You can love him, but you can't keep him
| Fanwork | |
|---|---|
| Title: | You can love him, but you can't keep him |
| Creator: | pencap |
| Date(s): | April 20, 2016 |
| Medium: | poetry |
| Fandom: | Captain America Movieverse |
| External Links: | "Original post". Archived from the original on 2021-02-24. |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
"You can love him, but you can't keep him" is a poem by Tumblr user pencap. It was originally posted on Tumblr as a Bucky Barnes poemfic in 2016. The poem has since become widely quoted and inspired derivative works in other fandoms.
Original poem
"You love him,
you do,
and here's the miracle:
he loves you too.
You are allowed
to lick off the colour from his lips
to listen to the hymns in his pulse
to bask in the sunlight of his voice
You are allowed
to have him.
You love each other,
you do,
and here's the tragedy:
it's not enough.
You are allowed
to watch the sun swallow him whole and burn him up
to stain your fingers to the bone holding him together
to count the constellations in his eyes as they blink out
You are not allowed
to save him."
– you can love him, but you can't keep him (j.p.)
This poem was posted on Tumblr by pencap on 20 April 2016.[1] The author tagged the post "#bucky barnes", in reference to Marvel character Bucky Barnes. No ship tag was included on the original post but it is most often interpreted as a Bucky Barnes/Steve Rogers work.
Derivative works
Within a month of the poem's publication, it was inspiring derivative works in MCU and other fandoms, particularly gifsets.[2]
Examples
MCU Ships
- Gifset, Archived version by dykebucky (Bucky Barnes/Steve Rogers)
- Gifset, Archived version by jensennackels (Bucky Barnes/Natasha Romanova)
- Gifset, Archived version by melissascvlly (Pepper Potts/Tony Stark)
- Gifset, Archived version by cath-avery (Steve Rogers/Tony Stark)
- Gifset, Archived version by onlymorelove (Steve Rogers/Tony Stark)
Other Fandoms
- Gifset, Archived version by electricitybetween (Rey/Kylo Ren)
- Gifset, Archived version by earstwo (Rey/Kylo Ren)
- Gifset, Archived version by sounds-chaotic (Jaime Lannister/Brienne of Tarth)
- Gifset, Archived version by cat-stark (Jon Snow/Sansa Stark)
- Gifset, Archived version by aproblematicpanda (Clarke Griffin/Lexa)
- Gifset, Archived version by shipsxahoy Killian Jones/Emma Swan
- Gifset, Archived version by cherryicola (Azula/Ty Lee)
- Gifset, Archived version by legolas.co.vu (Bilbo Baggins/Thorin Oakenshield)
References
- ^ Original Tumblr post by pencap (archived version retrieved 7 August 2021)
- ^ Bilbo/Thorin gifset by legolas.co.vu, posted on 24 May 2016