#btvs universe

[eclectic-mania]

she's a killer queen

2. turn and face the strange (ch-ch-changes)

(part 1) | (read it on ao3)

Point Place, WI

July 16, 1977

12:57 AM

A pair of mismatched eyes flew open. 

Jacqueline Burkhart was no stranger to waking up in the middle of the night, but the circumstances surrounding her lack of sleep this time around were definitely... weird. 

The sheets stuck to her sweaty—alright, not sweaty, Jackie Burkhart didn’t sweat—skin thanks to the sweltering heat of a Wisconsin July, and she pulled them off of her as she tried to take stock of what actually woke her up. 

She hadn’t dreamt, not that she could remember, and thank god for that. Her dreams nowadays were downright freaky. In them, she saw other people, people she’d never seen before, people from all sorts of backgrounds. There was a running joke between her and their friends that she hated foreigners—a sentiment her parents seriously believed, even if Jackie herself could never treat it as more than a joke, but even that joke died at the sheer love and kinship she felt for these women that she only ever met in her sleep. In some dreams she is these women, and as them, she fights monsters with deformed faces and giant fangs. Those are more like nightmares, even if she, acting as those women, always wins. 

Jackie shared one such nightmare with Michael once, when he was supposed to spend the night at hers. He huffed and accused her of trying to kill the mood, complete with his trademark “Damn, Jackie,” and she never shared her dreams with him again, monster-ridden or not.

She shuddered, snuggling deeper into her bed. It’s not the first time she’s seen that... hideous creature in her brain, but tonight, now, it doesn’t bring up the same fear. No, for some reason, tonight the vision makes her... anxious. Not in a running way either; in a fighting way. 

Anyway, it wasn’t the dreaming that woke her up this time. Nor was it her usual fear of sleeping alone in a big house, although it was in the back of her mind to check the locks again when she woke up in the morning. Her eyes moved across the room and, finding nothing amiss, she shook her head and relaxed again. I better not wake up again, she grumbled to herself as her eyelids drooped. I need my beauty sleep, damn it. 

She remained oblivious, as her sleep went on undisturbed, of the new power thrumming in her veins. 

The summer days were long and lonely when her friends were busy. Sure, Jackie could have hung out with other cheerleaders, but the girls on the team made her feel terrible, not just about herself but about everyone. She was her worst self when she tried to fit in with them, but damn it, she loved cheering. It was the one thing she did that brought her joy to her days, aside from spending time with (okay, bossing around) Michael. 

She frowned. Come to think of it, she hadn’t spent much time with Michael lately, even though she went to the basement almost every day. Half the time, he wasn’t even there! Still, she was able to get closer with the rest of the basement gang, so it wasn’t a total loss. Fez loved her, Eric and Steven tolerated her, and Donna... Donna was her best friend, and she was a much better friend than anyone on the cheer team, that was damn sure. Hell, even the Formans were wonderful to be around! They were great company, better than her high school social circle and her perpetually absent parents, but that didn’t mean she didn’t miss her man.

Well, then, it was decided. Jackie would be spending the day at the Formans. 

It was a normal day, just as bright and warm as the other summer days, but something was off. Come to think of it, something had been off since the night before when she’d woken up abruptly. She’d been feeling... powerful, she decided, but in the most subtle way possible. She felt an understated strength and damn it, try as she might, she just couldn’t explain it. It didn’t help that she nearly snapped her eyeliner pencil in two just by grabbing it, nor that she seemed to anticipate a car running a stop sign before it even approached the crossing.

You’re just overthinking it, she said to herself as walked over to the Forman residence, though she swore she never used to walk this fast before. Nothing’s wrong, nothing’s different, it’s all in your head.

She said it to herself enough that she believed it. And then she nearly tore the basement door right off its hinges. 

Oops.

Luckily, the only person in the basement was Steven, and he barely paid attention to her on a regular day. But what about today had been regular so far? She saw his eyes widen behind his glasses as she closed the basement door, ten times gentler now after the slam she opened it with. Jackie could practically see the gears turning in his head, and she braced herself for the insults and name-calling to begin. She could hear it already: Jackie Burkhart, cheerleader freak. 

Thankfully, what he actually said was nothing of the sort. “Look, whatever Kelso did, don’t take it out on the damn door, okay?” 

“The door’s just falling apart,” she said, trying to hide her relief, “it wasn’t my fault, and besides, nothing happened to it. It probably just blew open with the wind. Mr. Forman should really fix that door sometime soon.” 

Hyde opened his mouth to respond, but blessedly, he was interrupted by the presence of Michael Kelso himself. 

Perfect, a worthy target of her frustration. “Michael, where have you been lately? I feel like you’re not around a lot nowadays.” 

Michael stammered, looking between Steven and Donna and Eric, who had just come down the stairs from the kitchen. “I’ve been walking the dog. Yeah, yeah, that dog is crazy, Jackie, he needs to pee all the time.” 

“Michael,” she huffed, eyes narrowing, “you don’t have a dog.” 

Lies. He’s lying to you. 

“Yeah, Jackie, I don’t, but, but I gotta walk it anyway because... because I got a job! Yeah, my dad won’t give me any more money for our dates and stuff, so I’m walking dogs now. Yup.”

And really, Jackie shouldn’t have let it slide that she was suspicious, but the implication that he was doing it for her was just too sweet. He was doing what her dad did, trying to provide for her, even if he disappeared from her life in the process. She couldn’t fault him for that, could she? Besides, she’d look like a total bitch if she confronted him after that.

Sure, she’d appreciate some attention sometimes, too, but... wait, was that something she wanted from Michael, or her dad?

“Well,” she sighed, smiling as she plopped onto his lap, “how about we use that date money now?” 

The others in the room were watching with amusement, and their snickering as Michael stammered through some question or another did not go unnoticed by Jackie. They’re just laughing because Michael’s an idiot. That’s all. They’re not laughing at you.

This belief was cemented by the fact that Donna threw a newspaper at him, trying to hide her laughter. “Go ahead, Kelso, plan a date for Jackie.” 

He still looked lost, so Jackie threw him a bone. “Michael, I want to go to the movies today.” 

Eyes brightening, he looked for the movie timings in the paper. 

Throughout the ensuing discussion about Smokey and the Bandit and girl movies, Jackie couldn’t fully move away from the fact that Michael was definitely lying to her. He didn’t have the scent of dog anywhere on him, unlike Mr. Wilkerson when she walked by his yard on the way here. The Wilkerson dog was sickly and not too active, but Jackie could still smell it clear as day on Mr. Wilkerson, and the closest she’d gotten to him was walking past him as he sat on his porch. So there had been no dog-walking or Jackie would’ve smelled it, like how she could smell Donna’s dollar store shampoo and the detergent Mrs. Forman used on Eric’s clothes. 

When had she gotten so good at picking out scents? 

The movie was a great distraction, totally uncomplicated. The Goodbye Girl was great aside from its direct parallels to Jackie’s life, but she could overlook that for Richard Dreyfuss’s insane Richard III performance. She was still giggling at the absurdity of it when Fez reached over and kissed her, with tongue.

Well, so much for uncomplicated.

It didn’t help that Michael punched Fez in the face, which meant they were all sent home. The kiss was great, maybe the best Jackie had ever had, but even that couldn’t distract from the pure fury in Jackie’s heart when she realized what exactly had happened, once she finally had the chance to reflect on it in private. 

Who gave him the right to touch me? 

She suddenly longed to rip Fez limb from limb, to tear his tongue out with her bare hands. A part of her suspected that she actually could do so, too, if she chose. She had that power now. 

That power. 

Where had it come from? Why did it manifest in her? Of course Jackie Burkhart was special, she’d be the first to tell you that, but she didn’t want to be a freak. Her mismatched eyes already made her one; because of them, she’d endured taunts of “freak” and “mutant” for the bulk of her childhood, half of them coming from her own mother. Jackie hated her eyes, and she was quickly growing to hate her newfound abilities in a similar fashion. They didn’t make her special, they made her a freak. And she refused to let anyone call her a freak any longer. 

Not only that, but powers like these were dangerous. Jackie may not have been a comic book dweeb like Eric or a conspiracy nut like Steven but even she knew that people with abilities like hers were at risk of being locked up and experimented on. 

Jackie didn’t want to be locked up! How would she be head cheerleader by her senior year if she was stuck in a secret government facility, being dissected? 

No, she couldn’t let that happen. So Jackie did what any intelligent, rational teenage girl would do: she scribbled about it in her super-secret diary (as opposed to the regular diary she knew her parents and Michael tried to snoop in) and resolved to hide her powers from the public forever, or for however long they lasted. No superhero business for her, no sirree! 

Besides, this was Point Place. Even if she wanted to use her powers for good, when would she get an opportunity to do that around here?

--

Across town, a couple stumbled into an alley next to a bar. The blond man pushed the woman into the brick wall of the bar, relishing in the delighted groan that ripped from her throat. 

“Randy,” she mewled, half-laughing, “yeah, baby, just like that, just—”

The next thing to rip from her throat was her blood, and he happily guzzled it, letting her collapse against the wall once she was drained. 

Randy gazed down at her, sated. It would’ve been smarter to turn her, but he was hungry, and who wanted to change the world on an empty stomach? No matter, he’d turn the next one, maybe one of the other barflies in the pub he’d just walked out of. This town seemed better than any to enact his plan, after all. Yeah, he grinned to himself, wiping his mouth on the back of his hand, Point Place’ll be just fine.

[itwasanangryinch]

Diversity win! The demon that orchestrated the kidnapping of your son, the betrayal of one of your closest friends, and the suspended animation of an enemy who should have died hundred of years ago uses they/he pronouns.

[clarkgriffon]

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER 6x22 | “Grave” 

[ptieuca]

buffy & angel + post season three/ats

[dogboy-danielcain]

dogboy-danielcain edit event !!

hiiii i'm joy and sometimes i make edits if you like my stuff and/or are part of any fandoms i'm in, you can donate to any (or multiple if you're able 👀) of the GFMs on my list of Palestinian campaigns and i'll make an amv/edit for you!!

✨and hey if you've read this far please please PLEASE consider giving to one of the listed campaigns even if you don't want to participate in the giveaway !! every little bit counts !!! ✨

your request can be as specific or as general as you want (for example if you have a specific character and a specific song lyric in mind you can definitely request that), i'm fine doing edits for whole movies/characters/pairings/etc! i reserve the right to turn down or ask to change any suggestions if i'm uncomfortable with them, but in general you can request literally anything including, but not limited to, the things tagged on this post! just donate to one of the campaigns listed, dm me with a screenshot of proof, and we can discuss your edit request! ❄️ i'll be open to requests till jan 15th ❄️

[5bi5]

Kendra with a sword

[unnamedmedicalprofessional]

There's been a backlash to ''quippy'' media in recent years, but it works so well if you do it right. first of all, it can make scenes that would otherwise be necessary but boring exposition or setup fun to watch. more importantly, having large amounts of humour in a story that also has drama endears you to the characters so that the more dramatic moments hit harder. people say it undermines the drama, but if you do it properly it enhances it.

[okiankeno]

her canine teeth in the side of my neck

[vargamornight]

buffy leads because she is the only one she believes capable of it. willow follows because she wants the privileges of being beside the leader (aka doing whatever she wants, whenever she wants, and never facing any consequences because buffy loves her and buffy's the one in charge of consequences) without any of the responsibility of leadership (aka consequences)

willow has proven that when she is powerful enough that she doesn't need to fear consequences, she does not hold back. not one bit. she will do whatever she wants, kill whoever she wants as horrifically as she wants, and the only thing that EVER stops her is the worry that buffy won’t like her anymore, because if buffy doesn't like her anymore, then she won’t be able to get away with all of her usual bullshit.

[periru3]

Better to Have Loved and Lost (Vidshow)

A vidshow for all the loves that were never meant to last (and maybe a few that shouldn't have even started to begin with). Made for VidUKon 2024.

Bad Blood (Never Ever), a Multi-Fandom fanvid by Fiercynn & Scribe We are never, ever, ever getting back together (like, ever).

Hate Me, an Interview with the Vampire fanvid by Killabeez I hate me for loving you.

Bottom of the River, a Due South fanvid by Scribe Hold my hand, ooh baby, it's a long way down to the bottom of the river.

Rolling in the Deep, an X-Men fanvid by Arefadedaway I can't help thinking, we could've had it all.

(I'm Not Calling You a) Liar, a Steven Universe fanvid by Butterfly I love you so much I'm gonna let you kill me.

The Lost Sky, a Xena: Warrior Princess fanvid by Ohvienna Why would you say those words to me if you could not follow through?

This Is Everything, a Star Trek fanvid by Morrigan291 No, I'm not aware of how I could possibly love you without aching.

When We're Dancing, an 11.22.63 fanvid by Periru3 Let's pretend this song won't end, and we never have to go home.

La Noyée, a Portrait of a Lady on Fire fanvid by Tafadhali Running along the shore, I call to you to come back.

Personal Jesus, a Fleabag fanvid by Findmeinthealps & Teyla Someone to hear your prayers, someone who cares.

No Children, a Community fanvid by Xandra You are coming down with me, hand in unlovable hand.

Lucky Me, a Buffy the Vampire Slayer fanvid by Milly And you're sad, and you're sorry. Let it all out. What are you waiting for?

Till the World Ends, a Titanic fanvid by Rhoboat If you feel it, let it happen, keep on dancing til the world ends.

Thank U, Next, a Crazy Ex-Girlfriend fanvid by Ultraviolet Catastrophe I'm so fucking grateful for my ex.

Would've Been You, a Multi-Fandom fanvid by BeatriceEagle You know the greatest loves of all time are over now.

A whole bunch of bonus vids - cut for time, or for duplicate songs, vidders, or fandoms:

Dante's Prayer, a Titanic fanvid by Thevetia & Morgandawn

Destroying Angels, a Yellowjackets fanvid by Tafadhali

Everything Stops, a Star Trek fanvid by BeatriceEagle

Exile, a Xena: Warrior Princess/Multi-Fandom fanvid by Ultraviolet Catastrophe

Let Me Live, a Multi-Fandom fanvid by BeatriceEagle

Mowgli's Road, a Brideshead Revisited fanvid by Obsessive24

Some Fantastic, a Buffy the Vampire Slayer fanvid by Laura Shapiro

Something Just Like This, a Game of Thrones fanvid by Sisabet

The World You Thought You Lived In, a Multi-Fandom fanvid by BeatriceEagle

This Is Everything, a Torchwood/Doctor Who fanvid by 24SE

Where Did You Sleep Last Night, a Yellowjackets fanvid by Ohvienna

Writing Notes, a Buffy the Vampire Slayer fanvid by Here's Luck

[tenderjock]

BUFFY BROKE UP THE COVEN (but make it gay) ->

in which DARLA is the vampire cursed with a soul who falls in love with the slayer; and DRUSILLA is the monster who remakes herself in order to earn a chance at buffy summers' love.

insp | insp

[amongaesthetics]

So, spooky season means spooky show rewatching, and thoughts about said spooky shows.

I need someone to agree with me that The Vampire Diaries took their archetypes from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Like, nobody can convince me that Stefan is not supposed to be Angel (when normal he’s the height of morality, but secretly has a darker side that gets out of control and dangerous). And that Damon is not supposed to be Spike (wild, does what he wants when he wants, but falls in love deep and hard because behind the murder and mayhem, he’s a romantic at his core).

I also love that someone looked at Angel and Spike and said “ah, torture and falling in love with the same girl, that’s sibling behavior” which I am HERE for.

Other thoughts on TVD:

- all the past doppelgängers of Elena and Stefan are doomed to fall in love and then die miserably, so really we should be thanking Damon for being a meddling girlfriend stealer since without him everybody else would literally die in season 2/3 (he was the problem in season 1)

- Stefan loved Elena, but I think he was more happy that Damon would fight him for her than he was upset about it. The whole series Stefan loved Damon, and for a good while he wanted to find humanity in Damon and ground him in that. Damon loving Elena proved that humanity to Stefan, which is why Stefan only really got upset when he lost Elena.

- Spike is still better than Damon, but I find Stefan a more fully fleshed out character than Angel (at least in the Buffy series) since in Buffy Angel was literally “I’m tortured and love you and have your back but I’m a vampire and I hate that and I used to be suu-ccchh a bad person but don’t look at other guys” and it felt like he was almost too tall dark and mysterious most of the time. Stefan at least we follow and hear the monologue and thoughts and hopes of.

- ALSO Angel/Stefan are the reason Spike/Damon even are vampires? And Angel/Stefan want their soul/humanity back because of how bad they are as a vampire and miss being human or good, but Spike/Damon get their soul/humanity back because they’re in love with a girl and want to be that for her (which, yeah, motivated by love, checks out).

- Spike/Damon start off as a spunky villain that make legit threats but bond with the main girl the most when trying to stop Angel/Stefan. Like, I can’t make this up and there’s so much overlap.

[nicollekidman]

literally three paragraphs into the new @vertigo-vertere fic and i’m like IS EVERYONE SEEING THIS….. go read

[hannibalhasthetardisat221b]

Oh my gosh. Okay. This is what I stumbled upon when I was searching through the Internet.. John Constantine and Ruper Giles meeting eachother. This is such an interesting idea for a crossover. I NEED TO SEE THIS HAPPEN!

Y'all have no idea how much I thought about this interaction. How many eye rolls and sarcastic/snarky comments we would get from Giles as well as how many times Giles would take off his glasses in frustration (i bet it would be around 10 times in one day), and how many times Constantine would be sassy towards Giles and try to flirt with him (at least in the beginning of their meeting), and then it will all go down to them bickering about the use of dark magic, demons etc. British sassiness would intensify, sarcastic comments flying left and right, at the end Sunnydale will be destroyed by British snark 😆 (someone said that they might also hookup, so.. um... 👀) lol

But in all seriousness, I think Giles wouldn't trust Constantine in the beginning, maybe even would go as far as hating him, but perhaps with time he will change his mind about Constantine. Plus it also all depends on when they meet, like Giles from season 1 to 4 would definitely be sus about Constantine and probably will have disdain towards him (perhaps because Constantine would remind him of his younger self, of his Ripper days..). For Constantine it would be similar, he would find that Giles too proper, too by the books guy. So, yeah, they will definitely hate eachother. (I bet Constantine would still continue to "flirt" with Giles from time to time, though, at that point he would probably do it to just to annoy him..) Honestly, their arguments will be a pure delight to read about, but also seeing them teaming up would be so much fun. I can already imagine Constantine's reaction upon learning about Giles' past. My head is flooded with so many different ideas but I'm not a writer, or at least not a very good one :(

Someone please write this 🙏🏻 and if there is such a fic exists then can someone please send me the link to it.

Thank you for reading my small rant on this and have a good day 😅

p.s. I apologise for my english, it's not my first language. (sometimes being multilingual is a nightmare when I try to express my thoughts 😅)

[oldfangirl81]

I'm going from around when they became a popular fanon ship, not the year it became canon if it happened.

[invisible-pink-toast]

watching tv together is a love language