#lionheart dies

[spinnysocks]

whitestorm is a great character, he could never do anything wrong! *Side glancing at multiple aus were he Does Something Wrong*

[one-real-wrimonkey]

I will live and die with my headcanon that Clover comes from Argus or at the very least that his family lives there and moved there when he was a child. It serves absolutely no purpose in terms of the plot (98% of the time) but is near and dear to my heart.

[knightsickness]

daeron the young dragons situation where grrm wrote he was remembered as a greatt king one of the best then in the histories elaborated that he reigned for like two years almost entirely killing people abroad and then died kind of very funny that IS what medieval people loved to see from a king. the more hes at home the more he annoys them the fewer frenchmen hes killing the more they resent paying taxes. welcome back richard lionheart

[softlypaintedseafoam]

one piece fic recs

because everyone else has fun listing theirs, so i wanna list the fics that changed my brain chemistry. there's some gen fics, ship fics, au fics and i'll be sure to included the ratings for each as well. beware anyone not fully caught up or at certain points in the story, there will be spoilers (but like... we should definitely talk about these recs together...)

gen

light up, light up by taizi (t)

“I have a condition,” Sabo says, sounding, to his own ears, disconcertingly like his father when his father is doing business. It might be that, more than anything, that causes Outlook to consider him thoughtfully. “I’m listening,” the man says. 

where ace is the brother that 'dies' after the gray terminal incident and sabo and luffy are left behind

and i'd know your face if i was drunk and blind and dead by solena2 (t)

Sometimes, Sabo wonders about who he used to be. He gets the chance to find out when he bumps into Fire-Fist Ace at a bar.

TAT the fix-it fic of all time where the brothers of all time get a chance to be with each other once again. this is canon, oda told me so himself

a tall tree, with roots like a newborn by chali (t)

A closer look at the immediate aftermath of Whole Cake Island, because Sanji went through some shit and it was not nearly addressed enough.

a fic where the sasuke sanji retrieval squad learn the full extent of the things sanji experienced in wci. they would have truly crashed out if they knew what all went on

rebase and rebuild by sinelanguage (t)

Sanji’s hands are blown off on Whole Cake Island. Franky builds him prosthetics, but Sanji has a much harder time adjusting to them than anyone expects.

a fic where reiju didn't swap out the cuffs and now sanji has to deal with the consequences featuring phone calls with zeff! as if that makes everything any less angstier

a mercy out of me by merikai (g)

“These,” Sanji replied dully, raising his arms. “Handcuffs.” “Handcuffs,” Luffy repeated.

luffy and sanji having a bonding moment post-wci's events

and then what by grayimperia (t)

Zoro becomes the world’s greatest swordsman and is directionless in more ways than one.

ft frobin post-canon fic where, with his lifelong goal finally achieved, zoro isn't sure what to do with his life next

lionheart by cyan96

Wherein thirteen year old Trafalgar Law and twenty-six year old Rocinante tumble sideways through time-space via the blue desperation of a newly eaten devil fruit, from Minion island to a future distant. Right, unwittingly, onto the submarine deck of a another Law shortly after Doflamingo’s fall.

the rosinante lives fic i was not expecting to come across but the power of dope fanart dropped it in my lap

zosopp

take care of you by strawberrycamel (t)

In which Zoro and Usopp can’t see what’s in front of them.

a zou fic where zoro realizes he can totally use minkship as an exploit to cuddle his crush whenever he wants and usopp panics about it

frobin

how to dance with you by grayimperia (g)

When you meet a girl as super as Nico Robin, you learn to make sacrifices. Or, Franky learns to waltz.

ft. lusan wanting to waltz with robin whenever the opportunity again arises, franky asks sanji to teach him how to waltz. of course, not everything goes to plant

between thoughts and steel by inked_spirits (g)

Nights on the Sunny are long when sleep refuses to come. Robin needs to deal with her memories, Franky gets a chance to show her that some wounds are easier to bear when carried together. Night talks under the starry sky are a perfect cure for insomnia.

post-enies lobby fic centered around franky and robin after the first date of all time

lawzo

seeing a lab about a doc by rollingchibi (e)

This is all Bepo's fault.

ft. lusan college au a/b/o fic with alpha professor law and his omega TA zoro. there are shenanigans and smut, what else does one need?

stages of affection by rollingchibi (e)

Looking at himself in the mirror, at the haunted skeleton that looks back at him, he knows—knows as easily as he knows how to run a wire into someone's heart to remove a blood clot, knows as easily as he knows the list of side effects for a pacemaker, knows as easily as how much of a headache Dr. Crocus gives him by simply breathing near him—that things need to change, that he needs to change.

ft. lusan, usokaya modern au. sugar daddy lawzo fic, send tweet. also, plenty of straw hat misunderstandings and the author also found a way to incorporate luffy and zoro's post-timeskip scars into the story... but at what cost

needling away by rollingchibi (t)

"Sorry—you here for an appointment?" Unfortunately. He should've just gone with Bepo to get coffee.

ft lusan, josaku, past zosan surgeon law wants to get his tattoos touched up... sadly he walks in on the tattoo artists' homies going off about how it's fucked his best friend is dating his ex

luzo

these small hours by maximumqueer

"‘Grief’ is a word Zoro never he thought would associate with his captain, and he feels a bit stupid for that. Of course Luffy would grieve Ace, would probably never stop grieving him. Zoro sure as hell hasn’t stopped grieving Kuina, the promise he made her held tightly between his teeth with every fight, a small empty space in his heart reserved for her."

ft namivivi remember that episode post-wano where the straw hats were worried about vivi and zoro brought up ace? yeah nami gives him a STRONG talking to about the insensitivity of that statement

deadhouse by yamatossenpai (m)

"And then Zoro saw it. The mob rushed through the streets like floodwater, dividing and conquering. The men and women were frenzied; their mouths hung open, their eyes wide and bulging. They tore at each other, or rather, the mob attacked anyone who screamed. The attackers were ravenous, barely human. “If you don’t wanna die,” Luffy whispered, “then we should run.”"

ft frobin, usonami modern zombie au no one asks for but we all secretly think about our faves being in anyway. definitely mind the tags on this one

zosan

warning signs by olgaphobia (t)

*unrequited zosan, endgame lusan zoro's perspective fic where his inability to be vulnerable and refusal to be taken care of leads to him fumbling sanji contrast to luffy who has been open about his feelings from day 1. takes an interesting spin on zoro's absence in wci. imagine fumbling sanji when he was actually romantically interested in you at one point in the story, i would cry

lusan

warning signs by olgaphobia (t)

The cook left, but you weren't the one to bring him back.

ft unrequited zosan, end game lusan zoro's perspective fic where his inability to be vulnerable and refusal to be taken care of leads to him fumbling sanji contrast to luffy who has been open about his feelings from day 1. takes an interesting spin on zoro's absence in wci. imagine fumbling sanji when he was actually romantically interested in you at one point in the story, i would cry

insatiable by codhya (g)

But then Luffy says, join my pirate crew. One look at that blinding smile and those wide, unfathomable eyes made Sanji hear the words for what they were. Be greedy with me. And Sanji, he finds that he is starving.

sanji introspection piece on being selfish and wanting

crack baby by sanjilockhart (t)

Luffy and Sanji's developing relationship and how Sanji felt when Luffy, quite literally, crashed into his life.

pre-timeskip baratie arc fic centered around sanji's perspective of the luffy recruitment process, aka sanji introspection piece on the horrors of being perceived and wanted

anchor by trixree (t)

It is said that dreams are shared between soulmates. Luckily, the Vinsmoke children do not dream. (Except, of course, for the failure.)

soulmate au where soulmates share dreams with moments that truly hit one in the feels with this one

easy as anything, simple as that by trixree (t)

“Luffy? What’s the matter?” “We’re gonna’ have a wedding,” he says incomprehensibly. Which—no. Absolutely not. Haven’t they had enough of weddings, lately? Nami's certainly had enough for a lifetime, thanks. “What are you talking about? What wedding?” she demands as coherently as she can while running on only two-and-a-half hours of sleep. “Mine and Sanji’s,” Luffy declares.

post-wci where hours after getting themselves to safety, luffy and sanji decide to have an impromptu wedding

a fine looking high horse by grayimperia (t)

The epic duel between first mate and captain’s boyfriend, involving pettiness, throw pillows, and a general inability to walk in another’s shoes.

zoro perspective fic where it turns out the new cook is also luffy's boyfriend. as it also turns out, zoro discovers he's not good at sharing

we both unsettled (shadow preachers) by senjuside (m)

Relationships are not easy. Luffy and Sanji are still learning how to sail thought their prides and fears, even after all those years.

post-canon married lusan fic where sanji deals with the drawbacks of a husband who still remains at sea even after retirement

love is a full stomach by b3rry_jam (nr)

Luffy doesn’t understand romance, but he knows he feels happiest when he’s with Sanji.

sweet and pure lusan fluff, 11/10

and if you still want me... by fizzyren (g)

Sanji gets a lil angsty in his head about Luffy after Whole Cake.

luffy being possessive and clingy post-wci my beloved

and i know where to look by mr_crowsnest

“Luffy, I’m cooking—” “It’ll wait!” Luffy interrupted, already pulling Sanji into the middle of the kitchen. “This is important!” Sanji stumbled, his protest dying on his lips as Luffy’s hands found his, their fingers intertwining with surprising care. Luffy’s grin was infectious, his laughter bright and unrestrained, and Sanji couldn’t bring himself to push him away.

fluff fic where luffy and sanji dance in the kitchen

[pinata-candy]

Into the Wild ThunderClan!! These are 'canon' world designs for me! I've been working on a personal rewrite for my own entertainment (mostly fixing the family trees) alongside my WOF rewrite, but these designs ignore my family tree and follow the canon one! -> Fire and Ice

Design details and explanations below!

Bluestar- I wanted her to be like. somewhat regal looking, somewhat serving. But I also wanted to try a like, reverse colorpoint? It didn't turn out how I pictured in my mind, might have to revisit

Redtail and Spottedleaf- they are twins to me, I wanted them to look similar no matter what, I really like how square I made them. I also wanted to drift away from overly like, fem spotted- I have no problems with people who make her design overly fem coded but I personally do not care for it

Lionheart- Is a lion

Tigerclaw- is a tiger. Tiger means orange. get Oranged boy

Whitestorm- silly old man to me. Colorpoint like his mama, I wanted him to be very whispy, like a storm

Darkstripe- I wanted to get like. sleezy king's advisor energy. I think I did a good job with that

Longtail- I wanted him to look like a serval! I adore Longtail

Mousefur- wanted her to look like a lil mouse <33

Runningwind- I wanted quick, whispy shapes like the wind (and for him to look like sand. Can't help myself. She's a runningred baby all day everyday to me) I added the eyelines that cheetahs have bc he's a fast guy!

Firepaw- CRINGE BABY!!! wanted him to look flaming!

Dustpaw- I struggled with him bc when I think of dust I think of like, dust bunnies and kinda fluffy shapes, but he isn't a fluffy guy! Though, dust bunny dusty sounds fun. Might have to revamp him lol

Graypaw- droopy and soft and friendly! Gave him cartoony friend eyes bc it felt right. Looks like his mama!

Ravenpaw- tiny, weepy little guy. He is so cute

Sandpaw-I wanted tough, sharp, and swirly bc of her storm warrior name, and when I think storm and wind I think of swirls!

Brindleface- ok, I know brindle is a kind of pattern but when I hear the world brindle I think of like, crinkly shapes? So I tried to make her crinkled somehow

Willowpelt- droopy like a willow! I know willows aren't purple but I associate the word with purple? So she's purple n green! I love her design

Speckletail- I admit, didn't have much thought on her. Just made her speckled

Frostfur- snow, frost, cold girl- wanted her to have awesome snow and winter vibes

Goldenflower- Golden flower = sunflower, she is a sunflower <33

Halftail- really no thoughts about this guy but I like his shapes

Dappletail- she gives me like. old wealth vibes. High class old woman who is kinda mean. Tried to get that across. Don't know why, I really don't even remember her beyond her weird 'relationship' with Stormtail and how she died

One-eye- I wanted to make her kinda sharp and tough

Smallear- Old man looking cat bc he is an old man <33

Rosetail- I want to draw a full body of her one day bc I can picture a rose looking tail in my mind but until then, she just is pink and heart coded

Patchpelt- wanted to try and make 'stitches' along his patches!

That's everyone- some of these cats I could picture in my mind, some not at all but this was so fun. I can't wait to do more!

[wanderingcas]

The Truth

tags: post-s12x02, mutual pining, case fic, truth spell, cas and dean use their feelings irresponsibly || rated: E || chapters posted weekly

Cas closes his eyes, touching a finger to Noah’s forehead. His shoulders slump, and he frowns. “I don’t sense any of the demonic residue that a possession would have left behind.” “Don’t sound so disappointed,” Dean scoffs.  Cas opens his eyes. “I want to find Lucifer’s trail. Is that so wrong?” “No. Just—this kid died from something. Are you saying it’s not a supernatural reason?” “I’m not saying that it isn’t, Dean,” Cas says carefully.  “Then look for another reason!” Dean waves a hand at the body. “Don’t just look for demonic stuff. Can you find anything else?”

read chapter 3 on ao3

taglist under the cut<3

taglist - let me know if you'd like to be added or removed!

@therighteousmanlovesanangel @genzchangeling @theythemst @choppedhoundfanprofessor @lizaintheduster @talking-raw @pansaremykryptonite @tongue-blisters @angels--twice--descending @anchaaquarii @doesntgiveafck @collapseddominos @meeshsen @fulltimesapphic @saturnalia21 @kaiteymae @wastlelandcomma-baby @doasyoudesireandlive @hereforthespncontent @pleaseraisemefromperdition @strawlessandbraless @rayraywillis @illusionremember @captainhaterade @thelorgoescrazy @eliaandarahew @sarahblakenatural @im-some-lionheart @eternallyeepymess @angelsdean @jollyjolly @samantha-lefay @4c-aperture @bragginball-z @rich-tree-pelican @greatworkbegins @starstuffatsea @were-makin-it-up-as-we-go @treezenith @shallowseeker @hoarderheart @queerdeans @thejellyfishlounge @letnervanarain @yfkmaifky123 @inadequatecowboy @mistymountainflop @inacatastrophicmind @babygirlstiel @that-willowtree @cactushugger @itstorming @farenmaddox @friendofcarlotta

@valleydean @isntalovestory @treaciel @sanndh @notreallyaroad

[himboblaze]

goldenflower being horrified to learn the man she trusted, the man she had kits with, the man she loved, attempted to murder her dear childhood friend, their clan’s leader.

goldenflower not being able to look bluestar in the eye after tigerclaw is exiled. she knows deep down she’s not to blame, but the idea she was so infatuated with a man who would soon attempt to kill for purely selfish and evil reasons haunts her to her core.

goldenflower feeling hollow and yet so full of despair, like a rock sinking helplessly into the river, when she receives the news that it was because of tigerclaw’s betrayal and jealousy that her brother died in that battle. that his and rosetail’s deaths were completely avoidable, and that her past mate was the reason they happened.

goldenflower feeling a deep, burning hatred, one hot enough to burn a thousand forests to ashes, when she discovers that swiftpaw, her firstborn son, someone who tigerclaw seemed to get along with so well, was torn apart by the dogs that tigerclaw lead into the forest. that her baby boy never got to become a warrior after he waited so long and tried so hard, all because of him, makes her claws ache, desperate to sink them into that terrible man’s throat.

goldenflower feeling so incredibly guilty, a feeling akin to being crushed by a hundred stones, whenever she looks at brightpaw. such a sweet, beautiful girl. her son’s best friend. inseparable, the two of them were. she looks at brightpaw’s disfigured face, chewed and spat out like a rejected play thing, and yearns for the life that was ripped away from that poor girl.

golden watching her sister tirelessly treat brightpaw, forced to become a medicine cat after falling for a cruel trap left for bluestar and feeling so hopelessly lost and confused. why would starclan punish so many cats with tigerclaw’s treacherous greed? why did cinderpelt’s dreams have to be crushed so ruthlessly? why did brightpaw have to suffer? why did swiftpaw and lionheart and runningwind and brindleface and redtail have to die? why was she cursed to fall in love with a murderer? why?

goldenflower staring blankly at bramblepaw, the only piece of her heart she has left, as her brings her fresh kill and encourages her to eat. her daughter is gone, left her without saying goodbye to join her father, for a reason goldenflower will never understand. she can only hope her dear tawnypaw is still alive. bramblepaw is all she has left, and cruelly, as if another terrible joke from starclan, he looks like a spitting image of the man she once loved.

goldenflower, who can only hope, with guilt and sorrow threatening to drown her, that her precious son turns out nothing like his father. that he will be kind, caring, compassionate, a loving mate, and perhaps even a wonderful leader. bramblepaw is old enough to make his own choices in life now, without his mother doting on him constantly. she can only hope, with all her broken heart, that he makes the right ones.

[mysterycitrus]

This is so stupid but I was wondering if you might have any Dick and Roy meta? I've always loved your meta posts about the relationships between the Fab Five and different characters and lately, I've been seeing a lot of those posts where people splice certain comic pannels with poems/sayings/inspirational quotes and things that match and I've been wanting to have more in-depth ideas of the relationship between Dick and Roy because they're just so interesting but I don't have the brains to come up with anything myself

when i think about dick grayson and roy harper i think about the trope king + lionheart — a burdened hero, and their loyal protector — and how they switch roles with each other. like two standout dickroy books are probably old friends, new enemies and outsiders (2003), and while they’re both initiated with roy reaching out to dick for help, his motivations are very different. i think that dynamic, and how they don’t fit solely into one role, is part of why i enjoy reading about them so much.

in old friends, roy is the king — he’s trying to track down chesire and find lian, and isn’t initially honest about his intentions. he’s struggling with his decisions, and his faith in himself. dick acts as the moral support, his backup, and also calls him out on his actions.

but their relationship is still loving. there’s a solid foundation of trust that makes dick want to support roy and protect his daughter, to the point that he and jade nguyen show a (very) begrudging respect to each other.

in outsiders, dick is the king — donna has just died, bludhaven is going to shit, and roy knows that he’s spiralling. roy is the solid support who convinces dick to lead a new team because he knows dick hurts himself through isolation. they’re both grieving donna and the loss of their team, but roy forces dick to reconnect again. he forces dick to care.

despite being the leader of the outsiders, dick is uncompromising in his loyalty in roy. he tells people to leave if they don’t accept roy’s authority in the team. after roy is shot, dick takes the same action as roy in the first issue — he brute forces his way into getting roy out of the spiral. he holds a gun to roy’s head and tells him to take it.

im a huge sucker for friends to lovers, but what i really love is two competent people with absolute faith in each other. i dislike the idea that bat-characters are like….. absurdly op and everyone is just in awe of them all the time, but dick’s reputation means that trusting someone the way he trusts roy is important. he watched his teammates die, he watched his sister die to save his life, and he still trusts roy to be there. roy historically has a bit of an inferiority complex about working with dick, but dick does not reciprocate. dick knows roy will be there when it counts.

there’s a particular kind of love that comes from mourning the same person during one of the worst times of your life.

the fact that the early tragedies in their lives are so similar, that they lost family and an idea of place at similar ages, were mentored by mortal men who wanted to do good, but still ended up so close but so different is really really interesting to me. u get to outsiders, and they really know each other in a really intense way.

truly like…. i would fall on ur sword because i trust u not to land the killing blow. to finish — something something gay people

[hurtspideyparker]

Underrated MCU pairings

Happy Hogan and Peter Parker: THIS is the grumpy & sunshine trope you need. This is the MCU's Eleven & Hopper. The Ellie and Joel. While everyone was mooning over irondad Happy Hogan was putting in the WORK. Let's have some appreciation for this man and the way he took care of Peter in FFH and NWH. Also the scene where May dies and you can see Happy's heart break not for himself but for PETER. It was breathtaking, thank you Jon Favreau

Tony Stark and Natasha Romanoff: They give big "my ex is gay so now we're just besties" energy. And the fun thing is you can choose which one is gay! They will most definitely be gossiping in the back of the room. Yes they are judging you. Yes they are hotter than you. Yes they say "I hate you" constantly and yes, that actually means "I love you" for them. People forget that other than Clint and Nat these two have been friends the longest in the Avengers. They hurt each other badly because they know each other, and they forgive because they care

Clint Barton and Wanda Maximoff: Clint being a dad in MCU is surprisingly fitting and the way he recognized that Wanda was just a hurt kid being used as a pawn and helped guide her was fantastic. The "you're an Avenger if you step out those doors" speech in AOU? Glorious. And in Civil War when he comes to rescue her from the compound and holds her hand like AH I don't even have daddy issues and I'm looking at Clint like "papa 🥺". Plus the respect and love shared for Pietro was really moving: "Nathaniel Pietro Barton"

T'Challa and Steve Rogers: Both born leaders, they have an incredible understanding of the duty and responsibility they each shoulder. Such a natural respect and trust between people who may not have much personal history, but share the same lionheart. T'Challa trusting Steve with Wakanda's secrets was special, and showing up time and time again for him. Plus the "someone get this man a shield!" before the Infinity War battle was the cherry on top

Anyone to add?

[howlingday]

Blake: Your majesty, it is time...

Ruby: Hm? What do you mean, Blake?

Blake: I believe this is the ideal moment for you to carry out the prior king's dying wish. Before Ozpin died, he said in his will that he wanted you to continue the silver-eyed lineage, and to always be happy. He believed you could accomplish both in the pursuit of love and choosing a consort.

Ruby: I REFUSE. Remnant is still divided, even after the death of the Brothers and Salem. Everyone is still bickering with each other, and they're all creeps who only see me for my eyes.

Blake: But... It's been ten years since the war ended. The kingdoms are uniting, slowly but surely! I am sure there is someone who-

Ruby: I SAID NO.

Blake: (Thinking) 10 years since the war ended... and ten before that was when the war started! I still remember when I fought by her side, and she killed General Ironwood, exposed Headmaster Lionheart, and took her rightful place as the Ruler of Silver Eyes. When I first met her, she was such an innocent girl, but now she's fearsome monster...

Blake: I'm... I'm sorry, your majesty. Please, (Hands over sack) take this and forgive me...

Ruby: What's this?

Blake: It was something new I found in my travels. Please accept this as my apology. The creator called it... "cookies".

Ruby: (Bites into one)

Ruby: ...BLAKE. WHO MADE THIS?

Blake: A... baker made it. He served in the war-

Ruby: BRING HIM TO ME. NOW.

--------------------------------------------------

Jaune: (On his hands and knees) Your majesty, forgive me! I promise to never make food that displeases you ever again!

Ruby: Are you single?

Jaune: Er... Y-Yes...?

Ruby: Good. Then from now on, you will be my spouse. Also, from now on, you will be granted the title of "LORD OF GREAT COOKIES".

Jaune: WHAT?!

[kandadze]

FoF rewatch ep 5-6: Zhuo Yichen and Zhuo Yixuan (gifs and loose thoughts)

It might be because I'm an only child, that I tend to gravitate towards sibling - whether by blood or found - relationships. One of my favorite books growing up was Astrid Lindgren's "The Brothers Lionheart." I'm more likely to watch a show if it has an ensemble cast of characters who are in all sorts of familial and otherwise close situationships (hello, FoF). (Must also be why I finished watching My Journey To You the first time - due to my morbid fascination with the absolutely dysfunctional, codependent, borderline incestuous and in general fucked up dynamic between the eldest and the youngest of the Gong "brothers"... not sure what that says about me lol)

Back to the Zhuo brothers.

I loved Zhuo Yixuan the moment he appeared in ep 5 (and not only because I have a soft spot for his actor). I do realize that we get an idealized version of him, seeing him only through the eyes of someone who loved him and then lost him too early, and I still think he was a remarkable guy.

I believe that he can be considered one of the biggest influences on who ZYC is as a person. (The other one would be WX, but that's a whole separate post.) As far as the Zhuo family goes, we know there was a father, but even though he is mentioned, it's never by name, and he never features in any of ZYC's memories, either - which makes me assume that he was a father just by title, and not very close with either of the brothers.

As for their mother, we were told that she died when ZYC was little, so I imagine ZYX himself was a teenager at most at the time. Now imagine this young boy, having just lost his mother, and with barely any support from his father, not only raising himself, but also becoming a whole-ass family unit (mother, father and brother) to his Xiao-Chen. And, even allowing that ZYC's memories only show us the best moments with his big brother, seeing what we can of ZYC's character, I think ZYX did a spectacular job.

He's most likely the reason why ZYC, even socially awkward and shy, draws people in - whether demon, half-god, or human child that's a little bit of both. As long as someone doesn't pose an active threat, he just does his best to do what his big brother used to do for him - asks questions, listens patiently, responds from his personal experience and to the best of his ability. ZYX didn't ridicule him for having nightmares or being scared to dream; he reassured him and then looked for ways to help. ZYX didn't force him into making connections with other children when it was clear it was too painful; he did his best to be there when it mattered and let nature take its course.

There's that scene in later eps where ZYX does his sword training while ZYC entertains himself in the vicinity. It's obvious the brothers enjoyed each other's company, but also had their own pastimes and commitments (the nightmare in ep 6 starts with ZYC doing his own training while ZYX is away). There's the scene with ZYC trying on that delicate golden headband, and ZYX teaching him what it meant to wear one (made me think of a book I read years ago, which featured an apparently Anglo-Saxon tradition of boys up to a certain age wearing a headband woven with 7 strips of white cloth for pretty much the same reasons as ZYX explained to ZYC). He clearly taught his baby brother some sound principles.

I'm also assuming that ZYX was quite lonely himself. In ZYC's memories he's of age to marry and have a child, but there's no other family around that we can see, or that would get mentioned. ZYC must've intuited that, asking ZYX if he's the same as him - as in, misunderstood, and lonely, and his big brother just smiles and doesn't answer, clearly not wanting to burden him.

He instead shares what I think was what he got from being born into Bingyi line - a gift of foresight. I might be reaching, but in my mind ZYX foretold many events in ZYC's life - meeting ZYZ (the "anomaly," that ZYC will recognize not with his eyes, but his heart! The Truth Eye parallels are everywhere...), meeting like-minded companions, waking up the Cloud Light Sword... He seems to have hoped for all the best for his baby brother, not for himself. Which again, makes me emotional at just how good of a man he was, and how he helped ZYC to become someone who's not afraid to be open and soft, who's able to change his mind as new information presents itself, who's emotionally intelligent and does his best to see the world clearly.

We'll never know what would have become of the brothers had ZYX survived, but I believe that if he could see his Xiao-Chen now, he'd be very very proud.

[onyxmagica]

I'm honestly so obsessed with @greenerteacups Lionheart, i dis a v quick sketch, but will resume character sheets soon XD

[knightsickness]

what did you mean when you said that joanna would do some lion in winter stuff with jaime

if its the lion in winter part ur asking about, its a play about eleanor of aquitaine, henry ii, and their three sons that she’s trying to persuade to kill him (especially her darling eldest boy richard lionheart). if its what i mean by lion in winter, i mean that i think joanna, if she’d survived tyrion’s birth, would have a) badly fallen out with tywin, who (no longer able to just add ‘killed joanna’ to the list of tyrion’s crimes in his head) would blame her for tyrion + convince himself that she’d birthed him to embarrass him on purpose b) distanced herself deliberately and immediately from tyrion, clinging instead to her westerosi ideal boy as her avatar to use against tywin. particularly given that we know when she died she was already both aware of their relationship and looking into separating jaime and cersei in a way that would fling cersei miles away and keep jaime in casterly rock i think they would have been playing out eleanor and richard dynamics

[greenerteacups]

Hi GT. I hope this message finds you well. I am sending all the good vibes and we'll wishes your way! ♥️♥️♥️ I hope you've had a wonderful summer.

I'm such a big fan of your work. Lioneheart is amazing and has stuck with me for such a long time.

I was wondering if you had any other stories you'd like to explore one day (even if you never get the chance to write them.) Whether it be fanfiction or original work, I was just curious because sometimes I feel as if I have hundreds of stories inside that I could tell, and I am not sure how to pick just one and see it to completion.

First of all, thank you! This is a fun one. I have a few enduring ideas for longfics I may or may not ever write (i.e., ideas that would have been projects already if I didn't have an ongoing longfic). I don't get stuck in them mostly because I try to remind myself that the idealized story you imagine when a concept occurs to you will never actually exist as it does when it's unshackled by the constraints of execution. What you'll get if you actually sit down and hack it out is (1) a real and imperfect piece of writing, and (2) the satisfaction of having written it, which is by far the more reliable source of motivation, if we're being honest. That being said, here are some ideas I've always wanted to explore, if and when I finish Lionheart:

I've always wanted to write a longform canon-divergent Tomione fic about Tom Riddle's 7th year at Hogwarts. Big honking political melodrama ft. the original Knights of Walpurgis, a Triwizard Tournament, and realistically functioning time travel (hence why this one's always been kicked down my list of projects, because writing a time-travel plot is like running through a minefield made of trampolines). I've already got character concepts sketched out for the Hogwarts cast — sooooo many fun ideas for the teenage Walburga. But I'd still need about a week of solid fic preproduction on the plot alone before I was ready to boot up and start writing, and it'd take at least 250k words — closer to 300k, if I'm being honest about myself. So this probably won't see the light of day anytime remotely soon, if ever.

A canon-compliant Dramione war fic, diverging from the Malfoy Manor chapters in Book 7, picking up from a speculative thread I read once about what would happen if the war didn't end after Voldemort died at the Battle of Hogwarts. I've always thought it would be fascinating to see who Hermione and Draco would become if they were actual soldiers in the war (and my disappointment with how Book 7 handled the "war" of it all has been established). That being said, Book 7 of Lionheart will probably give me a lot of similar ideas to chew on, so I don't know what my appetite for this one will be once I'm finished with it.

Durmstrang AU. This one's barely a fic concept so much as it is a mental moodboard — I just want to worldbuild the hell out of Durmstrang. And the international wizarding world, generally. It's a delicious sandbox.

A longform canon-compliant fic or series of fics about the previous generation of Blacks (Sirius/Bellatrix/Narcissa, namely). If you look at the books, there's a huge amount we don't know about the fall of the Blacks. I always found it bizarre that the sisters and Sirius seem to be the only ones left by 1995. No one else has a claim? No one else from this all-powerful wizarding family wants to step in and claim this big honking townhouse in the middle of London? Or its attendant fortune? Dude, what happened? Also, we don't see nearly enough of the Black family melodrama in canon. They lose 4/5 children of a generation in the span of almost single decade. And then (presumably) all of their parents die in the span of another. Goddamn. Just imagine the character work you could do there.

A No Chosen One/Voldemort Wins (The First Time) AU where Hermione never gets her letter, and meets Draco much later in life as a self-taught witch. The dynamics I have in my head for this are really enjoyable, and it would be a chance to finally write Hermione POV, plus the Draco I've cooked up for this universe is [chefs kiss]. I also just love the idea of Hermione as a feral witch-child running around muggle London. I love it a lot.

[hadesisqueer]

Going from crying during Yang and Raven's talk and Yang breaking down at the end to being just like 😐 while Lionheart dies to crying again while Blake reunites with Weiss, Ruby and Yang and they hug

[artaintfart]

The last of those ship requests (or most of them) from b4 my arm temporarily died LOL!!

Whitestorm/tigerstar I for @violentshine

Whitestorm/lionheart for anon

Nightheart/blazefire for @rollysoly

Sunbeam/bayshine for @quiverpaw

Reedwhisker/brambleclaw for @justweirdassfan