#yes it's to show that Angel misses Buffy

[liam-summers]

BtVs 3.07 | AtS 1.03

Bonus🎶

[dreamsuvivor]

Okay I might be a little bit biased here, but I really hate how Buffy and the scoobies behaved to Spike in s5 after he confesed to his feeling for Buffy. I’m sorry but now y’all want to act all high and mighty? not when she was dating Angel, who quite literally killed someone close to her or when Riley just constantly made her feel guilty for her powers and guilt tripped her to apologize for spending time with her sick mother?!

And like I could understand if this was during the previous seasons when Spike was a bit assholey towards everyone, but he was almost part of the team at this point! He helped them on several occasion and Buffy even trusted him to look after her mum and Dawn at one point. And suddenly everyone acts like he murdered their loved ones…tf

[teddypines]

Weekend alone

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Summary: Y/N and Bruce have the house to themselves so they think watching a movie or show would be a good idea, until things take a different turn.

Bruce Wayne x Fem!reader.

Warnings: SMUT! 18+ MDNI, please and if you do not my problem. Use of vibrator, bit of degrading, i think. Let me know if i missed something.

Note: So.... First time doing smut. I hope it's good, i hope you enjoy it. Tips are always welcome!

Art/picture's are from Pinterest, credits go to whoever made it. I just put it together like this.

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It was an odd acuranse for Bruce and Y/N to have the whole house for themselves. Yet it happened to them. All the kids out of the house doing their own things with friends, partners or just something by themselves. Even Alfred went out for the weekend, going on a well-deserved vacation to a butler convention. Even the animals did their own things as Bruce and Y/N tried to figure out what to do for the day. Not wanting to do a lot since it was Sunday, which meant a lazy day for Bruce and Y/N to bond and recharge for the next week.

“We could watch a new show or movie downstairs.” Bruce suggested. Knowing fully well that they would never watch something new without the kids and will probably circle back to one of their favorite shows and or movies. “Yeah, but the bed is so warm and cozy right now. I don’t want to leave.” Y/N answered as she snuggled into Bruce’s side a bit more. Bruce laughed a bit and booped her nose. “Alright then, we can watch a show or movie here in bed. I did put in a tv in the room that we barely use.” 

“Can we watch Steven Universe?” Y/N asked Bruce, not even bothered that they watched Steven Universe multiple times and it wasn’t a new show or movie. “Please, Brucie, please.” Giving Bruce her puppy eyes. Bruce looked at Y/N and sighed. “You really want to watch Steven Universe again over watching something new? Something that, I don't know, needs to be checked before we watch it with the children?” 

“Steven Universe." Y/N answered. “Because all I wanna do is see you turn into a giant woman.” Bruce could only laugh a bit at Y/N quoting the show. “Or we can watch something that is a bit less gem related. We could watch that show with the angels and demons.” Bruce said as he pulled away from Y/N to find the remote to the tv in his nightstand. 

“Be more specific, Love. There are multiple shows with angels and demons.” Y/N responded. Turning on her side to watch Bruce look for the remote. “The one where they are lovers.” Bruce added. “Still not specific enough, love.” Bruce sighed and rolled his eyes. feeling a bit frustrated about not finding the remote or the show he ment.

“Do you want me to list them off?” Y/N asked, wanting to help Bruce with finding the show or movie he ment. Bruce only nodded his head as he continued his search for the remote. “Okay, so we have ‘Good Omens’, ‘Supernatural’, ‘Lucifer’ I think ‘Vampire diaries’, ‘Buffy the vampire slayer’ ehm…. that one show with the witches. Yeah no I think that’s it.” Y/N listed off all the shows she could think of. Bruce was a bit baffled about all the shows with angels and demons that were lovers or had other lovers. He dropped the remote on the floor. “Yeah… ehm�� Let’s just watch Sherlock.” “Okiedokie, which one?” 

Bruce looked at Y/N, wanting to give up on watching a show or movie all together. “The one with Rdj?..” Bruce answered. “First or second one?” Y/N asked again. Bruce leaned against the headboard in shock. “Jeez women stop asking so many questions, I just want to watch Sherlock Holmes and snuggle with you!” He answered. “So…. I can pick the Sherlock version?” “Yes! Just pick, please.” Y/N giggled and put on the first Sherlock Holmes movie with Rdj in it after grabbing the remote from Bruce’s hands. 

<---------------------------------------------------------->

“I don’t like Irene.” Y/N commented after Irene just tricked Sherlock into doing her dirty work. Bruce laughed at her comment and kissed the side of her head. “I know you do. Good thing she’s not real and Sherlock ditches her.” Y/N nodded her head at Bruce’s response. “You know Sherlock only likes her somewhat because she’s interesting to him and he can’t really read her like all the other people, right?” He asked before continuing to kiss Y/N head and cheeks. “Yes, I know that, but I still don’t like her.” Y/N pouted after answering.

Bruce laughed a bit at the pout Y/N had on her face and slowly placed his hands over her thighs. “Such a pouty girl.” Y/N looked up at Bruce, sticking out her tongue. “And here I thought I was free of children for the day.” Bruce teasted. “Maybe I should teach you how to behave.” Y/N turned a bit red and quickly looked back towards the tv. “No need.”

“No need? Owh sweetheart, I think you do need to be taught a lesson in behaving.” Bruce whispered into Y/N ears. His hands moved from her thighs towards her hips, gently lifting her up and placing her into his lap. “Good girls don’t stick out their tongues.”

Before Y/N knew it Bruce had pulled off her sleep shorts and panties. “Focus on the tv, Sweetheart.” He ordered Y/N in a husky tone. Y/N could only listen and turned her focus on the tv in front of her. She could hear Bruce reach for his nightstand and grab something from one of the drawers. She had an idea of what he grabbed but had to do her best not to look. Her suspicion was however quickly confirmed when she felt something cold against her clit and a low buzzing sound started to fill the room. “There's a good girl. Keep looking at the tv, love.” Bruce smirked as Y/N started to whimper and squirming between his legs. The vibrator was on the first setting and she was already a mess.

“Bruce…” Y/N moaned as she turned her head up to look at Bruce. “Ah ah. No, Love, keep looking at the tv.” Bruce purred into her ear before turning up the vibrator, making Y/N’s breathing hitch. She moaned at the stronger sensation on her clit, the feeling of Bruce’s hard one against her back wasn’t helping either. She wanted to look at him not at the tv, but he wouldn’t let her. “Such a good girl, Sweetie.” The way Bruce said those words didn’t help Y/N at all, the feeling between her legs only getting stronger and stronger.

Bruce looked back at the tv enjoying the movie once again as he kept the vibrator on Y/N’s clit. Changing the levels every once in a while, going from really low to the highest and everything in between just to tease her. Making sure she wouldn’t come or look away from the tv. Holding her tightly against his chest.

“Bruce… Please~” Y/N whined as she could feel herself getting close again. “Please, please.”

“Please what, love? What do you want?” Bruce asked, adding to the teasing, wanting to hear her say what she wanted in this messy state. “Please, want to come.” Y/N barely got out as Bruce turned up the vibrator once again. “Yeah? You want to come, love? but I don't think you have learned your lesson just yet.” Bruce answered Y/N plea. The way she started to shake in his lap made him want to continue this little teasing game. “Please Brucie, please, i'll be a good girl. A really good girl.”

“Hmmm, are you? Are you going to be my good girl?” Bruce asked after placing a kiss on Y/N’s shoulder when she nodded to his question. “Alright, love, come for me, sweetheart. Be a good girl and come.” The moment Bruce told Y/N it was okay to come, she came. She arched her back against Bruce and moaned out his name. Bruce was pleased by Y/N coming like this and the sight alone made him come inside his sweatpants.

After a little while of calming down Y/N turned over in Bruce’s arms. “You’re mean,” She whispered. “But I love you more. Now let me make you feel good too.” She said before getting onto her knees, only to be stopped by Bruce. “No need for that love, you already made me feel really good.” He gestured down at his crotch where a noticeable dark spot was. Y/N looked at it and could only laugh. “Did I really make you come by just letting you toy with me?”

“Maybe.” Bruce smirked and pulled Y/N towards him for a kiss.

“Come on, let's get cleaned up and get some snacks so we can finish this movie.” Bruce said as he picked Y/N up and started to carry her towards the bathroom. Y/N smiled and nodded her head. “I’d like that a lot.” 

[monsterswithimagines]

Undisclosed Desires - Part 13

Joe Goldberg x female!Reader

Summary: Twenty minutes before he would have met Guinevere Beck, Joe meets you instead. You intruige him, but it will soon become clear that there is something off about you.

Words: 1298

Masterlist

(I guess Joe's willingness to murder is more book-Joe than show-Joe, but whatever. I can't help that I'm halfway through the first book right now.)

Minor warning: masturbation is briefly mentioned.

Some things, you just can't learn about a person until you're in a relationship with them.

For example: you like to be kissed, often. Softly and sweetly, but also with intent, until you can't breathe. You smile into kisses and when I pull away, you tilt your head and the smile doesn't leave.

I live for that smile.

Also, you're not always nice. You run out of energy and you stonewall me. When you get like that there is nothing I can do to make it better, except leave. This happens most often when you've had a busy day at work, and one day soon we're probably going to have a beautiful fight about it, but for now I let you close down and shut me out. I really do try not to take it personally.

You don't care if I look at your phone. Sometimes you even ask me to check texts for you. This would make me incredibly happy, except aside from me, the only people you text in English are your coworkers.

You're more secretive about your laptop, which makes me wonder what I missed when I looked at it. I guess I didn't really do much digging. But when I do check it out again, even digging doesn't turn up anything.

Weird.

You're a bit of a slob. I knew that already, but I didn't know it would be so easy to take things from your apartment. You don't notice when items go missing, or if I move them around while you're not there. You did comment on your missing toothbrush, but you just assumed you misplaced it yourself.

“I swear, Joe, if my head wasn't attached to my body…”

All of this, I've learned over the course of two months. Two amazing months of being with you. Only it doesn’t always feel like I am with you, because you haven't told Nadia or your mother or even Grey about me, and I've been checking. After you told him you had a crush on me, he tried to find out more about me and you avoided the subject by writing to him about how much you like Angel from Buffy the vampire slayer. (If I could beat up a fictional character, I would.)

And we haven't had sex.

We've gotten close a few times, but you always pull away just when things are getting hot and heavy. Sometimes when you're alone, you masturbate several times in a row and I know you think of me, (Y/n). I can see it on your face. But when we're together, you look embarrassed and tell me you're not ready and I am patient, I am, but how can you not be ready when you are so obviously eager for it? Even dreaming about it?

I still don't like your coworkers. They are rude to you and belittle you, and they make inappropriate jokes in the groupchat. This is why I almost say no when you invite me to a company lunch, but in the end I say yes because at least you're inviting me somewhere.

“It won't be like last time,” you assure me. “No alcohol, for one.”

And you're right. It isn't like last time: it's worse.

I’m pretty sure your job is a scam, (Y/n). Nobody who works at your agency (other than you) actually needs to make money. The owner, Sam Carr, is a man in his fifties who considers this entire venture a hobby. He has two other companies, neither of which are making any money, but he doesn't need to make money because he is the kind of rich that goes back generations, to before white people even lived in America. Yet he pays you peanuts and you have to borrow money from your grandfather over and over again.

Sam's wife is Pam (which is short for Pamela, but Sam thinks it's hilarious for them to be Sam and Pam). She is only a little over half his age (thirty) and twice as smart as him, and you know this. You address her like she's the owner, and when she's around, you don't even talk to Kim, whose approval you were so eager for last time. Pam comes from old money, too, and has started several foundations throughout her life, all of which are doing well.

There's Judy Allen, who is tall and blond and keeps her lips pursed at all times. She does the same thing you do, copywriting, but her real job is being a momfluencer on Instagram, showing her kids off like accessories. Out of everyone here she is the nicest to you, but I can't tell if she means it or not and neither can you. You are nice to her, but you address her like you would a teacher, or a distant relative.

Jasper is so much worse than I remember him. He follows you around like a lost puppy and you let him. You glance at me, testing me, and I hate this side of you. I hate who you are around these people.

Surprisingly little is eaten, though there is much more on the table than even an entire orphanage could put away. You and your coworkers talk about Google and helpful content and black hat SEO and I don't understand anything any of you are saying.

At some point somebody asks me what I do. I grit out that I work in a bookstore and you look up and say: “he's being modest. He manages it” and I feel kind of proud. But then the person who asked me what I do in the first place starts asking me about the store's website and I have to admit that actually, Mooney's doesn't have one.

“I prefer things a little more old fashioned,” I try to justify, and then realize immediately how incredibly dumb I must sound to these people. “I mean, sometimes we sell a first edition on Ebay.”

You pat my leg underneath the table, which is code for 'shut up', so I do.

“You could always ask (Y/n) to help you make a website,” Jasper says, and he is looking way too intently at your chest as you reach across the table for a croissant. “She's surprisingly good at it.”

Surprisingly good? Seriously, (Y/n), I want to bash this guy’s teeth into his skull.

But you act like it's a compliment. You blush and wave him off and shake your head at me.

“You'd be better off hiring someone who actually knows how to make websites. I can write your content, though, if you want.”

I don't even want a fucking website, but I nod.

“Maybe.”

Finally, we can leave. I don't know what the point of any of that was.

In the cab, you slump against me and close your eyes, and you say: “Did you see the way Jasper kept staring at my boobs? I fucking hate that guy.”

Faith in you restored. I never should have doubted you.

“He just will not leave me alone lately,” you complain, and I wrap an arm around your shoulder and press a kiss to the side of your head. “But when I tell him off, he goes and tells Kim I'm being rude. She told me I need to be more of a team player, you know.”

But you are a team player, (Y/n). It's just that those people aren't on your team. I'm on your team.

“He's basically harassing me, and if I wanna keep my job I can't do a damn thing about it.”

“Fuck him,” I say.

And I mean it. Fuck Jasper. Fuck him and every man like him who thinks he can own a woman just because he has money and connections.

Jasper's gotta go.

[coraniaid]

🔥 about tara

OK, so for the record I like Tara a lot. She's definitely in my top ten favorite characters. I am still in the early stages of a (painfully slow) Season 4 rewatch, and one of the things keeping me going is the thought I will get to see Tara again soon.

I think Tara's death is very sad and I can understand why Amber Benson felt poorly treated by the way it was handled (especially with the stupid gimmick of adding Tara to the opening credits just for that episode). On balance -- and especially given the context arround her introduction and her relationship with Willow -- I think that it was probably a fairly significant mistake from a writing perspective for at least a couple of reasons. (It's not really a good look to kill off half of your show's groundbreaking lesbian couple, whatever the context, and the writers didn't really seem to have any sort of coherent plan for what to do with Willow afterwards.)

But it kind of irks me when I see it described as an obvious case of the Bury Your Gays trope because ... it really isn't?

Tara doesn't die because she's gay: she doesn't die shortly after coming out, she isn't targeted because she's a lesbian; she isn't, in fact, targeted directly at all. Her death is basically just a stupid random accident. She was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Neither is Tara treated as more expendable by the narrative because she's a lesbian. By the time Tara dies, Buffy (and the Angel spin-off) had already killed off (among other recurring and at least occasionally sympathetic characters) Jenny Calendar, Kendra, Larry, Doyle, Forrest, Joyce and Darla. By the time both shows end the writers will have also killed off Jonathan, Anya, Cordelia, Fred and Wesley. Buffy isn't quite a show where Anyone Can Die, but certainly it's one where anyone can die if they're not in the Core Four (and if they're not vampires Buffy has slept with, in which case they can die for a little bit but they'll get over it).

And nor is there some sense that Tara's death affects the rest of the group any less than any of the others on the above list. On the contrary, other than Joyce, who is the protagonist of the show's actual mother and had been a presence in the show for almost twice as long as Tara was, she gets mourned for longer and by more people than anyone else on that previous list. (Xander and Willow's supposed childhood friend Jesse gets mourned so little I couldn't even bring myself to add him to the list.)

Yes, the show is far from perfect. It definitely is, at various times, racist, sexist and homophobic, often in ways that cannot at all be dimissed as the show being a product of its time. I think you could certainly argue that Tara was a victim of the show's persistent narrative misogyny (Willow's first girlfriend, Giles's first girlfriend on the show, and both of Xander's girlfriends die, but neither Oz nor Riley die and neither Angel or Spike die in a way that matters).

But Tara's death isn't automatically an example of the Bury You Gays trope just because she dies and was a lesbian. Even though, as I said, it was a probably the wrong decision for the character and the show and I wish it hadn't happened.

--

Oh, also, a bonus hot take:

In a hypothetical Season 7 where Tara survived, I really don't think I can see her relationship with Willow lasting long. The show sort of forgets about it in favor of advancing the subplot in which Willow becomes a magic addict after her Evil Friend Amy takes her to see a drug dealer and then forces her to relapse, but .... Willow's supposed magic addiction isn't why she and Tara broke up. They broke up because Willow was messing with Tara's memories and consent, well before she'd ever met Rack or de-ratted Amy. Willow hadn't actually done anything to address the things that made her take Tara for granted and consider herself entitled to mess with her mind with magic at all. She'd been sad about the relationship ending, sure, and Tara missed Willow, but ... Willow was absolutely the same person who did this to Tara.

The show doesn't bother to address the actual reason she and Tara broke up, preferring the cheap shock death just when they'd gotten back together again. But after a while I think Tara would have realized this, and without the shock of losing Tara in the first place I think Willow would find it very hard not to fall back into her old habits. Habits which have nothing to do with Amy's supposed malign influence. After all, Willow was trying to use magic to change her best friend's mental state without his consent as early as Lovers Walk, a full year before she ever met Tara. And when she and Oz broke up that same season she very quickly started talking about wishing she had a way to "make [him] trust me". This is much more a part of who Willow is than any addiction to evil magic.

[mcgnagallsarmy]

Spuffy style Reading Challenge - #27: Monthly Key Word Reading Challenge #3

1st month - Secret, Heaven, True, House, Come, Only, Know, Winter:

A Wonderful Awful Idea by The Danish Bird [NC-17]

With nothing apocalyptic looming on the horizon and hoping to avoid a certain thick-headed commando, it seems like the perfect opportunity when Giles mentions a monster terrorising the good people of Lake Tahoe. What could be more merry than a Christmas trip to the mountains to investigate? The gang is all coming along, defanged vampire in tow. Buffy should totally be able to deal with the demon, ignore Spike and their recent “engagement,” enjoy some resort-town shopping, and be back with Mom on Christmas Eve. Right? What could possibly go wrong? Set in season 4 at the beginning of Doomed.

2nd month - Heir, Night, Bride, Down, Women, Hand, Teach, Guest:

Drive by Holly [NC-17]

Freshly turned and very grumpy about it, Buffy finds herself in a weird place. One where her friends smell like food, her former mortal enemy smells like heaven, and the so-called love of her life has made it clear that killing her is on his to-do list. Throw in some overly zealous army guys and this is not Buffy's idea of a party. So she and Spike decide to hit the road at least long enough to figure out why neither of them can hit anything else. And since they're both single and free, well, Buffy wouldn't say no to a distraction from the never-ending laugh riot that is her life. And Spike can be very, very distracting. Good thing soulless vampires can't fall in love or she might be in trouble.

3rd month - Story, Hunt, Plot, City, You, Cry, Another, Paint:

I Can Get Money by scratchmeout [NC-17]

Spike puts his past to good use to get money for Buffy. However, things become complicated when her ex shows up and targets Spike.

4th month - Darling, Funny, Familiar, Somewhere, List, Meet, Never, Word:

First Alternate by Soulburnt [NC-17]

After ‘Not Fade Away,’ Angel gets the Shanshu. A thrilled Buffy gets her curse-free soulmate. And Spike? He gets his heart shattered again. Gutted and seeing no point in staying in a world without his Slayer, Spike doesn’t hesitate when pursuing a deadly demon through a portal. He finds himself stuck in an alternate reality where he truly died closing the Hellmouth. He also finds another Buffy, one who is devastated that her Spike didn’t believe she loved him. They console each other over their losses… but are they only consolation prizes? Or can two heartbroken people get a second chance for love?

5th month - Library, Dark, Drown, Ex, Iron, Done, Love, Stranger:

If I'm Butter Than He's a Hot Knife by scratchmeout [NC-17]

Buffy meets a man at a bar on Valentine's Day.

6th month - Ink, Fragile, Road, Summer, Breath, Every, Push, Sorry:

Favor by EllieRose101 [NC-17]

Spike asks an impossible thing of Buffy––and is stunned when she says yes. Could he really have gone up in her estimation?

7th month - Mine, Again, Honey, Paradise, Still, Club, Train, Legend:

Eucharist by Holly [NC-17]

He had it all. The prophecy and the girl, merrily ever after and all that rot. But life doesn't stop.

8th month - School, Cut, Sky, Fate, Wing, Belong, Justice, Way:

The Time We Had by Dusty [NC-17]

She was there and then gone. All his life long.

9th month - Twice, World, Man, Quiet, Sweet, Hold, Shallow, Invisible:

Pardon My French by Girlytek [R]

In retrospect, it was probably a bad idea to let Buffy perform a spell in French. Begins at No Place Like Home.

10th month - Vampire, Here, Mist, Death, One, Missing, Bite, Witch:

Sweet William by cawthraven [PG]

After the fall of Sunnydale, Buffy’s living in Boston and working as a waitress, grateful that here, not everyone knows her name. She’s free for once to be herself—and to grieve.

11th month - Spice, Life, Hello, Keep, Truly, Couple, Joy, Young:

Candy Corn Mischief by honeygirl51885 [NC-17]

Spike gets roped into taking Dawn trick-or-treating.

12th month - Snow, Season, Ice, Merry, White, Under, Mistletoe, Inn:

A Christmas Wish by all choseny [PG-13]

On one lonely Christmas Eve, Buffy makes a wish to a stranger and is given a glimpse of what might have been with Spike.

[thetriangletattoo]

How's it going with Buffy? A strong love/hate relationship already budding?

omg hi! YES ours is definitely a strong love/hate relationship. I'm currently on season 5 and I really really really don't want this to end. I'm so glad angel is gone and the focus is now on spike, don't give me a nice bad guy but give me a bad guy becoming somehow a friend and I'll be yours. honestly no matter how bad the show is it still never misses and it never gets so bad you stop watching. they knew how to make bad television good back then. I've already said it and I'll say it again, today's TV show lost so much!

also I love how they build every character, so many main characters and none of them falls flat they each get a personality and a backstory and a meaning. it all comes together so well. and then there's Riley, which you'll probably guess it, I don't like as much as I don't like angel. why do they give Buffy so many boys I don't like? is this a me thing or am I not alone in this?

also the 90s fashion of it all, not a single bad fit in sight. even the worst of them is still ok lmao

[jakeluppin]

if you could only pick one show to watch ever again, what would you pick?

okay i thought about it a lot. before i get into what i picked, some honorable mentions:

deep space nine - decent length, good variety in episode types, amazing show all around.

leverage - i've rewatched it already so many times and never get sick of it.

the oc - i rewatch the first season like once a year and the full thing every few years. but despite how much i love it, i don't think i could only watch it forever.

911 - decent length again, good rewatchability. since it's still on air, though, i wouldn't want to pick it in case season eight they do something crazy like kill off buck. but if buddie becomes cannon well.... might have to change my answer haha.

the office - despite not being a perfect show, it is one i've rewatched and enjoyed many times.

it's always sunny - tons of episodes, but similar to 911 in that it's still going and i would hate to end up hating future stuff.

buffy - such a good show, lots of episodes with good variety. i think i'd miss being able to watch it and angel, though.

okay i'll stop here before i start listing out every show i've ever watched haha

so, yes, my final answer is: psych. i can't count the number of times i've rewatched this show since it aired. it's one that i watched while it was airing and always loved. it has so many great elements and variety to it. it's funny, but can also be dark and serious. i get a musical episode there as well. shawn is one of my all time favorite characters. some episodes are weaker than others, but i always enjoy watching it and it's been a show i can turn to when i'm sad and it will always make me smile.

[sunnydaleherald]

The Sunnydale Herald Newsletter, Sunday, August 25th

GILES: Their numbers are increasing. BUFFY: And they're getting cockier. Look, I'm not loving it. Last night was a pretty close call. GILES: (distracted) Yes. BUFFY: Giles, care? I'm putting my life on the line battling the undead. Look, I broke a nail, okay? I'm wearing a press-on.

~~Prophecy Girl~~

[Drabbles & Short Fiction]

Weekly Drabbles #164 — Flesh and Blood by veronyxk84 (Buffy, Dawn, PG-13)

Red Light by mmooch (Buffy, The Rookie xover, T)

A Sparrow's Fall by eevol76vamp (Fred, Spike, Not Rated)

Beyond Red by fatalfae (Buffy, Tara, Xander, Willow, T)

Apocalypse Wishlist by HollyDB (Buffy/Spike, T)

Safe (with Spike) by BloodyEll42 (Dawn, Spike, Buffy, Xander, G)

Conversation with a Dead Friend by MGAllan (Xander/Jesse, T)

Damaged Goods 破損品 by MGAllan (Quentin Travers, T)

Fuffy Drabble by thedeathscar (Buffy/Faith, unrated)

If you'll have me by rossshin (Buffy/Spike, G)

[Chaptered Fiction]

Double Date - ch. 1 by Rippertish (Buffy/Giles, E)

Stiff Pole - ch. 4 by scratchmeout (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

Mysterious Destinies - ch. 5 by EnchantedWillow (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

Lost in Desolation - ch. 5 by Melme1325 (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

A Blackcap's Song - ch. 7 by Murray (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

The Degradation of Duality [Series Part 2] - ch. 45 by Ragini (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

Love Lives Here - ch. 97 by Passion4Spike (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

Rebirth: A Stargate Tale - ch. 17 by Buffyworldbuilder (Buffy, Stargate xover, FR13)

Xanderpocalypse - ch. 11 by AxelBlade (Xander, Harry Potter and X-Men xover, FR15)

Stiff Pole - ch. 4 by scratchmeout (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

Anything But Ordinary - ch. 12 by Harlow Turner (Buffy/Spike, PG-13)

What the Drabble? Vol. 2 - ch. 64 by VeroNyxK84 (Buffy/Spike, PG-13)

To All We Guard - ch. 22 by simmony (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

Love Lives Here - ch. 97 by Passion4Spike (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

[Images, Audio & Video]

Comic: [Image description: Sherlock of BBC Sherlock and Buffy of Buffy The Vampire...] by paulgadzikowski (worksafe)

Artwork: Using my art to make some fake vintage style comic book covers by onedrawsoverthecuckoosnest (Buffy/Angel, worksafe)

Artwork: If Harmony had really been Buffy by isevery0nehereverystoned (Buffy/Spike, worksafe)

Artwork: continuing my series of illustrating scenes from the show Buffy The Vampire Slayer... by ibtravart (Buffy, worksafe)

Artwork: close ups!! ≽ܫ≼ by camellcat (Buffy, worksafe)

Gifset: BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER (1997-2003) by clarkgriffon (Spike, Buffy/Spike, worksafe)

Gifset: BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER | 2.10 & 1.03 by whatisyourchildhoodtrauma (Buffy, Kendra, Giles, Willow, worksafe)

Edit: Buffy Summers as the Sun sunlit by R.Wright / Buffy the last vampire slayer #4 ... by twelverriver (Buffy, worksafe)

Edit: I apologize, you forgive me. by raffaella-cerullo (Faith, worksafe)

Edit: charles bukowski, for jane by dogmetaphors (Spike, worksafe)

Edit: Buffy ~ Baltički profil - Ivana Milankova... by heterocosmica (Buffy, worksafe)

Icons: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, S01E06 — The Pack. by nostalgc (Willow, worksafe)

Icons: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, S01E06 — The Pack. by nostalgc (Buffy, worksafe)

Playlist: Musi Playlist by mr-miss-sunny (Spuffy)

Fanvid: buffy summers, certified "busy girl" by lesbianboyfriend (Buffy, worksafe)

Fanvid: this one is for the rupert giles fans out there, i hope i did him justice by bananabeans88 (Giles, worksafe)

Collage: Collage #79 by thedecadentraven (Buffy/Spike, worksafe)

Collage: Collage #80 by thedecadentraven (Spike, worksafe)

Collage: Collage #81 by thedecadentraven (worksafe)

Collage: Collage #83 by thedecadentraven (Buffy/Spike, worksafe)

Collage: Collage #84 by thedecadentraven (worksafe)

Collage: Collage #89 by thedecadentraven (Willow/Tara, worksafe)

Collage: Xander and Anya by sunflower1109 (Xander/Anya, worksafe)

Fanvid: Fred & Gunn - Architecture (Angel the Series) by TheOverLookedOne (Fred/Gunn)

[Reviews & Recaps]

I Robot, You Jane Fashion Part Two by theoverlookedoneedits1997

my btvs tarot deck arrived and i love it so much, it's absolutely beautiful, but... by sadsmihalleyface

btvs 5x10 "into the woods" was very good. by lesbianmarrow

btvs 5x11 "triangle" episode made FOR ME. by lesbianmarrow

First timer - just finished [all of BTVS] by banana_fine

I just watched 5X16, The Body, for the first time and holy shit... [first time viewer] by Impossible-Ad-3270

S4 E4 fear demon by Piratedking12

[Recs & In Search Of]

ISO: Christianduty seeks Obscure pieces of media connected to the show

ISO: atthecirclek seeks the brand of Buffy's tank top from season one? [with various resources in the comments]

ISO: Burnie89 seeks takers for a 3D Jesse bust

[Community Announcements]

Sunday prompts: Lonely Prompts Sunday by comment_fic

[Fandom Discussions]

Meme: [oh no we're all doomed by the narrative...] by kalmiopsis (Buffy, worksafe)

[i love Spike and Giles's father/son dynamic] by trealtox

a better season 6 villain: MOO by lunaticobscurity

[on how the Seeing Red scene was partially inspired by the writer's personal history] by housedyke

fic prompt: spies are forever buffy the vampire slayer au. tatiana is the slayer.... by ghostface-knight

fic prompt: [Willow in high school] by confusedguytoo

POLL: which of these lowest ranked episodes of btvs (according to imdb) is your favourite? by ohrevienssoleil

Why Stakes? by MoonLightSY-3

2 characters I would’ve liked to see live longer by atomiclovebomb

[Zura Skye as Cassie in Conversations with Dead People] by BiggTS

Does Willow think Buffy’s dumb, and if so was it ever explored in the show? by RafRide

Abigail [the movie and what if the vamps didn't dust on BTVS?] by Guilty-Tie164

Spike’s power relative to his age by Temporary-Buddy-2199

How does Spike enter the house in Lovers Walk? [vampires needing permission] by Fluffy-Maybe-6448

Is Buffy integral to Angel's character? [can you only watch ATS without BTVS?] by debujandobirds

Were Giles and Ethan lovers? by music_and_pop

Filming/Location Question: The WB Ranch by Special_Ear7031

[references to the 1969 Western movie] "The Wild Bunch" by caldude1985

Buffy’s Best Burns by Randy_Giles1880

Do you remember your reaction to the graduating class joining Buffy and the Scoobies in "Graduation Day, Part II"? by jdpm1991

« SPIKE », a mortal bartender in Tokyo [fic prompt] by Ok-Original4977

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[girl4music]

WILLOW: “It's horrible! That's me as a vampire? I'm so evil and... skanky. And I think I'm kinda gay.”

BUFFY: “Willow, just remember, a vampire's personality has nothing to do with the person it was.”

ANGEL: “Well, actually...

*gets a look from Buffy*

That's a good point.”

Can we discuss how ‘Doppelgängland’ presents a study case for Vampire Willow being like human Willow if Willow was suddenly missing an internal moral compass? I talk about Willow’s repressed sadism a lot and some overwhelming evidence for it is that there exists a vampire version of her in canon that’s a literal sadist and is just as evil as Angelus is. That enjoys inflicting torture and pain purely for fun. That has a good old time being indisputably sadistic.

Dark Willow - even though she has a soul and is human - thrives in the killing and the torturing of Warren and Rack. Yeah, she’s corrupted by black magic and feels nothing but vengeance, anger and hate. And yes, the people she does end up actually killing deserved it. But the point is that this is what she can be like even when HUMAN, even when ENSOULED. So Vampire Willow is interesting because that’s a Willow that isn’t either human or ensouled and how sadistic and evil she can be without an internal moral compass and without her humanity is reminiscent of Dark Willow.

And so I can’t help thinking that maybe that vampire has nothing to do with the demon that “possesses” Willow. Maybe the reason why that particular vampire is “so evil… and skanky… and kinda gay” is because that’s the human that the vampire is informed by. That it’s because it’s Willow why Vampire Willow is like that.

And I know it’s just for jokes why they had Angel start to say what he did in response to Buffy’s comment to Willow in trying to reassure her that that vampire is just an evil demon and has no bearing on her character at all… But I really wish we had got to hear what he was going to say. If I had to guess I feel like he was going to say something like “Well, actually… that’s not quite true. A vampire’s personality is still informed by the human that died even if it is not the person it was.”

But with Vampire Willow… the question is just how much of alternative human Willow informs her and how much is really just a demon from the ethers “possessing” the body of the alternative human Willow that died? You would think adding this particular situation on to the soul lore would be in support for it being demon possession… but I’m not so sure that that is so when much of the Willow that we see later on is what we get with Vampire Willow.

See for me, ‘Doppelgängland’ comes off more as foreshadowing than it does in being an addition to the soul lore that provides evidence for the perspective that vampires are a demon possession of a dead human because it does the entire opposite in telling and showing that to be the truth as they give us a significant look in to what Willow would be like both without a soul and without her humanity - which for me don’t mean the same thing because I don’t think of the soul that way. See, I have a very specific understanding of what a “soul” is and I don’t think of it as the human itself or as the person itself. I think of it as an internal moral compass for the human or person.

Which then further means if that human or person is suddenly bit by a vampire and dies - it doesn’t come back as a vampire because its body is possessed by a demon. It comes back as a vampire because IT IS a demon. A newly created or newly born demon in a human body that is informed by both the demon AND the human respectively. That’s why and how it can’t be a possession by the demon or human because possession means it’s an entirely different entity from the demon or human. And a vampire isn’t because it’s a half-breed of both the demon and the human. So it is still the same entity that died all the while becoming a newly created entity. It is, essentially, a resurrection or reincarnation of the human or person that died but just with personality traits and qualities that are only evil and sadistic in nature depending on what the human or person could be capable of that the newly created demon exacerbates in them with abandon.

Vampire Willow is a very interesting study case for this because what she is depends on whether human Willow can be capable of being that evil and sadistic all the while being a human. And… she can… as Dark Willow eventually and inevitably shows us. Yes, for her to get there it required the themes of power corruption, addiction and vengeance… but the point is that she was still capable of it. And, for me, it only just proves that if somebody that pure can become that evil and sadistic as a human… then so could we all.

Vampire Willow is not a study case for vampires being entirely different from their human counterparts. It’s a study case for learning that they are or can be alike if they’re missing an internal moral compass and therefore their emotions or desires were not being repressed. Vampire Willow is an uninhibited entity. They make that very clear in the writing when using it in juxtaposition with human Willow’s inhibitedness. Willow even acknowledges that both her and Vampire Willow feel like the world’s “no fun” anymore but then recedes that acknowledgement in the final scene, realizing that being “reliable dog geyser person” isn’t so bad. That she could actually be the entire opposite to that and she never wants to be like Vampire Willow if this is the pain and damage that she could cause.

So Vampire Willow truly is what we would get if human Willow was completely free of all constraints on her good character. If she suddenly believed that she didn’t need to be the good person she always is and could do what she wants without any thought for the risks or consequences of her actions and choices and without any concern for any pain or damage she may cause through her carelessness and recklessness. It is very much in her capability and nature to become what we see of Vampire Willow’s appearance. And I think that if Xander had not have been able to save Willow in ‘Grave’, this is precisely what Willow would have become. Not simply just Dark Willow. But Evil and Sadistic Willow. She would have lost her humanity.

Fortunately… she still possessed an internal moral compass and so her humanity won over the battle and Vampire Willow remained just a fantasy in fan-fiction. But it does give me pause to realize that Willow’s selfishness, arrogance and entitlement in Season 6 would still inform everything that Vampire Willow is precisely because she is the human psyche for her.

[forgottenghosty]

Dang I miss Immortal/Undead Male Whump with possible wholesome romance as tv shows...

I just got done rewatching FOREVER (2014) and Moonlight (2008) and want to watch more shows and even movies of the similar tastes and it’s hard to find.

(Forever 2014)

(Moonlight 2008) (Fun facts, the character Joseph from the show voices Terra in the Kingdom Hearts games. A book was published years after the show that inspired the series called “Angel of Vengeance” by  Trevor O’ Munson. The show went on hiatus due to the writers strikes and received 4 new episodes before ending, being cancelled, and not being picked up again.) 

I miss seeing shows where the male lead has to keep the secret or deal with someone knowing their secret and trying to live with it. All of it based more in a realistic reality of the actual world, while still be fictitious enough to have things that could never happen in reality as well.

I know there are some show or movies out there similar, but they don’t fit my tastes or I did watch them for a time and then stopped cause they started getting crazy or boring for me.

I’m not one for watching something with sex in it, nor a lot of demonic things in it either. Some exceptions have been Angel and Buffy, but those are more supernatural fiction. I tried watch Vampire Diaries and did enjoy it for a time, same with the Teen Wolf series, but they both got to a point I couldn’t stand them and just stopped watching and couldn’t get myself to watch them again. I’ve tried with Teen Wolf, but just got bored.

I did try watching some of True Blood to see what it was like and only came out enjoying the theme song and left that quick. I don’t think I made it past the first episode.

Tried watching Penny Dreadful and same thing happened. The Sabrina remake as well. One ep and then I ditched it. I hated the the demonic stuff and just dipped. Made me miss the 90s show I grew up all the more.

I used to watch Forever Knight as a kid, She Wolf, and Beauty and the Beast as well, but not really into watching the super older shows of late 80s early 90s right now.

Also sucks how I can’t get season 2 of Invisible Man (2000) in the US. UK is lucky and got the second season of Invisible Man, we only got Season 1, which I bought up so fast. Though based more in science, Invisible Man was another good one. Poor guy couldn’t catch a break. Miss it so much.

(The Invisible Man (2000) (Thankfully, though only 2 seasons, the series got to end with an actually ending.)

Thankful we keep getting Psych movies every few years or so, though movie 2 and 3 haven’t been available to buy yet, which is frustrating since they only show it on peacock, though 2 was on USA recently and 4 is in the works.

(Psych (2006-2014, Movies ongoing)

Enjoyed watching Dracula, the NBC, not the BBC one. That one I hated. I enjoyed Jekyll and Sherlock, but Dracula was horrible.

Dracula NBC ended too soon.

(Dracula (2013))

One I didn’t see until after it aired, that for a time was free to watch on old Hulu, was The Crow: Stairway to Heaven. Very 90′s, but enjoyable all the same.

(The Crow: Stairway to Heaven (1998) and yes that is Mark Dacascos probably known by many as The Chairman of Iron Cheif.)

Which I recently found out they finally have made a remake of the 90′s movie with Bill Skarsgard that I hope will be good. Just leaves adding any vfx and so on they need to before release.

Many will know him more as Pennywise the Clown and leads into why I sat through watching all of Hemlock Grove.

Only good reason to watch that show on Netflix. 

It has Vampires and Werewolves and more, but man, it isn’t worth it in the end with the plot they give.

So, yeah, really wish we got more immortal / undead whump with possible wholesome romances.

[madlyn5ever]

Another part to my cast list for HSMTMTS for different musicals, but I lack the energy to refamiliarize myself with the full casts of stage musicals so tonight I’m gonna do musical episodes of tv shows and based purely on vibes

Buffy The Vampire Slayer: Once More, With Feeling

Buffy: Gina!! Maybe a part of me just thinks HSMTMTS would so make some sort of call back to Andi Mack like they did with the airport episode with Asher Angel, and I’d eat it up honestly. But also Gina is the strongest contestant to play THE SLAYER HERSELF.

Xander: Ricky would get Xander but find out in secret that his actor irl is entirely problematic and offer the role to EJ as if they need an extra person and EJ, entirely unaware, happily obliges and even gets all giggly and peppy (yes PEPPY as he practices his lyrics.

Willow: Ashlyn. Listen, she doesn’t get that much here and her voice deserves more and better, but redheaded and gay and gets to wear a renaissance fair style dress is the vibe and trust me the outfit would get a ‘dying deceased yes’ from her.

Tara: Maddox. Okay stick with me. Dresses are clearly not her thing, nor is acting, but this whole episode is just singing, basically no other lines. Literally. And besides I think she’d play my favorite Tara SO well. They’re kinda similar to me idk, it just fits. And she gets to wear the green ren fair dress to match her girlfriend, and her big song is a love declaration to Willow, so I need this immediately.

Anya: Nini or Seb for sure (I was gonna do Maddox cause Anya’s the autistic coded one but these two fit better.) (she sings -and really goes for it- about her bunny phobia and it’s one of my favorite moments from the episode.)

Dawn: she doesn’t sing. So, I’m gonna give this one to someone who deserves to play a younger sibling who’s naive enough to get kidnapped by a musical devil. Danny.

(Bonus points that Lily is coaxed into joining and thinks she’s getting a good role but SHE’S playing the devil.)

an alternate for Dawn would be Emmy, but there’s no singing for this role and her voice is too talented for that. So maybe they’d make a new song to add just for Emmy so she could sing.

Giles: Ricky. And yes it’s entirely awkward that he’s playing his girlfriends mentor who has gotten with her characters mother. But Ricky’s siked about wearing ‘specks’ as he’d call them to get into character.

Spike: Jet! He’d be so good as spike he’d live for playing a vampire and he’d love the leather duster coat. Maddox would get tired of hearing him talk about this coat. But it’s a good coat!

Ensemble: Carlos would get the role of the guy in the dry cleaning flash mob who sings “they got, the mustard, OUTTT!”

And Kourtney would be set to be chosen for one of the main cast roles, but some antics would lead to a domino affect that gets Kourtney stuck in that musical number and nothing else, holding a plastic dry cleaning bag with clothes in it doing the full ensemble flash mob with Carlos instead. She will not let it go until they finally perform and she admits she had a good time.

(Also Miss Jenn is low on students, so the main cast has to join in on the flash mob scene, including herself and Mazzara, in separate costumes that look like their characters in disguise. It’s all very chaotic. Nini ends up in an animal maybe cow, or farmer costume because of some mix up and she just goes with it because she’s not even sure why she decided to come back to East High but she’s happy to be here.)

[jvstheworld]

The Buffy Re-watch: S1E7 (part 2)

Angel

Does Angel not eat human food? Or is that really a Spike thing? Because even as a vampire I wouldn't turn down free food, I'm not stupid. Honestly, if you were a vampire, wouldn't you miss the taste of certain foods you enjoyed as a human if you only stuck to drinking blood?

Buffy jumping the gun on Angel reading her diary. Miscommunication can often be annoying, like in many Rom-Coms, where it is used to stretch out the plot and create drama for the sake of it where it could have been resolved with one conversation. This is not one of those times, this is done well and resolved quickly. No complaints.

Buffy is 16, Angel is 240. Yes, there is an issue here, will not deny that. However, I will also not deny that the moment leading up to the kiss is sweet. It's just that Angel needs to ditch the stalking, watching from distance and the cryptic messages and I would like it a bit more.

After the kiss, we see Angel's vamp face. And he just throws himself out of the window and slides down the roof on his stomach. I just found that funny.

The exposition on vampires: they have the look, the memories, the personality, and movements of the person turned, but is still a demon. The question raised: can one be good? Giles says no, but h knows that Angel has proven to be different, we later find out that it's because of his soul. So, does his soul give him back enough of his humanity to override the demon that took up residence? These thoughts will later be brought back up when talking about Spike in seasons 5 and 6.

I have no concept of fashion but what is the point of one-of-a-kind dresses? I'm really willing to learn about this.

Angel's apartment is kind of nice. Like it's a decent space.

Darla and Angel caused a whole lot of damage together. I enjoyed the episodes detailing the adventures of Darla, Angel, Drusilla, and Spike. But going from what Angel says about the last time he saw Darla, she was wearing kimonos. However, in the show Angel, the last time the audience see them together was in China during the Boxer Rebellion. She wasn't wearing a kimono then. So, did they accidentally cross paths at some point in Japan during the time after the Rebellion, before the start of the show? And when and why did she split from Dursilla and Spike?

Angel's curse, does anyone understand it? He's only had it for about 80+ years.

Sneaky Darla, how dare you hurt Joyce and frame Angel. Though angel you shouldn't have changed your face or should have changed back before Buffy got there.

The first of many unfortunate trips to the hospital for Joyce.

Yep, 3 parts it is. Tomorrow, the exciting conclusion of this tragic romance.

[llorom4nn1c]

♡ TMI tag!!! ♡

So the other day I was watching some of Eugenia Cooney's old videos since I used to watch them a lot as a kid. I found some of her tag videos and I guess I thought it'd be fun to do one of those 2015 Youtube tags but on Tumblr. I'm not sure if this is going to be that interesting but yeah. You can watch Eugenia's video here btw.

🎀 What are you wearing?

I'm wearing a Misfits Marilyn Monroe t-shirt, black cargo pants, a skeleton hand bracelet, and Hello Kitty headphones because I'm listening to music right now.

🎀 Have you ever been in love?

I've had crushes but I doubt I've ever been in love

🎀 Have you ever had a terrible break up?

No

🎀 How tall are you?

168 cm or 5'6

🎀 How much do you weigh?

Last time I got weighed I think it said something like 105 lbs

🎀 Do you have any tattoos?

No

🎀 Do you have any piercings?

No and I don't even have my ears pierced

🎀 What's your OTP?

Buffy x Angel

🎀 What's your favourite show?

Gravity Falls

🎀 What are your favourite bands?

I love so many but The Pretty Reckless, Paramore, Tally Hall, Pierce The Veil, and Sleeping With Sirens are probably my top five.

🎀 What's something you miss?

Nigahiga

🎀 What's your favourite song?

I don't think I really have a favourite song but my top song on Spotify every year is always Make Me Wanna Die by The Pretty Reckless so I guess that's my favourite.

🎀 How old are you?

16

🎀 What's your zodiac sign?

I'm a Gemini but I don't really know what that means other than that I'm apparently evil.

🎀 What do you look for in a partner?

I don't know

🎀 What's your favourite quote?

'I'm just a girl'

🎀 Who's your favourite actor?

Anya Taylor-Joy, she's so gorgeous and smart and she always chooses great projects (except for that one time when she was in the Play Mobil movie). She's probably my favourite scream queen too.

🎀 What's your favourite colour?

Probably really obvious but pink

🎀 Loud or soft music?

Loud

🎀 Where do you go when you're sad?

Notes app

🎀 How long does it take you to shower?

When I'm not crying, less than ten minutes

🎀 How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?

Usually about 10-20 minutes

🎀 Have you ever been in a physical fight?

I have a brother so yeah

🎀 What's a turn on for you?

Guys with long hair, mainly because of Kellin Quinn

🎀 What's a turn off for you?

Guys calling girls 'females'

🎀 Why did you join Tumblr?

I was bored

🎀 What are you afraid of?

Looking dumb and doing badly in school

🎀 What was the last thing that made you cry?

Probably my mom arguing with me the last time we had lunch together.

🎀 When was the last time you said you loved someone?

I think it was to one of my friends but I'm not sure

🎀 What is the meaning behind your username?

It came from the Falling In Reverse song I'm Not a Vampire. There's not really a reason why I chose that song specifically, I just really like vampires. Originally my username was just going to be imnotavampire with no numbers, but that was taken so I added a 13 into vampire.

🎀 What was the last book you read?

Lapvona by Ottessa Moshfegh. I might write a whole post about it because I really enjoyed it.

🎀 What book are you currently reading?

Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors

🎀 What is the relationship between you and the last person you texted?

She's my mom

🎀 What is your favourite food?

Probably apples because they're the thing I eat the most

🎀 What is a place you want to visit?

I would really love to visit the Palace of Versailles. It looks so beautiful and I'm so jealous of all of the French queens who got to live there.

🎀 Where is the last place you were?

Panera Bread parking lot

🎀 Do you have a crush?

Yes, on thirty year old emo men

🎀 When was the last time you kissed someone?

I've never kissed anyone

🎀 When was the last time you were insulted?

The aforementioned lunch with my mom

🎀 What is your favourite flavour of sweets?

Strawberry. I'm so addicted to strawberry flavoured things that someone could tell me their vomit is strawberry flavoured and I'd probably try it.

🎀 What instruments do you play?

I play guitar

🎀 What is your favourite piece of jewellery?

Probably the skeleton bracelet I mentioned before because I wear it the most and my mom hates it.

🎀 What was the last sport you played?

If taking ballet as an elective in middle school counts then ballet

🎀 What is the last song you sang?

I sing a lot so I'm not really sure. Probably Bubblegum Bitch by Marina because I sing it all the time.

🎀 What is your favourite pick up line?

It's a toss up between 'Dang, girl, are you a construction worker? Because you are BUILDING,' and 'I want your bull in my Bronx.'

🎀 Have you ever used it?

No but I will

🎀 When was the last time you hung out with someone?

I have no idea. Really all I do is just rot in my room.

🎀 Who should answer these questions next?

Anyone else who also wants to overshare on the Internet

That's it, byeeeee!! ˚｡⋆୨୧˚♡

[titsgirlbuffy]

any thoughts on how spike and angel show their genders when they where human vs vampires

Yes!

So it's really fascinating to me what bits of how they present themselves do or don't change through the centuries. And I can't tell which bits of this is for, like, internal reasons, and what's a response to the changing cultural ideas of what makes a man.

We've talked before about how Spike (as a vampire) seems to see himself as a masculine object - talking about himself as the corpse of a man (like in Once More With Feeling), like he's being animated by his obsession with Buffy as much as he is by the vampirism. And with the whole "I know I'm a monster, but you treat me like a man" thing too, for Spike the vampire there's this recurring thing of A Man being not something he Is so much as something he'd like to be.

I've only seen the one scene of him as a human man so some of this was outsourced to @transangelus who's watched Buffy many times. But the thing about human Spike is he also tied a lot of himself to the women in his life, clinging both to his mother and to the women he tries to seduce with terrible poetry, even (especially?) when that's unsuccessful. Spike as a human man is... not wholly successful just in general, actually.

From an article on Victorian masculinity and how it affects our present understanding, "Victorian public school boys were strong, stoical and athletic – ready to die for their country, but not to talk about their feelings." Now, that sounds like pretty much the opposite of what we've seen of William Pratt, a man who was:

Not a successful poet

Wrote primarily about his emotions

No indication that he was good at sports

Not physically intimidating

Left handed

Bad at seducing women

Bullied by other men

Defined by his relationships (and lack thereof) to women

I don't think I'd say Spike was "womanly" as a human, but he wasn't living up to what it meant to be a "man".

A lot of that is tied to not being physically powerful and not having a girlfriend - the reverse of which is pretty inherent to his vampire self. But somehow, as a vampire, he's Still drawn to nonconformity, wearing his woman's coat (stolen from Nikki Wood's dead body in the 70s), painting his nails black (the most masculine colour he could have chosen but like... this is during the era of "metrosexual", when even the fact that he puts products in his hair could be taken as a non-masculine trait), naming himself after a Thing Of Violence rather than keeping the cool manly William the Bloody, generally doing non-masculine stuff he wouldn't have had a chance to do as a human man. I think the main difference between his modern vampire self and his Victorian human self is that now the non-masculine facets of Spike's presentation are a choice rather than a failure. Every time he insults a man for being effeminate, it feels... well I'm not sure Exactly how self aware Spike is, but it feels like he's trying to get under their skin more than legit pick on them for being girly or gay yk?

Angel's pretty similar in some ways. Seen as a failure by his parental figure - that failure being tied to masculinity (direct quote from Angel's human father: "It’s a son I wished for – a man – instead God gave me you"). But from what we saw of Angel as a human... unless I'm missing some history info about 1700s Ireland, there's nothing non-masculine I can see! Angel as a human:

Used a man's name (Liam - the Irish version of William, interestingly)

Kept his hair long (in fashion at the time)

Regularly had sex with women (from an article about masculinity in this time period - "From around 1720 [...] the dominant, hegemonic man is no longer defined by his house-holding status and his good domestic and Christian order but by the fact that he desires and has sex only with women.")

Angel as a human didn't seem happy, or even content, with his masculinity. He sought for it and, like Spike, was accused of falling short. And I hate to say any bullies were right, but I Do think the "not a man" accusations were speaking to something inherent about Angel rather than any failures to live up to a cultural standard of masculinity.

Vampire Angel is interesting. I mean, taking the name "Angel" (not the most masculine of names) is one thing, but even (especially?) while soulless his masculinity is... not quite right, I'll say.

Angelus kept his look pretty much the same throughout his relationship with Darla - and while that shifted from being classically masculine to being more effeminate as the centuries passed, since he was going around with a 1600s women (who wouldn't care about such things) and acting as the family patriarch, any nonconformity was way less of a big deal. But once he gets a soul? He goes right back to forcing himself into cultural norms.

In the 50s he cut his hair and dressed like a greaser. In the 70s he kept it long but started wearing low cut shirts and leather jackets - possibly his least conformative souled era and it went badly enough to send him back to eating rats in the sewers. In the 90s and early 00s - with a brief break for Angelus to wear some eyeliner (imitating Spike? Imitating what he believes to be corruptive?) - he puts on such a strong facade of masculinity that the man posing as his Swami asks "Why do you hate yourself?", before saying that Angel consists of "The image you work so hard to create and the real you." (personal note - Angel refers to his demonic side as "it" during that conversation). Combined with how many times he's given the opportunity to take on something feminine and either Immediately reacts with fear and anger, or tries it out very happily before someone else sees or questions? Plus the refusal of the titles man, boy, Mr..... I can only see Angel's masculinity as an intentional facade covering something he's terrified of. Two things, actually. The internal calls to the feminine and to the demonic.

So... yeah! TL;DR - Human!Spike = struggling man tied to relationships with women, Vampire!Spike = successfully nonconforming corpse seeking personal masculinity in relationships with women. Human!Angel = successfully masculine in theory but somehow still not allowed into male socialisation, Vampire!Angel = deeply concerned with emulating an ideal of the Normal Man, repressing womanhood and evilness as if they equally reveal him as something other than what he strives for

[coraniaid]

OK, some final belated thoughts on Season 3 before I move on to something new.

At this point, it doesn’t seem very controversial to suggest that the show often handles Faith’s killing of Allan Finch less than perfectly.  In particular, I think it’s a real shame that the writers either forgot (or just didn’t care?) that Giles himself once accidentally killed a man, especially as they did remember this fact  last season, when it was Buffy who thought she’d killed a man.  

(And though I defended – and will continue to defend – Buffy’s actions re:Ted when I talked about the eponymous episode of Season 2 in the rewatch last year, I do think they are harder to defend than what Faith did to Finch in Bad Girls.  Yes, Buffy had grounds to think Ted was a threat to her, but she also thought he was a human, and she hit him anyway.  She didn’t hurt him by mistake.  In the heat of the moment, Faith really did believe that Finch was a vampire, which – in the setting of the show, in the immediate context of the episode – was a pretty reasonable assumption to make. Lunging at an armed stranger in a dark alley probably wasn’t a very smart move on the part of the late Mr Finch.)

So it’s a little jarring when, in Consequences, Angel starts to give Faith the big “I too, know what it’s like to deliberately kill people for fun: it was addictive and I loved doing it” speech.  Faith’s dismissive reaction – “sounds like you need some help.  A professional, maybe.”-- is, on the evidence so far, surely entirely justified.  At this point in the show, it is Giles, and not Angel, who Faith is most similar to.  It feels rather like the writers are trying to force a comparison that – at least for now – simply isn’t there.  

Especially since the way Consequences is written it seems clear we’re meant to think that this speech is somehow “getting through to” Faith until Wesley’s ill-timed interruption.  Only … why would it be? Angel’s problem – a love of murder for the sake of murder – and his solution to that problem – getting cursed with a human soul – are both entirely meaningless to Faith, who already has a soul and has not in fact demonstrated any interest in murder for the sake of murder.  (And who might be claiming not to feel bad about Finch’s death, but must be on some level if Buffy’s intervention on her behalf makes any sense.)  

Faith is not Angel.  Not yet, anyway.

(That being said, there is another reading of the show where Angel isn’t getting through to Faith at all, but only convincing her that she needs to try to become more like him, especially if she’s going to win over Buffy.  I’m not at all sure that this is the reading intended by the writers, but I think it fits the evidence a lot better than the other reading at this point.  You can quite easily read Faith’s arc in the last third of the season as a deliberate – and not quite unsuccessful – attempt to remold herself in Angel’s image: to become somebody who really wouldn’t care about killing a human being by mistake, and who might even enjoy doing it.  And I do think that Angel’s second big attempt at connecting with Faith a year later, for all that it treads a lot of the same ground, makes a lot more sense in context.)

On the other hand, I think the show should get a little more credit for the conscious Buffy and Faith parallels than I sometimes see it given.  

Just as sometimes people point out that the show presents Angel behaving in some rather disturbing ways in Season 2 (“falling in love” with a teenage girl after driving past her school and catching a glimpse of her, for instance) without acknowledging that the show is – at least intermittently – very aware of this, I think people who defend Faith by saying that Buffy has also killed things that look and act like people are missing the fact that this is a tension the show is very conscious about.   I think Buffy’s many nights spent indiscriminately slaying demons and vampires is something the show definitely wants us to think about.  By this point of the show, we’re clearly not meant to be entirely okay with all the death Buffy herself is responsible for..  

(Sometimes I see the suggestion that Buffy is different from Faith because she only kills vampires and demons who are an imminent threat to human life or trying to hurt people, but that is simply not true.  Buffy patrols cemeteries in the middle of night – cemeteries notably lacking in casual passersby – looking for newly risen vampires to stake before they know what’s happening.  She attacks demons on sight – or at least, she does until the show decides some demons are okay, which is something that only starts to happen this season.  In the original conception of the show – from the era of the Master and Luke and the Anointed One – we’re just not meant to think that proactively killing vampires could ever be a problem.)

When Buffy confronts Faith for the last time in Graduation Day she asks her something.

“What's the matter?  All that killing and you’re afraid to die?”

How are we to interpret this question under the old rules of the show?  At this point of the story, Faith has killed exactly two human beings: Allan Finch (by accident!) and Professor Worth (admittedly not at all by accident).  At the risk of being a Faith apologist (which, well, I guess is what I am, but...), the phrase “all that killing” hardly applies here, does it?

… unless, that is, you count all the various vampires and demons that we’ve seen Faith kill recently (including the demon in Enemies who tried to sell her the Books of Ascension, a demon whose killing definitely appears to bother Faith at the time and to disgust Buffy when she finds the body).  Faith certainly has killed enough of them for the phrase “all that killing” to apply.  Bur crucially, so has Buffy herself.  (She’s killed far more of them, in fact.  As Faith told her at the start of the season, she’s been doing this the longest.)

So I think we’re meant to understand Buffy’s question in the Season 3 finale as part of a conversation with herself that started in the Season 1 finale Prophecy Girl and will continue all the way to the Season 5 finale The Gift (and arguably beyond).  That’s why Faith exists in the narrative in the first place, after all.  Not to be a version of Angel, but to be a version of Buffy.  A reflection, a mirror, a shadow.  Somebody Buffy was, and is, and might have been. It’s what Faith has been arguing all season (“anything I have to answer for, you do too”, she insisted to Buffy in Consequences), and something that – to people other than Faith – Buffy has already admitted (“She had it rough,” she told Willow in Doppelgangland, “Different circumstances, that could be me.”).

So let’s talk a bit about some other versions of Buffy, and try to place this question in its proper context.

The Buffy of Prophecy Girl told her Watcher that she was still a child (“Giles, I’m sixteen years old…”) and that she didn’t want to die.  Her reaction to learning what would happen to her if she faced her destiny was to beg her mother to take her out of harm's way ("Mom, let's go away ... anywhere ... Mom, please"). Years later, the adult Buffy of The Gift will tell that same Watcher that she doesn’t see the point of going on in a world without her mother, a world where “everything gets stripped away”.  Later still, she’ll tell her sister that living is “the hardest thing in the world” and then voluntarily jump to her own death rather than lose another family member.  “Death is [her] gift”, as that season will keep reminding her.

And halfway between these moments, in the Season 3 finale, we have a Buffy who is only on the cusp of becoming an adult.   A Buffy who has died once, but “only for a minute”.  A Buffy who just sent her mother away from danger because she couldn’t save the world while worrying about her, where the younger Buffy had instead pleaded with her mother to protect her.  

This Buffy looks at her fellow Slayer – at somebody who she knows she could have been herself, at somebody who is not just her narrative shadow but a living reminder of the fact she’s died once and it maybe wasn’t quite that bad, at somebody like her who kills vampires and monsters and maybe enjoys doing it a little too much  – and it’s easy to imagine her confronting her tearful younger self in the school library again, hearing the prophecy that her calling as a Slayer will end with her own death.

“What’s the matter?”, the older Buffy asks her younger self bluntly.  “All that killing and you’re afraid to die?”