#dapper dean

[certaimromance]

࣪ ִֶָ☾. Love or seal?

Dean Winchester x Fem!reader

Summary: An avenging spirit is killing married couples, so the Winchesters think it's a good idea to use you to pretend to be one and take down the ghost. But the act becomes all too real before you know it.

Words: 1,8k.

TW: mentions of murder, death, violence (normal warnings in the series). so much teasing. a little of angst with happy ending. dean from the early seasons but soft and chaotic (a bit simp). sam being cupid and forgotten lol. english isn't my first language (sorry for my mistakes, be kind please).

Note: I've always been a Dean girl and I'm so excited about this. I love the concept of "Frenemies to Lovers" with its more playful and cutie version from the earlier seasons, I hope I described it well.

This is my second time writing here, i'm still new.

♡ Enjoy! ♡

You took another look in the mirror and walked a few laps around the dingy motel room, trying to swallow the act. It seemed ironic to wear such a fancy dress and high heels in a place like this, but it was all so you could solve the case and prevent more deaths. After all, it was your job to catch the ghosts and put them to rest.

It had been a long time since you'd been out on a date or worn anything other than your usual jeans and leather jacket. Buying yourself a cute dress and wedding rings with one of your fake cards had been entertaining, the closest thing to a normal life you'd had in years.

“Come in, I need help with the zipper on my dress.” You said after hearing a couple of knocks on your door.

You were still standing in front of the bathroom mirror, waiting for Sam to show up to help you so the two of you could leave soon for the restaurant where you both had reserved a table. The strange thing was that the cold hands you felt running down your back and zipping you up were not his, but those of his older brother.

“What are you doing here? Where is Sam?” You turned around to look at Dean once your dress was closed. It was then that you noticed he was wearing a suit and the ring.

“In the room.” He replied, moving closer to you so he could look at himself in the mirror and adjusting his tie with difficulty, he was not used to wearing one at all and felt suffocated.

“Why are you dressed like that?” You asked him after looking him over from head to toe and inevitably biting your lower lip. He looked good, all dressed up and dapper, you could even smell the scent of cologne wafting off him.

“I'll be your husband for tonight.” Dean smiled at you.

You frowned when you heard that the younger Winchester would no longer be your fake husband, because that was not what you had all agreed upon. Sam had always been more husband material, and you trusted him enough to have some physical contact if necessary. On the other hand, you saw Dean as someone who was far from the prototypical perfect partner, and you could barely talk to him without arguing about your differences, never having touched him except for sparring practice or taking away the gun he kept stealing from you. You couldn't deny that both brothers were attractive, but they were almost equally far from meaning anything romantic to you.

“We flipped a coin and I got the job.” He added to the explanation, noticing the confusion on your face.

Finally you nodded, realizing that once again they had not been able to reach an agreement and had had to put luck in the middle for the choice of roles. You didn't mind going with Dean, you had already been on several hunts with him and trusted his skills, but having to impersonate his wife was weird.

“Can you...?” He tried to ask you, pointing at his tie and all the trouble it caused him.

You let out a small laugh at seeing him so confused over a simple tie and went over to him to take it off. You had to tie it all over again because of how badly he had done it before.

“This looks very wife.” He commented as he saw the delicacy with which you were trying to fix his mess.

“I hope the spirit feels the same and is looking forward to slaughtering us.” You replied, taking a step away from him as you finished.

You two said a quick goodbye to Sam and then hopped into the Impala, which took you to a shiny restaurant near the road where the ghost appeared.

“Don't embarrass me, please.” You said to him as soon as you both sat down at the table and placed your order.

“How could I, darling?” He smiled innocently at you and took your hand on the table, caressing the ring on your finger.

You didn't say anything, just smiled back and kept your thoughts to yourself. You couldn't believe he actually called you that, sounding almost like a husband, even though you knew it was because of the acting, it gave you a funny feeling in your stomach. The most you'd gotten from Dean Winchester in all the years you'd known him was a "good job" and a strange smile, followed by a lot of questions about your careless decisions. You alone were far enough away from marriage, let alone someone like him.

“You look very handsome tonight.” You told him as you saw he was drinking water, causing him to almost spit it out in surprise.

Usually you never complimented him, barely looked him in the eye, talked about anything other than hunting, or even laughed at his jokes. It seemed that his presence didn't matter much to you because your interests were more aligned with Sam's and you got along better with him. That bothered Dean a lot, he hated being so invisible in your eyes.

Now, however, you didn't take your eyes off him and even gave him compliments that left him speechless to continue the performance.

“At least the food is good.” You said absentmindedly as the waiter brought the plates.

“And the company?”

You looked into his eyes, trying to understand if he was playing with you or if he was really hurt by your lack of emotion. The strange thing was that you didn't know if it was one or the other, his greenish gaze was a mystery.

“The best company, of course.” You gave him a smile and picked up your glass of wine to make a small toast.

“How affectionate you are now.”

“Yes, I feel almost as if today is the last day of my life.” You said with irony.

Dinner went off without a hitch in a quiet and strangely pleasant atmosphere. You couldn't help but be surprised by Dean's friendliness, it was the first time you had a civilized conversation with him. The first time he held your hand and you noticed how green his eyes were.

Suddenly, everything he said, silly or not, made you smile. The only rational thing to do was to attribute it to the glass of wine he had decided to drink. In general, you didn't allow yourself to drink alcohol, let alone in the middle of a hunt. But now, for some reason, you thought it would help your nerves and relax you a bit.

“Where did you leave the car?” You asked once they left the site and the time to travel the road of death was approaching.

“In the corner over there...I hope.” He answered without really being sure. For him, it had all happened so fast when you two arrived.

“My feet hurt. Don't play with me now.” You said, hating the high heels you were wearing.

At that moment, the hunter stopped and motioned for you to sit on the bench by the exit. Unsure, you obeyed and frowned as he knelt down to gently remove your shoes.

“Happy now?” He asked he asked, holding your heels in his hands.

“I can't walk barefoot.” You claimed, putting on a fake sad face and lowering your gaze to his arms.

Dean shook his head instantly.

“No, don't even think that I'll carry you.” He warned confidently, folding his arms.

A few minutes later, he was silently leading you to the car, snorting at every opportunity to give in so easily to your wishes.

“This looks very husband.” You pointed out with a smile and a teasing tone.

��I would offer you to the spirit right now.” He replied, looking at you with narrowed eyes.

“How lovely you are, my dear.”

The two finally got into the car and headed for the exit. Dean had received a message from his brother telling him that he had found the name of the ghost woman and her grave with her husband, who was the cause of all his resentment against happily married couples, and to top it off, he was buried on top of her.

“Sam is going to burn the grave and everything will be fine.” He said trying to comfort you as he saw the concern on your face. “Maybe the woman doesn't want to kill anyone today.”

“You have too much faith in a murderous spirit.” You sighed and tried to remove the ring from your finger, but it stuck. “And you should take the ring off.”

“Are we getting divorced so soon?” He replied in a joking tone, with his eyes on the road.

You looked at him seriously, this was no time for jokes because everything was going wrong. If Sam didn't dig up those bones soon, they were probably going to kill you both and the plan was going to fail completely. It was supposed to be easy and you were terrified that it wasn't anymore.

“Come on, don't be like that. You were laughing so hard with me.” He smiled at you.

Before you could respond, a pale woman in a blood-stained wedding dress appeared in the back seat. You could barely say Dean's name when the ghost's hand came around your neck and began to choke you. After a few moments, you couldn't even breathe and everything became a blur.

You didn't want to die, at least not at that moment. Not without having lived a life as good as the night before everything went to hell. You still had too many things to do to go like that, let alone in front of him, you couldn't let that happen.

“Don't move.” The hunter said to you before drawing his gun and disputing you to the back seat.

The ghost disappeared for a few seconds and then reappeared just ahead of the road. A braking maneuver as the woman was beginning to burn in front of the two of you almost made you jump out of your seat.

Sam had succeeded.

“Are you okay?” Dean asks, looking at you with concern.

“Yeah.” You said, still trying to catch your breath and process everything that had happened.

“And my thanks for saving you and not letting death part us?”

At any other time, you would have simply made a sarcastic comment and emphasized that it was all thanks to her brother. However, the recent experience had changed something in you and made you kiss his cheek.

Before you could completely pull your face away from his, he put his hand on your cheek and pulled you close. You felt his lips move over yours and responded without hesitation. A big part of you had been thinking about this moment all night and was more than happy it was happening. It was like the perfect ending to a fake marriage date, minus the killer ghost part, and it made you smile in the middle of it.

“You didn't flip any coin, did you?” You asked as you broke away from the kiss for a second.

“No, I didn't.” He admitted, leaving a kiss on your head and making you smile even more.

[catindabag]

The third set of ✨Academy Photos✨ in my TBOSAS Crack!AU. Enjoy~.😏 Here’s PART 1 & PART 2.

Palmyra, Iphigenia, Juno, and Lysistrata hugging and acting like a bunch of besties after acing their history exam. Moreover, this photo was taken by Diana Ring before all of them (except Palmyra) were quickly rushed to the clinic for accidentally eating expired pudding made by Mrs. Monty. #gotfoodpoisoned #again

Coryo Snow pretending to be sick in order to skip Dr. Gaul’s lecture. The Cabbage Boy decided to go on a secret date with his rich sugar daddy boyfriend Sejanus Plinth who also called in sick to skip class. #SnowPlinth #powercouplegoals

Dennis, Livia, Iphigenia, Florus, Gaius, Persephone, and Juno skipping school to infiltrate Dean Highbottom’s Mansion in order to change their sh*tty grades. #besties #forever #stronger #together

Festus Creed looking dapper before being interviewed by Lucky Flickerman on why dumpster diving became illegal in Panem. #produmpsterdiver #foodisfood #feelingattackedrightnow #iaminnocent

Gaius Breen checking himself out on Highbottom’s office mirror before accidentally breaking it with his foot. #feelinggreat #lookinggood #gotanotherdemerit #sorrynotsorry

Lizzie, Vipsania, and Apollo using the infamous but powerful ✨Ravinstill Nepotism✨ to secretly bring Wovey to school because Hilarius Heavensbee forgot to give the child her Apple Berry Pie. #broketherules #sorrynotsorry #nomoreHungerGames #RavinstillNepoPower

Class Pres. Felix Ravinstill and Clemmie also breaking the rules and using the infamous ✨Ravinstill Nepotism✨ to invite Mizzen out to eat in one of the best seafood restaurants in the Capitol. Afterwards, they stole used Highbottom’s car to ride around the city for fun. #broketherules #Demerits4Life #RavinstillNepoPower #nomoreHungerGames #withMizzen

Arachne Crane calling her parents to sue Festus Creed and Sejanus Plinth for stealing her ✨Sandwich Queen✨ title after surviving the infamous Zoo Fiasco. #suckitlosers #iamtherealsandwishqueen #wearegoingtocourt

Coryo Snow sneaking inside the Zoo again to ask the amazing Lucy Gray to sing ✨Snow On The Beach✨ on his wedding day with Sejanus Plinth. #weneedasinger #ASAP #Snowjanus #weddingplanning

[totallyunbiasedspnpolls]

Pardon if we forgot your fave Dean. Mention it in your tags!

[strwbryshortie]

skipping around but here is Suptober day 10, “Close Shave”

When I read this prompt I immediately thought of Michael!Dean and his dapper dangerousness

This is painted with India inks and coffee on Arches cold press paper.

[megidonitram]

Everyone's Running From Something (ch. 4)

A Baldur's Gate 3 University Professor AU

Rating: M

Quick Summary: Astarion and Gale are two University English professors precariously mentoring a troubled 19-year-old and falling in love.

💖Main Pairing : BloodWeave,(Astarion/Gale) 💕Side Pairings: Shadowheart/Nocturne, Karlach/Dammon, Wyll/The Dark Urge, Tav/Tav 💔Past Pairings: Gale/Mystra, Astarion/Sebastian, Astarion/Tav

<=Previous Chapter | Master List | Ao3 | Next Chapter =>

**Please see Master List Entry for Full Content Warnings**

⏰Chapter Warning⏰ None

The all-hands meeting for the beginning of the semester went the same way every all-hands meeting at the beginning of semesters go. Every professor and TA in a humanities field got squeezed into a conference room that wasn’t quite big enough, had a powered sugar donut or a couple cubes of assorted melon with half a Styrofoam cup of burnt coffee, and listened to the departmental dean give an un-rousing speech about being on the same page with the other departments. Then he talked at nauseam about school policies and ran a quick training session over a new time-tracking software that would be implemented in 3 weeks’ time.

Gale scribbled down notes on a big yellow legal pad and tried to ignore Jen and Astarion, making faces at each other as he wrote. He’d been in academia long enough to know they’d both be crying to him in a few weeks when they messed up their timecards.

As the meeting drew to a close, a dapper man with slicked-back chestnut hair and a car salesman smile stepped into the room. Astarion went stiff like a cat puffing up to defend itself. The dapper man just gave him a plasticky, knowing smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes.

The dean perked up a bit as he noticed the man lingering in the back of the room. “Raphael, what a pleasant surprise! I had no idea you would be joining us,” he exclaimed, “We were just finishing up. Are there any words of wisdom you’d like to impart to our humanities faculty?”

“Oh, nothing so important,” Raphael said, and suddenly Gale understood why Astarion was so on edge. Everything about the man oozed with a disingenuous charm that made Gale’s hair stand on end. “I just realized I forgot to send out a notice about the upcoming donor gala the next coming Friday. I realized you were all in a meeting right now, so I thought I’d pop in and remind you in person.”

Raphael’s eyes landed directly on Astarion as he spoke his next sentence. “There is a reasonable expectation that faculty attend these events.” Out of the corner of his eye, Gale saw Astarion’s expression go steely. “After all, we want to show up and show out for the people who allow us to do so much.”

“Of Course!” The dean chirped. “I know I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

The meeting adjourned, and Astarion immediately made a break for the door. Gale hurriedly gathered his things in one arm, instinctually following after the only person in the room he really knew, like a baby duck.

Raphael stepped into Astarion’s path before he could get out of the meeting room. “Ah, we meet again, Dr. Ancunín!” Raphael’s voice dripped with sugary contempt. “I will see you at the donor gala, won’t I?”

“Perhaps. Are you thinking about calling in that favor I owe you?” Astarion’s voice was clipped, his face unnervingly blank.

“I think I’d like to wait on that a little longer, but I would like you there in case I change my mind.” Before Astarion could respond, Raphael’s gaze slid off him and onto- “Dr. Dekarios! Wonderful to see you. Are you settling in well?” He reached out a hand to him.

Gale stuffed his legal pad into his work so he could shake Raphael’s hand. “Exceptionally well!” he replied. “Everyone’s done their utmost to make me feel very welcome!”

“Oh, you don’t have to fib on your new colleagues’ account, Dr. Dekarios. I’m more than familiar with how surly certain members of the English department can get.” Raphael laughed congenially, but Astarion shot him a poisonous look.

“I’m not lying to you, sir,” Gale replied. “Astarion’s been nothing but professional.”

“Well, perhaps he’s going a bit soft.” There was a flash of something dangerous behind his eyes. He turned to Astarion. “I shall see you next Friday.” It was a command more than a farewell, but he walked away all the same.

Astarion muttered under his breath. Gale didn’t catch what he said but could make an educated guess. Astarion exhaled a deep breath like he was equalizing pressure.

He turned to Gale and said, “Thank you.”

Gale blinked. “Of course.”

Astarion opened his mouth to say something else, but the words couldn’t or wouldn’t form.

Shadowheart stepped in between them, too concerned with responding to a text message to notice the weird tension. “Karlach wants to get drinks.” She said. “She got stuck in traffic and doesn’t want to drive all the way down here for nothing.”

“Roveer’s?” Astarion asked, a very weary resignation in his voice.

“Yes, probably.”

“Nothing like running into your students at a sports bar a week before classes start…” Astarion grumbled. “Fine. Let me finish here, and I’ll meet you there in, oh… 15 minutes.” He turned to Gale. “Are you coming?”

“To the office?”

Astarion gave him a perplexed look. “To the bar.” He clarified. “You should take the opportunity to meet Karlach.”

Gale could feel himself going bright red as Shadowheart snickered. “Right. Yes. I would love to.” He replied.

“I’ll let Karlach know you’re coming. She’ll be thrilled.” Shadowheart replied, giving Gale a warm smile. “I’ll go lock up. See you in a bit.”

“Come on then.” Astarion replied, nodding for Gale to follow him.

***

The all-hand meeting was on the third floor, so by the time they’d returned to the basement and back up a floor to leave, Gale was starting to fear his knees wouldn’t survive the week- let alone the semester. “There has to be an elevator in this building.” Gale huffed and puffed as he hoofed it up the last flight of stairs. He didn’t want his new colleague’s first impression of him to be of him on his hands and knees wheezing. “I can’t take much more of this…”

“There is, but personally I don’t like chancing it unless I really don’t want to be in a meeting.” Astarion slowed to a stop at the top of the stairs to wait for him. He didn’t seem any worse for wear, but he also seemed much trimmer than Gale was- or at the very least, his shirt accentuated the pleasing nip of his waist. Gale wondered if Astarion was a swimmer. “A history adjunct got stuck in it overnight a few years past, and it still reeks a little bit when it gets hot enough.”

Gale laughed, but Astarion very pointedly did not.

The conversation lulled a little bit.

“Do you mind if I ask you something?” Gale asked.

“That entirely depends on what you want to ask.” Astarion stepped into the hallway, taking a moment to slip into his grey wool peacoat before they ventured outside.

“Raphael, is he always…”

“Such an ass?” Astarion finished his thought. Gale wouldn’t have used such a strong word, but Astarion had gotten the spirit of the question right, at least. “He’s usually much worse.”

“Oh?”

“He’s a glorified middleman with too much power and time on his hands.” Astarion scoffed. “He enjoys putting things in people’s way and watching them try to wriggle their way out of problems he created. My advice is to deal with him as little as possible.”

“Is he who you went to talk to earlier?”

Astarion gave him a poisonous look that only confirmed Gale’s suspicion.

They walked across campus in uneasy silence. The bitterly cold wind whipped and whistled, tossing the last remnants of fall leaves across the concourse. The few student residents who’d gotten in that morning had either decided to hold up in their rooms or were enjoying their free time in more exciting corners of town. Gale found himself wondering what Xenia was doing... He hoped she wasn’t all alone in an empty dorm.

“Does Xenia have many friends?” Gale asked as they approached a crosswalk leading to the block of shops across from campus.

“Hm?” Astarion tapped the pedestrian-call button, which commanded them to ‘wait!’ in a mechanical voice. “I think she probably has more friends than she realizes she does. Kids like her tend to think they’re alone in everything.”

“Poor kid… Seems like she’s been through enough.” Gale sighed. There was something heartbreaking in the phrase ‘kids like her.’ It was sad to think that there were more 19-year-olds out there carrying emotional burdens far too heavy for their age- sadder still to think that if there weren’t, then Xenia would be alone.

“She’ll figure herself out eventually. She’s not like…” Astarion paused, seemingly a little shocked by what he was about to say. He leveled a wary glance at Gale. “She’s not a quitter, I mean.”  

“I’m sure she’s not. I just hope she doesn’t run herself ragged.” The walk light flashed, and they hurried across the street.

***

They were comedically out of place in Roveer’s Roadhouse. A group of grown adults in Oxford dress crowding around a sticky Bud-Lit branded high top surrounded by a bevy of flatscreen monitors playing every sports broadcast under the sun. Shadowheart was already nursing a syrupy cocktail out of a chipped margarita glass.

An extremely tall woman with a red tipped mohawk and smiling eyes bounded over to Gale and clapped a firmly friendly hand on his shoulder. “You’re the new Adjunct, I take it?” She asked. “I’m Karlach, Professor Cliffgate, if you’re nasty.”

“Gale Dekarios.” He reached out to shake her hand. She fist-bumped him instead, and Gale got a glimpse of a nasty burn scar peeking out from the sleeve of her jacket. “It’s a pleasure!”

“Aw, I have a great-aunt named Gale!” Karlach replied.

“I get that a lot…” Gale sighed. “I like your hair!”

“Thanks!” Karlach tussled her own hair. “Told my kiddos they could pick what color I dyed it if they all passed their benchmarks.”

“Does Balduran give benchmarks?”

“Oh, no. Teaching university is my side gig,” Karlach replied. “I’m actually a full-time middle school teacher.”

A spindly girl with bleach-blonde hair pulled into space buns sidled up to the table, clutching a notepad. “Can I take your order?” She seemed quite put upon being asked to do actual work on a slow day.

“Vodka Soda,” Astarion replied, holding his ID out to the server.

She took it and dropped it in her apron, jotted something down on her notepad, and turned to Gale with an expectant look.

“I’ll, uh, take a Corona,” Gale replied. He’d never ordered a Corona in his life, but it seemed like an acceptable ‘getting drinks with colleagues’ kind of an order.

The server stood there staring at him a moment long before she asked, “ID?”

“Oh, um…” Gale patted for his wallet and realized he left it in his desk drawer. “I didn’t realize I would need it…”

“You didn’t realize you’d need an ID at a college bar?” Astarion asked dryly as he turned to the server. “Just put it on my tab.”

The server nodded and walked away without asking if they needed anything else.

“Wow Gale, just one day on the job, and you’re already bumming free drinks off the department chair.” Shadowheart teased. She took a sip of her drink crinkling her nose at the taste.

Gale flustered. “I-I was going to pay with my phone, I swear! I wasn’t planning this.”

“Relax. We’re not so underpaid that I can’t afford to buy you one beer.” Astarion rolled his eyes. “You can return the favor when you get your first paycheck.”

Gale blushed. “Alright.”

The server brought them their drinks without another word, then plopped down at the end of the bar to scroll on her phone. Gale pushed the lime through the neck of his beer bottle and watched it fizz as it sank to the bottom of the dubiously golden liquid.

“So, did I miss anything important at the all-hands?” Karlach asked idly, stirring her bourbon and coke.

“You know you didn’t,” Shadowheart replied. “We’re changing timecard systems, and Raphael and Astarion are in another one of their weird power struggles-there, I saved you an hour and a half.”

Karlach’s eyes lit up, and she turned towards Astarion. “Before the semester even starts?” There was a conspiratorial glee in her voice. “What the fuck could he have possibly done this time?”

“Why spoil the mood by ruminating on that rat bastard?” Astarion said. He picked the lemon slice out of his drink and laid it on a napkin. “I’ll tell you later.”

“Fair.” Karlach shrugged. She turned back to Gale and fixed him with a warm smile. “So, Gale, what brings you to the wonderful world of higher education?”

Gale had thought a lot about what he would tell people when they asked him why he wanted to teach college. He’d written little speeches in the shower about the joys of teaching language and the satisfaction of helping students reach their goal, but sitting in a group of other English professors, that suddenly all felt very trite.

“I was a public librarian, but I had to step away from my last position when I got divorced.” He admitted. “I found a job at a community college teaching database management, and I realized I’d just always missed teaching.” He took a long pull of his beer. The sour of the lime battled with the bitterness of the beer on his tongue.

“Library science might be a harder industry to break into than academia. It must have been tough to leave that behind.” Astarion mused.

“I do miss it terribly sometimes… but my ex helped me get into graduate school and got me my first library job. If I stayed, I would never be able to make anything that was truly mine.” Gale sighed. He could see the wheels spinning in Shadowheart’s head as she tried to figure out his age.

“You talk like you’re as old as this bag of bone,” Karlach pointed a thumb at Astarion, who glared daggers at her. “But there’s no way you’re that old.”

“I’m 35.” Gale clarified.

“That’s a little bit older than I thought, but still nowhere near as old as Astarion,” Shadowheart said.

“You are barely two years younger than me.” Astarion snapped.

“Barely a decade older than Gale, too.” Shadowheart shot back.

Astarion rolled his eyes and muttered something into his drink. “Did you go to get your master’s straight out of undergrad?” he asked.

“Yes, why?”

Astarion shrugged. “That’s just quite young to be with someone that well-established in their field.”

“Oh, we didn’t get together until I graduated.” That wasn’t entirely true. They didn’t get together publicly until he graduated. He didn’t know why he was still defending Mystra. It wasn’t like any of his new colleagues would ever meet her.

“I wasn’t trying to imply anything…” Astarion lied.

“Of course not.”

They both took a sip of their drink, holding awkward eye contact.

“Well, here’s to making something for yourself then,” Shadowheart said, holding her drink out to Gale for a cheers.

Gale clinked the neck of his beer bottle against her glass. “I’ll drink to that.”

[bestfurrywife]

Rules

Character must be 18+ (if they don't have a specified age, they must be reasonably assumed to be an adult)

No explicit nsfw images in submissions, suggestive content ok

If you're submitting an indie artist's character (eg, someone's oc from tumblr or other social media) you MUST credit them

follow @bestfurryhusband lol

Submission Form

Submissions for tournament 2 are OPEN

Contestants:

Next contestants (feel free to submit again if you have propaganda to add):

Aela The Huntress (The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim)

Allison Goleta (Super Lesbian Animal RPG)

Applejack (My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic)

Auroth, the Winter Wyvern (Defense of the Ancients 2)

 Bonnie (@dapper-lil-catgirl on Tumblr)

Princess Cadence (My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic)

Carmelita Fox (Sly Cooper)

Catra (She-Ra and the Princesses of Power)

Catty (Undertale)

Dabarella Yeetster (Adventure Is Nigh!)

Dean Hardscrabble (Monsters University)

Demona (Gargoyles)

Deoxys (Pokemon)

Diane Foxington (The Bad Guys)

Eclipsa Butterfly (Star vs the Forces of Evil)

Eda the Owl Lady (The Owl House)

Falin (Chimera) (Dungeon Meshi)

Fenneko (Aggretsuko)

Gadget Hackwrench (Chip N Dale Rescue Rangers)

Goodra (Pokemon)

Isabelle (Animal Crossing)

Laylee (Yooka-Laylee)

Lifts-Her-Tail (The Lusty Argonian Maid; Skyrim)

Lop (Star Wars Visions)

Merveille Million (Solatorobo)

Mrs. Brisby (The Secret of NIMH)

Miss Spider (James and the Giant Peach)

Moon Butterfly (Star vs the Forces of Evil)

Ms Tarantula/Webs (The Bad Guys)

Nala (lion king)

Olympia (Rivals of Aether)

Pinkie pie (My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic)

Princess Cadence (My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic)

Pyanfar Chanur (The Chanur novels by C.J. Cherryh)

Rainbow dash

Rarity

Retsuko (Aggretsuko)

Sarabi (Lion King)

Sasha Phyronix (Ratchet and Clank)

Shahvee (The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim)

Sophodra (Humans-B-Gone!)

Summer (Spiritfarer)

Sybil (Pseudoregalia)

The Empress (A Hat in Time)

Trixie (capitol critters)

Trixie Lulamoon (My Little Pony)

Tuca Toucan (Tuca & Bertie)

Tyranitar (Pokemon)

Vanilla the Rabbit (Sonic the Hedgehog)

Waai Fu (Arknights)

Washimi (Aggretsuko)

Wuk Lamat (Final Fantasy XIV)

Zecora (My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic)

Previous contestants:

Alphys (Undertale)

Arlinn Kord (Magic the Gathering)

Astrid (Spiritfarer)

Birdo (Mario)

Captain Amelia (Treasure Planet)

Cordelia Hendricks (The Smoke Room)

Dahlia Byrnes (The Smoke Room)

Duchess (Aristocats)

Erma Felna (Erma Felna: EDF)

Fenna van Houwelinck (Glory Hounds)

Fidget (Dust: An Elysian Tale)

Fillyjonk (The Moomins)

Fluttershy (My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic)

Freya Crescent (Final Fantasy 9)

Furryosa (Atomic Crops)

Golem (Pokemon)

Greasefang (Magic the Gathering)

Hecate (Tokyo Afterschool Summoners)

Holo (Spice and Wolf)

Hoodwink (Dota 2)

Hornet (Hollow Knight)

Ilia Shrikewood (Temptation's Ballad)

Isabelle (Animal Crossing)

Jenna Begay (Echo)

Judy Hopps (Zootopia)

Juno (Beastars)

Krystal (Star Fox Adventure)

Laika (Laika Aged Through Blood)

Laika (Laika's Comet)

Lola Bunny (Space Jam)

Loona (Helluva Boss)

Lopunny (Pokemon)

Loveander (Palworld)

Madam Dora (The Smoke Room)

Madame Vastra (Doctor Who)

Maid Marian (Disney's Robin Hood)

Marie Itami (BNA)

Maria (Extracurricular Activities)

Meicrackmon (Digimon)

Miss Piggy (The Muppets)

Molly Yarnchopper (Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts)

Moomin Mamma (The Moomins)

Mother Glory (Friends at the Table)

Muffet (Undertale)

Nidoqueen (Pokemon)

Princess Celestia (My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic)

Princess Luna (My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic)

Queen Bee-elzebub (Helluva Boss)

Renamon (Digimon)

Rivet (Ratchet and Clank)

Rose (Remember the Flowers)

Rouge the Bat (Sonic the Hedgehog)

Roxanne Wolf (Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach)

Salazzle (Pokemon)

Sally Acorn (Sonic the Hedgehog)

Soraka (League of Legends)

Tigress (Kung Fu Panda)

Toriel (Undertale)

Torque (X-Com: Chimera Squad)

Twilight Sparkle (My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic)

Vipress (Kung Fu Panda)

Xenomorph (Alien)

Whisper the Wolf (Sonic the Hedgehog)

Yona (My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic)

[stevieschrodinger]

"No Dean, you don't understand....this angel, he's not like us he's...a principality. Maybe the first angel. The history is...murky because there was no one to record it, but this angel might have made the universe."

"Wasn't that God?" Sam asks from where he's perched on the end of the library table.

"Doesn't matter, the OG angel has a book we need and we're going to go and get it."

Castiel shrugs looks like he's going to protest, but then simply says "you hate flying."

Dean looks like his whole body has puckered up but he goes and stands next to Cas anyway. Needs must. The whole world is on the line.

Again.

They appear on busy street corner in London, and Dean tries to reconcile the fact that he's pretty sure he left his guts back at the bunker.

Cas squares his shoulders before he goes in, taking a deep breath that he doesn't even need, and that's concerning enough for Dean.

A little bell tinkles happily over the door and it's...nice inside. Quaint. Dean doesn't know what he was expecting, but this does seem like a nice, regular, if old timey book shop.

Until a man dressed entirely in back, wearing shades inside which instantly sets off Dean's douch alarm, sort of slithers out from amongst the shelves.

Cas' angel blade drops into his hand instantly, "Crawly." He growls, sounding as surprised as Cas ever does.

"Oh Castiel," Crawly replies. He whips his sunglasses off, yellow eyes, slitted pupils like a snake. Scales flash across his skin, teeth long and sharp, curved like scimitar fangs, he seems to grow, blackened, gently smoking wings unfurling from his back. Not shadows, actual wings that Dean could touch. A flaming sword shimmers into existence, "make my day." The man in black, Crawly, hisses, voice sibilant, a forked tongue making an appearance.

"What have you done with Aziraphale?" Cas' demands.

Crawly seems to be smirking, "I think you'll find the question is what haven't I done with Aziraphale."

The scene is interrupted by a soft looking man coming out of the stacks, perfectly white curled hair, wearing a very dapper white three piece suit and bow tie. He takes Crowley's hand, "put it away please."

"But he got his out first!" Crawly sounds like a petulant child.

"Yes, but this is still a book shop and his isn't on fire."

Crawly seems to deflate, "oh, alright angel. Spoiling my fun," he grumbles, as all the non human parts fold away again.

Aziraphale kisses him on the cheek, "thank you darling. Now, we have guests, go and put the kettle on please."

Crawly slinks out the back.

[naughtystiel]

a fic where dean and cas are teachers but once they leave uni they change into leather jackets and go fuck shit up while listening to some dirty rock and then the next day they go back to work dressed all dapper and smart bc theyve got bills to pay

[spnfemslashbang]

Title: Lion's Paw

Author: @mbqnoyolo

Artist: @KaylieMalinza

Rating: Teen and Up

Pairings: Portia & Ellie, Dean & Ellie background. James Frampton/Portia background

Warnings: Mild Profanity

Additional Tags: familiars, hellhounds, canon verse

Summary: After the nightmare at Cassity Ranch, Ellie heads south for more goofer dust. Having Crowley's hellhounds on your heels makes for a rough road trip and along the way she has a run in with one of the Things That Go Bump in the Night. But things don't turn out the way she had expected them to.

Posting on July 24

Keep reading for a short excerpt!

Cassity Ranch, Shoshone, Idaho

Ellie had learned how to make her own hex bags while on the run from Crowley. She had to. Dean Winchester showed her how to do it her last night on the Ranch. That night she left the place that had been her home since she was a girl without a second thought. Her mother worked the ranch before her until the Parkinson’s made work too difficult. Before then, Ellie had shadowed her mother nearly every day during the summer. So she picked up for her mom around the ranch when the tremors and stiffness took their toll. As a child, she wasn’t nearly as capable as her rough hewn mother, but they managed until a dapper gentleman visited Shoshone. He told thirteen year old Ellie he could make her dreams come true. And she believed him. She had to. There was nowhere else for her to go.

Ten years later, she left her home at a run. Her life was stuffed in bags or boxes and thrown in one of the old farm trucks. A truck she knew she could Frankenstein together if need be. Her shotgun was laid flat next to her on the broad vinyl seat except now Sam had loaded it with salt rounds. Around her neck was a soft leather pouch that Dean swore would hide her from the demon dogs that prowled for the damned. Prowled for her. After the hex bags, the brothers set her up with supplies: goofer dust, salt rounds, spells, sigils, an iron crowbar, holy oil and water. Dean gave her that pair of glasses she thought looked good on him. The rectangle lenses with a thick black frame against his chiseled cheekbones. The way they had accentuated his long lashes and big, green eyes. She smiled sweetly at the flash of a moment they had after she called him Clark Kent.

[finlands-beret]

Thinking again of all of Sylv's musical references in his moveset: That's Amore - Dean Martin song Have a Ball - album by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes Ultra Violet - Bananarama song Hit Parade - BRADIO song Kiss Me Deadly, Gold Rush - several songs of the same name The Fight Fantastic - multiple albums, also an idiom meaning to dance nimbly Kiss of Death - several songs/albums of the same name Love Hurts - Everly Brothers song Shooting Stars - numerous songs/albums; also the name of a British comedy panel show which featured music Rough 'n' Tumble - jazz album by Stanley Turrentine "Dressed to Kill" accolade - 10cc song of the same name Bonus: Golden Boy's dialogue while giving the recipe book for the Dapper Doublet - references to Robbie Williams' song "Angels" and Take That's song "Shine"

[shirtlesssammy]

The Winchesters 1x08: Hang on to Your Life

Kansas City, Missouri

Outside a bar called the Knave of Hearts. (The marquee indicates that Jericho is headlining with Brock Billings. Is Jericho a nice nod to Robbie and Rich’s old show? Love it.) Brock pops out of one of the doors and wanders into a back alley. He scares a poor street cat and promptly burns up for it. 

Oh, wait, there’s got to be something more going on here. A whistling, dapper-dressed man approaches and warms his hands by the glowing charred remains of Brock. 

Mary, Millie, and John are back at Mary’s tending to an unconscious Samuel’s wounds. Ada has prescribed a magical tea to help with the nasty Akrida gash on Samuel’s shoulder. Operation Heavy Flirting has entered its next stage for Mary and John, and Millie knows when to give these two Alone Time. 

Samuel wakes and mumbles that he found a way to find the queen. 

Mary and John tell Carlos and Lata about the Akrida queen. There’s been radio silence from the Akrida since they found Samuel. Carlos did hear about a man burning up outside the Knave of Hearts though. The Knave of Hearts is THE place in the midwest to make it in music. Mary opts to stay behind to help her father mend. John opts to stay behind to simp after Mary. Carlos approves. 

“Being a hunter means living a life of sacrifice – not a lot of room for dreams. But you open your heart and get a little lucky, you’ll find you gain more than you lose.” 

(Boris puts on clown nose)

(Natasha against her better judgment, reluctantly also puts on clown nose)

Once at the bar, the duo sets out to investigate the case. Carlos interrogates the bartender with no luck. Lata finds sigils in Brock’s dressing room. They discuss the meaning of them when Carlos runs into an old music buddy, Jericho. It seems they were a duo once upon a time named Rivers Gemini and The Jericho Kid.  

Operation Flirtfest actually gets to the meat of the situation and John and Mary talk about the kiss. Neither regrets the kiss but Mary doesn’t know what the future holds.

Lata is having the Time of Her Life reminiscing with Rivers Gemini and The Jericho Kid. 

As Carlos and Lata head out, Carlos knocks a hat off the table of another customer. He picks it up and hands it back to the man. 

GABRIEL!!!!! OR LOKI!!!! OR THE TRICKSTER!!!!! THEY”RE ALL THE SAME!!!! AGGGHHHH

Lata’s van research reveals that Brock’s sigils were trying to protect him from dark magic. Lata asks if Carlos wants to go to the show that night. He declines and makes it clear that it was always a choice of careers. “It’s a matter of time before you come across a monster and then something has to die – the dream or the monster.” 

They interview the roadie. He tells them about the hat man following Brock out of the bar the night he died. 

Meanwhile, Millie and Samuel get to know each other. It’s chilly.

He doesn’t want the tea until Millie mentions that Ada prescribed it. Samuel is able to get in quite a few zingers about John. And he learns that Henry was a Men of Letters. (Or as he so Dean-ly says “Mole Men”, and then proceeds to explain the joke and it’s hilarious and not hilarious but at least we know where the Dean Dad humor comes from.) Millie makes it clear that without her “mole man” of a husband, Samuel’s daughter would be dead right now. 

Jericho’s set has begun. Lata spots Gabriel Loki jamming out in the back of the room and alerts Carlos. Jericho starts to smoke and Carlos grabs him and drags him off stage. Lata goes to confront Gabriel Loki but it’s no longer him. Meanwhile, the bartender burns.

Lata and Carlos head backstage later to find Jericho hurriedly packing up. He’s somewhat reluctant to talk, but quickly falls sway to their puppy eyed earnestness. He explains that his solo career fizzled until a few weeks ago. He met Loki and, while drunk, agreed to some kind of deal. He woke up with a flaming tattoo on his forearm. 

After that, his songs light the audience up inside…but in the bad, SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION way. Each night, one member of his audience dies a terrible, fiery death. If he doesn’t sing to someone (and sentence to burn), then the curse will burn him up instead. When Brock tried to get cut into the mad profits of Jericho’s rising career, Jericho killed him off. Tonight, he tried singing to the guy in the suit who bound him in the deal - some guy named Loki. 

At Casa de Campbell, Samuel stumbles his way into the den, apparently with the intention of grilling John about his dad. Instead, Mary cuts him off. She wants to know more about what Samuel was mumbling in his sleep. How can they find the Akrida queen? Samuel explains that he picked up on some signs and decided to check them out. He’s got three rolls of film (THOSE WERE THE DAYS AMIRITE?) for them to develop and figure out clues. Mary stalks off to play photo lab. John confronts Samuel and tells him to treat Mary like a daughter “and less like a soldier.” Oof. 

Back at the hunt, Lata, Carlos, and Jericho head for the van. Inside the van they find Loki lounging. “You were right about this one,” he says to Jericho, gesturing to Carlos. “He’s got pluck.” 

Jericho’s largely unsurprised to see him, and we quickly find out why. Loki made a deal with Jericho - if he can pass on his curse to another then he can be free from it. Jericho led Loki to Carlos. Before their eyes, Loki transforms, proving his powers, and tells them that Carlos taking on the Mark - I mean, the tattoo - is the only way he can save his friend. Former friend? 

Loki reads us Carlos’ resume, which is very enjoyable for me AND for him! It includes:

Love of modern dance

Gifted typist

Musician, hunter, hair model

He also sees Carlos’s nature, and knows that Carlos won’t walk away and let his friend remain cursed, or die. Against Lata’s protests, Carlos agrees to take on the curse.

Loki zaps Jericho away. Where did he go? “Oh, please, nobody cares. At least I don’t. He’s like a security deposit. Move on from that.” He hands Carlos a.k.a. Rivers Gemini a concert flyer for…his own comeback show. Carlos needs to play that night or face the consequences. 

They bring the news back to the Campbell house. John suggests just removing the tattoo. Please. The only way you can do that is by magically de-aging Carlos for the duration of the episode via an ancient witch’s curse and who has one of THOSE just lying around? The team sets to their research tasks with gusto. 

Samuel watches them spring into action. Carlos and Lata have come very far in just a few months, according to him. John earnestly tells him that it’s all down to Mary’s leadership. The gang settles in for a good old fashioned research and strategy session. Millie hands Carlos a pile of research, and heads off to prepare the “family special” dish for the somber occasion of Carlos’s maybe impending death. Millie’s special dish turns out to be a regular slice right out of my childhood. It appears to be something like…beef stroganoff over toast, with boiled green beans!

As they eat, they continue to research. Lata discovers a clue. Loki’s power is tied to a hand mirror he keeps with him. And sticking with the shiny objects theme, Samuel finds some guidance that says Loki can be killed with a shiny knife imbued with the hunter’s own blood. The gang prepare to slice their palms to seal the magic into their knives. (“Not the palms, my god you need to fight!” I hiss at them, but it’s like I’m watching them on a screen or something and they ignore my sage advice.) 

There’s a brief hiatus where Mary pulls Samuel aside and tries to order him to stay home. It turns into a confrontation about him leaving on his secretive, solo hunt. He tells her that he tries to stay under her radar. He didn’t want her to die like Maggie did. He got her into hunting, just like his dad did…and he hates it. OH THE REGRETSSSS. “When I put that knife in your hands, I chose this life for you. I forced you to follow in my footsteps, just like my dad forced me. It was wrong.” I can barely hear him over the deafening sound of Cat’s in the Cradle and glass crunching between my teeth. But! Mary’s a glass case of emotions as Samuel tells her that he wanted to get rid of all monsters so that Mary could live a life free of hunting. Instead, he stumbled into the looming threat of the Akrida. 

Back inside, the team imbues their knives with blood mojo and then they all head to the bar to finish their hunt. Loki shows up, sassy and saucy and shaking up a cocktail. He sizes up their bloody blades and intentions, and suggests evening the odds. We get a lovely fight scene of Loki, Loki, Loki, Loki, and Loki versus the gang. 

They scuffle to the tune of Saturday Night’s Alright, until Samuel gets pinned down. Mary knifes Loki and smiles triumphantly at her kill, only for Samuel to tell her he won’t fall for any more of her tricks. Samuel knifes her in the gut and then twists it. Mary morphs back into Loki, who topples to the floor, apparently dead. Samuel tells everyone that Loki/Mary attacked with his left hand, so it couldn’t have been Mary. 

Everyone regroups for a moment, until Loki hauls himself up again. ‘Twas but a flesh wound! He gleefully watches as they realize that Carlos still has the tattoo. He snaps his fingers, and the scene gets set. Carlos gets a wardrobe change and appears on stage, decked out in finery with a guitar. Mary, John, Lata, and Samuel immediately find themselves bound to chairs. Just behind Carlos, Jericho sits bound and gagged. Loki suggests Jericho as the ideal target. After all, why should Carlos suffer for Jericho’s misdeed? 

Carlos lifts up the guitar as though to play and then —

Smashes it! Carlos gives us a wild window into his soul, and it’s beautiful. He sacrificed music to hunt, but he gained more than he ever thought he would. Carlos starts to burn when all of a sudden…the smoke rising from his arms turns to GLITTER. NOW it’s a PARTY!

The tattoo zaps away from Carlo’s arm. Loki screams at Carlos and tells him that humanity should always choose the selfish way out. “I am not gonna lose to you!” he exclaims. Just then, a hand mirror crackles from the table. Loki gets sucked into the mirror and a moment later, everyone’s free. Lata delightedly taps at Loki’s trapped visage. 

Carlos tells everyone that they’re his family. HEARTS!

The next day, Millie heads out with the box. She tells a skeptical Samuel that she’s going to try to repair it. She IS a mechanic after all. Samuel tells Millie that she has a “good kid.” You did it, bbys. 

Mary brings out the newly developed photos from Samuel’s reconnaissance. The photos are barely legible - mostly washed out and useless for intel. Samuel tells Mary to take John to reassess the locations. While they do that, he’s headed to Ada to work on figuring out some magical means to defeat the queen. Samuel hands Mary a little recipe for a magical ant-Akrida tattoo. Handy! 

At the venue, Jericho contemplates his guitar. He plans to turn himself into the police, but Carlos tells him that’ll only get him in an institution. Carlos suggests an alternative: move on and put some good in the world. Jericho convinces Carlos to play one last concert. ONE. MORE. TIME!

Cut to the concert, where Lata shrieks at Carlos to play some Sabbath (she’s more of a metal girl). Readers, I love her. 

Carlos plays the theme song of the episode: Hard Times Come Around No More. We flash back to Mary handing her dad his hat and giving him a farewell hug. Elsewhere, Millie opens up the box. In the clubhouse, Lata locks away Loki’s mirror in a trunk. 

Carlos’s song is lovely and all, and I’m experiencing emotions, but also. ALSO. CHUCK IS THERE. IN THE BAND. PLAYING KEYBOARD. Guys. We get some good, clear close-ups of Chuck to really drive it home. Amazing. Love it. 

Later, John and Mary look at the photos and make out. Mary’s ready to take the leap with John. They’re about to kiss again, when John looks down at one of the barely developed photos. He recognizes the man in the photo as being the same person who gave him his dad’s letter. It’s…..

……

……………….

DEAN BEAN WINCHESTER!

For I’ve Got Him, He’s Right Here Science:

Natasha: Okay, Dean in the past is VERY IMPORTANT TO ME but did anyone else get some serious Book of Job / God placing bets for and against humanity. Who was Loki/Gabriel playing against that got him trapped in the mirror? It was someone who thought humanity would pull through and be selfless…

__

Oh Quote Times Come Again No More:

Lata, let’s boogie

I don’t know why everyone that comes in here thinks I’m a shrink. If you wanna cry on something, cry into your glass

It’s a matter of time before you come across a monster and then something has to die – the dream or the monster.

Doctor who?

The least you could do is treat her more like a daughter and less like a soldier

Hey guys, monsters that kill to feed and survive are one thing. Ones that kill for kicks - we’re in for a fight

Weird sensation but contemplating my mortality has surprisingly made me hungry. 

For the brains of this operation, you are not the smartest cookies. Cookies aren’t smart to begin with. Think on that.

__

 Want to read more? Check out our Recap Archive!

[uh-ohspaghettio]

I love how all the angels just pretty much wore whatever their vessel was wearing but Michael!dean was like no I gotta look fancy and dapper, god forbid I attempt world domination in flannel

[blessyourhondahurley]

Suptober day 5 - Part 2: Afternoon Into Evening

The long-awaited middle part to Restless, which began here .

Dean and Cas share their special day with their family and friends.

Suptober prompt: Portrait

(Read on AO3)

Half an hour later, they're pulling in to the venue, a picturesque little barn a few miles outside of town, situated on three acres of wildflower meadows and grazing sheep. Dean parks the Impala in the VIP Reserved spot. As he gets out, he gives her a pat on the roof and mutters, “Sam's probably gonna tart you up today, darlin'. But I made him promise not to do anything that'll leave a mark.”

On cue, his baby brother comes galumphing up out of nowhere.

“You're late,” he announces, Bitch Face #12 on full display.

“Keep your knickers buttoned, Samantha,” Dean replies breezily. “We're here now. That's all that matters.”

“Okay, sure, whatever. Well, the rest of us have been working for a couple hours already, but there's still a lot left to do. Cas, you can head inside and talk to Jody. She's in charge of decorations and setup. Dean, you're with me. We've gotta go pick up the booze order.”

The bridegrooms-to-be exchange a quick, dry peck of a kiss, then head off to their respective tasks.

~~~~~

By noon the place is gorgeously tricked out. Flowers and fairy lights adorn every available surface. Rows of folding chairs await guests' butts. Countless bottles of beer and wine are chilling on ice, and the caterers are starting to load in for the massive barbecue dinner.

The setup crew, all their nearest and dearest, sit down together at a group of picnic tables and share a rollicking pizza lunch. Precisely at 1:00, everyone except Dean and Cas heads back to the Bunker for showers and fresh clothes.

“Time to get prettied up ourselves, Sunshine,” Dean drawls as they stuff the last of the empty pizza boxes in the trash can nearby. The grab their garment bags from Baby's trunk and climb upstairs to the private changing area in the barn's loft.

~~~~~

Only the threat of interruption by an overworked Samsquatch keeps Dean from getting a little quickie action goin' with his handsome almost-husband. As fast as Cas can put on the pieces of his tailored suit, Dean itches with the urge to peel them back off.

He reminds himself to save it for the honeymoon, and concentrates on the job at hand. By the time the photographer calls up the stairs for them at 2:00 they're fully suited and coiffed, and ready to get their Blue Steels on. They take some formal portraits first, corny prom-type poses that Dean knows he's gonna treasure in the years to come. The wedding party returns around 3:00 and then there are many many many more photos, both posed and candid. At one point a couple of the more personable sheep get involved, and Cas almost loses his boutonniere to a particularly peckish ewe.

Guests start to arrive a little after 4:00, hunter friends and townies mingling freely, conversation lubricated with generous glasses of chilled sangria and various trays of nibblies. Dean and Cas circulate, sometimes separately, sometimes together. They greet their loved ones, chat and laugh and enjoy the party atmosphere, but they never really take their eyes off of each other.

As the sun starts to sink, burnishing the light to a buttery gold, Eileen rings a bell to call everyone into the barn for the main event. The ceremony is 20% pagan handfasting, 20% Enochian ritual, 20% traditional rite, 20% Led Zeppelin lyrics, and 20% lifted wholesale from Dr. Piccolo's third wedding (the one that had to be annulled after it turned out the groom was actually the disgraced fugitive ex-hospital administrator in disguise.) Dapper in a suit that matches his dads, Jack officiates. Helpless with love, undone with joy, Dean tears up the moment his son begins to speak, and he continues to weep steadily all through the vows and right up to the soggy kiss he shares with his equally-emotional newly-consecrated spouse.

Concludes here

[twofrontteethstillcrooked]

Suptober 6 Oct.: Parody

"I'm Dean, by the way."

"Castiel." He shook Dean's hand just right, an apology still written all over his handsome face. "Again, I'm very sorry for the tree's…attack." He let go of Dean's hand. "I suppose I couldn't offer you an extremely deep discount on a lightly used pine?"

deancas, Hallmark movie au...sorta, nsfw-ish

Dean didn't remember Lawrence being cold as balls this early in December. He shifted back and forth on his feet quickly and rubbed his hands together, trying to stave off hypothermia. Even the scent of the just-cut trees was arctic, but also an invigorating, spicy green.

The smell tapped his noggin like he was a chilled keg of beer. He remembered the orange-tipped electric candles in the living room window and the fresh fir tree in the corner strung with multicolored lights and silver tinsel the consistency of Easter basket grass. His new ornament that year was a teddy bear wearing a Santa hat. The one he'd helped pick out for Sam – who wasn't even born yet, still just a lump in Mom's tummy – was a lamb holding a candy cane.

A gold angel sat at the apex of the tree, wings delicate gossamer, catching all the colors of the lights. He'd been transfixed, when Mom first turned on the tree for the season.

Dean stomped his frozen feet twice to make himself stop thinking about it.

"May I help you find the perfect tree, good sir?" a thin, dapper man with a decidedly non-Kansasian accent asked him. "We have the best selection in town year after year here at Heavenly Pines." His tag said his name was Balthazar.

Well, takes all kinds.

"No, I'm just looking, thanks." Dean tried to side-step him and didn't get far.

"For anything in particular?" Balthazar asked, far too politely.

Dean sighed. "To be honest–"

"Oh, indeed, please do."

"Do you sell any smaller trees?" He glanced around at the nearby stands of Douglas firs and Norway spruces, all at least six or seven or more feet tall.

Balthazar's enthusiasm flagged. Smaller tree, smaller price tag. "Let me find my brother to help you. We do have a selection for those customers with, shall we say, specialist needs." He waved a hand while doing a spin. "Ah," he said, pointing toward the greenhouse, "he's just over there. Blue vest, can't miss him."

Upon approach, Dean took a moment to admire the view he was walking towards. Where Balthazar might have been described as spindly, the brother would qualify as sturdy. Very sturdy. Dean paused. Was he checking out strangers' shapely…forms at Christmas tree stands now? Was this happening?

What harm, he told himself. Who cares. Just 'cause this wasn't a woman? If ol Balthy back there'd had a sister, Dean'd have looked at her too. He had eyes that worked, didn't he?

Okay. No worries.

The brother turned as he spoke with another customer briefly, and Dean found himself stalled again to admire the man's lovely profile, so much so that he was caught unaware when a large white pine tree suddenly fell on him as if asked by God personally to tackle Dean to the ground.

"Oh my goodness," someone said. Dean had a terrible feeling that deep, surprised voice was that of the brother. Sure enough, when Dean rolled out from underneath the tree's soft if plentiful limbs, it was the brother offering him a hand up. A big, strong hand. "Are you hurt?"

The brother's eyes were so startlingly blue, and so filled with worry, it took Dean a moment to speak at all. "No, it's fine, I'm fine." He brushed a plethora of pine needles and a bit of aisle mulch off of himself. "Despite the ambush."

"Gabriel, what the hell?" the brother called across the stand. "These trees in section B aren't properly secured at all."

"Yeah, yeah, on it," someone, presumably Gabriel, said from somewhere unseen.

"We are so sorry, sir. Are you sure the tree didn't cause any damage?" the brother asked Dean.

Dean got the impression this guy would've been patting Dean down to check for injuries if that was the sort of thing that strangers were allowed to do when their wares had tried to mug a guy. "Truly, I'm not even bruised."

The man reached out a hand towards Dean's face and then pulled back. "You have a small scratch on your cheekbone."

Dean touched it with his fingertips gingerly. Didn't feel too bloody. "I'll try to recover from this trauma the best I can." He smiled, wanting the man to smile back. Decided to stick out his hand. "I'm Dean, by the way."

"Castiel." He shook Dean's hand just right, an apology still written all over his handsome face. "Again, I'm very sorry for the tree's…attack." He let go of Dean's hand. "I suppose I couldn't offer you an extremely deep discount on a lightly used pine?"

"You could," Dean said, lighting up at the humor in Castiel's voice. "But I'm actually shopping for a tabletop tree. Bal said I should see you about smaller trees?"

Castiel tipped his head as if puzzled. "Bal? Oh, my other brother. Yes, we have a selection of those in the greenhouse. This way."

Dean followed, feeling downright cheerful. Cool your jets, Romeo, he told himself, which did not work. Under the greenhouse's twinkling lights Castiel looked better and better. Dean wanted to put his arms around his waist and line up his whole body against the strength of him. It was perhaps not the most helpful or even well-timed desire he'd ever had, but he'd almost died, for pity's sake.

All right, probably not. He was still going to take advantage of ogling Castiel's gorgeous hands and forearms as he hoisted a potted tree up onto a table at the door. "This is a dwarf Alberta spruce," Castiel said. "After the holidays, if you want to plant it outdoors, it'll eventually grow to be ten to thirteen feet tall. Emphasis on eventually; it'll take years."

Dean touched a small limb. The tree was a healthy shade of green and, importantly, wouldn't take up too much space this year in his tiny rental. "It's perfect."

"Then it's yours," Castiel said. "Least I can do."

"No, no," Dean said, "you don't have to–"

"Dean." Castiel's voice denied an argument, and jesus if that didn't make every nerve ending in Dean's dick jump to attention. "Enjoy your tree."

"Thanks, Cas." Dean was finding it difficult to look away, and finding it invigorating that Cas seemed to be having the same trouble. A long, long moment later, Dean said, "You guys been selling here a while, huh?"

"Third generation." Cas tipped his head again. "You're not from here?"

"I was. I mean, I am. I guess." Dean wrung his cold hands that were going numb. "Just moved back after about thirty years elsewhere. Town's not as different as I expected it to be. Lots colder."

Cas smiled a bit more shyly. "This is the hardest cold snap in December we've had in several years. They're saying it will be a much snowier winter than usual."

Dean nodded. "I gotta step up my game, wardrobe wise." Stop gazing, stop gazing. "Working with family fun?"

"No," Cas sighed. "But it's better now that our father is… Out of the picture." He looked down like he realized that wasn't an admission for small talk and shook his head. "You don't work with your family, I take it?"

"I did, for several years. My dad, um." Dean swallowed. "He passed couple years ago." Not long enough ago Dean didn't still feel guilty as shit for being relieved about it. "Been making my way here ever since, I guess. My brother's thinking of moving back too, if he can figure out the logistics with his law firm." Why are you telling him any of this, dummy? But Cas's eyes were kind as he listened. "Well, hey. You got other customers to attend to. Thanks very much for the tree."

"Of course, Dean." Cas made a gesture like he was going to say something else, but didn't.

Before regret – or common sense – could set in, Dean said, "You like pecan pie?"

Cas blinked. "Yes?"

Three hours and thirty-four minutes after that conversation, Dean opened his back door. Cas stood on the stoop holding out a red velvet bow.

Dean grinned as he took it from him. "It'll bring out my eyes."

Cas smiled crookedly. "It would, but it is for the tree. I forgot to tie it on before you left." At Dean's questioning expression, he said, "It's our signature thing at Heavenly."

"Ah. Come on in." Dean put the bow on the kitchen table. "Offer you a drink?"

"Whatever you're having," Cas said, coming over to stand beside him by the counter.

Dean handed him a beer from the fridge. Cas's fingers slid over his as he took the can from Dean and put it on the counter.

"There's homemade pie?" Cas asked quietly, looking up through his dark lashes as he and Dean leaned into each other.

Even bluer up close, Dean thought, ducking his head to kiss Cas, a soft, experimental touch of mouth to mouth. He had a question to answer but was almost positive the next kisses, more urgent as he pressed Cas against the counter, spoke for him.

It was minutes before they untangled for a proper breath, and Cas said, sounding wonderfully hopeful, "You have protection on hand?"

"Whole new box," Dean whispered, diving back for another kiss.

He hadn't actually made any decisions about taking things slow with a guy he'd known for four hours, and therefore didn't have to berate himself for telling the truth. Ten minutes later, in his bedroom, on his knees, Dean felt a number of delicious emotions, including plain old awe. He did manage to mutter, "There's a tree trunk joke in here somewhere," before swallowing down Cas's astonishing cock.

Cas's soft gasp of pleasure was the sweetest sound Dean had heard in forever. Cas curled his hand in Dean's hair and yanked–

"Dean," Cas said, "it's just me."

Dean opened his eyes at about the same time Cas caught his hand mid-slap, Cas's face looming over him with a half-amused expression. Dean felt the bunker mattress under his back and that heavy blurriness that came from being startled out of REM sleep.

Cas lowered his eyebrows as Dean noticeably woke up. "Sorry. Good dream?"

Dean rubbed his eye with his knuckle. "Hmm."

Cas gently pulled his hands down to kiss him before curling up on the bed next to him.

Dean took stock of the rest of his body as he curled into Cas and decided he was probably too sleepy to do anything about the quickly dissipating, murky arousal leftover from the dream. He also decided he was never watching another Hallmark movie again for any reason.

"We should buy a real Christmas tree this year," Dean murmured as he placed a kiss atop Cas's warm head.

Cas tucked his hand under Dean's shirt. "It's October 6th." He sounded confused.

"I know," Dean said. He yawned. "Just putting a pin in it for the holidays this year."

"All right," Cas said. He looked up as Dean started to sit up. "You're not going back to sleep?"

Dean had just remembered the last part of the dream with tremendous clarity. He smiled down at Cas like a shark.

[tweltchy]

Well, hello. I haven't been tagged in one of these things for literal years! Was tagged by @c-n-i-d-a-r-i-a-n to fill out a sort of "get to know me" meme. Thanks so much!! To keep this going, I'll tag some beloved mutuals.

@rye-satchel, @kaykayfranco, @lottafuckingshit

3 ships:

Not much of a shipper and the ones I do like are kinda strange, but I got a few that hold a place in my heart. It's not three, tho. Ye get two.

Rarity x Applejack (My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic)

The MLP Resurgence on this website is a gift from above. I get it now........... they are so cute and we stan gay horses. Iconic butch/femme couple....... I don't think I need to say more than that.

Sam Winchester x Castiel (Supernatural)

Feel like i need to justify myself here.

Listen........... i know the show is dumb and stupid and it's over now, but I still think about it. Tbh, I shipped it out of spite at first, but then I kinda started to see potential in it, and now it's one of my OTPs. They are both queer in some way and i will die on that hill. Big sucker for the Friends to Lovers trope, and and and...... idk I just think they're sweet, especially given their growth together in the show. plus Sam doesn't abuse Cass like Dean does so that's a plus lolololololol

IDK. I just think if Cass confessed to Sam, Sam would have at least shown strong emotion. Probably would have tried to sacrifice everything to try and get him back.

first ship:

Zack Fair x Aerith Gainsborough (Final Fantasy VII)

Again, not really much of a shipper, but I remember the first ship that I reeeeeaaally got into was this one. They are just...so perfect for each other.... it's hard not to love them.

last song:

The most underrated as well as the darkest song the band ever made. I think about it constantly and adore it.

last film:

Ginger Snaps (2000)

It's one of my absolute favorite movies of all time. I saw it was free to watch on YouTube and watched it twice in a row. It's so good and a unique take on werewolf stories. I recommend it if you have an interest in werewolves. It is free to watch in English on YouTube, but it's only available to watch in the USA for some reason. It's blocked everywhere else, INCLUDING Canada. ??? That's dumb as hell. Snag a VPN and watch it.

Regardless!! Good movie.

currently reading:

-Lots of TTRPG corebooks/rulebooks.

I love tabletop RPGs!!!!

-Tender Is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica.

Jules Dapper on YouTube sold me on this book, and it's one of my new favorites. Very dark and depressing, but also very compelling!

currently craving:

A BIG sandwich with every vegetable ever.

fav color:

All shades of purple!

relationship status:

Not single.

last google search:

"halifax glove guy"

The fact that this dude is actually real and not some weird urban legend fascinates me more than it should. Stay safe out there, guys.

current obsessions:

-TTRPGs

-BIRDS!!!!

-Kingdom Hearts (my forever fandom and favorite game series ever)

-Final Fantasy series

-Animation and art

Thanks for tagging me!! :D

[nomorefstogive]

I had a thought what do you think would be a modern songs or musicals want get a musicart in tact opt. I thought of ones based on Mean Girls, Heathers, Cats the musical, Chicago the movie specifically the cell block tango and Six the musical.

I am not sure about the lore of musicarts and why there is no such thing as a male musicart or is there a in lore explanation that I don't know about but If we can I would love to see one based on Jason Dean from Heathers if we can't get a male musicart we could just get one based on Veronica.

Mean girls, They could have one based on Regina George or Cady Heron.

Cats could have an old cat girl named Grizabella to me I would like to see more variety as in gacha tend not to have playable elderly women that look visbily old.

Cell Block Tango and Six the musical, there are so many options on who to pick I would be fine with any of them but if I had to pick Katalin Hunyak Helinzki and Catherine of arragon would be my choices.

Admittedly I am likewise uncertain as to why there are no male Musicarts, the closest we have to a male one is Enigma and that is because no one knows what their gender is.

The pictures are courtesy of the Takt op. fandom wiki:

That said, it is interesting to consider modern, or simply non-classic era Musicarts, your ideas for potential Musicarts for the songs are nice as well, especially in regards to there being more variety by adding an older character, perhaps she could be the one who acts as a tired grandmother most of the time, but when one of her grandkids is threatened she starts making the Despair Dolls into her personal scratching posts lol.

Perhaps she could be of a thicker build, muscles gained from a lifetime of work matched with calloused hands, laugh lines and crows feet to go with her gray hair, all joined with a slightly whimsical nature to match the...unique let's say, nature of Cats, that is nonetheless underlined by a relaxed and calm personality.

I also cannot see her speaking with anything but a New York accent for some reason lol.

In that same vein, in thinking of non-classical music inspired Musicarts, an image that comes to mind is that of Frank Sinatra's "My Way", and the Musicart inspired by it being either an older man or woman, they look like someone that has walked their road and are content with the ending in sight.

Be it male or female I see them wearing a dapper suit and hat, at least partially in honor of the way Sinatra would dress when singing, with their hair having gone gray or white and their face adorned with laugh lines and wrinkles.

They would be the wise old mentor to most of the Musicarts and Conductors, the one that would have them sit down at a Tea Break and offer wisdom and advice as they smoke a cigar.

In battle though, they quickly teach everyone that the old adage is true, that "In a job where most die young, Fear the old" is especially true in regards to them.

I admit I am unfamiliar with the other songs, I will take a look at them when I get the chance.

With all of that said, I am glad to see your ideas for this fandom, and I hope that you stay safe and take care.

P.S. What do you think of a Musicart inspired by something like "Dark Was the Night, Cold Was The Ground" or "Sound of Silence" would be like?