#I simply loved chronicling their story

[marigoldwriter]

Chronology of my Stellatrix AU

Current Timeline: The events of the 1rd and 2rd seasons occur normally, with some changes to the characters' speeches or actions, but the vast majority remain the same. Things start to change with the events of the 3rd (non-existent) season.

The Plum Organization ➯ In Stella's search for Beatrix's sisters, she discovers a secret organization of witches, and by herself, discovers that Beatrix's entire family is made up of witches, and that Beatrix's disappearance as a baby was news which changed the course of the witch covens hidden around the Magical Dimension. It is discovered that Beatrix's family has an important status in wizarding society.

The First Circle of Almana: Penances ➯ Beatrix awakens in the world of souls with issues to be resolved, Penances, the first circle of the spiritual plane, in which she is taken by Charon to an island where she discovers a little crystal witch girl who is between life and death, and so, the two go on a mission to descend to the next circles of Almana.

Ghostly Conversations ➯ Stella secretly joins forces with Beatrix's sisters, even though they have their resentment against Solaria, to find a way to bring Beatrix back, in which the three try to make contact with Bea's spirit, but strangely, they managed to speak to former members of the Solarian Royal Family.

The Second Circle of Almana: Limbo ➯ The paths between the opening Gates to the next circle are long, but when they reach the second circle, they discover that the place is a desert of black sand and tormented souls that wander moaning and dragging themselves in every corner, from there, they they need to meet the leading Entity of that circle, just as they did in the first circle. In this circle, both go through many challenges, escaping from souls that are strangely obsessed with Beatrix, and that stick to her skin until the end of the journey, where both are instructed by the Entity to move forward.

Corpse Internal Freezing Spell ➯ In the middle of the night, a superior order orders that one of the coffins be removed in silence and without much fuss, this coffin is involved in a kind of rustic magic that has not been used for a long time, magic that preserved the body inside this coffin, and this body which has been carefully moved to an unknown location. Or, in the period before finding Bea's sisters, Stella found a spell in an old book in the Royal Archive and applied it to Beatrix's body, then, a few months into their partnership, Stella, Isobel and D'arcy took the cup of Bea to one of the structures of one of the covens, in this case, the Daniels Coven.

The Labyrinth Purgatory ➯ Beatrix and the little witch girl come to an ordeal to go to the next circle, both are tormented and haunted by nightmares and memories of their lives. In this situation, Beatrix discovers that the little witch's name is Sapphire and that she has two older sisters.

Annual Golden Leaf Ball ➯ The heirs of all the kingdoms of the Magical Dimension come together in a huge gathering that ends with Eraklyon declaring war on Solaria, and ties hastily formed between some heirs. Stella discovers that she is not alone when it comes to liking someone who is "unreachable" when it comes to romance.

Tranquility Bay ➯ The labyrinth was the difficult part, now, when Beatrix and Sapphire pass through rocks and some flying specters, the Bay is visible, from there, the souls leave and go to the Garden, there, Beatrix finds a familiar face: "Headmistress Farah?"

Where the Living Live ➯ Luna attempts peace deals as the king of Eraklyon screams about an unworthy throne and stolen territories, he gives a war cry and the soldiers mercilessly march to the Golden Land, where the inhabitants are taken to reinforced underground shelters, Stella is far away, going to Andros to ask for help with supplies for an innocent population.

"Miss D?" ➯ Dowling guides Beatrix and Sapphire through the Bay, Beatrix doesn't know how to act around the older woman, who seems to feel no resentment, when the two tell her of their common goal, Farah is shocked, "How did you two get through the other circles? That's it's– technically, it should be, impossible", none of them can explain it, just as they can't explain the butterflies that have followed Beatrix for so long, just as they can't explain why the paths seem to be in their favor, both continue until the Third Circle, with Beatrix muttering a small "I'm sorry" before leaving, her soul lighter and cleaner.

A Golden Queen ➯ The Ghosts continue to haunt even in times of war, and they know Stella's weakness, the ancestors of the Solarian royalty are secretive and manipulative, Stella fears becoming identical to all of them in the future to come, little does she know self defense, but fights with everything she can, the treaty of wars is clear, only magic, no weapons, 'it's like medieval times' she thinks when see the swords clashing and the blood drying on the ground, a strange feeling pricking her chest, that's when Stella has the first memory of her first past life.

Pantheon of Gods ➯ The Third Circle is empty, a sea of nothingness that makes Sapphire's hopes evaporate as quickly as they arose, Beatrix shows indignation and anger, but all she has left are tears to be cried, she does not want to continue So, she wants her heart to beat again, life was horrible but for the first time she feared what she might lose, she cries softly for Stella, even though she knows she won't be heard by the princess, when the fog on the ground gets thick, they both know that there is something wrong, when a thin layer shines and shines beneath them, the Gods are close, more than one could imagine.

The Holy Grail and the Saint(?) of Light ➯ Stella's memories are mixed up with those of her past life, at one point she is Star, the first saint of the Golden kingdom, with golden eyes and eight-pointed stars in place of pupils, with veils and silks adorning her as much as gold jewelry, the other point she is Stella, current princess of Solaria, whose spirits now haunt her, who is in the middle of a war, the memories confuse her, but do not distract her, they are like lived dreams, in one of these she sees, the Holy Grail, herself, she when Star, bent over in tears of gold, filling the Holy Grail, when Stella opens her eyes, she sees herself in front of that cup, in a dark place, the Royal Archive, the cup glows with golden liquid, and Stella knows what to do.

Third Circle of Almana: The Eternal Garden ➯ Surprise invades Beatrix when she finds herself lying in grass, there is a voice in her head as she nervously stands up, looking for Sapphire,"The spirits rest here, child, but you are far from come to peace.", The female voice was soft and deep at the same time, Beatrix didn't move, she stood still, waiting for any other speech, "What do you want, little one? The Garden is at your disposal.", there is a sad feeling inside the redhead when she sits on the grass again, she is exhausted, she doesn't want anything, she wants her, "You can't give me what I want. Who I want.", the woman's voice sighs, "Don't you remember who It's been a day, hasn't it, child?", Beatrix's tears stop, she doesn't understand, and the Goddess's voice continues to ring in her ears, "You need to go back."

The Return of the Saint ➯ Stella's birth was marked by a meteor shower, it was to be expected that she was destined for great things, so Luna thought, but when the guards found Stella leaving the Royal Archives in the middle of the night, her eyes different color, they were scared, the feeling they described was of a pure aura of superiority, the other day, Stella glowed, she shone confident and proud, like a translucent golden aura, she transformed into another person overnight, Luna thinks. Or, Stella has recovered the memories of her past life.

[To be continued...]

[pharaohcarterkane]

Unpopular opinion but I kind of don't want tkc to get adapted

[fallingbyjuleecruise]

genuinely feel that the drama happening in the amc iwtv fandom is what happens when fans promote a show bc it’s gay first and do not mention the plot/genre at all

[rosiethorns88]

Dropping the latest Patreon Sketch-a-Wish, voted on by my lovely Patreon members for November! One of the peak scenes from Winter of The Lunar Chronicles Series by Marissa Meyer, featuring Cress and Thorne! Cress was my favorite character of the series, simply because of the harrowing nature of her story-line. (her satellite??) Given that each of the four main leads are retellings of classic fairytales, I think Cress and Thorne had the most clever adaptation. After doing a second couple illustration from the series, I'm getting the urge to complete the set. Especially, Scarlett + Wolf, who have one of the most satisfying reunion scenes I've read thus far. Prints available in bio link!

[sunflowhamato]

Usagi Yuichi: (Ghost/Ukagaka) ft. Leo Hamato- English/Spanish

Meet Usagi Yuichi, the brave protagonist of Samurai Rabbit: The Usagi Chronicles (also known as Yuichi Usagi: Ghost/Ukagaka), who is now ready to interact with you directly from your computer. The best of all is that in this experience you can also live with Spot and Leonardo Hamato (ROTTMNT).

Includes history from both series, and one completely original, so Spoiler Warning. There will be no updates

Content (Menu): -Questions about him, friends and clan -Interact with you like watching movies, listening to music or reading -Tells interesting facts about the Yokai -Talk about Miyamoto Usagi -You can meditate -Spend time with Spot

-It is also in Spanish

If you like the character, but not the Leosagi/Leoichi ship, that's fine. You can enjoy Ukagaka without needing to include that feature. Simply DO NOT follow the following steps.

How do I get Leonardo? It's very simple. At first, only Usagi will appear on your computer. You will have to spend enough time with it to unlock some functions, mainly in the menu, where you click on “Interact” below, the folders dedicated to Leo and Spot will appear. When you click on this folder to join Leo, you will only need to wait a few minutes, and it will appear. With their arrival, some exclusive functions will be added for them. This step can only be done if you wish.

Usagi functions with Leonardo: Functions to interact with the characters. The system includes several functions for you to spend time with Usagi and Leonardo in some activities. In this part, the Ukagaka will be focused on the relationship between both characters, showing you funny anecdotes or cute gestures between them. You will be able to unlock these animations the moment you get the folder, and you will only need to click on the action you want them to perform. Some animations may only be performed once a day. For his part, Leonardo will only be added as part of the Ukagaka, which means that you will not be able to ask him questions or pet him, since these functions are exclusive to Usagi. It is important to highlight that this experience of adding Leo is inspired by the ship between both characters. Therefore, you should not expect any of them to have flirtatious gestures towards you.

Costume change (with Leo): What excites me most about this Ukagaka is that, after spending time and earning points with Usagi and Leonardo, you will unlock a very special feature: Both characters will change costumes and transform into versions inspired by different popular comics about them. It's an exciting surprise that you're sure to love! I want to thank and give credits to the artists who gave me permission to use their designs as part of the Ukagaka. Now, I'm excited to reveal the comics selected for this feature.

-Big Mama's Child AU- @hitokshellart:

-True Colors AU- @v-albion:

-AU (Yo-ho-ho) A Ninjas Life for me- @triona-tribblescore

-Love Me Dead (Vampire AU)- @x.bluell

I would just like to give a clarification about this, even if they change the costumes, the functions or the questions will not be changed, that will remain the same, because all the stories are concluded for the moment and asking questions or telling something that has not yet been revealed is It makes me wrong for the comic.

To make the ukagaka change costumes you just have to left click and search for “Change Shell”, the different outfits will appear, and you just have to select the one you want and wait for it to load.

How do I get the ukadaka? For this point I would like to give one more thanks to @venelona-turtle-den (Ukagaka by Leo F!) who was the biggest source of inspiration to create this ukagaka.

There are two options, if you have Leo F!'s ukagaka, the only thing you need to do is enter the drive link that I will leave below and download the first file called “SamuraiRabbitBalloon” with that file downloaded, you need the second one that would depend on you In what language do you want it, if it is in English, download only the “Yuichi UsagiENG.nar” file, and if you want it in Spanish, it would only be the “Yuichi Usagi.ESP” file.

If you don't have Leo F!'s ukagaka, you need to go to this page. Download what this. Then you just need to follow the previous step that I put in when you already have the ukagaka (In this case Emily).

From here you have two options to take out Usagi Yuichi, the first is to left click on the ukagaka you have at that moment, and go to where it says “Change Ghost”, you only click on the option of the ukadaka you want to take out. If it doesn't appear and you already have the files downloaded, what you can do is grab the file that ends in “.nar” and drag it to the ukagaka. With this completed you just need to wait for everything to download and update.

Link Drive:

Special thanks: I was not the only one working on this ukagaka, so I thank my great friend @Kyon_uwu, who was the programmer who managed to do all this, so thank you very much for your great work in these weeks <3 He really made a great effort so thank him for everything. If you want to support more for their work, I leave you the link for donations:

Doubts: If you have any questions, send a message to this account, or you can send them to my Twitter, I will be happy to answer them.

[kooldewd123]

god i love just how grand the ellimist chronicles is. right as we near the end of a relatively grounded war story, animorphs suddenly throws us an apotheosis story that balloons in scale to such a degree that it only barely connects to the rest of the series. the story stretches over decades, then centuries, and even millennia by the end - and yet it still takes places tens of millions of years before the series begins. entire civilizations are introduced and then promptly destroyed in the blink of an eye, now remembered only by the ellimist himself. our protagonist's appearance is left vague, giving the early portions of the story a sense of uncertainty as the reader tries to piece together the scattered details toomin gives us and then layering the ending sequences with a grand mystique as he builds and rebuilds his body into a biomechanical deity. crayak, the ellimist's opposite, is never really explained, and we're left only to imagine what sequence of events in some other galaxy led to the creation of a being like him. and then after the book reaches it absolute apex of grandeur, the final page brings us back to the ellimist simply standing next to a dying child. we're back in an animorphs story. the ellimist tells the child that they mattered - that even compared to everything he has been through, this single, comparatively insignificant child still made a difference in the world. and with that, one of the animorphs breathes their final breath. god what a book.

[carelessflower]

Ranking Magnus's love interest in the bane chronicles on how much they affect him

I was scrolling Instagram and I saw this post, it's so cool you should check it out! They are doing edits of each of the stories in the bane chronicles and Magnus's lover so I randomly have this idea to rank them. This ranking will be purely dependent on the lover's appearance, description, and impact on Magnus in the bane chronicles, anything outside is frankly irrelevant so please just keep an open! Now let start!

8. Kitty

Appearance: What Really Happened in Peru

Impact on Magnus: not that much, though they did have a very fun summer conning people together, she ranks this low cause I feel they both know it's not gonna last

7. Woosley Scott

Appearance: Vampires, Scones, and Edmund Herondale (mentioned)

Impact on Magnus: Magnus's on and off bed partner! He ranks higher than Kitty because while Magnus and he also know what they have gonna be purely physical they did go back together a couple of times and he's the last werewolf Magnus ever dated, which is a worthy flex! (Also lowkey laughing how Alec was semi-correct in his guessing, Magnus just knows every important figure that founded something even more important up close and personally)

6. Axel von Fersen

Appearance: The Runaway Queen

Impact on Magnus: Look, Magnus helps the literal aristocrats escape during a revolution made to behead them because he's fallen for the pretty black-haired hair blue-eyed boy, that gotta count for something. Also, I would make the case that he's the one that gives Magnus the black hair and blue eyes kink

5. Alec Lightwood

Appearance: The Last Stand of the New York Institute (mentioned only), The Course of True Love (And First Dates), What to Buy the Shadowhunter Who Has Everything, The Voicemail of Magnus Bane

Impact on Magnus: Listen, before you stone me to death, this is based on the entrance of Alec in The Bane Chronicles, like the literal diary Magnus gave him. To be honest, compared to other stories, Alec's stories are kind of not very showing the emotional impact on Magnus. Their first date is cute, but without the werewolf trouble, Magnus is going to bail on Alec. And again, the Alec birthday one, is cute, but it's like a school crush figuring out how to buy them the perfect present stuff, not very romance that transcends time over here, and again Magnus's gift is literally a gift to Isabelle, like can't you both spell her whip and give Alec a sweater or something? And the impact of their breakup just simply doesn't devastate Magnus like with the higher-ranked on this list relationship, Magnus just literally dumped Alec and moved on with his life lol (Alec in Voicemail my cringefail queen)

4. Imasu Morales

Appearance: What Really Happened in Peru

Impact on Magnus: I always think of effort as incredibly romantic so the fact that Magnus willing to learn to play the charango for Imasu, whew. And also he was on the verge of asking Imasu to live with him and after the breakup he drink himself to a manic stay where he propose to cactus and think he's Aladding on flying carpet

3. Unnamed Woman

Appearance: What Really Happened in Peru (mentioned)

Impact on Magnus: The first lover to stay by his side and die in his arms. Magnus was unable to settle anywhere thirty years after her death, so yeah, it's pretty big shoes to fill

2. Etta

Appearance: Saving Raphael Santiago, The Fall of the Hotel Dumort (mentioned), The Course of True Love (And First Dates) (mentioned), What to Buy the Shadowhunter Who Has Everything (mentioned)

Impact on Magnus: He asks if she wants immortality to be by his side, he left the country because it's so unbearable for him and she's the last person he ever love for half a decade

Camille Belcourt

Appearance: Vampires, Scones, and Edmund Herondale; The Midnight Heir (mentioned); The Rise of the Hotel Dumort; Saving Raphael Santiago (mentioned); The Fall of the Hotel Dumort; What to Buy the Shadowhunter Who Has Everything (mentioned)

Impact on Magnus: To be honest, should I even spell this out look at the gigantic appearance list, she's constantly on Magnus's mind even after he dates another person (Alec in this case). Like she hurts him badly but also a part of him will always love her and care for her type, also the sight of her in pain literally hurts him so bad he asks to get his memory wiped, the only instance we know of him doing this so it's possible to assume this is the only lover that truly has that effect on him

The list's done! I'm quite satisfied honestly, definitely tell me what you think :333

tag list: @magnus-the-maqnificent @literallytypogod @hoezier-than-thou @sociallyineptbibliophile @queenlilith43

@khaleesiofalicante @wandererbyheart @raziyekroos @onetimetwotimesthreetimess @alexandergideonslightwood @andrwminward

@noah-herondale-lightwood @elettralightwood @dustandducks @deliciousdetectivestranger @delightfullyterrible

@letsgofortacos

@kita-no @thelightofthebane @secrettryst @goldendreams3 @cityofdownwardspirals

@stupidfuckindinosaur

@i-have-not-slept @rinadragomir @potato-jem @kasper-tag @cam-ryt

@banesapothecary

@sheisntyou @izzysimcns @culiehua

[seraphinitegames]

The Wayhaven Chronicles - Update 03/Nov/2023

A different and exciting update this week!!

So, a little while ago, I had this idea pop into my head, and I just couldn’t let it go. It built and built until it formed into a full-fledged plan in my head and then on paper. But I didn’t really do much about it because time-constraints, etc.

But with Book Four being quite intense in different ways, the idea I was imagining was much more…fluffy, hehe! Not that Book Four doesn’t have some awesome fun, downtime moments, but this other thought was more of that.

Then one day I mentioned it to Nai, and she absolutely loved it, so then it started to become even more of a plan with her excitement fueling it!

And this week, I began making a real start on it…

I don’t really want to promise anything quite yet—as you can probably guess considering the theme of this project that it’s a bit of a tight schedule if I want to get it out on time—and I would hate to disappoint anyone, but I really am slamming through it already and am ahead of the very strict schedule I have for it!

If it comes together as smoothly as hoped, then it’ll be available for purchase via itch.io for Windows, PC, as we haven’t managed to find anyone who could port it for us yet, but hopefully that might still happen! It’ll also be avaliable for $5+ patrons on Patreon as a free download on Windows, PC!

Next week I will be squeezing in social media days before hammering back through this again!

I realise I’m being super vague about this, but I will be sharing much more as the weeks go on, and it begins coming more to life, but I can give a small hint…

--

Waiting at The Square, on a Very Chilly Evening.

Christmas in Wayhaven.

It's sparkling, frosted, and magical…quite literally.

Which means the spirit of the season takes on a whole new perspective when you know magic is actually real.

--

Prepare for something light, fluffy, cosy, and full of festive fun with those Unit Bravo romances… ;D

(This ‘novella/side-story’-type game won’t be considered canon or anything, so you don’t need to play it to enjoy the main series if it’s not something you’re interested in. It’s more just a nice moment between the books to simply indulge much more in the actual romance-side of things, hehe!)

I hope you all have the most amazing weekend! We’ll be offline as usual, so I’ll update again next Friday with more hints about what’s to come…hehehe! ;D

[trumpkinhotboy]

Chronic protective brother syndrome

Pairing: big brother!nick nelson x little sister!reader

Type: Request (thank you so much!!)

Warnings: Mention of fainting, having a chronic illness, but nothing too intense

Word count: 1900

Requests: Open! For Heartstopper, twilight wolfpack, chronicles of narnia and harry potter

A/n: honestly… i dont have much to say except that i love writing for requests and that big brother nick makes me weak in the knees. Hope you enjoy angels xxx

*gif is not mine

Summary: The reader has been living with diabetes her whole life. She's grown quite accustomed to it and manages it well with the help of her supportive family. Although sometimes, support can feel a little suffocating...

Through your 14 years of existence, you have grown quite accustomed to life with type 1 diabetes. As you grew up and became more conscious of what it meant to live with a chronic disease, you learned to accept and care for yourself quite well. 

Your mother, Sarah, was a real trooper and never let you down, always carrying you when you felt exhausted and done with your condition, which did happen more often than you care to admit. Luckily, you also had someone else in your corner: your older brother. 

Nick is known to be quite protective. Especially with the people he cares for. However, that aspect of his personality gained a new high when you were born, and your mother explained why you could never do everything just as he did. Of course, you would still be able to do most of them. You would simply need to be a little more careful. 

Sarah remembers very clearly the look in little Nick’s eyes when she explained why you were always sick. You were resting in bed after a substantial flare-up when his eyes welled up with tears. That's when he finally understood that there was something in your own body that would always try to fight and hurt itself. That’s also when he promised himself he would do everything to protect you. Your mum still tells that story with a few tears welling up in her eyes. 

Nick knew you could have a lot of complications from your disease. To avoid them, he always made sure you had everything you needed at all times. You usually didn't mind, seeing how your ADHD sometimes made it a little harder for you to remember to pack your stuff. Plus, the fatigue diabetes often fogged you with did not help in that department. 

The thing is you were now 14 years old, finally starting to make new friends and explore the jungle that is social life in high school. So when your 16-year-old brother comes over, and all your lady friends swoon over him, or worse, when he comes over to baby you, it gets a little irritating. Luckily, Nick was quite stubborn about that stuff and was not about to let you get hurt just because of the image you wanted to project.

That was until you made quite a scene in front of everyone.

You had been feeling particularly irritated and moody that day. So when you saw your brother walk over to you with a backup diabetes kit, which was his creation, you felt anger boil in your blood.

It did not help to hear some nasty year 10 make jokes from a picnic table near your friends and you. "Oh, would you look at that? Diabetes Nelson still needs her big brother to bring her her little drugs. I don't understand how someone like him could be related to her."

It was stupid. It wasn't even a good insult. Plus, the people who kept making comments were not something to be impressed with. Still, you couldn't help the shame from creeping on your cheeks.

So this time, when your big brother came to check on you and offered you your safety pouch, you refused.

"I already have the normal one. I don't need this one."

"I know, but I don't think you've put the new insulin shots in. I brought you the safety one just in case."

The snickers you heard from the people behind had you gritting your teeth. You couldn't understand their exact words, but you knew it wasn't positive. 

"Don't you have anything better to do than watch over me all day?" you hissed. "I'm not stupid Nick."

Your diabetes also made you prone to mood swings, mostly when your blood sugar levels were too high or low. That's why Nick usually did not make a big deal out of these outbursts, but this time felt different. Hurt flashed in his eyes, and briefly, you regretted the words.

"I never said that. I just want to make sure you have everything you need. You know the risks." His tone was soft, his gaze focused on you. He tried as much as he could not to make a big deal out of this, but your reaction had the exact opposite effect. He knew how the fear of being judged could make a person act in such a terrible way. 

"I don't need you to remind me how weak and useless my body is, okay? I'm the one living with diabetes, Nick. Not you." You whispered angrily.

You grabbed your bag and left him planted there without looking back. Nick and you were usually like two peas in a pod, and to leave him there hurt much more than you would care to admit. 

You got back in class, trying to act normal, but after an hour in, you felt queasy and feeble. You had indulged in some sweets some friends offered after your altercation with Nick, brushing off the risk with your ongoing anger. Subtly, you pricked your finger and couldn't help your eyes from growing two sizes when you saw the little numbers your tracker presented. You were in hyperglycemia and urgently needed to get a shot of insulin. Swiftly, you asked to be excused from the class and headed for the bathroom. The walls seemed to shake around you, and your vision kept warping up. Cursing yourself for being this dumb, you opened your bag with shaking hands, searching for your shots.

"Shit."

There was only one thing worse than fighting with Nick, and it was when you realized he had been right. You mumbled under your breath, trying to stay calm and figure out a quick solution because this was becoming urgent, and you needed the care right now. Calling Nick would do no good since he was at Truham anyway. You decided to head back to class to ask for your teacher's help, but once you tried climbing the stairs, a thousand little dots started dancing around. You were able to mutter an 'I feel kinda dizzy' before everything turned black.

You awoke to a commotion. Distorted sounds and everything around you moved too fast to register. Someone was holding your hand while you felt a pinch in your arm. 

"It's okay, it's okay Y/n. You're going to be okay. I'm here."

You knew that voice. You lifted your gaze with an effort and only saw a flash of red hair before darkness swallowed you once more.

This time, when you woke up, everything was silent and peaceful. You were lying in a bed, a hospital bed, with an IV drip set up in your arm. Nick was resting in the chair next to you, his worried eyes set on his phone as he quickly typed.

"Hey," you croaked. 

His head whipped up in surprise when he heard your voice. He immediately dropped his phone to come by your side. His hand flew to your forehead. The coolness of it felt incredibly refreshing as you leaned into the touch.

"Hey, kid," he whispered. He tried putting a smile on his face, but it couldn't hide the worry he was truly feeling.

"So, I'm guessing I fainted? And someone found me? And they panicked ?"

"Panicked is an understatement."

He explained that Imogen found you at the bottom of the stairs. She didn't know whether you had fallen from them or just fainted at the bottom, so she immediately called for help and texted him.

"I ran to Higgs faster than Charlie ever could," he added with a smirk, his joke stealing a chuckle from your chest.

"I'm sorry for causing such a commotion. I should wear a bracelet that says fainting is normal for me so people won't worry."

His gaze hardened at your comment. "Fainting is not normal for you. It's a bad sign, and you know it."

You sheepishly dropped your gaze. Okay, he wasn't ready to make jokes about it yet. Charlie would have laughed, you secretly thought.

"I don't understand why you pulled that crap. I just wanted to help you." 

You lay back in bed with a sigh and covered your eyes with your forearm. You did know Nick only wanted to help, but still. His kind gestures irritated you so much sometimes.

"It's already hard enough to be the sick kid. That was my only thing when I was in middle school. I thought now I could step away from it, that I could be someone else. Be known for other things than my messed up immune system." 

You noticed Nick's expression softened once you uncovered your eyes. 

"And I know you want to help and trust me, I appreciate it. It's just that sometimes it feels like you don't believe in me. Like you don't think I'm capable of doing stuff. Instead of helping me become stronger, you keep worrying me with your horror scenarios."

It was now Nick's turn to look all sheepish and guilty. You might have been right in saying he tended to get a little paranoid when you wanted to try new things. He only thought about protecting you. He never realized the effect it would have on your self-esteem. 

"I'm tired of being afraid. I've looked it up, and there are so many people with diabetes who are doing amazing things. I can stay healthy and still be a badass kid who tries new stuff."

He looked up, his eyes holding so much uncertainty and fear. Though through it all, love was the strongest thing in his gaze. He grabbed your hand once again with a tight smile.

"I hear you, I'm sorry. I never thought it would make you feel like this, or else I wouldn't have done it."

"Nick." You gave him a knowing look.

"Okay, okay. I might have still done it, but only because you're my baby sister, and I want you to be healthy and have a long, long life, okay?"

You nodded while tightening your grip on his hand. 

"I promise I will be less overbearing, and I will support you in whatever new thing you want to try."

"Thanks, Nick, and for school, could you maybe not come and do your big brother number in front of all my friends? I appreciate the gesture, but I'm over dealing with the dumbasses." 

He sighed heavily but still agreed to your request. "About that, just a piece of advice. I've learned that sometimes the thing we are afraid will show our weakness or vulnerability only does when we allow it to. Once you reclaim your power and own it, it all switches around. Anyone who has something to say about it will suddenly disappear, or you won't care what they have to say anymore."

You nodded sheepishly. You honestly didn't care about your diabetes. I mean, it could be a gigantic pain, and you would have to be careful for the rest of your life. But all in all, you were pretty lucky. You had your condition mostly under control when you weren't a sassy dumbass, and you had the best support system someone could wish for. 

"Look at me. You're going to be okay kiddo." Your brother squeezed your hand tighter in a reassuring motion. 

You lifted your head to meet his supportive gaze and smiled in return. Yes, you would be okay.

[rockingreads]

Peter Guralnick:

Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley (1995)

Careless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley (2000)

If there’s a better chronicler of American 20th Century music than Peter Guralnick, I haven’t discovered him or her yet!

Guralnick's roots music trilogy -- Feel Like Going Home, Lost Highway, and Sweet Soul Music -- is quite simply essential reading and taught me so much about the music -- blues, country, soul, R&B -- behind the music I love: rock 'n' roll.

It takes precisely this kind of scholarship in the cultural and political forces that shaped the American experience in the 20th Century to tell the story of one of its principal personalities: the King of Rock 'n' Roll.

That's why, Guralnick's scrupulously researched, two-tome recounting of the rise and fall of Elvis Presley is, to my mind, the definitive account: cutting through the biases and gossip of countless lesser biographies in its search for the truth.

So don’t let the heft of these two volumes -- each one of them averaging 600 pages! -- scare you away from Guralnick's remarkable achievement.

Elvis' life is a true American epic.

Featured Records:

Elvis Presley: Elvis Presley (1956)

Elvis Presley: From Elvis in Memphis (1969)

Buy from: Amazon / Amazon

[jbaileyfansite]

Interview on Today (2024)

Jonathan Bailey and Matt Bomer tell a decades-spanning love story, set against a dark time in American history, in the miniseries "Fellow Travelers."

"It's a once or twice in a career experience to get to tell characters' stories for three plus decades," Bomer tells TODAY.com.

It also seems to be a "once or twice in a career" friendship between the two stars.

As we sit down to chat after their appearance on TODAY, I tell Bailey this interview will be audio-only, not on camera.

"So you'll get to hear Matt's Elphaba riff," Bailey jokes, before Bomer belts out a near-perfect tenor rendition of the closing notes of "Defying Gravity."

In addition to "Fellow Travelers," which premiered on Showtime in October 2023 and led to both stars receiving Emmy nominations, Bailey is also gearing up for the release of the film adaptation of "Wicked."

"I wore my emerald shirt to support," Bomer says later.

Throughout the interview, they share effusive praise for each other. Bomer was a "huge fan" of Bailey's work before they met, he says, and the "Bridgerton" actor then "exceeded all expectations." Bailey credits Bomer, who served as an executive producer on the show, with making "the whole thing happen."

"He's been a hero for a long time," Bailey says of his co-star.

Their friendship may be the happily ever after that, on its surface, is absent from their show.

"Fellow Travelers" chronicles the love story between political consultants Hawkins "Hawk" Fuller (Bomer) and Tim Laughlin (Bailey) over the course of four decades. Their relationship starts against the backdrop of the Lavender Scare in 1950s Washington D.C. and runs all the way up to San Francisco in the '80s, at the start of the AIDS epidemic.

The show is romantic, sexy, moving and devastating, right up until the last line.

An 'instantaneous' friendship

Bomer says their friendship was "instantaneous."

"I feel like we went from coworkers to friends the first time we read together," he says. "It was so great to have someone I could completely trust as my scene partner and lean on and who made me better every day as an actor an a person at times."

He adds, "It was never really an effort."

Because their characters maintain an off-and-on again relationship over the years, Bailey and Bomer saw their characters through different ages and life phases.

That “nature of the love story” means they “grew with every scene," Bailey says.

"One of the most bonding experiences was seeing each other turning up through the different decades — see how we were aging, sometimes gracefully, sometimes not, and then sometimes gracefully again,” he says. "We're bonded, I'd say, for life."

‘Fellow Travelers,’ ‘Bridgerton’ and ‘Wicked’ — oh my!

The intensity of the show's emotions was matched by the intensity of filming.

Bailey, known for his breakout role as romantic hero Anthony in "Bridgerton" Season 2, filmed Season 3 of "Bridgerton" and his upcoming film "Wicked" at the same time as the Showtime drama.

When asked on TODAY Aug. 16 how he kept all the roles in his head, he simply answered, "I don't know."

But he did recall a time when his roles as Tim in "Fellow Travelers" and Fiyero in "Wicked" overlapped.

"There was one afternoon where we had a two-way trailer," Bailey said. "And the trailer was sort of rocking."

"I was like, 'What's going on in Johnny's trailer?'" Bomer recalled.

"I came out really sweaty," Bailey continued. "My Tim glasses were on, and I had on Adidas from the waist down, and I had been practicing my 'Wicked' choreography."

At its busiest, "Fellow Travelers" filmed for entire days — literally.

"Some of the days were like 20 hours," Bailey recalls to TODAY.com.

They filmed Episode 6, "Beyond Measure," largely set in the ‘60s —years since Tim and Hawk last spoke — in about three days, Bailey says.

"We had to wrap the show. You had places you had to be, and the schedule was so tight, we were just doing 18-hour days, 20-hour days," Bomer adds.

This happened after theactors had filmed the final scenes of the show.

"So we'd done the real heavy moment —," Bailey says, as Bomer adds, "We had this great release for the whole experience. But then we had to go back."

And about that ending...

"Fellow Travelers" turns out to be a frame narrative. The show both opens and ends in the '80s during Tim and Hawk's last reunion, before Tim dies of complications from AIDS.

Tim's death is not shown on screen. Instead, it's revealed through the final scene, which sees Hawk and his daughter looking at Tim's name on the AIDS Memorial Quilt in 1987. For the first time, Hawk tells her about his relationship with Tim.

The last lines of the show are Bomer's.

"He wasn't my friend. He was the man I loved," Hawk says.

Both actors confirm that the last time Tim and Hawk saw each other was in 1986 at the political gala shown in Episode 8. After Tim tries and fails to get an audience with the California governor to advocate for a crucial AIDS bill, he interrupts the event with a protest. But before taking the stage, Hawk kisses Tim, who then tells his longtime love to go home.

"I have to fight this fight. That means letting go of everything else. And if you're around, I will not be able to let go," Tim says.

Bomer calls their ending "brilliant."

"To see Tim in this moment of absolute triumph, where he is his most authentic self, pumping his fist in the air with a passion and a cause — everything that he had tried to hard to be in the '50s, he is celebrating out loud in the '80s," Bomer says. "I just thought it was such a beautiful, heartbreaking way to go out."

Tim’s arc “ends with his strongest moment, even though his body is dying," Bailey adds.

Hawk meanwhile, "hits the 'f-it' button," Bomer says.

"To kiss Tim openly is such a huge, revolutionary act (for Hawk)," he adds. "So he's definitely made the choice that he's going to take a complete new path for his life."

Bailey says the gala was the last time Tim and Hawk saw each other “in this world.”

"From the last scene, you can tell that he will live on as Hawk's great love of his life," Bomer adds. "Forever."

Source

[zeebee3]

Mother!! Your last fic slapped so hard? Omg. You're genius.

I wanted to ask you for some recommendations.👀 I love everything you've ever written, so I'm sure I'll love what you've enjoyed reading too.

If/when you have time, of course.💙

Ahhhhh okay this is going to be a long list, I can already tell 😂 I've tried to limit myself but there are SO MANY fics out there that I eat up again and again, and there will never be a comprehensive list of stuff I've enjoyed because so far, it's truly endless.

That said, here are the first handful that jumped to mind which I've read at least twice (that's got to be a metric of something, right?). I'm going to do the absolute barest summary for them because really, the author's summary and tags do more good than I ever will.

It also goes without saying that every fic by any of these writers is a 10/10 slam dunk, so make a cup of tea and scroll their work lists for more gems. I hope you enjoy!

Note: all of them are rated E

In no particular order...

Dramione

While They Were Sleeping by Dizzle00. The sexual tension in this one!!!!!! pls. I die, even on rereads. Mind the tags as it's an infidelity fic (dating not married).

Full Tilt by Khakis. BDD and a Hermione who is determined to take it. You're welcome in advance.

I Won't Kiss a Death Eater by Orolin. Wartime, forbidden love, clandestine meetings, THE SPICE, the moody vibes!! The podfic of this (linked at the bottom) is also insanely good.

A Healer's Guide to Mating with a Werewolf by sad_millennial. The build up and storytelling is so wonderful, it's truly mind boggling that this clocks in under 8k words for how rich and full of life it is!

The Horny Virgin Chronicles by SilverDragonGemini. 8th year, Hermione asks Draco to help her learn what she likes in bed. Every chapter is amazing, I read it in a single sitting and will be rereading for sure!

Serpents & Skulls by Wanderingfair. Muggle uni AU, secret society, mystery and romance! The moody, dark academia vibes are exceptional.

horny devil by SultryNuns. Draco grows horns, and they are sensitive. I know, I know--say less.

Mount by molivier. Brazilian Ju Jitsu as foreplay. AGAIN, say less.

I was just thinking about it, I'm not gonna do it by malfoyesque. Draco pulls out every time...until now. This is the Draco POV of our dreams.

The Wandmaker by Charingfae. Draco makes magical sex toys; Hermione buys one 🙃

A Marriage of Inconvenience by Beforetherealbook. The title says it all--add in virgin!Draco, pining!Draco, and baby we're cookin'

The Summer After by youhavemyswordandbow. Set in the summer before 8th year, Draco is sent to live with the Grangers. I have a crush on this whole story.

Triads

The Cock Tongue Incident by neilistic. (Hermione/Draco/Astoria). Hermione is summoned to Draco and Astoria's home to help with something. I'm full-on on my knees for this Astoria, and the premise is so unique and so so well done!

Tarnished by westxnorthwest. (Draco/Theo/Hermione). 8th year, the start of a triad, no prior Dreo (which is very very fun to see bloom).

Drarry

Only for October by DodgerKedavra. Every chapter is written based on the 2023 HP Cocktober prompt. Every chapter is also FANTASTIC 🫠

Former Things Come to Mind by DodgerKedavra. Okay I'm cheating on my self-imposed "one fic per author" rule but I simply can't not suggest everyone read this one. The prose. THE CHARACTERIZATIONS. I tear up every reread.

That Old Black Magic by bixgirl1. God-tier marriage law fic. This is the one that got me into that trope to begin with. PHEW.

Lumos by birdsofshore. Another classic Drarry but hey, if you haven't read it, let this be your cue!

OKAY that's it for now, but I am curating a list of my favorite other/rare pair fics as well so once I get that together, I'll do a follow up post.

Annddddd now I want to go reread half of these AGAIN 😅

[book--brackets]

Note: Good Omens is by both Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman, it just doesn't fit in the character limit lol

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern (2011)

The circus arrives without warning. No announcement precedes it, no paper notices plastered on lampposts and billboards. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not.

Within these nocturnal black-and-white-striped tents awaits an utterly unquie experience, a feast did the senses, where no one can be lost in a maze of clouds, meander through a lush garden muse of ice, stare in wonderment as the tattooed contortionist folds herself into a small glass box, and become deliciously tipsy from the scents of caramel and cinnamon that waft through the air.

Welcome to Le Cirque des Rêvez.

Beyond the smoke and mirrors, however, a fierce competition is under way—a contest between two young illusionists, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood to compete in a “game” to which they have been irrevocably bound by their mercurial masters. Unbeknownst to the players, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battles of imagination and will.

As the circus travels around the world, the feats of magic gain fantastical new heights with every stop. The game is well under way and the lives of all those involved—the eccentric circus owner, the elusive contortionist, the mystical fortune-teller, and a pair of red-haired twins born backstage among them—are swept up in a wake of spells and charms.

But when Celia discovers Marco is her adversary, they begin to think of the game not as a competition but as a wonderful collaboration. With no knowledge of how the game must end, they innocently tumble headfirst into love. A deep, passionate, and magical love that makes the light flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.

Their masters still pull the strings, however, and this unforeseen occurrence forces them to intervene with dangerous consequences, leaving the lives of everyone from the performers to the patrons hanging in the balance.

The Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss (2007-present)

My name is Kvothe.   I have stolen princesses back from sleeping barrow kings. I burned down the town of Trebon. I have spent the night with Felurian and left with both my sanity and my life. I was expelled from the University at a younger age than most people are allowed in. I tread paths by moonlight that others fear to speak of during day. I have talked to Gods, loved women, and written songs that make the minstrels weep.   You may have heard of me.

So begins a tale unequaled in fantasy literature--the story of a hero told in his own voice. It is a tale of sorrow, a tale of survival, a tale of one man's search for meaning in his universe, and how that search, and the indomitable will that drove it, gave birth to a legend.

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo (2015-2016)

Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price—and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can’t pull it off alone. . . .

A convict with a thirst for revenge A sharpshooter who can’t walk away from a wager A runaway with a privileged past A spy known as the Wraith A Heartrender using her magic to survive the slums A thief with a gift for unlikely escapes

Kaz’s crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction—if they don’t kill each other first.

American Gods by Neil Gaiman (2001)

Days before his release from prison, Shadow's wife, Laura, dies in a mysterious car crash. Numbly, he makes his way back home. On the plane, he encounters the enigmatic Mr Wednesday, who claims to be a refugee from a distant war, a former god and the king of America.

Together they embark on a profoundly strange journey across the heart of the USA, whilst all around them a storm of preternatural and epic proportions threatens to break.

Scary, gripping and deeply unsettling, American Gods takes a long, hard look into the soul of America. You'll be surprised by what - and who - it finds there...

The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer (2012-2015)

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth's fate hinges on one girl. . . . 

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She's a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister's illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai's, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world's future. 

The Princess Bride by William Goldman (1973)

Westley ... handsome farm boy who risks death and much, much worse for the woman he loves; Inigo ... the Spanish swordsman who lives only to avenge his father's death; Fezzik ... the Turk, the gentlest giant ever to have uprooted a tree with his bare hands; Vizzini ... the evil Sicilian, with a mind so keen he's foiled by his own perfect logic; Prince Humperdinck ... the eviler ruler of Guilder, who has an equally insatiable thirst for war and the beauteous Buttercup; Count Rugen ... the evilest man of all, who thrives on the excruciating pain of others; Miracle Max ... the King's ex-Miracle Man, who can raise the dead (kind of); The Dread Pirate Roberts ... supreme looter and plunderer of the high seas; and, of course, Buttercup ... the princess bride, the most perfect, beautiful woman in the history of the world.

S. Morgenstern's timeless tale--discovered and wonderfully abridged by William Goldman--pits country against country, good against evil, love against hate. From the Cliffs of Insanity through the Fire Swamp and down into the Zoo of Death, this incredible journey and brilliant tale is peppered with strange beasties both monstrous and gentle, and memorable surprises both terrible and sublime.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl (1964)

Willy Wonka's famous chocolate factory is opening at last!

But only five lucky children will be allowed inside. And the winners are: Augustus Gloop, an enormously fat boy whose hobby is eating; Veruca Salt, a spoiled-rotten brat whose parents are wrapped around her little finger; Violet Beauregarde, a dim-witted gum-chewer with the fastest jaws around; Mike Teavee, a toy pistol-toting gangster-in-training who is obsessed with television; and Charlie Bucket, Our Hero, a boy who is honest and kind, brave and true, and good and ready for the wildest time of his life! 

The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare (2010-2013)

Magic is dangerous--but love is more dangerous still. 

When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to find her brother, her destination is England, the time is the reign of Queen Victoria, and something terrifying is waiting for her in London's Downworld, where vampires, warlocks and other supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets. Only the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons, keep order amidst the chaos. 

Kidnapped by the mysterious Dark Sisters, members of a secret organization called The Pandemonium Club, Tessa soon learns that she herself is a Downworlder with a rare ability: the power to transform, at will, into another person. What's more, the Magister, the shadowy figure who runs the Club, will stop at nothing to claim Tessa's power for his own. 

Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters of the London Institute, who swear to find her brother if she will use her power to help them. She soon finds herself fascinated by--and torn between--two best friends: James, whose fragile beauty hides a deadly secret, and blue-eyed Will, whose caustic wit and volatile moods keep everyone in his life at arm's length . . . everyone, that is, but Tessa. As their search draws them deep into the heart of an arcane plot that threatens to destroy the Shadowhunters, Tessa realizes that she may need to choose between saving her brother and helping her new friends save the world. . . . and that love may be the most dangerous magic of all.

Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman (1990)

The world is preparing to come to an end according to the Divine Plan recorded in the Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch (recorded 1655). Meanwhile, a fussy angel and a fast-living demon have grown fond of living among the earth's mortals for many millennia and are not looking forward to the apocalypse. If Crowley and Aziraphale are going to stop it from happening, they must find and kill the Antichrist.

Coraline by Neil Gaiman (2002)

In Coraline's family's new flat there's a locked door. On the other side is a brick wall—until Coraline unlocks the door . . . and finds a passage to another flat in another house just like her own. Only different.

The food is better there. Books have pictures that writhe and crawl and shimmer. And there's another mother and father there who want Coraline to be their little girl. They want to change her and keep her with them. . . . Forever.

[teddy-boar]

'pull the blanket tight now'

The chronicle of the blue blanket, from how Jayce got it, to how it became interwoven into Viktor's very soul. (5+1 things Fic)

Word count: 3.4k

(Also on AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/61725736)

I.

Jayce never liked the cold. Ever since that fateful trip, the first sign of a blizzard, of snow, of a mere drop in temperature, he and Mom would abandon all responsibilities and stay home where it was warm and safe. Mom would have him excused from school, as he would help her make sancocho and hot cocoa, an odd combo of flavor but nine-year-old Jayce had insisted and a tradition it had become. They would huddle up together before the fire, sipping on their hot soup and drinks, bundled up under Grandmother’s blanket and traded stories, from the latest town gossip to the most fantastical tales they could make up. He loved their silly little tradition, it always made him less afraid of the cold raging on outside.

When he first moved out of the Talis Home, Ximena insisted he take Grandmother’s blanket with him to the new place, a piece of home she said. A lot of back and forth was had before he finally relented, but not before commissioning her another blanket nearly identical for her to keep. It wasn’t the same as her Mother’s, of course, but she still appreciated it, and it lived on her couch now where she often spent her evenings with a book. Jayce liked to think it was a piece of him she was keeping in return.

II.

The blanket became a constant fixture in his life, a comfort item in a sense. It spent some of its time on the bed, sometimes in his workspace where he would get cold and tired while hunching over papers and prototypes. Rarely, but occasionally, it would get folded up and put in the closet when he had company over. He wasn’t fond of the idea of rolling around in bed with someone on his Grandmother’s handmade blanket.

He would bring it home for Mom to wash every few weeks, just because the soap she used somehow preserved that scent that always reminded him of home. Or maybe it was the soap itself that reminded him of home.

III.

After he got that snazzy new position within the Academy, where he would spend arguably more time than he would his own apartment, the blanket found itself a new residence in the lab. Long days and all-nighters spent tinkering with inventions and conducting experiments with Viktor, the place had become his second home.

The downside of bringing it to such a public place meant more people would have access to it. Jayce wasn’t possessive of the object, no, just… protective.

When Prof. Heimerdinger would sit upon the folded blanket on the couch for a bit of a height boost, Jayce would wince but refrain from saying anything. He couldn’t blame the Yordle, the thing looked awfully cushy and comfortable. When Sky would trip over the fabric in her haste to get to class, Jayce would bite his tongue so as not to alarm anyone over something so trivial. When Mel would come by sometimes and remove the cover from his shoulders and set it aside, he tried not to take it to heart. She simply wished to speak to him professionally, without him bundled up like an iceman.

The only person he didn’t have any qualms with handling the blanket was Viktor. He would often purposefully drape the thing over the man when he was shivering, too prideful to admit he was discomforted. When Viktor would be passed out on the couch after an arduous day, Jayce would tuck him in, enjoying the way he burrowed into the warmth like a cat.

Once, they got snowed in and Jayce was desperately trying to keep his panic under wraps. Their other colleagues at the Academy were none the wiser, trying to convince them to a slumber party of sorts in the main hall, but Viktor noticed. He always noticed.

“I need Jayce here in the lab with me. My leg, you know, gets bad in this weather.” Viktor took one for the team. Jayce knew how much he disliked talking about his leg with these people he said would never tolerate, let alone understand him. He sent his partner an appreciative look as their colleagues wished them well and took off, whispering to each other under their breaths.

“Thank you, V. I wasn’t in the mood to mingle, but I don’t want to seem rude and…”

“It’s okay, Jayce. You don’t have to explain yourself to me.”

He knew it was merely sentimental, but he could have sworn Viktor’s smile chased the cold within him away.

Jayce had never shared the blanket with anyone besides his Mom, yet as Viktor drew him under the warm cover, he had never felt more at ease, like he had always belonged there within his partner’s arms. Jayce’s heart was still beating a bruise into his ribcage as the snowy wind clattered and bashed against the windows, but when Viktor dozed off warm and contented all around him, he knew he'd be alright.

IV.

Somewhere along the way, the blanket had stopped smelling like Mom’s soap and had begun smelling like Viktor, star anise and warm cinnamon. He stopped bringing it home for her to wash because he didn’t want her to wash that scent away. He was thankful of that decision now as he buried his nose into the cloth and cried, hand clutching upon his cane until nails scraped painfully against the metal. The shallow hum of the machinery keeping Viktor alive, keeping him in stasis, made his head ring and he wished to hide away in the cocoon he’d made for himself.

Why did it have to be Viktor? He was right��there beside him, so why did it spare him and take…

His body was burning up, from the restlessness, the anxiety. Yet, he only wrapped the blanket tighter around himself, desperately clawing at whatever essence was left of his fading partner.

V.

Viktor was alive. Jayce couldn’t believe his eyes as he gazed upon his partner’s reformed body in amazement. He wasn’t the same but he was alive.

His tired limbs, his aching heart were soothed as he held Viktor in his arms, solid and real and not just a limp body. He was selfish and he was greedy, he understood. But Viktor was alive and that was all he could afford to care about.

He suddenly realized he had been holding on for too long and broke away, flustered but not regretful as he dashed away to find his partner some cover. “You must be cold.”

Flesh had been turned into buzzing metal beneath his fingertips, and Jayce acknowledged he should have been appalled or shocked over the new development, yet he could only feel joy when he heard Viktor’s familiar voice again. “Cold. No, I don’t think so.”

Still, he draped the blanket over his hunched shoulders, pulling it tight and willing some comfort into him, just as it had done for Jayce these past few weeks of uncertainty.

When Viktor reminded him of the promise he had made, Jayce couldn’t help but wince. He indeed had broken his friend’s trust but wasn’t he right to do so when it saved his life?

“I was supposed to die.” The words sliced like a blade through his flesh and it pained more than the wounds already crisscrossing his body.

“Our paths have diverged long ago. It was affection that held us together.” Viktor said dismissively, as if that wasn’t the core reason why Jayce had to betray his vow, why he went against every advice given by his Mother and his mentors.

“What are you saying, Viktor?” His heart ached and he yearned to reach out, to twine his fingers into the blanket and anchor himself, anchor Viktor to him, to keep him from walking away. After everything they had been through, was he really walking away?

“I’m saying… goodbye, Jayce. Good luck with your city, but I cannot be a part of it anymore.”

The sound of his metallic limbs trudging across the marble floor echoed through the lab and Jayce’s extended hand lowered, vacant of his partner’s returning grip. The last flutter of his Grandmother’s blanket disappeared behind the closing door and suddenly, it was final.

Viktor was alive, but Viktor was gone.

***

I.

Everything was more vibrant and alive, yet in the same instant, more dulled and muted than he had ever experienced. Iridescent ripples of magic were suspended in the air like dust molecules and they swayed when his hand pushed through. It was beautiful, and it was alien. His new body was also alien to himself. Alien fingers trailing upon alien flesh. And there was a sensation, yes, but it wasn’t what he had grown to know as feeling. Merely inputs and outputs, the intellect to discern what it represented, but not… feeling.

Jayce’s blanket, what had once been a source of comfort for the man during cold days, now laid upon his shoulders and he could feel none of its warmth, its texture. His bare feet walked across the earth and he could feel no dirt, no jagged edge beneath the soles. Mere inputs and outputs.

There was a force within himself, pushing him down a path deep within Zaun’s diseased and neglected corners. He hadn’t an idea where to go, or what to do after waking up from death, except he couldn’t bear to look at what Jayce had done with their Hextech dream, so he ran as far as he could from it all, a single desire to help the people burned within his undead chest.

These folks, whom even Zaun itself had exploited and abused, were on their knees before him as he replenished their health and their minds, and he did not feel pride or mighty. Just a sense of duty, of belonging. If he must be wretched back from the death where he should have stayed, at least he could do some good deeds with it.

II.

Material possessions must be shed within the commune's confines. One must learn to share with everyone else, to live in harmony, to not hold ownership over any property, any belongings. That was the teachings everyone had agreed upon together.

However, they were more lenient when it came to their leader. Viktor recognized his own hypocrisy, but he reasoned these were the only things left from when he was human, and he wished to keep them close to remind himself of his humanity. His people understood without qualms.

Except the newcomers. They still had much to learn and to adapt to, having their lives changed so rapidly. He couldn't exactly blame them. So when he couldn't find his cane and his blanket after a night's rest, he tried to quell the anxiety rising in his chest. Surely, no one here would purposefully steal from him. It must be a misunderstanding.

He asked around, tried to refrain from going into his people's heads and seeing for himself who took them, but with each moment he was without his belongings, the more vulnerable and out of depth he felt. He walked the plains of their camp, up and down, left and right, asking, looking, keeping his composure and trying to deny the real reason why he was so wracked with fear of losing these objects.

Then he stumbled upon their newcomers’ quarters, and Viktor had to constrain his own anger at the sight of a group of children playing with his cane, decorating it with baubles and paint, while his blanket was being washed, dunked in soap and scrubbed into a rock by Salo and a few others. 

With great effort, Viktor swallowed the first reactive words that jumped to the tip of his tongue. The children swarmed him, showing him their work and at the sight of their innocent joy, he couldn't bear being angry any longer. Paint could be washed away. Baubles could be taken off. It was fine. 

His blanket, however…

“Herald!” Salo greeted with a grin, waving him over, seemingly unaware of his troubled mood.

“We were hoping to help clean your things before you woke, but the little ones got out of control. Apologies.”

He shook his head. The little ones could be forgiven, but what they were doing to Jayce's—, to his blanket, could not be reversed.

“Why have you done this? I haven't asked you to do this.” Viktor tried to keep his voice down and his tone mellow, not wanting to portray how upset he truly was. Because he understood this was a mistake. They simply wanted to help.

He knelt and took the wet cloth back, wringing it dry and tried to keep the tremble of his hands hidden. 

“I'm… sorry, Herald. I just thought we should help. You are always so busy and we noticed your garment hasn't been cleaned in a while and—” Salo prattled on and he raised a hand, nodding solemnly as he gathered his things. 

“I appreciate the gesture, Salo. I do.” He patted the head of one of the children clinging to him and smiled at them, trying to ease their worried minds, “I know you were only trying to help, but please leave the maintenance of my possessions to myself. And please don't come into my tent without me knowing again.” 

There was a cacophony of apologies that trailed after him as he left and he was quick to accept them all, to forgive and move on. He wished not to dwell on this any further. Maybe he needed more work assigned to the newcomers, so their idle hands would have something to do. 

He hurried back to his tent, a wet bundle in his arms as he tried to hold himself together, at least until he could be alone again.

When his tent door was drawn and he was by himself, he collapsed and brought the blanket to his nose. Desperately, he searched for the scent of a blacksmith’s forge again, the deep musk of sweat and mahogany aftershave still lingering within the strands of the fabric after all this time. But alas, all he could smell was watery soap. 

It should not matter. He should have left all this sentimentality behind when he had left him behind. But when the last traces of him were washed away for good, Viktor begrudgingly allowed himself a moment of grief.

III.

The gear rolled around his fingers, metal upon metal, as he absentmindedly listened to his community’s latest quandary. The Noxus Army was at their gate, waiting for an opening, and though Viktor should be more worried, all that occupied his mind was this gear, and his long lost partner who just came back from the dead.

Salo’s blood still clung to the membranes of his mind and Sky advised him to be more worried. He should be fearful, should set up precautions to protect himself and his people from Jayce and his unpredictability. Viktor only refuted her concerns.

Jayce would not hurt him. The man might be unstable and dangerous right now, but not to him. He was sure of it.

He wasn’t certain about a lot of things in the world, but that was a constant he knew he could rely on. Jayce might hurt his feelings with his words or his ignorance, but he could never raise a hand towards him, no matter how disturbed he may appear.

So Viktor waited.

He sent out instructions for his people to guide Jayce to him. He bided his time and waited for his partner to return, to finally share with him the work he had done, the good he had wrought. To convince him to help, to enact their dreams together. It still wasn’t too late.

He almost smiled at the visage of his dear friend, it had been far too long. But before he could descend, before he could even think, his undead heart tightented when Jayce didn’t utter a word. Didn’t wait for him to explain. Didn’t let him get a single word out before he raised his hammer with gritted teeth and so much agony upon his weathered features. And for the first time since Viktor woke up from death, he felt something.

Pain, pain of betrayal and pain of confusion ripped through his chest and he fell. His weak hand lost its grip on the gear while the other clutched upon the blanket, a piece of Jayce he was still unable to let go.

With each heaving breath, his eyes begged to fall close, but he fought through. He needed to see why. He needed to understand.

How could Jayce do this? Jayce would never do this. His Jayce could never do this.

He didn’t understand.

He couldn’t understand…

IV.

He tried to reason with him. He tried convincing him to see the truth, see the good they could do. But his partner was too influenced by an unseen force. Something even stronger than their bond.

So Viktor severed the tie completely.

He gave his old mentor the go ahead and soon after, he was reborn, a monstrous creation that resembled neither man nor machine. Something beyond.

The Noxus Army wasn’t his first choice of allies, but they were a path towards what he needed to do. Just a little bit more ugliness to achieve eternal peace and homogeneity for all. A minor sacrifice to make, all things considered.

He looked down at his new body and found it lacking. No bad leg, no lungs to struggle for air, yet he still felt a need to have something in his grip, to aid him in his gait, for nothing but familiarity alone.

He dug through the rubble, and his hand wrapped around his cane, what had once helped him walk was now a symbol of power, of completion to his new form. And just because he couldn’t help it, he also took in the tattered pieces of blue cloth nearby, destroyed in the chaos but still resiliently remained. He felt a certain kinship to the object.

Without overthinking it, he draped it over his renewed body and marched onward to war.

V.

Jayce was so miniscule compared to him. A single mote in a galaxy of stars. Yet, he still seemed to burn brighter than most.

As he poured his heart out, as he confessed and tried his hardest to make Viktor see himself the way he saw him, a sudden, almost violent, sense of apprehension hit him.

As Jayce showed him what he had seen in his time lost within the Arcane, the need for air came rushing back to him with a choked gasp. He had peered upon his own visage, old and weathered, a look of deep remorse and adoration when he gazed down at his own Jayce, immobile and lifeless, surrounded by the only patch of greenery in a planet of grey.

The blanket still hung upon the other Viktor’s person, discolored by time and worn by age, but still the very one.

Hesitantly, penitently, he came to the realization of what he had done. Of what he was about to do.

It still wasn’t too late.

Jayce, his Jayce, still human and true, clasped his hand with a promise, one he would not break this time. “We finish this together.”

Viktor wouldn’t lie to himself and say death didn’t scare him, but with his partner beside him again, he found he could go through it once more.

It wasn’t too late to fix this.

+1.

The sun was shining upon his face and he swallowed down the lurch of nausea. This wasn’t what he expected death to be, but when a solid body collided with him and he was pulled into a pair of meaty arms, he realized he might not be as dead as he had expected.

“Jayce?”

“Viktor…” His partner uttered, so breathless and disbelieving, but there was no doubt in his mind that this was real.

“We’re okay.” There was a delirious tint to Jayce’s laugh as he ran his warm hands over Viktor’s skin, and he suddenly noticed he had skin again.

“We’re okay,” he echoed, running his fingers along his partner’s flesh, refamiliarizing himself with touch and feel once more after months of muted nothingness.

Then his hand bunched into the blue blanket draped across his lap and he chuckled, bringing it to his nose, inhaling deeply and shivering at the scents entering his nostrils again. How he’d missed this.

“What does it smell like?” Jayce asked, an adoring smile playing at the corner of his lips. The warm breeze whizzed past them, tousling his long, shaggy hair, and Viktor reached up to smooth it down, carding his human and tactile fingers into his beard, scratching at his scalp.

“It smells like you.” He smiled back, pressing his head against his partner’s, feeling true breaths returning to his lungs. “It smells like home.”

[erbodd]

What if? - Happy New Year

This is a very short story that was inspired to me by @plusvanity 's latest fanfiction Clarity in Kerosene. I strongly recommend reading it, and especially if you want to better understand this short drabble.

The first part is @plusvanity 's part, the second is my view of what comes next.

Grabbing the bottle of wine he went out in the cold, behind the house to have a small break. He lit up a cigarette and took a long drag out of it, almost wishing he could choke on the vaporous poison again. Hit after hit, a gulp of red wine followed to drown the bitterness in his soul and take away the visceral truth that he held the title for the biggest idiot in the human species.

He couldn't even chuckle at the irony of it all. One time wanting to be there for his mother to repair their broken relationship and she couldn't fucking care less.

He could imagine Olve choking on his own spit from guffawing at the hopeless pit he dug for himself in unawareness. Only if the bassist knew the tragic comedy that Kristian won with his final denial. He could almost hear his good friend calling him an underdog for choosing motherly love instead of drugs and alcohol.

But when did Olve become a good friend? 

Kristian must've been out of sync with his own personal chronicles because he couldn't find the exact moment in which he allowed the bassist to climb up in rank. What a strange anomaly . He couldn't be thinking at that clown in his most crooked and vulnerable shape.

His mind shifted focus, eventually wondering what were the others doing while he was loathing his existence, hiding from plain sight in the darkness.

They must be living the time of their lives.

The sound of footsteps muffled by snow pulled him from his thoughts. In the darkness, he couldn’t quite make out who was walking but he was certain they were getting closer to his location. Holding the neck of the wine bottle firmly, he got ready to defend himself if needed but relaxed when he recognized him.

“What in the living Hell are you doing here?” “I felt something was off with your story, so I came to check if my hunch was correct.” Olve explained, taking a drag of his cigarette. “Why did you lie to me?”

Varg noted the use of “me” instead of “us”, showing how he was the only one who counted. He still replied, not in the mood for an argument.

“It was supposed to be just my mother and I tonight. I wanted to mend our relationship but she had organized this stupid party I knew nothing about and-” “And now you’re the idiot.” “Right.” he conceded before adding : “Asshole.” “Righteous.” he snorted. “Don’t you want to escape from this?” “I do, but then I’d only be digging my grave more.” “You really think it can get worse than her ignoring you like that, and I bet, treating you like a servant?”

Olve was shooting in the dark there, but Varg couldn’t keep a straight face, meaning he hit right.

“Come on! We’re having fun and I want you to be part of it. It’s not the same without you.”

What kind of confession was that, Varg wondered. Yet somehow, it echoed the one he made to himself mere minutes ago. Maybe Olve as well had grown into considering Varg a good friend and he wouldn’t be surprised about it. Giving one last look inside the house where he clearly wasn’t missed, he agreed. Olve’s face lit up and they went back to the party together.

Varg’s arrival was celebrated and soon, Varg had a beer in his hand and Olve’s arm on his shoulders. Plenty of drinks and weed later, it was getting close to midnight. Everyone moved naturally closer to their partner, and Varg noticed Olve came closer to him, somehow as expected. They were standing by the corner of the room, where Varg had more or less retreated.

“Ready to start the new year with a blast? I feel this one is going to be really good!”

Varg simply nodded. They all counted the seconds down together and come midnight, kisses were being exchanged. Varg felt his friend leaning closer and laying his chin on his shoulder.

“I’m not drunk enough to kiss you.” Varg flatly stated. “But I am.”

Those were his last words before he clumsily grabbed Varg’s chin and connected their lips. He was smiling as they parted.

“Happy new year.” “Fuck off!”

Varg pushed him away and looked at their friends with a slight panic, but no one seemed to have noticed them thankfully.

[divider created by @sisterlucifergraphics]

[vixstarria]

2024 Writing Retrospect

I was tagged by @marlowethebard, thank you so much!

What's been your biggest learning point this past year?

I think the main thing I've come to realise is that discipline and simply sitting down to write something is more important than and will often surpass a lack of inspiration or writer's block - the ideas will often start flowing once you just get started.

...Whether or not I've learned how to actually be consistently disciplined is an entirely different question.

How has your writing developed this past year?

It's difficult to measure it. One thing that I can say is that re-reading the fics I published in 2023 now makes me cringe, which I suppose is a sign that I've (hopefully) improved.

I will add that I am currently actively working on learning and improving (i.e. reading / watching lectures on the more theoretical aspects of writing, story building, etc) - and it's been interesting. There are some things that I've already been doing intuitively, and others that I only realise now that they've been explained to me. Hopefully it will show in my writing soon.

Good writing habits?

Just sitting down to write even when I don't feel like it. Chances are, I will start feeling like it soon after I start, and even if I don't - at least I will know that I have accomplished something that day.

Bad writing habits?

I feel I've gotten so used to and spoiled by my writing software (scrivener) that I can no longer just open a google doc on my phone or work computer and jot down a few lines whenever an idea hits me - I leave it for later, and when the later comes it's all washed out. I need to stop being so damn picky.

Favorite thing you wrote?

Bloodbang Chronicles my beloved longfic.

Favorite reads?

This is a very tricky question, because I have a lot of very talented friends in the fandom, whose works I love and always look forward to seeing updated, and 1) I don't want to offend anyone by omission, and 2) I don't want to make the list a mile long.

I will only list the fics that are completely unlike anything else that I've read:

Direct from Hell Logistics by @ineadhyn - modern AU Raphael/Haarlep - Raphael is killed by Tav and is sent to our world as a DHL delivery man as punishment. Hilarity ensues. But also, the slow burn romance? (well, the romantic aspect of it, anyway) And the angst? And the action? Mwah. This is the fic that made me love Raphael.

Thy People Shall Be My People by @leomonae - postgame Astarion/Tav. What makes it so different from other Tavstarion fics? Well, Tav is an illithid. Also, this is a fic where every single word and sentence is full of meaning, nothing is irrelevant, and I read with bated breath to make sure I don't miss anything.

Ruins by @marlowethebard - modern AU but not really, the setting is Faerun 1,000 years in the future, and it is close to the modern world, but not quite. Astarion is in the centre of it all, with some 'friends' from BG3 increasingly making appearances. The mystery, the drama, the amazing characterisation, the unique setting, the absolute love with which it is written. I squeal happily every time I get an email about a new chapter.

Biggest win?

"The real treasure was the friends we made along the way", lol.

But quite seriously, it's being part of the community here and on Discord - having the opportunity to bounce ideas and inspire each another, as well as the general support (relating to writing and otherwise) I've had throughout the year - it's been amazing and I doubt I'd still be writing or creating if I hadn't met so many lovely people here. ❤

Goals for the new year?

Publish winter big bang fic in February

Continue writing Bloodbang Chronicles (I'm not going to commit to actually wrapping it up - I've got way too many ideas to fit inside it before the end)

Publish some original works and try to actually make some money with it - that would be nice

Your favorite words of the year, aka the words you check each chapter for, making sure you didn't repeat them 788 times?

I should probably come up with a way to depict that a character was surprised or momentarily caught off guard, other than having them "blink". They tend to "sigh" entirely too often as well.

What are you excited for in the new year?

Accomplishing the above goals and reading more of the fics I love.

tagging @tragedybunny @spacebarbarianweird @snowfolly @wilteddreamsofbaldursgate @mj-bites

@leomonae @ineadhyn @bardic-inspo and whoever else wants to share their thoughts