Icon from a picrew by grgikau. Call me Tir or Julian. 37. He/They. Queer. Twitter: @tirlaeyn. ao3: tirlaeyn. 18+ Only. Star Trek. The X-Files. Sandman. IwtV. OMFD. Definitionless in this Strict Atmosphere.
sorry @landwriter but I saw one of your tags on the way past the other day re: is there any fic where Dream just greets Hob in the New Inn by kissing him and I have NOT been able to stop thinking about it since so this one is your fault/for you <3
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Hob’s been planning for decades what he’s going to say to his stranger when he turns up again, which he will, because they are friends, and that’s that. Hob knows a friend when he has one.
It just. Takes a second, to get the words out, when his stranger is actually there, in the flesh, just like Hob remembers him but also clearly different, clearly not the same man… creature… being… who walked out on him a hundred and thirty-odd years ago.
His lips are parted to say it, you’re late, when they’re suddenly otherwise occupied.
It’s soft, so soft, sweeter than he would’ve thought his stranger—his friend—capable of, sweet enough to make Hob’s insides clench to the point of wonderful agony as he learns the rainwater and ozone taste of a mouth he has, okay, wanted to kiss for a small handful of centuries.
It’s also mercifully quick, which is just as well, because immortal he may be, but mortified he would be if the pathetically needy desperate noise welling up in his chest had managed to escape before he’s even said hello.
There’s only a half-inch of space between them, his stranger’s hand curled around his shoulder, just as bony as Hob always imagined and about a hundred times stronger.
“Hello, old stranger,” he manages, any desire to be a smartarse about this having dissolved into the warm liquid of his insides. He can’t even bear to open his eyes, too afraid his friend will be gone when he does.
“Hello, Hob,” comes the response, the low rumbling response that’s always played havoc with Hob’s soft parts and is much, much worse in this context.
A gentle thumb strokes Hob’s cheek. He still can’t make himself open his eyes. Should he pinch himself, to make sure he’s not dreaming?
Because he has, just quietly, had this dream before.
“Quite a greeting,” he manages, impressed by how he only sounds like he’s run up a flight of stairs and not an actual marathon.
Because he has, just quietly, had this dream before.
His stranger hums. “Will you take it as an apology?” he asks. “I believe I may owe you more than one.”
Hob risks cracking his eyes open. He’s got to, eventually.
Seeing his stranger smiling, really smiling, so that his pretty blue eyes sparkle in the afternoon sun, makes it more than worth the risk.
“I would beg forgiveness at length if necessary,” his stranger says.
Hob, somehow, melts even more. He’ll be a puddle on the floor in a minute.
“Nothing to forgive,” he says, in earnest. He was never really angry. He’s never really been upset. He’s just been waiting. “But that doesn’t mean you can’t kiss me again.”
Okay, okay, but the mental image was too good. I had to share.
Dream coming to visit Hob at his apartment, Hob’s JUST gotten a new appliance of some sort that came in a big cardboard box, that he’s left sitting on the floor in the living room, like ‘eh, I’ll recycle it later’ while he’s setting up the appliance. Dream takes one look at the cardboard box, his eyes go all black and he turns into a cat and jumps inside, curls up and goes to sleep. Hob, watching on, is like ’… hello?! What just happened?! I didn’t… even know… you could do that?!’
“If you ever find yourself in Morpheus good graces, deem yourself lucky, or doomed. If he is good, he’ll leave you breathless, if wronged he will break hell loose to bury you and himself in its soil.
For of all the seven Endless children, Morpheus is the most inacessible of them all, only rivalled by Destiny whose focus is forever on his book. Morpheus had wronged and been wronged one too many times to bare himself to anyone.
A prideful creature he is, but that you already knew. An injured bird whose wings have been clipped by his own sibling once or twice for Love is Desire’s domain, and they do love to mess with their brother’s paramours.
Tread carefully, Hob Gadling, for for the first time in thousands years the dear Orpheus sang in his father’s name.
Singing la la la la la la la, La la la la la la la”
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Now that I posted the backlog I have, drawings might come less regurlarly, basically when I have time and want to draw, hope you have a good time still!
He’s the king of dreams and he visits hob’s subconscious to practise a thousand possible versions of them meeting again after their big fight because he doesn’t want to risk anything being left to chance that’s right it’s just like hbo the rehearsal but with an anxiety riddled ruler of the nightmare realm and one night in one of the dream variations hob just kisses him and he————
Ok here are my Thoughts on this bc i can’t let it go. Under the cut because i went overboard
But the point is that it mentions Dream “this dream is over”-ing scenarios that get too overwhelming and I didn’t want to derail the post but the thought that is now haunting me is:
Dream, in the Waking World, trying to “this dream is over” moments with Hob that get too overwhelming because surely, Hob wouldn’t forgive him? Or kiss him? Or tell him he loves him? This is surely some twisted joke a rogue dream is playing on their Lord, they are angry at him for abandoning them and so they want to hurt their King, offer him poisoned gifts of immortal humans smiling at him and telling him “I’m just glad to know you’re okay, old friend”, HOW DARE THEY?! This dream is over.
But the dream doesn’t end. When he opens his eyes, Hob is still there, still smiling, brushing his thumb over his cheekbone and saying “Really? For me, the dream is only just getting started.”
i’m watching the sandman and i think Death planned for Hob. i think she has heard Hob have that rant before. she heard him and went “omg you know who would absolutely not stand you? my brother Dream” and then she planned everything bc she knew Hob was gonna be at the inn and she knows Dream loooves to be proven right and can’t resist a bet so she was like “what if i make this man. my brother’s problem” and she did. what a queen. truly an ally for the mlm community. support your emo brother by giving him a boyfriend against his will
With the announcement of season 2 my fellow dreamling shippers understand that the ship is not going to become canon right?
Hob will show up in season 2, Sturridge and Kingsley will probably have the incredible chemistry that got us all into this ship, and what will be on the screen is a completely platonic friendship.
And when that happens people are not going to complain and send Neil horrible asks, right?
Because dreamling is awesome and it is ours. The ship belongs to the fans. If we want content of it then we have to make it and support the fans who are making it.
It’s not going to be canon, and you know what? That’s awesome! Because it belongs to us and we can make it whatever we want.
There is already so much incredible art and fic out there. Let’s make more and let’s tell the people who make it that we love it.
