I Loved Your Hc About Neil Doing Robin's Hair So Much 🥺 Do You Have Any More Robin And Neil Headcannons?

hc that andrew smashed all of bee’s glass figurines at one of their first sessions by throwing his hot chocolate mug at them, just to see how she’d react. when she remained calm and pleasant and wasn’t phased, he finally started to warm up to her ever so slightly and he has been building her collection back up ever since 

Forehead kisses.

Dude no shit, he literally says “fuck you, cripple” and books it out of the room before Kevin can beat his ass. And in the first book too, like oh damn you guys don’t even know about his “attitude problem” yet

I’m surprised this quote is in the third book considering, you know ... everything

so i'm currently consuming only orange food (on accident) and my mind just decided this needed to happen so consider this:

it's neil's sophomore year and they've managed to make it to championships again

this year it's a home game, so they don't have to travel anywhere

enter neil

it's the morning of the game, and as he pulls an orange from their fruit bowl he gets an idea

how much orange food do you think can he eat before the game?

he tells no one, but eventually they all catch on

the foxes were never one for superstition or pre-game rituals

the closest they got was tapping the "riko racquet" before each game

but suddenly it's like they're on a mission

that first year it's mostly neil, but after he scores the winning shot of the game it's cemented in the team forever

the next year almost all of them join in, going to every length to keep it orange

neil buys orange ice cream and special orders all orange m&m's to try and get andrew to join, to no avail

his junior year he stops to pick up coffee (the one thing they agreed to allow, though they usually shoot for orange mugs) when he has an idea

"do you think you could make an orange coffee"

the barista: 👁👁 can i what now

turns out they can

when neil shows up at the dorms with orange coffee for everyone andrew has never been so close to murdering him

nicky all but loses his mind when he sees the tray

matt very excitedly adds it to their running list of orange foods held to the fridge with a fox magnet

when neil graduates allison frames it and they hang it next to the trophy stand

by his senior year andrew still outright refuses to join in

until it's his last college championship game

neil comes home from his run early and flips on the kitchen light to find him on top of the counter

3/4ths of the way through a pumpkin pie, orange whipped cream and all

and halfway through a two liter of orange crush

they both freeze

for a long moment nothing is said

a clock's ticks echo through the room

neil grins, "don't believe in superstition, huh?"

"shut up, junkie"

"i'm not the one devouring an all orange pie like a gremlin right now"

"i will kill you"

"you'd have to put down the pie first"

eventually he does, in favor of a very different pre-game ritual

@jensen57 @jingerhead @twirlingflurry This is all your fault. Enjoy the novel.

I will start this off by saying, write whatever the hell you want. I don't have to interact with it. But also really think long and hard about why you are writing them that way. Why do you need to change these characters so completely to enjoy them? So yes write whatever you want, but also think a little when you do.

This is all in reference to this post for context. Now I will rant.

I hate to be mean but I think some of you need the actual slap in the face that is there is no justification for this whatsoever. Whatever "oh he's overcoming his trauma, oh he's friends with her because this and that, oh it's because he's allowed to now," bullshit you want to come up with is worthless to anyone who has any grasp on the characters and their personalities.

Neil avoids Allison for pretty much the entire series. He barely even likes her. The only time they interact in canon is when it is actually necessary for them to do so. The one time they're ever alone is when he has to ride with her and they literally do not say a word to each other. He never seeks her out, even for the coverup in TRK. Wymack sends him. On top of all of that, she is also the person who outed him and Andrew to their entire team against their will not even 2 days after a very traumatic event solely to win money. And you can argue that they don't really care because they don't acknowledge it at the time, but I will calmly direct you to the scene at the cabin when it is brought up again at a much less traumatic and stressful time and both him and Andrew react very negatively to it.

Neil also hates shopping, and gossip, and drama. So tell me where exactly their personalities and interests line up. And listen I know that she is a deeper character than that but I am speaking solely to these situations where they also tend to erase her personality too. And I am all for hc's where she cuts his hair or her and Nicky (who canonically enjoys it) shop for him. But please explain to me where exactly "Neil's bestie Allison picked him up for a goss sesh and then they went to the mall." fits into canon. Literally one example. AND very very importantly. Neil isn't gay, he is demisexual. GBFs are already a harmful stereotype, so maybe don't erase an ace characters identity and his canon character in general to fit him into the role of one. Like seriously what the fuck.

Getting into that more, since when has Neil been this hyperfeminine allo "sassy bitch" who blushes when someone looks at him. I will say this, I think a lot of us in the fandom recognize that it has grown a lot in the last year and there are a lot of young fans now who probably should not have read it. But they did, and now they're here. And now Neil goes skirt shopping because they fit his slender waist and long legs oh so well. Oh wait, Neil's 5'3. Oh wait, Neil's a man. Oh wait, since when did he ever express anything but anxiety and discomfort about showing his scars. Sorry, I just forgot that the entirety of canon and Neil's characterization exists for a second there. On that note, the word blush (or any variant) doesn't exist in canon outside of describing 1) exertion (you know from the sport they play that requires strength that might, just maybe, mean Neil is muscular) and 2) Maria Hemmick being a horrible person. And then I read one of these posts and someone looks at Neil and he flushes red. Since when. I feel like I don't need to explain how that is ooc.

In that same vein, what is with the characterization of Andreil as a whole in these. Andreil is just such a special ship. They go against pretty much every relationship norm. They fit so well together because they are so similar. Neil is just about as emotionless as Andrew throughout the books in case anyone forgot. But because they've turned him into this hyperfeminine caricature Andrew now needs to fit into the strong manly uncommunicative toxic boyfriend who will Defend At All Costs and like mf growls now. People don't growl so what the fuck is with that. In reality, Andrew lets Neil handle his own problems. Because Neil can handle his own problems. I don't know why I need to stress that when it is canon and obvious. He doesn't need Andrew to throw someone out the window because they looked at his scars wrong in the crop top he and Allison bought. As you can probably guess he doesn't because that would never actually happen if he were in character, but I'll reiterate it here anyways for the sake of ranting. They also fucking talk to each other. I don't know where y'all got the idea that Andrew never asks questions or like says words to Neil when he is so serious about consent (as he should be) and half the reason anyone bet on them being a thing in AFTG was because Neil is the only one he talks to most of the time.

On to other topics.

I like Matt in canon. He's an interesting character who has overcome a lot. But I cannot stand him in fanon most of the time. He literally acts like the fucking dog from UP half the time and that is the only way I can describe it. Yes, he is friends with Neil. Yes, he is also kind. You know what he also is? He's a recovering addict. He's a flawed person just like every fox. He's a traumatized person just like every fox. He has an actual personality and life outside of being nice to Neil. Maybe consider giving him that next time.

KevAaron just kinda spontaneously appeared out of the depths of hell and I don't know how to shove it back in there. I have met young fans that ship it exclusively (yes, instead of Andreil). I'm fairly certain people just went "ah here is a character we haven't tried to ship Kevin with yet" and ran with it. They never once have direct dialog in the entire series, despite living together, being in the same group, being on the same team, and partying together. Apparently they "have similar trauma" but like guys.. if that is the only link you have for a ship I have very very many questions. Especially if you're going to bash KevThea for the same reason (I don't ship KevThea either pls don't come for me I'm just making a point). If you feel the need to break up KateAaron's happy, healthy canon relationship to shove a character into an mlm ship that has absolutely no bearing in canon and basically requires it to be written ooc please reconsider that ship. 

I will end this by saying, in the nicest way possible:

If you need to change so much about the characters to enjoy them and the series, did you really enjoy the series?

i just think that if i go one more day without meeting the foxes i’ll cry

i really wish we’d had more hernandez content, because he was obviously important to neil. like neil didn’t flinch at all when hernandez reached to help him up after andrew slammed him w the racquet, he clearly cared for neil and wanted to see him succeed, he was probably the person neil most trusted (although still warily) in millport. like i bet he puts up all the newspaper clippings about neil that he can find, and i bet he follows neil’s life through the news (and is shocked when the truth about his past comes out). i hope that neil gives him a ticket to watch him at the olympics. anyway, i want more hernandez content 

the foxes as taylor swift albums 

this post is dedicated to @unholy-goddess oddess (because i know she’ll love it, and because she helped me place a few foxes) and to @andrewssock (because i know they’ll hate it xoxo)

the first three are tentative but there’s more and more good proof the farther along you get, so just bear with me

1- debut: aaron

aaron gets debut mainly because of the longing-for-things-you-can’t-have and i’m-absolutely-in-love-with-you vibes, but also partly because of the slightly judgemental aspect of the album

lyrics that remind me of him: 

- i’m only me when i’m with you, from “i’m only me when i’m with you”

- and i don’t try to hide my tears/ my secrets or my deepest fears/ through it all nobody gets me like you do, from “i’m only me when i’m with you”

2- fearless: dan

first off, just because of the name of the album lmao. the love songs are also great for her and matt, discovering yourself and ending up better off than you were when you were a teenager, and the underlying theme of friendship, loyalty, and desperate love all fit dan. 

lyrics that remind me of her:

- don’t forget to look before you fall/ but i’ve found time can heal most anything/ and you just might find out who you’re supposed to be, from “fifteen”

- this love is difficult/ but it’s real, from love story

3- speak now: matt

he’s so in love with dan and that’s the driving reason behind this placement, but also the standing up for yourself bits are very fitting

lyrics that remind me of him: 

- you’re the kind of reckless that should send me running/ but i kinda know that i won’t get far, from “sparks fly”

- long live the walls we crashed through/ how the kingdom lights shine just for me and you, from “long live”

4- red: allison

my beloved. the whole reason i even thought of this post in the first place. i was listening to starlight and it fit so well and then i listened to the rest of the album (for the millionth time) and it all clicked into place for her. this one is very much about glamour (and its beauty and struggles), off-and-on-again relationships, and the highs and lows of being a (beautiful) young adult. allison vibes all around

lyrics that remind me of her: 

- the whole place was dressed to the nines/ and we were dancing, dancing/ like we’re made of starlight, from “starlight”

- and they still tell the legend of how you disappeared/ how you took the money and your dignity and got the hell out, from “lucky one” 

- the entirety of “i knew you were trouble” and “we are never ever getting back together”

5- reputation: andrew

i have no doubt in my mind that this is andrew’s album. for a second i did consider neil, but he actively avoided having a reputation whereas andrew’s is all people think of when they hear about him. also i think he’d appreciate the beat drops

lyrics that remind me of him:

- i don’t regret it one bit/ ‘cause he had it coming, from “i did something bad”

- maybe i got mine/ but you’ll all get yours, from “look what you made me do”

- for you i would cross the line and don’t blame me, love made me crazy/ if it doesn’t you ain’t doing it right, from “don’t blame me”

6- 1989: neil

debated this for about 2 seconds, at which point i remembered the song “i know places” exists. the overall album atmosphere of big cities and hiding and faded memories fits neil to a t. 

lyrics that remind me of him:

- they are the hunters, we are the foxes/ and we run/ baby, i know places we won’t be found and/ they’ll be chasing their tails trying to track us down, from “i know places”

- nothing lasts forever/ but this is gonna take me down, from “wildest dreams”

- but when the sun came up, i was looking at you, from “out of the woods”

7- lover: nicky

it’s an album about loving someone from abroad, with a mix of euphoric songs and hopeless songs and honestly i think this is just perfect for nicky. it was one of the easiest ones to place

lyrics that remind me of him: 

- i like shiny things but i’d marry you with paper rings, from “paper rings”

- have i known you twenty seconds or twenty years?, from “lover”

- something gave you the nerve/ to touch my hand/ it’s nice to have a friend, from “it’s nice to have a friend”

8- folklore: renee

literally listen to any song and you’ll know what i mean

lyrics that remind me of her:

- i just wanted you to know/ that this is me trying, from “this is me trying”

- only twenty minutes to sleep/ but you dream of some epiphany/ just one single glimpse of relief/ to make some sense of what you’ve seen, from “epiphany”

9- evermore: kevin

unholy-goddess and i both actually originally thought fearless for kevin, but some of the songs in evermore are just too perfect of a fit to ignore, so he gets my favourite album. what is most reminiscent of kevin in this album is the exhaustion and the discovery of one’s own worth. it’s best related to him if you listen to it thinking of him looking back on his time with the ravens. also it’s literally called evermore 

lyrics that remind me of him: 

- i know my love should be celebrated/ but you tolerate it, from “tolerate it”

- there’ll be happiness after you/ but there was happiness because of you too/ both of these things can be true/ there is happiness/ past the blood and bruise, from “happiness”

- tell me, when did your winning smile/ begin to look like a smirk?/ when did all our lessons start to look like weapons pointed at my deepest hurt, from “happiness”

- i don’t need your “closure”/ your “closure”/ don’t treat me like some situation that needs to be handled/ i’m fine with my spite/ and my tears/ and my beers and my candles, from “closure”

- and i fell from the pedestal/ right down the rabbit hole/ long story short, it was a bad time, from “long story short”

i honestly don’t think anyone besides heidi will get this far, but whoever is reading this, i truly do love and appreciate you <3

neil josten’s favourite place to sit is the floor. i will die on this hill

agdjahkshskdhj you’re not wrong💀💀

neil. buddy. my guy. you got through christmas at evermore with riko moriyama, but concerned teammates are what you can’t survive. sir, wtf

(the king’s men, pg. 16, ch. 1)