#what a stellar gain so far omg

[millenialfanfictionaddiction]

Please Me Oikawa's Oasis: Part 1

⚠️THIS FIC IS 18+, MINORS DNI⚠️

Welcome to week 4 of the Please Me Series!  A collaboration with @axoxtxhxh! This weeks theme is Virginity Loss featuring Oikawa and Goshiki!  This weeks fics are broken into 3 parts! Please check out Joey’s fic, Guiding Goshiki!  I will link it in the Please Me master list!  

Warnings: Swearing, bad pick up lines

Word Count: 2,000

The sound of Volleyball hitting the floor and shoes shuffling around in the hard wood is all to familiar to Toru Oikawa.

He was finally, living out his dreams as a professional volleyball player. It’s all he ever wanted to do, all he had ever thought about from the time he was a young kid.

After high-school, his goals became centered around making his dream a reality. To accomplish this, he knew he would have to sacrifice a lot. Forgoing his personal life in order to pursue his main objective.

The thought never really bothered Torū. He was always popular with his fans, however none of them seemed to understand his deep desire for the sport he loved so much.

After countless failed high school relationships, he put his personal life on hold in order to pursue something more favorable.

He was given the opportunity to move to Argentina and become a member of Club Atletico San Juan. He jumped at the chance to further is professional career and move abroad, gaining citizenship to a country world renowned for its athletes. His dream was finally becoming a reality

Entering the training gym, Oikawa was anything but nervous. He knew his skills as a setter were exceptional and he always aimed to improve in any way he could. His specialty outside of setting was serving, which is what attracted the recruiters to him. Taking a deep breath, he walked into the bright gym for the first time, preparing to achieve his goals.

“Ahh Oikawa! It’s great to finally meet you” the San Juan teams head coach said as he greeted Oikawa with a smooth smile and a firm handshake.

“The pleasure is all mine sir” Oikawa says as he watches the various members begin to practice.

Oikawa was amazed at the level of skill he saw. These players were on an entirely different level, a level that only served to excited him more.

“Well, it’s probably best if you just join in. I’d like to see your abilities up close” coach says as Oikawa nod, running over to great the members of his new team.

“Hello everyone! My name is Torū Oikawa and it would be my pleasure to set for you” he smirks as the players study Oikawa closely.

Torū had always had a rather flamboyant personality. Often being the stand out character in a room. It never bothered him when others made comments about him because he was confident in himself as a person and as a setter.

The team looked at him, nodding as the captain made his way towards Torū.

“Show us what you’ve got Oikawa” the captain says as he signals for the spikers to form a line “the best way to learn is by doing.”

“I couldn’t agree more” Oikawa smirks as he turns heading close to the net.

“By the way, I prefer if you can get the toss as high so I can have time to correct the positioning if needed” he remarks as the men prepare for spiking practice.

One by one, the players toss the ball to Oikawa as he sends set after set to the players.

“I’m sorry, that one was a little long” he signals to one of the spikers “I can tell by your approach, you favor balls close to the next. I’ll adjust.”

The player nodded to Oikawa and the next player stepped up, tossing the ball to Oikawa.

“Man his adaptation skills are incredible” on of the assistant coaches says as the head coach watched Oikawa closely.

The door opens as the men shift to see a figure pushing open the door with their foot, emerging into the gym with a basket full of freshly laundered jerseys.

Letting out a deep breath, you sigh as you set the basket down, moving onto your next task of refilling the now empty water bottles.

You had been the team’s manager for almost 3 years now. You loved your job so much. The perks were fantastic and the pay was stellar. You worked long hours and traveled a lot but that never hindered your life. You actually enjoyed seeing the world with your team.

Grabbing the bottles, you begin to head for the fountain when the coach approaches you.

“YN, I’m going to need you to prepare a jersey for our newest team member. His name should be on the sheet I gave you this morning. Please have it ready by the end of the week” the coach asks as you nod in agreement.

“I’ll work on it as soon as possible sir”

“Thank you YN. We would really be lost without you” he says as you smile back, eyes glancing towards the gym floor.

You knew a new member would be starting soon. You had heard rumors of one, Torū Oikawa. You had seen his skills on many videos as the team prepared for his arrival. You took notes from what you could see so that you could immediately start helping the promising new setter.

You eyes glanced towards the net as they were met with gorgeous chocolate orbs. The young setter stared at you in wonder as you smiled sweetly, moving towards the door to fill the water bottles.

God you are so pretty Oikawa thinks to himself as he fails to hear the shouts of his teammates, as a tossed volleyball hurls straight for his head.

As you reach the door, a loud SMACK sounded causing you to turn your head towards the men to see the new setter rubbing his head feverishly.

Oh, this one’s a klutz you think to yourself as you roll your eyes, setting the bottles down and running to see if the setter was ok.

“Are you ok?” You ask running up to the new setter, trying to ignore the snickers of the other players as you check him over.

Oikawa rubs his head as he looks up to you.

“I hope you know CPR” he says looking up to you.

“Omg is it that serious?”

“No, it’s because you just took my breath away” he says smiling at you as you roll your eyes walking away as the rest of the players laugh at Oikawa’s cheesy line.

You get up, moving back to the door grabbing the water bottles and walking out.

Great another Romeo you think to yourself as you snicker lightly, remembering the young man’s pick-up line.

“He is pretty funny I’ll have to admit” you under your breath, smiling a little as you fill the teams water bottles.

“Hey Oikawa, are you sure you’re, ok?” the captain says laughing lightly.

Oikawa shakes his head smiling “if there’s one thing I’m accustomed to, it’s getting hit in the head with a volleyball.”

The team laughs as Oikawa looks to the door where you exited.

Of course, you were stunning. Oikawa had seen his far share of women but none quite gave off the radiance you did.

“Hey man” the captain said placing his hand on Oikawa’s shoulder “don’t worry about YN. She just takes her job serious. She’s not really one for screwing around.”

Oikawa nods as he looks back at the door, watching you reenter the gym. He had to admit, he admired how determined you were to do your job. And your cold tone wasn’t going to deter the great king, Torū Oikawa.

“Okey doke then guys, let’s get back to it” he says shaking his hands as he returns to his spot at the net as the next spiker tosses to him, sending a set perfectly to the spiker.

You watched in awe at the new team member. You have to admit, the man was good. He seemed to take the sport of Volleyball more seriously than his pick up game. You smiled as you watched the men hit spike after spike, kill after kill. It was refreshing to have such an invigorating member join the team.

“Alight guys, time to wrap it up” the coach yells as he grabs his clipboard “YN will you lock up tonight after your done please? Also leave the nets up tonight. We will have the gym open early for practice.”

“Of course, coach” you say smiling as the team grabs their towels and water bottles, leaving to change.

You went about your business, finishing laundry, logging notes and filing a few pieces of papers.

“Just mopping left” you say as you sign, leaving your office and heading to the gym.

The sound of volleyballs hitting the gym floor radiated from down the hall way.

What is someone still doing here you wonder to yourself as you walk into the gym, checking your watch.

You see a panting Oikawa, tossing a ball up, serving over the net with such intensity.

Your eyes widened as you body jumped at the power he held. His serves were so strong, so intense and so fast. How can anyone stop them?

“It’s not polite to stare” he says as your concentration is broken as you look over to him, smiling at you as he wipes his face off.

“Oh, I wasn’t staring- I just came to umm, I just came to mop up the gym floor” you said stuttering as you walk in, putting your bag down.

“Oh, I apologize. The coach said it was ok for me to practice” he said as he continues to try and cool down.

“No worries, I have sometime. I can wait” you say as you turn heading to sit down. “Oh and by the way, that last serve was out by like a centimeter” you say sitting down, pulling your phone out of your bag.

“Ughhhh” Oikawa says as he grabs his hair and pulls on it as you snicker.

You continue to watch Oikawa practice, 10 minutes turns into an hour, which turns into an hour and a half. While you didn’t want to interrupt his practice, you knew he needed to rest. You could tell he was overexerting himself.

You got up to talk with him when he sent up a serve, landing incorrectly on his leg and wincing.

Your eyes widen as you run to him.

“Ok that’s enough tonight, Oikawa. You’re going to hurt yourself” you said as you grab the ball from him.

“It’s fine YN, this happens all the time” he says wincing at the pain radiating from his knee. He really did overdo it.

“Alright well I don’t care how often it happens, I’m closing practice” you say grabbing his arm and pulling him towards the bench.

“YN –” he says before you interrupt him.

“It’s my job to make sure you don’t overdo it. I’m not doing my job if our setter can’t set after his first day” you say as you help Oikawa to the bench, running to grab an ice pack and a hot pack.

“Here, we will do 15 minutes cold, 15 minutes warm. Then I’ll wrap it” you say as you check his knee.

“Thanks, YN” he says sweetly as you smiley at him.

“No worries, Oikawa, it’s my job” you say as you out the ice on his knee, helping to reduce the bit of inflammation that was forming.

“When you get back home, you’ll need to take anti-inflamories. Do it every 4 hours and you should be ok!”

Oikawa looks at you as you help ice his knee, you really were something else.

“Alright” you say as you wrap his knee up “let’s get you home.”

You help Oikawa to get to the changing room, as you quickly go to mop up the gym floor. You turn off the lights to see Oikawa waiting for you at the doors.

“yoo-hoo Yn-chan” he says waving frantically at you as you roll your eyes at him braking into a smile.

“Yn-what?” You say as you help Oikawa out the front doors, locking the building behind you.

“It’s a personal greeting in Japanese. Often used for close friends” he says smirking at you.

“Oh so we are close friends now are we?” You say as you walk with him towards the dorms he was staying at

“O f course, we are YN-chan! Why wouldn’t we be!” he says smiling at you as you laugh lightly.

“You really are something else Oikawa” you say as you wave him off, heading towards your own dorm.

So are you YN, so are you.

Taglist: @serostapesweat @chaotic-nick @lovelyzabrak-meadow @yep-seeyalaterbranflakes

[kylermalloy]

So, I'm curious, what is your favourite TO episode? If you are able to make a choice ;)

Oh, oh! This is one ‘favorites’ question I have no problem answering.

My favorite episode is and has always been the season 1 finale, “From a Cradle to a Grave.” Honestly, I think this is where the show peaked in its writing. I was on the edge of my seat the entire episode, just loving the excitement, the tension, the themes, and all the narrative threads coming together in one culminating, sweeping episode.

This episode is everything I love about the show. Murder, mayhem, and family :) But seriously! (Omg am I going to have to do a blow-by-blow of the episode? I think I might.)

In that case, the rest goes under a cut. (Spoilers for TO ahead!)

The episode begins with Hayley giving birth, induced by the witches who betrayed Klaus. It’s in the church, that unholy horror of a murder museum.

Intercut with the rose-tinted flashback of pregnant Hayley and Klaus feeling their baby kick, Hayley gives birth as her voiceover promises a safe home and family to “Zoe…or Caitlyn, or Angela.”

*irony* but it hurts.

Klaus and Hayley are, for once, united in the fight for their child. They’ve been at each others’ throats all season, and in the past neither have had trouble getting their way. But in this crucial hour neither the Original hybrid or the uncontrollable mama wolf can do anything.

Can I say: I love love LOVE that look Klaus and Hayley share after the baby is born. Hayley asks to hold her, and they share this…look. Listen, I’m not much of a klayley shipper, but their partnership is golden. They’ve reached a tentative agreement at this point that they’re both going to play a role in raising the baby they created. The trust and pride and satisfaction between them in this moment, despite the horrid circumstances, melts me.

And then Hayley dies.

Klaus screaming NOOOOOOO is all of us in this moment.

Oh! And I almost forgot—Klaus being pinned to the wall in that Christlike pose. That was NOT an accident. It helps tie in to the larger theme they’re going for, that Elijah expounds for us later. He’s not a sinless, perfect Christ figure—in fact, he’s the opposite. He’s the monster under the bed, the devil in the night. One might even go so far as to say he’s the symbol for everyone to pin their problems to. The ultimate scapegoat. Not to say he didn’t exert some effort of his own to get there—this is the price he has to pay for his sins. Crucified, figuratively, forced to watch helpless as his newborn daughter is taken from him and her mother slaughtered.

Then Elijah bursts in. (Bless Daniel Gillies’s funky lil run, it gives me joy in the bleakest of times)

And this, oh goodness, this quiet grief they share over Hayley. Klaus has held her body since he woke up, I’m guessing, this woman who carried his child, chafed against every controlling measure he tried to impose on her, whom he holds some degree of respect and fondness for.

And Elijah, dear Elijah. He pinned all his hopes (hee) to this woman, this werewolf Madonna and her child. He gave her more space in his heart than he’d given anyone, including women who’d haunted him for centuries. And now she’s dead, just like anyone who’s had the misfortune of sparking his affections.

Klaus healing Elijah—HEY REMEMBER EARLY IN THE SEASON WHEN KLAUS BIT ELIJAH AND LEFT HIM TO SUFFER?! Now, Klaus offers his blood without compunction, without hesitation. This time it’s Elijah who hesistates. You have to wonder, is he deliberating which nightmare he would prefer—the torture of wolf venom, or the torture of Hayley’s death and her baby’s disappearance?

“You were bested? My invincible brother?”

Klaus doesn’t rise to the bait like he normally would. He barely reacts. He’s broken. He wanted too much—he played king and gained the whole world, but lost his soul. And then his kingdom.

You see why I love this episode?

We move to the graveyard, where we see not only Klaus and Elijah trapped in a maze, but the witches preparing for a sacrifice. Let’s not gloss over their costume change, either—in the church, for the birth, they were all clad in black. But here, as they prepare for their worst atrocity yet, infanticide, they wear pure white, like they’re going to a christening or something. *irony*

Then comes *the speech* from Elijah, the one that mirrors the pilot so perfectly (I know them both by heart, thank you very much.) In the pilot, Elijah’s speech is rousing, patient, and encouraging. Here, he has lost his patience. Here, he tells us what we’ve been seeing throughout the entire season.

“This is the world you created, Niklaus. All your scheming, the enemies you have made every day do your miserable life—what results did you expect? That your child would be born into a happy life? That the mother would be alive, to know her daughter? That we could live and thrive as some sort of family?”

“That was your fantasy, brother, not mine—”

“No, brother! This was our hope. This was our family’s hope. And now she is gone.” (And then we realize that he’s not just mourning the baby, that family he imagined—he mourns Hayley.) “Do you understand? I let this person in. I let her in. I don’t let people in.”

And Klaus’s reaction! This Klaus, with compassion he deserves only for his closest family—this is the Klaus that melts me. This is the scene that slaps. This is how we tie a bow on a season—nay, a millennium—of brotherly tension. They’re not healed; nothing could truly heal the damage they’ve done to each other (or the damage others have wrought on them) but it’s a start.

And Hayley wakes.

Before I go on, let me mention Marcel. Ally, enemy, friend, surrogate son to Klaus (and that could be all in one episode!) He’s destined for death by hybrid venom, having led his vampires into a massacre. All his attempts to rally his people have failed. He’s lost the city, and his vampires have been slaughtered by Guerrera werewolves. He has almost nothing left.

He goes out, armed to forcibly obtain Klaus’s blood and heal his friends—but he upon finding Klaus he makes very on-brand choice. He saves the baby.

He does what the combined efforts of Klaus, Hayley, and Elijah can’t. He wins Klaus’s trust back by saving his newborn daughter. He protects the innocent instead of contributing to the feud. He murders the girl he once tried to save from the Harvest. And he gets to meet his baby sister.

It’s strategy and heart all in one. It’s very Marcel.

He reconciles with Klaus, and Klaus heals him. They are healed—to some degree.

Then Klaus gets to hold his child for the first time, and we all die.

This is what the season has been building up to. Yes, it’s been building to Klaus being toppled off his throne, yes it’s been building to the splintering of his ego, but THIS is what we’ve been promised since the beginning—before the beginning of the show, even. The Original hybrid, brought to his knees by this child. His child. Someone he loves without reservation. Someone who doesn’t fear him. Someone innocent, who carries none of the burdens of their family. Someone who inspires hope in the hopeless. Someone he would kill for, or die for. (he does both)

And I can’t, I just can’t with them. I love the way JoMo handles the baby in this episode—very gingerly, a little awkwardly. It’s probably been a long time since Klaus has handled a baby (one that he hasn’t eaten D: ) and it’s just. so. endearing.

Meanwhile, Davina has…brought Mikael the destroyer back to life? I remember reading somewhere that Josh was supposed to die in this episode, and while I wouldn’t dare wish to deprive Josh of the happiness (and subsequent heartbreak) awaiting him in s2 and beyond, I think Davina’s motivations would’ve made more sense here if she were seeking to avenge her friend’s death. But I digress. Davina resurrects Mikael. Oh dear.

I haven’t mentioned Genevieve yet! She is one of my favorite antagonists. At first, she seemed to come out of nowhere, and I suspect she might have stepped into the narrative hole that was originally filled by Sophie Deveraux, but regardless I like her conflict. A witch cheated out of life (by an Original, no less!) and coerced to murder by her coven, living and dead. An apologetic killer. Yikes.

Klaus and Elijah then discuss how to protect the baby (and I swear in the opening shot it looks like they’re holding hands—but alas, it’s just a trick of the camera angle.) and Hayley helps them determine that they need to send her away. And let me say, Phoebe Tonkin impressed me more with her acting in seasons 2-3, but she hurts me here too. Ouch.

We get a few expository scenes—Francesca spins the werewolf attack into a gang war (she’s not wrong), Marcel makes a deal, Oliver is still an arrogant brat, and Davina plans to keep Mikael as her secret weapon (you poor child).

Then we get the most painful scenes in the episode, because even though we know this tragedy is a lie, it’s still a loss. The baby did not die, but their pain over losing her is real. Elijah says as much: “grief, after all, is grief.”

Klaus and Cami share a scene, and this is one of my favorites of them. Klaus admits that he finds her…beautiful. And for that reason, she should stay away from him. Whether you read this as romantic or not, it’s still so good. This is a woman Klaus pinpointed as being useful, intelligent, insightful, and strong enough to handle his psyche. They began with a rather twisted relationship (let’s save that essay on autonomy for another day, shall we?) but by the end of the season they’ve shared some experiences and gained more sympathy and respect for each other. And Klaus, in his moment of clarity and grief, recognizes that he is fundamentally not what she needs. (Or we could say this is all part of the lie. We’ll never know.)

Also, let me give a shoutout to the music in this episode! The two songs that play toward the end, Open Hands and Shallows are stellar. Speaking of the end! Let’s get into the biggest surprise this episode has for us.

“In what world will she be safe without her father? Who can protect her better than we?”

“There is one person.”

Rebekah. The thousand-year-old beauty queen I honestly thought we’d never see again after her exit in episode 16. The Original sister, the girl who loved too easily, who broke her brother’s heart and incurred his wrath. Who left to live her own life, who only could leave after her favorite brother set her free. Who always wanted what she couldn’t have, a family of her own.

And here she is, smiling at Klaus even though last time they screamed themselves hoarse in a graveyard and he put an enchanted stake through her chest, inches from her heart. She loves and hates him in equal measure, but she has nothing but love for this newborn baby. It’s a peace offering and the ultimate gesture of faith. Klaus could not trust anyone else in the world with his daughter, but he will hand her over to his beloved sister. It is the PERFECT way to end the season, especially with their parting words. Rebekah wants to know the baby’s name.

“Hope. Her name is Hope.”

They’ve been planning this gimmick from day ONE, I’m telling you. Ever since the pilot, when Elijah asks, “who’s more pathetic—the man who sees hope to make his family whole again? Or the coward who only sees the world through his own fear?” And I don’t care how cliche and gimmicky it is—if I did, I wouldn’t be watching this CW show. It’s perfect. This is what the baby means. She is the hope for this broken, broken family. She’s no savior—she doesn’t have to do anything but exist. But she reminds these siblings who, after a thousand years of bloodshed and fighting, are “the definition of cursed—always and forever,” that they can be better. They don’t have to remain the shells of who they were. They can pick up the pieces and begin a new chapter.

And that’s what this episode does for me, folks. It’s honestly too much to handle. I cannot watch this episode like a normal person—I writhe and scream and laugh maniacally and recite the lines. It’s a trip.

This episode concludes the season so strongly. It’s actually a major part of why I rank season 1 as my favorite! I did an official ranking of all 5 TO seasons a while back, which was a lot of fun.

[gffa]

SO, HEY, YOU WANT A PRIMER FOR WHERE TO START WITH LORD OF THE RINGS/THE HOBBIT/SILMARILLION FIC TO READ? The other night @belldreams asked me if the fic I was currently reading (as I mentioned that I’d been enthralled by it) was accessible to a layperson and, sadly, I don’t think it is.  But then my eyes lit up with an unholy glee because I do know a bunch of fics that are great for a layperson to read! I assume that a person will at least have seen the movies and are thus reasonably aware of how Tolkien’s world is set up, but you don’t have to know the history of the world to start reading these!  This is a list that is aimed at gently easing a person into the wider fandom or just providing a starting place, if that’s what you want! LET’S INTRODUCE YOU TO SOME FUCKIN’ ELVES: ➡ I have a series of posts about The Silmarillion which are told in a Very Broad Strokes kind of way and not always in chronological order (so maybe you should start with the first fic rec instead? idk!) and they’re still in progress, but I had a great time with Let Me Tell You About The Silmarillion:  Part One, part two, part three, part four, part five.  (The rest are written, I just need to post them!)  They’re cute, ridiculous yelling about my Elf Feelings and won’t take a person that long to read.  (And it’s a lot of names to throw at a person, but, hey, you can always come talk to me spoonfeed you another overview, if you like!  ♥) ➡ Or you can listen to the audiobook here!  I warn, even with having the audio on in the background, it’s still a very dry and dense prose.  I love it!  But it’s definitely not going to be for everyone. ➡ But if the whole thing is too much and you just want an overview, I also really liked this series of Lord of the Rings Mythology (part 1, 2) that will take you less than ten minutes to listen to and they set up the basic structure of Powers in this world. ➡ A good quick overview (only 10 minutes of talking) on Feanor and the creation and then theft of the Silmarils.  It’s definitely more on the side of asshole!Feanor, but, well, they’re not wrong!  There’s a whole series of videos to tell about the history of Arda, all of which are generally under 10 minutes each and are good overviews!  Caveat:  Don’t trust the pronunciations here, they’re off sometimes.  But, then, that’s a thing all over--they’re hard! ➡ I also laughed at The Silmarillion in under three minutes, which acknowledges how much it skips/gives only the very broadest of strokes on (so you may be tempted to assume things, but there’s very often deeper reasons) but did indeed get the story in in under three minutes! OH BUT YOU WANT SOME FIC TO READ: The Silmarillion Rewrite by Jenavira - A fic that lovingly “translates” the Silmarillion from the admittedly very dry style Tolkien has and this is a great fic to start with if you want to get an idea of the shape of the Silmarillion.  It’s hilariously funny and does a great job of familiarizing you with the characters!  My only caveat is that you can’t take it as gospel, it’s not the same as reading the book yourself, because some things are open to interpretation--for example, in reading the fic, it sounds like the Dwarves gained sentience on their own, while in the book I think the takeaway is that Iluvatar granted them sentience, as he’s the only one able to give true life in that way.  I say this not to argue, but to remind potential readers that Tolkien fans have been debating this stuff for decades for a reason!  (And also I’m a Thingol stan for life, but I admit not everyone shares that bias with me.  XD) But absolutely read this fic, it’s hilarious and does a stellar job at being just a fun read and getting you to know who the hell Maedhros and Maglor and Finrod and all of those people are, the history of the Great War with Melkor and Sauron, how all of this is important to the history of Middle-Earth and the rest of the world. The Starlit Sky by Makalaure - You probably need a little context for this one, but it’s not hard to pick up!  Basically:  Once upon a time, a brilliant asshole made some shiny rocks that everyone wanted, Fantasy Satan stole them, he and his seven sons swore an Oath to get them back, a lot of really bad shit happened because they were bound to that Oath, and eventually two of the sons attacked the havens of Elrond and his twin brother Elros’ parents place and killed a bunch of them and then wound up with two Elflings on their hands.  There, now you can read the backstory of Elrond and Elros growing up in the care of Maedhros and Maglor and cry about feelings with me.  Because, yeah, by the end of this one I definitely had tears in my eyes for understanding how Elrond could love these Elves, even after all the terrible, terrible things they had done. WHAT ELSE YOU WILL FIND HERE: -  OR INSTEAD EXPAND ON THE CHARACTERS YOU ALREADY KNOW -  OR READ SOME FELLOWSHIP-CENTRIC STUFF, JUST ‘CAUSE THEY’RE GOOD -  NOW THAT YOU’RE MORE FAMILIAR, HERE’S MORE COMPLICATED FIC

OR INSTEAD EXPAND ON THE CHARACTERS YOU ALREADY KNOW: In a Field of Blood and Stone by ScribeofArda - The Battle of the Five Armies, this time told from the point of view of the Elves.  One of my biggest criticisms of the movies (especially The Hobbit movies) is that they did the Elves so wrong and this fic can be read without having ever picked up any of the books, but I think it does a lovely job of showing what the Elves should be like, especially Thranduil.  There’s some great stuff with him and Legolas, as well as Bard and Bilbo have great roles.  Also, it’s just a incredibly engaging fic that adds such rich detail to that battle! Interrupted Journeys by ellisk - This series is legitimately my favorite in the entire fandom because you can read it without knowing anything beyond the movies (though, they’re not really movie!characterization and instead truer to how Elves really are) but you can also pick up so much on Sindarin politics, if you’re familiar with them.  The first time I read this series, I didn’t really know that much about who Thingol was, other than some Sindarin king, but I followed the context of the scenes referencing him just fine.  Later, once I was more familiar with the Silmarillion, I gained a ton of admiration for the thought that went into this fic, the history of the world, why most Silvan Elves loved Thranduil, but some did not and why a Sinda ruling Silvan Elves was still a thing even thousands of years later. But it’s also just an incredible series of stories about worldbuilding for Greenwood the Great, it builds up characters for important relationships with Legolas and Thranduil, ones that I deeply care about, and it has an incredible plot, that spans over a million words and never, ever stops being enthralling.  And yet my favorite moments are probably the quieter ones, the little Elflings getting into trouble in various ways, how their parents talk to them, as Elves do, and the absolutely stellar characterization of Thranduil especially.  My only caveat is to start with Part 3, because that’s when Legolas is born and I think it’s easier to get hooked from there! daw the minstrel’s fic - I love pretty much everything of daw’s, the Legolas’ childhood and stories about growing up in Mirkwood are wonderful.  There’s a fair amount of OCs (whom I have grown to love!) that you can skip over the scenes when they’re not interacting with a canon character (Thranduil or Legolas) if you like, but are ones I’ve found myself rereading several times because they just do so much good at plot and worldbuilding!  They’re all wonderful, but the ones I started with where All Those Who Wander, Good Neighbors, Legolas’s Begetting Day, and Growing Under Shadow.  They’re all set in the same universe at different points in his life and all fantastic! Ich Dien - To Serve the KingdomMissFaust - This was written before the third Hobbit movie came out but I love it and it’s one of those that I think a layperson could read just fine!  It’s been completely Jossed by BOTFA but I think it’s still readable and it does a much more gorgeous job of taking the movie versions (at least in the first two movies) and writing them with more care and staying true to their spirits.  Also, it’s just really cool worldbuilding! OR READ SOME FELLOWSHIP-CENTRIC STUFF, JUST ‘CAUSE THEY’RE GOOD: A Bit of Rope by Aiwendiel - “What if Gandalf had survived at Moria?” is the question this fic poses and it’s not especially a nice answer.  Things do ultimately work out but it kind of leaves you with the impression of the canon version of events, as difficult as they were, were what was necessary for the best outcome.  This one is something of an exhausting read, but in the way it’s meant to be, in how you absolutely feel Frodo’s journey with him.  It’s gorgeously told and I was absolutely engrossed by it and I think it keeps the spirit of the canon incredibly well.  And it’s basically like five novels worth and yet I tore through them at a speed because OMG SO GOOD. The River by Indigo Bunting - Another gorgeous Fellowship-era fic, where Legolas and Sam accidentally get separated from the main group and you think that it’d be such a random pairing and yet it works brilliantly well.  It adds such depth to both characters, it does beautifully at writing both of them and this world they’re in, and just slides right on by as you read it.  It doesn’t sound terribly exciting when I put it that way, but it really is! Far Horizons by Bodkin - While there are other post-canon fics that I love, I think this one has my heart in a way that others don’t, because it’s my favorite one for Thranduil and Legolas in the Fourth Age.  There might be some characters you’re not familiar with (like Elladan and Elrohir) but I don’t think there’s anything you can’t pick up from context.  Basically, Thranduil, Elrond/Celebrian, and Celeborn/Galadriel are all finally in Aman and they want to establish their own realm--this is the story of the difficulties of that.  It’s such a sharp and clever story, there are so many genuinely charming and hilarious moments, there’s a great polish to the way the story is told, and it really builds a community for these Elves in a way that is both pleasing to my id and to my nerdy worldbuilding/character-loving side!  And there’s even plot!  I couldn’t ask for more. NOW THAT YOU’RE MORE FAMILIAR, HERE’S MORE COMPLICATED FIC: And What Happened Afterarrogantemu - As much as I would deeply and truly love to shove this fic at everyone who’s ever flitted by the Tolkien movies at any point, it’s one where you need to know who these people are and their histories before you can read it.  You need to know who Feanor is, you need to know who Celebrimbor is, you need to know who the Valar are, etc.  Once you do, though?  Oh, this is quite possibly the grandest post-canon fic I could have asked for.  It’s everything I never knew I needed--Feanor and Fingolfin’s reunion brought me to tears, Frodo and Celebrimbor’s conversation made me physically ache for how perfect it was--and it’s written in such a gorgeously cathartic, beautiful way.  I felt the lushness of the world in all the little details and conversations written here.  I felt peace at what was put forth here.  I fell in love with Silm fandom all over again because this one sparked such love in me again. Return to Aman by bunn - This is the first fic of the author’s I read and I just sunk right into it and didn’t want to come up for air whenever I could read on it.  It’s the story of Elrond grabbing Maglor before sailing off to Aman at the end of Lord of the Rings and what happens from there.  It’s a gorgeous look at what happens when the main story is done, at Elven politics and characterization, and the Feanorians trying to heal.  It doesn’t negate what Maglor was a part of or what the Oath meant, what others suffered because of his deeds, but also it’s such a kind fic and so it’s incredibly Elven.  I fell in love with this and it breathes such life into all the characters (god, every single scene with Finrod makes me fall in love with him more, how is that possible, how am I not already at maximum Finrod love!? and yet LOVE HIM MORE I DO), it’s so sharp and clever, that I really loved it. Quenta Narquelion by bunn - This is the fic I was reading when bell asked me if it was accessible to a layperson and, for all that it’s a retelling of the events of The Silmarillion, I think it draws on too much context from before they got to Middle-Earth (it starts in the immediate aftermath of Feanor’s death) for that.  But once you know the shape, it’s a gorgeous story for breathing life into the characters and the events that took place--not shying away from the horribleness of what they’re doing, but also showing that they are still Elves, that they’re not just evil, because they weren’t.  There’s such charm and charisma in this writing, there’s such a strong sense of the world and how all the pieces were moving, and how it makes everything so interesting that I love it.  I especially recommend it for the Maedhros & Maglor & Elros & Elrond feelings because BOY DID I HAVE THOSE. Oak and Willow by Potboy - Marnie writes absolutely beautiful fic and this one is no exception!  This is another “gap filler” fic and I think it might not be wholly readable by laypeople just yet, but if you have a vague understanding of the Silmarillion, it’s GORGEOUS.  One of the things about Tolkien’s world is that it’s told from the point of view of the Noldor, so OF COURSE the other Elves all look like jerks.  What this fic does is then tell the story from the Sindar’s point of view and suddenly there’s a whoooole lot more context going on here!  It’s gorgeously done and, oh, if you like Galadriel or want Celeborn to have more depth, to understand why Galadriel loved him in this author’s hands, it’s a brilliant read for that.  Gap-filler or just really great characterization/worldbuilding, this fic covers both. This Taste of Shadow by Mira_Jade - This is a collection of various Tolkien prompts and there are so many incredible gems here.  It spans from the Silmarillion to The Hobbit to The Lord of the Rings, it spans from the Elves to the Men to the Dwarves, they’re all here, at some point.  Sure, primarily it’s about Elves, but the Elves are the ones we know the most about, and I think you need to know The Silmarillion to read this, but once you have the shape of it, this is some fantastic filling-in-the-spaces pieces with a boggling amount of variety of characters!  You can skip around to your faves if you like, if a chapter depends on reading another one first, it’ll tell you, and so pick your beloved character and there’s probably a gorgeous fic in here about them!

[syua]

92 qs tag + 30 qs tag!

tagged by @soonsyoung and @y0ungmins for each of these !!!! thank u

/first game/

RULES: you must answer these 92 statements and tag 20 people (its?? not?? 92 questions??? lol)

THE LAST:

drink: bai peach juice

phone call: idr probably my mom?

text message: i’m about to leave home & have dinner with ryan downtown

song you listened to: uhhhh ive been listening to youtube videos all day but maybe vibrato by stellar

time you cried: uhh i think i cried out of pain when i came home from getting my wisdom teeth out friday or if not i def cried cos my sunburn hurt so much like a week ago

date someone twice: no

kissed someone and regretted it: ehhhgfhghhhh 

been cheated on: i mean not that i’m aware of but that’s not always something ur made aware of u know.

lost someone special: lost like died? no but if like lost contact then yes lol

been depressed: yes son

gotten drunk and thrown up: no ive never thrown up from alcohol hhhaha 

LIST 3 COLOURS

12. yellow

13. pink

14. black

IN THE LAST YEAR HAVE YOU:

15. made friends: ummmm closeish lasting irl friends? no…

16. fallen out of love: thats uh

17. laughed until you cried: i can’t remember a particular time but probs lol??

18. found out someone was talking about you: not that i can think of? no one knows me they wouldn’t have anything to say lol

19. met someone who changed you: guess nottt

20. found out who your friends are: ?? not to repeat myself but i don’t have any

21. kissed someone on your facebook list: i don’t haaave one

GENERAL:

22. how many of your facebook friends do you know in real life: again lol don’t have one

23. do you have any pets: a dog (ginny) & a cat (phoebe)

24. do you want to change your name: yeah i never liked my name i always wanted to be named austin???

25. what did you do for your last birthday: umm took a final moved out of my dorm and bought myself chinese takeout

26. what time did you wake up: 1pm

27. what were you doing at midnight last night: i think i was just laying in bed watching buzzfeed unsolved over and over

28. name something you can’t wait for: when my mouth doesn’t HURT 24/7 and i can chew anything

29. when was the last time you saw your mom: like 3 hours ago

30. what is one thing you wish you could change in your life: i wish i didn’t give up art after high school & i actually tried to get into art schools?

31. what are you listening to right now: still youtube in the background

32. have you ever talked to a person named Tom: uhmmm i think

33. something that is getting on your nerves: everything really

34. most visited website: tumblr or youtube

35-37. well these questions dont exist apparently

38. hair color: blonde

39. long or short hair: longg i wish my hair was longer rn

40. do you have a crush on someone: i guesss

41. what do you like about yourself: ?

42. piercings: just one in each ear but i want more

43. blood type: noo idea

44. nickname: none

45. relationship status: single

46. Zodiac: taurus

47. pronouns: she/her

48. favorite tv show: game of thrones BUT i haven’t watched the start of s7 yet so shhh

49. tattoos: none but im trying to get one if i can get my shit together before school

50. right or left handed: right

51. surgery: wisdom teeth just friday like i mentioned;;

52. piercing: u already asssked

53. sport: none man

54. vacation: ?last vacation favorite vacation??? i just went to st augustine florida w my family but my best trip ever was suzhou/shanghai/beijing at the beginning of the summer

55. pair of trainers: what about them??? i never wear sneakers

MORE GENERAL:

56. eating: nothinnn the last thing i had was ice cream since that’s 50% of my diet in the last week (the other 50% is mac n cheese)

57. drinking: water

58. I’m about to: maybe sleep lol

59. waiting for: once again just until im not in pain

60. want to: literally nothing just lay in bed

61. get married: probabbbly

62. career: ?? art director or maybe something like front of house manager in a theatre or something in film production or ui eng

WHICH IS BETTER:

63. hugs or kisses: hugs

64. lips or eyes: eyes

65. shorter or taller: tall but most ppl are taller than me lol

66. older or younger: uhhh i guess either as long as it’s within a couple years of me, tho since im 18 right now i guess not younger. i guess for guys it would always be older but i. dont think i want to date guys

67. nice arms or nice stomach: well for ME i have neither and i would prefer to magically gain a nice stomach so

68. hook up or relationship: relationship

69. troublemaker or hesitant: ??? i don’t like loud annoying people so hesitant

HAVE YOU EVER:

70. kissed a stranger: no

71. drank hard liquor: yes

72. lost glasses/contact lenses: no ive never had them lol

73. turned someone down: yes

74. sex on the first date: excuse u im 12

75. broken someone’s hear: i don’t think so ive never been the one doing the breaking up so

76. had your heart broken: i dunno that’s a strong phrase

77. been arrested: nope

78. cried when someone died: not that i remember

79. fallen for a friend: yes

DO YOU BELIEVE IN:

80. yourself: ehhhhhhghfhhhhh

81. miracles: no

82. love at first sight: it’s a strong no from me

83. santa claus: i wysh

84. kiss on the first date: sure

85. angels: no

86-89. there were no questions asked…

OTHER:

90. current best friend’s name: current What

91. eye color: blue green

92. favorite movie: the fall or only god forgives

/neeeext game/

Rules: answer 30 questions then tag 20 blogs you would like to know better.

1. Nicknames: noneee

2. Gender: female

3. Star sign: taurus

4. Height: 5'1″ / 157cm

5. Time: 7:37pm

6. Birthday: may 4

7. Favorite Bands/Groups: uhhm for kpop it’s svt, omg, loona, wjsn, etc... english it’s brand new, bad suns, stop light observations

8. Favorite solo artists: suran, heize, dean, childish gambino, hyuna, bruno mars

9. Song stuck in my head: vibrato by stellar 

10. Last movie watched: uhhhh i think i watched like half of the grand budapest hotel lol

11. Last show watched: game of thrones (tho once again not the 7th season yet lol)

12. When did i create my blog: this acct is just about to be a year old but my first one was from probably summer 2012 or 11

13. What do I post: nothin exciting, kpop + whatever pictures i like

14. Last thing googled: “red velvet red flavor” idr what i was looking for tho lol??

15. Do you have other blogs?:  too manyyy orz

16. Do you get asks?: yahuhh some

17. Why did u choose your url?: i just wanted smth short like i was surprised this wasn’t taken less than a year ago hhhu

18. Following: ~120

19. Followers: an amount;;

20. Favorite colors: yelloooow, pink, black, plus lately i like red more

21. Average hours of sleep: in the summer like 12-14 a day ha

22. Lucky number: 27

23. Instruments: nooone

24. What am I wearing: tshirt and boxers the only thing i ever wear

25. How many blankets I sleep with: just 1 comforter (+ the fan on tho)

26. Dream job: answered in the other game^^

27. Dream trip: baaack to suzhou

28. Favorite food(s): steak, shrimp, mac n cheese, red velvet cake, smoothies

29. Nationality:  american

30. Favorite song now: uhhh i’ve been listening to 1+1=0 by suran and that’s what i like by bruno mars a lot. all time favs r wishing well by blink 182, jude law and a semester abroad by brand new, and shark attack by grouplove

okiee that’s more than u ever wanted to know about me!!! tagging anyone who read this far cause this was really far so u yes u i tag u