#that's such a generic charles sentence lol

[thebreakfastgenie]

For the WIP asks: 🐬 ⚠️ 🖍️ 🤔

And some extra kudos ❤️

Thank you! ❤️

🦈Tell us the name of your/ one of your WIP(s)

Hmmm I guess sharing the title couldn't hurt... the time loop WIP is called Ad Nauseam. I haven't decided about capitalization yet; sometimes I do the AO3 all lowercase style if I think it looks better that way but I'm a traditional gal who prefers title case.

⚠️Which wip your most likely to finish or update next?

Time loop WIP, god willing.

🖍Post Any sentence from your wip

Charles smiles pompously, then, looking as dignified as a person can in a pilling, pin-striped bathrobe, he heads toward the coffee. 

🤔What’s a story you’d love to write but haven’t even started yet?

I had an idea recently for a sort of follow-up to The Joker Is Wild about the effect it had on Hawkeye and I recently figured out how I would do it and got kind of excited but I haven't started it.

[pitchcom]

soz if u guys arent here for this but these are MY personal grid A/B/O assignments + reasoning:

Max: alpha and i feel like i dont need to explain this one LOL

Checo: omega but i could be persuaded to see beta checo !! like take one long look into his beautiful big brown eyes n little freckles and motherly aura and tell me you dont see it ….

Charles: controversial but …. alpha. omega charles truthers i see you. i love you and hold you dearly. but to me charles is just a softer alpha u know ?? but he still has the bite too him … like hes all sharp teeth grin n you KNOW its all casual with him but you cant help but fall in love w him anyways ….

Carlos: DOUBLY controversial but I AM AN OMEGA CARLOS TRUTHER !!!! like again. look into his big brown eyes n plush lips … look at his quotes about how he was “too soft” when he was younger n just wanted to be friends w everyone … i will die on this hill

Lando: TRIPLY CONTROVERSIAL but alpha lando scratches an itch in my brain actually !! like chest puffed bravado rookie lando wanting to prove himself bc people always assumed he wasnt an alpha … now mellowed cheeky alpha lando whose gone through 2 older omega teammates (spoilers for daniel LOL) and learned a lot from them …

Oscar: alpha but i could be persuaded to see beta !! idk hes just so chill. so unbothered. people assume hes a beta bc of his attitude but hes just been raised so that he literally does not care abt designations at all

Alex: beta but i could be persuaded to others … like this one is not solid solid to me ?? but hes genuinely just so chill with everyone on the grid that hes like a stabilizing force … a calming presence u know … even though he absolutely has the capacity to be teasing n silly

Logan: omega end of sentence. look into those sad eyes and miserable aura and tell me you do not want to bundle him up. hide him away whisper sweet things to him. he would love it too the frat boy logan-ers are lying to you …

Daniel: omega LOL i mean i can see alpha danny n would not necessarily be opposed to it but his kind of mentoring of max n lando … his wide eyed curly hair braces when he came into f1 … also honey badger nickname speaks omega to me. it whispered in my ear and i saw the vision of danny stuck with angry baby alpha max n the two slowly learning how to coexist abd slowly becoming one ot the closest people ever to each other

Yuki: i actually dont have a preference LOL i mean i think the whole “shorter/smaller person is an omega” thing is a tired trope so i feel i have a little predisposed bias against omega yuki BUT i am generally open to all designations for him

Fernando: I AM ALSO AN OMEGA NANDO TRUTHER i am too hung up on his twink days w the old grid to ever really see him as anything more then a conniving little omega who absolutely kicks ass and proves the haters wrong LOL. you love to see an omega whose a little feral out there. like go forth and cause mischief or something

Lance: i wanna say omega but i could be persuaded …. like look at him. plush hair big brown eyes with fluttery lashes pouty lips. hes a little spoiled thing like hes so cat coded to me. lanky ol omega who knows what he wants

Pierre: omega !!! i dont rlly have an explanation for this one it came to me in a vision BUT i love omega pierre … pretty little bratty omega …

Esteban: beta but generally open to all interpretations !! he seems so like neutral to me … like big lanky guy whose trying his best to stand out n get his moment in the sun but gets a little overshadowed by other stronger personalities …

Lewis: alpha 100%. again hes calmed hes mellowed but this man has the calm quiet “i know im the shit. what are you going to do about it?” alpha demeanor to me. like he absolutely tore it UP when he was younger n was brash n confident (and was not the best alpha) but after the nico situation and teaming w valterri he rlly had his eyes opened and now he’s just chilling

George: alpha but i could be persuaded to other points of view … like this man was crazy n dedicated enough to powerpoint present why he should be in mercedes 😭 i think that he is deffo like hyperaware of designations/tries to do his best by everyone in the paddock tho

Kevin: omega BUT i could be persuaded for beta kevin. no real explanation again but i am once again influenced by rookie kev and also his fatherhood

Nico: alpha or beta. again no real explanation for this he just gives off cocky would-be-an-asshole-if-you-didnt-know-him-well alpha vibes but in an uncle way. like the guy who likes to tease you but goes too far sometimes and doesnt rlly apologize for it

Valterri: beta through n through 🫡 again influenced by his stint at merc where he was the perfect second driver and was also brought in to help smooth over turbulent emotions that were left from the brocedes divorce and nicos subsequent retirement. definitely grew into himself a little more post merc tho and now gives no fucks about what people think abt him or his designation. viva la vida

Zhou: i wanna say alpha OR omega. my narrative is that he was a shy rookie who’s not super comfortable in his designation yet when he first debuts but as he spends more time with “no fucks given�� valterri he slowly becomes more confident and comfortable in himself. thats it sorry zhou fans im not well versed in the zhou lore 😭

[marley-manson]

Doctor Winchester Mr Hyde is genuinely a pretty great episode.

Loved Hawkeye telling Winchester he's been there and it sucks, love him showing concern for Charles multiple times and being particularly joke-free about it in the ending tag, love Charles asking him to proofread a paper lol. Loooove Hawkeye's fear of mice and especially love him basically showing off that fear when he asks to pet Daisy for luck in front of the marines and makes a show of cringing. And BJ automatically doing the thing certain people do when they find out you're scared of something and shove it in your face to make you freak out lmao, that's exactly correct for him.

Charles demanding Radar go fetch his opera glasses when he's about to dose the mouse, and then in the next scene he actually is watching the race through binoculars was an amazing detail lol.

Also I overall liked the way Charles taking speed was handled - the ending was a little DARE-esque ofc, but generally it was a pretty light and funny touch. Klinger directly asking for them (with 0 narrative condemnation) only for Charles to condescend and then take them himself was great, as was this exchange between them: "Do you want extreme depression, chronic fatigue?" "I already got those!" a+

The drugs actually helping Charles for a while was solid and there was little in the way of overtly impared behaviour which I like - more sold by little details, like Hawkeye mentioning that Charles' 27 page paper seems to be all one sentence.

First mention of Honoria is her marrying 2 dudes in succession and getting ostracized from the family which doesn't seem to fit later mentions unless she divorced second dude and was welcomed back, which tbf isn't implausible lol. Though I don't really remember, so maybe it's possible that Honoria is the family black sheep and only Charles remains in touch with her, which would be interesting.

Last time I watched I had the minor complaint that Hawkeye and co admit to the marines that their mouse was on speed and I considered that annoying when My Hawkeye(TM) happily cheats to win competitions against random army guys ie Requiem for a Lightweight - buuut to be fair to the episode he did say they should "give the marines their money back while we're still alive" suggesting he thinks they might find out they were cheated? I don't see how lol, and it's still a little too moralistic cheating is wrong-esque for me, but I'll accept it as an explanation that keeps Hawkeye ic for me.

Anyway yeah, solidly written, good dialogue, good character moments, little oasis in this chunk of season 6.

[liamlawsonlesbian]

fic writer questions

thank you to the lovely @mecachrome for the tag <333

how many works do you have on AO3?

there are 19 on my profile currently! there is also one anon, and I believe nine orphaned (rip)

what's your total ao3 word count?

statistics page says 92,629! it is somewhere north of that (see above reference to orphaned fics)

what are your top 5 fics by kudos?

biting fic, vegas fluff, child actors au, witch charles, remote control vibrator + feelings

do you respond to comments? why or why not?

yes!! I want to show appreciation for people taking the time, and honestly I'm just so excited that I always want to respond asljdf;asaf

what's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending?

definitely i can feel the sun on you! (that is perhaps a spoiler for the 71 year old movie Roman Holiday lol)

I don't even really think of it as angsty, though, they're each in a better place than when they started, they're just not together (and I don't do that much because I'm a sap)

what's the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

maybe the sky might not always be blue, for sure....I have a habit of leaving fics in the moment of getting together, and that one tackles the happily ever after a bit more

do you write crossovers?

not really! my old little women modern au fic has some pop-in characters from other louisa may alcott works but I don't think that really counts (I did also dabble in 1D/LM/HP crossovers as like bday presents for fandom friends back in the day but those never made it out of their inboxes lol)

have you ever received hate on a fic?

no, I'm very lucky! I have received the occasional odd "constructive" comment, but I try to take people on good faith that they're trying to be helpful! (I have also gotten a couple of less-than-stellar numerical bookmarks ratings...I am begging people to learn to use private bookmarks if they want to do that)

do you write smut? if so, what kind?

yes...not sure what "what kind" means, but it ranges from decidedly vanilla to somewhat less so...vibes wise it always involves a Lot of Feelings even if those feelings aren't necessarily romantic (though they often are)

have you ever had a fic stolen?

not that I know of!

have you ever had a fic translated?

nope!

have you ever co-written a fic before?

not yet....ro and I have thrown around a couple of ideas but we haven't managed it yet. I'd be interested in trying though!

what's your all-time favorite ship?

this is an interesting question to me,,, I feel like there are different answers to this depending on if it's like...in media in general, in fic, in rpf, in f1......I will answer with Enjolras/Grantaire, bc baby 11 year old jo who had never heard the term "slash" and barely knew the concept of fanfiction read the brick and then got pissed when she was R in a drama camp production and was blocked to have a girlfriend in Drink With Me, because "obviously he's in love with enjolras"

what's a wip that you want to finish but don't think you ever will?

brocedes knight/prince dragonslayers my beloved/beloathed.....I know what it needs to be but it's very different than anything I have ever actually accomplished....

what are your writing strengths?

I think I'm decent at mood and imagery! but honestly I'm not sure....maybe those things only make sense in my head lol. I do know that my fics have made people laugh, which is lovely <3

what are your writing weaknesses?

plot!!! I am bad at writing anything that isn't just vignettes strung together, though I am Working On It....also sometimes I like my dialogue but other times I feel it verges on hokey....also someday I would love to be able to write something longer than 12k....or even just write something 10k again.....

what are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

it's tricky! I do think it's easy to fall into tropey-ness with it, especially in a fandom where it's common (eg, this one)...I definitely do it some, though! and I did enjoy putting sentences in french/spanish/italian in whole cloth in i can feel the sun on you, bc it was supposed to mimic the feeling of watching roman holiday

what was the first fandom you wrote for?

first fic I ever published was for 1D asldjfa;jf (and was.......far and away the worst case of just really obviously projecting onto some dudes I have ever done.....but I was 18 and my mom had just died so)

first fic I ever wrote, before I even knew it was called that, was definitely either anne of green gables or lord of the rings, in fourth grade

what's a fandom/ship you haven't written for yet but want to?

someday i will write the perfect his dark materials fic and actually know peace.....also in f1 terms I would love to Actually write galex!! i love them so much that it's sort of weird that I haven't written them

what's your favorite fic you've written?

it depends on the day! right now I would say either you don't have to know that it's haunted or would have loved you (in a day or two)

no-pressure tags: @oscarpiastriwdc @blorbocedes @kritischetheologie @wewentcarracing @gayferrari @foggieststars and anyone else who wants to do it! I have no idea who's done this one already

[edwinspaynes]

DBD mutual here. Wondering if you could explain all the acronyms you use in your other fandom (Last Hours?) because I try to keep up and it's impossible lol

I know we like Cordelia and Matthew and we don't like Julius

Forgot to answer this earlier in the day, lol, but I love you for that last sentence. His name is Julian, not Julius, but I'm going to call him Julius from now on because he canonically is glad that it's not his name and fuck that guy.

SO! The Shadowhunter Chronicles (TSC) is a long saga of books. It follows several generations of demon hunters as they navigate supernatural politics, interpersonal relationships, and world-ending scenarios.

The author, Cassandra Clare, does a wonderful job with developing three-dimensional characters and stories. She is one of my biggest role models as a writer and I hope that I can craft as compelling characters as she does. Her style of writing also has a massive influence on mine.

My favourite of these series is by far The Last Hours (TLH), set in 1903. The main character, and one of my favourites, is Cordelia Carstairs. You may know her from my profile picture! The male main character, James Herondale, is another favourite. He calls her Daisy. As a result, their ship name is Herondaisy.

Matthew Fairchild is my favourite-ever fictional character, and he is one of the other TLH mains. He's dear to me. Other favourite TLH characters you likely hear me talk about a lot are Thomas Lightwood and Alastair Carstairs, who make up my favourite-ever ship Thomastair. Cordelia and Alastair are also siblings.

Other TLH-related acronyms you may see here are:

ChoG -> Chain of Gold, the first book

ChoI -> Chain of Iron, the second book

ChoT -> Chain of Thorns, the third book

CLS -> Cast Long Shadows, a short story about Matthew

NBS -> Nothing But Shadows, a short story about James and Matthew

EET -> Every Exquisite Thing, a short story about another TLH character Anna who I like quite a lot

You also may see me talk about A Sea Change (ASC), an upcoming novella about Matthew, and Better in Black (BiB), an upcoming short story collection that will have short stories about Herondaisy, Thomastair, and several other ships.

Anyway! The other series you likely see me post about a lot is The Infernal Devices (TID). This series is set in 1878 and is about the TLH character's parents!

You likely hear me talk most about Will Herondale and Tessa Gray, ship-name Wessa and parents of James Herondale.

You also likely hear me talk most about Sophie Collins and Gideon Lightwood, ship-name Sophideon and parents of Thomas Lightwood.

Its wonderful books are:

CA -> Clockwork Angel

CP1 -> Clockwork Prince

CP2 -> Clockwork Princess

I like most of the TLH and TID characters, but the ones I've mentioned are my blorbos. <3

Cordelia, Matthew, Thomas, Alastair, and Edwin Payne (in no particular order) are my life-altering, insane, best-friend, untoppable blorbos. James, Tessa, Will, Charles Rowland, and Niko Sasaki (also in no particular order) are also very much up there with them.

There's also a series called The Mortal Instruments (TMI) about those character's descendants. It's set in 2007. Wonderful series, and I adore it very much! TMI is technically the main series of TSC. You probably see me talk most about Simon Lovelace and Isabelle Lightwood, whose ship name is Sizzy. But I love most of the TMI cast.

There's also another series called The Eldest Curses (TEC) that acts as a companion to TMI. It's lovely.

The Dark Artifices (TDA) is another modern-day TSC series set in 2012. It's the one I don't like. You probably see me bitch and moan most frequently about Julian Blackthorn (who I will now be calling Julius, thank you) and Emma Carstairs. Their ship name is Blackstairs, and when they hold hands or breathe, I want them dead <3

The Wicked Powers (TWP) is set to be the final series in the Shadowhunter world. It is going to begin its publication in 2026, which is exciting! I am currently pretty cautiously neutral about it (since it involves TDA characters heavily), but Cassandra Clare is an EXTREMELY talented writer in general and I think it has the potential to be a wonderful series. So, excited as well as cautious!

[azures-bazar]

Gang members (Arthur, Sadie, Charles and Mary Beth) reacting to their fem S/O who is Turkish. How they react to her language, culture, beautiful olive skin and brown curly hair, golden honey eyes and teaching them about her culture (food, music, arts, belly dance, etc) and she shares her culture and language with the rest of the gang aswell! Also how they would defend her if anyone was ever racist towards her! 🥹❤️✨🥰

Headcanon - Turkish Beauty - Female!Reader

Hey there sweetie ! Thank you again for your request ! + Javier ! 💖

I'm sooooo sorry if it took me so long ! As you know, my life now mostly consists in my job lol (and in the family I'm currently building).

This headcanon was hard to write since I know very little about Turkish Culture in general. At least I tried, any corrections are welcomed !

I tried making it as accurate as possible (but ended up creating a rather weird mixture between Turkey and Ottoman Empire, since it's supposed to be 1899 lol). If anything is offensive towards the Turkish culture, just let me know and I'll either edit my mistakes or completely delete the headcanon !

Request : Female!Reader

Characters : Arthur Morgan, Sadie Adler, Charles Smith, Mary-Beth Gaskill + Javier Escuella

Relationship : Romantic, settled

Lines : About 9 per character

A/N : The Reader is Agnostic !

Arthur Morgan : 

Let’s be honest : Arthur doesn’t know much about what is outside America (and perhaps Tahiti). When you tell them you’re Turkish, he is a little confused. "Wait up, ain’t Turkey a large bird ?" is the very first genuine question he asks when you talk about your country. After you explain him a few basics, he profusely apologises for his mistake, telling you his just a "dumb cowpoke", which he isn’t. He’s just clumsy.

You wear a nazar as a necklace. Arthur is curious, often asking you about the meaning of this beautiful eye-shaped pendant, staring at its dark blue, white, light blue and black colours. When you explain its use, Arthur is even more curious, asking you if he can have one for himself. "Maybe a nazar can be a lucky charm for me too, so the Pinkertons won’t ever find us !". 

On some occasions, you can be heard talking to yourself in Turkish, either when you think out loud or when you’re a little pissed with folks like Micah or Bill. Arthur doesn’t show it, but he’s thrilled when he hears you talk in Turkish, finding it beautiful. As he often says, he can barely speak English, but he still tries his best to learn a few words while listening to you !

Believe it or not, but Arthur knows how to count up to ten in Turkish. He made this surprise to you while the two of you were in his tent after a long day on guard duty. "Hey, listen to that, bir, iki, üç, dört…". You were so amazed by it, listening to his raspy voice and heavy Southern accent when he tried his best not to mess up ! When you asked him how he learnt how to count in Turkish, he just told you he has his own "sources".

Yes, he indeed went through your belongings to snatch a book written in Turkish. Still, how he managed to translate Turkish words into English is an absolute mystery even Arthur himself can’t really explain. He isn’t as dumb as he believes he is, him trying his best to learn a few words in your language is a proof of his hidden intelligence. 

At some point, you tried your best teaching Arthur to say a few basic sentences, such as "benim adım Arthur". Your favourite Van der Linde boy struggled a lot, but was indeed thrilled to make you even a little happy. Arthur is not as fast as John when it comes to learn things, but he is definitely devoted to whatever he does. And your proud gaze is absolutely worth any single grammar mistake (which might also be heard as a potential ancient invocation due to his mispronunciation) he would make. 

In case you’re being harassed by anyone, Arthur is very quick to jump in and defend you from all these folks causing you harm. Since it’s the United States in 1899, many folks are just blatantly racist. If you’re a few feet away from him, he will proceed walking towards you and wrap his arm around your shoulders. "Get away from my girl, I doubt ya wanna have a hole in your head, partner." is what he often says to calm things down. If it doesn’t, the situation ends up in a fist fight which often results in the two of you having to run away because Arthur "unexpectedly broke someone’s skull". 

Arthur is absolutely in love with your looks. Each time the sun shines on your face while you’re both around camp, he will proceed caressing your olive skin. And when your golden eyes meet his, he nearly faints due to your exquisite beauty. Your eye color is so unique that he can’t avoid blushing a little whenever you’re looking at him. A few pages of his journal are dedicated to you, as well as some drawings. He loves describing your golden eyes in his journal, comparing them to the sun. You are the light of his life, literally speaking. 

Each night, Arthur runs his fingers through your thick brown curls, slightly brushing them away from your beautiful face. You’re one of the most beautiful women he had the opportunity to meet, and your natural beauty made him fall in love with you on the day Dutch had brought you to camp. But don’t worry ! You’re so beautiful that he falls in love with you every day, even if he’s too proud to say it.

Sadie Adler : 

For some reason, Sadie somewhat knows more about the world’s geography than the rest of the gang. She can’t forcibly place countries on a map, wherever they are republics, kingdoms or empires, but can actually tell that there is a huge continent across the Atlantic Ocean. So, when you tell her you’re from beyond the ocean, Sadie is indeed quite curious ! 

Sadie loves listening to you when you’re talking about your culture. She just sits there with starry eyes, gazing at you whenever you talk about its traditions. She is indeed fascinated by it, it feels so mystical compared with the life the Van der Linde gang is currently living. Having you tell stories about your country or about your culture and beliefs is certainly much better than Dutch’s speeches about freedom and MONEY.

She is pretty much your personal bodyguard whenever you’re alone. She knows you know how to fight, but she just loves you so much… and even ends up wanting to know more about Turkish fighting techniques. "How do folks fight in your country ? Like us ? Or do they still use swords ?". Her question seems pretty innocent for a woman who went through so much, but you don’t mind. 

You eventually end up telling Sadie about the Ottoman Slap, which is one of the Ottoman martial arts. "I wanna try it, I wanna try it !" is the very first thing an excited Sadie tells you when you explain her that it implies using her hands. You don’t even have time to explain anything to her that she is already on her way to give Micah an absolutely massive slap.

Sadie loves being around you when you do to town, and is quite protective towards you for a variety of reasons she can’t even explain. So, when she hears a few folks criticise your looks, your skin or your clothes, if not even your origins, she is quick to get into a violent fight and, quite often, wins it. Sadie even tries doing the exact same Ottoman Slap you told her about, but is likely to take out her guns to finish a fight if the situation goes worse. 

You two have fun altering Mr. Pearson’s stew with a few ingredients which match the Turkish recipes you have collected in one of your books upon traveling to the United States. Sadie loves the Tavok Sote, which is a Turkish chicken stew, and is even willing to chop vegetables for you, something she wouldn’t have done for anyone else. She just wants to spend all her free time with you, even if, as she says… she "ain’t gonna chop vegetables for a living". 

Sometimes, when she is on guard duty, Sadie will just slightly turn her head and look at your for a few seconds, analysing your beauty. Your black hair is often beautifully tied in a braid, your nazar bracelet hangs on your wrist, your colourful dresses make you look divine. She loves you, and if you pass by her while she is on guard duty, she will gently stroke your chin. "Here’s my beautiful balım." she would say before dropping a kiss on your lips.

At some point, after you told Sadie about belly dance, she is excited to learn it from you ! The very first time she tries it, she laughs as the feeling it gives her. She is not used to it, but absolutely loves it ! You like seeing her so happy to try new things, and can’t deny you did not expect her to enjoy belly-dancing this much ! She isn’t really good yet, but she really tries her best to impress you ! 

Sadie tries really, REALLY hard to learn a few words in Turkish. She already knows how to say some sweet words, like "balım" or "güzelim", and… a little set of swearwords. In fact, whenever you swear in Turkish, you can hear Sadie repeat the word after you, even if you told her you would rather want her not to say any swearwords in a foreign language. 

Charles Smith : 

Charles is well aware about the countries surrounding the United States, such as Mexico and Canada, and knows a little about Europe due to him listening to Herr Strauss. He is very respectful towards you and asks a few questions he repeated to himself a few times. Charles doesn’t talk much, and each word he says are filled with a wisdom a very few 28 year olds have. Needless to say that, compared with John who is just two years younger and eager to ask foolish questions, Charles just thinks twice before saying anything.

Charles is, again, the quiet type, except when he is drunk or around Javier and Arthur at the saloon. And he is even more quiet whenever you’re talking about your culture by the fire. He just gazes at you with starry eyes, interested and fascinated by your country's customs and traditions. Charles doesn’t interrupt you, he doesn’t want to spoil your stories with his questions. He will have all the time he needs to ask them after you will finish. 

If he is on guard duty with you, there is a huge chance that Charles will likely end up asking you some details about your country. "What do Turkish people eat ? How do they fight ? How do they talk to each other ?". He is curious, and just wants to be around you, and only around you, to ask his questions. Even if he only answers with a soft smile whenever you answer him, he is so thrilled to learn new things. 

The simple presence of Charles near you is quick to make people shut their mouths whenever they want to insult you. Charles, being himself a man of colour, as the son of a Native American woman and an African American man, knows what it feels like to be downgraded due to the colour of his skin, especially in 1899. If he sees anyone offend you, he will just stand before you and calmly tell people of. "Please, leave this lady alone.". If it doesn’t work, after a few good punches, he will take you to someplace safe, apologising for all the mess he is not even the responsible of. 

When he has the opportunity to rest, which is often rare since he is one of Dutch’s strongest men, Charles just enjoys gazing at you. He loves the way you look, the way your beautiful hair flows around you whenever you make even a subtle movement. But what Charles loves the most about you is your voice, and how beautiful it sounds whenever you speak to yourself in Turkish. 

Charles doesn’t speak much, but he secretly mumbles each word you say in Turkish, and sometimes asks you what you just said means. He then proceeds repeating the same word once again. "Did I say it right ?" is the question he asks you the most whenever he tries talking to you in Turkish. He does his best, and it's a beautiful thing to watch. His smile in the end is worth it ! 

Like many folks, Charles is not indifferent to your golden eyes. Whenever you’re close to him, even if it’s already clear that the two of you are in a very stable relationship, his heart beats faster and his eyes twitch a little, he even blushes and stutters at times ! You, Y/N, are the only person who can make Charles Smith loose his words whenever he is around you ! Charles even commented your eyes more than once. "So your parents put all the gold of the world in these eyes of yours.". That’s quite a compliment ! 

You managed to bring up a Hookah with you, and a lot of gang members often ask you if they can use it. Charles was very curious to try it at first, especially knowing that you can sometimes combine the effects of tobacco with other plants. You made him try a mixture of regular tobacco with vanilla flowers, and Charles surprisingly loved it. "Damn. I like it. I like it !". It was probably the very first time you saw Charles so happy ! 

Charles loves laying next to you whenever people are already asleep or far enough from him, his head either on your thigh or on your shoulder. He knows that you will naturally start singing. You can’t resist singing a few beautiful Turkish songs you know, especially with Charles being so close to you. "It’s beautiful, breathtaking." he often tells you between two songs. 

Mary-Beth Gaskill : 

Mary-Beth is quite aware of where Turkey is located, having red so many books about everything, and not only romance books as Ms. Grimshaw often says. She is thrilled to meet anyone who is not from the United States or from America in general, apart from Herr Strauss, indeed. But a woman like you is more interesting than an old loanshark ! 

You tried making a lentil soup based on what Mr. Pearson had in stock, and it made Miss Gaskill happy. "It’s peculiar and so different from Pearson’s stew ! How did you manage to do it ?" she asked. Mary-Beth barely knows how to cook, but is interested by your Turkish cookbook you brought with you upon being inducted into the gang. 

Sometimes, Mary-Beth daydreams while listening to your stories about your country. She just pictures so many people wearing bright colours, women doing bellydances while men are trained to fight. Mary-Beth is quite a romantic and re-interprets your stories inside her head, but genuinely likes asking questions about your culture. "What does a Turkish marriage look like ?". You try your best to answer, making Mary-Beth’s eyes get filled with stars. 

When the two of you are in town, you often get a side-look from passerby because of your origins. Mary-Beth is eager to fight for you, quickly taking your defence if someone tells you something inappropriate. Even if she knows how to fight, the two of you most likely end up in trouble if many folks try attacking you. But Mary-Beth is courageous enough to defend you, telling people off and throwing a few more or less impactful punches if needed. You two can’t even count the number of times you ended up at the Sheriff’s Office after a fight, having Dutch, Hosea or Arthur bring you back to camp. But a good fight was worth saving your honour. 

Even if you told her about henna and its use on very specific occasions, Mary-Beth is eager to try some on herself, on Tilly or on Karen, and even on Arthur who just grumbles when he sees her drawing figures on his wrists when he’s around camp. She doesn’t care about the fact that henna figures she made on herself is a temporary tattoo, she just loves it so much and is very skilled !

Mary-Beth loves reading, and it’s no secret for anyone. So when she genuinely asks you if she can borrow one of your books and read some pages out loud, you can’t say no. You just love listening to her when she tries her best to read some Turkish words properly with her sweet voice and adorable accent, and she loves the way you look at her and how proud you are whenever she tries either reading something out loud, or talking in your language. 

She likes asking you if she can borrow your dresses. Her favourite is a traditional Turkish gown you brought from your country, white and red coloured, with a matching headscarf. Mary-Beth loves it and often likes putting it on whenever she knows you will be around camp. She respectfully wears it and twirls around with it, thrilled to wear something as beautiful as a traditional Turkish gown. She sometimes digs into your jewerly, but you don't mind much.

When you told Mary-Beth about belly dancing, she was eager to give it a try ! Despite she did not know much about this dance or about the moves, looking a little uncomfortable while trying her best, she just gave you a rather nice performance, which was both funny and adorable. You fell for her as much as she fell for you. Between two moves, she even got to stroke your olive skin while blushing, which made you love her even more than ever !

She loves brushing your hair. It’s so thick and beautiful, she loves running her fingers through it, or combing it to create the most perfect hairstyles which could fit you on a daily basis. Mary-Beth loves you enough to compliment you anytime she tries something new on you. After all, you’re so beautiful ! So, mesmerising ! She keeps reminding this to you almost three or for times a day ! And this even in bed…

Javier Escuella : 

Javier is definitely smart enough to say that Turkey is a part of the Ottoman Empire as of 1899. He is genuinely curious about everything, and loves asking you so many questions that you sometimes end up struggling to find a correct answer. "What are your people doing when they’re angry ? How tall is the Ottoman Empire ? Are all Turkish women as beautiful as you are ? What music do they play ? Do they believe in god ?". Many questions, too many. 

You don’t know how he managed to do this, but Javier has, very soon after you were inducted into the gang, tried talking to you in Turkish. Since he already speaks English and Spanish, he is willing to learn another language, just for you ! Javier tries his best, he really does. He even repeats the words after you whenever you correct him, and often compliments your language. "Ah, Turkish language is quite beautiful, mi amor ! Hard, but wonderful !". 

Privately, between two trees, while the rest of the gang was having fun by the fire, you showed Javier how you belly danced. He is absolutely not familiar to it, but spends his time gazing at your moves, at the way you shake your hips, the way you twirl at times. He loves it, and even ends up asking you if men can try doing it too ! He is genuinely interested, which is a pleasure to see ! 

Javier is often lost into his deepest thoughts when looking at you. Your golden eyes make him loose every word, even his most romantic ballads can’t express how smitten he is to you. He often tried singing about it, playing his guitar by the campfire, but nothing can describe the "hermosa chica de ojos dorados." that crossed his and the rest of the gang’s path. 

Whenever you’re out, Javier doesn’t let go of you, not even for a second. Sometimes the two of you get side-looks from people seeing two non-white people just enjoying their day in 1899. Javier doesn’t usually jump into fights and tries his best to tell people off. However, sometimes, random folks don’t cooperate, and it ends up in a brutal fistfight. "You won’t ever insult my girl again, puto !" Javier usually says when his opponent is either unconscious, or dead. He won’t let anyone insult you. Never ! 

When you joined the gang, you had a few belongings coming from your country, among which a few musical instruments such as an Oud, a Kaval and a Sipsi. Javier taught himself to use the Oud, pretty proud of himself whenever a nice melody was coming out of it. "It’s as easy as playing a guitar, but the sound is so beautiful !" he always says whenever he plays it… when you don’t play it yourself. 

Sometimes, when you’re the one playing some Oud, you like singing a few ballads from your country. Javier loves listening to you, often getting distracted if he is on guard duty. Your voice is so beautiful, so mesmerising ! Enough for him to loose the track of time whenever he listens to you. He usually doesn't understand your songs, but genuinely loves them ! 

At some point, only to make you a rather nice surprise after you went back from a robbery with Dutch and Micah, Javier decided to sing a personal song just for you, playing the Oud, while Uncle played the Sipsi, and Lenny used a barrel as a drum to add some rhythm. Javier just wanted to make you happy, especially after a robbery with your absolute friend Micah Bell. "Look ! Look Y/N !" he had told you, so excited. The song was in Spanish, played with two Turkish instruments and a barrel as a drum, but it was awesome ! 

Sometimes, late at night, when the two of you are nearly asleep, Javier usually tries his best to mumble you some sweet words in Turkish, running his hand through your black curls while gazing at you with a loving smile. He just loves making you happy, and knows how excited you are whenever he tries speaking your language. "Seni seviyorum, mi chiquita.". A rather peculiar mixture between Spanish and Turkish, but very sweet !

[rickie-the-storyteller]

Incorrect Quotes Tag Game - Ships Edition (Part 2)

It’s been a while since I last did this. Link to the incorrect quote generator:

And link to part 1 of this:

I’ve been starting to share more of the Steph’s Crew sequels with you all (UVC in particular), and there are so many more ships to explore in them. I only did 2 ships last time… the two main ones of TMM. So I think I’ll do 2 more here - Dalice (Dylan + Alice) and Chelise (Charlie and Elise). The two ships from last time are still pretty big ships in the sequel, btw. I just want to explore some different ships/characters this time around.

Here we go!!

Dalice:

Alice: I love you. Dylan: How many people have you said that to? Alice: Everyone. Dylan: What? Alice: I told everyone that I love you.

___

Alice: PEASANT. I REQUIRE SUSTENANCE. Dylan: You know there are other ways to say you want McDonalds. Alice: FOUL PLEBEIAN. YOU DARE SPEAK AGAINST ME— Dylan: *sigh* What do you want? Alice: Chicken nuggets please.

___

Dylan: I would let you ruin my life. Alice: Sorry, but I’m busy ruining my own. You’ll have to wait.

___

Dylan to Alice: Turn that frown upside-down! (a little while later) Dylan: What are you doing? Alice, trying to do a handstand: You told me to “turn that frown upside-down” but it’s not working!

___

Dylan: This is a bad idea.  Alice: Then why are you coming along?  Dylan: Someone has to help get your injured ass home.

___

Alice, texting Dylan: Any plans for tonight?  Dylan: No.  Alice: HA! Loser.

___

Alice: I can't take this anymore, someone needs to take me out!  Dylan: In a dating type of way, or an assassination type of way?  Alice: I don't know, surprise me!

___

Chelise:

Charlie: They don’t make them like me no more. I’m the last of my kind. Elise: Thank God...

___

Elise: You know, when I first met you, I really didn’t like you. Charlie, after a moment: …I thought there was going to be another half to that sentence? Elise: Nope! That’s it.

___

Charlie: Hey.  Elise: *pissed off* You… complete …ASS, Charlie!! You show up here after WEEKS, and you say “hey”?!

___

Elise: Oh shoot! Elise: Um. Excuse my vulgarity. Charlie: I’ll let it slide.

___

Charlie: El is playing hard to get… Charlie: Little does she know, I'm a master at playing hard to get rid of.

___

Charlie: I’ve been dropping them the most insanely obvious hints for like a year now. No progress whatsoever.  Elise: Wow. They sound really stupid.  Charlie: But they’re not. They’re really smart actually. Just dense.  Elise: Maybe you need to be more obvious? Like, I don’t know… “Hey! I love you!”  Charlie: I guess you’re right. Hey El, I love you.  Elise: See! Like that! Just say that. Charlie: *frustrated* Holy fucking shit. Elise: If that flies over their head then, sorry Charles, but they're too dumb for you.  Charlie: Elise-

___

Elise: Hey. So, about that love letter you sent me… Charlie: *blushes* Oh. W-what are your thoughts? Elise: The fourth sentence- Charlie: Yeah, that’s where I got really deep and emotional and I- Elise: It’s “you’re,” not “your”.

___

And we’re done! Woo-hoo!

Maybe I’ll do an update version of the Bephanie and Brelise incorrect quotes as well lol. This was fun! (I think my fave is the third Chelise one… reminds me of Harry Potter lol)

I’m also planning to do a part 3 for Rachel and Gordon at some point.

Anyways, I’m tagging these folks to do it next:

@mysticstarlightduck, @fire-but-ashes-too, @exquisitecrow, @toribookworm22, @winterandwords, @aziz-reads, @sam-glade, @waywardwizzard, @janec23, @rbbess110, @clairelsonao3, @ember-writer, @harleyacoincidence, and @writinglittlebeasts. Plus anyone else who wants to do it is welcome to. 🤗

Let me know what your favourite incorrect quotes were!

[leclerced]

Ohhh okay so we’re talking real vampire au. I love it tbh. Charles for sure is super old but just loves humans and Max is perfect for being old and grumpy in a godly body hahaha

Poor Oscar is terrified when he learns what he’s become and the stories aren’t only that-fiction made by someone’s imagination. He’d try and starve himself but learns it’s not that simple when you’re a vampire and finally he stumbles onto Charles who immediately knows what’s going on cause he’s seen things like this more than once in his life. He’d be the first of his bloodline so he’d have to learn about the specifications of his powers. Oh damn him meeting Lando whose specialty is seduction and generally making people do what he wants. Can def see a love story here with Oscar being insecure because he doesn’t know if it’s real or just Lando’s powers meddling with his brain.

With them still being drivers I can totally see it too! Like maybe there is one or two super old that decided they are getting bored in their too long of a life so why not hop into f1 car. But then someone getting turned accidentally and having so much troubles because of it. Maybe it does help a little but…(here’s how I’d imagine the vampire thingy to work lol). When you’re a new vampire it’s not like you have all of your heightened senses all figured out just like that and the bits of additional strength are not settled in (?) so whoever would get turned would struggle so much through the first ad second race. Then he’d get used to it and start using it so that’s why suddenly he’s better after actually being the worse for the past weeks. Maybe after one race the hunger for blood would be so bad that he’d attack his teammate? Or the older ones without knowing they’re also vampires ofc and it would be pure comedy with them finding out in that way. Like suddenly they have fangs in their neck and someone’s trying to feed on their almost nonexistent blood n they have this debate whether it’s just weird or uncomfortable or enjoyable??? Either way they don’t know why people are letting them do this haha

Oh god it’s so long probably deserves “read more” right after the first sentence hahaha

yes real vampire au !! my fav vampire stuff is like buffy, cirque du freak, lost boys. that's more what i would draw inspo from. im forgetting some but those are more my vibe than like. tvd or twilight. i like tvd but i like it for the same reason i like teen wolf, y'know?

oscar’s slowly drying out or is extremely sick (what happens to vamps that don’t drink blood?) because he doesn’t want to hurt anyone. charles stumbles upon him and immediately knows what’s wrong with him and takes him home, gives him a few blood bags and asks who turned him. oscar’s got no clue, he woke up one morning in pain and in a room he didn’t recognize surrounded by dead bodies. can imagine he’d want to stay inside and avoid humans because he’s terrified he’ll rip into someone’s throat. charles would introduce him to other vampires, and they’d help him understand what he’s going through, maybe telling him about how they were turned. they’d get him to go out and start living again, promising they’d stop him before he could hurt anyone.

lando being super seductive !! i think vampires sharing blood is very intimate but i can imagine lando shares his blood with oscar and oscar assumes he shares w everyone because of it but then oscar finds out he’s doesn’t and lando’s just like “well you won’t bite a human to feed and it’s better fresh. it’s not my fault you’re a big baby.” and totally makes it out to be like he’s doing oscar a favor by letting him feed from him

in a possible racer vamp au, i can definitely see them attacking a teammate after a race, when they can hear their blood pumping and can see the veins in their neck throbbing. im thinking about landoscar and oscar becoming a vampire midway through his rookie season. he manages well enough getting blood from people in the middle of the night and healing them with a bit of his own blood before he returns to his hotel room and pretends he didn’t go out for a late night snack. he’s so careful not to take too much. one day he can’t control himself after a really good race, he didn’t feed the night before and now all he can think about is blood. how it’s pumping through everyone who gives him a congratulatory hug or even passes by, he can’t help but think about sinking his teeth in them. he had a good race so he’s on the cameras giving tight lipped smiles, forcing his fangs to retract during interviews and the debriefs. stumbling upon lando back at the hotel when he’s debating calling room service and snacking on whoever brings his food, but suddenly his teammate looks really good. goes a little blood crazy and bites lando before he remembers who he’s biting, then starts panicking and giving lando his blood to heal him. drags him to his room and is pacing around while lando slumps on the couch.

i think it’s fun when vampire venom makes it’s victims feel euphoric so they’re not scared, so lando’s just like “hey that felt really good do it again.” while oscar tries to figure out if mind control is a vampire ability or if that’s just in movies, hoping he can make him forget this ever happened because it never should have!!

it’s very funny to think about two vampires on the grid and not knowing the other is one! max and charles being old vampires who are bored and decide to see what humans are up to lately, find out about formula one and think it would be funny to race. then one day they catch another driver drinking from someone at a race, like in a back hallway or bathroom, and just being like, “jesus you’re so stupid. don’t do that here! what is wrong with you? who raised you?” and then teaching them vampire etiquette!

i like when vampires have blood and they can feed from each other but its an intimate thing, so only done with someone you’re bonded to, or not really sustainable because it’s not human blood. they could get by but they’re weaker. and i swear there’s one vampire book i read where when they drink from each other they see each other’s memories or something weird like that. they get bitten by a newbie vampire and are like “hey! what the fuck? not cool man!! only my friends can do that.” the newbie is confused why they’re fighting back and why they taste so different than others they’ve fed from

also the drama of a vampire driver getting in a crash and coming out unscathed? just like aha yeah nbd! just got really lucky! haha! stop looking at me. they def have tests done on them (at least random piss tests for drugs, no?) so would he have to mind control ppl to fake the tests ?? how would it work

[roosterbox]

Fic Rec Friday 8/18/23

Title: Sigh No More

Rating: General Audiences

Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply

Category: M/M

Fandom: X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom

Relationship: Erik Lehnsherr/Charles Xavier

Characters: Erik Lehnsherr, Charles Xavier

Summary: A gentle song, sung, and played, in the depths of a cold winter night.

———

Oh boy. This one is kinda special to me, not gonna lie. For a few reasons.

Firstly, it’s just a beautiful piece of writing. A bit abstract and lyrical. Poetic, even. It reads as if it were actually a poem. There’s no dialogue, no names, just descriptions. But it’s still obvious who’s who. It’s so soft, and the love is palpable in every word, every sentence.

Secondly, it’s short, but incredibly sweet. Not a word is wasted. Not a single thought is excessive or unnecessary. Like a painting; every brush stroke is a lovely piece of a whole.

Thirdly, and this is the part that really fucking blows my mind, it was written for me! On my birthday! This is the only time anyone ever gifted me a birthday fic and I just. Every time I re-read it, I remember that and get choked up. Well, at least part of my emotions are due to the fic just being a masterpiece, but the gift part helps, lol.

I feel like this one is a little underrated in the fandom, and it really shouldn’t be. It’s truly a beautiful story - check it out if you can!

———

Next Week: I have been absolutely DEVOURING a shit-ton of Narumitsu fics for the past few days. Even added like 20 more fics to my bookmarks. How about one of these new additions?

This is one I read many months ago, but didn’t favorite it then, for some reason (I am a dumb). Took me forever to find it again. Not going to say much, other than that the fic’s title is absolutely perfect. It feels like the title of an actual case in an Ace Attorney game. And that’s so fun.

See you next week! Peace and love!

[emmashouldbewriting]

The original ask was about anne flying under the radar and I sent it, saying that anne said that she didnt understand climate change. The other ask was by another anon and not by me.

But that being said, anyone can disagree with Charles. The point I was trying to make with anne flying under the radar is that papers don’t really care much what she’s up to or what she’s saying. Had this been William or Catherine, the papers would be making very clickbait headlines to fuel the C&C vs W&C narrative. It’s profitable for papers to make bombastic claims while either twisting or omitting certain sentences. That way the papers aren’t directly making shit up but they’re not being truthful either.

And I’m not targeting Anne; Sophie and Edward fly under the radar as well and there have been also instances where they have put their foot in their mouth. It’s not a big deal but I suppose it’s a blessing for the less famous royals to fly under the radar. Sure you don’t generate a lot of news but you also get a lot les flack and hate. For example, when the Dutch visited Dutch overseas territories this year, the only think I thought was that W&C would have been shredded.

I didn't see the original ask, but you are right. I admit that I was expecting this interview to be like 1995 or something, but it was 2020 for her 70th.

I think the timing played a lot in it being under the radar too - covid, with an Aussie magazine, that kind of thing. Also, like, not in a mean way, but nobody really cared about Anne, you know? Which sucks because she deserves all the accolades and so much more, and I actually respect her more for speaking her (apparently unpopular opinion.) I also think the press is a bit afraid of her. She's absolutely like her father and I don't think she'd hesitate to tell them to piss off whereas everyone else wants to please the press. I think Anne just doesn't give a shit.

And yeah. We aren't talking about that Dutch visit. I kicked up a stink then LOL

[marley-manson]

1, 4, 9, 10 for the fandom asks.

Thank you!

list 3 positive things about your current fandom(s)

Hawkbi is universally (as far as I've seen) assumed and I dig that vibe. Plus while it's not universal, it seems that the majority see him as very experienced and in touch with gay culture, which is something I love and never get sick of seeing in fanfic.

I've met some awesome people through Mash, and it's been great making new fandom friends.

It's great for creating in. I can't participate in mega fandoms, I just lurk and enjoy the vast amounts of fic, but in smaller fandoms I'm compelled to create what I want to see in the world that no one else is creating, so it's been perfect for that. Plus I feel like the vibe of Mash really suits me, fic-wise. Like when I casually wrote a random Mash scene for the first time I was fully expecting it to be like pulling teeth to get the voices right and be funny, but then it turned out to be super easy, and I made myself laugh like 3 sentences in? I can't say whether my Mash writing style works for everyone, but it works surprisingly well for me.

4. say something nice about a ship you don’t ship (it can be another ship in your fandom, a mutual’s OTP, etc)

I can imagine Hawkeye/BJ/Peg fics I'd really enjoy. I like triad ships when they're messy and fucked up and dark and destructive rather than presented as a convenient solution to a love triangle, and I think this one has a lot of potential there, even if it's endgame rather than doomed (though preferably endgame in a non happily ever after way).

9. a ship that isn’t your OTP but that you enjoy

most Hawkeye ships in Mash lol. Hawkeye/Charles for sure, Hawkeye/BJ, Hawkeye/Frank, basically anything gay that doesn't default to top Hawkeye lol

10. a blog (mutual or one you follow) that has made your fandom experience brighter

wagh questions like these are hard for me to answer because I don't like to single anyone out. Literally all my Mash mutuals 💖I mean everyone I follow on tumblr in general, because if they didn't make my fandom experience brighter I wouldn't follow them.

ask meme

[volturialice]

C, M, R, S, T and X for the ask game thing. I could have gave you more but I feel like it wouldn't give much choice for others to ask.

ooooh thanks anon this is so many!

C: What character do you identify with most?

from twilight? none of them, really. I guess I'm reserved and well-read like bella, and identified with her kind of empty shell "white teen girls project self here" characterization when I first read the books, but eh...nah. I'm way more fun, interesting, and assertive than she is, and I have like a shred of dignity and self-esteem lol get wrecked bella

from my own fic? usually jasper, because I write him as very introverted, level-headed, and calculating—but really I'm far less practical/grounded and more outspoken/impatient than he is.

in general? that gif of rosa diaz climbing out the window rather than being emotionally honest. in YA, risa from the Unwind books and katniss from thg (book one only) are some characters I can remember identifying with as a teen because their decisions actually made sense to me, which was rare. ya heroines get on young!G’s level challenge

M: Got any premises on the back burner that you'd care to share?

I think I've mentioned it briefly before but I would love love love to actually write my james/alice-y three-shot Laurel Tree one of these days. I also woke up a few weeks ago with an absolutely killer idea for cyborg!jasper that I will continue to let marinate and see if it's any good

R: Are there any writers (fanfic or otherwise) you consider an influence?

growing up, I reread her books so often that my writing was definitely influenced by libba bray's (and maybe charles de lint's?) now idk if I have any real specific influences but I do sometimes try to make my writing "carter-esque" if it fits a particular piece, and The Bloody Chamber is forever my go-to thing to read to Inspire Me (I also read poetry, often random bits of baudelaire or keats or something.) I'm also completely floored by every single sentence of tamsyn muir's works but idk if that influence ever trickles down enough for me to even TOUCH her level

S: Any fandom tropes you can't resist? / T: Any fandom tropes you can't stand?

answered!

X: A character you enjoy making suffer.

yeah it's jasper. he's so societally privileged, physically tough, and logic-driven that he's just kind of perfect for it, you know? I wish all brooding stoics a very lose their shit emotionally

lol I love that I just said I identify with him AND enjoy making him suffer. I'm such a sick masochistic lion

fanfic ask game

[macgregorhoughton]

I think I’d need a 4k file to actually be able to really read it but some things I could read from the article:

The title says something catchy with “the Amazon” and underneath you can read “of the late Charles Houghton following in her father’s footsteps?” so I assume the beginning of the sentence was just her name.

Then the subheader says “The [Something] Legend - Myth or Truth?” I assume it’s something in a foreign language, but the letters all just kinda blend together, you can only really make out the Y.

The article itself is extremely difficult to read at this quality. Some tiny bits I could make out:

I could swear one sentence has “the ?? legend of the Tears of the Moon” in it and the following sentence seems to start with “Her belief is”. It’s possible their father had made his own search for the Tears of the Moon public and apparently it is well known that Lily believes in it. Now why they’d make this search public in a newspaper is beyond me lol but it does kinda sound like it’s generally treated as a myth that only the Houghtons seem to really believe in. 

Then I can make out some bits mentioning “the Americas” and I think I can even read the word “cartographer”. I think one sentence says “Mr Houghton was (made famous?) for his record trip from the Pacific to ?? in just under 16 days”. The following sentence isn’t fully clear but some bits: “He began his voyage to the (Americas?) in 1867 (or 87?) ?? 34 ?? with the intention of mapping the entire region”. Apparently he spent a lot of time exploring uncharted regions.

Also hilariously easy to read is the sentece “His peers describe Mr Houghton as a misanthrope.” lmao get owned dead man.

So the article seems to spend a lot of time detailing Charles Houghton’s famous adventures and his personality. I assume there’s also some stuff on Lily but I can’t read any of it but my guess is that it’s taking a bit of a stab at her and her family for being so weird.

Now I personally can’t make out anything referencing that he disappeared on his last expedition but maybe someone out there has an even higher quality file. My personal sight has reached its limit here I think.

[parcoeurs]

Extremely fascinated by your wag AU tag 👀.

thanks bestie so am i.

okay lmao so this isn't an actual fic that'll ever be written but. i was talking to my friend about it who still hasn't finished dts season 3 unfortunately but it means that i've switched around ages and years etc. i promise this has the potential to be a fun and sexy time but there's just s o much background shit that needs to be discussed. tw for mentions of irl deaths etc:

but pierre & charles meeting when they're 5-6 (which is what i think charles actually says irl but someone said it might've been closer to when they were 10-11? regardless.) and charles' dad passes away when they're 9-10, and jules when they're 13-14 and charles quits racing then. (fyi i know that irl jules passed away first)

he thinks about quitting when his dad passes away but keeps going with help from jules. so when the accident etc happens, it's not even like an active decision he ponders. he just knows there's no way he'll race again.

and pierre's been with him throughout everything, his best friend who he can talk to when he can't bear looking at his own family. so he doesn't understand when pierre tells him he's going to keep racing. when charles had told him he was never going to get into a kart ever again, pierre had nodded, grabbed his hand and squeezed it tight. important to note that they're barely teenagers rn so yes charles feels betrayed that pierre isn't feeling the same things he is and isn't choosing the same future for himself etc.

they have a huge fight, lots of crying, lots of dramatic teenage angst. but it ultimately ends with charles shutting pierre out of his life. which is easier said than done when it's your best friend whose family is super close with yours. but it works because pierre is off racing around the world and charles has done all he can to never have to think about that stuff.

so charles goes to school, is doing uni somewhere in europe. studies something generic like business or maybe if i'm feeling suuuuper indulgent i will have him major in environmental studies like moi <3 pointedly does not come to monaco during grand prix weekend or the week before or the week after.

and then anthoine passes away too. (they're 20-21 now)

they see each other again at the funeral but don't talk, they meet up afterwards. pierre breaking down in charles' arms, clutching at his back, telling him he was right. pierre should've quit, he can't do this anymore either. they haven't said a word to each other in 7 years but charles still knows pierre, and knows that this isn't actually what pierre wants. or what he should do. (charles vaguely knows pierre's in f1 but doesn't know he's with redbull, doesn't know redbull's the top team etc)

"you can still do this, you will," charles tells him.

"not without you again."

so then comes the challenge of mending their relationship while still working through the shared trauma, and the Layers of past trauma. and also just the general awkwardness that comes with a friendship breakup/makeup situation you know! they can't just act like nothing happened but would it be easier that way?

they start texting first, then they play fifa or cod together. (sometimes pierre's british friend lewis joins too.)

slowly slowly slowly, they become friends again and then inseparable too. maybe even closer than they were before and charles only now realizes how much he missed pierre. while pierre still can't believe he has charles back now, it's as good as he let himself imagine.

the part i'm unsure about is if i would want pierre's career trajectory to be the same or not. because i think the demotion adds SUCH a painful but interesting aspect to his ~storyline. but ultimately i think maybe he just doesn't get the second seat immediately. spends more years with toro rosso/alpha tauri before getting "called up" (sorry i have no idea what the proper terminology is haha ignore the nba/nhl terms).

he invites charles to his first race in the red bull and charles says no. immediately. pierre's quiet on the other side of the phone, internally thinking he messed this up somehow. he thought things were going well and he takes this as charles doesn't want to see him. but he knows there's a lot more that's stopping charles and he also knows charles will definitely pull back if pierre asks about the other stuff. so he moves right along, asking charles about school, the weather, and tries not to let it show in his voice that he misses his best friend and needs him too.

"i'm going to try to watch," charles says, after pierre's yawned goodnight through the phone and is waiting for him to hang up. because you know pierre's not going to hang up first.

"what?"

"the race. i'm going to try. goodnight!" mentally charles slams the phone shut but really he just smashes at the red button before shoving it under his bed and looking at his hands trying to get answers for what he just did.

his only relief is that he didn't promise pierre he would watch, just that he would try. couldn't even choke out a, "good luck." (insert long paragraph about charles letting pierre down or thinking he has).

he only watches qualifying. pierre p3. already knows on saturday that there's no way he can watch the actual race.

but on sunday when he's supposed to be going over his notes for his climate change science & policy course (yes.... i did it...) he finds himself with his heart in his mouth refreshing formula1 dot com. watches the random names move up and down while keeping his eyes on 10 - gasly. (starts shaking for a second when he sees pierre's name drop until the IN PIT sign comes up across his name. fellas the thing about triggers is-- anyways.)

the scariest part is that by the time he's scrolled through all of red bull's socials to look at pictures of pierre on the podium (he finished p2 sorry i know this truly does not matter), he's forgotten about the race. the anxiety sits small in the back of his throat, his happiness for pierre is bright and loud in front of him. charles sends him a message, asking him to call whenever he can and adds a blue & red heart emoji which feels like a Big Step. but basically pierre calls and acts like nothing has happened since the last time they talked. mentions the breakfast he had in detail as if he didn’t get a podium in his first race with red bull. finally with a big team. but charles embarrassingly realizes that maybe his text didn't exactly imply in literally any way whatsoever that he knows the results of the race and was trying to congratulate pierre with this call. charles probably feels so embarrassed at this point but somehow still can't manage to say anything about the race until the next day maybe.

maybe texts pierre, good job. or, you were great. or something about him and not the race. or maybe reposts a picture from red bull but not one of pierre in his car, pointedly. only one of him on the podium. and pierre probably reposts it with the squid emoji and/or my favourite sentence in the world, merci petit calamaro.

charles cries when he reads it.

not to be lazy now but [insert 10k words of them building their friendship. meeting up in monaco with both of their families. meeting in milan or london or paris idk where pierre would live. but he flies charles out. not on a private jet because charles flat out refused lol. not because he's an environmentally conscious king he's just too, embarrassed? overwhelmed? by pierre doing Things Like That for him. even though he wants it lol. like when he graduates he's soooo annoyed that pierre couldn't come celebrate immediately because it was race week. but when he comes home his apartment is filled with flowers (roses, his favourite) and balloons and a giant teddy bear as tall as charles. and he DOES post 12 instagram stories to go with the other 30 from his other friends congratulating him. so yeah charles goes through a lot of personal growth and therapy. to the point where he's watching pierre race again, and waiting for him to invite him to a race again!!! do not even think about actual dates i'm fucking begging you but the one he goes to is monza :))))]

ultimately charles' path to understand/accepting/moving on from, his trauma, happens once he has pierre back in his life. it's also encouraged by pierre, but it's also not entirely because of him. not sure how to word that but yeah. these things are happening at the same time but charles still has to go through them by himself.

pierre takes him on romantic dates all around the world and charles doesn't realize that's what they are. fully in his bestie vibes only mood while pining for pierre in a way he doesn't even quite understand. almost a self deprecating, jeez whoever gets to date pierre is going to be so lucky :/

fanpage on ig: met pierre's alleged bf he's so pretty and sweet, i complimented his shoes and he was so nice. charles reading that: i didnt know he was dating someone :( why wouldn't he tell me :( well at least someone complimented my shoes today :(

pierre doesn't necessarily think they're dating, but he does know charles doesn't quite realize what they're doing so he's just waiting for him to come to terms with it.

not to give this au 10 different subplots but yeah that miscommunication plot becomes our prize for surviving through the first part of this.

but yeah at the last race of the year, that pierre wins because i said so? charles finds him before he goes on to the podium, kisses his helmet. says i love you, i'm so proud of you.

THEN, finally, charles does become pierre's wag. we made it kids. we did it joe.

[i-finally-watched-it]

The Personal History of David Copperfield (2019)

dir. Armando Iannucci

A modern take on Charles Dickens's classic tale of a young orphan who is able to triumph over many obstacles. (via IMDb)

Highlight/s: Costumessssss! ❤ the production design in general - everything's so pretty & colourful despite the oftentimes gloomy circumstances; I loved the transition from stage backdrop to outdoors in the beginning! It reminded me of the opening scene of that Shakespeare political thriller Anonymous (which I haven't watched in 5eva so I know what I'm doing today!); Dev Patel's Peter Capaldi impression fsjdkjkskjdk well all his impressions really lol but the Capaldi one was probably my fave; I love Armando Iannucci's style & wit, always a delight (if you haven't seen The Death of Stalin what are you doing?); Anthony Welsh!!!!!!!! (how did they make a 37 yo man look like a high school senior though??? No wonder I couldn't place him sfjkgsk); Dev Patel, Dev Patel aaaaand Dev Patel 🥰

Lowlight/s: Ben Whishaw was fucking creepy - a sentence I never thought I'd write 😂 I mean Uriah was awkwardly cute at first but THEN. He was not. 😳

Will I watch it again? SFGJSKHDJKSK OF COURSE

Rating: 🥳

[atmilliways]

As long as anybody didn’t find out, Pickles figured the worst scenarios he had conjured in his head would never happen.

[send me a sentence and i’ll write the next five or more lines]

You got it! This... turned out longer than five more lines, lol. 

Snakes N Barrels era Charles/Pickles. Warning for one night stands, drug and alcohol mentions, questionable disguises, and Charles hitting the club with a briefcase that contains a book and condoms (just in case). 

Bottles & Bodies

As long as nobody found out, Pickles figured the worst scenarios he had conjured in his head would never happen. The gossip, the cold shoulders, the colder looks . . . all the shit he’d left behind in Wisconsin, but would be so much worse to encounter again now, here, in the fucking tabloids and the faces of his bandmates, because he actually liked this life. 

It wasn’t like he was ever going to fool around with any of the guys, even if Tony was pretty cute. As far as Pickles could tell none of the guys ate from both sides of the buffet anyway, and as a general rule the groupies were always girls, so it was easy enough to compartmentalize. When he was being Pickles, the rockstar, in his red gloves and makeup and tight, low-riding jeans, he hit on chicks; when he snuck out to gay bars as Pickles, just some dude, with his blue wristbands and no eyeliner or eyeshadow and slightly less teased hair and even tighter, sluttier jeans, he hit on dudes. 

And usually, just to be on the safe side, he picked guys too loaded to pick him out of a lineup later. 

So why. Why the fuck. Had he picked the most straight-laced looking guy in this bar to sidle up to and ask if he could buy him a drink?

Probably had something to do with the fact that he was a little cross faded on weed and booze. . . . But mostly it was that the guy—young, probably not much older than he was—was hot, and he’d wanted to so he’d gone in the bathroom to snort a little coke until it seemed like a better idea. 

Hot in a preppy sort of way, admittedly, with the glasses and the blazer and the nearly combed hair, nursing a scotch and soda while reading something and taking notes in a steno pad at a small table in the corner. But once you got past that part, there was a serious set of his jaw, an intensity to his gaze as he focused on what he was reading despite the noise of the crowd, and a firm decisiveness in his hands that Pickles had found himself obsessing over in stolen glances for the past half an hour. Good shoulders, too, and Pickles suspected he was pretty fine under that blazer and button-down. 

Pickles grabbed a chair from a nearby table and sat in it without bothering to turn it around, folding his arms across the top of it and grinning at the handsome stranger. “Hey, whatcha reading?”

“Naming, Necessity, and Natural Kinds, by Stephen P. Schwartz,” the guy reeled off automatically. When this wasn’t immediately followed by Pickles losing interest and wandering off, he glanced up and did a double take. “Wait. You’re, ah, Pickles. From Snakes N Barrels.”

For a fraction of a second, Pickles did his best impression of a deer in the headlights. Because yeah, lack of stage makeup wasn’t much of a disguise, but no one had ever actually called him on it before. 

Then he recovered, and all his experience in bullshitting and performing under pressure kicked in. Pickles turned the wattage on his smile up a notch. “Heh, y’think? I could just be a handsome, sexy lookalike.”

The guy shook his head while still staring. “I’ve been to your shows,” he said with unshakable conviction. “I know it’s you.”

Without meaning to, Pickles laughed. “You have? Really?” He let his eyes rake pointedly up and down the other man, since he wanted to anyway. What he saw did not, in any way, scream Snakes N Barrels fan. For one thing, there was an honest to god briefcase wedged under his chair between his nice leather shoes. Not enough piercings or tats, for another—not that he could see at least, to which his lizard brain slyly added Yet. 

After waiting patiently for his eyes to wander back up, the guy said seriously, “Really. You, ah.” Suddenly his confidence seemed to waver, even if his conviction didn’t, and he looked down at his book. “You stand out.”

Pickles considered. He wasn’t thinking too good at this point, which might possibly present a flaw in his whole ‘compartmentalization’ plan. . . . But he had a pretty good radar for when people were interested, and this guy was definitely pinging on it. And somehow, he didn’t really think that someone who’d brought heavy reading to a hookup den was the type to try blackmailing a celebrity in the bisexual closet. People like that had better things to do, right?

It didn’t mean everyone would find out. 

He drummed his fingers on the top of his chair, barely heard it over the ambient noise of the bar around them, shrugged. What the hell. “Okay, you got me,” he said with a smirk, one he knew for a fact was particularly winning. Under the table, he stretched his leg out and rubbed the toe of one sneaker against the other man’s calf. “This your first brush with fame or are you jest happy to see me?”

There was a twitch of surprise at the sudden contact, but otherwise the guy held his ground. “Well, I, ah.” His face was reddening, though. “I like your, ah . . . music.”

“Thanks, dood.” With a wink, Pickles added, “What’s yer name, since you already know mine?”

“Charles.”

“Nice name,” he said, still feeling up the back of Charles’ leg with his foot. “So hey, Charlie. Wanna go appreciate my ‘music’ somewhere private?”

It was a stupid line and probably shouldn’t have worked, but the guy nodded and shut his book, using the steno pad as a bookmark. Pickles took the liberty of finishing the last of the stranger’s scotch and soda before getting up to leave the bar; Charles stowed his book in his briefcase and followed. 

Stupid, impulsive, thinking with his dick instead of his brain as usual. . . . But hey, a guy’s gotta eat. Otherwise what was the point of it all, right?

They got a motel room a few blocks away, but not until after Pickles had pushed Charles against a few darkened brick walls along the way to give him a test drive. Charles kissed back hard, eagerly, like this was some sort of fantasy he’d never dreamed he’d get to live out. His hands ran down Pickles’ back to grab his ass and fuck he was unexpectedly strong. Pickles felt his feet practically leave the ground, literally, and moaned into it. 

By the time they got into a room (which Charles had gamely gone into the motel office by himself to pay for), Pickles had him one zip away from pants-off. That was quickly taken care of, and shirt buttons undone, and sure enough, what he found underneath the crisp white shirt lived up to expectations and then some. Pickles dropped to his knees, shivering in approval when Charles’ hands went straight into his hair. He was less appreciative when he was held back from leaning forward. 

“I, ah,” Charles panted, staring down at him with bruised lips and desire in his eyes. “I have condoms in, in my briefcase.” 

Pickles quirked an eyebrow. “Seriously?”

“Well, it’s. . . . I mean, because, the bar. You, ah, never know, right?”

Probably smart. 

Pickles rolled his eyes but got the condom, rolled it on with his mouth, and proceeded to suck his new friend’s brain out into the protective latex. Then he tossed Charles a washcloth and a fresh Trojan and put on a show of peeling out of the tight jeans and tight t-shirt, making strategic use of the motel lotion until they could get the new condom on and Pickles climbed atop him. He eased down with his head thrown back, scrambling without looking to find Charles’ hands and press them to his hips while his head floated and spun, the perfect high. At one point he realized that Charles had flipped them over, so smoothly he hadn’t even noticed, bending Pickles bare feet effortlessly back his ears as he thrust into him with the steadiness of a drumbeat, and it all felt so fucking good. 

The other stuff was good too—the rush of being onstage, free booze and drugs, groupies whenever he wanted—but there was something in this that he needed just as much. Couldn’t give up one any more than the other, got the shakes if he went too long without it. He’d picked a good one tonight, too. Unlike his usual fare, Charles didn’t seem to be any more than slightly buzzed. Usually Pickles would be offering to share a little bit of his coke right now just to keep his pick of the night awake and functioning; instead, he was being steadily, blissfully fucked into the mattress with a controlled pressure that carried no hint of sloppiness, no possibility of passing out halfway through. Which was . . . kind of a first, and kind of felt like the best sex he’d ever had (without being on the really hard shit, at least, where it was more about the trip than the actual fucking anyway). 

He almost wanted to offer a few lines anyway, just so this could go on all night. . . . But it hadn’t been all that long ago that he couldn’t afford to share, and old habits died hard, so he didn’t. 

At one point Charles was sprawled across the bed, head resting on Pickles’ thigh as the musician leaned back against the pillows and well-rattled headboard, idly twisting short brown hair into tiny braids that wouldn’t stay. Charles’ eyes were mostly closed when he asked, matter of factly, “I’m not going to see you again, am I?”

Pickles chewed on the inside of his cheek for a moment before conceding, “Yeah, prahbly naht.” He yawned, then grimaced—damn accent always thickened up on him when he was tired or coming down, and right now he was both. “Sahhry. I mean, you can still come to shows and stuff, but. . . .”

“No, it’s fine. I understand.” Charles rolled over onto his elbows, looking up at Pickles. “Knowing it’s a one time thing takes, ah, takes some of the pressure off. I’m not, ah, very good at . . . this sort of thing, usually.” He paused, looking faintly embarrassed. “I, ah, say things like that, for example.”

“Dood, me neither,” Pickles said with a laugh. It was true, and he was a little relieved to hear the sentiment echoed by the other man. He wondered, briefly, if Charles would get all weird if he admitted that he slept with women too. A lot of guys did. But that  was a mistake you only made . . . five, maybe eight times, outside of doing it on purpose to make sure these trysts ended when he needed them to. Not necessary in this case, where they both already seemed to be on the same page. He yawned again. 

Men or women, all of his relationships came with an expiration date that could usually be measured in hours, and that mostly didn’t bother him because there were always others waiting when he turned around. Maybe he was kind of bummed to know that he’d never see this guy again, but he’d wake up in the morning and move on. There would always be another body to tumble into the next time he turned around to scratch this particular itch.

~

Several years later, past the band breaking up, past numerous auditions and brief stints as frontman for other groups that never really seemed to stick, after getting over the crushing reality of defeat and admitting to himself that he’d never be able to get his voice to go as heavy as he wanted, Pickles tapped the creased business card Nathan had given him on the edge of the desk and said, “So. . . . Hey.”

“Hi,” Charles replied blandly. His hairline was showing signs of beginning a slow retreat, there were lines around his mouth and eyes that hadn’t been there before, and he looked very professional and joyless in his gray suit and power tie, but it was definitely him. “So. You, ah, have a new band now.”

“Yep.” Pickles tapped the card on the desk again. It had been a very long time since he’d wondered any time he’d seen the name Charles or any of the variations if it would turn out to be that Charles. . . . Honestly, he’d probably only done it for a few weeks before the booze and drugs had washed away any certainty that he’d even remembered the name right. He definitely hadn’t walked into this appointment with a potential manager for the newly formed Dethklok expecting this blast from the past. 

“And you’re . . . not the frontman.” 

That wasn’t phrased as a question, so Pickles just shrugged. “Yeah, that’s Nathan. He’s the one who called. He’d’ve come, but he had work today, so, y’know. Here I am.” He shrugged again. “I’m the drummer.”

“I, ah, see.” Charles wrote something on his steno pad. It was, upon craning very unsubtly to see, the words Pickles the Drummer. “Nathan didn’t, ah, mention that over the phone.”

“Yeah, he’s not real chatty. Good guy though.” Pickles saw the faintest hint of questioning look and felt a sudden, uncharacteristic surge of embarrassed defensiveness over, essentially, nothing. “Not that he’s, I mean, we aren’t, no way, uh, no.” 

Fuck, he regretted ever learning how to talk as a kid. But he’d never been stuck in a conversation with someone who had this particular dirt on him before—even though, technically, he had the same dirt on Charles. The 90’s were almost less forgiving of that shit than the 80’s had been, in their own way. Anxious and fidgety, Pickles  started patting his pockets, looking for cigarettes or something. 

Charles put his pen down with a sigh and took off his glasses, studiously wiping them with a handkerchief. They hadn’t seemed dirty a second ago. 

“Pickles. . . . If you’re worried about, ah, my discretion, I can assure you that I am a professional. We don’t have to discuss our, ah, shared. . . . The fact that we’ve met before. With your band mates, or even with each other, unless you chose to do so. Either way, you can consider that information, ah, confidential.” The handkerchief disappeared into a pocket, and Charles put his glasses back on. “And I, ah, hope that you would do me the same courtesy. Particularly if I do become Dethklok’s manager.”

There the damn smokes were. Pickles tugged the squashed, mostly empty pack out of his back pocket, but paused in the middle of shaking one out as the words sank in. “. . . Wait, you really wanna manage us?”

“Of course. The demo tape you sent me showed a huge amount of promise, especially considering it wasn’t recorded professionally.”

“Damn right it wasn’t,” Pickles scoffed, jamming the cigarette in his mouth and distractedly resuming his self-frisking, this time for a lighter. “Had to record it on a fuckin’ two year old Talkboy that Magnus stole from his niece. Thing’s a piece of shit. Where’d I fuckin’ put—”

A flick of a lighter snagged his attention, and he glanced up to see Charles holding one, already lit. It was one of the windproof ones, matte black and heavy looking. Metal, Pickles thought, and leaned forward to touch the tip of his cigarette to the lick of flame, wondering idly if it was monogrammed. He tried to remember if they’d smoked anything that night, but came up blank and felt . . . weirdly disappointed in himself for not knowing.

“You want one?” he asked, and hoped he sounded casual instead of probing. 

Charles shook his head. “No, I don’t smoke, I just, ah, just work with a lot of people who do.”

Pickles sat back, taking a deep drag and sighing out smoke. It was strange how this encounter was making him a little nostalgic—or maybe just making him stupid. Sure, that one night stand still stood out in his memory as the best sex he’d ever had, but it had only been one night. They didn’t actually know each other, probably didn’t have anything in common. In the space of this one meeting they’d probably exchanged more words than they had back then. But. . . . 

There was something about Charles, even older. Even in that boring suit. A flicker of something—subdued interest, maybe?—dancing behind the flame as he’d conscientiously offered to light Pickles’ cigarette. 

He hadn’t felt the itch for a while, but something about Charles suddenly had him itching like crazy. 

“. . . Okay then, chief. We need a manager, you want to manage us, sounds like a good deal to me.” Pickles took a long drag on his cigarette and then smirked, one he knew for a fact was particularly winning. Just because the wristbands he had on now were black, his hair was tamped down into dreadlocks and his goatee long shaved off, and his jeans were loose enough to give his balls some room to breathe, that didn’t mean he couldn’t still live a little. 

After all, he didn’t have any stage make-up on. That made him, for the moment, just some dude. And Charles, well . . . he could clearly keep a secret. It didn’t mean anyone would find out. 

Pickles leaned forward, resting both elbows on the edge of Charles’ desk as he said, “Why don’t you tell me what you like about my music?”