#and have fun freaking out over that episode title

[denimbex1986]

'...“It’s fun playing bad, but actually he’s not,” the actor says, smiling as he reflects on his character, Crowley. “He’s a villain with a heart. The amount of really evil things he does are vanishingly small.”

...As it always has, “Good Omens” dissects the view of good and evil as absolutes, showing viewers that they are not as separate as we were led to believe growing up. Aziraphale and Crowley’s long-standing union is proof of this. The show also urges people to look at what defines our own humanity. For Tennant — who opted to wear a T-shirt emblazoned with the words “Leave trans kids alone you absolute freaks” during a photocall for Season 2 — these themes are more important now than ever before.

“In this society that we’re currently living in, where polarization seems ever more present, fierce and difficult to navigate. Negotiation feels like a dirty word at times,” he says, earnestly. “This is a show about negotiation. Two extremes finding common ground and making their world a better place through it. Making life easier, kinder and better. If that’s the sort of super objective of the show, then I can’t think of anything more timely, relevant or apt for the rather fractious times we’re living in.”

“Good Omens” is back by popular demand for another season. How does it feel?

It’s lovely. Whenever you send something out into the world, you never quite know how it will land. Especially with this, because it was this beloved book that existed, and that creates an extra tension that you might break some dreams. But it really exploded. I guess we were helped by the fact that we had Neil Gaiman with us, so you couldn’t really quibble too much with the decisions that were being made. The reception was, and continues to be, overwhelming.

Now that you’re no longer bound by the original material that people did, perhaps, feel a sense of ownership over, does the new content for Season 2 come with a sense of freedom for you? This is uncharted territory, of sorts.

That’s an interesting point. I didn’t know the book when I got the script. It was only after that I discovered the worlds of passion that this book had incited. Because I came to it that way, perhaps it was easier. I found liberation from that, to an extent. For me, it was always a character that existed in a script. At first, I didn’t have that extra baggage of expectation, but I acquired it in the run-up to Season 1 being released… the sense that suddenly we were carrying a ming vase across a minefield.

In Season 2, we still have Neil and we also have some of the ideas that he and Terry had discussed. During the filming of the first one, Neil would drop little hints about the notions they had for a prospective sequel, the title of which would have been “668: The Neighbour of the Beast,” which is a pretty solid gag to base a book around. Indeed there were elements like Gabriel and the Angels, who don’t feature in the book, that were going to feature in a sequel. They were brought forward into Season 1. So, even in the new episodes, we’re not entirely leaving behind the Terry Pratchett-ness of it all.

It’s great to see yourself and Michael Sheen reunited on screen as these characters. Fans will have also watched you pair up for Season 3 of “Staged.” You’re quite the dynamic duo. What do you think is the magic ingredient that makes the two of you such a good match?

It’s a slightly alchemical thing. We knew each other in passing before, but not well. We were in a film together [“Bright Young Things,” 1993] but we’d never shared a scene. It was a bit of a roll of the dice when we turned up at the read-through for “Good Omens.” I think a lot comes from the writing, as we were both given some pretty juicy material to work with. Those characters are beloved for a reason because there’s something magical about them and the way they complete each other. Also, I think we’re quite similar actors in the way we like to work and how we bounce off each other.

Does the shorthand and trust the two of you have built up now enable you to take more risks on-screen?

Yes, probably. I suppose the more you know someone, the more you trust someone. You don’t have to worry about how an idea might be received and you can help each other out with a more honest opinion than might be the case if you were, you know, dancing around each other’s nervous egos. Enjoying being in someone’s orbit and company is a positive experience. It makes going to work feel pleasant, productive, and creative. The more creative you can be, the better the work is. I don’t think it’s necessarily a given that an off-screen relationship will feed into an on-screen one in a positive or negative way. You can play some very intimate moments with someone you barely know. Acting is a peculiar little contract, in that respect. But it’s disproportionately pleasurable going to work when it’s with a mate.

Fans have long discussed the nature of Crowley and Aziraphale’s relationship. In Season 2, we see several of the characters debate whether the two are an item, prompting them to look at their union and decipher what it is. How would you describe their relationship?

They are utterly co-dependent. There’s no one else having the experience that they are having and they’ve only got each other to empathize with. It’s a very specific set of circumstances they’ve been dealt. In this season, we see them way back at the creation of everything. They’ve known each other a long time and they’ve had to rely on each other more and more. They can’t really exist one without the other and are bound together through eternity. Crowley and Aziraphale definitely come at the relationship with different perspectives, in terms of what they’re willing to admit to the relationship being. I don’t think we can entirely interpret it in human terms, I think that’s fair to say.

Yet fans are trying to do just that. Do you view it as beyond romantic or any other labels, in the sense that it’s an eternal force?

It’s lovely [that fans discuss it] but you think, be careful what you wish for. If you’re willing for a relationship to go in a certain way or for characters to end up in some sort of utopian future, then the story is over. Remember what happened to “Moonlighting,” that’s all I’m saying! [Laughs]

Your father-in-law, Peter Davison, and your son, Ty Tennant, play biblical father-and-son duo Job and Ennon in Episode 2. In a Tumblr Q&A, Neil Gaiman said that he didn’t know who Ty’s family was when he cast him. When did you become aware that Ty had auditioned?

I don’t know how that happened. I do a bunch of self-tapes with Ty, but I don’t think I did this one with him because I was out of town filming “Good Omens.” He certainly wasn’t cast before we started shooting. There were two moments during filming where Neil bowled up to me and said, “Guess, who we’ve cast?” Ty definitely auditioned and, as I understand it, they would tell me, he was the best. I certainly imagine he could only possibly have been the best person for the job. He is really good in it, so I don’t doubt that’s true. And then my father-in-law showed up, as well, which was another delicious treat. In the same episode and the same family! It was pretty weird. I have worked with both of them on other projects, but never altogether.

There’s a “Doctor Who” cameo, of sorts, in Episode 5, when Aziraphale uses a rare annual about the series as a bartering tool. In reality, you’ll be reprising your Time Lord role on screen later this year in three special episodes to mark the 60th anniversary. Did you always feel you’d return to “Doctor Who” at some point?

There’s a precedent for people who have been in the series to return for a multi-doctor show, which is lovely. I did it myself for the 50th anniversary in 2013, and I had a wonderful time with Matt [Smith]. Then, to have John Hurt with us, as well, was a little treat. But I certainly would never have imagined that I’d be back in “Doctor Who” full-time, as it were, and sort of back doing the same job I did all those years ago. It was like being given this delightful, surprise present. Russell T Davies was back as showrunner, Catherine Tate [former on-screen companion] was back, and it was sort of like the last decade and a half hadn’t happened.

Going forward, Ncuti Gatwa will be taking over as the new Doctor. Have you given him any advice while passing the baton?

Oh God, what a force of nature. I’ve caught a little bit of him at work and it’s pretty exciting. I mean, what advice would you give someone? You can see Ncuti has so much talent and energy. He’s so inspired and charismatic. The thing about something like this is: it’s the peripherals, it’s not the job. It’s the other stuff that comes with it, that I didn’t see coming. It’s a show that has so much focus and enthusiasm on it. It’s not like Ncuti hasn’t been in a massive Netflix series [“Sex Education,”] but “Doctor Who” is on a slightly different level. It’s cross-generational, international, and has so much history, that it feels like it belongs to everyone.

To be at the center of the show is wonderful and humbling, but also a bit overwhelming and terrifying. It doesn’t come without some difficulties, such as the immediate loss of anonymity. It takes a bit of getting used to if that’s not been your life up to that point. I was very lucky that when I joined, Billie Piper [who portrayed on-screen companion, Rose] was still there. She’d lived in a glare of publicity since she was 14, so she was a great guide for how to live life under that kind of scrutiny. I owe a degree of sanity to Billie.

Your characters are revered by a few different fandoms. Sci-fi fandoms are especially passionate and loyal. What is it like being on the end of that? I imagine it’s a lot to hold.

Yes, certainly. Having been a fan of “Doctor Who” since I was a tiny kid, you’re aware of how much it means because you’re aware of how much it meant to you. My now father-in-law [who portrayed Doctor Who in the 80s] is someone I used to draw in comic strips when I was a kid. That’s quite peculiar! It’s a difficult balance because on one end, you have to protect your own space, and there aren’t really any lessons in that. That does take a bit of trial and error, to an extent, and it’s something that you’re sometimes having to do quite publicly. But, it is an honor and a privilege, without a doubt. As you’ve said, it means so much to people and you want to be worthy of that. You have to acknowledge that and be careful with it. Some days that’s tough, if you’re not in the mood.

I know you’re returning to the stage later this year to portray Macbeth. You’ve previously voiced the role for BBC Sounds, but how are you feeling about taking on the character in the theater?

I’m really excited about it. It’s been a while since I’ve done Shakespeare. It’s very thrilling but equally — and this analogy probably doesn’t stretch — it’s like when someone prepares for an Olympic event. It does feel like a bit of a mountain and, yeah, you’re daring to set yourself up against some fairly worthy competition from down the years. That’s both the challenge and the horror of doing these types of things. We’ve got a great director, Max Webster, who recently did “Life of Pi.” He’s full of big ideas. It’s going to be exciting, thrilling, and a little bit scary. I’m just going to take a deep breath.

Before we part ways, let’s discuss the future of “Good Omens.” Gaiman has said that he already has ideas for Season 3, should it happen. If you were to do another season, is there anyone in particular you’d love to work with next time around or anything specific you’d like to see happen for Crowley?

Oh, Neil Gaiman knows exactly where he wants to take it. If you’re working with people like Gaiman, I wouldn’t try to tamper with that creative void. Were he to ask my opinion, that would be a different thing, but I can’t imagine he would. He’s known these characters longer than me and what’s interesting is what he does with them. That’s the bit that I’m desperate to know. I do know where Crowley might end up next, but it would be very wrong if I told you.

[At this point, Tennant picks up a pencil and starts writing on a hotel pad of paper.]

I thought you were going to write it down for me then. Perhaps like a clandestine meeting on a bench in St James’ Park, but instead you’d write the information down and slide it across the table…

I should have done! I was drawing a line, which obviously, psychologically, I was thinking, “Say no more. You’re too tempted to reveal a secret!” It was my subconscious going “Shut the fuck up!”

#David Tennant #Michael Sheen #Good Omens #Neil Gaiman #Terry Pratchett #Ty Tennant #Peter Davison #Aziraphale #Crowley #Doctor Who #Macbeth #Ncuti Gatwa #Job #Ennon #Bright Young Things #Series 2 #Matt Smith #John Hurt #Russell T. Davies #Catherine Tate #Max Webster #Life of Pi #Sex Education #Billie Piper #Rose Tyler #BBC Sounds

[onyourhyuck]

LUKEWARM. L.DH | Episode 1

— Title: ‘Wasteland, baby.’

— Summary: Hong Yujin is the new patient at the psych ward admitted for her eating disorder. On the first day of being admitted she meets Haechan, a patient being treated for his bpd. Yujin already claims to hate him; he is everything she dislikes. Loud, annoying, self destructive.

— Genre: Psych ward, hospital, mental illnesses, can be triggering so read at your own risk, guys take care of yourself, mentions of eating disorders, mentions of bpd, suggestive, smut, angst etc.

— Notes: please don’t read if you’ll be triggered !! Take care of yourself guys.

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Yujin is emotionally constipated and Haechan is a meddler.

The two most complex cases in the ward — happen to be each other’s triggers and worst of friends in the whole of hospital. Putting these two and two together is like asking for a death wish to happen.

You see punishment takes in many different forms. Yujin is convinced that god is punishing her with Haechan messing up her life whenever she’s in a good mood.

The young girl only recently started to enrol in this hospital not out of her own choice. News spread around quickly of Yujin and of course Haechan wanted to see the newbie for himself. She remembers how he bothered her with so much questions on the first day. Now Yujin wishes he would choke and shut up for once.

If there was a thing to describe him. It would be running tap water.

Strange interpretation right? Yujin likes to think that Haechan’s like tap water. Distasteful, stale and unpleasant.

So far it sounds accurate to Yujin.

A plop of weight pressed on the mattress with shoes on the hospital bed. The boy crossed his legs over the covers with a gleeful smile gazing right back at the owner of the room who looks to be the most pissed he’s seen her yet.

How exciting. Haechan loves getting reaction out of people the most. The girl has been his main source of entertainment here since she arrived. It was like a blessing from God, or so he likes to think.

“Get out.” Yujin states not even bothering to say hello or ‘please get out’ it was just a flat out unemotional reaction equivalent to ‘fuck off’ which he pretends that it hurt him. But it didn’t in reality.

The boy gasps pretending to be a freaking sob but he stopped acting when the expression on her face did not budge. Haechan was intrigued by Yujin’s bluntness. Most other patients would’ve backed down and been submissive to him, but not Yujin. He liked that in a very twisted way.

“Oh come on don’t be such a stick in the mud, let me hang out with you.” Haechan flashes her a little smirk hoping it would encourage some agreement between them.

Yujin heavily exhales. Might as well add some smoke particles, Haechan swore he saw her head turning to flames any minute.

“No. If I want to hang out with someone like you I would get a pet dog. Now get out of my room!” The arms extend out towards the door so Haechan can see the way out.

Taken aback by such statements but not letting them phase him outwardly. Haechan definitely notes from bothering her as of lately he did notice Yujin was rather a feisty individual. Deciding it would be even more fun to get on her nerves and push the already pressed buttons even more just for the fun of it. He didn’t actually care that Yujin was upset.

Haechan’s back pressed on the wall while he was sitting up on the bed this time. Legs crossed over the covers with that devilish smile.

“Oh calm down you’re in a mental ward, I’m sure you’ll come across much worse than me.”

The audacity to have Haechan smiling at her at this time? Yujin feels every inch of her body blood boiling to the point she couldn’t stand straight and see clearly.

Yujin glares over at the boy who made himself comfortable on the bed unannounced with one leg over the covers as if he owns this freaking ward to himself. Yujin stands there in middle of the room immediately ready to protest to the boy who gave no ounce of care.

“Who do you think you are?” Yujin says with an unamused expression.

The boy notices Yujin’s reaction to him sitting down on her bed and her glare. It would fun seeing someone else react this much, Haechan sometimes wonders if her head will explode someday.

The girl has only enrolled recently. He grins from ear to ear. It was fun however. Especially to a guy like him.

Haechan leans back on the bed and rests his feet against the wall. He grabs a magazine off the bedside table and begins to read, as if he’s at home. “Oh come on, what makes you think you own everything here? Who do you think you are?”

Haechan taunts her back. He can’t get enough of this interaction. It was like watching a sitcom on television but he was starring himself.

The moment which was full of tension like a chalk scraping at the chalkboard in a classroom. It felt like a million knives stabbing in the same constant pressure point on a body. It wasn’t a good energy at all so when the young nurse walked in on the moment, she was rather surprised to see Haechan on the bed already harassing the new patient.

The nurse furrows her eyebrows. “Haechan shouldn’t you be in your room taking your medication with nurse Joong?”

His eyes dart away from Yujin to the nurse rather eerily and he slants forward with a dropping smile. “Awh bummer — well this was fun.” He said it like he spent most of the living moments in this ward.

Yujin couldn’t put her finger on it, but it certainly sounds like Haechan was used to the pills prescribed.

But before he was fully leaving he whispers to Yujin. “Welcome to the Wasteland, baby.”

Not quite understanding what the boy meant. Yujin frowned and turned back but by then he was gone on his way.

@onyourhyuck please refer from translating copyrighting and plagiarising my work. Please reblog this blog and follow me for more updates it helps a girl out !

#nct fanfiction #nct smut #nct x reader #nct u scenarios #nct hard hours #nct series #nct fic #nct recs #nct scenarios #nct dream smut #nct dream hard hours #haechan fanfic #nct haechan smut #haechan fanfiction #haechan imagines #haechan headers #haechan smut #haechan scenarios #nct fanfic #nct u hard hours #nct u layouts #nct u moodboard #nct u reactions #nct u smut #nct u x reader #nct imagines #nct 127 hard hours #nct 127 smut #nct 127 fanfic #nct masterlist

[stevie-petey]

episode nine: the beginning

“No, I understand.” Steve smiles and then points to the wall of comics behind you. “So, if we’re going to be friends, I gotta ask about your Spider-Man obsession.” “Oh, now that’s just too personal. This is like, day three of our friendship. At least ask what my favorite color is, first.” Steve laughs again and nods. “Alright, fair. What is your favorite color, then?” And this is the beginning of your friendship with Steve Harrington. 

summary: BONUS EPISODE TIME ! steve becomes bookstrorindary's favorite loyal costumer, jonathan buys you a bug for christmas, you freak out your poor coworker alex, and suddenly steve is really hot and you're feeling so many feelings (bad ! it's all bad !).

rating: general, some swearing

warnings: swearing, angst ending (sorry gang), fem!reader and use of y/n

words: 6.5k

before you swing in: surprise ! bonus chapter that takes place between seasons 1 and 2. basically, as the title says, it's the beginning of everything between steve and reader. this is where everything starts to take shape, their beginning dynamic, and ultimately the horrible timing of it all. life is hard, steve is hot, and reader just wants to heal her physical and metaphorical wounds. enjoy !

-

November 15th, 1983

When Steve Harrington walks into Bookstrordinary your first day back, you think your lingering concussion from the monster is causing you to hallucinate. 

You had been struggling to reshelf some books, your crutches being a burden and hard to balance with as you stack, when the bell above the front door alerted you of someone’s arrival. 

“Welcome to Bookstrordinary, how can I help you–” You place the last back in the shelf and turn around, not expecting who you see. “Steve?”

He smiles at you and shoves his hands in his bomber jacket. “Hey, Y/N.”

“What are you doing here?”

“You can’t figure out my nickname if we don’t hang out, right? So,” He shrugs, as if this is just another Monday for him. “I’m here.”

You stare at him for a moment, unsure what exactly to do. While you hadn’t been lying when you told Steve that you guys could be friends, you hadn’t expected him to jump at the opportunity so quickly. His eyebrow is still healing from his fight with Jonathan in the alley and you’re stuck with crutches for the next two weeks. 

Wounds are still healing. You figured Steve would take some time to collect himself, but it appears that he simply doesn’t care, or maybe it doesn’t matter to him.

“How did you know I even worked here?” You ask the boy, now making your way over to the front counter where he stands.

Steve chuckles. “You really can’t give me credit for anything, can you? I pay attention, Y/N. I can be observant.” 

“It’s not like that,” you’re quick to correct, scared that Steve will think you see him as some mean jock. “I just… I’m not used to people paying attention to me, I guess.” 

You pause and make a face, not liking the way that sounds. “That sounded incredibly gross and cheesy, huh?”

“No, I understand.” Steve smiles and then points to the wall of comics behind you. “So, if we’re going to be friends, I gotta ask about your Spider-Man obsession.”

“Oh, now that’s just too personal. This is like, day three of our friendship. At least ask what my favorite color is, first.”

Steve laughs again and nods. “Alright, fair. What is your favorite color, then?”

And this is the beginning of your friendship with Steve Harrington. 

He spends almost two hours the first day at your job, asking you questions about yourself, your favorite food and color and animal, which genre of books you prefer, anything and everything he can think of to get to know you better, Steve asks it.

At first you’re unnerved by his onslaught of questions, but slowly you find yourself opening up to him and enjoying having Steve with you. He makes your last few hours of work bearable and fun. Before you know it, you begin asking him your own questions. You learn that he loves banana bread, secretly enjoys helping his mom around the house, and that blue is his favorite color. 

When your coworker Alex walks in to take over the next shift and finds you leaning against the counter talking to Steve, he almost spits out the milkshake he had been drinking. “S–Steve Harrington?”

Steve tenses for a second and, before your very eyes, he morphs into his King Steve persona effortlessly. You’re not sure what exactly he changes about himself, but he becomes more closed off, guarded, with an air of authority that frightens you a little. “Hey, kid. Do I know you?”

Alex shakes his head, too stunned to speak. 

“That’s my coworker, Alex.” You take pity on the poor kid. He’s only a year younger than you, but you suppose that a junior like Steve, someone well known and admired throughout the school, can be intimidating. 

“Nice to meet ya, buddy. I’m assuming that Y/N here is off the clock now?” 

“Y–yes.” Alex squeaks out. 

The bell above the door rings again, this time announcing Jonathan’s arrival. 

He walks in, distracted with some groceries in his arms, so when he finally looks up and sees you, Steve, and Alex all standing in a circle staring at him, he freezes. “Well, this is an interesting sight.”

Steve ducks his head, his King persona quickly fading away. “Hey, Jonathan.”

“Steve,” Jonathan responds cooly, looking between you and him as if trying to figure out a complex math equation. 

Great. 

You clear your throat and step away from Steve, heading to the back of the store to collect your things and clock out. “Just give me a minute or two to grab my things, then I’ll be all set to leave, Jonathan.” 

He nods at you, still staring at Steve like he’s some foreign creature, and you quickly hobble away to avoid any interaction between them. You’re not sure why having the two of them in the same room as you feels so wrong, but your head still aches from its concussion and your ribs are so bruised that breathing still hurts, so you really don’t have the time to figure any of it out. 

While you’re gone, Steve and Jonathan continue to stare each other down. 

“Picking Y/N up?” Steve guesses, eyeing the keys in Jonathan’s hand and the groceries in the other.

“Yeah, kinda something I’ve always done.” 

“Right.” 

Jonathan readjusts his grip on one of the grocery bags, having nothing better to do as he waits for you. Alex busies himself with rearranging some books at the counter, clearly equally as uncomfortable as the two teens are. 

Steve lets a whistle out and awkwardly stuffs his hands into his pockets. Jonathan watches him in curiosity. The scab on his eyebrow has almost healed over, but Jonathan still gets a kick of pride seeing it. He’d done that. He’d marred King Steve’s handsome face. 

“Are you, like… Y/N’s friend now?” Asks Jonathan, the question heavy on his mind. He trusts your judgment of people, he knows you can read people better than anyone else, but having Steve around you makes him uneasy. The guy had been a grade A dick to you and him for years, especially his bullshit friends Carol and Tommy. 

“We made a compromise,” Steve says, a hint of humor in his voice. 

Jonathan frowns. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Well–”

“Okay, let’s go!” You walk back in, fearful of whatever conversation you’ve interrupted. 

Jonathan watches as Steve immediately turns to you, as if drawn in by your mere presence, and he starts to wonder exactly what the boy’s intentions are with you. All you did was walk into the room, and yet Steve is hanging onto your every word.

He doesn't blame him, god he doesn't. It’s you. You could command a room with just your smile alone, but Jonathan isn’t used to sharing that with others. 

Especially not with people like Steve. 

“Will you be working tomorrow?” Steve asks you, a twinkle in his eye. 

You nod at him. “Mhm, I work every day after school. On weekends I’m usually home doing homework or keeping that one in check.”

You point at Jonathan, who laughs. “Guilty.” 

“Then I’ll see you at the same time tomorrow?” Steve doesn’t even look over at Jonathan, which he rolls his eyes at. 

“See ya then.” You smile wide at Steve and for some reason Jonathan really wants to throw the bag of eggs he’s holding. 

This was not what he had been expecting when he told you earlier he’d be picking you up after getting his mom some groceries. 

And had someone told Jonathan that the rest of sophomore year would go on like this, he probably would’ve thrown the bag of eggs at Steve then.

– 

True to his word, Steve comes by and visits you almost every day leading up to winter break. He becomes a regular, hanging around the counter talking to you about anything and everything. The first few days you had been a bit nervous that your boss, Mrs. Waters, would have a problem with him, but she quickly dispelled your concerns. 

“Oh, that handsome young man? He can stay as long as he likes. I think he’s the reason we’ve been getting so many young customers recently.”

You look around and realize that, yeah, there is in fact a new group of freshmen girls who have started stopping by and browsing the romance section. You’ve noticed the way they stop and stare at Steve while he talks to you, whispering and giggling to themselves. 

Steve pays them no mind, always too busy talking about basketball or his latest issue with Nancy. 

That’s been the one downside to all of this, really.

You’re happy the two of you are friends, but between Jonathan’s moaning about the girl and now Steve’s worrying that he’ll never be good enough, you’re kinda sick of talking about Nancy Wheeler. 

Which is a shame, you actually quite admire the girl. 

“And today she looked at me in the hallway and I think she even smiled–”

“Steve,” you interrupt him, a headache forming. “Like I’ve told you a million times now, she needs some time. It’s only been a few weeks, I think she’s still recovering from what happened at Jonathan’s. She also lost Barb, you can’t forget that.”

You don’t tell Steve about the whole Jonathan and Nancy situation, partly because it isn’t your place, and partly because you’re not sure if it will do more harm than good. 

The boy nods, looking crestfallen. “Yeah, you’re right. I just… I want to get this right, ya know?”

“I know, and you will. Just… let her come to you, but also show that you’re still there for her. Does that make sense?”

“Yes. Got it. Stay at a distance, but in a smooth way.”

You snort. “Not how I would’ve phrased that, but sure.” 

You go back to counting the change in your register, beginning the early stages of closing up for the night. Jonathan will be here in about twenty minutes, you’ve come to learn that if you distract Steve when he’s here, then there’s fewer awkward interactions. 

You’re hoping that once Nancy figures out which boy she wants that you can then all be friends, but until then you’re stuck with being an uncomfortable middleman who just wants to drive home with you best friend in peace after spending a lovely evening with your new and endearing friend. 

Speaking of your new and endearing friend, Steve begins to tap his fingers against the countertop, fidgeting around. Amongst the many things you’ve learned about Steve these last few weeks, you’ve also learned that he absolutely hates silence and standing still.

“Okay,” you place your hand over his fingers, stopping his tapping. “I’m going to start closing, how about I give you a list of the books and comics I need to bring home with me? It’ll make closing go by faster.”

Steve perks up, happy to be given something to do. “Alright, I can do that. What are they for, though?”

“Most of the comics will be for the boys; it'll be their Christmas gifts. The rest, the books mostly, will be for myself. I like to add them to my bookshelf at home.” 

“No way,” Steve’s eyes light up and he leans in close, a teasing smile on his face. “Am I about to get a look into Y/N Henderson’s mind?”

You shoo him off your counter, grabbing your crutches to start restocking books for tomorrow. Steve follows close behind, carefully watching your steps to make sure you don’t fall. “I wouldn’t be too happy, I doubt you’d be able to figure out which comics are for me and which are for the kids. As for the books… well, guess I’ll have to make you sign a contract stating our friendship is legally binding. Can’t embarrass myself.” 

“I’d gladly sign it,” Steve says, without even hesitating. 

You stumble a bit and he’s quick to steady you. Steve does that sometimes, says things that make you feel like you feel hazy and warm. Too warm. You’re not used to his candidness yet; Steve doesn’t hide how he’s feeling, he’s an open book. 

You’re not sure if his open vulnerability is a good thing, but you’re slowly starting to find it nice. Pleasant, almost. 

“Anyways,” you shake your head, trying to clear your mind and ignore whatever cologne Steve is wearing that makes your head spin. “The list is in my backpack by the counter. Grab it and start hunting, soldier.” 

Steve salutes you and does as he’s told. In no time he’s wandering the bookstore, humming to himself as he skims the many shelves and aisles to find everything you need. You busy yourself with your own job, arranging a new shipment of books so that Alex has a calm opening shift the next morning. 

The freshmen girls have long since left, leaving you and Steve alone. Mrs. Waters is somewhere in her office, probably seeing if there’s any way to hire Steve, and it’s nice being alone with him. The two of you work silently side by side, he diligently works on his task and you can’t help but sneak a few glances when he’s not looking. 

Steve Harrington has always been attractive, you can’t deny that, but learning this gentler and nerdier side of him has only increased his attractiveness tenfold. Pair him with Nancy and it’s no wonder the two of them were such a hit at school. They make a beautiful pair, something you almost envy. 

Just as you’ve finished stacking the last of the new shipment, the bell rings in the store. You look up, seeing Jonathan, and feel yourself smile. He looks more tired today, though you suppose it’s because he’s basically become the kids’ chauffeur now that he’s no longer working. He claims that he doesn’t mind, but you know he secretly wishes you were there to help. 

“Rough day, bee?”

He nods, walking over to you and places his head against your shoulder, letting out a dramatic groan. “Dustin insisted I drive them to the quarry to reenact Will’s body being retrieved. It was morbid, and yet… Kinda funny.”

“I…” you’re speechless, in complete disbelief. “Those boys are horrible, I love their freakish little brains.” 

“What’d they do now?” Steve appears, a giant stack of comics and books in his arms. “Hey, Jonathan.”

“Steve,”

You gently remove Jonathan from your shoulder and face Steve. “They reenacted Will’s dead body being found in the quarry. A typical Friday afternoon, really.”

Steve’s jaw drops, equally as speechless as you were, and you and Jonathan laugh at him. “They sound insane.”

“If we’re going to be friends, you really gotta get used to the boys.” You tell him with a shrug. 

Jonathan walks over to the counter and grabs your backpack, then goes to Steve and holds it open, motioning for him to place all the comics and books in there. “She’s right, you know.”

Steve lets a chuckle out, a hint of nervousness mixed in with delight as he drops your stuff in the bag. “I know, she’s always right. That’s what scares me.” 

You blush and leave the boys on their own to go inform Mrs. Waters that you’re closing up. You hear them start whispering to each other as you leave, and you make a mental note to badger Jonathan about it on the drive home. While you’re relieved they seem to be getting along tonight, you absolutely cannot have them forming an alliance against you. They’d lose, of course, but still.

– 

Winter break comes and you spend the first half of it with your family and the Byers. Your mom has slowly started letting you out the house again. When you came home with a sprained ankle, crutches, and bruised ribs, she’d almost fainted. You were promptly placed under house arrest, only allowed out for work and school, but you didn’t mind.

It takes some pleading, you manage to convince her to allow you to bike to the Byers’ on Christmas to deliver your treats for them. When she agreed, you were giddy, finally having some time to yourself. 

Though it’s snowing, you enjoy the beautiful serenity of it all. The layer of white, untouched and pristine, falling around the pine trees like a blanket tucking you in after a long day, makes you smile. 

It’s always so lovely seeing Will and Joyce and you wish you could stay longer, but your mom had been firm when she told you to be back within the hour, so you deliver the cookies and bid your farewells before Jonathan drives you home. 

After your conversation, making him promise that things will always remain the same between you two, the car ride is silent once more. You’re okay with this, finding that you’ve come to miss your comfortable silences with Jonathan. They’ve become few and far between ever since Will’s reappearance. You’ve both been busy attending to him and the boys, trying to make everything as normal as possible again.

When Jonathan pulls into your driveway, you unbuckle your seatbelt and lean over to kiss his cheek, but he stops you. “Hold on, I figured we’d do our gift exchange early this year.”

You gasp. “Did you plan this?”

For years now, you and Jonathan have given each other your gifts the day after Christmas so that it’s just the two of you, no one else, experiencing the moment. You love the tradition, it’s become your favorite part of Christmas. 

“Maybe,” he laughs, wrapping around his seat to get to the back. He pulls out a small box that’s so poorly wrapped, you know he did it all by himself. “Here, open it.”

“But your gift is inside, I didn’t–”

“Shush and open the gift, damnit.”

“How sweet,” you tease, but eagerly begin tearing at the wrapping paper. Jonathan has always given you the most obscure and wonderful gifts, every year he somehow manages to surprise you. You tear off the last piece of wrapping paper and open the small box, gasping when you see what’s inside. “Jonathan… you didn’t.”

Inside the box is a beautiful silver necklace. The chain itself is simple, it’s the pendant attached to it that takes your breath away.

Dangling from the necklace is a bee, no bigger than a centimeter or so. 

There’s small diamonds in its wings and the necklace itself is minimal, something you’d only notice if you were paying attention, and it’s the most precious gift you’ve ever been given. You touch it delicately, the metal cool against your fingertips.

Jonathan gives you a boyish smile. “Figured we could match.”

“What–” He raises his right hand and for the first time you notice a ring on his index finger. You gasp again and snatch his hand, bringing it closer to your face so you can get a better look. The ring has a thick silver band, and there, in its center, is a ladybug as small as your bee. The ladybug is all silver, its wings integrated through the ring’s band. “Jonathan…”

“Do you like it? I found the jewelry at a garage sale this summer. Came as a pair,” Jonathan wraps the hand you’re inspecting around your own. “Almost like fate knew I’d find it for us, ya know? Bug and bee, you and me.”

You have so many things you want to say, but the words are stuck in your throat and all you want to do is grab Jonathan and pull him in and never, ever let him go. “You’ve had the jewelry for months?”

“Hardest secret I’ve had to keep from you, honestly.”

You laugh and cry and kiss Jonathan’s cheek a million times. “Thank you, thank you, thank you.”

Things are finally starting to feel alright again. Here the two of you are, parked in your driveway in Jonathan’s rundown car, off in your own little world for the first time in months. It’s just the two of you, no one else, with only the falling snow as your company. 

You couldn’t be happier. You feel complete again, whole, with Jonathan’s pinky promise from earlier as your oath. 

“I feel bad,” you say as Jonathan walks you to your door. “For Christmas all I got you were cassettes. Had I known you were being sentimental this year I would’ve given you a lock of my hair or something.”

Jonathan laughs, and the sound doesn’t hurt you as much as it used to.

– 

Working the day after Christmas has always been your favorite shift. No one ever comes in, it’s always just been you, your books, and your comics for five blissful hours.

Somehow, you should’ve known that Steve would stop by anyways. 

You’re admiring your new necklace in a mirror when he walks in, all bundled up due to the flurry of snow that’s encasing Hawkins. 

“How do you always manage to know when I’ll be working?” You ask him in lieu of a greeting. 

Steve unzips his coat and hangs it up. “A magician never reveals his secrets, Y/N.”

“Boring, I say they should.” 

“Well,” he walks over with both hands behind his back, hiding something, which you raise your eyebrows at. “Instead of my secrets, can we compromise on revealing a gift instead?”

You gape at him. “Please tell me you didn’t.”

“Oh, I did.”

“Steve! I didn’t even get you anything, I hate being empty handed! This is literally my worst nightmare–”

Steve places the box on the counter with a devilish smile on his face. “Just shush and open it, Y/N.” 

“But–”

“Open it.”

You sigh, very much against this entire thing, but curiosity gets the better of you. Steve has only been your friend for barely a month now, what could he have possibly gotten you? The wrapping is well done, vastly neater than Jonathan’s had been, which you comment on. 

Steve blushes. “My mom sorta helped me wrap it.”

Something warm settles in your stomach at the idea of Steve’s mom helping him wrap his gift for you. “Tell her that I admire her tasteful wrapping skills.”

Steve chuckles and tells you he will, but he’s too focused on watching you slowly unwrap the gift. Inside is a rectangular box, thin but sturdy, and you look up at your friend curiously. “What’s this?”

“Open it and see.” Steve says, giving you a duh look. 

You roll your eyes at him but lift the box’s lid and almost scream when you see what’s inside. 

Steve anxiously studies your reaction, seeing the way your eyes widen comically and you throw your hands over your mouth to stifle a scream. You’re practically jumping up and down in your excitement to hold the framed poster up, and he feels relief wash over him. You seem to love the gift, he finally did something right. 

“How the fuck did you get this?” You exclaim, studying the incredible details on the poster. It’s the cover of the very first edition of Spider-Man, Amazing Fantasy #15. You eyes scan over it and notice scrawled handwriting next to Spider-Man’s leg. “No, oh my god.”

“Notice anything special about it?” Steve leans against the counter with his arms crossed, a pleased smile on his face. 

“It’s signed? By Stan fucking Lee?”

“Yup.”

You run out from behind the counter and engulf Steve in your arms. He’s stiff against you, having not expected such a reaction, but you don’t care. You bury your face in his chest and squeeze him, trying your best to exude your immense gratitude. “Thank you,”

Steve slowly relaxes into the embrace and wraps his arms around you, gently patting your back. “My dad knows a guy… Thought you’d like it.”

“I love it, Steve.” You whisper, your words muffled by his sweater.

You’re still wrapped in his arms, standing toe to toe with him, and you’re so happy it almost hurts. Steve’s arms are warm and strong and you feel him hesitantly rest his cheek atop of your head. He brings you in closer, secures his hold on you a little tighter, and you can smell that stupidly expensive and addicting cologne of his. 

Steve is internally freaking out. Not only is he hugging you right now, but he’s surrounded by you. Your hair is against his cheek, your soft perfume overtakes his senses, and the sweater you’re wearing has Steve believing that everything about you is just warm and comforting and lovely. He wants to pull you in deeper, pull you into him, even. 

He’s never been hugged like this before, so openly and with such sincerity. 

He doesn’t want this moment to end, honestly. 

Then your boss comes through the front door. “Well, hello there, children.”

You don’t necessarily pull away from Steve, letting an arm linger around him so that you can face your boss. “Hello, Mrs. Waters. We were just wrapping up, then we’ll be out of your hair.”

She waves you off, winking, and scurries over to her office. “Oh, don’t mind me! Carry on!”

You and Steve laugh, no ounce of tension between you. He seems carefree as always, and you have to refrain from pulling him into another hug. You look up at him, still toe to toe, so your head almost butts against his chin. “I sort the books, you stack?”

He smiles down at you. “Deal.”

– 

Winter becomes spring and somehow you manage to finish sophomore year without any further problems. Jonathan remains by your side, Steve continues to visit you at work, and you even strike up a tentative friendship with Nancy. 

It was hard at first, especially after she got back together with Steve, but Jonathan seemed to do well at burying down his feelings and insisted that the four of you could make things work, so you do. 

Nancy is a joy to be around when you forget about the fact that Jonathan is hopelessly in love with her. She’s incredibly intelligent, cunning, and a great chemistry partner. Following the events of Will, you and her discover that by studying together, Kaminsky’s exams aren’t too difficult. 

You often study together in the library while Jonathan sits across the table doing his own work. Slowly, Steve begins to join in as well. He usually spends your study sessions cracking jokes and bugging Jonathan, but after a while even he breaks down Jonathan’s stoic demeanor and strikes up their own hesitant relationship. 

It’s not perfect, there’s still some underlying tension between you, Nancy, and Jonathan, but it’s enough.

Plus, it’s useful having Steve around whenever Jonathan and Nancy slip off into their own world. It’s become inevitable, something you’ve come to accept, but at least you can turn to Steve now and roll your eyes together. 

It’s really nice, actually. 

He eases the sting of losing Jonathan, even if he doesn’t realize it. Makes everything more bearable.

Summer comes and you don’t see Nancy as often, but Steve makes sure to visit your job whenever possible. 

One day he comes in looking nervous and doesn’t do his usual greeting. He doesn’t wave, doesn’t flash you his signature smile, he just walks straight towards the counter with a frightened look on his face. “I need your help.”

You put the book you’d been reading down and immediately feel dread overwhelming you. Something is happening again, all those contracts you had to sign by Hawkins Lab are coming back to bite you in the ass. Will is in danger again. “Is everything okay?”

He must see the terrified look in your eyes and he quickly reassures you. “Oh, no it’s nothing serious, I just… I need your help with something.”

“Holy fuck,” you let out a breath, feeling your heartbeat start to return to normal. “Dude, after the whole monster fiasco, can we use some discretion when it comes to asking for help?”

“Right, sorry.” 

“It’s fine… So, what’s up?”

Steve looks around the store to ensure no one is listening, which you find a bit odd, but whatever. He leans in close and whispers, “I need your help finding a gift for Nancy.” 

“A gift?”

“Yeah. It’ll be six months with her soon and I just, I don’t know. I want to be a good boyfriend and get her something she’ll like. But I don’t know what she’d like, I’m the worst gift giver ever.”

You frown. “That’s not true. The poster you got me is hanging in my room as we speak.”

“Thanks, Y/N. But Nancy is different, she’s… She’s still really shaken up about Barb and I want to make it up to her. Cheer her up, ya know?” Steve fiddles with his sunglasses, you’ve never seen him so closed off and guarded before.

“Okay, well. What did you have in mind?”

“Something she’ll love.” Steve thinks for a moment. “A diamond necklace, maybe?”

“Okay, woah.” You put your hand up to slow down Steve’s frantic ideas. “I know you mean well, but Nancy is like. Pretty well off. She can afford her own diamond necklace, but besides that, she’s not a very materialistic girl. She wouldn’t like a necklace.”

Steve sighs. “You’re right. That’s um, actually why I’m here.”

“Oh?” You’re intrigued now. 

“Nance has been going on and on about this news article that came out recently. Something about politics, or maybe the weather?” You stare at Steve, urging him to get to the point. “Sorry, doesn’t matter. Okay, basically I know she likes journalism. And you work at a bookstore, so…” 

“You want to get her some books on journalism?” You ask, your heart clenching. Here’s this guy, Steve fucking Harrington, who is gorgeous and kind and shyly asking you for book advice for a girl he so dearly loves.

Somehow you envy Nancy Wheeler even more than you already do. She really does have it all, and you can’t even begrudge her for it. She’s genuinely a nice person, it’d be easier to hate her if she was horrible, but she isn’t.

Typical. 

“Is that dumb? Actually, you know what, now that I’m saying it out loud it sounds stupid–”

You grab Steve’s hand, interrupting him. “Hey, no. It’s actually a really sweet idea. I think… I think she’ll really love it.”

Steve looks relieved and you can’t help but pity him. He’s trying so hard to be better for Nancy, to be all she wants him to be, and yet just yesterday you had to break up a weird staring contest between Nancy and Jonathan when you’d been at her place picking up Will and Dustin. 

Your heart aches for this boy, so in love with a girl you’re afraid may love your best friend. 

You guide Steve over to the journalistic section of Bookstrordinary and tell him some of your personal favorites. It’s not your favorite genre, but you’re familiar enough with it to give Steve a good starting point, which he’s immensely grateful for. 

“You’re a lifesaver, Y/N.” 

“What can I say? It’s a talent of mine.”

Steve starts to search through the books and you leave him alone to get back to work. It’s a slow day today, the mid July heat seemingly keeping everyone at home, so you spend most of your time watching Steve. He meticulously goes through each and every book, spending almost three hours reading their synopses over and over again to ensure that he finds Nancy the best book. 

Occasionally he mumbles to himself, shaking his head when a book doesn’t fit quite right with what he has in mind, or exclaiming with glee when he finds the perfect one. Slowly he accumulates his own little pile of books before he brings them over to you. 

He places the stack on your counter with a proud smile on his face. “I’ll take these, please.”

You whistle at the pile. “Think it’ll be enough?”

“Do you think I need more?” Steve asks, fear in his voice. 

“I’m kidding, Steve. This is more than enough; it’s perfect.”

You start ringing the books up and Steve leans against the counter, back into his usual stance at your job. The price racks up quickly, but you’re sure it’s no problem for someone like Steve. In total he’s selected six books for Nancy, and with each book you scan you feel more tugging at your heart. 

He deserves better, but he wouldn’t listen to you if you told him. 

“Thanks again, by the way.” Steve breaks the silence. 

“For what?”

“For helping me. You’ve always been so patient with me, well–I don’t know. It’s nice.” Steve rubs the back of his neck, sheepish. 

You find yourself blushing as well, his words making you uneasy as always. “It’s nothing, Steve. We’re friends, what else am I supposed to do?”

“Well, I’ve never really had any friends before. I’m still new to this.” He confesses, looking away. 

Again your heart aches for the boy. Here King Steve is, admitting to you that he’s never really had any friends before. You can’t imagine what that must be like, being so loved by a crowd of admirers yet isolated because of it. 

You think about Tommy Hagan, Carol Perkins, and the various people who seemed to flow in and out of Steve’s inner circle of friends. The numerous girls he never stayed with for long, the boys who only used him for his popularity, you never considered how exhausting that all must’ve been. Surrounded by all, yet loved by none. 

Hell, even with Nancy, Steve has confessed to you that he feels like he’s too much for her sometimes. 

“You’re a great friend, Steve.” You reassure him, trying to keep your voice level. You know that any hint of pity will only make him feel lesser than, but you really wish you could make him believe you. Steve Harrington has somehow become your favorite person to be around. “I promise, you’re a natural when it comes to friendship.”

Steve smiles. “You think so?”

“I know so. In fact,” you finish ringing Steve up and deduct your employee discount from his total, dropping the price significantly. “I just gave you my employee discount because that’s what friends do and I know you’ll do the same for me one day. That is, if you ever get a job.” 

He puts his hands in the air. “Hey, the way I see it: why get a job when I don’t need one?”

“Such wise words from a rich kid.” 

“What if the rich kid offered to buy you dinner to repay you?” Steve’s tone is teasing, but there’s openness in his eyes that makes you freeze. He wants you to say yes, he’s almost pleading with you to accept his offer with those big brown eyes that make you want to scream.

You want to say yes, to accept his offer and go out to dinner with him and laugh and tease each other’s food choices and feel like the only two people to exist in Hawkins, but you can’t. 

Steve is looking at you with a softness in his eyes that catches in the July afternoon light, and you see the shift. It’s subtle, but it’s there. He’s looking at you as if he’d do whatever you asked, without any hesitation, because he cares about you in a way that no one quite has before. 

Sure, you’ve noticed it before through his actions, but seeing the deep fondness behind his eyes is something entirely different. You feel this flutter within your chest and you feel heat rise to your cheeks. He’s looking at you as if you’re holding the goddamn sun, and you can’t do it. 

You can’t tell Steve yes. 

He’s Nancy’s. So is Jonathan. 

You can’t develop feelings for yet another guy that Nancy Wheeler has claimed for herself. 

You don’t love Steve, but you know how easily you could fall for him. With him, everything is easier. Your laughs feel freer, your heart a little lighter. With Steve, it feels like you’re coming home after being away for so long. First uncertain of what you’ve left behind, but then so full of love once you’re embraced with open arms as if no time has passed. 

It would be so easy falling in love with Steve. 

That’s why you tell him no. 

“I can’t.” You finally say. It takes everything within you to get the words out, as if your body is physically unable to break Steve Harrington’s heart. But you have to. 

Steve’s smile drops. “Oh, alright.”

You wrap up the last of the books for Nancy, take the cash from Steve, and then inform him that you have a lot of work to do before closing. “You should leave.”

“Already?” He looks so hurt and you want to just kiss his cheek, whisper how lovely he is. 

But he’s too lovely. Too selfless towards you. Too kind and charismatic and easygoing. 

He’s too much for you, but not in the way that plagues him with fear of rejection. 

He’s too much for you because of how easily you could embrace him entirely, how willing you are to make room for him even if you already know there’s plenty of space for him regardless. 

“Yeah,” you busy yourself with a meaningless pile of books. “Just go home, give Nancy those books.”

The words burn your tongue almost as much as your tears burn your eyes. 

But you remind yourself of Jonathan, of how much it hurts to hear him say Nancy’s name like a prayer. How Steve describes her as if she’s the moon and he’s a lowly astronomer tasked with studying her. 

You can’t keep putting yourself through this hurt. 

It isn’t fair to yourself, and for once you need to be selfish. 

Steve leaves, mumbling a soft goodbye, and you vow then and there to push him away. You’ve gotten too used to his company; you came too close to falling in love with yet another person who couldn’t possibly ever love you back. 

So you limit your interactions with Steve. 

You’re dismissive when he comes to your job the next day, then the next, and the next. He seems hurt at first, asking you if he’s done anything wrong, why you’re icing him out, but eventually after a few weeks he seems to let it go. 

You’re thankful for that. For his ability to read you and understand that there’s something more, you just can’t tell him. 

July turns to August and Steve stops coming by Bookstrordinary. 

You go back to only spending time with the boys or Jonathan, rarely ever Nancy. You don’t see much of Steve, and sometimes it feels like last November never happened. Like he never came into your life and flipped it completely upside down. The only reminder that it had been real is the poster that hangs on your wall, taunting you for your cowardice. 

Jonathan notices your change in demeanor, missing Steve more than you thought you would, but you make up some lie and change the topic. You know it’s for the better. It has to be for the better. And yet it feels like you’ve just lost something incredible. Something that could’ve been everything, an almost that you’ll never quite understand. 

But you refuse to fall in love with Steve Harrington. 

-

⌑ series masterlist

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#steve harrington x henderson!reader #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington x you #stranger things #steve harrington fanfic #stranger things rewrite #slowburn #angst #wdtai #m's writing #steve just wants love #n reader just wants to feel normal and okay again #ugh #wrong time for my babys

[ctitan98official]

Daniela Dimitrescu x Y/N who has a kid part 2

I’m really excited to return to this AU and it’s been highly requested that I write a sequel! Read the first part here! Let’s get into it!

You and Dani have gone on quite a few dates recently. She had been terrified to tell you about her… Family situation. But, after the whole fainting episode, you told her that nothing could change the way you feel about her. You just want to be with her.

Dani, being the softy she is, balled her eyes out at your statement for half an hour.

She still hasn’t brought you to meet her mother yet, but… Baby steps. You two are content to stay in the safe, private bubble you have created for your relationship. No one else needs to know how much you like each other (Well, Ana being the exception).

This morning, you’re feeding Ana as she sits in her highchair. You make silly faces at her as you offer her spoonfuls of food and she squeals happily while she eats.

You love bright and fun mornings like these.

Suddenly, you both hear a knock at the door. Who could that be? You aren’t expecting any visitors…

You holler out that the door is open and are met with a very welcome sight. It’s Dani.

“Good morning, my loves!” The chipper redhead calls out.

You smirk and wipe Ana’s face. “Hey, babe. I didn’t know you were coming over today,” You say and go over to give Dani a kiss.

Dani all but purrs the minute your lips touch hers. She pulls back and affectionately pinches your cheek. “Well, I went for a walk in the castle gardens this morning and found the most yummy-looking apples ever!” Dani says, showing you a basket she brought along. “I had to share!” She giggles.

You laugh at this. Dani’s the type of person to make up tons of silly excuses just to see you. But, it’s really sweet that she thinks about you so much.

However, before you can say anything else, Dani gasps when she sees Ana in her highchair nearby. She abruptly shoves the basket into your hands and speeds over to her.

“Hi, baby!” She coos and kisses Ana’s cheek. “I missed you so much!”

Ana is excited to see Dani. So excited, in fact, that she says something that will change you and Dani’s lives… Forever.

“Mama!” Ana babbles happily and reaches out for the redhead to pick her up.

You and Dani immediately freeze at this.

It’s a moment you would have never anticipated, and yet… It feels so right. Dani is like Ana’s mother. She’s so loving and always makes your little one a priority.

But… Is this going to freak Dani out? You don’t know if she will appreciate the title or if it will make her feel uncomfortable. You finally manage to look over at Dani and can see the sheer… Delight on her face.

Dani’s eyes are watering and she’s wearing the most precious smile. She leans closer to gently nuzzle her nose against Ana’s. “Would you… Like me to be your mama, baby?” She asks.

Ana giggles and claps her hands. Repeating one word over and over. “Mama! Mama! Mama!”

Dani picks Ana up and cradles her to her chest, reveling in the warmth of the precious child in her arms.

It’s… Weird, though. As Dani looks at Ana… She feels that a new, stronger attachment has formed between them both. It’s something instinctual and raw. This is her baby now and she will do anything to protect her.

Anything.

Dani breathes heavily at the intense feelings coursing through her.

You, mesmerized and watching from a distance, put the basket of apples on the table and go to join the two in a hug.

Dani hums contentedly. This is her new little family. She loves you and Ana so much.

No words are spoken, and yet everyone knows that something special has just happened.

The rest of the day is spent together.

Later on, as you, Dani, and Ana are snuggling on the couch, Dani finally addresses the elephant in the room. “I… Need you both to meet my mother,” She says quietly.

You feel your heart rate quicken at this. No… You’re not ready! What if she hates you?! Not to mention Dani’s sisters. “I… But… But-!” You try to argue.

Dani just shakes her head at you. “Y/N, my mother needs to know that… I’m a Mama now,” She says, looking down at Ana adoringly and brushing some hair out of her face. “I… Want her to meet you and her new granddaughter,” She says and turns to you. “Don’t you agree?” She asks and raises an expectant eyebrow, her tone holding no room for argument.

You blanch at this, but eventually nod. “I’m… I guess I’m just nervous. What if she doesn’t like me? Telling her that you have a family now is… A pretty big bomb to drop,” You say quietly.

Dani sighs at this. “I know… To be honest, I’m terrified as well,” She admits. “But…” She says and gently pecks Ana on the head. “It’s the right thing to do. She deserves to know about us,” She says with conviction, leaning over and capturing your lips in a kiss.

You eagerly kiss Dani before she pulls back to look at you.

“So… What do you say, Y/N?” She asks, pleading silently with her her eyes.

You laugh at this. Dani’s puppy dog eyes are impossible to resist. “Alright, babe,” You concede.

Dani squeals happily and softly bounces Ana in her arms. “Are you ready to meet grandma, baby?” She asks.

Ana just giggles at Dani’s excited voice.

“I’ll take that as a yes!” She gushes and peppers kisses all over her little one’s face. “We’ll tell her tomorrow! Oh! And you’ll get to meet your aunts too!” Dani declares. She rattles on, telling Ana all about them.

You, on the other hand… Are a little less than enthused. Looks like you’re staying up to write your last will and testament tonight…

Note: In this AU, Dani is kind of giving Giselle from Enchanted XD What do you think??

Masterlist

#re8 #re8 village #y/n is stupid #daniela dimitrescu #daniela dimitrescu x reader #daniela dimitrescu x y/n #re8 daniela #re8 incorrect quotes #re8 fanfiction #resident evil #resident evil village #resident evil 8

[italiansteebie]

Love on Screen

Welcome to my Streamer au :-) Episode One, also on ao3 (Preferred format)

Steve sighed as he opened his laptop, clicking on the ‘Youtube’ icon and pulling up his channel. He likes his job, really he does. But so many people do the same thing that he’s honestly running out of ideas. Luckily, his subscribers seem to enjoy the weird ass shit he’s been putting out lately. In the last one, he’d made a bed out of cheese for his cat, the only issue was, was that she wanted to eat it, and if you don’t know, cat’s are lactose intolerant, so what started as a stupid video turned into him vlogging how to clean cat diarrhea of a carpet.

His subscribers thought it was hilarious, paying no mind to his discomfort, moreso worrying about piggy, his cat, and how her tummy was doing. She’s fine. Just a little dramatic. So with a lack of ideas, he goes lives. “Hey. How’s it going, chat? Look, I really need some new ideas because honestly, I’m bombing here.” And like always the chat blew up with responses, ‘call robin!’ and Steve snorted, “call Robin? Fine?” He picked up his phone, tapping Robin’s contact and waiting for it to ring.

“What?”

“That’s real nice, Rob. What a way to answer your best friend.”

“You aren’t my best friend, Nancy is.”

Steve scoffs, “Whatever, say hi to chat!”

“Seriously? This is the content y’all like? God, give him good ones, like getting a life.”

“I have a life, okay? Just because I don’t-”

“Your life consists of bugging me and Nancy, now get off live and think of some real idea’s, Steve!” Her tone was accusatory and Steve didn’t have a chance to answer before she hung up on him. He sighed, looking into the webcam, “Well. You heard her. I’ll talk to you guys later. Bye chat!” He ended the live and shut his laptop with a huff. He pondered for a moment, before deciding to scroll, what better way to come up with ideas than to scan and see what’s trending, right? 

He knows it’s a lazy tactic but, hey. He’s been doing this for years, there’s only so many ideas a brain could hatch. Maybe he could play a new game? Nah, he’s played all the good ones. Maybe he could play a really bad one just for giggles, maybe that’d be fun? It’s not fair! Robin and Nancy use their lives as content! Steve’s life was boring! Maybe it was worth a try, and so, a dumb little morning vlog was in the works.  

-

And okay, so it turns out maybe his subscribers are somewhat interested in his life. How was he supposed to know? He wakes up, answers emails, makes breakfast, works out, and that’s it! It wasn’t anything special. He felt… Boring. 

And yeah, the video did well but he still felt like he fell flat. He was supposed to be funny! So in his fit of doubt, he decides to scroll a little bit. (A bit of mindless scrolling didn't hurt anyone, right?) Wrong, Steve. It hurt a lot of people. But either way, in his attempt to bury his feelings he came across a video titled “Freak Rage Quits and Then Cries,” and Steve was a little apprehensive. He doesn’t really do the bullying, mean girl content, well, at least not like he used to. (He was a different person then). But he clicked on it anyways, and holy shit. He was funny. And really hot. 

And soon enough, Steve fell down a rabbit hole. He couldn’t get enough of this guy, he was cute, and charming, and somehow chaotic in a way that made Steve weak in the knees. (And look, the liking guys thing was relatively new, but the whole ‘attracted to chaos thing’ came out of left field). Well, if he’s being honest, it really didn’t. When he thought he had a crush on Robin it was her chaotic energy that really got to him, which was surprising seeing as his ex before her was very much the opposite. But as it turns out, chaos is like this guys whole brand. Eddie. That’s his name by the way, goes by corrodededdie on twitch, which honestly, fit him perfectly, 

Steve didn’t get the guys subscribing count at first, over 1.5 million (which is almost as many as Steve), but he gets it now. He doesn’t understand how someone could make him fall in love, over video. It was a bit ridiculous, really. Luckily for him, corrodededdie struck the inspiration bucket and Steve fell asleep with some new concepts floating around in his head. And yeah, maybe they were a bit more chaotic than what he usually did but… Oh well. Blame it on his new muse.

—

Eddie grinned as he waved goodbye to the stream, he’d just finished a 12 hour long long haul that he did on a dare because some troll in the chat said he wouldn’t be able to do it. And well, Eddie runs off spite, so of course he made sure to do it, and do it right. 

So here he was, 12 hours later, absolutely exhausted. He’d started the stream at a nice time of 6pm. That meant he’d have to stay streaming and making actual content, not just farting around on his phone, for 12 hours. It seemed easy enough. 

It wasn’t.

Right around the eight hour mark he started to get pretty restless. He’d already played all the games he had within his reach like, twice, and he was honestly really sick of talking about himself, so he made the courageous decision to ask the chat for suggestions on what he should do. (That was especially dangerous since at the time he was doing it, which was 2 am, was the time his especially creepy subscribers like to join and torment him by suggesting really gross stuff. And not like eating dog food gross). But luckily someone in the chat, named ‘dustybun04’ came through for him, suggesting a channel by the title of ‘Steve goes to Hell’ and well. Needless to say, it wasn’t what Eddie was expecting with a name like that. 

It was mainly this guy doing different hair techniques and making weird shit for his cat. He has to be honest, ‘dustybun04’ really disappointed him. He was under the complete impression that this guy was going to be some metal badass that played COD and killed zombies. But… It wasn’t. “Oh come on, dustybun. This guy?” And the chat lit up.

Dustybun04: watch the one where he makes a chees bed for his cat it made me laugh so hard i threw up.

And that caught Eddie’s attention. So there he was, at 2 am, pseudo stalking this guys channel looking for a very specific video. And he makes sure he’s mic'd up so that the stream could catch his candid reaction. “Mr. Piggyyyy, look at what mommy made you,” and Eddie had to pause the video. The guy called himself ‘Mommy’? Oh god, who was this guy? He snorts, looking at the camera like he’s on ‘The Office’ before turning the video back on. And as much as he hates to admit it, he was crying with laughter by the end of the video. 

And so the 12 hour long stream turned into him doing a deepdive review on ‘Steve goes to Hell.’ And he wasn’t disappointed. He could tell that his viewers were ready to move on to something else, but Eddie couldn’t help it. He was just… Enamored with the guy. Eventually though, around the 11 hour mark, Steve ran out of content for Eddie to watch. So he reluctantly decided to bother his best, dear, friend, Nancy. She ran a channel with her girlfriend and they were so disgustingly cute that it almost made Eddie want to barf. He picked up his phone and dialed Nancy, waiting with a mischievous smile on his face. “Eddie? It’s… 5 am, why are you calling me?”

“Say hi to chat!” He cheered, far too loud and excited for the early hour.

“Ugh, Eddie. You’re the worst.”

“You love me, Wheeler.”

“Wha’s goin’ on?” Oh shit. Did he wake up Robin? “It’s just Eddie baby, go back to sleep. You woke up Robin you fucking asshole. I’m going to kill you the next time I see you.” Yep. 

She hung up on him with a huff, “Isn’t she a charmer, folks? Okay…. Let’s see.” Eddie muttered to himself, scrolling mindlessly, looking for something to get him through the last 30 minutes. “Okay… Thirty minute stretch guys. What should we do?” And then it happened. ‘Steve goes to Hell has uploaded a new video.’ “Awh, shit guys. Steve goes to Hell has another video,” He dragged out the ‘o’ far too excited for a channel he just found of a guy he knows virtually nothing about. “Wake up with me? Ew. God, he’s so cheesy. Let’s watch” And it turns out it was actually pretty cute. 

And yup. There it is. Eddie has a new crush on a guy. A guy who happens to look super hot when he wakes up and by definition out of Eddie’s league. He sits and watches silently, enraptured with the way this guy lives his life, waking up so god damned early. As the video comes to an end, so does the 12 hour stream. “Well, shit guys. We did it. Actually, I did it. You guys did nothing. Anyways. It’s been fun. wheeliemike, suck my dick, and fuck you for saying I couldn’t do this. Alright. Thanks for chilling with me!” 

And that brings us up to speed. Eddie slumped back into his gaming chair, breathing out deeply. “Shit. I am never doing that again.” He slid out of his chair and trudged over to his bed, flopping down onto it and groaning loudly. He was just about to succumb to the sweet release of sleep when his phone chimed. ‘Steve goes to hell just subscribed to your channel.’ And oh fuck. Oh fuck, was he watching? Shit. Well. His heart was beating too fast to go to sleep now, may as well instagram stalk the guy. Like all normal people do when they develop a new crush.

#seriously nervous about posting this #ngl #steve harrington #eddie munson #steddie #best friend robin #robin buckley #minor ronance #streamer eddie munson #youtuber steve harrington #steddie fic #social media au #steddie streamers #steddie streamer au #streamer au #steddie fanfic #best friend robin buckley #background ronance #stranger things #no monsters

[piko-power]

So, the Knuckles Show...

It was a hassle to attempt and find the show somewhere else (pirate if you wanna watch), and also I had a lot going on that day, BUT!

I have finally finished all six episodes of Knuckles, and my final thoughts...!

...It was pretty good.

Honestly, nothing to ground-breaking and outstanding but it was fantastic and such a lovely treat to hardcore Knuckles fans. Like me lol. (It may not look like it, but TRUST ME THIS SHOW TURNED ME INTO A HARDCORE KNUCKLES FAN.)

All of my thoughts are under the cut, but to make a long story short, I really enjoyed it! (Forgive this post and me I'm not the best at sharing reviews DX)

Now, some things I wanna point out... (MASSIVE SPOILERS AND PERSONAL HEADCANONS AHEAD)

THOUGHTS ON CHARACTERS

I really liked Wade Whipple. He's goofy, and dorky, and he was fantastic for saving his family and Knuckles. His character arc was really interesting to watch, and he's got a lot of funny moments. Him and Knuckles also make a great team. I believe he would make a great Uncle for Knuckles. XD

Knuckles' arc was fantastic too. I was hoping that he realizes that Earth is his home, and he did. The Movie Series version of Knuckles is definitely my favorite version of Knuckles. EVER. Love this character to death. Number one favorite character right now.

The story was pretty good, too. Interesting that Knuckles isn't the only main focus, but I was onboard with the idea that Wade is also in the spotlight. I liked Wade but I love him A LOT.

The whole drama with Wade's family was something that honestly caught me off guard, but in a good way. It's just great to see more of his extended family. (And Wade's mother and is just so sweet and cool.)

Mason and Willoughby were fun to watch. Almost better than Orbot and Cubot, honestly. XD

The Buyer... I kind of forgot about him until the last few episodes. XD Cool villain, though!

Pachacamac... Never thought I would actually enjoy this character. Really wish he got enough screen time, dude is so hilarious. So much better than the Pachacamac we all knew from Adventure 1 pffffft. And hearing Doc Brown's voice coming out of Mac's mouth was the best part. He fits the role perfectly.

WACHOWSKI FAMILY CRUMBS! WE GOT TO SEE MORE OF THE WACHOWSKIS! It was only for one episode, but it's just so refreshing to see Knuckles with his newfound family, especially Tails. (Even though he didn't get enough screentime.)

No Donut Lord... 😔

MY HEADCANONS OF THE EVENTS DURING THE SHOW (and afterwards)

The house is still in construction after the second film. I have a feeling that the Knuckles show took place probably a month or two after the second film. (Or at least after the baseball field scene from the movie.)

And if that's the case, then it's probably why Sonic and Tails haven't called Maddie "mom" yet. Sonic JUST made Donut Dad official, but not hearing Sonic calling Maddie "mom" didn't surprise me, actually. Since he had a mother figure once before, and now she's gone. Sonic is probably still struggling to make Mama Maddie official after that whole mess. 🥺

And also I think Tails does look at Tom and Maddie as his parents, but calls them by their first names because that's what he's most comfortable with for now.

Sonic mentions that Tails and Knuckles are his roommates. ...Something tells me that he hasn't realized the bigger picture yet. 😈 Once the realization hits, it's over for the middle child.

I seriously don't believe Knuckles is sticking with the Whipples. He's got a bed at home, and "pretzel woman" is a motherly title of sorts for Maddie. I just think Knuckles and Wade have formed a really strong bond. Wade is more of a uncle figure for him, but the Whipples are part of the Wachowskis regardless. 💕

I bet Knuckles' grape stash that the moment Knuckles walks back home with Wade, Sonic, Tails and Maddie (and Tom if he came home) freaks the hell out because he just straight up left home without an explanation. Especially since he's grounded and shouldn't have step foot out of the house. But all that matters is that Knuckles is at home with his family. Did this calm everybody down? No, and yes. It's hard to explain. (At least Sonic knows now that Knuckles can finally relax.)

Ever since the events of the Knuckles Show, seeing visions of Pachacamac is pretty normal for Knuckles, whether he needs to be guided for something even if it's small, or he just casually shows up in his dreams just to say "hi." I feel like since he visited Wade while he was unconscious, I think Pachacamac would also visit other people's dreams or visions. It be so goddamn funny if this dude just randomly show up in Sonic's dream, scaring the living daylights out of him, and when he explains it to Knuckles, he's like: "Oh, that's just Mac, he's cool." and Sonic is like: "???????"

THOUGHTS ON THE EPISODES - Fair warning, I've only seen these episodes ONCE (Including some clips I rewatched on Tumblr.) so some things here might be fuzzy or wrong, so bare with me here...

Episode 1 was a great start. I love the dynamic Sonic and Knuckles has. Bummer that we didn't get to see more of them together, but with the power of writing, that problem can be solved! (HUZZAH!) I love the small bit with Knuckles and his mother Maddie after he got grounded and how he just, took it okay with the fact that he's grounded. And I love Sonic trying to help his new buddy out, he's an absolute sweetheart for that. Pachacamac's appearance in the episode took me by surprise and he was such a joy to watch. Love the elderly goofball. Seeing Knuckles and Wade interact was nice, too, even when he gets to talk about his dad. It was a nice moment. And Knuckolas Cage. Best nickname ever, how dare Knuckles decline such a title for a perfect warrior XD

Episode 2 was great. Absolutely love the daydream scene with Wade's plan on saving Knuckles from the G.U.N. agents, and Holding Out For a Hero playing in the background. GOLDEN. Don't remember much else other than that and Knuckles and Wade rocking out to so music. (And Knuckles breaking the radio again.)

Episode 3 is when we get to see Wade's family members, and it was nice. Wanda is one of those siblings that we had and Wendy (is that her name?) is just so lovely. We got to know more of Knuckles' dad, and once more, it was a tender moment between an Echidna and a dork-ass Uncle. 😊 And we got a EPIC fight scene with Knuckles, Wendy and the goons. It was AWESOME. Also, love Wade's room. He's got good taste.

Episode 4... Oh, my God. It was a fever dream. Literally. It was so RIDICULOUS but it was the greatest thing I've ever seen in a long time. XD I love musical numbers that just come out of NOWHERE, and this was one of them! Adam Pally (Wade) in a Knuckles costume is just the most elegant thing. AND ECHIDNA MUPPETS ARE REAL! I WAS HOPING THAT THEY WOULD ACTUALLY BRING IN THE ECHIDNA MUPPET!! Jokes aside, it was a strangely epic episode of Wade going through Knuckles' past in a unique way. And the songs were pretty great. ...You think that's where all the budgeting went? On this gorgeous musical number? /j Also we got more of my boy Pachacamac, being one of my favorite characters besides Knuckles lmao GOD I wish we got more of Pachacamac. I love him so much XD

Episode 5 Is when they arrive at Reno. It was alright. We got to see Wade meeting his dad finally (also Knuckles is using a phone no problem I guess??) I think that's all I remember. WE GOT KNUCKLES WITH THE HAT THOUGH SO YEAH!

Episode 6 is the last one of the mini series and it was pretty kick-ass. More cool fight scenes, with Knuckles and the Agents, him against the Buyer, which was short and sweet, but still pretty intense. Wade and Pete was competing in bowling. Kept forgetting about that, but it was cool regardless. And Wade being the best uncle ever and protecting Knuckles while he was out. Also kind of forgot a lot from this episode, but nonetheless, badass way to end the mini series. Complete with the classic freeze frame of Knuckles and Wade getting a high five! Knuckles realizing that his home is on Earth was such a powerful scene. It was the first Sonic movie all over again.

And yes, there was a pretty quick post credits scene where Knuckles found a song and claimed it was his jam. It was really cute. XD

Really wish there was a scene where Knuckles came back home to the Wachowskis with the family flipping the lid over the fact that he left the house, but in my heart I know damn well it happened. I know this series too well lmao

That's pretty much all I wanna say about how this show made me feel. It was a fun time. Not was insane as Movie 1 and 2, but still as enjoyable.

Honestly, after watching this, I hope we get a Wachowski family TV show, where it's just the family on misadventures, and moments together that are comedic, fluffy, angst, any emotion you wanna feel watching it, and it's just a good time. I just wanna see more of this goofy little growing family. (Also it'd be cool if season 1 was after the first movie because I wanna see Sonic adjusting to his new life with Tom and Maddie and spending traditions and holidays with them before the sequel.) I love this series too much. 😅

This show got me really ambitious to work on my stories and I really wanna show the community how amazing these characters are. (I just need to get an AO3 in the future...)

It feels good to be back on the Wachowski bandwagon.

The Knuckles Show is flawed, but it was a fun time. I love the characters, I love the story, I love the choice of songs they used, and of course, I love Knuckles. This is the best we've ever seen of Knuckles, and I'm proud of how far this little, tough guy has came.

The Echidna Warrior made his debut 30 years ago, and he's never been stronger. Keep on punching, Knuckles! 😎💕

#piko rambles #knuckles wachowski #sonic movie 2020 #knuckles series #knuckles series spoilers #I don't really do review posts. Just wanted to share my thoughts on the show.

[hollybell51]

ok i know you said requests are backlogged but i also read your sam winchester fic (oh my god???? so good!!!!!) and i noticed that you put dean on your tag list form and i am literally in love with him so if you get time could you do like a hurt/confort fic for him where the reader gets like seriously injured and tells him she loves him because she thinks she's dying and doesn't wanna die without saying it?

Anon you are in luck, the supernatural brainrot is still going strong. Also if you wanna be tagged in stuff make sure you submit responses to that form otherwise I don't know what usernames to put xx

The other thing

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Dean Winchester x fem!Reader

Supernatural (2005)

Word count: 5.8K

Summary: hunting a ghost that only seems to attack young women, you volunteer yourself as bait. The plan doesn't exactly go to plan, leading to some confessions being made.

Content: ANGST. Angst, besties. Hurt/comfort, mainly hurt but there is some comfort there, whump (sorta), mostly Dean's perspective but still second person narrative voice (loml), probably bad characterisation but I think it's passable???? Sam is like the no. 1 Dean/you shipper, A+ wingman. Badly written emotional vulnerability but I tried I promise. Kissing, first kisses, "I love you"s, bit of blood but not too explicit, hospitals, etc. etc. Dean is a warning on his own but yknow what I love him. I may have missed some stuff so please don't hesitate to catch me on it!

Notes: ft. my freaking awful titles lmaoooo. This isn't really set during any actual episode, but I'm sorta working off only having watched the first two seasons so just assume it takes place somewhere around then. Also the more I watch this the more I just wanna grab him and put him in my pocket or something, it's so bizarre. He's so pretty. I love his cockiness, I love the little eyebrow thing he does, I love the little jaw thing he does. Sorry if I messed up any lore or anything, writing this was a fever dream but tbh I had fun, it's nice to just sorta write you know? Thanks for the suggestion Anon

“Guys, can you hurry up?” 

Dean glanced over his shoulder, frantically sprinkling fuel over the exposed corpse below. He couldn’t see all that much in the darkness, but it didn’t exactly look like you had the upper hand. None of them had realised how big the ghost was until now, and with the machete it was currently slashing at you…

“Almost there!” Sam shouted, striking a match and casting it into the grave. The remains went up with a “whoomp!”, the ghost howled and stumbled back. It was difficult to really know what happened in those few moments as the light from the burning remains glinted off the metal of the machete and the ghost shimmered and began to disappear, but what was clear was that something had happened to you. 

“Fuck,” you groaned, dropping your own weapon with a dull thud. You staggered, catching yourself on a headstone before your knees gave out and you sank to the ground. You were hunched over awkwardly, your shoulders heaving, hands clutched tight to your stomach. 

“(Y/N)?” Dean asked, frowning. Were you hurt? Just out of breath? 

“I’m alright,” you called. “Just… give me a second.” 

“Shit,” Sam muttered, dropping the salt and packet of matches and running towards you. “Dean!” he yelled as he knelt down, stripping off his jacket and balling it up, pressing it to your stomach. 

No, Dean thought. No, no, no, no. He was frozen, the can of fuel dangling limply from his fingers. He’d known using you as bait for a psychotic ghost murderer was a bad idea, even when you’d insisted that you’d be fine. It wasn't that he didn’t think you could handle it – he’d seen you in action enough times to know you were a force to be reckoned with – but he’d had a horrible feeling something was going to go wrong from the moment you’d laid out your plan. 

“He goes after girls, right?” You’d had an uncomfortable light in your eyes, all steely determination that Dean simultaneously loved and hated. Loved because, well, it was so you and it meant you were getting shit done, hated because more often than not you were putting yourself in danger. And yes, he was aware of the hypocrisy. 

He’d tried to talk you out of it, Sam had too. But once your mind was set – and set it was – no amount of convincing on anyone’s part could do anything about it. The second the idea had begun to form in your brain, the path was laid and there was no point trying to change that. 

“You better get over here man, quick!” Sam’s voice dropped, but wasn’t quiet enough that Dean couldn’t hear his next words, addressed to you. “Just hold on, Dean’s coming. Keep breathing, ok?” 

Fuck, that didn’t sound good. Dean’s limbs jerked back to life. He didn’t waste another second, sprinting the few metres through the forest of tombstones to where his brother was bent over you. 

“Don’t just stand there!” Sam yelled, one hand pressing his jacket to your stomach. “Help me!” 

It was like his body was moving on autopilot, kneeling beside you and taking over from Sam without any input from Dean himself. Dully, he noticed that there was already a warm, damp patch on the jacket, as well as a dark spot glistening darkly over your side. Shit. 

“I’ll be fine,” you’d insisted when he'd raised his doubts. “I’ve got you guys. You just burn the bones fast, I reckon I can hold him off for a few minutes.” Then you’d shrugged, grinning. “And if it all goes to hell, I know you’ve got my back.”

Yeah, fat lot of help they’d been. 

“What happened?” he asked. 

“He got me on his way out,” you laughed bitterly. “Can you believe that? Halfway gone and he just–” You broke off, making a vague slashing gesture with your free hand. “God, I’m an idiot.” 

“No, no you did fine. We shoulda been quicker.” Dean assured you, pressing harder. “Sorry,” he muttered as you let out a pained whimper.

“‘Salright,” you grimaced. “My fault. Dean, I gotta–” 

“Shh, no, it’s fine. It’s ok, you’ll be ok.” 

You shook your head, tears mixing with the sweat on your face. He watched one trace a path through the dirt caked on your skin. “It’s important, please.” 

He shook his head. “The only thing that’s important right now is keeping your eyes open, yeah? Just… just do that.” 

“I’m calling 911,” Sam said. “Just stay there, don’t move.” 

“I’m not planning on taking off, don’t worry.” You smiled tightly, then your face twisted in what Dean thought was fear, panic even. It was like a punch to his stomach, he hadn’t seen you look that scared since… Well, ever. Your hand fumbled over his, trying to find something to grab. 

“It’s alright,” he told you, pressing on the jacked one-handed as the fingers of the other one twined with your own. “It’s alright, (Y/N).” 

“No, no Dean, you have to burn me. Make sure you salt me, uh… Sage, use sage too.” 

He felt the blood drain from his face, cold rushing through him. “What?”

“Please,” you begged, your voice breaking. “I don’t wanna hurt anyone. You have to get rid of me, ok?” 

Oh God. Oh God. Dean looked up, searching frantically for Sam. He was watching you while he talked to the emergency operator, his fist pressed against his mouth and his hand shaking where he held the phone. He met Dean’s eyes, shaking his head. 

“You’re not gonna hurt anyone because you’re not going anywhere.” Dean’s voice was blessedly steady, despite the uncomfortable lump in his throat. 

“Promise me,” you whispered, then shouted when he didn’t respond. “Promise me, Dean!” 

He gripped your hand tighter, your own fingers digging harshly into his flesh. “I promise you will be ok,” he said. 

You sobbed, your body heaving under the rapidly dampening jacket. That was way too much blood for Dean’s liking, and judging by the increasing urgency of Sam’s quiet conversation on the phone, he felt the same. 

Your panicked gaze locked on Dean’s face, tears coursing down your cheeks. “I don’t wanna go,” you choked. “I didn’t tell you. I can’t go.” 

Didn’t tell him what? It didn’t matter. He squeezed your hand in what he hoped was a more reassuring than painful way. “It’s ok, you’re not going anywhere, alright? You’re staying right here, I’ve got you.” 

“You’ve gotta listen to me, Dean–” 

“No, tell me later. Just hold on, save your energy.” 

“Dean–” 

“(Y/N) hold on!” 

“Dean!” 

“Dean, listen to her.” Sam had finished on the phone, the screen shining eerily on his face. At Dean’s raised eyebrow he gave a tiny nod. Yeah, there was an ambulance on the way. 

“Sam, she is not gonna die.” He shook his head, turning back to you. “We’ve got all the time in the world, ok sweetheart?” He searched frantically for something to say, anything to keep your attention. He was no doctor, but he knew it would be bad if you passed out. Very bad. 

“Uh… fuck.” He broke off, floundering. What would keep you awake? What could he possibly say after you’d just made him promise to get rid of your spirit once you were dead, which was not going to happen.

“It’s actually not a bad night,” he started, already kicking himself mentally. “Bit of a breeze. I guess it’s sheltered down there, you’ve got a nice, uh, headstone blocking it. Ground’s not too bad either, not too hard. Glad it’s not gravel, my knees’re killing me.” 

A watery laugh clawed its way from you before another sob wracked your body. “Dean, I gotta tell you…” 

“Can you see the stars from down there?” he asked, cutting you off. “I bet they’re bright out here. No light pollution.” He grabbed your hand as your fingers loosened their grip, dread settling like a stone in his stomach. 

Your eyes wandered away from his face, sweeping over the space behind him. You nodded, but the haziness that had slid over your face didn’t do anything to help Dean’s panic, especially now that you weren’t holding his hand nearly as tightly as you had been. 

“Wait,” he said, squeezing your fingers. “Just focus on me, keep looking at me.” 

Your eyes swung back to his. “Please,” you whispered. “Please Dean, listen to me” 

Sam’s hand settled on his shoulder, large and heavy. He nodded to your face when Dean glanced at him, and to his horror he realised there were specks of blood on your lips. 

He swallowed hard. He hadn’t realised, but this was probably one of the worst moments of his life. He’d entirely ignored even the possibility of you being injured, let alone dying – just thinking the word felt wrong – since you’d joined him and Sam, doggedly refusing to acknowledge the near physical ache the idea of your absence caused. Now it was happening, right in front of him. Heat prickled behind his eyes. 

He took a deep breath, steadying his voice. “Yeah, alright sweetheart. You tell me, I’m listening.” 

Relief washed over your face. “I wanted to say it,” you whispered, “before. I didn’t want it like this.” 

“It’s ok. Sh, it’s ok.” 

Your body convulsed under his hand with another sob, more blood leaking from the corners of your mouth. “I love you,” you choked. “I love you so much. I don’t wanna get stuck because I never told you.” 

Oh. Oh. Dean’s mind went blank, then crashed right back into his skull. It was like swinging on a swing, at the peak of the arc where you floated a little before you started going down again. Yeah, that was his brain in that moment. Of course you’d have the guts to say it when he didn’t, even if it was out of fear of becoming an angry ghost. He cursed the universe and its cruel sense of humour. He faced horrors beyond most people’s imaginations almost every day, but still couldn’t say three simple words when he wanted to more than anything, and now you’d taken the first step for him and it was because you thought you were about to die. Someone up there must have hated his guts.  

“I know,” he said finally, nodding. “I know you do. Hold on, ok? There’s an ambulance, it’s gonna get here any minute” It wasn’t what he wanted to tell you, but no matter how hard he tried he couldn’t make his mouth cooperate. 

You smiled, your grip on his hand all but nonexistent now. Your breathing was getting shallower by the second, your eyes unfocussed and no longer trained on his face. It was like now that you’d said your piece, you weren’t even trying to stay awake. He didn’t like to be too dramatic, but he was almost convinced that he was the one who’d been stabbed, not you. 

“No,” he whispered. “No, (Y/N), not you. Please, not you.” 

A wailing siren sounded in the distance, blue and red lights flashing rapidly brighter as the ambulance drew closer. 

“Just a few more minutes,” Sam said, pacing. His eyes never left your face. “Come on, (Y/N), any second now.” 

You were perfectly still, too still. Dean leant over, careful to keep applying pressure to your stomach as he listened for breath. The faintest hint of it brushed his cheek, not enough. He blinked hard, holding you against his chest, his face pressed into your hair. It still smelled like the cheap shampoo from the most recent motel, mixed with blood and dirt and sweat. It should have been disgusting, but to Dean it smelled so right. He wondered what that said about his lifestyle choices. 

“Please,” he whispered, his voice choked. “(Y/N)...” 

Your hand slipped from his, and it was like a damn breaking. He felt his shoulders jerk, something between a sob and a grunt torn from him. 

“I love you too,” he whispered, clinging so tightly to you he was half scared he was going to hurt you. “I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, (Y/N), I love you.” 

The siren was deafening as the ambulance skidded to a stop, Sam waving frantically to the paramedics swarming the graveyard. Someone pulled Dean back despite his protests. Cold stung his cheeks, the breeze from earlier having turned into a wind. It vaguely occurred to him that the reason it was so cold on his face was because he was crying. 

Everything was a blur as you were engulfed by uniformed paramedics, your limp form lifted onto a stretcher and born away into the vehicle. Someone tried to talk to him before Sam, uncannily put together and coherent, spoke to them and explained. There was a lot of nodding and “thankyou”s, then Dean was being loaded into the Impala like a little kid and Sam was driving like you were in the back seat instead of in the ambulance.  

All he was aware of at the hospital was Sam’s hand gripping his arm, muttering that he needed to pull it together “for her, man.” The harsh, clinical lights and the rush that everyone seemed to be in wasn’t helping Dean’s panic, every prone body he glimpsed taking on your face until he blinked and it was a complete stranger. What if the unthinkable really happened? What if you died, and he hadn’t been able to save you, keep you safe like you’d been so sure he would? What if you really did linger as a tormented spirit, what if he and Sam had to hunt you, get rid of you like you’d said? He didn’t know if he’d be able to do that. 

Finally, a serious looking man with a clipboard and a badge approached them. “Are you with the young woman–” he glanced at the clipboard, “(Y/N), who just came in?” 

“Yes,” Sam said quickly. “Yeah, how is she? Is she alright?” 

“She’s damn lucky someone put as much pressure as they did on that cut,” he sighed. “She’s lost a lot of blood, but she’s stable.” 

Dean let out a breath he hadn’t even realised he’d been holding, shoving his hands into his pockets to hide their shaking. 

“Thankyou,” Sam smiled. “Thank you, doctor. When can we see her?” 

He frowned at the clipboard again, tapping his fingers on the plastic. “Well she’s unconscious, I daresay she will be for a while yet.” 

“Please,” Dean interrupted. “I– we just need to see her.” 

The doctor raised an eyebrow. “You boys family?” 

“Brothers,” Sam lied at the same time as Dean said “husband.” 

“I’m her husband,” he went on, ignoring the little flip his stomach did. Somehow, the familiar lie felt different now that he’d told you how he felt, even if you hadn’t heard. “He’s my brother in law.” 

“Ok,” he shrugged, “but she won’t… Well, she was stabbed. There’s a lot of tubes, bandages, and she’s out cold. It might be…” He stopped, sighing. “Some people find it confronting, seeing their loved ones like this.” 

Dean felt Sam glance at him, but he ignored it. “Trust me,” he said with a tight smile, “I’ve seen worse.” 

He had not, as it turned out, seen worse. You were completely still apart from the gentle rise and fall of your chest, a thin cotton blanket pulled up and tucked in with clinical precision around your ribs. You had a little cut on your forehead that Dean hadn’t noticed at the graveyard. A drip trailed from the back of your hand to a cluster of bags suspended above you, a thin plastic tube wrapped around your head just under your nose. Oxygen, he assumed. If he ignored all that, you could have been sleeping. 

Sam pushed the door open softly, as if he was afraid he’d wake you up. Dean hesitated a moment, then followed him inside. Up close, he could see the light sheen of sweat on your forehead, the darkness under your eyes, the pallor of your lips and cheeks. He reached out to touch you, maybe lay his hand on your forehead or smooth your hair away from your face, but drew his hand back at the last moment. He didn’t want to somehow unbalance you from whatever tightrope you were walking right now, even though he knew that was illogical. Still, even breathing the same air felt somehow dangerous for you. 

“Did she tell you?” he asked Sam eventually. 

“That she loves you?” He didn’t give Dean a chance to explain that he hadn’t meant that, that he’d been talking about your fear of not-quite-death. “She never said it outright, but I sort of worked it out, y’know? You guys weren’t really that subtle.” 

Dean frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean?” 

“Just…” He shrugged, gesturing vaguely between your prone form and Dean. “You’re always looking at her, when you think she can’t see you. She does the same. Always just sorta… doing little things for each other. And you’re always touching her, I don’t know if you realised.” 

“Huh. I didn’t.” It was true, although it didn’t really surprise him. He liked the little smile you gave him whenever he picked something up from a store for you – a favourite candy, something you’d mentioned you felt like – and he’d just assumed when you did similar things for him it was because you were, well, you. But now that he thought about it, he couldn’t name half as many times when you’d taken the same care and effort for Sam. Not that you’d neglected his brother, it was just… slightly less personal, less specially catered. He felt a surge of warmth for you, then a pang as his eyes landed again on your too-pale face. 

As for touching you, well, he wanted to. All the time. He wanted to put his hand on your shoulder, wrap his arms around your waist, hold you close and feel your heartbeat against his. Every brief half-hug or brush of your skin against his was something precious to him, so of course he’d want more. His mind flashed back to the tightness of your hand in his at the graveyard, the warm slick of your blood as you’d clung to him. Even that had been almost euphoric, past the raw terror and sickening dread. He was going to hold you like that again – under better circumstances – if it killed him. 

“Yeah,” Sam went on. “She’s the same, actually.” He laughed, shaking his head. “I remember this one time, Illinois, I think. We got a motel room with the longest couch you've ever seen. You sat down in the corner, and she comes and sits right next to you! When she’s got, like, another two metres of space to choose from.” 

Dean did remember that, actually. He remembered the rush he’d gotten as you’d squished up against his side, complaining that you were cold even though your skin had been warm to the touch. He still thought about it, sometimes. “Huh,” he said again. 

“Yeah.” It was silent apart from the beeping of your monitor and the normal hospital sounds outside the room, then Sam turned and faced him. “I’m sorry,” he said. 

Dean shook his head. “It wasn’t your fault. I shouldn’t have let her put herself out there like that in the first place.” 

“No, I was supposed to have her back. I shouldn’t have taken so long with the salt.” 

He wasn’t wrong, Dean knew that, but it had been him who’d agreed to your plan. You’d put your faith in him just as much as you had in Sam, and he’d let you down. He hadn’t liked the whole thing from the start, but still he’d gone ahead with it. And now here you were, lying unconscious in a hospital bed, and Sam was beating himself up about it. It was all so wrong, and Dean could have stopped it so easily. But as he looked at you, he swore he could hear you snorting derisively at him, crossing your arms with a firm “bullshit!” 

“It’s my choice,” you’d say. “You’re really gonna try to steal my credit?”

“She’d call bullshit on you, you know,” he said. 

His brother shrugged, nodding. “Yeah, you too probably. She’d poke you, right here.” He reached around and stuck his finger firmly in the middle of Dean’s chest, right where you’d done countless times. 

Despite himself, Dean smiled. Then your drip beeped and he was jerked painfully back to the present, and the problem at hand. 

“Did you know she was so scared?” he asked. “Of, y’know…” Dying. Haunting someone. Getting stuck here, not being able to move on. 

Sam didn’t answer for a moment, then he sighed, still looking at you. “She mentioned it.” 

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Why didn’t she tell me? 

“She didn’t want me to. She thought you’d think… I don’t know, that she wouldn’t be able to do the job. She really didn’t want you to know she was scared, she was so worried about what you thought of her. She said you were…” He swallowed, cleared his throat, continued. “She said you were never scared, and she didn’t want you to think she was. Even when I told her we were all terrified.” 

“Damn right,” Dean muttered. You’d done a great job at putting on such a brave front, he’d sometimes wondered if there was actually something wrong with you. Or maybe not wrong, but different. He’d never known anyone who could handle the things they did so well, not even his dad. It was something of a relief to know that there was more to it. 

“She was convinced she’d be the type of person to get stuck,” he continued. “Kept saying she wouldn’t be able to move on, that she had too much that she was holding onto and she didn’t know how to let go.” He finally raised his head, looking at Dean with what he thought was pity. Any other time, that would have annoyed him. 

“That’s why she said it,” he muttered, the uncomfortable lump back in his throat. When you woke up, he was going to give you a serious talk about timing. 

Sam nodded. 

“And she didn’t–” His voice broke, and he turned away. He wanted to punch something, put his fist through the wall or slam his hand down on the table, but he was too scared it would somehow disturb you. “I didn’t say it back.”

“Woah, hey.” Sam’s hand was firm on his shoulder, steadying him. “You did, man. You did.” 

“I was too late! She was out!” 

“Yeah, and you can tell her again when she wakes up.” 

“What if–” 

“No.” Sam shook his head firmly, fingers digging into Dean’s shoulder, anchoring him to the spot. “She’s waking up, and when she does you’re gonna ask her out on a proper date, she’s gonna say yes, and you’re gonna sort yourselves out like adults. Ok?” 

Dean looked away. The prospect of asking you out suddenly felt enormous. Of course he’d taken girls on dates before, he knew what he was doing, but that had been more along the lines of “I think you’re cute and you’re clearly into me, let’s get dinner and then we can hook up.” He’d never faced “I’ve been pining over you for months and I was too scared to do anything about it but you almost died and told me you loved me – love, not like – and I have no idea where this is gonna go but Sam’s right and asking you out is probably the best next step even if it’s absolutely terrifying”. He was a total mess, and he knew it. 

“Ok?” Sam asked again, insistent. 

“Ok,” he agreed. “Ok.” 

“Good.” 

You didn’t wake up until a day later. Well, that was according to the time and date displayed on the clock opposite your bed. Dean didn’t really have any recollection of time actually passing. 

He was slumped in the chair beside your bed, your hand held gently in his own as he dozed. He hadn’t let himself fully sleep since you’d been brought in, too afraid that something would happen while he was out, despite all Sam’s urging. Eventually he’d just sent his brother back to the motel, assuring him that he’d be fine on his own and that he wanted to be there for you when you came around. 

He jerked out of his half-nap when your fingers twitched, cursing when his pain stabbed through his neck. Snoozing in hospital chairs was never a good idea. 

“Fuck,” you groaned, frowning at the ceiling. 

Dean cleared his throat, his mouth suddenly dry. “(Y/N)?” 

You turned, your face clearing when you saw him. He’d be lying if he said it didn’t make his heart skip a beat. “Dean,” you whispered. “What’re you doing here?” 

He shrugged, making to withdraw his hand, but your grip tightened. “I’m the ‘welcome back’ committee.” 

“Oh.” You nodded, smiling softly. You ran your free hand over the bandage circling your waist, studying the IV embedded in your skin. “We got him, didn’t we?” you asked. 

Right, the ghost. “Uh, yeah, he’s gone. Your plan worked,” he added, almost as an afterthought. 

“It was a pretty good plan,” you grinned. 

He shook his head. “It almost got you killed.” 

“But it worked,” you insisted, your eyes shining. “He’s gone, Dean. Who knows how many people we saved?” 

“And what about you, huh?” 

You shrugged. “You can’t get rid of me that easily.” 

He took a deep breath, bending his head so you wouldn’t see the moisture he was sure he could feel gathering in his eyes. How were you so casual about it? It had been your life on the line, you who’d gotten stabbed, who’d been bleeding out, terrified of not dying properly and becoming a ghost yourself. 

“Hey,” you said gently, your hand slipping from his, sliding up over his arm to rest hesitantly on his shoulder. “Are you alright?” 

“You almost died, (Y/N). Sam told me, what you said about getting stuck, being unable to move on.” 

You were silent for a moment, then you sighed. “Well it’s just awkward now that I’m still here.” 

Despite himself, Dean laughed. He raised his head, placing his hand over yours, rubbing his thumb in a circle over it. Your skin was warm as ever, dry to the touch. It was such a contrast from the graveyard, one he was glad of. You smiled, some of the colour already returning to your face. 

“I’ve always got your back,” he said, “no matter what. Why didn’t you just tell me?” 

“I wanted to, I really wanted to. But I just… I don’t know, I just couldn’t. Every time I tried it was like this brick wall went up in my brain.” You shrugged, drawing your hand back as you shifted to sit more upright. Dean missed its warmth instantly. “You’re always so… unfazed, you know? It felt kinda stupid.” 

He snorted. Sure, Sam had already told him what you’d said, but it was different coming from you. 

You folded your arms, as if you’d just won an argument. “See?” 

“Shit, (Y/N),” he said, shaking his head. “I’m not – what’d you say? – unfazed. This shit gets to me too, I just…” He thought, unsure how to phrase it. “I didn’t wanna scare you,” he finally settled for. “Didn’t want you to worry.” 

“Oh.” You picked at a loose thread in the blanket, biting your lip. “And the other thing?” 

“Yeah, the other thing.” He’d known this was coming, he’d tried to find the words as he’d sat beside you, waiting for you to wake up. He’d almost had it, he told himself. How hard could it be, after all? 

“I didn’t wanna die with, like, unfinished business. That’s the main reason people stick around. It felt like if I didn’t get it out there, I wouldn’t ever be able to… keep going. Move on.” You swallowed, not meeting his eyes. “It’s ok,” you went on, “if you don’t, y’know, feel the same. I’d understand.” 

So you hadn’t heard him. Dean wasn’t surprised, but some part of him had been clinging to the hope that somehow his words had gotten through to you even as you were bundled into the back of the ambulance. 

He shook his head. “I just wish you’d said something before.” 

You looked up, hope chasing confusion across your face. “What?” 

“I wish you’d said something before,” he repeated. “It would’ve saved us both a lotta trouble.” 

“I don’t…” You frowned. “What’re you…?” 

He shrugged, his heart beating a million mph. “I love you too,” he said simply.

You blinked, opening your mouth to say something, closing it again. Slowly, a smile crept across your features. “Alright,” you grinned, way too smug for Dean’s liking. “Alright then.” 

“Don’t push it,” he warned, but the threat was empty and you both knew it. 

You shifted again, leaning towards him. “Come here,” you said softly. 

He stood, ignoring the ache in his back from the bloody uncomfortable chair. 

Impatiently, you beckoned him closer. 

He raised an eyebrow, brushing a stray piece of hair from your face. “Do I get to kiss you?” 

“That’s the goal, yeah.” You rolled your eyes, tilting your face against his hand. Dean wasn’t fond of the whole “butterflies in your stomach” thing, but he had no idea how else to describe the feeling that tiny gesture conjured. It really was like someone had released a swarm of the things inside him, and he wasn’t sure if he liked it or not. 

You were watching him expectantly, almost like you were challenging him. “Go on,” your eyes seemed to be saying, “try it.” 

He did. Your lips were softer than he’d expected, and just as warm as your hands. You made a sound somewhere in the realm of a sigh as his hand slid down to rest on your shoulder, pushing gently towards him, your own fingers running over his jaw to brush along the back of his neck. He couldn’t believe he’d waited this long to kiss you, and now that he’d finally taken the plunge, he never wanted to stop. 

But he had to breathe, unfortunately, and so did you. 

“You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to do that,” you whispered. You were still close enough that he could feel the words against his skin. 

“You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to do that,” he replied. 

You laughed, a soft, breathy sound, and closed the tiny gap once more. “I love you,” you murmured between kisses, “and I’m sorry it took me almost dying to say it.” 

“Yeah, I’m sorry about that too.”

The door handle clicked, the hinges squealing. “Ok, so I ran into the doctor on the way in— woah.” 

Dean stood up so fast he almost overbalanced. 

Sam was standing in the doorway with a disposable coffee cup in each hand, his mouth hanging open as he stared from you to Dean and back again. 

You cleared your throat. “Hi, Sam.” 

He shut his mouth, shoving the cups into Dean’s hands as he crossed the room and bent to hug you with a muttered “thank God.” 

“Watch it,” you warned, “I’m injured.” But your arms snaked around his back anyway, your voice muffled as you pressed your face into his neck. 

“You’re never allowed to scare us like that again,” Sam said firmly. 

Your eyes found Dean’s over Sam’s shoulder, and you smiled. “I’m not really planning on it, don’t worry.” 

Sam just laughed. “How’re you feeling?” he asked when he finally let you go. 

“Ok,” you nodded, then frowned. “Hungry.” 

Sam glanced at Dean, who shrugged. He’d gotten bored some time in the morning, and the packet of pudding that had been left on your bedside table along with a bottle of water had been practically begging to be tasted. He’d wondered if you’d wake up before they brought a replacement, he’d even felt a little bad eating your food, but he was hungry, dammit, and when Sam had left he’d said he would come back “later” which meant “tonight”. And that was too long for Dean to wait. He also didn’t have any money on him, and wouldn’t have left your side for the cafeteria when the pudding was right there. 

“What?” you asked. 

“He ate the pudding they left you,” Sam said. Dean never should have mentioned it, but he’d been desperate to get Sam to bring him something and it had felt convincing over the phone.

Dean glared at his brother and the coffees – which were very noticeably not the fast food he’d had in mind. “You try living in that chair for a day, see how long you can go without.” Then he turned to you. “You didn’t miss much, don’t worry.” 

“Well, I’m hungry!” you protested, crossing your arms and looking for all the world like a petulant toddler. 

Sam’s words about asking you out echoed in his mind.

“I’ll buy you dinner,” he said. “At an actual restaurant, not a fast food place. As soon as they let you outta here, alright? In the meantime…” He reached for the bottle of water, handing it to you with an apologetic shrug. It was better than nothing. 

You wrinkled your nose at him. “This is a pretty shit first date.” 

“I’ll make it up to you,” he said. Then, on second thoughts, “It’s not a first date, Sam’s here.” 

“Geez,” Sam muttered, “sorry. And after I got you a coffee too.” 

“Did you get me one?” you asked hopefully. 

“No,” he said slowly. “But you can have mine if you want?” 

You sighed. “I don’t like it how you do. But thanks,” you added with a smile. 

“Sorry, I just wasn’t expecting you to be awake.” 

“Have a little faith, Sam.” 

He smiled, glancing between you and Dean. 

“You owe me a coffee, and you owe me a dinner,” you continued before he could say anything. Dean thanked you silently. He didn’t really want a shovel talk from his own brother right now, which he could see Sam was just dying to dish out. He wondered if you’d be getting one. Probably, but he had no doubts that it would be less “shovel” more “talk”. 

“Soon as you’re fixed up,” he said. “I promise.” 

“And it’ll be a date?” 

“Sweetheart, it’ll be the best first date you’ve ever been on. Trust me.” 

You just grinned, ignoring Sam’s fake-disgusted sigh. “Ok.” 

#wow #i did it #go me i guess #supernatural #dean winchester #spn #dean x you #dean x reader #fanfiction #fanfic #fem!reader #female reader #self insert fanfiction #x reader #reader insert #whump fic #angst #hurt/comfort #idiots in love #pining #mutual pining #friends to lovers #love confessions #dying love confessions #adding angst like americans add sugar #anyways enjoy

[pyjamaart]

A looming presence... (A piece of fan art for Episode 11 of the Christmas Comeback Crisis)

Read more for an essay on all the memes and references ;)

So here it is. Finally. Only one month too late: This piece of CCC fan art I've worked on since the episode came out.

Sorry for the delay, but I just started at my new job this week and it's been a little stressful, so I didn't have much time to work on this. But now it's finally here!!! I gotta say, the hardest part by far was the background, lol. I didn't mean for it to escalate that much. At the end I was honestly running out of memes to draw.

I bet we can all agree that episode 11 of the Christmas Comeback Crisis was so worth the wait, right???? My god. Peak entertainment. I still can't believe I'm getting all this awesome lore and music for free, feels kinda criminal.

I'm so invested in this story, it's unreal. I can't wait to see how it will end. I can already tell it's gonna be pretty emotional. (And not to alarm anyone, but I have a slight feeling that the Voice is not gonna make it out of this story arc alive. I mean, after everything he's done, it's safe to say that he kinda deserves it. Of course I really don't want him to die, cause that would mean…….. Woodman would also have to die??? Otherwise the Voice will just keep coming back again and again because Woodman is keeping his memory alive…….. Oh man wait a moment….. I don't even want to think about that. Forget I said anything about this.)

Anyway, let's talk about this piece of art for a moment.

In the foreground, we have our brave protagonists. I really really like how Nozomi turned out, so I decided to make her my new icon from now on. Don't get me wrong, I love my old icon, but it's kinda zoomed out and you can't really make out any details when it's really small. So Nozomi it is. Meta Knights sword was shockingly difficult to draw, especially because I had to figure out how to draw it when he's holding it at an angle like that. Otherwise, drawing him was actually one of the easiest things about this whole thing. His design is really just two circles with some arms and armor. Figuring out how the circle tool in Gimp works has never felt this good. (Kinda crazy I can just draw him like this now, considering how obsessed with him I was when I was about 12-13 years old. Back then you had to download official renders of your favorite characters onto your computer, then print them out and hang them on your walls all around your room. Yeah I've always been like this.) Drawing Santa was really fun too, just his right hand was a little difficult. But that's just because I still can't draw hands in general. Maybe I should practice drawing hands more. (Naaaaaah I'm just kidding, I'll never do that.) Now that I'm looking at him again, he's also longingly staring at President Haltmann in the background. Doomed yaoi fr.

Speaking of the background, let's talk about that next. There's obviously the title-giving "looming presence" the Voice. I had his hands completely in the background at first, but I thought it looked cooler when they were hanging threateningly around Santa's shoulders. (You may ask yourself, 'man these hands look kinda alright for my usual hand drawing standards', and that is because I traced over pictures of my own hands. I love "cheating" at art.) I also gave him his stupid little bow tie and the colored buttons on his suit sleeves. Not only is that kinda my trademark for drawing him at this point, it's also supposed to show, that under all the threats and the evil villain persona, he's just kind of a loser. A real (male equivalent of a) girlfailure. That's why I made sure that half of the things shown in the background are there to make fun of him a little. I love the Voice dearly, but that's just what felt right.

And now let's get to the actual main course of this essay. I probably spent half the time working on this on the freaking background. I'm just gonna start in the top left corner and then go down each column and explain what each of these mean or what they reference. (Since there are some quite obscure ones in there.)

Let's start with the two ponies in the very top left. They're actually ponysonas of Nozomi Tojo (left) and Takane Shijou (right). Nozomi is an earth pony and has a tarot card as her cutie mark, specifically the ace of cups. Takane on the other hand is a unicorn and has some musical notes as her cutie mark, which you can't really see. I don't know enough about the Idolmaster to think of something more meaningful for her, sorry. ;)

Under that are Susie Haltmann and her father, President Haltmann. They were (after Woodman) the first characters I wanted to draw into the background. Susie has this black bar covering her face, since she was never really there to begin with. The whole story line with her father wanting to bring her back was actually so freaking sad. And when the Voice killed him in episode 11 and that image of Susie flashed on screen as the last thing he saw before he died….. Oof……… That's also why I drew that cursor looming next to her "window" about to click on the closing button. Haltmann himself is also the only character in the background to actually leave his little window, wanting to reach his daughter. He's also glaring at the Voice for causing him all of this grief and anger in the first place with his false promises.

Then there's…. ahem, "Hot robots in your area". With drawings of a random unnamed robot and Mettaton from Undertale. Which the Voice has apparently bookmarked. This is just a head canon, but I like to think he has a thing for robots, lol. ;)

Oh and on the left next to that on the very first column is Simpleflips' logo. Shoutouts to Simpleflips indeed.

Onto the next column. At the very top is Haruka Amami (also from the Idolmaster), who played a pretty huge role in the CCC, especially in the latest episode. That moment at the very end where she saved Grand Dad from certain death was just fantastic. Absolutely goated scene. She's kinda pressing her face against the window she's trapped in. I hope you can even see that from far away, haha.

Under that is one of the more obscure references. It's from a King for Another Day video, specifically one titled "The Hobart Hootenanny - SiIvaGunner: King for Another Day". It's a slideshow made of beautiful Hobart pictures. One that struck me personally the most was a little family picture of Hobart and the rapper Eminem, who was also a contestant in the KfAD tournament, looking lovingly over their son sitting in a cradle. Eminem is seen saying "Our son is beutiful". A truly touching photograph indeed. In that same slideshow is also another scene of Hobart together with the Voice, but we'll talk about that one later.

The next one is a reference to the CCC side story "I wanna thank me" and shows a pie chart with the election results that were discussed in that episode. Under the pie chart itself is a little box containing all the different parties and showing their respective percentages. On the left is a poster for the "Poké Poké Literature Party", showing Monika's head with the words "Just vote Monika" at the top of the poster. The words (and Misha.) are scribbled on the bottom, lest we forget that she's not running this party alone. This side story was first featured in the Christmas Comeback Crisis Watchalong in 2020, which was actually the first time I watched the CCC in its entirety. It all went downhill from there. ;)

Then there's the Voice's… thing? Object? Weird apparatus where no one really knows what it does or what its purpose is? Every time we see the Voice sitting in his office, this thing is sitting on his desk right next to him. There's been loads of jokes about its purpose. They've all been made before. I'm not going to repeat them. Only the Voice himself truly knows what this thing does. Probably. Could just be a decorative piece of art.

Then we have something veeeery self indulgent on the next column. It's Aquaman from Megaman 8 (With a not so subtle skull right next to him). You should all know by now that I'm the founding father of the Aquawood ship. And I also have the head canon that Woodman and the Voice are very divorced. Interpret into this whatever you want.

Next to Aquaman is the internets' favorite panel from the web comic Tails Gets Trolled. I fucking love that comic. If you haven't read it in its entirety, I highly recommend doing it. (Though be warned that it contains some pretty heavy topics, many many slurs and a plethora of gore.) Okay, maybe I don't recommend reading it. (Just read it with all of that in mind.)

Under that is a personal favorite joke of mine. It's supposed to be Spotify, with a playlist open that I created some time ago. I called it "Die Pizza Playlist" (Remember that die in German is just "the") which I always listen to when I'm baking my own pizza. Highlights include "Pizza" by Antilopen Gang, "Pizza Heroes" by Lemon Demon (You can actually see the album art for Spirit Phone on the left of the playlist.), "Pizza Pizza Pizza" from the Ratatouille musical and so on and so on. The first song in the playlist is obviously "We like pizza" by the Pizza kids, which is even playing in the image. On the side are two more music artists, at the bottom is the image for the Veggie Tales soundtrack, which also featured a song called "Pizza Angel". And over that is Mitski. I just feel like the Voice would listen to her music. Do not question me on this.

The audience laughs at the funny 7.

On the Voice's left shoulder sits a single green bean. It's flashing you a cheeky grin and a peace sign. While I didn't intend for this to happen, I accidentally referenced my own Woodman birthday gallery art from two years ago, where the bean also sits atop the Voice's shoulder. I know that next to "Yankin'", the bean is one of the most hated memes on SiIva, but I think he's just a silly little guy! :D

Let's head on over to the next column. Seems like the Voice has an incoming call from one of his guards, but he's ignoring it as he has more important things to do, like hovering intimidatingly over Santa Claus.

Next to that window on the right are the Voice's messages. I almost wrote "messanges". That would have been embarrassing, thank god I caught that in time. This is also (yet again) a little self indulgent, since the Voice apparently has the last message he sent Woodman pinned to the very top of his messenger app. His big triangular head is blocking most of it, but since I'm the artist, I can tell you exactly what it says: "Please call me back", which was sent on February 1st 2023, the day "The Disappearance of Woodman" was released. Yeah, I'm still very upset, how could you tell? :( Under that is a message to his trusty pizza guy asking for a pizza with extra cheese.

Next we have two of my favorite memes on the SiIvagunner channel (My absolute favorite being "Funny budots", since I never wrote that down anywhere.), one being Frisk Undertale becoming uncanny and the other one being the goat. I don't really know how to describe the goat, but apparently it was crafted by the same artist who made the stoned fox that's also very popular online?? I may just be stupid, but I didn't know about that until I looked up a reference for the goat. Since it often appears alongside Undertale and Deltarune, many have made the assumption that this is what Asriel would look like in real life. That's why Flowey is there next to it with an equal sign. Whoever drew up that calculation wasn't really sure of their work, which is why they drew a question mark right next to it. Between Frisk and the goat is a little Soul, also from Undertale/Deltarune.

Onto the next column, where I'm dropping very subtle hints that a specific character in this image might like pizza. Or might even be a little obsessed with it. On the left is a list with the contact details of three well known pizza chains, on the very top is Sonic the Hedgehog who just recently became a brand ambassador for Totino's and on the bottom right of this section is a flyer for some kind of pizza sale.

The next window contains my favorite joke of any rip on the entire SiIvaGunner Youtube Channel. "Peepoona 5. Let us shart the pants." Just typing this out is making me die of laughter yet again. (The rip in question is "Our Beginning - Persona 5".) But as you all know, I am very into toilet humor. That's why Aquaman is one of my favorite robot masters. And why I'm such a big fan of Youtube Poop. And why I watch Minion fart gun religiously. But enough of that, you get what I'm trying to say. I love funny poop jokes. That's why this is here.

Oh man. This next one is why I wanted to write this very detailed essay in the first place. A reference so obscure, even I can't find its origin anymore. And believe me, I tried. Thankfully, I took a screenshot of the original comment thread this was based on. A user called "The New Guy" commented on a SiIvaGunner rip, something along the lines about how much they enjoyed this specific rip. At the time, the comment had 920 likes, so I'm guessing it must have been a pretty popular video. (The comment should also be about 4 years old now?) Anyway, under that comment, someone asks them what their profile picture was from. They simply answered "wagon", since that was exactly what their profile picture showed. Someone on the SiIvaGunner team must have found this exchange so funny that they commented "wagon" as well. And that's the origin of this joke. If anyone knows which rip this is from pleeeeaaaase tell me. I need to know.

I don't think I need to explain who the next guy is. Just the love of my life. I specifically drew Woodman in his getup from the Nuclear Winter Festival, since that was the last time he appeared on the channel. He's looking kinda concerned in the general direction of the viewer, for obvious reasons. And right under him is his trademarked >:] emoji.

And last but certainly not least, the final column! Now I finally get to talk about this other scene from the Hobart Hootenanny. It shows Hobart and the Voice having a romantic stroll at a beautiful beach, while the sun is slowly setting in the background, making the water shimmer with its breathtaking colors. Okay, the last thing didn't really happen, since it's a shitty MS Paint drawing, but I like to imagine it did. Maybe I should draw a remake of this image one day. Now I'd like to quote the video in question: "A man and Hobart were walking together on the beach. He looked back and saw that in his times of sadness and need, there was only one set of footprints. He asked Hobart why he would leave him in his time of most need. Hobart simply turned to the man and said, VVVVVRRRRR SRRRRR RRRRGGGHHHH--" (Thank you SiIva Wiki for the transcription.) Now I don't think I need to explain why I drew Hobart in a bikini top and fishnets. The question answers itself.

The next image is actually quite easy to explain. It's mm5charge and smol Maki. In another universe, Chargeman and Maki might have been integral to the SiIvaGunner lore. This specific image is just stolen from my piece of fan art called "Megaman 5 Brainrot (featuring Acidman)", which I posted in 2022. I still head canon that Megaman and Love Live take place in the same universe. Just because I think it's funny. And because I want to see funny robot masters interact with the girlies from Love Live. How do I explain this? It's like…. balancing out the world? The robot masters are almost all male (with a few exceptions) and the characters shown in Love Live are all female. How would Thanos say? "Perfectly balanced, as all things should be." Don't question my cool head canons, okay?

After that we have a poster featuring the Jazz Cats! I really really love the little animations that showed their backstory when KfAD2 first came out. I don't know if it's okay for me to say this, but I also really really enjoy the song "But Not You" written (in universe) by Doge and Naxx. The text is veeeeeeery questionable, but man, does it sound good regardless… And shoutouts to wolfman1405 for the heavenly vocals.

On the right of that is a missing poster for Wade L.D.. Nothing much to explain here I guess.

Left of that is the Voices shopping list, which lists flour, oil, yeast… Wait a minute…. All of these are ingredients for pizza dough! Guys, I'm beginning to think that this guy might like pizza.

On the very bottom of this column is Mario 7 Grand Dad himself, who has his hostile gaze directed at the Voice. I would be pissed off too if someone kept me locked in a glass tube for 7 years.

The last little window just shows the Vineshroom with the words "fecal funny" written under it.

And with that, it is done. The entire background thoroughly explained. (I may have gone a little overboard this time.)

It's been a while since I posted new art, huh? In the meantime, a lot has happened. As I said before, I started a new job, got a tattoo of Woodman on my leg (best idea I've ever had btw) and I also started watching MLP, which explains the Love Live / Idolmaster ponysonas, lol.

And that's all I wanted to say. I hope that the next piece of art isn't that far off. Jenny out. (I think this might have been the longest essay I've ever written here. I'm so sorry. By which I mean, I'm not sorry at all. I'm not forcing anyone to read this.)

#welp im one month too late #but better late than never #i put my giant ass essay under the read more this time #open with caution its extremely fucking long because i got a little carried away #siivagunner #the voice inside your head #santa claus #nozomi tojo #smol nozomi #meta knight #president haltmann #susie haltmann #thats it im not tagging all of these guys #christmas comeback crisis #if you saw this posted to the wrong blog no you didnt #jumpscaring kirby fans with siivagunner art is my favorite hobby

[cozymidnights]

Dub re-watch over more feelings after the cut

This time there weren't much changes to the script, everything was pretty much the same as english

Fun fact the spanish title of the episode is "The last supper"

YO OOOOOOO NORI'S VOICE IS FREAKING EDA FROM THE OWL HOUSE LOL

It made N and Nori's interactions extra funny to me

Biggest shout out to N and Uzi's dub actors they acted the hell out, made me tear up again at the cliff scene

Tessa's performance infuriated me as much as it did in English hahaha

Cyn didn't convinced me in earlier episodes but she sounded so good in this one

Very exited for badass Khan in Spanish you have no idea (I'm really hoping he and N team up in episode eight, it would be super funny to see his reaction that that's his son in law LOL)

Not dub related but lowkey Thad and Lizzy are very cute together, this episode made me to finally start shipping them

I love the spanish dub so much, it isn't perfect but the casting is so spot on

the direction got so much better this episode

#murder drones #murder drones spoilers #I could gush for hours over the spanish dub #Talkstuff//

[batmanisagatewaydrug]

fuck it we're liveblogging Batman '66

black list "#66 time" right now if you don't want to see this because god. there's going to be so much.

ep 1x01: Hi Diddle Riddle

"Makenzie you never included the episode titles when you were doing Gotham" yeah man but the 66 episodes make little rhyming couplets and I want you to experience the whimsy with me

I think all the time about the way that Burt Ward was fully married with a child when he started playing Dick Grayson as like. the ageless platonic ideal of a wholesome young lad

"the Riddler contrives his plots like artichokes" I'm always saying that Bruce

Frank Gorshin Riddler you will always be iconic. he's literally just suing Batman for assaulting him. and it's working!

except he's not REALLY suing him that's just a pretext for delivering MORE riddles as part of a scheme to kidnap Robin and replace him with a henchgirl like it's so needlessly convoluted

so much is made about how much it would suck if Batman had to appear in court and reveal his identity but he's like. he's so above board in this show. he says in the first ep he's a "duly deputized agent of the law." he's literally just a cop in a bat costume with a teen sidekick he's only wearing the bat costume because it's fun. this Bruce is arguably the biggest freak of any Bruce ever put to screen.

bro they drugged his orange juice... can't have shit in Gotham...

Gorshin plays the Riddler as such a fucking. creature. always scuttling around and crouched over and bouncing and cackling and popping out of spaces where he absolutely should not be with a deeply weasel-like look on his shifty little face. he had such a blank slate to work with (if memory serves, the Riddler had cropped up in a grand total of like six comics prior to appearing in the show) and he picked violence.

and he was right for that

1x02: Smack in the Middle

see look at that. a couplet. how cute.

Bruce has an uncle? an alive uncle?

things that exist in Gotham: the old turtle mill on Orleans Cove

more writers should let Bruce have a "Bat Ray" the just kills the ignition in people's cars. surely that won't go wrong.

I don't think anyone talks enough about how buckfucking wild it is that in the second episode ever of this very goofy non-violent series a woman dies by falling into a nuclear reactor

and then Bruce makes a terrible pun about it that literally no one can hear but him. dick move tbh.

Riddler's got a whole plaid suit pink shoe/gloves/hat situation going on... kind of serving

the lawsuit was dismissed btw. if anyone was worried.

#66 time

[kemihaydeestantonva]

I'm just going to word vomit my season 2B predictions for Helluva Boss here so I can come back later and see how close I was to anything!! I find this speculation game really fun.

OKAY

Predictions! The full moon starts out with the duet, apparently, so my guess is - Blitzø has been doing a lot of opening up lately so I think he is actually going to try and make this full moon more intimate (with Fizz's help) meanwhile Stolas is freaking out and preparing to have a serious talk with him. Blitzø pulls out all the stops (omg that giant ass candle lmaooo) Stolas gives him the crystal and shatters Blitzø's plans. He takes it as a HUGE rejection, the talk escalates to a fight, they break up.

Apology tour is Stolas and Verosika somehow teaming up, she makes the tour all about shitting on Blitzø and maybe Stolas initially goes along with it or maybe he interrupts and finally publicly stands up for him. Blitzø makes amends with Verosika in some capacity, takes the first steps in being accountable for his past actions towards them both.

Ghostfuckers is the ghost busters one, and that creepy blonde guy is Leviathan - he lures them in as an unassuming bellhop with the ghost hunting thing, then traps him and Millie. I'm assuming he has some sort of possession powers, and being the embodiment of envy he forces them to face what they envy about each other, intense fight ensues. We get backstory on Millie, who she was before IMP, how she joined, ect.

Mastermind is the episode with the agents and the cherubs, I have no idea how that is going to play out but it does look like they figured out a way to open a portal to hell. From the picture we got of agents one and two dressed in IMP cosplay I'm still desperately hoping that a furry convention setting might happen because I think it'd be hilarious

Sinmas is the one with all the Goetia family gathered, along with the sins. Looks like some sort of big shindig. All the apple and snake architecture tells me it'll be in the pride ring but I doubt there will be any Lucifer cameo (I don't think they could legally even if they wanted to). I'm guessing that the scary Zestial looking guy is Satan, and I think he's going to be bad news (I think when Mammon told Oz he'd "regret" admitting his love for Fizz that he was going to go over his head and plot something nasty with Satan. Or maybe Mammon teams up with Leviathan and the sin stuff is tied to the ghostfucker episode not this one, but the episode title hints otherwise)

I think Stella is going to turn Via against Stolas over these episodes, he's going to spend this entire time grappling with his breakup and figuring out how to move on, it's a prime time for Via to feel neglected and for Stella to make a move - and the gathering is going to be like, a public reckoning scenario resulting in Andrealphus fighting Stolas, and Blitzø will swoop in and protect him! No idea where this will ultimately leave their relationship but one I hope it starts to mend by the last episode. (I also don't get major bad vibes from Vassago so maybe Stolas won't be entirely friendless at this gathering??)

Anyway that's what I got so far, see y'all at the full moon

#helluva boss spoilers #helluva boss

[itslottiehere]

the one that could have been — (h.s)

hello beautiful people 🤍 welcome back! this is inspired by one on my favourite ‘friends’ episode — season 6 episodes 15 and 16 — named, as you can see from the title, “the one that could have been”. i had so much fun writing this, and i hope you all enjoy it. please, do let me know what you think! and if you have any requests, don’t be afraid of leaving them in my asks, i’ll look through them as soon as possible. if you wish to read something else from me, you can check the tag “my writing” on my blog (i still need to make a masterlist). thank you for reading! please like, reblog and let me know what you think! it really helps me a lot <3

tw: swearing, fluff, angst (?) a tiiiiny bit of smut (?)

word count: 5.1k

masterlist | let me know what you think here

—

he tried his best not to look so shocked, but the red on her cheeks told him he wasn’t doing a great job at hiding his surprise.

“stop looking at me like i’m some freak show! not everyone got to be the captain of the football team, someone had to be the loser in band.”

“you weren’t a loser, you were just quiet and-“

“harry, i was in band and i played the big ass drum in costume. it’s okay to say that i wasn’t the coolest person in school.”

“i thought you were cool.”

“you thought i was nice enough to let you copy my homework, which i was. but yeah, you must’ve found something in me if you stuck around even after high school.”

“hey! i talked to you because i thought you were nice, and cool and funny. and perhaps it had to do a little with the homework stuff, but mostly the other things!”

you threw him your napkin and laughed at how silly he was.

“but you can’t blame me for being a little surprised.”

and, here it was.

“i knew i shouldn’t have told you anything! now you think i’m weird and now everything between us is going to be weird and fuck, you’re a shit friend sometimes.”

“hey! i’m not! and i’m sorry for how i reacted, it’s just that i wasn’t expecting for this date to be your first... date. nothing wrong with that though! it’s perfectly fine!”

so, the thing is she was a virgin. she was 25 and hadn’t had a date yet, which isn’t something she was embarrassed about, she was waiting for the right person. but the look on harry’s face, who was staring at her with a “oh my god you have two heads” look, made her feel a little embarrassed. she knew who she was talking to, and having known him since high school meant that he told her all about his excapades, while she quietly listened to him and never said anything else. he was always so open about all his experiences, and he just figured she was more closed off, which was totally fine, and he wouldn’t pry informations about that part of her life: if she wanted to let him know, he would gladly listen, but whenever she is comfortable enough to do so.

though, if harry had to be totally honest, her not sharing that part of her life with him — until recently, that is — was maybe for the best: he doesn’t like it, but he can be of the jealous kind. and to think about anyone getting that close with his best friend, who was basically the best person walking on earth, made him feel something in his chest, something he couldn’t quite put a finger on.

“so, where’s this james guy taking you?”

“uhm, actually he’s coming over, i’m going to cook him dinner.”

“oh, that’s nice! your cooking is amazing, he’s going to love it.”

“yeah, i hope so.” she nibbled on her lip.

“hey, come here.” he held out his hands for her, waiting for her to take them. “if he’s not a total idiot, he will love it. and if he doesn’t, then he doesn’t deserve you. please, please don’t settle for someone who isn’t worthy of you. especially for something so important to you.”

she knew harry was a sweet person, who cared about her feelings, but it still shocked her a little bit, because he had such a serious look in his eyes.

“yeah, i know H, thank you for worrying.” she gave him a tight-lipped smile. “but now, leave.”

“excuse me? are you kicking me out?”

“yeah, i am.”

“but whyyy?” he whined like a grumpy child. all that was missing was him stomping his foot on the ground, to complete the picture.

“have you already forgotten that i have a date tonight for which i have to get ready?”

“yeah but i can still stay here a while, can’t i?” he was giving her those puppy eyes, that menace. she knew what he was doing.

“no! stop looking at me with those eyes.” she laughed. “i’m so sorry, i wish you could but i have to get dinner ready and get ready myself, and i feel like i’m already running behind.”

“alright, alright.. i’m leaving... all alone... by myself... kicked out by my own best friend... in the whole world...” he dragged every word, dragging his feet on the ground.

good god, he was such a man child at times.

“i promise i’ll text you if something weird happens and i feel uncomfortable. or else, you’ll be hearing from me tomorrow morning.” she really wished she was going to text him the following morning.

“alright angel, let me know if everything is okay. i’ll be over in a heartbeat if it isn’t. and remember: don’t overthink too much, try to enjoy your date.” he put his hands on her shoulder and looked into her eyes, because this was important and he wanted her to know she really had to enjoy tonight.

“i will, thanks H.” she ushered him towards the door, and opened it, basically shoving him out of her home.

“byeeeee. oh wait-“ he was almost out of the door. “please send me a pic of your outfit, i’m curious.” he said, raising his eyebrows in a teasing manner.

“yeah yeah, bye now.” she closed the door behind him, put her back against it, closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

now it was time to get everything ready.

she decided to prepare dinner and set the table first, before getting ready herself, so she went to the kitchen and started making her famous lasagna. harry went crazy for it, he always asked her to prepare it for his birthday dinner.

“it can count as my present! i won’t ask for anything else, i promise!”

she knew it was really good, it was her nonna’s recipe, so of course it was delicious. she grew up eating it, and whenever she cooked it, it was like she was brought back into that small kitchen, in the italian countryside, her nonna and nonno smiling at her because she had sauce all over her mouth. maybe it was stupid, but cooking this for someone held a level of intimacy that for now she only shared with harry. she told him the story about her grandparents and he listened to her, giving her his undivided attention. at the end, he just told her “i wish i could taste the one your nonna used to make.”

so, preparing this for james, already set the mood for tonight, how serious it was for her. she went out with him a couple times, just simple lunch dates — both cut short because he was called back to the hospital — but he was nice, albeit a bit boring at times, and she was kinda growing tired of not being intimate, so she thought he could be “the one”.

after putting the lasagna in the oven, she set up the table and went to take a shower, that kind of showers that consist on three different hair masks, face and body creams, serums and all that. after that, she went to check in on dinner, but it still wasn’t ready, so she went back to do her makeup and dress up. she put on a simple dress, her favourite one: it was of a dark red colour, with a bit of lace on the back, long enough to keep her comfortable but still not too long.

she snapped a picture for harry, just a simple mirror selfie with her hand up in a peace sign and sent it to him. it took him no more that 4 seconds to text her back.

“you look absolutely gorgeous. he’s going to love you. x”

she smiled, put her phone away and finally went to take the lasagna out of the oven, proceeded to put it on the counter to let it cool a little.

james should have been on his way now, so she decided to tidy up the last things. then, she heard the doorbell.

game time.

she was giddy, scared and over all a bit overwhelmed. this night meant so much to her, she just wanted it to be good.

she walked to the door and greeted him with a big smile.

“hello, you.” he said, smiling as well.

“hi!”

“this is for you.” he gave her a bottle of wine, one she liked a lot as well.

“oh my, that’s so nice of you, thank you. please, come in, make yourself at home.” she said, walking further into her flat, going to the kitchen to fetch a couple of glasses for the wine.

“this is a nice place, thank you for having me over.” he said from the living room, while taking a seat on her couch.

“oh thank you! and of course, it’s my pleasure.”

she walked back into the living area with two glasses, and set on the couch with james.

he was talking about some case he had at work, and she was half listening, half pretending to.

she could do this, couldn’t she? this was going well, they were drinking wine on her couch, making a bit of small talk, dinner was waiting for them in the kitchen... all was going to be fine.

her thoughts were interrupted when james took the glass from her hands and put it on the tiny table in front of her sofa.

what was he doing?

“you look beautiful tonight.”

oh, that was what he was doing.

“oh, uhm, thank you.” she smiled shyly. “you look handsome as well.”

“well, thank you.”

he inched closer, putting a hand on her thigh, the other stroking her cheek. she felt her breath hitch, how long has it been since she had been kissed? probably years. god.

his face came closer and closer, and when he closed his eyes, she did the same, preparing herself for what was going to happen next.

and when his lips touched hers, she felt... okay. nothing weird. no fireworks, no butterflies. it was a normal kiss.

she can’t say she wasn’t a bit disappointed. wasn’t this moment meant to have her feel like she was walking on air? head and body all floaty and tingly, stomach filled with butterflies? she always thought it was going to feel like this. she daydreamed every time she read about it in her books, how even the tiniest touch could bring up the biggest spark between two lovers.

but this wasn’t it.

this was okay, really, it was a good kiss. he was touching her not too roughly, and it wasn’t making her uncomfortable. it was just not what she thought it was going to be like.

“maybe those were all just fantasies, maybe the real thing is supposed to feel like this.” she thought. so she decided to suck it up, and just let herself enjoy this moment.

she had one of her hands on his chest, the other around his neck, playing with his hair.

and when she heard a small moan from him, she thought she was doing a good job. he was enjoying it!

but soon, it got her to overthink about how she didn’t make any noises: was she supposed to? was he expecting them? was she weird for not making any?

her interior freak out was cut short by a phone ringing.

“shit.” james said, disconnecting their lips.

oh no, not again. it’s the third time this has happened; although, the other times it happened she didn’t really care all that much, because their lunch was almost over, so it wasn’t really cut all that short.

he checked his phone and sighed.

“i’m sorry, i have to take this.”

“yeah, yeah, of course.”

he gave her a tight-lipped smile, apologised again, and got up to answer the call.

she sighed and slouched on the couch. maybe it was a friend just wanting to say hi? maybe they could still have dinner and a nice night.

“i’m sorry, i really am, but i have to go back to the hospital, they need me.”

of course not.

“oh.” she stood up, straightening her dress and looking down. she was disappointed of course, but it wasn’t his fault, wasn’t it? the hospital needed him so he had to go.

“i’m sorry, maybe i can get off early and-“

“oh no, don’t worry! do what you have to do, don’t worry about me.”

“we’ll do this another time, yeah?”

“yeah, of course. let me walk you to the door.”

after bidding goodbye, she closed the door.

“yeah, this night blows.”

—

she decided to put some more comfortable clothes on, and also took her makeup off, so she could enjoy her — now, solo — dinner.

there was going to be so much leftovers, she thought. so, why not ask someone if they wanted some?

—

harry was at home, fresh out of the shower, thinking about what to do for dinner. having cereal and milk again didn’t sound too appealing.

when he heard a ding from his phone, he thought it was from the guys, asking him to go out.

but when he heard a second and then a third ding, he actually went to check who the texts were from.

and when he saw his best friend’s name pop up, his heart skipped a beat. she said she would’ve texted him only if something bad was happening, so what happened?

“hey, date finished early. pretty bummed tbh.”

“did you already have dinner?”

“because i have leftovers. want to keep me company?”

as if he could ever say no, both to her and to her home cooked meals.

“yeah of course! i’m on my way. x”

he put on the first sweatshirt he found, and he was out the door.

—

when the doorbell rang, she just answered with a loud “it’s open”.

harry let himself in, took off his shoes and looked around to see where she was. when he saw her in the kitchen, his heart acted all weird.

he couldn’t understand if it was from seeing her in sweats and his old fleetwood mac shirt, feeling warm at the sight of her wearing his clothes, or if it was by seeing that she wasn’t in the dress she was wearing in the picture he received before, meaning that her date didn’t go as planned, which made him a bit sad. he doesn’t know much about this james, but from what she’d told him he seemed like a nice guy. so why didn’t the date go through?

“hi, angel.”

“hey.” she answered, with a somber tone.

“is everything okay?”

“are you ready to eat? i made lasagna.”

that struck harry. she made her date one of her (and his) favourite home cooked meals, he knew how much it meant to her.

“yeah, of course. but you still have to answer my question.”

“can we eat first? then we can talk about how miserable my love life is.”

he chucked a bit. “of course, let me help you with the plates.”

they ate almost in silence, the only sounds you could hear were harry’s praises about her cooking.

“angel, you should be a chef.”

“if i pay you, can you cook me meals for dinner everyday? i’m tired of having milk and cereal five days a week.”

“harry, you can’t have milk and cereal for dinner everyday!”

“i know! that’s why i’m asking you this!”

after they finished eating, she took the plates to the sink, and he followed her.

she started washing their plates, when harry cleared his throat.

“what?”

“what are you not telling me?”

she sighed. “the date was cut short. james was called by the hospital, and he had to leave, exactly like the two times before tonight.”

“oh.” he didn’t know what to say.

“yeah.”

“i’m sorry.”

“it’s okay, it wasn’t meant to be, i guess.”

“you really liked him, huh?” he said, and why was it so hard for him to get these words out of his mouth?

“i mean, i wasn’t in love with the guy, he was okay. i don’t know, we kissed for a bit, i didn’t feel anything, and now that i think about it i probably wouldn’t even have gone all the way.” she said all in one breath.

harry listened closely to what she said, and he had one single thought.

“can i just ask you something?”

“yeah, sure, go for it.”

“why haven’t you ever asked me?”

she dropped the plate she was drying in the sink. did she heard right?

“uh- uhm, what?”

“why haven’t you asked me to help you out with.. that?”

she couldn’t bear how weird the situation was. so, naturally, she laughed it off.

“you’re so funny H, always said you should be a comedian.” she dried off her hands and made her way to the living room.

Harry followed her, gently grabbing her wrist to stop her from running away, putting his chest to her back.

“i’m not kidding. i’m genuinely asking you why, in over 10 years of being best friends, you’ve never asked me.” his hands started travelling from her wrist to her waist.

“isn’t it obvious? you’ve just said it: we’re best friends. doing that would make everything weird and complicated, and i don’t want that.”

“are you sure that that’s it?”

“yeah, of course it is.”

“angel, i can’t even see your face right now and i know you’re lying: you’re a shit liar, you know that. and i’d like to think that i know my best friend a little too well to not know when they’re lying.”

she huffed, she hated that she couldn’t lie to him, ever. but she hated more that she had to come clean now, so she tried convincing him one last time that there was nothing more.

“i’m not lying. that’s the only reason.”

he sighed, and turned her around.

“now look me in the eyes, and say that.”

the fucker. he knew for a fact that she wasn’t able to lie, especially if she looked in the eyes of the person she was trying to lie to.

“alright, fuck, you win. it’s not the only reason.”

“and do you mind telling me what is it?”

she took a deep breath, she really doesn’t want to, because she knows for a fact it’s going to make her sound like an idiot.

“it’s just.. i know that you don’t like me that way, and that you never did, back in high school or college. i’m not your type and that’s fine! i don’t blame you for it, everyone can have a preference.”

he was stunned. she took his silence as a way to tell her to go on.

“and so, i’ve never asked you any “help” because of that. i didn’t want to put you in an uncomfortable position, of having to tell me the ‘no’ i already knew was coming, and ruining our friendship. never in a million years i would want that, so i never did.”

she released a breath, and looked up at him.

he was looking at her with wide eyes, that held a certain softness.

“and now i’ve made it weird all the same, fucking hell, i told you i wasn’t supposed to-“

“no angel, no, it’s okay. i just.. i don’t understand. have i made you feel ugly? is that it?”

“no H, no, it’s just that i saw the girls you went out with and we aren’t the same. they were gorgeous, like drop dead gorgeous, and so sweet and just incredible. some were even wayyyy out of your league, but you charmed them all the same.” she laughed, and it made him laugh as well.

“heyyy, that’s rude.” he whined, making her roll her eyes.

“but i am sorry, if i ever made you feel this way. i‘ve never wanted to. i think you’re beautiful, breathtakingly so.”

“oh stop it, that’s not true.” she tried to leave his grasp, but it only tightened on her waist.

“no, i’m serious. i think you are probably the most beautiful person i know, and not just on the outside. you’re a beautiful person all over, you look great and your soul is beautiful. you’re sweet and caring and just amazing, and i can’t believe you think i didn’t think this about you.”

she looked up at him and couldn’t believe how sweet he was being. was he saying all this out of pity?

“i can see the wheels turning in your head, what are you thinking about?”

“i was just thinking that maybe you’re being so sweet out of pity. because my night didn’t go the way it was supposed to.”

he scoffed. “you’re just so dense sometimes. i’m telling you this because i really do think those things. why can’t you just accept that?”

“uhm, okay then.. thank you H, for saying all of this.”

“you’re welcome, angel. now... would you want to?”

“what?”

“would you want me to kiss you?”

what the actual hell was happening. was he actually asking her this? her best friend of ten years was asking her if he could kiss her. harry. her harry. her best friend harry. no way.

“we don’t have to, angel. just... if you want, i could kiss you and we can see if it feels good for you, and if you feel comfortable with that. i just want to make you feel good, and i hope you know you’re safe with me. i don’t expect anything to happen, nothing more than a kiss, if you even want that.”

“uhm. i-“ she was afraid of what was going to happen to them, but she so wanted to be selfish. just this one time. one kiss, that’s it.

“i think i’d like that. i feel safe with you.”

“yeah? you do?” he looked down at her, and a sheepish smile spread across his face.

“yeah, i really do. but do you?”

he could swear his heart was about to jump out of his chest. how cute was she? he was the one who proposed the whole ordeal, but she still wanted to make sure he felt comfortable.

“of course angel, it’s you. i always feel safe with you.”

they couldn’t lie to themselves, they both thought about this moment from time to time. 

the first time harry wanted to kiss her was at their junior prom, when he saw her in that long, beautiful dress, but didn’t because she had a date — and so did he —, especially when he saw she was having so much fun with aaron (her date), dancing around the school gym and laughing, and he thought he wanted to be the one who made her laugh like this forever. but he was late, and aaron already filled that position. so he made his peace with it, and spent prom night with his date, a lovely girl of course, but she wasn’t her.

and the first time she really, really wanted to kiss him was during a football game. it was their first year of college, and she was busy with finals, but harry begged her to come because he was the quarterback and promised her his team would win if she was there. so, when his team scored the winning touchdown, before even celebrating with his teammates, he looked for her in the bleachers and when he found her he had the biggest smile on his face, running towards her shouting “it’s because of you! it’s you!”. she never wanted to kiss someone that badly ever in her life. thankfully, when she came down from the high of his victory, she just hugged him tight, while he picked her up and spun her around. no kiss.

but now, how could she turn him down? how can she not kiss those lips? they seems so soft, like soft pink pillows.

harry couldn’t wait for it anymore. ever since he was a teen, he asked himself what it’d feel like kissing her, tasting her lips. he got close to do that too many drunken nights, but never did because either both of them were intoxicated or because he didn’t want to make her uncomfortable.

but now? they were both trembling with anticipation. so, he put his hands on her face, and slightly turned it upwards, looking deep into her eyes.

“are you sure?”

“yes, i am.”

“positive?”

“yes.”

“swear on your mum?”

“would you kiss me already?”

he didn’t have to be asked twice. he leaned in and softly touched her lips. the kiss started slow, like they wanted to test the water first, make sure nothing felt wrong.

‘wrong’ was the last word she would use to describe this kiss.

this is what a kiss should feel like: all the butterflies she didn’t feel before with james, here they were, batting their wings away in her stomach, making her feel like she could fly away.

harry’s hands travelled down her waist, one towards her bottom, and he broke the kiss for just a second.

“is this okay?” he asked.

she nodded, but clearly that wasn’t enough for harry.

“angel, i need words. is me touching you okay?”

“yes, harry, please.”

hearing her begging him made him groan in pleasure. he wanted to stay in this moment till the end of time.

he left his hands wandering on her waist, and a little lower, and brought his lips to hers once again, this time more purposefully. he licked her bottom lip, silently asking her to open up for him, and she happily obliged. her hands travelled up his shoulder, playing with the hair on the nape of his neck, tugging lightly on the curls, making harry moan a bit.

and fuck, was it hot to hear.

she kept playing with his hair when harry pulled his lips from hers, a small whimper leaving her mouth.

she fucking whimpered. he was going to heaven, that was the only explanation.

he brought his lips on her neck, leaving a trail of wet kisses and sucking here and there, making her unconsciously moan softly at his actions.

“does this feel nice, angel?”

“yeah.” she said in a breathy voice.

he could not get enough of her.

his lips reluctantly left her neck and he decided to sit on the couch, looking up at her.

he didn’t even have to say anything, because she gladly climbed on top of him, straddling him, and connecting their lips once again.

she wasn’t sure if a kiss ever felt like this. she didn’t know if it was because of how safe she felt with harry, or if he was just really good at kissing, but never in her life has she been kissed like this. it felt too good to be true.

his hands travelled to her hips, holding and squeezing her love handles, which made her a little uncomfortable, and she didn’t know if she made a sound or if harry could just read her mind, but he stopped kissing her.

“is everything okay?”

“yeah, yeah, everything’s good.” she went in to kiss him again, but he turned his head.

“you have to be honest with me. is it the position? does it weird you out?”

“no, no H, the position is great, it’s just... your hands squeezed my hips, and i don’t feel very comfortable with that, because i don’t like how squishy they are. it makes me a bit self conscious. i’m sorry.”

“hey, no need to apologise. if anything, i’m sorry. but angel, just know that there’s nothing wrong with them, i fucking love them. but i won’t squeeze them anymore now, alright? i want you to feel good and safe.”

“yes, thank you.”

he started kissing her again, softly at first but it soon became more heated, tongues touching and hands roaming over each other’s bodies; soft moans and the wet sounds of their lips connecting were all one could hear.

unconsciously, she started grinding her hips on him, making a deeper moan leave his mouth.

“angel, fuck.”

“i’m sorry, did i do something?”

“no no, fuck, it felt great. but are you sure?”

she didn’t answer him this time, she just kept kissing him and grinding on him, feeling him buck his hips to match her movements. she hoped this was enough of an answer for him.

“dear god, why didn’t we do this before?”

she let out a breathy laugh. “i was thinking the same thing.”

“what are you doing to me, angel?” she felt his hand on her hair, brushing them out of her face. she felt the coldness of his rings on her cheek, it all felt so real. almost, too real.

“mmh...“

“angel.” her pet name sounded a bit more distant, and she felt a stronger hand on her shoulder.

“angel.” the voice was getting closer, she thought. but how could it be closer if she was kissing the source of that voice right now?

“angel, wake up.” wake up?

she opened her eyes and the soft light from the tv burned her sleepy eyes. through her blurry vision, she could make out a figure, a curly headed man with green eyes was looking at her, smiling softly.

“hey angel, welcome back to planet earth.” he chuckled. “i woke you up because one of your favourite episodes of friends is coming up.”

“uh, what?” she was still a bit confused from her sleeping state. when did she fall asleep?

“yeah, season 6, episode 15? “the one that could have been”, i think that’s what it’s called, it’s one of your favourites. i would’ve let you sleep but i know you like it.”

oh.

oh.

“thank you, H. it’s one of my favourites, indeed.”

“no problem, angel. so, did you have a nice dream?”

boy, did she.

“yeah, it was good, i think, i can’t remember it right now.”

“mmh, i’ll try to believe that.” he looked at her as if he knew what she was just dreaming about. oh my god, she didn’t say anything out loud, did she? the embarrassment.

“so, where’s this james guy taking you?”

oh fuck.

–

so here it is!! i hope you all enjoyed it <3 love yaaaaaa

#my writing #harry styles #harry styles os #harry styles one shot #harry styles angst #harry styles blurb #harry styles fluff #harry styles smut #harry styles x reader #harry styles x y/n #harry styles writing #harry styles fic #harry styles imagine #harry x y/n #harry x reader #harry styles fanfiction

[tarisilmarwen]

Rebels Rewatch: “Fighter Flight”

We went out shopping and wound up stealing a military aircraft, only on Rebels people, only on Rebels.

This is one of my favorite episodes to rewatch, it’s just so FUN.

A very pretty shot of Lothal, pre-burninating, and a short mellow excerpt of the Main Titles theme to open us up.

Behind the scenes it seems that Kanan has been teaching Ezra something, because he’s poised over this bowl like he’s ready and raring to practice something he learned.

You know I gotta talk about it, it’s the flirting scene!

Look at this dork trying to be all suave and charming. ^_^

It doesn’t work because of course Ezra is fourteen and a dumbass just how I like ‘em but I like that Sabine never really seems overly bothered by his attempts, mildly irritated at worst, and even then she never gives him a hard no and she’s plenty capable, she certainly doesn’t let niceties get in the way of her speaking her mind on other things.

(See: How she was almost outright rude to Kanan and Hera about the whole Fulcrum thing.)

Subtle animation appreciation moment: Ezra briefly losing his place leaned against the doorframe and having to quickly readjust.  Adorkable.

Zeb, you’re already awake, there’s no point to threatening Ezra here.

Smug little bastard I love him so much.

I really do like that they explore the inevitable friction that was going to occur when you house a snarky teenager with a cranky grown adult.  It builds naturally off the previous episode.

Plus I just love Zeb and Ezra’s dynamic and love seeing them grow to respect and care about each other, sue me.

This is nitpicky but... sometimes the paths the characters take through this ship make no damn sense.

Like right here, Ezra comes out of the nose gun pod... which can only be accessed via the cockpit ladder that he immediately runs to.  We can hypothesize that maybe he made a detour via the vents, as in the pilot, but... Zeb comes that path too.  And he definitely doesn’t fit in the Ghost’s ventilation system.

Granted I notice this because I obsessively charted out the Ghost’s layout but still, it bugs me.

Zeb coming in with a flying leap to tackle Ezra will never not be hilarious.

The Found Family dynamics are in full swing this episode; Hera lording over as Team Mom, Zeb and Ezra acting like squabbling siblings, pretty sure this is the first time someone refers to the other three as “the kids”, Kanan and Hera being absolutely low-key married...

The bouncy, elastic character movement is also very prominent here.  Like I said, the show loses this as it goes on, but it lends itself perfectly to the comedy of this episode.

Please appreciate Ezra swiping at Zeb like a feral cat with me.

Subtle animation appreciation moment: The animators take time out to have Ezra scratching up into his hair as he turns from Sumar.  I love little tiny character details like this, it just makes things feel so natural and organic.

Imperial March snatches coming on the clarinet here.

Again with the small character moments, Ezra crouching and readying his slingshot.

Rebels said Eminent Domain is the arm of state tyranny, pass it on.

Friiiiiiick the height difference between Ezra and Zeb is getting to me, he is so freaking tiny!

No wonder everyone he meets feels the immediate need to adopt and protect him.

Serious question: What exactly does the Empire want or need with a crate of meilooruns?  They hardly seem the type to care that much about the nutritional needs of their troops.

Like as not it’s for the plate of an officer with an expensive palate.

Ezra already responding much better to Zeb’s shoulder punches.

I would like to just reiterate: I love Zeb and Ezra’s friendship, it is adorable, they play so nicely off each other and I’m glad they got this bonding episode in early Season One.

The bouncy woodwind that’s been picking away in the background here transitions seamlessly into the Force theme prelude, hgn I LOVE it when the score adds to plot beats.

I could be wrong, but this sounds vaguely like a cue from ANH when the Stormtroopers were chasing Han and Chewie.

Ezra being so smol that Zeb can literally chuck him up to a rooftop. *cries*

Baron Valen Rudor was featured in Ezra’s introductory short (Zeb’s too I think?), it’s kind of a running gag how the Rebels show up to ruin this guy’s day in particular.  And it is hilarious.

Please appreciate Zeb’s maniacal cackle as he blasts troopers away with the TIE fighter with me.

Oh wow, I never noticed the subtle Force ring sound effect right here with Ezra leaping to the other roof.  Nice touch.

I hear some notes from the Return of the Jedi soundtrack here, specifically when the Rebel Alliance is making its attack on the Death Star.  I think that may be one of the leitmotifs associated with the Rebel Alliance specifically?

I really want to know the story behind Ezra’s, “You don’t know how.  Let me!” here.

A lot of this really seems to suggest that Ezra’s flown ships before.

Force ring sound effect coming in as Ezra senses the approaching rock formation and once again, I love this show’s animation.  I think I have a gifset of this moment specifically under my #your clone wars could never tag.

(Explanation: That tag is mostly for appreciating early Season One Rebels animation, which is on the level of TCW’s Season Three at least.)

I may be a Sabezra whore at heart, but I do love how casually domestic Kanan and Hera are right here.

This is one of the funniest exchanges on the show. XD

Subtle animation appreciation moment: Zeb’s ear flickers and the awkward way Ezra scratches his face.

Ezra’s “I think I know where it [the smoke] is coming from.” makes me think he’s visited the Sumar’s farm at least once or twice and knows its general location.

IIRC a large part of this episode’s inspiration was the toy or concept of this specific transport right here.  Fun trivia fact.

I don’t think anyone anticipated Lyste becoming more prominent a player lol.

Like an OC you get inexplicably fond of.

Oh hey!  Ezra’s theme is piping in here!

Oh frick is that a Dies Irae reference?

(For context, the Dies Irae is basically an ooooooooold classical music meme, usually used to musically portent death, doom, or gloom.  Star Wars tends to use the Dies Irae liberally.  Rogue One in particular had heavy Dies Irae references in several of its tracks.)

This music cue, on the other hand?  Unique to Rebels.  Kind of fun, but then I’m a soundtrack nerd and enjoy this kind of thing.

Zeb continuing in the classic Star Wars tradition of, “We’re fine, we’re all fine here... now... How are you?” failed bluffing lololol.

I know I’ve mentioned my appreciation for the hair animation but... seriously.

It’s so soft-looking.

A stuttered, half-formed variation of the Force Theme here, which only plays a few notes in the sequence, just the suggestion of the leitmotif really.

Luke’s Theme, on the other hand, though in mellow horns, allowed to play more fully, though interrupted on the very end by a sharp discordant note as the Stormtroopers come up top.

This is what we call ~*musical storytelling*~.

Snrk, one Trooper downed by fruit, the other by friendly fire.  Love the whimsical little sting as Ezra’s pelting them with meilooruns.

“You did all this... for FRUIT?!”

Still one of the funniest lines in the series.

Oh wow I just noticed the nice scuffed texture on Ezra’s backpack.

Ezra’s jaunty little salute character tic, which Kanan picks up. <33333

Props to Zeb’s prehensile feet, love whenever the writers use them.

I wanna know when and how Zeb learned about Ezra’s helmet collecting hobby, did Ezra try to cram his stash on the shelves as soon as he moved in?  Lol.

Awwww and Ezra’s already getting comfortable with arm bumps, love to see it.

*bangs “Rebels animation was gorgeous from the start, ya’ll just hatin’” drum*

I think I can hear some of the cue from the “Property of Ezra Bridger” short.  Pretty sure it’s used as a kind of “Rebel shenanigans” leitmotif throughout the series.

Prime “aww” moment here as Zeb and Ezra wrestle, love love love the boys being affectionate, underrated friendship, gimme more.

Lol, Ezra sounds more confused than offended by Sabine’s painting.

And a slightly more upbeat rendition of Ezra’s theme to close us out.

I love this episode it’s got Zeb and Ezra friendship bonding, Kanan/Hera being adorably married, it becomes delightfully relevant to the finale, and it’s hilarious, I don’t really have anything else to say except haters to the left, why don’t you have some fun occasionally?

Tomorrow, the episode that most people said was the hook for them for the show and the start of major Spacedad-Spaceson feels.

#star wars #star wars rebels #liveblog #rebels rewatch #sabezra #ezra bridger #your clone wars could never #music #soundtracks #kanan x hera

[trikadekaphile]

Here’s where the fun begins (aka my “Star Wars” marathon)

I've been making my way through the entire SW saga, starting with TPM. It's been a while since I watched any of the SW movies straight through. I'm really amazed at how well the whole saga fits together -- despite what the fucking stupid pricks bashers claim, the prequels do dovetail quite well into the OT. And the prequels make the OT richer...especially ROTJ, but ANH and ESB too. 

Specifically: Owen and Beru's exchanged looks when Luke talks about Obi Wan,and Obi Wan's own shifty-eyed looks when Luke asks about his father, gain so much from the prequels; and I always teared up at the scene in ROTJ when Anakin tells Luke to take off his mask: "I want to see you with my own eyes." But the enmasking scene in ROTS makes it even more resonant and heartbreaking. Now I don't just tear up, I bawl like a baby during that scene. And in ESB, I see various Luke scenes and think, "Damn, so much like his dad!", not to mention various Leia scenes and think the same thing: so much like her dad, she's got his temper and some of his personality traits. Of course, that gets muted a bit once she stops being in denial about being in love with Han. 

And despite what the fucking perspectiveless assholes bashers claim, Hayden gives a good performance in AOTC and especially ROTS, before and after Anakin turns to the Dark Side. Another especially: he had to integrate the performances of no fewer than four actors (five if you count Ben Burtt providing Vader's breathing) into his own, and also make his own contribution to the character. That's no easy task. But Hayden was up to it, and he didn't deserve the thrashing he took from the self-important asshats known as movie critics, nor from the fucking shit-for-brains dickheads bashers, who did more than thrash him...they fucking persecuted him. 

Which is why it was so nice to see him join Ewan onstage at, what was it, a Celebration? I forget, but anyway, he got a Standing O and the audience absolutely freaked out over him...part of that is because the people who were born around the time Episode I came out are now adults, and grew up with the prequels like our generation did the originals -- they've replaced some of the nastier fucking lamebrain sons of bitches bashers and have to some extent taken the microphone back from them. Also, the passage of time has mellowed some people out. 

Even fucking Chris Gore. What changed him from a virulent, vile basher into a...well, not exactly a fan of the prequels, but someone considerably less hateful toward the prequels, was a simple, common life event: he became a father, and was able to see the prequels through his offspring's eyes to an extent, and realizing they're not so bad -- maybe there's a reason they were so popular and made so much money, maybe they're even (gasp!) kinda good! 

(Kind of like how the passage of time, a run of flops, and an expensive divorce delivered a well-deserved kick to Harrison's ass and made him realize that being remembered as the fan favorite character -- one of the hippest characters in movie history -- of a stupendously successful and beloved movie series isn't so damn bad after all. 

Mark Hamill was sensible enough to have realized all along that most actors aren't remembered at ALL, let alone remembered for being a central character in, again, a stupendously successful and beloved movie series. His good friend Robert "Freddy Krueger" Englund realized it too, and both he and Mark had much more cause to bitch and moan about their respective series' association than Harrison ever had. I can't see where the SW association ever hurt Harrison's career, whereas Mark was denied the chance to play a substantial part -- the title character of the movie version of "Amadeus," a part he'd played on stage to great acclaim -- specifically because of the SW association. So shut the fuck up about SW hurting your career, Harrison!) 

But anyway...Hayden has always been the nicest of guys, and behaved with real class when so many of the fans acted like stupid buttheads. It's good to see him be appreciated by fans now, and of course it was good to see him in "Obi Wan Kenobi," playing both Anakin and Vader.

Natalie...well, I feel kinda the same as I always have about her performance(s). I think she was really good in TPM, but kind of had bought into her own press with the other two (although I did think she was quite good in the family scenes for AOTC, and the "birth of the Rebellion" scenes for ROTS -- alas, those scenes ended up on the cutting room floor, a poor decision IMO) and felt she was "above all this." But to be fair, she did seem to change her 'tude more recently, and start to (gasp!) defend the prequels and her character against the fucking cretinous pricks bashers and their representatives in the media. 

Liam as Qui Gon...love him. That's all that needs to be said. And despite Ewan's bitchiness about the prequels, I think he gave good performances too, and he had more fun making them than he claims. I really like the relationship between Obi Wan and Anakin in Episodes II and III. Yeah, there's a lot of friction between them in II, but it made sense -- Anakin was beginning to chafe under Obi Wan's tutelage, plus he was making his first serious steps toward the Dark Side. I remember how the fucking idiot dickheads bashers bitched about his whining, claiming (falsely) that Luke doesn't whine in ESB. First of all, Luke most certainly DOES whine in ESB. In fact, he whines twice as much as in ANH. Practically all he does once he meets Yoda is whine, for Pete's sake. But anyway...does it ever penetrate their thick skulls and find one of the two (dying) brain cells clattering around in the otherwise empty space in their craniums that Anakin being whiny was the POINT? That Anakin and Luke have completely opposite journeys? Isn't Anakin falling to the Dark Side just as Luke is fighting against it and, ultimately, rejecting it? Fucking DUH!

Then there's the complaint about how Anakin falling to the Dark Side "makes him look dumb." Jesus H. Christ, do they think it should have made him look SMART? I mean, turning to the Dark Side IS dumb. It's rejecting everything he's ever been taught and worked for, because he CLAIMS to want to save his wife, when really, all he wants is more power. So he makes this dumb decision for the sake of power...and it ends up nearly destroying him physically and mentally. 

I haven't gotten as far as Episodes VII-IX, but watching them again is going to be hard, because of Carrie. Her death was not only devastating to the fans, but it threw a big wrench into the filmmakers' plans for Episode IX. It was supposed to be something like: each one of the movies was going to focus on one of the Big Three. VII was Han's movie, VIII was Luke's movie, and IX was going to be Leia's movie. But instead they had to rely on putting in cut scenes from the other movies to form Carrie's performance.

And I don't give a red-hot flaming SHIT who shot first, nor do think Jar Jar or the Ewoks ruined a bloody thing about the movies. *assumes bratty tone* So THERE! Nyah nyah nyah! *ends bratty tone*

Damn, that felt good. Now I will go resume my marathon.

#star wars #star wars marathon

[brw]

this is ur chance to infodump abt aeon flux bc i have no idea what it is

okay. overview is. it's an animated MTV show that aired in the early to mid 90s (91–95) with very heavy inspirations from anime (the creator is korean-american i believe) and german expressionism. it runs on literally nothing but pure, hard vibes. the title character dies in every episode of the second season and only season 3 has feature length, voice-acted episodes. it has incredibly progressive discusses of gender and depictions of sexuality for its time that are nicely casual.

it follows æon flux, an assassin from the neighbouring city of monica where everyone dresses like hellfire gala (that's the comics not stranger things) patrons. what she's doing is always left ambiguous but she moves like a freak and looks like a freak and i love her so much. once she tries to backflip off a ladder and lands flat on her face and looks so embarrassed and i love her. I love her so so so much. the only other properly consistent character is trevor goodchild, her boytoy / fascist dictator boyfriend she's sometimes beating the shit out of. trevor is terrible and i love him dearly. he reminds me of the post someone made praising arcane for having sneaky, manipulative but physically weak men and aggressive, violent physical woman. that's trevor and æon all over.

the thing is. i cannot describe most of the most iconic scenes without it sounding like a porn parody of itself. and i say that will so much love but woof. there is like... this scene where æon wants eggs and goes through her fridge (the only thing other than the egg container is a cooked chicken btw) and there aren't any eggs so she looks around and finds her Trevor, who is a literal dictator war criminal, curled up into this tiny cupboard and eating raw eggs off the floor of it nude in a collar. and that scene lasts for all of 15 seconds and im still struggling to decipher it. trevor literally killed æon in the prior episode but now he's here. nude and eating her eggs uncooked and slurping them from the floor of this fucking cupboard. and this happens a lot so you can appreciate why describing the content of the episodes is difficult because i genuinely go "hey wait a minute. what the fuck" a LOT but it makes it super fun.

They made a more SFW, linearly told movie with Charlize Theron and objectively it's terrible but I'm kind of obsessed with it. The costume and set design is GORGEOUS and while he's extremely generic looking Trevor does at least seem like he would eat raw eggs nude so there's that.

anyway until season 3 all the episodes are like 5 minutes long (maybe watch the 12 minute one afterward bc the end is uh super fucking weird) and even season 3 is like 20 something minutes so. if this at all interests you. consider viewing it i have A Legal Link pinned now so i can convince more people 🫡😁😁

#asks #gaya ❇️ #æon flux #aeon flux

[lutawolf]

Between Us Episode 3 Commentary and Review

Previous episode reviews can be found here.

We start the series with Team playing basketball. He misses. In the book, he is actually a very good basketball player.

Yup, you stink, Team. Bet we have Team second guessing if Win really meant they were in a relationship. Remember, the UWMA Team needs reassurances. Why? Well Win is perceived by many to be a fuck boy. Is anybody surprised? Bisexuals are often perceived this way. It will be interesting if that actually is being kept. Guess I'll have to continue watching to see.

This is what I mean by the dominant Team. He isn't really, but he does feel the need to puff up. He is concerned with being seen as weak.

Look at that pissy Win. I know a lot of people have made comments that they feel Win is different. Remember, you were only seeing snippets of Win with Team, whom he is soft with. Outside of Team, he is tough. These coconuts.

Too late! Win has already eaten him alive! The slow mo! Love it, but I love Win waiting on Team even more! Did that dead ass actually run. 🤣🤣🤣 Is there really a product placement for iqiyi! ☠️ Team, you are so brave when it isn't Win. These lovely bunch of coconuts.

New nickname is drama king, and I'm not talking about the actor. The nickname fits. Look at him freaking out, then raising his hand.

Oh, T-rex, you risk losing your head. Look at that stare from Win and also him going Dom Daddy. Telling his friend not to talk about his man like that again. 🤟 I mean, he used the guise of him being a member of the club, but that's for Team's sake. Dean is coming in with words of honesty and humor. T-rex, seriously, you are trying to dye. Poor Win, though.

Fucking coconuts 🥥 Pince don't ditch your education! Bee is gone 🤣🤣🤣 Is he even gonna wash his hand. Okay, Team, I'm pretty sure you know why Win is concerned about you and not Bee. He might not be your daddy, but he is your Daddy.

I am dead. The ABC gang is making fun of Team. Rightfully so cause he damn sure not as brave as he talked. Love how Win just bluntly asks Team if he was avoiding him. Guys! Win's sad face is killing me. I'm gutted. He doesn't want to wait for Team.

Staaaaap, don't hurt me like this. Okay, I can't judge alcohol therapy. I've been there and done that. Get ready to embarrass yourself. The coconut gang really wants to help Team. Poor Win.

Why did you have to call him out on calling him Hai. It's their version of Daddy. Don't ruin it for us! Hell to the fucking yeah! Flashback, baby! Yup! They making Win a perceived fuck boy.

These fucking drunk white crayons are singing the abc song. I'm so dead. You fuckers really went to attention and dropped your friend. Niiiice. You assholes left him with the person he was just talking about!!! You white crayons have better read the room and know the situation. Otherwise you deserve an ass kick.

There is no time like the present for a conversation. Oh, you lucky that finger didn't get bit. That's straight up disrespectful. Don't put a finger in my face unless you are ready to fight. Fuck! I love their openess. Win wants to know why he has to report. Win explains he worries. That's what Team wants to hear. That arm on the shoulder is a signal of a wall coming down. He is still guarded, but he is listening. Who is Win to Team to worry. Win wants to know what title would allow him to be protective over Team.

They were so close to kissing, but Team pulls back. It's alright cause Win is starting to put two and two together, and he knows Team is still interested in him.

Win putting the helmet on Team, so cute. Getting on a bike drunk, though, is a recipe for disaster. Kids, don't try this at home. Yeah, we were really lucky he didn't fall off with being this drunk. Go take a shower!?!? You want him to drown! You are a brat, Team.

Parasomnia is a bitch. It can be caused by sleep apnea. So imagine your body has fought sleep so long that it's just fucking wore out, right. Then exactly what you're afraid of happens, the nightmare, but your brain is past exhausted. It locks you into place so you can't wake up. It often does take someone else.

Sub trio! Swimming makes you so hungry. Team, don't tease your friend! Nah, it's cute. Continue!

Open house! Poor Team. This is gonna kill me. Poor tired, baby. Win buying his basket. He's so worried. Ha! Daddy, husband, wifey! Just call him special. Ha! He bought him healthy food too.

Dean, leave my baby alone. I can't handle it. ABC gang are pretty good friends. Come on, brat, you gotta talk. Ah, see, that step towards Team. He was going to cage, but Team talks before he has to.

Yessss!!!! Take him to your room. To sleep. Baby needs it. Move closer. We've done more than this. 🤣🤣🤣 That's it. He does puff up like a cat! The care, though! Team how can you not see it!

There you go. It's better not to wake them up but sooth instead. Help them to find comfort while sleeping. Which Team does. Instinctively seeking comfort. Aww, he completely wrapped himself around Win. Pay back!

He kicked him off the bed and called him a squid!! This fucking brat. Dead. Team lies. Here is this Dom that has put up with being ignored, run from, bad mouthed, and kicked, but the instant Team doesn't talk or lies he goes Dom. And goes straight to caging.

See that smile at Team gonna wear his shirt. Me too, Win, me too. Did Win really grab Team's pillow to cuddle and sleep with. Cuteness overload. 😍

How did you forget! 🤣🤣🤣 The love. Damn. That kiss was so damn cute. They are so damn cute.

Hope you guys enjoy! 💜💜💜

#between us the series #between us #between us kink #coconuts mafia #win x team #winteam