#new year in new orleans

[sarahsmi13s]

|| new year in new orleans ||

you're my new year's kiss, it's not a question

What’s a better way to ring in the new year than with the people you love? There isn’t.

Which is why Star and Omaha, along with the Daggers are in Louisiana with Sam and Bucky.

Sam had managed to rent a boat to fit everyone on to go out on the water for the fireworks. Not that it mattered much, they could have sat on the docks and drank - as long as they were together.

As the night ticked closer to midnight, Star proposed a toast.

“Hey, Daggers! And friends. I got something I want to say… This year has been crazy, to say the least. Coming back together after 5 years of adapting to the losses we faced and then adapting to having them back in our lives just months ago. This year, we showed the world, the universe, that no matter what it throws at us… we won’t just lay there and take it. We’re gonna fight, and we’re gonna come out there side better than ever. I’m glad this year gave me us, and next year is gonna have a hard time handling it. I love you guys, let’s kick next year’s ass.”

And as the clock hit 00:00, Star and Omaha started the new year in each others arms, and it was perfect.

i wanted to end the year by celebrating the next! and since J and S and Duckie got moodboards tied to their series, Lieutenant Rogers and Oma-Star deserved one too!

thank you to everyone that came to celebrate this milestone with me, i love y'all! and i'll be doing a big end of the year post as well and probably get a lil sappy 💜

you can find all of the moodboard for this celebration here! -> unwrap us!!

[nenoname]

thinking about stan "god i love cards and gambling" pines

[captainsophiestark]

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Klaus Mikaelson x Reader

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Written for my personal fic writing challenge for 2024, Sophie's Year of Fic! Featuring a new fic being posted every Friday, all year long :)

Fandom: The Vampire Diaries/The Originals

Summary: When a serious magical threat comes to Mystic Falls and puts Josie and Lizzie at risk, Caroline and Ric send Klaus' ex down to New Orleans to seek safe harbor for the girls with him. Or, what if Y/N went to New Orleans instead of Caroline, and Klaus was free to see them.

Word Count: 2,966

Category: Angst, Fluff

Putting work into an AI program without permission is illegal. You do not have my permission. Do not do it.

I chewed my lip as I stared up at the building before me. If this were any other situation, I would've turned on my heel and run by now. But there were two little girls, one on either side of me, who needed me to be strong. This was their best hope of being safe, which meant all of my stuff needed to take a back seat.

I took a deep breath, trying not to let the girls sense just how nervous I was, then started heading for the door to the bar. It was the middle of the day, so hopefully no one would mind me bringing two kids in with me.

Caroline and Ric had trusted me with Josie and Lizzie, and I refused to let them down. Some new supernatural none of us knew existed had come to town and, worse, had started going after the girls. So, I'd sat down with their parents, and we'd figured out a plan to keep them safe: take them to the bigger, badder supernatural who I used to know.

My eyes scanned the bar for the familiar face of Klaus Mikaelson, and after a moment, I found him. He was leaning against the counter talking to the bartender, and I was surprised he couldn't hear my heart beating out of my chest from here. I hadn't seen him in years, and I'd also rejected him the last time I saw him. But he was the best chance the girls had, so I was just going to have to hope he didn't hate me now.

I cleared my throat, shook my nerves off as well as I could, herded the girls into a booth where I could keep an eye on them, then turned to face the bar. I found Klaus already looking at me, his arms crossed and a curious look on his face as he leaned against the counter. A wave of emotions hit me at once, but I shoved back against the feeling, squaring my shoulders and putting one foot in front of the other until I stood in front of Klaus.

"Hello, love," he said, and my heart damn near stopped in my chest. I took a deep breath. "It's good to see you again."

"It's... it's good to see you again, too."

And it was. Most of my friends had been relieved when Klaus finally left town, and they'd freaked out the minute they found out he'd come back to see me. And at the time, I'd convinced myself they were right, and that it was better he was gone. But standing before him now, that slight smirk on his face, I realized I had really, really missed him.

"So what brings you to New Orleans?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. He looked past me to where the girls were playing a clapping game in the booth. "I take it it has something to do with them."

I sighed. "Yeah. Yeah, it does."

"And who's the father?"

Now it was my turn to cross my arms and raise an eyebrow.

"They're actually not mine. But I'd say you don't have a lot of room to judge, considering the reason you moved to New Orleans in the first place."

"Who said I was judging? I was just trying to gauge how jealous I might need to be."

I huffed a laugh, trying and failing to hide my smile by glancing at the ground. Nik grinned at me, and for just a flash of a moment, it was like nothing had changed between us since the last time I'd seen him.

But then I heard Josie and Lizzie behind me, and I remember why I'd come here in the first place. I sighed and met Nik's eyes again.

"I need your help."

His eyebrows immediately drew together, and he straightened up from the bar, taking a half step towards me. The intensity of his worried stare made my heart melt.

"What's wrong, love?"

"There's a new supernatural in town. Or a few new ones, I guess. We're struggling a little bit to deal with them, and they've made Josie and Lizzie their targets. Caroline and Ric are their parents for all intents and purposes, and we sat down and decided our best chance at keeping the girls safe is if I left with them, alone, and came to you."

"And whose idea was that?"

"...Mine. It... actually took a lot of convincing for Ric and Caroline to let me bring them to you."

A hint of a smile flickered across Nic's face as he huffed a barely audible laugh. His beautiful blue eyes met mine with the intensity I'd seen a thousand times for both good and bad moments, and it made my heart race.

"You will always be welcome here, with me. I'll keep the three of you safe."

Relief washed over me. I closed my eyes, taking a minute, and when I opened them again I found Nik still watching me intently. I thought he might lean in for a hug or a kiss or something else, but instead, he just gave me a small smile and nodded in the direction of the girls.

"Mind introducing me?"

The girls absolutely loved Nik from the first moment they met him, and he was nothing but sweet and patient and kind. He made a few absolutely ridiculous jokes that had them falling out of their chairs laughing, and had my heart melting all over again. We left the bar together, the four of us strolling through the streets of New Orleans as Nik led us to his home. He glanced over at me a few times with the roguish smile I'd come to love, and despite the fact that I'd come here on the run to protect the girls, I couldn't help enjoying this moment with him. In different circumstances, it might've just felt right.

"We're almost home, but I just had a thought," said Nik, his arm swinging back and forth with Lizzie's as they marched down the street together. Lizzie and Josie held hands, and I did the same with Josie, making us a little chain. I turned to smile at Nik over the girls' heads.

"And what's that?" I asked. Nik smiled at me, then turned his attention to the girls.

"My favorite ice cream place in the whole of the city is very close to here. Does anyone else feel like we ought to make a pitstop?"

"YES!" the girls screamed in unison. I laughed as Nik stopped abruptly, turning on his heel and then pulling us in the other direction.

"Alright, come on then!"

The girls cheered as they marched after him, and my heart soared as I followed along behind the three of them. I'd gotten to see Nik like this every so often in Mystic Falls, but a lot of our interactions were colored by whatever drama he and his family had going on with my friends and I. Being with him, like this, and seeing him being so amazing with the girls was seriously doing something to me.

"This place really does have the best ice cream," Nik assured me as we stepped inside and joined the line, the girls bouncing excitedly in front of us as we stood shoulder to shoulder. "Hope loves it."

"Hope... how is she? How's... how's Hayley?"

Nik smirked. "They're both good. We've had our rough patches, but Hayley and I have found our rhythm as coparents despite not being together."

I released a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding, and Nik laughed.

"Now look who's trying to gauge their jealousy."

I rolled my eyes, but couldn't hold back a grin all the same.

"Whatever. But... you're happy? Being a dad, and being here, and... and everything?"

The corner of Nik's mouth quirked up, but the smile didn't reach his eyes.

"Like anything, it's had its ups and downs. But I wouldn't trade Hope for anything in the world."

I nodded, and the two of us fell into comfortable silence as we worked our way through the line. The girls were ecstatic to try their cones, and Nik recommended his favorite flavor to me, which lived up to the hype he'd promised. The four of us wandered slowly the rest of the way to our destination, which turned out to be an absolutely massive compound in the middle of the French Quarter.

Nik pushed open the door and led us inside just as the sun began to set outside. I came to a stop in the beautiful open space just inside the front doors, staring around at it in awe.

"C'mon, love," Nik said gently, resting a hand on my back and guiding me in the direction of the stairs. "Let's get the girls settled in for the night."

I just nodded, putting my focus back on the girls as we followed Nik through the massive compound. He pushed open one of the many doors along the second floor, letting us into a bedroom with two beds. I even spotted a few kids books on the shelves to one side of the room.

I slid my eyes to Nik with a raised eyebrow, but he just shrugged.

"For Hope, and any friends she might decide to bring over when the time comes. No reason to not be prepared, especially since we have the space for it." The corner of my mouth tugged up into a smile, that warm feeling spreading in my chest again. "I'll bring a few of her pajamas in, they should fit these two alright."

"Thanks."

"Of course, love."

Between the two of us, Nik and I managed to get the girls settled down and in bed in under an hour. They'd had a long, tiring day, after all, and if I weren't practically jittering with nerves after the afternoon I'd spent with Nik I'm sure I would've been right behind them.

Instead, I found myself following him after we closed the door to the girls' room, going who knows where in this massive house in his new life since he'd left Mystic Falls. After a few moments, I couldn't really take the silence anymore, so I spoke up.

"Where are the rest of the Mikaelsons?" I asked, my voice thankfully even. "I'd expected to see at least one of the siblings by now."

Nik turned to give me a little smirk over his shoulder, and I hated that he could probably hear my heart race.

"They're busy with other things for the night. And Hope is with Hayley having a mother-daughter weekend away from everything. It's just us, tonight."

My heart sped up even more, although that shouldn't have been possible. After a moment, Nik led me into the kitchen and headed straight for the refrigerator. I took a seat at one of the high stools at the counter, watching him as he moved.

"I assume you still like hot chocolate more than most other drinks?" asked Nik without turning around. I smiled.

"Absolutely. I know it's been a little while, but come on Nik, I'm not a completely different person."

He paused to give me a smile over his shoulder, then continued in his hot chocolate preparations. I scratched at something on the counter while he worked, trying to get up the courage to talk about all the million things hanging in the air before us. Finally, I cleared my throat and forced myself to look up, watching Nik's back as I spoke.

"Thank you for this, by the way. For taking us in, even after... Well, even after I told to leave me and Mystic Falls."

Nik sighed, bringing our two mugs of hot chocolate over and setting them down on the counter before walking around to stand in front of me. We were barely an inch apart, but he didn't make a move to close the distance anymore. I'd set a boundary the last time I'd seen him, and he clearly had no intention of crossing it.

"I will always be here for you if you need me, love. If you seek me out for refuge, or to change your mind and take me up on my offer to show you the world, or even because I make the best hot chocolate in the entire world and you just can't live without it... I'll be waiting."

I stared up at Nik, a slight twinkle in his eye, as I fought to keep tears out of my own. He'd truly caused so many problems in Mystic Falls. My friends' dislike-to-hate of him made sense. But he'd always been sweet and funny, patient and kind and understanding, with me. If I was totally honest with myself, I'd been starting to fall in love with him before I'd decided to side with my friends and push him away.

"Don't cry, love. It's alright," he said, his eyes scanning my face. I hiccupped, the tears finally starting to fall, a combination of all the different emotions and stressors of my past few days coming together and overwhelming me at once. I'd held it together for the girls, but now they were in bed and taken care of, so I could safely fall apart.

I leaned forward, falling into Nik's chest, and he wrapped his arms tightly around me the moment I did.

"It's alright. You're safe with me."

That brought on a whole new wave of tears, not just for the stress of the day, but for everything I'd lost with Nik, too. He just held me tighter, rubbing soothing circles on my back as I let it all out, then slowly started to calm down.

I pulled back slightly once I managed to get ahold of myself. One of Nik's hands stayed on my arm, and he brought his other hand up to gently cup my face, wiping away a few of the tears with his thumb.

"What can I do, love? Tell me how I can help you and I'll do it."

I choked back another sob, this one turning into a half-laugh.

"You've already done enough, Nik. More than enough. It's just... it's been such a long day. I feel like I've been barely holding back a complete stress breakdown for like a week, and I always had the girls with me so I had to keep it together..."

"Well then, why don't we get you settled into a room so you can get some sleep, hm? We can always talk more in the morning."

Nik started to move to help me off the stool and up to bed, but I stopped him, hands resting on his biceps. He raised an eyebrow at me but didn't move away.

"No, Nik. I don't want to talk tomorrow, I need to say this. I... I love you."

Any hint of humor or lightness dropped off Nik's face, replaced by completely serious shock. My heart was racing out of my chest, and I knew he could hear it, but I pushed on anyway.

"I think I was falling in love with you before, and I didn't want to admit it to myself. But being with you here, now... it feels right. There are a bunch of powerful murderers chasing me, trying to hurt two kids whose parents have trusted me, exclusively, with their safety, and I'm in a strange city far from anywhere I've ever called home. But for some reason I just feel... happy. Happy to see you again, happy to spend time with you, about a thousand times calmer than I was without you. You feel like home, Nik, and I love you. I just... that just feels like something you should know."

Nik's eyes had been scanning and searching my face intently the entire time I'd been talking, the slightest hint of wetness gathering in his own eyes. A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth once I'd finished speaking, and he brought his hand back up to cup my face, his thumb brushing lightly over my cheek.

"I don't think I've made it any secret how I feel about you, love," he said, voice soft and tender. "But in case you need to hear it again, I love you. Always and forever."

A few tears managed to sneak out and down my cheeks again, but this time I had a smile on my face. Nik's expression mirrored my own.

"Once... once all of this is over, do you think... well, maybe I could come back here. To New Orleans, once the girls are safe back home. That is, if... if your offer to follow you to New Orleans still stands from the first time you extended it?"

Nik beamed back at me. "I can honestly tell you that absolutely nothing would make me happier."

My smile grew to the point of pain as I stared up at Nik, a light in his eyes that I'd missed much more than I'd realized. I leaned forward just slightly, Nik mirroring my move as I glanced at his lips. One corner of his mouth rose higher in the troublemaking smirk that always made my heart race before he closed the rest of the distance between us, his lips meeting mine, soft at first and then with the same urgency pulsing in my heart.

I'd kissed him before, but it had always been tempered by concern for my friends, and about what they'd think. But this time, as fireworks exploded in my chest and thousands of butterflies took off in my stomach, I couldn't bring myself to care.

I was safe and happy in the arms of the man I loved, kissing him senseless. I'd missed out on a lot of times like this, but from now on, I didn't intend to let anything keep me from spending every second I could just like this, friends and insane supernatural threats be damned. Always and forever.

****************

Everything Taglist: @rosecentury @kmc1989

TVD/TO Taglist: @elenavampire21

[robinhuntr]

With all the new Gambit content coming out that has him looking beautiful and pretty, I need everyone to remember where we came from. He used to look fucking crazy. His hair took up half the panel, he almost always had a cigarette, and you can just tell that jacket REEKED but I still love this Gambit more than anything.

[ubetterburnwitch]

there is a house in New Orleans…

[frettchanstudios]

Art vs Artist 2022. A selection of my work/opportunities for my existing work from this past year. I'm so proud of what I was able to accomplish, it was definitely the year of public art and my most successful year as a small business owner/artist. A lot of murals and art installations around the Fraser Valley as well as being flown to the unveiling of the mural I designed for New Orleans. I had my first solo exhibition and painted my largest work to date. I created a lot of designs for Indigenous-focused campaigns this year, partnering with many businesses. It is incredible to have the opportunity to use my artwork to make a difference. I feel very blessed to be able to make a living being creative and for all the opportunities that I've had. I am also thankful for the holidays as I'm currently on the butt end of art fatigue/burnout and I've pulled back a little bit from social media to keep my mental health in check. In transparency, it isn't always sunshine and roses and I think it's important to share that. I'm very excited about what the new year will bring. New murals and projects are being planned and I'm currently working on a personal piece that I'm very excited to share, it is a goal of mine to create more personal art in the coming year. In 2023 I will be relaunching my online shop so keep your eye out for that. I am so thankful to everyone who supports my work, from the companies I've been blessed to work with to the individuals who commission me or purchase my prints to those that like and share my work with others. It means the world. Happy New Year to ya'll, see you next year!

[wolfkller]

sorry for my absence from stupid discourse i had shit to do

[specialagentartemis]

Sarah Sisko’s whole deal is so horrifying and messed up and DS9 just kinda. Glosses over it

[enbysiriusblack]

black-latino remus lupin who never bothered learning his parents' languages but finds out sirius is fluent in loads and makes lyall teach his welsh and italian and hope to teach him spanish and french, just to try to impress sirius

[doyouneedmedicalwesistance]

wheres your hot boyfriend when you need him

[brutal-out-here]

We’re still going to get a Speak Now song right?

[aheathen-conceivably]

If I remember correctly, you said before that you didn’t choose Zelda’s gender, but had written or had plans for her life that would work either way, and then just refined them when you knew what you were working with. And that’s why Josephine and Antoine are a brother-sister duo; if Zelda were born a boy, he’d be with Josephine. And of course you mention pretty frequently that Giorgio has become SO much more than he was ever intended to be.

Can you tell us a little about what would be different? Who would Antoine be with?? And Josephine with a baby.. I can hardly imagine 🫢

AHHH friend!! This is such a delicious question, and so timely at that 😉

So yes, that’s correct. I didn’t change any of the birth sex or genetics for our first generations of Darlington babies. I was still in a phase of writing/planning where I was functioning more on general ideas than deadset plans. So before our heir was born all I really knew was that they would end up in New Orleans by 1920, and that the decade was going to explore the artistic scene in that era. I also knew that if they were born female, they were going to be a jazz singer while if they were born male, they were going to be a writer who documented the whole era almost like from an “outsider’s perspective.”

In both of these scenarios the heir’s personality would have been very similiar, in that they would get pulled into this world by the Duplanchiers and kind of be swept up in it beyond themselves. I had a very vague sort of F. Scott/Zelda Fitzgerald vibe visualized for our potential 1920s male heir and Josephine, and I think a lot of the tempestuous conflict between her and Giorgio was originally born from that vision.

Beyond that, I didn’t really have much planned. More that the characters were envisioned and waiting there for us. So I couldn’t tell you the route Antoine would have taken if our male heir had ended up with Josephine, mostly because their actual arcs and plot points came after Zelda was born, and even much of it when she was already in New Orleans.

Josephine especially, who’s character I had visualized since before Zelda was born, didn’t actually come to life until they met. Still one of the first things I knew about her (plotwise) is that one of her partners was our impetuous to move out west. So the figure of Giorgio the first time we see him, was meant to be one of her partners, and a different one to who we eventually met in Strangerville. Only over time in the 1920s, they just kind of…became soulmates? Like I know they are absolutely fucked, but simultaneously the more I wrote them together the more it was like a puzzle piece that was missing from Jo’s character, and perhaps left there by my original idea of who she would have been if Zelda had been born male. So gradually the Giorgio we knew in New Orleans and the faceless partner out west became one in the same, and I bridged the gap between the two of them into one character.

And Josephine with a baby you say??? 👀👀👀

[sprinklysparkle]

am I the only one thinking about how Rebecca didn't seem that surprised when renfield revealed he was draculas familiar?

obviously the way she reacted when renfield told her he works for dracula implied that she's aware of draculas existence -as a fictional character at least. ("Dracula?...like count Dracula ") she definitely did seem to doubt renfield at first but she seemed to come to terms with that whole thing rather quickly?? idk if that's just a fault of the movie itself or there's some other reason to explain it? cause if some random guy told you he only kills people cause he works for dracula you'd probably think he's insane and making it all up right?

another thing worth mentioning is when dracula introduced himself to teddy lobo, he also doesn't react too strongly to that revelation and doesn't seem to doubt him or even care about it that much. later on when teddy introduced Dracula to his mother (who also didn't seem shocked at all) he says "it's the real fucking dracula!" which again proves that Dracula is a well known character (or maybe just a well known person?) and suggests that the general public know about him. yet this doesn't explain why NOBODY DOUBTS HIM OR EVEN QUESTIONS IT???

like... okay, you're dracula? as in the bloodsucking vampire from Bram Stoker's novel 'Dracula' or perhaps the classic 1931 'Dracula' starring bela legosi? oh yeah, cool! that's believable! didn't know you were actually a real person but whateves! 👍

additionally when Kate was saved she mentioned how renfield told her he used Dracula blood to heal her. Rebecca just said it was some herbal remedy- so she essentially hid the truth about Dracula's existence from her for what appears to be no reason?

idk I've been thinking about this alot- trying to come up with different ideas of how Dracula is basically like 'viewed' in society. I need other people's opinions on this cause it drives me crazy.

[cuntylestat]

wish i had taken better pictures while i was in new orleans but i almost gave myself heat exhaustion/a heat stroke walking to the gay vampire house. here's some proof of my follies though :)

[soobinies]

The heat just makes me so irritated very easily. I get annoyed very quickly

[doublescribble]

C.J. McCollum 2024 NBA Playoffs, 1st Round