#this is basically what happens at the end if book 5

[batbabydamian]

Batman and Robin #20 squinting, jabbering at the Ra’s conspiracy board + Thomas and Damian journal/comic!! imo a must-own issue…yes, my Juni Ba bias is showing

anyway, obligatory Dick & Damian connection - their acrobatic form in flight!! Damian learned from the best!! 🥺

OKAY ONE LAST TIME, slapping the convoluted Ra’s-relation conspiracy board (RIP Dr. Bashar)

from the beginning, direct reference to PKJ’s Ra’s al Ghul story in Gotham City Villains with the chess game

the preview blurb at the end of #18 being chess related could suggest the ongoing game between Bruce and Ra’s, especially when Memento “captures” Robin in the next issue.

Batman: Death & The Maidens

2. Alchemy at play? PKJ has made references of current timeline events happening with Gotham character books including Poison Ivy, Detective Comics, and Batgirl (if Cass not showing up when the batfam was called is an indication). so if Batgirl can have Nyssa back, that puts Ra’s creating a potion to “speak with the dead” back in the game.

Lautrec finds notes written by two people: one old and neat, and the other recent and messier. if the old notes are from Ra’s about alchemy, maybe it could be combined with Crane’s current studies on Gravedigger’s Poppy to truly create those Vestiges that Bruce is actively seeing. the notes are also the only evidence the intruder took away.

left image from Batman (1940) #670

3. waving at the entirety of Resurrection of Ra’s al Ghul with the spirit of Ra’s hopping from one body to another. the most recent appearance we saw of him, he was a roaming ghost courtesy of Nika. now we’ve got ghosts or hallucinations claiming the “Devil” stole Nicodemus Crowe’s face, and it can be argued the Devil could be a specific “Demon’s Head”.

4. Ra’s was aware of Bruce’s early training as “Jack” in Batman: The Knight. Memento directly mentions Damian’s parents as if he knows each of their whereabouts, and more particularly calling out Jack/Bruce/Batman.

5. this one’s a reach based purely on the solicit for #23 and the fact this connection is from the Batman Arkham games universe, but!! an abandoned world/city under Gotham related to Ra’s? HMM!

OKAY NOW TO THE ACTUAL ISSUE #20 LOL

while it might be a buffer for Javi Fernandez to catch up in the series, I LOVE THIS ISSUE DEARLY. it’s such a delightful collaboration of artists with differing styles that just works with the context given throughout. it’s also a glimpse into Damian’s head that’s been buried in Thomas’s journal, and even his very own comic!!

seeing Thomas’s art be so similar to what Damian would originally draw feels more convincing how Damian made such a quick connection when reading it, especially with a grandfather he had little thought for outside of Bruce.

the peek of Alfred in the journal is both hilarious and devastating sdfghh we have Thomas seeking advice from him about Bruce, and Alfred basically reassures him that he’s doing a good job :)

while in Batman and Robin (2011) we have Alfred scolding Bruce and giving him directions on how to interact with Damian (not to mention Alfred doing a majority of the child rearing) >:(

then Thomas hits us with the “I hope Bruce has [Alfred] in his life for many years to come…” and I’M SAD AGAIN. and when Bruce is once again struggling to communicate with Damian without Alfred. but at least Bruce has picked up on the cooking!

DAMIAN’S SKETCHBOOK!! JUNI BAAA!! Damian just started making comics and he’s already pulling out masterclass sequentials, someone get this kid published.

i need to see PKJ’s script for Ba’s section oh my god…would love to know how much detail and free reign was given because Ba DOES IT AGAIN!! just stunning flow and fun!!

these parallel pages!! Bruce moving forward, chasing the shadows (the bottom panel of the building stretching into the sky as Batman swings after the shadow…SICK)!! Damian chased by shadows, executing the same maneuver as Batman, but is cut off and falls 😭 also the sketched gargoyle is such an endearing detail haha

eek. also something that made me pause?? because Damian’s drawing is way too similar to what Bruce is seeing under the poppy’s influence.

“The future’s always in the process of interpreting the meaning of the past, Robin.” pretty much Damian reading Thomas’s journal lol

in Batman and Robin (2011) #1, Bruce folds the film program of The Mark of Zorro into a paper boat to sail it away, as Damian makes cutting remarks throughout. Bruce wanted to express his hope to celebrate the life of his parents rather than their death, and in a way, Damian is now doing the same. PKJ’s big brain utilizes this scene by connecting it to Bruce’s childhood and his relationship to Thomas, and even extends it to Damian 😭

Bruce’s facepalm after finding Damian’s paper boat is so full of pain and regret 😔 AS HE SHOULD

Damian was happy about Bruce making plans to play chess with him, but was angry to find it was partially a guise for Bruce to plant a tracker on him. in this issue, Bruce sees Damian’s single paper boat…a request for a moment of Bruce’s time… orz

Damian looking down on civilians is introduced early in this run, and it’s finally addressed in his lil comic!! i got a sense that some of Damian’s motivation in sticking to helping as a hospital volunteer was through a fear of worse consequences as a vigilante, but!! it continues beyond that by gaining a newfound perspective and respect for people helping on the ground 🥺

Damian’s view on normal civilian people doesn’t impress him, but Batgirl (2009) #17 gave us a lil wistful moment when he’s watching kids go to school - this is played out in favor of finding he’s not used to having fun, but it’s something that’s made me wonder about his idea of a life outside of vigilantism. so seeing his compassion be expanded into that world and make use of his skill set to help people…my god…ofc he would 😭

while i’m absolutely cheering about Damian forging this future for himself, and removing the “civilian mask” i still have some doubt with Damian becoming a doctor “like his grandfather.” ofc Thomas’s journal was a catalyst for the change, but what would have eased me into it was if the al Ghuls were given a nod. there would be that soft spot of Damian being the culmination of healing hands between the two families he’s had so much conflict with!! i can put aside my hope for him breaking away from lineages and getting into a self indulgent career if we just got a bit that…either way, it’s fine because in the end DAMIAN WAYNE!! YOUR HEART IS SO SOFT!! 😭💚

[markantonys]

My Mom Reacts To: wheel of time season 3 episodes 5-8 (no book spoilers)

season 1 (book spoilers)

season 2 episodes 1-4 (no book spoilers)

season 2 episodes 5-8 (book spoilers)

season 3 episodes 1-4 (no book spoilers)

3x05

since i'd already watched the episodes on our account back when they came out, the player attempted to pick up where i'd left off and opened this up at the very end of the episode and so my mom saw a few seconds of the egwene-lanfear-rand cliffhanger scene as i was frantically trying to pause and rewind, so she knew that was coming haha but even at this initial glimpse she wasn't shocked or anything, perhaps because while it was loading she was reading out the episode summary about "egwene learns rand's dark secret" and asked "what's rand's dark secret?" and i said "guess" and she said "lanfear" and i said "yes. oh, maybe i shouldn't have told you that."

as soon as they showed cold rocks hold, she started wondering about how the aiel survive with so little water and seemingly no place to grow food. once again, a woman after robert jordan's own heart! she wants to know all the little anthropological details!

she went "oh! he has different wives?" but that was her only comment on the aiel polyamory loredrop

elaida: i know what you are. river trash. mom: TUH!

"i feel like egwene suffers so much" -mom seemingly apropos of nothing (egwene was just sitting in the temple talking to the wise ones), but maybe thinking of the spoiled end of the episode lmao

she finds all the dream lore stuff very confusing. i do too! thankfully, she only asked me basic-level questions that i knew how to answer.

my dad loved elaida's dramatic hand-flick shooing motion when she was sending the novice away from adeleas haha

mat: [runs out of the ship cabin after being repeatedly told not to, while elayne yells at him to stop] mom: mat is always doing the wrong thing. every episode, someone is saying "mat, don't do that!"

Mat Cauthon: A Summary

"that doesn't really look like him" critiquing min's art skills

multiple mentions throughout theses episodes about how concerned she is by the prospect of these four young people haring off on a dangerous mission all by themselves. she would definitely be the kind of person to go "but where are their parents??" when reading a YA fantasy book.

min: no eye contact mat: [stares at the hanged man] mom: no eye contact, mat!!!!! me: it's a corpse mom: oh

when whitecloaks appear onscreen: "i don't like these people"

mom: so elaida's not black ajah me: no mom: then why is she siuan's enemy? me: she can be her enemy without being a darkfriend mom: [sighs] i guess that's true

once again she is distressed by how many different factions of Bad Guys there are

the cauthon girls: perrin what's happened to your eyes? mom: i don't think that would be the first thing i'd notice right now me: you wouldn't notice if someone you used to know suddenly had bright golden eyes??? mom: well, it's dark in here

perrin: i thought you were a good man dain: I WAS!!!!! dad: [chuckles] that's a good answer

rand: [gives his earnest speech about how he believes lanfear can be a good person again] mom: [sadly] oh rand, you have rose-colored glasses

so! she doesn't seem to blame rand about the whole randfear situation (perhaps because seeing the ending kiss scene first helped prepare her, perhaps because all my rand sympathy seed-planting in the first half of the season was successful, perhaps because the "this naive young man is getting preyed on" angle comes across more clearly to the middle-aged mom demographic than it does to some other demographics who dismiss it as cut-and-dry rand-fault cheating. who can say?)

and at various points in the episode she asked "what does lanfear want, just to rule everything?" and "does she actually love him or is she just saying that?" so i don't think she has ever been taken in by lanfear's tricks for one second even though many viewers did feel swayed by her "i want to break my dark oaths" schtick haha my mom never has any time for the forsaken's sob stories, like when she went "so kill yourself then" while ishy was delivering his sadboy nihilism monologue. WOT if my mom was a ta'veren: 1 book

mom as egwene is preparing to give moiraine a ride to a meeting: how are they traveling around to these places? me: they're going there in a dream dad: which is the only way anyone seems to travel anywhere in this show

mom while moiraine and siuan are kissing: .........is egwene still watching all this?

during the montage of all the friends' dreams she asked if this was halfway through the season because "it feels like they're giving us a recap" (but i reminded her that last episode was the halfway point)

speaking of last episode, before we started this one she said that she liked that episode because it was only about one plotline so it was easier to keep track of what was going on

3x06

"i vaguely remember him" about thom

mom during the weird moggy montage: what is she doing???? me: she's just really weird idk

when egwene pushed the wise ones out of her dream my mom gasped and thought egwene had destroyed them

rand: do i kill egwene? mom: [gasp] is that prophesized???? me: no he's just worried it might happen when he goes mad dad: it can't be prophesized if she [moiraine] keeps saying things will happen "sometimes"

(it felt dishonest to transcribe that sentence more efficiently as my dad saying "moiraine" himself, because i need you to know he does not know a single name of any character in this show)

faile talking about her backstory: she killed him mom: her own son???? faile: her own son mom: oh, i guess if i'd just waited a second

mom: does elayne stay good forever? me, incapable of shrugging mysteriously and letting her think elayne might become evil: yes she does mom: oh good. it's hard to get invested in characters when i'm always afraid they'll turn out to be evil.

mom after the hills of tanchico: i thought they were trying to be subtle

she liked "i don't mind strange" and faile's reaction to finding out mat blew the horn, but was feeling wary about her. "i don't know if this is a good thing or not" when faile and perrin kissed, then in the next episode she asked 1) is faile secretly evil? and 2) will perrin kill her by accident like he did his wife? and i told her no on both counts, sometimes i've just got to spoil her for the sake of soothing her worries haha

even after the kiss she referred to faile as "perrin's new friend". diversity win: straight couple gets "and they were roommates" treatment

after all my wondering, she ended up having absolutely zero reaction to or comment on the randgwene breakup! oh well, i don't think she minds it or blames rand too much at least, or else she would've said Something, and she definitely seemed fond of both rand and egwene throughout the season, so maybe it came through fairly successfully as a balanced No Bad Guys breakup for her.

3x07

she was so happy to see the s1 tuatha'an again!

perrin: it may be the season of falling leaves, but when people see how bare the trees are, they'll long for spring mom: [chuckles] when did he get so wise?

someone mentioned lord luc and she went "who????" lmaoooo he really was such a "go girl give us nothing" character this season

i've had to go "that's the son of the guy whose dad perrin killed" just about every time for dain's first scene per episode, she never remembers who he is

she also asked "who's that?" about egwene's mom no joke at least 5-6 times during this episode

in loial's first scene this episode she was like "i want him to have more to do, he's one of my favorites" and i was internally thinking "well, she's about to get her wish............."

ila: there is no leaf without the seed dad: they have a lot of weird sayings in this show

"since they have two rivers nearby, why don't they just dig a moat around the village to keep the trollocs from entering?" perrin come hire my mom as your new strategist

dad about alanna taking out a huge chunk of the army with her hailstorm: "that feels like cheating somehow"

my mom was very sad about loial! but she figured it was coming because "angels started singing" right before his final moments.

me: he doesn't die in the books, but in a show you can't keep as many characters around forever, so that's why they killed him off here mom: but they don't understand that he's my favorite character

then i said "what about lan?" and she said "he's a different kind of favorite character" haha and she went on to say that she liked loial for his comic relief and also because he was a scholar who showed the importance of books and stories in a world full of warriors and battles. RIP loial!

she does not believe for one second that padan fain will keep his promise to perrin and thinks he'll be coming right back to attack again sooner or later

mom taking stock of the battle results: so, Worst Whitecloak is dead and Peddler escaped and is still alive

3x08

mom about the amyrlin election: it's like the conclave for the new pope

leane to siuan: you haven't once told me how you know this mom: i guess she can't exactly say "somebody told me in a dream" can she?

when sammael says lews therin gave him his scar: "lews therin is something to do with rand right?" oh mom

moggy to liandrin: mistress has been very busy mom: she sounds like gollum

mat and nynaeve: [put on their veils to follow liandrin] dad: [scoffs] THOSE are their disguises?

mom about lanfear's little wedding dress number for her meeting with rand: she always has the best costumes

moiraine: we leave for alcair dal mom: where? me: just some other location don't worry about it

mat: [making for the doorway] min: mat wait! mom: he never LISTENS! he's so ANNOYING!

but then him yelling at the eelfinn about being sick of every magical force on the planet got a hearty chuckle, so it's not all losses for mat in her esteem haha

she was worried about thom dying because she "likes his voice"

mom about min's CPR: i can't believe that worked

she was upset with nynaeve for not hiding or disguising herself while waiting for the others, solidarity with @butterflydm haha

dad when nynaeve parts the sea: too bad no one else is around to see how cool this is mom: too bad liandrin isn't around to see that she needs to try harder!

she said fondly "he's gotten so smart" about rand at some point during his convo with moiraine

mom when lanfear shows up in her Ultra Goth Supreme getup: who's that? me: lanfear mom: oh. she looks different every scene!

my dad likened the Dueling Car'a'carn Presentation to a gameshow lmao

mom had a moment of panic thinking lan might die, so i had to blurt out that he was not going to die

mom: he made it rain in the desert? the other guy's gonna have a hard time topping that!

she's getting very concerned about rand doing big channelings since it will bring him closer and closer to madness every time he does. the show's done a good job emphasizing those stakes for viewers!

after it was over she said "so many good guys died this season! i'm so upset!" in the same sentence as asking hopefully if there would be an s4 haha

later that evening: "i really hope they do more seasons, because i'm not reading all those books". i hope so too!

[km3tt0]

Ares: Why did you allow your daughter to hurt me? :(

Zeus: Bc she’s my fav

[sleepyvib-es]

like the hercules merchandise in disney's hercules, and we're reaching the point when herc looks around at the room full of cheap imitations and feels empty.

Once again I agree with everything you've said. The hercules comparison jumped out at me b/c it's something I've thought about before with percy's retcon/mischaracterization in recent works. The brand/merchandise angle is one thing, as you've brilliantly pointed out. I also just find it quite ironic since percy had a brief arc and reflection moment in the ttc about how he didn't want to be like hercules. It's one of my favorite percy moments in the og books.

Percy was able to reflect and look at his childhood hero in a new light after being informed of how he used and abandoned Zoe Nightshade and decided right there and then that he did not want to become like him.

This was a declaration that meant so much to Zoe (as per her final words to percy) and Percy did a lot to show that he meant it. It was a huge part of the reason why we get that gut wrenching, heartfelt moment between her and percy before she dies.

We see him prove this over and over again throughout the series. Take the moment with him and the river naiad in botl for example. He literally made a deal to clean out the stables and gambled his and his friend's lives so that they'd all get out safely if he succeeded (actually he made this deal to free nico since his friends were already granted safe passage by hera, which is another character moment i love that is consequently forgotten with the retcon of nico and percy's friendship but let me not get too ahead of myself). Percy was on a very tight time limit and had virtually no other options other than to use water to clean the stables. Then we meet the river niaid. She knows exactly what percy is there for as heroes before him have tried it. She tells him he doesn't have her permission to use her river b/c it'll pollute her water and ruin her ecosystem. Percy notices that she was scared, that while she was bravely putting up a front, she also knew that if he decided to fight her for control of her waters he would most likely win. Percy then proceeds to tell her that she's right and that he won't fight her, which shocks her since again, heroes before him have tried it with no regards to her. He literally says "The thought made me sad. I felt like a bully, a son of Poseidon throwing his weight around."

The reason why we have the iconic "the water is within you" moment with percy (that ultimately we see again and again with percy's powers like when he blew up a volcano in that same book, when he recalls what she told him) is because percy showed her compassion. He didn't use his might, he didn't force her, he was simply given an alternative way to help his friends as a result of him being considerate.

He has more moments in this book alone where he proves that he isn't like hercules. He asks rachel to help them navigate the labyrinth, since she's clear sighted and their best shot at it. He knows that what he is asking of her is dangerous and reassures her that she did not have to help them if she didn't want to. He also reassures her that she's doing great and that he trusts her even after she feels guilty for leading them to the arena percy almost lost his life in (and again we get more great character moments with percy refusing to kill ethan and instead using his wits to outsmart the giant and get them all out safely.)

He also demonstrates this with his interactions with calypso. He feels so much empathy for her. She helps heal him and all she asked in returned, besides staying in her island, is that he plant her a garden in manhattan. Which he does. He could have left it at that but what does he do next? He asks for the gods to swear an oath to set her free. He doesn't use people, discard them or forgets about them until he "needs something from them" so it's so jarring to me that this is apparently the narrative we went with in regards to percy in hoo and tsats.

It fills me with so much rage. It's one thing to milk out the series when there are no more stories to tell but it's another thing entirely to drastically change the very same character you're trying to make a profit from. Percy's themes, characterization, his arcs, his interactions with other characters and how they fundamentally change him and influence his world view has been bastardized and thrown in the trash and like you said ... this all hurts the narrative. It harms not just him but other characters as well. The way rr takes hero moments from classic myths (like perseus, hercules, theseus, etc) and retells them in the context of his story is similarly done to percy's character in the worst possible way where we just hand out his significant moments to make others shine and take away from his. Which like yeah.. it shouldn't have to come down to that. Let his other characters be great and have their moments to shine without needing to messily tie it all back to percy and diminish him entirely.

Hi just wanted to say that your tags on my percy post are so spot on. You're so right, rr uses him as some kind of metric and it's frankly hurting his character so much. Also yes there's really no one else he can measure up with being momma's boy so that's really the only thing about percy that stays intact. Like you said, other characters can def shine on their own without it having to tie back to percy's achievements or low moments in the series but sadly rr has this capitalist need of name dropping percy in everything he writes about. Sorry for the yap session just wanted to say you're soo right <33

yes it's so capitalistic! i really feel like percy has become little more than a product to rick. one that can be sold and polished and reconfigured and resold. like the hercules merchandise in disney's hercules, and we're reaching the point when herc looks around at the room full of cheap imitations and feels empty. or like captain america when he's first being paraded around and all his natural heroism and humility is being hidden by something flimsy and marketable. but the difference between those characters and percy is that those obstacles were built into their stories for them to overcome, whereas percy is helplessly trapped in this story where the integrity of his character is being corroded by the ever-present push to appease the market.

and i might understand this more if it were disney hyperion who were pushing for this kind of exploitation, but given that rick essentially is to dh what sjm is to bloomsbury, in that he can do pretty much anything he wants, i'm not inclined to believe that to be the case. especially especially because this name dropping is not existing without narrative consequence, which you so brilliantly pointed out in your post.

it's as if percy's a loaf of bread that keeps being brought out for other characters to tear off and claim pieces of until all that's left of him is small and stale. and yeah there is still a good chunk of himself he has claim to, but percy's always been so much more than just a mama's boy yk. and it's not fair to the other characters to make them subsist on percy's shadow, even if they are getting something out of it, because it robs them of the possibility to create their own measure as individual characters.

[gynnnicsworld]

You know Sterek has been frequently 'cancelled' and attacked for basically being the most popular ship in the TW world, right?

Because of the age gap between them, right? Well, I have to complain about it, because it really pisses me off that they're discarding the beautiful, slow-burning love story that exists between Stiles and Derek in CANON. Because damn it, they liked each other.

It bothers me that they tarnish Sterek's image for things like being a "pedo" ship when NO, they're not. They're trying to lump us all into a "sick shipper" category.

If we're being honest, Sterek has probably been the story with the most backstory, where we've seen how each season has seen the closeness between Stiles and Derek grow, where they've gone from 'hating each other and having to deal with each other because of Scott' to genuinely caring for each other to the point where Derek would take a bullet for Stiles or Stiles would go against the entire FBI to protect and get Derek out of whatever mess he was in.

They care deeply and genuinely for each other, so much so that Derek preserved and fixed Stiles' Jeep, keeping it in his garage as a sort of memento or anchor for him.

It bothers me so much that they talk shit about Sterek when this couple exists:

sorry but parrish/lydia was a canon pairing between a teenager and an ADULT and if that wasn't enough, an adult from the sheriff's department.

Why aren't people talking about this more? Why are they attacking Sterek instead? Sterek: a couple that wasn't canon during the show's run, and we only got confirmation of feelings for each other through the actors and through obvious hints in the show. But directly, it was never a canon couple between a teenager and an adult guy. They were together.

I put the adult that way because Derek's age was never confirmed as such. At the beginning of the series, Stiles says Derek is only a couple of years older than him and Scott. So at the beginning of the series, Derek was between 18 and 19 years old. But later on, they address the fire, so they change the age again, but they never say exactly how old he is, so canonically Derek could be 2 to 5 years older than Stiles. You choose what age gap to give them.

While Lydia, about 17, and Jordan Parish, over 20, are a CANON couple.

Anyway, hypocrisy and homophobia, right?

But there is a VERY important theme between the Derek/Stiles relationship, which if you ask me made the possibility of a relationship between the two of them impossible while Stiles was still a high school student and perhaps only when Stiles was older could something exist between them.

The existence of this damn bitch and what she did to Derek.

I hate her as much as you do, and it disgusts me to have to watch Teenage Derek with her.

But it's important to what I wanted to say; it's why I think Derek repressed his feelings for Stiles.

According to the Teen Wolf book, Kate was Derek's substitute swim teacher, who used certain hormones and scents to attract the teenage Derek to her. YES, that was not only a relationship rife with manipulation, power imbalances, and pedophilia, but she also ended up orchestrating the murder of Derek's family at a moment of vulnerability for Derek because Paige's death hadn't happened long before.

We all know Derek blames himself for the death of his family, and he hates Kate. He knows what she did to him. He knows he was manipulated by an older woman and that he fell for her.

Derek has serious trust and self-confidence issues.

He doesn't believe he's worthy of love or peace.

His anchor until Season 2 was anger because his life was infested with anger/hate/rage.

So he sees himself as something bad, something that hurts, someone who destroys what he loves. He's a victim of sexual abuse, even though he doesn't admit it.

But Stiles became that little glimmer of light annoying, but a light in his dark life filled with negative things. Stiles earned his trust. Stiles fought every step of the way and broke down that wall Derek built around himself to keep people away from him, because trust means giving someone the power to hurt you. Oh well, Derek's mind worked that way. Unbeknownst to him, Stiles earned that trust.

And that's where we have this scene.

This is where Derek lets us see how important Stiles has become to him, Stiles became his anchor.

At this point, it's undeniable that Derek already has feelings for Stiles. He trusts Stiles blindly. But then, why didn't Derek do anything to have Stiles? Because Derek is a victim of sexual abuse by a woman who took advantage of him in high school. And Derek never dealt with that trauma, or we were never shown to have it that way.

Derek dates women, of course—Jennifer (who also manipulated him), Braeden, etc.—whose relationships didn't end well or were never serious.

But not with Stiles, because Stiles is like that extremely important thing where he can't ruin that connection they have, he can't taint or sully this relationship he has with Stiles. It's too important to Derek. Plus, the untreated traumas surrounding his abuser are a clear impediment to starting something real, something serious. And everything seems to indicate that Stiles is THAT person his unconscious heart has chosen.

That is, to start any romantic relationship with Stiles, Derek has to face all of his demons, all of his traumas first, in order to give Stiles what he believes Stiles deserves.

Kate ruined Derek's heart and mind a lot, plus Derek already had a wounded and bleeding heart since Paige.

So, a relationship as such didn't exist in the series between S/D, and it was quite unlikely that it would, but the feelings were always there.

That's why I don't understand why they keep attacking a couple who has SO MUCH backstory, and who if they ever dated, it was definitely when they were already adults and able to deal with their own issues.

The sheriff's line about the jeep and Derek always makes me think that the sheriff was always aware and noticed everything. He never disapproved; on the contrary, he supported them, because he knows there's no one who deserves each other more than those two. It was also a clear confirmation that Derek always had feelings for Stiles, complicated feelings he didn't know how to address, but whose feelings led him to treasure and fix Stiles's jeep.

[lunavrse]

（ OSCAR PIASTRI ）✶ ── APRIL FOOLS

✶ summary : some people ship you and oscar and some people don't even know that you're aware of each other's existence so your latest post really gets people riled up.

✶ category : smau

✶ notes : heyyyyyy. short little smau to get back into the swing of things, maybe I'll post more, probably not. this is for the anon who asked me about this months ago. i'm so sorry, I hated all the other versions of this and finally got some inspiration the other day and now i'm running with it. times and dates? irrelevant! spelling mistakes? (mostly) intentional !

Liked by bestfrienduser, logansargent, zendaya and 5 649 263 others

oscarpiastri at long last love has arrived

View all 7 826 comments

user somebody shoot me, like right now

user what. the. fuck.

user happy April 1st!!! hahaha!!!! so funny!!! very practical jokester!!!

user the way they look at each other 😭😭😭

user shayne and courtney core

user sobbing, nobody talk to me right now

user congratulations 🎉

user love that i clicked on your post notification and immediately got attacked😊

user please say this is for a movie

user idk, these look a little TOO real

user to LAURYN HILL??!?!! oh I'm kms if this isn't real

user i think i missed a few chapters...

user honey, the book wasn't even published

user what a beautiful couple 😍

lando you guys are unbelievable

user oh so it's fake, thanks for the confirmation

lando where did i say that?

user oh so it's real❓

lando didn't say that either

user you're a horrible person and not even your good looks can save you

lando so you think i'm good looking, thank you😏

user oh who is you

user oh Oscar's decided to become an actor, good for him

user even you don't believe that

user SOMEONE SAY SIKE RN

user real or not, they look so good together

user WHAT DO YOU MEAN YN LN AND OSCAR PIASTRI NOT ONLY KNOW EACH OTHER BUT ARE MARRIED??!!??!???

user life is not real

user craziest crossover

user please god, let this be real, i need this

user I really want to be it to be real but this literally looks like a movie and yn is an actor

user a movie with their friends and family?

user well, you can't really see their faces and movies always need extras

user not even joking, i genuinely dropped to my knees in despair

user the mclaren admin is going through it in the comments and they're so me

user real ones know oscar's been dating someone

user BUT HER?!??!! how did he keep that a secret

user genuinely don't know, if i was dating yn, i'd be singing it from the rooftops

user guess that's why they're married and you're alone

user 😦 too soon

user i basically stalk him and i didn't even know

user uhhh that's not...

user going in for more kisses?? destroyed me

nicolepiastri Welcome to the family(officially)! We're so excited to have you.

user everybody pack it up, nicole just confirmed it

user i won't believe it until april 3 bc she loves to go along with a joke

user i'm gonna cry

user this is how I'm gonna announce my relationship, no soft launching, just pictures from my wedding

user am i being punked rn

hattiepiastri finally oscar's done something useful! so happy to be able to call you my sister

user mans is literally a f1 driver but rn his biggest accomplishment is marrying yn

user well yes!

user this is so sweet

user ugh i love the piastris

mclaren my favourite actress marries my team's driver and i'm not even invited to the wedding 😭 why do bad things happen to me😭😭

user atp i need to go to the oscar piastri and tom holland school of manifestation

user i get tom because of the obvious but why Oscar?

user because i need to end up with matthew gray gubler or i will die

user so real of you

user added context bcz op's not adding it but there's a youtube video of a younger oscar mentioning that yn is his celeb crush

user WHAT? so nobody was going to mention this to me??

user i can send you the link?

user SEND ME THAT! SEND ME THAT!

user me too!!!

user me 3

user here's the link for anyone who wants to know : https://youtu.be/5cfbKEK5gzU?si=HwTsDDBAjF8stXly

user you're a doll !

user this is the hardest of hard launches😵‍💫

user ugh i love seeing gorgeous people together

user i would kill for this type of wedding

user I swear if they've linked up just to do this prank, i will commend them for the dedication to the bit but i will also lose my mind

user i won't believe this until i see a marriage certificate

user what in the snowbunny mind control 🫣

user very on brand i fear

user lord please, when will it be my turn🙏🏼

zendaya beautiful bride, beautiful wedding, beautiful day

user i just know she slayed

user call it a jlo concert ticket because I'm not buying it🙂‍↔️

user nae nae i know this is you

mclaren wow, so nobody told admin that oscar was dating yn and is now *checks notes* MARRIED to her... fake! ALL OF YOU

user don't worry admin, we all know how you feel

user swear i would've told you had i known🤞

user I feel like I'm in a mass hallucination

user no shade, it's all that shrooms n weed.

user you saying no shade doesn't mean shit and also doesn't mean you can publicly air out my business

user and yet i said what i said.

user best believe i'll be at your door in ten minutes

user oh oh oh oh oh shiver me timbers, girl please, you not gon do nothing.

user OK EVERYBODY GO HOME, APRIL FOOLS IS CANCELLED

user sure i knew they knew each other because they're celebrities and yn attends races when she can but this is insane

tomholland2013 you're joking

user we know you were there!!!

user is this gaslighting? am i being gaslighted right now? cause there's absolutely no way

user no, that's what your boyfriend does to you everytime you catch him cheating. this is real, keep up.

user UNPROVOKED?!?

user everyone on twitter who said i was crazy for shipping this was gagged🙂‍↕️

mclaren even lando knew??? omfg they hate me

lando what's that supposed to mean?

user that you're not very reliable and you can't keep secrets, pick one🤷‍♀️

lando er, don't you mean or?

user no.

user say sike right now, i'm begging you

user what is up with all of my favourite internet people and announcements on april fools??? like do they want me to go insane 😭😭

user okay

user they definitely posted this and immediately turned their phones off

user can't say i blame them

user I'd do the same

user saw a tweet about this and had to come running to see if it was true

user I'll believe it’s a prank until they both confirm it every day for the next few years

user "everyone who thinks this is real is so dumb" ok shut up, either it's not real and you can appreciate the prank or it is real and you're still not better than everyone else

youruser and oscarpiastri has added to their story.

user: see, you could convince five of your friends to get dressed up so i don't even know what's going on right now

user: like i said, unless there's a marriage certificate, i do not believe it😪

user: i won't believe it and i won't accept it

user: this is such a great bit, next april fools' joke should be pregnancy!

lunavrse: i think i did a good job at making the dresses blue but don't look too closely 🙏

user: a day i will continuously try to erase from my mind

user: my sister's gonna be devastated by this, can't wait to tell her😈

user: you're actually married? diva down✊😔

bridesmaiduser: ugh we look so good 😊

user: women>>>

user: what a beautiful venue

user: I’m going to carry on with my day and pretend this isn’t true

user: so jealous

bridesmaid2user: so lucky to be apart of your beautiful day❤️

user: this makes me feel so lonely, but congratulations on your (real) marriage

user: just cause you rented a venue doesnt make you married!!

user: you're lucky you got to her before me

logansargent: with the amount of alcohol available I'm surprised i didn't forget my own name

user: insert I don't need sleep, I need answers meme

tagged : oscarpiastri, officiant

Liked by oscarpiastri, bestfrienduser and others

youruser yes we are actually married. sorry to everyone who wants him, the boy is mine💋

View all 2 328 comments

user i feel like I've been stabbed

user i've been stabbed, this is worse actually 😀

user you're taking the piss

user can we talk about how good you look!!!!

user To Japanese denim?!!??! OH😭

user never dedicating that song for NO ONE

user especially not for a man😔

user right😭😭

user sooo happy for you guys... but seriously, on the phone that i pay for is crazy

user i know that man don't play about you

user me and pookie

user girl what❓ your man stay playing in your face

user glad this wasn't a prank, genuinely happy you guys are together ❤️

user girl, the boy in question said he sees god in your eyes, you won

bestfrienduser guys this is a joke, she's actually married to me and we just had oscar fill in for the prank

youruser you play too much

user you know I'd actually believe this

oscarpiastri yeah absolutely, thanks for letting me be apart of the special moment🙏

user i've had a few days to come to terms with this and i still can't believe this is real, like this is the timeline im in 🤯

user reacted '👍🏽' to your message

user this took me out

user real

user now you're just flexing on us and i don't mind it🤷‍♀️

user Oh how I love this song

oscarpiastri i only want you, can't even think about anyone else

youruser i'm obsessed with you.

user how i want my man

user may a love like this find me

user okay, you've convinced me, congratulations on your marriage🫶

user still don't see a marriage certificate 🥱

user ITS REAL?!?!

rachelzegler wait-

user just opened this app btw

oscarpiastri my wife everybody!!!

youruser my husband!!!!

user ofc he's a wife guy, love that 🤭

zendaya they're so in love it's sickening

youruser nawtt the woman who gushed about how in love she is with her partner only yesterday, unprovoked mind you

user real lover girls🙂‍↕️

zendaya and i stand by my words

user okay, i checked out the wedding officiant's page and it seems legit, they're actually married you guys

user sometimes you really just have to say damn and scroll

charlesleclerc oh my god you guys, I thought this was just for the bit, can't believe that was a real ceremony

user you're not funny, the jokes over😶

user Ariana Grande mention🚨🚨🚨

oscarpiastri has added to their story.

user: you're not special, i also see god in her eyes, in fact i cry because she's so beautiful

user: you're so real for this

user: i believe this how every man should think about his wife *olivia wilde nodding gif*

user: and i was right

youruser: still can't believe i get to wake up next to you

oscarpiastri: best feeling in the world

user: yeah, I'd be bragging about the fact that i married her every chance i get

user: you know, you're actually kinda funny sometimes. catches me off guard

user: drop the manifestation technique king🙏

user: you're the only man who deserves rights

and also my boyfriend

user: she's so gujdehnht. you're so lucky

user: wishing y'all a lifetime of happiness

user: Oscar how could you do this to me? this was supposed to be us ever since we locked eyes in a mall that one time. I don't know how you could betray me and just go on your day like what we had didn't matter.

user: life is so crazy, one day im shipping you and the next you're married

user: saw the interview, read the article and I'm still shocked

youruser has added to their story.

[tahbhie]

How Plot Progression Works—Myths and Facts.

Let me start with a myth.

Last week, a writer approached me with their half-finished draft, unsure how to continue. Apparently, they got writer's block in the middle of the work. For about thirty minutes, we discussed the book freely as if it were a finished and published work.

Then I realized the issue.

☞ The problem?

From the conversation, I noticed that the writer's thoughts and ideas, which they voiced for the book, totally contradicted what they had written.

Their book followed a sequence of events. It was well-calculated, and the plot progression was on point but only to a certain level. I noticed robotic recurrences.

Something like this:

Scene 1— a sudden revelation

Scene 2— an unexpected fight

Scene 3— introduction of a new character

Scene 4— a conflict

Scene 5— another sudden revelation

Scene 6— an unexpected fight

Scene 7— introduction of a new character

Scene 8— a conflict

Meanwhile, all these elements didn't tie to each other in the story. They just performed different roles in each scene and were rendered useless in the next and every other scene that followed.

☞ Why did this happen?

Among other reasons, being extremely rigid with writing advice is a main factor.

Writing advice is great, but don't bend your style to suit the rules; bend the rules to suit your style.

Here's a clearer example of what I'm talking about.

Writing advice often says to keep readers on the edge of their seats within the first five pages, but this doesn't mean introducing unrealistic problems that don't fit your story. For example, introducing a sudden and improbable conflict just to add excitement can disrupt the flow and believability of your plot

During our session, I already understood how to assist, and we were setting our comfortable hours when the writer suddenly said, "I was told to include conflict in the middle of the book, then I ran out of ideas when I got there. I could have added one just a few pages in because I believe it would do well there, but again, I was unsure if that would make sense."

Now, who said conflict can't start a book? When you start your book with a conflict, you just have to ensure that you build towards 'the reason' behind the conflict so your readers can understand.

☞ Should I follow every writing advice with a closed mind?

No, you shouldn't. Remember that you are writing that book because you want to, and your idea was great enough to convince you to actually write. You need to enjoy the process and create what you truly want to create. Follow instructions flexibly.

Now that the myth is out of the way, let's talk about things that make a plot.

➜ Basic plot elements.

Initially, your plot should have the following:

✧ Protagonist ✧

Who are readers following in the story? Make that clear in the first few chapters. If you're writing from a first-person point of view and plan on switching between characters, aim for a maximum of two characters. It becomes clear that those two characters are an important part of the story; hence, they get the privilege to narrate the story from their respective views.

✧ Goals and objectives ✧

What is your protagonist after? Here's one thing you should know: your character doesn't have to know what they want at the beginning of the story. They may be as confused about their life as anyone reading, but as the story unfolds, they find a goal worth reaching and discover the needed strength to reach the goal.

✧ Antagonist ✧

What/Who is standing as a threat? A threat is hell-bent on ruining your protagonist and stopping them from achieving their goals. An antagonist could be an object or a human. It all depends on the concept you aim for. Funny enough, the antagonist could be a lie that starts out seemingly small but ends up being harmful. The rom-com movie "Upgraded" is an example of this concept. The lie the art enthusiast told was the greatest trouble she faced.

✧ Conflict ✧

What are the problems the protagonist faces? Problems can start from anywhere over anything, and you can choose to make them mild and solvable at first while building up to something larger.

✧ Resulting consequences ✧

What happens after the protagonist faces the trouble and tries to solve it? Did they lose anything? Hurt someone? Earn support from people they least expect?

✧ Character arc ✧

How has the journey shaped your protagonist? After going through something they probably never saw coming, how has it changed them? For a timid main character at the beginning of the story, do they finally become brave and display a different side of themselves?

All these are important for a well-rounded story as a whole.

Join the Writers' Universe and connect with like-minded writers.

➜ Secondary plot elements

These elements help you shape the above category.

● Setbacks

Let's use movies to illustrate this. There are certain points where we lose hope for the main character, almost convinced they've lost. We see them at their weakest points, hurt that the antagonist got them good. These moments are the setbacks. The protagonist is made vulnerable.

● Loss

What did the setback cost them? The reason I intentionally labeled this as loss is because to move a plot forward, some things need repairing. Since most loose ends were already from the beginning of the story, adding a fresh loss piques the reader's interest. It doesn't have to be the death of someone. It could be the brutal end of an alliance formed on an emotional scale.

● Break of a new dawn

I just wanted to get creative with the title. This point marks the pivotal change of events, and once again, there's hope for the protagonist as they find solutions to their problems. In this stage, they discover hidden abilities within themselves (this isn't limited to fantasy).

And there you have the important sections of plot progression. But keep these few things in mind. To ensure you're not leaving a huge gap in your plot, try to:

┗→ Introduce elements that work for your story:

It's common to believe something works well simply because it did in your favorite book. You might want to reconsider that with a different mindset.

┗→ Tie elements together:

Of course, this doesn't apply to all, but try to create a link between events in your story. If a fight occurred in a scene, link it to a cause in a few scenes ahead. This can lead to another conflict, this time on a larger scale, without having to introduce something entirely different.

And back to the question that birthed this post:

ᴥ Should conflict come early or not?

It depends on your work, but it can come early. That's not taboo.

There was a movie I watched featuring a female lawyer as the protagonist. The movie started with the kidnap of her only child, and the rest of the scenes drove us to the 'cause,’ then more conflicts, setbacks, and finally resolution. We were also able to explore the character’s personality based on the decisions she took in different emotional scenes.

She tried to keep her calm in some scenes while she just flat-out threw a tantrum in others, but overall, she was a strong woman who was broken by the incidents occurring and then rebuilt. I read a book with the same premise: the main character was a tween who misplaced something precious and decided to go on an adventure to search for it, and that was what the story was built upon.

I always tell writers one thing—own your book. The first draft seems to be the toughest one of its pair, but if you don't allow yourself to freely express your thoughts, there will be no first draft or story at all.

✧✧✧✧

Struggling with any stages of writing? Send me a message, and let's sort it out for a suitable fee.

✧✧✧✧

Do you want to create characters readers are compelled to start a fandom for?

Check out "My Characters and I" extensive coaching session. Understand the secret behind every attractive character. The slots are limited, and this opportunity closes once capacity is reached. Don't miss it; you never know when you’ll stumble upon these golden gates again.

[deliciousangelfestival]

Let's Play Pretend - 1 | Bucky

Character: Bucky Barnes x singer! Female reader

Summary: You just wanted to hide here and find peace from the mess that wasn’t caused by you. But then, your hot neighbor bothered you. As if that wasn’t enough, the enemies you hated found you too.

PART 1 , PART 2 , PART 3 , PART 4 , PART 5 , PART 6 , PART 7 , PART 8 , PART 9 , END.

Main Masterlist || If you enjoy my work, please consider buying me a coffee on Ko-fi 🙏🏻

By the way, I publish my book Arrogant Ex-Husband on Kindle. 👉 Now available on e-Kindle Amazon! << here's the link.

Thank you to everyone who has read this chapter. Leave a comment and Reblog, please. I'd love to hear your thoughts. ❤️

Shocking Split! Y/N L/N Dumps Fiancé After Drug Party Scandal

Betrayal Drama! Y/N L/N’s Manager Caught Stealing Millions for Gambling

Where’s Y/N? The Singer Vanishes Amid Scandals!

“I’ve always wanted to be a singer, but I never had the confidence to stand on a stage—until my music teacher, Mrs. Walls. She believed in me.”

Mrs. Walls sighed as she watched your Grammy interview on TV. You looked radiant, glowing with excitement after winning such a prestigious award. As a music teacher with years of experience, she had worked with many talented students, but you stood out uniquely.

At first, you were the shyest student in her class, hardly speaking above a whisper. But what surprised her the most was your natural gift: a perfect pitch. You could write down the notes to a song after hearing it just once, and you picked up musical instruments with ease. She vividly remembered showing you basic piano chords; within minutes, you were playing along effortlessly. The same thing happened when she introduced the guitar.

Her fondest memories were of you standing shyly at the front of the class, yet lighting up when it came to music. She smiled as she recalled your speeches at award shows: “I wouldn’t be here without my music teacher, Mrs. Walls. She was the first person who put faith in me.”

“That’s the last interview she gave us,” the gossip channel host said dramatically, feigning concern. “It’s been three months since anyone’s seen her. Where is Y/N L/N?”

Mrs. Walls frowned and turned off the TV with an annoyed grunt. “Urgh. Gossip vultures,” she muttered under her breath. She grabbed a glass of lemonade from the fridge and walked out to her garden. She noticed her guest seemed lost in thought, staring off into the distance. It had become a habit whenever she was in the garden.

“You’re not thirsty, huh?” she teased lightly, holding the glass toward someone sitting under the garden umbrella.

The person she handed the drink to was none other than the missing singer, Y/N L/N. For three months, the paparazzi had been on your trail, but they had no idea you were hiding here—in the sanctuary of your former music teacher’s home.

Mrs. Walls still remembered the night you appeared on her doorstep, mascara streaked down your face, eyes red and swollen from crying. You looked nothing like the glamorous star she’d seen on television, but instead like a lost child searching for safety.

“I don’t know where else to go,” you had whispered, your voice trembling.

In that moment, she didn’t see the world-renowned singer. She saw the shy, seven-year-old girl who used to sit in her classroom, clutching her music notebook like a lifeline. She hugged you tightly, her heart breaking for you. “Stay as long as you need, my dear,” she had said softly, ushering you inside.

Since that night, you’d been living quietly in her guest room. The once-vibrant star barely spoke, and the silence worried Mrs. Walls more than she let on. She watched as you avoided stepping outside, terrified of being recognized. The only place you seemed at peace was her garden.

She wondered, How long will you keep hiding like this?

You took the lemonade from her hand with a quiet “Thank you” but set it on the small table beside you without taking a sip. Sitting on the bench, you leaned back, tilting your face up toward the sky. The sun was warm, filtering through the leaves of the garden trees. Through your Ray-Ban sunglasses, you watched the golden rays dance, letting them calm your stormy thoughts.

Here, in this little haven, you could pretend the outside world didn’t exist. The judging eyes, the betrayals, the relentless cameras—everything melted away in the sunlight.

You thought back to three months ago, just after wrapping up your world tour. It had been the most significant milestone in your career, a dream come true. Exhausted but proud, you returned home, excited to move on to the next chapter of your life—starting a family with your fiancé.

But the moment you landed, things began to unravel. You’d called your fiancé multiple times, but he didn’t answer. At first, you thought he was busy, but a nagging feeling in your chest wouldn’t go away.

When the truth finally came out, it shattered you. Your assistant broke the news: your fiancé had been busted at a drug-fueled party. Worse, it was also a sex party.

You felt your chest tighten at the memory. That betrayal had cut deep. But it wasn’t the only one.

Later that week, you discovered that your longtime manager, someone you trusted implicitly, had embezzled your money to feed a gambling addiction. Two people you thought you could rely on had betrayed you in the worst ways possible.

One night, overwhelmed and broken, you drove aimlessly, tears blurring your vision. Without any plan or destination, you just kept going until you found yourself parked outside Mrs. Walls’ familiar home.

Even after all these years, she had always been honest with you. When you needed guidance, she gave it without hesitation. If she thought something was right, she’d say, “Go for it, my dear.” If it wasn’t, she’d warn, “No. You deserve better.”

Now, sitting in her garden, you sighed and closed your eyes, letting the sunlight warm your face. For a moment, you could almost believe you were that shy student again before fame and heartbreak had found you.

Mrs. Walls watched you silently, her heart heavy. She wanted to help, but she knew you needed to find your way back on your own.

“How long are you planning to hide here?” she finally asked, her voice gentle but firm.

You didn’t answer right away. Instead, you opened your eyes and looked at her. “I don’t know,” you admitted, your voice barely above a whisper.

Just like this, Mrs. Walls worried about you. You knew you were taking advantage of her kindness, aware she wanted you to step out of your shell, but you weren’t ready. The thought of facing the questions, the prying eyes, and the silent judgment was too much.

Just a little more time, you thought. That’s all I need. And some peace.

But peace wasn’t always easy to come by.

"VROOM!"

A sudden loud roar shattered the tranquility of the garden. The grating sound of a lawn mower filled the air, making you wince. You covered your ears, irritation flashing across your face.

Your gaze turns toward the source of the noise. “It’s already noon. The sun’s scorching hot—what kind of madman decides this is the best time to mow their lawn?”

“Well…” Mrs. Walls trailed off, watching the man seated atop the lawn mower. Her lips pressed into a thin line.

It's her neighbor, a man who had recently moved in. He wasn’t just any neighbor—he was one of her former students. Not from her music classes, though. He’d been one of the troublemakers, a kid who lived on detention slips and second chances.

“Bucky!” she called out, her voice carrying across the garden.

The man paused, cutting the engine. The deafening noise stopped, leaving an almost eerie silence in its wake. He climbed off the lawn mower, wiping his brow with the back of his hand.

You squinted, ready to roll your eyes, but then your gaze lingered for a moment longer than you wanted. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, and his broad chest glistened with sweat. The sun highlighted the sculpted lines of his six-pack, and every step he took radiated an infuriating confidence.

Great, you thought bitterly. Annoying and ridiculously good-looking. Just my luck.

Mrs. Walls met him halfway, handing him a glass of lemonade. “Thank you,” Bucky said, his voice low and smooth.

You let out an exaggerated sigh and rolled your eyes. “You’re welcome for the noise pollution,” you muttered loud enough for him to hear.

He turned, raising an eyebrow at you. “You’re welcome for cutting the grass, princess.”

“Princess?” you repeated, your tone sharp. “You’ve got to be kidding me. You’re out here ruining everyone’s peace, and I’m the problem?”

He smirked, crossing his arms over his chest, the gesture only drawing more attention to his muscles. “Stop acting like a diva.”

Your jaw dropped. “I am a diva!”

“Yeah, right,” he scoffed, taking a long sip of lemonade.

“What rock have you been living under?” you snapped, glaring at him.

He rolled his eyes dramatically, his expression shifting to one of mild exasperation. What you didn’t know was that Bucky wasn’t as clueless as he seemed. For the past three years, he’d been living under the radar, cutting ties with his old life. His job had demanded secrecy, isolation, and sacrifice. He didn’t have the luxury of keeping up with the world, let alone pop culture or celebrity news.

The truth was, he hadn’t recognized you—not as the world-famous singer everyone else seemed to adore. To him, you were just the frustrating woman who had suddenly appeared in Mrs. Walls’ house and made everything more complicated.

But even as irritation bubbled under his skin, he couldn’t help but feel intrigued. There was a fire in you that clashed with his rough edges, and it both annoyed and fascinated him.

For Bucky, Mrs. Walls had always been a comforting presence—a grandmother figure who offered him advice and a safe space to talk. Her home had become a haven. And then you showed up.

Now, that peace was gone, replaced with constant banter and an energy that made it hard for him to stay indifferent.

Mrs. Walls watched the two of you, her lips twitching as if suppressing a smile. Despite your usual quiet demeanor, you seemed to come alive whenever Bucky was around.

“You two are like a pair of bickering children,” she muttered under her breath.

“Excuse me?” you said, shooting her a look.

“Nothing, dear,” she replied with a knowing smile, sipping her lemonade.

Bucky glanced at you, shaking his head. “You know, for someone who wants peace and quiet, you sure have a lot to say.”

“And for someone who wants to mow the lawn, you sure talk a lot for no reason,” you shot back, folding your arms.

Bucky laughed, low and mocking. “This is going to be fun.”

“Fun for you, maybe,” you muttered, turning your attention back to the garden, though your face was still flushed from the exchange.

As he walked away, you couldn’t help but glance at his retreating figure, hating how effortlessly confident he looked. Bucky, meanwhile, shook his head, pretending not to notice you watching him.

Both of you were equally exasperated—and similarly intrigued.

Bucky reached into his pocket and pulled out a coin, holding it up between two fingers with a smug grin. “Alright, princess, let’s make a deal. If it lands heads, I’ll keep mowing. If it’s tails, I’ll stop, and you can go back to your precious nap.”

You crossed your arms tightly, narrowing your eyes at him. “I hate this game,” you muttered, watching as the coin gleamed in the sunlight. He always did this—turning everything into some sort of challenge just to get under your skin.

Bucky smirked, clearly enjoying your irritation. “I know. That’s why it’s so much fun.”

Rolling your eyes, you huffed, “Tails.”

He nodded mock-seriously, flicking the coin into the air with practiced ease. It spun rapidly, catching the light with every turn before landing in his palm. He slapped it onto the back of his hand, then slowly revealed the result with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

“Heads,” he declared, his voice full of triumph.

“Ugh!” You threw your hands in the air, frustrated, pushing off the bench. As you stomped toward the house, the wooden slats creaked behind you, muttering, “I’m getting noise-canceling headphones.”

Mrs. Walls watched you retreat inside, shaking her head with a fond smile. She turned to Bucky, who was spinning the coin between his fingers like a magician showing off his trick.

“You really should stop teasing her,” Mrs. Walls said gently, her tone a mix of reproach and amusement.

Bucky shrugged, slipping the coin back into his pocket. His lips curled into a devilish grin. “Nah… it’s fun.”

🌷🌷🌷🌷

You peeked through the blinds, trying not to let the soft rustle of the fabric give you away. Outside, Bucky was still chatting casually with Mrs. Walls. He leaned against the handle of the lawn mower, his broad shoulders relaxed, and his expression unusually serene.

How could he be so normal and polite with her, yet every time he spoke to you, it felt like he lived to make you grit your teeth?

You narrowed your eyes, watching him laugh at something Mrs. Walls said. That face… you thought bitterly. What a waste of a perfectly good jawline and those stupid dimples.

Letting the blinds fall back into place with a soft snap, you turned away and headed to your room.

Inside, the space was dim, the curtains drawn tightly against the glaring afternoon sun. The cool, muted light was a welcome contrast to the irritation buzzing in your head. You kicked off your slippers with a little more force than necessary and flopped onto the bed, burying your face in the pillows.

The mattress was soft, and the faint scent of lavender from the room’s diffuser helped ease the tension in your shoulders. But even as you lay there, trying to block out the world, your mind kept drifting back to the smug grin on Bucky’s face and the way he seemed to revel in riling you up.

“Urgh,” you groaned, rolling onto your side and hugging the pillow close. You closed your eyes, willing yourself to forget about him.

Eventually, the steady hum of the ceiling fan and the distant chirping of birds outside began to lull you into a state of calm. Your breathing slowed, and your grip on the pillow loosened. For now, rest was the only thing you wanted—a reprieve from the relentless antics of your maddeningly handsome neighbor.

🌷🌷🌷🌷🌷

The dream came fast and vivid, like a storm. You were running—barefoot, your breath ragged and your heart pounding in your chest. Behind you, shadowy figures loomed, their voices sharp and cruel. The flash of cameras blinded you, their light like fire against your skin. You kept running, your legs aching, but the ground felt like quicksand, pulling you down.

You jolted awake, gasping for air. Your hands gripped the sheets tightly as your heart raced, the remnants of the nightmare still clinging to your mind. Glancing at the clock on the bedside table, you saw the dim, glowing numbers: 2:00 a.m.

Sleep felt impossible now. The stillness of the house, once comforting, now felt suffocating. You swung your legs off the bed and walked to the window, pushing it open. Cool air rushed in, brushing against your flushed skin and carrying the faint scent of dew and earth.

“Should I go out?” you murmured to yourself. It was late—no, it was early—and the world outside was likely asleep. It might be safe.

Pulling on a hoodie and sweatpants, you crept quietly through the house. Every creak of the floorboards beneath your feet made your pulse spike, but you pressed on, determined. When you reached the door, you hesitated, your hand resting on the doorknob.

Flashes of the past flooded your mind—the crowd of paparazzi outside your apartment, shouting your name, their cameras clicking incessantly, their relentless pursuit. You clenched your eyes shut and took a deep breath.

“It’s different here,” you whispered, willing yourself to believe it. Slowly, you pushed the door open and stepped outside.

The cool grass greeted your bare feet as you stepped off the porch, the gentle night breeze brushing against your face. There was no one. No voices. No flashing lights. Just silence and the soft rustling of leaves in the dark.

You exhaled deeply, relief washing over you like a wave. One tentative step after another, you left the house, the distance growing between you and your sanctuary.

You wandered toward the park, the faint glow of streetlights guiding your way. The world felt peaceful, and for the first time in months, so did you—until the faint hum of an engine broke the stillness.

You glanced over your shoulder, your pulse quickening. A car was following you, its headlights low but its presence unmistakable. Then you saw it—a glint of metal, the unmistakable outline of a camera lens.

Shit. They’d found you.

Your heart pounded as the car crept closer. Picking up your pace, you started walking faster, then broke into a run.

“Y/N! Where have you been?” a voice called out from the car, loud and intrusive.

You didn’t answer, your breath quickening as you pushed yourself to move faster.

“Have you heard your ex-fiancé has rekindled things with his ex?”

The words hit you like a punch to the gut. What? Your mind reeled. You hadn’t even ended things officially, and he’d already moved on? That bastard. While you were here, broken and dealing with trauma, he was playing house?

“Is it true you gave money to your manager, knowing about his gambling addiction?”

You stopped dead in your tracks, glaring at the man hanging out of the car window. “No! I didn’t know! Leave me alone, you jerk!”

You started running again, your breath burning in your lungs, your legs aching. Desperation clawed at you as the car followed relentlessly. Then you saw him—a familiar figure jogging under the streetlights.

“It can’t be,” you whispered.

Without thinking, you sprinted toward him, your voice frantic. “Bucky! Help me!”

Bucky stopped mid-stride, his brows furrowed as he saw you running toward him. His routine early-morning jog had just turned unusual. His sharp eyes quickly took in the distress written all over your face. Before he could react, you leaped behind him, clutching the back of his hoodie and crouching slightly to shield yourself.

He stiffened, caught off guard. Then he saw it—a car slowing down, its passenger wielding a camera that kept flashing incessantly. The bright lights blinded him momentarily, and irritation sparked in his chest.

“Hey!” Bucky growled, marching toward the car. The camera flashes continued, and without hesitation, he snatched the camera from the paparazzo’s hands and smashed it against the pavement.

The paparazzo’s jaw dropped in shock. “My camera!” he yelled, scrambling to pick up the broken pieces.

But he wasn’t done. Pulling out his phone, the man began recording. “You’re a dead man! Who the fuck are you? Her boyfriend? Bodyguard?”

Bucky, his irritation mounting, opened his mouth to correct him, but before he could, you blurted out, “He’s my boyfriend.”

Bucky froze, glancing over his shoulder at you. Your grip on his hoodie tightened as you peeked around him, glaring at the paparazzo.

The man in the car stared at the two of you, his phone still recording. “This is going to be front-page news.”

Bucky sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “What the hell did you just drag me into?” he muttered under his breath.

Exciting News!

I’m thrilled to announce the release of my new book, Dad, I Can’t Let You Go—a heartfelt collection of short poems about loss, love, and the journey of missing someone deeply. This book is dedicated to my father and to anyone who has experienced the pain of losing a loved one.

Available now on E-Kindle Amazon!

Dad, I Can't Let You Go! <<< Here's the link.

Thank you for your support, and I hope these poems resonate with you.

Join the taglist 💖💖💖

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[ifyoucandaniel]

favorite fics of 2024/basically just batfam fic rec list

It's that time of year guys, here is my favorite fics of 2024 in no specific order (aka my master batman fic rec list bc that's all i read this year with some spider-man thrown in there lmao). most of these have been in my previous rec lists, but this is just like one big frankenstein’s monster of a fic rec with all of them in one place <3

starting off strong, anything @bluelotuswrites's hands have touched is pure gold. Red is the Color of Sinners placed post UTRH where after being hit by bruce's batarang and now mute, jason decides to leave gotham and go to hell’s kitchen for a fresh start, but he keeps running into daredevil both in and out of costume. this is possibly the best jason of all time i rotate him in my mind like a microwave all day

The Hellblazer's Apprentice is an all blades jason fic where instead of continuing his lost days world tour, he meets john constentine and decides to learn magic to piss of bruce. blue added some lore to jason’s character in this that to this day makes my brain vibrate with excitement and the dynamic between john and jason is just ?? so good. both of these fics haunt me, they follow me wherever i go, i love them. read everything she's written, trust me

going with the theme of my favorite authors i read this year, @cdelphiki wrote my favorite read of the year and possibly all time Life Happens a fic that hit me like a sucker punch where tim and damian are both sent to a different dimension where everyone they know are comic book characters. with no other choice, they have to start a new life in this world while they wait for rescue. words just dont do it justice, please please read this fic. it’s the most beautiful story on growing and life

their other fic Jason and the Three Terrors crosses my mind at least once a day if not three times. jason is still with the league when talia charges him with getting damian, his cousin mara, and his secret sister athanasia to bruce safely from ra's. the rest of the fic is jason going from "i cant wait to get rid of these kids" to "these are my kids, i need to provide for them and keep them safe and i would die for them" 100/10 jason's character development is some of my favorite in any fic.

The Time Before is another of my favorites where jason is sent back in time to when he was 9 and goes to bruce for help and realizes maybe his memories of bruce maybe aren't all accurate. just read everything cdelphiki has ever written, trust me <3

Split by @wolfsbanesparks i have never been hooked on a character i previously did not know much about faster than when i read this fic. Billy and shazam are forcefully separated into separate bodies by black adam and then they have to try to keep billy's identity secret somehow while working with the justice league to fix them. the end of this fic had me sending paragraphs and 5 minute voice notes to my friends, trying to explain why i was so absolutely distraught and obsessed.

also by wolfsbanesparks, From the Shadows is basically everything you could ever want from a billy batson joins the batfam fic. it's got plot, it's got identity shenanigans, it's got badass magical billy, what more could you possibly need! seriously idk what is up with everything wolfbanesparks writes, but the endings are always so fucking good, 100/10.

Something in the Static by @bonerot19 is one of my favorite jason series ever, i go back to it constantly and think about it all the time. this is a series where jason's mom doesn't die and his dad isn't in prison, instead he's 17 working nights at a convenience store when everything changes and suddenly batman won't leave him alone. this is my favorite jason & steph best friends fic ever and the way this fic is paced scratches an itch in my brain, the flow of the story is just perfect

Buy Back the Secrets by @vinelark is the only ship fic on here and it deserves a place of honor. every time i get an email that it's updated an angel gets it's wings and my friends all get texts in all caps. Timkon fic where kon still doesn’t know tim’s civilian identity, but tim keeps calling for superboy when he's in trouble which leads to kon meeting him as a civilian. the identity shenanigans are just so top tier, its a 5 + 1 fic so every chapter is just just a new world of fun tropes. the chapter with tim's fake uncle and jason is actually probably my favorite chapter of a fic ever its so dear to me. as far as i'm concerned, this fic is the only timkon ever <3

Honoring Promises by LananiA3O is the shortest fic on this list and is the most important jason & dick post UTRH fics i've ever read. this fic both scratched an itch and created an itch because i need 100 more chapters and for it to never end. set post UTRH when dick starts to rethink his opinion on a note jason left him and realizes it was jason reaching out and decides to find him and fix things. this goes up there with RITCOS in the post UTRH fics where jason decides to just fuck off and do his own thing, i love them

Adopting a New Plan by A_Silly_Gander is yet another fic where jason winds up with an adoption problem when he first comes back to gotham. however, my favorite part of this whole fic is how the author writes jason making mistakes and being flawed and how those mistakes affect him. absolutely 10/10 character development and jason rejoining the batfam + damian and jaosn meeting in the LOA tag is just a mixture of all my favorite things, i love this fic so much

A Collision of Masks by MOVAZ is my favorite dick grayson fic ever, its set in a young justice AU where batman never joined the JL and YJ never met dick, so when the YJ team is sent to investigate a new vigilante, nightwing, identity shenanigans ensue. this is seriously such a fun fic, i loved all the crossover between dick's many identities and the YJ team

Cards on the Table by @wesslan is just!!! so fun oh my god. the chapter titles are to this day my favorite things ever they enhance the experience. it’s about tim being a scam fortune teller who knows a lot more than he should about the upper class due to his nighttime stalking. he winds up meeting the batfam and giving some scarily accurate advice which leads to him being tied up in their business and lots of lying <3 it’s such a fun fic and i just love the vibes 100/10

Hand in Unloveable Hand (a chokehold) by @a-large-orange-cat is by far my favorite fucked up tim fic! while tim’s out taking pictures of batman and robin as a kid he gets kidnapped by black mask and raised to take over his crime empire. cue 50k of manipulation and angst, the ending is so satisfying and the sequel with jason always makes me :’) very good, this tim lives in my mind in a little house he and jason built

Dark Matter by @mysterycyclone because would it be a fic rec without the loml? i love this fic so much oh my god, it sent me back on my spiderman obsessed bullshit which in turn led me back down my marvel bs. post infinity war peter is dusted and wakes up in the DC universe with the ghosts of the dusted avengers following him. i love this fic so much, nothing compares to this peter in my mind. the dynamic between him and the batfam + the identity angst is just so well done

keeping up with the peter theme, The Teenage Vigilante's Guide to Saving New York (And Making Friends Along the Way) by candlesneedflame is such a good team red/mentor matt fic oh my god. where peter goes against tony’s wishes and starts hanging out with daredevil and his friends and maybe starts getting mentored by new york’s vigilantes. 10/10 i love peter interacting with the other vigilantes and also matt mentoring him

anyways, that’s all folks! 2024 was the year for the DC and marvel fics clearly and hopefully 2025 will be the year of me binding all of these finally and having them sitting pretty on my shelf <3

[somethingusefulfromflorida]

I made a post a few months ago about how I thought Madagascar 3 was the worst movie I had ever seen. Well, after 13 years, I've finally changed my mind. A Minecraft Movie is now, hands down, the worst 2 hour experience of my life. I don't even want to get bogged down with hyperbole, it was not funny or enjoyable in any way, shape, or form to me. It is a movie for VERY little kids that was mismarketed as fun-for-all-the-family. I only saw it because it was my nephew's 6th birthday party, and I had to struggle to match his level of enthusiasm throughout the whole thing. He kept leaning over to ask questions and make comments, and I really wanted to walk out and go home. Even if I did, I couldn't ask for a refund because my sister paid for my ticket.

I knew it was from the same director but I was not expecting so many connections Napoleon Dynamite (Idaho, lady with a llama, tater tots, Jason Mamoa basically playing a hybrid of Uncle Rico and Rex Kwon Do), but it lacked all the charm and sincerity of Napoleon Dynamite. None of the Hashtag Quirky™ characters felt like real people. Not the protagonists, and certainly not the high school faculty. They all felt like they were trying too hard to be ironically funny and every single performance fell flat, they even managed to botch Matthew Berry's voice cameo at the end.

It's obvious that they wanted to cast Finn Wolfhard as the main character, but not modern Finn, Finn from 10 years ago, season 1 of Stranger Things Finn, so they got a knockoff dollar store version instead. The sister had nothing to do, the black best friend had nothing to do except say something along the lines of "aw hell naw" multiple times, Jack Black is a sellout who is nowhere near as cool as they try to make him seem, and the villain was sub-Saturday Morning Cartoon levels of intimidating and effective. It was annoying from start to finish.

It felt like a fake movie. Literally like an example script from a college freshman's How to Write Screenplays book; heavy exposition dumps, cliche dialogue ("punched up" with tons of distracting ADR), "one of the characters lies to the rest and then gets revealed and everyone is mad at them," "heroic sacrifice, SIKE, turns out he's alive and comes back 5 pages later," "everyone wants the MacGuffin because it does whatever the plot needs it to," "found family but they've only known each other for one day," quips, quips, endless quips... One of the first lines of dialogue is literally "yep, that's me." This movie has five writers, and none of them thought to do a second pass on that.

You know what? It was a perfect one-to-one adaptation of those clickbait animations my nephew watches on his ipad about things that don't happen in the game like winged shoes and mutant boss mobs and made up crafting recipes. If I had to describe it in one word, "undeserved." Every single joke, every attempt at emotion, all the 2011 Le Epic moments, all of them were undeserved. The movie did nothing to earn any response from the audience. I understand what it must have felt like for my parents to take me to Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 2005 or the Squeakquel in 2009. I loved those as a kid, but they are objectively absolute dogshit, and Hollywood will keep on making movies like that until the end of time.

TLDR, if you are over the age of 12, don't watch A Minecraft Movie. I have absolutely nothing positive to say about it.

[milf-harrington]

i read a fic yesterday (return of the king) where Steve swapped with Eddie at the last second at the end of s4 and ended up being the one who died and had to be left behind and then he came back as a vampire and it just got my brain TICKING.

So role-reversal AU where steve is the one who comes back basically kas-ified as is the common trope with eddie, but where eddie goes to steve, steve goes to robin.

lets say, for funsies, that they managed to kill vecna and max only ended up hospitalised for a broken elbow and a twisted ankle (from falling on it), so everyone has the time and space to grieve.

Steve’s death hits Robin the hardest because he was her person. He was her i-wish-we-could-just-merge-into-one-being. Her ride or die. Her soulmate. And he’d been taken from her, torn apart and left to rot in the very world he’d tried so hard to protect her from. 

The others give her space to let her mourn quietly in her bedroom, dressed in steve’s clothes and listening to his music like if she just tried hard enough she could still merge them together and let him use her lungs to breathe, her heart to pump his blood, her head to share his thoughts. that she could single handedly go from a me to a we.

And then, one day, Robin starts acting weird. She doesn’t know the Wheeler’s phone number and on her way to find it in the phone book, she found the Munson’s first, and when Eddie picks up it’s too a very chipper Robin asking for a lift to the shops where she proceeds to buy an alarming amount of red meat and refuses to answer any questions.

And she’s just- happy. She’s weird and happy and keeps calling Eddie to ask him about Dungeons and Dragons lore and if he can take her to the library or to the butcher and if he can let her borrow his jumper please? I get cold easily. And then she just keeps stealing clothes, from everyone. Sometimes she asks, sometimes she’ll just take a jacket off of the back of a chair and act like nothing happened, sometimes she just sneaks off to go rooting through washing baskets.

Then comes the day she invites Eddie over, probably a week or so after her initial journey into Weird-Ville, nervously rambling about nothing right up until she closes the front door behind them and runs into Eddie’s back because Eddie’s just spotted Steve-fucking-Harrington peering at him from around the corner. 

Apparently, a not-exactly-dead-anymore Steve crawled through Robin’s window one night and has since taken up residence underneath her bed. 

“He was kinda- not all there, at first.” She tells him, chopping a steak into cubes and dropping them into a blender. Steve, winged and fanged and tailed, leans against the counter and watches her with sleepy eyes. “But we’ve been working on it.”

After the initial pants-shitting shock of having her dead best friend re-appear as a creature of the upside down, Robin had simply accepted it and moved on. Happy to have Steve back no matter what it looked like. 

And what it looked like was blending raw meat, and reading together in the bathroom to bring back his ability to talk, and stealing clothes for the veritable nest Steve was building in her closet. The next step in her plan to re-domesticate her best friend, had been to introduce him to another person: Eddie, evidently. 

Steve promptly spends 5 minutes being a feral little creature, scenting Eddie within an inch of his life like he’d done to Robin, and then attempting to plant him in his nest like a little ornament. 

Just. idk. feral kas!steve seeking out robin for safety, who slowly re-introduces him to his humanity and then his future boyfriend.

[cloudcountry]

I've discussed this with a mutual but I really need to read it: I'd like to request a confession scenario with Jamil where he goes through the 5 stages of grief.

Basically Jamil is fell head over heels into the Mariana trench but forgot that De Nile is a river in Egypt and pulled a page out of Kalim's book by being purposely oblivious about his own feelings.

The poor reader is also very much in love and has pining for WEEKS. One day, they decide to just tip the band-aid off. The pair are in the kitchen hanging out as usual when the reader turns to him and goes "I'm in love with you. You don't have to say anything and you can pretend this never happened. I just want you to know"

They're expecting a rejection but Jamil just stares a freezes for a good three minutes. While the reader is panicking trying to get him to snap out of it, Jamil is going through the 5 stages of grief.

Ultimately, Jamil's thought process ends with "If we don't kiss in the next 5 seconds I'm overblotting again" and the intrusive thoughts win.

SUMMARY: you confess to jamil. he doesn't know how to respond until he throws his inhibition out the window.

COMMENTS: I LOVE THIS REQUEST??? i decided to play off of the actual stages of grief for this even though its an expression hehe

“Jamil, I like you.”

What.

“Actually, no, I’m...I’m in love with you. And it’s okay if you don’t, it's okay if you don’t say it back, I just wanted you to know.”

What!?

Jamil stares at the fridge in front of him, mind blank except for your words. They repeat over and over and every emotion ever swells up in his chest because what!?

Since when? Why? What did you see in him? What did you see in your future with him? DId you even see one? Did he mishear you? Did you mean to say that to someone else?

No, there’s no way you did. You two were the only ones in the kitchen at the moment. Grim was outside in the living room, talking to the ghosts about something or other and why would you even say something like that to Grim anyway?

Denial.

You didn’t mean it. There’s no way you meant it. even after he overblotted and threw you to the other end of his dorm? Even after he showed you all the ugliest parts of himself, the parts of himself that nobody ever should have seen because he wasn’t supposed to be a person, only an aid?

And he certainly didn’t like you back. It’s not like he wanted to do things for you to make you happy, it’s not like he got the slightest bit jealous when he saw you hanging out with Kalim, it’s not like he wanted to monopolize all of your time so nobody else could have it.

Okay, so he was lying to himself. Great. He can deal with this for sure.

Anger.

It’s so unfair. It’s so unfair. If it wasn’t for Kalim and his parents and this suffocating life he’s sure he’d be able to accept your confession in a heartbeat. He’s sure he’d be able to comprehend his own emotions and bring you into his arms. He’s sure he’d be able to process his own emotions and be the partner you deserved, without all the jumbled mess that is his rage and jealousy and resentment.

He didn’t want to be someone else, he just wanted a different life. He just wanted to be free, to be able to exercise his own pure talent, to be able to rise above everyone else.

Bargaining.

He wished there was some way to make that reality for you two. He didn’t want you to go be with anyone else, the very thought of it made his stomach turn and his heart brim with anger. He was a selfish, jealous person, but you loved him. How could he make this work? How could he keep you in love with him, keep you by his side, keep you controlled? Did you have to be controlled? You started liking him of your own free will, maybe he didn’t have to do anything.

But falling for him was one matter, staying by his side was another.

Depression.

There was no way this was going to work.

He had to find a way.

He couldn’t find a way.

There had to be a way.

His mind is moving too fast for him to keep up and he’s still staring at the fridge, and your voice is calling his name and you look so worried, your visage in the corner of his eyes swirling. It’s like he’s not even rooted in reality anymore. How can he make this work? It almost feels hopeless...but Jamil is anything but a quitter. He’s never given up before, and he’s not going to start now.

Acceptance.

“Jamil?” you say for what feels like the hundredth time, your hand resting gently on his shoulder.

He’s still not responding. Oh fuck, you didn’t think confessing was going to mess him up this much. If you’d known that, you wouldn’t have said anything and just kept it to yourself forever.

He murmurs your name and finally, finally turns to look at you. His hands grab your shoulders and he meets your gaze, pupils dilated and eyes wide.

“Be mine.” he says, and your heart flutters at how serious he sounds.

“J...Jamil?” you squeak, pliant in his arms and he pulls you close, clinging to you like he never wants to let you go.

“Be mine.” he repeats, words muffled in your shoulder, “I will...always do my best for you. Always. I don’t want you going to anyone else.”

“I don’t want to be with anyone else.” you murmur softly, placing a hand on the back of his head as he crushes you against him.

He shifts, bringing his face close to your neck. You barely have the time to wonder what he’s doing before he kisses the junction between your shoulder and neck, a soft smack of lips roaring in your ears.

“Good.” he replies, the word a hot gust of air against your skin.

[iamnmbr3]

Put this in a chat originally, but I'm still thinking about it so it's going here too. I really think Ginny got done so dirty by how Hinny ended up turning out in the books. She really truly does deserve better imho. It's so tragic because Ginny gets kind of overlooked a lot and diary!Tom seems to be the only person to really listen to her...ever. And he doesn't even actually care about her. And once he's gone she never gets that again. He gloats in the end of book 2 that she once told him "no one's ever understood me like you, Tom" and that's still true.

Harry never tells her anything nor does he seem to bother to learn anything about her. Never mind the Horcrux stuff that he only shares with Ron & Hermione and never even considers telling her about. He doesn't even tell her about the prophecy after book 5. And in book 7 he goes into her room briefly and mentions that he's never been there before. All that time he lived with her and he never looked in.

And he shows no sign of recognition when he sees what posters she has up there. He doesn't think "oh of course she'd have that" because he never even found out basic things like what teams or music groups she likes. The one person who ever bothered to care to actually find out these sorts of things and show interest in her was Tom...who turned out to be using her. It's really sad.

I do actually like hinny happening in the books and find it realistic given both their characterizations - given the way Ginny idolizes Harry and probably feels pressured to change to become his "perfect girl" and to not "bother" him with her problems and the way Harry thinks he might be dead soon and Ginny symbolizes to him all the normalcy he thinks he might never get to have, more an idea that a person, and also seems to be physically attractive to him. I just don't like it as an endgame relationship. I think it's realistic they would get together under the circumstances they did. And I think they would break up after the war when Harry realizes he's not comfortable talking to Ginny and Ginny realizes Harry doesn't respect her and they both realize they don't really know or understand one another.

[alphacentaurinebula]

We needed more time

Having had a little bit more space from the WoT finale and all the hurt it entailed, I feel like I can now comment more on the season as a whole. My verdict? We needed more time. In the form of two more episodes.

[FYI I have put aside the real world consequences of Siuan's death for the purpose of this post. I've talked about them extensively in this post and about my emotional reaction to her death in narrative terms in this one. Here I'm just going to look at the season as a whole, narratively/critically.]

Despite a few missteps in this season (obviously Siuan's death but others as well), I do feel like this was the best season overall. It had the best pace so far; managed to bring us along on several story threads; it provided incredible expansion to the world-building in Rhuidean; it kept me interested in disparate plots despite their limited time on screen, and it provided satisfying resolution to some longstanding stories/character arcs.

But it was also the season where I felt most strongly how much better the show would be with two more episodes per season.

Because so many plots were underserved; so many stories left dangling; so many narrative choices undermined by a lack of screentime and a lack of focus.

If we'd had two more episodes, we could have had:

More build up to the Two Rivers battle and Perrin's leadership dilemma. I thought the show did an excellent job of successfully resolving Perrin's relationship with violence, as well as his grief and guilt over his wife. But though his ambivalence toward leadership is discussed, we were never truly shown it. We didn't get his build up into a leadership position, his resistance to it and his realisation that if he didn't step up, the wrong decisions would get made. We see him convince people not to go back to their individual homesteads - that's it. One example. Then he's in charge and people are raising a wolf banner and joking about him being Lord of the Two Rivers. We never see him resisting the mantle of leadership. Faile has a line about how Perrin will have to lead the Two Rivers whether he wants to or not, but it's a real tell not show moment. I didn't feel like the 'resolution' of this thread was satisfyingly. Without being a book reader I'm not sure how meaningful I'd have found the final shouts of his name at the end of ep 7.

More resolution in Tanchico. Now don't get me wrong, I thought the show did an impressive job of conveying the storyline in Tanchico with VERY little time on screen. We got such brilliant character moments in the Hills of Tanchico episode, the time on the ship was excellent (even if I'd have liked to see more of the sea folk), and Moghedian was successfully the most creepy and terrifying thing on our screens. The compulsion scene was brilliant. And the whole storyline brought some much needed humour.

But as satisfying as Nynaeve's parting of the seas moment was, as glad as I was to see her overcome her block and as well as I felt that character storyline was handled - what happened in Tanchico afterwards? Are they still chasing Liandrin? Do they know she's left Tanchico, is that why they are on the ship? Basically, they super failed. They were trying to stop Liandrin and instead they gave her one of the armbands and helped her find the collar. We have no moment acknowledging that (or Mat's almost death or Nynaeve's block being resolved), no discussion of what to do next, nothing. We're left narratively hanging and the shot of them on the ship was almost more confusing than anything else. We needed at least 5-10 more minutes of storytelling in Tanchico in the finale, and more time with them throughout the season certainly wouldn’t have gone amiss.

An entire episode in the tower. The finale could have had room for more time in Tanchico, if we could have had a separate episode about the Tower Coup.

Just picture it:

We could see more build up to the coup. Elaida whispering in ears. Sitters defending Siuan - but are they convinced? Verin and Leane making back up plans. We could have had more sight of what Siuan was doing to try to bring world leaders in line, what she was doing to try to bring the tower in line. There would have been a chance for her to get close to realising abut the coup, almost outsmart elaida but then be outmanoeuvred. A scene where elaida gloats to a bound Siuan, asks her questions, loses her temper. A scene where Alviarin convinces Elaida that execution is the only option (if we have to have her die 🤦‍♀️), whilst Elaida hedges. Finally, Elaida agrees. She must be executed. And then - we leave it there. Episode ends.

Then, in the finale, we would have had more space and time. We could have had a very short scene of Siuan's allies fighting to reach her side. Then the speech and Moiraine's fight scene interwoven as they were. Siuan dies. Instead of the last shitty shot of her beheaded body, we get a shot of Leane sobbing over her, Rima saying death cannot be healed, and then Verin and the various allies convince them all to leave for Salidar in Siuan's honour. For Siuan, we will resist! For Siuan, we will support the Dragon Reborn! For Siuan, daughter of the River!

Just - how much better would that have been? I'm not sure it would have totally solved the real world issues of Siuan's death, but I do think it would have helped.

All this could have been ours - indeed, I think that most of that would have been in the writers' plans if they'd had 10 episodes. I really feel the show did better with pacing this season, but OH! What they could have done with enough time!

(obviously much of this could have worked with stilling instead of execution. Moiraine could still think she is dead (stilling could have cut off her link with the oath rod) and Elaida could have even sent her off to be imprisoned secretly away from the tower (and off screen for a few seasons), and told Leane et al that she was dead. But I digress.)

[literallyjusttoa]

Finally got around to doing this, here are some rough sketches of my idea of how Lester looks each book! Some books are more different than others, like I don't think much changed between books 1 and 2, but I had fun doing this! Look under the cut for some notes about things I added for each design.

Book 1: Not much changes from how he's described in the books. All of the clothes he borrowed from Percy are a bit too big for him, but the flannel he borrowed from Will fits pretty well, only being slightly too long (I think Will has like, an inch over Lester)

Book 2: Basically the same as book 1 Lester. He keeps the flannel Will gave him, but it gets pretty beat up over the course of this book so he has to switch it out before book 3 :(. Hair is just a lil bit longer, and he gets clothes that fit a bit better. Headcanon time bc if Rick won't give me substantial Thalia and Apollo interaction I'll make it myself: Thalia gives Lester archer's gloves at the end of TDP, which he wears for the rest of the series. He didn't even think to wear gloves bc as a god he wouldn't need them, but Thalia noticed his beat up to shit hands at the Waystation and went "bestie... bestie no...." and gave him a pair.

Book 3: Will's flannel has been swapped for a big coat and Lester get his iconic pink camo pants. His hair is long enough to start getting weighed down a bit, and also way messier bc he's been in the labyrinth for like a month. The beat up sneakers he was wearing in books 1 & 2 get replaced with much more reasonable boots. Eyebrow scar shows up, a reminder from one of the many concussions this poor man has suffered. Also another HC time! Georgie gives Lester a little handkerchief that he wears for the rest of the series (I was gonna use Paolo's handkerchief, but Lester canonically gives that back so boo)

Book 4: The Lester looks like shit book /j. His hair is now long enough that he should really be doing something with it but he is not. He has a zip up hoodie now to cover up all his fun purple veins. Just more beat up in general honestly. Also I hc that Apollo actually lost some weight here (both bc he wasn't really eating well before getting to New Rome bc of stress/grief, and bc he got really sick and continued to not eat well while that was happening) But it obviously doesn't do anything to help his self-esteem or mood in this book. Kind've a visual way of being like "the superificial flaws Apollo clung to in the first book weren't the real issue, he was just hyperfixating on them to distract himself from what he was really upset about, so when the superficial issues get solved he doesn't even notice bc he's grown enough as a character to cut the bullshit and focus on what's really bothering him." or idk something like that. I like to contrast this with a hc I've mentioned before about the time between books 4 and 5, which is that the physical flaws Apollo whined about in book 1 (i.e. the acne and his weight) get "worse" throughout the road trip from California to New York, but Apollo truly just does not care that much about that shit anymore and that's why it doesn't come up in the narration.

Book 5: Final Lester! It's been over a month since the last book so I'm taking liberties and saying Lester's hair is long enough to pull up now bc I want him to be able to do that goddammit. Final outfit is borrowed from Percy again, so that's why it's so big. He also has a pendant that Lavinia gave to him bc they're besties. Also I forgot to mention it, but his shoulders are slightly broader here (and have been getting broader throughout the series) bc he's been working those muscles so much with the constant archery.

Also I didn't draw his quiver bc honestly I forgor, but I like to imagine he's been getting little pins and bobs from a lot of his friends that he's been sticking on his quiver strap. A few examples that come to mind are:

Kayla: A classic hot topic pin with a sun with sunglasses on it.

Leo: A pin made of scrap metal with the alchemical symbol for fire carved in.

Agave: Pinned a clover to Apollo's quiver for good luck. It didn't stay on there long, but it was the thought that counted.

Hazel: A piece of citrine decorated with metal cords.

Lavinia: Another classic hot topic pin, this one is heart shaped and has a picture of Hatsune Miku on it.

Jason: One of the monopoly houses he'd been using to mark the positions for the temples. A lot of the little houses had fallen off the diorama during the car crash at the beginning of TTT. The night after, Apollo asked Reyna if he could make sure the diorama was fixed. Reyna agreed, and he put it back together based on what he remembered. He spent an hour or so gluing on houses and hotels for Mars, Somnus, Fons, Salus, and on and on, until he got to the last one. A red hotel meant to show where the temple of Apollo would go. Apollo poked a little hole in it, and fastened it to his quiver with a bobby pin. It's nestled close to where the strap meets the quiver itself, so it's less likely to fly off.

Meg: Pinned a rose petal to his quiver right before he went to fight Python. It lasted for even less time than Agave's clover did, but again, it was the thought that counted.

[cheriladycl01]

Crash into my life - Lance Stroll x Civil Servent! Reader

Plot: You work in a fancy government job, pretty boring 9-5 but Lance Stroll and his insurance claim makes your job that little bit better

Your job wasn’t exactly fun, wasn’t exactly boring. It was one of those jobs that you’d got it at a young age and worked your way up through the ranks as you’d got better and better and because it was safe and something you were good at you stuck with it.

To keep it short and sweet you were a civil servant. Not like 007 kind of crazy stuff but you did work for MI6 in their fraud, tax and insurance department.

You basically took over insurance claims that were over a certain threshold and had to go through the government for … whatever reason whether they are a foreign National claiming in the UK or something.

Usually it was boring matters such as Chelsea Football Club claiming compensation for things as simple as water damages etc. You didn’t even really get to see anyone, you had the data and you analysed it against the scenario and hey presto you made your pay out.

Your favourite time of the year was winter. More claims came through and life was more unpredictable thanks to the whether. Delayed train into London St Pancreas? No tubes working so you have to make the 20 minute walk to your office building from the station. Slipping on ice, it was the only excitement you got in life which was honestly kind of sad.

For you it started at as a normal Monday. You woke up at 7am, brushed your teeth, got into a nice corporate appropriate outfit, got on the train, got a coffee from Pret before heading into your building.

That was your routine, and you didn’t often differ from it unless you had holiday booked. But working a 9-5 Monday - Friday often meant that you

But it felt like there was a different buzz today around the building like there was something going on.

When you all went into the morning briefing for the cases you’d get today, everyone was way too excited for 9am and the start of the day. You sat down next to your office buddy Shiv and looked around confused.

“What in earth is going on with everyone?” You ask looking over at Shiv who’s typing away on her laptop taking in information.

“Apparently there’s some really interesting cases to work on up for grabs today” she explains and you nod knowing once every blue moon some exciting things would crop up and have the whole office acting like kids on Christmas.

You’re all still waiting for the department boss to come in, joining in conversations about what could possibly be happening today.

“Ladies and Gents please take a seat for the meeting to commence. Thank you. Thank you” he offers smiling and everyone gets comfy.

“So we’ve got some exciting stuff today. I’ve formed a team to deal with the Train Networks Claim, that’ll be Shiv, Brayden and Ravi” he says and they all nod writing in their pads what tasks they’d have to do today.

He went through all of them apart from you, before dismissing the meeting. You were slightly confused and therefore packed up yours things a little slower than everyone else to see if you could stay behind and ask why you hadn’t been given an assignment.

“Y/N could you stay behind so I can talk to you for a moment” he asks and you nod, going to the end of the long conference table where he was stood.

“I like you, you’re young and learn quickly and I want you to progress more than you already have so I’m giving you a really important case. You’ll actually get to meet the said person affected, he’s … of high value so be considerate of your wording when talking to him. Alright thank you, here’s the case! Have a report to me by Friday” he offers and you nod happily. You take a seat opening up the material seeing the name of the claimer immediately.

Lance Stroll

You read through the facts, apparently he crashed his Aston Martin driving down the M1 to get to Silverstone into some sort of government van.

After analysing some of the data yourself, a knock comes on your office door from one of the younger interns.

“Erm, Y/N there’s two men in suits here to see you?” She asks rather than tells you, it wasn’t common for people to come in and out of the building due to the confidentiality of the work conducted here.

“Send them in please, but before you do ask them if they want anything. Tea, Coffee, Water” you smile and go back to reading another report from a police officer who was on the scene of the accident.

You watch as two men walk into your office space. One looking younger maybe the same age as you and one looking significantly older which you assumed was the dad.

“Good morning” you smile lightly before going back to some data on your computer. They took a seat, patiently waiting for you to address them.

Lawrence, who you’d just read about in the report who was indeed the father, cleared his throat as if to get your attention.

“Give me one minute Mr Stroll and I’ll be right with you” you smile, still nose in your computer.

“We’ve come all this way to the city centre to see you it would be appreciated if you didn’t waste our time” he huffs and even just from this reaction a bubbling of excitement started in you, just at the promise of actually seeing a client and talking to them in the flesh.

“I understand that, but I won’t be able to tell you much unless I see all the data” you say looking up at them through your glasses. This time you notice Lance and how he’s just sort of staring at you.

“Can I help you Mr Stroll?” You ask looking over him.

“No, I’m all good. Take your time” he smiles and you nod. In 5 minutes you believe you’ve combed through enough data to talk to them.

“This is awfully interesting I almost never get to see the people behind the claim” you smile happily and they both nod.

“Okay so so far from what I can see is there was a crash in your vintage Aston Martin that was for an event at Silverstone, the race track and that you got into a collision with a government van trailing a foreign national?” You ask.

“In short terms, yes … but” Lawrence tries to declare.

“And you weren’t present Mr Stroll” you say looking in the direction of the older man.

“No I wasn’t” he huffs out.

“Okay, then I will ask you to just step out my office while I get an account of the events from your son, if that’s alright with you. Just down the corridor there’s a waiting room there, help yourself to the food and drink in there” you smile hoping to butter him up a little to get him out.

“Alright” he says before taking his leave.

“Okay Mr Stroll lets…” you start but he interrupts you.

“Lance, please just call me Lance” he offers and you nod.

“Well Lance, it’s not … looking great” you start of slowly and he looks at you shocked.

“What do you mean? Your guys went into me?” He says raising his voice slightly and you give him a stern look that has him sinking into his seat.

“Don’t come into my office and raise your voice when I’m doing my best to help you!” You exclaim placing a pad in front of him.

“Sorry it’s just that my dad isn’t happy already that i totalled a car that was needed for race day” he sighs rubbing his temples.

“Ahhh so you’re an F1 driver. Or is it NASCAR because of the accent?” You ask and he looks shocked as if you were supposed to know who he was.

“Er F1” he offers and you nod.

“You any good?” You ask writing done some more notes as you watch the camera on the government vehicle as Lance’s car didn’t have one.

“Excuse me?” He chokes out and you couldn’t help but laugh a little.

“Well I mean im currently looking at your claims for a super car that you totalled and so I can’t help but ask if your any good” you tease and once he heard the tone he gets it and just rolls his eyes.

“Oh haha laugh it up” he says and you do.

“Im sorry but this is quite possibly the most fun I’ve ever had in this job. It’s rather boring most days so I’m just making the most of it” you smile and he smiles back.

“Okay I can see that they did in fact turn into you. And of course I’m here for the people. The issue is where your Canadian. I can pay out what the car was worth when you originally brought it, but 50,000 for the fact that it was an accident on our part” you say and he thinks for a moment.

“No” is all he says and you look over at him in shock.

“Sorry? What do you mean no, no is my final decision” you say crossing your arms.

“I would like to add something else to the 50,000 on top of the car value” he smiles and you nod, wondering what it could possibly be and admiring the boldness of his statement.

“Id like to take you out to dinner” he smirks and your head shoots up from your laptop.

“I- i cant do that… it’s not professional. I could get told off. I could loose my job.” you admit knowing that if people were to find out about your payout and think it was bad then they’d be asking questions to you.

“Oh come on it’s just dinner to say thank you for being so … helpful” he smiles leaning forward in his seat and you shake your head.

“Fine, dinner it is” you smile.

That was the start of something way bigger than just dinner.

y/user

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y/user: Work has been rather interesting lately 👀🏎️

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lance_stroll: thank you for having another look for me 👍🏼

-> y/user: 🫣you’re welcome Mr Stroll

-> lance_stroll: you’re making me feel old ☹️

user: is that whose car I think it is bestie?

-> y/user: it sure is 🏎️

user: need to catch up soon babe, Pret tomorrow morning?

-> y/user: sure thing!

user: Civil Service < Serving Cu*t 🥰

Instagram Story Caption:

Back in the Office wiv Shiv 🌸

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