#this! apparently! is what i do with it

[novelconcepts]

I’m curious to see what you’d do with Taivan and the role swap from the prompt list!

14 - Role Swap

It's a funny thing, what being told you're a slacker from birth will do. A funny trick played on the unsuspecting child. Sometimes, it results in the Natalie Scatorccios of the world: adamantly leaning in, dressing the part, cloaked in the reckless prestige of the burnout. Sometimes, it results in proving the point, making a game of it, making it your own.

And sometimes, it results in Van Palmer.

Taissa has been watching Van for years, curious. The way she bumps elbows with Nat, you'd think they ought to be twin terrors. Grown from the same seeds, watered with the same reluctant care. The same ember of raw potential buried beneath bad luck and worse parenting.

Except where Natalie leans in, armored in leather and nicotine, Van chooses instead to dip into the fire and come out the other side polished as glass. Where Natalie grimaces and rolls her eyes, Van bares her teeth in a snarl that looks so much like joy, it lights something behind Taissa's ribs. Where Natalie leans in, a joint dangling from pursed lips, Van assesses every angle of the cage she was born into.

And sets to work tearing it the fuck down.

Bafflingly, she's always laughing. Laughing, when she scores the highest in every single class. Laughing, when she races perilously from between her goal posts, booting the ball so far downfield, the goal is nearly single-fucking-handed. Laughing, when she crosses her arms over her chest, taking in Coach's advice and Shauna's scowl with the same feverish amusement.

Laughing, when she takes Taissa by the collar in an empty locker room, kissing her until Tai can't imagine doing anything else.

It must be exhausting, to be Van Palmer, she thinks sometimes. To have that GPA, to be the MVP of game after game, to walk the streets of Jersey like God Himself has handed her the map to the exit ramp. It must be exhausting, to house so much ambition in a five-foot-six frame. Taissa, relaxing between her parents in the evenings, can't fathom it. Taissa is content being good enough.

Maybe that comes from growing up with people who ask and answer, who empathize rather than envy. Maybe it comes from a securely middle-class tax bracket. Maybe it's just pure luck of the draw. She's going to be okay, she knows. She's smart. She's talented. She's capable. She doesn't need to kill herself to get out of here. Things have a way of working out.

She tries telling that to Van, and Van only laughs harder. "Maybe for you," she says sweetly, arms bracketing Taissa in the grass. Then she's kissing Tai again, and the conversation is over. All such conversations with Van go this way. A layer of steel behind her smile. A layer of don't-push-it couched in jokes. Fire so hot, it begins to melt whatever dares look too long at the flames.

All conversations with Van go this way. Tai wonders how much weight is on the other girl's back. Wonders how she keeps her head so high. Wonders if she sleeps.

She'll learn, eventually. In the woods, when Van takes the lead so easily, it's almost scary. In the woods, when Van's good-natured sense of humor gathers the others to her like freezing children to a bonfire.

In the woods, when Van raises her head in the dark, eyes blank, teeth bared. Ambition has a price, Taissa realizes. Ambition has a price, and Van's been paying for years.

Exhausting, it must be. She gathers Van close, presses firm lips against her hairline, feels the desperate gallop of her heartbeat. Exhausting, it must be. Van Palmer, the consummate refusal to burn out. Van Palmer, burning so brightly, she might just consume them all.

[lennjamin-o7]

[jasminebythebay]

thank you for your help 💎

--

By popular demand, this piece is now available as a print! https://jasminebythebay.etsy.com/listing/1707594190

[hansoeii]

It's about who.

[wren-kitchens]

im annoyed and a little pedantic so can i just say as a blanket statement

queerbaiting is when the promotion for a FICTIONAL STORY intentionally hints towards two characters having a romantic relationship, without any intention to follow through in the show, in order to get queer people watching without discouraging the homophobic enjoyers of the show

queerbaiting is NOT:

a celebrity who you think is queer because theyre gnc or they have a 'vibe'. that is a real person and they cannot queerbait

two friends of the same gender pretending to flirt with each other for fun. those are real people and they cannot queerbait

a show with two characters of the same gender who are canonically friends that YOU PERSONALLY think would be better in a relationship. that's not bating, that's shipping, and subject to opinion

there are more but those are the main examples of people misunderstanding what queerbaiting is and being mad at something that isn't actually a problem

[seafoamsol]

Violence!

[fcthots]

Jason Todd with sharp canines that he accidentally nips you with all the time. At some point you kinda just have to shove your hand in his mouth to take a look and find out what the fuck he has in there that could possibly be doing this shit. He just sort of lets you without question and complains in muffled gibberish around your hand.

He does apologize profusely every time he knicks you though (and depending on what he was trying to do, he’ll lick or kiss it better). Unfortunately he refuses to do it on purpose.

But if you distract him enough with your hands tugging on the roots of his hair while he’s trying to leave a hickey… let’s just say he has a hard time focusing on being careful.

[seventh-district]

Making Incorrect H:SR Quotes Until I Run Out of (hopefully) Original Ideas - Pt. 2

[Pt. 1] [Pt. 3] [Pt. 4] [Pt. 5] [Pt. 6]

[bluerosefox]

A DPxDC soulmate au idea

So DCverse is a soulmate world (pick any soulmate way btw, words, touch, drawings on the skin, can't see color(s) until they see or touch them, etc etc)

DPverse doesn't.

Meaning Danny wasn't born with a soulmark BUT he gets one after becoming a halfa because he is now connected to the Infinite Realms.

SO its during another one of Vlad's schemes, he's popping into different worlds and stealing things or something like that (basically like that one ep where Danny chases Vlad through the timeline after he stole Frostbite's map)

During the chase they pop out into the DCverse in one of the hero cities (pick any, not picky on which) and their fight is getting a bit out of hand (Vlad's fault, he's using the stuff he's been stealing, and Danny is doing his best to getting innocent people from getting hurt)

ANYWAYS during the fight, one of the cities hero's come to try to help/find out whats going on when Danny is hit by Vlad and gets tossed at them. The moment they either touch or Danny/Soulmate says something to the other, Danny feels the odd mark on him burn up and is MEGA confused on whats going on but decides to do what he does best.

Ignore it for now. He'd figure it out later he still needs to stop Vlad.

He apologizes to the other hero and gets back into his fight, missing the look of complete smitten awe/shock said hero had on their face.

[puppyeared]

horrible truth bomb dropped on my head 20 min ago

[bisclavret]

i don't mean to alarm anyone but i think sir gwaine might be having an illicit love affair with the king's manservant

[hinamie]

congrats on your recovery n all yuuji but unfortunately for you I thought the scars were cool >:/

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Lan Wangji Goes To Lotus Pier AU: Part 1: Dread on Arrival

(Part 2)

[egophiliac]

Hi it's just to let you know that the official romanization of Revaan's name is Raverne ! Also they have romanized Baul's name to Baur !

Twst coming back at us again with the least expected romanization! thank you everybody (oh god my inbox) (no it's great, I literally asked for this and the reactions have been INCREDIBLE, thank you all!)

I do like Raverne though, I think it's got a nice fancy sound to it! (I had kinda suspected it was going to be an R instead of an L, so the fact that it's SO close to Laverne except for that is hilarious to me personally.) and Dragoneye Duke is honestly probably the best translation for his title, I wasn't envying the localizers that one. :') Baur instead of Baul I was NOT expecting, but in retrospect I think his name's supposed to be a reference to the Bauru crocodile, so that actually makes way more sense!

someone else also said Meleanor has become Maleanor, which is the REALLY weird one to me, because I was so surprised it was written as Mel instead of Mal in the first place?! oh god no I can't decide which one I like better. 😭 (I wonder if they might change it to Mal...they have made romanization changes before) (like I remember House of Distraction being corrected to House of Destruction in Playful Land) (I did check and she's still Mel for now, but I dunno, they might Mal her up and some point and save me from having to make a decision about which one to use) (HECK I CAN'T DECIDE)

uhhhh thank you for letting me ramble about anime names, let's just say MONOGRAMMED SWEATERS FOR EVERYONE

[azuneekun]

Shane's getting ready for the day 🐔☀

[chamerionwrites]

Possibly The most surprising thing I have discovered on the internet is the number of people who will unironically refer to others as "degenerates" without expecting anyone reading this to immediately assume that they are a straight-up fascist