Work Text:
All Tumblr wants is one day. One fucking day without kids breaking rules, exes calling, or stepparents who call to complain about what a waste of space and money they are. The week had been a trainwreck from the start: Tumblr had caught their oldest, [Artists], posting inappropriate works again. They know that part of letting their kids grow up is letting them express themselves, but they had made the rules very clear: no posting explicit works around the website. Their bosses, [Shareholders] and [Advertisers], liked to swing by for "chats" far too often for Tumblr to allow them to post whatever they want.
After they'd been caught, [Artists] had thrown a tantrum about the rule, whining about how X let them post whatever they wanted. Tumblr had sighed, letting [Artists] throw their tantrum. They really weren't sure how to explain that X was a lot more popular than they were, allowing them to get away with more. Tumblr had always been considered the oddball employee. The one who had worked there forever and never fit in, always on the verge of being fired. Their career had been referred to as 'dead' more times than they could count and yet here they were, still chugging along.
As if summoned by Tumblr's argument with [Artists], their ex X had called later that day about splitting custody. They'd said something nasty about their liberal users again and were in a tight spot, and would need Tumblr to spend a little extra time with [Artists] as a result. Tumblr couldn't contain a sigh, burying their face in their hands. Ever since Twitter had transitioned into X, they'd been making one bad decision after the other, digging themselves into an increasingly deeper pit that looked like it was going to get them fired sooner or later. They knew it wasn't entirely X's fault, with their new website management, but they were still annoyed that they had to pick up the slack. [Artists] was already upset with them for banning explicit works, and cutting back the time they spent at X's house meant they would be even more upset about having nowhere to post their explicit content.
Tumblr had hoped to find solace in the safety of their own website, but Reddit's users had come knocking at the door instead, soaking wet and looking for a place to stay. Reddit was having a meltdown that their users wanted no part of, and they needed a place where they could safely post. Sighing, Tumblr let them in, allowing their own users to show the new ones around the website. Tumblr and Reddit had an on-and-off-again sort of relationship for a very long time, so it really wasn't surprising that Reddit's users had fled to Tumblr for safety. Tumblr just wished that the painful reminder of Reddit's need for assistance didn't still pull at their heartstrings. They couldn't afford to let themselves fall into old habits, not with the number of users they had to take care of.
The final breaking point had come in the form of a wall of code in the office. Their stepparent, Yahoo, had worked on the same code years before, and before passing it onto Tumblr they had apparently left behind a note attached to the code. The note degraded Tumblr as useless and claimed they'd never be able to figure out how to fix the issue the same way they'd never figured out how to pull ahead and become popular or desirable, declaring Tumblr once again as dead to them. The words stung despite their familiarity, years of failures weighing down on Tumblr's shoulders. Between the world outside and the overwhelming amounts of chaos on their own website, Tumblr wasn't sure they could do this anymore. There seemed to be no respite.
When Tumblr got home that night they planned to put on the new Superman movie for the users to enjoy while they wallowed in self-pity when [Artists] quietly approached. They needed a ride to somewhere, to meet up with a new friend. Tumblr vaguely remembered that they'd brought home a friend, [Writers], on multiple occasions, to the point where having the extra users on their website had begun to feel almost normal. Apparently [Writers] had invited [Artists] to meet their parent at their workplace, which is why they needed Tumblr to drive them. Sighing, Tumblr made sure to brief all the users who were staying before grabbing their keys and getting in the car, [Artists] practically vibrating with anticipation as they drove.
The location that [Artists] gave them was a quiet library they'd never bothered to go in before, always too drained from work to even think about sitting down to read. Still, they followed [Artists] inside, not wanting them to be alone. What they found seemed nothing short of a miracle. The users inside were all sharing stories, placing various stickers on the different works to ensure that everyone could read what they wanted to. Tumblr watched as users squabbled on passed sticky notes and wrote in their notebooks, adding their works to the shelves with different stickers. Some of the stickers were peeling or misplaced, but it was so much more organized than both their work and website that they couldn't help but feel jealous. What was truly impressive, however, was the one behind it all. [Writers]' parent, the librarian. They ran the place with a steady, firm hand, working with their users in a way Tumblr had never quite mastered. It was incredible to watch, and all Tumblr seemed to be able to do was stare in awe.
[Artists] looked at Tumblr with a mix of disgust and exasperation that only their eldest child could pull off before heading over to meet up with [Writers], sitting together and exchanging creations. Tumblr didn't even think to warn them about explicit content, not that they seemed to need to. The librarian had given the users stickers to help measure the age ranking of what their users created, allowing for users to know what ages the creations on the shelves were meant for. The librarian was not forceful with managing the age ratings, but rather they were there for the users to decide what they wanted to see. Tumblr couldn't help but be impressed by this little library. Completely untouched by bosses like their own, such as [Shareholders] and [Advertisers], the library seemed to function entirely off the librarian and the users, like its own mini ecosystem.
Finally the librarian cleared their throat, and it was then Tumblr realized that they had probably spent more time than was appropriate admiring the library and its setup. Awkwardly, they offered the librarian a hand. "Uh, hi. I'm Tumblr. [Artists]' parent." The librarian shook their hand with a soft smile. "I'm Archive of Our Own, though you can call me Ao3. Everyone does." Tumblr's heartrate increases as they listen to the librarian speak, watching them fidget. They're gorgeous, and Tumblr has to physically stop themselves from saying something stupid about calling Ao3 theirs. Their users really have rubbed off on them.
Awkwardly Tumblr cleared their throat, trying their best to continue the conversation. "You do an incredible job of running the library and managing [Writers]. I feel like all my users and I do is argue, especially [Artists]." Ao3 just smiled again, shaking their head. "Dealing with users is hard. While I'm very blessed to have the users I do, I don't always get along with them. One thing we're constantly arguing about is money. They want to be allowed to sell their works for money, but if I let them then the library could get investigated and shut down for copyright reasons. It hurts my heart to limit them, but sometimes you have to prioritize your website's needs over your users' wants." Tumblr had never been more touched or reassured. Sometimes they felt like a failure of a parent, having to constantly change and monitor their website, but it was necessary to avoid upsetting their bosses, even if it did upset their users.
While [Artists] and [Writers] traded creations, Tumblr and Ao3 talked. Their conversation varied on everything from legal issues to common things users complained about, but one topic they found themselves discussing in depth was tagging. Similar to the stickers on Ao3's works, Tumblr allowed users to label their posts. Oftentimes, however, their users would instead use the tags to instead talk or make additions to the post without adding to the post itself. They traded stories with Ao3 about some of the bizarre things their users put in the tags of different posts and works, some more concerning than others. Ao3 was a lot more friendly and seemed a lot more put-together than a lot of the websites Tumblr had met or even dated over the years, allowing them to relax in a way they hadn't been able to in a long time.
By the time [Artists] and [Writers] were done it was getting late, and Tumblr needed to get back soon to check on their own users. [Artists] elbowed them and gave them a look, and Tumblr sighed, gathering their courage before they could second guess themselves. "Do you want to grab coffee Saturday? I can come pick you up around 9 AM." As soon as the words were out of Tumblr's mouth they regretted them. They'd dated so many people, and they were suggesting coffee? How cliche could they be? Before they could open their mouth to apologize Ao3 laughed, a small sound that tugged at Tumblr's gut, and nodded. "Coffee on Saturday sounds lovely. I'll see you then," Ao3 said lightheartedly. Tumblr felt their heart leap, and they couldn't stop grinning all the way home, much to [Artists]' disgust. They'd managed to score a date with the gorgeous librarian they'd met earlier that day.
The day they were supposed to meet up with Ao3, Tumblr was a nervous wreck. [Artists] had to comfort them, and while it was an awkward experience3 for them both it snapped Tumblr out of their anxiety. It would either go well or it wouldn't, and there wasn't much they could do other than look and act their best. Reassured despite the awkwardness with their users, Tumblr left the house prepared to make this date the best date they could. Even if it took them a few minutes to actually force themselves to get in the car and get going, they still managed to force themselves to push past their nerves and actually not ruin a good thing for themselves for once.
Ao3 was waiting for Tumblr by the door when they knocked, looking incredible. They'd kept everything lowkey for the most part, but the extra little bits of effort were evident. Tumblr felt incredibly flattered that Ao3 had put in extra effort for them. As they drove to the coffee shop, Tumblr felt ecstatic. Conversation with Ao3 flowed just as easily as it had at the library, despite the nerves Tumblr felt. They felt like they were tripping over their words, and yet Ao3 seemed to easily run with whatever mistakes Tumblr made, turning them into clever jokes. Ao3 had a way with words that made Tumblr feel like they could fix any mistake or situation. It felt perfect, which was why Tumblr should've expected something to go horribly wrong. After all, they could never have something nice like these moments with Ao3 for long. Something or someone would always come along, some consequence of a long-forgotten action, and things would be ruined.
What went wrong this time was X, who always seemed to have a way of showing up and ruining things wherever they were wanted least. Today they were stumbling into the coffee shop where Tumblr and Ao3 were having their date day drunk, immediately spotting Tumblr. If there was one thing that one could count on when it came to X, it was that they couldn't stand to see people happy while they were miserable. They always had to make their misery into misery for everyone else, and today was no exception. X approached Tumblr and Ao3's table, drunkenly leaning on Tumblr's chair. "Hello, old lover of mine. I see you've found someone new to ruin the life of?" Tumblr shifted uncomfortably in their chair at X's words, while X turned their attention to Ao3. "You know, Tumblr's always been a mess. All their relationships and even situationships have always ended badly. They just don't know when they're not needed, and they're so anxious that they get overly attached and act super clingy. Constantly need reassurance. I don't know why you'd waste your time on them."
Before Tumblr could defend themselves or sink into the floor Ao3 spoke up, their sweet voice holding a new edge. "I do believe that you have little room to talk, considering you're clearly drunk and it's not even 10 AM. I'd rather deal with a clingy, anxious sweetheart like Tumblr than deal with a pathetic and miserable drunk like you. Everyone has had a messy relationship before, and sometimes those messy relationships help us grow as people. Clearly, you grew in a rather unfortunate way. Now, if you'd leave us be so we could continue our date in peace, that would be lovely." Ao3's words left both Tumblr and X baffled, Tumblr's face flushing in embarrassment as X sputtered. Finally, X drunkenly stumbled away, thoroughly scolded. Ao3 turned to Tumblr, ready to reassure them. "Don't worry about that little mess, sweetheart. We've all had our fair share of messy breakups. My last ex wouldn't stop showing up at my door, and eventually i had to give them a good ass kicking to get them to leave me be." Tumblr could hardly focus on Ao3's words, still marveling at their sharp tongue. By the time they had to drive Ao3 home, Tumblr was half-convinced they were in love.
As soon as [Artists] and their other users saw Tumblr, still flustered and lovestruck from their date, they all immediately groaned in disgust. They all knew what Tumblr was like when they were head over heels, and they also knew they'd have to be the ones to deal with it. Tumblr didn't care about their users' judgement, too wrapped up in their own giddiness from their date. Tumblr's good day had finally come, and with the way things were looking with Ao3, there would be many good days.