#ballroompink

[incorrectavengersquotes]

Melina: [to Alexei] You really think there's "happy ever after" for people like us?

#submission #ballroompink #the avengers #the thomas crown affair #melina vostokoff #alexei shostakov

[sullenaquarian]

Tagged by @ballroompink to list 10 comfort shows and tag 10 people.

1. Parks and Recreation

2. Brooklyn Nine-Nine

3. 1995 Pride and Prejudice

4. Guy's Grocery Games

5. Miss Scarlet and the Duke

6. The Good Place

7. Late Night with Seth Meyers when he has Andy Samberg or Amy Poehler on

8. Original version of Powerpuff Girls

9. The A-block of Rachel Maddow, which isn't actually comforting, but I like listening to smart people

10. Any sporting event where I don't really care who wins and can just enjoy excellence.

I don't think I can get to 10, but how about @stars-inthe-sky @shadowoftherat @running-rabbit @clubgetright @mediumsizedfountain

#ballroompink #comfort shows

[talldecafcappuccino]

Da Moon

This makes me think of Moonstruck (my beloved!), so I would write a fic where Ted is woken up by the giant moon shining through his window in Kansas. (here's a clip from the movie for context.)

It's the middle of the night, but the moon is so bright that Ted's wide awake and unable to go back to sleep. He checks his phone and likes a message from Rebecca (or maybe replies to one an instagram story with a funny quip). A few minutes later she calls, worried about what he's doing up in the middle of the night. He explains that the moon woke him up, "Cosmo's moon" he mumbles, chuckling quietly as he crawls out of bed.

"Moonstruck?"

"Course."

Rebecca hums and he can hear her morning tea clink against the kitchen counter top. "Cosmo can't own the moon."

"And yet it's his moon." Ted pulls back the curtain and looks out on to the quiet street below. "You a Cher fan or a romcom fan?"

"A Nick Cage fan, actually."

Ted pauses, processing this new fact about Rebecca. Maybe he's still dreaming. "Well that's a surprise."

Then they go on to chat a bit, exchanging late night little facts about themselves until Rebecca gasps at the other end of the line. "I see it!"

"See what?"

"The moon."

"Stop. You're pulling my leg."

"I do. I swear. It's just a little thing, but it's right there above the roof next door."

"Well how about that. Guess it wanted to visit us both, huh?"

"I suppose so."

#ballroompink #ask #I'm not sure if Da Moon is a reference to something else but it was either this or something about 'the MOON will join your coalition' 😂 #fic title game #ted x rebecca

[stars-inthe-sky]

9, 19

9. Do you prefer to write AUs, canon divergence, or canon-compliant fic?

I mainly prefer to write what the muse moves me—which is mainly canon compliance or full-on AUs with very little in between. Certainly my Terminator fics are all intensely canon-compliant, although a lot of the Marvel stuff kind of depends on what you mean by "canon"...

I'm pretty sure Through the Roofs and Gables is my only real canon divergence fic, and that one is honestly just a weird entry in my work (hopefully a good kind of weird!)—although of course When are you coming home? was also a fun little detour that folks seemed to like a lot.

19. Who is the easiest/hardest character for you to write about? Why?

Without doing the math of whose in what stories from which perspectives, the easiest was always probably Bucky Barnes, and I have no idea why. I just think he's neat? Everyone in More Than a Hunch came really easily, too—maybe that was @blithers's fault, but the characterizations all just felt really clear and crisp before I even started writing.

Hardest usually tends to be background characters—there are so many "extras" in tell me where your strength lies with varying depths of characterizations and frequency of reappearance that it was difficult to distinguish among them and a headache to decide who would recur, or die offscreen, or just not be a significant presence. I had figured on that variety—it seemed realistic in-universe and meshed with my characterization of Savannah—but it was a bear.

I've also literally written one line of dialogue for Thor Odinson ever, and he only even appeared in the one fic because I just have no idea what to do with him most of the time, and Marvel's answer to that question has varied widely over the last decade and change to boot.

#ballroompink #ask me ask me ask me #fic meme

[tessaservopoulos]

Just me in vacation mode wondering about a scenario where Yuri wasn’t a con artist and got Hop out of the Soviet Union and Joyce and Murray just waited all clean and fresh in Alaska …

i'm always curious about this!! because i think what joyce and the gang end up doing in the russian prison IS so vital to the hawkins crew, so i'm curious what would change if she and murray were in alaska and hopper joined them there? would they end up in california when the government came for el in time? would they return to a shot up house and have NO idea what was going on? would they be able to get in contact with owens in the middle of the desert? i think it's SUCH an interesting concept but i don't think i'm smart enough to fully flesh it out into a full fic and do it justice.

#ballroompink #asks

[andyridgeley]

Mrs. Doubtfire/An Education/One Fine Day/The Cutting Edge

mrs. doubtfire never seen | want to see | terrible | boring | okay | good | great | a favorite

an education never seen | want to see | terrible | boring | okay | good | great | a favorite

one fine day never seen | want to see | terrible | boring | okay | good | great | a favorite

the cutting edge never seen | want to see | terrible | boring | okay | good | great | a favorite

send me a movie!

#I'VE GOT SOME GOOD RECS HERE THANK YA!!!!!! #hadn't heard of one fine day but the others i've heard of i should watch em! #fare thee ask #ballroompink

[lasshoe]

47, 67, 77

47. good in bed - dua lipa

67. dangerously in love - destiny’s child

77. sorry - beyonce

#so many of the same songs i’ve been listening to for the past several years lmao #thank u 💗 #ballroompink #answered #spotify wrapped

[village-skeptic]

I was tagged in this "get to know you" meme by both @booksandabeer and @stars-inthe-sky - but it has slightly different questions! I've synthesized them, LOL. Thanks for the tag, you guys!

last song: "The Letter," The Box Tops, followed by "The Letter," Joe Cocker. No one make me choose! The former is a perfect, crisp, driving little pop/soul gem; the latter is a live performance that you've probably heard so often that it's easy to forget just how good it is. It feels like everyone on that recording is operating at the height of their powers, and the result is this towering, ecstatic, howling, joyous track that will be stuck in your head for the rest of the day if you're lucky.

currently reading: a manuscript for work that I wouldn't pick up if it wasn't for work, LOL. Last few books, though: Eleanor Catton, Birnam Wood (def recommend, I keep thinking about this one); Thomas Mallon, Fellow Travelers and Up With The Sun (sometimes you have Questions about an author and the only thing to do is to read more of their work; more on that eventually maybe).

last film: Never Let Me Go. Quite simply, I had trouble entering into the spirit of the thing (the concept doesn't really hold up upon examination and I'm not sure I buy the larger analogy), but the book is supposed to be fantastic, of course. I did enjoy baby Keira Knightley, Carey Mulligan, and Andrew Garfield though.

currently watching: The final season of The Crown, more out of curiosity than anything else. I'm finding it very...mid? Is that what the kids are saying? The show peaked a while back, but Elizabeth Debicki's performance as Diana continues to be shockingly good and worth the price of admission. Also, as per my recent reads, watching Fellow Travelers, on track to finish up next week. Waiting to say more about that til I've seen the whole series, but I will say that I have gained a lot of respect for Jonathan Bailey!

three ships: I feel a bit like I'm between fandoms right now, but I can always be talked into reading some good Betty/Jughead, Steve/Bucky, and, uh, *looks at her bookmarks* Crowley/Aziraphale.

favorite color: purple!

currently consuming: About to consume some homemade spinach tortellini soup. (Well, okay. Mostly homemade. The tortellini isn't my own. There are limits.)

relationship status: old married :D

first ship: Hmm! I guess maybe Rachel/Tobias, way back to my preteen Animorph days? Although I certainly did not get into fic for shippy purposes, as @stirringsofconsciousness can verify.

currently working on: desperately needed post-holiday cleaning, honestly. And a bunch of little art projects!

tagging (as ever, with no obligation): @lurker-no-more , @jandjsalmon , @pantsaretherealheroes, @ballroompink

#tag games #village-skeptic

[themculibrary]

Melina & Alexei Masterlist

american pie (ao3) - ashlearose13 G, 4k

Summary: Here's the thing about Natasha Romanoff: before she was theirs, she was her own.

Because It Came From You (ao3) - dallirious alexei/melina G, 4k

Summary: Fatherhood came easiest to Alexei when he was telling stories.

beneath the artist's loving hand (ao3) - wouldratherbe alexei/melina G, 970

Summary: It was everything she’d been taught to be. Everything she’d teach her girls to be.

or: Melina is learning.

Between Two Lungs (ao3) - thetbone alexei/melina T, 4k

Summary: "Melina learns to be air: silent, invisible, everywhere." (Or: Melina's life in three acts.)

Bye-bye, Miss American Pie (ao3) - xForeverYoursx alexei/melina T, 5k

Summary: When everyone is returned after The Snap, Yelena receives a call from Clint Barton and learns that her sister will not be coming home. Or, Yelena, Alexei, and Melina, in the aftermath of Natasha's sacrifice.

Champagne (ao3) - melonmania yelena/kate, alexei/melina G, 3k

Summary: Yelena drags Kate along to meet her Mama and Papa. The champagne is uncorked.

Five Times Melina Hates Alexei a Little Less and Loves Him a Little More (ao3) - Sibir alexei/melina T, 9k

Summary: Melina can’t stand his big glasses, bad dad jokes, terrible English, shuffling bear walk, and tiny capacity to comprehend anything remotely related to science. But it’s exactly these things that make her fall hard for him.

Good Game (ao3) - ballroompink alexei/melina M, 1k

Summary: A free moment for Melina and Alexei.

if you're still breathing, you're the lucky ones (ao3) - Charlie_Balle M, 11k

Summary: >>BLACK WIDOW SPOILERS&lt;<

What if Yelena was just a bit younger? Still a teenager. What if the Red Room cracked down when Natasha escaped? Yelena was plunged into hell. She comes out colder and bitter. She won’t be so forgiving this time.

Basically, what I feel should have happened if Black Widow wasn’t restricted to a PG-13 rating

It Would Be So Easy (lets stay forever) (ao3) - weirdlywordy (graciewrites9) T, 21k

Summary: Mount Vernon, Ohio

1992-1995

I Was Taught Not to Trust (But For You I Think I’d Like to Try) (ao3) - Lulu_Williams alexei/melina T, 3k

Summary: “Do you not want to go to the park?” He asks and it’s almost like he cares, like he’d be willing to herd the girls to the park by himself. He wants her to fall for it, his charm, she knows. He’ll use it to disarm her if she gives him the chance.

Except she won’t.

Alexei can order her around and she will follow. Not because she wants to, not because she trusts him, but because she has to.

. . .

Also known as Melina has trust issues and Alexei is too good to be true.

Learning (ao3) - thenigotthisfamily (guitarplayer3) T, 9k

Summary: Years later and Melina and Alexei are still trying to learn how to be good parents, much to Natasha and Yelena’s frustration. But when tensions rise, the two sisters finally start to learn that their parents do care for them, no matter how awful they are at expressing it.

Melt With You (ao3) - thetbone G, 3k

Summary: Skating, snowball fights, and swear jars — all crucial elements of a family reunion.

Training Wheels (ao3) - thetbone alexei/melina G, 13k

Summary: Natasha doesn’t know how to ride a bike, doesn’t know how to be part of a family, doesn’t know how to be free.

But she’s learning.

we sang dirges in the dark (ao3) - Sanctuaria alexei/melina M, 5k

Summary: She was a daughter, sister, student, mother. She was his architect, his plaything, his Widow—the great Iron Maiden.

Now, she is free.

Now, she is Melina Vostokoff, never to be controlled again.

You taught me how to care (and I haven't forgotten since) (ao3) - AutumnalVesperum alexei/melina G, 11k

Summary: Sister. What a strange, incomprehensible emotion of a word.

#themculibrary #marvel #mcu #masterlists #black widow #natasha romanoff #melina vostokoff #alexei shostakov #yelena boleva

[pearly--rose]

tagged by @ballroompink (thank you!)

last song: Respite by Goldmund (unwinding by listening to my instrumentals/ambient playlist rn)

favorite color: various shades of green

last movie/show: Bones and All (cannot decide how I felt about it)

sweet/spicy/savory: sweet

relationship status: single

last thing i googled: "acl scars healed" (lol fic research, I needed a visual reference)

current obsession(s): sudoku...I'm seem to go through a sudoku phase every 5 years or so 😂

tag 9 people: (no pressure!) @cashewdani @wordybee @finnickfoxes @sdwolfpup @halfagod @goddesspharo @kulliare @pretty-thief @thesadnessrabbit

#tag game

[incorrectavengersquotes]

Melina: Do you want me to beat him up for you?

Alexei: No, I shouldn't have to ask you to do stuff like that. You should just do it.

#submission #ballroompink #the avengers #the office #melina vostokoff #alexei shostakov

[sullenaquarian]

Tagged by the magical @ballroompink

Last song: Psycho Killer

Favorite color: Green, then purple

Last movie/show: Fargo

Sweet/spicy/savory: Sweet with salty

Relationship status: Spinster, moving toward crone

Last thing I Googled: Kendrick Lamar, "Swimming Pool (Drank)"

Current obsession: Figuring out my next vacation.

Tagging anyone who wants to play.

#ballroompink #tag game

[talldecafcappuccino]

Hey I hope I’m not too late for the fic ask. 🧩

Not too late! Thanks for sending 🥰 🧩 ⇢ what will make you click away from a fanfiction immediately?

No spaces between paragraphs is an automatic out for me and I think it is for most people. First person POV is also a no, but so rare that it's not really a thing.

I don't love pregnancy or baby fic or OC kid fics so I won't make it past the tags, but if I'm reading a fic and there are hints of an untagged surprise pregnancy? I will nope out of that fic with the speed of a thousand F1 race cars fueled by Red Bull itself 😮‍💨

#ballroompink #ask #writers truth and dare game

[stars-inthe-sky]

15 questions for 15 friends

Tagged by: @village-skeptic

Are you named after anyone? My Hebrew name (Ariel B'rucha) is allegedly to do with two Benjamins, which I've never fully understood but remain grateful my parents went with that instead of Benyamina, in general but also because with Jewish day school I ended up getting called Ariel half of every school day for six years.

When was the last time you cried? Probably in November or December. Morning sickness suuuuuuucked.

Do you have kids? One extant, one en route, one dog that I refuse to call a "fur baby" but she definitely thinks she's people

What sports do you play/have you played? I played softball from ages 9 through 18; you'd think I'd've been better at it. I had a brief kindergarten-era stint on a soccer team but was very much the kid who made daisy chains for both teams (including during gameplay). As an adult, I've been much more into solo enterprises like running and skiing; I'm not especially remarkable at any athletic endeavors, but those make me much happier.

Do you use sarcasm? Frequently, although I try to tone it down around Bébé, who is incredibly verbal and soaks up anything you say like a sponge but doesn't quite appreciate the nuances of adult conversations yet.

What’s the first thing you notice about people? Clothes? Hair? I don't know. If I'm just wandering around the neighborhood it's probably whether they have a dog along.

What’s your eye color? Green

Scary movies or happy endings? Happy endings, for sure. I'd even take unhappy endings over anything scary or horror.

Any talents? I've been told reaction gifs are my superpower, but most people don't know that's just being on Tumblr for too long.

Where were you born? Philadelphia

What are your hobbies? Knitting, running/exercise (though less so at the moment because third trimester), this hellsite

Do you have any pets? Phoebe the mini goldendoodle!

How tall are you? 5'5"

Favorite subject in school? English/literature/creative writing, although I majored in political science in college and took enough extra math and science classes in high school that the college counselor thought I wanted to go pre-med.

Tagging: @angstyteenagesam, @ballroompink, @clubgetright, @gallifreyburning, @hondagirll, @iloveyouandilikeyou, @kyrafic, @lulabo, @miabicicletta, @poehlaris, @ryeloza, @sadieb798, @stillscape, @sullenaquarian, and @whimzical

#about me #about me meme #meet the blogger

[claudiajcregg]

Completely forgot that I was tagged by my awesome friend @wavesoutbeingtossed to shuffle my on repeat and post the first 10 songs!

I almost did it last night, but realized the playlist would update this morning to have something slightly more recent. (Some of them I wouldn't say I've had them in repeat recently, either.) So!

Now That We Don't Talk · Taylor Swift

love is embarrassing · Olivia Rodrigo

The Architect · Kacey Musgraves

champagne problems · Taylor Swift

firearm · Lizzie McAlpine

map at the mall · Matt Nathanson

History of Man · Maisie Peters

making the bed · Olivia Rodrigo

Anywhere · Passenger

AM Radio · The Lumineers

Tagging (only if you want to do it!): @onekisstotakewithme @mihrsuri @darlingbandit @unseenacademic @thebreakfastgenie @ballroompink + whoever wants to do it 💜

#shoutout to i miss you i'm sorry for being number 11 on its 4th birthday #was half expecting Stick Season to appear #this is a very early-to-mid March list #tag games #music

[ffrannyglass]

i was tagged by @chantalstacys to share my four favorite movies 💕

i thought this would be fairly easy because my top three are definitely locked in, but i couldn't decide between 4 and 5 so i cheated and put both 🤷🏻‍♀️

i'm tagging @ballroompink, @lilybarthes, @fruitcage, @wonderwanda, @natashagurdina and anyone who wants to do it

#currently trying to convince myself that i don't need the LIZ & ROCK! giant movie poster i found for $100 but i'm weak and bad with money