#long time pro

[sneppu]

huhuhu look at this little Sneep test animation I made!! He's being brewed while he sleeps!😭he's so baby in there. Not me finally being motivated to animate again for the first time in 10 years purely because I felt The Overwhelming Need™ to boil Sneeps at 3am. (if you click on it, it's nicer quality! stare at the Sneep!)

u could say that i was,,,, cookin

[short-wooloo]

I feel that now, in light of certain things, is a good time to note that a red lightsaber is not in of itself proof of a sith

Jedi and sith are not the only Force cultures that use lightsabers, they're simply the most common, more than that, a red lightsaber is just a lightsaber with a corrupted crystal, not something unique to the sith, any dark sider can do that, as we see Dagan Gera do, actually he is in fact an example of what would probably be the most common example of a red lightsaber wielder in the pre-movies era, a fallen Jedi, someone who already had a lightsaber and corrupted its crystal after falling in order to symbolize their break from the Jedi

All of this is to say that the Jedi are not being foolish/arrogant/head in the sand/blind/etc if they don't automatically jump to "SITH!" upon encountering someone with a red lightsaber

[thegoldenelite]

I saw this PICTURE a while back, and it's haunted me ever since. So I went digging around, and I found this reddit post. It's the DDT roster depicted as anime girls!

DDT did a collaboration with a flash game called "Ring ☆ Dream". So these are official! The game was about managing a women's wrestling promotion

(this game is no longer available to play).

Kota Ibushi

Konosuke Takeshita

Tetsuya Endo with Mad Paulie

Daisuke Sasaki

Michael Nakazawa

The rest is under the read more!(Long post under the cut)

Kazuki Hirata

Antonio Honda

Shigehiro Irie

HARASHIMA

Toru Owashi

Masahiro Takanashi

Ken Ohka

Yukio Sakaguchi

Makoto Oishi

KUDO

Keisuke Ishii

Akito

Soma Takao

DJ Nira

Cherry

Yoshihiko

Sanshiro Takagi

Danshoku Dino(Dino is topless but you can't see anything lol)

[gentil-minou]

This is the dumbest argument I've ever heard

I can't think of any hobby more wallet friendly than picking up a pencil and paper. Like this is just plain stupid.

Also, I'm not an artist and I don't have drawings skills, but sometimes I paint little watercolors for myself and I have fun even though they look awful, and that's the entire point.

Also also, since I can't draw and I still want to share my ideas, I write. And yeah it takes practice but THATS THE POINT. There's so many genuine ways you can share your ideas with the world.

Hell, model with clay, act out a dumb video, draw stick figures, do whatever. I promise all of that is a better rendition than a program that isn't actually intelligent and is just giving you results based on keywords like a glorified search engine

Just say you want recognition for something you stole and didn't care enough to put the effort in and shut up

[dukeofdelirium]

and I know that the world needs him, but doesn’t he know how much that I need him, too?

[velidewrites]

ACOTAR x Castlevania Character Sheets: Part 1/6

Rhysand “Dracula” Tepes 🩸🦇

Last year, @damedechance, @shadowisles-writes and I started watching Castlevania together and lives were changed. Today just so happens to be @damedechance’s birthday and I wanted to celebrate her by gifting her this AU! This is part 1/6 of this little story, and I hope you enjoy it just as much as I did making it.

Happy birthday, @damedechance!! I’m so lucky to call you my friend. You’re a beautiful person inside and out, and your talent knows no bounds. Everyone seeing this post is legally obligated to go wish her a happy birthday and report back to receive a smooch.

[pigeonxp]

ok now that bt is FINALLY bones, all i really have to say is fuck yall for real. there are some of yall that arent that bad, but the overwhelming majority of you guys are actually fucking awful. i have had twitter mutuals be harassed by yall, i have had friends harassed, ive seen people i dont even follow being called horrific things and insulting their appearances, and so so much more. one thing that really sticks out is the blatant misogyny that some of you guys present. the amount of men that have gone online and confidently called women bitches and sluts and whores and cunts and hoes is genuinely fucking deranged, and i hope you all know that. there have been bt stans in my replies and my inbox and in my business, telling me that IM in the wrong for stating my opinions on the weird ass shit theyve been doing, telling me that they "dont feel welcome" in this fandom, and that they feel like this fandom is toxic and etc etc etc etc I DONT CARE BRO. i have said it once and ill say it again and again. some of you guys are just not meant to be in fandom spaces. there are block buttons for a reason. you can block people and tags and literally everything under the sun but you continue to SEEK OUT shit that makes you mad or that you dont agree with just so you can hate on the OPs in their replies. you dont seem to understand that people can have opinions on what characters they like and what ships they enjoy, and that other people have the right to criticize them. i am NOT sorry and i will NOT apologize for how i may have reacted. i do NOT feel bad for you. we all told you that this wasnt going to last, the showeunner said it wasnt going to last. the ACTOR said it wasnt going to last. and instead of using critical thinking skills and media literacy training, you got tattoos for this ship, you spent hundreds of dollars on cameos from a nepo baby, and you spent days of your lives hating on and harassing people over a FICTIONAL TV SHOW. instead of being upset at LFJR for leading yall on, you attacked oliver stark for being "biphobic"??@?!?!??!!??!÷*×(!&×,@ for having an opinion on his own character, especially after he spent time becoming genuinely one of the biggest bisexual allies i have ever seen. after he told reporters that he was planning on playing buck as bi anyway, after he made post after post saying how excited he was for bucks storyline, and after he advocated for this character he loves so dearly. you jumped down his throat for no reason. i have absolutely no sympathy for you. i really do hope you follow lfjr back to SWAT and i truly hope he gets every single line and every single scene just to keep him off of my fucking screen. 🫶

[karmaliciouslife]

My fellow elriels will be letting out the biggest, nastiest I-TOLD-YOU-SO's when Elain's book is announced and I won't even blame them.

[canonkiller]

do you consider your self made?

[sctumsempra]

severus definitely spends breaks/summers so high he’s in a different realm. it’s not alcohol so it’s not triggering and it gives the not connected to your brain or body most autistics and people with shitty childhoods look for. and there’s no way he doesn’t deal with chronic pain or migraines on a regular basis so once he found weed it was game over. also smoking on ur back porch while the sun is setting is so peak that i genuinely think it might fix him a little bit

[angelsdean]

I need people to understand how S&P (standards and practices) works in television and how much influence they have over what gets to stay IN an episode of a show and how the big time network execs are the ones holding the purse strings and making final decisions on a show's content, not the writers / showrunners / creatives involved.

So many creators have shared S&P notes over the years of the wild and nonsensical things networks wanted them to omit / change / forbid. Most famously on tumblr, I've seen it so many times, is the notes from Gravity Falls. But here's a post compiling a bunch of particularly bad ones from various networks too. Do you see the things they're asking to be changed / cut ?

Now imagine, anything you want to get into your show and actually air has to get through S&P and the network execs. A lot of creators have had to resort to underhanded methods. A lot of creators have had to relegate things to subtext and innuendo and scenes that are "open to interpretation" instead of explicit in meaning. Things have had to be coded and symbolized. And they're relying on their audience to be good readers, good at media literacy, to notice and get it. This stuff isn't the ramblings of conspiracy theorists, it's the true practices creatives have had to use to be able to tell diverse stories for ages. The Hays Code is pretty well known, it exists because of censorship. It was a way to symbolize certain things and get past censors.

Queercoding, in particular, has been used for ages in both visual media and literature do signal to queer audiences that yes, this character is one of us, but no, we can't be explicit about it because TPTB won't allow it. It's a wink-wink, nudge-nudge to those in the know. It's the deliberate use of certain queer imagery / clothing / mannerisms / phrases / references to other queer media / subtle glances and lingering touches. Things that offer plausible deniability and can be explained away or go unnoticed by straight audiences to get past those network censors. But that queer viewers WILL (hopefully) pick up on.

Because, unfortunately, still to this day, a lot of antiquated network execs don't think queer narratives are profitable. They don't think they'll appeal to general audiences, because that's what matters, whatever appeals to most of the audience demographic so they can keep watching and keep making the network more money. The networks don't care about telling good stories! Most of them are old white cishet business men, not creatives. They don't care about character arcs and what will make fans happy. They don't care about storytelling. What they care about is profit and they're basing their ideas of what's profitable on what they believe is the predominate target demographic, usually white cis heterosexual audiences.

So, imagine a show that started airing in the early 2000s. Imagine a show where the two main characters are based on two characters from a famous Beat Generation novel, where one of the characters is queer! based on a real like bisexual man! The creator is aware of this, most definitely. And sure, it's 2005, there's no way they were thinking of making that explicit about Dean in the text because it just wouldn't fly back then to have a main character be queer. But! it's made subtext. And there are nods to that queerness placed in the text. Things that are open to interpretation. Things that are drenched in metaphor (looking at you 1x06 Skin "I know I'm a freak" "maybe this thing was born human but was different...hated. Until he learned to become someone else.") Things that are blink-and-you-miss-it and left to plausible deniability (things like seemingly spending an hour in the men's bathroom, or always reacting a little vulnerable and awkward when you're clocked instead of laughing it off and making a homophobic joke abt it)

And then, years later there's a ship! It's popular and at first the writers aren't really seriously thinking about it but they'll throw the fans a bone here and there. Then, some writers do get on the destiel train and start actively writing scenes for them that are suggestive. And only a fraction of what they write actually makes it into the text. So many lines left on the cutting room floor: i love past you. i forgive you i love you. i lost cas and it damn near broke me. spread cas's ashes alone. of course i wanted you to stay. if cas were here. -- etc. Everything cut was not cut by the writers! Why would a writer write something to then sabotage their own story and cut it? No, these are things that didn't make it past the network. Somewhere a note was made maybe "too gay" or "don't feed the shippers" or simply "no destiel."

So, "no destiel." That's pretty clearly the message we got from the CW for years. "No destiel. Destiel will alienate our general audience. Two of our main characters being queer? And in a relationship? No way." So what can the pro-destiel creatives involved do, if the network is saying no? What can the writers do if most of their explicit destiel (or queer dean) lines / moments are getting cut? Relegate things to subtext. Make jokes that straight people can wave off but queer people can read into. Make costuming and set design choices that the hardcore fans who are already looking will notice while the general audience and the out-of-touch network execs won't blink and eye at (I'm looking at you Jerry and your lamps and disappearing second nightstands and your gay flamingo bar!)

And then, when the audience asks, "is destiel real? is this proof of destiel?" what can the creatives do but deny? Yes, it hurts, to be told "No no I don't know what you're talking about. There's no destiel in supernatural" a la "there is no war in Ba Sing Se" but! if the network said "no destiel!" and you and your creative team have been working to keep putting destiel in the subtext of the narrative in a way that will get past censors, you can't just go "Yes, actually, all that subtext and symbolism you're picking up, yea it's because destiel is actually in the narrative."

But, there's a BIG difference between actively putting queer themes and subtext into the narrative and then saying it's not there (but it is! and the audience sees it!) versus NOT putting any queer content into the text but SAYING it is there to entice queer fans to continue watching. The latter, is textbook queerbaiting. The former? Is not. The former is the tactics so many creatives have had to use for years, decades, centuries, to get past censorship and signal to those in the know that yea, characters like you are here, they exist in this story.

Were the spn writers perfect? No, absolutely not. And I don't think every instance of queer content was a secret signal. Some stuff, depending on the writer, might've been a period-typical gay joke. These writers are flawed. But it's no secret that there were pro-destiel writers in the writing room throughout the years, and that efforts were made to make it explicitly canon (the market research!)

So no, the writers weren't ever perfect or a homogeneous entity. But they definitely were fighting an uphill battle constantly for 15 yrs against S&P and network execs with antiquated ideas of what's profitable / appealing.

Spn even called out the networks before, on the show, using a silly example of complaints abt the lighting of the show and how dark the early seasons were. Brightening the later seasons wasn't a creative choice, but a network choice. And if the networks can complain abt and change something as trivial as the lighting of a show, they definitely are having a hand in influencing the content of the show, especially queer content.

Even in s15, (seasons fifteen!!!) Misha has said he worried Castiel's confession would not air. In 2020!!! And Jensen recorded that scene on his personal phone! Why? Sure, for the memories. But also, I do not doubt for a second that part of it was for insurance, should the scene mysteriously disappear completely. We've seen the finale script. We've seen the omitted omitted omitted scenes. We all saw how they hacked the confession scene to bits. The weird cuts and close-ups. That's not the writers doing. That's likely not even the editors (willingly). That's orders from on high. All of the fuckery we saw in s15 reeks of network interference. Writers are not trying to sabotage their own stories, believe me.

Anyways, TLDR: Networks have a lot more power than many think and they get final say in what makes it to air. And for years creative teams have had to find ways to get past network censorship if they want "banned" or "unapproved" "unprofitable" "unwanted" content to make it into the show. That means relying on techniques like symbolism, subtext, and queercoding, and then shutting up about it. Denying its there, saying it's all "open to interpretation" all while they continue to put that open to interpretation content into the show. And that's not queerbaiting, as frustrating as it might be for queer audiences to be told that what they're seeing isn't there, it's still not queerbaiting. Queerbaiting is a marketing technique to draw in queer fans by baiting them with the promise of queer content and then having no queer content in said media. But if you are picking up on queer themes / subtext / symbolism / coding that is in front of your face IN the text, that's not queerbaiting. It's there, covertly, for you, because someone higher up didn't want it to be there explicitly or at all.

[sneppu]

I really will just ship anything so long as Severus is part of it, won't I? I dont care who it is, as long as The Sneep is loved. Like please, won't someone just love this creature and mean it.

[sysmedsaresexist]

Wait until you all learn about Dr Jamie Marich

I'm shocked they haven't been brought up yet by pro endos

Anti endos are going to lose their minds in the worst way

[prodigal-sunlight]

What do u have against ai? :(

How much time do you have?

1. Generative AI is trained on the works of artists and writers without consent or compensation. It’s literally stealing from actual people. And no, it isn’t “learning like a real person” because it isn’t a real person. It’s a program that is incapable of creating anything new of its one. All generative AI is built on theft by corporations from small independent creators.

2. It uses considerably more power than most other current technology. Like, arguably it is worse for the environment than NFTs. The amount of water it wastes is absurd, the uptick in energy usage is absurd.

3. Corporations are salivating at the chance to cut creative people out of products. They don’t want to pay people for their work because they don’t respect art and artists. As long as we live under a capitalist system, people need to be able to own what they create and be able to provide for themself with their own skills.

4. The misinformation and disinformation generative AI can cause and has ALREADY caused is insane. People have had their faces and voices stolen without consent or compensation. People can generate believable deepfakes of politicians and social figures that will degrade the truth and potentially even damage our already messed up political climate. How would you feel if someone posted a realistic video of you praising a product you never bought? Or vouching for a politician you hate? Or saying you think all gay people should die?

5. This one is just personal, but I don’t care what a machine “makes.” Creativity is special to me because it lets you see the world through someone else’s eyes. Art of all kinds—writing, art, music, roleplay—is a kind of communication. I want to communicate with people, not an inanimate object mimicking what a person would be like. The joy of art comes from creation. Reducing it to only consumption is a disservice to all humankind.

Certain scientific fields have genuine uses for other kinds of AI, and I respect that. But Generative AI is built on theft and disrespect; at best its used for shallow art that someone didn’t care enough about to make themself, at worst its used for scams, disinformation, and stripping away even more of people’s rights.

I legitimately believe there is no current ethical uses for Generative AI. Will there be one day? Its possible, but I honestly find that unlikely. For now, though, if you are pro Generative AI, please unfollow me.

I may not be the most talented artist/writer out there, but I have enough self-respect that I don’t want people who see me as replaceable by machines engaging with my creative works. I put a lot of time, passion, and love into my work. Someone who sees that as equal in worth to something an algorithm spat out in five seconds is not welcome here.

[seriousbrat]

How do you think others perceived Lily and James' relationship once they started dating?

Many people seem to believe the main obstacle was that Lily hated James, but both the author and other characters clarify that this wasn’t true. It’s more likely that she found him too immature at first, but not that she actually hated him.

What I like to focus on, however, is the idea that the real challenge in their relationship may have been tied to blood status and the societal pressure that came with it. I can see how some people who weren’t purists themselves might still harbor biases against Muggle-borns, leading them to distance themselves from them in an attempt to evade the attention of real purists. People might see it as foolish for these two to be together. Others, especially those who had crushes on James, might wonder why he would choose a Muggle-born when he could easily be with someone who is half-blood or pure-blood. The most extreme ones would gossip and say hurtful things that no teenage couple would want to hear.

It’s been mentioned multiple times that Harry, at his core, takes after Lily. We see how he broke up with Ginny to protect her, so I can imagine that, while Lily may not have wanted to break up with James in the same way, she might have been hesitant to enter relationships. During the time they lived in, being friends with a Muggle-born is one thing, but dating one is another.

There isn’t much information about the Potter family, but James’ black-and-white woldview likely came from them. To him, you’re either opposed to blood purity, or you’re on the wrong side. The Potters have a long history of being open toward Muggles, and there’s some great meta on Tumblr that explores James’ grandfather, Henry, and his support for Muggles during World War I. The theory suggests that if Henry lived in Godric’s Hollow, surrounded by Muggles, he might have formed friendships with them and watched as generations of men he knew were lost to the war. This could explain his disappointment with the Wizengamot’s ignorance to Muggle suffering. That frustration may have carried over to his son Fleamont, who later passed it on to James. Therefore, I think that James's parents were more familiar with Muggles than Weasleys, and that's why they had no problems with Lily

Another thing to consider is that Lily and James were asked to join Voldemort when they came of age, which in wizarding society is 17. This would place them in the latter part of their sixth year at Hogwarts. While it’s harder to pinpoint exactly when Lily was approached (and even more puzzling as to why Voldemort would recruit her), we know from the prequel, set in 1977, that James and Sirius were already being pursued by Death Eaters at that time.

On a subconscious level, James likely felt a sense of security in his status, which would have been completely shattered by the attempt to recruit him, especially since Voldemort had a habit of killing those who refused him. Moreover, it would be a harsh blow for him to realize that the Death Eaters even thought someone like him could be persuaded to join them.

the real challenge in their relationship may have been tied to blood status and the societal pressure that came with it.

I mean, I think this was something that was definitely operating on some level in their relationship, as well as class-- the Potters were very wealthy, while Lily was from a working-class Muggle family. I think these two things caused some difference between them and possibly some friction or argument, but I don't think it was a HUGE challenge in their relationship, exactly.

I had another anon mention recently that they thought Lily would have been very careful around dating purebloods because of her Muggle-born status (and I didn't address it because my reply was long enough lol) but I don't see this as particularly true, honestly. Not for how I see Lily's character-- generally trusting, determined to see the good in others-- but also not for the way I think the general culture at Hogwarts is in canon, even during the first war.

Similarly, I sometimes find it a bit exaggerated in fics when everyone at Hogwarts, including Gryffindors, Ravenclaws, and Hufflepuffs, openly despises and shuns Lily for being Muggleborn and goes around insulting her. Not only do we know she was popular at school, personally I think that's also a bit of an oversimplification of what we see in canon. That's not to say bigotry didn't exist among non-Slytherins; I'm going to try and explain this as well as I can because I think it's quite complex, and also quite complex to portray.

The way bigotry against Muggle-borns functions in mainstream wizarding society appears to be in general quite subtle, largely rooted in apathy and a sort of seemingly "benign prejudice," the "Cornelius Fudge Mindset," if you will. Unless you're in a very particular pureblood supremacist context, it's not socially acceptable to openly call someone a Mudblood, as we see in the Gryffindor team's reactions to Malfoy using the slur in CoS. Your average Hufflepuff is likely not going to be actively hostile towards Muggle-borns-- remember that those three houses include and have always included plenty of Muggle-born students.

Ernie MacMillan and Hannah Abbott, both purebloods, are very fierce in their defence of Justin Finch-Fletchley in CoS. In OotP we learn that Ernie's family, who definitely lived through the first war, has similar views to his, which is where he probably learnt them. I think simply growing up in a house alongside Muggle-born kids helps with this immensely.

Open bigotry has festered so acutely in Slytherin because Muggle-borns are NOT allowed to be sorted into the house (ik people differ on this but I understood it as the Hat physically cannot sort them into Slytherin by design.) Any half-bloods like Snape probably learn quickly to downplay their Muggle side.

As I said, though, bigotry still exists, even among non-Slytherin purebloods, and the subtle nature of it doesn't make things any less difficult for Muggle-borns. I brought this up in my fic when a pureblood girl on the Gryffindor team, who has a crush on James, can't understand why he'd date Lily because 'they don't have anything in common.' But James has to drag this confession out of her, and she's (rightly) very, very ashamed of herself immediately upon expressing it in public. And this sort of prejudice can be much harder to see and combat, because it usually goes unspoken. It exists, though, and it's the reason why anti-muggleborn propaganda was accepted so easily in DH. (though per Arthur, not by everyone- most are just too scared to do anything about it.)

Many purebloods might assume that Muggle-borns are less talented at magic like Slughorn does, but I think most normal people wouldn't generally say this to a Muggle-born's face, and on some level they'd recognise that this belief is shameful (as Slughorn appears to do: "You mustn't think me prejudiced!") Even if they believe it, it would simply be impolite. These people wouldn't consider themselves bigoted, they might even have Muggle-born friends and colleagues. But ultimately they wouldn't do anything to actively address the struggles that Muggle-borns face (especially out of fear during the war,) nor would they stop to question the world around them. They might not question, for example, why Muggle-borns are passed over for job opportunities, because it works in their favour.

After the Ministry coup in DH, Voldemort puts a great deal of effort into a propaganda campaign against Muggle-borns, but this hadn't been done previously, at least not on that level. As I said, he's able to take advantage of existing "mild" prejudice very easily, which is precisely what makes it dangerous. But even during the first war, I don't think Voldemort's or the Blacks' view on Muggle-borns was supposed to have been the mainstream-- not at Hogwarts under Dumbledore, and not wholly at the Ministry either-- and I think expressing such views publicly would be generally considered impolite. Outside of Slytherins, I don't get the feeling that admitting that you think Muggle-borns and purebloods shouldn't date would be very socially acceptable at Hogwarts, even if it's what you secretly believe. Now, obviously Slytherins would be saying this, but at the point that James and Lily got together, they're not setting much store by what any Slytherins think.

James is VERY openly pro-Muggleborn, as is his family, as is everyone he surrounds himself with. He and Lily were both popular, they were Head Boy and Girl, so largely due to social pressure (also knowing how strongly James and Sirius feel on the subject and how jinx-happy they are) I'm not sure that many Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs, or Ravenclaws would really dare comment, especially not to their faces.

All this being said, I can imagine certain people, maybe even acquaintances of the Potters, thinking that Lily's 'taking advantage' of James for his wealth and the safety of his pureblood status, especially as she probably wasn't working while in the Order. I will actually deal with this in my fic too, though it appears to have more to do with class than blood status. Of course, we can't forget that those things are in many ways intertwined in the wizarding world, so there is an underlying bigotry there even if it's not intentional. I can definitely see Lily struggling with this a bit, especially because James would be more than willing to support her financially and buy her things, which might make her uncomfortable. And James not really understanding this (because he wants to make her happy and has never struggled with money himself) might be a bit of an issue, but one they can overcome I'm sure.

I know this reply is already incredibly long, but I wanted to say that, like you, the fact of Voldemort trying to recruit Lily has always puzzled me. I've dealt with it in a way that makes sense, I think. Perhaps if Voldemort really wanted James onside he'd realise that James wouldn't join without Lily, so he made a concession, especially since Lily is also a capable witch herself. I've no doubt it would have bothered James to be asked, but his immediate reaction was probably to loudly, clearly, and angrily refuse, and to spit in Voldy's face basically. I had a lot of fun writing that scene actually heehee

[marriso1]

Part one:

Severus Snape wasn’t the gift giving type, even in his youth the amounts of time he’d spend shopping for such had been very little, dwindling down to searching for only one for the majority of his school years. Thus, Severus was greatly befuddled when beginning to christmas shop for Harry. The child had been taken in by him at the young age of ten, after the discovery of how horribly his relatives had treated him. He hadn’t personally shopped for really anyone in awhile, let alone a child.

The malfoys had revoked his gift giving rights to Draco the moment he’d been born, claiming that he wouldn’t be able to match a gift to their standards. This didn’t bother Severus as they were most definitely right and thus didn’t mind once they forged his name down on a present they picked themselves.

So, there stood Severus in the middle of Hogsmeade without the slightest idea of what to do. Severus needed to make sure the gift he got for Harry made up for the many years he went without. He refused to return home without securing the best for him. Severus decided to think about the things Harry had taken an interest in, DADA, magical history, art, and unfortunately quidditch. He had gotten some books pertaining to the first two. Two focused on the research to be studied surrounding the subjects while another set he had bought were more childlike flip books, including nicely drawn illustrations and glittery pages. Severus decided on buying Harry a sketchbook with graphite and watercolor supplies. He ended up buying several different sketchbooks as they came in different sizes and had particular uses. The art supplies were the best he could find, nothing professional as Harry was very much a child, but nice nonetheless. Severus decided on getting Harry a broom, nothing too complicated, but with add ons to provide Harry with more safety. Harry was ten after all. Severus mainly just hated seeing him in any kind of pain, so he was naturally nervous about him being so infatuated with quidditch.

Severus had felt quite satisfied with what he had gotten Harry, and yet he hadn’t felt as if his duty was complete. He felt as there was something else he needed to get for him. Something that surpassed the gifts according to his likes, he needed to buy something of greater sentimental value. Severus was more practical, relying on ethics and such rather than emotion, especially in his later adult years. Yet, he knew exactly what he should get for Harry.

Severus found himself wandering down a toy isle, and there lie the perfect option. A stuffed bat that smelt of rosemary, by the looks of the stuffed animal it had been handmade, it was beautifully crafted. As the two had grown closer, Harry had begun to tease Severus, remarking that he was like a giant bat. He found himself fondly thinking of Harry’s progress so far. When he had first been introduced, he had been quite quiet, flinching at every raised hand, tiptoeing through the house. Harry had worn a solemn expression. An expression that had quickly faded as he got used to Severus. He had become quite loud, which Severus hadn’t minded and would only not mind if it was Harry. You could hear his footsteps from a mile away. He’d practically climb on Severus now, as Harry saw him as his outlet for comfort. Again, Severus didn’t mind that Harry’s main love language seemed to be physical touch, nor that it had been him to receive it. Of course, it would only be Harry who would be allowed to hug him, or lie next to him as a storm raged on outside. He thought of the bat as the perfect present, as it was symbolic of how far he had come and how much he’s grown into his own person, not the shell he was molded into. He had also taken into an account that Harry was quite clingy, so the stuffed animal also serving as a reminder of Severus would serve as extra comfort. Although Harry had become comfortable with Severus, he had still ways to go with others, particularly adults. Most kids had tormented or avoided him, seeing him as what the adults would whisper about him. Adults however, were far more harmful. It took a lot of self control not to deal with Harry’s relatives himself.

Suddenly, on top of all his previous gifts, Severus had found himself shoveling a treacle tart, a fine selection of winter sweaters and jackets, a variety of wizarding toys, and a gingerbread house kit into his inventory, along with several types of wrapping paper. He found that he wasn’t frustrated with the hole the venture had left in his wallet.

He was however, appalled with himself, especially the night he set the gifts out. He had gone into the trip with getting a singular gift in mind. The christmas tree which he and Harry had picked and decorated had what looked like a mountain of gifts piled under it. He wasn’t regretful of the gift amount of course, as he couldn’t see Harry’s first real christmas going any other way. Or any future ones for that matter. The warm feeling brought upon him couldn’t smother the desolate feeling when thinking about Harry’s past christmas experiences. He had been forced to watch his relatives open their luxurious gifts while he’d been gifted the likes of tissues. No matter what it took, Severus would make sure to always have gifts prepared for Harry. It hurt him to know that Harry would never enjoy the belief of Santa claus. Petunia had him wrap his cousins presents since his was quite young.

It was early christmas morning and Severus heard Harry’s footsteps come downstairs and freeze as he made it to the living room. He turned to see the child’s mouth wide open, his face portraying a state of shock. Severus had waited until the night before christmas to put the gifts under the tree.

“What’s all of this doing here?” Harry questioned.

��It’s for you, Harry. You didn’t think you’d go without some gifts today could you?” Severus answered.

If it was humanly possible, Harry’s jaw dropped even lower. He walked over and stood in front of the tree, taking in the sight before him.

“Some?” Harry teased.

“All of this. All of this is for me?”

“Yes, every single last one.”

He watched fondly as Harry opened every single gift, gasping at the unveil of each present. Severus watched his smile grow even bigger once he mentioned the treacle tart in the kitchen. You couldn’t imagine his surprise when Harry had went upstairs to return with exactly eight different christmas cards. Each with their own unique designs and individual passages of writing. He was wished about several Merry Christmases. Harry explained that he couldn’t choose just one. Severus had his favorite of the cards, of course. It had been the one featuring himself and Harry. It had detailed how much Harry’s life had changed since moving in with Severus, and how happy he was to have him. It remarked adventures the two had gone on, and some of their favorite memories made together. He could feel his expression soften once more, a smile forming on his lips. He gently thanked Harry and went to grab a purposely hidden present under the tree.

Severus watched as Harry had unwrapped it. There was no reason to explain the gift as the moment Harry had seen the stuffed bat it was as if he understood immediately. He watched a little notice escape from Harry’s mouth before his eyes began to fill with tears. Severus reached for Harry, who had welcomed the embrace immediately. Severus tightly held Harry, knowing that if he’s done anything right, it would’ve been this. He had realized nothing had made him Happier than seeing his boys face light up the way it did today. It was as if the sun itself been in the same room as him.

As they both grew older, Severus found the people he needed to christmas shop for increase. He’d been granted gift giving rights by the Malfoy’s again. He’d couldn’t also help getting trinkets for each of Harry’s friends besides Draco. Books for Hermione, chess sets and candies for Ron, trinkets for Luna, herbology equipment for Neville, wizarding robes for both Draco and Blaise. Being a parent sure had made severus soft. No matter whose presents had entered the area under his tree, the majority would always contain things for his son.