#the amount of gay adoration in this fic will be the death of me

[xanthippe74]

Masterlist of my “12 Days of Fandom” recs, inspired by this post. As always, please check the tags and author's notes before reading. Enjoy!

🔸 Terminal Lucidity by @romaine2424 (Drarry, HD Career Fair, rated G, 3K) This bittersweet fic has Harry putting his abilities as Master of Death to good use by comforting those close to death themselves. We see him at work here, adeptly easing the way for someone dear to him with compassion and care. I found this story incredibly moving and a beautiful portrait of family ties in the face of an impending loss. Featuring older, established Drarry and the Black-Malfoy family.

🔹 Our Objective Remains Unchanged by @citrusses (Drarry, rated E, 46K) Gorgeously and vividly written, this university rowing AU drew me in right from the get-go, despite the fact that Muggle AUs are not my typical cuppa. The enemies-to-lovers tension is perfectly paced as Harry and Draco fight for the same spot on the Oxford team. Citrusses did a fantastic job translating their backgrounds and personalities (as well as those of other familiar characters from the books) into this world. Class divisions and the pressure of a highly-public sporting event stand in very effectively for Harry’s canon experiences. All in all, the story has the poignancy and drama of a lush coming of age film, and I can’t recommend it highly enough!

🔸 The Pile by @b-vul (Drarry, not rated, about 1.5K) This hilarious ficlet was born out of littlewinnow’s tumblr post about Veela!Harry performing an intricate mating dance to impress Draco. Delightfully, it’s from Harry’s POV as he blindly “trusts his instincts” to guide him into increasingly bizarre actions. And the evolution of Draco’s reaction is pure comedy gold. I’ve come back to reread this one a couple of times, and it never fails to have me in stitches. (The tumblr thread also contains adorable art by regretfulcorrine!)

🔹 Shine on, You Crazy Diamond by @lagerloutfic (Drarry, HD Mpreg Fest, rated E, 42K) This is one of those fics that you can’t stop reading once you start (something I confirmed this morning when I went to skim through it for this rec and wound up spending a few happy hours devouring the entire thing again). It’s laugh-out-loud funny and deliciously smutty, with a full cast of delightful side characters and just the right amount of feelings. The story begins with the discovery of Draco’s surprise pregnancy, then switches to a long flashback of Harry’s gay awakening and his fast sexual/slow emotional burn relationship with Draco. The entire fic has a joyful feel—banter-filled pub nights, chaotic family dinners, audacious curse breaking—culminating in the baby’s arrival, which left me in happy tears and wishing for another 40K of this fabulous story. Featuring confident Harry, supportive friends & family, hot Charlie, and some shamelessly kinky Unspeakables.

🔸 Silhouettes by @sweet-s0rr0w (Draco/Ron/Harry, Dronarry Fest, rated E, 16K) Draco/Ron/Harry is not a ship I’d ventured into before I read this fic, but I’m so glad I did! Sweet’s writing always hits the right spot in my brain, and her alternating POVs and spot-on characterizations of all three boys are delightful. I especially loved Ron’s sexy self-assurance here. The unique magical theory around sentient houses is fascinating and ultimately poignant, once Draco gets to the root cause of the Burrow’s behavior. Sweet-sorrow surely lived up to her username with this one, weaving grief with humor and a heartwarming resolution.

🔹 Harry Potter Gets a Job (A 106-Page Comic) by dustmouth (Drarry, HD Career Fair, rated M) Dustmouth’s comics never miss, I swear! In this one, we find Harry overcoming his distrust of Draco with the help of the Weasleys, especially Ron (who is definitely up to something himself). All of my favorite Dustmouth elements are here: the expressive characters, Draco’s wild wardrobe choices, and punchy dialogue galore. Also featuring drunken shenanigans at the Burrow, adorable Teddy, and some first-class Slytherin-ing by Draco to win his man (and find Harry that job). What a treat!

🔸 the earth from a distance by spqr (Drarry, rated E, 15K) A whirlwind time-travel fic with breezy humor, bedsharing, and spqr’s unmatched smut with feelings… What more could you ask for in a fic? Oh, yeah: fantastic worldbuilding for Hogwarts in 1599, brilliantly clever Draco, and a dash of enemies to lovers. I can never get enough of this author!

🔹 A Year In The Life by @ladderofyears (Drarry, HD Career Fair, rated M, 19K) I swear, the author conjured a little bit of magic to write this story. It’s told entirely with 50-word microfics, one journal entry for each day of 2006 (an impressive feat, by itself!), and yet it reads just as smoothly as any traditional fic. Draco’s voice is perfect here, full of wit and subtle emotion, as his and Harry’s developing romance takes a sharp turn with an unexpected pregnancy.  Draco’s anticipation, worry, and joy are mixed with deftly-chosen details of his daily life, all captured with Emma’s trademark tenderness and warmth. This fic is a perfect comfort read for family feels and gentle romance.

🔸 try to fix you by @maesterchill (Harry/Ron/Hermione, HP Snooze Fest, rated M, 2K) A beautifully and tenderly written hurt/comfort fic set in the aftermath of the Battle of Hogwarts. Ron is the glue that holds the trio together here, caring for Harry and Hermione with gentle devotion. There’s no dialogue needed to tell this story, just Ron’s perceptive POV that captures the grief and love that compel him. I have a soft spot for this triad forming immediately after the war, as a way of holding onto each other and holding themselves together. Maester’s fic makes their transition from friends to lovers feel like the first step towards healing.

🔹 The Scent of Soft Rains by @dodgerkedavra (Drarry, HD Career Fair, rated E, 20K) When Harry is left housebound and isolated by a traumatic injury, magical prosthetist Draco gets called into help. But Harry’s struggles go far beyond the physical ones. This recovery fic combines magical and non-magical therapeutic treatments in a way I can’t remember reading before. The hurt/comfort is just as it should be—both heart-wrenching and soothing—but there are enough surprising revelations to keep the story from feeling predictable. Draco is wonderfully unflinching and patient, and the ending left me crying happy tears. With lovely, restrained prose and vivid magical imagery, this one’s an absolute stunner.

🔸 Connecting Lines, Connecting Crimes by @sleepstxtic (Drarry, H/D Career Fair, rated M, 15K) With its intriguing careers, fascinating magical theory, and well-researched worldbuilding, this story captured my attention immediately, and the mystery at the heart of it kept me engrossed. This was one of the more thought-provoking fics I’ve had the pleasure of reading, exploring the intersection of magic, the environment, and colonialism. Harry’s first-person POV is lovely, and it feels like we’re learning to love India and the people he meets along with him. The getting-back-together romance is gentle but satisfying, propelled by pent-up yearning that’s palpable. There’s so much to enjoy here, all in only 15K words!

🔹 Waking Up Slow by @sweet-s0rr0w and @ihopeyoubothstaysafefromharm (Drarry, H/D Wireless Fest, rated E, 22K) The first word that comes to mind while reading this fic is charming. First there’s the novel setting: a Christmas shop in the tourist destination of Cheddar Gorge, in the middle of a July heatwave. Next, there’s the shop itself, so imaginatively described and full to the brim with clever Muggle and magical details. Then there are the delightful OCs, Draco’s seemingly unhinged enthusiasm for all things Christmas (including ridiculous jumpers), and Harry’s complete disregard for professional behavior. But underneath the playful banter and humor, there’s also a layer of poignancy to tug at the heartstrings, especially when we find out the backstories behind Harry’s and Draco’s unlikely careers. And to top it all off, like the glowing star on the tree, are Joy’s exuberant, colorful illustrations. This is a Christmas-y fic I’d reread any time of the year.

Thanks to all these brilliant creators for sharing their work with us!

Happy New Year!

#12 days of fandom #2023 favorites #drarry #dronarry #harry/ron/hermione #fic recs

[whenyoucallmelover]

everything i read this month! ✷

august flew by as it seemingly always does, but i still managed to read a decent amount! no smut recs this month…sorry to all of you naughty lil readers hehe, i just didn’t really read much smut this month for once.

(just a lil heads up~ i read a few fics this month that contained some scenes/discussions that may be upsetting to some. i find a lot of catharsis in writing + reading stories that i can see myself in, but i know it’s more triggering than therapeutic for some people! so please, as always, read the author’s tags & warnings!)

✷ under 10k words.

🍎 Ice, Ice, Baby, @beelou (1.1k) tags; tooth-rotting fluff, figure skater harry, pining, no smut

🍎 Hold On Tighter, @hellolovers13 (1.4k) tags; no romantic relationship, coming out, trans harry, angst and feels

🍎 A Beacon of Hope, @justanotherghostblr (2k) tags; girl direction, non-traditional a/b/o dynamics, insecurity, nesting, alpha/alpha

🍎 The Elf Who Saved Christmas, @ladyaj-13 (2k) tags; meet cute, christmas, mall elf harry, sweet big brother louis, fluff

🍎 listen to me, butterfly, wherewestood (2k) tags; a/b/o, alpha louis, omega harry, nesting, emotional hurt/comfort, established relationship

🍎 Take the Moment and Taste It, @hellolovers13 (4k) tags; strangers to lovers, first date, footballer louis, singer harry, fluff and smut, cheeky harry

🍎 Running Over Thoughts That Make My Feet Hurt, @enchantedlandcoffee (5k) tags; a/b/o, baker harry, little league coach louis, dad harry, omega drop, confessions, kid fic

🍎 The Scent Of Grapefruit, @red-pandaaa (5k) tags; fluff, no smut, demisexuality, coming out, established relationship, lots of cuddles

🍎 Sex Drunk Suckerpunch, @thinlinez/@gaygodlou (7k) tags; reverse sugar baby, sugar daddy harry, sugar baby louis, but! harry is louis’ baby, escort louis, fluff and smut, stubbornness, banter and humor, tw: brief mentions of death, age gap (25 & 39)

🍎 Your Secret's Safe With Me, @lightwoodsmagic (7k) tags; online friendship, secret identity, prince harry, friends to lovers, first kiss, fluff

🍎 In Shining Armour of Trackie and Trainers, @ladyaj-13 (9k) tags; bad dates, strangers to lovers, famous louis/non famous harry, fan harry, protective louis, tw: non-con elements (read end notes for more info!)

✷ over 10k words.

🍎 Been Here All Along, @bravetemptation (10k) tags; college/university, american football, mascot harry, first kisses, mutual pining, quiet harry, jock louis, secret identity (...? kinda?), tw: panic attacks *absolutely adored this one! i found this to be a great representation of what social anxiety feels like to me and i really appreciated it! x

🍎 It's A Start, Anonymous (10k) tags; neighbors, angst and fluff, first meetings, hate to love (ok, hate is a strong word…annoyed neighbor-to-lovers?), protective louis, hurt/comfort, tw: past abuse

🍎 tread lightly on my ground, @lookslikefairytale (20k) tags; a/b/o, mpreg, miscommunication and misunderstandings, touch deprivation, omega drop, angst with a happy ending, mutual pining

🍎 (Gimme a Solution and) Watch Me Run With It, @lululawrence (21k) tags; famous harry/non famous louis, friends to lovers, sharing a bed, assistant louis, emotional hurt/comfort, lovely sweet caring louis, harry styles needs a hug, touring, tw: panic attacks

✷ multi-part.

🍎 Take me, Take Mine, @likelarryfics (54k, 5/5) tags; a/b/o, boudoir photoshoots, photographer louis, slow burn, healing and recovery, angst with a hopeful ending, tw: discussions of past abuse *favorite of the month <3 

🍎 Just a Flower Boy, Larryruinedme (70k, 15/15) tags; highschool au, popular louis, openly gay harry, jealous louis, secret admirer, first time, discovering sexuality, tw: mentions of homophobia *a classic fic that i just read for the first time…a lil late to the party; love a cheesy old fic tho!

don’t forget to leave a comment and kudos for the authors & reblog their fic posts! ･ﾟ*｡･

#there’s a lot of a/b/o this month…i fell down a rabbit hole oops #monthly wrap up #trackinghome #trackinghappily #tracksintheam #hlficlibrary #thelarriefics #hlsource #larry fanfiction #larry fanfic #larry fic rec #larry stylinson #harry styles #louis tomilson #28th appreciation #(on the 29…so close)

[chrononautintraining]

All right! Fine! I’m in! Can you recommend me your favorite fic in the non-hobbit fandom that you post about a lot? I’m not familiar with it all so a fic that explains canon a little more than an a total AU would be best

No biggie if you don’t want to recommend any hahaha just send me on my way with a ‘no’

Yes! Join us! You must be referring to The Untamed, which is a Chinese drama based on a web novel translated into English under the name The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation. It has a lot to recommend it to Hobbit fans! Swords! Legendary monsters! Do you like that scene in the Fellowship of the Ring where the hobbits stumble across the ancient tomb and are almost laid to rest by a barrow-wight, but come out with the Numenorean blades? I have good news about both leveling up weaponry in graveyards and ancient tombs!

If your preferred way to enter a fandom is a fic rec, I have to say A Narrow Bridge by JoLaSalle and FrameofMind is my current favorite. It's a Fix-it-AU that tells most of the early canon through flash back scenes while diverging wildly. I'd say it goes into even more detail than canon about how some aspects of cultivation and demonic cultivation works. Moreover, it has a *lot* to appeal to Hobbit fans. "How do you feel about pastoral novels?" she asked knowingly. Please enjoy two devoted, justice-loving idiots growing radishes in a graveyard, zero feet apart because they are in love.

Okay, so A Narrow Bridge is 700 thousand words. A big part of the appeal of this fandom is how many incredibly writers go for sprawling, epic AUs. There is a library here waiting, if you find you like the blorbos. That said, if you're looking for something a little shorter:

Short and Sexy - if this is what you like in a fandom, my friend, this one has a tremendous amount of well written, niche smut.

River-to-the-Sea Sure by Deastar is ~7k words of heat. This fic is A/B/O, which is not usually my thing. So believe me when I say that it is both extremely sexy and genuinely virtuous. It captures the characters of our main leads and their usual dynamic very well. Interestingly, this is the first in a series of A/B/O Bingo by the author, which somehow manages to keep Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian in perfect character no matter their "dynamic". But the dynamic illustrated in this story is the one you meet with most often.

But the rose was awake all night for your sake knowing your promise to me by x_los is ~8k of magical lovemaking. Very magical. Using tentacles of resentful energy...

Midlength Mysteries - my understanding of the genre is that the typical format involves two cultivators traveling together to investigate supernatural mysteries. Here are some of those.

And I will Call You Home by Spodume 42k of a post-canon investigation into some mysterious deaths. This is an interesting example of the ways the monsters in cultivation novels differ from traditional western Dragons In Need of Slaying, ala Smaug. At its core, this is two investigators working a problem, and one very smart protagonist coming up with an answer. Also, the investigators are in love. Love is the answer.

Vagabond by xantissa is 65k of something similar, equally good, with added undertones of gay culture in ancient china. I really adore this one, but maybe read one or two other stories first so the climax has its full impact.

Look Not With the Eyes by Spodume 28k Classic tropes, truly classic mythological creature, absolutely adorable. Is it kind of cheating to recommend two by the same author? Maybe. Do I low key think you should just start with this one? Yes. Two men travel to investigate a mystery. After a strange encounter, they find that everyone they meet falls instantly in love with one of them. The other is totally not extremely jealous, but works hard to solve the mystery and fix this serious problem.

And once you're in deep, hit me up again! I have a million AUs to recommend.

#wangxian #the untamed #chen qing ling

[multidimensionalmusicalmess]

A bunch of praise of Olivia Barnett-Legh's performance of one specific scene, and of the west end revival's version of Heather Chandler in general

(This post is copied over from Reddit; I wrote it there originally because I was shadowbanned here.)

Disclaimer: I've never seen a portrayal of Chandler I didn't enjoy, and each actor brings at least one unique and brilliant thing to the role. While Olivia is my personal favorite for the reasons below, I don't mean by comparing her to other actors to in any way disparage those other actors, and this post is obviously my opinion, not fact. Also, I am very gay, and am biased towards any version of the show that makes it easier to read things in a gay manner.

Additional disclaimer: I will be extrapolating way too much from small details in this post. But isn't that the grand tradition of musical theater fandom?

Okay! So, despite being in the Heathers fandom for... way, way too long, to the point that I named myself Heather after Chandler a few years ago, I only got to see the show live for the first time a couple months ago in August. I was lucky enough to see the last West End revival cast with Miracle Chance, George Renshaw, and Olivia Barnet-Legh, and I adored Olivia's portrayal in particular so much that it singlehandedly got me back into the fandom and inspired a (so far) 50k word fic I've been writing ever since.

To preface, I'll talk a bit about what this particular production of the show does for Heather Chandler—if nothing else, because a lot of people seem unfamiliar with it, and it's worth being familiar with. Generally speaking, while the 2014 off-Broadway production made Chandler an entirely villainous and external presence, the latest version of the show has done a lot to bring the story a bit more in line with the movie, in which Veronica and Chandler were close friends before the story even began. In the 2014 production, Chandler's death is barely a tragic event, and it certainly isn't seen as one by the other characters (except perhaps McNamara). Veronica says after Blue that she doesn't feel as bad about Chandler's death as she should, and they share little chemistry other than that of enemies. It makes the line "I just killed my best friend" ring very hollow, for all the other merits of the original show.

This is radically changed in the latest production. Listing all of the ways the two characters have been made closer would take too long, so I'll just go over the big ones. Firstly, the line about not feeling guilty is cut, and replaced with an earlier and much more sincere "I feel bad. Heather was a human being, and we killed her" right after The Me Inside of Me. The croquet scene is made longer and changed from awkward and tense to playful and relatively friendly (except, obviously, Chandler's interaction with Duke). Several of Chandler's more confrontational lines with Veronica are cut (such as "You're doing it wrong!"). 'Ghost Heather' is given significantly more stage time, and, most importantly, shares a genuine rapport with Veronica. The two talk together in the background of multiple scenes (such as during Martha's added conversation with Fleming before Shine A Light) in what looks like an amicable way, and—my personal favorite—after the new conversation between Chandler and Veronica after You're Welcome (formerly Blue), rather than delighting in Veronica's suffering at the hands of Duke, Kurt, and Ram, Chandler actively gets between Duke and Veronica, in what (in most performances I've seen) reads as an attempt to protect her, or at least possessive jealousy. Granted, she does eventually give up and join in the song, but, well, she's still Heather Chandler.

(As a side note, all of these scenes between Veronica and Ghost Heather have an enormous amount of visible dialogue that isn't audible to the audience, and while I know that there probably aren't set lines in the script there, I would kill to hear what the characters are saying to each other)

All this sets the stage, so to speak: The most recent version of musical Heather Chandler is, while still arrogant and mean, much less cruel, and seems to share a mutual affection with Veronica. So, where does Olivia come into this?

First off, I'm incredibly biased towards her performance because she's gorgeous, has a ridiculous and entertaining voice, is a head taller than Veronica, and plays the gayest version of Chandler I've ever seen. But that goes without saying, and this production was really gay for plenty of other reasons anyway (particularly at the show I saw, where Veronica sang "A hot girl smiled at me" in Big Fun).

What stuck out to me most, though, and the reason I love her performance, is how she plays Heather after her death, especially the part of The Me Inside of Me clipped above.

It's long been a subject of speculation whether Heather Chandler's appearances after she dies are her literal ghost, or a figment of Veronica's imagination. Generally, I think it ends up largely down to acting decisions, and most actors make it pretty ambiguous (though there's been a shift towards the ghost end of the spectrum in later productions when compared to the 2014 one; Olivia, for instance, is far from the only actor to physically drag Veronica around during Never Shut Up Again).

Olivia, though, leans harder into the ghost interpretation than anyone else I've seen. I won't say she confirms it—that's impossible without script changes—but she heavily implies it, most notably in the above scene.

There are a few ways actors tend to play this part of The Me Inside of Me (the section most open to individual interpretation). Some, like Charissa Hogeland from the famous 2014 bootleg, Maddison Firth from the proshot, or Jodie Steele from the first West End run, mostly stand around being indignant and smug, which does undeniably work for the character. Others, like Emma Kingston (also from this revival), plays it very contemplatively, which I also like.

But Olivia panics. Her Chandler reacts exactly as I'd expect her to react to as if she were actually a ghost and had actually just discovered that nobody at the school who used to worship her could see her anymore, and I adore this for several reasons.

The first and most subjective reason is that it's extremely angsty. I read a lot of fanfiction, and seeing someone play Chandler in a way that felt like it stretches the boundaries of what the script allows for is brilliant. It makes the scene very sad in a satisfying way.

More importantly, this sadness radically alters the tone of the song, and by extension a large part of the show, in a way that I'd argue improves it. In most performances, The Me Inside of Me is a comic song. It's darkly comic, of course—this is Heathers—but the complete misunderstanding of Chandler's character, and Chandler's reaction to it, is mostly just funny.

Olivia's running around and trying to get people to notice her during the second chorus changes (a large part of) the song from darkly funny to outright eerie. Her escalating panic and terrified expression, plus her horrified reaction to the suicide note, suck most of the positivity out of the scene. Of course, it does still end with her being overjoyed at the attention, because that's how the show goes—but the influence of this part stays there, and its influence is apparent in every other scene she has as a ghost.

It impacts more than just her, though. Frequently, I've seen people criticize the musical for making JD seem too justified in his actions. Some dislike the addition of You're Welcome because they feel it casts Kurt and Ram as people who deserved to die; some dislike the emphasis on his tragic backstory in general. I don't agree with this critique, personally; I love sad, sympathetic JD. However, I do agree that the musical has often suffered from not showing negative consequences of the murders. Sure, Veronica says she regrets Chandler's death, but besides Duke's coup, it can be hard to see why her death or those of Kurt and Ram are really so bad. Olivia's performance during The Me Inside of Me, and to a lesser extent later on, makes immediately clear the tragedy of Chandler's death; it's obvious to the audience that, despite how united the school suddenly is, nothing good is happening here.

The biggest influence all of this has on the show, though, is how it changes Veronica's relationship with Chandler. Of course, no matter how you interpret things, they were clearly some degree of close in this version of the story; even if Chandler is a hallucination, Veronica cares about her enough to hallucinate everyday conversations with her. If Chandler isn't, though, and is really there—as Olivia's performance implies at every turn—then those interactions mean so much more. They mean that Chandler values Veronica enough to spend time talking to and in physical contact with the person who indirectly killed her, and, though we don't see much of their dynamic together before Heather's death, they imply that they really were close; or, alternatively, that Chandler is spending time with the person she condemned to social execution because nobody can see her anymore and she feels like it. It means, in short, that everything she does after her death can be taken as evidence about Heather Chandler, rather than about Veronica's stressed-out mind.

Now, obviously, I'm extrapolating a lot of meaning from a very short scene. I'm also praising Olivia's performance specifically when many of the elements that contribute to the ghost interpretation of Chandler are scripted, and thus shared by everyone who plays her in this production.

But, honestly, I'd just never seen anyone play Chandler's realization that she's dead remotely like this before, and I was really excited by it when I saw the show; I figured I might as well share some of that excitement with other fans. Hopefully the more fandom-minded among you (that is, people inclined to engage with fics) can see why I find this version of the character so fascinating, and those who aren’t can at least be amused by my extremely long post.

#Heather chandler #olivia barnett-legh #I've since been informed that Maddison Firth also does something like this #and that she just doesn't in the proshot #which is a shame #heathers #west end heathers

[allbrodennis]

not dvkt, but currently obsessed w/ Brodennis!! any fic recommendations???

YESSS AHDHHA this ask made me so happy to receive omg

ok so the deal with brodennis is that there are 4 fics of it on AO3 so far, all are written by @laurasauras and all of them are freaking FANTASTIC.

if you haven't read her stuff in general, oh boy you are missing out!!!! she is one of the most talented fic writers in our fandom and YES she's one of my besties but i totally was a fan before i ever got to know her ok!

she is the queen of rarepair fics and she has this superpower where she can write any ship and NOT ONLY sell me on the merits of it, but ALSO make me wish i could read a million more fics of that ship. it's honestly infuriating and i love her to death.

here's a link to all her brodennis stuff bc it fucking slaps and also i sooooo badly need more brodennis content in the world! i cannot shill this ship enough. i need it like air.

if you want more specific info about fics...

No Homo

Summary: "Bro is just a dude who didn't plan on having kids, but is dealing with it pretty okay. Dennis falls into his life and doesn't leave. They're bros for life. Bro has no idea how it could be considered anything more."

THIS GODDAMN FIC makes me completely fucking feral and it owns my soul. i have this obsession with like frat boy dude bro ships where they jerk each other off and justify it as "not gay" somehow and this fic hits every single thing i love about that trope.

Road Trip

This is a DirkJohn-centric fic that features the first appearance of BroDennis in the Laurasauras canon!!! They're very much a background feature here but at the same time they totally steal the show in the BEST way.

The Evil You Know and The Evil You Let Go Of are an excellent and HILARIOUS superhero/villain AU.

from laura's author note: "so this started as a dramatic estranged brothers thing and then idk dennis happened and suddenly it was adorable. you are extremely welcome!"

dennis exhibits a delightful amount of himbo behavior in this series, and honestly so does bro. they are both so stupid and also so smart and talented and in love with each other 😭 also D is there HAHA sorry dave i love you too <3

i hope you enjoy the fics and i extra ESPECIALLY hope that more people catch on to the magic of brodennis and give me even more food to eat 🥰

#ask #fic rec #fic #bro strider #brodennis #dennis from gamebro #homestuck

[elizabethrobertajones]

Ship bingo: Aymeric x Estinien

Grats on the bingo :P

TBH the attempted murder one could be in that one cutscene but I think when it's possession it doesn't really count, and you already had a bingo.

Anyway I ship them every which way... I love so much of the stuff people make in fandom for them and then I have multiple layers of canon in my own brain. Like, obviously just enjoying them being shipped face value fluffy and together in the story of the game. I gobble up the fan art and fics :D Just pure vanilla (or, not, but you know, just them together without other people or epic break up arcs or AUs or whatever) Estimeric is like, a baseline ship of the game to me and textually canon to a considerable degree for the amount they hint at these things.

Then I have my more complicated canon I weave around my WoL where I think they were together (with Haurche) and broke up when he died and then there's MONTHS or YEARS of delicious angst depending on how long you think SB is before they begin moving on, so every time they mention each other until EW is all sad gay pining. In Frogverse I ship her with Aymeric and I ship Estinien with Vrtra so they're not even together, but it's a lot more amicable and I think it's going to loop around somehow but I haven't really felt that vibe yet, in the same way I haven't felt a good point in canon to trigger canon Frogshtola but it's definitely real. But at the very least by EW in Frogverse, Estinien is no longer leaping out of the nearest window at the suggestion Aymeric is nearby.

They're probably married in Galvinverse though, since he's a lot less obtrusive on breaking up big ships, since he's just there in a weird universe where he's monogamous and exclusive with Urianger so I have to envision a world where Thanuri isn't canon and never was, so if I can handle that, I can handle anything and Estimeric perma-breakup is nothing to that. Anyway, that would be a very placid reality where they are all fan fic fluffy and nice :)

I do also adore Haurche lives scenarios that keep them all together because they're sold as a set in my head, so that's a major aspect of the ship to me. I don't have a sort of meaningful canon where I have a coherent narrative or WoL that interacts with that, so it's all very fan fic vague to me that I will just see or make the scenario and point at it and go "nice!" because I don't feel any real need to have Haurche alive in a main canon for my WoLs I've become attached to as characters, unlike how I have mentally unfridged the other major HW death and sent her to live with the moogles in all canon as far as I am concerned >:)

Anyway that's a long ramble that didn't even get into all the different dynamics that all throws up but basically I love them in pretty much any configuration.

#ffxiv #estimeric #listen this fandom allowing you multiple versions of canon #and canon being exactly what you want it to be and how you shape it??? #absolute kid in a candy shop after I crawled out of the trench warfare of the Supernatural fandom

[craw-dacious]

Thats the art of getting by, by sarewolf

Again, new to marauders. This fic 3 that I’ve read. Feel free to shoot me recs, currently looking for ~100,000 word fic with a good angst balance and no major character death.

Summary: Overall this story was INCREDIBLE. I loved the writing style, such a good amount of angst, and an easy to follow narrative. It raised Harry like exactly how I wanted and was so cutey and sweetly and UGH

SPOILERS BELOW BEWARE

Chapter one

I already like the opening quote. Can tell the writing is going to be good.

God the angst is already great

He’s only 24 wild

I kind of forgot just how much he lost that night, like all of his closest friends were dead. Even in canon, with no world star this probably sucks the worst for Lupin.

Okay I’m actually crying already

I’ve been wanting a babyfic since the first one I read

This is such a hard thing to do, parenting is hard without the trauma and sob storying

Chapter two

I wonder how they are going to reincorporate Sirius

And I’m concerned about Harry’s quietness, I feel like that’s not consistent with who he grows up to be

Hoping for some baby Ron and harry content eventually 

I never give Kudos until the end of the fic, this is incredible and I absolutely adore it already

Literally crying from how sad Remus is Jesus

Chapter three

YES love old lady gossip

Neris is so cute delicious

Plus Harry is opening up a lot, so far very happy chapter!

So gay bruh

HARRY BEING SAD TOO IS KILLING ME JUST A BABY FR

This is actually fucking INFURIATING him being like “Sirius never loved us” like BRO I know you’re being LIED TO but I CANNOT HANDLE IT TOO SAD

Chapter four

Now I need to be a depressed widow with a three year old son who loves me

Like I think just having a child would patch my soul

This is actually the cutest thing ever love love love

I think me and remus lupin are the same person

Like gay traumatized werewolf = teenaged girl

“Oh the memories, oh the love” SO ME

YES RON AND HARRY BEST FRIENDS IM GONNA SOB

Damn he’s in love with Sirius fr fr

Can tell this is a shift, so gonna do a small recap

Wonderful characterization

Remus kind of being forced to push forward is great narratively, a little concerned about how it will work with pacing

They write Harry very well, not annoying as children can often be in fic

Chapter five

This is what I wanted, you see James and Lily in harry and remus is just thoughtful and reflective enough to show the audience the importance of this its just MWAH

Oh my god

Baby trauma. He’s so cute and being such a little bitch

Literally so sad, like remus is such a better parent than the Dursleys could ever be but him knowing what harry had makes it sad

If I have to read “angry fucks” again im gonna lose it, say sex please, at least sometimes

YES HE’S FREEEE

Chapter six

God this sucks, like I know they aren’t truly in danger but the emotional turmoil goes crazy

3 chapters till we get Sirius saying it now

Cannot understate how much remus’s pining and distraught connects to me

Like I can tell they were in love but SO TOXIC which, again, is teenage girl core

Not to diminish the relationship, I think the way teenage girls evaluate breakups and romance is like peak human condition and is incredibly poignant amidst the issues of war and death and loss.

YES FUCK YES HELL YEAH INNOCENT INNOCENT INNOCENTTTTTT FUCK PETER HATE THAT SON OF A BITCH

Chapter seven

UGH I know I said fuck Peter but this still sucks ass

When do I get to see Sirius. Ik I said 3 chapters but I didn’t mean it

Damn Petes evil as fuck

The justice in him being DECLARED innocent is so beautiful. I wish that could’ve happened in the books, he died being known as a shitty, terrible human being

Chapter eight

Ok skip this shit and jump to the gay sex I do not want a flashback rn I need TEARS

Jk obviously its important and builds suspense, well written two with good symbolism

Fuck fuck fuck fuck just kiss please I need them to kiss please

Like I actually cannot watch them be fucking roommates ill vomit

Sobbing sobbing sobbing “I hope not” Jesus fucking christ let me suck the authors dick I love this sm

Chapter nine

Just taking in the idea that both Sirius and Harry see each other as a replacement for James in the books, that is such a beautiful like concept with such horrible influences on how they treat each other and I really want to see how its reconciled here, if its relevant at all

Harry with his two dads that barely speak to each other

I do need reconciliation but making sure the weight of tragedy is like there also seems important

But also, please, just fuck already

Chapter ten

Ok remus time to put your big boy pants on and apologize

Like actually nothing will fix itself until you say sorry man

“He’s pack” BRUH harry

Pls having to tell everyone you’re living with this famous not-criminal is so funny I actually am losing it

Pls just be nice to each other for once bruh

Yay!! Nice!!

They’re so like fucked up its messy brother

Chapter eleven

THIS IS SO CUTE IM GONNA KMS

The dog plushie, the memory album, literally everything god I love Christmas

Omfg. Sweater. Sobbing.

AND HITTING ME WITH ANGST AT THE END. This is such a good joy-depression balance

Like its SO SO SAD like irrevocably depressing and filled with grief but also like LIFE and CHILDHOOD and JOY and bruuuhh

Chapter twelve

evil

Chapter fourteen

Basically skipped twelve and thirteen

Jesus Christ

That was gay sex fs

The dementors kiss scene was fucking heart breaking, like devastatingly sad but obviously Peter deserved it

Actually idk, soullessness is so horrific

Then THE KISS and the SEX and everything it was so raw and good and Jesus fucking christ

I want to have sex with eric again bruh

Just so sad, and so happy at the end with the talk of learning to live with it and just UGH amazing I love it

Literally cannot think of a critique atm, im sure ill have some at the end though

FULL RECAP

Yes I know I skipped 16 and 17 and I'm sorry.

Overall this story was INCREDIBLE. I loved the writing style, such a good amount of angst, and an easy to follow narrative. It raised Harry like exactly how I wanted and was so cutey and sweetly and UGH. I will say I wish there was more to the plot than “everyone is sad and trying to not be anymore”While that is a completely reasonable story, it does make it a little boring. But because this fic is fairly short it works out alright. My only true criticism is going to be on the pacing. I am not sure at all when Harry and Remus were introduced to each other, or how far after that Sirius came into their lives. I also think Harry and Sirius’ connection, while amazing, was a bit unrealistic at the beginning. For a child with this much past to IMMEDIATELY latch onto someone like this is kinda wild, but it works for the story so no big deal honestly. I think characterizations were good, not great. However, this is a situation we haven’t seen marauders in and I’m not super familiar with how marauders are usually characterized outside of reading the books and watching movies, so I’d reevaluate characterization stuff once im more engrossed in the fandom.

This is something I just thought about while adding tags, having moody in this fic was nice. He's a character I'd like to see more out of what I've read so far in marauders

9/10, truly loved this one

#fanfiction #wolfstar #harry potter #fic rec #fic #post war #post azkaban sirius #remus lupin #sirius black #alastor moody #baby harry

[erstwhilesparrow]

what's double life, sparrow? it almost sounds like a dnd podcast title jsdfgkjh

reyni, i would like to preface this by saying that i'm genuinely delighted and flattered by your consistent efforts to reach out / discuss shared interests, and that i hope my responses reasonably convey how much i like seeing you in my inbox. i appreciate you! :]

that said. i regret to inform you double life is not a dnd podcast; it is a minecraft roleplay series on youtube. double life is the third season of what i think we're calling the life series, where a bunch of creators scheme, collect resources, and fight to the death on a very small map. the goal is to hold on to your limited number of lives longer than everyone else, and the prize is [???]. (the prize is you have fun fucking around with your friends, and a lot of people on the internet get very sad about your roleplay character.) i have seen double life be described by turns as a telenovela, a sitcom, and a minecraft gay marriage simulator. i really really like it, and in particular i'm a huge fan of the way they do soulmates, but i will put that under a cut for reasons of [talking a lot about something that is not really directly answering the question]. i'm (not very) sorry that i keep reblogging fanart that makes silly youtube videos look all edgy and serious :P

hi there, welcome to the space underneath the readmore! the thing about double life is its shiny new conceit, the thing that makes it different from previous seasons of the life series, is (:sparkles:) soulmates! each player is "soulbound" to one other player, and what this means mechanically is that when one of them takes damage, the other person takes that same amount of damage. what this means narratively, on the other hand, has widely varied depending on the creator / soulbound pair.

i've tried describing this set-up to multiple people without mentioning the minecraft component and the thing that particular exercise has thrown into sharp focus is that "person who feels your physical pain (and only your physical pain)" is. not necessarily a very conventional definition of soulmate. and the thing i keep ending up at is that i kind of adore that fact? it gets dressed up in language and behaviour we typically use when dealing with romantic relationships (some characters refer to their soulbound partners as their "crazy exes", others find their partner and immediately start flirting with them, i mean even just the fact that they call this being soulmates) but it is so important to me that the soulbond is fundamentally a game mechanic.

it's completely arbitrary who gets paired with who, and i know that none of the creators went into this game with the goal of picking apart the whole way people often think about romance, but the fact of its randomness combined with the ways the players talk about the bond is so deeply appealing to me for a soulmate story because i think it opens up avenues and / or spaces for discussing aspects of romantic relationships i am personally very interested in exploring?

i've thought for a long time about soulmate stories, because i'm invested in Doing Weird Shit to romance tropes (see: that summer i wrote what is to date my longest published fic about hanahaki But Make It Weirder) and this is sure one of them! i know there are other people -- on tumblr even! -- who are interested in this too, but i've never been totally satisfied with the stories i've seen?

like, obviously, just playing the trope straight throws me off because it constantly feels... too easy? like it shouldn't have worked out that neatly? it typically assumes a certain amount of... natural importance to romance that i don't agree with? but the ones that try to complicate the trope have also never quite clicked for me. the closest i've gotten to being able to say why is... i think they are often "what if soulmates existing sucked for this one specific person because [this person isn't their soulmate's soulmate / this person is in love with someone who isn't their soulmate / this person doesn't seem to have a soulmate at all / this person is aro which comes with its own set of potential complications]?" and there's. it feels like a personal problem? one that that specific person has to [repress / ignore / cope with / solve]? and that, on top of being wildly depressing, just. doesn't ring true or feel interesting to me?

because sometimes [gestures broadly at the whole thing of dating / relationships / falling in love] is good for people! it works out for them, and they genuinely are getting things they need / want out of it even though it's not perfect! i care about stories that can play around with that! i don't care about stories where this works out fairy-tale-happy-ending perfect, but i do care about what it takes to get to this being Good For You, what those types of people might fail to consider when they assess other people's relationships, the very subtle ways things can go wrong in a relationship because parties involved have been told their whole lives that this thing they're doing is Good and Correct and The Only Way, what it looks like to feel that pressure toward a romantic relationships and attempt to conform to those expectations, and so on. there are so many different ways to be hurt here! and that sort of thing just. doesn't fit into either of the models of soulmate stories i've described above?

but double life! double life has So Much of that! it's so delicious! there's such a range in the way that the players approach the bond, and it's so so fun and useful as a springboard for thinking about and illustrating -- in the [greatly exaggerated for funsies but nevertheless reflective of real parts of our society] way of sci-fi / fantasy fiction -- so many of the ways people approach romance, outside of the binary of [Perfect And Good] and [Just The Shittiest Ever]. and, again, i cannot imagine any of the creators set out to On Purpose say any of the stuff i've described here -- it was improv and playing around and friends trying out new stories to tell. but they give themselves over to an arbitrary system for defining their relations to each other, and some struggle to fit themselves to it and others don't, and we as the audience can see just how arbitrary it is but we and they find meaning regardless, and none of them think to say, "hey, what if we just gave up on every single piece of this system entirely?" and in the end it all falls apart anyway, because separate from being a soulmate story it was also a death game and it was never not going to be a tragedy. i care So Much about it. despite this being the season where the rules of the game themselves seemed to intertwine themselves with the concept of love, it was also the season where the power of love failed, where everything unravelled not despite but because of it.

#chattering sparrow #thanks for the ask! good opportunity for me to talk about things i've just been rolling around in my brain for the past uh. six months. #i just. wow. double life smp you own my entire heart. #i do not feel as awkward for talking this much as i otherwise might because i suspect this is at least loosely relevant to #some of your interests reyni

[feedtheriver]

i just wrote 2.1k words about being in love. it's cold in my room. i have a crush on a boy. i have i'm done with the world by foals running through my head. i am desperate for a hug and to be protected. life is serene after midnight.

#talks #i am deficient in all forms of love: romantic; platonic; familial. #sometimes it isn't enough to just love yourself and that shouldn't be something that is looked down upon #humans are natural company-seekers. we are social. we crave love like we need it to survive because we do. it's vital. #i use that yearning to fuel my writing and it's honestly both hard on me and soothing #the amount of gay adoration in this fic will be the death of me #writing tag

[sweetmotherof]

Haikyuu Fics: The Classics™️ (pt 2)

PART 1

I already thought of more, and I didn’t want my first part to be super long, so here is a part 2!! I’ll probably make another couple of parts because I know I missed some. So again, please comment if you have any recommendations for me to add, it’s highly appreciated. Also, just some housekeeping, please mind the tags and go give the authors some love and support!! I hope you guys enjoy!! (My summaries are super bad for this one so just look at the summaries for the work or ask ahah id be happy to elaborate)

*contains nsfw fics, so please read the tags*

⭑=my faves

TSUKKIYAMA

~quick deanpendragon spam (they are the mastermind of tsukkiyama fics read all of their stuff pls)~

campfire in your chest by deanpendragon

M, 74.4k words

This is the classiccccc slowburn, childhood friends to lovers, slowburn through high school fic. With an amazing plot, beautiful writing, and stunning characterization, if you like Tsukkiyama at all, you should literally just read it. It’s just....perfect.

the certain things we lack by deanpendragon⭑

M, 89.6k words

AHHHHHHHH STOP DON’T TALK TO ME IF YOU HAVEN’T READ THIS. no no no it’s so good like should be published good. It’s Kei-centric, and him and Yamaguchi are so <333 ugh i can’t stop. High school au, canon compliant, getting together yeah yeah yeah but the writing is.....i’m speechless it’s so good. Something about it connected with my soul and the writing, i can’t stop the writing is so good. If you like to read, like you just appreciate the art of literature, read this read this read this. 

blue summer sky by deanpendragon⭑

T, 32k words

Deanpendragon, take all of my money. You deserve it after this one because, oh, oh MY GOD it’s so good. Yamaguchi working in a pet store. Tsukishima working in a music store. Right next to each other. STOP READ IT NOW YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO. It’s Yamaguchi’s POV and his like stream of thoughts is SO relatable oh my god. It’s too good. This is hands down one of my fave fics so,,,,, u should read it. Also, it’s a series so, thank you for that one.

~~~~

Stoplights by 5yenwish(iamacamera)

E, 48.6k words

Something about Tsukkiyama authors, I would literally ask the president to get you ppl published because JESUS we do not deserve these works for free. I mean, this is just Yamaguchi, Tsukishima, and Karasuno being VULGAR and hilarious, and it’s like,,,,you have to have a certain type of humor to enjoy this. If you don’t like sex jokes AVOID this fic, but I loved this SO MUCH. The writing, ughhhhhh the writing is horrifyingly good. I kinda just really want to pay this author money because you made my life smmm better. On Hiatus tho,, probs forever so <//3 STILL READ IT

MATSUHANA

boiled frogs by reginagalaxia⭑

E, 91.5k words, cw: EMOTIONAL ABUSE, mental health issues that come with that

SAD BOY HOURS ughhh. This fic is so angsty and hurt so bad to read,,,,,,but so,,,,goood. Of course it’s depressing, it’s Hanamaki, Oikawa, and Iwaizumi watching Matsukawa be in an emotionally abusive relationship, all the while Hanamaki is in love with him,,,, eyeroll it’s very hard to watch. But, the writing is amazing, the plot is painful but good, so if you’re considering, you definitely should read.

rated m for by orphan_account

T, 10.6k words

Voice acting au. The most beautiful voice acting au ever. I love Matsukawa and I love Hanamaki, and you should definitely read this because it’s so funny. The writing is so good, the plot is so funny, and I love to laugh my ass off and this fic is funny lol. They act in a BL even though they hate each other. PLS READ IT AHAHHAH.

plus one by orphan_account

G, 6.1k words

This is the cutest lil getting together fic that so adorably fluffy it hurts. If you want to come down from, oh let’s say boiled frogs ahahhaha plug (look above lol), this fic will literally rot your insides with how cute it is. It’s quick, easy, and a fun time at a wedding, so if you just want some matsuhana for bedtime or something like that (?? what am i saying lol) then I definitely recomeend this one.

DAISUGA

Open Tab by Mooifyourecows⭑

E, 541.5k words, cw: anxiety, breakdowns (not that bad, but some parts made me feel a bit on edge so I thought I’d let u all know)

The longest fic I’ve read, and worth every second. I BINGED this mf, like in a couple of days lol and it’s so good. Artist Suga, bartender Daichi, gay panic and basically all of the other main haikyuu characters lol,,,,, read it if that sounds interesting. I think this is probably the staple Haikyuu longfic, so you should definitely check it out at one point or another. Also, it’s SO funny and the writing is rlly good. Oh, and it’s a SLOW BURNNN.

bell, book, and candle by skittidyne

M, 762.9k words, cw: blood, swearing, violence, minor body horror, death, anxiety/anxiety attacks/panic attack (part of the author’s warning)

I’ve seen so many people recommend this one, so I thought I’d include it in this recommendation, even though it’s focused around a lot of the ships, not just daisuga. It’s a supernatural hunter fic, and even just the summary is super captivating and interesting. If you like fantasy, mythology, or anything of the demons and magic sort, you should definitely check this one out. There is also some ~~magical~~ romance.

Cardboard Castles by valiantarmor

M, 18k words, cw: homophobia, mental strain that comes with homelessness

For the sake of your guys’ brains, I included this shorter fic that you could definitely complete in a short amount of time. Basically, this is about coffee barista Daichi, and how he meets Suga, who is secretly homeless. And romance blooms, of course. I definitely recommend this one if you want a short, kind of angsty, but happy ending read.

KYOUHABA

Police Dog by surveycorpsjean⭑

E, 34.9k words

This fic is so so sooo good. I usually stray away from like shifter, werewolf type fics, but this one handles the trope so so so well. I love the kyouhaba dynamic and this fic exemplifies it without making it too cliche. The premise of the fic is Kyoutani is a dog shifter and Yahaba is a police officer. I really had a great time reading this and I definitely think that you should check it out ahhah.

Close to the Chest by darkmagicalgirl

T, 61.1k words, cw: HOMOPHOBIA LIKE BAD (not violent but very internalized and prevalent) 

Yahaba and his self-acceptance journey,,,,ughhhh im crying. This fic is vvvery emotional and filled with angsty self-hatred that makes me :(((. but BUT its worth it because watching him grow :’) and find love in Kyoutani. it’s very warm and happy at the end. If you want a CLASSIC coming of age set in high school and very gay so <33 pls check it out. The plot and writing are really well done and it is a work of art srsly.

#haikyuu #haikyuu fic recs #haikyuu fanfiction #hq #hq fanfic #tsukkiyama #tsukiyama #matsuhana #daisuga #kyouhaba #tsukishima #yamaguchi #matsukawa

[brain-reads]

dnf fics that make me scream into my pillow at 2 am

disclaimer: i do not wish to cross the ccs boundaries in any way possible. if they ever say or indicate that shipping makes them uncomfortable, this post will be immediately deleted. 

i will keep updating this list as i read more

note: all of these fics are on ao3

complete, multichapter fics:

heat waves: classic angst with fluff, such a good fic tho the descriptions are so well written

inkling: THE WAY I SCREAM FOR THIS FIC PLEASE ITS INCREDIBLE AND I REALLY DONT READ A LOT OF AUS GDSFUIJHSD anyway- this is basically about a soulmate au where anything you write on your skin is shown on your soulmate’s skin on/after both of your 18th birthdays and oml it was adorable (bonus karlnap! sgfhbd) this is one of my all time fav fics and i would HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT !!!

chasing snowflakes: mutual pining, fake dating au because george has been telling his family that he has a bf but he doesnt, angst and christmas fluff

12 days of DNF-mas: sequel to chasing snowflakes and honestly the loml i would marry this fic if i could it is so cute with the right amount of angst and asghfhdsvbfhhsdn

7 minutes in heaven, but it’s 7 days in florida: SFGHDJFJHSGDFSBDCX I LOVE THIS FIC SO MUCH IT MAKES ME SO HAPPY WITH THE AMOUNT OF MUTUAL PINING AND FLUFF AND SAPNAP THIRD WHEELING IS SO FUNNY 

lovesick (the beat inside my head): the only au i am probably going to read for dnf ever, highschool au, dream and george havent seen each other and dk where they live, gnf is moving to florida, meets clay at his new highschool, and well ;)

seconds, minutes, hours, lifetimes: highschool roadtrip au! oh i loved this one so much, it was amazing i would highly recommend it <3

stick with me: angst. so much angst. but it is so worth it the feels are insane!!! dream and george trapped in an airport together because of a hurricane, chaos ensues

heavenstruck: guardian angel au !! cw for major character death (i cried a lot in this one but it is so worth it)

hold me close: ahhh the yearning the angst the fluff this fic is just *chefs kiss* i would highly recommend it (also!! a tiny bit of bonus karlnap again :D)

it was only a fic: sfgdhn dream accidentally gets invested in a dnf fanfic. that cant end badly can it 

moment’s silence: smut and sexual tension. thats all i have to say for this fic (the students really be actin like us dnf stans-)

incomplete, multichapter fics:

tidal pools and stars:  it’s an amazing read, quite a lot of angst but mixed with some softer moments (i cried in this fic like thrice-)

helium: sequel to heat waves, hopefully with a happy ending? it’s genuinely so good there’s an incredible balance of angst and fluff

blushing!: oh my GOD this was AMAZING ITS ADORABLE AND SGFHB BONUS KARLNAP AND SKEPHALO (implied) DSGFHBD I WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS FIC

an interstate paved with memories: another roadtrip au ! updates every friday

early age: im so sorry this is so much angst theres a lot of tws in this fic too so please go through that before you read it

bedroom walls: oh boy are y’all in for a wild ride on this one. college/uni au, frat boy dream, internalised homophobia, SMUT, this fic has it all 

oneshots:

this is a drista moment, lets just accept it: drista content my beloved, i’ve only ever read one more dnf fic that’s been from drista’s pov (and sadly that was only the last chapter) and i loved it! this is such a sweet oneshot there’s just something so domestic about these fics and i am so asgdfhjshf /pos AGAIN THIS IS ONE OF MY ALL TIME FAVOURITES AND I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT

they say love is contagious: sickfic!!! all fluff no angst, absolutely adorable, dream, sapnap, bbh, and big q are all visiting george and dream is just taking care of him because he gets sick sdfhdsbvjfdn

“i thought i lost you”: the PAIN OH MY GOD I CRIED its so beautiful the yearning the love the everything and the way i can picture this so vividly- i would highly recommend giving it a read

3 am showers: ahhh such a cute domestic oneshot, honestly i love sickfics so much they’re adorable

paper rings: read it. trust me. it will not let you down i swear

hold what’s close to your heart: dream and george are dating in this one and they finally meet and oh its just so cute

you are home: this is so super cute, another feel good domestic fluff fic that just warms my heart :’) george reminisces over some special moments in his and dream’s relationship 

like real people do: tooth rotting fluff. its another oneshot and just,,, yes. i read an incredibly angsty and frustrating fic before this that i will neither name nor recommend but this just fixed my mood completely

chasing rays of sunlight: red string soulmate au 10/10 would recommend

stella by starlight: god domestic fics just make me so happy, george is in florida, but he’s here to stay! and just in time for new years too!

tawny, marigold, caramel and somewhere in between we fall in love: another fic centered around george’s colourblindness! i swear these are just too cute to handle-

stumbling into place: sdgyufjhbn i laughed so hard this is so cute and funny the way sap think george got a cat is so gdsfhbv

heart and throat, lined with it: im gay and touchstarved so i read about gay cuddles help

strawberry blond: roommate au!! college au !!! ahhh i love it 

stay on the phone just to hear me breathe: a 5+1 of dream watching george sleep (it sounds creepy when i say it like that but i promise its good)

dream’s dollar donations: established relationship, dream and george have a fight and now dream’s trying to make it up to him <3 super cute and fluffy

#dnf #dreamnotfound #dnf fic recs #fic recs #fanfiction recommendation #dreamnotfound fic recs #fanfiction #mcyt fanfiction #fluff #angst #fluff and comfort #ao3 #archive of our own #dreamwastaken #dream #dream mcyt #georgenotfound #george #george mcyt #dsmp #dream smp #dream smp fanfiction #dream team #dream team fanfiction #minecraft #minecraft fanfiction #mcyt #oneshot #oneshots #multichapter fics

[billiewena]

hey tabitha i just saw you finished and this your living kiss for the first time? 👀 what are your thoughts on it?

(spoiler review under the cut lmao)

LOVED IT LOVED IT. so I’m not a big AU person (I love canonverse too much and there’s always so many OOC characters... it's why I never finished Beat Sheet RIP, though it was hilarious and now that I know the plot twist through tumblr I kinda want to finish it just for that.) But this hit just the right amount of buttons for me.

I think their relationship translated soooooo well to this alternate universe. like, what is dean if not just some guy with a shitty, shitty life but lots of spirit and love who somehow inspires cas to be himself and break free y'know.

the side character roles were so creative too. like, missouri being his former teacher and mentor? kevin being the insecure student in class who was worried he'd never measure up to the poems from class? even tired-and-true tropes like charlie being his best friend felt more fleshed out with the flashbacks to how they met and her having her own life & story rather than just being there to be the emotional gay support.

also I said this here but I really do like that jack was the saileen kid instead of the destiel kid. I'm not big on baby jack (sorry y'all.) to be fair, this is definitely a personal preference since I don’t really care for babies or kidfic in general lol (the responsibility of raising a baby is terrifying to me and I don’t get the appeal of a ship having one) and have complicated feelings on dean & jack in general. but sometimes it sucks to see the importance of sam & jack's relationship undermined just to give dean/destiel a baby too, especially when he had been the first one to truly be there for him and care about him. so this at least fixes that.

uncle dean works SO well too. he’s not his father but he does spend a lot of time taking care of the kid and still becomes a huge part of his life. and it also meant we got to have a young jack who greets everyone by signing and I think that’s absolutely adorable (love that he was still adopted too.) sam got to more than just the “brother who is off at law school” too, loved them discussing the intricacies of being raised by john winchester and dean seeing how sam is trying to be a better father to jack.

anyways, as for the actual meat of the fic I mean woooooooooh the psychoanalysis of dean winchester through poems were written SO well and delicately. I’m not a very cultured person when it comes to poetry so I honestly learned a lot about form and prose from the discussions about it in both cas and missouri’s class. jack allen’s style is so fun and the kind of poetry I would be way more into over the “I am very intelligent” types the other students seem to prefer, with the way it feels more real and storytelling and references pop culture. it’s why I enjoy spn bloggers’ poems so much I think, because I know what it’s referencing.

but yeah, the “perfect” poem had me crying and seeing cas’s reaction to realizing the “lazarus” poem was about him was great. dean’s first poem about death was actually my favorite, I loved that it used creatures from the show like Thee Death as metaphor and imagery in his poem. it’s just such a cool way to tie in canon.

other small moments I liked: 1) the alternating POVs showing how each saw the other and were like “wow he is out of my league” 2) the hilarious discourse on how his poem was “femalecoded” and Max and Kevin basically being like “yeah that’s not a thing” like hello spn tumblr and 3) DEAN’S BIRTHDAY <3

was it borderline lifetime rom-com? sure. is it very unrealistic that a lot of people would show up to a lgbt college group’s poetry seminar because there was an attractive teacher? definitely. but overall, it’s just a very soft and sweet fic that I think any artist or creative type (not just poem writers) can relate to and see themselves in.

anyways this is definitely longer than what you asked for but WOOF I like this fic a lot, talk to me about it

sidenote: had a very out-of-body experience reading this part of the fic after realizing this fic was written in 2019 aka a YEAR BEFORE THE CONFESSION???

#the cascord has been doing a fic of the month club which is why I finally read it #next one up is strandlines so wish me luck #last one was Teaching Poetry to Fish which I haven't actually finished yet because I made the mistake of trying to read it one sitting #asks #gracekisses #destiel #and this your living kiss

[frosted-night]

Realized I never publicly dropped the lore about the depiction of Sergy Lermantoff that i made in collaboration with @sp00kfr0st so im gonna try to fix that!

Here are big details about him that y'all might be interested in.~

He has no interest in the guardian vs Pitch conflict these days. He didnt at first but was swayed in by Pitch's honeyed words. Sergy doesn't care about children and their belief. He just wants to stay tucked away in his Valley Of Lost Dreams and experiment with the dreamsand.

Sergy is an expert on dreamglass. It was his study of it that drew Pitch there in the first place, besides the rumors of the Valley itself. He likes to melt it down and put irrelevant dreams next to each other in mosiacs. The experiments he does isn't really ethical but he doesn't care. It isn't like hes harming actual people.

Sergy doesn't have many allies outside his valley but he has a handful! (See below)

Ombric was a good friend and they studied magic together. Sergy stole a number of books from The Library Of Alexandria with Ombric's assistance. Ombric foresaw the library burning down and Sergy impulsively acted(to the surprise of no one who knew him) He looks upon those books fondly and misses his old friend.

Sandy was suspicious of Sergy at first but had a silent truce with him prior to Sergy's serpent transformation. When he heard Sergy was saved and was back in the valley... it made him curious. They began to slowly develop a tight friendship as Sandy vowed to help keep him out of the war between Pitch and The Guardians. Sandy helped clarify things about dreams and reignited Sergy's fixation on his former studies. Presently, Sandy is one of his closest friends and playfully teases him whenever he visits.

Mother Nature is his closest ally alongside Sandy. It was her who saved him from death by the guardian's hands after hearing him actually say how he didnt want to die. (Which should've been impossible for him to speak in his serpent form.) She kept him in her realm to help try to reverse his curse and her merciful act confused Sergy greatly. Her patience, mercy and protectiveness allowed him to be more vulnerable around her. He knew she had a connection with Pitch but never tried to pry. He knew she was hurt by him in some form and felt a kinship with her. They feel no romantic love for each other, but the platonic love between them is strong. He adores her visits and watching her navigate under the valley's dizzying effects. She saw past his monsterous exterior and he saw past her intimidating stature and hardened walls. They saw themselves as two monsters finding someone who could finally understand them.

He has a signature weapon! Its called a Ranseur. It has some stones imbedded in it that renders certain entities/spirit's powers null. It mostly effects dream spirits.

Sergy has happened upon unfortunate humans that were claimed by the valley multiple times. If outsiders aren't careful, they will fall into an endless sleep as their dreams flow through the valley until they die. He has no power over the fate of one in such a condition. All a victim can hope for is that Sergy finds them before they fall into the cursed slumber. He's indifferent to seeing such sites ironically enough. The most he does is leave an offering out of respect and then let the valley have whatever is left of them.

He's kind of an asshole who doesn't care much for human life. Considering he is barely considered a human at this point, he doesnt see it as hypocritical. If a human dies in the valley then he does not focus on it. Its those who die while suffering that make him care.

If you asked me what -core aesthetic fit him the most, it'd be Dreamcore/Weirdcore. The valley he lives in makes outsiders hallucinate wildly in similar manners to dreams or just batshit visuals. He loves to document what people experience and watch them trip out in his presence. Sergy has a high resistance to the valley's affects but he can allow it to overtake him for a short amount of time.

His relationship with Pitch is dubious present day. They have yet to interact after Sergy was presumed dead. Pitch has no idea Sergy is alive and Sergy tries to keep it that way. Pitch tries to bury their past yet he cant bring himself to throw out the dream mosiac Sergy made for him. Sergy has very conflicting feelings over Pitch and tries to avoid talking about him. They were initially drawn to each other by pure fascination, since Sergy showed no fear over Pitch and did morally questionable things with Dreams. While Pitch's powers over nightmares appealed to the darker side of Sergy's interest of dreams.

His home is what you would imagine a magical dream wizard researcher would have, but you'd be surprised at the odd pieces of furniture he has tucked away. Sometimes outsider's hallucinations inspired him to conjure odd furniture just because it sounded hilarious to him. His favorite piece so far is an inflatable chair shaped like a bear. The concept sounded so bizarre to him that he couldn't resist.

Sergy Lermantoff is gay! 🏳️‍🌈

Thank u for reading abt our scaley grumpy boy. If you'd like to read abt his encounter with Pitch, check out my fic below! (More are coming including his backstory with Mother Nature)

And if you want to see art of him, check out @sp00kfr0st 's blog. <3

#rise of the guardians #guardians of childhood #sergy lermantoff #lermantoff serpent #sanderson mansnoozie rotg #sandman rotg #pitch black #pitch black rotg #ombric shalazar #ombric rotg #mother nature #mother nature rotg #emily jane pitchiner #jack frost #jack frost rotg #oc #dunno if its headcanons but uhhhh #headcanons #i guess

[experiment-000]

My Top 10 Ships of 2020

It's been a weird year but I've seen other people doing this. Plus this year I've been way more into gen fics (love a bit of found family especially in clone wars and marvel) than anything shippy. So I genuinely don't know what imma put on here aside from two ships for sure. Sorry this post is super long idk how to do the below the cut thing and I've had this app for 5 years...

10) Viktor Nikiforov and Yuuri Katsuki - Yuri!!! On Ice

It was a real toss up between this, supercorp, kanera and wolfstar cos they're all very integral ships to my fan heart but this son because of the Yuri on Ice fandom's rebirth this year. I've never stopped shipping this, never stopped reading fanfic of them for any extended period of time, they're still my most bookmarked ship on ao3 (although I think now star wars - all media types may have overtaken them for fandom). They were one of the first things I watched where the queer ship I loved became canon and I can't wait for the film (and hopefully someday a season 2). Heck I even made my mum watch Yuri on Ice with me so I think that says it all.

9) Edelgard Von Hresvelg and female Byleth - Fire Emblem: Three Houses

My first fire emblem game was fates when I was like 14 (and finally gay awake lol). I was so disappointed that I had to be with a guy character because the only female option was kinda creepy and also I wouldn't get the character of kana. So when three houses came out I was so happy because finally there were beautiful incredible female characters my female byleth could romance (I'm so sorry mlm you deserved so much more than you got). I got the game as soon as it came out (had to search a lot of shops let me tell you) and started on black eagles. I was actually kinda disappointed back in 2019. I didn't like the explore the monastery bit (still find it kinda tedious) and the battle mechanics weren't quite the same as fates (no pairing up?! Aka my main battle technique for protecting the weaker units). So I got like 20 hours in and put it down. Came back to it in lockdown and finally finished it! I'm so proud of myself I virtually never finish games. And I fully fell in love with the useless lesbian edelgard in the process. When I started back playing in 2020 I was like eh I wish I'd picked a different character to romance (like shes an emperor that's morally very shady) but then the romance stuff started with edelgard and I fell the heck in love.

8) Cory Matthews and Shawn Hunter (and Topanga Lawrence) - Boy Meets World

Disney+ was released in the UK this year and I finally got the opportunity to watch boy meets world in its best quality (aka not on YouTube). I watched it back when I was like 12 or 13 and it's such a nostalgic show for me. Watching it again I still absolutely adore it (and my bi ass was low-key crushing on Shawn especially in chick like me - I'm 18 btw and I got so scared for a sec but rider strong was 18 when chick like me came out so it's fine woah). And of course now I see the possibilities of the beautiful Cory and Shawn relationship like they were so bromance it was basically romance and throw in topanga it's the perfect ot3 (but I'm also fine with just Cory and Shawn or just Cory and Topanga). Read some good fanfic for them this year. My favourite was one about Shawn stealing makeup and stuff and exploring gender (need more fics like this I'm biiii).

7) Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes - Marvel Cinematic Universe

I rewatched all the MCU films this year too. And got really into Peter parker whump and irondad. Plus my eternal obsession with identity and relationship reveals of course led me from Spiderman identity reveals (and found family cuteness) to stucky coming out. Especially when it involves the internet and social media. Not my favourite ship but it's been significant to my year due to the sheer amount of marvel stuff I've read.

6) Satine Kryze and Obi Wan Kenobi - Star Wars

I rewatched clone wars in prep for season 7 and wow Satine's death was sad and sudden. She first appeared in S2 E13 I think and just the sheer sexual tension of their bickering. "The sarcasm of a soldier. The delusion of a dreamer." Just ugnnhhh my bi ass can't take much more of this. And Anakin just sipping his wine in the background grinning. And I fully believe korkie is a Kenobi.

5) Commander Cody and Obi Wan Kenobi - Star Wars

I am very much an Obi wan multishipper. I don't really have a favourite but I fully believe he was with satine and Quinlan in his life. I don't think be would've actually done anything with Cody because of the whole superior officer thing. And this probably isn't even my favourite Obi wan ship - that honour probably goes to quinobi or obitine. However the most popular ships in the fandom are codywan, quiobi and obikin. No offence to anyone who ships these they're just personally not to my taste, but I can't stand quiobi, and obikin I find only slightly more tolerable and I think that's just because there's so much obikin content so if I like the concept of a fic that happens to be obikin I'll read it. I'm just not a fan of the mentor/student relationships. So I generally favoured the codywan fics when there was shipping involved meaning I read a lot of them this year. Needed that nice fix it content post season 7.

4) Zuko and Katara - Avatar: the Last Airbender

Again I am a multishipper I have nothing against zukka it's cute. But I'm a zutara shipper first and foremost because when I first watched avatar I was like 13 and denying my gayness and gayness in general so I shipped the straight things and the straight things only. Most of these ships I stopped shipping - dramione, spuffy, some my little pony ones which we don't talk about. Zutara stayed. (I have nothing against any of the things I used to ship I just stopped shipping them so much/shipped new things more). I've continuously shipped zutara since I first watched avatar even if I didn't necessarily spend that much time on it it has always been here as one of my favourite ships. It has such good fanfic I swear including my favourite ever fanfic from any fandom - love thy enemy. Plus like the black games (reread this for the millionth time this year), a delicate subterfuge (which I read for the first time this year and damn it's so good) and so many more. With the avatar resurgence this year I haven't actually rewatched avatar aside from my normal random episode every now and then when I feel like it. But there's been a lot of avatar on my dash from people I follow getting into it and people I followed for avatar returning so naturally I returned to the fandom and read quite a lot of fanfic. I also read just a lot of avatar gen fics which were great at the whole found family thing I've been so obsessed with this year.

3) Catra and Adora - She Ra and the Princesses of Power

Catradora is canon! They kissed! What more is there to say. Arguably they should've been top but I never shipped them that much since I was always very much a multishipper when it came to she ra so yes I was very happy it became canon because we actually won for once but also I've never read much fanfic for them etc. But they are very much a dynamic I love and watching she ra all again in prep for season 5 I really enjoyed the build up of their relationship. The other two only go above because Buffy is my favourite show ever and damn there's some good fuffy fanfic and Aphra and Tolvan is both fresh in my mind and star wars owns me. Would love some catradora fic recs btw if anyone has them tho.

2) Buffy Summers and Faith Lehane - Buffy the Vampire Slayer

I didn't realise it was last year that I got super into them but according to my ao3 bookmarks it was lol. 2020 I swear it's lasted an eternity. I got into them about a month before lockdown (which feels like another lifetime). I've loved Buffy since I first watched it when I was 13. It's arguably still my favourite TV show. I've been through a lot of ships for Buffy - bangel to spuffy and now fuffy. I still think angel and her were a beautiful ship back in season 2 and especially in the angel episode I will remember you. But faith and Buffy had so much chemistry in season 3 - she would've been a fresh start for Buffy and the amount of fix it fics I read I swear. My favourite has to be one where they met in LA during Anne and how that changed everything feat Buffy's internal homophobia.

1) Cheili Lona Aphra and Magna Tolvan - Star Wars

I read Darth Vader (2015) and Doctor Aphra (2016) for the first time at the end of 2020 (got a comic subscription which has served me very well already I've nearly finished the star wars canon comics). Just to see canon queer ladies in star wars was so magical for me as a queer lady. I didn't think star wars would be so overt yet as to have a queer kiss in canon (even if it's in the comics) and especially not with the main character of arguably their main comic series. Now we just gotta hope that we'll get it in live action someday soon. They weren't the ship I consumed the most content of in 2020 but they were the highlight of my 2020 because star wars did that and I finally found out about it

Honourable mentions: Vivian and Elle - Legally Blonde, Candace and Vanessa - Phineas and Ferb, Stevie and Alex - Wizards of Waverly Place, Xander and Spike - Buffy the Vampire Slayer (I actually don't ship this but damn some authors are good - this was the ship that made me realise I don't need to like a ship if the author is good enough to write it well), Eli Vanto and Mitth'raw'nuruodo - Star Wars (started reading the books last year but finished this year and only started with fanfic this year), Villanelle and Eve - Killing Eve, Kanan and Hera - Star Wars, Barriss and Ahsoka - Star Wars, Remus and Sirius - Harry Potter, Kara and Lena - Supergirl (let's hope this becomes canon next year!) (Those last four are ones I've shipped forever some of my og ships but nothing particularly big has happened for me this year with them so)

I got Disney+ this year so rewatched a fair few things from my youth and though hey my obsession with that character may have been a little gay.

#fuffy #chelli lona aphra #aphra x tolvan #magna tolvan #zutara #top ten ships 2020 #very star wars lol #victuuri #edelgard x byleth #codywan #catradora #obitine #stucky #shory #shorypanga #idk what their ot3 name is #boy meets world #hmu if you like any of the more obscure of these #or vibe with my reasonings #top ships 2020 #and if anyone wants any fic recs for any of these ships just ask

[voughtcorsair]

DANGER DAYS RECLIST

hi everyone! i wanted to organize a few of my fave fics here! i will continually update this & please feel free to send more in the comments or tags, so everyone check the notes!

DOESN’T HAVE TO BE ALL DESTRUCTION by SPELLINGBEE

@enby-partypoison​ / spellingbee / kir has never written a bad fic in aer life...destruction was one of the first fics i read when i was new to the fandom; it’s a superpowers au with jetpoison & funkobra, the ending is SOOOO beautiful (it will rip your heart out at some points though.) i’m also a big fan of once you go hazy, you’ll understand, playground eyes, and the alien au in particular, but everything’s worth a read!

STEADY AS IT GOES IN EDEN by DOUBLEMASTECTOMY

a SUPER angsty and terribly heartwrenching fic by my friend val @doublemastectomy​. the war between killjoys and bli is over, everyone lives, and then party poison ruins everything. his other fics are absolutely wonderful, too, fading out is a fave of mine...(oh, and i wrote an alternate ending for steady as it goes.)

HOW TIME DECIDES by CALLOUSHEARTZ

a fucking AWESOME series by my friend soph @neon-rat​; it is...gay. (& about how poison and ghoul met.) also one of the first fics i read in the fandom!!! poison and ghoul have the BEST fucking dynamic here, poison is goth and brooding, ghoul is punk and likes to fight, kobra is british which is really all the reason you should need to read this. mwah. 

THE GREAT SHIPPING PRANK WAR by KRYPTIDKAT

do you know how hard it is to just choose one??? oh my god!!! @kryptidkat​ has so many solid fics but considering the amount of heavier fics on this list i thought i’d choose one that’s more fun than anything! it’s fucking HILARIOUS and i love it...aside from this, my other faves include i have loved the stars too fondly (SOFT) and star tripping (ADORABLE!!)

ART & GASOLINE by KILLTHEDJ

a&g is an absolutely amazing fic...not quite sure how to summarize it because it’s wonderful tbh, but kobra goes missing, poison has to find him, & fallacy fame is a DICK. @ruination-formation​ has one of the most well-developed universes i’ve come across, i also recommend return to the ashes you call and generation nothing.

THE WORLD LAYS BACK, PUTS A KID BEHIND A GUN by GOTTABEWHATTOMARROWNEEDS

well :( this fic singlehandedly destroyed my heart. no comment. tommy chow meins pov, it’s just before the sing mv takes place, it is....Yeah. say goodbye to all my friends, i fell in love with her again, is also a beautifully written fic, party poison/the phoenix witch is a pairing i never thought of but i ADORE this, the witch is a storyteller and very lonely...

COUNT TO SEVENTEEN AND CLOSE YOUR EYES by RADIOTEETH

I’M SORRY I’M SORRY my friend told me to put my own fic here don’t hurt me...However it is a ghost au and it’s very nice i promise...there is the fab four backstory...as a treat. 

INSECT KING by TOAD1

tommy chow mein and doctor death defying backstory!!! u cant get much better than that tbh, there’s a fair amount of really cool worldbuilding in here too, it’s pretty unique compared to a lot of interpretations of the zones and show pony is the BEST!

DON’T STOP IF I FALL (AND DON’T LOOK BACK) by DISCOCRITIC

oh man oh man!! post-sing mv. @discocritic is an amazing writer anyways, but this...this kills me. the fabulous killjoys are captured, interrogated, & some bad shit goes down...i won’t spoiler it but <///3. i also particularly enjoy or i’ll sleep in the rain, it’s just so sweet and a lovely backstory; show pony & kobra centric!! 

ALL YOUR FAILURES WILL DIE STARRY-EYED by THEELUSIVEOLLIE

honestly, all of theelusiveollie / @graffitibible‘s danger days fics are WONDERFUL. starry-eyed is jet star’s backstory, it’s a beautiful read and you can absolutely tell how much thought was put into it. don't tell me to rest in peace while you're still picking the bones of my memory is party poison’s backstory; we put the faith back in mayhem (it's important to enjoy what you do) is fun ghoul’s. i also recommend checking their tumblr as linked in the beginning of the paragraph; there’s a LOT of super interesting character building and background information. 

#radiowaves #danger days #tlotfk #fics #sorry for the @s!!! i wanted people to have quick links to your alls tumblrs too

[gottlem]

summer fl(in)g. gigi/crystal

a/n i made crystal sad about 3/4 through and im SORRY i was projecting. anyways theres a tiny tiny bit of angst but MOST of this is just dumb gays in l*ve. im still getting used to writing fics so be nice pls !!!! also if u want a pt2 be sure to let me know!

summary: lockdown in summer can be lonely, but Crystal and Gigi make sure they never feel alone. thank god they have good service. (3.8k words)

When lockdown was announced, Crystal wasn’t surprised. The pandemic was taking the world by storm and yeah, it fucking terrified her. But she had to look on the bright side. So that's what she did. Just as the announcement came to an end, Crystal’s phone pinged from her pocket and she smiled to see her friends' names light up on the screen.

JANtastic: well its official

miss cox: Yeah I’m gonna miss u guys!!!

goodegirl: you say that as if u won’t be spending lockdown with jan. i’ll be ALONE thanks for asking

CRYstal: hey i’ll be alone too !!! I’ll text u everyday to keep u company :-))

goodegirl: i’m gonna hold u up to that

And Gigi did hold her up to that. The country was two days into lockdown when Crystal received her first message.

goodegirl: ugh we are how many days into lockdown? And ive already had A MILLION people hit me up with “hows quarantine treating u ;)” i am SICK.

When Crystal read the text, an odd feeling bubbled in her stomach. She told herself it was because she wasn’t used to out-of-the-blue messages from Gigi yet, they just didn’t talk that much, but looking back she admits there was probably (definitely) more to it than that. Of course the girls had already been friends, but Crystal had never found it in herself to speak to Gigi that much because, well, she was intimidatingly gorgeous. They got on well in groups, where Crystal could try to focus her attention on someone who didn’t make her face red every time she looked at her, but she knew if she invited Gigi out by themselves, she would make a fool of herself. It was stupid really, it wasn’t even like she had feelings for her - she was just too pretty, and Crystal didn’t know how to handle herself around someone who looked like they belonged in a vogue magazine. A ping shook her from her thoughts.

goodegirl: like i get that ppl are thirsty rn. i get it. i am too. but is that really the BEST they can come up with?

Crystal needed to reply. But what could she even say to that?

CRYstal: at least u have people trying to hit you up ://

goodegirl: omg what??? ur telling me not ONE person has tried to slide into those dms? they need to get on that! ur a catch

Crystal felt her face flush at the comment. Did Gigi really think she was a catch? Or maybe she’s just being nice? That was probably it. Just friendly banter. 

CRYstal: nope haha! ANYWAYS. hows quarantine treating u ;-)

goodegirl: very funny. bitch.

From then on, the texts flowed easily between the two and Crystal started to ask herself why she hadn’t done this earlier. So what if Gigi was offensively attractive? They clicked so easily - Gigi was smart, quick witted, and didn’t take anything too seriously. So really, she was Crystal's perfect match. As a friend. Platonically. That night, they texted until Crystal was struggling to even keep her eyes open. It was a conversation that felt natural to them, bringing up anything that came into their heads and letting eachother start stupid tangents without fear of judgement. Gigi found Crystal's ability to ramble on about any random subject impossibly endearing, but she wouldn’t admit that out loud. Not yet, anyways.

--

After three days of almost constant texting, Crystal facetimed Gigi for the first time. She picked up within seconds with wide eyes and a grin on her face. 

“Hey you” If Crystal couldn’t see her smile (which she absolutely could) then she could definitely hear it. Gigi’s voice was soft and she hadn’t realised how much she missed it until she was reminded of it. The best thing was that Gigi sounded genuinely happy to speak to Crystal, it made her ecstatic. Crystal had called in the late afternoon, just before the sun had started to set, so she could see golden light shining gently onto Gigi’s features. It left her speechless for a second. How many times was Gigi going to leave her completely unable to reply by merely talking to her? This girl was going to be the death of her. When Crystal finally came to, she managed out a soft, but casual, reply, hoping that she had covered up the embarrassing amount of time it took for her to speak. If Gigi noticed, she didn’t mention it. 

It took them a while to get into the rhythm of actually talking to each other - texts made it easy to think over before you send, and Gigi had never really been one to think before she spoke aloud anyway. She didn’t want to scare Crystal off with how blunt she could be, but after some awkward laughs and stuttered jokes, the pair slowly fell into a rhythm they felt surprisingly comfortable in; they bounced off each other's jokes and soon enough their cheeks hurt from smiling. A few hours into the call, Crystal was sitting comfortably on her bed, her phone propped up with pillows so she and Gigi could still see each other. She caught herself staring again. It started off as small glances that lingered a bit longer than they should, but it was easy to do that and quickly cover it up, especially on facetime. Soon enough, Crystal would completely daze off for minutes, just staring at the girl on her screen. She figured out she really liked looking at Gigi, and Gigi didn’t seem to mind.

Gigi thinks Crystal’s voice is her favourite sound. After about 5 minutes of hearing run on sentences about god knows what, she had already decided she could listen to her talk forever. About anything. She really didn’t care as long as it was Crystal and she was talking to her. As the call progressed into the late hours of the night, the pair had started to get giggly - the tiredness they were feeling was starting to take effect, but it made them anything but sleepy. At 11:56pm, Gigi decided Crystal’s laugh was her second favourite sound. She would sometimes giggle, sometimes she’d shake with silent laughter, but her favourite was when she gave into a full-belly laugh. The kind of laugh that substitutes for a full core workout. That was Gigi’s favourite. 

Crystal was obsessed with Gigi’s smile. It softened Gigi, showed a side of her that Crystal hadn’t been acquainted to previously, but she was so glad she knew now. Gigi could be harsh sometimes, she had learned this years ago and had just accepted it as who Gigi was, but after seeing that damn smile, it was hard to think that Gigi was even capable of hurting a fly. Crystal was quick to realise the mean girl facade (which had only made her scarier to talk to, and somehow more attractive) was just that - a facade. Walls she had built up. Crystal was eager to break them down, and she felt like she was making a good start everytime Gigi smiled like that.

They hung up when Gigi started yawning more than she was talking, she insisted it was just because she was tired, and Crystal wholeheartedly believed her. When Gigi’s face disappeared from her screen, Crystal was still smiling. Her cheeks hurt and she felt whole. She took a deep breath and took in the silence for a moment - she was alone again. She didn’t feel lonely. Despite her ever-growing fatigue, Crystal just couldn’t fall asleep, her head was buzzing with Gigi’s voice, and her laugh, and her smile, and her eyes, and- Crystal was in deep shit. She was all too familiar with the feeling of butterflies manifesting in her stomach, the thoughts of a particular person on her mind constantly. To be completely honest, she hated it. Falling for anyone had never ended well for her, and falling for someone she was already friends with? Even worse. There was no way this would end without somebody getting hurt, and that somebody would probably be Crystal. And yet, being stuck in isolation, she thought the idea of possibly having a girlfriend didn’t sound too bad, but that might have been the lack of human contact talking. 

Gigi let her thoughts wonder as she drifted off into sleep. She wasn’t one to get crushes, but when she fell, she fell hard. And willingly. There was just something about the drama of having such strong feelings for someone, and playing guessing games on how they felt. And by the way Crystal had been staring at her all night, Gigi felt like she was on the right tracks. She liked the way her cheeks would flush if she thought too hard about the girl, or how butterflies would dance around in her stomach, making her feel lighter than a feather. Maybe she was just a hopeless romantic, but she wouldn’t have it any other way. She allowed herself to dream up scenarios of herself and Crystal being together once this whole situation was over. She quite liked how it looked in her head. 

--

As the days passed, Gigi and Crystal found themselves spending more of their waking hours talking to each other over facetime than they did doing anything else. They were both falling quickly, only mildly aware of each other's adoration. It didn’t take very long for the casual flirting to start. Everytime Gigi gave an off-handed compliment about how Crystal sounded “really pretty today” or how her laugh is “the prettiest thing”, the other girl would turn bright red and freeze up. Gigi would tease her about it, which only made her more and more flustered. She thought she’d eventually get used to it, but she never did. Crystal tried to flirt back,really tried,  she wanted more than anything to make Gigi stumble over her words like she does to her so often, but she would always be completely unfazed by every compliment Crystal could think of. Crystal found her ability to keep her composure so easily both irritating and compelling. 

It took Crystal a few days to find something that would finally, finally break Gigi down. Pet names. When she had casually let ‘babe’ slip in the middle of a sentence, she could practically see the breath that got stuck in Gigi’s throat before she started to choke on nothing but air. When Crystal asked if she was ok, she answered with a question.

“Did you just call me babe?”

“Yeah. Is that a problem?” Crystal genuinely wanted to make sure that it was ok, but the comment came off as less of a question, and more as straight up flirting. 

“No. Nope. Not a problem at all. What were we talking about?”

Crystal doesn’t press further, taking pride in being able to make the girl so speechless, and continues what she was saying as if nothing had stopped her in the first place. She watched as Gigi’s blush died down very, very slowly, only to watch it burn up again every time Crystal repeated the pet name. She absolutely adored it. 

“You’re cute when you blush, babe” Gigi made a noise at this. Crystal made a note of that before deciding that this would never get old.

--

Soon enough, the girls were in a comfortable routine - talking every day until one of them would give in to sleep. It was usually Crystal. Gigi would stay on the call for a bit, just to listen to the girl’s breathing, it provided an unexpected comfort to her. Plus Crystal was adorable when she slept. The routine was broken one day about a month into the lockdown, though nobody was really paying attention to what day it was anyway. Gigi had been awake for no more than an hour when she started to miss Crystal, so she gave her a call. Crystal didn’t pick up. Gigi called again, just in case Crystal had her phone on silent, but she was met with no answer. Instead, she was sent a text, a text which really didn’t explain anything. At all.

CRYstal: hey !!! sorry can’t pick up rn but i promise u i will call in like an hour or two ???? speak to u soon love !!!! <3

It was unusual for Crystal to miss out on a call - she was usually the one to be ringing Gigi. What could she even be doing? Gigi needed a distraction, something to pass the time instead of sitting and waiting. That was when she realised she hadn’t worn any makeup in weeks, so she sat herself down and started on a full face - the process of doing her makeup always calmed her down, so it was a welcome distraction. Just as she finished, her phone began ringing. She didn’t have to check to see who it was. 

“Hi! Sorry I didn’t answer before I was kinda busy” Gigi was speechless. A pixelated Crystal was beaming at her from her phone screen. And she had green hair now. This is why she didn’t pick up? The bitch was dyeing her hair? It did look really pretty though. Like, really, really pretty.

“Quarantines really getting to you that much huh?” Gigi decided against gushing about Crystal’s new hair - that would be giving her what she wanted.

“Do you like it?” She loved it. Adored it. 

“It’s nice” 

“That’s all you’re going to say?”

“Needy are we?” That shut her up. She changed the topic in an instant. 

“So... you look really pretty today!”

That night, the girls fell back into their easy routine. It had been hours since she first saw it, but Gigi couldn’t keep her eyes off of Crystal and her new look. It really suited her. It just felt so utterly Crystal. The green haired girl was in the middle of a long rant about how One DIrection “are definitely planning a reunion really really soon” when Gigi had to stop her.

“I fucking love your hair, Crys” She blushed at the out-of-the-blue compliment.

“Really? I thought it was just nice?” Gigi shook her head.

“I was teasing, of course I love it. It suits you so much, you look beautiful” She was smiling ear to ear. Crystal loved it when Gigi gushed over her like this. It made her feel like there could be something there, like this was more than friends bored in quarantine.

“Thanks,” Crystal paused for just a moment before her face lit up “Oh my God, you should do something to your hair too!” Gigi hated that idea, and shook her head affectionately at the girl's adorable excitement. She felt slightly bad when she told her that she would be caught dead before doing anything to her hair - she loved the deep brown colour it had always been, and was happy with how the length framed her face. Crystal however, was incessant. Gigi was surprised when she found herself telling Crystal that she’d “think about” changing her hair up. 

Saying this was a huge mistake. Crystal reminded her every other hour that she had to dye it or cut it or just do something, and it drove Gigi insane. It took her all but two days to finally cave in - it irked her that Crystal had this much power over her. She wanted to do something shocking, something that would shut Crystal up about her damn hair for good. So she shaved it. 

She did it when Crystal fell asleep after a particularly heated debate about her hair (the second of the night) and Gigi hung up to get to work on it. To call it an impulse decision wasn’t perhaps the most accurate, seeing as though she had been bugged about it for a solid 48 hours, but waking up that morning, Gigi hadn’t expected that all her hair would be gone by the time she went to sleep. Once she had finally bitten the bullet, it took her an hour to admit that she actually kind of liked the look - plus it was fun to touch. 

When Crystal called her that morning, Gigi took a moment to herself before answering. She hadn’t told her about the change in her appearance and hoped she would like it, or at least be pleased that Gigi finally listened to her. She took a breath and picked up, feigning confidence with a casual “morning!”. She watched Crystal’s eyes go wide and her hands cover her mouth. Gigi acted oblivious.

“What's up? Is there someone behind me or something?” She looked at her screen and patiently waited until Crystal composed herself - she was used to her staring anyway. When Crystal finally spoke, she was practically squealing out a string of compliments. Apparently, she loved it. 

“Are you keeping it like that? Please say you’re keeping it like that, it's so hot” Gigi wasn’t sure if she would grow it out, but after Crystal had said that, it was an easy decision.

“I guess I’ll keep it then. Just for you”

--

Crystal loved being so open with Gigi, and she really appreciated how close they had gotten during lockdown - but she really just needed today off. She had woken up one morning with a feeling of dread that she couldn’t quite place, and a persistent headache. This was going to be a bad day, but she was used to bad days. She ignored Gigi’s calls and sent no follow up text. She could speak to Gigi later. Right now, she was just going to go back to sleep. 

So that's what she did. She woke up in the late afternoon and finally dragged herself out of bed to make some food in the evening. When she got back to the safety of her bed, she was still tired. And she kind of felt like crying. So she cried. Sometimes, especially on bad days, Crystal’s mind could get the best of her, she had learned to just let herself get all her feelings out when she got like this - bottling them up had only ever made them worse. This was when Gigi called for the millionth time that day, her texts had become concerned, then angry, then concerned again. Crystal felt like she owed an explanation, so with bloodshot eyes and a puffy red face, Crystal finally picked up.

“Ugh finally! You haven’t spoken to me all day I- what’s wrong?” Crystal felt a ping of guilt at Gigi’s initial response to her answering. Had she really kept her waiting all day? It felt silly, like an unreasonable excuse, but deep down Crystal knew what was good for her. She also didn’t know how to answer Gigi’s question. She was starting to regret picking up, having Gigi see her like this - god, she must have looked a mess.

“I’m sorry I shouldn’t have picked up. I'm probably bringing the mood down” She saw Gigi’s features become impossibly softer at that.

“Hey, no, it's ok. We don’t have to talk about it, but we can if you want to. But you’re not hanging up. And neither am I. If it means I sit in complete silence with you for the next few hours then so be it” 

This was when Crystal knew Gigi was a keeper. Whether whatever they had going on would continue, or whether they would return to strictly just friends, Gigi was someone she needed to keep in her life. They eventually started talking, first it was about how Gigi’s day went - Crystal didn’t feel like speaking much, but once she warmed up to seeing that all-familiar smile, she felt comfortable enough to start to open up. They talked for hours. Crystal cried. Gigi cried (though not as much). 

“I just wish I could be there to help, or at least give you a hug or something, god this sucks” Crystal saw this as an opportunity to lighten the mood.

“As if you would settle for just a hug” Crystal winked pitifully and Gigi laughed, but didn’t disagree. 

Of course one chat didn’t fix Crystal’s problems, but at least now she had someone in her corner - and that was half the battle.

--

It didn’t take the pair very long to fall back into their rhythm, feeling closer and more comfortable with each other, their feelings getting stronger as each day passed on. Crystal found herself falling back into the habit of sitting silent, and admiring the girl on her screen.

“You’re staring.” Gigi told her. Crystal hummened in agreement.

“You’re pretty”

It was normal for the pair to bounce words like pretty, and beautiful, and gorgeous between them. It was as if they both knew exactly how the other felt - like it was completely unspoken and yet so obvious. And maybe it was.

Two months into lockdown, Gigi was really starting to miss physical contact - she was starting to feel a thrill when she made eye contact with strangers on her way to her weekly shop, she was getting desperate. It was brought up with Crystal.

“I just miss human contact. I want to hold a hand. I want someone to hug me. I want a kiss! Oh my god I miss kissing.” Crystal felt herself blushing at the mention of kissing (kissing Gigi, nonetheless). She would give anything to see Gigi right now, to be close to her.

“When this is over, I’ll kiss you, don’t even worry about it” Crystal was only half joking. GIgi went red, but tried to act as if the thought of Crystal kissing her didn’t phase her at all.

“Oh will you now?”

“I’m not kidding”

“Well. I’d very much like that Miss Methyd” Gigi gave in, she refused to play hard to get with someone who she had fallen so hard for. She just hoped Crystal would stick to her word.

--

Summer was halfway through when lockdown was lifted. The instant the announcement was made, Crystal phone pinged - it wasJan, and she suddenly felt a wave of deja vu from when the lockdown started.

JANtastic: GUYSSSSSS i’ve missed you so much PLEASE say y’all are free to meet? Like right now?!?! 

JANtatsic: Jackie’s already with me so, she’s down too :))

CRYstal: i’ve missed you too !!! i’m free to meet!

goodegirl: me too !!

The group reunited within an hour, Crystal shed some happy tears, and Gigi laughed as she wiped them for her. It was nice to be with her, to be able to stand next to each other. But it also felt odd - like something had shifted now that they were right in front of each other. So for the rest of summer, the girls shared lingering glances and awkward smiles, too scared to make an official move.

#this took so long to write #hope u liked it #there will be a part 2 maybe !!! #pls dont let this flop #just two gays in l*ve #so fluffy #also i cant flirt so i cant write flirting #sorry bout it #can be read as w/w or m/m depending on how much u squint #gigi goode #crystal methyd #jackie cox #jan sport #just jan #gigi x crystal #jan x jackie #lesbian au