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twunny20fission · 7 months

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My thoughts on Pitchfork's 150 best albums of the 1990s; #40-#31

There are three completely subjective criteria. 1: do I like the album, yes or no? (Basically, is this for me?) 2: Would I recommend it to anyone, yes or no? (is this for anyone else?) and 3: Is it better than STPs "Core"? (The lowest bar. Few things are better than "Purple," but Core should absolutely be in the top 150, so that's the bar.)

40: Nine Inch Nails: The Downward Spiral (1994). We're here in what should be rarified air. Top 40. Not quite the top 25% of this list, but definitely elite territory of albums released during the decade in question.

Is there anyone like Trent Reznor? There are people doing things with sound that approach comparison. There is Aphex Twin, Tricky, the various iterations of the Mars Volta. But none of them do what NIN does.

If I can get deep for a minute, this artist has been there for me. I've never done heroin, and there are many topics NIN covers that I've never experienced. But the reaction to Trent's problems sound like what is in my brain sometimes. Existence is filthy, painful, and loud.

And knowing that I'm not alone in my baseness, my anger, my transcendence - can be everything.

This should be higher on the list. There are going to be so many things higher than this that will be boring and useless. The Downward Spiral is of the top 10 albums of all time.

Like it: yes. Recommend: yes. Better than "Core": yes.

39: 2Pac: All Eyez on Me (1996). This album is a lot. I have a lot to learn about hip hop, and I think I could understand Tupac a lot better than I do. The delivery is crystal and the beats are spectacular. But some of it is hard to listen to, and it's not for me. But I recognize its greatness.

Like it: basically. Recommend: yes. Better than "Core": yes.

38: Janet Jackson: janet. (1993) It's fine. A lot of the songs seem like they are the music to a montage about like, party preparations. That's probably Hollywood's fault, not Janet's (I am not nasty.) That being said, some of these songs were great. I disagree that it's this high. I should probably copy/paste that for a lot of upcoming albums...

Like it: yes. Recommend: no. Better than "Core": probably.

37: Fiona Apple: Tidal (1996). Look, I tried to keep an open mind. I tried to listen with the same cautious pessimism with which I took in Elliot Smith.

But it didn't work. I do not enjoy this. I dislike the lyrics, I dislike the delivery of the lyrics, I dislike the assault with a deadly piano overmixing. I especially dislike the pretentious pearl-clutching of Apple's fans. And with this one (and, spoilers, When the Pawn... at #19?! fuck) I refuse to give an inch of ground. I will not say "maybe I'm wrong and it IS brilliant, just not for me". I refuse. Also: fuck it. Her singing is flat. Or sharp? I don't know. The notes are wrong.

Like it: no. Recommend: no. Better than "Core": NO

36: Lil' Kim: Hard Core (1996). Good beats, clear vocals. But hard to listen to. Made me embarrassed? I understand why Kim was such a story at the time. This shit is raunch. It's like "Dear Penthouse." Not my thing, but I'll grant you that it certainly broke ground. Fuckin' obliterated that ground, bro.

Like it: no. Recommend: no. Better than "Core": no.

35: The Breeders: Last Splash (1993). This is an extremely 1990s album. Esoteric and hard to pin down, other than "it is extremely 1990s." I enjoyed listening to it again. And I think that if someone put it on, I'd enjoy listening to it again. But will I seek it out, specifically to hear it again? I'm leaning toward "no."

Like it: yes. Recommend: yes. Better than "Core": maybe.

34: Aphex Twin: Richard D. James Album (1996). Predictably, I liked this album. I like Aphex Twin. I know I've read blurbs that have tried to say "it's too weird," or "it's scary" or whatever. But the weird is what makes it exemplary. This artist is an innovator, and broke ground that is still being examined 25-30 years later. There are other artists in the Venn diagram (NIN, Tricky, others not on this list.) But they are each extraordinary in unique ways. I've said all this before, haven't I?

Like it: yes. Recommend: yes Better than "Core": yes.

33: Talk Talk: Laughing Stock (1991). Maybe I'm in a bad (<5 hours of sleep, nothing in this world fucking works, and I'm chronically depressed anxious and angry) but: this album is nothing. The rambling, out-of-tune instrumental ravings of 2-5 overrated chumps.

"Taphead" is audio poison. 1 star. Do not recommend.

Like it: no. Recommend: no. Better than "Core": no.

32: Lucinda Williams: Car Wheels on a Gravel Road (1998). It was fine. Folky, well-executed, etc. I disagree that it's this high.

Like it: yes. Recommend: sure. Better than "Core": nope.

31: Neutral Milk Hotel: In the Aeroplane Over the Sea (1998). I definitely have thoughts. a. It's fine b. I'm sure it was "groundbreaking" at the time to have a lofi indie (and the internet is telling me 'psychadelic'? That can't be right) album. Now, it's nothing. I guess that shouldn't count against it... c. Neutral Milk Hotel was one of those bands that music guys in college would always be championing. Like "oh, I don't listen to pop radio, I only listen to Neutral Milk Hotel and Wheatus" or some shit. Doesn't make them good.

Like it: not really. Recommend: no. Better than "Core": no.

#pitchfork #nine inch nails #2pac #janet jackson #fiona apple #lil kim #the breeders #aphex twin #talk talk #lucinda williams #neutral milk hotel

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iosagol · 7 months

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foaming at the mouth rolling in the ashes putting on sackcloth because marvel dared to touch the absolute force of nature that is god of stories Loki and they completely misrepresented what he stands for and now when I search that glorious tag I have to look into hundreds of posts featuring the wretched hollow shell of the MCU Loki with his wretched dorky helmet and his "Oh I was once a narcissist who used to want a throne but now I love people and I don't like thrones at all, what an arc" even though he never ever wanted a throne and he always loved people what is going on

I think what really gets to me is that this god of stories role is presented as a shackle to MCU Loki

He is trapped now, he is alone, he's tied down by the narrative. Being a storyteller keeps him isolated and sad.

While in the comics, becoming the god of stories means breaking free, finding hope, being an icon of trying new things and traveling the universe. Being a storyteller allows Loki to become his true self and reconcile with himself and the people he loves. It's a visceral moment of coming home.

Loki in the comics addresses that "maybe who we are is really just a trap, one we'd be free of if we didn't cling so damn tightly to the bars"

Becoming a neutral storyteller breaks these bars and gets the Schrodinger's cat out of the box

But it's the opposite in the show

I don't think? They're trying to be cruel to the comics? But why are they slapping my favorite comic character's title onto this man even though what they are is completely different? And their arcs are completely different? And why then are show fans posting things such as:

Guuuys didn't you know this is from the comics? Loki is like the comics now :D He's finally completed a full arc and become the god of stories like in Agent of Asgard :DD

Like no, Janet, I'm sorry, but he's just not. MCU Loki has never been close to comic Loki, and to rip titles out of the comics and stuff them into the show and bait comic fans by saying "Hey guys you know what this is and you liked it there, so like it here" but it's not anything like that

That's not how this works

Don't get me started on Verity Willis either

#anti loki show #god of stories loki #loki comics #loki god of stories

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acadjonne · 11 months

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so hear me out

tim drake and danny fenton are twins

jack drake really did have a brother named eddie, once upon a time. eddie drake also had a wife, and she was expecting twins, but of course gotham is gotham. right before the twins would be born, eddie died, but his wife was brought to the hospital and lived long enough for the twins to be born.

jack and janet drake adopt the older twin, tim, because people knew that eddie and his wife were going to have a baby, and they had been considering having a kid themselves. but no one knew the drakes were expecting twins, and jack and janet don’t want two babies, so they arrange for the younger twin to be anonymously given up.

well, through some insane miscommunication, the other twin ends up in illinois, where he’s adopted a few months later by jack and maddie fenton. of course, because danny was given up anonymously, there’s no information whatsoever about his birth family

tim finds out he’s got a twin when he’s eleven or twelve by finding his birth certificate and an ultrasound print in his father’s safe. he starts looking for his twin, but doesn’t find a whole lot on his own.

(even when tim becomes robin, he never thinks of mentioning his twin to bruce.)

when they’re 14, tim meets sam manson at a gala in gotham. she’s originally from gotham as well, but moved to amity park as a kid, so this was her first time back in a long time. danny had just recently found out he was adopted, so of course when sam sees tim and he looks exactly like danny, she puts two and two together and approaches tim.

once sam gets back to amity, she puts danny and tim in contact. they agree that it sounds super unlikely on paper since danny was found in a hospital in chicago, while tim was born in gotham, and danny’s birthday is a couple days off from tim’s because no one knew exactly what day he was actually born, but they also look way too much alike for it to be coincidence.

of course, before they can get a dna test done, danny’s portal accident happens, and he gets super squirley about it after that whenever tim mentions it. plus they’re both minors and the drakes are never around to actually consent to it so it would be kinda weird for tim to insist on a dna test at that point.

but they stay in touch for the next few years, both expertly dodging any mention of their hero activities, and even manage to meet up for their sixteenth birthday. they hang out for a weekend in cleveland because it’s neutral ground, pretty much right smack in the middle between amity park and gotham. then, a few weeks after the events of d-stabilized, shit hits the fan.

valerie knows vlad is also plasmius, and after giving (dani) ellie a good head start, she starts going after him, outing him to the whole town in the process. of course, vlad assumes danny is the one who told valerie, so he outs danny as phantom as well. vlad manages to shake valerie, the fentons, and the giw, but danny isn’t so lucky, and gets captured by the giw.

of course, once they find out he’s been captured, sam, tucker, and jazz start planning to break him out and get him somewhere safe. obviously they can’t take danny to either the manson or foley houses, the giw would check there first, and they can’t take him to jazz’s college dorm either. gotham has a lot of ambient ectoplasm though, and the giw (probably) wouldn’t go anywhere near batman’s territory even with the anti-ecto acts, so sam calls tim and asks if they can take danny to him once they rescue him.

of course, tim had no idea about anything going on in amity park, not that team phantom knew that. turns out the giw have been covering things up forever, and the extremely high ectoplasm leaking from the fentons’ portal doesn’t help either. but of course sam assumes he knows because most of amity park is actively protesting against the giw and demanding danny’s release and it’s about to start getting violent any second now, and if it’s such big news in amity then of course tim knows danny is phantom by now, right?

but tim’s able to keep hold of himself long enough to let sam know that yes, danny can come to gotham, all of team phantom can come to gotham once they’ve rescued him, and once he’s let her go he immediately goes to the other bats and sounds the alarms

so queue the justice league showing up in amity park to deal with the giw, and inquiries about the legality of the anti-ecto acts and how they overlap with meta protection laws get raised, and danny gets rescued, and team phantom is evacuated to gotham.

once things have calmed down, tim tells danny about being red robin and they bond over hero stuff. danny fixes jason’s pit-induced anger problems because holy shit dude your ectoplasm is rancid. bruce of course takes on look at danny and decides to adopt him.

anyway, thanks for coming to my ted talk.

#dcxdp #dpxdc #danny phantom #tim drake #danny fenton #tim drake and danny fenton are twins #listen the whole ‘giw and fentons find out about danny by accident and he has to run to Gotham’ thing is fun #but i think we as a phandom sleep on valerie finding out about vlad being plasmius in d-stabilized way too much #and like vlad would totally think danny told valerie since he was literally bragging about how easy she was to trick #so if valerie went after him for being plasmius he’d immediately turn it around and out danny too #plus in this case it works as a way to get danny to gotham and get him to join the batfam which is great #honestly i wanna write a fic about this but i don’t even know where to start #so enjoy my 1am ramblings of ideas that have been rattling around in my head for several days now #drake twins

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scintillyyy · 1 year

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anyways, i'm not going to say tim is a paragon of sensitivity or anything, because he's not, but i do think the graysons' death is an area where he does actively try to at least be somewhat delicate and sensitive about discussing it.

batman #441

like he very much actively does not want to have to tell dick how he knows, and he's very apologetic that bringing it up is hurtful to dick.

secret origins 80 page giant

like honestly. this is actually a very neutral way of telling the story. very bare bones. "it was the best day of my life. then your parents died." which. is objectively true?? and tim is still very apologetic, especially when he realizes how he might be coming across. like. idk. obviously dick is the center of this tragedy, but it is fundamentally like. a super, super terrible and traumatizing thing for a child of indeterminate age (anywhere from 2-7) to witness a death, not just in general, but at a happy place like a circus. hell. it was fundamentally terrible for the adults at the circus to witness this death, bruce and jack and janet and every single person in that audience included. and while it's a little cringey that tim is narrating the worst day to dick's life to dick, this conversation only even came up because dick brought it up to begin with.

and at this point dick and tim have known each other for almost a decade in real time and have been explicitly written as brothers for probably about 4 years real time, so dick probably genuinely doesn't mind talking about this with tim. i do like the idea of how this probably progresses for dick over time. like, at first, dick is probably super, super annoyed at this thirteen year old kid who wormed his way into dick's personal tragedy but then as dick gets to know him and love him and that's his little brother now-

like how much it must crush dick (now that he knows and loves tim) that tim had to experience the same horrible thing that happened to dick and that dick's parent's death happening is what ended up bringing the two of them back together again eventually.

#dick and tim #realistically haly's circus probably went broke because their liability insurance #had to cover therapy for a full house audience that night #unless they wanted to be sued into oblivion by everyone else in that audience that night #jack and janet were probably the most sympathetic parents there tbh they sent dick the photo and then proceded to never speak of it again #i'm sure like 75% of the rest of the audience were not as sympathetic because their kids were traumatized from this event #anyways we have acquaintances whose children did witness someone accidentally dying in front of them at a young age #and they were very affected by the tragedy and they were very much considered victims of the tragedy merely by witnessing it

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thebowieconstricker · 2 months

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Head Over Heels - Prolouge

(The Creature x Reader)

A Lisa Frankenstein (2024) fic

masterlist link

Alright, monster lovers, I’m gonna try something a little more ambitious: an actual fic. Constructive criticism welcome! Please be kind because I have no proof reader and I’m still learning how to write good stories lol. I’m also gonna be fleshing out some characters to better fit the narrative I have in mind for this story. I hope you enjoy the prologue!

Warnings: slight language, my best attempt at worldbuilding, and our gender neutral reader is an orphan, so discussion of that. Also, (N/N) stands for nickname!

~~~

1986, Brookview, Indiana

“Oh. My. GOODNESS, (Y/N)! You have to try a face mask! It’ll help you with those dark circles under your eyes!”

“But (Y/NNNN), pink is totally your color! Just give it a chance, your nails would look SO pretty!”

“You didn’t even jump! It’s like you’re built for these movies, (N/N)!”

Comments like these had already gotten old around- you checked your watch- two hours ago. You considered yourself a survivor of some ancient teenage girl ceremony. Saying polite “no thank you”s to Taffy and the rest of her much too perky friends was becoming quite the laborious task. Some may say you were being too stubborn, as they had treated you with nothing but kindness since you came to town, to which you’d argue that Tricia certainly seemed like she had a bone to pick with you. Along with her, you had unfortunately seen enough of the world to understand one of the most important rules of high school:

The popular girls were mean, and these girls were certainly popular.

You had no idea why Taffy had run up to you on your first day of school and excitedly introduced herself, her gaggle of friends confusedly following after her. You figured this was some kind of territorial power move, checking out the fresh meat before inevitably deciding to kill.

But then Taffy kept hanging out with you. And complementing you. And begging you to hang out with her group of gals.

You took it as some kind of elaborate bit, but hey, they were nice.

At least they didn’t look at you like you were a rotten corpse walking down the halls.

Your thoughts snapped back to your current situation at Taffy’s house. Her mother, Janet, had actually sneered at you when you walked in, but other than that, the night was shaping up to be your average “new girls first sleepover”. Grease had taught you well. That was, until the truth or dare game started.

Lori had brought it up, and it started pretty normal.

“Who’s your crush?”

“OMG, I’m not telling!”

“Come on, Misty! We won’t tell! Right, (Y/N)?”

“Uh, yeah. I mean, no.” You mentally cursed yourself.

This is how it continued for a while before you finally perked up.

“I dare you to go to the Bachelors Cemetary Grove.”

“WHAT??? No way, Tricia! There’s no way in hell-“

Your eyes widened in intrigue and you blurted out without thinking, “There’s a bachelors cemetery?”

The girls turned to look at you.

Tricia raised one of her perfect eyebrows.

“You haven’t heard about it? It’s like- uber haunted.”

That piqued your interest. Life in the foster care system had caused you to grow accustomed to the darker sides of life, and you had always had a special interest in the dead. Your own parents had died in a mysterious fire when you were just a baby, leaving you with no real memories of them. You believed that everyone deserved to be remembered, especially the average, unremarkable person.

(Mainly because you knew that’s how you would turn out, and you’d like to be remembered.)

Enough of that, though, because everyone is still looking at you, so you cleared your throat.

“Would I have to go tonight? Or like, right now?”

Tricia rolled her eyes. “I mean, I didn’t ask you-“

“Oh, shush, Tricia! She’s participating!” Taffy smiled widely at you.

Tricia shot you a look.

“Fine. Yes, tonight. And you’d have to bring back a vine to show that you actually went there. The place is full of them, so it should be easy for you.”

You detected a hint of challenge in Tricia’s tone, but ignored it. You wanted to do this to quench the thirst of curiosity that was bubbling in your brain. This seemed like the first interesting thing you had heard about in this boring town.

You stood.

“I’ll do it.”

Taffy cheered and Lori looked at you in amazement. Misty immediately began to try to talk you out of it, worrying about your safety, while Tricia went silent.

Your mind was set, though. Time to see what all the hooplah was about.

~~~

The walk to the gravesite had been much more peaceful than you thought it would be.

Taffy’s house was constant noise, light, color, total overstimulation. However, the cool mist that danced across your skin along with the eerie silence of the woods soothed you. It helped you clear your head.

After walking through the woods for what seemed like hours, you finally came across the old rusted iron gate that sadly displayed the text, “Bachelors Cemetery Grove”. You frowned, finding the disrepair of the cite pitiful. This place should be filled with respect, not to be forgotten by vines and leaves.

Speaking of, holy shit, Tricia was right about the vines everywhere.

Thick, bright green foliage covered every inch of the area, graves poking out here and there to display faded names. It was enchanting to see so much life growing in a place of death. You could have snapped off a vine and booked it out of there, but you were drawn to this cemetery. Careful steps led you deeper and deeper into its heart as you swerved this way and that to try and make out the occasional name.

Then, through a beam of moonlight that shone through a break in the trees, your eyes caught on a specific grave.

You walked closer and came face to face with the stoic expression of a handsome young man, carved in the same stone his grave was made of. He had a strong nose, with beautifully curved lips and hair that flipped upwards on the ends. He was looking slightly downwards, his eyebrows painfully curved upwards, as if to express a dramatic feeling of grief. Resting beside his bust was an arm and a hand, attached to nothing and slightly curled. He looked like a man that would recite beautiful poetry, professing his deepest desires and most intimate thoughts.

Your mouth was slightly agape as you admired him. Despite your more logical thoughts, you brought a hand up to gently caress his cheek, finding a raised texture chiseled there that suggested sideburns. A sigh escaped your lips as you realized the romantic-ness of it all. A man who seemed perfect, a lover, full of life and emotion, condemned to a permanent fixture in a buried world.

You could say it was love at first sight.

#lisa frankenstein #lisa frankenstein movie #lisa Frankenstein the creature #the creature lisa frankenstein #the creature x reader #the creature #cole sprouse

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brucewaynehater101 · 4 days

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Tim who had the watchtower/super hero substitute treehouse built so Batman can have relatively healthy socialization also eggs on the baking rivalry that develops between Alfred and Ma Kent as part of his multi step plan to direct Batman towards developing a wider social circle than Superman who, again, Tim does not fully approve of as a good influence on Batman. He appreciates that Batman shouldn't kill and that Superman helped that much but otherwise is unimpressed with the kryptonian. Basically the only things Superman could do to make it up to Tim would be first, sincerely apologizing to Kon accompanied by actively being better and second lobotomizing the Joker. Unfortunately Superman has yet to realize he needs to make up anything to Tim. Thus Ma Kent will continue to receive cook books and high end baking supplies from anonymous sources as well as strategic praise and comparisons to Alfred's baking from various heroes and Alfred will receive similar praise and criticism and Bruce and Clark will both receive uncomfortable questions from both sides about which pie or cake or cookie he liked better.

Tim having monthly tea parties with Queen Hippolyta in a neutral location to talk about how Diana is doing, again as part of the plan for Bruce to have good social influences in his life. Cassie helped him arrange it. Queen Hippolyta mothers Tim a bit because she's experiencing a little empty nest syndrome and while Tim is a boy, he's very polite and didn't invade her home and brings treats he either bought or made himself (he's not dragging Hippolyta into the baking beef). Tim reacts better to this than he would if someone attempted to act fatherly to him as she does so in small doses and in a manner that is slightly softer than Janet and is thus nostalgic.

Tim will find the parental figures in the JLA's lives and he will make connections. He is trying very hard not to be Bruce's entire (functioning) support system.

Ma Kent and Alfred should have a very fierce rivalry over food. The competition should be intense, yet they still care about one another. They'll switch in seconds from casually chatting about their sons and gardening to very pointed insults about the other's cooking.

Tim dragging Bruce's friends' parents into that man's support circle is hilarious and amazing. He will ensure that Batman will be up against crowds of friends and their parents the next time he decides to go on another crime-fighting bender.

Also, it could be healthy overall for in-the-know parents of heroes to have their own support group. They can get advice and comfort from others. Yes, some of the parents aren't exactly "civilians," but the group is geared towards parents of first generation "heroes," (though other generations of parents of heroes are welcome as well). There are a lot of nuances, laws, and issues pertaining to being a public hero.

Tim should have beef with Superman. Let that teen continually give the man glares of disappointment and disproval at the hero's back (which Clark feels but can't pinpoint the origin), and then his face smooths back to neutral whenever the man looks at him. Tim is a professional, after all. I think Jason and Tim could bond over this when they start getting along.

#dc comics #tim drake #dc universe #thank you for the ask!!!!#bruce wayne #dc au #ma kent #alfred pennyworth

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ukulelekatie · 2 years

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Good Janet

Bad Janet

Neutral Janet

Disco Janet

Baseball Lesbian Janet

#the good place #a league of their own #d’arcy carden #aloto #greatest hits #1k

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nono-bunny · 7 months

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Braving the Elements having Evanna Lynch as a guest on The Fortuneteller episode, which is a real tryhard Kataang one, and her turning out to be both Fire Nation AND a Zutara was fr so healing

Like, this episode was probably the harshest on Kataang as of yet and I was living for that!!! They constantly call Aang a kid and acknowledge just how uninterested in him Katara is, and Evanna even (correctly) says that when Katara goes "yeah, I guess he is a powerful bender" she seems more disappointed than anything else, and!!! Legit probably my favorite podcast episode to date just because it was very obvious how much Dante was vibing with her takes, and even Janet who tries to be more neutral seems to at the very least to lean away from Kataang even if she's not as into Zutara, and!!! Just good stuff all around lol

The one thing I REALLY disagreed with however is that Evanna does seem to believe that Aang goes through a hero's journey which is patently untrue because Bryke's writing denies him from ever actually completing it but, like, the start of one was there at least, I guess?

All around just VERY embarrassing for Bryke tbh, and VERY satisfying for me as a result

#avatar the last airbender #atla #anti aang #anti kataang #zutara #anti bryke #braving the elements

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dairy-farmer · 4 days

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Please consider this ridiculously convoluted idea inspired by my favorite Norse myth:

Basically, there are a couple of parents whose son is being threatened by a monster (ogre / trolls/giant / whatevs) and they pray to Odin for help to protect their son. Odin says no because he's busy and/or he's not interested in helping these random humans. So next they try praying to Thor for help but get a similar answer, and start to despair. But Loki happens to hear about Odin and Thor turning down this couple and their son and shows up to intervene and defeat the monster (I suspect because of how many children Loki has lost in the mythology). The story ends with the three of them giving Loki a hug in thanks.

So what does this have to do with Tim and the bat family? Consider: Justice Lords situation and let's say because of the whole 'being okay with murder/be evil but thinking they are good' thing, the Justice Lords either have no beef with or are actively friendly with Ra's. Ra's has taken an interest in the son of a wealthy Gotham couple named Tim and has sent them a message informing them that he / his minions will be coming to collect Tim.

First, Jack and Janet try asking Superman for help to protect their son, but Superman is basically 'I'm far too busy taking care of the world to worry about one random kid' about the whole thing. So next they try petitioning Batman, but since Batman has a neutral, trending-towards-positive relationship with Ra's in this universe, he declines to interfere.

But Bruce has a son; Dick Grayson, AKA Nightwing AKA formerly Robin (and everyone knows that Robins, the first one at least, are rather mischievous. Thus the Loki role)! Dick hears about the situation and how both Superman and Batman have declined to help. And maybe, even if Ra's and his League aren't enemies in this universe, let's say Dick has some animosity towards Talia ( how dare she try to date his father: Baby!Dick to the rescue cockblock) and messing with Ra's is a roundabout way of messing with her.

So Nightwing shows up and sends the assassins (possibly even Ra's himself) packing, saving the day! Jack and Janet are so grateful, and bring out Tim from the panic room they had hidden him in to meet and thank Nightwing personally. And when Dick sees Tim for the first time, he falls in love instantly: Tim is a beautiful teenager, all smooth pale skin, strong yet delicate limbs, silky black hair and intelligent blue eyes. He blushes so prettily when he thanks Dick for keeping him away from Ra's (and from definitely becoming his new little wife).

Dick plays it cool, even while he drinks in every detail of Tim, already planning how to court this beautiful young man. Nightwing even cracks a joke about getting a kiss for saving the damsel in distress. He is pleasantly surprised when Tim blushes, looking down nervously, before placing a hand on Nightwing's shoulder and leaning up to press a sweet kiss to his cheek.

Dick wants to stay longer, but unfortunately he has to figure out how to clean up the mess/get the assassins back to Ra's before it becomes an issue. He promises before he leaves that he will come back to 'check in' on Tim and make sure he's doing all right.

(That's all I really have, aside from this somehow leading to a detailed and relentless (and enthusiastically welcomed) courtship that ends up with Tim revealing that he knows who Nightwing really is and them eventually getting married (and fucking nasty style, of course 😘)

Thank you for indulging me in this myth nerd silliness! 🦇

❤️❤️❤️❤️!! dick obviously being so unable to resist sweet little tim, he's tim's knight in shining armor afterall, his little damsel which tim is all too happy to be ❤️!

#answered asks #asks #anonymous

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hearts-hunger · 1 year

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four weddings and a funeral — part one

Read on AO3 | Masterlist | Series Playlist ♫

Series Summary: You and Danny haven't spoken in years. When the two of you stumble upon a week of weddings, funerals, and the hotel rooms in between, will fate rekindle your friendship or put the old flames out altogether?

Chapter Summary: The last place you ever expected to see him again was a funeral.

Pairings: Danny Wagner x Reader | Genres: friends to lovers, slow burn, fluff, mutual pining | Word Count: 3.6k | Chapter Warnings: smoking, drinking, funerals

A/N: Danny's cabin fic! The real one! I'm hoping this one goes better than Wild and Blue - I'm sorry again for abandoning it, but I hope this one makes up for it. Also, this fic has nothing to do with the movie of the same title; I haven't seen it, and I just liked the idea of social events pushing a couple together. I hope you like it, my loves! ♡

Of all the places to be without a lighter, you decided this was one of the worst.

You fished around in your little crossbody bag, already knowing you didn’t have one but hoping you’d get lucky. The American Spirit between your lips was stained with the most neutral lipstick you could find; you figured there was no use looking glamorous for a funeral, and you’d gone for an understated look when dressing in your plain black cocktail dress earlier.

You gave a frustrated huff. You hated funerals, and you’d only gone to this one because your mom hadn’t wanted to make the drive alone. The visitation service was for the relative of a friend of hers from years ago; you didn’t even know her name. You’d made sure your mom was settled talking about the good old times with a few of her friends before you’d stepped out to get a little nicotine in your system.

But, no lighter, no luck. You abandoned your search, leaning on the railing of the gazebo that stood on a hill out behind the funeral home.

You hadn’t been standing there two seconds before cigarette smoke wafted past you, and you frowned in confusion. Looking down, you saw someone standing at the foot of the gazebo, leaning back against the post. He held a lit cigarette in his hand.

“Hey!” you called.

He tilted his head back and looked up at you from under a mop of curly brown hair.

“Hey yourself.”

“Can I borrow your lighter?” you asked. You came down the stairs and around to the side where he stood without waiting for an answer, and he held his lighter out for you without protest.

“Thank you,” you said, returning it to him and taking a drag. You felt a brief sensation of butterflies when your hand brushed his; he was young, about your age, and almost too pretty to be somewhere so ordinary.

“You’re a lifesaver,” you said.

He chuckled. “No problem.” He took a long drag and exhaled through his nose. “Needed a break from all the fun inside, huh?”

You gave a wry smile. “Yeah, I guess. I’m not a huge fan of funerals.”

He raised a brow. “No? That’s strange. Most people love them.”

“Okay,” you conceded, and you couldn’t help but smile when he gave a soft laugh. There was something oddly familiar about him, though you didn’t have the faintest idea where you could have seen him before.

“Were you close with... uh, the deceased?” you asked. You felt bad that you couldn’t remember her name and felt heat rise to your face. “My mom was friends with the family years ago, so I’m kinda just here for moral support.”

He brushed a wayward curl back from his face.

“Her name was Janet Baker,” he said. “She was a really old lady who lived a good, long life, so it’s not so terrible to see her go. She was ready.”

“Did you know her well?” you asked.

He shrugged. “She was a friend of my grandparents’. My mom spent a lot of time with her. I didn’t really know her, I guess, but it’s nice to see how many people loved her.”

You hummed in agreement. “That is nice.” You finished your cigarette and looked around for a place to throw it out. Your mystery friend held out his hand.

“There’s an ashtray up by the back door,” he said. “I’ll take yours when I take mine.”

“Oh,” you said, putting it in the palm of his hand. “Thank you.”

You looked up at him. “I didn’t even introduce myself before I accosted you for a lighter,” you said with a nervous smile. “I’m — ”

“I know who you are, sunshine.”

You blinked. You couldn’t remember the last time somebody had called you that. It had been over a decade, certainly, and in fact the only person who ever had called you that was a skinny thirteen year old boy who lived down the street from you when you were in eighth grade.

“Danny?” you asked, incredulous.

He grinned, flashing that millionaire smile he’d had even when you were kids. “Yep.”

You stepped back and shamelessly looked him over head to toe, all six-and-some-odd feet of him. He spread his arms and did a twirl for you.

“Not too bad, huh?” he asked.

You almost didn’t know what to say. You’d always figured he’d be a good looking boy, but seeing him now — he’d grown into that lankiness, all broad and strong and lean. His curls were bouncy and healthy, streaked with blonde highlights; his features were dark, defined, and beautiful.

“Uh, no,” you said stupidly. “You look... great.”

His smile was a little crooked. “You’re not too bad yourself, sunshine.”

You were surprised at the flood of butterflies you felt. You’d had a crush on him all those years ago, and it seemed that it had grown up with you.

“I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you,” you said. Granted, it was kind of bizarre to run into him again after all these years, especially at a funeral.

He shrugged. “That’s okay. I’ve actually been trying to look as different from middle-school me as possible, so I’m glad it’s working.”

You laughed. “I can understand that.”

He shook his head. “No way. You were always going to be beautiful, sunshine. Even back then.”

You blushed vividly, a surprised and nervous giggle escaping you. “Oh, well, I don’t know about that. But thank you.”

His smile was too genuine and warm for him to be teasing you, and you allowed yourself to enjoy his compliment. You couldn’t let yourself get too far down the rabbit hole, though; you were in a place in your life where you’d be likely to take any attention that was offered, even if it wasn’t in your best interest.

You smoothed your hands over your skirt and tried to think of something intelligent to say. You’d almost settled on something when you felt a drop of rain on your shoulder; you looked up towards the darkening sky and felt a few more drops on your face.

“It’s raining,” you said.

You looked back at Danny to see him watching you with a gentle, decidedly interested gaze.

“Do you want to go back inside?” he asked.

You were a little lost in his pretty hazel eyes. Had they always been that dreamy?

“No,” you said. “I...”

All of a sudden, the heavens opened; rain came fast and heavy, and you would have been drenched if Danny hadn’t grabbed your hand and ran with you around the side of the gazebo and up the stairs. You stopped, a little breathless and damp, under the shelter of the roof while rain poured down around you.

You brushed your wet hair from your face. “It sure is a gullywasher, huh?”

He laughed, and the sound was sweet and musical. “A what?”

You smiled. “A gullywasher,” you said. “A heavy rain that usually doesn’t last that long.”

“I’ve never heard that before,” he said, amused. “But I’m filing it away for future use.”

“I’m pleased to be of service,” you said. The two of you made your way to a bench on the opposite side of the gazebo. “I teach vocabulary for a living, though, so I’m afraid I’m going to have to charge you for that information.”

He raised a brow. “Is that so?” He angled himself towards you on the bench. “And just how much does that word cost, sunshine?”

You smirked. “Give me a swig of whatever’s in that flask you’re hiding, and we’ll call it even.”

“Me, hiding alcohol at a funeral?” he said, aghast. He pulled the flask you’d noticed earlier out of his inside jacket pocket as he spoke. “Do you always assume the worst about people, or am I just special?”

“Whichever one makes you feel better,” you said, taking a drink when he offered it to you. The oaky sweet taste of bourbon spread a pleasant warmth through you that warded off the chill of the rain.

“So, you said you teach vocabulary for a living,” he said, taking the flask when you handed it back and having a drink of his own. “Does that mean you’re a teacher? Or some kind of weird freelance vocabulary tutor?”

You smiled. “I’m a teacher. Elementary school.”

“That’s great,” he said sincerely. “I bet your students love you. How long have you been teaching?”

The two of you talked for a long while as the rain continued unabated, passing the flask back and forth occasionally. He was eager to hear about your life since you’d parted on the cusp of high school, and you found him a more attentive and interested listener than most of the guys you’d ever tried to tell your life story to.

“Enough about me, though,” you said, when you couldn’t think of one more interesting thing to say about your job or your tiny apartment or your failed and infrequent attempts at dating. “I want to know what you’ve been up to, Danny.”

He looked a little bashful, then, and it endeared him to you.

“Well, you remember how I was always messing around with my garage band?” he asked.

You smiled. “Yeah. The neighbors loved you guys, turning your speakers up as loud as possible when you were playing.” You’d always liked the rock n’ roll they played, but you’d never been brave enough to ask if you could sit and watch them practice.

“Your bandmates were brothers, weren’t they?” you asked. “What was their last name again?”

“Kiszka,” he said. “The twins, Josh and Jake, and their brother Sam who’s my age.”

“Oh, right,” you said, remembering well the matched trio that had taken up all of Danny’s time that wasn’t spent with you. “Are you still in touch with them?”

“I am,” he said. “We actually play professionally now.”

“Oh, that’s cool,” you said, sincere and polite, figuring playing professionally meant they had a semi-regular gig somewhere local.

His smile was knowing. “You don’t believe me, do you?”

“Sure I do,” you protested. You shivered a little as a cool breeze started to cut through the rain.

“We’re bigger than you think we are,” he said, but he didn’t sound like he was trying to stroke his ego so much as he was trying to convince you of the fact. He shrugged his suit jacket off and draped it over your shoulders.

“What band would you guess we’re kind of in the same popularity bracket as?” he asked.

You were a little embarrassed at being caught out with what he thought was fake enthusiasm, not wanting to hurt his feelings but still unsure he could be as famous as he claimed to be. Wouldn’t you have known if your childhood friend had made it big?

“I don’t know,” you hedged. You burrowed into his jacket, his warmth and the smell of his cologne a heady mix. “I don’t really listen to the stuff on the radio these days.��

“But you know popular songs,” he pressed. “You don’t live under a rock.”

You shrugged. “I guess.”

“Can I play you one of our songs?” he asked. “Just to see if you’ve ever heard of us?”

You smiled. “Go for it.” You were curious to see if you had ever heard it, but you still held your doubts. His band might have been big in the indie scene or something you had no knowledge of, but that wouldn’t do you much good.

He pulled out his phone, hiding the screen from you so you couldn’t see what he was searching. After a moment, the first few notes of a guitar lick started to play, and you recognized it immediately.

“Ha ha, very funny,” you said, giving him a dry smile. “Now show me your song.”

“This is my song,” he said, looking for all the world to be absolutely serious.

“That’s not your song,” you scoffed. “That’s Greta Van Fleet.” You decided to tease him if he was so intent on teasing you. “And if you don’t show me your song, I’ll just assume you were making the whole thing up to impress me.”

He only laughed. “I hope it did impress you, but I’m not making it up. This is my song. I’m the drummer for Greta Van Fleet.”

You have him a fondly exasperated look, over the joke by now. “Sure. And I’m the lead singer.”

Danny grinned. “That’d be something, wouldn’t it?” He gestured to your bag. “Humor me. Get out your phone and look it up.”

You gave a dramatic sigh and pulled your phone out, googling “Greta Van Fleet members”. The page took a moment to load.

“So?” he asked.

“It’s loading,” you told him.

When the page finally popped up, you had to read it more than once to believe what you saw. There it was, in black and white: Daniel Wagner, dum kit.

“You’re not...” You looked up at Danny. “You’re — you’re really the drummer for fucking... Greta Van Fleet?”

“Minus the ‘fucking’ part,” he said. “We tried to pitch it to the label, but they shot us down.”

You could only laugh.

“How can you — Danny, how the hell can you be so nonchalant about this? You’re, like, famous famous.”

He chuckled. “I told you. Do you like our music?”

“Yeah,” you said sincerely. “I mean, I’m obviously not a mega fangirl for them, uh, for you, if I didn’t even know your names, but...” You grinned up at him, too charmed by his down-to-earth warmth to feel very starstruck. “I think your music’s some of the coolest stuff to come out since they invented classic rock.”

He smiled. “Thank you, sunshine. That’s sweet of you to say. I’m glad you like it.”

You shivered again, and he reached over and buttoned his jacket around you.

“I’m sorry I don’t have anything else to give you,” he said. “We can go in if you’re too cold.”

“No,” you said, a little too quickly. You blushed. “I mean... I like sitting out here with you.”

He gave a soft laugh. “I like sitting out here with you, too.” He lit another cigarette, leaning his arm on the railing. “So, sunshine, I gotta know... what’s your favorite Greta song?”

“Hm... I’ll have to think about that one,” you said with a teasing smile. “I really like that one everybody says is a Zeppelin rip-off.”

He rolled his eyes with a long-suffering smile. “Which one?”

You laughed. “I think it’s called ‘Flower Power’. It’s very romantic.”

“I wrote the guitar solo for that one, actually.”

Your smile was delighted and surprised. “Did you really? I thought you said you played the drums.”

“I do,” he agreed. “But I know enough about guitar to write some stuff here and there.” He shook his head. “Jake’s an incredible guitarist. He took what I wrote and made it fantastic when we recorded the song.”

You liked the way affection and admiration softened his features. “What do the others play?”

“Sam plays bass and keys,” he said. “He plays piano like nobody I’ve ever seen. Josh — ” He laughed, like he’d remembered an inside joke. “Josh likes to say he plays the vocals.”

You smiled. “So he’s the Robert Plant devotee.”

Danny chuckled. “You should hear his vocals now. It’s really amazing to hear his growth as a vocalist.” He angled his exhale of smoke away from you. “We did mimic a lot of Zeppelin’s style on our first album, and I wouldn’t change it, but I think we’re starting to come into our own sound. It’s exciting to be experimenting with different stuff and figuring out what we like. Our last album went a different direction to what we’d been doing before, that classic rock kind of thing, and I think it turned out really cool.”

“Sure,” you said, a little dreamy. There was something so alluring about the sound of his voice, the interest in his expression when he spoke. You felt that he could be reading a phone book and you’d be invested in it.

“You’re very polite to listen to me go on and on about it,” he said, sincerity and warmth in his tone. “I must be boring you to tears.”

“Not at all,” you said, shaking yourself out of your dreaminess. You felt your cheeks warm. “I’m sorry. I’m just... still reeling from the fact that we bumped into each other after so long, and that you turned into a rock star since I last saw you.” That was partially true, anyway. You wouldn’t spill that you’d been daydreaming about what it would feel like to kiss him for longer than was strictly appropriate.

The corners of his eyes crinkled as he smiled. “Maybe it’s fate that we met again,” he said. “What do you think?”

You didn’t say that it would be just the kind of cruel trick fate would play on you to bring you back the guy you’d always crushed on and have him turn out to be a rock n’ roll god that women threw themselves at in every city.

“Maybe it is,” you said with a smile.

“We should keep in touch after this, so we can stay up to date on major life changes.”

You breathed a laugh. “Yeah. I’ll give you a call when I play Madison Square Garden.”

Danny put out his cigarette and looked out towards the funeral home where people were starting to gather out on the porch. The rain was beginning to taper off; ladies in their shiny black shoes were starting to brave the wet grass to get to their cars.

“Looks like people are starting to leave,” he said, a hint of regret in his voice. He looked back to you. “I was serious about getting your number, if you’d like to share it with me. I’ve had a great time catching up with you.”

“Me too,” you said. You put your number in his phone when he handed it to you, and your fingers brushed again when you handed his phone back.

You stood, and you had the strangest feeling of something slipping through your fingers.

“Hey, Danny,” you said, hesitant. He watched your face with patience and interest and waited for you to continue.

“I don’t know how long you’re in town,” you said, nervously fidgeting with a pull in the skirt of your dress. “You probably have somewhere to jet off to, thousands of adoring fans to see...”

He gave a soft laugh, and it gave you a little spark of bravery as you looked up and met his eyes.

“Do you want to get coffee or something this week?” you asked. “I’m off on spring break, and... well, I don’t know. It might be nice. Maybe.”

He smiled, but there was something less than happy in it that made your spirits sink.

“I’d love to,” he said, and you almost thought he meant it. “But I do have kind of a busy week — I'm trying to cram as much into this break as possible, you know?”

You nodded. “Right, of course,” you said quickly, trying not to let it show how much you’d really, really wanted him to say yes or of course or let me move around my entire rock-god schedule just to have coffee with you. Something along those lines.

He fidgeted a little, like he was upset he’d hurt your feelings.

“Let me take a look, okay?” he said, and you hated the thought that he was saying it out of pity instead of any real desire to see you again. “I’ll text you.”

You smiled, but it was a little strained. “Sure.” Stupid, stupid, stupid. Of course the drummer for Greta Van Fleet wasn’t going to get coffee with you.

“Can I walk you back inside?” he asked.

“Um...” You saw your mom among the people on the porch. She waved at you, and you waved back.

“I should probably just go meet her by the car,” you said to Danny, feeling shy around him for the first time. Shooting your shot and getting let down gently would do that to you. “Thank you, though.”

“Of course,” he said. He walked with you as far as the gazebo steps. “Thanks for talking to me, sunshine. I’m glad you didn’t have a lighter.”

You couldn’t help a soft laugh. “Me too.”

You didn’t look back as you made your way over to the porch, and your mom was excited to see you when you came up to her.

“I see you found Danny,” she said, a beaming smile on her face. “His mom and I talked for a long time inside.”

“Did you know they were going to be here?” you asked, walking with her to your car.

She shook her head. “I had no idea. But it was nice to see them again, wasn’t it?”

You got in the passenger seat and leaned your head against the window. “Yeah, it was nice.”

You were halfway home before you realized you were still wearing Danny’s jacket. You felt terrible; you reached for your phone to text him and saw he’d already texted you.

Hey, you stole my jacket! I guess we’ll just have to meet up so I can get it back ;)

You bit the inside of your cheek, willing yourself not to feel that fluttery warmth that was sneaking its way into your chest at the thought of seeing him again.

Read part two!

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