#ALEX LOOKED AT HENRY 1ST

[daikunart]

[mcnuggetclub]

Henry's grin takes over his entire face, not his photograph grin, but one that is crinkly and unguarded and infectious.

[thebrownstone]

Introduction | FAQ | Discord | Twitter | Collection

Now ushering in the second year of the annual fandom-wide event dedicated to the beloved ship of Alex Claremont-Diaz and Henry Fox-Mountchristen-Windsor! This event takes place every day from September 27th through October 3rd. Each day has two different prompts which participants are asked to draw inspiration from. Participants may choose one of the two daily prompts, or do both.

Every prompt is designed to be vague so that each person can interpret it differently! There is no right or wrong way to participate. Whether you are an artist, a writer, a video editor, etc, you can join!

This event is not exclusive to members of our discord. Prompts below.

Day One - Friday, September 27th

“did you get my note?” and secrets

Day Two - Saturday, September 28th

silver or gold and hurt/comfort

Day Three - Sunday, September 29th

in a different universe and blood, sweat, and tears

Day Four - Monday, September 30th

“i can’t do this again.” and hot or cold

Day Five - Tuesday, October 1st

fairytale and little white lies

Day Six - Wednesday, October 2nd

heaven or hell and soulmates au

Day Seven - Thursday, October 3rd

“hey, look at me.” and gravestones

[onpurposeilovehimonpurpose]

An Incomplete List: Things I Love About HRH Prince Henry & FSOTUS Alex Claremont-Diaz

Happy February 1st, ya'll. I've decided to start posting an image that represents (in feeling or with direct imagery) Alex's list about Henry. While I can't do too much with gifs because my computer won't run the programs I need it to and I need to save up for one that does. I'm trying this format because I miss posting about RW&RB each day, and giving my thoughts. I'm going to post one each day in February, (the month of love) and I will use the other nine days to post my version of Henry's incomplete list for Alex.

I encourage everyone who may come across this post to do the same and tag it with (#An Incomplete List) and whatever other tags of course that you think will work, and reblog this too. It'll be fun spreading the love as the days go on and seeing what everyone can come up with for Alex's days too. Pictures, fanart, video clips, even if all you do is talk about the quote, it'll be fun to click the tag on Tumblr and see what others have contributed. Just a reminder of the list:

AN INCOMPLETE LIST: THINGS I LOVE ABOUT HRH PRINCE HENRY 1. The sound of your laugh when I piss you off. 2. The way you smell underneath your fancy cologne, like clean linens but somehow also fresh grass (what kind of magic is this?) 3. That thing you do where you stick out your chin to try to look tough. 4. How your hands look when you play piano. 5. All the things I understand about myself now because of you. 6. How you think Return of the Jedi is the best Star Wars (wrong) because deep down you're a gigantic, sappy, embarrassing romantic who just wants the happily ever after. 7. Your ability to recite Keats. 8. Your ability to recite Bernadette's "Don't let it drag you down" monologue from Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. 9. How hard you try. 10. How hard you've always tried. 11. How determined you are to keep trying. 12. That when your shoulders cover mine, nothing else in the entire stupid world matters. 13. The goddamn issue of Le Monde you brought back to London with you and kept and have on your nightstand (yes, I saw it). 14. The way you look when you first wake up. 15. Your shoulder-to-waist ratio. 16. Your huge, generous, ridiculous, indestructible heart. 17. Your equally huge dick. 18. The face you just made when you read that last one. 19. The way you look when you first wake up (I know I already said this, but I really, really love it). 20. The fact that you loved me all along.”

[taste-thewaste]

It’s Wednesday, friends! 5.1.24

Happy 1st day of May! Hope everyone’s week is going well 🩷 thank you to @tailsbeth-writes @agostobuwan and @blueeyedgrlwrites for the tags!

Fiery banner today because you’re getting some smut from tummy fic 3.0, my gift to you! Truthfully I am nervous about posting this because it’s much…tummy kinkier than before but fuck it, let’s do this.

He’s hard, just from this. He has no idea what’s happening. A tiny whine falls from Henry’s lips, and Alex’s eyes brighten a bit. He gets the devilish look on his face Henry knows so well, the one that means game fucking on.

“I can just see you…my little prince, all buttoned up and polished. You’re so charming, Hen. I can see you charming the pants off of this guy, telling him all the reasons he should put his money into your project…but all the while, you’re trying to keep it cool.”

Henry grinds down against Alex’s thigh, bucking his hips forward slightly. Alex raises his eyebrows a bit in surprise, but he doesn’t say anything about it. He just continues on, because whatever-the-fuck is happening right now is doing it for him, too.

“You’re trying to keep your mind on the task at hand, but you were hungry, weren’t you, baby? We shopped and came home and did other things, but you didn’t have time to grab something earlier in the day. You were hungry, so it was probably hard to pay attention. Wasn’t it?”

Henry nods, grunting just a little as he grinds down even harder against Alex. There’s no thought behind what he’s doing, there’s just action, there’s just what feels good and what sounds good and fuck, Alex reaches down and palms Henry’s cock through his trousers, and he gasps.

Tagging: @england-would-fall @henrysfox @luainthewild @o0anapher0o @bigassbowlingballhead

@eusuntgratie @onthewaytosomewhere @piratefalls @priincebutt @sail-not-drift

@hgejfmw-hgejhsf @bitbybitwrites @duchessdepolignaca03 @sophie1973 @lfg1986-2

(And @cemm1966 I think you’ll like this)

And open tag for anyone who wants to!

[sugdenlovesdingle]

Seven (and then some) sentence Sunday

thanks for the tag @sznofthesticks

Have a little snippet of my RWRB new year's fic (that was actually supposed to be posted on January 1st... if you think you're bad with deadlines - it could be worse)

---- "You fucked a prince." Nora said, looking way too giddy for someone who just stumbled onto what could potentially become an international sex scandal. "June was worried when you disappeared last night but I figured you'd just hooked up with some pretty blonde." She sat down on the foot of the bed next to Henry. "I didn't think it would be this blond though." She laughed and turned her attention to him. "Is this allowed then? Can you just go out and hook up with too pretty American boys? Does the palace have a gay sex policy? Or a no gay sex in the palace policy? And that's why you ended up in this hotel room? I watched The Crown, I know about this stuff."

"Er... I uh... I'm not uh... You uh... Well it's uh... You see we uh... I should probably go..." Henry stammered, wishing the ground would open up and swallow him whole.

"Go where? Are you just going to get a cab to Buckingham Palace?"

"Well no... I uh... Figured I'd just ring my mate Pez and ask for help... I just... Seemed to have misplaced my phone... And erm... Most of my clothes." Henry said, looking around the room and seeing the shirt he'd been wearing the night before near the bathroom door.

"Alex can probably help you with that. I mean he took them off last night, didn't he? Nora shrugged and gave Alex an expectant look.

"Yeah ok Nora that's enough." Alex finally snapped himself out of the panic that had had him practically frozen in place. "You two can go now." He dragged her to her feet and pushed her towards June. "Go take her for breakfast or something."

"We already had breakfast. It's way past noon already." Nora informed him.

"Second breakfast then! Embrace your inner hobbit! Make Tolkien proud." Alex shoved both girls out of the door and leaned against it after slamming it shut.

"So... now you know who I am..." Henry said after a few minutes of silence and wondering if Alex had forgotten about him.

"Yeah..." Alex pushed himself off the door and walked over to the bed "I kind of already did."

"You what?! Why didn't you say anything?!"

Alex gave him a sheepish smile and shrugged.

"We were kind of... busy last night..."

---

as usual I have no idea who has been tagged so i'm just going to pick some people @bonheur-cafe @carlos-in-glasses @im-overstimulated-and-im-sad @lightningboltreader @welcometololaland @cold-blooded-jelly-doughnut @noxsoulmate @kiwichaeng + open tag for whoever wants to share something

[tamtuliko]

Thoughts collected

4 minutes addition

So... tomorrow's is Friday. Finally, the end of the week. Unfortunately, I'm unable to watch the ep. 6 till Saturday morning, as I live in Japan and we are a few hrs forward, to put it simply while ep. 6 will be premiered. I'll be dreaming about this:

Seriously, does anyone move from this scene?? Cause my dumbest didn't, and I'm not sure I'll ever be. Look, I'm still thinking about Alex and Henry's scene on deck. These two were so cutesy and shit.

Sorry, I suddenly lost myself.

What I was saying is that it's really hard to move from the scene when the shit is happening in the series.

So I need to word vomit here.

I need to ask first:

Okay... let's see what we've got so far:

Great's timeline

Probably Tyme's timline

Tonklas timeline

In Greats timeline, he goes cardiac arrest at 11 o'clock. How he got at hospital we don't know. Yes, we saw him getting shot and bla bla bla, but don't forget this is after he re-do shit. Saved woman and this woman became his end. And dot forget, she is also his begging. She is the first re-do Great did. In his timeline we don't know what happened to Tyme. Is he alive running to Great? Or is he dying somewhere.

Tymes' timeline is more complicated cause we've seen Greats POV so far. I guess we will see Tymes from the next episode, and then we will have culmination. But just guess: Tymes plan was to get Great, I don't know fall in love or just befriend him and use him against his family or just use him for information, but he fall in love and that's where all shit goes down. In the end, we see Tyme run and his bloody nose appear and dissappear, I think we are shown 2 timelines, one is Greats, and another one is Tymes. Which is which hell knows. With Greats re-do, Tyme saved Nan and all good, but in Tymes timeline, nothing has changed, I think. The bloody nose in ep. 5 and Tyme being shot in ep. 1 can be seen as evidence. The place where he is shot looks like where illegal casino or Greats Fathers whearhouse is.

Tonklas timeline, the easy one, this kid got some serious problems. He went for revenge, his little brother never was saved, he was neglected by Korn, got new man, and became a murderer. I think his and Tymes' timeline can be seen as the same. Without Greats re-do. Don't get me wrong, I'm pretty interested in how his character gonna help and how his choices gonna help the timelines and the world's, but his story is really boring for me. I am stunned by Fuaiz (Tonkla), he is a great actor, he does everything really well, but Tonkla as a character for me af this moment is very boring and just I don't know... I can't see him fitting.

So

Great goes cardiac arrest, Tyme runs to him

Tonkla killes Title, who killed his little brother

Tyme is shot while somewhere, maybe trying to save Nan.

2 and 3 can be same timelines. Great is still going to cardiac arrest.

And here is the main thing, if this is some suspense/ supernatural series, the worlds will collide, and we will have one timeline, everybody surviving or dying.

Like in 1 Tyme will experience the other Tymes' feelings and maybe even see all the shit. Again, I don't know about Tonkla. How is he fitting in this story? I can't wait to see it, really. Great is already experiencing different timelines, so we will se if he survives.

Wild guess, after watching Bible and Jes rehearsal for 1st meeting. It was like they were in the same place, but they couldn't reach each other, typical parallel worlds and different timelines. It was the same act in teaser as well. They met, fought, fell in love, separated, and in the end, they died.

One of them for sure will die. Or both of them. Bible in his interview said that a happy ending depends on person, how we see it. For someone, it can be these two surviving and continuing loving and living. For some, it can be them meeting again afterlife. Let's not forget that death is not the end, Albus Dumbledore said: "After all, to the well-organised mind, death is but the next great adventure".

I hope for a better end, but... they are going to be together in everytimelime, parallel , and the afterlife.

I don't know a shit.

I'm sleep deprived, and I need to see Jes being bullied by Bible.

Sorry if I didn't make a sense.

The whole series doesn't make sense anymore. Yet I'm still here, in my 10000 rewatch.

Also:

Is that dimples I see there??

Soft, soft, soft

These two kisses were everything. Tyme is scared, nervous, and unsure. You can see it in his eyes, Jes, the actor you are 😍

Sorry, I just love this baby girl.

See you on Saturday. I am fucking working on that day, I'm gonna get myself ship home if continue being distracted 😆btw...

[iboatedhere]

WIP Wednesday

Thank you for the tag @anincompletelist @lightningboltreader @liminalmemories21 @lemonlyman-dotcom

Everything I’ve written lately is…..NOT GREAT…….it feels bad, it looks bad, it is bad, and the first chapter of The Roman Holiday AU will be up January 1st regardless ✌️

—

The first surprise greets them on the street just outside Alex’s door.

A red Vespa is tucked against the curb, a helmet hanging off each of the handles.

“Safety first,” Alex says as he tosses one of the helmets at Henry. “You might need to take the hat off.”

“I’m sorry,” Henry says, looking down the empty street as Alex fastens his own helmet. “Is there meant to be a second scooter around here somewhere?”

“Nope.”

“So you expect us to share?”

Alex nods. “That’s right.”

Henry hums. “Why aren’t we taking a taxi or an Uber, or walking?”

“Taxis and Ubers mean waiting around for them to show up and I don’t care how long your legs are, we cannot walk the entirety of Rome in a day. This is the fastest and easiest way to get around.”

“And you’ve driven one of these before?”

“In a manner of speaking, yes.”

“What manner?”

“I’m familiar with scooters.”

Henry narrows his eyes.

“I had a Razor Scooter when I was nine.”

“Oh my god.”

“Vespa’s are so much safer,” Alex cries.

“How is that possible? This has a motor!”

“And Razors would fuck up your ankles. You should’ve seen my shins that whole year. The bruises never healed.”

“I would rather have a bruised ankle than a concussed head.”

“That’s what the helmet is for,” Alex says. “Now c’mon.” He swings one leg over the scooter and sits down. “We’re wasting time.”

“It’s six thirty in the morning.”

“Which means we’re already behind schedule.” Alex starts the scooter. “Get on or I’ll leave you.”

“You wouldn’t dare.”

The scooter jolts away from the curb and Henry grabs Alex’s shoulder and climbs on behind him, tightening the straps of the helmet as he goes.

He’s unsure what to do with his hands—if he should put them on Alex’s hips, waist, or shoulders, and after fumbling awkwardly, Alex heaves a sigh and reaches back, wrapping Henry’s arms around his waist.

“You have to hold on like you mean it,” Alex tells him. “Tight.”

Henry shifts forward so his chest is flush to Alex’s back and he holds his hands together over Alex’s stomach, beneath the light fabric of his open button down but over the soft cotton undershirt.

Alex is solid and warm and smells like cedar smoke and spice and Henry feels him take a sharp breath as he moves even closer.

“Is this okay?” Henry asks, his lips dangerously close to the shell of Alex’s ear.

Alex swallows and nods. “Do you feel safe?”

Henry does.

“Good,” Alex says. He stops and blows out a breath. “That’s good. We should…” He trails off and lifts his foot off the pavement and the Vespa jolts forward again, this time by accident. “I got it,” he says when Henry flinches. “I got it, I got it, I was just fucking with you.”

“I’d prefer it if you didn’t.”

“Yeah, well,” Alex says as he gives it another go. “We’ll see.”

[ouatnextgen]

Halloween Costumes!

One Halloween, the Storybrooke gang decide to dress as the Disney versions of their parents.

This is the abomination culmination

Roland: Because this happens after Robyn learns the truth about what went down with Zelena and Robin, she's....not happy with her mom rn. So, Roland graciously decided to let Robyn be Robin Hood.

He decided to be his step/adoptive mom instead of his birth mom for a few reasons: 1) because it was less emotional for him, 2) so Regina wouldn't feel left out (Henry and Jacinda were doing a couples costume), and 3)...because the Evil Queen costume was way easier to find online.

He ends up slaying in it, obviously.

Alex: She knew she wanted to be Prince Charming right away, even though her mother protested.

They put their hair up using a million bobby pins and about two cans of hairspray, and adjusted the outfit to fit their boobs. They were also the one who made adjustments to everyone else's costumes to make sure they fit.

Leo: He was uncomfortable wearing and dress, so he went with Prince Florian. David offered him one of his old Enchanted Forest outfits, to which Leo had to explain that the cheap costumes were what made it fun.

The costume had the downside of coming with a pair of very cheap and tight tights. PJ seemed to like them, though

PJ: Picked out his dress on September 1st. He rocks both it, and the shitty felt crown headband it came with.

Robyn: Could not find a single commercially available fox Robin Hood costume. So, she bought a Peter Pan one, and had Alex make some adjustments.

She slapped on a fox tail and a different Robin Hood hat, and called it. (On the bright side, she and Alice have matching hat feathers)

Gideon: Really didn't want to be his dad (even the Disney Beauty and the Beast version) so he went with his mom's Disney version.

He doesn't rock it as well as PJ, but he makes it work. And on the bright side, now he and Hope match. (On the downside, his shoulders are freezing)

Alice: Alice really wanted to be Captain Hook. So, if she rigged the coin toss that she and Hope did for who got to be him, sue her.

Luckily, there were a lot of official woman's Hook costumes for her to pick from, including some fancy wigs....which she ditched after the pictures were taken (those things are itchy), but she kept the hat, so she and Robyn could match.

Hope: After losing the coin toss, Hope suddenly realized that Emma didn't really have a fairytale counterpart. The closest things were the Ugly Duckling or the Swan Princess. All of the Ugly Duckling costumes were made for kids, so Swan Princess it was.

The two animated versions of the Swan Princess (Barbie and the other one) didn't have commercial dresses, so Hope got a chunky plastic tiara and a cheap ballet dress (she used her own ballet shoes)

Hey, at least she matched with Gideon.

Individual Edits Under the Cut: (They look bad up close, but you can't see Robyn's tail in the group shot lol)

[elipheleh]

James I (and VI) & George Villiers

Continuing my series of learning about things referenced in the book, I'm looking at things referenced in Alex & Henry's visit to the V&A Museum. These are all tagged #a series of learning about things that are referenced in the book, if you want to block the tag.

"Actually . . . you remember how I told you about the gay king, James I?” “The one with the dumb jock boyfriend?” “Yes, that one. Well, his most beloved favorite was a man named George Villiers. [...] He stood in front of the Privy Council and said, ���Christ had John, and I have George.’" -Chapter 10, Red White & Royal Blue

-----

King James­­ I (in England, in Scotland he was James VI) ruled from 1567 (Scotland) and 1603 (England & Ireland) until his death in 1625. He was the son of Mary, Queen of Scots, and was crowned King of Scotland aged 13 months - after her forced abdication. He gained full control of government in 1583, and 6 years later married Anne of Denmark - they had seven children, but only three survived to adulthood, with one dying aged 18. Then-Queen of England, Elizabeth I, died childless in 1603 and James VI of Scotland was passed the crown of England without protest.

George Villiers, the 1st Duke of Buckingham, was born in 1592, to a minor gentleman, Sir George Villiers. Aged 21, he caught the eye of King James I and gained the King's patronage. He was described as "the handsomest-bodied in England", and also gained the support of the King's wife, Anna. Villiers was made a gentleman of the bedchamber - whose duties involved assisting the King as he dressed and ate, and also to provide companionship - in 1615, and in 1623 he was elevated to a dukedom, the first commoner in more than a century to be granted this.

Their relationship was the subject of rumours at the time, with many assuming they were sharing a bed. As Henry mentions in the same scene as the quote at the top, 17th century poet de Viau wrote "it is well known that the king of England / fucks the Duke of Buckingham." King James' nickname for Villiers was "Steenie", after Saint Stephen - who was described as having "the face of an angel".

The full quote preceding "Christ had John, and I have George" adds to the display of the depth of the king's feelings for Villiers. He said in 1617 before the Privy Council: "You may be sure that I love the Earl of Buckingham more than anyone else, and more than you who are here assembled. I wish to speak in my own behalf and not to have it thought to be a defect, for Jesus Christ did the same, and therefore I cannot be blamed. Christ had John, and I have George."

Sources/Additional Reading: Wikipedia - James I & VI Wikipedia - George Villiers Wikipedia - Succession to Elizabeth I Wikipedia - Union of the Crowns BHO - The bedchamber: Gentlemen of the Bedchamber Wikipedia - Personal Relationships of James I & VI The History Vault - James I & VI and his male ‘favourites’

[rockingtheorange]

Hidden Box (fanfic)

Chapter 1 - Henry's life

(1st chapter out, click on the teddy bear to read 🧸)

Summary:

AU where Henry decides to become a priest under his parents' desire. He has never questioned the Church and wants to make his parents proud, but a guy with an American accent and long eyelashes slams into his life. The most irritating, despicable, baffling guy.

He desperately, awfully, eagerly needs to know more about him.

Alex doesn't get why he keeps bumping into the same church guy. He doesn't pay much attention to it, but why does he look familiar?

Hidden box on Ao3 -> 🧸

[yrsonpurpose]

Can you help? You have 20 thousand more followers than me I’m sure and I could do with some help finding a couple of fics? Would you mind publishing my ask if it isn’t too much trouble? 🙈👉🏻👈🏻 Or maybe you know what they are?

1st one is a fic I read where Alex is fake dating Bea and he and Henry fall for each other

And the 2nd is Alex is a tattooist and Henry goes to him secretly to get tattoos, one of which is a bee for Bea… Alex doesn’t recognise him at first but then realises who he is.

Any help from anyone would be great.. I’ve tried searching for them again but the FirstPrince fandom writes so many fic, I can’t seem to see them. But I also understand if you don’t want to publish this. 🙂

heyy! i thinkkkk these are the ones you're looking for: first one is here. second one is here.

[firstsprinces]

Thank you @anincompletelist for all your wonderful works you shared this past year. I can't wait to finally indulge myself with all of your fics! I hope you feel so proud of all the writing you've been able to do this year and here's to all the exciting things to come in your next writing year! (bridesmaidsbridesmaidsbridesmaids)

I've joined the fandom/fanfic writing during the end of October this year, so I don't have an impressive catalog. I even saved this tag until the very last minute to I could have more than one work credited for this year. One is to be posted January 1st but I technically completed it in 2023. Both of these are for exchanges, but 2024 will be a year where I'll finally be posting more works!

Thank you to everyone's who's cheered me on or has any interest in reading what comes out of my brain!

🤍 Kia

Take This House and Make it a Home (T, 4.9K)

When the discussion of the Christmas tree had started, Henry had already come to the comfortable conclusion they’d continue to use the fake pre-lit tree they’ve used their last couple of years in the Brownstone. For their farmhouse in Texas, Alex wants to go all out and get a real Christmas tree that will reach the high ceiling of the living room, right in front of the large front window, and off to the side of the fireplace. He also wants a second or third tree to put in their conservatory and the study. Part of the reason is because going out to a tree farm and picking their own tree reminds Alex of childhood Christmases before his mother’s presidency and his parents’ divorce. It brings him back to when Christmas had been nothing but innocent and magical for him and his family, and now that Henry’s part of his family, he wants to create the magic all over again and in a new way, one that’s completely and organically theirs. - or, Alex and Henry pick out a Christmas tree for their first Christmas at the Texas farmhouse. Written for the RWRB New Traditions Advent Calendar Event

Here We Stand Worlds Apart (E for later chapters, 5K)

Lips part from the other man and Henry’s eyes glance down to his throat, watching as the column of his neck constricts and expands to the intake of oxygen. Then when the man speaks, what comes out isn’t something Henry’s expecting. The voice, if Henry can even call it that, sounds like the cinematic mix of the raptors from Jurassic World with a little extra hissing undertone to it. He pushes his glasses up his nose, his eyes squinting as if that’s going to help him focus on his ability to hear. He’s unsure if he’s experiencing vocal damage from the crashing or not, or if this could possibly be his real voice. The man’s – if Henry can even call this Jurassic sounding thing a human at all – nostrils start to flare, his head turning to one side as if he’s studying Henry closely. His tongue pushes through his closed lips, and Henry notices that it’s ever so slightly split at the front, as it wriggles and tastes the air. - an Alien! Alex AU Written for the RWRB New Year's Gift Exchange

I'm leaving this tag open for all! I hope everyone can look back at their year of writing, no matter how big or small, and are proud of what you've accomplished! Here's to you!

[myheartalivewrites]

Fic Writing Review 2023

thanks for the tags @kiwiana-writes @stereopticons 💚

Rules: Feel free to show whatever stats you have. Only want to show Ao3 stats? Rock on. Want to include some quantitative info instead of stats? Please do this. Want to change how yours is presented? Absolutely do that. Would rather eat glass than do this? Please don’t eat glass but don’t feel like you have to do this either.

Words and Fics

New fics on ao3: 12

Words published on ao3: 220,095

BONUS STAT 120,433 UNPUBLISHED words (holy fuck, I went to add this up because I was curious, but I was not prepared for this... No wonder I hate having all these WIPs hanging over my head right now. They are A LOT)

Fandoms: just RWRB

Most recent fic: "Please, I need you to." (also the shortest fic!)

Longest fic: Deep Blue, 76,031 words

Longest one shot: Love and War, 11,430

Top fics by kudos

(WELL, I wanted to do a mix of stats, but Deep Blue is my top fic in all the metrics--and we don't fuck with ratios in this house--so instead I'm doing by kudos)

Deep Blue (well, well, well. I love this baby so much)

Just Like That. (shocking outlier! It started as smutty crack in my mind!)

In His Wildest Dreams (love this with my whole entire heart)

Oxford Days (look here, kids! the things you can achieve with sleep deprivation and crazy hyperfocus!)

Tumbled Down and Tangled Up (with thanks to whoever it was who shared it on twitter that one time and led to me spending one very confused day--nine months after this fic was first published--watching all the ao3 emails coming in like, WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING)

Every single number on this list blows my mind.

Fandom/Fic events

Doing events is a new thing for me this year! I've just finished my @rwrbnygiftexchange fic and am super excited to put it out there (Jan 1st feels so far away!)

And I did a quick thing for Smutsgiving 2023

Just for fun

Most amusing stat: the fact that THIS has more kudos than actual words in it. Love you all 😘

Highest proportion of private bookmarks: just edging this, it's Happy NY! I was sure it would be In His Wildest Dreams lol. It only just lost out by 0.3%

Leader by POV: Alex, with 6 fics to his name. Then it's 3 for Henry and 3 in split POV, though Henry would lead this if I was doing it by word count lol

Things that moved me beyond words: everything Deep Blue related, but especially the comments (and I'd never done this before, but last week I sorted all fics in the RWRB tag by comments and there it was... on the first page 😱 *Of course almost half of those comments are from me, replying to people. Timely reminder of how all these metrics are not necessarily a true reflection of a work or a writer’s value). Anyway, whether it's people relating to Alex's confusion when working out his sexuality (hi 🙋‍♀️), or people who see themselves in Henry and his paralysing fear of being hurt again (hi again 🙋‍♀️), and everyone who dropped into the comments to commiserate about wanting to quit their jobs and fuck off to the coast to write full time (🙋‍♀️🙋‍♀️🙋‍♀️), they all mean so much.

New Year's resolutions:

to finish a bunch of WIPs

to work on fewer things at once and not stress myself out by having a bunch of unfinished things

to crack on with my original writing

This post ran a lot longer than I was expecting! I'm not tagging anyone because I don't want anyone to feel pressured to share numbers and compare themselves to others. The last four months have been CRAZY in the RWRB fandom, and to be honest looking at numbers and stats is a surefire way to feel small or slow or just plain not enough when you start comparing yourself to others.

But if you feel proud of something you've done (the first thing you've ever written! the first fic you've ever shared! some sort of stat breakthrough! your first ao3 subscribers!), whatever it is, please share. And tag me! Doing all of this online stuff can be fun, but it can sometimes feel lonely too. The best thing about it is talking to people, whether it be in discord or ao3 comments or on tumblr posts and messages or getting tagged on WIP posts just because people think I might like to see what they're writing, or because they want to see what I'm working on.

Anyway, my point is: don't be lonely. Bang on that tag. 😉❤️

Now, who's going to teach me how to use code and shit so I can have a nice spreadsheet with all these stats on? I did it all by hand and now I need a nap.

[thtdamfangirl4]

I agree it had it's good moments. I personally loved Henry asking Alex to be patient with him I thought was was really cute. I also loved their first time, it felt like the Alex and Henry I've come to know and love. I SOBBED when they addressed the crowd outside Buckingham. And the texting was done so well i got excited for the emails and then they just did like 2 of them. That made the leak not feel disastrous and ultimately "we won" not feel as powerful of a line. And god Alex’s speech. I like how they used it to send a message but it fell flat for me because we never really got do see Alex understand his bisexuality.

It started to feel like they were doing things for the sake of being able to say that the movie was inspired by the book. The turkeys in the book were important because it lead to A&H's first of many phone calls but it felt so forced in the film. Lake LBJ was meant to be where Alex realizes that he loves Henry but (imo) it just looked like a pretty backdrop for the pier scene. Idk if i missed it but it felt like there was no build up to Alex saying ily to Henry. It just felt like they bonded over surface level things.

Kensington was just a big slap in the face for me. It didn't really feel that heartbreaking and it just felt off and rough. I ADORE that scene. I reread it 3 times the 1st time I read through rw&rb before moving past it. I remember audibly gasping at "then fucking have me". That scene just really showed Alex and Henry at their rawest and most unfiltered form and it was so watered down I had to pause it to calm myself because I almost cried out of frustration. And they watered down so much of it!! Henry fighting back. The broom closet. The aftermath of the leak most especially!! I wanted to rip all my hair out because nothing that happened surrounding the leak justified the magnitude it was dealt with nor Alex and Henry's response to it!! God you won't even understand why it's a big deal that they got leaked if you never read the book

They just mischaracterized these characters I care so much about that they feel like different people. The traits that made them them was either gone or filtered. Alex’s passion for politics and Henry's for literature. Their drive to help people. That's the whole point why they want to make history in the first place!! It's not a throwaway line about them wanting to be the first unconventional pair. They want to make history by changing people's lives for the better (Alex through law and Henry through his shelters) and it makes me so angry that it got dumbed down to that!! [Although I do love that Alex verbally says it and is therefore never leaked so it's just forever theirs]

Anyways tell me to fuck off if I start to become annoying haha thank you for enabling my rants

Full agree with ALL of this!!

The paris first time scene was SO GOOD. Kensington felt so wrong just because it’s done so well in the book idk why they changed it. And the emails are the best part of their developing relationship and it all got lost in the jumble.

You put this into words so well! The good parts just made the parts that fell flat more obvious, which was disappointing.

[jacepens]

Two of Us

A brief intro: this was what I sort of consider my first washette writing expect it's just detailed notes about how I wanted each chapter to go

Fandom/Tags: Hamilton, George Washington/Lafayette, draft, historically accurate

Chapter one- the dinner party! Laf is a brand new (honorary) major general and meets George! Later that night, George invites him to live with him and become a part of his military family

Chapter two- Lafayette gets very excited and is dressed and packed to the nines. Then he shows up and everything’s a shit show but Laf is like, it’s cool. I came here to learn not to teach.  And George is like ❤️.

Chapter three- Army meeting thing next day. Looks like Howe is just going to attack Charleston- not Philadelphia. Next day- oh shit. He’s headed this way! Prepare for battle!!

Chapter four- Brandywine. Here we go. George, please let me fight. George (not thinking or in the mood to argue) yeah ok sure, wait. Too late. Lafayette goes in and is pretty awesome. Meets up with George and he’s like, your leg! Laf like, pffffh. I’m fine. Shit. And George is like: we’re getting that dressed immediately! A few days later he’s transported upriver but before that, he and George have a nice chat. Right before George shows up, he’s writing to Adrienne. Then after talk George writes report to Hancock

Chapter five- Laf has been moved to Bethlehem. Germantown happens and it’s bad. He wants to go and fight but George sends a letter urging him to wait. Laf writes a bunch of letters to France like, support America!!! Yay Saratoga! Laf gets very excited and writes to George like: for the love of God let me fight. Then when he doesn’t hear anything, he gets up and goes even though he can’t wear a boot to Whitemarsh where he is. Friends with Greene. 

Chapter six- Valley Forge. Also dead Henrietta. He has a gut(cot??) to himself. People want George gone cause valley forge sucks. Established board of war. Good gay sweet flirts. Comfort.

Chapter seven- the gang is pissed at congress. (Oh my god, Alex. They would be so GOOD for each other. Greene’s over here like: that’s what I said!) they have long talk everyday! Still trying to hurt Washington, they appoint Laf for an expedition they know will fail and will give him the same rank as George. Gil is pissed and like, George! Look at this shit!! Anyway, he arranges some stuff, heads up to Canada and there’s literally nothing! He is super pissed and writes to Henry Laurens and then to George. George writes back a message of consolation. Laf just wants to be with him and vice versa and valley forge has realllllly gone to shit now.

Chapter eight- it’s from George perspective at valley forge!! Half the men are dead. He’s worried about Gil and just needs him in general. Need more details for George chapter but will end with letter from Gil saying he’s coming back and all is well again! Yay!

Chapter nine- Greene and Steubem have saved the day! Gil gets to meet Martha! Stuff is more organized and George has appointed Laf head of foreign affairs, which he does very well with. He’s helping George with a lot of training and clothing his own calvary. Also he’s being a sweetheart. May 1st, George gets a letter that he reads out loud to Gil. The treaty of France has been signed! Gil gets so excited that he kisses George and he’s crying! But he kinda brushes it off. Everyone is celebrating and super excited at valley forge. THEN Gil finds out Henrietta is dead. And he has to go out and pretend he’s happy but that night he talks to George and he comforts him and they cuddle.

Chapter ten- woes vs woahs

So, war is over and yay and stuff! But for some reason Laf is sad and upset and emotional

And he’s confused cause he should be happy

He also doesn’t realize that George has been spending more time with him than usual and that all the extra time with George has been breaking his heart even more (and George is feeling the same but instead he wishes to spend all his time with Gil)

Then there’s a nice party with an orchestra you know

And Laf just wants to leave because he’s had enough of this talk

And the whole night George has wanted to be with him but so many people have been bombarding him with questions and comments, and he can’t be rude, but he can’t hardly take two steps without having to talk to someone but he just wants to get to Gil because he sees how upset he is from across the room!

Then George eventually makes it over and is like, “I can tell something’s wrong, what happened?”

And Gil’s like, “Is it that obvious?”

And George kinda half-heartedly jokes (aw. Look at him trying to joke for Gil’s sake) like, “I don’t think so, I think I just know you pretty well.”

And Gil’s just kinda looking at him, smiling, and wishing that he could be alone with him for hours and just lay in bed next to him talking until the sun rose but instead what he says is something like:

“Oh please, don’t worry for my sake. It’s nothing. You need to enjoy this wonderful occasion and forget all about silly old me.” because HE’S CONFUSED (And doesn’t think he can handle George being so kind and sweet to him at this moment as it is making his heart ache more than it ever has before)

And George is like: “Nonsense! I will worry about you all I want because I care about you and you mean so much to me and your happiness brings me joy.”

And then he puts his hand on his neck and like, in his curly hair and Gil really loves the gesture (it’s not unusual, it’s the first thing he does when comforting Laf) but then his heart starts beating like crazy and he’s shaking a little and he has to pull away because his head was spinning and that whole thing felt embarrassing in public (because George was over here looking into his eyes and he just couldn’t take it at that momentXD) and he’s just looking at the ground

George is kinda confused because Laf’s never done that before and Laf feels a little guilty about it but he’s still kinda shook up and George is like, “I’m sorry Gilbert, it wasn’t my intention to make you uncomfortable.”

And George is kinda at a loss for words as he realizes that Gil seriously upset

And Gilbert, feeling guilty and emotional says something like, “I’m sorry but I just need you to leave me alone right now, please leave.”

And you know, Gil doesn’t really want George to leave, he just wants his overwhelming feelings to  be quiet and let him go and thinks that temporarily removing George will accomplish that

And George, knowing Laf very well, knows that he hates being alone when he is distraught like this and is confused at the request, wishing to stay and comfort him (and enjoy every last second they had together before his heart was ripped in half) so he tries to assert his place and says that he will stay with him no matter what

But Laf just kinda snaps at George for a moment telling him to, “Leave me be!” While fighting back tears (Because why does he have to be so perfect and know exactly what he needs?? He can’t stand his kindness because he’s trying to forget him and not kiss him with the force of a thousand waterfallsXDXD)

(oh. That’s why this is making me so sad. That makes a lot of sense.)

And George fucking KNOWS that Gil, deep down wants him to stay (why is he crying?!? Don’t cry!!! Omg I love you so much!!!! Oh my god. I love him. That makes a lot of sense.) but he can’t be cruel when Laf has asked him to leave twice now even though it breaks his heart

So he simply takes a deep breath and slowly walks away

Laf is half-inclined to run after him, kiss him and confess everything and to apologize for his behavior but (luckily) George was lost in the crowd before he could

Now Laf really wanted to go back to his quarters and pretend that none of this happened. Pretend he didn’t finally make sense of the storm in him. Pretend he didn’t want to start singing on the rooftop that he was in love because that love was futile and impossible to pursue, especially when they were almost out of time.

So he left, and moped in his room

He’s awake (and balling) for hours and obviously can’t sleep because he has so much on his mind but then he hears a knock on his door that scares him half to death and then hears a familiar, “Lafayette, can I come in?”

Just for a second Laf doesn’t say anything but then George says, “I heard you Gilbert I know you’re awake *sigh* just please let me in.”

Lafayette says a little “ok” and George lets himself in

After his wallowing all night he was actually very very happy to see George and his presence was just the one he needed after an extremely emotionally exhausting night, and a small part is begging him to leave but Laf is a little weaker and listening to his (ridiculously in love) heart over his brain

George stands there awkwardly at the door and begins to speak but is then interrupted by Laf patting the bed next to him and George immediately obliges, unable to keep himself from Gilbert and as he sits down Gil wraps George up in a big hug and he hugs back very intensely with all the gd emotions they have to give

Gil can hear George sniffle and feels tears on his shoulder (Gil would be crying, but like, he’s been doing that all night and is so tired)

After a moment (and after George stops crying) Laf is like, “George. I’m so so sorry about tonight.”

And George is immediately like, “You think that’s what I’m upset about? I’ve been so worried about you all night, you weren’t acting like yourself at all. I’m not mad in the slightest, I’m worried about you.”

They part, but not very far and they’re holding hands

Gil says: “I’m okay now. Or at least better than before.” (after a moment). “Thank you. For coming here in the middle of the night, to comfort me, to check on me. You didn’t have to. But thank you.

And George’s heart is just melting as he’s like, “You may not understand Gilbert, but I simply had to come see you. I believe I didn’t have a choice in the matter, andI would so much more for you, with no thanks if it meant I could make you happy and be by your side.” And he kisses Gil’s knuckles and Laf is practically having a heart attack with how much he loves this man and George is trying his goddamn hardest not to kiss him

George: “Lafayette, there is something that I need to tell you before this night is over. Something that’s been gnawing away at me for such a long time now *deep breath*”

Gil is sitting still, stopped breathing, waiting to hear the words he had been dreaming of (that sounds cheesy)

George suddenly pulls Gilbert in for a big hug (cause he’s kinda scared to see the look on his face when he says what he needs to say) and with a quiet voice, proclaims his love for Gilbert

And Gil, although at first thrown off by the hug, hugs him back with a big smile on his face and small tears falling from his eyes and he says: “George, I love you too. I love you too!”

Then they’re both happy crying and giggling and hugging the daylights out of each other until they’ve just kind of exhausted themselves and part

And with their faces so close together, hearts on their chest, tears in their eyes, George places his hand on Gil’s cheek, completely taken aback by his beauty, and they finally kiss! And it’s great. And they pretty much just make out and chill and chat til the sun comes up (but only kissing because like, that whole night was stressful and they’re both tired, leave them alone.)