#like that invalidates her selective mutism

[functionalasfuck]

Okay, here’s one thing I think When The Phone Rings doesn’t understand.

When someone suffers from selective mutism, they CAN TALK!

Like, it would be totally believable and understandable that she can talk to her husband on the phone and still suffer from selective mutism. That’s what the selective part of selective mutism means.

But it’s like, the moment anyone realizes she is capable of making sounds, they think she’s cured and faking it (which she is) but that is not the case at all.

And honestly it is wholly believable that after pretending to be mute for so long she would actually develop selective mutism since it occurred during her developmental phase.

[mycptsdstory]

Do any of my followers suffer from Selective Mutism? I'm only saying this, because my therapist thinks, I had it as a child. Not so much now, but definitely as a child.

I was sexually assaulted, when I was 6 to the day I left my family. I was sexually assaulted from 6-16 years by the sperm donor. Also by my mother from since I could remember to 22, when I left my family 9 years ago.

Every time I was sexually assaulted, it was hard for me to talk. It felt like I had a lump in my throat, so it just created this stutter and I couldn't talk.

I got bullied a lot as a kid too and that didn't help with talking too. I got bullied for the way my voice sounded, so I changed my voice to different acents or tone, so people can like me. But that didn't help with me not talking, I thought it did.

My mother was extremely abusive towards me and she would speak for me. But she didn't have the best intentions for me, so I always have to be fake around her. If not, I was punished for talking. Even talking about my hobbies, like fashion and makeup, it was forbidden.

I could only talk to certain friends and family members when I was child, because my stutter and not talking to certain people, really effected me. Anytime I was in a certain scenario, I just couldn't talk. I could talk to some family friends because they were apart of church and they came over to my home all the time. Other than that, it was really hard.

More recently (about 2 years ago), I was involved with a community drama group that just straight up used me. I nearly got into working a professional theatre, before they got jealous and ruined it for me. During one meeting, I found out they used me, so they could perform at the opera house where I live (they only performed at the community theatre. So for them performing at the opera house, a professional theatre was a big deal) and they used me so they could perform there. I was in shock and I didn't say anything during the meeting. It felt like I had a lump in my throat, I couldn't move at all and my body was stiff. Hearing my own community drama group, who I thought were my friends, using me. Saying horrible things about me, in front of me and I couldn't say a thing. It was humiliating. My body wasn't my own at that point, when I got home. I just cried. Don't worry I did leave them and I don't speak to them anymore.

I did try to go on the sub Reddit for selective mutism, but they always argued that it's only anxiety. So they tend to dismiss my trauma and I'd rather not talk on there. It always felt, invalidating.

I'm only talking about this now because my therapist said I suffered from Selective Mutism as a child. Since I left, I can now finally speak and since I'm living on my own, it forced me to talk and yeahh it was difficult, but helped me in the long run. I do have problems for talking, for instance the drama group. But that's it.

That's my story. Sorry for the grammar.

[respectthepetty]

Sorry long but I’m mad

You’re the only one who seems to see it the way I do em was wrong and you know he was wrong by the way two of his friends told him he was wrong, I hated how he was ignoring name but then finally when he text him it’s let’s wait till the semester ends and right before I can even say anything it’s “I don’t wanna fight” like??? U have been ignoring him, standing him up but think he shouldn’t be mad? Then to go to his mom instead of him to let him know he won’t be on for a whole month! like what he broke something that meant everything to him he promised but failed on that promise so fast and names mom doesn’t help because her saying the stuff she said makes it seem like it’s names fault em wasn’t talking to him much because he is mute?? What kind of mother does that? She literally was saying em has a normal friend group now, he’s doing normal things like?? So instead of helping your kid and figure out what’s going on u sit here and degrade him, say it’s his fault that his best friend isn’t talking to him because to both her and em(as she made it seem) name isn’t normal??? she doesn’t understand how low she made name feel and em as well both of them caused him pain and I just wish name wouldn’t answer em back so easily next episode I hope he doesn’t rush to answer him because em for sure wasn’t rushing to keep that promise and his mother should be ashamed of herself for saying he didn’t break a promise he just got a life they see both on my bad side

We are not alone in our feelings about Em being the WORST in Remember Me this week. There is a choir of us waiting to see the miracle that Em better produce next week after his poo poo platter of communication this week.

Enemy #1

I'm focused on Em because Em knows how he feels about Name. He knows! He has always treated Name as his special person. His friends know as well which is why they have all told him what he is doing is unfair and wrong.

I haven't focused on Name's mom because, as much as she acted horribly this episode, I'm forgiving her because we see more of her internal struggle. She is a single mother. She became pregnant with Name in high school. The same age Name is right now, she was pregnant with him at that age. Something traumatic happened that made Name stop speaking and for her to pack up her life and move him when she was still young herself.

Similarities

In one of my newest favorite shows, Ghost Host, Ghost House, there is a similar situation. Pluem's father has recently passed away, and he is left having to take care of his sister, Prim, who is no longer speaking due to the trauma. Pluem, like Name's mother, has learned a signed language to communicate, and Prim also writes on post-its like Name.

In one scene, Pluem has had a difficult day where his world is falling apart, and Prim tries to comfort him by asking him questions through post-its. However, Pluem lashes out.

He is frustrated because the one person who could share this grief with him and understand his pain won't speak to him. She communicates, but he wants to hear her voice, to hear her pain the way she hears his. Prim has experienced something so traumatic that she can't speak, but Pluem has gone through something as well and sees her not speaking as a CHOICE to shut him out. Selective mutism is not a choice, but in this moment of raw emotions, Pluem is hurting. Pluem's pain doesn't invalidate Prim's pain or vice versa, but we have to acknowledge the pain of both.

A parent's love

Name's mom loves him. If there is one thing therapy and Name's mom speaking to her mother on the phone have taught me, is that parents love you even when they hurt you. Parents want to protect children so they place boundaries. Parents want children to have a good life so they place expectations. Parents don't want to see their children upset, so they toughen them up.

Name's mom is trying to help. It's clear Em is distancing himself from Name, and Name is hurting because of it. Name's mom encourages Name to go out and make new friends and new experiences instead of waiting by the computer. She has told him this several times, but she is human, and seeing him this upset again makes her upset. So she lashes out.

They have both gone through something traumatic, but the one person who shared this experience with her doesn't speak to her. Why can't he just be normal? To her, in this moment, Name is choosing to be in pain by not talking. It's not true, but she is hurting not just for herself, but for her child.

This is a common phrase parents of queer kids say. They might believe that being queer is a choice*, so why would their kids want to make a choice that would make society see them as less than or treat them badly? Why can't their kids be normal, so they can have an easier life? *Being queer isn't a choice because if it was, I'd choose to be even queerer!*

Em's mom pointed out that parents never understand their parents until they become parents themselves. When Name's mom speaks to her mom, she asks if her mom was angry at her when she got pregnant. Her mother tells her she wasn't angry but worried. She was worried others would look down on her. This is exactly what Name's mom is doing to her son.

Sometimes, parents really are shitty humans who place their traumas on their kids. But sometimes, parents are so worried about their kids that they overcorrect. They want their kids to have the best and happiest life, so they think the easiest way to do that is to make them as normal as possible so society doesn't treat or see them as less or bullies them.

I have faith that Name's mom is going to see the error of her ways and realize that there is no normal. She will see that Name is a great kid just the way he is, and if she really wants him to have a good life, she needs to support him in whatever that life looks like.

I have faith she will grow from this.

Now for Em?

It's ON SIGHT for him, and I hope his mother drags his behind!

[inevitably-johnlocked]

hey Steph! I wanted to know if you knew of any fics that dealt with the topic of consent, and very explicit consent, and not even necessarily for sex, but just, explicit consent and conversations of boundaries in a relationship. "hay can I kiss you? it's ok if I hold your hand? can I hold your hand when we're outside?" people talking boundaries, that type of thing... you know anything like that?

Hey Nonny!!

You know, I ABSOLUTELY KNOW that I do, but I didn’t have the foresight to pre-tag all of them as I read them, so I can’t give you ALL of the ones I have in my bookmarks, but I can definitely give you the fics I do have tagged with “Consent” or “Negotiation”, so I hope that’s okay!!

If any of my Lovelies have any that they remember or have their own fics, PLEASE add them!!

CONSENT AND RELATIONSHIP NEGOTIATION

Personal Space by probablyquantum (T, 1,814 w., 1 Ch. || Pre-Slash, Cuddles, Nightmares, Awkwardness) – John and Sherlock renegotiate the rules governing personal space. Pre-Slash.

Husband by jinglebell (E, 2,003 w., 1 Ch. || Est. Rel., PWP, Anal, Multiple Orgasms, Fluff, Toplock) – Sherlock orgasms when John refers to him as ‘husband’.

The Marriage Proposal Negotiation by Goddess_of_the_Night (G, 2,161 w., 1 Ch. || Dev. Rel., Possessive Sherlock, Insecure Sherlock, Fluff, First Kiss, Post Mary) – Sherlock hasn’t ever really done anything the traditional way, so of course it wouldn’t bother him to propose to John even though they’re not even dating. And the fact that John is already on a date with someone else when he decides to do it? Tedious.

Perfect Solo by Itsallfine (E, 2,384 w., 1 Ch., || PWP, Solo Kink, Fantasy, Pining, Dirty Talk, Sex Toys) – Sherlock couldn’t decide how he wanted to have John that night. (The one where Sherlock uses his box of sex toys to take himself apart in every way John might have him.)

Everything by patternofdefiance (E, 4,409 w., 1 Ch. || Snuggles and Cuddles, Bed Sharing, Frottage, Vulnerable Sherlock) – John wakes up with an armful of Sherlock. This – situation – is unusual, yes, and definitely unfamiliar, but in no way does it feel wrong. Rather, it feels the exact opposite. Part 13 of I Blame Tumblr

Uninhibited by 221b_hound (M, 4,293 w., 1 Ch. || Bathing/Washing, Naked Cuddling, Non-Sexual Intimacy, Big Brother Mycroft, Relationship Negotiation, Massage, Sherlock Has a Low Libido, Pet Names) – Sherlock and John have been apart for the first time since Sherlock returned from the dead. Neither of them has had a good day. John’s gets worse when Mycroft comes to Baker Street in Sherlock’s absence to warn John Watson against disappointing his brother by expecting things to change. Mycroft has misjudged things rather badly. But finally he sods off and leaves John and Sherlock to reconnect, to give and receive comfort, and show each other that they are, indeed, perfectly matched. Part 15 of Unkissed

Beg for Mercy (Twice) by Solitary_Endeavor (E, 7,060 w., 1 Ch. || Est. Rel., Bottomlock, Bearded John, Edging, Rough Sex, Idiots in Love, Canon Compliant) – Sherlock hasn’t left the flat in four days, the itch of impatience beneath his skin too great to allow him to suffer interaction with any human being who isn’t John. This is probably a mercy that goes both ways, as he’s driving even himself mad. Sherlock supposes there is a lesson to be learned here about having himself to blame, but of course he blames Mycroft.

The doctor is in by PlainJane (E, 7,581 w., 1 Ch. || Omegaverse || Sex Therapist, Anal, Hand Jobs, Frottage, Virgin Sherlock) – Sherlock is a young alpha with an aversion to his cycle. John is a gender medicine specialist. Nothing could possibly go wrong… Part 1 of Doctors and detectives

Caves in the Mountains Are Seldom Unoccupied by starrysummernights & TheMadKatter13 (E, 7,925 w., 1 Ch. || Were-Creatures, Werebear John, Pseudo Bestiality, Rimming, Dub Con, Rough Sex, Come Inflation / Eating, Size Kink, PWP, Bratty Sherlock, Rutting) – “This isn’t something to play at, Sherlock,” he snapped. “If it doesn’t work out- what you’re asking of me- we can’t shrug and say ‘oh well, at least we tried’. If we do this… I could seriously hurt you. Do you understand? I could lose control. I could… I could kill you.” (This one is… REALLY REALLY kinky, heavy dub-con warning)

Just Like That by sussexbound (E, 8,442 w., 1 Ch. || First Time/Kiss, Frottage, Virgin Sherlock, French Kissing, Anal, Emotional Lovemaking, Enthusiastic Consent, Tenderness, Crying John, Bathing/Washing, Insecure John, Toplock) – John doesn’t want to talk anymore. He wants. Oh dear god, how he wants. For the first time in what feels like years he WANTS.

Evening Ride by LapisLazuli (E, 8,632 w., 1 Ch. || Public Sex, Alternate First Meeting, Humiliation Kink, Groping, Frottage, Consent Issues, Come Play) – John has a series of unexpected meetings with a stranger on the Tube.

C. sapiens by patternofdefiance (E, 8,813 w., 1 Ch. || Tentacles Porn, Magical Realism, Bottomlock, Anal / Tentacle Sex, Pheremones) – “A few weeks ago I would have thought you were impossible,” Sherlock begins, walking into the kitchen in his blue robe, and John – not quite catching on – wants to scoff and argue, No, actually, you are impossible, but then Sherlock continues: “But now I’d say you are improbable.” John thinks this might be flattering, if he could wrap his head around it, but he can’t – Sherlock is standing near, steaming his sun-baked-clean-sand smell, like the beach after rain, an alive smell, an other smell. It’s intoxicating, and John has been studiously avoiding it, but he can’t shift away now it’s so near. Now Sherlock’s so near. And then Sherlock ruins the probable-loveliness of his words and the definite-beauty of his presence by saying: “And by ‘improbable’ I mean ‘not yet scientifically acknowledged.’” Part 1 of Gifts from the Sea

John Watson’s Moon by patternofdefiance (E, 11,314 w., 1 Ch. || Werewolf John, First Time, BAMF John, First Time, Anal, Fleeting Depictions of Violence) – Sherlock finds out John is a werewolf and wants to see the transformation. It, uh, gets really kinky.

Kintsugi by distantstarlight (E, 14,772 w., 1 Ch. || Post S4, Emotional Hurt / Comfort, Regret / Remorse, Loneliness, Separation, Drug Use, Healing, Protective John, Sad Sherlock, Dev. Rel., Complicated Relationships, Love, Angst With Happy Ending, Sherlock is Called Freak, John’s Penance, Voyeurism, Doctor/Caretaker John, Guilty John, Detox, Fingering, Love Confessions, Cuddling, Slight Non-Con Turns Enthusiastic Consent, Virgin Sherlock) – Sherlock Holmes becomes estranged from the man he had once considered his best friend after John lets him down horribly in public. It seems that the world’s only consulting detective will be on his own once again…or will he?

Lacuna by coloredink (E, 15,607 w., 1 Ch. || Angst, Consent Issues, Drama, Amnesia) – God, it must have been terrible, to think that he would never have this again.

The Midas Touch by flawedamythyst (E, 32,231 w., 1 Ch. || Magical Realism, John has a Magical Cock, Dub Con, Healer John) – John Watson has a medical condition that means everyone he sleeps with is instantly healed of all illness and injury. This causes complications when Sherlock breaks his arm, and even more complications when Sherlock falls in love with him. Yes, this is a story where John has a literal magic healing cock. It’s a lot less cracky than you’re probably imagining. Warning: Contains complex issues of sexual consent, although not between Sherlock and John.

In the Dark Hours by hubblegleeflower (E, 51,639 w., 12 Ch. || Friends to Lovers, Unreliable Narrator, Closeted Bi John, Angst, Miscommunications, Slow Burn, First Time, John’s Blog / Epistolary, Selective Mutism) – John, wounded and silent, drifts back to Baker Street for healing…and then goes home again. He visits, gets more upbeat, chattier, smiles, jokes… and still goes home again. Sherlock wants him to move back in - it just makes sense - but John shows no signs of doing so. This is the story of how John and Sherlock learn to say what needs to be said when they’re both so very, very rubbish at talking.

Coventry by standbygo (E, 52,020 w., 26 Ch. || Dollhouse AU || Case Fic, Slow Burn, Sci-Fi / Fantasy, First Kiss / Time, Attempted Rape, BAMF John, Falling in Love) – “Let me get this straight,” John said, wondering when his life had become a science fiction film. “Some guy orders up a personality, a person, to his specifications, and they program this into a real live person, who has consented to do this, and she goes to this person and acts as his wife, or lawyer, or Royal Marine, or Navy Seal or what have you, and she has all the skills, all the knowledge, everything? Then you say the magic words, and she follows you back to The House, and they erase it all until her next appointment?”

Just To Hold You Close by sussexbound (E, 70,841 w., 18 Ch. || Alternate First Meeting, Sherlock POV, ASD Sherlock, PTSD John, Demisexual Sherlock, Bisexual John, Cuddling/Snuggling, Platonic Cuddling, Enthusiastic Consent, Bed Sharing, Love Confessions, First Kiss/Time, Sexual Tension, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Cuddle Negotiations, For a Case Until It Isn’t, Hair Petting, Sexual Negotiation, Anxiety, Trust Issues, Slow Burn, Panic Attacks, Frottage, Hand/Blow Jobs, Referenced Self Harm / Abuse / Suicidal Ideation, First Kiss/Time, Anal, Autistic Sherlock) – When a woman is murdered and the last person to see her alive is recently invalided army vet turned reluctant (and prickly) professional cuddler, John Watson, Sherlock Holmes is pulled into a world of intimacy and intrigue he never could have imagined. John is a conundrum and mystery: frank yet reserved, tender yet angry, open yet afraid. Sherlock is instantly drawn into his orbit, and begins to feel and desire things he never has before.

A Cure For Boredom by emmagrant01 (E, 81,665 w., 8 Ch. || Dirty Talk, Threesomes, Light Dom/Sub, Sex Club, Experiments, Anal, Mildly Dubious Consent) – They’d never talked about sex in the year they’d known each other. Well, that wasn’t quite correct: Sherlock had never said a word about sex; John had bemoaned his personal dearth of it on many occasions.

Thermocline by J_Baillier (M, 83,557 w., 14 Ch. || Scuba Diving AU || Adventure, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Marine Archaeology, Asexual Sherlock, Horny John, Relationship Drama, Technical/Scuba/Wreck Diving, Slow Burn, Underwater /  Medical Peril, Doctor John, Hurt Sherlock, Anxious Sherlock, John POV, Protective John, Body Appreciation) – John “Five Oceans” Watson — technical dive instructor, dive accident analyst and weapon of mass seduction — meets recluse professor of maritime archaeology Holmes. As they head out to a remote archipelago off the coast of Guatemala to study and film its shipwrecks for a documentary, will sparks fly or fizzle out?

Not Broken, Just Bent by Schmiezi (E, 87,585 w., 43 Ch. || Pining, Love Confessions, Rape/Sexual Assault, Torture, Hurt/Comfort, Heavy Angst, Villain!Mary, Suicidal Ideations, Main Character Death, Sherlock First Person POV, Parentlock, Sherlock’s Mind Palace, Grief/Mourning, Emotional Love Making, Possessiveness, Depression, PTSD, Kidnapping, Virgin Sherlock, Eventual Happy Ending) – “For a second, I allow myself to remember teaching John how to waltz. There is a special room in my mind palace for it. A big one, with a proper parquet dance floor. For a second, I go there. I remember holding him, closer than the World Dance Council asks for, excusing it with the fact that we are training for a wedding, not for a competition. For a second, I feel his hand on mine again, smell his sweat, hear the song we used. For a second, I allow myself to love him deeply. For a second, only a second, that love reflects on my face.” Fix-it for S3, starting at the end of TSoT. Evil Mary.

31_Days_of_Porn_Challenge_2017 Series by distantstarlight (E, 96,540 w. across 31 stories || Prompt Ficlets, Assorted Kinks, PWP) – A collection in response to the 31 Days of Porn Challenge issued by AtlinMerrik! Thanks for doing that because this has been buttload of fun (that joke never gets old). All stories will be brief stand-alone one-shots.

Shatter the Darkness (Let the Light In) by MojoFlower (E, 109,683 w., 23 Ch. || PODFIC AVAILABLE || Genie/Djinn AU || Magical Realism, Kidnapping, Genie Sherlock, First Kiss / Time, Case Fic, H/C, Angst, Clubs, John Whump, Mild DubCon, Hand / Blow Jobs, Torture) – Fairy tales are for those who remember how to dream; not John Watson, broken and hiding from his bleak future in a beige bedsit. But then he discovers a lamp and finds himself in the dangerous riptide of an enigmatic man whose very existence is unbelievable, murder charges against his sister, and the growing pains of feeling alive once more.

The Gilded Cage by BeautifulFiction (E, 326,887 w., 31 Ch. || Omegaverse || Omega Sherlock / Alpha John, Friends to Lovers, Dub Con, Reproductive Rights) – In a world where Omegas are the property of the elite Alphas, locked away and treasured by those wealthy enough to buy them, John never questioned his flatmate’s secondary gender. Sherlock Holmes was an Alpha through-and through. Wasn’t he? A chance discovery turns the world on its head, and John is left grappling to come to terms with Sherlock’s past as events conspire to threaten their future.

[whitewolfofwinterfell]

hey, shannen! regarding your last post about skins (effy/cook): it's really interesting to hear other opinions. Personally, I liked that that specific pair didn't end up together; I always thought their relationship was too dysfunctional and damaging to make a good fit! But I have to admit, I didn't watch all of the fire/ice etc episodes and maybe it's been too long to remember s3/s4 correctly haha;) just love to hear your take on it if you find some time! best wishes :)

Hey there, anon!

I couldn’t have recieved this ask at a better time, because I literally just finished re-watching seasons 3 and 4 of Skins yesterday! 

Thanks for sending this ask, I always love to discuss these topics and I’ve never really had the opportunity to discuss Cook and Effy in-depth before. Strap yourself in, because this is pretty lengthy, but hopefully you’ll enjoy reading my take on it. :)

Cook and Effy are a very complicated ship for me, because part of me thinks they’re very toxic and that practically they could never work as a couple. However, the other part of me thinks that they were only portrayed that way on the surface, and that in actuality, there is no basis for thinking that. Cook and Effy absolutely could’ve worked together if the show had given them that opportunity.

Personally, I don’t think it was their relationship that was dysfunctional or damaging, but Cook and Effy themselves. As people, Cook and Effy were both deeply damaged people by the time they met in season 3. Having known Effy from seasons 1 and 2, we know that she suffered from some form of Selective Mutism and that she generally had a lot of emotional difficulties in regards to opening up to and connecting to others. Nothing describes that as well as her line in season 2 when she said, “Sometimes I think I was born backwards, you know, came out my mum the wrong way. I hear words go past me backwards. The people I should love I hate, and the people I hate–” In seasons 1 and 2 Effy was around 14-15 years old and she was already demonstrating reckless and self-destructive behaviours - regularly taking drugs, having sex with people she barely knew and generally entering into dangerous situations (e.g. Spencer in 1x08) with no regard for her safety or well-being. Also, at the end of season 1, she suffered the trauma of seeing Tony get hit by the bus, which we know hugely impacted her because she made reference to it in season 4.

As for Cook, although we never physically get to see his past in the same way we do with Effy, we know enough to know that his childhood was far from happy and that it deeply affected him. His mother was a neglectful and unstable alcoholic who was known for having sex with men for money and his father abandoned him when he was a young child (we also know he was a complete asshole from his appearance in the season 3 finale). He had an uncle, who was a bigoted drug dealer who not only supplied him with drugs but encouraged him to partake in it. Everything we know about Cook’s family suggests that he was neglected and it’s very likely that he raised himself for the most part, which explains why emotionally he was closed off, afraid to connect to others and incapable of maintaining healthy relationships (this was particularly clear with his friendships with Freddie and JJ).

So, to summarise, Cook and Effy are two people that both struggled (for different reasons) with emotionally connecting to people and that were terrified of opening themselves up to love because they didn’t want to get hurt. Their relationship for the majority of season 3 (up until 3x08) was a manifestation of that inability to forge connections and/or fear of it. It was a shallow relationship built almost exclusively on sex, and although some may perceive it as unhealthy, it wasn’t. It was a mutual understanding between two people whose reasons for being together were the same - they were using each other.

For Effy, her sexual relationship with Cook was all about avoiding and repressing her feelings for Freddie. We know this because Effy said in 4x05 that she knew from the very first time she saw Freddie he was the closest she would ever get to being close and in 3x07 Cook revealed whilst under the influence of “truth” pills that Effy was having sex with him because she couldn’t stand the fact that she loved Freddie.

With Cook, his reasons for entering into a sexual relationship with Effy were simply because he was attracted to her (which we know from the first moment he saw her) and that was what Cook did and was used to doing - he had casual sex with lots of girls. Cook’s perception of sex was a clear indicator of the complex emotional issues he had. His obsession with having sex was a result of him desperate craving intimacy whilst simultaneously being afraid of it. He had sex to attempt to have that intimacy with another person, but then labelled it as casual and meaningless to invalidate that intimacy and close himself off to it.

When looking at it like this, it might seem ridiculous that I then claim that their relationship wasn’t damaging, because it certainly wasn’t what constitutes a healthy relationship, but by the same token, it wasn’t bad either. From the first time they had sex, there was a mutual understanding between Cook and Effy that their relationship was just no-strings attached sex. There was no manipulation or coercion, it was all consensual and mutual. As their relationship continued, it became complicated because feelings got involved and both of them were hurt by each other, but it was the kind of hurt all relationships experience and nothing particularly awful. In season 3, Effy was hurt when she found out Cook was sleeping with Pandora but she knew that she and Cook weren’t exclusive and that they could both sleep with whoever they wanted. Effy’s reaction to that was much more about Pandora’s betrayal, as her best friend, than Cook’s. And Cook was hurt continuously by Effy’s feelings for Freddie and her relationship with him. Besides that, there was nothing that happened between Cook and Effy that constitutes damaging. In fact, I’d argue that Effy’s relationship with Freddie was much more damaging to her than her relationship with Cook was. What I’m trying to say is that Cook and Effy’s relationship was exactly what a friends-with-benefits or casual-sex-buddy relationship looks like, and therefore not dysfunctional. Even when their relationship developed beyond the casual type due to Cook falling in love with Effy, it was still what any non-reciprocated relationship is. Cook was heartbroken, he attempted to express his love for her on occasions and she made it clear that she didn’t return his feelings in a respectful but firm way (excluding 4x07 when she rudely told him to piss off after he told her he loved her, which always really bugged me because it felt so OOC).

Regarding your comment about Cook and Effy not being a great fit, I’ve actually always felt the opposite. Although they’re very similar (x) and the popular saying is that opposites attract, I think Cook and Effy worked together really well. I don’t think we got to see just how well they could’ve worked, because they were never truly together and most of their relationship was about the triangle with Freddie/Effy. Effy said in 4x07 that Cook was never good for her, but I never understood that because there’s absolutely nothing to support that claim. If you look close enough, you can see how good they were together. The two of them actually spent a lot of time together, although we never see it on-screen, it’s spoken about or hinted at. For example, in 3x08 Cook turned up at Effy’s house and was on a first name basis with her mom and had brought groceries to cook for her, suggesting he spent a lot of time at her house (and not always in her bedroom since he knows her mom) and also that they did do other things other than just have sex. Cook also knew that Effy’s favourite film was E.T. which means they either watched it together or Effy told him. At the end of season 3 they spent a significant amount of time (we can assume weeks, maybe even months) on the run together, only in the company of each other. My point is, they clearly got on well and knew each other too. Whenever Cook and Effy had scenes that weren’t the melodramatic angsty type that Skins is well known for, they were light and natural together (x). Throughout the whole of the season 3 finale (which is a very Ceffy centric episode), they worked. If you take the Freddie/love triangle drama out of the equation, they were affectionate towards each other, they had fun, Effy was supportive and protective over Cook when it came to his dad and Cook was making plans for his future with Effy (to get a job and a boat). Putting aside their individual issues (which I mentioned above), when Cook and Effy were together they were good together. Even if they were just having sex, that was okay, because it was what they both wanted. They knew how to have fun and be in a moment together, and that was what drew them together from the beginning, because they could lose themselves in a moment and forget about everything else. Also, for all their similarities, Cook didn’t have the same depressive tendencies as Effy and was able to keep her on an even keel more so than anybody else (this is particularly obvious in comparison to Freddie, who I felt fed Effy’s depression). That’s why I find it so strange that there’s this perception that Cook was wrong or bad for her, because firstly, Cook never actually did anything to warrant him being “bad” for her. He drank too much, did drugs too much, partied too much but so did Effy, so did Freddie, so did every character on the show (excluding JJ). Cook never did anything to push Effy to a dark place, he never did anything to hurt her or harm her in anyway. Everything they did together was what Effy was doing before she met Cook and what she did with everybody else. In fact, I sincerely believe that Cook was capable of helping Effy and reaching her emotionally more than anybody else. In 4x07 when Effy was in a fragile mental state, she trusted Cook (despite not knowing him because of some hypnosis bullshit her psychopathic therapist did to her) and later in on the episode Cook was the one that brought her back.

As for Cook and Effy ending up together, I believe 100% that they should’ve been together, even if they hadn’t stayed together. If I had been in charge of the show, I would’ve completely scrapped the Freddie/Effy relationship and pursued a Cook/Effy romance from the beginning. From my perspective, it made complete sense that these two damaged people that were unable to emotionally connect would strike up a causal sexual relationship and eventually come to fall in love. Obviously, it wouldn’t have been a straightforward road for them or a particularly happy relationship, but it would’ve been very interesting to watch their ups and downs. Cook loved Effy completely, she was the first and only girl he had ever loved, and that was significant for his character and to have her return that love would’ve led to development for both of them. Skins as a show is all about young love and it’s realistic in its portrayal of that. All of the Skins relationships have their problems and none of them last (because the reality is a lot of young relationships don’t last as their lives go in different directions), so I couldn’t see Cook and Effy’s relationship lasting and them staying together, even if they had been together in seasons 3 and 4. Season 7, however, is a completely different story.

I’m a huge Skins fan and have been since I was a young teenager, but I strongly dislike season 7 and the choices that were made. In my opinion, to bring Effy and Cook back for the final season and not have them interact was criminal. Regardless of Effy’s romantic relationship with Freddie, Effy and Cook were strongly connected and fans would have loved to have seen them reunite. Since you didn’t watch season 7, you won’t be aware of how Cook and Effy developed, so I’ll briefly summarise. In season 7, Cook and Effy had both hugely mellowed in comparison to how they were in seasons 3 and 4, whilst keeping their core personalities. In season 7, Cook and Effy as a couple would’ve just worked. It was a chance to explore their unfulfilled potential and finally make the most of Kaya and Jack’s chemistry whilst remaining respectful to the Freddie/Effy relationship. If I could’ve written season 7 I would have had Cook be on the run (like he was in Rise) and Effy pursuing him because she’s seeking answers about Freddie’s disappearance. I would’ve had the two reunite and have Cook fall to pieces, because it’s Effy - the only girl he’s ever loved - and she brings to the surface everything he’s been keeping bottled up. But I would have him suppress those emotions and react angrily to her having found him, telling her she was stupid for looking for him and that she should’ve let it go. I’d have Effy respond angrily telling him that she couldn’t let it go and that since he and Freddie have gone everything’s gone to shit. Eventually, Cook would tell her the truth about what happened with Freddie and the therapist, and then in their grief-stricken and heightened emotional state they sleep together. Afterwards, Effy is conflicted because on the one hand she’s still grieving for Freddie but on the other, her feelings for Cook are resurfacing and the fact that Cook loves Freddie and is grieving him too means that they’re connected in a unique way. I would then have Cook get angry at Effy (again, because let’s face it, this is Cook lol), tell her to leave and go back to her life and forget about him like she should’ve done the first time, that he deserves to be punished and on the run for the rest of his life for what he did. Then Effy defends his actions saying Freddie’s death was her fault, she was the one that brought the doctor into their life and when Cook killed him he was only defending himself. I would’ve had Effy choose to stay with Cook and live with him on the run because she feels she has nothing at home to go back for. At that point, they wouldn’t be together, but the implication would clearly be there. It wouldn’t be a happy ending and it would be open ended, but I think it would’ve worked perfectly. Not only would it have provided the fans (and Cook and Effy) with closure for Freddie’s death, but would’ve explored that potential of Cook and Effy and ended on a semi-positive note.

One final thing I wanted to talk about, is that despite the fact that I think Cook and Effy were a good fit and definitely weren’t dysfunctional, shipping Cook and Effy isn’t about happy endings or them being ‘good’ for each other or even ending up together. The appeal of the ship (for me, at least) is the messiness and realness of it. When two people have such complex and unresolved issues as Cook and Effy, it’s impossible to be in a healthy, happy, functioning relationship, because they’re not those things themselves. However, Cook and Effy show what love can be when it’s not neat or simple or easily defined. They also show that you can love another person with your whole heart despite feeling broken inside. Plus, Cook and Effy had such a palpable chemistry, history and connection that it’s difficult for me not to ship them and root for them to be together, even if only temporarily.

[apocalypseprodromus]

Barriers Between (Chapter 2)

Warning: More Angst! What a shocker.

Squall didn’t really want to leave Trinitas by herself, but if she already gave him what he wanted... Why should he stick around if he couldn’t help her? It’s not like he was any good at consoling others, but that didn’t mean that he didn’t feel bad for what she’s been through. Losing everything, a classic fear realized. He mentally shuddered at the thought.

No home to go back to, no one waiting for you? Abandoned by those you trusted? He paused at that one. All of the other ones he's lived through too, but being discarded wasn’t on the list, and he hoped it never would be.

Maybe I should’ve convinced her to go with me. At least then I could make sure she doesn’t do something to herself. “Is this really any of my business? I just met her. Besides, I don’t even know if she would...” Exactly, I don’t know if she would. 

Squall sighed before turning back around. I don’t know how but I’m certain... This girl is going to be the death of us both.

-

Returning to the field, Squall was sure he saw her lying on the ground with her hands beneath her head. She’s... sleeping? Seriously? Whatever. 

He observed her sleeping form before something startled him.

“You came back?” Trinitas’ voice was back to mild and questioning like it was when they first talked. “Is there a reason you were looking at me?”

“How’s your head? It looked smashed in before.” Squall examined her skull. It actually looks like there wasn’t even an injury there before.

“Oh, that. I actually heal pretty well on my own. But thanks for the concern. Was that all?” Her eyes were a lighter shade of green this time around.

Not deep emerald but bright celadon. “How do your eyes do that?” He moved closer to her, studying her irises.

“Um, you mean change color? They do that depending on how I’m doing. Mentally speaking.” She was close to studdering but not quite.

Noticing just how close he was getting, he backed off not wanting to make her feel uncomfortable. “Uh, I actually came here to ask you something.” He turned away from her.

“And...? What is it?” She gave a smile of sympathy. She could tell he was trying.

“If you wanted to join me.” Squall glanced back at the female who seemed to be in awe of the request. “You actually want me to go with you?” She looked to him with wide eyes, her face unreadable. Before Squall could make a half-assed retraction she remarked quietly to herself smiling softly. “No one ever wants me around.”

That statement said everything. It could be a byproduct of her emotional instability or an aura of unease that seems to affect others, but one thing is true... Trinitas was a pariah of some kind. She didn’t want to be alone, she was forced to because other people kept their distance or forced her away. But at the same time, he was realizing what he had just done. Trinitas is a sensitive wreck of a person. For a good reason, but still... He didn’t want to let her down.

But as she smiled up at him, a tear running down her cheek... He succumbed to her bittersweetness immediately. Her inflection was delicate and almost reverent. “Thank you.”

I’m as good as dead.

-

Traveling with Trinitas wasn’t as bad as Squall anticipated. She was relatively chirpy, but also a kind individual. He honestly couldn’t believe that this was the person who shouted at a goddess for being lazy and or weak. At least she wasn’t a hypocrite in saying all of that. She was far from lazy and didn’t mind hard work. He also came to understand she wielded a strange type of gunblade, dissimilar to his own. A Gatling Saw, a chainsaw machine gun hybrid that she paired with a Bear Trap Gauntlet. It looked too weighty for how she was holding it with one hand, but she carried it effortlessly regardless.

“Isn’t that thing heavy?” Squall pointed to her weapon. She shook her head slowly. “No. Why, should it?” Trinitas looked back confused. “Nevermind.” He dismissed.

He learned that she came from a world called Eos, she’s a noblewoman of House Prodromus, she was tampered with by greater forces when she was a newborn which explains the crystal heart more or less. And was engaged for basically her entire life to the Prince of her kingdom, Noctis. She told him about the Lucian/Nifilian treaty and the fact that it ruined her life and invalidated everything she did up until that point and added that hardly anyone that lived in the Crown City of Insomnia trusted her because of that unnerving feeling she instilled in others. Recently before she got to World B, she and her comrades got to Altissia and the cathedral Noctis and his new betrothed were supposed to finalize the peace treaty in, had gone up in flames. Arson and due to the color of the fire, a viridian hue, she was the first one suspected. Cosmos summoned her shortly after her comrades interrogated her and threw her out of the hotel window. When she was mentally at her weakest, not in a position to resist her.

Squall wasn’t aware that the scars of betrayal were still so fresh in her mind. It explained a lot.

In turn, she learned Squall was an elite mercenary for hire from a military academy known as Balamb Garden. That he’s had to deal with pushy squad members trying to get him to open up to them, growing up as an orphan, and getting and giving a scar to and from his self-proclaimed rival who also wields a gunblade and ran off to join a sorceress. Or a circus, either or... Trinitas wasn’t sure what Squall said at the end, his agitated mumbling wasn’t very coherent.

Trinitas also had the habit of talking, luckily they weren’t boring or very trivial conversations. She was very loquacious. Ironic then that she was traveling with someone as laconic as Squall. Though she didn’t mind carrying both sides of the conversation when he wouldn’t say anything. He figured it was better then if she was saddened. If he had to choose, anything was a more preferable alternative.

“But chocobos in my world are relatively big, they have to be to carry that mountain of a man...” Squall just let her keep talking, knowing that she’d stop at some point.

Trinitas never held back on honesty either. Brutality so and was quick with a sarcastic reply or a smart ass remark. Not caring who she talked down to, so long as she could follow it back up in a fight. Squall even chuckled slightly when she dramatically mocked people with her bear trap gauntlet.

And although he could do without her hair-trigger temper, she made up for it with thoughtfulness.

One of the things he came to like about Trinitas was that she never made him feel bad for his evasive behavior or his lack of emotional expression. She didn’t judge him or even care to scold him when he got lost in his thoughts. She never took count of when he did something uncharacteristic of himself. For some paradoxical reason, her fiery, verbose, emotionally volatile nature was a perfect match for his cold, stoic, emotionally distant one.

“So, you don’t mind that I’m quiet? Most people I know complain about it.” Squall thinks back to all the times he was asked why he didn’t speak to others.

Trinitas shrugged nonchalantly. “Not really. I was an introvert during the trip from Insomnia to Altissia. So I get it. If you don’t want to talk, it’s your choice.” That’s the first time he was ever told that. People are usually off-put or exasperated by his selective mutism.

Squall could spend all day listing the differences between the two of them, but this wasn’t a bad thing. He could now attest; opposites really can attract.

It probably helped that she was cute. Her stature, her face, her attitude... Even the little sub-conscience noises she made were cute. 

He also came to appreciate that she took his words to heart and paid close attention to his health, genuinely caring about what happened to him. 

“Are you sure you don’t need a potion or something? I don’t even use the damn things.” She eyed the wound he received from his last manikin fight.

Squall didn’t bother to look, deciding to carry on without. “If I’m hurt, I’ll let you know.”

She trusted his judgment and left it at that. “Fine, it’s your body anyway.”

-

One night as they were crossing through the Interdimensional Rift to find a place to rest for the night, they stopped off to the side of the Rift’s Castle. 

The night sky of the Rift was an abnormal mix of blue and green. No transdimensional gashes were visible in their direction, making the sky a uniform constant which was surprisingly rare.

“I’ll take first watch. You can go ahead and get some sleep.” Squall announced to the distracted woman. Trinitas gazed back in Squall’s direction, witnessing how tired he looked as opposed to herself. Squall wasn’t going to let her protest, urging her to take her place next to him, so she did as he said leaning up against the castle walls. Knowing he wouldn’t pass out until it was his turn to sleep she rested her head on his shoulder, an act unprecedented for the both of them.

“You’re cold as ice. I can feel your lack of body heat through my jacket.” He hisses in moderate worry.

“I’m sorry. I’ve just kinda always been like that.” It’s at this point Squall finally registers why he didn’t know that before. He’s never touched Trinitas before.

“I don’t know why I’m surprised, you wear a short sleeve dress that only goes down to your mid-thighs. Here’s my jacket.” He’s about to take it off until she stops him. “I have a better idea.”

Trinitas moves from Squall’s left side and in between his legs so her arms can wrap around his chest, with her legs resting on the ground. For a regular human, it would seem very uncomfortable to be in a position with her back bending like that but she really didn’t mind. Her eyes glowed a vibrant green as she hugged Squall for the first time. “I wouldn’t give this up for the world.”

“Give up.... what?” He peered down at the small female hugging his larger frame for warmth.

“Just having known you. Getting a chance to have you in my life. You’re all that I have, and I’m okay with that. I know one day when this conflict is over we’ll both go back to the lives we had before. But for the time we do get, I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else in this world or the next.” Trinitas’ eyes ceased glowing and dulled to a greyish hue.

Squall had gotten good at reading her. He could tell she was coming to terms with their future apart from each other. She might not have looked sad, but inside she was wilting like a dying flower.

She grinned, without a sign of sorrow. “I wouldn’t have traded the opportunity of having you around for anything.”

Squall held her closer to himself, deciding instead to let his actions speak for themselves. No other words were spoken between them.

I’ll miss you too. He knows he shouldn’t be feeling this way. They were in the middle of a war. It was impractical to be getting this close to anyone, especially someone from an entirely different universe but at this point, he didn’t have it in him to just push her away anymore.

Suffice to say, he felt closer to her than most people he’s known back in his own world. He didn’t want to get attached to her. Attachment only brought pain to him, and he was well aware of this, however... He felt this unmistakable pull towards her. Like a gravitational force he couldn’t escape from, she pulled him into her event horizon. Regardless of this revelation Squall acknowledged that one day he’d have to say goodbye to Trinitas. Something would rip them apart from one another, despite how worse off the both of them would probably be. He dreaded that day.

He didn’t expect that it would happen for the first of many times when he and every other Cosmos warrior died at the end of the cycle. All except for Trinitas, who watched helplessly as her only friend was ripped away from her. The purification had begun before she was able to reach Squall’s side. Unable to stop the gears of destiny from carrying forward.

Just like everything else in her life... The conflict restarted.

[mojoflower]

Magical/Mage/Spark Stiles fic recs (90%Sterek, 5%Steter)

A Moving Sea Between the Shores by foxtricks (knightofbows) M.  26k.  Complete.  They're so fucked. They fucked up so bad. And it's all Stiles' fault." // Love one another but make not a bond of love: let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls." - Khalil Gibran 

What delicious torture and pain and mistakes and regret and fear and suspense, unf. Stiles, it turns out, is quite a powerful mage, but he DOES make a small miscalculation... which very nearly leads to the deaths of the whole pack, to his imprisonment and torture. If only he and Derek had Bonded first, they might not have fallen to this point. But they hadn't....

Chapters alternate from what leads up to the Fuck Up and what follows. Derek is a good Alpha, Stiles is a good Emissary, but each thinks the other deserves better than what they could offer. Fully satisfying ending with sufficient comfort.

Dream of Life Again by BarlowGirl E.  18k.  Complete.  “You better be ready,” Lydia says as she cleans dirt out from under her nails with an antiseptic wipe. Stiles can smell the lemon scent even from where he stands a few feet away. She’s probably going to end up covered in blood in a few moments, but she likes to be in control in any way she can, so he doesn’t tease her about this. “It’s time to start.” // “I’m ready,” Stiles says and he’s pretty sure it’s not even a lie. Hopefully. // Scott, Stiles, and Lydia each sit at one point of the triskelion that Lydia’s drawn on the tarp. The center is a tight knot of some language Stiles had never even heard of before this, written in ink in tiny writing. It’s beautiful and also makes him slightly nauseated. Lydia makes both cuts, so the blood drops from Stiles’ arm and Scott’s, too, into the center of the triskelion. There’s wolfsbane on Scott’s knife, not enough to make him sick, but enough to keep him from healing too quickly. // It’s a surprisingly simple thing, after that, for what they’re doing. Blood, a few words, and a little magic. // Just those things, and, for the first time in three years, Laura Hale gasps in a breath. // Or: Resurrected Laura!!!

What an interesting story. It felt strangely... clinical?... distant, maybe. Stiles is very removed from everyone, and there's alot of teasing in the beginning as to why (we never DO learn the full story there). Any road, Stiles has a connection to some veerry powerful magic, but doesn't really want to think about it too much, much less admit it. Meanwhile, he continues with his distant-yet-close relationship with the pack, and his strange dance with Derek, and just. It was very interesting.

Such Things Don't Bear Repeating by Allizane E.  25k.  Complete.   A wizard, a wolf, and a boy. Or: spells and magic can never truly substitute for strength. (Harry Potter AU, in triplicate.)

This was beautiful, flowed like poetry, kind of. Three parts, three points of view, and we slowly watch Stiles grow, watch his powers develop. I never did figure out what he was supposed to be: he's a bit sociopathic, but has every reason to be (he's missing his tongue when Deaton first finds him.) I probably wouldn't have read it if I'd noticed the dark!Stiles tag, but the story didn't really come across that way. More wild!Stiles, and the future's wide open. ******* So Derek takes the twisted threads of blood and bone and fire (because they’d all tasted like ash to the wolf, like someone was already burning them up), he takes them and ties the loose ends to Stiles, because what else is there to do?

The Long Way Round by exclamation E.  180k.  Complete.  A magical accident sends Stiles back in time. Now he's stuck in New York, living with Derek and Laura, and the only way to get back to his own time is to learn to use magic. Meanwhile, he must figure out how much he can tell them about their future. Can he warn them about the dangers they face? Can he change his own past?And can he trust the creature known as Bookworm, who seems to know him better than he knows himself?

oh. my. fucking. god.

this is astonishing.

The one where Stiles is MAGIC, whoa, that is such a focus, and he's powerful, and you get the learning montage and everything. (He's also the ouroboros, which explains how he got sent back in time to hang out with Derek and Laura when they're living in New York.) The one with the dragon, Bookworm, and the magic shop, and the accidental coven, and the vengence ghost, and where Derek is a dancer at a club (lol) and ALL THE GOOD THINGS.

i am addicted to death (so remind me what it’s like to live) by cywscross T.  18k.  1/2 but it reads like it’s complete.   Stiles is sixteen years old. He has already died seventy-eight times.

Holy shit. (This says 1/2, but it's tight and complete, no worries.)

Magic Marker by Batwynn G.  3k.  Complete.  Look, just because he’s magical, doesn’t mean Stiles has to be an adult, right? // Where Scott keeps quoting Spider Man when he comes in the room, his dad keeps getting that pinched look around his eyes when he accidentally turns the microwave into a portal to another timeline, Lydia has stopped wasting her breath by heaving great, disappointed sighs at him, and Derek… Derek tells him to get it out of his system somewhere not here. Which is actually pretty nice, for someone with such judgmental eyebrows.

I would SO love to get a bigger peek into this world, heh.

In Which Stiles is Secretly Magic by apocryphal T.  27k.  Complete.   All Stiles wants from life is to learn to control his magic, keep his grades up, and not die horribly while saving Beacon Hills from supernatural threats. It's all going pretty well until Derek Hale, werewolf extraordinaire, has to go and ask him on a date. That asshole.

lol... stiles is a hoot.

Attach me to your world by artisan447  E.  27k.  Complete. Turns out Stiles is magic. He's as surprised about that as anyone.

Sweet, sexy and intense: everything you want a surprise bonding fledgling magic fic to be.

Growing Up, Growing Strong by cywscross T.  10k.  Complete.   Stiles is adopted by the Hales.

Lovely series of snapshots. Stiles at 10 saves the Hales, but loses his dad, and Talia takes him in, but it's Peter he attaches to. There's selective mutism, slow integration, kidnapping, self-rescue, discovery of magic (spark), and he's 16 in the end, but I think the rating could have easily remained a G. (We'll have to use our imaginations for the rest.)

Red Witch by rootbeer  T.  34k.  Complete.  The red hair of a banshee. The red eyes of an alpha. The red hoodie of a mage. The red of fire burning.Derek Hale has been a prisoner to the hunters since they burned his family alive. But now someone has come to save him: skinny, defenseless Stiles--147 lbs of skin and fragile bones. Turns out, sarcasm isn't his only weapon.

Ah, this hit the spot. Derek's a mess, poor baby, he's spent years locked in a cell in isolation being taunted by Kate when Stiles shows up as a captive in the next cell. It's about everything you'd want. (I love the protective fire around Derek, it's perfect.) Stiles is a BAMF, Derek is a beta. And those stories about the Red Witch and his/her companions? Not just fairy tales.

Children's Tales by artemis69 G.  5k.  Complete.  Be careful, little girl. // Don’t go causing troubles in Beacon Hills, because the Hales live there, little girl. // Keep away from Beacon Hills, little girl, or the Hales will destroy you. // --Or: In a world where the Hales are alive and the protectors of the town of Beacon Hills, the humans politely fake ignorance of their not-really-human status, and they all live happily ever after. // Then Kate comes in. // Well. // Tries to.

How much did I love this story, omg, it's kind of hilarious: Kate (POV) goes Hale-hunting and is thwarted at EVERY TURN because the whole damn town knows who she is, and who Derek is, and the character descriptions are so funny: "The annoying other kid is still there and both of them are mowing the lawn of a little white house. Hale is very focused, working methodically in parallel strips. His friend is running in circles around a rose bush like a rabbit on cocaine."

Inhuman History by Amazonia_8 E.  32k.  7/?  Stiles doesn't remember much about what happened the night he was to be introduced to the mysterious Hale family. He knows his mother is dead, but nobody can tell him why. He thinks it might have something to do with the things that happen to him, or that he can make happen, even though he's never been able to control it. Now it's just him and his father, an invalid he must spend all his time caring for, scraping by in a run down house in a run down town, miles away from the life he once knew. // Until strange things begin to happen, starting with the great black wolf that shows up at his door and the stranger man that claims he knows his father. Claims that Stiles is in danger and that it is his duty to protect him.

Hooooly guacamole. This one is a RIDE, I'm pretty sure I only breathed once in the whole first half. Only 7 chapters written, and it looks like it'll stay that way, and the story isn't NEAR complete, but you do get to end on a very satisfying sex scene, and this author is so good that even a glimpse into this world she's building is worth the time you put in to read it. The first chapters are such a tease, with references to things like John being paralyzed and mute, and Stiles having flashing memories of 'before', and it doesn't get explained for a while (it does eventually, tho, don't worry), and wow, it's just fantastic.

The Road Less Traveled by gryvon E.  25k.  Complete.   Stiles doesn't want to die in a basement. No one is going to die in the Argent's basement, not if he can help it.

ALL the Stiles!whump and hurt/comfort (although the comfort for the first round of hurt is rest-of-pack rather than Derek, but it's totally emotionally satisfying. This is the one where Stiles starts practicing magic by twiddling a pencil and then gets to firebomb some ghoul-things in the cemetery.

Night Owls Early Birds by Lissadiane T.  24k.  Complete.  Confession: Stiles is afraid of having magic. // The Spark had been cool. It had been small, manageable. He could do some funky stuff with Mountain Ash, all with the power of belief. // And now here he is, his Spark blown wide open, apparently coming down with a fatal case of magical overload, and all that stands between him and bleeding out is a grumpy owl that looks suspiciously like a feathered version of Derek Hale. // (In which Stiles learns he's a witch, but instead of a wand and a trip to Diagon Alley, he gets blood magic, a grumpy and reluctant owl as his companion, and an accidental blood bond with Derek Hale.)

Oh. This was... really intense, I wasn't expecting that, somehow, the summary made it seem kind of funny. Stiles' magic is no fucking joke, and it LITERALLY tears him apart sometimes, like, peeling his hands inside out and crushing them kind of thing... and all the extraordinary pain that goes with it. When they say blood magic, that means there's gallons of it everywhere. Which is AMAZING, and the intensity is wonderful, don't get me wrong, it's unique among the 'Stiles discovers he is magic' stories, because it really does seem more like a curse than a gift. Steve the owl is a hoot (lol), and Derek's quiet loyalty and fierce protectiveness is lovely. It's a fantastic read, and so is its sequel.

In Which Stiles Finds He Much Prefers When Interesting Things Happen to Somebody Else by Zoom Zoom (PaperLillyWebs) T.  21k.  Complete.  “Finish what you start,” the skull rasps at him, making him jump. When he looks up, the skull is just as still as before.Loosely based on Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wayne Jones.

What a fun story! Stiles the apprentice is every bit of adorable, his Master Hale is a shadowy, mean kind of figure, and something's going on where none of the ends match up. The story borrows the Howl's Moving Castle world, but that's all, none of the story or characters. I love it.

How to please your house spirit by Lesatha  M.  14k.  Complete.  Derek startled awake in the middle of the night. For a split second he didn’t know why, then as he felt a strange weight on his chest, he raised his head and looked down. And stayed speechless. // There was a tiny creature, barely the size of Derek’s whole hand, sitting on him. It had a human shape, from what Derek could see.It looked furious.

ohmygod this is infinitely adorable, Stiles is a (murderous, multitasking, shapeshifting) little shit (so is Peter) and Derek is utterly wrapped around his (occasionally) tiny finger.

Of Werewolves and Tentacles by Guede E.  173k.  Complete.   Stiles Stilinski and Scott McCall, childhood best friends who were separated, now reunite to get to know each other again. Since Scott's a werewolf and Stiles is a new graduate of Miskatonic University (which is proving strangely attractive to Peter-Hale-shaped werewolves), they've got quite a bit to catch up on.

So glorious. A lot of fun to read, lots of action and complexity and I know basically nothing about Lovecraft, and that didn't matter at all. Stiles is great in this, very pushy, very much an asshole, and still got that old insecurity inside... which, coincidentally, is very much what Peter is like. They're a lovely match. (The fifth story introduces Derek into their dynamic, but only in the end, and, sadly, we never get the sexin' for that -- aside from some strange dreams in Part 6 -- cause it would be delicious.)

And what are the odds that I'd read two sentient house fics in the same month? (The other being the equally fabulous When sparks fly by LunaCanisLupus_22. Sentient house is in Part 5 and isn't very friendly.)

The Foul Rag and Bone Shop of the Heart by WritersAreLiars M.  35k.  6/?  “Stiles. Did I just watch you sell that man a hex-bag full of crushed caffeine pills and rocks from our own parking lot?” // “I threw in some sage too.” // -Stiles may have lost his job and his place as Alan's Mastery student, but at least his former teacher had the decency to set up an introduction to Peter Hale, werewolf and necromancer. // It looked like Stiles wasn't as done forming impossible infatuations on his teachers as he thought. // (At least this time he's legal.)

Entirely delightful and unique... author creates a fantastic world and Stiles' blithe abandon of traditions works very well with Peter's scheming. Worth reading even if it's never finished.

You Only Live Once...or Twice by WonderWolf E.  33k.  Complete.  “Anything,” Derek’s eyes are determined, boring into Stiles’.Stiles huffs a laugh, “Careful there, big guy. Don’t want to be promising anything to every necromancer you meet. Some might ask for your soul or someth—” // “I’ll give you my soul to bring her back,” Derek says, his voice steady and strong with resolve, “if that’s what you want.” // Stiles’ mouth gapes open for a moment before his brain kicks into gear and he stutters out, “N-no, I don’t ask for that. I only ask for money.” // (Or the one in which Stiles is a necromancer who needs help stopping a rogue alpha and Derek is the solution, but at what cost?)

Interesting premise.

Red String verse by gryvon E.  13k.  Completed works, incomplete series.  Peter had given up hope of ever finding his soulmate until the red string on his finger leads him to a four-year-old. He's going to Hell. Or jail. Or both.

Everything about this series is perfection. How Peter is so utterly astonished and appalled at the age difference. How Stiles turns out to be tremendously and precociously magic. The sexual tension when Stiles gets tired of waiting (and Peter goes to the station to turn himself in, lol.

Those Are The Days That Bind Us by s_a_m  M.  63k.  Completed works, incomplete series.  His father wasn’t stupid. He was an officer of the law, trained to look for patterns. He confronted Stiles about werewolves and they shouted and Stiles tried to explain but his father was so, so, so mad, more mad than Stiles had ever seen him, ever in all his life and then his father looked at him and said,“It’s like you’re not my son anymore.” // And Stiles broke.

Really good.  Poor bb Stiles, life generally sucks hard.  When he leaves, he has a lot of adventures and new friends that I DON'T instinctively dislike (what can I say, I'm very loyal to my OTP:  I generally hate it when they split up and one of them seems to move on).  There's VERY little Derek in this, even though about 50% of the story is in Beacon Hills both before and after the 7 years of running away.  Maybe part 3 will have a little more Sterek.  But, yeah, Stiles is badass, so that's awesome.  The author writes well and the story moves quickly.

Professional Werewolf Witch by reptilianraven G.  5k.  Complete.  "Are you going to buy anything else?" Professional Eyebrows says and Stiles would like to buy him. A cup of coffee. On a date. // He just ends up pointing at the crate of whatever the fuck is behind Professional Eyebrows' head and says, "Uh, a box of that stuff." // P.E. turns, glances at the crate, and raises an eyebrow at Stiles. "You want a box of charmed rattlesnake tail?" God, magic is so fucking weird. // "Yeah." Stiles nods because he's making an ass out of himself. The hipster vampire browsing in the corner is not so subtly laughing at him. The sooner he leaves the better. // -The one where Derek Hale is a Professional Werewolf Witch who owns a magic shop and Stiles fails at being smooth on a regular basis.

so fucking funny

I Know Where Babies Come From, Derek by DiscontentedWinter M.  52k.  Complete.  Stiles finds a baby on the porch.It looks exactly like him. // Well, this is awkward.

Funny and unique and gripping (and there's one part that's simply fucking heartbreaking, god every.time. I bawl like a baby). I love this so much. It's totally one of my return-again-and-again-comfort-fics (even though there's very little that's slow-paced and domestic about it).

When sparks fly by LunaCanisLupus_22 E.  87k.  Completed stories, unfinished series, but that doesn’t matter.  “Derek,” Stiles thunders. “Were you ever going to tell me your house is trying to hook us up?” // Derek's head snaps up, eyes wide and scenting the evident crackle of magic in the air. // Or the one where spark!Stiles moves into an enchanted apartment block owned by a grumpy alpha and is completely oblivious to the building's efforts to matchmake them.

OH, golly, I love this, it's so funny and fabulous and unique and THE HOUSE, GOD, I LOVE THE HOUSE, it really is all up in everybody's business. Don't worry about the chapters x/? Each chapter is its own complete storyline, so feel free to jump in any time, you'll never feel like you've been left hanging. I absolutely LOVE the irreverent (and yet, very well-conceived and detailed) urban fantasy vibe. And I love every character just the way I like to.

(Just read another fic with a sentient house (fifth story) and urban fantasy tones: Of Werewolves and Tentacles by Guede, which was a delight.

Untamed by rosepetals42 T.  28k.  Complete.  Of course, the transfer kid gets mentioned because transfers are rare, but the news isn’t that exciting. In fact, according to Laura, no one even seems to know his first name. The only thing anyone has really figured out about him is that he’s American. And that’s not exactly hard because he obviously has an accent. // The only thing Derek really knows is that, despite other reports, he seems quiet enough, prefers to work alone, and has the most amazing shade of amber eyes that Derek has ever seen. // Not that he’s looking. Obviously. // OR: A Harry Potter AU where Stiles is a Slytherin transfer student and Derek is the grumpy Gryffindor who falls in love with him. // There are also potions, elves, and falcons involved. Oh, and illegal use of magic. Obviously.

Best. This is the best Hogwarts/Teen Wolf AU I've ever read, hands down. All the feels.

A Wild Heart's Desire by mikkimouse  T.  13k.  Complete.  If there's one thing Stiles Stilinski knows, it's that Deputy Derek Hale absolutely Does Not Like him. The only reason Derek even tolerates him is because their kids are worryingly codependent. // So Stiles is understandably confused when a very feral Derek shows up in his backyard after a call gone wrong and proceeds to move in with him.

Aw, feral!Derek is so sweet. And so is Stiles. And both of them are hella oblivious.

A Life for a Life, Makes the Whole Wo rld Bound by augopher M.  91k.  Complete.   Stiles was lonely; there was no other way of putting it. The Nogitsune had left the pack a wary of him, not that they thought it had been his fault. No, they worried it would happen again. Once bitten, twice shy. // The morning after his 18th birthday, his torso was covered in mysterious green tattoos. He hadn’t been that drunk. He'd definitely remember that. Great. Something else to make him feel like a freak. Insomnia led him to his mother’s diary and a tale of how she helped an odd man once who gave her the warning, “Be careful of your wishes three." Everything clicked into place. // So...he was a djinni. He subtly changed things about himself. More muscle? Done. Better hair? Done and done. End his crippling insecurity? Done, done, done. He hid his new gift until he found himself bound to Derek. // With Deaton’s help, they translated meanings in his tattoos, but they were incomplete. A passage of his 'Rules and Regulations' was missing. Everything was fine dandy until Stiles’ new powers and penchant for mischief and karmic retribution threatened to destroy him, fracture his mind, and turn him into something which couldn’t be contained. // Could the pack save him in time, and at what price?

Court of the Bitter King by The Feels Whale (miscellea)  T.  7k.  Incomplete series, but that’s okay.  There’s a reason Stiles refuses point-blank to take off his shirt in public. That reason would be the massive number of …somewhat illegal tattoos he’s had done over the years.  //  It’s not that his dad doesn’t know about the tattoos, it’s more that his dad doesn’t like to think about them. It’s a mom thing or more precisely, it’s a ‘mom’s side of the family’ thing and Stiles’ maternal relatives make his dad very, very nervous.

Interesting. Dreamy and a little surreal. Third part is unfinished, but then, so are dreams, often.

The Time Travelling Werewolf's Confused Spirit Guide by The Feels Whale (miscellea) G.  5k.  Complete.  

Normally you don’t imagine yourself as living in the dystopian future that hapless time travelers accidentally stumble into. // Or: that one where Stiles learns the hard way that reality is not static, time is not a river, and sometimes the way things are is not the way they were supposed to be.

Sweet and weird. And it all worked out in the end, but I'd miss asshole Derek.

Her Blood on His Bones by secondstar  E.  123k.  Complete.  Stiles may be cursed but that doesn’t mean he’s going to lay down and die. He’s going to fight. He won’t stop, he can’t stop. If he does, they win.  [Daemons, Dark Materials universe.]

Aching for you by LittleRedEmissary T.  45k.  Complete.  When Stiles tries to cast a protection spell on Derek and accidentally casts a spell much stronger than either of them expected, the duo has to relearn everything that they've learned about protecting the pack, because the old methods won't do anymore. With the infamous Winchesters coming to town Derek hopes that the hunters will just drive through town, but the pack has never been good that laying low.

Love this. God, Dean's an asshole. But he gets better.

Writ in Hecate's ink on willing skin by Lenore M.  6k.  Complete.   "As you're always so fond of pointing out, you're the alpha. When bad shit happens to you, it affects all of us. If someone wants to use your alpha mojo or your wolf force or," Stiles waves his hand, "whatever you want to call it for diabolical purposes? We need to be ready."

Beacon Hills Mysteries  by miss_aphelion  T.  80k.�� Complete.  Stiles appears alone at the doors of the emergency room the morning after the full moon, covered in blood with a deep slash torn across his left side. He's suffering from hypovolemic shock and barely conscious and he won't tell anyone what happened—not his hospital appointed psychiatrist, not his father. Not even his pack. // The list of suspects is disconcertedly short. There were only seven others in the woods with Stiles that night: Derek, Scott, Boyd, Erica, Isaac, Jackson and Allison. And none of them remember the night in quite the same way.

My note for the second story:  Whoa, so intense and stressful and simply amazing. Really, this whole series is the bomb. (Even with no sex!) And super!magic!Stiles like whoa.

Patterns of Intention by drunktuesdays E.  17k.  Complete.  Derek looked like the stuff of his deepest fantasies. His shirt was rumpled where Stiles had his hands in it, and he was breathing hard as well, chest heaving. His eyes—his eyes were glazed over and he looked stunned, like he’d been—like Stiles had—“No,” Stiles said, blood draining from his face. The word was croaky and felt like it had to be wrenched out of his chest. “God, no.”

The one where Stiles' magic is expressed verbally, and he starts to think he magically is making Derek want him back.

No spell quite like your smile by charimiel T.  29k.  Complete.  "I’m Stiles by the way. I’d shake your hand, but the stuff on my hands isn’t actually ink and I don’t want to subject anyone else to that.” .... Derek’s really just exuding an aura of ‘what the fuck is wrong with this guy’. Stiles gets that a lot actually.OrThe one where Stiles owns a magic shop and Derek probably regrets coming back to Beacon Hills right about now.

Cute.

From Here On by Isa_Iadel M.  97k.  Completed stories, incomplete series.  Stiles Stilinski hasn't been Sheriff for very long and dealing with the aftermath of the attack against the Hales ends up being far more complicated than he ever could have imagined.

Crazy good story, incredible and original world building (really, SO original), and Stiles is magic! to the max and totally wonderful protector of the town and all the characters, OCs and those well-loved, are just amazing. (Derek is underdeveloped, which is a pity, but everyone else is so riveting that it's alright.) Can't wait for the next installment.

B.S.T.P.H.T. by dornfelder E.  27k.  Complete.  Before Derek has the presence of mind to object, Stiles pushes the paper in his hands and makes for his jeep. “Just read it, okay?” is the last thing he says before slamming the door shut. // He starts the engine, and drives away in record time with gravel scrunching under his tires while Derek stands there dumfounded. He accelerates unusually fast, and the jeep’s back lights disappear into the night.What. The. Fuck.

dream-walker by hoars E.  5k.  Complete.   This is not the behavior Stiles was expecting from a werewolf he’s been dream invading. To be honest, Stiles expected more blood, bruises and begging. He was not expecting creepy Derek to go to sleep next to him.

Vision without action is just a dream. by Mynuet   T.  17k.  Complete.  Vision without action is merely a dream. Action without vision just passes the time. Vision with action can change the world. (Joel Barker) // Stiles has never known how to leave things well enough alone. If the root of their unhappiness is Derek losing the love of his life, then that's the problem Stiles is going to fix, no matter what it takes. He probably should have realized that things never go according to plan."

Perfect!

How I Met My Werebunny by Moku T.  20k.  Complete.  “This is going to end in tears,” Scott told Derek while he watched the man easily lifting Stiles’ desk up with one hand and driving nails into the ceiling with the thumb of the other. “Probably mine.” // Or:When a Stiles and a Failwolf love each other very much, they’ll engage in a prank war. Basically, it's a mating ritual for dorks in love.

So precious!

Shakespeare Was a Wolf by mommymuffin Unrated.  (I’d rate it an M.)  40k.  (Incomplete series, but that’s fine.)  Derek gets turned into a wolf by a witch. Naturally, he expects Stiles to fix it.

“To say that Stiles flailed before he hit the ground in the most spectacular display of falling down the world has ever seen would be a gross understatement.”

Spark by rispacooper  M.  10k.  Complete.  Derek had never actually seen Stiles in his full dragon form. If he was being honest with himself, he wasn’t sure he wanted to. The first time Derek had properly met Stiles, spoken with him, he’d had a hard time not reacting to the heat of him, far too reminiscent of the lick of flames at Derek’s skin. Dragons exuded heat, Derek had known that, intellectually. They might look like cold-blooded reptiles but they were creatures of fire.

Derek did not have good memories of fire. Stiles couldn’t have been expected to remember that, but it hadn’t helped that he’d focused on Derek with those impossibly wide eyes of lustrous brown and then let out of a puff of marijuana-scented breath and announced he’d take Derek instead of a sandwich.

Lord knows it would be the first time by uraneia  E.  12k.  Complete.  Stiles is home from Berkeley for the summer, but only because he promised the pack. He'd rather not see Derek, because whatever the thing was that they were doing, they're not doing it anymore, and it sucks. // Unfortunately, he doesn't have a choice. The betas tried a magical remedy for Derek's melancholy, and now Stiles has a three-year-old who looks like Derek. Stiles doesn't know how to deal with that, and he definitely doesn't know how to tell the betas he and Derek were secret fuck buddies for a year and a half.

Another kidfic: ending has a nice twist.

Of Bananas, Babies and Buzzkills by calrissian18  T.  25k.  Complete.  “Are you, um—What are you doing back?” He looks as uncomfortable as Stiles feels and that’s some small consolation.“You know, the usual. Witches, I’m the highlander now, magic bananas.”

Oh, god, the one where Stiles magics up Protozooey, and he's SOO CUTE.

I was a little disappointed in the ending (little rushed), but ALL the rest of it is so delicious it's ok.

(Once in a) Blue Moon by clarkoholic, skywardsmiles  E.  60k.  Complete.   Stiles and Derek are getting along, but they’re not a family, and they’re sure as hell not mates. Christ, they’re basically just two stupid guys who happened to get pregnant because of a full moon and sheer dumb luck.

Oh, the angst, the pining, the guilt, the blame, the anger. Total pain-fest while we watch Stiles nearly die from the burden of the pregnancy. Lovely sweet ending, of course.

A Heart is a Heavy Burden by lielabell  T.  41k.  Complete.  In Which Stiles: is accosted by unhappy witches, becomes friends with fire demons, is rescued by darkly handsome wizards, discovers hidden inner depths, is introduced to princes, and finds true love. Though not necessarily in that order. // (Or the Howl’s Moving Castle AU fusion fic you never knew you wanted but are delighted to have.)

Hale's Moving Castle. (I need say no more.) -- not magic!Stiles, but wizard!Derek is just as good.

Haven't Forgotten My Way Home by tryslora E.  101k.  Complete.   Stiles walked away from Beacon Hills and never planned on coming home. Now he needs help, and there's nowhere else he can go other than back to his childhood home and the pack he left behind.

Great story: intricate, suspenseful and unique. It stands well on it's own, no need to read others in the series if you don't want to.

Stiles, why is Derek Hale passed out on our front porch? bymarguerite_26, mothlights  E.  4k.  Complete.  Stiles doesn't hear the knock on his front door, but he figures there must have been one, because now his dad's calling out to him, "Stiles, do you know why Derek Hale just passed out on our front porch?" // Stiles freezes, carton of milk half way to his mouth. He looks around the empty room, wondering if it has any answers. Derek Hale just passed out on his front porch -- sounds like one of the signs of the coming apocalypse.

Breathe Me by mommymuffin Unrated (I’d give it T or M)  127k.  Complete.

Stiles tries desperately, but the air just won’t come to him. He can’t do it himself. He needs someone. Someone to help him.

And Scott left him.

Fabulous series. Starts as a kind of one-shot, just Stiles-Derek-panic attack, but then the author, lo, encounters plot, and what a plot it is. I love this one, it's fast, doesn't stint on violence, the whole second half is one stressful situation after another, and there is Cor, the amazing wolf made out of the blood spilled between Stiles and Derek, which is a concept I haven't encountered before.

I would rate it an T or an M... there's sex, but it's not described in any detail.

Last Call by grimm  E.  6k.  Complete.   He doesn’t come to The Beacon to pick up people. It’s precisely the reason why he doesn’t go anywhere else. People in this neighborhood know him, know he’s not interested in being hit on, which allows him to have a drink in peace. Derek knows he’s good-looking, but the type of people it attracts disgust him. At least other werewolves can smell the unfriendliness on him and stay away, but that doesn’t stop everyone. He went to a gay bar with his coworker Isaac once and it was horrifying.

Dragon's Breath by trilliath  E.  56k.  Complete.   Between the hunters and the monsters that have interfered with life in Beacon Hills, the pack has had to learn a lot in the last few years, including Stiles teaching himself to practice magic in private. It's not exactly a secret from the pack, but it's not something he's shown much. When it comes time to put his skills to the test, Derek is the only one who finally gets to see Stiles's wild magic put to use saving Erica's life from a new threat in town. //  The aftermath changes something between them, and those tenuous lines tangling them together may mean the difference between life and death for them both.

Lovely, vivid and intense.

In Sanguinem Scriptum Est by secondstar  E.  31k.  Complete.   In order to stop a new onslaught of nightmares from plaguing him, Stiles decides to become an emissary. No longer defenseless, he begins to realize that not everything is as it seems.

Strut on a Line, its Discord and Rhyme by xiaq T, 73k.

“Carry me,” Stiles says.  //  “No.”  //  “But I’m injured.”  //  “You have a rash,” Derek says. “On your arm. Your feet work just fine.”  //  “Please?”  //  “No. You weigh almost as much as I do. And you ate a pound of chicken at lunch.”  //  "Well, yeah, but I pooped like an hour ago, so.”  //  “You’re disgusting.”  //  “Don’t play, you love me.”  //  I do, Derek thinks, relatively horrified. I really do.

Oh, wow, this was so fun: ��such a fast read, it just never lagged for a moment.  Not that it's action-packed, because it isn't, but just because the story is so interesting and kept moving right along.  Lots of OCs in this (Paidrag, Teagan, Walsh) and they're fully realized and wonderful.  Stiles is a human adopted into a wolf pack that's been slaughtered a year earlier, and Derek and his dad are in Beacon Hills to help him recover from an extended kidnapping from demons.  Both of them are young (fifteen and later sixteen), so their interactions start out innocent.  Stiles is his usual self:  brash and loud and weirdly confident in himself.  Derek is shy and quiet.  They make a good pair.  Scott is the big brother who is suddenly a guardian.  I pretty much loved every part of this:  especially how Stiles magic just got stronger and stronger.

The Walls Are Breathing In by secondstar  E.  42k.  Complete.  Nothing could go wrong. It was just supposed to be a safe trip to the Nemeton. But this is Beacon Hills and things are rarely that simple. Welcome to the life of Stiles Stilinski.  // Or, that time that Stiles accidentally became a sorcerer against his will.

good story, and I loved the art (great colors)

Out Of Milk... by 74days  M.  88k.  Complete.   Derek Hale moved in with the Stilinskis after acting a hero, much to Stiles distress. However, things take a turn for the strange when his arrival coincides with some strange happenings in Stiles life - that will change the course of the pack forever.

Sooooo magic!Stiles. EXCELLENT story. The angst is strong in this one...

Salutations or Something by ravingrevolution  E.  155k.  Complete.  He needed an actual hobby outside of work where he would interact with actual people who did not live with him or talk to him through the internet or his phone. // Like yoga? His stupid mind supplied in an annoyingly accurate imitation of Scott’s voice. // Stiles sighed. // Like yoga. // “Fuck.”

"He was pretty sure that before he started doing yoga his life had not been an action movie sub-plot, but apparently things had changed. He really would have preferred to have starred in a romantic comedy, but he didn’t often get what he wanted." (Spark Stiles)

What I Did On My Summer Vacation by grimm  E.  119k.  Complete.  There's something weird about Beacon Hills that Stiles can't quite put his finger on. The way everyone in town knows his name the day he arrives. The way they insist the melancholic howling that echoes through the forest every night is just a dog. The way his dad denies getting a dog, even though Stiles comes home to find one sprawled across his bed, some big black thing whose eyes gleam red in the right light. The way that massive oak tree out in the woods vibrates under his touch, pulsing with sickly life. // There's something weird going on in this town, and Stiles is determined to get to the bottom of it.

hope is the thing with feathers by ShanaStoryteller T.  29k.  Complete.  Stiles is ten when he saves the Hales from their burning home and Derek from a wolfsbane bullet, and this establishes a pattern that seem to continue indefinitely."Then he's facing a burning home, and he wraps the hood of his sweatshirt around his mouth before he pushes the door open and steps inside. There's Mr. Hale asleep - he hopes asleep - on the couch, next to - Stiles thinks that's his brother but there are so many Hales, who can keep track. He rushes over and starts shaking him, can see the rise and fall of the man's chest so he knows he's alive, but he's not waking up. //  He shoves away his hood so he can shout, "Mr. Hale! You have to get up, there's a fire! Mr. Hale, get up!" Nothing, he's not even twitching, both of them taking in deep even breaths like they're having the most peaceful of rests, and Stiles is going to cry. "Wake up, wake up, wake up!" //  There's a moment, where all Stiles can hear is the blood rushing in his ears and not the roar of the flames or the creak of wood, then with a violent, silent pop it's all back and both of the men are gasping awake, eyes open and jumping to their feet. "

This is awesome: It starts when Stiles is ten, and he finds himself drawn int the woods in time to pull the Hales from their burning house, and much magic is used on that day, and lo, Stiles is an extremely powerful mage. For all that he's very brave and snarky, he's also very laid-back, and so he rolls with the punches and allows himself to be adopted (more or less) into the Hale clan, even tho they're very, very weird. So for the next five years, he tags along, fights the good fight, discovering new powers along the way, grows a bond with Derek (who hates words, and hates feelings and hates combining the two even worse), keeps his oldest and bestest friend Scott (who is similarly chill about the whole thing), and just blossoms before your eyes. It's fabulous. (So is the whole series.)

Beltane by DevilDoll  E.  8k.  Complete.   "Watching Stiles heal someone has always been a little uncomfortable for Derek, like he's seeing something intimate and private that shouldn't have an audience. That's nothing compared to how it feels." This is an AU in which Stiles has magical healing powers.

Taking Leave by coyotl   M.  91k.  Complete.   Stiles leaves. It's not like he wanted to, ever, but he had to. Sure, there were choices, always. It's just that, sometimes, all the choices were bad ones.

fucking fantastic. stiles resembles a gaiman-esque saint or a god or something, on a dubiously moral killing spree for half the story. the writing is magical and gripping, and the story moves fast: gritty and bloody and unapologetic. unique and lovely.

Didn’t See That Coming by knittersrevolt E, 84k.

Stiles leaves Beacon Hills in the dust after he catches his husband cheating on him.  //  He finds his way to New York where he starts working for the Hale House Nursery, accidentally adopts a werewolf baby (through no fault of his own thank-you-very-much), and somehow starts training to be an Exorcist Emissary. So, in general, life was going good.  //  Then he hears that demons have found their way into his hometown. Can he face his inner demons and go back to save the day?

I love this story so much, it’s such a fast and engaging ride.  Plus, accidental baby acquisition, who doesn’t love that?  The one where Scott's a cheating jerk so Stiles basically runs away to upstate New York and gets a job at Hale's Nursery Preschool with Laura, and after a few months finds a woman giving birth in an alley, takes her to the hospital, and comes home with her baby when she dies.  Her werewolf baby (not that Stiles has any idea about that).  So now Stiles is the proud single parent of baby Sam.  He eventually moves in with Derek (because a hotel is no place for a newborn and Derek has an extra room).  Things develop over the next few months, and then the Alpha Pack shows up and Peter starts acting suspiciously.  Meanwhile, Stiles is getting magic lessons from Mee-Mee, who is a Demon Puller in addition to being the local supernatural pediatrician and druid.

They discover that a demon escaped the Alpha Pack and went to Beacon Hills -- along with Peter and the twins he kidnapped -- so Derek and Stiles have to pack up and follow it, right on the heels of his dad and Scott, who hired a private detective to find him.  Beacon Hills is interesting, Stiles starts up a body shop selling (magical) creams and ointments and navigates the social waters of a town who seemed not to care that he was cheated on.

Stand Fast in Your Enchantments by DevilDoll, Rahciach   E.  77k.  Complete.   "Stiles knew damn well what a pissed-off wolf sounded like, and every hair on the back of his neck was telling him that somewhere in this room was a very pissed-off werewolf." //  An AU in which Derek is feral, Stiles is magical, and they eat a lot of fast food.

Love this one so much!