Back in October, when I started planning for Nanowrimo, I had no idea that the idea I would come up with would take such residency in my mind.
I had a set plan. Five chapters or so, episodic, starting with Reid reviving after dying in Georgia. Then it would have the Guard come to him. The next few chapters would be episode tags, ones where an immortal Reid might have made a difference, in a small way, without changing the overall result. It would end with Reid helping find Booker after the post-credit scene of TOG.
I was all set. And then, I barely wrote anything in November. I was hit by massive writer’s block that left me blank. I managed to post a scene from the larger story at the beginning of December, with the plan to finish the rest before the end of 2020.
Yeah, sure. After last year, there was no way I was gonna finish this project that damn fast.
Febuwhump surprisingly provided me with the tools and vehicle to finish the first part of the story. Ten “chapters” later, all published as singular stories, due to how I was posting for Febuwhump. (Mostly because I hated seeing fics with both interconnected and unconnected prompts being posted as chapters. It bothers me. I know. My own issues.) I told a story I wanted to tell.
Only, not everything.
You see, because of how I was writing the story, in pieces, I never did the episode tags. Specifically, “Minimal Loss” and “Nameless, Faceless”. I also managed to mess up my timeline pretty quickly, establishing the fic first as during a vague time in season seven, then “okay not really, Emily is here, whoops.” I skipped over writing Reid’s first death, instead introducing it during one of his page spanning train of thought scenes that seemed to take over whole chapters. I also skipped establishing why Reid and Andy don’t really seem to connect, but also where he stands with the others (sans Booker and Nile).
And that’s a bit of a problem. If I want to move forward, I need to establish some things. But I also need to set the stage for something else.
With my vague, handwaving timeline, I do have the ability to put a few things into the narrative. After all, I decided to cross in 9-1-1, because immortal!Buck is a concept that I want to play with, fight me. But that plan already had to change, because of an amazing AO3 writer who did a TOG/9-1-1 fusion fic… which ended up killing Buck in the exact same scene I wanted to use. Because great minds think alike. I managed to make it work, actually. Thank you Tsunami, because the timeline of that episode somewhat hurts me, especially since I looked at a map.
So, I now have plans.
I’m worried about adding stories into the series since I’ve already established ten in a certain order. But I also want to get to this new crossover sooner rather than later. I’m taking today to lay in bed and come up with some semblance of an outline.
The current goal is to hit those episodes that I really want to poke at. The reason I think “Minimal Loss” would be interesting is that Reid already spends much of the episode regretting what happens to Emily after she reveals she is an FBI agent during the siege against the religious cult they are in. He plays it off well, but imagine the guilt he’d feel if he was immortal and could have saved her from being attacked… except he had to keep his immortality a secret. It also would play into Reid only having been immortal for a short time at this point, just over a year, in fact. There’s also “Amplification”, which sees Reid stricken down with anthrax. In the TOG fandom, some have decided that the immortals can still get sick or be affected by things like poison, so it would be interesting for Reid to still solve the case, while having to act as though he was going to die, knowing that he’d get right back up if he does. And then there’s “Nameless, Faceless” with Reid getting shot. I think it would honestly be something of a comedy, with him having to pretend that he’s still hurt… after healing like fifteen minutes later. How would that change everything?
While my original plan was to set this as a three to four part fic, I realized a bit ago that it wouldn’t really work out that well. (Plus, I know I’m just gonna get sidetracked, and that’s not about to happen damn it.) Instead, I’m turning it into one long conversation, bookended with scenes from a bar, because I have a title that I refuse to not use, damn it. Plus, this would give me the opportunity to set up for the future. I can also address a couple little tidbits that I really want to poke, including the Malta Wedding, and Andy and Reid’s relationship. Oh, and Quynh’s place in the world. Because that’s important.
I’m about a third of the way down right now, with my notes stretching across onto a second page. Yes, I handwrite notes, while I type my stories. It’s honestly the only way I can keep up with little details.
I’m hopeful to get it done by the end of the week, or at least before any TOG2 announcement that may come with Netflix’s GeekedWeek. (The prayer circles have returned.) I also want to write and finish the introduction of immortal!Buck before Season Five kicks off. Fingers crossed.
Let me know if there’s anything you guys want to see!
Until next time!
