Good things:

★ new Cabin Pressure!! This week, Newcastle. No Benedict in this one; he was off with no voice, but it's awesome. This link allows you to stream the episode.

★ So many chocolate userheads and smoooches on my userinfo! Thank you to everyone: smilie117, rilla, lee, tailoredshirt, ven, dementordelta, viridescence, naadi, winstonmom, toast, deerang2002, emmagrant, rickey, ven, dmmccabe, kerry, flypaw, loki, lauriegilbert -- whew, that was kind of awesome. *smoooshes you all*

★ and to smittenfancy for the Orchids. (*affects Martin voice*) Are you about to propose to me?

★ summer school starts on Monday and there's a bit of a SNAFU going on -- I hope things get worked out this afternoon, otherwise Monday is going to be very, very interesting... Good thing about it, though: I'm doing upper school this time, and so many of the kids are former students, but older. Definitely looking forward to having time with them. ♥

★ Absolutely gorgeous John/Sherlock art by livia_carica here. [pg/pg13, probably SFW, but be cautious] Seriously stunning. I can't stop staring. Nor do I really want to.

★ girl_in_prague & inspiredlife tonight! And drusillas_rain & tjs_whatnot & incapricious on Sunday!

★ John Watson. guh. No, no link or anything. It just needed to be said.

★ I have a tea blend from Adagio teas called My Dear Watson [link] -- it's an Earl Grey/Chocolate blend and I really like it. Next time you visit, I'll make a pot and share with you. ♥


Alright, off to finish cleaning the living room, wash my face, and then head to school. *love*

Happy Birthday to me!

omg, omg, omg, omg, please, please go read this:

Five Times John Watson Disliked Being Compared to an Animal and One Time He Didn't Mind So Much (2800 words) by incapricious
Sherlock/John, rated g/pg -- by my very favorite incapricious in the world. ♥

It fits perfectly within the existing stories and is just fucking exquisite.

and it's my birthday, so I'm using my bemused eye-fuck icon so I can stare at it. And, I'm just going to put this here because it is exactly what I want to see all. day. long.


(found this via kim47, who is made of awesome.)


Ahhh, and now off to work! I hope you all have a lovely day!

Good morning!

I will have fic to post tonight, yay! I can't express how much fun it is to be writing again (on a regular basis) after so long with very little. I guess this whole Sherlock thing has really hit me hard.

Sherlock: *tall, snarky, brilliant*
John: * loves his brilliance; doesn't take his shit*
me: ♥____♥


Fun art link I found last night: a Sherlockian version of Keep Calm and Carry On by gothikmaus is here. So clever. Definitely my happy place this morning.


I hope you're all doing well. I'm off -- have a wonderful day, darlings! ♥

oh.
my.
GOD.

Kissing art. Of the most glorious kind. *flails*


Aw, come on, don't sulk... by mariemjs [sherlock/john, and oh I seriously can't handle how beautiful it is. Also, eye-fucking. Which we all know is my favorite kind of eye-action.]


[thank you to snottygrrl for the link; I have got to start watching that comm.]

*delighted squeals*

guys, guys, guys, GO AND READ THIS STORY incapricious wrote for me: bemused eye-fuck based on the John screencap from yesterday. [john/sherlock, pg13, warnings for UTTER PERFECTION]

GO GO GO! It's sooo gooooooooooooood and perfect and short and just the most very rightest story to read on a Saturday morning with tea (and no severed heads in the fridge). [Also, hush up. Grammar? Who needs grammar?]

*dies happily all over the place*

Lovely, wonderful day. ♥

Spent it hanging with my Cumberbrunchers (minus two), drinking tea, and eating lots of delicious food. Tonight is a load of laundry and possibly some writing.

Also!!! Please, please, please do go read this GLORIOUS ficlet written for me by incapricious! On Friday night I was a rabbit of negative euphoria and so she wrote Martin/Arthur (from Cabin Pressure) kissing! It's glorious. And the link is here: The Most Embarrassing Thing. ♥


I hope you all had a good weekend -- how are you??

Possibly the most beautiful piece of art I've seen all week:

Afghanistan rated PG

This is Dr. John Watson, army doctor in Afghanistan, in a quiet moment. Seriously, seriously beautiful. The artist, mariemjs, describes him as: BAMF!Army!John and you can see so much strength in him here. *flail* I may or may not have this open in it's own internet window for automatic ogling.

It might be time for new desktop wallpaper...


Okay, lovelies, off to shower and then to volunteer at a craft festival my school hosts. Busyness abounds. I hope you all have a lovely day! ♥

TEA: -- lauriegilbert is hosting another tea exchange here. You should all go sign up!!! I did it last time and it was a lot of fun to meet some new people, purchase and send them tea, and then get three packages of new, surprise tea in the mail!

MERLIN: -- reallycorking (aka: goddess of the pen) drew a gorgeous Merlin/Arthur picture last night. I flailed. Seriously. Merlin's jaw is a thing of beauty. Go look: What you need after a good day's hunt [NSFW]

BBC SHERLOCK: -- I'm rewatching this series (this is my third or fourth time) while working on lesson plans and am just dying over how much I love it. Seriously. What I want to do: write hundreds and hundreds of words of Sherlock & John kissing. What I need to do: finish a shit tonne of work for school and work on packing for London.

Maybe I can work out a deal with myself.


So, how are you all, my lovelies? *squeeezes*

a few art recs, because I don't rec things enough here:

★ Sex God of Slytherin by thilia [nc17 - Blaise]
~Blaise, in this, strikes me as almost unintentionally sexy. It's a gorgeous (and hot) image and I couldn't tear my eyes away for a long while.

★ Just Words On Paper by kath_ballantyne [g - Seamus, implied Seamus/Dean]
~This I love because it says so much and the details in this picture are almost deceptively simple. There are words accompanying that just make the image even more poignant. ♥

★ Quidditch Dreams by anonymous (except it's totally not anonymous :P) [nc17 - Harry/Percy/Oliver]
~This is beautiful (and, um, hottt), both in the way Percy is portrayed -- so true to his character in both the dream and the reality -- and in the simple, but perfect poses of both Harry and Oliver. guh.

★ Priceless by cugami [pg13 - Ron/Draco]
~This, again, I love for the details. Ron's hand is on a small patch of Draco's skin, and it's so beautifully intimate. Well, and, there's kissing. Need I say more?

oh my god. oh my god.

oh. my. god.

Seamus/Dean fanart. Kissing. So much kissing.

For me.

Probably the most beautiful thing I've seen in months.

Go now. Tell kath_ballantyne how amazing she is.

I'll just be here with my hand over my heart and tears in my eyes.

Seamus/Dean. Kissing.

There is nothing better in the world. oh my god.

*happy sigh*

I'm in a very Dean place right now. I'm writing a Dean (and Neville)-centric little piece, and have recently read two stories that featured Dean Thomas.

• First, hpslashnotsmut kicked off posting on Sunday with a story for me!! It's Seamus/Dean, and a story about Seamus doing an age-old dance of uncertainty. There are some lovely moments, and the description of Dean painting on Seamus's body is just glorious.
  
  The Keeper, rated PG.


• Second, I have no idea how I was even linked here, but I just read a fantastic story posted at springtime_gen. It's Dean-centric, and just so beautifully, lovingly detailed. I was more drawn in reading this story than any story in a while. It included seamlessly woven elements of canon in addition to information on Dean's real father.
  
  The summary included is: Dean thinks his dreams have come true when the most famous painter in the wizarding world takes him on as an apprentice. But magical portraiture is a dangerous enterprise, and in the final days of the war, the Minister for Magic approaches the young artist with a commission that may end in murder...
  
  I fell in love with this Dean. Deeply. And I can't really give a higher recommendation than that. Seriously. This story was outstanding. Go. Read. Love.
  
  Fra Pandolf's Hands [Dean, rated PG]

[also, randomly, with the triatha_ron last month and some of the exchanges going on now, I'm remembering how much I really enjoy rec'ing stories. ♥ It's been so long, and I'd forgotten how much I enjoyed.]

Okay, I finally finished reading the rest of the triatha_ron fics. !!! I'm overly pleased with myself that I read all of them. Go, me! I've included my picks for which story I liked the best/made best use of the prompt/had the strongest Ron below:

Prompt: Time
my pick Eighteen Hours, Four Tasks, and A Kilt by abigail89 [Ron/Oliver, adult ~ TEAM SLASH]

Prompt: Summer
my pick Five Days in August by thetreacletart [Ron/Pansy, R ~ TEAM HET]

Prompt: Gold
my pick All three! Seriously. I could NOT pick on this prompt. I thought each of the three were well done, well written, and really showed a great Ron and a great use of the prompt. They were also each very different, and included humor, sadness, and a lot of great Ron:

Red and Gold by aome [Ron/Harry, R ~ TEAM SLASH]
All God's Creatures by mizbean [G ~ TEAM GEN]
Weasley Is the Centerfold by tqpannie [Ron/Tonks, nc17 ~ TEAM HET]

Prompt: Lies
my pick Little White Ones by jamimegan [Ron/Lavender, Ron/Hermione, pg13 ~ TEAM HET]

So, by my own picks, the three teams stand like this:

TEAM SLASH = 7
TEAM GEN = 6
TEAM HET = 4

Go Team Slash! *waves banner* This Wednesday is when the mods will announce the actual winning team, though, really... what a fantastic fest! There have been such amazing stories and I just LOVED it. w00t! *throws confetti for everyone*!!

In case you missed it, my own contribution is here: memoria incognita [Ron/Harry, pg13]

So, I am immensely proud of myself. I am all caught up on all of the triatha_ron fics that have been posted so far, so I can add more of my pics to my list:

Prompt: Friendship
my pick: Steady by arsenicjade [Ron/Viktor, Ron/Viktor/Draco, nc17 ~ TEAM SLASH]

Prompt: Loss
my pick: Of Blood and Dust and Potatoes by maple_mahogany [R ~ TEAM GEN]

Prompt: Food
my pick: Ill Met By Moonlight by wolfiekins [R ~ TEAM GEN]

I don't know how to offer picks for the prompt I was involved in. But, as it's my journal, I'll vote for me! (Plus, I'm quite proud of the story)
Prompt: Question
my story: memoria incognita by meee!! [Harry/Ron, R ~ TEAM SLASH]

I'm about two prompts behind on my reading, but I wanted to post a few more triatha_ron pics:

Prompt: Red
my pick: Strife from the Furthest Prime by thrihyrne [Bill/Ron, Ron/Harry, nc17 ~ TEAM SLASH]

Prompt: Comfort
my pick: A Routine Comfort by mamalaz [hard R ~ TEAM SLASH]

Prompt: Pride
my pick: The Festivities by aberforths_rug [pg ~ TEAM GEN]

Prompt: Fire
my pick: Gold and Silver by simons_flower [Ron/Daphne, pg13 ~ TEAM HET] *this was a harder choice. I was waffling between team Het and team Slash for a long time -- and as much as I love Ron/Draco, I really just loved Ron's banter in the story for team Het


★ Real Life-wise, I'm still sort of in a weird place. A couple of pretty rough things happened at work this week, so I'm just holding back and finding beauty and strength in little things as best I can. Hope you all are well. ♥

I've really been enjoying the triatha_ron since they started posting on March first. The idea of 45 Ron-centric fics in fifteen days is just really, really awesome!! So far, I've read all of the fics posted through Saturday (three more were posted today that I've not yet been able to read) and thought I'd try to think about each of the three fics written for each prompt and link the one I enjoyed the most here in case any of you aren't going to be as insane focused and read every single fic. So... what follows are the fics that I enjoyed most from each of the prompts I've read so far. Please read if you get the chance and give the authors some feedback!


Prompt: Memory
my pick: A Drop of Red by approximedic [pg ~ TEAM GEN]

Prompt: Family
my pick: All in the Family by kerryblaze [Ron/Neville, R ~ TEAM SLASH]

Prompt: Joy
my pick: Truck-Driving with the Dead by kennahijja [pg13 ~ TEAM GEN]

Honestly, though, if you have only time for one, read Truck Driving with the Dead. It was an intriguing twist on the prompt, was beautifully crafted, and overall quite outstanding. Of the nine I've read, it's my favorite story in the fest so far.

My own story has not yet been posted, but I'll link here as soon as it's up. :)

Go, team slash! *waves banner*

So, I've read a lot of fic this week (*glee*) due to my fic-feedback exchange. I wanted to link a couple that really stayed with me so others can read them as well:

★ In Darkness Lies [Seamus/Dean] by chaeldub This was a non-linear story (which I love) that moved from bits at Hogwarts that both explained and looked into bits of canon and the present storyline. I always think it's hard to accomplish this, and it worked really well.

★ In Your Pocket You Carry Devotion [Remus/Neville] by dorrie6 This just took everything I love about Remus and Neville and melded it together so well that I both cried and felt warmed from within by the end. Beautiful.

★ The Fall of the World's Own Optimist [Harry/Draco] by mizbean I don't read much Harry/Draco anymore, but this was such a welcome foray back into that world. They were just so interestingly drawn here, as adults, and I could really see both of them so well.

★ A Matter of Intent [Snape/Harry] by florahart This one I loved because of all the interesting magical pieces flora put in. It felt so real, and Harry really won my heart here.

Also, it's not too late -- please feel free to participate in the fic-feedback exchange. I'm finding it a lovely way to read and find great stories that I've missed. It's always so gratifying to read a story that an author links me to. ♥

A few recs!

It's been a while since I've rec'ed anything, and today I have three!

★ Vanilla & Chocolate [Seamus/Dean ART - PG] by click_megalo

I found this in a blog search for my name [she'd mentioned it in relation to Deamus] and was just totally struck by the beauty in this picture -- particularly of Dean. I love the line of his jaw and I've spent many minutes staring at the cord in his neck and the perfection of his ear. *happy sigh*

★ Going Underground [Seamus/Dean FIC - R] by yodels

This was open in a tab for several days until I read just now and -- *glee*! Seamus and Dean pressed together and frotting in the London Underground. guh Is there nothing better than that?

★ The Best of My Love [Harry/Ron FIC - R] by kerryblaze

I found this in my search for stories today for HT and was truly brought in by the minimalist style. Many of you know that I *love* that in stories -- I want the story told in small bits and scenes, so I can draw my own picture of what *isn't* said. This is a gorgeous example of it. And, Harry/Ron. So, yay!


Go! Read! Love! Give feedback!

So, in talking with thenotoriousso4, I found out that sometimes my lj entries don't show up on her flist, but then when she goes to my journal, she can see them just fine. I wonder if it happens if I refresh the page in firefox before I post so the time is updated correctly. From now on, I'll just type entries in a text editor, I think. Anyway, in case you missed it, I wrote H/D! *gasp* Last night! It's a little self-pimpy, but I do know that many of you are big H/D fans [♥], so... you can find it here if you are so inclined:


soon ~ harry/draco [pg13] ~700 words
and I suck because it's for mah willow's birthday ♥, but way, way late...


In other news, it's been a good week for Seamus/Dean. *happy sigh* A few things you should really check out.

art:
~ Just wrestling, honest! Seamus/Dean [nc17] by reallycorking NWS
~ Roxanne? Seamus/Dean [nc17] by midnight_ljc NWS

fic:
~ Paper Planes Seamus/Dean [R] by sazzlette

That's all for now -- how you all be?

I'm being very spammy today, but here are two things that made me very happy this week:

The Rewards of Virtue [Neville/Seamus, light R] by wildestranger [Funny and wonderful and a joy to read. My gift!fic in nevillosity's ficathon.]

Untitled [Seamus/Dean] by magicofisis [a gift!drabble for me for correctly guessing the most songs on her lj meme. Adorable and makes me smile all gigantic!!]

It Only Takes One Word [Marcus/Lee, NC-17] by rillathegrape [This was my gift in hp_springsmut and I want to pimp it again! It was so frantic and needful and so Marcus, and gah, why is there not more Marcus/Lee in the world??]

Okay, how happy am I right now?

I finished my own Neville story [duh, sorry: here] and sat down to read some of the wonderful nevillosity stories and read three in quick succession that I just loved.

Cool [neville, gen] ~ by rosina_alcona
So beautiful and a look at Neville standing up to those that try to wield power corruptly.

In the Quiet Time [harry/neville] ~ by thetreacletart
Heartbreaking and mending and a story that I was *convinced* was canon while I was reading it. And, really, it should be. I literally teared up at one point.

Flying Lessons [ron/neville] ~ by shocolate
Laugh out loud funny and with a wonderful Ron who teaches Neville how to fly using an unorthodox broomstick analogy. *snicker*

links:
~Thank you for your lovely comments on without a single glance back. ♥ I loved actually *having* to write some Seamus/Dean because it was one of morganmuffle's requested pairings. :)

~Ack!!! I didn't link everyone last week to the AMAZING and WONDERFUL fic written for me in hp_springsmut: It Only Takes One Word [marcus flint/lee jordan - R!!] Oh, just guh! Hot and snarky and against WALLS and biting and just... omg, this a GREAT, GREAT for-kaalee fic! ♥ The Marcus and Lee interaction is just fantastic. Go! Read! Love!!

~Also, apparently, if someone demands it, I write them 200 words of almost porn. Who knew? [*smoooches mooncharm*]

wibble:
we sort of set a date for the wedding, omg. october 7th. this year. holy tomato.

funny:
In my classroom, there are sometimes children who pass gas. I've modelled from the beginning that what you do if you do pass gas is say, "Excuse me," and then we just keep on going. They're mostly pretty good about being inwardly amused and getting back to work.

Except yesterday. Holy pajamas. One of my students - Ephraim - was having some, er, farting issues. In that, he kept doing it. He wouldn't stop. And, omg, it STUNK! It happened three times in the morning. Finally, just before lunch, he did it again, and I had to say something. [note: he's new to our class - january]

( the fart talkCollapse )

but, yeah. the conversations I sometimes have to have with my class. *boggle*

So? How are you? ♥

lots of newses:

~Am back from Boston. Good trip. Very, very busy. Saw some wonderful old friends, former students, and spoke for a long time to my former mentor teacher, with whom I've not spoken in two years. *happy sigh* I also had a LOVELY fandom meet up with kriken [cricket], in_a_tizzy, & inspiredlife ♥ We sat at Pizzeria Uno's for a LONG time, and shared some very sinful desserts, all the while discussing life, robots, and not having enough time. [!!!]

~My hp_loveletters story was posted a few days ago: Happiness Is Quidditch and Marcus Flint [marcus/oliver, R] ~ just VERY much what draws me to this pairing, the animosity, the passion. *happy sigh* The anonymous writer did a great job!!

~I appear to have three stories up for nomination at the harry_ron_award: Lines [nc-17], Eyes Wide Shut [pg-13], and Doing it Right [pg-13] Thank you to whomever nominated! ♥ I'm ridiculously flattered to have a story included, but three? Especially as I haven't written harry/ron in a long time. I really should remedy that.

~stick a fork in me, I'm done.

much love to all of you!! ♥

Well.

This livejournal has been open for a year. Holy mother of (insert appropriate word here).

Around the 22nd or 23rd of February last year, I actually opened it, but didn't make my first post until February 29th last year. So, technically, this is a day early, but, heh. Anyway. It was interesting to go back and look at my first post because it was all RL related, just a place to get something out that had been bothering me - and I knew that it would be mostly private, because I hadn't yet commented or met anyone in lj fandom at that point.

I could not have predicted what a year it would be. That I would get to know so many of you... that I would actually write my own fanfiction... that I would join an RPG and fall head over heels in love with a silly Irishman...

I had grand plans of posting a smutty story in honor of you all (because I typically don't write the smut very often and willysunny and crikkita have poked me to do so), but it just hasn't happened yet. I will, though. At some point. :)

Instead, I'll do the stories meme that others have done (although a few weeks ago. I'm late to the party again.) In going back to look over all of the things I've written this year (15 stories over 1000 words, 12 ficlets plus the Points Series, and more than 50 drabbles), I was struck by the different pairings and subject matters. I adore that fandom has really broadened my scope and depth of appreciation for different characters.

*coughs* Enough of kaalee waxing poetic. Here's the meme...

( 5 stories that I love...Collapse )

( 5 of my own stories... (that I don't hate)Collapse )

Thank you all for making this such an amazing year for me. Truly. Getting to know so many people and finding such a support network that extends beyond HP fanfiction is probably the best thing of all.

♥♥♥

It is so important that I talk about Neville. Right now.

I was just talking to happiestwhen about him - rec'ing some fics and I went back to reread If You're Breathing by a woman that I'm not sure has an lj? maybe? (EDIT: She does: sanj. Thanks to contrariwise) I discovered this story on a rec by dorrie6 a while ago, but I can't find the rec now. heh.

This story never fails to make me cry. Her portrayal and respect of Neville and Neville's actions at the Department of Mysteries during OotP feel like they mirror exactly what I was thinking when I read and thought about that scene. The respect that her Harry obviously has for Neville in this story is immense. That is typically what makes my heart ache. When an author shows you all of the reasons to respect another character.

My friends? OotP pulled my heart apart in fourteen different directions... but the part where I always lose it in my rereading is the scene in the DoM when Neville shows the fuck up in that room with a bloody nose and still tries to curse Death Eaters that can barely contain or restrain him and YELLS RIGHT BACK into the face of the witch that fucking tortured his parents into insanity. *tears up*

God.

Freakin' definition of bravery if you ask me.

Just... go read and love and find your Neville. He'll amaze you, I promise.


I'll be here with tissues, if you need them.

Happy Birthday Neville!

I posted a little drabble over at nevillosity for the Weekend Birthday Drabblethon. I'm actually looking forward to reading everything over there this weekend, having read a few fabulous things today.

ETA: If you're a Neville fan, please go read this by marksykins. It's unbelieveable. Truly.


In other, non-Neville news, I'm putting the finishing touches on an entry for the Popstar Challenge over at andropotterist. It's a pairing I've never written and it's completely different than anything I've done before. I'm a little frightened, actually. hee!

For those of you that have been following The Points Series, jetis wrote a little ficlet in that universe that you simply must go read: Untitled OMG, someone wrote in my universe squeeeeeeee!!

And as for The Points Series itself, I have two more parts in the works that I'll be posting next week. :) I guess I should figure out exactly how many more parts there should be, huh?


Some Ron to check out:

Revising by arakne ~ Ron!wank, hard R, guh!!
Ron drawn by celestialsoda ~ who you all know that I love, and this is AMAZING!
Eyes Wide Shut by kaalee , PG-13, for the hurt/ill challenge at harry_and_ron ~ hee! Sorry for self-pimpage, but I'm actually kind of proud of it. ;)