#they're like distant cousins to me now. i NEED them to get into some family drama

[moe-broey]

@felikatze OH nothing LMFAOO (not that I know of anyway haven't caught up) I'm just rotating them both in my mind and desperately attempting to illustrate the parallels 😅😅

[mindmelter]

Owed and Owned

Angelo was peacefully sleeping when he woke up in the middle of the night with the most excruciating headache he had ever felt.

He grabbed his head and grunted in pain.

"Aaaaaarrwwhhhgh! Fuuuuucckkkkk!... There's something.... in my head.... it hurts! Get out! Get out! Get oooouuugghhh!!!"

Suddenly, Angelo's arms dropped limply to his sides, and his pained face quickly changed into a blank face in a fraction of a second, like a switch had been flipped off. With slow steps he walked to the door and opened it.

Waiting outside, with his usual nerdy demeanor, was none other than his distant cousin.

(A month later)

My cousin looks so peaceful, it even looks like he is sleeping, but for one to be sleeping, one needs to be awake first, and that is just not his case, not anymore.

Angelo had been the bad boy in my family since a young age, always getting in trouble or causing trouble; at 16, he joined a criminal gang; at 18, he was arrested for drug dealing; at 20, for getting into a bar fight. Now, at 21, nothing much had changed, he was still part of the gang, and he was still hotter than ever.

I was two years younger than him, and even though we were distant cousins and our interactions were almost nonexistent, I always had a secret crush on him. I couldn't help myself; I just had a thing for bad boys. I love the way they act so tough and fearless, like they're invincible and nothing can stop them.

I buried my face in Angelo's hairy armpit and took a long sniff; he just had the most wonderful smell under his armpits; it was powerful and primal, a musk that my olfactory epithelium was very much used by now.

I started licking them clean, making sure my tongue would drag slowly against his armpit's hair and I could taste every single bit of him.

While I feasted on my hot cousin's armpits, I saw a tiny alien humanoid sticking his head out of his ear, the tiny alien's head was no bigger than a bean.

"Good morning, Zul. Did you sleep well?" I asked.

"Yes I did, I see you're already having breakfast," Angelo responded with his eyes still closed. His voice sounded sleepy, like he was talking while dreaming.

"And how about you? Have you had your breakfast yet?" I asked.

"Not yet, was just about to when I noticed there was some stimulation coming from Angelo's armpits. I knew it was you."

"Well, don't let me get in the way, go back in there and feast on my dumb cousin's brain."

Zul feeds on brains, but because of his small size, he only takes small bits of it every day. It's been a month since I helped him get inside Angelo's body, and now there's only 40% of brain matter left.

The alien nodded his head and crawled back inside my cousin's head. Almost Immediately, I started to see the signs of his feeding on my cousin's body, like his muscles tensing and his biceps flexing. His head started rolling from one side to another as he let out deep grunts, looking like he was in a nightmare, he might actually be in one, but I was living my dream.

I buried my face back into his armpits as I knew what was going to happen next: Every time the alien fed, it would make Angelo's body release a lot of sweat. And I was starting to feel the effects, or better, to taste it.

"Hmmmm... he tastes soooo good," Angelo moaned.

"He sure does," I replied, switching from armpits.

I pulled off his tank top and shorts; Angelo's cock was big and thick but was flaccid, I gave it a few strokes, but I knew it was useless, his body couldn't respond to stimulus anymore without the alien in control. Luckily, the alien had kindly programmed Angelo's body in case I wanted him to be hard while he was busy feeding.

I pinched both of Angelo's nipples at the same time, and just like magic, his cock started to harden to a 9,5 inches huge shaft, throbbing full of life. As I took a few licks, I looked at him and noticed he was staring back at me, a sign the alien was now in control.

"How much is left?" I asked, my tongue running against his sweaty balls.

"34%" Angelo responded.

"Wow, just remember that you need to get out of his body when you reach 10%, you need to leave enough for his body to obey commands."

"You don't have to worry about that, I'm already looking for another host."

I was in the middle of giving Angelo a blowjob when I heard a knocking. I sighed in frustration, who could that be? One of Angelo's many hookups? I thought I already got rid of all of them!

When I opened the door I was shocked to see a tall, fully tattooed hot stud. I was left standing at the door completely frozen, staring at the hot man in front of me like an idiot.

"Is Angelo home?" He finally asked, his tone was intimidating and cold.

"H-he's...he's not home right now," I lied, "Is there something you want me, ummm... to tell him when he's back?"

I think he didn't buy the lie because he gave me an even more menacing stare, a stare that almost made me cry and apologize for lying.

"Tell him to pay what he owes, I will be back in a week." He said out loud, making sure Angelo could hear him.

It was all he said as he walked away. When I closed the door, I finally sighed in relief; that guy was so scary but so freaking hot at the same time. I asked Zul to dig into Angelo's mind for any information about the guy, but Zul told me he couldn't find anything and that he probably already consumed that memory. I was disappointed in knowing that precious info was now alien poo, but I just went back to giving Angelo a blowjob. Eventually, I completely forgot about the whole thing.

A week later I came back from school to find Angelo sitting on a chair with a book covering his face.

I walked towards him and took the book out of his face, and I was shocked to see his face expression; his eyes were staring in opposite directions, his left eye was wider than the right one, and his mouth was agape with his tongue sticking out.

I was used to Angelo's blank face by now, but he never looked this... empty before. I knocked on his forehead like I was knocking on a door, and in a sense, I was. The sound that it made was hollow, which was expecting since there was now only 14% of his brain left. "Zul? Are you there?"

"No, I'm here." A deep baritone voice came from the corner of the room, scaring the shit out of me.

I recognized him, he was the hot guy who knocked on Angelo's door a week before, now wearing nothing but a white towel covering his lap. "Zul, this is such a wonderful host. Good job buddy." I praised.

"It's good to be in control of an entire brain again. I accessed this host's memories, and it looks like your cousin pissed off the leader of his gang by not paying for his drugs. So his gang leader sent this big and strong guy to teach him a lesson if he didn't comply."

I sat on the tattooed hunk's lap and started caressing his fit body, feeling his muscles and pecs. I then pressed my face against his armpits and took a sniff, he smelled clean, like he just got out of the shower. The thug then pulled me in for a gentle, yet dominating kiss. Pulling away from the kiss I grinned at him, "So, this gang leader... Is he hot?"

"Very much, after this host's brain is at 10%, I might go for his boss, that way I would have plenty of hosts available for me. Would you like to own an entire gang of hot brainless men?"

"Yes! I would!" I eagerly said, my eyes glowing with the image of a bunch of hot brainless criminals at my disposal.

"Then you have to deserve it first," He said, caressing my face gently, it was weird to see such an intimidating guy acting so soft. "Go to Angelo and activate him for me, I can't control him while I'm in another host, but before leaving him, I programmed what was left of him to respond to physical touch. Pinch his right nipple two times and then give his left a twist to the left."

I nodded and walked to Angelo, I gave his right nipple two pinches, and his left a rough twist to the right... or was the left? I decided to twist it to the right. Angelo suddenly—still with his mindless face and hanging tongue—pulled down his shorts and started jerking off his cock.

I then heard the thug across the room laughing. "That's the wrong command, you need to twist it to the left, not the right."

I looked at Angelo, mindlessly jerking off his now hard cock, and I did the command right this time, two pinches on the right, one twist to the left...

Suddenly, Angelo stopped jerking off and walked to his bed, getting on all fours and exposing his ass.

"I like this new command, is there more?"

"Yes there is, watch it," The thug stood up, making his white towel drop to the floor. My jaw dropped when I saw his massive cock, he was so much bigger than Angelo. With a grin planted on his face, he grabbed his shaft and swung it in my direction, "Would you be kind and do what you do best?"

I didn't have to be asked twice; I got on my knees in front of this hunk and took his huge member into my mouth. I felt his hand gently caressing my hair. "That's a good cocksucker, get this cock wet for your cousin's ass"

I slobbered on it even harder when he praised me, after a few minutes, he gently pushed me away. His big cock swung with each step he took towards Angelo, he gave his ass a hard slap and smirked at me as he aimed the tip of his cock at Angelo's entrance.

It was far from Angelo's first time, since Zul turned him into a host last month, I've been having my share of fun with Angelo's ass. But Angelo wasn't used to a big cock like that, it was so big that it easily could count as a first time.

Angelo gave no response, he just continued frozen on all fours with his eyes blank as drool soaked the sheets under him. That was until the thug buried everything inside with a single powerful thrust, and just like that—as if a switch had been turned—Angelo started to move back and forward, fucking himself on the massive member.

"I programmed him so that as long as he has a dick stuffing his ass, he will fuck himself non-stop. Pretty cool huh?" The thug proudly said with both his hands behind his head, exposing his hairy armpits to me. Zul knows how much I love them.

"Now enjoy the show while I feed on this dumb hunk." With a final wink, the thug froze with his hands behind his head and his face changed to the same mindless look Angelo had: eyes rolled back and tongue sticking out.

Angelo was still fucking himself non-stop, like a broken robot trapped on a loop. I hopped on the bed and sat on Angelo's sweaty back while I was facing the frozen thug. My weight sure made Angelo's job more difficult, but I didn't care, I knew he was strong enough.

I pressed my face in the thug's armpits and started worshiping them. Sometimes, he would let out a long grunt, and his muscles would flex, but after a while, it stopped.

Zul appeared inside the thug's mouth and sat on his tongue, the tiny humanoid alien was now holding a tiny bit of meat, eating it like a burger as he watched me worshiping his new home.

I owe this little guy everything.

[intuitive-revelations]

I've got a kind-of crack theory about Ruby's mother...

Back in The Church on Ruby Road, Ruby is invited onto Long Lost Family, a genealogy TV program hosted by Davina McCall, with the hope of finding some information about her bio family. Unfortunately, they come up with nothing.

[ID: 6 gifs showing Ruby and Davina McCall talking to each other on the phone from The Church on Ruby Road. Davina apologies to Ruby, who tries to hide her upset at the news.

DAVINA: "There is no trace of your mum or dad. I'm sorry. It happens sometimes." RUBY: "No, that's fine... Thanks but, um, could you keep looking?" DAVINA: "No, there's nothing more we can do. If your parents aren't on some kind of database, we can't find them." RUBY: "Ok, um... isn't that unusual though? There's not a single trace anywhere? I mean... in the whole wide world, my mother's never left a blood sample or anythin'?"]

Now obviously, I know tracking down family is hard and, especially for orphans and adopted children, there's no gurantee that you'll be able to get the information you need. But I do find it odd there's seemingly "no trace" of Ruby's parents.

The section where I go on an odd tangent about genealogy

Speaking as someone who isn't a genealogist, but does enjoy researching family history in what little spare time they have... in my experience, close DNA matches aren't that hard to find. Especially if you're of white european descent, as Ruby is (presumably).

(It's generally harder for other ethnicities, as most research resources are white english/american focused. I know this is especially tricky for people like african-americans, where many of one's ancestors may have been enslaved. I've personally also found it tricky with Jewish communities as historically many of them used patronymic names prior to the 1800s, plus you have to account for immigration name changes, pogroms etc.)

For example, as someone who is white, with a mix of various british, mainland european, and ashkenazi ancestors, I actually have thousands of DNA matches, just from an autosomal test on Ancestry alone, let alone something like an mtDNA, xDNA or yDNA test:

[ID: Edited screenshot showing maternal and paternal DNA matches on my AncestryDNA profile. There are 16279 maternal matches and 9745 paternal matches.]

Obviously, due to the way family trees work, most of these are distant matches, however it does include plenty of close ones too, which I've been able to trace to real records and identify relationships with. Personally, my matches even already include many 1st and 2nd cousins, albeit usually a one or two degrees removed, especially as the userbase tends to swing older on these websites. This includes a few people close enough for me to have already known them from family functions and shared annecdotes. Meanwhile, where I did have blank spots, from immigrations, estranged family members, early deaths etc, I've been able to fill in a lot of information.

So what does it mean that there's "no trace" of Ruby's family?

Deliberate or not?

The big question I've had since The Church on Ruby Road is: just how untraceable is Ruby's family?

On one hand, I feel like if this was real life and professional TV genealogists were helping you, you'd get a bit more information than a quick phone call saying they've got zilch. If they're sharing nothing... do they literally have nothing?

On the other hand, this also feels like a writing shortcut. We don't really need 3 hours of Davina McCall sat with Ruby at a computer breaking down every question and theory about possible family members. Ultimately, this was probably just a way to quickly get some major exposition out there, plus throw in a Christmas celebrity cameo for casual viewers. The fact they only talk about Ruby's "parents" being in a DNA database, and no-one else, doesn't give me a lot of faith in the care for accuracy RTD took with this plot point tbh.

Indeed Davina does say 'it happens sometimes', which could indicate it's not as extreme as having zero close relatives...

...but Ruby also asks if it's unusual for there to be no trace of anything, which Davina doesn't answer. If we're asking that question, it sounds like things really could have turned up that blank.

It may not be easy for orphans and adoptees to find family, but I assume it must be quite rare to have zero possible leads? Especially if you're a younger person, and thus may have a good number of people of the right generation to know/remember your family members still alive. Worst case scenario, I can imagine having some leads, only for someone to be uncontactable, or lack the information that would be useful. That being said, maybe I'm being too optimistic, as someone who had the priviledge of never having as much difficulty.

The weird sci-fi parallel (TW: incest (kinda), intersexism)

This is where we get to my theorising. Because in a science fiction context, and specifically a time-travel one, there is one quite famous short story that has a protagonist with zero family connections: '—All You Zombies—' by Robert A Heinlein.

(Fun fact: "All You Zombies" is also the name of a planned Class Ongoing story, once I get the time to resume that.)

You may also be familiar with the movie adaptation: 'Predestination'. It's also seemingly the inspiration for all sorts of similar stories, from 'The Man Who Folded Himself' to Red Dwarf and Futurama.

You might see where i'm going from that last one...

(Again disclaimer: if you seek it out, that this story may be quite triggering. It also was written in 1959. While it's actually somewhat respectable of a trans (kind-of, you'll see what I mean - I'll generally use the pronouns used in the text below) protagonist, it includes sexism, intersexism bordering on medical horror, and selfcest/incest.)

In 1963 (funnily enough), a lonely, orphaned 18 year old woman named Jane has a sexual encounter with a man in a park which ends up leaving her pregnant. When complications arise, the doctor discovers during a successful caesarian she's actually intersex, with a form of ovotesticular syndrome, with her immature, partially developed organs "a mess". He removes the now damaged womb, ovaries etc and, without consent, 'rearranged things so that [they] can develop properly as a man".

A few weeks later, the baby is stolen from the hospital by a man.

Despite all this tragedy, they do decide to complete their transition, restarting life as a man. He struggles to find work, but eventually finds himself making a living selling fake confession stories to magazines as "the Unmarried Mother".

Years later In a bar, he tells his story to a Bartender. After it all, the Bartender reveals he's actually a time agent and offers the chance to see his baby's father again. He drops him off in 1963 to find the man.

Meanwhile, in 1964, the Bartender steals a baby from a hospital, and drops her off at an orphanage in 1945.

The Bartender returns to the Unmarried Mother a month later in 1963, just in time to see him leaving a lonely young woman he met with in a park...

"Now you know who he is", the Bartender says, "—and after you think it over you’ll know who you are... and if you think hard enough, you’ll figure out who the baby is... and who I am.” He drops the Unmarried Mother off in 1983, where he can be recruited by the Temporal Bureau.

The Bartender, Jane, the Unmarried Mother, the kidnapper, the Father, and the Baby are revealed to all be one person, a family tree onto themself. The perfect time agent, causally disconnected from the rest of humanity and thus safe from Faction Paradox - if they are truly human at all (possibly explaining their biological bi-sexuality).

Thus, literally, having no relatives.

NO, OF COURSE I don't think this is what's up with Ruby!

But...

A lot of people have suggested that the woman who drops off Ruby could be herself. Obviously this doesn't necessarily mean Ruby is her own mother - let alone her own intersex father, child, and recruiter too!

But the story did come to my mind watching the Christmas special, and I do think the less squicky side of it, the 'perfect time agent' angle is worth considering. Could Ruby really be causally/genetically disconnected from the rest of humanity? Could she literally have no close relatives?

Assuming her DNA is not taken from any other person, but some semi-random mix of genes, she really may not match with anyone. At most, she would have some distant false matches, who share very small portions of DNA with her just by statistical fluke.

"BUT", I hear you say, "Didn't she get rewritten by the literal butterfly effect in episode one? She must be connected to humanity!"

Yes she did. But you know else happened?

She was still there.

Seriously think about it. Time travel fiction often doesn't think about the full consequences of time being altered even slightly, especially for a gag, but think about it literally. If all of human history was changed and a whole new species, possibly descended from Silurians, became dominant on the planet...

... why would the Doctor still happen to be travelling with someone with a name beginning with 'Rub-' who looks like Millie Gibson? Remember her name comes from Ruby Road... so does 'Ruby Road' exist on Rubathon's Earth? The Church presumably doesn't, unless there's a lizard Jesus...

At the very least we can point to the Web of Time being particularly reinforced around Ruby for some reason, even after all the damage it's taken between Flux and now, letting Ruby persist into the new timeline. This is explicitly confirmed in the last episode, with the Doctor calling it a fixed point.

At worst, it may imply whatever 'designed' Ruby just needs her to meet the Doctor, no matter what the dominant species on Earth is.

Mind you, both of these do open questions about what happened in the timeline where Ruby was eaten by the Goblin King. Maybe targetting her after her birth left her temporally vulnerable? Or maybe it was a necessary event, to bring the Doctor to Ruby Road...

Add this to some other things we've seen this season:

In Space Babies, we're introduced to the concept of 'baby farms', allowing people to be loomed born without a parent.

We also know, at least, that Ruby registers as human to the TARDIS (though given Sutekh's influence, who knows how trustworthy that scan was now!).

In The Devil's Chord, Ruby is not erased by Maestro destroying humanity. Granted we can put this down to the Doctor/TARDIS, and how time travel effects people's biodata, but I think it could be a misdirect.

(Interestingly there was a very similar plotpoint in "City of the Daleks", the Eleventh Doctor adventure game, which saw the New Dalek Paradigm invading Earth in...1963. Unlike Ruby, Amy eventually actually does start to fade, needing a 'chronon blocker' to stabilise her. Hey remember how we just heard the word 'chronon' used a bunch in the show.)

In Boom, the Ambulance is entirely unable to find a next of kin for Ruby, despite seemingly having her in its records. This is a little hard to dissect, as you could take a lot of different interpretations away from it. At the very least, it suggests Ruby doesn't have any living descendents in the 51st century. Carla probably doesn't either (which makes sense with her not having any bio-kids, and Ruby seemingly being the only child she fully adopted rather than fostered?) But for its extensive records, it's notable it still couldn't find anyone after that, even presumably with access to Ruby's DNA like the genealogists had.

Everything in 73 Yards.

Between the snow falling in each episode, plus context in The Legend of Ruby Sunday, we know that Christmas Eve on Ruby Road, while fixed, is also uniquely vulnerable and 'raw'. With the woman's changing reactions to the Doctor, it's also flexible enough to change, somewhat.

Similarly, the possible connection between the woman who dropped Ruby off and the woman in 73 Yards, between her face not being visible and the CCTV camera being around 73 yards / 66.6 metres away. And if that woman really was Ruby, then maybe the parallels to All You Zombies may not be as insane as they sound.

[cuntry-r0ckst4r]

"But Daddy I Love Him!" ~ (lip gallagher x fem!reader's version)

sum! "But Daddy I Love Him!" Taylor swift - The Tortured Poets department.

tw! FACEBOOK... toxic family, mention of having a baby, swearing ig (again its shameless)

uhm this is gonna suck! I have no clue what I'm doing! ok days later n the middle/ending is very sloppy i feel like. idk i kinda dont like it.

"I forget how the west was won, I forget if this was ever fun, I just learned these people only raise you to cage you"

You and Lip were fighting again. You hadn't been getting along as much anymore, you were getting closer to your two year mark too.

No one in your family liked the Gallaghers to begin with, so you couldn't complain to your family (siblings, cousins, whoever). The one who disapproved of your relationship the most though? Your father. Your father hated the relationship you had with Lip. He thought he was going to use you for money, your body, etc. He just knew Gallaghers were usually up to something, so he didn't approve of this relationship as soon as you told him.

Except with how much you and Lip were arguing now, it's hard to remember all the fun you would have. It's like a distant memory that you forget was a dream or not.

"Sarah's and Hannah's in their sunday best, Clutching their pearls, Sighing 'What a mess', I just learned these people try and save you ... cause they hate you"

Your family wasn't just rude to him, you as well. It was a bunch of rich snobs, and if something hadn't gone their way then get rid of it.

They hated you for even being in the vicinity of someone 'lesser' than them. Because god forbid you bring normal people into the wretched family of yours. Your cousins and extended family were known to gossip about others in the family, and right now you were the hot topic.

"too high a horse, for a simple girl to rise above it, they slammed the door on my whole world, the one thing I wanted"

It was an accident. Sort of. With how complicated you and Lip were right now you had changed your relationship status to "it's complicated". Not thinking about how public your page is to your very judgemental family. Lip did the same so he wasn't necessarily mad. All of your cousins, aunts, etc. were messaging you asking what happened, trying to get as much information as they could. It was all fine until your dad texted you.

"Come home."

Oh god. You could feel your stomach doing flips inside of you. You knew what he was going to say. 'You need to break up with this boy if it's to the point you're both telling the entire world how complicated your relationship is right now'. You went over there with the full intent to defend yourself and your boyfriend.

"Now I'm running with my dress unbuttoned, Screaming 'But Daddy I Love Him!' I'm having his baby. No, I'm Not, but you should see your faces"

You got to your parents house and your dad started saying the exact things you thought he would.

"If you're sharing your relationship vis-à-vis the internet than I do not think this relationship should go on." Your dad kept repeating this in different wordings time and time again.

"Dad, me and Lip are just arguing like normal couples do. All you do is talk about how I should break up with him and that he is horrible for me." You snap at him, finally.

You continue your rant, "It isn't up to you to decide for me whether my boyfriend is good for me or not. I'm an adult and I can figure my love life out for myself. He has done nothing but be kind to all of you and get on your good side, but all of you are too snobby to understand that!"

You have to take a break to breath.

"I'm having his child. Not now... but eventually." As you said this they're faces were all filled with shock. Some of them had concern written all over there face.

"I'm telling him to floor it through the fences. No, I'm not coming to my senses, I know he's crazy but he's the one I want"

"I know none of you like him, but I see a future with him. But if you never learn to accept none of you will be apart of this future." God, it felt good finally standing up for yourself in front of your family.

Instead of waiting for them you got up and left. Not wanting to here what kind of excuse he's going to make for himself.

"Dutiful daughter, all my plans were laid, tendrils tucked into a woven braid, growing up precocious sometimes means not growing up at all."

Your way back home had you thinking about your childhood and how you grew up. If there so against difference, and all of your other family is, why were you taught different?

It can't be because of school because you went to school with some family that acts the same as them.

Maybe because you had friends that were in south side? They were friends with the private school's principal and they were able to get in free of cost. You would go over to their house sometimes and it wasn't a huge clean house in a nice pretty neighborhood. Maybe that's why you weren't born to be a horrible person and you actually got to learn about people who weren't as lucky as you.

Which also means from a young age you were already more mature than your entire family.

"He was chaos, he was revelry, Bedroom eyes like a remedy."

You got back to the house and saw Lip on the couch. You went inside and sat next to him. At first he didn't say anything to you. Until he couldn't just not speak.

"Where'd you go?" He mutters, not looking at you still.

"Parents." You answer him almost instantly, looking at him.

He nods, knowing what this is about.

"So, they knock some sense in ya? You dumping me?" He rubs his face and the looks at you.

You snicker, "You must know absolutely nothing about me if you think I'm listening to my parents?"

He smiles and chuckled (i'm thinking of the lil breath through the nose laugh that no one knows what to call...) he knew how stubborn you were when it came to your parents.

"Soon enough the elders had convened, down at the city hall, 'stay away from her', the saboteurs protested too much"

Your family had been trying to text you. Some to apologize, some to try to talk out out of being mad, some to get gossip, the others still trying to get you to break up with him.

Your father had compared you to a '"rebelling teenager" because of how you're acting? You and Lip had stopped arguing for now.

Every time they reached out to him to talk to you through him, he would tell them to stop, "leave her alone", or block them. He was sick of how they treated you and him too.

Almost all of your family was blocked now, because they all decided to text you. The only people you couldn't bring yourself to block were your parents. Even though they were the ones laying it on the strongest. Your mom kept apologising but your dad was saying the same things as before.

"Lord knows the words we never heard, Just screeching tires and true love"

God this whole situation felt like a movie or a taylor swift song. It was ridiculous. Everyone's actions were childish and obnoxious.

You and Lip haven't been arguing in a while, because your attention was on other things at the moment. You two had actually been more romantic. You both have put your status back to normal. Yet, nothing in your life was back to normal.

"I'll tell you something right now, I'd rather burn my whole life down, Than listen to one more second of all this bitching and moaning"

This had been going on for over a month now. It was just annoying and obnoxious now. Lip knew you defended him and this is why this is still going on. No doubt about this. Except now he was having to deal with you being: bitchy, exhausted, or just annoyed.

It was affecting him now, and he was starting to get pissed.

"I'll tell you something about my good name, it's mine alone to disgrace, I don't cater to all these vipers dressed in empaths clothing"

"Your parents have been talking to Frank about us. Frank was asking me about you." Lip said through gritted teeth and a scowl, he had been walking inside while I said that.

You roll your eyes and respond in an almost whiny voice, "Please tell me your joking. They have gone way too far with this. First they tell my entire family and now they start on yours?"

"God save the judgemental creeps, Who say they want what's best for me, Sanctimoniously performing soliloquies I'll never see"

The texts were all the same from your mom and dad.

"We just want what's best for you, and he isn't it!" They would say. Over. And over.

It was so repetitive, you had to block them. Not everywhere just where they would text you the most.

"Thinking it can change the beat of my heart when he touches me, And counteract chemistry, And undo the destiny"

I swear if you never had met him, which your not upset about meeting him, your parents wouldn't complain to you all the time. But oh well. There's a very real possibility they would have done this with anyone who you ended up with, seeing as how everyone they would try and set you up with was not your type.

Since this has been happening, your family would always have witty remarks like: "I'll keep you in my prayers" or "I'm thinking of you"

"You ain't gotta pray for me, Me and my wild boy, and all this wild joy."

When were they going to realize that he made you happy. You liked loved being with him. He was your wild boy. Yours. For no one to take.

"If all you want is gray for me, Then it's just white noise, And it's my choice"

Being with him wasn't there choice to make, it was yours. You just had to blur out all the background noise that meant nothing to you.

"There's a lot of people in town that I, Bestow upon my fakest smiles, Scandal does funny things to pride, But brings lovers closer"

Instead of biting back, you played nice. They would would say something rude and you would respond with a smile. All of the fighting only made you and Lip begin to grow closer to each other.

Their bickering with you about him, was backfiring. Big time.

Your parents saw this. They then saw how you looked at eachother. Realised you went to war for each other. Defending each other to your parents. It made them think a little longer.

"We came back when the heat died down, Went to my parents and they came around, All the wine moms are still holding out, But Fuck 'em, it's over"

Your parents had asked you over again. There wasn't anymore fighting online for a couple of weeks now, but you still went over there with the full intent of defending yourselves.

When they started apologising though you were skeptical at first until you saw the genuine look. They meant the apology. They didn't just apologise for what they said, but the actions they had on social media, how they brought the family into it.

"I was being a hypocrite," Your father had explained, "You were talking about your issues on the internet and then I went and did the same things to the both of you, as well as involving other people when it was unnecessary. I sincerely apologise."

Lip had a subtle smirk on his face, only you and his family could recognise.

You both had thanked him for apologizing, none of your other family had apologized though.

"Now I'm dancing in my dress in the sun and, Even my daddy just loves him, I'm his lady, and oh my God, You should see your faces"

Your parents were now very fond of Lip, praising him consistently. Your mother called him handsome. Your father realised how bright he was. Most of all they realised how good the two of you were for each other and how much he loves you.

"No you can't come to the wedding, I know he's crazy but he's the one I want"

You were at your family's annual gathering when one of your cousins came over to the two of you, "So when's your wedding?"

You laughed, "If and when it happens it will solely be immediate family and some friends that will be invited. The ones who actually care about us, ya know?"

[peakyltd]

Hi Daisy, I've come to request a John fic with the fluff prompt ❛ do you think the moon is jealous of how pretty you are? ❜( If you feel inspired, of course!) It seems like a line he would use!

Thank you for your request Lee! 🥰 This line really is something John would say, I already saw that cheeky little grin in my mind.

A/N: I wrote it pretty quickly but then I had some trouble with the flow of the story. I feel like it might not completely live up to what I wrote before. So if that's the case, I'm sorry. Anyway I hope you still like and enjoy it. I certainly did have a lot of fun writing John, it reminded me how much I love his character!

Warnings: Swearing. A few rude comments on Linda? Nothing serious. Other than that it's just pure fluff.

Word count: 2002

Family Dinner

"Please remind me that if you ever want to have a family dinner at our house again, that I'll say no." John mumbles in her ear as he wraps his arms around her waist. "Why?" (Y/N) giggles, looking up at him.

They’re both standing in the kitchen as (Y/N) is finishing up the home made dinner. It was her idea to invite his family but it took her some time to convince John.

"It's pure chaos and Linda is pissing me off with her nagging." He answers her, chewing on this toothpick. "John, you can't say that." She chided, eyeing his family who were sat at the table. The distant was big enough for them not to hear John complaining.

"Oh c'mon (Y/N), don't act like you don't think the same thing." He says as he takes her chin gently between his fingers, turning her face back to him.

As their eyes meet, she can't help but laugh. "See? This is exactly what I mean." John laughs. "I really hope Arthur will grow his balls b-" (Y/N) cuts John off by putting her hand on his mouth, shushing him. "Ssh!" She whispers as she lowers her hand.

"Can I help you with the food (Y/N)?" Linda asks as she approaches the kitchen. "Oh no you don't have to Linda, I'm almost finished. It will come right up"

"It's really no bother." She smiles. "Thank you but it's all set, John will be our waiter tonight." (Y/N) jokes, earning a chuckle from Linda. John, on the other hand, rolls his eyes as he turns to the counter. He takes the toothpick out of his mouth and cuts off some of the meat (Y/N) made.

"If you change your mind, I'll be right there." Linda points at the empty chair next to Arthur. (Y/N) smiles at her. "I appreciate it, Linda." She answers. Watching the woman return to her seat.

(Y/N) hears a deep sigh coming from behind her. "It's no bother" He imitates her. "To me it is." John adds while eating some meat. She pushes playfully against his shoulder. "John."

"I'm right there." He imitates her again. "As if she just came walking in, she's already sitting there for hours."

"John please." (Y/N) chuckles. "She means well. What has she done to you?"

John leans against the counter. "She has to fucking comment on everything someone says or does. As of right now yeah, Arthur just had a drink or two too many. He’s not even pissed yet but she keeps asking him if it's really a good idea to take more whiskey." He sighs frustratedly. "I know I need more whiskey if I need to listen to her any longer."

(Y/N) places her hands on his cheeks and pulls him closer to her. "Try to let it go for tonight, okay? They're both adults and if Arthur has had enough of it, he'll let her know." "He won't." He defends.

"Lets just enjoy the night." She adds as she kisses him softly. "Okay?" "Hm 'kay" John mumbles against her lips as he puts his hands on her waist, pulling her in for another kiss.

The dinner went well, the Shelby's enjoyed the fresh made food and the drinks were flowing. John had visibly relaxed and was slumped back in his seat, laughing at the conversation he was having with his brothers and cousin.

The kids were running in and out of the house, hopefully getting rid of their last energy of the day before going to bed. Ada was talking to Linda and Polly watched the family, a pleased smile on her face.

(Y/N) went back into the kitchen to get her selfmade pudding. She was excited about the dessert ever since the day she knew his family came over for dinner. It was her favorite and she loved to make it. She added some strawberries on top before taking it back to the table.

Before she could even reach the table, the kids came running in, chasing each other. A shout of John could be heard but it was too late, a few of them bumped into (Y/N). The sudden impact caused her to drop the pudding.

A loud gasp comes from her mouth. “Oh no…” She watches it splash apart, leaving it all over the floor. Disappointment filling her features.

“What have I said about no fucking running around the kitchen! Look what you've done!" John bellows as he stands up, the children immediately apologize. "Sorry mom." "Yes sorry aunt (Y/N)."

She sighs. "It's okay. Don't worry about it. Be careful next time, yeah?" They nod. "Now go back outside." John adds strictly, glaring at the kids. He made sure they were out of sight before he made his way to the kitchen.

"I'm so sorry." She apologizes to his family. "Don't be sorry, love. We've had already more than enough." Polly smiles at her. "We'll come back for pudding another time."

(Y/N) nods, wiping the remains of her dress. "Here let me help you." A voice came from behind her. John got a few towels for her to clean her dress and helped her to tidy the mess on the floor.

Once they were finished she sat back down in her chair. Feeling better after John’s attempts to cheer her up.

Rumbling was heard from the kitchen as John appeared with two bottles of whiskey in his hands. He lifted them above his head, a big grin on his lips. “I got a new dessert!” He cheered. A sigh coming from (Y/N)’s lips. “Oh god…”

As their evening came to an end, (Y/N) and John said their goodbyes to his family. Their exit was as chaotic as their entrance. Arthur was too drunk and had to be helped into the car by Tommy and Finn. Which resulted in John having tears rolling down his cheeks from laughter and a very annoyed Linda.

When Tommy told John to "shut his fucking mouth or he would help to do so" it caused Arthur to have his own fit of uncontrollable giggles. A lot of shouting and more laughter had followed until Polly and Ada finally managed to get everyone in their cars. As soon as the cars drove out of the drive way, peace had returned.

John wiped the tears off his face. "Did you see his face? Bloody idiot." He started laughing again. "I don’t want to know how they will get him out of the car." (Y/N) giggles. "I would leave him there. He can get out by himself in the morning." He chuckles.

As his laughter calmed down he took a deep breath. "I have to admit that I enjoyed this night more than I thought I would." "I'm glad you did." She beams at him as she pulls him in for a hug, leaning her head against his chest.

John strokes her hair and kisses the top of her head. While he is looking at the garden, an idea pops up in his head.

"Shall I light the fire pit? The weather is still lovely and I wouldn’t mind to spend some time alone with you." He offers. (Y/N) looks up at him. "Oh yes, I would love that. I'll quickly check on the children, I hope they didn't wake up from all the noise."

"Alright." He gives her a quick kiss, leaving her smiling. He collects some branches and makes his way to the fire place.

Once upstairs (Y/N) checks the bedrooms of their children. She finds them sound asleep, as if nothing happened. All of them too tired from their eventful night.

As (Y/N) arrives back outside, John was already sat in front of the fire. A whiskey in his hand and a new toothpick in his mouth. “They’re still sleeping.” She tells him. "I’m glad." He says as he gets up.

"Do I need to get your coat?" "No I'm fine, it's still warm enough." She assures him. "I did get you a blanket." He points at the chair next to his, a blanket hanging on the back of the chair.

She smiles at his gesture. "Thank you, John." She says, sitting down. The fire warms her skin immediately. "I got your wine." John sits next to her, showing her the bottle and filling her glass. "You're such a gentleman, John Shelby."

He chuckles as he hands her the glass. "Of course I am." He answers, putting the bottle down next to him. (Y/N) takes a sip of her drink, leaning back against the chair. The blanket had already warmed up by the fire, making her feel at ease. She takes a deep breath as she looks over the meadow next to their house.

John mimics her and watches the fire. The reflection of the flames dancing on his face. "Aren't we lucky?" She asks, looking at him. "I know I am, I have the most beautiful woman in the world." He grins at her. She blushes lightly at his comment. "Are you flirting with me?" She chuckles.

"Maybe." He smirks at her. "Is it working?" "It already worked a while ago." She jokes. (Y/N) grabs his hand, she softly strokes it with her thumb. John squeezes hers gently. "But yes, it is working." She admits.

A peaceful silence fell over them as they're both sipping on their drinks. As the flames become smaller, John put extra woodblocks and branches in the fire pit. He catches (Y/N) staring at the sky. He looks up as well, gazing at the moon and many stars that were visible this night.

"Do you think the moon is jealous of how pretty you are?" He asks (Y/N) as he looks at her, a cheeky grin on his face. She shifts her gaze to him. "My god John." She giggles, hiding her face in her hands. John laughs as he grabs her hands and pulls her up from her chair.

"Don't hide that pretty face of yours." He chuckles. He sneaks his arms around her and pulls her closer. (Y/N) wraps her arms around his neck, brushing her fingers over the short hair on the back of his head.

"I do think the moon is jealous of how pretty you are." John confesses to her as he looks into her eyes. "Nothing compares to you. Not even the moon."

(Y/N) blushes, admiring John’s face. "I love you so much." "I love you too, darling." He tells her as he moves his face closer to hers.

"Before you kiss me, please let me do this." She whispers, earning a confused look from John. (Y/N) takes the toothpick out of his mouth and throws it into the fire.

"Oh." He chuckles. "I don't think it would add much good." She smiles. "You never know, maybe you're into it." He jokes. (Y/N) can't help but giggle at his stupid joke.

“You make me the happiest, John.” She tells him, her voice soft. “Imagine how you make me feel.” John grins at her.

He moves his face closer to hers again. His breath fanning her face. (Y/N) feels the butterflies in her stomach, they're giving her a giddy feeling. She gently pulls him closer until their lips connect.

The kiss starts off soft but steadily becomes heated as they're exploring each others mouth. One of John's hand slowly lowers until he stops on her butt, gently grabbing ahold of it. He grins as she let out a soft moan. Her fingers are tangled in his hair as her other hand rests on his neck, wanting more.

John slowly breaks this kiss, breathing heavily. "I can't get enough of you." He breathes out as he strokes her cheek with his thumb. (Y/N) smiles at him, catching her own breath. "We don't have to stop yet." She teases him. "I wasn't planning on doing so." He smirks as he pulls her in for another passionate kiss.

One of many they would share that night.

[brf-rumortrackinganon]

That Eden specifically called them “William’s friend” makes me think it’s a Windsor who has friends in common with William, which is probably more likely Frederick or Gabriella, than the Yorkies. But as far as I know, the Kent branch doesn’t leak…except it was the Kent branch of Windsors that Eden referenced by name when he was talking about the crowded balconies. I think it’s from that side of the family.

I agree. A royal watcher on Twitter was oddly furious about the balcony this year and complaining that the extended family were being “disrespected”, particularly the Kents. (They weren’t this worked up the previous two years.) They’ve previously claimed to be friends with some of the Kents and tend to lose their temper very quickly whenever someone brings up Lady Amelia liking that IG post about turning BP into a gift shop. Various weak excuses such as it wasn’t her account (there’s screenshots, it WAS her handle) or suggesting she didn’t read the post first.

I think the source is a more distant relative who has absolutely no chance of becoming a working royal, and thus no chance of getting back on the balcony if it stays this way. Even if W doesn’t currently intend to have any of his first cousins, I think they do realise that there is always a small chance for them as he doesn’t have any other siblings like Charles. This is likely someone whose PR plays heavily on their adjacency to the BRF (e.g. Amelia - “the most beautiful royal”).

I agree - it’s someone whose career is heavily connected to the BRF, like Amelia and/or her siblings. And really, they’re the only ones it could be, from my perspective.

Since this topic seems to be generating some excitement from anons (going by my asks, the top 3 options are Frederick Windsor, Princess Eugenie, and Amelia Windsor). Let's dig deeper into it!

The Mountbatten-Windsors branch:

Peter and Zara couldn't give two shits if they're on a balcony or not, and their kids are too young to know what kind of "marketability" they have career-wise or attention-wise for being connected to the royal family. Not only that, their kids are very close to William's kids. They're in a pretty safe position as far as access and privilege goes. It's definitely not them.

Harry and Meghan. Well, there's a lot we could say here, but we're not going to look that deeply at them. All I'll say about them is this: Eden is not one of their usual sources when they leak, so I'm skeptical it's them but Harry does (or did) have a lot of friends in common with William so that's the most plausible "William's friend" excuse to me. But the guys who are legit still friends with William know better than to leak, so it wouldn't be those friends (like a van Straubenzee, Grosvenor, van Cutsem, or Pelly). It would be someone with a tenuous connection to William - maybe a friend of a friend who knows Harry better.

Beatrice is also close with William and she has her own career going for her. Edo also has his own career and he seems to be pretty financially set that Beatrice, and their children, probably have a super comfortable life and don't need the BRF as much. It's not her.

Eugenie is still a big question mark. She seems loyal to the crown for now and while she does have a chip on her shoulder, she does know which side of her bread is buttered. She is also probably fully aware that leaking about William guarantees a ticket of no return to Excludedville and after getting the invite to the Cousins Garden Party after being on the outs for a couple years, I don't think she's going to risk being "in," so I don't think it's her.

Louise and James have been raised with the expectation that they won't be working royals, not even part-time the way Beatrice and Eugenie were back in the day, so it's definitely not them or their friend circle (who are much too young to have friends in common with William).

Anne and Tim don't talk to the press, and neither do Edward and Sophie, like this. Andrew and Sarah do talk to the press and have leaked about the main branch before, but I don't think this is them. They wouldn't be quoted as 'William's friend' but - BUT - Eden had an exclusive from Sarah a couple days ago (about whether she and Andrew would remarry) and this nugget could've come up then, from Sarah.

The Duke of Kent branch:

The Duke and Duchess of Kent have never leaked or spoken to reporters, so I'm fairly certain it's not them. Besides, they're probably too old-school to think about going against the heir, and they probably raised their children (the Earl of St. Andrews, Lady Helen Taylor, and Nicholas Windsor) to be more ordinary than royally-privileged.

The bios for the Earl of St. Andrews and his wife (the Kents' eldest child/first son) on Wikipedia read like they enjoy the professional privilege that comes from being connected to the BRF but don't seem to be flaunting it. It's not them. And I doubt that they have friends in common with William. Edward and Andrew, sure. Not William.

Their children - Lord Downpatrick, Lady Marina, and Lady Amelia - are precisely the people who grew up with social media and thus understand how the power, access, and privilege of the BRF can further their work. Lord Downpatrick has a pretty successful outdoorsy/adventure-based travel company; he doesn't need the BRF. There isn't a whole lot known about Marina, but we do know that Amelia had/has a modeling contract and works in fashion. Marina seems unlikely to leak (since there isn't much about her), but Amelia is definitely a contender as Eden's source because much of her career is based on aesthetics and lifestyle - which she needs the BRF for.

Lady Helen Taylor, her husband, and their children. There's absolutely no easily-findable information about their four children. Even though they're the same ages as the Earl's children, and they'd be fully aware of the BRF's power with social media, the fact that they don't have Wikipedias and aren't very easily googlable hint that they're probably not the source.

Nicholas Windsor, hs wife, and their three sons. Not them. The sons aren't in the line of succession (owing to their Catholic baptisms). They have no use for the BRF because they wouldn't have had any privileges anyway.

The Prince Michael of Kent branch:

Prince and Princess Michael have complained about royal privilege before, but they also know - and respect - their places. They also wouldn't call themselves "William's friend" and I'm very skeptical that they have friends in common with William.

Frederick and Gabriella probably grew up without any expectation of royal connections and both seem to be in steady careers. They seem pretty tight with many of the Mountbatten-Windsor cousins - Eugenie is godmother to Frederick's eldest (which is odd to me but whatever), Frederick and Peter probably played together, Frederick's kids are the same ages as George and Charlotte, Lady Gabriella rode in the ascot carriage with Anne and Peter, and Lady Gabriella has been deputized by William before. It's definitely not Lady Gabriella, and I feel pretty confident saying it's not Frederick, even though he and his wife have spoken about being members of the extended royal family before (all positive, mostly about the time when Sophie was seriously injured in an accident, and Charles sent his personal chef to prepare meals for them).

Frederick's kids are too young to know any difference about what it means being related to the royal family. I do think Frederick enjoys the privilege of being related to the royal family and what it means for his career, but I don't think he cares from a publicity standpoint. Sure, he might like to go out on the balcony, but the guy's a finance executive. He doesn't need the balcony to help with his career.

The Gloucester branch:

It's not them. We don't even know a whole lot about them. The Duke and Duchess have three kids (Earl of Ulster, Lady Davina, and Lady Rose) and there's not much known about them. They enjoy the social aspects of being in the extended family but they wouldn't have had any expectation of using the BRF for career or professional connections.

The Margaret branch:

David Armstrong-Jones, Earl of Snowdon and his kids: I feel pretty confident saying it isn't the Earl since he doesn't really speak much to the press (that I'm aware of). His kids are the ages where they would be fully aware of what the BRF magic can do for them but I'm not sure. They seem to have a healthy relationship with the Elizabeth/Charles branch and I don't think they'd do anything to risk that. However, that said, Lady Margarita (David's daughter) does do some modeling work and she has her own art brands. I still don't think it's her because she was in William's wedding and if there's anyone who can profit off the royal connection, it's going to be her because all she needs to do is flash those photographs. She wouldn't complain about the balcony.

Sarah Chatto and her sons. It's definitely not Sarah. She has a safe and stable connection to the BRF and she strikes me as someone who doesn't want the attention. Her sons are of the same age who'd have grown up and know what social media could do for them, but they're not really in careers where they need publicity or the lifestyle for success; Samuel is an artist and Arthur is in the military.

So all that said, the top candidates for being Eden's source (for me) are Sarah Ferguson, Harry, Amelia Windsor, and Margarita Armstrong-Jones.

Since:

Sarah doesn't need any help getting attention for her career (or lack of it)

Harry doesn't use Eden, and

Margarita has the royal wedding pictures,

that leaves Amelia Windsor, aka the Kent branch. Who is in a publicity-hungry career, who likes social media content that criticizes the royal family, and who probably has the sour grapes of not having had any access or claim to fame with the BRF other than sharing the last name.

Also, another nail in the "it's not Margaret's side" theory for me is the Christmas walk. David and Sarah, and their kids, are often at the Christmas Walk and everyone is often being named by the press. I don't recall the Kent Windsors being on the Christmas walks recently and receiving similar treatment - so that's probably more sour grapes for whoever's the leak.

Oh, I forgot. I'm too lazy to scroll back up.

The PB branch:

Well, we know Camilla talks and talks and talks. But would she characterize herself as "William's friend"? I think that's a bit of a stretch for her.

Tom PB or Laura Lopes: Possibly. They probably do have friends in common with William, but they've never had access to or privilege from the BRF before, not even after Charles and Camilla made it official. So why would they care? I could see them caring from their kids' perspectives, but they've been around the BRF long enough to know that the affiliation to the BRF gets their foot in the door but any more than that only invites scrutiny in and they probably don't want that for their kids, and I think their kids are too young to understand the significance.

So for me, all roads lead back to Kents: it's either Amelia or Frederick, but I lean more to it being Amelia than I do Frederick.

Yes, I'm procrastinating some work stuff this afternoon. Gee, how could y'all tell?

[reanimationstation]

Can you tell me a little bit more about Sammy’s relationship with his family? What was his relationship to Riley’s parents and assuming he raised her after their deaths, how was he at it?

As soon as he was able to, he basically took off and carved his own life away from his family. They're not on bad terms per se, just distant ones. Very distant. But whether he likes it or not Sammy is notified of people passing, either through mail or someone tracking him down.

I think Riley is Sammy's cousin's kid. But most of their family either doesn't live in America or is too far away to have stepped in, so when he was contacted about his cousins deaths and their now orphaned daughter, he did not have a lot of time to process! He wasn't the closest in the world to them, but due to them living sort of nearby and probably helping him economically early on in his adult life, he held them in good regard (good for Sammy at least).

[THIS GOT LONG SO THE REST UNDER THE CUT]

I think it's sort of implied that whoever ended up taking care of Riley moved into her house? Or at least the devs just didn't want to model a new place lol. So Sammy isn't really... the happiest about moving into his dead cousins place, but it's also leagues better than the dingy little apartment he had. Though I'm not sure if I'm in love with the idea of him moving in I'll have to stew on it. EDIT: also he was pretty young when this happens?? Maybe like, early 20s. He is NOT prepared for a young kid.

He's an......alright guardian. He was and still isn't comfortably being seen as her father figure, but he's doing his best. He's marginally better at taking care of a kid than taking care of himself. Not by much. She's alive that what counts. And she likes him enough, Riley probably thinks he's weird and bit of an asshole at times but hey so is she so whatever.

They're both the eccentric artistic types, so to speak. He doesn't know how to handle her trauma and subsequent art outlet, outside of just letting her be. Which is a good and bad thing... good, because coping! Bad, because coping badly. Not to mention the implications of some sort of addiction (probably alcoholism?) later on with all the bottles strewn about the place. It seems like addiction sort of runs in the family.

When she later gets hired at JDS I think she applied behind Sammy's back. He would not want her working there. So he's not really... on her side when complaints start rolling in about her unsettling art? In his eyes it'd be better for her to work elsewhere. I don't think he ever ends up seeing the fallout of that, as I think his ink addiction and subsequent inkfection and disappearance probably happen sometime during her employment. Which isn't helping her mental state! So there's nobody to stop her from falling into GENT's clutches, because her parents are dead, and Sammy's disappeared.

ANYWAYS TLDR Sammy is a bit distant from his family and tries his best which isn't enough because they're both neurodivergent and need a lot more help than the other (or anyone) can provide.

[viperwhispered]

I'm sorry this has been brewing in my head for a while and I need to share it with someone: Jamil and Kalim teaming up to topple to classist society of the scalding sands.

Post-OB Jamil and Kalim actually reconciling and having some character development. Kalim breaking down realizing that his coping mechanism of obliviousness did more harm than good. Jamil actually missing his friend. Both realizing that the problem isn't just their own flaws, but the adults around them. Jamil working on letting himself go while Kalim works to become more independant (he clearly has the skill + learning capacity, he's just been so babied he never learnt). Also, adorable scenario where Kalim and Malleus become besties over their shared quest for independence. Based on this, this, this, and this.

Kalim and Jamil's relationship becoming more genuine. Honestly, I believe that Kalim will end up sooooo sassy cause of Jamil's infleunce. Jamil using his sharp tongue and Kalim trying to do comebacks. Jamil just responds by giving a rating out of 10. Jamil finally getting the personal time he so desperately needed while Kalim slowly learns to genuinely trust others with his problems. Kalim finally letting himself get genuinely angry at his parents for how they managed to ruin both his and Jamil's lives by trapping them in a codependant cycle.

Kalim getting into his first fist fight with some classist prick and Jamil's response is asking if he won.

Kalim saying something very stupid and Jamil just giving a glare and it goes like this.

Third year rolls around and the two successfully schemed to give Jamil his rightful title of dorm leader without the nobles of the Scalding Sands rioting. I don't know how yet but I know it'll involve Kalim maxing out his "innocent puppy who just wants to do what's right" to indirectly shame his father for bribing Kalim's way into power. Nothing really changes much other than the fact that Scarabia is now running much more smoothly while still having the best parties. Based on this, this, and this.

They graduate and Kalim instantly gives Jamil the go ahead to be free. It all happens so fast that none has time to protest. Jamil spends a good two years traveling while Kalim does his best to learn the ropes as being head of the family. Based on this and this. Kalim successfully setting up a trade deal with Malleus and helping to open up Briar Valley to modernization. Jamil making a name for himself by taking part in multiple projects as he travels (archeological sites, restoration projects, reformation movements, etc).

The two reuniting when they're both called to work with Leona for his relief project in the slums of the savanna as part of his political reformation of the monarchy. Jamil helping to oragnize + plan the logistics while Kalim provides funding + trade opportunities. By the end of it, the slums have turned into a major tourist stop in the middle of a major trade route (sorry for the side quest, I have a thing for Leona keeping his promise to Ruggie).

Extra context: the position of grand vizier is traditionally given to relatives of the family head, like a brother or cousin. Ever since Jamil left, the position was taken by one of Kalim's distant relatives. This guy absolutely sucks at his job, is a classist ass, and clearly only had superficial training. Its clear he only got the title cause of his relation to Kalim and never expected to do much work. Kalim having to fix this guy's messes for years and being like "oh god is this what Jamil had to go through with me?".

Back to the story, Kalim spent years kneecaping the nobility with relative success and now has the ideal circumstances for an ideological revolution. But for this, he needs Jamil. So he invites Jamil, now famous worldwide for his sills & contributions, to come back for the fireworks festival. There, in front of all the major noble families (plus a few ex-classmates like Vil, Leona, Azul, and Malleus who're there for support), Kalim begins to berate his vizier and expose him for his incompetance and blunders, ultimately dismissing him. Then he turns to Jamil, gets on his knees, and begs that he take the position because he's the most competant person in the room. Jamil revels in the ego boost that is Kalim kneeling and agrees so long as he can negotiate his contract.

The two then go on a relentless campaign to topple the classist bullshit nobility and give equal rights to everybody.

Which brings me to the x reader romance scenarios (lets say thry discovered a way to travel to & from the reader's world):

Jamil marrying and taking his S/O's last name for an "official excuse" to give him his freedom. The Vipers may be endentured servants to the Asims but the L/Ns have no such obligation. During his travels, Jamil switching between staying in a shabby hotel and spending the night at his in-laws. His S/O being his rock and offering boundless support and patience. When Jamil finally gets the title of grand Vizier, he rejoices at the thought of finally spoiling his S/O like they deserve.

Kalim marrying an S/O who is both a sweetheart but also a maverick unafraid to do the dirty work. One who makes kneecaping the nobility a whole lot easier and puts an end to 90% of all assassination attempts. Kalim having absolute trust in his S/O and their methods. Kalim being relieved that any children they have will also go to school in his S/O's world where they'll be safe and able to live somewhat normal lives. Kalim being determined to reform society so their children can live without fear or hatred.

This took me a little while to get to since I wanted to give all of this a proper thought, but here we are.

Ngl, as a sucker for happy endings it is lovely thinking of how things could work out.

Honestly, just for Jamil and Kalim to open up more to each other would take quite a bit of work. I mean, years of habits to unlearn and years of baggage to navigate through. I really wish they would, though - and not just when one of them is overblotting. Plenty of learning for Kalim to figure out how to face the things he’s been shielded from, and for Jamil to express the things he’s been bottling up.

Oh but that thought of Kalim “sassing up” because of Jamil is so amusing tho. Him trying to emulate Jamil, which would just get Jamil even more frustrated - is Kalim even going to take this from him now? Or Jamil would just be amused at the attempt, one or the other. But if they could actually get more on the same wavelength about it, that could indeed make for some real fun scenarios.

As for Kalim’s parents… Yeah don’t even get me started on that one.

For Jamil becoming the housewarden… Yeah that first pic kinda sums it up, doesn’t it?

Which makes me wonder: how much does Jamil want the power, and how much does he just want the recognition? Now my memories of book 4 may be a little fuzzy at this point, but iirc the primary motivation was to eject Kalim - to get back the blissful solace of those first few months in NRC without Kalim there. So I do feel like just being allowed to "flourish" and show off his skills and capabilities would be some balm for the wounds in his soul, so to speak.

But also, considering Kalim was able to transfer schools just because of Jamil, pretty much, I’m sure if it’s up to him he’d be well able to give dorm leadership to Jamil without too much fuss. Like, I wouldn’t be surprised if he got the position more because of a “only the best for my boy” attitude from his dad - or maybe it was supposed to be training for his future responsibilities as the head of the house.

In any case, I would assume the family wouldn’t be super upset if Kalim is the one deciding that actually, Jamil should lead. Like, it certainly goes over much smoother if Kalim instigates it and hands the position over, rather than Jamil rising up against him (because how could a servant possibly oppose his master, how dare). Tho it would certainly still raise some eyebrows, I’m sure.

(But like, while Kalim presumably has had to deal with his own brand of neglect / not so helpful upbringing, he still seems to be the sort of a golden boy who’s used to getting his whims, so.)

For Jamil being freed - to my understanding they would need to figure out a way to do it without it bringing shame / consequences to Jamil’s family (at least, based on how jp talked about these things). Like, Kalim would need to be “powerful” enough in his family to be able to shield / protect Jamil’s family from those consequences.

(As a sidenote, I do wonder how Jamil’s family would feel like being offered freedom from servitude / a different position. Are they under as intense pressure as Jamil, with their own roles? I mean, obviously it would be difficult for them to be let go without having a way to make ends meet, but I do wonder if they’re simply happy & proud of their positions or if they feel anything similar to what Jamil does.)

At some point I also made a post thinking that even if Kalim might not be able to dismiss Jamil outright (once they both come to an agreement about this being a thing they should do), maybe Kalim could still make up reasons to send Jamil out to travel. A halfway point to true freedom, and hey, at least Jamil would get to enjoy spending some Asim money for himself.

Ngl tho, I’m all for a bit of an upheaval of the social order in the Scalding Sands. Really don’t know how one could even go about making it happen - such change is slow, would paint an even bigger target on Kalim’s back, and would make for some very powerful enemies. Slow process more than a revolution.

Though, decent labor laws and prohibition for child labor sure would be a good start, considering what Jamil went through.

Jamil would absolutely get an ego boost from that situation indeed of Kalim asking for Jamil's help, but I do wonder if he really would want to tie himself to the Asims / Kalim again. Interesting to ponder just what would have to change for that to happen.

But the allure of power might indeed be enough. Now, how interested Jamil would be to effect change at large, and how much he's concerned about his own personal position... I mean, we've seen him very willing to use others, and his experiences (for a reason) have left him in a mindset that probably means seeing power equaling freedom and also as viewing the world as haves and have-nots. So he'd definitely need to start having more concern for others (and not just the people he cares about, like his family) to really be genuinely interested and helpful to the cause.

I’ve never really considered / seen a concept of the twst guys living in a different world than their s/o but still regularly traveling to see each other, that’s interesting 👀 I do love the idea of Kalim with a fierce protective s/o tho.

Ngl, there was a lot to chew over here, but interesting thoughts about the potential futures. I also have to admit that I’ve put much less thought into understanding Kalim than I’ve put to Jamil, so I’m very much open to rebuttals about any of my interpretations about him.

It really is a shame that so far, books 5 and 6 only gave us glimpses of change with these two. Like Jamil being a little bit more willing to let Kalim actually do things or help. I know, I know, it can't possibly happen overnight, but pls, give us something to see if and how things are changing - or if we're just stuck in a new, precarious status quo.

Also I don't know if you've been making posts in your blog developing these ideas but like you definitely should, if you've got this much of a concept. I'm sure others would be interested too.

ETA: forgot to say, but I think for societal change, Kalim certainly would have the funds for lobbying and charitable work. And he does have his own kind of charisma to keep that sort of stuff together, too.

Also for the kids with our world s/o... That certainly would make inheritance and things interesting in the future. Sure, if Kalim has his as you outlined, there would not be so much of a position as the family head to inherit, but still.

Not to even mention the whole literally growing up between two different worlds.

[fraudulent-cheese]

For the ramble prompts, 1. And 7

You're very lucky as i actually have access to my computer currently!!!

I'll pick 7, as i've already seen some people point out the differences between the twins but NO Staci analysis posts!

So. Staci. What the fuck is up with her. Why did she think lying about her family on a consistent basis and not helping in challenges would work? How exactly did that make her think it was the best she could do, to the point she thought she "was doing so well" (quoting her at her own elimination) after that first day?

I think Staci's goal while on the show was to win via social game - or at least, make friends on the show. Her lying could be due to either 1. wanting attention from them, so she started making shit up to make herself look more important or 2. she actually believes what she says and just wants to impress people with her family history. I don't think i can conclusively say which one canon's leaning into? Realistically, her exaggerating her family's achievements is the more likely option, but her actually believing them would be more tragic.

HOWEVER. Just looking at her one episode of content + her audition tape isn't enough. We need to look at her contestant biography.

YEAH IM GOING THERE! If you weren't aware, for the first 5 (6?) seasons of TD as well as TDRR, there were official biographies for every contestant depending on the season, all of which were available on the official (now defunct) Total Drama Website. I'd consider the information featured in all but two of these biographies canon, as they either came from the official website (ROTI + WT), the Teletoon site (TDAS + TDPI) or from Total Drama: Totally Interactive! Im unsure about the canonicity of the Action bios and the TDRR blurbs (because yeah. they're just blurbs. sad.) as they were released only on Cartoon Network's site and the Action bios have... inconsistencies with other sources, let's say.

Thankfully, Staci was lucky enough to be a gen 2 contestant, so she gets the most detailed contestant answers biography model, so i can get alooot more info out of them.

I'll get the smaller observations out first:

In her last answer, she mentions her great-great-aunt Mildred and how she "told the first lie." I could look into how this could be Staci's least favorite relative (as she does seem to value truth/honesty), but also what if that's Blaineley? Her legal name's Mildred after all! It would be really funny! We need more "Staci and her great aunt Mildred" content STAT

She seems to really like pop music

The only answer not related to lying or to her family is the First Job question, instead it's foreshadowing to her elimination

Now, for a larger one: She barely talks about herself in these answers. Sure, she answers the questions, but she spends the vast majority of her time talking about her family instead. She manages to link the fucking Favorite Color and Food question to them! Her love of her family is made very clear here. Knowing about them is literally what she picks out as her Best Quality!

...but only her distant relatives. No mention of closer grandparents, sisters, nephews/nieces, aunts/uncles, and only a single indirect mention of a mother. Only distant, mostly older family members and cousins. And she had to have met some of them! Her Craziest Dream answer describes a dream where her great-great-uncle Charlie was telling her lies, implying they've met and talked before! So where's the mention of her closer family members?

I'd say it's because if those family members are further away, or if they're dead, it's harder to fact-check what she's saying so her peers wouldn't find out it's at best an exaggeration and at worst an outright lie.

I think the answers that show this the most well are the Best Memory and Most Embarrassing School Moment, her presentation on an older family member and realizing the topic was a lie.

This feels like something that would happen earlier in life to me? Maybe primary school level, or even earlier. If she made her entire class project on it, she had to believe in it, right? Despite how absurd that notion is! This indicates to me that Staci was/is very naive, and her love for her family started in childhood. She seems very interested in her own family's history, to the point of exaggerating their accomplishments; maybe her great-great-aunt Lois created a plate design patent or her Great-great-uncle Jason simply looked into the history of the letter E, so either Staci exaggerated them to seem more interesting, or her family members would exaggerate these achievements at family reunions as jokes or something and little Staci just believed them.

Im also unsure on her family being good or not... her Dream Date answer is apparently Richard Nixon because she'd want to learn more about his life, specifically citing that he "reminds [her] of [her] third cousin once removed, Andrew." If you know anything about recent US political history, that is not a good thing. This also shows she has some interest in politics/recent history/other people's lives! This girl does have interests!!!

And this is where i bring up the Favorite Movie answer. The movie it's based on, according to the wiki, is "The Invention of Lying", a 2009 movie. skimming the Wikipedia article, it's a romantic comedy film about a guy with the ability to lie in a world where people can only tell the truth. He first abuses this power for selfish gain but in the romantic resolution decides to not lie to benefit himself and lets his love interest actually choose to be with him.

I think the reason why Staci likes this movie so much is the romantic resolution; this is what she'd want to happen if/when she'd reveal how her family's achievements are either fake or exaggerated to her friends, and they would stay. That she'd get people interested in her with those lies, before actually being honest with them when they're closer... But it never happened with anyone on the show.

TLDR, i need this girl to realise she doesn't need to lie so much about her family for others to like her, as hiding behind masks won't get you any real friends. Something that applies to the majority of the roti girls, actually.

[runawaymun]

End of Year Fic Recs <3

Happy New Year y'all!!!! I got tagged by both @deadqueernoldor & @camille-lachenille for this and what better day to fill it out than December 31st.

I must confess I haven't had the time or energy to read a lot of fics this year, but this is a great excuse to look back on the ones I have read and sort through my bookmarks!!!! I am going to cheat for some of these, purely because I'm very behind on fic reading. So not all of these will be fics that were posted this year, but they're fics that I read this year and loved.

So here we go with some recs:

Recommend up to 5 series or multi-chapter fics from 2023 that everyone should read (multi-year WIPs count, if the last update was in 2023).

Prefacing this by saying that I have not kept up with a lot of multichaptered fics this year 😭 but I will try to rec some that I have been religiously reading!

1. Sacrifice - Sekikaru (unsure if the author is on tumblr, nothing comes up for the tag!) [Original Fiction]

Hanyu is a human who has been delivered as a sacrifice to one of the powerful seafaring beings his people worship as gods. Antony is a bored vampire looking forward to a simple meal and a quiet new servant. Neither gets quite what he is expecting. But as old enemies resurface and the old order proves unsustainable, they might just find in each other exactly what they need.

Listennnn I read this on a whim while sick one day and it gripped me instantly. Every OC is fantastic. It's outstandingly queer. The author explores a lot of really difficult topics with incredible depth and care, and there have been points at the plot where I have yelled out loud or fist pumped. It's insane. It is so, so, so good. Rated E, though, and not just for smut. It can get very intense at some points. It is so, so so good. I've been meaning to do art for it one of these days.

2. The Secret of Formenos House - @jaz-the-bard

Once, Maedhros and Fingon were engaged to be married, before Maedhros broke it off for reasons unknown, and with his family took to the secluded manor of Formenos House. After their departure, only Maedhros ever came to Lindon to speak with his other kin again. The truth was that in the isolation of Formenos House a curse came upon Fëanor and his children, killing nearly all of them and leaving Formenos widely considered to be haunted. But when the curse abates from Maglor unexpectedly, he and Maedhros discover that they are now the guardians of two very sick children whose parents were lost at sea. Maedhros and Maglor might not be the caretakers Elrond and Elros need, unable to give them the spotless reputations they need to make their way in Society as orphans, but once the twins recover, they refuse to be sent to anyone else. It's up to the last remaining lords of Formenos House to turn the manor into a home.

I'm behind on this but it's Jaz, it's a Victorian AU, it's a kidnap fam. WHAT'S NOT TO LOVE. It's so good.

3. Aemond, First of His Name - @ellrond

Aegon Targaryen was never fit for rule. He begged with his brother to let him disappear, and his brother helped him. Said brother took the burden upon his shoulders to rule as king, and to crush the threat of Rhaenyra Targaryen. Canon divergence, Aemond is king and Aegon, not allowed to disappear for fear of inciting rebellion, has been sworn to his brother’s Kingsguard. Heavy Aemond/Helaena. Chapters with smut will be described as such.

EXCELLENT. STELLAR. OUTSTANDING. Prose, at times, feels just like GRRM's. The characterization is perfect. It's so delicious. I love it so much and the plot bunny is so intriguing!

4. We Will Make This Place Our Home - @leucisticpuffin

Elrond and Elros are sent to live with their distant cousins in a house that is crumbling slowly to pieces. They aren't especially happy about this. For Maedhros and Maglor, the twins are a rare chance to start living again. It will take a lot of work to turn a house full of ghosts into anything resembling a home.

Once again, a kidnap fam AU that I'm terribly behind on but enjoying nonetheless!!!! Excellent characterization and writing. I know I keep saying that, but that's what's really important to me in fics -- so naturally I love this one!

5. Vincarna - morgana-deryn (unsure if author is on Tumblr, if anyone knows lmk so I can tag them!)

When her life went from bad, to worse, to unbearable, she prayed for change. She could never have expected the answer she got. It came in the form of creatures that shouldn't exist, in a city too beautiful for words, in a heart that no longer beat. It should have been impossible, and yet there she was, living a life she wouldn't have been able to dream for herself. Elrond/OFC slowburn friends to lovers

Another one of those fics I picked up while sick and then really, really loved. The OC is a really well fleshed out human, with lots of wants, needs, trauma, and skills - and the Elrond characterization is perfect! I also really enjoyed the language barrier. It's something that gets ignored in a lot of these kinds of fics, but it's handled really well here!

Recommend up to 5 single chapter fics/one-shots (long or short) from 2023 that everyone should read.

Without the Leave of Thee - @jaz-the-bard

Celebrían is hosting a fairy revel, and she's determined to impress Elrond, who's promised to be in attendance. It's hard to hold herself back from stealing him away as the fae do to their lovers, but she knows it'd be a bad idea. But what is she supposed to do, when Elrond goes and eats from the basket of magic pears from her garden?

What can I say? This was a gift for me and it's Celrond + Fae elves it's like a no brainer. Jaz is a genius and the prose is so damn pretty & the characterization is PERFECT.

2. The First Water - @ellrond

“How did we first meet?” “You gave me water.” The first meeting of Galadriel and Elrond as a child is mentioned in Rings of Power. This is an incorporation of the kidnapping of Elrond and Elros by Maedhros and Maglor with that story. Not very happy.

Amazing fic based on one of my favorite moments in the show, and one of the moments I found most intriguing. The prose is really vivid and I just loved the portrayals of both Galadriel and Elwing in this.

3. Stirring - @slightnettles

Just a mostly sappy vignette for Rings of Power Valentine's Week. (Day 1: OTP)

Brimbrond is my other Elrond otp, and @slightnettles writes them perfectly. I adore this fic & come back to it often.

4. I Promise You You're Not Broken (I Promise You There's More) - @maglor-my-beloved

It is late in the evening when Celebrimbor is informed of the Elf who had arrived at the gates of Ost-in-Edhil and yielded to the guards, pleading to be brought to the realm's Lord. A strange Elf comes to Eregion. Celebrimbor meets a long-lost cousin.

So many pretty turns of phrase!!! So many incredible descriptions!!! I am just obsessed with the idea of Celebrimbor taking Maeglin in. AAA.

5. Braided - @glorf1ndel

Artanis and Celeborn are fascinated by each other's braids.

Hair customs among the elves!!!!!!!! Celeborn x Galadriel!!!! EVERYTHING I LOVE. Plus it is so well written!!!!

6. (I know, I'm cheating. I love this fic though!) A Million Miles Apart (I hold you close) - @raointean

"Elrond took a sharp breath in surprise. Eärendil’s fëa was not white-hot and blindingly bright like he had imagined the soul of a star to be. It was instead vibrantly colorful and full of life." OR Elrond speaks to his father for the first time since he left.

Listen. If you've followed me for some time you know I'm very iffy on my feelings about Eärendil. This fic made me like him.

Recommend up to 5 fics NOT from 2023 that everyone should read (oldies but goodies.)

Sugar and Diamonds - @nocompromise-noregrets

Celebrían, visiting Imladris for Midwinter with her mother, has a very important conversation with Elrond.

This was a gift for me and I'm obsessed with it. Celrond getting together!!!!! <3 <3 <3

2. bijebtorv’afâh - @arofili

Fíli comes to terms with his identity.

When I say this fic lives RENT FREE in my brain!!! The worldbuilding, the bead-making, Fili...everything is so good. Read it read it read it.

3. All The Ways to Love - @thatfeanorian

When Fingon is forced into an arranged marriage with a cousin he has never met before, he expects the worst. Soon, however, he will realize that Maedhros is not at all what he expected and might in fact be exactly what he has been looking for his whole life. featuring Mae's terrible mental health, Fingon's stubborn determination to make Mae love himself, and Feanor who naturally tries to ruin everything.

I know I recommend this fic regularly but it just hits all my buttons, okay? It's formative Russingon for me. I love it to death & reread whenever I'm sad!

4. All That Is Left - @tuuliii

When Nerdanel has finished the face of Fëanor she looks him in the eye, satisfied. "Some of my best work", she says and strokes his cheek. A tear glides down her own and falls to the while marble floor. "You left me. You left me and now all that is left of you are statues…” A story about Nerdanel and her family in five parts.

My favorite Nerdanel character study. It's so fucking good.

5. Under Strange Stars - @idrilsscribe

Barely a long-year after the Last Alliance all is not well in Imladris. Elrond's household has been dealt a crippling blow: a very young Elrohir has disappeared. After decades of false leads he is found in the Far South of Middle-Earth. Can Glorfindel rescue the House of Earendil once more? His task is not an easy one: Elrohir has no memory of who he was, and little interest in leaving his people's fight against the Black Númenóreans of Umbar ...

One of the first LOTR fics I ever read, and it's a favorite. I recommend this one a lot, too, but for good reason!!! The whole series is excellent and honestly just peerless.

Recommend up to 5 of your own fics (completed or WIP) from 2023 that everyone should read.

I actually haven't done a lot this year. Here's what I've been working on:

Beneath a Boundless Sky (WIP)

Set directly after the events of And the Stars Shine the Same -- Elrond’s two new wards both struggle to feel at home in Rivendell. The wounds from their slavery in King Frumgar’s court are still fresh, and the scars are deep -- and they’re not the only ones. Maglor is home at last, but each day he lives he is haunted by guilt and grief. Elrond is nothing if not patient, and he is certain that given enough time in Rivendell, all three will heal. Meanwhile, the twins set out to join Legolas and investigate the source of the mysterious Shadow which attacked Rivendell, but are held up in Rhovanion. In Greenwood, something evil festers beneath the trees. Only Lothlorien, protected by Nenya, seems to be safe...but for how long? Rhovanion stands on the brink of political catastrophe. Sickness spreads through the Misty Mountains, and to make matters worse...something is wrong with the children. A story about dysfunction and trauma, healing, the breaking of trust and of regaining it, and also the birth of the Kingdom of Rohan, redemption, and hope...if I can pull it off. No graphic depictions, some dark content ahead, mature themes.

This one is a continuation of the And the Stars Shine the Same series! Elrond centric, focusing mostly on the Peredhil fam -- but there are a lot of OCs and sideplots, too :)

To Partake (WIP, rated E.)

Even if it takes until the breaking of the world, Celebrimbor is determined to help Elrond feel comfortable in his own bones. He is too precious a creature to hate himself so much. (Or, the one where shortly before the scheduled mission to Khazad-dûm, Gil-Galad offers Celebrimbor a taste of his herald. Celebrimbor accepts, and regrets it.)

Based on the characterizations in Rings of Power, because I wanted to put the relationship between Elrond and Gil-Galad in the first season of the show under a microscope, but it isn't necessary to have seen the show to read this fic. I veer completely off of the canon events of the show after episode 5, and simply never return to the show's plot -- sticking a lot closer to the Silm.

There are several really difficult scenes in the fic, but I have tried to be very thorough in warning readers at the start of the associated chapters. If you really love Gil though this might not be a fic for you. He is uhhhhh--- well I am trying to fix him, but he remains a very large looming antagonist so far.

Really, it's an Elrond character study (exploring how his childhood trauma affects his current relationships with everyone in the second age, and how he grows into the strong leader we all know and love) disguised as shipfic porn. It's got me in an absolute vice rn. I've had such a blast working on it.

[ohwell-itsme-but-danganronpa]

Kokichi being related to Ishimaru

Apolllo: All the killing games were simulations (though Junko did die. She had it set up that once she was executed, life support would be switched off and a poison would be administrated meaning she didn't have to face them for she knew it would cause despair for them not to get that sort of closure. She made sure her pod was hidden as well). Kokichi got some of his leadership skills from his cousin, one Kiyotaka Ishimaru. They have different styles sure but he still learnt most of his things from Taka. He also learnt some from both Byakuya and the Imposter (who's impressed that Kokichi somehow managed to pick up that they weren't all they seemed). It hurt all three of them though Byakuya is hesitant to admit it to see him in V3 and the way he acted during it. It hit Imposter hard because they were one of the causes behind the tragedy which ended up with Kokichi being captured.

Ves: making kokichi an ishimaru is FASCINATING was he shielded from the grandpa blowback? Apollo: He's shielded dw! Kokichi doesn't tell anyone about their connection until he gets into Hope's Peak and one of them (probably Taka) slip up and mention that they're cousins or something

Ves: being in that family's gotta give him some WILD baggage around leadership, still how's he feel about having a cop uncle Apollo: Oh it really does. Especially when he gets his acceptance letter. He's tried to be his own person but he now officially has a (somewhat) similar talent to his cousin. As for the cop uncle, it's sorta awkward because DICE aren't the most…Law abiding citizens out there Ves: the ishimarus are canonically poor as dirt bc of what happened, but there seems to be a lot of pride in not turning to ~less scrupulous~ ways of earning money. the friction DICE'd cause,,,ouch

Apollo: It's something that annoys the hell out of Kokichi. So what if he's pulling stupid pranks and occasionally petty theft? If the world finds out he's connected to them, they're gonna expect it so may as well have fun. Taka's tried to stop him but it hasn't worked. Kokichi's got it in his mind that because Japan basically hates his family, he may as well give them a reason to hate him for more than any connections he has He almost turns down Hope's Peak but DICE encourage him to go…They regret it when everything happens though He forgives them dw

Ves: 'forgives' implies previous anger apollo don't do it don't break up the clown fambly- Apollo: At first he may or may not be slightly annoyed when he first goes to Hope's Peak because who needs some stupid school? He wants to go back to the clowns damn it! Ves: ohhh i thought u meant blaming them for him getting kidnapped Apollo: No he'd never do that he blames the man who ruined his family's life lmao When he gets out and remembers everything, he's pissed off. In the game he wanted to be someone and he gets out and finds that he basically had been but it turned out horribly The others find out and expect him to flaunt it only to discover how disgusted he is with the whole thing. He prefers his poor clown family thank you very much! He is slowly improving his relationship with his cousin and uncle but it's slow

Me: what if the reason Kokichi is shielded from the association with Ishimarus because he's from Taka's mother's side of the family, and his mom (or it could be dad ig, but I imagined mom) was like "I can't believe my sister married a cop" and kept him away for the most part, not fully cutting them off, but they're distant, usually making sure to meet up without the old man there Apollo: OH HELL YES Kokichi purposely fucks with the law because A) It's fun B) He sees how much the whole distance thing is actually hurting the family C) He just wants attention from them and what better way than to end up at the station his uncle works at? Taka tries to reconnect when he realises Kokichi is at Hope's Peak but Ko keeps brushing him off despite knowing he's not to blame for everything Me: yes, cause, when I said they meet up without the old man, I definitely had them still meeting and playing together as kids, but as they got older they started to sense something is off, and their mothers don't get along as well as they tried to make it seem and instead just tried to still support each other despite their disagreements Kokichi probably had a lot of hand-me-downs from Taka when they were kids

Apollo: Imagine if that ends up making Kokichi feel worse because yet again, he's connected to the part of the family his mother is lowkey trying to make him hate or something Me: I just wanted to be silly and have Kokichi's mom say acab and be the one that gave Kokichi his values when this started Apollo: Kokichi: acab…Got it, time to break the law whenever I can Me: She just disapproves, but still loves her sister and they supported each other through rising kids Apollo: The poor kids [pensive emoji]

[minijenn]

Jen Tortures Herself With Every Dreamworks Animated Movie Ever: Abominable

Wow I can't believe Dreamworks made their own version of Up but without the Dead Wife and Flying House and with a Yeti instead of a colorful bird

Anyway, this movie was kind of a mystery to me going in, because I swear to god I've never heard anyone ever talk about this, so I had no idea what to expect out of it. As for what I got, well... it was... actually pretty ok! So let's get into it.

After the death of her father, teenager Yi has grown distant from her family and her friends, Jin and his younger cousin Peng. That is, until she happens upon an escaped yeti, eventually named Everest, after she decides to help the creature get back to his home on Mount Everest, roping Peng and Jin along for the trip. All the while, they're being chased by the wealthy collector Mr. Burnish and zoologist Dr. Zara, who are determined to recapture the yeti and put it on display.

So yeah, a pretty simple "get mysterious creature back to where they belong" plot that we've seen in plenty of other movies in the past. The movie does kind of fumble over more than a few cliches when it comes to that plot, and the characters, for the most part, are a bit too simple and one-note for my liking. The tone is also a little strange, with some weird humor mixed in with often heavy-handed attempts at whimsy and drama. The pacing is also kind of strange? I don't know how to explain it but something is... off about the way this film presents its story and I can't... seem to articulate why.

As for the characters, like I said, they're all pretty simple. I feel like Yi is a little confusing and doesn't really have a clear character arc? Like she just decides to help Everest almost immediately after meeting him? Like literally just travel across China on a whim??? What? I get she's an impulsive teenager but still, bruh, that's just wacky. Peng is your typical hyperactive kid character, and he grated on the nerves a handful of times. Out of our main human trio, I think Jin is the best, he's a pretty funny character who goes through an actual arc, starting off as a tech-obsessed stick in the mud before learning to enjoy the journey alongside the others. Everest is also just... your typical cute creature cliche? He doesn't have a ton in the way of a personality and he has these powers that are kind of just... whatever the plot needs them to be? Like deus-ex-machina yeti fr fr out here.

Our villians are... surprisingly interesting! We start off thinking Mr. Burnish is our greedy big bad capitalist when, surprise! Dr. Zara actually is instead and I love her cause she goes from zero to 100 so fast and yeah, she's a twist villian cliche but I don't care because she kind of a baddie there I said it.

As for presentation, this movie is honestly gorgeous. Like seriously, it is so damn pretty to look at. The set pieces are so vibrant and colorful and the scale of them is awe-inspiring. The character designs felt kind of weird to me at first, burt I grew used to them as the film went along, and they're animated very nicely. There's a lot of scenes in this movie that were clearly just Dreamworks flexing, and you know what? I'm not gonna fault them for it. They're beautiful.

Something else that's beautiful about this movie is its score. Yi plays the violin and that actually becomes a major plot point throughout the film and every time she picks that instrument up, we get some truly soulful, beautiful pieces. This soundtrack is nowhere near as memorable as something like HTTYD's but its still absolutely lovely in its own right, I think.

So yeah, Abominable was one of the more surprising movies of the Dreamworks watch. I kept forgetting I would even have to eventually watch it until now, but I think, for what it is, it's ok. I wouldn't call it great, but I wouldn't call it terrible either. It's a perfectly servicable film about a bunch of kids and a yeti going on a cross-country adventure. And sometimes, that's all ya need.

Overall Rating: 6/10

Verdict: Evil Unetical Scientists Can Be Hot Sometimes, Actually

Previous Review (How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World)

Next Review (Trolls World Tour)

[namelysane]

When Lloyd and hellspawn go out do they have to put on disguises? Do they also put on like contacts or something? Does hellspawn love dressing up or does she hate it?

Initially, Lloyd never really saw any need for that because he never once took her out with him after she was made...spawned?

Keep in mind this was after the Final Battle — a.k.a back when Lloyd had to show up to ceremonies all over Ninjago and was busy as heck. On the days when he was on break, he always spent them at Garmadon's monastery and never left because he was desperate for some peace and quiet while trying to take care of her. The furthest he even went with her was just outside the monastery.

And yeah, maybe also because the thought of wearing a disguise didn't cross his mind at the time. Sigh.

(Garmadon, teach your son how to shapeshift. i'm begging you.)

At Zane's funeral, they just passed her off as a distant cousin of Jay's from Edna's side of the family. And then the team split, leaving Lloyd to spend nearly all his time at the monastery during the first few weeks contemplating things to the point he really needed a distraction.

So the only one he was left with was Nya, who was basically like: Put on a hoodie and take her out to the park. The weather's good.

Lloyd: But you guys told kid me i looked terrible with my hood up.

Nya crosses her arms: That was Kai.

Lloyd, sniffs, looking away: Whatever. Still hurts a year later.

Nya, lets out a sigh: Lloyd—

Lloyd: Not happening. It'll make me look like a kidnapper.

Nya looks at him warily: What kind of movies have you been watching, again?

Lloyd pretends he didn't hear her: Or maybe I could grow a moustache.

Nya stares at him: I'm going to pretend you didn't just say that.

Lloyd: But I'll look good—

Nya: I'm disowning you.

Lloyd: I was joking!

Nya: Just wear a hat. I'll even buy you one.

And so, Lloyd went with a fedora and green contacts to cover his red eyes & started taking her out more often — with Nya occasionally tagging along. It's mostly just walks in a stroller in which he just pretends to be his kid's older brother who's supposed to be watching her. Overall, it's fun. One day there were old ladies who came up to them commenting on how adorable the baby was, causing Lloyd to be like: there's no way i made this.

And fortunately, she was asleep at that moment, so her eyes didn't give Lloyd away.

When Nya isn't there with him—and it's also one of those days he blames himself for Zane's death, Lloyd finds himself spilling everything to hellspawn and then feeling really bad about it later. His only comfort is that he knows she won't remember this—he really hopes she doesn't.

After s4 and pre s5, Lloyd started getting sick of having to pretend to be his own kid's brother instead of her father so he decided to dress more maturely to look older, even putting on a fake moustache & goatee to complete the look and took her to other places to not be recognized. Kai could no longer see his baby brother anymore & was sad for a week.

But after s5...well that was where the real challenge began.

After the press found out the Green Ninja actually had a child, Lloyd was hysterical. They'd been so careful, so careful and now it was all gone. Great. She's gonna go through the same thing he does now all because she's stuck with him for a dad.

She's only two. Lloyd can't make her wear contacts every time they're out and Zane says that isn't advisable either. And considering he can't keep her isolated on the bounty for the rest of her life, he decided to get some wigs, hats and literally anything else to make her as unrecognizable as possible.

And she hates it.

Well the good thing is, her eyes look more brown from afar instead of red, so there's no need to worry about that. She really despises wigs though. Lloyd eventually decided to just dress her in toddler hoodies — which he made — or cover her face with a blanket after finding that out the hard way.

And before s8 and some time after Lloyd's eye color changed completely, she started taking an interest in green colored contacts just to match him because his eyes weren't red anymore.

[aspec-vents]

Just discovered this blog and I have to thank you so, so much.

I'm a sex-repulsed agender aroace. It took me 20-ish years to realize this was an actual identity and I wasn't just some fucked up human reject for not feeling any attraction but hey, we got there eventually.

This is probably going to get long because this might actually be the first time I feel comfortable and safe to vent this stuff.

When I discovered my identity and came to terms with it, I came out to my mom first. She was and always has been so incredibly kind and considerate and made sure to actually learn about it. Eventually I came out to my dad and while he probably had the stereotypical "girldad" response of "good now I don't have to worry about boys" he was generally cool with it.

However, despite them being very supportive and kind, I still just feel like such a failure to them. I feel like I've taken something away from them because they very likely won't get to share my wedding with me. They won't get to be grandparents and God they would be SUCH GOOD grandparents. I'm afraid they might be afraid I'll die alone because I'm an only child so when they're not around anymore, there won't be anyone there to comfort me or be supportive like a partner would be. Cousins and family friends are getting married or having kids and my mom is so excited about them. It kind of taints the event for me to see her so happy and excited and gushing about things that I don't think I'll ever get to have and experience. I just smile and pretend to be happy with her but it feels like someone is dragging knives through my heart.

Part of me is afraid I'm going to live with them forever because it is currently next to impossible to live independently in the US. Not that I hate living with them but as I'm getting older and older I am realizing that some of my issues and anxieties could be a result of living with my parents still.

The world is just so geared now toward people being in a relationship and having the support of another person. I'm not blatantly out at work so thankfully this hasn't been an issue but if I were I feel like people would ask me to do more and more because I "don't have a partner or kids I have obligations to" or that nobody's waiting up for me so why can't I stay later? I also don't really have a lot of friends (undiagnosed AuDHDer so that might also have something to do with that) so it just feels so isolating. I feel like even if I do have friends, I'm always going to be a distant second to whoever they are dating or in a relationship with. I'm so scared that I'm never going to be the first person someone calls with good news or immediately calls if they need support, that they check in with before doing something to see if it's a good/bad idea, to, that they ask for opinions for things. And I just...I would never WANT to be that person for someone that is in a relationship with someone, it would feel wrong and I'd feel like I was getting in the middle of them.

I feel like so many of us feel like this, I'm glad you were comfortable enough to talk about it here! I hope you go through life being proud of your identity and having as many close friends as you want

There will always be people who value friendships over or on the same level as other types of relationships, you won't be left in the dust, especially not by others who don't want to date

[oddball-artz]

I am gonna flood your inbox, just warning you now 🤗

So, you want questions? I'll give some to ya.

1. How tall is Dalia?

2. If she was granted anything she could want, what would she want?

3. Any family? If so, who's she closer too?

4. How does she feel about colorguard? Is she good at it?

5. If she was friends with one of my own oc's? Who, and why would she be friends with them?

6. Lastly, if she was dared to eat dirt for 20$ would she?

Sorry for all the questions! I wanna know more abt her, and squeeze her like she's one of my blorbos.

Here we go, in order! :]

1, Dalia is 5'6, and she's also 15 and weighs around 160 pounds just to cover bases

2, if she could have anything, it would probably be peace of mind. She's usually worried about something or someone, and she puts her concerns about and need to protect those close to her above her own needs. She wants a way to just shut out her thoughts and have the peace her epithet can provide to others, but if she tries to use her epithet on herself it doesn't work, so she's constantly seeking out ways to get that peace, but her thoughts never go away, she can push them to the back of her mind but they're always there and she wishes they weren't. (Lowkey needs therapy tbh)

3, alr family wise she has a pretty big family(so many cousins but I'll make a tree later, I promise) but for immediate family she has 2 siblings, both younger. The middle kid is Esme, and she's 9, and she's pretty close with Dalia (even though some days she makes her wanna rip her own hair out bc omfg does this kid not listen). The youngest is named Jasper, he's 8, and he's sweet, but that doesn't mean he doesn't cause trouble, it's just that when he just does it's more sneakily than when Esme does it. When they play together, it's just basically this (https://youtube.com/shorts/7EVy_Bh6lNk?si=qKcONC0YZzcMUH2b sorry idk how else to link it) Dalia regularly walks in on them being like this and is used to it at this point. Her mom is pretty distant and is constantly working, and Dalia wishes she was around more. Her mom(named Avery) also just kinda pins her siblings onto Dalia whenever her dad isn't home. Her dad(named Carter) is a stay at home dad who's trying his best. He's got a lot going on, but despite it all, he's pretty close with Dalia. They have the same sense of humor, so if you put them in a room together, they constantly crack jokes at each other. He was on drumline when he was her age, and that's part of the reason she joined guard bc she wanted to be involved with the marching band like her dad. She looks up to him a lot.

4, she likes colorguard a lot, but there was definitely a learning curve. If you saw her at her first performance compared to her latest, you wouldn't think it's the same person. She gets super nervous before performances tho (she cried because of her nerves before her first real performance) but the more performances and practice she got under her belt the better her nerves have gotten(she still gets a little panicky before big shows and parades, but nothing compared to how it used to be)

5, Prolly Sabrina, i feel her idgaf energy would ground Dalia in a way(I have a lot of friends with that energy and idk why but it grounds me, so now figuring out why is Dalia's problem lmao) They also have similar music taste(Dalia playlist coming soon) If they were friends they'd totally send eachother fanfic for fandoms they're both in at ungodly hours of the night lmao

6, short answer, no (but if you push, yes.) Long answer no, and not because she's above eating dirt for cash but because she knows she'll probably get made fun of if she does. She folds to peer pressure pretty easy tho (people pleaser) and could probably be convinced to if you pushed her about it.

(Sorry this took so long to make lmao, and tysm for asking questions about her. Sorry if this is kinda bad. I'm a better artist than I am a writer)

[panie-wanie-dean-bean]

The last piece for Hybrid AU where MC gets injured (which i genuinely appreciate u both deciphering my drunken nonsense and also writing something so So delightful btw i dont think i thanked u for that yet so thank u! ^^) i got more brain zoomzooms to abuse! >83

That last piece got me thinkin, well moreso the accident was definitely a wakeup call for the MC, they should really take their life insurance and will more seriously! In case of their untimely demise, it would be her utmost priority to leave her estate to her darling boys (and a hired caretaker for Bo).

But I imagine being a "rich bitch tm" is no easy feat, I mean who knows wat distant great-uncle-aunty-twice-removed-cousin is waiting in the bushes for their time to strike and seize their assets??

And with how Hybrids are already stigmatized and discriminated against, how much convincing would it take a judge to relinquish those assets to them? After all they share blood (somewhere in their bloodstream), and a den of wild animals aren't "smart enough to handle a true human's business" they're just a bunch of strangers, pets, in Nick's case they could all just be paid for whores who took advantage of their treasured relative! (What was her name again?)

And She was so ill! She wasn't in her right mind, what with her grief over her parents, it was truly a tragic day when that random piano fell upon her from a 10 foot drop, as she recovered from...some illness or another.

I mean what are the odds of a piano being moved to the second floor of a beach resort on a busy saturday afternoon 10 minutes after she accidentally ingested a poisoned margarita and was fine? perhaps it was her mother who was allergic to pineapples- but in any case It was Tragic! surely!!

It gives her the chills just thinking about it. Having a greedy yet wealthy family is honestly like being born in a den of snakes.

No, she needs a human to help with it all, of course. Why not someone who understands her plight?? That Hybrid Rights Activist! (Im naming her Daun), I mean the first meeting was off to a rocky start, but she of all people should understand how territorial hybrids get, she has one of her own! A cat boy named Simoun, who sneers at the idea of gettin to know the boys, but, you know how cats are. They shall move in post-haste!

Daun is named the Executor, which means she's the individual appointed with carrying out the instructions, and affairs of the deceased, as well as an inheritor of an equal portion of the total sum of MC's estate, its only fair after all. (Idk anything about law but in this universe of my mind Daun has the human privileges of editing the will if she wants bc they're second class citizens. And she wont ofc! :):) why would she? :):) )

It's so exciting! To MC and Daun it's like marrying ur best friend, with the added bonus of fantastic sex! And Im certain Daun wouldn't shy away from getting to know the boys on an interpersonal level now, Simoun too! Daun's always wanted to be a cool mom, we'll be spending so much time together, if MC kicks the bucket, and Daun is left in charge, well, it's only natural that they be on their best behavior. Wouldn't want to end up homeless or right back in that dreadful shop with someone who is far more poor, and a hundred times crueler than MC, reduced from a partner to a pet in an instant... oh excluding Daun, of course!

She wants to start fresh after that terrible dinner party, So long as there are No threats, No blackmailing with that silly little information Barry found,

it's not Daun's fault her father was a part of a Human-Hybrid Crime Syndicate. She just has to live with it! And she already told her sob story to MC. All they ever did was steal from the rich and give to the *mutter*-er. Mc heard "Poorer". And ofc they dont harm anyone else unless they're planning something Really dangerous...like setting a hybrid orphanage on fire, or skimming a little extra off the top of-...the "charity" funds that Daun's sector handles.

So~ no biting or misbehaving.

Just Smiles, and Charity galas hosted on their new shared estate. where they're dressed and buffed, seen but not heard. Charming if they have to be, when approached, to get people on their side.

Once people's minds change about hybrids, it makes it easier to conduct her family's business. And If Simoun gets a little snippy, or bratty by breaking things its their job as the older siblings to let it slide, he was practically a little prince in his old life within the Crime Syndicate. Practically posted right on top of her father's lap 24/7 and spoiled rotten.

it also wouldnt be difficult to convince MC that boys will be boys~ she's practically wrapped around Daun's little finger. All those concerns of "manipulation" and "coercion" they're just territorial! Yknow how they were when MC was on that business trip.

But Im making it seem worse than it is, Daun makes it clear that if they're cool to her, she'll be cool with them, they can even pretend to like each other in front of MC if they cant seem to get along after a while once they settle in. Oop! If you dont fall for her yourself of course! She really is the nicest human! They can learn to love each other. She wont judge them for being hybrids, will love them as her own, spoil them for every birthday and holiday with MC by her side, play with them if they'd like! And look the other way when they engage in their bedroom affairs that would definitely slander MC's image in the eyes of the disapproving public. But Nick should know how hypocritical humans can be when they hire his services in secret! Hell Daun can use that if he's ever interested~

And if by some happenstance over a cup of tea late at night if they run into each other...she could inquire if, Bo...Jack... or Rory may want to help get rid of some threatening Anti-Hybrid radicals.

Those big muscles and sharp teeth can sure come in handy during runs-No? It's fine if not, it would just reaaaally help MC out, given that they're so mean to hybrid sympathizers like them during their shared campaigns, so many hurtful comments and the occasional death threat. But Daun's sure its probably just some edgy teen commenting anonymously for attention.

MC also wouldnt want them getting hurt! She loves them so much, and endures...so much for them to have a happy life, oh..they didnt know about that?? not even with Barry's meddling?? Augh, of course she would never tell them about it~ I guess Daun is just.... better at easing her burdens~! ^-^ Hybrid Activists gotta stick together after all,

So...just be a cute and quiet little lap dog, when Daun goes on her personal "business trips" okay~? Maybe MC's kiss on one cheek, and yours on the other? And tell that birdbrain in the pool to mind his business and mind his manners. Everything Daun does, she does for their little family here~

Yes, we can all be one big happy quirky little family! Just the boys, MC, and their lovely new stepmother :)

ignore the ominous lightning in the background, you know how it is with late summer weather~

🖤 nonny

(...genuinely idk where all this came from. I stg i wanted Daun to just be an innocent helpful bystander to the cute hybrid boys jealousy, but i guess her soul said "nah let's go evil (well chaotic neutral) mode" and wrote this instead-)

Ok, this is pretty neat, but I really hope you know that none of this is canon. I'm glad my au could inspire you to make all this, but my main focus of this au is for the boys to heal, not for a new villain to come in and steal their master

Again, this is really cool, but I'm not going to add onto it at all because this is your own au of my au where this woman exists (Also my y/ns are always gender neutral unless I'm writing smut)