#i say that about every max gifset i make and you know what? i stand by it | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

daeyeolss · 4 years

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how I make my gifs: a tutorial

Hi everyone! Just in case someone asks in the future + for those curious, I'm here with a tutorial on how I make gifs! If you have any questions whatsoever, please do send me an ask! I’ll be glad to help! The gif I made with this tutorial is the one right here!

So... let’s start this tutorial with the programs I use.

Adobe Photoshop 2020 - To make the gifs, majority of the work is done in this program.

TopazLabs (Topaz DeNoise 6 and Topaz Clean 3) - To "denoise" and "clean" the gifs, as the names would suggest. Links for download: Topaz DeNoise 6 & Topaz Clean 3

KMPlayer (an alternative would be PotPlayer, or any other video playing program that allows you to capture the frames) - To capture the frames. - I use an older version of KMPlayer, though I don't know which exact version that is.

Now let’s continue onto how I use these programs to create gifs!

Step 1: After you’ve downloaded the necessary programs, download your video. The way to get the best gifs? Quality videos. That’s the first step. For K-pop performances, I recommend this website (the hq files are in .ts form, KMPlayer should be able to open these). Bookmark it! It’s really handy :) Get the video you want to make a gif from and open it in KMPlayer (or PotPlayer or any other program, but for this tutorial I’ll use KMPlayer). Open your video in said program and look for the part you want to make a gif of. Then press CTRL+G (I apologize because I cannot for the life of me remember if this was a standard shortcut or not)

Step 2: After pressing CTRL+G, you’ll be met with this screen:

I’ll briefly explain the numbered parts, but before that, these are my standard settings and just make sure you have them all the same and it should be good!

1: This is where your captured frames will be extracted to. I have them extracted to the standard folder, but you can change this if you want to. You’ll need this folder later when opening the frames!

2: Like it says, this is the image format. I use PNG in the highest quality, as the name would suggest, for the quality.

3: These are the amount of frames the program captures. Say you put in every 2 or 4 frames, you’ll get more choppy gifs. To get the smoothest gifs, put “every frame” (this in turn will increase the gif size as the amount of frames will obviously be bigger).

Once you’ve put in the correct settings and you’ve put the slider where you want the capturing process to start, press “start” (now, before you do this I recommend putting the video on mute as the audio will start to get kinda demon-y the longer you record lol save your ears pls). Then, when you’ve captured all the frames you need, pause the video, press CTRL+G again and click “stop” and close the pop-up/program.

Step 3: It’s time to open up Photoshop! Then go to File > Scripts > Load Files into Stack... (for older versions/another version I used in the past this one didn’t work and I had to use the “Load Multiple DICOM Files...” instead. It should work similarly though, if I remember correctly).

You then get a little pop-up that looks like this:

All you have to do here is click “browse” and navigate to the folder where your captured frames have been saved in. Select all the frames you need, wait for them to load in and then click “OK”!

Step 4: Depending on the amount of frames you’ve selected to load in, as well as the beefiness of your PC/laptop, the frames loading part might take a little while. Photoshop is importing every frame as a separate layer into one file, so just... grab a drink or something and wait a bit! When you’re done waiting, if you haven’t already, go to Window > Timeline. This will show you the animation timeline. For older Photoshop versions this is slightly different (I believe it’s called animation). Then click “Create Video Timeline” and click the 3 squares on the left bottom side (in older versions it’s on the right bottom side, not sure).

Step 5: After you’ve done all that, you’ll want to select all your layers. You can do this by pressing ALT+CTRL+A or going to Select > All Layers. With all the layers selected, you have to go to Layer > Arrange > Reverse. You only have to do this if you used the “Load Files into Stack” option!

Step 6: After reversing all your layers, you’ll want to go to the three lines you see in the following screenshot, and click “Make Frames From Layers”.

As the name suggests, this turns all the layers into frames. I don’t know why but the first frame will always be 5 seconds long, so to make it easy on yourself when you want to check your gif while editing, just put that on 0 for now. You can do that by clicking the seconds under the frame and clicking “No delay”. After this, check to see if you have the right frames and if you need to delete some (you can do this at any point in the process but I didn’t know where to put it in the tutorial oops).

Step 7: Time to crop the gif to the correct size! For this gif I’m using as an example, I’m making it specifically for Twitter, so the sizes aren’t that obvious (for Twitter I usually use a width of 850 px to keep it sharp, for long size gifs (more height than width for example), I add a background so that it eventually still becomes 850x850 pixels). There’s many posts on Tumblr about the correct sizes for gif/photosets, but a brief rundown of my most used sizes: one gif spanning the entire width of the post has to be 540 px in width. Two gifs next to one another need to have a width of 268 px. I use these dimensions the most! For others, you can Google!

Step 8: After you’ve cropped the gif, you can do either of two things: either you first add the coloring of your choice and then sharpen the gif OR you do it the other way around. I usually switch these two around depending on how sharp the gif already looks before sharpening because I can’t stand looking at 2 pixels while coloring (lmao). For this one I’ll do the sharpening first.

The whole sharpening process is actually quite simple but you need to make sure that you do the following little steps in the right order or else it won’t work! Select all the layers (CTRL+ALT+A or Select > All Layers) and then click this little thingy:

Then you’re going to Filter > Convert for Smart Filters

If you don’t do it in this order, your gif will end up... well, not being a gif and not moving. If that happens, track back in your history to see if you did it in the correct order! :)

Step 9: The actual sharpening process! After clicking the “Convert for Smart Filters”, you’ll want to go to Filter again and find the Topaz Labs tabs. Personally, I usually do it in the order of DeNoise first and then Clean, but this is a personal thing, really.

I recommend playing around with the settings to see what fits the gif but here are my go-to DeNoise settings (tip: save these as a preset so you only have to click that for faster giffing!):

And my Clean settings:

Press OK when you’re done with these and then go to Filter > Sharpen > Smart Sharpen. These are my SS settings (just copy these, and again, save as a preset!):

Depending on how sharp you want the gif to be, you can input the same settings or go to this in the layers and change the percentage.

Now that we’re done with these... it’s time to flatten it! Just follow these little steps:

And then you wait. Again. I know.

Step 10: After playing the waiting game, you’ll click the three little squares again and do the same thing you did earlier: “Make Frames Into Layers”. Delete the first frame. Add a coloring of your choice (can be a PSD, can be your own coloring, etc. this is honestly just... playing around with things and see what it can do). After you’ve done coloring, select all your frames (same lines as previous screenshot except now you’ll see a “Select All Frames” option, click it!) and change the time to whatever you like (I usually go for 0.05, 0.06, or 0.07. Again, just play around with this!! Try different things!)

Step 11: Final step! Saving :) I use shortcuts a lot to make things faster so either press ALT+SHIFT+CTRL+S or go to File > Export > Save For Web. Not much to do here, just copy the following settings and save the file!

!!! NOTE: After making a new gif today I realized there’s a weird dotted border on the top of my gifs, it’s a bit difficult to explain but I had no idea what it was. Turns out that the reason why this showed up was because, as shown in the screenshot below, I had “Transparency” selected. If you’re experiencing this too, UNSELECT the transparency and it should be all good!

Also make sure that the “Looping Options” is set to Forever, or else your gif will play only once and then stop!

Tip: While making gifs for Twitter I at one point noticed that if I added in a white background, no matter what I’d do, it’d show up as yellow-y in the preview box. After googling I found that going to the options (1 in the screenshot) and then clicking “Sort by Luminance”, then double-clicking the lightest color (not the transparent one, 2 in the screenshot) and selecting white (or FFF) will get rid of this! This likely won’t be that useful for Tumblr gifs but just in case you ever want to have a white background...!

Then just... save, and upload to Tumblr! :)

Final note: Tumblr has a mix gif size of 3MB. If you have a gifset of 4 gifs you want to upload, all 4 gifs can be max 3MB each. Keep this in mind! If you’re over 3MB, delete a few frames and try again, or resize/crop your gif!

As it turns out, Tumblr has increased their gif size to 8MB, however, the quality tends to get compressed with larger gifs like that so per recommendation: keep them below 5MB! (thank you @yeoli for letting me know!)

I hope this helped! If you have any questions, feel free to send me a message and I’ll try my best to answer them.

#tutorial #gif #gif tutorial #kpop #gif making #gifs #idk what to tag this lmao

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bathroombreaks · 3 years

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masterpost of all my edits and fanfics pt.2

everything i’ve created can be found here. all good girls edits can be found here. all good girls fanfics can be found here. all anne with an e edits can be found here. all shadow and bone edits can be found here. my collection of gifsets of random tv shows and movies can be found here. my rainbow edits can be found here. things that i like the most/am proudest of, for whatever reason, can be found here.

this masterpost is divided into:

1. anne with an e

a. anne x gilbert edits

b. other edits

2. shadow and bone

a. alina edits

b. other edits

3. good girls

a. gifset collections

b. quote edits

c. parallel edits

d. specific scene/episode edits

e. other beth x rio edits

f. other edits

g. fanfics

3.a. good girls - gifset collections

good girls episode titles

countdown to s3 premiere

good girls underrated moments

top 15 good girls moments

good girls appreciation week 2020

our favourite good girls in every episode

christmas gif(t)sets

countdown to season 4

girls in season 4

good girls meme

3.b. good girls - quote edits

beth - now is the time of monsters

annie, beth and ruby - friendships between women

beth and rio - i should go

beth and rio - how to write a tragedy in three acts

beth - everything i wanted

beth and rio - the next time i smile

beth and rio - from eden

beth and rio - steadier with you by my side

beth and dean - one of you is lying

rio - rang each syllable: e-liz-a-beth

beth and rio - nothing’s fair in love and war

beth and rio - entertainer

beth and rio - my love will never die

annie - the human heart

beth and rio - the (greater) fear

beth - the mask and the wearer

beth and rio - 11pm

beth and rio - you know me too well

beth and dean - positions

beth and rio - pov

beth - #girlboss

beth and rio - let it be hell

annie and ben - slipping through my fingers all the time

beth, dean, fitzpatrick and rio - my wife is a bitch and i like her so much

beth and rio - pumped up kicks

beth and rio - we wanna be with each other but we hate each other

beth and dean - a dress like that

beth - it’s not easy for me

3.c. good girls - parallel edits

beth - baking pastries vs cooking cash [2x13]

beth and ruby - hearteyes [1x01, 1x02, 2x02, 2x09]

annie, beth and ruby - robberies [1x01, 1x08, 1x10, 2x09]

annie - throwing cash into a fireplace [season 3 promo, 3x01]

annie and beth - without kids [1x05, 1x07, 2x08, 2x09, 3x01]

beth - drinking slushies [2x05 vs 3x02]

boomer - injured [1x01, 2x02, 2x03]

beth - asking kenny to watch tv/youtube [1x02, 3x02]

rio - realising he can’t/deciding he won’t kill beth [1x02, 2x02, 2x06, 3x03]

rio - saying he needs/doesn’t need beth [1x09, 2x06, 3x04]

annie and beth - loss of vision [3x04]

annie - running [2x12, 3x04]

annie - stuffing bills on her person [2x04, 3x01]

beth, lucy and rio - rio calling someone his girl [3x03, 3x05]

beth - sarcastically using important titles to refer to rio [2x12, 3x06]

beth and rio - hitting it vs making love [1x05, 2x04, 2x09]

beth and rio - facing off [2x04, 2x06, 2x11, 3x04]

beth and rio - standing close enough to kiss [2x04, 2x09, 2x11]

rio - heavy-lidded look [2x06, 3x04]

beth and rio - rio touching beth’s shoulder [1x08, 2x09]

max and turner - boards [1x04, 3x07]

beth, danny and jane - beth not knowing how to answer [2x12, 3x07]

beth, dean and rio - trust [2x05, 3x08]

beth and rio - beth making rio laugh at the bar [2x09, 3x08]

annie - captain can do t-shirt [3x07]

beth and rio - negotiating cuts [1x04, 2x04, 2x06, 3x08]

rio - walking [3x01, 3x08]

rio - expressions [3x01, 3x08]

rio - expressions [2x05, 2x07, 3x01, 3x08]

annie, beth and rio - my girl/your boy [3x03, 3x09]

beth - lying to rio during their meetings in season 3 [3x06, 3x09]

beth - beth finding out about dean’s cheating [1x01, 2x05, 3x09]

beth and rio - standing back to back while talking [2x10, 3x06]

beth and rio - smashing things [1x02, 3x08]

beth and rio - beth being bored with normal life [1x08, 2x10, 3x10]

beth and rio - rio surprising beth in her kitchen [1x01, 3x10]

beth and rio - rio smiling after beth is awkward [2x05, 3x10]

beth and rio - beth rejecting rio’s advances [2x06, 3x11]

rio - reiterating that beth is stuck with him [2x04, 2x11, 3x11]

rio - looking at beth with a lot of emotion in his eyes [3x03, 3x11]

beth and rio - looking at each other and smiling [2x09, 2x11]

beth and rio - kissing with sunlight streaming through the window [2x09, merlin 2x02]

beth, dean, kenny and rio - how dean’s speech applies to what he thinks is happening and what’s really happening [3x10, 3x11]

beth and rio - almost up and running, walk me through it [3x11]

beth - destruction [1x01, 1x09, 2x02, 2x05, 2x10, 3x09]

beth and rio - beth realising rio is alive [3x02, 3x10]

annie, cohen and mick - annie being protective of beth [3x03, 4x01]

beth - wearing apron with lemon print [2x13, 4x01]

beth and rio - eating weirdly [3x09, 4x02]

beth - reacting to seeing boomer’s and mick’s penises [1x02, 4x02]

beth - the state of that woman’s marriage was written all over her face [1x01, 1x05, 1x06, 2x02, 2x04, 2x05, 3x09, 3x11, 4x02]

beth and rio - touching hands [2x05, 3x04, 4x03]

beth and rio - beth bending over [2x04, 4x03]

beth and dean - ignoring “i love you” [1x01, 4x03]

beth - celebrating [1x02, 4x03]

beth - pta activities [2x02, 2x10, 4x04]

rio - looking at beth [2x09, 4x04]

beth and rio - beth looking surprised when rio agrees with her [4x01, 4x04]

beth, phoebe - wire [1x05, 4x05]

beth and rio - fall guy [2x12, 4x02, 4x05]

beth and rio - beth channeling rio [3x09, 4x05]

dean - misunderstanding tattoos [3x01, 4x05]

beth and rio - hooking up [2x04, 4x06]

rio - throwing his head back laughing [2x08, 4x06]

beth and rio - business [2x12, 3x06, 4x06]

beth and rio - rio’s family pictures [2x11, 4x06]

beth, dean, nick and rio - beth being called “elizabeth“ [2x09, 4x03, 4x06]

beth and rio - #bethany, why? [2x09, 4x06]

beth - panicking [3x02, 4x01, 4x06]

rio - beth imagining rio [2x05, 3x03, 4x06]

beth, fitzpatrick, rio - beth going to unbuckle a man and being rejected [4x04, 4x06]

annie and ben - annie taking the ged test [3x10, 4x06]

beth and rio - glovebox [3x10, 4x07]

beth and rio - hook-ups and callbacks [2x04, 2x05, 2x09, 3x03, 4x06, 4x07]

beth and rio - rio touching beths’ back and shoulders [1x08, 2x02, 2x04, 2x06, 2x09, 3x07, 4x04, 4x06]

beth and rio - a dress like that [1x08, 2x04, 2x06, 3x08, 4x06]

fitzpatrick and rio - saying “i can’t talk shop on an empty stomach” [3x09, 4x07]

3.d. good girls - specific scene/episode edits

annie, beth and ruby - flashbacks in 2x08

annie, beth and ruby - ruby saying she shot a guy in 3x01

beth - smiling as lucy leaves in 3x01

annie, beth and ruby - montage of them making counterfeit cash in 3x01

annie, beth and ruby - annie looking for coffee in ruby’s kitchen in 1x08

annie, beth and ruby - deciding to rob nancy’s spas in 1x08

ruby - getting high with stan in 1x09

beth and turner - parking lot at night in 2x05

beth - sitting on the couch in 3x01

ruby - talking on the phone with gwen in 3x01

annie, beth, nancy, rhea and ruby - looking pretty in 3x02

annie, beth, judy and ruby - talking about rouge in 3x02

rio - looking at the ultrasound in 3x03

ruby and stan - together in 3x03

beth and rio - fighting in her backyard in 2x06

beth and rio - drinking and talking at the bar in 2x09

beth - destroying her thanksgiving-themed baked goods in 2x10

beth - walking home in 2x13

beth and rio - bar in 2x05

annie, beth and ruby - talking about when they’ll reopen in 1x08

beth and rio - blue and pink gifs of them in 2x09

beth - wearing the red polka dot dress in 2x04

beth and rio - kissing in her bedroom in 2x09

annie and dean - talking in the bolands’ kitchen in 1x05

annie, beth, boomer and ruby - talking in beth’s car about marion in 3x08

beth - pretending to freak out about her husband in 3x11

annie and ruby - fight in 2x10

beth and pta moms - beth finds out that lucy’s body was found in 4x01

beth - alley in 2x03

beth and rio - bar in 4x01

dean and eric - boland bubbles showroom in 4x01

beth - wearing the strawberry dress in 4x02

beth and rio - rio checking beth out during the 4x03 pool scene

beth and annie - young beth and annie in 4x03

beth and rio - talking at the bar in 4x04

beth and rio - in the bedroom in grandma’s house in 4x06

beth and rio - hands in 4x06

rosa - barbecue in 4x06

beth - thigh shots in 4x06

beth - strip club scene in 4x08

3.e. good girls - other beth x rio edits

rio touching beth

looking at each other in season 1

looking at each other in season 2

looking at each other in season 3

in every episode of season 3

rio looking at beth’s cleavage

softly smiling at each other

playlist

favourite lines of dialogue between them

faceless

tv tropes

text posts

incorrect quotes

3.f. good girls - other edits

annie, beth and ruby - icons

annie, beth, lucy, rio, ruby and stan - season 3 first look and official trailer

beth - looking pretty in season 2

annie, beth and ruby - making funny faces [1x02, 2x05, 3x05]

beth - coping mechanisms

beth - hands

annie, beth, dean, rio, ruby and stan - colours

annie, ben, beth, dean, rio, ruby and stan - onion headlines

beth - black and white

beth - drawing

ruby - drawing

annie - drawing

rio’s golden gun, book club, paper porcupine - drawings

annie, beth, dean, rio, ruby and stan - planets

annie, beth, marcus, rio, ruby - seasons in the park

season 4 promo

good girls + rainbow

stan and diane

beth and mick in s4 trailer

annie, beth and ruby in s4 trailer

blue and yellow

annie, beth and ruby in pink, blue and purple

beth and turner

3.g. good girls - fanfics

bleed me a river - my take on how rio could’ve popped back into beth’s life after 2x13

little league (never felt so sweet) - beth and rio meet when beth picks up jane from little league practice

the bittersweet salt cracks my heart - pg-13 hate sex post-s3

a heart’s a heavy burden - howl’s moving castle au

everything you love will burn up in the light - rio is a vampire au

my heart burns there, too - beth and rio get married

aita for wanting to stop paying my wife’s “business partner” and yelling at her? - dean posts on reddit post s3

you think that by now i’d know - beth inadvertently asks out rio

“you’re being too loud, ma” prompt

“the lasagna here isn’t nearly as good as she remembered” prompt

“i told you: no dungarees” prompt

#txt #stfu #mine #masterpost #nav

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nowaynoee · 4 years

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at least i got you in my head

also on ao3

the typical clichè: very gay Maya falls in love with her very straight best friend Lola but it’s actually easier than they think.

enjoy and feedback is always appreciated!

this work is inspired by this gifset 💜

She doesn’t know exactly when her feelings for Lola started to bloom.

For what she can remember, it happened quickly and her self control got thrown out of the window. Maya did try to repress them, to convince herself that she was just a whim and that sooner or later they would go away as rapidly as they came. Truth is that after almost four years her feelings are still there, strong and apparently irremovable. The thing is that while she’s confident about her being a loud and proud lesbian, as far as she knows Lola is straight, very straight, and she’s also her best friend. What a situation.

Maya met Lola the first year of high school. They sat near each other for a while before starting a conversation and as soon as that happened they got inseparable. It’s special the bond that keep them still attached even after years and both of them felt it immediately, since the first word spoken with a hint of shyness. Maya was there for Lola when her mother died and Lola was there for Maya when she came out to her foster family and they threw her out. Coming to terms with her sexuality was easy. She always knew she is attracted to women. Let’s say that when she met Lola, well, she had another confirmation.

Maya even lived with her for a short time, while she was searching a job and another place to stay. Probably the best moments of her life. She left school at the end of the second year, soon after she started working and living alone in the tiniest flat ever. Her friendship with Lola continued, maybe even stronger than before.

As said, she can’t remember the exact moment her feeling bloomed but she can remember that little istant in which she admitted to herself that no, Lola wasn’t just her best friend.

They were having a sleepover at Maya’s apartment, the very first time Lola slept there. She mocked Maya a few times about how small it was and she was right but in a way it felt like her little nest and safe place. They laughed all night long, eat here and there and did an extreme marathon of movies wrapped in a huge blanked, side by side. Maya was about to turn off the tv when she realized Lola already fell asleep and her head was comfortably placed on her shoulder. She gazed at her: her face was relaxed, her mouth slightly open and she was breathing calmly, the warmness of it directly on Maya’s neck. Lola looked beautiful like this. Maya lost herself for god knows how much to take in all the details of her. When she came back to reality, she knew. I’m in love with you . ...

Same bed two years later, she’s still in love with Lola. It’s summer and her duvet has been replaced buy just one white sheet. Lola is under it, her hair splayed on the pillow and her eyes closed in a deep sleep. The shine caused by the sweat looks surprisingly good on her and Maya has to hold herself back from caressing her cheeks. The outline of her small body is evident under the light fabric and the little top and shorts she’s wearing doesn’t help hiding it. Maya feels like a creep when she looks at Lola like this. It’s not like she doesn’t try to not do it, she does, but when you’re in love with someone you have an hard time with that. It’s even harder to accept that nothing is going to happen and you have to let go of the hope it will. She fantasizes sometimes about confessing to her, about finally be able to kiss her and call her her girlfriend. Lola lives in her mind rent free ans she wants to punch herself for letting her in in the first place.

...

“I hate it.”

This is the third outfit Lola tries for the night and once again she’s undressing only to redress again with another pairing. Maya gives her advices through it, her already having chose what to wear for the night. She knows Lola’s room by heart but every time she’s in it she always finds something new. A photo, a drawing, posters of her favourite bands. Is on those that she centers her attention while her best friend changes clothes because the view would be too much for her gay panic.

“What do you think about this one? ╴Hey? Earth to Maya?”

She turns her gaze towards Lola immediately, realizing only then that she has zoned out once again. “It’s very much your style.” She replies with a small smile curving her lips. There’s nothing special about what her friend is wearing, it being a normal pair of black jeans and a top that cuts right before her navel, still Maya can’t take her eyes of her. “I think I’ll go with this one, then. Do you still want to do my makeup and hair?” Lola asks her and Maya nods, sitting up from the chair and leaving it to her.

She loves this part of the preparation. Firstly because she gets to do what she likes and secondly because it allows her to be close to Lola without it being awkward. Sure, they cuddle sometimes but Maya always interrupts it as soon as possible: it hurts her to have Lola cuddled to her in that way. It makes her feeling want to erupt.

“Do you remember the last urbex party we went together?” Lola asks her, bringing up her eyes to let Maya putting the kajal on the lower rim. Maya does remember it, well even. It was three months ago. “You were so mad because you spent like an hour doing my makeup and the rain smudget it like thirty minutes after we arrived.” She chuckles and suddenly stops when Maya gives her a little punch to not mess up what she’s doing. “It was one of my best works! It looked so good.” because it was on you , she wants to say but doesn’t. Instead they keep small talking until Lola’s ready and they get out of her house.

…

The party is crowded, like really crowded.

Once they arrived they met up with Jo, Max and Sekou and headed directly to the bar. They all took something to drink while Maya, as always, decided for a simple soda. Maya doesn’t like dancing that much, she definitely enjoys more listening to the loud music and laying on one of the free couches. Max and Sekou usually stay with her while Lola and Jo get crazy on the dancefloor for hours. “ ╴so, no target tonight?” Max’s voice gets her out of her thoughts, at least enough to take a look at the whole place in search of someone interesting. It’s not like Maya waited for Lola all these years, at least not apparently. She had a few night stands and one relationship even. It didn’t last that long and plus, Lola hated the girl in question. They mocked each other all the time and they were practically in an ongoing competition of who knew Maya better. Lola won each and every time.

“I don’t know.” Maya answers because she really doesn’t. There’s really no girl that attracts her that much and them being in a random club and not into a gay one makes things a little difficult for her. Better to keep some distance from straight girls, right?

“Oh, come on Maya—“ before Max can finish the sentence, Jo comes running towards where they’re seated, spreading herself in the free space they left for her. “God, I’m sweating from every pore, I swear! The drink I swallowed in one go didn’t help either, my head spins so bad right now.” She cups her face with her hands and Maya brings one of hers on her back, moving it in small circles.

“Wait — where is Lola?” Maya asks her as soon as Jo seems to feel better. “Mmh, she’s with a guy, I don’t even remember his name. He was cute though, she has taste!” Her words make her sigh, fortunately the loud music covers it. It doesn’t take to much of looking to find Lola in the crowd, pressed against the wall with a guy literally eating her face like there’s no tomorrow. Maya feels her stomach clenching and a sharp pain right where her heart is placed. The nausea hits her suddenly and she has to take a few deep breaths to swallow down the food she ate a few hours before. It’s not the first time she sees Lola with a guy, she has seen her with plenty flirts and even in a short-term relationship. This time hits different though. Maybe because it’s been three months since the last party they went to and she didn’t have to see her making out with anyone for all this time.

“I’m going out. I need some fresh air.” She blurts out, sitting up. Her head spins and tears are threatening to come out each second that passes.

“Maya, wait.” She hears Sekou say and she stops, turning around only to find that all three of her friends are looking at her with a concerned expression.

“You can’t keep going like this. You have to tell her what you feel.” He adds, signing her to sit again with them. They knew from the beginning what was going on between her and Lola. Even before Maya admitted it to herself. At first, when they tried to bring up her feelings, she brushed it off saying it was just in their head. Obviously it wasn’t. Jo, Max and Sekou mocked her about her crush for Lola for a long time when she finally told them they were right all along. Only when they realized that it wasn’t just a crush but that Maya really fell in love with Lola they stopped and tried encouraging her to tell her everything.

“I can’t, I can’t tell her what I feel. I would lose her! She doesn’t love me like that.” She said the same exact words a million times but it still hurts her to repeat them out loud. If Maya was sure that she wouldn’t lose her by confessing her feeling, she would at least think about it. The truth is that just the idea of not having her in her life is worse that having Lola just like a friend.

“It’s just what it is. I’ll get over it.” All three are rolling their eyes and Maya can tell they’re truly done with her bullshit.

“I can’t feel my legs anymore.”

Maya recognizes Lola’s voice as soon as she hears it and she finds Lola right behind her, bringing her arms around Maya’s neck and pressing herself on her back. The sitting position which Maya’s in makes Lola more comfortable and she leans in to her fully. “Are you tired?” Lola speaks in her ear to make herself be heard only by Maya. The latter nods, tilting her head up to see her friend’s face. “Guys, I don’t want to ruin your fun but tomorrow I’m working. I really need to go home.” It’s a lie , Maya thinks. She knows that Lola doesn’t work on sunday and probably the others know too but don’t say anything. They gather their things quickly, none of them too sorry to leave. During the ride home she gazes at Lola sometimes, the image of her kissing the stranger still very vivid in her head. She can’t seem to ignore it like she did in the past.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Lola whispers, their bodies tangled in a tight hug in Lola’s bed. Her best friend is caressing her hair, scratching her scalp from time to time, till she drags her finger under Maya’s chin to make her turn up her head.

Everything about this is wrong. Everything that she’s feeling is wrong but Maya can’t say it. She can’t bring herself to form the right words. Even thinking about that hurts her. Lola knows something is not right and Maya can see her questioning and concerned look. She gulps and looks away, trying to escape any further question. “It’s nothing.” She brushes it off, placing her head again on Lola’s shoulder.

“It’s not nothing if it bothers you.” Lola murmurs in her hair, her breath warm against it. She always knows when something is wrong and doesn’t leave it until Maya actually talks. It’s not the first time Maya feels like this, jealousy striking her until she almost stops breathing and shame after because they aren’t even together. She managed for a long time to swallow it down, to cry even when it all became too much, without Lola seeing it but she can’t seem to bring herself to do it now.

“I don’t want to talk about it.” Maya mutters, voice so low she’s not even sure Lola heard her. “I’m sorry.” She adds after a few seconds. A tear escapes and she’s fast to dry it out but not fast enough for Lola not to notice.

“Maya…”

Her heart clenches at hearing Lola saying her name and when one tear starts to become a full on crying session, Lola just holds her tighter. Maya grabs Lola’s shirt with her fist, as a way of saying please don’t leave me as her cheeks dampens, leaving a wet stain on the fabric.

“It will all be alright Maya. I promise.” She whispers and for the first time Maya can’t bring herself to believe her.

…

It’s been a week since her breakdown in Lola’s arms. They didn’t talk about it again, Lola deciding to leave Maya her privacy and time to come to her when she’ll be ready. Except that she doesn’t know if she’ll ever be ready. During the last seven days she kept some sort of distance with Lola, trying to shake off the image of her from the last saturday. Maya even tried to go on a date to remove the said girl from her mind for at least a bunch of hours. Her date was cute, hesitant when she pressed her lips against Maya’s ones, only to start kissing her deeper when she felt her hands pinching her waist. They spent the night together and the sex was good, it served its purpose. Maya didn’t call this girl again. As soon as she left in the morning, she put the bedsheets in the washer and brought herself under the shower until the girl’s perfume wasn’t on her skin anymore.

When Jo sent her a message proposing her to go out again on saturday, she initially refused. Parties weren’t fun anymore. Jo, being the chaotic girl she is, tried again, this time asking her to do a sleepover at her house. She wanted to find an excuse but she couldn’t keep ignoring her friends and Lola. Maya’s flat is small but it can handle five people if they squeeze enough to sleep. One thing was for sure, Maya wasn’t sleeping near Lola again.

...

“Never have I ever… Kissed someone of the same sex.” Jo speaks first, getting immediately puzzled looks towards her. “Seriously Jo?” Maya jokes, laughing quietly and drinking from her cup. Max, Jo and Sekou have vodka in their cups, Lola has it too but barely drinks it and Maya can tell because she doesn’t see her swallowing down the liquid when she should be. Maya, as always, has a simple soda. “I know you did, you silly, I just wanted to know if I was the only one that didn’t. Apparently I’m not!” As soon as Jo lets out the last words, she takes a look at Lola which has her gaze on her glass and isn’t drinking. It’s late night and Maya can see she’s tired of playing this game as much as she is. Fortunately it doesn’t take long until their three friends collapse on the mattress she placed in her living room. The only two that sleep doesn’t take are Lola and Maya.

They remain in silence for what it feels like an eternity. It’s uncomfortable but at the same time it’s not if it’s even possible. They’re facing each other while sitting on Maya’s small couch but they both are keeping their eyes down, avoiding the other’s looks. The unspoken weights on them like a million bricks and neither of them is courageous enough to lift it. At least that’s what Maya thought.

“Never have I ever fell in love with my best friend.”

Lola’s voice isn’t loud but Maya hears it amplified ten times more than it actually is. The implied question leaves her surprised and makes her heart skip a beat. She snaps her head back up, her eyes locked in Lola’s ones unable to move them somewhere else now. Her lips part slightly but no sounds escapes from them. She doesn’t even have the cup in her hands anymore from where she could drink. In a way, Lola trapped her. Lola didn’t say that innocently or without thinking about it. They aren’t even playing anymore so there’s a second ending for sure.

“Why are you asking me this?” Maya ends up saying after gaining enough confidence to form a coherent sentence.

“I remember. I remember everything .”

╴╴╴

Three months ago

Lola’s body was pressed against Maya’s side, while one of her arms was lazily placed around her shoulder to steady her. She felt dizzy but she wasn’t drunk. Or at least she wasn’t anymore, the effect of alcohol slowly left her body during their long ride home. Max decided to bring them and their friends to an urbex party on the other side of the city and the traffic, especially when they were going back home, was unbearable. They had fun that night, Lola dancing as always with Jo and sometimes bringing Maya with her even if she was complaining. She felt Maya’s front against her back and she couldn’t help pressing herself even closer to her, swinging her hips at the rhythm of the music. Thanks to the non-existent distance between them, she could feel Maya holding her breath.

It’s not like Lola didn’t notice that Maya was sometimes awkward around her. She tried to ignore it for some time but not thinking about it made her do it even more. Not only about what was going on in Maya’s head, but also what was going on in hers. She was straight as far as she knew, she has always been with boys and she liked it. Lola knew that Maya was attracted to girls only and she never had a problem with it. At least until her best friend wasn’t near one of them that wasn’t her. Maya’s first relationship was with a certain Charlotte, a girl she met at work. Lola hated her from the first second she saw her and never failed to make that very known. Maya tried so hard to find a common ground between the two of them but she never succeed. She knew that Maya didn’t love Char, she could see it in her eyes. It was just a matter of time until they broke up. When they did, Lola wasn’t surprised.

What she was really surprised about was her — jealousy towards her? She couldn’t explain exactly what she felt at the time, she just realized that she wanted to be the one Maya was holding. She wanted to be the one Maya was kissing. She wanted to be the one Maya looked at. She wanted to be at Char‘s place. Her feelings were confusing and Lola didn’t try to let them out for fear of hurting Maya. She ignored them by throwing herself in the arms of random guys, having even a relationship with one of them for a few months. At the end of the day though, she always ended up in Maya’s arms thinking what would it be like to be held. Seriously held by her.

She couldn’t ignore them anymore that night, after the urbex party.

Maya helped her going up the stairs and when they arrived inside her house she splayed herself on the couch. “This party was awesome.” Lola said, placing her head on Maya’s shoulder when she sat on her side. She could hear her trying to breathe slowly and, when she brought her hand on her friend’s chest, she took the time to feel her heartbeat against her palm. “Your heart is beating so fast.” She murmured, moving her chin until it was placed on the crook of Maya’s neck. Lola knew that with her lips being so close to her skin she could feel her breath against that sensitive spot. Lola’s mind is dizzy but not on alcohol and Maya’s silence is somehow motivating her to not stop. “Maya, look at me.” It was whispered extremely low but Maya must have heard her because she turned her head on Lola’s side.

“Lola, w-what are you doing?” Maya’s voice was unsteady, breathy and insecure. Lola tilted her head up a bit, until she could make their fronts touch. Maya closed her eyes and parted her lips almost immediately but nothing happened for long. They remained like that, enjoying their closeness and the silence that filled the room again.

Suddenly, Lola couldn’t hold back anymore. She slowly got closer and closer, until their lips brushed one another. Maya let out little sigh and that’s when Lola took the opportunity to bring their lips together one for all. It wasn’t more than a simple peck, even if it lasted a bit longer than that, but it still was enough to make Lola shiver.

Yes, she was acting drunker than she was only to make this easier. Only to pretend she forgot about it just in case Maya reacted badly.

Before she was able to deepen their kiss, Maya pulled her back by placing both her hands on Lola’s shoulder. “No Lola, this isn’t right.” She marked, getting up from the couch. It took Lola a few seconds to realize what was happening and when she did a wave of regret hitted her. Tears threatened to come out but she held them back as much as she could. “I’m bringing you a blanket.” She heard Maya say but her voice seemed like it came from afar. She felt the warmness of the fabric enveloping her and her back pressed on the couch cushions.

“You’re drunk, you need to get some rest. You won’t remember anything in the morning.” And she placed a kiss on her forehead, delicate as the tone of her voice.

She wanted to scream: no, i will. Sleep took over her before she could even part her lips.

╴╴╴

“You remember that you —“

“I kissed you.” Lola mutters, letting out the words that Maya can’t seem to pronounce.

Maya is in full on panic. Lola was drunk as far as she knew but apparently not as drunk to forget the moment they shared together.

She thought about that kiss a lot in the last three months, she couldn’t get it out of her head. For the three seconds it lasted, she was the happiest person on earth. She leaned to the touch of Lola’s lips even, soft and plump just like she imagined them, and she lost herself for a moment. Her heart was ready to burst out of her chest and her body was shaking from excitement and relief. It all came crashing down when she came back to earth and realized that none of that was true and felt. Lola was out of it, she had to carry her throughout the stairs and help her to sit on the couch. Probably the kiss was nothing more than an induced action caused by the effect of alcohol. Maya obliged herself to forget about it but she just couldn’t. After their kiss, at least, she didn’t saw Lola entertaining herself with a guy for a long time. Until the last party they went to.

Now Lola is there, saying that she remembers anything and the only thing Maya wants to do is to run through the door. She doesn’t want to handle rejection. In a way, it’s better not to know and still have a minuscule hope than knowing that nothing is going to happen ever because her best friend is straight as a line.

“Let’s not talk about it, okay? It doesn’t have to mean anything. It was just a kiss.” Maybe the reverse psychology can work to get her out of the situation. Maya tries to brush it off as nothing important, as something they can forget because it didn’t have to mean anything for their future. They were still going to have a future, right?

“Just a kiss.” Lola repeats and Maya can hear almost disappointment in her voice. She doesn’t get it, though. Lola shouldn’t feel disappointed. After all, none of them talked about it after it happened and even if Lola remembered chose to not talk about it.

Lola is suddenly closer to her and she fails in the intent of backing off from her. She feels paralyzed all of the sudden and confused too. Their eyes lock again and the intensity of Lola’s gaze is almost unbearable for her poor heart. “Lola…” Maya manages to whisper when one of Lola’s hand come to rest on her cheek and, unable to think in a rational way, she places one of hers on top of her friend’s. Their forehead touch, just like they did three months ago and at this point Maya is too far gone.

Words become unnecessary when, in a surge of courage, Maya closes the distance between her and Lola. I’ll probably regret this in the morning , she has barely the time to think. Their lips meet in an innocent kiss, a soft press that is enough to send sparks all through Maya’s spine. She doesn’t dare to deepen it but in the end she doesn’t need too because Lola is doing it for her. She brings the other hand on Maya’s free cheek and uses it to move her head how she wants it. If it wasn’t for Lola’s firm hold, Maya would probably already stopped to see any sign of discomfort in Lola’s face. But her tongue is licking her bottom lip and Maya lets her in, giving up any form of resistance. It’s heavenly and it feels good but she can’t bring herself to enjoy the moment fully. She feels dirty, like she took advantage of the vulnerable moment to do what she wanted the most for years.

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. I-I shouldn’t have… I’m sorry.” Maya parts their lips abruptly and almost immediately she can see that Lola didn’t expect it. It took her a few seconds to open her eyes and realize that Maya wasn’t kissing her anymore. She still tastes the delicate vodka flavour of Lola’s mouth and the softness of her lips against hers. The thing is that she can’t handle all of this. She can’t handle to be kissed passionately by Lola just because she feels sorry for her and her stupid feelings she can’t ignore. If Maya could go back in time before she knew how having Lola that close to her felt, she would. Three months ago she wouldn’t have let herself lean into her friend’s touch even if she thought that she wouldn’t remember it. Lola tries to mutters something but nothing escapes from her lips but a sigh.

“I have to go.” Maya forgets for a moment that she’s in her own house and there’s nowhere she can go. The flat is so small that there’s no way to stay far from Lola how she would like to. She ends up locking herself in her little bathroom, like a baby, and drags her back on the door until she’s sitting on the pavement. Her head bumps on the wood as she tries to inhale and exhale without shaking. She wants to punch herself, again.

She hears a knock on the door and then a dragging sound on it. Lola is in the same position as she’s in. “Maya, please. Can we talk?” Lola pleads, her voice shaky. Maya wants to let her in but doing it also means making her dreams crush after almost four years. There’s no way Lola feels the same for her, she doesn’t even know what it means to be in love with someone and not being able to breathe because they’ll never be yours. There’s nothing in the world she would like more now than to be held by her, to hear her voice saying that it’ll all be alright even if it’s a lie, to feel her fingers caressing her head and making her eyes flutter in the process. But Maya can’t. Her heart is already too broken. In the end, she doesn’t answer. Instead, she closes her eyes and lets a tear run on her cheek. A tear that quickly turn into many and quiet sobs escape her mouth.

On the top of it all, she overhears Lola getting up.

…

Maya ended up passing out on her bathroom floor.

When she wakes up god knows how many hours later, it takes her a few minutes to remember what happened during the night. She feels her skin dry as the sahara and her eyes burning from all the crying she has done. The shame hits her before she can even get up and it all goes downhill from there. She looks at herself in the mirror, her face tired and sleepy, and she’s still wearing the clothes from yesterday. She doesn’t know what to do now. Lola probably run away from her after the improbable reaction she had and Maya has absolutely no intention of talking to her. After some minutes of self pity, she splashes ice cold water on her skin and washes her teeth in an attempt to remove every little particle of Lola in her mouth.

Surprisingly, she isn’t alone in her flat. The first thing she sees going out of the bathroom is Max figure fumbling with something on the table and judging from the sweet smell he’s preparing breakfast for both of them. “Morning.” She murmurs with a sleep voice. Max turns to her as soon as he hears her and a small smile curves his lips. “I made breakfast. You need to eat something.” His tone is concerned as much as his face is. There’s no way he doesn’t know what happened. Or at least, there’s no way he didn’t notice that Maya didn’t get out of the bathroom for the whole night. “I fucked everything up. You have no idea how much I fucked it up.” She admits, sitting in one of the table chairs.

“Maya, listen.” Max starts while putting in front of her a mug full of coffee. “You hid your feelings for her for four years. Do you know how much time it is? People get together, get married and divorce in even less than that.” He takes a sip from his espresso and Maya can’t help but signing. “Is this supposed to make me feel better?” She asks him, visibly annoyed. “No, this supposed to make you realize that one day it’ll happen anyway. You’re sensitive, you feel everything ten thousand times amplified. Keeping all in isn’t doing any good to you.” He knows he’s right. Maya too. Keeping her feelings to herself made her slowly spiral in an infinite vortex of what if instead of living in the present and actually making her reality go in the way she wanted it to. Maybe it is the time to get out of her comfort zone, get out of the sea of doubts that has been drowning her and finally make a move. After all, it can’t be a case it all happened.

“I’ll talk to her. I’ll tell her everything, this time for real.” She gazes at Max and finds in him nothing but an expression of support and fondness. “I hope she won’t leave me.”

“ She won’t , Maya.”

…

Two days passed since her conversation with Max.

She was still convinced that talking with Lola was the best thing to do but bringing herself to do it required a bit of work. Maya spent these days taking care of herself. After the night with Lola and breakfast with Max, she took a long bath and thought about what to say to her best friend. Sorry if I locked myself in the bathroom, I’m in love with you was lame and made shame rise up at the pit of her stomach; I’m in love with you but I know you’re straight and I didn’t know what to do, so I fantasized about you kissing me for years and when that happened I got scared made her look like a creep. Maybe it was better if Lola never knew about her fantasizing. Who can blame her though?

If she couldn’t have Lola for real, she could have her in her fantasy. Maya used to dream about her a lot, especially at the beginning when she was starting to realize that what was feeling for Lola wasn’t exactly platonic. She dreamt about them in her bed, during one of their many sleepovers, legs entangled and busy lips. The heat of their bodies pressed together no matter the outside temperature, their curves perfectly fitting in one another and their fingers intertwined in a tight hold. When she woke up in the morning, she felt extremely guilty for those images running in her head, even more if Lola was by her side sleeping peacefully. She usually went to the bathroom to wash her face and to step out of that sleep induced fantasy, until she didn’t feel bothered anymore. Even if Lola couldn’t hear her, she always whispered a little I’m sorry .

Going back to the present, Maya is torn on what practically do to talk to Lola. She thinks about going to her house and wait there until Lola let’s her in or sending her a simple message, or even going to her workplace because suddenly waiting a few more hours seems unbearable. She goes for the second option in the end, hoping that Lola won’t take too long to reply.

to Lola: hey, can we talk? i’m sorry for what i did last time, it was stupid. i panicked and i left you without a word. i’ll explain it all to you, i promise.

She sends it before she can even read it again. Not even one minute later, Lola reads it. Maya’s fingers start trembling and the hold on her phone becomes precarious as she sees Lola typing, and typing, and typing.

A few second later, Lola’s not online anymore and leaves her on read.

…

Maya doesn’t even have the strength to be sad or get angry at herself anymore. She just stares at the screen, hoping that she’ll see Lola online again, but that doesn’t happen. Million thoughts spin in her head as she lays on the couch, the very same couch they kissed two times on. It’s half past eleven and Lola left work at least five hours ago. There’s no way she didn’t have time to reply to her text. She simply didn’t want to reply. Maya understands her, really. Finding out that your very gay best friend is in love with you, getting kissed, being left out of the bathroom without an explanation and, on the top of it, being completely straight must not be easy to handle. Probably if she was in the same situation as Lola, she would have reacted the same way.

Even after all that occurred between them, Maya can’t shake off the feeling that it can’t be done. If she got to know Lola as well as she thought in these four years together, it can’t be done. Maya knows her and she’s not the type to leave unfinished business behind her.

The ring of her doorbell gets her out of her thoughts and she quickly goes to open the door. Her heart clenches when she sees who is outside her flat this late. Lola.

“Hey. Can I come in?” Lola asks out of breath. She run for sure because she’s sweating and considering the five ramps of stairs to arrive to Maya’s flat is not that improbable. Maya lets her in with a welcoming gesture and as she enters her apartment, she never looks away from her. Lola doesn’t sit, instead she stands in the middle of the room, her chest still going up and down. She brings her look up, until she meets Maya’s one and takes a long breath before talking. “I want to talk first. Please, let me.” Lola says and Maya never heard her talking with such a firm voice. She simply nods as she places herself in front of her best friend.

“I met you when I was fifteen years old and I was in a bad place back then. My mother was dying and my family was breaking right in front of my eyes. I started high school thinking that I would hate every second of it but then you sat next to me and we started talking and I immediately knew that you would ruin me for everyone else. The special connection we have is something that I’ll be forever grateful for.” Lola stops for a second, a smile curving her lips. “When my mother died you were there for me and I was there for you when you came out to your foster family. We’ve been there for each other always, you are the best friend I could aim for. The truth is, though, that there is something more to it.”

Maya feels stuck, incapable to move every single muscle. So Lola did really understand it all from the beginning, maybe even before she admitted to herself that she was in love with her. She listens carefully to Lola’s words and as she asked, lets her talk.

“I knew you were having a few night stands but one day you came to my workplace with Charlotte and I was surprised. I never saw you that physically close to anyone before, not even me and I don’t know, I felt something that I’ve never felt before. I realized only later, after fighting with Char countless of times, that I was simply jealous of her. At first I thought it was because she took away most of the time we used to spend together but after truly thinking about it — this wasn’t the reason.” She takes a big, deep breath before continuing. “I was jealous of her because I wanted to be the one you kissed. I wanted to be the one you held your hand in the street with and I wanted to be the one you cuddled back home. Three months ago I shoot my shot and I kissed you on that couch not because I was drunk, not because I wanted to have fun with you. I did it because I fucking wanted to. I had to act on what I was feeling, I couldn’t hold it back anymore for fear that you didn’t feel the same. When you rejected me I felt so bad. I thought you didn’t want me.” Her voice trembles at the last words and she gulps down the lump in her throat. “ — then the other night you kissed me first, this time a real kiss, and It never felt so right with anyone else before. I know that I always told you that I was straight, trust me I truly believed it. I tried to say to myself that maybe what I was feeling for you was just affection but Maya, it’s not. I think I’m in love with you and I’m so fucking scared I have ruined everything between us.” Lola is crying, full on sobbing even but she doesn’t bother to dry her tears from her cheeks, she just leaves them stream out freely.

Maya takes in Lola’s words and has to pinch herself to make sure she’s not dreaming. Apparently, there is a universe where hers is not an unrequited love and she’s lucky enough to live in it. For all these years she was convinced there was no possibility of her and Lola together, together as a couple. She suffered so much. All those sleepless nights, all those hurtful fantasies, all the times she wanted to tell her how she felt but couldn’t because the fear of rejection held her down each time. Maya couldn’t know, though. Lola had always maintained a very good straight facade but after hearing her words, she understands why she did it. They were both scared of losing each other and Lola was most possibly confused with her sexuality, which is not something to underestimate. Maya wants to say a million things and at the same time remains silent to enjoy this moment for a little bit more before it ends. She parts her lips in an unspoken word and from her watery eyes she can see Lola’s figure blurred.

“Please, say something.” Lola’s voice is pleading, loud in the silence of the flat.

She takes a big breath, while the words in her head start to make enough sense to be spoken out loud. “Lola, I’m in love with you since the first time I saw you. It took me some time to admit it to myself but I’m pretty sure I fell in love with you the exact moment my eyes met yours. This is so cheesy but it’s true.” Maya can’t hold back a tiny chuckle. “I spent the last four year asking myself why I fell in love with a girl I could never be with. I always saw you with guys, you told me you were straight and I never suspected the contrary. I fell in love with you anyway. You’re the best person I know, beautiful inside and out. You have no idea how many times I dreamed about you saying exactly what you just said to me, I swear. Maybe this is some law of attraction shit, I don’t know.” She takes a few steps to be finally close enough to Lola to wipe away her tears. She’s still crying but has her signature smirk on her lips. Maya leaves a kiss on her forehead and caresses her hair, bringing them back her ears.

“You better kiss me right now.” Lola whispers, an inch separating their lips. “ — and don’t even think of locking yourself in the bathroom again because I’ll fucking break that door.”

Maya lets out a little laugh but she’s quick to close the distance between them just like she did a few days ago. This time, though, none of them has any intention to separate. This kiss has nothing innocent about it. It’s passionate, a bit sloppy and their teeth clashes together but they don’t care. It’s perfect in it’s own way. Delicacy left the chat a long ago. They stumble to the bed soon after and it’s all fast and blurry from there. The very same bed where everything began, where Maya realized she was in love with Lola. Maya’s fantasies quickly were becoming a reality as they lost themself with the moonlight shining from the window.

…

The morning after, their role switched. This time was Maya feeling watched in her sleep. She slowly opens up her eyes, revealing Lola’s figure on her side, her head laying on the pillows and her eyes towards her.

“Were you watching me sleep?” Maya murmurs with a sleepy voice, shifting under the covers to get even closer to Lola. “Yes. Just like you did for the past four years with me.” Lola laughs and it’s the best sound Maya could hear this early in the morning. So for all this time Lola knew that she was glancing at her while she was asleep but never said anything. Maya’s cheeks turn red in an instant but Lola is quick at brushing off of her the embarrassment with a peck on her lips. “Is this some type of revenge then?” Maya asks jokingly, reaching out for Lola’s hip under the duvet and pinching it. “Oh, stop!” Obviously Maya doesn’t, and keeps pinching her hip and her stomach. Lola tries to get away from her, failing miserably, because Maya’s hold is strong enough to keep her exactly where she is. When they stop laughing, she sees Lola face changing, the same face she does when she wants to tell something but doesn’t know how to.

She talks after a while, hesitant. “About tonight —” Before she can continue, Maya puts her lips on hers in a reassuring kiss. “Hey. You’ve never been with a girl before, it’s normal. I won’t push you into doing anything you don’t want to do.” She whispers, placing a hand on her cheek and caressing it with her thumb. Maya remembers that even if she was sure about her sexuality since as long as she can remind, her first time with a girl was still all tentative touches and embarrassment when she didn’t know what to do. Lola was no different but honestly Maya can’t care less about sex when she is with the person she loves the most in the whole world. Plus, they have plenty of time ahead of them to experiment with each other.

“But — I do want to touch you.” Lola mutters on Maya’s lips, as her hands travel on the side of her body. Maya shivers and kisses her again, again and again.

…

They get out of bed around noon with the intent to eat something but instead they find themselves sitting on the couch again. Lola is cuddled between Maya’s legs, her back on Maya’s front and her head gently placed on her chest. She’s running her fingers through her hair like she always does, letting the brown strands wrap around and then letting them go. She knows Lola loves when she plays with her hair, it makes her feel extremely relaxed and cared for. It is also their way to tell one another that something was wrong when there are people around. One of them puts a hand on the other hair and they know. They sneaked off so many times with this technique and all of them they found themself alone in a comfortable hug. Today is different, though. The hugs and the cuddles that used to be platonic aren’t anymore and Maya doesn't have to dream about the softness of Lola’s lips.

“Hey Maya —” Lola starts, turning her head enough to see Maya’s face. “ … Now I can stop calling you my best friend, right?” She ends up asking and Maya smiles against her forehead. “You better.” She imitates Lola’s tone of last night, when she told her to kiss her. Maya lost count of how many times she pinched herself already. She always does it when Lola can’t see her because she knows she would mock her for her entire life if she saw. It’s just that she still can’t believe she gets yo have Lola like this. It feels natural with her, it feels like home, but after four years of desperate longing and gay panic when she found herself a little closer than normal to her, you can’t blame her.

“I want to tell the others about this… About us.” Lola adds, shifting from her laying position on a more comfortable one straddling Maya’s lap. Maya’s hands travel from her waist to her thighs, while she locks eyes with Lola. “I’m not sure I want to do it now, though. It’s not because I’m scared of how people will react seeing me with a girl, I want to make this clear.” She clarifies, playing with the hem of Maya’s shirt. “I want to take the time to live all of this for a while, just the two of us.” Maya couldn’t agree more. She is out and proud but has nothing against Lola needing some time to process everything privately. She doesn’t care about how Lola will decide to define herself or even if she won’t at all, the only important thing is that Lola’s happy and if she can be the person to make her happy… Well, so much better. “I’ll give you as much time as you need.” Maya smiles and Lola makes their noses brush against one another.

“Thank you.” Lola murmurs on Maya’s lips and then she cups her face with her hands, bringing them together in a delicate press. Maya doesn’t answer but she’s sure that her lingering touches on Lola’s back and both of them deepening the kiss enough to get lost in it once again is enough to reassure Lola that she isn’t going anywhere,

that she’s here to stay.

#this was cute to write #i loved writing from maya's pov might do that again #there's angst but it ends well i promise #also hayley kiyoko song is iconic i love it #this is obviously inspired to her song sleepover #mayla fic #mayla #skam france

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angrycowboy · 4 years

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A couple weeks ago, I decided that for my birthday, I was going to attempt to put together some of my favorite things this fandom has created. I say *some* because this is an incomplete list. There are so many wonderful and talented creators in this fandom that this list would go on forever otherwise. If I have I ever reblogged something of yours, flailed in the tags, reached out to via DM or sent you a message, talked on discord or even Twitter, know that I love and adore not only the things you’ve created, but you yourself as part of this fandom.

And now, without further ado…

FIC

memento by @nielrian

I was obsessed with the idea of coming up with the backstory to the photo we see Michael look at in 1x02. When was it taken? Does Alex have a copy? Did Alex bring his with him to the other side of the world? How often do you think Michael looked at his own copy? And Nicki took a little prompt of mine, and wrote an achingly gorgeous piece about one photograph, and it’s significance to Malex in less than 700 words.

a little something to make me sweeter by @partsofthesamecosmicbeing

Camluca + D.E.B.S. is like a recipe for the perfect fic. I freaking love the movie, and when I saw this fic pop up on tumblr one day? I couldn’t even contain my excitement (seriously, the tags on my reblog were just me flailing wildly because it felt like Ly had reached into my brain and written something I wanted to read before I even knew it myself). Casting Alex as Scud and including Malex in the mix just made me love this fic even more.

And the Sun Rose Red by @michaels-blackhat

A Miluca Kissing Kate Barlow AU? SIGN. ME. UP. I adore Christi, and I adore her writing. One day she was like, “miluca kissing kate barlow au?” and the only appropriate answer to that is HECK YES. Michael/Maria is also a dynamic that just works for this AU, given their canon relationship, and Michael’s penchant for fixing things and Maria’s desire to have someone just be there for her. *runs off to re-read fic*

something broken in this town by @irolltwenties

Okay so, Meagn is one of my favorite people in this fandom. We kinda ramble at each other, and one day this happened where she started talking about the parents. About the relationship Jesse, Jim, and Mimi had as kids, as teenagers, as young adults. How they got sucked into aliens and government conspiracies. How they became the people we see and hear about in S1. If you’ve ever had the privilege of talking with Meagn, you know how amazing her mind is, how she takes these characters and the mere scraps we’ve been given in canon with some of them, and creates entire lives for them, and it’s beautiful.

open up my eager eyes by @haloud

It took me a while to get into Mylex, but apparently it was just because I hadn’t read Hal’s series yet. I’m usually terrible about multi-shipping, but once I find a writer that nails the characters down, I could probably read anything they write. And Hal writes all three of them perfectly. (I mean, Hal is just a phenomenal writer in general, but I digress.)

META

Michael’s bisexuality by @chasingshhadows

There’s been a lot said in the fandom about Michael’s bisexuality and how it’s been portrayed. While the show was airing, I was having trouble finding people who felt the same way I did about how it was being shown - that it wasn’t problematic, but that it was good and accurate. Not to mention that it made me feel seen. I tried writing out what I was feeling but nothing sounded right - until Chasing wrote this piece. It was everything I’d been trying to find the words to express, and it remains one of my absolutely favorite pieces of her writing.

Semiotics of Roswell by @hannah-writes

Hannah did this amazing thing where she took the camera work of RNM and analyzed the shit out of it. And in some moments of doubt, where I was still worried about Malex because of the direction the show had been taking, Hannah’s semiotics (or better known as “Why Malex is Endgame”) pointed out how the camerawork for Malex and Echo is very similar, not to mention deliberate as fuck.

Maria Can’t Catch a Break by @ober-affen-geil

I adore Maria Deluca. She has gotten such a bad rap in the fandom because of the “love triangle” business. But fandom in general has done her dirty in that without removing the shipper goggles it is very hard to see that the show has established Maria as a character in her own right, just as much as it has with Kyle and Alex. And that’s why I love Riley’s meta about everything that Maria is dealing with, what she’s going through, and what it’s been like for her to be the one left behind 10 years ago.

GIFSETS/EDITS

i would know him in death, at the end of the world by @vlamito

I don’t even remember now who told me I had to read The Song of Achilles - it was pre-RNM hyperfixation, but I absolutely loved it (I definitely cried while reading it). And then I saw this gifset, oh mah gawd. Mich just has this ability to find quotes from other media and fit them seemlessly into Malex. And the moments she chooses for her gifsets are utter perfection. I think everyone has probably seen this now, but it’s a gifset I just keep going back to over and over again.

Are you okay? by @maxortecho

So I adore Echo. There is something about their softness, the way they look at each other, the way they act around each other that is just beautiful. Mo made this set, and pointed out in the tags that Liz pushes her arms underneath Max like she’s going to hug him, and it broke me. Like, I thought that scene in the finale was heartbreaking enough, but pointing that out? It hurts and I loved it.

Leading Ladies Appreciation by @lsobelevans

Lucie does some amazing things with color that truly make her edits stand out, and stick out in your mind. And it’s one of the things I love about her gif sets especially - it makes them uniquely hers, her own signature if you will. And this edit is no different - the splashes of color, the texture used for the background, the highlighting of the leading ladies is stunning work.

Same page/Different book by @bisexualalienblast

Let’s just say that picking ONE gifset of Amanda’s is an impossibility for me, okay? Amanda’s sets are the reason I wanted to learn how to gif - her gifs are beautifully colored, they’re crisp, she always picks the best fonts, they’re smooth, and her ideas are stellar. Anyway, she more recently made this set, which just so perfectly illustrates Malex’s issue IN TWO GIFS. That’s it. Their entire problem in S1, right there. Beautiful.

VIDEO

Juice | Women of Roswell by @isakvaltersnake

Katie is a wizard with the video editing. She’s going to be a force when we’ve got more than one season of footage to play around with. And this video is fun and hot and LOOK AT THE WOMEN. They are smart, they are kind, they are flirty, they have agency, and they’re all hella sexy.

Weird Science | Liz & Michael - Science Bros by @soberqueerinthewild

Hands down, this is one of my favorite videos from the fandom, and definitely one of my favorite things Christina has made (though I basically love everything she does). It’s silly and ridiculous and 100% fun. She found every bit of footage in S1 and matched it to the song perfectly. It’s impossible to watch this video and not smile and laugh - it will instantly brighten your day.

MISC

RNM Texts From Last Night by @audreyblanche

I am slightly biased here, because while Irena came up with the idea, I encouraged her to actually go through with it, promising her that the fandom would enjoy it. So because of that it’s next to impossible for me to pick a favorite out of all the ones she’s done for this series (though the one where we settled on the Camluca ship name, as well as one I specifically requested for Malex come close), and I’m hoping that with the new season (and when she returns from hiatus), she can pick this up again.

#roswell new mexico #roswell nm rec list #also every single person here is a joy to talk to and follow #notso celebrates a birthday #fandom love

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ober-affen-geil · 4 years

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So literally every one of your recent gifsets has made me pause and curse softly. I mean, I adore your gifsets in general(I have no sense for lyrics or poetry but you make me feel things, it's very odd in a good way) but I did not expect these to hit so hard. Mostly because while I definitely understand the draw for Miluca I still don't...want it, I guess. Mostly because all I can see is Maria getting hurt by his secrets, one way or another. I want her happy, in some ways more than I even 1/3

{Alex and Michael together.(which, I ship them so hard it’s weird for me. I actively want them to kiss onscreen and that’s usually a thing that I more suffer through. Reading it is fine, but seeing it - I don’t see the appeal. Except no, I see the appeal, of course they want to kiss each other. I would have watched the show on the strength of their relationship alone, for the novelty if nothing else) But Maria just - I don’t want her hurt and I can’t see a way to avoid that here. I’m against 2/3

[third part missing thanks to tumblr, ask continued after advertising on my blog]

Oh man dude that got out of hand very fast so honestly I don’t remember. (I just wanted to say I liked your gifsets and then I realized I was talking about why and that dovetailed with why I can’t really get behind Miluca even when I see things that make me like it) But yes it was because the third part was when I actually figured out the point. Highlights are that I don’t like Miluca(they’re both going to be hurt, I feel like, but Maria esp and I love her too much to want to see her hurt by ½

his secrets. Plus, I feel like Michael can only really move up or stay stagnant atm, Maria could go up or down and I fear a downswing is coming. I definitely think they’ve got an interesting dynamic, but I’d honestly be much more interested in that dynamic if they weren’t romantically involved, or even dancing around it) Also I like your gifsets because every relationship feels equally prominent and complex and compelling, even ones like Miluca that I normally just don’t want to deal with. 2/2}

———————————————————————————————————–

Whew. Anon that is a lot, but who am I to say anything lol. Also very glad you found me again! Welcome!

First of all, thank you for your very kind words about my sets. I’m beyond flattered, so

Second of all, big ass mood on the surprise at shipping them so hard. And for me hardcore SAME for Echo, which was a big shock because I’m usually not here for het as much as I am for Echo so like. Idk WHAT they’re putting in the water but. Go Roswell go!

Third of all, woof. This is like reading my own thoughts immediately after the finale, and I mean that literally. I try to stay more or less neutral on this subject, partially because I know it’s a contentious one and I try to have my blog be welcoming to everyone from the fandom who might want to see content and partially because I really don’t like to speculate overmuch ESPECIALLY with shows like this that can turn on a fucking dime, but. In the interest of reciprocity and because I am absolutely starved for new show content, I’m gonna step out from under my neutrality umbrella for a hot second.

I am an endgame Malex shipper. I don’t try to hide that. But the reason I am an endgame Malex shipper is one of the reasons I’m not all that bothered by Miluca, and that is that the way the narrative has been set up (from episode one) Echo and Malex are on squarely even footing. Literally the second meta post I ever did for this fandom was about parallels between the two, that’s how strongly it speaks to me. (I am very, very happy to do another upon request.) In my mind, Malex is as clearly endgame as Echo is. That’s just the way I see the storytelling.

The other reason I’m not all that bothered by it addresses your concern about Maria being hurt. Because honestly, I’m frustrated about that too. I really like Maria and I don’t love seeing her in a situation that I’m pretty certain is going to end badly. But here’s the thing. As much as I doubt Maria is going to end up with Michael (poor boy has to finish crashing from last season, someone please get him a hug and a therapist ffs), her involvement with him is also almost certainly going to blow the doors off her story.

We didn’t see her a lot in season one, not as character with an independent story line, and I think that’s going to change in season two. Mostly because we now know that her necklace, a family heirloom, contains the non-native flower whose pollen happens to subdue alien powers. And she suspects something is up with Michael’s hand. And there have been too many seeds planted about her mother’s undiagnosable decline from mental stability for me to sit there and NOT expect that to become relevant.

Basically, like Isobel, I think we’re going to get to see Maria stand on her own a lot starting in season two. And it’s going to come from the fact that Michael came to her in the Wild Pony at the end of the season one finale because he was finally at a place where he could step away from Alex. (Which I believe is a good thing, I’ve talked about that before.) I think it’s going to open her up and yeah, she’s probably going to get hurt. But frankly, so is everyone else.

Michael is going to crash and burn. Hard. Isobel is apparently dealing with all of her stuff from last season in not the healthiest of ways. Max up and fucking died and while I absolutely LOVE THAT (no really, I do), Liz isn’t gonna take that too well. Kyle has now found himself in the middle of quite the shit storm, so heaven help the poor man. Rosa is just. Well, fucked, basically. And Alex, as much as I love to see him having found himself, seems like he’s going to go a little too far in the other direction which is going to be fascinating.

All this to say, yeah. I super feel where you’re coming from. But I can’t see the ships in this show as isolated from each other, they are all interconnected in ways that very much affect and inform all the individual arcs and journeys for me. So I guess that’s why my sets come across the way they do lol. Thanks again for the lovely words anon, I hope you don’t mind me riffing off them.

#ask #personal #roswell new mexico #rnm #rant #don't mind me #whole lot of speculation in here #please take with a large grain of salt #hey nonny nonny #a riley special

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letmetellyouaboutmyfeels · 4 years

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Rec Tag

Rules: It’s time to love yourselves! Choose your 5 favorite works you created in the past year (fics, art, edits, etc.) & link them below to reflect on the amazing things you brought into the world in 2019. Tag as many writers/artists/etc. as you want so we can spread the love & link each other to awesome works!

I was tagged by my partner in crime @extasiswings who is awful because she knows I’m terrible at praising myself but I will try my best.

Edit: I just went back through my notifications and saw that @koortega tagged me as well, bless you darling. Your gifsets and fanvids have inspired my fics deeply so. You’re the best.

Holy shit I wrote a lot in 2019. And I’m actually proud of pretty much everything - I took on a lot of challenging writing endeavors over the past year, and I think I managed to actually pull them all off. While I kind of beat myself up a little for focusing so much on fanfic and not my original novels, I think I needed this year of fanfic to really finish mastering my craft, come into my own, and prove to myself that yes, I can write this, whatever “this” might be. Not to mention that 2019 was a shitty fucking year otherwise, and I needed a goddamn distraction. So, without further ado, in no particular order...

1. the thing with shadows is (they come from light, from somewhere) (Timeless)

Jesus H. Christ this was a fic and a half. And its sequel was even longer. This fic is literally known as “the Garcy BDSM fic” and frankly that’s accurate. It started out as a joke between myself and a couple friends - “hey wouldn’t it be funny if” - and then I fucking played myself and actually wrote this 90k word monster. I’m really proud of it because it’s hard to take a fic that’s set in a BDSM club where there’s sex every chapter and actually keep the sex fresh and interesting each time, and it’s hard to weave a solid plot and character arcs into a fic that’s so focused on smut. It’s one of my most popular fics and I think it’s earned that popularity. I actually got a lot of asks and messages because of this fic from people asking me for advice and information on BDSM, kink, and sexuality/sexual orientation, so I like to think it had a positive impact that way as well, educating people on what BDSM and kink is and how it actually works. So yeah, I’m proud of this one.

2. whispers like poetry (Timeless)

Okay so technically this one was started on Christmas Day of 2018 but it was written all throughout 2019 so it counts. What began as a back and forth with @extasiswings over what would’ve happened if Lucy and Flynn had started fucking in season one turned into a complete monster of a fic where nobody was talking about their goddamn feelings for 90k words. As frustrated as we got with our beloved characters, it was an amazing and joyful experience to work with her. She’s a brilliant writer and understands the characters better than I think just about anyone (including the show writers, sorry not sorry) and I loved every minute of writing this. And I think the final product turned out pretty damn good.

3. Richie Tozier: Small Town Trash (IT 2019)

This one baaarely squeaks by since it was published December 30th but hey, that’s still 2019! I worked on it off and on throughout the month and was really fucking pleased with the result. I’m autistic and so I grew up with a sense of humor that, shall we say, did not vibe with the humor of others. I didn’t usually get jokes. I couldn’t tell when someone was kidding or was serious. I wasn’t considered funny - in fact I’ve lost track of how many times I would make a joke and the whole room would fall into awkward silence as a result. So to write something not only funny, but stand up? Jesus Christ, what was I thinking? But it worked. It really, really worked. People loved it. I actually managed to be funny. Go me.

4. The Void is Open (Timeless)

I thought this fic was gonna be like. 50k max. Ha. Ha ha. Hoo boy. I really need to stop underestimating how long it takes the flaming dumpster trio to get their emotional shit sorted. This fic was based on the very painful idea, “what if Flynn had actually shot John Rittenhouse in episode ten?” Exploring the consequences of that both emotionally for Flynn and literally for Lucy, who is erased from existence as a result, was a lot of fun. Painful, but like. I enjoyed it. I joked that this fic started a new fanfiction genre called “domestic angst” and I stand by that term. This is domestic angst. And I think I did a really good job with exploring the fallout from this one, single action.

5. Love You Like a Killer (I Want to Make Your Heart Stop) (Timeless)

Holy shit. This fic didn’t get wrapped up until the end of January in 2020 but I started it in September of 2019 - and it turned into a monster. It’s my longest fic ever, at over 200k words, surpassing even my smut collection. I really underestimated the myriad of plot threads I had going on with this one. I also underestimated how dark it was going to get. I mean, it’s a Castle AU, how bad could it be, right? ...right? Ha ha. *ahem* While the main pairing for this is Garcyatt, this fanfic was seriously an ensemble work in every sense of the word. Everyone got character arcs and side plots, and I had a lot of work balancing the murder mystery cases I was taking from Castle with the emotional arcs of the Timeless characters. I didn’t plan on this fanfic being my final Timeless work, but I think it’s fitting, because while it’s not necessarily my best work (I think Confidence Trick really earns that title) or people’s favorite work (see: Garcy BDSM fic), it’s the largest most complex single fic I’ve ever done.

Honorable mentions include If They’re Out of Lifejackets, Grab a Friend which was a fanfic of @qqueenofhades brilliant, absolutely showstopping (or should I say show-continuing) @timeless-season-four project, and Love is Bright but Casts a Shadow (Its Name is Grief) which had to wear a lot of hats since it’s a) the prequel to my magnum opus, but b) has to be read last and c) fit not only the canon seasons one and two but also d) @koortega’s fantastic video that inspired it.

Tagging @captainofthefallen @phoenixwrites @thestraggletag @nothingeverlost and anyone else who would like to! Seriously if you want to do this, claim me as your tagger! You’re all fantastic creators, praise yourselves!

#mads writes stuff #tagging thing #the moment I go to tag people I forget everyone I've ever known #so please do use this as a tag if you want it

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shadowhuntersaumondays · 6 years

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THE MASTERPOST.

These past few months have been unreal, and you’ve all been working so so hard, so on behalf of all the mods here at SHAUMondays - congratulations! You made it to the end and we’re all in awe of the fantastic work everyone created.

Thank you all so much for participating. You’ll be getting an e-mail in the next few days including an exit survey, which we’d really appreciate if you could fill out.

Thank you all again, and we hope you’ve had as much of a blast as we have.

Love, the SHAUMondays Squad

(when i close my eyes) i dream in colour by ohprongs / @katlisha

Rating: Mature

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: Inception AU, Canon-Typical Violence, Non-sexual Consent Issues, Minor Character Death, Ensemble Cast

Main relationship(s): Magnus/Alec, Clary/Izzy

Length: Mini bang (10k)

Summary: Twenty years ago, Valentine Morgenstern and Luke Garroway led a team of the world’s best extractors — industrial espionage agents who steal secrets from people’s dreams. Not remotely legal and more than a little dangerous, it wasn’t until Valentine went rogue that Luke and Jocelyn, the team’s architect, decided they had to stop him.

The past catches up with them twenty years later. Clary, Jocelyn and Luke’s daughter, vows revenge on Valentine for what he does to her mom, which forces a reluctant Luke back into the field for one final mission to make sure Clary doesn’t get herself killed, too.

This last job needs a team of dedicated specialists — and who better to turn to to find them than Luke’s old friend, Maryse Lightwood? She helps Luke put together a team of the finest agents she knows — three of her children, Alec, Izzy and Jace — and, along with rookies Clary and Simon, they’ve nearly got a whole gang. If only someone knew whether the rumours about the world-famous extractor Magnus Bane resurfacing were true...

(or, the inception au no one asked for)

Beta: @alecsimon

Art: Gifset by @alishaawainwright

A Freaky Situation by Onthecyberseas / @onthecyberseas

Rating: Mature

Archive warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Important tags: Canon-Verse, Bodyswap

Main relationship(s): Clary Fray/Isabelle Lightwood, Jace Herondale/Simon Lewis

Length: Mini Bang (10k)

Summary: A demon swaps Izzy and Jace’s bodies, forcing them to admit hidden truths.

Beta: @atswim-twocows

Art: Art by @ijustreallylikechemistry

Against All Odds by sweetautumnleaves / @magnusandalexander

Rating: Explicit

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: Alternative Universe - Human, tennis!player Alec, business!Magnus, idiots in love, mutual pining, angst and hurt/comfort, eventual happy ending, protective siblings

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood., side: Simon Lewis/Isabelle Lightwood, Luke Garroway/Maryse Lightwood

Length: mini bang (10k)

Summary: When Alec meets Magnus at a friend’s concert, he is immediately lost in the man’s presence. But the timing isn't right since Alec is busy on becoming a successful tennis player.

Now, two years later, he sees Magnus again. Out of all the places, they meet at the Lightwoods’ summer residence. During a time when Alec is recovering from a serious injury and trying to sort his life. But one look at Magnus and it seems like time stopped, and they’re back the night two years ago. And maybe this time. it's the right time and place to take a risk and find out if they actually stand a chance against all odds...

Beta: @mattdaddorkio

Art: gif/graphic set by @shadowrld

be my light in the dark by hufflebee / @hufflebee

Rating: Teen and Up

Archive warnings: Author chose not to use Archive warnings

Important tags: Pining, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Alternate Universe - Greek Mythology, Friends To Lovers, Demigods, Friendship

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood, Maia Roberts/Isabelle Lightwood, Maryse Lightwood/Luke Garroway

Length: Big bang (20k)

Summary: .Going to Camp Half-Blood is something Alec, a son of Apollo, looks forward to every summer, but when he arrives, he finds one of his best friends is missing. Suddenly nothing is more important than saving Magnus, even if it means going against Magnus's father, Hades himself. With the help of Maia, Simon and Izzy, Alec goes on a journey to find his best friend, one he may be in love with, as well as the truth about why he was taken in the first place

Beta: @maiarobers

Art: moodboard by @packleaderluke

beneath a different light by bravest / @malectrify

Rating: Teen and Up

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: Canon divergent AU, immortality, implied/referenced self-harm, Edom angst, no more parabatai bond

Main relationship(s): Alec Lightwood/Magnus Bane

Length: Big bang (20k)

Summary: Magnus goes to Edom. Alec goes after him.

Beta: @aestheticventing

Art: Fanart by @mundanelion

Change the World, Get the Guy by satonawall / @satonawall

Rating: Teen and Up

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: Alternate Universe - Modern setting, scientist!Magnus, warlock!Magnus, mundane!Alec, background Catarina Loss/Dot Rollins

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood

Length: Big bang (20k)

Summary: Isabelle leaned against the doorframe. “Any progress?”

Magnus looked around at the notes spread around him. “As dear old Thomas used to say, I’ve found 10,000 ways that won’t work, so we’ll call it a productive day.”

Magnus Bane has dedicated his immortal life to science, new inventions and discovering everything magic can do. After years of hard work, he is so, so close to revolutionising transportation by creating a magical portal that actually works, but he has let his work take over his whole life. However, when Isabelle, his mundane assistant researcher, brings around her brother Alec, Magnus’s obsessive focus wavers for the first time in a decade. Maybe giving himself a few breaks will actually help him figure out the magical theory behind portals.

Beta: @icymalec

Art: drawing(s) by @keristrasza

Enkrateia by L_ecureuil / @bloodboneandmuscle

Rating: Explicit

Archive warnings: Graphic depictions of violence

Important tags: Alternate Universe - Greek Mythology Gods, god!Magnus, mortal!Alec, Canon Typical Violence, Mentions of Suicide, mentions of era typical prostitution and slavery, Attempted Arranged Marriage, Immortal Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood

Main relationship: Magnus Bane / Alec Lightwood

Length: Big bang (20k)

Summary: Magnus is a god from a distant land who comes across a Greek man who is tormented by his gods. Magnus is not cruel, he will not stand for the Greek gods tearing this brave man apart, so he concocts a plan to yank the toughened hero from the gods’ hands.

Meanwhile, Alec’s mortal life is a never-ending chase, one which now consists of getting the Spartan Princess out from her cursed marriage. With not trust in the gods, Alec needs more than just his wits to keep them safe from the elements.

He soon realizes someone peculiar is offering to lead the way.

Beta: @galacticfrost @oneknightstander

Art: Digital Art by @magnus-rulerofhell

everything he could never be by em_the_gem / @alecsgideon

Rating: Teen and Up

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: single parent AU, friends to lovers, emotional hurt, family feels, mentions of slight dysphoria, mentions of alcohol abuse,

Main relationship(s): Magnus/Alec

Length: Big bang (20k)

Summary: In between jobs, Alec and his son, Max, move to Alec's mother's country home where they meet Magnus and his son, Rafael - the small family Maryse rented the 1st floor out to. As a big city MD and single dad, Alec finds himself fascinated by Magnus' eccentric healing practice, parenting methods and deep brown eyes.And while preparing for the move to London, finally spending time with his son, and juggling his growing affection towards Magnus, the ghosts of Alec's childhood threaten to disturb the peace he'd found surrounded by his family.

Beta: @tylerhunklin

Art: picspam/moodboard by @belovedbane

Faking the Truth by alexanderfightwood / @bowcfwar

Rating: Explicit

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: fake relationship, smut, friends to lovers, angst, holiday, fake boyfriend au, mentions of homophobia

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alexander Lightwood

Length: Big bang (20k)

Summary: Mundane AU. Alec’s annual Christmas vacation is coming up. It's the one time a year his parents put their work lives away long enough to focus on him and his siblings. However, this year both Izzy and Jace are bringing their significant others and he hasn't even been on a date since he came out. He wishes he had someone to bring since his parents still try to continuously set him up with women. It seems Magnus Bane may be Alec's knight in shining armour.

Or: Another Fake Boyfriend AU

Beta: @wonderdaysoflunacy

Art: gifsets by @magswoods

Family of Four by booknerdqueen / @le-fangirl-queen

Rating: General Audiences

Archive Warnings: Author chose not to use Archive warning

Important tags: Malec AU, Human AU, Malec and kids, babysitter Alec, Fashion magazine head Magnus, jealousy and insecurity, fluff

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood

Length: Mini bang but slightly over 10k

Summary: Magnus Bane is an excellent father, at least that was what he had thought.

Things have been busy since he became the head of ‘Downworlders’ magazine which is now one of the most popular fashion magazine, and started his own fashion line. But he didn’t realize how much he had been neglecting his children until they set the sofa on fire in his absence.

And then he found the perfect solution to his problem- a babysitter. Alexander Lightwood is perfect in every way. He is a good cook, kind and helpful, his body is built like Adonis and he has an angelic face, but most of all the kids love him. Maybe he is too perfect.

As Alec bonds with Raphael and Max and the three of them grow closer and closer Magnus starts suspecting that Alec is upto something. Tessa says he is being overdramatic and jealous but that is not true. Magnus Bane is not jealous. But as his family begans to unravel and his crush on Alec turns into something much more what is Magnus supposed to do?

Beta: @sims-ple

Art: Poster manipulation by @beyondthehunt

Flint to Flame by magnusragnor / @alecsimon

Rating: Teen and Up

Archive warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Important tags: AU, Slow Burn, Friends to Lovers, Fluff, Firefighter!Magnus, Light Angst, Mutual Pining

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood

Length: Mini bang (10k)

Summary: Magnus is the Captain of one of the finest fire stations in NYC. When he meets Alec, a handsome stranger, at an event, he secretly hopes their one night fling can turn into something more, but the last thing he's expecting is to see him standing among the other firefighter recruits.

(aka the firefighter au no one asked for)

Beta: @katlisha

Art: Gifset by @magnusbaene

Hiding Ragnor by SalazarTipton / @itsragnorfell

Rating: Mature

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: Canon Divergent, mentions of canon Camille/Magnus, Asexual Relationship, Fake Character Death, Homophobia/Acephobia

Main relationship(s): Ragnor Fell/Raphael Santiago, Magnus Bane & Ragnor Fell

Length: Mini bang (10k)

Summary: Ragnor knows Magnus is coming, so he hatches a plan to fall off Valentine and the Circle's radar for good. Too bad he wasn't prepared for a demon to cause a hitch in his plans to fake his own death.

Beta: @rosevestsuperman

Art: Gif by @maiababerts

Hopelessly Devoted to You by notcrypticbutcoy / @notcrypticbutcoy

Rating: Mature

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: minor character death, Alternate Universe - Childhood Friends, homophobia, mentions of domestic abuse, mention of suicide, angst with a happy ending

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood

Length: Big bang (20k)

Summary: When Magnus Bane walks into Alec’s third grade classroom, a scowl printed on his face and a permanent chip on his shoulder, Alec has no idea that, one day, this scrawny smart-ass will mean the world to him. He has even less idea that he’ll mean just as much to Magnus. (In which Magnus and Alec are destined for each other, everyone around them can see it, and sometimes, love is found in the most unexpected places.)

Beta: @ithinkimightbelost925

Art: Digital Art by @bloodboneandmuscle

Lantern Of Our Love by FiendMaz / @maztri

Rating: Mature

Archive warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Important tags: Alternate Universe – Harry Potter Setting, Established Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood, True Love, Sweet, Romantic Fluff, Pick-Up Lines, Engagement/Friendship and Magnus POV.

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood

Length: Mini Bang (10k)

Summary: A very special day in the life of the Founders of the Endangered Magical Creatures Conservation, the High Warlock (Auror) Magnus Bane and Hogwarts Care of Magical Creatures Professor Alec Lightwood.

Beta: @alecisgay

Art: Photo Manipulation by @djchika

melt your headaches (call it home) by tomfoolery14 / @champagnemagnus

Rating: Teen and Up Audiences

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: Alternate Universe - This World Inverted (Shadowhunters TV), Alternate Universe - Canon, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Dreams and Nightmares, Established Relationship

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood, Simon Lewis/Isabelle Lightwood

Length: Big bang (20k)

Summary: Set in the show canon alternate universe from This World Inverted. Six months after meeting at the Institute party, Magnus and Alec are balancing the unconventionality of a relationship that merges the mundane and supernatural worlds with the threat arising from the dreams Magnus is plagued with even while he's awake. With the knowledge that something dark and destructive is coming, they must scramble for answers and a way to handle what happens when their two worlds collide.

Beta: @alecsimon

Art: Moodboard by @banesomamori

of the night by magicmagnus / @magicmagnus

Rating: Mature

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Slow Burn, Mild Horror, Flirting, Pandemonium, WIP

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alexander Lightwood

Length: Mini bang (10k)

Summary: When journalist Isabelle Lightwood goes missing during an investigation for an upcoming article, her brother, detective Alec Lightwood, takes matters into his own hands. His search for his sister leads him to the mysterious Pandemonium nightclub -- a supposedly haunted venue that has been at the center of a series of disappearances spanning decades. Once inside, Alec attempts to wind his way through the crowds and various floors, only to realize that not only is the nightclub bigger on the inside than it is on the outside, but also that he is unable to leave. In order to find his sister and free himself and the others trapped inside, Alec must employ the help of Magnus Bane -- an elusive and alluring man whose own fate is deeply entangled with that of the club.

Beta: @banesomamori

Art: gifset by @dimshums

on a bed of roses (where i wanna kiss your silhouette) by Aurelie (NowImJustSomebodyThat) / @ravenschmaven

Rating: Teen and Up

Archive warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Important tags: Canon Compliant, Slow Burn, Soulmate AU, Canonical Character Deaths, Canon-Typical Violence, Ratings May Change

Main relationship(s): Jace Wayland/ Maia Roberts

Length: Big bang (20k)

Summary: Maia Robert's life has been defined by the continuous presence of dandelions marking her skin. Jace Wayland's life took a turn for the unusual when four thin lines of strawberry flowers wound their way around his neck.

Beta: @chaoswillcalmusdown

Art: Painting by @portialins

Open Books by parabatributts / @parabatributts

Rating: General Audiences

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: Fluff, Pining, secret identity, all human au

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood

Length: Minibang (10k)

Summary: Alec looked up. “I still can’t believe you use the word ‘ships.’”

“I’m a true fan, Alexander. I need to be a master of fandom terminology," Magnus replied.

Beta: storytellerandstorytold

Art: Manipulation by @beyondthehunt

Part of Her World by theloverneverleaves / @mermaidmaiabelle

Rating: Teen and Up

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: Alternate Universe - Mermaids, Marine Biologist Maia, Mermaid Isabelle, Mentions of Past Abusive Relationships

Main relationship(s): Maia Roberts / Isabelle Lightwood

Length: Big bang (20k)

Summary: The research trip to the small Caribbean island of Idris is a dream come true for Maia Roberts. After years of study, a joint project with Dr Magnus Bane will finally give her what she needs to get her own PhD. After leaving everything she knows behind for her work, she just might just find that there's more to life on a tropical island than just working all day. That and the island seems to have a few secrets to reveal, and one of them is called Isabelle...

aka mermaid au ft. science bros maia, magnus & luke

Beta: @itsragnorfell

Art: Moodboard by @katlisha

shadowhunters 99 and the worst case of all: heteronormativity by melbopo / @maiababerts

Rating: Teen and Up

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Detectives, Canon-Typical Violence, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Mentions of racism and homophobia

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood

Length: Big bang (20k)

Summary: Magnus knows that becoming the new captain of the one squad in the whole state that has not one but both of the younger siblings of his sworn enemy is bound to be a mistake but he deserves to be in charge of his own command. He knows how much good he can do with this leadership position. Who knows, maybe he'll even teach the nine-nine some new things as they solve Brooklyn's toughest cases.

Maybe they'll even teach him something.

Beta: @sunshinerosende

Art: Gifset by @meliorn

silence is golden (and you've got my hopes up) by baneandgone / @theparabatri

Rating: Mature

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: Alternate Universe - Human, musician!alec

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood

Length: Mini bang (10k)

Summary: Magnus looks like art, and for the first time in a while Alec wishes he had his phone on him, just so he could snap a picture. (aka where alec goes on a holiday, of sorts, and maybe comes back with more than just a souvenir)

Beta: @nerdyfangirl57

Art: Drawing by @atswim-twocows

Six of Swords by enkelimagnus / @enkelimagnus

Rating: Mature

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: Human AU, Psychic Abilities, Serial Killer, Obsessive Brotherly Love, Slowburn, Internalized Homophobia, Repressed emotions.

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood, Clary Fray/Maia Roberts, Catarina Loss/Dorothea "Dot" Rollins

Length: Big bang (20k)

Summary: Magnus Bane was born with a gift. A gift to harness a power and a sense that most cannot access. A gift that made him somewhat of an outcast. He’s 28 when, one morning, he is arrested and interrogated for the murder of 3 of his clients. He’s made his living as a psychic, and that very fact makes him more than suspicious to the man in charge of the case, FBI Alec Lightwood. Unfortunate orders leave Magnus and Alec forced into an uncomfortable cohabitation. What happens when two people, so different yet similar, are forced to live together? Let’s not get too comfortable here, because the murderer is still loose…

Beta: @loveislarryislove

Art: Graphic by @some-thrilling-heroics

The Dragon Prince by Kaye_Fraser / @kayefraser

Rating: Teen and Up

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: Mild Language,Chinese Mythology-Based AU, Urban Fantasy-type AU, Captivity, Master/Servant Roleplay Reference, Dragon!Magnus, Businessman!Alec

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bang/Alec Lightwood

Length: Mini bang (10k)

Summary: Alec has only known one goal in life: to restore his family's name and wealth to what it once was. It has guided his actions and choices from childhood, and it is what motivates him to attend an elite party in Hong Kong where he plans to take on one of the world's most powerful businessmen. He thinks he has his family's end game all planned out, until a chance encounter leads him to a subterranean cavern beneath the party mansion - and the strange man trapped inside.

Magnus never particularly cared for humans, always thinking they were basically there for simple amusement. Still, because of one 'small' transgression against the Jade Emperor centuries ago, he has been sentenced to several lifetimes of servitude at their hands. But when an intriguing mortal stumbles into his prison, he begins to reconsider everything he's believed about them.

Beta: @bonibaru

Art: Digital Art by @pandoraylam

The Love That Dare Not Speak It's Name by humansunghine / @humansunshineao3

Rating: Mature

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: Alternate Universe: Victorian, period-typical homophobia, period-typical racism, angst with a happy ending.

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood

Length: Big bang (20k)

Summary: The year is 1894, and queer culture is quietly thriving in London and across Europe. Magnus Bane, an important and highly intelligent diplomat from Batavia, is nervous and thrilled to have been selected to negotiate greater freedoms for the people of his home country. Alec Lightwood is the eldest son of the Foreign Secretary, a dedicated student at Oxford University, and is writing his dissertation on international relations between the Dutch East Indies and the surrounding countries.

They’ll have a lot to talk about when they meet in a society gala at the Houses of Parliament. Magnus has spent his life focussing on honing his mind so he can ignore his heart, and when that mind is met with the mind of Alexander Lightwood’s, his heart cannot stay silent any longer. Alec has spent the better part of his youth exploring his identity as an openly queer man in the microcosm of his college, and refuses to accept that Magnus, a successful diplomat, can’t have his cake and eat it too.

Or: A mundane!Malec AU set in 1890s England and Amsterdam.

Beta: @aceraphaelsantiagos

Art: Moodboard by @parabacri

The Vampire, The Witch, and Vengeance by alistoney / @lightwormsiblings

Rating: Mature

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: Supernatural au, mentions of violence, enemies to lovers

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood

Length: Mini bang (10k)

Summary: Alec thinks that the vampire case that he and Jace are on in Brooklyn will be just another ordinary case in their lives as hunters. Find the monster, kill it, and you’re done. But when he meets Magnus Bane, a mysterious man who can use magic, everything he thought he knew about hunting monsters changes.

Or a Shadowhunters Supernatural AU with a side of Malec

Beta: @lesbiankarolinadean

Art: Moodboard by @fear-frost

The Vanishing Vixen by CobaltCorvus / @squidpro-quo

Rating: General Audiences

Archive warnings: No Archive warnings apply

Important tags: Alternate Universe - Magic, Familiars and Warlocks

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood

Length: Mini bang (10k)

Summary: Clary's acting oddly and Simon needs help. Magnus Bane, the man with the adorably aloof black cat, is his best hope. A peek behind the curtain of Magnus Bane's work leads to more than just a cup of coffee and a lot more mystery.

Beta: @parabatributts

Art: Moodboard by @lesbiandot

To Fly is to Risk Falling by AStudyInFic / @brooklynxmagic

Rating: Explicit

Archive warnings: Author chose not to use Archive warnings

Important tags: mentions of homophobia, mentions of abuse, short period of Magnus/Camille relationship, alcohol abuse, depression, inadvertent suicide attempt

Main relationship: Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood

Length: Big bang (20k)

Summary: Thrown out by his parents and forbidden from seeing his siblings, when Alec's grandfather Andrew passes, he loses the only family he has left. One night Alec receives a mysterious package in the mail, his birthright from Andrew whose death left Alec alone in the world. Inside, he discovers his family secret: the firstborn Lightwood of every other generation has wings. With the knowledge of how to unlock his wings, Alec takes to the skies over New York every night, as a way to escape the sadness of his life. One night, he sees a man far too drunk to be standing that close to a railing and catches him just in time. So starts a tentative relationship between the 'broken' Magnus Bane and his guardian angel who appears on his penthouse balcony every night. Together the two start to heal on their own and as a pair.

Beta: @1-maleclove-8

Art: Gifs and Digital Images by @maraudeursera

War is sweet to those who haven't experienced it by fanetjuh / @acourtofhopeanddreams

Rating: Mature

Archive warnings: Graphic depictions of violence

Important tags: AU: World War II, AU: No powers, OT3, trigger warning: sorta cheating, multiple POV's, letters

Main relationship(s): Simon Lewis/Isabelle Lightwood, Simon Lewis/Clary Fray, Clary Fray/Isabelle Lightwood, Clary Fray/Simon Lewis/Isabelle Lightwood

Length: Mini bang (10k)

Summary: When Simon Lewis, soldier across the sea fighting in the war, accidentally mixes up his letters for Clary and Isabelle, the unexpected happens. Clary and Isabelle go look for each other and it's the start of a future neither of them has ever imagined.

Beta: @rosevestsuperman

Art: Drawing by @rexundergod

When The Devil Comes To Town by Tiger_Tiger_Burning_Bright / @the-burning-tiger

Rating: Teen and Up

Archive Warnings: Author chose not to use Archive warnings

Important Tags: Shadowhunters/Lucifer crossover AU, Mentions of murder victims, Crime Scenes (not too graphic), attempt at humor

Main Relationship: Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood

Length: Big Bang (20k)

Summary: Magnus had hoped that things would finally calm down after the final defeat of Sebastian and Valentine. He really should've known better.

All his hopes of spending some quality time with his wonderful boyfriend Alec Lightwood disappear with the arrival of his uncle Lucifer Morningstar and his-not-entirely-mundane partner Detective Chloe Decker. If that wasn't bad enough someone is killing off warlocks and Alec and Magnus find themselves dragged into the investigation.

So now the pair of them only need to help catch a killer whilst simultaneously try and keep Chloe Decker in the dark about the Shadowworld....so that should be simple...or not.

Beta: @anonomonomous99

Art: digital artwork by @pandoraylam

With Galaxies Inside Us by coziness / @alecfancywood

Rating: Mature

Archive Warnings: No archive warnings apply

Important Tags: Star Wars AU, Jedi Magnus, Pilot Alec

Main Relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood, Isabelle Lightwood/Maia Roberts, Maryse Lightwood/Luke Garroway

Length: Big Bang (20k)

Summary: The thing is, he was seeing someone. Not in the sense that would make his sister grin but in the sense that he was quite literally seeing this man, but he was sure that the man was not real. And even if he was, he was never truly where Alec was but in his mind. He was seeing a man that was never actually there.

or. a Star Wars AU where Magnus is a Jedi and Alec is a Pilot for the Resistance. They're complete strangers on the different sides of the Galaxy. Until a connection begins.

Beta: @a-conspiracy-of-cartographers

Art: Gifset by @simonmagnus

Working On Love by hoteldumortz / @sunnyalec

Rating: Teen and Up

Archive warnings: No Archive Warnings apply

Important tags: Drinking, Mentions of it and actual characters who are drunk, Emotional Abuse and the effects of it, Alec cries a lot and so does Magnus, Swearing but not copious amounts, AU, Slow Burn

Main relationship(s): Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood

Length: Mini bang (10k)

Summary: Being in love with the office receptionist was the most cliche and romcomy plot that Magnus never expected himself to fall into, but he certainly wasn’t complaining as Alec snuck another glance his way, face turning pink as he gave him a tiny wave.

Or the loosely-based The Office AU where Magnus is Jim and Alec is Pam

Beta: @packleaderluke

Art: painting by @alecsimon

Woven in my Soul by Itenoria / @themagnusbane

Rating: Explicit

Archive Warnings: Graphic depictions of violence

Important tags: AU, minor character death

Main relationship: Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood

Length: Big Bang (20k)

Summary: What if the devil employs the services of an angel to find his missing prince of hell?

Isabelle Lightwood's charge is in hell. To save Isabelle from being stripped of her wings, banished to earth and having all memories of her wiped out forever, Alec Lightwood goes to hell to retrieve the charge's soul. But Asmodeus makes a counter offer. Alec can have Maia Roberts, human and lover of the angel Isabelle back, if he brings back Asmodeus' son: Magnus Bane who pulled a Houdini, got out of hell and hasn't been back since. Luckily for Alec, Magnus sends postcards.

Beta: @the-crownless-queen

Art: Digital art by @pandoraylam

#shbigbang2018 #shadowhunters #malec #fic #shadowhunters fic

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meridianrose · 6 years

Photo

Day 9: Rec 3 or more fanworks you've created (many recs below) Day 10: Share your love for a trope, cliché, kink, motif, or theme (h/c and more) Day 11: Share something media related that changed your life Day 12: Create a fanwork (icon)

Day 9 In your own space, post a rec for at least three fanworks that you have created. It can be your favorite fanworks that you've created, or fanworks you feel no one ever saw, or fanworks you say would define you as a creator. I usually go with my longest to date work, a Da Vinci's modern au Weather Every Storm I'm really proud of it and the relationship issues I dealt with in it and the depth of detail (I tend to write more dialogue than description) I managed, really pleased with the sfbb art I received for it, really pleased by the comments I've had on it. "London, present day. Leo and Riario were in a tempestuous but passionate relationship until they recently broke up. Leo, believing they'll get back together, is stunned when he gets a call saying Riario has attempted suicide. Desperate to win back the love of his life, Leo will go to any length to bring Riario home and repair their relationship." The regency AU Revenge fic Compassion and Conjugality; it's sort of a sequel to a previous historical au but it stands alone. "Facing execution for sodomy, Nolan is saved when Emily declares him to be her fiancé. Despite her affection for Aiden, she decides to wed Nolan to further her own agenda; Nolan's only regret is that it will not be a real marriage." My fic series Everything's Better With Dragons, The Borgias fantasy au. "In a world where magic is real but witchcraft is banned, the Borgia family face the threat of the supernatural as well as more mundane enemies. A witch secretly resides within the House of Borgia, while a spell gone awry gives the family control of a dragon. " Three works so far, I had planned on more but the series finished and I had issues with the next fic, but I do hope to one day write the rest. I'm also proud of my Black Sails big bang, modern medical drama au, Bad Case of Loving You, my GoT fic au series It's Snowing Men where Jamie and Tyrion join Jon Snow at the Wall, my DvD pre-canon au Through All Hardship We Endeavour (Riario x Lucrezia), and my unconventionalcourtship Black Sails regency au Unconventional Countess which let me explore a nonsexual but deeply committed partnership between Silver and Max. Historical AUs, canon AUs, fantasy, h/c, nonsexual intimacy are probably key components of my work :) Fanfic is my go to but I do dabble in graphics and even fanvids; my youtube channel is RosettaGray and I have some Da Vinci's Demons vids there – of the four this is probably my favourite along with a crack CSI: Rome(if the Borgias were a crime show) and a Francois Arnaud/Morrocan Gigolos movie fanvid. But I am a very amateur vidder! Day 10 In your own space, share your love for a trope, cliché, kink, motif, or theme. (Or a few!) Tell us what makes it work for you, and why it appeals to you so much. Talk about what you like to see in fanworks featuring that theme most. Feel free to include recs and examples! Hurt/Comfort has always been my go to for reading and writing. I could wax lyrical about why but it's my jam and always will be. On tumblr it seems to be tagged more as "whump" and I've found more gifsets and fic recs that way :) Hair kink – give me all the long haired men! Talk about hair washing and brushing, let fingers run through tousled locks! Bed sharing – I just love this idea of intimacy and it's related to… Nonsexual intimacy – I'm asexual and I adore nonsexual intimacies in fic. Hand kissing, showering, the aforementioned bed sharing and hair brushing. There's a particular kink I've tried exploring more and which I read more of but in private and I'm still not brave enough to come out and say it outright yet, though my love of h/c is always front and centre, unashamedly so. Day 11 Share a book/song/movie/tv show/fanwork/etc that changed your life. A few key moments. I think Star Trek: The Next Generation was the first fandom I wrote in, though in a notebook and never to be shared (this was a time long ago before the internet!) Quantum Leap and Babylon 5 I participated in by reading fanzines but I never wrote fic, but that was a new experience for me in terms of fandom. Brimstone is one of the earliest oneline fandoms I wrote fic for, via yahoo groups! Legend of the Seeker; I felt very connected to fans here especially in the community dedicated to the Rahl family. I've written more fic in this fandom than any other. Discworld; I came later to the series but Pratchett's work has been a touchstone ever since. Whedon; I know there's now much (warranted) criticism of the man and his newer works, but Buffy and Firefly made lasting impressions on me. CSI: I read a lot of forensic books when watching early seasons of CSI. Fandom often leads me to gain knowledge in areas it has piqued my interest in. Day 12 In your own space, create a fanwork. Make a podfic, an icon, a sketch, a meta, or a rec list. Arts and crafts. Cross stitch. Draft an essay about a particular medium. Put together a picspam or a fanmix. Write a review of book you love, a ship manifesto, a you-should-be-listening-to-this-band essay. Create something. I posted fic just two days ago Men of Vision and Ambition, I've got a draft fanfic WiP, plus I have original fic I work on these days. I also reviewed 3 books (1 great, 1 good, 1 awful) on tumblr yesterday, and I've got gameofcards to make things for soon enough ;) Just in case none of that counts (and of course they count, it's Snowflake Challenge!) I made an icon for the tv series (based on the books) Strike

#black sails #da vinci's demons #strike #brimstone #h/c #bed sharing #hair kink #nonsexual intimacy #silvermax #LotS #other fandoms mentioned #shameless self promotion #vid recs #fic recs #snowflakechallenge2018

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alecsimon · 7 years

Note

ELLE !!!!! CONGRATS !!!! also malec + birthdays :))

RIYA!!! so it’s funny how i completed this for your birthday and the ask includes birthdays i mean iconic am i right? anyway happy birthday sweetheart!!! i love you to the moon and back and talking to you always brightens my day. i love when you tag me in your gifsets and i hold our friendship v dear to me especially when we expose our #darkpasts 👀 you’re beautiful and kind and i hope your day is absolutely amazing!! ❤️😚

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(huge thanks to the best beta a girl could ask for @lightwoodlesbians 💕)

Magnus sips on his morning tea, checking over the guest list to Rafael’s party one last time. Rafael’s turning 11, and it’s his first birthday with them, spending it together as a family. Though Rafael has been here under a year, he’s still as much of a son to Magnus and Alec as little Max is. So Magnus wants Rafael’s first birthday with them to be special and to serve as a reminder that he has people who want to celebrate with him.

“I hope Helen and Aline are able to make it. Helen says Aline is still sick with a nasty flu.”

Looking up, Magnus watches his very shirtless husband flip a pancake expertly, and Magnus grins, twirling the pen between his fingers.

“Me too. Although even without them we have almost 25 people who said they’re going to come,” Magnus replies, making a mental note to call the caterer to make sure the food comes on time.

“It’s gonna be a big crowd,” Alec says, putting the pancakes onto four plates and passing one to Magnus with an easy wink and a smile.

“And why are you so happy this morning, hm?” Magnus asks, getting off of his chair and taking a step towards Alec, who won’t stop smiling. It’s very difficult for Magnus not to mirror his happiness.

“I have two amazing kids and a beautiful husband - what’s there not to be happy about?” Alec asks, picking up the ends of the sash of the robe Magnus is wearing and tugging him flush against his body, kissing him deeply.

Magnus kisses him back instantly, wrapping his arms around Alec’s torso as Alec lifts a hand to cup Magnus’ face.

“Dad?”

Magnus pulls back from the kiss and turns his head, seeing a little seven year old in Star Wars pajamas clutching an oversized teddy bear and rubbing his right eye with a small fist.

“Good morning, Max,” Alec says from beside him, kissing Magnus’ cheek before pulling away completely and walking over to Max. “How did you sleep?”

“Good,” Max replies, smiling up at his dad. His blue skin is mesmerizing under the morning sun streaming through the windows. “I had a dream that me, you, Papa, and Rafael were on a pirate ship.”

“That’s one heck of a dream,” Alec says, ruffling Max’s hair.

Rafael appears a moment later in the hall, clad in his monotone pajamas.

“There he is,” Magnus says, walking over to Rafael and crouching down to pull him into a hug. “Happy birthday, sweetheart.”

“Thanks, Papa,” Rafael says, laughing when Magnus starts peppering his face with kisses.

“Happy birthday, Rafa,” Alec says, which Max repeats almost instantly.

“Dad made pancakes in your honor,” Magnus says, brushing Rafael’s hair out of his face.

“Chocolate chip?” Rafael asks, his eyes lighting up.

“Of course,” Magnus replies with a wink.

Alec and Magnus finish up making breakfast while the kids talk about yesterday’s museum trip at the dinner table. Mornings like this are what Magnus adores, and will hold close to his heart forever. Everything feels soft and rich with love, and Magnus doesn’t really know how he got here, surrounded by his own little family, but every day he’s thankful.

“Simon, Izzy, and Jace are gonna come a little earlier to set up for the party.” Alec says as he sits down at the round table.

“Catarina can’t stay for long but she promised to stop by,” Magnus pours some maple syrup on his pancakes and passes it to Max, who’s making grabby hands at him.

“She always gives the most thoughtful gifts. Oh, also, the cake I bought is your favorite, Rafa,” Alec says, turning to Rafael with a smile.

Next to him, however, Rafa is pushing his food around his plate, chewing on his lower lip. Magnus and Alec share a worried look before Alec puts his hand on Rafael’s shoulder and Rafael looks up.

“You ok, bud?” Alec asks softly.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Rafael replies. He looks down at his plate again before picking up his fork and pointing it at Alec. “That cake better be chocolate on top of chocolate.”

“You know it is,” Alec says with a wink.

The day goes by beautifully. The four of them finish breakfast and all give Rafael their gifts, and the way Rafael’s eyes light up when he unwraps the guitar tells Magnus that they purchased the right gift. The guests start filtering in around lunchtime, and by then the entire loft has been decorated in a pirate theme.

A pirate flag is hung over one of the walls and the bar has been made to look like a pirate ship’s front deck. Maia stands at the bar, chatting to Meliorn and Luke. On the other side of the room, Max is performing for Izzy and Clary, showing them the new magic he learned, and Alec is talking to Simon. Other people are littered throughout the apartment, but Magnus notices, as he does a twirl, that he can’t find the guest of honor.

“You look lost,” says a familiar voice, and Magnus turns to face his husband, his eyebrows furrowed.

“Have you seen Rafael?” Magnus asks. Alec looks puzzled for a moment, then shakes his head.

“Actually, no. Not in the past half hour at least.” Alec nudges his head towards the direction of Rafael’s room and they both walk to it. Magnus knocks once before walking inside, finding Rafael sitting on the floor reading a book.

“Rafa,” Magnus calls, stepping into the room. Rafael looks up guiltily, closing the book and setting it down next to him. “Why aren’t you at your party, darling?”

“I don’t know,” Rafael replies, twiddling his thumbs together. Behind Alec, an overly excited Max comes running in, holding a present.

“Uncle Jace brought you a gift!” he cheers, holding out the bright red box to Rafael. “Wait, why do you look so sad?”

“I’m not sad,” Rafael says quickly in response to Max’s youthful bluntness.

As Max puts the gift next to Rafael, Magnus and Alec make their way over to the kids. Alec crouches in front of Rafael and takes his hands.

“You wanna tell us what’s really going on?” Alec says softly, tilting his head to the side when Rafael looks down.

“I just -” Rafael starts, shrugging a shoulder. “It’s too many people. I thought we could spend the day with just the four of us. But you and Papa seemed so happy to have everyone come over.”

“Oh, honey,” Magnus says, crouching down next to Alec and cupping Rafael’s face. “You’re allowed to tell us what you want - you know that, right? You dad and I, we just want you to see how many people want to celebrate your birthday with you. But it’s also your birthday, and if you wanted something else you could have just said so, sweetheart.”

“I know. I just didn’t want to ruin the fun,” Rafael says, still looking sad.

“You could never ruin the fun,” Alec replies instantly. “It’s your special day. And all three of us - we love you very much.”

Rafael actually cracks a smile at that, and Max leans on him. Magnus barely holds back the need to coo at the brotherly affection.

“Stay here,” Magnus says to Alec, kissing his cheek and the top of both of his son’s heads. “Papa will be right back.”

The next fifteen minutes are spent doing damage control. One by one Magnus apologizes to his guests and tells them that the party is over, and while people are sad to leave, they’re all close friends and family and are extremely understanding. The gifts are left on the coffee table, and they have plenty of food left, but the loft is left in a mostly mess-free state.

He makes his way back to Rafael’s room and slowly opens the door. Alec, Max, and Rafael are putting together a Lego set that Rafael got for Christmas when Magnus clears his throat.

“Come on, let’s go back out,” Magnus says, and he can instantly see Rafael’s face drop at the prospect of having to socialize with a few dozen people.

With a little encouragement from Alec, all of them make their way out of Rafael’s room and into the loft towards the kitchen.

“Where did everybody go?” Rafael asks, climbing on one of the island chairs. Alec seats Max on the other one.

“They all went home. You said you wanted just the four of us - our family together for your birthday. So, here we are,” Magnus says, smiling as he walks over to the fridge.

“Next time, talk to us, Rafa, okay?” Alec says, leaning over the island to ruffle Rafael’s hair, to which Rafael laughs playfully and saying a soft ‘okay, dad’.

Magnus pulls out a chocolate cake from the fridge and sets in on the island, snapping his fingers and lighting a candle.

All three of them start singing happy birthday softly, Magnus using his magic to dim the rest of the lights in the loft a little so the candle illuminates the room. He can see now, the joy on Rafael’s face at just the four of them being there. Rafael has been denied a loving family for too long, and when he was adopted Magnus and Alec both swore to do everything in their power to make sure Rafael knew he was wanted and had a home. Had a family.

“You have to make a wish now, darling,” Magnus says softly once the song is over. Max is giddy next to Rafa, his eyes on the chocolate cake, and Rafael just smiles, shaking his head.

“I don’t need to. Everything I would want is right here,” Rafael says, looking at his brother and fathers.

Magnus swears he hears Alec’s breath hitch, and he feels his own heart melt at Rafael’s words.

Closing his eyes, Rafael blows out the candle, a huge grin on his face and a light in his eyes as Max claps from beside him.

“Oh, Rafael! Papa got fake swords. We can play pirate and guards,” Max says, wobbling his way down from the island chair.

“Cool!” Rafael responds as they both run towards the wooden box of styrofoam swords.

Magnus sets the kettle as two strong arms wrap around his waist from behind. Magnus smiles, turning in Alec’s arms and placing his hands on his chest. From the other room, Magnus can hear Rafael and Max playing and shouting:

“I’m gonna catch you!”

“You’ll never take me alive!”

Alec laughs softly, kissing Magnus softly and resting their foreheads together. “Should we go and join them?” Alec asks.

“Yea,” Magnus says, closing his eyes and just revelling in the moment. “But only if I get to be a pirate.”

Alec grins. “Deal.”

#malec #shadowhunters #willjtudor #magswoods #fluffyjimon #darthlightwood #lightwoody #hufflebee #saltyalec #blushyalec #moonylady #posibanesquad #ask #elle writes #500 celebration drabbles

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televinita · 7 years

Text

Zoo 3.11, “Cradles and Graves”

Maybe, you’re gonna be the one that saves me

I don't know if I'm more upset that this show had the gall to unironically use (a cover of)“Wonderwall” for dramatic effect, or that after 3 days of my inability to stop watching this episode, it's actually working for me.

I distinctly remember bursting out laughing when the first lyrics hit my ears, and now I'm like, teary eyed and nodding sagely through that whole montage. "Wow. So deep. So profound and meaningful."

------

A list of things I did not care for this week: the IADG bullpen unless Tessa was talking. Now that we've got that out of the way... Some things I like about the first 5 minutes -Imagining the Darkest Timeline version where they are all already dead by the time Clem finds them. -The (unintentional?) hilarity of the fact that Jackson's blood waits for the exactly perfect moment to ooze under the door for maximum dramatic effect -The fact that Mitch is found on the stairs instead of where he was shot, which suggests to me that he got to feel the full horror of seeing both Max and Jamie on the ground before he succumbed to his own wound (which is probably just an irresponsible directing choice because if he had, I'd think he'd be a little more grateful about the whole them-not-being-dead part, but it's fun to think about! Otherwise I just get bogged down again in wondering about the logistics of GSW injuries.) Ctrl + Z I loved it, but my parents and I could not stop laughing during the entire resurrection scene. "So I guess everybody's actively dying and no one can help us, but it's cool. Just gimme some of that tank serum (totally valid medical term) and mix it with water (just your basic home remedy recipe), and then we'll suffocate them back to life and five minutes later their mortal wounds will be fine and we can get on with the real problems." A.K.A. So there's example 57 or so of an entire episode's worth of possible plot being pushed aside because this show refuses to take a breath. We could have wrung so much more emotion out of Clementine, whilst ignoring her own signs of labor, trying to triage her father, grandfather, adoptive mother, surrogate uncle I'm pretending she is already attached to more than I'm sure she is, and other surrogate uncle who is also her best chance of saving her baby, the most important of all, if something goes wrong in delivery. ...and GDI now I gotta go find a special episode of Grey's Anatomy to get my mass tragedy fix. But I'm grateful that even at Zoo speed, they still gave me a little taste (in two flavors!) of people suffering the after-effects of injuries the serum couldn't fully fix. You're Responsible, You're the One to Blame, It's Your Fault :( to everyone being too busy hating her to notice Jamie cradling a clearly injured arm. But I love absolutely every sentence in this 7-way argument, including but not limited to Mitch's strangled "are you full term? how long was I out?!", the group-wide reveal of when exactly Mr. Duncan disappeared, Jackson's deadly-quiet anger, Jamie's valid defense of her actions, Mitch trying to take his daughter and blow this popsicle stand at a doubled-over limp, Clem taking her sweet time mentioning the quarantine, Max and Jamie's "oh" realizations about the plane, and Mitch's fabulously cranky echo and "what now" attitude. Last but far from least, the disgusted "I can't even look at you" was kind of my favorite part? I dig it when one member of an OTP is that intensely furious at the other out of hurt. (see also: Castle at the end of season 4)

A+ Comic Relief Laughing for 1 million years at Clem hopping off the exam table pantsless while all the men in the vicinity double take and look away* (except for Sam, whom Mitch hilariously whacks on the arm for his impudence, in my favorite sight gag since "Special Consultant") *the fact that Abe also does this, while understandably instinctive and appropriately respectful, is also kind of hilarious given where he just was

Oh My Darling(s, Sam &) Clementine (who can't make a good shipmanteau to save their life) I don't have enough interest to do it myself, but it sure sounds like the story of how they met would make a pretty great YA novel plot. Anyone who doesn't actually want to spend the month trying to be a paid author need a NaNoWriMo prompt? Particularly someone who likes world-building, because this show leaves things wide open to fill in the details of U.S. society outside New York and the plane. Speaking of which! Did Clem happen to share with him the part of her backstory about being raised as an orphan basically the same way for the same reason? Because that seems like it would decently bond them. I like this parallel. Also update, I am getting a lot fonder of his face, mostly because he shut up and stayed out of the way except when I needed him to chime in to be sweet and supportive of Clementine (or side with her dad about ranking her over the baby on the priority list). He seems like he's really tried/is trying to be a good partner, and I'm impressed that he holds his ground despite a faceful of largely unwarranted hostility from her. I might actually be okay with him being the head of his family, even though up until now my head has danced with visions of Clem raising her baby under Mitch (and Jamie)'s purview and/or roof, Last Man Standing style. (although I guess there's always Reba-style, where both young parents are under that roof) (I realize I'm making a lot of assumptions about everyone's ability to stay alive and/or live a semi-normal life)

Beta Ship 2.0 / My Wonderwall** There's something immensely funny to me about the juxtaposition of Jackson being in his Brooding Cave Of Isolated Despair while Tessa is in a brightly ilt location, in the middle of the hustle and bustle and basically being like, "Buck up and stop being so melodramatic." (Jackson: The prophecies have spoken. Food turns to dust in my mouth. A great wave shall fall upon us all. // Tessa: is your plane out of groceries again?) But on a serious note, I love so much that he's thisclose to broken until she pulls him out of it that I'm not even gonna whine about him asking Tessa to do the same thing he's punishing Jamie for. Though in his defense, he did say "stop" her and not "kill her,” which is an important distinction for him. **My friend once wrote a Jim/Pam (The Office) parody of Jim/Pam stories using this title, and that is at least 50% of why I can't take this song seriously even though I actually have always loved it.

I Don't Know What To Do My Whole Brain is Celebrating "How do you know the name of Jamie's scorpion?" "Because my son and Jamie have, uh, very lively pillow talk."** !!!!!!!!!! NO BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE.

The fact that Abe pipes up despite a sucking chest wound just so he can help take the mick out of Mitch is glorious. The cranky and ineffectual "shut up" in response is THE BEST. I love that Mitch has just always blatantly refused to publicly acknowledge how he feels about Jamie, despite the fact that everyone and their mother is like, "Oh yeah, I know Mitch. Snarky scientist, walks around with hearts in his eyes to match the one on his sleeve?" (Mitch, in the distance: I do not LOVE her, okay, I just...miss her when she's not around, think about her all the time, and I imagine us one day running towards each other in slow motion and I'm wearing a brown suede vest.) I doubly appreciate this exchange because I was wondering when the hell these people actually sleep and I was getting worried there was no recognizable place in canon that they might have both had a chance to go to bed at the same time. **This writer could not have more clearly been flagging us with a fic prompt. Max Morgan, Love Doctor My very favorite of the small moments in this ep is Max insisting that Mitch let him patch him up. I was all on board for some serious injury, but I loved the subversion of his attention being caught by the scars I thought the show had forgotten about instead. "Oh, Mitch."

That just kills me. I want to unpack their relationship right here so much more, but also, it's 7pm on the night of new Zoo. Suffice to say Mitch isn't the only parent who suffers over the thought of his kid being in pain tonight, and that's beautiful. And gosh do I love him quietly, individually, nudging Mitch and Jamie back towards each other. The promise that Mitch will understand eventually was an immediate balm upon my soul. If Max says a thing about my ship, it must be true! Mitch + Being A Mess of Emotions About His Daughter (if anyone wanted to make a gifset off of this theme I would not be opposed) Words cannot express how thrilled I am that Mitch gives zero bothers about Sam's baby daddy rights and takes up prime positioning to stroke Clementine's hair nonstop throughout the whole labor,* even stealing the requisite final "you can do this" encouragement. He also gets to be the first one to hold the baby and it's amazing.

* and makes some pretty wonderful faces over how hard it is to see her in pain and not be able to do anything about it -- and remind me I've got either some meta or a story scrap about how this is what Audra was on the front lines for all those years he selfishly hid away, telling himself it was for the best P.S. As much as I love that Mitch just falls apart in full Worried Dad mode and can't seem to process a single medical term or physical symptom as it pertains to pregnancy, you know that if Abe weren't a sex doctor and the writers weren't butts, Mitch would absolutely be whipping out the stethoscopes and telling us all about the time he delivered a baby gorilla so this is basically the same thing -- I imagine Clem would take loud offense here -- while roping in Jamie as a delivery nurse to follow his instructions to the letter (because there are some things fathers just should not do no matter how brilliant they are). Things I would like to know Why Mitch -- who apparently had a through and through -- is the only one whose gunshot wound is still bothering him Why Clementine didn't once ask where Jamie was. (at which point I'd really like to see Mitch try and explain that one.)

It is straight up ridiculous to me that 19-year-old girl in labor, surrounded by men, would not want a woman with her, particularly one she loves. This is the most "what...man...[wrote] this" moment I have ever had about TV.

Did I just miss it, or is it kinda weird that Sam doesn't bat an eye upon finding out Charles Duncan is actually a different person and his girlfriend's father?

Leftover Thoughts

This show is so nuts, I am just now realizing I didn't even stop to wonder how the hell Abigail reanimated herself last week before now.

Mitch being a testy bitch @ Abe is a thing that just does not get old. ("You put hybrid goo in my daughter? Was that not worth a little chat?")

Aww @ Mitch's mini pep-talk about being a good parent, followed by the "OK time to go" and the sweet "I'm having this baby?" / "You are having this baby."

I also really enjoy Mitch deciding to be cranky about Sam just because he's there and he can. It's kinda like sniping at Logan, but more fun and with way better reasons. (Which I hope is exactly what Mitch says when Clementine inevitably tells him to knock it off)

"Goodbye frequent flyer miles" lmao

I love that instead of shutting down the beacon by cutting the wire, they multiplied its effect by a thousand and destroyed a city, to which the response is basically, "Whoops."

"You've been good for my son. Take care of him for me." So I LOVE THIS, but also: dammit Max that is not what "die for our ship" means.

But I love the moment where Jamie and Max, individually, hear the baby crying. The joy dawning on their faces is so pure it actually makes it worthwhile that they're not present at the birth itself.

(I know we're especially mad about Jamie. But honestly, if it means All Mitch All The Time, that's an OK trade to me.)

tl;dr if something is not mentioned please assume I loved it

COMING SOON:

(will be links shortly) Mini essays analyzing Jamie V. Jackson, Mitch/Jamie and Max's death.

In conclusion: I spent my entire night writing this, but it was worth it. Future Me is gonna love looking back.

#cbs zoo #episode reactions #zoo 3.11 #2200 words AND THIS ISN'T EVEN ALL OF IT #most of the Mitch and Jamie analysis is yet to come

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