#but every year the lead up to Easter does this to me

[minstr3lsong]

Holy Week, or, Watch as I Grow Closer to Writing a Queer Passion Retelling with Each Passing Day

[lilacliquors]

another late easter special, but have some easter spice, cod men edition! hopefully these read as gender neutral as possible <3

you wear 🐰bunny ears🐰 on easter headcanons ( tf 141, alejandro, and graves )

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ GHOST

to say he's surprised is an understatement. sure, you two have your fun, but you've never really dressed up for him in any way before

so seeing you in bunny ears, a crop top, and shorts is a very welcome sight

he's gentle with you when he reaches you, his calloused hands skimming over the softness of the bunny ears, and you see a gentle smile on his lips

'you look absolutely adorable, you know that?' he asks you, his voice soft, yet raspy. and it's true, you're the most beautiful creature he's ever seen

and he's quick to show you, leading you to the bed and laying you on it, on full display for him

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ SOAP

soap thought he had the world in the palm of his hand the one halloween you wore the cat ears, but this...

he practically pounces on you the second he sees you, chuckling as the bunny ears bounce and the band covers your eyes for a brief moment

'aye, let's fix those up a bit, shall we?' he chuckles, gently adjusting them back onto your head as you laugh

his lips are on yours in an instant, his hands roaming your body, feeling you squirm under his touch.

'how about we get you in a cottontail next year, hm?' he teases, one hand gripping your rear. and that's when you knew you'd woken an animal in him

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ GAZ

'oh, fuckin' hell...' he breathes when he sees you. you're laying in your bed, your bedroom eyes on full display, as well as the rest of you

you're in the skimpiest lingerie you could find, pink to match the bunny ears on your head, and gaz is hooked

he walks to you in a trance, his eyes never leaving your body, and he crawls on top of you slowly and steadily

'all for me? you shouldn't have...' he purrs, his fingers toying with the straps of the lingerie

'all for you,' you whisper back, and you pull him in for a kiss, which he eagerly returns, ready to get your night started

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ PRICE

price wouldn't consider himself a religious man, but when he saw you, he swore he saw god, maybe even heard a chorus of angels in the background

you looked so perfect, opening the door to him in cute little bunny ears, and one of his shirts. nothing else covering you

'see, i would have gotten the hat, too. but i would never cut ear holes in it,' you tease, and he lets out a breathy chuckle as his hands fall to your hips

'that would have gotten you in trouble, yeah...' he murmurs, still in a daze as his eyes roamed over you

from that point on, you're his little bunny, and he makes sure to remind you of it every second of every day, when he can

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ ALEJANDRO

the only thing that leaves his lips the moment he sees you is your name, and it's barely above a whisper

you'd worn lingerie for him before, but never had you made yourself look so ... so sexy and vulnerable, and it's all for his eyes, and his eyes alone

when he reaches you, he can't bring himself to take anything off of you. he just wants to look at you, like the work of art you are

when he does finally get his hands on you, he's gentle, treating you like porcelain that could shatter at any moment

it's the most magical night of your life, funnily enough. he made you see stars, unlike any other time you made love, and you made a mental note to treat him to this more often

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ GRAVES

'well, look at what we have here...' his voice is soft, and there's a smirk on his lips as he spots you in white bunny ears and matching white lingerie

but despite the smirk on his lips, his eyes are full of a mix of love and lust, just taking in how you look, admiring your body and everything about it

he's drawn to you like a magnet, his arms wrap around your waist and his hands fall to your bottom, gripping it and pushing you against him

'it can be dangerous for a little lost bunny, if they're not careful," he whispers, giving your ass a squeeze

that night, he simply ravages you, unable to keep his hands to himself. and he sincerely hopes there'll be more nights like this in the future

[ch0k3herwithaseaview]

@jegulus-microfic | april 16 embarrass | words: 1,3k

this one is a lighter version of what happened to me during easter lol enjoy;3

tw: blood, hospital, stitches, needles, accident

part two

Regulus went out with Barty and Evan—nothing new.

They drank—also nothing new.

The fact that Regulus had forgotten how to ride a bike, however, was new.

Everyone always says you can’t forget how to ride a bike, and maybe it’s true, but when you do it for the first time in almost two years while drunk, it turns out to be quite hard.

The first few minutes were okay; he was a bit wobbly, but he managed to ride on his own. The problem started as they passed the old shrine. It was placed on a sharp turn, and Regulus, instead of turning left as he should, started turning right. He could see the bike hitting the curb and the pavement getting closer and closer with every passing second. Alright, he thought, I’m going to hit it. He didn’t even try to pull out his hands to cushion the fall; he just flew like a log on his face.

Regulus lay there for a few seconds, hearing his friends laughing behind him, and then started laughing himself. He stood up, dusted off his trousers, and touched his chin. There was a hole in it; Regulus could feel it.

“Hey, does it look bad?” He turned to face his friends, and that’s when he felt a thick liquid rolling down his neck.

“Reg, that looks fucking awful; we’re going to the hospital,” Evan said firmly, taking Regulus’ hand and leading him to sit a bit further from the road.

“Show me,” he said, laughing lightly, because what else has he left?

Barty snorted, taking his phone out and, a second later, blinding Regulus with its flash. When he saw the photo, he just started laughing harder.

“Oh fuck, I look so bad; we should call Pandora,” he choked out, trying to keep the wound closed (he didn’t manage it).

A few minutes later, Panda’s old peugeot stopped next to them. The girl grabbed his face and started cleaning it with wet wipes, mumbling how irresponsible Regulus is.

“Hold it,” she commended sternly. “You had one job, one, and still failed at it,” Pandora turned to address all three giggling boys. “Take his bike; I’ll text when we’re at the hospital.”

***

“Regulus, I swear to god, if you don’t shut up, I will—oh, thank fuck, take him away from me, please,” Pandora said to someone behind him. As Regulus turned around, he felt cured right then and there, because in front of him stood the most beautiful man he’s ever seen, with his messy curls, golden skin, and that stunning smile.

The man chuckled, and that’s when Regulus realised his jaw had gone slack.

“Are you Regulus?” the man asked.

“Are you God?” Reg replied before he could stop himself. Mr. Beautiful started straight out laughing at that.

“Well, I’m your doctor, so kinda? I guess?” The doctor answered, inviting Regulus to the treatment room. “What happened?”

Regulus considered all of his options: tell the truth and sound like an alcoholic who gets himself into accidents, or come up with some lie.

Because he didn’t feel like he could come up with a good one, Regulus chose the first option.

“Oh, I’m going to embarrass myself as fuck,” he giggled, while the doctor, whose name he couldn’t quite read from the name tag on his scrubs, started cleaning the wound. “Wait, can you—can you stop moving for a second?” The doctor did what he was asked to do. Regulus reached for the little piece of plastic attached to the pocket on the doctor's chest and finally got what he wanted. Letting go of the man’s clothing, Regulus continued, “So, James, did your parents teach you how to ride a bike?”

The doctor, James, snorted, “Yes, Regulus, they taught me how to ride a bike; why?”

“Well, I thought mine did too, but today I realised they did a shitty job at it.” James erupted into laughter, taking a step back from Regulus. “What? I mean it! Look, if they taught me better, I probably wouldn’t be here!”

“That, or if you drank a little less,” the taller man huffed, coming back closer to Regulus. He knew the doctor was right, but he still felt the need to roll his eyes.

After a few minutes, James told him it looked really bad and they would need to stitch him up.

“If you're afraid I'll disfigure your face for the rest of your life, I can call someone else,” Regulus heard, and he responded with a dismissive hand gesture.

“Stitch away; I don’t mind. Besides, scares are kinda badass,” another round of chuckles.

“Alright, just don’t make me laugh while I do it, or you really will look bad when I’m done.”

Regulus could hear some metal things clicking against each other and could feel the fear creeping up his neck. He started scraping the nail polish off his nails, waiting for the worst. James must’ve noticed somehow, because he asked if Regulus felt alright.

One moment Regulus was staring at the overhead lamp, and the next there was a blue cloth covering his face.

“What the fuck?” he grumbled, grabbing at it. “Take it off; I can’t see shit.”

He could hear James sighing, and then his face came back into view. Regulus couldn’t help but smile at the sight.

“If you weren’t so funny, I would put them all on you,” the other man muttered, throwing away the blue thing. “Okay, since you’re under the influence, I can’t administer local anaesthesia, but you have enough piercings to know the feeling.”

“Yeah, and I certainly do not do them for the feeling,” he mumbled, putting his hands underneath his buttocks.

James grabbed a needle with medical thread already pulled through it. He lowered himself closer to Regulus’ face and looked up into his eyes.

“Ready?”

“I will never be, so just go. Please,” was all Regulus could choke out while looking into those deep hazel eyes that crinkled at the response, probably from the smile hidden under the mask.

James looked back down at Reg’s chin and placed the needle in the wound area. As it went in and out, creating the first stitch, Regulus could feel a tear rolling down his temple.

“You okay?” James asked, looking into his eyes again. This time, only a whimper came out of Regulus. “Don’t worry, just one more,” the doctor said in a soothing tone, his eyes softening.

The second time was the same yet worse—Regulus wanted to run as he felt the needle just near his face.

After that, James cleaned him up again and gave him instructions on how to treat the wound.

“See you in two weeks; I’ll take them off,” he said, handing the discharge from the hospital to Regulus.

I’m drunk, Reg thought to himself. If it goes south, I can blame it on the vodka.

“Why not in two days?” he said out loud.

James looked at him, puzzled. “Excuse me?”

Regulus cleared his throat. “Why wait two weeks when we can see each other sooner?”

“I can’t take the stitches sooner then—"

“Not to take off the stitches, doctor,” he said, smirking slightly.

James eyes went wide. For a moment that felt like hours, they sat in silence, just looking at each other, waiting.

When the silence stretched out a bit more, Regulus decided to abort the mission.

“You know what? I’m drunk; I should just—"

“Does Tuesday at 8:00 sound good?” James said at the same time. It took Regulus a few seconds to register what he just heard, but when it finally got to him, he positively beamed at James.

“Yeah,” he said, his eyes sparkling with excitement. “Yes, that sounds lovely.”

[feelmyskinonyourskin]

Pink Roses [Fake Dating Trope]

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Female Reader

Trope de Sept Masterlist | Main Masterlist

Fake Dating situation 1. Two characters pretend to date for some purpose such as social gain, only for real feelings to get involved at some point "Bucky asked you to pretend to be his girlfriend to keep his elderly sister happy. You’re just platonic friends/coworkers, what could possibly go wrong?"

Warnings: Lil’ bit of angst into a happy ending. Reader uses fem pronouns and is referred to as ‘girlfriend’. No use of y/n. Friends to lovers. Reader spends Christmas and Easter with Bucky but doesn’t necessarily celebrate them herself, but they are mentioned.

WC: 7,000 baby!!!! Kicking off the Trope De Sept event strong!

*I never give permission for my fics, manips, or any other original creation I post on this site to be copied, posted elsewhere, translated, or fed into any AI program. The only platform I currently post anything on is Tumblr. Thanks!*

“Thank you for the flowers by the way, they are beautiful.” Rebecca sighed, playing with the pink petals of the roses in front of her

“Of course Rebecca,” you responded. “Bucky picked them.”

“Oh my, he has good taste. He gets you flowers right?”

“Oh…” her question caught you off guard.

Bucky had merely introduced you by name when you arrived with him to visit his sister for Christmas. You assumed he had warned her he was bringing a coworker, but she seemed to not have gotten the memo and thought your relationship with her brother was something else.

“All the time, Becca. Mom raised me right.” he said, giving you a playful wink as he did

It was a lie, but Rebecca didn’t catch on.

“See I knew my brother was a gentleman. Oh he is so lucky to have you in his life.”

You shot Bucky a curious look and he merely shrugged in response.

The reason you were there with him at all began a few days before, right before Christmas.

“Hey Bucky, just heading out. See you in the New Year!” you said, tying your scarf tightly around your neck, ready to leave the Avengers compound for the two week break from work.

“Hey yeah! Have a good winter break! You got any big plans?” he asked

“No. Keeping it quiet this year.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah I just…I got so sick of my family asking me the same thing and all my cousins flaunting engagement rings, and wedding plans, and ultrasounds, that I just don’t even bother going home for holidays anymore.”

“Oh yeah, I get it. You should meet my sister. I’m going to see her on Christmas and all she does is worry about me. She’s convinced I’m unhappy because I’m single. She literally tries to set me up with every new nurse they hire at her nursing home and I just know most of the Christmas dinner conversation is going to be asking me when I’m going to find someone nice to settle down with.”

“Oh gosh that sounds fun.” you said with a chuckle

“Hey if you don’t have any big Christmas plans, would you want to come with me? My sister loves company and we can even get takeout afterwards. You know, just so you don’t have to spend Christmas alone?”

“Bucky, that’s very sweet of you. I’d love to. Your sister sounds amazing. I can't wait to meet her.”

“Great. Yeah Rebecca’s a fun time. She’s 98 and still smart as a whip. You’ll love her!”

“Okay sounds like a plan.”

The Crown Heights Senior Living Center knew how to throw a Christmas party, with Rebecca Barnes leading the charge on the caroling group and Bucky helping her coordinate the gift exchange.

You couldn’t remember the last time you’d had such a fun time, with a group of octogenarians no less.

“Wow Rebecca! How did Bucky keep a pet racoon in the attic for a whole week without your mother noticing?”

“Well that old Brownstone we lived in was solid. They don’t build them like that anymore. The walls were so thick it took her a while to figure out where the scratching noises were coming from.”

“Yeah well she also got suspicious when I swiped an extra serving of her meatloaf and ran upstairs with it right after dinner.” Bucky chimed in

“Speaking of, Becs they’ll be serving your dinner soon and we’re getting hungry too.” Bucky said, standing and giving his sister a kiss on the forehead

“Darling, it was lovely to meet you.” Rebecca said to you, then turned to her brother “James, please bring your girlfriend around more often, she’s a treat.”

You and Bucky smiled at her and departed the room, making your way down the tinsel decorated hall.

“Awe, she thinks I’m your girlfriend!” you teasingly commented, playfully smacking his arm

“Yeah well, literally every time I visit, she’s trying to set me up with a new nurse they’ve hired and she’s always asking me when I’m going to find someone nice to settle down with.”

“I think it’s sweet.”

“Now when I come back to visit next week, she’s gonna ask about you and I’m gonna have to break her heart and tell her I’m still alone and destitute. I…” Bucky trailed off

“What?”

“It’s a dumb idea.”

“What is?”

“What if we… look this might be crazy but. Would you want to, you know, pretend to be my girlfriend? Just come with me to the nursing home every once in a while on like holidays and things? Just to keep my sister happy. I mean she’s 98 years old, there’s not a lot left going on in her life and I’ve literally never seen her more excited.”

“Okay. This is either going to go really well or really poorly. Either way I wanna see it. So yeah. Let’s do it.”

You saw Bucky at work nearly everyday in the New Year, exchanging pleasantries and making small talk like all coworkers do. At the beginning of February, he brought up his sister again, mentioning that she asked about you and asking if you’d like to join him to visit her again on Valentine's Day. You agreed.

Bucky gave your front door three knocks and you swung it open to greet him, still fiddling with the clasp on your necklace as you got ready.

“Hey, I’ll be ready in a few.” you said as he entered your apartment, stopping in your tracks as you noticed the bouquet he held in his metal arm.

Pink roses, just like the one’s he’d brought Rebecca at Christmas.

“Oh these are for you.” he said, noticing your gaze traveling to them

“For me? But…”

“Don’t worry I have another bouquet for Becca.” he said, pulling an identical bouquet from behind his back “But at Christmas I told her I got you flowers all the time, so I figured I actually should, you know, not be a liar.”

“Not be a… Bucky, we are quite literally about to go see her and lie to her a bunch! You know, about us.” you gestured between the two of you

Bucky laughed and shook his head.

“Fair, but why lie about one more thing? And besides, I think I owe you more than just a thank you for doing all this.”

“Fair.” you said, mimicking his tone and taking the bouquet from him

As you filled a glass vase in the sink and placed the roses in it, Bucky stepped behind you, grabbing the necklace from where you had placed it on the counter and wordlessly fastened it around your neck.

A chill ran down your spine as his fingers fiddled with the clasp, finally connecting it with the hook and pressing his palm against the back of your neck to lay it flat.

“Now I know you aren’t just spending such a romantic holiday just visiting an old lady. What are your plans? James, how are you romancing your lady today?”

You and Bucky looked at each other nervously. You hadn’t really discussed backstory or any other thing she might want to know about your relationship.

“I’ll tell you later Rebecca, don’t want to ruin any surprises!” Bucky finally spoke up, and you made a point to reach for his right hand, intertwining your fingers with his like any couple might and put on an excited look on your face for the non-existent Valentines plans. His palm was warm as he rubbed his thumb in delicate circles around your hand.

“Oh good! Well don’t let me keep you kids too long!” she exclaimed, shooing you out the door of her room

“Okay we really need to discuss more backstory and stuff before we come here. She’s asking too many questions.” he commented as you walked down the hall

“Bucky, maybe this is a bad idea. Your sister is so sweet and I feel bad lying to her like this.”

“Hey, look, she's happy because she thinks I’m happy. We can call this off if you want, but I really think it’d break her heart if I tell her we broke up. Please, just a few more visits? Just so she doesn’t think I’m totally alone.”

“But you are.”

Bucky shot you a look that you’d only ever seen when Sam got on his nerves.

You gnawed at your bottom lip and gave it some thought, Bucky’s blue eyes staring you down. “Okay. But we need to come up with more of a back story. Let’s go grab a cup of coffee and set some ground rules?”

“It’s a date.”

Your eyes went wide at the word date.

“Sorry. It’s a ‘platonic coworkers pretending to date’ not-date.” he said with a grin

“Fine, but you’re buying.”

“It’s Valentine's Day, it'd be absolutely ungentlemanly of me to not.”

The coffee shop around the corner was decorated for the occasion, with heart-shaped foil garland cascading from the ceiling and a cupid chalk drawing taking up a large portion of the menu board.

The barista topped your hot chocolate’s whipped cream with red and pink sprinkles and Bucky chuckled at the foam heart she drew into the top of his latte.

Every other table seemed to be occupied by couples, all looking gooey-eyed at each other and whispering sweet nothings across the small marble tables.

You were so busy taking in all the displays of love that Bucky had to clear his throat to get your attention, arms stretched out behind you reaching for your coat.

“Oh gosh sorry.” you said, shrugging out of it as he placed it on the hook on the wall and then pulled the wooden chair out for you to sit.

“Shit, your sister is right, you are a good boyfriend.” you said

Bucky rolled his eyes with a smirk and took his seat across from you.

“Okay.” you said, placing your palms on the table in front of you “ground rules.”

“Right, if you want to add a third to the bedroom, it has to be Sam. We made a pact a while back, it’s a long story but sorry it’s the only way...”

“Bucky!”

“Shit doll, sorry! I was kidding! I mean kind of, Sam and I did sort of agree…”

“Bucky!” you cut him off “Look if you don’t want to take this seriously, then fine I can just go and call it here. This is for you and your sister after all.”

“No, dammit I’m sorry, you’re right. Okay, go ahead.” Bucky replied

“Well we need to establish a backstory. And know a little more about each other so it doesn’t seem suspicious.”

“Okay. You go first. Ask anything you want to know about me.”

“Okay um. What’s your favorite color?”

“Really? You think what’s gonna make us not believable is whether or not you know my favorite color?” he looked at you in disbelief

“I don’t know! What else do couples know about each other?”

“Not sure. I haven’t dated regularly since 1943. It’s blue, by the way. What’s yours?” He responded

“Purple. Is that your usual coffee order?”

“In the winter, yes. In summer, I go for iced coffee.”

“Okay. Um. I guess it might be more important to have some facts about us. As a couple.”

“Right. Like what?”

“Well like where was our first kiss? Or our first date?” you asked

“In Central Park under the Cherry Blossoms. I’m romantic like that.”

“Bucky you told her we just started dating in the fall…”

“Fine, in Central Park under the orange leaves.”

“Who said I love you first?”

“You, obviously” he replied

That made you roll your eyes “Why is it obviously me?”

“Do I seem like the kind of guy to be open with his feelings?”

“No, you're the quietest on the team. It took four months of me working with the Avengers for you to return my good morning greeting everyday with even a nod of acknowledgement.”

Bucky raised his eyebrows as if to say “see I’m right”

“Fine. What’s the most romantic thing you've ever done for me?”

“Decorated your Christmas tree while you were at work.”

“I didn’t have a Christmas tree.”

“Well since all of this is pretend, let’s pretend you did.”

“Fine. While we’re on the subject, what did we get each other for the holidays?”

“I got you that necklace.” he nodded in your direction to the string of delicate pearls he helped you put on earlier. In reality, it’d been a gift you got yourself for your most recent birthday, but you were fine with the alternate story.

“Fine. I guess I got you a Frank Sinatra album for your record player.”

“How’d you know I have a record player?”

“Lucky guess.”

“Is it because I’m old?”

“I mean, yeah maybe…”

He sat back in his chair, looking thoroughly unamused.

“Since I know she’s going to ask next time you see her, what did you do to woo me on Valentine’s Day?” you asked

“Took you to a coffee shop and got you pink roses.” he gestured at the cafe around you, a proud smile on his face

“You know what, it’s actually the best Valentine’s Day I’ve ever had.” you said with a grin

“See, I am good at this boyfriend thing. What else should we know?”

“What side of the bed do you sleep on?” you asked

“Trick question, neither. I sleep on the floor because of my nightmares.”

“Bucky thats…” you trailed off

“Hey, it's something my girlfriend would know.” Bucky said so casually, as if he had not opened up to you and revealed something incredibly sad and personal about himself.

“Right. Um… what else do you and Rebecca talk about? That way you can think of things to weave into conversation about us that make us seem real.”

“Honestly, we talk a lot about our childhood. She helps me remember a lot of things I’ve forgot thanks to the, ya know” he pointed to his head

You nodded in understanding.

“Anyway, like last week she told me a story I’d totally forgotten about the time Steve and I snuck into the movies and when we got caught, we pretended we didn’t speak English to avoid getting in trouble.”

You listened as Bucky shared more stories about his life in the 30s and 40s, eventually laughing so much and talking so long, the cafe employees had to ask you to leave so they could close up for the evening.

He rode the subway with you to your stop and even walked you to your door as if he were really your Valentine’s date. You felt much better about seeing Rebecca again, confident now that you and Bucky could convincably appear as a real couple after today.

By the time Easter rolled around, you’d established a solid back story and even hung out with Bucky a few times outside of your work relationship to get to know each other better. You always loved every visit with his sister and hanging out with him felt easy.

You were, however, very nervous when Mother’s Day came. You’d finally be meeting Rebecca’s children and grandchildren, all of whom loved their Uncle Bucky, but loved Rebecca even more.

“You seem nervous.” Bucky commented

You had been silent but fidgety the whole subway ride from your apartment to the nursing home. Bucky, of course, picked you up at your front door every time you met, even though it was out of his way from his place to the nursing home.

“I am.” you replied

“Why? Becs loves you. She’s excited to see you again.”

“Yes but I’m meeting everyone else and it’s making me anxious.”

“Why?”

“Because they love you and your sister a lot. I want them to like me”

“I like you so they'll like you.”

“Bucky, you’re only pretending to like me! I love your sister, but it feels a lot easier to trick one old lady than to trick a bunch of people at once into believing we’re real!”

“Okay. First, I do like you. I promise, that part is not pretend.” You know he just meant it platonically, but it still made you blush.

“Secondly,” he continued “Rebecca is the sharpest person I know, so if she’s convinced, then they will be too.”

“I’m still worried they’re gonna find out and kill me.”

“Hey” he reassured “They won’t find out and they won’t kill you and even if they try, like they’re gonna get past me.” he wiggled his metal fingers in your face.

“She hasn’t said anything right? Like she isn’t getting suspicious?”

“Doll, take a chill pill. Even if she figures it out, it’s on me not you. I’m her brother, remember?”

“I know but Bucky she’s been so sweet and nice to me and I adore her and I don’t want to let her down!”

“You won’t, now just relax.”

Rebecca’s son, Scott, had prepared a fabulous meal and as you all sat around a table in the community room of the nursing home eating, her daughter Kim gave a beautiful speech about how Rebecca taught her to be a great mom and how loved she was by the family.

Tears sprung to your eyes at just how loved and revered this woman was and how lucky you felt to know her, even if it was under the false pretense of being her brother’s girlfriend.

Bucky noticed you getting emotional and placed an arm around your back, absentmindedly rubbing circles with his hand in comfort as Kim continued to speak. You shot him a look of thanks and winked at him as you saw tears welling behind his eyes as well.

After dinner had been cleared and dessert had been served, you were locked in a pleasant conversation with Bucky’s grandniece Jenny.

“I don’t know, maybe I should change my major…”

“Well, you’re young. Lots of people take years to figure it out.” you replied

“Uh oh.” she exclaimed, pointing toward the door “Looks like you’ve got some competition.”

Bucky was standing in the hall, deep in conversation with one of the nurses, who was throwing her head back in fits of laughter at whatever he was saying to her, and playfully touching his arm.

“Well, you know Bucky, he’s just… friendly.” you shrugged it off, trying to not let the interaction bother you

Jenny gave you a quizzical look, knowing that was a bold-faced lie and Bucky was the most surly and quiet person either of you had ever met. Except around you and Rebecca, of course.

“So tell me more about your thesis,” you said, directing the conversation back and hoping to distract yourself from whatever it was Bucky was doing

The subway ride back to your apartment was mostly silent, which wasn’t abnormal for him, except all you could think about was the way that nurse was with him, and more importantly, how he was with her. The way his eyes crinkled when he smiled at her, how he had leaned into her touch everytime she placed a hand on his arm, how they had talked nearly the whole afternoon.

“So David told me he and Shelby are expecting.” Bucky said, finally breaking the silence

“David and …? Oh yeah, Scott’s oldest.” you said, still mentally trying to keep all of Bucky’s nieces, nephews, and their kids straight in your mind, having just met all of them in one go today.

“Yeah. Which means Rebecca is going to be a great-grandmother.” he continued

“Oh my gosh that’s right! That’s so great! Did they tell her?”

“Yeah. She was pretty excited. Then of course, she asked me when you and I are going to start…” he said

“Oh yeah? What did you say to her?”

“Told her we’d get to it eventually. That we were still enjoying being young and in love.”

“Bucky, you’re 106…”

A smile formed across his face and he shook his head.

“You know what I meant!”

“Well we’ll never fictitiously get around to it if you for-real flirt with nurses.” you snidely commented

“Ohhh not my pretend girlfriend pretending to be jealous!” he joked back

“I’m not jealous, Bucky, I’m just trying to keep up appearances. But I don’t blame you, she was cute.”

“Yeah she was.”

“Okay serious question, what if one of us gets into a real relationship?” you asked

“Why are you planning to?”

“No, I mean I wouldn’t complain, but I don’t exactly have any great prospects right now.”

“I don’t either.”

“Um, that nurse was absolutely a prospect.” you argued back

“Doll, will you drop it with the nurse already?”

“No. Look, if you want to be for-real happy and quit lying to your sister, I think you should ask the nurse out. This has been fun, but don’t let us pretending to date hold you back from an actual relationship.”

Bucky sighed and hung his head.

“Okay. When I visit Rebecca this week, I will ask the nurse out. Just to get you off my back about it.” he conceded

“Well just be sure to add in the fact that you have prospects lined up when you tell your sister we broke up, just to soften the blow.” you joked

“Wow, you make it sound like I have women out the door, just waiting in line for me.” Bucky joked

You could if you wanted, you’re a fucking catch, is what you wanted to say, but instead just chose to lightly chuckle at Bucky’s joke.

“I think I will wait and see if the nurse says yes and if she does, see how the date goes before breaking it to my sister. And if it goes bad, at least I still have you.”

“Wow, make a girl feel more special to be your backup plan, why don’t you?” you joked

“You know what I mean! Wait, you will still keep this up for me if the nurse says no right?”

You sighed.

“Yes. I’ve actually really been having fun spending time with your sister.”

And you, you wanted to add, but again, didn't.

“But I do want you to be happy, so I will sacrifice hanging out with the coolest 98 year old I’ve ever met if it means you get a for-real girlfriend and stop being a grumpy, lonely old man.”

“Thanks doll, you’re the best.”

Things at work got hectic that week and you didn’t see Bucky until midway through the next week.

You were sitting at your computer, combing some case files when Bucky snuck up behind you.

“So things got complicated…”

“Jesus, Bucky, don’t scare me like that!” you said, practically jumping out of your seat when he spoke

“Sorry!”

“Wait, complicated how?”

“Well I asked the nurse out. And she said yes. And apparently it was the hot topic in the nursing home all weekend. And my sister asked why I was two-timing you. So I had to tell her we broke up.”

Your heart sank at the thought of not hanging out with Bucky and Rebecca anymore.

“Okay. Well, we knew that might have to happen. And the nurse?”

“Her name is Maddie, by the way. And we went out last night.”

“And?”

“It went well. She was nice and it was fun and we’re going to go out again this weekend.”

“Bucky, that’s great. I’m really happy for you.” you replied, trying to truly mean it and push your own feelings towards the situation aside.

But your mind just raced with worry about how well it actually went. Did he mean it went well like it was an agreeable evening and they talked a few hours and went their separate ways? Or did he mean it went well like she got to find out if his lips were as soft as they actually look? It went well like they hooked up and had steamy sex and she got to feel how his toned muscles felt under her hands while he brought her to ecstasy the way you’d always imagined and … no. You needed to stop. It was a bad idea to think about him that way. Especially since he now belonged to someone else, and never really belonged to you in the first place.

“Doll, I really can’t thank you enough.” Bucky spoke and broke you out of your spiraling thoughts “Rebecca had so much fun with you and you know… I think pretending to date you might have actually given me the confidence to ask Maddie out. Don’t know if I thought I could be a good real boyfriend without being a good fake one first.”

You laughed and shook your head.

“Well I’m happy to have helped. And by the way, yeah you were a phenomenal fake boyfriend. Better than most of the real ones I’ve had.”

You tried not to let the tears come to your eyes that you could feel brimming to the surface. You were just sad to say goodbye to Rebecca, that’s all. She was so special and spending time with her was a gift. It helped that Bucky was also so charming and funny, but it was absolutely just about Rebecca. Afterall, you’d still get to see Bucky at work. You wouldn’t really talk as in-depth as when you were with his sister and hanging out in service of keeping up the lie, but it would be fine.

However, much to your disappointment, it seemed like after that conversation, Bucky avoided you like you two had actually been a couple and actually broken up. He wouldn’t look you in the eye during mission briefings, wouldn’t say more than two words to you and they were always related to work, and if he ever found himself alone in a room with you, he quickly found an excuse to leave.

It had been about two months since you had “broken up” and you had given up hope of even having any sort of friendship with Bucky. But the truth was, you missed him. You missed making fun of him when he made a reference so outdated, historians wouldn’t even get it. You missed the way his smile rose more on his right side when you’d crack a joke. You missed when he’d sing along to one of Rebecca’s records and try to dance with both you and her at the same time, inevitably spinning you into each other and ending in the three of you in a fit of giggles.

You tried not to think of it though, threw yourself into work and tried to forget. But you couldn’t. Everything reminded you of him.

And you tried not to think about how much you missed him as you watched him walk onto the ramp of a quinjet, prepping to take off for a ten day mission to take down a Hydra base in Latvia.

Six days later, you were in your apartment, making your evening cup of tea when your phone rang.

You picked it up and put it down three times before finally processing that it was Bucky’s name popping up on the screen. With the time zone difference, it had to at least be three in the morning where he was.

“Bucky?” you finally answered “Is everything okay?”

“No. Doll, it’s not.”

“What happened? Are you okay? Is Sam okay? Did something go wrong?” you panicked, knowing of all the hundreds of people the Avengers employed, you were not the person to call if something went wrong with the mission.

“No, it’s Rebecca. She um…” Bucky sounded on the verge of crying and your heart broke in an instant “Kim called and Rebecca is in the hospital. I didn’t get all the details, but it’s not good.”

“Bucky, I’m so sorry.”

“Listen, I know I’ve already asked so much of you, but can you please… Can I ask you to go for me? Go see her? Sam and I are trying to wrap up as quick as we can, but I just can’t bear the thought of not being there with her and she loved you so much and I know you being there would really mean a lot to both of us.”

You had never heard Bucky ramble like that before. His voice was shaky and unsure and it broke your heart.

“Okay. Of course I can go.” you replied without hesitation. You loved Rebecca too, of course you wanted to be with her.

“Thank you. So much. Really. I’ll text you the room number and the hospital. I’ll let Kim and Scott know you’re coming too.”

“Okay.”

“And um… I just wanted to say I’m sorry. For how it’s been lately.”

“Bucky, It’s fine.”

“No, it’s not. But um, we can talk more when I get back.”

“Okay. I’ll go see her now, just text me.”

You were pulling on your shoes already when Bucky’s text came through. You were out the door and to the hospital in less than twenty minutes.

Kim greeted you with a big hug when you arrived.

“Oh, she’ll be so excited to see you!” Kim said, leading you down the hall of the hospital towards Rebecca’s room “You know, she still talks about you all the time even though you two broke up a while ago.”

You tried to bite back a smile, not wanting to feel happy in such a grim situation. But knowing at least Rebecca missed your presence and made sure Bucky didn’t forget you lightened your mood just a little.

Any hint of a grin was knocked off your face as soon as you stepped in the room. Rebecca was looking quite different from when you last saw her. Usually so healthy and spry for her age, she looked frail in the thin hospital gown, laying limply in the bed in the middle of the sterile room. Her gray curls were not in their usual coiff, but unkempt and wild. Her eyes looked sallow and dull. But her beautiful smile still came through when she saw you walk into the room.

“Oh my dear!” she reached out a shaky hand toward you. “It is so good to see you!”

Her hand wrapped around yours and she patted it a few times.

“How have you been? Oh, I’ve missed you! You know I was just saying to James the other day, it was a shame he let such a gem like you go.”

“Rebecca, that’s very kind, but how are you? Are you resting? Are you feeling better?”

“Oh, don’t worry about me. I was fine, but the nurses at the home, they called an ambulance and made me come here!”

“Mom, you passed out and your heartbeat was at 22 bpms!” Kim interjected

Rebecca waved her hand, then turned back to you.

“Where is James? Did you come with him?” she asked

“No. He’s away on a mission, but he’ll be here as soon as he can. He asked me to come see you until he could get here.”

“Oh that’s so kind of you. You know, he really loved you. I could see it every time he looked at you and every time I’d ask about you he’d talk and talk. I told him to hold on to you, but, well my brother never wants to listen to me!”

“Mom!” Kim interrupted again and you couldn’t help but chuckle. Even in this state, Rebecca’s personality was still shining through.

You caught up a little more, filling Rebecca and Kim in on your life since you last saw them.

Finally, Rebecca’s eyes kept closing mid-sentence and you and Kim left her to get more rest.

As you and Kim walked down the hall of the hospital together, she filled you in more on Rebecca’s health and explained that Scott and Jenny were also taking shifts visiting, currently hanging out in the waiting room down the hall.

“Sweetie, it’s getting late, let me give you some money so you can get a cab home.”

“No, Kim, I’ll stay here with you guys tonight.”

“You don’t have to…”

“Please? Just until Bucky calls again. Maybe by morning we’ll have a better idea of when he’ll be back.”

Kim nodded and gave your arm a light squeeze in thanks.

The waiting room was small and featured dated furniture and peeling wallpaper set under the glow of harsh fluorescent lights. Scott was asleep, curled in an uncomfortable position in a chair in the corner. Jenny flashed you a tired smile as you entered. You sat on one of the worn couches and laid your head back, attempting to drift off into sleep.

The night was rather restless, dozing in and out, but never really getting pulled into sleep fully. Between the buzz of hospital employees rushing about, the cramped sleeping arrangement, and the worry chewing in the pit of your stomach about both Rebecca and Bucky, it was far too difficult to get solid rest.

Would Rebecca be okay? How would Bucky act towards you when he got back? Would things go back to being friendly between you as a thanks for being there for his family or would he simply continue to ignore you and act as though this also didn’t happen?

You must have finally gotten to sleep, because you were pulled out of slumber by a metal hand squeezing yours and a soft calling of your name by a familiar voice.

Your eyes shot open to find Bucky, crouched down in front of you, face meeting yours as he gently woke you. Despite the exhaustion painted on his face, he was a radiant light in the otherwise dim environment.

“Bucky!” you sat upright and pulled him into a tight hug

“Hey Doll.” he said, squeezing you so tightly you thought you’d burst like a can of Pillsbury Crescent Rolls.

“How did the mission go? When did you get back? Have you been in to see your sister yet?” you asked

Bucky shook his head.

“We can talk about the mission later. Thank you so much for being here.”

“How is Rebecca?” you asked

“I… um. I don’t know. I just got here and came to see you guys first.” he nodded toward the sleeping forms around you.

“You should go see her. Hopefully she got plenty of rest over night.”

Bucky shook his head some more.

“I don’t know if I can… she’s the last thing I have of my old life. I don’t know if I can bear to see her like that.”

“Bucky, she needs you. She wants to see you, she asked where you were last night.”

Bucky sighed, wetness welling in his worn blue eyes.

“I’ll go with you.” you volunteered

“Doll, you’ve already done so much. I can’t ask another thing of you.”

“Please, Bucky, I want to be there for you. And for her.”

He nodded and took your hand in his flesh one, helping you off the couch and not letting go as you walked down the hall together towards Rebecca's room.

She was sitting upright in bed and her face lit up at the sight of you and her brother, nearly spilling the applesauce the nurses brought her for breakfast into her lap.

Bucky finally let go of your hand, giving his sister a hug much more gentle than the one he gave you.

“Oh James, you know you didn’t have to rush away from work just to come see me!”

“Becca, yes I did!” he smiled

“Well, your girlfriend had things covered here.” she gestured towards you

“Oh, Becs no, we’re not back together.” Bucky explained

“Oh? But why not?” Rebecca asked

“It's not important right now. What’s important right now is getting you healthy.”

Rebecca smiled and shook her head.

“James, it is important right now. I’ve lived a lot of years and I’ve learned the most important thing in life is holding the ones you love close to you. I learned that when my big brother ‘died’ at war. I learned that when my children grew up too fast and moved away. I learned that with every grandchild born and held in my arms. And I learned that when you came back into my life after so many years.”

“Rebecca…” Bucky spoke, but she held up her hand to cut him off.

“I don’t know why you two broke up or what happened. But what I do know is how much the two of you clearly love each other. Look, James, I’m old. I know I don’t have much time left. But you, you have a life to live still and running away from the good things is not what your baby sister wants for you.”

“Rebecca, this is a conversation for her and I and another time.” Bucky argued

“You know for being my older brother, you sure aren’t wiser than me.”

“Wow, even sick in the hospital, still trying the younger sibling thing.” Bucky joked back

A knock at the door took the three of you from the conversation as a cheery nurse stepped inside the room.

“I’m so sorry to interrupt, but I need to run a few tests the doctor ordered. It’ll only take a little while.” he explained.

Bucky sighed and gave his sister a kiss on her temple, then gestured for you to step out with him.

Once in the hall he finally broke down completely, the stress of the past few days catching up to him.

You cradled his head in your arms as he sobbed, knowing the longer the two of you stayed like this, the longer you could put off having a conversation.

“Can we go for a walk?” he asked, finally calm enough to stand and wipe the tears from his eyes

You nodded and took his hand again, leading him out to the front of the hospital into the sunshine.

A few open benches along the sidewalk provided a place for the two of you to sit. Still, it took a few minutes for Bucky to finally speak up.

“I’m sorry I let it get like this between us.” Bucky mumbled, barely loud enough for you to hear.

“Bucky, please. We don’t have to do this right now. You should be worrying about your sister, not me.”

“No, Doll, Rebecca’s right.”

“Yeah?”

“About everything.” he nodded his head “About life. About us. But don’t tell her I said that, or she’ll never let me live it down.”

You giggled.

“I wanted it to be real. Not at first, but after a while. When she tells you a story about us as kids and you smile at me the way you do. Or when your eyes light up when I make up a lie about the latest romantic thing I did. I wanted it all to be real. And I still do.”

“I wanted it to be real too.” you confessed “But if you wanted that, then why did you not just ask me out for real instead of Maddie?”

“Because, like Rebecca said, I was running away from the good things. I was scared that after everything I’ve been through, no one would stick around knowing all of that about me. But then you did, and it scared the hell out of me. And I wasn’t sure if I was reading it all wrong. Asked Maddie out as an excuse to push you away. I thought maybe avoiding you would make me get over it, but it didn’t, it just made me miss you.”

“And Maddie?”

“We went on a few dates and it was fun, but of course, I kept her at a distance. Didn’t want to let her in like I did with you. So she broke it off with me after a while.”

You chuckled and shook your head.

“You know, the leaves in Central Park aren’t quite orange yet, but it’s still a nice time of year for a first date there.”

“Yeah. It is. For real this time?”

“For real this time.” you agreed “But let’s worry about getting Rebecca healthy first.”

“I bet if we go up and tell her we’re back together, she’ll run out of that room and steal a cab just to make sure we make it to Central Park today.” he joked

You softly pressed your lips against his, feeling him melt into your kiss as the tension between the two of you these last few months finally evaporated.

When you finally pulled apart, you realized now you were the one crying, relieved that things between the two of you worked out.

Rebecca was released from the hospital a few days later, new medication bringing her health back into balance and making her as vivacious as ever. She was even well enough to join you and Bucky in Central Park for your 8th date, though she didn’t know that, as you and Bucky decided it was best not to tell her about the lie even now. And of course, when Bucky and Rebecca stepped out of the cab on 5th Avenue, he held two bouquets of pink roses in his hands.

[dysfunctional-doodle]

Yeah, both Mikey and Donnie didn't get much character in the movie. Makes me sad when those 2 don't get much screen time 😔

Do you have some head cannons for each of the 2007 turtles? There isn't much to go on, so I it's hard to think of any

Yeah, I don’t have many hcs. I do think it’s canon (I don’t know if it was ever confirmed) that the 2007 movie is actually the turtles from the 90’s movies, as hinted though a lot of background details. But that could also be just Easter eggs but I like to think it’s true.

A few rough hcs:

1. Mikey got hurt quite badly sometimes when doing the birthday parties, but no one noticed/he didn’t tell anyone due to the strained relationships in the family. As a result he’s gotten very good at lying and makeup/skin painting due to hiding his bruises. It’s a habit that has unfortunately stuck after the movie - Leo realises this after he tries to walk off getting punted off a building.

2. Raph was suffering from depression due to Leo’s departure. This was why, unless he was beating people up at night (an unhealthy outlet) he was in bed all day and unresponsive. Also this was why he was so closed off to everyone, especially Donnie.

3. Donnie has insomnia which can go on for days. He first got the tech job to do the night shifts and try and shut off his brain. Without stimuli and patrolling, it only got worse, hence his own short fuse towards Raph

4. Every night Mikey waits for Raph to return, trying to stay awake all night. He sleeps in snatches in the afternoon/early evening after the parties are over, wanting to stay up late and make sure Raph comes back and isn’t hurt

5. Donnie also has major issues with burnout that Mikey can help fix

6. Leo has mild OCD, hence why he doesn’t like change that much. His training helped with this, but he has to work on his anxieties all over again when he comes back to New York and his brothers have new and developed skills and fighting styles

7. These boys turtle pile. They also love water and basking. Over the 2 years Leo is gone they don’t do this as it feels wrong to do it without him

8. When the dust settles and a year or so has passed since the movie, Leo invites his brothers to go to the jungle he trained in and spend a month there to work on their skills and to have a nice holiday. Not what many class as a vacation but they actually thrive in the environment. Leo misses the jungle and it was a large part of him, so he wants to share its importance with his brothers.

9. Raph is VERY protective of his brothers. After the movie and his fallout with Leo, this is turned up to the extreme until they all ambush him and get him to relax. Turtle piles.

10. Mikey is one of those people that can eat literal nuclear waste and be fine. He has an iron stomach

11. As I always say, Mikey has ADHD

12. Mikey is also very bad at directions and maps. He can navigate by remembering landmarks and have a rough idea of the direction he came from, but he gets too distracted and wanders off. As a kid, Splinter had to put one of those long leads on him when he went to the surface.

13. The PB&J mischief duo is real. Both of them like chaos too much and form alliances against Raph and Leo

14. Raph is very very scarred. He has a habit of jumping in front of weapons and getting into fights too often

15. Leo has a specific cleaning routine for his katana he does everyday without fail. He will not class training as being finished until he has done this.

16. Leo is a terrible driver. Mikey is actually very good

17. Mikey is good at ventriloquism. He totally doesn’t exploit this talent in the lair

That’s all I can think of for now!

[thelarriefics]

SPRING FIC REC: Below you will find fics that take place in spring, have a springy feel, etc. 

📖 always you (i should have known) by @28goldens (60k)

“Oi, now we’re talking. Came running to ol’ Tomlinson for help, gotta say Harold,” He crossed his arms over his chest, and Harry watched as his eyes looked him over. “It's very out of character for you.”

“Yeah, well, don’t feel too special, you're my last choice,” Harry subconsciously crossed his arms as well, giving Louis his own look over.

“Oh, that's a lot of power, I’m your last resort!” He wagged his finger at him, letting out a cackle. “Alright, hit me with it.”

Harry’s lips pursed as he slowly started to regret the words about to spill out of his mouth, “I want you to pretend to be my boyfriend.”

or the one where harry and louis cant stand each other and fake date to make someone jealous.

📖 (I'm Dreaming of a) One Night Inn by @lululawrence (54k)

When everything Louis had planned for his life falls through, and on his birthday no less, he's left with no other option but to regroup and start over again. The road of life isn't always straight and it certainly isn't always easy, but sometimes it's those twists and turns that find you your closest friends and—if you're really lucky—the love of your life.

Louis just happens to be very lucky.

A Holiday Inn AU.

📖 Blush by @dip-lou-in-honey (33k)

Harry is a young omega, presented at his first Royal ball, when he first meets Louis, the King. They're immediately infatuated with each other, but in the ancient hallways of the castle, whispers travel far and wide, and what they want is not what they're allowed to have.

📖 Tip Toe Through The Tulips by @peachbootylouis (27k)

Ever since moving to Manchester, it had just been Louis and his dog Clifford against the world though it had never felt like enough. It’s not until Clifford quite literally sniffs Harry out while on a walk that Louis realizes he’d been looking for someone like this flower child all along. A fluffy one shot filled with fur and flowers.

📖 To Begin Again by @chloehl10 (23k)

Harry’s ready to spend a fun Easter morning with his two children at the park, but it’s thrown into chaos when an over-excited dog and his owner come barrelling into their lives...

📖 Sakura Sunset by @mizzhydes (16k)

Harry and Louis have a tradition. Every spring they stand below hundreds of dazzling cherry blossom trees in Kew Garden, and year after year they come back to walk amongst the trees and experience that love over again.

This year everything changes. Louis is offered a once in a lifetime opportunity in Silicon Valley, California.

Only after Louis has left does Harry realise he made the biggest mistake of his life breaking up with Louis, and he has to live with the consequences of his actions.

Four years later, Harry discovers that Louis has returned to London, and in an effort to find the closure he desperately needs, he must tell Louis the truth behind their break up so he can move on with his life.

📖 The Prince and The YouTuber by @haztobegood (12k)

The Annual Rosendal Spring Gala hosted by the Royal Family is the most prestigious fundraiser in the country. When a problem with the honorary foundation arises, Crown Prince Louis Tomlinson must pick a new worthy foundation on short notice. He discovers the perfect replacement in an unlikely place, while watching his favorite YouTuber, Harrysparkles.

📖 Love You To Want Me by @rainbowsandlovehl (11k)

Niall coerces Louis into doing 'spring cleaning', which is basically cleaning their flat which leads to Louis finding the pair of braces he used to wear back in early Uni days. Harry, Niall's bandmate has a strange but visible reactions to the braces.

📖 Chubby Bunny by @littleroverlouis (2k)

Harry spends his Easter Sunday basking in the spring breeze while playing games with the smallest Tomlinsons, and a package of marshmallow Peeps.

Louis is stuck in a sweltering bunny costume for the enjoyment of all around him.

Harry offers him a chance to peel himself out of the costume and indulge in some of the fun.

📖 my lap is the best place for you to be by @bottomhaztoplou (1k)

Omegas, especially pregnant omegas, are expected to ride in their marriage partner's lap, usually on their knot, during carriage rides so as to minimise any jostling that may harm the pup.

Heavily pregnant in mid-April, Harry lifts his skirts and sinks down onto his waiting alpha, his body easily taking Louis inside himself.

[phanfictioncatalogue]

Fics Written In 2024 (so far) Masterlist

Buffy Movie Nights are Life Changing (ao3) - angelicsam

Summary: Things get steamy between Dan and Phil during their nighttime Buffy streaming session in 2010; featuring a confident yet bashful Phil and a shy Dan who learns how to drive Phil crazy.

Burning Bibles (ao3) - cherryheartz

Summary: phil lester loved curly headed boys with tattoos on their arms and a joint made with torn bible pages between their soft lips.

and dan howell was exactly that.

Comfort in Chaos (ao3) - Anonymous

Summary: Phil wakes to Dan having a nightmare that he struggles to rouse him from. It later transpires that there is a reason behind his unsettled and panicked behaviour.

everything has changed (ao3) - gamingbeats

Summary: Dan and Phil go on holiday to NYC and everything changes when Dan books only the couple's options.

False God (ao3) - ForeverJustAnEmoKidAtHeart

Summary: After a stupid fight, Dan has been in the office editing the Easter Baking video for the entire afternoon. He specifically told Phil not to disturb him but was amazed (and worried) that Phil didn't.

home renovations (ao3) - possumdnp

Summary: Phil is a new homeowner with a knack for getting himself into awkward situations around cute guys. Dan is a builder who's always working on renovations around Phil's house. What could go wrong?

(An alternate meeting YouTuber Phil/builder Dan AU.)

just a little bit closer (ao3) - possumdnp

Summary: Dan and Phil have a deep conversation, leading to them trying something new together.

(Set during the week Dan spent up north at Phil's house in December 2009.)

Like a Bowl of Oranges (ao3) - cloej88

Summary: Dan has built a solid career for himself as a ghostwriter. He safely hides behind other people’s words, crafting their tales and pocketing the cash without any threat of notoriety. But lately he has been working on a book of his own, itching for a change.

Phil is an indie filmmaker who happened into some huge breaks over the last few years. He wants to use his influence to uplift queer stories for the screen, so he puts out an open call for story submissions. At his agent’s behest, Dan submits his story.

The writer!Dan and director!Phil friends/co-workers to lovers AU that we never knew we needed.

Like a cicada rhythm. (ao3) - emmibug

Summary: every night they share the same bed, legs twisted together, arms holding each other close. dan and phil haven’t grown up from their childlike sense of friendship which leads people to believe there’s something deeper going on.

a dan and phil childhood best friends to lovers AU where they share the same bed and always have done.

Phlonde (ao3) - yikesola

Summary: Phil has to admit though, stood here in the familiar shop aisles of cheap box dyes, the blonde box is calling to him. A fic about change and control.

phlondes do it better (ao3) - wearealldoomed

Summary: The day has come around quicker than Phil had anticipated.

The day where Phil dips his toes back into the waters of dyeing his hair after months of letting his natural hair colour grow back through.

The day where Phil goes platinum blonde without confronting Dan about it first.

sativa (i said im ready) (ao3) - catbearbunz (bunnieovadamoon)

Summary: it’s 2009, and phil really wishes dan would call. he does, but he comes greener than expected.

aka they get drunk and high and have esex.

Slut Era (ao3) - Bandom_Squirrel

Summary: Dan worries that he’s bad at being slutty. Phil is Phil.

snowballs (ao3) - calvinahobbes

Summary: your mum is trying to get me drunk

so american (ao3) - ae121

Summary: Phil has been living in London for a year and thinks he's gotten pretty used to the city. He works part-time at a bookstore, using it at first to gain some friends, now it's just fun for him. His friends are constantly trying to find him someone to date, but all of his dates don't go well. Well, that's until he met Dan.

so I will share this room with you (ao3) - jonsaremembers

Summary: Phil hadn't meant to end up here.

an exploration of the aftermath of meeting your soulmate when you're still so impossibly young; title from "And So It Goes" by Billy Joel

The Stress, The Glory and The Afterglow (ao3) - easybubby

Summary: It's 2024. Dan and Phil are overworked and slipping into old habits. The only difference between now and 10 years ago is that their relationship now comes first and they will do anything to protect it, even if they have to spend time apart. They treasure one wild night before they vow to keep their distance for a while.

Thou shalt be punished. (ao3) - firephan311

Summary: The sequence of events following the live stream on dan's birthday. Dan's wrist injury seen in the sims video after the live stream inspired me to write this. sister danielx father philip. very smutty. very detailed. Bit of fluff at the end.

To be loved (ao3) - Thedemonqueen

Summary: Dan knows Phil insisted they’re together. Dan knows Phil loves him. But it doesn’t stop Dan from feeling dirty when he wants to touch Phil.

Vampire Moon (ao3) - natigail

Summary: Phil knew it was foolish to stay out late on the night of a full moon. It was even more foolish to agree to take a walk with Dan who was never up do any good. But Phil couldn't admit to himself that he had a blind spot concerning the vampire, and now he was going to pay for that.

*Phil said: “Oh! Is this a self-insert fic? I was called hamster boy at school. I wanted to be Oz. Bite me, granddaddy.” And I said: Bet.*

you and me (that's all we need it to be) (ao3) - bunnyslipper

Summary: 🧡

[queerprayers]

beloved, I want to take the time to thank you for your honesty and vulnerability, all the time on your blog really, but especially now. I am going through, what I am sure is going to be the most rock bottom situation I will ever have to go through, I have met despair and found hell, and am looking up towards the living and am tired just from looking at the climb. and your posts have given me strength. what Do you do when you just want to pray for death, and yet holy week tells us that death has been defeated? it helps me tremendously to know that we are not alone in feeling this way. sending you so much love <3

My heart is with you, beloved. Thank you so much for this message. You are not alone and never have been. I am so honored and grateful that you've found meaning in my words.

"Looking up towards the living" is such a beautiful way to describe this weekend, and you're right, it's exhausting. Today we remember that Jesus made that climb for us. He entered into our pain and did not escape it. He met despair and found hell, and sweat blood in a midnight garden just thinking about it.

I think of the difference between death as an ending of life on Earth vs. capital-D Death as a destruction of love. I think of St. Francis calling death Sister. I think of the promised future resurrection--whatever I believe that means at the moment I think of it. I think of the icons of Jesus pulling Adam and Eve bodily from the grave. I think of my grandfather's death, when his body fundamentally altered its state of being.

I genuinely believe in an Easter, in Jesus clawing his way out of hell, breaking the bonds of where suffering leads. I believe that changed the way our universe works, for God to die. I don't know what you believe, but the living that you look toward does exist, and the climb is not one you have to make without a God who has done it, does it again every year, and every moment that you have to.

I'm aware that knowing that doesn't change the pain and exhaustion--at least not for me. He defeated Death, but he did not take away our relationship with it, and this has always intrigued me. Death is still something we can know, and fall into, and be terrified of. Hell is still something we can find. I won't pretend to understand that truth, and I won't pretend that hope in a future resurrection fixes our rock bottoms. 

But your rock bottom is the solid foundation you will build a life out of. The act of looking up is exhausting right now, but you're doing it. That's often the hardest part, to see what you want to hope for. Don't force the hope right now, just know it is there. If this is the darkest it will ever get for you, you're in good company on this day of crucifixion.

I often refer to parts of my life as my Holy Saturday seasons—times where I've been stuck in that space between death and life, where I know deep down there's hope but that doesn't mean it doesn't hurt. I think of the disciples spending Passover without their beloved. I think of my namesake Joanna putting together spices with which to adorn the body of one she saw die. Of course they knew the prophecies, or perhaps just desperately hoped—but you hurt first. I don't think the prophecy can come true unless you really genuinely feel the brokenness before it does. 

Praying for death is something I know too well—but know that what you're praying for is rest, the end of what is defeating you. God brings us to death when it is our time (and I won't pretend to understand that) but Death, what defeats us, faces its destruction. You face despair, but Love has won. This is Holy Week. What you do when you want to pray for death is call her Sister, and seek out rest on earth while you're here. Know that the destruction in her was stamped out, and love is the only thing left. Pain remains, rock bottom remains, but separation from God does not.

What you do when you want to pray for death but know Death has been defeated is you trust God knows what you mean. And you look at Life for as long as you can stand it, and do it a little more the next day. It burns like the sun—don't mistake that for hellfire. (Or perhaps formulate a theology in which it is, in the purifying sense. I don't make the rules.)

It's Good Friday. You can exist there. Jesus did not force optimism on the cross. He did not say "Well, it'll all be okay soon." He said, "My God, why have you forsaken me?" And he probably wished for death all morning. You don't have to force optimism when Easter comes, either. Jesus wasn't partying—he was seeking out love. He was dealing with the complicated emotions of his friends. Just look at the joy, for now, try to see it. Holy Saturday is a season sometimes. It bleeds into our celebrations. But it does not take away God's presence. Your despair does not prevent Jesus from rising—it just means embodying resurrection may perhaps be still ahead of you.

May God bless you and keep you, in rock bottom and as you climb. May he make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, and may you feel his gaze even when you're not looking up. May he look upon you with favor and give you peace as you seek rest. 

<3 Johanna

[you-have-made-a-fatal-error]

semi-annual tradition of roasting HeR's questionable fucking merch because all their designs are bad again let's goooo ->->->

remember how for a bit there it felt like HeR was putting some effort into making their merch good? desirable? well-designed?

welp it seems pretty clear they're done with that, because i'm sorry but this just looks awful. the font? bad! the horse/lasso clipart? bad! the layout? very, very bad!

"I left my at Shadow 💛 Ranch" are you serious rn? bad! i don't think you tried at all!

actual Mystery of the Seven Keys merch ffs why isn't it called Case of the Seven Keys that sounds so much better has dropped - and while it's nothing special (though some of it is weird - hey do you want an 8x10 metal print of the game 'cover' awkwardly centred on a blurred, indistinct background? 'cause HeR made 'em!) it seems like they can't decide what nancy silhouette to use? because while most of it uses the new exorcist-head-turn pants-y drew silhouette, they've also got a couple pieces with the classic silhouette - the one they haven't used since Stay Tuned for Danger. because who needs brand consistency.

(the nancy silhouette use from mhm to sea - aka for nearly 90% of the games - has not resurfaced.)

the presence of actual KEY merch raises the spectre of who they think is gonna buy all the merch they made during the lead-up to the game - seriously is there any reason someone would buy this now?

i would also argue there was no need for anyone to buy any of these before, but now? $60 for a hoodie with your fucking launch date?? really???

does anyone know what separates the 'classic' icons on the left from the 'deep cut' icons on the right? also wow they're really just never going to acknowledge ran at all anymore huh.

ah yes. noted 'deep cut' references. like henrick. and ethel. and hotchkiss.

these next designs are clearly not the worst things in the store and while I guess they're not awful though I don't like the font they are blatant Bess and George erasure and thus I hate them on principle.

Bess + George > Deirdre. Also, Bess + George > FrankenJoe. hope that clears things up.

the 25 year anniversary merch is a whole load of bad - the 'and all i got was this lousy _____' trend is lame, and has been for 10,000 years, but there are worse crimes. the mug is just boring in a way that looks unfinished rather than minimalistic. font crimes from the magnifying glass - every time i see it i think it says 'snoopers' not 'snooping'. i actually thought the teal callback designs were kind of neat in a nostalgia-bait kind of way until i realized the necklaces were the only option without all the text under the magnifying glass? maybe folks who were more active on the boards get a nostalgia kick from that last one but i'll be honest, it does nothing for me.

i don't mean to be an exhausting pedant but. no sassy detective until trt, no koko kringles until ssh, no easter eggs until dog, no horse shirt until ddi, can't call carson until clk, no lost luggage until dan. also the placement of the text is just. weird. doesn't look right.

and jenna's whale t-shirt still isn't available in green. bye.

[stormingfrost]

Rating ROTG/GOC characters! 

I have so many opinions about these guys so I decided to rate them. Starting from the bottom to the top, these are my opinions on each character of this world. 

27. Monkey king/ lampwick iddock of the               many legs

I hate him. I hate everything he represents. Stinky bastard man. The story doesn’t make sense to me: if he had all his greed taken away from him why’d he be like that? Also his title “The Monkey King” makes me think of Sun Wukong, which is nothing like this character. I also don’t like his redesign of the many-legs thing and I just hate him. Die stinky bastard man no one likes you. 

26. Man in the Moon (book ver)

The description of him looking “kind” and “good” makes me want to throw something. Why are we assigning morality to appearance? Also, why is this random guy the unquestionable source of moral goodness? Dude was raised by mice. Other than that he’s really only in the books for like three pages so idc. 

25. Mr. Qwerty

I forget he exists.

24. Jack Frost (book ver)

I don’t like him. He’s supposed to be this lonely rebel but he spends the whole book hanging out with socialites and going to pompous parties IN THE MIDDLE OF THE GREAT DEPRESSION? like hey man there are starving kids right outside the party you’re at with literal royalty. He’s also supposed to be a teenager (range of age manipulation powers: 11-18) but acts like a 50-year-old man. He does nothing but hang out with a bunch of politicians and old authors. He also only uses ice magic like once in the books and is just self-important. Everything is about him even when it shouldn’t be. Easter being called Easter was Jack’s idea. Katherine has powers because of Jack. Everything is his idea, or because of him, and it’s weird. Also, not everything has to be a thing. The hoodie is apparently just under the nightlight armor the whole time and his adopted siblings embroidered the white patterns on it (again, book!Jack only uses his icy powers like twice) and it becomes a thing (also hoodies being a thing BEFORE it was invented is frustrating to me on a nitpick evel. Did the Golden age have hoodies? Their fashion looks vaguely Edwardian. Where did the hoodie come from?). Jack’s staff is alive (???). The staff also has magic scratching powers (???????). Jack can talk to every tree including firewood, and then it’s not brought up again (???????????). Not everything has to be a thing. The attachment to historical figures is weird as well. It’s not educational, it’s not respectful, and it’s not anyone who kids would recognize. It’s just strange. 

23. The Man in the Moon (movie ver)

Revived a random teenager and let him loose like a stray dog without any guidance. Other than that, we don’t know that much about him to actually know what he’s about. We don’t even know if he’s a person or not.

22. Lermantoff Serpent

The thing that hurts most about this character is the sheer potential that goes unrealized. That’s a complex backstory that could lead to so many things, and he dies in his first appearance despite being important and having a cool backstory. 

21. Twinetender

Weird concept. The stick is alive. Okay. Sure. He’s like Jack’s personal Jiminy Cricket but 1000 times more creepy. The souls of hundreds of Viking warriors (previously Native American via Instagram post but that was changed thank god the implications of that were horrific.) make up what is essentially a stick that a teenager waves around and acts as a weapon/servant. I think Joyce straight-up forgot halfway through that he was alive because he just isn’t in there anymore despite Jack always carrying the staff around. I like the character design tho, but besides that, I’d rather have the stick not be a person thanks

20. Pitch Black (book ver) 

I think the fandom puts so much emphasis on his backstory, reasonably (it’s a good tragedy), but we don’t even see Pitchiner from before, just accounts from other people. Kozmotis isn’t a character - we only hear about him through other’s exposition. The theme of grief that is intertwined with the story is tragic knowing Joyce’s life. Besides the tragic themes, he’s a stereotypical villain who evilly plots. More cliché, but then there’s a line from him that digs into hearts and stabs wounds.

19. Ombric

Wizard man. That’s pretty much all of his character. He’s written as a wise old wizard but just is standing in the background half of the time until he does something overpowered. I also don’t understand why he and Katherine aren’t literally father and daughter. Didn’t he adopt her? Why does she feel like he’s not her father? Why does he act like he isn’t her father? He adopted her

18. E. Aster Bunnymund (book ver)

I love his design and I like nerdy dork characters who repress their feelings but sometimes his dialogue is annoying. 

17. Toothiana (book ver) 

Oh, Tooth, you deserve so much better. Her character, her book, her backstory, everything was affected so much by Orientalism. Everyone else gets a role, a personality, an in-depth description of their homes and lives but she gets nothing. There are aspects of her character I like (the grief is very heart-wrenching and I just love her as a character in general) but there are just too many things I have issues with. She’s the only POC in this cast and she is a BIRD. She’s Asian but wears white clown-like makeup? The only people to are violent and greedy over magic are the village people. Not the white rich socialites who colonized and maimed for power and money. No, not them, but the village people in India are the only ones who do get greedy and VIOLENTLY KILL Tooth’s parents. She (and the representation that could’ve been so awesome) deserves better.

16. Sanderson Mansnoozie (book ver)

I love his relationship with Emily Jane. But he doesn’t get a lot of time in the books. Just maybe a few chapters? He’s great tho and I like that he was a space cowboy. 

15. The Spirit of the Woods

Underrated! I love her! She tries so hard and I just love her so much. I love her description and her personality, even if she’s only a minor character. (The day William Joyce makes art of her is the day my life will be complete)

14. Nicholas St. North (book ver)

North slays in the sleigh. I like that he has a little redemption arc and has to figure out what he wants in his life and what he wants to be. For me, it makes the movie scenes where he’s taking a mentor figure role to Jack even more meaningful, because he was in Jack’s shoes at one point, despite now being sure and confident in himself. Despite me not connecting the books to the movie, this one is the closest for me to being a part of the movie’s ‘canon.’ North is very consistent and I like his character a lot. 

13. Katherine

Teen girl protagonist with a knife! I do wish she had a little more agency as a character because it seems like every decision she makes is about the male characters. I like that she sees herself in Pitch. In the fifth book she gets older (25 yrs with kinda age manipulation with a range of 12-25. I’d say it’s closer to regression than true manipulation as it only happens under certain conditions) and she and Jack are soulmates and then she is defined by him? Even her powers are because of him, or at least the ones that are talked about the most. Second to those powers, the mythosphere was a cool concept. But what her character represents is the most significant thing about her. She is a ghost in a book, living again within the words and text every time the book is read.

12. Nightlight

Wish he didn’t turn out to be Jack. Or at least in the way that it is. I’m not opposed to Nightlight being Jack but I just don’t like book!Jack so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ he’s a little adorable critter I love him and his relationship with Katherine is adorable

11. Pitch Black

My least favorite character from the movie. I don’t like his design (or any of his canon designs really. He looks like a bull terrier to me. I think the one in the comic is the best) He’s interesting as a selfish villain who is conceited and doesn’t like to share. He’s more interesting as a terrible person who likes hurting people. I love how he’s a foil for the Guardians, especially Sandy, and how he’s a mirror to Jack. I don’t get the fan interpretations of him where they woobify him and make the guardians ‘big bad bullies’ the man says with his mouth what his motives are. why are we pretending he said anything about fear being necessary and balance because he is not doing any of those? He is actively trying to take over the world with darkness. He doesn’t want balance. I’m not trying to judge anyone having fun, you do you, but I just don’t get it. I do think he’s a bit of a cliché, but it works for the movie. I also think he’s ugly (bull terrier looking mf)

10. Emily Jane

Oh, the drama! The tragedy! She’s great, and the build-up to meeting her character is masterful. I do wish we got to see her being just chaotic like how she’s said to be. Joyce tells a lot, rather than shows. 

9. Skreeklavic Shadowbent

Unironically this funky werewolf guy is my favorite character from the books. He’s got so much potential for more, the potential man! He and Pitch should’ve had more beef. Shadowbent knows all his secrets (that’s why his hair is so big) but is never utilized. 

8. Jack’s sister/Mary/Flee

I wish she was given a name. We see so much of her character and personality just from the flashbacks and she’s just so underrated. She’s more careful and nervous than her brother and needs a gentle push to have fun. She does only exist for Jack’s development which sucks. All the other kid characters get names, even if they aren’t said within the dialogue, but we never get one for her. (I’m not counting Joyce’s words as he isn’t consistent with them) However, this part of the story looks back on Jack’s past life is way too idealistic for what is a literal colonization. Her, Jack, and the rest of Burgess are literal colonizers. They weren’t good people. They were vile people who stole and maimed for land and money. While I adore this movie and its characters, this is one of my main issues with it. (Along with the weird racial coding of Bunny+Tooth, and the sexism and ignoring of female characters. The romanticism of colonization within the fandom is also worth discussing and criticism) 

7. Burgess Believers

I debated on putting Jamie in his own category but decided against it (they are tied). Jamie himself is this stalwart little believer who fights for light and hope and refuses to stop believing in goodness. They all have a battle with darkness and all win. We see their personalities! They’re great. They all have names too, even the ones that don’t have them said in dialogue. 

6. Baby Tooth

Shes so sassy I love her. I like the fan theory of her being Jack’s sister, or at least somewhat related to her. It’s fun. She’s incredibly passionate and such a fun character in this story. 

5. Bunnymund

He’s a grumpy dork with a heart of gold. I really like how they made him this gruff and badass guy who is nurturing and proud of making pretty and delicate things. It’s such a wonderful angle for a ‘gruff and rugged’ male character. He also looks up to and respects Tooth, the Smurfette (ugh) of the movie, and it’s truly one of my favorite ways this movie subverts common tropes I see in movies all the time. He’s a dork. I love him. 

4. North 

#1 dad of the year (and all years since 2012) without ever actually (technically) becoming a dad or a father figure to anyone. I adore this version of Santa. In a lot of Christmas/santa movies there is this… emptiness that I see. Because they aren’t given a reason as why they are Santa. Why did they deliver presents? Why do they care? With North, the why is answered: because he cares and loves the children of the world and wants to help protect their wonder. I think North, Klaus (2019), and L. Frank Blaum’s Santa are probably the best examples of a good Santa. (Tim Allen’s the worst. The beef I had with that man as a seven year old was insane.) They are all properly shown to why they do what they do and how important it is to them. I love how they made him crazy and sincere and caring and badass. The way he immediately steps up and becomes a mentor towards Jack is just ahshdiifska

3. Sandy

He’s such a cutie patootie. He would beat anyone up at the slightest opportunity to. I love him. I do wish he got more screen time. He could’ve came back when Jamie touched the dreamsand for the first time, or “died” later in the movie. I love how he’s characterized. The jumbled ‘words’ when he gets excited, the playfulness and gentleness. I think he’s neat and I do blame him for my insomnia. 

2. Tooth

I love her! She’s so badass and cool and awesome! I love her character design! It’s so fun and unique (although it would not hurt if they actually committed to her being Asian - there was an edit of what she would look like with darker skin and oml she looked so gorgeous). She’s kind and sweet and a bit of a manic pixie dream girl but then punches people and tears her enemies apart with her wings!!! (Unpopular opinion here but I genuinely love that she uses her wings to fight that is so cool - much cooler than a sword - I like that she is the brawler. Yes punch him!) She’s also unabashedly weird I just love that she gets so excited about teeth of all things. The sweet moment of her realizing that being out ‘in the field’ is what she’s been missing is just so great. She does tend to get ignored within the movie and the fandom, which sucks bc she’s such a great character, and she’s the only female character so it’s a big yikes (although the books nearly ignore her completely. She does like two things across the whole series) I may or may not have the tiniest crush on her. 

Jack 

I may or may not have based my entire personality around this little shit. He is ultimate Blorbo. He’s sensitive and annoying but genuinely cares and loves what he does. I love how resilient he is as a character (if I was in his position I’d go crazy) and how he’s just so genuine about what he cares about. His character arc was super relatable (where’s that interview Ramsey did where he said autistic kids related heavily to Jack?) and I just adore this version of Jack Frost. I love how even from the beginning, we see who he is- a fun loving guy who loves what he does. He genuinely cares about the children and wants to make them happy and loves his role in the world as winter. He’s such a goofy little guy I love him. 

[youngjusticeslut]

Since we can almost all agree season 1 was the best. What do you think made it so good and so favorited compared to the three seasons?

Given that I've recently finished rewatching Season 1, I feel like now is an excellent time to answer this ask.

In my opinion, Season 1 of Young Justice is the best, and none of the following seasons even come close to matching it. At its core, Season 1 introduced us to this core team of teenage heroes and told the story through their lens. There are a few defining key features to this season that makes it stand above the others, and they are as follows:

You did not have to know any comics history in order to understand and follow the plot. This is, arguably, one of the most important elements of Season 1 that the other seasons (Outsiders and Phantoms in particular) fail on. Each character is a unique take to their comic counterparts. In the case of Kaldur and Artemis, they remain completely separate and can almost be considered characters that are completely unique to the show. In the case of more recognizable heroes (Wally, Dick, Superboy and Miss Martain), Season 1 gives them enough of a refresh that they feel new, but with familiar elements that make them fun to watch and get to know. Easter eggs don't detract from the plot, and remain just fun little things to point out and commend for their inclusion. Unlike later seasons, which pulled heavy elements from DC comics and wove them into the plot, Season 1 is accessible and enjoyable to everyone and isn't just for those who've read the comics.

The core cast of characters. Season 1, primarily, focused on the Team (Aqualad, Robin, Superboy, Kid Flash, Miss Martian and Artemis, sometimes Red Arrow.... and later, Zatanna and Rocket). These characters were the main cast, and every episode revolved around a story that put them in the spotlight. Every character (with the exception of Rocket) got at least one episode focused on their their development and gave them a chance to shine, and the audience a chance to get to know and appreciate them. The famous couples (Spitfire, Supermartian, etc.) got proper build up and were pretty fleshed out, making them endearing to the fandom. Unlike later seasons, which have outrageously bloated casts and relationships that got maybe 50 seconds of screentime (I'm looking at you, Wonderbird), Season 1 invested in its characters and let them lead the story, making them feel all the more real and the story that much more genuine. This is why the harsh transition between Season 1 and Invasion feels like a heartbreak. We spent 26 episodes falling in love with the core Team, and now all of a sudden we're expected to care about an entirely new cast with no support, explanation or buildup. It felt like being cheated out of 5 years with this cast, and even now we still don't have answers to a lot of questions in the gap.

Show, don't tell. I won't get too much into this one, but if you've been following me throughout Outsiders and Phantoms you'll know how much I loathe the amount of "telling" instead of showing. Season 1 does this so much better. Missions are played out, instead of explained to viewers through excessive monologues. Characters let their actions speak for them and actually had the time to play around the plot, instead of letting the plot making the decisions for them.

The reality of it all. At the risk of sounding like I belong on Twitter, Outsiders and Phantoms has an insane amount of 'woke' storylines-- for the sake of being woke. Don't get me wrong, several of the topics brought up in these later seasons are extremely important topics and I can understand why they're included; they're just not executed well. Compare this to Season 1 where the natural reaction to the events of Failsafe was that everyone on the team needed therapy to discuss it. There was no cheesiness, no hammering on the head about it. Action --> Natural Consequence.

I can really go on and on about how amazing Season 1 is, but truly, it was so good. I wish we'd gotten 4 seasons just outlining 4 years with the Team, getting to see them grow and change and be together. The rest of the seasons are fine, but none hold the charm and sheer power that the first have, and for that it will always be top tier in my book.

[charmwasjess]

I woke up today and chose violence, so this is my "Rael Averross is Luthen Rael" in Andor endgame theory.

"Calm. Kindness. Kinship. Love. I’ve given up all chance at inner peace. I’ve made my mind a sunless space. I share my dreams with ghosts. I wake up every day to an equation I wrote 15 years ago from which there’s only one conclusion, I’m damned for what I do. My anger, my ego, my unwillingness to yield, my eagerness to fight, they’ve set me on a path from which there is no escape. I yearned to be a savior against injustice without contemplating the cost and by the time I looked down there was no longer any ground beneath my feet." - Luthen Rael (on why he's a fucking Jedi)

Luthen Rael, a Jedi?! Yeah kinda really seems like it

I'm hardly the first person to have picked up the hints that Luthen Rael was a Jedi at one point. He whips out a kyber crystal like it's nothing, specifies that his whole life changed 15 years ago (count back to Order 66), perceives that his embrace of anger instead of a list of ideals that sound a lot like the Jedi code is a failing, and the "share my dreams with ghosts" line sure does sound like the survivor of a genocide that targeted a specifically psychic community of people. He carries around that stupid wooden "walking stick" thing that's obviously a barely-disguised lightsaber. His fucking SHIP has a big lightsaber beam for christsakes.

In a universe where several Jedi do survive to go on to help the Rebellion under assumed identities, it's not a stretch to think that there's a conveniently-placed, established one still on Coruscant working for the proto-Rebellion in the years leading up to Andor.

So why do I think Luthen is Rael Averross, Dooku's first apprentice?

The clue in their similar names would certainly keep with the tradition of Jedi in hiding barely changing their names (looking at you "Ben" Kenobi who dresses in ... a Jedi robe.) But there's more than that.

The last time anyone saw Rael Averross was the end of the Master and Apprentice novel, where he's at the end of a 7-year-mission out of the Temple, faced with the possibility of joining Dooku, and uncertain about his future with the Jedi Order. While he ultimately doesn't decide to follow in Dooku's footsteps, his future after that does not seem clear. We don't see him again, not even in Tales of the Jedi. We know he was brought to the Temple very late (at age 5) and judging from Pijal, is very comfortable living outside the Temple as a regular guy. We know he has some difficulty feeling a sense of belonging in the Jedi Order, which seems to have worsened after Dooku left. If he left the Jedi at some point after Pijal, as he seems to have at least considered, he could have been well placed to survive Order 66.

There are other small details that could hint at their shared identity. Luthen's profession, running an antique shop full of very significant prequel easter eggs, fits with some backstory - Dooku's preoccupation with artifacts and Rael Averross's likely exposure to them. In fact, the Jedi prophecy holocrons that Dooku, Qui-Gon, and Rael all seem to obsess over at various points are even literally present, stashed in his shop. He doesn't speak with a Coruscanti accent. He's in possession of a blue kyber crystal (Averross fights with a blue lightsaber.) Rael Averross is politically connected from his time as regent on Pijal; Luthen Rael also utilizes such political connections. Luthen Rael even has a trusted, young female protégée and confidant -- if you want to go all into Rael Averross's Lost Daughter Trauma.

Both Dooku: Jedi Lost (2019) and the Master and Apprentice (2019) novels which came out ahead of Andor's 2022 release date go out of their way to flesh out the character, place him in Dooku's inner circle, and detail points of connection like the artifacts and holocron study. In a meta way, I wondered why they were spending so much book time on a relatively minor character only tangentially related to characters who get screentime. (For example, new canon hasn't touched any of Qui-Gon's previous apprentices, and if the point was just to explore Dooku's other students, Komari and Galidraan would tie in with the Jango Fett storyline and the Mandalorians.) These choices aren't random or at the author's whim; in an interview, Cavan Scott of Dooku: Jedi Lost infamy mentions he was specifically told to stay away from Dooku and Rael's apprentice days in that book. Someone in the greater Star Wars content ecosystem was paying attention to this character. Why?

Why not?

I think the biggest argument that he's not Rael Averross is the physical appearance - Claudia Gray describes Rael as short and "tan"/dark skinned, Stellan Skarsgård is a a 6'3 Swede. Probably that should stop my argument right there, but unfortunately, it wouldn't be the first time Star Wars has retconned right over a fairly large detail like that, and frankly, has a problem doing that more often with nonwhite characters. (*making direct eye contact with Clone Wars's take on Sifo-Dyas, but even Quinlan Vos occasionally gets white washed*)

Ultimately, I don't think that Andor is the kind of show that will want to show you a Luke Skywalker cameo; in the same way, I have a hard time imagining that if this theory is correct, we'll get more than a nod and a wink confirmation. The show is all about little people coming together to fight the Empire.

But I think there's at least a decent chance that Luthen Rael is a familiar face, and if so, I can't see a better place for one of the disaster lineage to end up.

[chosetherose]

"Paris recap" . . . so, we're presenting these as latergrams right off the bat, then? We know Karlie was in Paris at the same time as Taylor for the kick off of the Eras Tour in Europe. Does anyone else think this is just a recap of that trip? Jerk probably just flew out for an afternoon to take some stalker pics of Karlie for his collection and provide a little cover.

I don't like it, and I wish Karlie had done something to shoot down hopes again once she / her team could see they were rising. But I don't think she pushed the idea that she was free herself, so I can't really blame her for the disappointment. Her black and white outfits always seemed more in honor of TTPD than hinting at freedom, to me.

I know the framing of this as an anniversary trip with Jerk is 🤮, but it's probably the wedding day watch scenario all over again. Paris is important to Karlie and Taylor, they spent a romantic trip there together to coincide with the tour, and this is their way of confirming it. As well as making everyone think Karlie is in Paris now. It's nothing we haven't seen before, is my view, and I wouldn't be surprised if there are Easter eggs hidden in some of these images, the same way there were for Karlie's London trip and Robin / Fortnight.

I know feelings are high right now, but maybe something to keep in mind.

I mean yeah there was that Paris location tag before Taylor’s show (if I’m remembering correctly) so we all assumed Karlie was in Paris with Taylor for the Eras dates there. But let’s not forget the state dinner Karlie went to with Jerk in Paris was two days ago on 6/8. She attended the dinner with him, as his beard, as Taylor moved on with the tour. I mean none of this is shocking, we expect Karlie to stunt until there is a split announcement. But there was seemingly more going on than Jerk flying in for a few hours of photos. Guess it could have been a very long day lol.

And perhaps Karlie isn’t teasing us with finish line captions like she did leading into 2022 but there’s a reason why she’s been wearing and posting so much green lately. I don’t want to make us sound self important but she knows what she’s doing. T and K both do. Like the white outfit with bright green bag Karlie wore recently was a choice. It’s not like bright green is the it color right now so every model is wearing it (I am not a fashion expert but this is my read). The black and white outfits, which I believe started after the masters heist in 2019, do very much fit TTPD vibes but do we think in the near immediate aftermath of the heist they started signaling about an album that ended up being released 4-5 years later? I think it means something else but can’t pretend to say what it is with any certainty.

I was never holding my breath for Jerklie to be done in May. I read some very interesting theories that gave me some optimism. But I would have been thoroughly surprised. That’s the extent of it.

Ultimately, smoke and mirrors go both ways. We’ve learned that the hard.

[fantastickkay]

Album Review of the Week: Lady Gaga - Born This Way (2011) ☆☆☆☆☆

Buckle up! This is one of my favorite albums of all time and I have 12 years of thoughts to share! I absolutely loved The Fame and The Fame Monster, so when this album was announced I was ready! I wasn't too impressed with Born This Way (single) at the time, but I still had faith that this was going to be a fantastic release. This is while I was in graphic design school, so I had a MacBook and the week this was released, my charger had broken. I remember using the very last little bit of battery I had before a new one arrived to buy this on iTunes and sync it to my iPod. Yes, this was the dark days when I would buy music digitally. A few years later, I found the deluxe edition at Electric Fetus in Minneapolis to finally have a physical! The deluxe edition is definitely worth having, not only does it have an alternate cover (I absolutely hated the motorcycle design!) but the bonus tracks and remixes are fantastic. The competition is very stiff, but this is definitely my favorite Gaga album! The singles are iconic, the energy throughout is great and the deep tracks are soooo good.

The album opens with Marry the Night, this is the perfect song of the bunch to open the album. It's an energetic declaration that nothing is going to hold her down! "Kiss the bartender twice, I'm a loser".

Born This Way served as the lead single, like I said earlier I wasn't too impressed with it at first and it still isn't one of my favorite tracks on the album, but it has a great message, guaranteed to be heard at Pride festivities! Even if it's not my favorite, the quality of this album is so high that I still consider it a great song! "Don't be a drag, just be a queen."

Government Hooker brings us into what I consider to be the main sound of the album - dark and a little experimental. I've thought this song was the coolest ever since I heard it for the first time. I love the call and response/spoken word of the chorus, it has such a cool sound, as well as the HOoooOOooOKahahah. "I can be good, unless you want to be bad."

Judas is my favorite single of the album; this music video is on as many playlists as I can put it on! Her trolling the Christian community by releasing this on Easter Sunday is iconic. She calls back to Bad Romance by having that same "skat" style singing, if you can call it that. The instrumentation is super punchy, and the choreography isn't too complicated so it accessible to someone like me! The bridge is really great as well. "Build a house or sink a dead body."

While Americano is fun, it does seem like a filler track to me. This album is quite bloated, even the standard edition! Even so, the energy level does not falter and we have another great dance track that is fun to shout along to in the car! "I have cried for, I will die for how I care."

Hair is kind of a mix of Americano and Born This Way. It has that same bubbly delivery as Americano with the similar messaging of childhood memories and living as you are as BTW. I also enjoy the youthful lyrics, as if she's singing from the perspective of her younger self, it really helps paint the picture. "I'll die living just as free as my hair."

Scheiße brings us back to the dark side, although it's a good mix between bright + upbeat and experimental, which actually makes it a great transition track between moods which is what it ends up being. The chanting chorus is so silly that only Lady Gaga could pull it off! The mixture of actual German and made-up German is just amazing. The larger message of this song, however, is fantastic as it illustrates the struggle and need for a woman to be her own self on her own accord. "I don't speak German but I wish I could."

It's a close match between this and the previous track, but I have to say that Bloody Mary is my favorite song on this album. I absolutely love how dark and moody it is, and the vocal effects that are used every so often are really cool as well. My favorite parts are the chant and vocal run (would you call it that? I'm not sure) near the end, so fun to sing along to. This song had a resurgence in popularity last year thanks to Tik Tok. "I won't cry for you, I won't crucify the things you do."

Next we have a bonus track, Black Jesus † Amen Fashion, the melody on this one reminds me of Hair a lot. The chorus, however, is where the energy lies! It definitely fits the mood of walking down the runway with your fiercest attitude. "Dancing in my revelation, underground pop civilization."

Bad Kids was one of my favorites when this album came out, now I don't think of it as often but it is still a great track! The lyrics are super sassy although ever since I heard someone mention it sounds like "I'm a f****t baby" I can't unhear it! "I'm a brat. I'm a selfish punk, I really should be smacked."

Fashion of His Love is another bonus track. This is another filler track, I feel. The tone is really light and breezy though which can serve as a break from all the heavy songs surrounding it! "I'm fashionably just designed to be grand."

Highway Unicorn (Road To Love) counts as a filler in my opinion as well. I do like the vocal effects during the chanting. The vocals at the end of the chorus have a really nice tone and sound and the drums in some spots are really dynamic!

Heavy Metal Lover is a strong contender for favorite track as well. This is another one that has a huge cool factor in my eyes ever since it first came out. It is quite an odd song but something about it just pulls me in and doesn't want to let go. Again, the vocal effects create a very distinct mood and the melodies in some spots sound really great (I could be your girl girl girl....). "Let's raise hell in the streets, drink beer and get into trouble."

Electric Chapel introduces us to the last act of this album. It starts with a strong guitar riff and is driving and dramatic. I absolutely love the vocals and melody on this song! It has 80s hair band energy which she does a great job executing. Now, I'm not saying it's exactly reminiscent of that sound, but it just has the energy! "Follow me, don't be such a holy fool."

The last bonus track before we switch to disc 2, The Queen is a bouncy 80s-sounding tune. It's a motivational tune that encourages you to be the best queen you can be!

The last 2 tracks as this long journey comes to a close are the most well-known and radio friendly singles. You and I brought us Jo Calderone, Gaga's male alter ego. This song is a great track that belongs in dive bars everywhere. I used to be in a cover band and would sing this at dive bars! It was one of my favorites to sing. The lyrics are aching yet whimsical and delivered expertly. "Sit back down where you belong, in the corner of my bar with your high heels on." The Edge of Glory pales in comparison to the rest of the album, but that by no means makes it a bad song! It is definitely a great radio hit that appeals to the masses, and it is very easy and fun to sing along to! It also closes out an epic album on a high note.

Disc Two features a few select remixes, standouts being Born This Way (The Country Road Version) and Scheiße (DJ White Shadow Mugler). I normally tend to avoid remixes over 8 minutes long, especially if they are repetitive but Scheiße is just so hypnotic that I cannot resist!

If you made it this far, I very much appreciate you! This is definitely a legendary pop album, and it was a lot of fun experiencing the anticipation at the time and everything else that has happened to solidify this album's legacy since.

[artbychelcie]

Murder on the Dancefloor: The Chokehold of Oliver Quick

'Saltburn' has catapulted leading actor Barry Keoghan into our daydreams, revitalised music careers stagnant since 2007, and ensured we never look at a bathtub the same way ever again. It's delicious darkness has amassed a huge audience, some revelling in its lurid glory and others questioning what the f*** they just watched. There’s so much to say about this film, so many parallels and Easter eggs that tickle the brain notice - for today, I’m focusing on why Oliver Quick intrigued me the most.

As a devoted horror fan, some of the more controversial scenes served to stimulate rather than disturb… The vampire scene? That's just an average Tuesday night for some. The grave scene? Nothing compared to the visual impact Patrick Bateman’s hobbies. But what did succeed to unnerve me was the turning point of the film, when Felix suprised Oliver with a trip home for his birthday. You watch with stunned panic as she says his dad has been pacing all day waiting for him - in real time the web was unravelled and Oliver's traumatic background was quickly proven to be a façade. For me this scene positioned the 'real' Oliver to the audience, realising the person we thought we knew isn’t real at the same time his friend does. And this is where my interest peaked. For me, this film suddenly turned from a critique of the upper class, to a mythological study of a sociopath, and the subsequent events demonstrate how someone with an apathetic disposition could easily infiltrate and dominate a household of such wealth and status.

On a second watch, I couldn't help but laugh at Felix's naiveity as he pulled into the driveway of this enormous house, and noted that it looked as though his mother 'had really turned things around'. Anyone watching this would immediately question how someone allegedly suffering with severe mental illness and drug abuse issues manages to, in the space of less than 6 months, become the owner of a property of that scale. This small observation highlights just how out of touch Felix is anyone outside of his social class, and how Felix's pity towards Oliver, be it through kindness or ego or a convenient blend of the two, blinded him to the manipulation.

Another incredibly successful aspect of the film is the iconic soundtrack. It has brought some early 2000 musical classics back into the spotlight (we all know the best one) and I can admit I have listened to 'Loneliness' more times in the past two weeks than ever in my 26 years of life. The soubdtrack embodies the nostalgic and romanticised qualities of the film, set in 2006 before smartphones dictated every aspect of daily life, especially as a fresher. I may have been only 10 when Oliver Quick started university, it still made me long for the simplicity of this era of my life, when getting to know another person was fundamentally down to face to face interaction.

The choice to turn back time to the mid 2000s contributes to maintaining the mystery of Oliver's identity, depriving the characters of the ability stalk his social media profiles and forcing them to take his personality at face value. His manipulation, and eventual dismantling of the Catton family, was arguably possible through his ability to present himself without the hinderance of a digital footprint. There was no evidence available to anyone in Oliver's immediate circle of the sisters we found out he had, of the father that had infact not died, nor been an alcoholic drug dealer. So why did he lie?

In analysis I've seen online, many people contribute his deception to a need to be noticed by Felix, or in Oliver's own words, to 'perform' for his attention and friendship.

Revisiting the film, I picked up on certain phrases Oliver used to describe his home life, describing it as 'dirty' and proclaiming he could 'never go back'. To us, this sounds like the way you would describe his chaotic home life he described. But when the reveal comes, you can’t help but question why he’s adamant to distance himself from a seemingly stable, and privileged background.

During the scene, his parents also mention how he is the top scholar at Oxford, a member of the rowing team, participating in the school play... his chronic deception extends beyond the Catton family to his own. They also share with Felix that he was 'such a loner' and was 'so clever' that he struggled to make friends, both earmark characteristics of someone with sociopathic tendencies. This illustrates an individual who has never been satisfied, who always saw himself as superior, and who's fixation with Felix was just a desire to climb up and out of all the menial and average and into a position of absolute control.

The grandiose and self-absorbed lifestyle of the Saltburn estate allowed for someone like Oliver, whatever his original or developed intentions, to blend in without being truly seen until, both before and after death came knocking. The need to stifle emotional expression (We don't want to hear your American feelings, Farleigh!) and the uncomfortable obligation to uphold the British sentiment to 'Keep Calm and Carry On' gave him an invisibility cloak, blending in with his surroundings. It reframed Oliver's awkward disposition as one of politeness, and his manipulative sexual deviancy was guarded by members of the household behind a wall of upper class social etiquette.

I can safely say I have fallen into the deliciously depraved world of Saltburn, so much so I’ve felt like I had to write this. I love experiencing and analysing media, but this one really had me captivated. This is a maze will happily lose myself for weeks to come, especially when it comes to the complex and captivating portrayal of Oliver Quick - I would definetly sign my estate over to that beautiful crazy bastard.

[butlersxbirdy]

Hey! Can you do an Austin imagine where he comforts the reader after she has a nightmare where she loses him?

Here it is! I decided to do it as a part of the Canon for my series You Light My Morning Sky, because it gave me Derek and Meredith vibes, and I wanted it to have a moodboard. Whoever finds the MerDer Easter eggs in the board gets a cookie!

You Light My Morning Sky

Interlude 2: Dark and Stormy Nights

Warnings: Hurt/comfort, nightmares, mentions of death, use of Daddy/Princess outside of sex

You and Austin had been married for about a year now, and everything is perfect. He was every bit as doting as you'd known him to be and more since you became man and wife.

On your anniversary, you decide to surprise him with a nice dinner. You got all dressed up after prepping and getting everything in the oven, and you decided to light some candles everywhere to really set the mood for romance. You were secretly hoping Austin would come home and successfully put a baby in your belly, but you didn't dare hope you'd nail it on the first try.

After watching the clock, and beginning to get worried, you called his phone. He didn't answer.

You tried not to panic, but a knock at the door sends chills down your spine.

When you answer, a police officer is standing there.

"Are you y/n Butler?" He asks and you nod. Your whole body is shaking, and numb.

"Yes, I am, is everything okay?" You ask, barely above a whisper.

"Come with us please."

The ride to the hospital is agonizing. You feel sick to your stomach, and all you want is to see Austin. When you arrive, they lead you down a hallway to a small private room.

The machines beeping and the fluorescent lights make it seem as though someone is in the bed, but there is no life in the body in front of you. Austin isn't there anymore. You can feel it; the love he felt for you, the fire in those eyes, the strength of spirit that warmed any room he occupied, is gone. Before they can ask you to positively identify him, you scream, collapsing to the floor in anguish. You couldn’t go on without Austin.

You awoke with a cry, to an empty bed. The nightmare felt so real, and his side of the bed is empty. Your body shakes with sobs and you can't shake the queasy feeling still churning your stomach, and you scream out for help, for him to come back.

"DADDY!" you sob. Instantly, he runs in from the living room and scoops you up into his arms.

"Baby, baby, hey... hey, I'm here, what's wrong?" He coos. You cling to him, putting your hands everywhere you can reach, making sure he's real.

"Daddy, you were dead... they had you on all these machines but you were gone," you sob and he nuzzles you.

"That's never gonna happen, baby. I'm not leaving you, we have so much more to do together," he assures you. He pulls away a little to look at you but you cling tighter.

"Oh... baby, you're really shook up, huh?" He coos and you nod.

"Y...yeah, Austin, of course I am," You sniff. "I love you, so much, and I can't... I can't..." you sob, and he wraps you up in his arms, trying not to cry but his eyes are damp. His love for you is overwhelming, and the thought of leaving you, the thought of you having to live without him, marry someone else, have children with someone else, was painful. When he does pull away a little to look at you, you nuzzle his cheek and feel his tears.

"Why are y..you crying, D...Daddy?" You hiccup and he runs his hands through your hair. Your hands come up to cup his face tenderly, and he kisses the inside of your wrist.

"Picturing leaving you. I love you too much," he hums.

"Then why did I wake up alone?" You pout as he lays you down, cuddling up to you and turning off the lights.

"I was writing my vows, Princess," he whispers, kissing your skin everywhere he can. "But that can wait, let's go to sleep, hold on to Daddy, okay?" He soothes you and you cuddle in extra close, pushing your hands up his shirt and tangling your legs together.

"My Daddy," you sigh and he smiles, kissing your face as you drift off to sleep.

"My princess," he hums, and soon is asleep too, dreaming of the day he gets to call you Mrs. Butler.