#like I am just here because I ship geralt and jaskier not for any other reason

[yellowspiralbound]

Since season 3 of The Witcher Netflix comes out tomorrow...here are some of my concerns on adaptation from this season onward. Potential spoilers for the future seasons and definite spoilers for the books. Long post ahead.

The Hansa's Dynamic

I am so worried about how the Hansa is going to be handled in the show. Like shaking in my boots terrified. The showrunners already really messed up Dandelion & Geralt's dynamic...and that's one of the easier dynamics present in the Hansa imo. The dynamic is already going to be screwy because Cahir is a middle aged man and not a petulant teenager if he's present in the Hansa at all (though I think he will be since Emhyr called him and Fringilla out at the end of s2).

Emhyr as a Character

Speaking of Emhyr...I think they might attempt to give him a redemption arc, and I cannot emphasize how bad of an idea that is. They're going to retcon the whole "wanting to impregnate Ciri" bit, which I have mixed feelings on. Like yes, on one hand that's fucking gross but on the other hand, that bit is in there to show how fucked up Emhyr is and why Geralt needs to get to Ciri so quickly; it adds a sense of urgency to the Hansa's travels. If I see Emhyr sympathizers on my dash after this season I will lose my fucking mind.

Milva's Pregnancy & Related Scenes

I suspect that Milva's pregnancy is going to be cut entirely or play up the rest of the Hansa's concern for her as a weird "men think they can control women's bodies" thing which Milva will have to fight with them about so the show can be appropriately pro-choice without exploring any of the pro-choice nuance the books bring up. I can just see Regis talking to the guys about it being turned into a "the father deserves a say in a woman's choice to abort" scenario instead of the "I will give this woman her abortion regardless of what you all think about that (and I've made that VERY clear) but I think she's making this choice because she believes you all will abandon her/not support her if she wants to keep this baby and someone needs to make sure that she knows that won't happen" scenario that it actually is. This is also plays into my concerns about the Hansa's dynamic as changing that scene changes it irreparably.

Characterizing Nilfgaard as a Nation

Right now I feel like the show could go one of two ways 1) Nilfgaard is wrong in everything it does or 2) Nilfgaard is right in everything it does (if Emhyr gets a redemption arc). The show has already made a show of the Northern Realms' racism, which is book accurate mind you, but I fear this will translate to a sort of "Nilfgaard is the better nation as its less racist" scenario. While Nilfgaard is better in that aspect and a few others, it is still a militant slave nation. Nilfgaard and the Northern Realms both have their evils and their virtues; that's a big point in the books and the games. Neither nation is 100% good or 100% bad - they're just nations. I don't think the show will be able to handle that kind of nuance.

Jaskier & Radovid...

Apparently, Radovid is supposed to be one of Jask's love interests this season. Radovid is a massive racist, a war criminal, and a teenager. I'm sure all of that's going to be retconned but for fuck's sake just make a new character if you're going to age up and completely change the personality and insanity of an existing one. Important note: I am 1000% in support of queer Jask. I have never shipped that man with a woman in my life (even in the books and games) but for the love of God why did his LI have to be fucking RADOVID??

Mistle & the Rats

If they make Ciri and Mistle a love story, I am going to be disappointed but not surprised. Let me be clear: Mistle is a rapist and an abuser. I suspect they will change that to shoehorn in a queer relationship (even though Triss and Philippa are RIGHT THERE if they want a semi-canon wlw couple). The Rats as a whole are definitely going to be made into more robinhood-like characters because God forbid a main character like Ciri is morally grey or does questionable/bad things.

Geralt's Disability

If this season ends with the Vilgefortz and Geralt fight, as I suspect it might, Geralt will be disabled permanently by the end of this season. The dryads do not fix it. Magic does not fix it. Geralt becomes disabled and stays disabled. His disability becomes a hindrance during the books and the reader actively sees him grapple with the fallout of this. I do not trust this show to handle that - especially with how much more closed off Geralt is in the show compared to the books. If I had to guess, Geralt's disability will be handwaved away or mentioned in passing and never actually shown to impact him which is not cool.

[remythologise]

please rank your gay ships based on how bad thekr first time havifn sex would be thank you

a short selection of SOME gay ships from western live action on a RELATIVE score ranking because we don’t have time or space for all the rest: charles/erik: charles is literally a telepath. their first time having sex is 15/10 even if both of them cry and erik gives himself an injury it doesn’t take away from how out of this world the sex is

hannibal/will: 13/10 for the 13 people that died right before it happened. I am so sorry to tell you this but they are BOTH so into it and there is so much blood.

alexander/hephaistion: over two millennia of people saying alexander was cuntstruck by hephaistion’s thighs so I guess that first messy 12/10 handjob was astronomically good for alexander.

tos kirk/spock: kirk is very kind and gentle with spock here even though spock’s losing his goddamn mind about it. kirk, in fairness, ALSO loses his goddamn mind about it a bit. not for nothing are they based on the above two historical figures. 11/10 lewd handholding

xena/gabrielle: including women on this list as a comparison point. it’s so 10/10 good and they are so normal and communicative about their needs, wants and feelings

post-15.18 destiel: might be sort of normal actually. a bit awkward at first, but given cas is an angel and blows out some lights along with dean’s back I’ll give it a solid 9/10 that can only get better from here.

flint/silver: 8/10 sadly they’re both so in love with each other and work so well together it overrides all of the gaslight gatekeep girlboss manipulations and mindgames that have or will go on, even if they’ll never admit that!

steve/tony: picking one universe and saying ultimates, ults steve is homophobically trembling the whole time and ults tony is bitter and jaded and laughs derisively at the situation after steve comes. 3/10 objectively but a 9/10 experience for steve (previously had not had gay sex) and a 7/10 experience for tony (he’s a masochist)

holmes/watson: holmes is too in his head about it and watson doesn’t know if he likes gay sex yet. 6/10 love that dare not speak its name is still very sexy for all involved

house/wilson: they know way too much about anatomy for this to be bad, BUT never underestimate the power of them derailing the experience by arguing with each other and bringing up death before anyone even gets off. 5/10

kim/harry: oh this is ABSOLUTELY what you’d expect (harry full on losing it not even halfway in and sobbing violently) but it is saved by the fact harry can near-read kim’s mind even if he doesn’t know what kim’s mind means half the time. 4/10, +0.5 modifier (kim really trusts you)

nandor/guillermo: also 4/10, neither of them communicates about their kinks. guil makes a secret action plan of how the next time can be better, except nandor then immediately goes off and hooks up with some other love of his life

merlin/arthur: 5/10 sloppy blowjob by merlin that gets a downgrade to 3/10 because somehow in sucking arthur off he also managed to doom magic, all other gay people and the entire working class

geralt/jaskier: 2/10 geralt is thinking about yennefer’s breasts the whole time. sorry he can’t help it blame the djinn probably

aos kirk/spock (or any pre-movies version of tos): somehow kirk spends the whole time convincing himself it’s just a casual thing for a literal vulcan. spock spends the whole time trying not to kill kirk and then thinks he’s gravely injured him AND disgusted him with the scale of his aggressive desire. 1/10 they both get off but it’s physically painful and both are miserable about it

endverse destiel: dean is SOOOO angry and revolted with both himself and castiel. absolute 0/10 that never happens again.

dishonourable mentions for the hell of it:

aziraphale/crowley: whatever neil gaiman said about them never having sex because they’re beyond that or whatever. -10/10 they don’t qualify

[setaripendragon]

Trying to organize my ask notebook better since I've run out of space under general fandom asks and I would like to know what fandoms you are in so I can ask the correct people about the correct fandoms.

I think my main ones are Bagginshield/The Hobbit, Sherlock/Johnlock, Dragon Age Inquisition, {Pippin/Faramir Merry/Eowyn}/The Lord of the Rings and I dip my toes in a few that I currently can't remember but ones I don't engage in canon at all are Good Omens but only for Crowley/Azirapheal ship, Stranger Things but only for Steve/Eddie ship, The Witcher but only for Geralt/Jaskier things and Ladybug and Cat Noir but only for Adrinette .

Also do you like getting asks that are or include story ideas or snippets?

*Asks are sent for fun, no pressure to answer within a certain amount of time or at all.

Ooh, I am in so many fandoms XD It wouldn't actually be easier to list the ones I'm not in, but sometimes it feels that way.

Definitely there with you on The Hobbit and Bagginshield and Lord of the Rings and that whole 'verse, and I'm all in on the Good Omens and The Witcher (well, all in on most of the fandom, I've read some of one of the books, played some of one of the games, watched some of one of the shows... XD).

I also enjoy me some Sherlock, but my preferred flavour is Elementary, rather than BBC.

At the moment my main fandoms are One Piece (catching up with the anime atm, it's taking a while XD), Supernatural, and Star Wars (pretty much entirely second hand, except for the Kenobi show and recently being bullied into watching the Mandalorian with a friend =P).

Okay, I'm going to try and be concise now because otherwise we'll be here all day. Here are fandoms that I've written stuff for (published or not): A Song of Ice and Fire, Alice in Wonerland, Assassin's Creed, Avatar the Last Airbender, Black Butler, Bleach, James Bond, Charmed, Criminal Minds, Critical Role, Emperor's Edge, Fairy Tail, Firefly, Frozen, Fruits Basket, FullMetal Alchemist, Girl Genius, Rise of the Guardians, Harry Potter, Kingsman, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Merlin, Chronicles of Narnia, Naruto, Avatar (2009), Once Upon a Time, Peaky Blinders, Percy Jackson, Pride and Prejudice, The Sandman, Shadowhunters, Sinbad (Dreamworks), Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, Teen Wolf, The Untamed, Torchwood, White Collar, X-Men.

I'm not, you know, deep in the fandom of more than usually three or four at a time, but my muse wanders like she's got itchy feet. And I'm probably at least passingly familiar with several other fandoms: I'm enjoying watching Dungeon Meshi at the moment but I haven't yet got the itch to play in that sandbox, I love reading Scum Villain's Self Saving System fanfic but I don't feel I know the characters well enough to write my own, I watched basically all of the Disney animated movies as a kid but I haven't yet had a solid enough idea to write, I have seen some of Stranger Things but I watched most of it while somewhat sleep deprived and that is not the best way to watch horror ^^" I've played FF7, I've read the Hunger Games, I've watched Yuri On Ice, etc, but I don't have a convenient list of those, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I won't make this any longer than it needs to be going into my ships unless you ask specifically, but let it be said that I'm a polyshipper in a big way (nothing gets my brain to go brrrrrrr like complicated relationship dynamics =3), and making it onto my NoTP list takes some seriously rancid vibes and/or overly pushy fans, and it's always safe to ask me about a ship =P

Story ideas are very welcome! The muse needs constant feeding =P I won't make any guarantees about them going anywhere, but I love seeing them all the same. Snippets... are probably the same? I don't know, I've never been sent one. I'm probably even less likely to do anything with them, just because of stupid brain quirks, but who knows?

[bluedillylee]

hi! I'm here for the choose violence ask game and in case we could choose multiple, could I get 1, 3, and/or 6???

thank you!!

the character everyone gets wrong

Eskel. The majority of the time I see people characterize him as the better more emotionally mature Geralt whose very insecure about his scars. Essentially a nice sweet dude. I simply cannot vibe with that.

Now this is obviously a personal opinion but I just can't see how you get a guy like that out of the upbringing he shares with Geralt and Lambert and maybe Coen (not sure if its canon or fanon about Coen being from another school). Geralt very obviously reads to me as a fucked up and traumatized person whose trying his best with the circumstances he has. Lambert also is usually shown to have anger outbursts and bitterness over the way he was raised. I actually get really suspicious of a nice normal Eskel in fics because my brain just interprets that as him hiding something super fucked up about himself.

Shout out to that one fic I wish I could find again that had Eskel and this cannibalistic town and there was this song The Old She Hen Cackled. It was a great exploration of a fucked up Eskel.

to the nice!Eskel lovers out there feel free to tell me what it is you like about him. While not my vibe I enjoy hearing what makes people passionate about a character.

3. screenshot or description of the worst take you've seen on tumblr

haha oh man one time I saw someone saying that Yennefer had no right to be angry about her infertility because she "chose" it. Baffled me to realize people weren't really watching her story just sort of skimming it.

I find her character deeply interesting so any hate towards her is just like, really? her? my special girl? no way lol

6. which ship fans are the most annoying?

well this ties in with my answer to number 3 but anytime I'm reading a geraskier fic and it starts minimizing Yennefer's importance to the story and to Geralt it is very frustrating.

I'm mostly a multishipper and I like any combo of the Geralt/Yennefer/Jaskier trio but sometimes it's tough out there to find stuff when you like all three characters and you feel that each of them plays an important part in each others lives regardless of shipping.

Thank u fic writers that put in the tags that you hate Yennefer so I don't start reading and then get unpleasantly surprised. I am giving you a respectful nod from across the room from one enemy to another.

[yletylyf]

Rules: list eight TV shows for your followers to get to know you better!

Thank you for the tag @jhalya <3

Tagging @cindle-writes, @atomic-space-babe, @heavy-metal-dick, @ashesandhackles, @givereadersahug, @phantomato

I think I’ll list the shows I’ve watched recently, no clue how I would tackle an all-time favorite list.

1. Shadow and Bone

I never got around to watching season 1 before season 2 came out, so I’ve been binging all the episodes over the past week or so. I did not particularly like reading these books, and I do not particularly like the show. It’s a good production - it’s pretty and I like the actors, who do a great job.

My problem with this verse is that I loathe the main character, books and show alike. I am only in this fandom because I like villains and my friends keep trying to convince me the Darkling is the best villain. And he is a great villain! I’m desperate, however, for content about him that is neither canon nor his popular fandom ship. I’m reading some promising Nikolai/Darkling fics, and slowly trying to finish season 2 of the show.

2. The Mandalorian

I am an extremely casual, not-really-a-fan SW fan. I have like, seen all the movies and the live-action TV shows, and even some of the really bad cartoon, but find most of the content entirely forgettable. So, here I am, dutifully watching the latest in my very casual way. The negative is that I don’t care about the plot of this show (is there a plot in this season?) Positive points in season 3: Elia Kane was smoking hot and also a villain. Wooow! Plus, Bo-Katan is growing on me. Oh yeah, and baby Yoda is the best SW character.

3. House of the Dragon

I thought I would hate this show because I really, really hated Game of Thrones. And there was plenty I did hate about HotD - fuck every single one of those graphic childbirth/dying in childbirth/miscarriage scenes, why do the writers have such a hard-on for women suffering in ways unique to the female anatomy? Fuck off and die. 

I like dragons! I like Rhae and Ali (preferably shipped together)! I loooove Daemon. The settings are so pretty and the action is great and the unhinged villainy and incest is glorious. I kind of hate every single one of the younger characters though and because of it, haven’t really been able to get into the fandom or most ship fic.

4. Rings of Power

LOVE LOVE LOVE. Oh my god! It awoke my teenage love for LotR (I used to be obsessed) and increased it a hundred fold. A delightful and complicated villain-centric story with a smoking hot actor and all the chemistry with the other leads, in a beloved childhood canon? Holy shit, yes please.

5. Wheel of Time

I mean... I watched it. I think these books are terribly written and can’t stand them, but fine, I’ll watch a TV show about a fantasy canon. Loved the big, central role given to Moraine and loved the Moraine/Siuan. The settings and costumes are pretty. I don’t care about this canon at all. I have tried reading fic as encouragement and just cannot muster any caring about these characters.

6. Ted Lasso

Love it! Haven’t started watching season 3 yet, but I loved seasons 1 and 2. I didn’t expect to like it? Happy optimism, relentlessly feel-good, upbeat characters in a modern setting? Not really my thing. (I mean, does it sound like any other show I’ve listed here?) But it was so charming! The writing so funny and the actors so good. Keeley/Rebecca are a fantastic f/f ship and Ted/Trent are a fantastic m/m ship in fandom. I’m very into it.

7. The Witcher

Hmm. I like dark characters and themes but I don’t like jump-scare, horror/tension stuff. So the Witcher was sort of hard for me to watch. I think it’s better on a re-watch when I know what’s coming. Geralt is gorgeous eye candy for sure. The women are annoying (I don’t like children characters much and I hate plots that are like “all I want is a baby” for women, hate hate hate them, please die, Yennifer’s entire storyline). I love the fun monster-hunt plots and Jaskier!

8. Obi-Wan Kenobi

I wish I liked this. I wish I liked Anakin in particular. I ought to; he fits the character archetypes I love most. His relationship with Obi-Wan should be fascinating???? But I don’t care. I honestly can’t remember what happened in this show.

[mirika]

I always make my Comic Con post, but this year's is maybe even the least underwhelming to post about, so I will combine it with my Twitch Con visit yesterday (just one day because damn son that ticket was more expensive than a weekend ticket of Comic Con), which was luckily also underwhelming cuz now I know I don't need to go again.

So: - Comic Con June 2024 (weekend) - Twitch Con June 2024 (Sunday)

Before we start, initially David Tennant was going to visit, but he had to cancel... so both my friend and I were pretty bummed about that. I won't go deeper into that.

Comic Con day one. I've been waiting for this Comic Con since the moment I became an Astarion fan. I bought a big ita backpack with two compartments for buttons/charms/etc. The top compartment was multifandom, I put a bunch of stuff there, and I left the bottom one completely empty for just Astarion. I couldn't wait to fill it with a bunch of Astarion. I was a little disappointment there wasn't as much Astarion buttons though, so it is not filled... and half of them are basically memes instead of just artful buttons, but it is what it is.

So the first thing we (my friend and I) did was go to the artist alley. I saw one print I wanted to buy I never found back and did not want to buy with my friend knowing so... and when she left on day two (she had to leave early) I just never found it again. Oh well. I did buy at least one print I am very happy with, and several I am not happy with because there is a lot of pressure when you are shopping with a gazzilion people surrounding you, so you easily make rushed choices instead of taking a proper look at the product, but here is my loot!

Four of my prints. I really love the first one!!! It's so good. The fourth I also quite like, but the other two I have mixed feelings about (it doesn't mean it is bad, art is subjective, I can be really picky with my faves sometimes).

Also shoutout to the artist who sold this sticker.

Fucking hilarious. They also had it with "your mom" (the translation), but it doesn't hit the same. I really love this sticker so much ahaha.

Some stickers! The OnlyFangs one was too funny (and is a canon reference to an old video made by Larian, don't worry it is actually safe in my opinion)

The charm has two sides by the way, one side is Jaskier and the other Geralt. It is funny my friend found it after I had JUST complained that there is never Jaskier art by himself, only with Geralt; I was just happy this wasn't meant as ship unlike usually haha.

A print with the whole BG3 cast around the campfire. The Astarion charm is now on my usual bag because the ita bag cannot hold any more and has a button with the same design anyway. Speaking of the ita bag;

See what I mean with a lot of them being more or less memes/jokes rather than just nice art? Quite a bummer. The phone charm, every time I look at it my brain goes: "he is just a lil guy who wants to murder!"

I also bought some D&D stuff of course (plus the Astarion and Karlach print).

Pardon my dusty desk. I have one gorgeous set of D&D dice with red and darkness, my friend bought the same. The tiny dice set are metallic which I thought was very interesting. Lastly there is the key chain; I bought a mini red dice for it for contrast, let me show you.

So now I always have a little dice with me when I bring the key chain. Technically it could've fit the whole metallic set in there, but I liked this more!

This merch summarizes day one. I think we were busy ALL DAY with just shopping. The artist alley usually takes more time as they have more interesting things in my opinion. It is also always SO busy that you have to wait for your turn a lot more to just SEE the products. They did make the artist alley a lot bigger which I was happy with, and I was happy less artists were trying to share their table. I understand it is expensive to have a table by yourself, but as a customer it is extremely unpleasant when people share a table with a wall between their sections. If they found a different way to share to leave it more spaceous, that would be awesome... but alas.

So I was a lot of Astarion richer now, but HOLY SHIT THIS HAS BEEN EXPENSIVE??? I checked my bank app after today and I was MORTIFIED. I know what happened though: I used to be exclusive to just buttons and stickers, but buying prints is new to me. I used to not care for hanging art on my walls, but now I have a new crush that I want everywhere around me... and prints are the most expensive type of merch. God dang. Every time I complained about the money loss people just joke at me with their "haha happens to me at cons all te time" except FOR ME this is NOT normal. I've always been quite budgeted, even had many years where I would buy no more than 20 euros of stuff because I had gotten pickier, but the last two editions got a little wilder in merchandise, and the last one being cuz of Astarion.

Fuck me.

Also, quick appearance selfie, I wore my cute hobbit-y dress for day one cuz it makes me feel cute and I have a new flower crown for it.

A necklace would be nice for this dress. I really want something Astarion-themed though... listen, I am 100% living for this dude, it's fucking insane. I've even mortified myself with realizing I like him more than Jaskier (who was my main crush). What is happening man. Ever since I started fancying Astarion I even stopped liking any of my lesser crushes altogether, it's surreal. Then again, some know it's even gotten so bad I have dumb perfumes and candles that rock his canon scent. Why am I even admitting these things...

Time for a distraction! Look at how Starbucks managed to get both Laura (me) and Chris (my friend) wrong!

Comic Con Day two. I went back to see some missed merchandise, this is how I also saw that one stand in the artist alley sold some Digimon pins which I completely missed the day before. I bought the cutest one because pins don't actually work on my ita bag (Patamon was the cutest). I also bumped into an old college friend cuz she owns a stand somewhere and that was fun, but I actually wanted to talk about my encounter with an Astarion cosplayer.

I was trying to read the map after my friend left, but I know shit about maps, nor do they have markers telling us where we are. Someone else was staring at the map, it was an Astarion cosplayer with a string of roses around her neck. I decided to strike a conversation by asking where we were on the map. We were clueless, but now we were investigating this together, and it made me feel weirdly giddy about it, using the conversation to check out their cosplay proper (I never know how to check out someone's cosplay without just STARING which is... rude). I did find some key points, and we eventually figured it out and went our own way, but I thought it was fun. I ended up "D&D-ifying" the situation in my head as two individuals who failed their perception and investigation checks over and over, and started making stupid headcanons if this was actual Astarion because why not.

Okay, sillyness aside, here is my merch of this day, including an Alola Ninetales sticker my friend gave to me (my favourite Pokémon):

The "endure and survive" sticker is a reference to my favourite video game, The Last of Us. It is subtle, but I figured... why not?

As for the ace flag Astarion, I was hesitant on getting it the day before already. I was hesitant because I did want a pride flag on my bag, but I don't necessarily consider Astarion asexual. It does make sense though if you think about him/his story, though I think I would get closer to considering him demi/gray than entirely ace. Either way, I wanted to say that I mostly bought it because I am asexual, not because I headcanon Astarion as ace, though I am not opposed to the idea.

I didn't lie about the Digimon being cute huh? :D

Also quick photo of what I wore on day two, I went for a more vampire/goth look.

It is incredibly hard to synchronise those bat wing clips. It's why I never wear them. Should've gone for a headband...

That summarizes Comic Con I think? I had a bunch of onigiri, a good boba tea and a mediocre boba tea, uhhh... yeah. Many Starbucks coffee. We treated this weekend like a holiday I feel like.

So let's head onto Twitch Con!

———

Twitch Con. I went to Twitch Con for one day because ONE DAY was already 75 euros, whereas a whole weekend of Comic Con was like 50 euros. Insane!

However, I wanted to experience Twitch Con because I am/was a Twitch streamer (situation is complicated, I am only back as streamer to fuck around in Baldur's Gate 3 Honour Mode). At the moment I can still showcase myself as an affiliate so there's that.

However, after Comic Con I got terribly sick. My friend who went to Comic Con too by the way, so we definitely caught it together. I was so sick I took like 2-3 naps per day, had to take paracetamol to keep throat pain and headaches down, and just felt so shit. The first days my throat was just so sore, and when that finally faded, I started desperately clinging to tissues... so I was hoping I would feel well enough to make it to Twitch Con as the tickets could not be resold or refunded. Luckily it turned out alright (though the lack of hydration at Twitch Con made it worse the next day again lol), I could manage.

So I went together with my three of my friends, two are also affiliates and the third is the husband of one of the two ladyfriends. They were all okay with me still dealing with the aftermaths of my illness; my most infectuous days should have been over as well if I am to believe google.

So of course another obligatory photo with the Twitch Con pass!

You can see my nose is still a little red from the tissue use. Can't see on the photo it is also very... scrappy? I don't know an English word for it, but I looked like a mess. I still insisted on wearing some makeup like a dumb idiot.

We left super early to make it to the Q&A of some Baldur's Gate 3 cast though!!!

I was so excited! Let me write who they are from left to right: Interviewer, The Narrator, Wyll, Jaheira, Gale, Halsin.

Gale's voice actor sounds like Gale ALL the time, which was very confusing, and hearing Wyll's voice somehow made me feel so much comfort.

All of them are really funny, I really love the voice actress for The Narrator too (also she's really pretty). We heard some fun facts, like how Halsin's voice actor was kept away from all the sus content about Halsin, so he only knows about the wholesome stuff; that is probably for the better. It was a very nice Q&A, but I could really feel that 1 hour and 15 minutes was long; at Comic Con they are maxed out at 45 minutes. It was good though, and definely the highlight of Twitch Con.

.......

Which is a shame. A Q&A of video game voice actors shouldn't be the highlight of a streamer convention, right? That is what I was thinking.

I did have fun. They either had a lot of room for walking space, or there were just A LOT less people there than at Twitch Con. Makes sense, the tickets are less affordable.

After the Q&A we visited the artist alley there (naturally). A lot of very nice stuff, I found a few vendors that I also saw at Comic Con. I bought some gifts for friends because it was too perfect for them, and a few things for myself.

The sunglasses were an exclusive gift for affiliates, which is nice as I lost my serious sunglasses. The bottom Astarion pin I bought myself, the top Astarion charm my friend bought for me (she was acting really suspicious at a stand ahead of me so I had a feeling she either was trying to be sneaky or wanted me to come over lol).

I also could not resist this art of Wrathion from World of Warcraft.

The vendor had a bunch of really good World of Warcraft art and Wration is one of my favourite NPC's. He's up there with Illidan and Alduin I suppose, for any others I need to think hard.

So... let me re-think our process.

We arrived at Twitch Con, grabbed our badges and affiliate goodies, beelined to the BG3 Q&A, gotten through the artist alley (which consisted of a lot less artists, but they had enough space to show off their work and there were less visitors, so it was a more comfortable experience), after that... a lot becomes a blur. I think eventually we just sat down somewhere and did nothing? Which is like... okay.

We did sample some of those energy drinks that promote sexy anime art on them that I do not care for, my favourite flavour was the one that tasted exactly like ice tea except that ice tea is a lot cheaper to get, and at the end of the day I had to get back to a D&D stand to potentially win a D&D dice set worth 99 euros. It was even a miracle I came in the top 10 to participate with a 96 on the d100, but sadly I came second for the winning prize (which means no prize). I had a shared second spot actually, we even re-rolled to see who would have won, but we rolled the same number again, so we just shook hands on it haha.

So Twitch Con had so many halls available, but I felt like there was just not a lot to do. I can't explain it. However, I wanted to visit Twitch Con to have experienced it, which I did. It kind-of met my expectation: I assumed it would not be exciting enough to go again, it's just a bucket list thing I wanted to get rid of. Now I know I don't need to spend the expensive entrance price again, unless they invite guests I am truly excited about (in other words: come for the guests, not the con).

Shoutout to this Astarion cosplayer though, ignoring how absolutely shitty I look because of recovering from illness and somehow never being photographed nicely (and me never knowing how to pose).

Fun fact... I love the second picture a lot because of the sticker behind us, I had NO idea about that even being there, but having a lil heart between an Astarion and me makes me excited. Let me be lol.

There weren't a lot of cosplayers at Twitch Con because it is different from Comic Con, so it was just this Astarion, a Halsin and a tiefling that I saw. At Comic Con there were many Astarion, but I have a hard time bothering people for photos (people being my friend who would have to take the photo, but also because it is SO crowded at Comic Con). I would've loved to have taken photos with more.

It took me so much courage to ask for a photo lol, they sat across our table and I was just staring like a creep I imagine, I am SO sorry!

But this cosplayer was really cool. They did a good wig job, I see that go wrong so often. Every time I see these things I consider wanting to cosplay them too, but being plus size is just... I don't ever see a plus sized person being applauded for cosplaying a character unless the character is plus size too. Sorry, insecurity coming up.

Either way, Twitch Con was heavily uneventful outside of the big Q&A event I would say, but I did have fun. I just did not feel like the price matched the amount of things to do, ya know? But it was nice to have experienced.

I would summarize it as: if Twitch Con had a normal con price, it would be a fun con to repeat, but the price doesn't match the content unless there are guests you are dying to see.

And that summarizes my very busy June; two conventions and earlier that month I also had a concert. I can finally stop worrying about going to big cities and stuff now. Whew...

Thanks for reading my mess!

——— Twitch Con - 2024 - no cosplay HDCC - 2024 - hobbit vibes / vampire vibes WDCC - 2023 - hobbit vibes / Mimi cosplay DCC - 2023 - no real cosplay WDCC - 2022 - scuffed Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) DCC - 2022 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) / scuffed Ellie (The Last of Us) RCC 2020 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) WDCC 2019 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) / Mimi (Digimon) ACC 2019 - no report, little happened

DCC 2019 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) / Mimi (Digimon) DCC 2018 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) ACC 2018 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) DCC 2018 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) RCC 2018 - Mimi (Digimon) WDCC 2017 - Mimi (Digimon) ACC 2017 - Mimi (Digimon) DCC 2017 - Mimi (Digimon) RCC 2017 - Mimi (Digimon) ACC 2016 - Hook (Once Upon A Time) DCC 2016 - Ladybug (Miraculous Ladybug) DCC 2015 - Sunday - Hobbit (Lord of the Rings) DCC 2015 - Saturday - Ellie (The Last of Us)

[fangirleaconmigo]

Hi! I am gonna just go ahead and self rec bc I just posted a fic with our favorite old married husbands.

I don’t know what rating you read. It’s explicit, so if not, then obv skip. But it’s a short one shot with book boys just bantering and flirting (and other things). It’s called Men of a Certain Age.

Here’s another ficlet I wrote for them on tumblr. (It is not explicit.)

I also have a long fic that has book!Geralt and Dandelion, but it’s inter dimensional and the ship is between book!Geralt and TWN!Jaskier. But in chapter 8 I think it is, Dandelion shows up and he’s very much himself and he gets to know TWN!Geralt. I have a great time bouncing all four of them all off of each other.

So if you have any tolerance for TWN fics, (because it is both book and TWN) it’s called Posada Remix.

I feel like now that I’ve read the books, most of my fics sort of blend in book characterizations but those are the three that are very specifically, particularly them.

My other book fics are Gen or Geralt x Regis.

does anyone have any fic recs that are strictly book/gameverse geralt/jaskier. the main tag is almost only about the netflix version and i'm in need of more of their relationship from the books/games

[finleycannotdraw]

realllyyyyyyyy fast geraskier scribble because cmon let me have this. I am online to post gay art so that’s exactly what I’m gonna do.

[grishaverse-oddity]

Small things in The Witcher Season 2

-1-The signs, they’re beautiful and just so well done and I’m so very excited to see more of them

-3&8-Yennefer actually letting herself rely on people, how she will physically lean against those she trusts and let them help her

-Tissaia and Vesemir being parents of the most chaotic children on the entire continent while also going through their own shit (they do bad things this season, I was yelling at them both for most of the show)

-2-Lambert.  How he is first introduced by the nickname ‘Lambchop’.  How he is 100% the asshole uncle that bullies and pushes Ciri to be her best while also having her side and being willing to admit that he fucked up (yes he only does that to Triss but he is more eager to apologize than any other Witcher we see and we can assume he does the same with Ciri)

-Triss.  Just Triss.  She’s stunning and so kind and soft while also being tough as nails and as strong as obsidian.  She is woman and proud of it while also taking no shit and doing what needs to be done.  Racists can kindly fuck off. (side note, Ciri’s side-eye to both Geralt and Triss when they meet up again?? Absolutely fucking hilarious)

-THE FACT THAT THEY USED THE SAME ACTOR TWICE FOR WITCHER THINGS BECAUSE HIS ROLE AS DECLAN WAS JUST A VOICE ONE. Graham McTavish as Declan and Dijkstra supremacy

-4-I have to be honest, I was not expecting to ship an Enemies-To-Lovers Cahir and Yennefer at ALL no matter how brief that ship idea may have lasted.

-3&4-The way that Yennefer lit up whenever she saw of heard the people she loves and trusts, her grin when she saw Tissaia again (and Tissaia’s answering sob that had me in tears), and the way she absolutely beams when she hears Jaskier’s voice.

-4&7-Burn, Butcher, Burn and Whoreson Prison Blues are absolute fucking bops and I love how they are basically just what would happen if you took The Amazing Devil, Bardic versions of songs, and a singer going through a Taylor Swift/Olivia Rodrigo era and smashed them all together.  The only way they could make it better is if Madeleine Hyland was singing right alongside him.

-4-I firmly believe that to most people, Jaskier’s Toss A Coin and other works about Geralt overwrote the Butcher of Blaviken moniker that he previously had in people’s minds so now when he calls him ‘Butcher’ they don’t even think of that anymore and it is only painful to Geralt.

-I am quite literally just a Yennefer and Jaskier (also a Yennskier) simp, that’s all

-I LOVE THE STUPID FUCKING BARD OKAY

-I hope they bring in other Witcher schools, I just need Aiden, I just need my stupid fucking Cat okay??

-The mannerisms and blocking of each of the characters is genius and you can tell so much thought went into it with each of the characters and their motivations and history.

-7-Jaskier and Geralt’s reunion.  Tears just instant tears and Jaskier tearing him a new one is perfection. “Don’t fucking ‘Jaskier’ me, I’m talking to you, this is how this works.” and “I need you”

-5-Yennefer and Jaskier pretending to be married is peak humour and i need them to keep jokingly referencing it for the rest of time to confuse the hell out of Geralt.

-All their outfits are actually stunning???? I wish i had the skill to make them

-8-I should not be attracted to the Witchers and their black eyes but HERE WE GO I GUESS

these are all my own opinions and comments I made to myself while watching the show, feel free to add your own things you liked.

(The episodes that each thing I reference happen in are marked at the beginning with the number of that episode, if it has no number its more of a general statement or takes place at more than just a few points in the story)

[dat-carovieh]

More to come, more to reach for, more to hurl at the door

Ship: Lambert/Aiden

Rating: G

Wordcount: 1.3k

Tags: Fluff, Fix it, Romance, Lambert needs love, Aiden is alive

Read on AO3

Winter was barely over, when Lambert entered the town. He has been here often, since it was directly on the path to and from Kaer Morhen. He had left the keep in the morning and hoped to get a warm meal and a bed for the night. The people here were more used to Witchers then other towns so it surprised him, that they weere more hostile than usual.

“Another Witcher,” he could hear someone mumbling while they looked at him from the side. Probably thinking he couldn’t hear them.

It was weird because he had been the first one to leave Kaer Morhen, so none of his brothers could be here. It was too early and still too cold for them to leave. The snow had only gone enough for him to find his way down without his horse breaking a leg. He couldn’t take it any longer, being locked up with the other Witcher’s. He needed to get out, fight, when at Kaer Morhen he’d started to think and that had proven to be a mistake. It had been nearly a year since he had lost Aiden and being in the keep just allowed him to think about this too much. Especially when he saw Geralt with Jaskier.

He wondered what other Witcher would travel that far to the north. As he tried to enter the tavern, he was stopped by a man.

“There is already a Witcher here, from the school of the cat, we know you don’t get along, so please don’t’ start anything, we just want to live in peace,” he pleaded.

“And I just want a bed,” Lambert snarled and shoved the man out of the way. Why would a cat Witcher even come here? His mind immediately went to Aiden and he half expected to see him sitting there when he would enter the tavern. But that was obviously bullshit. Aiden was dead and no amount of denial would ever change that. The only thing he could imagine was that some cat wanted to start a fight, probably revenge for him killing Jad Karadin, who had been one of them.

Lambert would prefer to take a fight like that out of the city, because here it would probably mean spilling blood of the innocent.

With a sigh, he opened the door and entered. He didn’t look around, but walked straight up to the innkeep to ask for a room.

“We have one room left, but only the small one in the back,” the innkeep explained. Lambert knew the room, and he knew it was shit but still better than sleeping outside, it was still too cold for that.

“I’ll take it,” he said shortly.

“Lambert?” a voice behind him called. Lambert felt as if his heart has stopped briefly. This could not be, the voice sounded like Aiden. He turned around slowly and stared at the man, who indeed looked like Aiden. But it couldn’t be. Aiden was dead, he himself had seen him die, so that left only one option. A Doppler.

“What do you want from me and why are you impersonating Aiden?” he growled and stepped closer. While he did, he pulled out his silver sword. Dopplers are not really monsters, since they were sentient, intelligent and could communicate. They were also not evil. Much like humans, somewhere and some not, but that one seemed to be, using Aiden’s face against him.

“You think I’m a Doppler?” he asked and took a step back.

“Of course, you are, Aiden is dead.”

“I understand why you think that, but I really am Aiden. Let me prove it to you.”

Lambert jumped at him and pinned him against the wall. If he insisted to proof it, he would let him. He raised his silver sword and pressed it against his chest. Dopplers didn’t wear clothes, they transformed part of themselves into it so the silver would have an effect on him, it would make it difficult to hold his form and hurt him, however, he only looked at him, a little sad but with all the love Aiden had always shown on his face when he had looked at Lambert. Lambert took a step back and put away his sword.

“You really are Aiden?” He was still not sure about it. Aiden carefully stepped closer.

“Yes, it’s really me, my love,” he said. The cheesy pet name surely sounded like Aiden. Lambert would never admit it but he loved it. Aiden carefully took Lambert’s face between his hands and looked him in the eyes.

“You are alive? How are you alive?” Lambert asked, barely able to hide the shaking in his voice, while he leaned his forehead against Aiden’s.

“Let us go to my room and I will explain,” he said and let go of him, just to take his hand and pull Lambert to the stairs.

In the room, Aiden settled on the bed and invites Lambert to do the same. Despite still being a little cautious, he sat down next to him.

“I’m so sorry you thought I was dead but it was safer. You know they wanted to kill me and if they had realized I’m still alive, they would have tried again, until they succeeded,” he explained.

“But I saw you die,” Lambert said.

“I know, I also thought this would be my end. Everyone seemed to think I’m dead, but no one checked and, apparently, they just left me. I don’t remember anything, because I was passed out, but I assume you weren’t able to come back and look for me.”

“I did, but only a day later and then you were gone. I wanted to at least burn your body, because you don’t deserve to just lie at the side of the road.”

“I had been found by a merchant. He pulled me onto his cart and took me home with him, where I woke up in a bed, covered with bandages. I left as soon as I had healed enough to be able to fight again and started to look for you, but when I found out where you where you were hunting down the people who wanted to kill me. I didn’t want to get close, didn’t want to draw their attention to the fact that I am still alive. When they were dead, I felt it would be safe, but I couldn’t find you anymore.”

“We were at Kaer Morhen. Ciri, Geralt’s daughter, was hunted by the Wild Hunt. He brought her there and we fought them.”

Aiden’s eyes widened. “You fought the Wild Hunt? And apparently you won?” Lambert nodded.

“More or less, we were able to drive them away, at least,” he explained.

“That explains why I couldn’t find any trace of you. I thought you would be at Kaer Morhen for the winter, so I came up here, but wolves are not really fond of cats so I didn’t dare to actually go up there. I just hoped you would come through here and thankfully you did.”

Lambert had no idea what to say about this. He had never thought there was any chance of seeing Aiden again and now here he was,sitting right next to him. Slowly he raised a hand and laid it on Aiden’s cheek, carefully tracing his jawline. As if he had to prove to himself, that he was really there. Aiden didn’t rush him. He’d always had so much patience. Lambert lifted another hand and put it on Aiden’s neck, to pull him closer. His movements where still slow, as if the other Witcher would vanish if he moved too fast.

When he finally pressed his lips to Aiden’s he felt all the tension leaving his body and he leaned fully into that kiss. This was real, it was unbelievable but it was real and he would never let him go again.

[bambooastronaut]

some thoughts about Burn Butcher Burn, because I’ve been back and forth on whether or not it’s realistic that Jaskier would use the word “butcher” at all and I’ve decided that yes, it is, specifically within the context of the Netflix show.

while I can absolutely see the perspective that Jaskier would never use the word “butcher” as it’s the word that would hurt Geralt more than any other, I think it makes sense at this point.

I have read several of the books (working on reading them all!) and I feel like book!Dandelion would never use it like that. and that’s because book!Geralt would never have behaved quite the way show!Geralt did. I’ll take a beat here to say I do consider this to be a flaw in the writing of their relationship in s1. I spent a long time pretty unhappy about how unkind Geralt was in the first season, not just to Jaskier but to basically everyone, but I accept the adaptation for what it is and also appreciate the reported efforts of Henry Cavill to draw the characterization back to the books. that said, back to my point.

Jaskier’s song is, in my opinion, a logical progression of what happens. Jaskier is more vulnerable, more heart-on-his-sleeve, and also has been rejected in his affection for Geralt throughout their time together, moreso than any other version of the character. (if you��ve been on my blog for 5 seconds you know I ship it but I am not talking about romantic love in this discussion of canon, though to me his discussion with Yennefer in the fourth episode is an admission of that.)

at the top of the mountain, Geralt did the thing that would hurt Jaskier more than literally anything else he could have done. he rejected Jaskier's love, his softness, his kindness, his persistence, his music. he rejected his place in Geralt's life. and I think someone with the gentleness that Jaskier often portrays (I really enjoy this interpretation btw, as I don’t think womanizing lecher really lends itself well to modern tellings and Jaskier being portrayed as a bisexual disaster slut with too many feelings is much more interesting).

and while I don't like how unfair Geralt and Jaskier's relationship was in s1, I do like Jaskier in s2 standing up for himself. and I do like him willing to talk to Geralt again, but on his own terms. and I like to think when the dust settles at the end of s2, Geralt and Jaskier might have a longer conversation about Jaskier's boundaries and Geralt's apology and subsequent growth. I want them to treat each other better. I think that they can't do that if Jaskier doesn't get his chance to be really, truly angry. and as we know, Jaskier expresses the things he sees and hears and feels through song. so obviously he would write this song, and he would use the word butcher. will he come to regret that? maybe. should he apologize for that? probably. was it the right thing to do? no! but Jaskier is a flawed person who was harmed greatly and he lashed out. he’s human.

at the end of s1, Jaskier has all his love thrown back in his face. he climbed back down the mountain alone. he had to find new purpose after almost 20 years of making people see Geralt as a hero. why wouldn't he be angry? and despite the fact that it was petty, cruel, and awful of him to say say it, why wouldn't he feel entitled to lashing out just like Geralt did? so to me, it makes sense. to me, it’s this: fuck you, witcher, I spend two decades at your side doing everything I could to improve your reputation, to make you happier, to ease your burden, to care about you, and you didn't want it. no matter how much I did, no matter how much I loved you. so fuck you. you want to throw me away? then I'll tell everyone you were right about yourself all along. you want to act like a butcher? don't let me stop you. in fact, I'm going to watch you burn.

[jaskicr]

let’s talk about fandom racism

i have seen so many people say that they don’t like yennefer, or they don’t vibe with her, or she isn’t compelling, or she is irrelevant to their fics/art/creations...

yes. everyone is allowed to like and dislike characters. everyone is allowed to have their preferences. and i’m not disputing that. but when people brush yennefer off, justifying it some of the reasons above or other reasons they come up with, i question whether there’s something rather dodgy behind this, especially when those very same people really, really stan white male characters (geralt, jaskier, the wolves etc)

some people are going to come at me, ‘why are you making everything about race??!??’ or accuse me of calling them racist, when they aren’t racist, how dare i say stuff like that. but it’s interesting, isn’t it? the way fans justify their dislike or their dismissal of female characters of colour with excuses like they’re not ‘compelling’ or they’re ‘problematic’ - when their fave white dudes are arguably just as bland and problematic, but those fans continue stanning their faves anyway.

it’s important, i think, for many fans to take a step back and evaluate their preferences. ‘fandom is for fun,’ you might say. ‘why do i need a reason to like a certain character? can’t i just like them because i do!’

you can! what i want people to evaluate, though, is how their preferences have been shaped by unconscious bias. unconscious bias is created as people grow up, shaped by people around them, shaped by the structure of society - and in society, white-dominated ones in particular, racism is embedded deep within, and it influences the way many people perceive and treat media, the way they interact within fandoms.

that is what i want people to examine and evaluate. you might reject it - because no one wants to be told that they’re racist, that they have unconscious prejudices that they don’t even notice. everyone wants to think that they’re open-minded, that they’re inclusive, that they are completely accepting of every minority group ever - when in fact, the way they’ve been brought up, the way society has influenced them, has created biases within them that shapes their preferences and perception.

i’m not saying people are being intentionally malicious and sidelining characters of colour like yennefer on purpose. i’m saying that there are unconscious prejudices that influence their views in a way that they likely aren’t aware of, leading to them dismissing characters of colour, or demonising them, or magnifying the flaws that a character of colour has while excusing a white character (usually a white man) for similar flaws. 

this can very clearly be seen in how so many fandoms have white male characters as the most popular amongst fans, with many white mlm ships being the centre of those fandoms. meanwhile, people of colour, whether or not they have a compelling or interesting story arc, are relegated to the side, either ignored or used as a facilitator to help the two white men get together, or acting as a side character who has no life outside their connection to the white man.

sound familiar, fandoms?

i’m not telling you that you have to like characters of colour. i’m not saying that if you don’t like yennefer, you’re racist. i can’t make you like them, and it would be wrong of me to make you. but i am imploring that you examine and evaluate your preferences, and see if you have any unconscious prejudices and biases that you might not have noticed before, and become aware of them and how your prejudices might affect the way you treat others, the way you engage with fandom content.

then maybe - maybe, poc like me won’t feel so unwelcome in fandom. we all recognise that representation is important, and the fact that characters of colour are so often pushed aside in fandom tells us that you want to push people like us aside. it tells us that, because of your internal biases, you prefer white men over us, and for me? it makes me feel unwelcome, sometimes, the way i see characters like yennefer and triss and fringilla ignored or dismissed in favour of geralt and jaskier and the wolves.

and i get that people have preferences! i too enjoy writing and reading about geralt and jaskier. but sometimes i bring up yennefer or triss or fringilla and i simply get talked over - this really doesn’t make me feel welcome, and though i can’t speak for every poc in this fandom, i can imagine that at least a few of us feel the same way. 

geraskier is still one of my favourite ships, but i’ve noticed that i tend to gravitate towards white mlm ships, and i wonder - what does that say about me and my internalised prejudices? what can i do to improve and evaluate myself?

not liking yennefer or other characters of colour doesn’t automatically make you racist. you don’t have to like them in order to not be racist. i’m merely asking that you be conscientious of your preferences, and be mindful of how you engage with fandom especially regarding characters of colour. 

consider whether you hold characters of colour to a different standard than a white character - if a character of colour were white, would you dismiss them in the same way? would you demonise them for their flaws? 

consider how you write and interpret characters of colour. do you fall into harmful stereotypes? do you use characters of colour to uplift white characters, and do characters of colour only have significance in relation to white characters?

consider how you treat fans of colour. do you listen to us when we express our concerns, or do you talk over us and try to speak for us, rather than amplifying our voices? consider your white privilege, because there are parts of fandom that impact on real life. 

there is so much more i want to talk about, so much more i could talk about in this post (going into women of colour specifically), but the post would become far, far too long, and i’ve answered quite a few asks regarding this issue, so do check them out if you’re interested in knowing more about my take on different issues regarding fandom racism. 

(and here’s an ask where i link several posts about fandom racism in the witcher fandom, and in fandom in general)

feel free to send me asks or dm me about this! this is just my take on things and i’m speaking from my limited experience, so i might not be the best equipped to talk about this. i’m open to discussion, i’m still learning and developing my views on this, so please do talk to me if you find an issue with what i’m talking about or want clarification on anything<3

[jaskierswolf]

The Love We Have

Part 2/5 - AO3 - Previous - next

Summary: Kaer Morhen has an old tradition in order to keep the witchers safe after the siege. Only witchers and their partners are allowed in the keep but Geralt is tired of parting with Jaskier over the winter so decides to invite him to Kaer Morhen… only he forgets to mention one tiny little detail.

Ship: Geraskier

Rating: T

Warnings: None?? Maybe… I’ll add them later if I remember any.

_______

They’d reached Kaer Morhen by dinner. The keep was… not as impressive as Jaskier had imagined. Deep down he’d known that the home of the wolf witchers had been severely damaged long before Jaskier had taken his first breath, but in his head he’d always imagined a beautiful awe inspiring castle that rose from the mountains and dominated the horizon.

It was barely more than a ruin.

A very pretty ruin, one that Jaskier would normally find absolutely fascinating from an academic perspective, but… he was supposed to be living here during the harsh cold winter.

Perhaps this really had been a bad idea.

He swallowed, debating hiding behind Geralt as they entered the keep, but there was a reason that he’d become a bard instead of inheriting his noble title. If there was one thing Jaskier could do, it was perform. He took a deep breath and plastered a blinding smile onto his face. It was time to act. He laced his fingers with Geralt’s and flashed his witcher a wink before pulling him through the big heavy wooden gates. Another silver-haired witcher grunted as Jaskier flew past him.

“We made it!” he cried with false cheer, spinning both him and Geralt round in a circle. The witcher thankfully loosened his grip on Roach’s reins and she trotted off towards the stable. “I can’t believe we finally made it, oh darling it’s beautiful.”

Geralt’s flushed, a pretty pink that was stark against his pale skin. “Jask,” he groaned but let himself be pulled around, much to Jaskier’s delight.

The other witcher cleared his throat and Jaskier ground to halt, wrapping his arms around Geralt’s waist and pressing his face into his chest with a giggle. “My deepest apologies!” he exclaimed, pulling away from Geralt but keeping an iron tight grip on Geralt’s hand as he bowed deeply. “I am Jaskier, Geralt’s partner.”

He gave the witcher a charming smile and winked as he extended his hand. “It’s good to meet you.”

“Jaskier,” Geralt growled, as the other witcher stoically ignored his greeting. “Stop flirting.”

Jaskier pouted, but sighed and curled back up into Geralt’s side, taking advantage of the heat. If he didn’t know better, he would have said that Geralt had been blessed by fire nymphs. It would explain the smokey musk that followed Geralt everywhere, even when they hadn’t been near a campfire in days.

“Geralt, what is this?” the other witcher grumbled, his arms crossed in front of his chest, his face clear in its stony disapproval.

“Jaskier, my bard, partner,” Geralt muttered. “He’s staying with us this winter. Jaskier, this is Vesemir.”

“Hi,” Jaskier said with an awkward wave.

“Take him to your room and then come down to the library.”

Vesemir walked away before either of them could argue. Jaskier let out a low whistle. “Well, shit. That didn’t go so well.”

“He’s just protective,” Geralt insisted, squeezing Jaskier’s hand.

Jaskier looked down at their linked fingers, surprised that they were still together. As far as Jaskier could tell, Vesemir was the only witcher at the keep, and thus the only one they had to convince for now. There was no need for Geralt to keep hold of his hand… and yet, here they were.

“I just want them to like me,” Jaskier sighed.

“They will.”

Jaskier scoffed. “Darling,” the pet name rolling off his tongue without thought, “It took you years to warm up to me.”

“That’s not true,” Geralt grumbled.

Jaskier rolled his eyes. “Yes, it is!” he said as he poked Geralt in the chest.

Geralt hummed and stalked away, pulling Jaskier with him as if he’d completely forgotten they were even holding hands. Jaskier yelped and tripped over his own feet, gripping onto Geralt’s arm to steady himself. It was going to be an interesting winter indeed.

_____________

Geralt’s room was very lovely. He had a large double bed pressed up to the one wall. It was covered in furs of varying types, mostly wolf fur by the feel of it. There was also a large heavy rug in front of the fireplace that was blazing. As a result, the room was actually warm, almost too warm after the numbing cold of the mountain. There was a warm scent of lavender in the room that Jaskier hadn’t expected. It was a scent he enjoyed himself and he frequently chose perfumes and oils that were lavender based if the coin allowed. He found a small incense on the windowsill, the source of the smell. He inhaled deeply and smiled. Whilst Geralt was away he could imagine that the witcher had chosen this particular scent to keep Jaskier with him over their months, sometimes even years, apart.

It was nonsense, nothing but a dream, but it warmed Jaskier’s heart nonetheless. He flopped down onto the bed, exhausted in both mind and body. It was larger than the ones they’d had to share at the inns on the road. He was strangely grateful for that. It meant he’d be able to put at least some distance between him and Geralt. He would need that if he were to survive the winter. He rolled onto his front and pulled his lute case from off the floor. Once his precious instrument was safely unpacked and in his hands, he rolled back, staring up at the ceiling as he plucked tunelessly at the strings.

The cold had ruined the tuning just like he’d suspected it would. It was hard enough to keep the damned instrument in tune without the sudden changes in temperature, but at least it gave him something to focus on. He closed his eyes and fiddled with the pegs one by one, plucking at the strings with possibly more force than necessary, until his darling instrument was once again the envy of all the Continent.

He sighed dramatically and began to pull a heart wrenching melody from his baby. It had no words yet, but the message was clear to even an untrained ear. It was melancholic, full of longing, heartache… and lust.

He hadn’t even noticed he was crying until a sob tore from his throat. He cradled his lute to his chest and let the tears flood down his cheeks. He wasn’t even entirely sure why he was crying. Perhaps the whole journey up the mountain had just been a bit much for him. Physically he was completely exhausted. He wasn’t sure his toes would ever recover from the cold and even though they’d taken it slowly, the mountain path was called The Killer for a reason. It would have been hard enough even without the emotional toil that had accompanied it.

The hand on his shoulder startled him out of his thoughts. He gasped and shuffled until his back hit the headboard. It took him a moment to notice the soft yellow eyes looking down at him.

“Ah, Geralt,” he greeted with as much cheer in his voice as he could muster.

“You’re crying,” Geralt whispered, behaving uncharacteristically soft for the witcher. Jaskier bit back a groan of confusion at the concern lying in those familiar amber eyes. His heart was too fragile right now for this emotional whiplash and Geralt’s odd behaviour was opposite of what he needed at the moment.

“Just tired,” he muttered, wiping the tears from his face.

Geralt carefully took the lute from his hands and returned it to its case. Jaskier felt an urge to hug Geralt and never let go. No one had even treated Jaskier or his belongings with such tenderness. Gods, he was a mess. He was almost crying again because Geralt had touched his lute and didn’t break it.

“You’ll feel better after some food and then we can come back upstairs. Vesemir won’t be expecting our company this evening. We won’t have to pretend.”

Jaskier chewed his bottom lip to stop himself from blurting out that it wouldn’t be a pretence. That would be far too dramatic even for his tastes. Instead he nodded and let Geralt pull him from the bed. Of course, being the disaster that he was, he tripped and practically fell into the witcher’s arms. Geralt caught him but Jaskier hadn’t expected to be so close to the witcher. It felt like all the air had been sucked from the room as he glanced up at Geralt. Well… more across. Geralt really wasn’t that much taller than him despite his fearsome appearance.

They were close.

Too close.

Jaskier could feel the tickle of Geralt’s breath on his lips, that smokey musk mixed with leather and oil washing over him. He licked his lips, speechless for possibly only the fifth time in his entire life. For a moment he thought he saw Geralt’s eyes flicker down to his lips, but that couldn’t be right. That would just be an illusion, wishful thinking. He cleared his throat and patted Geralt on the shoulder.

“Alrighty! Thank you, Geralt,” he stammered and pushed away.

Gods, when had things become so difficult. They’d been friends for years and Jaskier had never been afraid of physical contact with Geralt before. Why couldn’t he just relax, be himself? He was going to ruin everything. Vesemir would never believe their performance if he kept acting like a scared rat, and Geralt would likely start becoming suspicious if he didn’t get a grip soon.

“I’m sorry.”

Jaskier’s eyes flashed up in surprise. Of all the reactions he’d expected from Geralt, an apology hadn’t been on the list. “I’m sorry, what?”

“You’re scared of me.”

Jaskier gaped, opening his mouth and closing it several times before letting out a long sigh. “No, I’m not.”

Geralt snorted. “I can smell it, Jaskier. There’s no point in lying to me.”

Jaskier swallowed. “And what else can your witcher senses pick up?” he asked. Okay, so maybe he was a little afraid, but not for the reasons that Geralt would think. If Geralt could smell fear, then it was only natural that he could smell other emotions, love for one, lust for another. Oh gods, how many times had Jaskier come back to camp after a moment alone to himself? He’d never even considered that Geralt could smell it on him.

“On you?”

“Yes.”

“Now?”

“Not necessarily.”

“Hmm.”

Jaskier would praise all the gods if he never had to hear that again. For once, he would just like Geralt to use his damn words! He was tired of trying to translate all the bloody grunts. Whilst he was unusually proficient in it, he was also a troubadour, a poet, a wordsmith. He took a deep breath, ready to give Geralt a piece of his mind when Geralt cut him off, pressing his palm to Jaskier’s lips. He huffed and glared at the witcher.

“Let me think, Jaskier,” Geralt said softly. Jaskier rolled his eyes and did the only rational thing he could think of. He licked Geralt. The witcher snarled and pulled his hand away. “Urgh!”

Jaskier cackled and put his hands on his hips. “Serves you right, darling.”

Geralt growled and shoved Jaskier lightly in the chest so he fell back onto the bed. “You stink of many things, bard.”

“Oh?”

“Lust mostly, bloody hell I’ve never known anyone to reek of arousal every fucking hour of the day,” Geralt grumbled but there was a fondness in his voice. Jaskier felt himself blush at the witcher’s words. He didn’t mention that his arousal around Geralt didn’t necessarily equate to feeling it all the time. That was a fun little fact for another time, possibly never. One to write into his songs perhaps. “and then something… sweeter.”

“Sweeter?” Jaskier asked, his heart beating faster than any percussion at Oxenfurt. There was still time to run right… maybe the trek down the mountain wouldn’t be as hard as the journey up.

“Not sure what it is,” Geralt admitted and Jaskier let out a sigh of relief.

Oh.

Jaskier’s relief didn’t last long at all. Geralt didn’t know what it was… because he’d never experienced it. Didn’t have the knowledge to put a name to it. He knew fear, and lust… probably anger too.

But he didn’t know love.

Jaskier wanted to kiss him. He wanted to worship him. He wanted Geralt to know how much he was loved, adored, but he was a coward; a fucking coward.

“Ah, right, well… I have no idea what that could be. New perfume perhaps?”

“Hmm,” Geralt answered, not sounding very convinced and Jaskier didn’t blame him.

“Shall we go?” Jaskier asked quickly, changing the subject before Geralt could press. “I am starving!”

Geralt led him through the stone corridors of Kaer Morhen, occasionally pointing out rooms that Jaskier might need to be able to find. He learnt that they were expecting two more witchers for the winter; Geralt’s family, Eskel and Lambert. He’d heard rumours that Lambert had made a friend on the road but, like Jaskier, he wouldn’t be allowed to winter with them unless they were in a relationship.

Jaskier scoffed haughtily. “You do realise that that is a stupid rule, right?”

“It protects us.”

“And you need protection from your friends? Is romance really that much stronger than friendship?” Jaskier muttered. It was bullshit, but he was a little smug that Geralt was prepared to break the rules for him.

Their friendship meant more to the witcher than he’d realised.

“Geralt, bard,” Vesemir greeted with a grunt, gesturing to the bowls of stew that didn’t look too dissimilar to the bowls of food that Geralt pulled together on the road. Jaskier was grateful for his years of acting training at Oxenfurt, because otherwise he would have pulled a terrible face that would have only offended Geralt’s father figure.

Instead, he swiped up his spoon with a cheerful smile and slid into the bench. Geralt silently moved to sit next to him and Jaskier, taking advantage of their situation, pressed a little closer than he would normally dare. Their thighs touched under the table and Jaskier felt a blush creep up on his face. He hooked his foot around Geralt’s, ignoring the startled look he received.

“Good evening,” Jaskier greeted with faux cheer “Oh this. This smells delicious, I can certainly see where Geralt’s gets his culinary skills from.”

Geralt almost choked on his food. Whilst Jaskier’s words sounded like a compliment, they both knew how much Jaskier had complained about Geralt’s cooking over the years. In fact, Jaskier had taken to bringing his own seasoning and herbs on their travels. Anything to save him from the bland never-ending stews of the road.

Vesemir smirked and raised an eyebrow. “Geralt has the culinary skills of a queen, bard.”

Jaskier flushed; rumbled. “Ah well, it does look rather similar.”

“Don’t judge a book by its cover.”

Jaskier dropped his head, feeling sufficiently shamed. Only he would accidentally insult their hosts on the first days whilst trying to make a quick-witted joke at Geralt’s expense.

“Sorry,” he mumbled and ate a spoonful of his soup. The flavours exploded in his mouth and he moaned around his spoon. “Oh, dearest Melitele, this is good! My sincerest apologies, Vesemir. Lesson learnt.”

“Hmm.”

Jaskier pressed his lips together to stop himself from laughing. Whilst their cooking skills were vastly different, Geralt and Vesemir’s conversational skills were apparently not so far apart.

“Oh, you have got to tell me how you made this, it’s bloody delicious! Not even the finest banquets in all the Continent can hold a candle to—”

“That’s enough now, bard,” Vesemir growled but there was mirth in his eyes.

Jaskier nodded and went back to his soup. Dinner was a quiet affair. Vesemir asked Geralt a few questions about life on the path, mostly professional curiosity from one witcher to another. Geralt’s answers were monosyllabic and boring, hardly a story to tell. Jaskier vowed to retell their adventures to the Kaer Morhen witchers over the winter. He would do them justice, and contrary to what Geralt thinks of his ballads, he would even tell the truth. They only needed a minor embellishment here and there. The winter would hopefully give him plenty of time to work on a new set. The time he’d normally spend teaching could be spent creating masterpieces, the likes of which the Continent had never seen before.

“Well, this has been very lovely, I thank you once again, my dear Vesemir, for the exquisite dining, but it’s been a long day and we really should be getting to sleep,” Jaskier announced with a flourish, giving Geralt a wink.

“Just remember, bard, that witchers have better hearing than you can even imagine,” Vesemir said with possibly the best poker face that Jaskier had ever seen. It was only the slight twinkle in his ancient eyes that gave away the joke.

Jaskier laughed and pressed his lips to Geralt’s cheek. “We’ll be sure to remember that, thank you.”

_________________

By the time they got back up to Geralt’s—no, their room—Jaskier was panicking. It had been an innocent joke on Vesemir’s part, a warning that privacy was not something they could expect. It was possibly even a plea to keep any sexual activities as quiet as possible and at reasonable hours of the day.

But…

Jaskier was panicking.

“Geralt?” he asked as he paced around the room.

Geralt was busy stripping off and getting ready for bed. Normally Jaskier would try to peek little glances, but he was too anxious. He didn’t have the luxury of ogling Geralt at that moment. They had a problem.

“Hmm?”

“Geralt, we have a problem.”

Geralt snorted. “We always have a problem, Jaskier, and normally you’re the one causing it.”

Jaskier gaped, his hands flying to his hips in a display of outrage. “Geralt! That is just rude! Mister-Let’s-Call-The-Law-of-Surprise-Even-After-We’ve-Just-Seen-How-Bad-It-Can-Be. You are rude and grumpy, and I don’t know why I’m friends with you.”

Geralt turned, giving Jaskier a rather lovely view of his bare torso, and raised an eyebrow. “Wouldn’t have been there at all if you could keep your dick in your pants.”

“Oh ho ho! No, no, no. You are not blaming that one on me.”

Geralt rolled his eyes. “Focus, Jask.”

Focus…

“Oh bollocks, yes, yes. Focus! Where was I?”

“You have a problem?” Geralt reminded him gently.

“We have a problem, darling. Witcher hearing,” he announced, his arms wide.

Geralt just stared at him blankly.

“They’ll know if we don’t… you know?” Jaskier hissed, but Vesemir’s words still rang in his head.

“So?”

“Oh come on, Geralt. That’s just not realistic! I assume you have at least mentioned me in passing over the years and the umm… well the trouble my umm… my habits can cause.”

“Fuck.”

“Precisely!”

[abluescarfonwaston]

Hi! So, um,, I know this isn't something you should ask a writer so please feel free to ignore this. I was wondering,, , your "the white wolves" story has brought me so much joy and I am grateful that you wrote it! I was just wondering, if you're not going to finish it (this isn't meant to pressure you. If you don't want to finish it that is 100% fine and your choice and I'm thankful for the five chapters you gave us!!!) so, anyway, I was wondering what the conclusion was going to be? If you're comfortable answering that. If not, that's absolutely fine of course and I'm sorry for asking.

Thank you so much for your lovely stories and I hope you're having a wonderful day!

Okay first off, we're totally cool don't even worry about it. I am always touched people still care about and think about an unfinished piece from like 10 months ago. And now that I have seen that it's almost been a year I feel it is important to point out that while this fic has clearly been physically abandoned, it has not been emotionally. Or Else I would not have spent the last hour pacing back and forth angrily lamenting that I do not have more hands. I do not want to provide you with an unsatisfactory summary in an undercut about how the story was going to unfold. It is not that I mind sharing these details - I have done so to others who have asked. It's just that admitting something I still love so dearly may never get done hurts.

Hopefully one day I will find that voice again.

Spoilers for a fic that will (probably) never get finished under the cut. It is 2.6k and includes most of the final section.

The next sequence in the story is them all taking a nap on the side of the road. Jaskier gets up and calls Yennifer for help. Do you know that part in the books where Yennifer saves Dandelion and he doesn't know why? Because I owed you one. You kept him from being alone. I think about that alot. I think that's why she comes. Not then. She meets them at the keep in a few days time. She is too tired to arrive before then.

There is a scene of the four of them in an inn. Of Ciri, afraid to sleep least she destroy the inn like she destroyed that forested grove. We have a moment when he looks at candle on the inn nightstand and remembers a inn fire that almost killed him and how he hadn't wanted to sleep in an inn ever again. (I foreshadowed it. It's allowed. I once read that Regis saved Dandelion from an inn fire. I thought it was canon. I know its not. I think. I only ever read the short stories. They sit on my shelf. One day I'll read them.) He understands. Still he tucks her in and tells her it will be alright. That is the empty words of adults who lie to children that they think do not know better. No. It is the empty words of a bard whose job is to write lullabies that get children to bed on time. Besides it will be fine. Even if things go bad, we will be with you the entire time.

These are the two scenes I largely blame for the fact I stopped writing this fic. I got stuck on Yennifer's conversation and then wasn't sure how to get that inn scene to actually play out. Anyway. Back to the part you were actually asking about. What's the deal with the wolves? Both of them.

They arrive at the keep. They are greeted and loved and yeered at and pestered. Jaskier is nervous and concerned as he eyes the silver in their blades. It is strange they believe the doppler. But he was a very good Doppler. He digs his fingers into white fur. Remember you promised. You promised you were him. Don't let it be a lie.

And oh I have lost the voice but they are in the great hall with Vesemir and Eskel and Lambert and Geralt and Geralt and Yennifer. She peers into his eyes and does not reveal him. Silver medallions brush against skin and he does not flinch or melt. Geralt of Rivia is Geralt of Rivia. Of this there is no doubt.

The conversation turns to Ciri and Jaskier quietly slips out. It is snowing, just a few flurries on the still air. The wolf flows him to the room they set their bags in. Geralt's room.

This was not how it was meant to go. This is not how it was meant to go. Yennifer was supposed to look at the doppler and then at him and go what the hell and they would slip away and break the curse on the wolf - on Geralt. And they would quietly change hands. The Doppler into the wolf. The wolf into Geralt. Ciri would not know of the quiet deception they had pulled. The magicians trick with revolving mirrors.

Because clearly the doppler loved them. Because clearly the doppler had chosen them. Do you ever think about how in the short story Geralt is ready to kill the doppler that wears his face and it knows this because it is also him so it turns into Dandelion. Because he Knows Geralt would never hurt Dandelion? It's falling in with a lie. It is so easy to in love with a lie. Jaskier knows this.

It was supposed to be like this. Laying in a bed in the Keep with a white wolf next to him. Playing ballads for Geralt and Yennifer and Ciri and not hurting. Because he'd lay next to the wolf at night and bury his face in its fur. And in the spring they would run off to the coast together. You can wear a different face, whatever one you'd like, and will prove to you again and again that I still love you.

I am good at loving people. You know this about me. I might not be able to love you first. That might be why you love me. Because I loved Geralt of Rivia first. So completely that whatever motive you had you abandoned for the sake of it. For the taste of it. I know what it is like to want so desperately to be loved. Wearing different faces and personalities in the chance that someone might.

I know that very well.

But unlike you I'm always still just Jaskier.

The wolf slips in the door behind him.

Jaskier rounds on him. 'What the actual fuck? What the fuck are you? You Promised me. You Promised me you were him." The medallion bounces off his chest and he hates it. Rips it from his neck and brandishes it like a weapon. "I kept this for you! I thought you were him! You promised me you were him! What are you?! I told you I would help you even if you weren't him! Why?!"

The circle of the medallion cuts into his hand.

"Is this funny to you? Bringing me all the way up here and making me look a fool?! Making me watch Geralt picker her Again? Is this funny to you? You and this sadistic game?!"

And he throws the medallion. It hits the wolf dead on. Hit's his bowed forehead. Right between the eyes. Just in front of his flattened ears.

He has always been a good shot.

It is snowing outside. Just a few more flurries. The winter stretches out, immeasurably long in front of him.

He knows who Geralt chooses. That those 'I love you's are lies. No. Not lies. Geralt did not mean to lie. Not intentional. But it was so easy when your heart is broken to bury yourself in someone that does. Love you. Drowning men love life boats but they'd much rather be on the ship that cast them out.

He knows. It exactly what he was doing too.

I love you doppler. I could love you too.

The winter stretches immeasurably long in front of him.

"I can't do this." There is a bag in his hand. A case. "I can't do this."

There is a whine but he does not hear it as he rushes out the door. He can't do this. Down the stone hall. Wind whips through a hairline fracture in the Keeps walls and cuts his cheeks red where they are wet. He can't do this. Out the doors. Through the large wooden gates. He can't do this.

The winter stretches immeasurably long in front of him.

In the great hall a sickening feeling curdles in Geralt's gut. Honestly its seeing Yennifer again. This is all so wildly out of hand. Even if he knows they need her. That Ciri needs her.

"It's startin' to snow. Your idiot better come back soon."

"What?" He turned to Lambert who had curled up in a mountain of blankets in the window nearest the fire.

"Said it's starting to snow, dumbass."

"No the other part."

"Peacock left a while ago. Think he had the right idea. If I'd know she was coming I'd have stayed down south."

"What?" Snow was coming down hard. Big wet flakes. Could hardly see the keep walls through them. "Why didn't you say so sooner?!"

He shrugged. "His dog went after him."

His gut does a funny thing then. It eases in relief before his brain catches up and yanks tight in terror.

The wolf went after Jaskier.

Jaskier is alone.

With the wolf.

In a snow storm.

Jaskier is is alone in a snow storm. He walks down the mountain alone. As he knew he would. Why did he think it would be any different this time? Why does he never learn? He is a fool.

The wind picks up. The snow buries the path. He huddles in a protected alcove and wishes he'd been thinking clearly enough to steal one of Geralt's cloaks. Just to be petty.

He is probably going to freeze on this mountain. Walking down it alone. He might die. But even if he doesn't something will have died. Something in his chest that he cradled like wounded bird.

How many times must you touch fire, how many times must you be burned before you learn? How many times Jaskier? How many times?

He pulled his doublet tighter around him.

Just the one more time it seemed. Just once more.

Barking. Just one voice barking. Barking into the snow and wind in the distance.

Are you looking for your pack? Did you get lost? Separated? I hope they find you. I hope they answer you. I wish I had a pack to call out to.

The snow drifts down in heavy blankets and there is nothing to do but sleep. All he wants to do is sleep.

There is warmth in his dreams. Heavy and warm and soft and reeking of wet dog and something deeper. Something less domesticated and tame.

"You found him?"

Geralt's voice. Deep and soft. Reaches him. Buried in the snow. Cruel and kind in equal measure. To make him hear that voice before he, probably, dies.

"... Thank you."

There is a gasp. He recognizes it. That shocked little inhale of Geralt's.

"I think... That druid overpaid."

He wakes up to a stone ceiling. To thick and heavy furs covering him. to a wolf pressed into his side. To a man known as the white wolf pressed into the other.

Words will find him soon. But for now they are held back by a dam of confusion and exhaustion.

Geralt reaches an arm over him and scratches at the wolf's forehead. "Hm." Got it. The hum says. The same one he uses when Jaskier reminds him to pick something up in town. Hm. Got it.

The dam breaks.

"Oh so you're just okay with each other now? Everything is hunky dory? Jaskier goes out into a snow storm and you drag him - Unwillingly mind you - back here and now you're best fucking friends?! Well it's not all A-O-Kay over here so perhaps you might let me up so I can demand Yennifer do me the solid of getting me out of this godforsaken keep?" He wiggled under the mountain of blankets that held him captive.

"Wha-" Geralt's hand pressed down on his chest. Preventing escape.

"Or you know just go back to the love of your life, take your one goddamn blessing and leave me be!"

"Jask-"

"Oh don't give me that- you're gonna run right off after Yennifer and we both know it and you," Glared. Bared his teeth at the wolf. "Are a lying manipulative bastard and I hope she turns you into a gnat or a pigeon or - or something!"

"Jaskier!"

His jaw clicked closed. He did not soften his gaze.

"We- He - it's not. He didn't lie."

He scowled harder at Geralt.

"You remember that druid Ciri told you I helped?"

"... Vaguely."

A woman and woman who was not her wife. But was. In his story, in his song, he would tell it as if she was.

You saved my heart, I don't know what I'd have done if she. She. Witcher how can I ever repay you?

What food do you have on you?

Uh.

Fine. We don't have time. Don't tell them which way have gone.

No that's not- perhaps the law of su-

No. No. Lie. That will be enough.

It's not!

"He," Nodded to the wolf. "Was how she decided to pay."

He studied Geralt. Then the wolf. Their matching golden eyes.

"What the fuck are you talking about?"

Geralt grimaced. Hair falling over his face. "He's a familiar. She made him for me. Of me."

He studied the wolf again, distrustingly. "How does that work?"

Shrugged a shoulder. "You'd have to ask Yen."

"Don't care that much." He tried to wave his hand and the idea off but couldn't get it free from the covers. "Shouldn't you have known then? If he's made of you?"

"We weren't... connected. You have to. Touch."

"Oh and she thought you'd just go out of your way to touch a big white wolf? Honestly what was the plan there? You'd have just killed the damn thing."

"Mhmm."

"Seriously what kind of mad man goes out and pets a two hundred pound wolf? Could have at least tied a note to its neck for explanation before setting it loose on the countryside, wandering around looking for you."

"It wasn't..." He hummed his prodding question. "Looking for me. That's not what it was supposed to do."

"And pray tell what was it supposed to do?"

Geralt was quiet. The charged quiet that said he knew the answer but didn't want to tell him.

Eventually. With a fair bit of glaring and wiggling on his part, he answered.

"She was repaying the favor."

"Oh and what's that supposed to mean?! What you saved her partner and she sent the wolf to go out and save yours?" He scoffed. "What did she magic you 'a white wolf to protect your heart when you could not?' as you did for her? Is that it? Absolutely absurd, I wouldn't write that drivel."

Neither Geralt met his eye.

"Geralt...?"

"That's..." He ducked his head. "Hm."

Right.

"But then why-"

A wolf appears in the darkness. All white fur and golden eyes. Protects him from the bandits. Brings him a rabbit when his stomach growls.

I love you Jaskier. I'm sorry it took me so long to realize.

They lay on the bedroll and Geralt kisses him like a thousand drunken kisses. Like a thousand sober ones. And the wolf follows after Ciri and comforts her when they cannot.

The wolf seeks him out in that ruined clearing while Geralt cradles Ciri. While Geralt debates with Yennifer and Vesemir over Ciri's fate. Her training.

I love you Jaskier.

Protect his heart, white wolf, when he cannot.

"Oh."

He let his head fall to the side. Watched Geralt watch him with those golden eyes he had memorized decades ago. Listened to the sound of his breathing that was more familiar than his own.

"Tell me again."

Geralt cocked his head a fraction. Brow furrowed in confusion.

"Tell me again, what I did not believe. If it is true. Tell me again. Geralt of Rivia."

"Tell you...?"

"I love you, Geralt. Despite all sense and reason. Do not lie to me. Do not pretend if I am fated to walk down that mountain alone again. Do not lie to me."

His eyes widened. He pushed himself up and over him. Caged him in his muscular, scarred arms. Shoved the wolf aside.

It grumbled. Huffed. Walked out of the room. Towards Ciri. Towards his heart.

"Jaskier. I love you." He said again.

And this time. This time he believed him.

"Then, You absolute fool and dullard." With only Geralt to hold him down he worked his arms free. Held Geralt's head in his hands. Traced the stubble of his jaw that he could, if he needed to, shave blind. From memory alone. "Kiss me. I have waited long enough."

Geralt leaned down and did.

He remembered the barking of a single wolf. It's howls into the storm. Searching for its pack.

I hope your pack finds you. He wished to its unseen form.

Mine did.

[gekkoinapeartree]

Thank you @otherworldsivelivedin and @you-remind-me-of-the-babe Thanks for the tag!! It's nice to be included in this and get to know more people in the fandom!! :)

Here's mine!!

My three ships: I only really engage in SnowBaz fandom, so my other two picks were just kinda like things I think are cute/ would be into if I wasn't already obsessed.

Snowbaz - I mean, I'm hooked. There's just so much to take from the books and so many options to explore with these two. I've read so many AU's about these two that I believe they could live in any story you want. Or any song. OR movie. Or comic. They love each other so much too, but also there's such a range to their relationship that you can spend eons exploring the depths of their connection. So I think I like that. And the fact that they are so intertwined. I'm obsessed.

Monty and Percy- I love these two. Almost as much as SnowBaz. If I hadn't gotten into the SnowBaz fandom, Monty and Percy are where I would be putting all my time. They're the perfect combo of sweet and hilarious and they have so much adventure!! Can't get enough of these boys.

Geralt/Jaskier- so i keep seeing stuff pop up in my feed about these too, and honestly, I'm here for it. I think they would make a wonderful angry, loud and musical family someday. One can dream at least.

My first ship: i think consciously Marceline and Bubblegum from Adventure Time. I probably had others, but like I don't remember any of that nonsense. But Marcy and Bubblegum are the Simon and Baz of the Candy Kingdom in my opinion. And they deserve to be together. They so perfect together.

My last movie: Encanto ( for the second time) it's so good!! I will say though we were trying to get the toddler to watch Coco or How to train your dragon, but both were "terrifying" (her words not mine)

I'm currently reading:

We Contain Multitudes by Sara Hestra - I can't recommend this one enough. It's so sweet and so heartbreaking. I love the concept and if you listen to the audiobook like I am doing, it adds extra depth I think. But ya. I'm almost done, but not sure what to listen to next. I have a bunch of comics/graphic novels to read. looking forward to them, but audiobooks are just easier for me right now.

I'm currently watching: the Witcher

I'm currently consuming: Seaside Cider- Cherry Lane

I'm currently craving: Filhos ( Portuguese doughnuts) - made by mum. I had one the other night, and I just started thinking about it because of this question.

My favorite color: Blue! the deepest blue in the sky when it's sunny. And hot florescent pink ( like in riso prints... also that dark royal blue colour for riso)

The last song I listened to:

Girls- Girl in Red

Sweet, savory, or spicy: sweet- I am a notorious sweet fiend and it's a problem.

I'm working on: trying to finish my EGF fic Magically Required. I just posted Chapter 5 last night, Chapter 6 is written and waiting to be beta'd. I will say, for the next thing I write definitely going to try and have patience to get it beta'd first- i did i think the first chapters, but everything else has been ... raw? other that me rereading it a million times. Editing is part of me writing. I write until i get stuck then go back and edit until I can think of something new. but yes. Hopefully you all are enjoying it. I know I've been drawing it out ( bit nervous about the smut to come so ... avoidance )

If you've already been tagged sorry! But folks! tell me about yourselves

@stillmadaboutpetra @simonscone @sillyunicorn @confused-bi-queer @bazzybelle @palimpsessed @moodandmist

[aerialflight]

Fic Rec (where i'm into too many fandoms rn and ships which is weird of me)

[Bleach] (been a while amiright?)

Oxytocin by Asuka Kureru (Askerian)

Ship: Grimmjow/Ichigo/Orihime

Complete trust and physical affection are great!

They're a bit less great when they were caused by weird hollow drugs.

They're even less great when the guy who was drugged up into loving the hell out of you is the same guy who tried to murder you a couple times a couple years ago.

(listen i just stumbled upon this and I have no regrets. i don't usually go for ships, let alone poly, but like, GOD, i love how everyone is characterized here, especially orihime and i just want to SCREAM OK? OK. the vibe i get from this fic reminds me of @murderlight (big fan) and if that doesn't say anything, i don't know what will.)

-

[Gintama] (i don't know how i spiralled into this fandom either, been literal years since i've even thought about this fandom, i have no regrets)

Grab Your Dreams With Your Fists While You Can Still Remember It by yatagarasu (leelhiette)

Ship: Hijikata Toshirou/Sakata Gintoki

Toshirou should learn to look both ways before crossing the road.

(Or he learns more about the people around him and about himself.)

(amnesia fic, and i know it's a common trope but they did it BEAUTIFULLY here. love this so much. and it's post-canon.)

I feel you by arashian155 for machinecuisine

Ship: Hijikata Toshirou/Sakata Gintoki

“I’m so done with this,” Gintoki muttered angrily. Zura sighed while Tatsuma laughed loudly. “Your soulmate’s getting roughed up again?” Gintoki groaned. “Worst timing ever! There was this one Amanto swinging his gigantic sword at me and I was just about to dodge it when, out of fucking nowhere, I feel something stabbing my shoulder! It threw me off and if it weren’t for that, I would have been perfectly healthy right now instead of getting nursed for this stupid wound!” he pointed at the ugly slash across his torso. “Fuck soulmates!”

A story about Sakata Gintoki's journey into embracing his soulbond, falling in love, and learning the cons of selflessness.

(THE SLOW BUILD-UP OF THEIR RELATIONSHIP AND THE PLOT FOLLOWS CANON AND I CAN'T STOP TALKING ABOUT THIS STUPID FIC I'M SO STUPID FOR THIS STUPID SHIP FEIWNFOPA)

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[One Piece] (of course)

Undone by pkmntrainer_alex

After the entire family almost dies at WCI, Judge Vinsmoke orders the removal of his sons' emotional modifications in a bid to save his own skin in future endeavors. He doesn't stop to consider the ramifications of his 21-year-old sons finally, suddenly, being able to feel their human emotions in full - and their newfound ability to judge both themselves and him by their past actions.

(the vinsmoke family dynamics and the brothers trying to deal with 21 years of pent up emotions? they're trying?? so freaking hard to be functional people and they realize just how freaking amazing sanji is and that HE wasn't the failure in this family??? god, i've reread this fic so many times like an addict please read and suffer the feels with me. this is the one fic where i'm trying to patiently wait for an update. i'm just happy that this exists.)

Song of the Swords by authenticaussie

Wado is tiny when she first appears before him; her tears are as silver as her hair and the moonlight, and they gleam from within with golden fire as they pour down her cheeks.

Zoro’s heart fairly stops in his chest for a very, very long moment.

(personified swords au! introspective and fascinating and a character study of zoro and his relationship with his swords! really liked this!)

where the rims have ridges by Civillain

Everything everyone does is in their own self-interest.

"I like your hat," she calls out quietly.

And the change is instantaneous. He stops where he stands, a hand on his head and his knees still bent to take another step, and turns to look over his shoulder.

There's a moment of silence where he says nothing, just peering at her with squinted eyes, before: "Thanks!" he beams.

His smile is wide and unchecked, so wide that it might make his cheeks ache. He doesn't have laugh lines, but the way he smiles makes her imagine that he's spent his whole life grinning like that, warmly and brightly, so sincere and upfront that the breath gets punched right out her lungs.

Sometimes, there are people close to exceptions. But not quite.

20 years apart, and two people that don't make any sense.

(god, such a good outside pov look on luffy! luffy is such an unreadable character lots of times and it's so hard to pin down his characterization but this fic got it so right! made me fall for luffy all over again and realize just how incredible he is, as both a not-hero figure and main character! definitely recommend!)

those things beyond us by Civillain

There's something different about Luffy on nights like this, nights where there's soft rain and half-moons, and when the streets are quiet; no cars or trucks, only midnight joggers or early risers taking walks to the beach.

(Where Luffy and his friends have a relationship Sabo doesn't think he'll ever be able to understand.)

(honestly, i just love all of this author's one piece works. its a modern au where the straw hats are reincarnated and find each other all in sabo's pov. it's beautiful and this is how i would picture how the straw hats would fit in a modern au. nakamaship is the best ship, no questions needed. so so good!)

Magic Paint by 8ball

Luffy sticks his hands out.

“Paint mine!”

Usopp watches the expressions on Sanji’s face. He likes watching the obvious emotions go through him like a slideshow, and it's somehow comforting that he can see the exact moment Sanji decides that going along with Luffy will be the easiest choice. So Usopp waits for Sanji to test his own nails, deem them dry enough, unscrew the tiny brush top again, and then he asks if Sanji will do his, too. And because Sanji already has the brush ready, and they’re both right there anyways, Usopp knows he’s going to get what he wants.

or the au that came from nowhere where Sanji paints his nails and everyone elses and thats really it

(*screams* the pureness, the fluff, the nakamaship!! fneiwoapfe!! the best, sweetest headcanon ever! had the biggest grin on my face the whole time i was reading this! please please read!!!)

-

[Percy Jackson & the Olympians]

Stealing Shells by the Seashore by CaffeinatedFlumadiddle

Ship: Sally Jackson/Posiedon

Sally's eyes flicked between Poseidon and then the sea below. He could feel the understanding click.

"Oh, absolutely not-"

"It isn't that high!"

"Poseidon, I am not jumping off of this cliff! I'm not doing it. I won't, you can't make me, it's very high, I am not going to-"

"If my brother sees you here, he's going to assume that you're carrying my child."

"Ridiculous. I have much higher standards."

"I also have higher standards, but he isn't going to listen to us," Poseidon reasoned. The wind blew a bit harder, and Poseidon felt the sea rise with his anxiety. "I would use my powers to hide you, but he'll sense I've used them. You'll be fine," he tried, and Sally gave something of a skeptical laugh.

"Not happening."

The lightning grew closer. For the love of-

"In that case… I'm sorry," he said. Sally tilted her head suspiciously.

"Why are you-" she began but was cut off by Poseidon shoving her off the cliff's edge. He could hear a scream. It started loud and high before getting smaller and smaller. Finally, a splash followed.

Or

Sally and Poseidon spent one summer together… and most of it was them being on the run for a godly crime they didn't commit.

(THIS is the ONLY backstory i will ever accept regarding this ship for the REST OF MY LIFE. i binged this so freaking fast and i am in love with sally as much as posiedon is. percy jackson got his Everything from his mom you can't change my fucking mind. THIS FIC NEEDS MORE ATTENTION AND KUDOS! READ!!!)

Son of Sea Foam by CaffeinatedFlumadiddle

“She’ll never claim me,” he whispered. Silena shook her head, eyes wild as she looked around for anyone who could be watching.

“My mother doesn’t remember half of her children as it is,” she said with a note of bitterness. “If you do something to impress her, it won’t matter. Return the bolt in her name. She’ll claim you if you act the part. If you stay unclaimed then they'll figure out what you really are," she said, squeezing his hands tightly. Percy's heart sped up.

"I - I don't know the first thing about Aphrodite-"

"My mother was born of sea foam," Silena cut him off. "And if you're really who I think you are... you are the sea. You can pull this off," she said and touched his cheek. "Get the bolt. Survive," she said. Percy swallowed.

"What if I can't act the part?" He asked. Silena's expression went blank for a moment. Slowly, she slipped off her bracelet and placed it in his hands.

"If you're going to be one of us... you better learn."

Or

AU where Percy has to hide the fact he's a Big Three kid otherwise he'll be killed on the spot. Unfortunately for him, unclaimed kids tend to raise the most suspicion... but he might have found a loophole in the form Aphrodite.

(one of my current obsessions rn. my eyes are constantly glued on the screen because i want to devour more of this galaxy brained fic. this author just keeps on giving and i love them for it. also, SILENA IS AMAZING AND SHE'S GETTING THE ATTENTION SHE DESERVES HELL YEAH!)

-

[Haikyuu!!]

He Waits For a Miracle by ich_bin_ein_stern

Ship: Hinata/Kageyama

A minute ago, he was on the ground after he and the others were tackled by their happily weeping senpai.

They had just beat Shiratorizawa.

And now - "Kageyama-kun? Are you paying attention?" - he's trying not to freak out because he's surrounded by distantly familiar faces while wearing a school uniform he hasn't worn in almost a year.

(TIME TRAVEL TIME TRAVEL TIME TRAVEL *screams*)

-

[The Witcher] (seriously, all my rare fandoms somehow popped up this month)

the way fire holds by theundiagnosable

Ship: Geralt/Yennefer/Jaskier

“There’s a song there, somewhere, don’t you think?” Jaskier says. “‘A witcher, a sorcerer, and a human walk into a bar’…”

(ROLE REVERSAL FIC HECK YES!! Witcher!Yennefer, Mage!Jaskier, Human!Geralt is amazing omg. It all works out so damn well and the relationship between yennefer and jaskier makes me want to cry so much. Geralt is at peak himbo greatness and it's fantastic haha! Their dynamics are just *chefs kiss* so damn good.)

The Shape of You by lirulin

Ship: Geralt/Jaskier

Some people say it's old elven magic, a remnant from before the conjunction of the spheres. Other's will say it's the last fading vestiges of chaos as the modern era slowly drives all magic and wonder out of the world. Those people are, naturally, real killjoys whom Jaskier cannot envision loving anything, but that's fine. To each their own.

Soulmate Spiritual Animal AU

(you have no idea how much i laughed when reading this fic. no idea. jaskier makes me want to scream with how much of a himbo he is and geralt, for once, is not the complete idiot between these two though it's a close call, not gonna lie.)

to grow in adversity by Soulykins

Ship: Geralt/Jaskier, Renfri & Jaskier

“For you!” Julian cried, shoving a fistful of weeds in Renfri’s direction, his smile wide and carefree. Renfri carefully took them in her hands that were only shaking a little bit now, smearing red onto green stems and yellow petals.

Julian clambered into the bed beside her and crawled halfway onto her lap. “I got you flowers, ‘cause you’re so pretty like them!”

“These aren’t flowers, they’re weeds.” Renfri told him, rolling her eyes but allowing the contact with ease. Somedays it seemed like Julian was the only person in the entire castle who wasn’t afraid of her.

“They look like flowers.” He said, crinkling his nose.

“They’re dandelions,” Renfri informed her brother with a tiny smile, “They grow everywhere, even places they perhaps shouldn’t. That’s why they’re a weed.”

“Perhaps they’re a little like you,” She teased, “Growing in even the scariest of places with no fear.” Like a monster’s heart, she doesn’t say.

“Like a superpower!” Julian gasped.

Renfri separated one dandelion from the little clutch and reached out to tuck it behind a little ear. “For the stubborn hero, Jaskier.”

(this is THE fic that got me into the witcher fandom and i can't believe i never reced this before. renfri & jaskier's siblingship is so damn good and just, the amount of effort put into their backstory and relationship makes me want to cry sometimes. and yennefer, ohoho, yennefer is at her Best here, i love her in this fic and her relationship with these siblings! geralt both makes me want to punch him and hug him, which is the norm and totally understandable hahaha! seriously, one of the best witcher fics i've ever read, please please read!)

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[Boku no Hero Academia]

Where your love has always been enough (for me) by classicequinox

Ship: Todorki Enji/Todorki Rei

It's a dark coil of anger deep in the pit of his stomach, reminding him that he was the root, the catalyst, the trigger for their family's downward spiral. It did happen - he reminds himself harshly. He can't forget that, even if time has actually reset itself.

Todoroki Enji gets a second chance. It's up to him to see what he can do with it.

(genuinely the most believable enji i've seen regarding how he deals with his past actions and trying to be better and rei being a complicated, good person who i can see matches well with enji. really well done characterization and slow building relationship that is believable to me. enji trying to change things in a meaningful, careful manner makes me want to root for him!)

Katsuki Bakugou Makes A Friend (And Also Almost Dies, But Whatever) by Sif (Rosae)

Katsuki Bakugou is eight years old, he has no idea how he got here, where he is, or who this other kid is with him, but that's not gonna stop him from being brave and tough, just like the hero he's gonna be when he's older!

The universe has other ideas, but Katsuki Bakugou is a child made of spite, hubris, determination, and way too much nitroglycerin, so the universe can take it's ideas and shove 'em. After all, nobody out-stubborns Katsuki. Nobody.

(KID BAKUGOU & KID SHIGARAKI FRIENDSHIP! BAKUGOU STOLE MY HEART! SO SMART, SUCH A HERO! I LAUGHED AND CRIED THROUGHOUT THIS FIC, MY HEART CAN'T TAKE THIS! LITTLE SHIGARAKI MAKES A FRIEND AND IT'S TOO CUTE!!! so freaking adorable, oh lord. fneiwofpweafe)

Play The Field by lalazee for Banna_Banana

Ship: Bakugou/Midoriya

Baseball and feelings, feelings and baseball. Turns out, Bakugou and Deku are both good and bad at the same things. They try to work on it.

(look, i don't even know man. i stumbled upon this baseball au fic and the characterization is so top notch!! the backstories and feelings you get from this matches bakugou and deku's canon relationship perfectly and i flew past this so fast, god. please give this a chance, it's fantastic!)

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[Marvel]

Blips on the Record by ambivalentangst for Bean_reads_fanfic

Flash, let it be known, doesn’t like Peter. He’s too good at everything—infuriatingly so—and nobody ever calls him on his bullshit, like with AcaDec nationals. Flash has to put his all into everything he does for a fraction of the attention Peter gets for his bare minimum, and it pisses him off, to say the least, so sue him for looking for chances here and there to knock him down a peg.

However, when he notices, he shuts his entire operation down.

Maybe Peter has a decade on his age when he was in the thick of it, but Flash remembers what it was like. He gets having school be a safe place, and nobody, not even himself, is going to jeopardize that for Peter.

//

Flash Thompson’s story is not simple, Peter Parker can always use someone else in his corner, and secrets are had and protected by all.

(flash is fleshed out! flash is getting some Good Rep! flash doing his best and being grumpy but ultimately trying to help peter in what ways he could! flash being a complex character and making me love him all over again! flash! getting some actual freaking attention fewnifoapew! THANK YOU! seriously, if you're looking for an actual good flash fic that doesn't feel disingenuous, read this!)

people were mean to you, but I always thought you were cool by suzukiblu for beckyh2112

Fandoms: Avengers & X-men

“What are your feelings on the mutant threat?!” one of the reporters shouts, and Steve just looks at him.

“I think anyone threatening mutants should be stopped,” he says calmly, and the swarm of reporters explodes, a dozen camera flashes going off at once.

(not exaggerating when i say i've reread this fic so many times that it's honestly concerning. steve & cyclop's friendship here makes me so soft?? they're both leaders of their teams and steve not being what everyone expects of him is always a soft spot for me. will forever be addicted to this fic, please enjoy!)

#notmycap by missgoalie75

Fandom: The Falcon and the Winter Soldier

In which Bucky fully embraces the 21st century and is a salty bitch on Twitter.

(nonono, you don't understand. you don't understand how much i howled and screamed in public while reading this, oh my GOD. honestly the funniest shit i've read in a VERY long time, bucky is Perfect here. fucking drag that guy you beautiful cranky soul. X'D)