#PreS1

[randomfoggytiger]

Dreamland II: Golf Clubs, Diana Fowley, and Mulder's Father

(Courtesy of: @theparadigmshifts)

Dedicated to @goodshipsmulder~

I started out this post trying to draw parallels between Mulder's golf clubs and his past relationship with Diana. Yet, nothing about the Fowl One screamed "golf" or even upper-class country club to me; not enough, at least, for Mulder to spend money on and continually reuse a pair of clubs at her insistence.

However, I stumbled into another entirely other theory-- one that connects directly back to the late Bill Mulder.

Here we go~

DIANA FOWLEY, GOLF CLUBS, AND ORIGINAL THEORIES

Diana Fowley and golfing don't seem to fit in the same sentence: ease and relaxed calculation doesn't quite jive with bold and determined manipulation.

She's career driven: her work ethic caught the eye of the Consortium either before or after she and Mulder discovered the X-Files; and she took trips back and forth from Europe to Tunisia weekly to report her findings. Not to mention, she and Mulder were partners during his first couple months to first year on the files (if my timeline is accurate), and she's shown to fix his singular focus more firmly to "the work" in service of her own end goals. Diana's compliments and wheedling in The End imply she's not slackened her pace years later, and that she believes she can pick right up where Scully left off and do more and do it better.

Perhaps she and Phoebe Green were sporty types, more inclined to low cardio workouts to keep active and in shape. This would be an interesting juxtaposition to Scully (a tomboy Navy brat who had better things to do than hit horsehide with a stick) who might've lacked the sporty inclination of Mulder's previous exes.

Or, perhaps, the golf clubs are another manifestation of Mulder's fleeting interests after moving back stateside. Perhaps he took it up briefly, memories of his blueblood years leading him to that low impact sport first before he switched to swimming (maybe golfing was too mind numbing or it wasn't mind-numbing enough with other people interrupting his focus.)

Perhaps he took it up because Diana suggested it; or maybe he was trying to "find himself" in the wake of Phoebe cheating or Diana leaving.

However, speculations with maximum Fowley influence don't quite fit into the timeline suggested by the room's "design."

WHAT WE KNOW

(Courtesy of: @amplifyme)

What we do know is: the bed had to be the first neglected item in this room, surrounded as it is by piles of boxes, knickknacks, and junk. The golf clubs were a more recent addition-- more to the front of the line-- and look older and used. There are also upturned plastic totes, old boxes separate from the neat storage boxes in the back, a basketball hoop, a punching bag, a bowling pin-- all a bit used-- and Cougar's sports memorabilia, as well as fuzzy dice, a flat bat or rowing paddle, and newer magazines and file folders.

The bedframe is blocked in by boxes and junk on three of its sides, meaning it was the first item placed into this room. Next to it are boxes stacked professionally, and high. It's unlikely that Mulder would have done so neat a job. And the overturned totes, sports gear, and assorted mess are more recent additions-- hastily packed or thrown together, toppling and spilling out easily with one swing of the door: in other words, Mulder's work.

Thus, the stages are revealed.

The bedframe was placed first; at an undisclosed time later, the boxes were professionally placed around it; and at an undisclosed time after that, Mulder chucked in at least two totes, a lamp (he wedged into the second layer of boxes), fuzzy dice, and sports gear on top of a pullout or loveseat or fabric chair. The golf clubs fall into that addition. And lastly but also undisclosed (and likely on-going), he stuffed in light, assorted papers or shirts or whathaveyou he was too lazy to put away properly in the moment.

Let's break this down in layers.

EXAMINING THE EVIDENCE: BEDFRAME, BOXES, AND TIMELINES

The bedframe and boxes must be tackled first.

His bedframe is empty (though intact) and neatly set aside in the corner of the room. That seems to be stage one of unpacking and rearranging-- meaning, in my opinion, Mulder crammed the boxes in right after his and Diana's relationship ended. Mulder chooses smaller spaces to sleep (the couch, the bed he bought after Monday); and he also tends to collect but never unpack his hoarded loot. Those boxes can't be casefiles from the FBI since they'd never let him keep them longer than required for a case; and his most treasured valuables are kept in the basement, anyway. Leaving one to believe they're his belongings: things he brought over from Oxford (if he did) or things he bought after moving out of the dorms.

And when was Mulder no longer living in dorm rooms? Post his education, likely around the time he and Diana were dating.

Two theories present themselves: Mulder's things were moved from Diana's apartment after she left, and he never unpacked them; or Mulder himself recently moved into this apartment after Diana left.

The latter would have to mean he had somewhere else to live for the five years he and she were together. However, there are a few canonical points that negate this theory, broadly pointing to a close or working relationship that spanned two apartments rather than one house:

Mulder tells Scully in Home that if he could "settle down" it'd be "in a place like this." Settling down, in his case, meant the home as well as the environment-- living in that location with those people in that kind of a house was still a fantasy without any tempered reality. Mulder would have lived in his parents' home on the Vineyard then in dorms in Oxford and back in other dorms in the States. Afterwards, the commute to the FBI would have excluded a house if in included his focus; and both he and Diana were very focused on work back then. To Mulder, owning a house was still a fantasy, not yet a practical reality, something he associated fondly with better days and better dreams for the future.

On top of that, Mulder is out of place in houses or suburbia, neither fitting in nor feeling in his own skin when prancing about in Arcadia. Yes, he was proving a point to the neighbors (and to Scully); but he wasn't comfortable there: it was too much, too spacious, too empty; and he found corners to wedge himself into-- hopping up on cabinets, hedging himself in with pillows, cramming in a chair up close to the door instead of other manners of surveillance, etc. (That's an entirely other meta post.) Mulder displayed discomfort above and beyond "proving a point": he wasn't used to the "stereotypical American life"-- he was weirded out by the austere space of it.

Mulder is further unsettled by suburbia in Amor Fati: in that case, he has command of his actions (to an extent), doesn't have to play to "the rules", has his sister, and is (seemingly) largely in charge of his life. And yet, it's "too perfect", leaving him to wonder why he's there. Mulder wasn't surprised to see Diana sweep in and seduce him (post here)-- he was shocked when she not only embraced a slower-paced life but wanted to also further domesticate it.

In Mulder's mind, settling down included a home and kids-- whether it was he and his sister riding bikes and eating bologna sandwiches or a distorted view of Diana wanting his babies and raising his sons-- and a rest from constantly running. Permanence. He looked upon it whimsically, not cynically or longingly like he would if he'd tried his best at that vision and failed (i.e. bought a home, had a "life", and lost it to work.)

In evidence of this, Mulder is shocked when Diana returns-- but not hardened against nor drawn back into a life with her. There are no ties beyond the past; and those ties weren't definitive enough for him to have closure or even completely sever, a classic Mulder move. There were five years between them; but nothing that would jeopardize or taint the idealistic world Mulder is trying to bring to fruition by recovering his sister and restoring that happy home life lost to her abduction.

So, what does that mean for the bed and boxes? When Diana left, she probably emptied her apartment and sent over his share of the belongings-- assets of a partial but incomplete merger. Those stayed stored and cluttered around his bed while Mulder philosophically took the couch. They're not enough clutter to have filled a house, but more than enough to spill over into two apartments.

EXAMINING THE EVIDENCE: ASSORTED AND SPORTING ITEMS

That leaves the clubs, the bowling pin, the basketball hoop, the punching bag, the rest of the et ceteras, and the totes stacked (read: jammed) frontside.

Compared to the Cougars jersey, the golf clubs, bowling pin, punching bag, basketball hoop, etc., appear older, used, and worn.

Turns out, the Cougars are a Houston football team jersey-- and where were Mulder and Scully recently during the opening events of Fight the Future? Despite not attending yet another football game together, it would be like him to pick up memorabilia that had special significance to him about them. If that be the case, Mulder, it would seem, associates Scully with football. Perhaps she prefers it to other sports (until baseball ranked higher up her list after The Unnatural, that is)-- in fact, that would make sense: part and parcel of the stereotypical, all-American Navy family raised on Thanksgiving meals and afternoon football.

Meanwhile, the golf clubs and other sports gear couldn't have been a recent Mulder purchase-- not only because of their wear and tear, but also because of the extent of their wear and tear in contrast to the general lack of time Mulder has to devote to sports other than a morning swim, a once-in-a-while basketball game, and the sports tv he ingests come rain or shine. We've seen him shoot hoops (Paper Hearts, later Two Fathers), we've even seen him sink a bowling ball dead center (Elegy), but we've never seen him take up golf or boxing.

So, if they aren't recent purchases... what are they?

THE REMNANTS OF CHILDHOOD

Bill Mulder was murdered in Anasazi and buried in The Blessing Way; but his house had to have been cleaned out and sold sometime after his death.

Tena Mulder always avoided peering into the past, veering away entirely whenever her son pressed her for memories (and, ultimately, burning her children's photos in Sein und Zeit to protect its secrets.) That leaves Mulder to pack up and sell or hire to have the house packed up and sold.

I believe the sports equipment were from his childhood. It would explain the wear and tear on the basketball hoop (referred to in a deleted Two Fathers scene here) and the bowling pin, as well as the presence of the unidentified sporting stick and fuzzy dice. (It would also explain why he stuck them with his new papers and magazines.)

But most importantly, I believe the golf clubs were his father's.

Golf requires a particular set of skills: silent calculation, strategic aim, and the ability to reposition oneself if the original swing goes wrong. While Mulder destresses through aggressive play (whether swimming alone or working alongside others he trusts will have his back) and Gibson Praise out-predicts his competitor's next move and CSM plays by the blind hand of luck, Bill Mulder retires away from stress, decisions, and consequences, preferring to keep to himself (post here and here.) Preferring not to compete.

Perhaps the punching bag was Bill Mulder's, too: a solitary way to release his pent-up feelings of helplessness and rage.

CONCLUSION: A SEQUENCE OF EVENTS

Diana moves to Europe; and Mulder either moves out of her apartment with the bedframe (minus mattress) and boxes or moves her boxes into his bedroom (and sells the mattress he might not have liked to begin with.)

Years later, his father dies. Mulder, a packrat at heart, can't let go of the happier times he connects with his childhood gear. Tena likely wouldn't want it cluttering up her already cluttered basement; so, he shoves it into his unused bedroom, stuffing them all to the left. In the tote closest to the door, he put his easily retrievable items (i.e. magazines, rumpled shirts, fuzzy dice, a few assorted bats, and miscellaneous filing folders) that he retrieves at will.

After Mulder's return from Houston, he opens the door and chucks in the jersey. However, it disturbs the balance of his haphazard system, beginning an avalanche that he quickly closes the door against. With the door in place, disaster is avoided, for now.

A few months after that, Morris Fletcher flings the door open and watches in appalled indignation as Mulder's junk spills onto the floor.

Thanks for reading~

Enjoy!

[lolaumarova-breitner2]

[un-pearable]

YES!!!!!!

[star-dweller-27]

So far my planned / intended The Boys fics for my Omegaverse canon are:

- Lore doc explaining in depth how Omegaverse works with Compound V and canon Dynamic assignments (PLEASE lmk which folks you want to know about, maybe I'll do a master post here too for funsies with all my thoughts)

- Transatlantic (Alpha!Translucent x Omega!The Deep) through preS1 - S2 May do an optional fic where Translucent dies to weave it in with the Deep-Train fic, but there will be a version where he lives. Stay tuned to see how I finagle that. ;D

- Deep-Train through S4 (Alpha!A-Train x Omega!The Deep) (likely to take place in the canon where Translucent still dies in S1.)

- Maeve + Starlight + Hughie + Butcher (Alpha!Maeve + Alpha!Starlight + Beta!Hughie + Alpha!Butcher) (hear me OUT) (likely a series of oneshots with no super defined canon, we'll see)

Open to questions / suggestions / requests! These will slowly make their way to AO3 as I write them, getting back into the fanfic saddle is gonna take some time.

[baronessblixen]

Saw your tags! I admit the angle about Bill knowing abt Scully's past relationships might be a stretch; but I find it interesting that from the get-go he intuits that Scully follows leadership "blindly" (as he sees it); and that she tends to "lose" herself in whatever "role" she's trying to fill before he even met Mulder or thoroughly assessed the situation. And it's no secret she and her father had pet names for each other, so it'd be easy for him to add 2 and 2 to get 4.

I can see him knowing about Jack Willis at least-- maybe not enough to care, but enough to know she was publicly dating and celebrating birthdays with him. Daniel's an if; but he was a big enough turn in Scully's life that she transferred out from under him and caused a big stink when recruited to the FBI. And Bill pegged Scully (not altogether rightly) as being a second mate to Mulder's insane quest, quietly judging the whole situation at Maggie's party.

I guess it wouldn't surprise me if preS1 and S1 Scully kept her family more in the loop, not having distanced herself because of her experiences: openly talking about her cute partner to Ellen, filling in Mulder on her own personal life, talking about her brothers casually in Roland's episode. I think reticence came later: before her abduction. she spoke her mind (little girl yelling at her brother and calling Mulder "Spooky" with her other peers before assignment, for instance.)

But I'm open to having my mind changed, of course~. ;))))

They don't seem particularly close to me and it's probably just a headcanon of mine, but I'm not sure how often they see each other. So I imagine Scully telling her mother - and before she died, her sister - things and then Maggie Scully slips that information into conversations with her other children. I wish we'd seen more of that whole family dynamic. Bill does seem a bit like he's trying to fill his father's shoes and be the head of the family after his death. So of course him not knowing something about one of his siblings would bother him.

Maybe he thinks she follows leadership blindly is because he doesn't understand what she does for work and he only sees her follow Mulder. Probably much like she used to follow their dad around and maybe even him when she was young. Do we know if their dad only had a nickname for her? Maybe each of them had a nickname.

I can't see Scully give Daniel as a reason why she's accepting the position at the FBI. I'm not sure the show intended it like that either. I think she and Melissa talk about it in a flashback and they're just talking about it being a challenge.

Totally agree that she probably kept them more in the loop pre her abduction. Especially pre-season 1. and can you blame her? What can she talk about? There isn't much. The only other person who fully gets it is Mulder. It's all very interesting and I really wish we could have had more of their family dynamics.

[amplifyme]

Read the first of your fics! :DDDDDDDD

The Sticking Place

Loved reading this! Your voice was so soothing and intriguing; and it was fun to look at all the parts you wove in from BATB and potentially nodded at from Nan’s work-- or that the two of you drew from the characters so clearly that it feels as natural as breathing to switch from her stories to yours. The fic was intense, engaging, and gave me a few more thoughts to deeply reflect on. All in all, felt more wrinkly brained afterward when all the pieces were tied together.

The theme of trying out new skills, scaling buildings, and finally escalating to murder was an excellent parallel between Vincent and the killer; and pragmatic Cullen chastising Vincent’s measures only to eventually sink to them himself in “Fever” was a fun little layer to add to the overall experience. 

One other thing: I see why you drew my attention so much to Cullen in BATB-- he plays a very key role in a lot of fic; so much so, that I wish he had been more in the series. Another funny thing, to me at least: he seems to just appear over, behind, or near Vincent in his unguarded moments; and that is levity almost bordering on comedy to me because of V’s reactions. 

The threads you drew post S3 and preS1 are making me tug on the tiny little threads woven throughout Vincent’s character arc, so I am a very happy reader~. ;)))) 

And now, for a live react from Sis:

Sis was delighted with the pinky toe hole in Diana’s sock. (I was reading, heard her delighted chuff of breath, asked her if she liked it; and she gave a very amusing “Yeah. Maybe. Heehee.” that left no gray area about her level of interest.)

I’ve been trying to poke more out of sis as we read; and she comes up short while being completely unfazed: “I wish I could provide [content/commentary] all the time”, she says, tapping spacebar with her thumb (while simultaneously researching a German film-- “Seine Beste Role” specifically.) Wouldn't have it any other way, because her nonreactions get me to ask her directly which unfolds into other hilarious sidebars.

Father mention-- Sis hilariously bangs a fist against the wall: “Every time Father is mentioned, I keep thinking ‘okay, what information ya gonna drop’?” She looks upon him as the coveted DLC character. 

Sis loved the mouse catching reference-- “the artists’ crossover!”--- and really likes the touches the tie into your fic and Nan’s AWTN. (I’ve been filling her in on what is canon vs. implied/invented with canon.)

““It’s good. Better than good. In, out. Up, down. Those. No good. You know, Vincent?”/“No, I’m sorry, Mouse, I don’t know what you mean. Can you use the name?”” Sis: “Exactly.” She laughs with me. “Sorry, Mouse.” 

Every time Mouse speaks: Sis “Ohmyword” with an indulgent tone (she describes her reactions as “keyboard jam”, a.k.a. akdfasdhfjsahfjksf.) 

““It hadn’t exactly been hot when he’d ladled it out of the enormous stock pot in the kitchen and would surely be cold by the time Cullen left him in peace. He sighed unhappily.”” Sis snorted in relatability. 

““Cullen said, “You got a good heart, Vincent. And I think you’ve gotten it stomped on a time or two because of that.”” I agree; and Sis snorted her agreement. 

““And Father? Father simply wrote off--”” Sis: “OHMYWORD Father’s back.” ””--wrote off his pensiveness as an acute case of spring restlessness and matter-of-factly prescribed a late-night trip Above and a brisk stroll in the park.”” Sis (not derogatory): “I’m disappointed in you, Father.” 

While reading through Cullen and Vincent’s dialogue, I had to prod sis for comments because she was enjoying simply soaking it in: “I’m really enjoying the incidental dialogue…. I know it’s important-- about Vincent’s mental health-- but it feels like a casual conversation... it’s [meaning the tone] Cullen, it’s Cullen.” 

We got in a brief discussion about Kant-- I’m more for, sis is more against. Both agree it’s so Father to believe external authority is needed, and Vincent is the opposite. (We derailed into Moomins temporarily-- something something Kant-- but we’re back on topic now~.) 

““I don’t want to worry him. He has more urgent matters to attend to.”” Sis: “Yeah just don’t make Father worry-- he’ll worry about anything. And you want to make him sit down and say ‘Father, please’. …I’m the most disloyal Father stan ever” (she says while ardently looking forward to Father whenever he pops up.) “EXCUSE ME.” (I told her what I wrote.) 

Sis is vibing with your writing on Cullen vs. Father’s methods with Vincent. 

Asked sis if she had comments after Vincent took off to deal with the threat. “Nooooo, keep reading” (said in a mildly tense tone.)  

Sis while Vincent is murdering a man: “UM, OHMYWORD.” 

““...Father’s swift but ungainly descent from the balcony down the spiral staircase.”” Sis and I loved that part. 

““The kettle took that moment to begin whistling and Father wheeled away and got busy with the work of dropping the infuser into it and gathering mugs and spoons and the honey pot and putting them on the table.”” Sis is so happy for the cozy vibes. 

““Surely not with Father, who had circumspection down to a science.”” I have to put my own thought here-- I’ve been nodding along, drinking in, soaking up your story so haven’t much so that I didn't have much to write; but on my second reread (to sis), this line stuck out, and I had to highlight it. 

““Now, you gonna help me finish this up or you just going to sit there like a bump on a log?”” Sis voted for bump on a log; and we had a spirited faux debate over why bumps and logs would not work in all situations (I against, she in favor.) 

All in all, a wonderful read! Sis gave your writing style a thumbs up emoji; and loved the comfy, cozy touches (and told me she wants to read more cozy BATB fics with less drama so she can completely soak up “the vibes.”)  

Okay, I had to sit with this for a while before I could respond. That's a good thing, by the way.

Your voice was so soothing and intriguing; and it was fun to look at all the parts you wove in from BATB and potentially nodded at from Nan’s work-- or that the two of you drew from the characters so clearly that it feels as natural as breathing to switch from her stories to yours. 

Seriously, this is the best feedback I could ever hope for. Because every BATB fic I've written has been a tribute to - and for - Nan. I think I had all the necessary tools to write good fiction before I started corresponding with her, but it was Nan who showed me how to use them effectively. And she inspired me so much - still does. I'm going to quote a section of her preface from the first edition of Phoenix, the 4th season anthology zine she edited and published.

"In Fourth Season, writers are on their own to invent, extend, and interpret what we've been given of the possibilities of Vincent, Diana, and the other characters of Beauty and the Beast. So it's surprising how similar the guesses and extrapolations are, of the writers of the stories and poetry that follow.

Ideas are nobody's exclusive property. If some speculation or insight in anything you read here sparks your own imagination, feel free to use it. We're all opening and exploring new ground, here. Usual markers that clearly point out some important feature of the landscape are, once established, common to us all."

These are the sorts of things she would tell me when we would discuss (primarily) AWTN. She would be like, "Oh, you like that line I wrote there? Go ahead and use it." "Does that idea intrigue you? Feel free to expand on it." She was infinitely generous - with everything she had.

I think you'll find when you read The Possibility of Being, that I took her at her word, all those years ago. TPOB is nothing more than a tribute to Nan, her writing, and the scope of understanding I gained from picking at her brain. It's littered with little touchstones from AWTN and her other writings. It's very much my gift to her for everything she gave me. And I think it may be the best thing I've ever written. Anyway...

I'm beyond thrilled that both you and Sis liked The Sticking Place, and I treasure your commentary. Honestly, I was terrified you might not like it. I'm going to copy and past this entire thing into a work doc so I can go back to it any time I'm feeling less than competent in my writing. You and your sister have also given me a wonderful gift. Thank you. ❤️

[tik4tat]

PREs1.org

Exclusively Gen Z's and Millennials

[krytus]

seeing the whole viren/aaravos Mess™ makes me glad that the url gayviren is being kept safe by someone i trust (myself)

[koliveitor]

just thought of this potential angsty scenario where after the kerberos mission keith and adam are both are in so much grief they end up in bed with each other.

[randomfoggytiger]

The Scully Family In-Depth Analyses

A nice little compilation for easy access~:

The Scully Family In-Depth (Part I): Childhood and The Pilot

Pre-Season 1; and childhood.

The Scully Family In-Depth (Part II): The First Christmas Death

Beyond the Sea; tensions and missed opportunities.

The Scully Family In-Depth (Part III): A Facade and a Funeral

Beyond the Sea; and the cracking of Dana Scully.

The Scully Family In-Depth (Part IV): Luthor Lee Boggs, Love, and Letting Go

Beyond the Sea; and resolution.

The Scully Family In-Depth (Part V): Miracles, Lyle Parker, and Psychic Charlie?

Season 1, post Beyond the Sea.

The Scully Family In-Depth (Part VI): Maggie Scully and Mulder Meet

Ascension; Mulder and Maggie.

The Scully Family In-Depth (Part VII): Mulder, Maggie, Melissa, and the Snake

One Breath; Mulder and Maggie and tensions with Melissa.

The Scully Family In-Depth (Part VIII): Maggie Calls Mulder "Fox"

One Breath; Maggie includes Mulder as family.

The Scully Family In-Depth (Part IX): Mulder and the Two Scully Sisters

One Breath; Mulder and Melissa and Scully.

The Scully Family In-Depth (Part X): One Breath and the Scully Men

One Breath; Captain Scully and his sons.

Enjoy!

[lolaumarova-breitner2]

[un-pearable]

writing schedule for myself/so you can pester me about it:

- post the edited wu + garmadon drabbles (planned to be a series)

- finish postpilots/pres1 kai + zane fic, couple hundred words to finish it off and final editing pass, maybe find a beta

- post short cole mourning piece

- movie!zane oneshot, flesh out and finish draft

[moomiiii]

see uh miwis like pres1-s2 mike and will and byler is s3-s4 mike and will

[wisewastelands]

What if preS1 apocalypse hasn't happened yet and the reason why Klaus stayed dead was because he didn't have his powers. Granted, Five found Victor's book and stuff, but it all being a big loop would be cool. It would also explain why Reggie knew about the apocalypse.

[artcake]

hello, do draw for hotchgan? if so could you please draw some soft sleepy cuddles with morgan being the big spoon and hotch resting his head and hand on derek’s chest? no pressure!! your artwork is amazing and you deserve all the hype and love!! (if you don’t draw for them, then could you do moreid or jj & derek instead? i just wanna see my boy giving some cuddles 🥺)

You know I'm not generally on board with the hotchgan train but this gave me feels. Maybe early preS1 hotch and Morgan spending time together on cases, hanging out socially because they're close enough in age to know and like the same stuff. Maybe they talk about their childhoods, skirt around the holes left by their trauma.

Or maybe they don't skirt around it at all. They open up to each other, about the wounds left on them, on how it drove them to be the helping hand that other scared and hurt people need. How they each want to be strong but so desperately need to be comforted and supported by someone else who knows.

Maybe one night, late, a few beers in to bolster their courage, one of them leans in close. Their eyes close, their fingers tangle. Something shifts.

(oh look at that I'm a hotchgan now)

[bakerolivias-archived]

the vampire diaries for the ask game

lmao i'm so predictable aren't i

my "forever" pairing: steroline, forwood, klamille, klaroline, bamon, klayley

my "sometimes" pairing (if i'm in the mood): bonkai, delena, beremy, jolaric, bonlena, dalaric, haylijah, bonenzo

my "friends with benefits" pairing: klayley, any combination of barolena, caroline/jesse, caroline/enzo, tyler/jeremy, denzo, klefan, stefan/bonnie, matt/bonnie, bonnie/katherine, bonnie/rebekah, elena/tyler, matt/tyler, pres1 forwood, stebekah, dalaric, katholine, mabekah

my "adele" pairing (WE COULD HAVE HAD IT AAAAAALL): so many of these tbh elejah, beklena, klonnie, rebekoline, kennett, bonnie/rebekah (what is their ship name), jeremy/anna

my "angst" pairing: forwood, bamon, jeremy/anna (forever bitter)

my "hate sex" pairing: klaus/elena, rebekoline, beklena, klonnie, kennett, bamon, bonkai, klefan, klaroline, klayley, datherine (lol), katholine, vicki/anna (idk i just think it would work out well heh), denzo

my "working on it" pairing: bonkai, delena, maroline

my favorite threesome: klefaroline, katherine/caroline/klaus, also sterowood and klarowood, not in the sense that they'd ever work out romantically but just because i love their interactions, basically anything that has caroline in it. also elijah/elena/rebekah, klaus/elena/elijah, klaus/stefan/rebekah, klaus/hayley/elijah, and elijah/hayley/rebekah since the original siblings are so fond of sharing love interests.

my “crack” pairing: uhm i must lave listed at least one here lmfao