And I wonder what possible catastrophe came crashing down from heaven, and brought this dashing stranger to tears? BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER: S5E7: Fool for Love | S7E5: Selfless

Official artwork for Slayers: A Buffyverse Story.

Ash unfolded the paper. A jolt went through his body. He turned away quickly so that Jace and Sebastian, deep in conversation, wouldn't see his expression.

It was her, the strange human girl he's once seen in the Unseelie weapons room. Dark hair, eyes the colour of the sky he only partially remembered. A murder of crows circled in the sky behind her. Not a photograph, but a drawing, done with a wistful hand, a sense of love and longing emanating from the page. A name was scribbled in a corner: Drusilla Blackthorn.

Drusilla. She looked lonely, Ash thought, but determined as well, as if a hope lived behind those summer-blue eyes, a hope that could not be quenched by loss, a hope too strong to feel despair.

Ash's heart was pounding, though he could not have said why. Hastily, he folded the drawing and thrust it into his pocket.

there is literally nothing (and i mean nothing) that anyone could say that would convince me that ash doesn't have the biggest crush on dru blackthorn idfc.

LET ME TELL YOU this ain't platonic in the slightest, okay?

NOW FOR THOSE WHO HAVE TIME I WANNA ANALYSE THIS BC I HAVE ISSUES WELCOME

this one is for the folks who doubt morgenthorn will be endgame *peace out*

like the "her" being in italics is already sus enough because he's like "omg it's the pretty girl i saw that one time *blushes furiously*" and then he seems so pleased to finally know her name????? drusilla???? and then like examines the drawing so thoroughly it’s actually mental???? he thinks she’s the most gorgeous human to ever walk the earth (and he’s not wrong)

and to top it all off he’s all “hmmm my heart is beating kinda fast lolsies i wonder why” and then wait for it HE FUCKING TAKES THE DRAWING!!! LIKE HE FOLDS IT AND PUTS IT IN HIS POCKET BC OFC HE DOES!!!! HE HAS TO LOOK AT IT IN HIS FREE TIME U KNOW BC THAT’S WHAT U DO (when ur a freaking simp)!!! he is so so whipped already and twp hasn’t even been released pls i’m so far gone for them save me

dru is getting like properly thirsted over AND FUCKING RIGHTFULLY SO bc she’s an absolute goddess and we all know it… and ash is the drusilla blackthorn fanclub founder idc like god he is gonna have it SO bad for her in twp and guys when she finds out he kept the drawing all these years, i will simply evaporate out of existence

morgenthorn is gonna be my downfall mark my words

i can’t wait yay A N G S T😀

[pterodactyl screech]

remember on buffy when evil willow from another dimension tied angel up and burned him with cigarettes just because it was would be hot if that happened? do you remember when Kira from ds9 had an evil bisexual dominatrix counterpart, also from another dimension? the sexy evil universe where everyone wears fetish gear and is a depraved bisexual used to be a genre staple. we need to bring it back.

“it’s hard for you, i know, but its only death. In the end, we all go over the river. I’m looking forward to meeting grandfather and seeing antigone again.” // domina 2.08

Not to like hate on Angel on main, but anyone who took the opportunity to beat the shit out of him was completely justified in doing so

ROUND 2 MOST FUCKABLE FFXIV LADY

How do you think Augustus felt about Livia?

It's a bit hard to parse out how the man felt about anyone, just because he controlled his image so tightly that nobody ever publicly saw anything he didn't want them to see, save for some very rare exceptions (ex: Augustus is recorded as having become publicly emotional three times in his entire public life, and two out of those three were very likely deliberate performances meant to engender a specific response, though one of them was definitely just spontaneous emotion). And with the added caveat that trying to ascribe feelings to historical figures can be very tough because those involve private thoughts that we are just not historically privy to, especially during the Antiquity where we're just missing so many records, I think it's fair to say that there was some kind of love there.

There's a lot of misconceptions around their relationship because Augustus and Livia just have very negative public reputations (Augustus just due to the popularity of Antony and Cleopatra as a couple, which means that most stories of this time are about them, slotting him into the role of antagonist or even outright villain in contrast to them as protagonists; Livia due to the popularity of stories like I, Claudius, which painted her as a scheming manipulator and burgeoned outward from there) that sees them both as people who didn't care about anyone, let alone possibly each other, and were in this relationship purely for opportunism and power. That's not to say that they didn't care about the power or opportunities the match would have afforded both of them, they clearly did; I've never bought into the legend that Octavian fell in love with Livia at first sight because nothing I've read about the guy, Mr. "hasten slowly" himself, shows someone who made snap judgments without thought. Octavian had prestige from his relationship to Caesar, and his family was influential in their Roman suburb, but he didn't have the patrician family roots that Livia did, and marrying her would have given him additional prestige to really solidify power. For Livia's part, her family was on the downward spiral after having repeatedly been on the wrong side in recent wars (her father fought for Brutus and Cassius, her first husband routinely was opposed to Augustus not just at Philippi but also during Fulvia's War and my beloved Siege of Perusia as well as siding with Sextus Pompey when he opposed Octavian), and allying herself instead with someone who was shoring up massive amounts of power and influence in his own right would have been hugely beneficial for her and her children. There was absolutely a calculus that went into this relationship and in figuring out what both parties could bring to the table to make the marriage viable against some not great optics, like Livia already being pregnant by her first husband and Octavian getting ready to break his alliance to Sextus by divorcing Scribonia (literally on the day she gave birth to Julia, my man you couldn't have waited a day?).

But I don't think that means that there wasn't any feeling there. For one, again, there were some bad optics involved as well as changes in alliances, and Livia definitely needed Octavian more than he needed her; he could have absolutely found some other patrician woman to boost up his pedigree by association rather than one from a family that had constantly opposed him. I wouldn't be shocked if there had been some emotion behind choosing Livia specifically, that when they met (sources say she was personally introduced to him before they decided to get married, so they had at least one chance for rapport) they formed a connection of some kind and an appreciation for each other. We also know that Octavian, as he grew in power and especially once things steadied in Rome and he got his name changed to Augustus, still relied on her as a source of advice and listened to her as a counselor, in spite of her gender and the extreme patriarchal nature of Rome. Augustus, when it comes to Livia's role as an advisor to him, actually had Livia occupying a space very similar to the one he had originally occupied for Julius Caesar: not just being an advisor and a trusted someone at their side, but also someone you could ask to intercede for you with The Great Man either on your behalf or on the behalf of someone you cared about. That Augustus allowed this at all shows a care for her, because he was big on the rigid societal structures and propriety of Ancient Rome, what with all his family laws and his strong stance on morality. But I do think the strongest indicator of love between them, since I do believe there was a love between them, is in the fact that they stayed married.

Livia and Augustus were married for 51 years, from 39 BC until he died in AD 14. And it is honestly wild that, in all that time, they never got divorced. Divorce in Ancient Roman times was exceptionally easy. Literally all was required was that one of the parties move out of the house and that's it, you're considered divorced legally and religiously in all ways that mattered. That's why, when you read about these people, you see how often they're just getting divorced right and left at the slightest provocation, Augustus included, divorcing Claudia and Scribonia with relative ease. But not Livia, even though the marriage wasn't doing the one thing most political marriages really need to be doing: bringing in children. Livia and Augustus never had any children, and only ever one pregnancy, which ended in a stillbirth. Given that Augustus specifically really needed an acceptable heir, as he was trying to build a hereditary autocracy that relied on power being passed down from father to son, rather than the semi-democracy Rome had at the time, this is a big deal. We know that Augustus struggled with heirs, mostly because everyone he ever wanted as an heir kept dying before him (which has to suck, just on a personal level, given that a lot of these were family members that he'd been close to and viewed as his own children, sorry man), and he probably would have very much liked to have a natural son to prepare to succeed him, rather than bouncing around. And given how quickly it became apparent that his marriage to Livia was not going to give him any children at all, let alone any sons, he could have easily divorced her with just a few words and found someone else, especially after he cemented his power following Actium and patrician prestige was no longer as important as his own personal presence. But he didn't do that. For a man who always thought ahead and always made decisions based on how they would advance the goals he felt he needed to have, irregardless of personal feeling (the existence of the Second Triumvirate is basically proof that Augustus, very quickly in his political career, developed a habit of shunting his own personal feelings to the side for the sake of doing what needed to be done), choosing to stay in a marriage that wasn't really offering him anything beyond the companionship of a woman he loved is very weird. It speaks to the amount and the depth of feeling there, that he decided to remove political calculation and opportunism from his thought process and decide to stay in a marriage that wasn't necessarily advantageous, because he wanted to, because he cared about and loved the person he was married to.

All in all, I think he cared about her, probably did love her, and even if there was some opportunism in the match, it seems to have been a marriage between two people who enjoyed being together and liked each other.

Domina S01E08 Happiness

i start thinking of dru and buffy parallels and all of a sudden im shaking crying and throwing up

Convinced they could never let Spike and Faith truly meet until deep in S7 because their chemistry was too good, like off the fuckin charts. our screens would have melted and we would have been reduced to ash and loving every second of it lol

More Isabelle in the Magical Girl au

--

The Maidens Library is where the Spell book of Winifred Sanderson is. Elena has long been a studier of witchcraft and dark magic, and one of her areas of expertise is the Sanderson Coven. She wants the book for herself to further her magic. Through her connections and extensive research, Elena has known for years one of the previous Maidens (the Maidens being another area of research for her) had taken the book and stored it in the library to keep it out of the hands of evil. Elena wasn't sure she would ever see that book until she saw that mystical gem hanging from her daughters wrist.

Isabelle became fixated on the book. She stared at it in the glass case, tapping it gently, coaxing it to open its singular eye for her. Something about it called to the girl. Maybe it was pride thinking she could handle using it, maybe it was some demonic call, maybe after her current heartbreak she wanted some distraction, she wasn't sure, but Isabelle against her better judgement took it out of its case. So long as it never left the library it should be fine to study. After all, nothing could go in or out so long she allowed it. But the book after all, had a mind of its own and had slipped itself into her bag one day before she left. Isabelle was shocked to see it as she unpacked it from the bag. She debated telling her mom, after all she was an expert. But something in the back of her mind told her to keep it secret. So Isabelle kept the Sanderson book to herself and studied it, practiced her witchcraft.

On Halloween night, Elena has Isabelle go with her to perform a ritual. They were witches, this wasn't the first time, so Isabelle did not think much of it. Elena drew the circle in the dirt and placed an assortment of seemingly random candles and instructed her daughter to light them. Isabelle did as she was told. Halfway through her task, one flame turned black once lit. A sound like thunder echoed through the forest and there they stood. Three women in old fashioned clothing, cackling that they were back.

Isabelle felt her stomach drop. She had heard the story about the Sandersons and Winifreds last spell all her life and she had let it come to pass.

"Mom, stand back!" Isabelle was about to transform when she realized her bracelet was gone. "Huh?"That's when she saw it dangling from Elena hand. "Mom, give that back!"

"This is far too dangerous for someone so inexperienced. Don't worry, it's safe with me."

"Winnie..." The black haired sister said. "I smell a child." All three looked at Isabelle in the circle and lunged for her. She backed away quickly outside it as the Sandersons entered it. Only for them to scream.

"Oh infernal forces," Elena said. "Bind them for I am Master now."

"A clever trick," Winifred said as she was clearly fuming, "But a foolish one. You-"

"Silence." Elena commanded. And some invisible force made her quiet. Isabelle stood there in horror as her mother grinned. "Save your breath Winifred Sanderson. I know all your tricks. And I'm in control now. You can't have that one.".

"Mom, what's going on?"

Elena finally looked at her daughter, "I'm going to become the greatest witch, that's what. We're going to lead the strongest coven that ever existed."

"But- my bracelet! You're not meant to have it. I'm the chosen maide, not you. You can't just take-!"

"I can and I have. Oh don't look at me like that. You're far too inexperienced and weak to fully comprehend what you have here. Maybe one day you can have it back when you're older."

"No!" Isabelle ran and tried to snatch it away from her mother's grasp only for a gust of wind to push her away and into the dirt on her butt.

"Now I only need to find the book-" Elena noticed Winifred eyeing Isabelles bag on the ground. "Call for it."

The magic holding Winifred mouth shut set her free and with no other choice than to obey, she did. "Book! Come to me."

Isabelle watched in horror as the bag lifted off the ground and fell into the dirt as the spell book flew out of it and floated towards Winifred. She tried in vain to get up, but her mother's magic forced her to stay seated. Elena grabbed it in the air before it could reach it's true owner. She flipped through it with a grin.

"Well well. Seems you've been holding out on me. And you insist we aren't alike at all."

"We aren't! I was only-"

"Studying it?" Elena interrupted. "This book has been safely hidden away for centuries until you took it out."

" I just wanted to learn. To get better."

"And how is that any different from how I started?" Elena replied. "You want to act holier than thou, but youre no better than I am or them" she gestures to the Sandersons who were still huddled together in the circle watching this whole exchange. Isabelle glared at her mother, who did not seem bothered. "You can sit there and be mad at me all you want. But when I establish this coven, and you can have all the knowledge and power you want, you'll thank me. You may not see it now, but this is better for both us."

Isabelle could hear the sound of footsteps and yelling. She recognized the sound of Drew and Seiths voices calling for her. But she was still frozen in place, unable to run to them. She couldn't find it in herself to yell for them.

"Ah, good timing." Elena said as she looked to where they broke through the trees. "Sandersons. My daughter is off limits. But those two are fair game. Have at it."

Drew and Seith are @mangacupcake

@writing-heiress @marrondrawsalot @the-weirdos-mind

Slayers: A Buffyverse Story trailer 2

Cordelia: "This world is full of Slayers. Where I'm from, it's just me." Spike: "I've saved this world a couple of times, might as well save somebody else's." Indira: "Wait. Spike? I can't believe it's you!" Giles: "I was supposed to be retired." Anya: "I didn't expect you to be a coward." Drusilla: "My vampire subjects will worship me forever." Indira: "Woah! Bring it, then."

dreamer preview

this fic is dru's perspective of my other recent fic dream(ed) girl and essentially involves drusilla (a prophet with a demon in her brain) encountering dawn (a spell by morally ambivalent monks) for the first time. the memory doesn't quite work.

When Dru opened her eyes, she was surprised to find how close she was to the little thing. The power was not quite strong enough, in the direction slayers’ power went. There was something though, something she couldn’t remember, something she’d forgot. The forgetting was the hardest part, the Knowing and then not knowing. She’d fought the slayers, fought them both, one tangled up in another land, the other tangling with her Spike. This child was neither of them. Not a Slayer, not a slayer but something else. She remembered it then, or knew it. That whiff of power wasn’t from distance, but from connection. The girl was not a Slayer at all, only a Slayer’s -  -three walking out of church, side by side, she looked back and saw him and she held them close, there were monsters she was right to be afraid-  - “so much to do before she gets here” -  - hands clasped and heads bowed and she knew she was protected, she was on sacred ground, she knew, she knew, she knew -  - “it’s always darkest before the” -  - a light glowing, effulgent in front of a rising sun and the blood flowed until a heart stopped- - “you are now fully and definitively a handmaid of the precious blood” -  -she loved darla, darla who was a grandmother and daughter and lover and a-  -”be back before dawn.”  sister. 

buffy the vampire slayer but faith is the slayer, anya is the petty queer witch, cordelia is the funny one with emotional intelligence, spike is the vampire who may or may not be a love interest depending on how the writers feel and if he’s gonna get shunted off to his own spin-off soon and wesley is the watcher.

Really wished they'd explored the ramifications of sticking a Victorian (Spike) and an Irishman (Angel) in a house together. Really wish this had been cited as causing more of the animosity between them.