#bookshop-cryptid

[dying-suffering-french-stalkers]

Hi Wendy! I'm looking to start reading Ursula K Le Guin's novels, especially the Hainish and Earthsea ones; but I'm unsure of where to start. The reading order seems on par with that of Discworld. Do you have recommendations, by any chance? And if you have recs for short stories too, I'm all ears! (I'm planning to read at least Omelas) Thank you! 🙏

Disclaimer that as much as I love Le Guin, I have actually...not read that much of her work yet 😔😅 I will tell you what I know, but I will also direct you to vaunted Le Guin Understander @aurpiment.

As far as I know, Earthsea has a fairly straightforward reading order, or at least the main books do: A Wizard of Earthsea, The Tombs of Atuan, The Farthest Shore, Tehanu, Tales from Earthsea, and The Other Wind. Tales is itself a collection of short stories plus a bit of reference material. As far as I can tell, there are two more short stories outside of Tales: “The Daughter of Odren” and “Firelight.” Of all these, I'm afraid I've only read Wizard and Atuan; I really need to get back to this series.

I'm not sure that there really is a reading order for the Hainish Cycle, unless you really wanted to go in publication order. Of the Hainish works, thus far I've only read The Left Hand of Darkness and The Dispossessed, plus a handful of short stories (“Winter's King,” “Vaster than Empires and More Slow,” “The Day Before the Revolution,” and “Coming of Age in Karhide,” plus her “pronoun experiments” for TLHOD). I can heartily recommend all of these, though I would start with a book, not a short story, since many of the ones I listed are directly related to TLHOD and The Dispossessed. I do think you, specifically, might enjoy TLHOD.

Thank you for asking!! I really hope you enjoy her work, no matter where you start. Her writing sticks with me in a way that many others do not.

[temporary-dysphoria]

-chinhands- Can you tell us more about your thoughts on FuJigen? :3

-Ell

Oh boy, now you've done it - because BOY do I have THINGS TO SAY!

I need to preface this by saying obviously these are my own headcanons, and as such they're heavily influenced by my own experiences.

So to start with, I think that Fujiko and Jigen are such interesting parallels of each other, in more ways than one - the most standout way being their consistency to their roles. They each compliment Lupin in almost the same way (as a criminal partner who is equally as skilled), but on one hand you've got Fujiko who is consistently unfaithful, compared to Jigen who is consistently faithful.

Then we get into headcanon territory. I have a myriad of headcanons for the gang, although I will admit I'm more fond of the OT4 than any specific pairing. Jigen and Fujiko often get the short end of the stick there, which I think might be partly by design, and partly by just how the fandom hive mind works sometimes.

Sexuality Talk

Jigen is clearly gay-coded (at the very least) in canon - there was a twitter thread about this a while ago that went into detail about it. My own personal headcanon differs and this is influenced by personal experiences. My consistent headcanon is that Jigen is bisexual but he does lean towards men. My other headcanon that shows up every now and then is that he's bisexual, but lands on the aro/ace spectrum. I don't think Jigen trusts or loves easily, so anyone who wants to get in on that needs to stick around for uhhh (checks watch) 12 business years to get past the walls.

Now Fujiko, I'm pretty sure Fujiko might actually be bi in canon, but don't take that as fact. My headcanon is certainly bi. My headcanon for her in relationships is pretty much as she's written in How to Train Your Assassins actually. She uses her body as a weapon so much that it can blur lines between where subterfuge ends and real attraction begins. To deal with this, I think she'd be likely to set out boundaries early on and stick to them, if she's dealing with someone that she actually wants a relationship with (which is not often, but happens occasionally).

Relationship Talk

I don't think Fujiko and Jigen are friends to start with. At all. I think they start as begrudging co-workers, who eventually realise that the other is actually incredibly trustworthy IF the effort is put in.

I think for the longest time they don't move past that almost sibling-esque kind of bickering, and it might even take a large near-death scare to either remind them or show them that they do care about each other.

THEN, even if they do admit that they care about each other, I don't think their relationship is ever as visibly romantic as the relationship Fujiko could have with Lupin or even with Goemon. Because Jigen is just not that kind of person. For him, I think love is shown in small actions, not large grandiose displays.

I think there's a real possibility sometimes that Jigen and Fujiko end up in a relationship where sex is not important. That particularly is one of my favourite kinds of headcanon, because Fujiko is so sexualised, I find it personally very fulfilling when I can imagine her in a relationship where her partner loves her without that added layer of sexual attraction.

My second favourite headcanon is that they don't fuck much, but when they do it's *stellar*

Parting words

I fucking love FuJigen as a ship, both platonically and romantically. I think they are a chronically underappreciated pairing who actually have the potential to compliment each other really well if the work gets done to bridge the gap between them.

I love them as a single ship. I love them as a begrudging best friends ship. I love them shipped together within the OT4. This is a hill I am WILLING TO DIE ON.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to rant and rave about these blorbos <3 <3 <3

[chickahdee]

-chinhands- Got thoughts about Jigen's mom, you said?

Yes! Okay so a few years ago @octokracken, @thesandlorde and I were brainstorming about Jigen's mom and now she has so much lore.

I posted some art and doodles of her over on my art blog

We had been thinking about transJigen which led to us wanting him to have family who was supportive as trans people ourselves we gotta fantasize y'know?

So Jigen's mom: - Is a Japanese immigrant who moved to New York - Married Jigen's dad, who was American-Italian - Dad left early on, Jigen doesn't remember him - She became a single mother to Jigen & his sister (who's mentioned briefly in the manga) - I like to think Jigen's sister is older than he is - They lived in a tiny house in New York City - Jigen left when he was in his late teens - Mom didn't know if he was alive or not - Jigen came back home with Lupin in tow at some point - Reconnected with his mom - She's supportive of him being trans and got used calling him "son" right away - She calls him every week and they get along well - They're very similar personality-wise - Stoic and tries not to show her feelings too often - Is very intimidating despite her small stature - Takes judo classes every week - Dislikes Lupin but tolerates him for Jigen's sake - Likes Goemon, Zenigata and Fujiko a lot!

[fallbabylon]

Published in 1928 'The Hodag: and other tales of the logging camp' documents American folklore in and around Wisconsin where the titular beast calls home. The Hodag is a fearsome beast with horns and spines, believed to be a product of the ashes of a cremated Oxen that had suffered at the hands of its owners. Carnivorous in nature it is said to have a particular taste for white bulldogs. Rhinelander in Wisconsin has The Hodag as a mascot and statues as well as a store can be found dedicated to this unique cryptid.

[haveyoureadthisfanfic]

Summary: Before anyone reports this post, I got this AMA authorised by posting proof to a mod, so there. Hi, Reddit! I’m no-one special, but about 6 months ago, I moved into a flat above a cafe next door to a bookshop, and my life has never been the same since, because the man who runs the bookshop is some sort of ageless (mostly) benevolent eldritch being. By all accounts, he hasn’t aged a day since at least 1944, sometimes he seems to have just too many eyes, and I once saw him turn water into wine (a nice rosé). His coworker / best friend / boyfriend / shadow entity is also definitely some kind of cryptid, but despite trying harder to be a bastard, he’s somehow less successful at it. So, if you have any questions about what it’s like to live next door to an eternal bastard man, AMA! Or, a cryptid bastard man haunts Reddit, trying to find out how to ask out his crush of the past 6,000 years and getting downvoted to literal oblivion. Just normal stuff on the world wide web.

Author: kyaticlikestea

[legendary-lunatic]

I’ve done it again. I’ve joined another fandom and immediately fallen in love with an unpopular ship that starves me of content. But I can’t help it if Oliver Banks and Gerard Kaey are so perfect for each other.

Post Mortem lovers?

A sweet lil dead goth and the avatar of the End? -These edge lords match each others’ freak don’t lie to me. They would treat each other well, we all know it.

Canon divergence who? You can’t prove Gerry doesn’t hang out with Oliver as a ghost, is all I’m saying~

-

Gerry: Life is just one crotch kick after another.

Oliver: Hell yeah it is, that’s why we don’t have one. Let’s go get a sandwich.

Gerry: I thought you didn’t need to eat food anymore.

Oliver: Yeah, but I like sandwiches.

-

Oliver: -And this is the weird Tarot Magic shop I work at.

Gerry: Do you just sit around and fortune tell people’s deaths all the time?

Oliver: Mostly they just buy rocks as a coping mechanism

Gerry: We should merge this with my haunted bookshop, then we’ll really have the creepy local Cryptid vibe on lock.

Oliver: You’re ridiculous.

-

They both just need someone laid back to sit on the couch with.

[cruelestpigeon]

The new bookshop owner, a perculiar fellow, tells the locals that Mr Fell has 'gone to heaven'. The locals make sure to stop by and offer their condolences to the black goth with the bentley who's constantly in the pub nowadays. Poor lad, losing his husband so suddenly like that. They have a feeling that the naked man who showed up outside the bookshop a few days prior had something to do with it.

Soho mourns their favorite cryptid. The guy who's been around longer than one's grandma could remember. The guy who's bookshop everybody swore burned down at some point and was back the next day. The guy who dressed like a gay-as-in-happy victorian and had his gay-as-in-homosexual goth boyfriend? husband? partner? to match.

Life moves on. Books get sold. A demon daydrinks in the pub next door.

[aziraphales-library]

hii! would you happen to know any fics where azi is an eldritch horror? the weirder/freakier the better. thank you!

Hey. We have #cryptid aziraphale and #eldritch tags, so check those out. Here are a couple more to add...

Held Close; Kept Safe by Sodium_Azide (E)

In which Aziraphale is an eldritch abomination, who loves his demon very very much. After their first night together, Aziraphale worries that he is too much for his serpent. Crowley reminds him that he wants all of him.

What is Essential to the Heart, is Invisible to the Eyes by theplushfrog (M)

Aziraphale closes his eyes, breathing in a useless but calming breath. Then he opens them. All of them. Perhaps in a human’s brain (provided it didn’t melt right away) it might have interpreted Aziraphale’s eyes opened around himself, floating in space like the motes of dust, or perhaps they wrenched open from his skin, each peering from a different patch of his body but also overlapping one another like an unfinished jigsaw puzzle, or perhaps opened all layered right on top of one another like a bizarre and nauseating stack of glasses overlapping and magnifying. All of these were kind of true. But they also were kind of wrong. -- A romantic eldritch body horror fic inspired by Victorian Lover's Eye jewelry. This is rated M due to gore.

Eldritch Bookseller seeks Local Cranky Librarian - Or local cranky librarian needs some adventure in his life by ximeria (E)

Crowley has always dreamed about adventure and otherworldly things, but the highlight of his day seems to be sending out late fees to people at the library. At least until one single bookseller in Soho refuses to return a book. He keeps telling himself that every time he returns to the bookshop, it's because the bastard won't give back the book.

Chosen Faces AU by SightKeeper, entanglednow (Series) (T-E)

Wherein Aziraphale is an eldritch horror who pretends to be an angel.

- Mod D

[danfrik]

CAN I GET A WA-HOO??

I'm bacK, yes, you can all see that.

I finally finished this silly little drawing of mine and god I love it, and yes I'm going to make more drawings of them 'cause I have no self-control, also

HELLO, LGBTQ+ COMMUNITY

⚠️Spoilers ahead for both series⚠️

So... about those takes that I have about this two (and a few others that I plan on drawing, don't worry, we'll get there), well, you can see that Phoenix is Crowley while Miles is Aziraphale...

It makes sense, I swear-

At first I was thinking of them but reverse (Phoenix as Aziraphale and Miles as Crowley) because, ngl they could fit either role anyway.

But character-wise? I think this is the best, mostly because of interactions the four of them had on their respective series.

To give an example, this dialogue in Ace Attorney:

It feels strangely similar to Aziraphale's "hereditary enemies" dialogue in the first season.

I might need to write some things down or else I will forget, fuck- (I'm writing this without any plan, help)

But hear me out, I'm not crazy-

Just take a look at Aziraphale's and Miles' fashion sense, that old-timey style they both have (and it's even more obvious with Miles' debut suit), that stubborn personality and undying faith about their side (Prosecutor's Office and heaven), etc.

While Phoenix's and Crowley's personality are more care-free, going their own way, their own side, bluffing away their problems and always chasing or following their "best friend" anywhere.

Phoenix getting a law degree just so he can reach Miles and save him, Crowley always being there for Aziraphale when needed and saving him...

Do you see where I'm getting at?

Also, you remember that scene with the bookshop being on fire and Crowley thinking that Aziraphale was dead?

..."Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth chooses death."

Yeah... the only difference is that Aziraphale didn't dissapear for a whole year and much less left a cryptid ass note behind and it wasn't really his fault-

But the feeling is quite similar, isn't it?

Now, after all the sad or complex feelings aside, let's see more happy things that I noticed:

Crowley's fondness of children / Phoenix's habit of adopting kids anywhere he goes.

Aziraphale liking yellow because it reminds him of Crowley's eyes / Miles finding a particular shade of blue relaxing once in a while.

Crowley's tendency of following Aziraphale like a dog following its owner / Phoenix's constant chasing after Miles (and also having a dog-like personality.)

Aziraphale not admitting that Crowley is his friend (or that he likes his company) / Miles also not admitting Phoenix is his friend (or that he likes his company.)

Yeah... the pattern is getting more obvious the more you look at it...

But I guess this is enough for one post, if you read it all the way, thank you for indulging my delusional brain!

Any comments, requests or... anything, really, will be much appreciated :DD

(If there are some errors, mispellings or anything of the sort, feel free to correct me because even though I've been learning english since I was like five years old, still isn't my first language so yeah👍)

[addledmongoose]

Good Omens Fanfic Friday (11 Oct 2024)

Visibilium omnium et invisibilium (5.9K; Rated G) by @haemey

A hilarious short set in 1969 when Crowley decides to set up another caper. Setting up an overly-complicated plan when he could just use a miracle, and the whole reason for it all is so very Crowley. It feels like one of those shorts that could work as a minisode.

***

That Odd London Bookshop (series) (6.4K; Rated T) by @gwenstacyismyicon

Outsider POV. A series of shorts told in social media form about the unusual cryptid running A.Z Fell & Co.

***

Never Judge Books By Their...? (4.4K; Rated NR) by @Worse0mens

Outsider POV. Two detectives interview two very different men (well, man-shaped beings) about a crime in their neighborhood.

***

Enraptured (42K; Rated E) by @naromoreau

Human AU (sorta). Aziraphale is a monk who works in the monastery's library. Crowley is an incubus summoned to kill him. Instead, he informs Aziraphale that someone wants him dead, and tells the monk he needs help finding an artifact that's keeping him tied to Earth. This one grabbed me from the get-go and wouldn't let go.

***

On That Note (7.8K; Rated G) by @splitting-infinities

Outsider POV. Over the course of decades, Basil, a theater ticket seller, interacts with a certain angel who simply won't watch all of The Sound of Music, and a certain demon, who keeps trying to convince him to. I love how Aziraphale and Crowley don't really try to hide what they are from Basil, and that Basil just accepts that his world is weirder than he ever knew.

***

Mr & Mx Fell (17K; Rated M) by @shaggydogstail

Human AU. Part of the DIWS Silver Screen Bang. This is Mr. & Mrs. Smith with Aziraphale and Crowley. Two sexy assassins marry after a whirlwind romance before settling into a mundane life of upper middle class mediocrity. Of course, neither realizes the other is their nemesis until a job gone wrong uncovers the truth. Now they're ordered by their organizations to kill each other.

***

Take a Little Love From Me (81K; Rated E) by @hermiola

Human AU. A Pretty Woman AU, with rich businessman, Aziraphale, and sex worker, Crowley. The bickerflirting in this story was simply top notch. You won't be able to stop smiling at the instant connection they have.

After fleeing a disastrous work event masked as his 50th birthday party and getting lost in a car he can’t seem to drive, Aziraphale Eastgate, CEO of Eastgate’s Booksellers Ltd., meets the mysterious Anthony, who offers to help... and not just with directions. Things escalate as they are wont to do.

[cuubism]

I have been absolutely loving Bookstore Cryptid Dream! Offline life got rough for a bit there, but this little universe never failed to make my heart happy. Thank you - and I hope you're planning on more!

i've indeed had one in my drafts so i finished it up for you :)

--

Hob has been waiting with equal parts anticipation and trepidation to find out exactly what ideas Dream will pull from his romance novels. He still hasn't figured out why he picked romance novels as his manuals. Maybe he needs his sex positions to have narratives. Maybe he's into roleplay. God.

But Hob doesn't get to find out.

He's been busy for a few days--new term at the local uni starting up means the cafe's suddenly gotten busier--and while Dream's popped in and out a few times, they haven't had the chance to spend much time together. It's probably good, Hob tries to convince himself. Puts the brakes on things, just a little.

But when he finally gets a break, hands the reins over to his staff for an evening, he heads to The Library. Even if Dream is busy with his own tasks, Hob's content to just sit in his space. Listen to his stories. It's not something the busy cafe environment usually allows, but The Library is like an alternate world, cool, quiet, and timeless.

Hob strides up the steps and opens The Library door.

And there's nothing inside.

It takes several moments for his tired brain to comprehend what he's looking at, and several more for him to decide that no, he's not dreaming. He steps through the doorway into a dim, empty room, old wood-paneled walls and dust gathering in the corners, and no infinite winding paths of shelves like in Dream's bookshop. Just a shell.

Hob presses his palm to the wall. It's cool, and smooth, and very much real. Not some mad hallucination of his, this empty room.

Blinking hard, Hob steps back outside, closes the door again, as if that might change things. Opens it again. Same room. Does it again. Same room. He calls out into the empty bowels of the once-Library: "Dream!"

No answer, of course.

Hob had known that The Library had a sort of magic to it. But just vanishing into thin air...

And Dream wouldn't...

...would he?

Hob spins in place on the stoop, looking out on the darkened street which suddenly feels so much more eerie. He steps down to the road in a daze, looking around as if The Library might suddenly appear in another doorway. Resists the urge to yell Dream's name into the darkness.

And then, well, fuck it. "Dream!" he calls. All that echoes back to him is his own voice.

Hob sits down on the stoop, defeated. If he hadn't seen Dream just yesterday, kissed him on his way out of the cafe not twenty-four hours ago, he really might have started to think he'd hallucinated all of this. Invented someone he'd wanted to know.

But he didn't invent Dream, he swears he didn't--so then where is he?

Hob doesn't sleep much that night. He doesn't do much of anything else, either--it's not like Dream left a note to track him down, or any evidence of his existence. It's not like Hob can put up missing person posters: have you seen this bookshop? Or force it to reappear.

He's having a very sleep-deprived, very over-caffeinated morning shift in the cafe, contemplating how long one's not-quite-human not-quite-boyfriend needs to be not-quite-missing before it's reasonable to start finding out which parts of London harbor demons and sorcerers--when a man he's never seen before stops at the counter, hands folded before him, and says, "Excuse me, but do you know if there's a bookshop around here?"

Hob has never seen anyone else ever go into The Library or even acknowledge its existence, and Hob's anxiety is so high that he almost leaps over the counter to grab this man by the collar and demand, what do you know about Dream?! Fortunately he belays that impulse. This stranger really does look almost laughably harmless and definitely not like a demon or sorcerer, not that Hob's seen one--and getting arrested for assault is not going to help anything.

"I tried the door," continues the stranger, as Hob just keeps staring at him, conflicted, "only, well. It seems to have vanished."

Well, at least Hob's not hallucinating. Not that a disappearing bookstore is helpful to his sanity.

After what was surely a conspicuously long silence, though his visitor just waits patiently, Hob says, "Have... you been there before?" He feels weirdly defensive of The Library, even if it's currently AWOL. He doesn't know if he wants random people to be able to find Dream.

Or maybe that's just jealousy.

"Oh, no, this is my first time coming this way," says the man, apologetically. "I'm just looking for a certain book."

Damn odd timing for it.

Hob comes out from behind the counter and waves him over to a table. He should probably get some tea. Proper hospitality and all. But he's too worked up and way too sleep-deprived.

His guest sits down primly at the table as Hob slouches against the back of his own seat. "Sorry," Hob finally says, "if I'm--" he waves a vague hand. "Dream's had trouble before, that's all." He holds out his hand to his guest. "Hob."

The man shakes his hand. "Hm. A pleasure. I am Aziraphale. To any associate of--" he tastes the name, "Dream's, that is."

It's interesting that The Library's reputation carries further than knowledge of Dream himself, despite how deeply Dream seems to be tied to the shop.

"Is it meant to be there, then?" asks Aziraphale hopefully. "I wouldn't blame him for moving around to protect the collection; I certainly wouldn't want all and sundry picking through the shelves!" He shudders. "Though I was hoping to find that book."

Hob doesn't bother asking what book. Whatever it is, Dream will certainly have it. What's more important is--

"'Moving around?' Do you know how?" And then, realizing if he wants a chance at info he's going to need to offer some of his own, adds, "You just missed him, it's only today that The Library's been... gone."

"Oh, dear," says Aziraphale, now looking troubled.

"Not sure what pointed you towards this place, but if you've heard anything..." Hob continues, "Dream is my--" what is Dream, anyway? They haven't established it, "...friend."

Looking contemplative, Aziraphale says, "Well it is odd timing, now that you mention it, because--"

That's when the door to The Library flies open.

A lanky man comes hurtling down the steps, limbs akimbo, yelling something over his shoulder that Hob can't hear from within the cafe. "Oh dear," says Aziraphale again, with a mix of concern and consternation. "Crowley!"

Dream storms out of the doorway next, expression thunderous, his hair sticking up in all directions like he'd been struck by lightning. That has Hob lurching to his feet, which Aziraphale does as well, and they both rush outside, just in time to hear--

"Look, it's just one silly book, okay?" The unfamiliar man--Crowley, presumably--says, stopping in the middle of the road and turning towards Dream. "Don't overreact."

Dream is, in fact, clutching a singular heavy book, and looks like he's just about to hurl it, except that Dream would never do something so undignified as that, Hob thinks.

Dream hurls the book at Crowley.

Or not.

Crowley catches it against his chest, stumbling back with the weight. "I do not accept," spits Dream, each word the strike of a nail, "surreptitious rummaging in my library."

"Oh come on," says Crowley, tossing the book to Aziraphale, who's just caught up to him and who catches it with a surprised little umph! sound. Crowley makes a shooing sort of go on, run gesture to Aziraphale, which he doesn't heed. "It's not like I was going to burn the place down. You're just prejudiced against demons."

"I am prejudiced against thieves," hisses Dream. Hob finally reaches his side before he can throw another book or something, lays a hand on Dream's arm. Though all he's really thinking is, demons?!

"Crowley," Aziraphale admonishes. "Please tell me you did not." He finally looks at the cover of the book, and gasps. "Crowley."

Crowley shrugs. "You wanted it, he had it."

Hob frowns, confused. "You don't need to steal from The Library. It's not a museum. Just go in and buy it." Not that Hob's ever actually paid for any of Dream's books.

Both Crowley and Aziraphale turn to him. "One could not simply give away such an artifact," says Aziraphale, caressing the book's leatherbound cover.

"Least not for a steep price," says Crowley, which evidently justifies his trying to swipe it. "I won't be beholden to the likes of you." He points at Dream.

Dream looks affronted. "Now who is prejudiced?"

"Let's back up," Hob says, unsure how he became the voice of reason here. He still has a hand wrapped around Dream's arm, it's grounding after the way Dream had just vanished on him. "What happened? Dream-- I tried to come over and you were just gone." The empty room past The Library doorway is going to continue to be nightmare fuel.

Dream makes an apologetic little sound. "I apologize. I closed all access to The Library for its protection. As it turned out, my assessment of the threat was overstated." He glares at Crowley and adds, darkly, "I thought you were from the school board. Breaking in in the dead of night like so."

Hob momentarily gets stuck on the fact that Dream considers the local school board a greater threat than an actual demon from hell.

"Which," Dream continues, "was utterly unnecessary. You could have simply come to The Library as a visitor and sought out what you were looking for. It would have been granted."

"Oh, so I was just supposed to know you actually sell your books?"

"The books will find their rightful recipients," Dream says stiffly.

"Crowley, you have been very rude," says Aziraphale, though he hasn't given up the book, "I think you should apologize."

"Eh," says Crowley, waving this off. Hob supposes it wouldn't really be given to demons to apologize for things. "You apologize if you really want to."

Aziraphale turns to Dream with a sigh. "I am sorry for my companion's behavior. And... grateful for the book."

Dream nods solemnly at him. It seems his ire does not extend to Aziraphale.

Crowley leans back on his heels, closer to Aziraphale. "Mayyybee we should go now."

Aziraphale nods. "Quite." He tips his head at Dream, and then at Hob. "Thank you for your hospitality, Hob."

Then he turns and hurries away, Crowley slinking along beside him. As they leave, Hob hears Aziraphale admonish, "Do you know how few booksellers there are with truly rare volumes? We cannot afford to make such enemies."

"Yeah, you're welcome, angel."

"...Thank you."

Hob shakes his head in bemusement and turns back to Dream. He takes both of Dream's arms in his hands now, holding onto him, looking him over. Unable to fully vanish the lingering panic of The Library just being gone. "Are you alright? I was... worried. When you disappeared."

"I am annoyed," Dream huffs, like it's a greater point of suffering than any actual injury. Then he leans in close to Hob, pressing a hand to his chest. "I apologize. I did not intend to cause you distress. I had to shut the doors rather quickly, but I hoped to resolve the issue before you had cause to visit The Library."

"It's alright, love. I'm just glad you're okay." He kisses Dream, tentative for how new this all still is. Tastes lightning on his lips. Dream hums with pleasure.

When they pull apart, Hob wraps an arm around Dream's back, starts leading him back towards the cafe, or perhaps just to Hob's flat above. Tea solves everything. "So. The school board, eh?"

Dream sighs with the weight of the world on his shoulders. "They are enthusiastic about banning books."

Hob pulls him against his side, kisses his temple. "Dream against the world."

Dream grumbles, but leans his head on Hob's shoulder, and despite the many strange things of today Hob is going to have to internalize, he feels all soft inside at the gesture.

"Don't worry," he says, "next time your many enemies come calling, just yell and I'll create a diversion."

"And be waiting with tea after I've dealt with them?"

"Got it in one."

As they reach the door to the cafe, Dream turns his head to kiss Hob's shoulder. "You are good to me, Hob Gadling."

And Hob will keep being so. Even when the next strange thing happens.

[dying-suffering-french-stalkers]

Happy birthday Wendy!! I hope you have a great day 💕

hghgkfj thank you!! ❤️

[temporary-dysphoria]

Hi! It's me again, with gun questions this time (I'm the mod of @ctrl-lupin ).

Have you watched Part 6, and if yes do you have info/thoughts about the episode The Last Bullet? The premise of the episode is that Jigen's been using .357 ammo in a gun meant to handle .38, and that his gun was falling apart as a result. I did some research at the time because that seemed weird, the anime has always been very clear on what gun model he uses, a S&W model 19, which is very much designed for .357 caliber. So I'm very confused about what was going on in that episode. Can you help?

(I made a post about it back in the day, but it's pretty long)

Oh hullllooooooooooo <3

Yes, I believe I might be able to actually!

If Jigen was using .357 ammo in a gun that was only chambered for .38 there's a very real chance that the gun would be damaged, it could injure the shooter in a misfire (ie, the pressure builds up in the chamber and doesn't discharge, thereby exploding in the shooters face essentially).

Much like you said in your post - this is because .357 is a more powerful cartridge than a .38, and guns that are chambered for .38's won't be able to handle the added chamber pressure that a .357 has. That being said - the opposite is why a gun chambered for .357 cartridges can safely fire .38's - it's already built to withstand a higher pressure, so the lower pressure of the .38's isn't gonna phase it.

On a more realistic note, it's unlikely that Jigen would actually be able to shoot .357 ammo from a gun chambered for .38's because a lot of cartridges are actually built to stop them from loading into guns that aren't designed for them (important from a safety perspective).

I would hazard a guess that this might be a case of 'artistic license' as it were - because the underlying theory checks out, and even I will admit that it's a cool premise to have his gun fall apart and become the bullet itself.

I'm not sure if that helps at all, but that's what I'm inclined to believe is going on. They've latched on to a believable phenomenon which definitely would have occurred in the early days of the overlap of the cartridges and run with it for the cinematic memes - with excellent effect might I add.

[ofmdrecaps]

07/12/2024 Daily OFMD Recap

TLDR; Rhys Darby; Samba Schutte; Vico Ortiz; Rachel House; Nathan Foad; Kristian Nairn; Minnie Driver; Gypsy Taylor; Nathan Foad; You Bear Fine Thing Well; Articles; Non Binary Awareness Week; Love Notes; Daily Darby/Today's Taika

== Rhys Darby ==

A LIVE Cryptid Factor show has been announced at ther Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2023! August 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th! Unfortunately it looks like they sold out within the first few hours. Hopefully we'll see some more lives soon! Grats boys on the quick sellout!

Source: Rhys Darby's Instagram

Rhys also posted multiple tiktok videos today regarding a new character I assume? "Brief Moments of Genius: The Doug Thandwich Pamphlet"

Source: Rhys Darby's Tiktok

== Samba Schutte ==

Samba made it safely to Florida Supercon! Annnnd apparently the hotel didn't think about his height when getting him set up in the deluxe rainfall shower!

Source: Samba Schutte's Instagram

== Vico Ortiz ==

Vico also made it to Florida Supercon safely (with Jack!)! Are you going to be seeing them this weekend?

Source: Vico's Instagram Stories

ALSO -- more OFMD S2 BTS (as well as exclusive other BTS from their other shows, etc) from Vico on their Patreon! Check out the new video here!

Source: Vico Ortiz' Patreon

== Rachel House ==

Rachel was out at a showing of &Juliet getting to meet one of her heroes, Keala Settle!

Source: Rachel House's Instagram

== Kristian Nairn ==

As mentioned before - Signed copies of Kristian's book are on pre-sale now! Apparently some of the signing is happening now because Kristian posted a video of some signatures happening! They've also hit the Barnes & Nobles Best Sellers list!

Source: Kristian Nairn's Instagram

REMINDER: Adopt Our Crew was kind enough to put together his list of where you can buy Kristian's Book! Reminder-- bookshop is great if you want to support your local bookstores!

Barnes & Noble

Amazon US

Amazon UK 

Bookshop.com

Source: Adopt Our Crew's Twitter

== Nathan Foad ==

Nathan once again out with friends <3. I'm so happy we're getting to see him have so much fun this summer!

Source: Nathan Foad's Instagram

== Minnie Driver ==

Our fabulous Anne Bonny, Minnie Driver is playing Elizabeth I in Serpent Queen Season 2! Which just so happens to premier today on Starz!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Min. (@driverminnie)

Source: Minnie Driver's Instagram

== Gypsy Taylor ==

Our darling costume designer for s2 - Gypsy Taylor has received a special gift from one of our fan crews-- Our Flag Means Daddy! She received a special jacket with the name Sea Gypsy embroidered on it! Congrats Gypsy and thank you Our Flag Means Daddy crew for continuing to bring joy and recognition to our dear OFMD Cast & Crew!

Source: Gypsy Taylor's Instagram

== You Bear Fine Things Well ==

Today was the final day for #YouBearFineThingsWell! @adoptourcrew asked fans to share their favorite bear puns Rhys came up with for the Hungry Games! I have to say mine was "We asked Cassanova if he had any types... he said brunettes".

Source: @adoptourcrew's Twitter

== Articles ==

A few more mentions of OFMD this week!

Source: Collider Article

And thank you to @adoptourcrew for bringing this screenrant article to our attention!

Source: Adopt Our Crew Twitter

== Non Binary Awareness Week ==

Another article from Pink News -- this time recommending 11 Must Watch Films/TV Shows Starring Non-Binary Actors! I already know several I'll be seeing once they're available. Check them out!

Source: Pink News Article

== Love Notes ==

Hey there lovelies! Happy start to the weekend! I truly hope you've had fun this week in some capacity. There's been something for everyone and hopefully we continue to see some hype coming up in the up coming weeks.

Today I wanted to remind you of something that I know you've heard before, but like anything in this life, repetition helps to solidify things so I'm gonna say some of it again. You don't need to prove to anyone your worth. You don't need to beg for anyone to love you and you certainly don't need to be someone you're not for someone else's sake. We all have demands from outside forces every day-- work, school, etc, and a lot of those demands are things we have to cope with in order to function in and be a part of society. Those demands aren't always in our best interest, but for the most part they're at least somewhat reasonable. However, there are going to be times that others have demands on you that are completely unreasonable. Maybe someone expects you to fall into a pretty little category. Maybe someone expects you to understand them when they aren't being clear. Maybe someone expects you to bend over backwards and change for their benefit, but not provide you with the same courtesy.

Whatever unreasonable demands you're dealing with, I just want to send you a reminder that you are allowed to say no. You are allowed to set up boundaries to help minimise that kind of behavior. You are allowed to just be you, and to continue to shine being you. Nothing is black and white, so it may not be easy, and may not be viable, or safe for some people-- I absolutely get that, and you should always keep your safety and security top of mind. But if you have the wiggle room, and you can set up those boundaries, remember there's nothing wrong with wanting to continue to be you, the way you are and defending that you.

You are wonderful lovelies, and we all have things in life we can improve on, but you being your beautiful, unique, authentic self is a right, and you have every right to protect the parts of you you hold dear. You don't have to prove to anyone that you are worthy of love just being yourself-- because you already ARE worthy of love, and light, and good things.

You don't have to fit into a neat little box to be loved, or valid. You are already both of those things, and sometimes it's hard to see it in ourselves-- so this reminder is from me to you, from the crew, to you, that you are wonderful just the way you are. Rest well and be kind to yourselves lovelies, you deserve it.

== Daily Darby / Today's Taika ==

Tonight's theme is shades on a couple of cool dudes! Gifs courtesy of two of the most fabulous and talented gif makers on the internet - @ofmd-ann and @bizarrelittlemew!

[weirdly-specific-but-ok]

Figured I'd send you some of my favorite happy Good Omens fics to cheer you up after the agony of the Final Fifteen!

we should just kiss like real people do by lesbicosmos - the demons don't attack during the dance and Aziraphale goes through with his love confession.

I live next door to a haunted bookshop owned by an immortal cryptid bastard. AMA! by kyaticlikestea - Reddit fic where Crowley lurks on Reddit (and so do people who have noticed he and Aziraphale aren't human). It is HILARIOUS

And Everything Is You by acetonitril - Crowley sings ABBA at karaoke while pining for Aziraphale. Aziraphale finds out.

Somebody to Love by everydayistuesday - The Bentley plays Somebody to Love every time Crowley and Aziraphale are in it together.

The Ineffable's Guide to Conducting a Courtship by everydayistuesday - instead of lying about the miracle being to get Nina to fall in love with Maggie, Aziraphale panics and says it was to make Crowley fall in love with him. Cue fake-dating shenanigans. Currently updating!!

get religion quick (cause you're looking divine) by brinnanza - you might have come across this one already, it's a fandom classic! Aziraphale, despite being able to sense love, mistakes Crowley's love that's been around since the Garden as background noise. Crowley is exasperated when Aziraphale says as much. (hilarious! pining!) And one of the inspired-by fics - you play with my feelings (right from the start) by PenroseSun is a hilarious version where it's flipped and Crowley despite being able to sense desires hasn't realized that Aziraphale wants him.

Happy reading!!

Thank you. Thank you, saviour maggot.

I bless thee with uh emotional support bananas I'm sorry it's the only blessing I've got.

[foolishlovers]

SOCIAL MEDIA AUs: Below you'll find a list of Good Omens fics that contain elements of social media such as Instagram, Youtube & Co.

You can request more fic recs here.

twitter cryptids by doctormissy (T, 36k)

Crowley's latest brilliant idea involves ranting about his undying love tiny crush on Aziraphale on Twitter instead of actually dealing with his feelings now that the world didn't end. Because he will never find out, right? Right?

Press L in the Chat (for Love) by Djapchan, Phoenix_Soar (E, 29k)

Bickering fan-content creators Aziraphale and Crowley only have three things in common — they are both avid fans of a new revolutionary TV series about pirates, they are popular for their fantastic fanfiction and fanart… and they are members of the same discord server. Neither of them likes the other, but across the chaotic virtual world of a discord chatroom, who knows what can happen when these two unlikely fans are paired up for an exciting collaboration? Us. We know ;) Discord Server AU — a collaboration between Phoenix_Soar (fic) and Djapchan (multivoice podfic organization & editing) for Pod-Together 2022

Angelic Whispers by AppleSeeds (T, 20k)

Crowley runs a very popular ASMR YouTube channel, but is considering applying for a job at a real life ASMR spa. He books an appointment as a client to try out the experience for himself, but becomes completely flustered when he meets the ridiculously gorgeous ASMR therapist, Aziraphale, who will be spending the next hour giving him unrelenting personal attention.

No Picture Can Express by nutmeag83 (T, 12k)

Ezra Fell prefers books (and discretely watching the lovely florist down the street) to social media, but takes up the hobby at Madame Tracy's urging. Anthony Crowley has been pining after his neighbor for ages, happy to keep his distance until Ezra asks him to tutor him in using Instagram. They find they have more in common than just having shops on the same block in Soho.

your smile speaks books to me by laiqualaurelote (T, 5k)

Aziraphale's bookshop becomes accidentally famous on Instagram, to his great distress. Since Crowley invented Instagram, it's also his problem.

it's a new craze by attheborder (T, 5k)

CROWLEY: I try not to make a habit of gratitude, but I must give our appreciation to everyone out there who’s been listening and subscribing to The Ineffable Plan. AZIRAPHALE: Ooh, yes, we’ve become quite popular, haven’t we? CROWLEY: Yeah, just hit number eight on the advice charts … No advertising at all. AZIRAPHALE: Mm. How … miraculous. CROWLEY: … Aziraphale. You did not.   *** Crowley and Aziraphale are very possibly the people least qualified, on the entire planet, to start up an advice podcast. But what else is there to do when the world isn’t ending anytime soon, you’re technically on indefinite sabbatical from your lifelong careers, and you need a plausible excuse to spend more time with your best friend who you’re definitely not, absolutely not, maybe just a little, actually maybe overwhelmingly in love with?

You've Got Kudos by curtaincall (M, 4k)

Aziraphale and Crowley both write fanfiction. As it happens, they both write Good Omens fanfiction. Of course, neither of them would ever admit this to the other. (A love story told primarily in AO3 comments)

London Book Shop Recommendations? by nothankyoudear (G, 3k)

A.Z. Fell and Co. is recommended as a local London bookshop on a Reddit post. Chaos ensues when someone actually takes the recommendation and goes there, only to find that: 1. They don't get to buy books 2. The gentle bookshop owner apparently owns a giant python And 3. The bookshop owner is 100% in love with his best friend with the sunglasses OR Ineffable Husbands told through Reddit posts.

Parsley, Thyme, Sage, Daffodils by MostWeakHamlets (G, 3k)

Aziraphale has a cooking show on the internet. It started out with three viewers, but now he's known as the happy grandfather that blew up overnight. Crowley occasionally makes cameos, has dedicated his garden to giving Aziraphale fresh herbs and vegetables, and struggles with living after the apocalypse. _ “Taste this, my dear,” Aziraphale said. He held a spoonful of jam to Crowley’s lips with his free hand cautiously under it, ready to catch any dripping. Crowley leaned forward to wrap his lips around the spoon. Most likely his shyness came from the small tender moments Aziraphale was not afraid of showing the world. It had been the topic of many long conversations after Aziraphale took Crowley’s hand in St. James Park, causing Crowley to freeze and break out in a cold sweat. Being discreet had always been their top priority. For 6,000 years, someone would have surely seen them if they embraced in the middle of London. But now, Aziraphale had assured Crowley, things were different. They no longer needed to hide, but Aziraphale would go as slow as Crowley needed him to. It was almost funny how their roles had switched after the apocalypse.

Crowley Invented Youtube Recommended (Parsley, Thyme, Sage, Daffodils remix) by flibbertygigget (T, 1.9k)

After Aziraphale's video on crêpes makes it into Youtube recommendations through a little demonic intervention, he quickly goes viral. Cue college students just trying to make it work, a bunch of young queers who see A.Z. Fell and his husband Anthony as "goals," and quite a few comments from one Newton Pulsifer.

Get Connected by AgentStannerShipper (G, 1k)

Crowley signs Aziraphale up for social media. Even if it's a slightly outdated one.