#i really love talking about once upon a time season 5.

[d1xonss]

H EY could you possibly write a fic where the readers been on some heat the whole day just overall pissed, then there’s a fight outbreak in Alexandria and everyone crowding around & people calling Daryl so he comes, just to realise it’s his girl and he has to restrain her, pulling her away so she doesn’t continue beating the shit out of whoever and she’s MAD so he has to calm her down and gets her to just talk to him so he can help her. Just a thought yk 😛

Sticks and Stones

✧ Pairing : Daryl Dixon x Reader

✧ Era : Season 5

✧ Pronouns : she/her

✧ Genre : Fluff

✧ Word Count : 3k

AN ~ I like this idea a lot! Just the thought of Daryl helping her clean up and take care of her after something like this just makes me melt. ps- Sorry for the inactiveness lately, April has already been such a crazy month for me and I've sadly had little to no time to write. But I'll definitely start getting back on track soon. Hope you enjoy!

The weather was hot, sticky, and humid. Your hair was a frizzy mess, sticking up everywhere as you worked in the miserable weather. You were sweating in places you didn’t even think were possible to sweat from. Bottom line was, you were miserable.

The bad mood that was embedded in you only seemed to grow as the day dragged on longer and longer. It was bad enough that your group joined this new community in the first place, having to live with all of these complete strangers after everything you had been through with your family. But what seemed to make it even worse, was this community had some high expectations upon your arrival. The leader, Deanna, made it very clear that she wanted each and every one of you working like dogs in order to do your part just like everyone else.

Meanwhile her sons were sitting in their air conditioned houses without lifting a damn finger.

Though you didn’t mind putting in the work, in fact, that was all you did your whole life. You were never handed a damn thing, needing to learn to find your own way in life and work for everything you got instead of being spoiled rotten. But again, you didn’t mind. The only thing that bugged you was that there were clearly a few favorites that got special treatment. Though you weren’t just talking about Deanna’s sons.

For the past couple of days you had been scheduled to work with a small group of others that you tried to play nice with. And for the most part, they all seemed friendly enough, willing to pitch in and do the part they were told to complete. Everyone…except for this one bitch who seemed to love getting a rise out of you.

You didn’t know her name, you couldn’t be bothered to learn it. But that didn’t mean the urge for punching her in her stupid, fake ass face wasn’t growing the longer you were in the same vicinity. She didn’t do a damn thing other than tell every other person what to do. And she always seemed to make it her mission to get under your skin at least once a day to really add to your sour mood, really wanting to see how far she could push you. But you, of course, always did nothing. It’s not because you weren’t capable of defending yourself, but you knew even one screw up could get you, and possibly the rest of your family kicked out of here.

You didn’t want to take that chance. After all, this whole opportunity and hard work was the chance to prove that you were all worthy to stay within the thick, sturdy walls they had built. You didn’t want to screw it up for yourself, but you especially didn’t want to screw it up for anyone else. Which is why you kept to yourself for the most part, only smiling politely to the ones who showed you even an ounce of kindness as they passed by with a friendly greeting. Other than that your eyes just stayed down, in hopes that somehow the day would go by faster that way.

You and a few others were currently in the large garden that was placed practically directly in the middle of the community, instructed to pick the fruits and vegetables that were ripe enough to bring back to the pantry. The job was simple enough, knowing that when this last basket of yours was full, you would take everything back, wash them off, and place them in the right sections before finally heading back to your new home. You could practically hear the cool shower calling your name from all the way over here.

Though subconsciously, your gaze traveled up a few different times to keep an eye out for Daryl, seeing if he was maybe passing the area. You didn’t necessarily know the job he was given for the day, but what you did know was that it was hot as fuck outside. And seeing Daryl with his arms exposed, the signature leather vest, and sweat glistening off of him…the sight would surely make your day ten times better than how it was going.

But everytime you did a subtle scan, he was nowhere to be found, and you couldn’t help but sigh a bit dramatically as all you wanted was to take him home and use that last bit of energy you had left.

“Hey!”

You were snapped out of your lustful daze suddenly when you heard a familiar voice from the other end of the space, seeing the one blonde bitch who wouldn’t get off your back, her face scowling into a glare.

You raised your arms up from your slightly crouched position, “What?”

“I can see you slacking off from all the way over here, get back to work!” she called with her hands sassily on her hips.

You sent her a bitter smile before ducking your head back down in attempts to pull yourself together, “Oh, I’ll get back to work.” you spoke under your breath, “Work on shoving this foot up your ass.” you grumbled as you began picking a few more ripe strawberries.

A few minutes of peace passed, moving down the line as you scanned for any more things that were ready to be picked off the vine. Your small basket sat by your feet as it was nearly filled to the brim with the amount of fruit you collected over the past hour or so. That is…until it wasn’t.

Out of the corner of your eye you could see someone’s shadow coming from your left as whoever it was seemed to just be passing by. But the sound of their foot coming in contact with the wooden basket right beside you is what caused your gaze to snap up, already knowing who the hell it was. Her blonde hair blowing behind her as she didn’t even stop to look at the mess she made was kind of a dead giveaway.

You shot up to your feet as annoyance began to quickly overtake you, causing you to open your mouth before you even got a chance to think twice. “What the fuck?” you called after her.

She turned around on instinct, as if she was expecting you to say something, a small smirk on her face as she shrugged. “What?”

You pressed your lips together as your annoyance grew, stepping up closer to her so you could keep the conversation quiet, “What the hell is your problem? You don’t think I can tell you’re doing this shit on purpose?”

“Oh I know you can.” she said with a bitchy tilt of her head, her arms coming to cross over her chest, “I’m just wondering when the fuck you’re going to get a clue.”

“Well, why don’t you just spell it out for me, because I’m getting pretty tired of dealing with the same bullshit from you.” you stated bluntly.

She scoffed, “You and your grubby little group don’t belong here.” she spat harshly, “None of you are what we need for this community, in fact, you’re only tearing us down. I don’t even know why Deanna let you people in here in the first place.”

Her words caused your eyebrows to fly up in utter surprise. You expected her to attack you, shoot insults directed toward you. But you never expected in a million years that she would have the audacity to go after your family the way she did with little to no reason at all. 

And in the end, that’s what pushed you over the edge as you laughed at her, not needing to come up with a single response as you had a few other things in mind.

Daryl was on the other end of the community, patrolling around the streets when he heard the sudden commotion. At first he couldn’t quite pinpoint what was going down, only seeing a swarm of people flooding toward one area where lots of shouts and panicked voices were coming from. Curiosity eventually got the better of him as his brows furrowed in confusion, his pace picking up as he approached the gardens, opening the white gates to step inside.

His eyes squinted as he could tell there was some sort of fight breaking out, the people surrounding them either cheering them on, or trying to rip them apart. He leaned from side to side, trying to see who was in the middle of it all as he silently prayed he was wrong about what he originally assumed. But then there was a small parting in the crowd, allowing him to catch a glimpse in between them, and his face dropped.

Some random guy was holding you back as you attempted to hit the blonde girl at the other end of the circle they created, clawing out of his grip every so often to get another swing in while she cried. Daryl then didn’t waste another second, harshly shoving his way through the crowd to get to you in attempts to stop you from doing anymore damage. It was almost like he couldn’t get to you fast enough, either that, or you were just quick when it came to nearly tearing her head off.

“Hey!” he shouted once he was close enough, pulling you out of the man’s grasp in attempts to hold you back himself, “Stop!”

You hardly even heard his voice, your ears ringing as you continued to try and pry his hands off of you, desperately trying to swing again as the woman sobbed. Her nose bloody and a bruise forming on her right cheek. She clearly couldn’t fight for shit considering she had such a big mouth.

Daryl groaned as he yanked you back harshly, “Damnit (Y/N), I said stop!” he shouted once more, his voice enough to silence everyone in an instant.

The familiar voice then finally registered with you as well, whipping your head around quickly to see him, smoke nearly coming out of his ears. Your face softened as you instantly came to the realization of the damage you just caused, the potential outcome of your actions suddenly terrifying you.

Your head shook slightly as you tried to speak, “I-”

“Get back to the house.”

His tone was firm, but somehow still held a bit of gentleness. You sighed as you took yourself out of his hold, not needing to be told twice as you slowly began to walk out of the crowded area. Now seeing the amount of people that witnessed your meltdown, you suddenly wanted to crawl into a hole and die, feeling all their watchful eyes on you as Daryl quickly ushered you the rest of the way out. The last thing you barely caught a glimpse of, was a few others crowding around the blonde as she continued to cry her eyes out with her beaten face.

There wasn’t a single word spoken between the two of you. Just silence. And it was killing you.

He didn’t utter a word, only gesturing you into the bathroom for you to sit at the edge of the tub, before pulling out a first aid kid from the closet. Your brows furrowed in confusion as she hadn’t laid a hand on you, but then your eyes traveled down to your own hands, seeing how cut up and bloody they were. The pain hadn’t even registered to you, you hardly felt the sting at all as if your adrenaline was still pumping fast through your system.

Daryl wordlessly kneeled down in front of you, taking your hands with such softness in his touch as he cleaned you up with precision. You could tell he was trying to be as careful as he could, despite the fact that he was probably upset. Hell, the whole group would probably be upset with you for a while, over something that you could now never take back. Something that you could never undo. All because you couldn’t keep your head on straight.

You were forced to think about it even more as the silence only lingered, playing the imagines back over and over again in your mind. You wanted to say it was worth it, to see her actually get somewhat of a taste of her own bitter medicine, knowing now she would probably never fuck with you again. But the fate of the future, what would come next, still weighed heavily on you as it was clearly unknown.

You then sighed softly as you looked down at him, “I…I’m sorry.” your voice spoke barely above a whisper.

He nodded as he kept his eyes down, finishing up your left hand as he wrapped it in some bandages, “I know ya are.”

“You don’t know the things she was saying…what she’s been doing ever since we fucking got here. God…I know I shouldn’t have taken it that far, but that bitch got what she deserves, trust me.” you spoke bitterly, trying to convince yourself more than you were trying to convince him.

Daryl’s eyes then glanced up to you, a small smile on his lips as he nodded again, “I know.”

Your brows furrowed in both confusion and surprise, “You’re…you’re not mad?”

“Why would I be mad?” he asked, his voice a lot more gentle than it was before. But then again you could only assume it was all just the heat of the moment.

You shook your head softly, “I don’t know…” you muttered, glancing down to your hands as you slightly examined them, mostly to avoid his eyes as you knew he would be able to see right through you.

And he did. His brows furrowed as a few seconds of silence passed before he spoke again, “Yeah ya do. You just don’t wanna say it.”

A heavy sigh passed through your lips as you looked back up at him, “I just…I know that doing that was a big mistake.”

His eyes softened as he heard the timidness in your tone, “Everyone makes mistakes, sweetheart.” he said as he raised his hand to tuck some hair behind your ear, “It’s alright.”

“No…that’s not what I mean.” you said with a shake of your head, “I…I fucked up…I fucked up everything. Once Deanna finds out what happened, once she finds out that we can’t work with her people, she’ll kick us out. And then we’ll be back on the road without any food, or water, or anything. We barely made it last time, I-”

“Hey.” Daryl interrupted you softly, raising his hands to gently grip your forearms, “What are ya talkin about? None of that’s gonna happen.”

“But she’s already weary of us, we’re the big, scary outside people. The second she realizes that we won’t be able to fit in here, there’s no way she’ll let us stay.”

The man in front of you couldn’t help but smirk, which at first confused you, but then you found yourself rolling your eyes. “The big, scary outside people?” he repeated with a light chuckle.

You gave him a pointed look, “This is serious.”

“I know, I know.” he assured, “But I also know you’ve been bustin yer ass damn near everyday tryin to prove that you can be trusted here. That we can be trusted here. So…I think right now, you just need to take a second and breathe…okay?”

You stared at him for a moment before swallowing a bit thickly and nodding your head, taking a deep breath in attempts to calm your nerves. It felt like your brain was scattered all over the place and you knew he was right in saying that you just needed to fucking chill out for a second. You still had your worries about the outcome, but for some reason the longer you looked at the man sitting in front of you, the more those thoughts started to disappear.

After a few moments of silence, you felt him gently squeeze your arms again as he hadn’t taken his eyes off of you, “Ya got pretty worked up back there, killer. And I don’t think this stress and worryin is helpin. We’re here for a reason…to have a fighting chance. And you just gotta trust that over time, everythin’s just gonna work itself out…no matter what.”

He was so confident in his words, it made you want to feel confident too. It made you want to believe that this would all pass, and you didn’t completely screw up this opportunity like you assumed. Though there was still something else on your mind.

“But what about the fight? I mean…I messed her up pretty bad.” 

He simply shrugged, “Good.”

Your eyebrows raised in slight shock, “What?”

“That bitch got what was coming to her. Truth is, ever since ya told me about what’s been goin on, I’ve been dyin for ya to knock some damn sense into her. If anything, I wanted to cheer you on.” he winked.

You couldn’t help but laugh, “Well, you always have been my biggest supporter…” you trailed off as you looked down toward your hands again, “And the best doctor around.”

He hummed with a small smile before grasping your hands gently, raising them up to his mouth to leave a few kisses on the back of your bandaged knuckles as if to seal the healing process.

You smiled a little to yourself at his actions, “So…you really think we’ll be okay?”

“We’ll be just fine.” he muttered as he placed one final kiss on your skin, “It’ll breeze over, people will move on. Cause I think they all kinda know she was the problem to begin with.”

“God, I hope so.” you scoffed, “And even though I kinda lost it…it felt good.” you admitted almost a bit sheepishly.

He chuckled as he pulled at your hands a little, helping you stand back up to your feet as he did, “Looked pretty good too.” he confirmed as he held you close, placing a kiss on top of your head. “I think you could use some kinda award for doin that.”

You smirked as you looked up at him, “Well…I could use a massage.”

He smiled right back at you as he nodded, “Done.”

~ Thanks for reading!

[radicalreliablerandomness]

Podcast Rec Masterpost

I've been asked a couple times for podcast recommendations so I thought I'd post a compilation of some shows and a bit of info about them. Most shows I talk about are tagged below (I ran out of tags) so you can look through fan content as well if you're not one to care about spoilers. My asks are still open for personalized recs if you send me some others that you've listened to just because I love you, yes that's right! You. The person reading this right now!

Here goes!

Dungeons And Daddies *not a BDSM podcast

This show is a dnd actual play podcast. The first season is about four dads from our world lost in the Forgotten Realms in search of their lost sons. It’s a comedy but as with all comedies, you will cry by the end of it. It's super easy to get into with great chemistry between all the cast players and the dm, no prior knowledge of dnd is necessary. They do invoke slight horror sometimes so do keep an eye out for content warnings. Season 1 has 68.5 episodes along with bonus content and a mini campaign in between seasons 1 and 2. Season 2 is currently ongoing. Transcripts available.

The Bright Sessions

This is a science fiction podcast. The premise is a collection of clinical recordings of superpowered people's therapy sessions. The plot gets more interesting and convoluted as you get further in. Incredible voice acting filled with emotion. Does have some heavier discussions so be on the lookout for content warnings. It has 7 seasons (the last two are technically not part of the first five seasons' plot) and is completed. Transcripts available.

Hello From the Hallowoods

A post-apocalyptic fiction podcast. A beautifully written and preformed podcast that explores identity, religion, and other themes in vignettes throughout this haunted world narrated by an omniscient being. Some heavier topics are included so check the content warning before each episode. Seasons 1 and 2 are completed and season 3 will be done soon. Transcripts available.

The Magnus Archives

A horror fiction podcast. A well written chronological story told through anthology which seem to be tape recordings from a paranormal investigation institute. Incredible writing and actors that really bring it to life. This is horror so make sure to check the content warnings. The show is completed at 5 seasons. Transcripts available.

Neighbourly

Another horror fiction podcast! An interesting look into all the houses on Little Street and their peculiarities. Some more peculiar than others. The podcast is absolutely delightful with a horribly fun narrator. I would suggest checking the content warnings as some episodes are more intense than others. The show has 2 completed seasons. Transcripts available.

The Fall of the House of Sunshine

A musical mystery fiction podcast. The first season is about an investigation on the murder of a beloved host of a children's tooth-themed show. That's all I can say without spoilers. There are 3 incredible seasons along with short stories in between each season. Transcripts available until halfway through season 2.

Welcome to Nightvale

Possibly the most well known science fiction podcast, it really speaks for itself but I'll do my spiel anyways. Recorded as snippets of a daily radio broadcast, the show details the weird goings on in this strange desert town of Nightvale. Narrated almost completely by the radio host's smooth voice. It's ongoing and is currently sitting at 233 episodes. Transcripts available.

The Two Princes

A fictional queer romance podcast. It takes place in that special part of fiction that always starts with "once upon a time," it feels like a story book almost. The show is based around two boys meeting in the woods. Spoiler alert: they fall in love. It's just a cute feel good show. The podcast is complete at 3 seasons. Spotify auto-generated transcripts available.

What's the Frequency?

A self described psychedelic noir podcast. It's an absolute blast even if it is a bit hard to follow. Takes place in the 1940s in LA when all radio broadcasts were turned to static. You kind of just have to go with it until you get to the end. Completed at 12 episodes. Transcripts available.

Story Break

A writer's room podcast. The basic concept behind Story Break is 3 Hollywood writers in a room together take a prompt and try to make a story for it in an hour. There are many laughs in this podcast and just all around good humor and vibes. The show is complete at 169 episodes plus two full movie scripts. No transcript.

Who Killed Avril Lavigne

A science fiction podcast. It's about a time traveling pop punk loser and that's all you need to know. It's a podmusical so you'll be getting great nostalgic pop punk type songs along with crying from laughing so hard. Completed at 8 episodes. No transcript.

The Behemoth

A fiction podcast. Based around an unexplainable creature emerging from the ocean and how the world, and one girl in particular, deal with this phenomenon. It is pretty short with the longest episode being about 12 minutes. Completed at 20 episodes. No transcript.

Rude Tales of Magic

A dnd actual play podcast. It is mainly focused on the actual roleplay and story telling as opposed to the actual play. A handful of college students from Polaris University fuck the world up by completing a hazing ritual which in this case is a supposedly demon summoning. Obviously now they need to fix the world. Currently 64 episodes and ongoing. No transcript.

Midnight Burger

A very well written fiction podcast. It’s about a time/space traveling diner where the employees try to help solve a problem every place they land. Think Doctor Who adjacent vibes but with more drama. There is an overarching plot that comes together so look out for that. It has incredible characters that are really nicely fleshed out. You’ll somehow like and hate all of them as much as possible in the best way. Currently has 29 episodes of the main feed and a 9 episode mini-series. Transcript available.

Monstrous Agonies

A fiction podcast. It’s an radio advice segment on a station for “liminal Britain” aka the monstrous world to put it plainly. It’s really chill and comforting. There’s very good advice there and the intermittent ad reads will have you giggling to yourself. Episodes are on the shorter side, averaging about 15 minutes each. It does have some heavier discussions so make sure to check the content warnings. The show is completed at 111 episodes through 3 seasons. Transcripts available.

Desert Skies

A fiction podcast. The voice acting in this one is incredible, it’s the same person the whole time. The show as a whole is also just super well done. The premise is that when you die you show up on a highway and get to this astral pit stop. I’m not going to spoil it anymore you just have to experience it. There is an additional show, Desert Skies FM that's a buddy to this one. I recommend listening to both. Season 1 was completed at 12 episodes. Transcripts available.

Wooden Overcoats

A sitcom dramedy podcast. The show is about two siblings that run a funeral home on an island. It used to be the only one, it isn’t anymore. It has a wacky cast of characters and even wackier plot points. The dialogue can be a little hard to get used to at the beginning but once you get into it it flows easily. The show is completed at 4 seasons. Transcripts available.

Greater Boston

An audio drama podcast. It's set in Boston if you couldn't tell from the title and starts with the death of a man on a rollercoaster. It blends real life with some subtle (and at times not-so-subtle) fantasy elements. It's currently at 4 completed seasons. Transcript available.

Gay Future

A science fiction podcast. In a world where everyone is gay in the future we focus on this one straight kid. Following his journey to destroy the government who are making everyone gay. This is a satire by the way. 1 season completed at 6 episodes. No transcripts.

Death by Dying

A dark comedy podcast. The show follows an obituary writer while he does things that are totally under the jurisdiction of his job. A well written and preformed show. There are a lot of laughs and obviously some heartbreaks as well. Currently 1 completed season with season 2 sitting at 2 episodes for a bit now. Transcript available.

Not Another D&D Podcast

An actual play dnd podcast. This one's more mainstream than my other podcasts so I don't talk about it as much but that doesn't mean it's not incredible. The first campaign is about 3 adventurers off to save the world. Obviously. It can be a bit slow in the beginning but anything past the second half of the first season is incredible. There's humor, drama, love, and much more. The DM is also just incredible. 1 completed season, a couple mini campaigns, and the second season is currently at 43 episodes. No transcripts.

Forgive Me!

A fiction podcast. It starts based around vignettes of confessionals in this small town taken by a new father in the local church. An overarching plot is present but it's generally a feel good, sweet and simple show. They have 2 complete seasons with season 3 currently at 9 episodes. Transcripts available.

Real Housewives of D&D

An actual play dnd podcast. This show is based around the concept of a "Real Housewives..." type show but you don't need to know anything about those to listen to this. It's about 4 reality TV stars thrown into a magical fantasy world with no knowledge of how to get home. There's drama, excitement, danger, and lots more. The first season was just completed at 16 episodes. Transcripts available.

The Silt Verses

A horror fiction podcast. Two people who worship a banned god travel together up a river in a pilgrimage. There is incredible worldbuilding in this show along with acting and sound design. This is horror and a very good one at that so make sure you check content warnings. Season 1 and 2 are completed and season 3 is at 2 episodes so far. Transcripts available.

The Land Whale Murders

A comedy fiction podcast. It takes place in the year 1899 and is about a pair of friends? maybe not, that metaphorically explore the world they're living in. It is a commentary on the world we live in and the problems in it through a hilarious and wacky cast. There are currently 17 episodes between both seasons 1 and 2. Transcripts available.

Elaine's Cooking for the Soul

A post-apocalyptic cooking podcast. The show is about a dentist who makes her way through the fallout of an apocalypse while also making a cooking podcast. It does have depictions of violence, war, and dentistry so check out the content warnings. There are 2 completed seasons. No transcripts.

Fawx and Stallion

A mystery podcast. If you hate Sherlock Holmes you'll love this podcast. Also if you love Sherlock Holmes you'll love this podcast. It's based around the detectives who live across the street from Holmes at 224B Baker street. It's pretty goofy. Season 1 is completed. Transcripts available.

The Amelia Project

A fiction podcast. Follow the shenanigans of this death-faking organization as they take in new clients and hear their stories. It does develop an actual overarching plot later on but every second is fun. Seasons 1-4 have been completed and season 5 is in progress. Transcripts available.

A Voice From Darkness

A horror podcast. It's centered around a radio show hosted by Dr. Malcolm Ryder, Parapsychologist. He helps people who call into his show with supernatural problems, gives PSAs and warnings about strange happenings, and more. Season 1 is completed and season 2 is at 9 episodes. Transcripts available.

Station Arcadia

A dystopian fiction podcast. Formatted through a radio show, it tells the story of a world that's slowly dying. There are vignettes of different characters through different areas of the world. Season 1 is completed at 25 episodes. Transcripts available.

Margaret's Garden

A science fiction podcast. It has two plots running at the same time which keeps you on your toes but makes for an intriguing story line. In one plot line, two agents are sent to investigate the strange happenings of a weird little long abandoned town. Simultaneously, we hear from the past of that town as it catches up to the agents. Completed at 10 episodes. Transcripts available.

Camp Here & There

A horror comedy podcast. It's recorded as a set of daily announcements over a loudspeaker at a totally normal summer camp. The announcements are made by the camp nurse and he's also totally normal. I promise. Make sure to check in with the content warnings as some topics are a little mature or graphic. There are currently 34 episodes. Transcripts available.

Wayward Guide for the Untrained Eye

A companion horror podcast. This is actually a bit meta because it is the result of a youtube series. This show is the one the podcast hosts in the series release, it's definitely worth both the watch and the listen though. It's got werewolves and drama. Completed at 10 episodes of video and 10 of the podcast. No transcripts.

I am in Eskew

A horror podcast. It's about a man who's trapped in a city where the buildings always change and the rain never stops. There's a weird monotonous creeping horror in this show that just draws you in. Check for content warnings definitely. Completed at 30 episodes. Transcripts available.

Traveling Light

A comfy cozy fiction podcast. It follows The Traveller on their exploration through space, visiting alien planets and collecting stories to send back to their community. For supporters of the show, it almost functions as a choose-your-own-adventure with choices to vote on and listener submissions. It's made by the same people as Monstrous Agonies so if you enjoyed that, you'd enjoy this and vice versa. There are currently 16 episodes. Transcripts available.

Not yet described but still recommended:

Eeler’s Choice

The Secret of St Kilda

The Endless Ocean

The Department of Variance of Somewhere, Ohio

The Sword & The Stoner

World Gone Wrong: a fictional chat show about friendship at the end of the world

Travelling Light

Waterlogged

[solomons-finest-rum]

Hello to one of my favourite Alfie fic writers! Since you're taking requests, I'd like to make one as well.

I don't know how it works but how about a scenario/imagine where Tommy gets in some kind of trouble (as always) and Alfie suggests that his lovely gangster wife could help and goes to introduce them but as it turns out it's none other than the Shelby's sister/cousin/relative/friend/or maybe even an ex? (Your call one this one) who they thought was dead or something?

Idk if it's even worth your time and effort but I just wanted to make a request ;) No pressure, of course!

Love you and your writing a lot!

“As The Crow Flies” (Alfie Solomons x fem!Reader) — PART 1

SUMMARY — By all accounts Anna Gray died in Australia and had no business standing in Alfie’s living room, nor calling the man “darling” for that matter. But there you were, identical to the picture they took when they shipped you off to the colonies.

AUTHOR’S NOTE — Thank you to @zablife for being the most gracious beta!💗💗💗💗💗 and thank you Anon for this request, because actually it inspired a full-blown multi-chapter idea! So this is set around... Season 5 I suppose? But I'm going to ignore everything in it and Season 6 too. Let's pretend none of it happened and just focus on the fun part! That is driving Tommy insane and making Alfie say outrageous lines.

WORD COUNT — 2,286

Masterlist

In retrospect, Tommy Shelby felt he should have known better. He should have fucking known that the moment, the moment, he came to Margate to sort the bloody situation out, exactly two things would happen.

One, he would have to sit and listen with a straight face to Alfie’s inspired monologue, the subject of which had swerved from elephants to bank robbery in about two and a half minutes, and then managed to touch upon just about everything else under the sun.

Tommy remained quite sure that the sense of Alfie’s rambling had been long lost to history and the point of it all was just to talk him to death, really. Put him out of his misery with nonsense alone.

“Now then, Tommy, as I said, right, I ain’t the vindictive type, I really ain’t, so I am gonna help ya out just this once, right, outta the goodness of my own heart.”

Tommy managed not to roll his eyes. Barely.

“‘Cause I am a changed man these days, Tommy, an’ it can be that the old man that I am, I’m goin’ soft on ya, right, an’ so tradition dictates, mate, to ask for more than ten thousand for my troubles.”

Tommy raised a brow.

“But as things currently stand with the medical bills, on the account of bein’ shot in the face by some cunt, right… Fifteen would sound proper fair, mate.”

Thank fuck for small mercies, Tommy thought, then lit another cigarette and promptly got up to leave. Alfie apparently managed to settle both sides of the conversation, negotiations included, and their American problem could very well sort itself out all on his own—thus proving to Tommy once more that the only thing he could really count on in this world had always been lunatics.

“Right, the fuck you’re doin’ now, sit down!”

Tommy frowned and remained standing, cigarette in the corner of his mouth and sheer outrage emanating from his entire person. The question of “what in fuck’s name do you want now, you crazy bastard?” overtook his face.

“Right, I need to make a bloody phone call,” Alfie said then, which explained exactly nothing.

Yes, that was the second thing Tommy had been so sure would happen. Alfie would first go on a tangent, then formulate a plan that involved three separate layers of deception, a bribe, and a crate of dynamite (probably).

Then Tommy would get caught in the middle as bloody always and Polly would have his head for going along with Alfie’s plan in the first place.

What he didn’t expect was for Alfie to change his tone of voice completely as soon as the person picked up on the other end:

“Yeah, darlin’, it’s me. Come to the house, alright? Right, ‘cause I need ya here for somethin’. No, not like the— Bloody hell, woman, just don’t fuckin’ argue with me for once, alright?”

Sometimes a rare occasion would present itself for Tommy Shelby to become fucking speechless. Truth be told, he remained rather surprised that two such occasions had also involved Alfie Solomons, undoubtedly purely for the Devil’s bloody amusement.

“Who was that then, Alfie?”

“None of ya fuckin’ business.”

Tommy had a sneaky feeling there wasn’t a clever enough question in existence that could have pushed Alfie to say anything more. He looked smug as hell for having pulled that stunt off so Tommy was willing to see it through.

For old time’s sake.

The sun was setting and they had another drink, then Tommy let Alfie go on another tangent about… Tea import. Perhaps. Who knew, he wasn’t really listening.

On drink three Tommy was alerted by a car pulling up to the house, followed by a door slam and a rhythmic clacking of high heels on the porch. Tommy looked to Alfie, but the man remained infuriatingly calm.

Just as Tommy was about to reach for his gun, the door to Alfie’s study opened unceremoniously and a scent of expensive perfume wafted across the room. Tommy turned around and tried his best to keep up the indifferent facade, but failed miserably. Nothing could have prepared him for you walking through that door, with a giant bodyguard no less, following you like a second shadow.

“Alright there, Billy?” Alfie greeted the bodyguard casually and the man grunted in response. “Right then, might ya wait in the car for us, mate? This whole bloody business will take a minute.”

Tommy then watched as Alfie approached you and planted an affectionate kiss to your cheek, at which point Tommy stood up abruptly.

For a moment he just stood there and stared; a state he didn’t find himself in too often these days. 

“Darling, are we having guests?” you asked Alfie in a tone so familiar to Tommy; so like your mother. Pleasant, on the verge of sarcastic. 

By God, either that Camden bastard was a magician or you had a twin sister that Polly never mentioned. Because it wasn’t possible… It couldn’t be you. Not according to the file he stole from the parish. By all accounts Anna Gray died in Australia and had no business standing in Alfie’s living room, nor calling the man “darling” for that matter. But there you were, identical to the picture they took when they shipped you off to the colonies. 

“Right then, Tommy, might I present my lovely wife,” Alfie said. “Sweetie, this here is Tommy Shelby, right, all the way from the ungodly place they call Birmingham—”

“Tommy Shelby?” you interrupted and looked at Tommy with a smile so like Polly’s that Tommy nearly lost his composure again. “My, my… And there you went and promised you were done with the life, Alfie.”

“Right, an’ how could that—”

“Anna,” Tommy interrupted what he was sure was a budding monologue from Alfie. 

“Yes?” you asked. “You know my name?”

“I… Know your mother.”

“Know?” There it was again. That curious smirk of yours that could really mean anything. Tommy found it harder and harder to keep up the charade.

“But that’s not possible, Mr. Shelby.”

“What’s not possible?”

Your tone remained polite, but your dark eyes said it all. The expression of quiet resolve Tommy thought only one person capable of delivering with such resentment.

“I’m an orphan, Mr. Shelby.”

Tommy said nothing to that, because what in hell could he even say? All of a sudden the American issue faded into nothingness, replaced solely by the phantom standing before him.

“So you did not lie, I see,” you turned to your husband with a quizzical expression, seeing as Tommy went quiet again. “He really is as strange as the papers make him. No matter, though, Mr. Shelby, I hope you like chicken? My husband insists I’m a terrible cook, but you must stay for dinner.”

Tommy nodded mechanically and put out his cigarette just to busy his hands with something. When he looked at Alfie, though, Tommy noticed how the man’s mouth twitched, clearly indicating the scheme was playing exactly how he wanted it to. Mad bastard, Tommy thought. There was no saying if he was being played or tricked or helped. Probably all at once, but solely for Alfie’s benefit of course.

“Right, curious as I am, luv, what delectable fuckin’ option you maimed and butchered for dinner, Tommy isn’t stayin’—” Alfie then stopped himself when two sets of identical Shelby scowls got directed his way.

Tommy did stay for dinner and made sure to clean his plate, too. He didn’t mind the food at all; it reminded him of Polly’s simple cooking back in the day when she would take care of Tommy and his siblings in Small Heath.

The more he listened to you talk and bicker with Alfie, the more of your mother he saw in you and the angrier he got at seeing you here of all places, as Alfie’s wife, unable to speak to you in plain terms. Tommy wasn’t exactly sure which made him angrier, though—the fact that you were Alfie’s wife or the fact that the sly bastard had kept you from your true family for who knows how many years. How did he even find you?

All the questions he had were still swirling around in Tommy’s head and he wasn’t particularly paying attention to anything else, besides staring daggers at Alfie. He was hoping there would be a moment to talk to you alone, but of course your husband would never allow it. He watched Tommy like a hawk the entire evening, sometimes with just a hint of a smile to suggest he was still three steps ahead of everyone else.

“See you never got accustomed to that fancy cookin’ they’re offerin’ ya at the mansion these days, Tommy,” Alfie said, undoubtedly truly enjoying the charade. “Tommy’s an MP, darlin’, right about two steps from gettin’ a knighthood I reckon. Yeah, a real prince he is.”

The way Alfie said the word was so clearly a jab at Tommy’s ancestry that he didn’t even flinch. What he was curious about was your reaction, but you remained perfectly pleasant: 

“Don’t tease, love, we haven’t had guests in ages and I’m not letting you drive this one away.”

When the maid took away the plates, you lit a cigarette in a swift overdone gesture and Tommy was once more taken aback with your resemblance to Polly. 

“Well, I’ll leave ya both to it,” you announced as you got up. “It was a pleasure, Mr. Shelby.” You extended your hand and Tommy shook it. “I know you tried your best with the chicken and I appreciate it,” you paused and tilted your head to the side as if sizing Tommy up.

“I rarely trust your husband’s judgement,” he replied.

The way you smiled reminded Tommy of a cat that got into the pantry. He decided not to think about it too much.

“I see. Goodnight then, Mr. Shelby.”

As soon as Tommy heard you got upstairs, he turned to Alfie who, unsurprisingly, already had a gun pointed at him. It was a casual way of it that was the most infuriating—Alfie’s hand was more so resting on the table and the gun just happened to be there, pointing at Tommy. 

“Now then, Tommy, let’s be reasonable about this, mate.”

Tommy clenched his jaw and remained silent, but his murderous glare said it all.

“There are four people at the house, right, includin’ you, me, my wife, then the maid… Then there’s Billy outside, right, who’s gonna be rightly worried once he doesn’t get my dismissal for the night. So I want ya to be real cold an’ calculated about it, Tommy, just like I know ya can be, ‘cause if ya decide to off me for no reason now…”

“No reason.”

“Right.”

“You’re old enough to be her father.”

“Yeah an’ fortunately I’m not, ‘cause that’d be right fuckin’ awkward at the temple, mate.”

“Temple?”

“What’d ya think, Tommy, that I smacked her over the head and dragged her into my cave?”

“Somethin’ like that.”

“Right, we’ll have to show ya the pictures then, she looked stunnin’.” Alfie leaned back in his chair. “Tell ya what, mate, why don’t ya come by for tea one day?”

“Tea.”

“Yeah. We have it, Tommy, we’re not animals.”

Tommy said nothing to that. He was still reviewing his options, but as he wasn’t a fan of spontaneous action, the patient approach seemed appropriate. The offer, though, just like everything else about the situation, was fucking infuriating.

“Cat got your tongue?”

“Fuck you, Alfie.”

That finally made Alfie smile and for some reason he lowered the gun.

“Right, so seein’ as we’re family, Tommy, and what a happy coincidence this is, I must say, I feel like we should talk fuckin’ proper. None of that shit.” Alfie then gestured between them as if he hadn’t been responsible for “that shit” in the first place.

“We’ve been talking, Alfie,” Tommy deadpanned.

“Yeah, but then there’s still somethin’ ya haven’t told me about your American troubles, isn’t there, mate, so I’m expectin’ you’ll be more honest with me in the future. Now that I’ve brought the right arguments to the table…”

The hint of a threat in that statement almost made Tommy wish he still had his razor cap around.

“She’s Polly’s only daughter, Alfie.”

“Right, I’m aware of that.”

Tommy nodded, feigning understanding between them. As always, handling Alfie very much resembled handling a live grenade without a pin.

“This can’t be the way to end things.”

“Who’s endin’ things, Tommy?”

“I’m just saying.”

“Yeah, an’ I’m going to let this one slide, Tommy, ‘cause you just got a lot to process, mate, so I’m prepared to be understandin’.”

Tommy shook his head and reached into his jacket pocket, at which Alfie uncocked the gun. Tommy slowly pulled out his cigarette box, but Alfie never even flinched. It was gruesomely reassuring to still have been right, even in the position that Tommy currently found himself in. 

Alfie Solomons would always remain Alfie Solomons, even with the whole song and a dance about getting old and senile. He was still the same mad bastard Tommy came to know all those years ago, and as things stood, Tommy found himself wondering if this time he shouldn’t try poison instead of a bullet.

“Tommy,” Alfie sighed, “with three good eyes workin’ between us, mate, I really would greatly mind if I somehow acquired a fuckin’ tumour in my lungs, too.”

Tommy said nothing and he knew Alfie hated it.

“Which means put that shit out, mate, and listen to what I’m about to say, ‘cause I got a feeling you’ll really wanna hear it.”

[leosficlist]

POST S-4 Getting Together

These fics are about their relationship Post Season 4, which could include apologies and fix-its, or simply fics which acknowledged the events of S4!

Bridges by sussexbound 🔒6.6k words

The silence between them is deafening, interrupted only by the hum of the traffic outside, and the soft click-clunk of the plastic cups Rosie is playing with on the floor beside them. It is the first time they have been alone together, since Sherlock’s birthday. It’s only been two days, but it feels huge, important, like there is a precarious bridge stretched out before them both that they need to at least attempt to traverse.

Nocturne by Atiki 6.6k words

All the most important conversations happen at night.

holding steady by darcylindbergh 12.7k words

“Sitting on a thick wool blanket at the end of a rickety dock side-by-side, legs dangling over the edge, a styrofoam container of wet, dark dirt between them, they’re fishing.”

John knows what this is about. This is about finally figuring it out.

notes: post-everything, no eurus mention, getting away for the weekend

Finally Home by LondonSpirit 🔒 3.5k words

“After the final problem is solved, after everything's resolved, and Sherlock and John have returned to a more or less ordinary life, there's only one ting left to do.

But can they eventually admit what everyone else already knew for a long time, or are they still too blind to see?”

Sehnsucht by unicornpoe 14.7k

Sehnsucht: longing, pining, yearning, craving, intensely missing. An individual’s search for happiness while coping with the reality of unattainable wishes.

John is here now, yes, yes he is. He and Rosie are back home in 221B with Sherlock, safe where they belong... but why is there still a hole deep inside Sherlock, wide and gaping and consuming? Does John feel it too? And what will it take to fill it?

Alternative Facts by SwissMiss 🔒10k words

It was so nice to see they'd finally got things sorted. After all they'd been through, they deserved to be happy. (Or: Five times people imagined what John and Sherlock get up to in the bedroom, and one time we see what they really get up to.)

Six Dates by AvaWtsn 7.4k

A rather accidental 5+1 written for the prompt "is this a date?" Hint: it is.

notes: the first 6 fridays after John moves back in

Whisper To Me by Chrysanthemumsies 20.7k words

Sherlock picks up playing the guitar. John falls more and more in love with every passing day.

notes: John struggling with his feelings, slowly creeping together

Questions and Answers by Pipmer 3.1k

It was useless. What was the point? No amount of talking was ever going to change that John wasn’t interested, and never would be. The only way he would be tempted to pull up house again would be if the practical advantages were enormous, and they just weren’t. Why else would he even consider it?

notes: Sherlock wants John & Rosie to move back in

Once Upon A Time by darcylindbergh 6.5k

It starts with a wish.

In the beginning, John comes home.

notes: fluffy soft warm

Getting On With It by StarlightandFireflies

“What is it?” Sherlock finally asked, staring into his tea. “Nothing,” John said quickly. After all, he could hardly just come out and say the truth: It’s just hit me again, all this. I’ve realized I’m here, and you’re here, and for some reason you don’t hate me, and yet I’ve got no bloody idea where to go from here.  I want to do right by you but it’s hitting me as if for the first time that I’ve no clue how to do that, even though it’s what you deserve. Rated M for chapter 2

Negative Space by Standbygo 8.8k words

John takes a drawing class, but drawing Sherlock has unexpected results.

notes: John’s in therapy, Sherlock goes to John’s art show

Home by liriodendron 2.9k words

Sherlock opens his mouth to ask how he can make the pain go away, but he realizes halfway through that he doesn't know how one asks such a thing, so the only word that escapes his lips is, "John..."

There is a sharp intake of breath at his name, and then John says in a voice like a broken radio, "Take me home, Sherlock."

notes: sex for comfort post-mary's death

Out Of The Woods by SilentAuror

Sherlock is fairly certain that John has taken to flirting with him of late, but can't be entirely certain of it. At least, not until a case takes them into a forest, along with Lestrade's team and something happens that will change everything about their lives...

notes: pining Sherlock, miscommunications, then oodles of fluff

[pmaxshay]

Love Conquers All

Benedict Bridgerton x Reader (Fem)

~ Part 1 ~ ~ Part 2 ~ ~ Part 3 ~ ~ Part 4 ~

~ Part 6 ~ ~ The End ~

~ Part 5 ~ (Another long one!)

*warnings - slight smut, kissing, praise*

Trying to forget that night at the studio was proving a difficult task for Y/N. She hadn’t been to the Bridgerton home for a few days. Wanting to avoid any interaction with Benedict.

Although nothing untoward had occurred, it almost occurred and that would have nothing but consequences for Y/N. As much as they had shared some truths together, having relations with him would do her no favours. In fact it could ruin her and her Pa.

On the other hand, she lay awake at night. Remembering the way his hands felt against her own and then warmth of his body up against hers. The soft way he spoke to comfort her and how he had been so honest about his own losses.

It was conflicting to say the least.

Currently, she stood in front of her mirror. Her ladies maids preparing her for tonight’s ball.

“But what if I said I do not feel well May, then what?” Y/N protested.

“Then you would stay home Miss. However, I have every faith that you are well. You’ve played that trick far too much.” May replied a smug smirk in her face.

“Well you are no help.” Y/N huffed but soon took a sharp breath in when May pulled at the corset strings.

Meanwhile at the Bridgerton house, Benedict lay slumped on one of the couches, holding a box of macarons to his chest, stressfully stuffing multiple into his mouth at once.

Colin quickly appeared into the room, glanced around until his eyes landed upon his older brother.

“Brother, there you are. I’ve been meaning to ask, where did you and Y/N disappear to the other night?” He tried to take a macaron but Benedict slapped his hand away.

“Nowhere. I merely went to check she was okay and then sat and read with her a while and then went home. I wasn’t feeling well.” Benedict was wide-eyes but managed to mumble through mouthfuls of the sweet treat.

“Ah I see. You had Mother worried. Although, it was rather charming to see her smiling again. Lord Anderson must be doing some good at least.” Colin cooed.

“Brother do you really wish to know about Mother and Lord Anderson’s… relations?! I certainly do not!” Benedict grimaced.

Colin realised what he had said and did the same.

“No… you are right. Forget I said anything.” He quickly stood up and began to leave.

“Oh before I forget, Mother has informed me that we are to escort Eloise and Hyacinth to the ball tonight. She isn’t feeling well herself. Must be catching.” Colin announced before leaving the room.

“Dear god I hope not.” Benedict shuddered. Both at Colin’s statement but also at the thought of bumping into Y/N again. They had not seen or spoken to each other since that evening at the studio. Despite nothing happening, Benedict could not help but feel somewhat disappointed. Even though it would have disastrous effects on Y/N and her Father. Something he did not wish to inflict upon someone he cared rather a lot for.

Some time later, Benedict took Eloise’s arm and Colin Hyacinth’s as they entered the ballroom.

While not as lavish as some other balls this season, this one had a subtle charm and grace that everyone seemed to appreciate.

From across the ballroom, Y/N couldn’t help but notice the Bridgerton siblings enter. Her stomach twisted into knots at the sight of Benedict. All the feelings she had been trying to hide came rushing back to the surface. She gulped a large sip of her lemonade.

Richard was making small talk with the Wetherbys. Their eldest son was trying to talk to Y/N but the topic was boring dull. He may be handsome of face but personality he is not.

Little did Y/N know, Mr Bridgerton had also spotted her. Standing next to her father and the Wetherbys. A perfectly decent family but incredibly dull. Benedict laughed when he saw the expression written all over Y/N’s face. However, he could not stop the feeling of jealously creep in. It should be he that she is standing with. He, that should be asking her to dance and getting to know her better, not dull and boring Charles Wetherby.

“What is so funny Brother?” Eloise asked with a smile.

“Oh no it’s, it’s nothing. Not for your delicate, young ears dear Sister.” Benedict teased, being brought back to reality.

“You are no fun. I’m going to go find Y/N. At least she shares her humour.” Eloise sighed detaching from Benedict and sulking off.

Even the mere mention of her name made his heart skip.

“Are you sure you are feeling alright Brother? You are looking rather peaky? You must have what Mother has.” Colin asked rather concerned.

“Colin is right. You don’t look well. Maybe you should go home.” Hyacinth chimed in. Placing a hand on Benedict’s arm.

Benedict glanced over at Y/N and then back to his siblings.

“Perhaps you are both right. I shall go and rest. Colin are you alright to stay with…”

Colin cut him off.

“Of course. See to it that you do rest. You’ve been acting strangely for a while. Will check on you later.” Colin hummed.

Benedict patted Colin’s shoulder and smiled at Hyacinth before turning to walk back out of the ball.

His legs carried him quickly out into the cold, night air. He took rather large gulps of air to steady his breathing.

As quickly as he had run out, Y/N came barreling out of the ball equally as fast. She took similar gulps of air but gasped as soon as she spotted Benedict.

“Apologises. I did not know you would be out here.” She huffed, placing a hand over her mouth to try to silence her breaths.

“It is… uhmmm…” Benedict coughed.

“It is quite alright Y/N. I just needed some air.”

“Oh.”

“Me too.” She continued.

Benedict glanced her way. The moonlight had given her a glow. A subtle sparkle. He questioned whether it was real or just something only he could see about her.

“I… I saw you with Lord Wetherby.” Benedict announced, trying to hide the jealously in his voice.

“And that is your business now is it Benedict?” Y/N replied, he had never heard such harshness to her tone before. As much as he feared it, he also felt that fiery heat. It angered him also that despite what they had shared she still denies him.

She had swiftly stepped closer now, further into the shadows of the building where he stood.

“It is none of my business who you choose to concern yourself with Y/N. I am merely saying that someone like Wetherby would not be right for you.”

“And who would be right for me?! Who are you to choose for me?!” Y/N whisper yelled. Cautious that footmen and guests were walking nearby.

Benedict stayed silent, stunned by Y/N standing up for herself with such bravery. He also feared he would say something he may regret so it was easy to stay quiet.

Y/N tilted her head and looked right at him. She began to laugh coldly.

“You? Would you be right for me Mr Bridgerton?!” Y/N shocked herself by saying such words. Up until now she had been feeling brave and bold and could not stand for being told who she spends time with.

It was Benedict’s silence that caused this newfound confidence to plummet. She did not wish to presume but maybe he felt exactly what it was that she was feeling.

“You cannot deny that there is something there. Even you are not that blind.” Benedict was finding his voice again. He was not willing to let this go.

“If you are addressing what happened the other evening… I do not wish to address it further.” Y/N whispered. Trying to turn away from him.

Benedict was too quick though and caught her arm. Twisting her back to face him. The heat rose in her body and so did it in his. The two of them gazed at each other for what felt like an eternity.

“You do not have to address I t. However, I do. It is all I have thought about. Every single moment since that day you have inhabited every thought of every second. In all my years I have never been this consumed by another person. I have always been the carefree, liberal man I have wanted to be. I have been allowed to have that for which I am grateful, but that is no longer me. I am changed. Changed by you.”

Y/N did not know how long she had been holding her breath for. She let out a shallow shaky breath.

“From the moment you entered that ballroom until this exact moment, it is you. No one else dear Y/N. My Y/N.” Benedict’s hand had began to tremble ever so slightly against her arm. A feeling that sent a pang of guilt through Y/N but also lust.

To know all of this. His true, honest feelings towards her was like hitting the right chord after practicing for so long.

“Benedict…” Y/N managed to whisper. Without saying the actual words, in fears she would mess it all up, she tried to convey she felt the same.

“You do not have to feel the same. It is alright. I shall not live any longer without expressing my true feelings.”

“Benedict.” Y/N said once more, with much more force but so much more lust.

He gazed into her eyes, then down at her mouth and back to her eyes once more. From the tone of her voice and her body language it finally clicked.

Without hesitation, he yanked at her arm and pulled her closer. His head pushing down, his lips crashing against hers in a swift motion.

The two of them locked in an embrace filled with so much passion and desire that they almost forgot where they were.

Benedict pulled back.

“Please don’t stop.” Y/N whined. Her eyes still closed.

Benedict laughed softly at her before speaking.

“I do not plan to. But not here. Too many eyes and ears.” He whispered, taking her hand and rushing towards the nearest carriage.

The all familiar studio awaited them. Benedict shrugged off his jacket. Throwing it onto the nearest object.

Y/N stood in the doorway, not knowing how to proceed.

“Come here.” Benedict hummed, holding out his hand. Y/N hesitated but moved closer taking his hand in hers. As soon as she was close, he softly caressed a hand up against her cheek and back towards neck. Craning it so that she was looking up at him.

“I have an idea.” He whispered.

“Hmmm.” Was all Y/N could manage with a small nod.

He took this as confirmation. Grabbing her hand once more and leading her towards the settee in the middle of the room.

“You can say no whenever. We stop when you say stop. But, I would very much like to… draw you.” He sighed.

“Draw me?” Y/N questioned.

Benedict nodded feverishly.

“And how… would you… would you like me?” Y/N drawled out. Wanting to be good for him.

By the way he swallowed hardly and sucked in a sharp breath she could tell it was working.

“I would like you in so many ways Miss Y/N. For now however, I want you to undress.”

Y/N gulped down the nerves. Her hands trembling somewhat but managing to slowly reach up and take her hair down. It cascades across her shoulders and sits just below her shoulders. The way Benedict was reacting, shifting uncomfortably on his feet and his lips parting, gave her so much confidence. She then, removed her gloves, playfully deciding to throw them towards him. He laughs proudly, a glint in his eyes.

She continues, removing her dress from her shoulders, letting it fall to the ground. This is where she falters. Needing some help with the strings of her corset.

“I… uh..” she clears her throat.

“May need some assistance, Mr Bridgerton.”

The way she spoke his name had him weak in the knees. She had no idea the things she did to him, the sheer notion of her.

He sauntered over. His hands gently caressing her bare shoulders from behind. She shivered but urged him to continue. His hands travel softly to the strings, pulling them one by one until the corset hangs loose.

Y/N shrugs it away and is left torso bare but turned away from him. She quickly shuffles out of her skirts and lets them drop also.

Benedict is yet to see her. All of her, but knows it will be worth the wait. He leans down towards her neck and begins planting kisses along her skin down to her shoulders and back up again. Her head tilts slightly to make room for him.

“Please Ben.” Y/N moans.

“Gosh you make it difficult to hold out. But I must capture you. After all, you are my muse. Ever since I met you, truly, met you. It’s like the pencil just uses itself. Before I was struggling, had no inspiration or ideas. But you, you sparked it. You lit the flame that had been stagnant.” He continued to kiss her soft skin.

“I want you to lie down.” He began.

“I will walk back over to the easel and when I turn around I want you here.”

He moved away, walking back over to the chair beside the easel. He had not been gone long but she missed the warmth of his body and the praise that he had been so happy to give.

She did as she was told though, sitting on the settee and then shifting so that she was horizontal. Facing where he was sat. As soon as she was comfortable, he turned.

From the sharp breath to the indescribable look in his eye, Y/N could see the effect she continued to have on him. It felt nice to cause such emotion in another person. For them to want you.

“You are… otherworldly.” He stumbled out, clearing his throat.

His hands soon began to make light work on the easel, sketching out lines. His brow furrowing in concentration.

As much as Y/N was enjoying herself, the confidence she had gained had made her bold and mischievous.

Using one of her hands, she began to caress her own body. Needing to feel something more, to elevate this already lustful scenario.

Benedict caught on quite quickly, he opened his mouth to scold her but was quickly transfixed by the sinful sight before him. He felt his arousal grow and the heat become almost unbearable.

“You are a surprise Y/N.” He croaked.

“Do you mean to say you underestimated me Mr Bridgerton?” She cooed.

“Keep calling me that I will have to make up for my underestimations.” He uttered, his arousal clearly taking over.

“Please.” She moaned. Her hand travelling further and further down her body.

Before she could get any further, Benedict shot up from his seat and marched over to her. Pulling his braces down and removing his shirt. Throwing each item of clothing across the room. He swiftly hoisted himself onto the settee and towered above her.

“But you’re drawing?” Y/N whispered.

“Damn the drawing. It most definitely can wait.” He drawled out, leaning down to kiss her once more.

~

The early morning sun beamed through the window and illuminated Y/N’s soft skin. Benedict had resumed his position by the easel and continued to create. His brow furrowed once more.

He stopped a number of times to just gaze at the beautiful creature that slept before him. He was pleasantly surprised by how knowledgable she had been of ‘intimate relations’ despite never having partaken herself. It excited him, that she had knowledge and was eager to learn but he was excited that he was also the first. Her first and hopefully both of their lasts.

His pencil created stokes across the parchment, the sound bringing him great comfort and joy. He had missed this sound due to his lack of a muse. He glanced Y/N once more.

No longer was he without one. A smile crept on his face just as Y/N began to stir. He watched her as she shifted groggily and slowly opened her eyes.

He kept his mouth shut but laughed softly at her sleepy expression.

“Did you even sleep?” She yawned.

“Somewhat. However, I made a promise to myself.” He cooed.

Y/N now sat upright, using some of the sheets to cover her naked body.

“And what promise was that?” She smirked.

“I decided that if I could finish this by the time you awoke. I would ask you to marry me.”

[bloodyshadow1]

it's really weird that they didn't make Supercorp a thing, I say this as someone who watched season 2 and then stopped after the comiccon incident. maybe they refused to make it canon in the show because it was a middle finger to the toxic supercorp fans, and there were a lot of them. I wouldnt' even mind since the second crossover event made me leave the supercorp fandom in disgust, you know whne many of them cheered when and alternate version of Jimmy, a black man, was murdered by Nazi green arrow, because the writers had him get together with Lena, it was bad. Maybe there are other reasons but it's still just strange when you make their relationship the heart of the show and don't have them get together..., it's just weird.

Once upon a time was weird like that, their show had Emma, Regina, and Henry, Emma's biological son and Regina's adopted son, not to mention the fairy tale bullshit that connects the two of them, only for them not to get together.

But with Supercorp, it was something that developed naturally, neither of them had any chemistry with the men the writers tried to pair them up with, and it was horrible writing when they were together. Yet Kara and Lena's 'friendship' kept getting center stage in the series.

season 2 lena was abducted by the daxamites because she was brilliant and had been tricked into bringing them to earth. She's going to be forced to marry Kara's boyfriend because of his mother wanting her as a daughter

season 3 a huge part of the season was Lena and supergirl's relationship breaking down, though she was still friendly with Kara. She bought Kara's job for her and despite Lena getting together with James, the writers never tried to develop that relationship.

season 4 Lena is again a huge part of the story since Lex is the real big bad of the season. The big reveal of Kara being Supergirl to Lena is what was supposed to propel the next season's plot. After she shoots him he makes sure to reveal that Kara danvers is supergirl because he knows that nothing would hurt Lena more. You know her completely platonic friend lying to her is what sets her off the deep end to become a villain.

season 5 their relationship is what drives the plot completely now since Lena is going full villain mode. The writing isn't good, but the writers also couldn't stop the two of them from having chemistry.

Hell, the writers had to be aware because the entire 100th episode was about Kara and Lena's relationship. The entire premise of the episode is Kara getting to see clips of what would have happened with her relationship with lena if she told her she was supergirl at different times or just stayed away from her. Almost every time Kara tells her, there's stress in the relationship and things get worse, but they're all about Lena, 5 separate timelines and Kara can't think of anything she would rather change with her life than try and make things wright with Lena. By the end, the episode is supposedly telling us that Lena is a lost cause, but I don't know it wasn't that good of an episode to begin with. It doesn't change that the writers decided to focus on their landmark episode to focus on Lena and Kara's relationship

By the end Lena realizes that she was tricked by lex and joins the good guys, Kara is pissed at her for what she's done, but they eventually can work together again. When lex sends Kara to the Phantom zone Lena is distraught, more than anyone else, even Alex who at least had Kelly for comfort

Season 6 is about getting Kara back and finishing the show. They kill off Kara's temp love interest and Lena is shown to be so desperate to save Kara that she's willing to go farther than Alex, her loving sister, to get her back. Even at the end of the series, the last scene of two characters on screen having a conversation of the series, is between the two of them at a lesbian wedding, where they're in tears talking about how much they mean to each other and hug.

it is bizarre that the writers didn't have the two of them get together given how much the series was driven by their relationship. Like I said, if it was a middle finger to toxic supercorp fans I would understand, but as an aspiring writer, not even a shipper, I feel insulted about how the supergirl writers just tossed aside the perfect natural relationship in the show.

I don't want to keep going much longer, but thematically Kara and Lena were one of the best relationships in the show. The actor's chemistry between the two of them was better than almost every relationship in the show, especially with any of either of their romantic partners. I dont' know, like I said I left the fandom pretty early and the shows been over for almost 3 years, but it still just baffles me.

[aziraphales-library]

Lost Fic #181

1. i can’t remember the name of a fic it was a ‘Raphael was Crowley before the fall’ type fic, and it was one where Crowley could still use his archangel skills even after his fall. in part of it, Michael shows up and starts talking (maybe yelling) at Crowley and Crowley shows her (him?them?) that he used to be Raphael and that he can still summon his archangel staff. the fic might’ve been a 5+1 fic but i cannot be too sure Thanks!!!! - @cosmxc-ars3hol3

2. hi! thank you so much for the work you do in this blog!!! i lost a fic that i read years ago. human au and i think crowley owns a flowershop? i think there was a part in the fic where aziraphale has to leave the bookshop for quite a while for a book deal and crowley decides to fill the front of the bookshop with all kinds of plants and flowers before aziraphale comes back. i was wondering if u folks or ur followers can recognize this fic 🥹 im not sure if im remembering this correctly so i apologize. and thank you once again!! - anon

3. Hello! I was wondering if you could help me find a fic with Crowley as a florist and Newt as his assistant. There's a scene where Az visits the flower shop and when he introduces himself to Newt, Newt says something like "You're the cute bookshop owner Crowley was talking about," or something. I'm not entirely sure if Az is a bookshop owner in this AU. I've been trying to find it using the Flowershop AU tag on AO3 but with no luck. Thank you for your help! - anon

4. hi, I really love perusing the almost limitless recs you have here and am always so amazed how you are able to find so many fics people have lost track of. So I was hoping I could ask for your help in finding one I cursedly did not bookmark once a upon a time. It had three chapters I believe and started during the future war between heaven and hell. Crowley dies on the battle field and the earth is destroyed and a new world is created, where Aziraphale becomes the new earths satan equivalent. He's also lost his memory of the previous world and ends up magic mirror/window staking this new angel and demon pair that make him feel like his lost something inconceivably important. It was really incredible and it would be lovely to experience it again. thanks so, so much for all your incredible work - @tomato-soup-and-cats

5. Hello! I hope you are having a lovely. Unfortunately I have lost a fic that I really enjoyed and despite quite a bit of scouring, I haven’t been able to find it again. For anyone else reading this the description of the fic will have some spoilers for season two. In this fic, the Metatron kills what he believes to be Crowley, much to Aziraphale’s dismay. Aziraphale shows up at Crowley’s flat to threaten and scare away the Metatron and there is also some crying over what he believes to be Crowley’s remains. However, Crowley managed to store and use a spare corporation to trick the Metatron into killing him. Crowley also steals and book of life and miracles it to look like a pair of his sunglasses. I can’t help but love a bit of angst with a happy ending so I’d greatly appreciate any help you can provide. - @kittykat2005

If you know any of these fics please include the number in your reply! Thank you :)

- Mod D

[grumpy-aino]

✨Little S2 Musical Analysis✨

You guys remember when Aziraphale forgives Maggie's debt in the first episode in exchange for some records?

Those records are by none other than Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich and I know LOTS about this man (and why the choice to include him may have something to do with Aziraphale's character arc in s3!)...

Shostakovich's life is usually characterised by his tricky relationship with Stalin. During the 30s, the musical freedom enjoyed by Russian composers came to an end, Stalin clearly preferring more traditional classical music. Although Shostakovich had been criticised for his more adventurous works in the late 20s, his 1936 ballet, Lady Macbeth of Mstsensk got him officially denounced by Stalin's official newspaper (Pravda).

Composers who refused to comply with the standards were denounced as formalists (including Western elements in their art) and risked deportation to a remote area of Russia, imprisonment and even death.

On to the record in question! The Symphony No. 5 was written after this denunciation. It was a success, being to Stalin's liking and praised as a "Soviet artist's practical and creative response to just criticism". Shostakovich was back in Stalin's good books.

Who else do we know to be once denounced and hated by a regime who has just recently got back into their good books?

This might just be a neat reference to Shostakovich's life in comparison to Aziraphale's, but Shostakovich's story doesn't end there: In 1948 he was denounced a second time for his Symphony No. 9, which was promised to be large and triumphant to celebrate the USSR's victory in WWII, but was completely the opposite - playful and cheery, mocking Stalin.

The second denunciation was in a way more serious than the first. Shostakovich (and other composers who were accused of formalism) were made to give quite a public apology. Many of his works were banned and he was expelled from the Leningrad Conservatory.

Although he was put to use again by the government in 1949 at a New York press conference, it had been remarked upon by Nabokov that Shostakovich was "not a free man, but an obedient tool of his government." Even after Stalin's death, Shostakovich still had a strained relationship with the government. They still largely controlled art and in 1960, Shostakovich was devasted when he joined the communist party.

Of course, all of this information could be completely irrelevant and it could just be Aziraphale buying some classical music. especially because the Symphony No. 5 is NOT 21 minutes long like Aziraphale implies (in fact, it's a little over an hour). But so much of this media is intentional and the PARALLELS are insane.

The second denunciation could mean a whole lot for season 3. Aziraphale is probably likely to 'go along' at first with Heaven (Shostakovich wasn't really on board with the heroic nature of his symphonies - the 5th, according to one musicologist, is a love symphony), but might be plotting something. This second denunciation appears like it could be entertaining.

What's more! Shostakovich also had a best friend who died before they could have their post-war reunion (as Shostakovich talked about it his letters). Honestly the whole thing's really tragic and hurts to think about; Shostakovich promised he'd never write another note again after his friend's death, but instead wrote his incredibly painful Piano Trio No. 2.

✨Anyway hoped you liked that✨

tagging @neil-gaiman bc why not?

[etaindelaserna]

Can I ask from this ask game : https://www.tumblr.com/toomanyfandomsthings/749729499738996736/send-me-a-ship-and-a-number-and-ill-tell-you?source=share

No. 2, 10, 11, 12, 15 for Dramione, KakaSaku and SukuIta....Thanks 🌻

Dramione

No 2. Draco's love letters are written on the best pergament one can buy with gold. In addition he has made an effort to charm them to smell like freshly mown grass, because he knows how much Hermione adores the smell. His impeccable handwriting and phrasing are meant to turn these letters into literary pieces of grandeur about the nature of love and how obessed he his with Hermione and when she is finally going to marry him BUT in reality they are discussions about charm and potion theories, books they think the other should read and A LOT OF arguing about the practical application of said theories. There is still a lot of flirting and teasing on Draco's part, which never fails to either make Hermione almost explode or smile with the hint of a blush on her face. Hermione takes her responses very seriously and thus they are always too long, which in return causes Draco to point out, that she had made her point already 3 pages earlier. Since Hermione doesn't really get the hint that Draco is indulging her with these discussions, he at one point had started to include book pressed flowers with his letters. He even extended that to her most read books in the library.

No. 10. They are united by their love for adventure and fantasy shows that have either a certain storytelling or entertainment quality to them. They watched Game of Thrones, Vampire Diaries (of course comparing these vampires and werewolves to the real deal), Westworld, The Walking Dead (but only till season 5), Once Upon a Time (they're both intrigued by how mystical magic is portrayed), Stranger Things, Charmed, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, True Blood, Xena, The Witcher and American Gods. They tried to watch Outlander but Draco was annoyed that Hermione seems to get awefully quiet every time Jamie smiled or smirked or was shirtless, so Hermione watched Outlander, Spartacus and Rome on her own. Draco on the other hand was hiding from her Band of Brothers, Homeland, House of Cards and The Pacific.

No. 11. Draco's first impression of Hermione was, that she seems to be just as snotty and aristocratic in the way she carries herself as he was but without the name or reputation to back it up. She thought too highly of herself, her opinions and seemed to think she was better than anyone else. She seemed to only help others if it benefited her. Hermione thought Draco to be just another rich brat, who thinks Daddy's money is going to solve all of his problems instead of working hard.

No. 12. They don't talk about it, athough Draco is dropping hints and he wants to negotiate what they are going to do for their anniversary, but Hermione says, she's too busy and whatnot. In the end Draco kidnaps her. They are visiting Versailles and the Louvre and he schedules an interview with one of Hermiones favourite authors. Hermione feels guilty for not realizing how much this day means to him and allwos him to take her to a fancy restaurant. Afterwards they take a walk along the Seine and they dance and laugh and drink a bottle of wine. She tells him, she loves him and kisses him and in response he asks her if they now can start working on "Project Baby".

No. 15. Sometimes Hermione whised Draco wasn't so high and mighty but then he wouldn't be Draco and she wouldn't be able to tease him about it. Draco sometimes whished Hermione wasn't so god damn selfless all the time, he whished she would take more care of herself instead of sacrificing everything for everyone.

KakaSaku

No. 2. Kakashi's love letters are basically just post-its or random torn-off pieces of paper which Sakura finds EVERYWHERE: on her desk, her drawer, the fridge, among her medical supplies, sailing out of her clothes or stuck to her backpack. They mostly contain one or two sentences, sometimes just a word or a doodle. But the most emportant thing: they always make her smile. Sakura's love letters are at least two pages long and contain detailed reports about a new medical jutsu she has mastered, a new food item she has tried or the complete mystery of why all of her plants keep on dying. In between she slips sentences about what he would have said or done in these situations. One of Kakashi's ninken has been put on mail duty and is to stay with her until Sakura has finished her reply.

No. 10. Sakura would never admit it but she actually enjoys watching rom coms, period drama or soap operas with Kakashi. Not because she wants to use them as ammo to tease him about it but because they are lighthearted entertainment with some analysis or commentary about the hardships of relationships sprinkled in every now and then. They ease her mind and she adores how invested Kakashi is. It's kinda cute. They watched Bridgerton, How I met your Mother, Ugly Betty, My Secret Romance, True Beauty, Downton Abbey, Poldark, Tudors and Outlander. The more teenage-targeted shows like Vampire Diaries, Never Have I Ever, Reign, Riverdale, Smallville and One Tree Hill she keeps to herself. Kakashi doesn't watch anything if it's not with Sakura.

No 11. Kakashi's first impression of Sakura was that she is just another kid who hasn't figured out life yet and who is still too focused on herself and on superficial things that won't matter in the long run. He tries not to judge her too harshly for her perspective because just like all genin, she'll have to grow up faster then she thinks. Sakura had a hard time believing that this man really was an elite shinobi with a widespread reputation that makes him known, respected and even feared by s-class criminals. He seemed too goofy, yet bored to be their teacher and not really interested in teaching, which enraged her.

No. 12. Sakura debated with herself for a long time whether she should bring up the "anniverseries" topic at all with Kakashi. Not because she thought he was indifferent to it. The contrary: she knew him to be a hopeless romantic. So she felt a lot of pressure to deliver something profound. Kakashi noticed within a week what it was that put Sakura under this much stress and decided to plan little things for them before the actual date: they tried the new ice cream flavor in Konoha's one and only gelato shop, he bought a new board game for Saturday nights, they went to take pictures of them with silly little hats and mustaches, they took a dance class together and tried to paint a portray of each other, which caused Sakura to laugh so hard, she almost peed herself. It made Sakura realise that they didn't have to do anything super extraordinary. So when their anniversary came around, they spent the better part of it assembling a new kitchen cupboard. Sakura cooked Kakashi's favourite dish and in the afternoon they went to the book shop and challenged each other to find the funniest romcom title books. They read them out aloud and whoever laughed first, lost. Sakura lost and Kakashi decided to drag her to a karaoke bar. Afterwards they sat down in the park and watched the stars together.

No. 15. There are times when Kakashi wished Sakura had abandoned Sasuke earlier. Not from her life but from her heart. A lot of her training and strength was a result of not wanting to put the burden of dealing with Sasuke on Naruto alone. Some of her heart was broken and it took a long time to fix the damage. Sakura wished Kakashi wouldn’t try to handle everything by himself all the time.

SukuIta

No 2. Yuuji loves to write love letters. He spends hours deciding on the perfect paper and what kind of colours Sukuna likes or doesn't like. When it comes down to the actual writing, Yuuji isn't a man of huge or many words. He likes to ask Sukuna silly questions such as "Would you still love me if I was a worm?" or "Do you want to be my boyfriend? Yes, No, Please don't check both". Yuuji decorates the letters with little hearts or flowers, sometimes slipping in one of the fotos he's taken of Sukuna while eating or napping with a commentary on the back of it. Sukuna would rather die than admitting that he kind of adores Yuuji's innocent, silly displays of attachment. He still thinks they're a waste of time. If he didn't like the brat, the brat would know. But he doesn't want to be an asshole so he either writes Yuuji beautiful poems or paints something in return. But he never answers Yuuji's letters, which bothered Yuuji at first, but then he read the first poem and still tries to recover from that.

No. 10. Yuuji always thought it would be such a headache to persuade Sukuna to watch ANYTHING with him, let alone comedy horror, body horror or horror with some romance or strong friendships sprinkled in it, but no. Sukuna does complain a lot about the nonsensical plotlines or the lack of gore at times but for the most part he was down to watch What We Do In The Shadwos, Ash Vs. Evil Dead, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, The Last of Us and The Walking Dead. Since Sukuna wanted a little bit more suspense and psychological horror he blackmailed Yuuji into watching American Horror Stories, The Hounting of Hill House and Hannibal. Ulterior motive here being to make Yuuji snuggle up to him. Sukuna doesn't bother watching anything without Yuuji but Yuuji tries to hide the fact that he likes to watch Jane The Virgin, Sex Education and Young Royals when he feels down.

No 11. Sukuna's first impression of Yuuji was that he thought him to be weak and overly concerned with the safety of others to the point of it being not entertaining anymore. Just an annoying brat who lets himself be easily manipulated and who would break under the slightest pressure. And yet said brat was able to control him, which angered Sukuna beyond measure. At least his vessel had a great physique if nothing else. Yuuji on the other hand felt indifferent about Sukuna at first. He didn't know who or what he was only that he wasn't about to surrender his body to him.

No 12. Yuuji thinks anniversaries are important because it’s important to make new memories and also to remember the old ones. Sukuna couldn’t care less but let’s the brat do whatever he likes to do for an anniversary. So they end up in the ice cream shop from where they kissed for the first time and eat ice cream until they feel ill. Afterwards Yuuji drags Sukuna into a nearby park to watch the clouds together. Sukuna thinks it’s silly but he is indulging Yuuji and at least he gets to cuddle with him.

No 15. Yuuji wished Sukuna would stop thinking that Yuuji only likes him for his power. This and that he has zero empathy for everybody else. Sukuna wished Yuuji would finally use his power for selfish reasons and unleash his full potential. That’s something he wouldn’t be able to forgive him.

[romancomicsnews]

5 Characters who should get an Invincible Special Origin Episode

Invincible Season 2 has just wrapped up, and while some fans are a little disappointed with its ending, overall the general consensus has been positive. From excellent music, to phenomenal voice work and animation, along with X-Men '97 its been a great time to be a superhero fan AND an animation fan.

This season also brought in a handful of new characters, as well brought some fan favorites to the forefront, including Allen the Alien, Rex Splode and Immortal.

I think I speak for everyone when I say I love being in this universe, and would love to see more. And while I know Season 3 will be here sooner than Season 2 was, I've been thinking about all those incredible characters and the Atom Eve Special.

It went a long way in showing how good the animation got, expanding on Atom Eve, and evening building up threats like The Lizard League.

I think theres alot of potential in expanding some of these characters, seeing their origins and helping build up their character development.

So I'm going to go through some, along with ideas as to how the episodes can play out. Spoiler Warning for Invincible Season 1 & 2 and mild spoilers from the comics.

5. Bulletproof

Starting off with one of the newest members of the Guardians of the Globe, Zandale Randolph AKA Bulletproof is definitely a character you forgot was in this season.

While he is known for a few big things in the future, he didn't really get to do much this season. He wasn't very useful in the sequid invasion, didn't really help in any major fights, nor do we know anything about him. So why him?

His history in the comics is rather tragic, and I think is something we are going to explore. His twin brother, a mad genius, attempts experimenting on Zandale in order to give himself superpowers. Instead it gives Zandale superpowers, and kills his brother.

Due to this, and unable to tell his parents, he pretends to be both brothers to preserve his brothers legacy.

That tragedy is alot, and could make for an amazing episode, with his brother being the villain and explain why he is so guarded.

Plus, I love Jay Pharoah. More Jay Pharoah please.

4. Dupli-Kate

We got some hints at Dupli-Kates origin in her eulogy from Immortal. Her powers come from a curse upon her family, that led to both her and her brother gaining the ability to multiply.

What you don't know is they started off as a brother sister team before going their separate ways.

We actually see Kate's brother Multi-Paul in the cell when the Maulers escape again. Seeing a young version of Multi-Paul before their inevitable confrontation in a later season could give us more stakes.

Yes, this is another sibling rivalry just like Bulletproof, but this could start way more fun than Bulletproofs.

And two multipliers who are children fighting it out in a dramatic finish? Also good television.

3. Monster Girl

Talk about a tragedy.

Monster Girl's curse was given to her after falling in love with a man whose grandmother disapproved of her. That grandmother was a witch, who turned her into an ogre with extraordinary power.

We don't get much else from her origin, which could give us some wiggle room.

This could start as a love story turned horror story, unable to get out of her monster form, feeling trapped in her own body. We can have the witch be an Agatha Harkness type, and a physical threat in the episode too.

Once she is defeated, Amanda is able to turn back and be with the man she loves, until she realizes months later, that she is getting younger, and he breaks her heart.

The beats are all there, and I'd love to see a magic based episode in the Invincible Universe mixed in with some Hulk style action. Plus, building up Amanda will be important as she is vital in the comics.

2. Thaedus The Great Betrayer

You didn't think I was only picking Guardians did you?

Thaedus' episode could be by far the most interesting, showing us Viltrum from a first hand perspective, before he betrayed and before he formed the Coalition.

I don't want to get too heavy into spoilers, but he causes a brutal blow on the Viltrum Empire I'd love to see first hand. We can keep Peter Cullen, or get a younger voice actor, but either way, seeing a younger Viltrum Empire would be very intriguing and a bloodbath.

1. Rex Splode

Despite being one of the most annoying characters in Season 1, Rex is by far the standout of Season 2 in my eyes.

Another origin that was slightly teased, I can imagine Rex's episode can be his sad origin, meeting Atom Eve in act 2, and taking out his oppressors by the end in a good old fashioned team up.

This could be a direct sequel to the Atom Eve Special, giving us more Eve, and help us understand their relationship even better. Plus Rex being blind sided with a girl who can make anything? Sounds like a fun battle to me.

Thank you so much for reading! Please consider following, and check out my socials and other sites here! And let me know: Who do you want to see get an Invincible Special Origin Episode?

[rphunter]

Greetings Tumblr >:) I am once again looking for new rps 🤝 now that peak retail season is over I can finally catch my breath and get back to writing again dhskbdwk

I (21NB) am looking for some fandom-based rps, but I’m not opposed to oc x oc or some very minor oc x canon (it depends on the media, which I’ll get to in a second). At the very least I’d prefer that my partner is 19 (18 is a hard no 😬), but realistically I’d prefer if you were 20+. And I’d greatly prefer if my partner is lit-advanced at least, because I’m lit-advanced to novella and have a difficult time keeping up with rps that don’t have as much content for me to play off of

I can easily categorize my rp requests into three different types

1. The Big Three - these are my main three fandoms that I don’t turn down very often 👀 I am literally begging on my knees for someone to do these with me

Ace Attorney -> in light of the Investigations 2 localization, I’ve had a particular itch to write the AAI1 + AAI2 characters in any capacity, but I’m not super picky with this franchise ^^ I’m down for pretty much any (queer) ship from any of the games, including the investigations spinoffs and The Great Ace Attorney

Danganronpa -> I really like character writing and this franchise has a lot of super interesting characters 😌 I tend to lean towards ships from THH and V3 because my big faves are in there, but again sometimes I’m not picky. Ask me to write Kaito in any capacity—or almost any queer ship—and my life is yours

Persona 5 -> same reasons as above, I really like these characters 👉👈 mostly looking to write Ryuji or Yusuke in some capacity as far as ships go, but I also love the wlw ships and am a sucker for platonic bonding

2. The more obscure - I don’t get to write for these very often and would love to change that >:0

Splatoon -> I’d prefer to write the canon characters, especially within the realm of the main campaigns, but I do have ocs that I could use for an oc x oc rp if you’d prefer 👀

Omori -> I haven’t done one of these in a hot minute :0 I think some canon divergence could be really fun. I’ve got some ships I like, but would be absolutely content in doing a platonic rp instead

Project Sekai -> I think I’d really like to write some wlw for a change! I’ve got a lot of mlm rps from this franchise, so any kind of yuri would be greatly appreciated

3. Rare requests - I’ve got an itch for these rps that I don’t normally, so if someone wanted to write these then I would be super thrilled >:)

Doki Doki Literature Club -> I haven’t touched this franchise in a hot minute but I think I’d really like to do some character exploration here—we could expand upon the main plot of the game or just do slice of life (potentially with an AU on top?), either is cool with me 😌

Stardew Valley -> I’m always looking for this in some capacity 👀 I’m cool with oc x canon with this—I don’t really mind if im the canon character or the oc, just lmk your preference! Otherwise I’m totally cool with cc x cc

Jujutsu Kaisen -> mostly in the market for sillier plots so I’ll probably turn to aus of some kind, but I don’t mind canon divergence :0 specifically I’m looking for Itafusha or Yuji x Junpei (me as Yuji in both instances), Inumaki x Yuta (I can play either ^^), Maki x Nobara and Satosugu

And of course I’m also down for oc x oc!! I’m mostly looking for fxf because most of my ocs are girls, but I do have one girl oc that I could also use for mxf (tho it’s not my preference rn) and I have a few guy ocs that I haven’t gotten to write before (one vampire oc, and my aforementioned Splatoon oc)

Sorry for the long post, I don’t know how to be succinct when talking about my interests 😪 like this if you’re interested, or better yet hmu on my rp account @kenzieiscreepin19 and I’ll get back to you asap!!

.

[seafearing]

@palmviolet this question was just too good (and difficult bcos of it) which is why i have been thinking about it for like six days. so sorry for this absolutely unhinged essay you are getting, feel free to. ignore lol

1 in the bleak midwinter, season 2, episode 6

this takes the number one spot because it's one i really remember hitting me upon watching it for the first time. his grave that's been dug out for him for the whole episode without him realizing it, then the acceptance in the mud and the field, the sequence where he actually falls into the grave with the dead bodies on top, i did fucking think he had died for a second there. and then he has to crawl out of it, and. then the realization that he has to keep going is what breaks him, and how that tells so much about his character and how it gets built up on and mirrored constantly the coming years.

oops this got long sorry i am entirely normal about this television series

2 did polly send you, season 6 episode 6

i can't not have this scene high up here. the symbolism throughout, with the crow, the fire, and the horse, his hallucination of his daughter and at this moment, imagining polly as well despite saying that polly would never visit him in his dreams again, that torn ugly heart of family, love and brutality, betrayal

and the sentimentality of spreading all these mementos of his loved ones in the caravan where he intends to die, like a kind of perverted version of him saying to campbell "i have my family". and alfie asking him, when will he stop, and "when i find the man i can't defeat", and that turned on its head and being manipulated into becoming the man he can't defeat, myself talking to myself about myself truly, as well as, most glaringly, the whole mental illness of it all. and, just i don't know i found it good storytelling not to have the main character that's struggled with mental health and suicidal ideation for the entirety of the series, die of suicide at the end for a shock ending of sorts. like i am so very glad that wasn't the twist in it all.

and then the continuation of this scene to the end. him with the gun in his hand once again, that addiction where he feels like god. and this time he doesn't pull the trigger, but it was never about pulling the trigger, it was having the power of being the one to choose. and they end it with him riding away with the white horse encased in fire. the obvious symbolism with how everything started with him arriving on the black horse, and also the mirror of how he blew up his house and walked away from it, repeated at the end. like sorry but this is poetry to me.

3 now you've seen me, season 1 episode 5

this was such a brutal and haunting scene that i really remember well from those early seasons. one of the few times we really see tommy lose it like this. used by the police much like he was used in the war, and then he snaps. and that betrayal, again. they were supposed to come, but they didn't come, the cavalry. and the vulnerability that he has afterwards, you see that it breaks him. that unavailable, closed off man he's become after the war, and you feel like, this is what was hiding underneath it all, these raw guts, the splattered, caved in skull. "now you've seen me," he says to grace, but he's also saying that to the audience. i do really like that their romance as well is always marked by them seeing this violence, the brutality in one another. "this one looks like it was killed by a wild fucking animal," and she marries him.

4 what fucking line am i supposed to have crossed, season 3 episode 6

i can't also not-mention this. i really enjoy pretty much all the characters in peaky blinders, but alfie is truly a wild one. he's sold tommy out again, and this huge rant he goes on after being confronted about it, it's just simply beautiful and so multi-layered that i feel too stupid to analyze it. just something about him unleashing this self-justified anger at tommy thinking he's above it all, and then to go, more softly: "i did not know about your boy, though." also the propensity of tommy always going back to him for more betrayal, just like he went back to grace after she betrayed him. this season, it doesn't even occur to him that alfie might have betrayed him (again): he interrogates his family, first. insane.

5 he just listened. and now he has no face, season 5 episode 4

god i love season 5, and this episode in particular. this whole sequence where the swan dies, in this episode where tommy keeps seeing his dead wife. the whole sequence is just, encapsulating love, betrayal and violence. lizzie going to hold tommy's hand as they watch the ballet, aberama proposing to polly, the reveal of linda and her raw confrontation of the violence and control, fuck. and then polly being the one to pull the trigger, and the swan, she does die. and the whole sequence that unravels afterwards with linda on the table is like something! out of a fucking renaissance painting!! it makes me unhinged!!

nooo and i didn't even include that sequence at the dinner table in s6 where the camera swiwels between the participants, just the cinematography and decisions they make in this show. prove it with your body. wait let me redo this whole thing i'm not doing it justice nooo who cares about season 1 (i do)

[xinnamonbun]

Got Nostalgic

So I decided to look at some old Inanimate Insanity humanizations I did a couple years back. I'm pretty sure I did these RIGHT when season 3 released. Good times-

(Looks)

...

AAAAAAAAÆ-

Below will be humanizations of: Soap, Bow, Paintbrush, Blueberry, Goo, Cabby, Test Tube, Cherries, Taco, Apple, Fan, Lightbulb, Suitcase, Balloon, Lifering, Microphone, Marshmallow, Nickel, and Yin-Yang

⚠️ WARNING OLD ART ⚠️

Off to a great start...the soap hair tie is almost cute...almost. (also I'd like to mention that I only knew like three types of shoes so you're going to be seeing these once or twice)

It's... Okay. This is one of the better ones we're going to see. Why does she have ballerina shoes???

I was really really bad at drawing guys and was much better at drawing girls (not that that was very good either). Paintbrush being an entirely different thing made me nervous that I was going to make them too masculine or too feminine. I remember being SO proud of myself... And like this one isn't terrible... But why are they wearing ice skates- (they're not supposed to be ice skates but that is NOT lined up)

Not terrible. I think that this still gives Blueberry vibes it's mainly the shoes that are bugging me. But other than that it's not BAD.

I remember one of my cousins called him Caillou, I sobbed... I hate that they were right- I MADE HIM BALD

Did not know how to draw a wheelchairs (still don't but I hope I could do better than THIS) THIS DOESN'T LOOK LIKE CABBY. END OF STORY. I also don't want to talk about the dress- it's bad

I guess I don't hate this one. I don't love it either. This one is pretty much just "I could believe that's test tube" BUT THERE'S NO SPICE

I had this headcannon that one of the cherries was trans which is why they never spoke because they were self-conscious of their voice. Not the worst head Cannon but I just can't see it anymore. These outfits also just suck. And the return of the ice skates-

This is season 1 Taco specifically and the idea was upon show to hide the hands while having her fancy spy outfit underneath. With the little that you can see of the spy outfit it sucks. The top doesn't look super bad I guess. I also gave her little fangs that I decided to make gray for some reason so they blended into her skin.

I remember this one was my absolute FAVORITE like I thought this was peak character design. It's not that good but at the very least it's definitely the most okay one here... Except for the fact that APPLE'S KNEES ARE LIKE 5/8 DOWN HER LEG- WHO BROKE YOUR LEG?!? Also are those green jeans? Also return of the ice skates.

RONALD MCDONALD!!! IVE FOUND YOUR COUSIN- in case it wasn't clear (it isn't) this is Fan... Excuse me while I bash my head into the wall- WHAT IS THIS ABOMINATION?!? AND ON TOP OF THAT WE HAVE ANOTHER CASE OF ICE SKATES- I swear if I see one more ice skate I'm going to lose it-

This is...kinda adorable??? The hair doesn't fit though. I still like the socks.

This one isn't THAT bad, it's just...the nose. The idea of her having a backpack to carry stuff is still cute. And-... Are those. Ice. Skates. (Inhale) AAAAAAAAÆ---

Burn it with fire. I didn't even like this one when I first drew it! I always had plans of redrawing it but I never did. In case you need clarification this is Balloon... In my slight justification for why he's wearing... that. I was originally going to give all of the returning season 3 contestants vacation clothes because they thought they were going on a vacation but I didn't really do this with any of the others so it just looks out of place and ugly.

I saw an ad around the time I drew this that showed a child missing their upper lip. I thought that that would be an interesting design choice for Lifering to to represent the hole in his face. I was correct that it's interesting. It being a good design choice before this art style is a different topic- still like the earring I gave him though.

I hate those fingers. They're so small. I hate it. I remember this was my favorite outfit, and now I don't like it that much. But I guess it's not THAT bad. It's still kinda bad.

This is Marshmallow. I needed to lead with that otherwise you wouldn't know who this is. This is straight up isn't marshmallow. That is some random girl that should not be trusted with hair dye.

This one is just...okay. at least compared to the other ones on this list. It's not the worst. It's DEFINITELY not the best. His hair is... Something. Also the return of the ice skates

This one is honestly just funny to me now. Yin just looks done (I feel you buddy) I really played around with a vitiligo (the reason why they have both pale and dark skin; look it up) and I do like the concept I had of this I just don't think I have the skills at the time to properly pull it off.

Wait...is that it? IM FREEEEEEE-

Bonus: (this was made before season 3 and I only found this because it was one of the reference images for my Bow humanization shown above)

You know what I said about Balloon? I take it back. Burn THIS with fire.

Ok NOW I'm free.

(for the record I give you full permission to bash me in the replies, in fact I encourage it. I'm planning on making redo's of these humanizations with my (hopefully better) art skills. So pointing out things that you didn't like in the previous designs or things that you think would be nice to add are greatly appreciated feedback)

[whatfamidoinghere]

The Umbrella Academy Season 4 Final Thoughts

I have opinions I need to share. Obviously spoilers ahead so… enter at your own risk?

Firstly, the positives

To give it some credit, this was a beautiful ending. It was technically the only way they could end it bc it was clear no matter what they did, the apocalypse would follow

I loved the reference to them saving the Eiffel Tower in an alternate timeline, like they did in the comics

…yeh, that’s it

Oh wait, I loved Klaus’ relationship with Claire. I love Klaus. I love everything about him. Thank you. End quote

Now for the negatives - this will be in no coherent order so bare with me

It’s embarrassingly clear that this needed its usual 10 episodes. I think I read somewhere that the director felt that 6 episodes were the perfect amount so maybe Netflix didn’t cut it, or perhaps he was trying to make the best of a shitty situation. But every scene felt like it was missing something.

Where was the family dance sesh???

Five and Lila. No. Just. No. They’re begrudging step-sibling and that is it. And even if they did want to go down this direction, even if I wasn’t so opposed to the ship, I just didn’t care. You can’t just time skip 7 years in 1 episode and simultaneously get me to feel invested in their relationship. They needed 2 episodes at least to make me feel the impact of those 7 years. I know for 5 that’s probably nothing compared to his time in the apocalypse, but to Lila, that would’ve driven her insane, and in her breaking point, that’s when she goes to 5, bit like how they did this. Not to mention, they come back looking the exact same. 5 is supposed to be, what, 27 at this point? I sure as hell don’t see it. I would’ve much preferred a scene where, once Lila releases they’re going back home, frantically tries to clean up and cut her hair to look exactly how she did before so that her family still recognise her. Ugh that entire point was just so shit

The baby shark gag was not funny

Why did Diego and Lila have to have twins as well. I get it, they’re tired parents who miss their glory days. But if you want us to feel really sorry for them, and later mourn them when Lila has to say goodbye, maybe let us see the family interact as… as well as family. I was so excited to see Diego in his real daddy era just for him to talk to his oldest daughter maybe once? ALSO why does Lila get that whole emotional goodbye to her children and Diego just, nothing? “Get the family out of here” umm hello, even if you didn’t like the in-laws, those are 3 of your fucking children that you’re saying goodbye to forever. I think I’m just upset that they reduced Lila to being a tired mother (to me anyway) and forget Diego was the father. I would’ve so rather seen him being the dad that he never had in his life.

Like putting the family on the Subway to nowhere. Literally. It’s not like she knew how the Subway worked so she was just sticking her family on the train and hoping for the best. They made it seem as though they had never found a world safe enough. Like truly the best place for them to stay was the fucking Greenhouse world, so how did she expect the family to survive, and with no powers mind you. And also didn’t thy know at that point that all ultimate timelines would be destroyed, except for the main timeline. Was she hoping they’d magicallly be taken to the main timeline orrr? I’m just so fucking confused man

The Subway. What a fucking missed opportunity oh my fucking god. Its only true function was to have all the Five’s meet up to tell Prime Five the super duper important convenient information that would bring upon The Finale. It was such a cool concept and we saw… none of it. Firstly, they made it wayyy to easy that Five just happened to find a journal his future self made that worked out the tunnel system. You’re telling me that in 7 years he never worked any of it out. Uhhh I just wanted to see how the Subway worked and we couldn’t even get that. AND they only showed us 1 world!!!! I think alternate timelines are such a. Fun concept because you can explore multiple worlds that are like your own but a little more freaky with little to no consequences in your own world. I LOVED seeing the Phoenix Academy so much but… that was it. Imagine a montage of Five and Lila visiting a ton of worlds like our own with messed up Academy. Can you imagine if we saw a comic accurate Umbrella Academy??? Omfg the ultimate homage. I’m tearing up just thinking about what we could’ve had.

Gene and Jean were rly fun but again, what waisted potential. I loved my quirky not-so-instance parents sm

Uncle Five? Uncle Luther? Gone. Maybe I’m misremembering but they always seemed so excited to meet Claire. Ik they’re pissed at Alison or whatever (but they’re literally not though) but you’re telling me we never see them interact, despite them being some of the only sibling to care about Claire??? Oh okay, okayyy

The powers. Does nobody care that some have multiple powers now orrr? So Lila had laser eyes but could still mimic everyone else. Also the running gag of not being able to control her eyes could’ve gone on for so much longer. And Alison. Was she just so powerful she could rumour ppl without saying anything now? And when her eyes went yellow, that was a completely new power, right? And did Viktor’s powers seem different to you guys or is it bc he absorbed Harlan’s powers last season. Me personally, I think they’re should’ve gone down the Tinkerbell: The Pirate Fairy route and swapped the sibling powers with each other or completely different ones

It would’ve been such a good plot twist if after learning that the Cleanse restored them to the one true timeline, they all think it’s their original lives as a misdirect and they the horror sets in as you realise that they’re actually part of an ultimate timeline. They just could’ve done so much more than that. I know with limited episodes they had to wrap things up quickly so after they learned they had to be erased they just kinda had to accept it but I would’ve loved an entire episode of them grappling with the fact and saying goodbye and reminiscing about their past and maybe even being in denial and self sabotaging or whatever (kind of in the style of that ep in s2 when they have an hour to meet up

Why was Jennifer in a squid??? Why? did she get all the durango? Why weren’t there 42 other kids who got ur? That could’ve been such a cool parallel like cmonnn

I always suspected Ben’s death to be connected to Reg in some way so I loved the reveal… but I hated Jennifer’s involvement. Like it just felt tooo convenient. And I understand why they did it from a writers/ directors perspective that they wanted to wrap everything up but I just felt it could’ve been done much smarter. ALSO I just realised that Klaus doesn’t know how Ben died. Diabolical. I will not stand for it

Reginald didn’t recognise his own wife??? Like when Fake Gene called him “love” and Reggie didn’t clock it???

Speaking of Reggie ARE WE EVER GOING TO DISCUSS THAT HE’S AN ALIEN ROBOT BITCH???

Soooo Luther never once asked Reggie about Sloane???

Ray. Where’s Ray? Maybe the actor was working on something else and they had to get rid of his character

WE NEVER EVEN HEAD ALISON SAY “I HEARD A RUMOUR” NOT EVEN ONCE like I get she’s powerful enough to the point she doesn’t have to say it anymore but that line eats down every. Single. TIME!

Lastly and most importantly… the soundtrack. The songs didn’t slap. Simple as.

Final Statement

I think I covered all my points. I doubt I’ll make a part 2 bc honestly, the show isn’t worth my time and energy anymore. I just needed to rant bc I don’t know any ppl who watch this who have any lick of media literacy.

The finale was painfully underwhelming. It didn’t feel like the same TUA I’ve grown to love over the past few years. I can accept the ending but the journey to how we got there was one massive slap in the face. I’m going to ignore this ending ever happened thank you <3

[whimsicallyenchantedrose]

Season 3 Rewatch Drabbles: 3x19 A Curious Thing

Summary:  A series of 100-500 word drabbles to accompany my    rewatch of season 3 of Once Upon a Time.  There will be a drabble–either a deleted scene, a “fix it” fic or a character musing for each episode of the season.  Focus will be on Emma, Henry, the Charmings and Killian–with an emphasis on Captain Swan’s epic love story.

Word Count: 712

Other Chapters: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10) (11) (12) (13) (14) (15) (16) (17) (18) (19) (20) (22) (23) (24) (25) (26) (27) (28)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Killian’s heart rate gradually returned to normal as the adrenaline faded, but with it, his hope faded as well.

This whole situation had completely spiraled out of control.  He’d tried so hard, so bloody hard, to do what was best–to protect the lad, to save Swan’s magic, to keep the Charmings and everyone else Swan loved safe.  The damned witch had left him with no options.

He couldn’t kiss her.  That much was clear.  There was no possibility in any realm he would willingly take away her magic.

He also couldn’t not kiss her, or he placed her lad in danger.

He also couldn’t tell her what had happened for fear word would get back to Zelena and she’d exact retribution.

The only thing he could think to do was to get the lad away from the witch’s purview, and even that had gone spectacularly pear-shaped.

He was quite fortunate Swan, the queen and the Charmings had shown up to the boathouse when they had when he’d run out of ammunition or…well the alternative didn’t bear contemplation.

But then Zelena herself had shown up spinning her lies and perfidious insinuations about him.

“Don’t blame me.  The captain failed me.  He knew what the price of failure was–your son’s life.”

Killian’s heart plummeted as he looked into Swan’s eyes once the witch was stopped and the curse was broken.  Her eyes were filled with anger and suspicion.

“Are you gonna tell me what Zelena was talking about?” she asked in a voice as hard as steel “She said you failed her.”

“Don’t listen to her!” he said, hearing the pleading sound of his voice.

“Killian, what’s going on?” she asked, arms crossed. “Were you working for her?”

Killian’s heart plummeted even further.  Had she no faith in him at all?  Had he not proven, at least to some extent, that her welfare and that of her family were his priority?  How could she even ask such a thing?

“The witch tried to back me into a corner,” he said, desperate for her to see his sincerity, desperate for her to see the hopelessness of his situation. “I did everything I could to try to resist her plans.”

“So whose idea was it to kidnap Henry and stick him on a boat?” she demanded.

He closed his eyes, deflating.  He was mucking this up royally.  “It was mine. I was trying to save him.”

“From what?” she continued, “What is she doing?”

There was nothing for it.  It was time to spill the whole sordid tale. “She cursed me. My lips actually.”

Her brows furled. “Your lips? Why?”

Did she really not know?  Did she really not see it? “Because she wants to steal your magic.  She thought I was the best way of doing that. She knows what we all know-that you can defeat her.”

For a split second he saw something that might have been pride or gratitude in her eye, but then the anger took over again. “It should have been my decision to protect Henry. Whether she forced your hand or not doesn’t matter!  I can’t trust you now.  How can I?”

It struck him to the very heart, her anger, her accusations, her lack of trust.  What could he have done? What could he have bloody done?  He’d been like a caged animal with no way out.

And as the scene continued to play out–as her parents looked on him with suspicion as well, accusing him of lying about how he’d obtained the potion, it suddenly became blindingly clear to him.

They’d never see him as a hero.  He could never escape his past.  A part of him–the part that had dealt with his grief over Liam’s death by becoming the most vicious and merciless pirate on the seven seas–was tempted to throw it all away and embrace his fate as a villain yet again.

But he’d tried that in the lost year.  He’d tried it and he’d found that she’d changed him irreversibly.  No, that wasn’t precisely accurate.  She’d inspired him to change himself irreversibly.  He was no longer the villain Captain Hook.

He was Killian Jones, and he’d never abandon her, never abandon her family.

Even if they never saw him as anything more than a pirate.

Note: I'm sorry. This scene always absolutely INFURIATED me, and if I have to suffer, so do you. I will however leave you with the following Gif because 1. I think this is what we ALL want to say to Zelena and 2. Killian with that intensity and anger saying "Damn you, Zelena!" is just...*whew! Fans self.*

NEXT CHAPTER->

[thefirstknife]

This question just randomly popped up in my mind, do Ana Brays face markings mean anything? If they do, would you please tell me?

Also would you please, give some interesting facts about Ana Bray? Or any lore including the involvement of Ana Bray?

Thank you!

Nothing in particular on her face markings, as far as I'm aware. We know that she didn't have them before becoming a Guardian, which means she put them on at some point after being rezed.

Her comic (part 3) also further specifies by showing her without the markings during Twilight Gap:

But the next time we see her in the same comic, when she's hiding after faking her death, she has them:

Possibly something to help her hide her identity? She also changed her hair style in the meantime. But we don't really know if they have any additional meaning.

One of my favourite Ana Bray facts was the stuff she was doing before she became a Guardian. I love her talking about her profession:

You can lead a machine to language, but you can't make it think. Well, you can't. But I can. My name is Ana Bray. If you want to insult me, call me a neurolinguist.

Not that it isn't a fine and noble profession, but neurolinguistics is about encoding language. I'm a psycholinguist. I study how language can lead to independent thought.

People don't really see her as a scholar and I've even seen people saying she's not smart, but she is absolutely incredibly smart and educated. Her profession is what led her to teaching Rasputin everything she did, in an effort to teach him not just how to speak, but essentially how to feel and think independently by using language as a base.

These are some older lore tabs that were recently reinforced with some extra details in Season of the Seraph. It's a fascinating read into Ana's expertise and thinking and her work that I've rarely, if ever, seen people mention. I linked the first bit up there, the rest in order: 2, 3, 4 and 5. Favourite part:

Military history, he's been fed by the truckload. But then I started in with operas and symphonies. I don't want him just to think about things.

Humans don't communicate strictly through data. We also communicate through art, through expression. If Rasputin is to be the most effective communications device in the Sol system, I want him to feel things.

Ana was incredible as a scientist and once you know how smart and innovative she is, you can kinda see why she always wanted to return to that passion and learn more about her pre-Guardian life. She even says it in the same comic I linked above:

At Twilight Gap, that Fallen gave me the opening I needed to let the world believe Guardian Ana Bray was dead, so that Doctor Anastasia Bray could finally do what needed to be done.

Another interesting and peculiar less known fact is that Ana was very likely a member of the Future War Cult. I kept seeing that being said, but couldn't figure out where it came from so I went to do a little research. Now for start, Future War Cult wasn't all just bad stuff we remember from Splicer; they were founded by Maya Sundaresh herself and have long lasting ties to Golden Age science and experiments. It might be that Ana joined or cooperated with FWC with that connection to the Golden Age in mind; Ana always knew who she used to be and always wanted to learn more about it. FWC could've been an early attempt to find out.

Back in Destiny 1, there was a mission that had Lakshmi sending you to Twilight Gap as part of the quest to get the exotic No Time To Explain. The quest involved a lot of different missions and included artifacts from Praedyth and Pujari, but also Ana Bray; they were artifacts manipulated by the Vex and time, with links to death. The artifact found at Twilight Gap was Ana's bracelet:

Upon returning to Lakshmi with it, she says:

Interesting! She is not only familiar with this, but she also says that the FWC inner circle will be grateful that the artifact has been "returned," sort of implying that it has been there before, with Ana. I wouldn't say it conclusively proves that Ana was a member, as the FWC may have been interested in the artifact purely for research purposes; the quest itself delves into researching artifacts that were pulled from time; Ana's bracelet may have been pulled because of the connection to No Time To Explain and Elsie. It's an interesting quest, if anyone wants to see it in its entirety, link to the only full playlist I could find is here.

Either way, it's a neat little tidbit from the past. I can definitely see Ana exploring FWC for potential links to not just her personal past, but also for the Golden Age in general.