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After being in several fandoms with underage characters (Harry Potter, Avatar, Naruto, Fullmetal Alchemist) I've run into several repeated... ways authors deal with the underage-ness of their characters in smut fics. Now, this is a very much a 'your milage may vary' thing but I have to say I get really annoyed with the random 'age them up' solution. Or at least, one common way this plays out.
Often, I will see people put in their other's note: "They're older!" when the setting is exactly the same (i.e. it's at a point in the timeline when their age is directly stated) or when I can see (because it's a vid) that they're a certain age... It just feels like you're trying to cover your ass. I mean, I know they're underage, and you know there underage, and unless you're doing an actual post-series, "yes they're older, and they have the jobs/responsibilities/etc of adults," I just get annoyed.
Frankly, my perspective is, it's fiction. So, if I request a smut fic for say, Toph, I see her in my head as the Toph on the show, i.e. 12. Now, I have HUGE issues with 12 year olds having sex in real life but in fanfiction I find it really irritating when people just randomly throw and older age on them just so everyone feels more comfortable with it. That's what warnings and back-buttons are for. (Actually, Toph is probably a bad example, because I have a hard time buying that she's actually twelve, most of the time.)
*prepares for the lynching*
Often, I will see people put in their other's note: "They're older!" when the setting is exactly the same (i.e. it's at a point in the timeline when their age is directly stated) or when I can see (because it's a vid) that they're a certain age... It just feels like you're trying to cover your ass. I mean, I know they're underage, and you know there underage, and unless you're doing an actual post-series, "yes they're older, and they have the jobs/responsibilities/etc of adults," I just get annoyed.
Frankly, my perspective is, it's fiction. So, if I request a smut fic for say, Toph, I see her in my head as the Toph on the show, i.e. 12. Now, I have HUGE issues with 12 year olds having sex in real life but in fanfiction I find it really irritating when people just randomly throw and older age on them just so everyone feels more comfortable with it. That's what warnings and back-buttons are for. (Actually, Toph is probably a bad example, because I have a hard time buying that she's actually twelve, most of the time.)
*prepares for the lynching*
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