#and he knows nothing about wilmon’s relationship

[khaalibilli]

What Marcus was trying say when he bought up Micke was basically this: “Simon you’ve got major daddy issues… falling in love with a hot-and-cold, denies-your-existence, literal prince like Wilhelm”

[othervee]

The birthday breakup

For some reason I have been musing over Wilmon's birthday breakup and what might have happened if Simon hadn't done it. I'm very interested in what possible futures might have played out and I'm convinced that if they hadn't split up then, they would never have ended up together.

When Wille excuses himself from dinner, Simon is trying to negotiate the situation as best he can. Wille is allowed to be upset, but he's also abandoned Simon to two people who barely know him, are talking without him about someone he never knew, and have nothing in common with him except Wille. Polite as the three of them are to each other, Simon and Wille's parents don't really know how to interact with them at the best of times, and this is not the best of times.

What Simon sees and hears when he goes to talk to Wille in the corridor is really important. He offers to leave. He can feel the air vibrating with tension and he knows that his presence is just standing in the way. Wille wants to hash things out through talk while his parents are in denial. Simon's presence provides a shield for them all to hide behind; we need to be polite and pretend everything's fine in our first real interaction with our son's boyfriend.

Simon's offer to remove himself is actually the most sensible thing he can do. He's fairly casual in the way he offers to go, and also in the way he says to Wille, "Please don't leave me alone with your parents like that." It's making his wishes clear and honest but keeping things as light as he can, not wanting to increase the tension in the air.

Wille, though, is incredulous that Simon even suggests this but his main response is "I… I need you here!"

In that moment and in the scene that follows, I think Simon sees what their future will be if he accepts the role he's being set up to play. He'll be Wilhelm's mascot, his buffer, his shelter from the storm.

I'm not suggesting that Wilhelm is the selfish one and Simon's the selfless one, because things are more complicated than that. Wilhelm loves Simon for himself. But Wilhelm at the palace inhabits a different world and is under different pressure, and as the cracks worsen he needs Simon there to comfort him and soothe his feelings and be on his side. Wilhelm hasn't had anyone on his side in the palace since Erik died. At the palace Simon is his buffer, his shelter from the storm.

But having Simon there will also mean Wille has a crutch to lean on, and an excuse to keep going in the same old patterns with his parents, because he thinks he can bear it as long as he has Simon. And that means he will stay in this role, he will keep trying to fit himself into the wrong shape, even as everything cracks and shatters around him. And eventually things with Simon will sour as well.

Simon can't fix the family relationships, and he can't stop the bad things from happening, and he can't give Wille the tools he needs to cope because - like Wille - he's a teenager. A teenager who has no idea how to operate in Wille's unfamiliar royal world. Wille needs Simon to ward off the bad atmosphere, but he'll only end up poisoning them both. So Simon needs to go. Going might not fix anything, but staying definitely won't. It will give Wille an excuse to maintain the status quo.

So Wille doesn't give up the crown for Simon. Absolutely not. But Simon's action in breaking up with him helps to create the conditions that make Wille able and willing to give up the crown for himself.

[unfortunate17]

Do you have any 🌶️ Wilmon headcanons?

Yes I do, but again nothing super specific!!

Also I know that this topic tends to piss people off, so if you’re sensitive about it, this is your warning not to proceed 🫵

At the core of Wilmon’s sexual dynamic, is the way they make each other feel (obv Saf 🙄).

I think Wille is one of the few people on the planet that Simon feels entirely safe with, so he tends to expose his most unguarded, vulnerable self with him. Like Simon’s not the clingiest person on a day to day basis, but in bed he just wants to be held and taken care of and loved. I’ll die on the hill that Simon has a praise kink. He also trusts Wille completely to give him exactly what he wants. He for sure likes getting manhandled/tossed around if the number of times Wille just casually lifts him means anything 🙂‍↕️ And honestly, as he should, Simon knows he has a man he can trust and would do anything for him and he’s going to make full use of him.

On the other hand, I think Wille’s a lot more unsure about a lot of things in his day to day life - his place in the world, who he is, what he wants, etc., but seeing Simon melt in his arms inspires a sort of quiet confidence in him. It’s not an accident that he’s “in charge” in most of the intimate scenes we see in canon -> seeing Simon happy, being secure in their relationship and feelings, makes Wille feel good about himself, like he’s doing something right. I know he’s smug about how he has a normally collected & self assured Simon speechless and stuttering even though Simon always rolls his eyes at him for it 😭

TBH the only time Wille is hesitant/unsure in bed is when him & Simon are fighting or if he doesn’t feel secure in their love. Sex is definitely a comfort thing for both of them too, even when they’re fighting, and half the time Wille knows an argument is over bc Simon just crawls into his lap.

If we’re talking nitty gritty specifics:

- As I’ve stated, Simon’s clingier in bed

- I can’t even make anything up about their fave position bc it is so obviously Simon riding Wille 😭 ty for this knowledge Lisa it keeps me up at night 🤝

- They’re phone sex enthusiasts and Simon is a lot better at it than Wille (Wille can’t always see him properly when they do this so he gets hung up on that sometimes), but Wille is getting better!! And Simon’s obsessed with him so it’s not too much of an issue

- Wille likes to LOOK 👀. Simon on the other hand likes to hear Wille talk in his ear when they’re doing it bc Wille has a way of making even the cutest things sound downright filthy 🤗

- Simon’s obsessed with Wille’s hair

- Overall I think they’re relatively vanilla, but I can see overstimulation being a thing that Simon is super into, and Wille’s def not gonna complain about making Simon come over & over again 🤷‍♀️

[groenendaelfic]

you know I wasn't going to comment on anything s3 in detail or write a super long divisive post because that's draining and tiring and I just want everyone to have fun and find joy in fandom in whatever way is best for them. And yet here we are. Who'd have thought?

All I wanted from season 3 was for Wilmon to talk to and with each other, to get to know each other (better) and to try to understand and support each other and grow together. To be a couple in love and working on their relationship, learning from each other. Them against the world, facing problems together as a team. I wanted romance and hugs and honesty, and all I got was them being horny. I mean don't get me wrong I love them being horny, but I don't want that to be their entire (positive) relationship and the only thing they have going for them as a couple. Please just have an actual, proper conversation with each other?

This post however is not about that. This post is about Kristina.

I hate what they did with her. I hate her entire character arc (if you can call it that) in s3. I hate what triggered her breakdown. I hate that instead of breaking the circle of abuse and emotional and physical neglect she no doubt suffered, she perpetuated it.

She left her son alone when he needed her most. When all he needed was a hug and a good long cry and the assurance that he's not alone, that she's there for him. That she understands. For someone (his family) to be there and listen and assure him that for them, Wille comes first. (I mean not all, he also needed proper therapy for one, but that'd have been a great and important start)

Wille is a child. Her child. Wille needed her and she failed him. She pushed him away and she sent him away and she left him alone.

(the same is true for Ludvig of course, it'd be extremely sexist etc to not put the exact same expectations and blame on him as well, but alas this post is only indirectly about him as everything always is at best)

However.

Her son is dead.

She's been groomed to believe her entire purpose in life is to be a mascot (which comes with very specific expectations and restrictions she herself said she struggled to adapt to) and to give birth to the next mascot.

I don't pity her for that, but that's still her entire identity and purpose in life. It's always been, and now the next mascot is dead and she has to burden the son she thought would be spared with it all, pun very much intended.

But let's return to my first point first. Her son is dead. Not just the next mascot. Her son.

Yes, Wille's brother died as well and I'll never make light of that. It's horrible and a grief and pain impossible to put into words. Especially as a kid or young teen. Wille needs all the support. Still.

It's not the same.

I know it's not the same because I know exactly what it's like. Both of it.

Granted I'm not a queen, but I did have a cousin who died aged sixteen. We lived in the same house their entire life and shared a bedroom for years. We were like siblings. It was my first time experiencing the death of a close loved one and it was horrible. We all struggled for a long time. Their siblings and I and the entire family, and they will never be forgotten, but it broke my aunt and uncle. Fifteen years later and they're still broken.

I also have two sons and a spouse who are dead (no I didn't lose them, I know exactly where they are) and I promise you it's not the same. A dead sibling is nothing like a dead child. (not that it's a competition)

I'm not going to talk about what it does to you internally, but I will tell you what you'll experience from the outside world when your family dies excitingly enough to make it to the local newspaper. Then feel free to multiply it by a large number of your own choosing when you're royalty and the entire country is looking at you and you've been groomed to never lose composure.

Everyone will call and show up and want to show their support and their condolences (that lasts until about a week or so after the funeral). And they will get two words in and break down and cry, each and every one of them, and then it's your job to console them and be strong and deal with all the arrangements and lawyers and bureaucracy. And it'll have to be you for most things no matter how supportive your family might be, because it's you who needs to sign shit and show the school a death certificate. Everyone will mean well, but it'll be everyone else who'll require reassurance and you who'll have no choice but to function because at first there's so much to do. So much. You won't have time to breathe until after the funeral, and after that there're still so much more to do and take care of you'd never have considered before. For weeks. You can ask someone else to drive you but it'll still be you who's required to show up and do the thing. Some things will drag out for months and more. You don't have time to break down and be weak. You can't afford to, because you also have a job and other responsibilities and a duty to your dead loved ones.

But then the day comes when it's 'over' and there's nothing more to do. Sure people still look at you with pity and whisper behind your back wherever you go and fall quiet, unsure how to react or what to say, because you're now the lady who lost her family in a freak accident, but everything and everyone else moves on. That's normal. It can't not. But it's that quiet after which is the most dangerous.

I hate that they made Kristina's breaking point her son publicly coming out as queer, renouncing following traditions without thought and admitting to having been in the video. I hate it so much, because that was a choice made with an entirely different motive behind the one I'll expound on now and I hate that. Don't instrumentalize grief and the loss of a child and sibling to further prove and underline your political agenda (which I agree with). It cheapens it and was very much unnecessary. We all would've gotten the point without it as well.

But you know what? I can't fault Kristina for that.

You don't know your breaking point until you reach it. It can be anything. There's a reason the saying goes 'the straw that broke the camel's back'. Everyone has a different one and they often feel very ridiculous to oneself (which is a very helpful feeling in that situation, believe me /s). I've talked to numerous people who've gone through something similar. In my support group and in grief counseling and group therapy. No one I've met had a 'logical' breaking point.

Mine came late last fall when I saw a robin outside my window. Yes a bird. We'd have one come every winter to eat the oats and raisins etc we put out for it, and my youngest would spend endless hours every day before dusk looking out that window waiting for the robin to come and eat for a few moments at a time, less if he started clapping out of excitement.

That was it. Boom. I was useless for the next seven weeks.

You don't let your grief overcome you. That isn't a choice. You don't choose not to function when a loved one dies. You don't choose to be depressed or to have the most ridiculous thing be your breaking point. You don't choose to be too strong to not let the grooming break you or to be too weak to be unable to break out of it. And you don't choose to be unable to sit at a birthday party and enjoy cake with a son you know you'll have to force into a role he never wanted, the one your dead son was supposed to fill.

Does that make Kristina any less of a shitty mom? No, of course not. Nor does it change anything for Wille. Kristina's grief shouldn't be Wille's concern. But you don't choose any of that, and the stronger you have to appear the farther you'll fall once you just can't hold it together anymore.

I grew up with a very large, multicultural extended family. There wasn't an hour I was awake at home as a kid when I wasn't hugged or kissed by a younger cousin or aunt or my mom (it was super annoying). We talked and still talk about everything. I married into a family which was a bit less physical and more Swedish in showing their affection, but they are still very open and loving and genuine. I had all the support I could ask for. They're the best and I couldn't have asked for more.

It's not enough. Your child is dead. And Kristina had none of that.

Is Kristina (and Ludvig) super annoying for going on and on and on about Erik and how perfect he was? About always bringing him up when they have a son right there who needs them desperately?

Yes. It annoyed me too. I kept catching myself being furious on Wille's behalf and Simon's with how Wille reacted to the not-comparison between Erik and Sara. But I understand Wille's reaction to Simon and I understand Kristina and Ludvig.

Because once your child / sibling / spouse / dog dies?

They become perfect. My oldest once poured syrup where he shouldn't (it was a Nordic winter night and the car was thirsty) resulting in us being out of our only car, our insurance laughing at us, and us unable to afford a new one. It cost a lot of money, my spouse almost their job and made our life a lot harder for well over a year. He was old enough to know better (and leave the house by himself to go outside and play). He never did anything wrong in his life. He was perfect. They were all perfect.

Erik? What we learn about him is horrifying, and it being normalized and dare I say institutionalized, with him probably not having second guessed his actions, makes it worse instead of better. I do believe Erik was the kind of guy who just didn't (care to) think and merely did what was expected without further thought. That doesn't make it better either, because those kinds of people are the ones who keep corrupt systems running. I might be wrong about his character entirely, but it doesn't matter, because as soon as he died he became perfect.

It's weird what death does to our perception of a loved one. Or maybe not. It's also weird what death does to our perception of everything, because suddenly everything will remind us of that person.

A cloud? A scent? A sound? Toilet paper? Kristina is at the stage where everything she sees and feels and smells and hears will remind her of Erik and his death. Of how he's dead and now Wille has to become him and that is the worst.

Also her son is dead.

No she can't just pull herself together and eat the damn cake. Everything she talks about is Erik because everything she currently is is Erik. Her son who is dead.

There is a reason this is such an often used trope in fiction.

Kristina spent all her life being told that her duty to the throne is her only purpose in life. Be queen. Represent Sweden. Produce an heir. Part of why she's as old as she is is no doubt because Pernilla August is awesome and you can't not hire her when that's an option, but nothing else in this show is a coincidence and done without thought, so I refuse to believe that Kristina hasn't always been meant to be an older mom.

Maybe she had fertility issues. Maybe she for whatever reason didn't want kids and put it off for as long as she could. She's certainly not maternal. Unlike every other woman her generation, no one ever expected her to be maternal. That's not her job.

Quite the opposite. Kristina is old enough to have been raised at a time when royal mothers weren't expected to have any hand in raising their children except for approving (or rather disapproving chosen) nannies and playmates and tutors and the like. She was very likely the first female heir apparent, or maybe she was simply the heir because she had no (male) siblings. Either way her job was always to be a monarch, not a woman or a mother. That's what staff is for. That's not an excuse, but it does explain her as a character.

She was groomed and forced herself to adjust (I do believe forced is the right word, because unlike Erik she seems to (have) be(en) a lot more like Wille than she'd like to admit). She had to be strong and queen and represent Sweden. And then her son and heir died and she failed at both.

I do believe Erik was always the 'easier' child, doing what he was told and taking only the freedoms he knew he'd be granted, while Wille is willful, argues, has a temper and his own head. (that doesn't mean Erik was happier or better adjusted)

And now Erik is dead and Wille has to fit the mold. Wille who got to go to a normal school and clubbing and was let to run wild with little preparation for the role he'd someday have to support his brother with. Arguments can be made that Kristina and everyone else never cared about Wille until they needed him, but I'd like to think she meant well and gave him the freedom she could, and because she is a bad parent she thought she was being kind, and because she is queen no one told her otherwise until it became a problem.

Kristina has never been a good parent, and I honestly believe saying someone meant well is an insult and not an excuse, but I do believe she tried the best with what she knew, the best she could.

It wasn't enough, it was the opposite of enough, but she tried and her breakdown is not a weakness but something which was a long time in coming.

She's not maternal. Her job wasn't to be maternal. Her job is to be a mascot and have other people make sure the next mascot is fed and watered and able to perform. Her being too brainwashed to see how horrifying that is does not make her innocent or any less of a bad mother, but why would she think of acting any other way?

She's ashamed of her breakdown. She can't be weak. Not in front of the nation and not in front of her son and heir. Wille can learn and grow and change. Everyone can and it's never too late, but Kristina here is meant to be what Wille risks becoming if he doesn't, if he gives up and becomes a thoughtless mascot.

Kristina is not a victim and I can't forgive her for being a shit mom, but she's also not the devil. She's a mother who lost her child, and she's spent her whole life being told that the worst thing she can do is to appear weak.

Well guess what? At one point that simply doesn't work anymore.

This post by the lovely @voldiebeth is what motivated me to write a similar one. I originally planned on reblogging and merely adding my own thoughts, and I did talk to her before posting, but then it became something even more personal than originally planned, and considering the difficulty of the subject I found myself more comfortable making this a standalone post. I know that's not proper tumblr etiquette, but please bear with me. Many thanks to @voldiebeth for motivating me to put my convoluted thoughts and feelings in writing and order them a bit. It was very cathartic.

[grapehyasynth]

young royals fic rec, 24/?

i’m (slowly) working my way through the wilmon tag on ao3 and thought that as i go i might shout out some fics i enjoy along the way! i've tagged authors where i knew their tumblr url, but please feel free to tag folks or dm me if you know ones i've missed!

see all my rec lists here

1. all i know is i can't let go by @tooindecisivetopickaurl - So, wanting to kiss Wille—it wasn’t nothing. It was a kind of warmth he hadn’t felt in years, like he could lay down all his worries for a little while and everything would somehow be alright. He didn’t know whether that was terrifying or the closest thing to magic he’d ever experienced.

2. Hetero of the Year by @girls-are-weird - Prince Wilhelm is nominated for the Hetero of the Year award at the QX Gay Gala. In response, he freaks out. Simon, his popstar friend who's been pining for him for the better part of a year, worries this might mean Wille's secretly homophobic. After all, what other reason could there be for him to get so upset?

3. I Want You to Want Me by SkuldTheNorn - After they got together on film night, there still are some things to clear up. Wille and Simon try their best to talk it out. Featuring a spot of making out, a hickey, unexpected insecurities and errant thoughts about boners. (Sequel to Study of a Prince in Pink and All Kinds of Ways to Be)

4. have i known you for twenty seconds or twenty years? by @prince-simon - Still basking in the novelty of their relationship, Wille and Simon celebrate their first New Year's Eve together.

5. One, two, three, four, five, sex on my mind by @pagegirlintraining and @the-amber-fox - When Wille first sees Simon, the rest of the world simply fades away. Which would be romantic and all, if it didn’t lead to him blindly stumbling into the sex shop Simon works at. Once he figures out his mistake, it’s already too late. But Wille wouldn’t be Wille if he let that stop him from pursuing the most beautiful boy he’s ever seen.

6. swaying as the room burned down by @altruistic-meme - the last moments that Wilhelm and Simon thought they would ever get to have, set in the time between s2e5 and s2e6

[caramelpenguin]

Wilmon

Simon knows what's coming, it's nothing new.

Simon knows what's coming, it's nothing new. He'd experienced it with Noah, and then with Leon- how fingers brushing and contagious giggling and ankles interlocking and fond looks from across the room gradually transforms like the changing of the seasons into the nervous energy of the present, of a few weeks into the relationship where both people question the stability.

Wilhelm tries to hide it. It's smooth when he removes his arm and swift when he turns his head, and it's casual when he shifts away slightly. Simon won't ever know if Wille's purposefully not in the same room as him when August picks on his clothes or skin or family. It's different to the Wille behind closed doors, who's unbridled and unapologetic with his affection and lingering touches, who presses honey kisses into the corners of his body and whispers sweet nothings into his curls.

At first, it's small. Simon slowly spends less time in Wille's dorm , making excuses about chores. Then, when Wille subtly moves away in public, Simon will shift away entirely, and he avoids the searching glance. When August walks in, he leaves the room and returns to sit somewhere else.

It's not new, it's not entirely unexpected. But it hurts like a bleeding wound.

[missmeganlee]

A question that I constantly think about when it comes to Young Royals is "how much do Wille and Simon actually know about each other's personal lives?" Simon obviously knows more about Wille's personal life as Crown Prince Wilhelm, but he has no idea what goes on behind the scenes in the royal family and can't fully understand the kind of pressure that puts on Wille. And this plot point was explored a little bit in s2, however, Wille knows next to nothing about Simon's personal life besides the basics. He know who Simon's best friends are and who his immediate family is. But he doesn't know Simin's history with his father, and this reflects what we as the audience know about Simon's personal life as well.

In s3 I'd like to see this as one of the main plot points for Wilmon. They're finally together, but still very much in the "getting to know each other" stage of their relationship. Learning stupid things about each other like what their favorite color is, what their comfort movie is, etc. Just learning each other's general likes and dislikes, but also getting into the deeper shit like experiences that have shaped them into who they are.

And if that's the case with a least a part of Wilmon's storylines in s3, I think one of their big fights could be that Simon doesn't let Wille in. Simon has a tendency to shut down and hide his true emotions when something happens to him, which I think comes from being parentified and feeling the need to be the man of the house, so his walls go up to put on a strong front. I can see them having an argument in the piano room after Wille tells Simon something the monarchy wants/requires them to do that they don't want to do. And while Wille's trying to discuss the best way to go about the situation, Simon shuts down because he feels powerless against the monarchy. To which Wille says "Simon, please just let me in. Tell me what you're feeling right now." Maybe I've been reading too much fic (no such thing as too much fic lol), but I can hear that in Edvin's voice.

[amailboxlemur]

Simon thoughts for season 3

My poor poor baby 💔💔💔💔

I love Simon. So much. And this season… he’s really going through it. Like the Erik bombshell really took over in episode 5 but up until then I genuinely think Simon was even more of a main character than Wille. I’m so glad they brought him back to the forefront this season.

Right off the bat, Simon is uncomfortable this season. He wants the trial? Settlement? Legal process? To just be over with. He hates that his classmates are staring at him. He wishes Wille gave him a heads up before the speech so he could have prepared himself.

His family life is a mess. Linda has finally clocked what’s going on and doesn’t trust him. Like I get it, he did steal and sell drugs. But also, he’s not using and more than anything he just got himself into a messed up situation. And it feels unfair that she missed what was going on for so long but now that she knows she’s acting like Simon is CURRENTLY drug dealing. Seeing him breakdown to Linda was absolutely heart wrenching, I’ve been waiting for the Simon breakdown and Omar did not disappoint.

And he’s not speaking to Sara. After doing everything to protect her for years she’s betrayed him in the worst way. I also think it’s interesting that they really leaned into SARA hating Micke and Simon only cut him off for her sake. After she comes home crying when Micke disappoints yet again it seems they’re on the path to mending their relationship but we’re not there yet.

Then there’s the online hate. It’s so easy to fall prey to the endless stream of negativity. Wille doesn’t understand, it’s always been his life and he’s probably at least somewhat accustomed to tuning it out. So Simon feels so alone in this. I also think the “the ones that like me only like me because I’m with wille” comment is very telling. It probably feels so fake and shallow to him. There’s also the “typical Latino” comment which… ick. I can’t imagine that’s the only comment of the sort out there.

So what does Simon do? He tries to carve out some positivity. He posts his song and receives some good comments immediately. He meets a young child who looks up to him. And gets a call right away from Wille that kind of… deflates his good mood. Why is Wille being left to “handle” Simon. And I can understand Wille trying to be gentle about it, but Simon just doesn’t understand the “rules” of the Royal court. It’s just an all around mess.

And then it gets worse. He starts getting hate comments even on his song. The kids at school are making fun of him. He even says he doesn’t love singing anymore which breaks my heart because music has always defined Simon. He gets a rock thrown through his window!! And the police are saying “ah yes, probably just a prank”.

No wonder he deletes his social media, no wonder he’s deleting himself. Nothing he does is right. The moment he gives in and joins the hillerska protest is so heartbreaking. From now on, these are the only ideals he gets to stand up for.

But he’s still insecure about his place with Wille. When Wille is distant after finding out about Erik, Simon immediately thinks he’s the problem, that he’s asking too many questions about what to wear to Wille’s birthday.

I want wilmon endgame. I believe in wilmon endgame. But Simon absolutely needed to take that pause at the end of episode 5. I hope they can save what they have without breaking up first. I hope they can have a genuinely honest all cards on the table conversation. I hope Simon can really let himself be fully vulnerable. And I hope to god wille listens, hears him and moves heaven and earth to make the situation better for Simon. Because the way it’s been going isn’t working.

I also can’t post this without a massive WOW to Omar’s acting this season. The role of Simon has always been complex but subtle. This season he really brings it with the big emotions.

[skibasyndrome]

Hi! About fic suggestions, what about, instead of the beloved trope enemies to lovers, the inverse and much less talked about lovers to enemies?

What are your thoughts on ABO?

Hiii! Thank you so much for sending the suggestions 💜

👀👀👀 oh that is DELICIOUS and needs to happen actually 👀👀👀 the tension of enemies plus the fact that these two used to be as intimate as possible 👀👀👀 Simon looking into the eyes that he spent hours staring into, that, a long time ago, he saw pain in and adoration and pleasure in, and finding nothing but disdain now 😫

Okay, my toxic trait is that I lowkey REALLY want to write wilmon fighting and screaming at each other some day. Like. Backing each other up against the wall and spitting insults at each other only to pause when they're chest to chest and suddenly feeling each other's breath on their lips type of shit 👀 and the hate sex!!! the hate sex!!! the I-can't-stand-you-for-the-things-you-did-to-me-and-I-hate-that-I-still-want-you sex?????? 👀 I'm afraid I won't be able to keep them away from each other for too too long, but realistically... neither did they stay away from each other for long in canon.

I actually drafted out a little, very unhinged, idea for angry sex for kinktober that I haven't gotten around to writing yet. Screenshot under the read more cut.

As for ABO (and these are purely my own personal thoughts on it as a reader/writer, I don't think anyone is wrong for enjoying this trope, I think all fiction has its place in the world and I love that there are so many different things!)

I'm afraid that, as a reader, I've never really had ABO fully work for me :/ I know there's surely some out there that tries to deconstruct some aspects of the concept, but I think there's something about the... hm... inherent biological essentialism that comes with it that just rubs me the wrong way? I've read my fair share of almost offensively essentializing ABO fanfic, especially when I was younger. I have a similarly complicated relationship with certain types of the soulmate trope. I think I just need a certain (actually, a pretty high, lol) level of free will and intention in my love stories to fully enjoy them I think. I'm also not 100% informed on all the lore that goes into ABO, but idk. I feel like the only way I could write it would be something like, idk. This alpha is failing at doing typical alpha shit, damn, how do we deal with that (the answer is: he gets to be as un-alpha as he wants to and then falls in love along the way or something like that. Ooooor something that goes a bit into forbidden love/starcrossed lovers territory, where despite being expected to marry/be with another person (complementary to his own a/b/o status), one of the two (most likely Wille probably, his family situation could in some scenarios make an arranged marriage plot plausible) just... refuses to do that. Because actually he's in love with Simon, who he should not be attracted to technically, according to the "rules" of the universe. So yeah 😅 Lots of thoughts there, hope I managed to make them make sense.

Send me things (scenarios, tropes, themes, etc.) that you'd like me to write a fic about <3

and a small snip of my very rough draft mentioned above:

[notalotgoingonatthisinstant]

May I offer you all some Wilmon in these AO3-is-down trying times? We'll get through this withdrawal 😭

Growing up, Simon didn’t stop to think much if he wanted kids or not. He loved his family, loved his sister, loved his mum, (loved his dad,) loved getting to see his little cousins grow over videocalls from South America – but he never stopped to think about himself.

He remembers a fleeting thought he had once, when he was very young, around twelve or thirteen, and figured out he was definitely gay, that it would take some extra steps to have children. He would never have them on accident. He couldn’t decide overnight, talk to his partner, and start trying the next day with a real possibility of making a baby on that very same day.

Then he put that thought inside a mental folder and left it there for the longest time.

He believes that it’s a natural progression to start thinking about it again once you’re in a committed relationship, even if it’s to decide it’s not for you. But he is aware that his thought process wasn’t the same as everyone else’s.

It started with random mental images, when he and Wille got out of school and into the world – well, the world and the military. Back when Simon was studying and working to afford his own flat in Stockholm and, some nights, he would have Wille there on his couch, in his small living room, laughing over a stupid series they’d put on, or pouring coffee for him the next morning.

He would watch Wille shrug on a suit jacket, looking very dapper for the morning meeting, and accept his goodbye kiss. Then Simon would finish gulping down breakfast, put on his flannel shirt, and leave his flat fifteen minutes later. He would lock the door behind him and wonder how earlier he would have to wake up if he had to drop kids with someone, or would they have a nanny? Or maybe Wille would take them?

The thoughts assaulted him without warning and were gone just as quickly. During Wille’s trips, how would Simon manage alone? What if they were both travelling? Could Wille’s children even travel with him? He remembered something about how two heirs straight in line for the throne couldn’t take the same mean of transportation, for safety reasons, which is why Wille didn’t travel with his mother, but did that apply to a toddler?

Simon didn’t ask for the longest time as well, because he didn’t want to open that discussion. He wanted to know if Erik had travelled with his mother when he was a baby; his fingers itched to google it, find pictures or articles, just so he could know.

But he didn’t ask, because back then he wasn’t even sure if he could take the pressure of marrying Wille, even though he was doing nothing to stop that natural progression.

The thoughts would come and go. Sometimes, they disappeared for months on end and Simon would just live his life and worry about more pressing matters, like his uni finals or Sara’s recent breakup. Other times, they would come in the form of his children having panic attacks over being in line for the throne.

Moving into the palace with Wille drew a line in his life, which is why he didn’t do it lightly. It definitely took longer than it would if Wille weren’t the fucking Crown Prince, because Simon felt ready to move in with him straight out of school. But he had spent his years weighting the pros and cons and decided Wille was worth everything and that they could figure it out together.

Living with him in one of the royal palaces, and therefore having more money to spare, brought a wave of baby thoughts to Simon’s mind. They had all this space, all this money, all this support. Surely it wouldn’t be too hard? He knew, rationally, that money would never be a problem, but Simon would have a hand in supporting his own children, and now he was feeling like he could reach that point.

He began to understand, then, how rich people’s minds work. Simon was working, but with a better job and a better salary, and he didn’t have to pay rent. He didn’t have to pay for cleaning supplies or spend one day a week scrubbing his flat. He spent a lot less on groceries, because food simply appeared in the kitchen cabinets and in the fridge. He didn’t have to pay water or electricity bills.

He had all this money monthly deposited into his account and he didn’t have to spend even half of it, which meant it only grew, even with taxes. It got to a point when Wille told him he should have a talk with the royal accountant, to learn how to put it in better funds and investments. To learn how much he had to spare for his own enjoyment.

It turned out to be a ridiculous amount. Nothing compared to the numbers he had pried from Wille about the royal accounts, but a ridiculous amount for a twenty-three-year-old working-class man from Bjärstad just beginning his career. Probably enough, if he braved into that line of thinking, to raise a kid.

One day, almost a year later, Queen Kristina nonchalantly talked about the Act of Succession over brunch, when they were discussing the christening of the daughter of one of Wille’s second cousins. Simon had never bothered to read the Act of Succession, because that had felt too big, so he learnt it for the first time in her voice while buttering a piece of toast.

She started by saying that the heirs have to belong to the Church of Sweden and profess “pure evangelical faith”, whatever that means. Wille doesn’t exactly do that apart from his cross necklace, but Simon didn’t point that out.

The heirs must be born in wedlock from a marriage approved by the monarch, and they must be brought up in Sweden. It’s an absolute primogeniture.

By then, Simon knew he was going to marry Wille. He had known from the moment he had moved into the palace, because why would he make that decision if he didn’t plan to marry him? And he knew Wille wanted to marry him, too. And he figured that Kristina approved, otherwise she wouldn’t even let Simon into her palace.

Simon also figured that she didn’t give that talk because she was afraid of illegitimate heirs – because, honestly, Wille wasn’t going to run around cheating on him and getting people pregnant. No, Simon was pretty sure that she was saying that to remind them that they needed to get engaged. Simon knew she was getting restless after seven years; Sweden was getting restless, if the tabloids and tweets were anything to go by.

So, when he was twenty-four and Wille had just turned twenty-five, Wille made a show of proposing and giving him his grandfather’s ring. Simon cried, even though he had been expecting it. From then on, his mind was pretty preoccupied with the wedding and everything it entailed.

A wedding and a marriage, in their situation, very much entailed future children, but neither of them focused on that.

They had one conversation the summer after they got engaged. Kristina had been particularly generous with the talk about grandchildren that day, like she couldn’t wait to have them, which was the same thing she spewed every time since her 60th birthday earlier that year.

“I don’t know why she’s so insistent now,” Wille said when they climbed into bed. “She had Erik at thirty-one. That’s enough time away for us.”

Simon didn’t answer immediately because, for one of the first and only times, he could see her point of view clearly and didn’t disagree with it.

She had to ensure heirs, sure, and turning sixty probably put life into perspective for her. But also, the monarchy had never done this, the whole gay Crown Prince couple. Were there any laws that needed changing? Would the kids need to be biologically Wille’s or would adoption be just as valid? And who knew how long that process would take. Maybe they did need to start thinking about it then so they could have a legitimate kid by thirty-one.

Simon was quiet for too long, lost in thought, and Wille pushed up against the pillows so he was more vertical. He spoke softly, “Hey, I know you’ve… mentioned it before, but… do you really want kids? I mean, I– I don’t really have much of a choice, but you do.”

Simon raised his eyebrows and smiled. “Who else would you have them with?”

“I don’t want them with anyone but you,” he shrugged. “But it’s too big of a thing to push on you on top of everything else.”

Sensing Wille’s anxiety spiking, Simon also rearranged his pillows to face him better in a more sat up position. “Wille. I knew I would have to have kids if I married you.”

“Still…”

“I was fully aware of it.”

“I don’t want to force you.”

“You’re not forcing me to do anything,” he scooted closer and took his hand. “Do you feel forced?”

Wille shrugged again, taking some time to choose his words. “In a way. Mamma always drilled it into our heads that we needed to produce heirs. After Erik died… the last remaining chance I had to refuse went with him. She doesn’t want to pass on the lineage to her sister’s side, so I guess I just grew up always knowing I was going to have children. I never stopped to think in any other way.”

“You should, though.”

“No,” Wille shook his head. “I promise it’s okay. I do want children, so it’s okay. Still don’t know how to go about it, but… I want them. Do you?” he finished, a hint of nerves in his voice.

“I do,” Simon answered honestly, “I’m not going to lie and say that the fact that I want a life with you, the fucking heir to a country, doesn’t come into play, because that’s too big to ignore. But I think it’d be cool to have a few babies with you,” he smiled. “Just a few, though. No more than three, for fuck’s sake.”

It got Wille laughing, which is Simon’s goal in conversations with him ninety-nine percent of the time, and the subject was mostly dropped.

It was dropped between the two of them for the time being, but their parents didn’t have the same idea. Cousins started having kids occasionally. Simon has a distant cousin on his dad’s side and news somehow travelled to his mum about his baby being born. Apart from Wille’s second cousin who had the christening, his first cousin Eleonora gave birth to a bubbly baby boy as well.

The comparison was even worse because they are mostly “older cousins” in their families, born from the eldest sibling. In their generation, Simon is only second to Sara on his mum’s side, and Sara had barely even started another relationship, nowhere near ready for children. Wille is also the second, since Erik died, behind only Eleonora in age. That, in their parents’ minds, automatically meant that they were supposed to start the new generation before everyone else, and they were already late.

And they were responsible for the country’s next leader, so no pressure.

Their initial deal, as a couple, was to revisit the conversation when they felt like it. Apart from outside pressure, the two of them didn’t have the urge, the need for children right away. It was always something for some day. Something for eventually. Something for when we’re not drowning in royal adulthood.

Simon doesn’t know what triggers it. Maybe he isn’t as immune to the passage of time as he thought, or maybe the comments start getting to him. Either way, those assaulting mental images have been building up in frequency and complexity, until one day Simon finds himself slowly pacing one of their spare bedrooms in Haga Palace, a week before his twenty-ninth birthday.

That is how Wille finds him near dinnertime, after calling out for him a couple of times. “Hey, what’re you doing hiding in here?”

Simon doesn’t answer immediately. Wille is still dressed in his daily formal clothes, having just come home, and Simon’s eyes automatically pan up and down his body, even with his head kilometres away. He sees Wille stepping closer to greet him, but lets his eyes lose focus. He interrupts Wille’s leaning in when he finally speaks. “Do you think this is too far away from our room?”

At Wille’s head tilt that he catches with the corner of his eyes, Simon meets his gaze. Wille asks, “What do you mean?”

Simon knows what he himself means, although he finds it hard to say out loud. Sure, they don’t have a solid plan laid out, but he recalls Wille talking about how his mum had Erik at thirty-one and also how Simon himself rolled his eyes at Queen Kristina’s half-playful remark about giving them five years to have children since their wedding. It has only been half that long.

(Linda had Sara at twenty-three.)

“I mean,” he picks his words carefully, feeling restless and needing to continue walking around and gesticulating, “this room’s got one of the prettiest views of the garden, with the cherry tree, and it faces south, so it’s got sunlight year-round. And I know there are, like, three more guest rooms like this along the corridor, but they’re all so big, no matter how much stuff we try to put in them, but also, is this too far away from our room? And it would be weird to have a few guest bedrooms and random rooms between ours and…” his voice trails off.

Slowly, an amused smile grows on Wille’s face. “You’re asking if this is too far away to walk in the middle of the night every two hours? Because yes.” Wille steps closer to him again, drawing Simon to a stop so he can comb a hand through his curls. “You’ve been worrying your pretty mind about this all day?”

“No, not just today,” Simon confesses, and then bites his lip briefly. “And I’m not… worrying, I’m… brainstorming.”

“Brainstorming.”

“Yes.”

“Simon,” Wille says with the same amused smile, “we’ve got another four potential bedrooms by our room, if you’d be willing to turn the music room and the gaming room. It even beats your limit of three kids. Why are you pacing the tiniest guest bedroom we have?”

Wille’s idea of tiny has never been the same as Simon’s.

Simon sighs and lets his shoulders drop. “Because… I don’t know,” he mutters, averting his gaze. “This room is… cosy. It’s…” He looks around. “Can you imagine a baby in one of those rooms? It’s ridiculous. They’re way too big for a baby. But then, what if when they grow up they resent us for not putting them in a bigger room? Do we just– Do we move their bedrooms? Is that what happened with you and Erik? Did you guys have smaller bedrooms closer to your parents when you were super young? Is that how this works? Because it would be weird to change their bedrooms. Wouldn’t it? I feel like it would. But I can’t think of a single room in this godforsaken palace that is appropriate for both a tiny baby and a rebellious teenager.”

Simon has lived in five bedrooms in his almost thirty years of life, but they changed when he changed houses. First, his childhood room in his parents’ flat, before his mum had saved enough money to move them out. Then in the house where his mum still lives. Then his Stockholm flat. Then the Drottningholm apartments. And now Haga (before he eventually moves back to Drottningholm someday). He can’t really picture moving inside the same place.

During the speech, Wille doesn’t lose his playful air, and Simon has no idea how. Maybe he is being ridiculous and there is a simple solution right in front of him, but he feels like, whatever he chooses, it will somehow be wrong, both from a parenting point of view and a royal point of view. He can’t say he is the best prince Sweden has ever had.

“Simon,” Wille says his name again, in that endearing way only he can, “why would it be weird to change their bedrooms as they grow? We’ve moved houses before and it wasn’t weird. People do that.”

“We’re adults, Wille, and we didn’t move inside the same house.”

“I did,” he shrugs. “I mean, I don’t remember much but, back when we lived at the Royal Palace, before my grandfather died, I know I had a room closer to my parents and then, at some point, I was moved closer to Erik. Then we were put in an adjacent wing to them when we moved to Drottningholm when I was seven, and I moved again when you came to live with me.”

All he is saying makes sense in a practical sort of way, and Simon knows Wille moved inside Drottningholm. Of course, if your house is a literal palace with hundreds of different apartments and available rooms, you can just… move from one side to the other and it will be like moving houses. You don’t keep the new-born in the same place as the sixteen-year-old heir. It makes sense. However, Simon grew up with the notion of His Room. People rent, buy, and build regular houses with those things in mind.

Simon frowns. “You were moved to that different wing when you were seven?”

Wille mirrors him. “Yes…?”

“You were a little kid and, when you guys moved, your parents put you in a completely different wing?”

“It’s not a different wing – it’s within the same apartments, just in a different portion of them, but it’s honestly not that far.”

Simon thinks back to sharing a thin wall with his sister and his parents’ room. “I’ve been there. It’s very fucking far.”

“No, it’s not.”

“It’s very far for a seven-year-old child to be from his parents.” Simon sighs, frustrated, and looks around. “And this is definitely too far as well. I just… This is smaller. It’s more fit for a baby.”

Now, Wille has dropped the playfulness and is instead searching Simon’s face with a more serious expression. He raises a hand and caresses his cheek, in an attempt to calm down his rambles, and it works, taking away a bit of concern with each swipe.

Simon knows how he sounds like right now, so he crosses his arms and doesn’t meet his eyes. “I’m just… I’m brainstorming.”

Wille raises his eyebrows. “You weren’t brainstorming a few months ago.”

Simon shrugs, unsure of what he wants to say, unsure if he wants to start that discussion. To be honest, fucking terrified of opening up that line of discussion. Terrified of what they will tell him about how to raise his kids. Terrified of having to fight on every decision, even as small as wanting his children’s bedroom close to his.

“Hey.”

The whisper startles him into meeting Wille’s eyes.

“How about we talk over dinner? I’m starving, and I know you get cranky when you don’t eat,” he finishes with a slight upturn of his lips.

Simon wants to be petty and argue that he isn’t cranky right now, even though he very much is, although not because of hunger, but he finally lets himself register the fact that his husband is home with him after busy days for them both and how amazing that feels. How their guards aren’t inside with them and they can put on pyjamas and make a mess in the kitchen if they feel like it. And Simon feels like it.

An involuntary smile tries to creep up on Simon’s lips. He fights it, shoving Wille’s shoulder for good measure, and he is drawn back into a bone-crushing hug, which makes it really hard not to smile.

They do eventually talk very seriously about it later that night. Simon confesses that something in him is growing space and that that space is starting to feel empty. It’s not like he feels his life is empty – he is extremely happy to be living with someone he loves and being able to use the privilege of the royal name to do charitable work that is important to him –, but maybe, in a little while, he will crave more.

Wille watches him talk, and Simon realises he has got a dreamy expression on his face by the end of it. When questioned, Wille simply says that hearing him go on about having kids with him makes his heart burst and that it awakens something in him as well. There is definitely something about seeing your significant other around kids or talking about kids; Simon can verify. He knows he very nearly had a heart attack when he had to see, with his own two eyes, Wille playing with Eleonora’s son and glowing while doing it. So, he gets what Wille is saying.

With all the excitement of it, there is the downside. Simon knows he would be feeling uneasy even if he hadn’t entered the Royal Family, because his own dad wasn’t the best at being a dad. Plus, how does one even go about being a parent? How much will he actually sleep? How do you not fuck up a child?

He had entered the Royal Family, though, and married the heir apparent. Just his luck that it means he needs to have A Meeting™ with his mother-in-law/boss to say he wants to have kids.

He and Wille have a gameplay sort of ready, because they know they need to present a united front in this. Part of that involves having the meeting on their own turf, with their own rules about the attendees and level of formality.

[controversialhottakes]

Apparently these are unpopular opinions but I don't want Wilmon to be endgame and I don't want Wilhelm to abdicate. (I think the show might be heading down the Wilmon endgame + abdication route but I can't imagine them doing it in a way which would feel satisfying to me personally.)

All I could think about throughout the whole season was how unsuitable for each other these two are. They're so different, and I don't just mean their backgrounds, I mean every single thing about them. Their personalities (this one is huuuuge), their values, apparently even their interests since after 3 seasons I can't really name a single thing they both genuinely enjoy (maybe rowing? or was Simon there for a reason? can't remember), unless we count sex which... fair but a rather shaky framework if a long-term relationship is what you're after.

What do they even talk about? Other than Simon hating the system which Wilhelm is at the very centre of. Or the fact that they don't understand each other because Wilhelm is too privileged and Simon is too big a socialist. And while I hate the phrasing I do agree with the sentiment wholeheartedly because it's actually absolutely 100% true. What we have here, ladies and gentlemen, is a conflict of interest. Plain and simple.

One thing that was very clear from the very beginning is that Simon doesn't understand what a relationship with a crown prince entails and that he's really not the kind of person who'd want or should be in such a relationship. He cares too much about other people's opinions, which isn't necessarily bad in and of itself, but people are going to have a lot of opinions if you're dating someone in the public eye, especially the future king, and they're going to be nasty af. Because they can. It's just the reality, nothing you can do about it.

I know a lot of people say that he didn't get media training and so on and so forth. And it is very true and valid. However, a lot of this boils down to his personality. You don't need media training to know that reading comments is a bad idea, let alone replying to them. To me, it's just common sense, and I know he's only 16, but even though it's been a while, I do still remember being 16 and my mindset (on this subject) has not changed since then. Especially if you know you're going to take it to heart, you shouldn't even be looking at the bs people post online.

Simon doesn't fit into Wilhelm's world not because he's poor. He doesn't fit into Wilhelm's world because his personality and values simply don't work in this context. How do you even begin to solve a problem like this? You just can't.

Simon has a very strong personality and even stronger beliefs. There's absolutely nothing wrong with it, it's admirable, but this creates so many problems that are virtually unsolvable. If you watch the series (not just the third season, it's been shown consistently), Simon needs Wilhelm to agree with him. And he wants Wilhelm to do it openly and preferably to feel about it as strongly as he does. Which simply isn't going to happen. In order for this to work, Simon would have to change his entire personality and that would be just awful.

Re: Wilhelm abdicating. You don't make a decision like that at the age of 17. Because this is literally life-changing and there's no going back. His brother just died. His mother is having a nervous breakdown. His father is absolutely helpless. You work through all of that first.

Correct me if I'm wrong but it's only been a couple of months since the accident. Oh and now Wilhelm finds out that his brother was human and not some perfect Disney prince. And he gets front row seats to his always-unnaturally-composed mother's descent into literal madness. Just imagine how terrifying it must feel. This boy is going through a lot, this is not the time to be making huge decisions.

I genuinely believe that Wilhelm would make a great king. Keep in mind that for 16 years, it never occured to him that he might have to do this. This was dropped on him like a bag of cement, together with the news that his older brother, whom he worshipped, was dead. All things considered, he's doing great. Come to think of it, Erik's death is the root of 99% of Wilhelm's current problems. Like he said, he never got to grieve and now on top of that he thinks that his brother was an arsehole and would have hated him for dating another boy. But I think Wilhelm finding out about what happened at the initiation is actually going to help him heal.

Wilhelm abidicating just feels too much like giving in, like he was running away from his problems which is a bit OOC. And it would feel like he was doing it for Simon which is such a bad idea on so many levels. I can't put into words how stupid it would be and, as impulsive as he can get at times, Wilhelm doesn't strike me as the kind of person to just completely fail to think of consequences of his actions when it comes to something this big. I can't for the life of me explain why, but he does come across as rather level-headed and sensible, specially for a 16/17-year-old going through what he's been going through. Certain... incidents... aside (the rifle... yeah, the hell were you thinking? you need to chill out and let it go). Season 2 was peak recklessness, he seems a bit more mellow and settled now. Although breaking up with Simon might turn out to be the final straw, yikes...

[dmajor7th]

Thought, feelings, and opinions on the YR3 finale

Far be it from me to rain on anyone's parade, but by God, the 'walk into the sunset' felt so cheap, lazy, and narratively unsatisfying.

Yes yes we all love love, love prevails all obstacles and suffices in all lacking, and now that they've trotted off into The Great Unknown and dived into The Vast Lake Of Possibility, it's all rainbows and sunshine from here on. Right?

If so, why does the rest of S3's build up stand in contradiction with the ending?

All the incompatibilities Simon and Wille have when it comes to class, wealth, social standing, etc, were really put under a spotlight this season and have not gone away just because they've had a little sun-kissed make-up. Once the car journey is over, they have to actually talk about how they want their joined life to look—quite the feat at 16/17 years old—and judging by Wille's treatment of Simon throughout the rest of the series, I don't see it the road ahead being paved with glory.

We blame (excuse?) a lot of Wille's behaviours this season on external pressures. And yes, Wille was trying to balance his duty to the crown with his romance and was under intense stress with his sick mother and looming ascendence to the throne, but a lot of his shitty behaviour also came from him, as a person. Those behaviours might be learned and cultivated in an upper class context, but they're still his. He chose to shush Simon in the tent then poke at the sore spot that is Simon's litigation settlement. He chose to shout at his mother instead of pulling her over for a more sensible conversation. He chose to pass on the pressures of the court to Simon regarding Simon's online presence, rather than discussing it with him or pushing back against Farima.

And yes, I know he's sixteen and troubled, but troubled sixteen year olds also have agency and personality and decision making abilities. As much as a lot of Wille's poor behaviour is a result of external pressures, we can't blame all his actions on external pressures either, lest be become a flat nothing of a character.

S3 ep 1-5 presented us with what seemed to be a fundamental incompatibility between Simon and Wille—as people, outside of any institutions. And the 'walking off into the sunset' ending glosses over all of that character and relationship build-up for the first five episodes. They even created all the mirroring resolutions for Wilmon ("I hope you have a nice summer" etc.), only to stomp on them with what? "Mom says it's ok for me not to be King anymore! Yay!" and that's it, a big silver bullet to all their problems, now they can live happily ever after.

Speaking of Kristina—Wille just asked nicely not to be King anymore and that was it? All it took was one polite conversation he failed to have with his parents for seventeen episodes and now he's "free"? Yes there was build up to Kristina's decision, but it was also way too easy. They finally get to have a grown up conversation with Wille—I don't think they're just going to let him go, like that, after 5 minutes in the car. They still want him to be King.

And even if he's not king, he's still going to be a Royal. He might not take the throne, but he will still have titles, land, duties, and a place in the Royal family tree. He's not going to be a damn bus driver now. The only thing is is that he might no longer have access to the resources he needs—namely personal security— to live the life of someone inextricably in the public eye, and that doesn't make him freer.

Look, I get that Wille and Simon's romantic relationship was central loci of the show, so it makes total sense why so many people were rooting for a happy ending. I begrudge no one, of course—there is no one way to consume or enjoy the show, and everyone will take from it what they need.

But if they were going for a Big Sappy Ending, I wish they wouldn't have make the cracks in Wilmon's relationship so enormous that they can't just be papered over, as it feels they have in ep6.

Long Live King August.

[othervee]

Season 3

On my rewatch though not finished yet. I had to take a break. Thoughts so far:

In the opening scene the queen doesn't even LOOK at Wilhelm as she comes in. Not a glance! Although she certainly watches Simon when he comes back after the little recess.

Boys! Why didn't you pre-warn your respective mothers about the drugs, at least? Sitting in front of August and his stepdad at a mediation is the second worst possible way for them to have found that out, and surely you would know he would bring that up because that's the only leverage he has apart from being the spare.

LOVE Wilmon boyfriends era. I love the soft little smiles and touches, the heart emojis, the way they say "puss" when they say goodbye. The fact that when they see each other for the first time they kiss in front of everyone and all the Hillerska background noise and chatter completely fades to nothing, because there's nothing else but them in the world.

Happy Wille is so adorable, decorating his bedroom with the poem and the polaroid of Simon... and then sitting down and being restless. Everything has changed and nothing has changed at the same time.

The way it cuts from the fight scene to Wilhelm and August sitting silently in Boris' office is LOL forever.

They are actually talking about the racism and classism. And again, it has to be the elites who find out it exists and what form it takes, to see that change should happen. August, who scoffed at Wille's "socialist safari" in season 1, is now angry when Vincent talks about them "sitting on the bus to the slums". Felice is not just aware of the microaggressions but actively pointing them out to the other girls. So glad that she points out the hair thing - and Stella's utterly tone-deaf reaction.

(There's at least one scene back in s2 where the housemother tells her to put her hair up and then Stella or Fredrika, I forget which, also puts hers up. Is there one in s1?)

And Felice's reaction when she hears about her father's experience at Hillerska. He started out as himself and ended up a complete cookie-cutter perfect upper-class Swede, and he thinks that's OK. And that it's important for her to do it too.

The Wilhelm/Kristina and Sara/Micke parallels they are drawing this season are really interesting. They represent potential futures for their children. Micke is Sara if she retreats from the world and from trying to form and maintain true relationships. Kristina is Wille if he retreats from himself and continues to put up a facade.

Micke has some pieces of childrens' art on his walls and a photo of a little girl... Sara as a child? Sara and Simon's artworks from their childhood? If so, that's really powerful and sad.

Wille's frog prince has the YR stylised crown:

Loved the kids all partying together. Kids are kids, whether rich or not. But oh, Fredrika, you are such a naive little nuffnuff.

Wille's SSSHHHH! to Simon in the tent is so like Kristina.

I am not surprised by the Erik thing at all. But I am curious about how that particular initiation went down, and how the homophobic taunting was stopped. Nils says, "I didn't dare to speak up". August says, "Hey, at least we put a stop to it. We kept our promise. We didn't do the same thing to our first years." Did one or both of them react? Who was it who promised to stop it, and to whom?

I have not forgotten that in s2e3, when Wille asks Boris whether Erik used to come to him, Boris says, "It can be useful to see someone like me, so that you don't feel you have to risk hurting somebody." We see that panic attacks run in the family; do violent outbursts, too?

I have so many thoughts about the royal family this season but that's going to take a longer post. "Not in my family", eh, Wille?

[ireneaesthetic]

• young royals : wilmon fanfic rec •

I've been reading a lot of yr fics lately and it's a daily habit of mine at this point, so i'll recommend some of my fav ones (i'm so bad at choosing and idk if i'll make this a part 1/2/3 thing or update it from time to time - let's see!!)

Completed : multi-chaptered

Summer of love • by @ungaroyals

summary: Through flashes to the past, follow the story of simon and wilhelm's summer of love as they reconnect years later, having moved on with their lives despite always wondering what could have been.

rating (plot, writing, characters): ☆☆☆☆☆/5

We left footprints when we passed by • by This_time_its_just_me

summary: It has been eight years since the video. Five years since hillerska. Three years since wilhelm disappeared from his life as quickly and as intensely as he had returned. Simon has done his best to move on from his past, but old ghosts are the hardest ones to exorcise.

rating (plot, writing, characters): ☆☆☆☆☆/5

The most beautiful boy • by lovelysarcastic

summary: When wilhelm first meets simon, he thinks he is the most beautiful boy he has ever seen. But simon is already in a relationship, so he does what anyone in his situation would do: try to get over his crush. What could possibly go wrong?

rating (plot, writing, characters): ☆☆☆☆/5

Right where you left me • by YourDemiurge | check the tags

summary: When crown prince wilhelm died at the early age of 18, he left three legacies behind: a video that he'd denied being in, a precautionary tale of young love and a statue outside an otherwise unknown public school.

rating (plot, writing, characters): ☆☆☆☆/5

Not if it's you • by @prince-simon

summary: A hallmark-esque christmas au in which simon is a nanny for the crown prince's son.

rating (plot, writing, characters): ☆☆☆☆/5

Letters to Romeo • by willeseas

summary: Wilhelm is romeo, a secretive entity that helps lovesick people in his hometown by answering their letters. Wille keeps himself at an arm-length distance from involving personally in the stories he's confided to, until a curly-haired boy crosses his way, and turns his world upside down from the very beginning.

rating (plot, writing, characters): ☆☆☆/5

In progress : multi-chaptered

This is everything • by paspeurpasseul | check the tags

summary: A childhood friends au where simon makes wille question everything. But their love is just as strong.

(special mention to Dark come soon also - and literally everything they write)

Obviously • by @grapehyasynth | check the tags

summary: Normal people au. In their final year of secondary school, simon and wille find themselves entering a potent, secret relationship that threatens to upend both their lives. It can't last, but neither can they stop being a part of each other's lives.

Heavy is the head • by @prncewilhelm

summary: At 8 years old, wilhelm and simon are inseparable. When simon abruptly stops showing up to play, wilhelm just wants his best friend back. At 16, wilhelm is sent to hillerska to find himself and instead finds simon—but simon wants nothing to do with him.

Doesn’t everyone belong in the arms of the sacred • by @alltoowille

summary: He painted and painted and painted and wille held him and watched, shared simon’s perspective, watched the whole thing happen, and simon felt like a fucking miracle worker, creating a world in front of both of their eyes, a world of color and light, saturated with gratitude and love and affection, a documentation of simon’s search for joy, his desire to grasp onto it, cling onto it, make it permanent.

Monotony blues • by @stardiveatnight | check the tags

summary: Over the years simon has learned that the best way to cope with the trauma that was his seventeenth year of life was telling himself two things over and over again: he was always meant to be miserable and wilhelm didn’t love him.

Get in loser, we’re going camping • by @piebingo

summary: Simon and wille go camping together, except they don’t know a thing about camping and Wille is madly in love with his best friend.

[groenendaelfic]

I've been thinking a lot about trans!Simon lately, specifically transmasc Simon, and the idea both saddens and infuriates me.

Not the part about Simon being trans of course, but how the Royal Court, the government and a not insignificant chunk of Sweden would react to Wille dating a trans man.

Because even if Kristina & co are told in the same briefing they find out he exists (unlikely but possible), they would hear his name first and assume he was AMAB.

Of course Kristina and the Royal Court would prefer if Wille dated a cis woman, but compared to a cis guy? They'd be delighted.

Transmasc Simon has a womb, to the best of their knowledge a fully functioning one, and that's all that matters. That Wille is enough into someone with a healthy womb that he's willing to marry and have children with them.

It's basically a win/win for everyone.

Wille gets to be with the person he loves, Kristina gets a happy son and hopefully grandkids and legitimate heirs in a few years, the government doesn't have to bother with pesky changes to the law and can still pride itself on Sweden being one of the most modern and progressive countries in the world, all without lifting a finger other than to permit the Crown Prince to marry the love of his life.

And if the relationship doesn't work out? Well then everyone can rest assured that Wille can manage to get it up for someone with a womb, so there's still hope. Yay.

Oh, except for Simon. It'd be a nightmare for Simon, because if he does not get pregnant, whatever the reason might be, then he'll be torn to shreds by the media etc and being called selfish will probably be the least of it. He will be pressured from day one of the marriage.

If Wille steps down? That is going to be a major blow to trans rights and acceptance, and terfs and transphobes will love it. I'm not saying that makes being a transmasc spouse to the future king worth it, I'm just saying there's no choice which won't be shit and leave Simon feeling guilty and most likely requiring therapy for life.

But if he does choose to get pregnant? He will be feminized to hell and back. He might enjoy being pregnant, but he also might not, and it as well as the entire circus around it might also cause the worst kind of gender dysphoria.

In fact I think it's very likely. And yet the pictures of him pregnant (and maybe photoshopped to make him appear more feminine because lets not kid ourselves people suck) will keep being posted and published for the rest of his life, whenever a "halfway plausible" reason arises, or maybe just because it's a slow news day.

And you know what happens after you have your first child? The questions of, why bother getting your figure back? Why not go for a second one immediately? Wouldn't that be easier? start coming up all day every day, even by "well intentioned people"'.

It'd be absolute hell for Simon, and that's why I'm never going to write trans!Simon (and/or pregnant!Simon of any kind). Apart from the fact that I would have too much anxiety about not being able to do the topic justice.

(I do know that there're a few trans!Simon fics out there I've yet to read, and that is awesome, because more fic is always good and because I admire those authors so much. This post has nothing to do with any existing trans!Simon fic, but is rather in reply to a few anon asks I got re Basket Baby and choosing to make Wille the one who gets pregnant, despite me generally seeing Wille as someone who prefers to top more often than not, and Simon to bottom, although they do switch plenty enough and want to try everything with each other, because they're Wilmon)

[theodoraflowerday]

young royals s3e2 episode reaction

heavy breathing on speakerphone? are they having phone sex?

oh no. just longing. that is genuinely worse

"what would you have done if I was there" ok nvm they're gonna have phone sex

OK NVM IT'S STILL JUST LONGING

WHAT ARE YOU? ADULTS?

oh that was really sad

are they ever not gonna get interrupted by knocking. on god.

vanessa gives me the heebie jeebies

y'all vincent is SO dramatic he should genuinely drop out and become an actor.

not the uncomfortable looks between the third years re: the gay porn movie sjfkdjfld

"no one's been bullied" and pans to alexander. yeah. fr.

I knew they were gonna talk shit abt wille as soon as he left.

hm. of course august wants to defend that.

how surprising, ludwig not going to see wille

oh, kristina is fully unraveling huh

bro farima is starting to piss me off too

seriously. not one single functioning adult in this whole damn country.

"so the plan is to not do anything until it looks bad to not do anything" isn't that the plan for all royal families for eternity?

god they're so cute with their piano and their hand holding and their talking about their feelings

simon: close the school !!!!!! wille: wait no

or are you just with me because we go to the same school skflsjfdljfslrk I MEAN.....

like that's not an unfair assumption y'all wouldn't have met otherwise bffr

hm. okay

awww yeah felice is a baby I love her

DIVERSITY

BROOOOOOOOOOO LMFAO OF COURSE IT WAS THAT

DISGUSTINGGGGGGGGGG FUCK YOU LADY FROM THE INCREDIBLES

YEAH FELICE GET THAT

NOT THE TICKLINGGGGG

omg the lil high five/hand shake thing with wille and simon I'm gonna start crying they're so cute

ooooooo a camping trip. love this for them.

WHY ARE THEY BEING SO CUTE

BRO IM IN SHAMBLES I LOVE ESTABLISHED RELATIONSHIP WILMON SO MUCH STOP

"do you think we'll get to sleep together" WHO ARE YOU NICK AND CHARLIE AT PARIS?? STOP THAT

god they're so fucking cute I'm gonna kms

oh her and micke having a whole conversation like parent and child? ok

OH SHE NO LONGER WANTS TO WORK WITH HORSES

OH SARA NOOO

oh wow sara's a whole driver huh

so weird to have sara and micke bonding. like genuinely so weird.

HE JOINED THE CHOIR NNNOOOOOOOOO

JAKFJSKFJDKFJDJF THATS SO FUCKING FUKNYKFKTJDKGKDKFKDLFK

I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS I'M GONNA DIE OF SECOND HAND EMBARRASSMENT

FELICE'S WIDDLE FACE OH NO

SIMON'S FACEJSKFJDKGJDLFKDLFKFL

oh they're making out now huh

I DIDN'T KNOW YOU LIKED TO SING - I DONT LIKE TO SING I LIKE TO LISTEN TO YOU SING

yo this season is wish fulfillment in every goddamn way

like they're so fucking precious I'm gonna fucking die

awww nothing more precious than rotting with your girl besties

a petition lol

why's he allowed a laptop and not a phone though? that makes no sense

oh. oh um.

oh well that sounds an awful lot like sexual assault huh

lil bro's got a full blown eating disorder huh. you need therapy not exercise

HE'S CALLING SARA

HE'S CALLING SARA AND TEARING UP

WHY ARE YOU TALKING TO HIM

GET A JOB STAY AWAY FROM HIM

oh uh simon tore him a new one huh

ooooooo protective bf wille going all out

listen. I don't *enjoy* abuse of power

but every time wille reminds august who's the heir and who's gonna be king n shit, it's just. it gets to me all right. it gets to me

aw come on that was barely a fight

NOT IN FRONT OF BORIS

"mediation talks" THEYRE SENDING THEM TO COUPLES COUNSELING DJFLFJRLDJRLDJFLDJFLDKFLDKF

STOP THAT IS THE FUNNIEST POSSIBLE OUTCOME DJGKDJFLSKFLSKGLSJGLSJFLSJ

oh come ON SJDLSJFLDJFL

listen I know this is supposed to be dramatic but A RELIGIOUS PAMPHLET I'M GONNA DIENDKFKSKGJDLFKDLGKDLFK

I thought I was gonna be immune to any and all mentions of any sort of revolution, turns out I'm not

oh good lord no

simon don't do it

oh he did it. oh yeah fucking wonderful.

teenagers, y'all.

sure, baby. be the very public boyfriend of the future king of sweden, get a fuck ton of hate (and be accused of social climbing), post an original song about revolution, profit. a+ decision making here. I see no flaws.

oh, yeah, of course farima is in this bitch

this is stressing me out lmfao

ugh.

NO DONT SAY THAT

NOOOOO

WHEN I WANTED A MUTUAL ILY I DIDN'T MEAN DURING A TENSE MOMENT

I mean I'm actually like really glad they're both tense and still reminding each other that they love each other. #communication

but oh no

"I've taken care of myself and sara since we were kids" yeah wonder why that was [stares at linda and micke]

girlhood, man. so beautiful.

OH FELICE IS TALKING ABT RACISM

not stella going "you're so so beautiful" like yes she is that isn't the problem

ok fuck you valter

WHAT GIRL WOULD YOU BE DATING lmfao

WHAT ABOUT THE NONBINARY ONES YYYYEEEAAAAAAAAA MADDIE

nonbinary regnant maddie

tbf simon....... like wouldn't y'all want to get it on lmfao

it makes me very sad tho. the fact that no one would wanna sleep in the same tent with them. homophobic.

FELICE SAVES THE DAY ONCE AGAIN

bro I am so into felice + wille + simon. a wonder.

the lil hammock bit I love them so much

NOT MARIEBERG CRASHING THE CAMPING TRIP

I'm genuinely so obsessed with them they're being SO PUBLIC like that's a power couple right there

STELLA AND ROSH?!!?!!??!? +/? +? /?? =!!

STELLA??? AND ROSH?????????

bro this is straight out of a fanfic I can't stop laughing

STELLA EHSKFJSKFJDKR

fredrika is so nasty and for what sjfkdjfkdjfkdkf

WILLE NOJFLFJDLFKDLFKDLGKD

oh my god

oh that's so fucking awkward akfkskflskd

THAT IS *NOT* THE SAME THING WILHELM BE THE MOST FUCKIN FOR REAL

oh that's a class divide fr in there. wow.

WE HAVE TO WORK TO AFFORD THINGS

DID HE JUST SHUSH HIM

WHAT THE FUCK

wilhelm that is *so* fucking *low*

like ohohoho you're rich like me now because you got your UNDERAGE SEX TAPE LEAKED

that is *so* low holy fucking shit

oh wow

okay that was stressful

I do love those artful shots of wille

oh. ludwig speaks. didn't know he had a voice. I assumed kristina had it on some conch shell necklace.

TAKING TIME OFF????

"is it my fault?" WILLE NO. NO

oh yeah that's gonna be stressful isn't it

god