{ "submission_id": "2903513", "keywords": [ { "keyword_id": "1209", "keyword_name": "bdsm", "contributed": "f", "submissions_count": "24094" }, { "keyword_id": "9101", "keyword_name": "d/s", "contributed": "f", "submissions_count": "382" }, { "keyword_id": "123", "keyword_name": "female", "contributed": "f", "submissions_count": "1104485" }, { "keyword_id": "420", "keyword_name": "mouse", "contributed": "f", "submissions_count": "54776" }, { "keyword_id": "157", "keyword_name": "red panda", "contributed": "f", "submissions_count": "15238" }, { "keyword_id": "4530", "keyword_name": "slice of life", "contributed": "f", "submissions_count": "1814" } ], "hidden": "f", "scraps": "f", "favorite": "f", "favorites_count": "5", "create_datetime": "2023-01-13 15:02:55.832837+00", "create_datetime_usertime": "13 Jan 2023 16:02 CET", "last_file_update_datetime": "2023-01-13 15:00:07.298458+00", "last_file_update_datetime_usertime": "13 Jan 2023 16:00 CET", "username": "TerraMGP", "user_id": "46355", "user_icon_file_name": "60251_TerraMGP_terramg.gif", "user_icon_url_large": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/usericons/large/60/60251_TerraMGP_terramg.gif", "user_icon_url_medium": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/usericons/medium/60/60251_TerraMGP_terramg.gif", "user_icon_url_small": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/usericons/small/60/60251_TerraMGP_terramg.gif", "file_name": "4323987_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_6_writers_write.doc", "file_url_full": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/files/full/4323/4323987_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_6_writers_write.doc", "file_url_screen": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/files/screen/4323/4323987_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_6_writers_write.doc", "file_url_preview": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/files/preview/4323/4323987_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_6_writers_write.doc", "thumbnail_url_huge": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/huge/4323/4323987_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_6_writers_write.jpg", "thumbnail_url_large": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/large/4323/4323987_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_6_writers_write.jpg", "thumbnail_url_medium": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/medium/4323/4323987_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_6_writers_write.jpg", "thumb_huge_x": "194", "thumb_huge_y": "300", "thumb_large_x": "129", "thumb_large_y": "200", "thumb_medium_x": "78", "thumb_medium_y": "120", "files": [ { "file_id": "4323987", "file_name": "4323987_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_6_writers_write.doc", "file_url_full": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/files/full/4323/4323987_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_6_writers_write.doc", "file_url_screen": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/files/screen/4323/4323987_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_6_writers_write.doc", "file_url_preview": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/files/preview/4323/4323987_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_6_writers_write.doc", "mimetype": "application/msword", "submission_id": "2903513", "user_id": "46355", "submission_file_order": "0", "full_size_x": null, "full_size_y": null, "screen_size_x": null, "screen_size_y": null, "preview_size_x": null, "preview_size_y": null, "initial_file_md5": "3d920a88f7b7776262709f8553337b1c", "full_file_md5": "3d920a88f7b7776262709f8553337b1c", "large_file_md5": "", "small_file_md5": "", "thumbnail_md5": "7a68db7d89a8d81194f0499db9565115", "deleted": "f", "create_datetime": "2023-01-13 15:00:07.298458+00", "create_datetime_usertime": "13 Jan 2023 16:00 CET", "thumbnail_url_huge": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/huge/4323/4323987_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_6_writers_write.jpg", "thumbnail_url_large": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/large/4323/4323987_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_6_writers_write.jpg", "thumbnail_url_medium": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/medium/4323/4323987_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_6_writers_write.jpg", "thumb_huge_x": "194", "thumb_huge_y": "300", "thumb_large_x": "129", "thumb_large_y": "200", "thumb_medium_x": "78", "thumb_medium_y": "120" } ], "pools": [ { "pool_id": "82354", "name": "Collared", "description": "A young woman seeks to find her way during her first year of College.", "count": "52", "submission_left_submission_id": "2898533", "submission_left_file_name": "4315779_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_5_our_house.doc", "submission_left_thumbnail_url_huge": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/huge/4315/4315779_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_5_our_house.jpg", "submission_left_thumbnail_url_large": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/large/4315/4315779_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_5_our_house.jpg", "submission_left_thumbnail_url_medium": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/medium/4315/4315779_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_5_our_house.jpg", "submission_left_thumb_huge_x": "194", "submission_left_thumb_huge_y": "300", "submission_left_thumb_large_x": "129", "submission_left_thumb_large_y": "200", "submission_left_thumb_medium_x": "78", "submission_left_thumb_medium_y": "120", "submission_right_submission_id": "2907212", "submission_right_file_name": "4329836_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_7_first_date.doc", "submission_right_thumbnail_url_huge": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/huge/4329/4329836_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_7_first_date.jpg", "submission_right_thumbnail_url_large": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/large/4329/4329836_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_7_first_date.jpg", "submission_right_thumbnail_url_medium": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/medium/4329/4329836_TerraMGP_collared_chapter_7_first_date.jpg", "submission_right_thumb_huge_x": "194", "submission_right_thumb_huge_y": "300", "submission_right_thumb_large_x": "129", "submission_right_thumb_large_y": "200", "submission_right_thumb_medium_x": "78", "submission_right_thumb_medium_y": "120" } ], "description": "Sorry this one is so late. Basically at the edge of my 'once a week' rule. But crippling depression and all that. Plus I don't know if I did as well as I could have.\n\nBut here's hoping you like my self indulgent trash. It's about time we caught up with Hui anyhow.", "description_bbcode_parsed": "Sorry this one is so late. Basically at the edge of my 'once a week' rule. But crippling depression and all that. Plus I don't know if I did as well as I could have.

But here's hoping you like my self indulgent trash. It's about time we caught up with Hui anyhow.", "writing": "Collared Chapter 6: Writers write\n\nBy TerraMGP\n\n\tHui Sang was no stranger to difficult classes. Academic excellence had been the expected norm her whole life. Many of her classes during the last school year had been AP or otherwise bordered on the level one usually found at a university. The reward for both a sharp mind and diligent study. Most of those, however, had been at her school. Online classes overseen by a relevant teacher or the like. Things like math and science where much of what needed to be done were rote theoreticals easily memorized and utilized. \n\n\tBut not this.\n\n\tThe nearby community college had worked things out with a professor from Western Michigan University so that one of their professors would teach some classes here as part of a program between the two schools. An English teacher. A published author. Someone who taught literature beyond just pushing out rote which was itself correct or incorrect. Best of all, it was an author who's works Hui actually read and loved! \n\n\tIt was a chance too good to pass up. Admittedly it came with a few logistical challenges. The biggest one being getting to and from the campus. There was no real bus to the place, so getting there would require ridesharing. Ten bucks a trip. With either her parents or a friend picking her up for the way back. That sacrifice was coming out of the money Hui had made over the summer. But it was beyond worth it for this chance, as was the added time between when school `should' end and when this last class would end for her.\n\n\tSo now here she sat, rail straight in the middle of the room on some hard plastic chair that was clearly older than she was.. Her jet black hair pulled back into a set of smart pigtails, A clean white button up shirt and sweater vest along with a plaid skirt. She'd even busted out some perfume her friend Esme had talked her into getting during a trip to the mall. Everything prim and proper for her first day in a real college classroom gaining the kind of insight that would carry her on to her future. It was the first time since she had turned eighteen that Hui felt like an actual `adult' in any tangible sense. She was going to capitalize on that feeling, no matter what.\n\n\tThere were far fewer people in the class than Hui had expected. A rather femmy looking black and yellow lizard boy off in one corner huffing on a vape. An eager, blonde bat boy in a G Gundam tee shirt. A pair of curly haired canine girls gabbing in the back, a very studious looking raven man who absolutely was not college age anymore sat with his laptop open and a notepad beside it. Objectively it all just seemed like another classroom. But for Hui the tiny gathering of clearly functional adults was beyond intimidating. Over a dozen people with jobs and lives, and here she was some little kid playing dress-up.\n\n\tShe found herself dwelling on that fact while the whole class buzzed away around her. Those noises all stopped once the door to the class opened. The figure standing there might almost be mistaken for another student at first glance. She was short. A bit shorter than Hui, in fact. A tawny-furred mouse with a long braid of chestnut hair running down her back nearing her knees. The woman dressed in a button-up shirt and a tweed jacket with leather elbows, along with a smart black business skirt and thick coke bottle glasses. Everyone watched as she made her way to the desk and sat a bag down on it. Green eyes shimmering out from long bangs and falling on the assembled students.\n\n\tThe middle-aged mouse woman wandered her way in and began to write a name down on the board. Her body twisting and contouring to compensate for her short stature. There was a footstool by the whiteboard, and she used it to reach near the top. Large flourished letters covering the top-left corner of the board.\n\n\t``Hello, class. My name is Ester Herman-Peterson. You can call me Ms. Peterson if you wish. Now, before we begin I should ask, is anyone here because they are a fan of my work? Say, the `Children of Danu` books?'' \n\n\tA few hands shot up. Hui's included\n\n\t``And is anyone here th-thinking that th-they will get a chance to see the Cal-arts cartoon coming out based on the setting?'' The teacher said with only a slight stutter to her Th's\n\n\tMost hands dropped. The bat boy's remained up.\n\n\t``You can go ahead and go.'' the teacher waved a paw dismissively. The boy had made it most of the way out of the class before the teacher sighed loudly and thudded both paws on her desk. ``Th-that was a joke. Sit down, please.'' She watched as the wayward student slowly moved back to his seat and once more got settled in under the eyes of the other assembled furs.\n\n\tThe prim and proper mouse took a quick scan of the class. Her tail flicked like a whip against the floor every time some stray noise broke the otherwise perfect calm she commanded around her. She then turned back to the board, writing out one word in big, bold letters. This one was a bit lower down and didn't require a step stool, but it was big enough that the whole class could see it.\n\n\t``Literature.'' The professor proclaimed the word while underlining it. ``Who here can give me an example of literature.''\n\n\tHands shot up. Hui was shocked at how quick some of them were. Normally she was the only one to even bother in most of her classes. Now here she was in a college class. Surrounded by people who had already passed the threshold of graduation. Her own paw reluctantly joined the others around the room. She watched as Professor Peterson pointed to one of them. A smartly dressed if somewhat tomboyish feline in overalls.\n\n\t``The Tempest.'' The cat chirped happily.\n\n\t``Good. Good. A bit basic, but good.'' Ester nodded. She wrote out the title under the header.\n\n\t``Lord of the rings.'' Another student called. The teacher putting it down with a small chuckle.\n\n\t``The Brothers Karamazov''\n\n\t\n\n\t``The Iliad''\n\n\t\n\n\t``Pride and Prejudice''\n\n\t``Game of Thrones!'' An enthusiastic zebra called from the back of the room. \n\n\tThe professor stopped. Her ears drooping a bit. She made her way around the desk with eyes locked on the student who'd given the answer. Gazing up at him over the rims of her glasses. ``Technically, a correct answer. Assuming you have no problem sitting though overly-long and tedious descriptions while characters you're either supposed to hate absolutely or care deeply about line up to die for the sake of the author's shallow sadism. Then yes, that would technically be a correct answer. Just as Martin would technically be an author rather than the world`s most overrated troll.''\n\n\tThe whole class burst into stifled chuckles at the dressing down. Hui was quick to yank her own hand down and toss the other arm over it as if it would somehow shelter her from sight.\n\n\tThe teacher, it seemed, had not missed this gesture. She pointed the pen cap at the red panda girl. That otherwise innocuous waggling plastic cylinder floating like a magic wand ready to smash a lightning bolt right in to the unprepared student.\n\n\t``You. You had an answer?'' The professor asked the question with a sinister grin that seemed hypocritical given her dressing down of an author's presumed sadism only moments ago.\n\n\tHui shook her head frantically and pushed back into the hard plastic of her seat. ``I, er, no. I mean I did but... I think it was a stupid answer.''\n\n\t``I didn't ask if it was a stupid answer. I want to hear what it was.'' Professor Peterson corrected\n\n\tHui racked her brain for something better than what she had. None of her teachers had ever cornered her like this. The perfect pupil was suddenly pinned under the gaze of a real professor. The veritable textbook of smart-sounding books she'd read in the past refused to come to mind while that one dumb solution kept circling around in her head.\n\n\t``Well, uh.'' Hui muttered ``I guess I do have a few authors I really like. You know. On Ao3?'' Hui ducked down as much as the cheap chair would allow and resisted the growing urge to cover her head with a book. Not that any shelter could save her from the impending verbal onslaught.\n\n\tThat attack never came. When Hui finally looked up she saw the word `Fanfiction' written under the other listed works. A fact that she was sure she had to be hallucinating.\n\n\t``That's more like it.'' Professor Peterson nodded her approval. ``Now we're getting somewhere. So, how about Kingdom Hearts? What about The Owl House? Maybe some Yu Yu Hakusho?'' The list continued to grow as the teacher put down new things. Watchmen. The Witcher. Cyberpunk 2077. When she'd finally finished the mouse set her marker down and turned back to the class leaning her slender frame on the back of the office chair as she looked out at the assembled students.\n\n\t``Telling stories is one of our earliest forms of entertainment.'' The Professor declared ``It is right there with singing as one of the first things any fur did around campfires in caves back when our collective ancestors were still figuring out that they could cook food to get more out of it. It is primal in a way few other things in this world are primal.'' \n\n\tThe mouse dug a paw into the pocket of her tweed jacket and withdrew a small grey plastic remote. A few button presses and the projector bolted to the classroom ceiling sang itself to life. An image projected out on to a blank bit of whiteboard.\n\n\t``What sets us apart from our various feral cousins is, more than anything, communication. We evolved due to communication. We grew intellect because we could pass on ideas. When you look at a news article of feral Orangutan disarming poacher traps and even warning off activists they think will get caught in those traps? That's evolution. When you hear about feral ravens who will make bonds with people and trade the objects for food? That's evolution. Stories are part of how we evolve. As a people. As a society.'' As she spoke she flipped though some of these articles. Dolphins saving swimmers. Whales with vast communication ranges. Articles on how some species evolved specific traits to pack-bond with sapient life forms even if they didn't share a common ancestor.\n\n\tEster's eyes then locked on the high school girl who'd sparked this all. An almost cat-ish smirk growing on the professor's muzzle. ``A good story is a good story. It doesn't matter where it's published. Or if it's published. Some of the best stories I've ever heard came from my wife and I as kids, with our parents, playing tabletop games on a Friday night. That's what you are here to learn.''\n\n\t``I thought we were here to learn how to write.'' The iguana boy in the corner of the class. His words quickly lost their smug edge as the mouse turned from Hui and locked eyes on him.\n\n\t``If you're here it means you passed enough basic English classes that you know how to use the correct grammar when you need to. Hopefully it means you know when to break those conventions as well. I'm not here to teach you that. Frankly you should have spellcheck by now and anyone here who is serious about writing will have an editor to help fix things. Maybe even beta readers. My class is about how to write a story. If you just want technical precision, your computer should have that covered.''\n\n\tOne of the figures, a tabby cat in a green sweater, threw up her paw to this. ``Um, ma'am. Then what are we supposed to learn here?''\n\n\tThere was clear contempt radiating off of the mouse. The whole class recoiled ever so slightly from the teacher's stony silence. When those green orbs fell on the girl who had asked the question, it came with a small, almost imperceptible smile at the corner of her muzzle. Once again the professor put a paw in her pocket. This time withdrawing a small red D20. A few of the class seemed to recognize it. Most were simply confused.\n\n\t``I have a list.'' Professor Peterson began. ``Writing prompts. Every week at the end of a class I'll be taking out this dice, and rolling it once for each of you. Whatever I roll, you get. I'll expect a story. One thousand words minimum. You can write more, but it won't help your grade any to simply waste my time.'' She set the die down on the desk and glanced around the room once more. Only when it was clear no more questions were coming did the teacher bother to continue. ``I'll be happy to answer any questions with what office hours I have. I'm not going to change your prompts though. Not without a good reason. I'm here to teach you how to tell a story. That's different for everyone but the first step is seeing how you think and how you write. That's why the first roll will be at the end of class today.''\n\n\tThe reactions of the class were mixed. Mostly typing. A few dejected groans. Hui for her part felt her heart skip a beat. Someone was going to read her work? Someone who wasn't an obligated friend or lover? Someone who actually knew enough about it to get something published? Even in her most fun gaming sessions Hui had never been this excited for a roll. This was going to be an epic semester.\t\n\n--------------------\n\n\tWhen the teacher had said `office hours'. Hui had expected, well, an office. It seemed silly on reflection. The Professor wasn't a regular here. She was basically a guest teacher. Why would she have her own space to do paperwork? She probably had some nice, big comfy spot up at Western to do all of that.\n\n\tHui still knocked. The diminutive mouse woman shot upright at the noise. There was a bit of frantic hurry which wasn't there before with the calm and in-control rodent. Right away Hui wondered if she'd made a mistake even coming.\n\n\t``Come in. Ms. Sang, was it?'' Professor Peterson's tone was curt. Another little dagger of guilt telling Hui she'd made a mistake coming here.\n\n\t``I'm sorry to bother you, Ms. Peterson.'' The wah started as she walked slowly towards the desk. ``I wanted to say I was sorry for my comment in class today.''\n\n\t``Which comment?'' The mouse quirked her brow and stopped rooting in her messenger bag. Her full attention now fixed on Hui. An even less comfortable position to be in.\n\n\tThe poor student found herself with a sudden reluctance to answer. She smiled politely and made her way up to the desk, leaning on it a few moments without saying a word. Those few moments drew out to what felt like uncomfortable minutes. Her brain was stun locked while simultaneously screaming for her to say something. The teacher's expression a mix of frustration and abject confusion.\n\n\t``I suppose.'' Hui started ``Mainly about the fan fiction thing. I appreciate you taking the effort to spin that. But it was a really stupid answer. Especially for the first day of class.''\n\n\t``It wasn't stupid.'' A bit more of the stutter had crept into the mouse's words than had been there when lecturing. ``Fanfiction is still fiction. If I thought it wasn't I would have said so.''\n\n\t``Well yeah but it's still not `literature'. I mean, it's not the kind of thing you bring up on your first day in class. Especially not a real college class.''\n\n\t``Is th-th-the college part important?'' Professor Peterson's stutter seemed to be worse now. In fact Hui noticed it had been worse when talking one on one than it was during the class. She made a mental note of it, mainly to ensure she didn't say anything about it.\n\n\t``If I'm being honest'' Hui sighed. Her whole body suddenly felt a bit heavier. ``I guess it is. Because this is what sets my whole life on track. High school is nice and all but nobody cares if you peak in high school. You still have time to change your life path by senior year. Which is where I am now. Up until now I was just focused on getting good grades and spending time with my Ma-, with my boyfriend. Typical girl stuff.'' She was dimly aware of the fact that her finger was fiddling with the ring of her day-collar. Something she'd made a conscious decision to wear here even though it clashed a bit with the rest of her prim aesthetic.\n\n\tThe look the mouse matron gave Hui was, to put it mildly, uncomfortable. Mercifully it faded just as quickly.\n\n\t``So did you break up with this `boyfriend?'' the teacher offered ``\n\n\t``No.'' Hui sighed ``he's just in college now. So now is as good a time as any to figure out what `I' want to do. I know what my parents want me to do. Well, kinda. I know they want me to get something like a law or med school degree at the very least.''\n\n\tThe teacher paused for a moment. Those emerald eyes scanned Hui up and down. It felt for all the world like the mouse was feeling out her student's worth. ``And what do you want?'' The teacher asked.\n\n\tThe obvious question somehow still knocked Hui off guard. Her eyes quickly falling to the floor. ``I don't know.'' Hui muttered ``I mean, I do know. I want to marry Justin. I want to be happy. I do want a job. It wouldn't be fair to expect him to carry us both. Plus, I like writing. Part of me wonders if I was just waiting for my parents to tell me what I'd major in. But I see how long doctors and lawyers work. I see how long my parents work, too. They aren't in those fields but it's still long hours every night.''\n\n\t``So you have the credentials to skip right into my classes, but you still don't know what to major in?'' the Professor blinked\n\n\t``A Doctorate. Or something like it. It'd be a waste otherwise.'' Even Hui didn't feel any conviction behind her voice. She swished her tail along the cheap tile floor and rubbed her thumbs into the teacher's desk. The more she talked the bigger the ball of nervous energy became in her stomach. To the point where she felt like she could just burst at any second. ``I guess the issue is that I'm worried that'd be a waste, too. I mean nobody has told me what degree to get yet. So part of me still wonders...''\n\n\tThere was always a bit of a problem for Hui when it came to reading people. She saw the stony face of the mouse as the professor checked her phone. She was wasting the woman's time and she knew it. Rambling and venting about things that should be addressed with the school therapist. Rambling about things \n\n\t``So I take it you're considering other options beyond what your parents are likely hoping for?'' The mouse sounded as if she was biting back a scoff, her eyes narrowing a bit ``Is that why you decided to take my class?\n\n\t``No ma`am!'' Hui yelped ``I mean, not really. I took it because you`re one of my favorite authors. Maybe that doesn't mean much coming from someone who loves trashy fanfic. But I`d love to be able to write that kind of original work and have people actually want to read it! It`d be amazing. Even if I knew what I was taking I can`t pass up a chance like this. It's, well, It's just kind of scary, I suppose.'' Hui sighed. ``I know what kind of job my parents want me to get. A-and look, I love my parents. I know they just want what's best for me. But I'm starting to think I really want to be a writer. If I'm going to get a degree-''\n\n\t``Don't.'' Ms. Peterson's words snapped curtly though the air\n\n\t``I... wah?'' Hui blinked\n\n\t``Don't get an English degree. If you want to be a writer, then major in something marketable and maybe minor in Library studies. Or hell, major in Library studies and get a job in a private archive.''\n\n\tThe younger woman stood dumbfounded. She gazed at her new teacher in confused awe. ``I, but I don't understand. You're a writer, ma'am. A published one. A successful one.''\n\n\t``And it has noting at all to do with my degree.'' Ms. Peterson squeeked. ``Well, ok. That's not entirely true. But my degree also kinda sucks.'' The mouse leaned forward on the desk. Leather patches on her tweed jacket grinding down hard as she sought to get her muzzle comfortable on her folded hands. Her shimmering green eyes, still holding a spark of innocence from her youth, heavily tempered with a cold resolve. ``Two years. I spent two years following my `passion' once I graduated. Leaving my wife, my baby and our friends behind for months at a time. All to sit in some tent in the ass end of Scotland dragging bogs in the hopes of finding some metal shard or a roadway plank. Or going over worn down rocks in a field hoping to find some Ogham script on one or two of them we dug up.''\n\n\t``But isn't that what you wanted to do?'' Hui whined\n\n\t``I thought it was. When I was a kid. I thought I'd find some ancient civilization or uncover something that changed how we see history. I thought there'd be some hidden lore like in a video game just waiting for the right person to come grab it. Eventually I realized I just didn't care. Even if I did find something like that, so what?'' The older woman's muzzle drew into a thin smile as she looked up into the distance. \n\n\tHui's face twisted. She looked down at the floor and let herself slump back, nearly falling over. She kept waiting for the mouse matron to say this was some kind of joke. Some elaborate bit of storytelling to make a point. \n\n\tInstead, the professor pulled out her phone and flipped though it until reaching a picture of two chipmunks. An adult woman in a brown leather coat and simple black tee shirt with a girl of about six on her shoulders. The younger girl in overalls, light up sneakers and a Stephen Universe tee shirt with her arms in the air.\n\n\t``Your family?'' Hui felt her throat tighten a bit as she offered the question.\n\n\tProfessor Peterson nodded. The listless look she sported had broken just a touch. ``Thankfully. After some hard lessons.'' the Professor sighed. ``My mother always supported me. I mean that. She adopted me as a single mother. She gave everything for me. But she also regretted she spent too much time at work. One day I came back from a flight to see my little angel in her gramma's lap. I was a wreck after the flight over the Atlantic. I passed out on the dining room table. We had a long talk after that.'' Ester snerked. ``My wife was still a cop, so she was busy all the time. I was gone all the time. Neither of us were happy. Our daughter wasn't happy. If I hadn't gotten lucky with my writing all I'd have is a mound of debt and maybe a job cataloguing displays in a museum somewhere. More likely I'd end up folding jeans or selling stereos or something.''\n\n\t``Isn't that... normal?'' The question was painful. Hui found herself shocked by that fact. She could see the teacher noticed it as well. The way Ms. Peterson's face scrunched. The way she fought back a small jolt of discomfort. It was clearly a question the mouse had faced before.\n\n\tHui thought about her parents. Always gone. Always at work. Her father's dreams of spending retirement camping all over the state. Her mother's late nights and careful saving to ensure the children would get in to good schools. They loved her. They loved Chen. There was never a shred of doubt in Hui's mind about that. But then the question came. How often had they left the two with Justin's mom growing up. Or his grandparents. Or various babysitters from church? Suddenly a thousand little things began unlocking. How so few other kids would walk to the library after school or be walking home on their own around town. The constant flood of lessons and activities hoisted on them. How often did the Sang family all even find themselves under the same roof before 9PM?\n\n\t``Look, Ms. Sang.'' The mouse finally sighed. ``I get that you're going though a lot. I'd like to talk about it with you in detail some time. But I do have to get home. I'm interested to see what you come up with in your first work. But I hope you won't stress too much about what I've said to you. Though if I can give you one bit of advice? Writers write. That`s it. You don`t need me, or a slip of paper, or anyone else to tell you that you`re a writer. Understand?''\n\n\tHui nodded dumbly. Part of her did. Most of her was still running though strings of mental code trying to pick out what she was even thinking at this point. She shuffled like a zombie out of the room as the teacher came along behind and locked it tight. Hui watched cult author Ester Peterson hurry away to her family and just... stood there. Dumbfounded. Wondering why the waves of anxiety were rolling around inside of her.\n\n\tIt was about the sixth time her chimed out the level up noise from Final Fantasy 14 that Hui snapped out of her stupor and checked the messages. She glanced over the string of increasingly angry and worried texts from Esme, dashing down the hall and swearing under her breath as her friend's annoyance dragged her back to reality.\n\n\tThis was going to be a long semester.\n\n", "writing_bbcode_parsed": "Collared Chapter 6: Writers write

By TerraMGP

\tHui Sang was no stranger to difficult classes. Academic excellence had been the expected norm her whole life. Many of her classes during the last school year had been AP or otherwise bordered on the level one usually found at a university. The reward for both a sharp mind and diligent study. Most of those, however, had been at her school. Online classes overseen by a relevant teacher or the like. Things like math and science where much of what needed to be done were rote theoreticals easily memorized and utilized.

\tBut not this.

\tThe nearby community college had worked things out with a professor from Western Michigan University so that one of their professors would teach some classes here as part of a program between the two schools. An English teacher. A published author. Someone who taught literature beyond just pushing out rote which was itself correct or incorrect. Best of all, it was an author who's works Hui actually read and loved!

\tIt was a chance too good to pass up. Admittedly it came with a few logistical challenges. The biggest one being getting to and from the campus. There was no real bus to the place, so getting there would require ridesharing. Ten bucks a trip. With either her parents or a friend picking her up for the way back. That sacrifice was coming out of the money Hui had made over the summer. But it was beyond worth it for this chance, as was the added time between when school `should' end and when this last class would end for her.

\tSo now here she sat, rail straight in the middle of the room on some hard plastic chair that was clearly older than she was.. Her jet black hair pulled back into a set of smart pigtails, A clean white button up shirt and sweater vest along with a plaid skirt. She'd even busted out some perfume her friend Esme had talked her into getting during a trip to the mall. Everything prim and proper for her first day in a real college classroom gaining the kind of insight that would carry her on to her future. It was the first time since she had turned eighteen that Hui felt like an actual `adult' in any tangible sense. She was going to capitalize on that feeling, no matter what.

\tThere were far fewer people in the class than Hui had expected. A rather femmy looking black and yellow lizard boy off in one corner huffing on a vape. An eager, blonde bat boy in a G Gundam tee shirt. A pair of curly haired canine girls gabbing in the back, a very studious looking raven man who absolutely was not college age anymore sat with his laptop open and a notepad beside it. Objectively it all just seemed like another classroom. But for Hui the tiny gathering of clearly functional adults was beyond intimidating. Over a dozen people with jobs and lives, and here she was some little kid playing dress-up.

\tShe found herself dwelling on that fact while the whole class buzzed away around her. Those noises all stopped once the door to the class opened. The figure standing there might almost be mistaken for another student at first glance. She was short. A bit shorter than Hui, in fact. A tawny-furred mouse with a long braid of chestnut hair running down her back nearing her knees. The woman dressed in a button-up shirt and a tweed jacket with leather elbows, along with a smart black business skirt and thick coke bottle glasses. Everyone watched as she made her way to the desk and sat a bag down on it. Green eyes shimmering out from long bangs and falling on the assembled students.

\tThe middle-aged mouse woman wandered her way in and began to write a name down on the board. Her body twisting and contouring to compensate for her short stature. There was a footstool by the whiteboard, and she used it to reach near the top. Large flourished letters covering the top-left corner of the board.

\t``Hello, class. My name is Ester Herman-Peterson. You can call me Ms. Peterson if you wish. Now, before we begin I should ask, is anyone here because they are a fan of my work? Say, the `Children of Danu` books?''

\tA few hands shot up. Hui's included

\t``And is anyone here th-thinking that th-they will get a chance to see the Cal-arts cartoon coming out based on the setting?'' The teacher said with only a slight stutter to her Th's

\tMost hands dropped. The bat boy's remained up.

\t``You can go ahead and go.'' the teacher waved a paw dismissively. The boy had made it most of the way out of the class before the teacher sighed loudly and thudded both paws on her desk. ``Th-that was a joke. Sit down, please.'' She watched as the wayward student slowly moved back to his seat and once more got settled in under the eyes of the other assembled furs.

\tThe prim and proper mouse took a quick scan of the class. Her tail flicked like a whip against the floor every time some stray noise broke the otherwise perfect calm she commanded around her. She then turned back to the board, writing out one word in big, bold letters. This one was a bit lower down and didn't require a step stool, but it was big enough that the whole class could see it.

\t``Literature.'' The professor proclaimed the word while underlining it. ``Who here can give me an example of literature.''

\tHands shot up. Hui was shocked at how quick some of them were. Normally she was the only one to even bother in most of her classes. Now here she was in a college class. Surrounded by people who had already passed the threshold of graduation. Her own paw reluctantly joined the others around the room. She watched as Professor Peterson pointed to one of them. A smartly dressed if somewhat tomboyish feline in overalls.

\t``The Tempest.'' The cat chirped happily.

\t``Good. Good. A bit basic, but good.'' Ester nodded. She wrote out the title under the header.

\t``Lord of the rings.'' Another student called. The teacher putting it down with a small chuckle.

\t``The Brothers Karamazov''

\t

\t``The Iliad''

\t

\t``Pride and Prejudice''

\t``Game of Thrones!'' An enthusiastic zebra called from the back of the room.

\tThe professor stopped. Her ears drooping a bit. She made her way around the desk with eyes locked on the student who'd given the answer. Gazing up at him over the rims of her glasses. ``Technically, a correct answer. Assuming you have no problem sitting though overly-long and tedious descriptions while characters you're either supposed to hate absolutely or care deeply about line up to die for the sake of the author's shallow sadism. Then yes, that would technically be a correct answer. Just as Martin would technically be an author rather than the world`s most overrated troll.''

\tThe whole class burst into stifled chuckles at the dressing down. Hui was quick to yank her own hand down and toss the other arm over it as if it would somehow shelter her from sight.

\tThe teacher, it seemed, had not missed this gesture. She pointed the pen cap at the red panda girl. That otherwise innocuous waggling plastic cylinder floating like a magic wand ready to smash a lightning bolt right in to the unprepared student.

\t``You. You had an answer?'' The professor asked the question with a sinister grin that seemed hypocritical given her dressing down of an author's presumed sadism only moments ago.

\tHui shook her head frantically and pushed back into the hard plastic of her seat. ``I, er, no. I mean I did but... I think it was a stupid answer.''

\t``I didn't ask if it was a stupid answer. I want to hear what it was.'' Professor Peterson corrected

\tHui racked her brain for something better than what she had. None of her teachers had ever cornered her like this. The perfect pupil was suddenly pinned under the gaze of a real professor. The veritable textbook of smart-sounding books she'd read in the past refused to come to mind while that one dumb solution kept circling around in her head.

\t``Well, uh.'' Hui muttered ``I guess I do have a few authors I really like. You know. On Ao3?'' Hui ducked down as much as the cheap chair would allow and resisted the growing urge to cover her head with a book. Not that any shelter could save her from the impending verbal onslaught.

\tThat attack never came. When Hui finally looked up she saw the word `Fanfiction' written under the other listed works. A fact that she was sure she had to be hallucinating.

\t``That's more like it.'' Professor Peterson nodded her approval. ``Now we're getting somewhere. So, how about Kingdom Hearts? What about The Owl House? Maybe some Yu Yu Hakusho?'' The list continued to grow as the teacher put down new things. Watchmen. The Witcher. Cyberpunk 2077. When she'd finally finished the mouse set her marker down and turned back to the class leaning her slender frame on the back of the office chair as she looked out at the assembled students.

\t``Telling stories is one of our earliest forms of entertainment.'' The Professor declared ``It is right there with singing as one of the first things any fur did around campfires in caves back when our collective ancestors were still figuring out that they could cook food to get more out of it. It is primal in a way few other things in this world are primal.''

\tThe mouse dug a paw into the pocket of her tweed jacket and withdrew a small grey plastic remote. A few button presses and the projector bolted to the classroom ceiling sang itself to life. An image projected out on to a blank bit of whiteboard.

\t``What sets us apart from our various feral cousins is, more than anything, communication. We evolved due to communication. We grew intellect because we could pass on ideas. When you look at a news article of feral Orangutan disarming poacher traps and even warning off activists they think will get caught in those traps? That's evolution. When you hear about feral ravens who will make bonds with people and trade the objects for food? That's evolution. Stories are part of how we evolve. As a people. As a society.'' As she spoke she flipped though some of these articles. Dolphins saving swimmers. Whales with vast communication ranges. Articles on how some species evolved specific traits to pack-bond with sapient life forms even if they didn't share a common ancestor.

\tEster's eyes then locked on the high school girl who'd sparked this all. An almost cat-ish smirk growing on the professor's muzzle. ``A good story is a good story. It doesn't matter where it's published. Or if it's published. Some of the best stories I've ever heard came from my wife and I as kids, with our parents, playing tabletop games on a Friday night. That's what you are here to learn.''

\t``I thought we were here to learn how to write.'' The iguana boy in the corner of the class. His words quickly lost their smug edge as the mouse turned from Hui and locked eyes on him.

\t``If you're here it means you passed enough basic English classes that you know how to use the correct grammar when you need to. Hopefully it means you know when to break those conventions as well. I'm not here to teach you that. Frankly you should have spellcheck by now and anyone here who is serious about writing will have an editor to help fix things. Maybe even beta readers. My class is about how to write a story. If you just want technical precision, your computer should have that covered.''

\tOne of the figures, a tabby cat in a green sweater, threw up her paw to this. ``Um, ma'am. Then what are we supposed to learn here?''

\tThere was clear contempt radiating off of the mouse. The whole class recoiled ever so slightly from the teacher's stony silence. When those green orbs fell on the girl who had asked the question, it came with a small, almost imperceptible smile at the corner of her muzzle. Once again the professor put a paw in her pocket. This time withdrawing a small red D20. A few of the class seemed to recognize it. Most were simply confused.

\t``I have a list.'' Professor Peterson began. ``Writing prompts. Every week at the end of a class I'll be taking out this dice, and rolling it once for each of you. Whatever I roll, you get. I'll expect a story. One thousand words minimum. You can write more, but it won't help your grade any to simply waste my time.'' She set the die down on the desk and glanced around the room once more. Only when it was clear no more questions were coming did the teacher bother to continue. ``I'll be happy to answer any questions with what office hours I have. I'm not going to change your prompts though. Not without a good reason. I'm here to teach you how to tell a story. That's different for everyone but the first step is seeing how you think and how you write. That's why the first roll will be at the end of class today.''

\tThe reactions of the class were mixed. Mostly typing. A few dejected groans. Hui for her part felt her heart skip a beat. Someone was going to read her work? Someone who wasn't an obligated friend or lover? Someone who actually knew enough about it to get something published? Even in her most fun gaming sessions Hui had never been this excited for a roll. This was going to be an epic semester.\t

--------------------

\tWhen the teacher had said `office hours'. Hui had expected, well, an office. It seemed silly on reflection. The Professor wasn't a regular here. She was basically a guest teacher. Why would she have her own space to do paperwork? She probably had some nice, big comfy spot up at Western to do all of that.

\tHui still knocked. The diminutive mouse woman shot upright at the noise. There was a bit of frantic hurry which wasn't there before with the calm and in-control rodent. Right away Hui wondered if she'd made a mistake even coming.

\t``Come in. Ms. Sang, was it?'' Professor Peterson's tone was curt. Another little dagger of guilt telling Hui she'd made a mistake coming here.

\t``I'm sorry to bother you, Ms. Peterson.'' The wah started as she walked slowly towards the desk. ``I wanted to say I was sorry for my comment in class today.''

\t``Which comment?'' The mouse quirked her brow and stopped rooting in her messenger bag. Her full attention now fixed on Hui. An even less comfortable position to be in.

\tThe poor student found herself with a sudden reluctance to answer. She smiled politely and made her way up to the desk, leaning on it a few moments without saying a word. Those few moments drew out to what felt like uncomfortable minutes. Her brain was stun locked while simultaneously screaming for her to say something. The teacher's expression a mix of frustration and abject confusion.

\t``I suppose.'' Hui started ``Mainly about the fan fiction thing. I appreciate you taking the effort to spin that. But it was a really stupid answer. Especially for the first day of class.''

\t``It wasn't stupid.'' A bit more of the stutter had crept into the mouse's words than had been there when lecturing. ``Fanfiction is still fiction. If I thought it wasn't I would have said so.''

\t``Well yeah but it's still not `literature'. I mean, it's not the kind of thing you bring up on your first day in class. Especially not a real college class.''

\t``Is th-th-the college part important?'' Professor Peterson's stutter seemed to be worse now. In fact Hui noticed it had been worse when talking one on one than it was during the class. She made a mental note of it, mainly to ensure she didn't say anything about it.

\t``If I'm being honest'' Hui sighed. Her whole body suddenly felt a bit heavier. ``I guess it is. Because this is what sets my whole life on track. High school is nice and all but nobody cares if you peak in high school. You still have time to change your life path by senior year. Which is where I am now. Up until now I was just focused on getting good grades and spending time with my Ma-, with my boyfriend. Typical girl stuff.'' She was dimly aware of the fact that her finger was fiddling with the ring of her day-collar. Something she'd made a conscious decision to wear here even though it clashed a bit with the rest of her prim aesthetic.

\tThe look the mouse matron gave Hui was, to put it mildly, uncomfortable. Mercifully it faded just as quickly.

\t``So did you break up with this `boyfriend?'' the teacher offered ``

\t``No.'' Hui sighed ``he's just in college now. So now is as good a time as any to figure out what `I' want to do. I know what my parents want me to do. Well, kinda. I know they want me to get something like a law or med school degree at the very least.''

\tThe teacher paused for a moment. Those emerald eyes scanned Hui up and down. It felt for all the world like the mouse was feeling out her student's worth. ``And what do you want?'' The teacher asked.

\tThe obvious question somehow still knocked Hui off guard. Her eyes quickly falling to the floor. ``I don't know.'' Hui muttered ``I mean, I do know. I want to marry Justin. I want to be happy. I do want a job. It wouldn't be fair to expect him to carry us both. Plus, I like writing. Part of me wonders if I was just waiting for my parents to tell me what I'd major in. But I see how long doctors and lawyers work. I see how long my parents work, too. They aren't in those fields but it's still long hours every night.''

\t``So you have the credentials to skip right into my classes, but you still don't know what to major in?'' the Professor blinked

\t``A Doctorate. Or something like it. It'd be a waste otherwise.'' Even Hui didn't feel any conviction behind her voice. She swished her tail along the cheap tile floor and rubbed her thumbs into the teacher's desk. The more she talked the bigger the ball of nervous energy became in her stomach. To the point where she felt like she could just burst at any second. ``I guess the issue is that I'm worried that'd be a waste, too. I mean nobody has told me what degree to get yet. So part of me still wonders...''

\tThere was always a bit of a problem for Hui when it came to reading people. She saw the stony face of the mouse as the professor checked her phone. She was wasting the woman's time and she knew it. Rambling and venting about things that should be addressed with the school therapist. Rambling about things

\t``So I take it you're considering other options beyond what your parents are likely hoping for?'' The mouse sounded as if she was biting back a scoff, her eyes narrowing a bit ``Is that why you decided to take my class?

\t``No ma`am!'' Hui yelped ``I mean, not really. I took it because you`re one of my favorite authors. Maybe that doesn't mean much coming from someone who loves trashy fanfic. But I`d love to be able to write that kind of original work and have people actually want to read it! It`d be amazing. Even if I knew what I was taking I can`t pass up a chance like this. It's, well, It's just kind of scary, I suppose.'' Hui sighed. ``I know what kind of job my parents want me to get. A-and look, I love my parents. I know they just want what's best for me. But I'm starting to think I really want to be a writer. If I'm going to get a degree-''

\t``Don't.'' Ms. Peterson's words snapped curtly though the air

\t``I... wah?'' Hui blinked

\t``Don't get an English degree. If you want to be a writer, then major in something marketable and maybe minor in Library studies. Or hell, major in Library studies and get a job in a private archive.''

\tThe younger woman stood dumbfounded. She gazed at her new teacher in confused awe. ``I, but I don't understand. You're a writer, ma'am. A published one. A successful one.''

\t``And it has noting at all to do with my degree.'' Ms. Peterson squeeked. ``Well, ok. That's not entirely true. But my degree also kinda sucks.'' The mouse leaned forward on the desk. Leather patches on her tweed jacket grinding down hard as she sought to get her muzzle comfortable on her folded hands. Her shimmering green eyes, still holding a spark of innocence from her youth, heavily tempered with a cold resolve. ``Two years. I spent two years following my `passion' once I graduated. Leaving my wife, my baby and our friends behind for months at a time. All to sit in some tent in the ass end of Scotland dragging bogs in the hopes of finding some metal shard or a roadway plank. Or going over worn down rocks in a field hoping to find some Ogham script on one or two of them we dug up.''

\t``But isn't that what you wanted to do?'' Hui whined

\t``I thought it was. When I was a kid. I thought I'd find some ancient civilization or uncover something that changed how we see history. I thought there'd be some hidden lore like in a video game just waiting for the right person to come grab it. Eventually I realized I just didn't care. Even if I did find something like that, so what?'' The older woman's muzzle drew into a thin smile as she looked up into the distance.

\tHui's face twisted. She looked down at the floor and let herself slump back, nearly falling over. She kept waiting for the mouse matron to say this was some kind of joke. Some elaborate bit of storytelling to make a point.

\tInstead, the professor pulled out her phone and flipped though it until reaching a picture of two chipmunks. An adult woman in a brown leather coat and simple black tee shirt with a girl of about six on her shoulders. The younger girl in overalls, light up sneakers and a Stephen Universe tee shirt with her arms in the air.

\t``Your family?'' Hui felt her throat tighten a bit as she offered the question.

\tProfessor Peterson nodded. The listless look she sported had broken just a touch. ``Thankfully. After some hard lessons.'' the Professor sighed. ``My mother always supported me. I mean that. She adopted me as a single mother. She gave everything for me. But she also regretted she spent too much time at work. One day I came back from a flight to see my little angel in her gramma's lap. I was a wreck after the flight over the Atlantic. I passed out on the dining room table. We had a long talk after that.'' Ester snerked. ``My wife was still a cop, so she was busy all the time. I was gone all the time. Neither of us were happy. Our daughter wasn't happy. If I hadn't gotten lucky with my writing all I'd have is a mound of debt and maybe a job cataloguing displays in a museum somewhere. More likely I'd end up folding jeans or selling stereos or something.''

\t``Isn't that... normal?'' The question was painful. Hui found herself shocked by that fact. She could see the teacher noticed it as well. The way Ms. Peterson's face scrunched. The way she fought back a small jolt of discomfort. It was clearly a question the mouse had faced before.

\tHui thought about her parents. Always gone. Always at work. Her father's dreams of spending retirement camping all over the state. Her mother's late nights and careful saving to ensure the children would get in to good schools. They loved her. They loved Chen. There was never a shred of doubt in Hui's mind about that. But then the question came. How often had they left the two with Justin's mom growing up. Or his grandparents. Or various babysitters from church? Suddenly a thousand little things began unlocking. How so few other kids would walk to the library after school or be walking home on their own around town. The constant flood of lessons and activities hoisted on them. How often did the Sang family all even find themselves under the same roof before 9PM?

\t``Look, Ms. Sang.'' The mouse finally sighed. ``I get that you're going though a lot. I'd like to talk about it with you in detail some time. But I do have to get home. I'm interested to see what you come up with in your first work. But I hope you won't stress too much about what I've said to you. Though if I can give you one bit of advice? Writers write. That`s it. You don`t need me, or a slip of paper, or anyone else to tell you that you`re a writer. Understand?''

\tHui nodded dumbly. Part of her did. Most of her was still running though strings of mental code trying to pick out what she was even thinking at this point. She shuffled like a zombie out of the room as the teacher came along behind and locked it tight. Hui watched cult author Ester Peterson hurry away to her family and just... stood there. Dumbfounded. Wondering why the waves of anxiety were rolling around inside of her.

\tIt was about the sixth time her chimed out the level up noise from Final Fantasy 14 that Hui snapped out of her stupor and checked the messages. She glanced over the string of increasingly angry and worried texts from Esme, dashing down the hall and swearing under her breath as her friend's annoyance dragged her back to reality.

\tThis was going to be a long semester.

", "pools_count": 1, "title": "Collared Chapter 6: Writers Write", "deleted": "f", "public": "t", "mimetype": "application/msword", "pagecount": "1", "rating_id": "2", "rating_name": "Adult", "ratings": [ { "content_tag_id": "4", "name": "Sexual Themes", "description": "Erotic imagery, sexual activity or arousal", "rating_id": "2" } ], "submission_type_id": "12", "type_name": "Writing - Document", "guest_block": "t", "friends_only": "f", "comments_count": "7", "views": "194" }