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I really like the idea of Darlin being a dancer.

I wouldn’t be surprised if they did it in college either or at least something creative. They’re quite smart academically but in maths their is only right and wrong, there was no leeway, no exploring. Dancing is something they’d done for as long as they remembered. A way to be expressive with movement.

Their parents said it was a way to learn control at first, to dampen down their impulses and put their energy into something positive. Despite that, they enjoy it. Convincing themselves it makes them feel free but going through the rules and steps over and over to make it perfect. They learn to work through pain, to ignore their aching muscles and cut up feet. They don’t do anything half-assed.

It starts controlling them.

They eventually stop as their life changes but Darlin carries dance with them every where they go. Keeping themselves small to never take up too much room, letting themself be contorted into whatever shape, pose or person necessary to fit the performance and to fit into life. Using their body to communicate, to tell a story.

All of the cuts and welts, all that practise and patience only useful when it comes to agility in fights now. It was a stupid dream, bruises and anger in a leotard? Even stage makeup can’t cover their scars. What an idiot they’d been.

But then Sam comes into Darlin’s life and he makes them home cooked meals and they bulk up. He see’s them for who they are, not who he wants them to be. And he fumbles around in the moonlight with them, trying his best as they spin each other.

They feel free and Darlin doesn’t have to perform anymore but they do get to dance again.

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“What was that for?”

Some more thoughts on Darlin’s love languages and Sam’s HBS. Part 1 observations.

Disclaimer: I wrote this last summer so if all of this seems really obvious now that’s why but I’m just posting my drafts and I still like it 😌

(Also thank you to @darlin-collins for reminding me I wanted to write this when you reblogged that old Darlin love languages post of mine! I remember you said that you wouldn’t mind if I talked about it for hours and so I hope this and the next post serve you well <3 )

To me it is clear that touch is one of Darlin’s main love languages . In their relationship, Darlin’ initiated the first touch (besides healing) when asking to hug Sam. The first video with the pair in a non-platonic relationship, Darlin strokes their fingers across Sam’s chest and initiates their first kiss, whereas Sam clarify’s his feelings with words.

Darlin’ also does not hesitate in hugging Asher nor David when the contact is offered, instead eagerly using it as a way to receive/give comfort.

Which makes it all the more devastating when you remember how long they went without it/ how they used physical touch to harm themselves. The way that as soon as Sam asked if there was anything he could do for them in the video after the David debacle Darlin straight away asks if he could give them a hug?!?! 😫😫

Whenever Sam compliments Darlin’ there is very rarely a gap where they’d reply but there is commonly a kiss straight after. Which shows that they use physical touch to display emotion and communicate as well.

For example; Straight after Sam’s famous ‘you just feel so right, like I didn’t know it could’ and ‘a lot of things come easy with you’ lines.

When Sam assures them that it’s okay to rest and relax when they moved in with him, Darlin’ once again kisses him straight after and then proceeds to move onto his lap.

In Sam’s HBS 22 they kiss Sam (to comfort him) straight after he confides in not wanting to burden them with the fact he can’t go out in the sunlight (at 12:47) and straight after he compliments how they look (at 16:40, as a thank you).

So when Darlin’ kissed Sam at the nightclub to stop him from overthinking and he responded with ‘what was that for?’ It was a genuine question. He knows they use physical touch to communicate and he didn’t understand what they meant by it, since to him there was no comfort or thanks necessary.

And I just think that’s cute as shit.

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Uh I was cleaning out my camera roll and found these from a year ago….. enjoy?

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In the valentines audio Darlin points out that Sam’s lip is bleeding and kisses him better. Which means he didn’t heal it himself.

He purposefully stopped his bodies natural healing process so that he’d have the magic to heal their cuts and bruises.

I need a moment.

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The silence. The soft ‘can I?’ And then the hug 😫. The shaky breaths. Him rubbing their back?!?!

David and Darlin, you’re so special to me

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Calls their partner Darlin, uses a lot of religious vocabulary, literally invented love:

Sam Collins 🤝 Hozier

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I’m under the firm belief that Asher just jumps on peoples backs with no notice. He’s a piggy back fiend. He will arrange a piggy back from the living room to the kitchen and you best believe he’ll point and say ‘onward’ like you’re a horse. David, Sam and Sweetheart are his most common victims.

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That trend where all the grandkids show up to their grandmas house for a sleepover but it’s the shaw pack going to Marie’s

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I love how the canon descriptions of the characters we have are like:

Milo: average height, tiddies*

Sam: wears flannels, silver eyes, tiddies*

Gavin: tanned skin, big dick

David : tall, BIG DICK

Huxley: muscles, HUMONGOUS SCHLONG

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So you’re telling me that Vincents turning was the result of a rollercoaster crash and then afterwards he collects cars and speeds around in them enough for there to have been multiple occasions where he’s tranced cops?

and those two things aren’t connected 🤨

I think not..

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Sam fandom thoughts

Although I can honestly see both sides of what the fandoms been saying about the recent Sam developments I think it’s important to remember that Sam and Darlin are both extremely traumatised characters. Their relationship isn’t going to be ‘normal’. Their coping mechanisms, their timing with events, everything to do with their relationship is different to one of non-traumatised characters if that makes sense?

There are definitely a lot of ways to look at how they handle things, like how Sam being ready for sex and biting with Darlin were both after life-altering events. Would it be nice for them to come to these points in there relationship in a ‘healthier’ way? Yes it would.

But that’s literally not how their brains work. I’m not trying to patronise their characters. Their actions are still their actions, they are grown adults and shouldn’t be minimised to just what’s happened to them. But the things they’ve gone through aren’t just side story’s or plots for comfort audios.

Trauma scientifically changes the way your brain works, it can literally change who you are as person. And for Sam in particular he’s canonically never been in a healthy situation besides his relationship with Darlin (and the Shaw pack).

So if the way they do things kinda seems off to the average folk, that’s normal. Sam literally says ‘it’s not weird, it’s us.’ It’s how THEY handle things.

There’s nothing wrong with disliking it, with wishing it was different or with completely enjoying it. But I think it’s something we don’t keep in mind in this context enough.

I’ve been an avid Sam fan since he got a playlist on the channel and even to me some things seem rushed or ‘strange’ but that’s because I’m not the characters, I haven’t gone through what they have, and in some lights it’s kind of refreshing to see how relationships between different people with different pasts can develop. Instead of a character going through something horrendous having a cry about it and then going back to their old self.

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“What was that for?”

Some more thoughts on Darlin’s love languages and Sam’s HBS. Part 2 headcanons yay!

@darlin-collins <3

Darlin feels like they are never close enough to Sam, they will be laid directly on top of him and still trying to figure out ways to get closer

Sam, although quite outwardly stoic, does not only use his ‘pretty prose’ on Darlin’ (although they get the most and the best ones). Since his turning he is so aware of how short life can be and when he truly admires something about a person he’ll let them know.

This is usually with close pack/clan and also always when he’s just on his own with the person he’s talking too. But, if the timings right, he lets out these poetic observations, usually leaving the other person speechless before he quickly changes the topic. Not always realising the (positive) weight of his compliments.

On multiple occasions Sam has used words to describe Darlin that they didn’t know. Not because they’re dumb but because some of his vocabulary is rather niche. And upon looking it up they almost always perfectly describe Darlin’ in whatever situation he was talking about.

Although not the best at giving compliments, Darlin’ does tell Sam that he’s beautiful, gorgeous etc depending on the vibe he’s giving at the time and they’re the first person to ever call him anything other than handsome or hot.

‘You’re so pretty’

‘Pretty?!?’

‘Mhmm’

‘Darlin’ I ain’t-‘

‘Especially right now, with your hair like that’

‘Alright…. Well, thank you.’

I’ve mentioned before in a head canon post that they like it when Sam runs a finger up and down the bridge of their nose. Darlin’ will also full on nuzzle into Sam when cuddling/hugging. Especially into his collarbone/neck

Although comfortable with (platonic) touch from people they know, Darlin doesn’t like it unexpectedly, nor will they usually initiate it.

Unless someone they love is upset, then they’ll be getting a hug or an arm wrapped around them without any hesitation (if that’s what they like ofc)

Sam feels like he’ll never be able to fully voice how much Darlin’ means to him, Darlin’s heart practically skips a beat when he simply calls them beautiful. (Or when he makes a joke or complains or laughs or….)

When comforting Darlin’ about something, Sam often adresses problems/reasons for their behaviour/feelings that Darlin’ hadn’t realised themselves yet. He is so careful with his wording and extremely observant of them.

Darlin’ although previously independent to a fault, realised that the best comfort they could give Sam was to let him help them. On multiple occasions Darlin’ has let him heal paper-cuts and small bruises (which is a ridiculous waste of magic in their opinion) because otherwise he’s not going to stop thinking about it.

Sam knows all of Darlin’s tells by their body language and Darlin’ know Sam’s by his tone and the amount he’s speaking for example: if he says he’s ‘fine’ then he’s not but if he says he’s ‘alright’ then he probably is

The same way Sam felt bad about not being able to give Darlin every physical action that they wanted Darlin feels bad that they can’t verbalise their feelings for him correctly.

Sam found a scrunched up love letter from Darlin’ and keeps it in his wallet. They’d wanted to write down their feelings so they wouldn’t mess it up when sharing them with him but ultimately hated the end result.

They do however leave little notes for him sometimes while he’s sleeping , since they tend to work on different schedules, that Sam also dearly treasures and keeps in a shoe box.

Sam is really good at writing professional emails and has on multiple occasions written some for Angel and Babe when they’ve had problems with their bosses

The perfect mix of polite, professional and passive aggressive

Another way Darlin’ helps Sam is by reminding him of his talents/abilities and how he uses them for so much good, they will not let that man be humble. His #1 cheerleader FR.

Even with all of this in mind both of their most comfortable ways of communicating their love is through acts of service. That way they get to keep up their grumpy outward personas that the pack/clan have long since learned to see right through.

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I always wondered why David was so adamant about Sam telling him if anyone was rude to him in the winter solstice audio cause why would you have people like that in your pack?!? but just chalked it down the fact there was other people there and David being protective. Not it being COLM All along.

Shame on you sir, shame on you 🫵🤨

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Redacted boys as book boyfriend tropes ~

David: The Mafia Boss. Definitely would be a scene where he saves Angel from an enemy and he accidentally lets out his feelings for them in his panicked state. How did Angel get involved with the mafia? Who knows, they’re Angel.

Asher: The Jock. Definitely thinking like a high school, college setting. Asher’s popular and seems to know everyone, Babe’s the nerdy/shy student that catches his eye.

Milo: The celebrity. He’s stylish and confident and Sweetheart doesn’t care about any of that because they are simply their to be his extremely badass bodyguard. (This could work both ways tbh)

Vincent: The Prince (obviously). He’s arranged to marry someone else when lovely catches his eye out in the village and there is definitely a scene involving a masquerade ball with a disguised lovely as his date.

Sam: Enemy’s to Lovers. HEAR ME OUT. That trope where the hero turns up to the villains door covered in blood (or vice versa) and the other patches them up? Yup Sam and Darlin’. Queue the ‘who did this to you?’ line.

Guy: Friends to lovers. As is the same in canon except it’s an extreme slow burn. Guy acts as Honeys wingman even though he’s in love with them. There’s a big scene where Honey realises that the person they’ve been looking for was there all along.

Vega: ‘He hates everyone but me’ (that’s it that’s the trope)

Aaron: The millionaire CO of his tech company and Smartass is his new assistant… Definitely a miscommunication trope in their somewhere and a heated argument where Smartass quits but it just ends in them smooching.

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David is Low-key (high-key) the type to cry when he sees Angel on their wedding day.

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Bar I went to tonight didn’t remind me of anything. Nothing at alll…….