#or well michael is just all encompassing

[finntias]

they put me in a room. a rubber room. with the distortion. the distortion made me crazy.

[sergeifyodorov]

Hi!

This is maybe a bit left of field, but I love your blog and you seem very knowledgeable so maybe you (or one of your followers?) have an idea.

Can you recommend some reading material on sports in general? It can absolutely be hockey related but I’m talking sort of bigger scope. More specifically, how (team) sports relate to society as a whole, what role it plays for humanity, maybe it’s history? What about the fan culture?

For context, I come from a pretty academic family where growing up there was this all encompassing prejudice of “it’s for stupid people” (which is clearly stupid in itself). I guess I’m trying to break the mold, but all of it is culturally very new to me.

It can be books, articles, essays, anything.

I realise I sound like a nerd, but. Maybe?

I love this q!!! I'm going to list some of my favourites, but I also haven't read everything (or even most things) so I'll leave it open to the floor to add to. If you have recs for this anon, please reblog with additions!

Moneyball by Michael Lewis and its semi-not-really sequel Big Data Baseball by Travis Sawchik are about the analytics revolutions in baseball - Moneyball about the original one that sparked from amateur mathematician Bill James' writings, and Big Data about the inception of the Statcast era about fifteen years later.

The Game by Ken Dryden is a biography by one of the greatest goalies and minds ever to play the sport. I would recommend almost anything written by Dryden, but this is really his masterwork.

17776 is a work of fiction written by Jon Bois, but I feel like it fits within the scope of your question anyway - thematically it seeks to ask and answer why we play sports and what they mean to us. It's also written and presented online for free and you can just google it, so you don't have to hunt through your libraries or buy a copy!

The Game of Our Lives by Peter Gzowski is a rarer one, especially if you're not Canadian, but I have a personal connection so I'll always recommend it anyway. It's written about Wayne Gretzky during his initial NHL season, and examines the way we think of greatness, what makes hockey players great (on a technical as well as social level), and the ideal of a Great Hockey Player as it relates to Canadian national identity.

Along that thread, I'll finally recommend the works of sociologist Kristi Allain, who's written multiple papers on the construction of Canadian identity both within hockey and within media discussing it, and the socialization and experiences of Canadian and non-Canadian hockey players.

[astaroth1357]

Witchy Requests: The Reality of Summoning a Demon Lord

Contents: Violence and demons being demonic

~♡♡♡~

Summoning Lucifer

First off, this is not even remotely easy to do.

Lucifer does not get summoned away very often because it takes a witch at least comparable to Solomon's skill to pull it off. Of the small handful of people who can, only a couple are crazy enough to try (so he already knows them all by name).

Not only is this hard to do logistically, Lucifer also HATES being summoned with a burning passion. It messes up his schedule, gives him a pounding headache, and it's pretty humiliating to be ordered about like a dog on a lead.

Anyone summoning Lucifer has put some seriously strong spells in place to keep him in check. It'll take more than a salt circle to stay protected because he'll just blow that crap away with his wings.

It's well known that he will attack the second that the caster gives him the opportunity. Even so much as looking away could leave enough of an opening for him to fry them to a crisp. Extra potent magic chains and bindings are about the only things that ensure safety....

Deals with Lucifer are extremely costly due to how pissed he is just being there. He doesn't stop at their soul. Depending on the day, he could ask for any number of other sacrifices before he so much as lifts a finger. A person summoning Lucifer must be prepared to lose almost everything...

That said, he always fulfills his contracts to the letter and employs very little trickery. If the agreement was unclear, then that's on the summoner. Not him. They get exactly what they asked for.

There was a rumor going around for a time that if Lucifer was summoned with classical music in background, he'd be easier to deal with. Unfortunately, a naive young witch gave it a try and found out that "easier to deal with" Lucifer is still willing take off a hand or two no matter how sophisticated the room sounds.

Solomon has only managed to summon him twice. The first time was in a bid for a pact (which ended in a very wrecked office) and the second was an attempt to ask the questions about Michael that Simeon refused to answer (he let him go pretty quickly after receiving a death glare that would have turned his hair white if it weren't so silvery already).

Summoning Mammon

So like. It's pretty easy to do, but it ain't cheap.

Mammon only shows up if the caster can offer up some serious wealth in return. We're talking sprinkling the summoning circle in gold coins and Rolex watches to make it happen. They don't get to keep any of it, either. He's taking that as the "entrance fee."

Though he's generally a pretty safe summon, Mammon's motivations are directly tied to how much wealth he's gonna make off of their time together. Bribes aren't just encouraged, they're expected, and he gets pissed off if they think he'll do any work for free.

Since he encompasses the sphere of Greed, he sees a lot of witches and the like who summon him for a bit of luck or to increase their chances of acquiring ill-gotten gains. He usually demands a cut of whatever they manage to get from his help, on top of what it already took for him to play ball to begin with.

The only witches who get to skip his exorbitant prices are, unfortunately, the ones whom he already owes money to and it is degrading to say the least... He tries to keep MC out of that as much as possible and he'll straight up toss anyone who brings it up.

There's an urban legend around witching circles that of you can get Mammon to kiss a Grimm and give it to you, you'll have good fortune for an entire year. He doesn't really believe it himself but he still gave one to MC, just in case.

Solomon hasn't ever tried to summon Mammon, though he knows that he could very easily. He's not too tied to wealth or material possessions, so he's never needed his assistance to start with. If he ever summons him now, it's usually just to ask how MC is doing since the two are so close.

Summoning Levi

Often more trouble than it's worth...

Summoning Levi is really only useful for a VERY small handful of problems, nearly all of which concerning the Devil's Sea in some way. He's the only brother with any jurisdiction over it, much less the ability to talk to fish.

The issue is that Levi hates being summoned just as much as Lucifer. It drags him right out of his comfort zone and puts him a space where he feels like he's being judged for how useless he is... Thus, he'll spend the whole time sulking, irritated, and hissing to be left alone.

Levi has to be spoken to with extreme care because setting him off could result in the caster getting crushed by all 200 tons of Lotan then swept away in the flood that comes after.

Those who can appease him with video games and anime fair better, not by much because he gets even more irritated if they get details the wrong or seem like a "fake fan" (yes, unfortunately he gatekeeps 🥲). Only the most otaku of witches are safe from his temper.

In truth, main reason that anyone summons Levi anymore is for nautical travel through the Devil's Sea. The dude is like a living compass with precise latitude and longitudinal coordinates built into his DNA. But asking for that is also a one way ticket to meet Admiral Levi who is even WORSE to be around than the Otaku version...

The first time Solomon summoned Levi, they actually got along pretty well (largely thanks to Solomon's equally copious knowledge of TSL). He was only looking for the scales of a specific sea monster, but the two ended up chatting for a while. He thought that he could have made a pact with him right then and there, but Levi asked if he liked The Magical Ruri Hana and his answer to THAT shut things down instantly...

Summoning Satan

Practically the OG demon to summon despite being around for the least amount of time.

Satan is one of the easier brothers to summon because he spent a few centuries spreading around just how to do so in the human world. He wanted an excuse to leave the House and piss off Lucifer by fucking with humanity. Architect of the Satanic Panic right here.

I suppose you could say that in his younger years, Satan was something akin to a rockstar in witching terms. Even non-witches knew of him, just not a lot of the accurate details.

Satan was really the "ground zero" for humanity's pop culture surrounding demons. He used to use it as a chance to let loose from Lucifer's constant pressure, so he played up the persona of the "charming, charismatic bad boy with a homicidal mean-streak" beautifully.

You would also have to be a lawyer if you wanted to make a solid contract with him. He was wicked smart even back then and put it good use by tormenting the humans more. That classic phrase, "Deal with the Devil" came from the amount of times he'd gleefully screw someone over.

Since then, he's calmed down considerably and is even a little embarrassed about his old persona if anyone brings it up. He's much more refined in his modern day dealings, though he'll still make a nasty deal or two just to keep the humans on their toes.

Satan's fondness for cats is the reason why cats got tied to witchcraft in media. It was common knowledge that if you summoned him with a cat present, then he would be too distracted to give you a bad deal. Ever since then, it just stuck.

Solomon's true first interaction with Satan was when he summoned him one day to get some advice about making a pact with Lucifer... It was one of his worst ideas to date and he still has the mended ribs to show for it.

Summoning Asmo

Very easy with low risk... for the most part.

Asmo LOVES getting summoned out by witches. It feeds his ego something fierce. So he never makes it all that hard to do, however...

Those who summon Asmo quickly learn that it cannot be a one-time thing. Or if it is, it better fucking stay that way.

Asmo ties a lot of self-worth to how "in demand" he is, so after a witch summons him, he'll keep a tally on how long it takes for them to summon him again.

If they do so quickly and regularly? No issues. He couldn’t be happier! If they take too long between summons though...?

Fury. He'll come at them laying curse after curse because how DARE they forget about him like that!! And after, uh... whatever he did to help them out, no less!

Most witches just preemptively make a pact with him since they know that calling on Asmo is more like an ongoing relationship than a simple business transaction.

Ironically, despite the fact that Asmo wants to be summoned so badly, he is incredibly picky about the kinds of work he'll do. He won't do anything that could ruin his manicures, mess up his hair, strain his muscles, dirty his skin, cause a breakout, make him frown-

All of this absolutely stems from that time he was summoned by Solomon and tricked into doing hard labor to build his Temple. You live and learn, then throw the people who treat you poorly into the desert as punishment. Or something like that.

Summoning Beel

A very unwise decision unless you have the resources of a sultan.

Beel isn't exactly hostile by default, if anything he's very easy going all things considered. It's just that his stomach does a lot of the talking in contract arrangements...

After summoning Beel, the caster has to try and keep him fed at all costs. If he's eating, he's docile and easily negotiable. If he's hungry, he will eat them without hesitation. He's just going to go for the most filling thing in the room and, unfortunately, that tends to be the human in front of him.

As long as they have ten or so caterers on speed dial, deals with Beel are very straightforward. He's refreshingly forthright compared to the rest.

Sure, the first thing he usually asks for is permission to eat them, but he can be easily dissuaded by offering up something else to fill his stomach in their place. He's not bloodthirsty, just hungry.

For a short time, it was theorized that summoning both twins at the same time would make their interactions more safe, but that was quickly canned when it was discovered that Belphie would encourage Beel to eat whomever brought them there... He was not a good influence at all.

Solomon did actually try to summon Beel once thinking that he made enough food to keep him satisfied for a talk. Beel didn't even get three bites into his tuna salad before he lost consciousness... When he woke back up in HoL, he didn't have any memory of it and Solomon tactically decided to never mention it again so he could avoid future arguments.

Summoning Belphie

Blacklisted. Not allowed.

For centuries before MC showed up, Belphie was considered one of the most dangerous demons for a human witch to summon. Full stop. Even worse than Lucifer. The guy's bloodlust was unreal.

How exactly was the weakest brother considered the most deadly to interact with, you ask? Cold, hard manipulation.

Belphegor knows he's considered the weakest. He knows that he doesn't look like much of a threat. He even knows how to play into that "sleepy and harmless baby brother" image that he's spent so damn long building up.

Belphie is even better at persuasion than Satan. He can make whoever summons him feel silly, no, embarrassed for ever thinking he was a threat, then attack them when their guard was down.

Even if they keep him contained, his contracts are notoriously filled with wordplay and deceit. At best, he'll twist the terms around so he doesn't actually have to do anything. At worst, it'll become a death warrant with more than just their life on the line...

All of this, of course, was Belphie back when he still hated humans. But even after settling down with MC, he's in no rush to go correcting any records. He quite likes having his nap days uninterrupted, thank you.

One of the most horrifying rumors about summoning Belphegor is that if you sleep afterwards without fully sanctifying the room, he'll possess you in your sleep. There are still witches to this day who travel to the Devildom with sage in their pockets just in case they see him and need to start cleansing the area immediately.

Much like Mammon, Solomon has also never tried to summon Belphie. Sure, he can be somewhat unscrupulous, but even the witty sorcerer knows when the risk outweighs the reward.

Summoning Diavolo

Really only possible in theory because there has never been a successful attempt.

No one is very sure why all attempts to summon the Demon Prince crash and burn so easily. Solomon himself as spent centuries trying to work out the logistics.

Is there just no sacrifice comparable enough to bring out a being of his magnitude?

Are the sigils and chants required so ancient and esoteric that they've long been forgotten by mortal minds?

Do the summoning circles work but Diavolo, by the nature of his power and authority, just "opts out" of showing up if he feels like it?

Solomon has tried summoning Dia numerous times and every attempt has left him with nothing but wasted materials and broken dreams. This is basically his white whale. Don't bring it up or he'll get pouty.

Summoning Barbatos

Another unwise decision that leaves many with nightmares years later.

Barbatos is an... interesting case to summon. Like Lucifer, the caster has to be incredibly talented. Though unlike Lucifer, Barbatos doesn't react with such upfront vitriol.

To be clear, he is NOT happy. He is NEVER happy to be called away so suddenly from his lord. But it comes across more like a frigid aura of contempt and malice than the white hot hostility of all the others.

Put simply, it just feels like you royally fucked up in ways you can't even process.

The most unnerving thing about accepting a contract with Barbatos is that he will always agree to whatever is asked for with no complaint, but he'll never say what he wants in return.

The terms of all demonic contracts are that whatever is asked must be balanced by an equal sacrifice, but since Barbs NEVER identifies what he plans on taking, it leaves the caster to wonder what they've loss...

Every bad event from then on gets overanalyzed to the point of paranoia where the caster victim tries to identify if their debt has finally been paid or if he may still come to them one day and demand what he's owed...

Solomon doesn't know it, but a popular theory among his peers is that what Barbs took in exchange for their pact was his mortality in hopes that the centuries of loss and isolation would make him go insane. It's a silly little rumor, but it does still make Barbs chuckle whenever he hears it...

[blackberreh-art]

Hey Berreh, I recently watched episode 101 of TMA. I have some mixed feelings about the ending. I'm not sure if you allowed spoilers on this blog. There might be a few people that still haven't seen the episode yet. I'll try to be vague as possible. (If you don't feel comfortable in replying on ask, you can message me. )

Originally when I started listening to TMA, I was invested in JonMichael and JonElias because of your fanart. I thought that Michael and Jon would have more interactions and Helen and Michael would be some silly distorted version of Team Rocket (since I saw some people drawing them together). I didn't expect what happened in this episode.

I know you're interested in JonMichael, but I'm curious. Do you think that despite the limited amount of time that Michael and Jon encountered each other, could it still be possible for them to hook up? I know it sounds dumb since there's always AUs and people can experiment with the ship, but I wish there's more interactions between those two.

Also, how did you start shipping Jon and Michael? Did it came from the canon? The fandom? Or was it both?

I don't think its silly at all ahah, you're not alone in wishing jon and michael interacted more at all! My shipping of them came from both ofc, I believe it stemmed from this animatic my friend showed me and it kind of snowballed from there. I've always been a sucker for monster/human relationships, its my favourite dynamic hands down, so it only felt natural to start shipping it ahah. I feel like I've never actually been in a properly established fandom where it can Actually Be A Thing!!

Michael suddenly become my Special Little Boy who could do No Wrong, Surely, and with Jon, er... well he's got that prey vibe going for him you know. Lol. (i love Jon a lot okay. A Lot A Lot. Jon/Michael/Elias are on constant rotation in my brain)

I miss Michael a lot, there was just something about his character that has a strangle hold on me. I can't really explain it, but he feels like something that is so deeply angry and hurt and betrayed and there is no vindication or relief because suddenly there is Helen, and Michael is No More. And don't get me wrong, i love Helen a lot!!!! Helen as the Distortion is NOT what Michael was at all, Helen is what the Distortion wished to be but could not. Helen is comfortable in her existence in a way that Michael Never Was, and that just makes me really sad lmao

Anyway, sorry for rambling. If it isn't clear I like Michael A Lot. I like michael with Jon ofc, and Elias and Gerry despite them having no canon interactions, but its all so vague that you never know!!! Maybe they did!!!!

I have like, two absolutely FAVOURITE michael/jon fics I would recommend. One I think you can read since that's where you're around in canon? The other I would wait til you've finished the series since it encompasses it all (and its LONG!!!!!)

Pay the Piper by NeverwinterThistle was the first to grip me, it was such a delight!!!!

And Eat it, Too by Trin had me on the edge of my seat and unable to put it down the entire time. Made me squeal a lot lmao. I blasted through it So Fast, I couldn't put it down. (but yeah you should probably wait to finish the series before you read it)

[bloodywickedvamp]

Two's Company - What The Hell Is Six? Part 2

Poly!Lost Boys x GN Reader x Michael

Series Masterlist

Summary: Michael and Reader continue their argument off the boardwalk for some privacy. Michael tries his best to explain, but it’s Michael so you can imagine how well that goes. Interrupting vampires say wha-?

Word Count: 2.6K

Warnings: angst, arguments, cursing, lil rough grabbing of reader, blatant disregard/disrespect for readers own opinions (looking at you marko), vampires and their isms.

Hello all! I'd like to start by saying thank you so so SO much for all the love and support I received on part 1. I truly was not expecting that and it warmed my heart and made me so happy to know you enjoyed it! I love you all and hope you like part 2!!

Dividers: @firefly-graphics

Our? I barely had time to register or retort back at the presumptuous claim before Michael grabbed my hand and stormed off to the beach, steam basically pouring out of his ears.

“Michael slow down, you’re going to rip my arm out of its socket!” I screeched trying to gain his attention, to no avail. He just kept speed walking his way down the stairs of the boardwalk till our feet hit the sand, his pace nearly causing me to stumble.

He made a hard right and pulled us both underneath the boardwalk. Now far from the people above and the drunken beach goers littered around campfires producing noisy chatter and blasting music. We’re shrouded in almost complete darkness with the faint lights from the busy stalls and flashy rides peaking through the wooden slats high up.

The tension in the air still lingers from before. To his credit, he does try to calm the heaviness we’re both feeling, albeit for different reasons, as he stops walking to face me and rubs his hands up and down my arms. It’s nice, reassuring even. But I won’t let it deter me. I won’t fall for those deep brown eyes that can suck you in so easily with a simple look and a slight tilt of the head that make him seem remarkably innocent and angelic. Like anything he does couldn’t possibly be from any fault of his own. No matter how much I want to give in and let any number of the excuses he’s already fed me slip past his lips and wrap my mind in a warm blanket of faux vindication.

I can’t, I won’t. My mind slips back to the look of sorrow on Lucy’s face earlier today. The fear I saw as the first few tears pricked her eyes before being pooled together with the back of her palm, an attempt to recollect her fading front of the strong, single mother she was recently thrust into. The utter confusion of what was happening to her eldest child paired with the obvious frustration of helplessness she exuded while I grabbed her shaking palms in encouragement and solidarity. Silently telling her she wasn’t alone, we would be navigating through unknown territory together. Vowing to come out the other side unscathed and bring our former Michael back with us.

I won’t fold or be persuaded by pretty words and empty promises of ‘I’ll do better’ or ‘I’m not acting different, the move has us all stressed out that’s all it is’ and one of the more recent, harsher comments like ‘I’m too busy to talk right now and I can’t deal with this, geez, cool it with the paranoia’.

I’m pulled back to the present when he finally starts talking. “Sweetheart, I’m sorry.” as I’m pulled a little closer, strong calloused hands still soothing my upper arms. Chest rising and falling as he takes in the air around us in deep breaths. A look of calm starts to encompass his visage, like one would do after smelling their favorite scent for the first time in a long time.

“So you’ve said.” I can’t help but throw a little more lip his way.

“You weren’t paranoid when you tried to call me out all those times. I’ve been a complete ass to everyone- to you.” He admits more willingly than before. I finally see a sliver of truth after weeks of the exact opposite. “Something happened to me…something I’m still trying to figure out. I couldn’t tell you, I didn’t want to, I was scared you’d be in danger. Of what they might do if you knew.” His eyes speak volumes over the vagueness of his speech. The same fear so recently shown to me mere hours ago is mirrored within his own.

Reaching out to cup his check in my palm, I implore him to continue. Beg him to fully tear down the wall hiding the truth, after the initial crack in its foundation. “Michael, whatever it is, whatever you got yourself into - let me help you. We’ll figure it out together, like we always do.” Affection passes through the heady mix of emotions swirling around his face as he leans into my touch. Showing that’s all he needed to hear from me he shuts his eyes for a second and nods his head yes, signaling to the both of us that he’s ready. Ready to let me in once more, ready for my reaction, ready to let me help him, ready to obliterate that damned wall he’ll never have to put up again.

“Those guys from the boardwalk, they’re not normal. The first time we hung out they brought me back to their place, a cave at Hudson's Bluff. The whole time going back and forth between fucking with me and making me feel like I could be one of them, like I belonged. After a while they offered me wine, told me to drink and I actually would be one of them. It’s like they were offering me something no one else could. So I did and ever since then I…” He exhausts, pausing for just a moment to squeeze his hands on my arm and hip grounding himself.

“Baby.” whining slightly before continuing. “It wasn’t wine that they gave me…it was blood, David’s blood. They’re vampires and they turned me into one. Told me I’m only a half and to complete the transition I have to make my first kill.”

I’m unmoving, shocked at the words revealed to me with a sigh from his lips and the weight lifted from his shoulders. There’s really only one thing I can think to say though.

“How fucking stupid do you think I am?” I quickly admonish him, a look of worry in response to my vehemence as he realizes I didn’t believe his tall tale. After thinking I finally got through to him I can’t believe he’d try to pull something so unbelievably stupid as this. I’m half expecting him to start laughing and saying ‘got you babe’ like i’m just some big joke to him.

“I’m telling the truth I swear on everyth-”

“No Michael I’ve had it I’m so done!” I scream in his face trying to rip myself from his grip, but he doesn’t let up. His hold only grew tighter in a panic to keep me still. “Let.Me.Go. Now.” I try again pulling and thrashing but it’s like he’s suddenly gained the strength of a hundred men and I can’t seem to move either of us to get away.

He suddenly grabs my face forcing me to look at him and whispers with all sincerity “I didn’t want to do this, I’m so sorry but you have to believe me. Please don’t be scared.” Faster than my brain can comprehend, he shifts. His face morphs into something I’ve only ever seen in movies or the occasional nightmare. The bones within his face move beneath the skin, forehead protruding past its normal position as his eyebrows are suddenly gone from sight, glowing yellow eyes stare back into my own, long and sharp looking fangs poke out just over his bottom lip begging to pierce through skin.

“Oh my god” is all I can seem to whimper out from what I just witnessed. How is this possible? This can’t be real. Suddenly very aware of myself I freeze in his hold, breathing no longer a concept I’m familiar with. That’s when he bolts into action as he hears my heart pounding within my restricted torso.

“It’s okay please please don’t be scared, I’m not going to hurt you I’d never ever hurt you my love.” Michael professes as he slightly releases the hold around my waist with one arm and completely lets go of my face only to slide down towards the middle of my back with the other.

Before a response can be given by either of us, we’re no longer alone. Peaking over Michael’s shoulder, just behind him stands the four boys from before staring, if it weren’t for the cherry red glow of the end of a cigarette I probably wouldn’t have seen them. Michael bristles though, like he knows they’re there without having heard or turned around to see, maybe he somehow does know. As if he can sense things in a way I can’t or anyone else for that matter.

“Michaelllll” David tauntingly says. Finishing off the cigarette before he flicks it from his grasp landing with a silent thud somewhere in the sand, smirking towards our entangled form. “You’re not speaking ill of me and my boys are you?” He goads through that final puff of smoke. With all eyes on me, now knowing what they are, what they did to my Michael, a wave of dizziness rolls over my body and I’m forced to release the air I've been holding in so as to not pass out. 

“Let’s not start throwing out accusations, you willingly drank, accepted our offer. Pointing fingers doesn’t change that. Trying to make us look like the bad guys to keep them away? It won’t work. You’ll have to learn how to share, like a good boy.” 

With a deep grunt of frustration from the boy in front of me, my back is suddenly pushed into a wooden pillar, not enough to hurt but still able to pull a gasp from deep within my chest.

“They’re MINE!” Michael seethed at the four. His large hands held on either side of my head taking in deep pants from my neck. Still behind Michael but now closer than they were before the rest of them seem to go a bit rigid. The tallest of them continues to walk further towards us, an unreadable expression plastered on his face that I wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end of, yet it seems to be glued on the looming figure above my own and in turn me.

“Dwayne” David stops him in his tracks just before he can reach out and touch. “Don’t worry, Michael won’t hurt them, at least not on purpose or on our watch. He’s freshly turned so even the bond between mates can’t overpower that insatiable need to hunt, to feed that we all have at the beginning if provoked far enough that is. Which is why it’d be in your best interest to stick with us Michael. You’ll need to learn how to control your urges, with a little time and a healthy diet you’ll be just like us.” He clarified, more so for Michaels and my own benefit rather than any of theirs it seems.

I glanced their way, still wanting any information they’d be willing to provide. I’m only able to stutter out “M-Mates?” I see varying degrees of smirks and giddy smiles from them at my sudden curiosity. 

Dwayne speaks up first as his attention turns solely onto me with a much softer look than before. “Vampires have mates, they're like soulmates. People destined to be together, mind, body, and soul. They fully complete each other.” Almost cooing the new information my way. 

“Alright cheeseball, way to lay it on thick.” Paul piped up with a laugh towards the boy as he walked over to sling his arm around his shoulders. Tacking on “but it’s true” throwing a wink and a few eyebrow waggles suggestively. 

“Michael is your mate.” David affirmed before Marko readily finished “and you're ours.” Gloved thumb shoved between his teeth covering a sly smirk on that contrasting angelic face he adorns. 

Fluttering my gaze back to the boy in front of me, I see his features have gone back to normal. No more teeth or glowing eyes from him. Sharing a confused look I realize he’s also been left in the dark on all of this as well. 

Michael turns around to face the group for the first time since the initial intrusion. Chest puffed up and eyes blazing into David, “No.” is all that falls flatly from him.

David lifts a single brow in retort. “You can’t argue with fate Michael. You may not like it but there’s nothing you can do about it and now that we’ve all had the pleasure of meeting we aren’t letting them go.” 

“You aren’t letting me go?” my voice dripping with sarcasm and incredulity while mimicking his previous words back to him. 

Regaining all the confidence I had from earlier I feel annoyance and anger start to bubble up inside. I still have no idea who these guys really are, besides their names and the fact that they’re actual, literal, real-life vampires! They have no right to make demands of Michael or I. No ground to stand on in my book - no matter the ‘supernatural claim’ they apparently have over me. Fuck this, fuck all of this. 

“Does anybody care what I think?” the words tumble from my mouth with a scoff of disbelief. I step out from behind Michaels protective guard towards his left side so I can see them all clearly. Not hiding the disdain I feel towards the situation - towards them. Unwavering defiance on full display while crossing my arms over my chest. “Since you’re talking about me like I’m not even here and don’t have a say in what happens, I thought I’d ask.” Glancing around for their reactions. Dwayne sort of cringing as the words resonate with him. Realizing how this all must sound from my perspective. Paul shooting looks at the others like he’s silently asking any one of them to ‘speak the fuck up - I got nothing’. David, still as calm as he has been the entire time, doesn't let on to what he’s thinking, just a small held tilt while holding my gaze like he’s studying me.

“Course we care sweetheart.” Marko says honestly, though not seeming all that apologetic. “Though let’s be real, we can keep up the back and forth all night long, but at the end of the day the outcome’s still the same. You belong to us, all of us…including Michael.” Emphasizing his name with an exaggerated eye roll.

“I don’t belong to anyone.” protested through gritted teeth. 

“Sorry to burst your bubble but you do.” He counters back. His fingerless gloved hands starting to get a little twitchy.

“I’m with Michael by choice, not because he claimed me as some prize or declared some weird, forced...vampy ownership over me.” Finding myself getting twitchy as we both refused to give in.

Marko's eyes quickly flash that same vibrant yellow as Michaels. But they’re gone just as suddenly. He clearly isn’t used to not getting what he wants.

Michael sticks his arm out in front of me as a barrier between the curly haired blonde and I. David fixes him with a look I can only assume is a warning to stand down.

David resumes the reigns by steering the conversation himself. “I would have worded it differently, but Marko is essentially right. We don’t want to force you into anything, so give us a chance to prove ourselves.”

Michael answers before I can with a quick “prove yourselves? what’s that supposed to mean?” My thoughts exactly. I take hold of the arm he’s outstretched and intertwine our fingers, with a small squeeze for comfort.

Ever the quick thinker, so I’m learning, I can briefly see the gears turning in Davids mind on how to ease the atmosphere and remedy the small tiff Marko brought on, before he’s already producing a solution like it’s the most obvious thing in the world.

“Let us take you on a…date. Get to know us without all the hearsay.”

For what seems like the thousandth time this evening Michael and I are shocked by the response. And then my brain starts jumping from one idea to the next at a million miles an hour. Thinking, analyzing, cursing over all that’s happened since I initially stepped foot on the boardwalk and up until this very moment.

I’ve never been the type of person to back down when it comes to the one’s I care about most. I would do whatever it takes, throw caution to the wind and deal with the repercussions later if it meant I could alleviate how devastating the world can make us feel sometimes.

Without fully contemplating the gravity of the situation and, regretfully, without the chance to discuss it first with Michael, I can’t seem to bite my tongue before the answer comes seemingly out of nowhere.

“Okay…I’ll do it.”

🖤 Taglist 🖤

@britany1997 @faefairi3 @princessmads1820 @1nternetvampire @itsyoboysparkel @nataliewalker93 @thelostone91 @misslavenderlady @ursatanicbunny @warrior-616 @charlizekkelly @ghoulgeousimmaculate @sidefanficaccounttohidemyshame @the-faceless-bride @wickedsandwich08

[gemsofgreece]

Sike

Initial info snippet: Βεργίνα (or Vergina in English) is pronounced ver - YEE - nah. Just saying, for no particular reason whatsoever.

Perhaps you know that there is a country in the periphery of Greece that has a flag with a sun. This alongside other issues has been a cause of contention between Greece and this country, as it using this sun as a symbol of its non-Greek nationality was condemned by Greece as an act of cultural appropriation.

That sun looked suspiciously like (as in, it was identical down to the last line) to the Vergina Sun, or sometimes called Vergina Star, most famously discovered in the tomb of King Philip || of Macedon, in Ancient Aegae, Vergina, Macedonia, Greece.

The golden larnax with the Vergina Sun found in the tomb that is believed to be King Philip's.

For some time the Vergina Sun was mostly perceived as a symbol of Macedonia or Macedonian royalty, except that meant polar opposite things to Greeks versus to their neighbours. The Vergina Sun became the symbol of the administrative and historical region of Macedonia within the Greek state, which has this local flag:

The flag was first created in the late 80s after archaeologist Michael Andronikos made the huge discovery of the tombs in Vergina. The Vergina Sun was added as a national symbol at the Hellenic Parliament in 1993.

Meanwhile, in 1992 the newly founded neighbour state (risen through the collapse of Yugoslavia) adopted the EXACT same flag as their official national flag, except the background was changed to red. Greece condemned the use of this symbol, accusing the country of appropriation. Due to the rising tensions between the states, the neighbouring country eventually changed its flag.............. which means it's still the same red flag with the sun except now the sun is "designed differently". Of course, the implications behind it as well as the claims have not changed one bit. The neighbour country was mad at Greece for preventing them to express their true ethnicity and for using her immense evil power (which, as we all know, Greece definitely possesses) to steal THEIR history, because Greece is jealous of THEIR history. Anyway even though there was a legal agreement of sorts between the countries in the last years, it is honoured so little you might as well believe it was never done. And it is crap for our side as well, so everybody hates it.

But here's the funny thing. Even if one argues the true issue is what being a Macedonian entails (which shouldn't truly be a discourse but let's pretend it is)... the hilarious truth is that the Vergina Sun..... is actually not a symbol of Macedonia and Macedonians.

You see, the symbol has been discovered all throughout Greece since at least the 6th century BCE, way before the Kingdom of Macedon rose to any prominence.

Vergina Sun originating from… Sparta, 6th century BC, exhibited in the Louvre.

This famous amphora by Exekias, 6th century BC, depicting Achilleus and Ajax playing a board game. The Vergina Sun decorates their cloaks. Exhibit in the Vatican Museum.

Hercules fighting the Amazons. The Amazon bears a shield with the Vergina Sun. Early 5th century, Gela, Italy. (So it was crafted in the Greek colonies in Magna Grecia, South Italy.) Exhibited in the Regional Archaeological Museum "Antonio Salinas", Palermo.

Jar with the Judgement of Paris. Athena's shield is decorated with a Vergina Sun. Athens, c. 360 BC.

So you know, not only it wasn't an exclusively Macedonian symbol but it actually seems to have been an Archaic symbol of Panhellenic (encompassing all the Greeks) warfare.

Dem evil Griekos stealing other pipl's history.

[leo-kinnie]

May I have some Sandro lore? Pretty please?

I was gonna draw something for this but I've been super busy with work and a diff fandom so ... TAKE THIS INSTEAD!!

Sandro and Baron Draxum have a love-hate relationship (in a silly goofy way) because Draxum is well aware Sandro has . Abilities (his strong ass bite) but the guy is so friendly and idiotic that it's NEVER USED for anything warrior-esq mostly just to soothe a growing tooth ache.

Draxum also isnt a fan of Sandro's flavor of friendly because it's not like Mikey's. Mikey's friendly is contingent on Michael's belief in someone, whereas Sandro's friendliness is all-encompassing (ergo why he was even considering befriending Krang Prime to begin with). That type of friendliness rubs Draxum the wrong way because it brings question into Sandro's loyalties and his unpredictability in the battlefield.

Also the guy is very dumb

[toastedcinnamonflakes]

Guide on How to Improve Your Reading Level

So. You want to improve your reading level. You currently read only “easy” stories – for example Colleen Hoover. But you want to challenge yourself. You want to read more.

Well, let me help you. I am compiling a guide for you here to help you get more advanced with your reading. I have sorted literature into different levels, and will give you suggestions for each level. This is not an all-encompassing guide, more like a guideline – obviously I don’t know every single author. I will try to stick to authors that are all also available in English, but if one or two sneak in that are not available in English, or your main language, I apologise. I encourage you to seek suggestions outside of this, too. A good place to get good recommendations and not just the same five #BookTok books over and over again are actually newspapers and magazines with a Feuilleton! You can also message me for some tips, or find other book blogs on tumblr. I am sure most are glad to help.

I am not sorting these books by categories like “Children’s books”, “Young adult” or similar, because I find that within those loose categories, books can vary wildly. Instead, I am focusing on complexity, length, necessary existing knowledge and other factors. Without further ado, let me begin!

Level 1: Books that are short, to the point, without complex vocabulary. There usually are no metaphors there, and if there are, you do not necessarily HAVE to dive into them, the story makes sense nonetheless. You do not need to have any pre-existing knowledge to understand them, either. They are also either stand-alones or can be read as stand-alones, so you do not have to commit to a long series.

Such books are:

Most books by Dyanna Wynne Jones, especially her Fantasy novels

Books by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Most books by Leigh Bardugo (although is STRONGLY discourage you from reading the Shadow and Bone trilogy, those books are messy, unimaginative and kinda sexist. She found her literary footing after that.)

Books by Michael Ende

Most books by Erich Kästner (his few excursions into adult literature are more complex and require some previous knowledge about the Weimar Republic)

Books by Alexander Kielland Krag

Books by Walter Moers

Most books by V.E. Schwab

Books by Axie Oh

Books by Naomi Novik

Books by Casey McQuiston

Books by Kai Meyer

Books by Marissa Meyer

Books by T.J. Klune

Level 2: Now we are coming onto books that, while mostly still short, use a bit more complex vocabulary and/or metaphor. So, you might be required to not take everything literally and do a bit of interpretation. Occasionally, you might need to do a quick Wikipedia read to get context for the book. The characters are becoming a bit more complex, too, but often the text itself explains character’s motivations/thoughts directly.

Books that fit that description are for example:

"Convenience Store Woman" by Sayaka Murata

“Swimming in the Dark” by Tomasz Jędrowski

“Kim Jiyoung, born 1982” by Cho Nam-Joo

Books by Phillip Pullman, in particular his “Golden Compass” Trilogy

“Iron Widow” by Xiran Jay Zhao

“Fire and Hemlock” by Dyanna Wynne Jones

Books by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Books by Celeste Ng

“The last Unicorn” by Peter S. Beagle

Level 3: Now we are reaching books that use complex vocabulary, maybe you even need to look up a word or two (but this is how you expand your own vocabulary). The sentences are more complex, the stories are constructed in a more complex way (but still usually follow one narrative string), the characters are most of the time nuanced. You will need to pay attention to the subtext and do some interpreting of your own. Some of these books have the labels “classic” attached to them, but don’t let that scare you – in fact, for most classics, you will be able to look up information/interpretations online if you are struggling. We also have some books now that are either parts of a longer series or parts of a bigger canon (not all of them, some are still stand-alones).

Such books are for example:

Books by Agatha Christie

Books by Selma Lagerlöf (although I have to say, she very often uses metaphors, dream-sequences and similar narrative devices)

Books by Terry Pratchett

Andrzej Sapkowski’s “Witcher”Saga

“The Shadow land” by Elizabeth Kostova

Books by Joan Lindsay

“A hero of our time” by Michail Lermontow

“Sauhund” by Lion Christ

Most books/short stories by Nikolai Gogol

Some of Stanislaw Lem’s books, like “The Star Diaries”, “Tales of Pirx the Pilot”

Books by Hanne Ørstavik, particularly the books before “Love”

Books by Gerd Brantenberg

“Revolutionary Road” by Richard Yates

“Carmilla” by Sheridan Le Fanu

The “Sherlock Holmes” Stories by Arthur Conan Doyle

Level 4: On this level, the vocabulary is advanced and the sentence structure is complex. The characters are multi-dimensional, complicated and explored on a psychological level.

The books want to say something, and often say it through the use of metaphors. You need to be attentive while reading, maybe even take some notes, if you really want to get to the bottom with your interpretation. Still, the books follow a (mostly) clear plotline and while there are occasionally some “non-realistic” elements in them like Dreams, they are still somewhat grounded in a fictional reality that mostly mirrors our own. Many of these novels are also long.

Jane Austen’s books

Fyodor Dostoevsky’s books

“Rebecca” by Daphne du Maurier

“Jane Eyre” by Charlotte Bronte

“Wuthering Heights” by Emily Bronte

“Agnes Grey” and “The Tennant of Wildfell Hall” by Anne Bronte

Plays by Friedrich Schiller

Plays by Henrik Ibsen

Most books by the Strugatzki brothers

“War and Peace” and “Anna Karenina” by Lew Tolstoi

“Dracula” by Bram Stoker

“Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley

books by Jeannette Winterson

books by Charles Dickens

Short stories by Anton Tschechow

Books by Michail Bulgakow

Level 5: Now we have reached the territory of the truly advanced reader. These books are not simple by any stretch of the word. These novels are not always more complex than the ones on level four vocabularly-wise, but they require you to have pre-existing knowledge of other works of literature (they often make references). You need to pay close attention while reading, perhaps re-read passages multiple times. The structure of these novels is often non-linear and/or experimental. They are mostly not “realistic”, rely heavily on metaphors, symbols and signs within the text. They can be confusing at times. Often, they play with the language and experiment. The meaning of these novels is multi-layered, and interpretations can differ wildly.

Such books are:

“If on a winter’s night a traveler” by Italo Calvino

“The experiment” by the brothers Strugatzki

Almost everything by Karen Blixen (“Out of Africa” is a bit easier, though still very complex and there are many symbols in that novel, too)

Books by Jon Fosse

“The Key” by Junichiro Tanizaki

Books by Osamu Dazai

“Catherine House” by Elisabeth Thomas (okay, I was conflicted where to put this – the vocab is not that difficult, but the structure is very unclear and dream-like and it puts a lot of emphasis on symbols. Maybe it would be good to start your journey to Level 5 novels with this one, if you are not very confident in your reading abilities)

Books by Han Kang

“The futurological congress” by Stanislaw Lem

Books by Günter Grass

“The Man Outside” by Wolfgang Borchert

Books by Slavenka Draculic (specifically her novels, her essays have a different style, obviously)

Books by Sjon

Short stories by Edgar Allan Poe

Books by Vladimir Sorokin

Books by Angela Carter

“Kult” by Ljubko Deresch

Most books by Vladimir Nabokov

Tales by E.T.A. Hoffman

The differing factor between these last two levels often is the STRUCTURE of the novels. I am making this distinction because I have seen that quite a few people struggle with experimentalist/surrealist/non-linear structure.

Others of these stories have a more linear structure, yes, but require you to dig deep beneath the surface to find out the meaning of various symbols in order to interpret the story.

Also, pay attention to the language! Many of these authors, like Nabokov, play around with double-meanings, similar sounding words (homophones) and even more than one language.

I hope this guide helps. Obviously, it is not perfect, but it should give you an idea where to start and where to progress. It is important to have fun while reading, and there is no shame in jumping between the levels. But, you should challenge yourself: You are smart! You can understand difficult things! Yes, it might be hard at first, but precisely because of that you should keep trying. If you never challenge yourself, you will never get better.

I wish you all the best on your reading journey <3

[magpod-confessions]

(loosely responding to a confession i saw a while back, but just a lot of stuff in general)

i don't like how the fandom is so quick to slap labels like 'sexist, racist, misogynistic, etc' onto anyone who dislikes a certain character. i know these things are very much an issue, especially in fandom culture, but it's really anoying when people will just throw those labels around just because people dislike a character that happens to be a woman of colour. because 1. people are allowed to just dislike characters 2. people can have perfectly good reasons for disliking minority characters that have nothing to do with them being part of a minority group

specifically i want to talk about preferring michael distortion over helen distortion. obviously michael is widely depicted as a white man, while helen is widely depicted as a black woman so it's easy to look at the general favouritism towards michael and shout racism and misogyny. but that doesn't account the numerous reasons people could have to prefer michael over helen that have absolutely nothing to do with helen being black or being a woman. So, I present several such reasons:

(now, to the people that are going to say "why are you comparing them?? they are different characters and you should treat them like it" first of all, why have you read this far. second of all, that does not apply here. these are not two seperate characters. these are two different interations/personas/whatever of the same being. comparison should be expected if not encouraged)

michael is more interesting than helen. becuase michael is the distortion when jon and the viewer know very little about the distortion and the fears, he gets to be more cryptic, he can hint at things and and be all mysterious and vague about the nature of himself and the world. helen on the other hand is the distortion when we have a much better idea of the distortions nature and the fears and how they work. thus, she has less opportunity to be cryptic and vague and mysterious, which , in my opinion, is one of michael's best qualities-and what makes him so loved by the fandom. helen attempts to be weird and cryptic like michael, but it's just very repetitive and boring because we already know how everything works and there is very little she can hide from us

michael is a more 'iconic' character. this basically comes down to, he's more quotable. he has his whole trademark laugh and all his great quotes "i am not a who archivist i am a what" "how would a melody decribe itself when asked" "does your hand in any way own your stomach" "there has never been a door there archivist your mind plays tricks on you" i could go on. i'm sure helen has some great lines as well but i don't know any off the top of my head, which honestly proves my point a little. anyway, helen doesn't have all that. probably becuase the writers didn't want her to feel too similar to michael but yeah. this reason is a bit basic but it's still true

michael is made to seem more important. I just want to clarify, what i mean here when i say a character is more importamt here, is that the podcast makes this character seem more important. they both had their effect on the storyline, but the show definitely makes one of them seem more important and influential (this reason encompasses a lot of things so i'm sorry if it gets a bit ramble-y) this kinda ties in with the michael being more mysterious thing. micheal is treated as this mysterious unknown character, a potential threat, an antagonist at some points. Michael affects the characters quite a lot, and jon specifically seems to dwell on him a lot. So despite having a lot less screentime than helen, he's built up to be quite an important figure. Helen is not treated as important by the show in the same way. by the time she comes along, the whole mystery and drama of the distortion has already happened, so she isn't that important. she becomes a little irrelevant to the plot, occaisionally popping in to bother jon. and that's what she's really framed as —an annoyance, a bit of a nuisance, but not that important or influential. especially in season 5, she becomes almost a comedic relief character. mag 187 is the exception to this, where she is very important for about one episode before being almost immediately forgotten about. her effect on the characters is made to seem important only in retrospect. michael remains relevant even after his 'death' because he plays an important role in jon's struggle with his humanity and his conflict over gertrude's morals. even though michael has very little screentime compared to helen, every bit of it is made to feel relevant and important to the overall plot. I AM NOT SAYING MICHAEL IS ACTUALLY MORE IMPORTANT THAN HELEN. YOU CAN LOOK AT HELEN'S EFFECT ON THE PLOT AS MUCH AS YOU LIKE. I AM SAYING THE PODCAST ITSELF CLEARLY MAKES MICHAEL SEEM MORE IMPORTANT. sorry i just want to be super clear on that

michael has a more tragic/serious backstory. we all know what i mean here. michael shelley being manipulated and decieved and betrayed and kept in the dark, to become a monster that's whole purpose was to do those same things to countless innocents—there's so much that can be drawn from that and it's so poetic and interesting. it's also relevant to the overarching plot of the podcast like i said before. and like i mentioned before, helen is treated as a more funny character, not as serious or tragic as michael. don't get me wrong, there is tragedy in her becoming but it is not explored in the podcast canon. you can definitely talk about the srious stuff of helen's character but it isn't as grounded in canon if you do. also michael's death seems more tragic because michael shelley was framed as super innocent and undeserving of his fate while helen richardson was canonically kind of an asshole (not saying she deserved it either of course)

helen replaced michael. this relates to what i said at the start of this list—helen is going to be compared to michael as she is literally his replacement. for one, that does set michael fans against her slightly already because she's complicit in his 'death' a tiny bit. but the real problem is, she's expected to live up to michael—while also being different enough that it doesn't feel like the same character—which i personally don't feel that she does. i think i'd like her better if she was her own character and hadn't replaced michael, and i think that's a big reason that many people that prefer michael don't like her as much. it's also a valid reason to dislike a character. also, this has absolutely nothing to do with her being a woman of colour in fanon. if she was another white boy i'd still probably dislike her when she didn't live up to michael standards.

that's all i can be bothered to write, i think i had more ideas but i forgot sorry lol. anyway, notice how none of those reasons had anything at all to do with helen being a woman or often being depicted as black? if michael had been a woman of colour and helen had been a white man instead, these reasons would still apply

anyway i spent so long on this i thought of a couple reasons someone might preferhelen because i still love her and i don't want to make it seem like i dislike her. i don't. i just prefer michael but helen is still definitely top5 tma characters for me for sure.

we get to see the distortion adapt to it's new identity as helen which is super cool (i do not understand why no one talks about this.like hello????? it's so interesting?)

sometimes it's nice to have a more funny character, especially the juxtaposition between the more dark stuff of the podcast and lighthearted moments between helen martin and jon in season 5

i like her more subtle manipulations and the whole 'fake friend' thing. i thought that was a really interesting concept and a good way of bringing something new to the distortion

anyway, i know that white-twink-favouritism is an issue within the tma fandom (and dare i say tumblr as a whole) but let's remember than not everyone who likes or dislikes certain characters or prefers one character over another does so because they are sexist or racist. there are so many different reasons for someone to dislike or like characters that have notihing to do with race or gender.

i notice this debate particularly with michael and helen and i agree there could certainly be an element of sexism and a bit of racism too (not racism so much because she is not canonically black it's just a fanon thing so racist people probably just see her as white idk) but i think most people have genuine reasons like these to prefer michael and should not be called sexist or racist for having preferences.

🗣️ if i remember right mod i know you prefer helen so disagree with me if you wish. I'M NOT SAYING MICHAEL IS OBJECTIVELY BETTER THAN HELEN I'M POINTING OUT REASONS THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE PREFER HIM. i'm not really here to debate whether michael or helen is 'better' i just wanted to point out something that annoys me a bit

oh my god you are so right anon. at the end of it all both distortions are just. the distortion. michael was more impactful to the actual story as a whole, being one of gertrude's assistants, but helen is also super important in jons journey into avatarhood. both of them affected how jon sees himself through this ( him seeing himself as a monster definitely is also from the distortion ) in their own ways , and while helen is more of comedic relief , she still is new. she's fresh. she is a blank slate for the distortion after having been michael for so long and that is so interesting , especially with how she feels at the very start after merging. - deceit

Agree agree agree. I love helen sm and I find her incredibly interesting (and well the disortion in general) and I do prefer her over Michael personally (partly bc im gay as hell), but I definitely understand why ppl love Michael sm. And yea I dont think ppl should be called sexism or racist over liking a character. Like theres a big difference between liking a character for genuine reasons and liking them bc you have a bias. Idk yea - Rosette

[sincerelylancelot]

6. things you said under the stars and in the grass - strollstappen

snippets from the if you could see 'em now verse

“Your dad’s gonna be pissed if he finds you up here.”

Lance just shrugs, the sound of Max’s familiar footfalls and slight foreign lisp giving him away before his face even pops into view.

“Mom says he needs to start walking more anyway, so if he can’t make it up here, it’s not my fault,” Lance replies nonchalantly, staring up at the sky but losing count of the stars. 

He’s lying back on the grassy hill overlooking the bustling chaos of the Cowtown Coliseum, the air buzzing with excitement as the Bull Riders World Finals approach their climax. Max stands there for a moment, arms crossed, before plonking himself down in the grass beside Lance. His hands instantly go to the laces of his shoes. 

They’re scuffed, stained, and falling apart; the kind of thing Lance knows Michael would hate. Remnants of a past life Max can’t let go of. 

“You always do this,” Max accuses, yanking at a loose thread on his shoe. “And then Michael has a go at me because Lawrence is pissed at you.”

Lance huffs, pushing himself up on his elbows to meet Max’s gaze. “Then don’t come up here, genius. Go play with Mick or something.”

“Mick’s a baby,” Max snaps, wrinkling his nose. “He cries about the bulls too much. Michael says he’s too soft. You know how he gets when someone says that.”

Mick didn’t like the idea of hurting the bulls. Lance remembers hearing their dads complain about Mick months ago, saying he didn’t have a stomach for the sport.

Lance had bitten his tongue back then, knowing his opinion wouldn’t matter. Max doesn’t bother hiding his own disgust, though—his face twisted with all the righteous indignation an eleven-year-old could muster.

It doesn’t last long. Max’s chest puffs out suddenly, pride lighting up his face. “Michael says I’d make a better bull rider anyway. They’re gonna get me lessons when I turn twelve.”

Lance’s frown deepens, an odd chill prickling down his spine like the winter winds back home in Montreal.

“Yeah, well, good for you,” he mutters, lying back down and staring at the sky again, his jaw tight.

Max continues to chatter, but Lance tunes it out into white noise. It feels like an assault, the press of Max’s ambitions sitting squarely on Lance’s chest and suffocating him.

That strange feeling lingers long after Max climbs back down the hill. It sticks with Lance for years, settling on him like frost on a January morning. Persisting through every whispered conversation about Max’s natural talent, every wide-eyed story of another milestone he’s crushed. 

He struggles to name it but it grows, twisting in his chest like a bull knot pulled too tight. 

It’s not until almost a decade later, when he’s staring into Max’s sharp blue eyes across the bullpen, that Lance finally recognises it for what it always was: resentment.

—

“I thought I’d find you up here.”

The lisp is still there, though the tone is deeper now. It holds a fondness that Lance thought he’d long lost. He turns his head slightly, enough to glance at Max standing a few feet away.

“Needed some space to think,” Lance mutters.

The hill hasn’t changed much over the years. It’s the same patch of grass overlooking the chaos of the coliseum below.

It’s not the first time he’s retreated here to sit in the dark, nurturing the ghost of Max by his side; speaking words that met nothing but the cool Texan night. Now, with Max beside him in the flesh, it feels both grounding and unsettling, like a ship finally docking after years adrift.

But loneliness has carved itself into him and Lance feels the edge of instinct itching for him to push Max away again. Urging him to keep the hillside and all its countless stars to himself, the same way Max had forced him to exist for over a decade.

He doesn’t give in to his wants. Instead, he pats the grass by his hip, his hand so much more encompassing in the space than when they were children.

Max hesitates for only a moment before sitting down, close enough that their shoulders almost brush. “What’s so important that you had to leave Liam to fend for himself with the other wives?” he asks, trying for mirth

It works, just enough to quirk up Lance’s smile for a moment before the storm clouds win out and coat his tongue.

“I’m… I’m thinking of telling Dad,” he admits.

Max doesn’t react immediately but Lance hears the sharp intake of breath. It’s tiny, barely audible, but then Max’s hand is there, covering Lance’s where it’s tearing grass out of the ground.

“He wants us over for the holidays this year,” Lance continues, voice quieter now. “Hanukkah falls on the same day as Christmas. And he, uh… He knows we’re friends again, at least he thinks he does. He invited Michael and Mick, too.”

Max shifts closer, his shoulder brushing against Lance’s arm, the warmth of him tangible. “Are you worried he won’t take it well?”

Lance hesitates, his gaze fixed on the stars above. “I don’t know. I mean… part of me thinks it will all be fine, but another part of me…” He trails off, his voice cracking. “What if it changes everything? What if—”

“Lance,” Max interrupts gently, his tone steady. “Whatever happens, I’m here. We’re here. You don’t have to go through it alone.”

Lance swallows hard, the words he wants to say getting caught somewhere between his thoughts and his throat. 

Down the hill, he hears a familiar voice calling, and both men turn to see Liam, red-faced, half-stumbling to make his way up the incline, his face lit with determination.

“Anyway, Liam can charm anyone, even ol’ Lawrence Stroll,” Max adds with a small smile.

[glorious-blackout]

Ten People You'd Like to Know Better Game

I was tagged by the wonderful @aeolianblues, thank you! 💚

Last song: Currently listening to Roland by Interpol and the song before that was Kiwi Maddog 20/20 by Elliot Smith

Favourite colours: Red, blue and purple ❤️💙💜

Last book: Just finished 'Close to Home' by Michael Magee which was pretty good, and I read 'Mayflies' by Andrew O'Hagan before that which I loved - partly because the characters are from the same region of Scotland as I am so the nostalgic themes hit doubly hard 😅 Trying to get in the habit of reading more regularly seeing as I had such a major reader/writer's block last year...

Last Movie: Trying to catch up with some of the Oscar contenders so I watched Sing Sing and Anora recently, both of which were excellent. I didn't realise I was so emotionally involved in the former until I found myself in tears at the ending, and Mikey Madison is *so* fucking good in Anora that I won't be mad if she beats Demi Moore to the Oscar 😅 Last movie I caught in cinemas was Companion which was great fun and has only solidified my crush on Sophie Thatcher 🥰

Last Google: 'I'm Still Here UK Release Date' - a rather fruitless endeavour sadly, as it doesn't seem to be coming to any cinemas near me 😥

Looking forward to: Properly starting my placement in Paediatrics next week, though I'm also slightly terrified for it. Have just booked tickets to see Sparks as well so I'm excited to see them live again 💖

Current obsession: Feel like I have a ton of mini-obsessions at the moment as opposed to a single all-encompassing one. Possibly Kendrick Lamar is the biggest one considering his Superbowl appearance is coming up and I'm having fun diving into his back-catalogue. Also obsessed with @uhbasicallyjustmilex's incredible new fic 'The Flame and the Moth' which I know I'm going to end up re-reading multiple times 💜

Tagging: @rock-n-roll-fantasy, @uhbasicallyjustmilex, @applysome, @cheese-danish-42, @daddy-long-legssss, @allbornscreaming and @ladyfauxhawk 💖

[bi-dykes]

hi I'm genuinely curious as a teenage bisexual what are all the different like bi flags/names I've seen some but like I'm curious to know more. You don't have to go super into detail if you don't want id just like to know the different terms. Also sorry if I'm not phrasing any of this right I'm always nervous sending asks and I'm just genuinely so curious to learn more about bisexuality as a young bisexual

Hello hello! Thank you so much for this ask!

First things first, you do not need to apologize! There is nothing to be sorry about! You phrased this beautifully- and get this: I know you are young and have wonderful intentions to learn more, so in the chance that you do phrase anything wrong (which you didn’t! you did great!) I would merely gently correct you and we would move on 🌈🐬✨ you never need to be afraid to ask me questions!

second of all, you said I don’t need to go into detail, well hehe, get rektd :3 /lh

An important thing to know is that anybody- literally anybody- can make pride flags. There’s no knowledge you need first, you can just post them. This is both a blessing and a curse bc we’ve seen many beautiful bi flags and terms by bisexual ppl, but also, anyone with, heh, brainless behaviour or malicious intent can make one and post it, such as superstraight and semibisexual. You do not need to look at either of these unless you’d like to, they’re just as off putting as they sound.

So if you are looking for new bisexual flags and/or bisexual terms, you might come across a post of someone coining a harmful or brainless notion, like the two I listed above. So if you see a neat new pride flag, check the description the OP wrote of it, and other posts made by the OP!

Onto the flag definitions!

The original bisexual flag was made by Michael Page in 1998! It’s older than you or I! A common misconception is that the pink means “attraction to girls”, the blue means “attraction to boys”, and the purple means both. But, that’s ppl looking at the colour pink and blue and assuming genders to it (IMO green is a woman’s colour), because the pink shade for same genders attraction, blue for opposite genders attraction, and purple for both! So essentially attraction regardless of gender! (that is a bisexual phrase, not solely pansexual, don’t let anyone tell you differently!) This post by the Trevor Project explained it perfectly

In 2020, @dykenotdeer made the Bi Dyke flag!

It is for bisexual women/bisexual sapphics who reclaim the slur dyke! There is a misconception that only lesbians can reclaim dyke, so this post explains it well that all sapphics can reclaim it!

Side note: Sapphic is an umbrella term for all women who love women (and nonbinary folks if it encompasses them), it stands for lesbians, bisexuals women, pansexual women, trixics, etc. (Trixic means nonbinary loving women.) So women-loving-women is shortened to wlw, and nonbinary-loving-women to nblw. I say “bisexual women/bisexual sapphics” a lot bc sapphic is a way to encompass nonbinary folks who are womanhood aligned, and it is quicker than saying “bisexual women loving women and bisexual nonbinary folks loving women” OOF that’s a wordy sentence lol.

Which perfectly brings us to our next one…

Selenic is a term for bi women and bi sapphics!

Made by @ LUV4SAPPHICS on Twitter!

Sidenote: I have made a bi men/bi nblm version of this called khonsic! I was inspired by the beautiful stripe pattern and the name being derived from a moon deity!

Camellian is selenics who choose to only date sapphics! So while there is still attraction to men + attraction to all genders, camellian means acknowledging attraction to men, but rejecting them. Still very much bisexual because sexual/romantic orientation are not something we can switch off like a light switch or “become lesbian not bi” when we choose to not date men, but camellian is solely sapphic within who you choose to date!

Made by my beloved mutual @bi-sapphics! There’s 3 versions of this flag, one with no flowers in the centre, one with one flower in the centre, and one with two flowers in the centre that I showed above! That version’s my favourite

The bi4bi flag is for bisexuals who date/prefer to date fellow bisexuals! Any bi4bi couples, whether they’re male/female, female/female, male/male, nonbinary/female, nonbinary/male, and nonbinary/nonbinary- whatever the gender the ppl in the relationship are! If they are both bisexuals, they are a bi4bi couple!

Made by @ flirtyshybisotd on Twitter!

Bi Femme and Bi Butch flags are made by @disasterbisexual-moved ! The red-pink-purple is the bi femme one and the blue-yellow-navy is the bi butch one!

Akin to bi women/bi sapphics reclaiming dyke, there are many misconceptions that femme and butch are lesbian only terms. This post by my beloved mutual @bisexual-coala (who is a bisexual butch!) explains it perfectly!

Bihet is an insult to bi women and bi sapphics, also to bi men and bi achilleans as well even if it’s, to my knowledge, not as often. It’s ridiculing bisexuals, saying that we’re “not queer enough”. @femmebis made a bihet flag reclaiming this insult, and @asepride-archive made a bihet flag reclaiming it as well!

The top one is made by @femmebis and the bottom one is made by @asepride-archive !

I would also like to toot my own horn and show you the Bisexual Feminist flag that I made!

(for bisexual feminists of any gender! We should all be feminists and support women’s rights!)

The Bisexual Women flag I made!

(as I said earlier, I see green as a woman colour :)

Pastel Bisexual flag I made!

The meaning remains the same as the OG bi flag, just that I wanted to recolour it :)

I have made many bi flags so feel free to check them out if you want! And I have more in my drafts <3 Thank you again for the ask! 💖💖 And don’t hesitate to reach out if you have more questions!

Have a bisexually day! 🩷💜💙

The bi divider is made by @animatedglittergraphics-n-more

[soullessjack]

not sure if I’ve ever made a post about this before but the idea of jack being non-binary is truly so perfect for so many reasons. firstly he’s always existed in this taboo gray area between two rigid/opposing binaries (human/angel ; good/evil ; mother/father)

and there’s also some gendering in those binaries if you squint hard enough but I’m not a fervent genderstudiesnatural expert

neither side of these binaries can fully accept that jack is a sum of their parts (for lack of better phrasing); Lucifer and AU Michael both view his humanity as a weakness/malfunction or a phase he’ll mature out of, and several hunters—namely AU Bobby—treat Jack’s angelic heritage like the equivalent of rabies, a ticking time bomb that will inherently and eventually go off. of course everyone can acknowledge that jack is a Nephil in his own right, but he’s still viewed specifically as two halves instead of one Whole being. it’s probably worth adding that he literally will die or become a megalomaniac if he isn’t a mix of his two halves

then, jack is also exceptionally morally gray. frankly the writing of the show doesn’t fully portray this well, and while he does openly position himself as a Good Guy and a Hero and aspire to be such,…. So did the rest of tfw and look at all the shit under their belt. They’re antiheroes at best but that’s another post

in AlCal’s own words:

jack is all-encompassing. he shows various parts of the rigid moral dichotomy—he literally has a penchant for torturing enemies out of sheer hatred for them while being nicknamed ‘sweetheart’—but isn’t really confined to either one (although he does try and fail to confine himself).

lastly, there’s a very common experience among queer autistic people called gender indifference, which is exactly what it sounds like. We just..don’t care about gender. there’s no strong attachment between it and our identity. I know what I am biologically but I literally don’t feel it, so I wouldn’t and haven’t cared if I was misgendered. and I think for jack, someone who deals with the weight of being this archaic nebulous creature while having an extremely new relatively-human body, there would be similar feelings of disconnection and indifference.

also, whenever people ask him what/who he is the answer is literally always “I’m Jack.” like. That’s it. That’s the sum of it. he’s not entirely good or bad or human or archangel; he’s not 100% kelly or Lucifer. he’s just jack :3c

[setevulpo]

i was thinking about the archangels and how fucked up being possessed by one of them would be and this was created. headcanons on what each (non-bloodline) vessel would go through while possessed! bon appétit

-

michael

their vessel runs hot, grace a constant thrum under the skin that imitates a heartbeat well enough for those unaware not to notice. the blue glow that takes over their eyes upon the slightest provocation calms only when their enemies are on the ground, enochian seared into what’s left of their skin once the light dies down.

the heat that follows them shapes the air into wings too big for the space they’re in, even in the most expansive fields earth has. they have to watch out when stepping on grass, or stretching their wings too far into the trees, or fire will follow them too.

eventually it starts to burn, whatever body they’re in. the grace running through its veins turns closer to lava with each passing day, flares deep inside its chest and expands down to its hands when their anger rises. bruises showing up in blues no matter how old they are, burns in its skin hot to the touch.

a smell of fire and smoke follows them when they leave the vessel, and they set ablaze anything in their path on the way to a new body. the largest fires are caused by their rage, charred eyes and hearts left behind on their path.

-

lucifer

there's something freezing under their skin, somehow encompassing entire rooms and digging into the skin of everyone around them. the air around them is cold enough to kill, frostbite reaching others before turning their own vessel's hands red with it. its lips are bitten red and raw because the taste of blood is almost intoxicating.

garbled enochian slips through in a constant downpour, because they are an angel and won't taint their tongue with a human language despite the way it burns their vessel's mouth. the easiest way to find them is following the trail of frozen footsteps and the scent of rust so strong it can be tasted.

the hypothermia that sets after some time is what leads them to find a new body, when the one they are wearing becomes too sluggish and their grace starts slipping through the dry cracks in its skin. all that's left is a cold body with its eyes frozen shut.

the earth bleeds on their path, water freezes red by being in their proximity, plants burn and die from the frost. their grace whips through the air and leaves bloody slashes in the skin of anyone who dares get in their way, the wounds never closing completely.

-

raphael

their electricity can be felt under the skin of their vessel, sometimes shocking those who try landing their hands on it. their presence makes people’s hair stand on end, their voice resonates through the room in a way that makes it impossible to ignore. the fissures that appear on its skin from one day to the next are eerily similar to lightning.

the eyes of their vessel gain an unnatural brightness, something fiery that is just wrong when compared to the decaying state of the rest its body. their words flow in a way that’s almost hypnotic, calming until the next strike of their blade.

an ill-suited vessel can’t hold them for long. the tremors starting in its hands show that, as do the bouts of dizziness that hit them every so often. by the time their vessel starts losing its sight they have a new victim picked, their electricity having already eroded the brain of the previous.

it seems as if thunderstorms follow their grace, both rain and lightning falling close but never hitting them. wildfires start in their wake, raindrops never quite reaching their destination, and the injured miraculously recovering in hours.

-

gabriel

there’s a wind hiding under their skin, usually unnoticeable to the common eye. they’re light on their feet, eyes travelling through every corner of the room they’re in, the air around them somehow feeling heavy with the power they chase. at times it blows stronger, the whole of them looking longer, bigger than their vessel, but it doesn’t last long anymore.

their vessel’s skin grows dry with time, tearing open with each snap of their fingers, grace pouring from its hands and giving life to lilies wherever it falls. all of their vessels’ hands are burnt by the time they leave, skin too fragile to handle their grace.

erosion is what kills their bodies, the debris that always seems to fly back towards them easily chipping away at flesh and bone. what’s left of the body after they take their leave isn’t enough to keep it alive, not with the dust coating its lungs.

tornadoes follow the path of their grace, leaving destruction and chaos between their vessels. they are angry, and they are frustrated, and the mayhem they create is the singular way they can be heard. the debris lifted by their rage is flung as far as their grace can reach.

-

[sonkitty]

First, Last, and Nothing

Why did Crowley want to be first?

This question has been puzzling me ever since I noticed Crowley deliberately was first for entering and exiting the Heaven elevator when going with Muriel to Heaven. The story further clues in that this idea might be important because it gives clues of Crowley being first on exit even if we don't actually see him enter or exit the elevator for the overall exit from Heaven with four angels.

I finally have a possible answer that doesn't really amount to much, so it's quite likely that I'm wrong or missing some key value in it.

But still, I have an answer.

Now, along the way of trying to figure out the answer, I've remarked, and still believe, that whatever is going on with this puzzle has to do with not just Crowley being first but with Muriel being last (Bookend Buddies - Crowley and Muriel (Part 2)). Muriel is the lowest-ranked angel.

Together, with Crowley being a former First-Order Archangel and possibly the Acting Supreme Archangel during most of S2, Crowley and Muriel encompass all the angel ranks. They are the bookends and can effectively "pocket" these ranks.

Which is what they (theoretically) do or did.

They "pocketed" the ranks out of Heaven and brought them down to Earth. Both Crowley and Muriel are still on Earth at the end of season 2 when Aziraphale goes up back to Heaven with the Metatron in the elevator.

So, why did Crowley want to be first?

Because then Aziraphale would be the Supreme Archangel of Nothing.

See? Not much of an answer.

Even without this idea for the ranks with Crowley and Muriel, it's not hard to picture characters like Michael taking issue with Aziraphale being given this position, which is why it doesn't seem to be an interesting answer.

I often cite Aziraphale's Ground Zero cut of The Door Catch with the hidden message of, "Here goes nothing."

The word "nothing" is used 33 times and in season 1 and 20 times in season 2, so that's one of the reasons I dismissed it as being relevant to this "first" answer for so long.

I am not going to cover the numerous times this word is used. I'll just point out some special instances for Aziraphale for season 2 along with one in particular for Crowley.

The first really noticeable instance in the context of this puzzle is that when Maggie tells Aziraphale he's an angel in thanks for her rent, Aziraphale answers, "Nothing of the sort." Take note of the "sort" given the speculation on ranks being relevant to this puzzle.

Over the course of the story, Aziraphale borrows Crowley's car to form a special connection between their homes (The Sideburns Scheme). When Crowley remotely contacts Aziraphale during this process, Aziraphale says the word "Nothing" twice during the conversation, both answers involving what he is doing to the car during the loan. When he goes to The Resurrectionist and is asked what he wants, he says, "Nothing for me."

That would hit a Rule of Three during the loan, but Aziraphale actually says it a fourth time since he says nothing happened to him when Crowley remarks on being worried something might have happened to him.

Since my theory goes that this loaning process has a finalized connection moment of both Crowley and Aziraphale taking the plants to the car, the fourth "nothing" would count as being during that loan, rather than say, going by when Aziraphale parked the car.

Keep in mind we get four specific clues on the Crowley being first thing for Crowley using the Heaven elevator. He goes in first on entry. He exits first on entry. He leads toward the elevator on exit. He leads towards the bookshop after being in the elevator. Those are the 4 particular clues I mean.

Moving on, Aziraphale visibly says "nothing" four times during the Final Fifteen. The one most viewers remember vividly is him saying, "Nothing lasts forever."

I have connected this "Nothing" to the Ground Zero line already in a post before: Nothing.

Not long after saying "Nothing lasts forever", he says, "Well... then there's nothing more to say." The other two instances are both to the Metatron. When asked if he needs to take anything with him says, "No. Nothing I can think of." Then he seems to hesitate while saying, "I think I... Nothing at all."

The last "nothing" is the hidden message with the Ground Zero cut of The Door Catch.

Other fans have long speculated Aziraphale himself will bring the ranks down because of him inadvertently throwing a ring toward a house of cards in the 1941 magic shop.

This "first" thing suggests that's actually already happened through Crowley and Muriel.

...

When Crowley orders his coffee in S2E1, he orders with the words, "Take a big cup, put six shots of espresso into it, nothing else."

The "six shots" are a clue bout Crowley's 6 Threshold Tricks. The "nothing else" is then a clue about the bonus 1 Magic Trick that Aziraphale does that is The Door Catch.

...

In my Face post, I also questioned the concept of the first and last thing with Crowley and Muriel as a way to shield the angels from whatever the Metatron is planning to do. That would be a little more interesting to me and may be linked to this "nothing," idea, but my thoughts are rather uncertain on that part.

[freneticfloetry]

ten questions for writers

Have I done this before? I feel like I've done this before. Oh well, still fun if I have. Thanks to @orchidscript @rmd-writes and @liminalmemories21 for the tags.

How many works do you have on AO3? 48. (We won’t speak of the tomb of forgotten fic.)

What's your total AO3 word count? 373,455 solo + 3,646 as part of a ~32k collab.

What fandoms do you write for? Actively: 911 LS, RWRB, The Magicians (ish).

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not? Absolutely! Comments are the best serotonin. Feedback is the single biggest motivator in the world for me. (I got a comment the other day on my beloved Magicians time travel shenanigans WIP, the plot of which was damn near the death of me, and though the show still makes me physically ill at this juncture, that one comment made me want to write it again.) I also just love responding to what people tell me they enjoyed, or exploring the symbolism or themes they’ve picked up. With writing fic, we’re in the incredible position of being able to regularly interact with our readers, and that’s a gift I would hate to miss out on. There are a couple pages of comments on my juggernaut fic that went woefully unanswered — they’re years old now, and I still itch to respond.

Have you ever had a fic stolen? Sadly yes. Wattpad is a lawless place.

Have you ever co-written a fic before? I have! Though not since the advent of GDocs and cloud-based Office, so I’ve never had the thrill of words magically appearing. Even so, I had a blast and would love to do it again.

What's your all-time favourite ship? Oof. I patently refuse. If pressed, I could maybe provide a top ten.

What are your writing strengths? Dialogue. I’m good at making characters sound like themselves (or at least who they are in my head). Character insight. Story structure. And @finnglas says I’m good at ensemble scenes, which is still a big point of pride.

What are your writing weaknesses? Brevity. Beginnings. Raging perfectionism. Getting too tied to canon, in a lot of cases. I need to write another big, all-encompassing AU and shake off the bonds of writing the things in between what we’ve already been given. (Also, my alliteration problem is real.)

First fandom you wrote for? OG Roswell! Lots of Michael/Liz and Kyle/Isabel. It was all very melodramatic.

Tagging in @never-blooms @ambiguouspenny @paperstorm @reyesstrand @heartstringsduet @carlos-in-glasses