Eye of Newt, Knees of Bees @dont-offend-the-bees - Tumblr Blog | Tumgag
Eye of Newt, Knees of Bees
@dont-offend-the-bees
Greetings, friends! Newt (or Bees), 30's, he/they, UK. Welcome to the disorganized pit where I throw every little thing that takes my fancy. Featuring fanfic, art and a mixed bag of fandoms. At this moment in time I'm mostly about Dead Boy Detectives. I try to add simple alt text descriptions when I post images myself but make no promises for images I reblog! Find the stuff I make in #my art and #my fanfic ^^ Ao3 is DontOffendTheBees 💖
Or, essentially, my 2024 Ao3 Wrapped because this show is all I've posted on main all year 😅 But it's nice to be back in the swing of writing and it's been such a rough year, so I'm gonna take a minute now to bask in the glow of my accomplishments 💛
(please note fic links are to Ao3, and most fics are locked to be visible to registered users only!)
Multichapter Fics:
never fade away (E, 66.3k, ch. 5/5, Charles/Edwin, past Cat King/Edwin, Complete)
My contribution to the 2025 Dead Boys Big Bang, a slow and sad All Of Us Strangers AU (movie knowledge not required!). Featuring gorgeous, achey art by @antichrists-plus1 💛
Art posts:
Poster | Ch. 3 | Ch. 4
A Heart’s A Heavy Burden (T, 41.7k, ch. 4/7, Cat King/Charles/Edwin, Ongoing), co-written with @dear-monday and @tw0-ravens
A whimsical, polyamorous Howl's Moving Castle AU, written in partnership with Hayley and Lucy and featuring SHOWSTOPPING art by @idliketobeatree!
Art posts:
Ch. 1 | Ch. 2 | Ch. 3 | Ch. 4 | Ch. 5 | Ch. 6 | Ch. 7
Oh, Lonely Bones, Have You Forgotten? (M, 31.9k, ch. 3/4, Charles/Edwin, Ongoing, Temporary Hiatus)
A haunting little odyssey of Edwin finding his earthly remains, and figuring out where the hell to go from there. Was hoping to finish this off before the year was out but pain and other projects sadly got in the way! Don't worry, she will be complete one day, I swear!
Somewhere Beyond the Sea (T, 26k, ch 3/6, Charles/Edwin, Ongoing)
A sweet and magical Payneland Ponyo AU, written originally as a Secret Santa gift and then ballooning WAY out of proportion! I'm so, so excited for how this one turns out! Now featuring adorable cover art by @honorarypines !
One-shots:
The Kind of Light That Means Just Love (When My Baby Smiles at Me) (T, 1.4k, Charles/Edwin)
Where it all began, a little ficlet I wrote based on a writing group prompt which made me realised how much fun the character voices were to play with. Short and sweet, Charles takes photos of Edwin and finds ways to be cheerful about it even when he doesn't show up in them.
Outside Looking In (T, 3.6k, Charles/Edwin)
Outsider POV fic in which Charles and Edwin are overhead having a very strange but sweet conversation while in their older disguises. While this was an early fic and there's probably some stuff I'd change about the dialogue if I wrote it now, I'm so fond of it and I'm touched by the response to it - ESPECIALLY in the form of Robin's incredible gifset! (this gifset MUST be reblogged by everyone, btw.)
The Scenic Route (T, 2.1k, Charles/Edwin)
A short, sweet little agency outing and Payneland get-together, written in large part to daydream of a better world of public transportation while I was stuck standing on a cross-country train for two hours.
No Rehearsing It, No Reversing It (T, 9.3k, Charles/Edwin)
Mandatory 'Charles massively overthinks getting together with Edwin' fic, a comedy of errors, featuring foiled kissing schemes, party games, flimsy excuses, and my first fateful foray into discovering how fun Cat King is to write.
’Cause You Cut Through All the Noise (M, 5.3k, Charles/Edwin)
First day of Payneland week, what a time! Edwin helps Charles calm down from a panic spiral with a healthy application of sweet, gently non-sexual dom/sub play, featuring sweet words and soothing games of cat's cradle.
Though We're Strangers 'Til Now (T, 4.7k, Charles/Edwin)
Payneland week day 2. One of my more out-there concepts; in the campy tradition of Saturday night British fantasy telly a la Merlin or Atlantis, Charles and Edwin take the mythological roles of Theseus and Ariadne. This fic exists in large part due to @every-moment-a-different-sound making me aware of Payneland week and asking me to collaborate, and once again, it is COMPULSORY that you go and reblog their GORGEOUS SHOWSTOPPING INCREDIBLE GIFS.
I Got Sunshine in a Bag (T, 1.2k, Charles/Edwin)
Payneland week day 3. The little script-format fic where (spoiler alert) Charles confesses his feelings to Edwin in the safe haven of his own magical bag of tricks. Sweet and silly!
Something I Can Turn To (T, 2.4k, Charles/Edwin)
Payneland week day 4. The AU where Charles and Edwin are alive in the same era, and helped each other survive the brutality of their teenage years. This one was so lovely to write and there's a little bittersweet hollow in my heart carved out for it. This fic also spawned this absolutely lovely art by @yasartmeme (GO REBLOG, GIVE IT LOVE) and a collection of related stories by several wonderful authors. Every time someone else dips their toe into this universe it warms my chilly little heart.
If the Shoe Fits, Then I Won’t Try It On (T, 2k, Charles/Edwin)
Payneland week day 5. Another outing with the disguises; pre-canon, Charles and Edwin on a case, getting used to their new magic disguises and constructing dubious backstories.
Spinning on That Dizzy Edge (M, 1k, Charles/Edwin)
Payneland week day 6. Short little flirty, steamy, fun date night with Charles and Edwin in a haunted pub, with a piano <3
Lived My Whole Life Before the First Light (M, 7.3k, Charles/Edwin)
Payneland week day 7. AKA the attic scene, as told in a soulmate AU. A few people who don't generally like soulmate AU's have told me this one plays with the concept in a way they found interesting and refreshing! Suffice it to say there's a happy ending, but not of the sort generally associated with the genre. And this one comes with yet another mandatory-reblog gifset, this one by @mellxncollie, which is SO beautiful and should be in an art gallery and truly such an honour to bestow upon my little words 💛
We Glimpse Each Other Out of Phase (T, 3.7k, Charles/Edwin)
Another little instalment in the Alive AU of Something I Can Turn To, this time a bittersweet domestic scene on a sleepless night in the kitchen.
Wise Men Build Their Houses on Rocks While the Rest of Us Settle for Skeletons (M, 2.2k, Cat King/Edwin)
First foray into Catwin! (or at least first on the main account 😉) Edwin digs through the Cat King's magical artifacts; and finds an ominous relic of his past lives.
Sink Your Teeth Right Through My Bones, Baby (M, 0.6k, Charles/Edwin)
First of the spotify wrapped inspired ficlets! A little glimpse into Edwin's mind as he and Charles cautiously approach a new dynamic in the bedroom.
Looks Like We’re In for Nasty Weather (T, 0.6k, Charles/Edwin)
Wrapped ficlet. Edwin and Charles brace themselves in the face of an ominous supernatural storm brewing.
Keep Me Warm, Love Me Long, Be My Sunlight (T, 1k, Cat King/Edwin/Charles)
Wrapped ficlet, and preview of the Ghostcat 1920s AU currently in the works by myself, @dear-monday and @tw0-ravens! In a sun-drenched loft in the last days of summer, Thomas contemplates what he has, and when he'll lose it.
Should I Cool It, or Should I Blow? (M, 1.9k, Cat King/Charles)
Wrapped ficlet. The Cat King confronts Charles after another little enemies-with-benefits hook-up for a little clarification on what, exactly, he's doing with his life.
And that about wraps it up for 2024! But I'll keep adding underneath this post when I inevitably write more -- so I'll be seeing you guys in '25! 🥰 Thank you thank you THANK YOU everyone who's shown me such incredible support over this year, this has been such an unbelievably fun fandom experience and I'm excited to sink my teeth into even more and longer fics next year 💛💛💛
My 2024 Writing Stats:
Works Published: 19
Word Count: 89,859
Top 3 fics (by kudos):
1. Outside Looking In
2. No Rehearsing It, No Reversing It
3. The Scenic Route
2025 One-Shots:
Third Contact of a Brief, yet Significant Eclipse (M, 4.2k, Cat King/Edwin)
A spin-off/prequel fic set in the universe of Wunderkammer by dear_monday and two_ravens! A bittersweet little scene at the tail end of museum curator!Edwin's dalliance with the Cat King; a torrid affair which lasted the duration of the 1960s.
Bet Was Made, I Kneeled and Prayed (and Went Off Like a Shotgun) (M, 2.5k, Cat King/Charles)
Wrapped fic, the last of them. Charles and the Cat King enjoy a bit of fun, fighty, no-strings messing around; and the Cat King comes away with more feelings than he bargained for.
Now featuring gorgeous and heartbreaking gifs courtesy of Olly, who simply never misses 💛💛💛💛💛
Darling, This Place is a Lover's Oasis (M, 1.4k, Cat King/Edwin)
Valentine's fic; Edwin gets some much-deserved pampering courtesy of Cat King and his ridiculous 1970s oversized bathtub.
Ain't That a Kick in the Head? (T, 2.3k, Charles/Edwin)
Anniversary fic, getting together: Edwin and Charles have some banter and a thumb war to decide the fate of the tiny office sofa.
Drop Dead Gorgeous (M, 3k, Charles/Edwin)
Short and silly morbid flirting fic between mortician Edwin and assistant Charles, based on Wooden Overcoats and written for my dear friend Ande's birthday 💛
Racism against Indians is actually a little insane when you consider how widespread it is even among liberals and leftists . Even people who consider themselves to be progressive will laugh at call center or tech support jokes. All scammers are inherently indian. It’s okay to laugh at jokes making fun of Indians for their feelings towards animals or how they drive. India is inherently backwards and dirty so it’s okay to make jokes about getting food poisoning from even looking at indian food
We cannot even talk about racism towards us without someone jumping in and going “well this other group has it worse” SHUT up. Genuinely shut up. This isn’t a competition. It’s like we don’t even exist.
“I’m not into Indian girls, but you look [other ethnicity]” you’re into Indian girls.
“Omg I love Indian food” and it’s just butter chicken or chicken tikka masala.
“Chandelier earrings” you mean my jhumkas?
“I love avatar/atla” you don’t know what the concept of an avatar even is.
“Your slums are dirty” tell that to the unusually low Covid rates in those slums.
“Indians don’t experience colourism” that is certainly an echo chamber chronically online take.
Exams during our festival season while every other religion gets their days off. Told to speak English when many of us in the diaspora already do (thanks colonialism!). Made to take English exams or considered international students on the basis of our names. Overlooked in job applications. Blamed for climate change. Blamed for lack of jobs. Blamed for crashing economy. Blamed for terrorism (more issues there). Random TSA checks. Random hate crimes. Stolen culture. Stolen property.
Uncredited for simple things everyone does nowadays. Coconut oil, miswak, mehndi, indigo, the number 0, banking cheques, chess, yoga, chakras, third eye, evil eye, turmeric, clean girl aesthetic, lost wax casting, bindis, kohl, dupattas, bangles, courtyards in houses, paisley, the very concept of rebirth and reincarnation. I could go on.
The racism towards Indians is so entrenched in every single western culture that nobody bothers to look twice when India suffers a heat wave. You all love Greece and Rome but did you know they directly benefitted from trade with the Indian subcontinent? Did you know Indians were taken as indentured labourers too? Did you know we were slaves too? And I’m speaking for South Asia as a whole here, did you know many of us are still slaves?
We’re not asking you to elevate us. We’re telling you to acknowledge us, and to do so without putting us in competition with any other racialized group.
Solidarity between LGBTQ+ people and unions has saved an event denied ‘a single penny’ of council money
"What’s the point of supporting gay rights but nobody else’s rights. You know? Or - workers’ rights but not Women’s rights - it’s - I don’t know - illogical."
"There’s a lodge banner down in the welfare. We bring it out for special occasions. It’s a hundred years old. I’ll show it to you one day. It’s a symbol like this -
Two hands.
That’s what the labour movement means. Should mean. You support me and I support you. Whoever you are. Wherever you come from. Shoulder to shoulder. Hand to hand."
“You write the beginning and then you go back and rewrite the beginning, and you never got off page one. It’s kind of a syndrome, and I have a rash piece of advice which is — Go on, page two, page three, and never look back. Get something finished, no matter how lousy it is. […] Perfectionists cannot get going unless they kind of do violence to their own instincts, and just blast ahead.”
— Ursula K. Le Guin, The Last Interview and Other Conversations
"Now I've shot so many Nazis, Daddy will have to buy me a sable coat." (From his Wikipedia article).
Neil Munro "Bunny" Roger
June 9, 1911-April 27, 1997.
Bunny Roger killed a bunch of Nazis and then invented Capri pants.
He was expelled from Oxford for his indiscrete gayness (discrete gayness being perfectly fine at Oxford and part of the curriculum until...today probably, at least like 1992?). Then, having been sent down to London, he started his own fashion business, and his first client was Vivien Leigh.
Bunny served in WWII, killing fascists in North Africa and Italy, and often wearing a mauve scarf in the field. Roger claimed that he had gone into a battle brandishing a rolled-up copy of VOGUE and commanding: "When in doubt, powder heavily!"
Roger was known in high society for his themed soirées; Diamond, Amethyst, and Flame Balls were held to celebrate his 60th, 70th, and 80th birthdays. He wore a curious plum colored catsuit with a feathered headdress at his 70th birthday ball in 1981. At his 80th, he made his entrance in a catsuit of scarlet sequins with a cape of orange organza, greeting his guests from behind a wall of fire. His parties were covered by the newspapers, including a New Year's Eve Fetish Ball where the proper upper class mixed with young guests in rubber S/M gear.
From an obituary: "Beneath his mauve mannerisms, Bunny was stalwart, frank, dependable and undeceived; to onlookers a passing peacock, to intimates, a life enhancer and exemplary friend."
The truth of the matter is that if you’re going to seriously pursue writing, not every line can go hard. It can’t be hard 100% of the time, or the hard just becomes soft. Sometimes the line just has to get the writing from point a to point b.
i wanna get some kind of procedure that gives me eyeshine. i want people to look at me and see a pretty girl at first glance, but then see my eyes flash in the dark and wonder if they've just had a dangerous encounter with the creature.
