Immortal Muses

The phone ringing doesn't interrupt anything other than his drive home. Now re-routed, clearly, with the news Ilya gives him. Yulia in a fight? With just that little bit of information, Shane knows she would have been provoked, would never pick a fight for no reason. She might be the daughter of two former hockey players, but she wasn't a violent child, was the opposite in truth. "I'm closer to the school than I am to home. Do you want me to meet you there?"

The roadway is relatively clear, and Shane is certain he will be there before Ilya, and wants to know what his husband does. "Did they say what the fight was about? Who started it? Or are they waiting for one of us to get there?" Shane would ask these same questions when they got there, to the principal, to the teacher, to Yulia herself.

ㅤㅤㅤIlya's  not  far  behind  Shane  on  his  way  to  the  primary  school,  the  speed  of  his  arrival  made  even  faster for  his  choice  to  drive  the  bright  orange  porsche  ___  that  his  husband  still  hasn't  convinced  him  to  sell.  Switching  the  phone  call  to  hands-free,  Ilya  corners  the  sportster  around  the  neighborhood  exit  and  accelerates  onto  the  main  road  leading  through  South  March,  considering  Shane's  question. 

ㅤㅤㅤ"Perhaps  you  should  go  in,"  He  says,  sounding  focused  and  almost  grim,  "…I  am  minutes  away,  but  I  don't  want  Yulia  to  have  to  wait  any  longer  than  necessary." 

ㅤㅤㅤThere's  something  unspoken  in  the  Russian's  tone,  a  well-worn  mistrust  for  authority  figures  who  speak  ill  of  children.  Not  just  his  daughter,  but  all  children.  Dr.  Galina  thinks  it  might  be  a  trauma  response  from  Ilya's  own  childhood  of  poor  (complicated)  treatment  by  the  adults  in  his  life,  and  she  tries  to  remind  him  that  not  all  grown-ups  are  like  that.  Frankly,  Ilya  doesn't  care.  He'll  always  believe  Yulia  over  anybody  else's  word  anyway.

ㅤㅤㅤFortunately,  it's  a  matter  of  minutes  before  Rozanov  pulls  into  the  school's  parking  lot.  He  throws  the  Porsche  into  park  and  climbs  out,  jogging  towards  where  his  husband  still  stands  outside  with  his  phone  to  his  ear.  Ilya  disconnects  and  shoves  his  cell  into  his  pocket  as  he  reaches  Shane,  palm  cupping  the  side  of  the  other  man's  neck  and  offering  a  quick  kiss  in  greeting.  "I  did  not  get  details  on  the  fight."  He  admits  with  a  half-shrug,  turning  to  walk  alongside  his  husband  as  they  enter  the  building.  "…Yulia  will  tell  us  what  happened."  What  the  Russian  doesn't  say  is:  Yulia  will  tell  us the  truth.

ㅤㅤㅤSouth  March  Primary  School  boasts  brightly  lit  hallways  and  a  generally  friendly  interior,  lacking  the  pretentious  air  that  was  prevalent  in  the  other  educational  institutions  the  couple  had  considered.  It's  part  of  the  reason  why  Yulia  is  enrolled  here,  along  with  excellent  reviews  on  the  customized  educational  programs  for  children  who  learn  best  in  non-traditional  ways.  Their  daughter  is  the  smartest  kid  Ilya  has  ever  met  (not  that  he's  biased),  but  he  and  Shane  want  to  make  sure  she's  taught  in  a  manner  that  best  encourages  and  supports  her  passions. 

ㅤㅤㅤOf  course,  none  of  that  will  matter  if  the  school  administration  handles  this  altercation poorly.  Ilya  feels  his  jaw  clench  and  consciously  makes  his  expression  relax.  They  reach  the  school's  head  office,  where  a  woman  behind  a  curved  desk  looks  up  with  a  sharp-eyed  smile. 

ㅤㅤㅤ"Hello,  welcome  to  South  March  Primary,"  She  greets,  and  Ilya  immediately  recognizes  her  voice  as  the  same  woman  who'd  spoken  with  him  over  the  phone.  Her  gaze  is  darting  between  the  two  men  as  if  deciphering  some  kind  of  puzzle.  Roz  suppresses  a  sigh. 

ㅤㅤㅤ"Hi."  He  replies,  gesturing  between  himself  and  Shane,  "We  are  Mr  and  Mr  Hollander-Rozanov.  You  called  about  our  daughter.  Yulia."

ㅤㅤㅤ"….oh!  Yes.  Of  course…"  The  receptionist  says,  haltingly.  It  looks  like  she's  only  now  realized  the  last  names  on  her  call  sheet  correlated  to  two  of  the  most  famous  former  NHL  stars  in  Canadian  history.  Shuffling  some  papers  on  her  desk,  the  woman  continues,  "…ah,  Ju-Yulia…  is  in  the  family  room  while  the  principle  speaks  with  the  parents  of  the  other  child…"  She  clears  her  throat,  gesturing  to  a  door  on  one  side  of  the  office.  There's  a  small  window  inlaid  in  the  door,  and  Ilya  can  just  see  the  small  form  of  his  daughter  within.  "Feel  free  to  go  in  with  her  and---" 

ㅤㅤㅤThe  Russian  doesn't  bother  waiting  for  the  receptionist  to  finish.  He  moves  with  the  same  laser  focus  that  used  to  be  his  hallmark  on  the  ice,  pushing  through  the  door  to  where  Yulia  waits.  "Papa!"  She  says,  sounding  both  relieved  and  mutinous  all  at  once,  and  leaps  up  to  throw  herself  into  Ilya's  arms.  Roz  wraps  the  little  girl  up  in  a  hug,  lifting  her  so  she  can  grip  her  legs  around  his  waist.

This week’s Featured Article is all about the Fairy Tale AU—fanworks that take characters and put them in situations and/or settings from fairy tales! Since fairy tales are often universal and well-known, these AUs are popular across fandoms.

Tropes and elements often seen in fairy tale AUs include magic, curses, True Love’s Kiss, and Fairy Godmothers. Princes and princesses, and a Happily Ever After ending, are also common. AUs can incorporate the original fairy tale in a variety of ways, from merely invoking the atmosphere, to using a few elements or tropes, to a full retelling. Some AUs will take the original fairy tale and explore darker themes and topics than typically expected of a fairy tale AU. These are not full trope subversions, because they usually still end happily, but they definitely take a darker perspective on the tale.

Do you enjoy fairy tale AUs? Let us know in the comments!

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Loyalty (1869)

— by Briton Rivière

Loyalty (2025)

We don’t talk about this enough. With all the big romantic gestures in The Long Game, this, to me, is one of the most romantic moments.

We know Ilya isn’t a fan of Shane’s restrictive diet. He teases him about it, but Ilya is an expert ragebaiter who knows how to tease the people he cares about when they feel safe and in ways that never really hurt.

Shane is “frantic” in this scene. Ilya has the perfect opening to say something about his diet, and he doesn’t take it. He sees that Shane is panicking, steps in and fixes it. He was looking at that menu thinking about Shane and Shane’s fuckass diet that Ilya doesn’t even like. But he knows this is important to Shane. He knows Shane is already nervous about being on a date with Ilya in public and being with another queer couple. So he meets Shane’s needs without Shane ever having to ask, and he does it quietly, without drawing any attention, so that Shane can save face.

Of course he’s gonna tease him about it a little bit later because that’s what they do. But he only does that AFTER Shane’s had a chance to catch his breath and feel safe again.

It's terribly simple. The good guys are always stalwart and true. The bad guys are easily distinguished by their pointy horns or black hats. And we always defeat them and save the day. No one ever dies and everybody lives happily ever after.

They are 2 cool 4 me

Bonus with no text:

Junicorn x Witch Hat Atelier

Prompt 2: fleabitten gray (ft. Beldaruit)

Junicorn x Witch Hat Atelier

Prompt 1: liver chestnut (ft. Alaira)