#season one is wild with the demon lore

[thisisapaige]

I think something fandom collectively forgot is that Azazel called Meg his daughter. And that Meg had a brother. Named Tom. Who Dean murdered with the Colt.

[alterlest]

𓃶 What Is The Wild Hunt?

The Wild Hunt is a common belief among many Northern European cultures. In short, the hunt is a cavalcade of ghosts, spirits, fairies, elves, and other spiritual beings that is said to sweep across our world every year. Depending on where your beliefs come from, when it happens will differ.

It is commonly believed that the leader of The Wild Hunt is a deity or figure of importance of some kind, such as Odin/Woden in Norse and Saxon traditions, or King Arthur in British lore. Other leaders of the hunt include but are not limited to:

𖤓 Arawn or Gwyn ap Nudd, commonly seen as the Welsh lords of Annwn

𖤓 Danish king Valdemar Atterdag

𖤓 The Norse dragon slayer Sigurd

𖤓 Biblical figures like Cain, Gabriel, Herod and the devil

𖤓 Gothic king Theodoric the Great

☾༺♰༻☽

𓃶 What Did People Do For The Wild Hunt?

The Wild Hunt was generally seen as a bad omen; one for destruction, famine, war, plague, or the death of the one who saw it. In many traditions, witnessing the hunt would result in the viewer being abducted to Otherworld or Underworld. Other times, those who were not protected would have their souls pulled from their bodies while they sleep, and they would join the menagerie of the dead.

To avoid this fate, people in Wales, for example, began the tradition of carving pumpkins as a way to avoid being taken by the fae. In Scandinavia, offerings like bread were put outside the home as an offering to the spirits joining Odin for the hunt.

☾༺♰༻☽

𓃶 When is The Wild Hunt?

Depending on where your beliefs stem from, there are various answers to this question.

In Britain, The Wild Hunt is associated with the autumn season, specifically around and on Samhain/The Autumn Equinox.

Scandinavian tradition tells us that they prepared for the hunt around December, specifically Yule/The Winter Equinox.

☾༺♰༻☽

𓃶 What Entities Are A Part of the Wild Hunt?

Many entities are associated with the Wild Hunt in different areas. These entities include but are not limited to:

𖤓 The Fae (The Sidhe, The Tlywyth Teg, etc)

𖤓 Spirits of the Dead

𖤓 Demons

𖤓 Valkyries

𖤓 The Spirits of Huntsmen or Nobles

𖤓 Horses (sometimes with an abnormal amount of legs)

𖤓 Wolves and dogs (sometimes spiritual in nature, i.e. the Cwn Annwn)

☾༺♰༻☽

[take-it-on-the-run]

Rosyln

Dean Winchester x FreshlyTurned!Reader

It was supposed to be a simple hunt. Something to get the three of you back on your feet after a year of thinking Sam was dead and no contact between you and Dean.

Word Count: 2.1k

Tags: Vampirism, the reader is turned, angst, hurt/comfort, soulless Sam is slacking, blood, vivid descriptions of smell and pain, vomiting, illness comfort, Samuel Campbell (yes he is a warning he sucks), brief mention of the reader killing Dean

Characters: Dean Winchester, Soulless!Sam Winchester, FreshlyTurned!Reader, Samuel Campbell

Anonymous requested: "hi <3 wasn’t sure if I could request this or not, feel free to ignore if you don’t feel comfortable doing it, but can I request a hurt/comfort fic with dean :) like patching up an injury or smth, thank you !!!"

Read it on AO3!

A/N: Bon Iver + St. Vincent title. Okay, I'm going to preface this by saying this went a little off the rails from what the request asked for, and I hope that this is still generally within the realm of hurt/comfort. Thank you for the request anon, and if you don't think I quite hit the mark, I'm sorry. Other than the haywire writing, this was a ton of fun to write, and made me brush up on my season six lore. Every mistake is my own, heed the tags, and enjoy!

Dean Winchester Masterlist | Supernatural Masterlist | Main Page Masterlist

Blood ran down your chest and stomach, coupled with a hot, searing pain that pulsated from the side of your neck.

The barn you were in was slipping in and out of vision as you tried to focus on a small crack that ran through a few of the ceiling boards.

The reality of your life coming to an end in a barn on the outskirts of a small Midwest town crashed down on you.

It was supposed to be a simple hunt.

Something to get the three of you back on your feet after a year of thinking Sam was dead and no contact between you and Dean.

Rush the vamp nest, take them out, and torch the place for good measure.

It was a fairly simple plan, given the things you three had gone through over the past years. Ghosts, demons, and the damn devil himself. A plan that would’ve gone through perfectly if Sam followed through on his end.

You were supposed to go through one of the top windows, Dean through the front, and Sam the back.

You found two vamps up in the loft, swiftly cutting through the head of one before the other kicked you straight through the loft’s railing, landing on your back a floor below.

Before you could get to your feet, he was on top of you, yanking the machete in your hands and throwing it across the room. He brought his grotesque mouth to your neck, all sharp needles made of bone. The metallic smell of blood caked to the back of his teeth wafted over your senses.

You could feel the muscles in your neck drawing taught as his teeth attempted to rip out the soft flesh between your neck and shoulder. You tried pushing him off, but the harder you pushed, the more his jaw would close. The only thing stopping him from ripping your throat clean open was Dean running behind him and holding the vampire’s mouth open like a wild animal.

Through your drowning ears, you could hear Dean yelling for Sam to come kill the monster on top of you, but no such relief came.

You didn’t know where Sam was, but you knew Dean had a choice to make.

Either let the vampire’s jaw go, letting him yank your throat apart as he scrambled for a weapon to kill it, or continue yelling for his brother who was yet to be found.

Your eyes met his briefly through the struggle of his vice grip on your attacker. You could see confusion, followed by regret, flash in his eyes; like you were telling him it was one way or the other.

As strong as Dean was, you knew that he wasn’t strong enough to wait for Sam and still have the energy to hold the vampire on you.

He knew it, too.

You closed your eyes when you saw his hands starting to move away from the vampire’s jaw before they slipped off and he was out of your sight.

You didn’t blame him. It was a tough call to make, and if the roles were reversed, you were sure you’d make the same choice.

That’s the life, after all.

You were barely conscious enough to recognize Dean dragging you away to prop you up against a wall with a grunt. You heard the rotting door of the barn get kicked open, and you blinked your eyes open enough to see Sam finally make an appearance with the med kit that you stashed in the Impala.

“Where the hell were you,” Dean spit at his brother with venom. You heard Sam’s voice, but the words were garbled and you couldn’t put together what he was saying.

Your voice rattled a moan without your control, like a ghastly breath escaping your lungs in an attempt to cling to life. Their voices came to a hush as Dean returned to kneeling at your side.

“Hey, hey sweetheart,” his hand cupped the side of your face while the other remained pressed harshly on the gaping wound in your neck, “I need you to focus on me. Just keep your eyes on me, everything’s gonna be alright.”

You knew you were at the end of your blood tank; in reality, it was a miracle you were still awake at all.

Fuck.

You moved your jaw, Dean’s hand riding on the side of your neck in an attempt to keep the wound covered.

In no human realm should you be awake or alive in this moment.

But, as Sam shoved thick pads of gauze into Dean’s hands, you felt the world stop as a new smell cut through the one of your blood.

A deep, unsatiated hunger, as if you hadn’t eaten since the moment you were born, dawned on your tongue. It didn’t pile in your stomach like normal hunger; it coursed through your body, wracking you with the urge to find the source of the smell.

Dean.

The smell was coming from Dean.

You forced yourself away from him, kicking against the rickety floor of the barn as he looked at you in shock.

“What are you doing? You’re going to bleed out, please, I know it hurts, but…” his words died in his mouth as you slowly stood to your feet, feeling around the site of the wound. Your hand moved on your skin, slipping in your blood but not dipping against the gaping holes you knew should’ve been there.

“I need you two to back up away from me, please.” You stated as calmly as you could. Something was clicking in your jaw, and you guessed it was the new teeth forcing their way through your gums.

The two of the brothers stepped away, Sam a little faster than Dean, as you dug your nails into a wooden beam to stop your feet from moving.

You watched them from a distance, whispering to each other with occasional glances your way.

Dean took a step towards you, his hands in front of him cautiously as you firmly planted your feet to the ground.

“Sam says he and Samuel may know how to deal with this, he thinks they might have a cure. I’m going to grab the guy that turned you,” he turned to the body slowly, keeping eye contact with you, “and we’ll need you to come with us. Can you do that for me, sweetheart?”

You craned your neck to look around before your eyes were burned with the light creaking through the walls. It burned like the sun had come down to Earth and set it on fire, swirling up to your brain and distorting your thoughts.

“Dean,” you heaved out, planting your hands firmly over your eyes, “I don’t think-” your brain felt too light to form more words. Everything was too bright, too fast, too much.

Your body buckled at your hips as you heard one of the pair approach you. Hands lightly pressed at the backs of your legs, and you were swept off your feet.

When you woke up, you were sat upright in a chair, alone in one of the many rooms of the Campbell’s compound. You recognized it as one of the rooms dedicated to the many monsters the Campbell family took in; the barred door locked from the outside.

You gasped, holding back a gag as you tasted your rancid breath.

“Y/N?” You heard someone call out your name from down the hall, and you scrambled to the bars, wrapping your hands around them.

“Dean?” You called out with a weak voice. The owner of the voice turned down the hallway, revealing Dean’s broad figure walking swiftly to you.

He knelt in front of the bars, gaze sweeping over you, taking in your ragged appearance.

“Hey,” he said, voice low and steady. “How are you feeling?”

You laughed bitterly. “Like something chewed me up and spit me out.” The words felt strange coming out of your mouth, as if each syllable scraped against your throat, raw and foreign. You tightened your grip on the bars, the metal cold against your clammy skin.

Dean nodded slowly, glancing down the hallway where Sam and Samuel’s muffled voices were discussing… something. Something about a cure. A way out of this. But you could tell by Dean’s face that the chances weren’t great.

“Listen, they’re working on it,” he said. “Sam and Samuel think they might be able to stop this, to reverse it somehow. You just have to hang in there.”

You met his gaze, searching his eyes for any sign of certainty, anything that might give you hope. “And if they can’t?” Your voice was softer than you’d meant, but you had to ask. The hunger clawing at your insides was getting stronger, more insistent, and it terrified you more than anything else.

He exhaled sharply, pressing his forehead against the bars. “Then we deal with it.”

You felt a shudder run through you, half from fear and half from the hunger that twisted your insides at the scent of his blood. “Dean… you don’t get it.” You tried to explain the gnawing feeling, how you could practically taste his blood just by being this close. “I’m not safe, not like this.”

Dean’s jaw tightened. “Then I’ll find a way to make you safe. Whatever it takes.”

Just then, Sam and Samuel came down the hall, carrying an ancient-looking book and a glass filled with a thick red liquid. You guessed it had blood in it, by the smell, but various other scents in the drink made you want to double over. Dean turned, his face hardening as he looked at them.

Sam cleared his throat, glancing at you behind the bars. “We… we think this might work. The cure’s based on a blood transfusion from the vampire that turned you, mixed with some ingredients Samuel and the family found.” He met your eyes, his expression somber, with a blankness in his eyes. “It’s gonna hurt. A lot. But if you can make it through… there’s a good chance we can turn you back.”

With a nod, you stepped away from the door, allowing Samuel to unlock it with a key he pulled from his pocket. Dean stared at you intensely as Sam crossed the threshold into the cell. He handed you the cup and quickly stepped back out of the room.

Before either Sam had a chance to close the door again, Dean stepped in.

“What are you doing?” Samuel asked, creaking open the door so Dean would have the chance to leave.

“If this has the chance to kill her, I think we owe her enough to not let her die alone in a cell like some damn dog,” Dean said harshly.

Sam looked as if he was going to say something, but Samuel silently closed the door and locked it.

“Dean,” you groaned out, the ache of your new sharp teeth erupting past your gums making it hard to speak, “you shouldn’t have done that.”

“I know you, and I know that out of all of us, you’d be the one with the most control to not eat me alive.” He said wryly, sitting against the wall opposite of you as you leaned against it.

You smiled despite the pain radiating throughout your body. The drink in your hand smelled like blood mixed with something bitter that sat in the back of your throat. You looked a Dean for a moment, before raising the cup a little in a ‘cheers’ motion and starting to slam the liquid down.

It burned like the first time you drank booze, but there was no warm and fuzzy feeling when you finished. You coughed roughly, dropping the cup and leaning over to sputter your inside up. Dean moved to you within a second, hand holding your hair out of the way as you finally opened your eyes to see what was escaping you.

Blood.

Blood shot from your lips over and over, the only relief found in the form of Dean’s hand gently rubbing your back as your body purged the vampirism straight from you.

You didn’t know how long you spent ridding the disease from your body, but it was long enough to create a puddle of blood that soaked into the jeans you were wearing. You brought your nose away from the smell, not realizing that the hunger in you had finally stilled. Every inch of your body was stretched and burning, but the smell that Dean carried with him was finally gone.

He leaned back against the wall again, bringing you against his chest as he whispered near-silent words of encouragement and comfort. The two of you sat in that cell for what seemed like an eternity, not bothering to call out for anyone to let the two of you out.

[dyssonant-skyline]

Hellbound Hostel: Preface

Welcome to my little Hazbin rewrite project! This is just a few rough things to set expectations and get my foot in the door. Break the ice, get some paint on the canvas, and all that.

I'm going to title the rewrite Hellbound Hostel for now. It's a working title and I don't know if I intend to keep it. Instead of sinners, mortals cast to hell will be called Hellbound as a parallel to Hellborn… so it's just a Hostel for Hellbounds.

The lore and worldbuilding will be inspired by biblical canon, biblical fiction, and some other religions, but it won't be a one to one recreation. I won't be using the names of actual angels/demons/biblical figures since I want to have more flexibility instead of remaking figures one to one. I also won't be reusing the names from Viv's work. I only have a revamped name for Charlie so far though, so I will be using square brackets around any names that will be changed in the future! Like [this].

I'm planning the plot out for roughly 24 episodes. It is generous to assume Hazbin would get that many, but it is an (old) standard season length that divides into 3 acts nicely. This will work as an introductory act, an act that raises stakes, and an act that concludes Charlie's story.

If you get inspired by anything I write, feel free to grab anything you like and make your own stuff off of it. No credit needed but I like it when people show me stuff inspired by my work. Go wild.

I think that is everything! I'm working on 10+ "chapters" of worldbuilding and lore right now. I'm really happy with what I have so far!!

[what-gs-watching]

"You guys are like a dead married couple on acid."

Y’ALL, I watched Dead Boy Detectives. Which really, should come as no surprise. Because of the whole Neil Gamain thing. But also because that kind of weird is right up my alley.

I have to say, I’m absolutely loving this trend of teen-shows-with-absolutely-wild-shit-happening. This was not a thing when I was younger, and I thoroughly appreciate it. Why did I only have Dawson’s Creek and Sabrina the Teenage Witch and fucking Boy Meets World? Don’t get me wrong, I love all of those but what I really would have benefited from was teen drama with fucked up situations. Gen Z is kind of lucky I guess? (LOL jk except for the entire state of the world, but at least they get good shows…)

Wherein two teenaged ghosts form a detective agency to help solve cases for other ghosts that would otherwise go ignored, while running from death lest they be forced into the afterlife and separated, making friends with a psychic and other humans along the way. 

The thing is, you gotta let go with this show. It gets INCREDIBLY weird and you have to roll with it. Edwin’s death by accidental satanic sacrifice? Sure. Crystal the psychic purposely letting a demon possess her? Okay yeah. A supernatural entity that controls all cats in a small town, ridiculously named the Cat King? Harder to swallow, but I guess. A literal crow that gets turned into a boy who loves astrology? Confusing but, go on.  Incredibly aggressive and vulgar sprites eventually locked up in a jar? Actually, that’s hilarious I’m good with that. 

Truly, it’s absurd. And surprisingly violent. But also, and again no surprise, I was all about the underlying subtext between Edwin, who died in 1916, and his relationship with Charles, who died in 1989. I will always get behind a decades long ‘will they won’t they’ even if it’s between ghosts. Because I’m a fucking sucker for boys maybe being in love. And the entire trope in general. I love love, gang, even if it’s surrounded by horrible things happening. Maybe even more, if it is? I’m not sure what that says about me, but I’m WITH it. 

Also there is a TON going on in this show, they cover an incredible amount in 8 episodes. I always appreciate shows that can carry an overall storyline and smaller ones in a good balance. Monster of the week slash lore smushed together is always so satisfying. 

I’ve seen some reviews talking about the acting being less than stellar but like, they’re supposed to be kids. Everything is dramatic to kids. Who cares? They carried it as best as they could, and there isn’t anything really that stuck out to me as absolutely cringe worthy. Yeah they look older than they’re meant to but again, who cares. Let go, people. 

AND how excited was I to see the actress that played Rowena in Supernatural as the Night Nurse? Absolutely perfect choice. If they get another season I can’t wait to see her relationship with the boys grow. 

Thinking about it, maybe I like teen dramas that are absolutely not grounded in reality because it’s easier to stomach the allegories they want you to, that way. Edwin learns to confront his feelings, both about Charles and with the kid that inadvertently caused his death. Crystal struggles with her memory and the person she used to be versus the person she wants to be. Niko has to figure out how to have friends again after becoming a shut-in. Charles struggles with memories from his life and feeling powerless, choosing to paper a happy face over it instead. Jenny has to confront her distrust of literally everyone and her fear of love (even if that went  horribly wrong). 

I don’t want to be beaten over the head with life lessons (I still haven’t finished Dawson’s Creek, it’s just too much to take sometimes) but I WILL absorb them while characters fight off horrible witches and try to defeat sea monsters. Ya girl clearly needs to be tricked into learning things. Don’t we all? Isn’t it better that way?  

I mean, you’re still getting force fed those slightly saccharine sentiments, for sure, but it’s easier  to swallow.  Gimme a little bit of spice with that sweet, please. 

The point is: this show is adorable. Can a show that’s about ghosts and witches and general supernatural fuckery be adorable? I don’t care, it totally is. And it slightly quenched my unending Good Omens thirst for like, a minute, and that’s obviously incredibly hard to do. 

So, I’m here for it. Gimme more Dead Boys.

[lmk-aus-galore]

Oh hard core agree. I can't tell you how baffling it was begging for people to actually read the source material in animanga fandoms because they would just go on trashing on the heroes and simping for the villains and making up false crimes characters didn't even do, then walking into LMK and it was the exact opposite. Everyone is obsessed with the source material, they HATE the villain. What the pepperoni. Seeing people go "well of course Wukong hates Mac what did he expect when he killed and ate a monkey and stole stuff" he didn't do SQUAT. And just because LMK combined demons with Brotherhood characters of similar names doesn't mean they were the same character in JTTW so seeing THAT and the assumptions people bring from that is. huh. I think JTTW is too advance a book for the 14 year old age demographic LMK attracts. I'd also like to study this wild phenomenon of villain redemption demands because nobody complained about Red Son and it makes me laugh everytime someone says "Macaque needs to show more actual want to change" like, fam. Maybe if he was an actual villain to BEGIN WITH instead of *checks note* a one off instance of villainy where all he did was fight Wukong post-stealing MK's powers and be a bullying jerk, another instance of ambiguous LBD warning and trauma projecting lore dumping, and then a following season of being an unwilling henchman who kept telling us 50 times he didn't want to do this, that LBD forced it bc he "already had a taste of dying" and just wanting to be free of it and never talk to MK and his friends again *points very deliberately at the "and then I'm done with you all." line. Pretty dang hard for a character to pull things out of a hat to convince others that "they no longer have those motives and desires" when they didn't have them in the first place. Love the way you're calling out the Bull Fam and Tripitaka those are so trueeee. Zhu Bajie too lmao. My thoughts exactly. Twinkle toes over there is going to be a fun character to witness when we get context on the "Monkey! No violence!" line in LMK. And by character, I mostly mean the fandom response.

I can spend all day listing how much almost all the villains hold MK responsible for Wukong’s actions nearly 90% of the time or at least shit on him all because he’s Wukong’s successor.

But that’ll take literally all day…

It’s also the same with Every SINGLE inaccuracy in LMK that gets glossed over because every single fan’s bias of certain things.

Like you can condemn Macaque and make him all villainy but what about Zhu Bajie? Or Tripitaka? One of the reasons I dislike Zhu Bajie is because not only did he not change he was a pervert. I really disliked him for that. But it looks like LMK COMPLETELY changed that because we barely see any mention of his wife and the flashbacks show that Wukong met him in the same village Tang, MK and Mei were in. So clearly there has been a change. But I barely see hate for Bajie about it because half the fandom villainizes Tripitaka already for not disciplining him as much as Wukong.

If you want to acknowledge how Macaque was in JTTW you also have to acknowledge EVERY SINGLE CHARACTER in the JTTW. If that’s how you really want it to go.

One thing I think would be the reason as to why the whole ‘Macaque cannibalized one of Wukong’s grandchildren’ was changed is because Macaque and Wukong KNEW EACH OTHER before the Journey. It is also implied that Macaque has been with Wukong the longest, (In the context of Shadow Play) and it is implied that he possibly resided or at least stayed in FFM. Which meant that Macaque is also attached to the Monkeys. Remember: Macaque’s motive is to hurt Wukong and only Wukong. Which is why he goes after MK because he knows that will hurt Wukong. But if he is attached to Wukong’s grandchildren and has lived with Wukong it’s also gonna hurt Macaque if he killed them. (Though Macaque is not overly affectionate like Wukong, the fact that the monkeys trust him enough to literally sit on top of any part of him they can sit on proves that Macaque did tend to them while Wukong was away.)

The only reason I can think that Wukong hates him is because of Tripitaka and the whole ‘using Wukong’s face’ jig.

Macaque can canonically pretend to be Wukong, he did so with MK in Season 2 and did trick Wukong into thinking he was MK in Season 1. There is a likelihood that the whole ‘pretending to be Wukong’ still happened in LMK.

Remember: In the Flashbacks of Macaque and Wukong’s confrontation, there is no circlet on Wukong’s head. This is further confirmed in Season 3 during the Samadhi Fire arc. In the Amnesia episode, Wukong confirms they are still in the Journey AFTER the Samadhi Fire was sealed (Because he said Four Rings which means the Samadhi Fire was sealed in rings already) And notice in the flashback when they were sealing the Samadhi Fire, Wukong doesn’t have his circlet, compared to the flashback with Azure where he DOES have a Circlet. No matter if Macaque’s flashback was faked, it does confirm that after some time, Tripitaka trusted Wukong enough that he removed the Circlet.

Which possibly means that Tripitaka and Wukong grew to have a mutual understanding of each other. Till Macaque showed up and proceeded to ruin everything.

So yeah if you need a reason as to why Wukong hated Macaque there’s a possibility it wasn’t about cannibalism in the context of LMK.

[atamascolily]

Lily liveblogs: Thunderbolt Fantasy 4x09

Well, this episode certainly subverted my expectations!

The demon cop tries to murder Lang Wu Yao in the cocoon and it goes very badly for him.

Lang emerges as a full demon, complete with a longer horn (that's what she said) and a black outfit. Oh, and he also has lightning powers now! He's basically a dark goth Pikachu.

(yes, this makes Ling Ya an electric guitar now by lore logic--we already had an amp in the last episode!)

Lang wipes the floor with the demon cop, believing him to be Locust, then has a crisis when he realizes he's murdered someone (he's still not done dreaming, though - guess there's more angst next episode?)

basically, Lang was able to do in his dream what he couldn't do by actually going back in time, which was very neat on a meta level. so in that sense, Ansarto's power-up was actually very effective therapy (not that he's around to appreciate it, sob).

Shang, Tian Ming and the mech climb out of the demon realm - Tian Ming asks about Chao Feng, and shang's like, one, I hate that bitch, and two, she's with Lin, she won't die, and it's the most backhanded compliment ever, hahahaha.

reunite with Dan Fei and Juan Can Yun. There's even a tent with the Dan crest on it??!!!! Talk about glamping!

Dan Fei uses her life energy to FaceTime Bo Yang Hou with the news that THERE'S A GIANT HOLE LEADING TO THE DEMON REALM and then passes out. Shang's like, "yeah, okay, let's not do that again"

Juan takes him to a cave that he found and Shang's like, hey, remember that favor I asked? put your mask on and wait here.

turns out that portal Lin summoned last episode was real and not illusion because Chao Feng wakes up in her own bed and throws a temper tantrum because Lang isn't there

she then demands that they invade the demon realm

ThisIsFine.gif

how is locust going to handle his two identities being in conflict like this, I wonder? Or will he come clean to his daughter??

Wasp and Spider find "Mantis" and give him the seals and their magic swords--they are escaping the narrative while they still can. also, they're an item now

You know, when I said at the beginning that their fates were entwined, this wasn't what I meant....

UGH OKAY I HAVE SUCH MIXED FEELINGS ABOUT THIS. On the one hand, it does fit their respective arcs, and also wraps everything up very neatly. On the other hand, it feels super-rushed, and Spider especially hasn't had the experiences I would need for this twist to feel emotionally satisfying for me.

I'm going to be charitable and say some of that was a casualty of this season's rushed pacing, but ALSO, when Spider says, "I want to protect this woman" and Ba Wang Yu says, "You called me a woman!!!" I just want to scream

like, it's supposed to be heartwarming that Spider recognizes Wasp as both a human being and more specifically feminine after spending the entire first part of the season comparing her to a wild beast, BUT all I can think of is, "girl, you deserve so much better"

like the romance feels both very heteronormative and also lazy on multiple levels. but they got a happier ending than literally any other villain in this show, so good for them, I guess.

anyway, while I was 100% correct that they would enter and leave the narrative together and their arcs were contingent upon recognizing each other's good points, my reaction is basically the same as Mantis: "thanks, I hate it".

Lin throwing a temper tantrum after they leave is very funny though

meanwhile, back at the cave: sure enough, a kid pops out of nowhere and tries to fight Juan Can Yun

and it's BABY SHANG

gotta admit, it took me a moment to recognize him because of the costume and different VA but he's got the wooden sword!!

but suffice to say he was just as an annoying little shit as Juan Can Yun used to be so this is PAYBACK

and also he wants Juan to be his master!

anyway, so all of Shang's kindness towards Juan Can Yun has paid off and come full circle and now also Juan gets to return the favor sflkgjflkgjflkgjlfkjglgkjglkg - they are BOTH each other's teachers!!!

part of me is sad that Shang actually was a kid once and not some mythic archetype sprung full-form into the narrative, but if it we had to do it, this was definitely the way to do it.

it hits different beats from what I was expecting but it still works out thematically: Shang is still a mythic hero, but we get to see the entirety of the hero's journey from callow youth to maturity

and it also highlights all of the parallels between these two EVEN MORE THAN THEY WERE ALREADY

given the fact that Juan keeps insisting that older!Shang rely on his friends for support and that mention of a Hu Yin Shi city to take care of the Index, I'm starting to wonder if Shang really will entrust the Index to Juan and the Hu Yin Shi at the end. One way or another, he's got to let go of it for the story to be complete... I feel like we had an entire season about why this was a bad idea, but we'll see if Urobuchi's changed his mind about this, I guess.

god this must be so embarrassing for older!Shang, though...

this episode is a great example of how I can see certain things coming yet still be surprised by exactly how they play out. structurally, it's all well done (albeit rushed), but I'm still working out how I feel about it emotionally.

like, I don't think all of the malewife Spider headcanons are enough to take the bad taste out of my mouth right now. I'll probably come around to this ship eventually, or at least accept it for it what is, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed by how this particular subplot played out. Sure, there's always fanfiction, but it's just not the same, sigh.

I will also be more accepting of Shang's backstory reveals if we get the ending I've been hoping for. also, while I still hold out hope for my pet theory about Lin not being fully/originally human (but also not a demon) I think it's likely we're also going to somehow see a bby!Lin to parallel this scene with bby!Shang, and that he is also human. I don't hate this twist the way I hate Wasp/Spider, but I still feel sad about it, even though it makes sense.

never a dull moment in this show, that's for sure....

[dragon-cookies]

Gonna finish off this series with episode 8 and then go binge watch Bluey while I paint my walls today

Alastor distorting video feeds like a cryptid that can't be captured on camera is one of the most interesting things about him tbh

I still really, realllly feel like an all-out war with Heaven should be like, a giant show finale and not the end to the first season. Where do we go from here?? We already know God doesn't exist in this universe, so what other lore is even left to be explored?

Once again Charlie giving some big heartfelt speech really doesn't feel earned when we've barely spent any time with these characters

Hate to keep beating a dead horse here but Alastor when did you start caring about the hotel and its residents

He's a good dad to Nifty though, 10/10

"You have always been a worthy opponent" Pentious we didn't see you fight Cherri Bomb once in the show

Oh fuck off this More Than Anything reprise is really good

THEY FINALLY KISSED FUCKING HELL

And ofc they had to immediately follow it up with Adam lmao. Not even Alex Brightman can save this character

"That's how they can kill us? With our OWN weapons?" HOW DID YOU NOT KNOW THIS. WHY WAS THIS TREATED LIKE SOME BIG MYSTERY.

It's so fucking wild to me that we're seeing angels get slaughtered by the dozens and yet we're expected to believe no other demons have ever fought back against them until now??

FUCK HIM UP ALASTOR- WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY VOX???

Al's voice in this part??? Hello????????

Charlie why are you apologizing to the angels who are literally trying to slaughter your friends and family

jfc why did those two kiss, how does this show have zero idea how to write romance

oh he's fucking dead lmao

DAMN RAZZLE AND DAZZLE BEING BIG DRAGON BOYS, I'm GAME though Charlie why didn't you do this at the start on the battle

SHIT NO DON'T HURT THE DREG BOYS

FUCK HIM UP CHARLIE.

Vaggie should've taken Lute's eye tbh

Oh yeah you'd think Lucifer would've been here sooner considering the angels are attacking his kingdom but here we are

Honestly I think Charlie should've been the one to defeat Adam. He was fucking awful to her from the start.

NIFTY GOT HIM LMAOOOOOO

Lute why do you care about Adam?? He was awful to you too???

Also what happened to Alastor?? Is he good??

Also kind of wild we're dedicating an entire song to Pentious but his actual death was played off like a joke

Ohh fuck we're gonna demonize Lilith for being a less-than-perfect parent but completely ignore Lucifer doing the same thing aren't we. This happened in Helluva Boss and I can see it happening again

I love how literally no one gives a shit that Alastor's gone lmao

Oh wait there he is

Ooh so he definitely made a deal with someone, very interesting

HE'S AN ANGEL OH MY GOD

Also Lilith??? Is in Heaven???? What??????

Honestly nothing I can say hasn't already been said about this show and finale. Kinda stupid Al literally got hit once and then just fucking dipped until the end, like good job man way to show you cared. BUT ITS OVER AND I'M FREE. I'm gonna go paint my walls and sew some stuff

[centrally-unplanned]

I have been rewatching Buffy recently btw, part of a sickness recovery tactic; I haven't been blogging about it because It Be That Way sometimes, my executive dysfunction strikes with its own will.

But one cache'd thought I have (likely through talking about it with friends) is that Season 4 is a good deal better than I remember. Season 4 of Buffy is often maligned; its probably considered the worst season except Season 1. The reason for that is two-fold; one, Riley sucks. Two, the 'arc plot' is poor. Season 4 revolves around The Initiative, a government operation to kill, research and weaponize demons. Its head, Dr Walsh, is essentially built up as the arc villain - a compelling one, a human being with real motives and ideologies that can clash with Buffy. Until she is murdered by her own Frankenstein creation, Adam, who becomes the new villain but to Buffy is just a tough dude to either whack or be whacked. This is a bad choice - Adam is probably the worst final villain of the entire show.

However, this is also the wrong lens to put on Season 4; its arc plot is also the least important an arc plot has ever been. Season 4 is not a full comedy, but in fact it is deliberately trying to shake up the often-maudlin formula of Season 3 for a new tone. Ever-brooding Angel & stone silent Oz are written out as main cast members, to be replaced by Spike, objectively the funniest character in the show, and Anya, a far more zany romantic partner for the Scoobies than Oz could ever be. The college episodes are full of the ridiculousness of that environment, and a lot of social mockery of college mores. Episodes that could be scary still have a ton of laughs - Hush (which, hey, one of the best episodes of the show, in Season 4!) is in fact very funny, with famous Buffy gifs from it.

What makes this all work beyond "being funny" is tonal alignment - the theme of the season is everyone being "adrift". Giles is fired from both his jobs, Xander has no career path, Willow is drifting apart from her friends, and Buffy is struggling to find a way to be "normal". These are themes that are way better done farcically; they are, in a certain sense, a little bit pathetic. In one of the final episodes of the season, the "plan" to defeat the Scoobies is Spike just...casually drops fake gossip about them in convos and they are start tailspinning, because they already are tailspinning. And you can do that kind of social implosion really funnily, in a way Angel & Buffy's relationship could never be.

And note how that is one of the final episodes, and it barely has anything to do with the Initiative or Adam. Those plots definitely eat up screen time and have their moments, don't get me wrong, but its given a good deal less focus. Its not fight-riposte with the Initiative; instead a background hum complicating the new lives they are building. The last episode of the Season isn't even the Adam fight finale! Its a dream sequence lore-building episode instead. So yeah, its worse, but its almost intentionally worse; if the villain was an Angel-tier threat it would be impossible for it take the backseat to the thematic elements.

So while Season 4 still has its weaknesses, Adam was a mistake in the end, I see a lot better why it is the way it is and the good stuff it has going through it. As I have been watching I have been following along with this old review blog of Buffy, Critically Touched, which was one of the biggest "comprehensive" analyses of the show in the 2000's (its comment section is a time capsule gold mine). And it gives every episode a letter grade, and even displays the whole season as a graph. And if you look at Season 4:

Its pretty solid! For sure, it has clunkers, I think the opening ~5 don't nail the tone right. And Where The Wild Things Are is...yeah, you can skip it. But Hush, The Yoko Factor (the aforementioned Spike episode), Who Are You (Faith's return), Restless (the dream finale), are some of the best in the series. Also this reviewer doesn't love Superstar, the Jonathan-alters-reality-so-hard-he-inserts-himself-into-the-theme-song episode, but its amazing - his complaint is that it isn't about the arc plot? But the arc plot is boring! Its not the point. Its an A+ comedy episode for sure. This is too many home runs to be a down-and-out season. You just need to take Season 4 as it is, and not as something trying to be a repeat of Season 3's stakes.

Riley still sucks though.

[mayapapaya33]

I haven't watched the last 3 episodes of tlovm yet so I'm just writing down my speculation for fun. I can come back and see how Awesome and Smart I am and or how Hilariously Wrong I am lol. I'm really not loving the whole Pike thing but I totally trust them to pull it off and I assume they'll come up with a kick ass way to renew Pike's faith in the Everlight. I think it will grow on me over time, especially once I've finished the season, if they pull it off correctly. This is how tv shows work, I know this, characters have to go through growth, it's just frustrating, also the campaign 3ness of the god stuff is maybe coloring my view of what otherwise might just be a normal character arc of doubt and faith brought on by an encounter with someone living in the literal Hells. In fact, I know it is, because they aren't going to just change a core character trait all willy nilly, that would be insane.

Anyhoo, my theory is that Pike will reconnect with the Everlight while trying to bring Percy back, whenever that happens (based on episode titles I'm gonna take a wild stab in the dark and guess ep 12). Because If I'm not mistaken, Orthax currently has his soul, the angst potential of this moment in my head is off the charts. I see Pike fighting for Percy's tortured soul, drawing on the strength of the Everlight's love. Give it to me! I want it! (If it doesn't happen in the show, I will happily accept fanfiction please and thank you).

As for the magic blood thing, I think they just made some new shit up for the whole "Trickfoot" lore because they do NOT have time to go into Pike's backstory with her charlatan family lmfao. No matter how much I would enjoy it, I just don't think it's going to make the cut, so I think maybe they came up with something similar-ish but different. Like maybe the family legend is different and true in the animated universe! Didn't they supposedly have demon blood, or magic blood or fey blood or some shit that caused the fake curse? Or someone in the family made a deal with a demon? Something like that. Idk It's been a LONG time since I watched that episode, I don't remember the specific lie. I need to rewatch it, it's a fun one. Someone who remembers can let me know if I'm anywhere near right about the made up Trickfoot family lore lol.

I'm very nervous/ excited to see what they came up with for her. So far the stuff written specifically for the show has been hit or miss for me. I've liked it more as the show has gone on, I think they found their footing, no pun intended. It gives me more Pike though so that's good.

[temple-of-mars]

Temple Of Mars Hexerei is Now on Etsy!

♦️⭐🔷 We are Temple Of Mars Hexerei. We're powerful occultists who have decades of experience with the paranormal and witchcraft, particularly Hexerei, Norse witchcraft, and satanic witchcraft. We were born and raised in beautiful rural PA, where we're surrounded by farmland, mountains, wooded areas, barns, vibrant hex signs, and Pennsylvania Dutch folk magic. Pennsylvania is a rarely spoken about hidden gem when it comes to both magic and the paranormal.The Keystone state is rich in various lore, stories, history, witchcraft, traditions, mysteries, spirits, and creatures, making it a potent spiritual area that's brimming with magic, energy, and paranormal activity. This is where we learned to master our natural magical skills in seclusion for many years, as well as work with various spirits and entities. Much of our knowledge of Hexerei has been passed down from old grimoires, teachings, spoken words and traditions from Pennsylvania Dutch witches and hex masters from the generations before us. Today, we're keeping old traditions alive and thriving. We're an animal friendly, family owned and operated business. We provide a variety of unique, powerful, and effective metaphysical curios, talismans, and spells that you won't find anywhere else!

What is Hexerei?

Pennsylvania Dutch Hexerei is a form of old, powerful rural witchcraft that encompasses working with both light and dark magic, utilizing your own energy. Hexes (German and Pennsylvania Dutch witches) work with nature, weather, planets, sun, moon, stars, herbs, roots, stones, oils, powders, magic staffs, trees, written words, spoken words, painted symbols, hex signs, barn stars, wooden effigies, metals, hex bags, coins, and tools. Dream and astral work, a practice to be mastered known as Draamerei (Dreamcraft, or continued practice of dreaming), is important to them. Hexes frequently work with various spirits, such as elemental spirits, house spirits, and field spirits, with tree spirits often coming forward as helpful guides. Star people were occasionally mentioned in old stories and beliefs, sometimes being tied to certain hex signs featuring specific stars, colors, and patterns. Hexes have their own belief system (Hexeglaawe) and unique practices. Hexes believe in taking care of and working with nature, plants, trees, spirits, and animals, treating them with respect. Independence, strength of character, self-reliance, and free will are encouraged. This is mainly due to living in isolation on vast areas of farm land and in wild wooded areas.

In addition to Pennsylvania Dutch Hexerei, we work with old Norse witchcraft (Seidr) and satanic witchcraft. We have decades of experience with astral magic, black magic, light magic, aura magic, green magic, weather magic, and elemental magic to name a few. We have been around the paranormal our entire lives and we have experience with a variety of spirits, beings, and entities, especially elementals, demons, and extraterrestrials. We've named our shop after Mars, the beautiful red planet. Mars is highly significant to us in a number of ways. It's an unyielding planet that signifies power, strength, durability, action, manifestation, and the energy of warriors.

Here at Temple Of Mars Hexerei, we are keeping old, rare traditions and magic alive while also offering a range of other one of a kind products. Here you will find a blend of powerful products and services, so there's truly something here for everyone to enjoy. Rest assured that by choosing to do business with us and our shop, you are choosing seasoned occult practitioners with decades of experience.

♦️⭐🔷Keep in mind that some pronunciations and spellings of Pennsylvania Dutch words differ somewhat from German language. They are NOT incorrect words, terms, or spellings. The Pennsylvania Dutch were isolated from Germany for years, English had some influence on words and pronunciations, and naturally, the language had begun to change. Pennsylvania Dutch is its own dialect♦️⭐🔷

[marvelousmagicalaura]

Done with Hollow Mind and Edge of the World. We should’ve gotten more of this dark content. More of this lore development. More focus on what occurs outside of the Boiling Isles.

Though there are some logistical problems I had with them. The Titan has been dead long enough that the Boiling Isles had an era with a volcanic environment and prehistoric creatures, along with a Middle Ages era. If the Boiling Isles’ passage of time runs parallel to Earth, that would mean it has existed for more than 200 million years. The Titan Trappers shouldn’t even exist. And I know the Collector lore revealed in Season 3, so this makes even less sense.

And now I’m realizing Belos’ empire is a stupid idea. Not his plan, but the empire’s scope and rise to power. I understand that Belos is supposed to represent extremism, fascism, paranoia etc… But that doesn’t work because the real world equivalents were formed in circumstances that allowed for the relevant organizations to come to power. Hitler or Communist leaders didn’t waltz into peaceful nations and put their fists down. Unlike Belos, who in my opinion comes across as someone who manipulated a bunch of gullible idiots who lived with wild magic in peace.

Hell, even his plan has holes. It ignores any non-humanoid fauna or beings that dwell outside of the Boiling Isles. The Emperor’s Coven KNOW about other Titans. The Titan Trappers KNOW about Belos’ empire and wield wild magic, so why hasn’t Belos done anything with them?? And… apparently there are shopkeepers who are wild witches? Why was this never established before??

One more thing. I don’t like the idea of Titan Blood being the only way to go between the Demon Realm and Earth. I would understand if the method of traversing realms was straight up unknown in Belos’ reign and the “Deadwardian” era. But Eda herself says that every Earth myth originates from the Boiling Isles. We got griffins, sentient creatures like vampires, giraffes(lol). I don’t find the Boiling Isles immersive if every single instance comes from unintentionally stumbling upon Titan Blood.

And what the hell happened to Belos’ portal door and key??? How the hell did he even lose it??

[salparadiselost]

Friday Fanfic Wrap-Up (July 26th, 2024)

Hey y'all, new thing I'm going to be trying is a Friday Fanfic Wrap-up to give a quick recap on things I've worked on during the week and what's in the general pipeline for updates. I get lots of "when are you going to update *insert here* and this will let you know what I've generally been working on. If I stop doing these after like, one week, you have permission to make fun of me. 🐾🌳Released into the Wild 🌳🐾

Seat of Stars Ch 8: link here!

The Crystal Ball: a short addition to the Abominations story: link here! 🪷📝 Actively Being Worked On 📝🪷

Seat of Stars (Centaur AU) - Me and @jube514 are still at it. We are about 5k words into the next chapter (;-; these chapters are so fucking long) and it should be finished relatively soon. Everyone thinks something really bad is gonna happen with Kon and Tim wandering on their own. I wonder why you have that idea.

How to Train Your Mers (Mersupials AU) - I've begun writing the next chapter and I'm about 1.5k words into it. I really love this AU, it's so so fun and I've been really enjoyed developing the fantasy science lore and answering some of the lore questions that come into the inbox.

Undisclosed Horror Story - I don't think I've mentioned but within this next month or so I'm going to be pausing everything to spend time working on horror features that I will be releasing throughout the month of October. This is one of them that got started early.

Another Seasonal Omegaverse Story - I'm still enamored with the lore I developed around teenage mom Bruce. I'm trying to figure out exactly what type of plotline I want, but haven't quite decided. For my sanity, I want it to be simple, but I have a feeling that it's going to be another interwoven plotline thing. 🪸 🐠 In the Distance 🐠 🪸

Demon AU - I've reread this series and begun to rework Leviathan's plotline so I return to it and finish out the series! I had to find a lot of notes, lol.

The Lamb - This has a half-finished chapter that I should probably just finish up already.

Champagne Problems - Another thing that partially finished and I should just actually finished.

[found--family]

It's so wild watching old eps I haven't seen in years and years. I tend to rewatch s6 onwards with a few s4 eps for Cas posterity, but i just watched 5x20 and didn't remember a single thing that happened so it was like watching a new ep for the first time (and weirdly like watching a good canonverse fic chapter come to life). Highlights: 

Dean and Sam wearing masks giving serious covid19 vibes and Dean thinking his comment about weeping statues won't be heard by the doctor standing right in front of them - because he's talking louder, bc of the mask XD 

Crowley rejoins our boys for the first time since he gave them The Colt - the demons ate his tailor! he wants to join forces! iconic lines include: "fancy a fag and a chat?" 

Crowley had planted a magic coin in the impala that let him track it and listen to their convos - this is phenomenal fic fodder! 

Dean + Crowley's first hunt together! the enemies to allies of it all, the gay jibes from Crowley, the early days of Drowley 

I'd forgotten about Brady! he is Pestilence's righthand demon + Sam's old college buddy - he introduced Sam to Jess! he was the one who killed Jess! Jess was baking cookies at the time?! 

"Oh, well good for yoooou!" bitchy juvenile Dean i love you so much 

Crowley brings his pet hellhound to fight off the one come to hunt them down! 

Dean looks So Good this ep?? i've always preferred later seasons Dean but he looks just edible in this 

bi!Dean vibes as well as sub!Dean vibes are surprisingly strong with both Crowley and Brady 

one of my new favorite scenes: Dean pouring a salt line and stops and looks up at Crowley who stands there waiting. Dean pauses the salt-line and lets him pass. tense eye contact. superb. 

Bobby meets Crowley! the soul deal for Death's ring! i honestly forgot this was an apocalypse deal, my only memory of it being from season 6 

Crowley's vessel is a moderately successful literary agent 

my point is: go back and watch random eps you haven't seen in a while because not only is it a good refresher of characters/lore/plot for meta and fic (and you might find "new" scenes for fanvids or moments to gif) it's also so cool to be watching an old ep with eyes that don't remember that shit so your brain is like: new content!! 

[lucifermorningstaropenforasks]

🎩🍎 WELCOME TO LUCIFER'S CORNER OF HELL 🍎🎩

"Greetings, my little sinners! Lucifer Morningstar is here to entertain!"

🦆 ABOUT THE KING 🦆 • Lucifer Morningstar, ruler of Hell, apple enthusiast, and rubber duckie collector • admin is Avanna (Vanna VV, and Van-Van if we're close)(they/them, any pronouns except it/its)(so she/her and He/him are allowed) • Asexual and panromantic admin • No neopronouns, please! I personally don't use them but if you do that is so cool!!

🎭 ROLEPLAY SPECS 🎭 • Aiming for canon-accurate portrayal with a dash of chaos • Well-versed in Hazbin Hotel lore and shenanigans • Open to all ships - let's see where the infernal winds take us! (low-key love Adamsapple rn_ • Flirting and romance? Yes! Explicit content? No, thank you! If you wanna at least be tasteful.

⚠️ HELLISH WARNINGS ⚠️ • SPOILERS for Hazbin Hotel Season One lurk here • Expect mature themes, dark humor, and devilish mischief • Language might make a demon blush (but probably not)

🚫 STAY OUT, YOU... 🚫 • Bigots, harassers, and general party poopers • Explicit content peddlers • Law-breakers (ironic, I know) • Spam demons and self-promo imps

✅ COME ON IN, YOU... ✅ • Ask-senders and RP starter enthusiasts • Theorists and headcanon crafters • Artists (keep it tasteful, darlings) • Hazbin Hotel chatterboxes

🎪 RULES OF THE GAME 🎪

IC or OOC? Label it, sweethearts

Please No god-playing in my domain

Respect the boundaries or face the consequences

Keep it fun, keep it wild!

🍿 SEND YOUR ASKS TO THE POPCORN MAN 🍿 Anon is ON - feel free to be mysterious!

Remember, every deal with the devil comes with a twist. Are you ready to dance with the King of Hell?

🦆 Quack quack, sinners! 🦆

(stuff from me will be in Purple and Lucifer will be in black/white whatever it pops up as)

[meltotheany]

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018! hi hi, loves! i hope you’re all doing well and staying cool (or warm) in whatever hemisphere you are in! i always love doing posts like this, and just reflecting on all the good book options i have for the last six months of 2024 (which feels wild to even type)! but truly, so many good books are publishing over the last half of this year, and i can’t wait to talk about them all with you! 😍 🌞 SUMMER RELEASES ☆ The Dead Cat Tail Assassins by P. Djèlí Clark – august 6th ⤷ once again, this book is about necromancers, assassins, and a vow our mc isn’t supposed to remember, but does. it very well could be my new personality very soon! ☆ Mistress of Lies by K.M. Enright – august 13th ⤷ maybe the summer buzzword is assassins, because this queer filipino debut also stars one who is forced to work with two others to solve a magical murder mystery that could also involve vampires. this is truly the debut that i have been looking most forward to all year! ☆ The Crimson Crown by Heather Walter – august 27th ⤷ we love a tuesday birthday, and this year for mine i get a sapphic snow white dark retelling. i am obsessed with this author’s writing and her malice duology that ended up being a favorite of mine. i can’t wait for all the sapphic stories she will give us, but this birthday release one feels very special to me already. 🍁 FALL RELEASES ☆ Graveyard Shift by M.L. Rio – september 24th ⤷ i mean, once everyone saw there was a new ml rio book coming out i think the entire book community let out a breath they didn’t know they were holding. it is “only” a novella (i say this as a novella lover), but it is about a group of night shift workers trying to solve a mystery at the graveyard, involving a gravedigger, and i know it’s going to be everything. ☆ The City in Glass by Nghi Vo – october 1st ⤷ at this point, i will just beg tor for anything that nghi vo writes. but this is a brand new standalone all about angels and demons and a lost city and i just know that i am going to love it like everything else this author writes! ☆ Lore Olympus: Volume Seven (Lore Olympus, #7) by Rachel Smythe – october 1st ⤷ there is just something really happy and healing about waiting for my next preorder of lore olympus to come in. volume six  was actually my favorite so far, so i extra can’t wait for this newest installment for the fall! ☆ Spectacular (Caraval, #3.5) by Stephanie Garber – october 22nd ⤷ i cannot believe we are actually get a caraval holiday story right before the holiday season! i am so curious if we will see characters from both of her trilogies in this, and if we will get some hints for what is to come next! but i love being in the world of caraval and i can’t wait for this! ❄️ WINTER RELEASES ☆ The Teller of Small Fortunes by Julie Leong – november 5th ⤷ this is actually one of my favorite covers… ever. but is a new debut about a immigrant fortune teller, traveling from town to town with her magical cat, and i think this is the tale of them trying to help someone in one of these towns! this is going to be cozy and heartfelt and i can’t wait to read. ☆ The Songbird & the Heart of Stone (Crowns of Nyaxia, #3) by Carissa Broadbent – november 19th ⤷ i am all caught up and so ready to read this new carissa broadbent book! this third full length story is about a character we know and love from books one and two, but i am curious how i am going to enjoy it because i really didn’t love the last novella i read set in this world. but i am still excited to find out this winter! ☆ Wind and Truth (The Stormlight Archive, #5) by Brandon Sanderson – december 6th ⤷ the fifth and last (of this story arc, before a very big time jump) of the very beloved stormlight archives. i cannot believe it will be in my hands in six months, and i also can’t believe brandon has said it is the longest bo...