#how many fights does neil start

[allfor-thegames]

hc that the first time andrew and neil's team plays kevin, the foxes group chat resurrects itself. the pot on which team will win is in the thousands.

[cubbyyyy]

Neil is there to protect the one who protects them all.

Andrew always knew how to protect. He sure has his own ways that many fail to understand but the bottom line stays the same.

With Neil coming into his life he gets to be something else than just the protector - which I want to talk about here.

The exy obsessed junkie who claims to only care about his own survival is the first one who sees beyond Andrews play - who sees that Andrew doesn’t take care of himself at all. Too busy keeping an eye on everyone to care about what happens to his own self. And Neil hates it furiously.

So Neil puts Andrew first.

Starting with his health. Exy is important to Neil but he knows Andrew needs to get off the drugs first. The foxes found it easier to deal with Andrew while he’s on drugs, so they didn’t put much effort into changing that - Neil though. Neil saw what the drugs did to Andrew. So they had to get rid off it as fast as possible.

So he makes a deal. He gives up a piece of a truth, gives a promise and makes him go take care of himself.

He punches Riko because he couldn’t stop himself.

He agrees to go to Evermore - he agrees to torture just to keep Andrew save.

Afterwards he refuses to back down his care after being explicitly told to. “If it means loosing you then no”.

After being brutally tortured, one of the first things he does is inspecting Andrews bruises. Inspecting Andrews bruises the same way Andrew inspects his. “All that time fighting and you never learned how to duck?”

He told the cops off when they indicated getting Andrew off him “you’ll what, asshole?”

He was there in a heartbeat the second Andrew got pushed in the final game. And only backed off after checking Andrew was really alright.

For the first time Andrew has someone who has his back the same way he had the backs of everyone else for years. Andrew is fiercely protective and for the first time he is fiercely protected too.

“You are a pipe dream.”

[dstryvampres]

Save a Horse Ride a Cowboy

Paring: Neil Lewis x Reader

Word Count: 2.3k

Warnings: smut, you have a cowboy kink :3

“What do you think?” Neil says, strutting down the narrow hallway out of his office.

Looking up from the magazine you were mind-numbingly immersed in, mostly due to the weird jingling coming from where Neil was coming from, you were greeted with an oddly pleasant view. Neil, uncharacteristically, dressed up as a cowboy. Black cowboy hat, a pair of black loose fitting jeans to match, a light denim button up shirt tucked into his pants with a couple buttons undone at the top, a black bandana tied around his neck, and cowboy boots that edged on godawful. Somehow Neil’s outfit of the week wasn’t that bad, it was kind of attractive…

“Hello? Anyone in there,” Neil waves his hand infront of your face, you try to grab his wrist but he snatches his hand away before you can get a full grasp. “So?”

“I think it’s better than last Saturday’s Dracula costume, that’s for sure,” trying to sound as uninterested as you possibly can despite the fact that you were undeniably very into the cowboy thing.

“Oh, come on. I had you speechless for a good minute there,” Neil points out, before mimicking a one-man gun fight.

“It’s fine,” is all you give him.

Neil sighs dramatically and pouts. Walking over to the couch infront of the TV and flopping down onto it, his melodrama is almost good enough to make you pity him, but he’s pulled this trick one too many times for it to do the full damage he intended. Soon enough you're trying your best to flip through the magazine in your hands. Unlike last time, you can’t seem to find it as interesting as it was before you saw Neil. The cowboy outfit fit him a little too well. Amount of undone buttons showed off his collarbones so well, hat fit weirdly well ontop of his head, and his pants hugged his ass in a way that made you drool. Maybe your boss dressing up as a cowboy was a new awakening for you. God you really hope not.

“Welcome to Gumshoe!” Neil welcomes the customer, springing off the couch and fixing his hat, “We have a special deal on Westerns this week, if you want to look into that just let me or my lovely employee at the counter know.”

You smile at the customer, before your eyes start to drift over to Neil. How you were going to last a full day working here while he looked like that, you didn’t know. As he blabbed to the customer about whatever movie they could be looking for, you willed yourself to look anywhere else, to do anything else besides stare weirdly at your boss and give yourself a girl boner over his outfit. There’s always returns you can sort through and late calls you can make, is what you settle on.

Pulling out the box from under the counter you start to sort through the returns of the past couple of days absentmindedly. Despite trying your hardest not to stare at your boss and focus on your task, you can’t help it. As he stanters around the shop in those stupid black jeans, fixes the buttons on his shirt, even daring to pop another button open, you can feel the wetness in your pants increase by the minute. It’s embarrassing. You move over to the back corner to start storing the movies, hoping this new perspective with a noticeable lack of view of your employer will help calm you down, but it does nothing. Possibly making it worse, this lack of seeing the real Neil makes your imagination kick in. Oh, what he could do for you. Legs over his shoulders. Is he soft or rough? What would he say during it? Is it just the costume or has he always looked this good? There’s a tap on your shoulder and you whip your head around.

It’s Neil.

“Can you check out the customer? I’ll take this over, don’t worry.” A blush spreads over your cheeks, and you can only seem to nod offering a weak, guilty smile to him. Standing up on shaky legs you make your way over to the register trying to make as little contact with Neil as possible. Knowing that if you touch him you will moan.

Your face feels hot, likely flushed, so you check out the customer as fast as you can. Plan foiled by their lack of a loyalty card. Soon enough they are out the door and gone, but you could’ve sworn you input their address wrong.

“Is the A/C not working?” Neil had sneaked up on you, grasping your shoulder. You jump, causing him to let out a small laugh.

“Uh- Yeah, I think so? Why are you asking?”

You knew why he was asking, you were sweating profusely and were red in the face. Even leaving a sweaty hand mark on the register, and possibly the DVD the customer rented out. All fueled by the simple cowboy costume worn by the man behind you. Curse ‘Western week’ at Gumshoe Videos, and curse Neil and his need to dress up for every event the store held, no matter how miniscule. 

“You’re just very sweaty and red. Is there any other reason? Possibly got the hots for anyone,” Neil teased, poking your shoulder.

To anyone other than you, it would’ve been quite obvious that he wasn’t referring to himself and was, instead, referring to the customer who just left. After all, most of your more noticeable nerves showed up after their arrival. But your nerves paired with just how close Neil was to you lead to the disastrous reply.

“No! Of course not! And it’s definitely not you either.” Followed by nervous choppy laughter.

“What?” 

Neil was not laughing.

“I have to go stock shelves.”

Neil stands there for a couple seconds before following behind you, despite how you desperately try to lose him. The shop is small and cramped, losing anyone in here is close to impossible. Just getting down to work is the best option right now, you plop down beside a box full of DVDs and try to ignore your boss.

“Look. I’m not offended or thrown off by what you said, but are you serious?”

You look up at Neil, guilt and embarrassment coating your face.

“You are! What is it? My charms? My humour? My looks?”

You go back to stocking DVDs.

“Is it the cowboy outfit?”

You look back up in absolute horror. He’s grinning at this realisation, both amusement and disbelief smeared all over his cocky smile. 

“Well how would you like to ride a real cowboy?” Neil asks, he’s putting on a horrible southern accent that’s somehow made the outfit so much more attractive.

You stand up and crash your lips together. The kiss catches Neil off guard, stumbling back a step or two before he’s reciprocating at the same force as you. Getting eager you pull at the hair on his nape. He moans into your mouth. God it’s better than you thought it would sound. God, do you want to ride this cowboy.

“Hey,” Neil breaks away, breathing heavily, “Can we, uh, can we take this back to my office?”

You nod, basically pushing Neil back to his own office. Both of you are giggling the whole way there. Normally being so giddy over something like this would make you sick, but you’re hot and have a growing tingling in your lower stomach urging you onwards. Once the door is closed to his office your lips are back on his, hand tangling into his hair. Stumbling forwards into him until you hit his desk. His hands find your hips and he groans. Lips now start to kiss your neck. Kisses sloppy and open mouthed, bordering on bites. You’re so high on excitement about this it’s making you dizzy. Never have you ever thought that you would be so excited to sleep with your boss. What a uniform can do to a man is criminal.

Neil’s hands slowly move from your hips to your breasts. Squeezing them lightly once before groping harshly. Looking down you make eye contact with him, his eyes are so round and soft, pupils blown out wide, basically pleading to let him take off your shirt.

“Go ahead,” You sigh out, he’s rubbing your nipples through your shirt.

Quickly his hands move down to the hem of your shirt, and it’s off you and on the floor. Neil starts to move his kisses down to your collar bones and breasts. Groaning the whole way down, acting like he’s never been with anyone as beautiful as you. Truthfully, it’s unlikely that he has.

His hands unclasp your bra, sliding it down your arms and exposing your boobs. Nipples hard from the cold and from the excitement of this whole ordeal. You place your hands on Neil’s jaw dragging him back up into a kiss. It’s sloppy, his spit is all over your top lip. If this was anyone else it would’ve disgusted you, but, again, something about the whole cowboy costume made it so much hotter.

“God, you’re so hot,” Neil pants into your mouth, tweaking at your nipples. You moan in response.

He’s leading you over to the couch in his office. Pushing you onto the couch, you watch him completely unbutton his slutty denim shirt before joining you. Lips crashing into yours in the same frenzy as before. Your hands come to the waistband of his pants. Desperately trying to undo his buckle. You get it undone, and as a reward Neil undoes his pants. You feel his bulge press into your hip as you continue. You stroke him through his underwear, causing him to whimper, breaking away from the kiss and squeezing his eyes shut.

“Don’t do that baby, I’ll cum, please,” Neil begs. You giggle in response, but are immediately cut off when he latches his lips around your nipple. Flicking his tongue over your nipple. Fuck. You cup his cheek.

“Neil, take off my fucking pants already,” You hiss out.

He detaches his lips from your nipple, focusing instead on sliding your jeans off of your hips. You desperately want to shy away from Neil’s gaze when he starts to feel the wet patch on your underwear that is growing by the second, but it’s hard when he’s sitting between your legs. He shoves your panties down your legs and onto the floor.

Neil looks into your eyes as he traces the line of your cunt, playing with your clit, then shoving a finger into your cunt. You immediately moan out at the intrusion, earning you a smile from Neil.

“You’re so wet, baby,” he teases.

He adds in a second finger and your eyebrows furrow. His fingers are thick. Stretching you out so nice. Finding a steady pace Neil pushes his finger in and out of your cunt, eagerly watching as your cunt easily takes in his fingers. You grip at his hair, pulling him back into a kiss. Moaning into his mouth as he fucks you with his finger, consistently brushing against your sensitive spot. 

Neil removes his fingers from your cunt, wiping them off on the couch. He makes quick work of his boxer’s pulling them down and discarding them in the pile of clothes already on the floor. He lines his cock up with your cunt and slides into you, both of you groaning at the sensation. Neil stays still for a little bit, getting adjusted to how you feel.

“Fuck you’re so tight, and so warm, and wet. You’re so nice,” Neil babbles, placing his hands on your hips.

Slowly he starts rocking back and forth into you, letting out breathy moans the whole way through. 

“You can speed up,” You tell Neil, holding onto his bicep for support.

His hips start to speed up, until the sound of skin slapping against skin and the wet sounds of your cunt echo throughout the room. Neil keeps babbling out praises, ‘so good baby’s and ‘you’re so hot’s breaking the previously mentioned sounds, along with moaning from the both of you. Neil was a surprisingly good fuck. His cock was angled perfectly into your cunt, allowing him to hit deep into your cunt each time in a way that made you squeeze your eyes shut and throw your head back.

“Do you- fuck- do you want to ride this cowboy?” Neil asks through pants, you look up at him. A mix of amusement and horniness coats your brain.

“Yes.” Is all it takes for Neil to slip out of you and bring you on top of him, then line up his cock with your entrance once again and slip it in.

You bounce up and down on him, aided by both his hips bucking into yours and his hands on your hips.

“You’re so good at this, holy,” Neil says, before taking one of your nipples into his mouth. Swirling his tongue around the bud, you yelp out.

You can feel the coil in your stomach tighten, gripping tightly on Neil’s shoulders for stability. The mix of Neil’s cock pumping in and out of you and his tongue playing with your nipples was driving you insane.

“Neil, I’m gonna cum.”

“Cum for me, all over my cock, baby.”

You reach one of your hands down from Neil’s shoulders to your clit. Rubbing your clit in quick small circles as Neil watches you with hungry eyes. 

It all comes crashing into you at once as you chant ‘cumming’ as you slump into Neil’s shoulder. He follows quickly after you. Both of you stay still for a little bit, trying to recuperate from everything. Neil rubs small circles into your lower back before you slide off of his cock. 

“Thank you,” you mumble, not being able to look at Neil after that.

“Here,” Neil says, handing you your underwear.

You both get dressed in silence, before both exiting Neil’s office.

“You can go home early today if you want,” Neil coughs out.

You end up going home early after all, walking back to your car on shaky legs and being left to think about the events of today at your apartment.

[lovebillyhargrove]

Part 2 of this where Steve's unhappy about the new guy, unhappy about the new guy's car and decides to ruffle his feathers a bit

***

Inhale .. exhale.

In .. out.

Smoking calms him down, always has. Thank fuck for cigarettes.

"I gotta find out who it is. And when I do, I'm gonna skin him alive."

That's got to be him. A girl going to all these lengths ..? Piling up snow all around and on top of a car? Losing her beauty sleep for that?

Nah, girls have other ways to drive a guy crazy. That's got to be a dude. A dead man walking cause Billy will fucking end him.

The latest pranks were pretty innocuous. A couple of moronic licence plates, nothing new, nothing too inventive. The damn prankster must have a collection of them at home, which he's showing off.

Having troubles with imagination? Lacking creativity?

Loser.

But then Billy found this plate screwed to the back of his car, and that was it. That was the last drop that turned him into a beast, thirsty for blood.

It kinda hurt his feelings. What, you can't even fathom Hargrove might actually have a couple of those?

Well, you know about his mom and his dad, the story's not special at all, but it's like the bastard took this very word right out of Neil's hate-spewing mouth. It felt like a low blow.

..

And that's why

Billy doesn't sleep at night anymore. Stays wide awake. Catches up on sleep during daytime when Neil's not at home. Parks the camaro so that he can keep an eye on it, out of his window. Can't really skip classes at school, also cause he doesn't want to let the guy feel he's being spied on. Hargrove's waiting for him to come to the car under the cover of darkness, hoping for good luck.

The universe doesn't let him down this time.

One night when he's sitting near his window in the dark, smoking and building his patience up,

Billy finally sees him.

Well well well, lookie what we got here.

He even stops breathing for a few seconds. Then lets out a quiet scoff.

Steve fucking Harrington — crouching, kneeling beside the camaro.

Of course. Of fucking course, how could Billy be so clueless, so blind ..? He didn't think the preppy prick was capable of something like that?

The fallen king. Pretty boy. The fucking babysitter for fuck's sake. So many faces. The night prowler, voilà.

Hargrove's squint is that of a predator.

Steve Harrington, in all his treacherous glory.

Billy has to fight the urge to deal with the motherfucker right then and there. Beat him up till his face is all bloody and he can't walk.

Hargrove's gripping his own thighs bruising himself, eyes glowing with fiery hatred in the inky blackness that surrounds him.

No.

***

If Steve's absolutely honest, he has run out of ideas lately. He knows the game's getting kinda old and lame but .. His brain just refuses to work that well. Especially when he sees Hargrove swaying his annoying ass around, cool as a damn cucumber, and girls following him around like he's hypnotized them. He's still the centre of everyone's attention, no matter what silly inscription Steve's scribbled on that stupidly hot car.

Maybe he should lay off with his little game, at least for a while, until inspiration hits, like it did back in autumn.

Steve finishes breakfast, glances at the clock. School time.

When he comes up to the beamer, his heart starts beating a little faster and blood rushes to his head.

There's black spray paint all over the hood and the windshield

I KNOW

..

Oh shit.

Shit shit shit!

Suddenly he hears the rapidly approaching car engine roar.

SHIT. That's the camaro's rumble. Harrington recognizes the sound in an instant.

The thunder is coming to get him.

Uh-oh. Guess he's gonna be late for school. Saving his ass seems of bigger importance at the moment.

Steve runs back to the house, in sheer panic, locks the door, draws the blinds on the kitchen window. What should he do ..!?

It's Hargrove alright. The psycho almost hits the beamer when he swerves into the driveway. There's nothing normal about the way Billy drives, he does it like a madman. Gets out of the car ..

With a bat.

Not hesitating a single second, swings it, smashing the BMW's left front light, then swings again — the driver's window follows, glass coming down like a sparkly waterfall.

"Come out, Harrington!" The voice sounds almost cordial. "Let's talk."

Yeah, talk. Okay, Steve absolutely didn't think it through when he started the whole thing. In his defence, he got carried away!!

"Come the fuck out, asshole. Let's see who's the mistake here after all." Drawls Hargrove.

Another swift swing, and the second window is down.

Crap, sharp pain stings Billy's elbow. He cuts himself on glass shards through his long sleeve with one careless movement. In all blinding fury he actually forgot to put his jacket on, it's on the front seat.

And yeah, Max had to get to school early today. The shitbird was pouting the whole evening yesterday when he told her

"Tomorrow morning be ready to leave half an hour early. I have to help Mr. McCarthy before the class starts."

The elbow is definitely bleeding, but Billy doesn't feel any pain.

Does he ever feel any pain anymore?

Hargrove leisurely leans on the beamer's side, takes out a pack of Marlboros, lights up

"So are you coming out or what, Harrington? I just wanna talk, no need to be afraid, amigo." The cigarette is irritatingly dangling between his stupid lips. "Let's have a friendly chit-chat, shall we?"

Circles the car like a vulture.

Bang.

There goes the third window.

Is Harrington fucking insane? Billy's going to ruin his fucking car. He has to crawl out of his hiding hole at some point.

He's there. He's right there, peeking out from behind the blinds.

Unbelievable.

"You know I'm not like .. a violent person, Steve. We can settle it like adults. I have receipts for changing the tyre and uh .. repainting the door. Well .. the moral damage that you have caused me is of course uh .. very serious. I wonder how you will pay me for that, but like I said .. I'm open for discussion."

Nah. The coward is not willing to have a constructive dialogue.

Billy swings the bat for the fourth time when all of a sudden the door of Harrington's house is flung wide open and he runs out holding his own bat,

Studded with sharp nails.

His wild eyes gushing horror

"HARGROVE, LOOK OUT !! BEHIND YOU !!"

***

Blood attracts them, don't you ever forget.

***

Wanted Billy to lure Steve to the quarry and almost throw him off the cliff but then went with this instead.

[all-for-the-game-confessions]

The upperclassmen not liking Andrew and loving Neil doesn’t make sense to me.

I can explain why. I know it’s because Andrew has a reputation and that they probably don’t get all of the context that the readers do and that he’s generally easier to get along with.

But like.. Neil verbally tearing Riko’s face off is not much different than Andrew threatening people. I’m not saying he should be violent, for the sake of those people who like trying to hold someone accountable in this nutball series, but he fully expresses his boundaries, not all of which are unreasonable, and repeatedly has them crossed; when he defends them, the upperclassmen act like he’s just nuked an innocent island completely full of orphans.

They get to know Neil as a person before they learn everything and I know Neil’s not a monster, but do they just straight up not see the similarities? Neil starts so many fights and can be just as aggressive as Andrew. Does it have to do with the fact that Andrew won’t actively reach for them/he doesn’t care much at practice? I know he’s quiet but he’s not nonverbal the entire series. He’s not hard to understand from an obligate standpoint.

Do they not see pieces of Andrew in Neil’s past? I can’t think of them being uncomfortable with Neil’s often callous and rude behavior aside from the MILD comment from Nicky when he asks who’s humanizing who. I know it’s not canon he ever killed anyone, even though it’s assumed by some of the fandom, but do they not hear ANYTHING from his backstory? I think it’s at least canon he shot at people right? He knows how to use a gun?? They don’t see that and feel anything but ‘oh no poor baby’? Not even a trace of the butcher anywhere?? Not a sharp glance that looks a little too much like Nathaniel? Do they never find out his orchestration of several people’s deaths? I’m not saying Neil and his father are on similar plains because I think it would make him vomit but still. Do they completely remove his stray-cat qualities in their brains? Neil’s a fucking jerk, and, beyond that, one of his best memories is of Riko being shot. Do they never make that connection? Hello? Do they miss the mastermind way he can manipulate people? Do they only see the bridge for their team and not all the bloodied knuckles and knives and gunshots under his skin? The base of that bridge?

I’m not saying they should hate or be afraid of Neil, and I know I kinda lost the plot when mentioning Andrew and not fully elaborating, but do the upperclassmen never see the ice in Neil’s smile like Jeremy mentions? I feel like they completely glide over it other than very very small comments. Am I just forgetting them? If I’m forgetting, are they really addressing it well enough?

Anyway, Scary Neil Rights

.

[ihni]

Bro, my first thought was that this would be HORRIBLE for Billy and Steve because the second Billy shoulder-checked Steve during basketball they would've hit the ground in front of EVERYONE. But then like. I thought more about it and it got worse.

Because Billy would kinda know that his soulmate is gonna be a guy, right. And he'd be doing everything he could to prevent anyone from ever finding out, so

He's been getting into massive arguments with Neil his whole life, every time his dad tries to get him into sports. When he's a kid his dad accuses him of being a pussy for shying away from really engaging with the team, never wanting to make contact with anyone, thinking that Billy's afraid of getting hurt while playing. Billy tries to push back as much as he can, he hates not being able to do anything to prove his dad wrong because he can't tell him the TRUTH, and he gets too angry to come up with a convincing lie.

He gets so paranoid about physical contact that he develops a reputation for beating the shit out of guys who so much as bump into him in the hallway at school. It happens a couple times. Some kid in his class will brush past him, not realizing who he is, and it scares him so much he lashes out.

Once he gets a little older he starts dating (girls) as much as possible. It's for his safety, he tells himself, and ignores the part where he just misses being touched so much he'll settle for whatever he can get. Which is not as much as he'd like, considering most of the girls his age are fucking terrified of him. (Moving to Indiana doesn't help much, he might have the advantage of being a relative unknown, but there's fewer girls who are willing to cozy up with a guy who isn't their soulmate.)

In short. Touch-starved Billy

And that fight at the Byers would go soooo differently....As in it probably would not happen at all, because up until this point they have not touched at all, and have barely interacted because they don't have basketball together and Billy's just been obsessed with Steve from a distance.

Then like. He shows up and Steve is being weird and Billy wants to touch him for all kinds of reasons, but he's also firmly against touching him for just as many. He's wound up and stressed and he can't lash out like he wants to, so he just ignores Steve and walks right into the Byers' house to take it out on the kids. He doesn't have the same hangups about pushing Max around, or Lucas. He knows neither of them could be his soulmate, so they're fair game.

But he's barely said two words to Max before Steve (who in this scenario has NOT been shoved to the ground and kicked, so was right behind Billy as he walked into the house) grabs his shoulder to get his attention, and they both hit the floor.

Which would be so interesting because it's technically the same result as the fight, both of them passed out (thought Max doesn't get to stand up to Billy), so the plot could continue as normal from there, except. Like. The kids are freaking out for entirely different reasons, Max is swearing them all to secrecy and worrying about what Billy's gonna do when he wakes up, and half of them are yelling about how much this does not matter right now because there's monsters to set on fire. Dustin's having a mild crisis about getting advice about girls a couple hours ago from a guy who might be gay now?? There's a debate about whether they should bring Steve with them after Max steals Billy's keys. Mike is uncomfortable with the idea and won't admit why. Dustin gets pissed at him. Lucas tries to breeze past the whole weird soulmate thing and focus on the fact that they'll need all the help they can get if they're gonna do this.

They do still bring him along, and leave Billy behind.

I feel like it would be so interesting for Steve to be trying to concentrate on fighting monsters and protecting the kids but there's this weird new soulmate bond thing distracting him, and he's so incredibly confused by it because it's with BILLY.

Meanwhile Billy wakes up alone in the Byers' house, and has a panic attack when he realizes what happened. His first instinct is to just get in his car and leave town because now this group of shithead kids know his secret and Neil was ALREADY pissed at him for losing Max, this is just gonna make things so much worse and he doesn't know how to deal with any of it. Except his car is GONE, and he has no idea where anyone is or why they took the Camaro. All he does know is that he can't go home right now, and he has nowhere else to go, but he just wants to run SOMEWHERE.

He'd end up avoiding Steve for as long as he can, and quite possibly just would not return home either. I feel like it would be incredibly awkward when Steve drives the kids back to the Byers' and Billy's sitting on the porch, chain-smoking and all hunched over like he's trying not to puke. No one knows what to say for a long moment, and then Billy just shoves past everyone, flees to his car, and drives off alone. I can see him trying to live out of his car for a good couple weeks, completely shutting everyone out, until Steve tracks him down and they actually talk.

(also side note, once they work their shit out and are actually settled into a relationship, Billy would be just. The clingiest. He spent so long avoiding touching people and now that he's allowing himself to he cannot get enough. He WILL be wrapped around Steve at all times.)

First of all, I love you. Just want to get that out of the way. Thank you for blessing my inbox thusly.

Second of all, this hits like half of all my buttons. Touch-starved, posing, secretly gay Billy who's hiding his fear behind a mask of anger? SIGN ME THE FUCK UP.

You got the kids' reactions exactly right, I could picture them so clearly in my mind. And Steve too, fighting monsters while trying to understand this new soul bond (which, how would that show? How would it feel and affect them?), and Billy freaking out and just ... "step one: need car. step two: who the fuck knows" and living out of his car because he's too afraid to go home. What would Neil do? Would he find out about it or would he just be angry that Billy ... left, and didn't come back? How does the soul bond affect Billy and Steve when it is new and they are avoiding each other, is that why Billy doesn't leave Hawkins? I suppose Billy would eventually have to go home since he's underage, how would that go? AAA SO MANY QUESTIONS, MY BRAIN IS ALIGHT WITH DELIGHT

In short; I'd like to order 80K of this please. Future clinginess on the side (to be enjoyed as a dessert <3)

Also thank you for this.

[sixbynine-da]

Writers Guild Presents - Grief of a Dying Sun: Ch 7 (Section 3 of The Serpent & The Owl)

with the better parts of my angst throuple! @kneelbeforeyourdogbabylon and @dbacklot99 and wonderful artwork by @lauramoon1987 who stunned me with the gorgeousness of how her work totally captured exactly what I was seeing <3

TSATO Volume 3 - Grief of a Dying Sun (74131 words) by anna_bird, sixbynine, babyrubysoho, TheScholarlyStrumpet, Kotias, GroovyNightStrawberry, MxTHRTN, GaiasEyes, dbacklot99, WiblyWobly_TimeyWimey Chapters: 7/8 Fandom: Good Omens (TV), Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett Rating: Explicit Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death Relationships: Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens) Characters: Aziraphale (Good Omens), Crowley (Good Omens), Beelzebub (Good Omens), Agnes Nutter, Gabriel (Good Omens) Additional Tags: Reincarnation AU, happy ending eventually, not in this part though, Angst, Angst with a Bad Ending, Hurt No Comfort, not that they don't try, Crowley is the Leviathan, the fall of atlantis, Aziraphale hates Crowley or at least convinces himself he does, Self-Harm, Suicide, Murder, Monsterfucking, Twincest (implied), face fucking, whipping/self-flagellation, Voyeurism, Hate fucking, physical fighting, very minor blood/other bodily fluid, Hemipenes, Fisting, Minor Character Death, Ableism, disability slurs, Depression, some brief suicide/death ideation, Oral Sex, Fist-fucking, threat of injury to eye, Arguing, Cruelty, Anal Sex, Anal Fingering, Rimming, this volume is the definition of literary scorched earth, Gaiaseyes was here, the Angst Throuple was here Series: Part 4 of The Serpent and the Owl Summary: Aziraphale, Champion of Atlantis, was raised to believe that the monster known as Crowley is a grave menace to his world and his city. Brought into training to destroy the beast, he develops a sense of hatred, based on the myths and legends he is told. He is under the influence of two conflicting voices: the monarch Gabriel, who wants Crowley destroyed, and Agnes, who recognises Crowley as a threat but attempts to temper Aziraphale's hatred. Their first encounter certainly isn't going to appease his view of the monster — Crowley as a Leviathan, wreaking havoc on his city. This cements his hatred and drives him to train only harder. During his training, he starts seeking historical records and sees Crowley in many forms, until the beast slithers into his dreams. An infatuation and eventual obsession takes hold, the dreams are visceral and sexual, and Aziraphale is heavily conflicted. During his training, Agnes continues to try to temper Aziraphale's hatred. She studies Crowley's history, she makes notes, keeps records. Agnes becomes a confidante of sorts for Aziraphale, but he never fully reveals the extent of his obsession nor the true nature of his dreams…

[ingravinoveritas]

The amount of hate David is receiving on X is horrible to read regarding the Baftas and NG/Good Omens. I’m glad he doesn’t use Social Media so he can’t read the horrible things said about him but i feel so sorry for him. I’ve been a fan of him since he started Doctor Who in 2004/5 and it’s upsetting to read how nasty people are. If people don’t agree with his views, that’s fine we’re entitled to an opinion but there’s no need to use such harsh words against him. It’s sad to read.

Hi, Anon. I agree with you that the hateful comments made against David since hosting the BAFTAs last weekend have been horrific. As I've alluded to previously, I don't think it's that David doesn't use social media at all, but rather that he has private accounts that are not for public consumption. Either way, I am also hoping he has not read (or had someone read to him) the nasty things that people have said.

So many of the attacks--largely in response to the Trump-related jokes that David made, but as you said, related to Good Omens/NG too--have been personal and veered hard into homophobic and transphobic rhetoric. Guilt by association as well--as if David himself wasn't horrifically betrayed and used by Neil. Because these days, and especially on social media, it doesn't seem like it's enough to just disagree with someone's views or have a differing opinion. It's now become necessary to tear someone apart completely--to dehumanize them, to twist and distort the truth for the sake of turning them into the "other" as a justification for lying and saying those nasty things in the first place.

I know this might not be much comfort, but another thing that I hope is helpful is to remember that X is an absolute cesspool at this point. It has now become a haven for the worst of the very worst, and so on that site, those voices are the ones most amplified. But just because they are the loudest, it does not mean they are the majority. Because David is receiving twice as much love and positivity on any number of other sites (Bluesky, Tumblr), and that more than counts for something.

The other thing is that David is 53 years old, and much of this has arisen from him deciding to speak up and stand for something. Something that, given the current political climate, has an enormous potential for backlash. But I think it's incredibly admirable and commendable that David has become so vocal over the last few years, regardless of the consequences. So as upsetting as the hate he's getting is, it's also encouraging, because it means that even in the face of such an onslaught, David is not backing down or apologizing for what he believes in. And that makes my respect for him grow immeasurably.

I hope this helps you to feel better, Anon. Remember, too, that David has a PR team and family and friends who love him, so he is very much not fighting this alone. So that is something we can certainly be glad for...

[daddyduncan69]

One of my recent posts got a few comments about media literacy being dead and Neil being an unreliable narrator so I want to clear some things up.

Firstly, media literacy isn't dead becuase it cannot die. Also, I am not a big fan of fear mongering. Humans have always sought to understand and communicate with each other about the things we create. It is a skill that can be taught and should be practiced. There is no one right way to do it. And, while I think the education system fails so many of us (something something to make us easier to control something something), I also think that there are tons of resources to help us learn without the need for an official "teacher". So, instead of pessimistically saying is it "dead" (especially on someone's textual analysis post, like... are you saying I prove it's dead becuase I don't have media literacy? are you agreeing with me and therefore proving yourself wrong? do I not count for some reason? i don't think I get it), engage in discourse about media that you love. And I mean actual discourse, not just fighting on social media about whether or not everyone should "like" your favorite character. Ask yourself "what is the effect of this rhetorical device in the text?" "is the text trying to make me like or not like this character? is it working, why or why not," (do not ask "why did the author do this?" because that is not relevant nor are you a mind reader). Take free online Literature classes from colleges that help you learn how to analyze. Invite others to do it with you. Join or start a book club. Engage in various types of media, not just YA, fantasy, fiction, etc. Consider kindly rebutting or offering a counter point to other people's interpretations, bringing actual textual evidence to back up your points. Use Google Scholar to access free scholarly articles to see academic prospectives on various medias that are not just from social media or blogs. Your local library may even have subscriptions to paid sights like JSTOR or collections of essays that would let you access articles that are otherwise behind a paywall. All of these things can help improve your own media literacy and, in turn, will help improve the media literacy of the people around you.

Secondly, the point of my other post was NOT that Neil is an unreliable narrator. I've seen a lot of people make this claim so I wanted to chime in. Unreliable narrators are marked by a few characteristics, some of which are exaggeration, detachment from reality, naivety, and deception of the reader. I don't believe Neil falls into any of these categories. I would be open to arguments that claim he does, but it would be hard to sway me because I can't find any textual evidence to support it. This is an important distinction to me because the larger claim I make in that post is that ALL narration, 1st person, 3rd person, omniscient, limited, etc is biased- all of it. It is CRUCIAL as readers to identify a narrators biases and consider the text through that lens. If you aren't practicing doing that (or only doing it when the narrator is "unreliable") you can easily fall into the trap of saying "well Neil says Kevin is a coward so he is", which is obviously an issue in the grand scheme of textual analysis. However, you can also easily fall into the trap of saying "Neil is an unreliable narrator because he is wrong about things/lies to people/has trauma so you can't trust him". I believe that Neil tells us as the reader the truth in his narration almost 100% of the time, Neil just lies to the other characters 24/7. So, as readers we should take what he says in his internal monologue at face value but question the motives behind his dialogue with other characters.

Anyway, that was a long winded, probably boring monologue about critical textual analysis. I devote maybe 16 out of my 18 waking hours to thinking about this, so thanks for hanging in there to read it all. I just care so deeply that we as a culture continue to grow these skills without shaming those who haven't had the same opportunities to learn how to do it or making the act of learning how to feel hopeless or doomed.

[stick-ball]

Serious question, but how do you think Andrew being taller-tall would affect plot and in what way. I always have hard time seeing him as this steady image of safety mainly because of his size.

I am an Andrew lover first and foremost so I accept him in every shape and size he may come in xd

Okay, but seriously now. I think him being taller would've definitely altered some points of the plot. The first thing that comes to mind is his relationship with Neil. Neil from the get-go makes us aware that due to his father's abuse, he is scared of not only older but taller men. They read as a threat. If Andrew was a big guy and had not the puppy dog personality of Matt, Neil would probably have a much harder time trusting him or opening up to him. Their relationship might've gone differently. All of Andrew's actions would've been interpreted with distrust, as they are anyway at the start, but the root would be in a much deeper fear.

I also think that's crucial for Andrews character. He is, as you said, seen by us as the image of safety - but that's Neil's opinion. that's how he sees him. Most people look down on him, only those who are keenly aware danger is not always about brute strenght don't make fun of the red flag he comes waving around in every situation. Neil or Riko aren't tall either, so they know what kind of things he can still be capable of without the proper moral limitations. Kevin, Jean and Renee will know that to, due to their experiences.

Still, most people don't see him as a threat, or as strong, the size is a point of ridicule but also a point of tactical advantage for him. If they don't take you seriously they don't see you coming for them, do they? Add the label of "psychotic" which is also thrown around in contempt, on the edge if being a slur by some characters and there you go. He's not seen as strong, he's seen as a train running of the tracks, about to crash in a nearby town.

There are only a few that know better, as it usually is in life, which, proper advantage. I would say the only reason Andrew was on parole with the requirement for medication after he almost killed those 4 guys who attacked Nicky before the first book happens - instead of being locked up for it instead - was due to his size. If he was a big guy he would be treated much more harshly, especially with his previous criminal record.

Another thing this point brings up is how I read a couple posts in the past, where people thought it improbable that Drake managed to get Andrew concussed and at his mercy so easily in the Thangsgiving scene, since Andrew is supposed to be so strong. (This isn't criticism, im just giving my own outview)

Be that as it may, size does matter. Andrew is strong and dangerous for many, and he could best probably most of the people reading this in a fight no sweat. But you know what's the reason for that? He's prepared. He actually knows how to fight. There are scenes in canon and ec If im not mistaken, that bring it up. I've been trained in martial arts since I was 4 years old (on G-d no cap) and I can, and did, manage to take down many guys twice my size and strenght because of that - but that's because I was smarter, or quicker, or my technique and endurance was better. Andrew spars, Andrew has training while most people don't. Just because a guy is twice his size doesn't mean he actually knows how to use his body weight to land a solid punch, doesn't mean he has the instinct and proper form to block a fist coming at his side thats gonna push all air out of his lungs. So yeah, against people less trained than him, he has a chance.

Tw: discussion of the thanksgiving scene, psychological trauma, ambush situations.

But Drake is a marine. He has extensive training, worse - he has the tactical advantage of surprising him, and worst of all - the force of trauma that comes with being suddenly attacked by one of your worst fkn horrors. It's a ambush and he has every single ace up his sleeve. I've been in a situation like that once, so I can imagine the complete and utter short-circuit Andrew's brain must have gone in in those precious seconds that would give him an even chance against Drake. But then, Drake is as much a physical as psychological horror, and it's no wonder the fear that brings make Andrew spiral into dissociation as a coping mechanism.

End of the triggering stuff!

In the end, though, safety in my opinion is about more than physical strenght. Sometimes it's just having someone by your side even if there's no chance of making it to the other side. That type of support can make anyone keep going. And I think that more than anything else is what Neil sees him as. He is, to make it cliché, the lighthouse bringing him to the safety of shore in a midnight storm. (I will shut up now bcs the fever must be getting worse if im saying shit like this).

thank you for this ask, I live to talk about andrew minyard ❤️❤️❤️

[gday-gecko]

so i finished tgr. that was. something. here's my review :) (spoilerss)

Well.

It was a bit slow-going. Mostly because I hadn't re-read the 1st one and this didn't seem to do the "road so far" kind of thing. (The amount of deaths in this book was very Supernatural-esque, though. I thought we were maybe moving away from the mafia, but nevermind apparently.)

I really like how Jean actually starts to trust Jeremy and Cat and Laila, and even his team a bit. Oh my god, they're so sweet. (And Jeremy is about as subtle as a heartache.)

“Does that really matter?” Jeremy asked, studying Jean with a stare that felt prying. “I’m not learning French for anyone but you.”

That first game was INSANE. The "Have a winning day!" and the way he pulls Cat out of the way when the guy starts a fight. Hinch was foulllllll. Also. Excuse me, Jean. What do you MEAN you hit yourself in the shin to chase after that guy when he got around you. What.

“You were incredible out there. I know everyone else will say the same at the post-match roundup, but I wanted to say it first. And I know you’re only going to get better from here, because I know you’re still second-guessing this new style. I can’t wait to see how far you can go this season.”

Aw, Jeremy <3

First Jean is beat up on court and blablabla, you know the drill, and then he's subbed off and bullied and beat up AGAIN???? WHAT THE HELL?? Thank you Coach Rhemann for saving the day. And Jean's subsequent breakdown. :(

Anyone learning stuff about the Ravens will never not be funny (even if it's awful, it's really great to see people realising how fucked up they are).

ANYWAY THE FOXES-RAVENS GAME??? I WAS AT THE BUS STOP. I WAS GOING TO DIE. NEIL??? ARE YOU OKAY?? THAT WAS UNHINGED. HOLY MOLY GUACAMOLE

It didn’t matter how many laps he ran with his team; every time he blinked, he saw Neil broken and still on the court floor.

...At least they got disqualified?

Jesus Christ they cannot get enough. I was actually about to cry when they set the house on fire. Laila's first proper home? All Jean's stuff that he'd slowly started to collect. BARKBARK?????? I'm happy we got to see Agent Browning though, he's funny.

“I hate this sport,” Browning said to his partner. “Explain to me why they’re all like this.”

Thea also!!!!

I'm glad we got to learn more about Jeremy. Wow, his family sucks. Poor Noah. :( And Elodie as alive!??!?!

DOG!!! THEY GOT A DOG!!!!! I WAS ABOUT TO CRY THEN TOO!!!! DOGGGGGGGGGGGG

“My coworkers and I had an informal bet that Moreau would get in at least one brawl. I thought for sure we would see the Trojans’ first red card.”

That reporter had me giggling.

Pfft, chaos? Never heard of her. I can't wait for the next book <3

(copied from my storygraph review)

i need to go see whats up on ao3 ;)

[welcome-to-the-end-of-eras]

I have officially finished the golden raven and I have MANY thoughts (obvious spoiler warning)

- There’s no fucking WAY the Ravens that attacked the Foxes all committed suicide. The one that attacked Andrew at least was not. That’s got mafia hit written all over it.

- On a slightly brighter note, Aaron finally got to drive the car!!! Good for him. Good for him. And he was cleared of all charges in his case which is immaculate. I fear only one twin at a time can have any sort of luck.

- I was unfortunately spot on with my Jeremy being a recovering addict theory. Wish I wasn’t but. Man. The boy has PROBLEMS.

- I actually really liked seeing the broken sides of Kevin on full display. Neil’s insight on him was always about Exy and the Moriyama’s and how he handled that, but seeing how he reacts so coldly to the other Ravens first hand and how utterly broken he lets himself be around Jean??? That’s FASCINATING. I want more of that.

- Jean not telling any of the Trojans that Grayson’s death was not a suicide threw me a little. I was fully expecting him to break down about it at some point and admit it to at least his friends but nope. Inch resting.

- I am also extremely happy that Jean fell right into the protective role I predicted. He’s so gentle and caring with his friends when he wants to be and he genuinely loves them so much even if he can’t say it. I adore himb. And the way his jealousy issues came out >>> “the fact that they came from another man…” “he is not your partner” my brother in Christ-

- I remember someone a while ago posting about how they were excited for more exy game descriptions and I agreed with them at the time but to be honest??? I kind of like the way Jean glosses over them unless he’s on the court. I think it’s very accurate to his attitude about exy and really ties in nicely the idea that his whole life doesn’t have to center around it like Neil’s does.

- Jeremy’s parents can die in a hole for all I fucking care they SUCK. I wasn’t expecting his bio dad to also be an asshole to him, or the extent of his mom’s cruelty, but holy shit no wonder he folded under all that pressure.

- And Noah??? Oh my l o r d that sucked so bad (unfortunately very interesting for storytelling purposes but that sucks so bad).

- The house burning down genuinely hurt me so bad. You can just feel the cosy vibes in every description of it up until then and the loss of it is so devastating. And the way it tied into Laila’s backstory and how dejected and broken she felt when it was gone??? Ugh my poor girl.

- Truly tho I think the thing that will always stick with me the most is the Foxes versus Ravens fight. I can’t even call it a match, it was just a fight. The ENTIRE Ravens starting line getting red cards. Wymack himself having to pull Andrew off the court and keep him from attacking Jasmine even with a broken collarbone, and FAILING to hold him back regardless. Just the sheer imagery of him and Neil dragging each other off the court completely broken. That was so fucking scary, I held my breath that entire sequence. But at the same time I’m so excited to see how they’ll navigate their relationship without exy in the mix, even if we have to see it from a distance.

This is all I can think of right now, it’s currently 3 in the morning so that will likely change once I sleep, but I’m thinking of moving these posts over to the main tag in a few weeks once a majority of people have had the chance to read it and add their own thoughts

[gizkasparadise]

Top five cdramas? And Chinese webnovels if you read them. Or novels in general if you're a reader. Oop. I think they became way too many questions. 😂 Feel free to ans whichever you want!

yaaay drama!! ty for the ask :D

top 5 cdramas

okay, not counting lost you forever since it's still airing, but if it continues the way it's been going it's def on the list! otherwise:

love and redemption. boy meets girl. girl is the reincarnation of the god of war who is angry at heaven. boy is forbidden to love anyone and lives in a sect of theatre majors. turns out boy has already met girl in 9 different previous lives and this one is their last shot to actually be happy. surprisingly queer, feminist, and just pure crack fun. best theme song!!!

love between fairy and devil. boy meets girl. girl is an orchid fairy who has been sheltered from the world. boy is the superpowered devil leader of the fairy's enemy. girl does not know this and frees him from mystical magic space jail on accident. sometimes they swap bodies, but only if they kiss. really pretty, everything you wanted from a fanfic when you were 13 but executed well. great supporting characters and plots

monarch industry/the rebel princess. girl is a spoiled sweet princess. Man! is a general who rose up from nothing. both of them get involved in a revolving door of monarchs as everyone fights for the throne. if you want mature, solid relationships this is the one for you! and palace politics that are super interesting from start to finish

go ahead. modern drama about 2 single dads who raise 3 children and just. really really good ;;

goodbye my princess. you want tragedy you want drama you want the most interesting murderbastard male lead in existence?? here you go!!! this would be #1 but the palace politics can sometimes feel a little too bloaty for my taste. absolutely stunning OST, costumes, and scenery

bonus, because i feel they should be included: love like the galaxy, le coup de foudre

top 5 novels?

off the top of my head, here's 5 i really loved (i need to read more 8|):

human acts by han kang (this one HAUNTS me)

going postal by terry pratchett

monstrous regiment by terry pratchett

this is how you lose the time war by amal el-mohtar and max gladstone

good omens by terry pratchett & neil gaiman (guess it's terry day!)

[avonne-writes]

I’ve re-read Broken Things and Silence so many times I love the angsty HS AU parts! It seemed like in Silence Gale was still half considering suicide or at least still very depressed. How does his recovery look like overall? I think you mentioned him going to therapy at some point? And in your ask post where you detailed some things they might say in arguments it seems like his near attempt is still something raw to both of them even a year later. Does he ever seriously think about doing it again or is it just a slow but steady way out of that headspace? Sorry for all the questions I just want to pick your brain!

Thank you for the questions, I’m always happy to discuss this AU! ❤️ I’m glad you liked the more serious stories in the series too.

TW: discussion of suicidality below.

Silence is shortly after Broken Things, so yes, unfortunately, Gale still considers suicide at that point. He’s depressed and all his issues just came crashing down for him, plus he has to cope with the change of moving to Bucky's and Georgia's place. It’s a lot, and he needs strong support.

His recovery goes like this:

Georgia finds a way to get him to a therapist outside of school. Gale's scared of medication, so the therapist accommodates this, but discusses with both him and Georgia that they shouldn't leave him alone while he’s still a suicide risk.

As expected, Gale doesn’t like this. He agrees because he doesn’t want any antidepressants, but he’s not happy. After some time, he starts acting out in his own way - not coming home, hiding from everyone etc. He has a fight about this with Georgia.

Thankfully, therapy, the new environment and all the love and attention heaped on him do start to take root and he starts feeling better by Christmas.

However, now that his biggest problem is getting smaller, other issues rear their heads. In a nutshell, the question of independence. Financially from Georgia, and emotionally from Bucky. He starts working for Neil to tackle the first and tries to set up boundaries with Bucky.

Unfortunately, this period coincides with Bucky's fear of abandonment and subsequent clinginess exacerbating, so there's a hard clash there. This builds up over the remainder of the year and comes to the surface during their first semester fights. His recovery becomes more of an up and down rollercoaster during this time.

And we're at the one-year mark already. He throws in the suicidality thing when they fight because he equates Bucky's clinginess with the post-suicide attempt close surveillance. But they're not the same.

I think he goes to therapy for about a year and a half, so stopping a few months after he and Bucky stop fighting all the time. He gets better, and rarely ever thinks of suicide again, and even then, not really as something he wants to do.

But there are a few things left over from all this. 1) once "unlocked", the option of suicide doesn’t get locked again. 2) Gale gets angry if he assumes that Bucky fears he’s suicidal (unfair, I know). 3) Gale struggles with crossing bridges.

Thank you for the interesting questions!

[afurtivecake]

choosing violence asks 🔥 7 8 18 22 >:3 - luni

7. which character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because of how fanon acts around them?

i don't have any characters i feel any particular dislike towards. but i did end up giving up on writing a fic because of how people talk about jean and jeremy. it was supposed to be like a bit of a romcom where jeremy feels like everything is going swimmingly with jean being part of the team and everything is a-okay...until cat and laila sit him down like they have something serious to discuss and tell him, hey, dude, i know you wanted a new project to work on this year and you've always wanted a pet, but, bro, jean isn't the answer. and jeremy would be all like, what are you talking about? i don't see jean as a pet! and laila, being the sensible one, would be like, "uh huh... what are your plans for this morning?" and jeremy would answer, "oh, I just was going to take jean out for a wal........." and they'd stare at him judgmentally. and the rest of the fic would be jeremy realizing that he really does do things that could be construed as him treating jean like a pet dog and having a crisis of conscience because of it. meanwhile, jean is like, awkwardly trying to figure out how to seduce jeremy and getting annoyed by how damn difficult it is. like, at first jeremy seemed to be just really dense, and just when he thinks jeremy's finally figured it out, jeremy goes and acts like a chaste and prudish victorian lady. anyway, there was supposed to be like, misunderstandings and shenanigans and attempts to seduce with puppy play. but seeing so many people talk as if jeremy ought only every be a paragon on virtue and the perfect friend and savior jean needs and that jean should never feel any obligation towards him ever has rather soured my enthusiasm for writing jeremy.

8.common fandom opinion that everyone is wrong about.

usually if i think people are wrong, i just go ahead and make a post that says what i think is right so i'm surprisingly having a hard time thinking of something for this.

oh ok. yeah, riko isn't bad at exy. neil and the foxes didn't beat riko and ravens because they played a better game. the battle they had between them wasn't even about exy. if riko had truly valued exy rather than power, he would have put everything into the game and the ravens would have won. but he was more concerned with proving he had power. and neil realized that. neil realized they couldn't beat the ravens at exy; the only way the foxes could really take down the ravens is to weaken their team. that's why he sends renee to honeytrap jean and to lure him away from riko. that's why he takes the risk to tattle on riko to ichirou and bring down ichirou's scrutiny upon the ravens instead of leaving it be. in the end, neil doesn't even win playing the position he's fought so hard to become good at. they didn't best the ravens at exy, they bested riko at his own game, the one he took the most pride in: wielding power to win with underhanded means. neil didn't outplay riko - he out-gangstered him.

so no, riko isn't bad at exy. he may not be as good as kevin, but you only need to be half as good as kevin to be loads better than anyone else. and riko was more than half as good as kevin. the problem was that he didn't make his fight with the foxes about exy.

18.it's absolutely criminal the fandom has been sleeping on....

two things: 1. riko ships. 2. nicky ships.

when i first came into this fandom, i was dead sure that there would be a ton, like A TON, of kevriko, neil/riko and jean/riko fics. like maybe even nathan/riko for the freaks. like, idk how you can read aftg and not think, "damn, these 'perfect court' assholes want to explore each other's bodies really badly huh?" like, riko is %100 talking like he's kevin's abusive ex. and don't get me started on neil and riko's insane christmas holiday. in fact i was so sure of this in my mind that i assumed i'd have to wade through oodles of "fix-it" fics or AUs that sand down all of kevin, jean and riko's edges and make them live in domestic bliss, just to find ones that were like, kinda dark and dramatic. anyway i was just coming off the high of finishing tkm and so andreil was my primary concern. i didn't think much about riko ships at all because i assume other people had that covered and if i really felt like it, i'd go trawl through them. and then i discover that apparently other people do NOT already have that covered.

similar thing with nicky ships. in all my previous fandoms, the outwardly cheerful, kinda slutty characters get ALL the ships. like, you cannot take two steps in those fandoms without running into works about those characters getting fucked to hell and back. i just assumed that would happen with nicky and it just...doesn't.

turns out I'M the one that's weird for thinking these things? you don't know how shocked i was (this was before i found out TSC was coming out) to find that people have arrived at jerejean before arriving at kevriko or kevin/nicky/erik? what the fuck guys? now i have to do it myself? come on, folks. this is a 10-year old fandom. what am i missing here?

22.your favourite part of canon that everyone else ignores

ok there is one thing that i really like that i've never seen anyone else like as much as i do and it's when thea barges into their room ready to have an argument and andrew shows up, takes one look at thea and basically goes, meh ok, carry on. it's so funny to me. like, this is the guy who's spent the entire series ready to shank anyone who comes at kevin. thea shows up and andrew's just like, yeah, not touching this one with a ten-foot pole. you're on your own, mate. and then just goes to stand with neil to watch the whole thing like it's a real-life soap opera. first of all, it means that andrew implicitly trusts thea despite never having met her. and second, i like to think it's andrew's way of saying, "you called this upon yourself, kevin." i like to think that andrew's been listening to kevin talk about his long-distance girlfriend whom he ghosted a year ago but fully expects to still want him back this entire time. and he's never said anything about it, because it's not his problem, but he has been silently judging kevin and thinking like, "fucking straight people."

[ingravinoveritas]

just a heads up so you’re aware I’ve sent this blog to both georgia and anna incase they’d like to take legal action against you have a nice day.

Hello there, Anon. I realize that you actually sent this logged in, as I still have Anon turned off at the moment, but for all intents and purposes, this is an Anon, and I appreciate you showing the courage of your convictions by sending your message from a throwaway account.

That being said, I'm amazed at how I've been in multiple fandoms over the years, and as many things change, some things never do. This really is déjà vu all over again, as I got an Anon just earlier this year calling me ugly and accusing me of being jealous of Georgia and AL. The wording of your Ask is different, obviously, but I have a feeling the intent is exactly the same.

I'm assuming, of course, that since you sent Georgia and AL my blog, you also sent the blogs of all the people commenting on my posts over the last few days. And the blogs of the people commenting on @problematicwelshman's posts. Oh, and the names/screenshots of all the commenters on the Daily Mail article, in the interest of thoroughness. Or maybe (and I'm just spitballing here) all of that starts to seem like a pretty big waste of time when you really think about it. Maybe Georgia, for instance, has bigger things to worry about than what I'm writing on my silly blog, things like transphobic lunatics like Graham Linehan and Posie Parker making actual libelous statements accusing David of being a groomer and an abuser. Maybe she's emotionally drained from fighting those battles, fighting on David's behalf and her children's behalf, and does not have the time nor is about to thank you for telling her about my blog. Again, spitballing.

I have to say, though, pseudo-Anon, that I am disappointed. As I've said many times before, I am more than open to hearing from people who disagree with me and sharing those opinions on my blog. This could have been a moment for a real discussion, for you to message me saying, "I don't agree with your perspective on Georgia and Anna, and here's why" and I would have read your thoughts with as much care as I do every Ask that comes into my inbox.

But it seems clear that you find fear to be a strong motivator, hence your decision to threaten me. I think you may have made a miscalculation, however, in assuming I am equally as motivated by it. I recognize what you are doing here for what it is: Intimidation, in an attempt to shut me up. You are free to dislike my thoughts and opinions all you like, and I will never tell you or anyone else that they have to agree with me. But it would also help you to understand that even if you did manage to bully me off of this site, there will always be people posting and saying things that you do not like.

As I've said to others who have sent me similarly hateful Anons, I'm genuinely perplexed as to why you would go to these lengths when you could simply block me and keep scrolling. It's much easier, and there is a lot less likelihood of you being disappointed when things don't work out the way you hoped. And in the end, cultivating your own online experience and learning how to cope with opinions other than yours will go a lot farther than "tattling" on fans that you dislike (such as I've seen fans doing with the Asks they send to Neil).

I normally end these responses by thanking folks for writing in, and while I'm not particularly inclined to do that here, I do appreciate the humor of you ending a threatening Ask with "have a nice day" (as it gave me Grandmama Addams vibes from The Addams Family). So I will sign off with the same: