#also happy 1 year since I met robin :')

[robntunney]

ROBIN TUNNEY as TERESA LISBON The Mentalist | 5.03 Not One Red Cent

[pooks]

back on my straw hat!Ichiji bullshit and i am cooking

here's some headcanons i've got;

headcanon number 1 imagine Classy Trio (Ichiji, Robin and Brook) just casually having tea and watching the usual Zoro and Sanji bickering/sparring session

Ichiji: I can't believe that my brother in law will be a ball of sentient moss. But as long as he makes my little brother happy.

and the kicker is that Robin and Brook just agrees (especially Brook, who probably the biggest ZoSan shipper XD). the classy trio is a very sophisticated group, they have teatime with biscuits and discuss various topics

no one understands how it works and no one bothers to. post-timeskip, they're the second strongest fighting group after the Monster Trio. in fact, during Wano Arc, Ichiji joins Robin and Brook to save Sanji from Black Maria (Ichiji is bi and demiromantic, so he's kinda immune to female enemies trying to seduce him. he's already given away his heart for Robin and Franky.)

second headcanon Ichiji reminding certain pirates of Red-Haired Shanks is a running gag. even better when poor Ichiji doesn't even know who the guy is.

the first time Luffy put his hat on Ichiji's head to comfort him (he had a bad mental health day and nearly resorted to self-harm), Luffy went still for a moment or two because he instantly got reminded of Shanks. Ichiji isn't complaining about the hug he got from his captain, but it was nice and a little confusing.

(then later at Loguetown, Buggy nearly flipped his shit because he thought Shanks came back to haunt his ass XD)

it went so far that Ichiji got called "Shanks" by some pirates who has met the guy and poor Ichiji is like "who?"

(once Ichiji gets to meet the actual guy, it's gonna such a spiderman meme)

headcanon 3 Ichiji canonically likes whiskey, but i decided to add rum to his favorite drinks. he drinks sometimes with Zoro, but is unable to outdrink him (he comes third in alcohol tolerance, behind Zoro and Nami). Ichiji likes rum because he believes "a real pirate should like rum"

post-WCI and he turns to alcohol to deal with it. he doesn't gave good trauma responses and it goes far enough to make Chopper worry for his health. enough that Nami threats to throw the rum overboard if he doesn't square up.

this prompts him to nearly fight Nami for the sake of rum

Ichiji: you would dare to challenge me?! Nami: bring it on, bitch boy!

Sanji puts an end to it by locking all alcohol behind five locks in the galley. he's the cook, after all, and the galley is his dominion. Zoro and Ichiji has to wait until dinner to get their sake resp. rum

headcanon four Ichiji is tall and very muscular in canon, but in this au, he's slightly different

he's still taller than Sanji and while he has a little more distinct muscular structure, he's also a little more slender. this is a side effect from starving on the rock with Sanji and Zeff, so it has affected him in his later years. he's not a buff hunk, but he's not a slender twink either (google the english diver Tom Daley, that's sorta his body physique).

Ichiji also have a more androgynous face and dresses himself in a non-binary way. this is the reason why Brook mistook him for a woman at their first meeting, but Ichiji set him straight (lmao) after that. he's aware that gender is fluid and isn't always strictly male or female.

post timeskip and he's more comfortable in who he is. he did a lot of soul-searching for the two years he trained on an unknown canyon island and officially comes out as bisexual, demiromantic and genderqueer. he still uses he/him pronouns since he feels most comfortable with them.

headcanon 5 Ichiji keeps Zeff on the loop of most things and he does it whenever he gets a chance. he has the dial number to the Baratie memorized in his head and he gets his chance whenever he comes across a den-den mushi (for public use, often found in most inns at the islands they dock)

he informs Zeff where they are, what kind of adventures they've had so far, how he and Sanji are doing and asks how things are at the Baratie. he's sorta like a "dutiful son" (he canonically are, but it's very debated if it's because of his modifications)

the relationship between Zeff and Ichiji is portraited in a more mature-ish way. Ichiji is the older son, so he knows and understands more while Sanji is a little more bratty.

the minute there's total radio silence from Ichiji during WCI and there's shady people around the Baratie, that's when Zeff knows something is wrong

headcanon 6 Ichiji has the worst potty mouth. we all know that Sanji is foul-mouthed, but Ichiji is worse.

believe me, when they grew up on the Baratie, Ichiji listened to the cooks around him swearing and cursing up to a storm in the kitchens. everyone thought that he didn't care, compared to Sanji who mimicked them constantly (and got a pegleg on his head). but now, Ichiji was quiet because he was learning and memorizing from his surroundings until he got old enough to swear casually.

Ichiji isn't allowed around Chopper when he's in a bad mood, because his curses are so crude that neither Zoro or Sanji wants the little doctor to learn that.

no, he doesn't care if he's a bad influence. Ichiji has always done whatever he wanted. XD

[celaenaeiln]

Do you think (I hope this doesn't sound as if I hate the batkids but im just genuinely curious), if the bat kids (Jason, Tim, Damian, Steph, etc) came earlier, like Robin Dick and Batman when they have still a rather good(?) relationship and before Dick leaving and before canon time of Bruce meeting Jason) met Bruce, will he take them in and/or adopt them?

Tbf, Dami is biological son so Bruce might take him in either way, but what do you think?

No it doesn't sound like that at all! :)

Honestly I don't think it would've mattered if any of the robins had met Dick and Bruce when they had a good relationship. First of all, Bruce only took in Jason because he missed Dick and wanted a Robin. So if Dick was still with Bruce, Bruce would feel no desire or thought to take in anyone. Furthermore, Jason isn't the first troubled talented kid that Bruce has met over the years. Bruce and Dick have been solving cases and helping such kids for years so Bruce taking in Jason during Dick's absence was more of a "right place at the right time" sort of thing.

For similar reasons, that's also why he wouldn't have taken in Tim. Bruce took in Tim under Alfred and Dick's encouraging and also because Tim made a good point about Batman needing a Robin. B was literally killing himself through self-destructive techniques because Jason died and grief does that to people. He lost a robin. If Dick had been the one that died during his Robin years, then Tim might have ended up Robin but it's debatable because he would've been younger than 13 at the time. But if he waited until he was old enough, then Bruce would've killed himself in grief by then. However since Dick is still alive, healthy, and on great terms, Tim wouldn't have entered the picture. Although, if he worked up the nerve to reach out to Dick sooner, Dick would've had a new baby brother a lot earlier.

Stephanie only became Robin because Bruce was trying to manipulate Tim to come back. He knew that Tim would hate him if he endangered his loved ones so by making Stephanie robin, Tim would have to return because he knows the dangers of being Robin. So no Tim, no Stephanie.

Damian. Damian would become Robin and that's canon! THERE'S ACTUALLY A SAME AGE DICK AND DAMIAN STORY!!!!

In this story, Talia suddenly drops off Damian with Bruce and he finds out that his father has another kid-Dick. It's a heart warming story of them getting to know each other with Raven, Gar, and Maxine.

Teen Titans: Robin Issue #1

Teen Titans: Robin Issue #1

When the tracker doesn't work he gets really worried so he calls Bruce about it. And Bruce is just like, "Whatever, it'll be fine, Dick. He was raised by assassins, he can take care of himself. I need to go."

But Dick is in full Big Brother Mode. So what does he do? He spies on Damian through CCTV cameras and then gets even more worried that Damian might be kidnapped or involved in something dangerous because oh my god there's random people whose identification don't come up with Damian.

So Dick then rushes out of the manor and goes on a road trip, tracking him down. Damian's friends are surprised and creeped out to see a guy and when Damian looks, he is not happy. Damian does not like Dick. But Dick in any universe will always be a responsible older brother.

Teen Titans: Robin Issue #1

At this point Dick is fed up.

Is that what Damian wants? Fine.

Teen Titans: Robin Issue #1

So they have a bunch of mini-competitions from archery to hacking to parkour to fighting to etc and Damian's getting more and more frustrated that he keeps tying while Dick is in it for a good time. I think Dick's genuinely happy about this because he's viewing it as a bonding experience but everything comes to head when Damian reaches his limit

Teen Titans: Robin Issue #2

Things don't get better but the event progresses because Slade's wife Adeline (to whom he's still married to) is working with an evil organisation that collects metas and non-humans is searching for Gar so they need to do something fast. There are also flashbacks from Damian's side of him being jealous that Bruce trusts Dick so much and how perfect he is which don't help. It makes Damian really furious that Dick doesn't even realize how Bruce trusts him and instead acts like he's best friends with Damian which just serves to tick him off more.

Dick and Damian end up working together, find out about Kori, escape Slade, and all's great in the end. They become the brothers they were always meant to be.

Teen Titans: Robin Issue #2

Teen Titans: Robin Issue #2

And then it becomes the real formation of the teen titans. Dick and Damian - brothers for life.

I wish there was an entire series on this! I want to see the continuation.

Putting aside the logistics of whether they would meet or not, if Dick had met any of the robins at any age, he would've adored the heck out of them. I think they all would've ended up in Damian's position but they would definitely warm up to him by the end because it's impossible not to love Dick, especially if he loves you.

There's also a canon comic moment where Robin! Tim meets Robin! Dick, and they get along far better than Damian and Dick here but still the same emotions run in the scenes.

Robin (1993) Issue #10

While Dick and Tim solve a case, Tim is just amazed by Dick.

Robin (1993) Issue #10

Robin (1993) Issue #10

He's a little salty too. "Dick's going to beat me to the punch. I'm older than him. At this point I've got more experience than him. And he's got me playing catch-up. The little gloryhound..."

Robin (1993) Issue #10

"Like I need him to remind me."

Robin (1993) Issue #10

The way Tim and Damian feel the same way - it's two different comics, but they both feel stressed by Dick for the same reasons.

Teen Titans: Robin Issue #2

They feel like the need to live up to Dick but Dick doesn't feel that they have anything to prove because he just genuinely likes them for who they are. This feeling is a source of friction on the Robins' side, but it's also important they have this because you can't really know someone if you don't overcome your differences. The fact that they have to learn about each other brings out both of their greatest strengths.

Like in the Robin comic, Tim suspects something is off and Dick goes along with it. Tim's right and in the end they catch the bad guy and figure out the escape plan.

Robin (1993) Issue #10

To which Dick says, "Oh yeah! I can see how you got your job. Robin."

Robin (1993) Issue #10

Tim's happy face <3333

Overall, I'd say that Bruce wouldn't take any of the Robin in during Dick's younger days. But if he did, Dick and the Robins would become the best of brothers.

Oh but you know what'd be exciting? Dick and Stephanie's same age Robin au! Tim, Damian, and Jason's would all be sort of the same. They would struggle with Dick's standing but love him possessively in the end. But I have no idea how Stephanie and Dick would go. Of course they would love each other but same age brother and sister?! I WANT THAT SO BAD!!! Their dynamic would be crazy!! The amount of grey hairs Bruce would have? The ultimate chaos duo, they'd feed into each others' energies! Gotham would be a goner.

[theyellowhedgehog]

Tim and Bruce Part 1

Ripple Effect Au

An AU of reverse robin where Damian is the oldest, and became a hero Gotham need. Tim is the second oldest that became the Grandmaster of Court of Owl. Jason in the middle and Dick the youngest. None of them became robin, except for Dick.This is the a parallel universe of reverse robin.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

How do they met?

Tim deliberately approached Bruce with intention of his cars. He was 10 then.

Does Bruce think of Tim as his son?

No. Tim is more of a close neighbor than a son. The thought of settling down hasn't cross Bruce mind ever since the breakup with Talia. So when Damina came into his life and saw Tim hanging out with him, Bruce was brought back to a certain part of his life.

As a child after his parents died, Bruce had a hard time making any friends as all the people in his social cycle kept distance thinking he would lose the fortune to the city.

When he saw Damian laughing and getting into shenanigans with Tim, that was the first time he felt like his inner child healing. He knew he wasn't fitted to be a father. He was too broken to father a son to become a better person than himself. But he will always watch over them.

If you ask Alfred, he would tell you that,

"If there's a mud puddle, Master Bruce would rather join in than scold them. I was the one who have to drag them back inside scrub all the mud off them."

"Instead of fathering them, Master Bruce is more like a comrade. It's like...He was himself before his parents died."

Do you know where I'm heading with this? Bruce treated Damian and Tim more like a reflection of his past than sons. More like siblings than sons.

And with this modern timeline, I feel that being a 27 years old might not be mature enough yet. That what I feel tho, I'm already in my twenties, I still feel so lost and small when I walk out there.

What do Bruce feel when he realised Tim was taken hostage by Joker?

Bruce was horrified. Tim was apart of the family Bruce has. Imagine his horror when he found out that Damian was responsible for Tim's capturement. It was all the alley, his parents and the mugger once again.

This time he searched and searched, not daring to be late. No, he couldn't let Tim meet the end for himself. Why? Because if he let Tim down, Bruce felt that his past is the same once more. Tim and Damian were like age regression therapy for Bruce.

Bruce checked up on Tim after he was rescued and hospitalised. Tim just looked at Bruce through laugh and tears. Although the Bruce shouldn't be happy about it, he was. He was so glad that Tim was just alive. That he hasn't fail himself.

You guys might be mad, cus I made Bruce not as close to Tim as the comics. But don't worry, Tim is still an important person to Bruce.

Before the morning Tim left with his parents to Montana, Bruce gave the boy his personal number to call him whenever and whatever he need.

Bruce would set a different ringtone for Tim. The first message he received from Tim was 2 months after Tim's left Gotham.

"Is Damian okay?"

Bruce smiled and reply. "He feel guilty .." Bruce paused, Bruce knew that Tim knew. So he pressed send. Tim didn't reply after that.

How does Bruce know Tim knows?

After Tim was rescued and hospitalised, Bruce reviewed the cowl footage from Damian's Batboy suit. The camera might not be clear but the mic picked up everything.

Bruce saw everything, from where Joker choke Tim to where Damian facing a Tim sitting in front of a fire. Bruce could hear everything. However, he never questioned Damian or Tim about it.

Does Damian know Bruce kept contact with Tim?

Yes, Bruce never intended to hid it from Damian. Bruce was the reason Damian took the major of Toxicology and Biochemistry could make the pills to help Tim fight off the nightmares of Joker. All because Bruce mention it to Damian in a passing conversation.

Bruce was also the reason Damian and Tim doesn't have that bad of a fall out. Bruce found it funny that Damian, even though knew Tim's number, never contact him directly but always come to Bruce when he wanted update on Tim. Bruce couldn't blame him, after what Tim said to Damian in front of that fire, Damian is cautious about mentioning himself in front of Tim.

It's funny how Tim also doesn't dare contact Damian directly. Bruce thinks he felt guilty of how he spoke to Damian that night too.

Part 2 Bruce met Tim during his trip to Montana

Part 1, Part 2

[hyperfixatedcatlover]

The Beauty's Rebirth - Chapter 2: Mother Agent

Hey y'all! Sorry this took so long to get out! Please cast your votes! I will write all paths but I will write them one at a time so I want to know what you all would want!

TW: Child abuse, starvation, mentions of being trafficked, MDNI

I do not support or condone such behaviors in real life, this is purely fiction.

Prologue - Chapter 1 - Chapter 2(You are here)

In modeling, there is a term models are aware of. This term is "Mother agent." The mother agent is the agency or the person that discovered you.

'It's funny,' you think to yourself on the way to your house ship - as one of, if not, the most famous models in the galaxy, having a nice apartment that can also travel the stars was exceedingly helpful - 'my mother agent is more of a mother than my actual one.'

The craft driving you home is silent on the inside, but the silence is thick. The typical post-filming headache has set in, restarting the typical routine of these gigs. You smiled, you waved as you went to the dressing room, you took the expensive dress off and put on another nice, semi-less stifling outfit, waved as you went to the car, continued to wave out the window as the car drives away until you were finally out of sight. In these moments of traveling while the pressure in your skull causes the intense desire for pure, uninterrupted quiet, your mind can't help but drift. And drift it does, into the dark recesses of your brain where the memories of your childhood are.

'Mother always hated my beauty, I wonder what she thinks of it now.' Your mother was always jealous. At just five years old, the curls in your hair and the smile that shone seemed to tell her that you were much more beautiful, something she couldn't be. Of course it had to be your fault, of course she needed to punish you for it, of course she needed to starve you when you were seven to keep your figure, of course she needed to train you in acting docile and submissive, though that may have been the malnourishment that caused you to not ever speak up. Mistakes were met with harsh punishment,

"It's for your own good, you ungrateful spawn!"

You shake the memory out of your head, instead choosing to remember the kind woman at the modeling agency, which was small and didn't have that much money who took a chance on you. Poor, starving, freezing you, who she gave a roof over your head and a job, who listened to the story of your parents selling you off to become a concubine to a man thrice your age on another planet, how they faked your death at home. The woman who taught you what you needed to know. In your reminiscence, you to see something out of the corner of your eye. You catch sight of a light blue planet with golden swirls in various parts. Gold and blue… The colors cause your brain to remember someone, someone you miss dearly. I wonder how those two are doing.

The Halovian boy who was only a year older than you, and his sister who was two years your junior, the Oak Branch of The Family. They were the only two people who ever made you happy. At one of the events you were allowed to go to at just nine years of age, you got lost and began to cry no matter how hard you tried to resist it. It was at that point when a boy of slightly shorter height than yours and his much smaller sister found you. When I looked into the young boy's eyes, I felt seen. You were friends ever since, though your meetings were few and far between from how your families kept you busy.

Mr. Wood must have given him some freedom now, I know Robin is a singer, and Sunny most likely is in charge of something back home. If I can even call such a place home.

Childhood friend musings aside, your aircraft has landed in your garage, and you step out waving Charles, your Chauffer, goodbye as you scan your fingerprint to unlock the door. As you step into the home, the mewls of your cherry pie and lemon merengue pie snacks cause you to giggle as the hop towards you like they haven't seen you in months, despite only having been gone for five hours. You pat their heads and go to the master bathroom and shower, scrubbing the makeup, hair spray, and whatever else they put on your skin and in your hair. As you exit the bathroom, now wearing a satin nightgown, you see the snacks waiting for you on the bed.

Oh those cuties, I wish I could stay with them all day.

You join them on the bed when you get a message, your mother agent.

'Hey, you have a couple days off but before you go to bed, you need to hear the options to decide what your next shoot is. I'll get your answer tomorrow so you can think about it.'

'I get to decide?'

'My assistant's system glitched out and crashed, causing three events to be scheduled at the same time. I'll handle the fallout, but you should pick what you want to do.'

'Oh, okay! What are my options?'

'First option is that you could go to a planet, called Belobog, which recently made contact with the IPC and do a shoot there to increase tourism.'

'I guess I wouldn't need heavy security as most people there won't know who I am.'

'True, but you'll still have some. The next option is a shoot on the Xianzhou Loufu. An indie designer you've modeled for in the past is launching a line of traditional hanfu-inspired nightgowns and wants you to model a few, some are a smidge risqué, however.'

'I think I've shown more skin than was you're implying, I'll be fine if I go that route, but what is the last option?'

'You don't have to go to this one, I will make sure your reputation with this brand doesn't sink.'

'What do you mean? You're freaking me out a little bit.'

'The last option is with a major brand, they have a new clothing line with vintage clothes with a modern twist. The shoot will be in Penacony.'

'Oh.'

'My thoughts exactly. I'll let you think about what you want and talk to you tomorrow. Goodnight, sleep well!'

Mother Agent has gone offline

You set the phone on the nightstand and ponder.

Do I go somewhere new and help a planet's economy? Do I go to a smaller designer and give them more reputation? Or, do I go home? Where do I go?

After some tossing and turning, you fall asleep, dreams not reaching you, just a voice telling you to fly free. When you wake up, the snacks are ready for food. As the coffee brews and the snacks munch, you pick up your phone, having made your decision.

'I want to go to…'

[tortoisewithoutashell]

Dancing with Shadows: Chapter 3

Chapter 2: https://www.tumblr.com/tortoisewithoutashell/769313060765810689/dancing-with-shadows-chapter-2?source=share

Hi William,

Thank you for reaching out! Ballet is difficult; sometimes I wish I had decided to become an electrician or something that wouldn't wear on me so much. I think I’m having a mental breakdown—this profession sucks! My instructor is making me take time off to get my head in the game, and I cried in his office like a baby! Imagine that, a 23-year-old man crying in his boss's office!

Steve rubbed his eyes with his knuckles and pressed the delete button. Don’t overshare in your first message, you freak! You’re going to scare him away! He leaned back in his chair and thought about what he loved most about his job.

Hi William,

There are many things I love about this art form: when I try for ages to get something and it finally clicks, seeing my maître smile after doing a routine a million times and being finally happy with it, doing my makeup backstage, the backstage camaraderie during a performance, hearing people call my dancing 'beautiful', and the way the sun shines through the window of our studio on a summer’s day.

Tell me more about surfing. How long have you been doing it?

I’ve never been to California.

Steve felt satisfied with this response; he sounded normal, less like a crazed lunatic than in his first message. He pressed the send button and shut down his desktop. Needing a walk, he called Robin.

**

Robin came bounding down the street with a cup of coffee in each hand. How she wasn’t spilling them onto the concrete was a mystery, but so was Robin. They had met when Steve first moved to New York. She was one of the most elegant dancers he’d ever met, but off stage, she was somehow the clumsiest person. The juxtaposition of man, Steve supposed. Once she reached him, she put her arms out for a hug, but Steve feared being burned by the hot drinks, so he backed away. “Put the coffees down, Jesus, Robin!” Steve exclaimed before he grabbed one of the cups, and gave her a quick side hug.

“How come you complain when I’m mean to you and also when I’m nice?” she rolled her eyes, and they began walking. “I ran into Vickie last week,” Robin sighed, her shoulders slumping. “She told me that she’s seeing someone—a blonde.” The word "blonde" came out with a venomous bite. Steve nodded along, careful with his words. Robin had been chasing Vickie for years, but he was always too afraid to tell her to give it up; he was exhausted from constantly talking about her.“Well, maybe it's time to move on,” he said under his breath, and Robin smacked his shoulder. “People who’ve had 1 failed high school relationship, and haven’t dated since should not be giving others love advice. ” Robin rolled her eyes for what seemed like the hundredth time in 15 minutes and picked up her pace. She wasn’t upset with him, but she sure was good at faking it.  He kept a couple of paces back; they hadn’t talked about Eddie in a while, and he was kind of shocked that Robin had even mentioned him—even if not by name—she knew he was a sore spot for Steve.  She quickly turned around when she noticed that Steve was no longer beside her and stopped to wait for him to catch up. “I’m sorry, that was mean. I know what happened with Eddie wasn’t—er—ideal.” Steve shrugged; no harm was truly done. Sticks and stones. 

Robin threw her empty coffee cup in a nearby trash can and clapped her hands together quite loudly. How did she drink her coffee so quickly between her constant talking? Steve had no idea how she managed that. Before he could ask, a devious grin appeared on her face. “So you remember Nancy Wheeler?” Steve’s eyebrows raised.

How could he forget Ballet darling Nancy Wheeler, the next best thing since Galina Ulanova had graced the stage! “She asked about you!” Robin exclaimed gleefully.  Steve’s face went red. “What do you mean she asked about me?” He was dumbfounded; how did Nancy Wheeler know who he was?

His studio wasn’t unknown per se, but it's not like he was one of the more well-known dancers in it. “I don’t know; I went to this party this past weekend, and a bunch of dancers were there. I was talking about you, and she pulled me aside and asked me for your number. It was insane! I mean, she could have any guy in New York, maybe even the country, but she’s interested in you—” Robin froze for a second. “No offense.” She studied Steve’s face quickly to make sure he wasn't actually offended before continuing, “I know you typically date men, and you lean more towards men, but at the end of the day, you’re bisexual, and I don’t know, I sort of maybe kind of gave her your number.” 

Steve stopped in his tracks. Nancy Wheeler knew who he was and had his number. No fucking way.

**

It’s not that Steve had expected Nancy to call, but he had kind of, sort of gotten his hopes up and anticipated her call. He kept glancing at his phone every five minutes to ensure he wouldn’t miss it! It was excruciating! Without ballet in his life, he had nothing to distract him from his thoughts. He tried watching a movie, he tried playing a video game, and he even tried both at the same time, but nothing worked. He couldn’t rely on Robin either because she had the studio, and yearning for Vickie took up a lot of her time too. He scrolled through their most recent messages: 

Robin: I never thought this day would come, but I miss you at the studio; Luc is driving me nuts!  

Steve: Lol, what’s going on?  

Robin: I wanna try something new for Arabian Princess, but he’s all like, “No, tradition is tradition!” Tradition, my ass!!  

Steve: If you didn’t like tradition, you should’ve done hip-hop.  

Robin: Never mind, I don’t miss you! 

He needed a hobby. It had been a week since Robin told him about her conversation with Nancy. He’d made sure his phone was always charged, which was usually a difficult thing for him. God, he was so pathetic and so starved for affection that when some girl he’d never met showed a little interest, he lost his mind. He was currently lying on his bed, trying to figure out how he would spend his day. He was supposed to spend this month finding inspiration, but he had found none; in fact, he wasn’t even sure where he should start! He stared off into space and got lost in his thoughts, then his desktop lit up and made a pinging noise. He had received new ballet slippers and was hoping they had been delivered. He walked over to his desk, sat down on his mahogany chair, and opened his mail app, but instead of seeing a delivery email from Move Dancewear, it was a message from the pen pal website. He had completely forgotten about it.

Subject: Sorry  

From: WilliamH1999  

Message: Hey dude, I totally apologize for taking so long to respond. I help take care of my little sister, Maxine, and it was the last week of the school year, and it’s been hectic. I’ve been driving her everywhere and helping her with her end-of-the-year projects. Ballet sounds awesome; I can tell that you love it.  

I love catching a wave; it’s the most addicting feeling in the world!  

I’ve always loved the water. My mom and I would go to the beach all the time when I was a kid. She’s actually the person who taught me how to surf. I've tried to teach Maxine, but she’s a skater girl through and through.  

P.S. I kind of went down the ballet rabbit hole online. I learned that it’s Nutcracker season, which is a crazy time for ballerinas!  

I hope you’re holding up!  

Holy shit, Steve thought. William had responded and very thoughtfully too. Should he wait to reply? He didn’t want to come off as desperate, but he was also so bored and frankly had nothing better to do. Oh well, forget it! If William found it weird, then he wasn't the pen pal for Steve.  

Hey William, no problem! Family comes first!  

Oh Jesus, Steve, could you get any more corny? He hit the backspace and started over. Be normal.  

Hey bro, I totally understand. I used to babysit for extra cash back home, and I know that kids can be a handful. This one kid, Dustin, talked a mile a minute! But somehow, I miss him, lol.  

Maxine sounds badass; any skater girl is a cool girl in my mind.  

I’ll tell you an embarrassing secret: I don’t know how to swim; I like having both feet on the ground at all times. That and I’ve dedicated my entire life to ballet and have been doing it since I was three, and never picked up any other skills. Although freshman year, I begged my parents to learn the drums, and I took about three lessons before my mom forced me to quit. I guess the drums weren’t “proper” enough for my mom. It didn’t fit the image of our family.

Was that too personal? Steve didn’t care; he kept typing. It felt good to express his feelings.  

My cousin left home when he was 18 and cut off all contact. We haven’t heard from him in years! To be honest, I’m kind of jealous of him.  

No nutcracker for me this year (I’m being punished), which feels really weird because I’ve participated in the nutcracker every year since I was 8. It feels strange to take this much time off from ballet; the last time I did was in middle school when I twisted my ankle. I genuinely thought my career was over. Silly me!  

I’m going to assume you were born and raised in California?  

Tell me more about that!  

Steve pressed the send button and then started to panic. Shit! He had totally overshared in his message; what the heck was he thinking? William would probably not respond. Gosh, he should think about getting a therapist instead of oversharing with strangers on the internet. He put his head down on his desk and began mourning the loss of his pen pal. Then his desktop dinged. He shot his head up, and to his surprise, another message from Billy appeared.  

From: WilliamH1999  

That sucks, dude! You don’t live with your parents anymore, do you? You should start playing the drums. A ballerina-drummer combo would be badass; trust me! :)  

You should also take swim lessons; most YMCA’s offer them. I'm saying this because it could save your life one day; trust me on that too!  

Bummer about the Nutcracker! Hopefully, it’ll be back on next year, haha.  

Listen, Steve, I don’t know you well, and you don’t have to take my unsolicited advice, but you’ve got to be true to yourself, man. I used to be so afraid to be myself and so scared of my dad’s opinion, but you’ve got to live; at the end of the day, it's YOUR life. 

Steve’s jaw dropped; Billy didn’t think he was weird. He smiled at that, unable to contain his happiness. 

He Googled the YMCA closest to him and signed up for swim lessons. William was right, he had to live his life. 

[fizzyxcustard]

What Is Possible.

Masterlist of fan fiction

Anything is Possible chapters: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7

Fandom: Robin Hood (BBC TV series)

Pairing: Guy of Gisborne x Fem!Reader

Warnings: Fluff, happy ending, family reunion, slight angst

Summary: Sequel to the fic, "Anything Is Possible." You and Guy are now married and have a one year old daughter, named Ghillie. You all go travelling together to see your parents who you have not seen for 18 months, since your interrupted wedding to Lord Edmund.

Comments: If you would like to be added to or removed from my tag list, please let me know.

I would like to dedicate this fic to two close friends. Firstly, @piggledy-higgledy who is the biggest Guy of Gisborne fan I know, and suggested the name of the baby. Thank you for believing in me. Secondly, @the-fragile-heart-of-a-lady I absolutely love our Guy banter and talking about him being jealous and burning houses down. I love you both. <3

“Ghillie,” you cooed. “Come on, darling.” 

The little girl giggled, her blue eyes focused on you. You reached out, encouraging her to come toward you. Then suddenly she began her unsteady stomps, her arms reaching up. But now her focus had shifted to just behind you. She wanted her father. 

Guy had walked in from out the back of the house, where he had been readying the carriage for all three of you to make the journey to finally see your parents. As soon as he saw his daughter’s chubby hands reaching for him, he couldn’t resist. Ghillie continued chuckling, stomping unsteadily towards Guy. 

You watched on in love as Guy scooped up the laughing one year old. He kissed her red cheek and then her almost-black hair. 

“The carriage is ready,” he said, holding Ghillie in one arm and then wound his other arm around your waist. 

Your mother and father had been in contact via letter now for around eighteen months, and today would be the first time that you all travelled as a family to see them. The town they were now living in was two day’s journey, but with a stopover at a small inn on the main road. 

The journey itself was quite uneventful for the most part. You sat with Ghillie on your lap, singing and talking to her, while Guy remained the steerer of the carriage. Every couple of hours and you would stop for a drink and to nurse Ghillie. The weather was bright, mild and dry, perfect for travelling. 

At the inn and Guy paid for a large suite for you both and Ghillie. There you all shared the large, four poster bed. 

“I wonder if this is the honeymoon suite,” Guy mused. “Not that I’d bring my bride here.”

You laughed. “Beggars can’t be choosers sometimes, Guy. Not everyone has the means to live in luxury.” 

Guy merely smirked and leaned over to you, kissing you. Ghillie was sat between you both, playing with her stuffed pony which Mary had made for her. Since your interrupted wedding to Lord Edmund, Mary the seamstress, had been a close friend. She had become almost a second mother to you, helping you in your questions towards motherhood. She was also Ghillie’s godmother. 

A short while later and you and Guy lay on your sides facing each other, with your sleeping daughter between you both. “I never thought this would be possible,” you said. “I seriously never thought I’d ever be happy like this.” 

Guy reached to you and laced his fingers through yours. He smiled and looked at your joined hands. “You’ve given me everything I ever wanted.” Then his steel blue eyes met your gaze. “I don’t deserve you or Ghillie, I know that…” 

“Guy, please…” 

“I don’t,” he continued. 

“Shh, come here, you stupid man,” you hissed. You kissed him hard, tugging at his thin tunic. 

“I do love it when you take charge,” Guy chuckled. “And when you scold me.” 

***

Finally you made it to your parents’ village. Guy took the carriage slowly through the main muddy track, where small houses were built on either side. There was a tavern, a blacksmiths and a few stalls in a field behind a chapel. 

Then you saw her from the small window of the carriage, your mother standing out the front of their house, waving to you. She was smiling broadly, something that she rarely did when she was in Nottingham. 

“Come on, Ghillie. I’ve got someone very special for you to meet,” you told your daughter. You picked her up and then stepped out of the open door of the carriage, which had been opened for you by Guy. In one arm you propped Ghille, and with your other hand, you held Guy’s. 

Your mother broke down into tears as she saw you, and then looked at her granddaughter. “C…can I hold her?” your mother asked. 

“Of course you can,” you said. 

You watched for a few seconds as your mother smiled at Ghillie, whispering ‘hello’ to her and then kissed her chubby fingers. “Her name is Ghislaine,” you said. “Ghislaine Sarah.” 

Your mother looked at you with wide eyes upon hearing Ghillie’s middle name be the same as her own. 

“Ghislaine was my mother’s name,” Guy said softly. “But we call her Ghillie for short.” 

“I can’t deny it but she looks just like you,” your mother chucked, looking up at Guy. 

You all went into your parents’ house and sat down in the main kitchen area, while your mother began preparing a kettle of tea. “Your father hopes to finish work up in the field a little earlier today. Are you planning on staying with us long?” 

“Umm, well, as long as you’ll have us,” you replied. “We’ve packed enough provisions for a week, and Guy is able to stand down from duty for a fortnight.” 

“We would love to have you permanently,” your mother laughed. “A week sounds perfect.” Ghillie was sat on your mother’s lap, having taken to her immediately, which was quite extraordinary as she normally didn’t like strangers. But your mother was the first person she had met without screaming. 

Your father later entered the house and embraced you tightly. It was the first thing he did. Then he apologised to you for all the heartbreak he had caused. “I was a coward. I know that. Edmund held a lot over me for years; he offered me money so that he could have you. That morning, I just knew what I had to do.” 

Your father hung his head in shame and then looked at Ghillie. “She’s beautiful,” he said softly. Then he looked at Guy. “Thank you for making my daughter happy, Gisborne.”

As dusk began to settle, your father took Guy down to the local tavern for a pint, while you remained at the house with your mother and Ghillie. Your mother was cleaning the pot from the stew she had made for dinner, while you dried the plates. Ghillie was sat on the floor, playing with her pony and a few toys that your mother had collected for your visit. The toys banged against the wooden floor, and with each bang, Ghillie giggled. 

“How are you and father doing?” you asked. 

“He knows I still hold resentment against him for what he did to you, but I pray often with the priest at the chapel. I want to let go of all the hate in my heart. It can be hard to live with him some days. All I can see is the coward that he was for so long.” 

“But he’s not that man now,” you countered. “Look what he did for me; that’s not the action of a coward. He saw what he was doing and he changed.” 

Your mother began to sob. 

You took her into your arms and held her, feeling her shake. “I think I hate myself more.” Her voice was muffled by your shoulder. 

“Mother, please,” you reasoned, pulling from the embrace. “I hold nothing against either of you for this. We know how hard things can be; father wanted to provide for the family. Edmund was a monster and he held sway over father with money. You can’t blame father for that. Money holds a lot of power, we all know that. I wish Guy would consider changing his work, but the money keeps us well provided for. You have to do what is right for your family. 

“Does he take care of you?” 

The instantaneous smile told your mother everything that she needed to know. “He dotes on us. Guy had quite a bad childhood and all he’s ever wanted is love in his life. I’ve never known a man with such an enormous heart. He seems like a walking contradiction in how cruel and callous he’s been known to be, yet with us, he would do anything we ask of him.” 

“As long as he cares for you both, that’s all that matters.” 

***

When your father and Guy arrived back from the tavern, the two of them were laughing. “It’s been a pleasure tonight, Gisborne,” your father said, and extended his hand. The two men shook hands, and it was here that you hoped the two of them would always have a good friendship. 

You retired to bed a while later, with Ghillie between you and Guy. She was already asleep, having been worn out from the day’s events. 

“Mother has said she will take Ghillie for a few hours tomorrow so that we can have time alone together,” you told Guy. You watched his face beam, and then his gaze drifted down to Ghillie. His fingers caressed her dark hair and he felt that all too familiar lump rise in his throat. It was the lump that reminded him of what was possible. 

“Are you alright?” you whispered. 

Guy’s gaze met yours, and it was now full of tears. 

“Do not say again that you feel undeserving,” you sighed. “Life does not deal in who deserves and who doesn’t. I gave my love to you freely, as you did me.” You reached out and cupped your husband’s cheek. “We both love you, Gisborne. We both love you for everything you are.” 

Guy couldn’t help but chuckle, and feel the tears fall down his cheeks. “I can’t even imagine what it would have been like if you had had Ghillie while married to Edmund. To see my child raised by another…”

“Guy, stop!” you exclaimed. “I didn’t marry Edmund. I married you. Ghillie is yours; she’s here with you every day. She carries your name, as do I, you stupid man.”

Guy smiled as you said those words again, playfully insulting him. 

“Give me that smile, Gisborne,” you said softly, and reached closer, kissing him. 

***

Follow Forever tag list: @lathalea @linasofia @xxbyimm @meganlpie @luna-xial @middleearthpixie @knittastically @guardianofrivendell @asgardianhobbit98 @eunoiaastralwings @rachel1959 @msjava1972 @lemond57 @mrsdurin @missihart23 @quiall321 @sazzlep @the-fragile-heart-of-a-lady @evenstaredits @catthefearless @glassgulls @aliasauthor @solairewisteria @littlebird-99 @court-jobi @heilith @albionscastle @absentmindeduniverse @way-too-addicted-to-fandoms

Guy of Gisborne tag list: @piggledy-higgledy @whoooooisthis @emmyspov

Anything Is Possible tag list: @purplerain85

[leasstories]

Lea’s advent calendar day 9 –  1987 is Gonna Be Our Year

@writerthreads writing prompt for Christmas (2022), prompt 25:

[New Years countdown/party]

Eddie x gn!reader

No trigger warning.

WC: ≈0.7k

December 31st, 1986

You and Eddie got invited to a small New Year Party organized by Steve Harrington. He decided that after the year you had, after fighting Vecna, after Eddie and Max spent months in the hospital, you deserved to get loose for a night. You and Eddie are currently living at yours since your parents decided to leave Hawkins. You’re in your bathroom, getting ready, while Eddie stands up before the wardrobe, his left hand clutching his cane to stay upright. He is pondering on which long sleeve to wear. Yes, since the Upside-Down incident, Eddie hides most of his body. Even from you and it hurts. It hurts because you’ve seen it all when you changed his bandages, it hurts because it would never change anything about the fact that you love and worship Eddie, and you told him, but he doesn’t believe you and it hurts.

When you get out of the bathroom, Eddie walks towards your shared bedroom door to close it.

“Wait Eds!” You speak.

“Yes Sweetheart?” He asks.

“Can I borrow your Iron Maiden sweater for tonight pretty please?” you ask, pouting.

Eddie walks closer to you, gently kisses your lips before saying. “How could I deny you?”. You smile and kiss Eddie’s cheek. “Thank you!” You tell him.

“Besides, I love when you’re wearing my clothes, and the idea that you will enter 1987 in my hoodie, no matter how cheesy it sounds really warms my heart. You let Eddie some privacy to change and once he is ready you leave. You help Eddie climb into your car, take his cane and put it in the back of the car.; %Eddie still can’t drive so you’re the one driving to Steve’s house.

You park your car in Steve’s driveway get out of the car, take Eddie’s cane from the backseat, and open the passenger door for him. You help Eddie out of the car.

“Go ahead, go get war, inside Steve’s house, I’m gonna take the little appetizers I cooked.” You tell Eddie while opening the trunk. Eddie doesn’t protest and gets inside. You get inside a little while after Eddie and you all seat on Steve’s sofa. You seat next to Eddie and you all start drinking, alcohol for the oldest and sodas for the younger kids. You all make small talks, checking up on everything. Your hand and Eddie’s stay intertwined all night. When midnight approaches, you all go outside. Eddie and you decide to take a little moment just for the two of you. You sit on the grass and look at the stars, in silence, holding hands.

After a while, you hear Robin telling you “Hey lovebirds! The countdown is going to start!”.

You start getting up, but Eddie pulls you back down. “Please, can we begin 1987 just the two of us.”

You nod. The countdown starts.

10

“I’m grateful to be alive” Eddie starts.

9

“I’m grateful to be your partner” you continue.

8

“Thank you for taking care of me.” Eddie says.

7

“I’ll do it forever” you answer smiling.

6

Eddie brings your hand to his lips.

5

“I love you” he earnestly tell you.

4

“I love you too.” You answer, blushing.

3

Eddie starts getting up and gets on one knee despite how much it hurts him. You gasp.

2

“My Sweetheart. I’m so grateful I met you, and I love you so much” Eddie starts.

1

“I also want to thank you for taking such good care of me and I promise to do the same for the rest of my life” he continues while you start tearing up.

HAPPY NEW YEAR ! You hear from your friends on the other side of Steve backyard.

“Will you do me the honor of marrying me? Will you do me the honor to start all of the next years of my life by your side?” You’re now fully crying.

You manage to choke out. “Yes Eddie…”. Eddie slips the engagement ring on your trembling hand, gets up with the help of his cane and kisses you like if there was no tomorrow. 1987 is going to be your year. Eddie’s and yours.

[spicysix]

event masterlist

can you guys believe it's been a whole year since we've met Eddie Munson?! since I've fallen head over heals for that man? since i've been reading a different ST fanfic every night before bed? since i've flipped this blog Upside Down (heh) and made this little TV show my entire personality?

and since then i've done a lot! i went back into writing fanfics after 5 years of nothing, first of all. and i've met and befriended so many special people, and i've admired so many special fanworks, and we all bonded over some children and their gaggle of babysitters.

and you saw my little blog dedicated to our little blorbos and decided to stay here ♡

so because of all that, i'm kickstarting a double (and my first one ever) celebration! pop one of those below into my inbox and get me working!

・celebration begins May 27 and ends May 31 ・meaning you can send requests until the end date, but i'm a bit slow so it can take me longer than that to answer everything. be patient, please ♡ ・you can send in as many requests as you want, just please send different emojis requests in different asks! ・you don't need to be following me to participate (but if you liked it, consider following anyway? let's be friends!) ・minors and billy stans DNI

🦇 eddie's pet demobat - send me this emoji + a fic or fanwork you'd like to show some love to! make the authors/artists happy and give us readers and enjoyers something to appreciate. you can also rec your own work of course! ♡

🎸 eddie's warlock - send me this emoji + a number from 1 to 11 and i'll post a promotional piece or a snippet from a chapter of my biggest WIP: it feels like i'm going home - a eddie X reader roadtrip fic! the numbers can only be asked once each, so be fast and choose wisely!

📖 robin's russian dictionary - send me this emoji + a word, song, prompt or scenario + a character or ship and i'll write you a ficlet! ↳ here's some prompt lists to give you some ideas if you need! ↳ check out my guidelines to see who i write for ↳ if you want you can specify if you want fem! or gn! reader

🏏 steve's baseball bat - send me this emoji + a character, ship (specify if you want romantic or platonic) or gang and i'll share my favorite headcanons. or, send me the emoji + your favorite headcanons!

📸 jonathan's camera - send me this emoji + an episode (from any season) and i'll share my favorite scene. or, send me the emoji + your favorite scenes and let's talk about them!

🍄 argyle's shrooms - send me this emoji + any question you want, anything you wanna know about me or that you wanna share about yourself! let's chat, play games, and get to know each other ♡

🔫 nancy's (childsafe water)gun - send me this emoji and i'll give you my first impressions of your blog through a moodboard!

thank you so much to everyone that follows me and interacts with me or supports my fics in any way!! i love you all to the moon and back, hope to stay here for a long while to talk about our beloved ones. and here's to many more friends to come! ♡

tagging some mutuals that i adore to help me spread the word (no pressure!): @thornsnvultures @beep-beep-sherlock @sunshine-munson @chaoticgood-munson @pollenallergie @wormdebut @paranoidmunson @districtsof-treason @willowsgrl @steviesnailbat @mvnsoneddie86 @inourtownofhawkins @singledadharrington @pepsimunson @itwasallblue @taintedcigs @chrissymjstan @eddiemunsons-missingnipple @beenabutterandjelly @king-calycanthus @callingmrsbarnes @chaotic--agraphia

[blog-de-una-persona-bi]

New fanfic idea: Zoro is an alpha, Sanji is a beta, still somehow zoro can't stop thinking about him in his heat.

~Zoro: Tiger alpha, met Sanji when they were 8 (I love childhood friends, ok? 😭) . Mihawk took him to a restaurant after getting his custody. Zoro got lost and ended up meeting Sanji at the port. He was dirty, and all skinny, yet Zoro thought he was pretty, he liked the color of his eyes. Mihawk and Zeff ended up finding them, Zoro was next to him, hearing him talk about the all blue while eating a sandwich that zoro had in his haramaki (he had it even as a kid). Zeff adopted Sanji (idk how, he didn't have any legal papers w him, but it worked somehow), and became his legal guardian, Zoro goes every few days to visit them. At 16 his first routine arrive, proving that he is an alpha (they get to know it once they are 5-7, bc they start to slowly loose their milky and parents scent and start to acquire their owm, but the routines arrive after that. At 12-13 they loose they epper ears and tails). He had Sanji in mind during his whole routine, he knew he liked Sanji, he knew it since they first met, but he didn't know his alpha also liked him. Now he is 25, lives with Snji as his roomate and doesn't know how to avoid the awkward conversation on how his alpha begs for his presence.

~Sanji: Beta fox (Ik he is supposed to be a goat, but meh) after his mother's death (at 5) his father locked him in their basement (idk, I just live that idea, even if is cruel) and kept him there for a whole year, his sister and brothers (they felt very petty for him, in this AU they did intimidated Sanji, but bc Sanji wasn't an alpha like them. Is actually after some years that Judge started to manipulate their hormones so they can be emotionless) freed him to the streets, his father found out he escaped, and somehow threw him to a poor neighbourhood. Sanji, a 6-year-old, remained homeless for 2 years until Zoro found him. At 16 he had a huge crush on Zoro, but he knew Zoro was an alpha and deserves better. In this AU Sanji doesn't hat men that much, bc just 1 men has been that mean to him (his father). Sanji starts dating different people, but his relationships never last. He is 25, living with Zoro as his roomate, and doesn't have any idea of why when Zoro is at his routine he keeps looking for him and during anytime he is near.

•They can transform into their animal forms once a month (otherwise they'll get tired, is also recommended to do it at least once a month).

•Sanji does ice skating in his free time, has a tiktok account dedicated at him cooking, he gives classes on Wednesday, and he also works at his father's restaurant.

•Zoro is a hockey player. He accompanied every single class of ice skating just to watch him be free. in his free time, he gives classes at a dojo on Wednesday. He planned to be the word's greatest swordman as kid (along with his friend Kuina, SHE IS ALIVE BTW), but as he grew up he realised that he wanted to be the word's greatest hockey player.

•The whole Strawhat crew is actually the hockey and ice skating team. The girls (including vivi ofc) are Sanji's ice skating partners, beibg Robin and Jimbei, their couch. The boys (including Ace, Sabo and Law somehow) are Zoro's hockey team ates, being Franky and Brook their couch. Chopper is a little boy (he is 19 😭) that helps him anytime they get injured.

•Chopper has a disease that makes him combine his human and animal form, which is a very uncommon disease, but he is not the only person in the world (let's say 5% of the poblation has this disease.

•betas DO feel pheromones, they are just not as alphas and omegas.

•they get a happy ending and they get a lit of puppies (make it happen, I BEG YOU, MAKE THEM HAVE PUPPIES).

To be something that I made on by writing it, ir is VERY detailed lol.

Anyways, if someone does this, reply this with the link, love y'all

[firethekitty]

okay you reblog a lot of albums ive never heard of and am curious about but it’s hard to get myself to sit down and listen to a whole album so please please, Top Ten-ish Songs To Get To Know You kind of list? pretty please?

i literally daydream about people asking me stuff like this LOL. so this is hardly a comprehensive list of all my favorite songs ever but here are some songs that are really important to me!!! this got REALLY long so i put it under a read more

1. meet me in the woods by lord huron

my absolute favorite song Ever like of all time. means everything to me. i could listen to this every single day and never get tired of it. INSANELY fun, incredible vibes, makes me want to go outside and shoot a beam into somebody. lord huron is an Experience. all their albums are concept albums and there’s actually a fair amount of lore going on. on the physical CD for strange trails it actually has the characters’ names next to their respective songs

for meet me in the woods, it sounds very upbeat and happy, but listen closely and you’ll realize it’s not quite as it seems… in-universe, it’s narrated by a woman named francine lu, and the song has the same chords as the first track of the album (and another of her songs) “love like ghosts”. she also narrates “the night we met”, easily LH’s most famous song. francine lu is not having a normal one. what’s her problem? listen to find out…..

2. crystals by of monsters and men

this was my favorite song ever for about 6 years until meet me in the woods ranked just a tiny bit higher. sooo fucking fun, itches a part of my brain that’s only accessible via icelandic stomp & holler. makes me very happy and always cheers me up! of monsters and men was the first new (at the time) band i ever really discovered on my own without hearing about from my parents or other people, and i’ve been listening to them ever since (almost 13 years!!) they are incredibly important to me and i highly recommend all of their albums

3. sunblind by fleet foxes

relatively new but became a favorite as soon as i heard it. this is also one of the most Me songs i can think of on top of just being so fucking gorgeous and raw and heartfelt. this song is a tribute to deceased musicians who influenced robin pecknold (the lead singer and songwriter for fleet foxes) and how their music is pretty much the reason he’s even alive today. my favorite lines are “only way that i made it for a long time / but i’m loud and alive, singing you all night”. this entire album is sincerely a masterpiece and i highly recommend listening to it all. fleet foxes have really beautiful and unique lyrics, they remind me of mitski’s lyrics in that they’re very poetic and personal and emotional but still subjective enough that you can connect them to your own life

4. this must be the place by talking heads

specifically the stop making sense live recording, which i still half-refuse to believe is a live recording because it’s just THAT fucking good. whenever someone says david byrne can’t sing i direct them here, because he does sincerely have an incredible voice and he simply Chooses to sing weirdly bc he’s a quirked up white boy with autistic swag.

this is just a really sweet and romantic song from a band that otherwise stays far away from love songs and it works extremely well. this entire album is fucking incredible and easily the best live album of all time. half of them are BETTER than the studio recordings, and you can also watch david byrne leap straight up backwards like a full 4 feet

highly recommend watching stop making sense just the entire film

5. vein of stars by the flaming lips

back in 2014, i watched a very beloved streamer play a game called “space engine”, in which you explore as much of the universe as we’ve theorized to exist. this was a little before copyright laws got so fucking strict on youtube and twitch, so mr. vinny vinesauce could play any music he wanted while planet-hopping. one of those songs was vein of stars, and it’s been one of my absolute favorites ever since.

the flaming lips are definitely an acquired taste. wayne coyne does Not have a very good voice and it can get extremely grating, especially to someone who hasn't heard them before. but when it works, god it works. this song is so pretty and nostalgic to me, always calms me down whenever i’m In A Mood. it’s nihilistic but not in a depressing way, more like “yeah maybe we aren’t here for any particular reason, maybe there’s nothing after this life. there’s nothing we can do about that, so why worry?”. very peaceful. REQUIRED listening when stargazing

6. good old-fashioned lover boy by queen

one of the first songs i ever truly hyperfixated on. unfortunately i listened to it SO fucking much it kind of ruined it for me, but i still do really love it. i may not listen to it that often anymore but i felt obligated to put it here bc it had a Profound Effect on my developing brain

7. too much time by john vanderslice

the year is 2012 and you're halfway through the newest episode of the hit podcast welcome to nightvale. cecil announces the weather. little do you know that you will carry the next 3 and a half minutes with you for the rest of your life. this one is just absurdly nostalgic to me (and not to mention incredibly vash the stampede coded). beloved song!!!

8. waltz for zizi & the real folk blues by the seatbelts & mai yamane

well it’s no secret that i think cowboy bebop has the greatest anime soundtrack of all time and one of THE greatest soundtracks of all time Ever. this is just an objective fact actually.

i believe this is because the seatbelts and specifically the composer yoko kanno studied real jazz, blues, and bebop to make the ost. like it's not just "jazz-flavored", there is genuine, deep respect and you can hear it in every single track. waltz for zizi gives me physical goosebumps every single time i listen to it, it's absolutely perfect. i've made it a ritual to listen to every time i visit the shore at night and go stargazing. sincerely transcendent experience

9. cuckoo song by cosmo sheldrake

hhhhhrrr this entire fucking albummmm hhhhhhhrhhhhrhhhaauuuuUUUUOOOGHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHH!!! AHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!

back during my final semesters of college, i had to take a course for art degree seniors. we’d pick something we were passionate about, make art for it, and it would be hung up for a week in the exhibition room. i chose birds of course, but wake-up calls inspired me to shift that choice to something more important than just random funny bird drawings. i focused on bird species that have gone extinct within the last 60 years because wake-up calls is made almost entirely out of endangered bird songs.

i’ll be honest i can barely listen to this song or anything on the album because i WILL literally start sobbing like in real life. cuckoo song in particular just makes me start crying every single time i listen to it, it’s like a magic spell. it’s not even necessarily sad but just viscerally bittersweet. the art for the album is made by flora wallace. here’s the spotify canvas i made a gif just for you 👍

10. take you back by orville peck

and finally………….. the song that made me realize that i actually DO love real country music a lot, and that the derivative “bro country” sub-genre that developed in the early 2000s has absolutely destroyed any positive opinion of country music in society. we NEED to go back, and orville peck is more than doing his part. this is the first song i ever heard by him and it's just so goddamn fun. i am completely unable to not sing along to this when it comes on

not only do i highly recommend orville peck but also any country music from the 50s and 60s, especially marty robbins, charley pride, conway twitty, and of course mrs. dolly parton. and later country rock/folk rock bands like america and creedence clearwater revival. it’s SO good i’m so serious

orville peck is the only modern country singer i can think of who's not afraid to bring back the harmonicas and whistling and steel guitars and whip cracks and yeehaws. it's fantastic. he's also gay and an outspoken trans ally. i believe this gives him the power to revive country music from the dead 🙏

[jackiestarsister]

OUAT Rewatch: Season 4

Episode 4x01 “A Tale of Two Sisters”

~ While the inclusion of Frozen may have been a questionable direction overall, there is no denying the brilliant casting and in-character writing of Elsa and Anna. Kristoff, though, is underwhelming.

~ Regina’s light-colored outfit suggests that she is still ultimately good.

~ Regina and Robin having their conversation in the same room where they were so romantic and intimate two episodes ago is so awkward and sad.

~ I like Belle’s yellow dress in this episode much more than the one she wore when first introduced!

~ It seems that Gold gave Belle the dagger before they began their honeymoon, possibly before they even consummated their marriage. His actions in this episode seem to ring true for the image of him being “addicted” to magic, trying to quit and maybe succeeding for a while before giving in to temptation when presented an opportunity.

Episode 4x02 “White Out”

~ The episode starts with Anna knocking on someone’s door!

~ How do David and Kristoff know each other? Neither of them seem like the sort to travel much, and apparently there is an ocean between their lands. Did the rock trolls take Kristoff on a trip to the Enchanted Forest?

~ Henry is the Anna to Regina’s Elsa in this episode. Oddly enough, Emma seems to understand Regina’s point of view, because pushing away the people she cares about is her own tendency.

~ Emma and David’s conversation in the car is a sweet and realistic moment between them as father and daughter. And David talks about walls as they’re on their way to a literal wall!

~ Grumpy/Leroy’s assertion that Snow/Mary Margaret is now the ruler sounds kind of like fanservice, like the writers listened to fans who said that should be the case.

~ Where did Anna and David get their swords? He made it clear that swordfighting was not something he practiced; did she bring them with her while traveling?

~ For David to have such a detailed backstory with his father, it seems like it should have been mentioned at some point earlier in the show. It could have tied in with his insecurities about being a good father in the previous season—especially since he turned to secretly drinking in order to deal with his nerves, when drinking was what caused his father’s downfall.

~ Out of all the dwarves, why is Happy one of those spouting complaints?

~ Why isn’t Leroy using the blackout as an opportunity to sell the nuns’ candles, like in the blackout he caused in season 1?

~ Since Snow wasn’t really present in the previous episode and has a minimal role in this one, it’s nice to see her have an outburst and stick up for herself! They really shouldn’t be bothering her when she is getting used to caring for an infant for the first time.

~ Emma and Elsa’s level of connection is great, only it seems to escalate very quickly, along with Emma’s freezing.

~ When did Emma mention Henry to Elsa? Did they talk more between scenes?

~ Despite apparently being aware of her situation, Emma doesn’t seem very concerned about the fact that she is in danger of death. I would imagine her having more fear and concern about her family, asking Elsa to tell them that she loves them and that kind of thing.

~ After lamenting that Henry would not hug her earlier, Emma gets a hug from him in the end!

~ David saying that the people in their family “really don’t like to give up” is even more significant after seeing what he was like before he met Anna!

Episode 4x03 “Rocky Road”

~ This episode’s title is pretty apt: multiple pairs of characters are on both physical and metaphorical roads.

~ The name of Ingrid’s ice cream parlor, Any Given Sundae, is not only a pun but also refers to how she gives away Marian’s ice cream.

~ Snow and David had a court jester named Rupert?! He couldn’t have worked for them very long, since they seem to have been married for less than a year before the Dark Curse was cast.

~ Regina’s outfit and hairstyle in her first scene are way more casual than anything we’ve seen her wear before! And she’s suddenly in short sleeves though just days earlier it seemed to be winter.

~ I think Operation Mongoose and Operation Cobra together allude to “Rikki-Tikki-Tavi” by Rudyard Kipling. In that story, the hero is a mongoose and the villain is a cobra. So both names refer to Regina, first to expose her as a villain, then to prove her a hero.

~ The bird painting is funny, and in line with Mary Margaret/Snow’s interests; but how is Regina so indifferent/accepting of Snow taking over her mayoral office, like she did her kingdom?

~ If they wanted Elsa to keep a low profile, the least they could do was get her some clothes from this world. Why is her only outfit the one from the movie, when this show gives so many outfits to the other characters in each world?

~ The scene of Hans and his brothers is so horribly written; the only good thing about it is that it is short. But it could have been omitted since Kristoff recaps it to Elsa.

~ How can Granny be part of the mob blaming Elsa, after everything Red/Ruby went through? If Ruby were still in Storybrooke at this point (her absence isn’t explained until later), she and Elsa could have bonded over their experiences as magical beings whose powers are triggered/amplified by fear.

~ It’s nice to see Elsa and Kristoff interact so much, since they don’t in the movie.

~ Will Scarlet must have been in Storybrooke (or elsewhere in the Land Without Magic) for some time before this curse, if he knew that blackouts were the time for a thief to go to work.

~ What was that scene with Archie about? The decent thing for him to do in that situation would have been to offer to help Mary Margaret get the carriage into the car, and/or tell her about the danger Elsa was in from the townsfolk. It doesn’t seem to me like Snow needs to let go of her newborn; what she needs is support from other people, instead of trying to handle everything about mayorhood and motherhood herself! And they gave Archie a “Let It Go” reference?!

~ Regina and David’s words to Emma, and her saying she doesn’t feel able to save anyone, seem like telling rather than showing a conflict. There’s no real support for it onscreen.

~ Elsa and Hook’s conversation is great!

~ Ingrid does the same thing to Elsa that Cora did to Regina, framing her in order to make people turn on her so she’ll think she can never gain their trust.

~ Regina casually sending Henry to fetch something from her vault shows that they’ve come a long way from the time Henry almost got himself killed while sneaking in there.

~ Why is Emma at Granny’s at the end of the day? She seemed to be living with her parents again, not staying at the B&B. Did she go there to get dinner by herself, or to talk to someone?

~ Throughout the show, Hook and his acquaintances refer to his knack for survival, yet he has many close brushes with death. This kind of goes along with how the ticking crocodile, a symbol of inevitable death, stalks him in Peter Pan.

~ This episode has some good storylines in it, but there are extra scenes that make it feel scattered or convoluted. It could have been streamlined by deleting some scenes, like the ones about hunting for Elsa and Archie talking to Snow.

Episode 4x04 “The Apprentice”

~ Why is the Sorcerer’s Apprentice so old? Is there no way to graduate from that role?

~ If the Apprentice has faced other Dark Ones before, he should know that a sword would not kill them. So either his sword was enchanted, or it was just an act to stall him.

~ This is the second time anyone has asked Henry what he thinks about Emma’s love interests, and both times, he prioritizes her happiness over his own feelings. This is even more impressive now, since he just recently lost his father. With both Walsh and Hook, he encourages Emma to pursue love and happiness.

~ Did Henry go off somewhere else while Emma asked Hook out?

~ Anna in the flashbacks and Hook in the present both make deals that they shouldn’t with Rumplestiltskin.

~ What I want to know is, what did Emma and Hook talk about over dinner? Was he able to calm down enough to carry a normal conversation? What do they talk about when they’re not solving a mystery or handling a crisis? Evidently they enjoy each other’s company enough to want more of it, but it would be nice to see them connect when they have time and space to themselves.

~ The scene of Regina and Henry … doesn’t really make sense. It’s like they chose him at random to verbalize what Regina and the audience are thinking, and then she just dismisses it based on his young age.

~ The Storybrooke radio mentions Rip Van Winkle wanting music “to wake up to”!

~ Did Hook spend the whole night drinking and/or sleeping on the docks? Poor guy!

~ How would someone in the Enchanted Forest know the phrase “fully charged”? Did Rumplestiltskin have foreknowledge of this world’s technology?

~ The fact that Henry doesn’t simply ask Gold directly about the Author suggests that he does not actually trust him.

Episode 4x05 “Breaking Glass”

~ Is Emma the judge and jury for all criminals in Storybrooke? It’s a bit autocratic for her to be the one person to decide someone’s sentence, and for it to be so arbitrary.

~ When Hook says he is taking Henry sailing, he obviously doesn’t mean the Jolly Roger since he no longer has it. What kind of craft do they sail instead, and to whom does it belong?

~ I’m glad to see they at least got Elsa a decent cloak … or maybe she made it for herself with her magic, since it’s the same style as her signature dress.

~ “You screw someone over, there’s no getting them back.” This sounds contrary to some of Emma’s experience: she and Hook ended up together despite all the times they betrayed each other.

~ When did Regina and Robin have time for someone to take their picture?!

~ Josh Dallas’ character mentioning Asgard offhandedly is hilarious, since he played Fandral in Thor!

~ This episode almost feels like Frozen II in that most of the characters end up lost in the woods.

~ Lily soliciting that promise from Emma feels pretty contrived, considering they’ve only known each other for about a day. I guess the reasoning behind it was that Lily didn’t want Emma to think badly of her if they were caught and her secret was revealed.

~ “I’m going to build a snowman” never sounded so ominous!

~ It makes sense for Snow to suspect that David set up an adventure for her, because that’s exactly what he did in Episode 3x2.

~ Regina says “before it’s actually winter,” but it seemed like they were in winter just a few weeks earlier.

~ It’s great to see Sidney finally stand up to Regina’s abuse, but it happens at the least convenient time for Emma!

~ How is Elsa able to break her chains of fear so easily?

~ Part of what I dislike about Emma’s backstory with Lily is that it kind of lessens the importance/impact of her backstory with Neal. It means that Lily was the first person she was on the run with and who let her down, rather than Neal.

~ Force choking? Really?

~ It’s a bit odd that Regina’s bad feelings toward Emma are now fixated on Marian, when she had plenty of grievances prior to that.

~ What Elsa says to Emma about never giving up on people sounds like how Hook never gave up on Emma despite her friendzoning him and trying to leave.

~ “I don’t want to kill you.” “See? That’s a start.” That’s actually a great bit of dialogue, only it might have done better for an enemies-to-lovers storyline like Emma and Hook’s.

~ When did Emma learn about Will’s escape, and how did she react? I’m guessing David probably told her via text or phone call.

~ Why does Emma have her box of childhood belongings at the sheriff’s station? Is the loft too crowded with Elsa staying there? Where was the box when Emma was on the run with Neal and serving time in Phoenix? Did she bring it with her to New York, or did it disappear and reappear with the curses?

~ “Reflective today, are we?” is more true than Hook realizes, considering the mirrors in this episode!

~ (Spoiler:) “I’d love to know more about your beginnings" is funny when you know the name of their song in the musical episode!

Episode 4x06 “Family Business”

~ David said they searched Ingrid’s business and home. If Ingrid wanted Emma to find that file, why didn’t she simply leave it in her home so they would find it sooner?

~ That lacy version of Belle’s blue and white outfit is so pretty!

~ Belle is doing the same thing to Elsa about Anna that Hook did to Ariel about Eric in Episode 3x17, withholding information about a newcomer’s missing loved one because they are ashamed of what they did to them.

~ Anna’s suspicion of Ingrid is similar to Amethyst’s suspicion of Bismuth in Steven Universe: they both question why a long-lost relative was never mentioned by their family’s leader.

~ It’s a little odd how various princesses in this show meet and become friends without ever mentioning to each other that they are princesses!

~ It seems that Belle learned about Rumplestiltskin’s existence and power from Anna, but Anna did not reveal his name, so Belle “did some reading” and learned more about him before returning to her home.

~ In the scene where Belle pulls out Rumple’s (fake) dagger, her scarf has a pattern of daggers printed on it!

~ Emma saying that the longest she ever stayed in a foster home was six months contradicts what she said in Episode 3x05 about counting the days in each new home until it seemed pointless.

~ Looks like Emma has had fair artistic abilities since she was a kid. Does that make art something she had in common with Milah and Baelfire/Neal?

~ Did Emma start her file of Henry’s projects in Storybrooke, or during their time in New York? The latter would probably make more sense, but the former would have been a huge sign of growth in her relationship with him.

~ Why does Belle not even tell Gold that she met Anna? He can probably piece it together since Belle mentions the hat, which Anna took from him.

~ Why does Belle need to go to the rock trolls in Arendelle to get her memories back? Why not find someone more local to make her a remembering potion, like the one Zelena made?

~ Watching Belle and Rumple’s scenes when she is so emotional and trusting of him is downright painful.

~ How could that heraldry record exist if the royal family wiped out all records of Ingrid’s existence?

~ Hearing Ingrid’s plan laid out at the end really makes her seem like a psychopath. Is she supposed to be mentally ill, like a stalker going after someone they’re convinced they are in love with?

Episode 4x07 “The Snow Queen”

~ The opening flashback is way too saccharine, and the dialogue in the second half is way too fast.

~ Is Regina’s vault just open for anyone to walk into?

~ What went wrong with Emma and Elsa testing the candle? Did they mean to neutralize Elsa’s powers as a test?

~ It’s canon that Emma babysits her brother!

~ I love that the local/OG princesses—Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and Cinderella—are all in the same mother-baby group! And I love Aurora’s modern outfit!

~ Ashley making a joke out of the “Cinderella” story is a bit odd since Rumplestiltskin was the one who served the role of fairy godmother. Did she even have a pumpkin carriage?

~ The dialogue and drama in that scene is just so contrived. Up to this point, Emma hasn’t expressed anything like jealousy or anger toward her parents for wanting/having another kid. It seems random for it to come out now, without any prior setup.

~ Emma telling Elsa not to let emotions get the better of her, when she is about to do just that …

~ Emma jokingly/casually calling Ingrid “sister” really isn’t appropriate given the context!

~ I love the scene with Regina and Henry, but why has it taken this many episodes for him to begin his job in Gold’s shop?

~ Emma says her family spans three generations in 400 years. Where does that number come from?

~ David and Hook look at each other as they reach the same conclusion and realize the danger Emma is in. Like in “White Out,” they are on the same page when it comes to Emma’s safety.

~ Robin Hood missing his target? Even if it’s darts instead of archery, that’s hard to believe!

~ Robin and Will’s conversation is … interesting. It sounds like it could fit multiple characters and relationships in the show, which makes me wonder how much it needed to be them.

~ The story of how Robin and Marian met sounds like it could have been its own flashback episode.

~ Gold shows a lot of trust in Henry’s self-control. Putting that particular kid in a shop full of magical items is like having an ordinary kid watch over a candy shop!

~ Young Ingrid’s fear of hurting others doesn’t hold as much weight as Elsa’s. Ingrid is only shown losing control when a bad person was threatening her loved ones; it was self-defense. Elsa on the other hand hurt her sister because they were careless while playing.

~ Did Emma even realize that she was trapped inside the sheriff’s station? Did she not hear the others calling out to her? And why was she left to interrogate Ingrid alone, without any other witnesses or magical backup?

~ Ingrid taunting Emma is totally like Satan, playing on people’s deepest insecurities, talking them into despair. Her words are probably things Emma has thought herself, only she might not have let herself dwell on them.

~ Emma’s internal, emotional conflict about struggling to control her magic seems to come out of nowhere. She and the other characters have talked about her need to learn more about it and/or embrace it, but that has usually been about her underutilizing it, not being able to tap into it. There has been little to no setup to establish her not being able to keep it in check.

~ David pushes Hook out of harm’s way! But Snow … how could you say “Emma” in such a “how could you” tone?

~ Why is young Ingrid dressed in that over-the-top sparkly outfit in this flashback? It visually conveys her ice magic, but at that point she is still trying to suppress her powers.

~ Ingrid barely displayed any of her magic in front of Wesselton. Why does he automatically assume everyone would hate her for her magic? Do they not have any good practitioners of it in Arendelle or the surrounding lands?

~ Helga’s end is pretty horrifying. Is it supposed to have happened more quickly than Anna’s freezing because Ingrid’s powers are greater?

~ How can Gerda suddenly slap such a dehumanizing label as “monster” on Ingrid? She must realize that it was not ill will that caused the accident. Maybe Ingrid giving up the ribbons made her think Ingrid did not care as much about their bond as she once did?

~ Overall, the relationships between sisters in this show—mostly Ingrid, Helga and Gerda, but also Elsa and Anna, and Zelena and Regina—feel shallow, like they were written by men who don’t really understand the dynamics of sisterhood.

~ Robin’s conclusion, and his decision to throw his morals to the wind and go to Regina, doesn’t really make sense.

~ That shot of Ingrid admiring her magic mirror—or admiring her reflection in it, I can’t tell—isn’t needed. It would have been a more fitting transition to show Emma alone and guilty, then cut to young Ingrid alone and guilty.

~ What does “we’ve looked everywhere” mean? Even for a small town, that would be difficult to achieve and would require a coordinated search with many people.

~ This whole episode feels somewhat haphazard. Then again, so does this half of this season.

~ The absence of the usual supporting/minor characters is also noticeable. Why doesn’t Archie offer his services to help Emma work through her sudden fear of her powers?

Episode 4x08 “Smash the Mirror – Part 1”

~ It makes sense for Henry to be the one to approach Emma, have no fear of her, and even deny the significance of any injury she causes. But him running away without a word doesn’t sit right; he would have at least said something like “I’m not giving up on you.”

~ Why couldn’t Emma ask Gold for something like the cuff that neutralizes one’s magic temporarily? That would be a much better way, since she does occasionally (but with increasing frequency) need her powers in order to protect her loved ones and defeat her enemies.

~ Even if she trusts Gold now due to him being Henry’s grandfather, Emma should know better than to think he would help her without asking something in return.

~ Why is Elsa wearing her gloves (apparently given to Ingrid by Rumplestiltskin) in these flashbacks? She didn’t have them in the earlier ones.

~ Cool use of the broken mirror in the cinematography, having Anna and Elsa appear in different pieces of the glass.

~ Why is frozen Hans still intact, whereas frozen Helga disintegrated?

~ This is the second time Robin has mentioned Friar Tuck. I want to see this Merry Man! On that note: Sundays would be the least likely day of the week for a Christian to be sober, since Sunday is a day of celebration like Easter; even people who are fasting may break their fast on that day.

~ Did Hook ride in the back of David’s pickup truck while they searched for Emma? That’s kind of amusing to imagine!

~ David couldn’t have taken that picture, because he’s in it!

~ Is “Anton the Giant” an homage to Andre the Giant? If so, I approve!

~ While Emma is trying to get rid of her powers, Henry bemoans the fact that he has none. He really should have had a larger role in trying to convince her to embrace her magic rather than run from it; that has been his role ever since he came into her life.

~ What kind of queen has to sneak around her own castle? Does Elsa not have as much political/legal power as Ingrid now?

~ Hook’s phone message scene is heartbreaking, in the best way possible! His emotions are so raw, yet his integrity and good heart shine through. And I loved the way his music theme played at the end as he realizes where he has to go!

Episode 4x09 “Smash the Mirror – Part 2”

~ Does Elsa just walk in those high heels everywhere? Even over a distance most others would drive?

~ Snow and Regina’s conversation is interesting, but it feels wrong for them to be discussing that when they should be urgently searching for Emma.

~ “If you do good hoping to be redeemed, is it really good?” That’s a very good question, probably one of the better points of reflection in this show!

~ Of course Will “gets” the Evil Queen type!

~ Gold and Emma’s scene is fascinating, but also painful to watch. There’s so much vulnerability but also so much manipulation. They are much like Pan and Henry in season 3, with the villain trying to convince the hero to give up their power to them. Gold seems to be making a confession to Emma, since he thinks she won’t be around much longer. Emma actually thanks him, something she’s never done before.

~ The scene of Elsa talking down Emma and explaining the necessity of self-love is so beautiful and powerful.

~ It’s great to see Elsa being proactive and heroic, rather than just being the cause of a crisis as in Frozen and the first few episodes of this season.

~ “I’ll take that risk if you will.” That scene has way more sisterly love than all the mentions of “my sister” between the Arendellian royals.

~ This is the second time Rumple attempts to take Killian’s heart; the first time, Milah stopped him. He also experienced Cora controlling him via his heart.

~ I don’t really buy the worldbuilding they tried to make around the storybook, but Robin and Regina’s scene in the library is quite good, especially as she says she owes Snow a quarter!

~ Emma’s smile after she makes the fireworks is so sweet: she’s proud that she was able to use her magic that way! That’s a great shot of the five of them looking up at the fireworks. The only odd thing is that Emma does not notice Hook’s absence from that lineup.

~ How could the Sorcerer’s Apprentice just conjure a doorway to the Land Without Magic? If it were that easy, why did it take Rumplestiltskin centuries to create a Dark Curse for the same purpose?

Episode 4x10 “Fall”

~ A whole episode is a pretty long time between a curse being enacted and taking effect, especially since they keep looking at the coming cloud.

~ It’s a small thing, but I like how Emma delegates everyone’s tasks, and finds one for Hook that is suited to his area of expertise.

~ What was it that caused Arendelle to thaw out in the present day, after being frozen for 30 years?

~ Gold’s words about choosing himself over everyone else sounds exactly like Hook’s attitude up until the end of season 2. That probably makes it even more detestable to Hook, because it reminds him of how he used to be.

~ This episode totally rehashes the stakes and twist of the season 2 finale, where the heroes have to decide whether to risk the town to save one person, and someone does a sleight-of-hand/bait-and-switch passing off an empty pouch while withholding the item that their fates depend on.

~ Shouldn’t Tinker Bell be among the fairies? She was in Storybrooke after the second curse, and after that no one could leave due to the flying monkeys. There was only a small window of time between Zelena’s defeat and the appearance of the ice wall; might she have left Storybrooke then to take her chances in the Land Without Magic?

~ Hiding and crawling on her hands and knees seems unbecoming of the Blue Fairy. Even if her magic is not comparable to that of the hat, I would at least expect her to fight in defense of her fairies. As Mother Superior, the other nuns are her spiritual daughters.

~ Hook feels so guilty and ashamed of doing that to the fairies and having to hide it from Emma!

~ Hook is so genuinely indignant and disgusted with Gold for Belle’s sake, seeing how dishonest he is with his loving wife. I think it may point to their different priorities: Hook is self-sacrificing and would choose love over power any day, whereas Gold either chooses power over love, or tries (and fails) to have both.

~ Gold explicitly goes against his own advice to Regina in Episode 2x17, that “You can’t have everything.”

~ Snow’s “both of you” means she was addressing both Emma and Elsa about their magic!

~ When told that he is going to die, Hook’s last voluntary action is to see Emma again!

~ Regina telling Henry “I wish I was as brave as you” is beautiful!

~ If Regina really wanted to keep herself contained for others’ safety, her vault would not be the best place, as she would be surrounded by powerful objects there that she could then use to free herself and harm others.

~ That montage at the end, showing the various ensemble characters waiting/watching in different places, is great!

Episode 4x11 “Shattered Sight”

~ They completely gloss over the fact that Ingrid made a life for herself in the Land Without Magic. What was it like for her to finally be like other people, without the powers she had feared for so long? And why did she expect Emma’s magic to come out in such a land?

~ In a show where the power of love is so often the solution to problems, it seems dissonant for the heroes to seek out strong hatred as a means to counteract such magic.

~ Emma compares her relationship with Hook to the relationship Regina could have had with Robin!

~ Hook’s fall is so fake!

~ Even while under the Shattered Sight spell, Mary Margaret and David still love their baby!

~ Did the sorcerer’s scroll allow Ingrid to get past Storybrooke’s magical protection?

~ One of the biggest plot holes: Why did Ingrid wait so long after Emma came to Storybrooke before enacting her plan?

~ Is David still trying to help Mary Margaret when she fights Regina?

~ That letter is waaay too long and too neatly written for Gerda to have drafted it in that scene of the storm at sea.

~ The role Anna plays in this climax is similar to that of Frozen: when the magical sister cannot stop the storm, she comes in and risks her own life to show love.

~ The fact that the spell can only be broken by killing the person who cast it … just doesn’t sound or feel right for this show. Ingrid’s death is completely unnecessary, and even contradictory, from a thematic standpoint.

~ Ingrid’s “conversion” moment and her decision to reverse the spell are way too rushed.

~ The fact that Snow White and the Evil Queen can laugh at themselves for fighting each other is pretty remarkable, considering their history.

~ The reunion scene is lovely, but why doesn’t Emma think of Hook? The last she knew, he was going to chain himself to the docks; shouldn’t she think to check on him?

~ Did Belle just sleep through the entire spell?

~ Gold’s parting words to Hook make him realize just how terrible a scourge the Dark One would be on that world.

Episode 4x12 “Heroes and Villains”

~ Emma sounds like a Jedi saying “I sense …”

~ Regina is back to wearing vivid primary colors! I love her blue coat and cable-knit sweater.

~ When has Marian had time, since waking up, to see the way Robin and Regina look at one another?

~ Hook speaks as though he believes in reincarnation, while Gold alludes to Hell and/or the Underworld.

~ Is that a Winnie-the-Pooh bear that Henry picks up in Gold’s shop?

~ Why did Henry bring the book to Gold’s shop, other than to remind the audience of Operation Mongoose? Was he finally going to ask Gold directly about how it works? That interaction with Belle really feels like it doesn’t have any foundation.

~ An animal leading a heroine off the path, into the woods, feels very fairy tale-esque.

~ Emma’s surprise at Hook makes sense: while he is resourceful, magic is not his area of expertise, and the idea of Gold helping his old enemy without a price is bizarre.

~ Hook wants so much to warn Emma, or just to hold her one last time, he manages to squeeze her hand despite Gold controlling his words and most of his actions!

~ When Rumplestiltskin looks for Belle in the flashbacks, was that the first time he called her by name? And was that message in the shell the first time she called him “Rumple”?

~ This probably wasn’t intentional, but Rumplestiltskin’s outfit in this episode is similar to Hook’s old style, with a black coat and red vest.

~ Until now, Gold and Regina have hardly seen each other this season! They’ve had maybe one scene where they were in the same place with a bunch of other people, but this is their first one-on-one. It may have been primarily to find out why Henry was snooping in his shop, but it also seems evidence that on some level he truly cares about Henry and Regina. That hand squeeze at the end is sweet.

~ Gold’s hubris is on full display in his monologue to Regina.

~ How can Robin leave behind his Merry Men? Are they disbanded now? The Sheriff of Nottingham is in Storybrooke, but are there poor people to steal for? Would Emma let them?

~ Regina ripping up the page underscores her despair of her happiness. Yet, she still chooses to do the good/right thing. Her willingness to do what’s right despite still having a “villain’s fate” may make her one of the most heroic characters in this show.

~ Cruella being in the Enchanted Forest and allied with Maleficent and Ursula makes no sense whatsoever. She came from a 20th-century Land Without Magic, not a magical medieval land.

~ “If anyone’s going to crush your heart, it’s gonna be me.” Such sad foreshadowing!

~ Emma should be thanking Elsa, not just the other way around! Elsa helped her learn to love herself and embrace what makes her unique.

~ Rumple/Gold did choose Belle over power when he exchanged the gauntlet for her.

~ Gold is left in a pretty pathetic condition, without even a cane to support his now-returned limp.

~ The “chocolate” in unison is a cute tribute to Frozen, but feels out of place in that conversation.

~ It seems strange for Anna to be wearing gloves as part of her outfit. They’re a symbol of Elsa’s repression, and Anna has always been openhearted.

~ They cut from a wedding to Emma restoring Hook’s heart!

~ Considering how much time was spent on Gold having Hook’s heart and planning to kill him, and what a big deal Emma made about the possibility of losing him, their recovery of his heart and their reunion kiss are way too fast. And how can Emma leave him behind so quickly to hang out with Regina and Henry?

~ If Emma truly believes that “everyone deserves their happy ending,” why did she just toast Gold’s misery?

~ I imagine Henry, inspired by movies like Young Frankenstein, must have tried turning every sconce in the manor in order to find the secret passage!

~ How could the fairy-tale characters be aware of their being in stories in a book, even as their stories were still unfolding?

Episode 4x13 “Darkness on the Edge of Town”

~ I really don’t like how the characters suddenly own up to labels of “villain.” It would make more sense, and not change the script much, if they instead said “people consider us villains.”

~ Throughout the show, it seems as though the writers reinforce the labels of “hero” and “villain” even as they try to transcend them. It’s confusing and inconsistent.

~ The montage at the start of this episode is a nice way to show what the characters have been up to during the six-week time jump. This, apparently, is when Regina and Snow go back to being mayor and teacher respectively.

~ I wish more of the show took place during periods of peace, just showing the characters’ lives and mini-adventures when they aren’t being threatened by “big bad” villains.

~ Where is David in the first half of this episode? He’s the only main character not shown in the opening montage. If he’s not working for the sheriff’s department or taking care of baby Neal, how is he spending his time?

~ While I like both scenes, there isn’t much emotional transition from the peace and happiness of the montage to Hook’s intense frustration in the following scene.

~ While some parts could have been better written, I really like that Hook and Belle have a scene together, talking about the guilt they feel in connection to Rumple/Gold. Despite their messy histories, they’ve actually become friends, who understand and encourage each other.

~ What does Belle think Gold could possibly have found, after being stripped away from her and from his power?

~ That scene of Rumple and the trifecta was really unnecessary. No new information was given, nothing developed in the plot or relationships.

~ After all that talk about needing a translation, Regina doesn’t even speak any incantation. And why is she trembling so much while clutching the Dark One dagger afterwards?

~ How do none of them notice the dark thing that comes out of the hat/box?

~ This episode suggests that Rumple didn’t make the Dark Curse himself, just modified one that already existed.

~ Rumple in flashbacks sounds less like his old, impish self, and more like his Gold counterpart.

~ It makes sense for Hook to be shown harboring insecurities, uncertain of whether he belongs with the “heroes,” even after the fairies are freed. While it is not resolved in this episode, it shows continuity throughout the season (and into the next two).

~ It seems a little insensitive to have the welcome-back party for the fairies in the same place where they were captured.

~ I really like Regina’s line about “what’s killing property values this time.” They’re so used to magical mayhem, it’s no longer a complete shock when something happens!

~ It is funny, and fitting, that they all have their roles figured out for when crisis strikes. Mary Margaret’s line about “getting everyone to safety” makes me wonder if they have actual evacuation plans in case of emergencies.

~ Why was Ursula needed for Rumple’s heist? Just to reach over a distance with her tentacles?

~ Trust is a big theme in this episode, but it’s murky when the villains are the ones throwing the word around. Emma also says “Trust me” to both Hook and Regina.

~ There should be some kind of system or protocol for when a “villain” wants to enter Storybrooke. No one is really held accountable for their past crimes, and there could be people already in town who have history with newcomers. Maybe there could be some sort of probation process?

~ Mary Margaret’s lines at the end of the episode are blatantly out-of-character. I know that’s the point, but … come on.

Episode 4x14 “Unforgiven”

~ I can’t decide what’s more OOC for Snow and David: the fact that they did something horrible in the first place, or the fact that they are so focused on hiding it afterwards.

~ I don’t like it when drama is pinned on characters hiding some secret, and there is too much of that going on here.

~ Flashback Snow and David already show their willingness to compromise their values, when they don’t do anything about Maleficent killing those guards.

~ Hook is so sweet and supportive, bringing Emma the lunch she was craving! Oddly, their music theme plays over the ending of the scene, when they’re in an awkward stalemate over him not wanting to share about his past with Ursula.

~ Honestly, given Hook’s reputation and his evasiveness on the subject, I’d expect Emma to suspect him of having a romantic history with Ursula sooner.

~ “Is this really the right thing to do?” David’s response doesn’t actually answer the question. Keeping the truth from Emma is their goal, and may be in their best interests, but that doesn’t mean it’s the right thing to do. And Snow asks another version of the very same question in the next scene.

~ Regina and Marco’s scenes are great! It’s a wonder that she hasn’t had more interactions like that with the various townspeople. And when she apologizes, showing empathy and humility, she receives kindness and encouragement in return, just like a heroic protagonist would.

~ Does Belle now run both the library and the pawnshop? How does she balance both jobs? And why would she keep the pawnshop running? I can understand having a sort of custodian since it’s full of magical objects, but aren’t many of them really the belongings of other people in the town?

~ It’s great to see Belle immediately assert herself when her former enemies show up! She wants so much not to be a pushover. I just wish she succeeded more often, instead of so easily being hoodwinked by other characters.

~ I’m not a fan of the whole trope of the heroes playing into the villains’ hands through an elaborate ruse. In this case, Cruella had no guarantee that David would search her car, find the trinket, and decide to go after Maleficent’s ashes.

~ “I only care about one thing: your pain.” The following episodes disprove this.

~ Emma shows a lot of maturity and growth in her second scene with Hook. It’s heartbreaking that that newfound optimism and confidence in her loved ones is what prompts her parents to persist in lying to her, in order to preserve that image.

~ Mary Margaret’s voiceover monologue overlapping scenes of various other characters feels like one of Jenny Lee’s voiceovers in Call the Midwife.

~ Where the heck did Belle and Will’s romance come from? The only time they saw each other onscreen before this was when she found him passed out in the library. And how can she be so quick to open herself to a new relationship after her short-lived marriage to Gold?

~ Mary Margaret asking Regina to keep a secret from Emma could have been a real test of friendship and integrity, but it doesn’t really amount to anything over the later episodes.

Episode 4x15 “Enter the Dragon”

~ The timeline of this episode does not fit with what Aurora described in Episode 2x01.

~ Does Storybrooke have its own railway system? Or did Cruella drive them somewhere outside the town to find that train crossing?

~ The whole test seems like something out of Rebel Without a Cause.

~ It’s interesting to see Regina have a “never meet your heroes” storyline with Maleficent in the flashbacks. Usually that kind of interaction is used for heroic characters who need to be called back into a fight.

~ The question that seems to be emerging from this half-season is: How far are the characters willing to compromise their values in order to preserve their reputation (either for good or for evil)? Snow and David cross lines in order to protect Emma’s goodness and their own image; and Regina goes along with the witches’ schemes, even going so far as to kidnap Pinocchio, in order to maintain trust with them.

~ Did King Stephen not recognize Regina as King Leopold’s wife?

~ It’s interesting that Gold uses a ruse that relies on Belle trusting Hook, who he hates. It’s so sad to see Gold take advantage of their newfound friendship.

~ I wonder if Gold/Rumple impersonating Hook is meant to show how similar they are. The cinematography cutting between the two of them is great, conveying the transformation without any special effects.

~ Gold (disguised as Hook) and Belle echo the vow they made when she agreed to stay with him: “You have my word” / “You have mine.”

Episode 4x16 “Poor Unfortunate Soul”

~ This show basically splits the (back)story of The Little Mermaid in half, giving the romance to Ariel and the father-daughter/human-merpeople conflict to Ursula. It’s interesting that Hook betrays both of them in some way, but reconciles with them later.

~ It seems that Hook and his crew didn’t just stay in Neverland for however many years; Pan allowed them to leave in order to pick up supplies for him.

~ Hook is justifiably angry about how Gold used his likeness and deceived Belle.

~ (Spoiler alert:) The episode drops the first hints that either Hook or Emma could become the Dark One!

~ I LOVE the version of “Fathoms Below” that Ursula sings! As fun as it is in its sea shanty version, it sounds beautiful as a ballad, and could even be a lullaby.

~ It took me a long time to figure out that Hook finding the Jolly Roger in a bottle was a nod to Jack Sparrow finding the Black Pearl in a similar condition! I guess that’s what happens when Blackbeard takes over your ship.

~ You can see the shift in young Ursula’s demeanor when she and Hook strike a new, less charitable bargain.

~ Hook’s decision to take Ursula’s voice … doesn’t really make sense.

~ Snow White pulled a Rapunzel, using a frying pan to knock out Cruella!

~ Emma looks at Hook with such pride, like, “You did that! You caused a happy ending!”

~ Hook’s final conversation with Emma is so beautiful! He is still full of insecurities about his past, his hero/villain identity, and his future. Him telling Emma that she is his happy ending is just like Flynn Rider telling Rapunzel that she is his new dream. For as long as it takes Emma and Hook to say “I love you,” they find many other wonderful ways to make their feelings clear to each other.

~ If Ursula and Ariel never met, how did Ursula gain her reputation as a villain? Did she ever actually do anything bad?

~ Does Ursula keep her tentacles, or return to a mermaid tail after reconciling with her father?

Episode 4x17 “Best Laid Plans”

~ This is the episode that is most self-contradictory about the theme of free will.

~ The fact that Snow refers to their child as “it” instead of “she,” even after seeing that the baby will be a girl, is very telling.

~ Parents afraid of their child growing up to be a threat to them is very mythical. In Greek mythology this happens with Ouranos, Kronos, and Zeus, as well as Laius, the father of Oedipus.

~ Putting a whole town under a sleeping curse seems to be Maleficent’s MO

~ What makes Isaac’s introduction so convincing is that he seems to serve the kind of role that is typical of folk tales and episodes alike: the guide providing exposition and offering advice to the protagonist(s).

~ “We’ve gone too far own this path.” = The rationale for most characters who start down a dark path and persist because they think the can’t go back.

~ How did they not see any potential danger in banishing darkness into the offspring of a villain/part-time monster? Wouldn’t that make them an even more dangerous threat?

~ Maleficent is far too nice in this show. She’s supposed to be the mistress of all evil, but she seems like a softie.

~ I find it hard to believe Maleficent couldn’t overpower Snow and Charming as they fled. And why would she not go after them during the months remaining before the Dark Curse was cast?

~ Gold and Belle’s scene is so bittersweet. What else does Gold refer to as “changing”?

~ Although they throw around semi-religious terms rather clumsily, the scene of Snow and Charming resolving to do better in the future is pretty beautiful.

~ It’s nice to see Mary Margaret acknowledge that Regina is becoming their friend. That has been increasingly evident this season, mostly in small moments like that one.

~ How long was that sleeping spell in effect? Did David and Mary Margaret come home to find Emma asleep on top of Hook?

~ Mary Margaret saying “I’m your mother” is kind of out of nowhere.

~ Even though it’s a small thing, it’s nice to see Hook have an arc of accepting August as Emma’s friend. Being comfortable with your significant other having friends of the opposite sex shows trust and maturity.

~ Is no one concerned about Regina apparently missing? And where is Henry when his grandparents come clean?

~ Why are none of the Authors that August alludes to female? They could have easily included Scheherazade, which would have provided a connection to Aladdin and the other Arabian Nights tales.

~ Apparently despite all the time they’ve spent looking for the Author, none of the heroic protagonists considered that he might have his own agenda, and that it might not align with theirs.

Episode 4x18 “Heart of Gold”

~ A title with multiple meanings—I like it!

~ This is the first episode that really focuses on Robin Hood as a protagonist, apart from Belle, Baelfire/Neal, or Regina (though she is still very much present in his thoughts). I wish we got to see more of him in action like this.

~ How would Marian have known so much about Baelfire?

~ For all that I dislike about this episode, Robin Hood chasing a thief on horseback down the streets of New York is pretty hilarious!

~ Apparently Robin knows this world’s emergency procedure: call 911. Maybe he learned this when they brought Little John to the hospital in Storybrooke?

~ Robin and Will met in Oz? Just how many lands/realms/worlds did Will traverse? If Robin’s mission were in Wonderland that would make more sense.

~ Walsh turns out to be relevant for something! And there’s a Hidden Mickey in his drawer!

~ Perhaps the biggest plot hole: Why did Zelena’s shapeshifting stay intact when they left Storybrooke and entered the Land Without Magic? That lifted the impact of the Snow Queen’s magic.

~ Zelena is basically playing the same role that Walsh did, trying to ensnare a hero into a false marriage.

~ Will’s backstory is kind of huge, and his words, “Doesn’t seem fair to ask somebody for their heart until I can fix me own,” holds a lot of truth; yet they seem to gloss over it.

~ I totally thought Will was playing up the nice act and trying to pick Robin’s pocket; having Robin instead slip the potion to him is a good twist!

~ The Genie poster for Aladdin is visible behind Robin outside the hospital!

~ The scene of Robin and Gold outside the hospital starts out so sweet and sincere, but then becomes so twisted and manipulative. Gold’s advice sounds like it would actually be good in real life, but he’s using it to play into Zelena’s deception.

~ Robin doesn’t really make the distinction that he only steals from the corrupt, unjustly wealthy. The way he talks about stealing for yourself or for others makes it sound like any kind of thievery done for others is morally justified. That could be taken in dangerous directions.

~ The real Marian is so sweet and supportive when Robin becomes an outlaw! No wonder he was so surprised by her apparent reaction to his behavior in New York.

~ There is a very plausible reason for Robin to have Regina’s number: she helped them get their start in New York, and she could help them again if they were ever in need.

~ Does Robin find a way to make a living in the modern world? What jobs would he qualify for, outside of crime?

~ Regina being protective of Emma is beautiful, and a sign of true character growth. Instead of wishing for Emma to share the same horrible experiences she did, she wants to spare her from them.

Episode 4x19 “Sympathy for the De Vil”

~ I get that Gold threatened Regina’s love, but for her to take Belle’s heart, like Belle isn’t even a person with agency of her own, is such a regression back into darkness.

~ “A person obsessed with vengeance is easy to manipulate.” Gold knows this because Hook demonstrated it earlier this season.

~ It’s nice to see Emma and Regina interact as concerned friends. Emma wants to protect Regina just as much as Regina wants to protect Emma.

~ Light brown is an interesting color on Regina. It’s one of the lighter colors we’ve seen her in.

~ I like Emma’s conversation with Hook and Regina, but searching for Henry seems like an odd time for them to get on her case about forgiving her parents.

~ This whole episode seems to stigmatize mental illness. Or maybe it’s supposed to be a commentary on poor treatment? The way it’s written off at the end as Cruella just opening herself to darkness is … unsettling, and not in a good way.

Episode 4x20 “Lily”

~ Who arranged Cruella’s interment? And why is Emma just watching Gold and Isaac from a distance, neither of them hiding from the other? Are they at a stalemate in terms of power?

~ Why would the Storybrooke library have microfiche records of births in Minnesota? Or did Lily enter this world closer to Maine, like Emma?

~ Abby Ross does a great job playing teenage Emma. It could also be a directing thing, but she seems to mimic Emma’s way of talking and moving very well.

~ Regina implicitly criticizes Snow and David for “messing with” fate, but then encourages Emma to push against fate.

~ Hook and Emma’s conversation is nicely placed at a time in between the major ups and downs of their relationship. He confirms what the audience could already deduce about how she influenced him to change.

~ I love Regina’s purple dress!

~ Emma seems to blame herself a lot for pushing Lily away, but Lily was a pretty awful friend to her.

~ Regina says she “went to the trouble to create Storybrooke.” That raises a lot of questions I’ve wondered about: how much of the town did she design, and how much was Rumplestiltskin’s handiwork?

~ It’s weird and ironic to see Regina be the one restraining Emma’s temper.

~ It feels like the show’s writers are using fate as an excuse for tropey, formulaic writing. Like, of course the wolf is fate intervening. The funny thing is how self-aware the characters are about it, even as Regina tries to deny it.

~ Lily really asked Emma to put herself in danger, approaching her gun-owning boyfriend.

~ Did that kid’s parents never warn her about strangers luring her with food? That is so creepy for Lily to do!

~ Was that even Lily’s car that Emma stole?

~ Even though Emma is mad at her parents, she still fiercely wants to protect them.

~ While the script is painfully unsubtle, Lily’s monologue raises a big real-life question: if it seems like the world is against you, and bad things happen no matter what you do, what is the point of trying to make better choices?

~ Lily’s tirade at gunpoint is confusing, like Palpatine urging Anakin or Luke to kill him. Does she really want Emma to kill her?

~ The fact that Regina gets to talk down someone about to make the same kinds of mistakes she made is beautiful.

~ Was Regina talking to Maleficent, Lily’s mother, practically standing next to her, without even telling her?

~ Emma and Regina don’t actually tell Lily that they want to introduce her to her mother. That could have changed her whole attitude toward them from the start. If she wanted to go to Storybrooke, she should have just heard them out and gone along with them.

~ Gold finally shows some contrition for deceiving Belle, and enough selflessness to let go of her and let Will take his place.

~ I don’t have words for how messed up the Robin/Zelena thing is.

Episode 4x21 “Mother”

~ Motherhood is a central theme of this entire show, but this episode zones in on it in both old and new ways: Snow reconciling with Emma, Maleficent trying to bond with Lily, Regina contending with Cora, Regina destroying her own fertility, and Zelena expecting a baby. That’s five mother-child relationships being juggled in this episode!

~ It’s interesting to see Regina at a stage on her way to becoming the Evil Queen.

~ It's so good to see Cora this season! She is my favorite OUAT villain, because she is the most frightening. She is so convincing, it's always tricky to tell when she is sincere and when she is lying or manipulating the truth.

~ Is the color yellow significant for the rose? As the Queen of Hearts, Cora would have favored red or white roses.

~ They use a forgetting potion as an easy solution for Roland, whereas when Snow White used it to forget Charming it had a huge impact on her personality. This is one example of the show losing its “All magic comes with a price” theme.

~ Bringing the Wicked Witch back to Storybrooke, where she would have more access to magic, is a questionable move. And why doesn’t that ice curse resume its course when she returns?

~ When they’re shown together, Maleficent and Lily really do resemble each other!

~ Where and when could Cora and Tinker Bell have met? That would have been an interesting interaction!

~ The Queen of Hearts and the Sheriff of Nottingham are actually allies in the Sisters Grimm books, another series that sets fairy-tale characters in a modern-day town.

~ Lily and Maleficent are oddly similar to Emma and Henry at the start of the series, except this time it’s the parent that wants the child to stay in town.

~ “Things could change in a week.” This is true: a lot can happen quickly in Storybrooke!

~ Cora and Zelena both tried to use imposture to trick someone into having a child with someone they didn’t love.

~ Snow corrects David by calling Lily “she” instead of “it,” a nice callback correcting the way they talked about her in the egg!

~ The look David and Hook exchange carries a whole conversation. “You did this, didn’t you? Thank you.” “No problem, mate.”

~ Why/how did Lily calm down enough to revert to human form?

~ Isaac is right about Regina being self-destructive, and it’s most evident in this episode! Sterilizing herself in order to keep Cora from using her (or her future child?) to get more power is so painful to see. But Regina being infertile, and immediately seeming to regret it, helps to explain why she has such a soft spot for children and tried so hard to get one of her own in earlier seasons.

~ “My happy ending is finally feeling at home in the world.” That actually sounds like every person’s happy ending, the final step in the Hero’s Journey.

~ Is Isaac just playing Regina the whole episode? Did he ever intend to help her?

~ The series really goes in the direction of the Inkheart trilogy, with the Author able to conjure or alter realities simply by writing a few sentences.

Episode 4x22 “Operation Mongoose Part 1”

~ I’m confused about Isaac’s true motives. Is he just out for himself? Does he really care who gets a happy ending?

~ The characters really can’t seem to decide whether “villains getting happy endings” is a good or bad thing.

~ The intro/teaser about Isaac becoming the Author is cool! The test to identify the Author is much like the test to identify the Avatar in The Last Airbender, which is based on the search for the Dalai Lama in real life.

~ Probably the most unrealistic aspect of the Author is how quickly he can write a bestselling novel!

~ Henry seems to be going back to his first-episode roots, running away to find his family. The only difference is that this time someone tries to call the cops on him!

~ I wonder if Isaac’s press tour event resembles actual Once Upon a Time fan events. It looks like there are Disney cosplayers in the audience, including Jack Sparrow!

~ I love Henry in this season finale! After being absent or on the sidelines for a lot of this season, he finally gets to be a protagonist and hero. I only wish there had been a little more setup for his arc.

~ I think this is Henry’s first time in the Enchanted Forest, or at least some version of it. No wonder he is so excited when he arrives!

~ What an amazing, hilarious, unexpected yet fitting callback to Henry’s famous line to Emma!

~ Dwarves serving as Black Knights is so funny and disturbing at the same time!

~ Snow’s hair looks like it might be Ginnifer Goodwin’s natural hair, only styled differently!

~ This two-part episode is basically like the show’s own fan fiction of itself, and it’s hilarious!

~ Henry refers to “his plan.” Was he the one who sent Robin to rescue Regina? Was there some deleted scene of them?

~ Was Emma really locked up for years, as Regina says? Or did she just wake up in that tower and start screaming, as shown onscreen? If it was the former, that could have had a huge toll on her mental state from then on.

Episode 4x23 “Operation Mongoose Part 2”

~ It seems that in this reality, Baelfire has been replaced by his namesake baby Neal. His presence with Belle and Rumple could also be foreshadowing of them having a baby of their own, something first hinted at by Peter Pan in season 3!

~ Isaac says Baelfire died because of Rumplestiltskin’s cowardice, but that’s not really true.

~ It’s so good to see Hook and Henry working together, Henry demonstrating how much he learned from Hook, and Hook learning about the ways of Star Wars!

~ Emma’s dress is beautiful, but way too extravagant for a prisoner.

~ “My schedule’s pretty clear.” = subtle callback to Hook telling Emma “I’ve all the time in the world” at the start of this season.

~ I hope Snow apologized to the dwarf she killed (I’m guessing Doc due to the glasses) after they returned to Storybrooke!

~ I LOVE Emma’s new Enchanted Forest outfit! Not that her dresses aren’t lovely, but the vest and pants fit her style and personality much better.

~ Even in this adventure, Emma shows hints of darkness, yelling at Grumpy and threatening him. She also shows how fiercely protective she is of Hook in that moment.

~ In the background, Hook picks up the sword and holds it up, so clumsy and uncertain, yet ready and willing to fight for Emma.

~ “Is she worth your life, pirate?” “I’m willing to find out.” That’s really been Hook’s attitude since becoming Emma’s ally at the start of season 3!

~ After all their animosity in seasons 2-3A, which gave way to friendship and alliance in seasons 3B-4, it’s strange to see Hook and David have an all-out duel.

~ I think the writers/directors specifically blocked that scene so Emma would see Hook’s face as he died!

~ Belle paraphrases Mrs. Potts in Beauty and the Beast!

~ “What does your heart tell you?” = another Star Wars reference?

~ I bet Emma has wanted to cross blades with Rumplestiltskin for a LONG time!

~ Regina choosing to protect Henry, even at the cost of her supposed happy ending, is completely in-character, yet also shows how much she has grown since the first season, where she put Henry in danger while pursuing her goal of a happy ending for herself.

~ It’s hard to believe that after everything that happened, Emma is still too afraid to tell Hook “I love you.” Colin O’Donoghue’s acting in that scene is incredible. And apparently Hook finally considers himself a hero!

~ Great lines from Snow about what makes a hero or villain!

~ “The best way to show your love for those that are gone is to tell their stories.” True words!

~ Henry is a lot like Harry Potter in his scene with the Apprentice: he wonders about the possibility of resurrecting a dead parent, and he breaks the Author’s quill the way Harry breaks the Elder Wand in the film version of Deathly Hallows. But how can he still be the Author if he does not have the quill?

~ Apparently Will is Roland’s baby-sitter! Not sure how wise that is, but it could make for fun shenanigans!

~ Why does the darkness target Regina? It can’t be because she has the greatest potential for darkness, since that was shown to be Emma earlier this season. Is it because she is now so full of light, as Henry and Emma hint?

[domsaysstuff]

Season 2 of Russian Doll Steve Harrington-centric au

I have only some vague plot and just some scenes from the show down but I'll probably never write this and I need to get this out of my head so here we go! Another Dom's au idea dump! (I missed them)

Season 4 never happened btw but 1 through 3 did, also Eddie Munson never existed in Hawkins in this AU

Steve's mother is dying, Steve's mother is dying and he wishes he could feel something other than anger about it, he wishes he could be sad because his mother is dying but she hasn't really been a mother for him for a long time now

But she's dying and Steve still feels like the lanky teenager that observed and analyzed every breath of Cynthia Harrington to know why she hasn't loved him, or moreso why she loved him and yet it wasn't enough for her to care about him

He just wishes he had something to mourn a relationship that never was

She is dying and she's reaching out to Stevie after years of not talking after he packed his bags and moved with Robin to Chicago and haven't looked back since then

She wants him to come and he thinks it's cruel of her to want him there when all she's going to do is left him one last time

He is debating with himself whether to return to Hawkins or not when he takes his morning train to work

And that's when the time fuckery starts, he like Nadia becomes his mother(because we are keeping the gender fuckery that was Alan becoming his grandmother, like Stevie is just gender™ like that) who is very much pregnant, the baby is obvs him, unborn yet and they are in New York or some big city like that (for pain it could be Chicago and maybe Steve never knew she was born in Chicago, that somehow he followed in her footsteps) because Cynthia has always been a big city girl, it was Richard Harrington that wanted to move to Hawkins, to settle down there

When he figures it out he tries to change his fate, he thinks he is here to fix things, to give himself and his mother better life, one where she was happy, one where she maybe loved him enough to care

He knows he needs to leave, he packs her bags and tries to escape by taking the train and it just takes him back

He comes back to his apartment with Robin and spills everything to her, they have survived shit™ so she believes him, but tells him to not mess with time shit but he's determined that he can just fix it, fix everything

So he goes back and finds out that Cynthia is still with her parents, still to be married to Richard, he founds out that the escape did happen but she returned when she realized she was with a baby, has no money, no other people than her family that is pushing her to marry Richard since she is already carrying his child and she's so young, barely eighteen

She chicken out, so he tries other means and somehow somewhere there as his mother he falls for Eddie Munson, Eddie who he never heard of, Eddie who his mother never spoken a word of (his mother hasn't told him many things)

So he falls for Eddie because Eddie is so kind and free and different and he loves him, god he loves him, learns about his mother's past and it's all doomed anyway because the problem of Cynthia Harrington was that she was doomed from her birth and it's the same shit as in the show that every decision that Steve makes doesn't matter, they end up exactly the same anyway

Side plot is Robin taking the train and becoming her grandma and learning her grandma was the same as her, that she was queer, that she fell in love with Vickie, she falls in love with Vickie and it's a doomed romance, she comes back to her present time and learns that Vickie died just two years after Robin/her grandma met her and she tries to prevent that, she thinks she is there to prevent that, in the end she can't, in the end Vickie dies and Robin loved her god she loved her so much

There are obvs intermissions where Stevie and Robin are in the present together and talk and scheme and try to make it all right

Stevie like Nadia steals himself as a baby because he thinks he can raise himself better, that he and Robin can do a better job and the scene where Nadia gives Alan the baby-her and says think of all the things i could be if i was raised with love and as Robin holds baby-him "just what i was talking about" because Robin loves him and he knows she will love baby-him

Also maybe the rest of the party come to Chicago at some point because they heard the news and are there to support Steve and are sucked into the chaos but also meet a random baby and as Steve sees baby-himself surrounded by the party who even tho question from where the fuck did Robin and Steve have gotten a baby are taking care of it anyway

It's just- Steve finally learning his mother, gaining knowledge why she's like that, how she was before him, that him and her are quite similar, that they both loved Eddie Munson and lost him and it will hurt them for the rest of their life, Stevie coming back to Hawkins to say goodbye to his mom

Because he wouldn't chose her to be his mother but that's how the story goes and he knows her and understands her now and they both deserve to say goodbye

[hallmarknostalgia]

Hallmark fans will likely think of When Calls the Heart first when it comes to Erin Krakow (its star and an executive producer), but she’s also all over the network’s movies, both rom-coms and Christmas. When TV Insider caught up with Krakow in April about her latest Hallmark Channel film, The Wedding Cottage, we also took the opportunity to have her reminisce on some of her past work — including the first season of the long-running drama.

“I feel like I’m really living it out with every project that [Hallmark] offers me. I’m so grateful for the characters I’ve had the pleasure of playing and that I’ve been able to executive produce on When Calls. It’d be an interesting new challenge to direct something for Hallmark maybe one day and maybe write something someday,” she told us of her Hallmark bucket list. “I don’t know. I would be curious to know what others would want to see from me if maybe there’s a different kind of character they’d be curious to see me play. But I don’t know that there’s anything that’s screaming at me right now. I’m feeling very happy and grateful with what I’ve been given.”

Scroll down for her thoughts on the Father Christmas trilogy, A Cookie Cutter Christmas, It Was Always You, and more.

Eike Schroter/Crown Media

When Calls the Heart Season 1 (2014)

“Season 1 feels like a lifetime ago and sort of just yesterday all at once. It’s this bizarre feeling. But it was a really exhausting and incredible chapter of my life. And I continue to feel so proud to be a part of When Calls the Heart and grateful that the Hearties have kept us on the air all these years, that Hallmark continues to believe in our show. Season 1, I think we filmed it in 2013, [and] it aired in 2014. It was a long time ago. And the show has changed and grown a lot since then. But looking back, I just feel a lot of pride to be a part of it.”

Alexx Henry Studios, Jeremy Lee/Crown Media

Chance at Romance (2014)

“This was my first Hallmark movie and I remember just being so overwhelmed when it was offered to me. It was such a fantastic script. Working with Ryan McPartlin was great, Patricia Richardson, these people were incredible. And then of course, our young Donny [Ian Andrew] who orchestrated the whole thing. That was a really fun project that continues to air, and I think it’s a favorite of our viewers.”

Diyah Pera/Crown Media

A Cookie Cutter Christmas (2014)

“Oh man, the late great Alan Thicke. Also super fun. What a treasure. And that was where I first met Genea Charpentier who joined us on When Calls for a while. And Jaeda Lily Miller was also in that movie as was Gracyn Shinyei. These are all some of our young talent from When Calls. So it was fun to get to work on a movie with them as well.”

Katie Yu/Crown Media

Father Christmas Trilogy (2016, 2017 & 2018)

“This is when I first worked with Terry Ingram, who directed The Wedding Cottage. He directed Finding Father Christmas. That was a great trilogy. The books were written by Robin Jones Gunn. I’m not saying that to toot my own horn, I truly felt like they had a lot of heart, and they were important stories to tell because not everyone has the cookie cutter family with the happy traditions around the holidays. And I heard from a lot of viewers that being able to see Miranda’s perspective around family and around the holidays was refreshing for them, to get to see something reflected back to them that represented their own journey. So I was proud to be a part of something a little different in that story.”

Ryan Plummer/Crown Media

A Summer Romance (2019)

“Any opportunity to get back on the horse. That was a lot of fun, to play a kind of cowgirl, and I worked with a lot of the same crew from When Calls. So those people are like family to me. It was a really good time.”

Eike Schroter/Crown Media

Sense, Sensibility & Snowmen (2019)

“This was really fun because Luke Macfarlane and I went to college together in New York, and he was an upperclassman, so I looked up to him, but we didn’t really get to work together in school. But it was a lot of fun to get to work together on this movie and reminisce about our time at school and just become closer pals. He’s a really great guy.”

Luba Popovic/Crown Media

It Was Always You (2021)

“This was my first time working with Tyler Hynes, and he was fantastic and so just present on set and a great person. This was also a very bold script written by Kathy Kloves. I think we were both really taken by how different this story was, and it was a really brave choice for Hallmark. I think they were doing something outside the box a little bit here. The story of a woman who falls out of love with her fiancé and into love with his brother is a tricky line to walk. So Tyler and I were very cautious about how we handled it, but I think we were both super proud of that love story. And it seems like our viewers must have loved it because they’re still talking about it and really campaigning for a sequel.”

[airasilver]

'Heart of Glass, Mind of Stone' by LylaRivers:

Here's the link to the first story and then go from there. You won't regret it.

I love this so i wrote a lot.

Under the read more because I know it's long.

It's so long and while I know most wouldn't have minded, hopefully, the replies following each other I didn't know how much AO3 would letr do. I think they are all in order but I had them in notes until I put them here so I'm not promising.

I love the way Tim just follows them and then decided to talk to Jason.

Tim doesn't even know how much he saved Jason and the family in general just by doing so. I'm so happy he met his brother and dad, even if he's scared, because yes, it got them looking for him and hopefully it'll bring him home faster.

^ Tim just wishes there wasn’t a massive secret hanging over their heads. He wants to tell the older boy that he knows about Robin- that Jason is a hero, that Tim has admired him from afar for years. 

He can’t, though. He doesn’t want Batman to try to put a stop to his nightly outings for good. Moreover, he doesn’t know what exactly Batman will do to him for figuring out the secret. ^

Jason will be flustered and then happy to know he's one of your favorite heroes. Take you into the family. That's what Bruce will do.

^ Ooops. Tim did not mean to reveal that. “They’re on a business trip. They’ll be back in a few days.” 

It’s one of the first true lies he’s told Jason. The lie sits heavy in his stomach, curdling the joy of being invited over to simply hang out.^

Tim, baby, you are going to need a lot of hugs and love. I'm prescribing your oldest brother's hugs. The others will help hug you but not as much as Dick. Love, you'll get from everyone. You're also going to find that it'll be coming back to bite you.

^ “I’ll let our housekeeper Ms. Mac know, since she watches me when my parents are out of town, but she should be fine with it,” Tim says. Another lie, this one tinged with truth, but still factually incorrect. Ms. Mac watches the house. He just happens to be in the house some of the time. ^

Yeah, you're good at this but I hope it'll clear up soon.

^ “Dick?” Tim asks. He’s pretty sure Jason is referring to Richard Grayson, the first Robin, but he probably shouldn’t know that.

“Yeah, my older brother. I cannot believe that any sane human would decide to use the nickname Dick for Richard. Like, seriously? There’s about a million jokes just built in, and you can’t counteract any of them, ‘cause you chose to call yourself after a literal penis. Rich and Rick were right there ,” Jason grouses. 

“Richard seems kind of formal,” Tim says. “I know that I hate being called Timothy. It’s what my parents call me when I’m in trouble.”

“Oh, the power of the full name,” Jason agrees wisely. “I have never seen someone drop out of the air so quickly as when B pulls out the ‘Richard John Grayson Wayne’ when Dick is about to break something by flipping on top of it.”

“What’s it like to have a brother?” Tim asks. 

“It’s mostly like being an only child, since Dick is older and we didn’t grow up together,” Jason explains. “B actually adopted me after Dick moved out. He comes by on weekends and we go out for ice cream or to the movies or whatever. He has an absolutely endless supply of terrible nicknames, which I suppose I should have expected, since he literally goes by Dick .” ^

I can't not think of him as anything but Dick. Rick, just makes me shudder and Rich would do the same. Just wait...you'll be getting full named soon if you haven't already, Jason.

^ Nightwing is the whole reason Tim was able to figure out the identity of all of the Bats. ^

I love how every story that brings Tim in differently has something like this in it.

^ “It’s one of my earliest memories. I have a picture somewhere, of us. Me, and my parents, and the Flying Graysons.” 

Jason bites his lip. “Dick doesn’t have many pictures of his parents. I don’t think they really had time to take family photos in the circus. Certainly they didn’t have a place to keep many photos.” 

“Do… do you think Dick would like to see it?”

“Probably. Like I said, I don’t think he was able to keep much from the circus."^

This makes me smile because Tim gives Dick back his parents in a way. With technology they should be able to do the picture of the three of the them...though I don't know how they take Tim out if Dick was holding him.

I love how Jason just casually mentions kidnapping his baby brother. Who’s freaking a bit because he did.

^ But Tim knows better than anyone how anything can be armor to shield a completely different personality with enough practice. His parents wear politeness and impeccable manners as a shield for the multitude of problems at home. Brucie Wayne is a shield for Batman- and possibly for the true Bruce Wayne, as well. 

What is Dick’s sparkling exterior a shield for? 

Tim is stabbed by a sudden shot of fear. “I don’t know where the picture is,” he whispers. 

Jason turns around in the front seat. “Don’t worry about it, Tim.” He might as well have told Tim not to breathe. But he also doesn’t have time to give in to the worry, because Alfred pulls into the driveway at Wayne Manor. ^

His anger. When he lets it out. Don’t worry Tim, you’ll be able to give it to Dick, let him see it later on.

Tim, you'll be lucky to leave Dick's arms...I'm exaggerating but nope, you won't be able to sneak around.

^ Tim crawls out of the car seat, carrying both backpacks. “Hi,” he says. “I’m Tim Drake. It’s nice to meet you.” Again. ^

Okay but this is making me think of Tim in a literal car seat.

^ Dick gasps, and covers Tim’s ears dramatically. “Jay, how could you use such language?” 

Tim ducks away. The skin on his ears feels warm and tingly where Dick’s hands were. “I’ve heard worse,” Tim says.^

Get used to it Tim, you’re the baby brother and you’ll be having this done a lot.

^ Tim doesn’t like missing information. Knowledge is power, and Tim needs more of it. ^

We sure Tim is Jack’s son? Because this is totally Bruce.

^ “I’m hurt! I’m wounded! My only brother, declaring me an asshole? What did I ever do to deserve this?” Dick asks, pressing a hand to his forehead.^

For now Dick, for now he’s tor only brother.

^ He can’t remember the last time he had a homemade cookie. If ever.^

You’ll soon have as many as you want Tim….hopefully soon.

^ “Yeah,” Tim lies. Being a bother is a much easier excuse than ‘I’m afraid you’re going to lock me up forever for knowing your secret’.

“Allow me to dispute this, Master Tim. You have been remarkably helpful with Master Jason’s infirmity, and with minimal prior friendship as reason for the help. You are one of the first friends that Master Jason has been motivated to bring home, infirmity or no. You are, in fact, the exact opposite of a bother.”^

Alfred would know. He knows everything.

^ “Bold of you to assume we’re capable of acting normally,” Dick says brightly. He launches himself into a front handspring, and leaps at Bruce. Bruce catches him, and backs away from the table.^

Bruce will always catch his kids if he's near them and they leap at him. Always.

^ “Could be worse,” Dick offers. Jason raises his eyebrows. “You could be dead,” Dick says. 

No one laughs.^

Dick, baby boy....if only you knew. Thank the Lord that you don't in this 'verse.

^ Tim wants to soak this warmth up like a sponge. He wants to recall every single moment of this joy, and bottle it up like one of his mom’s expensive perfumes. 

Is this what having a family feels like?^

It is baby boy. It is.

^ The conversation moves to other topics, and Tim can let his mind run wild. He has one shot to get this right. He needs to come clean, without making it weird. 

It’s going to be weird. He has to have an escape plan, too. They won’t want him to stay over if he tells them the truth, will they?

Will they?^

They'll want you Tim. You'll see.

^ Dick meets his eyes. For a moment, Tim wants to berate himself for bringing up his own memory, but Dick’s eyes are shining with gratitude. “I don’t have many photos of us, all together. Thank you,” he whispers. “Can I give you a hug, Tim?” 

Tim drops his backpack, and lets Dick wrap his arms around him. “I didn’t want to bring up bad memories. But you should have a copy of it,” Tim whispers. 

Dick squeezes his arms tightly. “I’d much rather have it, and be reminded, than not have anything at all. Thank you.”^

This made me cry and smile at the same time.

^ “Oh no, Dick got you into his tentacle-like clutches,” Jason says as they enter the den. “Tim, I hope you know that I’m not saving you. Every person gets to fend for themselves against Dick’s death hugs of doom.” 

“I don’t mind,” Tim says. 

“Jason,” Dick warns. 

“What?” 

“Why don’t you tell Tim about your experience with touch starvation, since he seems to think it’s normal.” Dick says as he drags Tim to a seat on the couch, not once letting go of him.

“My parents touch me,” Tim says, not even sure why he’s trying to defend them. “I mean… not like that. You know what I mean. They’re just not big cuddlers, that’s all.”

“Tim, you looked like you were about ready to cry when I hugged you. That’s not normal,” Dick says quietly.^

Tim is gonna gets lots of touch from his brothers, dad, and grandfather. He needs it. It'll also make it a bit easier to understand why he could follow them alot.... hopefully. (I want a Nightwing hug now.)

^ Jason casts a critical eye over the fort. “I dunno if there’s enough room for three in here, and you’re always complaining about how your back hurts when you sleep on it wrong…” he says. He grins when Dick pushes his lower lip out further, and furrows his brow. “It’s fine with me if it’s fine with Tim,” Jason says. 

Dick turns pleading eyes on Tim. 

“I’d like it if you stay,” Tim admits, sitting at the entrance to the fort. “I don’t want to keep you from patrol too long, though,” he adds absently. Then he freezes, realizing what he said.^

I don't know why this has me laughing but it does. Probably because of how Tim just blurts it out.

^ Screw it. He was planning to tell the Bats he knew tonight anyways. “Patrol. Because you’re Nightwing,” Tim says confidently. 

Dick raises his eyebrows. “What makes you think that?”

“Quadruple somersault,” Tim explains succinctly.^

Yep, Dick's fault. I love you Dick but this is totally your fault.

^ Bruce rubs his temples. “Dick, what did I tell you, over and over again, about style points?” 

“I’m a reckless showoff who’s going to endanger all of our identities, and style points don’t actually count for anything anyways?” Dick asks. 

Bruce splays both hands out in front of him, eyebrows raised. “And here we are,” he says. “I’m very impressed. Wraith . How long have you been sneaking out at night to follow us?” 

Tim grimaces. “A while?” 

“Define ‘a while’,” Bruce says, crossing his arms. 

“More than one year,” Tim hedges.

“Give me a more exact number.”

“Like… four years?” 

Tim can see the exact moment this settles with all three vigilantes, as they do the math. “You were running around the streets of Gotham at nine ?” Dick asks.^

Tell him Bruce! Why are you shocked Dick? You were his age when you started.

^ “So were you!” Tim retorts.

“Boys.” Bruce interrupts.^

Total exasperated dad here.

Love how Bruce started looking into Tim before this. They might have had an idea it was him but didn't know for sure.

^ “Jason, what was the ratio of actual business meetings to nonessential archeological digs?” Bruce asks, looking over at his younger son. 

“Like six to one in favor of archeological digs, in terms of actual trips,” Jason says. “In terms of time spent, the ratio was way higher. I don’t remember the exact number there, but I ran the report.”

Tim pales. He’s pretty sure the bottom has completely disappeared from his stomach. That’s… a lot of time. His parents always made it seem like their traveling was for business, and the archeological digs were a brief vacation in between business meetings.^

Ouch. That has to hurt. It hurts me just reading this.

^ “Drake Industries is primarily an American company, with few international contracts or interests,” Bruce explains. “Those few overseas holdings are primarily in Europe. As far as I can tell from the travel receipts and dig permits, any travel in Asia, Africa, or South America was archaeologically based.” 

That’s a lot . His parents have spent a lot of time in both the Middle East and South America- neither of which, apparently, have any Drake Industries assets at all. Tim can feel his eyes well up with tears. This is… he had no idea. Years and years of ‘we can’t possibly let the company down’, and ‘do you want to be the reason hundreds of people can’t feed their families, Timothy’, as excuses to leave with as little fanfare as possible- and that’s all they were. Excuses. Blatant, horrible lies with minimal grounding in reality. ^

Now I hope Bruce gets custody soon. Tim needs the family and probably therapy....if that'll work for him.

^ “I would like you to stay over, indefinitely, while your parents are out of town,” Bruce says.

“You can’t call CPS,” Tim says, shooting up with a sudden burst of energy, and breaking away from Dick’s loose hold. “You can’t . I won’t go into foster care. I’ll disappear.  I’ll… prove to the world that you’re actually Batman.”

“I’d prefer to talk to your parents, first, before any more drastic measures,” Bruce says. “That being said, it’s not safe for you to be living alone, particularly when we are more than willing to take you in, right next door.”

“You barely know me,” Tim counters. 

Bruce meets his gaze steadily. “I know enough,” he says calmly. “More than that, though, I will not willingly leave any child in a dangerous situation, particularly when there is a perfectly reasonable solution at hand.”

“That’s… that’s fine, then,” Tim says. Immediate danger dealt with, he lets himself collapse into Dick again. Tim pushes his head into the hollow underneath Dick’s shoulder, hiding his face so nobody can talk to him. He’s quite done with upsetting revelations for the night. ^

I know it's hard Tim but it'll get better in time. It'll take time but it will.

Thank God they were there for this panic attack but now I'm sad that Tim probably had others no one was there for and he didn't know what was going on. Sometimes you don't remember if you had any. Especially of they weren't as severe.

^ “Alright,” Bruce says. “You said that you don’t remember this ever happening before, right?” 

“Nope. Zero out of five stars, though. Would not recommend or repeat the experience. I’m exhausted.”

“I’m not surprised. Panic attacks use up a lot of energy,” Bruce says. 

“Can confirm,” Jason adds. He slides from where he was perching on the side of the couch to fully sit on the cushion. Tim never noticed him moving closer to them. “Panic attacks suck major ass. And yes, Alfie, this is a moment of distress, so I’m claiming exemption from the swear jar.” 

“Entirely fair, Master Jason.” 

“You…?” Tim starts to ask, but he can’t quite finish the sentence.

“Number one, living  alone on the street tends to leave some scars. Also, I’ve had a few traumatic experiences since then and now.”^

As I wondered above, Tim might have had some but can't remember or maybe he just slept then. At least Jason is helping even if it's to finally help Tim's curiosity in figuring out what happened.

^ Hopefully, he’ll finally get his suspicions confirmed. 

“Yeah,” Jason agrees. “But given that you've already had a panic attack this evening, how ‘bout we not talk about that tonight. ‘Cause it ain’t a pretty conversation.” 

“ I’m going to hold you to that,” Tim says.

“If you stay here, you’ll have plenty of time to hold me to that,” Jason agrees.^

Good reason Jason and good way of getting Tim to stay even though he's already agreed. Can't hurt to makes sure he is staying for sure.

^ “I’d rather stay down here,” Tim says. “We already got all these blankets out and built the fort. Also, where did this blanket come from?” He gestures to the weighted blanket around his torso and legs. 

“It’s one of the spare weighted blankets,” Dick explains. “The first time I used one, I fell asleep in like fifteen minutes, instead of lying awake for hours. After that, Bruce decided we needed about six more.”

“You can keep using that one if you like it,” Bruce says. 

“It’s nice,” Tim says. “Never heard of it before. But I like it a lot.” ^

I've tried a weighted blanket before and it didn't work for me. I'm glad it did for Tim. I just pile on blankets and then kick them off. (Probably why the weighted blanket didn't work.)

^ Bruce stops to hug both Dick and Jason. To Tim’s surprise, he stops to study Tim for a moment, then slowly and carefully leans in to hug Tim, too, before leaving the den, closing the door gently behind him.

“Do you need to go be Nightwing?” asks Tim from his cocoon. He doesn’t want to give up the comforting warmth of Dick holding him, but he knows that Nightwing has more important things to do than coddle one overemotional teenager.

“Nah, I’m the responsible adult for the night. Alfred’s running comms in the cave for B, so someone’s gotta be up here to make sure you don’t burn the house down,” Dick says. “I should probably change out of my jeans, though.” ^

Tim, you are more important right now. Besides Dick loves to cuddle, especially if it's his family.

^“Look, rich people compare the size of their stock portfolios the way normal people compare the size of their dicks.”^

Thank you for this image. Never seeing stocks any other way now.

^ “From what B said, it could have been so much worse,” Dick says. “You managed to take on the Joker, alone.”

“If B had gotten there even five minutes later, I probably would have died,” Jason says.

“The Joker?” Tim asks. “You said something about your bio mom and a car accident- clearly it wasn’t a car. But was your mom involved?”

“Oh, yeah. She did actually kidnap me, and tried to hand me over to the Joker to pay off her drug debts, to make a very long story short,” Jason says, voice forcedly light. “It sucked. Zero out of five stars.”^

Damn. He really is lucky.

^ “You’re so mean to me, Little Wing. You’re killing me- your first, oldest brother. I’m dying, and it’s all your fault.”

Jason rolls his eyes as they walk into the kitchen. “Dick, I’m your only brother.”

“B has an adoption problem. I’m sure it won’t be long until I’m not your only brother.”

“Hm. Pretty sure two adopted children isn’t actually classified as a problem.”

“He impulse nabbed me after my parents fell to their deaths during a show with him in the audience. He impulse nabbed you after you stole the literal tires off of the literal Batmobile,” Dick lists off. “With a track record like that, I’m sure it’s only a matter of time until B sees another sad orphan or needy child that he’s just desperate to swoop in and save.”^

Your new brother is walking with you both right now. Giving Tim a hint, Dick? It seems like it.

^ The rest of breakfast passes in a blur. Tim has never had a breakfast quite like this one- fresh baked goods, company, light conversation, and delicious coffee that he didn’t make himself. It feels totally different, basking in the warmth of the kitchen against the chill outside. Bruce seems genuinely interested in what his children have to say, once he’s drunk enough coffee to wake up. 

Tim could get used to this. ^

Get used to it Tim. Once Bruce has custody, you will enjoy this for the rest of your life.

^ This is it. This is the ‘it’s been lovely, but you’re far too much trouble, and we’re going to lock you up forever to keep you from telling anyone our secret identity’. Or maybe they have some gadget that can wipe his memory. 

Tim forces himself to look at Bruce, despite the fear. Bruce rests both hands palm up on his lap. “I want you to feel safe here,” Bruce says. “That includes feeling like you can voice your opinions, and state your preferences. If you don’t enjoy a particular food, you don’t have to eat it. If you don’t like an activity, within reason, we will try to minimize the time you spend doing it. Obviously, homework and household chores need to be completed, but any optional activities are just that- optional. If you are interested in something, we will do our best to accommodate that interest. Do you understand me?”

It sounds too good to be true. Tim can barely believe what he’s hearing. 

But, Bruce’s words logically line up with his actions over the past two weeks, the few times he has interacted with the man behind the mask. In private, Bruce has been nothing but a loving, attentive father, who just so happens to go out in a leather and kevlar suit to fight crime at night. 

Tim wants to believe. ^

When Brucw says something he usually means it. He means this so believe Tim.

^ “I know, but it’s a big house,” Bruce says. “It’s okay to have boundaries- both on your time, your space, and your interactions. If you’re not ready to interact with them, they can wait to come back into the room, or you can go into a different room."^

Bruce is so patient with Tim. Dick and Jason really helped him out that way.

Tim is confused but he is going to learn and get help and love from his family.

^ On the one hand… doing something with Dick Grayson , the original Robin. On the other hand… he still doesn’t know the rules here. He can’t just change the schedule… can he? 

“Come on,” Dick says. “B converted one of the smaller ballrooms into a gymnast's heaven, cause he’s an extra Dad like that.”

“It was better than cleaning up broken glass from the chandeliers that you shattered in the first few months of living with me,” Bruce mutters. 

“What was that, Bruce?” Dick asks, smiling with all his teeth. 

“I mean I love you so very much, my wonderful eldest child,” Bruce says louder. Then he turns and winks at Tim. “Alfred and I cleaned up a lot of glass that first year. And cuts from glass. The gym was absolutely worth all the effort and expense for decreasing my gray hairs.” ^

Go have fun with your brother Tim. You love him Bruce. Also, how many ballrooms do you have? It's got to get more than three if you converted one into a gym for Dick and now Jason and Tim to use. (That way they don't always need to go down to the cave to get a workout done.)

^ Every so often, as they work, Tim has to stop and mentally pinch himself. Dick Grayson, the last of the Flying Graysons, the first Robin, is teaching him how to tumble. 

It’s a dream come true. It’s something he didn’t even know he could dream about, even. What are the odds that Dick Grayson would just teach some random kid gymnastics.

“Actually, the odds are pretty good,” Dick says with a laugh when Tim makes the mistake of saying it out loud. “I actually teach acrobatics at a gym in Bludhaven, so I do work with a lot of kids. If you’re in a position to know about Robin and Nightwing, the odds aren't actually that bad.”

 “It’s just a little surreal,” Tim says. 

Dick ruffles his hair. “Welcome to the Batclan, kid.”^

I love this part. Dick is so patient and just treating Tom not as one of his kids at work but family. The end of the chapter helps prove that. The boys are going to have a great relationship.

^ Tim darts across the hall to his parents’ room. This room too is lifeless- cold, sterile, impersonal sheets. No decorations or photographs along the walls. The only indication that someone lives here is the ornamented wedding ketubah between Janet and Jack Drake hanging over the bed. ^

I wonder....is Tim being Jewish canon or is it fanon? Because Bruce also seems to be Jewish in alot of stories. Dick, I think is nonreligious and Jason is Catholic. At least in a lot of fanfics I read, Jason is the only one in canon that I know of that was given an actual religion and that was an AU. (Okay, I just finished 'Robins Being Robin' and Bruce, according to Dick isn't religious. So I'm guessing it's headcanon/fanon for at least Bruce being Jewish.)

^ “It was that or be caught,” Tim says shortly. “I had some close calls that first year.”

“How close?” Bruce asks. 

“I wasn’t always as good at hiding as I am now. There were a few close calls, I think ‘cause of light reflecting off my camera lens or something. But I’ve always been pretty quick on my feet, so when I saw someone coming my way, I scampered, and no one ever caught me. No one expects to see a kid out that late.”

Bruce slowly exhales. “Tim, the reason no one expects to see a kid out that late is because it’s dangerous.” 

“Jason and Dick both did it,” Tim defends himself.

“That’s true,” Bruce acknowledges. “But, Jason and Dick also both had immediate adult supervision, both while out in Gotham and afterwards, in case they were injured. I didn’t let Dick patrol alone until he was sixteen. Jason has never been on patrol alone. I’m very impressed with what you’ve accomplished, but I also want to impress on you just how dangerous it was. You had no direct supervision, and no one at home if anything went wrong. It sounds like you were extremely lucky that first year.”^

Bruce is already becoming Tim's parent. Tim is defensive though because he is used to his life and not really getting I trouble...at least for leaving the house.

^ “Except for attention, support, and adult supervision,” Bruce says immediately. “Tim, children cannot and should not be left on their own. From a purely scientific standpoint, your brain isn’t developed enough to take care of all of your needs. Recent scientific research actually suggests that the brain isn’t fully developed until age twenty five, particularly the areas surrounding executive function and impulse management. From a more emotional standpoint, children need constant love and affection to grow into healthy adults.”

“I’m not a child,” Tim protests. “I’m a legal Jewish adult.”

“Which only became true this year, and has no bearing on your status under common law. And besides, teenagers also need consistency and comfort,” Bruce says immediately. “If you were left alone for only a few hours at a time, with regular adult supervision, we would be having a different conversation. But being left alone with minimal supervision is a serious detriment to your health and well being- not to mention exceedingly dangerous. 

“From a purely practical standpoint, you are simply not old enough to take care of many of your needs. As Dick pointed out last night, you can’t drive. While you’ve clearly done an excellent job adapting with the city bus and your bike, it’s still dangerous, here, more than anywhere else. This is Gotham . Surely I don’t need to tell you about the dangers of our various villains and the prevalence of organized crime in this city.”^

Okay, I will be shocked if Tim isn't Bruce's kid by blood. (I know, I know) He's to much like his dad and they haven't even really been a family yet.

^ “My life just got turned upside down, and it’s only gonna get worse when you call CPS on my parents and I get dumped into the foster care system,” Tim says, just as bluntly. “No one wants me. Ms. Mac seemed thrilled to not have to take care of me. Clearly my parents don’t want me that much, either. Bruce is only doing this cause he feels bad.”

“Maybe Ms. Mac is thrilled, as you say, because she was worried about you being alone,” Jason says. “I know I can’t really speak to the actions of your parents, besides being horrified at you being alone. However, I can safely say that Bruce doesn’t ‘just do’ anything. Some people dress up in a leather fur suit and fight crime to cope, and some people impulsively adopt sad children to cope. Bruce just so happens to do both, because he’s richer than G-d and can afford a crazy hobby and to support a bunch of traumatized children who also are filled with rage and want to fight crime.”^

Jason is such a good brother.

^ “Eh, we figured out pretty quickly you weren’t a threat,” Jason says. He leans over to ruffle Tim’s hair, and Tim lets himself relax. “How did you know to seek me out, anyways?”

“This is gonna sound stupid,” Tim mutters.

“Can I come sit next to you?” Jason asks. Tim nods wordlessly.

Jason shoves himself to his feet gracelessly, and sits next to Tim on the bed. “Don’t get me wrong, I ain’t complaining,” Jason says quietly. “If B hadn’t been there, totally in the loop like he was, I woulda died. Full stop. If he had been even a few minutes later than he was to rescue me, or if he hadn’t even known I was gone, the Joker would have blown me to smithereens. Your warning saved my life. If you saw something on the street, or knew something was going to happen…”

“It was nothing so certain,” Tim scoffs. “It was just a feeling I had. I started Bat Watching at the end of Dick’s time as Robin, and there was this… distance between the two of them. In those days, I wasn’t good enough to get real close to Batman and Robin, but I overheard plenty of arguments.

“You had that same distance that developed really quickly, between you and Batman. But you’re a lot younger than Dick was, so it’s not like you could really strike out as your own hero as you are. I just…” Tim trails off. He still can’t quite put his finger on why he was so compelled to intervene.

Jason lets Tim pause and gather his thoughts.

"Okay, there was one other thing, but it's going to sound really stupid.".

“I dress up in traffic light colors and fight crime every night. Try me.”

“I had a dream something was going to happen,” Tim says quietly.  He feels stupid even uttering the words out loud. 

“Weirder shit has happened,” Jason says. “Have you had any other dreams that have come true? Or have you had any dreams you’ve acted on and changed an outcome?”

“Dunno.”

“Might be a latent meta gene,” Jason muses. “Or who knows- the multiverse is a strange place, and sometimes events from one timeline bleed over into another. It doesn’t really matter, one way or another. I’m just glad this timeline didn’t get fucked to hell and back, for whatever reason.”^

I just adore this part for some reason. Probably because I know canon and the way you wrote this part is so good.

^Did you, really?” Jason counters. “Tim, I know you’re not thrilled about having your life turned upside down, but the way you were living wasn’t healthy- and I say that on good authority, given that I lived on the streets for a few years. Dickie will expound on this until your ears fall off, but humans are pack animals. We’re not meant to be alone, especially as kids. People need other people.”

“My parents say that needing people makes you weak, and people will always disappoint you.” Their statement has certainly been true enough in regards to his parents. Tim honestly can’t say he’s had enough experience with other people to make a judgment call of his own, though.

His stomach lurches uncomfortably. His parents could have told him anything, and he would have believed it. Was this just one more way they lied to him, so he’d let them leave easier?

“I’m just gonna come out and say it, Timbit, your parents sound like shit,” Jason says bluntly. He wraps his good arm around Tim tightly, pulling Tim almost entirely on to his chest.

“I have a home to live in, and food to eat, and…” Tim starts to say, not totally sure why he’s defending his parents. It’s not like they ever defended him.

“And no one there to help you,” Jason cuts in smoothly. “Yeah, I’ll agree your circumstances ain’t exactly dire, compared to living on the street. But also, abuse comes in a lot of forms- not just physical. There’s emotional abuse, as well as neglect. Just because they never hit you or starved you or whatever doesn’t actually make them good parents, Tim.”^

I think Jason will get through to his little brother a lot better than Bruce. He's closer in age and had delt with a lot of things like Tim has.

^ Jason ruffles his hair. “I know, baby bird. But we want to convince you that what’s happening to you is wrong. Bruce wants to help fix it, but we can’t do much if you don’t let us.”

“Baby bird?”

“Do ya like it? Dick is fond of bird themed nicknames, for somewhat obvious reasons, knowing our little secret. If I’m Little Wing, and he’s Big Bird, that makes you Baby Bird.”

“It’s a lot better than anything else you’ve come up with,” Tim says, managing to sound grumpy despite the warm glow the nickname brings. The nickname, more than anything else that has happened in the last twenty four hours, convinces him that whatever is going on here is genuine.

“I mean, I’m not likely to abandon all the Tim themed nicknames in a hurry,” Jason warns. “It makes you puff up like a lil Robin yourself, and you get all indignant about it, which is totally satisfying, and I fully understand why Dickie likes doing it to me.” ^

I love how the baby bird nickname is brought in here.

^ “Bruce has a terrible adoption problem. I’m sure you’ll get to experience the joy for yourself.”

“You and Dick keep talking about Bruce’s adoption problem. What does that have to do with me?” Tim asks.

“Is it not obvious?”

“No.”

Jason pulls his head back, so that he can look at Tim fully. “Tim, I’m pretty sure the next victim of Bruce’s adoption problem is going to be you.” ^

Truth. Tim won't believe it but it's true.

The way Jason explains mental illness and the way Tim listens and breaks and then just packages it away....hurts. Baby boy needs help and he'll get it. It'll be slow but he'll get the help he needs. Slow, because Tim needs to learn how his parents are abusing him.

^ It takes barely one week to settle into a rhythm. It almost seems as if he’s lived here his whole life. ^

This sums up exactly what I'm thinking as I read this story. Tim, has become such a part of the family, it seems as if he was always there.

^ Tim presses his fingers against the glass surrounding what looks like the very first Robin suit. “This looks thinner than your suit.”

“I’m trying not to think about how you’ve gotten close enough to me as Robin multiple times to know that,” Jason says dryly. “But yeah, back in the early days, Dick mostly wore spandex. Or something similar, I think. After a few close calls, B finally convinced him to add some armor. It helped that Wayne Enterprises was testing out a super light armor weave at the time. Dick doesn’t like to be weighed down.”

Jason leads them through a wall of suits. “Here, of course, is my favorite suit- the Discowing. I have no idea why Dick thought fighting crime with his chest on full display was a good idea, but damn is it fun to tease him about it.”

“There’s not very many Nightwing suits here,” Tim observes.

“Yeah, Dick keeps his suits in Bludhaven for the most part. He only deigns to let Bruce display the really old outdated suits. Hence, Discowing.”

“He pulled it off.”

Jason gives him a sharp look. “He absolutely did not and never, ever, say that to his face. Come on. Let me show you the trophy room.”^

I love Dick but come on Tim. Dick doesn't have the best sense in fashion or keeping himself safe with his suits. At least he has family to help give him some armor....even if it's not as much as they want him to have. (Maybe he has more now in canon.)

^ “The penny and the T-Rex were before my time, so no idea how B got them into the cave,” Jason says. “I can tell you the story behind some of the other trophies, though. Dick tells the penny story best.”^

I actually want to know how Bruce built all of the cave without it being big news. Especially when he started bringing in some trophies, like the Penny and the T-Rex. Do any of the comics say, tell how he does it?

^ “Can we look at something else?” Tim asks quietly. The love that the Batfamily has for each other permeates the walls. Tim can’t even imagine his parents doing the same for him.^

Just wait Tim. You'll soon have your own place on the walls and will realize how much they love you.

^ “‘Kay, so you know how Dick was ten when he started out? Yeah, he thought it was hilarious, and B’s too much of a softie to try to change any of the names now.”

Tim giggles. He’s unlocking so much new Batman lore- he’s pretty sure he’s died and gone to Bat Heaven. “That’s amazing .” He walks back towards where Jason is sitting. ^

Considering the comics I just read had everything the same, just whatever their viligante name was, it seems as if it will follow every Bat.

^ Tim loses himself in looking at crimes across the city with Jason. He offers Robin several insights that the older boy praises as helpful. With every compliment, Tim glows with internal warmth. He’s helping to make a difference. His insights are valuable . It’s been a rare feeling in his life, and Tim chases it with the same intensity he might seek water in the desert.

He had no idea how starving he'd been, until he’d been fed. ^

I love this so much. Jason's just giving Tim compliments, like he should have had, and Tim is slowly realizing that he's never really been given any so when he gets some? He's hoaedinf them close.

^ Tim nods seriously. He may never have seen Alfred upset, but he can easily picture the kind of chaos the older man could wreak if he were so inclined.^

Alfred runs the family. Bruce might be the head of it but Alfred runs it. There's a reason why people are afraid of him.

^ “Well, as civilians Dick and Barbara Gordon were always hanging out and flirting, and Robin and Batgirl had the exact same flirtatious vibes, sooo…”

Dick slams his head on the table theatrically. “Am I your explanation for everything?”

“If Timmy could figure out this much about you just by watching, imagine what he’ll be able to solve as Robin,” Jason says.

Tim turns to stare at Jason. “What?”

“Oh, sorry, was that not the foregone conclusion when I graduate, eventually?”

“But… you’re Robin.”

“So was I, incidentally,” Dick says. “It’s not a gig that lasts forever.” He glares at Bruce. “Not that that was my intention at the start, though.”^

Yes, Dick. You are the answer to Tim figuring everything out. You always will be.

^ “Robin was my mom’s nickname for me,” Dick explains. “I chose the name to honor her when I was hunting down their killer. Robin became so attached to Batman, though, that when I was trying to step out of B’s shadow I changed my name. Someone decided it would be a good legacy superhero identity.” He ends this speech with a pointed glare at Bruce.^

Bruce is trying. He at least apologized and I can tell it helped because Dick and Bruce seem much closer.

^ He wants to join in the bantering and laughter, but he can’t quite figure out how. It’s so different from the silence he’s used to.

But maybe- just maybe- he can get used to it.^

You will soon Tim. You'll get used to it and then join in.

^ Tim stares at the email in dismay. “Bruce. Bruce, what do I do?” he whispers, holding the phone out to him.^

This opening sucks but it also shows how much Tim trusts Bruce to come right to him about his parents returning.

^ “Two things,” Bruce says. “Tim, I need you to look at me for this, please.”

Reluctantly, Tim pulls away from Bruce. “I’m listening.”

“Number one, we’re going to get you a wire and camera,” Bruce says. His eyes are steely and cold- Batman focused, even in civilian clothes. “The Commissioner has some gear for me to give to you, that should be easily concealed. We need to be able to prove neglect- try to get them to talk about how long they’ve been on their trip, about who’s watching you at home, things like that. Audio recordings will help us present an airtight CPS case that all the money in the world won’t let your parents wriggle out of.

“Number two, I’m giving you a Bat panic button, just in case. If something happens that endangers your physical safety, I want you to press that button, do you understand? If you are in physical danger, for whatever reason, we will come and get you, consequences be damned.”

Bruce doesn’t blink. “Tim. Do you understand me? We will get you out. I know that this is uncomfortable, but if we want to keep you- and we do, make no mistake- we have to play by the rules.”^

I'm hating why Bruce has these rules but I'm so glad he does. I'm also glad it seems as if Gordon is involved. It'll help if the Drakes find the wire and the camera...which is why Bruce had Jim get involved. That and they want to get Tim home to them for good. To do that, it has to be legal.

^ Still, it doesn’t stop the pit from forming in his stomach. He hadn’t been aware how much he thrived on being around people until it was taken away. He misses seeing Dick hanging from the chandeliers, Bruce’s inability to function until he has at least one mug of coffee in his system, Jason’s constant companionship, and Alfred’s silent but reassuring presence and sharp wit. He misses the constant bantering tossed from room to room- Jason’s sharp street drawl mixed with Dick’s excited tone.

Drake Manor is as silent as ever. Now that he knows what he’s missing, the silence is oppressive. Tim has the desperate urge to sing, or talk, or scream, or something , just to make the halls echo.^

You never has things like that before Tim. Once you had it, you want it all the time.

^ He misses the Waynes. He misses dinner with life and laughter- Dick perching on chairs, Jason arguing with anyone who will participate. He misses the warmth of eating with three or four other people who actually want to be around him.

He misses Alfred’s cooking. Ms. Mac is a good chef, but he had no idea just how much of a difference it made to have the food cooked fresh, not out of a microwave or reheated. ^

You miss your family. That's what you miss. Family that cares. Ms. Mac cares but you know for sure that the Wayne's do.

^ His father is angry . Tim wants to cower in his room and hide for the rest of eternity. “Do you want me to sit with you while you eat?” Tim asks. He’d rather be anywhere else.^

I thought Janet was bad with her distain for Jason...Jack's worse. He's going to hurt Tim isn't he? Not just verbally but physically also.

^ “Remember whose company this is, and remember where your power comes from,” Janet retorts. Her eyes are cold as ice, and her voice could cut diamond. Tim hides a shiver. These moods are rare, but dangerous. “Timothy. I expect you to act as perfectly befits the Drake heir. You will stay away from the gutter filth. Do you understand?”

Tim breathes out slowly. “It’s pretty pathetic that he needs so much help in school,” he says, matching his mother’s coldness with his own frozen tone. “I would certainly never seek him out.”^

I always thought Jack married in and just kept the name. This seems to help my headcanon on that fact.

Tim is more Janet than Jack in a lot of things. Like his tones in canon and fanon.

^ Tim stares at his reflection in the mirror. “It’s only a few hours,” he says aloud. “What’s the worst that can happen when we’re all offline?”^

A whole lot. Especially since you'll be getting hurt probably. Hopefully it'll help you get home faster...even if I dont like it.

^ Jason’s eye twitches, but he doesn’t argue. “Twenty four hours,” he says, instead. An apparent non-sequitur- but a subtle reminder that the end is in sight.

“Twenty four hours,” Tim agrees quietly. He takes his cup of punch and moves away from the table. Jason gives him a small smile, but blessedly doesn’t follow him. ^

Less than that because your parents mess up. Of course Tim follows their rules and he'll still mess up according to them. Why they ever had him and kept him I'll never understand. (I'm glad but I won't ever understand.)

^ “He approached me. As a fellow classmate and gala attendee, it would have been impolite to not acknowledge him,” Tim says calmly. “Additionally, he believes we are friends, or at least study group partners. It does not benefit Drake Industries for me to act otherwise, as Jason Todd-Wayne stands to be a major shareholder in Wayne Enterprises one day.”

“You smart mouthed little bastard,” his father snarls. He unbuckles his belt. “Where is your respect for your mother? Jacket off.”

Tim takes a very deep breath, and holds himself with steel in his spine. “I followed my mother’s directions, in keeping my friends close but my enemies closer.” Sorry Jason , he thinks.

“Jacket. Off,” Jack snaps. “If you can’t get respect through your thick skull with words, I’ll just have to beat it into you.”

Tim holds his breath, and looks at his mother. Janet Drake has already closed off, emotions hidden behind a carefully constructed society mask.

“Well?” Jack demands. “You have thirty seconds before I take the jacket off for you. Now.”

Resigned, Tim takes his suit jacket off. All he can hope is that this will be brief. Before his father can ask, he takes off his shirt as well, making sure the button cam is facing towards the scene.

That’s all the comfort he’s going to get.^

For now baby boy, for now. This will help your case and the Drakes can't say it was forced on you or anything else because Jim Gordon helped make this happen to get you away from the Drakes.

^ “Get up,” Jack orders. Wraith slowly pushes off of his arms, and turns to face him. Facing his father makes reality sink in, and Tim rises to the surface, shaking and shivering.

“Pathetic,” Jack sneers. “You can’t even take your punishment like a man.”

Tim sniffles, and moves to put his shirt back on. His father sneers at him. His mother watches over the scene, serene as she was at the gala. “I wasn’t aware men still got whipped with belts,” he mutters, against his better judgment. His back hurts , the pain overruling his normally iron control.

“Say that again,” his mother orders.

Tim puts his suit jacket back on carefully, and turns to face his parents. He holds himself straight and tall, just as they��ve always ordered. “I said I wasn’t aware men still got whipped with belts,” he repeats.

“He’s inherited your hot head,” Janet says to Jack. She grabs Tim by the collar of his suit jacket, and drags him to the front door. “You can come back in when you’ve cooled down,” she says, opening the door to the outside. She pushes him outside.^

He's a fucking kid who just got hit ten times and told the truth, what he thinks is the truth, and you say he's hotheaded? Tim's exactly like you Janet! Exactly!

Bitch. I hope this brings you both down and the company goes to Tim, all of it. You locked your kid out in winter just because he talked back. You deserve everything coming for you. Everything.

I'm so proud of you Tim. You asked for help. Yes, you waited a bit but you still asked for help. That took courage.

^ The warm glow that was steadily building from the warmth, hot cocoa, and companionship is abruptly doused. “Oh,” Tim whispers. Right. His parents locked him outside of the house in the middle of February. And beat him repeatedly with a belt.^

It hurts to think about but it will help the case against the Drakes. You'll soon be home with your family for good. Not making the 48 hours isn't your fault, Tim. You did your best. It's your parents fault.

^ “Bruce?” Tim mumbles.

“I’m here, sweetheart. Can you tell me what happened?” Bruce asks.

“They locked me out,” Tim whispers. “They never really wanted me, did they?”

“I don’t know the answer to that,” Bruce says. “But that doesn’t matter to me. We want you, even if your parents can’t see what they’re missing.”

Tim flinches. Shouldn’t his parents want him?

“‘S like I told you before, Tim. Some people ain’t fit to be parents, but they procreate anyways,” Jason says. “On the flip side of that, some people would be great parents and they never have kids of their own.” ^

Bruce is a great example of this. The way he cares for his kids, for Tim who he barely knows, shows this.

^ Tim shrugs. He’s getting tired of all of these endless questions making him make decisions, when the decision is patently obvious. “Sure,” he says.

“Thank you,” Dr. Thompkins says. Tim watches dully as she pulls out her phone.

“Are you doing alright, Tim?” Bruce asks.

“Fine,” Tim mutters. Soonest done, soonest over with.

“I know it feels frustrating that we keep asking for your permission, but we have to verbally make sure that you consent to everything that Dr. Thompkins does,” Bruce explains. “It may feel very redundant, but it’s important that we document your consent throughout the process.”

“Okay,” Tim says.^

I don't think Tim really understands. He's trying to though. He's just so tired and just wants to be done and sleep.

^ “It’s hardly nothing,” Dr. Thompkins says. “The documentation we did today was important, and the damage could have been severe. Fortunately, most of the bruising seems to be higher up, away from your kidneys. Bruce and Alfred will have to monitor you for signs of kidney damage for the next few days, just to be safe. You can put your shirt back on, though. The cuts are all fully wrapped, Tim.”^

You might think it's nothing Tim but it's something. It is proving that the Drakes are abusing you and it's showing that you trust Bruce enough to go to him for help. You are helping your own case. Plus, as they said, it's better to be safe.

^ “Do you want me to get Dick to come pick you up?” Bruce asks.

“I can walk,” Tim protests. He doesn’t really want to, though.

“You look exhausted, though. Would you like to be carried?” Bruce asks.

Tim shrugs. “I don’t know.”

Bruce pulls his phone out again, and starts typing. “Dick and Jason are on their way,” he says. Tim shrugs again, and buries his head against Bruce’s chest.

“I hear you have a baby bird for me!” Dick says brightly.

“Good to be passed off?” Bruce asks.

“Kay,” Tim mumbles.

Warm, strong arms take hold of him around his legs and shoulders. “Come on, Timmers, let's get you into a bed,” Dick says.^

Let your family care for you Tim. I'm proud of you. You are making decisions and/or telling them if you can't think. You aren't hiding which is good.

^ Jason keeps up the soothing movements against Tim’s scalp. “How are you doing, baby bird?”

“I just want it to wake up from this nightmare.”

Warm hands cup his cheeks. Tim opens his eyes, and comes face to face with Jason. “It takes a long time. I still have times when I have to reprocess something that happened to me. But we’re all here for you, okay?”

“Kay,” Tim mutters, closing his eyes again.

“Go to sleep, Tim,” Jason says. “Everyone will still be here when you wake up.”

Tim wraps both arms around Jason, and falls asleep.^

You will Tim, you will. You'll wake up with your family and never leave them again.

[telomeke]

[Description–

Video shows Both Nattapong Chinsoponsap proposing to longtime boyfriend Newyear Kitiwhut Sawutdimilin in an airy sunlit room filled with dozens of red roses and candles. They are dressed in suits, and Newyear looks taken by surprise at the proposal. Both hands Newyear another bouquet, and then goes down on one knee to propose with a ring. The moment is captured by several camerapersons and also (obviously) the videographer. The couple kiss and embrace (it's quite clearly a yes) and Both puts the ring on Newyear's finger. They kiss and embrace again, all smiles even as Newyear fights back tears of happiness.

The photos accompanying the video show: Both proposing to Newyear while down on one knee; the couple smiling broadly as Both slips the ring onto Newyear's finger; the newly-engaged couple kissing in a tight embrace; and a close-up of the ring being put onto Newyear's finger (the box it came in is a robin's egg blue, suggesting that the ring may be from Tiffany & Co.).

The last image in the set is a text post by Newyear posted on Twitter 1:14PM UTC 26 June 2024. The post reads:

B: Will you marry me? [red heart emoji] Ny: i said yes from the first day we met หมอโบ๊ทขอแต่งงาน ปิดห้องที่โรงแรมกลาง Mayfair ในลอนดอน [pleading face emoji; loudly crying face emoji] ฮือออ คุณเค้าบอกเตรียมการตั้งแต่ต้นปีแล้ว ฮือออออ dream come true [ring emoji]

Rough translation of the Thai by Google, paraphrased:

Dr. Both proposed marriage behind closed doors at a hotel in the middle of Mayfair in London. He said he's been preparing since the beginning of the year.

End ID.]

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Congratulations to the happy couple! They certainly didn't waste any time after Thailand's Parliament approved the bill to legalize same-sex marriage on 18 June‌ 2024. 💖

‌

Both and Newyear are getting married!