myauntspen

[myauntspen]

OP, I don’t even know you, why are you trying to end me?

POV you catch your weirdest officers in flagrante

[myauntspen]

No, it’s fine, I didn’t need my brain for anything else today.

If part 3 of 1941 is not "A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square" coming on the radio and Crowley standing from the table where they have been drinking wine and coming around to Aziraphale's side and offering his hand to Aziraphale to dance, and Aziraphale looking a bit wonderstruck and a bit delighted and taking Crowley's hand, and they slow dance, holding each other so close, and they look into each other's eyes, and Crowley whispers, "Angel," and he's looking at Aziraphale's lips with all the wanting in the universe written upon his eyes, and Aziraphale with a face that says he's never wanted anything more than to swallow Crowley whole so he can Keep him, and they lean in, and at the very last second, Aziraphale stops them and they are standing there breathing heavily with their foreheads pressed together, and Aziraphale whispers, "I want to; oh God, I want to," and Crowley whines and tries again, but Aziraphale pulls back but doesn't leave Crowley's arms, and says, "We can't," and Crowley looks like he's been slapped, and Aziraphale looks so heartbroken and says, "They almost caught us tonight, and they would have destroyed you" and then continues so quietly, like it's a secret, "I don't know what I would do if I lost you," and Crowley tries to protest saying they can be sneaky, they won't get caught, they can have this, together, and Aziraphale looks so sad and says, "Oh Crowley," and Crowley knows Aziraphale is so close to agreeing and so close to pulling away, and he whispers, "Please," and for a second Aziraphale looks like he is going to give in, but he can't put Crowley in danger, so he makes his face colder, and he steps out of Crowley's arms, even though it nearly kills him to do so, and he says, "Besides, you know Angels don't dance," and Crowley remembers himself says, "No I don't suppose they do," and he straightens up and puts his glasses on and pretends nothing happened and says, "Of course you're right," and they nod at each other and Crowley moves to leave the bookshop, and Aziraphale feels like he's about to lose something so precious that he will not be able to ever get back, so he calls "Crowley," and Crowley turns to look at him, and Aziraphale says, "Perhaps someday...," but he can't say what he really means (some day we can have that, someday we can be together how we want, someday I will stop pulling away), so he visually changes his mind and finishes with, "we can dine at the Ritz," and he prays to a God that he, in this moment, hates so, so much for keeping him from the demon he loves more than anything, that Crowley understands his true meaning, and Crowley looks like maybe he does and like maybe he still has hope, and he nods and says, "Stay safe, Angel," and Aziraphale nods back, and then Crowley leaves, and Aziraphale is left looking absolutely devastated and heartbroken and angry, truly angry, for the first time in his long and lonely existence that he has to be loyal to Her rather than to him, and he takes a moment, takes a breath, and walks silently over to the radio and turns up the volume on the song and closes his eyes and gives himself that moment to remember what it felt like to be held, to be loved, to imagine what saying yes would bring, then honestly what is even the point of all of this?

[myauntspen]

Just a little note for artists, writers, and creators of all kinds: it’s okay and normal for other people to like your work more than you do!

When that happens, it’s not because we just haven’t noticed some fatal flaw. It’s because we aren’t comparing it to whatever “perfect” conception of it you have in your mind. Also because different people have different ideas of perfection.

So if someone loves what you do, just know that they see it for what it is and you deserve the appreciation!

[myauntspen]

For anyone who enjoyed this test, FYI, there are apps called I Love Hue and I Love Hue Too (by Zut!) that are basically gamified versions of this. It’s SO satisfying when you get all the colors slotted into place!

How well do you see color?

I’m cry I scored 60, I feel blind

[myauntspen]

Oh, I LOVE A Portrait in Synesthesia and I can’t wait to read the rest of these! Thank you for posting this, OP!

Good Omens Fan Fic Friday (Nov 15, 2024) - Current Best of the Best

After too much frustration trying to find fics I loved but lost track of, I started using a spreadsheet. I rate everything I read. But for a few fics, the highest rating isn't enough. So I highlight them. These are the fics that kept me thinking. That "love" is not too strong a word for. Fics that I can't imagine ever forgetting. I'm sure the list will grow longer. Because writers keep writing. But this is my list today. First, is A Portrait in Synesthesia (M) by DiminishingReturns. In this remarkable, canon adjacent tale, God creates earth over and over, making subtle changes each time. Despite the differences, Crowley and Aziraphale always manage to find each other using their synesthetic senses. Lovely. And romantic. Next is My Favorite Ghost (T) also by DiminishingReturns with art by cassieoh_draws. Aziraphale and Crowley are discorporated. When Aziraphale finally gets his new body and returns to earth, it's hundreds of years later and everything has changed. Worst of all, Crowley is nowhere to be found. A lovely post-apocalyptic tale in which humans act on their better natures. A heartwarming read for difficult times. In So Much Discounted (T) WanderingAlice, Crowley disappears just after a discussion about love. And it's up to Aziraphale to bring him back. Don't want to give too much away. But we get to enjoy BAMF!Aziraphale if being a badass means you're steeped in love. And there is some amazing Crowley characterization. And finally, an AU story, Echo by snae_b. Each morning, barista Aziraphale wakes up and goes to work. But why does the chauffeur, Crowley, seem so familiar even though they have never met. Surprising. I could absolutely see this being a movie or mini-series.

[myauntspen]

Fucking ouch!

Doomsday

[myauntspen]

This too shall pass but like holy fuck

[myauntspen]

Just a reminder that Aziraphale didn't give up in the face of Satan and neither can we.

[myauntspen]

word on the street is that you have to keep living

[myauntspen]

👀

six thousand years is a hell of a slowburn huh 🔥

[myauntspen]

Gorgeous!

Another year, another geeky pumpkin. Happy Halloween!

In-progress and glowing versions under the cut...

[myauntspen]

I don’t know whether SoHo retailers host a trick-or-treat or not, but if they do I imagine Aziraphale standing outside the shop door with a great big bowl full of various finely-crafted and beloved sweets from around the world (lovely European chocolates, hand-pulled salt water taffy from New England, the most unusually flavored Japanese KitKats, Kendal mint cakes, Indian halwa and barfi…). He won’t wait inside for the kids to come calling (where they’d be uncomfortably close to the books), he’ll be offering goodies to every passerby right out on the pavement.

Crowley will show up to complain about having to stand outside all evening and greet children instead of drinking several bottles of wine together. He’ll do that whenever he’s out of earshot of any children, but each trick-or-treater will be delighted by his reactions to their costumes (“Oh no, a devil, how TERRIFYING!”, “Did this duck wander all the way over here from St. James’s Park?”, “I knew you were Rose Nyland immediately and, seriously, yours is my favorite costume of all, not even close.”)

They will both love every moment.

[myauntspen]

That’s adorable and I’m adding some photos I took of that bench a couple of weeks ago after I found myself sitting on it. I hadn’t been looking for it and only realized after I’d been there a little while.

Their South Downs bench will be the one from St James Park!

Today I headcanonned that the bois (gn) will miracle their St James Park bench to the South Downs cottage.

Imagine:

(Art by @idkchatie, South Downs collage made by me and @0xlilith)

(This also means that all the scribbles you absolute vandals (I know who you are and I love you) put on the bench every time you visit London will go to the South Downs as well.)

[myauntspen]

OMG. Aubreyyyyyyyy! ❤️❤️❤️

What would Aubrey Thyme say to us all right now?

[myauntspen]

I endorse these sentiments so wholeheartedly! Including the “fell in love with the filler” part!

Ngl, I'm scared about Season 3.

So much of what I loved about Season 2 was all the character development, the "filler" (minus a few moments that felt like unnecessary jokes, but that's a whole 'nother post.) How queer it was, how much it didn't hurry to further the plot like I felt like Season 1 did.

I came into Good Omens as as Gaiman fan, and as happy as I am that he's essentially no longer involved, I don't know what to make of the Pratchet Estate taking on a major role. Yes, I know TP wrote as much if not more than Gaiman when it comes to the book. But it's the show I fell in love with.

All that said:

I know David and Michael, the latter especially, took a fairly platonic script Good Omens Season 1, and made it very romantic.

I know they acted the fuck out of a Zoom call for three seasons and it's still one of the funniest things I've seen.

I saw Michael Fucking Sheen cold read an entire play for a 500 person audience. And he fucking killed it.

I saw David Fucking Tennant play a character that has been played countless times. And the audience still fucking GASPED at a key moment in the play.

I don't know the new producers enough to fully trust them yet. And that's okay.

But I trust David and Michael as actors. And for now that is enough.

[myauntspen]

LOVE these!!

Good omens fan arts from 2023 autumn I drew in delight after watching the show

"The after"

"Before Christmas"

It still gives me strong late autumn vibes before current november :')

[myauntspen]

This makes so much sense!

The Night That Changed an Angel (or, why does Aziraphale still wear that shabby vest?)

Mini-Meta Musing (#4)

I've been brooding for a long time about, of all things, Aziraphale's worn velvet vest and the long cream jacket he's kept in "tip top condition for over 180 years now." I love the sweet familiarity, but this is the same angel who popped across the Channel and almost lost his fluffy-topped head in 1793 for dressing like an aristocrat.

"I have standards!"

He's the height of elegance, extravagance even. A dandy. We've seen the same at the Globe Theater 1601, Edinburgh 1827, and even as a Knight of the Round Table in 527 Essex, where he's wearing a glorious pelt across his shoulders! However, sometime after Edinburgh 1827, Aziraphale's stylish extravagance ends. He adopts the dress of distinguished but modest gentility. No seamstresses strain their eyes for days hand stitching ruffles and trims for him any longer. When we next see him in 1862, his clothing is refined, simple, and serviceable. It becomes his uniform, with only minor replacements. Why? What happened to change him?

Edinburgh 1827 happened. And his encounter with tragedy ran over his sensibilities like a locomotive.

Aziraphale had, we were told, saved his earnings over time and had bought land, invested wisely, and became quite well off. He used real money, not miracles, to build the bookshop, paying the builders well and taking care of bills honestly. He built himself up to a more than comfortable lifestyle, from nearly nothing. And his clothes are real, not miracled from nothingness like Crowley's. (source: original showrunner)

Aziraphale's wealth allows him to afford luxurious tailoring and fancy shoes and ruffles and trims. He'll certainly pay the cobblers and tailors and seamstresses well for their labors. It will be a substantial expense for the era. (The linked post gives a wonderful perspective on 1793 lifestyles and costs.)

https://agoodflyting.tumblr.com/post/753227014283083776/why-aziraphales-white-satin-pumps-are-ridiculous

The angel's Edinburgh multilayered and trimmed top coat, soft leather gloves, matching scarf, jacquard vest, silk cravat, etc., look entirely out of place in the back alleys where the poor huddle. Walking the clean, gas-lit avenues with Crowley and Elspeth, Aziraphale is oblivious to the privilege he has in this world.

As he strolls along in philosophical banter with Crowley about the "blessing" of poverty, the angel spouts trite pontifications created by the rich to justify poverty. He genuinely believes Elspeth has more opportunities for goodness.  After all, look at Wee Morag.  He respects her goodness tremendously.  It proves to him his “rightness.”  And so he sabotages Elspeth’s attempt to sell the body she dug up in her attempt to support Wee Morag.  Dalrymple gets no body, Elspeth gets no money, and Aziraphale believes he’s saving her soul.

It’s a poignant moment, though, when Aziraphale cradles the jar containing a tumor from a seven year old child who died because there wasn’t enough medical knowledge to save him.  Turning point number one.  It becomes Real, not a philosophical debate.  Selling stolen bodies puts good in the world.  He’s all for it now, and goes back to encourage Elspeth.  Good heavens, he’s even willing to help this time!

But, as we know, it all goes wrong.  Wee Morag is shot by a grave gun, and dies of her injuries.  Elspeth steals laudanum, and plans suicide.  Crowley drinks the laudanum, saves her in a compassionate Scottish frenzy, and is stolen away by hell because of his kindness.   And it is All. Aziriphale’s. Fault.

Turning point number two.  Another watershed moment where Aziraphale’s world changes again.

One of Crowley’s last earthly acts, before getting plunged into hell, is to have Aziraphale give Elspeth all of his pocket money.  What is pocket money to the angel is a fortune to her, one that can set her up for a better life.  I have no doubt that in the aftermath of the traumas of that night, missing and worrying about Crowley, Aziraphale thinks about all of this.  He considers all of the money he casually spends on fine clothing and expensive tailoring.  He wonders how many lives could change if that money was better spent on helping to relieve the poverty that surrounds him.  He wants to help, and to try to make amends for the harm he caused.  What would Crowley do, if he were free to be kind? And so Aziraphale changes.

I’d love to know the story of how it all played out.  Did he sell his fine clothing and donate the proceeds?  Did he become involved in charitable foundations?  Did he buy the clothing of a simple gentleman and decide to preserve it, however worn it became, as a reminder to himself of his past blindness and vanity?  We see in Season 1 how important it is to him to preserve that coat. (Sure, it's also a fantastic opportunity to flirt and flutter those angelic eyelashes... But, nonetheless!)

By Season 2, the angel who took too long justifying a life-saving miracle for Wee Morag, and who hesitated to give Elspeth his 90 Guineas, willingly and freely gave Maggie forgiveness for thousands of pounds of debt. I'd love to know what else he's done over the last 180+ years!

Whatever happened, it began that night in a graveyard.