#they are eternal besties fight me

[merlinmylove]

How Sir Leon and Merlin became friends

It’s back in season 1-2 and Sir Leon is on patrol with the Prince and the other knights.

He hears and sees Merlin talk rudely and loudly to his highness, breaking all sorts of decorum, flirting with another knight, (surprisingly Sir Kay doesn’t seem to mind) and spending most of his time feeding the horses treats instead of attending to his duties.

(“There you are horsies, some nice crisp apples for you — I know I know, it’s awfully rude of Arthur to drag you out here in the cold, I hate him too”)

Once they return back to the castle he writes his usual report on the events; cataloging how many bandits they fought, how many lives or equipment lost, who got injured and who took charge. The usual.

He included a simple note on Merlin’s behaviour, and hoped it would be subtle enough that the Prince would take matters into his own hand, and make Merlin stop embarrassing himself and the Prince in the future.

He hands the report over for Arthur to proof read before officially filing it with the other reports. Sir Leon had, perhaps foolishly, thought the prince would appreciate his notice of Merlin’s behaviour but instead Arthur tears the report in half and orders him to:

“Write it again and dont mention Merlin. If you have a problem with him, you come to me. Any slight on his character is a slight to mine, do you understand? He has my absolute trust”

Sir Leon doesn’t understand, not yet anyways.

But nevertheless, he writes a near similar report, no mention of any servants this time around, and His Highness accepts it and files it with the rest.

Over the next few months he tires to observe Merlin and his behaviour around the prince. Just as a precaution! After all, the safety and wellbeing of the Heir to the throne lies with him as knight commander and closest friend.

He notices that Merlin is always the last one to go the bed and the first one up. He singlehanded does all the chores Arthur sets him, even the ones that are beneath him in station, and really is just an embarrassing punishment set by Arthur.

For the godssake they have multiple stable hands and errand boys, Merlin should not be mucking out the horses and running around the castle fetching Arthur’s things.

He seems to sneak out at night to walk an hour to the lake and chat to a woman who lives in it. Leon hides in the bushes as he watch Merlin rant about Arthur’s smelly socks to an apparent goddess.

Merlin is everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Helping Gaius and the citizens of the lower town, teaching the young stable boys how to count and write, mending Arthur’s torn clothes, brewing his tea and cooking his food, carrying buckets of water all by himself up ten flights of stairs, changing his bedsheets and polishing his armour.

Leon found himself wondering how the young boy stay so cheerful and kind whilst being so overworked? Does he ever have time to eat or sleep?

But then one night while on guard, Sir Leon would come to truly understanding Merlin. He hears hushed and harsh whisperings around the corner to the royal hall, so he draws his sword and peers around to listen.

It seem Merlin has cornered Lady Celia, and is blocking her path to the Princes chambers.

“Just give the flask to me, and I will tell no one” He demands in a tone of voice Leon had never heard from him before.

“I don’t answer to you, servant! Let me pass, or I shall scream. Then you will see what happens when you try to stop me” Leon didn’t need to see her face to know that she was smirking at him.

“Scream all you want, I don’t care. Arthur will belive me, and I doubt the King will be happy to hear how you tried to poison his son”

“It’s not poison! It’s simply —“

“A lust draft, yes I know. I recognise the colour and fragrance. You bought it three days ago from the traveling merchants. I saw you”

“Oh I see…the little servant fancies himself a spymaster. Stay out of this, or I will make your life a living hell” She sounded entirely too confident and it was starting to grate on Sir Leon’s nerves.

“Doubt you can make it any worse than what Arthur already does” Merlin mumbled, mostly to himself before continuing in a cold levelheaded voice;

“Your plan of seducing the prince and forcing him to marry you out of honour and obligation is disgraceful. I know you’re upset he didn’t dance with you at the winter feast last year — yes I noticed that too! But this is not the way to go about romance. A lust potion will be easily discovered by Gaius and your neck will be on the line. Hand it to me, and I will make sure this never happened”

Leon tightened his grip on his sword as he heard Merlin’s words. To think that someone had planned to accost His Highness tonight and Leon had no idea! He felt shame build up inside him. Lady Cecil’s voice drew him back into focus.

“Oh shut up little cretin! You’re nothing but a lowly servant, who in their right mind would believe your words over that of a Duchess? Your words mean nothing” She sneered.

Sir Leon had heard enough and decided to make his presence known. As he turned around the corner he held his sword drawn.

“But mine does. The King and Prince will belive me when I tell them what happened here tonight.”

Lady Celia drops the flask and it shatters upon impact. A strong aroma of roses and marsipan fills the corridor. She looks ashen and starts shaking.

Merlin on the other hand looks pleasantly surprised at his entrance. His body completely relaxed where he’s stood guarding Arthur’s door. Where the hell are the guards?! Did she get them too, Leon wondered for a second, but he had more pressing concerns at the moment.

“Besides, Merlin is not just a servant, he is the personal servant of the Crown Prince. Furthermore he is well trusted by all the knights and staff. And if you wish to go by social standing and birth…my word as Earl of Blackhall, and Knight Commander of Camelots army trumps yours.”

Merlin allowed a little smile at that.

“Now, if you will follow me my lady, I shall ensure this ends better than it would’ve had you tried to entrap the prince tonight.” It was an order and she knew it.

Lady Celia hmpft and walked ladylike over to him, carefully stepping over the broken glass, and potion soaking the stone floor.

He took her arm, and held it tight. Leon tried to conceal any further disgust with her as he turned to Merlin and asked him to gather as much of the potion as he could. “It will be needed as evidence. And please clean of up afterwards — I’d rather no one else falls under any enchantment”

“Yes, Sir Leon” Merlin said faintly, nodding his head at the older knight.

“And you’d better wake His Highess and alert him” At this simple request Merlin groaned and dropped any sense of dignity and respect.

Kicking his feet in a childlike manner he moaned “Ugh, why can’t you do that? He hates being woken up, and I would know because I wake him up every morning. He’s such an ass when he’s sleepy!”

Sir Leon grimaced as he was all too familiar with Arthur’s morning grumpiness. There’s a reason he always asked someone else to do it. Still, he had to feign some level of decorum.

“Merlin! That is an order. Fetch His Highness and tell him what you discovered. I shall bring Lady Celia to the council chambers and alert the King”

“Alright alright” Merlin huffed and hung his head. “But if he throws something me again, I will say I told you so!”

From this day on, Leon never once doubted Merlin’s character or loyalty towards his prince. He knew that he had finally found a man whom he could trust completely around Arthur…even if he was always late with breakfast.

[arolesbianism]

Time for more eternal gales isat au, this time featuring Sier as Isabeau, creating a sprite I can never use next to Aris’ because despite my best efforts it would make them look tall

[boomerang109]

guys i did it again

[flovverworks]

(person who thought about the flores brother a second too long and received critical dmg) ughhhh read....promise...of wizard...

[youreverydayfangirl]

afterglow

pairing: charles leclerc x australian! reader

summary: y/n made a rash decision, or in which charles fights for his girl

warning: age gap relationship, hate, teeniest angst to fluff

a/n: pt 3 guyss

find pt 1 here and pt 2 here!!!

yourusername has posted

liked by charlesleclerc, francisca.cgomes and 8, 987, 374 others

yourusername WONDERLAND TOUR is officially a wrap guysss

francisca.cgomes my bestie is so talented and gorgeous

→ yourusername francisca.cgomes STOP I LOVE YOU SO MUCH

→ yourusername I CANT WAIT TO SEE YOU AGAIN

→ user1 your honor i love them

charlesleclerc so proud of you

→ yourusername thank you charles

→ user2 PARENTS

oliviarodrigo NEW MUSIC WHEN

→ yourusername oliviarodrigo SSHH

→ user2 WHAT DO YOU KNOW

user2 and people said she was a gold digger when she already has MILLIONS

user3 i miss her and charles so much

user4 charles in the likes i see 👀

user5 he still wants her so bad omg

user5 and people said she was the obsessed one

user6 CHARLES COMMENT OMG

user7 no cause she started single, they started dating, got engaged and broke up all during this tour

→ user8 STOPPP

yourusername has posted

liked by charlesleclerc, francisca.cgomes and 6, 798 365 others

yourusername girls trip w my fav w @ francisca.cgomes

tagged: francisca.cgomes

francisca.cgomes tea was spily not only metaphorically but literally

→ yourusername francisca.cgomes STOPPP YOU SAID YOU WOULDNT TELL

→ francisca.cgomes i lied

→ yourusername traitor

→ francisca.cgomes hehe

→ user1 you should pay for her therapy francisca.cgomes

liked by creator

→ user2 girl what tea 👀☕

→ francisca.cgomes steaming hot tea

→ yourusername francisca.cgomes SHUT UP

charlesleclerc gorgeous

→ user3 get me a man that pines for me the way charles does for y/n

→ user4 word its been months

yourusername has posted

liked by charlesleclerc, pierregasly and 9, 287, 637 others

yourusername life recently

tagged: francisca.gomes, lilymhe, oliviarodrigo

francisca.cgomes shoulde put the photo in where you stacked it

→ yourusername francisca.cgomes wow i see how it is

lilymhe i missed you on the grid

→ yourusername ME TOOO

oliviarodrigo hehehe im excited

→ yourusername same omg

→ user1 WHAT IS IT TELL MEEEE

charlesleclerc the most beautiful girl ever

pierregasly i heard that charlesleclerc saved 55 orphans from a burning building

landonorris charlesleclerc bought everyone on the grid a free round

carlossainz55 charlesleclerc let me drive his new car.

maxverstappen1 charlesleclerc saved my cat from a tree the other day

lewishamilton charlesleclerc babysits roscoe all the time for me

oscarpiastri charlesleclerc payed for my tuition. thanks dad.

loganseargant charlesleclerc saved me from a cricket

alexalbon charlesleclerc saved my dog the other day. hes a good man savannah.

georgerussell ohhhhh

→ carmenmmundt 🤦‍♀️

georgerussell charlesleclerc bought me a new ferrari

user2 what is going on in the house of commons

yourusername has posted two stories

caption 1 a bit heavy

caption 2 feeling pretty spoilt

liked by charlesleclerc, landonorris and 654, 786 others

landonorris maybe he does have game

pierregasly that works aswell ig

charlesleclerc mon amor

yourusername i love you so much you don't even understand

charlesleclerc no one will ever even begin to understand how much i love you

charlesleclerc i need you more than oxygen

yourusername has posted one story

caption 1: if you know you know

liked by charlesleclerc, francisca.cgomes and 567, 897 others

charlesleclerc i can't wait to see you today

yourusername me to my love

francisca.cgomes your stunning omfg

yourusername STOPP ITT

yourusername has posted

liked by charlesleclerc, francisca.cgomes and 15, 678, 892 others

yourusername i heard he saved 55 orphans from a burning building

tagged: charlesleclerc

pierregasly charlesleclerc i told you it would work

→ charlesleclerc it didnt

→ pierregasly sure it didn't

charlesleclerc my eternal sunshine

→ yourusername i love you so much stop it

yourusername has posted

liked by charlesleclerc, oliviarodrigo and 20, 485, 383 others

yourusername i'm excited to annouce that my third album afterglow comes out next thursday guysss. this album was along time coming and it has been pieced together in a story for you guys to fully understed my perspective over the past two years. from heartbreak, to peace, to understanding what true love feels like. the title track 'afterglow' will feature oliviarodrigo much love you guys.

yourusername pinned

the tracklist:

you're losing me, this is me trying, i hate it here, illicit affairs, the prophecy, loml, the black dog, bye, guilty as sin?, begin again, so highschool, dancing with our hands tied, so american, king of my heart, you are in love, call it what you want, daylight, but daddy i love him, afterglow ft olivia rodrigo, paper rings, lover, timeless, the manuscript

charlesleclerc pov you've already heard the songs

→ youusername pov you should shut up

francisca.cgomes so excited

liked by creator

oliviarodrigo it was an amazing experience getting to collab with you

liked by creator

_______________

a/n: happy ending!!! also i will probably end up doing a pt4 at some point with wedding fluff.

[lets-try-some-writing]

Shortstack to Brickhouse

Jazz had endless fun making Orion run after him before the war. Unfortunately for him, Optimus has taken it upon himself to pay back the vorns of runs through Iacon.

(This is going to be part one for a series methinks. We shall see.)

━━━━━━ ⊙ ❖ ⊙ ━━━━━━━━━━━━

"There's a bar this way that I enjoy. Best engex in Iacon." Orion, looking more than a little winded, huffed as he all but sprinted to keep up with Jazz's strides. The archivist's vents flared as he ran along, his fans running on their highest setting in an attempt to follow Jazz along the purposefully convoluted path.

Any potential guilt he might have felt for forcing the far shorter mech to tail him was smothered behind amusement. Orion hardly left the archives, and when he did leave, he usually just took the train. Jazz's logic was simple. He took his bestie for a walk in order to get him to move for once, and in return, said bestie got a treat at the end of the trip.

"How far is it?" Orion managed to choke out a question in-between frantic venting. The poor mech hardly reached Jazz's hips. Every step Jazz took was four or five to the smaller bot, a fact that he found eternally amusing during their outings.

"Just a few city districts." Jazz had to fight back a snort as Orion all but deflated, his optics wide in distress.

"A few districts? Jazz, it can take me joors just to get through one!" Orion's exclamation was one that had been repeated many times over their various trips. He never stopped being dramatic, especially when forced to be active for once. It didn't matter that Jazz had been slowly working Orion into taking longer and longer trips. The archivist was agitated regardless.

And it was hilarious.

"Then we better be moving quickly, Rion! Otherwise we'll miss out on the bar!" Orion made a sound that bordered on a wail as he increased his pace in order to match Jazz's casual jog. His shorter companion straddled the line between being categorized as a minicon and a small civilian frame. It showed in his every step, especially with his frantic sprinting.

The only reason Orion wasn't legally registered as a minicon at all was due to the lack of rights for such frame types. It had taken more than a little effort on Orion's part to prove himself worthy of being listed as a normal civilian instead. But secretly, Jazz was pretty sure Orion was some flavor of minicon all the same, if only because he was built like a brick despite being on the taller end for such frame types.

Not that he was going to tell Orion that, of course. Orion was rather touchy when it came to his height, a fact Jazz abused on the regular.

"Come on shortstack!" Jazz laughed as Orion almost tripped over his pedes in an attempt to keep up. The archivist threw a middle digit in his direction, a scowl on his face as his frame steamed.

"I'm going… to shove you… onto a train… track." Orion wheezed out between erratic venting. His optics blazed with anger that Jazz had only ever seen directed at him while on similar trips. He liked seeing Orion all riled up. If he was pissed off when they got to the bar, he'd be far more fun than he would have been otherwise.

Angry Orion made a great drinking buddy, unlike calm Orion, who would chat the audial off the nearest bot, likely to rant about his favorite philosophical topics. Jazz shivered at the memory of Orion's last composed trip to the bar. Jazz had fallen into recharge in his seat watching Orion preach to some poor spark who got wrapped up in conversation with him. Yeah, he'd take his chances with angry Orion any cycle if it meant his bestie would actually be interesting outside of his work.

"You can try, Rion! If you can catch me, that is!" Grinning, Jazz gave Orion only a nano-klik to gather himself before he broke into a proper sprint. As he ran, he laughed and gleefully listened to Orion's screech of outrage.

Sooner or later, Orion would give up and resort to his alt-mode to try and keep up. It would dig at the smaller mech's sense of pride, only serving to make him more upset. This particular trip was long too. Jazz was betting at least twenty shanix on Orion being absolutely livid when they got to the bar.

Primus, he couldn't wait.

----

"We have an inspection to perform. Please follow me." Optimus, still reading a datapad, tapped Jazz on the shoulder to stir him from his defrag. He reset his optics to rid himself of any lingering lethargy before standing up with a stretch. His spinal struts popped as he did so, earning a groan of relief as he fell into step with his friend turned Prime.

Gone was the archivist who could barely ride most attractions even if he were to be allowed into Six Lasers. Now there stood a towering giant who dwarfed Jazz and most of everyone else by at least three or four heads. It was a lot to take in.

"Righty Rion! Lead the way!" Before the words even formulated fully, Optimus was already striding forward with newfound grace. Jazz adjusted his visor, processing just how fast Optimus was moving at a casual walk of all things. But he quickly got himself back in order and hurried after his friend and leader.

He had to jog just to keep up, a fact that he noted with a hint of surprise as Optimus didn't bother to slow down as he usually did with others he brought with him for whatever reason. Jazz didn't mind the extra effort it took to keep moving, but he did file the chance in behavior away for later. Was Optimus feeling alright?

Optimus led the way out of the Citadel, guiding Jazz through all sorts of back roads that the Primacy would faint seeing their Prime walk down. The path was meandering and wild, with no coordination that Jazz could pick out. Even more strange than that, Jazz could have sworn Optimus was picking up his pace. He didn't look like he was moving all that quickly. His every stride was graceful, weight perfectly distributed. Compared to him, Jazz was starting to feel a burn in his legs as he forced himself to move faster just to keep up.

"Where are we going? This isn't a path I know." Jazz called out, but he was met with a contemplative hum instead of a real answer. Optimus hadn't even looked up from his datapad, almost as if the path and the brutal pace didn't bother him in the slightest.

"Military installation 43B." Optimus finally spoke up as they rounded a corner. The moment Jazz registered what was being said, he skidded to a halt and stared at Optimus in horror.

"That's on the other side of Iacon!" Optimus, slag him, turned around slowly. As he did, Jazz found his spark sinking as he noted a smug grin on the Prime's face.

"That it is. But I'm sure if we move quickly, we can still arrive in time for the inspection I scheduled." Optimus returned back to his datapad, his pace absolutely picking up as he started into a casual hustle. Jazz scrambled to keep up, having to sprint to make up the difference as Optimus laughed.

"If you can keep up, that is." Oh that slagger.

"Rion!" Jazz lamented his every life decision as Optimus continued on his merry way, settling into a slow run that left Jazz throwing all the power in his frame into running as fast as he possibly could.

Slag it all. The Matrix may have made him bigger, but it hadn't made him any less Orion.

[vroomvroomwee]

"Now that's one form of magic that's definitely not gonna work on me." (

"So many parts. Hardly used."

"Well, there we are then." "I can come?" (He says only AFTER Donna made it VERY clear, she's not interested in him in that way)

"I was gonna be with you forever." "I know" (is it normal to spend eternity with your bestie and both be allo?)

*Insert every instance where Rose and the Doctor hug after being on the brink of death instead of having a typical kiss like typical romance couples*

Also, the ENTIRE fourth season is two idiots in a QPR. Fight me

[zae-heeyyy]

Stelliferous

Summary: You stargaze with Arthur. Pairing: Arthur Morgan x female!reader Word count: 1,353 Tags: fluff, shy, high honor Arthur Warnings: no warnings, enjoy the fluff.

a/n: Just a little something I thought of when I found this camp. Plus, I really wanted to draw a constellation. Fun fact, the game has accurate constellations, and Orion is one of them! I had a lot of fun reading about Orion mythology for this one. And TYSM to my tumblr bestie @littlemistey for helping me get the journal entry just right!

stelliferous: filled with stars or bearing stars, often used to describe a visibly starry night.

As everyone went about their business for the night, you headed to a deserted clearing just beyond camp and sat on the ground. You loved sitting alone, getting lost in the stars and the tales that went with them. Just as you were settling down, the snap of a twig alerted you to someone else's presence. The stars had aligned perfectly for you that night, putting you and Arthur in the same place at the same time.

You rose and looked around, spotting the cowboy leaning against a tree. If it were anybody else, you'd be annoyed, but seeing him there made your heart flutter in all the good ways. You loved looking at him just as much as you loved looking up at the stars. But the stars didn't make you weak in the knees at the sight of them or make you laugh until your stomach hurt. But just like the stars, Arthur always felt so out of reach.

"Things're really goin' downhill back there if a lady would rather sleep in the grass than in her tent," he said. His face was neutral, but you could see a playful glint in his eyes. You hugged your knees to your chest and tried to hide your shyness.

"Oh, hey Arthur, I was just––"

He held out a halting hand and tipped his head.

"I was just jokin, miss. I know what it's like to want some peace and quiet." He pushed himself off the tree and gave a two-finger wave. "Anyway, I won't disturb you."

You spoke out before he could leave. "It's no trouble, Arthur." You turned away from him and cranked your neck to the sky. "Y'ever wonder if it's just us out here?" It wasn't a question you expected him to answer. You were just thinking aloud. He didn't respond for a long moment but sauntered towards you, his boots appearing in your peripheral.

"I don't do much thinkin'."

You turned to glance at him again, shaking your head.

"Oh, hush, Arthur Morgan. We all know you do more thinkin' than any other fool around here."

You could tell he was fighting hard to keep the frown on his face from curving upward.

"That ain't saying much." He chuckled on his exhale, then, with a grunt, sat down beside you. "This whatchu' always doing out here? Just—" he gestured to the sky, "—looking up?"

"Don't knock it til you try it, Arthur." A soft smile formed on your face, and you waited expectantly. He quirked an eyebrow, then put his hands behind his head and laid back. A satisfied grin crossed your face, and you dropped down, too.

You spent the rest of the night pointing out stars and constellations to Arthur, sharing all the stories you knew about them. An hour crept by before a yawn escaped you. Arthur didn't show it, but your departure was the last thing he wanted. With one arm still behind his head and the other slung across his stomach, he kept his eyes trained on the sky above.

He was hooked—not on the stars, but on you. Then and there, he realized he could spend eternity on the ground, captivated by the rise of pitch in your voice when you got excited and how your eyes crinkled at the corners when your smile stretched from ear to ear.

From that night, Arthur used stargazing as his excuse to be near you, sometimes sitting so close to you that your shoulders rubbed when you pointed upward. Once, you turned to ask him a question and noticed him staring at you instead of the sky.

"It's impolite to stare, Mr. Morgan." His expression faltered, and he opened his mouth in a stuttering attempt to damage control.

He didn't need to be ashamed, though; you'd felt his eyes on you many times before. He admired you like you admired the stars, and knowing that sent waves of adoration through you.

Arthur caught up with you another evening just as you were finishing dinner. Golden sunlight reflected on his face as he glanced down at his feet, clutching his hat between his fingers. He reached nervously towards your hand, thought too hard, and placed it back on his hat. He started to speak, his words low and careful.

"Got somethin' to show you—somethin' I found— if you'll ride with me?"

You suppressed a building laugh, trying to save him further embarrassment. It tickled you that someone as audacious as him could be made so flustered by the likes of you. Your amusement was well hidden, and you reached for his hand, giving it a squeeze.

"It's about time you asked me on a ride, Mr. Morgan." He nodded and placed his hat back on his head, the brim shielding the building smile on his face. He walked you to his horse. He got on first and held a strong arm down to pull you up.

The two of you road down the Heartlands, across the Dakota River, and through Bard's Crossing. He slowed when you approached a hill outside Lone Mule Stead. Arthur helped you off the horse with one hand, keeping hold until you stood in front of a campsite that overlooked the Upper Montana River and beyond. The site was breathtaking; you could make out the lights of Blackwater, boats on the water, and the expansive night sky in all its glory. Just to the side of the spot stood a small brass telescope. When you finally saw it, your eyes widened, and you met Arthur's, your mouth agape.

"Found this out here the other day," he gestured towards it, beckoning you.

"Oh, Arthur," you ran your fingers across the smooth brass cylinder. You shook your head in slow incredulity. "I've never seen one in person, only seen 'em in books."

Arthur removed the cap on the end, letting it swing on its chain. He nodded toward the viewing device again, and you walked around to the lens, bending to look through it.

"I hope it's everything you read about, miss." His voice was comforting, like the soft rumble of distant thunder. Breathless, you pressed your eye to the lens, and a speckled blanket of black engulfed your vision. Truthfully, the stars were the same as always, but knowing Arthur had curated this moment, just for you, made the night sky more beautiful than ever. When you were done taking it in, you stood to see Arthur watching you from a few feet away. You approached the crate he was sitting on, your hands outstretched and reaching for his.

"Thank you, really," you said. The gunslinger stood and accepted your hands, his lips pressed together tightly as if opening his mouth would betray him. His eyes were strictly focused on your clasped hands. Surely, if his mouth would betray him, his eyes would too.

"Arthur." His name coming off your lips so endearingly could kill him. He finally looked up, his mouth falling open to speak, but you didn't give him the chance. You rose on your toes, your lips crashing against his hurriedly. When he finally realized what was happening, his shoulders fell relaxed, and he wrapped two arms around your waist, pulling you into him. Your mouths moved in sync with each other's until you pulled away for air. Heat had built up in his face, and you saved him the trouble of hiding his blush by wrapping your arms around him tight.

As breathtaking as it was, you forwent the telescope for the rest of the night, opting to wrap yourself in Arthur's arms instead. You pointed up at a line of bright stars.

"See those three? That's Orion's Belt."

"Orion?" he asked, saying the name as if it were a foreign language.

"Orion. He was a hunter—a big and strong one. They say he was a bit of a drunk brute, too. He reminds me of someone." You didn't need to peel your eyes away from the warrior in the sky to feel the warmth of the one right next to you, a knowing, gentle smile on his lips.

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL - I Still On1y Care About...

Organized, in each category, with ones I'm enjoying most at the top.

Sept 2024 Week 1

Ongoing Series - Thai

Monster Next Door (Thai Thurs Gaga ) eps 7 of 12 - Deeeelightful. They are so damn cute + a nice kiss! The rise of the green flag semes continues. I like it when Diew flirts and shows that he does have some experience in a relationship, and he can/will flex his power. Props to God for being a man who remembers to TAKE HIS DRINK with him. 

Addicted Heroin (Thai Tues WeTV) ep 4 of 10 - Yep I still like it and all its toxicity. It’s fun to see how closely it follows the original. Now I really can’t wait to see how this one ends. Since this time around we get an actual ending.

Battle of the Writers (Sun YT) ep 6 of 12 - How did they know that what I wanted more than anything was a side couple = spoiled prince + demon lord? How clever they are to give them to me. Meanwhile, in a shocking twist, the leads have known each other since childhood. Because why be original? 

I Saw You in My Dream (Weds Gaga) ep 8 of 12 - Oh it’s very cute. I love Ing. I love that Ai was honest with his bestie. Best friend's older brother trope is a go! Also good kisses all round. 

Kidnap (Fri YT) ep 1 of 12 - Ohm has his shirt off less than 5 min in. I guess GMMTV is learning what we want. My boy Title is the creep character again. I’m assuming that’s why GMMTV brought him on board at this juncture. Sigh. New boy, Q, looks like Mek’s younger brother. Ultimately? I'm not convinced on this one. It is doing what it says on the tin, but nothing more than that. I’m not wild about it, but I will keep watching.

The Trainee (Sun YT) ep 10 of 12 - The more OffGun BLs, the more time they spend communicating as characters in those BLs. It’s kind of charming. They've become the pair that advocates for communication in relationships. I like it as evolution for their brand. Flirting via the printer was very fun. Especially as the Thai script is so beautiful.

Live in Love (Sun Gaga) ep 1 of 5 - I guess this is a lockdown narrative? Odd choice. A lot of familiar faces but from more minor rolls. Is this from the Destiny Seeker people? It feels like that. It’s a bigger cast than I was expecting, and a sort of classic university BL of the kind star Hunter produces. Or the end of love people. Pretty classic Thai pulp stuff. I’m mildly enjoying it. Hali is too hot to be the dorky second lead. Nice to see Boat back on my screen. However, it is… what’s the word I am looking for? Oh yes. Boring. Plus singing. 

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

The On1y One (Taiwan Thurs Gaga) eps 5-6 of 12 - I entirely lost my mind over this show this week. Fuck me it's so good. The delicacy sends me. I keep expecting it to be clumsy and then is just isn't - it's so subtle and it demands we pay such close attention. I feel like I'm holding my breath the whole time I'm watching.

Cliff's notes on these 2 eps as follows:

The pure unadulterated tsundere of it all.

The awesome angst, it aches.

The series of repercussions after the fight was pacing genius.

The brilliant juxtaposition of "the kid who self isolates too easily" versus "the one who has been forced into isolation" meets both of them being smart enough to know why they react out of hurt, but neither can stop doing it.

Baby’s reaction to learning he’s going to be left behind = to instantly make plans to do the leaving in the future hurts my heart in the best possible way.

"Maybe what we call eternity is just persistence."

Maybe one boy simply deciding to be another boy's rock is romance. 

Production better nail the second half of this show! It better be the world against them from here on out or the audience is gonna riot.

And by "audience" I mean me.

Sugar Dog Life (Japan Sun grey) ep 5 of 10 - Oh noes! Poor baby boy!!! My heart hurts. But also gah so cute and next week they shack up together! Hooray! 

I Hear the Sunspot AKA Hidamari ga Kikoeru (Japan Weds Gaga) ep 11 - too much time spent on the girl again. I don’t need excuses for why she’s a bitch. So can we talk about Taichi instead? It’s such a good characterization, this boy who understands everything about other people but doesn’t notice anything about himself, including his own abilities of observation. The person who is special never realizes how special they are, I guess. The soundscapes are so good with this show. The moments where prod decided to be silent are so vital and so pivotal and used with such delicacy and strategy, it’s truly audio magic manipulation.  

First Note Of Love (Taiwan Mon Gaga) eps 7-8 of 12 - I loved how Orca just jumped on the stage. What a great side couple. CHARMED I TELL YOU. Orca was all… singing? Naw. I came back to fuck the manager's brains out. Anything less than that is unacceptable. 

Takara's Treasure AKA Takara No Vidro (Japan Mon Gaga) ep 10 fin - Essentially this was a growth story for Takara and an exercise in patience while the two of them learned each other’s quirks and languages. It was also an exercise in patience for me... who doesn’t like the power differential of a weaker younger character having to do all the pursuing while constantly feeling like he is inferior to the older popular hot character. I know this was a BL that was definitely for some people, since plenty liked it way more than I did, but I didn’t like it very much even though there’s nothing objectively wrong with it. It simply wasn’t to my personal taste. 7/10 

Seoul Blues (Korea Fri? YouTube) ep 5-6 of 8 - Enter an ex or something? Well he certainly has a type. Bah. This whole series seems to be mainly about cheating. It’s very annoying because they are all so pretty. 

Happy of the End (Japan Tues Gaga) - Based on a manga, longer than usual run time. A boy is disowned for being gay, dumped by his boyfriend, and ends up in a dysfunctional co-dependant relationship with his would-be kidnapper. We were due for another messy JBL. Messy gay pain here we go.

Oh it’s exactly what I expected. Do I like it? No I do not. And ya know what? There is plenty airing. I have a bad feeling about this one. DNF 

It's airing but...

4 Minutes (Sat Gaga) eps 1-6 of 8 - Gaga picked this one up so we can watch it there. I'm waiting until the end, it seems angsty and confusing and full of awful people being awful. But also... high heat and I'm shallow. So we shall see which devil wins (and how it ends).

The Hidden Moon (Sat ????) ep 1 of 10 - This is a supernatural romance (my ghost boyfriend trope) ‘เดือนพราง’ by Violet Rain (I Feel You Linger)... A Bangkok writer is hired to write an article about an old mansion in Chiang Mai which is being converted into a café. He gets into an accident and nearly dies on his way there. After that, he sees the ghosts of people who died at the mansion, one boy catches his attention. Was substantially recast. Couldn't find it. Didn't really look.

In case you missed it

Meet You at the Blossom (China) - I'm eating crow, binging the fucker, and live blogging. It's just taking me some time. This isn't really a bingable show, not for me anyway. It's A LOT to take all at once. No new one this week.

Next Week Looks Like This:

Plus:

9/9 Jack & Joker (Thai Mon IQIYI) 12 eps? - Be gay YinWar, do crimes. Dehup gives us Yin, War, Mark and a few other familiar faces in a Leverage sitch, only queerer.

9/14 Love Sick 2024 (Thai Sat ????) ?? eps - Remake of the original. I'm scared too.

9/15 Bad Guy My Boss (Thai Sun Gaga) 10 eps - Assistant to a player boss who is in love with that boss decides to quit to save himself. The boss then makes a move. (A gay What's up with Secretary Kim?)

Upcoming BLs for 2024 are listed here. This list is not kept updated, so please leave a comment if you know something new or RP with additions.

Coming SEPTEMBER 2024:

9/17 Love is Like a Poison AKA Doku Koi: Doku mo Sugireba Koi to Naru (Japan Tues Netflix?) 10 eps - Lawyer and a con artist meet at a bar, pair up, fall in love.

9/28 Teenager Judge (Vietnam Sat YouTube) ?? eps - oh I don't know just Ba Vinh doing his thing with pretty boys again.

9/? The Time of Fever (Korea iQIYI) 6 eps - HoTae & DongHee are back! Side couple from Unintentional Love Story, same actors, same character names I an WILD for this.

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

Not sure what this is from but I capped it for a reason so, shrug.

The scent trope AND the childhood crush trope? I see you suckering me into one trope because I like the other. Clever, Battle. Very clever.

(Last week)

Streaming services are listed by how I (usually) watch, which is with a USA based IP, and often offset by a day because time zones are a pain.

The tag BLigade: @doorajar @solitaryandwandering @my-rose-tinted-glasses @babymbbatinygirl @babymbbatinygirl @isisanna-blog @mmastertheone @pickletrip @aliceisathome @urikawa-miyuki @tokillamonger @sunflower-positiiivity @rocketturtle4 @blglplus @anythinggoesintheshire @everlightly @renafire @mestizashinrin @bl-bam-beyond @small-dark-and-delicious @saezurumurmurs

Sigh, Tumblr in its infinite wisdom doesn't like too many at-ings.

[burningcheese-merchant]

If the Beasts/Ancients had signature pokémon (or were pokémon themselves) what do you think they would be? I just know White Lily needs to be a fairy type

Do you have the slightest idea how happy I am to have gotten this ask

Time to flex my encyclopedic knowledge + almost 20 years of playing Pokémon

(Note: gonna stick to just assigning types to them, if that's ok)

A N C I E N T S

Pure Vanilla as a Pokemon: Normal/Psychic (thought of Normal/Fairy, but I thought Psychic may suit him better bc of his magic + the Light of Truth + the association with intelligence/knowledge the Psychic type has always had)

Pure Vanilla as a trainer: The very first Pokemon that came to my mind was Audino. Something about Vanilla says he'd be an Audino guy. I'm not even sure what it is, Blissey would probably be slightly more fitting, but I keep imagining him being besties with an Audino and it's adorable to me

Hollyberry as a Pokemon: Normal/Fighting, I think (or perhaps Fairy/Fighting, because of Fairy's power over and invulnerability towards Dragon)

Hollyberry as a trainer: Hmm... Bastiodon kind of feels like the easy way out tbh. Tinkaton would be funny (but suits Princess a lot better imo). Chesnaught reflects her fighting style and personality pretty well... Chesnaught it is

Dark Cacao as a Pokemon: Dark/Fighting for sure (I considered Dark/Ice as well, but I just can't ignore the Fighting type for him. I feel like I'd be committing a crime if I did. Also, I don't think he's actually from the Great Icing Ridge? It's not super clear, but Might of the Ancients made it seem like he was a traveler from somewhere else. That could perhaps be used as justification for shelving the Ice type for him. (Also also you don't NEED to be Ice-type to live in cold places, plenty of other types seen in snowy biomes in Pokemon)

Dark Cacao as a trainer: Man would be rocking a Kingambit, change my mind

Golden Cheese as a Pokemon: Ground/Flying, duh. (Or maybe Rock/Flying? Ground seems better idk)

Golden Cheese as a trainer: It's hard. There are so many Pokemon that would suit her imo. Sableye. Diancie. Persian (Kantonian or Alolan, doesn't matter). Unfezant (female, the Pokedex repeatedly lists them as superior fliers). But... keeping with the lore of both CRK and Pokemon... I think, after she wakes up and reenters the world, all Golden should have is the one Sigilyph left in the entire desert, who chose to be loyal to her and the kingdom to the very end and beyond

Just want to note that Golden Cheese would be besties with Olivia and you cannot change my mind on that

White Lily as a Pokemon: Grass/Fairy with some Dark-type moves available in her movepool as a nod to her being Dark Enchantress, change my mind

White Lily as a trainer: FLORGES! WHITE FLOWER FORM! RAAAAHHHHHHH

B E A S T S

Shadow Milk as a Pokemon: Dark/Psychic, duh

Shadow Milk as a trainer: this one is tough tbh. Malamar? Banette? Zoroark (Unovan)? Probably Malamar due to its natural malevolence and hypnotism powers tbh (but the other two are so compelling... why did I limit myself to an ace for each of them...). Also, I think he would've had a Slowking as a hero

Eternal Sugar as a Pokemon: leaning towards Fairy/Poison, latter because I've already been imagining her as a succubus of some sort and Poison suits that better (yes I know she has wings, Flying is a basic bitch answer and not all winged Pokemon are classified as Flying-types)

Eternal Sugar as a trainer: Komala is right there... but so is Musharna :/ (lots of "dream eater" Pokemon would suit her probably. Which is funny bc most of those are Ghost-types lol)

Mystic Flour as a Pokemon: Psychic at the very least. Not sure about a second type though... (or just make her Mewtwo from the anime/movies, they've got the same genocidal emo attitude lol)

Mystic Flour as a trainer: Girlie gets an Espeon, the end. (Maybe she knew Jirachi once upon a time)

Burning Spice as a Pokemon: Fire/Fighting (thought of Fire/Dark too, but... same deal as with Cacao, if I didn't add Fighting I'd probably go to jail)

Burning Spice as a trainer: Incineroar Incineroar Incineroar Incineroar Incineroar Incineroar Incineroar- (he'd suck ass as a trainer though, just because I know he'd treat his Pokemon terribly, the same way he mistreats the Wild Spices...)

Silent Salt as a Pokemon: Dark/Steel. Like. Come on lol

Silent Salt as a trainer: Something else that would land me in prison is not giving Salt an Aegislash lol. Or maybe a Bisharp. And a Corviknight. (Perhaps he would have met Cobalion while he was still a hero)

I'M STARTING TO IMAGINE A POKEMON AU NOW. LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO ME. I'VE GOT, LIKE, EIGHT OTHER AUs I'M JUGGLING IN MY HEAD ALREADY. NOW I WANT TO MAKE UP ANGST FOR GOLDIE AND THAT SIGILYPH. WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS

(you can atone for your sins by asking me for full teams for each of these good-for-nothing short stacks)

[faerievampling]

loving the idea (these are just some of my HCs for a soft A!A) that Astarion turned Tav so he could forever have someone to love. Like he created Tav to be loved and held by him. Gave Tav life eternal, made you part of him, for that reason alone. he didn’t create spawn!Tav to fight, or even scheme really (Astarion does all the work) — you literally just sit around Astarion’s palace, eat good, life forever, and party with your gorgeous pale bestie/lover.

that’s also the very first thing he does as the ascendant is turn his lover. He needs Tav/Durge to be his forever.

Astarion doesn’t really know how to love, so he just gives all that he can. I think with time, A!A can grow. Him and Tav’s love and relationship will only evolve, and a soft A!A just wants his consort to be happy. needs his consort to be happy.

You can even run off with Karlach and Astarion is just like “yeah i’ve just been preparing things for when you come back to me” like some kinda nesting bird (once you return to him, you won’t ever leave again. but he spoils you so much you don’t ever want to)

like imagine him decorating the palace with things he thinks Tav will like, or will impress Tav. Having the freshest intelligent blood waiting for them upon their return from the hells.

ugh this is romantic TO ME

[respectthepetty]

Pride Petty Watch (The Untamed) 2/?

The crowd picked two blacklisted shows for me to watch during Pride, so even though the first series took me only three days to get through, the second one is taking some time since I went out this past week and touched some grass for Pride. However, I did watch an episode a day AND spotted something on sale while out and about.

Fun Fact: These are 200 pages EACH, and they only cover what has been shown up until episode five. I teach English, not math, but doing some simple addition, dividing over A, carrying the Y, and solving for X, I have guessed that this series is going to be 20 books long! TWENTY! AT LEAST! Basically, it's going to be as long as this long-ass series.

*presses play on episode six*

These idiots are drunk, loud, and fighting. They are breaking rule #36, #265, and #1. Even I know that!

When you realize you're in love with a virgin who is a light-weight and can't even drive after talking about intimacy while touching his headband. I take back everything I said about this show. It's gay. Like real gay. Gay gay.

Fuddy Duddy is better than me because I would not have taken that beating, but that's probably why he is an elite Cloud Cunt or whatever, and also why he has now been blessed with Wei Wuxian trying to cuddle in this freezing water while talking about his "extremities" shivering. Note: In the comics, we see that Fuddy Duddy is BRANDED (like as in marked by burning the flesh) and has A SHIT TON OF SLASHES ON HIS BACK (like as in whipped . . . BY A FUCKING WHIP). Basically, this Cloud Cult is batshit crazy.

These two are fighting literal demons. But also the demons are homosexuality.

THEY TIED THEMSELVES TOGETHER WITH THE INTIMACY BAND! If it was red, it'd be game over for China!

Y'all cute but your kid is still an asshole, and there is a queer plot brewing. GET OUT OF MY FACE!

They were lesbian lovers, and I will not be entertaining any other reason for all of this because only a lesbian would tie her soul for eternity to a musical instrument just so she doesn't have to admit she was wrong to her wife, while her wife goes on to train the most elite squad of wizards just to one day help her wife because she already predicated her wife would fuck up. This is love.

Correction since my boy asked AGAIN if he could harness evil power for good - One of them is fighting demons, the literal and homosexual kind, and one is embracing them both, openly, with no fucks given.

And she knows! Not about the homosexual part, but about the "finding the stone hidden in the rock" part (but probably the homo part too)

Wei Wuxian lied for you when you got out of the rock. He touched your headband. And now he has touched your soul. Stop fighting it. Embrace this. It's Pride Month.

Wei Wuxian drinks, parties, talks shits, and backs it up. I'm getting flashbacks to Spring Break in South Padre. It was the best of times. It was the worst of times. But the hands were always ready to hit their mark.

My boy is Catholic. Fuddy Duddy took 300 hits earlier to uphold the integrity of his Cloud Cult or whatever, but my boy was told his punishment and is merely going through the motions since he doesn't regret laying hands on his future in-law. He said "tell me how many Hail Marias I need to say, so I can go play with the ants and get a tan." Same.

First, your best friend brought the bird into the class and now you took the bunnies to remind Fuddy Duddy of "those four amazing hours you spent in the hot tub together after Winter Formal." Y'all are schemers, and this will cause problems later. I've taught too many freshmen. Y'all need to be separated before you plot the end of the world and animals have to be sacrificed. I see the signs.

Who is going to kill this man? WHO?! Let it be a woman because he needs to be reminded he is insignificant and useless.

Oh my God, they found each other! I knew my boy would go after his boy, but for his Bird Bestie to spot them too?! These two idiots are going to cause havoc and hijinks.

Y'all are so Romeo and Juliet coded, it hurts my feelings. Girl, you're going to die and he is going to be sad about it. But can you kill that red asshole first? Please.

Sir, now you and I both know some shit is about to go down because that florist's house was crispy fried burnt, that woman outside was creepy as hell, and these two are over there chatting about soul snatchers. GET OUT OF THERE, FD, AND TAKE THE ANIMAL BROS WITH YOU!

FD might have the brains and the silencing charm, but my boy got the moves. He has that Spider Man magic string thing, he has the Shrek gingerbread men, and he keeps making spells out of thin air. Maury, who is his daddy? God?! THE DEVIL?!

SHE CAN PLAY A MUSICAL INSTRUMENT TOO! Hold up. HOLD UP! Fuddy Duddy's brother played it to calm everyone down. FD played his to subdue the zombies. And now she did too, but my boy's flute playing skills not only calmed the zombie, but controlled him. Did he learn it from her?!

Girl, what are you doing at the devil's sacrament?

Wen Qing has been holding off this fucking bird and these zombies all night, and these boys have been doing what at their slumber party? Braiding each other's hair? She better be the one to kill that red asshole. She deserves the body count. *wink, Jiang Cheng*

The bird needed to go, but this is what I'm talking about with him and his bird bestie. Homie closed his eyes and felt his feelings because FD told him to, then pretended to be dead just so he could kill that bird. It's smart as well as scary because how much power does he really possess? A shit ton. That's how much. But also, why didn't they take the dead bird with them? Don't leave behind magical creatures to be brought back to life!

Smart to have the others chase after a chicken, so the color-coded boys in love could get more details, but these two are a hetero version of the mains. She is not bad. She is trying to do good with what she has, which is a pile of shit, and he wants to do right by her but his principles are going to get in the way. I anticipate no happy endings for anyone. Not Romeo and Juliet or Romeo and Julio.

Bird Bestie was smart to stay behind because it was obvious there would be dead bodies, but WHO THE FUCK ARE THESE TWO?! This show is color-coded within an inch of its life, and everyone is a pair because they both have the other's color in their robes, so the fact that the white one showed up first and claimed evil guy was his enemy makes me think they have history (exes), but the new black guy replaced him. Black dude, I'd watch my back because Evil Dude is coming for you.

It also worries me that these two have a similar . . . something. Wei Wuxian, buddy, homie, ho-migo. You're getting darker. You were dark blue, but now, you're black. Why is no one else concerned that the call is about to come from within the house?

So much shit is going down on this mountain! White No Name dude just said he knows and was trained by the OG lesbian, so we know she is still alive and well waiting for her wife, and my boy is sad since his mama was trained by her therefore he was trained by her, which makes her his grandma or something (I DON'T KNOW!). And now the illegitimate brother I want to be with FD's brother is in charge of watching the evil dude, but he is wearing white/blue and evil dude is wearing black/gold, and if they become an item, I'm gonna be pissed!

Y'all, he is gonna fuck up. He is going to let the bad guy go isn't he? I don't understand why they couldn't kill the bad guy, but my illegitimate son has been disrespected in this house too many times in the past ten minutes to let this shit slide. He is going to make a deal with the devil. I feel it.

"I'll sleep on your roof" - That was a declaration of love because y'all fought on a roof over liquor, and now he wants to just chill on your roof while drinking even though you are leaving. He is sprung and does not care who knows.

WHAT THE FUCK IS HAPPENING?! THIS IS A FUCKING SHIT SHOW! The oldest kids are being called away which means Fuddy Duddy's cult is probably losing it and branding everyone. They are being attacked by the Evil Reds even though their evil dude admitted to killing that whole damn family! My illegitimate son DEFINITELY killed that guy and let the evil dude go. He did that. I know he did. And my boy's outfit looks so similar to that evil red swordsmen who is fighting on behalf of that weak ass red bitch because he can't fight himself, it's ridiculous (Someone needs to slash that evil red dude's face and his tires).

Everyone is going to die, and there is no hope.

*eats some naan*

Okay, maybe there is some hope in the other FORTY EPISODES! FD's brother could take in the illegitimate son, and they could live happily ever after. Right? RIGHT?!

[winxanity-ii]

⌜Knot in Time | Chapter 00 Chapter 00 |  Blurb⌟

╰ ⌞🇨‌🇭‌🇦‌🇵‌🇹‌🇪‌🇷‌ 🇮‌🇳‌🇩‌🇪‌🇽‌⌝

❘ prev. chapter ❘༻✦༺❘ next chapter ❘

𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐞: Knowledge of EPIC: The Musical isn't technically needed; this can be read with just common knowledge of Greek mythology.

❝Stay.❞

It was a whisper, barely spoken, but it hit like a blade to the ribs.

Your breath shuddered.

His eyes glistened, unshed tears pooling at the edges, his emotions raw and unmasked.

❝Stay by my side,❞ he breathed, his voice cracking. ❝For the rest of time.❞

Your fingers twitched at your sides.

You shouldn't hesitate.

You'd spent your existence moving forward without question, without pause; always knowing what must be done.

But here, in the silence of the Loom, with his hands pressed to your skin, with his plea hanging between you like an offering, you realized—

You'd never had a choice before.

Fate wasn't something you chose.

It was something that is.

Yet here was Telemachus, asking you, the one who wields the shears, the one who had ended lives without question, to defy everything you are—

To choose him.

..... ... ..... ━━━━━━━☆☆━━━━━━━ ..... ... .....

To cut a thread is simple.

To leave one uncut is chaos.

But for the first time in eternity, you don't care.

You were born to sever lives, to keep fate in motion. Never to hesitate. Never to choose.

Until him.

Telemachus, son of Odysseus—warrior, prince, and the man whose thread should have been cut weeks ago.

A single hesitation. A single choice.

But here's the truth no one ever considered:

Even the Fates were woven from something; and maybe—just maybe—they, too, can unravel.

..... ... ..... ━━━━━━━☆☆━━━━━━━ ..... ... .....

╭─↬ ❗𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆❗ ↫─╮ There will be mentions/descriptive scenes of the following:

╭ ⁞ ❏. Death ┊

🔺 Reader Discretion Advised.

Lol, I don't know if I got them all, so if you see anything I didn't list, come back and comment right here so I can add them to the list later ➡

Also, before you start, if you're new here, welcome! But if you're a returning reader/came from my other books, hi babies 🥹❤️ Enjoy (•͈˽•͈)

A/N: SCREECHING, SOBBING, THROWING MYSELF INTO THE SEA—WHAT IS HAPPENING?!?!?

Y'ALL. TWO. BOOKS. OVER. 100K. VIEWS. ON WATTPAD. WTF. WTF. WTF.

THIS IS NOT REAL LIFE.

Wattpad was literally the first platform I ever read and wrote on—like, baby me was out here devouring fanfics and original works at 2AM on a cracked phone screen, practically vibrating from excitement every time I found a good fic.

And now?? NOW I HAVE TWO BOOKS THAT PASSED 100K READS???? ON THE VERY PLATFORM THAT MADE ME FALL IN LOVE WITH STORYTELLING?!?!?

Y'all are too much. TOO. MUCH. (And by too much, I mean I love you all deeply and will fight Zeus himself for you.)

So, as a tiny thank-you for all the love and chaos, I present to you: "A Knot in Time"—a 10-chapter short story I finished weeks ago featuring Telemachus and a Fate-who-should-not-love-but-does-anyway.

It's slow-burn, introspective, and built on steady, lingering tension, because I wanted to write romance the way I personally understand it. Sooo if you're the type who likes instant love, jumping straight into things, and getting to the spice ASAP... yeah, this fic ain't it, bestie (but no worries, I have projects in the drafts more up that lane). 💀💀

But if you're here for a Greek-myth style tragedy-turned-love story about a man who should have died and the woman who was meant to end him... buckle in.

Hope y'all enjoy. And thank you, again, for making my inner bookworm FREAK THE HELL OUT. 🖤

Also, I'm working on a new update for both 'Know No Evil' and 'Godly Things' and oh! Y'all are in for a ride 😮‍💨

[redheadspark]

For your January prompts

15. holding them tightly, protectively- Druig 🙂

A/N - STELLA! I love this for Druig, thanks for requesting this, bestie!

Thick and Thin

Summary - Druig will always protect you, even in sleep

Warnings - Fluf and angst mixed together

“Druig, you know I need to breathe at some point right?”

“You breathe just fine,”

“Not with you holding me like an octopus,”

That alone made you squeeze you a bit tighter from his spot behind you, his nose grazing your neck and his arms around your waist and chest in such an intimate way.  It was his usual hold with you when you were alone in bed together, but it was one of many holds he had on you when you were side by side.  Centuries being together, holding one another, it was always a fresh feeling of love for you every single time and you knew that feeling would not go away.

“Hey,” you hummed, turning a bit to lay on your back and look at Druig with fondness in your eyes.  Your husband of 600 years was watching you as if you were a newly formed star in the night sky. His blue eyes almost illuminated The Domo's dark room where you shared a space together.  His brown hair was soft in front of his forehead and somewhat in his eyes.

You will forever be lost in those eyes and in his hold.

“I’m not dead, Druig,” You explained to him softly, seeing him search your eyes and almost confused as to why you would say those three words to him, but you went on, “I’ve known you for far too long, loved you for centuries, to know how you’re holding me.  You’re scared, aren’t you,”

It was as If you read his mind as he took in a long inhale and closed his eyes for a brief moment.  You hummed, leaning up and kissing his forehead with fragility as his arms around you tightened a bit more.  You knew him well, read him like a worn book, and could see from a simple lance all he was thinking or feeling.  It took some time to learn everything about Druig, from the very beginning when you two shook hands for the first time on The Domo so long ago, the way you two became friends so fast and quickly, and then it turned into love.

It was both scary and yet the best feeling in the world to be in love with Druig, and he made sure you would never feel any less from the moment you two kissed for the first time.  He made you feel as though you were the true north in his night sky, the calming wind in his constant storms, the warmth of the sun his cold moments.

You were everything to him, and he was going to protect you with all his might.

Druig knew you could fight and defend yourself, your own strength was almost a match to Gilgamesh’s strength. But he still had a protective knack in him solely for you.  A hand on your lower back when you both walked in public, his arm draped over your shoulder as you both sat side by side, even in how he held your hand with laced fingers to show he was there in case you needed him.  You knew he was simply loving you and wanting you safe, although it was annoying at times, but most of the time he meant well.

“That was the first time I was petrified that you…you were gonna….” Druig said in a low tone, gasping for air second to stop himself from being in tears.  You shushed you gently, kissing his forehead again and framing his face with one hand.  Being back on that beach, covered in blood and on the verge of death thanks to Ikaris who nearly killed you and was close to you, Druig thought you were already gone.  He only knew you were alive because of Phastos and how he was already cleaning off the blood on your armor.  You saw it in his eyes, the split moment of dread that he lost his wife, his better half, and the dread of going on with life without you.

There were few close calls in the past on both of your sides when you saw the other beaten up badly or had their life in the balance.  Sometimes a simple hug from Druig would make it better, letting the day off away.  That happened almost all the time, but other times it was a solid reminder that Eternal lives could also be fragile.  

Ajak and Gilgamesh are prime examples of Eternal fragility.

“I promised you, Druig, that I would not leave this life without you by my side,” You reminded him as you were nose to nose with him, rubbing his cheek with your thumb in a soothing rhythm as he watched you intensely, “I promised that to you when we were married 600 years ago.  Now how can I leave the love of my life behind?”

“You can’t,” Druig mumbled, your smiling sweetly at him as you nodded your head.

“I could never, and I won’t ever.  Druig, the love we have, it’s the best thing that has ever happened to me on this planet, do you know why?” You asked, seeing him close his mouth and shake his head slowly, “It’s because of the way you love me.  I won’t find it anywhere else, at any point in time.  I feel like so lucky, so fucking lucky, because you chose me to love,”

Druig finally smiled for the first time that night as you pushed his hair out of his eyes, “I love the way you hold me. I feel so safe, beyond safe.  I give you grief for it, but I love it,”

“I would protect you from anything that could take you from me,” Druig vowed to you, his voice a bit watery but sounding true.  You nodded your head against him as he pressed a kiss into your palm near his lips.

“I know you would, and I would protect you too.  It’s what we do for each other,”

You both were a packaged deal from the moment you two became a couple, even before that.  It was no surprise where one was, the other would be as well.  The others were fine with it, though Ikaris seemed more annoyed that someone could love someone like Druig.  But you never paid attention to Ikaris and his judgment.  

Plenty of years living together in the jungle, coming back to save the very earth you both loved and adored and now back in the Domo to search the stars for any other Eternals that Arishem created.  It seemed like a fever dream, but you would take any fever dream if it meant Druig would be at your side.

His protective side and all.

“Come on, my love. Let’s sleep,” You urged him, kissing his lips softly as you snuggled into his hold,  Once again his arms were around you like you were nestled in a cocoon, and his warmth engulfed you to be sleepy again as he rested his head alongside yours and he too fell asleep.  You both were back in your own safe space with one another again, not knowing if you were going to find other Eternals out there amongst the stars or if they would believe you in what you were going to tell them about the near Emergence.  

But for now, you both decide to rest. Rest and know that you both would protect each other through thick and thing.  

The End

[dailycass-cain]

By unlocking 7,000 Followers on Twitter (thank you all 😊) has me doing this nice retrospective of Cass's time in James Tynion IV's Detective Comics run (aka Gotham Knights) that started in #934-#981.

I'll start with some context before I go deep into this run. So in 2016 (it's been 8 YEARS?!), DC Comics relaunched their comics with the "Rebirth" label.

Taking some things of the past and putting them in the "New 52" universe.

For Cass, it would mean she would be getting a mask closer to her Batgirl costume. As we know with the end of Batman & Robin Eternal, she'd be going with the new Orphan identity.

Now, this all happened back to back with one another. In, a greater context this helped the character of Cass. Cause, before this. DC Comics had this history of yanking the character or we'd be stuck with two months or more before we'd get more (aka Black Bat).

The other thing (a bit more controversial), is that the friendships with Spoiler and Red Robin would happen between Batman & Robin Eternal and this. So we'd never get this subplot of introduction again.

So right away Cass/Steph would be besties. Akin to their prior life.

#934 The first showing of Cass in this run is her in full costume (with said mask), and what she does vigilante-wise in the Orphan identity.

Helping out other orphans who are being trafficked illegally. A theme that would put up a few times in this run and her tale with Orca in DC: Doomed & the Damned #1 (a few years later in 2020).

The issue establishes the team dynamics and obviously digs into the "X-Men themes" of each member.

You can see these themes with each member of the Gotham Knights.

For Cass, it's easy to see she's the "Wolverine" of the team. Though with the writer, Tynion has a clear bias toward (I mean Claremont balanced the Logan stuff). Not that I mind this. 😶

As for the rest of this arc, Tynion does a good job showcasing some elements in the past that were classic Cass flaws like in the Mudroom she keeps fighting everyone's battles instead of her own.

Which is a problem would have. So it's a flaw I do enjoy.

Just that well... we never see this flaw ever again in the series. Cass does let everyone fight their own battle (Steph in particular), but will be there to help someone else (more on that later).

We also get the one recurring subplot in the post-B&RE with Cass and Harper being closely entwined with one another (though sadly this gets dropped after the second arc, and eventually dropped completely after #950).

I still get the reason "why" Harper was being slowly phased out with Cass/Steph coming back, around this time but she does bring a few things to the table that others don't.

But that's a thing I'm gonna go in a future series of posts.

Like I said before, Tynion favors Cass A LOT and it shows in this opening arc with her getting several moments to steal the show. Starting with her fighting the enemies of the arc when they raid the Bellfry.

She does lose (but man what a fight she puts up in this taking out four of them) and it is hilarious that it takes THIS many darts to knock her down. 🤣

Then of course, the next issue she gets THE moment I think most are still hyped to this day on.

I mean I GET IT. The moment is still a 🐐.

Though, if there's one nitpick I can see is that Tynion really isn't fond of the mask concept entirely as there are moments that Cass puts on and removes the mask. Never keeping it on fully at times.

Like I knew this was a recurring theme in this series, but I forgot HOW MUCH recursion it was. With Cass getting the mask damaged or her unmasking at various points in this run. A part of me wonders if Tynion did this given how meh the mask just looks without the bat ears?

The other bit is the tease for the League of Shadows in this and the whole "black eyes" thing that we got later in the arc with them. I still don't understand the whole motif with that.

I remember debating with a friend the whole "was it a possession"? And now that I think about it more was it a nod to anger back in the ye old Puckett/Scott run? When Cass would get REALLY mad she'd have pure black eyes.

Since we never really got an answer, I just have more questions that I know we'll never get answers for.

That's Cass's part in this opening arc in a nutshell. All action, with just a tiny bit of characterization. You can best symbolize this as well in the next arc, "Night of the Monster Men" which crossed over with Nightwing and Batman ongoings.

This is a big one for me cause I remember really enjoying this story back when it came out, and I still do. It's Batman, the Gotham Knights, Signal, Gotham Girl, and Nightwing taking on Hugo Strange and his Kaiju Men.

Cause that's what they are in this crossover. Freaking huge monsters.

Now this is a BIG moment for Cass, as well this is the first Batman crossover she DOES things since-- Batman: War Games (though you could cheat Batman: Battle for the Cowl, as she does appear but never has a central role within the series).

So 2005 (or 2009). It's only been-- 11 or 7 years since her last Batman crossover.

….

🙃🙃🙃🙃

This one is the bits are co-written by Steve Orlando with Tynion, and I just enjoy this story. First up this is the stuff that gives us REAL good Cass/Steph crumbs. Bestest crumbs we'd get until this run would end.

Cass/Steph's part for "most of the story" is helping those who are infected and also not from Hugo Strange's new Monster Men strain (that makes you violent or turns you into giant kaiju).

It's a nice little beat as they're cut off from everyone else and Bruce is all, "TRUST THEM. THEY GOT THIS." Throughout the bits him and the rest are dealing with the Monster Men.

And the two do. Like these bits are probably the best Cass/Steph content we got since well---

-- Batgirls. And that's just do to reasons given Steph drifts away from Cass (so it can set up both their solo subplots. Though Cass's gets more attention somewhat, and Steph's gets rushed).

But yeah these bits of Cass/Steph in the cave are really the first REAL moments in the series that feel like Cass/Steph of old. Just because in the prior arc, they don't mingle save one scene where Steph gives off panel plot summaries instead.

It's just natural, and good. Really, this crossover has aged like an underrated fine wine. There's only one real flaw to it (more on that soon). But in characterization? This story is Cass/Steph perfection.

This arc is notable for three other things too. #1 This is also the ONLY arc where Cass remains masked in the entire arc. Cass doesn't appear unmasked AT ALL. So it's interesting to see how artists manage this and well--

This arc is notable for three other things too. #1 This is also the ONLY arc where Cass remains masked in the entire arc. Cass doesn't appear unmasked AT ALL. So it's interesting to see how artists manage this and well--

#2 As you can tell this is the arc where artists began to draw the white lenses for Cass. A feature that would stick to the character this very day. I get this sets up the whole white/black lenses debate. But I totally forgot it was THIS arc that began the white lenses.

This is the first time Riley Rossmo draws Cass and well I do enjoy it. Rossmo makes the Orphan design work with its limited costume pallet. I get the little gremlin energy throughout this arc with his Cass.

#3 the climax (aka the one bit I find anti-climatic) where Nightwing, Batwoman, Spoiler, and Cass each get into a building and-- command giant freaking lasers. It should've been a giant Voltron Bat mech. IT REALLY SHOULD'VE.

But the real INTERESTING thing is note how EVERYONE says their codename but-- Cass. She just goes online. I get it simple words but it just feels like re-reading this how already the writer who co-created the identity was basically undermining the new identity himself by doing things like this.

Or maybe it was Orlando?

He's a sneaky sneak writer when it comes to Cass lore (see his Supergirl run where he casually drops Carolyn Wu-San or his Batman Beyond fill-in where has Babs say BATGIRLS). Just small little bits. I wouldn't be surprised if this was him.

But yeah this is a fun and underrated event crossover STILL. Which is probably why we had it given what the next arc does with Cass which lays seeds and is 💔 the first "Victims Syndicate" arc.

The seeds laid are the beginning bits of friendship in #943 between Cass and Clayface (Basil Karlo) aka one of the things most remember for this run. It starts with the beginnings of her being a rock for him.

Sadly, this issue also marks the final time Cass, Steph, and Harper are all together (only WFA uses them together now). 😭

So yeah seeing Cass, Steph, and Harper interacting with one another does make me truly sad as this is it. The last interaction between all three together.

It's also HIGHLY amusing as Harper and Cass are wearing their "disguises" from Batman & Robin Eternal #7-8 (probably due to Alvaro Martinez drawing these issues and the Tec one).

But this is really Steph's arc, and that's all the notable things Cass does other than having to do this 🥺🥺🥺while Steph leaves the Bat Family to do her thing.

Plus gets her sweeter full-on Spoiler Mask again too.

This and the next arc are the lesser of Cass stuff because well-- Cass gets her own story in #950! But before that, I must address PAIN. OH YES, PAIN!

Because during this chunk of arcs, Cass did show up someplace else, Red Hood & the Outlaws #15. Where she's drawn by Dexter Soy for the first time! 😀 She fights an Amazon for the first time too in Artemis! 😀😀

And it happens off-panel save the last one where Artemis beats her. 😑😑😑😑😑

Oh, and um yeah OTHER things too with a little OOC Cass is in the issue. But hey the net positive was Soy would draw Cass with a far better writer a few years later.

So yeah, on the bright side, Tynion always hyped up #950 as the start of a Cass-centric arc and is reunited with the artist who drew the best issue of Batman & Robin Eternal (#14), Marcio Takara and we get Christian Duce's first-time drawing Cass here too!

There are still a lot of pros and cons with this particular arc. The biggest pro is the opening issue to the prologue to the arc. Being told via Cass's eyes per say with the narration boxes capturing the turmoil but not her voice.

It's different than how Kelley Puckett went with in Batgirl Vol. 1, not the better ground Sarah Kuhn had with Shadow of the Batgirl, and not crazy north to where Batgirls went with their narration (who was the narrator of that series again?) this is more the middle ground.

For the story itself, it does work. Just it's also 💔cause almost ALL of this relating to Cass is never fully followed up on here (until the Batman & Outsiders volume a year after this run).

But other beats such as Cass's relationship with Harper Row are just dropped completely after this point. Like, Harper just shows up one more time during this run (in Steph's subplot which is rushed to heck).

But it's not just Harper who gets dropped after this arc. The story also introduces Christine Montclair, a ballerina, who Cass idolizes and might crush on.

It's an obvious play of the "Phantom of the Opera." With Cass being the Phantom.

Christine really does help Cass, and just when you think she's gonna show up more in this run (or even elsewhere involving Cass). We really never see her again. She does give Cass the pep-talk that's needed, but that's it.

Feels like a sad waste of story potential. I digress we're nearing the point of this run where Tynion had to cut A LOT of fat. Given, he was leaving this comic to become the lead writer on Justice League Dark, and the "Rebirth" era was ending.

Maybe this was some of that "fat"? I'm just surprised no future writer picked up Christine or added her to the Batgirls supporting cast. In a way, Cass's interest in ballet somewhat wanned after this arc too (with only Black Label BoP covering it and WFA).

I still think there's potential there for Christine to be a supporting cast member filling the void Brenda left.

But what we have here with Christine is still quite good, the best moments of the arc humanizing and getting through the problems Cass faces in this arc.

Even if ironically, Christine's mental teacher was a book by Carolyn Wu-San (again a subplot we never ever see picked up).

Still, this arc brings back the "Rebirth" method of putting back stuff. This case is Lady Shiva being Cass's mom, and them having to fight.

I digress the idea did hype me up slightly at the time.

Just in the end, there's no real dimension here to either. Shiva finds out, still decides to nuke Gotham to screw Ra's over. Basically, the stereotypical "murder mom" behavior that a lot of us criticized. That's been righted but hoping that the new Batgirl ongoing fully answers.

Cass finds out that she is brokenhearted and that her mom is Lady Shiva. But there's never any real means to establish the "how".

Cass finds out, is 💔at the revelation, and barely has time to interact fully with Shiva before it's taken away. Even the fight with Shiva has no real sauce or even clear indication like Batgirl Vol. 1 #25 or even #73.

That's not even accounting the ending with Shiva getting shot, rattling words (that were a location code), and a subplot Tynion had to drop.

So the positives for the arc are still there. #1 being the big fight in #955 vs. the Shadows and the hype Tynion lays the groundwork in the prior issue giving Cass her "Wolverine" moment in full.

It's an epic moment. Still drives a chill done my spine. Likewise the entire fight vs. all the ninjas. Takara really just shines with the art in #955. Like the fight is just stunning.

That leads into the problem with the Orphan identity as the cracks are in this issue particularly were they develop as Cass's answer to who she is to Christine is, her name. Not Orphan.

I can go into that, but that's more to one of my past series I dwell on that on why the Orphan codename became dated.

Another bit that works well is the friendship between Cass/Basil really begins to shine further here and it just reaches its apex of positive emotions in the next arc.

The final thing which I find underrated is how Kate becomes the unwilling mentor figure (given Babs is pushed away from having this relationship with Cass). It's an interesting dynamic that could've added more tragedy to what is to come with them.

The Batman stuff is gold here too. Again solidifies the fatherly stuff we had in the past with Cass. The only problem is other than this run only four writers would further this.

So yeah, this arc is a mixed bag of good and bad. I cannot fault Tynion fully that he never fully realized the arc's full potential cause well DC was gonna DC.

As it stands the "League of Shadows" arc is just a good read to have. Funny enough what truly is the pathos to Cass is what is to come.

That being Cass/Basil, as their friendship really moves the subplots going forward. Basil helps Cass with her reading disability. Cass helps him with the bad side of Clayface showing up. It's a nice two-way streak of them being there for the other.

On the action front, we get probably the best fight in the series. A brutal 1 v 2 fight between a brainwashed Azrael vs. Kate/Cass (#961). Again, the fight is just nasty and again gets her mask torn. But it is the recurring theme of this run. Cass's mask gotta be torn.

But it's after this arc with Azrael, that Tynion is just rushing through trying to end as many subplots he can at this point to reach his climax.

We get moments between Cass/Basil sprinkled throughout (her being his rock when he almost goes back to villainy). Plus the whole Tim reunited with her and then Steph.

But it's all setting up to the next big stepping stone which is the second Victim Syndicate arc where now they're not just targeting Steph, but also Basil.

Man this arc, while the Steph stuff doesn't hit as clean (given how Tynion rushed through her subplot), the Cass/Basil stuff with it given all this time.

It STILL slaps hard to the face when they force Clayface to rage out in #972. The only one in his way in #973---

Even rereading it, it's like something you're like Cass, just hoping Kate doesn't pull that trigger and well... yeah. It hits and it hurts.

I try looking at what comes next from the perspective of well Cass not having that symbol. If you go with her wanting to achieve what Bruce/Kate/Babs have. Kate breaking the rule. It really hits that Kate betrayed her student here.

I do wish Tynion was given just a tiny bit more room to breathe. Because we never really get them mending here after this. It's just dropped and mended offscreen between the two (probably the only rare miss Alyssa Wong had when writing both).

Though with Tynion ending Kate's mentorship with Cass, he adds one final Rebirth layer: Babs mentoring Cass. We get the seeds in #975.

It's a GOOD idea, and something Hill does follow up on in his Tec arc. However, I just get the feeling with Rebirth ending, and Dan DiDio getting back fully in power from Geoff Johns. That well... certain edicts DiDio had prior between Cass/Babs came back.

Cause A LOT of this stuff was reburied and Cass didn't get to be with Babs until two years later (and when a certain someone was fired from DC Comics).

But enough what "could've been". What about Tynion's final arc on the series? It surprisingly still has a lot of Cass. Like at this point she's really the female lead of the book with Kate taking a backseat at this point.

I mean she's really all over the place in the arc. Starting with still recovering from Basil's death, and we get an amusing moment between her and Tim. Probably the last sibling moment (other than WFA).

It's just a cute moment, and well is bookended with Tim getting turned into an O.M.A.C. and Cass jobbing (cause she's nowhere in the right mindset at this point). But it leads her to Bruce and then Steph. And we get the next big moment.

I'm not gonna cover the "lie" moment aka a pantless future Cass fighting a shirtless Ra's. No, I'm gonna go right into Tynion's final critique on both Cass/Steph in #980.

We all know it.

Both are shown what was "taken". Their years of being Batgirls and Robin. I do still love each panel represents an actual story for the two. Something lost and taken by the New 52.

I feel like at this point, Tynion was just exhausted with the mental hoops he had to deal with regarding both characters, and this was his final response having both see what they can still have.

It feels like where Tynion wanted to put the two, but couldn't (cause DiDio gonna DiDio), but still left the seeds enough for Cass to know what she is.

Again, making the whole Orphan identity more pointless at this point.

But on the bright side you can look at these last bits and given what we know what occurs in Batman: Joker War. That Tynion was all, "Well, if you want a job done right. You got to do it yourself." Putting all this history back in.

In the end, you can look back at the run and see those positives which then occur less than two years later. This is still a flawed run, but with all the unknowns that were probably heaped on the writer.

It does hold up in other areas. Out of the team, Cass really was one of the few who really got the 👑in being the reason this run is remembered most. She does get A LOT of good moments in the series.

The really good moments are still really good. Just the bad? Well, just take it for what DC was at that time. Still, flawed (given WHO was still lingering around the company at the time), but almost there.

Though I find the Joker ongoing Tynion's best Batman work, this is probably his more entertaining one. Everyone gets a moment to shine (even if it's rushed).

This is still a better top to bottom Batman run compared to its counterpart which tripped and fell at the end (Tom King's Batman run).

So what you think about this run? Has it aged more gracefully like a wine? Or like milk? I'm really curious of thoughts of this run given where we are now with the character.

[one-strugling-bean]

So.

I finished the 4th season (MAG #160)

......I'm unwell

(part 3 of my Magnus Archives experience)

Ahhhhh where do i even start???? Ok, ok I think I'll start with the lesser things

First off, right off the bat, RIP Tim. More than ever, now I know he didn't have to die and I am so so sad he did..... Flirty boi deserved so much better u^u

Martin collected many moments of badassery throughout the 3rd and 4th seasons. Im so proud of his growth. Not him burning statements and snipping back at Elias - ahhhhhh he was so coooool, I wish someone else was there so that they could tell him! And when he made Fairchild sit back down to finish answering Martin's questions, I swear I got chills!!

Anyway. I continue being a fierce Martin fan, nothing new there

What is new is my newfound adoration for Daisy. Seriously. She's my baby now. Idc what happens or who dies, she needs to end this story okay :'))))

No, im 200% serious, if Daisy doesn't survive to the end, im def going to cry. Because i can totally see her being the "sacrifice herself so that everyone else will have a chance" type.

I swear she was the only one holding the brain cell power this season –  and FINALLY, someone who's not Martin is not being a bitch to Jon!!!

I wasn’t even expecting Jon to be able to bring her back. Much less for them to become supportive avatar besties! I’m so glad the writer decided to take that turn with her. It’s really satisfying from a narrative standpoint to have Daisy of all people do a whole 180 on her standpoint with Jon.

Idk, i just really liked her this season. She deserves all the hugs. So she gets a meme :)

Basira, on the other hand, fell a bit for me, but i think that was kind of the point. She was fierce and stony and nearly zero compassionate, – very Gertrude-ish of her –  but after everything that’s happened, i can't really blame her :/

Im just here praying to everything that the cop ladies can get a modicum of a happy ending

And just so I round up the gang, im scared for Melanie... She is now blind and also has (had?) a monster as a therapist. And Georgie doesn't feel fear which makes them even less likely to sense danger if it comes for them. I hope they're able to push through whatever season 5 throws at them

Okay. So only Jon is lef now. What can i say about him tho?? I mean, i can say he's been going through it.

Like, I spent my whole time hearing this podcast lowkey making fun of him for collecting beatdowns from pretty much every character - AND IT TURNS OUT IT WASN’T EXACTLY JOKING MATTER AND WAS ACTUALLY PLOT RELEVANT??

WHAT IS THIS SORCERY AND WHY IS IT MAKING ME FEEL BAD FOR VOICES ON MY PHONE??

I just feel so bad for Jon. The guy did not deserve all of this. He really was a lamb to the slaughter—a poor wet cat, an eternal damsel in distress, the Antichrist…?

That last statement from Elias/Jonah is so good tho. Like, objectively. I love it. Not only does it take the listener in a nice little trip down memory lane - nostalgia is always fun - but its also just. So evil.

They really gave us such a sweet start – Martin and Jon bunking together in a cabin in Scotland(?) seemingly happy and it's all "uwu, they sho cute, yada yada- and then BAM!! APOCALYPSE HAS BEGUN!"

(i could literally be here for hours coming up with titles for Jon. he makes it too easy.)

Elias though...... I was spoiled that he was Jonah Magnus halfway through season 2 or so, so the reveal wasn't a big deal for me. I wonder how shattering it was for listeners when it first dropped though... At least he upped his villainy cred this season. Suits him better than the "unbothered neutral/evil stand-by" vibe he gave before.

And one last character thing, I fell in love with Peter so quickly. His lines were all gold and his delivery even more so. He just had that unflappable vibe to him. Like he didnt have a care in the world.

Oh, and him and Elias totally had ex-wives who spent the last 10 years fighting about who gets what in the divorce energy.

No, i will not elaborate.

Uhhhhh yeah. I grew to appreciate Helen more and more every time they showed up. Simon Fairchild was surprisingly fun for an old man, Gerry deserved the freaking world (thank you so much Jon for burning that page) and i think that’s kinda it on my favorite “creatures and associates”

Im super excited for this last stretch. i wonder if TMA will stick the landing. I sure hope it does, and honestly trust it will.

Anywayyyyyy, off i go for those last 40 episodes. Wish me luck!

Finish testimony, or whatever