. AJ not telling her family, now that it's out in the open.
It's not really 'out in the open' yet, but in any case: she feels like she's let a large part of that family be abused and hurt because of her actions (ofc, the person who's really done this is Uncle Orange, but that's how AJ feels), and she's protecting Big Mac (and, I suspect, Granny Smith) by not telling them; they might blame themselves if they knew. On top of that, she's battling against the fact she'd be admitting to being a 'liar' for years, as well as a decade of blaming herself for what happened, and then for believing his lies, for being so 'foolish'. AND the fact that she genuinely seems to think this will make ponies dislike her (in this chapter, her friends)... can you imagine how devastating it would be to confess that and then lose such a huge, core part of yourself (AJ's family in this case)? AJ can, (and has been) I think.
4. AJ not taking any action whatsoever after she finds out it might have happened to others, "If it happened to Fluttershy I'd just lay down and die" ? no, she'd stomp the face of whoever did that in.
Meh. There's a difference between 'some horrible person did a horrible thing to a friend of mine' and 'a horrible thing happened to a friend of mine because of me'. AJ's primary emotion there isn't anger at her uncle for him raping her (and potentially other fillies), it's guilt that she was the cause of an awful thing happening to those fillies. If she's going to want to hurt anybody for 'causing' that, first on her list is probably going to be herself, despite how messed up that is.
I love the romantic, loving side you let Dash have in this chapter
It makes me feel all fuzzy and warm inside
Dash is officially best marefriend
Another intriguing chapter. I agree with DbzOrDie - I love how you portray Dash's supportive side. I find certain fanworks and even the show occasionally (cough Maredowell cough) sometimes toss Dash's connection with Loyalty out the window in favor of showing her as completely tactless, but you keep that part of her personality intact and in cooperation with her other characteristics. I'm no expert or anything, but I think you're handling this topic really well. AJ's guilt and desire to keep everything as secret as possible, as well as her determination to regain mastery over her own life is really spot on for how many victims seem to feel about these types of traumatic events. As always, eager to read more and see where you take this
I'm bein' tossed back and forth here. I love how Dash and AJ interact but I hate how AJ feels about the whole thing. She just keeps tearing herself apart.
Supportive Dash... that's a rare sight in and of itself. And I love it. AJ blaming herself is also a nice touch of realism. You're really doing an excellent job with this!
Right, sorry, but I can't read any further than this...
Any sense of realism was lost when:
1. AJ came right out and said what happened to her without a lot of false starts and more panic.
2. Dash quieted down and didn't speak of it anymore after the fact.
3. AJ not telling her family, now that it's out in the open.
4. AJ not taking any action whatsoever after she finds out it might have happened to others, "If it happened to Fluttershy I'd just lay down and die" ? no, she'd stomp the face of whoever did that in.
The prologue was almost scarily realistic, but that was quickly lost sadly enough...
1937047
YMMV, but...
Every CSA survivor is different. To say 'this is unrealistic because she didn't act xyz way when she told people' is silly.
Dash clearly wanted to, though. In the previous chapter she didn't understand how AJ could just 'go on living' like that, and she is the one who has to be persuaded to 'go back to normal'. AJ is the one who pushes her to race to Sugarcube Corner, and Dash is shown to be preoccupied with what she's learnt over the next few days. If Dash isn't speaking about it, it's only because she's respecting her marefriend's wishes.
It's not really 'out in the open' yet, but in any case: she feels like she's let a large part of that family be abused and hurt because of her actions (ofc, the person who's really done this is Uncle Orange, but that's how AJ feels), and she's protecting Big Mac (and, I suspect, Granny Smith) by not telling them; they might blame themselves if they knew. On top of that, she's battling against the fact she'd be admitting to being a 'liar' for years, as well as a decade of blaming herself for what happened, and then for believing his lies, for being so 'foolish'. AND the fact that she genuinely seems to think this will make ponies dislike her (in this chapter, her friends)... can you imagine how devastating it would be to confess that and then lose such a huge, core part of yourself (AJ's family in this case)? AJ can, (and has been) I think.
Meh. There's a difference between 'some horrible person did a horrible thing to a friend of mine' and 'a horrible thing happened to a friend of mine because of me'. AJ's primary emotion there isn't anger at her uncle for him raping her (and potentially other fillies), it's guilt that she was the cause of an awful thing happening to those fillies. If she's going to want to hurt anybody for 'causing' that, first on her list is probably going to be herself, despite how messed up that is.