#and he liked the Capulets better than the montagues to begin with!!!!

[thecomet-and-themeteor]

Sorry for Romeo & Juliet posting on not main but just hold on for a second, I promise this relates to & Juliet it's genuinely insane how Prince Escalus just fucking. Lost like all of his (named) relatives.

Motherfucker gave both the Capulets and the Montagues at least a million chances and both families just abused it.

His cousin was killed while visiting the grave of his dead fiancée and his nephew was killed in a fight that he had no reason to be in. The first one was by a Montague, the second one was by a Capulet. The first one was on behalf of a Capulet, the second one was on behalf of a Montague.

That's fucking insane, man. I wouldn't be surprised if, in & Juliet, while the Capulets were busy in Paris with Juliet and Frankie, the Montagues were being stripped of their status, titles, and land. And then when the Capulets returned to Verona, I wouldn't be surprised if they were also stripped of their status, titles, and land. And the worst part is, that is literally the least he could do as a punishment to them yet I don't doubt even for a second that that was the punishment he went with because HE STILL FUCKING CARED ABOUT THEM.

And the slap in the face of both Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet being alive meanwhile Paris and Mercutio both still lay dead is unimaginable. What would you do in that situation? Genuinely, what would you do? Because I can't imagine it'd be anything good.

[bookishdaze]

Noa and Mae as Romeo and Juliet in the Next Planet of the Apes Movie?

Here's why a potential "love story" between Mae and Noa, whether explicit or simply implied, may not be such a terrible idea.

Why? Because Shakespeare told me so, that's why.

"When in doubt, it's from Shakespeare....or the Bible." At least according to a book I had to read for high school, lol.

The biblical references in Caesar's trilogy have been pointed out multiple times already, and these movies have also been described as Shakespearean tragedies. So I thought, 'ok, what kind of Shakespearean tragedy will we have this time around?'

I'm first gonna start off with Hamlet in the Caesar trilogy. I'm also gonna mention other popular movies that are based on Shakespeare's plays. Not necessarily because it's concrete proof that this is what will happen in future POTA movies. This is me simply picking up certain storytelling beats and patterns I've noticed in some of my favorite movies.

It's not 100% the same, but there are some similarities. Also, this isn't anything new. Many have pointed this out before, but I love talking about this stuff!

The Lion King, Black Panther, and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes are loosely based on Hamlet. A king or rightful heir is killed. Usually by an evil uncle, cousin, or family member. For some reason this always results in them falling off a very high cliff.

Everyone thinks they're dead, the evil relative takes power, and everything kinda sucks. There is not enough food in the Pride Lands under Scar's rule. Killmonger burns the heart-shaped herbs. Koba leads the apes to war against the humans.

The rightful ruler spends time in exile, recovering from their wounds and trauma. They might even get a visit or have a recollection of their dead father.

Then the rightful ruler comes back from the dead, challenges the usurper, and regains their rightful place upon the throne.

Now lets take a look at their sequels.

The Lion King 2 and Wakanda Forever share some similarities. They both follow another one of Shakespeare's popular plays, Romeo and Juliet.

Like the Montagues and Capulets, we have two rival kingdoms in both movies. We got the Pridelanders and the Outsiders. We also got the Wakandans and Talokanils.

The two heirs/rulers from both kingdoms meet. They hate and don't trust each other at first, but then they start to have compassion for the other. In Kiara and Kovu's case, they fall in love. Namor and Shuri don't fall in love, but after Namor shows her his underwater kingdom and what he has to protect, she softens and begins to understand him more. (They even got the whole Hades and Persephone thing going on, who are a couple in Greek mythology, by the way).

There are losses on both sides. Kovu's brother was killed while going after Simba. One of Namor's people was killed when Shuri was rescued by Nakia, and Shuri's mother, Queen Ramonda, died after Namor's attack on Wakanda. (Starts nervously eyeing Anaya here...)

These losses make things worse, by the way.

In the end, both pairs are able to bring the fighting between their people to a stop. The Outsiders are welcomed into Simba's pride. The Wakandans and Talokanils stop fighting after seeing their leaders return together.

In the end, they realize that they're the same. That they can't let hate and fear of the other side cloud their judgement.

Kiara tells her father, "A wise king once told me we are one....Look at them. They are us. What differences do you see?"

Shuri tells Namor while she spares his life, "Vengeance has consumed us. We cannot let it consume our people."

And I think this goes well with one of the core themes of these POTA movies. The apes are a mirror to humanity. We the audience are seeing us through them, and the characters in the movies themselves must come to the realization that they're the same.

Like when Caesar tells his son, "I always think ape better than human. I see now how much like them we are."

Maybe something similar like this will happen with Noa and Mae and whatever fight will happen between apes and humans. While I'm all for a good romance, it may end up being more like Namor and Shuri's case. There's something there. The tropes are present, but they don't fall in love. (At least not yet. Please Ryan Coogler, give me Nashuri endgame in Black Panther 3, hehe).

This is just a theory, by the way. This doesn't have to happen, but I just think it'd be neat. There would be differences though. What those differences would be, idk, but whatever happens in the next one, I can't wait!

"But but.... aren't you forgetting something?"

What's that?

"Don't they...ya know...both die at the end?"

Besides, they don't have to die. Things can be a little more hopeful for our two heroes 🙈

[sapphic-shakespeare]

1,000 Follower Analysis Post:

Something that I've thought about for years is the significance of Mercutio's death. Why is he the first to die?

First, let's examine Mercutio himself:

He is not a Montague OR a Capulet. He is a kinsman of Prince Escalus of Verona, like Paris. But like Paris, he has chosen a side in the ongoing war between the Montagues and the Capulets, which goes to show just how much the feud affects the people of Verona when even people outside the families are involved.

Mercutio is one of Romeo's closest friends, possibly even the closest after Romeo's cousin, Benvolio. He's carefree, fun loving, and is the dream role of basically every queer Shakespeare fan.

Before I talk about him more, I want to mention a little theory of mine. Maybe call it a philosophy:

See, back in 2015, my brother and I saw Kenneth Branagh's 'Romeo & Juliet', and something that really bothered me about it was that almost everything was played for drama, even the famous 'Bite my thumb' exchange, which in my opinion was a huge faux par and made for a boring production.

The first two acts of R&J is rather funny, and plays out very much like one of Shakespare's comedies, even though the play begins by outright telling us that the two titular characters will ultimately take their own lives. In fact, the first half is hopeful, with the friar believing that the union between the two leads will result in the end of the war between their families. I believe the comedic nature of the first half is essential, and to remove it is to rob a performance of impact.

Now, I can come back to Mercutio and finally make my point: Mercutio's death is what sets off the tragedy, and marks the end of the lighter first half.

Because Tybalt kills Mercutio, Romeo kills Tybalt. Because Romeo kills Tybalt, he is banished. His banishment leads his mother to die from grief and Juilet to go to friar in a panic when her wedding to Paris is set. Friar gives Juilet the death-like sleeping potion... you get the idea.

Before Mercutio's death, there very well may have been a chance for Romeo and Juilet to be happy. I'm not here to argue about whether or not they would have worked out in the long run; that's not really my point. My point is there was hope of them working out pre-Mercutio death, which dwindles as the plot progresses.

I think it's also important that the first to die is not actually part of either family. Notice how, other than the titular characters, the first and last characters to die are not Montagues or Capulets, but outsiders, and better yet, kinsmen of the Prince.

The Prince himself even says at the end of the play that due to him "winking at their discords," he, along with the two families, has lost loved ones. That's what he means when he says, "All are punished."

So, why does Mercutio die first?

Kill off comic relief to signal tone shift.

Kill off a non-family member of either side to show the effect the feud has had on the rest of Verona.

[cto10121]

What are your thoughts on Tybalt? I knew before reading that he killed Mercutio and then was killed by Romeo so maybe i went in with some bias. But i wanted Tybalt dead as soon as he stepped on stage. No joke. The moment it said [enter TYBALT] and he started swinging his sword and talking smack i was like “Lord Jesus somebody stab him in the face rn.” This opinion never changes and is only furthered by his treatment of Benvalio in that scene as well as the Masquerade scene and the dual scene. But, i think if anyone could convince me of otherwise, it’d be you 🤭

Lol, I can try. Let me count the ways.

So I was, too, thinking about Tybalt, and I have come to the conclusion that his introduction may just be my favorite Shakespeare character introduction, no joke. I can hardly believe it myself, since Tybalt is such a minor character all things considered, but it’s true:

Tybalt: What, art thou drawn amongst these heartless hinds? Turn thee, Benvolio. Look upon thy death.

Tybalt also shows a modicum of wit when he criticizes Benvolio’s methods of keeping the peace. “What, drawn, and talk of peace? I hate the word / As I hate hell, all Montagues, and thee.”

After that, though, Tybalt becomes more or less regulated to antagonistic catalyst. He does have some good rhyming couplets (“Patience perforce with willful choler meeting / Makes my flesh tremble in their different greeting”). I’d say he is perhaps the most eloquent of Shakespeare’s hothead characters, except that he can’t stand against even Capulet’s bluster (“Why, uncle, ‘tis a shame” 😡 poor bby).

One thing Shakespeare is careful to denote, though, is his commitment to honor and the rules of dueling. He sends Romeo a letter of challenge. When Mercutio tries to antagonize him into a fight, he keeps his cool and doesn’t rise to his bait, but instead is focused on Romeo. When Romeo refuses to duel him, only then does he duel Mercutio instead. In a way, he is undone by his own curious integrity—Romeo dispatches him quickly through sheer rage.

That said, I do agree that Tybalt does get a lot of unjustified love, not just in the fandom but in productions. I’ve noticed that a lot of productions cast Tybalt with a much sexier actor than Romeo, despite the lack of canon evidence. Romeo of course is the much larger and more dynamic role, but I feel if you’re going to include sexy good looking actors, you should do it for all the youths (once again, the French musical is so superior for this). And then there is the anime version.

Like dude. Dude. Why did you go so hard on his design????

I think overall people are responding to the unrealized potential of his character—he does show charismatic flair at the beginning and quietly honorable instincts. And Shakespeare does show discipline and restraint in not rising to Mercutio’s bait. But yeah, most adaptations either go the Totally Evil Antagonist route (ew) or the tragically misunderstood/traumatized one (better, but just depends). You must be the first I’ve heard who disliked him immediately, but then I went into it not knowing he would kill Mercutio. So maybe that does make a difference.

[lcdrarry]

LCDrarry 2021 Master List

Dear lovely Participants, Creators, Alpha and Beta Readers, Commentors, Cheerleaders, Readers and Fans of our fest,

Our 3rd installment of LCDrarry is coming to an end, and we'd like to thank you all for taking part in our little fest, for creating so many amazing new Drarry works for us all to enjoy, for commenting on your favourite creations, for sharing and recommending the LCDrarry gems with your friends and blog followers, and for making this fest another amazing experience for everybody!

You can find out under the cut who created what ;D

~Your LCDrarry Mods Tami ( @celilasart​ ) and Suzi ( @erin-riwen​ )

PS: Please have a look at the author notes and tags on AO3 for additional information and more detailed warnings.

PPS: As always, reblogs are very much appreciated to promote all the wonderful works of LCDrarry.

Thank you! :)

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Podfic

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[Podfic] Harry Potter And The Disorder Of The Phoenix

Title: "Harry Potter And The Disorder Of The Phoenix" Written by: postjentacular Read by: @porcelainsalt​ | bluedreaming (AO3) Word Count: 1,304 words / 8 minutes Rating: General Warnings: none

Summary: An exasperated werewolf-slash-professor, a decidedly not-dead drama queen, a brat, and a straight white man settle down to watch a movie. It goes as well as you’d expect.

Listen to "Harry Potter And The Disorder Of The Phoenix" on AO3.

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Art

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[Art] At the Beginning (With You)

Prompt: "Anastasia", 1997, Don Bluth and Gary Goldman Artist: @zandragorin​ Art Medium: Digital Art Rating: Teen Warnings: none

Summary: It's one, two, three, and suddenly he sees it a glance.

View "At the Beginning (With You)" on AO3.

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[Art] Between Your Heart and Mine

Prompt: "Crimson Peak", 2015, Guillermo del Toro Artist: @kryptidfox​ Art Medium: Digital Art Rating: General Warnings: none

Summary: Auror Harry Potter is called to investigate barren and isolated Malfoy Manor, home to Sir Draco Malfoy. There, he finds forgotten secrets, lingering ghosts and perhaps even love.

View "Between Your Heart and Mine" on AO3.

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[Art] Fallen

Prompt: "Chocolat", 2000, Lasse Hallström Artists: @julcheninred​ & m4gOrtz Art Medium: paper, thread, chalk, ink Rating: General Warnings: Food, Depression, Clergy

Summary: As Père Harry passed the window of the chocolate shop early on Easter morning, he was shocked to discover the Comte de Malfoy, who had destroyed the shop's window display and fallen asleep in his grief and exhaustion.

View "Fallen" on AO3.

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[Art] I am only one side of a coin.

Prompt: "Merlin", 2008-2012 Artist: @digthewriter​ Art Medium: Digital Art in Photoshop Rating: General Warnings: none

Summary: The better side, obviously. Merlin/Harry Potter fusion. Harry as Merlin & Draco as Arthur.

View "I am only one side of a coin." on AO3.

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[Art] No Sweeter Innocence Than Our Gentle Sin

Prompt: "Romeo and Juliet", Shakespeare Artist: writingsbydestiny Art Medium: Digital Art Rating: General Warnings: none

Summary: Inspired by Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare starring Draco Malfoy as Juliet Capulet and Harry Potter as Romeo Montague.

View "No Sweeter Innocence Than Our Gentle Sin" on AO3.

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[Art] The Malfoy Family

Prompt: "The Addams Family", 1991, David Levy Author: @moondraconis​ Art Medium: Digital Art Rating: General Warnings: None

Summary: Harry and Draco have just got engaged. Now Harry has to sit for a family portrait with his weird new in-laws.

View "[Art] The Malfoy Family" on AO3.

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[Art] The Poet's Choice

Prompt: "Portrait of a Lady on Fire", 2019, Céline Sciamma Artist: @kairennart​ | Personaje (AO3) Art Medium: Digital Art Rating: General Warnings: none

Summary: On an isolated island in Brittany at the end of the eighteen century, Harry is commissioned to paint a wedding portrait of Draco without him knowing, since he refuses to pose. That means a lot of staring, and a lot of time together. Time goes by, and, inevitably, like everything in life, they fall in love. But Harry has to finish his painting, and Draco has to get married.

View "The Poet's Choice" on AO3.

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[Art] there are dangerous men about

Prompt: "The Legend of Zorro”, 2005, Martin Campbell Artist: @dragontamerdame | dragontamerdrarry (AO3) Art Medium: Digital Art Rating: Teen Warnings: None

Summary: Two wizards engaging in a vicious duel, but make it gay and sexy.

View "there are dangerous men about" on AO3.

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Fic & Art

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[Fic & Art] One More Lantern

Prompt: “xxxHoLiC”, 2006-2010 (anime)/2013 (live action) Author/Artist: vivi1138 Word Count/Art Medium: 8,373 words & Digital Art Rating: Teen Warnings: Smoking

Summary: Harry is plagued by spirits who seem intent on devouring him, and there’s only one place they can’t follow: a house hidden in wizarding London, belonging to Draco Malfoy. Harry didn’t intend to stay. He certainly didn’t foresee falling in love. Yet here they are. A slice of life where Draco is a sap, Harry buys ice cream, and spirits keep throwing their peaceful life into chaos.

Read and view "One More Lantern" on AO3.

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[Fic & Art] In the Shadow of Your Heart

Prompt: Howl's Moving Castle, 2004, Hayao Miyazaki Author: @fantalf​ Word Count/Art Medium: 854 words & Digital Art Rating: General Warnings: sectumsempra scars, memory loss

Summary: When the recluded ex-Death Eater Draco Malfoy finds Harry Potter wandering around the hills, with no memory whatsoever of who he once was, he and Teddy decide to welcome him into their little family.

Read and view "In the Shadow of Your Heart" on AO3.

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Fic

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[Fic] Paging Healer Twatwaffle

Prompt: "House M.D.", 2004-2012, TV-Series Author: @veelawings​ Word Count: 1,550 words Rating: Explicit Warnings: Mild dub-con and manipulation, but they’re already friends with benefits.

Summary: Healer Malfoy is an absolute wanker.

Read "Paging Healer Twatwaffle" on AO3.

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[Fic] (Let's Take Our Time) Just Moving Slow

Prompt: "Holidate", 2020, John Whitesell Author: Melacka Word Count: 1,886 words Rating: Teen Warnings: none

Summary: Harry and Draco have a mutually beneficial arrangement: automatic dates for all holidays and public events, no questions asked, no obligation, no strings. It all seemed like such a good idea when they started. Harry certainly never expected to develop feelings for Draco.

Read "(Let's Take Our Time) Just Moving Slow" on AO3.

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[Fic] Jurassic Drarry

Prompt: "Jurassic Park", 1993, Steven Spielberg Author: PhenomenalAsterisk Word Count: 1,941 words & Digital Art Rating: General Warnings: Unconventional disposal of dinosaurs; fanart includes graphic image of meat

Summary: An unflappable palaeontologist, a sexy chaos theorist, and a distracted palaeobotanist are called in to tour an eccentric billionaire's pet project.

Read "Jurassic Drarry" on AO3.

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[Fic] My Saviour Won't Stop Texting Me

Prompt: "Hercules", 1997, Ron Clements, John Musker Author: fwooshy Word Count: 5,012 words Rating: Teen Warnings: Texting fic

Summary: Long ago, in Ancient Greece, there was a man named Draco Malfoy who sold his soul to Voldemort. Tortured by his sins, he... oh, who am I kidding? This is a Hercules AU texting fic, not some Greek tragedy! Harry and Draco get together and everyone has phones in Ancient Greece. Please enjoy.

Read "My Saviour Won't Stop Texting Me" on AO3.

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[Fic] The Malfoy Family

Prompt: "The Addams Family", 1991, David Levy Author: floydig Word Count: 7,088 words Rating: Mature Warnings: All Addams Family Warnings Apply, Morbid and Dark Humor, Loving Horror, Mild Body Horror (fun), Carnivorous Plants, Blasphemy, Necromancy, Implied Sexual Content

Summary: The Malfoy Family is the Addams Family, and things are about to get interesting. Draco and Harry Malfoy are odd, intriguing, endearingly creepy, and completely and utterly infatuated with one another. This is going to be a fun one. Featuring deadly magical creatures as house pets, recreational use of Unforgivable Curses, hungry carnivorous plants, and plenty of mayhem in between. Also, the whole thing takes place at a Magical Multi-Purpose Store. The Malfoy Family goes shopping!

Read "The Malfoy Family" on AO3.

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[Fic] Love that Blinds

Prompt: "The Batman", 2004-2008, TV-Series Author: aminathescorpio Word Count: 7,245 words Rating: Explicit Warnings: Brief graphic descriptions of violence, dubious consent, gaslighting

Summary: When Draco Malfoy gets accepted to work as a psychiatrist in Azkaban Asylum, he finds himself caught in a complicated relationship with none other than Azkaban's most infamous resident: Harry Potter.

Read "Love that Blinds" on AO3.

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[Fic] Sesame Seeds and the Entire Spectrum of Human Emotion

Prompt: "The Proposal", 2009, Anne Fletcher Author: @bisexualronaldweasley​ Word Count: 9,530 words Rating: Mature Warnings: Nudity, Boat Incident, references to past abuse/neglect

Summary: Faced with exile, Draco pretends to be engaged to Harry Potter, who agrees to play along for Narcissa's sake. When they're forced to spend a weekend together celebrating the engagement with the Weasleys, they might try to kill each other, or... they might just fall in love. . Based on the movie The Proposal (2009), though you don't have to have seen the movie to understand the fic!

Read "Sesame Seeds and the Entire Spectrum of Human Emotion" on AO3.

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[Fic] Ghost

Prompt: "Ghost", 1990, Jerry Zucker Author: @maraudersaffair​ Word Count: 10,761 words Rating: Explicit Warnings: major character death (MCD), canon-typical violence, grief and mourning

Summary: When Harry is killed tragically during an Auror raid gone wrong, Draco does his best to move on. He's even a little cheered when Theo Nott starts pursuing him. Then Sybil Trelawney visits Draco.

Read "Ghost" on AO3.

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[Fic] all in good time

Prompt: "Groundhog Day", 1993, Harold Ramis Author: saltwatergarden Word Count: 13,054 words Rating: Mature Warnings: mentions alcohol

Summary: Draco Malfoy's life is boring and repetitive. He supposes he shouldn't complain, since that's better than sharing a house with Voldemort, or doing time in Azkaban. When he gets trapped in a time loop, however, he is forced to confront the routine he has fixed for himself, and try to break out of it. It isn't all bad, facing no consequences for his actions can be fun for a bit. But after he starts visiting the Auror Headquarters and having brief but remarkably pleasant conversations with one Auror Potter, he finally has the real motivation to break out of the time loop - something worth sticking around for.

Read "all in good time" on AO3.

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[Fic] Star Crossed

Prompt: "Romeo and Juliet", Shakespeare Author: GallifreyisBurning Word Count: 13,615 words Rating: Teen Warnings: none

Summary: Two Quidditch teams, alike in dignity, In fair Great Britain, where we lay our scene, From ancient grudge break to new mutiny, Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean. The Wimbourne Wasps and the Appleby Arrows have been bitter rivals for centuries. When a nasty brawl ends one of their Seekers’ careers, the teams need new blood to take up the slack and divert attention from the bad publicity. And who better to distract the press than the infamous Draco Malfoy and golden boy Harry Potter? Called back from successful careers abroad, the pair are once again to be pitted against one another in an epic feud. Too bad no one told them that before they started flirting…

Read "Star Crossed" on AO3.

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[Fic] The Slytherin Host Club

Prompt: "Ouran high school host club", 2006, Bisco Hatori and Takuya Igarashi Author: shushu_yaoi_lj Word Count: 14,377 words Rating: Explicit Warnings: explicit sexual content, scars, non-graphic mention of past abuse

Summary: Harry is simply looking for a quiet place to finish his Potions essay.It's a pity he ends up at the Slytherin Host Club instead. Or maybe it's a blessing in disguise, since he's had a crush on Malfoy since the beginning of his eighth year...

Read "The Slytherin Host Club" on AO3.

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[Fic] It is on the other side of my soul (where your name is written)

Prompt: "Call Me By Your Name", 2017, Luca Guadagnino Author: opaleopioid Word Count: 16,372 words Rating: Explicit Warnings: implied switching, rimming, anal sex, no age difference (HP canon-compliant age difference)

Summary: Harry’s having it all, now that the unpleasantries of being treated like a loose cannon is gone: the war is well over, and Voldemort is long dead. He’s made the choice to stay in B, an unplottable magical town in Northern Italy, whose protection wards had kept him in one piece at the height of the second wizarding war, and whose seclusion provides him with the quiet, normal life that he now lives. Harry adores the grassy hills that enclose B like the warm arm of a mother; Likes playing the grand piano from dawn to dusk; Cherishes his current life, on the whole. He gets himself Mocaccino every morning and sometimes has dinner with the Weasleys at their cottage nearby. With the majority of his friends and family falling in love with B and gradually settling down as well, Harry feels like this is the last place he would ever want to leave. To say that the arrival of a certain wizard—a razor-sharp, infuriating blond—makes anything remotely different for Harry would be absurd, of course.

Read "It is on the other side of my soul (where your name is written)" on AO3.

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[Fic] In Search of Our Better Selves

Prompt: "Mad Max: Fury Road", 2015, George Miller Author: alrespirar Word Count: 17,519 words Rating: Explicit Warnings: Mentions of past torture, mentions of past rape, brief mention of miscarriage, descriptions of gun violence and injury. Sexual content.

Summary: Five times Imperator Draco saved Potter’s life and the one time Potter saved his.

Read "In Search of Our Better Selves" on AO3.

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[Fic] Where in the World is Draco Malfoy?

Prompt: "Carmen Sandiego", 2019, Series Author: Anaxandria Word Count: 18,029 words Rating: Mature Warnings: Minor mentions of homophobia, violence, and blood

Summary: After the war, Draco Malfoy and Harry Potter took parallel paths of fighting crime. Draco discovered the existence of VILE, an international organisation dedicated to the eradication of Muggle-borns. With the help of his best friend, Blaise, he commits international capers to steal artifacts before VILE can get their hands on them. Harry is the auror investigating the heists, but his instincts tell him there’s more than meets the eye.

Read "Where in the World is Draco Malfoy?" on AO3.

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[Fic] My Fair Gentleman

Prompt: "My Fair Lady", 1964, George Cukor Author: emilattes Word Count: 20,766 words Rating: Teen and up Warnings: light alcohol use and mentions of child neglect by Dursleys

Summary: After an extended stay at Charlie's Dragon Reserve in Romania, Harry returns to London and makes a fool of himself at his first Ministry Gala. Minister Shacklebolt orders Harry to seven months of etiquette lessons with Draco Malfoy. Will Harry pull through and become an expert in PR? Will Draco manage to make over the biggest PR disaster the wizarding world has seen in years? Wouldn't it be loverly?

Read "My Fair Gentleman" on AO3.

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[Fic] saying yes (instead of no)

Prompt: "Schitt's Creek", 2015, Series Author: Pineau_noir Word Count: 21,022 words Rating: Explicit Warnings: canon typical alcohol and drug use, marijuana use, explicit smut

Summary: “It’s a general store that’s also a very specific store,” Draco grumbled. “Most people won’t realise this, but I want to market Muggle goods to the Wizarding world as well. I want something that will help boost the economy of the Hamlet and Muggles have so many amazing things we don’t have.” . Draco sighed again. “I think it would benefit everyone.” He glared at Emily. “But there’s not a single witch, wizard, or wix who will shop at a place owned by Draco Malfoy.” . “What if it’s owned by Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy?” Potter asked. . “That would be preposterous,” Draco mumbled. “Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy would kill each other before the store opened.” . “What if you didn’t?” Emily asked. Draco opened his mouth to let her know, they would indeed kill each other, but before he could say anything, she continued, “What if it turned into a lovely business?” . “There’s only one way to know,” Potter said. “I really think this is a good idea, Draco."

Read "saying yes (instead of no)" on AO3.

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[Fic] A First Look Into Resurrecting Mummies With the Aid Of the Chosen One, and Why It Should Be Advised Against (an Essay by Draco Malfoy, Assistant Archaeologist)

Prompt: "The Mummy", 1999, Stephen Sommers Author: @cibeewastaken​ | Cibee (AO3) Word Count: 21,948 words Rating: Mature Warnings: minor violence elements

Summary: Draco hopes to find an ancient spell book rumoured to be in Hamunaptra after Astoria found a map to the lost city. If he makes this discovery, maybe the Magical British Museum will finally look at his application, and his annoying colleague will finally leave him alone. It’s a good plan, until Draco is reunited with Harry Potter for the first time in ten years, as the man is about to be hanged.

Read "A First Look Into Resurrecting Mummies With the Aid Of the Chosen One, and Why It Should Be Advised Against (an Essay by Draco Malfoy, Assistant Archaeologist)" on AO3.

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[Fic] Wicked Game

Prompt: "Jumanji", 1995 or 2017 Author: DearJames Word Count: 22,044 words Rating: Explicit Warnings: Sexual Content, Implied PTSD

Summary: Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy crossed a line during one of their late-night Astronomy Tower Bonding Sessions and neither are sure what that means. Not that they got particularly far, considering they were caught and assigned detention for their antics. And, now, they've been sucked into a boardgame. That's just fantastic...

Read "Wicked Game" on AO3.

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[Fic] Love in Three Parts

Prompt: "Bridgerton", 2020, Series Author: static_abyss Word Count: 24,172 words Rating: Mature Warnings: Canon-typical content

Notes: Thanks so much to my beta, L, for all her help and her encouragement as I wrote this fic. Thanks to the mods for hosting this fest and to the Anonymous prompter who inspired this fic.

Summary: Draco has everything needed to be the diamond of the season. He has the looks, the pedigree, and if he should be short on the money end, well, it isn't up to him to convince anyone they want to marry him. And yet, he finds himself with no prospects and no suitable matches until Harry James Potter, Wizarding Britain's Most Eligible Bachelor, makes his first appearance in proper Wizarding society for the first time in five years. Together, they hatch a plan to secure Draco a husband and keep the debutantes' mothers away from Harry. And if someone should develop feelings along the way, well, the course of true love never did run smooth.

Read "Love in Three Parts" on AO3.

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[Fic] He would always win the fight

Prompt: "Killing Eve", 2018 - ongoing, TV Series Author: Akira-kun Word Count: 26,578 words Rating: Explicit Warnings: Serial Killer, Off Screen Murders, Corpses, Political Polarity, Corruption in Government, Corruption in Justice System, Off Screen Violence, Post War Instability, Ambiguity, Dark!character, Vengeance, In a Twisted Way, Obsessive Behaviour, Crime Mystery, Open Ending

Summary: “But you were always just a puppet, weren’t you, Potter?” That voice kept haunting him, in his dreams and during his days, as if hovering over his shoulder, cold as a ghost, lost and lifeless. He wasn’t sure why it hurt like that. Maybe because it was an ugly truth that Harry hoped no one would ever throw back in his face. Or maybe because it was Malfoy. . Killing Eve inspired Drarry where people are getting killed, Harry is getting desperate, Draco is too sexy for his own good, and all hell will break loose.

Read "He would always win the fight" on AO3.

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[Fic] Peaches & Cream And A Little Bit Of Acid

Prompt: "Modern Love", 2019, Series Author: shortie990 Word Count: 27,755 words Rating: Explicit Warnings: suicidal thoughts, mental health issues

Summary: In love there is no real hiding. You have to be pretty up front on who you are. The problem was though, Harry didn’t have a clue who he was one moment from the next.

Read "Peaches & Cream And A Little Bit Of Acid" on AO3.

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[Fic] Outwit, Outlast, Outplay

Prompt: "Survivor", 2000-ongoing, Series Author: Albuss Word Count: 30,976 words Rating: Mature Warnings: Brief homophobia, mentions of past health issues

Summary: Draco loves Survivor. Loves it. So when his job at the Dept. of Mysteries offers him the opportunity to go on as a contestant, he can't think of anything that could go wrong. He is sorely mistaken, but a little chaos turns out to not be such a bad thing. Featuring gratuitous descriptions of Survivor game-play, really jargon-y magical theory I got way too excited about, and Draco's best friend Isabelle being an absolute QUEEN.

Read "Outwit, Outlast, Outplay" on AO3.

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[Fic] Advantage Rule

Prompt: "The Queen's Gambit", 2020, Series Author: @ziezie13​ Word Count: 42,738 words Rating: Mature Warnings: Character death, Parental neglect, Brief references to eugenics, Sexual content, Mild homophobia, Alcoholism, Drug abuse

Summary: Draco's life has been struggle after struggle. He was exiled as a baby, his mother died, he was forced to live with muggles... Need I go on? Quidditch was supposed to be his escape, but how is he supposed to beat Victor Krum and take the world title if he can't even beat Harry Potter? ~No knowledge of The Queen's Gambit required~

Read "Advantage Rule" on AO3.

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[Fic] (This Will Be) An Everlasting Love

Prompt: #12 (also fulfils #6) | "While You Were Sleeping," 1995, Jon Turteltaub Author: @drarrelie​ & @janieohio​ Word Count: 45,139 words Rating: Teen Warnings: None

Summary: Life doesn’t always turn out the way we plan. That’s what Draco’s mother always used to tell him, but Merlin, who could have predicted how right she would be? A story about feisty dragons, loneliness, family, and friends — and finding love in places you least expect.

Read "(This Will Be) An Everlasting Love" on AO3.

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[Fic] In a Field of Chrysanthemums and the Woods

Prompt: "The Untamed", 2019, TV-Series Author: @outstandingmoralfiber​ Word Count: 83,399 words Rating: Explicit Warnings: None

Summary: Three notes, and yet they made all the difference. Draco could feel it, the slight magic and wavering notes, washing over him in a brief but calming wave that lit his soul and it was then that he knew that he was going to learn how to play this guqin no matter what. Little did he know that, like dominos, this one simple decision would diverge him onto a path he would've never imagined. - Wizarding world in the Untamed setting, (but you don't need to know anything about the Untamed). Drarry AU starting from Goblet of Fire. Rated E for the smut scene in Chapters 13 & 14, but is otherwise rated T.

Read "In a Field of Chrysanthemums and the Woods" on AO3.

***

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[isnt-it-loverly]

little birdie (4)// five hargreeves

Warnings: blood

Summary: When Five lands in the Sparrow Academy, he must convince one of them to help him reset the timeline. 

Word count: 1800

Author note: sorry if this is bad, ive been in a rut as of late. Once again thank you so much for all the love and support. I hope you enjoy :)

part one, part two, part three part five

You knocked softly on the door of apartment 217. An elderly lady opened the door with a bright smile on her face. 

“Hello, my little birdie! It's been so long!” She said while pulling you into a bone-crushing hug. The wool of her sweater scratched against your skin, and the smell of freshly baked cookies and wild flowers filled your nose. She pulled away and placed her gaze on Five. 

“Oh, you’ve brought a friend!” She added gleefully. 

“Yes, Granny, this is um�� Aidan! We met at the karate class my father has me in,” You explained. You hated lying to such a sweet old lady, but you knew the truth would be too much for her to understand. Plus you really didn’t have the time to explain everything. 

You turned back to Five and have a shrug of your shoulders. He was right, he didn’t need a normal name. Five was just too fitting. She moved closer to him and grabbed his cheek, making him very uncomfortable. 

“You’re father is just terrible for making you kids do that! Look how roughed up the pair of you are, come inside and we’ll get you cleaned up” She said solemnly. 

Five walked beside you and grabbed your arm firmly. Pulling you to the side he whispered a quick “what the hell” in your ear. 

“She thinks she’s my grandma,” you replied bluntly, “just go along with it.” 

Five sighed in exasperation, this was not helping him find his siblings. He followed you into the apartment begrudgingly, trusting that you were not just yanking his chain. The old woman excused herself and said she would bake a fresh batch of cookies. After she left you grabbed his sleeve and whispered, “follow me.”

You lead him into a side bedroom. It was small and quaint, very homey compared to the academy. 

“Remember when I said that I’ve lived a million lives? Gertrude was one of my first, I got stuck in her mind for weeks, and I learned a lot about her. Her husband died right before I got trapped in her noggin, so I switched some memories then added some new ones. I’ve been visiting ever since,” You explained. 

“Do your siblings know?” He asked, worry dripping in his tone. 

“Not to my knowledge, I don’t think they’d appreciate me having a life outside the academy,” you answered with a shrug. 

Five was utterly perplexed by you. You were an enigma, so eager to trust others, so kind, and selfless. How did you end up so different from the others? He watched as you opened a drawer of the cedar chest that was in front of the bed. 

“Sometimes, I like to take things from the people I’ve been. Just as little reminders. I think I have some clothes in here that might fit you,” you said with extreme focus. You pulled out a tee-shirt and jeans, something Five was not accustomed to. He turned his nose slightly.

“I’d rather choke on my own tongue than wear that,” He groaned. 

You shook your head in annoyance, pulling out a set of clean clothes for yourself as well. You enjoyed civilian wear, it made you feel normal and secure- something your academy uniform could never. 

“Just put on the damn clothes before I make you short stack,” you snapped back. Your eyes glowed s brighter blue for a moment and Five now knew he didn’t have a choice in the matter. 

“At least turn your back,” he grumbled in response. 

You gave him a small laugh and did as you were told. You crawled to the other side of the bed and slipped on your new clothes as well. After a few minutes, Five gave you the clear. 

“Wow, unknit that eyebrow and wipe that frown off your face, and you look almost normal,” You said with a smile. 

It was true, he looked like a regular ole teenager. Something you know that he has never been. You give him a look over before your eyes stop at his forearm. An umbrella tattoo, of course, he would have one. 

Five noticed you staring, he followed your gaze to his arm. He lifted it so you could see it better, and an ever-present scowl on his face. 

“Do you have one?” He asked. 

You nodded solemnly and pushed up your sleeve. You placed your arm against his, the bird and the umbrella practically touching. You wondered why your Father loathed them so much and then it was quiet for a moment. 

“The houses of Capulet and Montague,” you spoke up in a mocking tone. 

“I didn’t ask you to betray your entire family,” He said. His voice was deep and rough, a sense of anger could be detected. 

“No, but you really twisted my arm showing me the whole apocalypse thing. I’m an empath idiot, your feelings became mine,” You were quick to snap back. 

Five liked that about you. You were nice and helpful, but you also knew when to stand your ground. He could compare you to a coin, two different sides yet well balanced. A perfect equilibrium. 

“I’ve helped you,” you murmured, “now I think you owe me.” 

He raised an eyebrow at you, curious and intrigued at what you were going to say. 

“I’ve only done this once and it didn’t end well. I need you to keep me grounded, do whatever it takes to get me back. My father believes that I can project my consciousness onto someone without looking into their eyes, so I’m going to try to do that to your sister, Allison,” you explained. 

“You said it didn’t end well? What happened?” Five asked, very concerned. 

“It takes a lot out of me, I couldn’t get into anyone’s mind and it almost killed me,” You confessed. 

“I’m sorry, did you say killed?” He responded wide-eyed. It warmed your heart that he was at least concerned about you. 

“Look, do you wanna find your family or not? Unless you have a better plan?” You asked with a slight raise of your voice. 

Five shook his head, knowing that this was the best plan You sat on the plush bed, curling your fingers around the soft comforter. You took a shaky breath and closed your eyes tightly. Running the fabric between your fingers you counted every stitch. You pictured his sister’s face in your mind, paying extra intention to her eyes. Five watched intently as you did, he was worried about you- you were an important asset and a powerful ally. It would be a shame if you died. Your eyes opened abruptly and to Five’s amazement and horror there was just white and a soft blue emanating from them. 

When you opened your eyes again to find yourself sitting at a kitchen table. Looking up you see Allison sitting across from you, intently reading the newspaper. If she was there, then who were you? Looking down and the palms of your hands the words ‘hello’ and ‘good-bye’ were splayed across them. 

“Well shit, I’m the pretty one,” You mumbled to yourself. Although you were very glad and very surprised that you had managed to pull this off, you would have to thank your father for the extra training the past few months. 

“What are you on about now, Klaus?” Allison said utterly unamused. 

“Actually it’s number five. Not your Five, the other five. Sparrow Five. Ya know what I’m rambling, I’m (Y/n),” You spit out quickly. Holy shit this man’s brain was fried. Everything was happening at a million miles an hour, you couldn’t keep up.

You watched as her expression changed, she stood up abruptly in the same fighting stance Five had used earlier. Her eyes watched you like a hawk and if looks could kill you’d be dead. 

“Your family killed my brother, now I swear if you harm one hair on Klaus’ stupid head. I’ll end you,” She spat venom dripping in her words. 

“He’s not dead! Five is very much alive, and we’re looking for you guys. So all we need is an address and we will be on our way,” You replied with a smile. 

“Yeah right, why would I trust you?” She questioned. 

“Look, Five is hurt really badly. This astral possession thing is gonna knock me on my ass, I won’t be able to protect him from my siblings. If you don’t help us, well, we’re both already dead,” You said in a somber tone. 

 You could tell that the gears we’re winding in her head. You felt a pain in your head that radiates in your chest, you coughed slightly and blood appeared on your hands. Shit its starting, you couldn’t stay much longer. You felt blood begin to slowly drip from your nose. Double shit with a cherry on top.

“What are you doing to him?” She yelled.

“Allison,” you choked, “he needs you.”

“Fine, just stop whatever you are doing to him!” She yelled in fear of her brother, Moments later she revealed the address, perfect that’s all you needed. Now you could get back and share your triumph. 

You closed your eyes tightly and the world began to spin. Round and round, faster and faster.  Until finally, you felt your legs give out but you didn’t hit the floor. You opened your eyes slowly to find yourself in Five’s arms. He was looking down at you, fear present in those emerald eyes. He let out a sigh of relief.

“Thank God, you started pouring out blood like a fountain. I thought you were dead,” He scolded. He sounded like an old man when he spoke, it was almost endearing. 

You touched your nose and wiped away some of the fresh blood, staring at it intently. You felt so weak, that was too much and you vowed never to do that again. The cost was far too high. You sat up and you felt Five’s hand on your back- ready to steady you if you need it. You had really scared him, he didn’t know why. He had just met you, so why did the thought of losing you hurt so badly.

“I did it,” You mumbled hoarsely. 

“Did what?” Five whispered in a soft voice. The tone was foreign even to him, but right now he felt like you needed a friend and not a sarcastic asshole. 

“I found them, I found your family. They aren’t far from here,” You breathed out. 

Five hugged you tightly and gave you a sincere thank you. You hugged back gently, you couldn’t remember the last time someone hugged you. It was a feeling you could get used to, warm, secure, and safe. You also couldn’t remember the last time you felt any of those things. Perhaps these umbrellas weren’t so bad after all.

“Come on,” You said breaking away, “let’s get some of those cookies, hit the road, and get you back to the right timeline.”

Taglist: alexander-hamilhoe

[arisefairsun]

What do you think would've happened if Juliet never met Romeo and got married to Paris instead?

I think it’s hard to say, because Juliet repulses Paris, but I’m not certain how much that disregard derives from her love for Romeo. ‘Proud can I never be of what I hate,’ she says about her marriage to Paris. But would she be so opposed to it if she wasn’t in love with (and married to) Romeo? The Nurse says that Juliet ‘had as lief see a toad, a ver toad, / As see [Paris]. I anger her sometimes, / And tell her that Paris is the properer man; / But I’ll warrant you, when I say so she looks / As pale as any clout in the versal world.’ I think these lines  can be read in different ways—did she say those things to Juliet before meeting Romeo? Afterwards?

But whether Juliet’s aversion to Paris is influenced by her feelings for Romeo or not, I think Paris’ personality could hardly satisfy Juliet. Their conversation in act IV, scene I seems full of tension to me. Juliet is quick-witted, intelligent, her use of language wonderfully nuanced. But Paris can’t decipher the true meaning behind her words—he doesn’t really try very hard. This is a man who is about to marry a woman he’s never talked to. ‘You say you do not know the lady’s mind. / Uneven is the course, I like it not,’ says Friar Lawrence. Paris answers that Tybalt’s death has saddened her so much, surely marrying a man she doesn’t know will make her feel better. But he does not imediately ask about her well-being when he interacts with her; on the contrary, he talks to her as if she were his wife already: ‘Happily met, my lady and my wife.’ Juliet answers evasively: ‘That may be, sir, when I may be a wife’. ‘That “may be” must be,’ he assures rather bossily.

That contrasts greatly with Juliet and Romeo’s first exchange, in which they build a sonnet together, the poetry blooming willingly. They often share lines (verses that would remain incomplete without each other’s input), mirroring each other through internal rhymes. But Juliet and Paris use single lines only, their dialogue plain and strict, forced.

Given that Juliet is utterly meek and obedient at the beginning of the play, I think she might have agreed to marry Paris had she never met Romeo, just to please her parents. She thinks of her own heart like a dart which her parents are to throw to their liking, her agency non-existent (’no more deep will I endart mine eye / Than your consent gives strength to make it fly’). But would she have been happy? Would she have become the fiery sun she is in the play? She is silent and submissive in the first act. But then? Boundless seas roaring within her, galloping through her dreams like fiery-footed steeds, breaking caves with her screams of love. Her poetry is raw, her thoughts radical. She feels greater than Verona itself, defying customs and prioritizing her own will.

What makes it so enchanting to me, so charmingly radical for a 400-year-old play, is that Juliet loves to contradict Romeo. Hell, to cut him off mid-sentence and teach him to express himself earnestly. O, swear not by the moon. Shut up, Romeo. Not like this. She asks him to marry her (and I’ve noticed this is something that authors and filmmakers tend to change whenever they make an adaptation of the play loosely inspired by the original dialogue). Then in the wedding scene, he asks her to describe the happiness they both feel, but she turns down his offer: ‘Conceit, more rich in matter than in words, / Brags of his substance, not of ornament.’ She says whatever she wants, however she wants, whenever she wants. She takes control of herself. Just look at these lines. The yearning. The zeal.

And Romeo? Romeo is delighted. This foolish boy, the heir of the Montagues, expected by everyone to be bold and aggressive like the other men of his household—he gladly accepts Juliet’s assertiveness. ‘I would I were thy bird,’ he tells her when she says she wishes he were a little bird she could pet (she feels so intensely, she fears she might kill him with ‘much cherishing’ if he were her bird). Later on, he is ecstatic when he wakes up from a dream: he dreamed Juliet found his lifeless body ‘And breathed such life with kisses in my lips / That I revived and was an emperor.’ Such life. Juliet is his prince in a shiny armor. The title of the play might be Romeo and Juliet, but the very last words are ‘Juliet and her Romeo.’

Would she have displayed such ardor, such fierceness if she had never fallen in love freely? To me, Paris seems far too cold, too conventional, too sober to further Juliet’s yearning for liberty. Would they have become ‘Juliet and her Paris’? The way I see it, Paris represents everything Juliet ought to be (Capulet’s obedient, shy daughter, who gets married to a count to benefit her family) and everything she is not (this exuberant, outspoken girl who secretly marries the heir of her family’s worst enemy and dreams of turning him into a constellation that will make the world fall in love with the dark).

[a-skirmish-of-wit-and-lit]

Book Review: The Bastard's Betrayal (Scandalous Scions #1) by Katee Robert

Well, this was fun! I love a darker romance every now and again, and with fake identities, bullets fired, a kidnapping plot, and feuding mafia families who could rival the Montagues and Capulets with the decades of blood they have stained on their hands, The Bastard's Betrayal delivers on steam as well as back-stabbing. It's a lovers-to-enemies then enemies-back-to-lovers good time! The book begins when Rose Romanov, mafia princess and future heiress, learns that her vanilla civilian boyfriend isn't as vanilla as she thought he was. He's Dante Verducci. A notorious family rival. And he's been working undercover to probe her for secrets, for weaknesses, the whole time! Rightfully pissed, and still reeling from the betrayal, she ends the relationship--with pistol in hand. Then she consents to an arranged marriage with the heir of the Capparelli clan, Romeo. An act which will aid in solidifying a new family alliance. Dante isn't happy when he catches wind of this plan. In fact, he is downright incensed. Inflamed. Determined. He refuses to let Rose go through with it, to wed any man who isn't him because they have something, because she is his, he knows it in his bones. So what does he do? Absconds her from her own wedding. Yep, he kidnaps her right under her family's nose! After all, what is a man in love if not a fool who throws every bit of sense (and in this case, life expectancy) out the window to stake claim to his woman? I haven't read the O'Malley series this branches off from, but I landed in this book just fine. Murder attempts, light kidnapping, hate sex, etc. are all on the menu so if that isn't your thing then you might as well cover your eyes and scurry away now. If it is something you like from time to time, however, sit back, let your wrists be bound, and enjoy the ride! Overall, I liked the power struggle that existed between the Romanov, Verducci, and Capparelli families. I do think we could've gotten a better glimpse into the mafia world itself, though. That was hinted at, glazed over, rather than flushed out. I think Dante and Rose have enough spice that enemies-to-lovers fans will be happy, however. Rose is not afraid to pull punches (or triggers) and is feisty to the core, though she can be surprisingly vulnerable when she wants to be. Dante, on the other hand, is devoted, dangerous, seductive, and possessive in a way that's only hot in fiction. Possessive men in real life, I give a hard pass then shove them out the door. Possessive men in fiction, I flutter them my "come hither" eyelashes and prepare to swoon. Makes no sense, I know, but, hey, I don't make the rules! Dante's softer traits outweigh the possessive part of him, anyway, so it all balances out. Robert also sets the stage for future books to come. Rose's sisters are all fierce in their own way, none of them afraid to dive into the life, taking names, threatening to bust up a few faces, so I'll be interested to see what dangerous liaisons they get caught up in themselves. 😏 Many thanks to the author for providing me with an ARC!

3/5 stars

**Follow me on Goodreads

[ofcastora]

@lavolumnia replied to your post: i wanna read more from this AU

In which I continue the DiVerona Regency AU // Part 1 of me transforming Castora and Vivianne’s baking class into a Regency women’s archery club, inspired by this historical club and these outfits ft. Bridgerton-level historical accuracy

MENTIONED/APPEAR: @lavolumnia, @priam-taravella, Damiano Montague, Cosimo Capulet, Tiberius Capulet, Rafaella Capulet, Juliana Capulet, @ofaguilar, @deadvalentinagallo

Miss Castora Aguilar learned that young ladies should hold their tongue at a young age, but she quickly disregarded the lesson. She was a poorer, scandal-tainted relation; not quite an orphan, but just as good as. If she did not speak for herself, then who would? The world was unkind on a good day, and outright cruel on another, and there is no shame in surviving.

She had been permitted to be sharp-tongued by society because she had titled and/or well-connected friends who would vouch for her, and while she toed the line of what was appropriate or not, the only truly unforgivable thing she had done was be the daughter of a scoundrel. It is, unsurprisingly, difficult to find a match on the marriage mart when your father may or may not have stolen great deals of money from your potential suitor’s fathers, and perhaps something of more value from their mothers.

Alas, the Season practically thrived on such awkward encounters.

--

It had started out a day like any other – a quiet breakfast with her cousin that became quite rowdy when Miss Valentina Gallo came by to call on Ramona. The two went off on their own “adventure” to “buy some new ribbon,” which meant Castora would discover what they actually did in two weeks time. They used to invite her to their outings, but Castora learned it was better for all them if Castora had other plans during that time.

To achieve that purpose, she had recently taken up with a women’s archery club that practiced every Thursday in Hyde Park: the Hyde Park Amazons, a name that Castora had thought wonderful until she met the club’s captain, Mrs. Silviana, and realized she was more of a meddlesome matron than a ferocious warrior, although were the two not the same? 

It took Castora about five minutes about joining Silviana’s group to realize that she was awful at archery. By all accounts, she should have been good by it. She was an active young woman and her temperament was certainly suited to the activity. In fact, she was the worst.

Well, second-to-worst.

Well, she and Lady Vivianne Sloane were about equally matched. It was quite lucky that their practices were in a rather empty area of the park

The two women had started around the same time; since they were both new and awful, they were often paired up during practice. Castora didn’t dislike Lady Vivianne – she just did not like her very much. During their time with the Hyde Park Amazons, the two had barely exchanged two words, and those words have been teetering on the edge of civility. 

It made perfect sense to Castora. Lady Vivianne, daughter of an Earl, was engaged to Lord Capulet, a Duke who had never gotten along with Lord Montague, Castora’s benefactor. Lord Capulet was also in the unfortunate possession of a reckless nephew who had started a feud with Castora’s oldest friend and the most wretched woman in the whole of England as his ward. He also had a sweet-tempered daughter, who had nothing wrong in Castora’s eyes except to have the misfortune of being engaged to Priam Taravella, whom Castora had strongly disliked and had “accidentally” hit with a pall-mall ball during a game at a garden party. 

She imagined it was the same way for Vivianne. Here she was with a known associate of her husband-to-be’s enemy...and someone who caused bodily harm to her future son-in-law.

It was not personal. It was all personal-adjacent. It was awkward. In fact, if not for her unfortunate connection to Lord Capulet, Castora would have felt rather confident in publicly asserting that she rather liked Lady Vivianne. The older woman was poised, gracious, charming, biting, and powerful. No visible rough edges. 

She was everything Castora would like to be. 

“I cannot imagine why Silviana thinks it’s wise to pair the two of us together with weapons,” Castora had muttered under her breath. She could have sworn the corners of Lady Vivianne’s lips turned up.

They both drew their arrows and released them. Neither hit their the target. “Oh, I do imagine that’s why,” Castora said dryly, “We probably would never be able to hit each other.” In addition, the more time they spent bickering and failing together, the less they would be rolling their eyes at Silviana’s teaching metaphors. 

“Don’t be ridiculous, Miss Aguilar. We are close enough range to one another that anything is possible.”

“Shall we play a game of William Tell to test your theory?”

The two shared a look. Too risky.

Castora took another shot, putting all of her might into her aim. She hit the bottom of the target. “Do you think we will get better one day, Lady Vivianne?” Castora sighed, unable to hide her exasperation.

“We better.” 

-- A few more Thursdays came and went. Castora and Vivianne displayed marginal improvement, and she was beginning to appreciate the other woman’s company. The more time she spent with Vivianne, the less she had to look at the other show-off members of the group.

They understood the virtue of leaving one another to the soul-crushing frustration of slow progress with minimal interruptions. Castora thought it would be nice to have such a companion; she loved Ramona and Valentina, but there was only so much she could take of being number three; Pandora was her dearest friend, but she was married. There was power in a bond that existed only in their silence. 

Prior to their meeting at the archery club, Castora had little idea of who Lady Vivianne was, outside of her association with the Capulet family. She did not know if the universe threw some crumbs of gossip her way because of this or if she simply paid attention to it now, but over the course of the past month or so, Castora had come to learn that Lady Vivianne herself knew something of scandal; perhaps that was why they shared a quiet understanding.

First of all, she was a spinster who managed to nab a duke. Second, there was something about her coming out postponed for a year in favor of a nine-month stay in seclusion at the Sloane’s country estate, her parents sudden death, and something about them not leaving her as much money as expected. And there had been something about a broken engagement many years ago, but Castora had stopped listening by that point. 

Even though there was often some truth to such rumors, Castora would never bring them up to Vivianne’s face, lest she take Castora up on her offer of a game of William Tell. 

At the end of practice one day, Silviana gathered all the ladies and passed around a piece of paper, which Castora instantly recognized as an invitation.

The elegant and beauteous assemblace of Ladies Archers established three Summers ago at Hyde Park under the name HYDE PARK AMAZONS courteously invites you to a supper and Ball at the Liston Hall on the 31st of August. To all interested parties, the Amazons will host their annual showcase at a luncheon before the evening’s festivities.

Castora and Vivianne shared a horrified look. 

“Is this not exciting, Lady Vivianne?” Silviana crooned. “You and Miss Aguilar’s first showcase.”

Castora cleared her throat. “Excuse me, Mrs. Silviana, but do all Amazons have to perform at this showcase?”

“But of course, my dear.” She brought her voice down to a whisper so that only Castora and Vivianne could hear. “This is quite an opportunity for you, Miss Castora. This sport quite shows off your figure and there will be plenty of eligible young men in attendance. There always are.”

“Nothing really demonstrates how eligible a bride a girl is like demonstrating your expertise with a weapon.”

“Exactly!” 

“And how many people received this invitation, Mrs. Silviana?” Vivianne asked cooly. Castora could tell by the arch in her brow that she was not pleased by this situation either. 

“Liston Hall is my brother’s estate, so quite a few. Most of the ton is usually in attendance. Usually some family from the neighboring estates come as well. Aubrey Park, Kellnych, Hall, Campden Court, the like. Do not worry Lady Vivianne, I have ensured that Lord Capulet receives an invitation as well.” 

“Did you say Campden Court?” Castora asked. Both Silviana and Vivianne’s heads snapped to her.

“Do you know the family?”

“No, not really.”

Silviana soon left Castora and Vivianne to mingle with the other ladies of the club. As soon as the woman’s meddlesome gaze was no longer upon them, Castora turned to Vivianne. “Will you be attending?”

“I quite think Mrs. Silviana will have my head if I do not.”

“I think I might catch a chill that day and be too sick to attend.”

“In August?” 

“You are right. Mrs. Silviana may be a fool, but she will never believe that.” 

“And mine. I must confess, I do not have any desire to embarrass myself in front of the ton.”  Castora had oft said she would never to marry unless it was for love, and she had vowed that she would never love, but she had no desire to publicly humiliate herself. 

“Nor I.”

Castora picked up an arrow from a nearby quiver. “That leaves us with one option.”

“It does,” Vivianne nodded in agreement.

“We must ––” Castora started, before Vivianne interrupted, fishing her sentence.

“–– Practice.”

-- 

The next day, the pair met in Hyde Park. Vivianne handed Castora a bow and arrow.

“How did you manage to procure these in one day?”

Vivianne smiled, “I have my ways.”

“I do believe I am quite glad to know you, Lady Vivianne Sloane.”

“And I, you, Miss Castora Aguilar.” 

[kayleebreanne09]

I’m on a boat

Topper x Reader

Cutesy imagine about you being a pogue, in love with a kook. Scared of making the fued worse, your relationship is a secret. Until topper decides, he wants to go public with the kooks. I LOVED writing about this💜

Pogues vs kooks. Much like the montague’s & the capulets, it’s a battle that never ends. “It’ll be fine baby, they will end up loving you almost as much as I do” topper said, stopping to kiss me on the forehead as we walked hand in hand to ward Cameron’s big ass boat. Topper & I were the Romeo & Juliet of outer banks. We were crazily in love & almost no one knew about us. I was forced to admit the truth to Kie after a very embarrassing incident where she walked in on us trying to find a moment alone inside an unoccupied pantry at the wreck. “Not on the food!” She had cried while rolling her eyes. Aside from her, no one knew. Of course I didn’t enjoy being a secret, I’d love to be able to bring topper to the chateau & cuddle in the hammock with him while listening to John B tell us the newest insane adventure he’d been on. I wanted him there with me at the boneyard parties where JJ & I were constantly battling it out to see who could drink the most. I wanted Topper to pull me close, wrapping his arms around me while we danced at midsummers. But I was more terrified of losing him. I was afraid of my friends reacting badly & making me choose sides. I was afraid of his friends bailing on him, leaving him alone after all their years of friendship. I’d go to hell & back for Topper but could I give up my best friends? They were the closest thing to family that I had. Could I ask him to give up his? Toppers friends were terrifying, sure. My only run ins with Rafe had been when he was beating the hell out of one or more of my friends. Kelce was always on the side lines, encouraging Rafe or whoever else to start a fight with anyone resembling a pogue. But all that aside, they were still his friends. Because of that, they had to have some good inside them. Topper had his flaws too, everyone does. All I know is that Topper would fight to the death for me. He laid in the sand with me looking at the stars & telling me his dreams. When I was mad, he’d stroke my hair & ask me who’s ass he needed to beat. He’d lay in bed with me nose to nose cuddling & list every single thing he loved about me until I blushed tomato red & hid my face in his pillow which just made him burst out laughing. He had my heart. Which is why, against my better judgement, he was leading me right onto Ward Cameron’s boat. My nerves hit an all time high as we neared his group of friends. Everyone was drinking, dancing, smoking joints & some were scattered about partaking in some harder drugs. This was a full out kook party & one of the things was poorer than the other, ya know? Topper felt my hand clinch & slightly leaned down to where I could feel his breath on my ear. “It will be fine sweetheart. Breathe!” My body shivered, reacting to him even in a room full of people. I pushed away the unholy thoughts about what I wanted to do to him right then & took his advice, taking a deep breath. He kept our fingers intertwined as we walked up to his friends. “Whoa Top, I didn’t think you’d be into banging a lowlife pogue.” Before I even had a chance to shoot Rafe a go to hell look, Topper was face to face with the boy, only inches away. Anger was radiating off of him in waves. “Do. Not. Ever. I mean ever, talk about (Y/N) like that. If I see even a dirty look given her way, your ass is grass. Ya hear me? That goes for all of you. You’re supposed to be my friends. I love her! Can’t you be happy for me?” He asked his anger finally giving way to sadness. Kelce just stared. Rafe started to speak but I took a step forward. I stuck my hand out in his direction. “Hi Rafe, I’m (Y/N) it’s nice to meet you.” He looked at me & walked off. I turned to Topper to see him staring off into the water looking upset. “Babe, it’s okay. I’ll get them to warm up to me. I’m never going to let you lose your friends” I said standing on tip toes to kiss his cheek. “I love you so damn much. Drinks?” He questioned. I nodded my head vigorously.

About 4 shots of fireball, things were a lot less tense. I kept Topper laughing as we danced around & I did my best attempt at moonwalking & the sprinkler. I thought he might actually kill over once I started doing the stanky leg. Toppers loud laughter brought Kelce over. He joined us on our make shift dance floor & proceeded to do the YMCA. Topper busted out with the chicken dance. I smiled at him & Kelce, as we all looked like idiots pulling out our best dance moves. “Shots!” I said running & grabbing 3 shot glasses of tequila & bringing them back.

“Guys! I have the perfect song!” I shouted, maybe a little too loudly in my drunken state. I ran to the aux cord connecting to the boats huge sound system. Kelce followed & chuckled while watching me scroll through my music as I cussed my blurry vision. “Yes!” I cried in victory as I ran towards topper. He caught me, spinning us around as he pulled me too his chest. “Oooh very smooth Romeo” I giggled staring up into his beautiful eyes. He silenced me with a passionate kiss. His hand was on my cheek & his other on my lower back, pulling me as close as two people can be. Alcohol just tripled my love & attraction to my sexy ass kook boyfriend. “You keep that up, we are going to have to sneak out of here and-“ I was cut off by the first notes of my song starting so I shot to the front of the boat, spreading my arms out, & letting the wind blow through my hair, chilling my warm skin. “Oh shit, get your towels ready, it’s about to go down!” I yelled along with the song. “I got my swim trunks & my flippy floppy’s, I’m flippin burgers, you at kinko’s straight flippin copies!” I laughed as I sang along dancing wildly. I saw Rafe watching from the side of the boat. His mouth started to slightly turn up in the beginnings of a smile. I took that opening & danced up to him, taking his hands in mine dancing backwards, dragging him to the middle of the boat with me. “Believe me when I say...I fucked a mermai-ai-ai-aid!” My smile took up my whole face as he sang along with me during my favorite part. Topper ran up & put his arms around both of us, singing along. Then came Kelce. We were all in this makeshift circle huddle singing out hearts out. Some of the other random kooks even joined in on our little karaoke party.

Finally, once the sun had sank completely down & everyone had went their separate ways...Topper, Rafe, & I were laying on the highest part of the boat. We were laid on our backs, looking up at the stars. Rafe passed the blunt to me. I inhaled deeply, held it, then gently blew the smoke into the night sky. “Topper, I’m happy for you man” Rafe said resting his hand on toppers shoulder. “(Y/N) I apologize for being so rude earlier. It’s just, my whole life, I’ve been taught that the only way to be respected in life is through money & power. I was told that a mans worth is measured by his millions so I’ve resented the lower class. If the other pogues are anything like you...I mean, maybe I could rethink my stance.” He said quietly. “It’s all forgiven Rafe, I’m really glad we can be friends!” I said grinning over at him. Topper felt for my hand in the dark & gently squeezed it. “Thank you” he whispered in my ear. “Anything for you. Always.” I said bringing my lips to his then quickly laying back down, completely at ease under the light of the bright moon. Topper pulled my body closer to his as I rested my head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat. Maybe, just maybe, there was a way this pogues vs kooks war could be ended. If anyone could it, Topper & I could. Together, we’d take on the world.

[diveronarpg]

IN FAIR VERONA, OUR TALE BEGINS WITH JULIANA CAPULET, WHO IS TWENTY-FIVE YEARS OLD. SHE IS OFTEN CALLED JULIET BY THE CAPULETS AND WORKS AS THEIR BOSS. SHE USES SHE/HER PRONOUNS.

Our heroine’s story, at one time, may have been based upon something essential, the question that plagues both the living and the dead: what is worse than living without love? Juliana Capulet, heiress to a throne fit for the gods, had finally found her answer. Worse than living without love — living without strength. Her father had not built their legacies through love, or adoration, accompanied by the stroke of a gentle hand to one’s cheek. The Capulet legacy had been built through sheer power of will, bringing to heel those who had once refused to obey. Once, she had BATHED in the light of Cosimo Capulet’s love, and before her ugly death, her mother’s, her little sister’s. All she had ever known was love, and the war ripping the city entirely in two had taken that from her without remorse. Like daylily flowers, Juliana was determined to bloom into something great, something strong, something that would lead Verona back to a new age of peace, whether love warmed her to her core or not. She would not wither away like her mother or sister, pallid and sickly. She would not fall to dust like her father. She would rise to the call that she had turned her cheek from her entire life, and pray that the GODS themselves would forgive her for answering their question without their aid. No more GHOSTS. No more ONLOOKING NARRATORS. Juliana’s power would be hers.

She would embody her mother’s memory most of all. She would become the woman who could throw Aphrodite into a fury and put Hera in a jealous rage. With the guidance of her Underboss and her newfound Advisor, her two faithful devotees, she would keep vigil over Verona and end this war once and for all. Before, she’d been helpless to stop it. Put up on a pedestal, hair brushed away from her face, bound to a feeling of WEAKNESS. She was determined to never feel it again, even with the memory of it clinging to her like the silken threads of a crafty spiderweb. She knew, now, that this was the work of her father, determined to keep her as close to him and at arm’s length at the same time. He would’ve had her look at their future as something gilded, golden, just out of reach. He would’ve had her see his NARCISSUS-LIKE obsession as a boon instead of a curse. He showered Juliana with gifts, both exotic and quaint, in hopes that she would sit in her ruby-crusted cage and keep her head low, her mouth shut. He had deemed the birdcage necessary, and never noticed when his daughter refused to sing him any more tunes. Others revelled in his success, his savvy, even with RAFAELLA CAPULET whisked away to pick up the pieces all on her own. Even with his flippant disregard for VIVIANNE SLOANE and TIBERIUS CAPULET, both denied their true wishes without so much as a second glance. They shouted his name with joy as he ruined his soldiers, his Captains, and his Emissaries, and all their prospects. They wept for him even as he struck the match that would burn the great House of Capulet down. No more.

With all this sitting atop her shoulders, filling her hands, Juliana made her choice. Rather than stay by his side faithfully, adhering to his rules like a SAINT, she broke away from her father, and with the aid of Vivianne, finally stepped down from the tower of Babylon that he had built for her with his own two hands. They’d brought her into the business in increments, at first, and had not seen how far and how quickly she had progressed since poor Alvise Vernon’s death nigh over a year ago. BLOOD, now bedecking her finery, would be another accessory to be worn, as did other tools of the trade — knives, guns, bullets, blades. She would not allow her father to hide from the consequences of his own sins any longer. She would do as he had once done, and embody the SYMBOL of the violent elite. No longer would she be just a girl. She’d be more than that. How quickly this angel could bring ruination to those who stood in the way of the Capulets — her father being the first among them. How quickly this angel could bring down the spear of the Gods and wipe the blood from her cheek in a smear. Maybe this was the way it was always meant to be. Maybe this is what she’d always been meant to become. Someone had to take the throne, sooner or later. Her father’s actions and quickly dwindling sanity have proven more than ever the time for her ascension had come. 

Juliana laid her sacrifices before him, hands shaking and eyes upturned – hoping against hope for a miracle. She had once thought that she could slip into her father’s life and pry him away from the business that had enraptured him for as long as she could remember. Maybe he would step away, admit defeat with his head bowed, and return to her. Return to her and the ghosts of her mother, her sister, gaps in their family that were too big to fill. She had underestimated, at one time, the strength of the thrall that it had him under, even as her own blood succumbed to the call that her ancestors before her had answered to. It had become clear, now, that LOVE would not do Juliana Capulet any good. It hadn’t served her, or Rafaella, or her mother, her cousin, her sister, her father. Love had failed her, ruined her, left scorched earth in its wake. Love had failed her people. Her father had pressed the knife to cut Valentina Gallo’s throat into her hands, and she’d done it without hesitation. Before, love would have made her weep with the pain of it. Now — JULIET would not fail anyone, especially not her legacy.

RAFAELLA CAPULET & TIBERIUS CAPULET: Cousins. The three of them at one time might have been compared to planets, their gravitational pull. Infinitely different but relentlessly routine in the way they were drawn to one another. Now, with Rafaella gone and seemingly doomed to never return, shattered into a thousand little pieces neither Rafaella or Tiberius can help her to pick up, things are… different. Things feel off-kilter, unbalanced. The tension that sat between all three of them has now come to rest entirely on Juliana and Tiberius, a fraying wire that could shoot sparks at any time. Before, she’d never doubted Tiberius, or his loyalty to her, and she can’t say even now that she actually does. But the weight of the Capulet title has become her burden and her burden alone, an unwelcome cross. With the shifting power dynamics and no Rafaella to complete their balancing act, she worries it may be Tiberius that places the crown of thorns atop her brow.

VIVIANNE SLOANE: Pseudo-Mother. “You can never be her,” she had hissed as she slammed the door to her room shut, but Vivianne, ever-patient with Juliana, had taken her time. She’d pried the door open with her own two hands, and it’s a wonder that she’d never quite made the connection before. She’d snapped and seethed and raged in her youth, entrenched in the ocean of her own sorrow, and through sheer will, Vivianne had soothed her. Dulled her pain. Held her head and stroked her hair when all Juliana could do was cry for the sheer loss of love she’d once possessed. Taught her how to rule when her own father -- her own supposed teacher -- fell short. It had been Vivianne to bring her into the way of things. She knows that, and she owes her a great debt for it. But she sees the way Vivianne’s eyes drift, now, settle in the middle distance, after dethroning her father. Unspoken agreement of guidance or comfort aside, mother-figure or not, things have changed. They are not the way they were before. The dynamic of the Capulets has shifted, and so, too, it seems, have they.

ROMAN MONTAGUE: Enemy. She should hate him. By all means, by every predisposed legacy of their birthright, she should want to rip him limb from limb. But she doesn’t. She doesn’t have the capacity to hate someone without good reason -- it’s not in her nature. Juliana understands, now more than ever, that he wishes the Capulets ill will and nothing more. That should be enough, but she was never equipped with Tiberius’ natural brutality or Rafaella’s fury. Now, with the crown sitting atop her head, sword and scepter in each hand, she wonders further still if he struggles with bearing the title of his father. If he will ever truly rise to the occasion of his bloodline as she had hers and continue this war or crumble to pieces before getting the chance. Maybe she pities him. It would be a better word than hate. Her path was always illuminated -- she’d simply sped the process up, a little bit, with the aid of those she now knows to be hers. Roman, on the other hand, must fend himself among the Montagues, men and women more likely to cannibalize themselves before putting another Montague on the throne. She wishes she could hate him. If only it were that easy.

PRIAM TARAVELLA: Betrothed. She looks at him and can only think of them in the context of Zeus and Hera. Ending up here, with engagement rings and bright futures to look forward to, well. It was only a matter of time, wasn’t it? Cosimo Capulet had chosen Priam for his daughter. They’d grown up together. They’d seen each other shattered, built each other back up again. This is a love that is supposed to make sense, and to Juliana, it does, in many ways. She loves him. Could love him more, if the weight of the Capulet legacy were not so heavy, if she felt she could share the burden with him. What if she can’t? She’d made the difficult choice in dethroning her father. She’s put the Capulets first in every regard, in every way, by ascending and taking the throne. He’s a good man. Certainly not a bad one. Knows just how deeply entrenched he is, now that she moves the pieces on the chess board and has to strategize at every turn. What if there are choices to be... made with Priam, too?

Juliana is portrayed by ASHLEY MOORE and was written by JULIE. She is currently OPEN TO CURRENT MEMBERS.

[365days365movies]

February 28, 2021: West Side Story (1961) (Part 1)

It all began tonight...and with one story.

The fact of the matter is, love stories wouldn’t be anywhere near the same today if it weren’t for one seminal text: Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. It’s one of the most influential of Shakespeare’s plays, and that’s true no matter what you think of the original.

But above them all, this adaptation rises. It’s one of the most publicly acclaimed Shakespeare adaptations and musicals of all time, and I would presume that that’s for a good reason! And I hope so, especially considering...the last musical...

Ugh. OK, let’s finish off Ramance February with a bang, and let’s finally get this shindig underway! Romeo and Juliet, take two! SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Recap (1/2)

Rather than Verona, 1961 New York City is where we set our scene. A title screen with bongos and other instrumentals set the musical tone for the film against a simple artistic background. Aerial shots of the city follow, and then...snap.

Oh, yeah, that’s the stuff. These are the Jets, a gang led by Riff (Russ Tamblyn), and our Montagues for the film. As their rest turns to amble, and their amble turns to dance, they run into Bernardo (George Chakiris), leader of the Puerto Rican gang known as the Sharks, our Capulets. Their amble also turns into a dance, as they cross into Jets territory.

To fully translate this, Riff would appear to be our Mercutio for the film, while Bernardo is almost certainly our Tybalt. And, as always, the two clash with their respective groups, and an initial dance-like fight between a couple of individuals soon escalates into a full-on brawl and dance battle.

Ah, but our Prince has arrived, in the form of Lt. Schrank (Simon Oakland), as well as his subordinate Sergeant Krupke (William Bramley). Schrank is not tolerant of the street fights between the two gangs, but he’s clearly far more reasonable to the white Jets, as opposed to the Puerto Rican Sharks.

See, if you look back this month, I mentioned that a lot of romance studies tend to take from Romeo and Juliet, specifically if there’s a conflict that separates the two leads. However, those films work to give a reason for the “old grudge” that breaks into new mutinies. And this adaptation of the original play decides to give a reason for that divide.

Race: an age-old struggle. And after the Prologue is done and the two gangs are warned, Riff brings his group together, and they pledge to prevent the Puerto Rican Sharks from taking over their territory. Riff brings up the idea to get their old co-founder involved. When the others note that he’s gone good and left the Jets, we get the first major song of the musical (”Jet Song”).

Riff goes to meet his friend, and co-founder of the Jets, Tony (Richard Beymer), to ask him to come to the dance hall tonight, where the Jets will meet the Sharks in a neutral space for both gangs. But Tony works for a living now, after having left the gang. Riff’s confused by this, and asks why exactly Tony refuses to come back. Tony explains that he feels something on the horizon. While he doesn’t know what that is, he knows that he doesn’t want to miss it.

Riff leaves, and Tony sings on the fact that he feels something coming soon (”Something Coming”). In case you weren’t sure, Tony is our Romeo of the film. And as he looks towards the future, we get a glimpse into the life of someone on the other wide of this struggle, Maria (Natalie Wood), our Juliet. Her friend Anita (Rita Moreno), Bernardo’s girlfriend and the Nurse of the film, is making her a dress for the dance tonight.

Maria is potentially engaged to marry Chino (Jose de Vega), our Paris of the film, and someone whom she isn’t a huge fan of. Bernardo tells him to watch her at the dance tonight, and she puts on her new dress in excitement.

Time for the dance! Both the white kids and the Puerto Rican kids arrive, but tensions begin to rise, until Glad Hand (John Astin) steps in and sets up a sort of dance that’s meant to bring them together. And it’s time...TO MAMBO! And lemme tell you, if you want to good showcase of dance in this film, look no further than the mambo scene.

And as the two cultures clash in dance in their own way...two eyes meet from across the room. And our romance begins.

This romance between Romeo and Juliet is one of the most iconic in all literature and cinema, and one can say that it’s foolish or young or whatever, but it’s an iconic romance. And I’ll be DAMNED if I’ve ever seen a better version of that romance than this scene. Sorry, DiCaprio and Danes, this is much, MUCH better.

The two speak with each other and the world around them drops away. They speak as if they’ve met before, but they know that they haven’t. And as the grow gradually closer, physically and emotionally, they begin to kiss...and then Bernardo steps in. He takes his sister away, and the connection surprises Tony. Chino takes Maria out of the dance hall, and Tony starts to follow. Before Bernardo can stop him (by force), Riff gets in the way.

Riff offers to meet Bernardo that midnight at a local candy shop, Doc’s, for a war council. He agrees, and they all part ways to continue dancing. Except for Tony, of course. Having just learned Maria’s name, he fixates on it as it echoes in his head (”Maria”). And it’s wonderful, and it’s iconic, and it’s...great.

Back at Bernardo’s and Maria’s place, Bernardo chides Maria for her dalliance with Tony. Anita scolds him, however, and the two make their way to find the others on a nearby rooftop. There, they speak on what it truly means to be an immigrant in America, especially in 1961 (”America”). And it’s depressing, truly depressing that this seems all too familiar today for so many. But, I digress, as this is a great song.

But once the boys leave for the war council, Tony finds Maria in the apartments, and they talk about their love for each other. Maria is afraid that their people won’t accept each other, and Tony says he doesn’t care. They pledge their love for each other with a duet, and another iconic song (”Tonight”).

It’s a gorgeous duet...but I need to acknowledge something: these two aren’t singing. Not on screen, anyway. The voices heard are Jimmy Bryant for Tony, and the ever-forgotten, ever-unerappreciated, late, great Marni Nixon for Maria. You have no idea how many times you’ve heard her voice, but you’ve heard it more than you think. The King and I, My Fair Lady, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, An Affair to Remember (YUP), The Sound of Music, oh, and MULAN. Marni Nixon overdubbed the voices for SO MANY people in Hollywood, and she wasn’t credited vary much back in the day. A lovely lady, and one who always deserved more credits than she got!

There’s one more person who overdubbed a voice: Tucker Smith for Riff, but only during the Jets Song. But now...now, it’s all Russ.

The Jets linger about, waiting around for the Sharks. As they do so, Sergeant Krupke pulls up in a cop car and interrogates the group for their doings. Once he leaves...we get my favorite song in the musical. The only one I know by heart, and my absolute favorite. This is “Gee Officer Krupke!”.

It’s also this musical’s version of Queen Mab’s Song, cementing Riff’s role (and fate) as Mercutio, and I love it in every way. It’s just a fun song that also gives a lot of needed information about the time period’s treatment of teenagers judged to be delinquent. Also...I just fuckin’ love this song, AND how it’s performed in this film. I can never get tired of people bopping Russ Tamblyn on the head. I just love it.

 At that point, they get into Doc’s Candy Shop, welcomed by Doc (Ned Glass), the kindly owner of the store and the Friar Laurence of the story. The Sharks also arrive shortly afterwards, and the parley begins. They set up a fight between the two hangs to settle things once and for all. However, as they start to bring weapons in, the newly-arrived Tony intervenes and gets them to use fisticuffs rather than weapons.

However, Schrank soon arrives to check in, and the group pretends to be getting along. However, the racist Schrank kicks out the Sharks, then attempts a peaceful discourse with the Jets. He also offers to help them with the upcoming fight that he suspects, saying that he’s on their side. Fuck Schrank, he’s genuinely a piece of shit.

Once the Jets and Schrank leave, Tony tells Doc about Maria, and he fears for both of their safety. Still, nothing can stop Tony’s exuberance, and he leaves that night with a smile on his face and a song in his heart.

Intermission! Let’s take a break, then start up Part 2! See you there!

[cto10121]

R&J Clown Takes Round ♾ Part 12

In which there is a lot of sympathy for the devil parents, more Romeo the Death Eater-ing, and heartbreaking! One of my favorite shorts creators did a Rosaline skit and attracted all the clowns to her yard. I forgive her, but not the clownery. Hie-ho, and away we go

Sympathy For the Parents

‘If they only just talked to their poor parents, there would have been no tragedy!1!!1”

Yes, the Montague parents seem like nice people. They are concerned with Romeo’s odd behavior, Mama Montague dies of heartbreak when her son is banished, etc. Then again, Lord Capulet seemed like a very decent parent as well, refusing Paris’ suit and wanting to let at least two summers go by before Juliet can marry. And we all know how that went.

With regards to Lord Capulet, he is definitely characterized as a fair weather friend—if you are with him, it’s cool, but if you in any way threaten his authority…you’re a saucy boy and his fingers begin to itch. Lord Montague may be of that same ilk for all we know. Why else would Romeo trust Friar Lawrence with his crush over his own parents and even, er, Benvolio?

While it’s totally normal for teens to keep things to themselves, I think we can trust Romeo and Juliet’s assessment of their parents in terms of trust and reliability as an unfortunately correct one, at least when it comes to this. After all, the very first appearance of the lords is when they are threatening to kill each other. So yeah.

At least you know Paris as a paternalistic douche, OP. Small wonders.

Yes, it sucks that Paris died for virtually no reason at all. Guy wasn’t that bad. However, I must question this framing of Paris’ death as him dying to defend Juliet.

He does say that the Capulets believe that Juliet died out of grief of Tybalt’s death, and so blames Romeo for it. He also believes that Romeo is here “to do some villainous shame / To the dead bodies.” Not just Juliet, then, but Tybalt as well. He then tries to do a citizens’ arrest on Romeo.

Romeo does try to correct this misunderstanding, telling him that he is armed against himself. But as Romeo really isn’t well, and oblivious Paris is oblivious…🤷‍♀️

YMMV, but I feel Paris didn’t have to fight Romeo, especially when the latter was refusing to. He could well have called the guards and/or trapped Romeo in there. Romeo would probably had let him, as he was about to die, anyway, so it made no difference.

So no, I feel this doesn’t make Romeo less sympathetic. Romeo at that point is a dead man walking, and he more than makes up for it by honoring Paris’ last wishes and not being jealous that Paris loved her too. I think most productions just cut his death for time and for ‘eh, unnecessary, loose end, breaks Romeo’s reunion with Juliet’ reasons than ‘oh, no, Romeo is unlikable now and we can’t have that’ reasons.

There are just so many better Shakespeare plays!!! Like…like…you know! Hamlet and Macbeth…which are in the curriculum already and taught widely…shit, um…Twelfth Night and Much Ado…shit, they’re taught too…er…You know what I mean, much better Shakespeare plays!!! *foot stomp*

Romeo Hate Dumb Round Infinity and Beyond

Romeo was a discord mod, Juliet was his kitten—

*Planet of the Apes: The Musical voice*

He loved ev’ry girl he met

From Rosaline to Juliet

Yes, he fell in love with ev’ry bland coquette

Oh, no, wait, you are wrong

It was two all along

And the one he truly loved was

Yes, the one he truly loved was

The one he had truly loved was Juliet!

And now these dumbasses are trying to use this play as a teaching tool against suicide, fuck, okay, PSA, this play is not a good tool for teaching teen suicide REPEAT this play is not good for teaching teen suicide!!!

How dare this main character have main character energy!!! 😡😡😡😡😡 The audacity of this motherfucker!!! (Also re: English teachers: Why must they always have to say their headcanons as if they are canon? The Rosaline fan dumb is so big)

Thanks, OP. Now I can be sure never to go near the thing with a ten-foot pole. How the hell can you make the premise to that freakin’ Rosaline movie better by comparison????

Tag yourself, I’m “perving on her underage cousin”

[cygnusfae]

i loved you more than i meant to

in which roman reminisces on his first meeting with logan and has the gayest birthday morning ever. a background to my romeo and juliet au with romantic logince

word count: 2.1k

tws: alcohol, beheading mention, implied internalized homophobia, implied period typical homophobia

a/n: shoutout to my lovely beta reader @airiervessel as i cannot grammar for the life of me

read on ao3

This party was a disaster. What else could be expected of an event that didn’t have any of the amazing Roman Escalus’ creative input? It was absolutely dull, lacking true substance and a certain panache. A je ne sais quoi or whatever the French said. 

Currently, Roman was sat at a free table, idly spinning an empty silver wine goblet before noticing his cousin, Count Janus, and his disapproving glare from across the table. Him and his stupid creepy face. Roman stuck his tongue out at him and slammed the goblet back onto the table, reaching for the bottle of wine next to it. He could almost hear Janus’ scolding. Whatever. This party stunk anyway. More guests began flooding in after being announced, high nobility and that sort of thing. All of them sounded the same to Roman anyway.

He took another sip of this bitter wine. “You would truly think”, Roman grumbled under his breath, “that being prince would allow Thomas to get the finest wine possible. It's absolutely abysmal.” He let out a truly dramatic sigh, and dropped to rest his head on the table. Really, the decorations were hopeless. The tapestries were so last century. And what kind of goblets were these? 

“I would have at least chosen the gold goblets to complement the purple drapes.” He let out another theatrical groan and closed his eyes, then opened them again. He turned to the entrance. A true spectacle was about to begin, it seemed.

The squire at the door coughed loudly. Eyes around the room seemed to settle on him. “Announcing, Lord and Lady Montague, with Lord Patton Montague and Lord Logan Montague.” 

It was like a fairytale. Roman loved those. He loved reading them as a child, the romanticized ideals of the world and of love. He wanted love like from a fairytale, once upon a time. But fairytale love wasn’t in the books for someone like him. So he gave up on having his own romance and decided to put his passions in art, in his creative pursuits. Into helping others, providing justice and being like the princes in his books. Even if he never got to woo a handsome knight, that was fine with him. He was fine with the occasional flirt, a short lived tryst or daring escapade. That was fine with him. Kind of.

But if Roman didn’t know any better, this was as close to the fairytales as he could get. It was as if he was enchanted, spellbound by the man before him. He sat up, gripping the silver wine goblet in front of him. This Logan Montague- Who was he? He briefly remembered hearing about the Montagues and Capulets, rival merchant families. Something about a big feud. He didn’t care for it much, but now he started to pay attention. 

This Logan… he looked fascinating. Like an enigma. His face seemed bored, casually unreadable. Everything about him was sharp and angular, geometric and cutting. Even his spectacles, rectangular cut glass, stood sharply on the bridge of his nose. He looked as if he were carved from marble, sculpted by the finest artisans and craftsmen. He had to talk to him. This was a challenge he couldn’t resist. Roman nodded, as if to himself. He took a swig of his wine, turned it from one sip to three then four then just decided to finish it. He steeled himself, and got up to meet him. But Logan disappeared into the crowd.

Roman frowned. How did he get away so easily? The floor was a mass of swirling robes, colorful figures winding around each other in perfect step to the music. Roman almost growled. “Curse it all!” How difficult could it be to find one devastatingly handsome man? His blue tunic was very distinctive, a particular dark blue shade that reminded Roman of the night sky. Just look for that. How difficult could it be?

Very difficult indeed. Roman must have spent almost the entire night looking. The guests were slowly trickling out, but the Montagues still remained. He had even gone to Montague's son, Patton, and asked but to no avail. However, he did have a lovely conversation with the gentle young lord, so at least he may have gotten himself a new friend. But not what he was looking for. Great. Now he had missed a chance to be with someone new rather, than seem clingy and desperate and go back to one of his previous conquests. Roman sighed, standing at the edge of the room, his refilled goblet in hand. His eyes narrowed, taking a long, slow sip of the wine. He’d had enough of people watching. He needed fresh air. He stepped outside to the courtyard and found himself almost walking into a dark blue tunic. 

Logan was standing next to a fountain, eyes toward the sky and back to Roman. He didn’t even seem to notice that Roman was there at all. He cleared his throat, but there was no response. Logan shifted, moving to sit down next to the fountain. Still, he looked up towards the moon and stars. Roman moved closer, leaning on the wall next to the fountain. Nothing.

 “Good evening my dear fellow. Kind sir, would you oblige me and give me a word?”. Logan finally turned to look at him, but his face seemed annoyed and irritated. Well, Roman felt his enchantment lift slightly at the other man’s sour expression. “The moon is high and wits are waning, apparently, as I am not your dear, nor in the mood for the exchanging of words.” Roman blinked. He was a feisty one apparently, but he was not one to back down from a challenge. He put on his most dazzling, charming, roguish grin as he leaned in towards Logan. 

“Well, not so gentle fellow of mine, how can I refrain from dubbing thee ‘my dear’ when thou art dearest to mine own heart?” Logan made a sort of angry growl in the back of his throat, which should not have made Roman’s heart feel larger than his chest. 

“Do not presume me foolish, Roman Escalus. I do not wish to partake in one of your famed escapades, nor be a battle that you intend to conquer.”. Oh no. Roman might have misread the young man entirely.

“Why my dear Montague, if you only wished to tell me that you held affection for another fair maiden, then why didn’t you tell me thusly?” At this, Logan flushed. Oh no. Roman might have misread the situation incorrectly twice.

 Logan, now turned a lovely pale rose, quietly grumbled under his breath. “‘My dear’, I hold affection for no maid nor do I hold affection for such fairer of the sexes.” Now it was Roman’s turn to flush. But Logan wasn’t finished. 

“Now, ‘my dear’, I believe quite firmly that tis you who art behaving quite unfairly. You believe me some fragile damsel when perhaps you should reconsider your phrasing.” Strike three for Roman, but he was nothing if not persistent. 

“Sweet, gentle Montague, I do not believe thee a helpless maiden. Why, I think thou art the loveliest of the faeries, enchanting me, luring me away to the woods.” Roman lifted his head, looking to their silvery reflections in the water before hearing Logan snort and quietly snicker. Roman’s head whipped back up to meet Logan’s gaze. “How rude! I think that was a lovely compliment!” 

Logan adjusted his glasses before staring straight into his eyes. “The existence of the rumored fae folk is highly unlikely and unrealistic. Thou shalt have to be cleverer in an attempt to woo me, my dear Roman Escalus.”. 

Roman’s heart performed a strange flutter in his stomach, which worried him slightly. But he still gasped in faux horror. “Oh Logan Montague, the blasphemy! Queen Mab shalt have your head for the feast tonight, as consequence for your insolence.” 

“Fae are but beings of fantasy and whimsy, and I put no faith in such things Roman!” 

“Oh, truly, it pains me to hear of your untimely demise due to your disbelief.” 

“I swear-”

Roman grinned as Logan began on a passionate rant. Perhaps this party wasn’t so dull after all.

                                                              ---

Roman blinked open his eyes. Sunlight filtered through the open window, curling wisps of breeze floating in from under the edge of the curtain. He was in his room. The dream was truly vivid, as if he was back at their first meeting only four years ago.

He shivered slightly, gooseflesh rising on his bare arms. His palms were warm, resting on Logan’s arms. He was still asleep, his mouth slightly parted with the quietest of sighs. How lucky he was, to be blessed with the sight of such an enchanting and lovely creature in his arms. 

Roman gently laid the barest of feather light kisses along his shoulders, his lips resting gently on the pulse of his neck. Logan shifted slightly, burying his face deeper into Roman’s neck. If he was to die now, it would be a gift from the heavens to die in this position. 

He gingerly lifted his hand to run his fingers through Logan’s hair, moving it away from his forehead. At this, Logan began to lightly stir. Eyelashes fluttering open, Roman got a glimpse of his pale blue eyes blinking at him. He groaned, slumping father down into the blankets and resting his head on Roman’s stomach. Slightly muffled, he muttered, “Who gave the sun the right to part night’s dark curtains this early?” 

“Tis only the eighth hour of morning, my dearest star.” Logan lifted the covers higher, bringing them over his head. 

“Still too early.”

“Well my dear, might I at least retrieve your spectacles for you?” At his nodding, Roman reached over to where they were haphazardly placed the night before on a cushion laying on the floor. He gently lifted the blankets only to snicker quietly. Logan looked ever ruffled, like a particularly fluffy bird. Spectacles were replaced on heads and blankets were removed. Logan began idly tracing constellation patterns on Roman’s collarbone, having risen considerably more than earlier. Roman frowned. This one was familiar, itching at the back of his brain. 

“Libra? No, I give up. Cursed stars, which one is this?” Logan smirked, having one upped him finally after being evenly matched for the first few patterns. “Oh wise and brilliant prince, I would have thought you able to recognize this one?” 

Roman shook his head. “I concede; I surrender. My brilliant scholar, do enlighten me.”

“The constellation is Gemini, the star pattern you were born under.” That's why it had seemed so familiar. He had seen its shape in one of his books. He was more surprised at Logan. 

“You remembered?” Logan’s face, which was playfully competitive, had softened. “How could I not? The day of your birth must have proved a pivotal date in the turning in the earth. I could never forget.” 

Roman held Logan tighter, resting his head in the crook of Logan’s neck. Logan murmured into his neck, his warm breath making the hair stand up. “It’s your eighteenth year, our third year together. I couldn’t forget that either.”

The dream still had not left his mind. He wondered, and decided to ask, “Do you remember how we first met?” 

“Of course. The party was disgraceful, I had rather looked at the stars instead.” 

“And I would have rathered to look at you.”

“And we bickered all night.”

“A pair of squabbling hens were we.”

“Goodness, we certainly must have frustrated each other to no end.”

“Truly. Lucky for you however, I still love you.”

Oh no. He did not just say that. Roman felt panic rising in his chest, he must have said that way too soon. Logan was sure to be scared off. This was his first time truly loving someone, and he really hadn’t even expected himself to love Logan truly. Did he even love him back? His thoughts were cut off with a gentle press of lips to his. 

“I love you too. I shall love you until every star in the night sky burns out and even then will continue to love you for years after.”

“And I believed myself the more dramatic one.” Logan rolled his eyes, pressing another kiss to the corner of his mouth. “I could almost hear your thoughts travelling far away. I endeavoured to make sure you aware of my own thoughts.” Roman shushed him with another kiss.

“I love you. I love you. I love you.” Now that he said it once, he couldn’t stop. He murmured the phrase into Logan’s lips, as if to stamp the phrase onto his mouth. I love you’s were pressed into his shoulders, his cheeks, his forehead, his neck. As if to cover his whole skin, to let love melt into the pores of his skin.

“I shall love you till I part with this mortal coil and even then, for eternity in the heavens above.” Logan sighed, gently brushing his lips against Roman’s collarbone. 

“Till the sun and stars burn out and for eternities after.”

“Do you promise?”

“I do.”

[lcdrarry]

LCDrarry Round-Up Post | Week 1

On Sundays during our posting period, we won't post a new work, instead you have time to catch up on the works that posted during the week and hopefully leave lovely comments for our creators.

Happy reading, commenting and sharing! All links are under the cut ;)

~Your LCDrarry Mods

PS: Please have a look at the author notes and tags on AO3 for additional information. Thank you!

PPS: Here are all round-up posts of LCDrarry 2021:

Round-up Post Week #1 (you’re here) 

Round-up Post Week #2 

Round-up Post Week #3 

Round-up Post Week #4

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Art

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Art: I am only one side of a coin.

Prompt: "Merlin", 2008-2012 Prompted by: Anonymous Artist: Anonymous Art Medium: Digital Art in Photoshop Rating: General Warnings: none

Summary: The better side, obviously. Merlin/Harry Potter fusion. Harry as Merlin & Draco as Arthur.

View “I am only one side of a coin” on AO3.

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Art: No Sweeter Innocence Than Our Gentle Sin

Prompt: "Romeo and Juliet", Shakespeare Prompted by: @celilasart Artist: Anonymous Art Medium: Digital Art Rating: General Warnings: none

Summary: Inspired by Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare starring Draco Malfoy as Juliet Capulet and Harry Potter as Romeo Montague.

View “No Sweeter Innocence Than Our Gentle Sin” on AO3.

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Art: there are dangerous men about

Prompt: "The Legend of Zorro”, 2005, Martin Campbell Prompted by: the artist Artist: Anonymous Art Medium: Digital Art Rating: Teen Warnings: None

Summary: Two wizards engaging in a vicious duel, but make it gay and sexy.

View "there are dangerous men about" on AO3.

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Fic and Art

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Fic & Art: One More Lantern

Prompt: “xxxHoLiC”, 2006-2010 (anime)/2013 (live action) Prompted by: @porcelainsalt / bluedreaming @ AO3 Author/Artist: Anonymous Word Count/Art Medium: 8,373 words & Digital Art Rating: Teen Warnings: Smoking

Summary: Harry is plagued by spirits who seem intent on devouring him, and there’s only one place they can’t follow: a house hidden in wizarding London, belonging to Draco Malfoy. Harry didn’t intend to stay. He certainly didn’t foresee falling in love. Yet here they are. A slice of life where Draco is a sap, Harry buys ice cream, and spirits keep throwing their peaceful life into chaos.

Read "One More Lantern” on AO3.

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Fic

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Fic: (Let's Take Our Time) Just Moving Slow

Prompt: "Holidate", 2020, John Whitesell Prompted by: @Curlyy-hair-dont-care Author: Anonymous Word Count: 1,886 words Rating: Teen Warnings: none

Summary: Harry and Draco have a mutually beneficial arrangement: automatic dates for all holidays and public events, no questions asked, no obligation, no strings. It all seemed like such a good idea when they started. Harry certainly never expected to develop feelings for Draco.

Read "(Let's Take Our Time) Just Moving Slow” on AO3.

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Fic: My Saviour Won't Stop Texting Me

Prompt: "Hercules", 1997, Ron Clements, John Musker Prompted by: @onbeinganangel Author: Anonymous Word Count: 5,012 words Rating: Teen Warnings: Texting fic

Summary: Long ago, in Ancient Greece, there was a man named Draco Malfoy who sold his soul to Voldemort. Tortured by his sins, he... oh, who am I kidding? This is a Hercules AU texting fic, not some Greek tragedy! Harry and Draco get together and everyone has phones in Ancient Greece. Please enjoy.

Read "My Saviour Won't Stop Texting Me” on AO3.

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Fic: Ghost

Prompt: "Ghost", 1990, Jerry Zucker Prompted by: @Ladderofyears Author: Anonymous Word Count: 10,761 words Rating: Explicit Warnings: major character death (MCD), canon-typical violence, grief and mourning

Summary: When Harry is killed tragically during an Auror raid gone wrong, Draco does his best to move on. He's even a little cheered when Theo Nott starts pursuing him. Then Sybil Trelawney visits Draco.

Read "Ghost” on AO3.

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Fic: Star Crossed

Prompt: "Romeo and Juliet", Shakespeare Prompted by: @celilasart Author: Anonymous Word Count: 13,615 words Rating: Teen Warnings: none

Summary: Two Quidditch teams, alike in dignity, In fair Great Britain, where we lay our scene, From ancient grudge break to new mutiny, Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean. The Wimbourne Wasps and the Appleby Arrows have been bitter rivals for centuries. When a nasty brawl ends one of their Seekers’ careers, the teams need new blood to take up the slack and divert attention from the bad publicity. And who better to distract the press than the infamous Draco Malfoy and golden boy Harry Potter? Called back from successful careers abroad, the pair are once again to be pitted against one another in an epic feud. Too bad no one told them that before they started flirting…

Read “Star Crossed” on AO3.

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Fic: The Slytherin Host Club

Prompt: "Ouran high school host club", 2006, Bisco Hatori and Takuya Igarashi Prompted by: @eletriptan Author: Anonymous Word Count: 14,377 words Rating: Explicit Warnings: explicit sexual content, scars, non-graphic mention of past abuse

Summary: Harry is simply looking for a quiet place to finish his Potions essay.It's a pity he ends up at the Slytherin Host Club instead. Or maybe it's a blessing in disguise, since he's had a crush on Malfoy since the beginning of his eighth year...

Read “The Slytherin Host Club” on AO3.

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Fic: (This Will Be) An Everlasting Love

Prompt: #12 (also fulfils #6) | "While You Were Sleeping," 1995, Jon Turteltaub Prompted by: @manixzen & @thesleepiesthufflepuff Author: Anonymous Word Count: 45,139 words Rating: Teen Warnings: None

Summary: Life doesn’t always turn out the way we plan. That’s what Draco’s mother always used to tell him, but Merlin, who could have predicted how right she would be? A story about feisty dragons, loneliness, family, and friends — and finding love in places you least expect.

Read "(This Will Be) An Everlasting Love" on AO3.

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Please help promote the fest by sharing your favourite submissions, so more people can enjoy all the amazing new Drarry works of LCDrarry. Thank you!

Author and artist reveals are on 15 June.

[cosmicfoole]

* —— 1992  /  MODERN  WORLD.    &   @angelicfoole   ✞  

                      MERCUTIO  certainly  has  a  weird  way  of  distracting  romeo  from  his  WOE  over  his  latest  heartbreak  from  rosaline  by  bringing  him  to  a  capulet  masquerade  themed  ball.  leave  it  to  his  insane  friend  to  come  up  with  such  an  idea.  dressed  as  a  knight  because  knights  and  the  whole  medieval  times  fascinate  a  historic  and  fairytale  lover  like  romeo  himself,   he’s  a  little  reluctant  to  enter  the  event  FULL  of  capu-jerks.  though,  he  does  notice  plenty  other  kids  from  school  and  begins  to  ease  at  the  fact  he  may  filter  out  with  others  who  aren’t  MONTAGUES.  it’s  annoying  that  he  has  to  avoid  rosaline  at  school  already,  now  he’s  doing  the  same  on  a  weekend. 

          ‘  trying  hard  to  control  my  heart ... ’  madonna’s  voice  fills  the  room  and  romeo  can’t  help  but  frown  at  all  the  people  who  are  in  love,  hand  pressed  to  the  wall  he’s  leaning  against.  it’s  hurtful  to  see  others  being  wanted  and  him..   left  feeling  so  incredibly  UNWANTED.  the  only  fun  he  is  having  is  how  rebellious  it  feels,  knowing  if  he  were  to  be  recognized  he’d  immediately  be  kicked  out.  though,  he’s  trying  not  to  get  either  kicked  out  or  sulk  more  than  he  already  has  the  past  two  weeks.  especially  since  he  already  LOST  his  mask  after  trying  the  spicy  wings  on  the  buffet  table.  of  course,  romeo  couldn’t  react  like  any  normal  person  once  his  tongue  started  burning  from  the  seasoning,  however.  he  dunked  his  entire  head  in  a  bucket  of  water  it  freaked  him  out  so  much,  was  convinced  ROSALINE  poisoned  him!  as  extreme  and  irrational,  downright  dramatic--  that  is.  he’s  STILL  hungry,  and  while  he  recognizes  how  paranoid  he  was  he  still  doesn’t  trust  eating  anything  off  these  people.  wandering  throughout  the  shindig,  AWAY  from  all  the  happy  people  in  love,  the  music  fades  into  one  of  michael  jackson’s  newest,  remember  the  time,  and  becomes  muffled  the  further  away  he  gets.  

           soon  getting  DISTRACTED  by  a  big  tank  full  of  exotic  colorful  looking  fish  and  appreciating  how  he  can  finally  hear  himself  think.  it  immediately  attracts  him  to  come  closer,  get  a  better  look  at  all  of  the  wondrous  creatures  that  breathe  underneath  water,  “so...neat,”  thinking  out  loud  to  himself,  mumbling  to  himself  with  wonder  in  blue  hues,  just  like  a  little  kid.  softly  smiling,  leaning  down  to  see  closer  through  the  glass,  trying  to  understand  what  kind  of  fish  this  purple  one  is  that  he  sees  is...