[Report This]Date: March 22 2024 2:50 AM Title: Shana day after - Part 1
Good to see you back! And don't worry about taking a couple months to put out a chapter. You certainly don't owe us anything. In fact, I think I'm about two months out from putting out another chapter in my own story as well, so you're not the only one getting caught up in stuff.
Speaking of which, I hope whatever you're dealing with is getting better!
As for the chapter itself, again, I love the complexity of your characters. I just kind of assumed Shana simply bought into the public perception that tinies weren't really people, so I was pretty stunned to see that the reason she became known as the "Black Titan" was because she felt so guilty about accidentally stepping on them that she had to force herself not to care, lest she go insane. And again, Shana ends up being a good person, and everything we thought we knew about her has taken on a whole new meaning.
Not only that, but given how upset Shana gets when she finds out that the Little Folk probably left their weakest out there specifically for people like her to step on them, she gets really upset. I feel like the Shana at the beginning of the story probably would have shrugged it off and not really cared one way or the other, but the fact that she got pissed over Jane's revelation shows that Shana is really starting to get back in touch with the real her. She's starting (and emphasis on starting) to show people that she actually cares about them. She's starting to stop pretending that she doesn't care about about anything (tinies in particular). She's starting to show that she's actually a pretty good Big Sis!
Watching Shana develop like this throughout the last 10 or so chapters has been quite a rewarding surprise in this story!
The revelation about the Little Folk leaving those least able to contribute to their society out for Shana (and presumably others as well) to step on is a bit ironic. Shana has been made out by the tinies as the Black Titan, the one who literally walks on them without a care, but really the only reason she didn't care is because the tinies themselves unwittingly made her that way in the first place! It's kind of a self-fulfilling prophecy when you think about it like that.
And while it's heartless that Little Folk abandon their neediest like that, Shana's right that it does make sense for them to do so. With life being so hard for all of them, they can't really afford to look out for the weakest among them. Honestly, I more blame the bigs for this problem, since most of them view the tinies as bugs and even most of those who want better treatment for them see them more like pets than anything else. If most humans viewed them the way that Emily does, they could probably create a thriving society, one that would be able to take care of those most in need. Instead, they have to adjust to the harshness of their dark reality.
We saw a bit of an edge to Emily in this chapter, and I kind of liked it. She admitted that she hated Shana and even showed some anger toward her. Now that we know about Emily's dark past, it makes sense that she has some of that in her, even if she's still sweet at the same time.
Also, now that she has gotten past the barriers between Shana and her, I could see the two bonding down the road (once Shana starts getting a little more comfortable letting her guard down). Those two have a lot more in common than was shown at the start of the story. They're kind of like two sides of the same coin: Shana is a good person wrapped around a rude, uncaring facade, while Emily is super sweet, yet has a lingering darkness from her past hang over her head.
I also get why Emily might be mad at Jane for not being so forthcoming about her people abandoning the weak and frail, but I hope she can understand that there are several reasons why Jane wouldn't bring it up, not the least of which is how Emily reacts whenever Jane casually starts talking about how terrible life for tinies really is. Now the question is, what is Emily planning to do with this information. Is she going to try going to the park and saving some of these abandoned Little Folk? Hmm, I wonder if she might see anyone she knows if she goes out looking for tinies to save ...
Overall, this was a great chapter! After going a couple months without writing, this was actually pretty polished, I think. Good work, and I look forward to seeing what comes next, even if we have to wait a bit to find out!
Author's Response:
Thanks for the welcome back and good wishes, and I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter!
The last two months or so have been tough, with a lot of time in bed and even more time sick. That left me a bit anxious and itchy to finally get back to writing, something I've really come to appreciate over the last few months.
But there was a positive outcome in the end, as I finally found a way to include this particular bit of Little Folks lore. It was something I had tried to do on several occasions, but couldn't find a place for it, and had resigned myself to just cutting it out.
I'm not quite back to full strength yet, but I'm feeling better enough to write again, and I'm making good progress on the next chapter, which I'll get up and post as soon as I'm able, as I want to finish the story now that I finally have the whole plot in my head.
Once again, thank you!