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ziraley-j-crow · 4 years ago

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“When I’m 64″ - Crowley x Aziraphale

This one is going to be based on one of my favorite Beatles songs. Each chapter will be based on a verse of the song.

I know some of the lyrics might not coincide with their celestial nature, but we��ll have to make do!

I know Aziraphale doesn’t sleep, but I wanted to work it into my story, I just felt it worked. Thank you!

Here’s a link to the song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCTunqv1Xt4

“When I get older losing my hair, many years from now, will you still be sending me a Valentine, birthday greetings bottle of wine?”

13th February 2020.

The day before Valentine’s Day.

“What do you mean you’ve never celebrated it?” Aziraphale was almost dumbfounded by the words coming from Crowley’s mouth, his hot coca not even meeting his lips.

“What?! It’s just a human holiday! Why do they even celebrate it, anyway?” Crowley said defensively, leaning against the kitchen counter. Another morning gone by without the worry of impending doom looming over both of their shoulders.

It was a bright and early Thursday morning at Aziraphale’s bookshop. Crowley had found himself in Aziraphale’s kitchen, tinkering around the place before Aziraphale offered him a warm drink. The two sat together, embracing in chat.

“Well, although the humans had made a story about the Saint Valentine, I believe it was the poem by the great Geoffrey Chaucer that really helped boost morale for the holiday! The Parliament of Fowls, if I remember the name correctly..” Aziraphale tried to remember bits of the poem.

“So tomorrow, you will see humans expressing love for their loved ones. Family, friends, partners...” Aziraphale trailed off, smiling fondly. “Just to show them they love them. It’s rather lovely, the whole thing.”

“Whatever it is, I certainly haven’t dabbled with it.” Crowley said, sounding uninterested.

Oh, but how we had wanted to. For the past six thousand years pining for the angel, to finally have a whole day dedicated to spoiling him? You bet your ass he was on board with this.

“Oh, well I hadn’t really expected such a devilish fiend such as yourself to celebrate a rather joyous occasion.” Aziraphale said sarcastically, taking a sip from his drink. Crowley sneered at him, getting up from his spot at the kitchen table.

“Where are you going so soon?” Aziraphale asked, setting his mug down on the table, his gaze following Crowley.

“To get ice cream or commit a felony. I’ll decide in the car. Thanks for the coffee!”

Crowley made a beeline for Soho.

“Right. What the fuck do I buy him?” Crowley muttered to himself, gripping the steering wheel as his mind wondered. Ignoring the smell of burning rubber (presumably the tires), he dodged the slower cars ahead of him - rather flawlessly. He needed to get something before tomorrow, and he needed something now.

“Okay, what does he like...” he asked himself out loud.

A memory suddenly came to him.

“Listen,” said Crowley desperately, “how many musicians do you think your side have got, eh? First grade, I mean.’’

Aziraphale looked taken aback.

‘’Well, I should think-’’ he began.

‘’Two,’’ said Crowley. ‘’Elgar and Listz. That’s all. We’ve got all the rest. Beethoven, Brahms, all the Bachs, Mozart, the lot. Can you imagine eternity with Elgar?’‘

Aziraphale shut his eyes. ‘’All to easily,’’ he groaned.

Crowley eventually pulled up outside a rather modern looking vinyl store in Soho. Several artists he had never heard of plastered the names on covers of vinyls, which were so neatly placed in the shop front. He hesitated.

“Would he even like a vinyl?”

“Of course he would, he hoards the bloody things.” he reassured himself, getting out of the car and approaching the store. He knew all the composers Aziraphale loved. In fact, he shamelessly knew everything that Aziraphale loved. He made his way into the shop, the many names of Aziraphale’s beloved composers whirling around his mind as he scaled along the aisles of neatly stacked and alphabetically organised records.

A song played smoothly from the shop speakers - a song that can only be described the way the warm sunrise touches your face first thing in the morning, the violins could carry your troubles away and leave you floating in sempiternal bliss.

“When I fall in love... It will be forever...”

Initially, this wasn’t Crowley’s type of music. But have you ever heard a song that makes you stop in your tracks and think-

“Oh.”

Because that’s exactly what has happened to Crowley.

“To get ice cream or commit a felony. I’ll decide in the car. Thanks for the coffee!”

With that, Crowley was gone. The bookshop was filled with silence once more, the bustling of the streets muffled by the walls of the lonely shop.

“Oh.. I hope I didn’t offend him.” Aziraphale sighed sadly, turning back to the table. His mind was too focused on what happened, he wasn’t interested in finishing his drink. Had he ruined the wonderful routine he and Crowley had subconsciously slipped into?

“Don’t be absurd, you fool. It was hardly that easy to offend him!” he tried to reassure himself, but his mind wouldn’t lay off as he got up from the table. He paced the kitchen, and when he had paced all he could in there, he paced the whole bookshop, all the while overthinking.

He stopped in his tracks.

“I could call him! It’s not too soon after breakfast, surely?” Aziraphale rushed to his study, almost tearing the old phone from the wire. But he stood still, clutching the phone to his chest. Was it hesitation? Was he nervous? Just call him!

Aziraphale prepared himself for what he would say.

“Crowley! I was just wondering... No, not like that.”

“Crowley, you wily, old serpent! No, that doesn’t work either.”

He took a deep breath, and dialed in the demon’s number slowly, his heart racing. It’s simple, just call!

He finally pressed dial, each beep feeling like eternity. Any minute now, he’d pick up on the other end and everything would be fine.

Any second now.

With every beep, Aziraphale could feel his stomach churn with anxiety. He could picture Crowley look at the caller ID on his mobile, and scoffing as he tossed his phone on the sofa.

The call ended without anyone picking up, and Aziraphale brought the phone away from his ear. He considered calling again, his brain trying to think of reasons why Crowley hadn’t answered.

“Perhaps it’d be best not to call again, don’t want to be a bother.” Aziraphale said sadly, and placed the phone down.

Crowley didn’t know how he managed to find his way back to the Bentley while carrying a tower of vinyls, but he did. He could have easily miracled them into the car instead, right?

But no. He is an idiot.

An idiot in love, who has no idea what he’s doing, but he like feels he should.

Once he had the vinyls in the car, he got into the driver’s seat, and another memory came to him.

“That’s it then,” said Crowley, with a gleam of triumph. He knew Aziraphale’s weak spot alright. “No more compact discs. No more Albert Hall. No more Proms. No more Glyndbourne. Just celestial harmonies all day long.”

“Ineffable.” Aziraphale murmured.

Crowley was getting the hang of his gift buying shenanigans. Perhaps he was excited about this? Was he excited about showing the gifts to Aziraphale? To see how happy it would make him? Is this a good deed?!

“Hardly... I mean, technically it’s not a good deed. Because I’m buying these things, that means someone is missing out! Yes! HA!” Crowley reassured himself as he sped back to his apartment.

As he staggered in the door with the vinyls to his chest, he finally realized he could simply miracle the vinyls into his apartment. While glowering at his plants, who were trembling at the sight of him, he snapped his fingers, and the vinyls disappeared neatly to the kitchen.

“Right. Glyndbourne. Let’s see.” Crowley flopped down on the sofa, pulled out his phone and worked a few little miracles of his own.

14th February 2020.

Aziraphale’s Bookshop.

Aziraphale didn’t get much sleep last night. His mind was too full from the previous morning’s events. He was ridden with anxiety, thinking he had hurt Crowley with what he thought was friendly banter. And now he wouldn’t answer his call?

The sunlight peeked through his bedroom window, the new day announcing itself to Aziraphale. But he has been awake long before the sunrise. He sighed, sitting up in his bed. He spent most of the night reading to help ease his mind. Perhaps Romeo and Juliet wasn’t the best choice of book

As soon as he was dressed in his usual attire, there was a loud knocking on the shop door. He glanced down at the bedside clock for the time, and frowned.

“It’s not even 9 o’clock yet. Who could possibly be looking for books at this time?” As he let his bedroom he quickly adjusted his bow tie, scanning the room to ensure it was in it’s immaculate state.

Another irritable knock came from the door.

“I’m here! Just a tick!” Aziraphale rushed to the door, unraveling the blinds on the door, putting on his best shop keeper smile.

It was Crowley.

“Aziraphale!” Crowley said aloud when he saw Aziraphale through the window of the door, and smiled. Aziraphale, who was certain that he felt his heart stop for a solid two seconds, immediately opened the door, letting Crowley in.

“Crowley, I-”

“Before you say anything, Aziraphale, I had no idea what to buy, so I bought everything.” Crowley rushed as he walked into the bookshop past Aziraphale.

Aziraphale was stunned, “Everything?! What do you mean?” He shut the door behind Crowley as he strolled in, and rolled down the blinds.

“Valentine’s Day? Remember? You said people buy each other things when they... Yeah, I bought you some stuff, I guess.” Crowley trailed off, trying to be suave as he investigated the shelved books like he always does.

And it happened. It was quick, but intense. So intense, Aziraphale thought he had lost his vision. In that moment of realization, a soft pink aura had appeared around Crowley.

Something in the way Crowley was skimming through the various books had caught Aziraphale in a trance. Crowley had removed his sunglasses to get a better look, his golden snake eyes relaxed as they studied the unfamiliar titles. The sunlight complimented his hair, an illuminating orange, and visibly soft to touch. Crowley had picked up a random book, flicking through the old pages. Aziraphale smiled at how his brows furrowed as he tried to understand it’s contents. The soft glow from the aura was immensely calming.

Love.

“Dunno what that means. Are you alright, angel?” Crowley became uninterested in the book and placed it down, his focus returning to Aziraphale, who was staring at him in awe.

“Yes, I-I’m quite alr-”

“The gifts! I nearly forgot the bloody gifts!” Crowley suddenly exclaimed, and Aziraphale jumped slightly. Crowley snapped his fingers, and every visible surface of the bookshop had gifts of many sorts on top of it.

“I just.. Y’know.. Knew what you liked because you always talk about them.” Crowley explained, almost bashful as Aziraphale gasped at the sudden entourage of gifts.

Neatly wrapped classical vinyls. Flamboyant bouquets of flowers Aziraphale had never seen. Several bottles of Aziraphale’s favourite wine stood glistening in the sun. There were small boxes in shiny wrapping paper topped with delicate ribbon, with beautiful colors. Aziraphale walked over to the vinyls, all composers he loved dearly. His attention was drawn to the flowers, their smell so overwhelmingly fresh.

Aziraphale was speechless as he tried to take everything in.

“You don’t like it?” Crowley asked after a minute, seeing how Aziraphale had said nothing for some time.

The total opposite, in fact. Aziraphale, who had his back to Crowley, felt his eyes welling up with tears of pure joy. He tried to blink them away quickly without them being noticed, but he was so overwhelmed with sheer bliss, there was nothing he could do.

“Angel?” Crowley asked him softly, “I can return them if you want. Can get cash or store credit-.”

“I love them.” Aziraphale interrupted, not facing Crowley. His fingers gently traced the delicate petals of a pale pink rose.

“Then why didn’t you say anythi- Wait, angel, why are you crying then?” Crowley approached Aziraphale with caution. He’d never seen the angel cry, and was certain he’d never made him cry before.

“Oh no, no it’s fine! I’m fine, my dear.” Aziraphale quickly wiped his eyes, but the tremble in his voice gave it away.

“Please don’t lie to me, Aziraphale. What did I do wrong? What can I do to make you better?” Crowley’s voice was softer as he got closer, stopping when Aziraphale raised his head, and turned to face him.

Crowley’s expression soften, his eyes widened as Aziraphale looked at him with glistening blue hues. Although his bottom lip was quivering, he still managed to force it into a smile.

“Crowley, you have done nothing wrong. Quite the opposite, in fact.” Aziraphale gave Crowley a small smile. “I suppose I’m just overwhelmed with joy!”

Crowley blinked. “Joy?” he studied Aziraphale for a moment. “But you’re crying? I don’t understand...” The angel wasn’t used to such attention from the demon, and tried to avert his gaze.

“Oh, don’t mind me. I’ve just never had... This!” he gestured to everything Crowley had gifted him. He took a shaky breath in. “It’s such a wonderful feeling, I can’t even begin to explain.” Crowley was amazed.

“What do you mean, you’ve never had this?” Crowley remained focused on Aziraphale. “Are you telling me, in the 6000 years we’ve known each other, nobody has ever bought you anything? Gifts? Nothing?!”

Aziraphale said nothing, but simply shook his head, somewhat ashamed. Crowley stepped over to Aziraphale and gently gripped his shoulders, which took the angel by surprise. Aziraphale looked up at him, confused.

“Crowley, what the Heaven’s are-”

“I don’t know how many people you have known you throughout the last six millennia..”

Aziraphale couldn’t focus on Crowley as he trailed off on a rant. His eyes, as bright and intense as burning stars, were hypnotizing Aziraphale. He lied to himself. He told himself he wanted to look away, but the thought of shamelessly admiring them was too inviting. It was a sin he was willing to repent for, for all eternity.

There he was, in the middle of his bookshop, face to face with the most delectable and alluring creature he had the grace of walking the earth with for the past 6000 years. There he was, standing in the middle of the room, listening to his demon list every reason why Aziraphale should be cherished. What did he do to deserve this?

That’s when it hit him.

“So whoever hasn’t taken the time to treat you with an ounce of respect is a bloody idiot.” Crowley said, blinking at last. He was about to say something else, but stopped himself, his grip loosening from Aziraphale, and he took a step back.

Azirphale was speechless. His vision became cloudy, causing Crowley to appear blurry in front of him, but this time he didn’t try hiding his tears, and let them roll down his cheeks.

“Aziraphale? Did I say someth-”

“How long?” Aziraphale interrupted, his voice a shaky whisper.

“What?” Crowley asked softly. Aziraphale cleared his throat in an attempt to stop the lump in his throat from giving him away, and adjusted his bow tie, a habit for comfort.

“H-How long have you...” Aziraphale gestured to the gifts that were surrounding them. “This?” He felt rather meek, trying to discreetly get his words out.

“Angel, this is not the time for a game of charades.” Crowley said desperately, imitating Aziraphale’s gesturing, causing the angel to huff.

“Oh for Heaven’s sake, Crowley. How long have you been in love with me?” Aziraphale’s nerves got the better of him, the question ripped itself out, and his hands flew up to his mouth to stop his from saying anything else.

“Now look what you did, you’ve ruined a perfectly good friendship. Well done, lad.” he thought to himself. He couldn’t read Crowley’s expression. Was he angry? Was he going to laugh and walk out? He had to do something. Maybe there was a way he could turn back time to literally ten seconds prior?

“I-I mean, ignore that question. Dear, what I meant to a-ask was-”

You’ve heard of the age old expression “to take your breath away”, right? Well, that’s what happened to Aziraphale. In a flash, Crowley was gripping Aziraphale’s coat front, their bodies rigid with nerves. Crowley caught Aziraphale in a nervous kiss, which made the angel yelp in surprise. Crowley immediately retracted, not daring to look the other in the eye.

“Angel I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done that. I understand if you don’t want to talk to me again. See ya.” Crowley turned quickly and made his way to the shop door, but was stopped from opening it when he felt a hand on his arm, pulling him back.

“Aziraphale?” Crowley didn’t half expect Aziraphale to have followed him, and certainly didn’t expect to be kissing the angel again, this time against the bookshop door. This kiss was urgent, exciting. Aziraphale took in a deep breath, hesitantly putting his hands on Crowley’s shoulders. It was messy, but it was new to them. It’d be like learning to ride a bike, they’d just need more practice.

“Mm.. M-Wait. Angel, wait.” Crowley mumbled between kisses, slowly opening his eyes. Aziraphale stopped immediately.

“Did I do something wrong?” Aziraphale asked, and Crowley shook his head, excited, fiery eyes gazing dotingly at the angel.

“No, quite the opposite, But I think we have some explaining to do before anything else happens.” Crowley said with a smile. Aziraphale nodded, his heart beating with excitement, but led Crowley into the living room.

“Have a seat, my dear.” Aziraphale gestured to the couch that Crowley had sat on many times before, and once more he made himself comfortable. Aziraphale sat on the seat opposite him, adjusting his coat.

However, the two sat in a deafening silence for the first time, shooting quick glances at each other. The streets outside had come alive now, Aziraphale was certain it was past the shop’s opening hour, but that didn’t bother him at all. The ticking from the clock seemed to be the peacemaker.

“Perhaps I should start.” Aziraphale began. He was nervous, good God he was nervous, but at least they had the time and space to say what they felt. They had waited for so long to bring this to the table.

“Crowley, I have been foolishly blind to your emotions. For how long, I do not know.” Crowley stared intently at Aziraphale, listening to his every word. “But for however long I haven’t acknowledged your feelings, I hope you know I am deeply sorry.” Aziraphale finished with a sigh. Perhaps a sigh of relief. He looked to Crowley.

“Sorry? Aziraphale, what could you possibly be sorry for?” Crowley asked, shifting in his seat. “It wasn’t deliberate. You, not knowing how much I... I like you, is not your fault. It’s not anyone’s fault.” he said with a soft chuckle. “I just wish I had told you sooner.” Crowley said quietly, and Aziraphale smiled softly at him. He thought for a moment.

“My dear, may I ask exactly how much you like me?” Aziraphale asked, the questions sounding more flirtatious than innocent, which took Crowley by surprise.

“H-How much?” Crowley said, and Aziraphale nodded eagerly. Crowley cleared his throat, quickly thinking for the most appropriate action to do next. An idea came to him.

“Would you like me to show you exactly how much?” he asked gingerly, leaning forward in his seat towards Aziraphale. The angel’s eyebrows knit together.

“Crowley, we’ve made this clear. You already have shown me-” He stopped when he noticed Crowley raising an eyebrow. “Oh,” he said softly “Then yes, I’d very much like you to.”

In the blink of an eye, they were on each other once more. With eyes closed, their lips met with an urgent crash, neither of them seeming to mind the blunt force. The kiss meant a number of things for bth of them - comfort, relief, delirium, certainty, worship, love.

Six thousand years of friendship, bonding, judgement, rejection, fighting, all for this moment. And boy, was it worth it.

They were excited, roaming hands touching everywhere they had waited to. Crowley’s hands gently cupped Aziraphale’s face, pulling his lips impossibly closer to his own. He breathed him in through his nose, sighing contently into the kiss. Aziraphale’s hands had snaked their way around Crowley’s waist, and was pulling himself flush against the demon.

Personal space? Who’s that?

“Mm..A garden saw I... Full of blossomy boughs...” Crowley breathed between kisses. Aziraphale stopped kissing him. The two were breathless, but stayed where they were. Aziraphale was wide eyed, visibly impressed by the words he just heard.

“Crowley? Was that-” Aziraphale voice was excited.

Yes, it was. The poem Aziraphale briefly mentioned to Crowley the day before. The poor demon took it upon himself to study the poem inside and out. Just to impress his angel.

“Upon a river, in a green mead.” Crowley continued, gazing lovingly at Aziraphale, a tempting smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. Aziraphale wasted no time in returning to the kiss, nearly knocking Crowley down with sheer excitement. Crowley giggled at the behavior of the seemingly quiescent angel

“There as sweetness evermore enough is..”

Crowley slowly trailed his hands down Aziraphale’s back, the angel not seeming to mind the slightest, seeing as one of his hands were busy with Crowley’s hair, and the other was cupping the back of his neck. He certainly didn’t mind when Crowley gently squeezed his buttocks, the thrill of it caused him to gasp and grab a fistful of Crowley’s fiery hair.

“My dear, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to!” Aziraphale said suddenly, when Crowley moaned at the sensation. Crowley opened his eyes slowly, as if to relish in the feeling. His pupils were fully blown, a sight Aziraphale wasn’t too familiar with.

“I think.. I think I liked that.” Crowley said, his voice was gravelly and he squeezed Aziraphale’s buttocks again, pulling him flush against him, smirking down at the angel as he did so.

“Oh, is that so?” Aziraphale played along. “What if I did it again?” he asked innocently. Crowley suppressed a moan, and began kissing below Aziraphale’s ear. It was Aziraphale’s turn to moan, pleasure rippling through him at the unfamiliar sensation. The sound Crowley elicited from him was heavenly. It excited Crowley, and he wanted to hear more.

“Better make haste, angel, or I may just discorporate in your arms.” Crowley growled into his ear, slowly peppering light kisses along Aziraphale’s soft neck. Aziraphale sighed in bliss, his fingers threading through Crowley’s hair once more. He’d never felt anything like this.

“Oh Crowley, that’s wonderful.” Aziraphale purred in bliss. The last place he ever imagined he’d be was in the middle of his bookshop, with a demon whispering sweet temptations into his ear.

“You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to do this..” Crowley said between each kiss.

“Do what, my dear- Ohh my goodness!” Aziraphale moaned in euphoria when he felt Crowley nip a tender spot on his neck, and tugged Crowley’s hair once more, high on pleasure.

With that, Crowley found Aziraphale’s lips again, pulling him in for a hungry kiss. It was urgent, passionate, and they were both drunk on love, feeding off each other. Crowley gently guided them towards the couch, neither pausing for a breath. Aziraphale collapsed onto the couch, dragging Crowley down with him. The demon straddled his hips, completely flush against Aziraphale. The world could be ending right now, and this is all they would want to be doing. Nothing else mattered at this point in time.

Crowley pulled back from the kiss, the taste of the angel still on his lips. He placed his hands on both of Aziraphale’s shoulders for balance. Breathless, the two sat on top of each other, a childish giggle erupting from the both of them. Crowley could watch Aziraphale’s face light up when he laughed for the rest of his eternal life. The way his nose wrinkled when he beamed a smile was nearly enough to discorporate him. But his laugh - oh, his laugh - gleeful and bubbly, was enough to rid the demon of any negativity.

“Has anyone told you how devastatingly radiant your eyes are?” Crowley said, his tone drenched in awe as he lightly traced his thumb across Aziraphale’s cheek, causing the angel to blush.

“I hardly believe anyone would think such-” Aziraphale hushed when Crowley gently placed his finger on his lips, and gave Crowley a look which translated to “And what is the meaning of this?!”

“Cerulean blue, like the ocean on the sunniest day. Clinquant in the sun’s brash rays. A sapphire paradise I am eager to drown in, if you’ll allow me to. If I stare any longer, I’ll be floating in sempiternal tranquility. If your eyes are the sea, then I’m shamelessly a thalassophile.”

Neither of them spoke for a moment. Aziraphale was speechless due to pure astonishment at Crowley’s flawless use of words. Crowley, the now hopeless romantic, was still gazing into Azirphale’s eyes, perhaps staying true to his words.

“Crowley, where on earth did you learn that?” Aziraphale asked quietly, blinking to wake Crowley from his trance. Crowley was visibly pleased with his work, beaming a smile.

“When I first lay my eyes on you, it’s the only thing that went around my mind that day. And everyday since then. Just kept it tucked away until now.” Crowley confessed.

“Oh Crowley, my dear.” Aziraphale cooed. His brows drew together as he turned a deeper shade of red, looking away to avoid Crowley’s gaze. He was at a loss for words, the charm from Crowley was something he wasn’t used to, and Crowley knew. Crowley gently put his fingers under Aziraphale’s chin to guide him back.

“Hey,” he said softly to get the angel’s attention once more. “Would I lie to you?” he asked, his eyes trailing down to the angel’s plush lips, before lazily dragging his gaze back up to meet Aziraphale’s.

With a coy smile, Aziraphale pressed his forehead against Crowley’s. “No.”

The two share a chaste kiss together. Unbothered, peaceful, on a Friday morning in Central London in the bookshop.

Their first Valentine’s Day was a success this year.

#GoodOmens #Aziraphale #crowley #aziraphale loves crowley #crowley loves aziraphale #ineffablehusbands #romance #ngk

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ladyhawknell · 5 years ago

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The INTRO of epic love...

Okay so I have been analyzing the hell out of the beginning of the episode. Here's a few bits of fun to make you believe they are in fact in love of you are not yet of that persuasion.

The defining shift happens when they are in the globe theatre.

Aziraphale gets overly involved in the "to be or not to be" bit. Crowley offhandedly mutters a few lines of poetry. This is the point right here, that the line is drawn.

Crowley - Age does not wither, nor custom stale his infinite variety.

Enobarbus - Age cannot wither her, nor custom stale. Her infinite variety.

The line is from Antony and Cleopatra by none other than Shakespeare. Enobarbus is saying that Antony cannot get enough of Cleopatra, he is overwhelmingly attracted to her not because of her beauty but because her fascinating unpredictability and range of moods.

Crowley changed the poets genders, yes he is looking at the stage but he has no connection/affiliation with the man on stage only the one next to him.

(Sidebar- another great writer used a similar phrase.

“I trust that age doth not wither nor custom stale my infinite variety,”

It was one Sherlock Holmes, in the Return of Sherlock Holmes, but it was said by Sherlock in reference to a bust he had made of himself. To fool someone into believing he was at home in 221b while he was in fact not. )

After the line is delivered, Crowley walks behind and to the other side of Azeriphail, and their normal banter resumes. But what I found interesting is after Crowley delivers that line he's got ants in his pants. Pacing. For me this is the moment that Crowley realizes he has an 'attachment'. Feelings. Those things which as a demon he should most probably not have...

Still unbelieving?

Okay, move forward a few lines, when Crowley is trying to convince Azeriphail to use their 'arrangement' Azeriphail's main concern is not about getting into trouble himself. His worry is completely for Crowley.

"But if Hell finds out, they won't just be angry, they'll destroy you." Let's just say, "because he's an angel he cares more about people" fine look at his face. Therein lies naked fear. Eventually Azeriphail gives in and they honor their agreement.

Azeriphail is deemed to be the one to ride off to Scotland. Shakespeare makes the statement "It'd take a miracle to get anyone to come and see Hamlet."

With a raise of his eyebrows Azeriphail get Crowley, to make it bappen. Not a word and Crowley gives in, beyond gives in, more like gifts him. 'My treat'.

The look of elation on Azeriphail's face sends Crowley scampering off.

Want the final nail in the coffin? It is after this that Crowley begins referring to Azeriphail as Angel.

Still not enough? I have more.

Paris 1793 - The Bastille

So before they both had kind of just happened to run into one another, except when Crowley wanted Azeriphail to take the Scotland job. In Paris, Azeriphail is in Trouble. With a capital T. Funny thing is Crowley has no reason to be there. The beheadings are not his doing (he says so) he's not looking for Azeriphail to make use of their agreement. But by pure chance, he is lucky enough to be there, just in the nick of time... I don't think so.

So for the naysayers we could say that by watching out for a Azeriphail, Crowley is watching out for his own investments… which maybe. But. I'd lean more towards watching out for something he has… well doesn't hate. (wink)

Crowley's first appearance in the cell he is, langid. Slouching. Disinterested.

Azeriphail's reaction is excitement. Happiness. Then a quick once over of Crowley and a feigned indifference.

Other than Crowley using Angel for the first time. Crowley saving the Angel from the French and the guillotine, which for his side is all but a sin. Not a lot happens to move them forward but lunch, and us learning about Azeriphail's love for food.

No one of the Oh. damn. Someone has F.E.E.L.S. bits is the St James Park, London 1862. (By the by is about 70 years later)

BIG things are afoot in this snippet.

First Crowley seems worried. Wary. Distracted. He's usually so fluid. He's rigid.

Crowley asks for a favor. Which he knows is not.part of their agreement. An agreement that is finally made known to us.

But the BIG thing is when Azeriphail reads his note. The look on his face. Afriad. Then Pleading. His face stays along those same lines while Crowley's is detached and distant.

Until.

Until the word fraternizing. Crowley's face goes feral. He all but hisses the word in question.

Yes he's upset that Azeriphail will not get him the holy water, but it's fraternizing that sets him off. Like being introduced as 'just a friend' when you thought it was something more.

Azeriphail's response of "Well, whatever you wish to call it." Only intensifies Crowley's rage.

(Sidebar- fraternize - associate or form a friendship with someone, especially when one is not supposed to.) Cough. Cough.

So. There's that. If they were just friends why would that word elcite such a scathing comment as "I have lots of other people to fraternize with, Angel."

Azeriphail's response of "of course you do."

Is shot back with Crowley's biting "I don't need you."

Followed by Azeriphail's "well, and the feeling is mutual, obviously."

Followed by a mocking "obviously" from Crowley.

Written word cannot carry the feelings that the auditory tones invoke. Anger. Hurt. Confusion. Self righteousness. Spite. Azeriphail storms off in a huff.

Moving onto the air raid in the church bit … which by the by. Of there is any question about how much they care about one another… I do t.know what to tell you. Because Crowley goes into a church. A Demon willingly goes across consecrated ground to save his 'friend'. Yes Azeriphail has to handle the big guns of saving them from the bomb strike. But Crowley is kind of at a disadvantage here.

I mean.

Demon.

In.

Church.

But the part that strikes feelings. Is that Crowley goes into a church. (To save him. AGAIN. cough. cough. He depends on Azeriphail to save them from the bomb strike. And knowing the other man so well hel thinks of something that Azeriphail does not. Of Saving something that he loves. His books.

The look on Azeriphail's face. You'd have to be deaf (not hearing the romantic trill playing) dumb (willfully obtuse of all previously presented facts) and blind (His. FACE.) Azeriphail's heart is not on his sleeve… it's on his face, his lit up like a Christmas tree face.

We are now at the SoHo snippet.

After his little sneaky sneaky meeting he climbs into his Bentley. And there he is, Azeriphail.

He knew that against his worst fears (Crowley getting zapped into nothingness by the holy water, by accident or suicide) he would have to help his friend.

The music playing is sad.

But by far the saddest bit of possibly the entire series is when Azeriphail talks about someday.

"Perhaps one day we could, I don't know. Go for for a picnic. Dine at the Ritz."

And then heartbreakingly and confusingly, "you go too fast for me Crowley."

Okay. I have tried to find some hidden meaning some link to some poem, song, ode, piece of literature. And I cannot REMEMBER wherein I've heard it before. (yes it's a simple phrase. But it strikes a chord.)

In flat black and white: all inflection, music, prior conversation wiped away, the line could be taken quite literally.

After all Azeriphail is actually terrified of Crowley's driving… but.

But…

His tone is not chiding.

His face is not amused.

Maybe he's talking about something else.

Maybe.

- and that's just from the 20ish minute history lesson.

#goodomens #ineffible husbands #demon and a angel #that intro tho

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vocalfriespod · 6 years ago

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Basque-ing in the European Sun Transcript

Carrie Gillon Hi and welcome to the Vocal Fries Podcast, the podcast about linguistic discrimination.

Megan Figueroa I'm Megan Figueroa.

Carrie Gillon And I'm Carrie Gillon. And we have a little bit of housekeeping to do, so, once again, we have a Patreon now, and last month, our new patrons?

Megan Figueroa Yeah.

Carrie Gillon We'd like to thank you individually, so I'm not sure if people want me to use their last names, but I think... so in December, when I first picked it up. I didn't say originally that we were going to thank people individually and so I wasn't sure, but this time I said it, so hopefully okay if I use full names. Please let me know if that's not the case.

Megan Figueroa Yeah,

Carrie Gillon I apologize, but so Alyssa Crowley thank you. Talk the Talk another podcast about linguistics.

Megan Figueroa Aw.

Carrie Gillon I know. So if you guys are interested in lingpods, that's what I like to call them. That's another one that you should check out.

Megan Figueroa Hashtag lingpod. Is that a hashtag?

Carrie Gillon It should be. You know what? Let's start it.

Megan Figueroa Okay.

Carrie Gillon I'm just assuming it doesn't

Megan Figueroa it seems like it would be some sort of creature that would be under the sea.

Carrie Gillon then Ben Whedon Thank you also, and Chris Hengler, all the way from Hamburg

Megan Figueroa Oh!

Carrie Gillon Yes, and also, a former professor of mine from Toronto: Elizabeth Cowper. So thank you very much.

Megan Figueroa Oh, that's so nice. I don't see any any professors of mine. I'm just kidding.

Carrie Gillon Hmmm.

Megan Figueroa That's funny.

Carrie Gillon Oh, and related to the Patreon we have a new bonus episode. Where Tito Rios, my former colleague read one of his poems. So you get an extra poem.

Megan Figueroa from the poet laureate of Arizona. And it's awesome because it's a poem that is actually at the port of entry at Nogales Sonara and Nogales Arizona so it's very cool. Y'all should really get on the Patreon if you want to hear all these cool bonus epis.

Carrie Gillon Oh, dear. Think that makes you the Shoshana of this podcast. So before we really begin. I also want to apologize for my voice right now. I don't know if you can tell. But I it sounds much deeper to me. Because yesterday we went to a housewarming party, which was lovely, but it was very loud. So to talk over the music, means I'm a little a little hoarse,

Megan Figueroa a little introverted voice got a little tired

Carrie Gillon I'm not as introverted as I used to be.

Megan Figueroa Wait, did you see Hamilton yesterday?

Carrie Gillon Yeah, we saw that in the afternoon. By the way, it does live up to the hype. Yeah, I was a little worried because, I mean, there's a lot of times where things don't live up to the hype to me. So like Wonder Woman, I was like, eh. But this definitely I was like, no deserves every accolade it's ever gotten.

Megan Figueroa Well, another one that you actually agree lived up to the hype. was Black Panther.

Carrie Gillon also amazing.

Megan Figueroa Yeah, I am still thinking about it. I love princess Shuri and I love everything that I'm seeing on Twitter. All the fan art and the STEM the science technology. And what is the STEM sound for?

Carrie Gillon you're almost there. Science, technology, engineering and math.

Megan Figueroa Yeah, that's like I always say that I'm like really into STEM, but do I know what ie means? Yeah,.

Carrie Gillon Well, now there's also STEAM, which adds the arts, which.

Megan Figueroa Yes, I love the arts. It should always be in there. Do we really have math without art? I don't think so.

Carrie Gillon I mean, there's math that- Yeah, I guess it always is kind of art already at some level, but you don't know until you see it visualized some way I guess. Or like unless you're a really good mathematician. You can't see but yeah, so I really and also Black Panther involves the arts as well. Like, oh my god, that costuming.

Megan Figueroa Oh my god. I know.

Carrie Gillon One of the outfits was like this onesie, sort of or a jumpsuit. And I was like, I wish I could wear that

Megan Figueroa right?

Carrie Gillon I'm too practical, though. You can't pee in it.

Megan Figueroa I mean, you you could.

Carrie Gillon Yeah, exactly.

Megan Figueroa So also related to Black Panther. But it's no fault of Black Panther, Nyle DiMarco, the very handsome deaf model that is an advocate for the deaf community. And for ASL I would say right, he was tweeting about how he went to see Black Panther. But the captioning was just so horrible. It was skipping lines, like he had to leave. So it's one of those things where I realized that I have a privilege that I wasn't thinking about.

Carrie Gillon Yeah, and I think to be clear, it was a technological issue. So it wasn't on the main screen. He had like some kind of technical some piece of tech.

Megan Figueroa Right.

Carrie Gillon He's stuck into the chair in front of him, I guess. I don't know.

Megan Figueroa Yeah.

Carrie Gillon And that was not functioning very well. So I mean, the captioning still could have been missing lines if it had been on the screen. But it was the piece of technology was not working fully. I think that was part of the problem. But you're right, we have of course, we have this privilege of being able to hear lines and I one of the times that I really noticed that actually it wasn't about being deaf or hard of hearing, but something that's related. So me having a privilege was watching movies with someone who was a second language learner of English. And he really strongly preferred having the captions on the subtitles on because he could get more of the English that way. And it hadn't occurred to me that, of course, that would be helpful, for someone like that. So it was a similar kind of thing. So he's advocating, I think, for, like, actual captions on the main screen. Yeah, and I think, you know, bare minimum Why don't have just have some special screenings with that like once a day, at least? I don't know.

Megan Figueroa Yeah, he wrote something for Teen Vogue. So let's, let's, let's link to that when we have the link for this is episode.

Carrie Gillon Yeah. Gotta make sure we have that.

Megan Figueroa So let's, let's all examine our privilege. And also go see Black Panther. And enjoy that. Everyone's beautiful in it. Just, it's eye candy, the entire movie. And I don't mean if I just the people. I mean, like it's such a beautiful movie.

Carrie Gillon Mm hmm. It really is. Oh, yeah. And there's also a one one language thing one language related thing to talk about with Black Panther and that's the use of Xhosa, I dunno, that's not how you pronounce it. But it's a language that's actually spoken in South Africa so some people some people don't like that because it's Wakanda is in the central part of Africa. And so people some people were complaining about that but I'm like, well, it's a fictional country so they can have whatever language they want and it's kind of nice to hear that language being spoken

Megan Figueroa yeah alright so today we are talking to Itxaso RODRÍGUEZ-ORDÓÑEZ about Basque, which again, another week where Megan learns everything that she does not know. It's getting kind of embarrassing Carrie.

Carrie Gillon Well, I mean, you had a lot less to learn about Chicano English than I did.

Megan Figueroa I really appreciate that bone you just threw me. Alright, should we get into it?

Carrie Gillon Yes, let's get into it.

Megan Figueroa We're very excited to welcome Itxaso Rodríguez-Ordonez. She is an assistant professor of Spanish and linguistics at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. She received her PhD in Hispanic linguistics at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign in 2016. Her research focuses on context situations, she incorporates linguistic attitudes and ideologies to explain contact and language change. Most of her work pertains to the best Spanish context situation. Spain more recently, she has also focused on contact effects, and the linguistic landscapes of Spanish and English in Pilsen, Chicago. Welcome, Itxaso.

Itxaso thank you so much. It's so nice to be here.

Carrie Gillon Hi. So I guess we'll just begin with Basque because I'm assuming many of our listeners do not know what Basque even is.

Megan Figueroa Yeah.

Itxaso Yeah. So first of all, I would like to say that I'm very excited to be here, especially to talk about one of my mother tongues with which I identify very, very closely. So talking about Basque for me is always excitement and pleasure. So what is Basque? Well, bus is an isolate language, it is spoken in the north of Spain and south of France. And the reason why it's considered an isolate is because we still don't know whether it belong to any other families. Meaning that we don't have evidence that there is any genetic relationship with other languages in the world. So they've done lots of research about, oh, why is Basque so different from other languages in Europe, is it actually connected to Hungarian, which is also different in many ways? And the answer is no. So for now, we actually doesn't know necessarily where we come from. Well, that's what people seem to say, others suggest were actually one of the first settlers of Europe, obviously, this kind of hypothesis has had a huge impact on how people identify as well, whether they claim themselves to be from there, how authentic we are, how old we are, how much we belong there, and stuff like that. So that's what Basque is, and Basque is spoken by about 700,000 people. And this is spoken both on the Spanish side and on the French side, although there are more speakers on the Spanish side, because it's, it's a little bit bigger, the territory is a little bit bigger, but Basque was spoken a bigger territory that was spoken right now. So it has been shrinking and shrinking throughout the centuries. So one of the interesting characteristics about Basque that make it different, maybe per se, with other European languages has to do with the word order. So we tend to say, if I want to say that I saw somebody right when I say I, somebody saw, so we'll put the verb at the very end. And this has been something that Basque people try to over-exoticize as something unique about languages. But then when we look at different languages in the world, we notice that this word order pattern is actually more common than we think, so the Basque people said, Oh, so we are not as unique as we thought. Okay,

Megan Figueroa so I'm hearing that there's like a lot of pride with speaking Basque.

Itxaso Absolutely. So it's actually so I grew up speaking Basque at home, and also Spanish. It's actually a way of identifying yourself as an authentic member of the community. So and obviously, this is something that was going on, the fact that we need to maintain the language, one of the oldest languages in Europe, this is a big belief within the Basque community, that we have been able to maintain our language and our culture, even if we have been invaded by many, many people. And oftentimes, we talk about this invasion, that also speaks to the current political situation. And obviously, this is my side of the story. This is not the only side of the Basque story but there is a huge pride especially in terms of wanting to maintain the language, wanting to continue. This is a big part of our culture, this idea continuation, of generation to generation transmission is something that definitely takes a big load on on our identity as authentic members of the community and also wanting to maintain that history. We don't want to be defied, we want to be there and one of the stereotypes and obviously it's a stereotype that the Basque people are stubborn. So and this is something that in first works about descriptions that we have about Basque people, one of the main descriptions is that they are so stubborn that they're not willing to give up their language. My question is Who, who would want to give up their language, right?

Megan Figueroa Right.

Itxaso So it's not a matter of stubborn, it's a matter of wanting to keep yourself alive. And Basque people do take pride in that aspect, in the fact that we're still we're still there, and we're still wanting to be there.

Carrie Gillon So what is the political background of let's say, Spain, like how how is Basque situated within the Spanish speaking country of Spain.

Itxaso Right. So the context between Basque and Spanish is as long as the Spanish ever existed because Basque was already there, even before the Latin Julius Caesar, his friends came into the Basque territory. So going back into a little bit of more recent political situation. So I will start a little bit with, I would say, ever since the border between Spain and France was created along the Pyrenees, that it is not necessarily the first diversification of the Basque country. But he was actually one of the most important ones, the fact that Spain and France became two different countries, the Basque became politically very divided in that respect, there was this the boundary in terms of nation states. So going look at looking at it more from a more recent perspective, so Basque has been spoken there for a long time. And obviously, the contact with French and Spanish has also influenced the way those varieties have evolved. Right? So we do have a lot of Spanish words we do makes a lot the sounds even the sound so if you are in the Spanish side of the Basque country, you know, that you're in the Spanish size uh Spanish side, because some of the sounds of very similar to Spanish and when you're in the French area it is the same, there is a lot of French sounding sounds. But there's still some of the sounds are unique to the Basque language as well, so then we can just Spanish side so we had the Spanish Civil War broke out in 1936. And this had a huge impact on on the Basque population. Because the town of Guernica, the very famous town of Guernica, that was a cultural center for for Basque, the Basque parliament was there and was bombed in 1937. And then after the dictatorship, sorry, after the civil war, the dictatorship lasted for 40 years up to 1975 until the dictator Franco died. So the language was prohibited. So you couldn't speak the language otherwise you could be taken to jail or you could be killed. And that's what happened to many Basque poets writers that still wrote in Basque. Obviously there was a huge loss of Basque speakers during that time because just started to be not spoken or transmitted, although is in some areas of the Basque country right now, the dialects also died out before then but in this respect the dictatorship did have a huge impact on but on maintaining the language. And this is where I was born. And this is where my sister was born. And we spoke Basque at home. My parents would only speak to us in Basque. But they were to speak to us the standard variety. So supposedly, I am a native speaker of the standard Basque. But right now I have to admit that I don't speak standard Basque fluidly. I can read and write in standard Basque, but I cannot fluently speak it. There is always some influence of my regional dialect, because Guernica did have a variety there before the standardization of Basque. So this is just a little bit of the background. I mean, I think I could go on or on, but yeah,

Megan Figueroa That was perfect. Thank you. Is anyone here monolingual in Basque.

Itxaso Actually not that we know of. So maybe there are a couple or a handful of speakers in very isolated areas. But it's very, very, very hard to find a monolingual speaker of Basque. And even if they say that they're monolingual, they probably understand some Spanish or French so I do have friends that have told me that Oh, my goodness, my grandma. She doesn't speak a word of Spanish. This is in the Navarre mountains in a very isolated area. And I say, are you sure she doesn't know any Spanish? I will. She doesn't speak a word she would never respond to do the Spanish. And I asked her Do you think she understands? And she says, Well, I don't know. Maybe she pretends to understand it, right. So it could be that there are a handful of speakers, but he would not be possible to navigate the area if you've done the other language as well. Although there are areas in which past is spoken almost by everybody. And he has a huge impact right there some zones in which are considered more my bilingual than others. And this has to do with the regions where boss was already spoken. Before this summarization those areas maintain quite high degree of bilingualism with the Spanish or with French, but in a more urban area, even if bad has the presence of us has increased compared to other regions is other regions is spoken by less less people. Absolutely. So I never met one only one speaker best I love to eat there any but I doubt that if there is any, there will be a remote area. I wonder if this hypothetical grandma who says she doesn't speak any Spanish? Is it because of pride?

Megan Figueroa Is there a tension between Basque and Spanish.

Itxaso Yes? Oh, absolutely. There is there is tension between the Spanish and Basque or at least, historically, there has been some tension between the Spanish and the Basque. Also, there's tension within different varieties of Basque or different types of speakers of Basque. So it could be that this hypothetical grandma is hostile for all the war that she probably had to endure the fact that she probably had family members killed, she probably had to fight for her survival. So this is also a way to show that she's not ready to submit herself to such a horrendous cultural genocide, right? So it could be contributing to her pride. It could be contributing to who she is now because of the historical events in her life. Right? Yeah,

Carrie Gillon Yeah. Can I ask a question about so the situation of Basque in France versus the situation of Basque in Spain? Is there a difference? Is this the same?

Itxaso Right. Yes, there's some similarities and some differences. The major difference is that Basque is not official with French. So the French constitution only takes French as the official language of the state, French is the language of France, right. And that has had an impact because in the French Basque Country, language shift has been more has gone more rapidly, meaning that more and more speakers have shifted to the dominant language in French a lot faster than they did in the Spanish area. However, recently, or relatively recently at least in the last decade, France has allowed, or has given permission to be able to, to teach these regional languages. And not only the Basque country, but in other areas, as long as their French is not been affected meaning that they need to show that they're also fluent French speakers. So there is also a consortium of ikastola. So ikastola is the Basque word for Basque school, it means the place of learning. And there are lots of ikastolas in the French Basque country as well as the Spanish Basque country in which kids these immersion programs in which kids can go and can speak and learn Basque if they don't learn it at home, or to be able to be literate in Basque and then there is also something that they call Seaska, which is also a high school in the in the French Basque country. And this is located in the Baiona area, which is the capital of the French Basque country and the biggest city there is about 40,000 people, right. And there are lots of kids that go there and learn fast. But like in the United States, the immersion program, in which everything is being taught in Basque, and also they do have French as a subject so that they're also literate in French is starts to die out. Meaning that later on French is more dominant, even in the studies, right. But today, they're highly bilingual there are lots of people that are highly bilingual, but you can still see that French is the dominant language as well in the French Basque Country. Interestingly enough, I have, I have also done research on identity issues, language maintenance, language contact in both sides of the border. So one of the things that I noticed when I was there in the French Basque country in the Baiona area is that john people, there is a huge movement of young people wanting to maintain their language, right, they speak it, they celebrate it, there are lots of activism, there are radio stations, right, it's a way to put consciousness to the speakers. And obviously, there's also a mixture between French and Basque. And one of the things that I did notice there, as opposed to the Spanish side, is that everybody was able to speak Basque. Not everybody, but a large body of the speakers who can speak Basque fluently, or semi-fluently or whatever that means, they actually make a huge effort, right? This is different from other urban areas in the Spanish side of the Basque country, in the sense that in Bilbao young people, especially if you're younger than 25, or even 30, it's very likely that you learned Basque in school through immersion programs. But then that language is not been transmitted to the streets. So this is something that we call reversal language shift. Whereas before this standardization Basque was the language of the home, now for many urban areas in the Spanish Basque Country, Basque is the language of the schooling and then they would go home and there would speak Spanish, maybe because their parents don't speak Spanish. So there is alternative change in how Basque can be used and how it's been submitted. That has an impact on the transmission, and as I said, the vitality of the language. so I even interviewed a young Basque French speakers and who actually wanted to go study abroad in the Basque country. this is actually hilarious, because they're, they're going to study abroad in their own Basque-speaking territory. But it's broad because the countries the borders divide us, right? And he was telling me how disappointed he was when he was studying in Bilbao for a year. That one of the reasons why he wanted to go there is because he wanted to have education in Basque, he studied engineering, and he wanted to be able to study engineering in Basque. And when he was there, he said, Yes, all classes were in Basque. But he was surprised to find out that there are lots of young people of his age that they actually use more Spanish in their daily life interactions. And he was very disappointed and sad to see that. So one of the questions is, why do we see these divergent patterns? Right. And I would say that one of the reasons that I have in mind is that I feel that in the French Basque country, they probably feel more oppressed because their language, the Basque language doesn't have at least any it's recognized as existing, but it's not necessarily being guaranteed by the government, meaning that they have to work really hard to be able to have it in the schools. Whereas in the Spanish side of the Basque country is is given to us, the government has worked really hard for us to be able to have access, so we kind of assume that we're going to have that access too, right. Obviously, there are other factors the country, but I would say that, that that is probably a big issue or a big potential explanation for that. Yeah.

Carrie Gillon That's fascinating.

Megan Figueroa Yeah. And then the the French situation sounds very similar to the situation in Spanish in the US to me.

Itxaso Yes. Yeah. So yeah, it has some similarities and some differences, too, right? So in terms of the similarities is that the French Basque country, so the government does not necessarily support the schools, right? So they have to work hard for it. It's the same in the United States too, in the sense that these all these languages are not English, if they want to maintain them, then they have the families have to work really hard. The school system has to, there is a bottom up approach in the sense that this society gets involved with how they could provide these linguistic resources for the kids like literacy so that they can maintain the language. So in that respect, is very, very similar, right?

Megan Figueroa Yes.

Itxaso Yeah. Yeah, absolutely.

Carrie Gillon So are Basque speakers discriminated against in either Spain or France?

Itxaso oh, yeah, well, we can start even with the Constitution itself, right? And obviously, I don't think everybody would agree with me with what I'm saying right now. But so one of the beliefs is that Oh, yes, Basque now, it's been acknowledged by the Spanish government because Article 2 of the Constitution says that Basque is also co-official with Spanish, so Article 2 says that every Spaniard has the duty to know Spanish. But then Article 2.1 says that other is Spanish languages. So for instance, Galician in Galicia, Catalan in Catalonia, or Basque in the Basque country have the right to be able to use it, right. So in that respect, these these regional languages are considered lower in our state me that you also need to know Spanish, but not the other way around. So when you go to Madrid, and if I want to, I want to have kids and I moved to Madrid with my partner, I can't ensure that my kids are going to maintain the language, right. So in that respect, the Spanish constitution does not protect me as a Basque speaker or as a citizen of Spain. So in that respect, I do feel that there is a huge gap there. Yes, we have come a long way, but we still have a long way to go. So also in terms of nationalism. So there is there is some oftentimes a belief that they only nationalist regions are the ones that speak another language other than in Spanish, but there is also Spanish nationalism, right? And this also has to do with power issues in the sense that nobody questions that knowledge of Spanish, but everybody keeps asking us about why do you speak Basque? And they said, Well, why do you speak Spanish? Right? So then other types of discrimination also have to do with politics. So language and politics has been very entrenched in the Basque country and in Spain. So when terrorism in the Basque country and in Spain was at its peak by ETA terrorist group, or yeah, so oftentimes, when these people were being convicted, they had the right to have a hearing or a trial that was in Basque but that right was not given to them, right. So there is stuff we do have some issues of language discrimination. And obviously, acts of terrorism, one of the most punishable crimes in Spain. And language has had an impact in how those people are also being treated. There was also a law passed in the 90s, and this is when the peak of terrorism was there, in which Basque so some members of ETA would be taken to jail farther away from their families in the Basque country. And when families would go and visit them. Many were Spanish speakers only but many also were Basque speakers. And the language of the home was always Basque. So many Basque families would go and visit their relatives for prison. And the Spanish policeman would not allow them to speak Basque so that they could I know what they're talking about. So I do have Yeah, it was. So my dad is a schoolteacher, and he's about to retire in, actually, next week.

Carrie Gillon Yay! Congratulations to your dad.

Itxaso And so he taught Basque, even if he was not a native speaker of Basque he was a Basque teacher in a small school where Basque is spoken by 95% of the population there. And he had a student as a kid, because he taught primary school and he had a student that she was born in jail, because both of her parents were taken to jail prison for certain acts that they have they committed or whatever. And so she grew up with a grandma, and oftentimes she would go visit her parents. And there were moments in which she said, I'd rather go back home, than speak in Spanish to my parents.

Carrie Gillon Wow.

Itxaso So a sentence, they would go visit them to the other side of Spain in Andalusia and say, well, and that's a 12 hour drive. So let's go back because I can't communicate in a language. It's a foreign language to us, right? Doesn't mean that we hated Spanish, but it's the language of law, and we are being not allowed to use it. So there has been issues of discrimination at that level. Absolutely.

Carrie Gillon That reminds me just very recently, there was a man who speaks Hawaiian and English because, of course, everyone else speaks English in Hawaii. But he spoke, he speaks both Hawaiian and English. And he is one of the official languages of Hawaii is Hawaiian, and he tried to use Hawaiian in the courtroom, and the judge just refused to, like, let him use this language. And anyway, the whole situation was very upsetting, because if it's an official language, you should be able to have a trial in your own language. That's how I feel it's a Canadian, where that is the law.

Itxaso Absolutely. The way I this Spanish law would respond to that would say, oh, but Basque is not an official languages of Madrid, and these, these acts were being convicted in Audiencia Nacional or with the Supreme Court in Madrid, right. But still, you do have the right to have a translator, right. If that is the case. Right. You should have the right to express yourself in any language that you feel comfortable with. Because you're being convicted, right?

Megan Figueroa Yeah. Yeah. I mean,

Carrie Gillon Yeah, if there's any time when you should have your right to your language is definitely in a trial because the heavy hammer of the of the law, right, you need to be protected.

Itxaso Absolutely. And I have examples myself, I mean, oftentimes, I have to admit that I take a lot of pride in my Basque language. And as a sociolinguist, I also played with power dynamics a lot. So when I go to Madrid, maybe for you know, a layover, but I fly back to Chicago or something like that. Sometimes, they look at my passport, and they're like, obviously, they look at my last name, I'm just like, Oh, Rodriguez. You know, she's Spanish, Spanish passport. But then they look at my name. And my name is written with a 'tx' which is also very symbolic of the Basque language and they're like, Oh, so do you are Basque, and then make comments and sometimes I'm like, yeah, that should not be a surprise, right? Why is it that I have to know more about you than you know about me. So now, every time I have a layover in Madrid, I speak in English to everybody and you know, they think I'm American because my accent they cannot notice my foreign right I speak more fluent English they they think that I am American and then when I show my password they say, "but you're a Spaniard! Why do you speak to us in English?" And I said, "why not? I feel more comfortable in English than speaking in Spanish." "But you're a Spaniard!" I said, "I'm not a Spaniard right? I didn't pick my citizenship." And, you know, well, I use English because this is an international airport. So at the same time, I'm trying to give a lesson. And here I'm too idealistic of what it means to speak an imperial language. So yeah, I am using another imperial language to show what it feels like to be posed a language. I don't think my sociolinguistic lessons in the airport work that well.

Carrie Gillon Probably not. But it's worth a shot.

Itxaso But hopefully they go home and think about this weird girl. I mean, I don't know, but it makes me feel better about myself, though.

Megan Figueroa Would you actually say, is it true that your English is better you feel your English is better than your Spanish?

Itxaso Absolutely not.

Megan Figueroa No? Okay. Okay. That's a lie. Alright alright.

Itxaso Well, I would say I would say that I mean, in order to talk about certain topics I feel better speaking in English. So if I have to talk about linguistic issues, I think my English is the stronger in that respect. I had to think harder to find vocabulary, the Spanish and so it's better in that respect, I do think.

Megan Figueroa Yeah.

Itxaso And I also have sometimes I forget words in Spanish as well. And then I'm thinking "Am I losing my Spanish" or but then it activates very quickly, but it is not uncommon to have to forget certain words.

Megan Figueroa Yeah, so that's definitely something multilingual people worry about. Right? Is Am I losing x? Or am I losing? Yeah, it's part of your identity, right?

Itxaso Yes.

Megan Figueroa It's so I wonder how do you identify when you when you think of all the languages you speak.

I feel Basque. I feel very Basque. However, I feel very conflicted, because I don't use Basque very often because I don't have anybody around me to speak it with. So at the same time, I have to admit that I have developed an identity of an English speaker too, right. Also because my most immediate loving person is an English speaker right. So I speak English with my partner and but at the same time I feel very Basque and the more farther away and the longer I remain in this country in the United States I feel more Basque actually and I'm just starting to realize that I'm becoming part of our diaspora myself, which is something that it's it's very common after you leave home for a long time, right. Although I still have strong ties with my homeland, right, but and then those issues of discrimination also transcend into the host country. So interestingly enough so my father My father still feels very discriminated against in the hometown that I grew up in. For instance, he he is the result of big migration of monolingual Spanish speaker from Spain into the Basque country that happened in the 60s so my grandfather moved to the Basque country to Bilbao to the big city of Bilbao for work and my my my dad was 10 years old so when he moved there and then he learned Basque. He learned standard Basque and then he mored with my mom to this small town Guernica that has a large population of Spanish migrants but at the same time very very Basque-rooted culture and a regional dialect so oftentimes they will comment on his Basque that people would say "oh it's interesting to see a Spaniard speak Basque, right, but at the same time your Basque is different for us, you didn't learn at home you are not one of us" right

Carrie Gillon Yeah.

Megan Figueroa So I remember interviewing my father and asking him "you lived in the Basque century for longer that you have lived in Spain or monolingual Spain" and say "do you feel bad?" and he would respond to me he said "it doesn't matter how I feel because everybody has made me feel as an outsider."

Carrie Gillon Yeah

Itxaso And that was very tough to hear because my parents did everything they could. First they have been big proponents of revitalization of the Basque language they have played a huge role people like them and there are lots of people that praise them for that and by my dad he still doesn't feel like he belongs there mainly because of his ethnicity or because the variety he speaks and then I asked him "how do you how do you compensate for that or what have you done Have you hard Have you tried hard" and he said "oh absolutely" so for him being Basque is what we in sociolinguists call doing Basque because identity is a constant process of working forwardness. We are constantly practicing our identities, whether they're conscious or unconscious, I my dad has had a huge has been very conscious about it he always wanted to construct his Basqueness through different practices. So for instance, he, he goes to lots of Basque ritualistic events, he engages, he volunteers for teaching Basque to immigrants, other immigrants he also engages in there is a cycling club and cycling also has a strong connection with the Basque entity. So he's invested in capturing kids to sports, to the sports that are connected with the Basque country and mountains and those kinds of things.

Megan Figueroa It's It's so hard to hear, just because I mean, it's all the same, right? So linguistic discrimination across the world, I'm like, oh, what's happening in the Basque country is what's happening in the US for for people that don't speak English. Or who want to keep their mother tongue?

Itxaso Their mother? Yeah, absolutely. And we see that these patterns of discrimination, there's a lot of similarities. And in fact, it has to do with issues of power. But how those power relations are being established, obviously, has the consequences come from the historical events as well. Right. So how is it that Basque speakers are being discriminated against within the Basque country? Because that also happens, right? So in my own research, I'm able to show so one of the questions that I seek to ask is, so the revitalization of the Basque language has been considered one of the most successful ones in Europe. Why, because we went from only speaking, only few speakers would speak it. But after the standardization of Basque and the co-officiality with Spanish and the implementation of Basque in school, would you say that young people 90% of the young population and by young with mean 30 or 35 years old or younger, can actually speak Basque. They're competent speakers of Basque and Spanish. Obviously, there are varying degrees, but they have gone to school immersion programs in Basque and the government has done huge work on being able for Basque people to have those resources, but they use of Basque has remained quite stable, there has been some gains, meaning that maybe we had an increase of 5% or 10%. And obviously, these vary in terms of region. So one of the questions that I seek to ask in my research is that why is that the use of Basque remains low compared to the case so there are many bilinguals or all the gains in in bilingual speakers that we have been able to obtain. And one of the answers that we have, it has to do with identity. So many business, many speakers who learn Basque from early on they speak they learned the Basque the standard Basque variety in school, they start as early as three years old. So, but they don't consider themselves native speakers of the language, even if they are very, very fluent they still consider themselves non-native speakers, and, because of the ideologies or the mother tongue ideology, they also believe that they're not authentic enough, because they haven't learned it at home. So that's one of the issues that that is happening right now. And also, how is it that contact with Spanish and the contact features of grammatical aspects they incorporate in the Spanish contributes to their lack of authenticity, or actual authenticity, and here, it's very interesting because we see a pattern in which if you spoke if you learned a regional variety of Basque, and you use Spanish words, it's okay, because you are considered an authentic member of society of the Basque speaking community, because it's implied that you have learned the language at home, although it's not necessarily the case, right? But it implies that oftentimes, but what happens when somebody who speaks the standard Basque actually uses a Spanish word in it, or code-switches, meaning that they change, they say, a sentence in Spanish, and then another one in Basque, it actually contributes to their lack of authenticity. So many of the people that I interview they asked me, "Why is it that I'm not allowed to mix languages, when all those people who are very authentic are able to do it", and they're very aware that if they want to mix the language, which is common when you're learning a language, you should do it with the regional variety. So actually, one of the things that it's been suggested by other sociolinguists in the Basque country, is that, we should promote varieties in the classroom as well. So that these speakers have access to data authenticity. Yeah, so hopefully, that will pan out. But but we will see,

Carrie Gillon I mean that makes total sense to me.

Megan Figueroa Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. Yeah. Is there anything that you want our listeners to take away from this about Basque? Let me tell you what I took away I am I just had no idea that people would refer to themselves as Basque like, I knew the Basque language existed, I didn't think about it as an ethnicity I just didn't think didn't think!

Itxaso Yes. And if they just did that, because one one last thing I would like to say is that we have different labels for different types of Basque. So for instance, we called euskalu zaharra, which means old speaker of Basque, but that has nothing to do with age. That means that you, you, you probably learned the language at home, you probably speak a variety, a regional variety, old speaker of Basque means pre-standardization, right whereas euskalu berriaren, which means, euskalu means Basque, berriaren means new, which means that you are a new Basque, right? And you probably speak the standard, right? So you are from a different era, and now we're starting sociolinguists are starting to say, should we use this term? How racial is it, even if it's about language, it also brings into question issues of ethnicity and linguistic properties, right? And authenticity. So that this also happens in in in the United States and everywhere, right? with Spanish, what does it mean to be Spanish? What does it mean to be Latino, what it means to be Chicano, what does it mean to be other/American, right, and these kinds of diversifications that are obviously socially constructed, we do have that in the Basque country too. Yeah, I do feel very Basque. And I have to admit that I I wouldn't say that I take pride in it? Maybe some people will say, "Oh, my God, you're so stubborn." And I say "well, when your identity is being questioned all the time, you could be stubborn."

Carrie Gillon There's the pull quote.

Megan Figueroa Yeah, exactly. That's true. I'm sure there are a lot of people I feel exactly as you do about that.

Itxaso Yeah. Why do I have to explain myself ALL the time?

Megan Figueroa Exactly. Yeah, yeah. Well, thank you so much for coming on and speaking with us. It was great.

Carrie Gillon Thank you so much.

Itxaso This was super exciting.

Carrie Gillon And as we always say, don't be an asshole.

Megan Figueroa Don't be an asshole. Bye!

Carrie Gillon Bye!

Itxaso Agur! Agur! That's the word for goodbye in Basque: agur!

CARRIE: The Vocal Fries Podcast is produced by Chris Ayers for Halftone Audio. Music by Nick Granum. You can find us on Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @vocalfriespod. You can email us at [email protected].

Transcribed by https://otter.ai

#Basque #basque country #linguistic discrimination #sociolinguistics #spanish #french #spanish basque country #french basque country #euskara #transcript

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nerdylittleshit · 7 years ago

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Thoughts about Spn 13x02

SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS!

Trigger warning for mentions of self-harm and suicide

I felt asleep on the sofa. Don’t mention it.

Ah Bucklemming. On the plus side: they didn’t kill off a fan favourite. On the down side: everything else? It just felt like exposition, exposition, expostion, that really cool thing Dean did with the angel blade, expostion. Like a big info dump instead of an episode, with a weird cutting between the scenes, and the usual awkward dialogues (do they even read their scripts? Do they think actual people talk like this?). I mean we had worse from them, but it always saddens me to see in one week how great this show can be (13x01) and then we have this. I don’t think there was much to learn about the characters, at least nothing we didn’t already know, so I will focus a bit more on the mytharc stuff and what we could possible see in this season.

Bizarro World

In which Mary lands in apocalypse world and her hair still looks better than mine *sigh*. I really hope they kill of Lucifer, simply because the guy (and the dude who plays him) likes to hear himself talk. And is it just me but I think the reason why he keeps Mary alive doesn’t really make sense? He wants her as a trade for his son, but a trade doesn’t sound like Lucifer. Like, at all. I assumed he would just take Jack with him, and needed Mary to get back to our world. And by now I’m not sure iof Jack even wanted to be reunited with Lucifer, but maybe Dean’s behaviour will get him there? Believing his father is the only one who cares about him? (And does he? Don’t give this character feelings or a redemption arc, please don’t)

So, we learned a few new things about bizarro world. Appearently women are hard to find, which turned all men into rapists, because Bucklemming can’t write an episode without any sort of sexual assault in it. Angels dress up like soldiers, and Michael is cosplaying Cas. And he doesn’t kill Lucifer because he needs him, hopefully not for another trade. But why though? I wonder if this Micheal regrets killing Lucifer, because the big endfight didn’t bring paradise on earth like promised. Now he is stuck in an eternal warzone and maybe that is why he needs Lucifer to fix it? Also, look at these screencapes from the Shaving things promo: (credit to @postmodernmulticoloredcloak)

That looks like a cage to me. Is this some sort of ritual? Let me hear your thoughts.

Asmodeus

I already don’t like him. Dude looks like a comic book villian in his white suit and his accent makes it hard for me to understand what he says. I had a hard time understanding why he would wanted Lucifer and Jack to return, especially after he told stunt demon number three how Lucifer humiliated him, but at the end the picture got clearer. Asmodeus is out for revenge, and he tries to get Jack in order to help him achive his goal (the same way Crowley wanted to use Amara, and we all know how that ended). He asks (as Donatello) Sam about two things: Jack’s powers and his relationship to Lucifer. What he learns: Jack might be one day even more powerfull than Lucifer and he barely knows his father. Bucklemming are not very subtle with it, but you can see the direction in which this is going and why Asmodeus won’t stop to manipulate Jack.

Other than that Asmodeus was used to introduce a whole lot of new stuff to the show’s mythology. In true Bucklemming fashion they just created new stuff instead of working within the existing mythology, to make the story they wanted to tell work. I hated it.

So, appearently Princes of Hell can shapeshift, which from now on will have us second guessing everyone who even looks at Jack. Also, there is another gate of hell, a special one, because why not? Makes Azazel’s big plan in season 2 kind of redundant. And now there are the Shedim, who will probably play a bigger role in this season. They are actually quite interesting, at least if you look at their wikipedia entry:

Shedim are said to have had the feet and claws of a rooster and share some characteristics both of human and angels. Like angels, they know the future and have wings, but like humans they eat, drink, procreate and die. [...] The shedim are not always seen as malicious creatures and are also considered to be helpful to humans.

That... sounds like Jack? not the rooster part of course, but: both human and angel? Check. Knows the future (his vision in 12x19) and has wings (can teleport)? Check. Eats and drinks (and sleeps)? Check. Helpful to humans? Check. But also:

Asmodeus is a king of demons [...]. In Jewish and Islamic lore he is the king of the demons (Shedim/Jinn).

Asmodeus is already linked to the Shedim, he wants to free them, but he also wants to free Jack (”Jack, they wanna stop you. Contain you”).

Nougat

Can someone just like hug him? Kid needs a hug. A lot of what we saw was a continuation of 13x01: Sam thinks Jack can be good, Dean thinks he’s the devil. Nature vs nuture (and thanks Bucklemming for letting Donatello spelling it out, it’s not like every meta writer came to this conclusion since may this year). So far the jury is still out. What we know is that Jack is powerfull, enough to draw Donatello to him, and that he will become more powerfull. But his powers still don’t seem like a part of him, he has no control over them. He uses them unknowingly during times of emotional stress: when he is afraid, or hurting, or angry. He needs to learn to understand his emotions and how his powers are influenced by them, or else he ends up like the next Anakin Skywalker. (@margarittet wrote a great meta about the connections between Star Wars and what we could possible see in season 13, go read it).

Jack is still paralled a lot to his foster dad Cas. We start the episode with him sleeping in the back of the car like Cas did in 5x22, he enjoys TV the way Cas does (Scooby Doo, so you can bet Jack is somehow causing Scoobynatural) and he desperately wants Dean’s approveal. Mimicking Dean? That is what Cas has been doing for years. His whole manuael on how to be human is to act like Dean. And what is the first thing Dean teaches him about being human? that pain is being part of it. Because at the moment Dean is nothing but hurting.

There was a short moment where Jack rembered Lucifer reaching out to him, which was quite interesting, because if anything Jack seemed afraid of him. Donatello tells us that his power is not dark or toxic like Lucifer’s was, but then again power is just power, neither good or bad.

Sam tells Jack that he believes he is worth saving, like his mother and Cas did. Unlike them Sam though was never influenced by Jack. His faith in him is genuine. Also, with all the brainwashing talk, we should remember that Kelly already loved her son before 12x19. She wanted to keep him, to raise him, to take care of him. It was only after she learned that she wouldn’t be able to do so, and that Dagon would twist him into something evil, that she decided to take her life. At least when it comes to Kelly I like to believe she and Jack influenced each other in equal parts. “I was her”.

So what is Jack to the Winchesters? In the tattoo parlour Sam says they are brothers, that the tattoo is a family crest. But the tattoo vanishes, and though it is unintentional on Jack’s side it is rather symbolic. He is not a part of the Winchester family (yet). Later he calls them his friends.

The ending scene was pretty heavy. Jack doesn’t know who he is. More so, he is afraid to find out, that he will hurt everyone around him and can’t be saved. It was an interesting choice that Dean stopped him. Dean, who never believed he deserved to be saved, not after hell or the MoC. And he tells Jack the same. And I get where Dean was coming from, why he said, but that doesn’t make it OK. Dean telling Jack he will be the one to kill him makes me believe the opposite now, that Dean will die for Jack (who will bring him back of course).

Also, when Jack read the bible we saw The Book of Solomon opening:

Jewish tradition reads it as an allegory of the relationship between God and Israel. Christian tradition, in addition to appreciating the literal meaning of a romantic song between man and woman, has read the poem as an allegory of Christ and his "bride", the Christian Church.

Now, I already speculated about Jack’s fate on the show. If he turns out to be good where will be his place in the universe? I could see him replacing God, and him reading a text about the relationship between God and his chosen people? Interesting.

Anyway, “What would Mr. Rogers do?” is a motto we should all live by.

#supernatural #spn 13x02 #the rising son #spoilers #spn meta #my meta

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whispersandwhiskerburn · 8 years ago

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Much Ado About SPN Results:

SPN Fanfic Writers Team Up With Shakespeare!

It’s April 23, 2017--453 years to the day since (historians believe) that William Shakespeare, one of the greatest English writers ever, was born...and 401 years to the day since the day the Bard died! :’(

However, his words live on in his plays that are performed each year, the movie adaptations, the sayings in everyday conversation...and now in Supernatural fanfiction!

When I hit 1.5k followers, I put out a rather daunting challenge to my followers: Write a Supernatural fic using a line from one of Shakespeare’s plays, and incorporate 2-3 SPN-themed words that begin with the same letter (I, like WS appreciate alliteration).

24 brave souls took on the challenge.

The results are below the read more link, along with a brief review/rec from me for each. I hope you enjoy these and take the time to share some love with the writers--this challenge was truly out of the box and they wrote some incredible things as a result.

Let the fun begin....

Thank you all for taking on this ridiculous challenge of mine. I was blown away by the submissions, and I truly hope you had as much, or at least half as much, fun writing them as I did reading them. Thank you so much!!

Fics are in alphabetical order by prompts, not by any preferences list.

“A Life I Would Have Known” by @buffylovesfoxmulder

Prompts: Anna, Angel Blade, AU (French Mistake/EndVerse) and “This above all: to thine own self be true. And it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man” (Hamlet I.3).

My Fangirling: An episode rewrite of the French Mistake where Anna subs in for a much more earnest Balthazar and the reader has a surprise up her sleeve for the Winchesters. I loved it. Lengthy, but worth the read. :)

“Wanted” by @arlaina28

Prompts: Benny Lafitte, Bunker, Brothers, “We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; for he to-day that sheds his blood with me shall be my brother” (Henry V IV.3).

My Fangirling: An absolutely lovely smut fic between Benny and the Reader that builds up in canon-style characterizations from first meeting to the “I love you” stage. An excellent read, and a brilliant use of her prompts.

*******A Fic is on the way here!!******

“Nothing Either Good or Bad” by @deansdirtylittlesecretsblog

Prompts: Donna Hanscum, Devil's Gate, Deals, and “ “There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so” (Hamlet II.2).

My Fangirling: Mimi delivered again! An angsty-suspense with flashes of fluff Donna x Dean fic around the danger of a Devil’s Gate—the one in Wyoming. I loved this fic, and it’s not even my ship, so definitely check it out….and hold onto your seat!

“The Valiant” by @littlegreenplasticsoldier

Prompts: Ellen Harvelle, EMF Reader, and “Cowards die many times before their deaths; the valiant never taste of death but once” (Julius Caesar II.2).

My Fangirling: I--I don’t know what to say here…it was beautiful and sad and it must have taken you so much time to create this, and I love it. It’s an angsty peek into Dean’s head during his time with Lisa, how he’s struggling to maintain, how he’s trying to cope with Sam’s loss—and it’s done in VERSE. You almost want to read it out loud. I just love this…and I think Shakespeare would be proud.

“Papa Don’t Preach” by @whatareyousearchingfordean

Prompts: First Blade, Fathers, “What’s gone and what’s past help should be past grief” (Winter’s Tale III.2)

My Fangirling: A Reader x Dean angst fic where she learns of a pregnancy that she hadn’t planned on and tries to explain to a Dean who worries about fatherhood. I loved the canon characterization.

*******A Fic is on the way here!!******

“All Dogs Go To Heaven” by @rachelladytietjens

Prompts: Hell Hound, Hex Bags, Heaven, and “We know what we are, but know not what we may be.” (Hamlet IV.5)

My Fangirling: With what was probably the coolest title in this challenge, she did an amazing job on this fic that had some really conflicting and challenging prompts! It’s short and sweet, with no pairing, but extremely intriguing and it raised so many questions for me. Brava!

“Not So Innocent After All” by @im-most-definitely-fangirling

Prompts: Impala (Baby), Innocence, and “If music be the food of love, play on” (Twelfth Night I.1).

My Fangirling: A body-swap fic between the Reader and Dean that reveals a lot of what they’ve been hiding from each other. I loved this—besides, where can you go wrong when you end up riding Dean on the Impala? AmIright ladies?

“Wine, Meddling, and Temptation” by @avasmommy224

Prompts: Jody Mills, John's Journal, Job (Hunting), “Tempt not a desperate man” (Romeo and Juliet IV.3).

My Fangirling: I love it! The fluff with a hint of angst and reader being besties with Jody? Brilliant! She did a great job working in ALL of the prompts and this fic is fantastic. I absolutely love Jody as a matchmaker--I can just see her worrying about finding the boys the perfect lady. :) Dean x Reader with future fun times—nothing wrong with that!

*******A Fic is on the way here!!******

“Just a Little Magic...” by @wi-deangirl77

Prompts: Meg Masters, Mark of Cain, Magic (Witchcraft), “I am one who loved not wisely but too well” (Othello V.2).

My Fangirling: I was prepared for weird when I put Mark of Cain with Meg Masters and Magic, but Jess managed a canon style fic of angsty goodness that everyone should read. It’s MOC!Dean x Reader and...oh, it’s just lovely. Go read! She says it’s the start of a new series—and I, personally, can’t wait to read it!

“Chase the Nightmares Away” by @destiel-addict-forever

Prompts: Nephilim, Naomi's Room, Nightmares, “You pay a great deal too dear for something that’s given freely” (Winter’s Tale I.1).

My Fangirling: This cute little fluffy drabble is a Daddy!Lucifer fic (not kink, reader is Luci’s kid), something I imagine we’ll see more and more of as this current series continues. I swear, when I made the prompt list and put Nephilim on it, I had no idea it would become such a big thing this year on the show! Great job.

*******A Fic is on the way here!!******

“Purple Moose, Orange Squirrel, and A Pink Dress” by @mrsbatesmotel53

Prompts: Pagan God (Not Loki/Gabriel), Pie, Pranks, “We have seen better days” (As You Like It II.7) and (Timon of Athens IV.2).

My Fangirling: I absolutely loved this! It was beautifully characterized: witty reader, western-loving Dean, sassy Rowena, protective/knowledgeable Sam….and the way you combined your prompts…I just loved it. Comedy, alternate timeline, canon style…what is not to love here?

“Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night” by @roxy-davenport

Promtps: Queen of Hell (Abaddon), Quincunx (Hoodoo symbol), Quips, and “Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall. Some run from breaks of ice, and answer none, and some condemned for one fault alone” (Measure for Measure II.1).

My Fangirling: A rewrite of an awesome episode to include a reader insert and pairing with Crowley, this fic, like many of @roxy-davenport’s, shows a sentimental and charming side of the King of Hell in a way that even makes this Dean!Girl think fondly of the red-eyed demon. I loved the sassy way she broke down the Shakespeare quote in the fic.

“Together We Thrive” by @deansarms

Prompts: Ruby's Knife, Revenge “I burn, I pine, I perish” (Taming of the Shrew I.1).

My Fangirling: I can NOT compliment this work enough. Absolute brilliance. It’s a poem that switches from Dean’s perspective (in italics) to Sam’s perspective. It centers around the Shakespeare quote, but it provides canon accurate characterization and plot in verse form, and it….ugh, just go read it. I think I’ve reread it like five times now. ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL.

“Friendships is Constant” by @atc74

Prompts: Samuel Campbell, Sigils, Souls, “Friendship is constant in all other things” (Much Ado About Nothing, II.1).

My Fangirling: Canon-style fluff and character analysis set in season 12, Angelina used all of her prompts, and created a catch-up moment between the boys and their mother that I think we all want to see happen on the show. Short, sweet, and adorable.

“Goodnight” by @besslincoln-bruh

Prompts: Uriel, Uniforms (Outfits), Underdog, and “Strong reasons make strong actions” (King John III.4).

My Fangirling: An interesting AU with a future Dean x Reader pairing. Reader is a lawyer trying her first defense case—to prove Dean Winchester innocent when the world (and the evidence) is against him. It was hard to tear myself away from this fic, and a creative use of all the prompts. Well worth a read!

“Sweet Revenge” by @plaidstiel-wormstache

This is a completed series. The link above is to the masterlist. She wrote it at as one long one-shot with the quote at the end, but I encouraged her to make it a series--and the whole thing is fabulous.

Prompts: Vengeful Spirits, the Veil, Vessel, and “If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?” (Merchant of Venice III.1).

My Fangirling: This friend went way above and beyond the call of duty and wrote a truly spectacular SERIES based off this prompt, with some inspiration in the form of a rather intriguing OFC. No pairing, but a beautiful use of all prompts in a canon-style fic set during John’s first solo hunt. Angst, sprinkles of fluff, some dark emotional stuff, and so much canon beauty…I love it. I don’t want to play favorites on this challenge, but this one is my favorite.

“Wrath” by @waywardjoy

Prompts: Werewolf, Wooden Stake, Wrath, and “Is this a dagger which I see before me…or art thou but a dagger of the mind, a false creation” (Macbeth II.1).

My Fangirling: Short but strong, an angsty Dean x Reader piece where you see the unbridled danger that is a wrathful Winchester. My wonderful bestie worked in all of her alphabet prompts and her Shakespeare quote brilliantly. She also helped me put this whole challenge together, so extra kudos to her. :D

“Forgotten Rituals” by @thegreatficmaster

This is a completed two-part fic. The link above is to the masterlist. Both parts are for this challenge--@thegreatficmaster took on two prompts.

Prompts: Yellow-Eyed Demon, Yarrow, Youth, Zachariah, Zoroastrian Symbol, Zenith (the most powerful time), “Hell is empty and all the devils are here” (Tempest I.2), and “Pray you now, forget and forgive.” (King Lear IV.7).

My Fangirling: Nini created a very original reader here for a story the likes of which I’ve never seen before, and doubt I will see again. Azazel x Reader, sexy times, strange magics, manipulation of time and angels, old world religions, unexpected fluff…just wow…. I won’t be forgetting this series any time soon. Great job!

This link will take you to the masterpost I made of all of my celebration challenges!

Fics still to come for this challenge:

C @bringmesomepie56, 15. “Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them” (Twelfth Night II.5).

G @therealdeanwinchester13, 10. “Lord, what fools these mortals be!” (A Midsummer Night’s Dream III.2)

K @kalliravenne, 11. “I do love nothing in the world so well as you: is not that strange?” (Much Ado About Nothing IV.2).

L @hellssarcasticqueen, 19. “The miserable have no other medicine, but only hope” (Measure for Measure III.1).

O @little-red-83, 18. “Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt” (Measure for Measure I.4).

Tagging my Forever Crowd, because you guys need to see these so very much!

@2wonderinsighlents, @adaliamalfoy, @alcpegasus22, @andrastesflamingtitties, @angelofwinchester17, @alexastacio, @anokhi07, @ariethegreat98, @arryn-nyxx, @autopistaaningunaparte, @avasmommy224, @bennyyh, @benjerry707, @bringmesomepie56, @bucky-thorin-winchester, @bulletscrossbowpie, @but-deans-back-tho, @captainemwinchester, @carry-on-ms-believer, @casownsmyass, @cfordwrites, @chaos-and-the-calm67, @dancingalone21, @d-s-winchester, @deafgirlsarecooler, @deandoesthingstome, @deanfuckingwinchesterrr, @deanscherrypie, @deansdirtylittlesecretsblog, @deanwinchesterforpromqueen, @deliciouslyshadowymilkshake, @demonangelimpala, @demondeansdomme, @end-lessnights, @faith-in-dean, @fandommaniacx, @feelmyroarrrr, @fiveleaf, @graceforme86, @i-is-for-inspiring, @ilostmyshoe-79, @impala-dreamer, @jalove-wecallhimdean, @jarpadandjensenaremyheroes, @jencharlan, @jensen-gal, @jotink78, @just-a-touch-of-sass-and-fandoms, @katnharper, @kittenofdoomage, @kristaparadowski, @lipstickandwhiskey, @littlegreenplasticsoldier, @leatherwhiskeycoffeeplaid, @love-kittykat21, @loreleilara, @lunarsaturn88, @luv4jensen, @marilynnlew, @millaraysuyai, @mogaruke, @moonstonemystyk, @mrsbatesmotel53, @mrsjohnsmith, @mrswhozeewhatsis, @mzpearlz, @nicolesyneah25, @nightmaredean, @notnatural-supernatural, @paintrider13-blog, @pinknerdpanda, @plaidstiel-wormstache, @rizlowwritessortof, @roxy-davenport, @rushernparadise, @salvachester, @septicxsoulxdarkxmind, @scorpiongirl1, @skathan-omaha, @spnrvt, @supernatural-jackles, @supernaturalyobsessed, @theafinnerup, @thegreatficmaster, @vote-for-pedro, @waywardjoy, @wevegotworktodo, @wi-deangirl77, @wonderange, @withoutaplease, @writingbeautifulmen, @xtina2191, @yoursmilemakesmeloveyou, and @yume-deaimashou

#spnfanfic #dean x reader #crowley x reader #angst #fluff #smut #masterlist #muchadoaboutspn #shakespeare meets spn #Check these out!

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