#i love vampire zach so much

[jokerislandgirl32]

Oh MY GOODNESS THE WINGS…HIS SMIRK. THE POINTY EARS!!! I love it all so much, he looks outstanding!

DRAWTOBER DAY 13 - BAT

[intimidatingpuffinstudios]

Hiii love your work! I don't know if you do scenarios or not! If you don't, ignore me and just know that I'm in looove with the possessive vampire (can't wait for my MC to get caught after flirting with the dragon) 🫦✨️✨️ But if you do:

How would the ROs react to the MC kissing them just to shut them up mid argument!

Morkai would glare and start to pull back on instinct, but then he stops to consider how important the argument is to him. If not much, he takes over the kiss lol.

Straasa would let out a small sound of surprise but allow the kiss. He'd keep it chaste, though, and then pointedly tell the MC, "Nice try, my love."

Manerkol would immediately grab the back of the MC's head to keep them in place while he pressed their bodies together. He makes you forget your name because even though you started this, he's gonna be the one to finish it.

Daelynn immediately forgets all about the argument and gets straight into the kiss. Arguments are stupid, and she wants to give you anything you want anyway.

Eledwen is shocked into stillness, but then she shyly takes your hands in her and angles her face to better facilitate the kiss. She is willing to let go of the argument if you are.

And because I can't resist, here are the btm ROs too:

Cy has a hair trigger honestly, they want the MC 24/7. So if MC grabs them and kisses them like that, then said MC should be prepared to get trapped against Cy's body and have Cy's hand slip into their underwear.

Zach kisses back but lightly slaps the MC's behind in reproach. If the MC tries to pull back, they grab their chin and keep kissing until they're satisfied. Also give another smack.

[mahoushojo-chan]

Astarion x Tav || Anxiety Attack

gonna be right by your side (no matter what)

synopsis: he's never seen her look so frightened before. she trembles slightly, keeping her hands close to her body. she doesn’t even meet astarion’s gaze. it’s as if she's still focused on the creature, even though it's no longer within her line of sight. her breaths begin to come in starts, and his senses can hear her pulse skyrocketing.

an excerpt of “’cause my love (is mine, all mine)”

word count: 1739

pairing: astarion/tav

other tags: f!reader, bard!tav, hurt/comfort, light angst, non-sexual intimacy, romantic tension, friends to lovers, panic attack comfort, magically induced anxiety attack, song inspo: No Matter What by Zach Callison and Michaela Dietz

ao3: here

concept: panic attack comfort

After hours of traversing the dangerous depths of the Underdark, it finally dawns on Tav that the subterranean caves aren’t exactly suitable for a two-person adventuring party consisting of a bard and her dashing rogue companion. In the process, Tav has expended all her spell slots, save for two level one spells, and has endured not only physical damage, but psychological damage from the amount of whining that Astarion is putting her through.

“Gods, I truly hate it down here. Darling, let’s set a goal to live in a nice, lavish palace full of pointless luxuries.” Astarion insists, and almost enjoys the implication of living with each other in the future enough to forgive his incessant complaints. Almost.

She bites her tongue, because she figures it’s hard enough to give up life in the sun for a darkness he doesn’t truly care for. She’ll pester him about it later, but she knows the wound is still fresh for him right now.

It’s late into—well, it’s rather difficult to tell what the time is. Tav considers taking one more short rest, but she knows that they’re almost there.

“You know, I’ve actually never been to this place.” He says, now that they’re near enough to look for the entrance. Cazador’s entrance to the Underdark lead to some old vampire’s keep, located just to the east of Baldur’s Gate, auspiciously under the Fields of the Dead. “I wonder what wonders could be inside—hm?”

He stops when he notices Tav isn’t moving and narrows his eyes to try to see what she’s looking at. Though Astarion possesses keen night vision, the initial sight is somewhat obscure. At first, it appears as a mere silhouette, and in the Underdark, it's impossible to be wary of every peculiar shadow. Yet, after a moment, he discerns distinct horned features, and the shadowy form takes on the semblance of a horned humanoid, its eyes oozing pure horror, and it points a finger at them.

“Hells.” Astarion mutters, instinctively switching to disengage stealthily. He ducks behind the last corner they came from, and expects Tav to follow—before he turns to see her still rooted firmly in place.

“What are you doing? Get over here, quickly!” He hisses at her, but rather uncharacteristically, she doesn’t respond. He’s used to her fearless antics, and this does look like something she’d be rather interested in, but there’s only so much stupidity he’s able to take. Out of options, he grabs the back of her cloak and pulls, successfully tugging her behind the corner. “Are you insane?” He snaps, but the second he turns his attention away from the creature and towards Tav, he immediately freezes.

He's never seen her look so frightened before. She trembles slightly, keeping her hands close to her body. She doesn’t even meet Astarion’s gaze. It’s as if she's still focused on the creature, even though it's no longer within her line of sight. Her breaths begin to come in starts, and his senses can hear her pulse skyrocketing.

“Breathe, darling.” He instructs, but she isn’t listening to him—more importantly, she still isn’t moving. It’s not that he doesn’t want to comfort her, but he’s pretty sure the monster, whatever it is, is still slowly stalking towards them.

Quickly, as a last-ditch effort, he hoists her onto his back. She’s still heavy, and she’s slowing him down. Even if it might be faster to hide her and look for the entrance himself, when she stutters, “’Starion?” In that quiet, uncharacteristically weak voice, he knows he can’t leave her.

“Right here, my sweet, right here.” He reassures quietly, still looking for the entrance while trying to keep out of the creature’s sight. At the very least, it didn’t seem very perceptive.

Eventually, he sees a crack of firelight in the wall—just enough to reveal concrete slabs behind the layers of rock, and enough to illuminate the edges of a wooden door. He quickly dashes towards it and pries the door open, entering and putting her down before closing the door behind him. He looks through the iron keyhole to see if the monster will pass, but a voice breaks his concentration.

“Astarion,” Dalyria says, sounding relieved.

“Shh.” He dismisses. “There’s something outside.”

Dalyria stays silent for a moment before recognition tinges her voice. “Ah. You mean the Nightwalker. It’s okay, it hasn’t bothered any of us. It seems if we stay out of its way, it won’t go out of its way to hurt us. It’s been a bit of a relief if anything.” She tells him, but Astarion isn’t reassured quite yet. They had stayed well out of its way, and it seemed to target them still.

Still, seeing that the creature has at least stopped chasing them down, Astarion finally ducks down towards Tav, seeing her state once again. He knows something is wrong with her, and not something natural. She was normally fearless—and while he knew that wasn’t entirely true, it was too sudden for her to completely cower at some unknown, shadowy figure when she had faced devils and shades more fearsome than the creature they encountered. He knows it must have done something to her, but now that they are in relative safety, he just needs her to breathe, gods damn it.

“Is she alright?” Dalyria asks, trying to peer over Astarion’s shoulder to see Tav. His first instinct is to bristle, but he knows that out of all his siblings, Dalyria is probably the best to take a look at her.

A little reluctantly, he steps aside. Dalyria observes her for a moment, and takes her hand, but Tav immediately withdraws as though burned. She still can’t speak, but Dalyria discerns, “I wonder if this is its effect on the living.”

“And? Your verdict? What are we supposed to do?” He snaps, but he can’t stand to look at her shivering form anymore, so he turns away.

“You may just have to wait it out,” Dalyria accepts. “I could attempt to heal a physical ailment, but this seems mostly mental. If it’s magically induced, though, it shouldn’t last very long once it’s out of her sight.”

Astarion curses under his breath. He ducks down, and peers at Tav again. Her face is pressed into her hands, and her knees are tucked in. It seems to be more grounding behaviour than anything else. He takes her side.

“Where is everyone else?” He asks Dal, but he doesn’t take his gaze off Tav.

“They’re trying to calm the other spawn. It’s turmoil out there. So many of them… they haven’t been free in forever. Trying to reel them all in feels impossible.” She sighs. “I only came to check in on you. Should I… leave you, for a moment?” She asks, looking at his companion again.

He heaves a hefty sigh. They had finally come all this way, but… “For now.” He reassures, partially to himself. He glances over his shoulder. “We’ve prepared supplies, but we weren’t able to carry all of it here. The rest should be at the entrance to Cazador’s castle. You can use them as rations for now.”

Dalyria nods in understanding. “I’ll tell the others,” she assures him. “Then, once everyone has fed… please come to us then. We’ll be waiting in the dining room. All of us.”

He doesn’t respond, even as she shuts the door. Instead, he turns his attention back to Tav. He’s glad he can speak freely without revealing too much of themselves. He sighs dramatically. “Come now, love, this doesn’t suit you at all. Stop this, you’re being ridiculous.”

He’s hoping to provoke her into responding, but it seems the magically-induced fright is not something that can just be taunted away. It’s difficult, because he knows if he were under such an effect, she would be able to ward it off immediately. In fact, it was one of her special skills to divert charms and fears with her own.

“What’s that song you normally sing? The song about Heroism, with some drivel less about heroes and more about some saccharine ‘love and friendship’ and whatnot?” He asks, hoping to trigger her memory. She stirs, but it looks more like she’s withdrawing further into herself.

As a last ditch effort, Astarion begins to hum what he knows of the melody. It’s terrible and off-key, and he’s not even sure he’s remembering more than the chorus. To grab her attention, he drums his fingers on the top of her head playfully, approximately to the rhythm of the song that he remembers.

He continues humming, stopping ever so often to prompt her to continue. Eventually, in a shaky, unsupported, quiet mutter, she sings the lyrics to the song as a call-and-response.

Encouragingly, he perks up immediately. He continues his humming, and as they continue, she switches from call-and-response to providing the actual lyrics to the section he hums. She finally raises her head—ever so slightly—to meet his eyes.

When she continues, she continues with the melody, a little more confidently. She takes the opportunity to hold his hands, gripping both his hands with hers. He lets her continue the song on her own, and her fear seems to be dissipating. She garnishes her performance with pretty runs and vibratos, but then she looks at him expectantly—this time, she wants him to follow her lead, and she seems to be expecting more than humming.

Softly, she switches to a quiet new verse of the song, “With all that you were,” she sings.

“With all that you were,” he responds, though it’s more of him talking with a lilt than singing.

“With all that you’ll be,” she adds.

“With all that you’ll be,”

“With all that you’ve won and lost,”

He thinks he understands what she’s singing about. “With all that you’ve won and lost,”

“You will always have me.” She ends the song.

“You will always have me.” He replies, and he sounds fond, though he isn’t sure whether she’s trying to find reassurance in him or give reassurance to him.

At the end, she hangs her head to stabilize herself once more. He opens his mouth to let out a quip, but she speaks first.

“I’m sorry, Star, I just need a second—"

“As cute as you are all teary and needy, you’re absurd if you’re apologizing to me.” He clicks his tongue in disapproval. Then, more comfortingly, adds, “I’ve got you. We’ve got each other."

[crossedsabers10s]

hey i was wondering if you have any headcanons or theories on what if enzo had been the one to escape augustine instead of damon? i know enzo probably wouldn't leave damon but what if something happened and he does. idk i just find the idea really interesting that's all.

ah so, someone actually asked me this once and this is what i told them (paraphrased a lil):

To the person who asked me this the first time: thank you this is still one of my fav ideas <3

And to the anon who reminded me this exists: thank you, ily <3

So. The way i figure, Enzo wins the rock paper scissors, but Damon actually gets disappeared earlier. Enzo gets told that he was disposed of--like old equipment or a sharps bin or something--that keeping two vampires was too much a risk or getting too costly. Plus. Like. I'm sure Whitmore knew all of Enzo's baseline stats, maybe he noticed he was improving? (Which. Makes me question how the hell they didn't notice one of their patients was a step away from desiccating in canon but--) But Damon actually got given to someone else doing a different project. And Whitmore throws Enzo Damon's ring as proof, probably in effort to break his spirit.

So Enzo carries out their plan alone--it was more difficult, but he'd been drinking both his and Damon's rations for long enough that he manages. He escapes goes on a very bloody rampage and burns Augustine to the ground. He finds Maggie, or Maggie finds him. They get their love story, at least for a while, bc Maggie doesn't want to turn (or maybe she does and they stay friends? or lovers and friends or--)

Eventually, he wanders into Mystic Falls—because, the thing is, Damon had told him about Katherine. There had been a day or week or long month where he had been sure he’d die in Augustine and he’d made Enzo swear to get her out for him. Told him about the amulet and the comet and the tomb. 

So. Enzo rolls into a town where—well, first, Gale and Sarah are alive and living with Zach—and second, Damon’s brother is there. Enzo watches Stefan stalk Elena for a while—he’s never seen Katherine, but he had heard Damon describe her enough that he absolutely knows Stefan is Being Weird about this—before dropping by the Boarding House, very polite and chatting with Sarah, Gale, and Zach before Stefan walks in and clocks him for a vampire. Enzo keeps on being polite like ‘yes, also a vampire, not here to hurt you, don’t worry about it’ and tells Stefan that his brother is dead. He’d died decades ago. (He does Not show him the ring he keeps on a chain around his neck, right next to the wedding ring, if he ended up married to Maggie. Maybe he should give what’s left of Damon to his brother—since there hadn’t been a body, Enzo’d been told he’d been cremated—but he Does Not Want To. There’s a thought there about how Enzo had been the one to mourn him while Stefan hadn’t even known he was dead.)

Anyyyway. Canon happens with a bit less collateral damage, as Enzo had his emotions on and wasn’t quite as invested in fucking with Stefan as canon!Damon was. He gets the amulet, Emily, with the excuse that it was Damon she made the deal with and Enzo does not have the right to use her amulet as a key, still intervenes, but eventually the Tomb gets unsealed and Enzo discovers that, hey, Katherine was a giant bitch. Who knew? (He makes it a life goal to kill her, after that. Remember that time Katherine /did/ end up trapped in the Tomb? Enzo shows up with a few gallons of gasoline and some smokes and scared the unlife out of her.) 

Canon continues to happen—as Enzo sticks around to try to find Katherine/and then to protect what’s left of Damon’s family once the Originals roll into town. (Lexi is also there, because she isn’t dead. Both of them take turns filling Damon’s original role of protecting Elena/turning Caroline/dealing with Mason so on and so forth. Lexi is the one to get bitten by Tyler, Stefan still sells his soul to Klaus for a cure. He’d just discovered that he lost his brother—and, you know, didn’t even notice—he doesn’t want to be left Alone for the rest of eternity.)

Canon remains mostly on track—a few differences here and there, but Esther still gets re-alived and the Ball still happens. 

So. Uh. Right as the toast is going down—the one that would link all the Original Sibs to each other so their mother could gank ‘em all at once—someone walks in and—uhhhh, well. Enzo drops his drink. 

Because, the thing is. Damon isn’t dead. 

Damon, had, in fact, been sold to yet another mad scientist, this one obsessed with magic. Like, the guy wanted to unlock the secrets of vampirism, but not how their blood heals. He wanted to unravel what makes them. Like reverse engineering Esther’s spell. Maybe even he’d been after/interested in Silas and rightfully liked vampires as the next step down from it. Or he’d even tracked down Silas’ doppelganger bloodline and mistakenly thought it was Damon instead of Stefan due to the blood they share. 

So Damon spent fifty years being put through ritual after ritual, used as ingredients, had his mind, body, and very lifeforce played with like putty. He’s got magic runes and sigils inked and burned into his skin, scars that refuse to heal from magic so dark it makes Expression look like Glinda the Good’s bubble spells, and a whole host of new issues because he’d been alone for fifty years. 

Like. Anxiety, severe depression accompanied by an emotional flatness that often ends in dissociation. (I’ve legit been thinking of this as: In Which the Author Gives Damon Salvatore Anxiety *Evil Cackle*) Plus the magic that’s been dragged out of his soul makes him more prone to like. Just not paying attention to the physical world. He just stares off into space, blank faced and lifeless as any slightly glowing statue.

So. Yeah. After that, Elijah, of all people, finds him. Maybe Evil Magic Scientist died and one of the witches who knew Elijah went, maybe he’d like to hear about this? (As I imagine Elijah was forever looking for some way to break Klaus’ curse/restore Kol’s magic, he just never mentioned it to not get their hopes up, and he just. Kept up the habit even after he thought Klaus yeeted their sibs into the ocean.)

Elijah rescues him, debates killing him out of mercy, but doesn’t. And Damon spends some time recovering on a beach in like France or something. Elijah is the one to break it to him that Katherine is alive and free, that his Augustine friend is too, is living with his brother in Mystic Falls—and like. Damon wants to go there, but also—he’s traumatized, with powers he can barely control, and there’s the nasty thought that he’s been replaced. That Stefan has a new, better brother in Enzo, that Enzo has a new best friend who isn’t broken and moved on with his life when Damon’s been stuck missing him for more decades than he cares to remember, that if Katherine never cared about him at all, what does he have to live for? 

So. Damon walks into the ballroom, skin still tingling from the magic burned into him, a scar curving under his eye from where it had been cut out, spelled, and then put back in, and gives most of the people there a variety of heart attacks when he very casually knocks Elijah’s drink out of his hands, says ‘oops’, and then walks back out. 

…

There should be better music. 

The town’s rebel son coming home after half a century should rate better than a lackluster rendition of Clair de Lune. Like AC/DC. He likes Back in Black. It’s exactly the kind of music his father would have had a heart attack at, which automatically puts it in the running for Best Things About the Twenty First Century. 

Right up there with the clothes—or the lack thereof—the cars, and the sheer magnitude of the internet. 

…

“You’re late,” Elijah says, acting as if Damon walking into the black tie party of the year wearing jeans, a flimsy T-shirt, and motorcycle boots was the plan all along. He doesn’t even have a jacket, putting all the silvery scars and stark black arcane sigils on his arms on display.  

Hell, maybe it was. Elijah is hard to read at the best of times. Let alone right after his long dead mother pries her way out of the afterlife to throw herself a party. He’d been oddly reserved in his correspondence lately, not giving his opinion on the events one way or another. Just another reason for Damon to come to Mystic Falls in person. Elijah going cagey after Damon had grown used to the man being bluntly honest, if somewhat polite about it, had been disquieting. 

And it’s a good thing he had decided to return home at long last—after months of avoiding even the thought—with what he’d learned not even half an hour ago. 

“Sorry,” he says, shallow as any of the myriad of glitzed out people staring at the scene they're making. Somehow, despite all the eyes making his skin prickle, no one is really registering as real quite yet. No one but Elijah. And if he’s deliberately keeping it that way by purposely focusing on the Original, then at least there’s no one else in his head to call him out on it. Right now. That he knows of. “I didn’t want to come.”

He snags a champagne glass off the tray as he walks towards the staircase. The dirt on his boots from where he’d been lurking in the garden and not giving himself a pep talk flakes off into the polished floor. 

He used to be good at this, being the center of attention, going to these things all the time. When he was human and otherwise. 

He can do it now, when there’re actually things of importance on the line, but he’s no longer so at ease in his own skin and the crowd of people is leaving him—

Not nervous. 

Damon doesn’t get nervous. 

Uneasy, maybe. 

Paranoid, definitely. 

…

The entire room watches as champagne drips down the stairs. 

Belatedly, he says, “Oops.”

…

He’d been hanging out on the window to Esther’s spell room while she was with Elena and Finn while in the form of a crow—a nifty power that he actually likes. He actually prefers being crow shaped to human some days—and overheard their whole plan. Including Finn and Esther’s jabs at Elijah. Who he is spectacularly attached to, even if they both prefer to pretend that he isn’t. 

…

“You told me my brother was dead.”

Enzo doesn’t look away from the ghost across the ballroom. Faintly, he says, “I thought he was.”

“You lied to me,” Stefan says, so quietly that he could scarcely be heard over the noise of the room. 

Enzo manages to tear his eyes away Damon’s tense silhouette. It takes a certain amount of willpower to not immediately turn back. He looks at Stefan, whose hands are clenched around an empty champagne glass so tightly it is just as much a miracle as Damon’s appearance that it hasn’t shattered. “I didn’t—I wouldn’t—“ 

All of Enzo’s words abandon him at the soul-deep betrayal Stefan can’t hide. 

They hadn’t gotten along in the beginning, he and Stefan. Not when Enzo had only known him as the man who hadn’t even noticed his brother’s absence. Not when Stefan had only known him as someone who had barged his way into his perfect high school fantasy, bringing bad news and worse intentions as Enzo had done his best to fulfill Damon’s wish to see Katherine free. 

(He’d been almost glad that Damon hadn’t been there to see that godforsaken tomb, to know that the woman he’d died for had skipped merrily away while he’d devoted his life to getting her back.)

… 

“No big deal. I owe you, remember?”

“Damon.” Elijah steps forward. Damon doesn’t flinch as a hand settles into his shoulder and squeezes. Elijah’s eyes are firm as he says, “For this, any debt you think you owe is more than repaid.”

“I don’t think—“

“If anything,” the man continues, “I owe you. You put your life at risk to save my family.” 

And hadn’t that been a delicate way of skirting around the fact that it was family that had put the rest of them in danger. 

“I hung out on a windowsill for five minutes,” Damon protests. 

…

“You,” he says, scarcely an inch away from Damon and staring like he’s two seconds from slicing him open to see what makes him tick, “are not a vampire.”

“News to me,” Damon says lightly, in direct contrast to the blatant way he takes a step away from the Original. That brand of curiosity is one he is more than familiar with and he doesn’t appreciate it. If that step takes him closer to Elijah, then it’s a coincidence. “Should I not be drinking blood, then?”

“Vampires,” it is proclaimed as Kol draws even nearer, “cannot do what you have just done.”

“Have they tried? It’s not that hard,” Damon says, taking another step back. His arm brushes Elijah’s. Who sighs, but takes a single step forwards, extending an arm as he does. 

Damon doesn’t sigh in relief, but he does lose some of the tension he hadn’t realized was in his shoulders. Not all of it. But some. 

Kol frowns down at where Elijah’s finger is touching the center of his chest, stopping him in his tracks. He exhales petulantly, but stops staring at Damon like he wants to weigh his liver. “‘Lijah, your pet turns into a bird. How?”

…

“What have you brought into the house?” Rebekah asks her brother, eyes on Damon. 

…

Damon isn’t a witch or anything, his powers are like. The result of having the magic that made vampires stripped bare, broken down, and amplified. It gives him powers closer to what vampires had in the Vampire Diaries books—though def not as strong as his much older book counterpart. 

This, of course, leads to Kol going on a research spree, because this is the closest he’s come to getting his magic back since it abandoned him. Cue multiple scenes of Damon running tf away while Kol pokes him with a stick. Elijah dumps all of Evil Magic Scientist’s Research on his brother to cut down on the instances of Damon hiding somewhere in the rafters. 

Klaus absolutely tries to use him as an asset, except Elijah is fond of him and Damon can and will find a flock of crows to chill with for a week or two to hide. 

…

“And you thought that what? Taking over my life would be atonement?”

“I—“

“My town, my family, my brother? Leaving me there wasn’t enough, you had to replace me?”

“Da—“

…

Enzo slams him into the wall. Damon falls silent. The placid look on his face can’t disguise the rage, eyes glinting like ice in the light. It’s the most emotion Enzo’s seen from him since— 

It’s the most emotion Enzo’s seen from him since he’d popped back up, miraculously alive and in the company of Elijah, of all people. 

…

“Because the memory of you was all I had left!”

…

So. That. Stefan, who has been feeling guilty over Augustine and everything, is relieved that Damon isn’t dead. Enzo, who has spent. Years of his life loving Damon’s ghost, now has to deal with a walking, (sometimes, not often) talking man who looks through him more than at him. 

 Elena, Bonnie, Caroline, ect. Try to be supportive while also being not as trusting, bc Damon is v obviously on the Originals (Elijah’s) side. Though he won’t hurt them or anything, and, in fact, is more likely to zone out and leave the room, he’s still like an active obstacle to getting rid of the Mikaelsons. And then there’s a whole new subplot that Stefan and Enzo are invested in called Getting Damon Away From the Originals. 

(Damon barely notices this. He’s in Mystic Falls again. It’s weird. Whenever he’s human shaped and not with Elijah and Stefan/Enzo and all the complicated feelings he doesn’t get as a crow arent at home, he basically haunts the Boarding House like a ghost. The human relatives keep giving him food he doesn’t eat and Sarah keeps sending him playlists on the phone/computer he barely knows how to work. She eventually makes him an actual mix tape on a tape recorder he knows how to work called Music My Grandpa Doesn’t Listen To. Gale will show him baby pictures and like. Will occasionally get a very disjointed anecdote from Stefan’s childhood in return. Zach will sit with him in nervous-at-first—on both ends lol—silence and watch TV. Damon absolutely won’t drink something if any of them pour it, esp Zach, they notice this and stop trying.)

Eventually, Katherine rolls into town and tries to start a makeout sesh with Damon to make Stefan jealous. (She makes Enzo jealous instead) and Damon. Uh. bites off her tongue. It’s a thing.

So, there’s a long road of Damon coming back out of his shell, being more present, complete with the occasional backslide and a few instances of him forcing himself to act like he used to to be ‘more normal.’ Enzo stays very patient through all this, helping him recover, respecting his boundaries, and just generally trying to do what Maggie did for him. Stefan does his best too—the more Damon gets more used to everything the wilder he gets, which Stefan both appreciates and does Not lmao. The Originals move on to New Orleans, Damon stays in MF, which both he and Elijah decide is a Good Thing for him, bc he’s more stable/is less codependent these days. Still visits tho. Which. Skews things a lil bit, to have a magic vampire dropping by in NOLA. 

I did end up using some of this in my Feral!Damon series actually, tho the beginning is different, mostly the interactions w his human family

[jokerislandgirl32]

Oh they are the most handsome vampires I’ve ever seen 😍😍😍…the outfits, the pointy ears, the teeth, their sultry expressions are all fabulous!!!

Thank you for combining SIX and Wild Kratts ON TOP of making them all vampires….the brothers being turned into vampires by Zach👏👏👏….thank you so much this is a fantastic combo/crossover/au whatever you’d like to call it.

You bring the corsets We'll bring the cinches No one want's a waist over 9 inches

I have no excuse >.>

[luminiamore]

𝖒𝖊𝖑𝖑𝖎𝖋𝖑𝖚𝖔𝖚𝖘

a stefan salvatore love story.

𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗 𝖔𝖓𝖊

fioria

Stefan was, for lack of a better word, tired. He was tired of the way his past haunted him, tired of the way he couldn't control himself whenever he fed, tired of the guilt he felt when he thought of his brother, tired of pretending to be someone he wasn't. He longed to be free of it all; he wanted to rid himself of this suffocating pain, and he didn't want to carry these burdens on anymore.

He dreams every night of a beauty.

No, that term was far too simple for someone of her nature. She was ethereal, like the sunlight peeking through the leaves of trees. She was immensely radiant, so completely captivating. In Stefan's dreams, she gives him a feeling of freedom and peace just for being who he is.

He's been searching for her since the dreams started, the night he turned, going off pure intuition alone.

He feels so unnaturally connected to this celestial woman. Her voice makes him physically weak and her face..

God, her face. He often wonders if he's been personally blessed himself. How is it, he gets to see such a striking face every night as the deep pull of slumber takes him over?

He's done all he could genuinely to find her, at some point he thought she wasn’t real.

Witches were always so lovely to him; they actively cared for him when the things he did as ripper would wake him with breath-shaking nightmares. But even they failed to find the woman who consumed his mind on an unruly basis.

He finds himself back in Mystic Falls. His intuition led him back directly to the home he used to share with his brother. Despite preferring Stefan over his blood, Zach has been acting very hostile. Though reluctant, he didn't mind it when Stefan stayed for a day or two. But that day turned into two weeks and he still wasn't leaving.

In Stefan's mind, he wasn't going to. His intuition wasn't letting him.

“So, you've been here for a while,” Zach breaks the silence he and Stefan shared in the empty living room.

“Do you need something? You seem pretty eager to get me out of my own house,” Stefan's eye twitches a bit as he responds quite pointedly.

He was, for the undead life of him, trying his best not to rip through his jugular. He sensed Zach's hostility for a while, and the urge to kill was juggling at an all-time high.

“Well, I- I mean, this is the longest you've stayed,”he wanted peace again. The peace that came when he didn't have to worry about a blood-sucking vampire sleeping under the same roof as him. I mean, he's a vampire. He's killed people.

“You do know this is my house, right, Zach? You are the guest here. My brother and I are the ones that own this place,” Stefan starts, fixating his intense gaze on the man as he starts to circle around him. Zach has never seen this look on Stefan before; the look of pure craze and calculation, the look of a killer, frightens him. Was this his end?

“So, uh, let go of that hostility you have,” he continues, feeling the fear that radiates off his human relative. His lip twitches upward a bit, a slight smirk itching to make its way on his lips. Stefan finds that he likes this feeling.

He walks and stands face to face with Zach; his eyes flash green, similar to the leaves he sees in his dreams. He breathes out, “Or I will kill you.”

At that, the wooden floorboard creeks a minor tune as Stefan makes his way back into the comfort of his room.

No, he didn't care to see the pure shock on Zach's face. Stefan didn't care for the way his heart was beating twice as fast, the way he felt holes burning in the back of his head as walked. Stefan was much more interested in the enchanting being he had the pleasure of speaking with in his dreams.

He plops onto his bed, slight exhaustion taking over his body. Stefan fell asleep with a smile that night once again; the promise of seeing her was more than enough to drown all the guilt he felt. He remembers her honeysuckle voice as she would whisper, “You're a vampire, sweetheart; embrace it.”

He couldn't wait anymore, and his intuition was telling him that he soon wouldn't have to.

chapter two

[jokerislandgirl32]

You’re A Mean One, Mr. Zach

Hello all, here is the Zach themed Christmas song parody you asked for! You’re a Mean One, Mr. Zach! I had so much fun making this, and I decided to record myself singing it too! RIP my voice after having bronchitis for 2 weeks, lol. I hope you all enjoy, I’m putting the lyrics, with some accompanying Zach screenshots, below the cut because this is a looonnng post!

You're a mean one, Mr. Zach You really are a brat You're as cuddly as a skeleton You're as charming as an snake, Mr. Zach You're a bad guy with greasy black hair!

You look like a vampire, Mr. Zach You’re helpless without your Zachbots Your brain is full of evil schemes You've got toxic sludge in your soul, Mr. Zach I would totally touch you with a twenty-two-and-a-half foot pole! Uhhh, just kidding…

FYI: 22 is Zach’s favorite number, so I had to use it!

You're a vile one, Mr. Zach You exterminated all the termites in your house You steal inventions from Aviva You kidnap baby animals, Mr. Zach Given the choice between the two of you I'd free the baby animals!

You're a foul one, Mr. Zach You're a nasty evil jerk You faint at one speck of filth, yet Your soul’s full of pollution, Mr. Zach Three words the Wild Kratts Crew and fandom use to describe you are, and I quote "Skinny, stealing, sneak!"

You're rotten, Mr. Zach You're the king of whining Your heart's in love with tomato soup Stolen from the Wild Kratts, Mr. Zach

FYI: I intentionally whined at the whining part, lol.

Your soul is focused solely on yourself It’s overflowing with hatred for the Wild Kratts, the environment, animals, and anything that stands in your way of becoming the world’s greatest inventor… Even your very own Zachbots that wind up….mangled and tangled by Martin and Chris!

But, if I’m being honest… You excite me, Mr. Zach With your evil little schemes You're a pathetic excuse for a villain And you drive people insane, Mr. Zach You're a greedy, manipulative, liar And a total heartthrob who’s stolen my heart!

[jokerislandgirl32]

Oh, he looks so handsome. Oh my goodness, I love this vampire Zach design! The gloves, and ruffled and longer shirt are perfect!

I had this idea in my head for a long time and seeing that I'm not the only one here who thinks the same, I decided to make my own version of Zach vampire taking advantage of what's left of the month of terror ^^

Aviva: aww Zach you are very cute in your bat form

Zach: eh...I'll take it as a compliment, but I'm here Aviva, that's not me...

Aviva: oh sorry *embarrassed*

[afterglowsainz]

I’ve had this idea stuck in my head for ages. Reader is max’s teammate (sorry checo). The six times the reader breaks the internet with her cool down lap music (idk if that’s a thing) and the one time she makes the internet cry with her warm up music. Like the first time is after she signs her first contract and her cool down song is million dollar baby and the internet loves it. The second is she getting hate or something and her cool down song is false confidence by Noah Kahn. The third time is after an interview about missing home (let’s say Texas for the point of the song) and she plays hey driver by Zach Bryan. The fourth time is when she over takes max right at the end of the race to win so she plays 33 max verstappen (he thinks it’s hilarious). The fifth is when she wins her first race and plays so American by Olivia Rodrigo. The six is when she wins her home race (Austin) and plays Home by the good neighbors and absolutely bawls on team radio. Her music is so iconic her grid family (Oscar, Landon, max, and Charles) always get asked about what they think. Then the one time it makes everyone sad including her grid friends is when someone learns her pre race songs are Cellophane, enough for you, the grudge, and vampire (because of a boy) and everyone thinks she’s super sad but the songs make her mad and that’s why she listens to them.

I don’t know if any of that made sense but I just had to get it out.

omg no it makes so much sense

i literally have no notes nothing to say other than i love this concept and everything was so perfect i could picture it flawlessly in my head 😭

tysm for sharing this with me i- you left me speechless this is so creative💗

[lizzie-queenofmeigas]

About Damon Salvatore

My understanding of Damon

So, for what we know, in his human life Damon was almost the sole caretaker of Stefan. Once his mother died (faked her death) he became his only parental figure, Damon was 16/17 at the time. However, he has assumed that role since he was much younger. In the flashbacks of season 7 we see Damon, that couldn't be older than fourteen, taking punishment for Stefan. The money was taken by their mother, Lily, but Damon thought Stefan had done it accidentally so he confessed to a crime neither commited. The punishment was his father putting out his cigarette on Damon's arm.

Damon also left the war not only because he hated it and didn't agree with it, but because Stefan sent him a letter that worried him. When he returned home he returned to Katherine. He fell in love with her, for a second he thought she had chosen him, but them came to accept that she also wanted Stefan. This is very sad, because for what we know his own parents always preferred Stefan and he always put his little brother first.

Starting his life as a vampire, his emotions heightened. Damon spent his human life taking care of his brother and with Katherine dead he didn't really want to keep living. Stefan forced him to turn (I don't blame him) and Damon was rightly pissed off about it. But even after that he stayed with him and once he left he first made sure that Lexi took care of him.

Flashforward to the 40s when Stefan and Damon met for the first time after 1912. They reconcile, but it's short lived, because for whatever reason Lexi hates Damon enough to not even tell Stefan why he didn't appear in the train station when he explicitly told her to tell him why. In the 40s Damon was also doing what he thought best for Stefan, even if what he thought best came mostly from Lexi's guilt-tripping.

And then the 50s happen. So far Damon has been a pretty standard vampire with plenty of humanity and control, he even goes to visit his human family when one of them calls him and says he needs help. Then he gets kidnapped by some crazy doctors and for the following five years he is tortured daily and the only reason he gets by is because he made a friend. A friend with whom he hatches a plan to escape, but who he can't save when the time comes. So, when he knows he can't save Enzo, he flippes the switch. If he hadn't, he wouldn't have left Enzo and could've died or be recaptured.

During the first year of his captivity Damon believed that Stefan was going to rescue him. Stefan never came.

In 1994 is when he starts getting his humanity back, but he kills Zach's wife and probably switches his flipp again.

How long has Damon being without his humanity? decades. We saw how Elena and Caroline where when they got back their humanity, and they didn't even had it off for a full year.

Damon's humanity wasn't fully on again until late season 1 and once it was he was a fucking mess. Drunk and depressed, which I don't think it was only because of Katherine.

In season two he still adjusting, and to that we have to add Katherine's return to fuck shit up and falling in love with Elena. Both things he doesn't know how to process. Which is why he was so hyper volatile in season 2.

In season three he is doing much better even with the worry of Stefan having left with Klaus.

In season three to season 4 we see a big development in Damon. He is getting better, having a better relationship with his brother and with the people around him.

Season 5 is complicated. Because Damon returns to the place where he was captive and tortured for five years. And this is Damon, he doesn't talk about his emotions, he doesn't even acknowledges when he is sad. In S5 Damon was suffering a lot from PTSD. I imagine that going back to a cell and meet with one of the survivors of a family that tortured you (especially after knowing that Aaron was close to Maxwell) wasn't easy. And yes, he did kill Aaron because he thought Elena broke up with him, but I highly doubt that was all.

And he didn't tell Stefan of what happened to him with Augustine, because he didn't want him to feel more guilty.

In season 6 and season 7 we once again see growth in Damon.

And in season eight he is being mind controlled like half of the season. It's a good thing that he turned human again, because processing all that happened in season 8 with the vampires emotions would send him in a spiral again.

All in all, Damon Salvatore is an incredibly mentally unstable man who does his best.

[therealvinelle]

i've seen you answer a few questions about tvd so i thought i might ask, what are your thoughts on the main love triangle? and klaus/stefan?

As a caveat: I did not watch much further than the first few episodes of season 4, in fact I ragequit when one of the writers revealed we wouldn't be seeing Elijah on screen again until 4x20 at which point I thought, "Well I simply won't watch until 4x20 then".

And then 4x20 was a backdoor pilot to the spinoff The Originals and I simply watched that show instead.

All this to say, I was 100% a gung ho Vampire Diaries fan and you can tell by how closely I was following it, sadly the only TVD I know of would be the first three seasons. Same actually goes for The Originals, as I for reasons I don't remember wasn't able to access episodes post-season 3 so I wound up not knowing what happens after Hayley drives off with the entire family hibernating in her truck either.

Another disclaimer: it's been more than ten years since I watched this show and my memory may fail me at times.

With that:

The main love triangle

Having only seen the first three seasons, I think that Damon wishes quite badly he was a different man, and he is unable to take responsibility for his life and relationships being what they are. He would rather blame his failings on Stefan, and, whenever Stefan fails or falls short in some ways, it's immensely validating to Damon because who's the bad brother now?

His love for Katherine is not only about Katherine, but about being chosen by someone over Stefan. Because, as Damon will try to tell himself, just because she was sleeping with both of them and decided to turn them both, doesn't mean she didn't prefer Damon (after all, she had to compell Stefan, while Damon slept with her willingly. Victory for Damon!), and also- look, don't question Damon on this. It's fine and he's a well adjusted man, and once he has rescued his lady love from her tomb she'll tell him how much better he is than Stefan.

Enter Elena, who looks exactly like Katherine, is living in Mystic Falls just the same as Katherine, and who has drawn Stefan's interest.

Damon, eternally pulling Stefan's pigtails and being a goddamn creep, starts creeping on Elena, this does not work. Instead, however, he learns that Katherine faked her entombment, and has in fact been living her best life for the past 150 years. Worse, Damon and Stefan were never more than boytoys to her.

Cut to Elena, who is just as beautiful (in a very literal sense of the term), only she is kind, genuinely loves Stefan, the polar opposite of Katherine in every way.

Damon transfers his emotions from Doppelganger B to Doppelganger C.

Stefan, meanwhile, seems to... fall in with Elena, for lack of a better way to put it. They meet, he is confused about the resemblance to Katherine for long enough to get to know her, by which time he's into it, and Elena sees a very handsome and pleasant man who is easy to fall for.

The trouble with Stefan is I don't really have a grip on his character, he is... there, for three seasons, and he has his character moments and his speeches, I can tell you things about his personality except I can't.

He is one of those people you can know for years but never actually know who, having killed his father and become the Ripper for so many years, seems to be that he is running away from himself. That is the only way I can interpret his strange nothingness, as well as bizarre decisions like coming to live with his nephew Zach and attend high school.

I think Stefan wants to surround himself with people, form relationships with them, and through that find a sense of identity that he can enjoy. Which is where loving Elena comes in, as she is kind, generous, mature, vulnerable, and fun- the type of person you can lose yourself in, and have those simple moments of happiness Florence Welch sings about.

In other words, while my real ship here is Elejah, Stelena trumps Delena any day.

Klaus and Stefan

Klaus is a deeply sad person who is only interested in dating two people, and they are his sister Rebekah and his brother Elijah. At the time he met Stefan Elijah wasn't around, so Stefan became replacement Elijah.

(The proof of the Elijah projection lies in the fact that Klaus was fine with Stefan sleeping with Rebekah. He is historically not fine with outsiders doing this, you have to be family for Klaus to accept these things.)

"Look, Elijah," Klaus would imagine himself saying to Elijah, "I have a new brother now and he is hotter, cooler, and not a total bore like you! Stefan loves me more anyway," and then Elijah would sit and cry and give Klaus so much attention and it would be great.

As for Stefan, I think he just liked partying.

They probably did fuck, but Klaus is too embarrassing for Stefan to ever admit as much.

[blkvxmp]

spencer or zach, he/it/vamp/lurk, gnc transsexual fag ♱ prnpage ♱ rentry ♱ muttfail on sp ♱ hoard

yo, i'm spencer. i'm an autistic plural boything who loves girls and dudes, mainly dudes. think of me as the flamboyant gay man, lesbian in theory scared to practice, emo drag queen. girlie in a gay way, fagirl if you will. i love being a goth girl but don't get it twisted, i'm a boy despite my desire to be the typical girl. please don't use she/her on me. uhm other stuff is uhhhh.. i'm intersex, i LOVE body mods and bats, ginger ale and metal/rock carries my soul, and i'm the co-host of a system. my dude casper (a member of my system) might come on here from time to time but he's not much for publicity despite his big mouth. if you couldn't tell, i'm a vampire kin along with a ghost, zombie, werewolf, and banshee kin. i'm also a monster lover so there's that. i'm mixed ethnicity and i'm racially black. my fav bands are msi, ac/dc, mcr, evanescence, slipknot, deftones, blink-182, weezer, and limp bizkit. i believe in god but not organized religion, but idc what religion you follow as long as you aren't an asshat. no real dni but i ask heavy ns/fw accounts to not interact with me, it makes me mad uncomfy. that goes for sh/ed blogs, heavy political based blogs, and just the basic dni stuff. if i don't vibe with you i'll just block, and if you're confused, you can reach out, but depending on the reason i blocked i may ignore you.

i curse, i try not to but it gets annoying trying to be pg. i do art and i'll post some once i can. i identify as nb and genderfluid as well. i'm afraid of spiders and deep water, plus some irrational stuff like church bells, alpacas, and pigs, i don't need trigger warnings for them since i really only get scared seeing them in person, but i ask that you trigger warning trypophobia, videos involving deep sea creatures meant to scare you, emetophobia, and videos that play the toll of a church bell since the sound scares me. i'm also afraid of the dark, ironic for a vampire i know, so please trigger warning scary videos related to having things follow you in the dark. i have trauma around unwanted advances and flirting so PLEASE don't do that, it really messes with me. you can call me pretty/handsome or whateva but please don't flirt. please use tone tags. i'm in a system of over 100 so like if i seem grouchy for no reason it's because i literally have over 100 roommates talking all at once. if you'd like to be moots, don't hesitate to ask! i may be socially inept and anxious for literally no reason but i love meeting people who have the same interests as me! but i am painfully shy so keep that in mind. more may be added.

vamp divider

[wearethekingdom]

Sorry this is random but I’m so curious, What kinda music do you like bud? :3

no worries I love random asks! And to answer your question quite literally everything

Some of my favourite artists at the moment are SeeYouSpaceCowboy..., Modern Baseball, The Front Bottoms Pigeon Pit, KNEECAP and Vampires Everywhere!

But I've also been enjoying Zach Bryan, Aitch, Kendrick Lamar and The Saw Doctors lately, so yeah I love pretty much any genre :3

What about you? I feel like I don't really know what you listen to!

[kiss-my-freckle]

Full Episode Commentary

1x1: Pilot

I love the shift from night to day as they introduce their three leads because I feel they're representations. Damon is night, Stefan is dawn, Elena is day. There is a such thing as too dark and too bright. Even though Stefan is represented by what the balance of darkness and light looks like, he's not a balanced character.

"For over a century, I have lived in secret. Hiding in the shadows, alone in the world. Until now. I am a vampire, and this is my story." Stefan's journal voiceover is a lie. He's been living on and off as a human, so he's been living in the world. Living on and off as a human, he's had enough time to form relationships. He doesn't live in the shadows and he's certainly not alone. He has Lexi and Zach and Damon. His lack of a relationship with Damon is by choice. A good thing they introduce Damon at this time because I feel Stefan's journal is true to Damon but not to him. Had they introduced Stefan first, I would've confronted the writers about it.

Damon kills a couple driving after a music concert, and these two kills are premeditated. He had a choice, and he chose to kill them. For those that don't know the difference between Katherine and Sage, trust this is Katherine's impact on Damon. A mention to his fog, but not the only comment that gets me. "We already have a James Blunt. One's all we need." There's more than one Salvatore and more than one doppelganger, so this is a nice line to introduce with lol. Damon has all of his humanity, just thought I'd be clear about that up front.

"I shouldn't have come home. I know the risk. But I had no choice. I have to know her." What I consider the most selfish thing in the entire series, and it's all Stefan. He claimed to have no choice, but he had every choice. Never mind what Elena wants or needs, it's all about him. The very reason I agree with Cade. In his desire to know her, Stefan would've had to see her prior to the pilot to know she exists. So either they met before, or he simply saw Elena and started stalking her.

Dear diary, today will be different. It has to be. I will smile, and it will be believable. My smile will say "I'm fine, thank you." "Yes, I feel much better." I will no longer be the sad little girl who lost her parents. I will start fresh, be someone new. It's the only way I'll make it through.

A lot of references to Elena being sad, thus, making it clear to me that Stefan is preying on an emotionally vulnerable girl that just lost both her parents. Elena's morning coffee is the first technical scene she has with Damon. The couple he just killed are displayed on the tv over her shoulder. Bonnie is the friend driving her to school, which makes it clear to me that they're closer than either one are with Caroline. Elena's mind is in the cemetery where her parents are buried. I can't even begin to describe what the death of a parent does, but I can guarantee she's darker because of it.

Damon slams his crow into Bonnie's windshield, all-knowing that she's the only one who survived the accident with her parents. I believe he wants her to stay home from school. "It's okay. I'm fine. Really, I can't be freaked out by cars for the rest of my life." Bonnie gives Elena a false prediction to bring up her mood. Elena waves to Matt as they reach their lockers. She broke up with him, claiming she needed time when it's over-over. Her comment to Caroline is every bit what she wrote about in her opening diary entry. She's lying to her and Caroline is accepting it as truth. Tyler and Jeremy insult each other, and while I feel it excusable for Jeremy because he just lost his parents, I consider Tyler an ass because he knows that Jeremy just lost his parents.

"It's a hot back." Good thing Stefan has a hot back. Elena will see a lot of it given how much he walks away. He compels the secretary to get him in classes just in time to stalk Elena. He doesn't just want to know her, he's entering her life in such a way that he'll become part of her entire high school experience. "I'm sensing Seattle, and he plays the guitar." Bonnie has it right. They show his guitar in 3x1. Elena is acting as parent to Jeremy, which is weird to me. Everyone mourns differently. That's really the only fault I have with Elena in this episode. Jeremy will mourn as he mourns. It's clear that Bonnie and Caroline are both attracted to Stefan. Why they never went there with Bonnie and Stefan is beyond me. Elena is attracted to a vampire that stalked her, forced himself into her life, and is now sitting in her classroom whilst pretending to be human. And Stefan thinks this is exactly what she needs.

She's off to the cemetery to visit her parents and write in her diary. This is how she chooses to mourn. I love the soundtrack as the lyrics make it clear that she's looking for a home. That's what "a place to rest my head" means. She has no home without her parents. Damon tries to scare her out of the cemetery with his crow, but it's not enough. He brings in the fog to add to it, then puts on a show with his crow. His actions in this episode make it clear to me that he doesn't want Stefan in her life. First with school. Now with the cemetery. The way he hides behind the angel statue… that's what living in the shadows looks like. "I'm visiting. I have family here." Stefan's family is Damon's family. I can pretty much guarantee that Damon was in the cemetery first, and I do believe he's at their mother's grave. Elena's comments to Stefan should be considered even into the second episode because Damon is honest with both Stefan and Elena. From the cemetery with Stefan to the party with Bonnie's bottle reading to the end scene between brothers, then into the second episode with Delena. I'll explain as I reach each scene.

To be clear, I view omissions as lies, so I'll be counting Stefan's lies as I go along. "Oh. Um, It's a family ring, yeah. I'm kinda stuck with it. It's weird, huh?" Stefan being human is his first lie. His daylight ring is his 2nd. Purposeful though. Stefan vamps out when he sees the blood dripping down her ankle and disappears. This is his 3rd lie. Despite the fact that he admits not being able to resist Elena in his next journal entry, he continues to be in her life. In continuing to be in her life, he's choosing to put her at risk with his ripper side. Caroline is stalking Stefan and already planning their June wedding. Talk about shallow. But I do find it hilarious that his favorite color is blue and Damon dances with her in 1x19. Zach being Stefan's uncle is his 4th and 5th lie as he repeats it. Why they moved around a lot being his 6th lie.

Elena dropped her diary when she ran through the cemetery. Rather than give it back to her at school, Stefan uses it to stalk her and try to get invited into her house. Blood making him squeamish, 7th lie. How he knew where she lived is his 8th lie. He's been stalking her, so of course he knows where she lives. "Yeah, if I don't write it down, I forget it. Memories are too important." Says the guy who begs Rebekah to compel him of his entire relationship with Elena in season 4. "Well, I wouldn't want anyone to read mine." The most honest thing he's said so far. I believe he's lying about reading her diary. I believe he did. I'll mention why when I get to it. If Stefan weren't hot, Elena would be reporting him to Liz by now, talking about how this kid is stalking her. Instead, she's welcoming him, and he actually tries to get into her house the first day they meet. Completely insane to me. His shift is his 9th lie. He doesn't want her questioning why he didn't come into her house. "Her mom and dad died. How do you think? She's putting on a good face, but it's only been four months." Bonnie truly sees Elena. She doesn't buy the lies like Caroline does. Elena in this episode reminds me of a quote from Hannibal. "False faces in family portraits. Layers and layers of lies, betrayed by a sad glint in the child’s eyes." Bonnie is also loyal as hell, lying to Matt on Elena's behalf in telling him to give it more time when she knows it's over between them. I mentioned this on a post regarding Elena's ship shift from Stefan to Damon. The only difference between her stringing Stefan along and her stringing Matt along... she does it as a single girl with Matt. So while Elena waits until 4x6 to end things with Stefan, I can guarantee she broke up with Matt as soon as she could, and used the excuse that she needed time to mourn her parents. I can actually feel Bonnie's 3x22 flashback phone call with Elena in this scene, so I can literally feel Delena in this scene as Stelena walks in. "My parents passed away." While pretending to be human, Stefan uses the death of his parents to connect with Elena. In her believing he's only 17 would also believe he lost his parents in the past 17 years, not 145 years ago. This is gross af to me. He makes it clear that he'll only go to the party if she's going. As Stefan changes his shirt, Zach brings in the newspaper of the dead couple.

Zach is only solidifying what Stefan said at the open of the episode. He knew the risks coming home, and he basically said screw it. "And you being here, it's just going to stir things up." Stefan being there is stirring up Damon because he wanted Elena to get everything she's looking for, and he sees that his ripper brother forced himself into her life. Katherine's photo in Stefan's journal represents the human side of her, that's why he kept it. "I look at you and I see an angel." He's replacing one angel for another. One false human for a real one. He's falling in love with human Katherine all over again, knowing that Elena will make him feel human. An extreme desire for the brother that lives one human life after another - to feel human while living it. Elena is his sense of belonging. "Where do I belong?" The chosen soundtrack only supports this fact. Making a deal with God to trade the demon for the angel. "Your face. It was like a demon." They show this photo of Katherine before cutting to Elena on her second day back to school.

Mr. Tanner is discussing The Battle of Willow Creek. This involves the... 27 vampires in the tomb under Fell's Church. He insults both Bonnie and Matt. It's not until he digs into Elena that Stefan speaks up. He already had the answer, but purposefully waited to give it. Nothing like Stefan hating his vampirism only to use it to impress Elena. Stefan would know nothing of those 27 lives if not for being there and being a vampire. He then insults Mr. Tanner in front of the entire class, which basically supports the disrespect of an authority figure, and completely embarrasses him in the process of it. That's something Stefan could've done without being such a dick about it. The scene was purely meant to impress Elena. That's why it was for Elena. Mr. Tanner can attack anyone but her. Just as insane to me that Stefan feels the need to pipe up as if Elena needs to be verbally defended. Stefan shouldn't know more than the teacher does, so yeah... his vampirism is showing. At the party, intrudes on Elena's conversation with Bonnie. Every reason why I believe he read her diary before he gave it to her. Again, hates his vampirism, but has no problem using it to his advantage. That's why I respect Matt's comment to Elena later in the series. He can't hate what they are and use them to his advantage, so he refuses the healing powers of vampire blood. Stefan is using his vampirism to eavesdrop. I love the soundtrack for their party scene. "That was weird. When I touched you, I saw a crow. A crow. There was fog, a man." Bonnie's crystal ball reading should've freaked Elena out because she knows about the fog and the crow at the cemetery. She also asked Stefan if he was following her. Bonnie is referring to Damon because she already knows what Stefan looks like.

It's disgusting to me how Elena opens up to him about the death of her parents, and he listens to her as if he knew nothing about it. I don't know how to explain it, but… some things are more meaningful when they're real. The sharing of feelings, most certainly. Stefan makes it clear that he knows of her sadness, so he openly admits to knowing she's vulnerable and he actually feels this is the best time to date her? Insane. He's basically like, "Hey, you won't be sad forever. I'm here." Not at all healthy. Stefan already knowing her parents died is his 10th lie. "Wow. Vicki Donovan says no. That's a first." Tyler basically referring to her as a slut. Vicki is extremely damaged. She's opting to date Tyler rather than Jeremy even though Jeremy has actual respect for her. This coupled with her drug use leads me to believe she suffers more than Matt in having absent parents. Elena talks to Stefan about Matt. While I do believe she lost her virginity to Matt, I don't believe she fell in love with him. I honestly believe Stefan is her first love. He vamps out again while talking to her and takes off to grab them a drink, which I consider his 11th lie. Again, he continues to be in her life. In continuing to be in her life, he's choosing to put her at risk with his ripper side.

Vicki walks herself into a cloud of Damon fog, which I love. "That's okay, Elena. You do what you have to do. I just want to let you know that I still believe in us. And I'm not giving up on that." This is Stefan in season 4, only he uses the sire bond as an excuse. Unlike Matt and Damon loving her enough to let her go, Stefan willfully puts Elena and her loved ones at risk because he refuses to. Stefan tries to get Caroline to back off by referring to how drunk she is. Because it's not enough, he tells her they're not gonna happen. One of the worst rejections I've ever seen, and he rejects her simply because she doesn't look like Katherine. Elena has no idea that she's the fresh meat. And I mean this literally. Katherine is 500 years old, and Stefan actually feeds on Elena. "Trust me, you're not going to want to witness this." It's sad to know that Elena is blind to the reality that it's the other way around. Stefan won't allow her to witness him. The point Damon makes as she and Jeremy stumble upon Vicki in the woods. From school to the cemetery to the party. I feel this act is due to Damon's inability to stop Stefan from being in Elena's life. Only a vampire who wants to get caught would take someone from a party, rip into their neck, then leave without compelling them to forget, and leave them in a place where they'd be found by someone attending the same party. Damon has been hiding in the shadows, so anyone who knows the truth about vampires would first suspect Stefan of being one because he's the only person new to town. If Elena knew about vampires, she'd already suspect Stefan. Because she doesn't, she will soon enough. Damon makes it clear through his own actions that if he can't stop Stefan from being in her life, then he's going to make sure she knows their truth.

There's a moment, a single flashing moment that I swear Matt stares at Stefan and suspects him of being a vampire. I do believe he's the kind of person that would be open to the idea that vampires exist. Stefan rushes home and into his room to greet Damon's crow. "Hello, brother." I consider this very moment the beginning of the series. Not Stefan's journal voiceover, not his first day at school, not his time at the party. This very moment right here. The writers didn't have me until Damon entered like a badass. He's every bit what a vampire show should look like. No, the crow isn't a bit much. "Wait till you see what I can do with the fog." Damon's reply is his way of informing Stefan that he was at the cemetery. Stefan wants to know when he got home because he wants to know if Damon knows about his life with Elena. Damon saying he couldn't miss Stefan's first day of school is a reference to slamming his crow into Bonnie's car. He's literally admitting his actions. It's insane to me how Stefan makes it seem like Damon doesn't belong there. If Stefan doesn't have to explain himself to Zach, then Damon doesn't have to explain himself to Stefan. "Ah. That can be a problem… for you." Damon makes it clear that he's not afraid of letting others know he's a vampire, but knows it'll be a problem for Stefan as he is pretending to be human with Elena. Again, Stefan asks Damon why he's there as if he has right over when Damon can or can't go home. As if Damon has to explain himself. That's why Damon responds the way he does. "I could ask you the same question." They're equals. If Stefan has the right to question why Damon is there, Damon has the right to question why Stefan is there. "However, I'm fairly certain your answer can be summed up all into one little word… Elena." Damon letting Stefan know that he knows about his life with Elena lol. The camera pans across an animal control van as the town sells Damon biting Vicki as another animal attack. If Stefan truly cared about anyone in this town, he'd already be leaving for the sake of getting Damon to leave. Instead, he gives Damon reason to stay. "Elena, there's no way I'm psychic. I know that. But whatever I saw, or I think I saw, I have this feeling… that it's just the beginning." Bonnie is referring to Damon, to the bottle reading she gave Elena at the party. From what I've seen in the show, most of Bonnie's predictions land on Damon. She actually has to "near touch" Stefan to feel him. Damon takes Elena's breath away through Bonnie, then they cut scene to Damon's comment. "She took my breath away. Elena. She's a dead ringer for Katherine." He's referring to their 3x22 flashback, and she does take his breath away in that scene. As I said of Stefan, the same can be said for Damon. In her taking his breath away, he had to meet her or see her prior to the pilot, prior to the moment he slammed his crow into Bonnie's car.

Damon standing in front of what could pass off as a tree of life. "Is it working, Stefan? Being around her, being in her world? Does it make you feel alive?" Damon basically asking if it makes him feel human. He teases this way, having no idea he's gonna fall in love with her for that reason. The difference between the two brothers is made clear early on. Stefan lives as a human, so he stalked Elena and entered her life with the knowing that she'd make him feel this way. So Stefan very much expected and planned to fall in love with her. Damon lives as a vampire. He wouldn't plan to fall for a human he'd otherwise want to eat. But he'll fall in love with Elena for the same reason. Delena is unplanned, organic. Just Google organic relationships if you don't know what I mean. It's one of many reasons I prefer Delena over Stelena. "Well, let's hope not. We both know how that ended." This is what had me certain of Delena by the end of 2x1. It's because Damon was at both places when Stefan vamped out with Elena that I feel he starts pushing the issue about Stefan's diet. I think he's extremely bothered by the fact that Stefan continues to be in Elena's life despite the risk he poses to her. He even goes so far as to smack him around for the sake of making him vamp out, which I feel is the very point. So yes, I believe this is his way of saying why wait for the inevitable, why not feed on Elena now. I chose to put this collage together to show what I mean because Damon was actually there. He's probably feel as I feel. Stefan can't resist her, yet chooses to continue being in her life, so he's willfully putting her at risk.

That whole toss out the window is hilarious af. Exactly what I expect of siblings lol

"But wherever you go, people die." "That's a given."

Damon is being honest. It's a given because he's a vampire. Stefan's response is hilariously controlling and ignorant.

"Not here. I won't allow it." "I take that as an invitation."

The audacity of Stefan astounds me. Not only that he believes he can control what Damon does or doesn't do and where, but that he believes he has the right to control what Damon does or doesn't do and where. If Stefan feels he has the right to stop Damon from acting a vampire in Mystic Falls, then Damon should feel he has the right to stop Stefan from acting human in Mystic Falls. It's insane to me how much Stefan tries to dictate Damon's life. Damon is a natural born rebel, so when someone tells him what he won't do, he'll take it as an invitation to do exactly that. That's how much Stefan dictates his life lol. Damon took Stefan's ring, which is hilarious to me. He should've held onto it, given how hard it would be for Stefan to play human with Elena at that point. But it appears Damon is a fair play kind of person. "You should know better than to think you're stronger than me. You lost that fight when you stopped feeding on people. I wouldn't try it again." Obvious from this comment alone that Stefan is the stronger brother, but only stronger on human blood because Damon is on human blood.

"I've seen you in the cemetery writing in your diary. Is that - is that supposed to be you moving on?" Elena still parenting Jeremy, and his comment to her is the very reason I consider this a fault of hers. She shouldn't try to stop Jeremy from mourning how he mourns. Everyone mourns differently. Caroline is at the Grill, talking to Bonnie. She's drunk and dealing with Stefan's rejection. Rather than confront him and ask why, she's blaming herself, her own faults. While I feel it's great that Caroline recognizes her faults, it's pretty shitty of Stefan to reject her in such a way. That kind of approach is enough for a girl to question her self-worth, and all because she doesn't look like Katherine.

"It's not a competition, Caroline." "Yeah, it is."

Still one of the first things that made me hate Caroline. She feels the need to compete with her best friend, and four months after Elena lost both her parents. Never mind the fact that she's faking a smile, pretending to be okay. As much as I hate Stefan, I hate Caroline more for the fact that while Stefan is trying to bring some happiness into Elena's life, Caroline wants to compete with her while she's needing that happiness in her life. Caroline is not the type of girl I'd be friends with.

Just as Damon wanted, Vicki informs Matt that she was bitten by a vampire. Again with Stefan and Katherine's photo. They cut from Katherine to Elena because he's trading one for the other. The vampire for the human. Clear by the look in his eyes that he was crying. Their end scenes basically make it clear that Damon is the bad brother, Stefan is the good brother, and that's how the audience is meant to view them. It's because Stefan is still in Elena's life that Damon gets his hooks into Caroline at the Grill, he's that desperate for Elena to know their truth. And yes, I do believe it has to do with him wanting her to get everything she's looking for. He has to make sure that a vampire is what she's looking for.

Elena unknowingly and unwittingly invited the Ripper of Monterey into her home, which isn't just an issue to her physical safety. I actually consider it a complete disrespect on a spiritual level. Not only that he denied her the choice to date or not date a vampire, but denied her the choice to invite or not invite one into her home. All of this because he can't stand being alone. Selfish doesn't even begin to describe it. Stefan lied his way into Elena's life, into her home, and into her heart. That's why I already consider her his victim.

Damon cross-connects. It's through Stefan's mention of the brother he doesn't talk to that Stefan, Damon, and Elena are a triangle. They don't become a "love" triangle until Damon falls in love with Elena.

One final note: While Stefan knows that Damon met Elena, he has no idea that Damon and Elena met first. It's my belief that he never comes to know this about them.

[jokerislandgirl32]

Yessss, absolutely yessss. Vampire Zach is my sustenance like nothing else…I’m serious, I LOVE Vampire Zach. The wip looks outstanding so far, I cannot wait to see the final product!!!!

Wip!!!

Vamp Zach cuz yes

[manonamora-if]

February Check-In

From here on out, we should be back on track - IRL be damned (crossing fingers with that). Unless someone throws another wrench...

Anyway, let's not think about the bummer stuff...

Here's to a hopefully "normal" month with stuff actually being checked off a list!

Onto the usual index:

Recap of last month’s progress

IF Events in the Next Month

Plan for the next month

Still long post under the break. If you want a mini version, head over to itch.io!

January Progress

Welp... there wasn't much of a list in the January Check-in, since it was the retrospective, which included the yearly plan. Still, I did make a mini one on itch. Put together we'd get:

Still play more IF and maybe review. ✅

Finish the edits of Harcourt Ch5 ✅ and coding ❌

Fix one of the semi-completed games: ❌either the Egg parser or TRNT (and make it a proper parser)

Complete the Seed/Shuffle-Comp entry✅

Honestly, not bad... The first one, obviously is done and dusted. IFDB says I posted 60+ reviews in January - covering the Short Game Showcase, the ShuffleComp, and the Recipe Jam helped quite a bit. And that also meant... I'm 3rd in the Reviewer ranking! Only 100 more to second place...

MelS and I finally stopped playing ping-pong with the editing of Harcourt (later than we wanted...), and I'm currently sitting down to edit the whole maze. I had hoped to be done by the end of this month, but it wasn't feasible... It was close - I only have half a dozen passages to code, to check it works, and do the formatting. I used to laugh at his complaining of working all the rooms for this maze (because he chose to do that many), but now I'm the one suffering... Don't do mazes... Or don't do 30+-room mazes... (I'm not joking here) Also: If all goes well, March/April should be editing of Chapter 6, June/July coding of Chapter 6 (+ re-edits of previous chapters), August/September beta/edits, October? completed game.

As for the ShuffleComp, I made it realllll close to the deadline. But (not so) strangers in the night was completed just in time! Aaaannnddd, got 1st place in the Use of Songs category! Yay me :D Also submitted to the SeedComp! and the Zach Jam.

As for fixing the parsers.... whomp whomp, didn't manage that.

Buuuutt:

I made another parser! Not Another Sad Meal is a slice-of-life cooking sim of easy difficulty (and clickable elements for help!)

Also made a Zine! CTRL+SHIFT+ZUT+ALORS Lost content meets weird technology. I probably will never make this game, but you can use it as inspiration if you want!

And spent a few days working on a collaborative virtual card for a friend. While that will never be made public (for obvious reasons), You can find the basic interface [here].

Also won kuddos of best puzzle for An Eggcellent Preparation (even though it kinda broken)!

So yeah... not huge updates for projects, but some good progress and a few mini-new games. I'm not expecting people to check those out... But it would be neat if you did!

What’s happening in February?

There's always something happening in the IF world. I don't think I ever find all that happens anyway... but. Here's the ones I know!

The Queer Vampire Game Jam ends in about three weeks. Got a vampire/human story with a LGBT+ cast? Then this is the event for you! (unranked) Also they are doing a fundraising/matching donation with submissions!

Obviously @neointeractives got you covered for Valentine’s with the Smoochie Jam: it’s all about kisses, love and romance (unranked) - Be also on the look out for the next Neo-Interactives mini-jam which is happening mid-March.

The SeedComp! (Sprouting) ends at the end of February. Come transform someone’s idea or asset into a new IF game! See @seedcomp-if for more info ;) (ranked)

Concours de Fiction Interactive Francophone 2024 se termine dans un mois! Viendez faire des histoires en français!! <3 (ranked, duh)

The Spring Thing is waiting for your intent to participate until March 1st! After that, the submissions are due in April (also ranked)

Got a cool talk idea regarding Interactive Fiction, narration, or gameplay? Consider submitting a proposal for this year’s Narrascope! They are still looking for people!!!!

Note: @neointeractives will have jams all year long. One a month/or so. And the next Planting Round of @seedcomp-if will start as soon as the results are dropped.

The PLANtm for February

Shortest month, and one busy months in events (I'm at the head of two... what am I DOING WITH MY LIFE....)... So much to do, so little time. But also, ONE EXTRA DAY THIS MONTH! :D

What are we hoping to do this month?

Play more games! Because there are a bunch of jams happening and a backlog of games I'm trying to clear. Also I want to get to that second IFDB spot! (1st won't ever be attainable...)

Finish the Code Ch5 of Harcourt. This is attainable. This is doable. I will finish... because I am already 80% done. MelS is working on Chapter 6 for this month - hoping to have a rough draft for me to check too by the end of the month...

Finish fixing The Roads Not Taken. This is your month. I swear I am manifesting it hard. This is happening. I will finish you. I'm sorry I've been avoiding you....

Jam Entry number 685470w8698... probably. Maybe do a Queer Vampire/Smoochie Combo. Maybe even a French Comp game?

ALSO: I will probably do an another AMA mid-Feb.

~

The 2024 To-Do List:

New year, new list. A more feasible one, according to January-Me.

The hopefully maybe easy to handle To-Do:

fix the bugs in EDOC + overall the French version to match

fix the bugs of TRNT + find a way to add the missing pieces (giving up on the translation)

fixing the interface of LPM and the popups + check animal interactions

figure out the One-Button JavaScrip/jQuery issue...

edit the loading screens of the completed tiny games to include the program/format logo at least.

The 'Need a Bunch of Content to update but it's planned!' To-Do:

Update my website (bunch new title - also I don't think the logo clicky thing work...) + redo my itch page

Finish TTATEH (MelS dependent - this year should be it - for real)

Finish Exquisite Cadaver (half-way mark by this summer - manif)

Finish P-Rix - Space Trucker (main path at least)

Update CRWL (it's been almost two years... I'm getting ashamed)

The Unlikely But it Would be Dope To-Do

Finish The Dinner as it was planned (and translate)

Finish In the Blink of an Eye as it was planned (and retranslate)

Finish The Rye in the Dark City

Fixing TTTT (at least fixing, maybe try adding some storylets)

And finally The 'It's impossible, but one can wish' TO-DO:

Remaster SPS IH (if I managed to start this after completing the rest... I'm going to eat a whole sheet cake).

Start the IFComp project (2025? Might end up being a ST?)