#meansgirl

[schmem14]

 5 Underrated HP Ships (+ Recs!)

@lumosatnight thanks for the tag! I love this! Read Lani’s list HERE

1. Hermione Granger/Remus Lupin

I know what you’re thinking, didn’t Remus make this mistake with Tonks already? And what about Sirius?? (I HC Wolfstar for sure) BUT If Remus were attracted to women, I think that this age gap ship makes more sense than Remadora. I think it has a lovely, erudite feel to it. Hermione needs someone who will challenge her, and Remus needs someone to ground him when he gets insecure (as we know he does.)

Recs: 

Those Who Can, Teach by @inlovewithforever (E, 12.4 k)  Sixty Minutes by @mightbewriting (E, 5.4 k) 

2. Draco Malfoy/Neville Longbottom

This is such a NICHE ship that embodies one of my favourite dynamics--the Slytherin/Hufflepuff relationship. I know Neville is not a Hufflepuff, but he has a lot of those personality traits. He’s soft, thoughtful, and quietly assertive. He’s a good-natured teddy bear who won’t necessarily let you walk all over him but is honest and forgiving in the purest way. Enter post-War Draco, made surly and self-deprecating by his downfall. He’s jagged around the edges, unwilling to accept love willingly. He just needs someone to coax him out of his prickly shell. 

Recs: 

The Ugly Duckling and the Peacock by @vukovich (E, 12.3 k) All This and Heaven, Too by meansgirl (E, 103.7 k)

3. Pansy Parkinson/Percy Weasley

A HOT combination. I almost don’t know how to describe these two. Neither get a lot of love in canon because they’re both intense people in unpleasant ways, but when they’re older and a bit wiser, these traits make them the ultimate power couple. Pansy likes to get under Percy’s skin, and Percy loves playing mind games. These two are also the ones I most picture having a forbidden romance (yes, there’s a rec for that!) Also, Percy is totally a Slytherin in lion’s clothing. That was an incorrect house placement for sure. 

Mile End by @pacific-rimbaud (E, 8.3 k) The Secretary by @pacific-rimbaud (E, 45.9 k)

4. Pansy Parkinson/Luna Lovegood

This ship took me by surprise during the Rare Pair Fest last year, and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since. I see Pansy as someone who is boxed in by expectations, repressed pain, and fear. Luna is the opposite. She’s free-spirited, otherworldly, and she feels everything with her whole soul open to it. It’s a beautiful pairing with lots of healing potential. 

Landlocked, Oceanbound by @nanneramma (T, 7.4 k)

5. Draco Malfoy/Ronald Weasley

Don’t slam the breaks just yet, and hear me out. These two are so dynamic that this ship could go ANY WAY YOU WANT. Throw Harry in there, and you have some peak tension and jealousy and love triangle perfection. Maybe a humbled Draco finding that Ron is actually quite lovely? Or, Draco composing an entire song titled Weasley is our King (the Drarry obsession potential could indeed to extended to include Ron)? Or, forced proximity homoerotic hate fest? OMG, I am all in. Bisexual Ron is one of my new favourite HC’s, so I’m adding as a sub-pairing that Draco/Ron/Hermione is surprisingly delicious. I read this one brilliant fic and then sobbed because I want MOAR of them and it doesn’t exist. 

A Weasel in the Hamptons (has a sequel!) by @peachpety (E, 15.4 k) The Evergreen Game (this is THE Draco/Ron/Hermione that made me go feral) by imaginarium_imperfecta (E, 57.2 k)

Tagging @vukovich, @nanneramma, @the-francakes, @mugsdontlie, @holygnocchi, @broomsticks to do your own list if you’re feeling inspired <3

[heyjude19-writing]

HP Rec Fest: Day 9

Today's prompt from @hprecfest : a rare pair fic

Fic: All This and Heaven, Too

Author: meansgirl

Pairing: Neville Longbottom/Draco Malfoy

Rating: E

Why I rec this: I hadn't given much thought to dreville as a ship until I tried this fic and yup, it works and I need more exploring the potential for this dynamic. A beautiful, healing fic.

[mystrade-reading-club]

Reading schedule for March 2024

The lovely @ewebie did all the hard work to set up the reading schedule for March, which is the AU month, and she managed to combine them so we'll discuss ALL THE FICS!

Sun Mar 3rd:

The Hayloft (Chapters 1 - 18) by @ewebie AND

The Chills That You Spill by @meansgirl

Sun Mar 10th:

all of The Hayloft

Sun Mar 17th:

Then Let Us Love (Chapters 1 - 9) by @the-toad-in-your-piano AND

Fluid Dynamics by @stellacartography

Sun Mar 24th:

all of Then Let us Love

Sun Mar 31st:

Praise Worthy by @ewebie AND

Paradise Street by @mottlemoth

April will be for Mystrade Mondays so start thinking of fics that would meet this theme!

[percyjacksonfan3]

Heyyyyyyy lovely how are you? Read any good fic lately?

Hello my dear! The answer to this is always of course, though I've been pinwheeling through different pairings and fandoms (though what else is new) because I haven't had a hyperfixation since Good Omens :(

I'll list a few from different recent fandoms. My bookmarks tend to be more mature or explicit ratings and longer fics because I love a good established dynamic

Mystrade (Mycroft Holmes x Greg Lestrade from BBC Sherlock)

I've been reading for these two since October now so there's definitely a few for them.

Paperback Writer by meansgirl

Rated E and totaling 82 265 words, this was an awesome fic where it's technically still canonverse only Greg is secretly an erotica author who just so happens to be Mycroft's favourite. So then of course Mycroft finds out.

Human Remains by Saziikins

This series lives in my head rent free and is so wonderful. It's canon compliant and a very slow burn of Mycroft and Greg getting together and then making a relationship work. Rated E, it's got 3 works in it and totals around 900k words, but the second work is a retelling of the first from Mycroft's POV instead of Greg's.

Pater Noster by manic_intent

Another rent free series, this one is Mystrade but set in the Good Omens universe where Mycroft is a high ranking demon and Greg a lower tier angel. So of course after being brought together a very human Sherlock, they fall in love. Eventually. I adored every bit of it, there's 3 works numbering at 26k words and it's so much fun.

Which brings me to some other recent goodies....

Ineffable Husbands (Crowley x Aziraphale from Good Omens)

Ah, my beloveds. I only listed three here but I have a ton of bookmarks saved for them that I am only too happy to share, should anyone need some recs

Not For All My Little Words by mia_ugly and soft_october

Rated E and about 8k words, this is set post season 2 and is Aziraphale and Crowley's reunion and apology.

you're not a religious person (but) by isozyme

Some snippets of Aziraphale and Crowley over the years. Historical fics for these two are some of my favorites and this fic takes us through some great moments to post season one. Super cute, rated M and nearly 20k words.

post-professional endeavors by darcylindbergh

A look at Aziraphale and Crowley figuring themselves out in retirement, as told from the POV of their poor realtor and other humans involved. I love outsider POV fics and this was top tier. Rated T and about 9k words, it was extremely cute.

Some honorable mentions:

What Spring Does with the Cherry Trees by riosnecktattoo

If you're in the NBC Good Girls fandom you'll probably already know this author, because everything they write is phenomenal, but this fic was lovely. A friends to lovers AU for Beth and Rio that still kept the original characterizations, I can't recommend it enough. Rated E, about 77k words.

Curse of the Green Hag by Moorishflower

A Xedgin fic for DND: Honour Among Thieves. It's a fuck or die curse fic with just enough plot for me to be invested. Edgin is great, Xenk is great, and the smut is great. Enough said. Rated E, 16k+ words.

The Veretian Flytrap by Just_Another_Day

A Dament fic for the Captive Prince fandom, this fic is a great twist on the canon story if Damen and Laurent were an Alpha/Omega pairing. Super in character and has all the greatness of the trilogy itself, I loved it. Rated E (obviously) and is 176k+ words.

Alright, I'll wrap it up here, but I hope there's something in here that interests you! If you want anything more specific (a certain fandom, pairing, rating, etc.) then just let me know and I will have another list for you asap <3

Anyone else with some good fic recs feel free to drop them in the replies or reblogs :)

[johannadc]

I was just thinking it’d been too long since I did a Mystrade fic find! Thanks, @etrebko for the excuse!

I think you're looking for "Paperback Writer" by meansgirl. https://archiveofourown.org/works/22367914

It suits your description and it's a great read! It's marked 10 of 11 chapters, which gives me hope that there will be the promised epilogue still, some day, but what's there is utterly satisfying.

(Also, the late part where Sherlock fusses at Lestrade, saying, “I have a child. You have a Mycroft.” -- so funny and lovely.)

I went looking for pictures of "Rupert Graves with a book" to symbolize the author role and I could only find young pretty Rupert, so enjoy.

Hey, uh, so, does anyone know the name of a Mystrade fic where Lestrade is a writer of romantic novels and Mycroft finds one while stuck in an airport (?) and proceeds to read them all? Read it ages ago but can't remember name or author. I do remember it was multichapter and on AO3. Help please??

[gadovegano]

ROXENNE OF LOVE AND HATE - ESFJ

the claymore's mean girl

Extroverted  Feeling(dominant, FE): Roxanne is amazing at the ability to connect with other people (as standard, her ability with yoke is similar to her most striking feature: a synchronization), this ability to read how emotions creates an engaging relationship bond (here is the part of love in the nickname) with whom she wants to learn a technique. The Ability to analyze the emotional state is a useful tool in combat, using this against the opponent to destabilize and also understand what bothers you. The unique charisma that becomes very convincing, enough to set an entire organization against its rival, which alone in series almost impossible for her to win, as well as used to make her opponents scared. Roxanne has very marked traits of manipulation, mainly negative dissipation in other people, she maintains this attitude even after awakening since she was more developed in her cognition than her companions.

Introverted Sensing(auxiliary, SI): Roxanne mimics her companions to evolve, as soon as she becomes interested in some technique of her companions she uses her FE to connect with her, until she understands how it works and assimilates with her SI how her colleagues fought. She records each movement, in what situation it should be used, what mechanisms are behind the technique and finally what deficiency it supplies, SI is attentive to the movements themselves, which greatly facilitates the learning of manual techniques, as soon as all of this is recorded she abandons her colleague and goes in search of new techniques. Everything that has been seen before does not surprise her because she already has something to do recorded in the references of her SI, and everything that is new is quickly added and then worked on so that there is an answer like what happened with the Twins. Her SI built a path that she must follow, being the only claymore in the series to have some kind of personal goal to be fulfilled, approach number 1 and learn her technique and thus become number 1.

Extroverted Intuition(tertiary, NE): Roxanne's NE is the cause of Hatred in her nickname, from the moment she learns something, the desire for novelty arises, the feeling of being bored is the driving force for the new and different. Being under the 2 other functions Roxanne keeps on using everything she has learned, using her NE to have fun and escape from forever. During her battle with her awakened rival Roxanne ended up falling in the FE-NE loop because, her rival had a big change that she neither expected nor had experience to reference, the uncontrolled use of Ne gave her weakness, the lack of reference to SI. Testing various possibilities to try to pick up nuances already known to your opponent during the battle without success was the first mistake she made and also the answer on how to defeat her.

Introverted  Thinking(inferior, TI): Roxanne has a good use of her IT even though she is inferior, she is able to understand what a strategy or technique is and why it is, but unable to create, so she copies techniques already known and mastered. In her awakened form, her lack of TI skills is striking, since in this state she does not have allies to help her or practice enough to draw conclusions or form strategies on how to deal with a situation, something that her opponent, who uses TE quickly. realized and exploited effectively, his weak TI caused that even having better and more powerful weapons, he was defeated for not being able to use them in battle.

[mierlilith]

[checkpleaselibrary]

a floorplan (of my head and heart) by meansgirl

teen and up audiences

no archive warnings apply 

8 894 words

completed

eric bittle/jack zimmermann

“Dickey,” Coach rumbles, appearing in the doorway with a frown pulling the corners of his mustache down. “You better come quick. Where’s your phone?”

Bitty’s hands are still wet as he stands in his parents’ den and watches his husband’s career come to a screeching halt.

[checkplease-fanfic]

Author: meansgirl Rating: gen Status: Complete Length: 1182

A short ficlet about Jack telling his parents about Bitty - the conversation mentioned in Junior Year #13 - Riverside.

[faisu23]

Discretion Discreet Discrete – Discretion Meaning – Discrete Examples – Discreet during a Sentence. So first meaning discretion to be tactful the second meaning of discretion is the freedom to decide what to do in a situation so you can act at your discretion you decide what to do now notice the ad. #discretion #discreet #Discrete

[catsgethigh]

MORE CLIPS. Second photo are some cute lil boxes and cuff braclets I’m going to start making for you all. These are just the prototypes. Lastly I custom made some #meansgirls earrings for Tara! More to come! Thank you for supporting GLITTERTRAUMA. #resin #resincasting #diyjewelry (at Michigan City, Indiana) https://www.instagram.com/p/CmcxkQCr2dJ/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[kaths221b]

Christmas Fics!

5687 (Approximately) by prettysailorsoldier

When John's leave request for Christmas is denied, Sherlock is nothing short of devastated, not that he's letting it show. The holiday season now something he's just waiting to end, Sherlock doesn't think anything can possibly make it worse. That is, until he realizes no one in his life believes his army "boyfriend" is even real, but, luckily, everyone is in for a surprise.

All I Want For Christmas by Mssmithlove

Taking Sherlock's platonic university flatmate home with him for Christmas can be a tricky business. Especially when he wishes their relationship wasn't platonic at all.

John Watson's Twelve Days of Christmas by earlgreytea68

It's the holiday season. John Watson needs money. Sherlock Holmes needs something else.

Need vs. Want by Goddess_of_the_Night

Sherlock needs John to pretend to be his boyfriend for Christmas. John has always preferred to be wanted rather than needed, but there's some disagreement between them on the actual difference.

Dropping the Act by jadztone

Sherlock and John are quite happy living together with Rosie in Baker St. They might be even happier if they didn’t act towards each other like their love is only platonic. Mycroft brings troubling news in the form of Mary’s parents wanting to know just what their grandchild’s home life is like. The boys decide to spend Christmas pretending like they are in love in order to seem more like a "normal" family. It's easy enough to pretend when all you're doing is dropping the act.

Tomorrow by Berty

The night before they travel to Dorset to spend Christmas with Sherlock's parents and John's wife, 221 Baker Street is peaceful with the smell of baking, flickering candles and presents under the tree. But Father Christmas can't be relied upon to bring the boys their heart's desires. Just as well Mrs Hudson - who is NOT a fairy godmother OR their housekeeper, thank you very much - is so good at her job.

Untitled Christmas Goose Game by meansgirl (Mystrade)

Greg should have known better than to say the phrase ‘I’ll owe you one,’ to Sherlock Holmes. This was his own fault, really. After four years, he really ought to have learned by now. But Greg had been tired and desperate and Sherlock had been acting like a stroppy child. The words had slipped out and then Greg had immediately forgotten them. 

In which Greg agrees to pose as Sherlock's boyfriend at Christmas, finally meets the invisible Mycroft Holmes, catches feelings, and has a very happy holiday indeed.

I wish you a very happy Christmas!

[mystrade-reading-club]

We’re reading...

Safe As Houses by @meansgirlwrites

Sitting in a safe house that looks like an office building on its outside, and more like a palace from the inside, Greg feels very keenly that this entire situation stems directly from a phone call which happened over a decade ago.

Greg and Mycroft are caught in a minor explosion. Unfortunately, said explosion takes place in a highly classified government bio research lab. To err on the safe side, they'll need to spend two weeks together in isolation. What could possibly happen next?

We’ll discuss about this lovely fic on Sunday 6 December at 19.00 (UK time) on Discord. DM me for the invite.

[queenoftheland]

#meansgirls (at Bloomington) https://www.instagram.com/p/CF5GWzsh9YI/?igshid=gnuz9swf2ixy

[gnomens]

long mystrade fic recs

I love Mystrade, so here are some of my favorite fanfics. These are all medium or long and all are complete. They are masterpieces with much angst and only the happiest of endings. I highly recommend checking out all of these authors’ other works. Some may be locked to unregistered archive users.

Lullabye by Mottlemoth | E, 20k, Complete | Soulmates Twice a year—on your birthday and theirs—you can hear your soulmate's voice throughout the night. It gives each fated pair a chance to talk and bond before they meet. Sharing names, locations or other identifying details is unwise. It's rumored that if you try it, even in hints, the connection will be severed and you'll never find each other. Today is Mycroft Holmes's 38th birthday. He and his soulmate have had two nights together a year for the last two decades, never even knowing each other's names. But it's getting harder and harder to keep saying goodbye.

Under the Rose by Mottlemoth | E, 125k, Complete | Past Trauma, Secret Relationship It's no surprise for Greg Lestrade to discover that, when it comes to relationships, Mycroft Holmes doesn't really do things like other people. Mycroft's lack of experience and intense need for privacy will take some special care—but that's fine. Greg's always been a patient man.

End Game by Mottlemoth | E, 160k, Complete | Sex Holiday, Friends with Benefits to Lovers Mycroft has a problem. After a drunken New Year's Eve at Baker Street gets out of hand, this preoccupation with Greg Lestrade doesn't seem to be going away. He makes Greg an irresistible offer: seven days alone together in paradise, to be with each other and exhaust the craving. Sadly for Mycroft, Greg comes with irresistible offers of his own—and seven days in paradise might not be enough.

A Christmas Carol by Mottlemoth | G, 40k, Complete | Post Break-Up, Reuniting "All lives end... all hearts are broken." Mycroft Holmes never needed a reason to loathe Christmas—but getting dumped by the love of his life certainly did the trick. It's been a year since Mycroft lost the man he adored, and with Christmas Eve fast approaching, he's counting down the hours until all this festive lunacy is over. Sadly for Mycroft, fate has other plans. It's going to take three ghosts to show him the error of his ways. But can he make amends in time? Or will he prove to himself, once and for all, that caring is not an advantage?

Portrait of a London Vampire by Vulpesmellifera | E, 30k, Complete | Vampires, Hurt/Comfort Struggling artist Greg Lestrade lands his big break—representation by one of the most prestigious London art galleries. When his newfound status hooks an attractive and puzzling patron, dangerous desire and a daunting dilemma spins Greg about in a troubling fog. To complicate matters, someone is brutalising his neighbours, leaving behind gutted bodies, faces frozen in a rictus of fear. Grief stirs old, painful memories, wrapping Greg in a sticky web of want and deceit. At the web's edge, the East London Butcher lurks.

Written in Skin by Vulpesmellifera | M, 25k, Complete | Soulmates, Blind Greg Mycroft Holmes lives a quiet, steady life. He works. He paints. He takes walks. It’s what he does to ignore the flurry of partnering around him. Whether it’s the biological drive to mash two bodies together, or the religious dictum of the salvation in finding one’s Devotee, it’s not for him. It won't ever be for him. Until the day he meets a blind man in the park. The world will never be the same.

All Else Above by Meansgirl | E, 140k, Complete | First Time, Sex Work, Family Trauma Mycroft Holmes' life isn't going according to plan, and there is little he can do about it. His career is a mess, his house is a shrine, and he can't even manage to get laid. In fact, he's never quite figured that last thing out. Maybe it's time. Perhaps, if he could work out how to have a relationship, he could work out the rest. Enter Greg Lestrade, who comes highly recommended by Mycroft's shark-like coworker and sometimes-friend, Alicia. Mycroft, under the impression he is going to see a counselor, is shocked to realize he has been misled.

If You Ever Hunger, Hunger for Me by Meansgirl | E, 115k, Complete | Age Gap, Kinky with Heart Greg notices the kid watching him, and for a moment he fantasizes about watching back, doing the old once-over and eyebrow quirk. Do people still cruise like that? AU with a younger Mycroft, who can't stop watching the silver fox at the pub.

If That’s All There Is by Meansgirl | E, 55k, Complete | Depression, Family Trauma The slow-motion breakdown and hard-fought redemption of Mycroft Holmes.

[heyjude19-writing]

Your writing is so good, and it feels like you are a published author who have written romance before, and because your smut is realllllly quality smut i want to see what else you've written and get more of those steamy scenes! So can you recommend anything? Maybe one of your published works? And maybe another hp fanfic that's steamy and well thought out?

hi anon!

I am not a published author, just a gremlin with an overactive imagination held captive by HP and dramione. Everything you see on my ao3 profile is what I've shared thus far with the world. Your message was so sweet, I really appreciate that you enjoyed my writing that much.

Since you said hp fanfic I’m going to extend beyond dramione. Enjoy some hot, well-written fics:

First, a self-rec, if you haven’t already perused, I teamed up with two of my favorite writers and people (fellow smut peddlers @mightbewriting and @niffizzle) for A Delightful Descent into Depravity. You’ve got 31 filthy mini fics here with all different kinks and a variety of ships: dramione, drarry, dreville, dronmione, sirmione, nottpott.

Parkweasel (Pansy/Percy) The Secretary by @pacific-rimbaud. Not only one of the hottest stories I’ve ever read, but the writing is chef’s kiss all the way through. Run, don’t walk to read this one.

Drarry (Draco/Harry) I’ve only really dipped my toe into this ship but what I have read, I’ve really enjoyed. Crown Witness by @slytherco has been my favorite so far. Draco's first line to Harry in chapter 2 is guaranteed to make you snicker.

Theomione (Theo/Hermione) Tying the Nott by shayalonnie. I have fallen hard for this version of Theo my god. This was not a ship I ever saw myself reading, but shayalonnie got me with this one. Bonus: it features a DELIGHTFUL side pairing of Draco/Luna.

Dreville (Draco/Neville) All This and Heaven, Too by meansgirl. An excellent post-war healing dynamic. They're both so sweet in this one. We need more dreville in the world, please, such an underrated pairing.

Dramione (Draco/Hermione) finishing off with a few one-shots, multi-chaps and WIPs: Well Said, Hermione by @mightbewriting Tin Angel (can’t stop, won’t stop recc’ing this one, it is an all-time fave) by AraLuna Voices Drifting by @raven-m-3 Looking Glass by @kyonomiko Mutually Beneficial by orphan_account Sex Ed by MrBenzedrine89 Contradictions by @ambpersand

Thanks anon, hope you haven't read some of these!