238. You Ever Feel So Gay It Makes You Feel Like An Oaf???
Fluttershy walked through the train to the Crystal Empire. It was a good thing not a lot of ponies were headed there, because Fluttershy had to walk through cabin after cabin after cabin until she finally realized she wasn’t going to find what she was looking for. Or ‘who’, rather.
One might think it would be difficult for a mare as large as Applejack to just disappear, especially on a nearly empty train, but alas that was the situation Fluttershy found herself in as she searched for her.
Fluttershy was starting to worry that something may have happened to Applejack, and she wondered if perhaps she should ask one of the others where she went, but then Fluttershy decided she was probably just being silly and worrying over nothing like she always does and that she didn’t want to bother any of the others and besides they’d probably make fun of her for worrying anyway.
But then, what if Applejack was in trouble? What if she needed help? And Fluttershy was the only one who noticed she was missing and she wasn’t helping at all and now something horrible was going to happen to Applejack and it was all her fault cuz she was too embarrassed to ask someone for help!
And what if she said that to one of the others and they laughed at her for being silly? And what if—
Actually, as Fluttershy sat curled into a ball in the corner of the eerily vacant dining cabin, she thought to herself ‘what if I just use my magic that’s good at finding people’. And now she felt silly.
Granted, even with her face turning a painful, burning red, she felt more relieved than silly once she was able to easily detect Applejack’s presence nearby, and confirm that she wasn’t hurt or anything. That sense of relief was even enough to override the anxiety that Fluttershy had originally felt about talking to Applejack at all.
It was also enough for Fluttershy to not question where she detected Applejack’s presence, and why she was there. Fluttershy just exited out of one of the cabins and spread her wings, flying on top of the roof of the train where Applejack was sitting.
Fluttershy wasn’t used to the wind speed though and as soon as she flew above the train, the wind slammed her into one of the cars like a pancake hitting the wall, Fluttershy splatting flat against it and feeling a throbbing pain in her everything.
“Fluttershy!” Applejack cried out as she looked over and saw the flattened dragon trying to claw her way onto Applejack’s car.
Applejack came over to help Fluttershy up, and as Fluttershy stood to her feet, Applejack held her in her arms to help Fluttershy remain centered, and not only was the massive wall of beef that made up Applejack’s body a very good deterrent from the wind, it was also warm and soft and Fluttershy was gay.
Fluttershy absolutely loathed to admit it, but she couldn’t stop thinking about Applejack after their battle the other night. And not in the way that Fluttershy had been thinking of her— with contempt and jealousy— no, now Fluttershy was thinking of Applejack taking Fluttershy’s tiny frail pony body in her massive arms and just snapping her like a twig.
“Isn’t it dangerous? To be up here, I mean.” Fluttershy asked, using a small tinge of magic not only so that Applejack could hear her over the roar of the wind as the train they stood on galloped through the tundra leading to the Crystal Empire, but also so that same wind wouldn’t blow away the old hat resting on Fluttershy’s head.
“Not for me it ain’t,” Applejack shrugged. She looked back over to where she had been sitting, then looked out ahead toward where the train was going; Fluttershy turned to look too, but there weren’t any tunnels or low hanging bridges or anything in their future. “At least as long as I don’t fall off, I guess.”
“But you wouldn’t do that,” Fluttershy giggled, “cuz you’re too tough, right?”
“I dunno if I’d say that,” Applejack chuckled, and she was still holding tightly to Fluttershy to make sure she didn’t lose her balance or something, and Fluttershy was about ready to start freaking out cuz her brain was full of too much gay. “But I been climbin’ up on top of trains since I was a filly. Don’t really bother me none.”
“That’s so cool,” Fluttershy cooed, and at the sound of Applejack’s laughter, Fluttershy felt that familiar stinging sensation of embarrassment burning her cheeks, and the tips of her ears at that.
“Thank ye kindly, Fluttershy!” Applejack said with a big grin. “I think you’re cool too!”
Oh gosh, she complimented me!
Fluttershy bit her lip and put a hand on her cheek as she turned her gaze away from Applejack. This was so asinine! Why now was she suddenly acting like such a smitten kitten—oh, kittens, Fluttershy would love to play with some kittens— ahem, such a smitten kitten around Applejack?!
But then Fluttershy looked up and got her answer in the form of a giant, muscled mare with a gleaming smile that sucker punched all the worries straight out of Fluttershy’s brain space. When she was in Applejack’s arms, there was only Applejack.
“Oh, Applejack!” Fluttershy chirped, remembering she was still wearing the pony’s hat.
“Yes, hon?” Applejack said sweetly, Fluttershy feeling weak at the knees like a damn idiot.
“Uhhh, your hat!” Fluttershy took the hat off her head and handed it to Applejack, only for her to take it and place it right back on Fluttershy’s head.
“You hold onto it for a bit, sugarcube,” Applejack smiled, and Fluttershy bit her tongue to stop herself from erupting into a fit of smitten giggles. “Think of it as like a token of our friendship!”
Fluttershy let her fingers trace the edge of the hat as a smitten smile spread across her lips.
“O-okay,” she said bashfully, a warm glow washing over her like settling into a hot bath after a long day, “I would be honored to.”
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Huh, well then.
Oh, she's having an anxiety attack.
Oh. Well then.
More like Flattershy at this point. I am the goddamn King of Comedy.
Then, should you not get it?
You've been fucking what?
Captain! The shields cannot withstand gayness of this magnitude!
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I don't care to correct that assumption, because it shouldn't matter. This is a writing community. For writers. My initial purpose going into this, despite knowing exactly what was going to happen, was to provide some advice to a fellow writer to help them improve their writing. That's it.
I am not claiming any high ground. No one is perfect, and I am not an exception to that. One of the reasons I have so much trouble with authority is that I refuse to treat anyone differently, for any reason. We are all human.
I have been in this community for many years. I have read thousands of stories. Many of them have trans characters. I have enjoyed them a lot. A personal favorite of mine is the long series from BlackRoseRaven. More than one there, and the whole series, from start to finish, is fantastic.
"Because I said so." Is not a valid reason for literally anything. It is the excuse of lazy parents everywhere. If that is the only reason behind something in a story, then it is bad writing.
I understand that the author is trying to normalize trans characters in media, and there is nothing wrong with that. I fully support it. But doing it poorly is not helping the cause, it is harming it. The only people who will be okay with it are those who are already convinced. This creates an echo chamber, where people all pat each other on the back for being good, accepting people and criticism is shunned, because how dare you not agree with the message.
"It is not enough to be right. You must also be effective." - Neil deGrasse Tyson.
sneaky AJ
awwwww
fluttershy needs a hug
oh dear
indeed
oh goodness
AJ is a good!
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ah yes, respectability politics, otherwise known as "please kowtow to the ones in power because that is the only valid way forward" also known as "this will never work and is intentionally encouraged specifically because it is so ineffective"
the thing is, having a trans character in writing such as this cannot be done in such a way that everyone will be on board with it, no matter how much couching occurs. this is because dislike of trans characters isn't logically or reasonably motivated, it won't be helped by couching or build up.
at best you'd get a PR boost because you couched it so well that you can pretend you never stated it at all, so that queer people hungry for scraps will take it and run with it, and all of the people frustrated at That Kind of Thing can pretend it never happened. (or harass the creators until it gets removed entirely!)
so don't couch it, don't hide behind 14 chapters of "build up", just fucking say it. that's not bad writing, that's just a different way of providing character details.
like "oh yeah i like dark clothing", or "my eyes are blue". if the world is accepting of trans people then "oh yeah i'm trans" is about the same level as those, cool character details that don't need a massive "let's sit down i need to say something important!" chapter.
(seriously, celestia & luna are trans, if the immortal goddesses in charge say that being trans is cool for a thousand years straight, it tends to affect the culture to the point where it's a non-issue. see: being a dragon, and how that is *very much* a thing that needs multiple chapters of build up because otherwise you could die.)
edit: (besides, what kind of chapter would that be? "i need to say something important!" ominous music starts "i'm trans!" ominous music suddenly stops as everyone looks around in confusion "same though?" "yeah same" "me too!" "you know celestia and luna are trans right??")
edit 2: oh also, more trans characters can't "harm the cause". like at worst they'd be bad characters, and that's kind of a given right now for trans characters in media? see like, any big franchise adding trans characters? it's all deadnames, depression, and death all around, which is really just terribly boring at this point, none of those people have any unique ideas. but at best they can actually be really fun characters with true representation? like, yes please more trans characters whose character arcs aren't entirely focused on transition?? transition focused arcs can be written well (not by cis people though), but it's also really nice to have trans characters in non-trans-focused stuff.
and also indie media, especially fanfiction, wouldn't be able to "harm the cause" even if it was the worst possible representation. it's just too small of an impact area. but if that small impact area can be really positive for those that are in it? that's a good thing! (edit 4: though it can harm individual people, just not "the cause". so don't anyone take this as license to make terrible trans takes in fanfiction because it's "too small an impact area"
)
edit 3: oh dear it's getting long, somepony stop me before i end up at edit 36
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Does the size of the impact matter? Doesn't any impact, no matter the size, by definition, have an impact?
And we are getting away from my main point again. I don't care about the politics. I really don't. I put that energy towards something productive, like signing petitions and voting. Which has actually gotten somewhere in the state I live in.
Writing is always biased. You can only speak from your own experience. Everything is the way it is for a reason.
Of course, you SHOULD be able to just say, "I'm trans, so what?" But that just is not reality. Every social movement took vast amounts of time and effort. Just demanding that people change is counterproductive. Besides, a character just saying "I like dark shirts" without context would be just as weird, and throw you out of the story. You would be wondering why they said that, if you missed something, and you would go back trying to rectify your mistake, only to find that it was the writing, and not you.
When characters do and say things that don't make sense, it is bad writing.
If the setting was far future, where technology has made changing genders cheap and easy, then a casual "Hey, we are all trans" makes sense. But for the setting, you have to put in a bit more effort. I haven't read more than twenty ish chapters. All that context hasn't happened yet. I'm sure it does make sense later, but good storytelling sets you up, then hits you with payoff. Not the other way around. It's pretty basic stuff.
A last word of advice, if you are going to enter a debate, present yourself professionally. You can't wear a suit online, but you sure can use proper spelling, grammar, and capitalization. People take you more seriously that way.
but it literally is in this story.
and you think transition magic hasn't gotten dev time? (also "changing genders"
)
and even if it hadn't gotten any dev time and just didn't work that well, the literal immortal goddesses who rule the realm are trans. you really can't get much more of a trans positive culture than that. (as in, they've likely been trans so long that anti-trans sentiment might even be older than recorded history. or have never come into existence, gender is something humans made up after all, and the impact of having immortal trans goddesses rule the realm is likely to make their concepts of gender much more interesting)
I'm Deeply Sorry My Lack Of Capital Letters Makes You Take Me Less Seriously, I Shall Compensate By Capitalizing More Letters In This Sentence.
ah see there's your problem, this isn't a debate, this is me rolling my eyes and hoping at least a fraction of this reaches other people reading this, (or maybe just serves as comedic backdrop) cause it likely won't reach you and i already didn't care about that before responding the first time.
ah see this here, this is the perfect indicator that one is not, in fact, at all disadvantaged in this day and age. funnily enough, except not funny at all, some people's continued existence in this plane of reality is political, whether we wish it or not. ("do trans people deserve to *whispering while pearl clutching* walk outside????? buy groceries???? they might even need to... talk to people!!" and this is considered a legitimate political question, so uhhhhhhhhh, fuck that. or the converse, where "this character is trans??? why is that necessary, keep politics out of this!!!" which is like
you do realize that people can just... be trans? and really this fits back in the "not at all disadvantaged" thing, because they're used to every character representing them, and get mad whenever a character that doesn't represent them even a tiny bit shows up. i'm sooooooooo sorry (except not at all) that this character is *gasp* different than your expected baseline! this is unacceptable and will be rectified immediately and replaced by Bland McBlanderson the Average AlloCisHet White Guy who Never Shows Emotion and has One Girlfriend Who Gets Very Little Screentime.)
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ok reading the back and forth about this topic has been interesting, but i rly wanna nip this in the bud before it gets outta hand. so i'm gonna leave my two cents once more, and then i would appreciate it if everyone would drop it (or at least take it someplace else; i don't want my comments crowded by a conversation that keeps getting less and less related to the story the comments are supposed to be about)
i don't think u understand what i'm trying to do here. while normalizing trans characters in media is something i'm Extremely About, that's not what this story is about. the reason the mane six (and others) are trans in this story is so my trans friends (both my literal friends and just the trans community in general) can read this story and be like "hell yea these characters are trans". and for me? that's enough of a reason. maybe it isn't for u, but it's not ur story. if u think it's "bad writing" there's not alot i can do about that, i just don't agree.
i'm not interested in "convincing" ppl that trans characters should exist. that's not a subject for debate, it's an objective truth that some ppl have their heads in the sand about, and i'm not concerned with those ppl. maybe someday i'll need to consider them, but for this my little pony fanfic i'm doing?? honestly not worth the time or effort to consider those ppl's feelings (and those ppl tend to make life miserable for everyone else around them anyway, so i'm actually doing everyone who reads and comments on my fics a favor by not giving those types any ground)
this is actually MY point; and i have a reason for the way i wrote this story, and it's one i stand behind. it's just that my reasoning doesn't seem to be good enough for you, which if that's the way u feel then that's fine, but that's more about ur biases than mine
see most of these things are just differences of opinion, but this genuinely baffles me. ur right, it isn't reality. and like i could say "purple talking horses aren't reality either" but i prefer to raise a different question: why shouldn't i write a world that treats marginalized people better than reality treats them?
that question's rhetorical btw
so yea, that's that on that. i'm not gonna bother responding to the stuff about "debates" and "proper spelling\punctuation" cuz this ain't debate club, it's the comments section of a my little pony fanfic.
this got a little long tho, so let me sum up:
i get where ur coming from and why u think the way the trans characters are handled in this story is "bad writing". but as u said urself, we can only write from our own experiences, and my experiences and yours clearly just don't match up (which again, is fine; it's just a difference of opinion).
the fact of the matter is, i made the characters trans for trans people, and i do not care about the opinions of cis people on this subject, because the decision doesn't affect them any which way, and their input isn't ever going to be helpful in helping me tell the story that i'm trying to tell.
i'm proud of the way i've written this story. i'm proud of how i established the trans characters. i wouldn't change it even if i could.
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And I'm a Cis gendered, straight white man, aren't I? That's what it seems like you believe. It isn't true, but, you know, objectivity seems to not matter around here. But I digress. If you are just writing a story for some friends, then whatever. Do what you like. Sorry for wasting your time.