#i've been thinking about splinter a lot recently

[bambiraptorx]

just had a random thought: what if splinter starting going by that name when he met april. like, picture the context, he has four kids who have been calling him variations of dad since they could talk and he's rarely if ever interacted with other people since leaving the hidden city. he's gone by two names previously (and is no longer truly comfortable with either) but hasn't used either name in years. Again, his kids just call him dad and they're most likely the only people he talks to. so when he finally meets april, she asks what his name is, and he completely blanks and tells her the first word that comes to mind. maybe he's looking at his hands and notices a silver of wood from a box he was moving earlier. maybe he glances at an old crate and the word just comes out. maybe he's so disconnected from who he was before that even though he has two names he could give, he makes one up on the spot.

[irisinluv]

Yandere Stardew Valley- Sebastian

I've been playing some Yandere Stardew mods recently. While I love them..... I feel like they do my husband (Sebastian) wrong. The citizens of Pelican Town are telling me that they can't hang out with me because Sebstian threatened them. That they've noticed some weird behavior. That he's physically violent. I disagree with all of these for Sebby.

He's our hot programmer boyfriend who lives in his basement bedroom, and only emerges to enjoy a smoke break, or to go see his friends. Now, while again, I do enjoy playing the mods...... I think his cannon behavior sets him up to be the perfect chronically online yandere. Pelican Town isn't exactly the most connected (6 out of the 11 rivals have access to a computer), but there's still potential. Obviously they're gonners if they have a computer. Sam finds himself doxed after making a comment about the gifts you gave him this week, and poor Haley's socials are blowing up with hate comments- from her personal insta to her photography blog.

But what about the other 5? The ones who are more disconnected? Well. It's easy enough to get Shane fired from joja. A little email to Morris from "HQ" saying he either fires Shane or his own pay gets docked..... well. Suddenly, everyone's favorite alcoholic doesn't even have a job anymore. Elliott suddenly has all these taxes he hasn't paid on his little shack..... beachfront properties cost a lot, you know. The parents stop letting Penny watch their kids after some..... explicit photos get leaked. It doesn't matter that they're edited. These people don't know about Photoshop. All they know is apparently Penny's making ends meet to support her mother..... and there's a new favorite subject to gossip on between all the older women. The other rivals are equally taken care of. All you need to focus on now is how Sebastian is the only reliable option in the whole damn town.

And he knows you so well, doesn't he? You, who lived away from it all until now. You, who WAS connected to the internet. Who had their entire life detailed through Facebook updates and Instagram posts. Honestly, Sebastian thinks that maybe he DOESN'T need to leave Pelican town... looking at the life you lived before coming to the valley, he thinks its much easier to keep you safe when he can control everything that goes on. There were too many factors to your old life. Too many parties to go to, coworkers to talk to, ex-boyfriends/girlfriends worry about. No. Sebastian thinks that city life isn't fit for the two of you to start you life together.

While he enjoyed seeing the trip down memory lane of who you were before becoming the farmer, and learning more about your likes and dislikes, he much prefers this version of you. The version of you who he found bouncing on their toes outside his door, excitedly shoving a frozen tear at him. Who eventually became the only person he was genuinely excited to have come barging into his room unannounced. And the thought of moving into the farm with you was all together far too tempting. He can picture it already. He'd set up a little area to work on his bike, he'd help out around the farm for you (he saw your hands covered in scrapes and splinters one day, and you sheepishly told him your fences had started wearing down.... but fixing a fence was another first for you. So you ended up scraping yourself up a bit on the old wood. Now, Sebastain, who, while he doesn't enjoy it, grew up with a carpenter mother..... well. He's going to make sure you never have that many splinters again.) Oh and he can already imagine it. The two of you, far away from the rest of the town, from prying eyes, no one to hear what you two would get up to as he helped you relax after a long day of working the feilds.....

This fantasy would sustain him until you eventually asked him to marry you. I don't think he would rush anything. To you, and the rest of the citizens, he was just normal Sebastian. Showing up for band practice, playing pool at the bar (although he seemed to play much better when a certain farmer came to watch). He just realized that the best way to control all the factors in town would be to remain anonymous. Avoid suspicion. After all. In a small town like that, it would be all too easy to turn against him if he decided to publicly threaten someone. And how would you react if you came to drop off some fresh sashimi to your boyfriend, only to find him being dragged out of his house by Clint, with Marlon standing nearby, ready to ship him off to face justice in the adventurers guild? No. That wouldn't do. He can't add any more stress to you like that. He'd remain the puppeteer, pulling the strings of the valley.

This isn't to say Sebastian never stalks you in person or anything like that. He can't help himself. He's a night owl. He knows the villagers schedules, has since before you even came to town. So, he knows he can get away with digging in the trash to find the straw you threw away at the bar. And if someone does hear him.... well. Linus is going to be everyone's first thought. He does, however, start adopting a stricter routine as far as monitoring your house after you mention how you sell your produce.

Sebastian was rightfully horrified when you explained that Mayor Lewis comes by your farm at night to collect anything you wish to sell. How it's such a relief to be able to just chuck things in the the bin as you're rushing to bed at 1:50 in the morning, only to get up first thing and start your day again, and not have to worry about lugging all your goods to the store. Sebastian won't criticize you for the lack of sleep..... no. That's not what's worrying. What's worrying is that this old man who has a gold statue of himself and who gets it on in the bushes with his secret girlfriend (of course Sebastian knows about that) is showing up to your house sometime after 2 am. His mind flashes back to his fantasy of the two of you, completely alone on the farm.... and then is mortified as this fantasy morphs into a nightmare where he looks up from bed with you, and sees Lewis' wrinkled face peering through the window. Yea. No. Sebastain installs some hidden cameras to make sure Lewis doesn't get up to anything funny while you're defenseless, asleep, alone..... ok he might need to get a new mayor elected. The old man might just have to go. Perhaps to a home outside the town. Regardless, he makes sure Lewis stops coming by as frequently. Frustratingly, he isn't able to completely stop it, but that'll be an easy fix once the two of you are married. He'll act surprised, "wow Lewis, that's so kind of you to help out the farmer all this time. But hey, don't worry, I'll take over. I'm up late anyways, and it's the least I can do!" But Sebastian still wakes up in a cold sweat and frantically rushes to check the cameras, making sure you're OK. That Lewis really is just checking the shipping bin.

Once y'all get married, he shows a bit more of that possessive side to you. But you chalk it up to just bedroom spicy time, and honestly find his hand tightening on your waist as Elliot asks you to read his latest poem hot.

Just. Yandere Sebastian brain rot.

[dandylovesturtles]

Top Ten Posts of 2023

I decided, why not? ^^

I'm limiting this to fics/analysis/headcanon/etc posts I made during the year and skipping over anything that isn't my actual creative work. That said, if you're curious, my actual top post was this funky screenshot from episode 2.

10. Everyone's just fine with Donnie modding the moon buggy? (362 notes)

It occurred to me that despite being MASSIVE nerds for the Jupiter Jim franchise, the bros seemed awfully chill with Donnie taking an actual on-set moon buggy and modding the hell out of it.

A few people argued with me in the notes that the Turtle Tank is so cool no one could possibly be mad about it and I do think that's fair. The Turtle Tank is easily my favorite thing Donnie made in the show.

9. Splinter and Leo talk post movie (443 notes)

And then his dad walks in and says, “I would like to talk to Blue, please. Alone.” And suddenly Leo doesn’t feel so good anymore.

This is the most recent tumblr fic I've done (I think lol), so seeing it make it this high felt pretty good. I love Splinter and his boys... they make me emotional.

8. A headcanon about the Disaster Twins (445 notes)

I have a headcanon that the twins are lowkey always trying to get each other to laugh.

This is still true.

7. A showcase of Donnie's injuries in End Game (462 notes)

So everyone talks about Donnie getting his shell shredded by the Shredder in Many Unhappy Returns but I feel like it’s underappreciated that that happened to him coming off of getting his ass beat in End Game like

One of the first posts I made when I made this blog haha. Poor Donnie |'D

6. Donnie records everything (617 notes)

broke: Donnie listening to what happened in the prison dimension woke: Donnie showing Raph Leo’s big damn hero speech since he wasn’t there the first time

The main reason why this has so many notes is because @roseverdict wrote a great fic down in the notes that you should all go read.

5. Leo asks Donnie a favor (829 notes)

“You might as well tell me what you need,” he says, turning to his computer and pulling up his list. “I’ll assess it and prioritize.” “No, no, that’s okay. It’s nothing,” Leo insists. “Nardo.” Donnie levels his best stare at him. “What is it?”

I love writing the Disaster Twins being soft and you guys love it when I write it too.

4. Present Donnie and Future Donnie have a little disagreement (CAS AU fic) (1,242 notes)

“What was I supposed to do, tie him to a chair?” “Yes!?” says Mini-him like he’s stupid, which warrants a scoff.

Shoutout to @skcirthinq who doodled a comic version of their conversation.

3. Casey Jr. and Uncle Tello troll Present Donnie (CAS AU fic) (1,701 notes)

Casey Jr, says Uncle Tello’s voice. Uncle Tello? Do you want to see something really funny?

This is my actual fic with the most notes! I'm glad you all enjoyed this silly little take on what was actually an incredibly intense moment in Cass's original comic.

2. Mikey contacts the Hamato ancestors (2,054 notes)

future Mikey: *trying to contact the spirits of the Hamato for advice and guidance in the apocalypse* Donnie’s spirit: Hello, you are now communing with Donatello.

I can't believe you guys gave over 2K notes to the stupidest joke I've ever made. Shoutout to @nonymous06 for this artist's rendition.

and finally, drum roll please.....

My top post of 2023:

1. A very silly idea for a separated AU (4,283 notes)

non-angsty ROTTMNT separated AU where the boys meet online and bond over their shared love of Jupiter Jim and skateboarding and Lou Jitsu. Then one day they agree to meet irl for the first time at a con and decide to dress as turtle aliens.

This post spawned an adorable fanart by @thatsmutbean , this hilarious fanart by @onionninjasstuff , and an entire fanfic called new phone who dis by @rbtlvr

This has been an incredible year! My love for ROTTMNT has not diminished in the slightest and I still have lots of ideas, so I hope you guys stick with me for 2024. Thanks again! Happy New Year!!

[teetlestansecond]

Recently lost my grandfather the other day.. he was a bit like rise's splinter and sounded a bit like him. He might not have been the best father to my mom but he loved his grandchildren. So to cope a little can i get separate platonic/romantic hcs of the turtles reacting or catching reader (s/o or friend) coming to lair one day and suddenly started hanging around their father more because her grandpa passed away? (maybe make it so she doesnt tell the turtles dont know yet until they ask or overheard her and splinter's conversation/comforting the reader)

i was going to try and do these in the order i got them but i've been missing my own grandfather a lot lately and so this spoke to me, i'm so sorry for your loss nonnie 🫂

rise!turtles x grieving!reader

(mostly) platonic but could be taken romantically || gn!reader

tw: death of a loved one

Raph! ❤️

Raph doesn't think much about you coming to hang out with Splinter. he thinks his dad is pretty cool and is honestly glad you like him enough to actively seek him out.

if you're dating he actually takes it as a good sign - he loves you and wants you to get along with his whole family, not just his brothers. so seeing you and Splinter spending so much time together just makes him feel good.

sometimes he asks what you guys talk about, and sometimes you give him a general answer but for the most part you keep the details to yourself and he's totally fine with that.

Splinter has always respected your time with the boys and Raph does the same when it comes to your time with Splinter. he'll say hello and greet you with a hug once he sees you, but after that he leaves you two be.

so when Raph overhears your conversation, it's entirely on accident.

he actually had no idea you were in the lair. it was late and he wanted a snack before bed so he was just on his way to the kitchen when he catches the tail-end of something you were saying to Splinter.

he doesn't register it right away, but then he realizes that you guys are talking about your grandfather, who Raph knows you were close to. he realizes a moment after that you're talking about him in the past tense. he puts two and two together pretty easily from that.

on the one hand, Raph is glad that you're comfortable enough with Splinter to turn to him for comfort during your grieving period. but on the other hand, he wants to comfort you too.

he doesn't say anything that night, but when you come by the next day he pulls you aside and confesses to you that he overheard your conversation the night before.

he pulls you into a hug and tells you how sorry he is that you're going through this loss, and you let it out on his shoulder for a few minutes.

and you're grateful for his comfort, but you also take the chance to explain to Raph that while you do welcome his comfort, you're specifically going to Splinter because he reminds you of your grandfather.

Raph gets it, of course, and he encourages you to come as often as you need, and that they'll all be there to help you through this time.

from then on, Raph takes special care to keep his other brothers busy whenever you come to see Splinter.

sometimes you invite him to join you, and the three of you will talk late into the night. it doesn't make everything better, but it does feel nice to have them there for you.

Leo! 💙

Leo doesn't notice right away that you've been spending time with Splinter, he just sees that you’re spending more time in the lair and he’s got absolutely no complaints about that!

you’re actually pretty surprised he hasn’t caught on yet because everyone knows Leo has killer insomnia and you sort of figured he would have caught you and Splinter sitting in the living room talking all night by now.

but the thing about Leo is that he’s kinda got a late night routine going and he doesn’t usually stray from that routine. he gets himself a cup of tea and either does something in his room or goes to hang out with his insomnia twin Donnie.

he doesn’t really go near the living room at any point in the night and so he remains utterly clueless for a couple of weeks.

he also usually has headphones on listening to music while he moves around at night, but one particular night he went to make tea and left the headphones in his room, and ended up hearing you crying as he made his way back.

of course that just wasn’t okay in his book, so Leo rushes in to try and see what’s going on. he doesn’t know what he’s expecting, but it’s definitely not the sight of you crying on Splinter’s shoulder while the rat comforts you.

you hadn’t planned on telling Leo or his brothers just yet, but he’s clearly worried and you’d feel bad telling him to leave without explaining why you’re crying, so you just let it all out in the moment and tell him about your grandfather.

Leo sits on your other side and hugs you for a long time, letting you cry some more while he rubs your back and tells you how sorry he is. he’s big on words but he knows words can’t fix this so for once he stays largely quiet outside of telling you that he’s there for you.

once you’ve calmed down a little, Leo goes back into the kitchen and makes two extra cups of tea - one for you and one for Splinter.

this becomes a routine thing for him. Leo pays attention now and if he sees that you’re staying late or if you come by after the others have gone to bed, he’ll make three cups of tea and bring them to the living room.

sometimes he stays with you and Splinter, but for the most part he just drops the drinks off and checks in with you before leaving and giving the two of you space.

he realizes that your time with Splinter is helping and doesn’t want to intrude on that, so he’ll really only stay if you or Splinter invite him into the conversation. even then though he doesn’t stay very long and will claim to be tired before leaving the room.

you absolutely know he’s lying, but you know why he’s lying and it warms your heart a little.

Donnie! 💜

Donnie realizes pretty quickly that something’s going on with you. he might struggle with emotions but he’s pretty observant and picks up on the shift in your mood after a couple of days.

he doesn’t ask about it because he doesn’t know how to start that conversation, nor would he know what to say after finding out that was bothering you.

so he just worries in silence for a while. he tries lifting your spirits with puns or by showing you whatever he’s working on, but it feels like lately you’ve been more interested in spending time with Splinter.

and Donnie gets it, he likes quality time with his family even if he says otherwise, especially with his dad, but he just doesn’t understand why.

it really eats at him for a couple of weeks before he finally just bites the bullet and asks you what’s going on.

he tries to be gentle about it but he can’t hide that he’s worried and his tone is urgent as he asks you if you’re doing okay.

you knew he or one of the others would ask, you’d just been hoping it would happen later rather than sooner.

but you’d promised yourself that if you were asked, you would tell the truth, and so when Donnie asks you tell him that your grandfather died.

Donnie feels terrible hearing that, and immediately asks if there’s anything he can do for you to help. comfort isn’t his strong suit so he figures it’s better to ask outright and see what would best help instead of just awkwardly trying different comfort methods until finding something that stuck.

you tell him that the thing that’s been helping the most has been spending time with Splinter because he reminds you of your grandfather, but you also tell him that just having your normal routine with him and his brothers is helping too.

Donnie takes that to heart and starts inviting you to hang out even more, whether that be in the lair or out and about in the city. it’s never anything special, just the same shenanigans you normally get into with the boys, but Donnie feels like he’s helping by inviting you out and you enjoy the time you guys spend together.

but beyond that, Donnie also starts giving you a heads-up anytime he knows Splinter’s free, just in case you want to come spend time with him. since that’s what you said helped the most, he keeps a very sharp eye out and distracts his brothers so that you can spend some time with his dad.

Mikey! 🧡

listen. we’re talking about Doctor Feelings over here. of all the turtles he’s the one who notices something’s up first and he’s the one to ask first.

he gives it a few days first, just to see if you’ll share on your own, but during those few days Mikey realizes you’re spending more time with Splinter and it surprises him.

you haven’t really ever come to visit Splinter before, but between the change in your mood and the time you spend with his dad makes Mikey suspect that something’s really hurt you.

after those few days though, Mikey finally invites you over while his brothers are out and makes you your favorite drink before sitting you down and asking you what’s going on.

you try and tell him you’re okay but he’s not buying it. Mikey tells you he can tell you’re hurting, and sees how you’re going to Splinter for comfort.

he says that if you’d rather just go through it with his dad that’s fine, but he at least wants to know what you’re going through because he hates seeing you like this without knowing why.

you give up and explain that your grandfather passed away, and Mikey comes to the assumption that you’re going to Splinter out of a sense of familiarity, which he gets.

still, he wraps you up in a hug and tells you that you aren’t alone in this and that he and his brothers are there for you too, whatever you need.

a few days after that conversation, Mikey gifts you with a little blank journal. he says it’s for you to write down or draw out your feelings in, and once you start using it you find it incredibly helpful.

Mikey sits you down about once a week after that, just to check in with you and make sure you’re doing alright, but for the most part he gives you space and lets you decide who you want to go to for what.

and when you feel up to telling the others, Mikey’s right there to support you.

[shingekinomyfeelings]

what you really are // 2nd installment

Reiner finds that his first sexual encounter with a girl he truly cares for brings up a lot of memories and conflicted emotions. Loving a Devil is wrong, right?

warnings: none yet; explicit sex in later installments. characters are cadets here, but aged up to 19. honestly minors dni I'm so tired of y'all reading my porn just go finger paint or something

notes: listen, I've recently learned that Reiner being a tsundere man-baby is very, very funny to me

“They’re not our friends. They’re Eldian devils. I’m just gaining their trust for our advantage.”

Reiner had almost believed himself when he’d said those words to Annie, time and again. It’s easier to pretend he really means it when he’s talking about Eren, or Connie, or Sasha. He can pretend his jovial big brother routine is a mask. He can pretend he doesn’t really care about how much they look up to him, and that the sense of camaraderie is just a facade, most of the time...

But then she’d wiggled into his line of perception, somehow, little by little. Catching one another’s eyes now and then had turned into exchanging smiles, and smiles turned into shared observations, and quiet jokes, and tiny, happy waves upon seeing each other from across the mess hall. And then a feeling had appeared that really troubled him.

At first he had told himself that it wasn’t really happening: pretending that his growing curiosity about her was his merely gathering intelligence; that she was a useful pawn, or a game he was playing; that it didn’t really matter to him when he saw her physically and emotionally exhausted; that the strange, flipping feeling in his stomach the first time she’d hugged him was disgust.

When he realized he couldn’t convince himself, he tried to convince Annie and Bertholdt.

“It’s so troublesome the way she follows me around.”

“She really has a thing for me. Looks like I’ll have to play along, huh?”

“It’s kind of funny that she thinks this is real, isn’t it? It’s a little pitiful when she leans against me, I almost feel sorry for her.”

Gradually, as months passed, his attempts grew in some sort of petty desperation.

“I’ve spent so much time with her, I’ll be pissed off if nothing useful comes out of it.”

“Did you hear her joking around today? I had a hard time pretending to laugh.”

“She’s not as cute as Thomas always thinks she is.”

“She hugged me again and it almost made my skin crawl. Eldian devils really are totally different from other humans.”

“Sounds like you’ll really be relieved when she’s eaten alive on her first expedition outside the walls,” Annie had finally said one night, her voice caustic and bored. “Maybe you’ll even get to see it. But, if she survives and you’re disappointed, I can crush her in one hand for you. Touching her won’t make my skin crawl.”

Her impassive gaze when Reiner turned to her with a defensive fury only made him even angrier, and he’d stomped off into the night, aiming a splintering kick at the fence post Annie had been leaning against.

Still, he hasn’t complained to them about the girl since then.

When outright denial had failed him, Reiner had tried to simply will the girl out of his life, which had been an unmitigated disaster, because after nearly two weeks of him avoiding her gaze, excusing himself when he saw her approach, and even once or twice making a point to talk over her as if by mistake when she spoke, she went and turned it right back on him.

During training one afternoon, Annie had thrown her, far harder than she needed to. Whether it was deliberately to provoke him or out of simple meanness, Reiner wasn’t sure. She’d rolled to her feet and shaken herself off, looking at Annie with wonder.

“Can you teach me how to do that?”

Maybe neither one of them saw the way Reiner had started towards her to check on her, stopping himself short after three paces, nor the way Reiner’s face fell when he greeted her with concern after training, only to have her breeze by him as she talked to Annie as if he weren’t there.

It seemed less likely that she didn’t see him when he laughed a little too loudly at a joke she made in passing during dinner the following night at the mess hall, and he knew she saw him when he tried very hard to act casual two days later as he stepped out of a corridor at just the right moment for her to nearly collide with him, but even then she had just blinked as if he were merely a door flung open in her path, and sidestepped to walk towards Connie and Sasha with a cheerful wave.

After four days of this, he had waited to catch her leaving one of Hanji’s lectures and followed her down the hallway, while she acted like there wasn’t a huge guy trailing behind her like a dog with its tail tucked.

“Ah- listen, I just-- if I’ve done something to offend you, I--” The words had died on his lips as she turned to him in an instant, face flushed with anger, and then she’d layed into him like he was a training dummy, except that instead of with blades, she proceeded to eviscerate him verbally right there in the hallway. If he’d looked like a dog with its tail tucked beforehand, he was sure he’d looked like something a dog had chewed to pieces by the time she’d finished.

Well, maybe it wasn’t a completely unmitigated disaster, he figured later, because in that moment, acceptance of the situation had finally hit him like a brick, and he’d apologized, and stammered, and said a few things that barely made sense, and finally confessed his feelings with an utter lack of grace in the middle of the hall.

She’d looked at him with an uncomfortable stare, and then told him to get bent and walked away.

A day or two later, though, as he’d wallowed in the kind of dejected, confused misery that can only be brought on by acting like a jackass in front of one’s love interest, she’d met his gaze and greeted him tersely in passing. And then, much like before, small things like that turned into bigger things, and one day she’d kocked him to the ground during training with a technique he’d seen Annie use a thousand times, and while he was breathless in the dirt, she’d confessed her feelings, too – albiet with a degree of raw annoyance in her voice instead of an apology.

“I really wanted to tell you, right around the time you started being a dick, you know.”

“I uh... yeah, I know. I’m so sorry...” His meek voice and utterly abashed expression had made her laugh after a moment, and she’d offered her hand to help him to his feet.

“I’m not still mad about that,” she tells him with a lopsided grin, amused when he apologizes for it yet again. “That was months ago. It’s kind of funny now.”

“Uhh, glad you think so? It wasn’t one of my better moments.”

“I know, you were being so fucking stupid. But, it made me realize you weren’t as perfect as everyone thinks you are.” She laughs when he fixes her with a deep pout. “I mean that in a good way, quit making that face. You always seemed so out of reach, like someone who could only really be matched up with somebody... ideal. Like the couples you see in picture books.”

He watches her say this with what he thinks is a cool, interested expression, but his eyes are clearly asking what the hell that means. She gives a little huff of what might be amusement or mild exasperation.

“I just didn’t think you’d really be interested in someone who’s...” She trails off, suddenly unsure how she wants to finish that sentence. Reiner doesn’t wait for her to decide, though, ruffling her hair over her face with his hand, pulling her close and pressing his lips to her temple. He doesn’t say anything, just sighs very, very softly against her, and she lets him stay that way for a moment before pushing her hair out of her face and lifting a hand to gently brush the backs of her fingers along his cheekbone.

“I was kind of relieved to see you really are just a regular, flawed person like the rest of us are.”

It makes his heart flutter a bit, but for a reason he can’t quite pinpoint, it makes him sad, too...

[hyperfixationiris]

(In advance I apologize for any grammatical or syntax error that I may have, English is not my first language).

The Separated AU by @cupcakeslushie has been my complete adoration and obsession in recent days, so (with the author's permission) I created this playlist for Separated!Donnie!

I have chosen the songs mostly for their lyrics, so the musical genres may be all over the place, hehe.

The title comes from the mini comic "Thirds", also part of the Separated AU and creation of Cupcakeslushie, because damn, that interaction between Donnie and Splinter hit me hard.

That there are thirty-three songs (Three Three) in the playlist is... totally a coincidence! But it is one of which I feel very proud!

You can listen it on YouTube here or on Spotify here (I recommend the YouTube version more, since on Spotify I couldn't find all the songs or not in the versions I wanted).

Below is a brief explanation of why I chose some of the songs, (you can ignore this if you like) But enjoy the music and go see the Separated AU, I recommend it with all my heart!

(This part is very based on my interpretation of Sep!Donnie, so I may be wrong about some things.)

— "Saint Bernard" and "Cradles" are the first songs for being the ones I most associated with Donnie. The first for talking about being a failure and that there is something intrinsically "wrong" with you. The second I associated with his way of seeing the world and the fact that he does not perceive what has been done to him as abuse.

— The instrumental melodies I chose I feel they are a good reflection of his mental state, especially in one of his episodes.

— "Papercut" was a song I heard and it was immediately like: "Oh, yes, this is Donnie talking about Three and the hallucinations he has of his brothers".

— "Immer Sie" is one of the few songs I chose with a specific moment in mind, in this case: Donnie attacking his family because he felt they were leaving him behind and abandoning him. The song speaks of a desperate and almost aggressive love, in addition to having in its lyrics a fairly broken syntax. That is why I think it can reflect Donnie's altered mental and emotional state in that specific moment.

— There is a song that clashes a lot with the others and is "Lovefool (Remix)". However I think it represents the affectionate behaviors, although sometimes too intense, of Donnie, as well as his need to be loved.

— I think "Pale Machine" is a song that would play once Donnie was rescued by his family and once he was living with them. Although he is very happy and basically the situation is a dream come true, that does not mean that all his problems are fixed.

— Two other songs for specific moments are "What I've Done" and "Cop Graveyard". I am referring to the moment Mikey finds out about the collars his brother made for Big Mama, and when Donnie realizes that he basically helped Shredder poison Leo's mind.

— "Rolling Girl" is the first of the comfort songs, being a reflection of the way Donnie sees himself and how his family is doing everything possible to help him out of that vicious circle.

— I see "Demons" as a song dedicated to the relationship between Donnie and Vee (which I love). In turn, "Devil Town" would be Donnie's relationship with Leo, Raph and Mikey.

— "New Soul" is basically Donnie on the road to recovery, with its ups and downs.

— Finally, "Somewhere I Belong" is not exactly a happy or entirely positive song, but whose central theme is something that Donnie has been working on and has wished all his life: a place to belong to.

And with this ends my TED Talk, thanks for coming.

[alexcabotgf]

cabenson fic recs please? (like the ones you can read over and over again)

i've rec'ed most of my personal favorites here and here, so you should definitely check those out first, but here are some more:

Descent by milk3002 - established relationship!cabenson are working a case together and it goes south (make sure to check the tw in the description before reading)

Business Dinner by milk3002 - explicit; 4x06 dinner canon divergence

Splinters by VivalaB - post-congo, alex is back to prosecuting for svu but before she gets the chance to really talk to olivia, they both get abducted

Alex Cabot Was Drunk by aolurker - alex gets drunk with the sole purpose of confessing her feelings to olivia (this one's unfinished but it's worth a read)

A New Life by AOBZ - post-ghost, alex is going back into witsec and olivia decides to come with her (this one introduces an OC halfway through which is not something i normally enjoy, however i haven't been able to find a lot of fics which describe their life together in wpp, so if that's something you're looking for this one might be for you)

Mine by AOBZ - alex gets attacked by a perp and ends up in a hospital

The Cabot Cabin and Trial & Retribution by VivalaB - sequels to Déjà vu, i hadn't read them at the time of putting together the first recs post but i have now and i enjoyed all three stories

Questions and Answers series by RaeDMagdon - starts with the extension of the hotel scene in ghost + their s10 reunion

Chain Reaction by VivalaB - alex blows off a potential date to go to dinner with olivia and it kind of backfires

Home Is Where The Heart Is by TriXter21 - olivia is dying and her ghost comes to see alex one last time (i know, sounds crazy but give it a go)

Not So Soft by tremblingmoon - a short one-shot of alex coming back from witsec

Blue Dress by trancer - olivia has a gift for alex

Contradiction by tigerDE - explicit; alex is thinking about olivia (written from alex's pov)

Flight Pattern by The Party After You Left - set around s13, alex is finally coming to terms with her feelings towards olivia who's currently dating someone else (this is one of my most recent favorite long-shots <3)

Holiday Short - Columbus Day by sunsetwriter - alex and olivia are celebrating columbus day (this author has an entire series of them celebrating every holiday under the sun, so you might want to check those out as well)

The Summary of Errors by omiceti - post-loss, alex is taken to the hospital

One Hundred Things That Might Have Happened by omiceti - a collection of 100 ao drabbles (this one might be one of my all time favorite ao fics)

No Wedding and One Funeral by omiceti - conviction crossover; alex and olivia attend mike's funeral (i have no idea who mike is but it's good)

Three Ways to Die Trying by omiceti - and die they do. very angsty

you might need to use vpn to access omiceti's fics but trust me it's worth it. hope you enjoy!

[eternalglitch]

Okay so I've been keeping up to date with your fic LFLS and obviously it is amazing, I usually stick with completed fanfics simply because I'm always afraid they would be abandoned, which of course I don't blame people for it: life happens and a fanfic isn't always the priority and such! Any how, your fanfic literally was everywhere (TikTok, Tumblr, Instagram) for me so I decided to check it out and it has to be the most engaging, angst fanfic I've ever read!

Anyway before I keep rambling on about how great your writing and story telling skills are, I did want to mention that in the recent chapter where Green is ripping up Lou Jitsu's Posters (oof!) and Splinter walks in, obviously upset that his son is kind of tearing his father apart. It did make me wonder about Green finding out that the person Draxam wanted him to be, the person Green couldn't live up to, is the same person who is currently trying to raise Leo from the dead, who is trying to get Green to heal as best as he can. Also, the fact that Big Mama is coming back made me think about if Green did find out about the fact that Splinter = Lou Jitsu, would that confusing him more, making him feel more untrustworthy towards his family? Or would it help Splinter creep in through the cracks of Green, since Splinter had gone through so much during the Battle Nexus, and when he came out of it he also had lost everything (his family, his humanity, even his alter ego) to the point where he was no longer Hamato Yoshi nor was he Lou Jitsu, he became known as Splinter, similar to how Green now refers to himself as so. I'm pretty sure if you answer, I probably won't get to know, you know because spoilers and such, but now that I've written this I did realise that Splinter and Green have a lot more in common now simply because Splinter can no longer *be* Hamato Yoshi nor Lou Jitsu, because of everything he's been through, and even becoming a dad, he is now Splinter, who was once those people, and now a different person (not the greatest person, or dad, but he tries). Was it a coincidence that Green is so similar to Splinter? Or perhaps planned? Or am I looking a little too deep within the lines because that is another thing I tend to do instead of taking things at face value, aha!

Sorry for the short story 😅 it wasn't supposed to be this long but I tend to ramble and I'm not one for slimming text down to the point, oops!

I think the title of the fanfic could help answer this one for me…

[freneticfloetry]

Okay, Nice Ask Week Ask -

Okay, because I know you've watched a bunch of the same old school fandom shows I've watched - what was your fandom journey? Where did you start? What did you first read? Where'd you go next? (following authors or shows?) Livejournal - yes or no?

The noise of distress that I just made cannot be accurately described.

Okay so, I started both reading and writing fic in OG Roswell fandom. As I’m sure you know, fandom activity back then tended to be splintered into silos by pairing, and I lived in Polar land (Michael/Liz. All the Roswell ships had names. It was A Time.). The compulsion was more about Michael than anything — broken boy soldiers are always my weakness. I was intrigued by the scrapped storyline that was supposed to be a love triangle, especially since they had chemistry, but I didn’t love Liz as written, she just made the most sense with him, to me. Canon-wise, I was mainly there for Michael, Kyle, and Isabel (something that was ultimately painfully apparent in my fics).

(I did finally watch the reboot recently, and while I liked Liz a hell of a lot more, Kyle and Isabel were still my faves. Go figure!)

I was a one fandom reader and writer for a long time, though I did dabble in crossovers. Then I wrote a tiny little ficlet for Lost, and it opened the floodgates — I started writing Firefly, then Smallville (specifically Chlollie, another silo, which was definitely a LiveJournal thing), then Supernatural. And once I signed up for my first year of Yuletide, all bets were off — I got into the habit of writing my one perfect fic in a fandom and then fleeing to flit off to another, never to return.

I just realized that I’ve only ever followed a few of authors to new fandoms — @earlgreytea68’s Sherlock fic, for instance, was what made me start reading Arthur/Eames. What happens most often is that I randomly get a bunny for a canon I enjoy (or one that’s wildly pissed me off) that won’t leave me alone until I start writing.

The Magicians is the canon that made me settle down again, and nurture more than one idea for the same fandom. And even though I’ve had to step away from it for awhile (because just thinking about it still makes me anxious and angry), I think it was exactly what I needed to prime my brain for the Tarlos takeover — I think I would’ve been overwhelmed otherwise, and probably never written anything for them at all.

Sorry so long. I’m ridiculous.

[mistressoftherant-blog]

TMNT and Responsibility

I've posted a couple of TMNT thoughts on here recently that have been surprisingly well received, but I think this might be my most divisive so far 😅 I want to take a look at responsibility in relation to Leo and Donnie. This crosses most iterations, though I have made notes where there are exceptions.

A lot of people (both within the shows and within the fandom) tend to put quite a bit of emphasis on the weight that Leonardo is under as leader of the team (this is a little trickier in Rise due to Raph initially being the leader as well as being the oldest, but even in the Rise fandom there is a lot of focus on the pressure that is unexpectedly put onto Leo).

Now, I want to make a distinction here between the responsibilities of being the eldest brother, and the responsibilities of being the team leader, because they are not the same thing. Every Leo (barring Rise) is the oldest son for their entire lives (obviously😅). As the oldest, they are held to certain standards and expects to watch over their younger brothers. However, their brothers aren't that much younger than them even in Rise (and even though the fandom loves to baby all of the Mikeys, though that's a rant for another day), and so the responsibility is more along the lines of setting an example and helping Splinter out a bit more.

He is also usually more dedicated in his training than the others, though he enjoys training so this is also seen as a hobby until things get serious.

They only really become team leader when they are in their teens (I'm pretty sure every show has a moment where we see the teenage Leo accepting or asking for the responsibility of being in charge, though I'm not too sure about 03). This is an immense burden, putting the lives of their friends and family directly into their hands and forcing them to make tough choices. However, as mentioned, this burden is placed on them when they are teenagers. I am not dimishing that it is awful to expect a teenager to make plans that may include sacrificing themselves, their family, and/or their friends for the greater good, but up until their mid teens, when they start going to the surface and fighting enemies, their responsibilities are primarily more geared towards being older siblings (providing comfort, discipline, etc)

Now, this is the part where I am expecting some people to get angry with me. Unlike with the Leos who get the majority of their burdens acknowledged by the shows and the fandoms, Donatellos', for the most part, seem to be ignored, and even when the pressure they are under is acknowledged, it tends to be brushed off later on or is given a one episode focus that doesn't end up alleviating any of his duties (in 12, Leo never apologised for what he said in Fourfold Trap and I am still furious)

As the second youngest, Donatellos are still seen as needing to protect the youngest sibling, and also receives far less protection/leeway than Mikey does (that isn't to say that his brothers never protect him or show him any younger brother privileges, but Mikey tends to get away with far more than Donnie ever would, as I mentioned in a previous post, Mikey generally gets far fewer consequences for his actions within the narrative of multiple iterations).

Don also has the most responsibilities out of the entire team (this is again a little bit harder to say for certain in Rise as no team medic is confirmed, though I personally believe that Rise Donnie is the medic seeing as he is the one who brings up Raph's allergy, and having Leo be the medic when he was also going to be made into the leader doesn’t make sense to me).

He keeps everything up and running, the electricity, probably their clean water, their vehicles, their phones, their recreational tech, their security, etc. He's usually an emotional sounding board for the team (especially Mikey). As stated before, he also tends to be the team medic, and usually serves as a second in command to Leo, helping him brainstorm/finalise plans, and also often taking over as leader in Leo's stead when Leo is unable to lead, or when the mission relates to one of his specialities. Poor 07 even has a job on top of his usual responsibilities whilst trying to be leader.

And the Donnies have probably been handling most of this since they were pretty young (though, like Leo, their responsibilities do ramp up when they are teens) When their responsibilities increase, their brothers' lives are constantly placed into their hands. If their vehicles don't work, they can't make an escape. If their security fails, they might not be prepared for an attack. If they can't figure out a solution to a number of issues on the fly in the middle of some seriously stressful situation, the mission fails and the people that they care about could suffer for it. If they can't figure out how to patch them up, they die.

It just annoys me a little when people go on and on about how Leo has been martyred his entire life, sacrificing his entire childhood when, for the most part, his childhood was the same as his brothers up until they were teens, and Donnie probably had more responsibility as an actual child.

Although they would have had some responsibilities as the oldest, it was probably nowhere near as much stress as the fandom likes to portray. Rise Raph is a bit of an exception to this as their Splinter seemed to be a lot more neglectful due to his depression, and so Raph probably had more responsibility in raising his siblings.

So, as a sort of conclusion to this long rambling post, I just wanted to acknowledge that, although most of the time Leo is viewed as the brother under the most pressure, I fully believe that Donnie is a strong contendor for the title of brother with the most responsibility. An awful lot of their day to day life and their missions depend on Donnie being able to fix things or whip up a miracle. Also, like Leo, Donnie is often put on the spot, forced to make split second decisions that could tip the balance either for or against them.

[kitkat-artcorner]

Arstotzka's Saint ♡

Christmas is a very cheerful holiday in the world, even the dystopian wasteland like Arstotzka needs to get festive when they can afford it.

While some citizens may love it for the cheap deals or free stuff. A small, bright ray of sunshine loves giving gifts more than anything during this winter season!

It was after work hours and Alexie had gotten his recent paperwork done faster than usual. He was just about to head back home when he was approached by his two co-worker's, Dimitri and Vonel.

"Hey, Alexie!" Dimitri called. "Do you want to join me and Vonel for dinner? I found this new place near Altan."

Alexie politely declined while he got on his boots. "Sorry, I can't. I got lots of work to do this week!" He smiled as he thought about his projects back home. Vonel then inquired; "What do you mean? You've been on track with work and, last I heard, you called off some of the border shifts this week."

Alexie answered with a smile. "Not that work, Von. I mean prepping things for the holidays! It's almost Christmas and I need to pick up the pace!"

"Ah, I see. Well, we wish you luck on whatever you're working on." Vonel replied. Alexie waved them goodbye as he ran back home. when he got back, Alexie dressed into his casual clothes but with a change of a leather apron and woodworking gloves. "Alright. I just got Inspector's family gifts, then I can get to wrapping!" He looked over at his paint-encrusted desk, which at the moment was occupied by his tool box and a pile of various wooden objects. His current work was a little wooden car, a gift for the inspector's son (who Alexie thought of as his own nephew.)

Alexie sat at the desk and began sanding down the car's wheels. he was careful to make them extra smooth so the kid wouldn't get splinters. When he was done with that it was onto painting. "Now, what color did he like again?" Alexie muttered to himself as he opened his drawer and brought out a notepad. He flipped the pages to a small list that contained bits of information about his friend's recent interests. he then spot the things he wrote down for Inspector's son, he liked toy cars, drawing, and the color blue.

"Ah, Perfect!" He beamed, putting his notepad back down and got a small paint bucket from his closet. Alexie was great at a lot of art forms but what he excelled in the most was painting. He's been working with such things since he was in high school and has always been sharpening his skills whenever he could. As he began to paint the toy, he couldn't help but grin, thinking about how happy the kid was going to be once he got this gift.

It was now Christmas Day, early in the morning and Alexie was especially excited. he had gotten all the gifts for his friends done the day before, each decorated beautifully and different so he wouldn't mix up any of them! Alexie got all of them into a red bag as he dressed up, ready to go spread some Christmas cheer!

First up were his two youthful friends, Elisa and Sergiu! Alexie knocked on their front door and awaited for an answer. when Elisa greeted him, she was surprised when he handed her two gifts for her and her lover. Elisa had gotten a cast-iron pan along with a set of handmade spatulas and ladles, Alexie choose this since she was getting into cooking lately. Sergiu was gifted a scarf and some gloves, both handmade by Alexie himself. it also came with a note that said; "Since I've always seen you cold during work, I wanted to help you bundle up with these!" Next up was Dimitri and Vonel. Since he knew they were probably out together, he dropped off his gifts in their mail and moved along. their gifts were some fancy wine glasses and a bottle of fine aged wine (which he got from Impor a few months back) to go with.

Now was time for the big delivery, Inspector's house! Alexie walked up to the front door and knocked a little loudly, as he could tell the house was noisy today. after a bit of waiting, Inspector answered joyfully. "Oh, Alexie! Didn't think you'd be here buddy!" The two embraced each other with a quick hug and pat on the back. Alexie then replied "Yeah, I'm just here to drop off a few things and I'll be heading on my way!"

Inspector welcomed his friend in, Alexie was greeted by many hugs and his excited little nephew. when everything settled, Alexie had finally shown what he was here for; the gifts he made. "Oh, Alexie, You didn't have to go through all this trouble!" Inspector's wife said sheepishly, Alexie reassured her while handing the gifts out to everyone. "It's not a big deal, besides I love to spread a little joy every now and then!"

The Inspector's son, Arseni, was opening his gift. he jumped with joy when he held the little blue car in his hands, he ran to his uncle and hugged his leg. "Thanks, Uncle Alexie! I love it!!" Alexie was glad that he enjoyed his gift, he gave the kid a pat on the head before Arseni left to the living room to play with his new toy. Inspector then asked; "Do you want to join me and my family for dinner? we made a lot of food thanks to the new holiday bonus." Alexie, after a bit of consideration, decided to stay for a little while.

When the clock hit 7, Alexie was off again. He ran to his next destination as he had lost track at time with the Inspector. He needed to make one last stop at Calensk's place. He slipped and tripped many times but he finally got there with the gift still in perfect condition. he knocked lazily, a bit out of breath from all the traveling he did around the streets today. Calensk wasn't the one to answer the door, instead it was a man who looked similar to his friend. Alexie looked up as the man asked, filled with confusion; "Uhh.. Do you need anything?"

Right. Alexie forgot that Calensk was living with his brother. He answered as he straightened his back. "Oh, I'm here for Calensk, I believe he lives here?" The man responded. "Oh, Hang on, I'll go call him for you."

He ran back inside and yelled. "HEY CAL! YOU GOT A GUEST!!" Alexie could hear the annoyed shout back; "STOP FUCKIN' YELLING, DOMINIK, I CAN HEAR YOU JUST FINE!" Alexie was a bit startled when Dominik suddenly poked his head back out the door. "He should be heading down now."

Soon enough, Calensk had answered the door. "Oh, Alexie. Sorry about that, my brother seems to not care for indoor voices." Alexie waved away his apology. "Don't worry about it! besides," Alexie paused as he took the gift out of his bag. "-I got you a little something!" Calensk, like everyone else Alexie had gotten a gift for, was pleasantly surprised. He opened his gift to see that it was a toolbox, colored a dull teal, inside was screwdrivers, wrenches, hammers and many other hardware. Alexie then spoke up, turning his gaze as he got a bit bashful. "I-I know that you've been working on that car project of yours for a while now, so I wanted to give you something to help you out, even just a little.."

Calensk was admiring them, he knew only Alexie would come up with something so thoughtful. He looked up at his boss while shutting the toolbox, giving a small smile. "Thank you Alexie. This means a lot to me." Alexie nodded and was about to leave until Calensk took his hand. "Wait- You're not too busy this evening, are you?" The kind man thought for a moment before answering; "No, I was just gonna head home for the day. Was there anything you needed?"

Calensk shook his head. "No, I just was wondering if you'd like to stay for the night." Alexie took a moment to process his request, then his face got red. "Oh! Well, I uh, could spend the night here, I-If that's what you want." Cal smiled again, he always loved how flustered he gets. "Then come on in, I'll get us some drinks." The two walked inside as snowflakes began to fall outside. today was truly Alexie's best Christmas yet. ♡

Writers Note ♡◇♡

This was meant to be written and uploaded on Christmas but things didn't work out, tried New Years and I was still late. But hey, better late than never right?

I wanted to try something new with this one, went easier on myself with timing, tried to make it more clear who was talking and overall just tried to make it shorter since I seemed to be hard on myself with how long a fic could be, I'll test this out more often so hopefully I can get more done with my project (no promises)

Thank u all 4 supporting me through 2023 btw!! Hope y'all stick around for this year as well!! I'll cya later!

[springflwer07]

So i don't have a particular idea for part 2, but maybe Legolas does his best to pay attention to her, but he is very occupied with his royal duties, and reader tries to help him. He is very stressed during the day, but after a few months, he finally finds a calm time, and proposes to her? Just something cute and fluff (angst is fine too)

Idk, feel free to write what you had in mind.♡

Legolas x Fem!Reader Part 2

 part 1/part2

Type: Fluff, maybe a little angst(just a little), comfort

Warnings: stressed Legolas

Enjoy =D

__________________________________________________________________________

“I like reading and archery” the elf prince smiles down at me.

That was 2 weeks ago. 

Since then Legolas has been busy with his duties and we haven’t had a lot of time alone. Whenever we think we can talk alone and just relax, a guard will come in to take Legolas away.

I knocked on the doorframe of his study “Legolas, I was wondering if you had any freetime? We have not been able to properly talk to each other in a while”.

He sighs and puts down what he was working on “I know, I’m sorry but I have all this” he gestures to all the parchment on his paper “to deal with”.

“I understand, I will be in my chambers if you find yourself to be free” I smile sadly at the elf and turn to walk back to my room.

***

“Your father requests your presence at the throne”

…

“Your father wishes to speak to you”

…

“Your presence is requested in the forest, there are some spiders needed to be slain”

…

“Orcs have been spotted at the edge of the forest, your father requests that you make sure they do not go past”

…

“There’s some paperwork your father has requested you look at”

…

Needed

…

Requested

…

Wishes to

…

Your presence

…

At least one of those is used when Legolas is needed for something. There was one time he was giving me a courting braid and was requested for something halfway through. It’s safe to say that we have yet to properly braid each other’s hair..

A week later.

I walk into Legolas’s study without him noticing and go to stand behind him. I lightly hug him from behind and rest my chin on his shoulder so I can watch what he is doing.

“Hello” he says quietly, placing one of his hands over my own clasped hands.

“Hi,” I responded just as quietly “What are you doing?”

“Looking over some stuff my father requested I check”

A comfortable silence falls over us for a few minutes until I realize Legolas is gripping the quill, of which he was writing with, tight enough for his knuckles to go white and for the poor quill to begin splintering. I sigh and place a hand over his.

“You should take a break”

“I cannot”

“Why not?”

“Problems will occur if I do not. It will end badly”

I sigh again and softly kiss the top of his head before I walk away back to my chambers.

A Month Later.

I sit in bed with my back up against the headboard and a book in my lap. It’s a romance book. A tale of adventure and love. Recently that’s all I've been reading, romance books that end in a happy ending unlike my romance story. It’s sort of sad now that I think about it, reading love stories to make up for your own relationship?

I sigh and close the book, placing it on the bedside table. As the book touches the table a soft knock comes from my door. I get up, fix my nightgown, and open the door. To my surprise an elf prince is standing there with a single [F/C] rose in his hand.

“Oh hello” I say, stepping aside and smiling at the prince.

“Hello” He replies, stepping inside and handing me the rose.

“To what do I owe the pleasure?” I joke.

“We haven’t seen much of each other in… I am not sure how long, so I am here to make up for that lost time” 

I smile more as I walk over to a vase and place the rose in it. “I appreciate that”

“I suppose we will not be standing here talking the entire time, what do you have in mind?”

“Here,” He holds out his hand “I’ll show you”

I take hold of his hand and follow him as he leads me through the maze of halls until we reach a doorway that leads outside.

The courtyard we are in is beautiful, flowers and trees scattered here and there. There’s a stone bench at one side of the courtyard and a path at the other side. Legolas starts walking towards the path, pulling me along with him. On the sides of the path there are some flower bushes. I tug Legolas’s hand causing him to stop walking and look at me with confusion written on his face. I bend down slightly and pluck a single Gardenia from one of the bushes. I stand up and giggle softly as I place the flower in the prince’s hair. 

I watch as the tips of his ears flush a light pink, a smile slowly etching its way onto his face.

Instead of continuing down the path, Legolas leads me back the way we came and over to the bench. He sits down and pats the spot next to him, inviting me to sit down next to him. I gladly sit down next to him and lean my head on his shoulder. He sighs a happy sigh. We finally have time alone together. 

He lightly pushes my head off of his shoulder after a few minutes and stands up. Confused, I look at the elf and see that he’s nervously smiling back at me. Before I can say anything he takes a few steps making it so that he’s standing in front of me.

“I understand that maybe this is a tad soon and a bit untraditional, but I fear we may not have another moment alone for quite some time… Here goes…” 

He sighs and slowly drops to one knee and grabs both my hands. “I am aware we were arranged to marry each other in the first place so we did not have much of a choice. However, that does not mean I cannot still propose to you myself, so [Name]..” He lets go of one of my hands and reaches behind himself. He pulls out a dark green box, “Will you… will you marry me?” He asks with a nervous smile as he opens the box to reveal a simple but beautiful elvish ring.

I smile as small tears fill my eyes “I would love to” I say before Legolas stands up while gently pulling me up to stand as well. He puts the ring on my finger and places the box on the stone bench. Before I can say anything about how lovely the ring is I am being pulled in by a strong hand on my waist. He leans in close enough for me to feel his breath against my face and to smell a strong scent of faint mint, flowers, and the woods.

“Can I..?” He whispers while looking into my eyes. I nod ever so slightly and before I realize it his lips are on mine, soft and gentle. It’s a soft and sweet kiss that lasts only a few seconds.

As we part he smiles a sweet smile and rests his forehead against mine.

“I suppose we have a wedding to plan”

__________________________________________________________________________

I tried my best TvT I really hope it’s liked - I honestly might do a few more parts to this(?) idk, lemme know if I should. Anyways, I hope everyone enjoyed this =D

Tags: @randomstory56 @crowsforquills @siriuslydestiny

[sweet-s0rr0w]

Part Two is now here

Been busy for a while with real life and writing, but I'm so excited to be back on the reccing train again (and thanks @rockingrobin69 for including me on your wonderful reclist and @sitp-recs for being lovely, you both inspired me to get back to it <3)

So, look, it's been nearly a year I've been doing these five faves, and anyone who knows me knows how much I adore everything @bixgirl1 has written. I mean, when I first discovered their work, I refused to let myself read more than one longfic a week because I never wanted to run out! I can't count the number of times I've read TOBM, to be honest, and I'm sure I can quote great passages from that, and Claiming of Grimmauld, and various others. And that's why I've never recced their fics before - honestly, HOW can I be expected to narrow their incredible back-catalogue down to just FIVE?

So I'm cheating. This is actually ten fave fics, but split into two. I make the rules, so.

Bix's fics are just a gorgeous, perfect combination of plot, smut and delicious, delicious feels. They'll have you on the edge of your seat, screaming at the screen, and finally swooning over the wonderful payoff. They often have a fabulous cast of side-characters (including the Slytherins, which they always write so well) and their sex scenes will have you (and the boys) absolutely sweating. I tried to include a mix of fic types and lengths in both lists, and if there are any of these you haven't read (or haven't read recently) - seriously, run, don't walk.

Read bixgirl1's work here on AO3!

⭐That Old Black Magic (E, 78k, forced marriage, amazing 'meet the parents', wandmaking, mermaid scales, falling in love, five divorces, that tapestry)

Summary: Centuries ago, marriage contracts were the norm — ready-made alliances between families, expected and complied with, without complaint. But norms have a way of changing, and when a long-dormant contract flares to life, Harry has to navigate an unexpected splintering of the path he'd thought would be easy after the war... with Draco Malfoy.

⭐Hourglass Heart (E, 5.3k, roommates, drinking, pining, Draco's coloured hair, miscommunication, getting together)

Summary: It only happened once — depending on how Harry counted.

⭐Starting Positions (M, 8.2k, detention, snogging - etc - in the Forest, bicycles, thinking about the future)

Summary: Later, Harry would wonder if Malfoy regretted that first, surprised mutter after three days of hard-pointed silence. Later, Harry would wonder about his own lack of regret over looking up when he heard Malfoy’s voice. But that would come after everything had already happened, the way events always seemed to, when even a Time-Turner couldn’t change things. The shape of a path, as Harry knew very well by then, once walked, was a lot like a paper crane — unfolded and pressed flat, you could try to fashion it into something different, but the original creases would always remain.

⭐Life Lessons (E, 68k, etiquette lessons, Harry the disaster, Greg the fashion designer, magical massage, galas, dancing lessons with Pansy)

Summary: On the cusp of a promotion, Harry needs a little help with his image. Enter Draco Malfoy — who doesn't really do that, Potter — to whip him into shape… and make him feel things he hasn't for a very long time.

Featuring: odd jobs, surprising chemistry, lots of accidental kissing, the Prophet living up to type, owls exhausted by the carrying of dirty letters, a secret no one can talk about, a merry band of Slytherins (none of whom really approve), and an enchanted mirror (who really, really does).

⭐Shining, Like A Present (E, 14k, Auror partners, gifts, teasing, dirty talk)

Summary: The discovery of a small silver box at the site of a case opens up new possibilities.

***

Previous Five Favourite Fics posts - thestarryknight | vukovich | fwooshy | lq_traintracks (and 10 more) | tackytiger (and microfics) | m0stlyvoid | peachpety | magpie_fngrl | shiftylinguini | onbeinganangel | veelawings | shealwaysreads | loveglowsinthedark | birdsofshore | maesterchill | frayach | graymatters

[nerves-nebula]

Loving your au!

The thing you said about allowing yourself to stim resonated with me a lot. Like, I've been pretty loud and emotional as a kid, but was forced to bottle up my emotions. Which lead me to self-harm, yei! (btw, Im pretty sure I'm neurotypical, but moving my body in repetitive movion tends to calm my nerves. So I guess it counts as stimming? Unless there is another more appropriate term for it. It's a good thing I got out of rottmnt fandom, lol.)

So, I've wanted to ask about your Donnie's experience with autoaggression. You've mentioned that self-harm is one of his coping mechanisms. So I am curious. What triggers the action? It has to be an intense emotion, right? What does he tend to do? Is it like cutting, biting or burns? A mix of everything? If I'm not mistaken, he does tend to wear more clothes, possibly to cover the scars and such. Also, what would be family member's reaction to his self-harm scars? Would they lash out, ignore or try to lecture him? (The last thing happened to me and it was weird. Like, my mom brought my little brother to my room and told him to ask me to stop. I'm afraid I might have unintentiinally traumatized him there, whoops.)

Also, sorry for long rant, but I adore your Leo having gender issues. Like. I feel it. I tried to copy one of youtubers who sometimes used she/he pronounce and had fun with it until other people started questioning it so I stopped. But my fuckery with gender came to bite me in the ass afterwards. I've only recently realized I fall under demigirl term, so that was a relief. I wonder how Leo's gender adventure will play out. :)

Sorr for grammar mistakes, I'm not a native speaker :'D

your grammar's fine :)

aight so a lot to get into here. SO Donnie's experiences with self harm are heavily based on my own ones, which means overwhelming emotion. That can be either too much anxiety/stimulation, or feeling so empty and numb that you just need to DO SOMETHING that feels real.

you're spot on about his clothing hah, he covers more skin than the others cause he knows it'd make himself and everyone around him uncomfortable to see.

so the thing about his family's reactions is this: Leo is in denial about it, and Splinter doesn't even know. These are both because Donnie has a lot of naturally occurring scars from unsafe metal work. frankly its a miracle he didn't blow up one of his fingers when he was younger.

nowadays Mikey and Raph just try to support him so that he won't feel the need to self harm. I think Raph used to be really mad about it when they were WAYYY younger but. That doesn't really help the situation so he just, tries to help any way he can without directly talking about the issue.

anywho, congrats on the cool gender! Leo will realize his bigender ways eventually (but not soon enough hah)

[condemnhim]

(mutant mayhem spoilers)

OHMIGOSH so i saw mutant mayhem two days ago, on its official opening here in the US

it was really really good and i loved it so much and ugh i could rant about it for ages. so here's a nearly 2000 word rant about it. sorry for any spelling and grammar errors

(more under the cut)

so first of all, lemme talk about the characters real quick. my favorite character continues to be donnie but all of them were really likeable in this one, and the dynamic the turtles had is amazing.

mm!leo was a very very good version of leo, staying relatively close to older versions of leo but having some of the more fun traits that leo has had recently in tmnt media (for example, he was willing to do some things with his brothers, even if they went against splinter. even if he felt bad about it.) he was funny and cool, really bringing it all together. nicolas cantu (that how you spell his name? idk) did a great job as his voice as well, he pretty much perfectly illustrated all the emotions he needed to for leo throughout the whole movie. the only thing i didn't like about leo was the fact that he had a crush on april, but that's mostly a me thing because i've never been a fan of the turtle x april ships, they're just uncomfortable for me. they played it off pretty well though.

mm!mikey was really enjoyable for a character who is generally a little bit hit-or-miss for his moments. it was really a hit for all of the times he was on screen or talked which i'm very glad about. i a little wish that the movie focused even more on mikey, but maybe the series/sequel will. he was funny and not nearly as gross as some previous iterations were (ahem 2012) and it was just a really fun time with him. he was pretty much the best parts of all of my favorite versions of mikey all put in one. shamon brown jr also did an amazing job with him!!!!! he's a really good voice actor and he was pretty much perfect for mikey. and yeah, one thing i think they could've done better is just giving him more screen time and focus i think?

mm!raph was really great. you could tell that he was definitely raph but he wasn't super aggressive or hard to talk to. he was funny and there were plenty of moments that made me laugh with him. even though the movie didn't go terribly far into all the characters, you could tell that he definitely has a soft spot for his brothers and for splinter as well. seeing him as a turtle tot was amazing as well by the way, he looked like a cinderblock. and yeah, you bet i gotta bring up brady noon, who was amazing for raph. (really, casting all teenagers for the teenage mutant ninja turtles was a great casting choice on all levels.) even though he was this kinda aggressive guy, you can tell that he has dreams and he has people he cares about. it was really great to see for raph.

and of course i gotta talk about my favorite little guy. mm!donnie was SOO GOOd and like my favorite from the whole movie, he was really fussing great. his design is so good just because they really incorporated the tech stuff into his design, and the stickers on his bō were a nice touch. one thing i wish they would've shown more of is stuff that donnie made himself, y'know? donnie's original tech is usually kinda pushed to the front in tmnt which is great, i love seeing donnie tech. but the main thing donnie did in this movie is fight with his regular bō and use his phone and drive a car or something? i hope we get to see his tech in the future. also, micah abbey did such an amazing job at him@!!1 i mean i really enjoyed how he had a higher voice which is NORMAL for teenage boys, like people's voices change at different rates. he sounded great!! i am sad we didn't get to see more scooter action with him though

april i sure have thoughts about. i mean the thoughts are all positive. she was such a good april and an amazing addition to the cast. first of all, i am strong supporter in her design. sure am a big fan of the non-white aprils. a lot of fans didn't like her design for whatever reason?? some of them didn't like that she's not white and others had issues with her body shape, which is stupid. she's a teenage human, there's no reason to give her the "perfect" adult woman's body (in their eyes anyway) when she's meant to just kinda be this a little average but nonetheless badass ally to the turtles. her personality was great, she felt like a real teenager. her arc of getting (mostly) over her camera sensitivity was really nice, and i appreciate that she wasn't totally over it by the end. ayo edebiri was a really great cast for her as well. (also, i'm glad that even though she agreed to go to prom with leo, it seems like she still sees him purely platonically. i will NOT stand for another 2012 donnie and april situation.)

anyway, splinter, amiright? it's interesting how they went with the route that he was originally a rat. he was a really good character and one of my favorite versions of splinter now. he really was just trying to be a good father to these turtles in this weird little family situation, and i can't blame him for being so overprotective of them when he was made to be a monster in times square by mrbeast. jackie chan was a great choice to play him. (i don't support what jackie chan did to his daughter though btw.) the fact that he learned martial arts through old tapes, new movies and fussing youtube (a video of a channel i watch was in it by the way????) is amazing.

okay now all the other characters were really cool too. all the mutants that baxter stockman created were really interesting and it's great how they brought back so many existing characters while adding new ones. bebop and rocksteady were actually funny which i don't really expect from bebop and rocksteady most of the time to be honest. superfly was actually really scary for being this kids movie villain, which i guess isn't very surprising for tmnt. he got away with kinda a surprising amount of swearing for it though, a whole lot of instances of "damn" and stuff. mondo gecko was very fun and i was actually a bit scared when mikey found his tail. cynthia utrom didn't play as big a part in this movie as i expected her to but she will definitely be a bigger part in the future, especially considering that she's obviously meant to be an utrom. (and oh my god that end scene??? but i'll get into that later) i sure was a big fan of superfly's family turning on him for the benefit of humanity (and the chance of living with the turtles and splinter.) the voice cast was great for all the side characters. i think it's really cool that the main cast (as in the turtles and april) were all voiced by younger, less well-known actors while the side cast and villains were all played by the much better-known actors.

anyway onto the art, IT WAS AMAZING AAAAHHH as an artist this was on fussing spider-verse levels of art and animation. it looked like teenagers helped design it, which is what they were going for. the movement looked great and SOO natural, aahh!! the fight choreo was amazing too, there was that one scene where they were trying to find info about superfly was so well put together. there really were a few stand-out moments but all of it was so good. i love it when the ninja turtles actually use their weapons as they should be, which has happened in the past but it was so clear that they did their research here. also i'm glad that jeff rowe and seth rogen said that they ensured that the animators weren't being mistreated or overworked.

anywho, the music amiright? the soundtrack being based on NYC-based rap and hip hop was a really great choice. that one song that goes "can i kick it, yes you can" was a great choice for the main title-y thing of that movie. it hit all the places it needed to.

some other notes i wanna bring up:

the stakes were real my guys. at multiple points, i felt such genuine fear for these fictional mutant turtles in my heart i thought i would have a stroke or something. for example, when cynthia just kept shocking them??? are they not aware of the damage that like father like son did to ninja turtles fans???? also when superfly just had them in his hands and you could HEAR their shells crunching a little bit. UGH that hurt me fr. it felt so so real and it was so so good.

the fact that the cardboard cutouts that splinter acquired were chris hemsworth, chris pine and chris pratt lmao

are any of the characters autistic? i was thinking about this and to be honest i think yes, some of them probably are autistic. but it's not as clear as it is in rise, especially with donnie, y'know?

about the pop culture references and memes that they used didn't actually feel dated or cringe to me. i've heard others complaining about that but it didn't bother me much, it felt how teenagers actually talk. (i'm a teenager btw, i'm pretty used to how we talk.)

making leo have a crush on a girl after rise!leo lmao

but speaking of leo having a crush on april, there is more i wanna say. so i do not ship them, i've never shipped any of the turtles with april. it just don't sit right with me. but i think they still have the opportunity to play it off with elegance and grace, by having april straight up refuse him when he's honest with her about how he feels. hoping that will happen at some point. i've been asked to dances and stuff by friends, i hope that's why april said yes to him asking her to prom at the end. i will find seth rogen if they put leo and april together in the end. (for legal reasons this is a joke.) but yeah.

and the end scene???? oh god what do you guys gonna think shredder's gonna be like in mm???? because as much as i like the pretty goofy side of shredder that we've seen in the past (like '87 shredder was so silly compared to 2012 or god forbid rise shredder), i would love to see a really just horrifying version of shredder that they would actually maybe kill off in the end? and then there's another sequel where leo has to grapple with his own conflicted feelings about killing shredder or something. that would be so real lmao

i'm really looking forward to the future of mutant mayhem, even though i still want more rise!! and also we must keep showing support for the wga/sag-aftra strike, even though it's gonna delay production on the next parts of the series.

it was a great movie though and a great use of one hour and thirty nine minutes.

[asexual-fandom-queen]

Fanfic Writer 20 Questions

I was tagged by @nixie-deangel to do fanfic writer 20 questions, so let's dive in! Tagging @42wallaby-way-sydney @fatherofthebride @coldtomyflash to participate, if they are so inclined.

How many works do you have on AO3? 72

What's your AO3 word count? Just shy of 366,000

What fandoms do you write for? I started out doing most of my writing for The Flash/Arrowverse, but most recently have moved on to writing primarily for Stranger Things, Ted Lasso, 9-1-1, and Teen Wolf

What are your top five fics by kudos? 1. Turn And Face The Strange (Stranger Things, Stoncy) 2. All On The Line (9-1-1, Buddie) 3. Givin' Yourself to Me Can Never Be Wrong (The Flash, Coldflashwave) 4. Hands On Me (I Think I Wanna Let It Happen) (9-1-1, Buddie) 5. House Like a Homecoming (Stranger Things, Poly Monster Hunters)

Do you respond to comments? I do! I kinda never shut up about how important comments are to a fandom's ecosystem, so when I get them, I answer back!

What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? I don't usually end fics in full angst mode, but maybe the fic with the most bittersweet ending is Unfair. It's a SethKate (From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series) fic set in the aftermath of a sex pollen situation that leaves them both hurt and vulnerable. But there's still that nugget of hope, because they're hurt and vulnerable together.

What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? If I'm going for not just pure fluff factor, but how satisfying the happy ending is in the context of the rest of the fic/the source material, I would say Maybe We'll Get Forty Years Together which is a Jamie/Keeley/Roy future fic set during their wedding where Jamie has a chance to hash things out with his father.

Do you get hate on fics? Every once in a blue moon. I write a lot of polyships, and sometimes those polyships are an amalgamation of two sides of a ship war, and people have opinions about that lol. But generally, no.

Do you write smut? What kind? Sure do! I'd say it's what I write primarily. Generally, I write smut with feelings, or angsty smut. Sometimes it's definitely just smut for smut's sake though, which is also fun! I'm a big supporter of being horny on main.

Do you write cross-overs? I don't. The closest I've gotten is writing an AU based on another tv/show. I don't dislike them in principle, I've just never written one myself.

Have you ever had a fic stolen? Yes! Someone stole Taste of Your Lips (I'm On A Ride) and changed it from the original pairing of Zari/Amaya from Legends of Tomorrow to a Lauren/Camilla RPF and posted it on Wattpad. I'm very grateful to the person who messaged me on Tumblr to let me know, because the thief did take it down when I confronted them about it.

Have you ever had a fic translated? I have, and it's really cool to have been asked. My Buddie fic Exploration has been translated to Chinese.

Have you ever co-written a fic before? Not exactly. I was part of a multi-creator rewrite for season 2 of Legends of Tomorrow, which involved re-plotting and re-drafting as a group, so you could technically count Episode 2: Crisis and Faith.

What's your all-time favourite ship? I'm actually gonna have the dumbest answer for this question because it's a ship I've never written for, probably never will, and don't even really read, but it's Frank Castle and Karen Page from Daredevil/The Punisher. Their dynamic is just exactly what I want out of a ship. No notes.

What's a WIP you'd like to finish, but doubt you ever will? I have an Abby/Buck/Eddie fic that's on permanent hiatus that I almost certainly will never finish, especially because, in working on it, it started to splinter off a lot of ideas and dynamics and scenes I actually want to use for an original novel someday, so I don't see myself ever completing it. I would like to finish that novel though lol.

What are your writing strengths? I think I always feel most proud of my characterization being pretty on point, and I get enough comments to that effect that I don't think I'm just making that up. I also think I'm good at writing in small details that seem minor but make an impact.

What are your writing weaknesses? I fizzle out! I don't have good stamina to go back to something if it's gonna take me more than one sitting to write, which is why most of my stuff falls in the 2-4k range. I also lose steam without feedback and encouragement. My educational background is in creative writing, and I've been a long-time member of fandom, plus part of writer's groups even before then, so the idea of writing being a solitary thing is kinda wild to me.

Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic? To each their own for this. For me, personally, I'll use a word or a very small sentence I'm reasonably confident is correct in a fic, but for longer sentences, I would write in English and just indicate it was said in another language in the dialogue tag. Plus, even if it was a language I do speak fluently like Frech, it doesn't mean readers do, so I think English is still the way to go.

First fandom you wrote for? So, if we're talking first fic ever, we have to go back to when I was five and six years old and I would make little "books" out of folded index cards where I'd write stories about Sailor Moon or Cardcaptors. My first fic on the Internet was back in my FF.net days, and it was a Kyoya/Haruhi fic for Ouran High School Host Club. My first fic on AO3 was actually a multi-chapter Sterek fic that was never completed and that I've since taken down. The oldest fic of mine you can still find posted on AO3 is a multi-chapter Coldflash fic We Could Keep Things Just The Same, the first chapter of which was posted on February 24th, 2016!

Favourite fic you've ever written? I still feel like I've never topped There's a Menace In My Bed; Can You See His Silhouette. There are some edits I might go back and make with my extra eight (EIGHT!?!) years of writing experience, but the core of what that fic accomplishes? The delicious angst? The emotional minefield of dubious consent/sex pollen/fuck-or-die? The smut as character study? The caretaking? This just hit on a lot of things I like, and I'm really proud of it even all these years later.