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She is the turning point of everything throughout the series.

I rather like her as this corrupted but not intrinsically evil mother figure, since the idea of a mother's love is so fundamental to the conception of the books and narratively carries the plot. Usually, especially in children's media, you'd find a "good" mother and an "evil" (step) mother, but Merope isn't bad per se, she's just a victim of her circumstances. She's not in a position to understand or accept that drugging Riddle with a love potion is wrong. She's a true innocent but at the same time she's repulsive to many readers.

Stranger Tales FAQ:

What exactly is this event?

A celebration of Stranger Things and all things fairytales and fantasy! Think of it as a sort of fusion between the two. Works will intertwine the world of ST with our favorite fairytales.

All ST lore, characters, spaces and concepts included

Fairytales may be existing or original! As long as it fits within typical fairytale elements and includes Strangers Things, we encourage it.

Works may also be a fantasy AU

When is the deadline?

That’s the beauty of this event, there is no deadline! We will be doing yearly collections as long as there is interest, so whenever you have completed your work, feel free to add it! We will also be doing regular mini prompts in our socials and the Discord server for some additional fun and inspiration.

Is there an age limit?

Yes, this event is 18 and up, due to the often dark and sexual themes in fairytales, as well as the content being allowed for the event.

Are there content restrictions?

We are asking people to not make any ST character/OC (as main ship) and ST/Reader content for this event, but otherwise everything is fair game! (Just please tag appropriately.)

Does that mean dead dove content is allowed?

Yes! We just ask that everything be tagged accurately, and any appropriate warnings be included.

For those unfamiliar, Dead Dove: Do Not Eat is a tag that means “exactly what is written on the bag.” While this does generally include darker, mature and often taboo themes, the meaning is that what is listed in the tags will be in the work. Dead Dove writers are encouraged to participate, as we will not be turning away works for any specific themes. That being said, it is the author’s responsibility to tag works appropriately, and reader’s responsibility to read the tags and be mindful of their own boundaries and triggers.

If you have a piece you may not want to add your name to, that’s fine! You’re more than welcome to post anonymously if you prefer.

What about Omegaverse?

Omegaverse is absolutely allowed! Mpreg is also allowed, again as long as everything is tagged appropriately.

Please refer to this as either Omegaverse or Alpha/Beta/Omega dynamics, rather than the abbreviation to be respectful of everyone.

Are there character restrictions?

Nope! We realize some people may not be fans of certain Stranger Things characters, however we will not be restricting characters included in this event.

Once again, tag appropriately, but any characters or pairings may be included. 

Is there a minimum word count required?

We are asking any fics submitted for the main event to be at least 3k words, but the sky’s the limit!

However there is no minimum word count for the additional prompts!

But I’m a cosplayer…

That’s great! We would love to have you participate. Photos of your cosplay may be included in our collection, as well as shared with our socials tagged.

I’m a beta reader/editor or would like to be a cheerleader! Can I still sign up?

Absolutely! We would love to have you, thank you for all of your help!

Alas, I don’t write or beta, draw or cosplay, but I do craft?

Excellent! You will be able to add photos of your craft to our collections if you would like to share your talents with us! (Please note, craft submissions should still fit within the guidelines of the event.)

What if someone else has posted a work using the fairytale that I planned on?

The more the merrier! There is no limit to the amount of works that can be inspired by the same fairytale. More cake!

Obviously, DO NOT don’t copy anyone else’s existing work, but inspiration strikes in many ways. Go forth and create!

Also, we are posting prompts around one classic fairytale, so there will be overlap and lots of different cakes made from the same building blocks.

Where & how do I post my fic / art / podfic / craft / cosplay?

archiveofourown.org/AO3: Fics should be posted to Archive of Our Own in the Stranger Tales collection. Here is a guide from AO3 on how to add your work to a collection.

Tumblr: please tag your post with “Stranger Tales” and “stranger tales artform” = “stranger tales fic”, “stranger tales art”, “stranger tales cosplay”, “stranger tales craft”, “stranger tales podfic” etc etc and @ our account @stranger-tales so we can easily find it and repost it.

Bluesky: please tag our account @stranger-tales.bsky.social and use hashtag #StrangerTales 

Twitter: please tag our account @StrangerTales25 and use hashtag #StrangerTales

We will add additional posting info later which will be linked here.

Where can I stay up to date?

Discord: our event server will have all of the information listed here, as well as any announcements and updates as they come. Please fill out the sign up form for the link if you’d like, but it is not required. (the link is in the thank you message after you submit, please do not skip it) 

We also have a social server! If you are here for the event and want to stay for the chatter and community, we’d love to have you there as well! (invite for it can be found on the event server)

If you are not on Discord, please follow our socials where we will be posting additional prompts, any important updates and of course reposting people’s Stranger Tales projects:

Bluesky: stranger-tales.bsky.social 

Tumblr: stranger-tales.tumblr.com  

Twitter: StrangerTales25

Current Festivids stage: Festivids nominations are open!

If you're not sure about participating or are new to Festivids, here are the basics.

What is Festivids?

Festivids is an annual vidding exchange for small, rare, and completely nonexistent vidding fandoms. Vidders sign up to make a vid for a rarely-vidded fandom to fulfill someone else's request, and in return receive a vid for one of their own requests. (Treats are also allowed—you don't need to sign up to participate!)

Festivids runs on the AO3's exchange platform; if you'd like to participate but you don't have an AO3 account, direct message us and we'll send you an invitation so you can make an account immediately without having to wait in the usual AO3 invitation queue.

What is a rare vidding fandom?

For Festivids this year, "rare vidding fandom" means a fandom that has less than 150 one-minute-or-longer vids made in the last ten years. Festivids volunteers go through the nominations and evaluate rarity of each fandom nominated! If you're not sure if your fandom is rare, you can check our guidelines to evaluating rarity. We also have a list of fandoms that are already disqualified; this list isn't comprehensive as we'll be checking new nominations as they come in. This reflects fandoms evaluated so far, including those that were disqualified last year.

What kinds of things can I nominate?

Almost anything! If you can vid it, you can probably nominate it. Participants have nominated and vidded commercials, tv shows, movies, graphic novels, web comics, books, paintings, podcasts, music videos, celebrities, social media accounts, live performances, and just about anything else you can be fannish about. Festivids nominations rules help us to understand exactly what you're trying to nominate. (There are also some things that can't be nominated for Festivids; see the FAQ for more details.)

Because many Festividders write letters to describe their fandoms, and many Festividders watch every vid in the collection, this is also a great way to introduce your tiny fandom to a bunch of new people!

Want to see some of these vids? Check out last years' Festivids collection or every Festivids collection that's on the AO3.

What is the Festivids schedule?

Mon 1 Sept - Fri 12 Sept: Fandom nominations

Mon 22 Sept - Tuesday 30 Sept: Sign up for the exchange

Fri 28 Nov - Mon 8 Dec: Check in with the mods to confirm that you're still planning to participate in the exchange

Mon 29 Dec: Deadline to default on your assignment without a penalty. (The penalty is an earlier deadline the following year. See below for details.)

Sun 11 Jan: Deadline to turn in your gift vid

Sat 31 Jan: The collection goes live with a gift vid for everyone! There are also usually many treat vids made between the submissions deadline and go live, as well as some pinch hits.

Sat 7 Feb: Vidders' names are revealed!

I defaulted after the deadline in a previous year - can I still participate this year?

Yes, you can still participate. If you defaulted after the deadline in a previous year, the mods will reach out to you after you sign up to discuss an earlier deadline for your vid this year. (That is, you may need to turn in a complete draft by December 29th instead of January 11th.) If you turn your draft in on time this year, your record will be wiped clean and you'll be back to the regular schedule next year.

I want to sign up, but I think I'll need some support to help me as I make my vid.

Festivids also has an optional Festivids Buddies system. You can sign up for Festivids Buddies and be assigned a fellow participant in the exchange to cheerlead your vid, make music recs, beta your vid, help you find source, or provide technical help. You can ask for exactly what you want in the Festivids Buddies signup and we'll do our best to assign you a Festivids Buddy who knows your software system, shares your fannish interests, or is really excited to offer the kind of help that you want. (If you're new to the exchange, this is also a great way to meet people and find a beta who will keep your secret vid secret!)

Where else can I find Festivids?

Discord | Bluesky | Dreamwidth | Google Group

Launch the Ship Interest Check

Launch the Ship is a low-pressure multifandom challenge to write the first fic for a ship! You have 2 months to work on your fic.

I'd love to run another round, but want to check first whether there's interest, and if people have a preference for timing.

HP Triad Fest AUTHORS REVEALED!!!

Can't believe we're here! Another season of HP Triad Fest is slowly coming to a close! We'll be reblogging the wonderful works our hardworking participants have created over the next few weeks so they really get their time to shine, but this is the real Big Moment this fest has been building up to! We want to take this chance to thank everyone who was involved in this year's HP Triad fest. Thank you, firstly, to everyone who brought their imagination to us and submitted the lovely prompts for our authors to choose from. A huge thank you to every single author who claimed a prompt and helped us have this fest be what it is - there would be no fest without you. And finally, from the bottom of our hearts, thank you to you, the lovely people who have followed along, interacted with and cheered our authors on, whether on Tumblr, AO3 or Discord. We hope you've had fun, and we hope you'll come back next year!

Without further ado, it is my honour to present to you:

✨THE REVEALED MASTERLIST✨

Sit With Us [ART] by @digthewriter

Ship: Sirius Black/Harry Potter/Draco Malfoy Rating: G Summary: Something messy. Something real. Something that might turn into love—even if it doesn't start that way.

A Stampede of Misbehaviour by @dystopianrebel

Ship: Molly Weasley/Arthur Weasley/Lord Voldemort Rating: E Word Count: 3,346 Summary: After six boys, Molly and Arthur are desperate for just one girl – therefore, they call upon a demon to make a deal… Except that a denizen of Hell isn’t exactly who they end up summoning. It’s okay, though, because the Dark Lord is here to help!

Mother Dearest by @yoshifics

Ship: Blaise Zabini/Pomona Sprout/Poppy Pomfrey Rating: G Word Count: 9,333 Summary: Blaise Zabini did not expect to end up in any sort of romantic partnership. Now that he has, he's noticing he might have some emotional issues.

Come Closer And Stay by Elvira_Kamgut

Ship: Minerva McGonagall/Poppy Pomfrey/Pomona Sprout Rating: G Word Count: 610 Summary: Voldemort has returned, of that Dumbledore is certain, but what does it mean for Minerva?

Adult Product Testing by @piximera-fic

Ship: Fred Weasley/George Weasley/Ginny Weasley Rating: E Word Count: 2,288 Summary: Ginny was their normal tester, so she didn't understand why they suddenly didn't want her to help out. Turns out their newest line was a more adult line.

More than Roommates by @ceilidhchaos and SarahFraser

Ship: Luna Lovegood/Ginny Weasley/Blaise Zabini Rating: E Word Count: 1,816 Summary: A freshly single Ginny Weasley discovers that having two fit as hell roommates is no burden.

Midnight Chocolate by @qqquack13

Ship: Hermione Granger/Pansy Parkinson/Ron Weasley Rating: T Word Count: 1,952 Summary: Eighth-years share a common room upon returning to Hogwarts. Ron and Pansy hear Hermione’s nightmares through her silencing spells.

Bondage transcends dimensions by The_sapphire_potterhead

Ship: Charlie Weasley/Harry Potter/Cedric Diggory Rating: E Word Count: 8,942 Summary: Everyone had regrets, especially close to death. Harry was the lucky case and got to confess his feelings to his previously unrealisable crushes thanks to dimension travel. How would that affect the war and the prophecy? Harry didn't care. He was only there for a good time.

Welcome To The Family by @piximera-fic

Ship: Orion Black/Abraxas Malfoy/Severus Snape Rating: E Word Count: 1,758 Summary: To celebrate Severus joining the Death Eaters, Orion and Abraxas invite him over for drinks.

the moon loves how the flowers grow by ZoomieZoomie324

Ship: Pansy Parkinson/Lavender Brown/Luna Lovegood Rating: T Word Count: 1,857 Summary: They’ve gone through this before. Three times, in fact. Nothing ever changed between them. Personalities might, but their love did not.

Lines That Make Our Heart by @blackseatwenty

Ship: Harry Potter/Luna Lovegood/Draco Malfoy Rating: E Word Count: 10,737 Summary: Draco is still adjusting to their new arrangement—he's happy, mostly, but there are emotions he hasn't fully grasped, questions he's too afraid to ask. Luna wonders if she'll ever truly stop wandering and finally call somewhere home, everything is temporary, isn't it? Harry wants them both to stay, but how can he say it without sounding desperate and like the young boy who is just greedy for love?

Like a Tattoo by @yoshifics

Ship: Sirius Black/Lavender Brown/Blaise Zabini Rating: T Word Count: 11,073 Summary: Lavender has gotten settled into the rhythm of her adult life. She is in charge of her own tattoo parlor, and has a steady stream of clients, some of whom she's grown quite close to. But just as Sirius Black has made himself a place in her familiar routine, a new visitor settles into her life, opening new possibilities.

Catalyst by @smugrobotics

Ship: Harry Potter/Draco Malfoy/Teddy Lupin Rating: E Word Count: 7,494 Summary: "Marriage isn't about getting everything you need," Harry said, words pouring like salt into the open, wounded space between them. "Have you ever thought that maybe it could be?"Or: Edward Lupin comes home.

Daddy Can We Keep Him, Please? [FIC+ART] by @ohkokori

Ship: Harry Potter/Blaise Zabini/Draco Malfoy Rating: Mature Word Count: 575 Summary: “Look, Blaise”, Draco sniggered into Harry’s ear before nibbling on it, “It’s that map of his.”Blaise had to extract Harry’s other ear from between his teeth to respond but not before dropping a couple of soothing pecks on it. “No need for all that, Harry. We would have gladly”, Blaise raised his hand up from Harry’s thigh in a glide and then punctuated each of his next words with a slap on Harry’s clothed arse, “Given.” “You.” “An.” “Invite.”

Soulmates Paradox by @aleysiasnape

Ship: Abraxas Malfoy/Hermione Granger/Cygnus Black Rating: E Word Count: 1,553 Summary: Hermione uses a spell to bring her soulmates forward in time.

Thank you again everyone, and don't forget to show our authors the love they deserve!

Another week up, another round-up coming! But before that, here are a few fest info for the authors since there's only one week of work reveals left:

If you wish to keep your work anonymous in the collection, let me know till 31st of May.

I can also prep individual promo graphic for you similar to those—with the fest name and your fic title. Again, let me know till 31st of May over email, message on tumblr or email <3

And now, the round-up:

A Momentary Indiscretion

Seamus Finnigan x Pansy Parkinson, 635 words, E

She didn't remember him, that had to be the only reason why she showed him any attention, why she flirted with him, batted her eyes, licking her lips while smiling at him.

Sweaty Secrets

Harry Potter x Ron Weasley, 3,242 words, E

It all began when Harry admitted Cho has kissed him. They ignored it until Lavender kissed Ron. Ron was willing to stay quiet for Ginny's sake, carry the burden in silence alone. But Harry and Ginny broke up, and they're both playing for the Cannons, and Ron knows it's now or never.

The Sun goes down alone

Euphemia Potter x Lily Evans Potter, Regulus Black x Fleamont Potter, 4,357 words, E

"If your partner cheats on you, fuck their parents," or so the saying goes...

Fit like a Daydream

Regulus Black x Evan Rosier, 2,315 words, E

Barty leaves Regulus alone in a pub during freshers week. Fortunately, Evan is only too glad to help keep the loneliness at bay.

Late Night Grinding

Lavender Brown x Ron Weasley, 805 words, M

Finding themselves alone in the living room of the burrow, they couldn't help enjoying themselves just a little.

Queen Treatment

Sirius Black x Petunia Evans Dursley, 5,928 words, E

Prompt 164-AU. Sirius Black has a thing for single mums and Muggles. So of course he pursues the recently divorced Petunia Dursley, mum of Dudley and current guardian of Sirius’s godson Harry.

Severus' Naughty Boy

Neville Longbottom x Severus Snape, 2,554 words, E

Neville has a daddy kink, it just so happens the person he often fantasised about is now his coworker.

Burning Energy

Remus Lupin x Harry Potter, Harry Potter x Ginny Weasley, Remus Lupin x Nymphadora Tonks x Harry Potter x Ginny Weasley, 861 words [chapter 1/3]

Remus needs to burn off some energy on the build up to a full moon.

Lost and Found

Hermione Granger x Arthur Weasley, 7,977 words, E

**Announcing HD Hurt/Comfort Fest 2025!**

HD Hurt/Comfort is an 18+ anonymous prompt-based fest that welcomes creations from both the angsty and fluffy ends of the trope spectrum.

This fest was born from the idea that with darkness comes light, and that with hurt comes comfort. We believe that to every yin there is a yang, that every Jekyll has a Hyde. And through this fest we hope to achieve contentment with that balance. To that end, we will encourage and accept the following submissions:

100% angst

100% fluff

A hurt/comfort combination 

The main pairing for all submissions is Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter. Participants may include any side-pairings, threesomes and/or original characters, as long as the final submission is still a Drarry-centric piece.

Rules and detailed guidelines coming soon - updated for 2025 with a new ✨untagged✨ option!

Important dates to add to your calendar:

Prompting: Apr 7 - May 2 Claiming: May 5 - July 1 Submissions due: Aug 4 Posting begins: Sept 1 Reveals: End of September

Follow us for fest information! Your HD/HC Mods,