#happy to see a couple of art posts made the top five

[facewithoutheart]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers (except me because obvs I have done it). Spread the self-love ❤

Thanks Jess & also @bookish-bogwitch, @skeedelvee, @run-for-chamo-miles, @aristocratic-otter & @urban-sith who also tagged me ❤️ y’all are lovely and I’ve enjoyed seeing the work you’re most proud of.

I tend to suffer from recency bias when writing fics, where I only like the things I’ve written recently, which isn’t fair to my (oh god so big) body of work. So, it’s taken me awhile to think about this.

This Will All Go Down In Flames (E, 77k, SnowBaz)

This is the first fic that really made me feel like a writer. Getting to collab with @tea-brigade & having some amazing alphas/betas like @sillyunicorn, @martsonmars, @bookish-bogwitch, & @cutestkilla. I’d written longfics before, but this was the first time I had a community with me and it made me realize how much more fun writing is with smart people in the trenches alongside me. I also got to add place to a fic for the first time really, celebrating the Austin I knew and miss every day.

boulders turn into sand (E, 19k, SnowBaz)

This is the first fic that I think is really beautiful, and painful in a sweet, aching way. Plus it’s got a banger of a playlist if you ask me. This fic wouldn’t be half as good without @shrekgogurt sliding into my DMs with amazing song recs and I’m so grateful to her ❤️❤️. I know this fic isn’t most people’s bag bc of the infidelity arc, but I consider this a turning point in my writing where I stopped trying so hard to write what I thought people wanted and started to focus on stories about messy people trying their best which is where I find most joy exploring. I think about the end of that fic and Simon/Baz’s slow journey to heal after their “happy ending” all the time. I don’t think I can express how much it meant to have @iamamythologicalcreature make art of Simon toward the end of that fic; he has my whole heart and seeing that moment represented just healed me in such a powerful way.

The Wedding Bet (16k, T, SnowBaz)

This fulfilled my dream of being a sitcom writer lol. Man, I had a blast with this fic and it seems best fitting for a gift for @martsonmars bc it’s funny, tender, smart and witty, all traits Marta exemplifies. I worked so hard on this fic yall hahaha and it’s one of the first fics where I contrived some insane structure and plot devices and I think I pulled it off. Finishing this definitely gave me the confidence to try bigger plots and new devices.

Cursed Ships (Series, various)

I’m cheating here because this is a series, but I think this is such a fun gift to fandoms: writing the cursed ships no one asked for but kind of make sense when you think about it. This is probably one of those areas where I feel unapologetically proud bc it’s hard for me to write in spaces without a lot of covered ground and also to pull off couples you kind of what to hate. And maybe I didn’t hit the mark on these but I’m still glad I tried.

Just Like That (WIP, E, 8k posted, buddie)

Maybe it’s premature to say this is a top fic when I’m still in the process of writing it but oh man I’m so proud of this so far. It feels like all of the heart of TWAGDIF combined with the sweet pain of boulders. This fic is meant as an exercise to see if I can pull off some of the messier themes I’ve got planned in my original novel idea, and so far I think I’m doing it? We’ll see if I stick the landing.

[leejeongz]

🫧 valentine’s day with evnne 🫧

pairing:boyf!evnne x gn!reader

genre: fluff!

warnings: gift giving, physical affection, mentions of food

a/n: I AM A VALENTINE’S DAY ANTI NORMALLY but this year idk something changed (jeonghyeon) and i suddenly think it can be quite cute. also i’ve decided to start adding jihoo onto these now <3

𓆉 keita

⋆ oh he’s PREPARED he’s had reservations made since feb 15th of last year

⋆ he wants to cut up some fruit for your breakfast but you catch him with a huge knife looking a bit helpless so you take over

⋆ “i made you lunch, though, you can’t take that from me!” and it was delicious!!!

⋆ managing to sweet talk his boss to give him the afternoon off, he took you to a couples pottery class

⋆ honestly it was just an afternoon full of love and laughter rather than actual art but you wouldn’t want it any other way

⋆ and for dinner, keita had found a hidden gem only an hour away from your home, he knew you’d like the menu options and the view (even if it was pitch black outside when you got there)

𓆉 hanbin

⋆ he’s waiting very patiently for his valentine’s day treat from the minute he wakes up and he thinks everything is a hint

⋆ hands your card to you with the most expectant grin, waiting for you to open it like 😁😁😁😁 (he wrote something about him being the best boyfriend in there)

⋆ oh and he LOVESSS his gift, no matter what it is he’s bragging about it to his friends - that’s after the 5 million photos he posted of you on social media

⋆ other than that it’s a pretty normal day

⋆ except the five course, formal meal that he booked for 7pm

⋆ “oh my gosh you look absolutely gorgeous,” he’s basically in tears when he sees you all glammed up

⋆ at that moment, he asks you to turn around and places the most beautiful pendant necklace around your neck before kissing your shoulder and waking you to the car

𓆉 jeonghyeon

⋆ well it was going to be just another day for jeonghyeon since you didn’t mention it for a few weeks leading up to it

⋆ he just got you a card and some flowers to be delivered

⋆ but he took a step back like the day before and thought hmm actually there's way more that he could do than just a card and flowers

⋆ given that everywhere is pretty much already all booked up and he can’t get the day off work just like that, he decides he’s gonna cook for you when he gets home and find a way to make the evening as fun as possible

⋆ he leaves you with a short but no less adorable treasure hunt to find your gift (earrings that you’d been looking at for months!), collecting packs of love heart candy on the way

⋆ dinner is… questionable… barely edible even, but it’s the thought that counts

𓆉 seungeon

⋆ all morning he acts like he forgot that it’s valentine’s day, even if you bring it up he’s like “oh i thought it was next week”

⋆ but after you eat your breakfast (suspicious that there was some of your favourite cereal left over but you thought nothing of it) you notice a red envelope on your pillow

⋆ before he leaves he lets you know to expect a delivery, he’s ordered for you the most beautiful bouquet of your favourite purple/pink flowers with a cute note reading “i love you berry much, my darling, happy valentine’s day <3”

⋆ when he gets home, he cringes at the memory of writing that but soon gets over it when you kiss him to say thank you

⋆ you decide to go to bed early that night, but neither of you are sleeping, too busy giggling about memories

𓆉 yunseo

⋆ oh it’s his day to SHINE (but let’s be real everyday is valentine’s day with yunseo)

⋆ you can absolutely guarantee he’s taking the day off work and he’ll ask if you can do the same too

⋆ you spent your day baking at home together, little cookies in the shape of hearts and brownies with strawberries on top

⋆ it’s no fun without a food fight too, of course you end up covered in flour and chocolate, but he apologises with a very sincere hug and a kiss on the crown of your head

⋆ for dinner, you shared some homemade (from a packet) pasta under candlelight with the brownies and cookies for dessert

⋆ and they made the perfect snack for movie night, cuddled up on the sofa/in bed

𓆉 junghyun

⋆ a slight kiss to your forehead, a handwritten letter left on your bedside table and a platter of pancakes for your breakfast, all done by your boyfriend before he left for work

⋆ not to mention an enormous bouquet already in a vase that took up half of your kitchen

⋆ he returned late afternoon, full of apologies that he couldn’t be home today

⋆ “i got us tickets for the cinema tonight, they only had a horror left so we don’t have to go if you don’t want to.”

⋆ but it turned out to be the best purchase of his life because you cling onto him for the whole evening

⋆ and he would never miss an opportunity to call you his cutie!

𓆉 jihoo

⋆ “i don’t really celebrate it, it’s a capitalist marketing scheme”

⋆ and then goes to his members to help put together something elaborate that you won’t expect

⋆ a scrapbook of pictures he’s taken with little anecdotes on the side

⋆ pictures of you, pictures of clouds, the sea, city lights, pictures of silly little stuffed toys he's seen on his travels, anything that reminds him of you

⋆ you get take out for dinner so no arguing about who’s doing the dishes!

⋆ but you end up having to allow some of your friends around because your place is the hub of the friendship group unfortunately 😭

⋆ it’s all good though, you play some minecraft together before heading to bed at 2am

[thatoneaceinthecorner]

RQG Art Masterpost

Hey guys! So recently I've had a wave of notes on some of my old rqg art, and a few new followers. I got really nostalgic about rqg and decided I wanted an easier way to access my rqg-related art (other than the dumpster fire that is tumblr's tagging system), and I wanted other people who are just finding my art to have an easy way of looking at the rest, if they want to. So I dug through everything and made a masterpost! This post contains links to all the rqg art I've ever posted on tumblr, as well as a couple images that I couldn't find the original posts for, despite all the digging. It's loosely organized, emphasis on loosely, but I hope it should be fun to look through if anyone ever feels like it. Spoiler warning for the whole show, just in case anyone new isn’t done with their first listen. There's also stuff in here that's pretty old and that I don't necessarily love anymore, but seeing how my skills progressed over time is still pretty neat. This is a long post, so I've put all the links under the cut. Enjoy!

My top three pieces and why they're my favorites

General:

Shoin's sketch of London

RQG Inktober: Scars

Resurrection Ritual in the Ursan Village

Zolf Smith, cleric of what comes next (comic)

Alex's horrible Barret Monster with knife arms

Ada and Tesla in their lab with the Babbage brain

"Why didn't you do more" (it's all your fault comic)

Blue-veined arm in Other London

Zolf and Azu hear the hivemind

Sasha and Cicero leave Rome behind them

Apophis in human form

Party camping outside the Garden of Yerlik

Kantu!! Because I thought they were cute

Also these two drawings, the ones I couldn't find the original posts for. Azu giving Hamid a piggy-back, and a really old drawing of Azu in Carter's mind museum.

Sasha Racket:

Sasha hangs out with gargoyles (and sphinxes)

Sasha portrait

Goodbye, Brock

Goodbye, Grizzop

If Grizzop had lived and helped raised Sasha's kids

Sasha deserves bat wings, as a treat

"I so wish you could meet them"

My very first drawing of Sasha, post-Kafka fight

Wilde:

Wilde masterpost (yes he has his own)

"We're all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars"

His brain might've popped

Wilde looking pretty (plus bonus shitpost sketch)

"Oh Wilde, you must have been so scared"

Wilde with blue veins

Wilde gets his magic back (first time I ever drew him)

Zoscar:

Wild and Zolf in the rain, epilogue

"We've got this" "Yeah, we've got this" aka Parallels

Breath of Life

Wilde's first death

Peace and comfort (for once)

Actually some more peace and comfort

And a little more

Aaand back to some angst

RQG Zine Art:

The End of the World As We Know It

How Little He Matters

Rome Is Where the Heart Is

Animatics/Animations/Videos:

Hamimatic - Immature

Zolf is the sand guardian, guardian of the sand

Wilde and Zolf in the rain but animated this time

Sasha protecting Wilde in Paris

Time lapse of some of the "Breath of Life" drawing

Ben Meredith quoting Jenna Marbles (starring Toothbrush Zolf)

Doodles, sketches, and requests:

Messy busts of the whole party (plus Wilde, obviously)

Azu and Grizzop outfit/deity swap

Never wake a sleeping Barnes (comic)

Toothbrush Zolf

Azu caring for undead Sasha

Ada mourning Babbage AU

Fun sketch page of various PCs

Domestic Zolf and Wilde

Canon-compliant under-dressed Zolf (look he's posing like the coppertone baby from that one brand of sunscreen, i thought it was funny)

Sasha and Wilde bonding time

If Sasha and Cel met each other

Sasha and Zolf, amputee buddies

Wilde in a flower crown (Everyone Liked That)

More domestic Zolf and Wilde

Sasha playing with Hamid's twin brothers

Sasha looking after Grizzop's kids

Zolf and Wilde hugging

Sasha and Skraak, dynamic duo

Barnes and Carter hugging

Kobold in the kitchen with Zolf

Ada holding down the fort

Happy Hamid

Cel and Grag

Wilde and Hamid high-five

[jungwnies]

hi maeby! its been a while, im sorry this took too long and I don’t know exactly when you’ll see this but know that i’m writing this on december 16 for reference hehe (this will essentially be a 2023 recap but ill try to be as short as possible)

last time i was here i think it was the end of june or beginnings of july and a lot has happened in my life, on august i turned 21 and i also went to the eras tour!! definitely one of the best days ever in my life and maybe top 3 on best days of 2023  🤍

talking about my birthday its little sensitive topic, for the past five years or so my birthdays has kind of been something that I’ve dreaded so much and i'm just the opposite of happy, its like those posts you see everywhere of people crying in their room during their birthdays and this year wasn’t  the exception, this years birthday..lets just say it will be memorable but leaving that aside august was kind of okay

the concert experience may be on of my favorite memories just because it feel so cathartic, it was just so beautiful talking to strangers and us bonding over music and art, listening and singing to my favorite songs, getting to go to a concert for the first time on my own, traveling with my sister (just the two of us) for the first time, all the beautiful pictures and videos and people that i keep with me because of that one experience it just something that I will eternally be grateful for (also, so. many. friendship. bracelets.)

i remember looking back at my life and my lowest points in it and thinking (and hopefully it won’t get too sad) “well maybe someone out there was right, i just needed to hang on a little tighter, cause imagine missing out on this” 

september was filled with delicious food and me going out a little more often

in october was my sisters birthday, so she held a halloween costume party and i got to dress up as an elf/fairy, i also went to one of my best friends birthday party and felt amazing seeing a couple of familiar faces after months, and some of them even years, waiting. also yes, this means i ate a lot of cake on october (my moms birthday was also on this month hah). i also took a ceramic class. i loved it (I made a small bowl :))

november i went out a lot, bought new clothes, bought christmas decorations, studied korean, went to the doctor cause i thought i was going to die (turns out im not, even far from it : im as healthy as a horse) 

and as of december, planning christmas dinner with my mom and sister, got a bad haircut that made me cry so hard and then got it fixed at another salon, had dates with friends, retook ceramic classes (i made two cups, three heart shaped plates and a little jewelry organizer), scheduled one more therapy session before the year ends after months of not going, took more buses this month than in my whole life and i guess im slowly figuring out my stuff a little more. 

i discovered new artists this year, feel in love again  with old ones that I had forgotten about, learned new cooking recipes, got a little more out of the house than last year, made amends with my body and established boundaries even though it hurt :)

turning 21 this year essentially meant a lot, i don’t want to go into more detailed as to not make this any longer but lets just say im planning on getting 21 tattooed on my next year haha

i hope the rest of the year was kind to you, if you feel comfortable to answer with maybe your favorite parts of 2023 would be great! if not just know that i love you and missed dropping by here, hopefully starting 2024 i'll be back here regularly <3<3

take care, stretch, rest all you need, take your time, and remember that im always right here rooting for you and hugging you 🩶🩶🩶

happy holidays :) love youuuuu

-🧸anon

hiii 🧸anon <3

it has been literally so long, i was taking a break from tumblr, honestly i didn't even think i'd come back but seeing this upon logging in literally brought joy to my heart knowing you're still around! :)

i've read everything, from your birthday to your christmas dinner with your mom and sister. starting with your birthday i'm glad that 2023 you had a memorable birthday after dreading it for so many years, and i hope 2024 also brings you joy! onto the concert next, i know exactly how you feel, it's something that you don't feel often and the crowds are just so amazing because it's people who share the same love for the same artist, and it's like you are in your own little world for a few hours. next, september & october, i'm glad it was filled with food and another birthday, it seems so fun to have a halloween themed birthday honestly!! november, i'm glad it was a good month besides the scary doctors visit >.< december seemed to have been a busy month for you, and hopefully your hair is okay now :( hopefully the therapy sesh went well. I'm glad your year was overall not too shabby, and I'm glad that you had a lot of character development. Hopefully 2024 brings you absolutely nothing but joy! 🖤

now onto my year, i guess i'll go with the highlights. i essentially had a relatively good year, i was able to do a lot of things, and uni was not too stressful, but it's a little harder this semester. starting with my august, i didn't do much except get ready for the semester, signed up for my september classes etc etc, it was relatively boring. my september was a little more eventful, i took a marine biology class which was so fun, and i'm not even majoring in marine bio, we got to talk about sea legends and a lot of the lore behind mermaids and other stuff. in october i did the same thing, but i made one of my best friends ever, except uhhh we're not really friends anymore as of recently, but my heart goes to them, they meant alot. in november i built a new computer, a little nerdy but i actually really enjoyed it except i had a mental breakdown trying to do cable management LMFAO 😭😭in december i had a good month, except the basement flooded so that wasn't very slay but regardless it was a good month filled with nothing but holiday spirit and gifts.

now with a short little update on my 2024, because it's been awhile. in january i went back to school for the second semester, and it's been tough i'm not going to lie. i also got a boyfriend so like !?!??! kinda crazy, he's not too bad but like every relationship we definitely have our downs. in february, it was a short month but nonetheless eventful this is the downfall of me and bestie tbh, but it's okay he was like a life lesson or something!?!?! now this month, it just started and it's been great, it's midterm week right now so i'm a bit stressed, but i also suddenly got motivation to go back on youtube and write on tumblr again, so i'm super happy about that :)

i hope 2024 is kind to you and gives you a lot of joy! remember to take care of yourself, just as you always say to me, stretch, rest all you need, take your time, and remember that im always right here rooting for you and hugging you as well! ❤️❤️❤️

have a great year, and i hope to see you again 🧸❤️

[joycieillustrations]

20 questions for fic writers

Thank you to @the-reading-lemon for tagging me over on my main blog and also for encouraging me to get back into fic writing in the first place ❤️

1. How many works do you have on Ao3?

A humble five! Though I plan on writing many more.

2. What's your total Ao3 word count?

158,634, of which 112,023 belong to Ex libris

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Currently, I just write for House of the Dragon, though I do have a couple of unfinished Gallifrey fics (and a few more that are unpublished) that I really do want to continue some day.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

I only have five, but in order they are: Ex libris, Salt and Smoke, Office Hours, Causal Sequence and Stress Fractures

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Generally speaking I do not, though not because I’m not grateful for them! I have checking OCD, which I’m still trying to understand and develop coping strategies for, and unfortunately one of the ways it manifests is repeatedly checking emails, messages, texts, etc. to make sure that I haven’t ‘done something wrong’. It might sound dramatic, but it usually takes me a day to recover from the anxiety spike of just posting a chapter and I don’t have the energy to also deal with the repeat compulsions I would have if I responded to comments too, especially as I feel that if I respond to one, I should respond to all! Instead, I like to leave a note at the beginning of each chapter to let everyone know how much their comments mean. I really wish I could engage more, but currently this is what I can cope with!

In the last year, I’ve only responded to one comment and that was because I found the tone of it rude and upsetting and I wanted to let the author of the comment know.

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Bold of you to assume I’ve finished a fic. Currently the one with the angstiest content is probably Salt and Smoke, though I promise the ending will have a happy note!

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Again, not finished, but I think Ex libris will have by far the happiest ending - after all, we all know Corlys and Rhaenys are married with two children at the start of House of the Dragon!

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Not really. I have the best readers ever and I get such joy from seeing both familiar names and new ones in my comments! I’ve only received one bit of hate thus far, which I think is pretty good innings.

9. Do you write smut?

I do indeed! My smuttiest one thus far is my modern AU for Corlys and Rhaenys, Office Hours, though there is a sex scene in Salt and Smoke and I have plenty of scenes up my sleeve for distant chapters of Ex libris and future fics too ;)

10. Do you write crossovers?

Not really, other than some oneshot AUs I have planned - Corlys and Rhaenys as Han and Leia, for example.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not as far as I’m aware! I only started writing fic again about a year ago, so maybe it’s a bit early for fic theft. I have had my art stolen though!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

I haven’t, though I would consider it the absolute highest honour! I’m a translator myself (German to English) and I know how much love, time, and brain power translation takes, so if it ever were to happen, I would be the happiest fic author out there!

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Other than plotting out an elaborate HP fic with my best friend when I was 11? Not really, though Office Hours came about after throwing some AU scenarios around with my friends, so they definitely helped inspire that one.

14. What's your all-time favourite ship?

Currently it is obviously Corlys x Rhaenys, but I’ve adored Han x Leia for as long as I can remember. Twelve x Missy also dragged me back on to this website, so definitely have to give them kudos for that.

15. What's the WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

About 10 years ago I made a very basic Romulan conlang for a school project and, while I was doing that, plotted out a fic focused on Sela, the half-Romulan daughter of Tasha Yar from TNG, so that I could see the language used in context. I think I only ever wrote a couple of thousand words, but it would be cool to take this relatively small Trek character and build up the world and culture of Romulus around them, especially since we now have a lot more material to work with since Star Trek: Picard aired.

16. What are your writing strengths?

My dialogue gets mentioned a lot in my reviews, which makes me really happy! I think it comes from doing a lot of theatre and listening to a lot of audio dramas! For me, there’s nothing more satisfying when you’re writing fic than when you read through what you’ve written and you can hear the rhythm and cadence of the actor.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Making my sentences overly wordy or overly complicated. It’s something my teachers pointed out to me at school, I have a tendency to meander before I get to the point!

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I actually do this already for my House of the Dragon fics! I love, love, love High Valyrian and it’s so fun to sink my teeth into a new language (especially as, seeing as it’s a conlang, there’s way less pressure to be perfect all the time). I did a degree in linguistics, so it’s been a blast from the past dusting off these old skills and learning about grammatical concepts I haven’t used before (such as the vocative, locative and comitative cases). I’ve never been so thankful I suffered through three years of Russian because it’s given me such a head start when it comes to a highly inflectional language like HV!

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Like most people my age, it was HP. I wrote mostly about Bellatrix, Andromeda, and Narcissa: what can I say, I love a messy, mildly incestuous family.

20. Favourite fic you've ever written?

Probably Ex libris, though Salt and Smoke is very close to my heart. Ex libris has just grown into this absolute monster of a fic - I originally thought it would only be seven chapters! - and I’ve learnt so much in the process.

I am tagging @backjustforberena and @youleavethetardisbrakeson and you, the reader, if you’d like to have a go answering these too! 🥰

[gamerbearmira]

I have a Modern Spy AU called Code Word Chameleon that I posted over on AO3! If you’re interested, I have the first chapter below.

Present Day - New York City

It was a beautiful night for an art gallery opening. The Metropolitan Museum of Art was holding a private fundraiser and gala to celebrate the arrival of a rare painting that would be on exhibit for a limited time only. Monet’s Water Lilies, valued at over $80 million, was the main event. Those lucky/rich enough to get an invitation received a preview of the famous painting before it opened to the public. They rolled out the red carpet as the museum’s supporters and donors walked into the grand entryway. A limo pulled up to the steps. A middle-aged man and woman stepped out. The man wore a black suit and an orange and yellow tie to blend in, but the woman certainly wasn’t trying to blend in. She was wearing a brilliant orange and yellow ombre dress that sparkled when it caught the light just right. The two walked up the stairs, the woman turning heads as she walked arm-in-arm with the man. Her dress and his tie matched perfectly. At the top of the stairs, a man in a suit stopped them.

“Your names and your invitation, please,” the security guard said.

“Cameron and Miranda Montez,” the man said as he produced the invitation for himself and the woman on his arm. The security guard took their invitation and scanned a QR code on the back. His eyebrows knit together, confused.

“I’m sorry. I don’t see your name on the list.”

“That’s odd,” Cameron said. “We have to be on there.”

“Are you members of the Friends of the Met?”

“No, but we made a very generous donation,” Miranda insisted. “We gave this museum a significant amount of money because I wanted to see this painting in an intimate setting.”

“Let me scan the invitation again.” The guard scanned the invitation one more time. The screen on his tablet flickered, then confirmed that the invitation was genuine. His eyes widened when he saw the amount the couple donated to the museum. “My apologies, Mr. and Mrs. Montez. Please, go in.”

“Thank you,” Cameron said as he and Miranda walked into the foyer. After passing through a metal detector, both of them took a glass of champagne and started walking around the room.

“Comms check,” a voice said in their ears. “Camilo, Mirabel, can you hear me?”

“Loud and clear, Dolores,” Mirabel muttered under her breath.

“This must be what it’s like to hear everything,” Camilo said quietly.

“Nope,” Mirabel and Dolores said at the same time.

“Mamá and Antonio are on standby in case something goes south,” Dolores said from an unmarked van a block away. She was monitoring security cameras, looking for their mark.

“How is Antonio on standby?” Camilo whispered.

“He found a beehive three blocks away. Go silent. I’ll let you know if I see them. Happy hunting.”

Camilo looked at Mirabel. “I love being older than 21 on missions,” he thought. “I can do this without anyone getting mad.” He took a sip of champagne and smiled.

Mirabel rolled her eyes. “As long as you don’t get drunk, I don’t care,” she silently replied before taking a sip from her own glass. “Wow, the Met knows its champagne.”

“Considering how much money people spent to get in here, it better.”

“Any sign of our guy?”

“Nothing yet, but we’re barely halfway across the room. We haven’t even given you five minutes to get the attention of every man in the building. Whoever's trying to sell this painting will come over eventually.”

“I always did like this dress. If only I could be myself in it for once.”

The two of them walked together for a minute more before a specific song started playing. Camilo smiled. “It’s our song,” he said, holding his hand out to Mirabel. “Would you like to dance?”

“It would be my pleasure.” The two set their drinks down and walked onto the dance floor, which was pretty empty considering it was still the beginning of the event. They walked right into the middle of the floor, making sure that the light hit Mirabel’s dress perfectly. Camilo and Mirabel waltzed around the floor for a few minutes, Mirabel enjoying the turns and twirls that Camilo expertly led her into. They were dazzling the room as Mirabel’s dress sparkled and shone under the lights.

“I’m so glad you learned how to dance,” she thought as she smiled at Camilo.

Camilo returned the smile sadly. “Someone needed to cheer mamí up,” he replied. “Papí always danced with her.”

“Sorry. We can’t go down that road right now.”

“It’s never a bad thing to talk about papí. But right now, we’re coming to the end of the song. I’m gonna twirl you, dip you, and kiss you on the cheek, okay?”

Mirabel’s blink meant she was ready. With only a few measures to go, Camilo perfectly executed the move he told her about. When the song ended, the entire room applauded, both for the band and for Camilo and Mirabel. As they left the floor, a man approached them, three glasses of champagne in his hands.

“You must be Mr. and Mrs. Montez,” he said kindly as he handed them two of the glasses. “I’m Philip Rossiter, the host for this evening. You both are very talented.”

“It’s a lovely party so far, Mr. Rossiter, and thank you,” Mirabel said as she flashed a look at Camilo. This was their guy. “We were just talking about how beautiful this foyer is.”

“The Met takes great pride in both its artwork and architecture, Mrs. Montez. We here at the museum were blown away by your donation, especially considering you aren’t part of the Friends of the Museum. What made you decide to give such a generous gift to the museum?”

“We love Monet.”

“Well, she loves Monet,” Camilo said with a smirk. “I love her, and she asked me for this for her birthday after I dragged her to St. Kitts and Nevis for mine.”

“Saint Kitts and Nevis?” Philip said. “What a wonderful destination. The Caribbean is so beautiful.”

“If it hadn’t been during hurricane season and we didn’t have to evacuate forty hours into the trip, it would have been lovely,” Mirabel said, flashing Philip a dazzling smile.

“Well, I’d like to thank you for your generosity by giving you a private viewing before we open it to the rest of the group. Typically, we reserve this for the top donor inside the Friends of the Met, but your donation warrants special treatment. We’re going to announce you to be Friends of the Met once everything starts.”

“An honor we did not expect, but we will accept,” Camilo said as he raised his glass for a toast. “To the Met and Monet.”

“Hear, hear.” The three took a sip of their drinks before walking into the gallery where the painting was displayed. “We’ve been trying to get this painting here for years.”

“You must be very excited,” Camilo said before he took another drink. “Having a painting worth $80 million as part of your exhibits will bring in a lot of business.”

“Absolutely. It’s just brilliant. As the curator, I get to see the painting at my pleasure, which is also nice.”

“I’m sure you have extraordinary security here to make sure the painting is safe,” Mirabel noted as she also took a drink.

“Of course. We take great pride in our security measures, especially against those who would try to disrupt the integrity of the museum.” As Philip finished the sentence, Camilo’s vision went blurry for a split second. He blinked a couple of times and grabbed Mirabel’s hand.

“He spiked the champagne,” Camilo thought.

“I’m feeling it, too,” Mirabel replied silently.

The curator led them into the room where the painting should have been hanging. It was an empty room. Camilo’s vision was completely blurry now. “You should not have been so eager to get my attention. You are both excellent dancers. It’s a shame you won’t be giving an encore performance.” Two men appeared behind Camilo and Mirabel, holding guns against their backs. “Walk.”

“What’s happening in there?” Dolores’s voice rang out in Camilo’s ears before the man reached in and yanked the earpiece out. He threw it on the ground and stomped on it, hurting Dolores’s ears terribly. Mirabel received the same treatment.

“Who do you work for?” the curator asked. “If you tell me the truth right now, I’ll make it fast.”

“We’re Friends of the Met,” Camilo mumbled, barely able to stay conscious as he struggled to maintain his shift.

“Please, don’t do this,” Mirabel said. “We have a family.”

“So do I,” the curator said. “And we’re going to have a great life once I sell this painting.”

Camilo and Mirabel fell to the ground, the sedative taking full effect. As they blacked out, both of their bodies changed from a middle-aged couple to a couple of eighteen-year-old twins. Philip Rossiter’s eyes went wide as he looked at the two of them.

“I don’t know how they did that,” he said to his henchmen as he reached into his pocket and pressed a button. “But it doesn’t matter. Get them to the back of the house. We’ll dispose of them later.”

Every screen in the surveillance van went static. Dolores threw off her headphones and put in an earpiece before she sprinted out of the van and onto the street a block away from the museum entrance.

“Antonio, I need you at the service entrance!” Dolores ordered as she ran. “Mamá, they’ve been sedated and are being taken to the back. You have to get in there.”

“Got it,” Pepa said before picking up a tray of champagne glasses. “I’m in position.”

Pepa took a deep breath as she reached into the part of her mind that kept her powers under control. She mentally locked the door that had Félix, Julieta, Bruno, her mamá, and her children behind it and put on her game face. “Heading in.”

Pepa stepped into a room meant for employees only, her server’s uniform being the only thing granting her access. No one gave her a second look as she entered the room with ten people and five security guards.

“Ah, good,” Philip said as he entered the room like he hadn’t just sedated a couple of teenagers. “We can finally have our toast. What took you so long?”

“Lo siento, señor, lo siento,” Pepa said, not meeting his gaze as she passed out the champagne.

“What is your name?”

“Cristina, señor.”

“Well, Cristina, we speak English in this country. If you can’t speak English, I’ll find another server who can.”

Pepa nodded, trying like everything to keep the anger out of her face. “I’m sorry, sir,” she said, her English purposefully broken. “I try to speak English for you.”

“Thank you. Keep the champagne coming.”

As soon as the tray was empty, Pepa marched out to the kitchen again. “Dolores, if you don’t do something soon, I’m going to kill that man,” she mumbled under her breath as she poured more champagne.

“Don’t lose it, mamá!” Dolores said in her ear. “If you lose it, Camilo and Mirabel are dead.”

“I know. I’m trying.”

Outside, Dolores found Antonio standing at the service entrance. “Anything?”

Antonio shook his head, putting his hand out to stop Dolores. “Careful, I’ve got a bee’s nest surrounding me.”

“Thanks. What did you send in there?”

“A couple of bees. Sending the entire swarm would attract attention.”

“Good boy. What else?”

“They were going to use that van over there to get away.” Antonio pointed to an unmarked white van off in the distance. “A pigeon told me about it. It was really happy when I asked it to pop the tires. I guess pigeons think cars are loud.”

“You’re so good, Toñito.”

Antonio beamed at his oldest sister before his face fell. “Are Cami and Mira going to be okay?”

“They’ll be fine,” Dolores said, half trying to convince her little brother and half trying to convince herself. “They’ll be okay.”

Ok. You had me. And then you lost me, and then you had me, and the. I got lost again. Idk 💀 I KEAN ITS GOOD. DON’T GET ME WRONG, AWESOME PREMISE <333 Iiist need a little context? From what I can tell? Really cool spy AU. But like, what are they spying on 😼 Which honestly. I am loving, spys are cool.

I can also feel they’re older in this au, or at least the ages are different. ALSO??? CAN SOMEONE CHECK ON CAMILO AND MIRABEL LIKE…SUMN AIN’T RIGHT 🌚

[diddle-riddle]

Dark Angel

[Warning for potentially triggering themes: - implied / referenced: underage rape / non-con (not described or explicit, but stated - NOT between Bruce and Ed) - teen pregnancy - a setting with Alpha / Beta / Omega dynamics (Edward is an Omega in this)]

...... .....

Edward Nashton stroked lovingly the thin blond fuzz covering the top of his baby's head.

Stephanie addressed him a questioning gaze, her Caribbean blue eyes wide open making her permanently resemble a curious bird eager to discover the world, explore her surroundings and have a contact with everything around her.

He smiled, in awe of the tiny creature. The one month old baby petted the soft pale skin of his left breast with her minuscule fists, sucking on the nipple in her mouth.

It's the second time his Omega body goes through this change: his flat chest developed during his pregnancy, until it formed two small but round bosoms, that will entirely deflate post-breastfeeding.

He attested with Jason, whom he nourished up to the Alpha's twentieth month of existence, that the breasts fastly disappear once they don't secrete milk anymore, for him to fully regain his normal masculine silhouette.

Everything made him insecure during his first pregnancy: the changes, the waves of hormones of a new kind triggering his male Omega biology, the judgemental gaze of people in the streets when seeing such a young person carrying a life, the crushing anxiety of not knowing how to raise that child he had out of a night in an alley with a female Alpha who took more than she was allowed. Driven mad by heat, at thirteen, he could only spread his legs and beg for release.

Such a dark life period.

Such a... drastic opposition to his current situation, nearly five years later, in which things improved.

"Is something wrong?" The low voice of the symbiote who lives in his body inquired, worried when he felt his host shaking like when he is scared or cold.

A symbiote going by 'Bruce', the name Eddie gave to the extraterrestrial who bonded with him while he was three months pregnant expecting Steph. Touched to be proposed an Earthian appellation, the alien adopted it... and adopted them.

Edward, Jason and Stephanie Nashton.

Bruce learned everything about Ed's story after they became 'roommates', more by accident than anything. He took a sincere liking on the young Omega mother, who raised on his own a little Alpha and was pregnant of a second child, conceived by someone who left him when finding out about the pregnancy.

"Art is not a bad man," Eddie had sighed once Bruce suggested they stop by at the Browns' house and deal with the couple of Alphas, Arthur and Crystal Brown, who cast him out when unveiling the truth. "He simply... didn't want a baby, and he is married. If I chose to get rid of Steph, he wouldn't have asked Jay and I depart from his home. Since aborting from my baby was out of the question... here we are."

And 'here' was good.

Edward rents a modest flat, Bruce protects him and his children, he morphed into their 'extraterrestrial guardian angel'.

"Nothing wrong," Eddie murmured at present, when a smooth hand wiped the tear that rolled down his cheek. "I am just... happy."

"Then why are you crying?"

"Humans do that, sometimes. They... cry because everything is alright, they don't know how to express their joy otherwise."

"Humans are weird."

Yet... one thing certain is that Bruce found a family.

He will do anything to keep them safe and make them feel loved.

...................

Read “Dark Angel” on AO3 here Discover the rest of the DC Symbiotes Series on AO3 here

[verdantcactus]

I posted 4,759 times in 2022

That's 1,360 more posts than 2021!

39 posts created (1%)

4,720 posts reblogged (99%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@twink-frank

@iero

@void-flesh

@awsugar

@mcrbois

I tagged 3,389 of my posts in 2022

Only 29% of my posts had no tags

#g - 863 posts

#mcr 2022 - 546 posts

#frnk - 514 posts

#cool art! - 219 posts

#the man with the plan - 136 posts

#laugh rule - 119 posts

#f&g - 117 posts

#mfw - 112 posts

#them &lt;3 - 90 posts

#about me - 75 posts

Longest Tag: 134 characters

#but i will still wake him out by throwing shoes in his face in retaliation for the many years of being bitten by him when he was small

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

These shows happen and we get blurry ten pixel images that make me feral from them trickling in for hours afterward and I get struck with the “in a day or two we will get HIGH RES versions” realization and I lose it a little more

8 notes - Posted June 17, 2022

#4

I’m awake again and the first thing I thought of was another thing I loved from last night. Every time Mikey goes to a part of the stage and holds up a hand heart, a sea of people just stop clapping mimic it right back obviously. And it’s just a moment of line like “LOVE!!” “!!! LOVE!!“ in both directions and it made me so happy every time

8 notes - Posted September 8, 2022

#3

Hearing reports of foundations, nanana, give ‘em hell kid, house of wolves, and ghost of you so far from my friend... Omg a set to punch you in the face

10 notes - Posted September 16, 2022

#2

I love this for us really. They are out here making up for all the years they’ve been gone in like 4 sets.

11 notes - Posted May 21, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

So my favorite (not directly mcr related) thing about tonight was that because we somehow ended up in the wheelchair row without realizing those were the tickets we got from Ticketmaster (side note: which worked out bc my dad can’t really stand that long anymore so he got to sit and still watch the show and have a great time) but because we were in this row we got to sit next to this older lady (older than my 71 year old dad) who had blue hair and who talked to me before midtown. She’s been going to mcr shows since revenge and she’s seen them five times. She told me that retirement is for concerts and that since I haven’t seen the killers since 2005 I needed to promise her I’d go see them again because Brandon flowers is still young and I had some time still. When midtown came out and played when we were young she leaned around my brother to give me a thumbs up. She filmed all her favorite songs (mostly black parade ones and a couple revenge) on her little digital camera. And she got the most adorable pic of Gerard when he was talking to Frank about how to pronounce florida which she also made sure to lean over and show me. My dad was also so happy to see mcr. He was gossiping with me about what Gerard would wear before the show and was so excited about the ghost costume that he filmed the entirety of foundations. Sitting around all these older adults really loving MCR and getting it the way we really get it got to me tonight. This really is the most special band 🥹🥹

55 notes - Posted September 25, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[palimpsessed]

I posted 4,475 times in 2021

178 posts created (4%)

4297 posts reblogged (96%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 24.1 posts.

I added 5,390 tags in 2021

#simon snow - 1066 posts

#baz pitch - 1013 posts

#tyrannus basilton grimm pitch - 1008 posts

#snowbaz - 734 posts

#awtwb spoilers - 534 posts

#coc 2021 - 223 posts

#wings and tail - 220 posts

#simon’s wings and tail - 220 posts

#coc2020 - 190 posts

#fic rec - 182 posts

Longest Tag: 140 characters

#there is such pressure in the narrative of being queer i feel that places so much importance on labels and it’s nice to see a different take

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

@carryon-countdown 2021, Day 17: Decorating

🎵Don we now our gay apparel🎵

(Full size under the cut because he is looooong)

Click for best quality.

See the full post

218 notes • Posted 2021-12-12 16:18:29 GMT

#4

Thinking about Simon biting Baz, on his neck, over his old bite, and Baz asking Simon to be gentle. And how this mirrors Simon wanting to embrace Baz’s vampirism, and Baz resisting. And Simon wanting Baz to bite and drink from him and Baz refusing.

And how Simon biting Baz must have been particularly hard for Baz to sort through because of the way it inextricably ties to his vampirism and the monstrousness he struggles with so much.

Thinking about Simon trying to talk to Penelope in WS about coddling him, and Baz’s tentative touches, and Simon not wanting to feel like Baz thinks he’s going to break. And wanting to be touched harder and trying to touch Baz harder.

Thinking about how Simon was treating Baz the way he thought he wanted because of his own experience, and Baz treating Simon the way he thought he wanted because of his own experience.

Thinking about them asking each other for what they really want and need and finally being able to be intimate.

Thinking about Baz trying to decide if he wants Simon to stop being gentle or never stop. Thinking about Baz trying to figure out his relationship to his monstrosity and Simon’s relationship to Baz’s monstrosity.

Thinking about wanting to consume and wanting to be consumed.

340 notes • Posted 2021-07-08 16:11:15 GMT

#3

Ebb, CO:

Agatha, AWTWB:

Someone finally brought the nannies home. 😭

410 notes • Posted 2021-10-19 18:14:57 GMT

#2

He hides his face in my T-shirt. “It’s too much for me.”

I set the violin on the floor by the bed, then rest my hand over his on the hilt of the sword. He lets go. For a moment, I wonder if I’ll be able to lift it, but I can. I set it by the bed, too.

Simon crawls half into my lap, burrowing his face into my chest.

I lay my cheek on top of his head and hold him behind his ears.

“It would be too much for anyone,” I say.

—Chapter 91, Any Way the Wind Blows

@rainbowrowell thank you for this wonderful series and these characters that mean so much to me. It was such an absolute joy getting to see them get to this point together! ❤️❤️❤️

(Please click on the image for better quality.)

Notes, close ups, and process shots under the cut!

See the full post

552 notes • Posted 2021-08-07 17:39:07 GMT

#1

Hey. You post a lot of great stuff about Carry On. Can you talk about the biting in AWTWB. The Baz/Simon scenes.Trying to wrap my head around it to understand why Simon did that. Why he bites Baz and keeps biting. Bites his fangs through his cheek. Is it because Simon wants to be bitten? That he wants Baz so much and Baz can't be harmed? I'm really trying to understand it but . . . what do you think?

Anon, thank you for this ask, and also for liking whatever I'm doing on my blog.

Can I talk about the biting? You bet I can!

Why does Simon bite Baz? Is it because he wants to be bitten? In a word, yes! But of course, there's a lot more to it than that. And this went off in another direction than I thought it would, so I hope you can stick with me on this journey! Under the cut because it’s a bit long.

There is a motif running throughout the trilogy of love being a consuming force. So much of Simon and Baz's identities are tied up in hunger very early on: Baz, as a vampire, constantly craving blood; Simon, as the Humdrum, constantly sucking up magic; both of them starved of love and intimacy. There's also a lot of fire imagery, going all the way back to when they first met, and fire is another consuming force.

Simon and Baz are obsessed with each other. The only thing they think about is each other. ("Trying not to think about you…S'like trying not to think about an elephant that's standing on my chest.") They are consumed and they want to consume, and, at least in Simon's case, they want to be consumed.

In WS, Simon reflects on misunderstanding his feelings for Baz prior to eighth year, and the way he does it has always stuck out to me: "I thought about him all the time. I missed him so much in the summer. (I thought I was just lonely. I thought I was hungry. I thought I was bored.)" The second item on that list is what catches my attention. Simon missed Baz and he thought he was hungry. I think it says a lot about how Simon's love for Baz feels if he mistakes it for actual hunger.

In the biting scene you mentioned, Simon says to Baz: "If it were me, if I were you…I'd drain you fuckin' dry, Baz, and it still wouldn't be enough." That's intense. And it's absolutely Simon. We know how much hunger he's capable of; his hunger was so potent, it became a whole other being! I've long maintained that his hunger for magic is a metaphor for his hunger for love. Because Simon is so full of love, and just utterly bereft of people to give it to, and once he has people to love, he doesn't know how to do it without also hurting them. He's never had good relationship modeling. (He thinks Baz should know he loves him because of how many things he's killed for him.—He thinks about teaching Baz how to break someone's neck like it's a fun couples' activity.—He gets turned on by killing things and watching Baz kill, too.—Date night is helping Baz hunt down rats.) Simon is a mess. He wants to love so badly, but he just doesn't know how to do it. ("Is this what people do?")

Simon loves Baz so much, he can't fathom ever getting enough of him. Ever being able to consume enough of him. He can't stop biting and smelling and grabbing because he wants more, more, more. He fits his teeth over Baz's old scars because he needs to claim him—make his own mark on Baz, possess him.

Part of this, as you said, is the fact that Baz is a vampire. Baz can take the roughness (which is not to say that he should just because he can). Simon's fixation on Baz's vampirism, which used to play out as paranoia, has changed into a desire to be bitten. Simon is thinking about Baz's vampirism, thinking about draining Baz dry if he were the vampire, and Baz, the human.

The other part of this is that Simon is unfettered, but really only in the aggressive, physical sense. He's long hidden his desires behind aggression without realizing that's what he was doing. (In CO: "I just want to run him down and knock him over and figure it all out." In AWTWB: "I wanted to jump on you, I didn't really think past that.") He doesn't know how to be unfettered in the vulnerable, emotional sense, and that's what keeps him from being able to be intimate with Baz. ("I don't know how, Baz…To get enough.")

Simon desperately wants to have sex with Baz. Which is what he's trying to do in the biting scene, but all of his desires are warring for control, and he can't sort out what he wants, and what he should be doing in that moment, with Baz.

What this is all leading me to may be a bit off topic, but I think it's all tied up in Simon's head.

Simon doesn't know how to be gentle.

His hunger and his desire for Baz have never been gentle. It's aggression, it's violence, it's possession; it's a forest fire, it's not a hidden waterfall.

Simon has never learned how to be at peace. In a recent interview with Vanity Fair, Rainbow said she made Simon "fight of flight"—literally, he has wings! There's a reason that Simon couldn't handle the inaction at the beginning of CO and before the events of WS. There's a reason that Penelope thought that they were "being lulled" because there was no war actively being waged. There's a reason Penelope tells us in WS: "Lesson learned: Relaxation is the most insidious humdrum." These are characters who are so traumatized by childhoods being foot soldiers in a war waged by the adults they trusted, they don't know how to live without fighting! They don't know how to live in peace.

We all have "I can touch you less gently, but I won't love you less kindly" burned into our eyeballs by now, but let's move earlier in that conversation to what sparks this: "What if I asked you to be less kind to me?" —What if I asked you to be less kind to me?— Simon doesn't feel comfortable with Baz's kindness or gentleness, because it "makes me feel like I'm being turned inside out. Like I need to get away." Let's sit with this for a bit. Baz's loving touches make Simon want to run because they're kind and gentle and he doesn't know what to do with kind and gentle. His mind isn't programmed for kind and gentle.

It makes complete sense that Simon would show Baz affection in a way that Simon understands, considering, as I said before, that he hasn't had anyone in his life to show him a healthy way to do this. What does Simon most want from Baz? Love. What does Simon understand love to be? Consumption. He wants roughness and aggression, he wants the inferno, because these are things he understands.

Simon wants Baz's teeth, so he gives Baz his teeth.

This is how Simon feels comfortable. I made this post while processing my feelings about AWTWB. It talks about Simon trying to love Baz the way he wants to be loved, and Baz trying to love Simon the way he wants to be loved. They want to give each other everything, but they haven't actually communicated their needs to one another, and that's what keeps them from being able to work through their problems. It isn't until they voice their needs that they're able to be intimate. This is what I'm really trying to get at here.

"Is this what people do?" Simon asks, over and over again. When Simon was in therapy, he learned a technique to break up "life into bites you can swallow". He tells us he's doing this again in AWTWB "because [the future] is too terrifying. Too uncertain. There are parts of it that are too bright." —There are parts of it that are too bright.— Simon doesn't know how to be happy. He doesn't know how to cope with happiness. "Is this what people do when they're in love? Do they just keep touching and talking? And then what? Like what is it all leading to? I don't mean sex, I mean… If I knew what I meant, it wouldn't be so frightening." When Simon is having all these overwhelming feelings about his future with Baz, they're on the Tube, and Simon sees a guy giving him and Baz "a dirty look". He interrupts his introspective on therapy to tell us that he wants the guy to cause trouble "because I would dearly love to punch something right now. That's a decision I could wrap my brain around." He can wrap his brain around punching someone, but not around a bright future with the man he loves.

Simon doesn't know how to be at peace. He doesn't know how to be in love. He doesn't know how to be happy. I think this is what we're seeing at play when he bites Baz. He wants something so badly, but he doesn't know what it is, can't articulate it, can't get at it. In a way, when he bites Baz, Simon is trying to ask for what he wants, without words, and without really knowing what it is that he does want.

He can't figure out how to let himself be happy and feel good while being happy. He can't stand gentleness, or softness. In his head, he can't give that to Baz, because he can't handle it himself.

So, yes, Simon bites Baz because he wants to be bitten. And he bites Baz because he knows Baz can handle it. And he bites Baz because there's an emptiness inside of him that he's still trying to fill, and he doesn't understand how to do that. Someday, he will fill it. He and Baz are going to figure that out together.

I hope this makes sense. With your indulgence, Anon, I'm going to tag in @theflyingpeach who is all around brilliant, and I know has their own thoughts about this scene (and demon Simon 👀👀👀) that I would like to see more of. 🥰

A follow up to this ask can be found here.

Further reading on the relationship between consumption, food, and love compiled here.

691 notes • Posted 2021-07-19 03:05:10 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

[written-in-knife]

What their Devilgrams look like

Before and after you start dating (All brothers)

CW: None, but I do swear casually.

A/N: I wrote this in about an hour in a feverish panic. I don’t even know what inspired it, I just started writing and it happened. I think I may have been possessed. Enjoy lmao

Lucifer

12M followers

Before

There's nothing here but a couple months old pictures of rare bottles of Demonus.

If you go over into the tagged pictures, however, there are many pictures of him from Lord Diavolo's account.

They're all candid-- from parties and meetings and long nights in the office doing paperwork-- and he hates all of them but he can't get Diavolo to delete them.

Diavolo has at least an extra ten million followers that are only there for Lucifer's pictures.

After

Still pretty barren tbh

Occasionally he'll post a picture of TWO glasses of Demonus, your hand wrapped around one of them.

And every year on your birthday, he posts his favorite picture of you since your last birthday with a simple Happy Birthday message. It's very sweet, his fans go wild for it.

Mammon

411.3M followers

Before

He posts once a day at least.

Selfies at the casino, pictures of the piles of grimm he was counting, BTS photos from his modeling gigs, sneak previews of his next photoshoot release, goofy pictures of his brothers fucking around, upside down selfies from when he's hanging from the ceiling, ect.

He and Asmo do a lot of Devilgram shoots together when they aren't at each other's throats

After

He still posts the usual once per day. And then on top of that, he posts a new picture of you every day. Most of them are candid, some of them are posed while you wear his jacket or sit in his chair at a shoot, and the rest are selfies with him.

The captions are usually just a full paragraph of absolute simp behavior that get replaced five minutes later with some string of emojis or teasing you about your facial expression

But his fans definitely screenshot the original captions and they get circulated for weeks with everybody freaking out about how sweet it is.

Shit quickly becomes a meme. "If my mans doesn't talk about me like Mammon talks about MC, I don't want him."

Leviathan

203M followers

Before

He doesn't post every day, but he does post multiple times a week.

It's mostly sewing progress on his cosplays, screenshots of games he's gotten 100% of the achievements in with reviews as the caption, anime screencaps with reviews, pictures of manga pages with reviews, pictures of the line he's been waiting in for ten hours for merch followed by a picture of the merch and a review, girl group album art with reviews, and memes. Oh and Henry 2.0, of course. There's literally NEVER a picture of his face. If you're lucky, you'll see his fingers while he holds open the manga.

Another one that can only be seen in the tagged photos.

His fans don't really care that much tho? Honestly, most of his following there specifically because they trust his reviews.

After

Nothing changes for a long time. Seriously, y'all have to be dating for at LEAST eight months before he even mentions you on his Devilgram.

The first thing he posted was a picture of you in front of his fish tank wearing the Henry costume from the play Simeon put on with the caption "my Henry's." His fans lost their absolute MINDS.

He doesn't post pictures of you often because why should he share you with his followers? You're his, they don't need to see. But when he does, it's mostly in cosplays he's made or waiting in line with him for some release. It’s very cute.

Satan

139.8M followers

Before

Posts when he remembers to. Which isn't often. Multiple times a month, no more than twice a week.

A white woman's instagram

Seriously, it's a lot of pictures of cups of tea, and the cats in the garden, and piles of books. Everything is set up to be super aesthetically pleasing for the pictures. Occasionally he'll post a picture of Belphegor setting up a prank for Lucifer. Of course, it's not posted until after the prank happens, he can't risk Lucifer finding out early. The captions are all book quotes. Every time. Without fail. If he posts a picture of a book cover, he may also add a review of the book. The only time you see his face is if it's a selfie of him sipping tea or a cat is standing on his shoulders.

After

He definitely posts at least twice a week now.

The content doesn’t change much, but now you're there too! Petting cats or pouring tea or curled up in a chair reading a book he recommended. He'll also post pictures from date nights, selfies you took of the two of you on his phone. All still very aesthetically pleasing. He'll also post videos of you helping set up pranks, him narrating what's being set up and what's supposed to happen when it goes off with you and Belphie snickering quietly and shushing each other.

It's all very wholesome actually. 10/10

Asmodeus

450M followers

Before

Posts twice a day, every day. It's Asmo, what did you expect?

Thirst trap central! It's not every post, but shit is it almost! Risque photos in lingerie and tiny outfits, but also super glamorous pictures in frighteningly intricate dresses and suits. It's a lot of selfies and at home photoshoots. He promotes his favorite skincare and makeup lines. He also does a lot of BTS for his modeling jobs, selfies with the crew at whatever shoot he's at or the staff at the massage place or the nail salon, and a surprising amount of selfies with his brothers. (the reason Levi and Lucifer have any pictures of themselves at all)

Every picture is absolutely perfect and he will retake them as many times as he needs to make sure they are. He has the most followers on Devilgram. Again, it's Asmo.

After

As soon as you start dating, Devilgram knows. Hell, his followers might've found out before Lucifer did.

You're in at least 75% of his pictures. If you don't want to be in the risque ones, that's totally alright, but if you do?? Holy shit does he love those pictures. And so do his followers! At first, you were always just right beside him in his pictures, just as done up and flawless as he always is. But after roughly a year, it starts slowly changing. Eventually, a lot of his photos focus more on you than him, more often than not they’re candids where you aren't done up. You're just wearing sweatpants and playing on your phone in the common room. Those are his favorite pictures. He thinks you're perfect all the time, and he loves sharing you with the world.

Another one to become a meme after a mirror selfie of the two of you where he's just staring directly at you instead of in the mirror. "IF MY MANS DON’T LOOK AT ME LIKE ASMO LOOKS AT MC, I DO NOT WANT HIM."

Beelzebub

426.4M followers

Before

He has more followers than Mammon, and Mammon is furious about it. He only posts like once a week, if even.

You'd think he'd post pictures of food. You'd be wrong. If he did that, he'd be hungry every time he looked at his Devilgram, and he doesn't want that.

No, the reason he has so many followers is because he's the one posting all the candid shots of his brothers. Doesn't matter what they're doing, he's snapping a picture and posting it on Devilgram. He loves his brothers very much. He'll also just dump a bunch of pictures on there at once, it's never just one at a time, which is part of why he only posts once a week.

There's also some pictures he reposts from the RAD newspaper of Fangol matches, group pictures of his team, action shots of him. Those blow up real quick.

They also never have captions

After

Uh-oh, simp page! He very quickly becomes an MC simp page. He still takes candids of his brothers but for every one of them, there's two of you.

Across the table during a dinner date? Done. Getting ready to go watch one of his Fangol matches? Absolutely. Cutting Mammon down from the chandelier? He only posted that once and it got you in trouble, so he doesn't post those anymore :(

His favorites are pictures of you and Belphie napping in his bed.

They do have captions now! It’s a single heart emoji and people lose their minds about it.

Belphegor

22M followers

Before

He posts once a month, if that, and it's always incomprehensible.

It's usually something similar to that one canon selfie of him with bedhead, with some wild caption about a dream he had. Never makes any sense, but when has that ever stopped him? When it's not that, he's posting super high quality pictures of the stars with long explanations about the stories behind the constellations.

His tagged pictures are a lot of him sleeping in weird places, provided by Beel and Mammon. The one that got the most traction was when Mammon posted a video of opening up the cupboard under the sink in Asmo's bathroom to find Belphie curled up underneath. It was both adorable and hilarious.

After

Not much changes, actually.

He posted a picture of you dead asleep cuddling his cow pillow, which also had some incomprehensible dream recap, but that was about it.

What changed the most was his tagged pictures, which his fans go bonkers for. Now, not only it is him sleeping in weird places, you're also in those weird places! He's always got his arms locked around you so you don't fall off or try to leave while half asleep and not remembering where you are. Under the piano, on the kitchen counter, balanced on a branch of the tree in the yard, squished under one of the desks in the student council rooms. Mammon is getting a lot of content out of the two of you.

[destielfanfic]

Destiel Fic Starter Pack

Never watched Supernatural but wondering what all the hype is about? Then this is the post for you. If you have been on tumblr for some time or just from November 5, 2020, you may have seen a gif set or two or a hundred with destiel aka Dean and Castiel from Supernatural. @fandom​ even made a Destiel Is Canon post with short overview of basic facts! Are you interested but have no idea where to start? We know, we know. Life is hectic, 2020 is taxing and Supernatural has too many episodes to watch. 15 seasons and 327 episodes to be precise but who’s counting? Say no more, we got your back, fam!  You don’t need to have ever watched SPN to enjoy the fics on this rec post.

For fans who have never watched SPN, some basic facts - 1x01 starts with Dean Winchester (26 yo) professional monster hunter, picking up his brother Sam (22 yo), student at Stanford, and going on a one off monster hunt. For the next 3 seasons they travel around the country in their black Impala 67 hunting monsters, saving people. Castiel, Angel of the Lord and the multidimensional wavelength of celestial intent, arrives in 4x01.The rest is shipping history. Check this 36 min YT video, The Story of Dean and Castiel  by deansbansee with all the best destiel scenes from S4-15. And now, fics!

All title links go to our fully tagged reviews.

1. If you want to read fics that are set in Supernatural universe but are not canon specific, your best bet is pre season 4 (our tag) and solo hunter Dean (our tag) fics where young Dean meets Castiel differently from the show, and fics that are very loosely tied to a specific season. And, if you’ll decide to watch the show later, you still won’t be spoiled!

A Distant Mirror by zatnikatel [NC-17, 14,700 word count, time travel, humor, smut, posted 2013]

Ad Astra - latin; “to the stars” by nhixxie [T, 17,400 word count, Castiel is a Star, posted 2013]

Broadway Musical by Griftings [M, 12,400 word count, humor, Heavenly Host, posted 2014]

Carnival Oasis series by violue [NC-17, 47,000 word count, 10 works, creature!cas, posted 2016-20]

Convenient Husbands by Annie D (scaramouche) [NC-17, 39,000 word count, garuda!cas, hurt comfort, posted 2012]

Do What Feels Good by catchclaw & cymbalism [NC-17, 12,500 word count, smut smut smut, posted 2014]

Everyone Is Trying to Get to the Bar by balder12 [NC-17, 8,400 word count, true form!cas, posted 2012]

Good One’s Gonna Be by remmyme [NC-17, 37,000 word count, professor Cas, posted 2017]

Kiss You When It’s Dangerous by zoemathemata [NC-17, 58,000 word count, FBI agent Cas, posted 2012]

Professional Couple Only by saltyfeathers [M, 37,000 word count, pretend boyfriends on a case, posted 2015]

The Request by cloudyjenn [T, 36,000 word count, wing!fic, posted 2012]

Some Assembly Required by narrow_staircase [M, 47,000 word count, student Cas, posted 2016]

Unknown Quantities by xylodemon [NC-17, 8,600 word count, fluff, posted 2014]

2. If you don’t want to bother with Supernatural canon at all, then you are still in for a treat. With 92,500 fics (December 12, 2020) and counting, destiel is currently the biggest ship on AO3. Destiel fics cover a lot of popular tropes and kinks but some are more popular than others among destiel fans. Angst, miscommunication, exploration of Dean’s low self esteem, Cas’s rusty people skills and general otherness are a staple of AU fics. But also exploration of one’s sexuality - internalized homophobia, coming out, bisexuality and asexuality are common themes.

All the Way by cadignan [NC-17, 81,000 word count, college AU, posted 2013]

Cinderwings by bendingsignpost [M, 182,000 word count, wing!fic, masquerade ball, posted 2017]

Kiss the Baker by ltleflrt [NC-17, 111,000 word count, rom com, posted 2015]

Not Part of the Plan by Annie D (scaramouche) [NC-17, 338,000 word count, 8 works, arranged marriage, posted 2013-18]

Oh What A Beautiful City by moosefeels [M, 27,200, a/b/o, omega Cas, arranged marriage, posted  2014]

Passing Ships by quiettewandering [M, 78,000 word count, not traditional soulmate AU, posted 2017]

Peace and Good Luck To All Men by kismetjeska [T, 32,400 word count, humor, Xmas fic, posted 2013]

The Return Policy by castielrisingabove [M, 32,500 word count, incubus!dean, ace witch!cas, posted 2018]

The Sawdust Men by linoresearch [NC-17, 123,000 word count, dystopian angst, posted 2014]

Scars by lemonsorbae [NC-17, 148,000 word count, young adults - punk!dean, nerd!cas, posted 2018]

Three Funerals and a Wedding by engaldnwouldfall [M, 25,300 word count, friends to lovers, LARPing, posted 2016]

True as It Can Be by whelvenwings [NC-17, 72,000 word count, modern retelling of Beauty and the Beast, posted 2016]

Unsolicited verse by dangerousnotbroken [NC-17, 68,700 word count, 5 works, posted 2016-18, smut smut smut]

Unwritten by porcupinegirl [NC-17, 75,800 word count, a/b/o, alpha/alpha pairing, posted 2015]

3. Lastly, for all fans who watched SPN finale and were left with a raging wtf was that? feeling, here’s 4 fics where Dean and Cas did a better job at restoring Heaven and 2 fics where living with disability was not the end of the world.

The Dance of Inanna by peppermintwind [NC-17, 106,000 word count, humor and adventures, posted 2012]

The Five People You Meet in Heaven by amarillogrande [M, 22,200 word count, Dean arrives in Heaven and meets his loved ones, posted  2014]

Holy!Dean Verse by bunnycaccool [NC-17, 120,300 word count, 5 works, very Dean centric, posted 2011-15]

These Are Not Real Problems by Annie D (scaramouche) [NC-17, 30,500 word count, post godstiel Cas arrives in Heaven, posted 2011]

The Breath Of All Things by kismetjeska [T, 65,400 word count, Dean in a wheelchair, posted 2013]

Kingdom Come by cheesewithmy [M/NC-17, 97,700 word count, Dean has a prosthetic arm, posted 2014]

4. Other fun things to check out. Destielfanfic has been a part of destiel community since 2012, and while we used to be much more active (see this post), we are still kicking around. Please visit our Tags Page and explore all the goodies there. We even have separate tags for every season so you can avoid spoilers when necessary. Some useful links:

Tags Page 

ask about iconic destiel fics for folks who just joined fandom

thematic fic rec lists with art (college, creatures, a/b/o, Hogwarts, Christmas - you name it, we have it)

check out our Pride posts for more fics that explore sexuality  - Pride 2017, Pride 2018, Pride 2019 and Pride 2020.

Still can’t decide which destiel fic to read? Try this brand new random fic generator created by @deanwinchestergender​  (not affiliated with DFF) or try Random button on our blog - top right corner and the sidebar (see this post )

also, check out the latest destiel fanart at our sister blog  @destielfanworks​ - Cas with rainbow wings can be found on #cas with wings tag and fanart that was created after 15x18 can be found on #destiel 2020 and #theysilencedyou tags, we also have a general #season 15 tag.

and here’s another destiel fic rec list for new fans by a destiel fic writer and a long time contributor to our blog, our friend  @no-gorms​ aka Annie D (scaramouche)

And last but not least. Thank you, Elena, @purgatory-jar​, for letting us to use your beautiful art! Link to the original art post. 

If you enjoyed the fic, please drop by the archive (AO3) and let the author know with your comments and/or kudos!  Please support artists by Liking and Reblogging their art posts! And if you found our recs useful, let us know by Liking and/or Reblogging our posts!

To our new followers - our anon is switched off for good but we are happy to answer your fic related asks privately. Don’t be shy and tell us which destiel fic made you into a shipper. We may even make a rec post if we get enough fic suggestions!

[undertale-data]

[Image Description: An Undertale chat box that has “WHY FANS LOVE UNDERTALE” at its center. Next to it are a line chart and an Egg from the Dating Hub on its left, and a CRIME measurer (also from the Dating Hub) on its right. End I.D.]

[Image Description: a pie chart titled, “LEVEL OF LOVE FOR UNDERTALE.” The textbox on the top right reads, “On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the least and 10 being the highest, how much do fans enjoy Undertale?” From the top going clockwise, 12 or 0% chose 5 and below; 23 or 1% chose 6; 98, or 4%, chose 7; 325, or 12%, chose 8; 529, or 20%, chose 9; and 1664, or 63%, chose 10. End I.D.]

It’s clear from all of the data analyzed so far that fans who took the time to answer our survey love Undertale. It is unlikely that they would have taken the time to answer so many questions if they had not, and even less likely that they would have come across our survey in the first place. Naturally, it comes as no surprise that 63% of our responders gave their love for Undertale a score of ten out of ten. 95% gave their love for Undertale a score of eight or higher, and only 12 responders responded with five or below, a number so small that their responses had to be lumped together to be visible on the pie chart. Of those, only 3 responders gave their love for Undertale a score of 1, and based on those responders’ other answers, it is likely that they were only intending to troll. We are very fortunate that the vast majority of responders took the survey seriously, enough so that responses like this are barely a blip in the data.

Now, for our final analysis post of the event, we will delve into the reasons that fans love Undertale so dearly.

(Essay and highlights under the cut.)

There have been countless essays on the impact that Undertale has had on people’s lives. I can hardly add more on the subject than what has already been said, but I hope this summary can provide a brief overview of what stood out among the over two thousand answers given in response to this survey. That said, due to the sheer volume of answers, I could not read every single one in depth—however, I did skim all of them, and some that stood out or were representative of several responses have been highlighted below. If you would like to see what every fan who consented to share their response had to say, you may view the full list of responses here. Note that these responses have not been edited in any way. This document may take a long time to load, as it is over 100 pages long.

(Warnings for mentions of suicidal thoughts in the following essay.)

Several responders loved the theme of choices mattering in Undertale. Whether people played the pacifist, merciless, or neutral routes, they enjoyed how the game reacted to their actions. For some, it even made them consider their own morality. One touching response explained the impact that the theme of mercy made on them. “I realized that Mercy isn't something that's given to those who deserve it. Flowey didn't deserve it. I don't deserve it myself. Shoot, we ALL need Mercy in our lives.” Many fans left similar comments about how the themes of Undertale made them better people.

Undertale changed how its fans treat others, and it also changed how fans treat themselves. The theme of staying determined and the messages of hope in the game were a light to a very large portion of fans. I cannot list all of the fans who said that Undertale helped them out of a dark place, or that they would not be alive if not for Undertale. “DETERMINATION became a metaphor for not killing myself at a really rough time in my life and I’ll always cherish that. Undertale isn’t afraid to go to really dark places but at the same time holds on so tight to its hope.”

Undertale brought fans together in unexpected ways. Some said they met friends or significant others through the fandom. “I wouldn't have met my now husband without Undertale,” one fan said. A different fan who is non-native English speaking mentioned that the game and the fan community helped them to learn English.

It would be impossible to discuss Undertale without mentioning the fan community. Whether for good or bad, many responders mentioned the fandom in their responses. Overall the feelings towards the fandom seem positive, though many made references to “toxic” parts of the fandom without specifying which parts they consider toxic. Others rejected the idea of toxicity in fandom. One response said: “[SLAMS FIST ON DESK] I KNOW MOST PEOPLE SAY THE FANDOM IS TOXIC AND CRINGE OR WHATEVER BUT OH MY GOD. The Undertale fandom, both the UTMV and the actual UT fandom, has been so much fun to be a part of. I've met countless friends because of our shared interest in something related to the game! The art people create can be breathtaking and so inspirational, and the fanfics are so so good!! I've seen people write incredible things for this fandom and it's what made me continue writing!”

One thing that makes the Undertale fandom unique is the way it embraces various AUs. Some fans are tired of AU content, but the majority of responses show a love for the creativity behind AUs. “Roll your eyes at the 50th AU Sans all you want, it's encouraging people to step outside the boundaries of fanart and pushing people to make their own ideas! I mean, hell, it was how I gained the confidence to start making my own original content.” The lack of a judgemental atmosphere seems present in the AU community, according to the responses we saw. There is an interesting balance between AU and canon (sometimes referred to as “classic”) content that another responder pointed out: “The fandom helped keep the game alive all these years, with all of its AUs. Although personally, I always enjoyed AUs that kept characters as close to the classic material as possible (dancetale, outertale) I do appreciate the creativity of the fandom. They almost created entirely new stories with new characters of their own! If it weren't for those people, the Undertale fandom would have probably not been as active as it is now. I do feel like we're getting a resurgence of classic content now too! (In 2021)”

Regardless of the many AUs the fandom has created over the years, the original game of Undertale still feels like home for many fans. They wished they could reclaim the feeling of playing the game again for the first time, but even though we can’t reset time in real life, there is still a special feeling for fans each time they play Undertale. One fan said, “Even the best fics I've read can't capture that feeling of nostalgia/almost-"coming home" that comes with hearing the music and talking to the characters.” This feeling is one that can be cherished time and time again. In the words of another responder: “It always feels welcoming like home or like comfort food that I never grow tired of no matter how many times I go to it.” Others pointed out the strength of the found family trope in Undertale, which likely contributes to this feeling of “home” as well.

As mentioned briefly earlier, the music is part of what makes Undertale feel like home for fans. Even when responses focused on other aspects of the game, many would throw in a comment about the soundtrack at the end. One comment focused on the music said “IT'S SO GOOD like I will literally go through the entire thing over and over and not be bored with it. It makes my monkey brain so happy you have no idea.” Like with the game itself, the music has incredible replay value, an amazing feat considering most of the tracks use the same few motifs. “I think what I like the most about Undertale is how the music attaches you to the story,” another responder said. “They're simple melodies that stick with you throughout the whole game, and they can remind you of both good and bad times.”

If the music sticks with fans in their hearts, then the game’s lore sticks with fans in their minds. Even six years after the release of Undertale, fans are still creating new theories and digging up new secrets. The way the game breaks the fourth wall in particular intrigued many fans and has stuck out through all these years. The awareness that the game shows for the RPG genre makes it memorable. The game plays with the player’s expectations and turns them on their heads, all while reminding the player that they’re in a game. There are few other games that do this on such a large scale, so it’s no surprise that fans cite this as one of their favorite things about Undertale.

Lastly, the LGBT+ representation in Undertale has been a huge draw for fans. Especially in 2015, the sheer volume of non-cishet characters was unprecedented, as one fan pointed out: “It's practically unheard of to see so MANY from just one source, especially during its heyday in 2015-16. Hell, you can't even GET the true pacifist ending without helping two gay couples hook up. It's really nice to see all of them being accepted for who they are and not judged for their sexuality or gender, at least in-canon.” The LGBT+ cast including Frisk, Chara, Napstablook, Monster Kid, Mettaton, Alphys, and Undyne each connected with fans in unique ways. It’s clear how important this is from responses such as: “There are canon nonbinary characters 🥺. i have never seen representation of myself before.” “It made me gay and trans so thanks for that.”

Once again I am overwhelmed with just how much there is to say about Undertale. One responder really understood when they compared Undertale to an iceberg, explaining that there are so many layers to the game that there is something for everyone: “everyone can find something to enjoy in the lore/game regardless of what kind of fan they are! Being able to appeal to various types of fans—from simple happy shipper people to deep dive lorediggers—is the mark of the coolest games!” I would have to agree with them.

It’s been six years, and despite everything, it’s still you. Thank you for reading, participating in this survey, and above all, staying determined.

Highlights:

DETERMINATION became a metaphor for not killing myself at a really rough time in my life and I’ll always cherish that. Undertale isn’t afraid to go to really dark places but at the same time holds on so tight to its hope.

I think the coolest thing was having the opportunity to watch the AU community grow from its bare roots. It's nearly insane how big and complex it's gotten, unlike anything I'd ever seen before. Roll your eyes at the 50th AU Sans all you want, it's encouraging people to step outside the boundaries of fanart and pushing people to make their own ideas! I mean, hell, it was how I gained the confidence to start making my own original content.

i love how the lgbt rep is so naturalized... there are just gay people! and its nobodys business!

The music is my go to answer, but what I really really REALLY love is how the minor characters have so much personality to them when you talk to them. They aren't incredibly important to the overall story, but they're all so likeable and diverse that you just can't help but like them immediately!

I think it was the first videogame I have played that broke the fourth wall that much. Of course there has been other videogames that broke it but just for one or two tongue-in-cheek jokes. The guilt of killing mama goat was also something intense as well that I appreciated as an experience and that I didn't think a videogame could cause on someone.

I love how no character can be seen as completely bad! Everyone builds up Asgore as some horrible villain, but he turns out to be a 'fuzzy pushover' who's broken and just wants his family back by the time you meet him. Then you think Flowey's an irredeemable killer who engineered the suffering of the monsters across many timelines, and he is... but he also used to be the kind and beloved Prince Asriel Dreemurr, traumatized by his death and subsequent rebirth, projecting his best friend onto you.

The fact that choices matter in the game. Your first playthrough and getting the golden ending for the first time. I can never replicate those feelings again, wish I could erase my memories and replay the game from the start.

I wouldn't have met my now husband without Undertale.

(Toxic parts of the fandom aside) The community is possibly one of the kindest I've ever met. Cringe culture is completely dead, and I feel like I can be myself. I felt a very close connection to many of the characters, and I loved consuming content about them when I was in a rough patch in my life.

just everything, the whole game has just impacted my life so much. i know it sounds really lame, but when the game first came out, i would purposely put my hands in my pockets and sway slightly, like sans' idle animation. of course i dont do that anymore haha, but undertale still really impacts me to this day, and i wouldnt have it any other way :)

it made me gay and trans so thanks for that

I realized that Mercy isn't something that's given to those who deserve it. Flowey didn't deserve it. I don't deserve it myself. Shoot, we ALL need Mercy in our lives.

The thing I love most about Undertale is no matter how many times I play or watch a playthrough it always makes me genuinely happy. It always feels welcoming like home or like comfort food that I never grow tired of no matter how many times I go to it. Toriel still makes me feel all warm and cozy in her home, the Skelebros always make me laugh, and I still cry on the inside watching Frisk comforting Asriel. And on the flip side the No Mercy run still invokes the negative emotions in me as well. In short Undertale just feels like a second home to me and I always wish I could stay.

The reader inserts are my favorite way to decompress after a hard day

I think Undertale helped me discover my love for 8-bit games, and made me realize how IMPORTANT music is in video games.

the worldbuilding and character design are my favorite parts of the main game apart from the music! I’m also a huge fan of the random AU music- not for like underswap or underfell i like the stuff where someone makes a megalovania for a random au where gru from despicable me replaces sans as the character. i think its funny

Just... the vibe, honestly? Even the best fics I've read can't capture that feeling of nostalgia/almost-"coming home" that comes with hearing the music and talking to the characters.

there are canon nonbinary characters 🥺. i have never seen representation of myself before.

[SLAMS FIST ON DESK] I KNOW MOST PEOPLE SAY THE FANDOM IS TOXIC AND CRINGE OR WHATEVER BUT OH MY GOD. The Undertale fandom, both the UTMV and the actual UT fandom, has been so much fun to be a part of. I've met countless friends because of our shared interest in something related to the game! The art people create can be breathtaking and so inspirational, and the fanfics are so so good!! I've seen people write incredible things for this fandom and it's what made me continue writing!

There's a scene where Frisk (the player) is going towards what is presumably going to be their death. They will fight Asgore and he will use their human soul to break the barrier and free his people. The music, despite the player's impending doom, is... triumphant. You are not the triumphant one here, and yet, the score invites you to experience the monsters' joy and happiness as they tell you the tale of their subjugation. The monsters are going to be free. This is their victory, but they don't hate you or want you to die. They're just... happy. That scene has always struck me very deeply. I feel it represents the best parts of Undertale.

I loved how well thought out the Geno route was. It really made me feel like I was doing something horrible, and the characters were very obviously reacting to dire circumstances.

I dunno? I like Undertale for it's characters, story, music, secrets and many more. I am not good with Headcanons but I also like the neutral endings and how different they can depending on who you spare and kill

I was very bad at english before, i thought i couldn't progress because i was very shy and not confident. But my sibling and i wanted to have the best experience with this game so we wanted to play it in english. It's this game and the fandom which helped me to make huge progress in english !

THE SOUNDTRACK. IT'S SO GOOD like I will literally go through the entire thing over and over and not be bored with it. It makes my monkey brain so happy you have no idea.

to avoid writing an essay i will say one word. Mettaton

It is like Toby specifically made the games to fit the iceberg meme and it's awesome, everyone can find something to enjoy in the lore/game regardless of what kind of fan they are! Being able to appeal to various types of fans - from simple happy shipper people to deep dive lorediggers is the mark of the coolest games!

I love almost everything about Undertale as a game on its own. The music, the art and especially the characters and how they interact. They made me feel at home. Undertale means a huge amount to me. (I even got a tattoo of the castle when you and MK walk together!) The fandom helped keep the game alive all these years, with all of its AUs. Although personally, I always enjoyed AUs that kept characters as close to the classic material as possible (dancetale, outertale) I do appreciate the creativity of the fandom. They almost created entirely new stories with new characters of their own! If it weren't for those people, the Undertake fandom would have probably not been as active as it is now. I do feel like we're getting a resurgence of classic content now too! (In 2021)

the mystery. toby fox refused to give answers to anything and i think thats very sexy of him.

I just feel guilty for liking it so much when I'm in my 30's. But I recently got diagnosed with ASD, so I guess it explains things a bit. Many ppl consider Papyrus to be neurodivergent, and some adult fans are too, so seeing that makes me feel a bit better.

i think about "Despite everything, it's still you" everyday of my life.

I like how it's just as funny as it can be serious. All routes are this way. I laughed as much as I cried when I played the Pacifist route and then once I opened the game again and Flowey was telling me to let them be happy, I immediately turned off the game. I somehow felt bad.

The Found Family Trope

The True Pacifist Ending is just...man. And the fanworks about saving everyone even when the game doesn't let you? MANNNNNN

I think what I like the most about Undertale is how the music attaches you to the story. They're simple melodies that stick with you throughout the whole game, and they can remind you of both good and bad times.

there's honestly a LOT to love about this game, but i think one of my favorite things about it is just how many lgbt+ characters there are??? i can think of alphys, undyne, frisk, chara, mettaton, napstablook, monster kid, asgore, mad mew mew, the dress lion, the royal guards, and arguably even papyrus off of the top of my head, but im sure i'm forgetting a few from just undertale alone (there's even MORE in deltarune)!! it's practically unheard of to see so MANY from just one source, especially during its heyday in 2015-16. hell, you can't even GET the true pacifist ending without helping two gay couples hook up. it's really nice to see all of them being accepted for who they are and not judged for their sexuality or gender, at least in-canon.

[Image description: A wordcloud in the shape of the capitalized word UNDERTALE. The text is white on a black background, and uses the font found in the game. Some of the most visible words are: Game, Love, Music, Life, AU, Store, Friend, and Feel, which represent the most common words in the essays people wrote about their love for the game. End of ID]

[willowbleedsonpaper]

Winter In The Shade IV

Part IV

Sirius Black x Ravenclaw Reader

W.C. : 2504

Requested by @amourtentiaa : It is Sirius' fifth year at Hogwarts, the same year he ran away from home and to the Potter's. Soon, he discovers the unfamiliar sight of his brother Regulus smiling and looking truly happy, next to him a Ravenclaw girl who immediately captures his interest. What will happen when the Black family gets involved in their sons lives and the ones they hold close to their hearts?

Warnings: None

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Masterlist | Series Masterlist

As the days grew colder and a thin layer of snow covered the entirety of Hogwarts, the enthuthiasm was more than present over the students, after all, it wasn’t every year that the school hosted a small party for the students that decided to stay at Hogwart for the holidays. The cold halls were softly illuminated with the small flames from candles, the elves worked hard on the kitchens, the smell from their meals nothing but mouthwatering to anyone that walked past the great hall; stepping outside from the castle into the courtyard and the hills that rolled down to the black lake, you were met with nothing but never ending whites from the soft snow that fell from the sky at all hours. It was truly magical.

“Don’t you love it?” you said, extending your hand in the air as little snowflakes settled on your palm, the tingles rushing up your arm from the coldness making you erupt in giggles as you shook your hand. You rose your gaze to see Regulus sitting on the edge of the fountain, the water that usually flowed now frozen in eccentric shapes that you could easily think was the picture of an explosion that froze before it scattered all over the floor. And of course, Regulus was breaking the tiny pieces of the tips for his own amusement “Stop that!” you laughed, coming to sit with him as you took his hand away “You’re destroying mother nature's art.”

He chuckled lowly, taking his hand away from yours “That’s hardly art.” he argued “Besides, I can always re-shape it so it would actually be some kind of sculpture.”

“Right.” you scoffed, narrowing your eyes at him “What would make a good sculpture, Michelangelo?” you asked.

He playfully glared at you but then took a moment to think, both of you sitting on the edge of the fountain while facing the frozen water. People walked past the two of you, no one taking a moment to stop and wonder what Y/N and Regulus were up too, they all had stopped asking questions about what you two did with your time.

It was late during the day, one evening when the sun was setting and the stars started to appear in the sky, Professors and students alike started to follow the trail of water left in the stone floors of the castle, the worry rising as they all wondered what had gotten inside the halls of Hogwarts that left such a trail as if someone carried buckets of water only to pour them all over the floor. In the end they found you and Regulus, sitting in one of the balconies of the second floor. You were both dead silent, sitting close to each other as if you were glued; your hair was flat and sticking to your face while Regulus’ lips turned a deep shade of purple and his skin became more lighter than anyone thought possible. Both of your teeth chattered as a puddle of water formed at your feet, but you refused to move. A crowd formed before you but neither one of you said a word, eyes narrowed and empty of any emotion as you stared into the void. It wasn’t until the shock had left the Professor's bodies that they jumped into action and made you both go get changed, breaking the crowd with the help of the prefects until there was no one left but you two and the professors. You never said a word about what happened, no one ever knew what had you both in such a state; and even after the month's worth of detention you said nothing, not to a Professor or to other students.

People stopped wondering about you two after that.

“It could be a monster.” he said, pointing his finger at the tallest part of the fountain “See, that’s the head of the monster,” his finger lowered, making shapes in the air as he narrated the image in his head “This part here is the splashing water from the sea and all the thicker parts of ice are the tentacles.”

You tilted your head, side glancing between him and the frozen water. He turned his eyes to you, watching as you tried to follow his description. Your eyes widened and you sat straight, turning to him with a smile “Merlin.” you breathed out “You’ve finally lost your mind!”

He glared at you, a smirk forming quickly on his face. You were laughing loudly, holding onto your stomach as you threw your head back, when immediately you rolled back with the force of something hitting you right across the face. You fell with a squeal, the last image that Regulus saw of you being your eyes wide as you flew your arms up in the air trying to hold onto something.

“Regulus. Black.” you muttered, your head barely peeking from behind the mountain of snow you fell over “I’m going to kill you!” you yelled, sitting in the cold snow as you threw a snowball at him, one he easily dodged.

“Try actually hitting me first.” he mocked, the glint in his eyes daring as you jumped to your feet. He had run over the opposite side of the fountain, the both of you mirroring the others movements like a hunter and a prey. Which one were you? That was to be seen.

“Oh, don’t try me.” you said, trying to put on your meanest face which only made Regulus smile widen. In his eyes you were anything but menacing.

But he was too occupied watching you try to be intimidating and you knew that, he never registered the fact that your hands were moving where he could not see them, a snowball on each hand ready to attack. You threw the first one, missing him on purpose to watch him peak his head to mock you, and then, you took your chance.

“Ha!” you yelled in triumph, throwing your hands in the air as the snow stuck to his face and rolled down to his scarf. “Take that, you...NO!” you laughed, starting to run as you saw his face morph into one that let you know he was the hunter.

You ran as fast as you could, not once looking back as you knew it would only slow you down but he was faster, the feeling of his arms coming around your waist and lifting you up the ground only making you scream in delight as he spun you around. Your arms and legs fought in the air to get him to let you go but he had a strong grip on you, so you did the only thing that could save you now, become dead weight.

“What are you doing?” he asked, once you stopped fighting him “Y/N…” But he reacted too late, letting all your weight go onto him, he stumbled back, falling on his back with a thud that only worsened with your weight falling on top of him. “Merlin.” he whispered, his voice out of breath.

You quickly rolled to his side, both of you staring at the sky as you laid on the ground not once minding the snow soaking the back of your clothes, soft smiles on both of your faces as you lived inside the bubble you created. No one could bother you there.

“Want to go to the library?” you asked, turning your face to him. He turned his face to you in thought and you rolled your eyes. As if it was even a question “C’mon.” you said, getting to your feet and helping him as well.

He took hold of your hand and linked your arm with his, starting your walk to the library “Y/N.” he called.

“Yes?” you asked him, not turning to look at him but listening carefully.

“Do you want to go to the Christmas party with me?” he asked.

You turned to look at him, the smile that formed in your face reaching your eyes as you nodded “I would be delighted.” you said “Although, you know it will only fuel the rumor that we are dating, right?” you informed him, raising an eyebrow at him.

He thought about it, his lips in a line as he looked down at you “I’m fine with it if you are.” he said, shrugging his shoulders.

You both nodded in confirmation, continuing your path to the library like it was any other day.

*******

Friday morning came around faster than you ever thought possible, the last day of classes you had to endure and then you were free for weeks. But it also saddened you to leave Regulus behind, even if it was for a couple of weeks, you were sure you would miss him, going from spending time with him everyday to not seeing or hearing anything from him was going to be hard. You could only hope that one day you could celebrate the holidays together.

You had asked your mother if he could visit and she gladly agreed, even your father was eager to know the only friend you cared to mention in your letters. You had jumped and danced when she said Regulus could go home with you, running the halls to find him and tell him the good news. Sadly, he couldn’t go back to your home with you. Walburga Black was very strict with her sons being out of home for the holidays, a celebration for the family and family alone. Regulus color drained from his face at the mere thought of not being home for Christmas, so you didn’t insist. You told your family you would be staying at Hogwarts with Regulus, even if it was a lie, you prefered to be at Hogwarts than spend the entire winter break bored inside the walls of your home.

Officially, the classes ended that day. However, the students who wished to assist to the party were allowed to stay three more days at Hogwarts, until the day the party was being celebrated.

You still had until the party to be with him before you had to go your separate ways.

“Good morning.” you greeted Regulus, going to sit across from him at the end of the Ravenclaw table “You’re up early.” you said, giving him a soft smile.

“More like you’re late.” he said, looking up at you with a knowing look “Let me guess. Five more minutes turned into half an hour?” he asked.

You groaned loudly, rolling your head “Maybe…” you mumbled, glancing between the table and his knowing look. You dropped the fork in your hand with a huff “How do you know?” you asked with a groan.

He shrugged his shoulders “Maybe we’ve developed a mental connection and I can read your mind.” he said, giving you a funny look.

You dropped everything you had in your hands and leaned down on the table, staring into his eyes as he mirrors your movements “Tell me what I’m thinking about. Go.” you said.

Regulus stared deep into your eyes, and as you tried to focus on his gaze your attention drifted, the sound of laughter and the voice that hadn’t left your mind for days making it the more difficult to stay focused. Looking over his shoulder you saw him, standing next to Peter as he wrapped his arm over his shoulder, muttering something in his direction that made all four boys erupted in laughter.

Sirius most have felt your gaze on him, looking over Peter’s shoulder he met your eyes. You felt the air get stuck in your lungs, as natural as the act of breathing, he winked in your way and directed his attention back to his friends like nothing ever happened.

Regulus' voice broke you out of your haze, taking in a deep breath that caught his attention. He stared at you and then turned to where your eyes were glued, the now empty space where not a second ago his brother and his friends stood.

“Are you in shock because I did guess what you were thinking and we did develop a mental connection or you just had a revelation?” he asked “Y/N?” he called for you again.

Wide eyed you stared at him, opening your mouth with no words coming out from it. What had just happened?

Luckily for you, the owls saved you. The sound of wings filling the Great Hall as packages and letters started to drop in front of students. You and Regulus always watched from afar as everyone got their mail, the both of you knowing it was only on Mondays when you got letters. So it came as a surprise when an owl flew over you, dropping a small package in front of you.

As you stared with confusion at the small box, Regulus followed the owl with his eyes “I know that owl.” he muttered before he turned to you once more “What is it?” he asked.

You took the box, turning it in your hands before you shook your head “No.” you said, throwing it to Regulus “You open it.”

“Why me?” he asked, sliding the package back to your side of the table “It has your name in it.” he stated.

You argued back and forth for a couple of minutes before you finally ran out of patience “Fine, I’ll open it.” you grunted, taking the box from him and slamming it on the table.

With quick movements you untied the golden bow that kept it closed, the lid loosening enough so you could take it off. Softly you took it away, staring at the inside for a second too long. A blue rose.

“I think someone is asking you to the party.” Regulus said, his eyes fixed on the Rose.

You moved to look up at him and then back at the small rose. It was beautiful and ...normal. Muggle. A smile was drawn on your face as you picked it up, being a witch you would have expected a show from a gift like that one, to find a charmed rose that flourished right before your eyes but this one was a single normal rose, the more you thought was done to it being the color. Your house color.

You let out a nervous laugh, hiding the Rose before anyone could see it. “Well, that’s too bad for them.” you said, shoving the box inside your bag “Because I already have a date.” you said, smiling tightly at him “And I wouldn’t change it for anything. We will have the best night of our lives so far, we’ll have fun and possibly embarrass ourselves.”

Regulus nodded, but gave no answer to what you had said.

“You know who this is from?” he asked you.

Your eyes snapped up at him and you shook your head “No idea.” you mumbled.

But deep down you knew, looking past Regulus and to the Gryffindor table, grey eyes already staring at you.

TAGS

Skittles

@iwritesiriusly / @trinimalfoyyy / @megaprincesscakes / @lunalovegoodsgirlfriend / @amourtentiaa

Marauders

@destourtereaux

Winter in the Shade

@plethoraofpuppies / @dracoissohot / @funravenclaw2002 / @nehireerdogan / @ktyflwr / @lilyevanswhore / @edithsvoice / @medalloway-blog / @falconxbarnes / @blackst0nes7077 / @gabitanaka47 / @padsfirewhisky / @lazzwhile / @lilylikethefl0wer /

[gogglor]

Cap-Ironman RecWeek: What-If Wednesday

Time for another installment of @cap-ironman rec week! Today’s theme: AU’s.

I know AU’s in different settings are half the reason most people read fanfics, but they’re not really my thing on the whole. AU’s where different choices are made, or different events transpire? Absolutely. Coffee shops? Not my cup of... you know.

So, here’s my AU recommendations for mostly “turn left” scenarios. This time with an under-the-cut break so I don’t take over everyone’s timelines (sorry about that last post). Also with some summaries truncated for length.

Alone Like This

Author: GotTheSilver

Word Count: 7,452

Summary: Steve, post waking up, runs away from SHIELD, and Tony's the one who tracks him down.

Why You Should Read It:

First off, GotTheSilver’s been consistently and regularly putting out solid Stony since 2012 and not only are they not stopping, they’re only getting better. This writer doesn’t get nearly the fanfare I’d expect in Stony circles for someone who puts out this much good stuff, and here’s hoping this post can be a part of changing that.

While I am always a sucker for enemies-to-friends-to-lovers, there’s something to be said for stories where Steve and Tony hit it off right away. And watching these two very different people look at each other and see the same sense of being lost, then finding each other again is... excuse me, there’s something in my eye, ignore me.

Second Chance Lives

Author: raeldaza

Word Count: 43,872

Summary: Tony's gonna die of palladium poisoning anyway, why not join a pointless expedition to recover Captain America’s body? And after, well, why not dedicate his last few months to making sure an American hero settles into his new life? What else is he going to do, get drunk at parties?

Why You Should Read It:

This writer doesn’t write a lot for the MCU but when they do, dang.

“Tony is the one helping Steve acclimate to the new century before Avengers 2012″ is a whole genre of Stony fanfics that scratch an itch I didn’t even know I had before I started reading fanfiction, and this is one of the best ones out there. It’s got it all - Steve poorly coping with his PTSD, Tony poorly coping with his immanent mortality, some breathtakingly poor communication between the two most emotionally stunted men in the MCU, and a cat named Roomba. What’s not to love?

Should You Choose to Accept It

Author: elwenyere (look, you’re gonna be seeing a lot of them this week, sorry-not-sorry)

Word Count: 27,106

Summary: After a terrorist attack and a field operation gone wrong, the Avengers realize that Nick Fury's secrets are just the start of a much bigger mystery. Steve and Tony try to keep some things from each other as well, but that can't possibly affect the mission — right? Mission Fic + Getting Together (or Mission: Getting Together) that mashes up elements from Iron Man 3, CA: Winter Soldier, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season one, and Mission Impossible 3.

Why You Should Read It:

You can see my post yesterday for singing El’s praises, but what I really liked about this fic was how how damn creative it is. The CAWS/IM3/AOS mashup is everything I wished the actual MCU gave us and more, with well-developed characters and an exciting story to put them in. And because it’s El, you know the banter’s gonna be on point, the way the characters care for each other is gonna be emotionally constipated but touching, and the pacing’s gonna be exciting enough to draw you in and keep you there. Also, this fic doesn’t have nearly enough kudos so please go read it and fix that or I’m gonna have to try to hack AO3 and that’ll just be embarrassing for all parties involved.

What Happens In Vegas

Author: sabremc

Word Count: 161,951

Summary: “What the hell, Tony?” Rhodey demanded brusquely.  Tony winced and drew the phone away from his ear.  “You’ve got cops and Feds all over the hotel.  I’m watching you perp walk out of the police station on repeat on CNN.  They’re saying you tried to bribe Stern?  Fox News has you selling weapons on the black market, and God that picture they’re using is the one from Bali in ’09.   You look like shit.  They wheeled Stern out and put him in an ambulance, by the way.  Got some paparazzi swearing you decked the guy.  Now they’ve got ‘copters following it like he’s OJ.”

“Yeah, don’t worry, Sourpatch, I’ve got it covered.   Uh, though, I should probably tell you that, purely in the interests of national security and the greater good, I kind of had to fake marry that stripper-gram  you sent.  Thanks for that, by the way,” Tony added quickly.

Why You Should Read It:

If you’re deep enough into Stony to see posts like this on Tumblr, you probably know sabre’s what we in the business call a “big name author.” They’re prolific, they’re popular, and most importantly, they write words good (technical term). Seriously, sabre just keeps cranking out high quality stuff over and over again, raising the bar for the rest of us like a jerk (not really. I’m not bitter they write stuff so good I wish I’d thought of it first. Not at all.)

I never read stripper!Steve or stripper!Tony as a rule, but this came so widely recommended that I broke that rule and boy am I glad that I did. This is also the only fic on this list that’s a true-AU, with Steve being a non-powered vet from Afghanistan who left his army career to help Bucky and is stripping in Vegas to raise money for a prosthetic arm. He’s booked to do a private show for Tony, shenanigans ensue, and now they’re fake-married. This fic’s got some top-of-the-line banter and character development, but I particularly love it for its rich setting. Sabre paints a Vegas not just with strip clubs and blackjack tables, but KISS-themed minigolf, romantic dinners on the Eiffel tower, gaudy hotel lobbies, and making out on giant ferris wheels. It’s such a richly developed playground for the characters to play on, and through it, Steve manages to find a life for himself he’d given up on, and Tony finds multiple ways to show his kindness and depth of feeling for Steve. I know the word count’s long for this one but trust me, you’ve gotta read this fic.

Wait & Sea

Author: Lenalena

Word Count: 53,244

Summary: In which Tony and Steve get sent on an undercover mission aboard a cruise ship to make contact with Hydra. In this AU the military has kept the discovery and defrosting of Captain America a secret, so Steve and Tony have never met before. Yet they are to pose as newlyweds....

Why You Should Read It:

This one’s old and popular enough to be considered one of the “classic” Stony fics, and for good reason. Lenalena doesn’t write too often and not as much as they used to, but the fics they have up there are an absolute delight.

This is another fic that I skipped a bunch of times for being outside my comfort zone, but when I finally read it I saw why everyone’s so wild about it. In this story, Steve’s defrosted a bit earlier and not revealed as Captain America. He and Tony are sent undercover to sniff out Hydra shenanigans on a cruise and, because it’s fanfiction, they’ve got to pretend to be a married couple while onboard. There’s tons to love about this fic, but the things that bring me back to reading it over and over is first, Tony’s kindness and the way he’s attuned to Steve’s feelings, which... God, just inject “kind, observant Tony” straight into my veins, please and thank you. This is also another really rich setting for a story, and Lena knows how to fold the the hokeyness of the cruise into the seriousness of the mission and the depth of feelings Steve and Tony are finding for each other in a really beautiful, layered way. It’s funny, it’s heartfelt, it’s steamy, it’s gripping... why are you still reading this here? Go check it out for yourself!

Ashes to Ashes

Author: dirigibleplumbing

Word Count: 51,582

Summary: After regrouping following some surprise time travel, the world's heroes and sorcerers come up with a plan to protect the Mind and Time Stones by taking them into space in opposite directions. The result involves a lot more time loops than Steve would like, but at least they're getting a second chance to stop Thanos. (As well as a third, and a fourth...) And if Steve takes the opportunity to try to reconcile with Tony, too—well, they have the time, and Steve's going to make the most of it.

Why You Should Read It:

Dirigibleplumbing’s another name in Stony fanfics that does not get nearly as much fanfare as they deserve. They’re consistently a really creative voice in Stony fanfics and I always look forward to their stories showing me something new. Go read all their fics, I need more people to geek out with me over them.

I tend to limit myself on Steve-and-Tony-mend-things-after-Civil-War fics not because they’re not good, but because they’re so heavy, and also the Sokovia Accords have five hundred layers of crap in them that no good fic could possibly hash out well. This one, though? When you add in the Infinity War/End Game fixit? Poetry. Art. Music to my ears. DP wrote a really engaging, twisty story where it’s hard to predict what’s coming next, in spite of it literally being a pseudo-Groundhog day scenario. The characterizations are great, the story is engaging, and the feelings are big and sad and eventually happy. Go read it, you’ll love it.

I have tons of other recs for this category but this seems like a good place to stop for today. Tomorrow’s Alternative Media Thursday, and I’ve got some real gems I’ve been saving for that day (aaaaand possibly a self-rec or two ;)

[yeoandmoon]

you are now listening to graceland too by phoebe bridgers! ( yeosang x f!reader )

fluff, burnout!yeosang, bassist!yeosang, writer!reader, childhood friends 2 lovers but also idiots 2 lovers, yeosang and reader run away, seongjoong are engaged, wooyoung + yeonjun have a band, there is only one bed, yeosang has a nose ring, it’s implied reader has a bad relationship with her mother, wc is 3.1k

NOTE: happy yeosang day! this was a doozy to write, but i hope you all enjoy it! its based off one of my favourite phoebe bridgers songs! :)

There’s a mural on the wall of the hotel lobby. It’s a warm toned painting of a forest, with a hint of a bright blue sky peeking out from the top of the trees. There’s a moose standing at the forefront of the mural, and a little fox sleeping on a rock towards the bottom, surrounded by colourful flowers and leaves.

The mural confused you, if you were being honest. The hotel you worked the night audit at was situated in the busy downtown centre of the city you lived in, and there were barely any forests for miles around the city - let alone any wildlife, like moose or foxes. Hongjoong said it was to make guests feel more ‘in touch with nature’ and to help people forget about the ‘problems of the real world’, while Yeosang claimed it was ‘just another scam in the tourist trap’.

You, on the other hand, was sure the mural was put there to torture you. You would spend nights having staring contests with the moose (which, to your surprise, you always lost), or you would spend hours on Google with Hongjoong trying to find out what species of fox the sleeping fox was (you were sure it was a cape fox, while Hongjoong swore up and down that it was a gray fox). The blue sky between the trees teased you; a reminder that most of your days were spent in the library at your university, or in this dimly lit lobby.

Sometimes, it felt like the only time you saw the sunshine was when you were with Yeosang.

Despite the occasional burnout and the lack of seeing sun most days, you didn’t mind the job. You were always more of a night person, and your classes were always later in the day so you did manage to pull in some sleep. Due to the late hours, you usually only dealt with customers in the first hour or two of your shift, and most of that was just directing confused Ubereats delivery people and pretty Tinder dates to hallways and rooms. It was the perfect job to work on your writing, and get your school work out of the way without listening to your mother cry about how you’re throwing your life away like your sister.

Plus, you could think of a hundred worse people to spend the night shift with than the nighttime valet, Hongjoong. Hongjoong often kept you occupied with his latest reforms and art projects, and stories about his fiancee, Seonghwa & their friend, Yunho (who he kept insisting you needed to go on a date with).

“Your emo boy is coming.”

Well, you could think of ninety-nine worse people to spend the night shift with than Hongjoong, who sat next to you at the check-in desk.

You scoff, “He’s not my emo boy.” You mumble, glancing at the street entrance to see Yeosang walk in with an ice coffee on hand.

Despite your words, Kang Yeosang was your person (you wouldn’t quite use the term ‘emo boy’, even if it did fit), and he had been since your family moved in next door to his family when you two were children. Although your friendship lately had been reduced to these late night meetings while you two were on break on your respective graveyard shifts (you at the hotel and Yeosang at the convenience store down the block, of course) and occasional meetings in the garden when you were both running errands for your families, you still considered Yeosang one of your dearest memories.

It was hard not too, you suppose. He had been there for many of your firsts, and was always cheering you on. Yeosang always made you feel powerful and important - like a powerful heroine, and not his bratty next door neighbor who cried on his doorstep after being dumped by her first year partner. He always made you feel wanted.

Yeosang grinned at you as he stepped into the lobby (if your heart fluttered in your chest, you ignored it). He had on a backwards dad cap, and he had recently changed his nose ring out for the gold hoop San had bought him for his birthday. You could just faintly see his birthmark peeking out from where his bleach blonde hair curled under the hat.

“Hello, Sunshine.” He greets you, setting the coffee down on your desk.

You set the pen you were holding down, “Hi Yeosang.”

Upon first glance at Yeosang, you can tell he’s buzzing about something. He’s leaning over the check-in counter and chewing on his lip while making small talk with Hongjoong about the tourist season.

You raise an eyebrow, sipping your coffee as Yeosang turns back to you, “Do you remember Wooyoung and Yeonjun?”

You nearly choke on your coffee at the mention of your other neighbor and ex-boyfriend. Wooyoung had moved onto your street a few years after you had, and quickly became apart of the little bond you and Yeosang had formed. He moved to the coast with Yeonjun, your ex, the first chance they had gotten, but Wooyoung’s family remained in the neighborhood.

“I babysat Woo’s brother the other day…” You watched your friend, “Did something happen? Mrs Jung didn’t say anything the other day.”

Yeosang grins, and it’s his scheming grin, “Their band got signed,” He tells you, “They need a new bassist, and Wooyoung showed them that video you took of me from that show last month. Their label wants me to come down; play a few shows with them, record a couple demos. See if we have chemistry, basically.”

Your eyes widen - both out of excitement and fear. You were happy and excited for Yeosang! This is the opportunity he had been wanting for years, but you were also terrified.

You were terrified in a horrible, selfish way because you knew if Yeosang left to join Wooyoung and Yeonjun, he’d never come back to you.

“That’s… That’s great, Yeo!” You manage a grin whilst trying to shove the selfish thoughts away, “When do they want you there?”

Yeosang’s smile falters, just for a moment but you still catch it, “Monday.”

“F-Five days?”

He nods, “I’m leaving Saturday morning, so I can be there Sunday afternoon.”

You can see it in his eyes; he’s terrified too.

Before you can say anything else, Yeosang leans over the check-in counter and presses a chaste kiss to your forehead, “I have to get back to work, Sunshine.” He tells you, his voice quiet as if he’s giving you a secret, “I’ll see you later.”

He’s already halfway down the lobby when you swear and move out of your chair, you quickly call his name as you move out from behind the desk. You rush over to where he’s standing, and look up at him. He’s confused.

He opens his mouth to say something, but the words die in his throat when you pull him into a tight hug, “I’m proud of you, Yeo.”

Yeosang wraps his arms around you, pulling you closer to him. His chest is warm, and you’re sure you could spend hours here. He smiles, pressing another kiss to your head, “I know, Sunshine.” He pulls away, his hand on your arm, “I really do have to go, though. I’m already late for work.”

You nod, wrapping your arms around your torso as you watch him leave the hotel and turn down the street to go back to the convenience store. When you turn back around, Hongjoong is watching you with an amused look on his face.

You glare at him as you walk back to the desk, “Don’t you have a fiance to call, or something?”

----------------

You were tired.

Friday nights were always busy, but tonight was draining and loud and you could only take so much of Miss Liu’s incessant phone calls about mundane things at 3am. All you wanted to do was go home, and fall into your bed and sleep for hours.

Hongjoong didn’t help your mood either. It was an innocent question about Yeosang, asking if you’d seen him since he visited you on his break but it pushed your mood down to a low point. You had been so busy the past few days, and if you were being honest with yourself, you had been avoiding Yeosang.

You weren’t ready to see him leave. You knew it was selfish, but you figured avoiding Yeosang was easier than admitting you didn’t want him to leave you behind. You would just simply watch his life through Instagram and consider the ‘what-ifs’ in your life.

You shouldered your tote bag after clocking out before yelling a good-bye to Hongjoong. You could see the beginning rays of morning sun hitting the other buildings in the downtown core as you stepped out the employee doors, and then you were hit by the sight of Yeosang leaning against one of the pillars.

Your eyes widen, “Yeosan-”

“Come with me.”

You stop. Your words are left in your throat, “W-Wh… Go with you? To the coast?”

Yeosang nods, “Come with me,” He steps forward, taking your hands in his, “What do you have here? A degree you don’t care about? A job you hate?”

You frown, running over his words in your head, “I-I have my mom. And… I have Hongjoong!”

He raises an eyebrow, “Y/N, Sunshine… Your mom will barely notice you’re gone, and Hongjoong can visit us.” He cupped your cheek.

You’re so busy having an internal crisis you hardly notice the usage of ‘us’. You’re considering the logistics in your head. Yeosang was right; you didn’t care about your degree, and all it would take was an email saying you quit for them to find a new front desk person. Your mom would be upset for a few weeks. She’d probably make some passive aggressive Facebook posts about you before acting like your best friend again.

“Yeosang…” You look up at him, your hand coming up to circle around his wrist.

“Your sister is there, and you could write everyday.” Yeosang adds on, “I did the math, Y/N. Between the two of us, we’d have 6 months to figure it out. 6 months, and we’ll come back here if nothing works out.”

You stay silent for a moment.

“Sunshine, I promised I’d show you the stars, didn’t I?”

You gasp at the promise. It was a silly promise he had made when you were both kids; something you’d almost forgotten about.

It hits you quickly: there’s no one else you’d rather run away with. There’s no one else you’d trust to run away with.

You look up at Yeosang, “Yes.”

He grins, “Yes?”

You nod, “Yes, Yeo. I’ll go with you.”

----------------

An hour. An hour was how long it took for you to turn your life upside down for Kang Yeosang.

In an hour, you had emailed your program advisor and told them you wouldn’t be returning for the next semester, and you had called your manager and told them you wouldn’t be coming in for your next shift, or any shift after that (which was promptly followed by a phone call from Hongjoong, who seemed more excited about this than you were). You had packed up most of your clothes and important belongings, and they were loaded into the back of Yeosang’s shitty car. You left a note for your mother, and before you knew it, you were sitting in the passenger’s seat of Yeosang’s car.

----------------

You had fallen asleep barely an hour into the car ride. 

The rolling hills and fields outside your window made your eyes feel heavier, but you tried staying awake to keep Yeosang company.

“Go to sleep, Sunshine.” He tells you, “I’ll be here when you wake up.”

Yeosang’s promise was all it took for you to succumb to your exhaustion.

You don't usually remember your dreams. Though today, there are flashes of a beach, and a smile that takes your breath away. There are blue skies and if you try hard enough, you can just faintly smell sea salt.

You wake up hours later, smiling. True to his word, Yeosang is still there when you wake. He’s wearing a pair of sunglasses, and tapping his fingers to the beat of the song on the radio.

Yeosang smiles when he notices you’re awake, “I talked to your mother.”

Your eyes widen, “You talked to who?”

He laughs, “You didn’t answer your phone, so she called me.”

You frown, glancing at your phone in the free cup holder. You could imagine the amount of calls and texts that were in there.

“She wasn’t very happy.” Yeosang continues, “She wants you to call her when we get there.”

You nod, “Thank you, Yeo.” You say softly, looking over at him.

Yeosang throws you a smile, “Of course.”

“Not just for talking to my mom…” You watch him, “For not leaving me behind, too. Thank you.”

Yeosang reaches over, taking your hand, “I’d never leave you behind, Sunshine. You’d have to try really hard to get rid of me.”

----------------

The car ride was long, and full of Yeosang’s early 2000s emo playlist & fast food. You called your sister, who was ecstatic to hear about your plans and had immediately offered you and Yeosang her beach house. She made a comment about how ‘she always knew you two would end up together’, and it made your heart flutter when you glanced at Yeosang.

Yeosang told you about Wooyoung’s band, and how excited he was to play with Wooyoung. You smiled, listening to him fondly talk about your old friends and their music.

It was getting late though, and you could see it in Yeosang’s face that he was getting tired.

“We should stop for the night.” You tell him, “You’ve been driving since 6am, Yeo.”

He huffs, “We could drive through the night.” He proposes, “We’d make it to your sister’s place in a few hours.”

You frown, “Or... We could stop for the night, shower, and then leave first thing tomorrow morning. We'll get there by noon tomorrow.”

Yeosang glances at you, going to protest. He ends up yawning instead, his nose wrinkling slightly, “Fine.” He pouts.

You laugh, reaching for your phone to google the closest hotels. There's a comfortable silence in the car, filled with the occasional beat of Yeosang’s fingers on the steering wheel. You feel at ease, even if it's just for a moment.

“There’s a motel off the next exit.” You tell him, stifling a yawn of your own.

----------------

Sure enough, there had been a motel off the next exit. It was small and slightly rundown, but cheap and had an available room. You waited in the car while Yeosang went into the check-in office, promising to be back in a moment.

He came back dangling a key in his hand, and a slight frown on his face as he opened the car door to let you out.

“So... There’s only one bed.” He broke the news, a blush growing up his cheeks, “It’s all they had, unless we wanted to drive another hour down the highway.”

Your eyes widen, “O-Oh.” You glance at the key, and then back up at Yeosang, “I’ll sleep on the floor, or something.”

Yeosang frowns, shaking his head, “We can share for one night, Sunshine. I think it’ll be okay.”

Which leads you to here; lying almost nose to nose with Yeosang. Your hair was soaking wet from a shower in the tiny bathroom and the small motel bed wasn’t comfortable, but you didn’t seem to mind as you took in the man in front of you. You pushed the strands of bleach blonde hair out of his face, and your fingers softly lingered on the birthmark next to his eye.

His breath stuttered, “Y/N,” He says, his voice a mere whisper, “We’re free.”

You let your hand rest against his cheek. Your eyes lingered on his lips before you caught yourself, moving your gaze back up to his eyes.

Yeosang only smiled at you. He gently held your wrist as he tilted his head and placed a soft kiss on your palm, “I’m going to kiss you now, Sunshine.”

“Yes please.”

You felt every nerve in your body light up when Yeosang kissed you.

A small part of your brain told you that this is where you’re meant to be: in Yeosang’s arms.

You felt this way the first time Yeosang had kissed you too, all the way back on that roof in 11th grade. You two had been talking about the future; about your writing and Yeosang’s music. You looked up at the hazy night sky, and you asked Yeosang if you’d ever get to see the stars.

He smiled at you, telling you that he would show them to you one day before he kissed you so sweetly.

Yeosang still kissed you sweetly. He kissed you like you held the secrets of the universe in your hand for him to take.

You pulled away, “I think I love you.”

He smiles against your lips, rubbing soft circles into your wrist, “I think I love you too, baby.”

—————-

You had this assumption that the next morning would be awkward; that you would be stuck for the next 6 months with someone you could barely look in the eye because of a late night confession.

Instead, you awoke to Yeosang kissing your head and placing a bagel & ice coffee down for you. He had quickly ushered you into the shower, before you put on a change of clothes and were quickly led out to the car between bites of your bagel. This all happened over Yeosang telling you how you only had a few hours before you reached your sister’s beach house, and he wanted to try and make good time so you could enjoy the beach today.

You giggled at his antics before settling into the passenger’s seat for the last few hours of your journey.

You sipped your ice coffee as you watched out the window. The countryside on the highway zoomed by you, and the car was full of sunlight from Yeosang’s sunroof being open. There was a Fall Out Boy song on the radio, and you felt a sense of calm brush over you as Yeosang took your hand in his.

The sunshine had never felt so nice on your skin as Yeosang pressed a soft kiss to the back of your hand.

taglist: @vanishingboots @sunsethw4​ 

[whimsicallyreading]

Eight Second Ride

Okay, so I did a thing. This is for @charincharge​ who made me think this was a good idea and @wordsxstars​ who convinced me to post it anyways when I reconsidered. XD I hope y’all enjoy. 

CW- An inaccurate portrayal of modern cowboys. They ain’t shit y'all. XD 

The smell of hay and top soil fills the arena and Aelin can feel the anticipation of the crowd rushing through her.

So far, Bulls Night Out had been more epic than she was expecting. When Aedion had showed up at her apartment and presented her with the tickets, she wasn’t impressed. A night in a building filled with dirt, watching men attempt questionable things with animals wasn’t exactly her idea of fun.

Yet, with every near-fatal miss and the difference between victory and failure lying in the milliseconds between competitors- Aelin found she was quickly becoming invested in the bizarre sport.

Lorcan Salvaterre was the name highlighted at the top of the leader board with an impressive nine-point-one second ride. A lot of the men, she noticed, didn’t even make the minimum eight seconds before flying off their bull.

Aelin had watched in morbid fascination as a rider named Vaughn was tossed and narrowly escaped death. A hoof missing his head by a hair. His buddies had helped pull him back over the fence just as a gate at the far end of the arena opened. She watched as two men on horses roped the angry steer and guided it back towards the stalls.

When Vaughn saw the timer which now reads N/A he took off his hat and threw it on the ground, yanking on the ends of his dark hair. A couple of hands reached around to pat his shoulder consolingly.

Aelin’s attention was pulled away as Aedion squeezed his massive thighs through the tiny, crowded stadium seating. A cherry frosty in one hand and the funnel cake she requested in the other.

He set the dessert of fried batter and powdered sugar in her lap, and her heart nearly stopped in her chest. Whether it was from the sight of something so greasy, or the pure joy of the carnival snack she didn’t know.

“It’s about time,” she goads Aedion through a mouthful of dough. The sugar already coating her fingers and a layer of it dirtying her jeans. It was a mess, but so good.

Aedion’s eyes narrow at her as he sips his frosty, “It’s a mad house down there. All of the lines are like a mile long and I’m pretty sure a clown tried to grab my ass.” He snags a bite of her funnel cake and shoves it in his mouth. “I hope your snack was worth it.”

“Keeping me happy is worth it,” she smacks his wrist when his fingers try to swipe another bite.

The crowd roars and Aelin looks back down to see a rider running back towards the fence, a glinting smile on his face. On the big screen, they replay his ride and clock him at nine-seconds even, placing him in second place.

Aedion whistles appreciatively at the footage and Aelin claps when a Fenrys Moonbeam is placed just below Lorcan on the leader board.

“Damn, he’s attractive.” Aedion comments, and Aelin nods enthusiastically.

“I’m not going to lie. I was skeptical about this-“ they watch as another rider is helped onto a bull and they await the go, “but this is way more fun then I thought it was going to be.”

“It helps that all of these people are fine,” he laughs. Aedion pulls out his phone, and videos the next ride. It only lasts five seconds, but makes an excellent boomerang that he swiftly posts to his story. Followed by a selfie of them and their snacks.

Lysandra would be so mad she bailed.

“Shit,” Aedion swears as he drops his frosty and the red ice bursts across the front on his shirt. “Shit. I forgot napkins.”

“I’ll go get some,” Aelin assures, but as she battles her way through the crowd and bumps various limbs against other peoples body parts, she regrets her chivalry.

It takes five minutes alone just to get to the bottom of the stairs. Pulling herself free from the throngs of people, Aelin leans against the bars looking down, directly into the arena. She needed a moment of fresh air, not surrounded by dozens of sweaty people. Aedion could wait an extra damn minute.

But, as she peels her eyes open, they nearly bug out of her head. Directly below her she can see right into the shoot, and the bull rider who was being set up for his next ride.

His eyes are the same pine green as the forests of her homeland, and she can see the white hair coiled into a bun right before his buddy slaps a hat on his head.

He was beautiful. A work of masculine art. Muscles for days and Aelin swore she could gut glass against his cheekbones. Aedion’s napkins are long forgotten as she stares at the man situating himself onto the fidgeting bull.

Rowan Whitethorn- the name is plastered on the big screen alongside his previous states and homeland. He’s from Wendlyn, her mother’s country of origin.

When Aelin looks back down, she startled. His face is locked on hers, green eyes piercing her skin with its inquisitiveness. He’s close enough she can see his pail eyelashes droop, apparently satisfied by what he sees. Aelin forces her expression to stay neutral as his yes flitter back up her face to meet her own gaze.

Their eyes lock, neither of them blink. Aelin can feel the temperature of the building rise by several degrees and she bites her lip.

A man slaps Rowan’s shoulder, telling him the count down has started. He barely pays the person any mind though as the seconds before his ride dwindle down. Just before the horn blows, he winks at her.

Aelin’s whole face burns as the gate is released and Rowan is out of the shoot like a rocket. Her heart is thumping in her chest like a base drum and she’s about ready to lay on the floor and die.

That man. She caught that beautiful man’s attention and got into a veritable starting contest with him like a five year-old. Her horror is only exacerbated when she realizes her hands are still coated in powdered sugar and it was probably on her face as well.

So much for her image as smoldering, goddess.

A roar from the crowd rises like never before. The men above the shoots near her have their hats off and are cheering at the top of their lungs. People are stomping, clapping. Something big just happened.

A replay of Rowan’d ride is playing across several different screens. Below his name, is his time.

Twelve seconds.

Suddenly, a pair of calloused hands are gripping the rails near her face, and a heavily muscled body is pulling itself up and over the edge.

Aelin staggers back as Rowan drops onto the floor in front of her. His eyes are lit with adrenalin and sweat beads his brow, but despite the whirlwind he’d just gone through he looked strangely serene.

He marches in front of her grabs a paper from inside his pocket. It’s a crumpled paper with a bold number on one side and on the back is his name and information.

Information like his phone number.

Her mouth goes dry as he presses it into her hand. Rowan gives her a smile that sends a tingle down her spine and makes her toes curl in her shoes.

“You are good luck, doll. You should give me a call sometime.”

Aelin’s bravado catches up with her and she places a hand on her hip, meeting his gaze full on. “If I’m such good luck then you would take me out for a drink. Tonight.”

Pulling the hat from his head, Rowan combs a hand through the loose strands of silver hair cascading around his face. “I think I can manage that.”

“I’ll be in row ten, seat seven. When you are done.” She pushes the piece of paper back at hum and nods to where Aedion is sitting. He’s be pissed when he realized she would be ditching him.

“I’ll see you in about an hour,” his eyes rake over her one more time before walking away to join his jovial friends.

They clap his shoulders, he’s so tall some of them have to jump to rustle the top of his head. All of them enthused over his almost assured win, before they sweep him away and he disappears into the crowd, he looks back at her one more time.

An hour, she mouthes to him.

A half-grin graces his face and he tilts his chin as Aelin makes her way back to Aedion.

Yeah, the rodeo was definitely more exciting then she was expecting.