#A Very Supernatural Christmas Challenge

[talltalesandbedtimestories]

“(Don’t) Hurry Down The Chimney Tonight” - Dean x Reader

Rating Explicit

Dean x Reader

Tags: Christmas (Holiday) Smut, Red Ribbons, Candy Canes, Peppermint Sensations, Sleigh Bells, Sexy Santa References, Dean is Tied Up, Edging, Oral Sex, 69, Vaginal Sex, Reader is a Naughty Little Vixen, Dean deserves a proper (sexy) Christmas.

Word Count: 2700

Summary: Dean saved Reader from the supernatural on Christmas Eve years ago. Every Christmas since, she has always found a way to show her unending appreciation.

Notes: This smutty little fic is a holiday gift for @jessjad for the 2023 SPNFanFicPond Secret Santa Fic Exchange. I hope you enjoy the reader’s sexy times with Dean.

Big thanks to @sam-is-my-safeword and runawaydr3amer (AO3) for reading the first draft and helping with a great many awesome smut ideas. Additional thanks to runawaydr3amer, who also beta’d this fic and packaged it up nice and shiny. 

Merry holidays!

I'm participating in @jacklesversebingo, and this part will fill my "Edging" square.

Resources:

Collage created in Canva

Pic found on Google (Fanpop)

Song Reference: Santa Baby by Joan Javits and Philip Springer (listen/watch this version sung by Eartha Kitt)

Dean sinks those pearly whites into the flesh of his bottom lip. His top lip pulls up and back into a painful sneer. The usual rosy, pillowy fullness of that mouth is instead taut, whitening under the capture. You laser focus onto the pointy canine denting into the mouth you have debated sitting on since you began this teasing challenge.

jingle

You finish fashioning a sweet little bow with the ribbon. It’s ruby red and velvety soft.

“Well, I think that’s about the prettiest package I ever did wrap.”

jingle

“What do you think, Mr. Claus?” you ask, your voice as innocent and demure as you can manage.

Dean opens his mouth and expels a slow gasp. jingle “Fuck, sweetheart. You aren’t playin’ fair.”

“That’s the whole point.”

You rise from the edge of the bed and take in the entire scene. It’s magnificent. 

He’s magnificent.

Dean is lying atop the forest green comforter of your bed. Naked. Well, not totally naked. A red ribbon - adorned with one single sleigh bell - binds his wrists together and anchors him to the headboard. His arms, jutting out and bent to create a diamond-shaped frame around his face, give you a prime ticket to the gun show. Biceps flex and tendons raise under the skin as he tries to remain as motionless as possible.

jingle

You aren’t a complete heathen. He’s got a fluffy pillow, the same deep green color as the comforter, to rest his head atop. Dean is anything but sleepy. He’s wound up. He stares back at you, the green of his irises electric and flaming with intensity.

You anticipate how sublime it will feel to strum the cords of his neck. Tickle your fingertips down that chest. You imagine Dean ring-a-ding-dinging and cursing himself if you take the time to trace the outline of his tattoo. Circle those perky nipples. Dip into his belly button and follow his treasure trail of baby-fine hair.

You marvel again at the other ribbon that you tied. You’d purchased a couple yards of red velvet at the craft store weeks ago with this in mind. With him in mind. You were ecstatic it had been enough to criss-cross around the crease below that fine ass. It wraps over a slight vee along his waist. The makeshift holiday jockstrap has Dean’s beautiful, now fully erect, cock sporting a bow.

Dean sighs. “Are you done decking my balls?” jingle

You giggle and fiddle with the belt of your robe. It’s red as well, but made of silk. “As we discussed, the end result of all of this is all up to you. Santa.” You flip a switch to turn off the ceiling light. The sconces stay on above the headboard. Two halos figure eight over Dean’s beautiful body, awash in a warm amber glow.

He’s a full print ad of holiday cheer and sinful debauchery.

“You’re being very naughty, (jingle) Mrs. Claus.” Dean licks his top lip—your core clenches at the deep timbre of his scolding. 

You’ve been wet since you both finished Christmas dinner. Since you told him you had one more gift for him waiting upstairs. Since you left him in the bedroom with orders to strip while you changed in the bathroom. Since you pulled out the ribbons. Since you explained that if he was good and could keep his jingling down to a minimum through what you had planned, you’d fuck him into the New Year.

You inhale and shrug, then begrudgingly turn your back to the sight. It takes a few taps on your phone for you to get to the song. You stifle another giggle at the little jingles Dean can’t help as he waits. 

Once you tap the play button, the festive and recognizable melody begins. A barbershop quartet bah-bums a bit before the sultry and smooth vocals of Eartha Kitt take the lead.

You look back over your shoulder at Dean and whisper along with Eartha.

You peel the silky robe off one shoulder then the other. Dean groans when the layer slips down to the floor. jingle

“Shit.” He moans and you grin in satisfaction at the hoped for reaction.

You turn back to face him, adding a dramatic hair flip. You're wearing a sexy little Mrs. Claus outfit. It’s a red velvet dress with a scandalously high skirt and a low-cut halter. White fur lines both the top and bottom. It’s all cinched nice and tight around your waist with a black belt and a gold buckle.

You bend at the knees and lean forward, shoulders folding in and hands resting on your thighs. It gives Dean the perfect vantage to ogle your cleavage. You purr along with the next line and modify the lyrics a smidge.

“Man, I must have been a really good boy this year.” Dean stares in awe, not even caring how much he’s jingling with his squirms atop the bed.

You let it slide for the time being, thrilled at the kid in a candy store grin plastered on his face and the way the bow sways with every twitch of his cock.  

Dean tilts his head to the side. His gaze begins at your red-glitter heels and canvases every inch of skin from ankles to thighs. He pauses, stopping to stare at the hint of flesh under the skirt hem. jin-jingle jingle jin-jingle He pants out, “Mrs. Claus forgot her panties, huh?”

You lift a finger and wiggle it back and forth in the air. “Uh-uh-uh. Remember, really good boys stay still if they want their present.”

The bell jangles no matter how carefully he attempts to reposition himself. “Son of a bitch,” he mumbles and you laugh. “Sorry, sweetheart. I’ll be good,” he whispers soft and sweet.

The heels tap across the hardwood as you walk over to settle beside Dean. You adjust your skirt to let the scant amount of fabric fan over your naughty bits. Being so close to him makes you forget the lyrics to sing along with Eartha.

You rest a hand on his chest. Through clenched teeth, Dean inhales at the touch, the rest of him frozen in place. The bell is silent. Your other hand grabs one of the candy canes you had left on the bedside table. For reasons.

Watching him fight every urge he has to reach out and touch you is fascinating. And the power you have over him gives you a head rush. You continue the tease, twirling the candy between your fingers, then laving the cane’s hook with your mouth and tongue. Dean garners some pity from you as he whines, brows downturned, eyes attentive to your every swirl and suck. You swing the cane close to his mouth. “Wanna taste?”

He swallows. “Wanna taste you,” he states, the hint of hope escaping around the edges of a soft moan.

The thrill of his need quickens your pulse. No other man has loved and adored you as thoroughly and exuberantly as Dean Winchester. You nod. “You will. But, first,” you rub the wet-slick candy cane over his bottom lip, “show me what that mouth wants to do.”

“You know what this mouth can do,” he reminds with a little sass, letting the candy cane tap against his bottom teeth. 

But soon enough, he indulges you. He slips the hook between his lips. His tongue slides out under the curve of peppermint, lapping at the sticky sweet. Again and again. Your breath hitches into your open mouth as you watch, enthralled at the ministrations of that thick and powerful muscle. He sucks the confection in a little farther, pursing his lips. The sounds he’s making, enjoying the treat, are downright pornographic and send any extraneous bell ringing to the back of your hearing queue. The red food coloring coats them like lip gloss by the time you break from the spell of his show. You guess it’s been minutes since Eartha finished her rendition of ‘Santa, Baby.’ The rest of the playlist you created has soft and dreamy instrumentals.

“My turn,” you cajole. You tug on the cane. He relinquishes, but not without some resistance. A little pop escapes his mouth once the hook is freed. You marvel at the progress he made. The hook end is substantially shorter and thinner than when he began.

He sniffs and tilts his chin up in pride. jingle “Your turn with that, or my turn with you?”

The cane slips back into your mouth, your fingers sticky from all the handling. You stand, kick off your heels, and climb back onto the bed on your knees. You grin as you suck on the candy.

His eyes soften. “Be careful, baby. Don’t want you to choke. Well, at least not on that.” He smirks.

He’s right. Safety first. You toss the candy onto the bedside table.

“You are so (jingle) fucking hot in that (jingle) outfit.” He grins and waggles eyebrows in anticipation. “Gonna let me down your chimney, Mrs. Claus?” jingle jingle jingle

The actions in the next few seconds are a blur. You wonder if Dean has some sort of Jedi mind control ability. Because even though you are supposed to be the one making decisions this evening, his seductively god-awful puns find you sitting on his face, reverse cowgirl. 

“You might get the golden ticket to all my secret places if you’re lucky.” Your fingers tip-toe down his chest like a grinch about to steal someone else’s presents. 

jingle jingle jingle

“Fuckin’ hell,” Dean murmurs under your skirt. Hot breath bathes your inner thighs and other areas you hope will soon be explored.

Your hands rest in the little divots created by his pelvic bones while you take his body in and plan your method of attack. You pull on the ribbon and release his cock of the bow. Then, you’re deep throating him like he’s your last meal.

Not one to be outdone at an all-you-can-eat buffet, Dean’s entire face gets in on the feast as well. Nerves respond to the tingling sensation of the residual peppermint on Dean’s lips and tongue. You shiver at the gloriously heightened sensitivity when he pulls back to blow on your pussy. “This is so much better than milk and cookies.” He moans and groans and jingles all the way. 

As much as you’re loving the taste of his precome, the velvet texture against your tongue, and the way the tip triggers a tiny gag reflex at the base of your throat, it’s time to remind him of the consequences of all that noise he’s making. You release the hard length from your mouth and try to concentrate on your own breathing during the absolute virtuoso way he’s eating you out. As much as you’d love his fingers to get in on the action, you know you’d have no control over the situation. You sigh in relief that he’s trying to adhere to some parts of the game. The pitiful, half-hearted ribbon shackling of his hands to the headboard is no match for Dean Winchester.

You steady yourself on wobbly knees and one shaky elbow. A firm grip around the base of his cock makes Dean gasp. He stills after that. In your mind’s eye, you picture the beauty of that mouth and how his luscious pink lips were slick with peppermint. You imagine how slick they are with you now. “Sorry, baby,” he murmurs and you feel him settle back onto the pillow. “I’ll be as quiet as I can. Can you blame me, though? Here I am, under your sweet little skirt, in the dark (jingle)... shit, sorry. But, you can’t drop a five-course meal in front of a starving (jingle) man and not expect him to wanna little taste.”

You squeeze his cock. “That’s part of the challenge.”

“I’m always up for a challenge. You always make me feel so good.”

You groan at the praise he bestows. Without releasing your hold, you shimmy off his chest. Channeling the prim and delicate sensibilities of Mrs. Claus, you crawl along the comforter and settle between nutcracker bow legs. With knees tucked under you and sat atop bare feet you accept him in your mouth again and get to work. 

You take in the sight of Dean inventorying your every action. He’s gripping the top of the headboard with both hands to steady his upper body. You clock that the little stinker has also managed to palm the sleigh ball in an effort to silence or, at the very least, muffle it. You consider that move cheating. But he feels so sublime that you can’t bear to part with him to voice your irritation. He’s also whispering the sweetest filth to you while he watches.

“Damn. Yeah. Those lips of yours feel so good around my cock. You take it so good, baby. Wish I could fuck that pretty little mouth of yours, but I’d definitely jingle-jangle way too much.” A tongue swipe over his top lip accentuates the glossy look of his ruby-tinted mouth in the warm light. “You really are too good to me. You give the best Christmas presents.” He stiffens further with each downstroke. “Aw, yeah. Suck it.” Your rhythm increases. “So pretty. Wanna touch you so bad.” He gasps. “Fuck, I’m gettin’ close.” jingle jingle   

You clamp around the base again and squeeze, freeze mid-swallow - your lips around the tip - as soon as he rings.

Dean squirms and grumbles.

You continue to bring him to the edge of orgasm, then halt. Your jaw is aching along with the rest of your body as time passes.

You’ve fucked Dean up in the best way possible. He’s blissed out, wound up tighter than a spring. You’ve got him begging. But his words grow into admonishments with each successive denial. “You can’t keep doing this, baby. There’s gonna be consequences. Santa’s gonna for real put you on his naughty list. Nothing but coal in your stocking,” he huffs.

You give your mouth a reprieve and stroke him. “Is that all that happens to naughty girls?”

He gnaws at his bottom lip before offering, “You really wanna find out?”

You nod.

The ribbon binding Dean to the headboard shreds with one mighty tug. He pitches the sleigh bell in the air. It jingles as it pinballs around the room. 

You gasp as he cinches those hands under your armpits and drags you up his body. He crushes his lips into yours, tastes you with his tongue. The mixture of your arousal and a hint of peppermint melts you in his arms. Then, a sudden and swift rollover pins you beneath him.

He hovers, tosses your skirt up to your chest, and wedges between your legs. His hard, heavy cock slips into your folds and glides through your wetness. “I could drag this out. Or.” It’s his turn to tease. He notches snug against your entrance. You’re surprised your muscles haven’t pulled him into you of their own accord the way your entire body spasms with need. He whispers in your ear, “Let me be your Santa, baby.”

You gasp, “And hurry down the chimney tonight.”

He groans in victory and slides in, balls deep. He thrusts. One massive hand gathers your wrists together on the pillow above your head to anchor you in place. Fingers of his other hand grip the top of the headboard. Every sway in and out of you gets more frenetic. You’re screaming his name and he’s cursing yours. 

“Good girls do what they’re told,” he states, out of breath, face reddening. His gaze locks with yours. He slows down. Releases your hands. Finds your clit amid the white fur and red velvet. Strums. Angles and hits your sweet spot deep within you with a harsh abandon. “Come.”

Minutes later, after you’ve both orgasmed, you’re curled into his chest. “That was…” you manage between heavy exhales.

“Yeah, that was awesome.” He kisses your forehead. “Every year, since I saved you from that ghost on Christmas Eve, you find a way to outdo yourself with the holiday cheer.”

“Well, you deserve it. I’m glad you can get away for a little while and get a special treat.”

He sighs. “You know, you don’t have to feel obligated to…”

You rest a finger atop his lips. “How I see it. Guy saves your life one time, you owe him the rest of yours.”

He smiles and pulls you in. “How about we just focus on tonight, yeah?”

You nod. “Merry Christmas, Dean.”

“Merry Christmas, sweetheart.”

[whispering-about-the-tmnt]

Current list of my TMNT Fanfics

✅ next to a fic means that it is complete

⏳ next to a fic means it is still being worked on

🔁 next to a fic means it will never be "finished" because it does not require completion (drabble collections, etc.)

I'm dividing these into two sections: fics in my 1970s AU iteration, and everything else.

1970s TMNT AU:

A TMNT Cookbook 🔁

Presented by Michelangelo, King of the Kitchen -- A collection of TMNT-inspired recipes and the very short stories behind them

Rating / Genre: G / Food & Cooking

Size: 5/? chapters (~2,140 words so far)

Notes: Ties into my 1970s AU, but works for just about any version

Duck And Cover ✅

January 28, 1977 -- When April O'Neil bought the building where she had spent her early childhood, she knew it was going to be a challenge fixing it up... but she never imagined that challenge would involve uncovering both evidence of the old owner's Cold War paranoia and a group of unusual "tenants" living twenty feet below her new property.

Rating / Genre: G / General

Size: 3/3 chapters (~13,800 words)

Notes: The first story in my 70s Au... centers around how April meets the Turtles

Other TMNT Fics:

A Cup Of Good Cheer ️✅

April is afraid that she got Donnie the wrong Christmas gift this year, but Leo tries to convince her otherwise.

Rating / Genre: G / Holiday, family, gen

Size: 1/1 chapters (~3,400 words)

Notes: Autistic Donnie vibes

All The Time In The World ✅

All Donatello wanted was a little more time to think…

Rating / Genre: T / Drama

Size: 8/8 chapters (~5,950 words)

Notes / Warnings: 2003 Universe; explosions, peril, guns, injuries

Displaced ️✅

An unprepared Donatello ends up on a Greyhound Bus to Springfield, Massachusetts

Rating / Genre: soft T / Mild drama, road trip, gen

Size: 6/6 chapters (~18,500 words)

Notes / Warnings: This was my first TMNT fic, which I originally posted some 25 years ago. It was written even earlier, though, right after the 1990s movies came out // Blood, guns, mild peril

Fleeting Thoughts 🔁

A collection of 100-word TMNT drabbles

Rating / Genre: G / Various, gen

Size: 10/? chapters (1000 words so far)

Notes: I know it is hotly debated what the length of a drabble should be, but I was always firmly in the 100-word camp.

Just Breathe ️✅

Raphael has a frightening encounter on a chilly winter night.

Rating / Genre: G / Gen, mystery

Size: 1/1 chapter (~1,500 words)

Notes: Fits pretty much every iteration / mentions of suffocation

Midnight On The High Bridge ️✅

The High Bridge between Manhattan and the Bronx has always been one of Michelangelo's favorite places to go for a late night ride on his board; but on this cloudy evening, he finds more than just fresh air and freedom high above the Harlem River.

Rating / Genre: G / M/F, Meet-cute

Size: 3/3 chapters (~8,100 words)

Notes: Brings Oyuki into the 2007 universe; takes place a year after the events of the movie

Passage ️✅

Leonardo has an appointment with death.

Rating / Genre: T / Drama, supernatural

Size: 12/12 chapters (~16,000 words)

Notes / Warnings: Originally written back in the early 2000s // Death and dying, gore, blood, mentions of religion

Red Dust ️✅

I had a dream last night. It was a long, restless, wandering dream.

Rating / Genre: G / Drama, poetry, gen

Size: 1/1 chapter (~700 words)

Notes / Warnings: Donatello-centric, Post SAINW, originally written and posted back in 2007 // mentions of death and dying

Requiescat ️✅

Leonardo died today.

Rating / Genre: G / Drama, grief, poetry, gen

Size: 1/1 chapter (180 words)

Notes / Warnings: Written a couple decades ago // Death and dying

Second Time Around ⏳

Two years after the defeat and banishment of Krang and Shredder, the Turtles and their human friends now have different, more personal challenges to overcome -- challenges that are made all the more difficult to deal with when Baxter Stockman and Karai pull them into a conflict that involves disentangling the complexities time itself.

Rating / Genre: T / Script, gen

Size: 19/? chapters (~28,000 words so far)

Notes / Warnings : A screenplay for a third Bayverse movie // Character death mentioned

Something Wicked ⏳

He felt movement all around him; something like the wind, though the air was dead still. He backed against the curved sewer wall… holding his breath as his eyes scanned the pitch blackness. The feeling grew closer, touching him… a whisper against his damp skin…

Rating / Genre: M / Horror, suspense, gen

Size: 21/? chapters (~64,200 words so far)

Notes / Warnings: Originally written and posted a couple decades ago, now being put under an extensive rewrite // Blood, gore, possible character death, whump, etc.

Still Waters ️✅

They say I'm the quiet one…

Rating / Genre: G / Introspective, poetry, gen

Size: 1/1 chapters (~200 words)

Notes: Also from over twenty years ago. A Donatello introspective.

The Bone Garden ️✅

You gathered up old papers, old photos… and you flipped through them, one by one, remembering…

Rating / Genre: G / Drama, grief, gen

Size: 1/1 chapters (400 words)

Notes / Warnings: Originally written on Halloween, 2007 for the 2k3 episode, Same As It Never Was, but now I feel that it applies to The Last Ronin, as well... or really, any story where one Turtle remained after the others had passed on // Mentions of death

The Scent Of Violets ️✅

Donnie and Mike are trapped underground with a memory

Rating / Genre: T / Drama, gen

Size: 1/1 chapter (~1,800 words)

Notes / Warnings: Written in the late 90s, early 2000s // Blood, severe injury

Three Million Reminders ✅

Master Leonardo and the other elders had told Casey about graveyards and cemeteries, but their descriptions had fallen far short of reality. In his life he had seen plenty of funeral pyres, lone burials, mass graves, vast tracts of scorched and scattered remains… but he had never been to a place like this, where families could come and visit the dead in peace, where mourning need not be rushed for the sake of escape.

Rating / Genre: G / drama / supernatural

Size: 3/3 chapters (~8,200 words)

Notes: Takes place post-ROTTMNT movie battle, as Leo lies unresponsive from his battle with the Krang

Under The Influence ️✅

Leo is under the influence of… something

Rating / Genre: G / humor, gen

Size: 4/4 chapters (400 words)

Notes: Just a silly little four-drabble story I wrote when I wasn't feeling so well a bunch of years back

When She Loved Me ️✅

She always said that I had his eyes. I don't know if I ever really believed her… after all, I never knew him. But I suppose they must be his. Her own eyes were deep and dark, almost black… reflective like mirrors. Mine are blue… light blue, like the sky...

Rating / Genre: G / Drama, gen

Size: 1/1 chapters (~2,500 words)

Notes / Warnings: Oyuki's backstory as I see it. Originally posted at FFnet back around 2000, though the fic is contemporary with the TMNTA Comics, setting its year at 1992 // Parental abandonment and neglect

[bullet-prooflove]

New Characters:

Evan Buckley (911)

Bobby Nash (911)

New Fics Under The Cut:

911:

Not Yet (NSFW) - Buck loves it when you tug at his curls.

Burning Down The House - You and Buck cause a fire during date night.

A Future With You - Eddie makes a realisation during a one on one game of basketball.

Cash - Eddie discovers your secret Instagram profile.

Cherry Lipstick - Eddie gets better insight into you during a social event.

Christmas Card - Bobby still keeps the very first Christmas card he got in LA.

Chicago Fire:

Crazy, Desperate Things - Jeff intervenes when your ex turns up at your door.

Wallet - Your relationship with Sam is discovered when he forgets his wallet.

Chicago Med:

The Call - Jack receives a terrifying call whilst abroad.

The Cat - Dean doesn't want a cat...

Night Feeds - Sam and you experiance life as new parents.

Cobra Kai:

Sick Day - Terry knows something is wrong when you don't pick up his call.

Love Story - Terry questions your taste in literature.

Health Care - Terry takes care of your healthcare siutation.

Recovery - Terry plays an active role in your recovery.

Honesty - You discover what Terry's been up to when you recieve some unsolicited messages.

Snow - Terry's son Sebastian experiances snow for the first time.

FBI:

All That Glitters - Omar suffers after a tough case.

The Holidays - Omar always thinks about you during the holidays.

FBI Most Wanted:

Socks (NSFW) - Remy has a thing for knee socks

The Good Wife:

Glock 43 - Kurt reflects on your past relationship.

JAG:

Twister - You challenge Mic to a game of Twister.

Law & Order:

Insomnia - Jalen tries to talk about your situation.

Law & Order SVU:

Interrupted (NSFW) - You and Joe are interrupted by his phone.

Orchids - Joe says it with flowers.

NCIS - NOLA:

City Hall - Douglas mourns the loss of an old flame after she elopes with another man.

Love Letters - You still keep Douglas's love letters.

Beads - Dwayne discovers your secret.

NCIS - Origins:

Revelations - Gibbs is surprised to discover a connection between you and Mike Franks.

All Dressed Up - You and Gibbs have a frank conversation about an office event.

NCIS - Sydney:

Night Calls (NSFW) - You call JD in the middle of the night.

Numbers:

Anniversary - Don has to work your anniversary.

SEAL Team:

Ask Me Again - A bad day leads Brock to ask a surprise question.

Supernatural:

Staged - You wake up surprised to find John's stuck around.

Tracker:

Seattle - Things change between you and Russ in Seattle.

Tulsa King:

In The Morning - Cal doesn't mind waking up next to you.

Distraction - You distract Cal during a meeting.

Sunset - Bodhi reflects upon your relationship as you watch the sun set.

Sex Magic - Bodhi thinks about how far he's come since meeting you.

Yellowstone:

Past Lives - Lee's past life comes back to haunt him.

What Comes After The Dog - Ryan and you have a frank discussion about the future.

The Fun Parent - Ryan discovers there are downsides to being the fun parent.

Such A Good Girl - Ryan makes a realisation about your undercover op.

Broken Glass - You think Travis is cheating on you.

[kvothes]

20 questions for fic writers

tagged by @pitzer thank you so much!! answers below the cut <3

how many works do you have on ao3? thirty-eight!

what's your total ao3 word count? 403,695

what fandoms do you write for? les mis, IT, and supernatural most significantly. a few scattered others. might try to break into star trek soon

top five fics by kudos: without a mouth i can swear your name (six of crows); witchboy (les mis); even if they could (les mis); visions of gideon (locked tomb); don't break character (IT)

do you respond to comments? i try to! sometimes i fail. but i do read and cherish every single damn one. i've been making an effort to with my latest spn fic bc the weekly format made it feel really special

what is the fic your wrote with the angstiest ending? i don't tend to write angsty endings! but maybe R + E, which leans into the separation and forgetting inherent to stephen king's IT

what's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? right now i want to say the most recent spn one, between the essence / and the descent. maybe some of the others are happier, idk. but i really wanted the characters in this one to get their happy ending

do you get hate on fics? fortunately i never have

do you write smut? as of very recently, yes. i did it once for an anonymous challenge and now for the first time with my name on it in essence / descent

craziest crossover? i don't write them that often. maybe this gideon the ninth / price of salt au, which was just a silly little thing i did for christmas one year

have you ever had a fic stolen? REAL ONES REMEMBER THE TIME WITCHBOY WAS PLAGIARIZED BY A LITERAL ACTUAL PUBLISHED AUTHOR IN REAL LIFE

have you ever had a fic translated? i have! i've been translated into russian, spanish, and ukrainian. i think there's a french one in the works

have you ever co-written a fic before? nothing that ever made it to publication. i was co-writing a les mis thing once but i backed out, wasn't certain of the idea we were working with

all-time favorite ship? i've spilled a lot of ink for exr

what's a wip you want to finish but doubt you ever will? SEVERAL. but most of them i do hope i'll finish someday! the one that probably haunts me the most is the sequel to my first ever IT fic katabasis

what are your writing strengths? poetic prose, fun dialogue

what are your writing weaknesses? plot!!!!!!!!!!!!

thoughts on dialogue in another language? it's very easy for it to be clumsy so i tend to avoid it myself

favorite fic you've written? right now it just has to be essence / descent. recency bias, i know i know, but i'm so proud of it and posting it was so so fun

tagging: @bloodydeanwinchester @charactershoesfic @carpettmuncher @lesamis if y'all want to <3

[justhere4thevibez]

I got tagged by @1lostsoul0fishbowl @pipergirl17 AND @pearlypairings weeks ago for this fic challenge, so thanks for all the love guys:

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love❤

The Interview A fun college AU that starts out with Chrissy meeting Eddie when she interviews him for her journalism class and devolves into fake dating and real falling in love. Fluff, angst, and humor bundled into a fic that's very close to my heart.

A Very Harrington Christmas Chrissy agrees to be Steve's fake girlfriend to help him get Nancy back over a Christmas ski vacation and ends up falling for Eddie along the way. A Hallmark-esque comedy of errors with Christmas shenanigans aplenty.

Hold Onto Me Vampire Eddie tries to help clairvoyant Chrissy figure out her gift - and tries not to fall for her while he does. Angst, supernatural elements, and my very first explicit smut lol.

Devil in the Woods A fairytale-esque story where Chrissy runs away from her family, only to fall right into the arms of the devil himself, Eddie Munson (who isn't quite as scary as he seems). Whimsy, magic, and a lot of hurt/comfort.

Long Is the Road Out of Hell I'd be remiss not to add this one, my most popular fic to date. Chrissy joins Hellfire club in the hopes of getting Jason to dump her, but with Eddie's help she gains a whole lot more than that. Hurt/comfort, Chrissy becoming a nerd, and the Mike Wheeler we all deserved to see.

I decided to only do long fics for this, because I never would've been able to choose otherwise lol. If anyone wants to see my top five oneshots, feel free to inbox me!

[bwobgames]

Previous First

Credits scene

It's been multiple months since the mansion incident

The legal case lasted a good while, but no evidence was found against any of the survivors, so they are okay now.

The blood did not leave their clothes. They got new ones.

Oliver Beebo wakes up another day in his apartment. While a lot of his nights have bizarre nightmares, this one was calm.

Even though they are no longer on vacation, Ángel still stayed on Oliver's apartment, but they plan on staying some time in the capital, just to see what it's like.

He uses all types of products he can find to heal his scar. Beebo doesn't mind much. it's part of the job, he says.

They've been living a calm and domestic day to day life, with ups and down.

The downs are, very down indeed

But the ups are more often.

They got matching tattoos of a sunrise, it makes them feel better.

Oliver has started taking cases again, but he's going for simpler ones.

He has told his fellow detectives to keep an eye out for seemingly supernatural cases.

Ángel has declared that he will invite himself to any case that involves a haunted house. Oliver doesn't fight him on it

They both have gained new fears

Ángel gets very anxious when they're separated for too long. He's also terrible at guessing what time it is

Oliver makes a great effort in overcoming his fear of heights. It's a work on progress.

He's also afraid of developing any kind of memory affecting disease. He keeps an incredibly detailed diary

They are getting help. It's slow and nonlinear, but they can always go to a warm home with a cuddly cat and a tight hug.

Vivi invites Oliver for an exclusive 2-player session with Ángel, as a test for his dnd abilities, she says.

While he's not that good at the role playing, he's very good at strategy. He really enjoys lawful characters.

They have fun.

Marigold and Nina were also invited. It made for a very chaotic group.

Ángel wants to start a new game so he can upload it to his newly made youtube channel

He wasn't satisfied with a normal 9 to 5, so he decided for a more creative job.

He's slowly rising, with titles such as "Doing the 100 babies challenge in The sims 4," "RLcraft hardcore for 100 days", "Top 10 facts about Dominion the jewel thief", "Finishing Overcooked with all stars ft. Vivi", and his personal favorite, "Speedrunning Escape rooms with my bf ❤️"

He claims to be Dominion's number one fan and sells plushies of him. Oliver will never admit he bought one.

Apparently, he is considered a cryptid in Ángel's channel, which he appreciates.

The now officially named Iraola family invites them to events quite often, it's very nice to have a friend group

Game nights are... quite extreme

Turns out teenagers can be very competitive and capable

Nadia and Ángel have a scoreboard set up. The winner gets decided at New years.

Oliver has managed to keep his throne as the master of any and all card games, but for how long?

He can't wait for Christmas, he plans on giving Simon a cool anti-eye contact hat.

Even though he's still terrified of the concept of fatherhood, he really enjoys being an uncle.

Speaking of such, Ángel had to meet his parents. It was awkward at first, but he managed to win them over with his knowledge of old cinema and pretty boy charm.

Oliver met the Ronald Mcdonald statue by Ángel's childhood house. He has a picture with it.

Ángel's mother was sweet, hardworking, and strict. She was not afraid of telling her son how he should be a better gentleman towards Oliver. It was... an eventful night. It's a good thing the lady enjoys mystery novels.

They celebrated Nadia's birthday in spring, cordially invited.

Everyone was sure Ángel would give her a gag gift, like a cd to a boy band she doesn't like or an ugly shirt.

He gave her a key code to an expensive editing software.

She was grateful but refused to say so. She plans on retaliating with an equally thoughtful gift.

They are slowly learning to get along, like a pair of cats that need to be separated by a door when they first meet.

In other news, Oliver recently received an autism diagnosis. He was very surprised. Ángel wasn't. He baked him a cake for the occasion.

The biggest event had to be the wedding

On a warm spring day, in the middle of a flower field, Marigold Iraola and Nina Coli got married.

There was some bad press about it, but a certain reporter was very enthusiastic about how beautiful of an union this was, unlike the previous one.

Marigold decided to disband Coli's company, making a new one herself.

It specializes in medical equipment.

They saw the newlyweds say their vows, Oliver couldn't help but yearn for a moment like that.

He and Ángel danced the evening away

Between the multiple friends of the wives waiting for the bouquet toss, there was a determined man in white

And like a cat to a shiny object

He jumped and got it

They decide spring is a great season for a wedding.

They don't decide which spring though

That's for the future to know.

In a non-specific urban city like any other, an office awakes

Oliver Beebo is ready to start another day on his detective business

[sgtmickeyslaughter]

Gallavich Intro Post

I just realized I have been around for almost a year and never made one of these so if you're interested, keep reading!

Name: Gigi

Age: 24

What made you fall in love with Gallavich? I found it so refreshing to see a queer relationship defy the odds and find a happy ending. I was so used to the 'bury your gays' era of media that seeing Mickey and Ian get married and live happily ever after despite all the challenges presented to them felt the kind of emotional triumph that makes a story really great.

How long have you been a fan? About a year, give or take? I know I started writing my first fic around christmas last year

Favourite Gallavich moment/scene? Probably some of their first scenes together, in seasons 1-3 where they get to be young and have fun together. when mickey goes to see ian after he gets out of the hospital ("sorry im late"), and the conversation they have in their old bedroom when mickey opens up and explains why he isnt as comfortable in the west side apartment, that scene showed so much growth for both of them to be able to sit together and communicate and compromise that scene alone really saved season 11 for me

Favourite Shameless character apart from Ian and Mickey?

i have a lot of characters who i respect or who i am sympathetic with at various points throughout the show, but Veronica is the character i love through every single episode. also special shout out to Mandy bc i have a crush on her, and Liam because im in awe of how the kid who played him joined the cast late bc of the nature of the character and still did so well with a central role

Do you write or draw or make edits?

i draw and write fic! i love to write and create drawings to go along with my stories, all my work can be found on my Ao3 account or my tumblr!

Favourite type of Gallavich fics?

oh gosh i love post canon fics, i love stories that diverge from canon to ask "what if x had happened" because shameless is such a complex show that if one event did change it would be such a different story. i like supernatural fics a lot, but my favorite fic by far for whatever reason is Boy in the Box by Mellow_Yellow on Ao3, its such a unique and bizarre story, the pace and tone is so incredibly distinct that it really falls into the category of fics that really could be published as novels

Favourite Gallavich quote?

"what you and i have makes me free"/"i wanna be where you are"

Anything else you’d like to share about yourself?

i am a very friendly person so if anyone has any questions or wants to talk my ask box is always open!

[elle-thinks]

Wendell and Wild Commentary - Tim Burton vs. Black People

About a month ago, I watched Wendell and Wild on Netflix. I know it's been a minute, but I had to sit on my thoughts for a while. You see clay-mation horror films contain a feeling of nostalgia for me, considering the popularity of classics like The Nightmare Before Christmas and Coraline. Wendell and Wild, being directed by the same master of clay animation, Henry Selick, seemed to purposefully contrast the image of Tim Burton's family horror genre in its capacity to include people of color. This purposeful and creative insertion of Black people, Black culture, and contemporary issues made me question the validity of my nostalgic memories and assess the messaging behind the film.

Tim Burton has occasionally alluded to Black people and characters not fitting the aesthetic of his films, when asked about his primarily White casting. That, folks, is a can of worms if I've ever seen one. Without getting into the psychology of his statements, they were very controversial remarks that served as a talking point within the Black community. Additionally, Selick's continued partnership with Burton gave Selick much creative freedom but resulted in primarily Burton's acclaim. Ultimately, Selick does not share the same views about Blackness in horror media, and he decided to reach out to the iconic Key and Peele with an idea for a new project.

Whether it was purposeful or not, (likely it was, due to Peele's progress in the Black horror genre) the trio would create a counterargument of a film to challenge the concerns of Burton. Though most would likely agree that style, artistic expression, and various aesthetics are raceless and genderless, a contemporary example is always helpful. In Wendell and Wild, we are presented with a Black, goth girl as our protagonist who certainly doesn't hold back when it comes to teenage angst and supernatural surprises. We are also shown a compassionate, transgender character who was pleasantly multi-dimensional in both the plot and in personality. The dialogue is filled with AAV, Afro-centric subliminal messages, and some hilarious, Black-inspired one-liners. There is also some educational commentary on the school-to-prison pipeline which largely affects Black and Latin demographics, and you can read more about it here.

The artistic style of the film and the animation quality was top tier. I would recommend watching the film just to see what an amazing production the film actually is for the eye. Additionally, there were interesting interpretations of various environments, like hell being an amusement park or a manifestation of consciousness being a neon green, internal landscape. There was a lot of creativity in this film, resulting in a whacky whimsicalness that children are sure to love. The new take also held my attention as an adult viewer, because I was curious about the world-building aspects.

While I personally enjoyed watching the film, I don't find it to be particularly memorable. Perhaps I cannot compare it to the emotions I felt while viewing the other aforementioned films because I no longer have the lens of a child. I worry the film did not gain the popularity it deserved in relation to other hits like Paranorman and Corpse Bride. Obviously, the Wendell and Wild is fundamentally different from the other films in many ways, but something about the tropes in the plot or the incorporation of progressive modernism grounded the fictional movie in too much reality. It felt very much as if I was watching a television special rather than a children's feature film. Though many new concepts were introduced, it was predictable enough to leave little room for imagination of the viewer.

Ultimately the film proves that Black writers, actors, characters, and other marginalized groups, are more than worthy of being in the horror animation space. As a Black viewer, I actually had a lot of joy watching the film and could relate well to some of the characters. Though I don't see the film establishing quite the same legacy as some of Selick's other works, I hope it serves as a pioneer for others to follow in its niche.

[i-write-hurt-not-comfort]

Aww!!! I love your new Ayato story. To be honest, when I read the tags and the description, it was very hard for me to imagine a combination between Ayato and drugs, but I was very wrong, because now I started to get addicted to this story as well as Ayato. The idea feels so real and doable. I'm even now convinced that if Ayato was human in the canon universe, without those supernatural powers and vampiric sadism, he'd handle the situation in a similar way, since there's no way he'd be the asocial loser in class (-: However, his super beauty as a vampire doesn't work here, and it wouldn't be realistic just to exist to have friends :-*

hey anon! thank you so much! i'm excited to continue it, hoping i get another chapter in before christmas. here's the fic for anyone wondering, it's called the basketball diaries and i'll ramble a lil bit here, don't mind me.

putting it under a cut for discussions of drugs

so i've been writing drug addict fics for a real long time now and i generally consider myself able to make any character into an addict, primarily due to my wide scope of knowing and under the pretext of "it can happen to anyone", and in dialovers, i've now written shu, reiji, laito, subaru, ruki, kou, yuma and azusa. hence i moved to ayato.

ayato has gone up a lot in my heart since i first found dialovers in 2017 and especially since my re-obsession era in 2021. the more i read him, esp LE, the more i learn about his strengths and weaknesses. he's vulnerable, he's got academic trauma. he wants to do well, he does, but he's scared of trying because he doesn't want to make himself look stupid.

and contrary to the ayato can't read joke on my DL server, ayato can read and i think he's pretty smart if he really wants to do something. i.e. his MB after story he DOES get a degree but it's for yui's sake. he has to have a reason. and without said reason, he's void of motivation and frankly doesn't really know HOW to try.

you're right, ayato acts like a silly goofy big strong vampire because he's convincing himself he's The Shit. he bigs himself up as Yours Truly, pretends he's the best, because his entire self-worth growing up was based on the assumption he was going to be The Best. and if he's not The Best, then he's a failure.

when you combine that mindset with a situation where he obviously isn't going to be the best, you have a perfect recipe to write a drug fic i think.

he can't possibly be that guy with no friends, he wants to be liked and the best. but most importantly, he has a deep intrinsic desire to be the best academically too. but he never learnt to study, he has zero self-worth, and starting uni away from his closest brothers (laito n subaru in this case) in a difficult degree is challenging. couple this with the fact i gave him ADHD bc ADHD ayato has my heart, he's lost. and because being the best in his mind is more important than his own health and sense of self, he'd be willing to do anything to maintain that. and if he found a drug which does that for him, why wouldn't he use it, yknow?

i won't spoil too much about the fic there by mentioning yui's role in this (bc yui doesn't appear until ch11 unfortunately), but this is an overview of why i'm so excited to write an ayato addict fic finally.

on a similar note, next up Might be shin, actually. shin has potential, mostly from stuff in his LE. because of endzeit, shin very much has this mindset where he needs to prove he's sick in order to get validation. like he needs to be sick to prove something about himself. obviously if this weren't canon then endzeit can't be a thing, but i could talk for hours and hours and HOURS about the "needs to be ill to get validation of health" trauma (mainly due to personal experience) and it'd be really interesting to write in the context of drug addiction!

[coraleethroughthelookingglass]

Ten Year Fic Favourites

As I mentioned in previous posts, last week marked the ten year anniversary of me posting fic online so as a way to celebrate, I thought I’d put together a little list of my favourite pieces that I’ve written over that time.

2013 - Heart (Jaime Lannister/Brienne of Tarth, Rated G, 7 Chapters, Fairytale AU)

Only a true champion and an act of love can bring back one lost to the snow and ice.

My very first challenge fic, this was written based around Hans Christian Anderson's The Snow Queen (and I think was posted around the same time Frozen came out - and after the multiple times I’d read the original, by the time I saw that film, I was highly disappointed in it)

2014/2015 - From Winter to Spring (Series, Modern AU)

Rush Hour Crush - (Dacey Mormont/Robb Stark, Rated T, One Shot)

Returning to work after Christmas may bring the same rush hour problems for Dacey but it also proves to be a little more interesting than normal due to the red headed man she quite literally runs into.

Sugar Plum - (Sansa Stark/Margaery Tyrell, Rated T, One Shot)

Sansa has jitters before performing in The Nutcracker in front of one of her idols, Olenna Redwyne-Tyrell. Luckily Margaery is there to make things better.

The first fics I posted that weren’t for Jaime/Brienne, both are just very fluffy and sweet. The first is a meet-cute, the second more of an established realtionship.

2016 - 33 (Jaime Lannister/Brienne of Tarth, Rated T, One Shot)

A Westerosi Battlestar Galactica AU mashup. One of my all time favourite things that I’ve ever written.

2017 - Found in Forbidden Nights (Jaime Lannister/Brienne of Tarth/Cersei Lannister, Rated E, One Shot, Canon Divergence)

And my other all time favourite thing I’ve written, which feels very strange to say given that when I wrote this the GoT fandom was plagued by shipping wars and a threesome with these characters was almost unheard of. I feel very proud that I challenged myself with this fic and came out the other side a better writer.

2019 - Carry on My Wayward Son (Jaime Lannister/Brienne of Tarth, Rated T, One Shot, Modern AU)

The Jaime and Brienne hunt monsters in the Supernatural universe fic no one asked for but I really wanted to write anyway 🤣

2020 - All Veth’s Fault (Caleb Widogast/Jester Lavorre, Rated G, One Shot, Modern AU)

My first, and so far only, step into Critical Role fanfiction, this is a Caleb/Jester meet cute at a modern day music festival. It came after a long period of writer’s block and was something that came together very quickly.

2021/2022 - El Tango De Rose (Rose Tico/Armitage Hux, Rated G, One Shot, Modern AU)

Written slowly during my pandemic writers block but not posted for a long time (since I’d psyched myself out of posting at that time), this is a Dancing with the Stars/Strictly Come Dancing AU where Hux is partnered with Rose and has to learn to dance the Tango.

2022 - Poison and Wine (Galadriel/Sauron, Rated T, Part One of Exiles)

My first Haladriel/Saurondriel fic written for this prompt by Scriberated - So… *awkward silence* who’s going to write the fic where shit goes to shit and in desperation Galadriel agrees to marry Sauron to save what’s left of middle earth? This was honestly meant to be my one and only fic for this pairing but clearly I was only deluding myself as I’ve written so much more since!

2023 - The Decurion’s Wife (Galadriel/Halbrand, Rated E, WIP, Roman Era AU. Part of the Time and Time Again Series with my amazing friend @somebirdortheother)

And this brings me right up to date as I’m currently working on chapter 4 of this Roman Era AU. This is the one fic I think I’ve done the most research for and it has been an absolute delight to learn about so many things about Roman Era Britain and the lives of soldiers and civilians up on Hadrian’s Wall.

The likelihood is if I’m still writing in another ten years I’ll have found other ship(s) to explore (or who knows, maybe I’ll have actually written a novel!) but for now this is what I have. And through all the inspiration and writers block, all the tears and laughter, I really couldn’t have kept going without all the love and support that each fandom I’ve dipped a toe into has given me. I know writers say this a lot, but for anyone who’s ever felt weird in leaving a comment on anyone’s fic - please don’t! Even two or three words can mean so much. And that kudos email makes me smile every time I see it. It’s a little thing but it means a lot. I love you guys and I think after ten years, I can confidently say - I AM a writer 😊😊😊😊

[bookshelf-in-progress]

Trick-or-Treat 🎃

I'll treat you (and myself) to the behind-the-scenes info about the writing of "The True Story". (There will be spoilers).

The idea for 84, Charing Cross Road + Imaginary Book Recs in an epistolary fantasy story came to me in one of the last days of September as a Team Chesterton possibility. I was very excited by the wish-fulfillment of writing characters to get to read these books I wish existed.

(For those who might not know, Imaginary Book Recs is a game I've been playing on my main blog for the past two years. In the first round, people sent me the titles of books they loved, and I "recommended" a similar book that didn't exist. In the second round, people sent me titles and genres, and I came up with plot summaries for these nonexistent books.)

Initially, the first letter was going to be from a woman whose family had history of buying books from a shop that carried books that came from alternate universes. She totally knew the history of the shop and where these books came from. And maybe I could fit in the theme by having the bookshop owner get arrested for selling an alternate-universe banned book or something.

That version fizzled out because figuring out the logistics of this alternate universe set-up was too complicated. And having the only fantasy element be "these people can read books that don't exist" didn't feel very fantastical (I can throw imaginary books into mundane contemporary fiction in exactly the same way). Plus, I knew from experience that trying to write an epistolary fantasy for Inklings never works.

In the last week of the Challenge, after my simpler ideas just weren't coming together, I suddenly got the idea to go for a more magical-realism take on this story's shop. Even the bookshop owners don't know where the books come from. That instantly gave it a more whimsical fairy tale feel. The conflict could involve the girl learning about the strange nature of these books. I fit in the "work of mercy" theme by having the FMC take care of a sick grandmother, and we were off to the races.

This is the first original story I've let myself discovery-write in a long time. I knew the story would involve the FMC coming to believe in the supernatural origins of the books. I had a handful of imaginary books I wanted to highlight. I knew the characters would meet in person by the end. Beyond that, I just let the characters talk, and let their conversations shape the story.

I tried really hard to highlight books in a way that fit the story. So I kicked off a story with a children's fantasy that would be a nostalgic tie between Christine and her grandmother. (Song of the Seafolk was invented in response to a prompt from @magpie-trove). Mysteries are a vast genre beloved by grandmothers, so The Wings of Hermes (from a title by @siena-sevenwits) came next. Mercator Must Walk the Plank was another beloved @siena-sevenwits title I had to feature, and comedy was a reasonable request from someone stressed out by dealing with illness. I felt odd featuring Alfred Quicke (with its ties to @isfjmel-phleg's fictional universe), but the comedy and mystery blend were the perfect mix after the previous two books, and I needed a long-running series to justify frequent use of the shop. The Autumn Queen's Promise (from a suggestion by @into-means) and The Queens of Wintermoon (inspired by @lover-of-the-starkindler) were both seasonally-focused fantasies I could reasonably fit in.

Originally the story was just going to consist of letters between Christine and Ben. When I introduced Mercator Must Walk the Plank, Ben mentioned "we read it aloud at the Christmas party" as part of his pitch. I realized that if they were donating a book with such personal significance, the other shop employees would probably want to chime in, and since I'd been vaguely hoping to include other employee voices, I threw in the notes from Penny and Heinrich.

This let me develop the secondary thread of Penny's letters. Penny provided the fun "let's fangirl over imaginary books" side of the story, while Ben's could stay more serious and plot-focused.

Penny's the main reason this story got finished. I woke up on the last day thinking that this was a terrible story. My mains had no personality beyond what I stole from 84, Charing Cross Road. I had no plot except "people talking about books no one had ever read". But Penny's letter was fun and voice-y, and made me think maybe there was a spark of something worthwhile here.

Looking back, I'm shocked at how little was planned. The Mercator fan club, and the subplot surrounding that book, was totally unplanned. Even the main themes were unplanned!

Seriously, Christine's initial response to Ben's "I hate agreeing to disagree" letter was "Thanks for agreeing to drop the subject. Now let's get back to talking about Imaginary Books." Then I came to my senses, realized I was bypassing a major source of story conflict, and started the subplot of Christine and Ben arguing about the existence of the supernatural.

Cardinal's Map was always going to be an important part of this story (from a suggestion by @siena-sevenwits, it's my favorite of the Imaginary Book Recs), but Christine and Ben's conversation gave me the chance to make this story match the themes of that imaginary book (which is probably the closest I'll ever get to writing that book). Instead of just being one book among a list, Cardinal's Map could now bring about the climax of the story.

I had an idea to have a fourth employee at Wright's and Co. who provided a third set of letters. Christine could fangirl with Penny, fight with Ben, and this third woman could offer more personal insight and advice--and she'd be the one to recommend Cardinal's Map. But as I wrote, there wasn't much space for her, and it worked much better to split her role between Ben and Penny.

I considered having Ben recommend the book, but that came across as very patronizing--"Here, read this book that proves I'm right." Having it come from Penny (who isn't involved in this argument) felt more natural (and made the miracle of the book feel more miraculous).

Until very late in the story, there was a 50-50 chance that Christine's grandmother would die, and the characters would meet at her funeral. But that offered too many emotional and logistical complications for me to resolve before the deadline, and I figured it was better to keep the story centered around Christine's internal journey with the books.

I don't know if this counts as a treat, because it went on so long, but here's hoping it's not totally disappointing.

[missjackil]

Supernatural Battle of the Episodes!!

Looks "All Hell Breaks Loose " wins its 10th battle and gets to join "The Pilot" in the ring of Retired Champions! 🍻🎉

Since "A Very Supernatural Christmas " gave it its toughest fight, it will take its place in the battle!

Who will the next challenger be?

[glygriffe]

December Fanfic Reading & Rec

To start the New Year positively, let's celebrate the creativity of some fellow writers I had the pleasure to read in the last month.

I want to share the good stuff in my life and, so far, Tumblr has been a good place for that for me. Let's continue sharing the joy of fanfiction!

As a "warning", know that I read mostly Supernatural themed short stories in December. I vaguely sorted them into categories to help others find what they like.

Gen fic

Untitled Reader POV where the reader is living in the bunker with the boys, by @ellen-reincarnated1967. Whatever happened, the Winchesters are here for her. (No pairing)

Out of the closet: a bit of Destiel fluff by @bobwess on AO3. Dean is pretty sure Cas is stealing his clothes, but he isn't sure what to do about it. (Dean x Castiel)

Phone: A cute little AU drabble for Destiel Month by @blessyourhondahurley (Dean x Castiel)

Untitled: Castiel choosing to let his vessel age for… reasons by @aheavenlycreature (Dean x Castiel)

The Steadfast Soul: A wonderful piece about Sam by @posingasme, full of all kinds of love. (Creature!Sam, Very Sastiel-lite, brotherly bound)

We Are Hope: a Castiel ficlet on life and hope and Dean Winchester in early season 15. By @rauko-creates (lite Destiel)

Brotherly Figures: A series with Sam and Dean, both as big brothers to an OC! By @spnexploration (No pairing)

Untitled post-15x18 ficlet: Dean and Cas’ using their words by @queerstudiesnatural (Castiel x Dean)

Snow Globe: a moment of truth and fluff between Dean and the reader by @waywardnerd67 for a Christmas bingo challenge. (Dean x Reader)

Teen and Up

Total Eclipse: A story about longing by @posingasme on AO3 (Sam x Castiel)

Carry on my wayward sons: So much brotherly love in this combo art/fic by @peach-coke created for Supernatural Hiatus Creation (No pairing)

Ghost of Christmas present(s): Christmas fluff after the finale (link toward the AO3 post) by @mittensmorgul (Dean x Castiel)

Like you did: a growing old together story by @posingasme on AO3 for the Gabriel reverse bang 2022 of @gabrielbigbang (Destiel, Sabriel)

Mature

Prompted: wonderful short stories by @bobwess (on AO3), some sweet, some tragic, from Bob's own Twitter prompts. I read chapter 9 and chapter 10 in December and I loved them! (mind the TW for each chapter: Ch. 9 has MCD and possibly homicide; Ch. 10 is pure domestic/Christmas fluff.)

And for stuff unrelated to Supernatural:

Change, a beautiful (and sad) poem by @rauko-is-a-free-elf (original work)

How do you write poetry for someone who is your every moment?, a poem by @rauko-creates (original work)

Don't Drool on Me: By @lemonlillybee (on A03) a kind of slice-of-life sickfic of Tony Stark acting as Peter Parker's parent figure - I didn't even know Iron!Dad was a thing before September, but I found it awesome!

Happy reading, happy sharing, and...

[ladylilithprime]

Lils's 2022 Fanfic Retrospective

Haven't done one of these in a while because something about Covid just seriously sapped my creative energies right out of me and I ended up not writing nearly as much as I wanted for 2020 and 2021. But something in Autumn of 2022 perked me back up, and here's what was accomplished:

Broken Hallelujah: My beloved non-linear narrative Archangel Samuel with Sastiel fic, with wonderful art by @jazzforthecaptain! Not a new fic by any stretch, but I did get a new chapter polished up enough to post.

Unspoken Rules Can't Be Broken: A deviation back into the Harry Potter fandom, because my fandom interests are ever-cyclical. This one was a writing prompt for Harry/Hermione with a specific prompted time-travel do-over premise. I'm not the only person to do it, but I seem to have done a few things that are unique according to my readers.

Wer zu Lebzeit gut auf Erden: More Supernatural! This one was a belated birthday gift to my beloved mutual enabler @rodiniaorzetalthepenquin, featuring a canon divergence at Swan Song where Lucifer and Michael were pushed into the Cage without their vessels, Gabriel took over Heaven, and the Winchesters were told firmly to take a few months (or years) off from doing anything that might break the world again. Very Samcentric despite being Dean's POV, and with some definite Sastiel undercurrents.

Every Time A Bell Rings: A platonic Destiel psuedo-sequel to "Wer zu Lebzeit" as a birthday gift for my bae @jupiterjames who deserved to have something sweet to enjoy. Castiel bakes a pie, and Dean has a canon praise kink. XD

Durch du Engel Halleluja: The actual sequel to "Wer zu Lebzeit" with Christmas, family togetherness, expected and unexpected guests, and Sam FINALLY gets to see the photographs Castiel and Dean keep taking. (Only chapter one got finished by midnight of December 31st, but by golly is this thing going to be finished before February!

Living, Learning, Tongue-Tied, Trying: A snippet originally written for Ro as a happy thought piggybacked off one of her fics of Team Free Will 2.0 before Chuck decided to be an assbutt with Jack going off to college. Also heavily Sastiel, because that's how we roll. XD

These Dying Embers: A contemplative Michael in the Cage watching Lucifer taking Sam apart over and over and over. I actually don't remember how long ago I wrote this one for @threshie, though if I took the hours needed to scroll back through my tumblr messaging history with Ro I'm sure I'd find a date range.

Crack Fic Hat Tricks: Also not new, these were born out of a writing challenge issued by @sageclover61 in one of the Discord servers. Despite the series name, they aren't all crack, but they were definitely all fun to write!

Diamonds Falling Down - Bela Talbot/Lisa Braeden

A Vow Unto His Own - Sam Winchester & Garth Fitzgerald IV

And I Feel Fine - Kevin Tran & Balthazar & Chuck Shurley

You Just Gotta Take A Piece Of Me - Gabriel/Donna & Anael

Let's Go Out With A Bang - Tessa the Reaper/Pamela Barnes/Ruby

Burn Your Biographies: Sabriel this time! Possibly unrequited, possibly not, I left it ambiguous because Gabriel was a traumatized little puppy for a while there.

Maybe More Than Enough: What's this? A new installment of the Something Beautiful Sastimmy Soulmate Saga?? In 2022?? Yep, apparently so! Dean gets filled in on the scoop Sam got from Castiel and sets off to get his brother's soulmate and his family some supernatural protection.

Sons of Men, and Angels: WOOOOOO! This is the original start to the Samael series, the very first work that featured Sam time-travelling back to derail the Apocalypse! I started this thing soooooo many years ago, and there's still so much in this universe that I've got written but can't post yet because THIS, this one is where it all started! If you've already read the Sam Squared series, you'll have a ton of spoilers for where this is going. And speaking of that series....

In The End We'll Surely Lose: This baby got two more chapters added to it, and the fourth is almost ready to be put up! Truly this was a good year for working with Samael's stories because...

Margin of Loss: Ouch. This one hurt to write. It was a random little thought of the canon universe that Sam left behind in SoMaA and the seasons of mess that followed and what it meant that Dean said Yes to a Michael from a completely different timeline instead of the one still trapped in the Cage with Adam. (It may also have been the jumping point of another SoMaA spin-off series like Sam Squared; there's a few of them at this point.)

The Dragon's Librarian: Another somewhat random ficlet that spawned in Discord chat with Ro-- literally, I wrote the whole thing in the chat window. Platonic or pre-Sastiel, with Prince Sam and Dragon Castiel as a hefty dose of inspiration from The Enchanted Forest Chronicles because I will probably never stop loving those books.

And last but definitely not least....

Tell It On The Mountain: A fluffy Sastiel story for @mrswhozeewhatsis for the @spnfanficpond Secret Santa exchange, featuring physically manifested wings, truth compulsions, cuddling by the fire, and mutual consideration for consent and bodily autonomy. (With some Accidentally Engaged thrown in for fun. XD)

And there we have it! Everything I wrote, worked on, and posted in the year 2022! Feel free to peruse various prompt lists I have and drop one in my ask box if you've got something you think would be up my alley to write, and let's see if we can't make 2023 even more prolific than 2022!

[writeblrfantasy]

lila's wip wrap up 2022!

i did this last year! it's wild to see for one what i thought i would be writing this year vs what i actually wrote, and i'm sure i'm going to say that next year too.

i don't usually like to talk about word count or the number of books i write because i don't want anyone to ever think that their own worth with writing is equal to how much they write and how much they finish

so if you read this, please just know that everyone writes at their own pace and there is no right or wrong way to write, and no way more worthy than another. i just happen to be a very fast writer with a fair bit of free time to write big amounts, who gets bored of wips quickly and is constantly moving on <3

projects i finished this year:

fate of smoldering ruin (50k)

the lover with five names (123k)

the red king's mystical suitors (73k)

as the sea horn blows (48k)

empire of gilded sand (60k)

my mr. adlay (21k)

other things i wrote this year:

she who killed the elf queen (50k)

order of the os (32k)

jack of fools trilogy (all incomplete, 24k in total)

goldbloods (23k)

the lover's spell (42k, to be edited)

the water mage & the sun soldier (40k, ongoing!)

a variety of other novellas/short story collections that add up to about 60k

some fanfic which added up to about 11k (you can read it on ao3 if you're a fan of mash and supernatural! my username is taliamytalia)

projects planned for next year:

the artist & the warden, sequel to the water mage & the sun soldier

editing the lover's spell

editing she who killed the elf queen

a certain all queer woman wip

whatever else i feel like writing! i have been reading again recently and getting some mad ideas, as well as begging by my irl bestie for a wlw main wip

of all the things i wrote this year, the lover with five names and as the sea horn blows were my favorites. i've been trying to finish sea horn since last christmas, and to get it done this june was an incredible accomplishment that i'm very proud of<3 the lover with five names was just a huge project on another level.

once again, i would like to thank my bestie @magic-is-something-we-create for being a constant inspiration and rubber duck, bainstorming partner, and otherwise incredible human. love you bro <3

other people i have to thank for being lovely, helping with writing problems, and everything else are @ashen-crest @ettawritesnstudies @47crayons @faithfire @chayscribbles and so many more!! thank you all for another wonderful year on writeblr. i'm so excited to see what we all create in the next one <3<3 i love you all so much!

also, thank you to everyone who participated in my self love challenge!!

also also: shameless self plug to check out my sideblogs @devastatingly-handsome-friend and @hawksredrobe if you're a fan of supernatural or mash! i am very active on the mash one, not so much the spn one

[lyricalchrysanthemum]

ETHAN HIDAKA BEAM GO!! or maybe some fun facts about cheren. i know you like talking about cheren

HI MEL HIII thank u for the asks

ETHAN HIDAKA THE GUYY. I keep saying that he’s normal and he really is. The best way I can explain his role in the story is that he’s very much a vessel for the story to be told through.

He doesn’t have anything going on for him in his connections to the greater universe like Silver and Lyra, nor does he have any interesting backstory or problems like the gym leaders he helps work through, and just fumbles his way into the plot. But what makes him a main character is how much he continues to will himself into the plot and pursue other people’s problems once he comes across them. And because of how much he wants to help others, he finds greater meaning in the world as well as the supernatural.

Getting to be able to meet and help people gives him opportunities and a greater field of vision. He’s on a journey to become champion but a journey can be a quest of self discovery.

The fact that he’s kind of an every guy doesn’t mean he doesn’t have any own problems though. He lacks self any self preservation instincts and prioritizes everyone else over his own well being, when his problems and happiness are just as important as everyone else’s. Even if he doesn’t see it as that. For example he goes as far as to try and solo Team Rocket in Silver’s place because he believes it’d hurt Silver more than him. And when he finds out from Blue that is Red on the mountain, he doesn’t just go to maybe battle his idol, but to try and bring him down himself. (And it’s ultimately where he learns he can’t help everyone.)

If Lyra is like Ho-oh, and Kris is like Lugia, then he is like Celebi. Just like Celebi and the forests, Ethan protects and nourishes the people of Johto. And while he doesn’t travel through time, his touch on the world is seen across many different generations of lives he’s helped changed, including someone who isn’t of this time at all.

As for Cheren, my darling everything, some fun facts about him are:

His birthday is December 26th

He HATES Christmas because of it. Literally the grinch.

His favorite drink is an iced matcha latte.

He has a very low tolerance to the cold, it could be 60 degrees and he’ll say he’s freezing cold.

Had an anime phase during the events of BW. He’s embarrassed of it because he was an elitist. Nowadays he doesn’t have the time to watch shows because of how busy it is. But Kino’s Journey was his favorite.

Has autism. <- key fact

Got one ear pierced because he thought it looked cool. He didn’t know it was considered the gay ear but now that he knows he asks where’s the lie.

I’d call him a chuuni but he’s just barely not one.

I’ve mentioned this before but he’s missing a glove because he gave it to Hilbert. It was a way of challenging him/promise of a rivalry. He has it back in BW2 but he doesn’t want to talk about why he has it back.

Alder brought him, N, and Anthea and Concordia into his family unit after the events of BW, especially because the two of them had nowhere to go. He considers Alder and Drayden to be father figures, Iris to be his sister, Marshall to be his brother, Benga is also a brother, and of course N as a brother and Anthea and Concordia as sisters