#by Lina Crow

[milo-my-beloved]

"kaz would retire back to the farm" this, "kaz would never live long enough to retire" that. like that man wouldn't open a bingo hall and continue to scam grandmas in his old age

#guess where i am rn. yes it's bingo #shadow and bone #six of crows #kaz brekker #lina lore #grishaverse

[fanfic-corner]

Kanej Fic Recs

I've been thoroughly sucked back into the Grishaverse fandom after Shadow and Bone S2, so here's some Kanej fics for you to enjoy! But don't worry - none of these fics have spoilers for the show.

not like this by rebel_hearts (865)

Inej has been kissed before, but not like this. Not as if she's everything somebody could ever want - and not just because of her body, or her talents, but because it's her.

Drowning by witteefool (1.2k)

The shock of cold sent any stray thought from his mind, his body sinking as his wool coat grew sodden and heavy.

Then they were back. His demons grabbed at him from the depths, their bloated, grisly bodies pulling him downwards to the reaper. His escape had only been temporary. Jordie was ready to take him back now.

Tantalus Skin Hunger by PestilenceandSunshine (1.6k)

Why should they keep our Secrets? Keep us Safe? The Demon in his mind spoke.

Because they love us. They're our Friends, our Family. The Child answered again. They love us.

Dirtyhands did not speak again. 

Or: Kaz Brekker platonically pines and yearns, but Recovery takes time and is not a linear process

a laugh I could recognise anywhere by onthelasttrain (1.7k)

“Jesper Llewellyn Fahey, domesticated at last.” He freezes, his breath trapped in his lungs. All those months looking at maps, wondering where she is, and now he doesn't have to wonder. She travelled farther than any merchant or sailor ever did, and then she came back to the Barrel.

(Back to him, he thinks selfishly).

two solitudes by sixappleseeds (2k)

“I was going to say,” Kaz remarked. “That memory is a tricky bastard. It takes cheap shots when you’re not looking. Cuts you up when you least expect it.”

we wear red so they don't see us bleed by A_7187 (2.9k)

jesper fahey: this really hurts. after everything i’ve done for you

kaz brekker: which is nothing?

jesper fahey: I LITERALLY KILLED SOMEONE FOR YOU. ARE WE JUST FORGETTING ABOUT THAT NOW???

inej ghafa: im sorry?

Kidnapped by Youknowit (2.9k)

Inej's parents and some of her caravan are kidnapped by slavers. It's up to Inej and Kaz to fight the encampment and free those who were stolen.

a foreigner called candor by kallliope (2.9k)

A new strain of parem is tampered with to make a truth serum, which Kaz unknowingly consumes.

the end of a movie i've seen before by downn_in_flames (3.3k)

And then, standing before her, in a sober black wool coat, ink-dark hair tossed about by the wind, a small rolling bag at his side, is the very same person who’s taken up permanent residence in her dreams.

She’s not entirely convinced she’s not dreaming now - though if she is, this one’s an entirely new creation of her imagination, with not an ounce of intertwined past memory to be found. She entertains the thought of pinching herself just to be sure.

Six Fifteen by orphan_account (3.5k)

Every morning at six fifteen, gymnastics instructor Inej Ghafa sings in the shower. Her apartment neighbor Kaz hears her through the connecting wall, and one morning accidentally joins in.

love is not love which alters when it alteration finds by cameliawrites (3.8k)

“I do look forward to meeting this husband of yours one day, Captain,” the deputy drawls sardonically at her back.

Inej finds herself dangerously tempted by the notion. She caresses the blade of Sankt Petyr at her side as she takes her leave, the metal smooth and sharp as her lover’s dark gaze. The thought draws her homeward, and she quickens her steps, a single utterance underneath her breath:

“No, you don’t.”

By the Book by marycontraire (4.2k)

“You look like a pirate,” Kaz says.

“I am a pirate,” Inej reminds him as they emerge into the dark storage room. 

Kaz holds his bonelight aloft to illuminate the rows and rows of garments.  “Not this morning,” he says. “This morning you’re the bride of a respectable gentleman farmer."

home by northyard (5.5k)

When the assassin spoke, his voice was gravelly and strange. "Smart." He mused. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Dirtyhands. I've heard a lot about you." His hands drifted to the two knives strapped to his thighs. "And I'm sure it'll be a pleasure to kill you. Most of Ketterdam wants you dead, Brekker." He added, hands deft as he unsheathed his knives. Kaz didn't miss the bulge in the forearms of his sleeves (more knives) nor the two tipped daggers that emerged from the end of his boots.

Kaz lifted an eyebrow, waving his hand in a nonchalant manner. "Tell me something I don't know."

The assassin grinned. "You've underestimated me," he fired back, teeth bared like a wolf. "Any person who crosses me does not live to tell the tale."

Kaz shot back a wolfish grin of his own, tipping his hat to the assassin. "It's a good thing I'm not a person."

Can I Watch You? by aknosde (6.7k)

The older they get the more late nights working on his bed mean. And sometimes they let themselves become a little more vulnerable. And sometimes their friends are nosy and annoying.

farmer kaz by cafatonin (7k)

Kaz cleared his throat. “It reminds me of home.” Inej’s head popped up, her senses finely attuned to Kaz’s sharing voice. She looked to where he was lounging on the bale nearest the door, bad leg lazily draped over the side. He didn’t dare look back at her.

my pain shouldn't be yours by dregstrash (11k)

In a world where soulmates exist, what do you do when you feel the pain of someone else? Kaz Brekker and Inej Ghafa share that singular thread, and neither of them wants to acknowledge it. Kaz Brekker, the boy who never admits to weakness, and Inej Ghafa, the girl who has her own scars, must learn to navigate the dangerous streets of Ketterdam while trying to ignore the bond between them.

Dinner & Diatribes by Thesuncameout (12k)

There wasn’t supposed to be a storm.

Time spent creating this plan had taken up almost a month’s worth of days and nights. Neither of them had slept more than four bells, too caught up in perfecting the swindling. Even Jesper had lost a few nights helping them figure out the heist. They planned everything. The ins and outs, the what ifs and possible dooms, the plan A all the way to Z.

And yet, they hadn’t bothered to look above and see the rolling clouds and rumbling skies.

i wanna hold the hand inside you (i look to you to see the truth) by hyperspecificplaylists (12k)

It's 7:00 a.m. on the day before Valentine's Day when Kuwei's listicle comes out and promptly exposes everyone.

Wherein Nikolai sings love songs for the internet and pretends they're not for Zoya (except they totally are).

O Loving Hate by this_pendent_world (13k)

‘The Ravkan Roast’ is the top coffee shop on the doorstep of Ketterdam University - or at least, it was until ‘Tooth & Claw’ opened up right across the street.

While her friends insist that they are at war with the rival coffee shop, Nina Zenik believes that Matthias Helvar is too cute to be her sworn enemy.

If only they weren't on opposite sides of the brewing war, and the street.

Ace by KatyaMorrigan (15k)

Healing takes time and work, but Kaz and Inej have been putting in the hours. While once it seemed that they may always have to love each other at a distance, it now couldn't be further from the case. Although, Inej's thoughts have been wandering, and now she isn't sure what they are working towards. Even though the possibility that had once seemed so slim is now an option, is sex something she wants? Is it something Kaz wants?

And if the answer is no, what happens then?

A coming-out-to-herself fic in which Inej and Kaz explore intimacy and come to the conclusion that, for them, sex isn't a part of the equation.

all in good time by terribletruths (15k)

Inej needs a powerful man dead. Kaz, busy conducting 'renovations' across the West Stave and feuding with famous stage actors, is glad to have the opportunity to eliminate a threat.

False Hearts by QHQ (16k)

This was the weirdest fucking job Inej had ever taken.

Kaz and Inej go to marriage counseling. The only thing is, they’re not married. They don’t even know each other.

Killing Me To Love You by venus_in_retrograde (31k)

Inej comes down with a bizzare illness that has her weak and feverish and at the brink of death. As a result, she is forced to confront some truths about her heart she's spent the longest time avoiding.

Truths meaning her feelings about Kaz Brekker. Feelings which, knowing him, are most definitely unrequited, and will therefore only make her suffer more.

All in all, it's a pretty dire situation. Things are bound to get messy.

But her time is running out.

Dealing with Our Demons by ravenyenn19 (747k, in progress)

Inej's first letter back to Kaz after she leaves on her journey to hunt slavers, reunion ensues! Will they continue to learn how to battle their demons in order to get close to one another?

If you have any other Kanej fics that you recommend, please let me know! And in the meantime, thank you to all the fantastic authors who shared their work with us and happy reading :D

#grishaverse #kanej #kaz brekker #inej ghafa #shadow and bone #six of crows #lina lore #fic recs #ao3 #sab #long post

[daw-game-dev]

Meet Lina Sandre! Local punk rock/chill transsexual as she likes to call herself.

#we are here #can-crow-vas #original character #lgbtqia #queer #queer artist #trans artist #trans #Lina sandre #oc artwork #oc #trans character

[lilisouless]

Grishaverse opinions no one asked for, updated post show

Top 5 characters

Jesper

Nina

Inej

Wylan

The loser with ugly hair and uglier personality

Bottom 5 characters ( i Can awnser questions)

Sergei

Marie

The dark/ing in R&R AND season two of the show

Show!Nina

Number 5 i won’t say it, but people that know me probably can tell and I have given my reasons many time,also last time I stated d I don’t hate them anymore,I just think they don’t have the right to be that bland

Top 3 books

Crooked kingdom

Six of crows

Rule of wolves

Bottom 3 books

Shadow and bone

Life of the saints

Siege and Storm

Otp (just top 5) in that order

Wesper

Kanej

Ninej

Zoyalai

Helnik

Bottom ships (just 5) in that order

Da/lina

Nikolai x Nina

Nik/lina

Zoya x Mal (although the fans seem nice, all three of them)

Show!Helnik (congrats netflix, you dethroned J/K)

#netflix shadow and bone #six of crows #leigh bardugo #kaz brekker #jesper fahey #wylan van eck #grishaverse #nina zenik #crooked kingdom #inej ghafa #shadow and bone #Grishaverse opinions

[ssstarlighttt]

Introducing… Jack Rose, Luke Cypher, and Ann G. Lina!

Jack Rose is the son of Night Swan, a retired rock star who was the front woman of The Swan Army, one of the most famous rock bands in the Danceverses. He wants to make it big one day as an aspiring drummer, but he and his mom often clash heads…

Jack’s best friend is Luke Cypher, one half of the drag duo that took Dancity by storm. He and his sister Ann. G Lina are frequent performers at Scarlet’s Palace. Additionally, Luke is a fan of Glowing Crow, and is very excited about the new music they’ve been teasing…

navigation post

#just dance #just dance 2023 #just dance 2024 #just dance au #socmed au #smau #band au #jd jack rose #jd luke cypher #jd ann g. lina #star’s stuff #pedestals smau

[redcharacterbracket]

Red Character Bracket

Minor Bracket

Hello, and welcome to the Red Character Bracket: Minor Bracket. This is how it’s gonna work- 64 contestants. Double elimination. Only one will make it out victorious. Now, for our contestants:

Apple White (Ever After High)

Hua Cheng (Heaven Official’s Blessing)

707/Saeyoung Choi (Mystic Messenger)

Matsuno Osomatsu (Osomatsu-san)

Riddle Rosehearts (Twisted Wonderland)

Opera (Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun)

Ikuyo Kita (Bocchi the Rock!)

Cromdo Face (Bugsnax)

Courtney (Dead End: Paranormal Park)

Char Aznable (Mobile Suit Gundam)

Alucard (Hellsing)

Anna Akagi (Kiratto Pri☆Chan)

Taiga Kagami (Kuroko's Basketball)

Tokiwa Anzai (Mewkledreamy)

Fuuta Kajiyama (MILGRAM)

Strawberry Shortcake (Strawberry Shortcake)

Ringo Akai/Mew Ringo (Tokyo Mew Mew)

Reimu Hakurei (Touhou Project)

Jibanyan (Yo-Kai Watch)

Shotaro Kaneda (Akira)

Jake Long (American Dragon: Jake Long)

Akito Takagi (BAKUMAN。)

Ruby (Battle for Dream Island)

Red Blood Cell/AE3803 (Cells at Work!)

Blast (Club Penguin)

Rosemaster (Cucumber Quest)

Honey Kisaragi/Cutie Honey (Cutie Honey)

Lilith (Darkstalkers)

Lina (DotA)

Red (Everhood)

Jack of Blades (Fable)

Wilt (Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends)

Major Motoko Kusanagi (Ghost in the Shell)

Nobuo Akagi/AkibaRed (Hikonin Sentai Akibaranger)

Ib (Ib)

Padparadscha (Land of the Lustrous)

Sally Yumeno (Sally the Witch)

ProtoMan.EXE/Blues.EXE (Mega Man Battle Network)

Dianite (Mianite)

Flain (Mixels)

The Spanish Inquisition (Monty Python's Flying Circus)

Orko (He-Man and the Masters of the Universe)

Camille Severin (Muted)

Tom Servo (Mystery Science Theater 3000)

Pop Harukaze (Ojamajo Doremi)

Scarlett (Papa Louie)

Pucca (Pucca)

Ranma Saotome (Ranma 1/2)

Benson Dunwoody (Regular Show)

Mira Hanayashiki (Sekko Boys)

Corporal Giroro (Sgt. Frog)

Kate (Shadows House)

Crow (SHOW BY ROCK!!)

Stereo Monovici (Space Goofs)

King Kazma (Summer Wars)

Lloyd Irving (Tales of Symphonia)

James the Red Engine (Thomas & Friends)

Captain Red Rackham (The Adventures of Tintin)

Clover Ewing (Totally Spies!)

Gold Ship (Uma Musume: Pretty Derby)

Rika Kawai (Wonder Egg Priority)

Pyra (Xenoblade Chronicles)

Yona (Yona of the Dawn)

Yugiri (Zombie Land Saga)

Polls will be posted every day at 12am EST, starting on April 2, 2023. The Major Bracket will be revealed at a later date. Good luck to all of our contestants ❤️

#red character bracket #minor bracket #masterpost #long post

[mxniomei]

manhwa/manta comics recommendations go 🎤

FUCK YEA 5 PARAGRAPH RANT BELOW

Manta specific:

Under the Oak Tree is surprisingly good. I say that bc I honestly thought I was gonna hate Maxi bc I can't stand bumbling naïve protagonists, but she redeems herself really quickly. She's not naïve, she's traumatized, and has a lot of understandable triggers. Riftan is likable in the funniest way possible imo bc he's so Stupid like he's so scared Maxi is gonna leave he just looks goofy trying to get her to stay which I approve.

I've Become a True Villainess is a transmigration/Isekai who's protagonist, Seria Sterne, is trying to reform her image and it is so incredibly likable! Seria is refreshingly normal personality wise; she's not dumb not naïve , understands when to give up the ghost, and is just incredibly likable all around. Her relationship with Rouche is fascinating; I have a creeping suspicion that Rouche might be more of a romantic than he lets on, and it just makes their relationship kinda hilarious. Lina is a fascinating character as well, who might know more than we give her credit for. . .

Duchess Crow is my current favorite! Melisa, a 32 year old gemologist, is approached by Louis/Lewis, a 25 year old noble who asks for a contract marriage with her. Melisa is smart as a whip and has a no nonsense personality that speaks to me. She's not just the kingdoms brightest gemologist, but she's also just really good at analyzing a situation and figuring it out. Louis is severely charming to the point of pissing me off, but he's also smart and likable. However, i think Louis's most likable trait is how much he really respects Melisa. He gives her a lot of deference, clearly cares about her opinion, doesn't try to convince her he knows better-- he's genuinely collaborative with her, and knows that her intellect is greater than his in some situations, so he wants to lend her his power to be able to make her goals attainable. He also (so far!) has not pulled any asshole moves male leads are prone to in manhwa. He only ever dangles his status over her in a playful manner, and doesn't actually believe he's better or can dominate her in any way. And their story is pretty high stakes, working against a villain that's easy to love and hate.

Non Manta:

Marry My Husband is a time travel piece about a woman who's gonna get mad revenge against her boyfriend and best friend. The male lead is so pathetic meow meow and I'm obsessed with how he's obsessed with her. It's a good dramatic romp!

Beware of the Villainess is another transmigration/isekai except instead of just redeeming herself, Melissa fuckin DOMINATES the plot. She learns sword play, beats the shit out of a bunch of cunty dudes, and is my wife ! There's a wet blorbo blue haired boy, which is my favorite genre of boy, and a lot of bi vibes through out.

#Under the Oak Tree #I've Become a True Villainess #Duchess Crow #Marry My Husband #Beware of the Villainess #Manta Comics #Manhwa #THANK YOU FOR ASKING I LOVE U ANON #post lovingly edited bc i fucked up one of the titles kdjfkdjgh

[linashirou]

👑 ; what book genre would best describe your f/o?

🍉 ; if you and your f/o could go to another world or universe, where would you want to go? (Other than DD of course)

Just some silly questions!

👑: This is kinda obvious, but sci-fi, and educative literature can be the best way to describe Hal.

🍉: This question is so interesting that I took the time to think about it in a deeper way.

So here goes. I would love to see Hal and Lina in the Sailor Moon universe, especially in the '90s anime.

My idea is like the cliché story: Hal is an older kind of "Umino" (Maybe Usagi asking herself if Hal is cute under his glasses, and at the end changing his round glases for a rectangular ones like in MGS4) who is so shy that he can't tell Lina that he loves her. And Lina is waiting for him to express his feelings.

For some reason, Hal will end up turning into some kind of beetle demon, and Lina will beg Sailor Moon to help Hal and return him to his human form.

Then I can see them playing games in the Crow Center and maybe Hal asking Lina to marry him.

I think it really suits them.

#original character #oc x canon #otacon #halina #lina shirou #thanks for the ask! #thanks thanks 🥺! #thank a lot 😊

[jayciethings]

I can tell Shadow and Bone season 2 has dropped cos a lot of my old anti M*lina posts and Nikolina love posts are getting reblogged 😅 Meanwhile, having finished the Grisha trilogy and partway through the Six of Crows dulogy, I'm not sure I even want to watch S2.

Firstly, cos I'm either going to be disappointed in the depiction of Nikolai, and therefore frustrated, or I will love the depiction of Nikolai and be even more frustrated cos I know what happens with him and Alina.

Secondly, because I don't love how they're interweaving Six of Crows into it. Those characters deserve their own series. They're so complex.

Thirdly, because I loathe what Bardugo does to Alina in the end. Pbbblllttttt

#shadow and bone #shadow and bone s2 #nikolina #nikolai lantsov #ruin and rising spoilers #anti malina #six of crows #six of crows duology #leigh bardugo #the grisha trilogy #the Grisha trilogy spoilers #shadow and bone spoilers #possibly #adding that last one to be safe

[milo-my-beloved]

the fact that not only did Wylan go from admiring the butterflies to killing them in less than five minutes but also Inej just... listened? this man she barely knows pushes a butterfly through a tiny hole in the wall and she just thinks 'bet' and eats it

#shadow and bone #that whole sequence was amazing #the hallucinations were great but even that bit after was hilarious #sab spoilers #spoilers #lina lore #six of crows #grishaverse #inej ghafa #wylan hendriks #wylan van eck

[fanfic-corner]

Christmas Fics

Merry Christmas everyone!! I hope you're all having a lovely day and a fantastic new year. Here are all the festive fics I've written in case you want some holiday reading material!

Supernatural

Wrapped in Red (7k) — Dean and Cas have to pretend to be a couple for a case at a holiday party, and he wants to experience all of the human's Christmas traditions. Including mistletoe.

Darling, So It Goes (4k) — Jody and Donna beg Dean to dress as Santa for their Christmas party. He doesn't expect to dump a litre of chocolate milk on a homophobe or meet the love of his life, but that's how the holidays go.

Marvel

the ripples they cause (111k) — post no way home, Peter fights his way to a better life... with the help of every superhero in the city (and a bit of necromancy). Chapter seven is Christmas themed!

not at home for christmas (1k) — Phil and Clint end up in a safehouse for Christmas, but they make it work.

numb fingers but warmer hearts (6k) — Kate falls into an icy pond on Christmas eve... but the Bartons won't give up on their plans for the best Christmas ever.

Grishaverse

Fairytale of Ketterdam (2k) — Kaz fights his way out of a kidnapping to stop Geels from blowing up The Wraith on the eve of Feast of Sankt Nikolai.

we'll be okay (set sail for home) (2k) — When a heist goes wrong, Kaz and Inej have to fight their way home for the holidays.

Doctor Who

hot chocolate, candy canes, and a kiss in the snow (1k) — Yaz can give up the universe, but not the Doctor.

Yaz's Guide to Christmas Cookies and Alien Invasions (9k) — when her Christmas shift in the cafe gets strange, Yaz is glad to help a blonde stranger perform a holiday miracle.

#happy holidays! #lina lore #christmas #ao3 #my writing #destiel #supernatural #grishaverse #six of crows #kanej #wesper #peter parker #spider-man #phil coulson #clint barton #kate bishop #hawkeye #doctor who #thasmin

[sb69-bracket]

The Show by Rock Character Bracket is Here!

Are you tired of seeing Show by Rock characters show up in other brackets, just to lose because they got put up against a far more popular series? Then here's a character bracket that shouldn't have that problem!

It includes a total of 128 characters, from both Fes a Live and the old game. (FaL tie-in bands were, unfortunately, not included since it would make a number that would lead to a more complicated bracket. But, if you guys want, we could later make a mini-bracket with just them!)

Here's the Round 1 Bracket! (Text version under the read more at the end of the post)

For the sake of trying to keep at least the initial matches as fair as possible, FaL characters and old game characters were split up (Kintaurus and Cheety included in order to get the right number of matches per side, and also because they were two of the few characters in 'Special' FaL bands to get bromides). FaL characters were paired up based on number of FaL URs for each character, while old game characters were organised in alphabetical order.

Please no character hate. Cheer for your fave in a civilized manner. This includes NOT doing stuff like "Only [insert category of horrible people] would/wouldn't vote for X".

First round of polls begins sometime next week, and will be lasting a whole week.

Text version of the match-ups:

Top Left (FaL part 1, matches 1 - 16)

Cyan VS Crow

Yasu VS Rosia

Ailane VS Howan

Hacchin VS Darudayu

Rikao VS Ruhuyu

Shuzo VS Rom

Himeko VS Delmin

Lalarin VS Titan

Aion VS Joe

Sojun VS Uiui

Chuchu VS Retoree

Moa VS Yaiba

Orion VS Marimari

919 VS Sumomone

Tsukino VS A

Un VS Riku

Top Right (FaL part 2, matches 17 - 32)

Selen VS Holmy

Shibarin VS Arashi

Lepannyo VS Gyaraco

13 VS 659

661 VS 151

Kai VS Peipain

Hundrekko VS Argon

Jacklyn VS Uraragi

Kusuka VS Jalop

Kamui VS Oboro

Gilili VS Shimakk

Gashigashi VS Tsugihagi

Monmon VS Dyuradyura

Hakkun VS Kittsun

Pokoe VS Rin

Cheety VS Kintaurus

Bottom Left (old game part 1, matches 33 - 48)

Acidmond VS Amurin

Anifurun VS Anna Spire

Asami Rosy VS Bai Blue

Bai Green VS Bai Pink

Bai Red VS Bai Yellow

Candy Lapin VS Choquirrel

Corriente VS Cream Teddy

Daishizen VS Demon Bat

Demon Mangu VS Demon Mummy

Demon Smog VS Deyan

DJyksbeat VS Fennely

Fujiraid VS Ge Furocchi

Gengen VS Harike

Heikou VS Hideniro

Itodine VS Ivary

Kabutomoaki VS Kanato

Bottom Right (old game part 2, matches 49 - 64)

Kanon Beryl VS Kazzed

Kikka VS Kuwagatatsuya

Lina VS Maotti

Marie Spira VS Maro

Mitomiton VS Mix

Mopei VS Ochi

Pig Macaron VS Rix

Ryuryu VS Sadafurun

Shabobon VS Shakki

Shimiswans VS Taipeco

Takeppa VS Takuburning

Tanefurun VS Tasmanian Demon

Tentan VS Tentoumutsumi

Turtle BIG VS Uchuura

Wendy VS Yaginupan

Yoshiten VS Zebrina

#Show by Rock #SB69 #Show by Rock!!

[artificialgrinder]

THE DARK SEEPING IN (BRATZ FASHION PIXIEZ REIMAGINING) CH. 5

After one biology class, Cloe and Yasmin start to notice how off Cymbeline has been. And Breeana has another vision.

AN:  Ah yes, as we can see, it's starting to get into the part of the story we see in the movie

"Alright, class. These are just a few of the elements that make our world so enchanting."

Mr Del Rio's voice was enough to put Cymbeline to sleep. The science teacher wasn't paid enough to be here, clearly. He hated this job. He was probably thinking about something else – a sandwich, the NFL, how his wife wouldn't give in to his back massage the night before.

But Cymbeline didn't want to be here either. 

She'd seen things now, learned so much over the last few weeks, things that made her realise that all this educational bullshit...it didn't matter. There was a great big world out there, ready to be explored.

But here she was – listening to this old crow ramble on in his borderline suicidal tone.

"...which brings us to something truly fascinating," Mr Del Rio whipped the elements poster stuck to the board. "Zinc; atomic number 30 on the periodic table of elements. Zinc has six times…."

Cymbeline's forehead could have made painful contact with the table if it weren't for Mr Del Rio slapping the poster again. Why did he have to be so violent?

Glimpsing over her shoulder to see if Yasmin was still reading that stupid fairytale book, Cloe noticed the sleeping Devlin sister. For fuck's sake.

"That bird tryna beef with me," Dylan, also sitting at the table, chuckled, stealing Cloe's attention away from Cymbeline.

"What?" Cloe asked.

"The bird," Dylan nodded towards the window where a crow was staring right into his soul.

"Dylan, it's a fucking bird. Pay attention," Cloe whispered, leaning forward in her seat.

Dylan sulked, his eyes turning to Mr Del Rio.

"Alright, class. Start your experiments." Mr Del Rio then retired behind his desk, probably going to look for a bottle of liquor in his drawers.

"Cymbeline," Cloe barked.

The redhead finally jolted, her eyes bloodshot from how close she came to slumbering off.

"Turn your brain on. It's time for the experiment." Cloe said as if Cymbeline didn't know that was the point of this lesson.

"Right, yeah," Cymbeline straightened up in her seat.

"Dylan, stop looking at the crow," Cloe scolded the boy.

Indeed, he was looking at the animal again, flipping it off.

"Yasmin," Cloe squinted, "why are you reading fairytale books? How old are we?"

Yasmin flushed, hiding her book behind the chemistry textbook, "They're not exactly fairytales. They're darker…slightly more accurate and believable."

"But they're still fairytales." Cloe teased. "What's this one about? Mermaids?" She tried to peek at the pages.

"Shut up," Yasmin shimmied away, "You wouldn't get it."

"Yasmin?"

Hearing Mr Del Rio's voice, Cloe stopped teasing and put her head in her book.

Yasmin's stomach twisted, trying to hide the book as the teacher crept up behind her.

"That doesn't look like a chemistry book to me." Mr Del Rio put all his energy and dedication into this statement.

Yasmin was about to get her ass handed to her.

But as knocking sounded from the other side of the classroom door, the girl knew some higher power was looking out for her.

The door opened, and in walked Principal Byrne with a young girl following behind.

"Good afternoon, Mr Del Rio," Byrne nodded before looking to the students, "afternoon, class."

A few murmured their hellos, Dylan saying quietly, "Sup, bitch."

Cloe nudged him into silence.

"I just came to introduce you to our new transfer student," this Principal beckoned the new girl forward. "This is Lina. Lina…uhhh…”

"Crawford," the girl answered for him.

Cloe eyed the girl from her seat, taking in those bright green eyes against heavy makeup. Her hair was sleek and black, reaching to her navel, with only a few red streaks running through. She was pulling the whole look off – all that dark eye makeup and mahogany red lipstick standing out against her alabaster skin. Then there was the outfit. Cloe had seen her fair share of fashionable bitches in this school who came so close to violating the dress code. But this girl? She was definitely breaking some rules. Yes, she had her black denim jeans, which was fine. But the rips in the knees? The fishnets underneath? The cropped t-shirt with studded shoulder pads? How was this allowed?

"She's one of those wiccan bitches from TikTok. I know it." Cloe's eyes travelled Lina up and down.

"Bitch, don't make assumptions." Now that she was distracted, Yasmin quickly hid her book.

"I didn't say it was a bad thing," Cloe then raised a brow, "besides, I think you and her would get along pretty well, you and your fairytales."

"Shut up, Cloe. And Dyl'? Close your mouth; you're drooling," Yasmin flicked the boy on the ear.

Having been staring at Lina shamelessly, Dylan hoped she'd answer his telepathic calls to look back at him. But luck wasn't on his side this day. "I don't know, girl. There's something about alternative-looking chicks, you know?"

“Simp,” Yasmin jested.

"I don't know. Maybe she's not into Forever 21 rejects like you," Cloe teased.

As for Cymbeline, who had remained silent since Lina's arrival, she also stared shamelessly, a hot flush of pink staining her cheeks.

She bit her lip, and that's when Lina finally turned her attention away from Mr Del Rio and the Principal…turning her fullest attention right back at Cymbeline. A smile grew on the goth girl's lips.

And Cymbeline reciprocated, maintaining eye contact.

"Ooh, something LGBT is happening," Yasmin whispered, squeezing Cymbeline's shoulders.

Finally, Cymbeline looked away, pretending to be interested in the experiment. Yet, the red blush remained.

"Nah, Cymbeline. You gotta let me talk to her first, a'ight?" Dylan leaned across the table, speaking quietly.

"Ugh, she's not a prize to be won, Dylan," Cymbeline rolled her eyes, briefly glimpsing in Lina's direction as she was led to the desk beside them.

"Well, no offence, Cymb', but sometimes with you, that's what it feels like. A competition," Dylan countered.

"Don't be a sore loser, sweetie." Cymbeline jested.

"Okay, shut up already. Everybody do their equations?" Cloe asked.

"Yep," Dylan said.

"Right here," Yasmin showed her book, proving the fairytale book was long gone.

"Sorry. Kind of forgot," Cymbeline feigned shame.

"Cymbeline," Cloe started. Everyone at the table collectively sighed. This was about to become one of the blonde's legendary tantrums. "Are you crazy? I've gotta get an A on this class!"

"Cloe, relax. It's just one assignment. God," Cymbeline leaned back in her chair, playing with her red locks as she thought of something more interesting. "You need to smoke something."

Cloe was seething, her anxiety not helping the matter. But before losing her shit, she breathed out deeply, her shoulders relaxing. She wouldn't cause a scene…Not yet, at least.

Dylan stole quick glances at Lina, the new girl only noticing the third time.

"So…" Dylan said quietly, deciding he wouldn't let Cymbeline get to Lina before he could, "Do you…listen to Korn…or something like that?"

Lina held his gaze for only two seconds before quickly averting her eyes. Her face was unreadable, yet simultaneously screamed, "Never speak to me again."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

As soon as the bell rang, Breeana practically ran to her locker. She rarely used it, only to store some cheap perfume and tampons for when Mother Nature decided to show up. But only during English class, whilst mindlessly staring at her charm bracelet, did she realise her locker was the only place she had yet to search for the missing charm.

Swinging it open, she found more in there than she remembered – a few textbooks from the year before, forgotten candy that was probably past its expiry date and a few different coloured pens. 

But as she rummaged around, there was no charm to be found.

"Fuck," she sighed, setting her tote bag on the ground. The library probably appreciated these old books more than her locker.

As she pulled each one out, she stacked them in her arms until one slipped from her grasp, falling to the ground.

Breeana quickly bent down to retrieve the fallen text, only noticing the black boots on the other side of her locker door and the maroon-taloned hand also reaching for the book. She blushed, quickly standing again as the other person picked the book up.

She began to close the door to get a look at the helpful student, "Ugh, thank you. I appre - -"

And Breeana froze. 

The green-eyed girl…the one from Nevra's party…

The one she saw with Cymbeline.

Here she was, still looking down at Breeana like she had at the party – emotionless, yet just the slightest hint of hostility.

The mystery girl held the book out to which Breeana took it. But the youngest Devlin couldn't tear her gaze away from this girl's.

When the book was handed over, the corner of the stranger's mouth curved up into a smirk. She winked. And walked away.

Breeana let her eyes follow the girl as she walked down the hall, unlike the other students around her, in no hurry to get to her next class. The raven-haired girl stopped at the water machine, scooping up her hair in a fist as she dipped her head down to sip the cold water.

"What in the world?" Breeana squinted her eyes. What was with this passive aggression? Had she done something to this girl in the past, something that conjured up an ongoing grudge? Then again, this was the first time she had ever seen the raven-haired teen in school. 

Coming to no conclusion as to what was going on with the girl, Breeana gave up. She closed her locker, turning to make it on time for her next class.

But in her hurry, she ran face-first into someone's chest.

"Damn it! I'm so sorry!" Breeana flinched away, having dropped her books again. Ducking down, she gathered them up. Some part of her brain told her she'd look up and see the gothy girl standing before her again, making her giggle.

The person also bent down, helping retrieve the books. "No worries, shawty."

Hearing the voice, Breeana's head whipped up.

Dylan was standing now; therefore, so did she.

"How's it going, Bree'?" Dylan handed the books back. "You ain't texting me. You still got my number?"

Fuck . "Ugh, y-yeah. I've just been, you know, busy, and…stuff," Breeana tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Nah, I feel, girl. School is for the suffering, right?"

"Exactly," Breeana giggled, feeling her cheeks flare up. This was when she should've said her thank you's and moved on. But her feet remained planted. "So…Dylan, I was just wondering if…" she looked away from his eyes for a moment, missing as he caught sight of something down the hallway, "Um…if you're going to - -"

"Hang on a minute," Dylan held his hand up, silencing the girl, "I'll be back in a sec. Wait up on me, okay?"

"Yeah, sure," Breeana replied dejectedly, not that Dylan heard. He was already walking away from her, all the way down to the water machine, heading straight for the new girl.

Her stomach turned, watching her crush talk to the black-haired beauty, only to be shooed away.

And Dylan didn't come back to her. 

Of course…he was into someone that wasn't Breeana.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Look at that. Pathetic," Cymbeline laughed, walking down the corridor with Yasmin and Cloe. The sight of Dylan being waved off by Lina provided just the right amount of serotonin she needed.

"Okay, but can we talk about that experiment?" Cloe's brows were furrowed, "We're lucky we made it through to the end."

"Exactly. Nothing to worry about, bitch," Cymbeline stopped at her locker, the scent of Versace perfume wafting out when she opened the door.

"I meant, we're lucky the rest of us knew what to do!"

Yasmin touched Cloe's shoulder, "Girl, chill out."

"You done, Cloe?" Cymbeline fired back, quickly swapping her books over and closing her locker. "Later, bitches."

Before she could get too far, however, Yasmin caught up. "Cymbeline, wait. Look, I know chemistry isn't your favourite subject. And, you know what? Me too. I fucking hate it. I mean, fuck, I bring books to read just to keep it interesting. But I stay with it. And if you don't, you're gonna fail."

Cloe could have fallen to the ground and wept. Thank God for Yasmin.

"Look. I got it from her," Cymbeline's eyes flickered to Cloe and back again, "And now I'm getting it from you. I don't need to hear this lecture again. So get off my back, okay?" She smiled fakely.

Yasmin was silent for a moment. Of all the years she'd known this girl, she'd never heard her talk like this. "Okay, fuck it. What's going on?"

"What do you mean?" Cymbeline squinted her eyes. 

"Well, I guess, like… You're kind of," and Yasmin sighed, best not to beat around the bush, "Fuck it, you're different. I've noticed it for a while now, the last few weeks, actually. You're just…changed."

Cymbeline laughed through a scoff, "With all due respect, Yasmin, I am almost a legal adult. You think I give a shit about all of this?" She gestured to the school around her. "Shit, that doesn't matter? Do yourself a favour and open your eyes, bitch. Maybe then you won't still be stuck in the mind of a fifteen-year-old." Turning her gaze to Cloe, it was clear that the last part was aimed more at her.

Having said her part, Cymbeline turned again. "Sorry, gotta fly," and she struts down the corridor like a royal queen, too regal to even look at her subjects.

Yasmin and Cloe stood dumbfounded, watching their friend walk down the hallway…

All the way down to meet Lina at the water machine.

Cymbeline embraced the new girl, an embrace too intimate to be between two people who just met each other.

"Yo, does Cymbeline know her?" Dylan rejoined the girls, watching the scene in disappointment.

"I don't know. Maybe?" Cole shrugged, watching Lina wrap an arm around Cymbeline's shoulder, the black-haired girl giggling at something the redhead said. "But…how? She's new."

"I don't know," Yasmin shook her head, finally forcing her gaze away from the situation. "But I'm not wrong, though, right? Something's been going on with her."

Before Cloe could even agree, Dylan just had to speak again, "Y'all, I don't know. She probably just tryna score the chick for the Magnolia Ball."

And the three began to move on in the hallway, saying no more of the matter.

Breeana remained in her place. However, one moment glancing at Dylan, feeling her disappointment worsen, and then looking at Cymbeline and the new girl, adding to all her fears and worries.

The death glares from the new girl…the crushing feeling of being reduced to the smallest being…Cymbeline avoiding Breeana at all costs…Cymbeline being so cruel…

This can't be a coincidence.

As Breeana finally made her way through the hallways, she just couldn't bring herself to go to her next class. She wasn't the type to skip one, but her stomach was in knots at that moment.

This new bitch…She had to be responsible. The first time Breeana met her was at Nevra's party. And so did Cymbeline. But thinking back to that night, Breeana couldn't pinpoint any strange or bizarre behaviour from her big sister.

Then again, maybe that was because Cymbeline was absolutely smashed.

And the day after, yeah, she was a bit on the snappier side. But…hangovers… Yeah. She was just hungover.

But the day after…it was as if a switch had flipped.

Sighing deeply, Breeana's feet stopped beside a glass cabinet filled with pictures and newspaper articles detailing all the school's most notable events. And there in the middle was a picture of Cymbeline, sitting at a beautifully crafted booth, selling a whole bunch of books she collected from the town's only thrift shop. The small store was closing, therefore, would see so many precious items thrown in the trash. Cymbeline would talk about how she wished she could have saved everything. But books were her biggest passion, therefore rescued as many as possible, selling them in the school to raise money for charity.

She inspired many, always so humble when people praised her name. 

But was the Cymbeline in the picture the same Cymbeline Breeana saw today?

Breeana raised her hand, touching her fingertips to the glass, sweeping over her sister's face. And she whispered, "I miss you."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When Melvino called his girls for dinner, Breeana wasn't at all surprised when Cymbeline took her plate and retreated to her room without a word. She also wasn't surprised that her father didn't stop her.

But it still hurt, seeing the man who raised his two daughters alone already so defeated.

As bad as it was at school, having to deal with Cymbeline ignoring her, it was worse at home. Because Breeana would have to see her Dad like this.

Only a few nights before, whilst grabbing a glass of water in the night, she found Melvino sitting on the couch, sobbing quietly. In his hand was a sheet of paper. At first, Breeana had no idea what was on it. But sneaking closer, she recognised it instantly.

A letter twelve-year-old Cymbeline wrote for her father.

The last line always stayed with Breeana.

My Dad is my superhero.

And Breeana rushed back to her room, a choked sob escaping as the door shut.

Now, sitting in front of him at the dinner table, she hated that she could see the red rimming his eyes.

"So, um…" Breeana tucked a pink strand of hair behind her ear before biting into a meatball, "how're things on the other side, Daddy?"

Melvino could barely lift his gaze to her, "Fine."

"Okay."

More silence…

"Well, I watched that Jeffrey Dahmer series," Breeana tried again, "you were right. It's interesting. Messed up, though."

Finally, Melvino met her gaze, a small smile playing on his lips. "Your Dad's always right."

Breeana returned the smile before playing with her spaghetti again. "And…then I found this documentary about…um, premonitions. It's quite interesting, actually. I mean, do you think we can do that too?" She lifted her head up slightly, searching for any hint of suspicion on her father's face.

"Premonitions?" Melvino sipped from his glass of ice-cold water.

"Yeah. Like, if humans have that sort of power, then maybe… we  do too." Breeana tucked her hair behind her ear, twirling her fork and gathering spaghetti.

Melvino stared at his daughter, almost as if he could read her mind. He knew there was something more than just curiosity to these questions, and yet he didn't ask questions. "Like humans, only some do. I've had my fair share of premonitions, but they stopped when I turned twelve." He turned his attention back to his meal before sparing her one more glance, "Why?"

Breeana's demeanour shifted as if she really didn't care about the subject. "Oh, just…was wondering, is all." And she went back to playing with her dinner.

She could have left it at that, choosing to be satisfied with her father's answer. But she was still so curious but also didn't want to raise his suspicions. So later that night, after finishing her nighttime skincare routine, she stared at her reflection.

She focused all her energy on nothing but herself, her head cycling over the images presented to her in her first vision. It made her head hurt and probably wouldn't amount to anything. 

But the teenager was still so intrigued by the things she could possibly see – something that would give her answers.

After staring for a whole minute, her eyes grew tired, and it was clear nothing would happen.

"Fuck this," she whispered under her breath.

Clasping her hands over the edge of the sink, she turned her gaze to her bracelet. Still one charm short. Every time she was reminded, she told herself that it was gone and there was nothing she could do about it. She should just accept it and move on. It was just a piece of metal…

And yet her stomach still churned, reminding her of a time so long ago.

Staring at it now, Breeana blinked…

And the images surfaced.

Cymbeline standing in a crowd bathed in neon pink lights. Cymbeline inhaled a white powdery substance into her nostril. Cymbeline dancing in the crowd. Cymbeline blinking with black pools for eyes. Cymbeline kissing an unidentifiable boy. Cymbeline flying. Cymbeline kissing the new girl.

"Stop!" Breeana jolted. With a single blink, she was brought back to the present.

Her chest heaved, eyes wide as the image of her sister making out with that strange girl burned in her brain.

That girl…she had to be responsible for Cymbeline's new attitude.

Breeana was sure of it now.

#bratz fashion pixiez #bratz #bratz fanfic #bratz fanfiction #bratz breeana #bratz cymbeline #bratz lina

[burningblake]

Finished S&B

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

WHERE TO START?!

I have so many questions!!

I FREAKING LOVED IT! LIKE EVERY PART OF IT! 😭😭😭

Like yes, even the ma/lina moments I didn't mind that much, because they were all somehow shadowed by the darkling being a dramatic bitch lmao. Like them dismantling the fold? It was beautiful and I cried a lot. But also, the fact that aleks wanted to stop her and suddenly went like "wait gotta admire my wife" 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 Peak Cinema! More villains like this please!!

And that final speech of his 😭 "let me carry the hatred of this world" God I love him so much!!!

I know I know that there was not a single hint of requited romamce between darklina, which I honestly get, I mean, aleks did do some very bad things 👀 but still, the poetry of their mere existence? The fact that he is the darkness to her light and nothing will change that? The way her light burst out whenever he touched her? Epic.

Aside from that, I freaking loved how they tied all the separate plots together and even set up the ground for a soc/kos s3 or spin-off. (when kaz started talking about jurda parem I lost it asfagagh!! I haven't read the Nikolai duology but asdfg I can't wait to see zoyalai's story!) The crows were awesome! I loved that we got to see more of Jesper the Durast, Wylan must be protected at all costs and Nina Zenik owns my heart. AND KANEJ AAAAAAAAAAA!!!! I'd already gotten spoiled from gifs, but still, I loved their moments so freaking much!!! Inej being the one to pull him out of the hallucination :')

Ok i thought of something I didn't like and that's the fact that Genya and David deserved better 😭😭😭 I cried so hard. Like... Why? Why can't she have happiness? 😢

And finally, OH GOD!!!! THAT LAST SCENE?!?!? I saw the gifs but I thought it was an imaginary future! FIRST OF ALL!!!! DID SHE FUCKING SUMMON DARKNESS?!?!? I'M ECSTATIC! AND SECOND! without meaning to quote jesper, HOW? WHY? WHERE? WHEN? ADSFSGAGHA

#now I'll get to reblogging all the gifs I let sit in my tag until I watched this gem #shadow and bone #let there be a s3 #omg #Netflix for once don't disappoint me #darklina #kanej #zoyalai

[where-theres-smoak-2]

Netflix promotes Darklina so much because it IS the more popular ship, and people love Ben above all. The crows are great and very much loved but I think if you look at just the numbers, it speaks for itself in regards to Ben. Netflix doesn’t wanna fully lean into Darklina because they’re trying to be morally correct and not have bad blood with the aggressive do-gooders who can’t seem to separate fiction from reality. They’re gonna be screaming about how Netflix condones this and that and bla bla bla (oh yeah and HBO condones incest 🙄 seriously you guys, calm down) And as we saw, this is also reflected in the writing because they really tried to sell M*lina in S2 and yet, people still didn’t buy into it. Doesn’t help that Archie has been MIA for a lot of the promo. And it really doesn’t help that Ben and Jessie are just so magnetic and dynamic together on AND off screen. I mean jeez their interviews and photos alone—they’re all over each other all the time and they get caught up in their little bubble even when they’re around other people.

So I just wish Netflix and the writers would really take advantage of that and fully lean in towards the Darklina ship. Le sigh. But that’s a true pipe dream right there.

You're right, about all of it. I too would love for Netflix to just take that leap of faith and fully commit to darklina and take advantage of that popularity. Besides it could be quite nice if M*lina gets their book endgame and we darklina's get the show endgame, see everyone wins that way. 😁

#darklina #s&b season 2 spoilers #answered

[serpenteve]

LMAO court of porn and roses, i haven't read sjm but this sent me xD

i think the anon has a point tho! CW has done well with YA shows before. tvd, the 100, PLL, idk so so many ya shows that also typically followed the love triangles and various interesting cast of side characters. S and B hasn't even come close. (The 100 is a bit different maybe in the sense that it also got a fair share of adult viewers ig and it was generally less trashed on at least in the earlier seasons.)

I get that sab is a fantasy setting so might have more lore etc, but it's not a very COMPLICATED world to understand. in fact a lot of it is like this group has fire powers, this group has healing powers etc. (And they've got colour coded uniforms too!), the royal family and many citizens have no powers so they're the muggle equivalent, and the muggles are largely more dominating in this world. that's really the biggest chunk of what needs to be understood at a superficial level for the first book/season to make sense.

Additional info like the larger world can come in eventually, but things like tvd also would randomly come up with lore and audiences would just roll with it. Like ohkay now in s2 we have werewolves and also the blood of this x thing can cure vampirism and there is also some bloodline connection and hunter theory and whatnot??

Maybe it's the dumping of all the episodes in one go, but maybe it's also that sab just didn't capture non book folks as much that they'd want to make theories etc as to what's gonna happen. It just didn't create the fandom that it was supposed to. Book fans know the first one was the best one lol, and then it's the crows books that are more fun because of the heist. And non book fans didn't care all that much. And maybe this is my darklina bias but for most ya stuff you need a good romance subplot and sorry but ma*linas meadow scenes were a snoozefest for me. I couldn't care less and didn't want to sit through 10 meadow scenes. (The darklina scenes were good but those are probably done now)

You could generate enough debate or hype around character decisions and actions but the gregverse throws away all nuance in favour of making the darkling evil and where's the fun in that? So maybe have the main character face difficult choices? But it's basically alina has to do x y z to stop the evil darkling but now that she has done x y z she's gonna get punished? Was she given a choice between choosing more power vs taking more difficult paths to defeat the darkling? No she wasn't. So is there a fun love triangle where we can have folks pick a team? Nope, she has multiple love interests but one is an evil guy, the other is her childhood crush who in the show is perfect. The result is a decent ish show but not strong enough to keep pulling viewers back in.

I'm curious to see how the show fares after Season 2 because I think it will give us an idea of how many people are still invested. Are non-book fans going to tune in to another season? Will they go back and binge the first season to refresh? How will show darklina shippers deal with the darklina arc being derailed and demonized? Most of them already seem disappointed with the direction of the source material and have shied away from picking up the books as a result. Will the Mal and Alina dynamic be interesting enough to keep people rooting for them? And more deliciously, will there be a similar audience backlash if Alina loses her powers? 😈

I just don't think the source material for the original trilogy is really strong enough for non-book fans to actually enjoy. Even regular old book fans are salty about a myriad of things, let alone have much hope for how they could be adapted for the screen.

As for the love triangle, I think general audiences are getting annoyed with the overuse of the trope. Even Leigh clearly understood she played with fire by adding that Alina-Darkling-Mal-Nikolai love quadrangle because it left so much of the fandom against her canon ship that she conveniently had all the main characters of the Six of Crows franchise in safe one-to-one ships to avoid potential backlash.

#viv answers #i wish i was more into soc since its clearly better written but idk #i just have to accept that the original trilogy holds more interest to me because of all the wasted potential