#i try to post most wednesdays for the record

[quinn-pop]

waiting to post the next to be apart chapter because i need to review One paragraph and my only writing friend is asleep.

im still pretty busy but gotta make the most of cringe day Wednesday amiright

[achromatophoric]

Divina: Yoko! What the actual shit?!

Yoko: Babe, it’s not what it looks like!

Divina: Oh really? Cause it looks AND sounds like you’re listening to a recording your best friend blowing out her girlfriend’s back.

Indeed, the vampire sits on her bed with her laptop open and playing what can only be Wednesday’s seemingly indecipherable cries of ecstasy.

Yoko: 😬

Divina: 😠

Divina: *icily* Well?

Yoko: *blurts out* COOKIES! I think. Maybe brownies?

Divina:

Divina: What?

Yoko: Shit. Look, babe, lemme explain. Addams isn’t moaning.

Laptop: *filthy moan*

Divina: 😒

Yoko: *winces* Okay, she IS moaning, but she isn’t just moaning. If you listen carefully—THERE!

Laptop: *gibberish*

Divina: 🤨

Divina: So Wednesday doesn’t make sense when she’s getting railed. Bravo, Enid. Not helping your case, though.

Yoko: I thought the same! But she’s actually speaking in Old Latin—at least this time she is.

Divina: What?

Yoko: Oh, last time it was Sumerian. And the time before that—

Divina: No, I mean what, as in what the fuck?

Yoko: Right. Uh. So long story short, I’ve been recording their erm… their sessions—

Divina: 😡

Yoko: —so I could translate what Wednesday was saying! See? Totally not pervy.

Divina: 😐

Divina: 😤

Divina: *through gritted teeth* Yoko, I swear by the Seven Seas, I am about five seconds from—

Yoko: Recipes! Babe, she’s reciting fucking RECIPES.

Divina: 🤨

Divina: Recipes for what? Disasters?

Yoko: Nope. Recipes for the most mind blowing, absurdly tasty-as-fuck pastries that will ever bless your mouth.

Divina: *incredulous stare*

Divina: You’re telling me that Wednesday Arsenic-is-a-Seasoning Addams recites entire goddamn recipes in dead languages—

Divina: —recipes for ludicrously delicious baked goods, whenever Enid bangs the grumpy out of her?

Yoko: *hopeful* Yes. That is exactly what I’m saying.

Divina: 🤦

Yoko: Babe? Do you need an ibuprofen? That vein is—

Divina: Give me a cookie.

Yoko: Er, what?

Divina: *holds out a hand* Or a brownie. Muffin. Whatever the fuck you made from one of these supposed recipes. If one isn’t in my hand in ten seconds…

Yoko: 😲

Yoko: *scrambles to her desk, rummages, and return with something*

Yoko: Here! Try this! Made this one yesterday.

Divina: *takes the…* Churro. This is just a churro.

Yoko: Trust, babe. I promise you, it’ll all make sense. Just try it.

Divina: *eyes the churro*

Divina: *takes a bite*

Divina: *chews*

Yoko: So whatcha think?

Divina:

Divina: *filthy moan*

Yoko: *relieved fist pump*

Divina: Holy… Holy fucking shit. I think my tongue just came. What the actual fucking fuck?

Yoko: So am I off the hook?

Divina: Off the hook? Babe, imma need more like this, stat. Does she do this every time?

Yoko: Just about. Toughest part is the actual translating.

Divina: I’ll get Bianca’s help.

Yoko: You think she’d be interested?

Divina: Are you kidding me? She once kneecapped me at swim camp over the last cupcake.

Yoko: Yikes. Okay, so wanna help me translate the rest of this one?

Divina: Sure. Do I just try writing the phonetics for this part?

Laptop: *slurred post-orgasm gibberish*

Yoko: *quickly stops the recording* Oh fuck no. NEVER the shit after she comes.

Divina: Why is that? Are those recipes not-so-great?

Yoko: Less recipe, more ritual. I only tried one and that summoned The Bone Gorger.

Divina: 🫢

Divina: How… how’d you get rid of them?

Yoko: Churro.

Divina:

Divina: *wipes away drool* Yeah, that checks out.

[darklinaforever]

God help me...

First off, what the hell are you doing in Wyler tag ? What's your fucking problem with pissing off people who didn't ask for anything ?!

But let's see the rest of your bullshit in detail and tear it down as we go along.

But this ship is very much dead. There is hardly any traction towards it because the people who ship it make no sense when they defend it. They sound like they could be mentally ill...

Weird, Wyler is the most popular ship with Wenclair though. And for a dead ship, Netflix still took the trouble to make Wyler the first teaser for the new season...

And how do we make no sense ? It's you who had no interest in repeating things that the show and the show team have themselves contradicted for years now about Tyler's character.

And it's you who comes into Wyler's spaces to piss off and obsessively spill your venom. It seems that you are the one who is mentally ill...

I don't know how crooked you have to be to say that you're crooked to ship a canonical ship. Already, this is not even said for fanon ships, but even less canon. What are you trying to prove here ? You're shooting yourself in the foot by coming in to tag Wyler to insult us and try to seem like the smartest person when you seem like the stupidest.

By the way ; Do you think you're smart to say that kind of thing ?! That we are mentally ill ?!

Wow, for say that you must really hate the fact that Wyler is the first official trailer / teaser of season 2, otherwise you clearly wouldn't be here trying to impose your pseudo dominance...

I guess Emma Myers (Enid actress) is mentally ill then, since she says most of the same things we do about Tyler...

And not to mention Hunter himself who spoke of sexual compatibility between Wyler, that Wednesday had been Tyler's light during the events of season 1 and that if he had to imagine his character ending up with someone it would be her ?

You're really a piss of shit.

And I won't apologize for saying that.

You allow yourself to insult us with enormous condescension that you try to pass off as a form of kindness in the rest of your post ? Well, I will insult you in return, but head-on this time.

You are a big piss of shit. That all.

Tyler almost killed Wednesday and all her friends + he manipulated her like a professional and she felt humiliated because she never even suspected him and put a good person in jail because of him.

She will never forgive herself, let alone him.

Yes... and ? First, Tyler “tries to kill” Eugene essentially under the orders of Laurel, his master to whom he is forced to obey and who tortured him ? Note also that Laurel technically didn't tell Tyler to kill Eugene but to take care of him and that strangely, he's the only victim of Tyler who escaped death ?

Coincidence ? Maybe not !

And if you want an explanation for Enid, it is implied that the Hyde offers a second personality, different from the human version ? So, technically, the Hyde is not Tyler. It's a second personality. Why is everyone forgetting the recording of the psychologist that Donovan listens to ?! Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, you know ?!

Literally, these people are being dishonest on purpose.

Also... again, Wednesday doesn't blame Tyler specifically for nearly killing her friends. First, it would be bad faith, because she also did it in the show with Enid, but above all, it's a question of ego. No really justice in her anger towards Tyler.

She is mainly angry at Tyler because, yes, he managed to fool her and her intelligence. And she is deeply hurt in her ego and personal feelings.

But how would his anger on this subject be eternal ? On what fucking basis ?! Tell me !

Once this aspect calms down in her, everything will surely be better and she could potentially look again at the case of the Hydes whose research remains incomplete (which have always deeply interested her on the other hand), and therefore Tyler.

But to return to her friends, Enid and Eugene are fine. Wednesday can recover from what Tyler almost did to them. Especially since Eugene was under Laurel's orders (and strangely, Tyler who could have easily killed Eugene... strangely didn't do it ?), and that Enid explains it by the fact that Tyler was in Hyde mode, his second monstrous personality, that he doesn't seem to really have control over ?

But more than that, Wednesday is a person who generally takes those treated most unfairly under her wing. And Tyler is probably the one who has been in this sad situation the most.

That she hates him forever makes no fucking sense ; since although she is angry for the moment because her ego is hurt, she knows that Tyler had a shitty family life, was groomed by Laurel who woke up his Hyde thus forcing him to become her puppet and imposing a bond that makes Tyler want and love what his mistress wants.

Then again, it wouldn't make sense for Wednesday to be mad at Tyler forever...

Oh and... Just for pleasure : “Of course the first boy I kiss would turn out to be a psychotic serial-killing monster. I guess I have a type.”

Also... Wednesday didn't put Xavier in the cell because Tyler manipulated her into doing so ? Wednesday did this all by herself like a grown-up ! 😂 Because, for the recording, Wednesday is a narrow-minded and toxic person. And believe me, of all the people Wednesday could have upset and blamed herself for this, Xavier is the one she will get over the quickest. Because ultimately she just likes him as a classmate and childhood acquaintance. And again I'm being nice... because most of the time she actually just tolerates him.

Oh and Wednesday finally saved everyone at the end of season 1. Given her ego and her anti-heroine nature, I think she will eventually recover from her own mistakes / forgive herself. 😂

I get that some people are shipping them as some kind of kink ( monster serial killer with Wednesday addams) 😏. But this kind of shipping starts and stays in the dark corners of the internet.

This ship can't be acknowledged by a streaming platform to the general public ( which includes millions of kids).

Just... God, if you think Wyler is an impossible relationship to fix, then you've never read or seen a real enemies to lovers romance !

I literally read one romance where the guy almost killed the heroine forever by stabbing her in the heart ! And if it weren't for the intervention of other characters, she would have died ! And yet at the end of the story, they're happily married !

The enemies to lovers trope isn't as fragile as these morons think it is !

One mistake and the relationship is dead forever ? Wow...

Wyler is also so soft in that category too ! The antis seem like a bunch of fragile people when they talk about Wyler.

Literally every time these people try to put the Wylers down they just make fools of themselves. Because they just bring up arguments that have been contradicted a billion times or are comically weak, or they just say bullshit that is simply not true.

I repeat, enemies to lovers have existed since the dawn of time, it's literally one of the most popular and represented tropes in existence ! Whether in children's fiction or for a general audience !

What cave are you living in to dare to say that Wyler cannot be recognized by a general public ?!

Even in super popular books you have thousand times worse than Wyler ?!

“The general public can't handle Wyler” My god... hello Delena, Klaroline, Clarice & Hannibal, ect ?!

For information, as shocking as it may be The Vampire Diaries was seen by many children / teenagers in addition to adults in time. All my friends at the time and I were kids when this show started and we watched it, like so many others.

Hence children and the general public couldn't handle Wyler ? Wyler is as soft as fucking Reylo ?! Another great ship that the general public and children loved.

This is one of the biggest bad take I've ever seen ! The confidence you need to say this kind of stupidity ?!

Seriously, wtf ?!

Although he was groomed, Tyler was a willing participant in the crimes that he committed and he even told Wednesday that he enjoyed killing innocent people. Millar and gough folded the wyler book forever in that scene.

Tyler can never be trusted enough around outcasts to be released.

It's literally said in the show that the hyde is conditioned to like what its master likes and want what his master wants. It's not even ambiguous. It's said in the fucking text of the show.

And I remember that Tyler makes his fucking confession to Wednesday with tears in his eyes. Yes, what a great villain...

Oh and if you need to talk about the non-canon novelization of the show that most of Wednesday's audience hasn't read and never will read to prove your point about a canon scene and events from the show, we're going to have a problem.

They're the ones who sound like mentally ill repeating over and over again that Tyler absolutely loves killing without any fucking doubt... 🙄

And they go so far as to agree that the Hyde should be excluded ? While the show is literally about the treatment of the marginalized ? The excluded from society ?

And they think it's positive that there is a category of outcast among the outcasts themselves ?!

Clearly not.

The treatment of Hyde is something that needs to change in this show !

And for that, we first need to finish understanding how these creatures really work.

But hey... Not as if we had incomplete research on the subject, that Wednesday is interested in it and that she just happens to have a Hyde on hand to look into the subject... I wonder where this scenario could lead us ?!

But certainly not to a questioning of the treatment of these creatures by the society of this story according to the antis (#irony) ?! Of course, nothing will ever change for the Hydes ! They are too dangerous ! Long live the status quo !

This is driving me crazy !

Yes, what the hell would Wednesday who defends the oppressed and the victims, have to do with Tyler, the outcast of outcasts himself who was groomed by a psycho who triggered the Hyde in him to use him as a puppet and who has the equivalent of a mental illness by being a Hyde. Hyde by which she is fascinated, and who it is implied that she will complete the unfinished research on them ?!

Seriously, the writers racked their brains to write us a character like Tyler, a teenager with multiple problems, including family problems, a victim of abuse and whose hyde (the creature marginalized among the marginalized themselves, knowing that the whole message of the show is to accept the marginalized in reality) seems to be the equivalent of a mental illness, for people to be like “Yes, this guy is a pure villain who cannot have redemption ! He is rotten and the show is right when it says that the Hyde are too dangerous for the world ! Nothing must change and nothing aspires to a change of point of view on these creatures in a show where we are encouraged to accept the marginalized (and whose hyde is the marginald of the marginalized himself) through the only Hyde that we meet in person throughout the story who is only a teenager victim of abuse with the metaphor of mental illness !”

Seriouslly, the “Tyler will never be put back with the other outcasts because he's too dangerous” take it's so fucking stupid for a show about outcasts and injustices...

We present to you the outcast of the outcast, whose case in terms of creature has never been finished studying...

And you think Tyler will forever remain an outcast among his people and locked up for life ?!

WTF ?!

These people are tiring me out...

Because it lacks the "genuine" element: there is no love between Wednesday and Tyler.

I would like to understand how Wyler lacks romantic elements ? They literally have one of the most classic storylines in the world in terms of romance ? What the hell are you talking about ? Developed ? What would be missing ? My god, what bullshit. If you want analysis of the Wyler relationship you have my tumblr or those of @fullofwoe5321 @tylernation @wylerserver18official @ablatheringblatherskite @cosmic-lullaby @broken-everlark

Tyler and Wednesday only have one scene in season 2, according to the leaks we got. So this teaser is very much bait for the fans who still like them together 😏. Netflix is yet again giving false hope to fandoms about something that isn't going to happen.

Saying that Wyler will only have one scene in season 2 according to the leaks...

Are you aware that the leaks are not always true ?

Are you aware that it wouldn't make sense for Wednesday and Tyler to only have one scene together ?

Because a teaser is supposed to give an indication of what the new season will be about overall ?

Oh but am I stupid. In your stupid little shit head you think that Tyler will now always be locked up for life. In that case, why keep the character in the show ?

Fucking idiot...

You really have to be in complete disillusionment to say that this trailer / teaser will be the only scene between them in all of season 2 while a teaser serves to show the viewer what will generally be the center of the new plot.

Oh, and no official romance in season 2 doesn't mean no romance in the rest of the show, FYI. Especially since it is completely logical that Wyler (if these two were to end up together one day) wouldn't they go back into in love mode in season 2 ? They have a fucking relationship to repair first and also work on themselves each as an individual person ? Also, most Wyler fans, without even the announcement of a reduction in the romance being made, certainly did not expect the romance between Wyler to return straight away for season 2, simply because on a narrative level it would not have not been logical... Seriously, go find another hobby other than annoying people.

And even if Wyler doesn't end up together at the end of the show, despite all the logic of this romance, do you think that will stop us fans from shipping Wyler ?!

Obviously, you are clinging to Xavier when it is clear that nothing more will happen (since the character was removed from the show because the actor was accused of sexual assault) ?

Seriously, this person seems obsessed with the character of Xavier (who could have been an interesting character but who in fact remains generally average and a real potential ultimate shit boyfriend)...

But they got a slap in the face 🙂. since the teaser was met with massive backlash about the most unethical thing they did: dropping an innocent man and Convicting him of crimes he never committed...

Except the comments you showed don't show people being outraged that Xavier was sent to prison when he did nothing, just that they will miss Xavier's character.

You're thinking all by yourself, big girl (this is obviously a recurrence among the anti-Wylers).

And then “they did” ? What is she talking about ? Wyler fans ? Was it Wyler's fans who put Xavier in jail ? 😂

I repeat, you can only blame Wednesday for Xavier ending up in prison. Tyler has nothing to do with it, he never tried to accuse anyone to keep suspicion away from him. Wednesday suspected Xavier alone as a grown-up.

I'm so angry that this kind of crap is getting into the Wyler tag. Don't these people have anything better to do ?

I feel like I'm back in Reylo's time ! Because Reylo and Wyler are some of the softest ships in terms of enemies to lovers that I have seen and people act like they are some of the worst things in the world and that these ships are too hardcore for a general audience and calls us mentally ill for our thoughtful argument, which is ridiculous.

It's truly ridiculous and cheeky.

They just repeat the same bullshit over and over again, contradicted by the show itself and the show team !

At this point, we're not the ones who look ridiculous. It was them.

[the-wanderer]

Netflix has seriously harmed it's reputation with how often it is now cancelling shows. What used to be seen as the go-to service for saving cancelled shows, has now become the very thing it swore to destroy {Hello There Obi-Wan Kenobi reference). Netflix likes to repeat it's standard line that they have never cancelled a successful show, but they conveniently never tell us how they measure success, because this doesn't ring true with their shows like Lockwood & Co and Shadow & Bone, that got to both Number 1 and Number 2 respectively in Netflix's own published streaming charts, and that still wasn't enough to save those shows from cancellation. Also Netflix clearly has favourites in terms of marketing, for example I enjoyed the show Everything Now, but you've probably never heard of it, and I searched Facebook - Netflix did one post about it when they dropped the trailer 3 weeks before it's worldwide release, and that was it; but other shows like Bridgerton, you can't fail to know it's there because they post daily about it on their socials for weeks up to and including release and for weeks after too. You even have actors in a new show saying they have to search their show to find it so they can watch and it's not even advertised on Netflix's own home screen, let alone anywhere else, so no wonder these shows get cancelled as they are never given a fair shot to succeed.

It seems unless you go viral or break Netflix's own streaming records, like Stranger Things or Wednesday, then even getting the number one or number two spot is not good enough to save a program from cancellation. Netflix needs to remember that not all releases are an overwhelming overnight success - even some of the best and most popular shows took a while to find their audience, like Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones, The West Wing, The Sopranos, but then when they did find their audience they became what everyone was talking about, and people who had never seen the show, still knew about them from it's impact on the cultural audience. Somebody else said, and I truly believe it, that if Netflix had made Breaking Bad today, they would have cancelled it after two seasons, and then think what great storytelling we would have missed out on, all because the show wasn't a record hit in it's opening week.

And now Netflix finds itself in a self-fullfilling loop where they have now trained their audience to not try new shows and get attached as they'll likely be cancelled. Think about it, how many new shows can you think of on Netflix that got renewed last year. It only seems to be people will tune in for shows like Bridgerton, Emily in Paris, Outer Banks, as they have had time to grow with the characters, so now Netflix has got themselves in to a model where customers don't try a new show, like KAOS or Everything Now, and they'll wait and see if it's renewed, and when after only a month since it's release, it does indeed get cancelled, the consumer hasn't wasted time getting invested in a show & characters that get cut short, especially nowadays when there is so much to watch across traditional TV and now streaming services too, that just because the audience doesn't come running to watch as soon as it drops, doesn't mean it's not there or interested.

2025 see's the return of some of Netflix's biggest shows like Squid Game, Wednesday and Stranger Things, but 2 out of those 3 also end this year too and then what shows will be left that are associated with the Netflix brand - they had Stranger Things, House of Cards, Orange Is The New Black when Netflix first got going, it'll be hard to say by the end of this year what big shows Netflix will have left to draw customers in

Unless Netflix, and the wider industry, change their perception to not only see massive, viral numbers as success and that shows with strong-moderate success are allowed to grow and widen their audience, then there will eventually reach a tipping point where they will cancel one show too many that either customers leave their service, or creatives will decide that Netflix isn't a good partner to work with where you put years of work in writing, filming, producing, editing a project just for it to be cancelled a month after it's release, so if you have a story that needs more than one film or a one and done series to tell it in, then Netflix probably isn't your best bet any longer.

[artemisdesari-blog]

WIP Wednesday

More @codywanfirstkissbingo from the haunted armour AU, featuring a rogue Jaster Mereel as Cody's partner in ghost mystery crime! Can't believe that I can start posting these in full on Saturday!!

“Maybe he isn’t actually dead,” Jaster suggested. “I can't find a record of him among the battle lost.” The lists of those who died whose bodies were never recovered was extensive. It would make sense for his ghost to be among them, given the circumstances, but there were no Obi-Wans on the lists. Unless he had lived before the Dral’han. Most of those records were long lost. “Doesn't mean he didn't die some other time,” Cody shrugged.  Obi-Wan had never been clear about how he died, just that he had been woken when parts of his armour had been reforged and his passing had been a very long time ago. Jaster had spent the last eight years, once they had managed to get past the fact that Cody was not going crazy, digging into the history of the armour and trying to find out any information they might have about any verd named Obi-Wan. The name was unusual enough that it should have been relatively simple to find, but even after eight years they had almost nothing. “There are races that are extraordinarily long lived, Kote,” Jaster reminded him. “Your Obi-Wan could have been one of them.” ~No,~ Obi-Wan whispered. ~I’m not.~

[rocknrolldisaster]

kurty Cobain with a best friend reader who's helping him deal with his depression?

sure here’s my best try to not sound cringe lmao

~~~~~~~~~~

Post-Gig Blues

trigger warnings: mention of drugs,angst, fluff, that’s about it really lol

September 1989

You worked a 11-6 shift at a record store in the center of Seattle every Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. It was boring. The only things happening in that shop were teenagers stealing items, being loud, trying to flirt with you or couples making out in the corner, where the posters were. Your roommate, Kurt was in a hardcore punk rock band called Nirvana. And they just released their first record three months ago, and at the moment, they’re the “Most popular rising band in Seattle”

Hell, even the store’s tapes, CDs and vinyls of Bleach are on a low stock.

You’ve supported Kurt with his band ever since you moved in, five months ago. You’re best buddies, and you always feel safe when he walks with you in the dark.

23:16pm. Friday.

You sit at your desk, drawing a flower pot which stands at your desk while watching television. You’re the only one home, since Nirvana are playing a gig late tonight.

*knock knock* *sigh* “it’s me..” -you hear his tired and groggy voice outside the front door. He sounds fed up.

Your head snaps to the door, before you get up and approach the door, unlocking it and opening it.

“Hey Kurt, how was the show?” - you ask, with a polite smile, standing aside so he can walk in. His long, greasy blonde hair is drenched by the rain.

“oh- yeah, yeah we killed it.” - he says, his voice slurred, not sounding like it. He closes the door and locks it, shoving his hands into his coat pockets to hide how shaky and pale they are.

“doesn’t sound like it..” - you respond, looking at him with a raised eyebrow before you walk back to your desk.

“yeah, yeah I’m just tired.” - he grumbles, his hand reaching out to gently scratch the bridge of his nose then going back in his pocket.

“huh, me too dude.” - you say with a small chuckle, attempting to light up the conversation.

“…yeah.” - he murmurs. just staring at the floor for a moment. eventually he sighs and takes his shoes off, setting them aside, then coat off, hanging it up.

You continue drawing, but often glancing at him at the corner of your eye. He’s like this a lot. friendly, bubbly, creative and energetic for a few days, then some days it just crashes in when he’s lazy, stubborn, exhausted and fed up. And you know he shoots up on heroin every few weeks, thinking it’ll help with his intense stomach pains, and his moodiness.

He rubs his temples with a deep sigh, then swings his guitar case in the corner with no cares, and plopping onto the bed.

“god.” - he grumbles.

“What?” - you turn your head to him

“I don’t know.” - he rubs his eyes.

Your expression softens, you hum softly.

“Something happened at the show?”

“no it was great, genuinely.” -he replies.

“crowd loved it.” - he adds after a moment, looking over at you, his expression blank.

“then what?”

he rolls his eyes.

you tilt your head.

“tell me? you can always talk to me, kurt. I won’t judge.” -you softly tell him.

he scoffs.

“yeah right.” - he replies sarcastically, resting his chin on his hand and looking at the wall in front of his bed.

“i mean it, kurt. i never judged, never will.”

he stays unresponsive for a moment or two, before turning to look at you. You look at him back.

“you ever just…go out, and have the time of your life, but after…” -he starts, but his voice trails off. He looks back at the wall.

“Mhm?” - you wait for him to continue.

“you just hate the party life…it’s not for you..?” - he looks back at you.

“yeah, sometimes..” - you nod, looking back at the television then looking back at him.

“huh, thank god I don’t live in L.A.” - he chuckles bitterly, before sighing again.

“so what’s the main problem?” -you tilt your head.

his expression falters.

“it feels weird..im not the biggest fan of being famous ‘round here.”

“i get that.” -you nod.

“…im getting approached on the streets cause everyone knows me..I d…don’t like i…it..” -he stutters on his last words, his voice starting to sound more shaky.

You immediately pay close attention to his face, noticing his eyes are watery, you quickly get up and walk to him, sitting next to him on the edge of his bed.

“fuck, I’m sorry for this.” - he grumbles, his palm on his head.

“No it’s okay..you can cry..” - you reassure him.

“if it’s a good thing then your record is selling out at work..” - you raise your eyebrows, but he doesn’t answer.

You take his hands off his head and gently take them in yours, warming them up. He’s not fine, and he doesn’t want to admit it to you, since you’re the friend who he prefers emotionally supporting.

“you’re drenched.” - you softly say, looking at his wet hair and his clothes covered in raindrops.

“yeah, i knoww.”

You look into his eyes.

“You should take care of yourself.”

He looks back into yours.

“Don’t have the time to anymore.”

You roll your eyes at his response.

“Kurt, you need a break, you deserve it.”

“how..? i can’t, I got all this band shit. how could i take a break with everyone eagerly wanting to see me everyday?” - he gets more worked up, a tear rolling down his face.

“don’t listen to the people, just do whatever you want. i get paid on sunday, so I’ll take you to a spa on monday, maybe also have some lunch out” - you gently wipe his tears.

“pff, guess so.” - he rolls his eyes and sniffles, starting to quietly cry.

“shit, no it’s okay..” - you frown and pull him into a gentle hug.

“shut up.” - he grumbles.

“no let it all out..”

he eventually feels comfortable enough to let it out in front of you, he sighs and slowly rests his head on your shoulder, quietly crying into it.

“i’m here..it’s gonna get better.”

~~~~~~~~

[ingravinoveritas]

You know what's kind of wild to me? Anna just confirmed they've been together for 6 years. People forget she's still 29, and isn't 30 yet. So they met when she was still 23. Not hugely different from 25, but notable I think. Idk where the narrative that she was 25 came from and how that stuck.

Hi there! So I am still catching up on Asks, and I wanted to make sure I addressed these (grouped together due to similar themes). For those who might not have seen, what is being referred to are two separate incidents that occurred in the days after Anna posted the t-shirt story on Instagram. On Tuesday, she posted this story lashing out at a Swedish publication for sharing a story originally from a UK publication (The Independent) about Michael's answer to the age gap question on The Assembly. The story was originally in Swedish, but the English translation is on the right:

Then on Wednesday, she did the same thing again, this time with another Swedish paper:

Since so much of this hinges on what Michael said in his response, I will post a short clip of that here, so we have the visual:

When AL's stories were first posted, I noticed a few comments on a post from @nightgoodomens from someone who speaks Swedish, and after reading the article, their observation was that all the magazines did was literally translate what Michael said, word for word (which we can then also further confirm by watching the video above).

So Michael's words were translated directly, and on top of that, Anna was not tagged by these papers, or contacted by reporters "for comment"--she seemingly sought out these news stories and shared them on her own social media. What's strange is that most of us would never have even seen them otherwise, and yet she chose to draw attention to them. And if these articles truly are meaningless clickbait, I'm confused as to why Anna would lash out so hard at them, especially if she feels as secure in her and Michael's relationship as she has wanted us to believe.

The other thing for me is that the one voice that is (again) noticeably absent here is Michael's. Nearly every post Michael has responded to/shared in relation to The Assembly was about a moment between him and one of the interviewers, Leo. Not only has the clip of Michael's answer to the age gap question gotten much less circulation/attention than the initial clip of the girl asking him the question, he has not said a single word about it since the show aired on April 5th.

He has especially not said anything about being misquoted (either in UK magazines/newspapers or international ones). And this becomes even more glaring when you realize that Michael immediately jumped on someone Twitter the day before AL shared that first story and corrected them for misquoting him (in regard to his comments about Welsh actors and Welsh roles). So it's very clear that if Michael thought he was being misquoted, there is no reason why he wouldn't speak up about it. And yet...complete silence.

I also find it interesting that for months, Michael was being attacked on social media, first in the aftermath of his comments about the situation in the Middle East, then more recently after recording a video saying hello to Good Omens fans in Russia. In both cases, he was defamed over and over again, accused of supporting war and genocide, and in general had his comments twisted and distorted beyond recognition--in other words, he was repeatedly misquoted (to put it mildly). Not once did Anna defend him against any of this. Not once was there an Insta story or anything speaking up in support of Michael. But as soon as it was something about her/their relationship, here she was posting these stories and letting us know exactly what her priorities are.

To your comments @lookforthelight97 about AL inadvertently saying the quiet parts out loud, that was also something that caught my attention. We could be here all day talking about the narrative and who is trying to change what, but for those who don't know, the narrative of her being 25 came from every media outlet stating that Michael and AL met in May of 2019...despite the fact that she gave birth to Lyra just four months later, in September.

It was this discrepancy that gave a lot of us the feeling that something was off even back in 2019 (and I would urge folks to check out @problematicwelshman, who covered a lot more of this at the time). In actuality, Michael and AL would have had to have met in late 2018 (when Anna was actually 24, as her birthday is in August) for her to then become pregnant and have the baby in September. All of this to say that if the official PR line for the last five years has been that they met in 2019, it makes you wonder why AL is suddenly publicly contradicting it, especially to show the lack of contentment she seems to feel about the relationship even after five (pardon me, six) years.

In any case, my incredulity is and continues to be at AL so readily showing her insecurities in this way, because all these two Insta stories have done is to draw more attention to her response than to the articles that are mentioned. Articles that again, none of us would have known about if she hadn't shared them. Yet as was said above, I don't think there is anything that anyone could post or write that casts doubt on Michael and AL's relationship the way her own social media posts do.

And to what you @vaguelyomens and @angelsadvocate96 said about Michael mentioning that his greatest fear is being alone, I feel like maybe Michael has such a fear of being alone because he already knows what it's like to feel alone. To know deep down that you are not remotely on the same page as the person you're in a relationship with. To know that they don't understand you and never will, but feeling responsible for them nonetheless, and not knowing how to reconcile those two things. It's difficult to imagine anything that would make someone feel more alone than that.

So, those are my thoughts on the Insta stories AL shared earlier this week. As I have said before, I know that I could be completely wrong, and I'm happy for folks to share their perspective, whether you agree or disagree. A heck of a lot to think about, for sure...

[aaajaxolotl]

Feast Your Eyes: Fandom Cookbook Recipe Review #2

You Won’t Have Mush-room For Seconds - Minecraft: Gather, Cook, Eat! Official Cookbook

Tonight’s menu: sourced from the Official Minecraft Cookbook

Main Course: Mooshroom Burger, pg 55

Side Dish: Roasted Crops, pg 26

Full review under the cut!

Aurum Leuci’s Log:

[Begin recording.] Uh, hi. It’s Chef Aurum Leuci again, late… still. Are you sure you fixed the portal coordinates? Because this is NOT the culinary facility. Everything is cubes. I think I might actually be in a computer, because, uh.. when I say everything is cubes, I mean everything is cubes. I’m fine, and my gear is fine, and everything I make is fine, but I’m on an island full of giant pixelated-looking mushrooms, and pixelated… cow… things? With mushrooms growing on them.

…those could probably make a delicious meal, actually. Don’t worry about me, I’m going to see what I can cook up for some quick dinner. This weird new dimension might be a place worth exploring. As always, no need to worry. If I get into a sticky situation, I’ll jump dimensions again— but hopefully I’ll at least have time to eat.

If it’s good, I’ll be sure to bring some back to the lab for you. Aurum Leuci out. [End log.]

Please see this post for my full review scale!

Main Dish: Mooshroom Burger

RATING:

Difficulty: 5/5

Ingredients: 5/5

Immersion: 4/5

Time: 5/5

End Result: 4/5

TOTAL RATING: 23/25

I love this recipe, and so does my entire family. It’s a delicious swiss-and-mushroom burger that’s easily made completely plant-based using Impossible Beef and Daiya cheese- and it always turns out SO good! The reason this recipe isn’t quite perfect is twofold, so let me start with the somewhat sillier reason first: I WANT THIS BURGER IN MY GAME!!! Please!! We have the technology (bread, mushrooms, cooked beef). Give me the mooshroom burger, Mojang. Or at least a sandwich of some kind. The second point off is a matter of personal preference; the original recipe makes four absolutely MASSIVE burgers. Like, big enough that my family (all four of us) could barely finish them the first time I made this. I highly recommend cutting the recipe (and the resulting two, still massive, burgers) in half. Aside from that, this recipe was perfect (and delicious!) and very satisfying.

Side Dish: Roasted Crops

RATING:

Difficulty: 5/5

Ingredients: 5/5

Immersion: 5/5

Time: 4/5

End Result: 5/5

TOTAL RATING: 24/25

This recipe is another one I wish I could rate absolutely perfect. It’s easy, the ingredients are easy to get but relatively uncommon in most dishes, and the end result tastes incredible! This recipe made me love carrots, and it resulted in me even agreeing to TRY beets, which is a huge feat. The only point it loses is that the cookbook drastically underestimates prep time for cutting and peeling the vegetables. Especially if you’re not used to handling beets, they’re messy and will definitely freak you out at least once when the juice gets on your hands. Honestly, though, this cookbook was worth buying JUST for this recipe. It’s a consistent hit with my family.

Tune in next Wednesday (6/12/24) for another fandom cookbook review!

[moon-mage]

heaves a heavy sigh because fucking crap I am in LOVE Okay so. This was not meant to even go this far but here I am. Absolutely far gone. My INITIAL plan was to try to come up with a big bad villain to write a TWST fanfic about because I love taking all my favorite characters...throwing them in hell...and then orchestrating the drama and chaos while going: "why would anyone do this to these poor innocent peoples?" and "hahaha this is SO fun their suffering fuels me!".

One of my all-time favorite movies growing up was Anastasia. The 1997 animated Don Bluth film. So, I was like "oh boy what if I did a twist on that version of Rasputin?" Which holds promise considering he is a powerful lich sorcerer coded in death, ghosts, limbo...all my favorite tropes that I cannot get enough of. But Rasputin aint shit without his sassy bat familiar, Bartok. Their dynamic is interesting considering Bartok spends the entire movie telling Rasputin to get a life and stop trying to kill Anastasia. So, I thought on twisted Bartok more and....it just...it hasn't stopped. It hasn't stopped.

Now we got Sashmir Magnifico. The twisted version of Bartok AND Anastasia. Originally, he was just going to be twisted Bartok, but I ended up adding in elements of Anastasia to him as well and I liked it.

Sashmir is a bat beastman and a lot of people assume he is an albino bat, but his lack of pigmentation is a side effect of his Unique Magic; "Together In Spirit". He doesn't go further into details about it other than 'the adults around him growing up were not knowledgeable of magic and forced him to use his magic for the benefit of others without thought of the consequences on him'. Only a few people know his UM and its capabilities, and he wants to keep it that way. The incantation for his UM is: "I am the key...that unlocks your potential...I promise we shall stay...TOGETHER IN SPIRIT." Sashmir is a 2nd year student at Night Raven College in Ignihyde dorm. He is interested in biology and the combined use of magic and science for enhancing and healing the human(oid) body and mind. He also has a passion for music, having learned how to play most instruments to a passable degree and he taught himself how to write sheet music. He does so with popular songs and makes them available to the public while recording himself playing them online. He loves teaching...and tutors for free on Monday and Wednesdays at 12AM in the Ignihyde dorm lounge. He had hoped to one day become a music teacher but decides the more practical route would be to continue magical medical sciences. He doesn't like shoes and has lost his shoes when taking them off and leaving them places. One of the first time of magics he had learned was levitating as it felt natural for him to not be on the ground all the time. Personality wise, he is rather chill and easy going. He speaks in a Romanian accent and isn't afraid to clap back with the sass or defend himself if challenged. Sadly, Sashmir is under the thumb of a powerful and dangerous sorcerer...and the days are numbered until his master makes his grand appearance and destroys the "peace" of NRC. All according to plan and...all that evil jazz. I have a LOT MORE THINGS TO SAY but I will make a post specifically for his info dump I guess. I'm sorry I love this boy... Also you see the candy and coffin...if you know...you know.

[bjornensuckler]

Obey me! Silly little headcannons

Nightbringer has made me so so so sad, so I'm making silly little headcannons for the original timeline to make me happier :,)

When Leviathan has to go to RAD, he spends most of his free time in the back corner of the library with Satan and reads Manga

When Solomon is very stressed or overworked, he likes to have green tea with honey (Sometimes Luke brings it to him if he stays in his room for too long)

Mammon does little dances with his hands when he's walking somewhere if there's no one around

Sometimes, when Lucifer is listening to his records, he imagines himself dancing with MC and ends up having to turn it off cause he's too distracted

Asmo listens to screamo when he's by himself (occasionally with MC)

When Beelzebub is watching a movie with MC, he'll hold their hand and encourage them to lean against him

Belphegor has Crossy road on his phone but gets unreasonably frustrated with it causing him to play it for around a week before ignoring it for months only to replay the cycle

Barbatos kisses MC's knuckles on both of their hands everytime he greets them

Diavolo will occasionally attempt to learn about devildom internet culture only to go to Barbatos and ask him what it all means

Siemon really enjoys drawing wand will sketch little birds in his note books

Luke has secret handshakes with Simeon and Solomon (wants to make one with Barbatos but is too scared to ask)

Mephistopheles frequently listens to Beyoncé and Lady Gaga

Once Thirteen had found out what crazy frog was, she played it on repeat to try and get Solomon to leave (It is still stuck in her head and she hums it a lot)

Raphael once got a mood ring as a present from Luke and would stare at it for hours out of confusion (He'd be like 'But I'm not angry?? What is this trickery??') It's in a locked draw now

The House of Lamentation has bi-weekly hot chocolate night where everyone sits in the living room together with hot chocolates (Satan does little designs for them, and purposefully messes up Lucifer's)

Purgatory House has movie night Fridays where any of Solomon's choices have to be checked first cause he keeps recommending horror movies

Diavolo wants to have weekly events like that but never has much time so he settles on bi-weekly wednesday tea times with Barbatos, MC , and occasionally Lucifer

MC has clothes, toothbrushes, etc, at both Purgatory house and the Demon Lord's Castle cause of how much they stay over

Oki Doki, that is it for now!! I think I'm finally gonna start posting stuff so hello everyone!! Can someone also please tell me how to do that 'under the cut' stuff?? I wanna make NSFW headcannons :(

[highqueenofelfhame]

rowaelin // 5.8k words // masterlist // ciwyw masterlist let me know if you want to be tagged in my writing :) i hope you enjoy <3 i can't wait to see all your comments. y'all are kILLING me with them on this one.

As much as he knew he shouldn’t be, Rowan was drunk. Again. 

Tomorrow they had a match against Adarlan on Doranelle’s home field. While Rowan laid on his back,  staring at the ceiling fan above him with a full half-empty bottle of whiskey resting on his stomach, he knew they were going to lose. Not because Adarlan was better or because they wanted it more, but because Rowan was a selfish piece of shit and couldn’t put the bottle down. There was no way he would be in any condition to play tomorrow— at least not well. 

Burying his sorrows at the bottom of the bottle seemed like the better alternative until he could figure out how to repair what he had catastrophically obliterated. It had been a full week with no word from Aelin. Not a single one of those days had passed without him sending an apology text into the void. There had even been a few voicemails Wednesday night that went unanswered. He wouldn’t be surprised if she was erasing them without bothering to listen. He deserved that much. 

Rowan Whitethorn had never had social media. Ever. Not even in high school when it was just becoming a cool thing to do. Nobody needed to know that much about his life. At this point in his career, his agent and PR team begged him to do it because it would garner him more popularity. Even Lorcan posted on instagram from time to time and kept everyone happy. 

The thing that finally drove Rowan to making an instagram account was stalking Aelin Ashryver Galathynius. It was easier for his thumbs to scroll through her feed while nursing sips of whiskey, trying not to double tap on any pictures. He was pathetic enough— Aelin didn’t need to be aware of his sulking and pining. 

This all came after he googled her name paired with various words like ‘spouse,’ ‘husband,’ ‘wife,’ and ‘wedding.’ Nothing came back with a result, but it had been lurking in his mind when she didn’t answer his question earlier. Besides, Rhoe Galathynius very well could have been her father-in-law. As it were, she wasn’t married, and Evalin and Rhoe only had one child: their daughter. At least if she was married, there was no record of it. No photos of her in an elegant white gown standing next to the love of her life. 

Good. He could deal with that. 

What he couldn’t deal with was the photos of her in bikinis, arms wrapped around the waists of other men. She was nestled between the pair on the deck of a yacht all three of them with wide smiles and sunglasses covering their eyes. Her bathing suit looked more like lingerie and Rowan had never wished so hard for summer to come back around than he was right then. 

There were pictures of her with a stunning brunette woman, both of them dressed in finery or night-out attire depending on where they were headed. Aelin with a full face of makeup, with sultry dark eyes and a full pouty lip was enough to drive him into madness. 

He found photographs from holidays with her family, Aelin perched on a couch in comfy clothes and thick socks with Aedion Ashryver standing behind her. Further down her page he found the ones from years ago of her on Aedion’s shoulders after he won some match or another. It was captions Always my hero. 

Lower and lower he went until he finally hit her first post: a simple kingsflame flower from nine years ago with the caption Fireheart. He supposed that was where she garnered the name for her foundation. Gods above, she was incredible. A super-hero amongst ordinary women. 

Rowan scrolled back towards the top of her instagram, all the way back to the most recent one. It was from their day downtown, when they had bought a piece of chocolate hazelnut cake and sat outside the bakery. Aelin was laughing around her thumb that she held between her teeth. At that moment, he had been teasing her about getting the frosting everywhere. Behind the camera he was smiling just as brilliantly as she was. The light in her eyes, her smile, the utter joy that radiated off of her… It was enough to make him breathless all over again. 

“Fuck,” he murmured to himself, heart squeezing and soul dying at how absurdly beautiful she was. It didn’t seem fair. Everything about her was perfect. Not just outside, but inside, too.  Aelin Galathynius was the most selfless and loving person he had ever met. Inside and out, she shone with the light of a thousand suns. It made it impossible to look away and broke his heart that he had driven her away so sharply.

“M’such a bloody dobber,” he mumbled, zooming in on her face as close as it would get, until she was little more than a monochromatic cluster of pixels, none of her features distinguishable. 

The phone fumbled where he held it over his face, falling directly onto it. Rowan swore, the taste of metal blooming over his tongue where his tooth had cut through his lip. Worse than that, though, was when he noticed the giant heart that appeared in the center of the picture he’d been staring at. 

Rowan had accidentally liked it. Just as quickly, he unliked it and tossed his phone to the other end of the couch. Jail. He needed to be in phone jail. 

It had over ten thousand likes and three hundred comments. There was a chance she would never notice the notification appearing and disappearing. She might never notice. It didn’t stop the ice creeping into his veins, though. The idea that she would realize how utterly pathetic he was, as if all the texts weren’t indication enough. 

Rowan swore violently under his breath and grabbed his phone again. With bleary, bloodshot eyes he opened their text thread to send off another message. Just as his fingers started their drunken dance over the letters once again, his phone began to ring loudly. The vibration shook him to his core as he beheld the name flashing on his screen, a photo of the two of them laying on her couch flashing in front of him. The sight of it knocked the wind out of him. 

Aelin. 

Fuck. Shit. Mala fucking fry him. 

“Hello?” he said, breathless like he’d been running a marathon. 

“Hi.” Aelin’s voice was quiet. Rowan could imagine her sitting in the middle of her couch, a tv show paused. 

“I am so sorry, baby,” he began, letters and syllables stringing together with no space between. “I need to explain, to—”

“Did you just like that picture on my instagram?”

“I…” it was long and drawn out as he squinted at the ceiling, trying to find a way out of it. There wasn’t one. Heat crept up his neck and bloomed over his cheeks like rose petals. “Ye-yeah. That was me.”

“Are you drunk?” was her follow up question. On the other end of the phone it sounded like she was rolling over in bed. Gods, he would love to be wrapped up in bed with her. The expanse of her golden skin under his hands wasn’t beat out by anything, not even football. 

“No,” was his quick response. 

“You sound drunk.” It was impossible to tell what, exactly, her emotions were. Rowan swallowed thickly, setting the bottle on the coffee table and nudging it out of reach. 

“I sound like a pathetic bastard that ruined something perfect.” 

“You’re definitely drunk.” If Rowan wasn’t positive that she hated him, he might mistake her tone as amusement. 

“I miss you. And I’m sorry,” he paused to hiccup, “And I want you to tell me what to do to fix what I’ve broken.” A heavy, resigned sigh came through the phone and Rowan froze.

“Start with sobering up–” Fuck. She was going to hang up, and he had blown his only chance at making things right. Shit.

“Don’t hang up,” Rowan pleaded, lip tucking between his bottom teeth while he waited for her to respond. 

“Get some sleep and win your game tomorrow. After that… maybe we can talk.” If that was what it took, then yes. A thousand times yes he would do both of those things. Anything to get her to talk to him, anything so he could hold her, feel her lips on his skin, taste her and feel her beneath him.

“Do you promise?” A schoolyard thing to say, but he couldn’t help it. The gift of hearing her voice again after an entire week of deafening silence was the most beautiful thing he could ever imagine hearing. If he could, he’d bottle it up and get drunk off it. It was better than any alcohol, any drug. 

“I promise,” she replied, and Rowan swore he heard a hint of laughter weaving between each letter of those two, simple words. That couldn’t be right, though. Aelin was mad at him. They wouldn’t be laughing together anytime soon.

“Okay.” It felt stupid to say, but it was the only word he could find. 

“Okay.” Aelin’s voice was still soft and told him nothing of the status of his forgiveness, or if he needed to beg on his knees and worship her as penance. He would never, ever stop if that was what she required. “Goodnight, Rowan.” 

The line went dead before he could say anything else and a new zap of determination electrified his blood. If she wanted a win, she would get it. But he had to get sober first. 

With a pained groan, he pulled himself upright. A few deep breaths later the room wasn’t spinning quite so quickly and he was able to stumble to the kitchen. The smell of coffee made his nose wrinkle when he opened the bag. It quickly filled the space of the kitchen as he dumped the beans into the grinder, wincing at the shriek it made. Coffee and bread would help sober him up, and then he would focus on fluid intake to not be a useless sack of meat on the field tomorrow. 

He leaned against his counter, ignoring incoming messages from his teammates checking on him, and shoved half a piece of bread into his mouth. A cold shower would wake him up, and tons of water and painkillers before bed would help the hangover tomorrow. 

Anything Aelin wanted, he would give her. Starting tomorrow night by defeating the Adarlan Wyverns and handing it to her on a silver platter. 

When he finally drifted off to sleep, his phone screen was still illuminated in his palm: that final photo he’d taken of her at the bakery wearing a smile just for him. 

~*~

As soon as she took one step into the Neon Moon, she found Connall looking over at her with a healthy dose of surprise in his eyes. Aelin moved through the crowd that had gathered to watch the game, managing to snag a single barstool in front of the beer tap. 

“Water, please,” she half-shouted over the loud voices filling the room. As soon as it was in her hands she took a long drink before placing it down on a napkin in front of her. “Hi.”

“Hi yourself.” A crooked grin spread across his face and he leaned forward on his forearms. “Watching the game?” 

“Against my better judgment,” she sighed, ruffling her fingers through her hair. Now that she knew that he played for Doranelle, she just couldn’t miss it. Had she known from the get-go, there wouldn’t have been a single game that she missed. Even if it meant she’d be catching up on work during the short commercial breaks. “How much do you know?”

“Oh just… everything.” 

Aelin groaned and looked up at the ceiling. She wasn’t upset that he’d told his friends, his support system. Rowan needed that, just like she did. Though she had yet to tell her family, she was going to do it soon. Maybe tomorrow or the day after. Some of the dust had to settle with Rowan first. 

Though she was content to let him stew for a few more days, the single like she’d gotten from an account called actuallywhitethorn made her pick up the phone. A result of her doom-scrolling before bed, the notification had dropped from the top of her screen. By the time she clicked her notification icon, that particular like from that specific account was gone. It was like fate, she decided, for her to have seen it in its brevity. If he was miserable and pining enough to accidentally like an instagram picture, it wouldn’t hurt to call him. So she did.

At first, she didn’t know what to say, but as he talked it became more and more clear that he was very drunk. All his words had melded into one long syllable, and the fact that he was likely drinking away his feelings and problems had tugged at her heart. He really was adorable when he was drunk, calling her baby and trying his hardest to apologize, begging her not to hang up the phone. As much as she really did want to talk to him, it wasn’t a conversation to have while he was only half-aware. The apology she deserved needed to come from his sober lips, not drunk, loose ones.

After they hung up, Aelin had decided she would go to the bar to watch the game. It didn’t seem like a feat she could conquer at home alone on her couch. Even with Lysandra a phone call away, it felt too big to do on her own. The bar made sense.

“Congratulations?” Connall offered, and it was the first time she’d really picked up on any shyness or hesitancy from the man. 

“Thank you.” It was still so new, so foreign. The racing of her thoughts hadn’t died down about it yet, her emotions didn’t have a full grasp on the situation. “How is he?”

“I think you already know the answer to that.” Kind of. If his texts were any inclination to his mental state, he was having a rough go of things at the moment. “Feels like a piece of shite.”

“Yeah, well.” That was a little deserved after what he’d said to her. Connall didn’t seem to disagree, merely shrugging as he followed her eyes to the television.

The game had been on for fifteen minutes, and Doranelle had scored one point. Adarlan had nothing. It was a bit of a feat to score so early on in the game, showing just how skilled Rowan and his teammates were. A camera zoomed in on the players, a towering, dark-haired man with a glove tucked under his arm, using the bottom of his shirt to wipe his face. Aelin’s eyes widened and her head whipped toward Connall when the spitting image of him appeared on the screen. The only difference was the color of the curls: Connall’s were black, his brother’s golden. 

“You have a twin?” By way of answer, Connall merely winked and nodded back at the TV where Rowan had come into view. His uniform for home games was navy blue with white letters. Hands braced on his hips, he joined his teammates where they talked. It was only when he turned around that she saw how horrible he looked. 

Though his skin was golden brown as ever, his face was ashen. Dark circles clung beneath his eyes and his bottom lip was swollen and scabbed over. The sweat gathering at his temples didn’t do anything at all to make him look well, if anything he just looked sicker. 

“Whitethorn looks a bit… peaky,” Connall said cautiously, the corners of his lips tugging downward into a scowl.

“As drunk as he was when I called him last night, that makes perfect sense.” She was frowning, too. The most put together part of him was his hair, the single french braid down the center until it all met in a mess of a bun on the top of his head. 

As soon as the whistle blew, he inhaled and exhaled a deep breath. That was when the cameras zoomed back out to take in the entire field, all the players getting into position. Aelin watched closely, one eye on the ball and the other always aware of where Rowan was in the frame.

For a while, it was a lot of passing back and forth, working up and down the field, the ball getting stolen one way or the other. Once, Adarlan got close to scoring but the goalie for Doranelle was quick to block it and pass it back down the field. Another of Rowan’s teammates was quick to get it back toward the Adarlan goal. It was passed back and forth between a few as they worked further and further down the pitch until a pass from Connall’s twin had the ball being juggled between Rowan’s feet.

Watching Rowan play brought back the old feelings she felt watching Aedion. Her competitive temper rose in her chest as he sprinted downfield with the ball between his feet. Somehow, he never tripped or stumbled. When he passed it off to a dark-haired man, Vaughan, Connall told her, it was with tricky footwork that he made look easy. Seconds later and a single pass back toward him, Rowan lunged from behind a crimson jersey. By some grace of the gods he managed to land the perfect kick that arched beautifully through the air. Adarlan’s goalie missed it by a fingertip.

The bar became deafening– some of them rooting for Doranelle, others wanting them to lose for the sake of Varese’s team. On the TV, Rowan’s teammates pulled him off the ground and jostled him amongst them, Connall’s golden-haired brother smacking a kiss to Rowan’s sweaty forehead. 

If Aelin didn’t know any better, she would say his teammates were being a little more gentle with him than they might be otherwise. Rowan’s jaw remained clenched tightly, that muscle feathering as he nodded to the only person on the team that was taller than him where he stood down the field.

“Who is their goalie?”

“Lorcan Salvaterre. Team captain and one of Rowan’s closest friends. My twin’s name is Fenrys.” Aelin nodded and rested her chin on her hands as the next play started, polished blue nails digging into her palms. She knew of most of these names from Aedion’s soccer days and the afternoons at her parents house where her father prattled on about different team rosters.

The minutes ticked by, Rowan fiercely focused on the game. That look of sheer determination never left his eyes, even in the brief moments of reprieve he had to gather his wits. Whenever he could, Connall hovered near her for the moral support she’d come in search of. It meant more to her than she could ever put into words. Being in a new city, far away from her support system, with no one else to lean on? It was really nice to know he was there. Even if they barely knew each other. 

When Adarlan scored, Aelin had over half the pub groaned. The Doranelle players looked beyond pissed. Rowan and Lorcan shared matching expressions, both of their jaws grinding as they shook their heads before getting back into position. 

It led them into more volleying back and forth, the ball little more than a blur between feet. And then it was back in Rowan’s possession. It was like the wind sang for him, pushing him faster as he bolted down the field. Almost as soon as he made his goal, the one that would get them a point ahead though, a whistle blew and a yellow-checkered flag was waving. 

“Shit,” she murmured, closely eyeing the playback. It was a fair call, he had been offside. When the camera showed Rowan again though, he was pointed at the goal, mouth wrapping around words that looked a lot like fucking bullshit. The words weren’t more than a whisper as she said, “Rowan, you stupid idiot.”

Connall chuckled, despite the dire situation at hand. She knew he was only laughing at her, not his friend’s situation. Still, she wadded up a napkin and threw it at his head. It nailed him in the temple.

“It’s not funny,” she hissed, nibbling on the end of her straw, a sick feeling roiling in her gut.

The referee pulled a yellow card brandishing it in front of his face. A spark of anger flickered behind his eyes, mouth opening to spew something else when Fenrys grabbed him by the shoulders and made him turn away. Aelin exhaled a tight breath as Rowan shook his head on screen. Fenrys said something in Rowan’s ear and he nodded, lips thin in a stiff line.. It was enough to make him nod and hustle to his spot on the field, shaking his arms out when he came to a stop.  

Beneath the bar, Aelin’s legs were bouncing. Butterflies flitted their way through her insides enough that she braced her hands against her stomach as though it would calm them. It was impossible to look away as Adarlan took their free kick from the offside, launching the ball halfway down the field and into another frustrating back and forth between the two teams. 

This was always the part of the sport that Aelin hated. No, perhaps hated was too strong of a word. The build up always made her feel nauseous, waiting for one team to make one quick move to kick everyone into high gear to avoid a goal or make one. Being pregnant, it was worse. It felt as though her stomach was in the back of her throat.

Just before the end of the second half, disaster struck. Aelin saw it coming. She was pretty sure everyone watching at home or in the stands did, too. Connall swore filthily as Rowan ran for the ball and dove feet first to knock it away from Adarlan. Except in the process, his cleats clashed into the other player’s feet and they both went down in a heap on the field. 

“What the fuck did you say to him?” Connall asked over his shoulder, never taking his eyes off the screen as a ref jogged across the pitch. 

“I told him to win and maybe we would talk! I didn’t tell him to–” A yellow card appeared in the ref’s hand, followed by a red one and Aelin lost all of her words. Both were for Rowan. 

“I think he took that a little too do or die.” And so it seemed he had.

Distantly, she heard the announcer saying it was the first time he’d ever been red carded in his entire career. The patron’s of the bar murmured amongst themselves, many of them asking what the hell was wrong with Whitethorn tonight. 

The cameras zoomed in to where he walked off the field, sweat trickling down his face. Their coach followed him to the end of the field, the words he muttered only for Rowan to hear. Though he looked ready to hit anyone that was close enough, Rowan simply nodded. Fenrys caught his arm just before he walked off, mouth moving too quickly for Aelin to decipher. 

The last clear shot of him was walking into the tunnel and off the pitch, body rigid and muscles rippling while he pulled his jersey off his body. 

“I… I need to go,” Aelin said to Connall, who only nodded in response. She threw a few bills on the counter as a thank you and pushed her way out of the pub, walking as fast as her feet would carry her to her rental car down the street. 

~*~

Even though his team had another win under their belt by the time the game was over, it had been a fucking disaster. Rowan watched the second half on his phone from the comfort of his car after getting kicked out. 

It was the first time in his eleven year career he’d ever received two yellow cards, and consequently a red card, and been ejected from a game. All that anger and frustration from the week, from his hangover, had boiled to a head and exploded on the field. Next week he would have to sit out, too. 

Failing his teammates didn’t sit right with him. Lorcan was probably fuming and Rowan anticipated a less than friendly visit from him tomorrow. Coach Malakai was mad, too. The last thing he told Rowan was to get his shit together before practice on Monday. Only Fenrys, who never missed a chance to be a jokester about anything, had murmured words of encouragement before he left the field. 

By the time he pulled into his driveway, he was exhausted. His entire body ached from that last dive. There would definitely be bruises on his hips and thighs tomorrow from the way Ress Taylor landed on top of him. All he wanted to do was let his muscles thaw under a shower so hot it burned. A glass of whiskey would be great, too. Not that he deserved it after his performance on the pitch.

The game was… rough.The entire day was rough. From the time he’d woken up his mood had been in the pits of hell. Drunk Rowan hadn’t been able to piece together what Aelin said just before they hung up, but sober Rowan did as soon as his alarm sounded. 

Win your game tomorrow. 

Not win the game, like she used to say when she thought he was the coach. She didn’t ask him to wish the boys good luck like she had in the weeks prior. The words had changed. Win your game. The game he would be playing in, that belonged to him. She had given him a personal goal and though he helped his team achieve it, he still felt like he failed. Especially since he would have to sit out next week, too, because of the red card.

It had been stupid of him to think she wouldn’t find out the truth before he had the chance to tell her. Everything had just gone to such absolute shit before he had the chance. Rowan Whitethorn would be groveling at the feet of Aelin Galathynius for the duration of his life, and then some more after he crossed into whatever afterworld awaited him. 

The news of his career was just another lie he had to make right. All day it sat with him, festering like an open wound. It wasn’t that he suddenly felt bitter about his job. He didn’t. Rowan loved what he did, he loved the sport. It was his greatest passion and love in life. But Aelin deserved to hear about it from him. Not knowing how she found out only made it worse, until everything he felt was bleeding out into the astroturf beneath his feet and getting him thrown out of a game.

Upon pulling into his driveway, something white in front of his house caught his eye. His heart came to a stop as soon as his car did. Rowan didn’t even bother to pull into his garage, just parked beside the white SUV and stared at his porch. It felt like a fever dream, getting home from a hard game and seeing Aelin on his porch swing. The wind slowly moved her back and forth, but when she saw him step out of the car she stood, hands sliding into her back pockets. 

“I told you to win, not get a red card before the second half was up.” The lilting tone of her voice made his knees buckle. It forced him to gather himself before approaching, slowly walking up the stairs until he stood one below her.

“My mouth keeps getting me in trouble this week, it seems,” he said back, mouth completely dry. It was an effort to make his tongue form the words with his lips. “But it got you to my house, so I suppose there are worse things that could have happened.”

“Few things are worse than a red card.”

“Not talking to you might beat out all of them,” he said smoothly, fingers sliding along each of his keys until he found the one for his front door. He held it up between two fingers and Aelin nodded, stepping to the side and gesturing toward the door. 

She wore simple leggings and an oversized t-shirt, a pair of socks and slides on her feet. Though she wore no makeup and her hair was twisted half-hazardly onto the top of her head, she had never looked so beautiful. Lorcan would laugh himself hoarse if he heard the thoughts Rowan had about this woman, yet he didn’t care. Even in her most dressed down and casual state, she was breathtaking. 

He led her inside, locking the door behind them. It was late enough he assumed she would be staying for a while. Few people made a nearly two hour drive to turn around and leave upon arrival. Then again, he hadn’t seen last weekend going that way, either, and it’s exactly how that night ended.

“You played…”

“Shittily,” he offered, hanging his keys on a small hook by the front door.

“Brutally,” Aelin amended, slipping off her shoes and heading to the kitchen. Rowan watched as she grabbed two bottles of water from the fridge and handed one off to him before heading for the couch. “Have you eaten?” 

“No. Have you?”

“Not since lunch.” Phone in hand, she curled up in the corner and pulled a blanket over her lap. “I doubt we have any notable options, but Taco Bell is open and is shockingly one of the few things not making me sick at the moment.”

Rowan watched her from where he stood in the center of the room. It didn’t feel real. None of today did, really. It could be the hangover talking, but the day felt like a horrible dream. He was scared to move, scared that if he sat on the couch with her that she would vanish into nothing and he would wake up alone in his bed. 

“Are you going to just stand there all night?” Her eyes didn’t leave her phone while presumably selecting everything she wanted to eat, eyes narrowing at the screen briefly in thought. A moment later she held it out for him. Rowan stared at her, heart thundering away in his chest. “Rowan.”

“Right. Thank you,” he murmured, taking the phone and trying not to acknowledge the rush he felt when his fingertips grazed her palm. Not big on fast food most of the time, it took him a little longer to pick his dinner. “What do I owe you?”

Aelin just snorted as she submitted the order, eyes rolling slightly before placing her phone face down on the couch next to her, head tilting as she said, “Come to think of it, maybe you do. I think your twenty dollar fast food order might do me in completely. I’ll have to take out a loan.” 

“I can Venmo it,” Rowan said dumbly, reaching for the phone in his back pocket.

“I don’t need your money any more than you need mine.” Once there might have been a teasing edge to her voice. Her delivery was much drier than he was used to from her. But there it was. That stupid thing he’d said before he could stop himself, the words that brought everything they were building crashing down.

“Sit,” she told him, patting the cushion next to her. Rowan was careful to leave plenty of space between them. There were definitely lines and boundaries now. The risk of getting ensnared in one was too great and he had a lot of apologies to make. With his arms elbows braced on his knees and hands clasped loosely between them, he stared at the floor. 

“You’re actually getting a pretty sweet deal.” Aelin sighed, shifting so she was facing him full on. His green eyes didn’t leave the rug. “According to google my net worth is two-and-a-half times what yours is. Isn’t that crazy?”

“I didn’t know,” he finally said. As much as he wanted to look at her, he couldn’t. He was a fucking coward. Guilt was a disgusting, oily thing crawling beneath his skin. It threatened to consume him whole even worse now that he was talking to her than it had the rest of the week. 

Aelin sighed again, finally pulling his attention to her face. She laid her head back against the sofa and a few tendrils of hair fell down to frame her face.  Rowan’s fingers curled into fists to fight the urge to sweep them behind her ear. She must have sensed it because she did it herself. The blue of her fingernails was the same blue as his jersey. Part of him wondered if it had been on purpose. 

“I think tonight we can call a truce.” Aelin seemed to notice his gaze on her fingers because she folded her arms over her chest, curling her hands so her blue nails were hidden. “We’ll eat, sleep, and then tomorrow… Tomorrow we’ll talk.”

“Okay,” he agreed. The word was falling off his tongue as soon as she finished speaking. Her cheeks seemed to twitch with amusement, and if he had reacted differently last week she would probably be smiling. 

“I am curious, though. Did you make an instagram for the sole purpose of stalking me?” 

Rowan cringed. His eyes squeezed shut, lips rolling between his teeth as he looked away. Beside him it sounded like Aelin laughing, though it was little more than puffs of air coming out of her nose. It would have been easy to go on the defensive, to add one more lie to their crumpled house of cards. Instead, he went with the truth.

“I missed you. I just wanted to see your face.” He looked back over at her then, but it was she who looked away now. Her eyes were glassy, the dim lighting making the unshed tears in her eyes sparkle. “Shit. I’m sorry.”

“It’s these fucking hormones.” She dismissed him with a wave of her hand when he started to reach for her. It stung more than he would ever let on, but he retreated and dropped his hand into his lap while she used the collar of her shirt to dry her eyes. 

It was silent after that, the two of them alternating from staring at nothing to sneaking glances at the other. Rowan only knew because he caught her staring at him more than once when he thought he could take a second to drink her in. It was only when the doorbell finally rang and he stood that she said his name, stopping him when he was halfway to the front door. Turning to look at her, eyebrows raised in question, he watched her lick her lips. 

“I missed you, too.” It was barely a whisper, spoken so softly he might have dreamed it if he was any more tired. 

Still, it was enough to get him through the rest of their silent night. Enough that it didn’t hurt as much as he thought it would when he insisted she sleep in his bed without him. Enough to chase him with sweet dreams when he finally slipped into the guest room down the hall and tumbled into a deep sleep. 

@elentiyawhitethorn @autumnbabylon @fancysludgeshoelamp  @wordsafterhours @live-the-fangirl-life @the-hospitality-of-knives @tangledraysofsunshine @readandlisten @westofmoon @rowanaelinn  @morganofthewildfire @writtenonreceipts @feynightlight @emster1622-blog @scarblx @thefaetrove @loveyatopluto @actuallybarb @peppermint-fae @the-devils-own @scottmcgivemeacall @livingmylifeforme  @wordsafterhours @foreverfallingforthestars @llyncooljones @emily-gsh @loosesimplicity @emilyrose111294  @charlizeed @aelinchocolatelover @cretaceous-therapod @sayosdreams @fireheart-violet @the-regal-warrior @backtobl4ck @shyvioletcat @mariamuses

[juju-or-anya]

Now that I have your attention, do you remember the post I made yesterday asking which of these four Wednesday characters would join the trio of young criminals from Nevermore? Well, allow me to call this creative marketing. Get ready, because here’s an exclusive sneak peek of my upcoming fanfic.

[•••]

[•••]

The principal seemed to shrink even further into his chair but managed to awkwardly change the subject, grabbing the file on his desk as if it were a lifeline. "Let’s move on to something more practical," he said, wiping his forehead. "According to the reports we’ve received, three of you have criminal records."

The group turned to look at one another, clearly confused.

"Three?" Bianca asked, raising an eyebrow. "We know Wednesday and Tyler have a history, but who’s the third?"

The principal frowned at the file, as if hoping the letters on the page would magically rearrange to save him from what he was about to say. Finally, he sighed. "Ajax Petropolus."

Ajax, who had been sitting in the back trying not to draw attention to himself, slowly raised his head. His expression was that of someone who knew exactly what they were talking about but hoped no one else would remember. He slumped further into his seat, adjusting his beanie as if that might make him disappear.

"Ajax?" Enid asked, clearly surprised. "What did you do?"

Ajax let out a resigned sigh and muttered, "I know what I did. It’s not a big deal."

"According to our records," the principal interjected, "you were arrested for… stealing snakes from the Montreal Zoo."The group fell silent for a moment before bursting into laughter.

"Stealing snakes?!" Bianca exclaimed, doubling over with laughter. "Of all the things you could’ve done, you chose to steal snakes!"

"It was for a good cause," Ajax protested, still slouched in his chair.

"What cause could possibly justify stealing snakes?" Yoko asked, wiping tears from her eyes.

"They were my sisters," Ajax replied, shrugging as if it were the most logical explanation in the world.

"Your sisters?" Bianca repeated, completely incredulous.

"I’m a gorgon," Ajax explained, still staring at the floor. "They’re snakes. It’s a family matter. Besides, I think I was… a little high at the time."

[•••]

[•••]

"This is pure gold!" Tyler exclaimed, completely ignoring the principal as he yanked the incriminating page from the file and held it up like a trophy. "Listen to this, guys: 'Ajax Petropolus, arrested for stealing snakes from the Montreal Zoo… and a crocodile.'"

The group went silent for a few seconds, processing the information, before bursting into even louder laughter.

"What?!" Ajax exclaimed, looking at everyone as if they were conspiring against him. "That’s not… it’s not that bad, okay? It’s… you know… just one of those things."

"‘One of those things,’" Bianca repeated, trying to hold back tears of laughter. "What kind of life do you lead where stealing snakes and a crocodile is just something that ‘happens’?"

"Hold on a second!" Ajax protested, raising his hands as if addressing a jury. "First of all, it wasn’t theft; it was… an unofficial adoption."

"Unofficial adoption?" Yoko asked, raising an eyebrow over her sunglasses.

"Yes," Ajax insisted, crossing his arms as if his argument made perfect sense. "They were my sisters. I’m a gorgon, remember? They were snakes. I was just… reuniting the family."

"And the crocodile was family too?" Tyler asked, unable to resist the opportunity.

Ajax shrugged, clearly uncomfortable. "Maybe… a distant cousin, I guess. Plus, I didn’t know it was a crocodile. It looked like a big snake, okay?"

"A big snake with legs and a mouth full of teeth?" Bianca teased. "Please, Ajax, at least be honest. You were high, weren’t you?"

Ajax’s silence was more telling than any words. Finally, he muttered, "Maybe… a little. But that doesn’t have anything to do with it."

[•••]

[•••]

Excerpt from my upcoming fanfic School Exchanges. Coming soon exclusively on my AO3.

[loftec]

Weekly Wednesday Saturday tag

Thanks to my pals @the-rat-wins @deedala and @wehangout for the tag! I had to wait until I got home from a work trip to do this, so I wouldn't go insane trying to format this beast on my phone <3

Name: Lofty

Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? (or you): Sweden

Ok, so this week we are going to snoop into your google search. Type in each phrase and tell us what the first suggestion is that google gives you!

What is the best way to… lose weight (not me.)

Where can I…watch (haha I ruined this one by accidentally googling "where can I watch" two seconds earlier because I thought it was part of the prompt)

How old is… Eminem (pfffh not me.)

How long does it take…to learn Japanese! (I don't think I've searched this because I know the answer (your whole life lol) but at least it's relevant to my interests).

How many… seconds in a day (interesting but not me.)

Who set the record for… the fastest time to reach one billion views on YouTube? (Extremely not me.)

When did… Russia invade Ukraine (...okay, also not me.)

What does it feel like to… be in love (actually not me.)

Can you… run it (What does this even mean? Not me.)

When you… say nothing at all (Not me, but now I've got this song stuck on my mind.)

Why do… es Sweden have so many islands? (Do we have an abnormal amount of islands? Not me.)

Is there a way… to save Karlach (whomst??? Oh, from the video games. Not me.)

How old do you have to be…to play fortnite (most definitely not me.)

Where do the… sturniolo triplets live (now you're just making things up, not me.)

What is the best time to… post on instagram (I might have searched this for work but not on this computer.)

And to finish us off…What comes up when you type in Shameless?Shameless cast (not me!) (Whenever I search Shameless things I always write [thing] shameless us, as in: "Ian Gallagher shameless us" when I need a reference image or something.)

Wow okay I think what I've learned today is that I never search things using standard question formats, so here are 10 random searches from my history, for free:

vermillion

off centre chau gif

is this a butterfly meme

sue charlton

Average temperature chicago september

farenheit to celcius

pysgod wibbly wobbly

running through a field

daffodils svenska

loftec cake potato

The few times I google as a question look more like this: WHY THE FUCK DOES IT SAY MY POST IS MADE WITH AI ON INSTAGRAM AND HOW DO I REMOVE IT?????? (recreation of a thing I actually googled yesterday) (answer was I probably accidentally ticked the AI box myself but also fuck off fuck off fuck off)

Not tagging anyone because it's Saturday, but also tagging anyone who wants to do this!

[keepmeinmind-01]

wip wednesday 23/10

hi everyone and hope you're having a good week! here are my lines for this week :D

from "all i need", for @wizisbored @stonemaskedtaliesin:

CW: mentions of period-typical racism

Newt had no grand theory, no hypothesis about the roles of creatures or wixen—he only wanted the public to be less afraid and more appreciative, with his academic works simple and illustrative, his books comprehensive and designed for a wider audience.  With every letter, he felt the doubt return. He dared not to ask Theseus, as much as he wanted to, because the Auror Office had been specifically barred from the intel of the Department of Mysteries, and he worried his brother’s head might find some irrecoverable chopping block. In strict confidence, Leta had told him to release a statement, if he so wanted, positioning himself against the magical scientists drawing on the growing trend of Muggle eugenics. Tina had gone a little pale and admitted that she’d never been allowed in any of New York’s resorts, because of her being Jewish.  That, at last, had made him want to release something. The Ministry had posted it for him in a copy of the Prophet; that same week, a Muggle police officer had stopped Theseus and Leta as they’d come out of a riverside restaurant; and new intelligence Albus had given about Grindelwald’s tactical propensities had averted another planned massacre. 

from "never love an anchor 1908 part 4" (which weirdly is part 5, great job me in doing my file names), for @aparticularbandit @oriharaizayadividesintoslytherin @tamsinswriting @lizhly @kallisto-k @enigma-the-mysterious @loyal-house-of-lupin:

CW: referenced infertility

"Well," she said finally, letting the diagnostic spell fade, "it's certainly an unusual curse. Dark magic, without question, but with an interesting temporal component. Were you planning on having children, Mr Scamander?" Theseus's throat tightened. He'd never really thought about it before—or rather, he had carefully avoided thinking about it, the way he avoided thinking about most futures that didn't involve the Ministry. "I suppose that's not relevant now," he said quietly. "Not necessarily. There are treatments we can try. A regimen of specialised potions might be able to counteract the worst effects, though I should warn you they're not pleasant, and success isn't guaranteed." She pulled a piece of parchment from her desk and began writing out instructions in a neat, cramped hand. "Three times daily, with meals. The side effects can be...significant. Nausea, fatigue, occasional magical instability. And even if the treatment is successful, there may be lasting effects we can't predict." Theseus took the prescription, folding it precisely along its creases. His hands didn't shake—he was proud of that—but he could feel the tremors building under his skin, like the precursor to an earthquake. "Thank you," he said, his voice steady. "About the records—" "They'll be sealed, of course. Patient confidentiality." She hesitated. "Though given the nature of the curse, and who cast it..."

from "kmim thesleta flashbacks" for @sourb0i @auburnlaughter @whimsicalmeerkat:

CW a fight in which someone throws a vase

He knew he should stop, knew he was only making things worse, but the words kept coming, propelled by exhaustion and lingering alcohol and the image of that little girl's body that wouldn't leave his mind. "You want to talk about draining? Try walking on eggshells every day, never knowing if you're going to get the woman I fell in love with or someone who looks at me like she's measuring the best place to stick the knife. You bottle everything up, push people away, test them until they break—" The crystal vase sailed past his head before he could finish, missing him by inches. It shattered against the wall in an explosion of glass and early spring daffodils, water running down the wallpaper. Leta stood with her arm still extended, chest heaving, her eyes wild both a mixture of fury and horror. Theseus didn't flinch. If anything, his racing pulse began to slow, settling into an eerily familiar calm. His body remembered old lessons: when things started breaking, it was time to be still. Stay quiet. Don't provoke. Weather the storm. "Are you going to hit me next?" he asked, his voice perfectly neutral. "Go ahead." Instead, she turned and fled the kitchen, leaving him standing amid the glittering shards of broken crystal. Theseus didn't move for a long time. The coffee percolator bubbled and hissed, filling the kitchen with its rich aroma. Water continued to drip down the wall, the daffodils lying broken and scattered across the floor. His mother had given them that vase as a housewarming gift, he remembered distantly. She'd been so pleased to see him settling down, building a proper home with someone. From somewhere upstairs came the sound of drawers being yanked open, things being thrown around. The familiar sounds of packing, of leaving. His feet felt rooted to the floor, even as part of him screamed to go after her, to fix this. But he'd learned that lesson too—sometimes chasing only made them run faster. The morning sunlight caught the broken glass, sending rainbow refractions dancing across the kitchen walls. Beautiful, in its way. Destructive things often were.

and as part of the 2-for-1, from "kmim celebration/sudan" for @sourb0i @auburnlaughter @whimsicalmeerkat:

Rocking back and forth on his heels, he examined the vast range of jars the others had produced and started selecting a few, trying to ignore how discombobulated the sight of his hands reaching out to touch something solid made him feel. Pickled fronds of green cabbage, sesame seeds and grated carrot, bamboo shoots and broccoli stems, and a promising looking pair of jars that contained cucumber and chillies respectively. Leta had loved spicy food; he’d adapted his childhood’s bland palate of basic meals and skipped dinners for her.  This he could do. Cooking had always been a straightforward task for him—following steps, achieving results.  "That large jar is pickled radishes," Newt said. "But the red one next to it is actually preserved specimens of a rather fascinating fungus that grows on the Qilins' preferred grazing grounds. Best not to mix those up." Tina, who had been reaching for the red jar, quickly withdrew her hand. She moved to the sink instead, accidentally knocking the tap and spraying water in several unexpected directions.

[daresplaining]

heya! getting myself back into daredevil after a few years and shotgunned everything post-waid in like, three nights. i am wildly interested in hearing your thoughts on, uh, everything, but anything in particular on goldy? it feels like such an asspull that never went anywhere.

Heya, I remember you, welcome back! (Three nights?! I salute you. ...Are you feeling okay?)

I think I can sum up my overall opinion by saying that I miss Waid's run. I was mostly so-so on Soule's run; here are some posts on elements of it that I really enjoyed, though: (Sam Chung, Muse, "Supreme", Echo's return, that Spider-Man team-up) and then one of many (many, many) posts about one of the best things I think Soule, or any other Daredevil writer, has ever done: "Double Vision": The (Re)birth of Mike Murdock.

Zdarsky's run was my least favorite Daredevil run to date, full stop. I have never had such a miserable time reading a DD comic (and it just kept going! Most runs I've disliked had the courtesy of being short). Here are a few posts about some of my major gripes (my initial reaction to volume 6, my feelings on volume 7 ("The Red Fist Saga"), my feelings on Zdarsky's handling of Elektra). Pretty much all of the posts about things I enjoyed in Zdarsky's run can be found in my modern Mike Murdock tag.

I'm reserving judgement on the current run. I have a lot of sympathy for Saladin Ahmed for having to work with what Zdarsky left him (he's done admirable work in trying to make Matt being a priest make sense), but it also means that key elements that I disliked in the previous run have carried over. I don't hate it so far, but I'm not enjoying it yet.

I honestly don't know what to make of Goldy. I found him such a frustrating-yet-uninteresting character that he left my head the moment I finished the story. For the record, the idea of introducing a new element that builds connections between previously unconnected bits of continuity is actually a concept that I find really cool, and that I think can be executed in powerful ways that invite compelling reexaminations of earlier stories. But I found "mwahaha, I actually caused every bad thing that's happened in your life in order to make you stronger" both unoriginal (is Zdarsky a Flash fan, I wonder?) and, in this case, an addition that actually sapped those previous tragic stories of some of their power. The idea of every bad thing that Matt has ever been through being artificially orchestrated by an outside force, rather than being a combination of bad luck, malicious antagonists, and his own trademark poor judgement, just fundamentally doesn't appeal to me. And then, yes, he just vanished. Maybe he'll reappear? Maybe not? I hope not. I don't know. Maybe another writer could do something interesting with him and with the idea he represents, but I'm not hugely invested in that happening.

In any case, it's great to have you back! I hope your experience of catching up was a mostly enjoyable one. The next issue of the current run is out this Wednesday (June 26).

[suchagallabitch]

🫵weekly wednesday tag 🫵

omg I (simple old me?) have been bestowed upon the honour of coming up with these questions??? i would like to thank the academy for this most sacred honour 😋

1. if you could switch bodies with anybody for only one hour who would it be and what would you do? I think I gotta say taylor swift OBVI. first off im gonna dropping ME! acoustic version. Then I’m gonna hope lover deluxe is already recorded, drop that. If not i will make sure to text Jack and tell him that we need to record it so that i get it either way 😼. Then I would find out the definite truth of what happened between her and Karlie Kloss. I’d wire myself (as in me- me) a few million dollars, pet the cats and then post something really random on her instagram story. Literally want to make the public go absolutely bananas trying to figure out why taylor posted a random twitter meme. I have a lot of faith to believe this could all happen in an hour but I would try. SO hard.

2. whats your most trivial / dumbest hot take?I don’t think we should still be discovering animals. like what do you mean in the year of our lord 2023 we are STILL finding animals?? no they should all be discovered and if they havent been then i think they should stay undiscovered.

3. if you had to teach a college course what would it be in? I feel like we’re all expecting me to say something Taylor related but honestly I could teach a masterclass on the psychology of Ryan Murphy. I hate that man and i have so much to say about him and his productions

4. season 12 of shameless is suddenly happen and youve been put in charge! what plot point(s) are you gonna make happen? I cant think of anything substantial to actually contribute but i want Carl Gallagher to have a fruity little vape. I also want to see him quit the force and flourish in a new job!

5. who would be your godly parent? (can be any mythology). I’m gonna go with greeks as a Percy Jackson stan. I asked my bsf who is an expert in greek mythology. She said: “you’re a Aphrodite child cuz you’re a hopeless romantic and you appreciate beauty. You’re very particular in how you’re viewed and how everything you produce is viewed (what you write, how your feed looks like, etc.)” - I’m gonna have to agree with her on Aphrodite

6. what’s something you love about yourself? I think i’m so very very funny

7. describe your day in 5 emojis: 😴👁️👩‍💻✈️☕️

8. what shameless character do you think you could beat in a fight? Realistically i think the ONLY person i could beat in a fight is Liam and honest to god im not even sure i could.

9. tell us 2 truths and a lie, we’ll try to guess the lie!

- I’m double jointed

- I sleep on the left side of the bed

- I’ve never had pumpkin pie

10. do you have a pet(s). if so how did they get their name? I do! my son (cat) is named Chidi after the good place!

11. show us a meme (or picture) that captures your essence

self explanatory.

12. whats your typical coffee / tea / beverage order? see i gotta have a special lil drinky drink everyday and i mean my little drinky drinks are free so i am likw 80% gingerbread chai at any given time. Alternatively, an iced chestnut praline latte w/ praline cold foam.

13. use a song to describe the last 5 years of your life?

2019- its nice to have a friend- taylor swift

2020- ribs - lorde

2021- nothing new - taylor swift

2022- first love / late spring- mitski OR orlando- leith ross

2023- true blue - boygenuis OR now that we don’t talk - taylor swift.

Thank you friends thats all i got :)

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