#It's about Alex's first week of learning magic!

[jayreyen]

I'm back from the dead with a new artstyle!! This is art for the fic I still haven't finished writing lol

Colored version underneath

[trashpandato]

Magic

“Ah fuck,” Alex growls as the coin clatters on the tile floor.

“Language, babe. You know with Kara here, Esme can still hear you even from her room.”

Kelly’s admonishment is firm but warm, and Lena has to smile when she sees Alex’s frustration morph into adoration for her wife.

“Sorry,” Alex mumbles, before she bends down to pick up the coin to try again.

“It’s okay to fumble a little,” Lena reminds her gently, “the key is going to be to create enough distraction with your voice and words that your subject won’t really be paying attention to your hand.”

They’ve been at it for a while now. It being Lena teaching Alex a couple of very simple magic tricks. Alex isn’t particularly good at learning them, but when Esme came home from preschool a couple of weeks ago babbling non-stop about the “cool tricks” her teacher showed them, Alex promised herself to learn a few so she could keep the glee going at home, too. After she spent a few evenings trying and failing miserably to teach them herself through some YouTube videos, she sent a call for help to the Superfriends. 

And here they are now, Lena sitting in front of Alex, teaching her to hide a coin behind her fingers long enough to pull them out of Lena’s hair.

“You know,” Alex says as she shakes out her hand to get ready for her next attempt, “I know you’re a witch and all, but I never thought Lena Luthor would know these kinds of party tricks.”

Lena laughs. She demonstrates again how to tuck the coin first between and then behind her fingers while Alex watches.

“Lex taught me. Long ago, when we were both young. I think initially, he was trying to impress me, to be the cool older brother. But I saw through the tricks very quickly, so he pivoted to teaching them to me.”

Alex nods. She knows that Lena doesn’t like talking about Lex, especially not about this version of him, the brother who welcomed her into the family when no one else did, the brother she loved. Admittedly, Alex struggles to reconcile what she knows about Lex Luthor with the fragments of stories Lena has shared over the years, but she keeps that to herself. Mostly.

“Alright. Let me try this again.” 

Alex concentrates, holds up her hand, and this time, the coin doesn’t fall. She lets out a loud whoop and gives Lena a high five. The excitement and noise must have drifted into Esme’s room because only a few moments later, both Esme and Kara appear in the kitchen.

“What’s all the ruckus about?” Kara asks.

Alex claps her hands together, beaming. “I learned a new skill. Here,” she waves at Esme to come closer. “Let me show you.”

Esme bounces over to her adoptive mom and Alex directs her to sit down on Lena’s lap. Esme is practically buzzing, kicking her legs out excitedly. 

“What is it, what is it?”

“Hold still,” Alex tells her, and then she focuses on the trick. “See how I have nothing in my hands?”

Alex waves her hands briefly and Esme nods.

“Okay. But you know what? I think you, you might have something riiiight here.”

Alex slowly lifts her hand toward Esme’s left ear and produces the coin. It’s a bit clumsy but the coin doesn’t fall. It sits right in Alex’s hand.

For a brief second, Esme is silent. Then, she frowns.

“You had it tucked between your fingers.”

Alex sighs. She should have known that Esme would see through it. She’s just about to explain that she just wanted to learn a fun trick for her when Lena interrupts.

“I think that was my fault, actually.”

Esme twists in Lena’s lap so she can look at her, and Alex tilts her head in surprise.

“How so?”

“Well, you see, I gave Alex the wrong coin.” 

Lena holds out her hand and Alex places the coin in her palm.

“This one,” Lena continues, “is just a regular coin. We need a magic coin for this to work, so let’s just, let’s get rid of this one, yeah?”

Esme nods, her gaze locked on Lena’s palm. Lena closes her hand, shakes it a couple of times and then opens it again and the coin is gone. Completely gone. Alex tries to see if Lena has it tucked behind her fingers but then Lena turns her hand around and spreads her fingers wide and the coin is nowhere to be seen.

“Now, should we try and find the magic coin?”

Esme nods vigorously this time, her eyes bright and curious.

“Alright. Let me see. Hm,” Lena turns to look over at Kara, who’s been standing a couple of feet behind her, observing. “Ah. I think I know where it is. Kara, could you come over here for a second?”

Kara smiles and steps closer. Lena gestures at her to bend down a little so she is face to face with both Lena and Esme. Then Lena turns to Esme.

“Can you see the coin?”

Esme shakes her head. “No. Where is it?”

“See if it is behind her ears maybe?”

Esme frowns a little but then both hands come up to move Kara’s hair aside. She checks both ears, several times.

“I don’t see it,” Esme pouts.

“Check again,” Lena encourages, giving Alex a quick wink.

And this time, when Esme’s hand moves towards Kara’s right ear to brush her hair to the side, a coin tumbles right into her little hand.

“It’s here!” Esme exclaims loudly, showing off the coin. She hops off Lena’s lap and runs into her room, squealing.

Kara looks a little stunned. “What? How did you do that?”

Alex huffs out a laugh. “You know, it’s not really fair to use actual magic. How am I supposed to keep up with that?”

But Lena just smiles. “No magic involved, Agent Danvers.”

And that leaves Alex just as stunned as her sister. “Wait. Really?”

“Mm,” Lena hums. 

From back behind the kitchen counter, Kelly laughs.

“You’ve always been good with your hands, Lena. Maybe Alex needs a bit more practice?” And then, she smirks: “I’m happy to volunteer as a test subject.”

[anincompletelist]

[ vol i | vol ii | vol iii | fic rec fridays ]

hi all! :D I have slowly but steadily been knocking things off of my tbr list, a few classics and a few newer fics, and they've been AMAZING! as per usual I wanted to share before the list gets too long for next time!

as always, please remember to leave kudos and a comment if you enjoyed the fic or show support in other ways, and be kind! mind the tags and if you come across something you dislike, please kindly (and quietly) move on.

happy new year and happy reading y'all! <3

Have you ever been alone in a crowded room? | @hgejfmw-hgejhsf | T+ | 5k

When the Legendary Balls-Out Bananas White House Trio New Year's Eve Party is interrupted by a security threat, Henry, Pez, Nora, June, and Alex find themselves locked in the White House library for their own protection with nothing but time, a few bottles of champagne, and some lighthearted conversation, until a single question threatens to change everything for Henry.

(+ read their first au fic here ahh!)

muscle memory | @dumbpeachjuice | E | 30k

It's been ten years since Alex was in London to stage a PR friendship with Henry after ruining the royal wedding. It's also been ten years since Alex dropped to his knees in front of Henry in a Kensington Palace kitchen. But now Henry's in the Hamptons for the summer, and who should he bump into? None other than Alex Claremont-Diaz, who happens to be working in New York all summer long.

You Are the Wave I Could Never Tame | bleedingballroomfloor | E | 12k

That should be it. Henry is doing his job; the pool is getting cleaned, and Alex shouldn’t think anything more of it. Then why does he feel the slightest bit of disappointment when he walks back to the pool house and Henry isn’t there? Or, the pool boy Henry AU that I couldn't stop thinking about until I wrote it.

if evil, why so cute? | @everwitch-magiks | E | 5k

Alex’s cat hates Alex, but loves Henry, the Bookstagram influencer who’s on vacation in Alex’s quiet seaside town. And while Alex is pretty salty about his grumpy cat’s inexplicable affection for a complete stranger, he must admit he can see the appeal; Henry is fucking gorgeous. It’s why Alex follows him on Instagram in the first place. It's just, Alex had never thought he’d be officially introduced to Henry by his own goddamn cat. Or: Henry takes a two-week vacation to a seaside cabin with the intent to read a lot of books. Instead, he has a lot of sex.

Just like that | @myheartalivewrites | E | 10k

When Henry comes home from a date frustrated by the guy’s lack of expertise, Alex starts having thoughts. And then, because he’s Alex, he sticks his big foot in his even bigger mouth.

(@myheartalivewrites listen I fell down a rabbit hole ok and if I could rec your entire ao3 here I would -- OH WAIT I CAN)

In His Wildest Dreams | @myheartalivewrites | E | 11k

Set in and around the Henry bonus chapter, this is a story about Henry and Alex’s hectic schedules, family appearances etc. pulling them apart, and about what starts to happen between them, in the quiet of night: their sleeping bodies turning to each other, finding their sweet spots and opening up. And Alex and Henry learning a lot about each other in the process

Be Worthy Love, and Love Will Come | @sparklepocalypse | E | 30k

"For Christmas this year, all I would like is a best friend who doesn’t mind too much that I’m a prince. Most of my classmates poke fun because of who I am, or treat me like I’m too special to be their friend. I want a best friend who knows me as much as my family does and still likes me. I know that you can’t wrap a best friend up in a box and put it under the tree, but you’re magic so you know the best way to bring one." (Movieverse canon divergence; Prince Henry, age 8, writes to Father Christmas wishing for a best friend. A few weeks later, he finds one.)

A Picture on Your Corkboard | bleedingballroomfloor | M | 23k

It happens on a random morning in May when Alex, age fourteen, pads into the kitchen to greet his mother and steal a waffle from June's plate and sees a man sitting at their breakfast counter, reading a newspaper, a cup of coffee raised to his lips. Like he belongs. Like it's the most natural thing in the world. June doesn't seem to give the man a second thought. She merely flicks Alex on the forehead and takes back the waffle. Ellen isn't worrying, either. In fact, she's talking to him. Asking what his schedule is like. Making plans for dinner. Alex has never seen this man before in his life.

I want to mark my skin (it is paper thin) | @violetbaudelaire-quagmire | M | 10k

To: alex@biconicink.com From: hjfox@rocketmail.co.uk Subj: Tattoo Reference Attached: 1 file (orionsketch.jpg) Hello, Attached you’ll find a line art drawing of the constellation Orion. The shoulder blade is the intended location. Best, H.J. Fox [OR: It's a Tattoo Shop AU!]

(Dil)Do It Yourself | @happiness-of-the-pursuit | E | 16k

“Listen,” Nora starts, turning her body once more so that she’s sitting sideways in the chair with her legs thrown across the armrest. “I did the math. There’s a 79% chance you’re gonna become a slut to the power of the prostate, and while we’re not dating anymore, it’s my duty as your fellow slutty bisexual to get this party started.” Or, when Nora drags Alex to a holiday dildo workshop, he doesn’t expect to find someone to use it with.

just a figure of speech | @congee4lunch | E | 17k

“Like I said: Alphas really don’t know how to fuck.” “And like I said,” Alex sets down his mug and steps closer to Henry. “I can fuck and I know how to fuck you so well, you’ll see stars, baby.” [henry, an omega, hasn’t had good sex in a long time. as his alpha roommate and friend, alex can help with that. in a totally platonic bro way, of course]

+

saving some for next rec, I'll see you all then! enjoy, and remember to show support if you did! <3

xx

[richincolor]

December Releases

As we prepare for our hiatus, we are gathering the releases for December all in one place for readers. Next week, we'll start posting our favorites from 2024 and then we will have a bit of a break and see you again in 2025. Here are the books we're watching for in December.

December 3

Encanto: Nightmares and Sueños by Alex Segura Disney Press

Return to Casita where we find seventeen-year-old Bruno from Disney’s hit animated film Encanto, where readers will finally learn what happened to make people never want to talk about him.

Fans will love this dark and mysterious young adult novel by Alex Segura, a NYT bestselling author who also wrote Poe Dameron: Free Fall and Araña and Spider-Man 2099: Dark Tomorrow.

Seventeen-year-old Bruno has never really fit in with his family—why can’t he be as outgoing as his sister Pepa, or as friendly as his sister Julieta? Does he like being the awkward loaner who never seems to find where he can fit in? But it’s hard to be popular when you have the power to tell the future and people don’t always like what you are telling them. So Bruno devises an act, and begins to model the behavior he feels the town wants to see in a hero.

But is being dishonest to himself and others the right path to walk down in order to make friends, or is Bruno just kidding himself as he hides from his own destiny that threatens to destroy all he holds dear?

My Fairy God Somebody by Charlene Allen HarperCollins

The way Clae’s mom tells it, her dad took off when Clae was a baby, end of story. Ever since, it’s just been the two of them, living in the coastal city of Gloucester, where Clae is one of the only few Black girls. But when Clae discovers clues about a mysterious person she calls her fairy god somebody, she’s determined to know more.

Her chance comes when she’s accepted into a summer journalism program in New York City, where her parents lived before she was born. With a couple of leads and a steel resolve, Clae leaves home for the first time to find out about her history.

New York is as full of magic as it is mystery, not to mention romance. From Brooklyn to Broadway, Clae and her new friends, Nze and Joelle, explore neighborhood haunts and hustles, discovering a family trail that someone’s tried hard to bury. So who is the fairy god somebody? And can Clae use her sleuthing skills to find out the truth?

Set against one unforgettable NYC summer, this is the story of lies that run deep and patterns that are meant to be broken. Clae, Nze, and Joelle will stick with you and remind you that every girl deserves to write her own story.

The Last One by Rachel Howzell Hall Entangled Publishing, LLC (Red Tower Books)

Thrown into a desolate land of sickness and unnatural beasts, Kai wakes in the woods with no idea who she is or how she got there. All she knows is that if she cannot reach the Sea of Devour, even this hellscape will get worse. But when she sees the village blacksmith fight invaders with unspeakable skill, she decides to accept his offer of help.

Too bad he’s as skilled at annoying her as he is at fighting.

As she searches for answers, Kai only finds more questions, especially regarding the blacksmith who can ignite her body like a flame, then douse it with ice in the next breath.

And no one is what—or who—they appear to be in the kingdom of Vinevridth, including the man whose secrets might be as deadly as the land itself.

When the Mapou Sings by Nadine Pinede Candlewick Press

Infused with magical realism, this story blends first love and political intrigue with a quest for justice and self-determination in 1930s Haiti.

Sixteen-year-old Lucille hopes to one day open a school alongside her best friend where girls just like them can learn what it means to be Haitian: to learn from the mountains and the forests around them, to carve, to sew, to draw, and to sing the songs of the Mapou, the sacred trees that dot the island nation. But when her friend vanishes without a trace, a dream—a gift from the Mapou—tells Lucille to go to her village’s section chief, the local face of law, order, and corruption, which puts her life and her family’s at risk.

Forced to flee her home, Lucille takes a servant post with a wealthy Haitian woman from society’s elite in Port-au-Prince. Despite a warning to avoid him, she falls in love with her employer’s son. But when their relationship is found out, she must leave again—this time banished to another city to work for a visiting American writer and academic conducting fieldwork in Haiti. While Lucille’s new employer studies vodou and works on the novel that will become Their Eyes Were Watching God, Lucille risks losing everything she cares about—and any chance of seeing her best friend again—as she fights to save their lives and secure her future in this novel in verse with the racing heart of a thriller.

December 17

Spell of the Sinister (A Fairy Godmother #2) by Danielle Paige Bloomsbury

Two magical sisters. One more chance at revenge. . . .

Ever since Cinderella disappeared with Prince Mather the queendoms have been in disarray. Now with her magical power completely unchecked, Galatea intends to exact revenge on humans for using the Entente. Her plan? Send Bari off to find a new prince and take over one queendom at a time. But Bari’s mission is complicated when South joins her and sparks begin to fly . . .

Meanwhile, Farrow is on her own journey to reunite with Cinderella and Prince Mather in the first Queendom. Amid brewing conflict, Farrow grapples with her feelings for Mather, her friendship with Cinderella, and her loyalty to the Entente’s original purpose–to influence with helpful magic, never take total control.

Once as close as sisters, Bari and Farrow now find themselves on opposing sides. Will malice win out, or will the next generation of Entente chart a new path to “happily ever after” for their magical coven of fairy godmothers?

December 24

Heavenly Tyrant (Iron Widow #2) by Xiran Jay Zhao Tundra Books

After suffering devastating loss and making drastic decisions, Zetian finds herself at the seat of power in Huaxia. But she has also learned that her world is not as it seems, and revelations about an enemy more daunting than Zetian imagined forces her to share power with a dangerous man she cannot simply depose. Despite having vastly different ideas about how they must deconstruct the corrupt and misogynist system that plagues their country, Zetian must join this man in a dance of truth and lies and perform their roles to perfection in order to take down their common enemy, who seeks to control them as puppets while dangling one of Zetian’s loved ones as a hostage.

With political unrest and perilous forces aiming to undermine Zetian at every turn, can she enact positive changes as a fair and just ruler? Or will she be forced to rely on fear and violence and succumb to her darker instincts in her quest for vengeance?

December 31

Ex Marks the Spot by Gloria Chao Viking Books for Young Readers

For Gemma’s whole life, it has always been her and her mom against the world. As far as she knew, all her grandparents—and thus her ties to Taiwanese culture—were dead. Until one day when a mysterious man shows up at her door with two shocking the news that her grandfather has just recently passed, and the first clue to a treasure hunt that Gemma hopes will lead to her inheritance.

There’s just one major to complete the hunt, she has to go to her grandfather’s home in Taiwan. And the only way she can get there is by asking her ex and biggest high-school rival, Xander, for help. But after swallowing her pride, Gemma finds herself halfway across the world, ready to unearth her life-changing prize. Soon Gemma discovers that the treasure hunt is about much more than money—it’s about finally learning about her family, her cultural roots, and maybe even finding true love.

Filled with ingenious puzzles, a vibrant Taipei setting, and a delicious romance, Ex Marks the Spot is an exciting adventure by award-winning writer Gloria Chao, perfect for fans of Loveboat Taipei, The Inheritance Games, and Thirteen Little Blue Envelopes.

[theladyragnell]

ooo, how about alex/thom for #29 visiting their home for the first time?

(If you are reading this and wondering why I didn't do the obvious and send them to hill country, that's because I got the same prompt twice for this round and already did that! Once again please kindly ignore the epic backstory fic implied by this ficlet.)

Roger had avoided the City of the Gods. He’d called it stuffy and hidebound and sanctimonious and staid, and Alex had believed him. He had no Gift of his own, no opinion on the place where most of Tortall’s mages trained. From Delia, from the other women who came to court from there, he’d had the idea of pampered cloisters where women and men without martial talents learned how to administer their fiefs.

When Thom of Trebond had arrived at court, with his gaudy clothes and his incessant words and his clear uselessness at anything but magic, he’d done little to disprove any of that. The City of the Gods was where people went to become decorative and, according to Roger, to stagnate magically. Alex had never expected to go there and have his vague suppositions either proved or disproved. He hadn’t wanted to.

Alex stared for a long time at the city walls of forbidding grey stone and tried to ignore the feeling of saturated magic prickling across his skin and how familiar it was. Thom, reluctant as he’d been the whole journey, seemed just as disinclined to ride the last few steps through the city gates.

“We have to do it sometime,” Thom eventually said. “If nothing else, our king commands it.”

They were, the both of them, too good at pretending not to care, not to be hurt. After the first week of travel, of the two of them reeling and snarling like wolves, they’d stopped prodding at each other and just let each other pretend. “As my liege commands, of course.” A truth, but a bitter one. Alex put his heels to his horse’s sides, and expected Thom to follow.

There were few people in the streets. Priestesses traveling in gossiping knots, or sterner and older ones shepherding along lines of girls in plain dresses. Men in Mithran robes, or scholars’ robes, or mages’ robes. Acolytes in plain clothes, their allegiances only visible from the badges they wore. All of them stared at two young lords on horseback.

“You aren’t wearing your robes,” Alex realized aloud when they’d passed a mage of about fifty, a plump and smug master of the Gift whose eyes Thom had avoided.

Thom’s edgy laugh was as abrasive as everything else that came out of his mouth. “It might shock you to learn, Tirragen, that I’m not terribly popular with the other mages here. My hair is distinctive enough. Add that to my age and my robes of mastery? Best to pretend at anonymity. If I’m even a master at all anymore.”

Thom’s Gift was one of the wounds Alex had learned the hard way not to press at. When he had, Thom had pinned him against a wall, and the very air seemed to be rusty violet, and then it was all gone, and neither of them had breathed right for the rest of the day. “Doesn’t matter to me,” Alex said eventually, and Thom snorted, but didn’t speak again.

The Mithran temple where Thom had trained was austere to the point of ugliness, and where Alex had expected pampered younger sons unsuited for being warriors, he found quiet men with pinched expressions. They were, on the whole, pale and delicate, as though kept away from the sun, and the older ones steered clear of Thom in the halls, seeming not to see him, as a novice brought them to the master they were there to see.

Alex had, in those last terrible weeks before the coronation, been vaguely aware of a Master Si-Cham, short and lively and kind, trying to bring Thom back from the brink. He’d expected, as much as he expected anything, the priest replacing him to be a similar sort of person. Instead, they were greeted by a sharp-featured man with the look of the haMinch, businesslike and unkind, who treated Thom with open dislike and Alex with suspicion mixed with a dose of pity as Thom explained in cold technical terms what had been done to them both.

“We’ll see what can be done,” the priest said at last. “In the meantime, Master Thom, you know where the guest quarters are.”

If it bothered Thom to be a guest where he’d once lived, he didn’t say it. He said something insincere and honeyed instead, and took the dismissal with as much grace as he took anything. There was no one waiting for them outside, but the priest was right. Thom knew the way, and brought them through the dim and dismal halls of Tortall’s biggest temple to the god of the sun until they found an out-of-the-way hallway where the sconces were barely lit. The quarters were little more than a room each with a washstand, and Thom abandoned Alex and put a thick stone wall between them as soon as he could.

Alex looked out the window at the kitchen garden crawling with novices hard at work and thought of the palace in Corus, how cold and strange it had seemed, how regimented after his childhood in Tirragen. How Wyldon of Cavall, his page-sponsor, had with grim duty told him that page training was about learning to endure, and that enduring was a privilege if it served a realm that Alex’s grandfather hadn’t been a part of. How mistrustful and mistrusted he’d been, until Gary had extended a hand, and then Francis, and Raoul, and at last Jon.

And then they’d all reached out to Alan too, years later, no matter how surly and prickly he’d been. Looking down at the boys in the garden, all of their eyes on their separate tasks, Alex didn’t think many of them reached out. Roger had always said, half-laughing, that mages were a selfish lot, that they would never help another one along if they might be competition later.

Thom spoke more, and more fondly, of the City of the Gods than he did of Trebond. Maybe he didn’t trust Alex with Trebond. Alex hoped that was it, and that it wasn’t that this cheerless place was what he thought of as home, the way Alex sometimes guiltily thought of Corus first, and clear-skied Tirragen after.

Alex wouldn’t ask. Thom wouldn’t want him to. Neither of them wanted questions from each other, just an end to their duties and thus to the reminder of what they’d done. If the home Thom knew best wasn’t what Alex had thought it would be, that didn’t matter.

Still, he watched the novices from the window, looking for signs of friendliness or care, until Thom knocked on the door to show him the way to dinner.

[alex31624]

Comic Review: Uncle Scrooge and the Infinity Dime

The Duck Comic Reading Club went mute this week, and since I kinda like talk about one comic per week, is time for the review of Infinity Dime.

I not going to go deep in the cover topic, since that has been discussed enough. And yeah, that cover shouldn't have been published. This is the first comic on this weekly reviews that I physically own, I have the Alex Ross cover, because, how could I not?

The story begins with a Christmas that never was. Donald and the boys were supposed to get together with Scrooge but couldn't make it. That turned Scrooge in a even bitter and angry old man.

This is a What if…? scenario, and I'm on board with that. I like those stories. My favorite is What If… The Punisher's Family had not been Killed in Central Park?

They cut down the phrase for Ducktales '17.

Scrooge loneliness and bitterness consumed him. He knew something was missing. That's when he got a crazy and vicious idea.

And now, this story is going into the multiversal route. Everything has to be like that now.

But, if is fun…

We see then a different Scrooge, who's sees in horror how the entire Bin is being stolen.

At first, he thought it was another Beagle Boys heist, but he eventually found out what we already knew. This is the work of….

I really like the design here. How the Scrooge Above All wears all the dime he had take from all the others Scrooges. Is kinda morbid and tetric in a way.

Scrooge receives the beating of a lifetime and has no other choice but retreat. He now seeks the help of Gyro.

Who looks way to happy.

The babies are there too, and they look adorable.

That freaking guidebook has a section to everything imaginable.

They said the thing.

They think the dime is a universal constant and that's how Scrooge Above All can travel to different universes. But turns out the dime wasn't the constant, it was Scrooge himself. Kinda like Harry Potter being a horrocrux.

Scrooge traveled the multiverse to get himself some help.

Is so funny to see kid Scrooge there.

The Scrooge army beat the hell out of the Beagle Boys. They had the upper hand, until the Scrooge Above All appeared and kicked all their asses.

But the Scrooge army had one more card up their sleeve.

Ok, that hyped me up.

A horde of rage-driving Donalds must be the most scary thing ever.

With the Donalds attacking, the Scrooges turn the things in their favor, retreat the dimes from Scrooge Above All, who lose his magic, and is defeated. Nice and quick.

All the Bins return to their respective Scrooge, and Scrooge Above All learns what was he really missing. His family.

Because, family is the greatest adventure of all.

By the way, is that Webby? It has to, who else would it be? Nice to see her.

It was no masterpiece, or a must-read comic, but I liked it. It was simple and fun. I don't need that much more to have a nice time.

The comic had one more story, Christmas on Bear Mountain. But that's a tale for another day.

[duckprintspress]

Celebrate Lesbian Visibility Week with 20 MORE Book Recommendations!

This week, April 24 – April 30th, is Lesbian Visibility Week! Two days ago, we kicked off celebrating by sharing 21 book recs, but those represent only some of the amazing books that our contributors sent our way when we asked for books with lesbians. We got an amazing 39 recommendations total, too many for one post! So today, we’re back with part 2: 18 more of our favorite lesbian books (+2 bonus books at the end)! Today’s recommendations were suggested by @shadaras, @tryslora, @dei2dei, @adrianharley, and @owlouterbridge (whose first stand-alone story with DPP is coming out on Saturday!).

You can read Part 1 HERE.

-

When We Were Magic by Sarah Gailey

Summer of Salt by Katrina Leno

Queerly Beloved by Susie Dumond

Wild and Wicked Things by Francesca May

You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson

Ardulum by J. S. Fields

Ancestral Night by Elizabeth Bear

A Big Ship at the Edge of the Universe by Alex White

Delilah Green Doesn’t Care by Ashley Herring Blake

The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri

Mrs. Martin’s Incomparable Adventure by Courtney Milan

A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark

A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

Even Though I Knew The End by C. L. Polk

The Will of the Empress by Tamora Pierce

Machine by Elizabeth Bear

Unconquerable Sun by Kate Elliott

But wait, I hear you say. That's only 18! That's where y'all come in! In comments and tags on our first post featuring 21 lesbian book recs, we got three more suggestions - one of which is on the above list (The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon) and two which aren't.

BONUS TWO MORE RECOMMENDATIONS!

19. Cinderella is Dead by Kaylnn Bayron 20. I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston

You can learn more about these books by visiting our full post on Wordpress, which includes the summaries!

Happy Lesbian Visibility Week, everyone, and Happy Reading!

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[waytooinvested]

Small Problem… Chapter 5 (FINAL CHAPTER)

You can find the full story on AO3

…………………………………………..

‘I really am so sorry about this, it seemed such a nice idea when Trxy suggested it, I never even considered something like this could happen…’

Kelly nodded dazedly, still holding the slice of bread she had been spreading when Lena and the imp woman had found her to deliver their hurried explanation, but no longer attempting to turn it into a sandwich. She blinked between them for a moment, then apparently made a decision and turned a sympathetic smile on the harried looking blonde in front of her.

‘We understand, it must be a huge adjustment when you first come to Earth. But for future reference, non-magical gifts are generally safer for little children. Maybe consider a doll, or a packet of coloured markers next time?’

‘Absolutely, no more wishing presents, I promise. I do hope this won’t impact Esme’s friendship with Trxy though? She’d be devastated if they weren’t allowed to play together anymore.’

‘Of course we wouldn’t stop the girls being friends! Trxy will need to learn power control on Earth, but Esme’s in the same boat. Accidents happen.’

‘Thank you for being so understanding Mrs Olsen-Danvers.’

‘Please, call me Kelly.’

‘Pffskdrdlyn.’

The two women shook hands warmly while Lena leaned against the kitchen counter and tried not to glare. It wasn’t Pffskdrdlyn’s fault. Not really. Cultural misunderstandings, learning curve, adjustment to Earth, it was all perfectly reasonable. But Kara had been tiny for a week now, and she kind of wanted to glare at someone about it. It sure as hell wasn’t going to be Esme or the sweet little gappy-toothed blonde girl she was playing with, so this woman would have to do.

‘Can you turn her back?’

Lena managed to keep her question from sounding overtly hostile, but she knew it lacked the warmth Kelly had brought to the conversation so far. Thankfully however, Pffskdrdlyn either didn’t pick up on her coolness, or else was simply unoffended by it.

‘Oh yes of course, nothing easier! I can do it right-’

The woman raised her fingers as if about to snap, and much as she was loath to stop her, Lena threw her hands up.

‘Wait!’

‘Why?’

‘When she shrank there was a blast that threw all of us across the room, and Kara ended up naked and trapped in her boot... I just think in the middle of a group of little children might not be the best place for something like that to happen? Especially if she’s sitting on someone’s shoulder at the time.’

Pffskdrdlyn lowered her hand again, frowning slightly.

‘Trxy must have been sloppy, there shouldn’t have been a bang unless she made a mistake. I’ll have to have a word with her about that.’

‘We should probably talk to Esme first anyway. I still don’t understand why she would wish for this’ Kelly chipped in, and Lena had to admit she had been wondering the same thing.

Suprisingly, the answer turned out to be because Alex told her to.

Well, sort of.

Once Alex, Esme, and Kara had been extricated from their various party activities into the relative quiet of the kitchen the story had come out piece by piece, until finally they had it all. It seemed that Esme had been bemoaning the fact that her friends all had proper action figures while she just had a Barbie with a red and blue plasticine supersuit, and Alex had told her that maybe if she wished really hard, she would get to have her own little Supergirl in time for her birthday party. Of course, she had been hinting at the doll that was already wrapped and hidden in the bottom of their closet, having no idea that Esme had a real wish in her pocket at the time, but Esme had taken her at her word. Alex looked increasingly dismayed as the truth unfolded, running her fingers through her hair and glancing guiltily over at where Lena and Kara were hovering as unobtrusively as they could off to one side (metaphorically in Lena’s case, literally in Kara’s).

‘But why didn’t you tell anyone? At least after a couple of days when you saw we were all trying to turn her back.’

‘Auntie Kara likes being little! She likes playing with me and eating big snacks and being the lead singer in the supergirl band, she said.’

Esme looked to Kara for confirmation, forehead puckering as she started to realise that she might have made a big mistake. Her lip wobbled, and Kelly drew her in closer.

‘It’s okay baby. Now we know what happened, your friend Trxy’s mom can turn her back to normal, then we can have a proper talk about what to do next time there’s a power accident like this, okay?’

‘But- but we can’t turn her back now. It’s my party. Auntie Kara was going to be in all the games, they won’t work anymore if she’s big. We didn’t even do the concert yet.’

Alex sucked in an audible breath of the kind that usually preceded her temper, but her voice remained impressively gentle with Esme.

‘Es, you can’t make auntie Kara stay small just because you want a doll with real powers to play with. Think about what she wants!’

‘But we made an extra jello mold so she could have a boounce hoouse.’

Esme’s objection trailed off into a wail as big tears started rolling down her cheeks, and Kara flew over to dab at them with the hem of her cape before turning to meet Alex’s gaze, one hand stroking comfortingly at the tip of her niece’s nose.

‘Well hang on Alex, maybe we could wait, just until after the party. It’s only a couple more hours.’

‘Kara, we can’t reward bad behaviour. Esme knew better than to not tell any of us what happened, even if it was an accident. It’s been a week!’

‘I know, but it’s her birthday.’

Esme and Kara both look imploringly up at Alex, matching puppy dog expressions on their faces.

‘Pleeease?’

Alex folded her arms, frowning between her daughter and her sister.

‘You just want that jello, don’t you?’

Kara hesitated, looking somewhere between affronted at the suggestion and sheepish that it maybe wasn’t entirely wrong.

‘...Not JUST.’

Lena snorted, then quickly turned it into a little covering cough while Alex and Kelly shared a few moments of serious, silent mom-speak. Eventually Alex sighed, and nodded resignedly.

‘Fine, since you’re okay with it we’ll wait until after the party. But we’re going to have to have a proper talk about this at some point.’

‘Absolutely. Big, serious talk with our serious faces on. Tomorrow. But right now, Es, I believe our guests are waiting for us. Shall we?’

‘YAY!’

The tears were instantly forgotten as Esme and Kara dashed off to rejoin the party, already planning out the finer points of their big concert as they went. Once they were gone Alex met Lena’s eyes, and winced.

‘Sorry.’

Lena shrugged, caught somewhere between elation that they finally knew what had happened and that she absolutely, definitely hadn’t hurt Kara with her powers, amusement at the unlikely ridiculousness of it all, and disappointment that she had to wait a while longer to have Kara back to full size so she could finally, finally kiss her (not that her goddaughter’s birthday party was the ideal place to do that, but she would have taken what she could get, even if it was a just a stolen moment in the coat closet like teenagers playing seven minutes in heaven).

‘Oh well. It’s Kara’s choice, and it’s not for much longer.’

‘Yeah, but-’

They were interrupted by the sound of something shattering from the next room, and as one they sprang into action, everything else set aside as they rushed off to find the source of the noise and make sure no one cut themselves on shards of whatever had just met its demise.

From there the rest of the party passed in a chaotic, joyful blur of hero-themed games, including pin the cape on the Super; a dodge ball inspired heroes vs villains stand off with foam balls standing in as powers and a few willing parent volunteers as the villains; an epic battle with a monster pinata (in which after gamely battering away for a few minutes the children had called Kara down to finish it off, and she had put on an extremely satisfying show-fight, got ‘swallowed’, then blasted dramatically out from inside in a shower of miniature candy bars); and of course the eagerly anticipated Supergirl band concert.

Much as Lena was chomping at the bit to get Kara back to normal, she had to admit that she was glad not to have missed out on seeing this. The four little girls (five, counting Kara) were clearly taking it extremely seriously, and when everything was ready the rest of the guests and parents were ushered in to sit in cramped rows in the living room, curtains drawn so that the only light came from the handful of glow sticks each girl had wrapped herself in before artfully arranging themselves around their makeshift stage.

They waited in the dark for a few seconds, then from the back of the group Sammy switched on a Spongebob Squarepants flash light, spotlighting Kara’s dramatic pose in the centre of her doll-posse. As soon as the light came on, all four girls started waving their glow-stick adorned arms, and Kara launched into their opening number (as Lena had suspected it was the ‘Hero in my Hand’ jingle, and she felt Alex wince beside her even as she gamely kept the excited grin on her face for Esme’s benefit). The whole thing was surprisingly effective, and between the lighting efforts, Esme’s enthusiastic (if not entirely tuneful) kazoo accompaniment, and Trxy’s focused animation of the supergirl dolls to turn them into jerky backing dancers, the audience started getting into the performance in earnest. By the time the band had moved on to their main number (an unexpectedly heartfelt rendition of ‘I need a hero’), Lena couldn’t resist recording it on her phone for posterity, the same warm glow of fondness she always felt watching Kara do karaoke flooding through her.

After that they looped back to ‘Hero in my Hand’, getting the audience to join in at increasing speed with each repetition, until finally Alex couldn’t take it anymore and called out that it was time for the birthday feast to begin. Esme looked disappointed for half a second, then apparently decided the lure of party food was worth missing out on a fifth round of her new favourite song for and scurried after her friends.

They were about half way through the meal and had so far managed to avoid any major spills or sugar-overload sickness incidents, when Nia leaned over to murmur to Lena on her way past with a stack of extra napkins.

‘You know, if you two ever get married your wedding day is going to have to compete with this-’ she gestured to Kara, who had apparently finished jumping on her jello bounce house and was now making a snowman out of the stingingly artificial blue bubblegum flavour ice cream that Alex and Kelly hated feeding their daughter, but that Esme for some reason adored with such fervent passion that they had given in just this once ‘-for the happiest day of her life.’

‘Please, I’m a genius with connections and money, Kara can have a wedding cake so big she can be her own cake topper if that’s what she wants.’

‘Damn, okay. I guess you two really are made for each other huh?’

Lena shrugged, suddenly bashful as she realised exactly what she had just said, and the idea of some day marrying Kara settled into her chest as more than just a jokey aside about giant food.

‘I hope so.’

Nia patted her shoulder and flashed her one last grin before swooping in to catch a dangerously precarious cup of lemonade just in time to stop it from tipping all over a nearby plate of sandwiches, and Lena followed suit, getting stuck in to help. From that moment she was kept too busy to glance over at Kara again, until at last the cake had been sung over, cut, and wrapped in yet more paper napkins for the guests to take home, and there was nothing left on the table but the woefully untouched plates of carrot sticks, cucumber wedges and cherry tomatoes; a scattering of sandwich crusts; and the remains of Kara’s jello mold.

Even with her own lack of experience when it came to children’s birthday parties, Lena could tell that the distribution of the cake signalled home time, and her semi-repressed anticipation immediately ratcheted back up to 11 as she searched the room eagerly for Pffskdrdlyn.

… And didn’t find her.

Or her daughter either, for that matter.

Nonononono, where were they?

‘Esme? Where’s your friend Trxy?’

Esme smiled stickily up at her from behind a smeary layer of crumbs and melted ice cream, and pointed out to the hallway.

‘Her mom said they need to get home to take her brother to soccer practise.’

Lena dropped the stack of paper plates she had been clearing, ignoring Alex’s indignant protest as soggy corn chips and half chewed chipolata sausages scattered across the floor, and ran for the door. She should have insisted on turning Kara back right away, she should have known something like this would happen if they put it off. They were probably already gone by now, and she’d have to wait even longer to-

Pffskdrdlyn was kneeling by the front door, attempting to wrestle her daughters wriggling feet into her outdoor shoes while Trxy bounced up and down and chattered on about the party without apparent pause for breath. At the sight of them Lena was hit by a wave of relief so powerful that it made her knees shake, and her next words come out unexpectedly tentative, as if the two imps might vanish if she allowed herself to sound too eager.

‘Um, before you go-’

Pffskdrdlyn glanced up at her distractedly, two thirds of her attention still on her battle with Trxy’s shoelaces rather than Lena, then apparently gave up and gestured at them vaguely, nodding with satisfaction as they jumped to attention and tied themselves into neat bows.

‘I’m trying to get into the habit of doing things the human way, but it’s just so much easier to use magic, I don’t know how anyone ever gets anything done without it.’

‘Right, yes, speaking of magic though-’

‘Hmm? Did you need something dear?’

‘Yes. Kara. I need Kara- I mean, you were going to unshrink her? Please?’

‘Oh of course! Sorry, it slipped my mind for a minute there. I really need to get going now, but look, take this-’

Pffskdrdlyn held out her hand, a small, slim object not dissimilar from the glow sticks the children had been playing with earlier appearing in it as she did so.

‘Once the party’s over and Kara’s ready to resize, just snap that in half and the rest will take care of itself. No need to wish this time, the intention is already set – we don’t want any more accidents do we?’

Lena ignored the mildly patronising tone of the comment and took the wish-stick carefully, cupping it to her chest with a reverence she probably would have been embarrassed about if she could bring herself to care about anything except the promise it represented.

‘Thank you.’

...

It was just the two of them in the end.

The rest of the party guests were gone, everyone else was outside clearing up the unholy mess that could be created by fifteen excited children over the course of a few hours, and Lena and Kara were alone in Esme’s bedroom, Kara divested of her miniature Supersuit and swamped in the folds of a blanket to avoid a reverse incident of what had happened during her shrinking, Lena kneeling beside her with the wish between her fingers.

‘Are you ready?’

‘So ready. Please.’

Snap.

The stick broke with the small, dry sound of a cracking twig, and as promised this time there was no explosion. There was nothing dramatic at all, in fact.

There was just Kara.

One moment she had been almost buried under the heap of cloth, and the next she was standing over Lena, blanket draped around her shoulders, looking down with an expression of pure, wondering joy on her face. She reached down to help her to her feet, and all of a sudden they were standing in each other’s space, so close that Lena could have counted the freckles on Kara’s nose, had she not been too distracted by the gentle play of breath against her lips to do more than stare into her eyes and lean…

‘Did it work?’

Out of the corner of her eye Lena saw Alex’s head appear around the door, but she couldn’t tear her gaze away from Kara long enough to acknowledge her. The answer was clear enough anyway. Alex waited a beat, but apparently Kara was as unable to say anything as Lena was, and they simply stood there, drinking each other in and trying to believe that this was really happening.

‘Okaaaay. Kara, good to see you back to full size, I’m gonna find you some of my clothes to wear until you get home. You two… keep doing that I guess.’

The door closed, the sharp click breaking the spell just enough for Lena to remember where they were and regain a marginal amount of control over her motor functions. She made to step back, but before she could Kara tugged gently on the hand still holding hers, and then she was kissing her, soft and sweet and so meltingly perfect that a tiny whimper escaped from the back of her throat. Everything else faded away, and Lena reached out to pull Kara closer, hands fisting in the blanket as her tongue brushed lightly against Kara’s bottom lip and was welcomed eagerly in…

‘JEEZ this is my kid’s room, and you’re not wearing clothes Kara! Could you maybe save the rest of your make-out session until you get home?’

This time Kara let Lena put some space between them as Alex came properly into the room with a stack of clothes in her arms, but she was grinning far too broadly to look actually remorseful.

‘Sorry Alex, but I’ve been waiting way too long to do that. Do you uh… mind if we maybe skip out on helping with the clean up? I haven’t been able to go outside much for a week and I’d really like to… go flying. With Lena.’

Alex pulled a face halfway between a smirk and a grimace.

‘Is that what they’re calling it these days? Yes, please get out of here so I don’t have to watch any more of… that.’

They didn’t need to be told twice.

[rwrbficrecs]

Readers' Choice Rec List Part 4 of 7

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

lifelines by @indomitable-love

@dot524: I have been working my way through all of indomitablelove’s fics. They are all fantastic, but this one blew me away. Added so much depth to an already very dramatic event. Well written & includes some very thoughtful character PoVs.

@space--potat0: A perfect companion when you're rereading the book but want some extra Pain And Sadness

babygrxmlin: The emails from everyone else's point of view (it's so beautiful and gorgeous and stunning and it made my chest ache in the best possible way, please read it everyone!)

Rio by @treluna4

Statueinthestonetoo: This was one of the first rwrb fics I read, and Treluna is a wonderful writer who pulls you in and captivates you with their words. It's sexy and sweet at the same time and I highly recommend it.

eyes full of stars by @acdsbff

@musicandi: I submitted this fic because it is so beautiful and heartfelt.

Now and Then by @mudbloodpotter05

anon: This author told a Soulmate story with a canon divergence and made it AU all at the same time. Not only that, while it does have an MCD, the author has a happy ending that…well, gotta love that “soulmate magic” because while it does have an MCD, this story has not let me down when I need to feel the bad and read the good.

ManBatman: I tend to stay away from stories with an MCD, but when I saw that this was a Soulmate story too, I decided to read it especially when it said happy ending, despite the MCD. Happy endings can be subjective, but I can tell the author loves the Henry and Alex because as much as they lean into the drama, and live up to the mcd tag, they still pay off the happy ending in a way that definitely reminds me why soulmate stories are my favorite.

Hit (my love) out of the park by bleedingballroomfloor

Tabitha: The first story and the series as a whole, of Baseball Boyfriends, always is just the perfect read for me. Angst and joy, love and patience and acceptance of others and one’s self and never leaves me feeling left wanting when I read this series at least once a month!

Hashtag Soulmates by @everwitch-magiks

@mudbloodpotter05: This is such a crazy story and one of the first ever RWRB stories that I read in the fandom. Each chapter has a different fanfiction trope, and leans into what we love about fanfiction in the first place and just how outlandish and fun a story can be all the while telling a compelling story that has some angst, but also provides that lightness that comes with a happy ending

@three-drink-amy: It is the ultimate love letter to fanfiction and rwrb! So fun and well done!

The Other way by @three-drink-amy, @everwitch-magiks, @athousandrooms

@mudbloodpotter05: I love this story because it take reality tv and puts an RWRB spin on it while still staying true to Alex and Henry. Even though it isn’t the standard RWRB story for them, they still have to learn to communicate and grow all the while trying to make it down the aisle for their happy ever after.

In need of assistance by @stutteringpeach

anon: This story and it’s follow up are just one of those sweet stories that fill one’s cup I always come back to this story because one, arthur is alive and two the way he tries to go about setting up Henry and Alex is amazing and so obvious you can’t help but love it and the sequel is just as good as the first!!

Aged like a fine wine by @three-drink-amy

anon: I was reading this one as it was posting and I was absolutely hooked for weeks. It has several rwrb tropes I love and it's definitely one of my favourites

[porcelainmortal]

FirstPrince, Dancing with the locals!!!!!!

Thank you for the ask, Ash!!

💃🏻Dancing with the Locals

Alex dances like he was born to do it; his entire body moves to the beat of the music – hips swaying, head bobbing, curls bouncing, a blinding smile – and Henry is entranced watching him, every time. But here, on holiday in Mexico, dancing to the same music he likes to put on at home while he’s cooking, he’s magical. He fits right in with everyone around him, having a great time, laughing and singing along. He’s in his element. 

Henry stands off to the side, staying close to the bar, keeping his gin and tonic tight in his grip like a crutch. He doesn’t feel as out of place dancing with Alex as he used to, but here, in a sweaty bar off the tourist strip, where nobody is speaking English and everyone else seems made for it, he sticks out like a sore thumb. Henry had ducked away to use the loo about ten minutes ago and when he came back, Alex was chatting and laughing with another couple, his rhythm never faltering as they danced in a small circle. Henry felt a bit awkward, so he took the excuse to stay out of the way and let Alex have his fun.

He sips his drink, and it’s cool and refreshing and tart with an extra wedge of lime. The glass is sweating in his hand, and he brings it to his collarbone to enjoy the sensation of the cold condensation dripping down his overheated skin. It’s so warm in this bar, Henry is flushed and mildly sweaty, even just standing still. A bar stool opens up next to him and he takes the opportunity to sit down. 

As if he can sense it, Alex’s eyes are drawn right to Henry. His brow furrows before he says something to the couple he’s been chatting with and starts making his way across the dance floor. He pushes Henry’s knees apart so he can fit in between them.

“Hey, baby, what are you doing over here?” Alex brings one hand up, his fingertips grazing Henry’s jaw gently as he leans in to place a kiss on Henry’s lips.

“It looked like you were having a nice conversation, I didn’t want to intrude.”

“Intrude, Hen. We came here together, I want to dance with my fiancé.” His hand slides down Henry’s arm and finds his fingers, Alex’s fingertips fiddling with the ring he placed on Henry’s hand only a few weeks ago. Their eyes drop to it simultaneously and Henry’s lips quirk as they always do at the memory of Alex proposing. The trip to Mexico was a way for them to get away and celebrate alone, after several parties with well-meaning friends and family.

“I’m sorry, love. You know I’ve been learning but my Spanish is muy malo–” Henry says, cringing at his accent – “and I didn’t want to bring the conversation to a crashing halt.”

Learning French from a young age had been a piece of cake; learning a new language at 28 is proving to be much more of a challenge. Alex’s eyes soften immediately.

“First of all, your Spanish is coming along, just… slowly.” He grins. “And second of all, the man I was talking to, Ernesto, speaks perfect English and his wife Maria is conversational. So you could have joined right in.” He leans forward and kisses the tip of Henry’s nose.

Alex grabs Henry’s drink and downs the rest of it in two gulps, drawing Henry’s eyes to the long line of Alex’s neck and the bob of his Adam’s apple; to the bead of sweat that drips down right at that moment. He swallows hard before Alex puts the glass on the bar and gives him a knowing look.

“Come on, baby, I want to dance with you.”

“Alright,” Henry groans, rolling his eyes fondly. As if he could ever say no to Alex. 

Henry lets Alex take his hand and lead him back to the dance floor. He meets Ernesto and Maria briefly and they’re warm and friendly. But then the music is shifting to something slower and the couple excuses themselves and Alex is pulling Henry in close and pressing their hips together. And just like that, despite being surrounded by strangers, it’s only them in the room.

Ficlet Friday Summer/Holiday Prompt Game

[folklore-barnes]

shows that were cancelled

(but were pretty good and should've gotten more seasons)

the society (2019)

synopsis:

a group of teenagers go on a school trip, but are forced to return to their town because of a storm; only to realize that everyone on the town has vanished. the series shows them trying to understand what happened and finding ways to survive on their own.

genre: mystery, teen drama

starring: kathryn newton, gideon adlon, sean berdy, natasha liu bordizzo, jacques colimon, olivia dejonge, alex fitzalan, kristine froseth

platform: netflix

thoughts:

i was so surprised when this show got cancelled. it didn't really have the biggest audience but a little before it got cancelled (if i'm not wrong), its popularity grew. and before it got cancelled, it was already renewed for a s2 but because of covid affecting production (idk how), they had to cancel, and of course i was very pissed bc it's a really good show. it was interesting because you legitimately had no idea why they disappear, you can only assume.

fate: the winx saga (2021-2022)

synopsis:

after causing a fire in her family home, bloom peters is invited to attend alfea college for fairies to work on her skills and learn how to control her magic.

genre: teen drama, supernatural, fantasy

starring: abbey cowen, hannah van der westhuysen, precious mustapha, eliot salt, elisha applebaum, danny griffin, sadie soverall

platform: netflix

thoughts:

i love this show so much, i am still very upset that they cancelled it. i understand that at first it got a lot of backlash because they replaced flora with terra and musa was white instead of asian. and people hated the fashion as well. i get all of that. but i also feel like the writers really learned to listen to people more as the show went on because s2 was such a big difference compared to the first one, and that's why the audience grew because the fashion was better, the plot was better, all around it was much better. so i was really looking forward to see how the writers would make the show better than it was, and it surprised me when it got cancelled bc it was pretty popular and it had a lot of potential. i miss the cast so much, and i really wish we could've seen more of them.

grease: rise of the pink ladies (2023)

synopsis:

it's four years before the events of grease and follows the lives of the founding members of the pink ladies. they are four outcasts who decide that they don't want to live up to the expectations of everyone else.

genre: musical, romantic drama

starring: marisa davila, cheyenne isabel wells, ari notartomaso, tricia fukuhara, shanel bailey

platform: paramount+ (they removed it, so you'd have to look for it on the web)

thoughts:

i fear paramount is not seeing the pearly gates for cancelling this show. it was absolute amazing, the chemistry between the main girls and the t birds. the cliffhanger, the music, the plot, the inclusion, it was all wonderful. what pisses me off the most about this cancellation is that they did it a few weeks after the last episode aired, like literally not even a month after. and it sucks because it's been shown time and time again that some shows need time to grow in order to reach more people. an example of this is on my block. barely anyone watched on my block s1, but by the time on my block s2 was released more people were watching, and the same thing happened with each season. same thing happened with fate: the winx saga. so i don't really understand why they didn't give it a chance. plus a lot of these actors are young and this was one of their first acting experiences on tv and they did absolutely amazing. i totally recommend it if you're into musicals.

[cardcaptorsakura96]

Kara and Lena's Adventure at Nevermore

Fandom: Supergirl, Wednesday

Characters: Kara Danvers, Lena Luthor, Elizabeth Walsh, Lillian Luthor, Lionel Luthor, Morticia Addams, Gomez Addams, Alex Danvers, Lex Luthor, Sam Arias, Winn Schott Jr., J'onn J'onzz, Harley Quinn, Pamela Isley, Clark Kent, Zatanna

Summary: After an incident and the vanishing of her best friend, Lena is forced to attend Nevermore in hopes of learning to control her powers. She hates the idea because her cousin Morticia, who she detests with a passion, attends there. However, a certain blonde student captures Lena's attention and makes Nevermore more appealing to her.

Note: This this as a part of Supergirl May-hem. Like to give a special thanks to @theredcapeofk for providing art for this fic and @mad2balive for beta reading for me. This was the first time for me to participate in an event like this and I am glad they have helped me make this go as smoothly as possible.

Lena sat with her head against the limo window watching the vast green trees and valleys go by while listening to Don’t Speak by No Doubt. She was going over the things in her life that got her to this point and the unfairness of it all. She just wished that she was back at home underneath the covers. She was suddenly brought out of her thoughts by a soft tap of her knee. 

She pressed pause on her CD player and looked up to see three adults staring up at her with concern: Her father and mother, Lionel Luthor and Elizabeth Walsh, were sitting across from her with Lionel’s wife, Lillian Luthor, sitting to her right. Lena had always found their relationship a little peculiar. Lionel and Lillian entered a polyamorous relationship with Elizabeth about a year before she was born and they had been together ever since. It was not the norm, but she liked it because she had an extra person to love and call Mom. However, now she can’t stand any of them because she feels betrayed by them all. 

Lena narrowed her eyes and snapped, “What?”

Lionel rubbed his temple and said, “You don’t have to answer with that tone.”

“You’re kicking me out of the house and abandoning me in the middle of nowhere. How do you expect me to sound?” seethed Lena. 

Her mother winced but tried to keep a passive look on her face.

“That is not what is happening here. Nevermore is a wonderful school. They have wonderful teachers, the students are friendly, and you will learn more ways to control your magic,” Elizabeth tried to reason.

“I control my magic just fine. I’m even better at magic than you!” scoffed Lena. 

Elizabeth grimaced at that last statement and tried to return to a more passive face. 

“That may be true sweetie, but the way you’ve been using your magic is… less than desirable.”

Lena scowled while looking back out the window. “I have been practicing magic wonderfully,” she muttered. 

Lena felt Lillian grabbed her hand softly. She looked over to Lillian staring at her with a soft smile on her face. 

“You have a gift with magic. While I found the last stunt hilarious….”

Lionel frowned and asked, “Really, Lillian?”

Lillian looked up startled and asked, “What? I’m not going to lie to the girl. It was funny.” She turned back to Lena with a soft smile and said, “As I was saying, it was a funny stunt and I get why you did it, but violence shouldn’t be your go-to when someone has slighted you or someone else in this household.”

“But Morgan Edge was being a jackass,” muttered Lena. 

Elizabeth sighed and said, “Language, sweetie.”

Lena rolled her eyes and said, “Morgan Edge is a butt face. Happy now?”

Lionel rubbed the back of his neck and asked, “You don’t think what you did was the least bit overkill?”

Lena thought back to what happened a week ago. After school, she walked to L-Corp to listen to a presentation that Lex and Edge were putting together about a new energy-saving initiative.

However, Lex never showed up to the meeting, just Edge. He went on to pitch his own idea of replacing steel with nth metal since a new supply of it was found in South America and it is stronger than any metal on Earth. Because of the large supply of it found, it would save energy costs.

While Edge was explaining the numbers, Lena found it odd that Lex was still missing and used her magic to try to locate him. She found him locked in a broom closet with a pit bull. Lex had managed to get to the top shelf where the dog couldn’t reach him. 

She used magic to poof the dog away, but the damage was done. Lex was a babbling mess with scratch marks everywhere, and a urine stain on his pants. She instantly poofed him to a hospital so that he could be treated and given a sedative to calm down. While the doctors were working on Lex, she poofed back to L-Corp and burst back into the boardroom where Edge was finishing up his presentation. She remembers the confrontation with Edge vividly. 

She approached him like a cat about to pounce on its prey. She tapped his shoulder while looking at him passively.

“Is there a reason why you locked my brother in the broom closet with a pit bull?” Lena demanded. 

Edge chuckled. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Lena looked down at her hands nonchalantly and said, “I found him in the closet not too long ago. The pit bull had run him up to the top shelf. The closet is only able to be locked with a key from the outside, so Lex couldn’t have done it himself. When I asked him what happened, all he could say was ‘Edge’ over and over again.”

Edge smirked and said, “‘Edge’ could refer to so many things. Besides, it’s kind of pathetic that Lex couldn’t stand up for himself against a dog. The most basic of people can do that.”

Lena raised an eyebrow and asked, “Oh really?”

Edge laughed obnoxiously which caused Lena’s skin to crawl. “Everybody knows that your brother doesn’t really have thick skin when it comes to business, or anything else for that matter. He comes from a Wasp-y upbringing, but he is anything but. L-Corp needs strong and dominant leaders who can take the reigns. Not those that cry in the corner.” 

Lena narrowed her eyes and frowned. Her eyes turned black and started walking toward Edge, which caused him to gulp. When Edge looked around, his face fell when he noticed that everyone in the room was frozen in place and silent.

Edged looked back at Lena and stuttered, “It’s…nothing…personal….kid….”

Lena stopped within inches of him and smirked. “I find it funny that you think that you’re a Wasp considering you’re really just a worker bee gathering things in attempts to make your mommy richer and hoping that she loves you more for it. Too bad that she’ll still ignore you no matter what you do.” 

Edge took a step back hesitantly and said more confidently, “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Lena smiled while brushing her hand against his arm which caused him to gasp. He was so nervous that he didn’t notice a purple glow going from her hand to his arm. 

“Maybe you should be reminded of what bees do when a Wasp tries to enter solo in their hive.”

Lena cackled as she turned around and left. The room became lively again after she left. Everybody left the room except for Edge, who sat in the room in stunned silence. 

Lena has thought back to that day with a smile on her face often. 

Lena looked back at Lionel smiling and said, “I don’t think that it was overkill at all.”

“You had bees burst through the wall at his home and attack him,” Elizabeth said with a deadpan stare.

Lena looked down while pulling at her dress and said, “They just bit him. It is not like any of them used their poison stingers to kill him. If I wanted that, I would’ve done something that didn’t leave a body.”

Lillian raised an eyebrow and said, “You realize that it’s comments like that which have us concerned?”

Read the rest on AO3

[trashpandato]

Dinner

For as much as Kara loves food, thinks about food, talks about food, dreams about food, she’s not very good at actually making it herself.

It’s been a thing for as long as she can remember. Several of her childhood memories of Krypton involve Alura shooing her out of the kitchen after Kara managed to spill key ingredients in her attempt to help her mother make dinner. In Midvale, Eliza straight up banned her from the kitchen at some point. Granted, it only happened after the fifth visit from the fire department, but Kara still feels a little sour about it. All she wants, all she has ever wanted was to learn how to cook a few basics: pasta, cookies, maybe a pie or two. But for some reason, almost all of Kara’s attempts to learn have resulted in unmitigated disasters and a general unwillingness of others to try and share a kitchen with her.

So now she mostly orders take-out, buys pre-made meals that she only has to heat up, or relies on others to do the cooking for her. At the same time, she still really wants to learn.

When Lena cooks her dinner for the first time, Kara’s mind is blown. In between mouthfuls of creamy, delicious risotto, Kara swoons.

“Lena! This is, it’s so good!”

Lena chuckles. “You sound surprised. I don’t know if I should be offended.”

“Yeah. I mean, no! It’s just, I didn’t know you could cook.”

“I don’t have a lot of time, but I do enjoy it. It’s relaxing.”

The question comes out before Kara can control it: “Would you teach me?”

“Teach you? To cook?”

Kara puts her fork down to avoid flinging bits of rice around. She’s known to gesticulate wildly when she’s excited about something and has learned that it’s better not to do that with utensils in hand.

“Yeah. I, um, I’m kind of terrible at it. So terrible, in fact, that I’m not allowed anywhere near Eliza’s kitchen anymore.”

Lena doesn’t seem too surprised at this admission. 

“But you still want to learn?”

“I do! It doesn’t have to be anything fancy. Just something simple that I can make for myself at home.”

Lena hums, seemingly weighing her options, but then she smiles and nods.

And that’s how Kara finds herself in Lena’s kitchen two weeks later, kneading fresh pasta dough on the marble countertop. She’s been following Lena’s instructions carefully, taking notes, and so far, the only item she has broken is a wooden spoon which splintered under Kara’s excited grip when Lena brushed her hands along Kara’s back as she walked behind her to grab the eggs.

“You know, I really don’t understand why everyone says you’re such a disaster in the kitchen,” Lena muses as she watches Kara roll out the dough as per her instructions. “You’re doing great.”

Kara can feel the skin on her face heat up at that.

“Well, um, usually there are charred things,” she admits sheepishly. “And ruined pots and pans. And, um, the occasional visit from the fire department.”

“Really?” Lena laughs. “I would think Supergirl could get that under control herself.”

“Well, okay, the fire department thing only happened when I was younger. Before I was Supergirl. But I’ve definitely ruined several of Alex’s good pans, so I’m not allowed to touch them anymore.”

Lena shakes her head, amusement clear in her features as she takes a sip of her wine.

“It’s a good thing that I’m a billionaire, then. I’ll gladly buy some more pots and pans if necessary. But I have faith that we won’t need to go there.”

In the end, Lena teaches Kara to make the pasta and pair it with zucchini, mint, lemon and cheese and it’s among the best dinners Kara has ever eaten. Kara decides that Lena must have the magic touch and asks if they could do this again.

They do, and the pie that Kara tries to make ends up burnt, but this time, it’s not because of anything Kara does. It’s because Lena starts kissing her, first lightly, then fiercely and Kara forgets about the pie in the oven until the smoke alarm goes off and she has to scramble out of Lena’s grasp to use her freeze breath to take care of it.

Kara starts to apologize, but Lena is right there and she’s laughing but then she’s pressing her lips back to Kara’s and whispers:

“You can burn down my entire kitchen, I don’t mind. Just keep kissing me.”

[paigeswiftsea]

hi people, i just created a new fanfic for sabine because i’ve been reading all of the sabine docs and was inspired to write one myself. it’s already posted on ao3 if you want to look it up. i’ll link it here but i’d figured i’d also post it here (:

wc: 2,147

2 years.

That’s how long she had lived in Jorvik. Blaire Williams here for two whole years. And in a whirlwind of rune stones, druids, and magic squirrels, Blaire was now a soul rider. She was everywhere all of the time helping people all around the country. It got tiring for her sometimes, but she got some good cash by helping someone build a chicken coop, or set up a race. Although it got tiring at some points, she liked being busy, she was always doing something.

The equestrian festival had come and gone, and camp western was almost over as well. That meant the soul riders had to get back to work in the Fort Maria library. Not as much fun as it sounded. For Linda, it was fun.

The rest of the soul riders, Alex and Blaire goofed off more than they’d like to admit." They were both people who couldn’t sit still.

But now, blaire was walking up the steps from the grand hall up to the main level of the library. It was so far, everyday, walking back and forth from Avalon, then up the stairs, and then more stairs, then down stairs. Now it was the search of the book names Avalon gave Blaire that day to translate into Jorvik Gigantica. She sighed heavily, scanning the bookshelves for the last book she needed, mumbling the name of the book under her breath to not forget it

“ Ah! There it is! Volume 12” Blaire said to herself. She sat the books down and began translating. She had to admit there was some interesting history in these books. Things about wars and magic and previous reincarnations of soul riders and dark riders. Random things about primeval trees and Jorvik’s link to Pandoria. It was quite interesting at times. But today was incredibly boring. Just random things about farms.

Blaires' arrival to Jorvik to where she is today was a tale, no doubt. She lived in many places around the world, her parents often traveling for long term changes in jobs. Blaire never knew what exactly they did, and how it made them so rich. Blaire never questioned it. The last place blaire lived with her parents was england. Their longest homestead ever, she thought, was almost 3 years. That's where she first discovered her love for horses. She had one horse at a fancy riding school off of the main island of england. She hated to admit it, but she used to be one of those snotty rich kids, a brat, more or less. She was one of them, doing dressage, cross country, and jumping.

But then, her parents sent her off for the summer. To a riding camp. She hated that she had to go to a random country for the summer, away from her friends, her boyfriend. It was a rough first week where she did nothing. She had felt like her parents despised her and liked to punish her. She hated the buddy buddy friendship club thing at first. She was a distinguished rider, not a loser like the rest of them.

Then she saved moorland from being demolished by Mr.Kembell. And it changed everything. She found her starbreed, diamond. And then she continued helping around moorland, then fort pinta. And she started to like it. She made a pact to herself sometime during those weeks to never be snobby like she was ever again. And she had succeeded, so far. The dark riders had tested her patience, many times. Sabine almost killed her horse once. She still isn't over that.

Blaire liked the adventure, learning how to use her powers, so translating this book got hard at times, because it was just a bunch of sitting. Alex never helped either, once she brought snacks and almost ruined an old book. Lisa helped, but she got distracted writing lyrics or tapping a melody in her head on the table. Anne, tried… The only real help to the keepers was Linda, when doing translating. Blaire was also assigned to the wild weave, and damn tuning that chart was hard. Sometimes she heard the breaking of runes in her sleep from how many times she had failed to tune it. 

Eventually Blaire finished what felt like assignments from the druids , talked to Avalon, and walked out to the entrance of the Fort Maria Library. Mounting her perlino andalusian she had been given by the moorlands she clicked her tongue into a canter slowly going down the spiral path that led to the library. She still had to do chores for the moorlands and in her stable, splitting the work with Maya, who always worked too hard for her own good. Eventually blaire stepped in taking over some of Maya’s responsibilities so she could have more time to work on refurbishing her family’s farm.

As she rode back, passing Jorvik Stables, she thought back to the equestrian festival. More particularly, Sabine. In past years, Sabine had created chaos, multiple times, even manipulating Blaire herself to let the pigs out and the whole firework fiasco. During a later competition, during the awards, Sabine had leaned down into Blaire's ear whispering,

“I was never going to set those fireworks off. I just wanted to see what you and your little Soul Riders would do. And it was amusing, but you failed.”

“Failed? Failed what?”

“My last test.”

Whatever Sabine meant, Blaire didn’t know. However, this past festival had been different. No fireworks, pigs, spreading childish rumors, scaring off riding clubs. None of it. She was less of a pain in Blaire's ass. But she did go to Moorlands part of the festival and set up her own special race. Blaire did it every day.

Even though Blaire hated Sabine, she still felt like she had to prove herself to her enemy. Sabine always managed to get under Blaire's skin when mentioning riding skills. And their chase, Blaire did every day of the festival, hoping maybe one day she would beat Sabine and would be able to rub it in her face. But she knew it would most likely never happen. Blaire’s thoughts wandered as her horse trotted along the familiar paths of Jorvik. She recalled the countless times Sabine’s taunts had fueled her determination. There was something about Sabine’s smugness that made Blaire push herself harder, striving to be better. She knew it was irrational, but the rivalry had become a driving force in her life.

As she approached the stable, Blaire dismounted and led her horse inside. Maya was already there, busying herself with the daily chores.

"Hey, Maya," Blaire called out, trying to mask her weariness.

Maya looked up and smiled. "Hey, Blaire. How was the library today?"

"Boring as usual," Blaire replied with a sigh. "Just translating some old texts. Nothing exciting."

“ Well, maybe you'll find something soon. Alex has been texting me all day about how bored she is and how she was cheeseballs.”

“Figures. She didnt do shit today. Avalon was starting to get pissy at her.”

Maya chuckled, moving to pick up hay. Blaire finished taking off diamonds tack, putting it away into the closet in the nice organized way she always did. She led Diamond to her stall, then worked on her chores for the night.

.·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙　✩　*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ .

Sabine sighed, making her way back to the oil rig for the first time in a while. She hated this place—the cold, metallic structures, the ever-present smell of oil, and the mindless goons who populated it. The only tolerable people were her fellow Dark Riders. Sabine and Katja were deceivingly close, having understood each other and their similar upbringings. Jay, she could get along with, but she was nowhere near as close to her as she was to Katja.

Sabine walked into the rig, leaving her dark bay horse, Khaan, where the rest of the horses resided. The harsh lights and the constant hum of machinery made the place feel oppressive. She made her way to the small, cell-like room she stayed in, looking around it stiffly. After a minute, she let out a sigh and relaxed her shoulders. Being a Dark Rider was tiring, constantly working under the pressure of Mr. Sands and his looming expectations.

She threw her cloak onto a chair and sat on the edge of the narrow bed, running a hand through her slicked back hair. The rig's metallic walls seemed to close in on her, amplifying her sense of isolation. Despite the camaraderie with Katja, the loneliness of her role often weighed heavily on her. Sabine longed for something more, something beyond the endless cycle of schemes and battles. “Sabine,” a voice called out from behind her. She turned to see Katja approaching. “Mr. Sands wants to see you. He has news I guess.” she said distantly, like always.

Sabine nodded, her expression unreadable. “I’ll be there in a moment.” She watched Katja leave before taking a deep breath. Whatever the council had in store for her, she was ready. She had to be. “ General Malumi..” Mr. Sands drawled, spinning around in his chair like it was a movie. Sabine stood at the threshold of his office, her arms crossed, trying to mask her disdain. She hated his stupid little quirks, the theatrical gestures that made him seem more like a caricature than the powerful leader of the Dark Riders.

Mr. Sands,” she replied coolly, stepping into the room. “What do you need?”

Sands stopped spinning and leaned forward, his fingers steepled together. His eyes, though sunken and shadowed, gleamed with a dangerous light. “I have a special assignment for you, General,” he said, emphasizing her title with a mocking tone.

Sabine resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “Another assignment? I thought we already had plans for me.”

“I do,” Sands said, a smile tugging at his lips. “But this one is different. It’s important, and I believe you’re the only one capable of handling it.”

She raised an eyebrow, intrigued despite herself. “What’s the assignment?”

Sands leaned back in his chair, the smile widening. “I need you to find out everything you can about The Fifth Soul Rider. The reninarinate. I want her weaknesses, but more importantly, I want to know what makes her tick, explode. I want to understand her motivations, her fears, her desires. Get close to her, if you can.”

Sabine’s eyes narrowed. “You want me to spy on her.”

“Precisely,” Sands said, his tone silky. “And not just any kind of spying. I want you to get under her skin, make her trust you. Find out what she holds dear and how we can use it against her.”

Sabine’s stomach churned at the thought. It wasn’t just the idea of deceiving Blaire that bothered her; it was the potential implications of getting close to her enemy. “And what if she finds out?”

“Then you’ll deal with it,” Sands said harshly, waving a hand dismissively. “You’re resourceful, General. That’s why I chose you for this task. You have the ability to see things others miss.”

She clenched her jaw, hating how he twisted his words to sound like praise. “Fine. I’ll do it.”

“Excellent,” Sands purred. “I knew I could count on you.”

As Sabine turned to leave, Sands called after her, “ Remember Malumi—failure is not an option.”

She didn’t bother responding, the door closing behind her with a soft thud. Her mind was racing, the weight of the new assignment pressing down on her. She had faced many challenges as a Dark Rider, but this one felt different. Personal.

Back in her room, Sabine sat on the edge of her bed, lost in thought. Getting close to Blaire meant more than just another mission. It meant confronting the strange connection she felt with the Soul Rider, since she met her at the vineyard, a connection that both intrigued and unsettled her.

She sighed, running a hand through her hair. “What have I gotten myself into?”

Sabine knew she had to approach this carefully. Blaire was smart and perceptive; any hint of deception could ruin everything. She needed a plan, a way to integrate herself into Blaire’s world without raising suspicion.

An idea began to form in her mind, a way to encounter Blaire outside of their usual confrontations. She would have to use her wits and charm, traits that had served her well in the past. But this time, the stakes were higher, and the risks greater.

As the evening wore on, Sabine prepared herself mentally for the days ahead. She would become a shadow in Blaire’s life, watching, learning, and waiting for the right moment to strike. It was a dangerous game, but one she was determined to win.

For now, all she could do was wait for the right opportunity. And when it came, Sabine would be ready.

[fryingpan1234567]

Riordanverse outfit headcanons because I said so and I may have accidentally fallen down a rabbit hole

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alex Fierro does not own a single “bad” piece of clothing. Things that clash? Absolutely. But they don’t make bad outfits; not once.

Jason Grace cuts off the sleeves (and sometimes bottoms) of at least half his hoodies. So they’re all muscle shirts/ cropped muscle shirts because Leo says he’s hot they’re “easier to move in”.

The first time Percy Jackson dyed his hair, it was because he lost a bet. But he kind of fell in love with those blue streaks, and from then on, he redyed it every few weeks when the color stared to fade, even reaching out to other colors. Eventually he asked the Aphrodite and Hecate cabins to come up with a formula for a hair dye that shifts colors every few weeks and doesn’t come out by anything but magic.

Sadie Kane is slowly evolving into a blue and pink version of Alex. Her hair is choppy and blue, her fashion sense is becoming some kind of bubblegum E-girl Frankenstein. Carter is half scarred and half impressed.

Hazel Levesque is the most cottagecore bitch you’ll ever meet- sweaters, button ups, skirts, soft colors and patterns. She sometimes carries around a basket with like snacks and random wildflowers she’s picked. She’s the only Roman demigod anyone’s witnessed fighting in a poofy dress atop a horse, kicking ass like normal.

Magnus Chase wears too much brown. Hearth thinks it’s hilarious, Blitz calls him hopeless. Once Hotel Valhalla Green is added to the mix, the Floor 19 group start jokingly calling him a patch of moss.

Eventually, Alex convinces Thomas Jefferson Jr. to start dressing more modern, but he always finds a way to put his own twist on it. Navy blue jacket over the top of his outfit. Worn brown combat boots are a common sight. Sometimes he just outright wears his infantry hat around the mortal world.

Leo Valdez has pretty standard engineer-type clothes- stained T-shirts, jeans, Converse and Vans. But on Día de los Muertos, he completely full sends. Skull makeup, lots of colors, whether or not it’s a steampunk lookin sombrero or flower crown atop his curls depends on the day. He manages to drag the rest of the camp into it, which the other Hispanic campers appreciate, and each cabin has their own ofrenda honoring family and past campers.

Halfborn Gunderson manages to wear zero shirts in public and no one has ever denied him service. He’s too powerful. Enough said.

Piper McLean has learned to absolutely weaponize her good looks. She dresses almost male gaze-y, but she’s about as far from that as you can get. It’s for the feminism. It’s because she knows she can kick anyone’s ass who fucks with her or anyone else she sees. Pink is a power color, and she’ll fight you over that.

Carter Kane dresses like an archaeologist. Whether that’s Laura Dern or a musty museum curator depends on the day, but this chaotic bi dumbass always looks like the smartest person in the room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~ sorry y’all that’s gotta be it lmao

I’ll do a part 2 if you send in a list of characters to do!!

[amailboxlemur]

Three years ago today I watched Young Royals for the first time.

Story time/long post incoming. I wasn’t in a great headspace at the time, but let me try to set the scene.

Spring of 2021 was still pretty deep in the pandemic. My province had been on lockdown (number 3) since the beginning of April and I hated working from home. Partly because teaching online piano lessons sucks. But also I live alone, and lockdown is too much alone time no matter how introverted you are. I think that spring I went about 6 weeks without speaking to someone in person who wasn’t like a grocery store cashier.

I decided to go stay with my parents for a few weeks so I could get some human interaction. At the time, I was mooching off my former roommate’s Netflix that was still signed in to our living room TV, so I didn’t have Netflix access.

I also love Red White and Royal Blue, and all of a sudden in early July the fandom got flooded. There were gifs of two unfamiliar teenage boys all over my dash. Fanart of two boys who looked like Alex and Henry captioned “Wilhelm and Simon”. There were a bunch of crossover fics popping up on AO3. I was curious, but mostly I just wanted to get a feel for the characters so I could read said crossover fics.

July 12th was my first day back teaching in person. (Side note: the health precautions we had in place for those lessons were WILD). I came back from my parents place in the morning, taught in the late afternoon/evening and returned home around 8 pm. I made supper and figured I’d try watching an episode of this “Young Royals” thing. I started it and remember groaning when I realized it was in Swedish so I’d have to focus and read subtitles instead of watching mindlessly (I’m too pretentious to watch the dubbed version, but it had been a long day)

“Oh that’s a beautiful boy with a beautiful voice singing… I can keep going…”

“Ohhh they’re about to kiss… wait what? How does episode 1 just end there??? I have to watch another episode!”

“Yay they finally kissed!! But how will Wilhelm react?? It’s not even 11 yet, I think I can watch one more”

“Erik is dead. I knew this was coming because I saw the “beta read but Erik’s still dead” tag on AO3 but totally forgot! How will this affect my boys?? One more episode, just to see if wilhelm pushes Simon away again”

“Ok good, they’re together. August sucks though, I can see where this is going and why there seem to be so many comparisons to rwrb. But it’s past midnight so I’ll have to keep watching tomorrow… wait there’s only two more episodes?? Might as well finish”

Before I knew it, it was 2 am and I was crying on my living room couch. I NEVER get into new shows, I have tons of things I watched 1-3 episodes of and then quit, so I couldn’t believe I binged the entire thing. It was late so I went to sleep.

In the morning I woke up and the rabbit hole began. I read all the fics on AO3, I started following young royals stuff on tumblr. I googled the actor who played Simon and found out he’s an actual Swedish pop star? I think he was among the first artists I followed using my then brand new Spotify account. I followed both Omar and Edvin on instagram, along with Lisa (other actors followed later). I watched all the young royals promo videos on YouTube, including the Hillerska choir performance. That entire summer was spent diving down Omar’s back catalog of Foo vlogs. Some of them are in Swedish, but I remember watching them intensely, as if I would magically understand if I tried hard enough. I started learning Swedish on duolingo.

When season 2 was released, I fully quit all social media for WEEKS to avoid spoilers. I spent 3 days carefully messing up my sleep schedule so I could wake up and watch it at 3 am. When season 3 was released I was such an excited puppy dog that I didn’t sleep at all. I watched it at 3 am and spent the whole rest of the day amped up and on tumblr.

I remember all kinds of fun and significant days in the fandom: Rockbjörnen 2021, musikhjälpan 2021. The lead up and release of Mi Casa Su Casa. The release of OMR. Omar gave me a birthday present in 2022 when he performed “breathe” on Nyhetsmorgon on my birthday. Gay gala 2022 but especially 2023. Both boys have done incredible sommarpratar. So many other galas and performances and photoshoots I’d be here all day listing them all out.

Becoming an Omar fangirl was also surprising. I don’t listen to or follow pop music (my definition of which is incredibly broad so yes, Omar’s music qualifies). Like, I’ve never had a favourite artist before? One who’s work I actively follow and whose releases I know about in advance and look forward to?

Omar announced his concert at Cirkus in November of 2023 and it fell at the end of a semester break from work. I could go without needing to refund or makeup any missed lessons. It felt like a sign. That week was genuinely one of the best in my life, words can’t even describe it. A transatlantic flight, a week in Europe. I got to see Kaggeholm. I met Omar at Lyko. I stood in general admission 3 rows back from the stage and heard Omar sing live and sang along with other fans. It was surreal. Shout out to @yrblogbaby @the-words-we-sung @crownedwille and @omarsimp, wow you’re all amazing. There was a queer joy to hanging out with y’all that weekend that I don’t get too often irl.

Since then, I’ve tried to internalize a little bit more the idea of community in fandom. I’m still not super out there, but I try to interact more. I lurked in this fandom (and so many others) for years. I made this account in something like 2011 and until recently I probably had less than 50 posts.

So yeah… saying this show changed my life feels dramatic but also accurate. Hopefully here’s to more years to come, and more good memories when I head to New York this fall!