The Road to Kindness Review Responses

[shinigamiinochi]

This topic is for my review responses to my Gundam Wing fic, The Road to Kindness, since my review responses are quite lengthy.

Chapter 8 Part 9 Responses:

PsychoSausages: My reviewers will never cease to amaze me. When writing this story, not once did I ever consider the possibility that anyone would want to see a pairing between Wes and Duo, and yet I’ve gotten two reviews from people saying that they adore the idea. I’d love to say that I would consider writing an alternate story where Duo says yes to Wes’ proposal, the problems being that one, that would take a lot of time that I don’t have and two, there are just so many plot problems with that. If I did do it, I’d have to tackle the issue of what Heero and the others would go through, having never gotten Duo back, as well as the psychological atrophy Duo would go through, being forced to live with Wes again. Keep in mind something that is very important: as much as Wes might seem like he’s changed, but not once during that whole speech about what he’s willing to do, if Duo agrees to be with him, did he ever ask Duo what he wants. Such a relationship can’t work, so that story wouldn’t end in anything but tragedy. I truly considered writing it, even though it would probably be the darkest project I’ve ever attempted, but it seems like something I’d get stuck on. I might still write it, but in the far off future. If anyone else would like to write it, or if people could send plot points, it might go into my fan fiction ideas folder.

Loverofyaoi: ‘Sociopathic bromance’ XD I love it! I can totally see Chris killing Duo for ‘changing’ Wes, too. As for the ending comment, I’ve been getting a lot of people demanding to know what’s going to happen to Duo if Heero doesn’t save him. I only have this to save: Heero finding Duo is not the only way this conflict could end. In fact, there are about a dozen different things that could happen, not all of them good.

Djargo: As usual, your flattery makes me blush I’m glad that Wes is coming across as believable, especially since his personality has changed slightly due to his feelings for Duo. Thanks for the all the compliments and you’re right, this story has the tendency to take up all my time, focus, and energy, but hearing from readers about how much they enjoy this story, despite how dark it can be, it totally makes it worth it.

Mii: I’m glad it’s one of your favorites, if only because of the immense amount of time I’ve put into this story. Duo doesn’t keep his meds in his backpack. He really should, considering the number of times he’s been kidnapped/run away. And you’re right, Duo not having his pills is going to be a huge problem, especially since Wes is not even aware of Duo’s health problems.

Fan-to-fiction: You bring up a few good points here. First off, is Duo really acting like a weak child by telling everyone how he feels about being abused and thinking he isn’t good enough? Sure, by comparing this AU characterization with canon, it might seem like it, but also keep some things in mind. First, we are all created through our experiences. Canon Duo never went through the abuse that TRTK Duo did. When he was living on the streets, he had Solo to guide him and a bunch of kids to take care of. He had to hide behind laughter and try to be the adult because he had other people relying on him. This Duo never had anyone growing up and no one has ever relied on him. He was a lot more alone than canon Duo ever was. While canon Duo hid his problems behind laughter and a smile, this Duo hid his own problems his entire life through silence and lies. Now he has people in his life that actually care about what has happened to him, so does it really make him weak to use them as an outlet, to want to let go of that emotional poison inside of him through the people who love him? And while thinking he’s not good enough might be repetitive, it’s realistic. People who have been abused often feel that way. It is a lot more realistic to have Duo stubbornly hold on to those beliefs, especially after never being given proof that he is good enough, than to have him so quickly letting go of those insecurities. As Djargo said, it wouldn’t make sense for years of psychological problems to disappear in a matter of months.

[Daye]

Err. Review Response thread usually go in the relevant fandom section of the FanFic forums at the bottom of the main page.

[shinigamiinochi]

Here are the review responses for Chapter 8 Part 10:

Loverofyaoi: Heero definitely has a problem with anger and situations where someone he loves has been hurt. He internally blames himself a lot like how Duo does, but externally, in order to deal with that guilt, he attacks the people around him. We saw this in the very first chapter of this story, how Heero verbally attacked his mother, and in Chapter 7, where he placed all of his guilt against Trowa, who he saw as replacing himself as Duo’s best friend. This kind of jealousy isn’t far off. Trowa and Duo are a lot alike and Duo feels more comfortable talking about his own faults and his childhood with Trowa, because it would be more painful for him if Heero rejected him instead of Trowa, and Trowa was also a victim of sexual abuse. Heero obviously realizes that Trowa and Duo have this connection and it makes him feel vulnerable, as there are times when he doesn’t know how to comfort Duo. Of course, Heero is equally aware that his anger at Trowa is misplaced and that he’s being immature, as Trowa is his friend, he just has a problem seeing the forest through the trees where Duo is concerned. This is another reason why Duo and Heero cannot be thrown into a relationship right now. Can you imagine the massive protective streak and inferiority complex Heero would get if they were boyfriends? He would constantly be comparing himself to Trowa and getting more and more frustrated. Before that happens, Heero needs to realize that, not only is he the one Duo wants and they are a good match, as much as Duo needs him and relies on him, Duo has to stand on his own and not have Heero be the one responsible for saving him all the time.

Djargo: What, you thought just because Wes thinks he’s in love, he’s going to become a human being in the process? Yep, deep down inside, he’s still just as much a dick as he ever was. I’m glad you mentioned Name’s morals. A lot of readers get annoyed that she hasn’t gotten a hit taken out on Wes, but that just isn’t realistic with her character. Yes, she is willing to kill to protect her children, but only as a last resort. This is obviously going to become an issue now, with Duo’s life being in danger. You also brought up a good point about Wes’ reactions to Name as a threat. As you can see in this chapter, yes, he is so arrogant that this isn’t even on one level of importance in his mind. He truly believes that he has control over this situation and the Yuy’s will never find Duo. Wes’ world has now shrunk down to himself and Duo, for him, nothing exists outside of that, which is precisely why I label Wes’ affection for Duo as ‘stalkerish’. And I’m so glad that this story still has an emotional resonance with readers, considering how long it is already and all the different things that have happened. As long as people can still feel a connection to these characters and their situations, I can call this story a success.

Also thanks to Annie for the review!

[Satai Delenn]

Err. Review Response thread usually go in the relevant fandom section of the FanFic forums at the bottom of the main page.

I'm sorry, I don't mean to hijack this thread, but if that is the case, Daye, then I was misinformed, because I asked Beth (a Mod/Admin) where I should post review/response threads, and she specifically gave me the link to this section of the boards. If this is wrong, it would be greatly appreciated if I could be directed to the correct areas for review threads? My story is a Harry Potter story. I've been looking and looking and looking for the correct area to set up a review response thread on the off chance SOMEONE actually leaves me a review so I can respond to it, but so far, not only no reviews, but I haven't found the correct section to start a thread, which is why I asked Beth.

Thanks!

[DemonGoddess]

I just now noticed where this was, so I do have to move it. I expect I'll go through this forum later. As to where your hp topic would go, that would be here.

If you want to know exactly where something goes in the forum, I'm actually the best one to ask. Or Apollo.