#like it's FINE they're called headcanons for a reason and i can read in between the lines

[bikananjarrus]

always a bit of a whiplash moment (and a disappointing one at that) when i'm reminded that characters that i've headcanoned as queer aren't actually canonically queer. like somebody refers to them as straight and i'm just ????? THAT guy???? you think that guy is straight?? now i've got bad vision but i don't think i'm the one who needs to get their eyes checked lol

[popatochisssp]

What are your headcanons on Monster souls? Like the traditions we see in Fur a Good Time, Call, and Soul Searching, just genuinely curious about them and I haven't seen anything on them on your blog.

I don't have too many headcanons about traditions to do with monster souls, but you hit on the two that I do have--the soul-touch and the soul-share.

For monsters, souls are everything, the culmination of your being, the very crux of who and what you are at your most fundamental level...which is to say, it's personal, something that's generally kept to yourself, where you can keep it close to you and safe.

It's you, after all, the most vulnerable and unguarded part of you.

So letting other people into that is, naturally, a form of intimacy!

Whether that intimacy is platonic or romantic is circumstantial, and every individual monster's thoughts on it (and comfort level with it) will vary, but broadly speaking...

Most would agree that letting someone see your soul is a pretty bold move. It takes a bit of purposeful effort (as a monster) to manifest it visibly outside your body, so if you're showing it off, you've gotta be confident--either that no one could possibly hurt you enough for it to matter, or that you're in the company of someone who won't hurt you.

Sometimes a healer will want to take a look at someone's soul to check for visible problems that could be causing illness or instability, but generally there's not a lot of other reasons to bring it out, so in practice having your soul out is... maybe a little bit like being caught in your underwear--probably fine if it's your lover, or your friend, or your family who's seeing it, maybe a bit embarrassing at the worst, but man, it'd be mortifying if it was a total stranger, or really awkward if it's somebody you only know a little bit.

The next level up from having your soul out is having it physically touched.

This is pretty serious, intimacy-wise, because anyone who lays hands on your soul has access to the raw, unfiltered sense of you: who you are, what you're about, how you feel, the utmost you at that moment in time.

Generally, this isn't done casually.

In life-or-death moments, in the case of necessary examination or treatment, it's something a healer may do, but it's not done lightly and would be considered somewhat invasive.

As with letting people see it, letting someone touch it is generally saved for the close relationships, probably the human equivalent of letting someone read a page of your diary, or having them look at a mole for you in a...compromising location. No way in hell you're calling your boss or some rando off the street for that, but it'd be fine if you were trying get on the next level of understanding with your partner, hash something out honestly with a sibling, or maybe even bond a little closer with your BFF.

And, then there's the ultimate--the soul-share.

This is something you'd pretty much only ever do with a lover, and not a casual lover either, the 'seriously thinking about spending your life with this one' kind of lover.

The soul-share is a mutual interaction and it's even more 'everything' than the soul-touch is. The sharing of souls gives you the whole picture, beyond the sense of who a monster is right now and what they're about, but also how they got there, everything important in their life that shaped them into the person they've become, all the way up to the moment they decided to share their soul with you--and it's a two-way street, with everything that matters about you going to them, too.

You see what they've seen, feel what they've felt, know what they know, and at least in that moment, blur the line between you and them and become an emotionally unified 'us.'

...A lot of monster babies get made this way, actually, when a couple realizes through a soul-share that they're both deeply in love and mutually ready to be together for the long-haul. It's definitely not recommended to go into one if both you and your partner are ready for kids emotionally, but not yet logistically or financially, because the 'oops we were too excited about it' babies can and do happen.

Like I said, a lot of this stuff varies, monster-to-monster.

You could have one monster who'd die of embarrassment if their absolute bestie unexpectedly just saw their soul, and then another who'd hand theirs over to some stranger at a party to win a bet, and pretty much everything in between--the vastness of the human monster condition.

But that's more or less the gist of it!

[prcybeth]

Honestly? I think Suzanne made both decisions because she knew it would make her teen audience happy. But older fans - and fans who can read between the lines - will still be able to craft our own headcanons around these things.

Let's look at "sis" for one. For the teen audience, this puts Maysilee firmly in the platonic friend bracket. They don't have to have complicated thoughts about how maybe Haymitch might be attracted to her. It's a one and done for them. But an adult audience is looking at that and thinking some thoughts.

Thoughts like:

Why is Haymitch so determined to push Maysilee into a sister role? Why not just a friend? Ally? Partner? Why "sister" in particular? Wouldn't it make more sense for Louella or Lou Lou to have been his "sister"? Even Haymitch seems a little unsure about what makes Maysilee his sister. Or what a sister even is. Because he doesn't have one, so he doesn't actually know what he's talking about here. It seems more like he wants to give Maysilee a special role in his life, something that acknowledges the bond between them is deeper than friendship, and he settles on family because he can't imagine anything else.

Why can't he imagine anything else? Because it would be dangerous. It would hurt too much. One or both of them will be dead in days. He has a girl at home too (and everybody knows that). They just had a break up so painful it felt like his heart was being ripped out of his chest, and then she called and told him she'll never love anyone else or move on, and wants them to haunt each other even after they die. So much for his healthy idea of her moving on. Oh, and she's going to be watching all of this. Even if none of that was an issue, and he was free to like Maysilee - Maysilee would probably think she's too fine for a boy like him anyway. There are a thousand reasons Haymitch won't let himself go there in his head - but that doesn't mean those feelings aren't there.

My honest opinion is that Haymitch is lying to himself with the whole "sister" thing. The same way Katniss lied to herself about not having feelings for Peeta in her Games. She tells herself it's all for the cameras and she never wants to be with anyone anyway, but if you scratch beneath the surface there is a lot that contradicts what her pov is telling you. The same (in reverse) is true of Snow in ABOSAS. I don't think Haymitch in SOTR is any different. All of these characters lie to themselves about what they're feeling. They all have their blind spots. What is Haymitch's?

Why did he tell us he wouldn't have tried to follow LD if she'd been reaped? Why did he spend so much time thinking about how he would want her to move on after he died, if they were each other's one and only? Why was LD killed by poison candy (Maysilee makes candy) and Maysilee was killed by birds (Lenore Dove is associated with birds)? If it wasn't a love triangle, why frame it like that? There are so many other foods Snow could have poisoned. White liquor Haymitch brewed. Layer cake "his mom" made for his missed birthday. One of the geese Lenore was raising. Why was Maysilee's candy the thing that killed Haymitch's lover? Nothing is an accident with SC. Everything has meaning.

Just like all the Effie hints have meaning. Effie is probably about ten years older than Haymitch, which makes her seem impossibly old to a teen audience. Ew, icky! But adult readers know that Hayffie spend 24 years together, and that by the time Haymitch is in his twenties, that age gap won't seem huge. It's really not a deal-breaker. So adult readers look at the subtext, and ask questions about what SC is choosing to show us here too.

Questions like:

Why highlight that Effie has always been able to see the real Haymitch? Why show that Haymitch was always understanding of her too, and always appreciated her? Effie was never a rebel, so why does it matter so much to show that she always supported Haymitch and tried to help him? If Haymitch's story is meant to mirror Katniss's, then should we also notice the similarities between Peeta and Effie? Children of relative privilege, artistic natures (baking for Peeta, cosmetics / fashion for Effie), good "people" skills and charm, not afraid to show their sensitive side, likes to take care of others . . . and finally, both kidnapped and tortured by the Capitol after the events of CF. That's a lot of similarities. Do they all mean nothing? If they don't, what do they mean?

I think YA readers look at Haymitch saying geese mate for life and getting emo over a poem, and think it's a done deal and he's right to just wait for the grave. But adult readers think he's still mired in grief and guilt, and that his healing isn't done. If you believe every word in the book is gospel, then you probably think both Hayffie and Haysilee are dead and it's a done deal. But if you think that characters lie to themselves, and that the subtext is worth investigating, you probably side-eye the entire concept of Haymitch only being able to love Lenore Dove. And hope for his sake that he's wrong.

perfectly said! i love this, anon! i do almost wish this book was written a lot earlier because questions like this alone could last at least two books, (bonus if we were to get haymitch scenes with merrilee and he’s forced to unpack for a minute on why he felt that way about her sister.) One of my main issues with h/ydove aside from the writing is how everything that happens is essentially what haymitch feels like he has to do. he feels like he has to mark maysilee down as his sister because what they’ve shared in the games will always be so much deeper than just friendship, but he likely wouldn’t call her his partner out of respect for his girlfriend. haymitch grows a bond with Effie (whether he wants to admit it or not) but he never marks her as anything let alone as his sister because what they have is deeper than that, he even trusts her. but with LD, I struggle to think about that of all people, she’s what haunts him after all this time especially when so much of what he likes about her screams men writing women.

[ariddletobesolved]

of preferences and headcanons.

Hi! I know I haven't posted real content in over a year, but since I've been on Tumblr the past week, I can't help but notice a discourse happening on Helsa tag.

I believe as a community, we should all respect other people's takes and opinions, especially in a fandom, where everyone may perceive things differently. Everyone has their own preferences that not everyone could get or understand, and that is okay. For example, and also to address the elephant in the room, if you prefer a ship (in this case, Helsa) to not be canon, it's totally fine. And if you would love for it to be canon, then that is fine too. It's not okay when you try to tell people how they must feel towards a certain media (in this case, Frozen) and tell fellow shippers they're not a true shipper just because they don't share the same preferences as you do. Stating an opinion of your preference is not the same as telling others to change that preference to suit the one that you like.

"I would prefer to not have them to be canon."

"If you're a true fan, you would have done THIS instead!"

See how different those two sentences are? The first one is neutral, while the other one is more demanding.

Honestly, I want to respect both, but I believe respect is earned and not given, and if the person is being disrespectful then I will return the disrespect back to their faces. Treat people the way you want be treated, remember?

I've been in between fandoms for over a decade, so I've come across discourses over headcanons and preferences plenty of time. Here's a reminder: Be respectful! It's not hard if you recognise that everyone perceive things differently and that the world doesn't revolve around you and your opinions only. You can always agree to disagree.

Being respectful also means being respectful to fanartists and fanwriters. Have some decency and refrain from using someone else's works without their permission (it's not hard to ask!). Just because you found it on Google does not mean it's public domain. As for appreciating fanwriters, you can start by reading what you want to read. You can start by filtering keywords and tropes or genres that you don't like. AO3 has a tagging system for a reason. If you don't pay attention to the tags, don't blame the writer for writing what they want to write and not how you want it. They create contents for free and you are not the boss of them. If you want something that specifically suits your taste buds, you can commission them.

Learn how to differentiate between what's canon and what's your own headcanon and interpretations, what's canon and what's a mere concept. Maybe you're reading too much into it, maybe it's in your head. Headcanons are fun, being delulu is literally my middle name, but not everything that you perceive is canon. You can disregard canon (like I do, most of the time) but you have to be clear about it, and draw a hard line to separate them, label them with 'canon divergence' or 'canon compliance' (you can look up each definition). A concept that did not make into the final product can hardly be considered canon.

This fandom community is supposed to be a safe space for everyone regardless their reason in shipping Helsa (be it because of their appealing aesthetics or others) as long as they're being respectful to each other. I didn't think I would be here writing all these to address the bad apples. Sure, the bad apples are always there in every community, but when these bad apples are the loud majority, I feel like I have to say something to clear up some misconceptions about this fandom. Helsa fandom isn't exactly popular, even back in the day, and it's mostly because shippers of other ships and fandom purists have already assumed the worst when they interacted with the ship before they did the shipper, which once again is out of the shippers' control.

From my experience, name-calling fellow shippers over these niche stuff will drive people away and discourage some creators from creating content (I already am on this stage). So, in my opinion, let's just agree to disagree. It's probably just me, but it's not like we have the power to make the writers write what we want anyway (Frozen 2 is already a proof that they would write what they want to write).

[yandereunsolved]

Can I do a crackship with Raiden and gay Raiden (raikov♡) and reader? (Note this is for hcs... not a story because I'm pretty sure ur busy!!)

Imagine two blonde babes.... just making out in front of you to piss you off or better yet one kisses you with their eyes open to glare at the other like a little perv..... especially if they both equally are yandere's 4 you and like to shove what they do in each other's face like trophies😔 auughhhhgg okay real think is what would you headcanon for them and reader? Would they hate hate each other or love hate each other? Maybe try a little violence on each other for "training"? So many ideas rn💔

-🗝

nom, nom, nom

Is there a specific shipname for them? I honestly have no idea so I'll make one up. Ivden. I can't think of anything better. I'm also calling them the morally grey polycule because I definitely think before darling they more or less allowed each other to have romantic relationships with other people that they usually didn't get involved in.

This also ended up to be way darker than I expected so mind the content warnings.

❝ 𝙼𝚎𝚝𝚊𝚕 𝙶𝚎𝚊𝚛 ( 𝚂𝚘𝚕𝚒𝚍 ) 𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝙱𝚊𝚜𝚒𝚌𝚜 ❞

You may be a little lost about Raiden's part unless you read about him and how I headcanon him. ^^

꒰ morally grey polycule ꒱ ᯓ yan. Ivan x yan. Raiden x Reader cw(s): Ivan exploiting Raiden's DID, mutual abuse (between Ivan and the Storm System), threatening and or attempting self-harm (Ivan and Raiden)

ᡣ𐭩 These two dumbasses cannot decide if they love or hate each other.

ᢉ𐭩 Ivan is so obsessed with pushing Raiden's metaphorical buttons and watching him switch. He definitely loves Ripper just because it'll put him in his place. Raikov absolutely adores being marked by his partners so being bruised by them is no different. He'd go as far as to say he likes being physically abused because he craves the attention. He doesn't want to fight back. He wants to feel all the pain and strife he causes the system.

ᢉ𐭩 Ivan also loves cuddling up to Raiden and apologizing for being such an asshole. He learned his lesson and he won't do it again. (He will). More often than not he'll be apologizing to either Ripper or Snake. Snake doesn't take his shit. He doesn't even like Ivan. Ripper likes Ivan as a tool to use. They like to use him as an (unhealthy) coping mechanism.

ᢉ𐭩 They're on opposite sides of the job environment. Ivan works for Volgin in some secret Russian stuff that Raiden does his best to ignore. He's got more important things to take care of. They have a lot of fights about the personal nature of what they do. They promise not to bring it into the bedroom, but they do.

Raiden never sleeps with Ivan for this reason. Sex is just fine, but he has his own place he goes to when he wants to sleep. Ivan respects Raiden's boundary of his own bedroom and what will happen if Ivan breaks that boundary, for the most part. Really, Ivan is just scared that he'll cross a line that's too forbidden, leading to Raiden losing interest in him.

ᢉ𐭩 The Storm System adores you, but they have more than a complicated relationship with Ivan. That's where Ivan's insecurity stems from. What if they realize you're better for them than him? What if they take you away and he never sees you again? Originally Ivan wasn't even into you all that much. It was (adult) Jack latching onto you that peaked Ivan's interest. Ivan had only met Jack once, yet he seems to front a lot more around you. Ivan just wanted to get to know you so he could use you against them, but he ended up becoming just as attached to you.

ᡣ𐭩 The disagreements never stop about how to treat you when it comes down to it. They both vastly differ in their approaches.

ᢉ𐭩 Jack knew you first and bonded with you in a way he hadn't expected. He became comfortable around you, which felt good because of his past abusive relationships. He got too attached and clingy, reassuring himself that this was okay for him to do. He's still treating you right! He's keeping you safe. He's only restricting your freedoms some.

ᢉ𐭩 Ivan is much more pushy and aggressive. He'll quickly learn if he'll be your little bitch or if you'll put him in his place like he deserves. Either way he'll take up all your time and take you away from Raiden. He'll play the "I'm going to self-harm/kill myself" if you don't pay attention to me card. It's really a ploy. He'll hurt himself but only because he gets off on it.

Jack may also say this, but he's not doing it to purposefully manipulate you. He'll actually do it and mean it. Even if you try to explain that that's unfair of him to say, he'll either start crying more, shutdown, or actually go harm himself in hopes that you'll stop him. Although, usually, someone else stops him and he doesn't front for a while. Tempest may apologize to you, but she wants you to stay with them just as bad as Jack does.

ᡣ𐭩 Ivden's relationship further complicates it. All the trauma, abuse, and some type of love that keeps them connected yet so far apart.

[faksyan]

BBKaz fic recs *where Big Boss isnt abusive (or overtly)*? :3 While many BBkaz fics are good they also portray Kaz as accepting Big Boss abusing him. There are fics where hes clearly verbally or physically abusive to Kaz and i just CANT imagine Kaz like that. A lot of people make him the submissive bf because hes flamboyant which ?? this is the guy willing to die to take some men out? the guy who ambushed Snake after being captured?? the guy who trained soldiers in afghanistan??? Kaz isnt some defenseless baby UwU the man and Big Boss were on equal foot back in MSF, and Kaz was just as much of a manipulative bastard. HELL id say he was the one who pushed for Big Boss darker tendencies sorry for the rant :3 but Kaz being thrown around is so OOC it takes me out. Its just not who he is

YES thank you for the rant?? I. yeah I get that. that kind of interpretation is not something I can understand with how I view Kaz at all. Of course what they had wasn't what we'd call healthy, but the way it's portrayed sometimes just doesn't feel right. We're talking Kaz, the person who's been burning with anger and hatred since the day he was born and who still described Snake as his trusted partner and friend for years.

Funnily enough, that's the same reason I can't ever see him being with BB after events of V, in any interpretation of the phrase. It's an interesting thing to explore, but he just wouldn't. if Kaz loves a person, he loves them, if he hates them, he hates. forever. no compromise. and then he dies.

I don't really have long fics that fit the criteria (that I know of), hope that's fine. With all that being said.

Short n sweet msf era fic one, two and three. Different authors, but I think they go together well.

The formatting is a bit weird on this, but maybe it's just mobile, it's great either way. They're clueless and pining.

Enjoyed how much this one focuses on Kaz's thoughts. It finds a really nice middle ground between not making them overly abusive while also showing how complicated their relationship is. This one also fits the description I think, but the atmosphere is a lot less tense.

Foxhound era transfem Kaz fic in first person, I know. People often don't like that. Still recommend it. Aside from having a headcanon I love, I really liked how it's written.

The one where they go to a gay bar for a mission. I mean really what more is there to say.

Probably not what you want, but for me it's right on that edge of how I can see a meeting between them going in the years after tpp. Let Kaz be angry about it, let him be protective of his new life that doesn't have bb in it, that's the good stuff.

The focus is not quite on bbkaz but it's exactly the kind of unnerving that I'm a fan of. Loved the writing here a lot.

This one kind of. does not fit the non-abusive description, and it's also in second person, but this is the first and I think only time I read a serious take on Big Boss's pov that felt RIGHT. It has so much interesting character exploration that I honestly can't not recommend it. Re-read one of my favorite paragraphs for this, and man, I have A LOT to say about this fic, but better just read it, really. Keep in mind that it's unfinished though, but it's been updated some time ago. If you do like this one, this author has another bbkaz fic that I enjoyed.

To be honest I haven't actually read that much bbkaz (as in I don't think I went through the whole tag which is "not that much" only arguably), but I hope there is at least something in here that you like! Thanks for the ask, this made me want to go finish the fic that I have haha.

[stickytm]

carrd || playlist || pinterest || headcanon || art || memes

a study in: intention vs. attention, always getting back up , guilt, processing grief, life behind a mask, self-identity, the weight of responsibility, living a double life, learning how to share that weight & how the person you become affects the people around you.

under co. very duplicate friendly. minors dni. extremely LOW activity.

**MINORS DNI** if you are under 18, i dont want to talk to you! i do not want to talk to children on the internet. if you hide your age & i find out about it, i will block you immediately.

hi! i'm xan, i'm 25 & i never learned how to fucking read. jokes aside, i've been writing peter on & off since 2018. i was formerly at spiderwebbed & boywebbed, but i thought it was time for a fresh start. i've built a mixed canon timeline that cherry picks from my favorite peters & headcanons alike. there is a lot of information to take in & i don't expect anyone to know all of it! I will be highlighting the most important parts of his story on his timeline when i am done reworking it. the last time it was updated was 2022 & there is a lot to add & rearrange. i do ask that if you have any questions about the progression of his story, feel free to ask. i prefer to talk things out than leave any questions hanging.

on that note, tumblr rp is a social hobby as much as it is a creative one to me & i love keeping in contact with my mutuals. however, on this blog it is especially vital to building long-lasting relationships ic & ooc. my availability it not always consistent because i am Literally Insane & need to be away from tumblr sometimes, but that doesn't mean i value the friendships & relationships i make here any less.

i do not practice exclusivity. nothing against anyone who does, it's just not for me! i do, however, have mains. what are mains on this blog? they're characters written by friends who i will go to first for plot ideas. my mains will usually be woven into blog canon, one way or another whether or not that character is written in tumblr! if that is not something that appeals you, that's okay!

i have notoriously spotty activity. it's part of my flavor . it stems from a mix of mental illness & blanacing life, but this is just a hobby to me & it utilizes any energy i have leftover from everything else i have to do to live. this being said, if i don't respond to you ooc right away, again, it is nothing personal. i prefer having friendships & building them up over time, but it does take time & it is not always easy. active on the dash = / = active ooc& if you try to guilt me about this, i will block you <3

i do not have any triggers. i have a few icks, but nothing that triggers a huge emotional reaction from me. i will do my best to be mindful of any triggers that might appear on this blog, but if there is anything i fail to tag please feel free to point it out to me. i would like to maintain a safe space i can share with my friends!

if i'm following you, i absolutely want to interact with you. i want to write with you. i want to plot with you. i reblog a lot of memes & try to send a lot as well. this being said, i do not expect you to respond to everything i send you & vice versa.

i prefer to plot & send memes over starter calls starter calls are fine & dandy, i just become overwhelmed by them quicker than i care to admit & usually do not finish them. i prefer plotted starters & memes with a place we can start already defined.

if we have any problems, i would rather talk about them than leave them hanging between us. if it's worth unfollowing me over, please block me instead. i hate softblocking, I've never understood it & would rather just be blocked. i know this is not always possible because there are sooo many reasons someone might softblock me, but if you don't hardblock me i will probably refollow you without thinking about it.

don't be an asshole. it's easy, it's simple. treat people the way you would like to be treated. if you vague, i will block you. if you bring drama onto my blog, i will block you. i am here to play barbies not mean girls.

i do make art for peter, but it will always be tagged as my art. whether i post it here or on a personal blog, it will be tagged as something i made. if anyone wants to use my art for any reason, just make sure to dredit one of my blogs!

i am so duplicate friendly. i am so thrilled for the opportunity to discuss & share thoughts on peter parker with anyone willing to do so. i do understand, however, that not everyone shares this sentiment. do what you need to do to keep your space safe if you write peter & need to avoid other peter blogs, but if you ever want to talk shop i am sooo super game.

[crimsonscloud]

you know what. it's missing norton!bruce hours (again) and i got some headcanons to share this time. below the cut because we might be here a while.

general / misc headcanons:

based on norton's screenplay for the incredible hulk, this bruce's full name is david bruce banner. (this is also how i mentally differentiate between norton and ruffalo's portrayals; to me, norton!bruce is david, ruffalo!bruce is robert.)

his mother used to call him "davey" as an affectionate nickname when he was little.

frankenstein is one of his favorite books because his mother read it to him. (this one is canon to the ih novelization)

he adores dogs and adopts a puppy between the avengers and age of ultron. (i don't have a name for the puppy yet.)

he likes studio ghibli films and finds the animation style relaxing.

learned russian while getting one of his phds, like in the comics.

inspired by this panel from the "super spy banner" arc in the comics: he likes james bond. and yes, he absolutely takes the chance to say "the name is banner. bruce banner" when he's doing an infiltration mission (probably with natasha and/or clint) or something. he and natasha probably watch the films together since her solo film had her quoting along to moonraker.

bruce. is. a. martial. artist. the films forget this and i'm salty about it.

cooking is relaxing for him so he tends to make a lot of food, and he knows a lot of dishes from different cultures because of how much he's traveled. no one on the team complains.

bruce's powers:

glowing eyes <3

inspired by the john turman hulk script, electricity behaves weird around bruce when he gets emotional. he has made lightbulbs and other things explode if he's standing too close to them. he learns how to isolate the effect once he understands more about his relationship with hulk. tony helps by giving him things he doesn't mind getting exploded, and for bruce it also works kind of like a trauma release. he can still accidentally blow something up if he gets distracted / agitated, but it happens less.

the electrical-interference power also manifests as him being able to hear electrical currents. different things have slightly different sounds / pitches and tony always asks him to describe them.

still has a pretty good healing factor as bruce, it's just slower. (in a ih deleted scene sparr says she's never seen someone recover from a tranquilizer as fast as he does). also can't get drunk, but he's never tested that for obvious reasons.

in the novel he's able to dodge a tranq dart "aimed and fired in one motion" so he probably also has faster reflexes.

immune to mind control as bruce and as hulk. both are pissed at wanda for trying it.

based on a scene in the immortal hulk comics, bruce uses automatic writing and drawing to communicate with hulk when hulk isn't out.

can see astral forms. they're clearer and even tangible when hulk is in control, but bruce can also see them.

also inspired by immortal hulk, he has a weird sixth sense for when people are lying to him. as bruce the "itch" he gets can be ignored most of the time, as hulk not so much.

relationship / dynamic headcanons:

no brutasha romance to be seen here they are friends 😌 (if that's your cup of tea that's fine it just isn't mine.)

stays. in. contact. with. betty. (i will forever fight the mcu over this. they are soulmates yall.)

steals tony's band shirts like a gremlin. also steals tony's snacks.

bruce🤝wanda: blurring the lines of science and mysticism. (later comics describe gamma radiation as having a mystical element, "like a magic spell... when viewed from another angle" which is the same reason bruce / hulk tend to have some extrasensory powers).

i just think we were robbed of a bruce and wanda friendship okay.

[haven-of-dusk]

for the ask game: headcanons for nico di angelo? (if you haven’t read the books, then ricky bowen 🤠)

Sorry this took me so long... I have indeed read the books, so I'll tackle both! Nico Di Angelo:

Sexuality - Gay

A ship - I actually do like Solangelo a fair bit, they're not my faves per se, but I don't have glaring issues with them (especially compared with say, Caleo).

However for the sake of fun, I also love Jasico (I hope I have that name right). Minor aside that I'm about 90% sure Jason is (he's fine, TBM didn't happen I promise) a closeted gay man based on a number of hints dropped in TBM, plus vibes plus he just screams internalized heteronormativity. So I really wish we could've explored more of Nico and Jason's dynamic. Plus they'd be incredibly adorable about one-upping each other's displays of "touch him and die" imo.

A BROTP - Percico, I totally get why shipping them romantically is a thing, but I also adore the dynamic idea that Nico completely got over Percy and Percy's a little salty about it, plus the level of trust they eventually displayed regardless of the definition of their relationship is very special to me. (End of MoA always gets me right in the feels).

A NOTP - I don't have any specific ones...so I guess I'll just say any ship that tries to get him involved romantically with a woman.

A random headcanon - Though he mostly put Mythomagic behind him, he has since become a massive D&D nerd, with multiple fully fleshed out characters and a couple campaign ideas that he badgers people to play with him. (Also the main cast of HoO playing D&D is a podcast I wish was real, Critical Role style...)

General Opinion - I love Nico, top 3 Percy Jackson Universe characters (I think, I haven't gone through and put together an exact ranking ever since I love almost all of them), not super happy when the writing leans too far into the 'edgy' side of him, but his dry wit is always a pleasure, and he's also capable of backing up the edge with badassery.

His original artwork will always give me nightmares though.

Richard 'Ricky' Bowen:

Sexuality - Bisexual

Gender - Cis Male, though he did experiment with they/them pronouns to see if they felt better to him. They didn't, but he's glad he tried.

A ship - Caswen. Obviously. I think my canon rewrite of half the show serves as adequate explanation of my love for them.

A BROTP - Redky. The friendship/brotherhood between Big Red and Ricky was something I really enjoyed in the first two seasons, it felt quite accurate to my high school experiences and I also find their interactions in fanfiction very endearing. Plus it provides more fuel to my fire that Caswen are NOT brotherly since we have a perfect brotherly relationship for Ricky right there and it looks nothing like his relationship to EJ imo.

Plus I'm still extra irritated that in addition to the rampant biphobia in how Big Red's storyline was handled, they also tried to shove him out of the picture and replace him with Jet in S4, with a scene in E3 especially feeling like the dialogue was written for BR and then they had Jet read it for...no discernable reason.

A NOTP - ...Rina /s.

In all seriousness the only answer I can readily come up with is Rily, because wtf was that subplot even supposed to be, but I struggle to think of NOTPs for Ricky since my brain is mostly Caswen or bust. I thought of the EJ alternatives purely because Tim is so militant about Rina, but I really don't know what Ricky would do outside of preferably Caswen or Tim's beloved 'canon' Rina. And while I do think Rini work better as friends, I also wouldn't call them a NOTP since I feel kind of bad for some Rini shippers (not the creepy ones, the normies for lack of a better term).

Idk, I guess I'll just say Rily and move on.

A random headcanon - Ricky loves the Spice Girls. Where did this HC come from you ask? I have no idea. But I feel like it fits.

The urge to write a mini-fic of Ricky and EJ dancing at their wedding to 'Spice up Your Life' is rising. (Totally not influenced by Doctor Who)

General Opinion - I love Ricky. Not quite as much as Elton, but that's a pretty high bar to clear since Elton rose to my top ten of all time list pretty easily. I have mixed feelings about S3 and S4 Ricky since I felt like they made him overly obsessed with Gina and lost a lot of the charm of his earlier plotlines centering on familial trauma and figuring out his own desires in life, but he's still high ranking for HSMTMTS characters, and I obviously love Caswen to death, so it's hard for me to say I don't also adore Ricky as a special little guy.

That spiraled into a bit of a ramble. Point is that I do really like Ricky, I just wish the writing for him later in the show was less...self-parodic...if that makes any sense.

[zorilleerrant]

BANG BANG BANG

10 13 & 16

You said specifics last time so DC pwease

10. worst part of fanon

Don't get me wrong, I like a butch lady, but I don't know why everyone wants to make Cass so gender non-conforming. (I mean. I do know why.) In canon she leans heavily into high fashion aesthetic. Some of that reads a little more masculine these days than when they were drawn, but, like, not that much more masculine? And even when they are, they're paired with things that, if anything, read even more feminine now than at the time.

She loves her girly clothes! She loves cutesy fun soft things! She loves bright colors! Her casual clothes are the opposite of her costume, and that's by design! Her attraction to ballet as an artform is a visual struggle between her desire to look feminine and the fact that she never got a chance to do that in her childhood, while she was forcibly degendered by a white man, and then infantilized by everyone else around her. People cite that one picture of her in a tux, and it's like, that's because she's imagining herself as James Bond, and also, femme tuxes are a recent fashion trend.

If you want butch/femme StephCass, which, like, you also don't actually need one of each, why don't you butch up Steph? She wears a lot of androgynous or masculine clothing, and not that much super feminine clothing, and she doesn't like dressing up which you can easily read as a gender presentation thing. Steph can be butch and Cass can be femme and I never see it.

Cass isn't gender non-conforming! She's definitely not gender non-conforming enough to call herself a man! She'd be Batwoman if she took on the role, not Batman!

13. worst blorboficiation

Damian. I get projecting on him and using him to deal with all your personal issues, and that's fine, since he's basically a self-insert in the first place (with all love to Grant; they did a wonderful job). I expect a fair amount of variability in characterization and even think it's kind of fun, because as a kid/teen, he should be trying out lots of different looks and attitudes and interests. So, you know, the people who lean hard into Stabby Baby Loves Stabbing or Tortured Assassin Renounces Assassinry don't bother me.

...but you don't have to make it so flat. I swear, so many of them just avoid ever having any conflict in his personality. And he's a conflicted character! That's the joy of him! Whatever his conflicts are about can change, but he's the kind of character who thinks a lot about things and then can't decide exactly how he feels. He's done things he's not proud of, he wants to do things but he's not sure how, he does things the best way he can but he makes mistakes. People make him 100% right or 100% wrong and that's not how people are, not even when they're kids. Or they make all the conflicts romantic.

I feel this is especially true of him as a background character where people feel like they need to include him just because he's a Robin or whatever. So they go, oh, hey, his fans used this keyword, and then put him in doing that thing in the background. And people who like him eat it up! And I just feel like, if you don't like a character, don't include them, that's fine. But I also feel like, if you do like a character... have some standards, idk.

16. you can't understand why so many people like this thing (characterization, trope, headcanon, etc)

Character bashing. People just caricature that character's traits to make them more evil and hateful and like, why? I either already hated them, so you don't need to do that, or I didn't hate them, and now I'm wondering if you're alright there, buddy. And then they go and torture the character a whole bunch.

And it's just... if bad things happen to a character, maybe I do want to see that. I'm not immune to hating characters! I want Steve Trevor dumped in a ditch! But the joy of it would be that they're characterized well, but all the other characters hate them for the same reason I hate them. And then bad things happen, but they make sense in the context of the plot and the world.

Also when you have other characters be like 'haha let's torture this person' I'm sort of like. Okay but that's not very nice and now you're making the characters I like seem like, at best, assholes, and at worst... sometimes adult characters will torture a kid character that the author doesn't like, and, I mean, I get it, catharsis, but I'm still going to be like 'Batman why are you a bad person now' if I see that happening. I make actual faces at the words.

[team-frightfur]

character ask game: dennis mcamerican

Thanks for the ask!

General opinion/How much I care about them:

They're kinda eh to me, honestly, but I still appreciate them. For one, their increasingly suspicious and freaked out faces during infiltration are gold. For another, he has a really fun duelling style and a lot of personality. He's like a second, more competent Sawatari.

A ship I love:

I'm not super into any of his ships (or many ships, honestly) but I can def see why many would work.

Dennis x Yuri capitalises on their shared past and seeming casualness. Is Dennis lying when he tries to reach out? Is it just politeness? Is he scared of Yuri deep down? What abt Yuri, does he find him annoying? Does he ignore him? How does that change? It's an interesting quandary.

Dennis x Yuya is more on the fluffy side. Those two can pull off some fine prime clownwork together. Plus they're both students of Yusho so they have a reason to connect. Then you start thinking abt their flaws and strengths. Eg. Dennis teaches Yuya how to clown better and Yuya teaches Dennis how not to child soldier better.

Dennis x Ruri is pretty obviously interesting because of the enemy -> tentative allies -> friends -> lovers possibilities. It kinda emphasises Dennis's regret and desire for redemption as well as Ruri's whatever you decide to HC her as having.

A non-romantic relationship that I love:

All the romances work just as well as friends lmao. To me, there's barely a difference between romance and friendship anyway. What do you mean romance isn't just friends but kissy. Can you tell I'm aro?

The NOTP:

I mean, anything that's like, incestuous or pedo I guess? I doubt thats really prevalent tho like this is a low hanging fruit. I generally don't dislike ships because there's always some progression they drive or depth they illuminate if you look.

My biggest headcanon about them:

Unlike Sora, Serena and Yuri, all of whom are orphans, they have family in Fusion. Ripperoni.

An idea for a fanfiction I would like to write/read about them: (if I have none in my WIPs I'll make one up on the spot!)

Yuya and Dennis clown too hard at a tag duel tournament and start dropping 11 negates per turn. Cut to a few weeks later where they're sending strongly worded letters to Reiji about how Monkeyboard TOTALLY isn't op! While the entire rest of the cast sighs in relief.

Something that makes me think of them: (a song, a character in another fandom, an animal, anything)

My friend calls him Sideshow Bob (bc of the hair). The link is inextricable now.

Thanks again for the ask!

[valkyrievega]

What are your autistic headcanons for Anton? (And for Stephanie too!) 🥺

I HAVE BEEN THINKING AND COMPILING I'M SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG IVE LOVED THIS QUESTION

Anton:

The boy gets overstimulated as HELL. No one ever knows including him. Steph starts picking up on it because he stops using his minute facial expressions and that becomes her cue to get him out of there with an excuse. Eventually he starts picking it up, though he'll never know what to call it, exactly (though neither will Steph)

It's not so much a headcanon as it is an extrapolation of what we see but the pain tolerance / just straight up not knowing when he's hurt himself does eventually catch up to him in a few ways. It also means that he doesn't really realize how clumsy he can actually be (though he's mostly fine).

He thought he didn't like routine until Steph points out while they're settling in that he hasn't really found a new one. He asks her what she'd suggest and she shrugs and says why don't you just read with me for half an hour before bed and see how that goes and then he does that. Forever. Doesn't matter what time of night it is that he's actually going to bed he's sitting next to wherever she is and reading

It's Anton. Like . Anything I'm saying is just more extrapolation or scenarios that come up with what we already see to be honest XDD

Steph:

She guards against her t-rex arms by picking at her nails (she has bitten and picked to hell nails, she's just like me xx)

She struggles with going nonverbal - there are definitely times she'd prefer it but as a kid and then obviously later on she got used to forcing herself to speak. It's only later with Anton when he points out that she does that and that it's him and he doesn't mind that she starts working on it.

follow up to that: she realized how much more comfortable she was the first time she managed it and cried. Cuddles ensue (because Anton knows she needs it) (what an autistic way of viewing your relationship buddy i love you)

she literally never realizes it but partially the reason that she's so good at stating people's intent and relationships between people etc is definitely the autism

huge attachment to objects !!! Hence Teddy :)) she's the kind of person who feels bad for the ugly lime and buys it XD

her pain tolerance is also very high - MOSTLY because of the autism rather than the trauma, though it can be difficult to say - she's constantly banging and clanging into things and not noticing it until it bruises up the next day

she apologizes to the things she bangs and clangs into, though, don't worry. That ironing board has been emphatically apologised to

[indignantlemur]

I'mma just shuffle over on into this conversation, because Andorian/Human pairings are my jam and I have thoughts. The Andorian/Human dynamic has a lot of great points when you break it down.

1. Andorians are known to be proud, and sometimes stoic, but also easily offended and a little stabby. They value duty and loyalty extremely highly, generally speaking, and while they have tempers they also value reason and logic. Successfully befriending an Andorian is awesome - you will never have a better friend. That Andorian you've somehow bamboozled into being your bestie will have your back in almost every scenario, they will throw hands right alongside you when you get into fights, they will pick your dumbass self up and carry you home when you get in over your head and need saving. They will snark at you, they will poke fun and tease, but god help the fool who tries to pick on you because your Andorian bestie will fuck them up.

2. Andorians are, canonically, very tall and very strong. This is appealing for multiple reasons, I'll let your imagination handle that - but I will offer this: little spoon. Little spoon forever.

3. Andorians have insectoid ancestry, which seems to equate to them being extremely social. That plus their propensity for "play" (casual and largely indiscriminate sex prior to marriage for those unfamiliar) means they these guys are extremely physically engaged. Touch is frequent and casual, and physical contact runs the gamut from everyday to intensely intimate. I fail to see how this is ever not going to be a good thing.

4. Andorians are highly ritualized and litigated (12, 000 amendments to the Ushaan, for example) which means that they like clear lines and delineations. You'll usually have a good idea of where you stand with an Andorian, as long as you make an effort to meet them halfway and try to understand their culture.

5. While Vulcans are all well and good, a large part of the Vulcan/Human romance arcs features around pon farr and how it fundamentally cements part of the relationship between the two. That's fine, I'm not knocking it, but hear me out: Andorians don't make you wait every seven years for that kind of fun. That could be Tuesday. That could be every Tuesday. And possibly also every other day that ends with a 'y'.

6. Quad dynamics! For those who enjoy multiple partners or polyamory in their stories, the Andorian tradition of marrying into quads offers a whole new realm of possibilities. Headcanons and canon lore are a bit diverse when it comes to how these quads end up functioning, but even with the bare bones that we get from canon lore there's at least one ritual that involves a foursome orgy with a highly suspect substance called saf.

7. Antennae - a bit of an adjustment, to be fair, but once you get the hang of it they're a lot like a cat's tail in that they're mood gauges. You can't read their minds via their antennae, but you can get a pretty good idea of what's going on generally speaking.

8. Calf eyes. Andorians have limited facial musculature in canon lore, which means they don't quite smile like Humans do - but they do go in for big calf eyes. Think Jeffrey Combs eyes, all the time. That's adorable.

9. Body heat. Hailing from an ice planet with extreme temperatures, Andorians are adapted to survive those conditions. In my headcanon, that means they run a bit colder than Humans, and their unique semi-osmotic circulatory system (canon lore) means that they're much less sensitive to temperature shifts as a result. That does not, however, mean that they can't appreciate that Humans run quite a bit hotter than they do and, referring to point 2, that could be very much appreciated.

Aaaand 10. Andorians are stated as having psychic bonds of a sort in canon, though they are much less active than Vulcan bonds. Where Vulcan bondmates are often shown as being able to communicate freely with this bond, Andorians cannot. Andorian bonds are much less invasive, in that they can get a sense of each other's moods, well-being, and such, but that's it. The trade off is that that bond is unbreakable outside of the death of one or more parties. That's a big commitment, but it also means that all parties have to be absolutely sure before entering into a bond or marriage. That's very reassuring for a lot of people.

I have to know, so y’all who like Humans/Other Alien Species from Star Trek instead of Vulcans, what’s the biggest appeal?

Like, as a Vulcan/Human fan, my favorite stuff about it, cause I’ll usually project onto the Human, is like: having a partner who will never yell at me, someone who can understand me (telepathy and mind links), someone who will be forever patient with me, the quiet intimacy, etc etc etc

So for the other species, what’s the biggest plus sides?

[sirendeepity]

[ Nesand one-shot ]

A/N: before you come at me with pitchforks and torches, ready to burn me at the stake, I'd like to clarify that this is not a romatic/crackship fic. They're both more than happy with their own actual mates and so are we. Also, on this blog we stan and highly support healthy communication (given the characters and the canon events, I'd better say communication of any kind, bUT STILL). I know many would find it weird, but I've often headcanon(n)ed? this as their first step toward a real reconciliation. So there it is, black on white, hoping you'll enjoy reading this much more than I did, writing it (twice, actually, and we can thank my stupidity for that).

W/C: 3.7k

T/W: sexual assault, abuse

“We’re going to have guests very soon,” Feyre announced as soon as Cassian’s ass touched the velvet seat cushion of the couch, Nesta leaning over the arm to his left. When he’d looked at the free spot left in a silent request, she had just waved him off and found her own comfortable seat.

“We received a letter from the Human Queens: they wish to send here one of their newest courtiers to meet with us. They didn’t mention for what reason, exactly,” Rhysand went on, picking up where his mate had left off, “but we’ll take our chances, given the latest events.”

Given the war still looming over Prythian; given what happened with Briallyn, and the powers Nesta lost and found anew; given the threat Koschei and his Fourth Dread Trove represented. They couldn’t allow themselves any failure or misstep, nor miss any given opportunity to gather new information or forge possible alliances.

The unspoken words were everyone’s first thought, Cassian could tell it solely on the look on their faces, but the air was thick and heavy with something else, something more. Something his High Lord and Lady weren’t eager to share.

“What it is?” He asked, looking to the couple standing across the studio.

Rhysand’s gaze hold his own for a few breaths but remained quiet.

It was his High Lady who spoke, her eyes fixed on a pair the perfect reflection of her own, just colder, sharper, “It’s Tomas.”

Cassian could have sworn Nesta’s heart missed a beat. His surely did.

Predatory calm washed over him as every muscle in his body went taut.

He breathed in, then did it again, trying and failing to keep at bay the surging fury already warming his siphons and the whole room with them.

“He’s not setting foot into this fucking Court.” Cassian failed to recognize his own voice, so calm and low despite the rage he was feeling.

Tomas Mandray.

The name wasn’t new to him.

It had left Nesta’s lips only once, but the cold restrain in her voice, the stillness in her very being, and the swallow she had to take after the dismissing “ex-fiance” bullshit told him everything he needed to know. He lived on top of a library filled with priestesses in white robes, after all. Had spent many years there even before he could call it his home, their home. And had learned to read between the lines.

That day he’d seen red like never before. Rhysand’s and Feyre’s voices had snaked in his mind, one after the other, asking what was wrong. He’d ignored both, shutting abruptly his mental shields. Nesta, as it was to be expected, had matched his temper just fine - her cold resolution the only thing that kept him from flying all the way to the human lands to hunt down the son of a bitch and tear him apart with his own bare hands, as if he were nothing more than a mad beast foaming at the mouth, taking down whoever got in his way if necessary. They had never spoken of it again, but his name was inked in his brain like the tattoos on his very skin.

“Who is Tomas?” Mor asked carefully, trying to ease the tension and bringing the conversation back to a common ground - or at least a ground where more than three people understood what was going on.

But Cassian was having none of it. “Someone who’s going to be dead soon enough.” His gaze was fixed on Rhysand, daring him. The High Lord narrowed his eyes at the challenge and his mouth opened to throw back a retort. Nesta beat him to the punch.

“Let him come.” Were her only words, laced with cold indifference. As if it didn’t matter, as if she didn’t care. Fucking lies.

“Are you kidding me?” He turned his face, looking up at her. He knew the fight they had avoided weeks before would’ve come back sooner or later, and if it was going to happen right there and then, under everyone’s attention, then so be it. He wouldn’t back down this time. Nor ever again.

“Drop it, Cassian.” Nesta didn’t even look at him, insisting instead on keeping her eyes down, checking her nails. As if this -him- wasn’t worth the effort.

His hand twitched and he felt his skin prickling like it was too tight for his body. “No, I don’t think I will.” He stood up, unintentionally shoving Nesta’s elbow in the process, and put as much distance as he could between him and- well, everyone.

“You’re making a scene for nothing.” Cassian turned to face her again, only this time she’d deigned to look at him. He almost wished she hadn’t, because what he saw in her eyes… They should’ve been over and done with it, yet there they were. Back on square one, apparently.

No, we’re not, he reminded himself.

“He’s not getting anywhere close to you.” His voice held resolution enough, but he still crossed his arms over his broad chest, ready to take whatever Nesta would throw at him.

If she rolled her eyes once more, Cassian could bet they would pop out of their orbits. He would have grinned at the reaction, at the slight sag of Nesta’s shoulder and the tension released from his own, if it weren’t for the decision yet to be made. How the hell did Tomas even manage to get the Queens’ favor? Not only that, he became their courtier as well.

Nesta’s exhale was loud and heavy as she stood, chin up and all, “We have to let him come here and play his stupid little game.”

“No, we fucking don’t. We refuse. We ask them to send someone else.”

“That’s the whole point! They’re doing it on purpose. They know, Cassian. There’s no other possible explanation. He must have sold them my-” she faltered, regret already shadowing her eyes at the realization of what she’d let slip from her mouth, quickly recovering from her mistake, “our past, and gained something from it. How do you think he caught the Queens’ attention otherwise? Chopping special wood for them? Please.” Nesta scoffed, the anticipation for what was to come painted on her face. “I gave him the power he thinks he has now, and by not agreeing on meeting with him we’re just proving his point: that he has something, that he’s worth something. I’d rather die than giving him the satisfaction.”

Gods.

She was standing a breath away from him now, and Cassian had to remind himself that he was, indeed, still mad about the whole Tomas situation and that they were, indeed, still in a room full of people.

That was the reason why their fights never lasted until the morning of the day after.

He’d taught her how to wield a sword, among many other weapons, but they did little compared to what her steel-will and that wicked mouth of hers were able to do. Places and situations like the one they were in - that was the battlefield she belonged to. And she was every inch a conquering Queen, posed and ready to guide her one-woman-army into war.

He forced his lips not to bend upward in a smirk, not to show his pride, the awe toward the female he had the honor to call mate and wife. Instead, Cassian dismissed her entirely, turning his attention toward Rhysand and Feyre instead, watching and listening intentionally like everyone else, clearly entertained. “Do you remember the days off I always refused to take? I do now. And so does she.”

Nesta tilted her head, narrowing her eyes at him. She was pissed. She was very, very pissed.

* * *

Nesta blinked away the recent memories of the day.

They managed to found an agreement - of which she was still bitter about - and moved on. The flight back home had been quiet, but as soon as they’d landed and she had glanced at Cassian’s expression, everything went downhill. Or uphill, it depended on the point of view.

He’d worn that insufferable smirk like a medal, and she’d wanted nothing more than to erase the smugness from his face. Either by fucking his brain out or kicking him in the balls. The second option, tho, would’ve given her immense but temporary joy, and it wouldn’t advantage her in the long run. So she’d gone for the first one instead.

They’d both ignored Azriel’s unnervingly kind request of keeping their business out of the dining room, at least. And the things Cassian had whispered against her ear, as she’d laid bare and writhing and begging-

Stop, Nesta.

Hours have passed since then, Cassian and Azriel both long gone - something was not quite right in Illyria if the Shadowsinger had to leave as well. She’d planned to ask Gwyn to keep her company but ended up doing otherwise, also because she knew a specific someone would have knocked at her door, sooner or later. Asking right away for an explanation, or pretending to “just talk” while trying to carve the truth out of her.

Who she sensed wasn’t exactly on her list of suspects.

She shut the book resting on her lap, standing and quickly reaching the door of the private library.

And there he was, the High Lord of the Night Court. In the middle of her hallway, his hands already tucked in the pockets of his finely made black pants and an expression she struggled to decipher on his face.

He just… Stood there, looking at her. She didn’t move, didn’t balk from his violet eyes, only stared back. And then she acted.

She closed the door at her back and headed for the stairs, hoping he would understand her silent invitation. He did, thankfully, and they walked in silence for a few minutes, climbing step after step. Once she reached the upper level of the House, she went straight for the wider balcony, where two wooden lounge-chair awaited, each one with a thin wool blanket. It wasn’t so far into the night to be needing them yet, but Nesta had no idea how long her brother-in-law planned to stay.

She took a seat, looking up at the stars already visible in the darkness above their heads, waiting for Rhysand to join her.

That he did not, choosing to stand instead. She couldn’t see him from where she was without twisting, and that realization settled something restless in her chest. That told Nesta they’d both end up needing the covers sooner than expected, and not because of the chilly air of the night.

“I didn’t know you went to the Wall for Feyre,” Rhysand said, finally breaking the silence. He had asked, then.

“She’s my sister.” They’ve laid down their weapons since Nyx’s birth, yet Nesta still found it hard to keep the harshness at bay when speaking to certain members of the family. But she was trying, at least, at that was still something.

“Not many expected you to do so, given the risks.” His voice was low, distant, like that was not at all the reason why he was there.

Because it’s not, Nesta reminded herself.

“Not even Feyre , apparently.”

She knew where Rhysand wanted to carefully lead the conversation without any spiteful retort getting in the way, but she kinda missed his word games and provocations, all made just for her to expose her neck so he could hit, aiming straight for the jugular. So Nesta got in his way, making sure their current conversation came to an end, and waited for his next attack. But Rhysand didn’t reply, so she waited some more, and more, and more. To Hell with him.

“Say it,” Nesta snapped. He clearly wasn’t in the mood for playing games, so there was no point in keeping this one going.

“What’s with him?”

There it was.

She knew it was coming - she literally asked for it, yet she found no words, no answers.

It was like she didn’t want to find the answers. Because saying the words out loud, Nesta knew, was admitting once and for all that it had happened. That it had been real, and not just a very vivid nightmare. One of her worst.

Her stare was fixed on the golden capital, lit by fires she knew burned until the first lights of dawn - and sometimes even after. Yet it was not light what Nesta saw.

It was the brown and the green of the trees; the pale, dirty skin of the hands tightly wrapped around her wrists, tearing at her dress, greedy for something that wasn’t theirs. Nesta flinched at the creaking sound near her, from the lounge chair Rhysand was now sitting on. He took his time to make himself comfortable, legs sprawled before him and ankles crossed; one arm resting on his lap as the other went behind his head, to give support. She watched it all under furrowed brows.

“The 50 years I spent Under the Mountain had been the worst of my entire life - and I’d lived a very long life. I’d made a lot of mistakes in the past, hurt a lot of people. Amarantha… She made sure I paid for all of it.”

He wasn’t looking at her, but at the glittering sky above, counting the little dots piercing through the dark. The same ones, she supposed, he hadn’t been able to see for so many years. Nesta suspected it was not stars what his eyes were beholding, as well. She looked away, too.

“I had to please her, to warm her bed every night, to pretend I was enjoying myself just as much as she was. Only she was not. What she truly enjoyed was the pain she knew I was feeling. The disgust. Amarantha’s whore. That’s who I was, who I had to be. That was the punishment I deserved.” Rhysand fell silent again, not turning or looking for a reaction, an expression. Never meeting her gaze as less and less time passed between a blink and the next.

Nesta inhaled quietly, feeling the weight of what her brother-in-law just told her. She was supposed to say something, that she knew, but what? Did the right words even exist? She could try to find them, at least.

“Did Tomas… Is he your Amarantha?”

She should have tried faster.

Breathe in, then let it go.

“No-not really. But he got close.”

It was her turn to look up, the stars now way more than before, and let them hear her secret. “I asked him. I made up an excuse and asked him first - to come to the Wall. He said no, of course, and laughed at me, calling me crazy. He said that if Feyre had been stupid enough to get through the Wall, to the Fae, then she clearly wasn’t worth the risks. He wasn’t even done talking when I decided that it was over, so I let him know. And when it was my time to say no he just… He didn’t care. At all. I managed to run away before he could… ” The words died out, stuck in her throat.

Almost five years had passed and yet she couldn’t bring herself to say his name without feeling sick. Maybe, one day, when she stopped pretending not to be affected by all that had happened, she would. She would say his name loud and clear, without fear, or nausea, or cold sweat. But for now, she would keep it hidden in the darkest part of her mind, hoping to just forget about it - about him.

“Who knows about it?” Rhysand asked, his voice leading her back to the present moment.

“You, me, him, and the stars.” Her answer was vague enough that, if she were him, she would’ve been fairly annoyed by it. Rhysand, apparently, was not. He was surprised by something else. “Wait- You didn’t tell Cassian?”

“I did not. The thing is: he knows, yet he doesn’t.”

In that moment, Nesta swore she could hear the gears turning in Rhysand’s mind as he said, “I think you lost me here.”

“When he first came into my house, back into the human lands, to dispatch the letters to the Queens, it took him all of one look at me to know that something -someone- had happened to me,” she said, recalling the memories of that day. How he had tempted and teased her; how she had played along, convincing herself she didn’t want to know how warm and soft and sure his skin felt under her touch, how tight his arms could held her. Ah, that damned day. “We never had an open conversation about him, but by now he must’ve already connected the dots and came to the same conclusion on his own.”

“You should tell him nonetheless,” Rhys went on. His tone was no longer the low, deep rumble of words it was before. Now it was even, at least. “He’s your mate, your husband. He cares about you more than life itself.”

“I know.” She really did. He made sure never to miss the chance to remind her, that tongue of his working its way around her in more ways than one. Yet, no matter how sure and light her heart felt, Nesta couldn’t bring herself to do it. “But I also know that it would destroy him - the rage, and the grief. The guilt. And I don’t think I can survive the look in his eyes, knowing that I’m the cause of his pain.”

Many times now she had debated whether to tell him or not. Every scenario ended the same moment she started picturing the shift in his eyes, the hazel turning dark and hard as rock, the predatory stillness of his form.

Many times now she hadn’t been able to look at his husband’s face for more than a few seconds.

Nesta’s voice had created a veil of silence between them, and Nesta’s voice had also been the knife that cut it open, as she shared her curiosity by asking, “Did you? Told them about what happened, I mean.”

The High Lord took a deep breath, “No, I didn’t, either.”

The eyebrow raise had been an automatic reflex. The pointed look? Not so much.

“You should, they’re your family.” Her words were honest, but she knew the turn the conversation was taking would end with both of them running toward the end of a cliff, jumping face-first into what awaited underneath.

Amusement shone in Rhysand’s eyes when he turned to face her. “How the tables have turned. Correct me if I’m wrong, but they’re your family, too.”

End reached.

“It’s not the same thing,” she huffed out, a loud exhale covering and muffling her words. Nesta knew the words she was willingly cutting out were a hard pill to swallow, but they still rang true to her heart.

They were not her family. Not in the way she imagined or wanted her family to be.

In her head, she wouldn’t have to hide or be ashamed of who she truly was; in her head, she wouldn’t have to give herself a pep-talk before meeting them for more than the brief, occasional rendezvous; in her head, she wouldn’t have to beg on her knees or save multiple lives at once to be forgiven.

Still, it didn’t mean they could never become one, someday. She was sure as hell willing to try. “They’ve been your family for 500 years. I can call them that since just a few months.”

Rhysand stared at her for very, very long seconds. She almost believed he was reading her soul. Almost.

One more and we’ll find out if red and violet are a match after I’ve stuck my fingers in your eyes, she thought.

You’re funny, Archeron.

She’d opened her mental shields just long enough for him to read her thought and give it an answer. A sarcastic one, even better. They were closed shut the second after.

“Still,” he stated, maybe a bit too loudly than necessary, bringing the conversation back outside their minds, “They are. We are.”

It was like they were switching turns, because this time it was Nesta who stared, head slightly tilted, letting the daemati in front of her picking up her train of thought even without strolling around in her mind. The slightest twitch of his dark brows told her he knew.

“So, you mean to tell me, that you find just and fair for me to tell them about what happened with Tomas, but not you opening up about Amarantha?”

Nesta didn’t need an answer. His hardly repressed eye-roll and the way he had to dart his eyes around, just enough to hide the annoyance at her -very fair, if she may add- point, were more than enough. “That’s what I thought, too.”

“Okay,” all Rhysand’s attentions were on her in an instant, a new intent lighting up his eyes,” let’s make a deal, then.”

Fuck.

“I will tell them about Amarantha,” Rhysand went on, clearly pleased with himself for the discomfort he was causing to her, “Only if you do the same about Tomas. With your sisters, at least.”

And Cassian.

The name never left his lips, yet it couldn’t have been louder.

Nesta added him to the list, anyway - in fact, she put him first.

What caught her attention the most, tho, had been the fact that Rhysand had been ready to put so much of himself, of what he’d been through, at stake. For her.

Nesta shifted in her seat, not stomaching the starlight violet any longer. She felt Night caressing her mental shields, purring, asking to get in. She let it.

You’re worth the risks.

She turned, the bones in her neck cracking with the fast motion, and stared speechless at Rhysand. She’d let him in her mind, yet the voice wasn’t there.

He’d said those words out loud, had made sure the stars heard them too.

Nesta filled her lungs with cold air, trying to recollect herself at best as she could and displaying self-control, or at least pretending she still had some.

“They’re going to send us their therapists’ receipt,” Nesta finally commented with a newfound lightness in her tone. She surprised herself with the swiftness with which she’d jumped between emotions that seemed so far away from one another.

The soft chuckle he gave in return was as much as she would get. That night was not for deep, belly laughs. That night was for healing what others had broken. To build anew.

.

.

.

taglist: @thewayshedreamed @bookstantrash @letstakethedawn @sayosdreams @starksravings @julemmaes @moodymelanist @duskandstarlight @iddragyouwithme @perseusannabeth

[squishmallow36]

Fedex headcanons please? (unless you’ve done so already :D)

Okay i've never done one of these before which is why it took so long. Also sleep. And school.

At this point i can't really tell the difference between something my brain cooked up itself and stuff i've simply adopted into my belief system. Also a lot of these are in kotlp

They're nerds, your honor. And yet somehow they have no clue what the other one is talking about. Dex is more chem and tech while I give Fitz more of my random geography and astronomy and history knowledge

If it can be made into a competition, it /will/ be.

They've been banned from playing kahoot because there may or may not have been fightinggg

It's their greatest joy in life to prove the other one wrong

Fitz is horrible at mario cart. Which is why they do not play anymore

One year they're tired of seeing the 'donate to wikipedia' things so they just send, like, an entire luster to the wikipedia people

Fitz stress bakes. So much. This boy is always stressed (fun times with gifted kid burnout) dex appreciates the baked goods but is constantly worried about him (i mean xe did pretty much raise xor siblings so it's not new to xem)

Xe/xem/xor dex!! My belovaed!

Fitz does /not/ understand what the xor is doing. Despite getting several explanations on why Dex did that. He just accepts it as fact and moves on in life

Okay--what if the vacker accent is like some sort of equivalent to a speech impediment and the reason fitz called dex deck is because his face just didn't want to make that sound and the reason he can say it now is because he felt bad and he repeated it over and over again instead of sleeping

Speaking of sleep--fitz gets up at like. 5. For fun. Dex has a history of staying up until 5. Usually it's more like 3 but you know hyperfixations can do that

Watching disney movies has just turned into being all gay for like prince eric (from the little mermaid) and shang (from mulan) etc. they bond over this fact.

Fitz would absolutely be reading dracula daily here in 2022. He would've decided Dex is a vampire because xe just doesn't go outside. Also the fact xe's a ginger also makes xem incredibly pale i would know i'm also a redhead

Fitz is a classical music nerd and a half. He plays name that tune with commercials. For fun. Dex on the other hand has every movie and game score burned into xor skull

Fitz occasionally forgets words and fills it with english words. Why? *shrug* words are difficult

Speaking of words being difficult, i think that's all i got. Not sure how good this is but eh it's fine

[villainess-supremacy]

headcanons of the four lords celebrating pride for the first time with their s/o

notes: you told them that it's pride month and asked if they would like to celebrate with you. none of them have ever celebrated pride before. I made the lords and s/o queer because I can

type: sfw, gender and sexuality of the s/o are not specified

tw/cw: slight mention of alcohol, blood, lgbtphobes

requests: open

Alcina Dimitrescu

her daughters have mentioned pride month before, but she's not sure what it entails exactly

you gladly explain it to her in detail!

she loves the idea since she is fruity herself loves celebrating for such a wonderful reason

you being part of it makes it so much better

and a whole month?? she's in

she would love to go to pride events with you, but she's afraid other mortals will be scared of her due to her height so you decide to just have your own celebrations in the castle

you love watching movies together so you show her all of your favorite queer movies and shows

you bought a pride flag to hang up below the balcony in the entrance hall

she loves the smile on your face when you proudly look up at it

"maybe we should extend pride to be all year if it makes you this happy, my love."

she already regularly gives you presents, but during the entirety of pride month she additionally leaves little gifts for you in your shared bedroom, the kitchen and all of your favorite places in the castle

and that daily

if there is any queer owned shop you like she will literally buy their entire stock

if there are any charities you mention she will gladly donate in your name and give you the certificate as a surprise

she realizes that something about June just makes her want you even more in general, in the private chambers, whichever is up to you wink wink

as a surprise she decides to make a special wine without blood of course named after you and your sexuality/gender if you use labels, but in fancy Latin words

she loves to drink, but of course watches over you so you don't have too much

mortals don't process it as well as she does...

if you come across any lgbtphobes and are noticeably saddened she will be there to distract you right away

everyone who dares to make her love sad will feel her wrath! be ignored since they're not worth her time

but if she finds out that anyone in the village doesn't support you or anyone who is part of the lgbt community, they will be forced asked to vacate their home

she will pamper you and shower you with her love even more

you once jokingly say "be gay do crime and turn maidens into wine" and she makes it her new motto but she's serious about it

Donna Beneviento

she knows a couple things about pride since she reads a lot, but you're so excited to tell her about it she simply lets you talk

you'd love to go to pride events with her but she's too shy and tends to have anxiety attacks when around too many strangers so she sends Angie instead

afterwards she will gladly listen to both of you tell her all about it!

she has her own collection of books that have queer characters in them which she never told anyone about before you and will read all of them with you if you like

there will be regular dates picnics while Angie takes care of the house

she's a cottage core sapphic and pride month brings out that side of her more

she has made dolls for you before, but this time she makes one that looks just like you

it has a pride flag embroidered on the top above the heart

of course you love it!

you're so glad that she accepts every part of you

she will make one of herself with a similar outfit and a small pride flag as well so she can set them up in couple settings

ever since she found out about online shopping it has opened up a whole new world for her so she will definitely get both of you matching outfits or jewelry from an lgbt owned shop

you love doing arts and crafts together so you suggest making bracelets for each other, either color coded or with letters

Donna's house has a flagpole she hasn't used in decades, but for you she'd gladly call for maintenance if it turns out it's unusable after all these years to hang a pride flag

anything to make you happy!

if there are any lgbtphobes bothering you or your friends, she will be right there to comfort you and won't hesitate to send Angie and her other dolls she can control to deal with them

even if you tell her that it's fine and she should just ignore them she's great at distracting you so you wouldn't notice until it's done oops-

since she has no portable device that can access music streaming platforms, but knows the password to your phone she decides to steal it for a bit and makes you the softest playlist that you since then often play for comfort

Salvatore Moreau

he has spent decades almost completely separated from humans so he has no idea what pride month means, but instantly agrees to it because he loves you so much

he will agree to anything that makes you happy

you both sit down and he looks at you with puppy eyes while you tell him all about pride

he loves the idea of celebrating a group of people you both are a part of

he thinks you deserve your own month to be cherished and celebrated!

he may be a little awkward with expressing his feelings, but he sure knows how to prepare a romantic dinner

with mother miranda needing all of the lords a lot to assist her, he usually barely has time to prep food, but for pride month he does his best to cook for you every single day

part of his usual outfit is a cape to cover his back and a type of crown made out of bones and rope

he's not the best with his hands, but he makes a crown for you that resembles his anyway because you're his queen/king/majesty

you love it so much!

you want to give him something in return so you go to the village and visit the shop you know is lgbt owned and get him a custom necklace with a fish pendant that has your initials engraved

he literally bursts out in tears because he is so touched :c

when you started dating he initially was scared of what you would think about his giant fish form, but you turned out to be really impressed and love it and since you'd be tiny compared to him he suggests taking you on an adventure of sorts

meaning you sit on his back while he swims around the lake which is like a roller coaster ride but more wet

he leads you to a hut you never visited before and he shows you treasures he has collected when he was still mortal

he starts making a list of things you could do and stays up all night to complete it but ends up with so many activities and ideas to celebrate pride you'll have to extend pride month... by possibly years....

if he hears about anyone being mean to you he'll just encase them into the blobs of gooey mass he can make but you don't need to know about that, pride month or not

he has always wanted to propose to you so he might be able to work up the courage to hint at it by the end of June

Karl Heisenberg

of course he knows about pride month!

he knows more than you might think

he isn't considered the rebel child for no reason

in the past he has done some celebration for himself, but it was never anything too special

he thinks it's no fun alone and his experiments servants aren't much fun

sure he could program them, but unless it's to attack something they're not really... party animals

since he has you now he'll gladly give it another go!

he'd love to go to pride events with you, especially if you go to drag shows

he didn't know about them before you made him go to one

something about them fascinates him so much, he's more excited than you

he's not really into cooking, but nothing will stop him from making you a nice breakfast in bed

you always love watching him work on his machines because he likes to take off his shirt when he's hot seeing him do what he loves makes you happy

so he decides to gift you some robots to assist you with your everyday endeavors

it's not really necessary but of course you appreciate the gesture

it means more time to spend with him after all

he once sees you with a keychain that has a pride flag on it so he paints it on one of his machines that he uses more often

mostly he will end the day by having a drink and dancing with you

it's a celebration, so celebrate he will

if you're more in the mood for chilling on the couch he won't say no to watching some queer shows or movies

after working on his machines he has a way of just melting into your arms

if he sees you smile at certain scenes in movies he might attempt to do the same with you

of course you notice, but you definitely can't complain especially if you smile on purpose at the spicier scenes

anyone who will come between you and happily celebrating pride will be visited by Sturm banned from his factory and getting anywhere near you

he likes to name his subjects so he will start naming them after all of your favorite queer historical figures, activists and famous people in general

any smile he can get out of you is a win

a win for the gays you might say

when he was younger he may have had a phase of spraying graffiti around the village so you're not surprised when he goes around his factory and writes "be gay do crime" on several of his machines and doors