#also I just love love LOVE how Hecate and Dimity interact in the show. they are so cutely antagonistic toward one another!!!

[marascomics]

[marvellouslymadmim]

You’ve said before you didn’t see hackle initially and I’m just wondering what tipped you over the edge. I have trouble seeing it but I am curious about it.

First, let me just say thank you for the way you’ve approached this outlook/question. Given recent events, when I see an anon ask with “why” and “hackle”, I immediately get a wee bit tense. So I doublyappreciate you coming into this with an open mind and a kind attitude.

Second, I came to this fandom entirely to see Raquel Cassidy.I expected this to be some kind of cutesy kids show which I could watch withhalf an eye and see RaqCass’ beautiful expressive face from time to time. Andthen she showed up in HELLO NEW PERSONA WHO DIS jfc gimme detention right MEOWMiss Hardbroom. Naturally, I turned to tumblr to enable this sudden new levelof obsession. And the tumblrs I saw were all Hicsqueak and so I was well awareof Pippa Pentangle before I even saw her on my screen. And so I think frombasically the very first episode, I was “programmed”, in a way, to see Hecateas a partner to Pippa. So…I didn’t really look for subtext elsewhere.

But like any bias, you only see what you look for, you know?

And gosh Pippa is such a force and Hecate’s emotional reaction is equallyexplosive and so yeah it’s totally LOOK AT ALL THESE LESBIANS.

And then the Hackle Summer Trope Challenge came along. And Ithought “Look I love Hecate Hardbroom and I want to write her as much aspossible. I’ve never done a writing challenge, and I really don’t see Ada andHecate as romantically interested in each other, but hey, that only makes agreater challenge, right?” If you read my first entry in that series, SurvivalSkills, you’ll see that Hecate and Ada actually interact very little in thatstory. There’s more tension and banter between Dimity and Hecate (whom yes I doship as well) because I found Dimity Drill extremely easy to write (she’sactually my favorite to write, but don’t tell the others). I hadn’t found Ada’svoice at the time, not well enough to write her for extended lengths of time. 

The thing that has always stood out to me is that Hecate Hardbroom,regardless of whom she’s paired with, is a hopeless romantic with a sense ofgallant devotion. She also has an extreme worthiness complex and a life builton meritocracy (something we’ve seen proven further true in this season especially). I think that while she very happily admires feminine beauty, forit to be love, she has to feel that the person is worthy—not worthy of her lovein particular (because I don’t think she finds her own love a particularlyvaluable thing), but worthy of respect, loyalty, and devotion in general. AndTHAT was something I did see between her and Ada, when I watched the seriesagain with a keener eye. She says, more than once and with more than a littleconviction and passion, that Ada Cackle is good. She believes this, and she’ssomeone who would not say such a thing lightly. She feels that certainty in herbones.

Also a few things happened in season two that shifted thetides for me. In particular: The Friendship Trap, in which Hecate gives Ada this look:

I don’t know what others see when they look at this, but Isee the look of a woman who is so fucking pleased with Ada’s capabilities in asmug “oh, look at my baby go” kind of way. Then there’s this:

I call this look the “woman, the second we’re alone you arenot safe because I am gonna absolutely rail you.” (and that’s the politeinterpretation).

Almost every other instance I could sweep under the categoryof “just really good friends who love each other dearly and strictly platonically”.But that look is so unmitigated and just like…Hecate, there are childrenpresent. Calm your tits, woman.

Also throughout season two, you see more of Hecate andAda’s relationship develop. I see a connection between this show and DowntonAbbey—I definitely see the dynamics of Carson and Hughes reflectedin Hecate and Ada. The uptight stuffy establishment supporting time-keeper who believespraise should be earned, and the more forward-thinking, at times flighty andfun loving mischief maker who understands that you catch more flies with honey,and who can often very easily soften the sour-faced rule-enforcer with a gentlelook or a touch. It’s a match of equals and complements, who work as a team,who go from friends to lovers in a long, meandering path that is continuously linedwith genuine respect and admiration.

I think it was hovercraft79 who said that each ship is kindof like apples to oranges. Each one gives you something different. For me, I’mtired of seeing every wlw relationship as this thing filled with angst anddrama—whether it’s a classic queer-dies-for-the-straight-cries or sexualityangst or gosh-two-women-must-be-super-dramatic-because-women-amirite. And soHackle is just this sweet summer breeze of fresh air. Their jobs are complicated,but their love, for the most part, is not. Even when they have issues, at the endof the day, they know who’s going to be in their bed and at their side. They’retrue partners, and they believe in each other when no one else does. They’resoft looks and sweet smiles and solid reassurances of yes we will. And I lovethat. I love seeing two women whose lives are not completely defined by theirsexuality or their romantic relationship, just loving another woman without itbeing The Thing or even A Thing.

I think our ships often say a lot about how we see ourselvesand how we wish to be seen and loved by others. I think, more than anything,that’s why I love Hackle so. Because when I see that, I sigh and go, “Yeah, I wantthat.” I want soft looks and kind words and cups of tea and two black cats andthe kind of magic that shimmers without loud pops or explosions. I want the simplehopeful joy I feel when I look at them. And I can’t unsee it.

I know I just wrote a novel to answer a simple question, but I don’t think I can sum it up more succinctly (and I legit cut about 4 extra paragraphs from this). Thanks again and I hope this sheds some light. 

[lostberryqueen]

Let’s Talk About Episode 7 of The Worst Witch (spoilers)

Warning: this post contains spoilers, you really do not want to read this unless you have seen this episode, I promise it’s really something you don’t want spoiled.

DO NOT READ BEYOND THIS POINT WITHOUT WATCHING EPISODE 7 OF THE WORST WITCH (SERIES 3)

So, I think I’ve given enough warnings, but just in case I haven’t--go watch the episode!!

I really just want Miss Hardbroom to experience joy again. After all she’s been through--I wish she could experience that innocence and happiness again.

If you look at the three series of TWW through the eyes of Miss Hardbroom, knowing her backstory, it seems like the story of Ada Cackle torturing Hecate with the ghosts of her past. 

Miss Hardbroom didn’t treat Mildred the way she did because they were different--but because they are alike. Mildred is who Miss Hardbroom was before, and who she wants to be again--she’s just terrified that if she deviates from the code, something horrible will happen. It’s classic PTSD and survivor’s guilt and it’s been controlling her life for the past 30 years and Ada has done absolutely nothing substantial about it! 

Despite the fact that judging by--series 3 especially--they are in a close presumably romantic relationship. 

Ada should have convinced Hecate by now that what happened wasn’t her fault! 

It was the result of an F’d up system dividing magical people from nonmagical people (which isn’t in the 98 version at all, Cackles actually encourages interaction between magical and nonmagical people in that version). 

I understand that Ada probably was trying to help Hecate by bringing Mildred and her mum to Cackles--that is certainly one angle this situation could be looked at from--but Ada should have taken a different approach! 

This entire time Hecate has been suffering from PTSD and anxiety and flashbacks! Ada should have convinced Hecate by now that Hecate doesn’t deserve to be imprisoned at Cackles forever (witch is probably definitely by choice at this point, considering how Hecate reacted to the potion Mildred tried to give her to help Indigo, I strongly suspect Hecate has the power to remove the enchantment but hasn’t because she’s punishing herself.)

It seems that whenever Hecate desires something, she pushes it away. This is highlighted by the scene where Hecate and the other teachers are given the love potion and it is revealed how they show attraction. My current theory is that Hecate is attracted to Dimity and Julie Hubble because they remind her of Indigo Moon, and that’ s why she treats them so horribly--because of the fear and anger and utter despair she feels over the situation with Indigo.

When HB becomes Miss Softbroom, we’re seeing who Miss Hardbroom could have been--if she had been allowed to be with Indigo Moon, if her innocence had never been destroyed by watching her love being corrupted by magic and then being imprisoned in the statue--if she herself had never been imprisoned in the castle. 

When Miss Hardbroom is nice to Mildred, (when she passes her on her broomstick test and gives her back her cat) we’re seeing joy slip through--her desire to be joy again. And she stifles it. It’s so painful and emotional to watch, but she always stifles it again. And that’s what makes Miss Hardbroom such a compelling character--all that hurt expressed through her motions--and that desire we all feel for her to feel joy again--and her desire for it as well. It’s Miss Hardbroom who needs to be freed from the statue. 

Free Miss Hardbroom.

Also, I feel like probably Miss Hardbroom has a twin brother who also liked the nonmagical world--but he followed the rules while in school, then promptly left the magical world, became a plumber, met Julie Hubble, and unknowingly became Mildred’s dad. 

Her twin would want to visit her, but because of the overwhelming emotion she feels over the situation--Miss Hardbroom would have shut him out completely--casting an enchantment keeping him from entering the castle or its grounds. Her estrangement from her twin brother is not only another way of punishing herself it is also motivated by the extreme pain she feels that her brother was able to escape the magical world and live the life Joy Hardbroom truly wanted. 

Also, when Hecate sends Mildred back to the nonmagical world--she’s sending her back to the world she used to always desire to be in--the world she is barred from entering. So, through her eyes, she’s not really punishing Mildred at all by sending her away--instead she’s freeing her. 

Perhaps, Miss Hardbroom’s greatest fear is not that Mildred will harm Cackles or the magical world--but that the magical world will harm her--and imprison her the way that she herself is imprisoned. Taking all of Mildred’s joy away.

[twtd11]

Hicsqueak Teacher AU

@mirandapriestlysbitch’s wanted a “normal” teachers AU where Pippa shows up as a new teacher. This is the first scene of a fic I may or may not write and then several headcanons/a fic summary. 

"She's insufferable," Hecate complained. The only person in the staff room to hear her was Dimity Drill, who huffed.

"You think I'm insufferable, remember?" Dimity poured herself a cup of tea and sat down at one of the tables.

"You've been promoted to merely annoying." Hecate poured her own cup of tea and joined Dimity at her table.

"I'm not sure how I feel about that." Dimity sipped her tea. Once she swallowed, she spoke again. "She's barely been here two days. Classes haven't even started yet. What could she possibly have done to upset you?"

"Her rooms are in the same hall as mine and she gets up at 5:30 every morning," Hecate said it like it was the gravest sin imaginable. As someone who enjoyed their sleep, it very well might have been.

"There's no way you can hear her alarm. The walls are too thick for that."

"Nevertheless, I have been woken at 5:30 on both of the past two mornings." Hecate looked pointedly over the rim of her teacup. She woke up at 6:30 precisely every morning. She did not appreciate her schedule, one built up over years, being disrupted. It threw off her entire day.

"Maybe you could just ask her to turn the volume down on her alarm? Seems like the simplest solution to me." Dimity finished her tea and stood up. "Anyway, I'll be down in the gym if you need me, you know, for something other than complaining about Miss Pentangle." Dimity shook her head fondly she reached for the door just as it opened. "Speak of the devil." She stepped back to let Pippa into the room.

"Oh, excuse me," Pippa said to Dimity as she slid past her and into the room. Dimity smiled at her.

"No worries, Pippa. Just be careful of that one." Dimity motioned toward Hecate with her head as she raised her voice slightly. "Woke up on the wrong side of the bed or something." She edged out of the room and let the door fall behind her.

Hecate huffed. "I think I'll be taking my leave as well." She stood up, rinsed out her cup and set it aside.

"Well, alright." Pippa blinked in confusion.

"Miss Pentangle," Hecate enunciated each word as and nodded and followed Dimity out of the room.

As was in the prompt, Hecate teaches chemistry at a small girls' boarding school. She's also the deputy headmistress. She's been teaching there for her entire career and even though she thinks no one can tell (they all can) she really loves the place. She loves the students and she loves teaching and she tolerates the other staff members. She has a routine and she's set in it. It's worked for years. She basically has everything about her job down to an exact science.

At some point over the summer, without Hecate's input (Hecate was off teaching an intensive class on pedagogy over the summer), Ada hires a new English instructor, one Pippa Pentangle. Pippa moves in a week before the start of classes and has the bad luck of being put in the same hallway as Hecate, which has heretofore been empty. They don't meet when Pippa moves in because Hecate isn't back yet.

Pippa's alarm on her phone is a bit too loud and Hecate has very sensitive ears, so her alarm wakes Hecate up as well. Hecate is NOT happy about it because it disrupts her routine and because she likes to sleep as late as possible. Everyone knows that you do not disturb Miss Hardbroom before 10 am on the weekends unless the building is burning down or someone is in mortal danger. In any event, Hecate is very, very grumpy the first time she meets Pippa over breakfast. A grumpy Hecate is a disdainful Hecate (even more so than normal). She dislikes Pippa from the moment she first sets eyes on her.

Pippa isn't sure what's up with the chemistry teacher, but she's friendly anyway. She tries to make conversation with her over the few days before the semester starts but doesn't gain much traction.

Dimity ships it basically from the moment she sees Hecate and Pippa meet. There's no way Hecate would let someone get under her skin that much if there wasn't a reason beyond, "she makes me wake up early."

With school starting, Mildred and her cohorts arrive to cause chaos. Pippa immediately takes a shine to them. Hecate thinks she's playing favorites. Pippa accuses Hecate of playing favorites as well, ahem, Ethel. They get into a fight about it. Pippa decides she doesn't much care for Hecate after all.

There's lots of using students, mainly Esme, to pass passive aggressive notes between Miss Heardbroom and Miss Pentangle's classrooms. If anyone were to read the notes, ahem, Enid, it would seem like they were being perfectly polite. Hecate and Pippa both know better. Enid quickly gets tired of reading the notes because they seem so dull. Esme, who sees them writing the notes and reacting to the notes, knows better.

Esme ships it mainly because the idea of it seems romantic. None of the other students believe her, particularly not Ethel who sees Pippa as too frivolous and doesn't like her at all.

Hecate and Pippa are perfectly polite to each other when they have to interact in person. Hecate is no more or less disdainful of Pippa than she is of the other faculty. Pippa is just as cheery with everyone.

At night, when they're in their rooms, they completely ignore each other if they happen to run into each other. There's lots of glaring. The facade of politeness goes away.

One night Pippa is playing some music too loudly and after suffering through it for an hour, Hecate finally decides to tell Pippa to turn the music down. She bangs on Pippa's door. Pippa answers and, after Hecate insults Pippa's taste in music, they get into another fight that's about far more than just music. In a bid to just make Hecate shut up, Pippa kisses her. They end up making out. Hecate pushes Pippa up against her doorframe and tries to take over the kiss. Pippa won't let her. There's lots of back and forth and grasping hands and they just can't get close enough to each other. Eventually, they need to breathe. Hecate is staring down at Pippa's blown pupils and swollen lips and is on the verge of just dragging Pippa back into Pippa's room to fuck her when there's a sound in the hallway behind Hecate. She spins around, glares, and charges off to see what made the noise.

Mildred is fleeing the scene as quickly as she can. She didn't see the fight, but she definitely saw the kiss. She gets back to her room before Hecate can catch up with her, but Hecate knows someone saw her and Pippa and she is completely mortified. She goes stalking back to her room, takes a look at Pippa who is still standing beside her door, and goes into her own room, slamming the door behind herself. Pippa is thoroughly insulted.

Mildred totally ships it now and convinces Enid and Maud that Miss Hardbroom and Miss Pentangle are meant for each other. They conspire to get Miss Hardbroom and Miss Pentangle together. It… doesn't go well. There are cute hijinks though.

Hecate and Pippa are fighting again. They completely avoid each other. Ada frets. Dimity gets Hecate drunk (not sure how) and spends the night listening to her rant about Pippa and eventually, she tells Dimity that she kissed Pippa and it was life alteringly good and she wants to do it again but Pippa hates her even more now than she did before. Dimity vows to fix it. She pours Hecate into bed. Pippa catches her sneaking out of Hecate's room and thinks the worst.

Suddenly Pippa doesn't have the energy to fight with Hecate anymore. She's just completely despondent. Everything sucks.

They go on a school trip. Dimity finds a way to force them to stay in the same room. Pippa makes a snarky comment about Hecate wanting to stay in a room with her girlfriend. Hecate is all wtf?!?!? I don't have a girlfriend. Pippa says there's no reason to lie to spare her feelings. Pippa is perfectly happy to switch with Dimity for the night. They fight about how Hecate doesn't have a girlfriend. "I think I'd know if I was dating someone!" "Stop lying to me." "I'm not. Oh, for Christ's sake," Hecate grabs Pippa and kisses her.

They fuck.

Neither of them can walk straight the next morning. There might be some new bruising. No one wants to see what Hecate's back looks like. Dimity is not so subtly pleased with herself. She teases them hardcore. Hecate verbally decapitates her. Dimity doesn't even care because she was sooooo right. The End.

[fallenandrogyne]

What I want if there's a tww s4

(this is all just for fun and a place to put my thoughts. i’m not expecting any of this to be realized on the show)

- to see hecate wearing pants. she’s worn a blouse before so there’s no reason why she can’t wear pants with a blouse instead of a skirt. i just want her (and raquel) to be comfortable. same goes for pippa/amanda if she can hopefully return. pls stop with the skin-tight constricting outfits!!! and while we’re talking about clothing, bring back mildred’s fingerless gloves and her striped scarf.

- the actress who played teen hecate to return, so she can interact with a new teen actress to be cast as teen pippa so we can learn how their characters got their "pipsqueak" and "hiccup" nicknames. or really just learn anything about the time they spent together as kids.

- hecate explains to pippa why she didn’t show up to the display, and why she left her all those years ago. tells her everything about the confinement, indigo, possible fear of unrequited feelings that made it easier to let her go, I'm just saying...

- an explanation as to why pippa and hecate had such an emotionally charged reaction to both of them saying they missed each other. just how close were they when their friendship was at its prime? why did pippa so badly want to build a successful authoritative team with hecate? well, we already know why but it sure would be wonderful to hear them say they have love for each other!

- hecate visits pippa at pentangles's academy. I would prefer the entire episode to take place there with no B plot at cackle’s. If I had my way i'd never have hecate anywhere near cackle's again. mildred, and of course since no one would hear the end of it if she wasn't invited, felicity, can accompany hecate to penatangle's.

- ummmmmmm, perhaps hecate could buy a house, castle, cottage, or where ever it is that witches live in??? 'cause now that her confinement is over she's homeless during holidays, and in-between terms. or she could, you know, stay with pippa, I'm not picky~~

- morgana! it was lovely to see hecate holding tabby those few seconds, but i really want to see how she interacts with her own familiar.

- more dimity centric episodes/backstory. how she became star of the sky. an entire dimity centric season would be best.

- more dimity/Julie interactions. to have an arc where hecate chills on the adamant following of the witches code/traditional magic and learns to get along with julie, which i fooled myself into thinking we were gonna get in s3 with hecate assigned as her mentor. maybe hecate could see how much dimity has taken a liking to julie and asks dimity why she gives that woman the time of day. dimity could explain that she accepts people for who they are, regardless of things that are out of their control. that she saw something special in julie.

- gwen and rowan webb go off to retire to enjoy their married life together, allowing the school to once again return to having an all women staff. and while we're at it, have the great wizard be overthrown by an even greater, more capable witch.

- all 5 years of students and everyone on the teaching staff have a meeting where they're taught about consent and how certain potions/spells are off limits as they can take away the consent of the person that the magical outcome is intended for.

- since ethel cleared out hecate's entire potions lab, I thought it would be cool to see a potions class take place outside where everyone helps miss hardbroom gather new ingredients to replenish her inventory. of course Hecate could summon ingredients in half the time it'd take her students to gather them, but it's also her style to take the opportunity to teach her girls a lesson. as long as they all forage in somewhere other than hollow wood, of course.

- ethel to be humbled and finally face serious consequences. such as a suspension, and while she’s spending that time at home maybe she can fix her relationship with her mother.

- more hard-hitting topics like the gender inequality in the vespertilio episode. obvs my first choice would be lgbt represention in both the teachers and the students. for the teachers it would be amazing to have hecate and pippa’s lesbianism confirmed, and/or dimity possibly being bisexual or a lesbian as well (i’m just basing their sexuality on the majority of the fandom’s headcanons). and i know i’ve seen some people ID felicity as bisexual, which was practically proven in the spelling bee episode since she fantasized over miss pentangle, and the wizard competitor in the same dreamy inflection. so a way that could be explored could be her possibly having crush on drusilla (just for example because she transferred schools) without realizing what she was really feeling so she doesn’t know why she misses her so much. and they could have hecate/dimity/pippa accidentally overhear felicity saying how smart and pretty she thought drusilla, and how she’s confused why she misses her. and they could be thinking like, “wow girl are you really that oblivious??” but then they’d remember what they were like at that age and realize, yes, she really could be that oblivious. then that teacher could pull her aside privately and say they know from personal experience that it’s okay for witches to have feelings for other witches. s4 will be airing in 2020, there’s no excuse as to why lgbt characters shouldn’t be allowed on kids shows. but then again i don’t know if i want the writers showing sapphic women because i was just burned by w&g so they’d probably ignore hecate’s lesbian tendencies & her long-standing following of sapphic women outside of the show to confirm that she’s ‘’‘straight’’’ and make her homophobic, therefore ridicule a student potentially showing interest in another girl. and that.... is not something i can live with, the love potion episode was traumatic enough.

[cosmic-llin]

Dear Festividder

I love pretty much all aspects of all the fandoms I’ve requested, so I’m sure I’ll be thrilled with whatever you come up with, but here’s some stuff to help if you want a little bit more to go on!

Music:

Really, the most important thing is that the song is the right one for the vid - I have pretty broad musical tastes and there’s not a lot I don’t like, although I’m less keen on the more electronic/dubstep-y side of dance music. I really like folk music, rock, pop, 80s power ballads, female singer-songwriters with their own instruments, some country, musical theatre soundtracks… artists I like include Dar Williams, Vienna Teng, Regina Spektor, Ingrid Michaelson, Janelle Monae, Kate Bush, Tori Amos, Bonnie Langford, Foxes, CHVRCHES, The Burns Unit, Clannad, Cyndi Lauper, Dolly Parton, Florence + the Machine, Lorde, Karine Polwart, Jim Moray, Toyah, Kate Rusby, Nancy Kerr, Fleetwood Mac, Patrick Wolf, Tracy Chapman, Brandi Carlile,  Missy Higgins, Ella Fitzgerald - but honestly I’ll listen to almost anything and if it works for the vid that’ll make me love the song anyway! (And uhh... I know it’s deeply unlikely but I would very much appreciate if you did not use a Ronan Keating song.)

General:

This’ll probably become rapidly obvious with my individual requests, but I love vids about women! Character studies, friendship vids, vids about communities and teams, cute vids, sad vids, silly vids, dancey vids, people kicking ass vids… Mainly though I just want to feel emotions about the thing in handy-dandy vid form.

As to the individual fandoms:

Home Fires (UK TV) (12 x 45 min episodes)

I love this series! I love the stories it tells about women working together and supporting each other, I love the dramatic jam-making montages and the moments of unexpected connection. I love Steph, Pat, Joyce and Teresa, and I especially love Frances and her relationship with Sarah, but I’d honestly be thrilled with anything about any character or the community overall.

Jam and Jerusalem (aka Clatterford) (19 x 30-min episodes)

This is one of my favourite shows of all time. I’d love anything about the whole community or anything about any one of the women or any individual relationship or group of relationships, you really can’t go wrong. A few favourites are Sal/Tip (friendship or shippy), Caroline/Suzie, Eileen and her Guild… Sal, Tip and Yasmeen are my favourite characters but only by a hair!

One Day at a Time (TV 2017) (39 x 30-min episodes)

This series is so full of love and so heartwarming and good, and I’d love absolutely anything about it! If you’re looking for ideas though, maybe something about how the three generations of women connect, a lighthearted/comedy vid about everybody, or a character study of Penelope.

Steerswoman Series - Rosemary Kirstein (Novels)

I absolutely adore these books! I know it’s unlikely anyone will attempt this so if you do I’d honestly be thrilled with anything! But my favourite elements of the books are Rowan and Bel’s friendship, the community of steerswomen, the travel/quest elements and the worldbuilding.

Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego? (40 x 20-min episodes)

I recently fell in love with this all over again after watching it a lot as a kid. Carmen is my fave! I’d love a vid about her escaping from Ivy and Zack in improbable ways, or about the weird slightly mentory relationship she has with Ivy in particular, or just about what a badass genius thief she is!

The Worst Witch (2017) (26 x 30-min episodes)

I got a terrific vid for this last year but this is my primary fandom at the moment and my thirst for it CANNOT BE SLAKED*. The vid I received last year was about Miss Hardbroom, so I’d prefer her not to be the main focus of a vid this year, but she is my FAVE so it’s still great if she’s in the mix. In terms of what I WOULD like, I’d love anything about the school as a community and the different generations of witches and how they interact. I’d also love to see a character study for Ada (I have a lot of feelings about her complex, difficult relationships with her sister and her mother and her legacy and her school. I also ship her with Hecate if you happen to feel like working that in), Dimity (I love how she balances being the “cool teacher” who relates well to the kids with always stepping up in a crisis), or Miss Mould (I don’t know if it’s possible to make a vid about her given how comparatively little screen time she had, but if it is I’d love to see it. The show hints at her perspective and motivations but we don’t really get to explore them). Ooh, or a vid about the Hallow sisters.

* That said I’m equally excited about all of these fandoms, so no worries if we matched on something else! (And sorry this section is longer, my thoughts here are just a bit more specific!)

Xanadu (1980) (Movie, safety fandom)

I LOVE this ridiculous film with deep sincerity but part of that love is recognising that it’s super mockable, so don’t worry if you’re working from a more tongue-in-cheek angle. I’d love to see anything that showcases the absurdity of the plot, the glitzy delight of the musical numbers, the fabulous late 70s/early 80s-ness of the setting, the dancing, the characters, the sheer OTT-ness of the entire production...

[marvellouslymadmim]

If you could have 5 hackle fics custom made to your interests, what would they be about? What tropes would be included? How long would they be? Fluff? Angst? Hurt/comfort? Ratings? Canonverse? AUs? Top 5 dream hackle fics!

AAHWHWHWHWHWHWHW what a top shelf ask, nonny!

*incoherent Jeff Goldblum noises as I attempt to even consider answering this question*

Answered below the cut because I write novel length replies:

So…the thing about being a writer is that a lot of my fics (particularly WIPs) are custom made to my interests. So a few of these things I���m actually working on now:

1. (current WIP). Ancient Britannia AU. Rating T (M/E potential, because hey, who knows?). Genre: Drama/Romance/Historical Fiction. Length: ooh, we’re looking at a solid 30 chapters, easily. 

Britannia under Roman invasion, 70 CE. After the death of her mother, Ada becomes chief of her tribe. When ill omens begin to appear and the Roman forces turn their sights north, to Ada’s tribe, she is urged to take a journey to see the bone-reader, who will read her future and ultimately show her the destiny of her people. But the reader, Hecate, refuses to reveal what the bones have spoken to her, which only confirms Ada’s fear: she’s cursed. Influenced by: Britannia (if you aren’t watchign this, you should be, because Zoe Wanamaker is a treasure).

Tropes: um…soulmates/destined to be together, I guess? I could and probably will get some bedsharing in there.

2. (early stages WIP). Modern Day Burlesque AU. Rating E. Length: most likely 10-20 chapters. Genre: Romance/Comedy/Light Drama.

Esper Vespertilio’s Extraordinary Cabaret is celebrating its 50th anniversary. Madame Vespertilio’s partner in business and love, Mr. Rowan-Webb, wants to do something special. Their basically-adopted daughter Julie Hubble knows just the thing: a night of special performances, featuring some of the biggest names in burlesque. Most notably, Hecate Hardbroom (specialty: fire fans), and The Twins (specialty: song and dance striptease numbers). When so many personalities converge in one place, anything can happen, right?

Tropes: Definitely some Agatha-as-Ada-messing-ish-up. Mutual pining, as always. A very all’s well that ends well vibe. I’ve actually written the very last scene and it’s adorably sweet.

I actually have several more but let’s just switch over to more “dream” stuff:

3. Look, I have a degree in crime analysis. I want a gritty crime drama with Ada and Hecate, the whole “I find this woman wildly attractive and I have no clue if I can trust her” trope, femme fatales and ill-lit alleyways and the odd humming like a neon sign always running beneath every interaction. Magical or nonmagical. I want Dimity Drill as the fast-talking, faster-thinking partner who wears a leather jacket and makes all the gay girls swoon (for science, of course).

4. I want a canonverse slowburn Downton-Abbey style recap of every single time these little idiots even thought about looking at each other. Make it slow and aching and angsty and collision-course certain. I want to be kicking my feet against my mattress at 2am as I yell at my kindle screen “You idiots! SHE. LOVES. YOU. BACK!!!” And I want all the burbly happy feels when FINALLY one of these fuckers realizes the truth, and to feel second-hand cringe as they attempt to navigate the early days. I want it awkward and hesitant and fucking adorable. 

5. ALSO I WANT THIS VERY SPECIFICALLY. If I had a way more in-depth understanding of the British legal system, I’d do it myself. But alas, I am lazy and refuse to learn that particular subject, even for a fic so promising as this.

Basically anything that holds these elements: heavy mutual pining, waiting for fucking ever, angst over an outcome that the reader knows for certain, timid beginnings, sweet little nonverbal actions, **CHARACTERIZATION on-point or at least extremely close to the amazingness that Clare and Raquel have given us**, a good dose of comedic timing, some FEELS, some fluff, and if they end up getting naked at some point, I won’t complain. But I do love sweet PG endings, too. Throw in some nerdy stuff like: historical AU, or modern day but with historical elements (archaeology/etc), or crime AU, and I’m so there.

I love canonverse and canon-divergent stuff, but I think I do find AUs more satisfying because the author has to do a little more creative shuffling to preserve their canon personalities in a totally different setting and that’s so awesome to me when it’s done well. Also it’s generally set in a world that’s new to me, in some way, and I love learning something new while being thoroughly entertained. Also I love basically rewatching these two personalities fall in love with slightly different backgrounds. 

This was such a great question, btw. Thanks for breaking my brain with it.