#hannah solomons -> after

[marianbrook]

books read in 2025

be ready when the luck happens - ina garten ★★★★☆ (1/7)

assistant to the villain - hannah nicole maehrer ★★★☆☆ (1/9)

apprentice to the villain - hannah nicole maehrer ★★★☆☆ (1/18)

piranesi - susanna clarke ★★★★★ (1/19)

yellowface - r.f. kuang ★★★☆☆ (1/27)

how to end a love story - yulin kuang ★★★★☆ (1/28)

deep end - ali hazelwood ★★★★★ (2/9)

circe - madeline miller ★★★★★ (2/12)

the dead romantics - ashley poston ★★★☆☆ (2/16)

the seven year slip - ashley poston ★★★★☆ (2/17)

is she really going out with him? - sophie cousens ★★★★☆ (2/18)

you between the lines - katie naymon ★★★☆☆ (2/19)

small things like these - claire keegan ★★★★☆ (2/22)

once upon a broken heart - stephanie garber ★★★★☆ (2/25)

foster - claire keegan ★★★★☆ (2/26)

not in my book - katie holt ★★★☆☆ (2/26)

divine rivals - rebecca ross ★★★★☆ (3/5)

ruthless vows - rebecca ross ★★★★☆ (3/6)

check & mate - ali hazelwood ★★★☆☆ (3/8)

the hunger games - suzanne collins ★★★★★ (3/10) [reread]

the ballad of never after - stephanie garber ★★★★☆ (3/14)

a curse for true love - stephanie garber ★★★★☆ (3/15)

catching fire - suzanne collins ★★★★★ (3/17) [reread]

mockingjay - suzanne collins ★★★★☆ (3/19) [reread]

sunrise on the reaping - suzanne collins ★★★★★ (3/21)

first-time caller - b. k. borison ★★★★☆ (3/24)

done and dusted - lyla sage ★★☆☆☆ (3/26)

the strawberry patch pancake house - laurie gilmore ★★★★☆ (3/30)

flawless - elsie silver ★★☆☆☆ (3/31)

so late in the day - claire keegan ★★★★☆ (4/4)

beach read - emily henry ★★★★★ (4/11) [reread]

people we meet on vacation - emily henry ★★★★☆ (4/14) [reread]

book lovers - emily henry ★★★★★ (4/19)

bride - ali hazelwood ★★★☆☆ (4/20)

great big beautiful life - emily henry ★★★★★ (4/24)

happy place - emily henry ★★★★★ (5/3) [reread]

just haven’t met you yet - sophie cousens ★★★☆☆ (5/4)

this time next year - sophie cousens ★★★☆☆ (5/6)

problematic summer romance - ali hazelwood ★★★☆☆ (5/31)

the good part - sophie cousens ★★★★☆ (6/13)

what happens in amsterdam - rachel lynn solomon ★★★★☆ (6/13)

harriet tubman: live in concert - bob the drag queen ★★★★☆ (6/17)

swift and saddled - lyla sage ★★★☆☆ (6/20)

lost and lassoed - lyla sage ★★★★☆ (6/22)

a study in drowning - ava reid ★★★★☆ (7/7)

emily wilde’s encyclopaedia of faeries - heather fawcett ★★★★★ (7/10)

emily wilde’s map of the otherlands - heather fawcett ★★★★☆ (7/12)

currently reading:

emma - jane austen

caraval - stephanie garber

a darker shade of magic - v. e. schwab

the iliad - homer (translated by emily wilson)

[aibafiles]

i've been sitting on this thought about the hatchetfield timelines for a while: i 100% agree with the 2005 timeline-split theory; it's all but outright stated in witch in the web and explains ted-as-homeless-man's presence in every timeline, since he went back to 2004.

but! there's a detail i haven't seen discussed, which also comes up in witch in the web:

at some point around the time the timelines split, miss holloway and wilbur cross got into a fight that only one of them survived, the outcome of which depends on the individual timeline. that means we can sort some of the timelines by which of them is alive:

black friday: wilbur cross. self-explanatory.

the witch in the web: miss holloway. the two of them do interact, but only inside nightmare time after hannah's power brings him back

all of nmt2: miss holloway. also self-explanatory.

nerdy prudes must die: wilbur cross. this is where it gets more into speculation since neither of them appears directly, but i think we can infer it from solomon lauter's possession of the black book, which holloway would have had if she were alive.

the rest i'm not sure there's enough solid evidence for to say either way (although i like to believe watcher world is a wiley timeline because of the voice at the sniggles show), but there's plenty of room to speculate! much to think about 🤔

[onstagesport]

I saw a twitter post wishing for interactions between Lex and Steph and I need to pitch a Nightmare Time called "Wicked Stepsisters"

After Solomon Lauter's charity photo-op in the Hatchetfield Trailer Park, Pamela Foster manages to schmooze her way into a marriage with the mayor. The relationship goes smoothly at first with the Fosters gaining financial stability and Solomon gaining clout before the election.

But that doesn't last for long. Steph is irritated with Pamela for using them for their money and pissed off at her father favoring Lex because he can buy HER good behavior; Lex--sorry, Alex. Solomon paid the name change fees for Hannah and Lex, and Lex Lauter "just doesn't sound as good"--is annoyed at her mother's fake-ass housewife routine and snippy with Steph because at least she grew up with money to compensate for having a bad parent; Hannah doesn't do well with the attention and being paraded around as a prop for Solomon's new Disability Advocacy campaign; Pamela doesn't want her daughters to ruin this for them; and Solomon's image is faltering with all of these problems surrounding him.

So what does he do? He packs them all up for a family retreat at the Outclast Resort in the prettiest part of the Witchwood so they can relax and find some common ground before they cost him the election.

Obviously things get worse; it's Hatchetfield.

[teddy06writes]

New Year, Same Us

Alfie Solomons x gn!reader

Trigger Warnings: Drinking

Summary: Ringing in the new year once more, with Alfie at your side.

{AKA new year, same bull shit}

Alfie watched from across the crowded floor, as you let out a bubbling and boisterous laugh, helping Ishmael's wife Helene -or maybe it was Henrietta, something with an H to be sure- pour glass after glass of champagne.

Business with the Shelby's aside, it had been a good year. Then again, Alfie thought, any year spent with you -fixing breakfast in the morning together, trips to the market side by side, and late nights spent tucked close together- was a good year.

The party too, he had to admit, in spite of his usual scorn for such things, was quite enjoyable. There had been dinner, reminiscing, many laughs, and even dancing.

When the band had struck up again after a dinner break, you had taken Alfie's hand, and refused to take no for an answer until he was twirling you across the floor. There'd been Fox Trots and Charleston's, and other new dances that he had learned, not because he cared much for them, but because of your bright smiles and never ending love of music.

One of the last songs before it was announced that there was only fifteen minutes to the new year had been a waltz, and Alfie had pulled you close, pressing his lips to your cheek, your temple, the corner of your mouth. And you, in your several drinks in, loose and free flowing state had giggled and giggled, a kind of music that was far sweeter to him than anything the band could play.

After the dance Hannah -yes, he was sure it was Hannah- had whisked you away to help with the final preparations for toasting the new year. Alfie had retaken his seat at one of the tables, but of course, he could never keep his eyes off of you.

That is, until Ollie had come up to congratulate him on something or another, and someone called out to give an announcement about the New Year being only a minute or so away, and Alfie lost sight of you in the crowd that surged up onto the floor.

He'd hardly gotten the chance to begin looking for you when you emerged from the crowd, two flutes of champagne in hand, smiling that bright smile, he loved so dearly, "There you are love! Nearly wasn't enough champagne for everyone -I don't know what Hen was thinking- but I nicked us the last two."

"Thank you, treacle," He said, taking one of the glasses, "Ready for the New Year?"

You grinned up at him, "I don't think I could ever be tired of new years with you."

"My thoughts exactly."

Somewhere at the front of the crowd, someone began counting down, and you joined in eagerly, leaning into Alfie's side when he wrapped an arm around you.

"Three... two... one.... Happy New Year!"

You turned, reaching to cup his cheek with your hand, whispering, "Happy New Year, Alfie, love."

The crowd around you had burst into cheers, and the band had already struck up again with Auld Lang Syne. Alfie leaned in, lips brushing your the way they had for countless New Years past.

"Happy New Year, Treacle."

[nerdy-prude]

‼️SPOILERS FOR HATCHETFIELD LORE AHEAD ‼️

Let me introduce you to what I like to call The Lords in Black theory

Notice how in NPMD during The Summoning each of our remaining main characters are told something by a lord in black.

Blinky says: 'We've been watching you, Gracie. Someones been a naughty girl'

Tinky says: 'Oh boy! A Spankoffski! I'm gonna have the whole set in my toy box!'

Nibbly says: 'Stephanie, yum yum!'

Now, as we already know, Hannah is kinda like 'The chosen one' of the Hatchetfield universe. She plays a major part in BF, from the very begining she hates Wiggly. Wiggly on the other hand, is kinda like the leader of his brothers.

In Yellowjacket Hannah is fighting Pokey but she can't defeat her until Lex, a powerfull, MAJOR CHARACTER and her own sister shows up.

It seems as if all of the brothers are somehow connected to one of these major characters. All of these characters are important parts of the story and have shown to be powerful in some way. With Lex and Hannah their power is more clear since they have the gift, but think about it, we don't really know that many people who have had the Black book, even less good people who have had it.

But there is one very much good character who has had and used the Black book. Miss Holloway, everyones favorite witch lady who in every universe fights Wilbur Cross, the guy who has been described as the ultimate bad.

Now some of you might be thinking: "Okay, well that doesn't yet prove anything. There should be bigger evidence if they were actually connected. Their stories should be tied together" Well, funny you should say that! Lets take a deeper dive, shall we?

Wiggly-Hannah

Both are the 'leaders'with the most power. Hannah and Wiggly says to her: "We just keep running into each other, don't we Hannah"

Pokey-Lex

In Yellowjackect it was made very clear that Otho was incredibly powerfull and no one could defeat him. Lex did just that. Also, I am not trying to say any of the brothers are more powerfull than others (well, maybe expect Wiggly) but the thing is, we know that there is a world where Pokey wins. We know his powers. We also know Lex' powers. It would make sense that out off all of them Lex would be connected to her.

Tinky-Peter

Tinky hates Ted with a burning passion, that is why he trapped him. It makes sense that he would be after his brother too. Also kinda unrelated and doesn't prove much but it would be funny that when Peter says: "I have been waiting for what feels like five ducking years and I still haven't gotten my hot chocolate" would have more meaning than just a funny bit. Almost as if he could feel that in another universe five years agohe ordered a hot chocolate and never got it. Like he could sense TIME and SPACE differently?

Nibbly-Stephanie

Whose dad has had the Black book? Oh right, Stephs! And what did mayor Solomon Lauter say abou the black book again? Wasn't it something like: " ...It comes with a price, a terrible price" and "No! I am not touching that book ever again"?

And who has a major part in organaizing the Honey Queen festival? That's right, the mayor! Who has shown multiple rimes they will do anything to keep getting elected? Who has shown to be interested in power? Who has shown to be 'Hungry'?

What if he cast a spell and Nibbly wanted her daughter as a sacrafice? What if he then gave something else. Something that made him bury the book. It might have worked for a while. But Stephanies fate was already sealed. Nibbly still wanted to have Steph tho, he tought she'd be yummy.

Blinky-Grace

Ahh, Grace, Grace, Grace...

I have to admit, she was more of a mystery to me but lets SEE what we can FIND. (Laughs in Jigglypuff)

Grace is the perfect Christian girl. She never does anything wrong! But then she just snaps? She very quickly comes up with a plan on how to hide a body. Then at the end she goes after 'the souls of the pervs'. But to everyone around her she still looks like an innocent young girl. Makes you wonder what else she has hidden. Makes you wonder about the other alternative universes. Maybe Blinky was referring to many different Grace Chasities. He ment the many different things Grace has done bc of her faith and hidden from anyone elses eyes. Only problem for her is that you can't hide anthing from Blinky.

[koolades-world]

the inspiration behind this idea came from one of my favorite vocaloid songs from back in the day. rediscovering the song gave me some great inspo. the songs is about gukapo, whose likely playing a character for the purpose of this song, the purple haired man in the thumbnail, who sees a girl he’s immediately enamored with after she runs into him at a party. after following her out of the venue, he sees her with another man and kidnapped her. her holds her captive and later kills her lover. at the end of sing, she rejects his advances and it’s implied he hurts or kills her. I love vocaloid :)) at one point in the songs he's like "i'll just cut off your legs so you can't run from me" and that screams barb. dark vocaloid is one of my fav genres

had a tough time picking between belphie or barb, but you guys decided for me!!

quick warning! the beginning of the song is a little loud and scared me the first time I listened. it’s just some rain and glass breaking but just know not to have it too loud if you do listen. also general warnings of yandere themes, kidnapping, bodily harm to both parties involved, and blood.

alright i've rambled enough now! If you couldn't tell i was very excited to write this. please enjoy!

Destiny

"You didn't notice? It has been written in the stars that we were to be together since the beginning of time. It's just a shame we faced so many 'bumps in the road,' on our journey where our paths converged to one, as he always put it."

It wasn’t supposed to be this way, and he knew it.

You’d noticed his gradual changes in behavior. At first, it was nothing to you. Finding excuses to see you throughout the day with small tokens of his affection, and brief moments spend hidden in closest together to avoid being seen by Lucifer or Diavolo that turned into more, despite the fact that he had no need to hide from them. You suspected he treasured these moments, just like you did, so who were you to object? He treated you like the crown jewels, and you weren't even certain he was this close to Diavolo.

His obsession gradually grew slowly, and you were none the wiser, like a frog set in a pot of water that had yet to be turned to boil. "It was just Barbatos being Barbatos" you thought as he began to show up in your room any night you weren't staying at a palace with treats made specially for you. "It's just because he cares" you thought as he started to fend off demons he deemed as untrustworthy in all parts of your life. "He's so sweet" you thought as he began blocking off portions of his day for time with you, and only you. "He must really care! I'm so lucky to have him in my life." These thoughts are exactly what he had intended to plant into your head all along.

Unbeknownst to you, despite his signature air of indifference, Barbatos had been taken with you from the start. He had hoped you'd come to live with him in the palace, but unfortunately, the Young Master has wanted you with the brothers instead. It wasn't a problem, however. He made sure to make an effort to make his way into your life even if it was somewhere he didn't belong. Despites his efforts though, you grew much too close to Solomon for his liking. He often opted to go out of his way to separate the two of you, so he could keep you all for himself.

But what did that damned sorcerer have that he didn't? His humanity. Although it was long gone, he knew what it was like to be human. The thought of this infuriated Barbatos. The fact that something as simple as human mortality was keeping him away from Mc absolutely would not do. Of course, it wasn't something he couldn't fix. His hatred for the

He could just swap to the timeline where he was the apple of their eye, without all the playful dancing around what he so desperately wished for, but where was the fun in that? Good things came to those who waited. He of all demons would know. Besides, it would bring him great joy to make Solomon suffer. He was nothing but trouble and Barbatos would revel in his absence.

The way Solomon swept you off your feet in a way he just couldn't almost made him drop his facade several times. The moments the two of you had shared in the broom closets now became you and Solomon vanishing when he came searching for you. You were at the House of Lamentation less frequently, and were always out with that human. When you two finally made it official, and began dating, he knew Solomon had tried his best to keep the news from reaching his ears. But nothing escaped Barbatos, not when it was about you. He always thought it was ironic his favorite and least favorite human had found their way together, but it was just a road bump, as he heard Solomon refer to his problems. Barbatos always thought it was annoying.

After lots of meticulous planning, he finally decided he was ready to have you all to himself. He was done sharing what was rightfully his with Solomon. He called you, saying it was urgent and that you needed to come over to the palace right away. After saying something about how it concerned your family and that you were to come alone, he set his D.D.D. down and waited. He knew you would have told Solomon, or whoever you happened to be with, which would give them the excuse he needed to get you away from the others.

When you showed up, he invited you into his room with little words. It was strange of him to be so silent. He also had his usual, sweet smile on his face, but it seemed more intense that usual. You just couldn't understand how he looked so calm when he'd had a sense of urgency in his voice not even ten minutes ago when you'd spoken to him on the phone. After you stepped into his room, he closed the door behind you, and shut the lights off. You'd never been more terrified of the demon you'd come to love.

Before you knew it, you were waking up in a human sized cage in the corner of Barbatos' room you hadn't noticed when you'd entered. Besties being locked inside, there was also an ornate choker around your neck you could only describe as a collar. After sitting up, you began to look around for Barbatos. As you searched, he emerged from dark spot in the room, the same intense grin on his face from earlier.

"Barb? What's the matter?" You placed both hands on the bars and squeezed.

"Nothing, my love." He took a seat on his bed, and just started at you, unblinking.

"Can you please let me out then? Don't we have to go see my family? If they need my help, I want to be there for them." You got to your feet, only to hit your head on the ceiling of the cage.

"You're best kept here, where you're safe and away from Solomon." His eye twitched slightly at the name of your lover.

"Open the door. Barbatos, this isn't funny." You tried to shake the bars, trying to find the Barbatos you'd loved. He just stared. It was beginning to get very creepy. "Please. I don't like this. What have I done?"

"Nothing, and that's precisely it, dear. You're too precious for this world, and I've decided it's best you stay here, with me. Where better for you to be?" He finally blinked, and the gentle smile you knew well returned. For a moment, you thought the joke had finally ended, and he was about to open to cage door to let you know it was all for a surprise. But, he didn't. Instead, he got up and walked towards his door. Before he left, he spun back around to speak to you a final time. "I'll be back later with dinner. Sit tight, and I'll answer more of your questions later." He opened the door just enough to leave, and slipped out.

You were alone. You knew better than anyone else that his room was soundproofed, and that screaming was pointless. You tried to escape for what felt like hours and cried for some portion of that too. Nothing you tried worked, even summoning any of the brothers with your pact. Did he always want to just keep you in the corner of his room, like some trinket, from the very beginning? You had millions of questions.

When he returned with a plate of food, like he'd promised, you didn't know how long it had been. Your back was to the door, tears caked on your face. "My darling, I brought dinner, like I promised." You didn't want or feel like moving to face him.

"Why?" Your voice was raw, and you weren't sure if you were more upset about the seeming betrayal, or the treatment you were receiving, as if nothing was wrong.

'Why? I thought I told you this. You know how much I hate redundance." The loving lilt in his voice dropped.

"You lied to me. To think I ever loved you." You whipped your head around to meet his gaze, letting the emotions seep their way into your words. He looked more dull and empty than you'd ever seen him. He didn't respond. He moved towards the cage, causing you to scoot back, suddenly afraid.

"I know you tried to escape. I don't appreciate that, love. That's what the point of your necklace is. I work quite hard on that." He opened the door and yanked you towards him by your ankles, causing you to fall flat on your face. In his other hand, he held a knife you'd never seen before.

"What the hell are you doing? Put that away." You kicked your legs, but he and his gaze remained unwavering. He rested the knife on your knee joint, and slid his gloved hand up your leg so his thumb rested next to the blade. It was a touch that was all too familiar. He seemed to feed of your fear, and a small smile grew on his face.

"If you apologize right now, I'll have no reason to cut your legs off." You could feel the blood draining from your face. He'd never been violent with you before, but you knew he could if he wanted to. "Well? I haven't got all day."

"I- I'm sorry, Barb. Please put the knife away." You're relieved at how his expression softens and how his hands slide back down to your ankles. However, much to your surprise, he slashes the bottoms of your feet with the knife before letting go of your legs suddenly. Your scream was equally one of pain and shock. Blood began to pour out of the cut. You cradled your legs closer to yourself, now facing him as he turned around to get the first aid kit he happened to have on hand.

"You won't be going anywhere now, will you?" He hummed as he pressed a cloth around your feet to stop the bleeding. You could only stare at him in horror as he tended to the wounds he'd created. "You can sleep with me in my bed tonight. I'm sorry, but it had to be done. I can't have you leaving me." He smiled as he would at the Little D's but you would never see it the same again.

As the days went by, you began to wonder just how much of the outside life you were missing. What where they doing in RAD? How long did they expect you to be gone? Did Solomon miss you? Your only company was the soft pulsing of the portals that were somewhere nearby when Barbatos wasn't in the room. The only way to tell what time of day it was, or how much time had passed was the routine meals he brought to you like clockwork. He would consistently mention, especially nightly when he would drag you out of the cage to bed with him, about how this is how things were meant to be, and that how this was your mutual destiny. He'd never mentioned that before, but now it seemed like it was all he wanted to talk about. It was strange, but if he was happy, you could’ve cared less. Most of the time, you just remained silent, unless he directly inquired you. He was his charming self again, with the empty Barbatos returning rarely. He’d broken your trust, but didn’t seem to care. He treated you just like he had before you got with Solomon, like the days where the two of you acted like children with crushes on each other. He wanted to go back to the days of chaste kisses and long nights together, but you couldn’t get past what he’d done. You never tried to refute his claims, but deep down, it disgusted you.

He didn’t hurt you too badly, or too often, but that didn’t take away from the constantly fear. Seemingly, if he felt like it, he’d get the knife back out and threaten you with it in a very violet way, before only minorly hurting you compared to what he’s just threatened to do. Once, he said he was going to stab both of your eyes out if you didn’t stop crying so much, becuase he hated seeing you upset. Instead, after you promised to stop, he danced his blade on your face and left some minor injuries. The entire time, one of his hands was on your chin and he was looking directly into your eyes. At one point, he even threatened to carve his name into your neck so you’d never forget who he thought you belonged to. Sometimes, you thought he enjoyed seeing you suffering more than just physically, because he'd keep your D.D.D. charged and leave it in your sights while he was gone. You could see all the texts and incoming calls, but powerless to respond, just to let them know you were in their backyard. Solomon called the most, but your group chat with the brothers seemed to continue as normal.

After another afternoon of tears while Barbatos was gone, he returned earlier than expected, leaving you no time to clear up your tears. Without any words, he dropped something next to you. Through tears, you tried to make out what he'd dropped. When you looked up, you saw him expectantly smiling down at you. You looked back down to try and figure out what he'd left. You grabbed it through the bars, studying it.

"He's finally out of the way, dear. You don't need him. That wretched sorcerer only caused us problems. You were happy with me, so you can be happy with me again." With horror, you realized you were holding a fragment of Solomon's wand. The very same wand that been the source of many of your problems, but also love, together. You'd polished it many times. The piece you were holding was part of the tip where the cute star rested.

Barbatos knelt down beside you to open the door, but you didn't move. But you had finally had it with him. You almost didn't want to know what he did to your lover and refused to even think about the possibilities. Gripping the wand piece in one hand, you balled up the other and socked Barbatos as hard as you could in the face. You hit the center of his face, and he stumbled back a little. He touched his nose gently with his hand, and both of you saw the blood trickling down onto his white glove. You made eye contact, and you saw the sweet Barbatos leave you along with any ounce of courage you'd mustered up to do that, for Solomon.

Nobody ever did see you, or Solomon again.

i wrote this all in one sitting!! not in love with it since I don't think I'm great at writing action but i really like the beginning!! hope you liked this bc this was so fun to write

[awigglycultist]

HATCHETFIELD SWAP AU!

If it's hard to read what all the role swap are then go here to read them instead

Please feel free to ask questions about this!

Reblogs very much appreciated this took me stupidly long, there's so many characters

Some notes below the cut:

The color change in the lords mean nothing, they do not swap roles with each other in this au, the colors are just inverted to show a difference between canon and this au.

Instead of being in a relationship, River and Sophia are secretly siblings and don't know about it, also siblings with Steph. They have Solomon as their dad. Sophia got to stay with him and now has the burden of "mayors daughter", since River got to stay with his mom Linda who's been lying to all her kids that River is Gerald's son, although Gerald actually died right after she got pregnant, and Steph stayed with her mom whos poor and of course then discovered she has the gift. I still need figure out how to make the end of abstinence camp happen without the shower scene but for npmd they discover they're siblings and have each other as their biggest want because they want to make up for lost time.

Emma was forced by her family to get a normal job before she got the chance to go to Guatemala. Now she works at CCRP with her sister's ex husband and with Linda Monroe, and she hates life, she'd much rather be in Guatemala or making a pot farm. Paul was forced by his family to "go live life" because he was so boring. So somehow he ended up going to Guatemala. Paul, although he would much rather just be living a simple life as an office worker or as a corn farmer, he didn't understand how long would be enough before he has "lived life" and can return to Hatchetfield, so he just doesn't return. Well that is until he finds out his best friend's wife died and realizes he should return to try and help him through this.

Bill was a science teacher at Hatchetfield middle school and had Pete as a student. He was the only teacher that really understood Pete and his "quirks" but then his wife died and he decided to quit. Ted is pissed at him for this, Bill was the only good role model in Pete's life. For Yellow Jacket Bill would decide to go back to teaching and just decide to go to the high school instead.

Age changes: For tgwdlm/black friday/2018- Tim is aged up to 16, Trevor, Stacy, Brenda, would all be the same age, Ziggs would be a little older, 18. Alice is 17 (making her 19 in 2020). For npmd/nmts2/2020- River would be a freshman/15, Jordan a sophomore/16, Seaton a junior/17 and Trent a senior/18. Reese and PJ are also freshman, Sophia is a sophomore, Daniel is a junior. Danny and Sof are seniors. Pete, Steph and Grace are all of course 15. Deb is 20. Richie and Ruth are 21.

Max is injected with the yellow goop (yes yellow not blue since inverted colors) they found on the moon and that causes him to turn into Otho.

River and Trevor aren't dating, just besties. Alice and Deb are still dating.

Charlotte is Hidgens' niece.

For tgwdlm Linda is the one to suggest they go to Roman's house since that's her father (rather than Paul having him as a professor).

Rather than his marriage falling a part, Bob Metzger is struggling to still have a good relationship with his kids. Him and Linda are together though they're just hiding it from their kids.

Lex would never out someone, so Hannah is just chilling and hanging around in support of her sister during honey queen. Pamela still gets fucking killed though for the same reasons as Mimaw Chambers in canon.

Sof and Danny tried out for the cheerleading team on a dare but actually did really well and ended up enjoying it.

[starcanwrecked-confessions]

i feel like there's a lot of unconscious sexism/racism in starkid fan content and it makes me sad. i constantly see female characters and especially characters of color getting shafted in favor of cis white men. like, the fact that after nightmare time 2 pete & steph got so much content but rose got barely anything breaks my heart. bill's one of the most fleshed out hatchetfield characters w/ stuff like watcher world but ted gets so much more attention and his canon sexism gets excused so much. i see more attention for random npmd background characters like brenda and kyle than detective shapiro and solomon lauter. nowadays the spankoffski brothers get so much more content than lex & hannah despite their relationship being so much more significant & fleshed out. i don't think it's meant with malice but it just makes me sad.

~~~

[lithub]

May 5, 2025

Today, we’re celebrating 20 years of Never Let Me Go, reading novels about female friendship, and showing some love to the librarians fighting book bans!

On Lit Hub dot com:

After 20 years, Kazuo Ishiguro reflects on the decades-long process behind Never Let Me Go. | Lit Hub Craft

Sarah Manguso and Liana Finck “challenge the popular depiction of children as adorable idiots” in a series of drawings that explore youthful philosophy. | Lit Hub Art

Aron Solomon explains why the legal profession needs to stand up to Trump: “By not pushing back hard against this executive overreach, the country’s most powerful firms set a chilling precedent.” | Lit Hub Politics

“There are moments when a place you live stops being livable. Sometimes that arrives slowly, like a leak. Sometimes all at once.” A dispatch from Oliver Baez Bendorf, poet in exile. | Lit Hub Memoir

These 10 great May nonfiction books include work by Bridget Read, Amanda Hess, and Robert Macfarlane. | Lit Hub Reading Lists

“Neither of us was thinking about poetry, yet it was the only way we had of saying anything to each other.” Astrid López Méndez on feeling resistance to poetry. | Lit Hub Craft

From woodcuttings to ancient sketches, Jessica Poundstone explores a human history of depicting dogs in art. | Lit Hub Art

Disha Bose recommends novels about female friendship by Elena Ferrante, R.F. Kuang, Sally Rooney, and more! | Lit Hub Reading Lists

Peter Conrad considers the relationship between Charles Dickens’s own Dickensian childhood and his writing. | Lit Hub Biography

“The kids at Calvin Village Elementary School made me feel better and worse about myself.” Read from Demree McGhee’s short story collection, Sympathy for Wild Girls. | Lit Hub Fiction

From around the internet:

“What is happening at this moment does not dictate what is going to be happening tomorrow.” Angela Davis discusses Gaza, June Jordan, and solidarity. | Democracy Now!

Melina Moe considers Amanda Jones’ ​​That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in America, which attempts to address both “the public defamation of a librarian accused of willfully using book selection to pervert patrons, and the broader question of how books should be selected (and challenged) in public collections.” | Los Angeles Review of Books

Jennifer Smith Richards and Jodi S. Cohen report on the gutting of the Department of Education’s civil rights offices. | ProPublica

Forget LLMs! Hannah Katznelson looks at 16th century language automation models. | Aeon

In the age of A.I., Joshua Rothman wonders: “In how much of our thinking lives will we be passengers, rather than pilots?” | The New Yorker

Dana Liebelson on the National Endowment for the Arts, the Kennedy Center, and Trump’s attempts to conquer the arts. | The New Republic

Follow us!

Newsletters

Other socials

Lithub.com

[ace7librarian]

Hatchetfield Jewish headcanons!

Based on surnames and some unrelated headcanons.

*After Jane died, Tom really wanted to keep the Jewish traditions for Tim, but he had zero clue what to do, so he called Emma. She also had no idea what to do, but she tried her best.

*Ruth and Richie make fun of Pete for being the only goy in the squad. Everyone just assume he's Jewish, and that makes him really confused. Also, Ruth unironically ships Tanakh characters.

*Shapiro has a Jewish dad and a Catholic mom, so she got the Jewish surname and the Catholicism. She breaks the glass in her and miss mullberry's wedding. Miss mullberry is also Jewish.

*at one timeline Steph finds Solomon with the black book or something and blames him for encouraging the stereotype that Jews worship Satan.

*Dan Reynolds is Jewish. I have no reason for this.

*the following conversation happened at some point.

Emma: and I'm not going to let some republican, Christian old man-

Bob Metzger, offended: Christian????

Emma: ....

Bob: there's ONE synagogue. How did you never see me there???

Emma: I was smoking outside???

Bob: we're a big family! My grandchildren were outside! Our last name is Metzger!!

Emma: ....sorry. A republican old man.

Bob: there you go.

*Karen Chasity is very upset about having Solomon lauter as a mayor. Sam sweetly as well. I just know these two would want a Christian mayor.

*Daniel/stopwatch invites the other kids to celebrate Jewish holidays with him. Sophia melts some candlesticks and Hannah starts having visions when they read the Haggadah, but they still had a great time.

Characters that deserve an honourable mention:

The spankoffskis sound very Jewish, but we know ted is a Christian, and they both went to a Christian summer camp.

Linda says "mensch", but with the implications of the rich bitch being Jewish? No thanks. Plus she has way too much Christian symbolism in her character. My headcanon is that she heard Jews were controlling the media so she started using Yiddish slang to look richer. I'm sorry, but she would.

I love Gary Goldstein, but he is a walking stereotype.

[tikkunolamresistance]

Tissot and the Bible

Tissot and the Bible includes some 30 works by the French painter James Tissot (1836-1902) that come from a group of more than 350 paintings related to the Hebrew Bible. Spanning all of the books, from Genesis to the Prophets, Tissot’s watercolor illustrations are some of the most beloved and sought-after images in the Jewish Museum’s collection. 

The Gathering of the Manna (c. 1896-1902)

David Takes the Head of Goliath to Jerusalem (c. 1896-1902)

Moses Destroyeth the Tables of the Ten Commandments (c. 1896-1902)

David Takes the Head of Goliath to Jerusalem (c. 1896-1902) 

The High Priest and Hannah (c. 1896-1902)

Festivities in Honour of David (c. 1896-1902)

By the Waters of Babel (c. 1896-1902)

David Plays the Harp Before Saul (c. 1896-1902)

Moses and the Ten Commandments (c. 1896-1902)

Jacob and Rachel at the Well (c. 1896-1902)

The Offering of Abraham (c. 1896-1902)

Jezebel Advises Ahab (c. 1896-1902)

The Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon (c. 1896-1902)

[reliquiaen]

Solomon is set up to be a trustworthy and reliable character. He is gracious when Sarah gives him a piglet, he warns her to be careful in the woods (or is he just worried she’ll catch him; if he knows about the parties, then he probably knows they visit Widow Mary, hm…). He is kind and understanding when she tells him she loves Hannah, he is protective when Pastor Miller tries to kill her in the chapel. He tries to talk sense into the other townspeople. He seems like a genuinely good man. But he’s not, and when I did my rewatch, I looked at his words and actions through that lens instead.

It's fairly self-evident that he’s selfish and cares about others only insofar as they can be of use to him, but knowing what he is from the start allows for some interesting reads.

First, this exchange right at the end with Sarah; the tinting of my lens:

Solomon: “Consider, Sarah, a single soul,” (Cyrus Miller) “Just one. And in return, what no amount of praying could ever bring. One person every few years seems a small price to pay.”

Sarah: “One person? The pastor slew twelve children.”

Solomon considers one person to have been sacrificed. Sarah argues it was thirteen. Both of them leave out poor Widow Mary, a total of fourteen people. Neither of them mentions the other costs: the divisions and suspicion it sows in their community, the dead livestock and the toll that will take on a small village’s food supply, or the potentially unending casualties this will have going forward. Obviously, given the situation and how shocking this is to both of them, I’m willing to put aside these things. Heat of the moment and all that. And Solomon expects there will BE no consequences in the vein of poor harvests and such.

What I really want to emphasise here is this: Solomon views his only victim as being Cyrus Miller, Sarah considers all of them to be his victims. This is interesting because it highlights not only the completely askew moral compass Solomon is working with (and I mean, yikes, you know), but also how he views women. Again, this is an “at the time” thing that I’m mostly willing to wave off as being pretty standard. Men did see women as less than at the time so it makes sense that he’s not really visualising Widow Mary (who had a Reputation for being a bit of a weirdo anyway) as a Victim Who Mattered. Children were also, generally speaking, a woman’s concern. He shows no remorse at all for the children being killed; the children who would’ve been Union’s future. And he WAS a father. We never find out how his wife and child died (or maybe I’m just not sure I believe his story), but I’d be very curious to know if this is his first foray into the occult or if perhaps he had previous victims. A trial run or some such.

HOWEVER. This idea of Solomon not actually giving much of a shit about women got me thinking about another scene from earlier in the movie (and this is where I really started to re-evaluate his actions based on new knowledge).

This is Solomon upon entering the chapel where Cyrus has just murdered a dozen kids. You can see in his expression and movements that he’s unsure what to expect; he doesn’t know what he’ll find in here. He clearly knew there would be SOME effect on poor old Pastor Miller, but my guess is he just assumed the man would die horribly and that’d be that. So imagine being Solomon here and having to confront what you’ve REALLY done.

This is the shot where he fully comprehends what’s happened. The horror on his face. He was not expecting this. Something bad, yes. Gouging out kids’ eyes? Not so much. (There’s a slightly zoomed out shot of Solomon on his knees just after this and it’s great, it’s like here you are Solomon. Behold the consequences of your actions. And he’s sitting among all these dead children, we as the audience are getting a moment to fully take in the horror of what’s just happened, but HE is taking this moment for it all to sink in. In this moment, he’s got to be wondering “Is this really worth it?” and I wonder what kinds of things he’s weighing up in his head. I wonder what would’ve happened, what he would’ve decided later, if Sarah hadn’t stumbled onto his secret and condemned him for it. Anyway.) Please also note the lighting behind him: not an accident, he is literally being posed here as a saviour of some kind, a vengeful angel, perhaps. We are being positioned to see him as the guy who will Do Something about all this, starting with Cyrus Miller we must assume. Very good framing in the “don’t let the audience figure out he’s the bad guy” kinda way. But wait up a minute.

The townsfolk spill in the doorway, they find the children relevant to them and have a horrified moment and then there's Sarah in the front row. The pastor comes around the stand with the clear intent to kill her, and Solomon has a moment. He knows what’s gotta be coming, he has to know, there’s this anger in his face, and he calls out to Sarah as a warning. Goody Miller says, “Cyrus no!” and then Solomon impales him. No hesitation. This is a man beholding his works and being very conflicted about them.

What’s interesting to me is that the first time you watch this scene it is VERY easy to say that he does this to protect Sarah whom he has feelings for. Super easy. It’s set up right from the start with Sarah’s conversation with her dad and her lil visit out to see Solomon and their friendly banter. It’s established and it’s understandable. The contrast is between Solomon and literally everyone else in the room, however.

The townsfolk with children come charging in to find out what’s gone on and they all go right to their children because they love their kids/siblings obviously and want to look after them. Goody Miller’s instinct is to go to her possessed, murdering husband because she CARES for him. But Solomon does not go to Sarah. He stands there, staring at Cyrus and that’s it. He doesn’t even LOOK at Sarah. Why not? He’s supposed to care about her? But does he? Does he value her at all outside her potential as a wife?

Now, Solomon is obviously Going Through It, here. He did a thing, it escalated WAAAAY beyond his expectations, and now he has to wrestle with that. He has to decide is all this worth it? Does he care so little about people that’ll he’ll do it again?

This is largely the scene I was considering. But there are other little changes to a reading of Solomon. Such as when Sarah tells him she loves Hannah, which she did right before this scene in the chapel. Here’s his expression:

This is Solomon’s face when Sarah says, “And if it wasn’t? […] That’s why I’m so afraid, because it was not just a dalliance.” That is the face of a man whose grand plans are crumbling. On a first watch, it's the face of a man hearing something he's not expecting to, something he might find a little distasteful about a person he cares for and respects. On a rewatch?

He KNOWS that she and Hannah have been having a lil thing going on, he SAW them in the woods. But he’s clearly decided that it doesn’t matter, he’s got his own reading of the situation happening in his head and it goes like this: a woman loves a man, they get married, they have kids, there are no deviations from this; if there ARE deviations, they are just… practice for the real thing, nbd. Therefore: Sarah will love Solomon, they will get married, have kids, all will be well and as people expect. So when Sarah very much has no intention of going along with this view… he’s got to be wondering how it’ll work with his devil plans. He MUST have this niggling doubt in his mind that she's even worth including in his master plan. And when he saves her in the chapel but never so much as looks at her? He has a decision to make, there.

And it makes ME wonder: how much did he ever really care about Sarah? Did he love her? Or did he just love the idea of having another wife? A take-two at being a family? Did he love the idea of proving his brother (and the town) wrong and being a hero with a thriving farm and a quaint lil family? Because he turns on Sarah easily enough, he chooses the devil pact over her and the other townsfolk. He chooses not to live his life but to end others. (Solomon Goode has two hands and he's making that everyone elses' problem.)

So when he’s standing in the chapel over the body of Cyrus Miller (his one and only victim, we PROMISE), what’s he really thinking? Yes, more than one person has died. No, that doesn’t have to put a dent in his plans. Perhaps Sarah can still come around. Is he considering how to get rid of Hannah? Is he wondering if Sarah is worth it? She’s a very strong personality (she is no lamb, after all), it’s not like she’d let him go about his business without any questions, she’d stick her nose in everywhere, maybe find him out. Is that risk worth it?

Solomon actually says when they’re wrestling at the end, “Don’t make me hurt you, I love you, Sarah.” And it’s the ‘don’t make me hurt you’ that’s so typical of men like him. He doesn’t love her, he loves the idea of her, the idea of what she could give him or be for him. He's a man who lost his wife and child and he feels that keenly; a failure or absence in his manhood. So his faults and shortcomings become her problem. Any woman could be substituted and as long as they were malleable and suggestive enough, it’s all the same to him. Which is clearly the conclusion he eventually arrives at since he turns on her and she hangs.

Should Sarah have figured out he was untrustworthy and insane earlier? No. I don't think so. It's not like Solomon was waving red flags around everywhere. He seemed like a normal dude on the surface, definitely pretty great in comparison to Thomas or Caleb, which is what makes him so dangerous. It is interesting to watch again knowing the truth, though. The things that make your hackles go up with more context, the subtle hidden meanings in his words, the way everything he does is for himself, it's a very nice reframing.

Sarah’s final line also drives me absolutely insane: “I will never let you go.” She didn’t want anything to do with him, but now? When it ends like this? When he’s decided she’s not worth it and he doesn’t want her after all? When he's taken away her chance at happiness? When he's ripped all the solid ground out from under her? That’s when she says she’ll never let him go? And that word choice? It's not 'I'll never let you forget this' or 'I'll never let you rest' or something more like that, it's 'never let you go' she'll hold onto him forever. He's made his issues other people's problems and now she's making herself HIS problem. Taste of his own medicine. Never let him go. Vicious, outrageous, iconic. I love her.

Everything is about HIM, and he uses all the tools at his disposal to make sure things come up Solomon. He chooses himself every time. A great juxtaposition to Sarah who chooses Hannah every time (even when Hannah tells her to run and she does, Sarah still goes back. It's a stupid decision, monumentally dangerous, but she wants to help Hannah, she goes back because she CARES). And I think the really great part is that to everyone else in the town, it looked like Sarah was just being a bitch, but she made her choices with the goal of protecting people; she tried to protect everyone in Union – Hannah, foremost, sure – but even that is a selfless act. She knew it was one or both of them so she saved Hannah. Solomon knew it was him or like… hundreds of people. And he chose himself. Would love to know what Hannah did after this, we don’t see another Miller in ’78 or ’94 so like, where’d she go? (The answer is probably ‘got married, took her husband’s name, no more Millers’ but like, c’mon, something more interesting please.)

And listen, I know Solomon must’ve gotten married again and had more kids, that’s obvious enough; and we know he kept going with the rituals, but I BET he pictured himself as the poor, sad, unsung hero of Union, doing this for the Good Of Everyone™ and having to live with the suffering in silence. I bet he thought he was living a miserable life because it didn't turn out EXACTLY how he wanted. Because he had to justify it to himself somehow, and it started with his ‘these lands are fertile’ so he’s got this picture of himself in his head where he’s solving everyone’s food problems as if he didn’t cause them in the first place.

He’s the very epitome of “be careful what you wish for” because he wished for Sarah Fier and by god he got her, teeth and all.

[skyeslittlecorner]

Second fic for WHB MC Shuffle~

This time our lucky one is Hannah from @sweeteaacakes. And I must admit up front- I got a little carried away with my imagination. Instead of writing the script you asked for, I did something a little crazier. That scene just captured my mind so much that I had to write it. I hope you dont mind, and you will like it too 🧡

As always, let me know what you think - if you want to make any changes (even write it from the beginning because after all I deviated a lot from your script), just write them and I will try my best to fix it!

Words: ~1200

WHB MC Shuffle | Hannah

The walls of the temple were so silent. Thump, thump, her aunt's shoe tapped against the ancient pottery as she impatiently waited for the priest to hurry up. Swish, swish, the girls on either side of Hannah ran their fingers over the beads of the rosary, their lips whispering inaudible words. The girl's hand, meanwhile, was tightening on the devil's symbol. Solomon's Key. Her aunt almost forcibly ripped it off her neck, so she put it in her pocket. At least this way it could warm her up her in this icy, distant place.

The ceremony, where they were supposed to take vows of chastity, was so small. Several girls in modest, covering dresses sat at the front, and behind them, family and invited friends gathered on long benches. Even though they wore white, the atmosphere seemed sepulchral. That's how Hannah felt too. Stuffy. Tightly. The enormity of the temple overwhelmed her, the eyes of her family burned a hole in her back. "You can manage. You have to manage." She repeated in her mind. "You must. Only half an hour and you will go to the ball, and after the ball you will go home. Only a few more hours until evening. You can handle."

She counted the minutes on her fingers, just as the surrounding girls counted their prayers. They fell silent only when the priest came. Hannah looked up. She had the impression that their delighted faces had nothing to do with their admiration for the God. The man with white hair looked holy, like an angel. As if he was the last test to see if they really wanted to stay pure. Hannah was too nervous to share their reasons, although she wasn't in a rush to vow either.

Just forty minutes, thirty-nine, thirty-eight…

The ceremony went smoothly. A priest with the appearance of a saint, he also had such a voice, calm, and yet distant.

“The most humble of you who, take a vow of chastity, you will be welcomed at the gates of heaven…”

He approached each one in turn. Personally blessed each one. Hannah glanced stealthily and was nearly dying from nerves; the key she was clutching cut through her skin. But she didn’t feel the blood. 

She didn't want to do it. Really didn't want to. But still, she felt more aware than before, repeating the words of her oath in her head, ready to fulfill her duty… Until she came face to face with the priest. For the first time, his gaze seemed alert, even terrifying. Not because he looked down on her. Because he was smiling.

“The most humble of you… Did I say?” He spread his arms. Hannah was dumbstruck. That's not what it should look like, that's not what the blessing should sound like. Did he want to embrace her? 

She understood even less when, in a gentle flash of light, a white scythe landed in his hands.

“You do not belong to them, descendant of Solomon.”

The words of the oath evaporated from her brain. A new priority has emerged. Survive. She felt like the key was burning in her hand. Defend yourself, run away, do whatever. 

He stopped looking like an angel. Pairs of powerful wings appeared behind him, covering the colorful stained-glass windows, shrouding her in shadow. He *was* an angel.

Frustration overwhelmed her. A wave of rage washed over her, almost bringing tears to her eyes. Why! Why did he destroy everything! She didn't endure all this just to die!

As he raised the scythe, there were screams all around. Hannah didn't have time to do anything. Before the gleaming blade fell, she saw the angel's pleased smile... and disgust as he, too, was enveloped in darkness.

She squeezed her eyes shut and covered herself with her hands. Pain. This was what she expected, but she felt nothing. Just the sound of metal hitting metal. The acrid stench of sulfur that filled her nostrils and lungs. Is that it? End? He killed her so quickly that she died without pain?

She opened one eyelid, then the other. There were screams all around again, and panicked footsteps of people leaving the temple. But before the eyes (that she slowly stopped trusting), she saw *something*. A two meters pile of muscle, covered in black fur, casting a shadow over herself and her surroundings. The smoke that surrounded him slowly dissipated. It accumulated right next to her hand. By the key, which she was still clutching with all her might.

“I see I arrived on time!” The demon roared with laughter. Even behind him, Hannah could see the massive, bloody scythe that stopped the angelic one.

“Tsk.”

She, paradoxically, felt safe. Behind the giant's back, behind the rock-solid muscles, it was one of the few times she felt like someone wanted her well. She clutched the key to her chest and glanced to the side, just to see the angel's expression. He wasn't angry, wasn't scared. His white brow furrowed in irritation.

“I shall not let you go.” He muttered under his breath and withdrew his scythe. Instead, he took a swing and brought it close to his chest. Blood gushed from the cut skin, falling on both of them. Hannah felt her own chest burn with pain. Meanwhile, the angel flew up as if nothing had happened.

The demon turned to her and wrapped his arms around her waist. The horned head tilted, dark eyes staring out from a frowning muzzle.

“I am Satan, King of Gehenna.” He placed a hairy paw on her chest. “And you are in grave trouble, Descendant of Solomon.”

"I know." She whispered, thinking about her family. Her aunt will kill her. Literally. With a stick and rag. Frustration and rage hit Hannah’s head like a hammer again. If it weren't for that stupid angel, it would all be over, and now...!

“I don't want… I can't go home!” She pushed demon in the chest. “You could have let me be killed, at least I would have had peace!”

“I like you more and more!” He burst out laughing again and wrapped his arms around her waist tighter. “I won't let you go home. The angels will track you down too quickly.”

“What should I do…” She asked herself more than him, but got an answer nonetheless.

"Come with me." He offered cheekily, raising her chin. “I can give you a new home if you help me save it. Take revenge on this angel and help us save hell. Then you will be safe… and no one else will dare to raise a hand against you.”

“I will.” Emotions spoke through her more than reason. What else did she have to lose? “I will help you, I swear.”

More images flashed through her head as if through a fog. A beautiful palace in European style. The exhaustion that set in when she felt safe. The demon's grip loosening as he handed her over to the arms of another cute boy with a horn. And the one and only memory she remembered clearly. A flash of white as the captivating demon turned into the captivating man, his charming smile when she huffed in irritation, and the warmth of his lips as he kissed her goodbye.

Her life was finally about to begin.

[man-down-in-hatchet-town]

Theory: Hannah's Birth Led to Steph's Mom Dying

Okay, this is a bit of a wild journey, but I promise it's at least somewhat thought-out if you're willing to bear with me for a bit. (Theory under the cut!)

I'm endlessly fascinated by the absence of the Church of the Starry Children (not a random opener, I promise). We're told multiple that times that "nothing that dies in Waylon Hall ever truly dies," and we learn that the Waylons put a spell in place to essentially resurrect anyone killed on the house's property. We also learn that the Waylons and their followers all died in the house in 1979. So... where are they? Max was a singular teenager, and within two weeks he had the entirety of Hatchetfield whipped into a panicked frenzy. Surely an entire cult of evil zealots brought back from the dead and imbued with insatiable bloodlust would be even more noticeable. At the very least, their Number 1 Fan Roman and remaining widow Sheila would know that they were still out there, which is clearly not the case. So it's pretty undeniable that, despite their safety-measures, the Waylons and their followers are no longer around.

There are multiple potential reasons for this. The Hatchetmen have experience with such people. Perhaps they got around the spell by taking the Cult's bodies to the Witchwood and burying them there, though that doesn't seem hugely likely. Or maybe Miss Holloway took care of the Waylons back in the 80s. That timeline arguably kinda' sorta' works--Miss Holloway gave up her life as a pop star to become an immortal witch just a handful of years after the Waylons' deaths.

But then we have Solomon in Nerdy Prudes Must Die, who has the Black Book, but says that he will never touch it "ever again." This statement heavily implies that Solomon once summoned the Lords in Black, and the absence of Steph's mother implies that she was the price he paid. (Nick and Matt also give A LOT of credence to that theory in the Hatchetfield Halloween livestream.) Solomon also knows A LOT about Max, the spell that created him, and how to put an end to it. And sure, this could be second-hand knowledge passed down from previous mayors or Miss Holloway. But what if it's not? What if, in an eerie foreshadowing of his own daughter's future actions, Solomon Lauter was the one to summon the Lords in the Black and sacrifice the love of his life to stop the resurrected Waylons?

There's an obvious problem with this theory--the timeline. Judging by Max, it's likely that a whole cult of monstrous and monstrously powerful ghosts on the loose for 25 years would have been Apocalyptic long before the timelines had the chance to shatter.

So what if they weren't around? What if the Waylons' spell was not automatically triggered upon their deaths, but instead required activation? Perhaps, in their cult-y arrogance, Mathias and Agatha never imagined that every single one of their followers would be wiped out alongside them. Maybe the Starry Children were supposed to return to the Hall upon the Waylons' deaths and activate the magic. With the Cult massacred, there was no one left with the knowledge to complete the ritual and resurrect the dead, leaving them in limbo.

And then Hannah enters the scene, born the same year that Solomon performs his Summoning. We know from Wilbur that Hannah is basically a nuclear power plant. What if her birth, together with the massive burst of energy as Lex activated her powers to save her sister, (and also maybe PEIP's portal playing whatever role it played,) was enough to do for the Waylons as Hannah would later do for Willabella Muckwab? What if Hannah's nuclear battery existence automatically served to complete the Waylons' spell, activate the house (leaving it primed for Max's return from the grave), and release the Waylons onto the unsuspecting town? Leaving Solomon, town Mayor, sentinel at the gates of hell, to work alongside Miss Holloway and her Black Book, discover the truth of the Waylons, and summon the Lords in Black for help. And maybe Miss Holloway, still in the middle of her own deal, was unable to make another, separate one, leaving Solomon to give up what he treasured most...and murder Steph's mother.

(And maybe the little girl she left behind is nothing but a reminder of his loss and his guilt.)

(Update: lmao @thatdelusionalnerd just described this as "far-fetched but still makes quite a bit of sense" and I just wanted to acknowledge that because I feel like that's my sweet spot with Hatchetfield theories. Arguments that are absolutely bananas and almost definitely not true, but to my own consternation kinda' work nonetheless.)

[stupid-starkid-headcannons]

The Melissa/Zoey/Steph cousins anon back.

I have another Steph one.

Steph and Lex met in high school when Lex was a senior and Steph was a junior (Lex got held back a year due to poor behavior). They met in detention and bonded over having shitty parents.

After Steph graduates, she ends up moving in with Lex, Ethan, and Hannah both to help them with rent and to get her out of Solomon’s house. She’s viewed as the Foster-Green’s adoptive sister, and ends up bonding with Ethan like a brother she never had.

She ends up being the Best (Wo)Man in Lexthan’s wedding, while Hannah is the Maid of Honor.

oh i love this!!

[the-maid-of-witchwood]

Okay so there's an animation meme to the song Flightless Birds from the Bubble Guppies (banger show BTW. Yes it's a kid's show and yes I love it)

But it got me thinking about the wing au. The song is only a minute 44 so a listen would be quick :))

If, say, your very cool and awesome moot wanted to animate the wing au to that song, hypothetically ofc, what lyrics would go with what characters/shot progressions? :3

I'm very normal (lying)

OMG I LOVE YOU

I’m familiar with the song! I’ve seen it in multiple edits for various fandoms recently. Never realised it was from Bubble Guppies though - god, that show is a throwback to my childhood; I never watched it much myself (we never had the channel on our TV) but it had a lot of adverts/trailers on other DVDs I had, so still pretty nostalgic.

And this is a song on my playlist for the AU as it so happens. And I’ve definitely dreamt up scenarios of hypothetical drawings or animations before.

As for an animatic, let me see…

There’s the obvious route of doing those winged creatures that can’t fly - some of them are species that can’t really fly and just soar or glide - but most of them are pretty minor characters like Dan.

My ideas for this, however, all kinda come back to Lautskity (what can I say? I have favourites), either together or individually, Ted/the Homeless Man or Lex.

Ted did have wings but lost them to Tinky in Time Bastard, so the animatic could easily be a recap of that episode with flashes to the Homeless Man with broken wings unable to fly and help/warn Paul (23) of android Emma. And there’s always fun to be had imagining (one of) the LiB. Maybe a few scenes of Ted teaching Pete to fly just as a contrast? Adds more angst.

Lex is a similar case to Ted. Did have wings, used them lots but lost them in horrifically - granted, by their own doing. They never got the chance to teach Hannah to fly or fly with her out of Hatchetfield. They are left with terrible back pain that prevents them working as hard and making enough money to leave. They are totally shamed by others for their lack of wings. Then add in all the shit that happens to them in Black Friday and Yellow Jacket, and how having wings probably could have made it so much easier. I feel there’s a lot to work with here.

As for Lautskity, individually:

We’ll start with Steph as she is admittedly the weakest case because she is an incredibly strong and skilled flyer. She isn’t flightless by any literal means like the others. However, Solomon uses a lot of wing specific punishments to keep her in line - caging (bars on the windows) and chaining (metal chain around her ankle). While this would work for a very short animatic, it wouldn’t really work for anything longer than a couple seconds. She is only sometimes (read as very briefly and temporarily) flightless, after all. There isn’t as much to work with, it’s just the idea.

Grace is flightless in a more metaphorical sense. In how Max treats her, for example. She’s trapped and can’t get away. And he plucks feathers from her, which definitely fuck up flying if someone plucks too many of ones specifically used for flight. (Essentially All You Wanna Do from Six but with wings; specifically Samantha Pauly’s version). Or even her compulsion to protect her chicks. It keeps her grounded because Richie can’t fly, and probably only further leads to danger from bullies. But if you want to be literal, there is her general fear of flying - specifically heights and speed - that usually keeps her grounded. And yeah, for a bird type, she’s a pretty weak flyer.

Pete definitely encapsulates the most literal flightless meaning, though he isn’t a bird. He’s not a confident flyer on his own - he was taught by Ted and Ted kinda just made fun of him the whole time - but this is made worse by bullies like Max. He’s also picked on a lot by Brad and Sara. (I’m currently working on an fic where he’s bullied by these three poking holes in his wings in the school parking lot; don’t worry, his girlfriends save him before anything too serious happens). That treatment combined with having a flightless friends keeps Pete pretty grounded, insecurities further this by keeping his wings folded back. Male butterflies face a lot of harsh treatment for having “feminine” and delicate wings. Insect wings in general are the most delicate too, so the slightest injury could render them flightless.

And of course putting the three of them together would just be a combination of the above. Steph being someone who wants to and can fly, but is kept from doing so; while the other two are a lot more angsty and, technically speaking, probably bloody and gory.

Depends what you would like to animate really! But if you had any ideas of your own, you are more than welcome to do it!