#hi everyone it's me coming to grace ur dash

[prettyboykatsuki]

hi fang!!

i apologise if this is something u get asked often, but ur writing is most definitely my favourite to consume and ive never felt feelings the way i do when i read anything you've written, and was wondering if you have (or have already posted) any writing tips that u could give me?

reading your creations for so long has honestly really inspired me to write too but i have no idea where to start in terms of anything. i've never attempted to write before, i've always been more of a reader, but if i could make anything even close to what you do for beloved characters and fandoms then it would make me so so so happy.

if you need me to be more specific about what i'm having trouble with i could try and narrow it down but honestly everything is pretty accurate T-T

anyways thank u for posting everything u do, i am eternally grateful! at this point im conditioned to get excited every time im scrolling on dash and see the green katsuki pfp <3 hope ur 8 hours wherever u are isnt too perilous >:(

this made my lower lip tremble how could u think so highly of lil ol me.... im very glad my writing could invoke such feelings you!! enough so to even inspire like how huge is that... im a very unpolished and messy writer by nature so im extra moved when people are kind to me about this kind of thing. like.. ough. i have moved u... what a world...

i dont know if i have any good writing advice to give you!! im very clumsy in my own writing. here is some advice i have given people before

my biggest piece of writing advice is stop worrying about it and do everything lightly. i think there is a lot of pressure and expectation on people who are trying their hand at any creative thing to hit a point of being objectively good. im a huge perfectionist in my normal life - but because of that, i always miss out things i could actually do. being that caught up on the details made it so that i never actually tried at anything

a lot of my writing has typing errors and things i could do better but i have to intentionally allow myself that grace because if i don't - i would've never finished a piece of writing in the first place. i only get better if i write and i only write if im not so caught up on the details. there is always going to be a learning curve. im always going to look back at old writing and wince a little at all the things i can do better.

but at the time, i had the confidence to put that out into the world. now that its out, i can look at myself critically. posting for me is a way of holding myself accountable if that makes sense. everyones already seen the flawed version, so there's no longer any reason to not improve or be embarrassed. its also why i dont delete fics even when i hate them later. there was one person who liked the cringe worthy sincere aspect of me. how nice would it be if i could make something even better than that.

writing can be anything you want. it can be the most important thing you've ever done or the thing you do on the bus ride home. it can change your life or you can forget about it the very next day. its yours. your voice is always all yours.

but you it can never be anything to you if you don't just give it your most honest try. do everything very lightly. pick an idea, map out a beginning middle and end, and write a story.

more practically - it will help immensely for you to observe the way other people write first. try to read critically instead of for enjoyment and see what you like. what inspires you? a persons flow, diction, dialogue? and emulate that in your own way. when you start your voice will not be much more than a mish-mash of all the things you love and that's okay. that's what all writers with very distinct voice tend to do anyways.

i know it seems counter intuitive and pointless to stress but really - the best thing you can do for yourself when it comes to writing is just sitting down and giving it a try. pick any idea, plot out a simple 3 point beginning middle and end, and just see what you can do. you can be critical and edit as much as you want after. just get it down on paper first the best you can and don't worry yourself sick over each sentence or nothing will ever get written

i can try and give you more practical advice if you let me know what you need!! ive given writing advice before but im very under qualified for that i fear. even so i hope it helps you a little to give it a shot. i know it sucks to hear u just have to try and see but it rlly is true

[maggiecheungs]

2020 ~everything~ wrap

i finally have time to do all of the tag games that people have tagged me in over the past month or so! i cannot for the life of me remember who tagged me in which one, so i’m just putting ~everything~ in one huge post. if i tag you anywhere then consider it a standing invitation to do whichever of these you haven’t done :) in fact, this is me issuing a standing invite to any of my followers who wants to do it :) also, thank you all!

Creator Wrap: Favourite Works

Rules: It’s time to love yourselves! Choose your 5 (or so) favorite works you created in the past year (fics, art, edits, etc.) and link them below to reflect on the amazing things you brought into the world in 2020. Tag as many writers/artists/etc. as you want (fan or original) so we can spread the love and link each other to awesome works!

this collection of philosophy quotes paired with thai bl series, (and its sequel) which is possibly my favourite thing i’ve ever made. for, uh, nerd reasons.

these gifted text post memes i made still make me laugh sometimes

this fic about green from 2gether, which i wrote in the notes app on my phone and published the same day. not my absolute best writing but i am very fond of it <3

i have a bunch fof friend zone dangerous area edits/shitposts which i like, but i’m particularly fond of my fzda as satire headlines (which now has a sequel!)

i also love my crisgood-walmart-lesbian post. i might send it in to gmmtv to try and convince them to do a crisgood-bffs spin-off

+ bonus: since i wrote this list i made this gifset (my first ever!) of jennie panhan in the shipper and i love her too much not to include her on here

+ extra nerdy bonus: this niche meme about Chinese philosophy, which still makes me crack up whenever I think about it

Favourite Creators/Follow Forever

i’ve completely lost track of who’s following who from which blog, so this is just going to be a haphazard, non-exhaustive list of people who i adore/admire/am vaguely intimidated by, mutuality be damned. maybe we talk all the time! maybe we’ve never interacted! maybe i am constantly there in ur tags... lurking... 👀... but if you’re on this list you have made me smile at least once this year and i love you for that alone <3

@wjmild kylie!! you make gifs of arm & tay & lee (separately or in various combinations) & the shipper & and kapook & random fluke pusit cameos & school rangers so i don’t have to <3 ilysm

@janeramida vianey, you have such impeccable taste in general, but your sizzy gifset in particular is so gorgeous it lives in my mind rent free

@applelapis bri, this post was a callout and i want you to know that it haunts me at night as i lie awake staring at the ceiling :((((( i hope you are happy

@gigiesarocha cata, i love it when you show up on my dash bc you have!! such taste!! also, every time you gif gigie i gain five years of life <3 pls continue doing the Good Work

@pvrrish​ eleni, i remeber legit thinking that this was an official poster when i first saw it, it’s so beautiful

@ahysopae​ juliette your khaithird fic is so good and it literally changed the way i think about khai (not an easy feat)

@kurosawadachi angel, whenever i think about grace’s speech i remember your gifset and get literal chills

@doctorbahnjit alexa, you have no right to be as funny as you are. your friend zone edits give me life

@khaotungthanawat sam, you’re probably sick of getting tagged in these lists by random strangers, but i just had to bc your gifsets are Pure Art

@tanwirapong roa, all your gifsets are so ✨iconic✨

faiza @asianmelodrama and rahul @petekaos! yours were the first two thai drama blogs i followed and for ages i lowkey thought of you as my fandom parents.

and some more blogs that make me happy: @curlykytta / @lee-thanat  / @fck-inspector-m / @pangwave / @tichawongtipkanon / @tawanv @kimmonv (violet istg i have spent more time this year trying to figure out how many blogs you have than i have spent admiring your gifsets. & i spend a lot of time admiring your gifsets) / @taytawan / @1akorn and @yihwas (and your radiant lovechild @lakornladies ofc) / @teh-ohaew / @vihokratanas (mel your gifsets are just so gorgeous) / @tootiredtoosadtooangry / @headcompletelyempty / @demiromanticmickey​ / and there are definitely more but my brain is a sieve so apologies if i’ve forgotten anyone!! i love you all!! 

2020 HIGHLIGHTS ✨

rules: list your top 10 shows (bl or not) you watched in 2020 (doesn’t necessarily have to be shows that came out in 2020 though!)

1. 2GETHER & STILL2GETHER

my first thai drama, and even after all the amazing shows i’ve watched this year, it still has a special place in my heart. watching 2gether was the first time i’d ever seen a queer romcom that just... was. for me, by the simple fact of its being, 2gether was revolutionary. and then still2gether came along and took all the best things about the first season and gave us something beautiful and quiet and lovely and just proved to me, once and for all, that queer happiness doesn’t need to justify its own existence. there can be gay cuddles on the beach for no other reason than that we want them. 

2. UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN

i don’t really have the words for this one but. it makes my heart so very soft.

3. FRIEND ZONE 2: DANGEROUS AREA

season one was mindless fun because everyone was an absolute trashfire and it was hella cathartic to watch, but season 2... wow. i love it for so many reasons: it has messy and authentic queer rep; the characterisation is excellent and i somehow care about all of the characters; amazing women taking centre stage(!); a wlw relationship with lesbian, ace and bipolar rep; multiple interesting plotlines; actual character development; arm weerayut as a chaos gremlin... absolutely one of my favourites of 2020.

4. CHERRY MAGIC

i don’t think i need to explain this one, which is fortunate, because i have no idea how exactly i’d describe the happy-warm-fuzzy-queer-seen-loving-affirmed-profound feeling that rises in my chest whenever i think about it. 

5. THE GIFTED: GRADUATION

confession: i liked season 2 more than season 1 (with the exception of the ending, which we don’t talk about). season 1 was enjoyable and interesting, but for me it was season 2 which made me love this series. it did some incredibly interesting and complicated things (even if it didn’t quite nail the landing): it pushed characters to the breaking point and wove so many layers into the story and questioned its own underlying themes. plus, watching it alongside everyone in the fandom made it 200% better. i love all of you and i love this show. egg girl 5eva.

6. THE SHIPPER

i 100% understand why so many people didn’t like this show, or found it problematic, but through some fluke it absolutely worked for me (even the ending). one day i will write an essay explaining my rationale, but for now i’ll just say that it’s one of my favourite shows about adolescence and queerness and identity and compassion and friendship and love that i’ve ever watched. 

7. YYY

this series is absolutely off its rocker, and it somehow managed to be one of the most affirming shows i’ve watched. it shouldn’t have worked by it did, and i love it so much.

8. 3 WILL BE FREE

absolutely iconic. amazing plot, stunning visuals, great characters, canon polyamory, jennie being incredible... what a series.

9. MANNER OF DEATH

i love the fact that this show exists; i love the mix of crime and romance; i love maxtul’s acting; i love the central relationship; i love bun. i know we’re not even halfway through yet, but this show is doing something special and i’m so grateful that i get to watch it unfold in real time. 

10. CHIHAYAFURU (SEASON 3)

odd one out on my list, but I had to include it. chihayafuru is my all-time favourite anime and it finally got a third season, which is somehow even better than the first two. mashima taichi is one of my favourite characters of all time and his storyline hits me on such a profound level. plus, in the years since i first say this show i’ve fallen in love with classical japanese literature (particularly heian poetry) so i had newfound appreciation for the karuta matches (aka i cried every time someone recited one of my favourite poems)

other favourites: together with me, he’s coming to me, sotus and sotus s, my dear loser: edge of 17, why r u, theory of love, wake up chanee!, gameboys, pearl next door, uta koi (anime), three kingdoms (2010), blood and water (netflix). (itsay would almost certainly be on my list if i’d had time to watch it. same with dark blue kiss, which i had to pause so i could do my assignments)

Final Thoughts

well, it’s been... a year (i don’t think anyone needs a reminder of the details) but writing this post has reminded me of all the amazing shows and people I discovered over the course of it.

thank you to everyone for being so lovely and creative and funny and quirky and kind and passionate. you’re all incredibly awesome people and i wish all of you the very best xx

[seoschangbin]

Hi hi, it’s ya gal Rachel! To start off, this isn't really a follow forever but more of a mushy love fest. I was going to do this back in October when my blog hit 2 years but then with everything that happened... 😞✌ figured it wasn’t the best time! But since it’s the new year, I just wanted to spread some love to start off the decade, especially towards all the lovely people who have made my 2019 a little bit happier ♡ Thank you to everyone for making this such a fun & amazing year; thank you for supporting my gifs & graphics and interacting with me; overall, thank you for making Tumblr fun again! So to all my moots and followers, I’m wishing you all a very happy and wonderful 2020! 

I wanted to take some time as well to write some messages to all my mutuals - seeing you guys on my dash + all your work (if you’re a cc) is such a joy and I admire all of you very very much! Thank you for putting in the time to making gifs/graphics/fic/etc. and I hope you won’t mind if I gush about you a little, even if we’ve never spoken hehe! Under the cut in alphabetic order.. she’s a long one sorry!

@00hj | karen!! angel!! first of all, everything u make is just the cleanest cutest thing ever, i truly want your brain!.. u are such an incredibly talented gfx creator and i get heart palpitations every time i see ur work!! i adore u so much n ur tags are also so full of sweetness n purity and 😞💕 i just want to give u a hug!! + the way u always say hi to ccs in ur tags when u rb their stuff. cute!! pure!! 

@01degree | joanna!! first of all... thank u for filling my dash with so many groups, some of which i almost never get to see 😌💕 ur brain being multi af like me.. chefs kiss! also! you make such clean and nice gifs please don’t ever doubt that laskjd!! 2020 joanna stops saying her gifs suck! idk how u make them so clean but legends only! bls remember to be kind to yourself this year! 💕

@1095 | nicolle!! i haven’t seen you around recently but i hope everything is okay and you’re doing well! i have to say that your graphics are absolutely INSANE i don’t know how you do it!! the colours.. how it all comes together.. amazing! ur career as a graphic designer will be a good one 😌👍 secondly your urls are always so cute nd nice!! and thirdly back to number 1.. i just love everything you make so so much bls come back to us 😖

@3noracha |  falak.. ur the fandom’s gem.. the sharpening on ur gifs takes my breath away everytime + the colouring.. omg chef’s kiss!! i didn’t know you before you came back earlier this year but i’m so so glad you did come back bc u are so full of love 😳💗 you make the cutest graphics as well and are just radiate so much positivity 💞

@bamgchan | henri! still my confident car selfie king!! so glad i found you through sagey.. i love all your content (ur graphics.. always so well put together!) and the way you interact with people is so full of energy and positivity and i adore that! i hope 2020 treats you well 🥰

@banghans | ollie!! all of ur content.. ur gifs! amazing.. wonderful.. iconic thank you for providing so much hq content for the rest of us peasants 😌💕 your love for chan and jisung is also so pure n cute when u rave abt it 💞 bls stop being so hard on yourself and i love reading about how you’re always striving to be better to yourself! i hope 2020 is a good year for you 💖

@binnieseason | emily.. a loss for binnie stans that you’re gone 😔 anyways i hope to see you back sometime because you make such nice gifs + the colouring on them.. so pretty and clean.. how to be you! i hope things are okay with you and that you’ve been well!

@cb-97s | miss li! y/a novel protagonist herself!! li you’re a burst of sunshine in my day and i love chatting w u! your love for chan.. too pure 😭 every time i talk to you i’m like.. dang.. she’s real.. ppl get to see her for real! might force u to meet me irl 🤷‍♀️ also queen of gfx.. always so clean.. 😍 i know it’s been a stressful year for you but i hope 2020 brings you happiness and love 💞 love u! 

@changbeanie | hi ruby! ur graphics are always so intricate n pretty + the colouring on ur gifs.. so pretty 😭💖 thank you for providing like 90% of the changbin content nd keeping me well-fed 🥰 ur always so sweet to ur anons as well and are just a lil ray of sunshine ☀️

@changbinie​ | jo.. what even is there to say abt u.. still can’t believe i got u into skz.. CAN’T!!! thanks for suffering w me and dealin w me wakin u to talk abt middies.. + changbin arms.. i love u a little i think (?) 

@channie | hi fishy! ur one of the very first skz blogs i ever followed back in 2017.. we ancient 😌🤙 i know you’re not too active anymore but all of your gifs have like. the prettiest colouring ever idk how you do it! i hope you’ll come back to us 

@elfminho | min! i love the way u tag skz in your tags.. so cute 😭 star boy!!! cute 😭 ur gifs are also lovely as well 🥰 i think ur one of the first skz blogs i followed when i starting using this blog again n i’m glad i found ur blog bc i adore u 💞

@glowsvt | grace.. my little baby! i wish i could just !! get into ur brain how lovely nd wonderful of a human you are.. have more confidence in yourself! 😣 you make wonderful graphics.. ur style! cute! and you have such a sweet and good heart!! i love when you ramble about things and always appreciate how you take the time to reach out to me despite how busy you are 💕 thank you for being a real-life angel, i hope 2020 is good and kind to you 🙇‍♀️💞

@hanjisungz | britt!!! nerd squad let’s go!! you’re such an angel, the way you treat everyone who talks to you with so much kindness and positivity makes me want to cry!! ur truly just the cutest sunbeam and just such lovely lovely human!! thank u for puttin up with my late replies and how boring i am 😭 i also adore your gifs and icons.. which you know.. but always.. chefs kiss to them!

@huiracha | marie... first of all skz AND ptg? great, amazing, fantastic combination... galaxy brain 💞 secondly, u make such SUCH nice gifs 😭 ur prob one of my fav skz ccs and all ur pretty chan comp sets.. always look forward to them! thank u for also bringing me ptg content i never see enough of them 💕

@hwang-hyunjin | agnes!! ur topaz settings r always insane and they make your gifs look amazing!! + the colouring u do is always so beautiful!! the combo rly makes ur gifs so distinctive nd pretty💞 ur edits too!! just lovely 🥰 also the fact that we’re also moots on our mx blogs.. amazing.. i love a staybebe!! 

@hyunjins​ | godleigh???? still one of my fav gifmakers ever!! perfect colouring.. sharpening.. best brain! 💞 rmbr ur skz x prince series... still think abt it sometimes.. wish i could be half as brilliant as u!  i’m so glad we started talking bc u are incredibly funny and fun to talk to and i love witnessing ur breakdowns even though they’re probably way funnier to me than they should be 😭 love that u vibe w me and we can be mean together 😭 thank u for giving me this url 😭 thank u for being my friend, u truly are like. half the reason i enjoy being on this blog 😭 you’re wonderful and i love u a lot! sorry for clowning u sometimes! i hope everything sorts itself out soon bc u deserve some peace nd happiness 😩 and i wish u nothing but the best for this year and hope that the next year will be filled with good things 💖

@ifbin | mikaela.... u know i could talk abt you forever right???? ur graphics.. bro 😭 literally my fav gfx ever on this site.. u have such a vibrant + clean style it’s so sexy 😭 literally am in love with everything u make.. every time i see it i’m like 😳💖 also you’re such a sweetheart in your tags i can’t with you... spare friendship miss 💍

@jeonginz | bri! honestly.. i think you’re my oldest mutual from when we first started our blogs during survival era #ogs? 😳 when i found out you were nctmark... mind blown... anyways all your content is AMAZING even though u dont make as much for skz anymore msdg but ur dedication to all ur sideblogs.. galaxy brain 😌

@jinlix | kelly...!! still gazing at u across the river i love love love u!! how to purchase friendship? ur just the purest snowflake and a wonderful person with the cutest tags... ur love for hyunjin.. CUTE 💞 all your graphics are so pretty and clean as well.. dragonlix gfx never forgotten.. 😳 and you’re rly just a little angel!! 💞

@kim-woojins​ | emma, i know that you’re gone and closed pretty much but if you come back to this! just wanted to let you know that you were my fav woojin cc and i hope you’ll consider coming back someday 💖 your gifs.. always amazing! plus, you’re such a kind person and i hope everything is okay with you and things have settled a bit! sending you lots of love 💕

@kittylixie | moon.. honestly one day i just started seeing ur content everywhere.. ur gifs are so clean and pretty and just! mwah! you’re always so quick to gif as well i don’t know how you to do it! all the stuff you choose to gif as well.. best moments 💖

@kmwoojins | sagey.... still don’t really know how i came to be following you! 😩 but i’m so happy i am because you are so pure and sweet and i adore adore adore you!! 💞 love how welcoming and lovely you are as a human and still laugh every time i think about how shocked you are about jo and i... 😌 anyways i adore your graphics and you, thank you for just being such a lovely human, you were a wonderful part of my year 💖

@leeminho-s | hi lia! i know we only became moots recently but all your gifs.. so pretty 😳 and we never have enough minho content.. thank you for providing 😫 i’m sorry i don’t know much about you yet but i just wanted to say i admire your gifs so much and hope you have a wonderful start to the new year!

@minknows | hi thien! first of all.. your name.. so lovely 😳 secondly.. the colouring on your gifs is always so pretty and good 😭❤ the sharpening too.. 😔 just!! chefs kiss to it all, would take a class on how to gif from you 🙇‍♀️

@nochous | dez!! we haven’t interacted much on this sb of mine but hehe i loved our convo on my sf9 blog.. still always thinkin abt you calling kun daddy 😭 you’re such a fun person to talk to and i hope everything is okay with you since you’ve gone on a semi-hiatus! i hope we’ll have another chance to talk soon, sending you some good energy for 2020 💗

@prodskz | hi neha! i feel like you took a hiatus sometime this year (??) where i didn’t see you on much but i’m happy to see you a little more active on here now!! u provide such nice content + for some reason i rly rly love your icon 😭💗

@realstraykids | miss em.. secret santa FATED us 😔💕 anyways i adore you, we are the core of fantastay culture and this will forever unite us 😌 i’m vibrating at the thought of their comeback 😖 ANYWAYS you are such a friendly and lovely person and i enjoyed getting to talk with u so much over the past couple of weeks 💖 you’re one of my fav gifmakers honestly your mv aesthetics swap.. as i said.. 😭 amazing iconic showstopping! + the colouring on all your gifs.. so pretty 😭

@seungminhos |  to quote you. you are far too funny to be a gifmaker 😣 but then who would provide all the good seungmin content.. 😞 you’re such a force of nature on my dash and i love reading all your thoughts bc you are Funny.. and your love for seungmin + how you always want the best for him is pure!! our sporadic interactions too.. always enjoy them 💕 even though i know you’re stressed about being on here sometimes, i want you to know that you’re wonderful and i appreciate all you do to bring more seungmin on our dashes 💗 pls stop threatening to delete your blog, i would be devastated 😫

@seungminsmile | aurora!! the one time i was about to have a seungmin breakdown and went to you... hehe you’re such a cutie and very grounded person (imo!!) and you make the cutest little graphics.. the little doodles.. how do you do that!! 😳 and now that you’re making gifs.. Queen! i hope your first semester went well! 💕

@seunie | hello nia!! i know we are still new moots but you are such a pure soul.. just ur blog title.. angel! you radiate so much love and sweetness 💞 your gifs are always so vibrant + colourful as well and bring a bit of colour onto my dash just like you! hopefully we can speak in the coming year, i wish you the very best! 🥰

@skzbffie | rayana... all ur gifs... bro.... how to start a rayana religion... amazing 😍 ur gifs are always so clean + i can recognize them by the subtitle font you use.. u always choose the best moments to gif honestly how to be u! honestly ur tags are fun to read too don’t judge me i am just an admirer and fan of u 😭

@skznta | miss sierra! idk how to put it into words but you... goddess of goodness? you truly radiate so much positivity and happiness and it makes me so.. uwu (for lack of better words).. you’re so so cute over all your love for science and i’m glad we got to bond over that! the way you’re always striving to learn more + improve yourself.. u inspire me 😳 you are also an incredible cc and thank you for bringing so much joy into the fandom and my life!! i feel very grateful to have gotten to know you a little this year 💞

@thechanboys | jem.. u are a GEM... 😭 the way i got u for secret santa i’ll never get over it!! you are just such sunshine and so fun to talk to and 😳💞 if u ever wanna abandon bin for me.. 😌 my fav number one chan/bin stan..! i’m so happy you got into skz this year and i’m gonna try my hardest to get you into some other groups hehe 🤧 anyways, you are incredible, lovely, wonderful, amazing i love u jem!! 💖

@tinyjisung | bea! honestly.. we are moots on like 3(?) blogs our multi selves.. galaxy brain...  i know ur more active on ur ateez blog but i wanted to write abt you here anyways because I CAN! 😌 but i love all that good san content you provide + you just seem like a very calm n fun person 💕

@virgolix | nina. you’re such a cute person filled with love and you just spread so much positivity and good energy! you treat everyone with so much kindness and it’s so nice to see 💖 and if i can rave about your gifs for a minute... they are unreal 😫 the sharpening.. colouring.. always so amazingly clean + pretty + vibrant! 

@wonstal | hi hi! okay.. i adore all your content, you have the cutest colouring ever!! + topaz settings.. so pretty 😖💞 even though we started off as moots on my mx blog, i’m so glad you got into skz and ateez + will be on your sweet merry way to sf9 soon 🤞 i’m glad we’ve just started chatting a bit because you seem super fun and i’m excited to get to know you better! i hope 2020 treats you well darling 💖

@yongbells | iana.. hope everything is okay with you always and sending you lots of love! i miss seeing you on here but i hope you’re taking good care of yourself 💗 also.. gfx queen... 😖 you’re SUCH a ray of sunshine.. the way you always tell people how much you love their creations is so kind and all of your own gfx are some of the most beautiful things ever 💖 we are so blessed to have you in this fandom 😩 

[gray-anxiety]

Hello! Loving ur work! Would it be alright if I ask for a scenario of Loki trying hard to butter up tony becuz he has a crush on his avengers!sister? :) hope you’re having a great day!

o m g y e s

Screw headcanons this gonna be a one-shot-

I also made the reader in college (but like she’s an Avenger, she just wants to graduate too)

also sorry it’s really fast-paced????? I’m still really sick and I have school tomorrow so I’m trying to get 4 hours of sleep after this-

A h e m , ,

Oneshot Masterlist

Character request list

“For the last time, Reindeer Games, I’m not letting you go out on any sort of errand for me. You’re not trustworthy.” Tony was getting irritated at Loki’s countless attempts on trying to help Tony all day, after all, he did destroy New York, and you know, kill almost hundreds, brought aliens to the planet, and tried to rule as a god.

“On the contrary, Tony, I would rather think of it as you are receiving aid from a god.”

“Not this shit again…” Tony walked out of the kitchen after taking his scalding coffee cup out from the coffee maker. Loki panicked as soon as he left. Tony’s sister was visiting from Columbia University tomorrow. Loki had to get Tony’s trust if he was to ever go near the beautiful girl. How in the nine realms was he supposed to break through to Tony?

Loki was clueless. He (that was originally ‘the’ but I swear I edited that before I posted it. Oh well) banged his head on anything solid within a 20-foot radius and was not getting any better. He was screwed. He tried to introduce Tony to Asgardian tech but ended up causing Tony to go grey early. That was only one attempt of numerous failures and it was not getting better. Loki didn’t even try to sleep that night. He was too busy trying to figure out how to not look like a blubbering fool in front of the Starks.

“Keep doing that, Brother, and you’ll be looking like a dead Jörmungandr in no time” Loki didn’t even realize it was already early morning and he still didn’t have any clue on how to impress Tony. What made it even worse was the fact that Thor was right behind him.

“Leave, Brother.” Thor didn’t respond right away; like he was thinking. What was even worse was the words that left his mouth after the pause:

“You’re nervous.” Thor knew that, like mother like son, Loki fidgeted with his hands when he was nervous. Today was no exemption. Loki’s regular stiff and proper posture was replaced with a hunched form, fidgeting uncontrollably with his hands, never once moving from his spot at the bar.

“What could’ve possibly given you that clue, Brother?” Loki sneered and huffed, knowing very well that if Thor figured out the cause of his ill nerves, he would be set up for permanent doom. Had it been a regular day, Loki would’ve hidden his form with an illusion, but today was not that day. Y/N Stark was coming home, and he was once more going to see her. What was worse was the fact that Loki had somehow fallen for the witty girl and he knew that if her brother had anything to do with it, Loki would be dead by the day’s end.

“Y/N is coming home today. Will you greet her at least this time, Loki? She felt awful last time because she thought she did something wrong when all that you did was hide and watch on from a distance.” Loki stiffened at that (which Thor noticed). He made Y/N feel bad because his own feelings got in the way? 

“You’ve fallen for her, haven’t you?” And just like that, Loki was caught. His future plans of even talking to her shattered. Thor was going to not only tell Y/N, but Tony too. Thor noticed Loki’s figure further crumple into the stone of the bar, he too, knew what Loki was thinking and sighed.

“I’m not telling either of them if that’s what you’re worried about, Loki.” Thor motioned with his eyes to tell him what Loki was even trying to do.

“Convince her brother I mean no ill will towards her whatsoever.” 

“Fine, I’ll help.”

“Wait, what-”

By the time you arrived, it was early afternoon. Tony, being Tony, unleashed his inner extra and threw a mini (and when you say mini, you mean it only consists of a few hundred people this time) party in your honor to welcome you back. It was a little overwhelming at first, but you were used to your older brother’s useless parties by now. 

“Please tell me he’s somewhat recovered from his PTSD?” Pepper shook her head as a no and sighed. 

“He’s not doing well, but with Loki staying here too, it makes it worse. Loki has been trying to talk to Tony, but he suspects it’s because Loki just wants to leave.”  You rolled your eyes at Pepper once more, yes, you were angry with Loki for what he did to your home, but if he was somewhat trying to make amends you didn’t see any need to discourage him from that.

“Pepper, what if he’s really trying to make it up but he doesn’t know how? Every time I’ve been here he’s been in the corner or isolated and only watches everyone from a distance. What if he’s lonely?” Pepper nodded her head, but you both knew Tony held grudges for years.

“Lady Y/N! It’s so nice to see you!” You heard the big lug long before you saw him. When you turned around you saw not only Thor in his regular formal button-up, but Loki in a dashing crisp suit not too far from Thor either. Your feet carried you as swiftly as possible to the Thunderous man’s welcoming embrace.

“Thor! It’s so good to see you too!” Thor laughed and ruffled your hair despite your protests. Thor eventually let go and stepped out of the way for you to greet the eyes of Loki himself. Your breath hitched.

“Hello, Loki.” You walked up to the tall god himself, having to crane your neck upwards to even meet his gaze. His raven hair wasn’t slicked back anymore, but simply naturally cascaded down to rest lightly above his shoulders. His blue eyes (this is why you edit your works, kids) softened and a smile graced his face.

“Hello, Darling.” Loki kissed your hand before bending back up to stand at his full height once more; towering over most nearby.

Tony saw your meeting unfold and was getting ready to walk over there and drag Loki out of the building as soon as he touched you once more, that is, until Thor looked over and mouthed to Tony:

‘He won’t hurt her.’

Thor looked desperate for Tony to back off and leave you and Loki to engage in this rare conversation that wouldn’t last long. Tony was uncertain until he saw the look Loki gave you, then he knew. 

And he finally gave in.

“Alright.”

[ashesonthefloor]

oh actually this is a FANTASTIC game cos i have a doc FULL of lyrics i wanna use as titles. so here's a couple: "am i ready for love, or maybe just a best friend", "despite the weather, it gets better", "melancholy soundtrack". maybe i wont tell you what songs they are. unless that would help you determine the vibe? theyre from turning out by ajr, voldemort by with confidence, sometime around midnight by the airborne toxic event. ok i love u from bella

thank you!!! I think it’s really fun and I’m having a BLAST. will b honest I originally just planned on writing uhhh like the ao3 style summaries and then ended up just. writing out a part of the fic and then explaining my idea oops?

but everyone sent me so many angsty ideas Jesus Christ!!!! is everyone okay??? anyway I made ur last one fluffy. also all of them end happily because I said so

send me a song lyric and I’ll write a summary like it’s a fic title

“am I ready for love, or maybe just a best friend”

this one screams Cashton to me. where Calum’s got a massive crush, and confesses, and there’s a lot of internal struggle with Ashton leading up to that as he tries to figure out his sexuality and his feelings towards Calum. he figures it out after he confesses, though, and comes to Calum with an apology - and a declaration of love

“I like you,” Calum said, breath coming out in a long, slow shudder, shoulders relaxing like he was Atlas, with the weight of the world on his shoulders, and someone had just freed him from his burden.

“Yeah, I know. How long have we been friends?” Was Ashton’s reply, not clueing in to the tension, to the somber expression on Calum’s face. He started to understand, though, dread forming in his stomach when Calum shook his head.

“No, Ash.” His voice was too quiet in the silence of the room, the two of them it’s only occupants. Nothing there to stifle the quiet between Calum’s every word. It was deafening. “Not like that.”

“Oh,” he said. What can he say? There was no apology that could make this better. For either of them. He’d only just come to terms with being confused, there hadn’t been enough time to untangle the self hatred, or think about his too-close friendship with Calum that had always bordered the side of not-just-friends. “Oh.” Calum pressed his lips together, not surprised in the slightest. “Cal, I’m sorry-“

Calum shook his head. “Don’t. I don’t need the ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ talk. I know, Ash. I know. And maybe it was selfish. But I just needed to say it.”

“despite the weather, it gets better”

did someone say Lashton with a dash of angst? this one just SCREAMS that you start at the angsty part, or right after, and work your way up to the optimistic ending. I had an...angstier thing I’d written but we’ll go with this one. tldr: Luke’s life falls apart. Ashton helps.

Luke was pretty sure his life was falling apart. It was….miserable, to say the least. His dad had died, and he’d lost his job, and then he’d have to move to the city over away from his mum to get another decent one. Putting the pieces of themselves back together was harder when they were in different places, felt like someone had dumped three puzzles out on the floor and asked him to separate the pieces and put them together.

The only saving grace of the entire thing has been Ashton. He shouldered more than he had to, taking Luke in and helping him put the pieces of himself back together. Figuring out which piece goes with which puzzle, which piece goes where, went a lot smoother with two people and an extra pair of eyes. And maybe - just maybe - despite all the shit the universe decided to put him through. Maybe it’ll end up alright.

“melancholy soundtrack”

okay admittedly this one would probably be a little angstier but I’m DONE with the angst sorry. this one is a college au featuring depressed Michael who’s bored with his life, and stressed out by everything to the point of numbness, who meets positive Calum, who’s full of fun ideas and manages to make Michael see the good side of life. they go on a road trip and fall in love thank u

Michael was…. stuck in a rut. His life was monotonous. He got up and did the same fucking thing every single day, and he did not have it in him to even try to break the stupid fucking routine he had. He was cursing whoever had told him university was a good idea, no matter how much his therapist had said it would benefit him in the long run. This was the short run and he fucking hated it.

Calum changed things, though. Just a little. Like a whirlwind of everything good in life, he showed up in Michael’s life and flipped it completely upside down. He was dragging him out to dog shelters, and the movies, and actually getting him out of bed. After a few months of nothing but the dull, unhappy melancholy soundtrack of his life, he was finally back to feeling somewhat human. So when he suggests a road trip over the summer, who is he to say no?

[abigailnussbaum]

Thoughts on Black Sails

Overall, I really liked it, though perhaps not exactly for the same reasons that the fandom (or at least the parts of it that keep showing up on my tumblr dash) does.  This might seem like a strange thing to say, but I think the thing that caught my interest, quite early on, was the fact that this is a workplace show, even if that workplace is a pirate stronghold in the Caribbean in 1715.  And by workplace show I mean not what anglophone TV usually produces when it makes workplace shows - soap operas where the main focus is who hates who and who is sleeping with who - but a story where the work, and how the personalities involved combine to accomplish it, is what’s paramount.  The ur-example of this type of story (and I realize this will seem like a weird comparison point, but I really did end up thinking about it quite a lot while watching) is Mad Men, though The Good Wife is also relevant.  They’re all shows where what really matters to the characters is the work - whether that’s landing a Coca Cola account or securing a shipwrecked Spanish treasure galleon.  As in Mad Men, in Black Sails sometimes you have to work with people you dislike because they have the skills you need.  Sometimes you end up liking people you thought you wouldn’t because you work well together.  Sometimes people you thought of as friends become unbearable because they’re focused on their own project or actively undermining yours.  And ultimately, loyalty is impossible, because when people get too old or too distracted to give their all, you have to leave them behind.  A true workplace show recognizes the inherent transience of that place, and I think Black Sails does that too.

I think I’m less invested in Flint than a lot of the fandom.  Not that I don’t like him - he’s a great character and a great performance - but he feels more like the engine of the story than the protagonist of it.  I’m more interested in the characters that change over the course of the show, like Silver or Max, or even the characters who don’t change but do learn, like Eleanor or Jack.  Flint, in comparison, feels like he keeps going in circles, repeating the same dynamic with different people.  To bring this back to Mad Men, he feels like a very Don Draper sort of character - someone of incredible intelligence and sensitivity who is so damaged by the tragedies that have happened to him, and the things he’s had to do to survive those tragedies, that he’s fundamentally incapable of growing beyond them.  Especially in the later seasons, how the other characters related to Flint reminded me a great deal of Don’s fall from grace in the later seasons of Mad Men, with everyone in his vicinity collectively coming to the conclusion that, yes, we love this guy; yes, he’s better at what he does than anyone else; but the emotional and practical toll of dealing with his bullshit is more than we’re willing to put up with anymore.

To continue the Mad Men analogy: Silver starts out as Pete and becomes Peggy.  Billy starts out as Joan and becomes Harry.  Poor Eleanor starts out as late-season Peggy and becomes early-season Joan.  Max is Shirley the secretary politely telling Roger Sterling to fuck off.

All this said, I think one of the things I like about Black Sails is that it isn’t a straightforward antihero show (and not just because everyone in it is an antihero, or even a straight-up villain whom we’re expected to care about).  It’s not about a single rebellious person in a generally functional environment whose chaotic behavior threatens to overturn it.  Here, it’s the environment that is chaotic, and the fact that so many of the characters are forced to behave like villains is a direct response to that.  And what most of them are doing, throughout the course of the show, is trying to make something more orderly out of their environment so that they can maybe live a more conformist (and even more just) life within it.  That’s not something that a lot of TV shows, antihero stories or otherwise, are concerned with - trying to make a better world.  And while I have reservations about how well the show achieves this, it’s definitely worth celebrating.

Another thing I really like is the plotting, and how it refuses to gloss over, and even relies on, the difficulty of achieving the characters’ goals, and the complications that emerge along the way.  The first two seasons are all about trying to orchestrate a single score.  The second two are driven in large part by the difficulties that emerge once you have that treasure, and the need to secure it and convert it into spendable cash.  This is not a show that is afraid of complications - every time a character, even a mastermind with a great deal of power and control, comes up with a plan, someone or something throws a spanner in the works, whether it’s a clash of personalities, or someone you trusted deciding to strike out for themselves, or even just the weather (I really like how this show uses storms to get in the way of the characters’ schemes; it’s the ultimate “men plan, god laughs”).  The only other show I can think of that is this concerned with the practical considerations of how things get done - in how information travels, how people get from one place to another, who has which resources - is Better Call Saul (and before it, Breaking Bad).  It’s nice to find another show that cares about that sort of thing.

I do not get the point of Charles Vane.  Like Flint, he moves the plot along, though without anything resembling the character complexity.  And I suppose he serves a purpose in that he’s the only character who isn’t trying to order his environment, who is perfectly happy with chaos as a way of life.  But guys, that’s a garnish, not a main dish.  Why we needed to spend so much time with the guy I have no idea.  (It really doesn’t help that alongside some pretty impressive 18th century costuming and styling, Zach McGowan looks like a stoked 21st century beach bum who wandered on to the set; in fairness, this is also a problem with Jessica Parker Kennedy, but Max is a much more interesting character so I’m willing to overlook it.)

I really dislike what the show does with Eleanor in the last two seasons.  In principle, I can see the writers deciding that she’s reached the end of her tether at Nassau and needs to make a change (and I can see Eleanor coming to that realization too).  But the way that she sublimates herself and her ambition to Woodes Rogers is really tough to watch - and especially because, unlike with Charles Vane, she never seems to realize that she’s tied herself to a psychopath.  It’s really striking how much more interesting she becomes in the few episodes in S4 when she gets to operate out from under his shadow, to once again make her own decisions and plans.  But even then, what she wants isn’t what she used to want, to build something lasting, but to escape with her family.  That’s not a unique choice - Silver ends up making the same sort of decision - but it means something else when a woman goes from having grand ambitions to having domestic ones, and I’m not sure the writers realize this.

I really don’t know how I feel about the way the show handles slavery.  I can accept that for the characters, even the ones who are supposedly radicals, slavery might be part of the background of their lives, an evil they sometimes ignore, sometimes make small stabs against, and sometimes participate in.  (Though even then, that feels only partially excusable; you can’t tell me that Thomas Hamilton was a freethinking reformer and in the same breath reveal that his only objection to how English colonies in the Caribbean were run was the treatment of pirates.)  But it often feels like the blind spot belongs to the show more than the characters.  Like, take the way that slavery is so often filtered through the experiences of white people.  The only main character who is a former slave, and allowed to feel angst about that, is Charles Vane.  And even as a free man, the suffering of other, black slaves is used as a way of jumpstarting his inner turmoil (while Mr. Scott has to be philosophical about it).  Or look at the way the show talks about slave rebellions, like when it tells us that the British soldiers captured by the free Maroons had their ears cut off and sent to their commander, or when it focuses on slave-owner Underhill’s wife and daughter during the attack on his plantation.  These are clichés of the slave rebellion narrative, designed to prioritize one kind of suffering over another, and I’m not entirely convinced the show realizes it’s indulging in them, much less does enough work to counteract them.

In theory, the fact that the final arc of the story involves our heroes participating in a slave rebellion should address all these issues, but again I’m not sure the show truly puts its money where its mouth is.  The fact that Flint incorporates emancipation into his revolutionary mindset (after, again, decades in which he seemed not to care about it at all) feels more like a way of moving the story along than something the writers expect us to care about.  The leaders of the slave rebellion don’t get to be characters on the same level as Flint, Silver, or Max, and the one exception, Madi, has a really powerful personality but doesn’t actually get to do that much, spending most of the second half of S4 being acted upon by white men.  By the end of the show, the three people whose feelings about the slave rebellion are meant to matter to us are Flint, who claims to care about it but who is probably, as Silver argues, just projecting his rage and need for revenge on a new target; Silver, who doesn’t care about it that much, and certainly not above his own desires; and Madi, who cares about it a great deal but doesn’t get to make any of the important decisions, except the one to forgive Silver for selling out her life’s ambition.  I get that this is part of the story’s conclusion - that when individuals try to fight empires, the result is rarely favorable, and the best choice possible might be to carve out a tiny bit of the world for yourself and just try to survive as long as you can.  But there’s a huge difference between accepting that your society victimizes the underclass, and accepting that your society designates some people as subhuman, which I’m not sure the show realizes.  And, you know, sixty years down the line, a rebellion against the British crown is going to succeed.  Twenty years after that, there’s going to be a successful slave rebellion.  Empires are tough, but history shows that they’re not unbeatable, and when talking about slavery, it may not be fair to conclude that the fight isn’t worth it.

I’m pretty dubious about the decision to end the show on a reunion between Flint and Thomas.  For one thing, I find Thomas’s survival pretty implausible - a New World plantation where the workers are white and upper class and which functions as a humane prison?  Really?  (I’m being inconsistent here, because Madi’s survival is, if anything, even more implausible and I don’t mind it at all, but given how much this institution dovetails with the show’s themes of how society treats the underclass, this feels a little more important.)  But more importantly, I just don’t buy that this is a happy ending, or even an ending at all.  If the show wanted me to believe that Flint can give up the persona he’s constructed in the years since losing Thomas, even as a result of learning that Thomas was still alive, it should have done the work of showing me this.  Telling it isn’t convincing, and I’m left with the belief that after the joy of reunion wears off, Flint will still be the same person we knew throughout the show (and that’s leaving aside who Thomas has become after ten years of imprisonment and hard labor, not to mention the news of Miranda’s death).  Best case, I think he orchestrates an escape and he and Thomas live out their lives in the woods; worst (and more likely) case, he never stops running and fighting, and Thomas becomes just one more person who gets eaten up in the attempt to protect Flint from himself.  But James Flint (or McGraw) agreeing to spend his life in prison?  No way.

Not unrelatedly, I feel like the decision not to feature a m/m romance in the main storyline of the show (that is, not including the flashbacks that introduce the James/Thomas romance, or the coda in which they are reunited) was a copout.  This is a show with tremendous LGBT rep and it deserves recognition for that, but every single same-sex romance that happens in the main story is between women.  Especially given how unbothered Silver and Madi are when they find out that Flint loved Thomas, would it have killed the writers to reveal that, say, Hornigold and de Groot have a semi-serious thing going on?  Or that Dufresne swings both ways?  It feels like a missed opportunity in a show that clearly cared very much about getting this sort of thing right.

Having said that, there’s no denying that the most important relationship in the show’s final season is a romance between men, albeit one that happens to be platonic.  Not only do Flint and Silver grow closer than almost any other relationship on the show in this season, but the terms in which they address each other and describe their relationship are the sort of thing you’d expect from a romance.  They talk about their feelings, about how they feel about each other, about their fears that their newfound trust and friendship won’t last.  Even in shows where same-sex attraction is never acknowledged, you rarely see this kind of emotional openness between male friends.  And it’s honestly nice that in a story in which m/m romance can and has happened, you can also acknowledge the possibility of close platonic friendship between men, even when one of them is bisexual, without any sort of “gay panic” on the part of the other (one assumes that the extreme romanticism with which Silver’s relationship with Madi is depicted was intended as a bulwark against this, but still).

In conclusion: good show; lots to think about; some problems; glad I watched.