#MIKE KNOWS the actual answer

[chloesimaginationthings]

An important FNAF question, why is Michael purple?

[florallylly]

i've seen model steve harrington aus. i've seen child steve harrington aus. i present: child model steve harrington

note: this came from my own desperate need to see this conceptualized and i SWEAR i've searched, i just can't find any content with child model steve so. :(

bc little steve harrington was remarkably cherub-like. his large brown eyes and soft pout ensured endless cooing and fussing from his mom's friends. and when he blushed and ducked his head in shyness, they only complimented him more. when he got home that day, his mom smiled at him.

so steve decided that he would put up with the cheek pinching and the squealing. he sat upright in his chair, sitting on his hands so he wouldn't fidget and ruin the image. because he'd do anything to keep his mom smiling at him. if he was being particularly good that day, she'd let him lay his head on her lap on the drive back home.

but everything changed at his father's birthday gala. a nearly eight year old steve harrington sat prim and proper in his seat, but a smile lit up his face--his cheeks round and his dimples showing up. he raised his hand up to cover his giggle, but he couldn't help but laugh at some silly old man with a loose toupee. then he sees his mom approaching, and his face quickly smooths over, going back to the more polite smile he usually adopted when it came to these events.

he'd ruined it. he hadn't continued being the sweet boy his mom wanted. but then, she smiles at him. and introduces him to the man behind her, who says he's a designer. the man holds out his hand, but when steve puts his hand into his palm, he doesn't shake it. the man simply holds his hand, his eyes scanning steve's face. steve tries not to squirm under the attention. but the man nods and smiles at his mom, and he gives two brief cheek kisses to steve, whispering in his ear "you're going to be a star, darling." steve looks at his mom, confused, but she waves him off to continue talking to the man.

a few months later, steve's mom whisks him off on a trip to france. and steve is so excited to go, nearly vibrating in his seat as the airplane prepares to take off. but instead of the eiffel tower and the seine, steve is taken to a studio. he's posed and changed. once again, he's being fussed over, but instead of wealthy socialites, gossiping make-up artists squeal over him. he's "perfect for the shoot" and "the most darling little boy." steve doesn't understand, but his mom is still smiling, so he lets the nice ladies brush powder over his face.

and he looks in the mirror. his hair is a little more tousled and his lips have a slight tint to them and his eyes seem to take up much of his face. he's put into new clothes, and he feels like a doll in their hands. and when he's put in front of the camera, he simply follows the photographer's directions. afterwards, he's bundled into the car and his mom can't stop gushing about how good he was.

apparently, he's a natural. and then she goes back to fussing over him, focusing more on appearance than his behavior now. but she takes him out shopping and they eat at an upscale restaurant along the champs-elysses. and steve is happy.

and then they go back home, and his mom is so much stricter than before. she has him try out all kinds of different hair products, determined to find the best combination to keep it looking shiny and soft. she controls his food intake and what he wears and makes him use weird creams and serums on his face. but this is what makes his mom happy, so he's happy to let her.

his mom is also on the phone a lot more lately, whispering harshly about the quality of brands and steve just assumes she's being picky about the clothes she buys. later, his mom picks him up and holds him, and asks if he'd like to move to italy. she looks at him intently and it's obvious what answer she wants, so steve nods. she smiles and holds him close, and it's the most loved steve has felt in a while.

so they move to italy, and suddenly steve is a lot more busy. he's put in front of more cameras for more people he doesn't know. but he's smiling and pouting and doing whatever they want him to do. his compliant attitude and polite nature have photographers and designers alike singing his praises, and steve always looks to his mom for approval. but she's been arguing with his dad a lot lately, so she's upset more often than not. but that's okay, the make-up artists are always kind to him.

but then one day, his mom takes a phone call in the middle of the shoot. and when it finishes, she's gone. steve goes back in, close to tears, but the make-up artists still hanging around look after him until a car is sent to pick him up. this becomes a trend. and eventually, steve goes alone to his shoots. he's always taken care of by the crew and someone is always there to pick him up, but it's not fun without his mom there.

but he knows that she's always enjoyed him taking pictures, so he continues to do so, hoping that she'll come watch him again sometime soon. and he busies himself with befriending the chatty make-up artists and the bossy photographers and the eccentric designers. and he's such a cute little thing that they can't help but dote on him.

steve is never catapulted into child stardom, as his mom is picky with his jobs, only choosing luxury brands and well known designers for him. but within the industry, they call him the "little prince."

and then steve is catapulted into puberty, but his intense skin regimen prevents him from getting acne, save for the occasional zit. and his diet and religious exercise schedule help maintain his look. and he's still doing remarkably well, especially now that he's fully aware that he is a Model.

and steve has truly grown into his looks. with time, he's grown more comfortable in front of the camera and made numerous friends. nearly all of them are older than him, but they're fun and loud and it fills up the space that normally surrounds him. and they're the ones who get him hooked on american movies. steve remembers living in america, but he's been in milan so long that everything he recalls is vague.

but he watches them and falls in love with the american high school experience. so when he finally catches his mom off the phone and actually in the house, steve asks if he can go to school in america. and his mom laughs. but steve keeps asking, which devolves into begging. and his mother snaps, slapping him across the face and calling him ungrateful. she cries and begs for forgiveness, cowed into shame by steve's desperate attempt to hold back tears.

and so she lets him go to school in hawkins, indiana. an odd choice, but his parents just so happened to own a property there. (in truth, both of his parents expected him to change his mind within the year). but steve finds his place at hawkins high, because even though nobody in hawkins has ever heard of versace, steve is pretty. he's pretty and charming and he knows the right thing to say. after all, he's spent his whole life perfecting his mask.

and even if his mom ended up moving back home with his dad, leaving steve all alone in that big empty house, steve is happy. he's finally hanging out with people his age and high school is so far removed from the glitz and glam of the fashion industry. and he's settled and content with tommy and carol by his side. while he misses his friends back in milan, steve finds himself longing for the clothes more often. hawkins was certainly the opposite of milan, what with the nearest mall being two hours away and only equipped with a macy's and jcpenny.

through it all, steve is determined to be normal. he laughs along with jokes he doesn't quite get and rolls his eyes at carol's cue, and he joins the swim team. and he joins the basketball team. and he goes to parties and kisses girls and wears dumb little polos with his letterman jacket and does everything that he saw in the movies.

but nancy wheeler is different. steve can't forget his time in italy and who he is and was, and he's reminded of his old life in everyone and everything in hawkins. but not nancy wheeler. she's all hawkins and all his. and then the upside down happens.

and then nancy wheeler breaks his heart.

even after three years, his parents continue to ask when he'll go back to modeling, but he's different now. the upside down and billy hargrove beat that starry eyed little kid who thrived in the spotlight. and nancy wheeler proved that adoration and love is fleeting, so what would even be the point of trying anymore? his dad was a little more approving of steve's retirement/hiatus, saying that steve must want to go to college so he can take over the family business.

but when steve doesn't get into college, he's once again badgered by his mom to go back. but he's grown and changed and he's not sure that he can pretend anymore, so he says no. and they cut him off. enter: scoops era.

the measly scoops salary is not nearly enough to cover all of the new bills and expenses steve has, but he's not willing to leave hawkins. so he reaches out to his friends back in italy, and they refer him to their american connections. steve doesn't model at the same level as before, but he poses for a couple of zines and one artist who got a little too handsy at his exhibition. but he's able to make it through until the mall blows up.

this routine continues and he starts working at family video with robin at his side, but he keeps his side job a secret from the kids, using the excuse of visiting his parents to leave town for his shoots. he's not ashamed, but he knows he wouldn't "be normal" anymore if they found out.

but how does he explain his near mental breakdown at the sight of his healing demobat scars. they're raised and ugly, ruining what should have been a perfect body. and even though he uses scar cream everyday, they refuse to fade away completely. and how could anyone stand to be near such an ugly thing when all his life, steve was meant to be pretty? after all, love and adoration is fleeting.

[pinkeoni]

How fucked up would it be if we got the byler confession + kiss, there is this super happy moment where they are both in disbelief and we get a beautiful display of love and joy, and then shortly after we get a huge bombshell regarding Will and his connection to Vecna, and at first it seems like to only way to end everything is a sacrifice from Will.

And Will just thinks it’s tragically funny. Of course it was too good to be true. Of course he wasn’t going to live long anyways. Of course he wasn’t going to get the future. Hasn’t this been his fate the whole time? Why put it off any longer?

AND THEN we get Will at a crossroads. Will has to decide if he sacrifices himself for everyone else, or if he tries to fight for himself? Should I stay or should I go? And who better to convince him to stay, to fight, to keep going, othan than his heart?

[marzipanandminutiae]

anti mike flanagan why

why NOT is the real question

(The real reason is that he keeps making adaptations of Gothic literature that aren’t actual adaptations in the sense of bearing more than a passing resemblance to the source material. And I happen to have beef with this specifically because the first one was a “adaptation“ of one of my favorite novels and now all the tags are clogged up with stuff from the show and some people don’t even realize there IS a novel)

(also it’s just annoying. Like… Why adapt books if you’re not going to really adapt them? Why not just make your own thing? Clearly people like his original stuff; what’s the point of this anymore if he doesn’t want to ADAPT in any meaningful way?)

[iamnmbr3]

the moment when you realize an ai would've written a better larry show than mike waldron bc an ai would've been trained on previous loki content and thus, unlike mike, would've actually watched the films

[ectonurites]

Uhhhh very late miwip wednesday? it is thursday.

I've had this au—Will as Robin, El as Batgirl, Mike as Spoiler + a few more Hawkins characters as Bats but I'll leave the rest a mystery for now—rattling around in my brain for like a week, and I don't know if I'll ever actually write out the full longfic idea I have for it, but I'll at least post snippets and some doodles 👍

Text under the cut if the images are hard to read hehe:

—

“I know I did it to you when we first met,” the sound of boots hitting the rooftop echoes behind him, “But it’s really not proper vigilante etiquette to take off someone else’s mask.” 

Mike whips around to face him—Robin, The Boy Wonder. While he’s figured out who the new Batgirl is, he hasn’t got a clue about this guy. Unless maybe it’s not just El—maybe all the Bats are connected to the lab? Robin could be a number, too.

He stares at the other boy, lost in thought, not sure what to say. 

When it must fully register that his comment isn’t getting a response, Robin shrugs and retracts his grapple, clicking it into place on his utility belt as he steps closer out of the shadows.

Mike quickly puts his mask back on, just for something to do with his hands, something to interrupt his gawking at least for a second. When he looks again, there’s now a layer between them—flimsy blue fabric that makes it a little less clear that he’s still staring. 

But how could he not? The two of them have only really met twice—when Robin had tackled him not realizing The Spoiler is a new hero not a villain, and when Robin had come to his window the following night telling him to hang up his cape. So really, this is the first time Mike can stop and take him in without some sense of urgency bleeding into the situation. The first time he can just… look.

His mask is a deep green leather molded into a sort of beak, and despite leaving a decent amount of his face uncovered, it conceals what could really be identifying—his eyes, his nose, parts of his cheeks. His warm smile is visible though, and Mike can’t help that his eyes are drawn to it. It’s just the part of his face I can see, he tells himself, but maybe that’s not the only reason. 

Robin runs a gloved hand through his gelled-back hair, a chestnut brown that Mike bets would glisten in sunlight. But Robin isn’t someone you see during the day. Bats only come out at night in Hawkins, even ones who wear bright colors. Red, yellow, and green—he’s like a traffic light.

Only now while glancing up and down as he crosses the rooftop, does Mike really register how small a guy Robin is, noticeably shorter than Mike himself. But regardless, he still moves with confidence, it makes his presence seem larger somehow—wise beyond his years.

[mel-loly]

us!

Hey silly!! Hru? How's your day going?? :]

That's really canon!! Also- I kind of made a little comic about this but with c!melple, so.. Yeah, hope you like it! :D💖

[py6oto]

this has nothing to do with anything ive ever posted but i need an answer.

[muzzleroars]

What if Michael had succeeded in riping his holy light from himself?

self-harm mentions /

if he had been successful, michael would have become a fallen angel of violence as violence toward the self is (unfortunately) considered a part of that layer, and it would go similarly to gabriel's fall - michael would initially survive for a time without his light, doing little more than praying as he awaits his death. notably, he would try to force himself not to plead for forgiveness, as he is determined to endure his punishment in hopes that god would deliver it personally - instead he begs over and over for fair judgment of his crime. unfortunately, this would prove ineffective as his last embers die out and he goes with them, only to wake some time later in his own tomb just the way gabriel did. the cathedral he lies in is colored a shocking red against the white stillness of violence, already painted by what michael has done. his wings would fail him, and his body itself would have turned a stark, bloodless white, but most importantly he would be filled with a need to consume blood (though unlike machines he can drink from the rivers that run through hell). yet all michael sees is that he has been left alone, that his fall was automated and god had no hand in it, not even for his most loyal servant. he cannot face the idea that god is dead, and so he determines instead they are all abandoned, as god once abandoned humanity in his disgust. all of this is wrong, all of this is flawed, it must be done away with because god can't stand to even look upon it any more. and michael will do that for him. he waits out his full transformation in his tomb, growing stone-like skin beside terrible teeth and claws (like to think the bottom half of his helmet breaks so he can you know. bite everybody lol) that he becomes accustomed to out of necessity. and when it's through, when his halo has finally fallen away, he is determined to wipe out the ragged remains of god's failed kingdom.

[heavencasteel420]

I’m definitely putting the cart before the horse, because I have three active multi-chapter WIPs, but I’m debating whether or not to put Nancy Wheeler Can’t Win (my vaguely Freaks and Geeks-inspired no-UD AU) and Life During Wartime (my Will-and-Jonathan no-UD AU) in the same universe and if so how to work out the timeline.

[occasionallykettle]

why is it always mike???

[katierosefun]

Howdy Caroline, I saw a post about Talk shop Tuesday so I thought I'd be nosy on main. I wonder, how does research factor into your fic writing, and what was the most taxing research you had to do for a fic? 🐸

oooh hi, iva!!! thank you so much for shooting the ask--god knows i always love talking about fic!

to answer your question: i think most of my fic-related research is limited to "what episode did character x do this/say that", just so that i have the timeline of events down. i know it's not the end of the world if i don't perfectly remember how a certain scene went down, but i can't help it--i like being precise when it comes to at least recalling canon events.

outside of that specific brand of research (just making sure my timeline/recitation of quotes is all set), i'll sometimes do wilder research for like ... au projects that are set in a different time. that doesn't happen often (i think the reason why i tend not to write au's that are set other than present day is specifically because i get overwhelmed by the amount of research to be done), but when it does, i'm usually stuck researching for hours. that's probably why i just never got around to posting this one period jwds au i have. the plot keeps shifting, mostly to suit the research that i've done. deep sigh. one day i swear i'll finish writing that story and post it, but right now it's just gotten a little away from me. it's marinating.

outside of that story though, i think i've been lucky enough to not need to do too much research for fics . . . maybe that'll change one day (especially if i ever fall in love with a more period-drama-esque story), but ! ! ! as of now, i think my research time really only takes up 10 - 15% of my fic writing process.

[lemonkookies]

Ok serious question

[maddy-ferguson]

all of 'Will was a dick at the roller rink' arguments are so funny because they all boil down to 'how dare you sympathize with will and see him in the right when the show's intention was to make you see him in the right and sympathize with him in the first place because that was the narrative purpose since he was portrayed as a sympathetic character who was made to third wheel and the audience was supposed to see him as in the right.' or like... 'why do you not side with mike!!' idk man maybe because the narrative portrays that will is supposed to be sided here and not milvn's relationship? ''why do you not blame el too then?'' because maybe el wasn't the one who came at will and started a pissed fight? idk though

like i thought we all agreed that they made us feel for will all throughout the season why are we mad that more people are siding with him

and like i said (a month ago), mike saying "why am i the bad guy?" LITERALLY makes him sound like the bad guy like yeah they made it hard for people to side with him i'm sorry

[you-usuratonkachi]

forget about endgame couples for a moment and let's focus on what of all the Will storyline is actually plot relevant, because if there's one thing i'm pretty sure of, is that all the emotional pain he's been through this season will be addressed nextseason.

why do i think that?

it was stated before that we would find out why Will was the first one to be taken to the upside down and it occurred to me that out of all the pain he went through by hiding his feelings for Mike and supporting Mike’s relationship with El, the most fucked up thing he got in return was the person he loves saying that the day Mike started to live is the day Mike also found out that he was missing. And that didn't go unnocited by the characters. The camera focuses both on Will and Jonathan (though you could argue that it’s about the whole monologue, not just that part, but same difference). 

Now, if this was simply a statement to reinforce Mike's love for El... well, my guys, it would be the most horrible thing EVER. Of course it still is, but it makes me wonder, from a writing pov, WHY they chose to include that. 

We know that in the main plotline the upside down stopped "aging" when El opened the gate, which is "coincidentally"  the day Will went missing, consequently leading to El and Mike’s meeting. 

If the point of that confession was simply that, a confession, that sentence would have been TOTALLY unnecessary.There was no reason for Mike to say that. they could have given him different words to confess his love, there was no  need to hurt Will specifically in the process... unless it was building up to something else, unless it's drawing our attention to that day specifically and what led to it, unless there is meaning to Will missing and El coming into Mike's life on that day. 

It was still shitty of Mike of course,  but i can see how putting such a sentence right there brought attention to it, which is, i suppose, what the writers wanted to stand out (or am i giving them too much credit? I’m 50/50 on this, i can’t decide either lmao)

What made us mad the most this season is the way they had Will express his feelings as El, the way he said El commissioned the painting, the way Mike kinda repeated Will's words to El. Will was, in a way, "sacrificed", to give El more space. Which, if you think about it, is exactly what happened the day Will went missing. He went, she came. 

Remember also how people kept inferring that El and Will looked alike in S1? Maybe it's a small detail, but it's something that came up over and over in the story. 

The fact that Will basically confessed to Mike by masquerading it as El's feelings makes me feel even more strongly about this. It's like El and Will are somehow connected, like two sides of one coin. 

It's probably not the case, but I do wonder if Will was taken because he was mistaken for El that very first day... There's definitely something about the writing choices this season that makes El and Mike's relationship feel like it stands on  Will's ashes and the more I think about it, the more it feels intentional. 

Will confessing by using El's name MUST be addressed. His painting MUST be addressed again. Those lies cannot simply fall flat. There are too many parallels between El and Will (and both their relationships with Mike) at this point to ignore them. They have always been there but it feels like they were put at the forefront this season and that Will's feelings for Mike aren't simply the Duffer finally deciding to make Will's sexuality explicit, but to draw attention to the fact that he and El? feel the same way, they are so much alike, they have always been. 

That first day, after opening the gate, El went missing from the lab. Everyone was searching for her, One specifically would have searched for her the most because he wanted her to open more gates (and it was the first time he could reach into Hawkins to actively do that). Is it that far fetched that his underling, the demogorgon, got the wrong person?

I don’t know if i like this theory or not myself, but I think it’s perhaps worth thinking about. 

(assuming it was the demogorgon who took him and not One himself. someone pointed out that in that first ep, Will closes the door of his house and the door gets opened by telekinesis-kind of powers, which would definitely hint at One more than a demogorgon. this would definitely make my point moot lmao but still if it was One who targeted Will, WIll MUST have something that One wanted from him)

I don’t want to delude myself, but I think we have reason to believe that Will will be the center of next season like Max was this season. He’s inherently connected to the beginning of the upside down, it all started with him. To explain the upside down, they must address his dissapearance once again (One’s actor already said that Will was the center of it all and the Duffers said they would explain why he was taken) and contrary to how it felt like at first watch, I now realize that S4 was nothing more that the beginning of everyone’s character arc. 

None of the problems that came up in S4 have been resolved by the end. We felt like they would because it was split in two volumes, but Vol 2 left everything unresolved and if anything it created more confusion. 

Nancy and Jonathan’s problems? Unresolved. Steve’s feelings for Nancy? Unresolved. Robin’s storyline with Vikie? Unresolved. Vecna himself is unresolved. El’s independecy character arc is unresolved. Mike’s ooc behavior with WIll? Unresolved. His monolugue to El? Never addressed or acknowledged after the fact so also unresolved. 

I know at first it might feel like the monologue resolved the problems between Mike and El, but the truth is that every watcher KNOWS that it was brought upon by Will’s sacrifice. That makes it feel WRONG. It was the result of LIES. 

Lies are what are keeping the Jancy storyline open and I have reason to believe it’s the same for Mike and El. We haven’t seen the end of their characters’ arcs at all. It’s going to conclude in S5, this was just the beginning. 

[crumbleclub]

For the drawing prompt, how about Elizabeth wearing those big, cute heart shaped sunglasses?

her fashion sense is very avante garde

(she learned the term from one of her dad's fashion magazines and she's very proud of her pronunciation, thank you very much)