One thing I noticed is how inconsistent Max's writing is. Not just in season 4.

She has a lot of anger, not to mention she repeats some of Neil's tactics, but on screen she didn't see any of the shit that went down in the Hargrove house. She either didn't know about what was going on, or she did, because her behavior is imo only explained if she has witnessed Neil at his worst. But there is no on screen evidence of this. It's only mentioned in Max's letter that Neil flipped and skipped out after Billy died.

She acknowledges that Billy died protecting her and her friends... and then the Duffers shit on that with Volume 2.

Plus when Billy grabs her arm, she does look a little shocked, like he's never done that before?

So much is left for "interpretation", and what isn't shown on screen could actually explain so much.

Agreed. Every character has their inconsistencies, but I think because Max’s arc involves Billy so much, her character suffers the most. At the very least, she has to have heard Neil abusing Billy through the walls. And for her to so stalwartly ignore the lock on his door, she has to be either completely oblivious or cruel, neither of which is consistent with her characterization.

And perhaps she just doesn’t understand that a lot of what Billy goes through is in fact abuse. This was the ‘80s, child abuse wasn’t taken anywhere near as seriously back then as it is now. Given that she just sees Billy’s behavior as “being angry all the time” and that she refers to what was definitely Neil abusing Susan as just “bad fights,” there’s room for a little ignorance.

You’d think the Duffers could at least be bothered to keep her character consistent for a single season, but no. And I know, “complicated feelings about Billy and all that” but I really don’t care. It’s clear that by s3 he’s just her annoying gross older brother who she actually cares about, not the raging monster that s4 makes him. For her to go from “I wish we could try again” to “I’m not sure if he deserved to be saved” in a season and to never address that she no longer wants him gone… it’s atrocious writing.

And I’m sure other Billy fans with siblings can attest to this, Billy’s behavior toward Max is mild. Too mild to warrant “i don’t wanna be like my brother,” in my opinion. Siblings fight a lot, even in a stable family dynamic, it’s just what happens when you’re stuck around someone basically 24/7. And maybe I’m expecting too much from a middle school girl, but I wish she was aware enough to wonder if he was being a dick for a reason? A relationship ending, having to leave his mom behind, just moving in general? It never crosses her mind that he’s dealing with something. Yes, this show could definitely do with a little less leaving things up for interpretation sometimes.

welcome aboard, clementine martinez, student #2. we are excited to set sail with you !  has anyone told you that you look like alexa demie? according to our records, you hail from florida, usa, prefer she / her pronouns, are a cis woman, and are here to study creative writing. we also see you received a spot on the ss university because of your online lottery win — we won’t tell anyone. during your first few weeks here, other students said you were + charming, + free-spirited, but also - restive. it sounds like you spend most of your time at the billiards room. upon checking your luggage, we noticed you packed a casino chip carried around for luck from home. hopefully your roommates don’t steal it!

hi friends! i’m very excited to be here. i’m jay (est, she/her) n i used to play astrid nyland a few months ago if anyone remembers bt i had to leave for personal reasons. i’m so glad to be back now that i hve life sorted and some free time for summer break <3 read on for some details abt this new muse of mine, clementine. 

01. biography !

so ! clementine was born in florida. & yes, her real name is clementine. her mom thot it was the cutest name idea ever. clementine mostly goes by clem. she comes from the town [redacted] in florida bcoz i am too lazy to look up a specific town <3 but alas ! it was swampy and humid and she lived in a trailer park. 

her parents got knocked up at nineteen. clem was born nine months after a particularly wild 1999 fourth of july. her birthday is march 26th and she’s an aries. 

(TW: addiction, child injury) clem’s dad was a gambling addict and petty criminal—he wld steal credit cards n whatnot. he wld gamble away diaper money n it would cause constant fighting until her dad finally left. her mom took this very hard n began drinking a bit too often, leaving clem to to make cereal for dinner n fend for herself. once clem tried to make hot dogs on the stove and spilled boiling water on herself. got a p bad burn on her arm/shoulder and still has a big scar.

the soundtrack of her childhood was cicadas buzzing and stray dogs barking. the sizzle and pop of natty light cans. turning up her ipod to max volume to drown out the sounds of her mother fighting with her new boyfriend.

throughout her upbringing, clem’s dad was always in and out of the picture. he’d blow into town when he hit it big. he’d take her on these little “adventures” like staying in a motel 6 n renting movies at block buster n ordering good pizza nt the dominos shit she ate with her mom lol. ofc he was charging it all to someone’s stolen credit card. he’d always promise to, like, take clem away. n clem was a daddy’s girl so she believed him. the last time it happened was her h.s. graduation. her mom didn’t show ( "overslept” after a bender ) but her dad did and surprised her n said everything wld be different. bt then he bailed on their plans for the next day n when she called his cell, the number was disconnected. tht was the defining “i’m done” moment. clem promised to never be disappointed by her father again.

(TW: racism) her mother has mexican ancestry and clem’s always been called her twin. but clem was raised in a predominately white area and honestly ?? it was really hard without her even realizing it. she’s still unpacking a lot of things today abt her youth that jst weren’t okay bt she thought were normal. like microaggressions, stereotypes, being fetishized by boys in high school. gross shit.

as a kid, clem was rumored to be really poor bc she wore tattered clothes n got free lunch at school. once she invited a friend to her house & the next day they told everyone it’s in a trailer park. that reputation—the “trailer park girl”—was really hard to shake. and clem got almost desperate to shake it. she was endlessly trying to set her old self on fire and emerge from the ashes like a phoenix.

eventually clem became more “popular”. in school she was, like, a straight b student. very average although super creative and quick-thinking. she always had street smarts. problem solving skills. independence. more of, like, practical intelligence as opposed to book smarts because academia bores her tbh. she was like why am i reading these overrated boring books by dead white men or learning abt polynomials when i know nothing abt how to pay a mortage or do taxes. like...she saw the american education system as bullshit and put in modest effort because she didn’t believe it deserved her sweat and tears. 

however, she entered the online lottery for the seas program on a whim and got in. so she’s studying creative writing now.

02. personality !

first thing you shld know abt clem is that she’s a compulsive liar essentially—she tells various stories to make her life seem better than what it was. to one person, she’s an heiress to a real estate company and grew up wealthy. to the next she was raised by nomadic hippies. some of her lies are small fibs while others are grandiose tales. she rarely talks about her actual upbringing. she hates talking abt her family or the v real trauma of growing up in a household where both parents struggled w/ addiction; the uncertainty, the broken promises, the fact that she had to grow up so soon and deal w/ so much. it wasn’t fair, and if she thinks about it too much, she feels this anger. anger at the universe. anger at her circumstances. she doesn’t know where to put this anger. she doesn’t know how to shrink it. so she avoids it.

despite her rough upbringing, though, clem is actually really sweet and kind. she’s adventurous, fun-loving, free-spirited, and bold. 

bt ! she can also be closed-off, competitive and restive. 

she’s seemingly tight with everyone? like she’s jst that girl who can get along with anyone tbh. 

in her spare time you can catch her tanning by the pool, hanging at the bar, playing pool ( which she learned from her dad ), and socializing. she’ll never say no to hanging out with people. 

she learned a lot from her little “adventures” with her dad, who was very good at conning others and often involved her in his dumb little scams. clem is suuuper good at pulling the ‘im baby 🥺’ card to get what she wants.

she can be a little selfish, because she grew up looking out for herself. 

stubborn and dogmatic as hell !!!

she doesn’t do too many relationships but when she does fall, i imagine she falls hard and fast. she refuses to be made a fool of, tho. when she gets vulnerable she flashes back to being a kid, waiting all day for her dad to show up only to have him bail on her. again. she hates that feeling. so if she, like, senses a shift in someone’s energy she’ll b like, “i’ll break up with u before u can do it to me” and the person wasn’t even tryna dump her lmao.

has a lot of sex. too much ?? sex?? mayb. but she’s v sex positive.

her personal style is v late 90s. hair clips, big scrunchies, neon, fur trim, crop and tube tops, hoop earrings, chokers, patterns, platform shoes, biodegradable glitter cuz it’s good fr the earth *winks*. clothes from o-mighty.......actually jst google o mighty, pull up the images and That is clem. she dresses like a bratz doll. she’s dedicated to the aesthetic.

03. headcanons !

her item brought from home is a hot pink poker chip from a casino. her dad gave it to her. he said it reminded him of her because of the color; he got it during one of his winning streaks and said it was lucky. she has a complicated relationship w/ her dad n doesn’t even speak to him anymore, bt she will never go anywhere without it.

she’s a smol bean—only 5′4

an astrology girl and she reads palms ! she absolutely makes astrology tik toks that people only watch because she’s hot. her flirting technique is to ask you to read your palm.

she doesn’t typically drink to get drunk. but she does love a good sugary cocktail. to her, a drink is like an accessory. a blue fishbowl by the pool, a jack and coke as she stands around a bar. usually she'll nurse the same beverage for a while. if you see her wasted it usually means she’s going thru it emotionally lol. the one thing she does do is drugs tho 

pretty much listens to exclusively female artists.

a bit of an activist. environmentalism, feminism and the like, she’s v outspoken. vegan for ethical reasons (TW: drugs) bt still does cocaine. she wears shirts with ‘my pussy my choice’ bedazzled on the front.

loves to rollerblade ! back home she didn’t have a car so she’d bike or rollerblade. now she still has her blades and she’ll use them when the ship docks. 

03. wanted connections !

Friends, bffs, ride or dies, friends who are like siblings to her, maybe a friend with an unrequited crush on either side ??

an ex she dumped/cheated on/otherwise self sabotaged their relationship because she was afraid of vulnerability.

an ex friend who realized she lies a lot abt herself n felt betrayed. OH ! ESP if they opened up to her on many occasions abt intimate, personal stuff. imagine the betrayal they felt when they found that everything they thought they knew abt clem is a lie.

someone who she actually opens up to. a confidant. or, maybe, like, a stranger she drunkenly spilled her soul to and now she avoids them like the plague.

a rival. clem can be competitive.

her drug dealer 

someone she knows she shouldn’t hook up with and… does it anyways. like a friend’s ex or smthing. spicy <3

i welcome anything !

you've been on my mind like a drug (heaven help a fool who falls in love)

Day 1 Fic prompt: Welcome to the Party @michaelguerinweek

They park down the road from the isolated ranch house that is practically vibrating with the thumping music playing inside. It makes Michael flinch as they make their way out of Max's car and up to the house.

“This was a mistake,” he says to his siblings, eyeing all the cars around the house with contempt. He recognizes more than a few of the flashier, newer cars that belong to the ‘A’ crowd. “Can’t we do something else for our birthdays?”

“No!” Isobel snaps at him, her eyes mean as she continues to walk ahead of them in pointy heels. “We went to that science expo like you wanted, and Max’s boring as hell poetry reading. I want to go to a party like the only normal one of us.”

“But it’s Valenti’s party,” Michael all but whines, looking at Max for support; knowing his brother dislikes the guy too. Max makes a face but doesn’t do much more than that, having accepted his fate of having to socialize with the meatheads of their school.

Isobel stops and turns to look at them. “It’s the best party of the school year,” she starts, giving them a warning look, her mouth tight. “So, you two will not embarrass me,” she points at Max. “Or start trouble,” she turns to him. “You don’t like Kyle, that’s fine. Drink his beer, eat his food, and go find someone to make out in a corner with, got it?”

Michael waits a moment to agree, letting her sweat it out before giving her a begrudging nod of agreement. In return, she rolls her eyes at him and turns around, sure that they’ll follow her.

Michael makes another pained face when they make it inside. He knows it’s not possible, but it looks like the whole school is there and not just the seniors class. The volume of the music is so loud that he can’t make out the lyrics through the noise. Isobel spots her clique and without so much as a wave back at them disappears through the crowd to join them.

“So much for being together for our birthday,” he shouts in Max’s ear and gets a chuckle from his brother. He points towards a table in the corner with red solo cups and starts to make his way to it, Max following behind him. He reaches for two, passing one to Max.

“We should have put a time limit to this before Isobel disappeared,” he says, taking a sip of stale beer. “There is only so much torture I’m willing to put myself through, even for her.”

Max takes a mouthful of his drink, making a face. “It’s what she wanted, Michael, don’t complain so much.”

“It’s just so vapid,” Michael argues. “These people aren’t our friends.”

“To be fair, we don’t make it easy to be friends in the first place when it’s always just the three of us,” Max points out, and Michael doesn’t bother answering, hating when Max has a point.

Okay, so he prefers it when it’s just the three of them, sue him. He’s never felt comfortable around people. He’s painfully aware that he’s not like his peers and not just because he’s from a different planet. Even if he were from earth, he’d still be different.

He’s a foster kid, in ratty clothes with a huge brain and no mouth filter, he might as well have a bullseye on his back. He gets ready to tell Max all of this when he sees a pathetic lovesick look cross his face. He sighs resigned and turns to look in the direction Max is staring at, knowing what he’s going to find and -yep, Liz Ortecho straight ahead with Maria Deluca and a bored-looking Alex Manes.

‘Well, maybe this party won’t be so horrible after all,’ he thinks as he stares hard at Alex. Biting down on a grin when the dark-haired boy turns and catches his eye, raising an eyebrow when Michael doesn’t break his gaze.

Michael nods in the direction of an open door that leads to the back of the house and waits for a response, letting out a  victorious smirk when Alex sends him a subtle nod after a moment of hesitation.

“I’m going to go take a piss,” he turns to Max, who continues to stare stupidly in the distance. “Are you going to be okay gawking at Liz Ortecho, or do you need a napkin to catch the drool?”

“I’m fine,” Max mumbles distracted, and Michael shakes his head, amused at how infatuated his geek brother is with the pretty Spanish girl.

“Okay buddy, you keep doing what you’re doing,” he says as he tracks Alex making his way out the back. He follows a couple of feet behind, letting people move around him. His focus is Alex’s snug black tee. He gets outside where it’s quieter and a whole lot emptier than the house, with just a kid or two lingering around. He spots Alex leaning against the side of the house at the far end of it, away from prying eyes.

“Alex Manes at a Kyle Valenti party will wonders never cease,” he says as he walks up to the boy, taking in the ‘I’m not okay’ MCR shirt that is tight across his chest. His slim waist where a black studded belt hangs low with skinny black jeans ripped at the knees to finish the outfit. The guy is such an emo cliché but so ridiculously hot, with his eyeliner and black nails.

“I can say the same for you, Guerin,” Alex raises an eyebrow at him, and Michael has to curl his hands to keep from reaching out to touch him. “Liz and Maria dragged me here.”

Michael lets out an amused huff. “Same, Isobel wouldn’t take no for an answer until Max, and I caved.”

Alex shares his amused expression. “Don’t be best friends with girls; they bend you to their will.”

Michael shrugs. “It’s turning out okay. Max is in there gazing at Liz lovingly, his favorite hobby.”

Alex nods in agreement. “And you, Guerin?” he asks, something indescribable in his tone. “Are you getting anything out of being at the ‘rager of the year’?”

Michael doesn’t say anything; instead he stares at Alex’s face, his lips. He feels his pulse spike as he watches Alex run his tongue over his bottom lip, his ears catching the way Alex takes a sharp breath, and he looks away from Alex’s mouth to find wide eyes staring back at him.

“You can’t look at me like that,” Alex whispers.

“Like what?” he asks quietly, taking a step and then another, closing the gap between them until his front brushes against Alex’s. “How do I look at you?”

“You know how,” Alex complains. “Don’t play dumb.”

“Tell me,” Michael demands, his face closer to Alex, his skin tingles with anticipation. “Tell me.”

“You look at me like you know what I taste like,” Alex shoots back, his words sparking something inside Michael, and he flashes back to a month ago when they found themselves in the stalls of the Roswell public library. Strong hands holding on to his hair, the floor hard under his knees and an addictive taste on his tongue as he sucked Alex down. He remembers the look of bliss on Alex’s face as he swallowed around him and the pride he felt that he put that look on Alex’s face.

“I do know what you taste like,” he whispers, hardening in his pants, letting Alex feel it as he presses him into the side of the house. He’s unable to keep his hands off Alex as the boy lets out a soft moan and puts them on his waist. “I think about it nonstop, the taste of you, the sounds you made. I’m obsessed, and all I want is to do it again, and again, and again.”

Alex lets out a low-pitched whine. His hands, twisting up Michael’s flannel shirt. “You can’t say things like that,” Alex answers, his body going against his protest as he pulls Michael even closer, rocking into him when Michael pushes a knee between his legs.

“Why not,” Michael challenges, giving him a feather-light kiss below his ear, his mouth against the shell of it as he asks again. “Why not, Alex?”

“We said it was a one-time thing,” Alex says breathlessly, as he tilts his head back to give Michael room to leave a trail of open mouth kisses.

“You said it was a one-time thing,” Michael says, pulling back, he tries for a casual attitude, but even he can hear the hurt in his voice. Alex hears it too, and he pulls back to look at Michael, snapping out of his haze.

“You agreed,” Alex argues, now completely focused.

“What was I supposed to do?” Michael asks, pulling away, the mood dead. “I blow you; you give me a handjob and before we even pull our pants up, you tell me that I shouldn’t worry. That it doesn’t mean anything and that you won’t be catching feelings!” he finishes, now louder, angrier. The words have been echoing in his head since Alex uttered them.

“I was giving you an out!” Alex shouts back, not backing down. “Everyone knows you date girls, and then one day you corner me in the library, kiss me and next thing I know; we have our hands on each other’s dicks. I thought you were experimenting and I’m the only out guy at school,” Alex continues, his voice small, his arms going around himself. He looks so unsure and shy, so unlike school Alex, who wears his ‘fuck you world’ as a part of his emo-punk aesthetics. “I didn’t need you to tell me it didn’t mean anything, so- “

“So you said it first,” Michael finishes for him, his anger gone and in its place, a tender affection that he’s never felt for anyone but his siblings and he’s filled with a need to pull Alex close and protect him from the world.

Not one for impulse control he does exactly that, he pulls a tense Alex close and holds him to his chest, his face tucked in his shoulder. He feels Alex slowly lose his tension, and soon the boy is hugging him back tightly. He holds him for a few minutes longer before pulling back to look at his face.

“Milkshakes and fries, tomorrow at the Crashdown,” he says, smiling when Alex gives him a confused look that clears to a surprised but hopeful expression.

“Are you asking me out, Guerin?” Alex asks, a small smile playing on his lips.

“Are you going to put me out of the misery you’ve had me for the last month and say yes, Manes?” he questions, his heart tripping all over itself when Alex nods at him, his eyes soft.

As he closes the space between their lips, he silently thanks Isobel for dragging him to this stupid party. Not that he’ll ever tell her verbally, no need for her smugness, he thinks. Which is the last thought he has because Alex does a twisty thing with his tongue and Michael stops thinking completely.

***Well... clearly a lot has happened during this on-going hiatus, huh? I mean, I could maybe go on another rant of this absolute nonsense but I believe you are just as tired as me. Besides, there are way better things to spend your time with---reading Malec fanfics, for example. I dunno about you but those fics always cheer me up and put me in a better mood, so I hope this will be the case for you, too.

Anyway, thanks so much for all the love for the previous rec’s and I hope you enjoy this 8th(!) edition of Malec fanfic rec’s as much as the other ones. As always, I am curious to know what you think of it, so let me know. Even more so, leave a comment or/and kudo for the authors---we all need the validation and it is just a nice gesture after their fics kept you entertained for a little while.***

Volume 1

Volume 2

Volume 3

Volume 4

Volume 5

Volume 6

Volume 7

MR CONGENIALITY by @stupidnephilimlove [ M | AU | 28.7k | complete ]

When a terrorist threatens to bomb the Mr United States pageant, FBI Special Agent Alexander Lightwood is chosen to go undercover. His partner, Jace Herondale, thinks he's doing Alec a favour by choosing him, but Alec's disgruntled. He considers the idea of a male beauty pageant - hell, any pageant - degrading.

As he progresses through the rounds, Alec struggles to fight a growing attraction to pageant consultant Magnus Bane, forms unlikely friendships with contestants, and learns that Mr United States is much more than just a beauty pageant.

But with limited time, can he uncover the person behind the threat before it's too late?

BEST LAID PLANS by @superficialpeasant [ E | 74.2k | WIP | Best Laid Plans #1 ]

When a High Warlock looking to end his celibacy streak meets a Shadowhunter after no-baggage thrills, the two make a deal: anytime, anywhere, no strings attached.

CASUAL WIN by @superficialpeasant  [ E | 6.5k | complete | Best Laid Plans #2 ]

Alec tries new things, and Magnus rediscovers the joy of laughing during sex (a ‘Best Laid Plans’ one-shot).

SET ME IN MOTION by @lemonoclefox [ M | AU | 132k | complete ]

“Is that your way of asking me to cook for you sometime?” Alec says. “'Cause I will.” The moment the words escape his mouth, Alec finds himself slightly panicking. Because he does not talk like that, ever―in a way that might even be considered flirting―and he still doesn’t understand what it is about Magnus that brings stuff like that out of him. More importantly, he has a boyfriend. Magnus, however, just looks mildly surprised as their eyes meet. “My, my. Master chef, good family name, and charming?” Magnus tilts his head ever so slightly. “Careful, Mr. Lightwood,” he says in a low, teasing voice, mouth curving up in a smile. “You’re gonna make me swoon.” ---

One night, Magnus spots a handsome stranger in the elevator of his apartment building – which wouldn’t be a big deal if said stranger didn’t turn out to be dating Magnus’s neighbor. The stranger soon becomes Alec, and their paths end up crossing more than once. A tentative friendship develops as they slowly get to know each other, and they both find that it’s effortless in a way neither of them has ever known. It's only when other kinds of feelings start getting involved that things become a bit more complicated.

ON STRANGER TIDES by @lecrit [ E | AU | 53.7k | complete | A Pirate’s Life For Me #2 ]

Alec kissed him like he had the first time, desperately, but tenderly, with all the rashness of a man in love. It was Magnus who pulled back, thumb gently brushing over Alec’s cheekbone. “I’m going to miss this,” he said, voice pitched low, “when we get back to Alicante.” “As will I,” Alec allowed, bowing his head to rest his forehead against Magnus’. “But I know we can show them how it’s done, you and I.”

As long as he had this, the unconditional love of an extraordinary man, the gift of his passion behind closed doors and the tenderness of his eyes in the secrecy of his mind, as long as there was their burning bodies melting together to express what words couldn’t, Alec didn’t need to worry. What was the worst that could happen?

A TINY SPARK by @magicandarchery [ E | AU | 55.7k | complete ]

As a firefighter for the FDNY, Alec Lightwood and his battalion respond to an emergency call for an apartment fire. After rushing a young, soon-to-be mother out of the burning building and to safety, Alec must deliver her newborn baby.

He never expected the little girl to spark an inexplicable bond between them. After a prior adoption fell through in a devastating way, should he and Magnus even hope they might be able to adopt her?

EXIT POLLING by @unrestrainedlyexcessive [ E | AU | 14.7k | complete ]

You can have ambition or love, but you can’t have both. ---

a political au: magnus is a political fixer, and alec is the poor fool hoping to be mayor.

STARS IN YOUR EYES by @carmenlire [ not rated | 2.1k | complete ]

Huh. His door is standing open but there’s no one in his office. He’s about to stand up and close the door when he hears a giggle. Alec smiles, and leans back in his seat waiting for-- Ah, there it is. A pair of big blue eyes are peeking around the corner of his desk. Alec makes a show of focusing on the inventory spreadsheet in front of him. He silently starts counting to five in his head. He barely makes it to three before an enthusiastic body launches itself at him. Alec has help with his Head of the Institute duties.

THE ONE THING (I CAN’T GET ENOUGH OF) by @floralegia [ M | AU | 28.7k | complete ]

Alec wasn't expecting to enjoy this summer locked away with his family at a posh resort in the Catskills, just biding his time until he can go home in the fall and then finally, finally move out and escape to college. He was expecting to alternate between bored out of his mind and frustrated with his father's heavy-handed attempts to set him up with Aline, whose parents own the resort, as a last-ditch attempt to pretend Alec didn't come out six months prior.

Enter Magnus Bane.

OR: a Dirty Dancing AU.

I NEED YOU (DO YOU NEED ME?) by discoveries [ T | AU | 6.5k | complete ]

“I am your ex, you are a cop, and I just got arrested for being drunk and disorderly."

THE ANSWER IS “NO” (BUT BABY IT’S COLD OUTSIDE) by @la-muerta [ M | AU | 9.3k | complete | A Game Of Pitch And Catch #1 ]

It's Christmas Eve, but instead of being home with his siblings watching cheesy television and eating pizza, Alec Lightwood is stuck in a small town in the middle of nowhere because of a snow storm. Worse, he's going to have to share a room at an over-priced B&B with his sister's annoying boss, Magnus Bane. They'll be lucky if this Christmas doesn't end in bloodshed.

OUT OF LEFT FIELD by @la-muerta [ E | AU | 13.5k | complete | A Game Of Pitch And Catch #2 ]

Alec and Magnus didn't expect this attraction between them, but they'd agreed to give it a chance. And if this was going to be more than just sex, then it made sense to take sex off the table for now... or at least that was the game plan.

Well. When life throws you curveballs, there's only one thing to do - knock it out of the park!

WELL AT LEAST SOMEBODY NOTICED... by @the-burning-tiger [ G | AU | 2.7k | complete ]

Alec Lightwood is seriously regretting his life choices. If it weren't bad enough that he was on the blind date from hell, his work nemesis Magnus Bane just walked in.

IT’S GETTING HOT IN HERE by @astudyinfic [ E | PWP | 4.9k | complete | Institutional Series #1 ]

When Alec is late for date night, Magnus goes to the Institute to retrieve his workaholic boyfriend.

But it turns out that Alec is cooking up a lot more than dinner.

STUDYING HARD by @astudyinfic [ E | PWP | 5.1k | complete | Institutional Series #2 ]

Magnus wanted a chance to pay Alec back for the kitchen incident, as he liked to refer to it, but work kept getting in the way.

But when Alec gets stuck in the Institute library doing research, Magnus eagerly offers to help. However, it appears very little research will actually get done.

Revenge never felt so good.

HAPPY SHINY PEOPLE EVERYWHERE by @unrestrainedlyexcessive [ E | AU | 18.1k | complete ]

Alec emerges from one of the bathroom stalls already fully dressed in a gray suit, plain white dress shirt, and hair neatly combed.

He looks like he always does, which is to say: painfully handsome and angry at the world.

A week into his new living arrangements and Magnus has realized that no matter where Izzy goes, she wears towering stilettos that hurt Magnus just to look at them, Jace is a mostly harmless douchebag, and Alec is a big mystery, their very own Phantom of the Loft.

VITULA by @lightwormsiblings [ G | AU | 1.9k | complete ]

Alec vaguely registers that he’s standing in the middle of the sidewalk and blocking people’s path but he can’t stop staring.

He’s beautiful. Not just because he’s outwardly gorgeous, but because of the way his eyes slip closed whenever he crescendos and the way his body seems to move fluidly to the music he’s creating.

Or the one where Alec becomes particualarily enamored with a street violinist

THE STORM, THE WHIRLWIND, THE EARTHQUAKE by @alecsgideon [ G | AU | 1.4k | complete | Small Town Verse #2 ]

Lightning has a way of changing Alec's life

CALL IT LUCK (CALL IT FATE) by the_crownless_queen [ not rated | AU | 17.5k | complete ]

When Izzy rents out a house in Corsica, the last thing Alec expects it to meet the man of his dreams while running on a beach there.

THREE TO MAKE A PAIR by @like-a-bucky [ M | AU | 47.8k | complete ]

Magnus is a good friend and the absolute best roommate in the world, so of course when Jace begs him to pretend to be his boyfriend for his family's 4th of July barbecue, he says yes. Enters Alec, Jace's gorgeous brother. Aaaand Magnus is screwed.

EVERYTHING HE COULD NEVER BE by @alecsgideon [ T | AU | 21.7k | complete ]

In between jobs, Alec and his son, Max, move to Alec's mother's country home where they meet Magnus and his son, Rafael - the small family Maryse rented the 1st floor out to. As a big city MD and single dad, Alec finds himself fascinated by Magnus' eccentric healing practice, parenting methods and deep brown eyes.

And while preparing for the move to London, finally spending time with his son, and juggling his growing affection towards Magnus, the ghosts of Alec's childhood threaten to disturb the peace he'd found surrounded by his family.

BLUE JEANS AND BLUE SKY by @like-a-bucky [ M | AU | 57.6k | complete ]

Magnus was seven years old when he arrived in Colorado to start his new life - with new parents, a new language, a new everything. Making friends would have helped him, except that his first encounter with the neighbours' kids didn't go too well, and Magnus vowed to hate the Lightwoods forever.

Forever. No matter what.

IT’S US AGAINST THE UNIVERSE, BABY by @la-muerta [ E | PWP | AU | 12.9k | complete | The Universe is Conspiring Against Us #5 ]

Magnus and Alec have been happily married for seven years now. They've started their own law practice, and they have three beautiful children together. They should have known the universe wasn't going to leave them to their happily ever after.

Then again, nobody messes with Mr and Mr Lightwood-Bane - not even the universe.

YOU KNOW WE’RE GONNA DO IT RIGHT by @unrestrainedlyexcessive [ E | AU | 26.7k | complete | Happily Ever After, Kind Of #1 ]

"So, like, this is--what? A pity date? Good press? Take the poor college kid out, let people see you mingle with the commoners?"

"No," Magnus says, "I like you."

Alec shakes his head. "You don't even know me."

"Does anyone ever really know another person?"

"Boy," Alec says, fiddling with his napkin, "I love philosophy."

---

A royalty au. Magnus is a prince. Alec is perpetually stressed out.

THE CHEMISTRY BETWEEN US by @astudyinfic [ M | AU | 42.2k | complete ]

Izzy's parents will never accept her new boyfriend, whom they expect her to bring home for the holidays. Enter her best friend and colleague Magnus. Sure, pretending to date is a terrible idea in the movies but as neither of them harbors any secret love for the other, Magnus figures this should be a simple weekend in the Hamptons with his friend.

Until he meets Isabelle's brother and Magnus knows they have all the elements of a chemical reaction that is about to blow up in his face.

MIGHT AS WELL by @carmenlire [ not rated | AU | 3.1k | complete ]

The two of them stare at each other for long minutes. Alec doesn’t know if Magnus is waiting for him to speak first but now, laying here with Magnus just inches away and feeling like it might as well be an oceanic chasm, he’s too tired to keep the words from slipping out.

After all, what’s the worst thing that could happen? He’s already staring down the face of his world imploding, just because he was stupid enough to fall for someone who wouldn’t ever be interested in him like that.

GOING DOWN by @lecrit [ M | AU | 6.7k | complete ]

Of all the days in all the years Alec has worked here, and of all the people who work in this building that he could have found himself stuck with, the Universe chose to trap him in an elevator with Magnus Bane on the day his sister is giving birth. Well, fuck you too, Universe.

Week of Bookblr - Top 5 Best Books of 2018

So, while I did read some really bad books there were also some really great books this year. I actually narrowed my list down to the top five books that I thought were really great. So without further ado let’s get into my top 5 books of 2018

#5 Scythe by Neal Shusterman

Shusterman always has these great premises and this book is no exception. In this world humanity has basically cured death. The only threat is overpopulation so you have these people called Scythes who’s job it is to maintain the population. Shusterman some how figured out my greatest irrational fear is immortality so that’s terrifying. Along with a creepy AI, some really great characters, and an appropriately asshole-ish villain this book deserves the number five spot. Rest in peace Shawn Dobson.

#4 Fullmetal Alchemist Vol. 8 by Hiromu Arakawa:

Words cannot describe how much I love Fullmetal Alchemist the series. It probably the closest thing to a perfect series. I absolutely adored it and my favorite volume of this series was the penultimate Volume 8 (the omnibus version). First of all the van Hohenheim and Father stuff was amazing. I love seeing Mustang’s crew and the Briggs troops take over the city. It is so cool how clever these characters are. Mustang going absolutely nuts with Envy and that talk was so beautiful. Then when Mustang apologizes to Riza, I just teared up. It had my second favorite fight scene with Greed and Wrath. So awesome to see Greed and Ling work together. But it also had the best fight scene in the entire series which is when the Armstrong siblings and Curtis couple fight against Sloth. I did not know I wanted to see these four characters fight together but it was the most epic thing I have ever seen. I loved it so much. It was bad ass and powerful and SO AMAZING! I loved it.

#3 The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick:

I read and listened to this on audiobook and it was unbelievable. It was a mixture of the wonderful writing and the sound design that made this story come to life. Selznick was a new to me author and I so happy that I found his books. This one especially was whimsical and charming. It had beautiful artwork. The characters felt so real and it was so heartwarming. This is something that you need to read when you’re feeling down and need to put a smile on your face. It’s a classic in the making.

#2 Skyward by Brandon Sanderson

Yeah, yeah I have to put Brandon Sanderson on this list. I think the real shocker is that he isn’t number one on this list. Nothing this year really felt like it deserved the number one spot. Legion and White Sand Vol. 2 were both five star stories but I think Skyward is the best that he published this year.

The reason that this book does deserve to be on this list is the characters, especially Spensa. If you saw my Top 5 Worst of the year list you’ll see that I hate overly aggressive main characters. When I first read this book, I had the kneejerk reaction to hate Spensa. She was aggressive and violent. However, I actually really liked Spensa. I cannot believe it. Brandon Sanderson took the trope that I hate the most and made it something I liked. I’ve talked with other people who HATE this trope as well and they were shocked at how well Spensa’s character was handled.

I think there are three reasons why Spensa works. First is that she is given a logical reason for acting this way. First when she’s young it’s more child-like and then as she gets older it’s because she’s an outcast in this society for what her father did. Second, it’s a lot of talk. She generally never really physically hurts anyone. She’s never really mean. There’s no mean-spirited-ness to her. Third, and this is the most important thing: she is not automatically great at flying. Spensa loves flying and wants to do it more than anything in this world. But she is not automatically amazing at it. She has to work her butt off to become great. Which not only ties into the theme of meritocracy but also shows a character having to work for things.

I also really loved most of the side characters. Jorgen was a tad bland for me, I hope that we get to see a little more of him, maybe even add his own POV chapters. I was really sad when someone either left flight school or died (and man do a lot of characters die in this). The story is portrayed very realistically to how you’d think flight school would work. It also gave Spensa a chance to grow and realize how dangerous this path could be. M-Bot is obviously the best character. He funny, sarcastic and an obvious self-insert.

#1 The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

I am so mad at myself for waiting so long to read this absolutely brilliant book. This book is about a girl living in Nazi Germany where her adoptive family hides a Jewish man in their basement. I know, so uplifting! This story is absolutely heartbreaking (no surprise there). Towards the end I was just crying nonstop at everything that happened.

First of all Zusak really humanizes the Germans, even those who belong to the Nazi party. He doesn’t make them all evil and cruel. All of these characters are human beings. These are people who are just trying to survive and you really feel for all of them. This plays into the Death being the narrator. Death does not discriminate and thus he can have an objective point of view when it comes to what is going on. He is so alien yet relatable. Despite being Death he brings some light heartedness to this story. Zusak pulls no punches. When Liesels parents die it is the saddest thing imaginable. I am tearing up right now as I write this. Zusak made me feel like I too had lost someone. It is so heartbreaking. I am glad that Max had lived and found Liesel. It was the most beautiful thing.

This book is truly a classic. A book that will never leave me and that why it deserves the number one spot.

When I worked on Dark Angel I created a character, one of Max's missing siblings, who as a child was the mythmaker of the group. He kept them from losing faith in themselves by telling stories in the darkness of the dormitory, stories with heroes and spirits and demons, and now that Max is all grown up and the group is scattered and in hiding, she finds that people are being murdered according to the mythological details of those childhood stories. Her beloved storyteller has grown into a serial killer. This was a tough role to cast. You needed someone you could believe was a genetically engineered human; who could, when necessary, radiate both intelligence and menace; who could be scary one minute, and who could give you a lump in the throat the next from his sheer vulnerability when he admits to Max that he's broken and begs her to kill him. I sat in casting as actor after actor came in. It was one of those evenings when you listen to the words of the script and wonder how they can sound this horrifyingly bad -- dear god, am I truly that wretched a writer? Then Mr. Ackles walked in. The first scene involved his character sitting handcuffed as he tries to convince Max to let him go. It was tonally challenging, because although he's cuffed, you have to have the impression he's extremely dangerous -- that in fact just listening to him is dangerous because he'll screw with you psychologically. "Mind if I sit on the floor?" he asked calmly, in the voice of one who's worked it all out ahead of time. He put his arms behind his back, did that scene, and wow. Young Hannibal Lecter, hello! Then he did the death scene, made my eyes tear up, walked calmly out, and we looked at each other. This was exactly the character I'd envisioned. It was clear to me that if anybody else got this role, I would have to commit ritual suicide. Fortunately everyone else wanted him -- except one highly placed producer. Now, although Hollywood as an entity has issues with women, my personal experience on writing staffs has been almost uniformly positive. This producer happened to be an extremely rare exception -- and it's not that he was in any way meanspirited; he was a perfectly nice guy, kind and gentle, but sometimes your head snapped back just listening to him. He was upset by the fact that the people in casting that night had been mostly women; that we all liked Jensen Ackles; and that he was a good-looking actor. Because, clearly, that must be what was influencing us. "Something very disturbing was going on in that room," he insisted. Leaving his opinion of our emotionality aside, I asked what his issues were with Ackles -- hadn't that been a terrific reading? He admitted the reading was fine, but -- "He doesn't have muscles." "What?" "He doesn't have muscles, he doesn't look like a soldier. If he was genetically designed to be a soldier, wouldn't they make him strong?" My head spun for a moment. I said, "Our heroine is Jessica Alba." And yes, she'd worked out pretty hard for this role, but she was still a slender-looking, gorgeous young woman, who was usually shorter and much lighter than the men we regularly showed her throwing around with such abandon. I said, "Clearly whatever genetic manipulation was going on involves strength that's not determined by the sheer volume of the muscle." I'd reached this conclusion the moment I saw the pilot, and thought it was unarguable, given what we'd been portraying on screen for the past season. But he had a reply to that: "She's a girl," he said -- clearly bewildered that I would even bring this up. Sigh. But the angels smiled for a moment, Jensen Ackles got the role, and though my script was rewritten it did still retain a certain amount of what I'd been going for. The direction was tight, the acting full-throttle, and the episode was so well-received that the series was sold for a second year on the idea of "more like this!" I, however, had moved on to Smallville the following year. There, we discussed casting for one of the early guest roles. "Jensen Ackles!" I said. The executive producers went away, returned, and I was told with compassion, "I'm sorry, Doris. He's just been booked for the year." "Really? Where?" "Dark Angel." Yes. The producer who'd been so opposed to him? After seeing his work in that episode, he hired Jensen as a regular. And apparently he also made him bulk up -- because boys need muscle. I said, "But we killed him!" "He's back as a clone." Damn you, science fiction, and your wicked genre ways! Someday, Jensen Ackles, I muttered. Time passed and I found myself on the second season of Tru Calling. We had a character, a medical student, whom we first meet as a sort of golden boy -- a nice guy, funny, the sort who tries to do the right thing. Brilliant, but with some self-esteem issues that have kept him from his full potential. Tru and he become friends, and as time passes, they start to become more deeply involved. Then, partway through the season, he dies; and Tru, who's had enough of death, resolves to stay awake until someone somewhere asks for help and her day rewinds -- thereby allowing her to save Jensen as well. (Yes, shockingly, he ended up with the name Jensen. I think it was my sheer repetition doing subconscious work.) I'm going to quote here from an earlier post: ============== But Jensen's soul is already committed -- it can't return, but his body, memories, and the habits of his personality continue after the time he "died." The idea was that over the course of the arc we would gradually see anomalies of character develop -- unsettling moments, as the imprint of Jensen's personality disintegrates, at the same time it becomes fascinated with death, in an almost wistful way. This would be pretty damned creepy, coming as it does alongside Tru's growing physical intimacy with him. Jane Espenson wrote a beautifully disturbing scene that I'm sorry you'll never get a chance to see -- on one level, it's just Tru and Jensen talking on the sofa during a movie, and on another level, oooooh. As the arc plays out, we hear the jarring comments he'll occasionally make, the way the things that used to mean something to him -- like his need for his father's respect -- are just no longer vulnerabilities. We see scenes that suggest a growing involvement with violence, in an unsettling but ambiguous way, so Tru can't be sure it's there or not. Till one morning Tru wakes in bed with Jensen and goes about her day, which rewinds over the murder of Jensen's father. Just before the rewind she learns that not only did Jensen do it, he's been behind a string of recent killings (born of his fascination with learning about the thing he's apparently been barred from -- i.e., death). She rewinds -- and wakes up in bed next to him, knowing now that he's a monster. And that she created him. This was once a young man who won her with his generosity and understanding, his good humor and sweetness. He's still bright, he's still clever, there's no evidence against him. And he'll be creating a lot more victims, starting on this rewind day with his father -- unless she takes the responsibility for putting an end to him. So she finally turns to the person with experience in ending people's lives: Jack. =============== Now, obviously this was going to be the kind of role where you can't count on a pretty face to pull you through. (And sometimes there's pressure to go with a pretty face, even when the necessary screen power is not behind it. This doesn't make sense, because it means the audience will never spark to that role the way they should, but sometimes executives think the fact they can promote the show using a particular actor's name makes up for that. The unfortunate truth that you can get people to watch once, just long enough to drive them away permanently if the goods aren't there, doesn't always sway the decisionmakers.) We needed someone who could say long words as though they know what those words mean -- and I'm not being sarcastic here; that's harder than you think. But someone who could also be funny. And sweet. And boy-next-door. Oh, and also turn on a dime and scare the beejeezus out of you. "Jensen Ackles!" I said, pretty much every time the subject of casting came up. But the process ground on a bit slower than we anticipated, and one day I was informed -- again, with compassion -- "We're too late; he's booked elsewhere." I asked where. "Smallville," they said.Smallville? Those bastards, how dare they listen to me? Who told them to respect my opinion? This was clearly my fate -- to make so much noise about Jensen Ackles at any show I'm on that they'll grab him first chance they get, which will inevitably be when I'm at my next show trying to get him. One of the writers, hearing this news, turned to me and asked, "Are you solely responsible for this guy's career?" The answer to that would be no. Clearly he doesn't need my help, but you have to admit that the aura of Ackles doom I bring to each production is amusing, at least. At the time I said to myself, sour-grapes fashion, "Well, I hope that Smallville role is as interesting and layered as this one will be," and went on with life. As it turned out, we were fortunate at Tru. Eric Christian Olsen took on the role, and it was clear from the very first look at his reel that we were in safe hands. (In fact, when I first saw his work I had that sense of awe I always feel in the presence of good acting, because it is so very much something I cannot do. Really, I have no idea what button actors push to suddenly convey, "This is real," but I know it when I see it, the way Robert Graves says you know a true poem when you hear one. Recently I was talking with a medical consultant and mentioned that I'd just come out of a read-through of a script. "It's always cool to hear the script at a read-through," I said. "Why?" he asked. I was surprised at the question. "Because they do that magic actor thing," I said. Why else?) In any case, I'm sorry you never got to see the character's turnaround, because I have no doubt he would have been compelling. And as it turns out, since the show was cancelled mid-season, maybe Smallville was the better bet after all. And now I'm at House, and surrounded by such talent that it would be the height of ungraciousness to do more than note that Mr. Ackles has a show of his own this coming season. And while it's not mine, I'm forced to admit that that might not stop it from being, well... good.

[ Doris Egan, Posted on 2005.08.18 ]

Get You Where You Wanna Go (If You Know What I Mean)

This was written for the prompt challenge run by @rarsablack! It definitely got away from me and it’s way too long, but here it is. Title credit fully goes to Rihanna, and that boppin’ tune, Shut Up and Drive.

Billy's been on edge lately, thanks to his dad nagging him about grades. As if one B on one test is the end of the world. As if Billy doesn’t work his ass off. And maybe Billy didn’t study this time around, and maybe he went to a party instead, but he deserves a fucking break once in a while.

Still, he’s not a pleasant guy to be around at school. He doesn’t mess with Steve so much anymore. Mostly because of Max. Well. Partially because of Max. Mostly because of… Other Reasons. Other Reasons that just piss Billy off more if he thinks about them. So he doesn’t.

What he does do is mess with Tommy. Sure, Tommy is supposed to be his friend, or whatever. Really, he’s more of his lackey. But the guy is a weasel with no real loyalty and no real appeal, so it’s no hardship for Billy to toss a few more put downs his way and slam him with elbows and shoulders. Billy’s got aggression, and it has to go somewhere.

Of course, actions have consequences, yadda yadda yadda. It’s Saturday, and the basketball team has an away game in some equally lame small town that is inconvenient enough to be four hours away. The boys are piling in on the bus that already smells like feet and sweat, and Coach Michaels is standing there with his clipboard, not really paying attention.

Billy’s running late because he’d gotten in a screaming match with his brat of a stepsister on their front lawn. Even his furious defiance of the speed limit doesn’t get him there at the strict one o’clock meet up.

It’s opens the kind of opportunity that Tommy just can’t pass up. The coach tosses his attendance sheet aside and rubs away a headache, shouting over the boys “Does everyone have their asses on the bus? Can we haul out already?”

Tommy takes note of the lack of a Billy-sized ego on the bus and grins. “All accounted for, Coach.”

It’s just a bonus that, as they pull away from the high school, Steve isn’t on board, either.

Billy’s furious. He’s been looking forward to this fucking game, because God knows basketball has been his only outlet lately. He needed a win. He needed the cheers and the praise and maybe a pretty girl who would smile and blow him behind whatever lame high school they’re playing.

But as soon as he pulls into the Hawkins High parking lot, the stupid bus is pulling away. And he knows whose fault it is. Of course he does.

Tommy is going to eat shit when Billy gets his hands on him.

It’s going to happen soon, too. Because Billy will be damned if he misses this game. As if the team will be anything other than tragic without him, anyway. What, Harrington’s going to bring them the win? Fuck, no.

And it’s funny, really, because as soon as he has that bitter thought, he sees it. He’s speeding after the school bus, breaking every traffic law in Indiana, and there at the side of the road is Harrington’s pretty little Beemer. Steve’s leaning up against the passenger side, tugging at his hair as he looks dejectedly at his blown out back tire.

Billy slows to a stop, flashing a dangerous smile as he rolls down the window. “Car trouble, Pretty Boy?”

If it’s possible, Steve’s frown deepens. “Why?” He narrows his eyes in suspicion. “You gonna try and run me over if I’ve got nowhere to go?”

Billy snorts, tapping an impatient rhythm on the metal of the car door. “Shut up and get in.”

“Why would I go anywhere with you?”

“Because we’ve got a game to catch.” He bats his lashes and flashes that panty-melting smile of his. It’s mostly a mockery, but there’s a bit of a thrill when he sees it’s got Steve shifting uneasily on his feet. “And I don’t know where I’m going.”

Steve should know better. Really. Billy is insufferable in the best of circumstances- Not that Steve has gotten the best of much, lately. But trapped in a car? No, sorry, trapped in Hargrove’s monstrous death trap? For four hours?

Steve isn’t sure he hasn’t died and descended to Hell.

The antagonism starts from the get go. Even before Steve climbs into the Camaro, when he’s still fumbling around in his own back seat for his duffel, Billy goes out of his way to be a dickhead.

He leans on the horn, scaring Steve half to death. “Vámonos, Harrington. We’re losing daylight.”

“Don’t get your panties in a bunch, shit head.” Steve shoves his things in the back of Billy’s car before propping his hands up on his hips. “Now get out so I can drive.”

Billy just wheezes a laugh, like Steve is some kind of A-level comedian. “You’re fucking with me, right?”

“I’m the one who knows the way,” Steve shrugs. “It’s easier if I’m behind the wheel.”

There’s a second there where Billy actually considers it. He’s just going to chalk it up to temporary insanity. It’s that prissy way Steve is looking at him, after all. Like he always gets his way, and Billy wants to be the one to give it to him.

Oh, yeah. He’d love to give it to him.

“Get in the fucking car before I change my mind and leave you here. Jesus fucking Christ.”

With a sigh, Steve slides into the passenger seat. And it’s nice for a grand total of, like, maybe two minutes. It’s a cozy comfortable silence. Just two guys on a short road trip, on their way to shoot some ball.

Then the talking starts. And it goes on and on and on and on. Seriously, it’s like rambling is all Steve knows how to do. Like he’s some housewife going off on a lecture.

“They’re obnoxious and loud and stubborn, but they’re okay kids. I mean, they never listen to me, and they always find themselves in some kind of trouble, like it’s their job or something. But they’re smart, and they mean well, you know?”

Billy just barely resists the urge to roll his eyes. “Sure.”

“And like, it’s not like I have any siblings of my own. So it’s nice to have someone to look after. Makes me feel important… Though, I guess you can’t relate. You’re not exactly thrilled about the whole Max situation.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Which, I mean, I’m not telling you how to live your life, but you gotta get over that, man. At least a little. You need to apologize. There’s enough going on in this bat shit crazy town. You don’t need to complicate things for anyone.”

Billy stops resisting, and he rolls his eyes so hard he’s surprised they don’t pop out and roll around beneath the seats. “Whatever.”

“Are you listening?” Steve asks, and it should be annoying, but his face is doing an earnest scrunchy thing, and it’s just a little bit cute. “Like, really listening? Because I get anger issues, but you need to cool it. You’ve got a reputation and whatever, but also, really? Because this whole look you’ve got going on is a bit much, too. Like the earring and the hair…”

Billy abruptly ends the one-sided conversation by flicking on the radio. He cranks up the volume and lets loud, angry music fill the space between them.

To Steve, it feels like endless torture. It sounds like it’s all one long song, crashing instruments and bitching and giving him a headache. It rattles his brain, and he turns to look at Billy to complain, but then he just stops.

Maybe Billy is a massive asshole who never does anything but inconvenience Steve, but there’s also something about him that Steve can’t pretend he doesn’t like. It’s stupid, but Steve’s a little stupid, too.

He’s staring at Billy, because Billy is bobbing his head along to the music. He’s got this content little smirk on his face, and those sleepy bedroom eyes are twinkling with something. Steve has heard girls squealing about bad boys before. Has heard them mooning over guys with something wild about them.

He sees the appeal now.

In fact, Steve is so caught up in soaking in the sight of wild child Billy Hargrove, that he’s forgotten to tell Billy to take a left for a solid six minutes.

“Oh shit.”

Billy stops dancing in his seat and looks over, brow raised. “What?”

“Turn around.” Steve grimaces and prepares himself to be hurled out of the car. “We’re going the wrong way.”

Billy doesn’t turn around. Doesn’t even slow down. Like he doesn’t believe Steve, or something. “What are you talking about? You have one job, Harrington.”

“Turn around,” Steve insists. “And you know what? It’s not my fault. I can’t concentrate. Are you trying to shatter my eardrums with this garbage?”

“Are you eighty fucking years old?” Billy snorts, and makes no move to adjust the volume. “Get over it and figure your shit out.”

“Turn it down,” Steve insists, even as he’s reaching out himself and dialing it back. “I can hardly hear myself think.”

Billy scowls, because he really doesn’t like it when people touch his things. He cranks the volume back up. “Think louder.”

“Are you twelve?” Steve shouts over the music, going so far as to reach out and turn it almost all the way down.

“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” Billy sneers, boosting the music up to maximum volume. “That seems to be your target audience!”

“Very funny, asshole!” Steve reaches out again for the volume. Except this time, Billy catches his wrist in a firm grip.

“Don’t even think about it.”

Paused at a red light, the world seems to stop for a second. Billy doesn’t let go and Steve doesn’t pull away. They’re both staring at the point where their skin meets.

Billy’s hand is warm and strong, and Steve sways a little closer. Blue eyes snapping up to Steve’s slack face, Billy licks his lips. Steve gasps, and under the music he thinks Billy does something close to a groan.

Behind them a car honks as the traffic light glows green. The moment between them shatters, and Billy jerks away and slams his foot down on the gas. Steve punches the music off all together, and mutters a mutinous “We’re still going the wrong way.”

The thing is, they still make it there in time. And let’s be honest, the entire team heaves a big sigh of relief, because their asses were grass without their two star players. So it’s all great.

And Steve and Billy play great, too. They wipe the floor with the other team. Sure, Steve and Billy do their best not to look at each other, touch each other, or even acknowledge the other is alive, but it works out okay. There are other members on the team, after all. Pawns they can use to pretend that they’re not busting their asses, trying to impress each other.

So, yeah. Yep. Everything’s great. The cheering and the praise and the slutty girls don’t do anything for Billy’s mood, but it’s fine.

It’s fine because Billy just wants to fall into bed and forget this stupid day. But the team gets to the hotel and Coach Michaels- the idiot, the absolute moron- tosses Harrington a key and announces, “You’re with Hargrove.”

Billy groans, loud and growling, and stomps off through a patch of daffodils. He can’t escape good ol’ King Steve, and this stupid away game was supposed to alleviate his frustration. That simmering something beneath his skin has only gotten worse.

He takes up residence by the too small, weirdly green hotel pool and paces the perimeter. His fingers itch for a fight or a fuck, so he shakes a cigarette out of a pack, instead. He lights up and contemplates just sleeping out on one of these broken deck chairs tonight.

Steve is sensible. Steve hauls his duffle- and Billy’s, fuck you very much- up to their assigned room. He picks the bed closest to the window, because he’s being the mature one, he deserves the better real estate.

He goes to the window and pushes the curtains aside to see what kind of view he’s set up for, and… Stops. Of course. A tacky kidney bean pool, garish orange deck chairs, and Billy Hargrove smoking like a chimney.

Something burns in Steve’s gut. It makes him sweat and it makes him antsy. It makes him want to get his hands on Billy, and he’ll figure out just what that means when it comes down to it.

Steve storms out of the room and down the stairs, around to the back of the hotel, to plant himself in front of Billy and put an end to his laps around the outside of the pool. Billy takes a long drag on his cigarette and stares. He drops his gaze to Steve’s toes and drags it slowly back up to his face before asking, “What the fuck is your problem?”

“Me?” Steve throws his hands up in exasperation. “What’s your problem?”

Billy huffs a laugh. “Now, or in general?”

“You’re impossible. You’ve been impossible since the second you crashed into town like some… Some… Like some kind of asshole.”

“You crash a lot of assholes, Harrington?”

“Shut up!” Steve punches him lightly in the arm. It’s pathetic. And embarrassing, really. He’s like those whiny girls who flirt by swatting their hands all over guys. He tucks his hands up under his armpits to get control over himself. “This is what I’m talking about. You’re always needling at me. Poking, and probing, and plundering.”

Billy arches a brow, a wicked smile tweaking at his lips. “Are you trying to suggest something, or…?”

“You push me around, and you taunt me. You almost killed me, man! And then you offer me a ride, which is like, a nice human thing to do, but you’re a dick the whole time! Which, whatever, wouldn’t want anyone to think you’re decent, right? Because you have the leather jacket, and the shirts that show off the nipples, and the stupid hair.”

“You seem to have a real problem with my look. I’m not really getting it.”

Steve drops his hands from under his arms and pushes lightly at Billy’s shoulder. “You’re not listening! There’s a point somewhere.”

Billy shoves Steve back, a little harder. “Then get to it.”

“Fuck off,” Steve fumes. “Don’t rush me.”

“Oh my God.”

Steve lashes out with both palms open and slams them as hard as he can against Billy’s chest. It’s incredibly satisfying for a full quarter of a second, until Billy stumbles and flails backwards, crashing into the pool. Panic and regret seize him as he watches Billy sink down to the bottom of the deep end, and he remembers suddenly, like a projector going off in his mind, that time in sixth grade when Carl Greenberg almost drowned in the community pool.

With a nervous screech, Steve flings his body into the water.

Naturally, before Steve can do much but splash, Billy resurfaces next to him, spitting out water. Steve gasps and throws his arms around him, which manages to be both incredibly weird and a little adorable to Billy. “You’re okay?”

“Get the fuck off of me. What are you even talking about?” Billy shrugs him away, but Steve doesn’t go far. Their knees still bump as they kick their legs to stay afloat.

“I thought I killed you. I thought you were going to drown.”

Billy elbows Steve out of the way and hauls himself up out of the pool. Water is dripping from his limp curls and soggy clothes. It squelches in his shoes. “I’m from California, moron. I know how to swim.”

With a little less grace, Steve climbs out of the water. “Well, I’m sorry I was worried!”

“What you should be worrying about is the hypothermia you gave me. Jesus.” Billy holds his hand out expectantly. “Key.”

“Key?”

“The room key, Steve! I’m freezing my balls off!”

Rolling his eyes, Steve schleps ahead of him toward their room. His shoes squeak the entire way. It’s the only sound that passes between the two of them, both boys determined to destroy the other with icy silence.

When they get inside they turn their backs on each other, starting the world’s most unpleasant task of peeling cold, soaking clothes off of their bodies. Billy chucks his shoes across the room. He feels a little better when they make a loud, angry thump against the wall. He just wants this day to be over. He wants to get into the shower and get feeling back into his body and then fall unconscious.

He drops his shorts and turns around to reach for his bag. Steve turns around at the exact same time and they both freeze, naked and staring. It’s stupid, because they see each other naked all the time in the showers in the locker room. But never alone like this. Never while they’re simmering and burning and really confused about if they want to bite each other in a vicious, violent way or in a really intense and primal sexual way.

Steve’s eyes dip below Billy’s waist, and he knows he’s probably going to get his neck broken any second, but he can’t help but just… Look. But the still silence of the room doesn’t shift, and neither does Billy, so his eyes keep wandering. They wander over the thick muscles of Billy’s thighs, and the definition of his stomach. Up over his strong biceps and over that sturdy jaw. His gaze lingers on the curls plastered to his cheeks and forehead- like he’s some gorgeous, dripping gift sent from the gods of sex.

“That fucking hair.”

Billy scowls and crosses his arms. “We really need to talk about your thing with my hair.”

But Steve isn’t in the mood for talking. He crosses the room and tangles his fingers in Billy’s hair, tugging him forward to crash their mouths together. It’s an instant thing, when Billy melts against him.

Billy moans as Steve holds him close and kisses him deep and hard, like he’s some heroine in a trashy romance novel. He just goes along for the ride, hands clutching Steve’s hips.

When Steve pulls away, it’s only far enough to nip at Billy’s jaw. Billy sways a bit, knees weak and shaky. He feels the heat building between his legs. “What…?”

“Shh,” Steve insists, dipping his head to kiss a line down Billy’s neck. He bites down a little, and starts in on sucking a mark.

“Fuck,” Billy breathes. “I-”

Steve slaps at the radio sitting on the table between the beds. He cranks the volume all the way up and shoves Billy so he sprawls out over the mattress. “I don’t want to think right now.”

Billy just grins, because yeah, okay. “Works for me.”

Realizations: In Which Alya Realizes First

This is my @mlsecretsanta​ gift for @miraculousstorytelling​ so I really hope you like it! You said you liked OT4 and I wanted to do something a little challenging, so this is actually a 5 part fic! Also available on Ao3!

“There is never a time or place for true love. It happens accidentally, in a heartbeat, in a single flashing, throbbing moment.”

Or the five moments that lead the main four to discovering the truth about their feelings.

Alya liked to consider herself the top journalist at Collège Françoise Dupont, which meant she had trained herself to notice the small things.

She had been the first to notice when Max had shown up with a new pair of glasses, as well as the first to notice when Juleka showed up with another piercing, along with being the first to notice when Ivan showed up to school with pins from a new band he liked. She prided herself on being the most observant person in school, and she wore the title proudly.

The first time she saw Marinette, she thought the girl was cute, dark hair pulled back into cute pigtails and bright blue eyes. When she saw Chloe harassing her and heard how defeated the girl sounded, she had stood up without a second thought to step in. Chloe seemed obnoxious, like any school bully, but the way Marinette seemed so resigned to it left her more than a little uncomfortable, especially as the girl tripped, spilling macarons all over the floor and apologising all the way.

Comforting the girl was easy, although she’s sure a large part of that is built upon years of experience comforting her younger siblings. She doesn’t bother to think too deeply on it as she pulls the smaller girl in close and tries her best to encourage her to be more confident. She had seen her earlier attempt against Chloe taking her seat and Alya was sure that if she could just find it in herself to stand up more, she’d have far fewer problems than she currently did.

When Marinette simply smiled, broke her macaron in half, and handed half over to Alya while introducing herself, Alya knew she was screwed. Marinette had been cute in a kind of ‘kicked puppy’ way before, but the way her smile lit up her whole face was so beautiful Alya was sure nothing else would ever compare.

Falling for Nino is unexpected, and so fast it feels like whiplash. One moment she’s trying to coach Marinette through the most awkward conversation with Nino she’s ever seen, and the next thing she knows, Ladybug is throwing them both into a gorilla cage and dashing off to defeat the akuma.

She’s upset at first, partly at the fact that she’s locked in a gorilla cage, partly because she’s now missing her chance to record the battle for the Ladyblog, and slightly because she’s locked in the cage with Nino.

It’s not that she has anything against the DJ, but if she’s really going to be locked in a cage with someone, she would rather it be someone she’s friends with, like Marinette. She finds herself so focused on trying to find a way out that she ropes Nino into helping her by letting her sit on his shoulders, oblivious to the way he fidgets with his headphones as she looks around.

When she finally gives up and settles back against the log with Nino, her eyes are immediately drawn to his fingers tapping against his thigh. She can hear the beat coming from his headphones and finds herself trying to be as quiet as possible so she can listen along. A few moments later when the song changes, she watches as Nino’s fingers quickly change rhythm to follow the song’s beat and before she even realizes, she’s reached out to stop him. She’s watched Adrien fidget like Nino is and every time, Nino reaches out and holds the model’s hand until he calms down.

Nino’s head immediately snaps to her, and when she smiles at him, he pulls his headphones off his ears and settles them around his neck, pressing pause on the song as he does. Without a word, she moves so she’s settled against his side, pulling his headphones off his neck so she can settle one end against her ear as her free hand reaches for his phone to press play and fiddle with the volume.

When the music begins to play and he’s still sitting there staring at her, she raises an eyebrow and he fumbles for the other end of the headphone, pressing it against his ear as well. Two songs later, he’s stopped fidgeting, so she presses pause and starts talking. She opens with complimenting his music and the conversation quickly moves forward from there. When the swarm of ladybugs sweeps by and deposits them on the bench outside of the cage, she finds herself a little disappointed at them going their separate ways.

She doesn’t even think on it before inviting him to check on Marinette, and when he smiles and agrees, she doesn’t even stop to think on the way her heart sighs in her chest as they start walking. The conversation has jumped to how much they both dislike Gabriel Agreste when he makes some corny joke, one so ridiculous she can’t remember it now, that causes her to completely lose it.

She’s laughing so hard that she can feel the stitch in her side growing, but she can’t bring herself to stop. When she’s on the brink of taming the giggles, she turns to shoot Nino a playful glare and instead finds herself frozen. He’s smiling at her, and it’s obvious he hasn’t realized that she’s looking back at him with how gentle it is. She can’t describe it beyond the fact that he seems ‘softer’ with that smile painted across his lips and the sun highlighting the gold in his eyes. When she’s gotten rid of the pain in her side and stood up fully, he turns forward and keeps walking, and though he’s not wearing the smile anymore, her heart tells her she won’t be forgetting it anytime soon.

Falling for Adrien is almost so ridiculous, she wants to smack herself. He’s literally the class pretty boy, and while she’s sure most of the girls at their school have a crush on him, she’d mentally vowed the day she’d first met him, to not be one of them.

Of course, those vows meant nothing when he consistently proved how much deeper and more wonderful he was than anyone else had first assumed. The boy, aside from being the prettiest person she had ever met, was also as close to a genius as she had ever seen. He seemed to understand the work they were given quicker than the teachers did half the time, and he was always kind in trying to help other students with understanding.

He also had a habit of checking in on those who had been akumatized the next day, bringing each of them a small gift basket tailored to their interests and making sure they were okay. Nino’s had been full of cds, band t-shirts, and tickets to his favorite band’s concert. Alix’s included new wheels for her skates, in a myriad of different colors, as well as a year’s pass to the local rink. Alya’s had come with a new phone charm, a lens clip for her phone camera, and an account for an online cloud service so her photos and videos were automatically uploaded and she didn’t have to worry about them accidentally getting deleted. He had even gone so far as to give gift baskets to everyone who had been akumatized, including Mr. Ramier, Mr. Haprele, and Mr. Grimault.

She hadn’t realized exactly how hard she’d fallen until the Gamer incident.

She had seen how excited Adrien was to have won against Max, and knowing how controlling his father was, she wasn’t at all surprised at how excited he seemed to be now that he was going to be in the competition.

Then, Marinette’s giving up her controller to Max, and while Alya finds part of her hoping the girl will stay in the competition so she can play with Adrien, the larger part of her knows that giving it up is the better choice.

Of course, then Adrien’s showing up and handing his controller off to Marinette. He’s assuring her that honestly, she’s much better than him at the game and actually deserves the spot, and while Alya can tell he’s happy to let Marinette play in his place, she can also see the quick flash of disappointment that crosses his face once everyone is focused on Max and Marinette.

She watches as he cheers the two on with the rest of the class, and though he’s lost his opportunity for some fun not controlled by his dad, he seems as excited and happy as the rest of them to simply stand back and wish the two players luck. It’s when she’s watching him cheer, smile wide and cheeks lightly flushed that it hits her like a freight train.

The biggest realization doesn’t come until she’s invited the three of them over for a study date and she wanders into the living room after having checked on the cookies in the oven.

Marinette had pulled her hair up into a messy ponytail as she stood in the corner of the room, laughing and holding Nino’s hat hostage, hair that wasn’t in the ponytail framing her face messily. Without his hat, Nino’s hair fell around his face, forcing him to move one arm to push it out of the way as the other pinned Adrien to the couch, tickling him every time the blond reached up to pull Nino’s hand away. Adrien was laughing in a way that left Alya wondering if he was even able to breathe as he flailed about, both hands trying to push Nino aside so he could grab the hat from Marinette first as his legs pushed against the arm of the couch.

The room was filled with laughter from Marinette’s small giggles to Nino’s deeper chuckles, with Adrien’s gasps and squeals of laughter thrown in. The sunlight from the large window highlighted the golden speckles of Nino’s eyes, as well as the sheer quantity of Marinette’s freckles dotted across her cheekbones and nose, as well as the array of golds and yellows that made up Adrien’s shaggy hair. As Alya took in the sight, her brain froze at the sudden realization her heart had thrust upon her.

“Oh no,” she thought, continuing to watch the group in front of her. “I’m completely in love with them all.”

The Stranger Things Kids: Sorted into Hogwarts Houses

I recently listened to this Weird Sisters podcast sorting all the Stranger Things characters into Hogwarts Houses. And while I didn’t agree with all of their sorting choices, I loved their take on the four boys being a conceptual representation of the Hogwarts founders. Now I can’t help thinking that if our boys actually went to Hogwarts together, then they would all choose to be in the same house and that house would undoubtedly be Ravenclaw. Nerdy Ravenclaw traits are something they all have in common and it’s at least the secondary house for three of them, but the primary house of only one of them. Our Hawkins boys are actually ideal representations of each of the four houses and how these four character types can work together as an effective complimentary unit. So I wanted to expand on why the boys fit their houses so perfectly and then ponder which house Eleven might possibly be sorted into. The jury is still out on her.     

Mike Wheeler: Gryffindor

Like the great Taystee Jefferson before him, Mike is a Gryffindor soul with a Ravenclaw mind. Like all the boys Mike is fiercely intelligent, but it’s his bravery, compassion and recklessness that drives him. Mike’s classic Gryffindor moment of course comes when he leaps off a cliff to save Dustin. It’s worth noting that in this scene Troy actually gave Mike the option of pissing himself or jumping to his possible death. And Mike with his insane impulsive Gryffindor courage chooses to show his bully that he’s ready to sacrifice himself for a friend at any moment rather than trying to negotiate for Dustin’s safety through fulfilling a lesser dare. Mike has another “You will have to kill me before I let you hurt my friend” scene when Brenner’s soldiers come for El at the school. And in the S2 finale Mike is not content with being benched or even just creating some small diversion to help El close the gate. No it’s Mike plan to go right to the roots of the Shadow Monsters hive mind and then set it on fucking fire.

The balls on this kid, seriously. But it’s not just his bravery that makes Mike a Gryffindor. We also see it in his desire and ability to be a leader. As the Dungeon Master of his group, Mike is assertive, motivational, a little controlling and a lot of a show off (as seen in his hilariously theatrical Thessalhydra death performance in the S1 finale). Mike can be arrogant in his leadership sometimes, expecting that no other party members will make decisions without him and furious when he finds out important decisions have been taken out of his hands. Like many a Gryffindor Mike has a hot temper, he shouts a lot and he gets his big ‘caps lock Harry!’ moment when he rages at Hopper for hiding El from him. That scene is the perfect clash of Mike’s righteous Gryffindor fire with Hopper’s cold cunning Slytherin survivalism. I suspect these two will continue to have conflict in future seasons as all great Gryffindors and Slytherins do. I’m also predicting that once they’ve grown out of their sibling squabbles we’ll start to see a stronger alliance between Mike and his sister. Nancy is also a Gryffindor with Ravenclaw wit and Hogwarts house traits tend to run in families, even though the magical Wheeler kids were born to oblivious muggle parents. Just as Nancy grabs a gun when the Byres house is under attack from demodogs, Mike snatches the first improvised weapon at hand, a candlestick. Mike surely doesn’t know how to fight with a candlestick. Point is the boy’s a fighter by nature.     

Dustin Henderson: Ravenclaw

Do not tell me that Dustin is anything other than a Ravenclaw. I will fight you. I will grant that Hufflepuff may be Dustin’s secondary house, but it’d still be a very distant second because this kid is so Ravenclaw it hurts. Though he may at first appear to be the goofball of the group (not that Hufflepuff’s are actually goofs but this is the common misconception) Dustin is really the brains of the operation. It is shown time and time again that while all the boys are smart, Dustin is by far the smartest. Take the scene where Dustin comes up with the plan to use their compasses to find the gate and is a little pained at how long it takes Mike and Lucas to grasp a concept that instantly makes sense to him. This is what makes Dustin so Ravenclaw, his quick comprehension of crazy complex ideas. Though  it is more often Dungeon Master Mike who first comes up with theories on their supernatural problems, it’s Dustin who takes Mike’s ideas, expands on them and guides their party towards possible solutions. Look at how Dustin takes charge of explaining the Veil of Shadows and the Mind Flayer to the group, using textual references from the D&D handbook to support his thesis. He also fussily insists that everyone starts using his newly invented ‘demodog’ terminology, which is another classic Ravenclaw quirk. Dustin is full of them.

This is a kid who steals library books and interrupts his science teacher’s dates and justifies it by saying he’s on a curiosity quest. Dustin doesn’t tend to be as bold as Mike and Lucas in fights (he’s the one who initially cautions Will to cast protection) but Dustin is a fearless adventurer when it comes to expanding his knowledge. I’d say that it’s his Ravenclaw inquisitiveness rather than Hufflepuff sweetness that drives Dustin to risk keeping Dart as his pet. And while Dustin keeping Dart could be considered a dumb move from a supposedly smart kid, Dustin is vindicated in the end when he successfully uses his bond with Dart to help him and his friends escape the tunnels. Dustin doesn’t get too sentimental over leaving Dart (presumably to die?) seeming more interested in his scientific discoveries as he tells Steve to preserve a dead demodog in the freezer. Indeed, Dustin’s discovery that they can tame monsters from the Upside Down could prove really useful in future seasons. Lastly, I will add that Dustin’s Ravenclaw mind doesn’t always serve him well. He has a tendency to overthink things and assume his theories will always work in practice - such as if he copies the way Steve acts with girls, he will get girls like Steve does. This is why Ravenclaws like Dustin (and dear Luna) are often kooky misfits. Things that make perfect sense in their heads don’t always fit in with reality.        

Lucas Sinclair: Slytherin

This is not to say that Lucas is the dark or corruptible kid of the group. Lucas is actually a great example of how a Slytherin can be a powerful ally, particularly a Slytherin with Ravenclaw brains (see Stiles Stilinski as another great example of this type). Lucas, like all Slytherins, is fiercely loyal to his own people yet very suspicious and hostile towards those outside his circle. To say that Slytherins have a strong sense of self-preservation is not to say they’re cowards. Lucas is clearly a little badass, but he’s also far more cautious, cunning and prepared for battle than impulsively-jump-off-a-cliff Gryffindors like Mike. Lucas has his wrist rocket and his army-style kit bag and he thinks before he acts or trusts anyone. Whereas Mike immediately took El in without question, Lucas gave her a hard time but also exhibited a rational mistrust of a girl so strange and powerful. But when Lucas comes to trust El, he is devoted to her. Lucas initially holds back on bringing Max in and telling her any of their secrets too. Like Mike he has a crush on the girl who he wants to be their new party member, but unlike Mike he is not blinded by his emotions. When Lucas brings Max into the fold he plans for it, he does it in a secure setting, he acknowledges the risks and he makes sure Max is aware of the consequences. And he does all this without consulting the group, because if Mike can take charge and recruit new members then so can he. And he will vet his newcomers more than Mike ever did.

So I guess the main thing that makes Lucas Slytherin for me is how he clashes with Mike. He’s one member of the party who challenges Mike as their leader. Their little row over both wanting to be Venkman speaks volumes. It is not just because Lucas resents being automatically cast as the black guy. It’s because Lucas and Mike both want to be the main man. There’s a sense in S2 that Lucas has taken the leadership role away from Mike, given that they are now playing arcade games, not D&D. As Dungeon Master, Mike led them in a game where they would all worked together as a group, though he was the one shaping the adventures. In the arcade, the games are competitive and Lucas is clearly the best at them, having the most high scores. While Mike seems disinterested and forgets to collect quarters, Lucas is out mowing lawns so he can show off his skills and brag about being top of most of the score boards. This is his Slytherin ambition coming through. Lucas is initially attracted to Max because she is a worthy arcade competitor and he treats his love triangle with Dustin and Max as a competition he’s determined to win. And just like Lucas gets the princess on Dragon’s Lair, he also gets the girl at the Snowball. Ironically though, I’d place Max in Gryffindor, meaning that like Mike and Lucas, they are likely to have a stormy relationship in future. But in Lucas’s case as an intellectual ambitious Slytherin, he thrives on people who challenge him.     

Will Byers: Hufflepuff

Here’s our Hufflepuff. I was impressed that the podcast correctly sorted Will into Hufflepuff after only S1. It shows just how well Will was characterized even in a minor role. Though as they also rightly point out, Will was always most likely to be in Hufflepuff because he was raised in a family of Hufflepuffs. Not Lonnie of course but Joyce and Jonathan are both shown to be hard working, quiet and kind-natured and incredibly loyal to their loved ones. Will might not be working long hours to bring money into the Byers house like they are, but his preference for drawing over action figures hints that he’s a worker bee too. Unlike the other boys who favor games where they fight and win, Will would rather spend time quietly creating something. And while his mom is so gushingly proud of Will’s artistic talent, Will himself is quiet and humble about it. Just as he is humble in the games he plays with his friends. In D&D, the demogorgan gets Will because he was trying to do what was best for their group. He lacks the ambition to win for himself. Will always chooses to be kind and to please others. Like in the story Joyce tells about him giving away his Tonka truck to a little girl who was crying. It makes Will the best peacekeeper of the group - his little “Why can’t there just be two Venkmans?” line was so perfectly Hufflepuff.

However, for all his sweetness it’s not surprising that Will has had the darkest storyline so far. While Hufflepuffs are kind souls, they can also be perilously naive. See Jesse Pinkman as the perfect example of a sweet Hufflepuff who is especially vulnerable to evil influences and manipulation. His open and trusting Hufflepuff nature is partly what makes Will prey to the shadow monster. In S2, Will’s first mistake was to follow Bob’s advice, dear Bob who meant well but had no comprehension of the powerful forces Will was up against. Will is not a fighter like Mike and Lucas are. He survived the Upside Down mostly through hiding and holding on until he could be rescued. When he becomes possessed Will survives in the same way. Will takes Mike’s advice and he quietly spies on the monster inside him and selflessly works to leak his knowledge of the monster through his maps and Morse code messages. Even when being mind controlled by evil forces, his Hufflepuff nature shines through.  

Eleven: Undecided

So all this brings me to El, the character I find that Stanger Things sorting hat posts struggle with the most. The Weird Sisters put Eleven in Ravenclaw on the basis of her telekinetic abilities, but I’d argue that having superpowers in your brain is not the same as being intelligent and cerebral. Ravenclaw is actually the last house I would sort El into, because she lacks a complex perspective on all matters. She tends to view people as either good or bad, she gets angry over lies and broken promises while ignoring any complicated reasons behind them. El does not act based on rationality but on her raw instincts. Her powers may be concentrated in her mind but in S2 they made it clear that her powers are fueled by her emotions. Dustin has described El’s superpowers as being like a battery that they need to recharge. But at the school, it turned out that El didn’t need chocolate pudding to take down Brenner’s men and the demogorgan. The thing that charged up her powers was her love for Mike. It was Mike kissing her and sweetly promising her she can have a normal life. That gave her strength to fight back when she was drained. So given that El is a feeler more than a thinker, I’m stuck between Gryffindor and Slytherin for her house.

As I’ve said with other characters like Will and Mike, Hogwarts houses often run in families. Eleven is a girl who’s been raised by Slytherins. And not just by bad Slytherins like Brenner, but by a more decent Slytherin like Hopper. She has a third Slytherin influence in her lost sister Kali. The Slytherin breeding has rubbed off on El. Like a Slytherin she is also fiercely loyal to her loved ones but hostile to outsiders, like Max. Like a Slytherin she has strong self-preservation instincts. And I suppose most of all like a Slytherin, El has a real potential to turn dark and have her powers become monstrous. However, El is in love with a Gryffindor and it could well be said that their shared Gryffindor spirits is what brought Mike and El together. It’s too early to say for sure but I think El is one of those characters who will slowly move away from her family house. Clarke Griffin was born into a family of Gryffindors and started off Gryffindor herself, but she developed into a diehard Slytherin. I could see El developing in a similar way, but in the other direction. Bred to be Slytherin, yet born to be Gryffindor.    

Other Gryffindors: Nancy, Steve and Max.

Other Ravenclaws: Bob, Murray and Mr Clarke.

Other Hufflepuffs: Joyce, Jonathan and Barb.

Other Slytherins: Hopper, Brenner, Billy and Kali.   

                           “I don’t wanna tame your animal style

                         You won’t be caged in the call of the wild”

           Swinging my cheery red firecracker in a full arch, I strummed the broom handle dramatically to shred to the chorus. Ah, it was good to have my music back.

                             “ Shooting at the walls of heartache

                                             BANG, BANG

                                          I am the Warrior”

             “YES I AM THE WARRIOR!” More yelling than singing, I stumbled a quick side step to not fall into the packed snow or the frozen footpath. I know, I know, I’ve lived here for over a year and I’m suppose to get use to the snow and blahblahlah. See, back in San Francisco now was the PREFECT time to grab your board and hit the coastal waves. With a bit of a cool breeze, it was also an excellent time to avoid tourists. Perfect. England is… wet. Scotland is… angry.

       Dropping my broom back to my side, I snugged my scarf closer to my neck when I finally saw the rooftops of Hogsmeade. I tried my best to keep the cold from 95% of my body (Wearing two baseball tops, three layers of pants, scratchy wool socks, and my “jumper” from Christmas) but I was stubborn to keep the breeze away from my neck. Remember when I said I was thinking of making my dad’s coin into a necklace? Surprise! That’s exactly what I did. It sat comfortably beneath my clothes (at all times) from a dainty gold chain. It was too girly for just anyone to see me wearing, I can’t have them thinking I’m suddenly turning into Lavender or something. The enchantment my dad used (the super dad one where it glows and warms when he’s holding it, (insert one of his dad jokes about holding hands here)) over the past few months the metal feels colder, if that’s possible. I could feel my stomach turn just thinking of it all. Three months ago I couldn’t go three days without the coin giving me the thought of dad, probably hunched over his desk covered in stacks of paperwork but still managing to remember me. I groaned out the built up worry in my gut right before fiddling a piece of droobles from it’s wrapper. If I couldn’t distract myself from THAT- Popping the fat square of blue gum into my mouth, I turned the volume wheel to max on my Walkman. It’s better not to think about it.

      I pressed my lips together into a smile as I approached the front door to The Three Broomsticks. Stop thinking about dad. My first attempt to push the door open, it squealed it response. Stupid sticky door. I threw my shoulder into it a second time before it screamed open. Seems the door hates the cold too.

           It was packed, just like always. You’d think there was something in the butterbeer here. I’d figure not many other kids from Hogwarts would want to leave the super cozy common room during winter. The fireplace and blankets sounds pretty good- why did I agree to this again? Shuffling round about the tables with no sign of my tall, broodsome friend. I took a glance to a near empty table to my left. Oh good, it was just a group of three Ravenclaws studying and taking up a whole table for studying. I jolted to the single empty chair next to the oldest of the three who gave me a “What the hell, crazy face” look.

           “I’m commandeering this chair… Ministry business and all that.” I pulled out the stumpy seat and hoisted myself up onto it. With this view I could see everyone, just as much as everyone lose could see me. I even got a few confused stares from the patrons, which I returned with a cheesy grin. After some leans to the left and right, I pinpointed Theodore’s fancy overcoat at the bar. Hah, sure turn down fire whiskey but take a mystery “House Special” brew here. I hopped down off the chair with a loud THUD before slipping into the mob of a crowd. I never figured myself “Short” till now, everyone in this place had to have been 5’10 and up. Jeez. Parting the crowd with my broom held high I inched the entire way to the bar.

             “Let’s meet at the Three Broomsticks, he said.” I announced myself behind Theodore just before nudging shoulders with him. I scooted myself onto half his stool seat while he was distracted from my sudden ninja appearance. “What’re we having? Hmmm?” I leaned to the bar onto my elbows. Butter beer of course, it’s not hard to miss in that glass pint of his. I just love messing with him, Theodore is so easily tensed. God, you should’ve seen ‘em when Theo just started bringing him around. A solid week I was surprising him- just testing the limits on this seemingly stuffy guy.

       “I am having a butterbeer, you have yet to order..” Snatching his glass from my line of sight, he leaned a bit heavier to his left trying to awkwardly scoot away from me. “The last time you referred to a drink as a plural possessive I turned around and was left with an empty glass.”

       “Aw, that hurts my feelings. Sharing is caring, ya know…” I chuckled and looked to the irritated Madam Rosmerta behind the bar. I’d probably be annoyed too if my place was overpacked with non paying students just looking for a place to hang out. I leaned further over the bar to get her attention and loudly ordered a butterbeer over the crowd. A small nod for confirmation from Rosmerta and a thumbs up for a response from myself, I sat back down and swore I saw a NEAR smirk on Theodore before he raised his pint to his lips. Whatever you might say about Theodore, I know he’s a big ol’ softie underneath. Under the hundreds of layers of smarty, sophisticated, lacrosse player kind of layers. WAAAAY underneath he’s a good, funny guy. Like me. Sort of.

             “So, I heard the Theo/Theodore crime fighting duo- Or would you guy be Batman and Robin… ” I paused only for a few seconds trying to imagine the two. “I mean, Theo would be the Robin, just between the two of us.” I lowered my voice to a near whisper and snorted at the thought of Theo in bright green tights. It would’ve been so much funnier if I wasn’t the only one who understood the image. “Good on you, helping his dad the way you did. Theo said it was a really powerful spell. I guess I now know why I wasn’t invited to the party.”

           Rosmerta rounded the bar again and dropped my mug of butterscotch and frothy goodness in front of me. In return I gave the exact amount of pricing for a mug- the money thing is still confusing BUT I’ve ordered it enough to memorize at least THAT much.

             “The spell was a powerful one- but it was also... highly illegal as well.” Theodore spoke in hushed tones while I took a quick swig of Butterbeer. “If it wasn’t Mad-Eye who came for us, I would be in Azkaban right now. I was willing to take the risk, Theo wouldn’t risk anyone else’s safety so eagerly…”

           You could always tell his seriousness by the monotone whispering. Wow, he really was Batman.

           “Well, while you two were off fighting crime in Gotham City. I was er-“ I looked around us from all sides and sighed nervously. I took two gulps from my pint and wiped my mouth with the backside of my hand dramatically. “Okay, I’m going to tell you something super secret. I know how you’re good at keeping them…”

       “Right, Obviously.” Shaking his head at my bad joke he leaned against the bar and sipped his butterbeer.

       “George Weasley, you know him? I mean, who doesn’t…” I cleared my throat and turned my cheesy grin into a serious one. Batman mode on, Maggie. “Know how I stayed over at Ginny’s? They’re related. I mean, you probably know that… But they’re siblings. So he was there over Christmas and everything. And I’ve had a… small, very small.” I gave an inch between my index finger and thumb. “The tiniest little crush on him-“ I rolled my eyes and avoided looking him in the face. “I lied, it’s… it was pretty bad. But- Ginny, one night she tells me “Maggie, I think George likes you. Weird, right?”” I could feel my face turning pink, in response I shot him a full smile. Hell, I was already grinning telling the story. “I wasn’t sure at first but I’m… I’m pretty sure he does. But I’m… I mean, I’m awesome but… George Weasley?!” I checked my surroundings again after my outburst of his name. I tried my best to keep my voice at a near whisper.

        “Anytime I’ve just… WANTED someone, it usually just works out and I’m kissing them by next Tuesday but it’s different. HE’S different. I can’t just kiss him, I mean not that I haven't thought about it- I mean, first off I can’t even reach his stupid mouth…”  

       “I think...” Theodore cut me off with a small wave, more like an attempt to stop my rambling. Good. I picked at the single burgundy yarn sticking out from the side of my glove. “It is a brave act; to show your emotions instead of hiding them. It’s likely what he finds appealing, your brash nature. You shouldn’t be afraid to act on instinct around him.”

       “What does-“

       “If you want to kiss him, then kiss him.”

       Just KISS HIM. What. WHAT KIND OF ADVICE IS THAT. I could feel an odd vibration in my chest  thinking of… JUST KISSING HIM. Maybe it could work if I was on my broom and I-

       “Ah, Miss Garnet! Just who I was looking for!” The voice came from behind us and on queue, the both of us turned around to see a bundle of copper color plaid named Sluggy. Looking exceptionally excited with his lopsided grin and crooked eyebrow, he looked between us. Ah, no.

       “Professor! Care for a butter beer?” I rummaged in my pocket for some coins.

       “Oh, no. No, my dear girl. I have a meeting with Dumbledore soon. No time to dawdle. Oh- A few recruiters from universities here and there are interested in seeing Gryffindor’s next game. I’ve told them to keep an eye on Potter, Holling and yourself.” Sluggy gave me a not-so-subtle wink before a tiny bow of his head. “Oh, would you kindly inform Mister Holling of the news? I can’t seem to find that rascal anywhere.”

       “Will do professor.” I gave a smile and turned back to my mug. Theodore turned back as well and chuckled into his glass. Was that a laugh? Well that might as well be gold coming from him. Even while I chugged my butterbeer, Theodore’s victory was accompanied with the click of the empty glass mug against the bar.

       “We’d better find that little rascal then.” Theodore’s unemotional tone made it even funnier. I snorted my drink and pulled back to cough/laugh.