#from me to you ✨

[castieldelamancha]

His ninety years of age are heavy on his bones, heavy on his mind, heavy on his tired shoulders.

But they aren't as heavy as the deep sadness he feels every time he looks at the empty side of the bed next to the one he has occupied for years. The deep sadness he feels when, every morning and every night, those beloved green eyes aren't there anymore to greet him or wish him good dreams.

Any dream he has now is good if it means he can lost himself in their depths once more.

Castiel sighs tiredly, trying to find a comfortable position on the bed, pointedly avoiding sparing a look at where Dean used to sleep.

One last separation, this time around it wasn't Castiel who left Dean behind, like he used to all those years ago.

He comforts himself with the knowledge that, after Dean rescued him from the empty, now a human once more; he gave Dean his heart, his everything, that he tried his best to make him happy and that he had the privilege to grow old and gray by his side.

He comforts himself with the knowledge that sooner rather than later they will meet again and never part again.

He closes his eyes, letting sleep wash over him, he can feel deep in his bones, it will be soon.

"Good night, beloved."

That's his last thought, as every night. Come morning he will greet it as if he was talking with Dean too.

.

Castiel opens his eyes, blinking and squinting at the sudden burst of light that surronds him. He groans, annoyed, at being woken up so abruptly. He closed the curtains, didn't he? And the blinders too.

Or maybe he forgot, he does forget things sometimes.

He closes his eyes, putting his forearm over them for a moment. As his brain slowly wakes up and catches up with his body he realises he feels lighter than ever before, the weight and hurt in his heart now gone, his usually heavy and aching limbs light again, as they used to be many years ago.

He must be dreaming, for a few moments he will get to have all he is missing and then he will wake up for sure, and all will be gone again.

He shakes his head, he refuses to let those thoughts ruin this moment.

The sound of muted footsteps somewhere near him makes him move his arm away, he opens his eyes once more, a hand has appeared in front of him, it's familiar, he knows every line on it, just like he knows his own. He knows its touch, its weight, that one scar that goes from the thumb all the way to the wrist.

"Dean." He sighs, a little out of breath, a smile on his lips.

"I've been waiting for you." Dean smiles back, he looks younger than he did when he died a year ago, back on his late thirties, a youthful glint in his green eyes, one that he never really lost despite the passing decades.

He holds the offered hand in a strong grip, letting Dean help him up. It isn't until that moment, when he is face to face with Dean, that his words sink in.

There is a hint of sadness in the green eyes looking at him, barely there, but still Castiel can see it, clear as day. He might not have been that well-versed on human customs, cues and relations. But he was when it came to Dean. He patiently learned how to read him, how to listen to what he said and to what was left unsaid too.

"I am not dreaming, aren't I?" Dean shakes his head, Castiel's smile doesn't falter, "I am not sad, and you shouldn't be either." He puts his hand on Dean's left shoulder, squeezing lightly.

"I know that, mixed emotions and all that," Dean shrugs before gingerly lifting a hand to cradle the side of Castiel's face, "I'm glad you are here, I've missed you so fucking much," he finally leans closer and lets his lips touch Castiel's briefly, "but I still feel bad you had to go through this alone, that I left you on your own."

Castiel shakes his head, "you are with me now, I don't have to be alone anymore."

"I love you."

And Castiel could laugh and cry with joy. The joy of hearing Dean say those three words again. The joy of being together once more.

His smile widens, a tear escaping his eye, "I love you."

He goes willingly when Dean pulls him closer so they can share a warm embrace and a longer, more passionate, kiss.

"Welcome to Heaven."

"Home," Castiel corrects softly, not because he was once an angel, "doesn't matter where we are, you are right here, it's home to me."

[jkvjimin]

(132/∞) the perfect nose for butterflies to land on it ♡ for @cosmicdreamgrl 🤍

[alicornze7]

Silly guys goin' on silly adventures:]

@rorydrawsandwrites's puppeteer au but the only difference is that jax gives consent

My contribution to this wonderful au has been long overdue:')

Rambling in tags ehe (cw: ribbun:p)

Well maybe it's not the only difference

[starry-bi-sky]

i have been unmedicated for the entirety of spring break and thus have had little interest in writing this down, but i have been thinking about this for the entire week (as well as a dpdc clone danny au that resulted in it becoming its entirely separate batman au that includes a teenage vigilante bruce wayne, an ocarina, and me entirely incapable of making a batman au without making bruce dirt poor but we're not talking about that) and so i've finally went 'fuck it' and forcibly grabbed my laptop. I will get this done in one sitting even if it kills me.

BUT. This is about neither clone^2 danny nor about who i am calling Ocarina Batman. This is about my Danyal Al Ghul Au and more SPECIFICALLY it's me thinking about his relationship with Sam and Tucker specifically.

Tucker and Sam? Adore this asshole (affectionate) with every fiber of their being. And it is very much a reciprocated feeling, but Danny's thoughts will not be delved into much other than he would kill for them.

Tucker? The only person currently capable of getting a deep, loud, belly laugh out of Danny. Sam can get him to smile and to laugh, but it's the kind that's a chuckle-under-the-breath. The quiet, looks-down-while-huffing laughter. Snorts once with laughter and then grins stupidly.

But Tucker? Tucker can crack a slew of stupid jokes and Danny will be incapacitated for the next five minutes because he's laughing so hard that he can't breath. He lands one well-timed pun or quip and Danny will be close to tears. His laughter is their favorite sound in the whole world.

Sam is lowkey jealous of this ability, and she's gotten a belly laugh out of Danny a few times. But alas, it is Tucker who wields this power and has gotten it the most times out of the two of them.

-

They're also both physically affectionate with Danny as much as possible. It started roughly around when they were 12-ish, a year since they befriended Danny, and they noticed that he sought after touch but never seemed to initiate (and was in some ways repulsed by it). They started slowly being more touchy with him. Hooking a finger around his to lead him somewhere, tapping his wrist, looping arms. Little touches, grabs, etc, to get him used to it, and once he started doing it back they started increasing it.

It's gotten to a point where he will now just. Lay on them. Like a lizard sunbathing on a rock. Leaning on their backs when they're sitting in class before the bell rings, his chin on their heads. He'll talk about anything with his arms looped around their shoulders.

If they're sitting on a couch at either of their houses, he'll lay his legs on theirs. Him and Tucker will press their feet against the other's and try and push against them (newsflash: Danny always wins, Tucker claims its the ghost strength but Danny's been winning since before his accident)

-

Naturally, both Sam and Tucker know where Danny keeps his weapons on his person, and are allowed to grab them off of him if they need it. His only requirement is that they don't lose his weapons if they take it and forget to return it immediately.

They both understand how big of a thing this is from Danny, and so they do their best to treat his weapons with a lot of respect and care because they know its his way of saying he trusts them.

-

Sam and Tucker are so fond of Danny it's insane. Like fr. That's their goddamn best friend, and they are so protective of him. Emotionally, physically, you name it. They will tear the head off a grown man if they need to, Danny's had scars since he arrived in Amity Park and Sam and Tucker both are going to find the person who put them there and make them pay for it.

One time, Tucker overheard a bunch of upperclass girls speaking nastily about Danny and about the rumors surrounding him, calling him names like 'freak', 'monster', etc. Danny was with him and heard it, and seemingly appeared unbothered by it, even telling Tucker that he was used to such rumors.

Tucker was so furious that hacked into the school system later that night and tanked those girls grades. They were kicked out of their clubs and had to go to mandatory tutoring for the rest of the year. He made sure to leave some way of letting them know it was him who did it.

And Sam doesn't like using her money for things, doesn't like abusing that wealth. So instead, whenever her parents talk bad about Danny, she causes a media incident that has her parents scrambling to deal with. She does something wild, outrageous by her parents' standards.

She heard some boys on the basketball team making fun of Danny once, similar to those girls had. She kicks up a fuss about something eco-unfriendly at school and forcibly holds a protest on the same day of the big home basketball game, forcing them to cancel the event and reschedule to a visiting school.

She anonymously donates money so that there's new uniforms for the team but oops! Looks like she "forgot" to donate enough money for them to get uniforms for all the team members, and strangely enough those boys in particular didn't get them! Looks like they'll have to wait until more money gets donated for the basketball team to get their new, nice uniforms. The old ones look so ratty in comparison, right?

And since the football team gets most of the sport money, that might just take awhile. And if (and when) they kick up a fuss? oops! Off the basketball team you go, :) such unsportsman-like behavior is unfit for the team.

(The only good thing about how corrupt the school system is is that she can use it to her advantage too.)

The both of them know that Danny suspects them for the sudden misfortune falling on these people, but he doesn't call them out on it. He's kinder than he used to be, but not kind enough to vouch for people who speak badly of him. Sometimes, he might just congratulate them on not getting caught.

Because Danny is their wonderful, hurt friend with a "slightly" Blue and Orange Moral code, and enough scars that people have been calling him a criminal (and worse) since he arrived in Amity Park when he was ten. And they'll be damned if he gets hurt anymore.

[spacecircusofklowns]

⭐I wonder, what Slim, Jumbo, Spikey, Rudy, Bibbo and Shorty looked like as babies?⭐

My idea:

[larkoneironaut]

✨Seven of Pentacles✨

Reaping what is sown, perseverance

🌿Lily of the Valley🌿

Return to happiness

Can you guess what my tarot card symbolizes?

[rayroseu]

never let meleanor cook again 🔥

she def wont bcs shes on the other side now :(

still makes me ill that briarland used to be a open country like they permitted the humans to live in their land but the humans just abused that decision and now almost all faes have hesitance in getting along with humans bcs of how significantly traumatic her death was 😭💔 also maybe im reaching but maybe the time where Maleanor had to fight Knight of Dawn/Silver Owls was the only time she was alone (since its implied she was always with Levan and Lilia or staying at her castle with the other royal guards 😭✨)

also ik maleanor fought alone bcs she was really out of soldiers and having lilia escape alone while she stops the Silver Owls is beneficial for Briar Valley (bcs remember that silver owls also ravage the land they trespass so if she escapes with Lilia then the damage Briarland couldve suffered would stretch to Maleficia's castle instead of just in Wildrose castle) but STILL i do want to see her being calculating because her position in Briarland military is that she's the commander yk, maybe she knew this was a bad decision (bcs of her scene when she was being sentimental ("im a mother thats why i must conquer) to lilia when he reasoned with her) i just feel like the story couldve portrayed it a bit nuanced and not just come off as "meleanor died bcs she was too prideful" i think thats just too easy/simple for the writer to write as her cause of death lol

anyways excited for book 7 updates 😭✨✨ i know next update is about silvers dream im just too excited for maleanor's screentime akxjkskd

i knowww im so late to the trend 💀💀 my sense of time is literally the same as malleus' sldkflkd

[star-stages]

@000marie198

Part 2, together at last ✨

(Go read her story asdfgthvyjujrvu you'll understand the picture better)

(Click for quality on this one)

[kaicko]

🐉2024 is the year of the dragon🐉 you know what that means!!!

[satans-knitwear]

Pwetty new glasses!!! I shall use them for evil purposes (seeing things.)

Treat me ~ Tip Me ~ More of me

[royalarchivist]

Pac: It was really cool to see Baghera too, man. Baghera and Fit, it was really cool. Then Tubbo, I only met him in spirit, but Baghera was great to see, man.

Pac: Baghera and Fit– ah, it's always great to see the QSMP people. I consider everyone from QSMP as if they were family, you know? They are great friends that I made during one very cool stage in my life, and I will take them with me like this forever. It's the kind of friendship where you pick up exactly where you left off, you know? I see them, we exchange ideas, we talk, it's super cool, we say goodbye, and if we see each other again, it seems like we come back exactly where we left off, you know? It's really cool– because like, even if we spend a long time without talking, we still have that affinity, that friendship and affection for each other, you know? And that is something I can say about all of the QSMP members, it’s just that I specifically met these two this time. But anyone from QSMP I have that same affection for, you know? It's really cool, man, really cool.

Pac: Anyways, this photo is Fit and me in Minas Gerais.

[bb-eb-db-bb-eb-b-ab-f-b-ab]

THIS SCENE—

[gentlebeard]

Our love was made for movie screens

For @saltpepperbeard 💕 Show: Our Flag Means Death - Season 1 & 2 Music: All I Want by Kodaline YouTube

[lilybug-02]

Artfight against @ejsuperstar ft. The Mad King and Chip. They're both so evil. I hope they have the most extravagant downfall of any onscreen villain.

This interaction is based on a little fic writing >:)

[sherrymagic]

Aou Thanaboon and Boom Tharatorn WE ARE | EP. 9 — behind the scenes

[bisclavret]

like many who have suffered at the hands of bbc merlin before me, i recently indulged in a thought experiment in which i outlined my own version of seasons 3-5 that stay thematically and tonally in line with the show (except they're less fucking stupid). but then i quickly realized that focusing on details is pointless: all you need is to solve the one Big Problem the show has, and the rest will follow. the problem in question? ✨morgana✨

i like the first two seasons. s1 achieves what it sets out to do and has fun while doing it, and s2, while flawed, sets up a ton of potential that the following seasons unfortunately squander, beginning with the insidious season 3. you can only distract me with cute knights and goblins and fart jokes for so long before i start seeing through you, evil, evil season of television.

my hypothesis is that if the writers had crafted s3 morgana into anything more sympathetic than a violent half-alive poltergeist that can never be reasoned with because she's suddenly terminally off her rocker, everything would've fallen into place. a sympathetic morgana would've made real, valid arguments against uther (and arthur) that wouldn't just be the ramblings of a woman possessed. her betrayal of arthur would have stemmed from her feeling increasingly morally superior to him because of his complacency in the face of their father's tyranny. under morgause's guidance she would stop believing that arthur is capable of change, and the whole point would be that she might actually be right. arthur would have to actively try and prove her wrong, instead of getting praised for doing the bare minimum because the bar is on the floor.

furthermore, morgana's prophetic dream about arthur and gwen becoming king and queen and her decision to prevent this however she can is a direct parallel to merlin learning about that same prophecy and making it happen by any means necessary. merlin's desires about his and arthur's futures are subtextually fueled by gay love and devotion, so why couldn't morgana's be? why couldn't she properly express her bitterness that arthur gets to be with gwen in a way she can't "took gwen away" from her, instead of suddenly declaring that gwen is nothing more than a servant, after two seasons of demonstrating again and again that she loves, values, and respects gwen more than anyone else in that godforsaken castle?

following this, an angry and emotionally volatile but still sensible morgana asking gwen to stay by her side during the coup of the castle in the s3 finale and gwen going behind her back to help arthur and the knights would've hurt like a bitch. double-sided betrayal! gwen having a real plot! the proper beginnings of a toxic yuri that would shape a generation!

then there's the utter hubris of having morgana shoot arrows at the same civilians she worried herself sick over for 2 seasons — even morgan, her medieval counterpart that was rooted in every sexist trope in existence, doesn't just go around killing senselessly but instead has (often petty!) personal vendettas against gwen, arthur, and the knights. morgana had every right to be sick of the pretensions around chivalry in camelot (she was always quick to mock it, even in s1), and to lash out at the knights and soldiers after years of feeling powerless in a castle full of armed men that blindly followed her oppressor. the show conveniently forgets that morgana was victimized as a woman as well as a sorcerer those first 2 seasons.

but like i said, this is not just about morgana. allowing her to remain a real and multifaceted character even as she betrays everyone in pursuit of her ambitions would've given the rest of the core four more interesting conflict to work with: merlin because he would have to experience real consequences to his actions, arthur because he would watch his sister go against his father (and his knights, and his birthright) and experience some actual internal dilemmas about it, and gwen because she would be forced to choose between morgana and arthur without the pretense that it's an obvious or easy choice for her to make.

even morgause and gaius would come off more interesting as mentors: neither one inherently evil or inherently good, both jaded by events that happened before our protagonists were even born, both heavily influencing morgana and merlin into fulfilling roles that they think are appropriate, but that morgana and merlin may not have chosen for themselves had they not been under their care.

you get the gist. if the show followed its own setup, morgana's mistakes wouldn't lie in cheap and senseless acts of violence but in alienating the people she loves because she is too hurt and jaded to trust them. meanwhile, everybody else would feel guilt over "failing" her and yet they would be too caught up in their own (sometimes flawed!) beliefs of right and wrong to truly see her point of view.

arthur would convince himself it was sorcery that corrupted her. merlin would know that isn't true but he wouldn't be able to argue without confessing everything, which is the defining conflict between him and morgana and it's cheapened when she's just an evil witch caricature and merlin is framed as inherently virtuous in contrast. gwen, too, would become a more active participant in her own life by choosing arthur over morgana and choosing to rule camelot with him instead of just waiting politely to see where things go.

and, of course, uther's downfall and death would be quick, final, and completely earned — when and why did the show even decide he of all people was the sympathetic villain, anyway?

lastly, and perhaps controversially, i think morgana should've learned merlin's true identity by season 4. her being the first of the main characters to find out makes perfect sense considering their shared history and their interconnected and mirrored arcs. even the show seems to agree, considering she does find out a little before arthur. but the narrative itself tried pointing flashing neon arrows towards this way earlier — there is a whole entire episode in s4 where merlin being emrys is repeatedly spelled out for morgana and she still isn't allowed to see it. that episode makes her look like the stupidest person to ever live, which is pretty funny im not gonna lie, but also another frustrating thing in the endless string of frustrating things that make up this show.

morgana learning that merlin has magic would've transformed the source of merlin's anxiety from a crippling fear of being outed someday to the crippling fear of knowing she could out him at any moment. this would make him want to beat her to the punch (perhaps he'd consider killing her for a minute and decide against it because she isn't a cartoonishly insane evil person in my version of events) and maybe he would even feel some tentative excitement at the idea of coming clean, now that it seems inevitable. after all, he always intended to tell arthur eventually! and i think gaius would have to admit outright that he does not want merlin to tell arthur he has magic because he, gaius, simply cannot risk such a gamble. it would be so interesting to see gaius and merlin clash and disagree once it becomes obvious that it's not merlin that isn't ready for the reveal, it's gaius. delicious!

with morgana's knowledge looming, things would inevitably spiral into a magic reveal by the end of season 4. i picture this season as an absolute mess of miscommunication between everyone at camelot, which is, y'know, canon. growing increasingly cunning and vengeful, morgana would use this tension to her advantage, destabilizing the court from the outside while she creates alliances with other sorcerers outside of camelot (instead of living alone in a hovel for no reason — morgana le fay i'm sorry i'm so sorry they gave you agravaine instead of your all-female entourage oh my god).

and here's where the events would change beyond recognition (aka here's where the meta becomes the fanfic i refuse to write). picture it with me: a militia of sorcerers infiltrates camelot and arthur and gwen have to set aside their differences (assuming gwen kissing lancelot and arthur overreacting happens, which it should) for the good of the kingdom as well as for love. picture high priestess morgana in her element, side by side with a bunch of misfit sorcerers that aren't so easily vilified, chopping down camelot's soldiers and knights and assuredly making their way to the newly-minted king.

then, just as it starts to seem that all hope is lost, in swoops merlin (the actual merlin, not his old fart disguise) on dragonback (kilgharrah hates morgana so much i know his sexist ass would stoop to anything to stop her)!!! imagine merlin showing off the extent of his powers in front of everyone and preventing the sorcerers from getting any further, declaring loud and clear that camelot is protected by him, by emrys. imagine that display of power alone being enough to send everyone home.

imagine the loyalties clearly drawn: merlin on arthur's side, morgana on the sorcerers'. imagine arthur, feeling confused and betrayed by everyone at this point, banishing merlin despite everything he's done for him in the angstiest, most emotionally dysregulated scene the show had ever put to screen. imagine merlin starting season 5 free at last but very lonesome, an embittered dragonlord like his father. imagine the absolute mess camelot would become without him, even with gwen — now queen guinevere — there to pick up the slack. imagine arthur actually earning merlin back, finally growing into his role as king as he does so. imagine the reunion.

all this and more could've been not just possible but inevitable if morgana was allowed to remain a complex character that is neither inherently good nor inherently evil: it was undeniably the biased and one-note treatment of morgana's downfall by the writers that set the precedent for literally everything else that happened after merlin chose to poison her. the show wouldn't have even had to jeopardize its tone or the monster-of-the-week vibe, all it would've had to do is admit that even the "good guys" are capable of mistakes and what makes them good is the ability to feel remorse and change for the better. (as opposed to uther, who was miles beyond redemption since way before the pilot and deserved to lose everything and die alone. OBVIOUSLY???)

in a world where morgana remains multifaceted and sympathetic, mordred would get a better arc as well, so if we really wanted to, we could still end on the same tragic note that the show ended on. with so much harm inflicted onto so many innocent people by the pendragons for so long (including mordred and the many druids and sorcerers that raised him), it could realistically end up being a little too late for anything more than one shining glimpse of king arthur and the sorcerer merlin's short-lived golden age before fate catches up to them. glimpsing that reality just to immediately lose it would've been far more satisfying and far more tragic than whatever the writers thought they were doing with all that pointless carrot-dangling.

and finally, an ending in line with morgana's new and improved arc. in this version, rather than bleeding out on the forest floor alone, she would channel the morgan le fay we know from the legends: sobered up by the reality of her brother dying, she would use her high priestess status (and perhaps also her pendragon status) to be granted passage over to avalon alongside arthur on the boat — a one-way ride — just to make sure he gets there safely. this is her penance for the harm she has caused, the same way arthur's penance is to die and leave the true ruler of camelot (gwen) behind to achieve everything he was too slow and indecisive to build while he still had time.

merlin's penance, then, would be to stay behind and watch them cross over without him, waiting and waiting and waiting until they come back or until he can finally join them. which is a bit fucking harsh if i'm honest, so i'd at least make it slightly more faithful to the legends by having him return as an old man and letting him take a long nap under a tree by the shore, his body slowly enveloped by vines like the cobwebbed fisher king in 3x08, never fully sure if he's dreaming or if there really are strange shapes fading in and out of the fog over the lake. still tragic, but nevertheless a little more open-ended and whimsical than [TRUCK NOISES] THE END!