#but they all adore neil so they kind of just go with it..let it play out

[queer-reader-07]

a love letter to trans romance

because i can't be normal about media and i'm making it y'all's problems

hi hello and welcome to my mildly unhinged ramblings about love and gender. this post comes to you in three sections, enjoy <3

--

t4t romance novels made me believe in love again

the first romance book i ever read was The Feeling of Falling in Love by Mason Deaver. TFOFIL is a t4t (trans for trans) romance that follows a teenage trans boy, Neil Kearney, and a figuring-out-their-gender teen, Wyatt Fowler, as they get themselves wrapped up in peak YA romcom shenaniganary and eventually fall in love. cute, right? just a fun little romcom, not much more to it?

yeah well that's what i thought going in, but coming out of that book i was in tears. tears because i'd never read a story about trans love before. tears because at that point in my life i'd never allowed myself to fully claim the word "trans." tears because Wyatt made me feel so seen and so real.

there's this one scene where Wyatt is talking to Neil and they describe themself as being the kind of person who sometimes wants to wear makeup and dresses, but other times they like their body hair and scruffy beard. and i just remember nodding along and then absolutely melting because Neil takes it in stride, he comforts Wyatt and let's them know that they don't need to have it figured out just yet. Neil makes it clear that he's there, and that Wyatt doesn't need to come out to anyone unless they're ready.

Mason Deaver has another t4t romance, Okay, Cupid. and that similarly had me in my feels because there is something so special about finding people who embrace you for all that you are.

every t4t romance I've read has one thing in common, the fact that the love interests do not love each despite the other's transness. their transness is not an obstacle to love or to attraction or to adoration, it is an object of it. their transness is something to be admired and to be loved and to be cared for. it is not something the other has to "get over."

reading The Feeling of Falling in Love was the first time i ever thought to myself "maybe, just maybe, i can call myself trans and still be loved." because up until that point i hadn't let myself accept that i was some flavor of trans. up until that point i'd said "not cis" without ever saying trans because i was so scared my being trans would make me unlovable. t4t romance books showed me how wrong i was. they showed me that my ability to be loved was not dependent on my girlhood.

ha you thought i could write something this long on tumblr and NOT mention good omens? think again bestie

i have held a trans reading of crowley since i read the book and the show only solidified it for me. crowley canonically plays with gender.

he's dressed femme during the crucifixion scene, his modern look is a mix of men's and women's pieces, his hair is a Whole Thing in and of itself. i could go on but i digress.

but it's not just the way he plays with gender that informs my trans reading of him. it's also how his character arc can very easily be read as an allegory for transness.

an angel who falls (a girl who isn't a girl anymore)

a fallen angel turned demon (a girl who is a boy now)

a demon who isn't really a demon anymore (a used to be girl, a thought to be boy, is now nonbinary)

girl = angel and boy = demon is entirely arbitrary in this please don't read into it

now, you may be thinking "A how in god's name does this apply to trans romance?" to which i say, aziraphale falls in love with every version of crowley. aziraphale beams heart eyes at angel!crowley before the beginning and loves crowley as a demon for millennia and is so deeply and unabashedly in love with crowley in his not-quite-demon form of s2.

aziraphale loves all the versions of crowley because crowley's angel or demon-ness (gender) is not the reason aziraphale loves crowley. aziraphale doesn't love crowley because he's a demon or because he used to be an angel, aziraphale loves crowley because it's crowley. crowley in whatever clothes he chooses to where, crowley with whatever hairstyle he's fancying at the moment, crowley as he inhabits the shades of grey just a little more.

to me, that is so easy to read as a trans love story. you could argue it's t4t depending on how you read aziraphale, but to me, it's at the very least a love story between a mostly-demon who gets down to some gender fuckery and an angel who loves him very much.

fuck it let's talk about fanfiction

i don't think i could make this post without mentioning @ineffabildaddy's fic I'm Beginning to See the Light.

i have a complicated relationship with my body. i don't plan to ever medically transition because i don't want to make any permanent changes to my body. but there are days where all i want is to have a flat chest and hips that are flush with the rest of my body but instead i'm stuck with tits and an hourglass figure cis people always seem to focus on.

i don't hate my body, but the idea that anyone could look at it and not just see A Woman is beyond me. i walk through life being perceived as a very feminine woman even on the days that i feel the most androgynous. the idea that a lover could look at my body and still see me for who i am feels like a dream that could never happen.

and IBTSTL slapped me (lovingly) across the face with the message that, actually, i can be loved as my whole self and that there are people out there who don't look at me and see A Woman and those people don't love me any less. IBTSTL made me feel safe in my trans body because it said "you are worthy of love and adoration because your transness is not something to get past it is something to admire. it is something to love."

--

i think the point i'm trying to make here is this: trans love stories are so special to me. they've been so vital in my own journey to love and accept myself. they're the reason i can imagine myself maybe having romantic love in the future.

representation matters, it can quite literally change your life.

[onceuponapuffin]

My Good Omens Season 3 Predictions

Based on the Amazon Playlist and Established Patterns in S1 and S2

I’ve been listening to the songs on the official playlist that Amazon released in December, and I’ve been thinking about it non-stop. It’s been long enough, and now I feel like I have a solid enough footing to have ideas about season 3 based on the information given to us by the playlist (especially the songs Neil provided). Keep in mind that this is my speculation only. I may be entirely wrong, this post may age poorly, but I am okay with that. At the end of the day, I know for absolute fact that I will be THRILLED with whatever season 3 actually brings (But please – for my sanity – let there be a happy ending for Crowley and Aziraphale).

First of all, we know the season was outlined back in 2005, and I would assume (for the sake of this post if nothing else) that by the time the s3 announcement came, Prime had the general outline. And so, in the spirit of how this show does things, the playlist is full of Clues.

GIF by fuckyeahgoodomens

I’ll put the songs in parenthesis as I go.

Between “Before the Beginning” and “In the Beginning,” i.e. Flashback 1:

We’re going to start the season with Crowley’s Fall (Midnight Rain). Neil has said that he’s not going to ever tell us Starmaker’s name, so I’m not expecting that. But we know that each season starts with a prologue, and we also know that these flashback mirror the current events. Crowley’s Fall makes a lot of sense to start with because it is the first thing that pulls him and Aziraphale apart. And where are we starting from in present day? The Divorce.

How Are Crowley and Aziraphale Doing?

Bad (I’m a Mess). Crowley presents fine to the world, but we, who know him, can see he is struggling. I don’t know if he’ll actually go to therapy, but I would adore it if we got a glimpse of Crowley trying it and being like “NOPE” when it got too hard. He keeps expecting Aziraphale to walk around every corner, and keeps replaying the divorce in his mind (Just My Imagination).

Aziraphale isn’t doing well either. The Kiss, and by extension his last conversation with Crowley plays on his mind all the time (Could’ve Been).

Very soon after the playlist was released, one of my Good Omens friends on Discord (I forget who it was, I am so sorry), suggested that maybe Aziraphale is communicating with Crowley through his dreams. Honestly, I am so on board with this. With the number of songs that mention dreams and daydreams in this playlist, there is no way that Crowley’s dreams and/or imagination won’t play some kind of role in this season (In Dreams, Just My Imagination).

Minisodes

The Titanic

I think the most interesting thing is that we’re going to have at least one minisode about them alone through time. It’s something that we haven’t seen before, and it parallels their current journey.

That being said, I think one of these will be the Titanic (My Heart Will Go On). Here’s how I see it happening:

Crowley is the one on the ship. He’s not there to sink it, he’s just there to enjoy himself. Maybe he plays around with the kids a bit, maybe he makes friends. Point is, the humans have built this supposedly-unsinkable ship of dreams and he just has to see it. He’s there when it sinks. Maybe he even tries to save people or get the other ships to come faster, but he can’t save everyone.

Heartbroken, he returns home to his dark flat. He doesn’t turn on any lights. There are two envelopes waiting for him. He sits at the table to read them in the dark. The first is a commendation from Hell:

“Great job sinking the Titanic! Downstairs are Very Impressed with your work, as always!” He scoffs and tosses it aside. The second one is from Aziraphale.

Oh great, he thinks, Just what I need, a little ‘oh how dare you drown all those people you evil demon you.’ when I’m already feeling like shit. He opens it anyway. The first lines read:

“My Dear Crowley,

I heard that you were aboard the Titanic when it sank. Are you alright?”

Crowley breaks down and cries. ~End Scene~

1941

The playlist has Heart and Soul on it, but not a recent version – it’s specifically one that was recorded in 1939. So we’re almost definitely getting 1941 Part 3.

GIF by mimisempai

We’re going to find out what happened to cause their huge shift in dynamics from Date Night to 1967, and I think it’s a kiss. Maybe a kiss on the cheek? I’m not entirely sure. I do hope they get to slow dance to A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square though.

The Reunion

My friends, it will not go well. This is one of the songs that Neil chose – Cry Me a River. It just reeks of Aziraphale coming back and Crowley being (understandably, and rightly) being bitter towards him. Aziraphale will, eventually, I’m sure, get back in his good books, but he’s gonna need more than an I Was Wrong Dance to do it.

(Actually?) Saving the World

Okay so being perfectly honest, the only reason either of them are the lead characters in this series is because they’re so freaking loveable. They are very bad at their jobs. Anathema, Newt, and Adam saved the world in S1, and although the Husbands gave Adam a little pep-talk, I think he’s smart enough that he could have managed it on his own if he had to.

So, this time they actually need to save the world and have an actual plan. This is where I think a second body swap will happen – hear me out! First of all, remember that no one aside from Gabriel (who is Someone Knows Where), none of the angels or demons have figured out their trick from the first time. So I don’t think it is the plan, but I do think it will be part of the plan. Where am I pulling this idea from? The Show Must Go On, another one of Neil’s choices. It sounds like it’s from Aziraphale’s perspective, but Queen songs are usually associated with Crowley. Seems odd, right? Maybe because it is. Maybe because they swap.

The Book of Life

I think we’re going to see The Book of Life, and I think it’s going to basically be The Book of Love. I think this is where we’re going to get the Main Thesis. The Answer to Life, the Universe, and Everything, if you will. Love. It’s supposed to be Love.

The Book of Love – another of Neil’s choices.

Epilogue

I predict they get their South Downs cottage (Neil said “not yet,” which implies it’s coming). And there’s also a wedding, though I’m not sure whose it will be (The Book of Love). I REALLY hope that it’s Crowley and Aziraphale, because they deserve that kind of happy ending, and Neil is too much of an Ally not to realize how important it is that they get to Live Happily Ever After.

One Last Thought

I still have no idea what to make of I’d Rather Go Blind. That’s it. That’s the last thought I wanted to share that doesn’t really fit in anywhere else.

Thanks for going on this journey with me. Let’s make our Bingo cards and see if I managed to get anything right in 3-4 years.

[thescentofrainonstone]

It's the voice. It's what He says YOU and only YOU directly into your ears.

Or "fanfics, audios and self esteem building"

Let me explain.

There's an addendum to be had on the matter of where we go for escapism, when it's stories or fanfics that then become books if that experience of disappointment in current life, frustration and longing is shared enough (like in the case of twilight and fifth shades).

I seem the only one vocally noticing when one writes a self insert is because of their need ultimately to feel special, chosen by the character for whatever reason is desirable to them (usually tall, dark, handsome, immortal or thereabout and wealthy but not ostentatiously because money exists as preventative from problems).

But what hit me recently, and admitedly late, relates to audio. And the baldur's gate 3 people who fell hook line and sinker for Astarion might probably back me up on this because from what I understand, as someone who hasn't played and doesn't even know the game but got still hit by the way the pale elf got into the zeitgeist (at least of nerdy people whl play d&d old fashionably around a table monthly) is that most of the heavy lifting and heart throbbing is due to the work of Astarion's voice actor Neil Newbon.

Now, audio is a peculiar thing, go check out GoneWildAudio on Reddit and see for yourself the quite literal mind🦆it can be to have someone, speaking in your ear, addressing YOU and then go convince your brain that is *not* an actual human referring, adoring, and talking to YOU.

First: audio recordings have been around a little over 150 years. So in a way you'd think we haven't evolved to understand the difference between a recording and someone there who really whispers in your own ear.

But then again, film shocked the first time they saw the locomotive but nowadays no one would dream what's in their TV is actually part of their surroundings. And to that I argue: audio has no frame. Nothing physically breaks the illusion like the screen and its separation from your actual surroundings.

Audio doesn't have that. Put on headphones, close your eyes and with a good quality equipment (or binaural) it's freaky what audio can give the impression to your brain that's going on.

Now personal vulnerability moment: years ago I went into a rabbit hole that led me to the work of a certain GWA Voice Artist. I was writing a paper and supposedly "researching and studying" like a good observer of the human condition when I suddenly found myself nothing short of addicted to sound in the form of their very unique specific voice. to the point I took it upon myself to try and understand what kind of ton of bricks hit a performer when they share something seemingly personal and vulnerable... Via audio. Which as said above, doesn't have a defined frame that separates it from how our brains differentiate everything else that affects any of our other senses in reality. Let's just say that I realised the experience of someone whose voice presented male is vastly different from someone like me whose voice was coded femme. And that's because cishet men don't know how to respectfully interact with the subject of their porn. At least that's what I saw in my brief but intense experience as a virtual sex worker, basically.

But beside the point: voice and sound create such a good illusion because of how many more human facets come through with timbre, every breath intake, every exhale, all those imperfection that communicate "human".

Now here's where it gets tricky: there is an agreement on the swoon-worthiness of words spoken to YOU about YOU in Your ear. How "unique, amazing, exceptional, beyond whatever he dared to imagine You are, how You affect his entire world and way to see at every human after you who doesn't hold a candle to your being". Which reflects in the popularity of audio and I suspect justifies the success of Astarion beyond the video game world like, to my knowledge, no character had breached before.

But.

What struck me is one specific effect Audio has on people, and I mean beyond the physical effect of the rightfully horniness. I refer to:

self-confidence.

Please consider this an invitation to confirm or deny, but after spending days, listening to a voice telling you how amazing, and special, and sexy you are, how crazy you drive him/her/them and how they only have eyes for you, don't you start to walk a little bit taller? Head a little bit higher? Hips a little bit swayer?

And this is to say: I don't think most people have the ability to do that for themselves, to write themselves into self inserts and yet being able to praise themselves like they clearly yearn to. And audio then becomes I guess like you're masturbating with someone else's hand voice?

Btw: again kudos to fanfic writers in the Astarion realm because at least they are a step ahead the last fandom I checked and if not praising their self insert enough (ever for me, but maybe I'm just a praise slut) they definitely spend more time in the pale elf's head than I ever witnessed in the last twenty or so years I've read (and occasionally written but I will forever deny under torture) Fanfiction

In this air, if you are looking to disconnect from reality with amazing heartfelt smut go check our @again-please and @fangswbenefits ❤️❤️❤️

[imeanwhynotbruv]

Stranger things/Black phone crossover Au

(Call me family)

Ok so I absolutely adore stranger things / the black phone crossover au fics. Like I actually can’t get over it or stop reading them, I can’t seem to find all that much on it but when I do I absolutely love itttttt!. Like it’s to the point I can’t get certain HCs out of my head so here we are!

So I think one of my fav plots (I’ve found like one) is of Vance & Billy being related and I can’t get enough! Or Vance being related to Hopper (especially as his son but that doesn’t work for this so Uncle Hop!).

Also I love the idea of them having cute nicknames! Eg

Billy for Vance : Pinhead, kiddo, little guy, terror

Vance for Billy: Billy Bee, bubba

Ok so hear me out. Vance and Billy are half brothers, Billy’s mum left when he was like two years old (bc that’s more convenient 👀) because Neil is an abusive ass who is also very unfaithful.

So like maybe a month later Neil gets with Layla Hopper (Jim Hoppers estranged little sister) who he was on again off again with, she gets pregnant and voila! You have Vance Hargrove!

While little Billy is sad that is mum is gone he’s happy to have a new baby brother (he’s not an ass yet that’s later)

it just so happens little Vance is absolutely obsessed with his big brother. Like he looks at him like he framed the sky just for him and he follows him around like a baby duck.🐥. Even the kids Billy hangs out with just accept that his Lil bro is probs coming too.

At this point Billy takes his big brother roles very seriously. He’s practilly the one raising Vance bc Neil sure as hell isn’t gonna do it, Layla is young, like grossly young for Neil but still legal, and she doesn’t know what she’s doing and while she’s not that bad she’s not the best and kinda just leaves the kids to it.

So it’s Billy doing all the things Like:

• When Neil is being a dick Billy will keep is lil bro distracted so he doesn’t piss Neil off

•if Neil is getting violent Billy will intensionally set him off if he’s worried he might go after Vance

•if his lil bro is having a nightmare he will put him back to bed and keep him company, with promises to watch incase the monster comes out from under then bed.

• he’ll walk Vance to the beach after he finishes School

• he’ll take him to get Icecream /make his meals

•teaches him how to properly insult people and how to make comebacks(just general life things)

Unlike what Billy’s like with Max, he absolutely insists that Vance is his little brother not half brother.like he’ll fight you to prove it cuz he totally would.

Also I can totally see Billy being the one who first takes Vance to an arcade and shows him pinball. Little Vance is absolutely fascinated and it Billy who teaches him how to play the game. They always compete against each other at the arcade, and Billy’s not the kind to just let you win (most of the time) so Vance spends ages practicing so he can win.

Then on the day Vance genuinely beats Billy, he gets a high five and an “about time Pinhead” and from that day in he is affectionately insulted with being called Pinhead and he wears it like a crown!

But no one else can call him Pinhead (cuz Billy won’t allow any disrespect (plus that’s his thing)) so people start calling him Pinball Vance!

Eventually Layla has enough of Neil’s abusive controlling ass and decides to leave him (good for her but my poor babies) and takes Vance who is like 8y/o at that point.

Lil Vance doesn’t want to leave his big brother, lil Billy is sad but he know Vance is probs better off (that doesn’t mean he wants him to go)

So the brothers part ways and promise to call each other all the time but sadly that’s impossible as Neil changes their number out of spite and Billy doesn’t really know where they ended up.

So Layla changes Vances name and he becomes Vance Hopper as a kind of middle finger to Neil.

She marries a guy called George Howle two years later when Vance is 10, this guy is basically Neil again but super manipulative and Layla is too tired to run away this time.

Neil married Susan a year later (he blames Layla leaving on never being married to her)and she moved in like immediately with Max who was 8 (she’s a Year younger than Vance and three years younger than Billy bc I say so)

Neil forbids billy from ever talking about Vance or Layla so Max knows next to nothing about him, barely knows he exists.

Billy is resentful because he feels like Max is trying to replace Vance (which is kinda what Neil is doing) but she’s not she just knows that Billy doesn’t like her so she decides she doesn’t like him. Neil continues to be an abusive asshole.

Billy becomes an ass because he’s a kid with anger issues, no outlet, and abusive dad, a stepmom who willingly looks away when things get bad, an annoying redhead who gets him into trouble and is constantly missing his little brother.

Vance becomes an ass and constantly picks fights due to the neglect of his mother, abuse of his stepfather, anger issues, missing his brother and at this point is practically a learned behaviour.

Ok side note, the grabber has already killed Billy and Griffin (sorry babies 😭)

The grabber kidnapped Vance (when he was 13 bc I need that age), the grabber has to keep Vance drugged bc he’s still pretty big and won’t stop throwing punches. The grabber gets cocky at not being found and Kidnaps Bruce, Robin & Finney (they’re not really in this but that could change depending). Does some of his awful shit to them, especially Vance, because he thinks he’s pretty and the grabber is creepy af.

The Bboys get their chance and kill the grabber escaping, Bruce has to literally carry Vance, Robins arm is broken, they’re all messed up and end up in hospital. Most end up in comas (for plot convienece)

When Layla was going to visit the hospital, she was speeding bc she realised how terrified she was for her son and desperately wants to see him, she gets into a car crash and dies before she ever reaches him.

George refuses to take Vance in because he’s a delinquent and is now traumatised so after they can finally track down Jim hopper (bc Layla had put him in her will as who would be Vances guardian and just never changed that) by the time Vance moved to Hawkins season 2 is ending and Season 3 is starting.

So like he vaguely remembers Jim but not enough to want to go live with him in the middle of butt fuck nowhere.

•••

This might just be referenced and not actually done bc like, it’s just the show mainly.

The Hargrove/Mayfield family move to Hawkins in 1984 (billy16,Max13, because plot and I say so) (season 2)

On the night when Billy is supposed to attack Steve, he gets attacked by a demo dog (not badly just enough to see it at maybe get a bit hurt) outside outside the Byers house. The kids come out and see Billy basically winning against this monster through the sheer will of not wanting to die.

Steve helps him kill it with the bat, Billy gets given all the details and after a minor breakdown and trying to not believe it finally goes along. (Part of him still hoping it’s just a dream). Eventually he joins the party when they go to the tunnels because someone needs to drive and apparently that’s Billy.

Demon dogs get torched. Basically the same ending just + Billy.

•••

End of season 2/ beginning of season three

Vance gets to Hawkins and the fun can begin

(This is getting long so imma stop)

(If you want my other stuff for this au is under the tag= Call me family au)

[queers-gambit]

Not a request obviously because they're closed so don't worry 🤍 These are just questions I have had since I started reading your fics and that I have wanted to ask you but feared it would sound too futile. If you don't want to answer them please feel free to ignore this ❤️

What is or what are the Billy Hargrove fic(s) that you wrote and that you love the most and why ? ❤️

What is a thought/headcanon/idea/storyline about him (either with reader or him on his own) that you haven't seen being explored enough in the fandom and that you would love to read ? ❤️

What's your favourite part/aspect of writing him in your fics ? (Examples : The emotional turmoil ? Him recovering some lost childhood innoence ? Describing him being turned on ? Describing his secret feelings for reader ? etc ) ❤️

I'm genuinely curious to know. 🤍

Stay safe ❤️❤️❤️

why would it be futile? i love answering messages! you are always welcome here - no matter the subject or content matter or reason. hear me? always. welcome.

lets get into it -

favorite fic and why?

my favorite Billy fic might be Bobby Flay or Billy Flayed because i'm a sucker for the loyalty plot. you know, the "i can tell something's wrong because you're acting weird and i know you too well" trope.

i was young when my eldest brother was in high school and had this girlfriend that i adored. so i took from that experience / memory to try to skim over the detail that Max is close with Reader / Billy's girl - or at the very least, trusts her enough to seek help. Max is almost coveted in the sense that Reader understands their relationship is fractured, so, she tries to help push them towards reconciliation from the sidelines. Reader is this pillar to Max and i really like that - when younger siblings actually like the significant other. it's a different kind of relationship. younger siblings are like bloodhounds and if something isn't right, they'll fuck you up - so i like the idea that to get the Muse, you have to "unlock" the younger sibling's trust first.

siblings are just cool, my mother always says they're built-in best friends for life. i have two, and while i don't have the best experiences with them, it's fun to write. in a way, it feels cathartic - like i'm healing my own past with writing. i can write the older sibling i deserved when i was a kid. i can write about love and loyalty as i think it should be - not what i've been shown.

what do i want to see more of?

maybe i'll even say that's what i want "explored" more of. when reading, i teeter between wanting something that establishes Max and Billy trying to heal their relationship, and not even mentioning her at all. however, i do like those small tidbits where Max is just a fleeting presence, felt but not seen, like a ghost; it alludes that she and Billy are on better terms. i'm even a sucker for Billy going to Max for advice 'cause she's a girl and he doesn't know what he did to upset Reader. Max is young, yes, but she's going into / starting high school, so she has a foundation of understanding. and Billy's just a dumb boy, he needs guidance. so i like the idea that Max is like "i don't need to know what happened; she's right, you're wrong, go buy her flowers and apologize."

Max and Billy? the unlikely duo we all deserved. the writers fucked us out of what had the potential to be a beautiful relationship and i'm annoyed. but i digress.

i like the idea that Billy protects Max against Neil. like if Neil is losing his shit and Billy manages to get away, he's rounding around the house to tap Max's window. she climbs out and they leave together; maybe going to the arcade where Billy lets Max play while he figures out their next move. did i just give myself a new idea? goddamnit, Cherry, your draft count is in the 30's!

honestly? i don't know what i want "to see" from the fandom. i like almost any story i come across! i like each author's interpretation of Billy and what his character arch should be. he's a bad dude, so we get the "dickhead to everyone but her" trope - which i love. he's a playboy - so we get some good smut; including B being the sub. there's a lot unsaid, so there's room for authors to really fill in gaps, fleshing out who they understand Billy to be / what they want him to be.

HOWEVER - being said, i like internal monologue. so maybe in some fics, if Billy's actively being a dick, a quick little switch in POV to give readers a glimpse into Billy's mind and maybe a look at WHY he's doing / saying / behaving the way he is. like is he even aware of it? is he doing this on purpose? what was his trigger? why is there conflict? is it premeditated? spontaneous? what's the decision making process? where do characters go from here? how does this change them? i think it creates authenticity; by showing internal turmoil, you establish a bond with the audience and how difficult everything is to navigate. that what's "right" isn't always known. that while we might not have the same reason for getting there, we've arrived at the same feeling / destination - which is called empathy. i think that's cool, but that's just me.

favorite aspect writing for Billy?

-> i like the emotional turmoil, yes. Billy is a great guy to write for when i'm writing to cope - to expel emotions. -> i love that he's a known, established bad boy, so he works for my favorite trope, "dick to everybody but her". but also how that isn't always 100% true - i mean, couples still fight, but i love Reader being "that" person for Billy. -> he's fun to write surprises for. you know, a situation that he might react differently to than what's expected. -> i think he's much more empathetic than given credit for and that's a common theme in my writing; like Billy and Reader both have experience with life being shitty. -> Billy's easier for me to relate to - possibly because of the abuse. -> he's very transparent. he's an enigma, yes, but also, once the story is in front of you, he's easy to see through. like he does THIS because of THAT - so as an author, it's fun to play on that. he's like a piece of paper - strong, pristine, useful, and then the moment he's wet, he literally falls apart. -> being said, the way i write Billy's character is literally 75% influenced by semiotics. so, i appreciate that not everything has to be black and white; a slap in the face; be a bright neon banner. a lot of him is "inferred", hence the semiotics. this gives me a lot of room to engage my imagination.

super quick unpopular opinion? i want a main character to die. like die-die, like, ain't no coming back - no resurrection - no nothing, just a dead body. because fuck Stranger Things for giving us fantastic, interesting, deep side characters and fucking killing them all! don't just threaten me, actually hurt me - kill a main!

Bob Newby, Superhero? a gem. Eddie Munson? a sweetheart. Billy Hargrove? complex with space to develop. Alexi? babygirl. at least they gave us Robin - for now.

thank you for writing in, poppet. i love talking to you guys! i hope to have something new out soon, too! i am sending you all my best wishes! and all my love 🖤

[hargrove-mayfields]

tag game, stranger things edition!

i was tagged by @thatgirlwithasquid and @intothedysphoria, thanks y’all, I really appreciate it! 💕

1. ride or die ship/otp : Hellcheergroveton! every combination in this ship is adorable and it has all my favs too ☺️

2. most annoying ship : m*leven. I am beyond tired of watching a young disabled girl be taken advantage of and have it be treated as romantic. El deserves to live partner free, and M*ke deserves to go in the whole garbage can.

3. second favorite ship : Hollogrove. Since it’s not part of the core hellcheergroveton relationship, I’ll branch out a little and bring in my girl Heather. I love her and Billy I’m a relationship and can totally see them spending the rest of their lives together ♥️

4. favorite platonic dynamic : Billy and Max, or Dustin and Steve. Or Steve and Gareth. Cause I headcanon Gareth as becoming Steve’s caregiver after the events of the show leave him with cognitive and physical disabilities

5. underrated ship : Hollogrove, Cunningway, Pompompineapple, Stonathan, Cheerscoops, Calicheer, Rockie, Stargyle, Cammy, Kegboys, Steather, Argilly, and so many more but I’ll stop there.

6. overrated ship : Any of the fruity four (it makes me wanna gag just typing it) ships. I haven’t looked in the fandom tags for a year because it’s oversaturated with passionless, factory produced, carbon-copy fanworks that look like Harringrove fics put through ai to be rewritten as St*ddie, or Buckleway into r*nance. I’m sick of it. It’s boring. I’ll come up with my own steddie content, thanks.

7. one thing to change in canon : Everything. Not even joking. I’m going blorbo shopping and bringing all my favs back to my dollie house to play fix-it.

8. something canon did right : Um. I guess letting actors put in feedback and details of their own. Like Millie choosing for El to touch Billy’s cheek, Dacre giving us backstory on Billy’s mom and also on Billy’s disability (BPD), both he and Joe Keery refusing the original scripts, Joe Quinn improvising Eddie’s crush on Chrissy, and so on. All of the actor choices are the only good things about the show at this point.

9. a thing I’m proud of creating for the fandom : @disabledbillyandsteveweek! There's more information about the event over on the blog, but basically it’s an event starting in about two weeks meant to highlight Billy and Steve as disabled characters, through all kinds of fan works and different ships!

10. a character who is perfect to me : Christine Renée-Beth Cunningham. Nobody compares to my cheer girl.

11. the most relatable character and why : Also Chrissy. She reminds me a lot of myself, especially how I was when I was still in highschool, being timid and struggling a lot with my mental health. I wish she could have grown and gotten help and felt better since I’m on my journey to doing so right now, but I’m forever grateful to have seen a character with an eating disorder and an abusive family on screen, portrayed in a heartfelt and generous way- all thanks to miss Grace Van Dien

12. character I hate most and why : Neil, Karen (actually just the Wheelers in general except little Holly), Brenner, Owens, the lady that shot Benny, literally so many of them. Anyone who intentionally and unabashedly hurts other characters without remorse.

13. something I’ve learned from the fandom : To be patient, because even when things seem tough or impossible, we can make it. Together, with friends who understand us, and who share our pain, we can fight and keep going! Especially because this community will always have folks who understand and have our backs, we just have to find them ❤️❤️

14. three tags I seek out on ao3 : I actually don’t read fic on ao3. The extreme amounts of severely triggering content hosted on that site is just too much for me and I can never seem to avoid it. I only post to ao3 because I know people find it easily accessible, but I had one too many mix-ups that led to me being in a terrible state of mind, so I discontinued using the site.

15. a song I strongly associate with otp and/or favorite character : I’ll never shut up about “Time in a Bottle” by Jim Croce. Conveniently off the same record as Hop has on Vinyl and Cassette, it’s my favorite song ever because it’s so tender and loving and even though it’s old people music yall should give it a listen. It applies to any ship, but especially packs a punch with Harringrove. Also “Magic” by Olivia Newton-John.

I’ll tag: @eddie-munsons-guitar86 @honey-tongued-devil @martianclown @hephaestn @jaylikesrainbowtigers @denkiddo1 @enchanted-day-dreams @stranger-themes-blog @ratbastardbilly @thinger-strang But there’s no pressure to do it! You absolutely don’t have to if you already have or if you just don’t feel like it! <3

[i-am-trying-my-best-okay]

Headcanons About The Next Generation After TLH (Part Three?)

I doubt James and Cordelia will stick to just one kid and I bet Lucie and Jesse will also have kids and so here they are:

Cornelius “Neil” Herondale: Cordelia and James’s middle child, born in 1914. I know James was being so deadass when he wanted to rename Jesse Cornelius, and so he lived that dream through his son. Neil is under the predicament of having a pet demon dog. He met this dog when he very young, and this demon dog was just a baby at the time. This demon dog was rejected and left to die in a river, and Neil, who had assumed this was just a really ugly dog that just so happened to have certain mutated features, saved the dog and took it home. Upon learning this dog was a demon, he is not swayed to let the dog go; he's already very attached. He hides the dog for as long as he can but it's eventually discovered. The Clave is obviously not pleased, but then during a demon attack the demon dog helped Neil fight it off, so the demon dog gets a pass for now, and Neil fights demons along side his demon dog. Neil names the dog Potato, because like a potato, the dog has many eyes along his body. Neil's definitely on the blunt side, to the point people are kinda reluctant to talk to him. But despite this, he's actually very kind, to the point of it being a bit ridiculous, his bluntness simply coming from a straightforward mindset.

Rayna Herondale: The youngest Herondale sibling, born in 1917. Rayna means ‘Queen’, and I figure James and Cordelia would name their kid something after chess. Rayna got bit by a werewolf when she was young. It was an accident; she had a secret friend who was a werewolf, and they just played too rough that one time (and I imagine her and this werewolf end up getting romantically involved later as teens but that’s another story). Anyway, she kept the bite a secret, and she didn’t end up turning into a werewolf. However, she does notice she has some heightened abilities as some sort of side effect, like needing very little sleep with very good night vision, and being slightly stronger then what would be natural and so on, and of course keeping it all a secret. She needs very little Runes as a result, but she’s actually very fascinated by Runes (kind of the opposite of Alexander). She has incredibly strong opinions about everything, with a tendency to give a speech about things at any given moment; much like her grandfather Will, she’s always willing to spin a tale on something that happened, adding her thoughts on it all the while. Overall, a very talkative person, which is a bit odd for someone so secretive.

Jessamine "Jazz" Blackthorn: Jesse and Lucie’s eldest, born in 1915. Lucie knows it would mean a lot to Jessamine if she named her daughter after her, so she did. Her nickname Jazz came from when she was a baby and she would sway along whenever she heard music, babbling the tune. And as she got older that didn’t change; she still adores music, studying it as much as she can learning whatever instrument she could get her hands on. Jem for sure taught her the violin. She’s got this never ending restless energy that she can pour into her music, but when she’s not holding an instrument she becomes rather fidgety. Her restless energy comes in handy when fighting demons, able to fight for a very long time without tiring, her endurance very incredible even by Shadowhunter standards. 

Rupert “Ruie” Blackthorn: The younger Blackthorn sibling, born in 1917. Sticking with the ‘named after dead loved one’s’ theme they’ve got, it was Jesse’s turn, so he named him after his dead father. Ruie adores tricks, especially if it’s done to him. He loves solving all sorts of riddles and puzzles, the higher the stakes the better. It’s not a bragging thing, in fact, unless asked, he wouldn’t bring it up. He just likes the challenge of it sort of, just utterly enthralled with it. This, naturally, makes him very much drawn to the fae. He ends up strolling up to the fae and literally asking them to be tricked, much to the fae’s confusion. But they do, and somehow Ruie almost always ends up on top. He gets fairly well known among the fae, with them actually kind of respecting him for being able to withstand their games. This causes his loved ones a lot of stress, particularly Matthew, who has tried to warn him several times but to no avail. He ends up coming up with a lot of security measures for the clave, which has the unfortunate side affect of him knowing how to break into things the clave hold dear. Ruie finds straightforward fights with demons to be a bit boring, but he understands his duty as a Shadowhunter and puts his all into the fight. He occasionally gets his fun in when he can trick a demon into a trap of sorts.

[fannishstuff]

I am a little obsessed with this take, it's very good

(For context, I have not encountered the "Crowley is Abusive" take. Since he pretty much only gets loud or aggressive if his clearly stated boundaries are being crossed, and since it's always in the context of a routine that Aziraphale is obviously comfortable with, I definitely don't read it as abusive. It reminds me more of the way me and a close friend of mine will playact violence when we're annoyed. So my response isn't to that bit.)

I think that this is one place where the narrative suffers ("suffers") from the limitations of its medium - specifically, the light-hearted tone of the show is present in every scene. You're right, every single Crowley scene is a straight-up horror story. Every single Aziraphale scene is an adorable light-hearted romance (possible exception of the Shax scene). But the actual show has to pick one, and it picked light-hearted romcom - the demons make dumb jokes, the horrific bits are played off as silly. I think that's one reason why the season finale hit so hard; the entire show is toned one way, and the boxfly reveal even plays off of that, making it look like a beautiful, feel-good love story! Up until the literal final scene, the Ineffable Divorce, it's going to be this beautiful coming together! But, of course, it's not - and we, the audience, should very well know it's not, because this wasn't a bait-and-switch. Yes, the show keeps its tone lighthearted, but we don't just have the tone, we have the plot. Crowley's plot is happening right before our eyes, and it is, as you said, a horror story.

(This is such a quintessentially Neil Gaiman way of doing tone and pacing, too.)

Crowley is scared all the time. Crowley has always been scared all the time. His dayjob is scamming the legions of Hell, he kind of SHOULD be scared. Now, he's homeless, unemployed, and keeps getting cryptic threats from the only demon who is willing to talk to him. And... yeah, his boyfriend has not earned any trust, so he can't go to him for help. Aziraphale has always treated their relationship as being contentious when it comes to matters related to heaven and hell. For example, he hid information about the presence of the Antichrist from Crowley - Aziraphale is on the side of Heaven, and he still assumes Crowley is, therefore, on the side of Hell. Crowley isn't on Hell's side. Crowley is literally a con artist. He's a parasite. He takes credit for all of the evil of the world, but he doesn't do very much of it at all, he just sends them his bills and gets on with his life. He has openly, explicitly, and multiple times told Aziraphale this. He hasn't hinted at it or implied it, he has said it, and that's actually a big deal for Crowley. So, if Aziraphale is refusing to work with Crowley, it is reasonable for Crowley to assume that he's rejecting Crowley himself (as opposed to Crowley as Hell's agent).

Also, Aziraphale knows they're in love, but he has never told Crowley that - he just takes for granted that Crowley must already know. My favorite single piece of acting in the entire show is when Crowley is talking about how important they are to each other, and then says, "we've spent millennia pretending that we aren't." Michael Sheen plays Aziraphale as looking baffled and suspicious the instant he hears that sentence. Aziraphale isn't pretending anything. He does not realize that Crowley was. Because, yeah, he really bought into the oh, haha, my funny demon friend is doing his demon thing but it's all hunky-dory, everything is fine.

Aziraphale is weirdly bad at empathy.

A brief defense of the angelic asshole:

Crowley doesn't just not tell him things, he actively hides things. Crowley has been going out of his way to play up all of his normal, day-to-day stress as a Cool Badass Demon bit, and refuses to let anyone, including Aziraphale, read it as actual distress. That is not to absolve Aziraphale; he's known Crowley for literal millennia, and in that time, he has watched him get dragged down to Hell for minor infractions, go to extraordinary lengths to acquire the spiritual equivalent of heavy arms, panic at the prospect of being called "nice" or "good" (AND NOT STOPPED CALLING HIM NICE AND GOOD), and behave in ways that were openly treasonous to Hell. Aziraphale should NOT be as clueless as he is, and it's mostly his sense of prejudice that hell is "The Bad Side" that lets him dismiss all of this as not that big a deal. That said, if someone has a long history of hiding their distress, it can be hard to notice if they're distressed.

Remember that interview with Michael Sheen and David Tennant where they agree that the perfect date for the two of them involves Crowley complaining non-stop? When you know someone like that, it's kind of hard to tell when they're actually calling for help, and not just in the default mode of grousing.

(I keep ending up saying nice things about our Angel. Honestly, he reminds me of someone who I know and am very much struggling to forgive, a good person who is very stupid and has made awful decisions out of ignorance. I therefore have a lot of practice feeling empathy for this absolute idiot who deserves to feel the way he's going to feel once he's finally given the chance to understand what he's done.)

thinking about Good Omens 2. and stories, and the shape of them, and Terry Pratchett and his themes. and something clicked.

Aziraphale is cackling.

it's not just the ball. he spends the entire season trying to force the story into a shape it's not, and everyone suffers for it.

i've seen some less than charitable takes on Crowley's actions and they all ignore how much Crowley did try to talk to Aziraphale, did try to ask Aziraphale questions, did try to help, only to be ignored or brushed off. because his questions, his offers, they didn’t fit with the story Aziraphale was telling himself.

quiet, gentle, and romantic. it was, if you're our favorite Angel - right up until the end, at least. because he decided that's the story he was in. from the very beginning, he's off in la-la land, living out this romcom with a cute little mystery wrapped up in it, completely ignoring what's actually going on around him. i'll set Nina and Maggie up! (completely ignoring that Nina tells him she has a partner, and at that point, he has no reason to think she's anything less than happy.) i'll take ~our~ car to go do investigate this silly little mystery (he's not taking it even a little bit seriously!) while you stay here and run the bookshop and it will be so quaint and domestic! soon we'll dance and confess our feelings that we obviously share because we're already so clearly a couple we just need to finally say it!

Crowley knows the entire time that they're in a horror story but Aziraphale ignores every attempt he makes to point that out because it doesn't fit the story he decided he's in the middle of.

he brushes off Crowley's concerns and questions - his QUESTIONS! - like they're nothing. he doesn't want to see it, so he doesn't. and Crowley should have told him more?

why would he?

when you are CLEARLY in distress and it's being BLATANTLY AND WILLFULLY IGNORED, what the fuck are you supposed to do? "Crowley didn't comminicate" well okay if I were having a panic attack about something and my husband completely ignored it, chattering on about our dinner plans or whatever, that wouldn’t exactly make me want to open up about what was wrong! that would send the very fucking clear signal that he didn't want to know!

words aren't the only way we communicate and Crowley's body language, the entire season, is that of someone who is living in a horror story, knows he's living in a horror story, and is fucking terrified. if Aziraphale were paying any attention to Crowley instead of focusing all his energy trying to set things up just so for the big climax of his love story, he would know something major was wrong.

why would Crowley have told him how cruel Gabriel was about the execution when Aziraphale's already so thoroughly convinced that heaven is pure and good and has shown over and over through the millennia that he's not really open to considering that it can be cruel!

just look at them at the dance. Crowley freaking out because there's a horde of demons out there and Aziraphale giggling as they go to dance. that's the whole season!

you know who Crowley reminds me of this season?

he's watching helplessly and with increasing levels of distress as Aziraphale shoves every plot point into the romcom hole even though it's obviously not remotely romcom shaped! and i'm sick of people saying he was abusive because he raises his voice about it a few times!

[thespineoftherighteous]

Aaron Minyard at any point in the series:

[prettybillycore]

You Are Not a Burden, Billy Hargrove || Billy Hargrove x GN!Reader

Pairing(s): Billy Hargrove x GN!Reader

Universe: Stranger Things

Summary: After moving in with you, Billy has good days and bad days with his mental health. You were there for him in one of his darkest moments.

Rating: Teen

Word Count: 1.3k

Warnings: Neil Hargrove is his own warning, Billy's Anger issues, Mental Health Breakdown (Billy's), swearing, Police

Read it on ao3 (or on this Tumblr post below the cut)

Part of your deal with Billy was that he had to work on bettering himself. You told him from the beginning of your blossoming relationship– be nice to me and the kids and Steve or our relationship can’t continue. I know you’re still learning and I can see that you are trying, but respect is one of the most important things in relationships like this. 

Billy had never been in a relationship; this fact surprised you at first, but the more you thought about it, the more it made sense. It broke your heart a little inside knowing that he had never been shown gentle kindness and love. You were willing to give him the safe space he needed to heal and he knew that too. You said as long as he was trying to get better you would be there to support him and that was more than anyone else had ever done for him. I’ll do my best, Doll. I promise. I know I’ll have bad days, but I’m gonna do everything I can to get the anger out in better ways.

You brushed your hand across his cheek and smiled up at him. He had never seen someone look at him with so much pure adoration. It made him feel fragile. All I ask for is that you’re trying. I love you, Billy Hargrove. 

He set his hands lightly on your hips. I love you too. 

| < ♥️ > |

Billy had more good days than bad this summer and you were so thankful for that. You loved him dearly– he was protective of you, always brought you flowers on date night, and wouldn’t let you open or close your own car door. He essentially worshipped the ground you walked on most days and you felt so loved. The party and your friends were all starting to accept that Billy was treating you like a god(dess). They didn’t always love that he was hanging around, but they respected your relationship. It was enough for you to feel comfortable. Billy was making progress on being generally nicer to the soon-to-be freshman and he treated Steve was respect every time he saw him. It made your heart swell.

There were still bad times, though. Mostly now they consisted of panic more than rage. Billy was staying at your house all the time and Max stayed in your guestroom whenever she felt like she needed to get out of the Hargrove-Mayfield household. Billy would receive angry and threatening calls from his father sometimes. He would scream into the phone until you gently placed your hand on his shoulder and he hung up the phone. You two would curl up on his bed and you would let him sob into the crook of your neck. He held onto you like nothing you had ever experienced before; like if he let you go, you would evaporate. You would hum simple songs and play with his hair until you both fell asleep. 

This bad day wasn’t like those bad days, unfortunately. You walked into the house after dropping the Party off at the Wheelers’ place, and Billy was fuming. Much like Steve’s parents, your parents weren’t around much. Billy was just alone, just pacing around and mumbling to himself. You could see how angry he was in his body language. You closed the door behind you, “Billy, Love, are you alright?”

His nostrils flared, but he didn’t stop pacing. “Do I look fucking alright to you, y/n?”

You kept your temperament even and you were so glad that Max was off at the mall with the Party right now. “What happened?”

“Fucking Neil! Ugly bastard called the cops on me.”

“What? Did the cops come here?” You had only been gone for like an hour; you picked up all the members of the Party and drove them to Starcourt. 

“Just Hopper, thank fuck. He said he recognized your name from when Neil called the station. He came to check on everything and told me he would handle Neil, but fuck! Why can’t he just leave me alone? I’m completely fucking moved out at this point. I live here with you and I’m not a fuckin’ burden to him anymore,” he seethed. His teeth were clenched together so tightly you were worried they would break. 

“I’m so sorry, Billy. You handled it well; let’s get you a drink and sit down for a minute. I’m worried about you,” you said. You started to reach your hand out toward him, but he pulled back and glared at you.

“Don’t treat me like a child. I know I’m a burden to you too. You don’t have to pretend to care about me.”

You were dumbfounded. “What? Billy, you are not a burden to me. You never have been and never will be. Your brain is just saying that because you’re raging. You’ll be okay, I promise you’re safe here.” It was the first time those words had ever come out of his mouth. You couldn’t bare the thought of him considering himself a burden to you. “Honey Love, you are the most important person in my life. Your mental health doesn’t make you a burden, it makes you human.”

Normally, when you said things like that, he would go soft. He would fall into your arms and you will hold him until he was ready to talk about what was going on in his brain. Again, today was different than usual. He had really gotten into his own head while you were gone. “Stop lying to me, you fucking bitch! You don’t care about me! No one–”

“God I hate you sometimes. I hate your brain sometimes, fuck!” You cut him off with your cursing. His near-constant pacing stopped as you put your hands over your eyes. “I wish I could take away your pain. I wish I could take your trauma and lock it away and throw the key into the fucking ocean, but I can’t! I don’t know how to help you when your rage transfers to me. I know you aren’t really mad at me, but fuck it hurts…” Your hands were becoming damp with your own tears. 

“Baby…” Billy mumbled. His raging monster inside had been shut up with those sentences. The guilt was crawling up his spine and made him feel like he was going to be sick. He wanted to talk to you about feeling burdensome, but not like this. This broke everything in him. His one promise to himself was to not hurt you; he never wanted to hurt you. You told him that was unrealistic because he’s human and we are all capable of hurting people, but he still told himself not to hurt you. He couldn’t believe that he had let those words come out of his mouth. “I’m… I’m sorry. I’m pissed at Neil, not you. I didn’t mean to make you cry.”

You pulled your hands away from your face and he was standing still a little ways away from you. He looked absolutely horrified and you were sure that he was thinking all kinds of self-hating thoughts right now. You wiped your eyes and walked over to him with open arms. He hugged you back quickly and tightly. “I know, Love. You’re still going through things with Neil and there are still going to be bad days.”

“I never want to make you upset though… Fuck…” His face was hidden in your hair. You could feel him trembling. “I don’t want you to leave me, but I understand if you want to.”

You squeezed him tighter. “Absolutely fucking not. Even when things happen and we fight or you slip up, I know you’re trying to get through your pain. You’re starting to heal and I’m not going anywhere. You are not a burden, Billy Hargrove; not to me or anyone else. You are a human who’s got some growing to do... And I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said what I did either.”

“It's alright... I love you… so fuckin’ much,” he whispered.

“I love you too, Billy.”

[yukinojou]

The Sandman on Netflix - first impressions

Okay, not so much first impressions as "I mainlined the lot in 26 hours and it only took so long because I was stuck at work for the first 7 watching on my breaks and then had to actually break for sleep". Spoiler-free above the cut, spoilery below it, criticisms at the end.

Caveat: I've been a Sandman fan for 22 years. I first read the books in a big bookshop, doing the surreptitious reading at the bookshelf for two weeks in snatches, because I was in London with very little money and graphic novels were very expensive. It took me five years to buy the lot, and it was only then that I found out how the story ended because I didn't manage to get that far in those two weeks. The Sandman was absolutely foundational for my philosophy, aesthetic, and dear gods Desire was a revelation - "You mean you can be both???" I never liked Preludes & Nocturnes' horror bend, so it's my least-reread volume, but Doll's House is my second favourite after Season of Mists. I've read all the Gaiman-penned addenda and most of the first run of The Dreaming. BIG Sandman fan.

And the show blew me out of the water:

Perfect cast is perfect. I had a lot of reservations because of the announced ones, only Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Mason Alexander Park and Gwendoline Christie immediately seemed right for their parts. But somehow they've dug up Exactly The Right People and let them play it with a richness of nuance that is so rarely allowed in American drama.

The pacing. The show breathes! There are quiet moments, there are very few action sequences, and the big plot moments are people talking. Let the words tell the story, let the actors act, let the scenery breathe and shine.

The filmography is quietly lovely. It starts "typical BBC Period Drama" but veers so soon into the just-off, just-bizarre. All the taxidermy at Fawney Rigg, the richness of every set (messy rooms!), the texture of everything. And even when it's not recreating the panels one by one (which, closest adaptation of a comic I've ever seen), it's shot in such a graphical way, drawing the eyes to the action with the composition, especially in the first episode. Much appreciation for clear vivid lighting in such a dark show too, I didn't have a single moment when I didn't know what was going on. And the colours in the second half are so bright, a very glam lighting that disappears for mists and shadows as the spell breaks.

I saw someone on Tumblr mention this is a bit like Sandman fanfic, that sensibility of fleshing out motivations and behind the scenes actions. And it is, and it works, plus it tightens plotlines in a way that hopefully makes sense to people watching for the first time. Which I'm very much not, as someone who can quote whole pages.

The rewrites are - the first word that comes to mind is Kind. Neil's a more mature writer now, not a shock jock in his twenties, there's no template of gritty 80s comics he has to adhere to in order to get the show to our screens. In the comic, the kindness only really arrived with Death in issue 6. Here, the tweaks let it be present from the beginning. And all the nuance and richness - you can see where he took characters that were flat stereotypes and then jiggled them until layers spread out. More about that below, in the spoilers...

Spoilery plot bits:

I actually love Ethel the most of the changes? She's such a pistol and a conwoman and legend in her own right, using Roderick and probably so many others to learn and forge a life on her own terms. I love the fact she let John use the ruby as a child, that we saw her arrival at Fawney Rigg and all the research she must have done to recognise Alex offhand, and that she showed up the Corinthian in five minutes flat, only letting him get close because she knew that's how she makes people go splat. I already liked her in the book, especially the way she calmly let her co-conspirator go splat there, but letting her shine was very much the right choice. I adore complicated women, and the way her sacrifice was echoed in Unity at the end, though honestly I would have had John grab the amulet from her rather than refuse.

The Corinthian's plotline - more about HIM later because oh my favourite eye munching nightmare was perfect, but that's the fanfic bit. He doesn't exactly change anything in Preludes & Nocturnes, but it makes perfect sense that he'd be doing it, because he's a smart cookie who doesn't want to go home and play nice. And in the Doll's House he actually pulls the plot together a lot. All a logical extrapolation, and building on both his popularity in the Kindly Ones and The Dreaming, and the fact they managed to cast Exactly The Right Guy.

The rewrites in 24/7 - damn, I'm going to have to rewatch this one, aren't I? Ugh. But I've seen Lourdes' character called a tiger woman and she's very much not, she's just trying to forge her happy ending and her equal partner, trying not to poke at the insecurities he has while still supporting him and not diminishing herself. And Bette, so desperate, so fragile there with all the things she won't let herself feel in order to be safe in her small town as a vulnerable single mother, and that's death as a writer, that's why she can't write her book. The scene where she burns her manuscript just made my heart hurt. The whole sequence is so much quieter and less graphic and yet more heartwrenching. You're so ready for Dee to go down with a bang.

(Rosemary! I had an inkling she'd survive when she was Black - because optics of her getting shot in that situation - and when the dog appeared because Neil knows if he killed a dog just after Gregory's sacrifice we'd riot, but oh the layers in the way she did survive, giving up on everything, just pleading for the dog, the way it showed how much a hurt simple kid Dee is too... Rosemary is so much love.)

Doll's House revisions give people more agency, and Gault is adorable as a sort of light mirror of the Corinthian, but I was a little sad about losing Lyta's confinement in the Dreaming, a pregnancy that lasted years. Some of that languidness was there in the series, but the hair brushing and lack of agency in the comics made the explosion of anger after Hector disappeared into a more wrenching shock.

I read about the Cereal Convention years before I attended my first WorldCon, and mwahahaha. Still a loving sendup of literary cons, with their panels and awkwardness and small talk and the flash of recognising a fellow obsessive. Gilbert ducking in and out of panels was brilliant.

Lucifer doing the Oldest Game was absolutely logical (honestly, Choronzon almost besting Dream always felt like a stretch), but oh the ending. As above, Season of Mists is my absolute favourite Sandman volume, and Gwendoline's Lucifer stepping down and shutting out all that racket of demons who dared command them will be the very best. How soon can we have season two?

Casting, broken out separately because the squee is strong:

Tom! Okay, I liked the Sandman Audible thing, and James McAvoy is a favourite actor, but it let me down with the kind of Morpheus voice so much I was resigned to not having the voice-in-my-brain in the series as well. But it is, and it's the grave white-on-black baritone in my dreams. He also acts so subtly with the eyes and makes the best faces, so much I'm willing to forgive the fact he often forgets to close his mouth completely. (He does have lovely lips, doesn't he?) The moments where the stubble comes through were jarring at first, but also very true to the comics. And oh, his 17th century wig was the best, shadows of Michael Wincott in The Crow. Plus the way he shows Morpheus thawing and cogitating desperately each time a woman yells at him (which is roughly twice per episode) is so clear and almost adorable. Oh, the ending is going to hurt so much.

Boyd! I was honestly worried about him because I hadn't seen him in anything before and in his usual offstage look he's - a bit awkward, like completely not what I imagined the Corinthian as, and also not the right voice (again, offstage). But oh, I should have trusted him. Because this is perfect, this is MY Corinthian, the eye-munching gay nightmare I've loved for two decades. True to himself, so much joy of life (ice cream scene!), crafty and in love with adulation, so flawed and bright in ways that completely don't address the serial killer part. I love that even more than Morpheus, he has chemistry with everyone. Like, people see him and want to make out immediately, and you buy it because he's charm on a stick. And he does it all in sunglasses, dammit. And he's so funny! I can't wait until The Kindly Ones, because Boyd and Patton Oswald are going to be a HOOT.

Vivienne! I literally had a phone named Lucien, that's how much I love the character, and she's perfect and open-hearted and frustrated. I really hope they'll bring up her raven past at some point, because that's the core of her devotion and the clear-headed way she sees Morpheus.

Kirby! Oh, she's just THERE, she's Death, that's her and her kindess and cheer and frustration with her boneheaded brother. That bit with her taking off her shoes was just *chef's kiss*. She's there and she's Death and she looks perfect in a 14th century headdress while daring her brother to strike a friendship that'll last centuries.

Come to that, Ferdinand Kingsley was adorable and also very confusing because at some angles he looks very much like my cousin. But his chemistry with Dream was perfect and I can't wait to see him again.

Gwendoline, of course, was dreamy and poisonous and oh, that smile at the very end killed me dead. I didn't know she had so much malice she could drag up to the screen like that, and even that slightly dodgy Rose of Versailles wig couldn't get in the way. Her clothes, on the other hand, mmm.

Mason! I was sold on them as Desire as soon as I looked up them doing Frank'n'Furter and Cabaret MC, but oh, you can see they love Desire the way I do, the way Desire as Dream's sister-brother was a revelation and a breaking of gender chains, and Mason's having so much fun with it. Plus they totally sold me in both sibling scenes, the very tactile and adoring way they were with Despair, the way they kept pushing Dream's buttons to the very end.

(I adore Despair's upgrade to comfy clothes and crocs. Despair's such an everyday thing, so insidious and hiding in plain sight, it fits so well.)

*flails* Everyone else was great too, with honourable mention to Emma Duncan, who gave away so much with her eyes, and Ernest Kingsley (Kai'ckul) who managed to copy Tom's performance to the letter while doing very heavy eye-emoting in just moments.

Criticisms:

I wish Cain and Abel had more time, because I love them. They bring out the Dreaming's creepiness nicely, but it wasn't even mentioned that Secrets are always true and Mysteries are stories. (And yes I mourn Gregory, but it was a well-written sacrifice and Goldie tied the knot nicely.)

I really don't think the budget was as high as rumoured, because the CGI is - sparse? I mean, it's beautiful, but at some points it's C-drama streaming budget, not millions per episode. Really visible outside Hector and Lyta's house, where all people are Very Pastede In, and outside the physical sets like the throne room and the library, the Dreaming suffers from lack of texture at times. The Threshold too, the outside was well done but the inside is just red. I'd love more organic textures there.

Relatedly, the dreams of the house dreamers in Doll's House aren't weird enough, especially when they start to merge by just dropping people into the same meadow. The vortex effect was pretty cool, but before that, no blurring, no overlapping, and the dreams themselves - I loved Zelda breaking Chantal's recurrence, but the dreams weren't different enough. They could have done so much with different lighting, CGI and whatnot, the way they did Dee's attack on the throne room, but I suspect budget was running out and they were relying on the actors to sell it (which they did, but I love that sequence so much in the comic).

And okay, some of my favourite quotes didn't make it in. "Beware the march of ideas!" "I give you a name and the name is lost!" And of course I imagined the summoning incantation differently, more frantic, more building up, but then they surprised themselves that it worked...

And that's everything out of my brain in the first hours. Maybe now I can actually sleep? And someone stop me from writing fanfic with Ethel and the Corinthian because whoa, that chemistry sizzled.

[golyadkin]

I absolutely adore this, what made you choose those titles for the books? - @casimirt

To be honest the main inspiration was me looking at my bookshelf going "what's plausible for the bookshop" but there was some thought put into it lol. As follows (long post ahead):

Frankenstein - man plays god, creates living thing he hates, abandons that thing, thing grows to hate his god and seeks revenge. Both parallels to how god treats humanity in GO as well as Adam's relationship with Satan in S1 (especially with the monster in Frankenstein comparing himself to the original Adam)

M*A*S*H - comedy about a war zone; innocent bystanders trapped in the goriest parts of a war they don't believe in trying to make the best of it. Sound familiar? (let this be your sign to watch the show)

Crime and Punishment - man commits a crime, convincing himself it's justified if it makes things easier for good men, but then has to recon with the guilt and horror of what he has done

John le Carre - author of a series of spy novels. Felt appropriate with Az and Crowley's roles in the war and Crowley's love of spy stuff

The Brothers Karamazov - deals heavily in questions of god, morality, and free will

Hitchcock and Cinema - I misremembered the title of the book Hitchcock and Art: Fatal Coincidences, which is a book about the cinematography of Hitchcock movies and how they relate to or reference famous art pieces. Partly in reference to the cinematography of the show (which had some great shots) and the arrangement of my own drawing which... yeah...

Mr. Punch - picture book by Neil Gaiman, mostly there for the Gaiman brand but also it's a beautifully illustrated book dealing with damaged memory and learning the authority figures in your life aren't always good people

Bury the Lede - a graphic novel about a journalist interviewing a murderer; there for the title and how Az and Crowley tend to conceal things from each other, especially where Heaven is concerned

Canon - both the canon of the show and the original meaning of canon as it relates to religion; not a book, just needed something on the spine

Vile Bodies - book about the socialites in England post-WWI and how their relationship with the world changes at the outset of a new war; in the movie adaptation, Bright Young Things, Michael Sheen plays a character called Miles who, in the midst of enjoying a hedonistic lifestyle, is forced to flee the country or be arrested for his sexuality following the betrayal of his lover

Oxford English Dictionary - should've been an encyclopedia or a French-English dictionary but it was late and I was tired

Great Gatsby - more hedonism post-war; Gatsby is constantly trying to regain the affection of a woman who loved him in the past but she can't be with him

Our Kind of Traitor - another John le Carre novel about spies; the title here works for both of them as they've both betrayed their sides

Neverest - a thriller novel about an expedition a woman takes to find her missing husband's body after he disappeared climbing Mount Everest; obsession with finding an answer leading you knowingly into dangerous territories (God doesn't like it when you ask questions)

American Gods - this one feels pretty self-explanatory; Gaiman, Gods, Earth as a battlefield (this is a great book, read it if you haven't already)

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - newcomer to a psych ward stirs things up a la Jim at the bookshop; but what's also in the book but not in the movie is a HUGE theme of questioning reality, danger being translated into something otherworldly, persecution, and the strict dictator who sets all the rules and can strike you down if they so please (this one is great too, but be wary going into it if you ever read it, there's a lot to be conscious of)

The Voice of the Night - two best friends, one good and one bad, and the slow temptation of the good one to do a very bad deed; morality and obsession and the realization that good and bad are not as distinct or simple concepts as they seem (similar vibe to Strangers on a Train)

The Underpainter - I read this in high school and have very little memory of it tbh, but it dealt with obsession with the past, the horrors of war, the grief of loss, and struggling to connect with humanity while both desiring that connection and deriding it; it's also about love

House of Leaves - I'm reading this one now so I'm not done yet, but it's already said a great deal about God, humanity, and the nature of a labyrinth that I feel applies nicely to the ineffable plan

Obviously these aren't all super relevant to GO, but I hoped to keep it within the wheelhouse in one way or another. I wanted as much as possible to keep it to fiction novels and things that could feasibly be in Aziraphale's bookshop. Looking back I should have added Jane Austen and maybe some Shakespeare, but I'm happy with what wound up on the books

Just a little temptation

[aacciorriptide-writes]

The Foxes babysit Estelle Jackson

summary: second addition to the Percy Jackson x all for the game series. each member of the PSU foxes looks after Percy's little sister.

a/n: i just got a new laptop so im finally able to post again!

content warnings: light swearing i guess

pjo masterlist | aftg masterlist | pjo x aftg masterlist

requested by anon

Nicky loves babies. He loves little kids, it's a well-known fact. Always has, always will.

He especially loves Estelle.

he's quite fond of Sally, of her strong belief in herself, her resilience, her confidence. Her attitude, and her kindness. Estelle truly is her daughter.

She's very bossy for a toddler - she loves playing dolls with Nicky, and he loves it too. He's eager to encourage that creativity. Estelle will tell him exactly what he's allowed to do, and will tell him off - it's adorable.

Spending time with Estelle gives Nicky major baby fever. He begs Eric for "one of his own" after a day with the Blofis-Jackson baby.

Matt, like Nicky, adores Estelle. He loves to spoil her. He'll do anything she asks.

Matt loves to bake with her. They fight over food dye (blue vs orange)

he also lets her have waaaaayyyy too much of whatever they make - tons of cookies, a big slice of cake, you name it. [credit to @bookworm-coming-your-way 's tags on my last one for this]

Estelle can basically get away with anything around him, and she knows it, too.

He's also good at the not-fun stuff too. Bedtime, sickness, tantrums, he can deal with it. Sally is sure he'll be a good father, someday.

Wymack is a little...... perplexed? by children. Doesn't like talking to people under the age of 17. He has no idea what he's doing, and mostly treats her like one of the foxes.

She's always okay after, though. Wymack? Not so much

So is Kevin. He doesn't really know what to do around kids because he didn't get a proper childhood.

He's immune to her cuteness. She's immune to his bullshit. It works, somehow.

they're literally best friends though. despite being like, eight, they bitch about everyone together. Kevin attends a lot of tea parties.

Neil is okay with her. They mainly bond over their mutual love for Percy. He'll sort of just do whatever she tells him to. He's not great at it, but he's better than wymack and the gods, so that's something.

I don't see Allison as being fond of younger kids, but she doesn't mind tween/teen Estelle

Same with Renee, I don't think she'd know what to do with a kid, but they'd get on well when Estelle's a bit older

Estelle looks up to all the female foxes, especially Dan. She's not as bad as Matt, but they both love to spoil her.

Sally and Paul ship Matt and Dan so so hard and can't wait for them to have a baby of their own

stay at home dad Matt

Aaron tries so hard to be good with her -- he thinks of it as practice for him and Katelyn. It drives him crazy that Estelle prefers Andrew and Neil to them.

Andrew likes to say he doesn't like children.

Andrew also likes to lie a lot.

He's kinda a softy when it comes to kids. Some people can resist tiny shoes, and he's not one of those people.

If Estelle is going to the foxes for advice, he's usually her first call (followed by Kevin and Dan)

She loves Andrew and Neil, and it very much so helps that they're such good friends with Percy and Annabeth.

[helnjk]

A Brief Glimpse - C.W.

Charlie Weasley x fem!reader

Word count: 2.5k

Summary: there’s nothing like the rumors that students can come up with about their favorite teachers. especially when one of them is adamant on keeping her private life, well, private. 

Warnings: brief mentions of meals, one curse word but that’s it

A/N: a purely self-indulgent, fluffy fic inspired by this ask from kendall ( @lupinsclassroom ) who said that if i taught at hogwarts, i’d be the COMC professor! and i love me some good charlie content. this is also kind of a different style that i’m used to, i hope you guys like it! x

–

The top three favorite professors at Hogwarts were as follows: Headmistress McGonagall, Professor Longbottom, and Professor L/N. 

While most students would argue that Professor L/N could potentially overtake Professor Longbottom on that list, there was just so much they didn’t know about her. She was practically the perfect professor; she loved what she taught (Care of Magical Creatures), she was considerate and understanding with students who were struggling with the subject, and her office doors were always open to anyone who wanted to chat. 

Still, she kept her personal life very private and of course, the more she refused to answer their prying questions, the more intrigued the students became. All they knew was that she was one of the top students of her year, she was a Ravenclaw, and she fought at the Battle of Hogwarts years prior. 

There were many rumors going around the student body of Hogwarts about who Y/N L/N was. The most popular ones were that she was actually Headmistress McGonagall���s secret daughter, because of how close the two seemed to be. In reality, Y/N was just one of Minnie’s favorite students. The headmistress often joked how she should’ve been in her house instead of Filius’. 

Meanwhile, Neville was always open with the students, answering whatever questions they had for him, as long as they weren’t crossing the line between professional and personal. They often loved to ask him questions about his friendship with the Golden Trio or his stories of the war. 

“They’re getting more creative with the questions they ask me,” he shook his head, smiling slightly one dinner, “They’re trying to see if I’ll slip up and mention anything juicy about you.”

Y/N laughed slightly, eyes glimmering, “What sort of questions have they come up with now?” 

“Today Chapman asked me if I’d ever spent the holidays with other professors around my age,” Neville mused, “Or if Hannah was ever jealous that I was working with a girl so close to my age.”  

“Oh please, Longbottom,” Minerva tutted, and the two younger professors turned their heads in her direction, “At least your questions still have some sort of delicacy. Griffiths has actually asked me, point blank, if Y/N’s spent her summers with me.” 

The collective guffaw of the professors at the head table caused the majority of the student body to shift their attention to them. Of course, the authoritative looks that they sent at the house tables were able to convince them to get back to their own conversations, but now the Great Hall was abuzz with trying to figure out what made the professors laugh so loud. 

“I wonder when they’ll stop trying,” Y/N mused as the crowd of students began to slowly shuffle out of the Hall.

“Don’t count on it, L/N,” Minerva smirked. 

–

“Professor L/N?” a meek voice sounded from the door to Y/N’s office on Wednesday afternoon. 

The middle of the week was rather free for her, therefore she used it to catch up on grading and, if she had time, a little light reading. This afternoon, though, she was in the middle of writing an important letter. 

Her owl, Athena, perched at the edge of her desk and her scrutinizing eyes darted towards the fourth year Hufflepuff who stood by the door. Eloise Abbott, a shy young thing with a penchant for Care of Magical Creatures and one of Y/N’s best students, sent the intimidating owl an uneasy glance.

“Come on in, Eloise,” Y/N smiled as she slipped the ink and parchment she was using into one of the empty drawers of her table, “Don’t mind Athena, she’s just impatient to get this letter out.” 

The young girl shuffled towards the professor as Y/N asked, “Is there anything you needed?” 

“Erm, I was just wondering if you could check my Defense paper,” she mumbled, pulling out a parchment from her school bag, “It’s on Grindylows and other creatures we could encounter in the Forbidden Forest, and I know it’s not really part of your syllabus, but I just wanted to make sure I didn’t get anything very wrong.” 

Y/N smiled and held her hand out for Eloise to place the essay. It was silent as she read over what was written, that silence only broken when Athena let out soft hoots or ruffled her feathers. 

“Erm, professor,” muttered Eloise after a while, Y/N’s eyes glanced up from the parchment, “I don’t mean to pry, but why does your owl want so badly for you to finish that letter?” 

A soft chuckle came from Y/N’s mouth before she answered, “She just loves the person I’m writing to, and I honestly think she would rather be in his care than mine. Even if it were just for a few nights.” 

“But you’re wonderful with animals!”

“And he is too, I assure you. Maybe even more so than me.” 

Eloise nodded her head slowly, and Y/N could see the gears turning in her head. It perplexed the young student, who could ever be better with animals than her professor? She knew it couldn’t have been Hagrid, as he still lived on the grounds and Athena could visit him any time she wished. 

Maybe her favorite professor was friends with the Scamander family. Rolf Scamander definitely had ties to Hogwarts and seemed about her age. 

Before her thoughts could go any further with hypothesizing, Professor L/N handed her essay back, “It looks great, Eloise. I have no doubt you’ll get high marks on this essay.” 

Eloise could spot a professor’s dismissal anywhere, so she merely nodded as she took the parchment back. As she hurried out the room, she expressed her gratitude over her shoulder, catching Y/N pull out the letter she was writing with a soft smile on her face. 

–

The end of the school week came with a surprise visitor to the castle. The students could not stop discussing the presence of a dragon tamer on the school grounds. He had arrived later in the morning, trudging up the pathway from Hogsmeade and making his rounds around the school.

Headmistress McGonagall greeted him at the gates with a smile and a hug before she took his arm and the two of them had tea in her office. Of course, as the students weren’t used to seeing an adult that wasn’t the faculty or the staff in the castle, his presence sparked many conversations.  

“I saw him knock on Hagrid’s door!” said Neil Chapman to anyone who would listen to him at lunch, “He had some burn scars all over his arms and really bright red hair. He seemed really cool.” 

It was as if the whole Gryffindor table was gathered around him as he told and retold how Hagrid’s booming voice announced that Hogwarts’ resident dragon tamer was back. Rumors floated around the school for the rest of the day, each student having something to say about the mysterious man. 

“He’s gorgeous though, isn’t he?” sighed Daphne Griffiths, as she and her best friend roamed the hallways on the way to their next class, “All rugged and handsome. I caught sight of him walking towards the quidditch pitch after Transfiguration.” 

All the professors had to stop themselves from full-on grinning at the different things they had heard about Charlie Weasley gallivanting around the grounds, but none of them as amused as Professor L/N. 

“Hurry along then!” 

Y/N stood next to a small paddock at the edge of the forest, next to its open gate. At the center of it, a cluster of fluffy creatures rolled around and play fought with each other. 

“Alright class,” she clapped her hands together, “We’re having a little bit more of a relaxed class to end the week. A crup of one of the Hogsmeade villagers just gave birth about a month ago and her owner’s graciously allowed us to spend an afternoon with the puppies.”

The second year students cooed at the litter of small dog-like creatures with two tails. As soon as she finished her sentence, the group of them rushed to get inside the paddock, each one wanting a turn with the small puppy-like things. Once all the students were inside, she shut the gate and joined them as they congregated around the tiny crups. 

Y/N was grateful that her last class of the week was with younger students. They were much easier to please and sometimes more eager to learn. Of course, almost anyone would be enamoured by the litter of puppies running around.

With her wand pointed at her jugular, she began the small spiel she had prepared for the lesson, “Now, as most of you might know, crups are basically magical dogs…” 

Most students weren’t really paying any attention to her little lecture, but she told herself that at least she tried. She understood the need to coo over cute little puppies, she could let it slide just this once. 

From where she stood towards the other end of the paddock from the gate, she had a panoramic view of the class, just in case anything happened. She doubted anything would, but at least that way she could keep everyone in sight. 

“Of all the magical creatures in the world, you chose to teach about crups?” 

A strong voice rang through the open space and caused many of the students to turn their heads at the sound. Somehow, Charlie Weasley had made it to the gate of the paddock without Y/N noticing. Upon seeing the redheaded dragon tamer so close to them, murmurs spread among the young students.

Y/N rolled her eyes, taking in the sight of him with his arms crossed and a smug smile on his face. 

“Oh wipe that smile off your face, Weasley, you try teaching these kids all week,” she replied, raising her voice slightly so that he could hear what she had said. 

“I guess they are quite adorable,” he caved, leaning his forearms against the paddock and seeming as if he was going to observe them their whole class. 

The students observed their playful and easy banter, in awe that their professor knew the ever mysterious man. 

As her wards were still distracted by him, she said, “Pay him no mind class, he’s harmless. The crup puppies need your undivided attention!” 

As soon as the prying eyes were off of him, Charlie sent Y/N a cheeky wink. She couldn’t stop a smile from growing on her face at the gesture, but she shook her head to indicate that they could talk after her class was over. 

“Professor L/N?” a young girl walked up to her, sending a furtive glance over her shoulder to where her friends were gathered. 

The group of them gestured to her to carry on and Y/N’s eyes lit with amusement, “What’s up?” 

“I-er, we wanted to know how you know the dragon tamer guy? The other professors haven’t said much about him when asked.” 

The young student fidgeted nervously, picking at the hem of her sweater as she glanced up at Y/N. Despite being in the rather early years of her journey at Hogwarts, she knew that Professor L/N enjoyed her privacy. She didn’t want to overstep. 

Y/N sensed this apprehension and gave her a soft smile, “We were in the same year at Hogwarts. He was a Gryffindor and I was a Ravenclaw, but we managed to have a few common classes.” 

“Cool!” 

Before anything else could be said, the girl scurried off to meet her friends with the small tidbit of information she was able to gather from the otherwise close-lipped professor. 

Thankfully, the rest of the hour passed by rather quickly. 

As soon as the bell rang, it was obvious to Y/N that the students were stalling. She had dismissed them fairly quickly and had already begun her process of cleaning up. Meanwhile, the majority of the class was still situated inside the paddock, shuffling around in groups. 

Inwardly, she sighed, knowing that there was nothing she could do about it, it was the end of the school week and they were free to roam (or stay) in any part of the grounds and the castle they wanted. 

Inevitably, Charlie had gotten impatient waiting for them to clear out. Instead, he strode confidently through the gate and towards where Y/N was directing the puppies to stay. 

“Charlie? What are you–”

The remaining students, who had been not-so slyly watching the redhead stride through the paddock, all collectively gasped as he pressed his lips firmly on their professor’s. 

Y/N began to weakly protest, the logical side of her brain screaming at her that this was definitely unprofessional, but the emotional side took over as she was surrounded by the scent and the presence of her boyfriend. Her boyfriend whom she hadn’t seen in months and made a special trip to Hogwarts just to see her in her element. 

Thankfully, Charlie pulled away fairly quickly, his arms still firmly wrapped around her body, a dopey smile on his face. 

Once Y/N gained her bearings, she slapped his chest, “Charles Weasley!” 

“What?” he grinned. 

“You’ve just kissed me in front of my students!” 

–

Despite the–shall we say scandalous?–first encounter between the couple, the rest of the afternoon was quite lovely. Y/N showed him all of the creatures under her care and in the section of the forest that was relatively safe. They also borrowed some old brooms from the shed and raced each other out on the pitch until their cheeks were painful from laughter and their noses were red from the cold. 

By the time dinner rolled around, of course the whole student body was aware of what transpired between the handsome dragon tamer and their favorite Care of Magical Creatures professor. 

This was the first piece of juicy information that they had gotten on Professor L/N, and while they were highly amused at what had happened, they were also not surprised that she was dating someone who worked with dragons on a daily basis. 

They also couldn’t deny the fact that she practically lit up in his presence. They had never seen her so at peace and so happy as when she was with Charlie. Anyone with eyes could tell that the pair of them were in love. 

Minerva had also graciously allowed Charlie to sit at the Head Table with the rest of the faculty at dinner, which caused quite the stir. 

Practically all sets of eyes were trained towards the couple as they ate their dinner fairly normally. 

“You two seem to be the talk of the whole school,” the headmistress teased. 

Charlie sent his favorite teacher a shit-eating grin, “Must be my dashing looks that’s got them all interested.” 

“Please, Weasley,” Y/N tutted, “They’ve just gotten a huge piece of information about me. This is basically their Christmas.” 

“Maybe they’ll finally stop hounding me with insane questions now!” Neville chirped happily, and the table erupted in laughter. 

–

General taglist: @expectoevans​ @george-fabian-weasley​ @gxthsanrio​ @slytherinscribbles​ @harpyloon​ @nuttytani​ @mesmerisedangel​ @amourtentiaa​ @sarcasticallywitty15​ 

Charlie taglist: @pinkypurplemagic​

[and-i-want-and-i-need]

My Stadium Tour Experience

I finally saw the Stadium Tour after so long(I was 14 when I bought the tickets and I’m 17 next week so…). Anyway, here’s the quick summary

So I arrived like right when it started so I didn’t see Classless Act much, only one and half songs :/

Joan Jett

Ageless queen

Seriously she looks amazing for someone with her style and her age

And her voice….memorizing

I want to be Joan Jett when I get older

I sadly can’t recall the first song she played but the second one was Cherry Bomb and the stadium went wild

For an act that was 45 minutes it was so fun and I wish she had longer

Poison

So bands will play songs before they start to get the crowd hyped…they chose Welcome to the Jungle

Bret Michaels came run out onto the stage and went wild

I loved his energy so much

“Pretty Shiny boy Bret Michaels”-The ladies behind us

Y’all he had a harmonica solo and it went harder than it should have

C.C DeVille got his solo and the stadium was chanting his name

Did I know there was chance he would play Eruption and lead into Fallen Angel? Yes. Was I still prepared when it happened? Not at all

Every time you blink Bret Michaels has a different hat on

Something to Believe In *Mwah*

What was really cool was how Bret interacted with the fans. He let them touch his guitar and waved to them, and when he was driving back into the stadium, he stopped the golf cart and went and gave a few fans high fives

Mötley Crüe:

I saw tits

Okay yes I don’t like the Crüe much themselves but they know how to put on a show

That magic was kind of lost once the giant statues of women appeared and the focus was on the dancers….first portion was just pure rock and I loved that

There were two people dressed like 80’s rock stars, like, Party City kind of costumes and I thought it was funny

Nikki Sixx’s daughter was there and they showed him playing while engaging with her and yes, it was cute and every woman over forty went “awwww”

Nikki Sixx:* Talking to the crowd and has a towel* “Want this towel? Here, it’s like the one I gave your mom in 1986…that’s probably true actually*

Back to the tits, yes it was even Tommy was speaking and they were shown on the screen

“Three pairs of titties in Houston of all places…oh there we go.”

That was kind of funny because he looked like he had just been released into society after being locked up

In other news the guy next to us was a little too drunk….his friend were literally dragging him

I know Vince Neil can’t sing but…oh it was bad…The backing vocals and the crowd saved him

MICK MARS MY MAN! He was just rocking in his corner and I love him for that

Def Leppard

There was a timer and that was the longest ten minutes of my life

They started with Take What You Want and I would have sang along if I didn’t become paralyzed in awe and excitement

It never felt real. The whole thing was like the best dream of my life

Sav*does the thing* Me: HE DID THE THING

Joe Elliott I luv u 🥺

Sav wasn’t shown enough on the screens :(

They started playing Armageddon It and I went ballistic

*This Guitar* My mom: this is so good why haven’t you play me this song :(

I will mom I will I promise you

RICK ALLEN THE THUNDER GOD AT THE FRONT OF THE STAGE GOING AT IT AND THEN AGAIN A FEW SONGS LATER IN THE BACK

I did not expect Promises for some reason so I was shocked when they played it but it was BEAUTIFUL

Y’all Hysteria had clips of them ove the years and newspaper headings on how awesome they were and I got teary eye

Two Steps Behind>>> And when it was just Joe at the end oml he’s an Angel the lighting his voice amdbaldnalshwpdbd

They love each other so much it’s adorable I want that kind of bond and I hope I have it with my friends

Rick walking around with his little maraca ❤️❤️

Rick:*epic solo* Me: THATS WHY IVE WRITTEN THREE ESSAYS ABOUT THEM

“From my head to my…” I got that on video fyi

“Rick has something to say” “Gunter Glieben Glauchen Globen” *Chaotic screaming*

There were two drunk girls dancing in front of us and they weee just having the time of our life and it was cool to see

Did not expect them to end with Photograph…but it was an amazing ending

They could have gone on for hours and I would have enjoyed every single moment

They played Kings Of The World on the speakers when it was all over so it was a giant stadium just singing along…beautiful

I could go on and on but I won’t I might upload some photos and videos

In all, the best concert I’ve ever to. The crowd was much fun and you can tell everyone wanted to be there. I didn’t know if I wanted to be a rockstar or a middle age woman reliving her youth with her friends. Seeing Def Leppard was so surreal and unbelievable, and everyone was amazing(Vince…Vince tries. He tries).11/10 experience

[thefairyonthemushroom]

the dps boys as ghosts

loves greeting people to his house with a lot of enthusiasm

puts on a white sheet on with two holes to quote his favorite plays

introvert tenants are prefered so he can adopt them as the great extrovert he iS

misses human touch but when tenants watch, participate or make costumes and props for his plays, his used-to-be heart feels warm again, almost as when he felt alive

after years in unbearable silence, trapped in his own abandoned house, he realised some feeling or force was guiding him restlessly for days straight. following that sensation, almost like a string, he arrived to a small cottage near a small city. from there, charlie came out as if no days had passed after they saw each other for the last time.

they held each other only in soul because of their matterless bodies and still felt each other's warmth. that same feeling that kept pushing neil towards his best friend invaded both of them and led them to welton.

as soon as he arrived at welton, he commited himself to mess with the new students and make spooky pranks

mischief rate always ascends at halloween season

he hides himself from students because being invisible is a hell of an advantage to scare bullies

wanders all around the academy and hides things from the teachers

is great comforting misunderstood"trouble makers" w neil's help

writes allllllll the time. seriously. as a song writer, he had so much fun he couldn't stop, even in death

years after wicked mischief in welton from the best buddies, another soul came along: it was meeks with a small smirk on his face when he saw his friends.

helps students study

shows them ways of getting out of welton and tells them how to find their cave until he realises they can all be on the welton's grounds. they weren't confined to the building alone, and that made him incredibily happy

loves being on the roof, listening to one of the student's radios. that student thinks it's malfunctioning and changing channels randomly.

he lets himself being seen only to one student because he trusts him and reminds him of pitts

on pitts' birthday, he talks to the moon, asking himself what he might be doing, where he might be at, wishing him luck even though he doesn't believe in those things

more than five years had to pass for another one to join along, which to them was a relief. they often had reunions at the cave, wondering and speculating what the other might be doing. nonetheless, they had to stop worrying and thinking about what pitts was doing.

looooves helping w pranks. "it is an honour to help in any way,,, but if it involves miscHIEf, then it gets better"

tries to help students study but he's like,,,, so distracted all the time and often says to students "life's too short to worry about academic approval. let's read poetry!!!" "nO" says meeks, "do nOt tempT theM!¡!!!,,, however, this is utterly borring,,,, i'll do it for u, go with pittsie, have fun"

smokes with a pipe and leaves the smell in the teacher's room so it's a. annoying and b. students are not blamed

picks flowers to observe under tha school's mycroscope

has a protégé w meeksie, a shy and kind student who loves astronomy

seven years after pitts' arrival, a man in his 50s suffers a sudden death and joins the rest. the red hair is the first thing they notice as soon as he enters the academy.

loves cleaning charlie's and all the students' mess so they won't either get caught or yelled at

misses teaching so he explains things about his field to whoever wants to listen, especially meeks and pitts with who he has the most interesting debates

asks everybody how they're doing w being ghosts and all at every cave meeting

scares students he doesn't like out of the woods w charlie

loves to tease people but they know it's his way of saying he loves them. you're pathetic = i adore you

makes funny ghostly sounds near the principal's office

just a year later, knox comes along and the first thing he does is put charlie to the ground and hug him like he'd never done before.

rants about the meaning of life aLL the time

helps students w their dates

carefully, makes plans to make students' love interests fall into their arms (sometimes literaLLY)

runs all around the campus and watches the games

talks about his travels around the world along w cameron

leaves notes and poems hidden in the cave so, one day, somebody finds them. he checks everyday to see if anybody finds them and takes them as he indicates

ten years had passed. neil has been waiting for the reunion for way too long, but at the same time, didn't want it. not ever. leaving two boys and a grandaughter behind, todd joins the ghostly club.

extremely shy when someone enters to his bedroom and keeps himself invisible for a couple days, weeks or months (or as long as the person is staying)

loves to stare at the window but when it starts to snow, his Welton bedroom gets colder and sudden sadness feel the new students. "you have to let it go. we all did" neil reminds him. "i just,,,, i just can't. not yet. not with you here,,, not knowing what you had to go through all these years"

reads poetry and plays where he feels unbothred and at ease (generally under a tree and neil often joins too)

misses his family more than any of the others because he never knew before that family could be a beautiful thing until he adopted his babies </3