#mechanical courtships

[vroomvro0mferrari]

CL16 | Oblivious

Sorry it took me so long, I was really busy with finals the last couple of weeks but I've finally finished the fic from the poll! I hope you like it :)

Summary: Charles has been blatantly flirting with Y/N for months, but she's the only one who hasn't noticed.

Charles Leclerc x Sainz!Reader

WC: 2.4K

Warnings: None

Masterlist

Charles was busy in the garage, talking with his mechanics when he saw her walk in. Y/N Sainz, the younger sister of his friend and teammate. He had seen her many, many times when she came to support her brother at his races. It seemed like Charles could sense her presence, knowing she was there without having seen or heard her, always looking up right when she walked in. Y/N Sainz was greatly loved by the Ferrari employees. With her bubbly personality, witty jokes, and bright smiles, all the team members enjoyed her presence. And Charles couldn’t help but feel the same way, although Y/N was completely oblivious to his affection. 

His face lit up when their eyes met, instantly smiling at her company. As soon as she was close enough, he greeted her, “Ah Y/N! Nice to see you again, you look lovely today!” He grinned.

“Oh, thank you, Charles. You’re so kind!” She responded with a bright smile as she hugged him in greeting, the flirty undertone going by entirely unnoticed.

Charles had been enamoured with Y/N since the first time they met. In an effort to not come off too strong and scare her away, Charles tried to flirt with her subtly. However, after several occurrences without any reaction from Y/N, it seemed his flirting was too subtle. Either that or she was not into him. But he couldn’t give into that possibility just yet.

As time passed and Y/N became a more familiar face in the paddock, Charles’s flirtations became bolder. He’d constantly try to include her in conversations and would make up all kinds of excuses just to talk to her. Whenever he did manage to string her into another conversation, he’d try to make her laugh as much as he could. Simply because he could, and because he loved to see her happy and smiling. And if he was feeling really confident, he would even go as far as to touch her arm or the small of her back while they were chatting away or walking around the paddock together. Nevertheless, to Charles's frustration, Y/N didn’t seem to notice his underlying motives, dismissing his actions and words as nothing more than friendly gestures.

Meanwhile, everyone else who had ever been around the duo seemed to have caught sight of the one-sided infatuation and attempt at courtship. Everybody except for Y/N had noticed Charles was desperately trying to make his feelings for the girl obvious, but she simply kept friend-zoning him. Frankly, he found it embarrassing. 

Nearly all of Charles’s fellow drivers had been caught up in one of his attempts to woo Y/N while she simply brushed his compliments off as friendly comments. It was hard not to notice Charles’s fruitless flirting when he did it right in front of them, but they didn’t say anything about it. His colleagues merely exchanged knowing glances with others aware of the situation, amused at Charles’s futile attempts at winning Y/N over. But as time wore on, and Charles kept trying, at least a few of his colleagues started to comment on his persistence, calling him a simp, and joking about his poor flirting. Some suggested he should stop his pursuit of Y/N, as it seemed she wasn’t interested, but Charles was relentless: he would not quit until he knew for sure Y/N Sainz didn’t and would never like him.

And so, when Charles spotted Y/N walking through the paddock with Lando, one of the people in the paddock she got along with better, talking animatedly and laughing loudly with each other, he approached her once more; he would seize any opportunity to blatantly flirt with Y/N. He quickly caught up with the two, putting his hand on the small of her back as he matched his speed with theirs. “You’re absolutely radiant today, chérie” He greeted her with a cheeky grin.  

Y/N looked to her side, greeting the new presence “Hey, Charles!” As oblivious as always, she sweetly smiled up at him and replied, “Thanks! You’re such a sweet friend!”

Lando was a mere bystander in the situation as he observed the interaction, surprised and amused at the ease with which Y/N once again waved off the man who was so clearly crushing on her. He held his opinions back until Charles left, “Wow, you certainly have no trouble friend-zoning him, don’t you?” He commented.

Y/N cocked her head as she looked at him, her brows furrowed. “What do you mean?”

Lando laughed humourlessly, “Dear God, you really have no idea?” He paused, “Y/N, Charles has been flirting non-stop with you for ages. How on earth have you not noticed?”

She stopped walking and looked at him in confusion, “He’s not flirting with me, Lando, he’s just being nice. He’s a good friend.” 

“I’m actually quite sure he’s flirting with you, Y/N. So is everyone else. You could literally ask any of the drivers, and they would confirm it. The Ferrari employees too, I reckon. He likes you, Y/N.” He said unimpressed.

“Charles likes me?” She asked softly, suddenly turning shy, a blush creeping onto her face.

Lando sighed, realising his friend was even more oblivious than he initially thought. “Yeah, he does. I’m honestly surprised you’ve never noticed.” He gently squeezed her shoulder before they parted ways.

— — —

For the rest of the day, Y/N thought about Lando’s words. She thought about all her interactions with Charles over the last few months and realised that he did compliment her quite often. 

Once, on a sunny afternoon, Y/N was chatting with some of the Ferrari team members near the garage when Charles spotted her. He, as always, decided to walk over to talk with her, his usual charming smile on his face and mischief in his eyes.

"Y/N, only you can make a sunny day even brighter," he said with a big, playful smile and admiration in his voice.

Y/N blinked at him, surprised by his sudden appearance and his bold statement. "Oh, thank you, Charles! That's really sweet of you to say."

Unfazed by her obliviousness, Charles pressed on, determined to make his feelings known after such a long time. "No, really," he insisted, his gaze unwavering. "I mean it. You bring a brightness to the paddock that I can't quite explain."

Y/N laughed softly, “Well, um, thank you. That’s very kind. What can I say? I try my best.” She replied with a smile.

Another time, Y/N was in the team hospitality when she accidentally spilt her drink, leaving an obvious stain on her white shirt. Charles, who was, unsurprisingly, standing nearby (as always), had noticed immediately and courteously offered one of his extra Ferrari shirts. When he saw the girl he had liked for months in his clothes, wearing his driver’s number, he naturally couldn’t resist the urge to flirt with Y/N.

"Have I ever told you how stunning you look in red?" he remarked, his eyes sparkling with mischief and fondness at the sight of her.

Y/N laughed and replied, "No, I don't think you have," smiling at him in a friendly manner.

"Well, consider it said," he said, his tone playful. "You wear it better than anyone else, that's for sure."

Y/N laughed softly, appreciating her friend’s words, "I doubt that’s true, but thanks, Charles."

Thinking back to these moments, Y/N realised maybe Charles had indeed been flirting with her. However, he might just be like that with all of his friends, complimenting everyone he cares about. Nevertheless, now that Lando had brought this to her attention, she would surely pay extra attention to what Charles would say to her tomorrow.

— — —

The next day, Charles had caught her in a conversation again. They were talking about the race and the current situation with Ferrari. He mentioned the pressure from the team and all the fans that want him to do well, and that the car and the strategies aren’t working the way he wants them to. Of course, Y/N tried to reassure him; to relieve the pressure and stress Charles was feeling. He absolutely adored the way she was trying to comfort him and was not afraid to let her know, “I have to admit, Y/N, nobody can cheer me up like you can. You calm my nerves like no one else,” he said, looking at her lovingly while he expressed his feelings.

Y/N didn’t know how to respond. This was the first time she noticed he was flirting with her whilst he was actually doing it, and she had no idea how to react. When she felt her face heat up, she could only assume she was blushing from the nerves. She diverted her gaze, trying to come up with a good reply to Charles’s advances. How did she usually respond when Charles complimented her? She couldn’t remember now.

Charles was confused at Y/N’s lack of response to his remark. Normally, she’d immediately smile at him and thank him for whatever compliment he’d come up with, but now, she was looking away, and - was he seeing that right? Was she blushing? He had flirted with her countless times, but she had never blushed at any of his comments. Had she finally noticed his advances? Charles watched her with an amused smile while she searched for the right words.

Eventually, she shyly smiled at him, meeting his eyes in a fleeting glance before responding, “I’m glad to be of help.”

Charles, Charles, proud that he was the one to cause her flustered appearance, decided to push a little further, curious to see what would happen, “You really have no idea how much you mean to me, Y/N. Your support helps me so much.” Charles smiled gently and put his hand on her arm. When there’s no immediate response, he continues, “Anyway, I have to get ready for the race. I’ll see you later, yeah?” Y/N merely nodded and watched him walk away.

Her brother had been watching the interaction from a distance, observing the way his sister responded to Charles’s obvious flirting and, too, noticing the difference. “You finally figured it out, huh?” He said with a teasing smile. Y/N rolled her eyes at him in annoyance, but Carlos just continued, “You should let him know you like him too.” Y/N didn’t respond. “You do like him don’t you?” He asks, confused at her unresponsiveness. “Leave me alone, Carlos!” She replied, pushing her brother away. He laughed at her; that reaction was enough for him to know the answer to his question. He ruffled her hair and walked away, also needing to get ready for the race.

After her short talk with Charles, Y/N was sure that he liked her, but how to proceed? She could barely focus on the cars going around the track while all types of ideas were racing around in her head. What on earth was she supposed to do now? Should she wait until the next time Charles would flirt with her, or should she make the move instead? Considering Carlos’s advice, she decided she should take matters into her own hands.

She walked up to Charles as soon as she saw him entering the garage after the race. She had always thought Charles was incredibly attractive – like most women, but he looked especially handsome after he had raced.

“Hey, good job on the race!” She greeted Charles, pulling him into a hug. She looked at him for a second or two, contemplating whether she should actually do this. She smiled up at him shyly, “You know, I love the way your hair looks after a race.” She said blushing, running one of her hands through his messy hair. Charles is surprised at her comment, but he’s shocked at her hand in his hair. This is the first time she has complimented him – or at least, initiated it. Let alone, her touching him in such an intimate way. His eyes were wide and his mouth was slightly agape as he stared at her in disbelief. It was now Charles’s turn to be flustered as Y/N finally reciprocated his attempts at flirting.

In his silence, Y/N decided to continue, “It’s hot.” She said, avoiding eye contact. Charles was unsure how to respond. He had never experienced a situation like this before; he always knew exactly what to say, but she had caught him off guard. After Y/N had friend-zoned him countless times, he was definitely not expecting this; he was not sure what to do.

The absence of a reply only made Y/N more nervous. She distanced herself from him, letting her hand fall from his hair, realising she probably shouldn’t have touched him without permission. Charles was quick to notice her retreat and held her face to stop her from leaving. He raised her chin to make their eyes meet and asked her softly, “Let me take you to dinner?” while he stared at her with adoration.

Y/N smiled at him fondly and nodded her head, “I’d like that, Charles. I’d really like that.” 

“Good,” He said firmly, his smile growing wider, matching hers. “I have to leave now for the debrief, but I’ll text you, okay?” 

Y/N nodded her head in response, letting out a hum. Charles pulled her face closer with the hand on her cheek, and fleetingly kissed her forehead before leaving, looking over his shoulder to catch her gaze one last time.

Y/N stood still in shock for a while, processing what just happened. She had agreed to go on a date with Charles. She was staring outside, letting the situation sink in as she watched people pass by in the busy paddock. Suddenly, she spotted Lando waving wildly at her, trying to get her attention. When he realised that she had seen him, he smiled mischievously and gave her a thumbs-up, assuming the kiss he saw Charles give her was a good sign. Y/N rolled her eyes at him, annoyed by his nosiness, but Lando just laughed, amused at her bother and glad his meddling had helped.

[grison-in-space]

I'm sorry? Pigeons have to coo to ovulate?

okay, okay, I left this one out in the tags without elaborating the other day and you were not the only person who asked-- @nanavn and @corvus--caurinus were also curious. I did not have a ton of time yesterday when my brain was not leaking out my ears, so here I am today.

First, I apparently misremembered my grad school teachings: the best-documented case study of doves being required to hear their own coo in order to ovulate is that of the ring or Barbary dove (Streptopelia risoria), not the rock dove which gave rise to our domestic pigeons (Columba livia). They look like this:

They're the domestic doves you see sometimes that aren't domestic pigeons.

But yes, I was completely serious: hens need to very specifically hear their own nest coo to ovulate. The way it works is this: these doves have a very specific courtship pattern, where courting males at different stages of the nesting process perform first a "bow" coo, then a nest coo. Then the hen makes a nest coo back, and the pair goes on to build a nest together in which the hen will lay fertile eggs.

If you prevent the hen from producing this coo--and the first paper I've linked does this in several different ways with both neural lesions and also mechanical blocks of the synrinx--she will not ovulate. Then Dr. Cheng tried rescuing the effect for doves who could hear but not produce their own coos by playing back recordings of devocalized doves' own nest coos, recordings of other hen's nest coos, recordings of male nest coos (their own males, I think, for preference?) and no recordings at all. Hen nest coo recordings, especially the recordings of the hens themselves, were enough to rescue ovulation effect... but deafened hens who could, themselves produce nest coos weren't able to make ovulation happen half the time even when the male was right there. The male nest coo and his mating display is really important, because his coo stimulates the female to make her nest coo, and that's where ovulation starts.

In 2003, a little over a decade later, Dr. Cheng wrote a whole book chapter about auditory self-stimulation as a phenomenon in neuroendocrine shifts. It makes for pretty interesting reading! I'm going to really enjoy it this afternoon. Stimulated ovulation is actually a pretty common phenomenon in animals--often it makes more sense to only bother ovulating if you know there's a partner around to use whatever eggs you yield up--but this one is one of the most interesting and elaborate systems out there, and definitely the one that offers the most options to a given female dove to potentially consciously control her reproductive output.

But grison, you might ask, what about the doves outside my window? Is this just a function of this one dove species, or are lots of doves doing this to make ovulation happen? So I went looking to find out whether anyone has checked. The thing is that the heyday of pigeon behavioral research has faded somewhat in the intervening decades since Dr. Cheng's discovery, so there's not as much as I might hope where people sat down to investigate the question. I did, however, find a neat study on Columba livia demonstrating that auditory stimulation is more important to courtship displays and success than visual displays are, although of course the multisensory courtship is stronger than either sensory modality alone. So yeah, the cooing back and forth really loudly is part of a display that is functionally necessary for successfully producing offspring, and the auditory component is important for basically every pigeon that has been studied in this respect (albeit that number is pitifully small).

I also found this really interesting review of known uses of birdsong to set internal emotional states in birds (either for the self or for a partner or flockmates) that I want to look into with more detail, plus this really thoughtful review from Dr. Donna Maney talking about how "incentive salience" can use learning and experience to make certain cues bring up neuroendocrine changes in state over time, which helps individuals control how their endocrine system is reacting to stimuli in the world they've been shaped by. Clearly I have some reading to do...

[ja3hwa]

Jae's Recommendations pt.5

There are so many more stories I'd love to add. But alas Tumblr as a tag limit (which is stupid but oh well). Enjoy these gorgeous fics that will most definitely satisfy any need. I love each and every one of these stories. They all have such amazing plots and twist that can either pull on your heart strings or make you become a puddle. Hehe. Everyone on here deserves all the attention. ♡♡

8:45pm [By @hyuckilstan ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut | Yunho x F.Reader

Mondays Isn't So Bad After All [By @hongthoven ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut | Hongjoong x F.Reader

Warm Me Up [By @shingisimp ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut | Mingi x F.Reader

Wax & Temp [By @mia-tiny ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut | Mingi x F.Reader

The Dressing Room [By @imaginidol ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut | Hongjoong x F.Reader

Getting Caught [By @coupsie-daisies ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut | San x F.Reader

Dual Courtship : Heart In Your Throat [By @sanjoongie ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut, Alien Au | Alien!YeoHo x Human!Reader

Level Up [By @sugarnspice630 ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut | San x F.Reader

7:30 am [By @destiny-fics ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut | San x F.Reader

Atz In Bed [By @halazea ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut, Reaction | Ot8 Pairings

On This Ship [By @luvt0kki ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut, Space Au, Mini series | Yunho x F.Reader

Tell Them You're Horny [By @sxcret-garden ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut, Reaction | Ot8 Pairings

Morning Sex With Seonghwa [By @k-hotchoisan ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut | Seonghwa x F.Reader

Kinkmas [By @wooyoungmybelovedhusband ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut, Mini Series, Event | Multiple Idols

All You Can Eat [By @binniesbang ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut | Yunho x F.Reader

Esex [By @gothlcsan ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut | Yunho x F.Reader

Nerd Loser Bf!Mingi [By @teasteeper ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut | Mingi x F.Reader

Two friends with benefit [By @yuyu1024 ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut | Yungi x F.Reader

HONGWOOHO [By @yourfatherlucifer ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut | HongWooHo x F.Reader

She's A Regular Here [By @that-irrelevant-ricecakeaddict ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut | Drug Dealer!Seonghwa x F.Reader

First Time [By @ateezscupid ♡]

↳ Genre : Fluffy Smut | College!Yunho x F.Reader

Assert Your Dominance [By @everyonewooeverywhere ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut, Fluff | Mechanic!Mingi x Gf!Reader

Face Sitting [By @beenbaanbuun ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut, PWP | Mingi x Plussize!Reader

Multiple [By @lomlhwa ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut, Hybrid au | Snake!Hwa x Bunny!Reader

Couples Toys [By @ughsimpp ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut, Reaction | Ot8!Ateez x Fem!Reader

Master's Precious Pet [By @hwashotcheeto ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut, Fantasy au | Vampire!Hwa x Human!Reader

Cheerleader [By @byuntrash101 ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut, pwp | ot8!SoccerTeam!Atz x Reader

You [By @ateezinmymind ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut, Supernatural | Vampire!Seonghwa x Pet!Reader

Master's Precious Pet [By @hwashotcheeto ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut, Fluff, Supernatural | Vampire!Seonghwa x Pet!Reader

Shark Bait [By @yourfatherlucifer ♡]

↳ Genre : Fluff, Hybrid au | Shark!Hongjoong x Merfolk!Reader

One Story At The Hotel [By @therealpie02 ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut, poly | SanSang x Reader

Interlude [By @luvt0kki ♡]

↳ Genre : Smut, Angst | Assassin!San x Assassin!Reader

—

I layed this on out differently so people can see the genre of the fics cause i know some of you guys dont read smut/gore/horror or anything blah blah ahahh.

Don't forget to check out my work, too, at my masterlist here, hehe. You can click here for more recommendations ♡

[bethanythebogwitch]

So a while back I made this post

And it became very popular. While many people already knew, I did get some asking why humboldt squids are scary. So for this Wet Beast Wednesday I'm going to teach you why you should be afraid, or at least respectful, of molluscoid menace that is the humboldt squid.

(image: a humboldt squid)

Known to scientists as Dosidicus gigas and to many others as the jumbo squid, pota, jibia, and diablo rojo, the humboldt squid is the 5th largest squid in the world and the largest of the flying squids. Don't worry, it can't actually fly. They reach an average mantle length (tat's excluding the head and arms) of 1.5 meters, with some specimens reaching up to 2 meters (6.5 ft) in mantle length. The arms can reach up to another meter in length. Adults can weigh up to 50 kg (150 lbs), with females generally being larger than males. They live in the Pacific along the cost of the Americas, from the tip of South America up to California in North America. Some individuals have been known to travel farther north, up to Alaska, which is outside of their historical range. It is possible that as the ocean warms, their native range will continue to expand north.

(image: a humboldt squid releasing ink as a defense mechanism)

Humboldt squids reproduce in deep waters, and as a result we don't know much about their courtship. Males use a modified arm called the heterocotylus to transfer sperm into the female's mantle. She then lays a transparent, gelatinous egg mass that is left to float in the water column. These masses can range between 1 and 4 meters in diameter can can contain up to 4 million eggs. Hatchlings receive no parental care and most will die before adulthood. They grow extremely rapidly, likely as a self-defense against cannibalism by larger squids. Like many squid, humboldts only live for a year and die shortly after mating.

(image: a humboldt squid next to a much braver diver than I will ever be)

As with most cephalopods, the humboldt squid has cells called chromatophores that allow it to change color. Cameras attached to captured and released specimens have show two types of color-changing behavior: flashing and flickering. Flashing is when the animal changes rapidly between red and white. This is done in the presence of other squid and is likely a means of communication, possibly a form of courtship or warning to stay away. Flickering is when waves of red and white travel down the body. This is likely a form of camouflage to blend in with light flickering through the water. In addition to flashing and flickering, cameras have seen multiple forms of color changes and communication behaviors, indicating that they have a rich social life. The red color the squid turns when hunting contributes to its nickname amongst Mexican fishermen: "diablo rojo", the "red devil".

(gif: humboldts changing color)

So all that sounds pretty normal, why are they scary? Well that comes down to their feeding behavior and aggression. Humboldt squids hunt in shoals that can include thousands of members and go into feeding frenzies that can make shark feeding frenzies look like a child's tea party. They are infamous for their aggression and there are many stories of them attacking divers and fishermen. Not even they are immune to their predation, as multiple studies have found between a half and a quarter of all dissected specimens have recently fed on others of their species. Cannibalism may make up a major portion of their diet, though cannibalistic behavior seems to increase in response to stress. Their typical diet consists of fish, crustaceans, and other squids. Humboldts typically keep their two long tentacles coiled up between their arms, only for them to suddenly lash out and grab prey. These tentacles have multiple sharp hooks that have been reported to cause severe cuts in humans. Captured prey is then pulled in toward the beak and consumed. Feeding happens so fast that scientists need to us high-speed cameras to record the capture as the tentacles move so fast they prey can be caught and reeled in between frames. Eating is also fast enough that they can grab a hooked fish and skeletonize it in the time it takes a frustrated angler to pull their catch in. And if that wren't enough, they also engage in cooperative hunting, working together to catch prey. When not feeding or being hunted, they have been described as curious, though they often react to unfamiliar stimuli with aggression. Some divers have reported that humboldts will come investigate them and even act friendly, though I can't say I'd be willing to try it.

(gif: a squid attacking a camera)

(gif: hunting squid)

Numerous fishermen's tales and news stories tell of attacks on humans, but the squid do have a reason to not like us. They are fished heavily, especially off the coat of Mexico and are the most important squid for commercial fisheries. Humboldt squids make up about a third of all squid fished every year and are the most popular food squid. Squid meat is saturated with ammonium chloride, which they use for buoyancy, and must be prepared to remove the taste before eating. Not much is known about threats to conservation, though some speculate that overfishing and global warming disrupting their food supply could threaten the population. They are listed as data deficient by the IUCN. As scary as they might be, humboldt squids serve a very important ecological role in their territories, both as primary predators and as prey to sharks and toothed whales, and more research on their sustainability and conservation needs is important.

(image: a scientist attaching a crittercam to a humboldt squid)

[munsonsmixtapes]

munsonsmixtapes masterlist

Anthony Bridgerton

Tired of Waiting

request: you and Anthony are convinced that you’re enemies until you’re not

Benedict Bridgerton

Paint Me series

Part One

Part Two

Part Three

Part Four (18+)

Part Five

Part Six

Part Seven

Benedict x bestie!fem!reader series

Benny

Ben

request: you tell Benedict that you don't want to have children

request: your fiancé Benedict worships your body after you struggle with some insecurity (18+)

request: You see Benedict dancing with another woman and think your courtship is over, but he assures that he loves no one but you

Tyler Owens

Save a Horse (18+)

Make it Real (18+)

Oh, Baby (18+)

request: even though you claim not to be, you are very jealous when Tyler interacts with female fans

request: you give Tyler special treatment even though it’s your birthday (18+)

request: you and Tyler can't deny the tension and sleep together at a house party-based on the song shut up and drive by rhianna (18+)

request: Tyler knows exactly how to comfort after you've had a nightmare

request: kitchen floor sex with your boyfriend Tyler (18+)

request: Tyler decides to teach you a lesson after he gets jealous seeing you hang out with Boone (18+)

request: you're the only one who's able to tie down Tylet the womanizer

Finnick Odair

request: a snippet of your life with Finnick

request: you're totally oblivious to Finnick's obvious feelings for you until he comes out and says it

Peeta Mellark

request: make out session with Peeta after he tells you that he loves you

Boone (Twisters)

request: a storm causes you and Boone to share a motel room where you have plenty of time to talk about your feelings for each other

Theodore "Laurie" Laurence

If We Have Each Other

Summer Celebration Requests

You and Steve say “I love you” for the first time during a picnic in the park

You tell your best friend Eddie that you love him on the way to a camping trip

Your best friend Eddie takes you to see your favorite band in concert where you both realize that you’re in love with each other

You’re filling in for Gareth on the drums on the Corroded Coffin. Too bad you and the lead singer hate each other. Or do you? (18+)

Steve takes you to see a horror movie despite his hatred for them just so you’ll cuddle him

You and your best friend, Eddie become members of the mile high club while on a flight (18+)

A love confession with Eddie in the rain

rockstar!Eddie and roadie!you are finally together

One thing leads to another and you make out with your enemy, mechanic!Eddie in the rain while you both wait for a tow truck to take your car to the mechanic

Eddie hates the pool, but he accompanies you anyway because he loves you so much

You and Steve are working are camp counselors for the summer, but it’s too bad that you don’t like him

Halloween requests

You and your husband Eddie Diaz take your daughter pumpkin picking

You and your friend Eddie Diaz decide to take your friendship to the next level after months of pining for each other (18+)

[pr0cyon-lotor]

Au where it was all a ✨dream✨

A collective dream specifically, sorta....

Okay, we're dropped in a scene Shen Yuan is dying. He sacrificed himself to save Binghe from idk a demon attack or something. But he's Shen Qingqiu's husband because there was a previous courtship full of drama, misunderstandings, and eventually love.

So he's being held by Shen Jiu, and as Shen Yuan finally drops. The system pulls up for everyone saying something about how they had completed an exercise, before anyone can even blink all plot relevant characters just drop to the floor.

Anyway PIDW isn't important anymore, let's go to the modern world.

Shen Jiu wakes up in a hospital bed, his memories rushing back. He's... A historian— no, a modern day scholar?... he's renowned for his research papers... Ugh, the voices.

Shen Jiu is told he was in a plane crash that had hospitalized most of its passengers, which is better than the alternative. He asks if there's a Shen Yuan in the hospital, the nurse hesitates and asks why. Shen Jiu got that Shen Yuan is in the hospital but is probably either in bad condition or his family isn't allowed the staff to talk about him.

Shen Jiu says that they're married. The nurse hesitates and then says he is and he's doing worse than before and is in critical condition. Shen Jiu is left to stew over the information.

He is forced to go into physical therapy and all that stuff. He meets the other passengers and can clock each of them. From his Qi-ge to Mobei Jun. It was strange, to see them like normal people when he has a memory of them being greater than that.

They all talk and Shen Jiu takes note of their professions and connections. Once he recovers, he tries to visit Shen Yuan and is told he needs a proof of marriage.

And Shen Jiu being the spiteful and conniving motherfucker he is uses his recently made connections to gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss some legalized falsified documents of his and Shen Yuan's marriage, which was a year before the plane crash and their anniversary landed on the day of the crash. How unfortunate truly :,( (he totally didn't pick that day because that was the day they met so in his brain that was they day that led them to be together or anything)

So he shows the documents and then visits Shen Yuan each time he can. He does try to avoid his family and got good at remembering their schedules of visits. He always keeps his hand over Shen Yuan's chest, just so he can feel his heart beat so he knows he's still alive aside from the mechanical beep of the heart monitor.

The day Shen Yuan wakes up, it was during one of Shen Jiu's visits. He wakes up with Shen Jiu . He's still half delirious and still mixing things from his coma "dream" and real life. So he says:

"My husband will get upset if he sees you touching me like that on my chest."

Shen Jiu is amused and puts Shen Yuan's glasses on his face softly and says that he is his husband. Shen Yuan stares at his demure beauty of a husband, mouth agape. The heart monitor picks up and he just says "sup" which confirms to Shen Jiu that he is still the nerdy man he fell in love with.

Shen Jiu tells him they've been married two year by now and kisses his forehead. A nurse bursts in to make sure no one is like y'know dying and sees that Shen Yuan is up. She is shocked because for all intents and purposes he shouldn't have woken up yet. She shoos Shen Jiu away and tells him to wait outside.

The Shens are notified and they finally meet Shen Jiu. He manages to gaslight and charm his parents and siblings. He convinces them that Shen Yuan totally mentioned him and they were totally going to meet if not for the plane crashing. (Shen Jiu remembered when Shen Yuan and him were talking in the plane that he mentioned that he was visiting family. Shen Jiu was flying to speak in a convention or something but they don't need to know that.)

Once Shen Yuan fully awake, his family start worrying over him and then ask why he didn't tell them he was married. Shen Yuan, who did realize his husband was lying is going along with it, said he was going to but things (the plane crash) got in the way.

Anyway new Shen in the family. He probably likes Shen Yuan's little sister and mom.

[devilevlls]

Creepy Obey me! AU

𝖲𝖾𝗇𝗌𝗂𝗍𝗂𝗏𝖾 𝗍𝗈𝗉𝗂𝖼𝗌 𝖼𝖺𝗇 𝖻𝖾 𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝖾𝖽 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗐𝗋𝗂𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀𝗌, 𝗌𝗎𝖼𝗁 𝖺𝗌: 𝖺𝖻𝗎𝗌𝗂𝗏𝖾 𝖻𝖾𝗁𝖺𝗏𝗂𝗈𝗋, 𝗆𝗎𝗋𝖽𝖾𝗋, 𝗁𝖺𝗋𝖺𝗌𝗌𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍, 𝗏𝗂𝗈𝗅𝖾𝗇𝗍 𝗅𝖺𝗇𝗀𝗎𝖺𝗀𝖾, 𝗌𝖾𝗑𝗎𝖺𝗅 𝖺𝖼𝗍𝗌, 𝖽𝖾𝗆𝗈𝗇𝗂𝖼 𝗉𝗈𝗌𝗌𝖾𝗌𝗌𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌, 𝖼𝗈𝗋𝗉𝗌𝖾𝗌, 𝖺𝗆𝗈𝗇𝗀 𝗈𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗋𝗌. 𝖯𝗋𝗈𝖼𝖾𝖾𝖽 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁 𝖼𝖺𝗎𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇. Remember: The following information might not be that accurate comparing to Lucifer's canon personality.

Lucifer

⌞Feeding Habits⌝

  ࿔ Carnivorous (meat-eating)

  ࿔ Hunting habits: Lucifer harbors a distaste for the act of hunting souls directly. Instead, he frequents a secluded area in Devildom where lost souls wander, offering a more palatable source for consumption.

However, when it comes to acquiring meat, his approach takes a stark turn. He revels in the thrill of stalking his prey from a distance. The panicked screams only serve to heighten his excitement, igniting a primal thrill within him as he closes in on his target. ㅤ

⌞Unique features⌝

 ࿔ Two pairs of black feathered wings, some says they can cure wounds, but no one was brave enough to try plucking a feather.

 ࿔ Specific scent: He emits a natural scent reminiscent of roaring flames, so potent that it can induce discomfort and even prompt coughing fits. ࿔  Height: 1,97 m ㅤ

⌞Reproductive Habits, Seasonal Changes⌝

  ࿔ Mating seasons: Courtship displays - Lucifer's devotion to his mate knows no bounds, often manifesting in grand gestures and displays of affection. However, don't be too quick to celebrate, for alongside his demonstrations of love, you may find an unexpected presence creeping into your surroundings. Ghostly apparitions, once mortal souls he dispatched, now transformed into loyal servants, subtly assist you with your daily tasks, a testament to his unwavering commitment to your well-being.

  ࿔ Nest building - He leaves a whole mess of feathers scattered across his bed, evidence of his restless nature and feral instincts. Some of them bear traces of blood, torn impatiently from his own wings in moments of unchecked impulse. Afterward, he may find himself sore and in need of assistance, perhaps even seeking your help to tend to the wounds inflicted by his own fervor.  ࿔ Seasonal variations: Aggressive Behavior - He won't let his brothers come closer to you until his breeding instincts are gone. They won't try either, none of them wants to be hanged from the ceiling for weeks. Scent Marking - Brushes his feathers against you, imparting a subtle scent that escapes human detection but leaves you enveloped in a warm, weighty sensation. Alternatively, he may press his face into your neck, tracing gentle licks along your skin. As he marks you with his presence, you notice a distinct shift in the demeanor of other demons, since no one wants to defy Lucifer himself by getting too close. ㅤAnd of course, an intense craving to ravage you at least 3 times a day. ㅤ

⌞Territorial Behavior⌝

࿔ Aggressive displays/Territory defense: Lucifer wanders around the house when he has free time. Not just casually walking tho, he makes guttural sounds and stomps heavily. No one dares getting out of their room when he is passing the corridor. ㅤ

⌞Sleeping and Resting Patterns⌝

You see, there isn't Day/Night in devildom, just emptiness and darkness, so we are using as reference, RAD's daily activities to measure time. Class time being the morning, class end being twilight and after dinner being night.

 ࿔  Nocturnal (active during the night). The avatar of pride hates waking up early in the morning, he gets more active at night, and you can see a slight change in his behavior at this time, getting more chill than normally. ㅤ

⌞Bad/Creepy habits⌝

  ࿔ Lucifer loves classical music, especially cursed records. Do not dare come close to the music room when his songs start playing, or you might end up piercing your own eardrums, trapped in an unstoppable curse. ㅤ

⌞Defense Mechanisms⌝

  ࿔ Lucifer has the power to hear through walls and can teleport behind someone if they say his name out loud to check why he is being mentioned.

  ࿔ Possesses a remarkable immunity to the majority of poisonous substances found within Devildom. Similarly, he remains largely unfazed by the powers wielded by angels. Only the most ancient and powerful curses have any hope of affecting him. ㅤ

⌞Hygiene and Grooming⌝

 ࿔ Self-grooming: Grooming, or preening, is the meticulous art of cleaning and maintaining various parts of the body. Lucifer, in particular, dedicates himself to keeping his feathers impeccable, adhering to a strict schedule of cleaning every three days. This meticulous task demands much of his time and attention, occasionally leading him to fall asleep in the middle of his grooming rituals. ㅤ

⌞Playful Behavior⌝

 ࿔ How do they release stress? For Lucifer, playing the piano serves as a refuge where he can lose himself in the soothing melodies, calming his mind and easing the burdens of his responsibilities. However, if one were to delve into his more sinister forms of stress relief, a scene of horror awaits. He takes perverse pleasure in seeking out the terrified sounds of lost humans, reveling in their fear as he approaches, a dark satisfaction coursing through him at the sight of their trembling forms. Proud of the intimidating aura he exudes, Lucifer finds solace in the knowledge of his power and dominance over those who dare to cross his path. "Yes, scream, let me hear how much it hurts when I devour you. I could do this all day" ㅤ

⌞Human Interaction⌝

  ࿔ Responses to human presence: Annoyed, he doesn't understand why such an important demon as himself needs to be in the same ambient as an insignificant mortal. Won't attack unless you trespass his boundaries, but will threaten the hell out of you.

  ࿔ Domestication behaviors: None. Jk jk, he has his soft spots, but hides them very well. Give him some ultra-rare cursed vinyl. Or worship his boots. He will pretend it doesn't affect him, but seeing you bend down to his feet? That makes him excited. If you manage to earn his trust and affection, a rare privilege indeed, you may find him unexpectedly responsive to your touch. A shiver courses through him, and a near-purr escapes his lips when you scratch the base of his horns, a gesture that elicits a subtle display of pleasure from the typically composed demon lord.

Hope you guys enjoyed, please give me your opinions! Sorry for any grammar mistakes ＞﹏＜ Check my Creepy AU masterlist for more content!

We reached 150 followers!!!

Thank you all for the support, for sending your asks and reblogging my content 💖

[galateaknife]

Supernatural Wincest Reclist:

All stories here are over (roughly) 30k words, written before 2020, not frequently recommended these days (as far as I can tell), unearthed from various storage areas on my computer, and end with Sam and Dean together.

Please mind any tags and author-written descriptions.

If a story says (podfic available) underneath it, that means that I have a copy of the podfic. Feel free to dm me for a file.

I hope you find something new to enjoy here!

Under my skin by yourkidney. ~31k words. Post-S1. Ghost-induced mind meld.

https://yourkidney.livejournal.com/27595.html

(podfic available)

Chains of Babylon by poisontaster. ~43k words. Post-S1 futurefic. Dean is trapped in an evil mental institution.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/5721952

(podfic available)

Turn of the Wheel series by gekizetsu. ~111k words. Vague S2. There’s a war between the elements, and Sam and Dean get caught in the crossfire.

https://amalthia.mediawood.org/ebooks/viewstory.php?sid=127

This is Ourselves (Under Pressure) by clex_monkie89. ~30k words. Post 2x12. On the run from the FBI.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/230040

(podfic available)

The Things We Carry With Us by lovesrain44. ~48k words. Late S2. Dean thinks that Sam needs to get laid.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/267862

(if anyone has a copy of this podfic lmk, I lost mine a couple laptops ago.)

Black Velocities and Shining Movements by dimeliora. ~40k words. Late S2 AU. Sam is seriously injured, and something is seriously wrong.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/19454164

Swear By All Flowers by sweetestdrain. ~37k words. Post-S2. Sam’s out of the game, and Dean is cursed.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/18507

(podfic available)

Crush by sonofabiscuit77. ~61k words. AU from mid S3. Partially outsider POV. Dean owns a mechanic shop and Sam teaches.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/826173

(if anyone has a copy of this podfic, I’ve lost mine)

Threefold Path series by rei_c. ~182k words. Alternate end to S3. Sam gets Dean out of his deal. It changes everything.

https://archiveofourown.org/series/1581844

I’d Gladly Lose Me To Find You by flawedamythyst. ~36k words. Post S3. Sam makes a vow of silence to save his brother.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/2215497

(podfic available)

And So Awakens Devils by concernedlily. ~59k words. Alternate S4. Sam ends the world.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/190731

Not Time’s Fool by FayJay. ~58k words. Mid S4. Dean gets turned into a girl.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/4720

(I’ve also lost my copy of this podfic and would appreciate another copy)

The incestuous courtship of the antichrist’s bride by fleshflutter. ~48k words. Post-S4 AU. A classic.

https://fleshflutter.livejournal.com/102268.html

(podfic available)

As Through a Glass and Darkly by lexicale. ~118k words. Preseries and S1-5 AU with Hindu mythology instead of Christian.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/524025/chapters/927238

Hidden by AxeMeAboutAxinomancy. ~79k words. S6 Daemon!AU. Sam’s back from hell but daemon is missing.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/9488537

(podfic available)

Tornado Warning by dear_tiger. ~28k words. Early S6. Sam is walking around without a soul, and a man with no memory gets a job at a butcher shop.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/475602

Choir of Furies by Atanih88. ~32k words. Late S6. Sam’s wall has sprung a leak.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/221544

(podfic available)

Another Brick in the Wall by road_rhythm. ~170k words. Late S6. Sam disappears. Dean searches for him. Sam tries to survive.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/3207755

The Allegory of the Cave by Jay Tryfanstone. ~36k words. Post-S6. Memories and emotions and a hunt in New York City.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/488058

(podfic available)

Absolute Zero by pixymisa and selecasharp. ~61k words. Post-S8 AU. Sam closed the gates of Hell, and now he can’t die and can’t wake up.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/4156011

Sam Winchester’s Guide to Blood Magic, or How the Rockies Were Made by badbastion, thursdaysisters. ~46k words. S9AU. The apocalypse everyone forgot.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/4147914

(podfic available)

The Partisan by nigeltde. ~39k words. Mid S9. Post-Gadreel claustrophobia and restlessness.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/2049891

The Babel Fish Has Forsaken Us by orphan_account (indiachick). ~34k words. Late S9 AU. Phantasmagoria.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/2146206

a long hard day, a long hard night by deadlybride. ~39k words. Post-S9. Dean’s body disappeared. Sam gets him back.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/16475585

Apophenia by MeltinSkelton. ~149k words. S10 or thereabouts. There’s a hunt and human evil in a town by Austin. Mutual pining and fever dreams, with a side of pining Cas.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/17274647/chapters/40624721

Baba O’Riley and Eleanor Rigby walk into a bar by thecapn. ~33k words. The only non-hunting AU I’m likely to ever recommend.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/27906127

Captured by the Game by rivkat. ~54k words. Raised apart AU. Azazel sends Sam to gain the confidence of Dean Winchester.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/1389

(podfic available)

[winter2468]

Paige permanently exhausted as she tries to balance the demands of working as Jaxon's mollisher with going behind his back to help the survivors of Oxford. Across London, Arcturus Mesarthim is typing "human courtship rituals" into an internet search engine with a level of focus usually reserved for quantum mechanics calculations

[y-rhywbeth2]

Illithid: Biology

Link: Disclaimer regarding D&D "canon" & Index [tldr: D&D lore is a giant conflicting mess you can almost always find something that argues against [x]. Larian's lore is also a conflicting mess. There's a lot of lore; I don't know everything. You learn to take what you want and leave the rest. Frankly these posts may get updated now and then. etc]

Biology | Elder Brains | Culture | Variants WIP

I need a break from elves.

Frankly I think most of this info is on the wiki, but whatever; a compilation of three sourcebooks and some errata.

Life cycle: From tadpole to squid to Elder Brain food; how ceremorphosis is a joy (and also a manageable condition that need not end in tentacles if you stay on top of it)

Psychology: Propaganda hours and one-sided relationships for the tentacled academics; and why the undead make them flip their shit.

Physiology: Internal organs, lifespan, senses and what do you suppose being able to feel with your stomach lining is like?

Habitat: 'On today's agenda: kill the sun.'

Diet: You don't have to live on human brains, asshole.

Reproduction: So how are half-illithid made? WotC, once again, show me the forbidden mind flayer courtship lore.

-

It all begins when a mind flayer lays eggs in the brine pool that houses the elder brain. A clutch of mind flayer eggs consists of a pile of clear eggs, one-sixth of an inch in diameter, bound together by sticky garlic-scented mucus, which float at the top of the nursery (usually around the edges).

After a month these hatch into tiny mauve tadpoles less than an inch long (the tentacles are deceiving, they're not cephalopods, they're amphibians) which live in the brine pool as room mates with the colony Elder Brain. Most will be eaten by the Brain, leaving a handful of survivors (1 in a 1000 are spared).

Without the Elder Brain these tadpoles would begin cannibalising each other, until only one survived, developing enough to leave the pool and become a giant wormy horror that's about as intelligent as a dog that I'll talk about later. Nature is beautiful.

But moving onto the average tadpole who grows up with the Brain: Tadpoles take a decade to mature, feeding on mashed organs fed to them by 'nursery attendants.' Once they're about 3 inches long they're ready to get shoved up somebody's nose. The 'sucker' on the underside of its body which served as a mouth has developed a spiny rim, and four tentacles and webbed growths have spouted from it like a tail. By the time they're mature they look like elongated tiny octopi.

Tadpoles are implanted into the orifice of a humanoid being of appropriate size. Eye, nostril, ear canal, you decide.

Hosts must be mammalian, between 5'4"-6'2" tall and weigh between 130-270 pounds. This means candidates for ceremorphosis are humans, elves, gith, gnolls and large goblinoids. Worry not, the rest of you may still be of service to our glorious mucus covered masters as slaves and food, and advancements in illithid science now allows gnomes to become tiny squid people.

A tadpole in its natural state is about as intelligent as a frog. It proceeds to consume its host's brain, growing in size and intellect and melding itself to the brain stem, replacing that brain as the body's control centre.

The length of the process varies by host, depending on both their strength of mind and physical health and can take from an hour to a tenday or more. Translating mechanics to narrative: as the brain damage develops the infected loses motor control and balance, memory, personality, intellectual capability, emotional regulation and probably emotions in general, and so on so forth begin to go as the person is slowly and utterly destroyed. A restoration spell cast upon them will reverse the damage done, delaying ceremorphosis - in theory indefinitely, but it will not destroy the tadpole. The tadpole is easy to kill, but incredibly difficult to locate as you'd have to go rooting through the brain looking for it which will almost definitely kill the host. Apparently a heal spell is required to cure the condition. Of course if you kill the host and the tadpole pre-ceremorphosis then resurrecting them will bring them back right as rain, tadpole free.

Assuming that doesn't happen: once the brain is gone, the host is dead, '[their] spirit seeks its fate in the Outer Planes' and the body is left to the parasite.

The illithid begins to rewrite the nervous system and physically edit the exterior of its new body (though not the interior organs). Interior function remains largely the same, but soft tissue is overwritten on a fundamental level to the point where it doesn't really count as humanoid tissue any longer. Within seven days you have the finished product. The skin turns mauve and begins to secrete mucus, the eyes sink into the skull and turn solid white throughout, fingers begin to meld together, webbing increases between digits, the human mouth is replaced with that of a lamprey's, and four tentacles are acquired.

Once the host is destroyed the only way to bring them back is the miracle spell: in other words you need to track down a very powerful cleric and convince them to give their god a call and ask for direct divine intervention to rewrite reality so that the ceremorphosis didn't happen. Mind flayers, being sapient beings with a patron deity, presumably have souls. Most illithid believe they don't have souls (or at least not ones beholden to a deity), and insist that Ilsensine and Maanzecorian are just 'ideals,' but the hubris ridden squids are hardly unbiased. The Illithiad talks about it like they do have souls.

The illithid may have picked up some residual memory from the host, a psionic echo of neurons now gone, though considering illithid and humanoid neurology and emotions are incompatible as hardware and programming these memories are going to mean little to them if anything, and mind flayers have no sentimental attachment to the host identity as a result.

You now have a neophyte: a newborn illithid is little more than a tentacled frog that suddenly gained a lot of processing power and a shiny new sapience. It has no innate knowledge of its needs or culture and hasn't fully developed its abilities or adjusted to its form and will need the guidance of its colony as it learns and 'grows up.'

At 21 years old they should be adult ilithid with fully mature psionic abilities and control of their bodies.

An illithid lives for about 135 years, at the end of which it has its brain removed and is thrown into the spawning pool from whence it came where its brain is eaten by the colony Elder Brain. Illithid believe that they will live on forever as part of a union of those who came before them. In truth the Brain just treats them exactly as they once treated their host and victims; by killing of their individuality and personality and stealing their memories and intelligence to empower itself. But kinda worse, because at least the tadpoles aren't intelligent enough to have morals.

Psychology:

It's often believed due to their lack of facial expressions and unfamiliar body language, as well as the flat effect of their 'voice' when communicating telepathically, that mind flayers have no emotions.

It's actually the exact opposite: mind flayers have all-consuming, overwhelming feelings at all times, carefully internalised.

A mind flayer's emotions are not directly equivalent to those of a humanoid in 'feel' (possibly due to a lack of brain and hormones?), though some can be compared for an idea of what they're like. From an outsider perspective the majority of these emotions would be viewed as 'negative.'

A mind flayer experiences fulfilment and positive emotion from a) eating brains and b) pursuing and satisfying their curiosities and taking pride in positive outcomes. Curiosity itself being a powerful drive for their kind, they're all usually studying something. Outside of those two activities nothing gives mind flayers 'happiness'/whatever their version of serotonin is. 'Fear,' 'envy,' and 'hate' are other manifestations of aggression, the same as with most sentient beings.

Another other primary mind flayer emotion is aggression, usually frustration. They are a very easily pissed off people, and the belief that they are the superior beings who should be guiding the world into a Lawful utopia of master (mind flayer) and thrall (everyone else) often leads them to be very grumpy when the world, most bizarrely, does not seem to be in step with their outlook.

Whether it's innate or conditioned (and at what stage the conditioning began, tadpole or illithid) is not clear, but it's described as an 'instinct' for illithid to believe they are inherently superior and all others are thralls and good. Oh boy, the hubris. On the plus side it can be overcome and unlearned.

Mind flayers need socialisation, in a sense. Being telepathic, hive mind-oriented beings they're known to panic when alone in their own heads (such as when being outside the range of their colony).

'Dominion is life' is a key philosophy; 'only through the domination of others can [one] actualise their inner desires, needs, and future goals.' Mind flayers on a base psychological level need a thrall as a kind of mirror and anchor of their identity, not so much for care of the person they're connected to but in order to project themselves onto a being they feel 'intimately' connected to. Being without thralls is traumatic, and mind flayers will usually drop everything to acquire more when they have none. Without thralls the mind flayer's emotional health is destroyed and they just downward spiral into depression and insanity. They will often 'die quietly' in this situation.

Creating a thrall is 'no small matter' and requires the efforts of the entire colony lending their psionic abilities to the one performing the process in order to bring them into the hive mind. The intended thrall is branded with their master's ID and conditioned with layers of psionic brainwashing in repeat sessions, completely erasing their personality and individuality and then reprograming them to suit their master's needs.

While we 'cattle' consider this horrific, mind flayers see this as an act of altruism. They genuinely believe that the 'lesser races' require their dominance for guidance to thrive. Those who are consumed are appreciated; an illithid grants the lesser races a boon by consuming them and briefly experiencing their existence, and the thrall race grants them their 'gifts.'

'Oh, most delicious morsel, perceive my appreciation of your unique gifts...' - A mind flayer, addressing its 'donor'

(Mind flayers that question any of these doctrines of how it's good for the 'lesser races' are subject to immediate execution.)

Illithid do not typically have such 'intimate' bonds with each other. While they are cooperative, mind flayers are highly individualistic and very competitive. While they're known to experience grief at the passing of their people, tentacled academics don't like to share their personal research with the other mad scientists.

They aren't incapable of being decent people.

'...there are some benevolent illithids, though these tend to be reclusive and well-hidden, or magically disguised into other shapes they “wear” almost all the time, just to avoid constant attacks or hostility from others who see their mind flayer bodies and react accordingly. At least one longterm-in-print “human” NPC of the Realms is actually one of these disguised illithids. - Ed Greenwood (I'm not sure who it is, NPCs aren't my forte)

'Rogue' illithid are those who - somehow - break free of an Elder Brain's borderline omnipotent dominion and reclaim their individuality. Some of them, often those with open minds who've lived long and experience many things, come to see mind flayer supremacy propaganda as nonsense and come to respect non-illithid as their equals on par with fellow illithid rather than thralls in the great plan of the universe.

Aside from the gith, the undead are the illithid's least favourite group of people in the universe. This has been downplayed as editions proceeded, but as walking corpses the undead have neither body temperature nor brain activity; This makes them effectively invisible to mind flayers who struggle to sense their presence, and worse, means that they cannot be controlled throwing a wrench in the 'we are the supreme beings' paradigm that informs the entire mind flayer propoganda machine. Mind flayers are absolutely fucking terrified of the undead to the point of psychological trauma, to quote the book, and when informed of undead sightings near their colonies the community will drop all activity to focus on getting rid of them. Preferably by organising a group of thralls trained to hunt them and sending them off to deal with the problem.

'To an illithid’s way of viewing things, it appears as if undead were created long, long ago just to thwart illithid dominance.'

To add insult to injury they're not edible, and if you tried to eat their brain it would be 'like eating a frozen pizza that's still frozen. Not the most uplifting experience.' Or so says Christopher Perkins. Ghouls and zombies on the other hand are probably fine eating their brains.

Physiology:

Mind flayers are warm blooded.

Tall, emaciated looking figures; While they're extremely powerful natural psionicists, in terms of physical prowess they're usually nothing to write home about.

Their tentacles range from 2-4 feet in full length, usually appearing shorter at rest. An illithid's tentacles are very responsive, almost always in motion in response to their inner thoughts and moods. They double as an extra set of arms, and possess the full strength of arms too.

Most internal anatomy, with the exception of the sex organs and any mammary glands, remains and functions much the same as it always has, save that each organ is now wired into the nervous system to a greater degree. Every single organ effectively becomes an auxillary brain - likely because a mind flayer doesn't have a true brain of its own - allowing an illithid greater information storage and processing capabilities. It also allows them an awareness of their internal anatomy rather like everybody else is aware of their external sensory anatomy.

Mind flayer skin is a vibrant mauve; The glands of the dermis are altered to secrete a lot of mucus in order to lock in moisture and keep that delicate amphibious skin covered in a film of slime - which smells of vanilla, onion and garlic. Without this protective covering, for example if lost to the drying effects of the sun or from disease, the mind flayer dehydrates and is at risk of death if not replenished. The mucus also does something unexplained that amplifies a mind flayer's psionic abilities and offers protection against harmful magic.

There's also been something about moulting that wasn't expanded on.

The index finger is lost, for some reason, leaving a mind flayer with three fingers and a thumb. These are tipped with long black 'claws' of cartilage, but despite looking threatening they're harmless. On the feet all but two toes are lost as webbing stretches between them to form flippers. Unsurprisingly for semi-aquatic beings, mind flayers are adept swimmers, though they can't breathe underwater and must surface for air.

Due to the shape of their mouth and the loss of a tongue and use of vocal chords due to ceremorphosis, illithid technically cannot verbalise and communicate exclusively via telepathy and body language (via tentacles). If forced they can shove one of their own tentacles down their throat and force it to function as a voice box and tongue (usually for spellcasting purposes). The sensation is horrible for the illithid and the sound is godawful for those listening to it, so everybody suffers together!

Senses:

The primary sense of an illithid is, naturally, their psionic abilities: primarily detect thoughts which they can use to track living beings around them and communicate.

The exterior remodelling has several effects. The nostrils are lost in favour of tentacles, meaning that an illithid must breathe through its mouth and has no olfactory sense.

Sight: Illithid eyes are covered in a pale film which screens out the light spectrum visible to human eyes, but does give allow them to see in infrared and track heat signatures. Or in 3.5e-onwards parlance due to jettisoning infravision as a concept: they can see perfectly in the dark, but struggle in lighted conditions and see not at all in full sunlight. Due to this lack of vision, illithid 'write' things using a psionic method called Qualith. While it is inscribed, the actual information it contains isn't in the writing it just beams into your brain at a touch.

Hearing: The outer ear is reduced to a barely noticeable ridge around the ear canal over the process of ceremorphosis, which reduces the illithid's auditory capabilities. They're reasonably good at telling what direction a sound is coming from, but struggle to tell sounds apart or pick apart various components within a sound.

Habitat:

As the sun blinds them and dries them out - which is greatly uncomfortable and a serious health risk - illithid absolutely despise the thing. A popular mind flayer rhetoric is that the damn thing should be blotted out. Not just the sun of Toril; the sun of every world across the planes.

They need dark, cool, damp moisture in their surroundings to survive and thrive.

For the time being mind flayers live the subterranean lifestyle, seeking out damp briny caves to make their homes in. Mind flayer collonies are often most at home in the very deepest levels of the Underdark.

Diet:

The downside of this reconstruction of the stolen host body is that the body loses its ability to produce hormones and enzymes - in order for a mind flayer's neurons and organs to function, it must take them from living beings (preferably humanoids). While they're infamous for eating brains, and the largest portion of their diet is brains - from which they can gain most of what they need - an illithid must actually consume a balanced diet of all organs found in the human body. The psionic energies within brains gives a boost to metabolism that allows illithid to effectively go without standard nutrition for the most part. A brain a month holds them over fine.

The brain doesn't need to be humanoid, it just needs to be 'nourishing' enough. Felids and canids and octopi should make a good meals.

However part of the pleasure of consuming a brain is in experiencing the memories of the victim, a sensation often shared with the rest of the colony, and animals rarely provide the same entertainment value. While illithid can get by on a brain a month, and can find more ethical options, the s majority wouldn't do that and eat far more than they need to simply for the pleasure it brings them. They also eat animal brains for snacks in between humanoid meals.

That said apparently 'many illithids over the years have forsaken eating human brains in favour of other diets, and working with human thoughts and memories in other ways.' The details of these diets have been written up somewhere but are currently behind NDAs (can't be given 'yet' was the phrasing).

While most find an illithid mouth scary, rest assured that mind flayers do not bite. Their mouths are too weak to break skin, let alone chew through flesh and bone: No, their tentacles secrete enzymes that dissolve through organic matter, allowing them to expose the organs (the illithid's own mucus protects their own flesh). The lamprey-like structure of the mouth allows them to latch onto the flesh and then they shove their tentacles into the cavity, move the dissolving organ mush into their mouth and eat it.

Reproduction:

Ceremorphosis also edits the reproductive organs. The host's mammalian sexual characteristics disappear as they are altered for illithid use.

Illithid are hermaphrodites and oviparous, every illithid will - on two or three occasions in its life - lay eggs in the colony brine pool. Lore does not go into mind flayer mating practices, so how these eggs are fertilised is not covered. Possibly they self-fertilise. It's also possible that it takes two to tadpole: it could be done in the style of fish, where one lays the eggs and another fertilises them, but considering they're amphibians with a mammalian base structure it's not out of the question that mind flayers fuck. Especially on Toril. It's also not explained why two/three times; if they have a libido at all, or if they go into heat three times in their life, or if the colony simply has a roster that decides who is on breeding duties and when...

Their reproductive system, for those found on Toril, is also apparently compatible with humanoid systems and can produce half-illithid. It's the Forgotten Realms. Everything in this setting turns out to be horny when you dig deep enough.

Underdark assures us that 'most often' mind flayers impregnate humanoids with mad science rather than by 'direct mating.' 'Most often,' not accounting for the minority who decided to go at it the 'direct' way. I have no idea what illithid society thinks of mind flayers with these inclinations (I strongly suspect it's not approved of), nor do I have any hints as to how direct mating with illithid works.

[yeahtimesten]

How Your Relationship Started With Patrick, Art, or Tashi

As much as it pains me to say it because I’m such a slow burn girly, I think Patrick moves quick in relationships. I know he gives the impression that he’s a player and doesn’t like to get tied down. And maybe that’s what he thinks he’s doing. But really, I think he develops crushes quickly and dates around because he appreciates the art of connecting with people. And I think when he finds a person worth the trouble, he fixates on them with total earnest. He wants to take you on like three dates a week as soon he realizes he likes you. He’s not only quick to get you in bed, but also to ask you to be official with him. He wants to make it clear asap that you are just for him, and he’s just for you. If you insist on taking it slow, he’ll oblige. If you tell him you only want to be fwb or a casual relationship, fine then. But really, if you give him the opening, he’ll be on the topic of marriage and babies in no time. At first, he’s raising red flags with your friends who think he’s love bombing you. But like, he actually loves you, and he eventually proves it to your friends just how down bad he is for you. He’s the total definition of “talking stage? just move in babe we can talk at home.”

Art on the other hand? He takes his sweet ass time. For one, he loves the dance of courtship. Bringing you flowers, opening doors for you. He was raised to be respectful, to be a gentleman. But, I also think he’s scared of rejection and he’s not quick to pick up on reciprocated feelings. He’ll be so respectful, so patient, that maybe you’ll figure he’s not interested and he’s just a nice guy that wants to be your friend. But my god, he’s pining, he’s yearning. His skin burns *so good* if you brush past him or set your hand on his knee. He’s scared to make a real move. Maybe, he even watches you go through a painful break up with another man and is ready to pick up the pieces when you give him the chance. He wants to scream ‘I’m right here! In front of you. Look at me. Don’t make me say it, I’m so in love with you.’ I picture that it takes him a good year to finally confess his feelings. You’ll laugh, and he’ll get totally taken aback, sad, ashamed. But then you’ll say something like ‘what took you so long?’ A wave of relief will wash over him and only then will he be ready to ACTUALLY start the courting process. And the rest of your relationship will be him treating you like he’s still trying to win your heart.

Tashi? Ha. Yearning is too delicate. Whatever she goes through is much more disgusting. The scene in the movie where Art tells her Patrick doesn’t love her and she gets mad and asks if she ever said she needed him to love her (not verbatim lol), my heart breaks for her. I interpret that as her defense mechanism 100%. I wish I knew why, but I see that as she doesn’t think she deserves love. And that’s how she navigates her love life. “Love is 28 different things……. There’s fear and jealousy and revenge, control…” I think being in love is sort of a foreign feeling for her. And, especially if you’re a girl, it’s confusing for her to navigate. When you meet, you probably think she hates you, she acts totally cold to you. You wonder why she hangs around you so often. But you catch her reading a non-academic book that you finished reading about a week ago. And she asks to study with you after class. And she wants to borrow a couple of CDs she sees in your dorm room. And otherwise she’s extremely nosey about all your possessions. One night, she texts to you come to her dorm as soon as possible, and bring ice cream. And because you love her, despite being so confused on where you stand with her, you stop at the closest convenience store to grab her favorite ben and jerry’s (you did your own research, unbeknownst to her) and rush to her side. She’s distraught and she’s not opening up about it at all. You both eat your ice cream with a side of small talk. Eventually, after you poke and prod and offer her some stories about your life, she opens up, not about her feelings, but about her life as well. Growing up, her love for tennis, her other interests. She tells you she really enjoyed that book you were reading, but doesn’t admit she read it because of you. It gets late and you aren’t ready to go home but she looks sleepy and you offer to let her sleep and quietly she says ‘you can stay’ when you’re already halfway out the door. She doesn’t even think she wanted you to hear. But you did, and you join her on her twin sized bed. And for a beat, your laying squished awkwardly like sardines side by side until you adjust your arm above her head, and that’s all the invite she needs to readjust and rest her head on your chest. And without thinking you run your fingers through her hair. And she’s practically purring, until she’s snoring in your arms. That’s when you realize this was never about her hating you.

[burningvelvet]

My analysis on Heathcliff and his relationships, and some interesting excerpts from Juliet McMaster's "The Courtship and Honeymoon of Mr. and Mrs. Linton Heathcliff: Emily Brontë's Sexual Imagery" via JSTOR (TW: abuse, sa/sexual violence, generally graphic and potentially triggering content)

*note: I've had half of this in my drafts for a while. My last reblog, which discusses Heathcliff's lack of attraction to Cathy II, inspired me to finally expand on & post it. That reblog is here: https://www.tumblr.com/burningvelvet/738896230943522816

Cathy II is one of my favorite characters and I think her dynamic with Heathcliff is fascinating. I would say that while he may not be attracted to her (indeed, he sometimes seems repulsed by her) his behavior toward her IS explicitly predatory as it includes lying to her, manipulating her, physically abusing her, kidnapping her, and forcing her into a marriage in which he helped to seduce her with love letters under his son's name.

Combine this with his behavior toward his wife Isabella, in which sexual violence may be easily inferred as he says Isabella hated him a day into their marriage (and sure, some people conceive on the first try, but what are the odds? and the concept of marital rape didn't legally exist back then) — not to mention Heathcliff calling her a slut (sexually violent epithet* *editing this post to say that "slut" was a mainly gendered term, but in Brontë's time it didn't have today's more sexualized meaning; for most of history it primarily meant "slovenly" aka messy/careless), and both of them vaguely referring to heinous abuses she undergoes in private (and what could be worse than what we already know about his treatment of his subordinates). With how determined he was to get a male heir, and that being the whole reason why he married her, it is not much of a stretch to assume that he bedded her multiple times until she showed signs of pregnancy. It is a very easy thing to infer actually.

He was probably as insulting and as violent (or at the very least, cold) with her in bed as he always was in every other aspect from the very start of their relationship. As they both confirm that she receives his abuse openly (until her escape), and as she wishes to be a "good wife," she likely did not struggle to avoid her "marital duties," but again, she clearly hates him for most of her marriage, and we learn that she despises him immediately after their marriage when the veil finally fully drops. And with how upfront with her he initially was about his intentions, and how his own verbal admissions + outright verbal abuse failed to quell her desire for him initially, what more than physical and especially sexual violence could have led Isabella to despise him so soon after their consummation? Their sexual experiences couldn't have gone splendidly for her, and for him it was likely a mechanical chore he likely resented and was therefore probably not delicate with (he hates delicacy anyway).

Yet, while Heathcliff is violent and predatory (in the colloquial as well as the primal, animalistic sense, as he is always related to nature even in his very name), he also contains hints of a long-buried goodness, as we all know, and this is what makes him a fascinating protagonist. He has a capacity for strong feeling, a deliberate if not faulty moral code, and he sometimes shows kindness accidentally.

This is why Heathcliff catching baby Hareton is such a pivotal moment in the story, because it is only after he saves his life that he actually realizes what he's done and then muses that he should've let the child die. This scene shows that his natural subconscious instinct is actually good, and that his external situations are what have shaped his darker impulses on the conscious level. In other words, he causes us to examine the nature vs nurture debate.

Despite later abusing him, Heathcliff sees Hareton as a son-like figure in his own twisted way, and in the end as he loses his life forces, he gives Hareton and Cathy II his blessings like a father would — he essentially is Hareton's father, and he is legally Cathy II's father-in-law, first through his son Linton and then we could say through his unofficial adoption of Hareton, who he says he would have preferred as a son. So Cathy II has Heathcliff as a sort of double father figure, though of course she would never accept this.

At one point, Heathcliff notes that he takes good care not to do anything that could be proven to be criminal or illegal. In his usual exactness, he was pretty much right. He is always tip-toeing the line of immorality: in the gothic literary tradition, his relationship with Cathy I has incestuous undertones, but they are not legally or biologically related, and so he skates by.

He declares that he has no regrets and that he's done nothing wrong by technical standards. Manipulating, lying, mental and physical abuse of one's financial dependents, and marital rape (hypothetical or not) were all within legal bounds for the most part, and even the forced marriage of Linton H./Cathy II was done through the process of emotional blackmail (and physical evidence in the form of her love letters) so that in his mind, he wasn't actually responsible.

However, Heathcliff may have reasoned that sexually abusing one's daughter-in-law in revenge may be in violation of the law; that he would gain severe detraction from his "slaves" Nelly, Hareton, even Joseph; and that if such a huge scandal broke out, he would have a harder time finding tenants, etc. — also, I don't think Heathcliff would have felt like he "needed" to sexually abuse Cathy II to get revenge against her/her family, because as he says, at that point he already has his revenge and his victory; he already has her lands, and degrades her every day by forcing her to be a servant and a slave, and by abusing her in every other way. Sexually abusing her would be an extra effort on his part.

And I don't think he would gain anything out of it aside from revenge. I don't really think Heathcliff has much sexual interest in anyone at all, probably not due to inborn asexuality but due to his depression, trauma, emotional repression, and general issues. Although he and Cathy I have an extremely passionate spiritual relationship, I can't say that I believe he ever experienced fully actualized/conscious sexual feelings even for her. Considering their youth and rocky position when he leaves her for his hiatus, and the very brief period of their reunion, their relationship was likely never "consummated" — or at least I see no hard textual evidence to suggest that it was, although I'm sure many people could probably argue against this. And regardless of whether or not he and Cathy I ever had a physically sexual relationship, I don't think he could ever really be seriously attracted to anyone but her.

But in order to get his revenge, he did bed Isabella likely multiple times until her pregnancy. And as McMaster demonstrates below, by encouraging Cathy II to marry his son — and quite literally seducing her himself by writing love letters to her under his son's name — Heathcliff essentially beds her by proxy, if not in actuality. He wants her property, and he wants her, and because his son is the same age as her and dying, he decides to use him as the perfect pawn to access her by

If Linton H. died before he could be married to Cathy II, would Heathcliff have attempted to marry Cathy II on his own? I think this is a fascinating topic to theorize about, and I can only assume the answer would be yes, because Hareton wouldn't have worked as a pawn, though perhaps Heathcliff would have simply manipulated Hareton to sign over Cathy II's inheritance to him instead (as the laws of marital coverture meant husbands were entitled to 100% of their wives money/property/inheritance). But at that point Heathcliff was still looking for revenge (and therefore may not have been adverse to getting it like he did in his first marriage with Isabella), and he may not have wanted to be financially responsible for the newly weds and their potential offspring, or to suffer legal repercussions if Cathy II or someone else convinced Hareton to hire a lawyer lol. But I digress.

And as the last quote in the following list demonstrates, I think it was not only a touch of the gothic incest theme that Emily was going for by having Lockwood assume Cathy II is Heathcliff's wife, but that it was intentionally symbolic of how weird and difficult-to-define their relationship is: they don't act like father and daughter in-laws, but he is legally her provider and in-house patriarch, and she is the lady of the house, and she is the closest thing to her mother he has. I could write whole essays about that last point & the similarities of both Catherines, such as their fearlessness, particularly toward Heathcliff (and I believe this makes him uncomfortable and even scares him at times).

---

Excerpts from Juliet McMaster's "The Courtship and Honeymoon of Mr. and Mrs. Linton Heathcliff: Emily Brontë's Sexual Imagery" via JSTOR:

"Linton is called at one point 'only a feeble tool to his father' (205). In the sexual context he becomes a sort of human dildo, which his father uses to rape and degrade the second Catherine, the child bride whose birth caused the death of the Catherine whom Heathcliff loved."

"'Making love in play, eh?' says Heathcliff of the young couple, with grim jocularity (188). And that is the way in which Bronte develops this courtship of juveniles."

"Heathcliff even writes half of Linton's love letters for him, so that they turn out 'singularly odd compounds of ardour and flatness,' 'copious love letters, foolish as the age of the writer rendered natural, yet with touches, here and there, which I thought were borrowed from a more experienced source' (182), records Nelly. Catherine is being wooed by son and father together. And when the time comes, the marriage is consummated by the same team."

"[Linton] takes his pleasure, when Catherine pushes him off, in summoning his father and in witnessing the physical domination of his bride [..]"

"After Heathcliff abducts and incarcerates young Catherine and her attendant, he keeps our narrator, Nelly, imprisoned for 'five nights and four days' (220). Meanwhile the marriage ceremony is performed, but we have no one to describe it for us."

"'She's not to go; we won't let her' [..] Now more than ever Linton's life and opinions are ruled by his father: he can do little more than parrot what 'he says.' If Linton's satisfied mein suggests the happy bridegroom, his role as husband, lord and master is shared with his father."

"Heathcliff testifies, 'I heard him draw a pleasant picture to Zillah of what he would do [to Catherine], if he were as strong as I. The inclination is there' (228). Linton evidently has a conception of himself and his father as complementary in this sexual context, part of a team."

"Heathcliff's appropriation of the property and physical abuse of the bride leaves her in effect deflowered. His brutal blow that makes the blood flow recalls his symbolic defloration of Isabella, Linton's mother, when he hurls the knife."

"[Heathcliff] won't listen to Nelly's pleas that since he hates the young couple he may as well let them stay at the Grange. 'I want my children about me, to be sure,' he answers with chilling irony; '—besides, that lass owes me her services for her bread' (227). One wonders what sort of 'services' he has in mind. He apparently intends to prolong the honeymoon at which he has assisted. And as he takes her away, there is some doubt, as in Lockwood's mind at the beginning of the novel, whether Catherine is Heathcliff's daughter-in-law or his bride [..]"

Source: McMaster, Juliet. “The Courtship and Honeymoon of Mr. and Mrs. Linton Heathcliff: Emily Brontë's Sexual Imagery.” Victorian Review, vol. 18, no. 1, 1992, pp. 1–12. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/27794707.

[melynen]

Rec list #1: Regency Adjacent

Aka fics with similar themes that I keep rereading again and again and again. 💖

The Courtship of Mr. Bond | 00Q | E | by marlowe_tops

Summary: In which Bond is a retired naval commander with too much house, Q is a mechanical engineer with too many sisters, and they have lengthy conversations about decorum, bonnet-ribbons and philosophy in Regency England.

This fic has everything I’ve ever wanted from a P&P AU. The slow burn (and its conclusion) is beautiful, the banter is witty, and all the side characters are wonderful additions to the story.

something has scarcely begun | 00Q | G | by pdameron

Summary: It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.

This was a favored saying of Mrs. Moneypenny’s, as it surely was for all mothers with beautiful daughters.

Q had always thought that a single man in possession of a good fortune would hardly be in want of anything, let alone a wife. But then again, Q had never paid much attention to such matters.

(yet another Pride & Prejudice AU)

This is probably my most favourite Regency AU fic ever, I adore every word of it. 🩷 The (mild) enemies to lovers type of slow burn is extremely satisfying, and the plot overall is great. Can’t forget the lovely side characters, either.

people can surprise you (or not) | 00Q | T+ | by pdameron

Summary: “I’m not you, Bond. I don’t exactly have a technique for getting rich strangers to like me.”

“Just do your naive cute puppy thing, and they’ll be doting on you in no time,” Bond replies as he pulls up to the grand estate.

“My what?” Q asks incredulously. Bond doesn’t answer, simply giving him an indulgent smile. The fucker.

(or: 00q meets Gosford Park. Except not really.)

This fic has one of my favourite tropes, fake relationship. It’s beautifully written, has a nice Agatha Christie-esque plot with an MI6 twist, and a lovely developing relationship between Bond and Q.

[phoebehalliwell]

ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhmygod phoebe always jumping to the maybe this was how it was meant to be when someone is facing death (in love hurts w leo  i think that you need to learn to accept the possibility that... maybe we're not supposed to save leo. maybe he's not our innocent. maybe we're only meant to save daisy. // in the courtship of wyatts father with chris i just think that we have to face the reality that chris's destiny might have been just to come here and warn us about wyatt, and that's all.) bc she's trained herself to use it as a coping mechanism bc she grew up w a dead mom and an absent father...........................

[not-fitzwilliam-darcy]

✨ONE DIRECTION (Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson)

🌻Leave the Sunshine out

"You alright there, lad?”

Harry startled, and drew his hand away so fast it hit the coffee cup, spilling it on the tawny brown table and the dry brownies, which became soggy enough soon. The ‘oh shit’ from the enabler of the crime goes unheard as Harry scrambles to move his precious laptop away from the mess. It gets a little too hard to breathe, a little too stuffy, everything feels uncomfortable and too sudden and hard to comprehend and there’s a yellow rag and someone’s wiping the table and it goes round and round and round…

“Hey! Earth to pretty boy! Are you alright?”

Harry blinks, heartbeat running a goddamned marathon and skin tingling like Velcro tape. It takes him a moment to focus but when he finally lands his gaze on the boy, well, his world kind of stops.

***

Harry should really send that email before it's past deadline but he's anxious. Louis is the cute barista that distracts him.

🌻Ready for a war

Harry is a hero, Louis is a villain. Louis wants to destroy the one Harry loves.

🌻She is Beauty, We are World Class

Harry grinned widely. "Okay," he said, giggling. "Take me out to somewhere nice then, Mr. Tomlinson. I’m free tomorrow."

"I will, I promise." Louis couldn’t help reflecting Harry’s grin. "Meet me near the Royal Opera House, at four thirty?"

Harry hesitated. "What if someone sees?"

"Someone is bound to see." Louis’ smile dimmed a little, the fear that pulsed through him earlier in the evening coming back. "But society is blind to things they do not want to see, love. Let’s take advantage of it."

"As the historians say, they were friends."

"I’d even go so far as to say they were roommates."

***

A 70's London AU where Louis loses himself, and Harry finds him before he gets lost.

🌻Honey, I rose up from the dead (I do it all the time)

It became a thing.

His fate was already written. Louis William Tomlinson was dead—or, rather, supposed to be dead.

And yet.

***

Where Louis doesn't want to die and a hundred years later, Harry is still trying to kill him.

🌻Sculpt my World (in the palm of your hand)

What Louis needed was to relax. A pint or two with his friends, take someone home, and let out the pent-up frustration, maybe. That would have helped him.

Not this whatever-hipster-earthy shit that Zayn takes him to on the only day of the week he’s free.

Kil’n it! Pottery and Ceramic Studio

Pasted on the glass door was a hand-written sign: Pottery classes Every Saturday from 10:00–11:30.

"Zayn." Louis refused to put his foot in that monstrosity without an explanation. "What am I doing here?"

"Relaxing?" Zayn asked questioningly.

"I thought of a spa day." Louis was getting desperate. "Massage, pampering, going to the bar, and drinking my liver off?"

Zayn just rolled his eyes. "It’s ten in the morning, Lou; we’re not getting drunk when the sun is high."

***

Louis just wanted to spend his free day relaxing. Pottery helps.

🌻Good-Old Fashioned Lover Boy

Harry's savior complex has often led him to rather questionable situations, but this might take the cake. When a miscalculated decision leads to an accidental courtship with the sweetest, most gentle alpha, Harry is torn between breaking the alpha's heart and telling the truth. Yes, Louis does seem to give unorthodox courting gifts, but he is rather endearing and Harry is just an omega, after all.

✨ GOOD OMENS (Aziraphale/Crowley)

🌻Raindrops

Time is a fickle thing; Nina and Maggie had gotten married, and Muriel had finally understood the mechanics of running a bookshop without actually selling any books. Seeing them mended his heart in a way he couldn’t explain, and by some feat, Crowley had lived again, regardless -knit friendship he had formed with the bottles in the attic, and he kept going on.

Someday, he’d be strong enough to leave. He’d go away somewhere far, where his memory isn’t tainted by a love he wasn’t meant to feel.

But for the time being, Crowley drank.

***

Crowley and his terrible coping mechanisms. It rains a lot, and somewhere out where no one knows, an angel cried.

[elusianknight]

Wyll vs Astarion vs some fanon stuff

im not ragging on ppl for having fun w model swaps and whatnot. play bg3 however u want it's a masterpiece!

but i got thinkin after hearing apparently some ppl ACTUALLY believe Astarion is like a fairy tale prince and should be acting like Wyll--

Wyll is a young idealist, a LITERAL prince, believes wholeheartedly that there is good in the world - because he most certainly is a force of good! his dancing and twirling his lover and all this fancy courtship comes from, frankly, his own confidence and ideals about what kind of relationship he wants to have. you can make fun of him for being a prude or w/e and he doesn't take that shit even for a second!

Astarion is the literal opposite. He has a trash charisma score. You can argue a separation of mechanics and story, but I think it's plenty meaningful. He has learned through sheer force of practice, memorization, and terrifyingly negative reinforcement, how to tell people what they want to hear. how to guess at others' desires and fulfill them for the purposes of manipulation. His flair for the dramatic, his dandy persona (loving finery and rich things) all stem from his extreme insecurity, imo. Upon first glance, his starting outfit is a nobleman's garb, but if you read the description you realize it is very old and worn and has been repaired countless times.

Astarion's fear makes him crave power, and we often talk about that in terms of literal strength (and magic power), but I think we sometimes miss how that also includes wealth and political influence. Sure, Astarion certainly has an appreciation for fine things and a discerning eye when it comes to aesthetics, and especially clothing, but I really think much of his... pickiness? about these things is just him bullshitting for the purposes of seeming superior to others. both in terms of, being superior and lording himself over them, and also being seen as superior. because it's a performance.

We can see this manifest in spawn vs Ascendant Astarion tbh.

Spawn Astarion's epilogue outfit is specifically described to be made of "cheap leather." In most endings, he's either holed up in the Underdark with the other spawn, or a wandering folk hero. In either case, he's very genuine to himself and to others - he's a bit self-deprecating even (basically saying "yeah it's crazy that i'm actually the GOOD guy for once!"). He doesn't have to project an image of anything else, he doesn't have to perform, he simply is. So he wears something decent, but practical. And, crucially, he burned the shithole of Cazador's mansion to the ground.

Ascended Astarion... well. He shows up in a custom embroidered fit (with crimson dragons on it!!) which is absolutely gorgeous! He took over Cazador's palace and hosts masquerades and balls and invites important nobility to the estate. He is condescending to the other people at the epilogue party, including his lover if they displease him. He's still quite clearly putting on a performance.

Uhhhh so yeah this got long but! the differences between Astarion's cynical theatrics and Wyll's idealistic shows of courtship.