#Bill Adopts Harry AU

[childotkw]

If you were Harry, what would be the year that you'd drop out of Hogwarts? Personally, I think that my name coming out of the Goblet of Fire would be the last straw for me.🤣 (Sorry for the bad english)

Oh, absolutely it would be fourth year! At the end of the GoF, Harry is:

fresh from a hellish tournament,

still dealing with the treatment he endured from his friends, wider peer group, national community, and international community,

has been betrayed by another professor he liked and trusted,

was forced to help resurrect his parents' murderer,

was tortured, and

watched Cedric, someone he liked and respected, die.

And that list is the bare minimum.

If I were Harry, fourth year would have been the last straw for me. Fuck that shit. Self-preservation should have kicked in, and no matter how much he loved Hogwarts and his friends, Harry should have run for the hills.

Would have been great if Sirius or someone else came along and just grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and vanished into the night.

This is bringing back memories of that vague AU I had though - the one where after the fight in the ministry Harry just goes I'm going to get myself or someone killed and decides to book it. Could work for him right after the tournament as well.

Point is, Bill Weasley finds him just as Harry's leaving Gringotts and realises what's happening, and he decides Harry desperately needs an adult in his corner that can see him buckling and actually wants to help. They whisk themselves away, and under Bill's informal training and tutelage, Harry becomes a badass, and they hunt the horcruxes down together. Voldemort definitely isn't prepared for it lmao

Thanks for the ask, and don't apologise for your English, my dear! 🥰

[oldgaysbrainrot]

raeda would definitely listen to abba together

[kamwashere]

spideypool fic rec list please!!!!

Paradise (spread out with a butter knife) by Sarah_Sandwich [T, Graphic Depictions of Violence, 72K]

He sighs from where he’s prone, arms akimbo, and roof gravel digging into his spine. “I lost my job. My… other job. The one that actually pays the bills.” He doesn’t want to dwell on why he’s telling Deadpool of all people. Surely it has nothing to do with his desperate lack of friends. MJ is in California chasing her dreams, Harry’s undergoing treatment for his mental health and isn’t allowed visitors (not that it matters since they blacklisted Peter after last time), and Gwen… Well. And it’s not like he can talk to Aunt May without her worrying about him starving to death under a bridge or something so… Deadpool it is. Man, when did his life get this pathetic. OR: The one where Peter and Wade are literal soulmates but don't realize it for literal years because they're literal idiots.

✦ kam's notes: My favoritest SMDP fic. It’s a soulmate au and it has one of the best characterizations of Peter and Wade. It burns so slow and so good. My favorite thing about this fic is how unique but somehow familiar this universe is. Peter is bad at being an adult and Wade is larger than life. I love the transition from strangers to friends to best friends to partners to roommates to soulmates/heartmates to lovers. I could not recommend this enough. 

Peter Parker's Home for the Wayward Villain by BeanieBaby [T, 90K]

A really long redemption story.

✦ kam's notes: The mother of all SMDP fics, in my opinion. It’s spideypool + a lot of fun side couples and cameos. Peter is Tony’s adopted son and he has no powers. He adopts a bunch of villains like Loki and Magneto. So fun and one of the first SMDP fics I’ve ever read!

Quackery by CAPSING [M, 3K]

In a world where the first words your soulmate will say to you appear on your left wrist at your tenth birthday, Peter gets the short end of the stick.

✦ kam's notes: It’s not a Spideypool fic rec list if there are no works by CAPSING. It’s a soulmate AU where Peter gets a duck-related soulmate mark. It’s funny and light-hearted, but with Deadpool-typical angst.

you grow up and you lose touch by scarlett_starlett [M, Graphic Depictions of Violence, 52K]

Peter always thought that when he had kids, there would be someone by his side. Instead, he has a mouthy mercenary acting as a chef every night for him and his newly adopted son and a narcissistic billionaire philanthropist paying child support on the sly. But Peter figures it isn’t all bad, especially when Miles loses that dullness in his eyes whenever Wade slips on the banana peels he ‘strategically’ places all over the apartment for Peter as a joke.

✦ kam's notes: Normally don’t like a kidfic but this one is too adorable not add. Peter and Wade co-parenting/co-mentoring Miles! Love the dynamic between Wade and Miles, it’s so silly.

TheRealDeadpool posted by JessJesstheBest [T, 6K]

Carly Shep @Spider-butt Sooo… has anyone else noticed how cozy Spider-Man and the Merc with a Mouth seem to be lately? (14 retweets, 74 likes) Or the Isn't it Bromantic comic run from the perspective of in-universe social media

✦ kam's notes: What it says on the summary. Very cracky and sweet. I like the outsider POV element of this.

BF(F) by HexxBunny [T, 10K]

Five times people thought Wade and Peter were a couple which, seriously, where did they get that from? They are not a couple, stop asking. They are just friends now, and did plenty of friend stuff. Like kissing.

✦ kam's notes: Peter being in denial: the fic. It’s very fluffy. A lot of kissing. The Avengers make an apperance. 

Pizza Parker, Booty Double by vulcanhighblood [G, 1K]

The pizza delivery boy has hips that don't lie, and a booty belonging to Spider-Man. All Wade has to do now is find proof that Peter is the webbed wonder...

✦ kam's notes: The famous “Deadpool recognized Peter outside the suit based on his ass” fic. There are some dubiously-consensual groping but it’s all in very good fun.

that's all it is, man by scarlett_starlett [T, 5K]

"It’s just a leap of faith. That's all it is." (or: Peter B. Parker returns to his New York and actually believes that he won’t mess it up again; not this time, not with him. WARNING: Spoilers for the Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse movie. Read with caution.

✦ kam's notes: Another scarlett_starlett fic! Possibly the best Peter B. Parker/Wade Wilson fic, in my opinion. I love love love their dynamic in this. The banter is 10/10. Wade gives  some much-needed appreciation for Peter B’s dad bod. 

Parallel Horizons by mokuyoubi [E, 10K]

When Peter B Parker enters the collider again to return to his own dimension, he’s dumped out a week into the future, but still in Miles’ universe. Repeated attempts to return home only speed up the damage done to his body by the glitches, and leave him stranded 2 years in the future. Enter Deadpool, who’s seen a lot of versions of Spider-Man, but never one so in need of a friend. He vows to save Peter’s life, whether he likes it or not. Along with Miles and Gwen, they work to repair the damage, and find out what’s keeping Peter from being able to return home. And maybe Peter finds he has more in common with the strange Merc than he could have anticipated.

✦ kam's notes: Another Peter B./Wade fic. Wade is very helpful and charming, how could Peter not fall for him? The other Spideys also make a cameo. Some Liv/May crumbs in here, too.

liminal spaces by brawlite [Series, M, 18K, Unfinished]

New York City is full of liminal spaces. Somehow, Peter always seems to find Wade in them.

✦ kam's notes: This one is technically a series. There are three works in here and they’re all so good. I love how intimate these fics feel and there are some great Peter retrospectives here. 

an itch you can't scratch by jilliancares [G, 8K]

5 times Wade bumps into Peter Parker + 1 time he realizes Peter Parker is Spider-Man.

✦ kam's notes: Oh my God, this one! Wade keeps meeting Peter and keeps feeling like he’s forgetting something. The moment he realizes is my favorite part of this fic. Definitely recommend!

Another Trip Around the Sun by isaDanCurtisproduction [M, 31K]

Peter likes Wade. A lot. Like-likes him. But this is a problem, see? Because Wade has no idea who is behind the Spiderman mask. And then they go to a New Years Eve Party hosted by Tony Stark, get completely wasted, and suddenly this does not seem to be nearly as much of a problem as Peter originally thought. Because Peter always makes the best decisions while drunk, don't you know? Especially when his decision involves getting into Deadpool's pants.

✦ kam's notes: The miscommunication fic to end all the other miscommunication fics. Frustrating, sexy, and a little angsty! 

Halo by Pancake22 [T, 5K]

Convinced that Spider-Man is hiding in plain sight as an employee at Parker Industries, Deadpool explores the building in hopes of spotting his friend amongst the sea of corporate drones. All to offer him a job opportunity, of course. That was it though. Honest.

✦ kam's notes: SM/DP compliant. Identity reveal. Enough said. 

It Had to Be You by fancastical [T, 20K]

Or, Five Times Deadpool Recognised Spider-Man and One Time He Didn't

✦ kam's notes: A frustrating, bordering on cracky identity reveal fic. Peter is a troll, Wade loves him anyway. The ending is super satisfying, I promise. 

Don't mind just shamelessly plugging my own fics—

my heart is wild (and my bones are steel) [T, 9K]

Out of the corner of his eyes, MJ quietly takes the seat across the younger Peter, swiftly sliding into his place. He visibly relaxes, resting his forehead against hers. They belong together in a quietly intense way. Longing burns hot inside of him, like a branch caught in a forest fire. It’s strange. Even if this version of Peter has lost virtually everything, he still finds a way to be envious of him. He thinks of Wade. For some unfathomable reason he isn’t quite ready to examine yet, he misses the idiot. No Way Home, but in Peter-Three’s perspective.

all the skeletons you hide (show me yours, i’ll show you mine) [M, 16K, WIP]

A wave of affection and longing almost makes him stagger on his feet. Just seeing him in that suit—looking less than impressive, scratching his butt—makes him realize just how much he missed him. “Wade,” Peter cringes at how his voice catches, “Hi.” Wade turns around, turns back, turns again and does a double take. He eyes Peter up and down and to his surprise, turns away snootily. “Sorry cutie, any other day, I would be super into this hipster nerd slash skater boi with an I you’ve got going on—devastating combo, by the way—I’m sadly not in the mood.” Peter, fresh out of his multiversal escapades, gains a new perspective in life. One that includes a certain mouthy mercenary, perhaps? The problem is, the mercenary doesn’t seem to remember him. Like at all. He has a sneaking suspicion it has to do with that spell thing Peter-One was talking about…

‣ Both are a part of the new york isn't new york without you series

[lostdrarryfics]

THE BIG FIND 2023: Day 1

The Big Find is a 10-day long Drarry fic-finding marathon to celebrate the blog’s anniversary. Below is the Day 1 compilation of lost fics, both old and new, that we’ve been unable to find. Our aim is to get as much attention to these lost fics as possible, to help people finally find their missing fics! Anyone can participate by reblogging, reading through each list, providing additional fic details, and informing us the title, author, or link of a fic, and their respective number in the comment section. Happy finding!

1.1 It’s a fic where after Draco is sentenced to live in muggle world and Draco first works in a cofee shop and then in a pharmaceutical company formed by a witch. then on a full moon day he suddenly turns into a werewolf and then with bill helps him adjust, and then he becomes potions professor meanwhile Harry adopts teddy and becomes defence professor and Harry magic goes haywire

1.2 it has Draco, Hermione, Ron, and Harry but the main scene is basically just Draco and Harry in the Room of Requirement. Premise is that Harry had been using magic to glamour himself to cover up the signs or the Dursley’s abuse FOREVER so no one has actually seen what he looks like. Somehow I think Ron and Hermione convince Harry to let someone in so he decides to show Draco who he’s dating what he actually looks like and Draco is so shocked/aghast Harry thinks he’s disgusted and one of them (though i don’t remember who) runs away back to the dorm and Harry is deeply upset. I believe it’s relatively short (2-10k?) and i feel like it’s 2-3 chapters or parts but could be wrong. It’s probably AO3 but slight possibility it was FFN (HIGHLY unlikely tho). If it is AO3 then unfortunately it’s not tagged for any of the things i listed.

1.3 Harry and Draco were out with Teddy, and they ran into Neville who questioned Harry about Draco and their relationship. I believe it was winter. There’s another scene that I can remember and I don’t know if I’m conflating two different fics but there’s a scene where Harry and Draco are shopping in muggle London and they’re looking at weird shirts and they run into Vernon who makes some homophobic slurs.

FOUND! 1.4 I’m looking for a fic that was on ao3. Draco is some sort of an artist, not sure if professionally or simply something he pursues as a hobby for his healing. Writer or painter maybe. He has a mentor who tells him to go a retreat by the seaside in a little hotel which he does and he runs into Harry by accident. Harry is overall happy and open to him, but Draco has a lot of anger towards him I think. They start a dom/sub relationship, Draco being the dom, taking pleasure out of humiliating Harry. Towards the end there’s a scene where he makes Harry suck off a stranger in a bars bathroom or maybe the stranger sucks Harry off while Draco watches. But I think this is a where Harry has enough because ultimately he only wants Draco. It’s a happy end if I remember well.

1.5 i read this fic on ao3 it was unfinished and a muggle au. harry works at an office (I think) where he is the boss and he meets Draco at a bar. Jily is still dead so Halloween is hard for him. He also dated Cedric I think and Cedric died. Draco helps bartend with Theo, and Draco is dressed like a cat cause of Halloween. Draco then gets assaulted and harry punches the guy. after that they hangout in Harry’s car.

1.6 Draco and Harry had a one night stand (I think?) and Draco gets pregnant, he doesn’t tell Harry and then leaves the baby with him once it’s born, Harry didn’t know that he is the father but keeps the baby. Said baby gets sick and the treatment involves the father so he publishes about it in the Prophet and ask the baby’s dad to please show up. Draco does and had some test done, they start the treatment and Harry asks him to stay.

FOUND! 1.7 been looking for this fic for a long time. i think draco is some sort of healer in the fic and harry always come to him injured and he helps patch him up also they’re close friends and by the end of the fic they go to ginny’s quidditch match and the gang helps them realise they have feeling for each other?

1.8 I believe it was on AO3 but I could be wrong, I think it was a number of fics in a series but it could have been chapters but I’m fairly sure it was complete. It was set post-war, Harry had become an Auror and was apparating home from an alley while buzzed. There was a line about how the whores don’t hit on him anymore because he never takes them home? He hears a weird noise and his magic automatically sobers him up. The noise is Draco, who got kicked out by parents and got roofied. Harry rescues him, I think Draco passes out? and then Harry is annoyed because his buzz is gone and he has to deal with this. The second fic (or chapter) opens from Draco’s POV. He’s looking around the bedroom he’s in and he figures out it’s the old Black house because of the furniture and that Harry must have rescued him but taken him home instead of the hospital. He decides to seduce Harry and he’s able to conjure like a mirror and brush? and there’s a line about how this is the only spell he’s able to do wordlessly/wandlessly? I think the POV then switches to Harry and there’s a line about how Draco has managed to get like a single ray of light from the curtains to fall on him perfectly. Harry is aware he’s being seduced but he’s into it. Then I think the next chapter has Harry confronting the Malfoy parents about how they’re going to get married and they’re not going to hyphenate names, Draco is going to take his last name. The final fic is maybe from Lucius pov (or narcissa?) Draco threw Harry a really big birthday party and reveals he’s pregnant which causes Lucius to faint? And there’s a line about how the baby has brought both Harry and Lucius to their knees.

FOUND! 1.9 harry tells draco that he wants to wait until theyre eight years into their relationship to get married so that hed have spent more time loving him than hating him before they tie the knot

1.10 auror fic where Draco and Harry have to work together to arrest some child abuser and learn about each other’s past. I don’t remember if they were in relationships or it was drarry but the focus was the work in the auror force and their building relationship.

1.11 major plot point is ginny and Molly Weasley being behind some sort of plot and eventually are imprisoned. I know Ron is an ass for much of the fic, hermione helps solve a case or problem with Harry and involves draco. Not a lot much else I recall fic is not The Haunting of Harry Potter by Alexandria_ofCiro

1.12 was either 1 or 2 chapters, it was on ffnet. Set in the eighth year. The plot is somewhat similar to the show/manga “boys over flowers”. Also Draco was being bullied due to receiving a howler (I think, sorry it’s been a long time since I’ve read it) Neville has an unrequited crush on Draco and they are friends.

1.13 takes place in the eighth year but some of it also takes place after the war but before the eighth year. Draco receives an inheritance from a high ranking Veela who died which made him a Veela. Most of what I remember takes place before he goes back to hogwarts and is basically him learning how to be a Veela and stuff

FOUND! 1.14 Draco cursing his family name (Malfoy) because he wants to feel pain each time someone says it to it. So i think the fic starts with Draco working as a cafe barista in the human world and harry walks into the shop and calls him Malfoy, so the curse is kinda unlocked and Draco gets sick so he has to stay under surveillance in Harry’s house 

[maladaptivewriting]

Well since you asked- the weirdest/most fucked up hp fic I read was this hedric soulmates fic (I was very bored) where voldy died during the triwiz battle and Harry was falsely accused of Cedric’s death and sent to Azkaban. Like literally everyone believed he killed Ced including dumbledore and even Ron and Hermione testified against him and Sirius broke his bond with Harry so Harry like hates him. During his stay we find out that Amos Diggory visited him a lot and the guards basically let him torture Harry… It was rather- depraved. People find out the truth and Harry eventually gets released and he cuts ties with everyone- and snape adopts him for some reason.

Then.. they move to forks Washington and without any warning it turns into a twilight au were because the spell voldy used (it involved contrived time travel that’s never explained) didn’t actually kill ced, it just sent him back and time- and also turned him into Edward and he consequently forgot his life as Cedric.

OH OH I forgot to mention that there’s this weird mpreg subplot were Harry (mind you he’s like 14) has his and Cedric’s baby while in Azkaban, and because of soulmate magic she somehow didn’t die. The rest of the fic is them trying to get Edward to remember his past life, because in the soulmate lore they can’t live without one another and Harry is still alive and Cedric technically isn’t so Harry is basically dying the entire fic.

Um Bella tries to get Jacob to kill Harry (her character is a total bitch in this fic- the character assassin is nuts she’s just whiny and annoying) but he imprints on Harry’s baby… To get rid of the Bella problem because she’s (probably rightfully) upset that Edward doesn’t love her any more THEY LITERALLY DEAGE HER- LIKE YOU PEOPLE ARE WIZARDS YOU HAVE THE ABLITY TO ERASE MEMORIES?!?!!! God- but yeah they turn her into a baby and Charlie is weirdly okay with it.

The rest of the Cullens are in the fic, George has a crush on Harry, Snape and Bill(?) I don’t remember but he’s gay) are dating, Bella’s character is awful, there’s also this subplot where Amos (his literal abuser) is trying to get custody of Harry because he wants the baby, Harry’s character is also just infantilized to a gross degree. There’s a cop-out death were Edward says he doesn’t remember Harry and it hurts him so much that he and the baby “die” (Bc they’re connected) and picture all of this with the character development of a wooden spoon. Idk why I put myself through that. Excuse any typos I wrote this at like 2am 😭

that was a wild ride frankly i don't even know what to say

i once read a dramione fic where the author spent 150k words shitting on ron like they were writing an academic paper about him and hating hermione's curly hair only for the sequel to inexplicably include the volturi for no reason

this is the problem with jegulus they never commit to this insane degree

[padawansuggest]

I want to talk to people about my Harry Potter series (where Harry gets adopted by Bill and nothing bad happens -for at least a few years- and Bill is bi and Harry is too but Harry is also transfluid and everyone is an Actual Threat to JKRs existence) but I don’t wanna repopulate my HP blog cause I feel like y’all are so mean to the HP writers now like bitch she HATES ff and especially gay and trans ff and that’s all I’m doing and NONE of them are straight and Snape went to fucking therapy and Draco isn’t cocky in this AU because he has a specific magic ability that I haven’t revealed yet but it makes him sorta quiet and thoughtful around others cause he can’t stop dissecting their actions and also Neville is gonna be taken better care of too and Harry is half Indian so he’s also not white because I think that’s way better in all ways and everyone is gay and trans so like???? Obviously it’s superior to all canon ever, and I ain’t supporting the actual HP franchise cause ewwwwwwww, but like??? I just wanna talk to you guys about a chat Snape is gonna have with Blaise about using his extremely rare Veela magic to get Potter to think twice before he touches the next cursed object in sight and Snape can keep one more nerve maybe but it sorta just tumbles into puppy love because Harry is all ‘oh; prettiest person I have ever met wow’ and Blaise is like ‘huh… he’s kinda cute…’ and now they’re in love and instead Snape has to watch them mooning over each other and it’s cute to the readers but not him.

Anyways. I like this rarepair with a burning passion, I am falling back into the cringe to enact the Dark Veela trope and hand it to Blaise as a super mega rare male Veela (it’s already rare as a whole but him being a child of a full blood Veela but a boy is just wild it’s the highest Veela concentration a boy can have) and I’m legit considering making Draco get slightly obsessed with cousin Tonks and she’s all ‘you obviously aren’t a metamorph because you would have had uncontrollable powers before now’ and he’s all ‘BUT TRANSFIGURATION EXISTS IMMA LEARN IT’ and now he’s less of a brat because he keeps following Tonks around everywhere and it’s kinda funny. Neville is his new BFF and they’re so weird.

Idk man I’m like. I’m trying to make this as threatening to JKR as possible (WolfStar is real and they’re married and gonna survive the whole series don’t TEST me) but I still don’t really… wanna restart the HP blog… idk.

[mirananananan]

intro & fic masterlist

hi & welcome to my blog which consists mostly of me screaming about the last of us, more specifically joel & ellie. i also enjoy a fair amount of other fandom content (ted lasso, succession, harry potter, marvel, some musicians, etc), so expect occasional reblogs outside of tlou.

my name is miranda (she/her), and i am back on tumblr and ao3 after an approx. 10 year hiatus, so it has been really fun finding joy in this again after so long! my asks are always open, as are my dms! i love meeting and talking to people on here!

speaking of, i write tlou fic and post on ao3 when i have the time and inspiration! i absolutely love found family dynamics, angst/fluff, and giving these beautiful characters who i love so much some softness and happiness.

masterlist:

ONE-SHOTS:

you were wrong (my healing needed more than time) - ellie and joel adjust to life in jackson. joel is having a harder time than he thought he would...and he somehow forgot how hard it is to be a parent (3.9k words)

what would it feel like to put this baggage down? - the progression of joel & ellie's relationship through conversations they have while he does her hair (7.4k words)

routine - there is a break in ellie's routine, and the entire day spirals from there. set in modern au in which 7-year-old ellie was adopted by good parents joel & tess, the beautiful verse set up by this fic (4.6k words)

twenty year dark night (now i see daylight) - joel remembers a series of core parenting memories with sarah as he navigates being a parent to a very different child under very different circumstances (11k words)

a place in a brand new world - joel tells ellie the truth after a few months in jackson. she struggles with forgiveness, complicated further by having a hard time coming to terms with what her place is in joel's life. ft. good uncle tommy, feelings of inadequacy for ellie, and joel waiting patiently to pick up the pieces (5.4k words)

we don't get too long (that's why i'm holding on) -  ellie's getting older, and so is joel. lots of things are different, but plenty is the same. ft. aged-up ellie and joel; everyone lives, no one dies jackson fluff (2.4k words)

i had the best day with you today - the pumpkin patch/fall vibes fic i dreamt up one day while listening to "the best day" (taylor's version) by taylor swift (5.1k words)

a home that leads me back to you - whumptober 2023 promt #3: "like crying out in an empty room, with no one there except the moon" | solitary confinement | "make it stop"

SERIES:

modern sisters au -

modern setting au in which joel is a single dad to his two teenage daughters, sarah and ellie.

daughters - in another universe, joel has both of his girls together, minus the apocalypse. aka, the modern au in which sarah & ellie are sisters (2.3k words)

on my side (even when i was wrong) - sarah and ellie attempt to pull off a scheme to keep joel from finding about ellie's school troubles. he finds out anyway (4.5k words)

the better version of our past - joel and tess agree to smuggle a six-year-old named ellie to the fireflies in exchange for gear they need to get west in joel’s search for tommy. when they discover she is immune and what the fireflies plan to do with her, there is a change of plans.

takes place about 8 years before canon. tess lives, family is found, ellie gets a post-apocalyptic childhood.

the past coming back (pt. 1) - main story. an alternate universe/timeline where joel & tess meet ellie eight years earlier under similar circumstances (30.7k words)

the future looks good (pt. 2) - a little extra of ellie’s pov at bill & frank’s (set in chapters 3-4 of part 1 of series). ft. ellie's process of starting to trust joel & tess even though she's never really known trustworthy adults (2.2k words)

just tryin' to find my way to you (pt. 3) - ellie gets sick while settling in jackson. joel worries too much. ft. the healing powers of candy land (7.1k words)

today is another day to find you (pt. 4) - joel makes a guitar once they're settled into jackson. ellie is absolutely smitten, but tess is even more smitten with her family and the moments they enjoy together (2.7k words)

time cutting me open (then healing me fine) (pt. 5) - tommy convinces joel & tess to take a "vacation" so that he can activate good uncle tommy mode. it goes about as well as could be expected. ft. ellie's separation anxiety, tommy doing his best, and lots of fluffy comfort for all (6k words)

i found you under an april sky (pt. 6) - during her early months in jackson, ellie learns what it means to be loved, have a family, and a place to call home (6.4k words)

a flower bud in concrete (pt. 7) - the miller family grows within the safe walls of jackson. tess & joel decide to have a baby now that they are in an environment that is normal enough, and ellie has mixed feelings about being a big sister (14.3k words)

just stand still (pt. 8) - ellie is 14 now and experiencing some major growing pains. ft. aged-up tpcb ellie, heavy angst, and canonical violence/traumatic events, but also the incredible miller family there to help make it all better (25.3k words)

[jknerd]

Oliver Twist in NYC AU: Oliver

Full Name: Oliver T. Foxworth

Age: 6

Gender: Male

Other names: Ollie, Gato

Occupations: Orphan (former), Elementary school student

Residence: Unknown illegal orphanage (formerly), Fagin’s Barge (formerly), Foxworth Residence (currently)

Family: Agnes Fleming (biological mother; deceased), Mr. Leeford (biological father), Harry Foxworth (adoptive father), Rose Maylie-Foxworth (adoptive mother; biological aunt), Jennifer “Jenny” Foxworth (adoptive sister; cousin), Edward “Monks” Leeford (estranged half-older brother), Lindsay Foxworth (adoptive grandmother)

Relationships: Dodger (first friend), Rita (friend; a first mother figure), Tito (friend; uncle figure), Francis (friend), Einstein (friend), Fagin: (his first benefactor), Nancy (friend; a second mother-figure), Winston Bronslow (butler), Georgette (nanny), Marie Bonfamille (friend, crush), Berlioz Bonfamille (friend; classmate), Toulouse Bonfamille (friend; classmate), Minerva Pinscher (friend; classmate)

Likes: Reading books, hot dogs, chocolate mousse, playing with friends, Marie Bonfamille (crush)

Dislikes: Being useless to others, abandonment, “scary” adults

Oliver Twist Foxworth was a former orphan who was recruited by Dodger into Fagin’s gang, eventually adopted in Foxworth family as Jenny’s brother. Since birth, he was in an underground orphanage where all children were forced to be in labor; sewing clothes, wallets, dolls, toys, and other products. When some are no longer useful, the children’s limbs or organs are illegally trafficked. When Oliver was abused for wanting second oatmeal gruel, he was soon to be sold but escaped, arrived in New York city’s subway station where he stayed with the homeless until he met Dodger, led to see Fagin and the gang. As their benefactor was persuading Bill Sykes, the loan shark, Oliver was caught by one of the two henchmen, DeSoto who recognized him as a runaway orphan in their territory, proceeded to drag the boy by ear harshly to the point of bleeding but Oliver defended himself by hit his nose with a bottle, breaking it in process. Oliver asked to stay and wanted to be useful with what he can do, but Fagin’s gang were reluctant to make him work.

For days, he helped Dodger in busking, able to help Fagin gathering money. Yet, Oliver refuse to spend allowance from Fagin, prefers to save them for emergencies. In the boat house, Oliver spent his time sewing pillows and dolls, or even disposed clothes. These were enough for additional earning when Fagin could sell them. One day during busking, the police were chasing after Dodger and others. Oliver was lost in a middle of city until he met Jenny and her butler Winston. Jenny, one of the audiences of his busking, asked if Oliver can sing for her Birthday, which he agreed to. While then, he hesitantly stayed in Jenny’s house. Meanwhile, Winston noticed a striking resemblance Oliver has with sister of Jenny’s mother; Agnes. Initially, Georgette didn’t like the idea of street orphan in the house of Foxworth, but grew attached to the boy. Encountering Jenny’s parents, they discovered Oliver’s pendant actually belonged to Jenny’s aunt, which they go through official process to adopt him. Even adopted, Oliver’s kindness remained the same as he prefers to spend his allowance for someone else other than himself. In school, he had made friends with kids around his age, including the Bonfamille triplets and a sweet girl Minerva, who was actually a daughter of Roscoe. However, Edward “Monks” Leeford—unofficial heir of Leeford family—discovered Oliver alive and decided to plan the boy’s death. 

After school, Oliver was taken back to Fagin’s house by the gang. Seeing his clothes replaced with expensive ones and his relation to Foxworth family, Fagin believes the hope in repaying debt while Sykes was appointed by Edward with a proposal; close the account with Fagin as he could kidnap both Oliver and Jenny for ransom. Believing Oliver is no important to the family, Edward added the appointment in killing Oliver as soon as the money is paid. Overhearing this, Nancy warned the gang and Jenny about Edward and Sykes. When Jenny went out with Georgette to find Oliver, the girl was kidnapped to lure Oliver under, schemed by Sykes. Oliver volunteered to save her, finally meeting Edward who was actually Oliver’s half older brother. Recognizing Oliver as a friend of his daughter, Roscoe expressed distress when Edward abused the boy with hate and rage. The boy also witnessed Nancy’s fatal state due to being beaten up by Sykes, alarming DeSoto who has developed romantic feelings for Nancy. During the Fagin and the gang rescuing the children, Sykes died of brutal traffic accident and managed to get in time to stop Foxworth family to give up the business to Edward, exposing his crimes. When Edward attempted to kill Oliver, it was stopped by their father Mr. Leeford who was alive thanks to Fagin saving him from being left to die in fire days ago. Mr. Leeford and Oliver had a tearful reunion as the man disowned Edward. Adding more fuel in Edward’s life, his mother guiltily submitted all evidences of his crime to police as he was arrested.

Oliver reunited with all orphans who were finally freed from underground orphanage. Feeling bad of causing Roscoe and DeSoto to get arrested, he persuaded Minerva to write letters to them together as she reluctantly agreed. As Mr. Leeford was still ill, he changed his will in favor of his son Oliver; The Leeford house will be used as boarding house for Fagin and the gang as his gratitude for them as they helped and protected Oliver, entire fortune to help Fagin raise the orphans until they could find new home and family. Edward’s mother decided to leave New York, leaving her all fortunes to Oliver in repentance for blaming him and his mother Agnes. Eventually, Oliver has two sides of family; The Foxworth and the Fagin’s boarding house family.

[kneecoal-mooma]

No one: Literally no one: My brain when I have exams: Now what AUs can I come up with...?

Okay, but like.

Harry Potter and the 12 Dancing Princesses AU, but it's the Weasleys.

And also there is literally no similarities, bUT think about it!

During the First Wizarding War, let's say that 'Oh no! Molly and Arthur die!', which leaves Bill, Charlie, Percy, Fred and George parentless. The Weasley parents die before Ron and Ginny are born, so basically they aren't characters in this.

But like, imagine the Marauders looking after them while the war is still happening, so the five of them have a nice life until Voldemort kills James and Lily, which causes Sirius's arrest, Lupin having to go into hiding and Peter, well, Peter is still there but as a rat, so they're parentless again.

So, this time they were officially adopted by the Malfoys, but they don't particularly care for them and are more intent in getting out their 'blood traitorness' removed from them, by enforcing rules and schedules and not letting them have time for themselves.

Of course, this would be in the Daily Prophet as it looks like Lucius and Narcissa are 'becoming good people' by adopting a bunch of kids, but because it's in the newspaper, Sirius would see Peter Pettigrew in the paper, essentially moving the whole of the Prisoner of Azkaban plot 10+ years earlier.

Anyway, so Bill goes off to Hogwarts, leaving Charlie, Percy and the twins alone with the Malfoys. George manages to befriend Dobby, while Fred attempts to find as many loopholes in the rules as possible. Percy is convinced the only way they'd be able to escape the Manor is when Bill graduates, but Charlie is determined to get out earlier than that.

One day, they're all sitting around the table together and Lucius mentions that Sirius has escaped Azkaban. Charlie and Percy can remember the times when they lived with him and are sure that he is coming to save them.

During the Christmas holidays, Bill comes home and they whisper to him about the news of Sirius, causing them all to be on the lookout for him, in case they spot him walking past.

(They never do, but they see a dog passing by a number of times.)

One day, Sirius sneaks inside the Malfoy Manor with the help of Dobby, and reveals himself inside their room one night.

Immediately, Charlie tells him how bad their life sucks now, and asks him to take them back. Sirius, who didn't even think they were living with the Malfoys and who just wanted to kill Pettigrew, reluctantly agrees as long as they bring the rat.

However, Lucius was creeping around at night, and enters the room at the noise. Bill starts stuttering an excuse, but Sirius is just about ready to rip his throat out, so Lucius pulls out his wand while Sirius grabs Bill's.

Now, obviously they duel, but Lucius wins because he's using his own wand and Sirius is tired enough as it is. And just like great parenting, he punishes the kids for Sirius's break in.

As a silent rebellion, George asks Dobby if there's a secret area they could go where Lucius couldn't find them. He shows them some sort of a 'Room of Requirement' in their room and they spend time in there instead of sleeping, feeling thrilled about disobeying behind Lucius's back.

Like in the original film, Lucius begins to become suspicious as they keep falling asleep during their breakfast. He finds out about the 'Room of Requirement' via Dobby because of how the loyalty thing works, and manages to get inside and tries to burn down the room while they're in there.

Fortunately for the Weasleys, Sirius has recruited Remus after telling him about Peter and Lucius and they arrive just in time to save the children.

While Sirius is going off at Lucius, Remus is seriously close on murdering Peter. The Weasleys are horrified that Scabbers was indeed not Scabbers but the man who they had viewed as a parental figure. Remus tells George to tell Dobby to apparate them to Grimmauld Place.

And basically Sirius is declared innocent as they give the evidence of Peter's betrayal to the Ministry and he legally adopts the Weasleys again, with Remus helping raise them up.

Basic crash-course:

The princesses: Bill, Charlie, Percy, Fred, George

Twyla: Dobby

Rowena: Lucius, Narcissa

Derek: Sirius, Remus

Or, if you didn't bother reading any of that:

The Weasleys x The 12 Dancing Princesses Except That Half The Plot of the Original Film Isn't Quite Important At All And Nothing Quite Matches Up Except For Like 3 Key Points Or Something (I don't know, I didn't count.)

[kits-ships]

filling out the entirety of this ask game for Olive because i love having fun and getting silly

1. what are the basics of your self-insert? name, date of birth, height, etc.?

Name: Olive Madison Birthday: Sept 14, 1947 (Jumped 44yrs into the future) Height: 5’3 Current home: Maine Birthplace: Cincinnati, Ohio

2. when in canon does your self-insert come in? do you have a scene in mind for your entrance?

Between ‘The Ark in Space’ and ‘The Sonatran Experiment!’ The Doctor drops off Harry + Sarah Jane to do whatever they need to do and goes ‘ok I’ll pick you up in a day!!” 

But, when he’s by himself, the TARDIS dumps him in the middle of Ohio and he finds Olive injured after a protest. They go on a single adventure after the Doctor patches her up before she becomes a companion. <3

3. how do the other characters generally feel about your self-insert?

Olive is very sisterly/motherly towards other companions, so she’s generally well-liked by them. Some are confused as to why she married the Doctor, others feel the need to stand up for her when she can’t do it herself, and others are like, “How did you get the Doctor to even flirt with you? Hold on, let me get out a pen and paper-”

Some of the villains are intrigued by her, while others only see her as something they can use to manipulate the Doctor. The alien villains in particular see her as weak because she’s a human- including the Master- but he quickly regretted underestimating her after he tried to kidnap Olive and she bit the ever-loving shit out of him.

4. would you be considered a main character, side character, villain, or something else?

She would be a main character for the twelfth season but, after that, she’s a side character with a few appearances a few times each season. There are a few AUs where she might appear more often than that, though!

5. does your self-insert have any special powers or abilities?

No, not really! She majored in botany and minored in culinary arts, but that’s about as far as her ‘special abilities’ go. I’ve considered having the Master try to turn her into a Time Lord as well, but I like that she’s just a lil human :3

6. does your self-insert have any pets?

Olive had a long-haired, black cat when she was little. It grew up alongside her until she was sixteen!

When Olive graduated college, she adopted a kitten named Celeste a month or so before she met the Doctor. Celeste got to live in the TARDIS for a bit and even came to the future alongside Olive.

In a Doctor/Olive/Master polycule, the two Time Lords adopt two ragdoll kittens for Olive! I haven’t named them yet.

With Olive/Master, they come across two orphaned kittens that Olive bottle raises. The Master named them Artemis and Apollo.

7. would any other characters (besides your f/os) have a crush on your self-insert?

I don’t think too much about this, but Harry and Bill might have little puppy crushes on her that they never act on. River having a crush on her would be cute, too!! (Jack has a crush on everyone so he doesn’t count.)

8. what is your self-insert’s orientation?

Olive is bisexual and polyamorous!

9. who are your self-insert’s closest friends?

Excluding the Doctor/Master: Sarah Jane, Jamie, Donna, and Yaz.

10. how do the other characters feel about your self-insert and f/o’s relationship?

Copy and pasting from before: Some are confused as to why she married the Doctor, others feel the need to stand up for her when she can’t do it herself, and others are like, “How did you get the Doctor to even flirt with you? Hold on, let me get out a pen and paper-”

When she’s with the Master, they’re worried and confused. Did he hypnotize Olive? Is she safe? Should they try to help the Doctor win her back? Only Graham ever gets to see how happy she is with the Master after she showed up at her house one day.

With the Doctor/Olive/Master, they are so confused, but they do their best to trust Olive and the Doctor when they say that he’s changed for the better. Still, though, they’re a bit wary of it all.

11. what kind of outfit(s) does your self-insert wear?

Olive enjoys wearing sweaters, t-shirts, jean shorts, skirts, and short overalls! Her style focuses on being comfortable and being able to garden in outfits without ruining them entirely. She also likes to wear sandals but will put on a pair of boots if she really needs to.

12. how would the fandom view your character?

I like to think that they’d see her in a similar light to Rose and River! You either really like them or you pretend they don’t exist so you can focus on shipping Thoscei.

13. does your self-insert have any information about their family?

Olive does not get along with her parents. They took care of her physical needs when she was little, but were not affectionate or very empathetic. When she went off to college, they tried to get her to major in financial accounting so that she could follow in their footsteps, but Olive just moved out and cut ties with them. Her parents had even offered to pay for her classes if she switched majors, but she didn’t wanna!! She wanted to study plants and bake cakes, goddammit!

14. what hobbies does your self-insert have?

She likes to bake, garden, and dabbles in various forms of fiber arts! Olive also enjoys fostering animals.

15. how does your self-insert play a role in the plot of the story? do they help directly defeat the villain, support the heroes, etc.?

Olive is just there to help the Doctor and be cute.

16. freebie! name a fact about your self-insert that you want everyone to know.

I don’t always draw her as such, but Olive is a redhead! Her hair is a very dark copper color but she always assumed it was just brown. It was Donna who pointed it out to her and Olive was so confused. 

(I think an explanation for this would be books and audio dramas describing her as a brunette despite the fact that she’s a redhead.)

[bookgeekgrrl]

My media this week (9-15 Apr 2023)

ᵍᵘᵉˢˢ ʷʰᵃᵗ ᶦ ᵇᶦⁿᵍᵉᵈ ʸᵉˢᵗᵉʳᵈᵃʸ

📚 STUFF I READ 📚

🥰Love Exactly (darter_blue) - 64K, zimbits AU - fluffy AU with a chance meeting in a bar and instalove - fun read, like wrapping a warm blanket around yourself

😊👂‍Death Beside the Seaside (Lady Hardcastle Mysteries #6) (T.E. Kinsey, author; Elizabeth Knowelden, narrator) - Emily & Flo try to take a holiday at the seaside but there's no sea and a surprising number of internal spies. -

😍Wish Granted (ambut) - 40K, stucky no powers AU - reread of this fave D/s getting together fic

😊👂‍A Botanist's Guide to Parties and Poisons (Saffron Everleigh Mystery #1) (Kate Khavari, author; Jodie Harris, narrator) - entertaining enough cozy mystery set in 1920s British academia with the standard 'plucky & smart-but-also-foolish' amateur detective (newly minted botanist) trying to exonerate her mentor from murder charges. I enjoyed it enough that I might read another but I'm not feral for it

🥰Winter's Children (Neery) - 66K, stucky - "When their attempts to recreate the super soldier serum failed, Hydra started trying to breed Captain America clones from his genetic samples. Unfortunately, the serum's effects aren't passed down genetically, so instead of an army of tiny Captain Americas, they get a bunch of tow-headed, asthmatic, allergic, immuno-compromised little Steves. And then the Winter Soldier stumbles across Hydra's failed experiment…" - just a great fucking fic. I stayed up until 1AM to read and I am too fucking old to be doing nonsense like that, but it was totally worth it.

😍Fourth Floor (dirtybinary) - 41K, stucky modern magic AU - "The one where Steve is an angry millennial wizard, Sam is a Disney prince, Natasha is a shapeshifter, and Bucky is a spoiler."

🥰👂‍Rattling Bone (OutFoxing the Paranormal #2) (Jordan L Hawk, author; Tristan James, narrator) - another enjoyable & spooky ghost hunting adventure with the OutFoxing The Paranormal found family, this time dealing with Oscar's actual family history/trauma.

🥰You're the One That I Want (PR Zed (przed)) - 53K, stucky modern no powers AU - reread, angsty arranged-marriage-for-insurance that is so satisfying

💖💖 +203K of shorter fic so shout out to these I really loved 💖💖

toasty warm heart (wearing_tearing) - Stranger Things: steddie, 9K - TOO FUCKING CUTE AND WARM AND FLUFFY

as sunshine falls on the wretched (KivrinEngle) - The Hobbit: gen, 18K - a very sweet canon-divergent AU where bilbo adopts a lost little dwarf baby

Handy (softestpunk) - The Sandman: dreamling, 3K - ceramicist Dream lusts after handyman Hob, doesn't make his move, is sad but is saved when he meets the hot professor he's giving a guest lecture for - short and sweet!

the game is on again (ReinventAndBelieve) - The Witcher: Geralt/Jaskier/Eskel, 7K - hot and tender af!

📺 STUFF I WATCHED 📺

Dirty Laundry - s2, e5-7

Ted Lasso - s3, e5 [x2]

The Brokenwood Mysteries - s9, e1

Uncommon Comfort Reads with Malka Older, Martha Wells, KJ Charles, and T Kingfisher - super fun panel

Schmigadoon! - s1, e1-6

Schmigadoon! (Schmicago!) - s2, e1

🎧 PODCASTS 🎧

99% Invisible #316 - The Shipping Forecast

The Sporkful - Bill Nye, The FOOD Science Guy!

Big Gay Fiction Podcast - A Trip to the Ballpark with KD Casey

The Atlas Obscura Podcast - Places Our Families Took Us

The Atlas Obscura Podcast - Ashley House

The Atlas Obscura Podcast - Fairy Circles

Vibe Check - A Satisfied Geriatric Millennial

99% Invisible #532 - For a Dollar and a Dream

⭐The Atlas Obscura Podcast - Fun and Funny Science with Mary Roach

Off Menu - Ep 187: Lily Allen

Into It - Are We Into Taylor Swift's Breakup, Lofi Girl, and a Baby Shark Podcast? {worth a listen to hear whatshisname Alwyn described as 'sentient mayo'}

You're Dead To Me - Al Andalus

ICYMI Plus - Meet the Internet’s Princess

Welcome to Night Vale #226 - Creditors

⭐Hit Parade Plus - The British Are Charting Edition

🎶 MUSIC 🎶

CREDITS: Burt Bacharach

AM In The A.M.: '70s Pop Morning

Classic Sunny Afternoon

Best Of '81 To '85 [Ratt]

Essential Glam Rock

Ratt radio

"Summertime Girls" [Y&T] radio

The Fixx radio

[jpbjazz]

LÉGENDES DU JAZZ

PAUL BLEY, LE ORNETTE COLEMAN CANADIEN

‘‘Anything you play twice is once too much.’’

- Paul Bley

Né le 10 novembre 1932 à Montréal, au Québec, Hyman ‘’Paul’’ Bley était le fils adoptif de Joseph Bley, le propriétaire d’une usine de broderie, et de Betty Marcovitch, une immigrante originaire de Roumanie qui était arrivée au Canada avec sa famille à l’âge de neuf ans.

Bley avait commencé à étudier le violon à l’âge de cinq ans, . Bley avait sept ans lorsque ses parents adoptifs s’étaient séparés. Il était passé au piano la même année. Peu après, Bley avait commencé à copier les albums de Woody Herman au piano.

Plusieurs années plus tard, Bley avait finalement découvert que sa nurse, une canadienne-française nommée Lucie, avait eu une liaison avec son père, et qu’il était issu de cette relation.

Sur l’encouragement de sa mère adoptive, Bley avait pris des cours de piano avec un professeur itinérant du Conservatoire de Paris avant de poursuivre ses études au conservatoire de l’Université McGill où il avait décroché son diplôme à l’âge de seulement onze ans. Il avait aussi étudié au Conservatoire de Québec. À l’âge de treize ans, Bley avait formé son propre groupe, le Buzzy Bley Band, qui se produisait dans les camps de vacances à Sainte-Agathe, dans les Laurenties.

À l’adolescence, Bley avait abandonné son prénom de Hyman pour adopter celui de Paul, car il croyait que cela permettrait d’attirer son succès auprès des filles. Toujours à l’adolescence, Bley avait joué avec des groupes américains en tournée, dont le Tramp Band d’Al Cowan. Du milieu à la fin des années 1940, Bley avait joué et dirigé des groupes de jazz dans la région de Montréal, souvent sous le nom de Hy ou Buzzy Bley. Durant son adolescence, la mère de Bley lui avait donné de l’argent et l’avait encouragé à passer quelque temps à New York afin de découvrir s’il pourrait être capable d’y vivre.

Bley était à sa dernière année au high school en 1949 lorsqu’Oscar Peterson lui avait demandé de le remplacer dans un concert à l’Alberta Lounge de Montréal. "That was my first really serious jazz gig’’, avait déclaré Bley plus tard.

En 1950, Bley s’était installé à New York pour étudier à la Juilliard School of Music. Même si Bley avait passé toute sa vie adulte aux États-Unis, il n’avait jamais renoncé à sa citoyenneté canadienne. Bley avait obtenu son diplôme de Juilliard en 1954. Durant son séjour à Juilliard, Bley avait formé un groupe qui comprenait de futurs grands noms du jazz comme Jackie MacLean, Donald Byrd, Arthur Taylor et Doug Watkins. Au cours de cette période, il avait également joué en tournée avec Lester Young, Ben Webster, Roy Eldridge et Bill Harris. Bley était aussi un assidu des célèbres sessions du samedi soir qui avaient lieu dans les studios du pianiste Lenny Tristano.

Lors des vacances d’été de 1951, Bley était retourné à Montréal et avait participé à la fondation du Montreal Jazz Workshop l’année suivante. Organisation contrôlée par les musiciens, le Jazz Workshop présentait des concerts de musiciens de New York accompagnés par des musiciens locaux.

Bley était président de l’Associated Jazz Societies of New York lorsqu’il avait été contacté par Charles Mingus qui l’avait chargé de superviser un de ses enregistrements avec un groupe de dix musiciens. En échange,  Mingus avait permis à Bley de participer à sa première session comme leader, ce qui avait donné lieu à la publication de son premier album en trio intitulé Introducing Paul Bley qui mettait  en vedette Mingus à la contrebasse et Art Blakey à la batterie. L’album avait été publié par la compagnie de disques de Mingus Debut Records.

En février 1953, Bley avait invité Charlie Parker à venir jouer à Montréal avec le Jazz Workshop. En 1984, Bley avait expliqué au cours d’une entrevue accordée au Globe and Mail comment il avait approché Parker.

“I’d been filled in about everything. So I knocked on the door and invited him to the workshop.

“He said, ‘When is it?’

“I said, ‘Now — we leave in 20 minutes.’

“There was no use in discussing anything in advance with him. So I took him to Montreal, didn’t let him out of my sight, and after the concert took him back to the plane — I didn’t want to be responsible for getting him lost on my gig.”

Avec Parker, Bley avait participé à l’enregistrement de l’album "Charlie Parker Montreal 1953". Parker s’était également produit à la télévision de Radio-Canada avec une section rythmique composée de Bley et d’autres musiciens. Toujours en 1953, Bley avait fait une apparition dans le documentaire Canadian Cameo Series: Spotlight Number 5. Parmi les autres musiciens que Bley avait invités à se produire avec le Jazz Workshop, on remarquait Sonny Rollins, Brew Moore et Alan Eager.

À son retour à New York, Bley avait recruté Jackie McLean, Al Levitt et Doug Watkins afin de participer à un engagement prolongé au club Copa City de Long Island. Il avait aussi joué avec Sonny Rollins et Ben Webster. Comme pianiste, Bley avait été particulièrement influencé par Bud Powell, ce qui ne l’avait pas empêché de façonner.

DÉBUTS DE CARRIÈRE

Du début des années 1950 jusqu’en 1960, Bley avait joué dans divers trios avec Al Levitt et Peter Ind. Les enregistrements de Bley avec son trio en 1954 ont été inclus sur l’album Paul Bley publié par les disques Mercury. En 1953, l’agence Shaw avait obtenu un contrat pour le trio dans le cadre d’une tournée avec Lester Young. À la même époque, Bley s’était également produit avec Ben Webster. En 1960, Bley avait de nouveau enregistré avec Mingus, mais cette fois avec le propre groupe du contrebassiste.

En 1954, Bley avait reçu un appel de Chet Baker pour jouer avec le quintet du trompettiste au club Jazz City d’Hollywood. Le concert, qui avait eu lieu en mars, avait été suivi d’une tournée avec la chanteuse Dakota Staton. En 1955, le magazine Down Beat avait interviewé Bley. L’article intitulé "PAUL BLEY, Jazz Is Just About Ready For Another Revolution" avait été publié le 13 juillet de la même année. L’article, qui avait été réédité dans le cadre du 50e anniversaire du magazine, reproduisait une déclaration de Bley dans laquelle il affirmait: "I'd like to write longer forms, I'd like to write music without a chordal center."

En 1956, Bley avait fait une tournée aux États-Unis avec son trio comprenant Hal Gaylor et Lennie McBrowne. La tournée incluait également un arrêt à Juarez, au Mexique. Le point culminant de la tournée avait été une apparition dans la résidence de Lucile Ball et Desi Arnez à Palm Springs, dans le cadre des festivités du Nouvel An. Durant la soirée, Bley s’était effondré sur scène à la suite d’un violent ulcère. Inquiète, Ball avait immédiatement conduit Bley à l’hôpital de Palm Springs et avait même payé tous ses frais médicaux.

À l’époque, Bley avait entamé une liaison avec Lovella May Borg (aussi connue sous le nom de Karen Borg), une Américaine d’origine suédoise qui travaillait alors comme vendeuse de cigarettes au club Birdland de New York. Le couple s’était épousé à Los Angeles un peu plus tard. Borg, qui était éventuellement devenue une des principales collaboratrices de Bley, s’était fait connaître plus tard sous le nom de Carla Bley. Plusieurs des compositions de Carla figuraient d’ailleurs sur des albums de Bley comme “Footloose!” (1963) et “Closer” (1965).

Un jour, Bley était venu voir Carla en lui disant qu’il lui fallait six pièces pour le concert qu’il devait donner le lendemain. Racontant l’événement plusieurs années plus tard, Carla avait déclaré: "He'd come in and say, 'Well, I got a record date tomorrow and I need six hot ones.’’’ I'd sit down and write six of them. I just functioned like that. Instead of cooking the dinner, that would be my job."

Décrivant sa collaboration avec Carla, Paul Bley avait commenté: “She didn’t have all the sex appeal that a female star should have. She was sort of serious. Maybe I felt a bond with her for that reason. I wanted to be serious. It wasn’t anything to do with her being the first female director. I learned that later.”

À l’époque de son mariage en 1957, Bley dirigeait le groupe-maison du Hillcrest Club, dans le quartier noir de Los Angeles. Devenu quintet l’année suivante, le groupe comprenait de grands innovateurs comme Dave Pike au vibraphone, Don Cherry à la trompette, Ornette Coleman au saxophone, Charlie Haden à la contrebasse et Billy Higgins à la batterie. Mais peu apprécié par les amateurs de jazz de Los Angeles, le groupe n’avait pas tardé à être congédié. C’est ce même groupe qui allait donner naissance au free jazz quelques mois plus tard. Bley était d’ailleurs devenu le premier artiste à transposer les innovations de Coleman au piano. Bley était aussi considéré comme un des seuls pianistes (avec Geri Allen et Joachim Kühn) à avoir réussi à collaborer avec Coleman avec un certain succès. Il était d’ailleurs d’autant plus facile pour Bley de jouer avec Coleman, car il avait toujours eu une approche de l’harmonie similaire à celle des saxophonistes.  

Au cours de cette période, Bley s’était aussi produit avec le trompettiste canadien Herb Spanier. Comme plusieurs musiciens des années 1950, Bley jouait surtout du bebop à l’époque. C’est durant son séjour à Los Angeles que Bley avait commencé à se tourner vers le free jazz. Au cours de cette période, il avait également collaboré avec de grands noms du jazz comme Bobby Hutchinson, Scotty LaFaro, Lawrence Marable et Dave Pike. 

Après être retourné à New York en 1959, Bley avait joué et enregistré avec des groupes dirigés par Charles Mingus, George Russell et Don Ellis. Il avait aussi joué avec Roland Kirk, Oliver Nelson et Jimmy Giuffre au célèbre Five Spot Cafe de New York. Avec Russell, Bley avait enregistré avec un big band, ce qui avait donné lieu à la publication de l’album Jazz in the Space Age en 1960.

En 1961-62, Bley avait fait partie du trio Giuffre 3 avec Jimmy Giuffre aux instruments à anches et Steve Swallow à la contrebasse. Le répertoire du groupe était composé de compositions de Giuffre, de Bley et de son ex-épouse Carla, dont il avait finalement divorcé en 1967. Trio très innovateur, le groupe jouait du jazz de chambre et du free jazz. Comparant sa collaboration avec Giuffre à son association avec Ornette Coleman, Bley avait commenté: "So just as Coleman's music challenged the validity of the pianist as accompanist, Giuffre's music challenged the validity of the drum/bass format as a rhythm machine. We found that one of the ways to get out of a particular era in music that has us locked in is to change the instrumentation." Décrivant le travail du trio, le pianiste canadien Kris Davis avait commenté: “The way the three of them improvise and compose in real time is something that I’ve been searching for and try to do in my own music. They’re able to improvise and make it sound composed.”

La tournée européenne du groupe en 1961 avait causé toute une sensation car le public s’attendait à entendre du bebop, mais il avait eu droit à des classiques du free jazz. À la même époque, Bley avait enregistré et s’était produit en  tournée avec Sonny Rollins, ce qui avait donné lieu à la publication de l’album Sonny Meets Hawk! avec le saxophoniste Coleman Hawkins. Le concert avait été enregistré au Festival de jazz de Newport en 1963. Le solo de Bley sur le standard "All The Things You Are" avait été qualifié de ‘’shot heard around the world" par le guitariste Pat Metheny. Durant la même période, Bley avait également travaillé avec le contrebassiste Gary Peacock et le batteur Paul Motian.

En 1963, Bley avait enregistré l’album ‘’Footloose’’ avec un trio composé du guitariste Pete LaRoca et du contrebassiste Steve Swallow. Des années plus tard, Bley avait qualifié l’album de son premier véritable enregistrement majeur. Durant le reste des années 1960, Bley avait continué à construire une approche très personnelle de l’improvisation et à redéfinir l’harmonie, le rythme, la forme et le tempo, pavant ainsi la voie à des innovateurs comme Keith Jarrett et Bill Frisell.

En 1963, Bley et Herbie Hancock avaient tous les deux été invités à se joindre aux groupes de Miles Davis et Sonny Rollins. Les deux groupes se produisaient tous les lundis soirs au club Birdland de New York. Bley avait finalement décidé de se joindre au groupe de Rollins durant un an et de faire une tournée au Japon. Bley avait également travaillé avec Albert Ayler en 1964.

En 1964, à l’invitation de Bill Dixon, Bley s’était joint à la Jazz Composers Guild, une coopérative qui regroupait plusieurs musiciens de free jazz de New York comme Roswell Rudd, Cecil Taylor, Archie Shepp, John Tchaicai, Burton Greene, Carla Bley, Michael Mantler, Sun Ra et plusieurs autres. En plus d’organiser des concerts hebdomadaires, la guilde avait créé un forum pour la ‘’Révolution d’octobre’’ de 1964. L’expression faisait référence au désir de certains jeunes musiciens comme Archie Shepp et Cecil Taylor de s’affranchir des contraintes de l’industrie du disque pour prendre leurs destinées entre leurs propres mains. Comme Bley l’avait déclaré à l’époque: “I think all record companies should be run by a musician, just as you wouldn’t trust your health to an electrician.’’

Très influent, le trio de Bley avait fait de nombreuses tournées en Europe à partir de 1965. Il avait aussi enregistré plusieurs albums, dont Ramblin', Blood et Mr. Joy. Parmi les membres successifs de la formation, on remarquait les contrebassistes Kent Carter, Mark Levinson et Gary Peacock, et les batteurs Barry Altschul and Billy Elgart.

À partir de 1968, Bley avait été un pionnier de l’utilisation des synthétiseurs ARP et Moog. Bley avait aussi été un des premiers artistes à explorer les possibilités tonales de ces instruments. Décrivant ses premiers contacts avec les synthétiseurs, Bley avait expliqué: “I was fortunate to be privy to the Karlheinz Stockhausen studio in Cologne at the time, which filled an entire room, from floor to ceiling, with modules [...] When I heard that Moog had added a keyboard, I was very intrigued as to whether his design was compatible with improvisation {...}. He was only too happy to put his instrument through the test of an authentic improvising musician, to see what it could and what it couldn’t do.”

Le 26 décembre 1969, Bley avait été le premier artiste à se produire en direct avec des synthétiseurs dans le cadre d’une performance au  Philharmonic Hall de New York. Le concert mettait également en vedette la chanteuse et compositrice Annette Peacock (l’ex-épouse du contrebassiste Gary Peacock). Par la suite, Bley avait de nouveau collaboré avec Peacock sur les albums Dual Unity et Improvisie. Publié par une compagnie française, ce dernier album comprenait deux pièces improvisées et mettait en vedette Bley aux synthétiseurs, Peacock au chant et aux claviers et Han Bennink aux percussions. Batteur d’origine hollandaise, Bennink avait également participé à l’album Dual Unity. En fait, les années 1969-72 avaient été tellement marquantes que les performances de Bley avaient parfois été qualifiées de ‘’Paul Bley Synthesizer Show.’’ Après s’être séparé de Peacock, avec qui il avait enregistré huit albums, Bley avait dirigé un groupe de jazz-fusion appelé Paul Bley and Scorpio.

Mais les débuts de la relation de Bley avec le nouvelle technologie n’avaient pas toujours été de tout repos. Reconnu comme un remarquable raconteur, Bley avait expliqué comment il avait introduit les synthétiseurs Moog au légendaire Village Vanguard de New York, qui était alors la propriété du sévère Max Gordon. Au milieu de sa performance, les ordinateurs étaient soudainement tombés en passe. Bley poursuivait: “So there I was,” literally on the floor, with a flashlight in one hand and a microphone in the other, saying, ‘Ladies and gentlemen, I hope you’ll bear with us, there’s a bit of a technical problem here.’ Max told me three things at the end of that matinee. ‘Get out. Stay out. And don’t come back!’’’

Comme Bley l’avait précisé avec son sens de l’humour habituel: ‘’It wasn’t easy to continue a career in electronics.” Mais même si Bley était considéré comme un pionnier des synthétiseurs, il n’avait pas tardé à retourner vers le piano traditionnel.

En 1972, sur l’insistance de Manfred Eicher, Bley avait publié un premier album de piano solo intitulé Open, to Love sur les disques ECM. La même année, Bley avait également publié un album en trio intitulé Paul Bley & Scorpio sur lequel il jouait du piano électrique et du synthétiseur ARP. En 1974, Bley et la vidéaste Carol Goss, sa seconde épouse (qu’il avait épousée en 1980), avaient fondé la compagnie de production Improvising Artists, aussi connue sous le nom de IAI Records & Video.. Destinée à faire la promotion du jazz expérimental, la compagnie avait fermé ses portes quatre ans plus tard. L’enregistrement-phare "Turning Point", qui avait été publié par les Improvising Artists en 1975, avait été enregistré en 1964 lorsque Bley avait réuni John Gilmore, Gary Peacock et Paul Motian en vue d’une performance à l’Université de Washington. Pour les disques ECM, Bley avait également enregistré en trio avec le saxophoniste britannique Evan Parker et le contrebassiste Barre Phillips.

En plus de publier des enregistrements acoustiques mettant en vedette les improvisateurs les plus créatifs du 20e siècle, la compagnie Improvising Artists avait publié le premier album du guitariste Pat Metheny avec le prodige de la basse électrique Jaco Pastorius. Participaient aussi à l’enregistrement Bley au piano électrique et Bruce Ditmas à la batterie. L’album avait été décrit par Josef Woodard du magazine Down Beat comme "a raw-nerved, fascinating document, both of Bley's foray into electronic jazz and as a crude archival snapshot of future jazz legends." 

En tout et pour tout, la compagnie avait publié une centaine de CD mettant en vedette des artistes comme Jimmy Giuffre, Lee Konitz, Dave Holland, Lester Bowie, Marion Brown, Ben Webster, John Scofield, John Abercrombie, Bill Frisell, Chet Baker, Sonny Rollins, Bill Connors, Steve Swallow, Gary Peacock, Gunter Hampel, Lester Bowie, Steve Lacy, Ran Blake, Red Mitchell, Marc Johnson, Niels Henning Orsted Pedersen, Arild Andersen, Kent Carter, Barre Phillips, Paul Motian, Barry Altschul, Han Benninck, Billy Hart, Tony Oxley, Bruce Ditmas, Cecil McBee, Gary Burton, Jane Bunnet, Hans Koch, John Surman, John Gilmore, Evan Parker, Sam Rivers, Herbie Spanier, Bill Evans, Perry Robinson, Naná Vasconcelos, Badal Roy et John Gilmore. La compagnie avait aussi publié deux enregistrements en solo de Sun Ra.  

Bley et Goss avaient aussi fait la page couverture du magazine Billboard pour avoir enregistré le premier vidéo de ‘’musique commerciale.’’ Goss avait également produit des enregistrements vidéo live mettant en vedette les artistes d’IAI Records. Les vidéos de Goss étaient souvent accompagnés de performances de Bley au piano solo ainsi qu’avec son groupe de fusion, dont certaines n’avaient jamais été publiés sur vinyle. Au début des années 1980, Bley et Goss s’étaient installés à Cherry Valley, dans l’État de New York, où la compagnie Improvising Artists avait également été relocalisée.

Après 1974, Bley avait souvent joué et enregistré en Europe, que ce soit en solo, en duo ou en trio. Il avait aussi souvent réuni certains de ses anciens groupes, plus particulièrement son trio avec Annette Peacock et Barry Atschul, qu’il avait réuni pour une tournée au Japon en 1976, ou son trio avec Jimmy Giuffre et Steve Swallow, qu’il avait reformé de 1989 à 1995. En 1991, vingt-cinq ans après leur première rencontre, Bley avait de nouveau collaboré avec Giuffre et Swallow pour enregistrer l’album The Life of a Trio: Saturday and Sunday.

En 1975, Bley avait également participé à un récital au Loeb Student Center de l’Université de New York aux côtés du poète William Burroughs.

Même si les séjours de Bley au Canada avaient été plutôt rares dans les années 1960 et 1970, il avait commencé à collaborer de plus en plus avec des musiciens canadiens comme Jon Ballantyne, Jane Bunnett, Sonny Greenwich, Yannick Rieu, Herb Spanier et Kenny Wheeler dans les années 1980 et 1990. Il avait aussi fait de nombreuses apparitions dans des festivals de jazz canadiens.

En 1981, Bley avait été en vedette dans le documentaire Imagine the Sound de Ron Mann, consacré à la Jazz Composers Guild, dans lequel il avait effectué des prestations et discuté de l’évolution du free jazz et de sa propre musique. Dans les années 1980, Bley avait commencé à enregistrer dans différents formats avec de nombreuses compagnies de disques. Parmi ses productions de l’époque, on remarquait les albums de piano solo Tears, Tango Palace, Paul Bley Solo et Blues for Red, des albums en duo et en groupe comme Diane avec Chet Baker, The Montreal Tapes (avec Charlie Haden et Paul Motian), Fragments (avec John Surman, Bill Frisell et Paul Motian).

DERNIÈRES ANNÉES

Dans les années 1990, Bley avait continué de faire des tournées en Europe, au Japon et en Amérique du Sud en plus de faire de nombreux enregistrements aux États-Unis comme soliste ainsi qu’avec une grande variété de groupes.

En 1992, le Festival international de jazz de Montréal avait permis à Bley de se produire durant quatre soirs avec des musiciens de son choix (dont John Scofield, Gary Peacock, Gonzalo Rubalcaba et King Sunny Ade) dans le cadre de la série ‘’Sur Invitation.’’ Le festival avait d’ailleurs honoré Bley en lui décernant son prix Oscar Peterson en 1994. Toujours en 1992, Bley avait publié Memoirs, une collaboration avec ses fidèles collaborateurs Charlie Haden et Paul Motian. Josef Woodard avait écrit au sujet de l’album dans le magazine Down Beat: "Memoirs serves as a tidy summation of Bley's gifts as an individual and a musical conversationalist. Motian is roughly to the drums what Bley is to the piano, capable of sculpting icy, paradoxical emotions; on a moment's notice, they can venture 'out' where tonal centers and rhythmic pulses are not invited." Au cours de cette période, Bley avait également publié deux CD en hommage à ses ex-épouses Carla Bley et Annette Peacock.

Toujours aussi prolifique, Bley enregistrait parfois jusqu’à huit albums par année. Bley avait aussi renoué avec les synthétiseurs dans le cadre de l’album Synth Thesis (1994). Conscient de n’avoir pas toujours reçu la reconnaissance qu’il méritait, Bley avait déclaré au début des années 1990 qu’il n’hésiterait pas à abandonner la musique s’il s’apercevait qu’il n’avait plus rien à dire: "If I thought for a moment that there was nothing new to be done, whether it was playing a tune in a different way or taking [Austrian composer Arnold] Schoenberg's atonality as a premise for a project, then I would happily retire to the country and enjoy the company of my children and come out only for those events that were really useful."

Toujours dans les années 1990, Bley était devenu professeur à temps partiel au New England Music Conservatory de Boston, où il avait enseigné à des musiciens comme Satoko Fujii et Yitzhak Yedid. Bley se rendait à Boston une fois par mois et en profitait pour rencontrer des étudiants dans les ‘’coffee shops’’. Même si Bley considérait ses étudiants comme des musiciens déjà accomplis, il croyait qu’ils pourraient bénéficier de son expérience du métier.

Dans les années 2000, en plus de se produire en solo aux États-Unis et en Europe, Bley avait publié plusieurs albums solo, dont Basics, Nothing to Declare, About Time (pour les disques Justintime) et Solo in Mondsee et Play Blue - Oslo Concert (pour les disques ECM). En 2008, Bley avait aussi joué en solo dans l’église d’Oslo, en Norvège.

En 1998, l’American Physical Society avait contacté Bley et lui avait demandé l’autorisation de publier sa photo sur le Century of Physics Time Line Wall Chart and Web Site. L'American Physical Society avait ajouté que Bley serait le seul musicien à être inclus sur la ‘’Ligne du temps’’ (Time Line) des lauréats du prix Nobel en raison de ses innovations avec les synthétiseurs dans le cadre de sa performance en direct au Philarmonic Hall de New York le 26 décembre 1969. La liste a été imprimée et distribuée dans toutes les classes des États-Unis et a été publiée sur internet en mars 1999.

Bley avait livré ses dernières performances en 2010 dans le cadre d’un concert de piano solo au Festival de jazz de La Villette à Paris, et dans le cadre d’un concert en duo avec le contrebassiste Charlie Haden au club Blue Note de New York.

Paul Bley est décédé de causes naturelles le 3 janvier 2016 à sa résidence de Stuart, en Floride. Il était âgé de quatre-vingt-trois ans. Bley laissait dans le deuil son épouse Carol Goss, ses trois filles Solo, Vanessa et Angelica, ainsi que deux petits-enfants. La fille de Bley, Vanessa, avait annoncé la mort de son père en ces termes: “Dear Friends, I’m deeply saddened to tell you that my father passed yesterday [...]. He was at home and very comfortable with family at his side. Thank you, Vanessa Bley.” Tout en reconnaissant que Bley était un maître du trio, Vanessa avait ajouté: ‘’As exemplified by his solo piano albums, Paul Bley is pre-eminently a pianist’s pianist.”

Les Archives nationales du Canada ont acquis les archives de Bley en 2001. Bley avait été nommé membre de l’Ordre du Canada en 2008 en raison de ses ‘’contributions as a pioneering figure in avant garde and free jazz, and for his influence on younger jazz pianists”.

En 1999, Paul Bley a publié une autobiographie intitulée Stopping Time: Paul Bley and the Transformation of Jazz. En 2003, le musicologue Norman Meehan a publié un ouvrage intitulé Time Will Tell. Basé sur de nombreuses entrevues accordées par Bley au cours de sa carrière, l’ouvrage constituait une discussion approfondie sur le processus de l’improvisation. En 2009, le pianiste de jazz italien Arrigo Cappelletti avait publié l’ouvrage Paul Bley: The Logic of Chance. Initialement publié en italien sous le titre de Paul Bley: La Logica del Caso, l’ouvrage avait été traduit en anglais par le pianiste Greg Burk. Le réseau américain Bravo et le réseau franco-allemand Arte ont également consacré un documentaire d’une heure à la vie et à la carrière de Bley en 1998.

En plus d’interpréter ses propres compositions et des standards du jazz, Bley interprétait également des compositions d’Ornette Coleman, Carla Bley et d’Annette Peacock. Même si ses performances comprenaient habituellement des pièces déjà composées ou des improvisations, Bley avait aussi créé des compositions spontanées, que ce soit en concert ou dans le cadre d’enregistrements. Souvent caractérisée par sa nature informelle et par l’absence de répétitions, la musique de Bley était très innovatrice et explorait de nouvelles approches comme les dissonances, l’atonalité et le sérialisme.

Considéré comme un des pianistes canadiens les plus influents depuis Oscar Peterson et Glenn Gould, Paul Bley avait contribué à redéfinir le rôle du piano dans la musique improvisée. Il avait également servi de source d’inspiration à des pianistes comme Keith Jarrett, Ethan Iverson, Chick Corea et Aaron Parks. Il avait aussi exercé une influence majeure sur le guitariste Bill Frisell.

Le producteur Howard Mandel avait déclaré au sujet de Bley dans le magazine Down Beat en avril 1995: "Since the Montreal-born, long-US resident Bley's 50's debut with Mingus and Blakey, he's worked with more first-rate, wide ranging original musical minds than anyone but Miles {Davis}..." Saluant le rôle de pionnier de Bley, le critique du magazine Down Beat, Jon Balleras, avait écrit en 1985: "Like Keith Jarrett, Thelonious Monk, Bill Evans, and Cecil Taylor, Bley is a unique musician, and like these pianists he has discovered and energetically cultivated his own musical vision, informed by an exacting sense of inner logic. It's this internal rightness of conviction that marks Bley as a major artist."

Même si Bley n’avait jamais été aussi populaire qu’Oscar Peterson, son style était facilement identifiable. Comme le critique Ben Ratliff du New York Times l’avait fait remarquer: “He wasn’t clear. He wasn’t popular. He wasn’t catchy. When you went to see him, he wasn’t going to deliver his signature sound. You never knew what the hell was going to happen.” 

Artiste qui cherchait constamment à se renouveler, Bley avait toujours refusé de se reposer sur ses lauriers. Bley avait un jour déclaré: ‘‘Anything you play twice is once too much.’’ Dans une autre entrevue, il avait ajouté: “How does that joke go: How will you know the next movement in jazz when you first hear it? You will know it because you won’t like it!” Comme il l’avait déclaré dans le documentaire Imagine the Sound en 1981, Bley ne répétait pratiquement jamais et croyait que chaque performance devait entretenir un caractère unique. Bley, qui adorait provoquer, avait d’ailleurs expliqué dans une entrevue qu’il avait accordée en 2002: “I’ve spent many years learning how to play as slow as possible, and then many more years learning how to play as fast as possible. I’ve spent many years trying how to play as good as possible. At the present I’m trying to spend as many years learning how to play as bad as possible.”

Au cours de sa carrière, Bley avait participé à plus de cent enregistrements. Le  Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings avait décrit Bley comme "a restless experimenter with an inbuilt resistance to stopping long in any one place." Le guitariste Pat Metheny avait déclaré au sujet de Bley: “When I heard Paul Bley’s piano solo, a whole new universe of harmonic possibilities opened up for me. Even a non-musician can sense something amazing is happening. On one level, what he’s doing is very complex, but it’s also completely accessible, very open. . . and in the end, something very personal becomes very universal.”

©-2024, tous droits réservés, Les Productions de l’Imaginaire historique

[shadowspellchecker]

55. Animal shelter AU

Beth: alright, so the proposal for a 3% increase to the budget didn't make it past the lobby *despite rising kibble prices so backup plans it is for this quarter. Benny—

*funny background event

—get cracking. We're counting on your poker winnings to make up the deficit. Jolene—

"I'll get the anonymous donation forms written up before lunch," the legal consultant drawled, lazily swirling foam circles in her tea.

—*thank you, * competent person. Prioritize your meeting with Commerce Secretary Schneider today though; I want you on him like a pit bull.—

Jolene rolls her eyes—

Now the electrical has to be fixed before adoption week, and as we all know, Alston dropped the ball again. Harry—

Insert confusion all around —

You apprenticed as an electrician for two years before switching to veterinary college. Time to put those skills to use—

"I'm not licensed."

—yeah, don't have the budget to care. Get the overheads off the extension cords yesterday, we have no room for lawsuits. M&M twins!—

They stop muttering suspiciously—

Community outreach. The spay-neuter metrics can hold until Monday, I need you two talking to every news distributor in the county. I'll speak to Townes, get the ball rolling with the papers, but with Margaret on leave you're on your own about the rest. All of you—

Everyone freezes

—should be *delighted (AN: imagine how dry Beth's tone can get. You will fail, but try to anyway) to know that Cleo's Pet Boutique has agreed to work pro bono for the event, so we can hold off on fixing the large breed showers until next week. Pray that Shaibel is back on his feet by then or that the trades union changes their minds about us. Questions? —What is it, Watts?

I know Gibson's Catering has pulled out, but Levertov says the Jewish Community Center would be willing to foot the bill…. Apparently there is a kosher food truck?

—tell him we'll take it. Jolene—

Paperwork coming up.

—Not before lunch. We're in crunch time, so reconvene tomorrow.

[Staff exits]

Beth [to painting on the wall]: How am I doing, Alma?

The Alma Benson House for animals.

[callmesel]

I love this idea so much

I really like the idea that Percy was close the marauders but I have never thought about it in a way that he was adopted

Just imagine you get back home and you just have and extra child sitting on the living room

And imagine the confusion Bill and Charlie went through trying to bond with this new kid all of a sudden.

I think they would have a harder time trying to talk to him because they know that he isn't a Weasley while the others, being so little just assume that he is a distant cousin or something. And they might also know that Percy's parents are dead so they try to make him feel better but everything is akward.

I think that someone like Ron and Ginny would remember when Percy came to the house as an adopted kid and they just think he is their brother by blood like the rest and he just took his looks from some distant relative they don't know about.

Fred and George might know that he is not a real Weasley but they don't care. I think they would know that but not know why he is here and what happened to his parents. But I don't think it would affect their dynamic in the slightest, maybe Percy who would think that the twins hate him and want him out of the family or something.

Also the fight that he would have would change. Because they would know by now that he is not a Weasley so the fight would be more like "I want to discover who I am and who my parents really were" "Are you abandoning us? We are your family" "It doesn't feel like it"

Or maybe Percy feels like he can put his family in danger, because maybe Voldemort wants to kill him or whatever because he is Harry's sibling and use him as a hostage or something

idk,I really like this au

Had a weird idea for a fic idea. Percy Adopted AU

So. Imagine if James and Lily were a little older and had a 5y when Harry was born,

Percival (named after Dumbledore), middle name one of his Grandfathers who recently died Potter born August 22,

when they die because he knows about magic Dumbledore places him with the Weasleys.

Tells them that he found the child in a destroyed family and he was worried someone would come after him cause of who his parents were. They should tell people he was theirs biologically

The kids all know he is adopted but Ron literally forgets and they honestly kind of forgot.

This could also move into more of how Percy doesn’t feel like he’s part of his family.

Most 6y don’t know anything other then parents are Mom and Dad. He doesn’t know who they were and not helped by the fact no one called them James and Lily but Prongs and whatever nickname for her and since he was so young the memories are fuzzy af he is very confused. He does know he has a baby brother and thought he died in the “fire/attack on his muggleborn parents” as he was told

This could also explain why Peter came to him. Guilt and felt he had to look out for him,

What he does remember is the feeling of being loved, laughter, one of the paintings he loved to stare at. The stars on his rooms roof. Having a giant fluffy dog he would cuddle with. A sorta rough voice reading to him. Maybe a Deer that would break in, red hair and the sound of laughter.

If he tries harder to remember his nightmares get worse. He was there when it happened. Watched his parents killed and his brother almost killed. Trauma also one of the reasons he doesn’t remember his family,

Things that happened living with his parents that he doesn’t remember

Knowing Snape and McGonagall. He and Lily reconciled and she introduced them when he was a baby and he used to call Snape Sevy and McGonagall Granny. She was not pleased

Would visit his grandparents - his Moms Dad who passed right before he was born.

I am on the side of the headcannon that Mrs Potter is from India. Idc about Cannon and that he actually visited where he was from when he was 3. He’s still Red Hair and pale, unlike Harry

Was babysat by all three other marauders a lot. Like Fully feel Sirius and Remus lived with them with Peter visiting a lot ( he was offered a room but his Moms health isn’t good) he was just as much a friend as the rest. That’s the tragedy of it all.

Has pulled on Dumbledores beard as a baby. Got a hand in it and wouldn’t let go till it was time to eat. James thought it was Hilarious. Lily not so much.

There is a photo of once when Severus and Sirius were forced to jointly baby sit they bonded over motorcycles ( I HC Snape has one) and they are working on it in Leather jacket and Percy is wearing a tiny leather jacket joining them. Lily came to pick him up.

Also one showing how Snape has no idea how to hold a kid and is legit hold him like a sack of potatoes under his arm,

Cue 1st year and Snape and McGonagall are like 🤨🤨 hmmm and side eyes this little first year and side eye Dumbledore and he eventually tells them but he makes them promise not to reveal it.

Cue 5th year and he meets Harry. Basically like the books where he treats him like family. Cause he did. He’s always been kind to Harry. He feels like he’s familiar but that’s cause he’s famous, right?

But then cue 7th year! Harry’s 3rd

He meets Professor Lupin and. There’s just SOMETHING about him and WHY does he look so darn familiar, and when he reads experts to the class he feels like a kid again,

While Remus is freaking out cause he was told his pseudo God Kid (both he and Harry are technically Sirius’s but if Remus was allowed to be he would be as well) was killed, and here’s a 17y version with Lillys hair and James eyes and Fleamonts face,

Percy would ask Dumbledore if he knew why Professor Lupin looked family and he would shrug at this technically a adult who has every right to know but Dumbledore the anxious king is worried

Later after he leaves cue Remus storming going “bitch what the fuck” okay but going “you told me Percival was dead! He’s not” and Dumbledore goes on a spiel of how it would only put him in danger if anyone else knew, cause he was the only witness to that night and even he himself doesn’t know. And no you can’t tell him.

Remus goes 😑 and comes up with a plan to get the kids to figure it out themselves, cause he was told “tell them and your fired. I’m sorry”

Like asking Harry if he knows he had a brother, and he did but none of the pictures he was given show him/removed from the images, Remus goes “huh I was sure he was in this one” and Hermione uses Revelio and whoa!

And like more shenanigans, Percy eventually figures it out. Remus told him of a way that he could access files about himself cause he’s not legally dead. It’s a rumour Dumbledore spread, cue intense panic and weirdness from him

eventually Peter ends up sorta telling Harry cause the whole Sirius Peter thing happens and Sirius thinks Percy is dead and yelled that Peter might as have killed him and he’s like “he’s not! He was adopted by the Weasleys!” And Ron and Harry are like 👁️👄👁️

Cue more shenanigans and an awkward convo between them, Ron’s like “Harry this means you are technically family!!” And then this is where it would deviate more from cannon cause till this point it’s pretty on point

Thoughts?

[childotkw]

Which of your AUs are your current faves? x

I'm actually thinking of my more obscure AUs at the moment, because they're fun to play around with and not as stressful 😂

I'm jumping between:

The 'Bill Adopts Harry' AU, where Harry finds out he's a horcrux in fifth year, goes on the run, and Bill goes with him and becomes a brother/mentor/sort-of-father figure for Harry, and Voldemort does not enjoy going up against a curse-breaker of Bill's level.

'Hold your Misery', which is the obscurial!Harry one. Harry falls off the grid, never goes to Hogwarts, develops an obscurus that is weirdly sentient thanks to the horcrux, and years later Voldemort gets curious about his strange dreams and hunts his lost-nemesis down.

And then one of my time-travelling Regulus stories.

I'm all over the place, to be honest 😂😂😂

[rboooks]

Based on the wonderful fic C’est La Vie   by the ever talented @cywscross. I just love the fic so much and I am very late to the fandom but whatever.  

AU: Had Hadrian had arrived a little earlier and Fate had given him a different back story. 

Orion Black had not noticed the new store until it’s opening day. 

He had been passing by with his Father who was ever so excited about buying Orion his Hogwarts supplies, insisting they needed to beat the crowds and go the moment the owl dropped it off at their home. (He knows the real reason, of course, being werewolves made it difficult to shop and “beating the crowds” was another way of saying “Avoid large amounts of discrimination”. He let his father think he wasn’t aware though) 

Orion couldn’t work up the energy to match Father’s enthusiasm. His first year of Hogwarts was everything and nothing like he expected it to be. He knew he would meet students who would not like him for his condiction but he had hope that he could make some kind of friends. Naive as it was, he went there with the desire to find the kind of best mates his Father had found among the magical castle walls.  

That hope had been shoot down the moment the headmaster announced what he was. Harry, always eager to put Orion in his place, jumped at the chance to turn everyone against him until it felt like he was sitting behind enemy lines no matter where he was.

 Add to the fact, he was sharing a room with Harry and his new idiot best friends not to mention the open hostility Weasley and Longbottom showed when drawing that line. Orion could honestly say he hated every second of his schooling.

Throughout the year, the eleven-year-old encountered some kids who seem friendly at first, but it all had ended up as a prank, often with Harry as the mastermind behind them. It was eye-opening, in a twisted so of way, to realize just how the world saw him. 

A part of him wanted nothing more than to burn the second year Hogwarts letter and never return. But he was no coward. He would not run away from reality. He was a Gryffindor after all, and he would endure these next six years like he did his first. (Maybe, just maybe this year will be different? First years wouldn’t be told of his status...maybe one of them would like him) 

“’ Rion? Would you like to go get your books first or some new robes?” Father called, smile soft but the corners of his eyes strain with distress when his son did nothing more than stare at him for a few seconds before shrugging.

All summer long, the young werewolf had spoken as minimum as he could, shut away in his room. He’s always been a bit reserved and socially awkward but never to these levels.

Orion knew his parents were worried, had known each time they came over during the full moons. They tried their best to cheer him up, to get him to talk but even that took the levels of energy he just wasn’t feeling anymore. Each passing day at Hogwarts caused him to shrink further in on himself in order to protect what little Orion could of his heart and now, well into the summer he seem unable to unshrink. Not even for his parents’ sake. 

“Well, how about-”  

Whatever Father was going to say was lost on Orion, because his attention had been taken by a new store. The one that had just open with no pre-warning. (Magic buildings tended to do that but they were at least advertise days beforehand in order to generate some kind of clientele).  

Or to be more precise Orion’s attention had been taken by the young boy standing in front of it, who was staring right back at him with wide eye astonishment. The boy was small, almost delicate face but painfully average and the only thing that really stood out were his green eyes. He was wearing Muggle brown trousers and a plain white shirt, a white apron was thrown over his outfit and a tray of little cups in his hands.

He must have been handing out samples. 

Orion sent him a sneer, suddenly angry that even here, even away from his classmates, other kids still stare at him like he shouldn't be real. 

The boy didn’t so much as blink. He returns the sneer with an intrigued look, unoffended in any kind of way before his eyes shift up to look at Father who had to realize Orion was no longer listening. It was only because he was watching that Orion caught the ripple of emotions that went over the boy’s face before it settles into a calm friendly glance.

“Is that one of your school friends?” Father asks a tad bit too eagerly. To Orion’s horror, he was already moving in the direction of the child even before finishing his question.

This seems to be all the approval the stranger needs, seeing as he straightens up, turning in their direction fully. Before he could state he had no friends, the boy left his post and was walking quickly in their direction.

It was almost a run, but the boy didn’t seem to waste a single step, graceful in a way that didn’t make sense. There might be a mistake, maybe the sounds of the always busy alley masking it, but he swore he couldn’t hear his footsteps either.  In only a matter of seconds, he was standing before Orion, holding out his little try.

“Free sample?”  The werewolf didn’t miss the way he seems to stare at him like he was drinking up his features. 

Orion said nothing staring back at him before his father cleared his throat an obvious sign he was disapproving of his manners.  “Um, what is it?”

“Dragon’s Breath. You stick the puffball in any of these flavors and blow smoke out while you eat” The boy said easily, and for a startling moment, he realizes he may not be all that young. In fact, they may even be near the same age despite how tiny this kid was.  “It’s really popular in the States.”

“Are you from the States?” Father asked taking the toothpick the boy offers and stabbing one of the puffs. He quickly dunks it in the white melted chocolate like Orion knew he would.  

“I’m from all over.” The kid answers staring up at him with an odd emotion in his eyes.  “My parents were curse breakers so the family traveled a lot.”

His eyes flicker to Orion.  “Would you like one?”

He doesn’t answer, and the air thickens with awkward stillness for a few seconds before Orion careful takes one of the puffs going for the caramel flavor. Luckily the other doesn’t seem all that offended, patiently giving him time to decide what he wanted. 

Once it’s in his mouth the flavor of caramel dances over his tongue, and he makes a small O with his lips as smoke rushes out. It’s not a little puff like he expected by a long white smoky breath of air that curls and flickers in the air. 

It’s kinda wicked.

His Father blows out his own smoke smiling. It’s as interesting watching as it is being the one to perform it. “Your dad would love this.”

The boy beams.  “We sell some take-home boxes with various flavors if you like to take him some? I’m Hadrian by the way. Hadrian Evans”

“Remus Lupin,” Father answers charmed by Evans. “This is my son Orion Black.”

If he’s curious about the different last names then Evans doesn’t show it. Instead, he bobs his head at him respectfully. “Nice to meet you”

Maybe this year was worst on him then he thought because Orion finds words falling out of his mouth before he can stop himself. “I’m a werewolf.”

He waits for the fear, or the hatred aware his father has stiffened next to him but unwilling to look away from the green eyes. Evans doesn’t faze in the slightest instead, he raises a brow looking far too amused. “That’s nice. I’m a wizard myself”

He wonders if the bewilderment he feels is showing on his face. It was...such a lack of reaction even Father did a double take. What does one even say to that? 

Evans suddenly smiles, warm and friendly in equal parts, and Orion doesn’t know what to do in the glory of it.  “I like you.”

Is this what it feels like to be kicked in the chest?  

“Hadrian Evans!” A man’s voice suddenly cuts through the air, sharp with chiding. Evans winces, for the first time looking like a child. 

Walking towards them is an older looking Evans. He’s got long dark uncontrol hair, poorly pulled into a ponytail, like it was shoved there despite it not wanting to be. Loose stands swung rebelliously out, his green eyes aren’t nearly as bright at Evans, more moss then brilliant jewel but they are the same shapes.  

He’s older but far too young to be Evans father. A brother perhaps? 

His face is pulled into a nasty scowl. “Young man, what did I say about wandering off by yourself? You could have been kidnapped!”

“Sorry Will,” Evans tells...older Evans.  He gestures to the werewolves, his eyes seemed to convey another strange emotion.  “I just wanted to meet someone my age.”

Orion feels his face heat up as the older man cuts his gaze at him and Father, looking like he suddenly understands why Evans disobeyed him. For some reason, he is embarrassed by that. (From the corner of his eye he peaks up at his parent and is meet with gleeful amusement, beaming in parental pride. His face grows hotter)

“It’s fine, just don’t do it again.” He huffs rubbing Evans’ hair roughly. He grins over at the werewolves open and friendly as Evans. “Sorry about him. He tends to ignore social rules. I’m Will Evans, this brat’s older brother.”

The pair of brothers invite them back to their shop, called Dimension Hoppers, which turns out to be a general store of various imported objects from all over the world. There are so many new things that Orion could barely choose where to look, Hadrien dragging him along pointing and explaining what each item was, with obvious enthusiasm. 

Especially when they came across the Ancient Runes section. Orion thinks that’s his new...friend?...favorite topic.

Obviously, he had some experience as a salesman, because he doesn’t flatter whenever Orion asks questions nor tries to push a sale. He just gives a general tour of all the allies as the grown-up talk up front.

Turns out Will was also a curse breaker, following his parents' footsteps. After their deaths, he gained guardship over Hadrian and had chosen to start a business using the family connects to supply rare objects from around the world, so he could be close by when Hadrien started Hogwarts. 

“He was going to homeschool me,” Hadrian says a few hours later walking with him as the pair finish shopping for their school supplies that weren’t sold in his brother's shop. 

Which were only like five things. Orion himself had most of his list finished there too. The prices were much fairer and his Father had been overjoyed that they could save some for new robes. 

“But I kinda always wanted to go to an actual school instead of being taught everything on the road, you know?”

He didn’t. But he also didn’t know how in the world he left Dimension Hoppers with an invitation to come back and hang out sometime before Hogwarts. Nor why in world, Will had passed him some Dragon Breath’s boxes on the house for his brother’s first friend on their way out.

His father wouldn’t stop smiling and...neither could he. Orion hadn’t had this much fun in a long time. He already couldn’t wait to see Hadrian again. 

Maybe his second year at Hogwarts won’t be all that bad after all.