#woodland stan au

[razzle-zazzle]

Can we hear about your aus? They seem interesting!

Okay okay so. For the first AU, Woodland Stan. If you haven't watched s08e14 "Woodland Critter Christmas" and s18e06 "Freemium Isn't Free", go watch them, bc even if they're not the best South Park episodes out there they're so so funny to me & the basis for the Woodland Stan AU. And also "Woodland Critter Christmas" has a twist in it that's genuinely more fun to experience watching the episode than reading about it.

this got long so i'm putting it under the cut

See, in "Freemium Isn't Free", Stan is briefly (and consensually) possessed by Satan so Satan can go kick the Canadian Devil, Beelzeboot's, ass. And I know that technically the woodlnad critters don't actually exist in South Park, and come from a story Cartman wrote (and also appear in the Imagination Land trilogy), but they appear in The Fractured But Whole so I say they do exist and are just as demented as in TFBW. So in the Woodland Stan AU, they somehow find out or figure out or just in general catch wind of hwo Stan briefly gave his soul to Satan That One Time, and decide that that means they just gotta adopt him!

Which means Stan is kidnapped by a bunch of talking animals. Who then heavily dehumanize him (both in a "you are one of us and thus an animal" way and a "your thoughts and feelings and rights matter less than us wanting you to join us" way), in addition to exposing him to, and in some cases forcing him to engage with, all the violence and gore they normally get up to. It's basically a lot of whump, with emotional abuse and other trauma. Fun! Plus they kill Sparky and reanimate him as a hellhound when he tracks Stan's scent.

He does eventually get rescued, and has to slowly readjust to not being Stanny, to not living in the woods with a group of animals who both see him as one of their own and as a useful tool. There's so much more I could say about this AU with regards to how each critter interacts with Stan, or how characters back in South Park respond to the disappearance, or just Stan's trauma and response to it in general, but that would make this post too long. So moooooving on!

The second AU, which is called Guinea Possession AU, is based on the season twelve two-parter, episodes 10 & 11 "Pandemic" and "Pandemic II: The Startling". You know how the Guinea Pirate escaped prison at the end as an end-of-episode joke? And you know how Craig shot lasers from his eyes, and everyone commonly headcanons Craig as Peruvian due to the whole prophecy thing?

Yeah. Yeah you know where this is going. The Guinea Pirate returns, looking for revenge, and possesses Craig. This is both to get revenge and because those laser eyes weren't a one time thing. But before Cavisuwa can truly take advantage of the powers he's trying to activate (which. to make it more fun. is basically electrokinesis. but not very much because Craig is a fourth grader + hasn't done anything with them), Tweek figures out what's going on.

Where Woodland Stan's story takes place over at least a month, the Guinea Possession AU would take maybe two weeks at most, with most of the action happening right at the end. Tweek and a few other kids confront Cavisuwa, and through the wonderful power of Tweek Bros Coffee and a punch to the gut Tweek makes Craig vomit. Which exorcises Cavisuwa. Because this is South Park. Craig ignores everything Cavisuwa said about "godly powers" and goes on with his life and everything is fine.

Which leads me into the third AU. The Bad End AU. Wherein Stan goes missing thanks to the woodland critters. But before anyone can get to the bottom of things, Tweek starts freaking out. "Something's wrong with Craig!" He claims, "Because that's not him!" He is correct. Craig just got possessed!

Except... Clyde's sure he'd have noticed if something was up with his best friend. And everyone else is more concerned with the fact that Stan is missing. So Tweek confronts Cavisuwa alone. On the playground. To everyone else it looks like Tweek just started beating up his boyfriend out of nowhere, so they get pulled apart. Tweek goes back to the drawing board, and Cavisuwa..... okay look I love Tweek and I really want to involve him more heavily in this AU. But currently.. yeah he dies at the hands of Cavisuwa, who then goes on to cause a blackout, start destroying Peruvian pan flute music however and wherever he can. Giant guinea pigs and guinea bees and guinea rabbits and guineasaurus rexes start to come back, Cavisuwa takes over South Park,

and because everyone in South Park is preoccupied with Cavisuwa's rise to power, Stan never gets away from the woodland critters.

So the Bad End AU sees a world ruled by a possessed Craig, with a greasy animorphic demon lurking in the woods. There's also a resistance against Cavisuwa's "reign" lead by Kenny, Wendy, and formerly Kyle, giving me three major factions to work with. There's so much I can say about this AU, but again this post is supposed to just be the synopsis so yeah.

tl;dr Woodland Stan sees Stan kidnapped by the satanic woodland critters, Guinea Possession sees Craig possessed by the Guinea Pirate, and both of those AUs combined make the Bad End AU where, because nobody listened to Tweek, neither the possession nor the kidnapping get resolved.

[justvibingwhilecrying]

I forgor to post these

[nutal]

Wait guys im torn between stanny marsh au and woodland stan for the AU(unofficial)/hashtag name which one should it be

ALSO CREDITS TO BOTH ANONS WHO SUBMITTED THESE!!! IF YOU WANT SPECIFIC CREDIT PLEASE LMK

[the-real-couchrat]

Flock OC challenge!

Draw your flock OC as…

Normal

As a nightmare/dream, whatever their opposite is. (If they’re neither, draw them with the opposite aesthetic)

Post God!cor

In a human disguise (inspired by static worms)

Pre-Alcor (before they’ve taken a solid shape, or how they looked under another demon)

(Optional) the dream/nightmare they make people experience

Interacting with someone else. Could be another flock member, Alcor, yourself, a character from another fandom, anyone you want!

(Optional) Sub AU!

Mizar (Equivalence AU, Mabel) = pigs

Atlantica (Pacifica) = sea creatures

Pollux (Geminus AU, Ford) = owls

Mercuriat (Avarice AU,Stan) = dogs

Sarva (Henry’s No Good Very Bad Terrible Horrible Day AU) = any woodland creature from any forest biome. (Rainforest, pines, prehistoric, ect)

Example by me

And if anyone decides to do this, please tag me! I’d love to see it!

[wixelt]

Was going through some notes I archived on my PC when I got my new phone, & found something I wrote years ago & never got around to sharing.

Basically, many years ago, I wrote the loose outline of a rather grim Gravity Falls AU, & while it’ll likely never go anywhere, i’m impulsively deciding to share what I wrote, now.

Broken Falls AU

Alternately After Falls, Afterword, Afterworld or Gravity World, as I couldn’t make up my mind.

Technically this is a post-show AU, but only by virtue of the time-frame.

The Prologue:

In the final battle with Bill Cipher, he does the 'eenie meenie' murder thing with Dipper & Mabel when he catches them, & settles on Mabel.

Via some means, he's learned Ford - at least in this AU - doesn't actually know how to break the barrier around the town, so he intends to kill Mabel out of spite.

Dipper, in desperation & panic, pleads with Bill, telling him without thinking that he'll take any deal the demon wants to make if he spares his sister & frees everyone.

Unexpectedly, Bill agrees, seemingly concocting a new plan to spread weirdness... via possessing Dipper.

This time, Dipper's soul is sealed away inside his body rather than being forced out, as Bill exists physically, literally fusing his entire being into Dipper.

While this makes Bill physically weaker, it actually makes him even more powerful as a reality warper. Something about the pact involving physical flesh.

Regardless, it also stops Dipper’s ghost form being a nuisance for him.

Bill keeps his word, at least for now. Mabel, Stan & Ford, with everyone freed from the Fearamid’s decor & the Shacktron, flee.

Mabel tries to stay for her brother, but is convinced she won't be any good to him dead, & concedes in fleeing.

The Main AU:

Almost an entire year has now passed since Weirdmageddon began.

Human!Bill has utilized some loophole in how the barrier works via push his powers through his human body, forcing the barrier’s area of effect to gradually increase.

This is gradually spreading weirdness further & further without breaking the region’s weirdness magnetism law. At present, the area's a little over twice its original size.

Bill & his Henchmaniacs mostly ignore the humans inside the barrier now, or don't actively pursue, only occasionally hunting out of boredom or if they run into them.

With the Mystery Shack a wreck & far from where it was originally, Ford's woodland bunker was the next sanctuary for the locals.

However, shortly before the present it was attacked, & while most survivors escaped, they're now on the move constantly.

Ford has considered trying to clear out the UFO under the town & make a base there, as Bill either doesn't know it exists or just can’t touch it.

With a year, an apocalypse & a stubborn grand-niece, Stan & Ford have largely made amends, but still bicker, as siblings do. It... can get heated, at times.

13 (now almost 14) year old Mabel, despite all that life has thrown at her, is still somewhat optimistic, cheerful & determined.

The past year’s given her the experiences & skills -both good & bad - to use her passion for more things.

She’s developed a bit of a dour & cynical streak, though, often seeing the worst case scenario before even getting to a preferred best case.

She wears Dipper's hat constantly, only taking it off to sleep & reacting violently if anyone tries to take it.

She’s also picked up her brother’s habit of chewing pens.

Oh, also, because its me we’re talking about, Mabifica’s a thing, either before or during the AU. The alternative wouldn't work here, anyway.

Due to his deal with Dipper, Bill can't harm Mabel without first releasing his hold on Dipper’s body, nor can anyone knowingly working for him.

There are loopholes he tries to exploit whenever Mabel’s antics irk him, but the key one’s always to get others to go after her without them knowing he's involved.

As Bill had already begun trying to kill Mabel as Dipper stopped him, Mabel was directly exposed to chaotic energies without actually dying.

This manifests by giving her what Ford calls 'Oddsight'. When active (it can be turned off) she's immune to & can ward off some weirdness types.

This is only one among a number of other abilities that develop later.

In this state, Mabel’s right eye turns black with a yellow, elongated iris - a colour flip of the eyes of someone controlled by Bill.

Using this curse often strains her heavily at first, so it comes out rarely.

Wendy, Soos, Candy, Grenda, Pacifica & Gideon all survived, & all but Gid - who left with his surviving bikers - have stuck with Mabel’s group.

No word on anyone else, though. Past me didn’t get that far.

For safety, Ford’s compiled new copies of the journals from a set of backup notes he made just before things went down & stored in a secure locker in his bunker.

He’s also begun writing a 4th journal documenting Weirdmageddon. He still plans to throw them all in the bottomless pit once they get through this, though.

Mabel always has at least one journal on her at all times, most often the 3rd.

And that’s pretty much where past me got up to with this idea. As I said, I probably won’t do anymore with it, but I wanted it to finally see the light of day.

Enjoy! :D

[walnutcookie]

:D i havent been in the cr fandom a wbile so bear with me .......

i think Roque has some similarities to Stanley Marsh !! (totally not basing this off of the fishy au cus thats the only canon interpretation to me anymore) . Stan is shown to have a lot of compassion towards animals and others, which has gotten him into trouble before :3 like in Woodland Critter Christmas when he raised the antichrist and Two Days Before the Day After Tomorrow, where he felt immense guilt for setting a beaver dam on fire abd trapping a bunch of people in a massive flood <3 He tends to be a bit more socially reserved sometimes, but he'll often take the lead if Cartman hasn't already .

He will also WALLOW IN DEPRESSION and SHAME and GUILT, and will literally fall apart without a support system (Kyle), like in Guitar Queer-o, You're Getting Old/Ass Burgers and a few others. Stan closes himself off when something is seriously wrong, as does Roque (⁠＠⁠_⁠＠⁠;⁠) AND!! he also has an alter ego. Toolshed. hes also bisexual and nonbinary thank you and thank you (/hc)

Almond makes me think a bit of Tweek, mostly for the love of coffee and inability to sleep. Tweek tells the boys in one epsiode that "I can't sleep.. ever..." which comes from paranoia and a constant caffeine/meth high. HOWEVER, Almond isnt jittery or as paranoid as Tweek is. Because he is a pathetic wet puppy, he makes me think of Randy Marsh, who sometimes is also a wet puppy. Randy tends to go a bit above and beyond a lot of the time - hell, he got the town to believe that the economy was God for almost a whole year X3 i want almond to say "I am lorde ya ya ya" one time for me pls plssss /ref. But as for the four main boys (Stan, Kyle, Cartman and Kenny), id give him Kenny. Bro loves his family and dies all the damn time, what can i say

Walnut....... walnt. walnut walnut walnut. Im gonna give her Wendy !!. Wendy is PASSIONATE about what she believes in and will (90% of the time) stick up for what she believes is right. Shes also been shown to have some pretty damn good detective skills, as shown in The List when she figured out that the ratings on the list didnt sparkle with all of the girls, and it was actually a conspiracy. Wendy is incredibly smart and has actually beaten the shit out of Cartman before :3 so when shes pushed to ends length, she will start swinging, despite the consequences. Live laugh Wendy

whoopsy dasies i cringed out there ummm . yeah idk enjoy reading this when u wake up❓

OOUAUUAUAA READS ALL OF THS SO INTENSELY /POS THIS IS . I LOVE <333

[elishevart]

Thanks for the tag^^ sorry it took me some time to answer! They are all Gravity Falls related. Okay here it is…

“True to his words, Stanford went to work after the forest dwellers visit to gather as much knowledge and information about the role and position of Guardian there was in Gravity Falls.” — The Guardian of Gravity Falls, aka dragon Ford au.

“Climbing the water tower blindfolded guided by your great niece and then having said tower swayed dangerously left and right was a fast way to have your fear of heights cured.” — Conquering Fear, from the Beast of Gravity Falls au.

“In a town full of weird and unusual things, it is hard to find something that hasn’t been discussed.” Dr Mystery’s Mysteries, from The Beast of Gravity Falls au.

“Stanford came into the cabin after spending the last half hour under the rain making sure everything on deck was well tied up if the storm turned for the worst during the night. He shook himself off and lifted his wet bangs from his eyes. Stan was currently at the stove, cooking something that smelled delicious. Stanford’s stomach grumbled at the aromas.” — Convos with a Toddler.

“Months passed since the incident with what Stan had explained later was a Colombian cartel chief whom he had been forced to work with in his lower moments. Stanford had understood and apologized that his twin had to result in such drastic measures in order to survive. Their parents' visits hadn’t been easy to handle so soon after Stan’s imprisonment and both events took a considerable toll on Ford’s body.” — Woodland Travels.

“Stanford Pines came to the conclusion that testing a new specimen with his molecular analysis device during a snowstorm was not the best idea he’d ever had.” — the beast of Gravity Falls (where it all started)

“Stanley Pines was in one of the most crappy motel rooms he had ever rented. The ceiling leaked, the wallpaper peeled off and he would be surprised if no one had ever died in it. That’s what you get when you can’t afford anything.” — Stan counter of the twin kind.

“Stanford Pines sat at his kitchen table, frowning thoughtfully over his latest specimen of oddity.” — dragon fruit anomalie.

“It happened slowly and he never saw it coming. Granted he should have paid more attention to the signs but he was having so much fun with his twin on their sea voyage that his mind hadn’t paid much attention to it. Besides, in all his life he never thought this sort of thing would happen to him.” — one pound at a time.

“On a beautiful clear winter day, Stanford was trotting through the woods, making his way along the cliffs that surrounded the valley of Gravity Falls. A huge layer of snow covered everything in white, making his own brown feathers stand out amongst the scenery. A huge brown mass moving silently through the threes.” — a miracle on gopher street.

Hope you like! As for the tags… @alextwdgf01 @ramblesanddragons @detectivejigsawpines @nelson-and-murdock @mother-ofthe-universe @nataliedanovelist @thelastspeecher and anyone who wants to jumps in!

I was tagged by @anistarrose in this challenge! Thanks rose, this is so neat.

Rules are to share the first lines of ten of your most recent fanfics and tag ten people. I will not be doing that lmao - I don't even think I have 10 fics on my Ao3 (a lot of my stuff doesn't see the light of day) So I have elected to pick 5.

it's all GF stuff, mostly because i refuse to publish my knuckles the echidna stuff lmao

Jersey Boy (Gravity Falls)

The Backupsmore University brochure wasn’t nearly as interesting as one would would think by the way Stanford Pines pored over it, but if anyone were to wander by and see the way he stubbornly refused to look away from its pages, they might think it was a map to glistening treasure or the Fountain of Youth, rather than just a mediocre list of mediocre “luxuries” provided by a mediocre “school”: -Bug free dorms!* -Edible lunches!* -Certified non-criminal teachers!*

(jesus what a run-on sentence - y'all read this stuff?)

2. A Holiday Classic (Or, How Ford Learned Jane Fonda is Still Kicking) (Gravity Falls)

Stan and Ford were at port for only a few hours, but it didn’t stop them from fully exploring the gorgeous Finnish port town of Jakobstad while they waited for the repairs on the Stan O’ War II to finish up.

3. How Hard Can It Be To Lose (Gravity Falls)

He felt sick, and he knew it wasn’t going away until that money was in his hand. 

4. Time Loop (Gravity Falls)

He just had to get run out of California, huh? Right as the new year was creeping in? Couldn’t have lasted long enough to stay hunkered down with the palm trees through the winter before the cops were called on him?

5. 30 years (Gravity Falls)

He spared a glance over his shoulder, at the hunk of metal that ruined his life, the hunk of metal he had spent the better part of six years creating. It was falling apart, debris draped across the rafters. The end of the world.

I will be tagging @nour386, @sciencevillain, @unculturedmamoswine, @fordanoia @gravi-mania @ninety-smiles-an-hour and uuuuhhhhh i know there are people im missing here so im sorry about that, im just typing this up during a break from work - feel free to ignore this tag or feel free to grab this challenge yourself even if you aren't tagged!!!!

[weallpartyatybcpatricksfuneral]

I wrote

gravity falls and marble hornets au! Decided to share this now, just to get it out there

------

"Come on, Dip-Dop!" Mabel shouted. She stood atop a mushroom covered log, looking out into the vast forest. Dipper made his way over to her.

"I'm here, I'm here!" He laughed, holding his blue notebook to his chest. Dipper and his sister had just arrived back in Gravity Falls, after a long eighth-grade year. His strange old uncles, Stanley and Stanford, were conversing with each other as the family went on a woodland stroll to celebrate Dipper and Mabel's first day back.

"Ah Gravity Falls! Looks exactly as I remember it." Mabel smiled, inhaling deeply. The air smelled of moist earth and fresh flowers. Summer had come once again. With Bill Cipher gone, the twins felt much safer roaming the forests. Dipper no longer felt the hair on the back of his neck rise as he stumbled through the birch trees with his silly sister. Gravity Falls was safe at last -- or, as safe as it can be. It's Gravity Falls after all.

"Grunkle Stan, Grunkle Ford, come on! Stop being so slow!" She turned around to face their uncles, who were still a good couple of steps behind the younger Pines twins.

Ford laughed quietly, "We're coming, my dear."

"Yeah," Stan interjected, "We're old, give us a break!" Mabel laughed.

Great Uncle Stanford looked around wistfully, "It's so peaceful out her--." Ford was cut off by a round of harsh coughing. Stan pat his back gently until the coughing stopped. Mabel's smile faded away.

"Grunkle Ford? You okay?"

He took a deep breath. "I'm alright, Mabel. My time in the multiverse must have ruined my immune system; I've been sick quite a lot recently." Grunkle Stan nodded, slinging an arm around Ford.

"You kids shoulda seen this poor, poor soul when he had a cold--by the way he acted, you'd think he was dying!"

"I wasn't that dramatic Stanley--"

"You laid on the couch and said, "Stanley, I'm dying" the second you started sniffling."

Mabel's smile returned and she laughed at her silly uncles. Ford smiled and tried to say something but started coughing harder.

"Grunkle Ford!" Mabel exclaimed, running to his side. Dipper followed suit, his eyebrows raised in concern.

"Sheesh, Sixer, are you okay?" Stan placed his hand on his brother's back. Ford looked up and glanced at the woods for a brief second, before collaspsing to the ground in a violent coughing fit.

"Great Uncle Stanford?" Dipper whispered, reaching out to place his hand on his great-uncle shoulder. Stanley looked paniked as something red stained Ford's sleeve.

"Stanford!" Stan exclaimed, "Oh my gosh!" He reached over to wipe away the blood that dribbled out of Ford's mouth. The coughing fit stopped, only for Ford to look up and stare into the woods.

"He had no face..." Great-Uncle Ford rasped, before falling unconcious in Stan's arms. Stan freaked out, rightfully so.

"Stanford! STANFORD! WAKE UP! WAKE UP!" He shook Ford's body. Mabel had tears running down her face as she kneeled down by her uncle's side.

"Grunkle Stan! What do we do!" Dipper cried, falling to the ground by Mabel. He looked up and around -- Ford had looked up at something right before he collapsed. That couldn't be a coincidence.

Suddenly, Dipper became very aware of the fact that the Pines were being watched. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end, and he started to drown out Stan and Mabel's frantic words as they tried to stir Ford awake. Then, he heard it -- a twig snapped.

Mabel must have heard it to,for she looked up, and screamed. Dipper's head shot up and he saw the creature too, standing among the trees. It had to have been ten feet tall, maybe more, with a snow white face. The anomaly wore a black suit with a red tie. Dipper's skin crawled as it stared dead ahead, right at the Pines family.

Stan stood up, and backed a step away from Ford before glancing back down at his brother.

"What the heck is that..." He whispered.

In a blink, the creature was gone.

"Where'd it go?!" Dipper cried, searching around frantically. Stan shuddered.

"I dunno, kid. But it's giving me the heeby-jeebys." Stan kneeled back on the ground and tried to shake Ford away with more urgency than before. "Come on, Sixer, Come on! Wake up! Wake up!"

Leaves rustled. The slender creature stood much closer than before, that same straight ahead stare on it's featureless face.

Stan jumped up and backed away, pulling Mabel and Dipper close to him.

"Kids...we have to run..."

"But what about Great Uncle Ford--"

" We'll have to leave him, we'll come back." Like before, the creature disappeared in a second. The Pines started to run. Stan led them around the trees,in a large circle. After a few long minutes of running, they made their way back to where Ford was laying.

But he was gone.

On the ground, where Ford should have been, was a circle drawn in something red -- Dipper's stomach churned, it looked dark enough to be blood -- with an X through it in the same deep crimson color. Right in the center of the X was a piece of paper. Dipper approached it cautiously and picked it up. It seemed to be a page torn out of Ford's old journal.

On it, are the words "DON'T LOOK...OR IT TAKES YOU." besides a crude drawing of the figure the Pines saw in the woods. Dipper's heart caught in his throat as he saw the symbol on the ground repeated all of the page. There was other writing too, crammed on it.

"HE HAD NO FACE HE HAD NO FACE"

"LEAVE ME ALONE"

"NO NO NO NO NO"

"ALWAYS WATCHES"

Stan closed his eyes at the sight. "Oh Sixer, what have you gotten into now..."

- - -

Ford awoke in the middle of the forest, much deeper in than where he can last remember. How did he get here? With a groan, he sat up and placed a hand to the back of his head. Sticky blood remained on his fingers when he pulled his hand away.

Twigs snapped.

Leaves rustled.

Something was in the forest. Ford couldn't speak. He found the words to be stuck in his throat when he tried. The older man mustered up the strength to pull himself off the ground and then stared straight into the face of The Operator.

Normally, he would have screamed. He would have run away, as fast as he could and then skip town to get away. This time, Ford felt a strange feeling of calmness wash over him as the horrid creature stared to speak:

'They're after the pages. Find them. Kill them.'

All coherent thoughts in Ford's mind were replaced by these few words. At The Operator's feet were a yellow hoodie and black and white mask. Two names began to float to the surface in Ford's muddled brain but were quickly replaced with the Operator's voice.

'They failed me. You must not.'

Slowly, Ford stripped himself of his cloak, and put on the hood and mask. The Operator left as quickly as he came, leaving his proxy behind. Ford looked around the forest.

THEY ARE AFTER THE PAGES.

FIND THEM.

KILL THEM.

- - -

"Grunkle Ford! Grunkle Ford!

"Great Uncle Ford!"

"Sixer!"

The Pines called out to Ford. Dipper held the page from the weird circle thing in hand, gripping it so hard some of the charcoal rubbed off on his hands. Mabel bounded over to a tree, where a different page -- this one depicting a forest with the tall slender figure -- was stuck.

"Here's another one!" she exclaimed, waving it in the air.

"That's about...3 now, including the one in the circle." Stan said, taking the page from her and putting it with the other one they had found. "When we find my brother, I'm telling him he's no longer allowed to write cryptic creepy messages anymore." Dipper laughed a little bit. Even in such a dark situation, Stan found a way to make them smile.

That figure hadn't reappeared again, much to the Pines' relief.

"Grunkle Ford! Where are you!" Mabel called, hopping over a rock and into a small pile of leaves, making a loud crunch sound.

Right after her jump, came another crunch sound.

And then another.

And another.

Someone was running.

Dipper looked over his shoulder, to see a masked figure in a yellow hoodie hiding amongst the trees.

"Hey! Who are you!"

The masked man ran over and took the page from Dipper, before running off again.

"Hey! I need that!" Dipper went to run after him, but Stan held him back.

"Don't! We don't know who that could be -- what if they're dangerous!"

"But-but- the page--"

"We've got two others. It's fine..." He looked in the direction the masked man had come from, and shuddered.

"We gotta keep going. Stanford's somewhere in these woods and we better find him before that slender man does."

" Let's hope Masky doesn't come back." Mabel said, scrunching up her nose.

"Masky?" Dipper raised an eyebrow

"Yeah, he needs a name. Duh!"

Dipper sighed and ceded to Mabel's insistance that the masked figure needed a name. The trio continued their search for Great Uncle Ford.

After a while of stumbling around, they came across another page. 'HELP ME' was sprawled across it, including the words 'WATCH THE TAPES WATCH THE TAPES. REMEMBER.'

Dipper handed the page to Stan, and the two sat down to figure out what it means.

"Tapes? What tapes?"

"Maybe Ford means the tapes he took back when he was here?" Stan shrugged, "He's gotta whole box of 'em in his bedroom, but I've combed every second of those tapes to look for a way to start the portal. Ain't nothing there other than him being a huge geek."

"Any other tapes that Ford could have had?" Dipper pondered.

"Nope. I've looked everywhere in that house, kid. I've found everything there is to find."

Dipper sighed and rested his head against the tree. They were no closer to finding Great Uncle Ford.

A scream tore through the silence, shattering it like a baseball shatters a glass window.

And that scream belonged to Mabel. Dipper hopped up and rushed to the source of the sound. Masky was back again, standing over Mabel with a large rock in his hand. She screamed again as he raised the rock over his head. Panic flooded Dipper's body, just like it had when Bill nearly killed Mabel in the Fearamyid.

Stan ran over to the figure and wrestled him back, shouting that he wasn't going to hurt Mabel. But something made Stan stop dead in his tracks.

"Stanford..." He said quietly, his eyes wide in shock as he stared at the stranger's hand. Dipper ran over and joined Stan in the fight (Stan didn't fight as hard as he did before. Was he taking it easy on Masky?)

Dipper and Stan manages to wrestle him to the ground and rip the mask off his face. Stan stared right into the identical brown eyes of his twin.

"STANFORD!" he shouted.

Something black stained Ford's lips and chin. His eyes had a cloudy look to them, like he wasn't quite there. But the second Stan shouted, the cloudyness faded away. Mabel stood back in shock and horror, tears running down her face.

"How the hell..." Ford mumbled, resting his head back on the ground with a small whimper of pain. Stan stood up, paler than the slender man.

"Ford- what- how--"

"Where the hell are we..."

"We're in the forest, where we've been this entire time. You just attacked Dipper and Mabel! Where'd you get this mask and hood from?"

"What do you mean."

"Great Uncle Ford, do you remember what happened?"

"Not after I passed out, no..." Ford groaned and placed a hand to the back of his head.

Stan and Dipper shared a look and quickly filled him in. Ford put a hand to his mouth.

"Oh my God...Mabel, I--" Ford stammered and tried to stand up. Dipper saw red staining the hood of the hoodie and Ford's silver grey hair.

"Grunkle Ford! You're hurt--"

He waved it away. "I'll be fine." He fumbled in his pants pocket for a little hand-held video recorder and pressed the on button.

"Sixer, how is this going to help."

"This has happened before...I need to call Tim--"

"Who the hell is Tim? What do you mean this has happened before?!"

"Old college friend. Anyway, we need to leave, now." Ford looked to a still-shaken Mabel, " Mabel, my dear, I'm so sorry."

"Grunkle Ford...what happened..." She whispered, wiping tears off her face.

"I don't know, my dear, but it won't happen again." He didn't have to verbally add in the 'i hope', but the tone of his voice and look on his face certainly implied it was there, hanging off the end of his sentence.

The four started to walk through the forest. Ford assured them that there would be an explanation when they arrived back at the shack. He was constantly checking the camera. What was he expecting to see? After a long, mostly silent trek through the woods, Dipper started to hear a static sound come from the video camera.

Ford's eyes widened with fear, "Go, Run! He's here!"

"He? Who's he?!"

Ford opened his mouth to the respond but found himself coughing again as the Slender Man appeared once more. It stood behind Ford, completely still. The camera went crazy -- the audio became distorted and full of static until it cut completely.

Finally, it spoke. Dipper had never heard a voice like his. It was undescribable and the pain it brought to his ears wasn't on any scale.

'My proxy...I told you to kill them. You've failed.'

"No, no, no..." Ford stuttered, falling to the ground

"Get away from him!" Mabel shouted, throwing a little rock at the Slender Man's head. It stunned the creature for a brief moment, allowing Stan to pull his brother up.

"Run!" Ford rasped between his coughs. Just like before, he coughed up blood.

The four of them ran and ran, until the unfamiliar trees melted into the enchanted forest.

But the Pines didn't stop until they were inside the shack. After they all took a breath, Ford led them into his office.

"Alright, Grunkle Ford, explain what's going on." Mabel said, crossing her arms.

"Back in college, the flim students asked me to help them on their project called 'Marble Hornets'. Alex, who was the director, cast me as an actor and we started to work on the film. Then, Tim -- another actor -- started falling strangely sick. He spread that sickness to all of us -- to Brian, to Alex, to me. With that sickness came the mysterious appearance of a creature called the Operator."

Ford fished around in his desk for an old journal, much older than the three he kept about Gravity Falls. It was apparently from his time at Backupsmore College. He flipped through it, and showed them an old entry. Dipper read aloud from the page:

"'It is called the Operator. It showed itself to me months and months ago, when was I walking home from the library. Under the streetlight was a tall man in a black business suit. He had no face, and no eyes. I found myself paralyzed with fear for a brief moment, before running in the opposite direction. I mentioned my encounter to the rest of the Marble Hornets cast, but they said they hadn't seen this creature before. After filming, Alex pulled me aside with a video recorder in hand. He handed me a tape and told me to play it when it got back to my dorm. On that tape was Alex encountering the same creature outside his dorm window. Alex and I quickly got together and talked. The creature -- which I later knew as The Operator -- started to stalk us both relentlessly. Alex dropped out and skipped town. Slowly but surely, the members of Marble Hornets disappeared. The project was cancelled and Jay was given Alex's old tapes. After Alex left, I saw the creature once again. It was in my dorm room, standing in the corner. I shouted for help but it disappeared before anyone could do anything. The creature hasn't reappeared since, but I'm still paranoid. I'm going to keep recording everything until I know for sure it's gone."

Chills ran down Dipper's spine. The Operator was undoubtedly the creature they met in the woods. The drawing of it Ford including beside the entry looked identical to the Slender Man they saw out in the woods. Ford put his hands behind his back.

"After that encounter in my room I didn't see him again, until Jay reached out to me about seeing this guy on the tapes. That...that led to," Ford trailed off, seemingly not sure how to go about with the rest of sentence. He shook his head, "Nevermind. That's the past now. It's behind me. I left that area and moved to Gravity Falls where I never saw it again. Until today. Definetly brought back some old memories..." He shuddered.

"Why's he here now?" Stan asked, crossing his arms.

"I don't know. Maybe he's still after me? But that doesn't make sense. Why would he wait until now?" Ford sighed, placing the journal back in the drawer.

"Great Uncle Ford, what tapes do you have? One of the pages we found in the woods said to "Watch the tapes". What does that mean?" Dipper asked, handing Ford one of the pages he found. Ford read it, and dug around in a drawer. He pulled out a dusty old tape.

"This one. This one details my experience with The Operator during the whole..."Marble Hornets" incident."

Stan blinked at it. "How the heck did I not find that! I thought I checked everywhere in this house!" Ford smiled slightly.

"I've got some hiding places you haven't found." Stan was about to ask another question, but let it die in his throat as he tossed the mask to Ford.

"By the way, you were wearing this. Dunno where you got it." Ford held it in his hands, staring at it wistfully before tossing it back onto the table. He pulled off the yellow hoodie but instead of tossing it, folded it neatly and placed it on the chair. Dipper watched as he looked at it for a bit too long before turning back to his brother.

"Please be careful. If any of you start to cough frequently, or if you see The Operator again, please tell me. I know how to hold him off but only for a bit. Now, I have to call an old friend of mine down here. He can help."

"Not so fast, Sixer. You're injured." Grunkle Stan gently pulled Ford over to him and checked the back of his head. "Sheesh. What did you do?"

"No idea." Ford winced as Stan tried to touch his head, "I might have fallen on a rock or something."

They went upstairs so Stan could treat Ford's injury. Along the way, Dipper and Ford talked about what happened in the woods.

"So you can't remember anything when you're...like that?" Dipper pondered.

"Can't remember a thing. It used to happen more often, practically every night. Tim and I came to the conclusion that this dissassociative state is a progression in Operator's Sickness."

"Operator's Sickness?" Mabel raised an eyebrow.

"That's what we call it. It obviously doesn't have a real name, but it's tied to the Operator. Encounter him or someone with the disease is enough to contract it. Which is why I'm so scared of getting you all involved. You've all been exposed to the disease -- from both me and the encounter in the woods."

Dipper tried to hide how nervous that made him. If they all had this disease, what was next? Would Dipper find himself waking up in the middle of the woods, with no memory? Would he fall into a state like Ford?

Ford must have noticed how nervous Dipper was. "Don't worry. The disease can be staved off with pills. Doesn't cure it, nothing really can except prolonged abscene from the Operator and those under his influence, but they certainly help. I'll ask Tim to bring the pills with him if he still has the prescription.

"So who's this Tim guy?" Stan asked, eyebrows rasied.

"Old friend from college. Like I said, we worked on Marble Hornets together. And then him, Jay and I eventually got involved in the, uh, "Marble Hornets" incident."

"What's that?"

Ford shook his head. "I can't explain it all now. Too complex. Maybe when Tim arrives he can help. He'll probably bring another old friend -- Jessica -- with him." The elevator dinged and they were all back upstairs. Golden sunshine streamed through the window as Stan sat Ford down and went to get the first aid kit.

[babbushka]

You can say no if you're uncomfortable with it, but would you mind telling us about the kids you and flip have in the personal au? I LOVED that ficlet you just posted!

In the past, I've been a bit secretive about it just because even though I know it's silly, the personal AU is, well, something that is quite personal to me, lol! I know they're fictional, but something about putting kids in fics without their consent feels ethically wrong, but I know it's silly and they are fictional, so yes, if you'd like, I'll leave below the cut the kiddos, for anyone who might be curious :)

Me & Philly's kids in birth order:

Asher (Ash)

Eldest son, Mama's boy to the Extreme. It's not that he dislikes Flip, he just likes me more. He's very shy and soft spoken, is a fantastic reader and is really good at math. Right now when he grows up he wants to go into the film industry but just because he likes being where I am. Every day is a good day for Ash, he is so sweet and sunshiney, nothing can bring him down. He's so positive and happy, like genuinely a happy kid, his smile is infectious and I'm In Love.

Bertha (Bertie)

Second child, lil Miss Bert has her eyes set on Olympic gold from day one. She is determined to be an Olympic figure skater. She loves to dance and perform little shows, she's a fabulous swimmer and loves science, but absolutely hates math, so that's proving to be sort of an issue. Birdie is the Boss, and she lets everyone know it. She has an attitude but she's almost always right so, she's allowed to have her attitude. She's bossy and we love for her #GaslightGatekeepGirlboss (this is a joke don't come for me)

The triplets:

Miriam (Micki)

Micki is just like her Mama -- bossy, pushy, and loud. She wants to be a senator when she grows up and dammit she's got the drive I'll tell you that! She's curious, precocious, very nosy, likes to be told what's going on all the time and gets annoyed when things are happening that she's out of the loop on. She is sarcastic and wicked smart, she's the only one who can beat Ezzie in chess.

Ezra (Ezzie)

Ezzie is Flip 2.0! He's the only one of the kids that actually looks like Flip lol, the rest are blonde like me. Ezzie is...a Weird kid, and we have no choice but to stan. He wants to be a criminal prosecutor when he grows up, and often puts various members of the family on mock trial for their crimes (such as when he put @autumnlovesadam's Ben on the stand for the alleged stealing of cookies from the cookie jar). He likes to wear formal clothing all the time, except for when he is doing outdoorsy woodland lumberjack things with his best friend Flip.

Ruth (Toothie)

Ruth is absolutely 100% the most theatrical, dramatic, performer in the family. Part of this comes from being the youngest of 5, and part of it comes from the innate Jewish need to be the center of attention. She and Bert choreograph recitals together of their own accord and will interrupt any sort of social gathering to perform their own songs and dances. She's determined to have a Tony by the time she's 30 and really who am I to tell her no? (She got her nickname Toothie because she got her teeth so early lol)

[styleweek]

Classic Style Moment: This can be any moment that Stan and Kyle has shared throughout the series, however the first few seasons ha a some of the best. ;)

Goth and Jersey: These are some of the most popular au styles of Stan and Kyle. Do whatever you want with it!

Band: Stan is in a band now. The two of them have also been in a couple of bands throughout the series. Think about Stans's metal band, the Peruvian panflute band, Fingerbang, and Moop.

Free day: This is up to you! Anything is welcome.

Fanfictions: this can be fan art of your favorite fan fic or you can write fanfics for this day.

Holidays: this can be any holiday! Though during this time of the year Christmas, Hanukkah, or New Year's is a given. Also, there's the woodland critter Christmas special. ;)

Super Best Friends: This speaks for itself. This can be anything that shows their friendship or how the relationship started through friendship. This may also include some angst.

Have fun!

[razzle-zazzle]

if stan's stuck in the woods in your woodland stan au, does that mean his hair gets greasier than usual? wouldn't it get cold out there? what about his clothes, what happens when they get filthy?

"Doesn't it get cold out there?" That's what the den is for, silly! And the hellfire, and Beary and Deery and Foxy and Beavery and Racoony and Rabbity's body heat! Does Stan enjoy being fenced in with hellfire when he tries to leave, or being shuffled into a hole in the ground for bedtime? That doesn't matter! They're keeping him safe and warm :] <- blatant disregard for Stan's choices and desires example #32534

And do you really think the woodland critters are above thievery? They may not like going near human settlements but that won't stop them from stealing all kinds of things for Stan. An extra set of clothes. Old newspapers to read to them. A toy from his room if he's been good. A wholeass road sign, the theft of which has caused many accidents. Really, Stan should be more grateful that they're going to all this effort to give him all these things beyond his basic needs! But of course he'll become grateful with time, because he's one of them! And if there's one thing the woodland critters know, it's gratitude!

They just gotta be patient, and keep involving him. He'll come around eventually, they're sure.

[justvibingwhilecrying]

[nutal]

au where stan is raised by the woodland critters

OH BOY. bro poor stan.

[nataliedanovelist]

(I did not draw this, my friend, @missinspi, drew this for me) (https://www.deviantart.com/missinspi)

Wanna read fics with this OC in it?

For a fic close to canon Gravity Falls (season 3?), read this.

For an AU about Stan and Ford getting a new neighbor at seven-years-old, read this.

Miscellaneous Oc Asks

@cityandking created a (relatively short) list of random, weird, hopefully interesting OC asks. Feel free to specify a character or just send a couple of questions, and then share it around!

What six CD’s would your OC keep in their car? Is it just a taste/preference thing, or do any of them have particular significance? I can’t think of any particular CDs, but as far as artists go... Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, Queen (or in the Gravity Falls world, the band called King), ACDC, a disk full of instrumental piano music, and a Dolly Parton CD her friend Madeline Ingrid probably gave her.

What does your OC smell like? What does your OC wish they smelled like? Coconut butter, japanese cherry-blossom perfume, and occasionally disinfectant (she works at a hospital). She tried every hard to smell nice, as most women do, and if she feels like work is ruining that, she might use her favorite “stress relief” lotion to help overpower the smells of rubber gloves and baby spit up.

How aesthetically-oriented is your OC in their clothing? Their living space? Their general presentation? If their look™ is mismatched, is that on purpose? Hephzie has a plain, easy-to-follow fashion sense: blue-jeans with t-shirts for casual events, jeans with blouses for nicer days, and occasionally a sweater for the winter. She also has a small love for boys’ clothes; she won’t shy away from mens’ t-shirts or button-ups if they feel nice and look OK. Her living space is relatively tidy (having grown up with grandparents who needed clean floors to avoid falling) but she’s not a clean freak. Her living space is very artsy and mitch-match, having friends all over the world and she loves learning about different cultures. She might have a rug from India by her bed, but a quilt from Ireland on her bed and a small statue from Hawaii on her dresser. With a bunch of hand-me-downs and mis-match tastes, her overall aesthetic is old and comfort.

What one word would you use to describe your OC’s vibe? Chill.

What’s one mundane thing that would throw them off-kilter? Why? Nuclear families. She grew up with her Grandma and Grandpa on her mother’s side. She never knew her father and her mother abandoned her at a hospital, not even waiting to see what would happen to Hephzie. So Hephzie values family very much, but she sees no reason why blood should be the most important factor in the definition in “family”. The idea of a “normal” family, one with two parents who are married and in love, siblings, and occasionally cousins and aunts and uncles, is like a dream to her. It’s nice, but not for her.

What kind of AU is your OC best suited to? What kind of AU would be the worst? Is there any AU that would be, objectively, just really funny? Hephzie is in 2 AUs: one pretty close to canon Gravity Falls, and one in which she grows up as neighbors to Stan and Ford. Both AUs are very interesting and I love seeing how she responds to each scenario, but I think the more “tragic” of the two is the canon-like one. I’ve toyed with an AU of her becoming a singer and I can see it going either two ways: either she crumbles under the pressure and gets into drugs and overdoses, or she flourishes and uses her money and power for good, like feeding the hungry and helping the homeless find homes.

If your OC could pick a different name, title, or pseudonym for themself, what would they pick? Why? Have they ever been given an alternate name/title, and how do they feel about it? Well, her birth name is Alicia-Sarah Hephzibah Fisher Cece, but she HATES the name Alicia-Sarah and only goes by Hephzibah/Hephzie. In one AU, she legally “fixes” her name.

If your OC were playing D&D, what would their race and class be? What backstory tragedy™ would they give their character? Does that reflect their own life in any way? Be honest. Okay, because a certain extra-special person in her life loves D,D, & More D, she plays, too. She’s an woodland elf, a healer, and has very little interest in her character, but she likes the storytelling and the praise she gets if she manages to heal a wizard with pointy-ears and fluffy brown hair named Rokuro the Righteous.

Star Wars or Star Trek? A certain boyfriend of hers likes Star Trek better, but she likes Star Wars better. It’s been a bitter rival since the beginning of time.

If your OC is from a fantasy world, where in the real world would they come from? If your OC is from our world, which fantasy world would they most want to live in? Bonus: Would you ever write/RP them in that world? Hephzie grew up on Irish folktales (her grandmother’s family is from there), so she would love to meet færies and see magic and meet a selkie. Screw being a mermaid, she wanted to be a selkie! And... no, don’t expect a fic about this.

What plant, animal, and color does your OC feel like today? A Venus Flytrap, a mongoose, and the color dark-green. It’s been a rough day but she’s keeping a level head.

If your OC were a superhero, how flashy would their costume be? Also, what would their superpower be? Does this go with their costume at all, or are they all about fashion? #Can’tFightCrimeIfYouAin’tCute Well... in the canon-like AU, she’s kinda a superhero already, so... think something like a knight’s armor on the arms and legs with a maroon cape. Power would be healing, but she can also fight hella well with a sword and bow-and-arrows. And she’s never cared about looking good, she just wants to survive the war...

Does your OC thrift? Buy designer? Where would they shop irl? GOODWILL FOR THE WIN!!! She and her friends called it “treasure hunting” in high-school and it stuck. She loves it, and when a certain somebody came out with a song about it, she was livid (even if she was fifty-something years old).

Is your OC superstitious? If so, what superstitions do they believe? If not, what do they think of superstitious people? She’s constantly around the supernatural and abnormal... and loves it. She thrives off of what is different. So, superstitious?... Hm, she isn’t paranoid or afraid; she welcomes it with open arms.

Is your OC religious? Do they want to be? Have they ever been at some time in the past? How complicated is their relationships with worship/the gods/the church/etc? Her grandparents took her to church growing up and she loved the music. Her grandmother was the choir director and her grandfather played the piano, and she had “the voice of an angel”, so she happily sang in church, but she kinda stopped going to church when she went to college, but if you ask her she’ll tell you she’s a Christian. She says it just makes sense to believe in a god; there’s too much that science can’t explain. She also likes studying Buddhism, Islam, and Judaism to learn more about other people and cultures.

Hardwood, tile, or carpet? Hardwood. But she will NEVER say no to a fluffy rug.

What’s their go-to parlor trick? Are they actually that good at it, or do they just enjoy it? Do people tell them they’re good, even if they aren’t? How do they handle criticism? I can’t really think of a good parlor trick. She has a lot of talents she keeps on the down, like singing and stand-up comedy (don’t ask). On another note, she takes criticism overall pretty well.

If your OC could request one boon from a god, what would it be? The extermination of a certain three-sided demon.

Favorite comfort food? Do they enjoy junk food or are they more of a foodie? Can they cook? What’s their favorite thing to cook? OREOS are HERS! DON’T TOUCH THEM UNLESS YOU WANNA LOSE A HAND! She also secretly loves watermelon (doesn’t like to tell people this) and her comfort food is either hot tea or hot chocolate. Something to warm her hands. And no, she can’t cook; she burns everything. EXCEPT, she can brew coffee and she’s a pretty good barista (was one during college).

Any major theme(s) or conflict(s) in your OC’s life? How have they dealt with that? Are they aware of it, or do they ignore it? Did you design them with such theme(s)/conflict(s) in mind, or did they evolve naturally? Loyalty is a huge one for her. I think so many people have forgotten what it means to be a true friend and what real loyalty looks like. You’re willing to go far and wide for the people you care about because you want to, because you get fulfillment out of doing the right thing. Hephzie will have your back, no matter what. She doesn’t care what race, background, gender, sexuality, religion, she doesn’t give a shit. If you’ve got her, you’ve got a loyal friend. IOne thing she struggled with - and is only semi-aware of it - is loneliness. She finds it suffocating. It’s slight PTSD from losing so much in her life, and she’s not terribly clingy, but she’ll wallow about it and sink into depression if she feels abandoned or alone. She NEEDS that reassurance that she is not a freak and not alone and that SOMEONE would care if one day she was gone. This evolved naturally when shaping her backstory and realising it needed to have realistic consequences.

If they could steal one major piece of art with no consequences, what would it be and why? Bonus: how would they pull off the heist? Anything Bob Ross. Loves that guy. And she’d probably just recrute Stan to help her with either blackmail or her “Please, for me?” line.

Now it’s YOUR turn!

[richie-txzier]

Sweet Dreams Are Made Of This (Who Am I To Disagree?)

Request: Can you do a Stenbrough soulmate story?!! I loved the Reddie one so much it was great.

Requester: @kylieee827-blog​

Pairing(s): Bill Denbrough x Stan Uris, Eddie Kaspbrak x Richie Tozier

Warning: Lil sad, but Richie’s there so it’s okay

Author: Admin Tozier

Note: A lot of you were wondering wtf Bill wanted in Paraprosexia (Spoiler Alert: He was having a gay crisis), so consider this a prequel/sequel/add-on to not only answer that question but give you a Stenbrough Soulmate AU as well! I started to write this and suddenly it was 3k words later and we hadn’t even got to Buttercup’s yet and I was like yikes so consider this Chapter 1!

Extra Note: GEORGIE IS ALIVE BECAUSE FUCK YOU STEPHEN, THAT’S WHY

Actual Useful Extra Note: The basis to this Soulmate AU is that on the night of your 17th birthday you have a dream featuring your soulmate. You see their face and hear their name, and for every consecutive birthday after that, you have a dream featuring them again and again until you find them. I’d say I created it, but most likely it’s a mash-up of every other Soulmate AU other there, so feel free if you’d like to use it! (:

Paraprosexia , Chapter 1 (YOU ARE HERE), Chapter 2, Chapter 3

23:58pm

23:59pm

00:00am

Bill let out a deep breath, the panic-inducing feeling of tears, a constricted chest and frozen limbs ebbing away in the early morning darkness. As his eyes met the ceiling, his hands coiling together to relieve the lingering anxiety, he first figured that he didn’t really feel any different. He was 17 now. 17 years of waiting for this exact night. He figured the worst was over, the rest he really didn’t have much control over. All he had to was sleep and there his soulmate would be.

Bill wondered what they’d look like. Would they be like Bev? With badge littered leather jackets, heavy dark make-up around crystal eyes, crimson-painted lips circled around a cigarette while one foot stayed propped up on the pedal of her motorbike. Or would they be like Mike? With big warm smiles, floppy straw hat casting a kaleidoscope of sunspots across his face as he looked up at him from fluttering his fingers through the field of flowers, a few of them tucked into his overall’s pocket. Or would they be like…

No. Bill couldn’t get his hopes up. There were 7 billion people on the planet, what are the odds his soulmate would be his best friend? His best friend with soft blonde curls, almond shaped brown eyes that when turned to him made him feel like he was the only person in the room, the rare and bright smiles that graced his lips and creased his eyes-

No. He couldn’t get his hopes up.

Exhaling another breath, Bill closed his eyes, his nerves betraying his determined desire to sleep and he fidgeted with his fingers. Eventually, he rolled onto his side in an attempt to get more comfortable while simultaneously facing away from the taunting ticking clock that recorded each minute he was away from his soulmate. He curled up under his blankets, bringing his knees to his chest in a fetal position he hadn’t slept in since the night Georgie went missing. Why was he so nervous? His heart was beating frantically as if it knew something Bill didn’t, his mind only rationally telling him the unlikeliness he would recognise his soulmate, let alone ever meet them.

With a determined, frustrated and familiar courageous coiled feeling in his stomach, he put on a brave face and decided he was going to face this head on. The universe wants to give him a soulmate? Get fucking on with it.

And with that, Bill huffed to himself, squeezed his eyes shut, and focused on sleeping until he drifted off into unconsciousness.

He was in a woodland. Stood tall, but so short against the towering trees, the foliage rippling under the soft summer breeze, the pale yellow sun shining through the gaps in the leave with angelic curtains of light. They fell like a spotlight to glimmer and shine again blonde ringlets, the tight curls swaying delicately like loosely twirled golden ribbons.

The figure slowly turned, chirping of birds causing them to hesitate for a moment to flutter through the book they held with graceful slender fingers, pale arms exposed by the sleeves of his cotton shirt folded at his elbows. His skin shimmered, the pearly expanse interrupted by faded freckles that he could only make out by the sudden proximity he found himself to the figure.

“Bill?” A silky, sharp voice interrupted his gaze on the figure’s body and Bill flinched, eyes lifting to meet the face of the figure.

Almond irises. Focused solely on him. Mouth curled into a rare smile, creasing his eyes.

“Stan?” Bill breathed. Stan cocked his head, closed his book and made his way closer, but Bill only stumbled backwards, eyes blown and jaw dropped into a pure state of shock as he stared into the angled concerned features of his best friend.

Stan’s eyebrows knitted together, his hand laying gently on Bill’s bicep and Bill resisted the sudden urge to jolt it back. His touch was too kind, too tender, too loving. Bill’s breath quickened and Stan’s mouth only tightened in anxiety.

“Hey,” Stan murmured softly, and Bill could only let him, his body frozen, as he wrapped a gentle arm snugly around his waist to draw him closer. Stan entwined their hands together and brought Bill’s to his lips, kissing his fingers softly. Their eyes met again, Stan’s warm brown eyes staring at him with a genuine clear emotion that Bill had never seen lining them, “I love you.”

Bill’s cheeks twitched into a smile, cheeks flushing a little as he pressed their foreheads together, vacant fingers curling into his shoulder to keep him as close as possible, the actions and words acting automatically; the pessimistic voice in his barely conscious brain telling him that this may be his only chance to say it, “I love you too.”

Bill woke up with the words sculpted into his mouth.

OH FUCK.

Bill felt like he wasn’t attached to his body as he scrambled out of bed, the clock on his bedside glaring 8:53am out the corner of his eye. His mind was telling him he was drifting over to his pile of shoes, but later he would realise he was probably clambering and stumbling over, pulling on the first pair of trainers he saw, not bothering to change out of his sweatpants, grabbed his phone, keys and hoodie before thundering down the stairs.

“Billy?” A small voice wavered into his focus and he looked down to see Georgie staring up at him, one flesh and one plastic hand holding a bowl of cereal as he was still dressed in his pyjamas, “Where’re you going?”

“I-I’m juh-j-just going t-to Beh-Beverly’s for b-b-breakfast.” He managed to spit out, his tongue feeling heavy, his mind clicking at a mile a minute. Georgie’s face brightened and he bounced on the balls of his feet, head reaching Bill’s chest now.

“Can I come? I wanna see Bev!” He asked, cocking his head and Bill got a sudden reminder of Stan doing similarly in his dream and another wave of panic crashed over him.

“Suh-sorry Georgie, not t-tuh-today.” Bill’s gaze was distant as he ruffled Georgie’s hair and quickly circled around the barely-teenage boy to rush out the front door. Georgie frowned at his retreating form, but quickly shrugged it off, happily walking into the dining room with his bowl of Lucky Charms.

Bill slid into the front of his car, tossing his phone into the passenger seat, plugging his key into the ignition and then paused for a moment to catch his breath. What was he doing? Where was he going? His head fell on the steering wheel and the car honked loudly. He jumped back, head falling into his hands with a depressed groan.

He needed to tell someone. Someone who would understand. Someone who was close to Stan as well, so they could help with how to tell the boy… what they were. Bill bumped the back his head against the car seat, groaning at his own cowardice to even think the word.

Soulmate. That’s what he is Bill. Stanley Uris is your soulmate.

Bill’s breathing was picking up, his heart beating painfully in his chest and his brain feeling like it was being wrung like a wet sponge. He needed to tell someone, get the pressure off his shoulders so he can focus on how to tell him.

How to tell him, oh my fucking god, how am I supposed to tell him?! Hey Stan, how you been buddy, listen, I had my wacky soulmate dream last night and guess what? WE’RE SOULMATES. Oh, and by the way, I’ve been in love with you since I was 15. Isn’t that cool? Haha! Wanna make out?

He smacked himself on the forehead. Out the corner of his eye his phone lit up as he got a notification from his messenger (Three in total; each a birthday message from Bev, Ben and Mike) and his background photo, that Richie had changed of him and the meddler with Richie smacking a kiss on his cheek while Bill was laughing, the alcohol evident in the redness of his cheeks, blared up at him. Richie.

Bill thanked God for the existence of Richie Tozier.

He snatched up his phone, pulling up his messenger and typed out a quick text:

Big Billiam: Meet me @ quarry in 20

He hesitated and then sent another:

Big Billiam: It’s important

He got a reply after a few seconds of typing:

Tozmanian Devil: omw

Bill puffed out the breath he wasn’t aware he was holding, his whole body slumping into his seat as a minute piece of stress lifted from his shoulder, allowing the feeling to come back into his fingers so he could start the ignition with a flick of his wrist. With a determined foot pressing on the pedal, he drove out of the parking spot and on to route towards the Quarry, hoping the wide open area would at least relief the squeezing pressure in his temples.

Pulling up he spotted Richie’s bike discarded carelessly on the ground a few feet behind its owner sat in the fire pit the seven of them had gradually created with a few rotting logs placed around the clearing in a circle to frame the social clearing. Richie was looking a little messy, as if he had just got out of bed, which earned a rightful pang of guilt in Bill’s chest, as his shirt was untucked from his jeans, glasses askew and glinting on the mid-Sunday morning light and his dark curls a mop across his face so thickly Bill wondered if he could even see.

“Rich?” Bill called, slamming the car door shut and locking it. Richie tipped his head back to shine a sleepy grin, eyes still a little bleary but the straightness of his posture held the concern he held for his best friend. When Bill came to sit beside him, in front of the log, leaning back against it, as Richie was obviously too cool to sit properly, he placed a friendly hand on his shoulder to silently assure him it wasn’t as bad as he knew he was blowing out of proportion in that wild head of his.

As he settled in next to him a whiff of antiseptic, wool and vanilla hit him, making Bill smile and laugh lightly, “You smell luh-l-like Eddie.”

“Well I’d sure hope so,” Richie replied, stretching long legs out to stare at his converse clad feet contrasting against the dark dirt they sat on, “Given that you dragged me from the sleepy and warm hold of my adorable boyfriend with your cryptic message. So what’s the hullabaloo about, cockblock?”

Bill only stared at him, terrifying Richie as his bright blue eyes held him down with an emotion he hadn’t seen pouring from them since they were 13: fear. Richie leaned into him, his hand falling to his knee, tone falling soft and concerned as he ducked to stare up at his friend, “Hey Bill, what happened? Talk to me, buddy.”

“What huh-happened in your s-suh-soulmate d-dream?” Bill suddenly asked. He didn’t know why he needed to know, he just did. Maybe it was because he needed reassurance it would turn out okay, that his feels could be requited. Or maybe he was just stalling, wanting to have his best friend here to do what he did best and just talk to drown out his thoughts.

Richie’s whole form softened and Bill was fascinated. A slow and painfully genuine grin took over his mouth and the words he spoke flow from his lips like he’d thought about it a lot, telling it over and over in his head until he could describe it perfectly. But the disbelief was there, the edge of shock that still hovered over him, stemming from his intense insecurity of never being good enough for the Eddie he was destined. It warmed Bill, a platonic and full glow that had him mirroring Richie’s smile.

“We were in the back of my truck, Eddie sat next to me, and I was playing my guitar. We were singing Africa,” He laughed, shaking his head, “Singing is not the right word actually. We were yelling more like. So off-key, so goddamn loud, and he was smiling, Bill, beaming, at me. His eyes were so big and full of love and he was grinning, his face gold in the setting sun and I could feel the love he had for me. For me. And then the song ended, but the giddy loving buzz stayed. Eddie leaned his head on my shoulder and he murmured that he loved me. It was so genuine that I remembered waking up crying.”

Richie was grinning dazedly, his eyes soft as he stared above the horizon with the pale blue sky reflected in his glasses.

“How did you t-tell him?” Bill whispered as he scuffed his free against the ground.

Richie shrugged, carding a hand through his mussed hair, “It all just kinda came out one day. I knew I had to tell him but couldn’t find the right moment. I kept putting it off and off until I couldn’t take it anymore. I climbed through his window, like the Romeo I am, and told him. Bare and clear, for him to take or leave.”

Richie smirked, “And boy, did he take it.”

“Beep fucking b-beep Richie, fucking heh-hell.” Bill hissed, spraying him with dirt and Richie only laughed. Bill could feel the bind on his chest loosen a little.

The two of them calmed; Richie laughs softening to a chuckle and then simmered to a gentle grin full of Eddie, Bill collecting his knees to his chest for the second time that day and placed his chin on his knees. Richie’s eyebrows furrowed as he took in the vulnerable position Bill had curled himself into and shuffled closer to him, leaning his head on Bill’s tense shoulder, hand rising to stroke Bill’s unbrushed reddish hair softly. Bill leaned into the touch and Richie sighed.

“Bill,” Bill knew what he was going to ask, Richie’s thumb pressing firmer into his temple, “Who’s your soulmate?”

What surprised Richie the most after that was not the name Bill muttered, it was not the absence of his stutter, it wasn’t even the sniff that followed; it was how Bill dropped his head to his knees and he sobbed. Broken, confused and scared. And what Richie thought was surprised, felt a hell lot more like pain.

“It’s Stan.”

And now it was real.

“Buddy,” Richie honestly didn’t know what he was going to say after that, so he was ironically thankful that Bill had flung his arms around him after that, burying his soft cries into Richie’s shoulder that smelled so strongly of Eddie. He stroked his hand down Bill’s back, dragging to trembling boy into his lap to hold him securely, his mouth aching to make a joke, diffuse the tension, do anything to interrupt the scene of the best friend he’d looked up to for so long, break down in his arms.

The moment was interrupted by the melodic singing and the low buzzing of Richie’s phone from his pocket into Bill’s thigh. Bill sniffed deeply, wiping at his nose as he pulled away from Richie with an embarrassed wet chuckle.

It’s gonna take a lot to drag me away from you~

“Sorry, Billy, it’s the ball and chain,” Richie remarked, smiling lightly, reaching into his pocket with the intent of muting it, but Bill shook his head and sat back further, waving his hand.

“Ah-answer it, it’s oh-okay.” Bill tried to smile but it came out more as a grimace. Richie gave him a guilty look before he pulled out his phone and swiped to take the call, his thumb swiping across the picture of Eddie scowling up at the camera, but he hadn’t been able to stop the sweet smile that pulled at his mouth as Richie had no doubt said something stupid behind the phone.

“Hey Spaghetti-baby,” Bill caught a shrill sharp phrase of ‘Don’t call me that!’ and the two of them chuckled.

“Yeah, I’m okay. Yeah, I’m with Bill. He’s uh, he’s fine.” After another moment, Richie tilted his head to face Bill and smiled, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes, and Bill felt responsible and guilty for that, “Eds says Happy Birthday.”

“Tell him thanks,” Bill replied softly, his fingers twiddling with the soft material of his sweatpants.

“He says thanks. Mhm. Okay, baby, I will,“ He paused for a moment as he stared at Bill fidgeting, sniffing lightly, the pale light reflecting off the tear smudges across his cheeks and his overall slumped demeanour had Richie desperately wishing to see him smile, "Hold that thought Eds. Meet me and Bill at Buttercup’s. I’ll tell you when you get there. Mhm. Aw, you looove me? Okay, okay, I love you too, bye!”

Bill tilted his head to stare up him, eyebrows drawn together and mouth pressed into a line, “Wuh-why’re we goin’ to Buh-B-Buttercup’s?”

“Because, dear Billiam,” Richie began softly, standing up and offering a hand to Bill, which he gladly took, their hands linked as they walked towards Bill’s car, Richie squeezing it comfortingly, “Number one, I’m hungry as fuck. Number two, we need help from someone way better at this emotion shit than you, me and Eds. Number three, I miss Eds,”

Bill scoffed, chuckling as he leaned against the car door, watching Richie fit his bike into his trunk, “You suh-aw him an hour ago.”

“AND NUMBER FOUR,” Richie said loudly as to purposely ignore Bill’s teasing statement. He walked back to Bill to squeeze his shoulder, smiling so tenderly it made Bill’s heart clench, “You look like you need pancakes.”

When Bill smiled Richie considered his wish fulfilled.

BONUS: An aesthetic collage of the three people 17-year-old Bill knows he’s fallen in love with: 

[beebuddyreviews-blog]

Title: Paint Me in A Million Dreams // Author: Green_feelings @greenfeelings // Rating: Mature // Word Count: 110024 // Chapter AU - Enemies to Lovers // Completed: 07/03/2017 

Actual Summary: Harry's one of Hollywood's biggest actors, has made a name for himself in prestigious films and lives the life of a superstar. There's just one thing missing to make it picture-perfect, but the one Harry's in love with is completely out of reach for him. Enter Louis, one of Hollywood's biggest actors himself, who just came out of the closet and taps new genres in the industry. When Louis sacks the role Harry auditioned for in Scorsese's next big film, their irrational feud starts. Who could have guessed it would get even worse when for promo season, their teams decide to present them as a couple for publicity?

In short, Harry's in love with someone and doesn't care about dating anyone else, Louis never felt home in L.A., Liam writes love songs for someone he shouldn't write love songs to, and Niall makes everything better with good food.

Green’s Summary: Louis and Harry are both actors. They’re both really good actors. Except that Louis has starred in more comedic roles while Harry has done more serious roles. So enter Louis with something to prove and a little bit of a chip on his shoulder and Harry an actor that’s been on the scene a little longer and is kind of bitter about not landing the lead role against Louis. So they hate each other until they don’t.

Review Under The Cut <3

Green’s Review: This is me, Green doing a review over a fic by green_feelings, and let me tell you I had a lot of feelings. Green ones. That is terribly cheesy. Ignore it. Anyways, if you have been in the Larry fandom for a couple years then you’ll definitely know green_feelings. She’s the author of great Larry fic classics like Empty Skies, Jump Before We Fall, and Nameless Night (which I hear might be getting a sequel and I’m super pumped for that). I have read everything that this author has put out and I have to agree that she is one of the most talented writers within our fandom. She is also incredibly sweet and patient with her fans - you should visit her on her blog because she is really sweet. She even helped us get our blog out there. Basically Bee Buddy Reviews is a major stan of Shai/green_feelings.

The first fic I read by green_feelings was Nameless Night and that fic chewed me up and spit me out. Honestly, I read it when it was still being updated and every time I got an alert I was like damn I wonder how messed up I’ll be after this chapter? Green_feelings is just really good at conveying emotion and angst in a believable way. And she continues this talent in Paint Me in a Million Dreams. Paint Me in A Million Dreams is a fresh new way to deliver the “enemies to lovers” trope. Which also happens to me one of my favorite tropes, so I was always a big fan of this fic. The thing I loved about this fic is that the reader gets to understand that both Louis and Harry are really great people so anytime one of them is talking bad about the other you’re like “no listen he’s really great.” I loved Harry and Louis pretty equally and was constantly wanting the best for both of them. That never really happens for me in fic because I am a huge harrie so I am usually biased in fics, but not this one.

I loved the interactions between Harry and Louis even when they’re fighting. Hate is just as passionate a feeling as love so, it made sense that they would feel so strongly about each other from the very beginning even if they were confusing those feelings for negative ones. One of my favorite scenes is when Louis shows up unexpectedly at Harry’s house where Harry is entertaining Luke and eventually Louis and Harry just get left alone - of course. And even that early into the story you know they’re falling for each other but green_feelings just makes it so subtle. Like Harry being kind of taken aback about having Louis snuggled up to him but he doesn’t realize why.

Another big part of this fic is miscommunication. Which I normally cannot do. Because it’s so easy to solve if you just sit down and have a five minute conversation. Fortunately, this offered enough communication to balance out what wasn’t being talked about. Harry and Louis were constantly making strides in the right direction for their relationship so even though their miscommunication was frustrating it made sense with the story and I really enjoyed watching them slowly open up to one another. I squealed out loud when Louis realized Harry had every single one of his movies. I loved that green_feelings included that part.

This fic was just brilliantly written and so fun even with all of the angst. I really enjoyed it and I cannot wait for the next fic that green_feelings begins working on.

Before I go I wanted to address something that really bothers me about this fandom and fic in general. The day the final chapter came out green_feelings received a lot of flak because Harry and Louis didn’t have penetrative sex. This reaction is common in this fandom. I know Blue and I have both been wary about releasing fic because neither of us write smut. Now I am not saying that a fic shouldn’t have smut, but I am saying there is no fanfiction out there that needs it. Writing smut is purely up to the author and their comfort level and the direction in which they want to take their story. The fact that people feel entitled to a sex scene is just kind of gross and uncalled for. I remember this same discourse happening with Young & Beautiful and just feeling completely shocked at the comments people would make because the fic didn’t have a sex scene. It is truly unbelievable to me. Paint Me in a Million Dreams was 110,000 words of amazing and talented work. And it should not be reduced to “oh well they didn’t have sex.”

Would You Recommend it to Blue?: Yes. I would. I think it’s really well written and very cute and I think Blue would enjoy it.

Speaking of Blue - my beautiful precious woodland elf - will be a little behind on her reviews.. Blue is a professor, a really good one, and she is currently teaching summer courses and preparing for next semester, so her schedule is going to be a little tight for awhile. If you are interested in what she is reading you can shoot her a message in our inbox. I’ll be posting as usual.

Thank you guys again for reading this review. As always please go leave green_feelings comments and kudos because feedback is important!

Until next Sunday,

Green.<3