#DON PAULO HI DON PAULO

[maniculum]

Odd interaction at the bookstore yesterday. Got summoned to the register in my capacity as Employee Who Knows About Old Books because a customer wanted to know what Don Quixote was about.

(Yes, this does mean that the employee already at the register wasn’t able to answer that question. I have a lot of “what are they teaching you in those schools?” interactions with my younger co-workers.)

Anyway, I gave the customer a quick synopsis. He asked if I’d recommend it, and I said I would, that it was not only well-written but also pretty accessible & engaging for a novel written four hundred years ago. Then he asked if he would “see things differently after reading it.”

He then elaborated that he really liked Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist and wanted other books he read to have a similar paradigm-shifting effect.

(I haven’t read The Alchemist, specifically because every time someone recommends it to me they use this same kind of language, which makes me feel like they’re trying to get me to join a cult rather than read a book.)

We are in a college town, so “young person who’s just learned what philosophy and poetry are and now thinks of themselves as Deep” is a Type of Guy we encounter fairly frequently.

(Just a few hours before this, I overheard a young man recommending a book to his female companion because it would “help with her creative energies”.)

So it’s not that this is particularly unusual in vibes, it’s more that… this seems like an odd standard to hold a novel to before you read it. And it’s an odd question to ask your local bookseller — “will this book change my life?” I dunno, man, I don’t know your life. Maybe it will, books do that sometimes.

Anyway, I told him “probably”, because honestly Don Quixote is a really good book and I think more people should read it. And, I dunno, maybe it will make him see things differently.

(It might even make him see novels as intrinsically worth reading rather than as vessels for personal change.)

I have no idea if that worked, because as mentioned I wasn’t at the register at the time. I went back to organizing the used books and didn’t see him again. Kind of hope he bought it.

(To be clear, at no point during this conversation was he holding a copy of Don Quixote. I had to instruct him to look under “C” for “Cervantes” if he decided he wanted to buy it. His curiosity was sparked by a set of novelty bookends.)

[quantomeno]

Wait I've just realised Don Paolo in Pandora's Box makes no sense

I mean, his actions in the beginning are fine. It totally matches his previous modus operandi to steal a mysterious and valuable artefact. Plus he did know Dr Schrader so it makes enough sense he'd target him.

But then...

Was he on the train with Layton et al? Was he just hanging around Dropstone? Did he take the Molentary Express because he saw the train ticket too? Or did he take the train because he saw Layton was planning to take it and thought he'd be able to work out the mystery of the box for him?

From his dialogue, it seems like he was trying to solve the mystery to find the Herzen family wealth, but then he hangs about in the hotel most of the investigation.

But that side of things I can sort of accept. The really big thing is his Flora disguise.

Because Flora was not meant to go on the train ride with Layton. If Don Paulo was observing Layton and learned he was going on the train and decided to hide on board (probably in disguise) then he would have known Flora was left behind.

(funnily, if Don Paulo had packed a Flora disguise assuming Flora was coming and then realised she wasn't, he could've gotten away with disguising as Flora anyway and just saying she didn't want to be left alone, exactly as Flora actually does. Flora could have been written out of PB entirely, which I'm glad didn't happen, but it would also have avoided her being stuck in a barn for a day)

But then he sees Flora has arrived and is like good, I didn't pack my Flora costume for nothing! Or did he have several plans? Did he plan to replace Luke if Flora wasn't there? Was he hoping to do Chelmey again but then saw the inspector was on the train too?

I guess he just keeps a Flora disguise around just in case. And then he saw the opportunity and took it.

I said this makes no sense but honestly this all does indeed seem to fit nicely with Paul's MO. and also he gets that Layton disguise very quickly in Lost Future, so I expect he does just have a massive set of disguises with him at all times and has been practising everyone's mannerisms just in case.

[topguncortez]

Bad Medicine | Chapter 2

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word count: 5.4k

synopsis: A wealthy Italian mobster sets up his daughter to marry the head of one of the last remaining mafias in California. The union was supposed to create and heal the damage between two families, but all it does is cause more harm than good. MAJOR SLOW BURN (ENEMIES TO LOVERS)

WARNINGS: death/murder, guns, violence, physical abuse, cursing, mentions of prostitution, mentions of murder, grief, blood, nudity, mentions of drugs, mentions of a brothel

Y/N’s apartment looked over the upper East Side of New York. It was a cute little place that was within walking distance to the club. It gave her both things that she loved, the chaotic life that came with living in New York, and privacy to where she felt safe coming home at night. And that was partially because of Rueben, aka Payback, her bodyguard that Rafael had hired when she moved back to New York. That was part of Rafael’s deal in sending Y/N back to New York, she had to have a bodyguard. Y/N was smart though, and could figure out how to leave her bodyguards in the dust and jet off around the world, except Rueben could see right through that all. 

Y/N stood on the balcony, taking in her surroundings for the last time. She hadn’t stood out on the balcony in a long time. Good and bad memories filled her mind as she held her cup of tea close to her body for some warmth. Images of her relationship with Francisco filled her mind and sent a shiver down her spine. She also thought about all the good times she had while working at the club. Sure it wasn’t the best job she could ever have, but she loved the girls she worked with. She was probably going to miss them more than anything. 

“Y/N?” Gianni asked softly, “You ready?” 

Y/N and Rueben had spent the whole night packing. She looked over at the small carryon and purse sitting on her bed. She packed the essentials to make the trip over. Her brothers would be sending the rest of her clothing in the coming weeks. 

Y/N took a deep breath, she wanted to tell him no. She didn’t know a thing about Jake Seresin, to the internet it was like the man didn’t exist. She knew that he supposedly studied law at University of Texas, but never went past that. He took over for his father when he had a heart attack nearly two years ago. It was all fabricated bullshit about “Seresin Enterprises” and how they bought several blocks of casinos and clubs in both Vegas and San Diego. Apparently they had been on the FBI’s radar for sometime due to an underground boxing and prostitution ring. However, they claim no such truth about it. Which was something all mobsters said. 

“Y/N, we gotta get headed to the airport. The Don is mad we held it off this long,” Paulo said walking into her room. Y/N sighed and walked into the room, leaving the warmth of the morning sun, “You got what you need?” 

“Yeah, Payback took my bags to the car,” She answered and fixed herself in the mirror. She wore a simple skin tight black dress and paired it with matching black heels. Her tan skin looked sunkissed compared to the dark colors. She looked around at her barren apartment and frowned. She didn’t have a lot of stuff to begin with, but seeing it all boxed up made her feel kind of sad. Y/N nodded, and Gianni gently led her through the house and towards the waiting car. 

“Wait,” Y/N said, and turned to face her brother, “Have you heard from Sophie? I haven’t heard from her since she left for Greece and I know she’d want to be a part of this wedding bullshit.” 

Paulo looked at his two brothers, as if to tell them to keep their mouths shut. Narciso clenched his jaw and Gianni whistled, looking away from his little sister. 

“I have not heard from Sophie,” Paulo answered, “But I’ll make sure someone reaches out to her.” 

“She’d kill me if I got married and she wasn’t there for it,” Y/N smiled sadly and pulled her phone out, dialing the number again. Paulo ushered her into the car as Sophie’s phone went to voicemail again. Y/N sighed and left her yet another voicemail. 

When Y/N arrived at the small private airport she noticed the black SUVs and armed men that were standing around. She would try and make a break for it if it weren’t for the military style weapons ready to fire at any moment. One would think that the president or some diplomat was about to land, but in reality, it was just some man from Italy. Although the Santiagos had slowly defeated their enemies over the years, some still lurked in the shadows, waiting for the right moment to strike. 

The Don stepped out of his own vehicle when the Santiago siblings arrived. He looked pissed and Paulo fixed his suit as he walked over to talk to him. The patriarch stared his daughter down through the dark tinted glass of the SUV. She gulped and looked over at Payback who simply shrugged. He didn’t want to do this anymore than she wanted. 

“Do you want to make things easy?” Payback asked and Y/N nodded, “Don’t try and fight every little thing he says.” 

“You know me better than that Rueben,” Y/N smirked, and opened her car door. Her heels clicked across the ground as she walked up to her father. His stare sent a shiver down her spine, and it made her hold her head up higher, trying to show him that she was not afraid. 

“No funny business, Y/N. You get on the plane here and off in San Diego. I hear you made the pilot take you to England or Paris, I will cut off the expenses for the wedding,” Rafael threatened Y/N. The girl rolled her eyes, “We’ve set up for you to be married to Jacob in four weeks.” 

“Four fucking weeks?!” Y/N cursed and was met with another backhand across her face. 

“Watch your fucking mouth,” The Don yelled, “This is why you couldn’t find a husband on your own.” 

“Maybe if you would give me a damn chance!” Y/N yelled. 

“Why? So you could find someone else to murder someone in our family?!”

Y/N clenched her jaw and looked away from him. She had heard it almost every year since her mother’s death, Rafael never let her live it down. What happened to her mother was one of the worst things that Y/N and her family could’ve gone through, but no one knew that Francisco would turn his anger towards Marie. Her brothers forgave her for what happened, but Rafael still held it over her head. 

“Are none of you going to say anything!?” Y/N yelled at her brothers. They were all looking down at the ground, not bothering to jump in and say anything, “Spineless fucking idiots,” Y/N cursed and licked her lips, “I’ll see you in hell, Rafael.”

Rafael stood with his head up, his jaw clenched as he watched Y/N and Rueben walk up the plane steps. She sat down in a chair that was by the window. She watched as her brothers wouldn’t look at the plane, but the Don looked like he was ready to give an order to shoot it down. Y/N knew once the plane took off he would scold her brothers for telling her about Francisco, but the Don didn’t dare punish the boys in front of her or anyone else. People needed to know the boys were untouchable, but Y/N’s life was useless.

“Miss Santiago, can I get you anything to drink?” The flight attendant asked.

Y/N looked around the small jet and noted who the security was. There was, of course, Reuben and what looked to be like his new partner. Rafael hardly let Y/N go without two guards. The last one had been killed because the Don caught Y/N and him together. The new guy was all of 6 foot tall, with tan skin and a scar running down his face. His dark hair was gelled back and it looked like he had just bought a new black suit and dress shoes. Payback could see the glint in her eye and knew exactly what was going to happen next.

“Well, Rueben will have a Hangman IPA, I’ll take whatever red wine you have open, and a glass of whiskey for the Rookie,” Y/N smirked. Payback rolled his eyes, knowing Y/N’s plan like the back of his hand. This wasn’t the first flight he had taken with her and some new rookie, he had seen this episode before. 

“We can’t just have one plane ride where you leave the Rookies be?” Reuben asked, and Y/N just smiled, “You know what’ll happen.” 

“Then why not enjoy the fun while it lasts,” Y/N said as the flight attendant handed her the glass of wine, “Leave the bottle please, dear.”

“Laying it on thick,” Payback said, taking out his headphones. 

“My life has been signed away, Reuben. These are my last moments of freedom until I have to go wait on some mobster hand and foot,” Y/N said and Rueben frowned. He glanced outside the window to see that the black SUVs that carried her family were gone. 

“Fine,” He muttered, “Just know this one is on you.” 

“Of course,” Y/N nodded, her eyes going over to the Rookie who was seemingly confused. She just gave him a wink, and settled back in her chair as the pilot told them to prepare for take off. Y/N closed her eyes, she wasn’t ever a fan of planes taking off, she always felt like she was going to fall right out of the sky. 

Once the plane got up to cruising altitude, Y/N opened her eyes and looked at the Rookie, “Have you ever joined the Mile High club?” 

“N-no, ma’am,” He said. He had a thick country accent, making him out to probably be from the South. 

“Perfect,” Y/N smiled and stood up, taking his hand in hers and leading him to the private bedroom in the back of the plane. Payback groaned in annoyance, and pulled his earbuds out of his pocket. He settled them in his ears before going back to look through his magazine. 

“They never learn.”  

— — — ♱♱♱ — — — ♱♱♱ — — — 

When the plane finally touched down in San Diego, California, the skyline was already starting to light up. Y/N smiled, noticing the familiar sight of the skyscrapers in the distance. Rueben followed behind her, straightening out his suit, and looking at The Rookie behind him who had a smirk plastered on his face. He felt like the king of the world having bodied the princess of the Italian Mob. The Rookie fixed his suit jacket and ran a hand over his gelled back hair. 

“Good evening Miss Santiago, my name is Martin, and I’ll be handling your movement from the airport to the Seresin compound,” Martin was a middle aged man who had salt and pepper hair. Y/N held her hand out and Martin kissed the back of it. Y/N’s favorite pastime was making men bow to her like she was the Queen of England. In a way, Y/N was a queen, the mafia queen. If Y/N was into old men, Martin would be added as another name on her list.

“How was your flight? Everything went smoothly, I assume?” Martin asked, as he ushered Y/N towards the awaiting white Range Rover. Her father hated white cars. He said it made them stand out too much and put a bigger target on their backs. 

“Yes the flight went very well,” Y/N said, and glanced over her shoulder at the Rookie. He smirked to himself, and fixed his suit jacket. He felt like he was the king of the word having bagged the Italian Mob king’s daughter. But that feeling was short lived as Rueben tightened the silencer on his gun, and then fired a shot into the Rookie’s skull. 

“Clean this mess up,” Reuben said to the men standing by. Martin opened the door for Y/N, and she noticed a group of men picking up The Rookie’s body. She looked at Rueben who was tucking his gun back into the holster of his jacket. 

“What?” Reuben asked, and Y/N nodded her head towards the body, “I told you not to.” 

“Mood killer,” Y/N said and Rueben shook his head, shutting her door before getting into the front passenger seat. 

The Seresin mansion sat in the neighborhood of Mission Hills, which was about ten minutes outside of San Diego. Y/N had only visited a handful of cities in the US, and had only been to California once. She understood why mobsters picked quite poor towns to set up shop. The busy hustle and bustle of the nearby ports could mask the terrors that the mobs did. Y/N eyed the prostitutes as they hung around the street corners in downtown San Diego.  

“Those are someone's daughters,” Her mother used to say when they would pass a young female on the street in barely there clothing. Her mother would take them in, like stray cats, give them food and a place to bathe, before they would run off back to the streets they know.

“Everything is pretty close,” Martin explained as they drove through the busy streets, “It’s no European country side, but it suffices. Los Angeles is about two hours by car. San Fran is two hours by jet. Mr. Seresin has his own private jet. It’s one of the best ways to travel around. Sometimes, they’ll take a private train. Although, most of his work is done in Miramar or North Island.” 

She knew that from the google search that she did. Jake owned a flight club and a bar in North Island called the Hard Deck. It was a quaint little place that attracted a lot of sailors to the area. It also just so happened to be where his brothel was set up. If there was anything Navy men loved more than causing a fight, it was getting pussy after a long trip out to sea. 

“What is the legality of their business?” Y/N asked. 

Payback looked at her in the rearview mirror, “You know what they do.” 

“I can’t ask questions to get to know my future husband? I am going to be investing in this, so it is only fair that I know what he is doing.” She had a point and both Payback and Martin knew it. Y/N was smart and knew how to play her cards correctly, “Tell me what they do.” 

“Mr. Seresin’s grandfather set up a very vast trading company back in New York during the twenties. The Seresins own and control almost 50% of the US trading ports. Seresin Trades is working on going global with the help of Mr. Santiago. Mr. Bob Floyd has been fast at work creating Seresin Industries, one of the fastest startup technology companies,” Martin said. 

“A trading company,” Y/N tilted her head to the side, “How unique. And the brothels, fight rings, clubs, and casinos, those are just. . . extra amenities?” 

“Athena,” Reuben warned. 

Y/N held her hand up stopping Rueben, “Martin?”

Martin scoffed, “You act like your family is the greatest gift to God’s green earth.” As soon as the words left his lips, Martin regretted it.. Y/N glared at him through the rearview mirror and a cold sweat broke out down his back, “I apologize.” 

“A little too late,” Reuben said and Y/N smirked.  

If there was anyone who knew Y/N better than her own brothers, it was Rueben . He had become her personal bodyguard after Francisco attacked her and her mother’s death. Y/N had gotten too smart, she figured out how to run away from her guards. So Rafael hired Rueben , and the man watched her like a hawk. Y/N was never out of his sight. He had not only become her bodyguard, but also her closest confidant. She could tell him anything and everything. 

Martin’s knuckles turned white with his grip on the steering wheel, as he turned on to a magnificent compound. The black gates rolled back as the SUV drove onto the marble driveway that was lined with black lamp posts. Buried behind the trees was almost like a castle. The Kiszka house stood tall, at least 3 stories, and had a complete wall of windows. 

“Mr. Seresin likes windows. Makes him feel less caged in.” Martin said as he pulled up in front of the house. There was a large water fountain in the middle of the circle drive and Y/N could see water lilies floating around in the water. 

“Lovely,” Y/N said. When the car came to a stop, her door was opened. She reached her hand out and a guard gently grabbed her hand, helping her out of the car. She smoothed down her dress as Rueben  quickly rounded the car to her side, “Where is he?” 

“I believe they are at the club, or getting ready to go,” Martin responded. The glass front door opened and an older woman stepped out of the house. 

“Welcome Miss Santiago,” She introduced herself, and bowed her head softly,“I am Emile, I will be your personal attendant. Do you care for a glass of champagne, maybe even wine?” 

Y/N took a step into the house, and looked around the foyer. It had high ceilings that opened into a glass grand staircase. Everything was red and white, giving the entrance a cold yet warm feeling. The living room was open, and had white leather couches and a fluffy black rug on the floor. Hanging above a roaring fireplace was a picture of a young man in a black suit. She stood in front of the picture, the man’s green eyes were enticing and almost as if they were locking her in a trance. She looked away at the sound of the front door opening and Rueben walking in. 

“I’ll take a bottle of white,” Y/N said to Emile, “And please take the bottle to my room. Oh! And if you would, can you draw me a bath? I don’t like the feeling of blood on my hands.” 

Rueben scoffed, “You’re one to talk.” She could see a smudge of blood on his collar, more than likely from killing Martin before he walked into the house. 

“Yes, Miss,” Emile nodded and scurried off towards the kitchen. Y/N stepped farther into the house surveying everything. She walked over to a set of windows and glass sliding doors. She looked over the backyard, an infinity pool and giant garden that looked daunting at night, caught her eye. Y/N made a note of wanting to test the water in the pool at some point tonight.  

“He would like you to come to the office,” A guard said, standing in the doorway of the living room. 

Y/N turned around to see about ten or so men standing in the living room, all of them wearing black suits and ties. 

“No,” Y/N responded, a smirk on her lips. Her eyes not leaving the reflecting water of the pool, and kicked off her heels. She reached for the zipper of her dress and undid it. Payback also knew this tactic, and rolled his eyes. Y/N let the sleeves of her dress fall down her shoulders, and shrugged the dress off, wearing absolutely nothing underneath. All the men standing around her tried to avert their eyes the best they could, but failed miserably. 

“I want a bath first,” She said. 

“I can’t let you do that,” The guard responded. 

“Why not?” Y/N asked, stepping closer to him, “Do I turn you on?”

“I-I. . . Mr. Seresin  had strict instructions-” 

“I bet these pants are feeling pretty strict,” She let her hand shamelessly trail up and down his body, before landing over the clothed hard-on

“Please,” The guard practically begged. Y/N smirked as she gently palmed him, “You’re going to get me in trouble.” 

“What are you going to do about it?” Y/N challenged. Before the guard could respond another gunshot rang through the house. Y/N shrieked as the guard’s body buckled and she moved out of the way to let him fall. She looked over at a tall man with curly hair, holding a gun out.

“That’s what I’m gonna do about it,” The gun wielding man said. He tucked the gun back into the waistband of his black dress pants. He was tall with beautiful brown eyes with scars on his face and neck. Y/N smirked and walked over to him, but he held his hand out, “Don’t think about it. Let’s fucking go.” 

Y/N opened her mouth but squealed as he threw her naked body over his shoulder, “Hey! Put me down!” She yelled, hitting his back. The man tightened his grip on her body so he wouldn’t drop her as she kicked and squirmed in his arms, “Payback!” 

Reuben took a step forward to try and intervene but was cut off by guards standing in front of him, “Just keep your mouth shut!” 

Y/N felt a shiver run down her body, “I’ll fucking kill you,” She threatened the man. 

“I’d like to see you try,” The man said and tossed her down onto a cold leather chair, “Wait here, don’t fucking move.” 

Y/N looked around the office, seeing more pictures of the man from the living room. There was a bookshelf with tons of old leather books with gold writing. Y/N narrowed her eyes, reading the titles on the side, most of them were in Latin, but she could understand that they were law books. There was a large dark oak desk in front of her, which must belong to her future husband. On the wall behind the desk were various diplomas from colleges that he must’ve gone to. 

He’s distinguished, Y/N thought to herself, and smart. 

Y/N almost got out of her chair to go explore more things around his desk, when she heard the clicking of fancy dress shoes coming down the hall. She sucked in a breath as the door opened, and a beautiful blonde man with green eyes stood in the doorway. He was wearing all black, with his shirt rolled up to his elbows. He forewent the tie, and Y/N could see he was wearing a thin gold chain around his neck. 

“You couldn’t give her the dignity to walk in here by herself? With her clothes on?” The blonde man asked.

“She didn’t want to,” The man with the gun shrugged and looked over at a man who was wearing a big pair of glasses, with a smirk, “We lost Martin and Dominick.” 

“Fucking idiots,” The blonde cursed, “Welcome Y/N, I’m Jake, your new husband.” He held his arms out as if he were presenting some great prize. Y/N looked him up and down, he looked like the human version of Adonis, “My beauty stunned you into silence. It happens, sweetheart. But thank you for finally joining us.” 

Y/N scoffed, “You basically bought me from my father to help your little group here get up and running.” 

“Oh don’t flatter yourself sweetheart. You weren’t the pick of the crop I wanted,” Jake said, but then shrugged, “No offense.” 

“Offense taken,” Y/N said, “What? I’m not good enough for you? You prefer underaged prostitute pussy instead? I bet, he-” She said pointing at the man with large glasses, “Would you like a taste?” 

“Not my type either,” He said, “I like my pussy tight and silent.” 

Jake chuckled and Y/N clenched her jaw. He walked towards her, his green eyes looking her up and down as if he were examining her. She felt like she was under a microscope and wanted to hide away. She was suddenly very aware that she was sitting naked in front of three guys who could easily kill her, and had no idea where Rueben was. 

“Where are your clothes?” Jake asked. 

“I like being naked,” Y/N smirked, sitting back in the chair, exposing more of her body. Jake looked like he was about to murder everyone in the room. He looked from her face to her chest, his eyes seemingly assessing every millimeter of skin, down her stomach and to her legs, which were crossed hiding her modesty. Y/N caught the wandering eyes of the men behind Jake, and slowly uncrossed her legs, opening them slightly. That was the final straw for Jake, as he moved quickly, snatching her up by her chin.

“I was told I was getting a mafia queen,” Jake spat, holding her throat tightly, “We got rules, sweetheart, and you’re going to listen to them, got it? Or I swear to god, I’ll fucking sell you for whatever your worth to the highest bidder. I’m sure these-” He said, tracing his fingers between her breasts, his knuckles brushing against the soft mound of skin, “could get me a pretty penny. Of course, the face is a little fucked up.” 

Y/N clenched her jaw at the mention of the scar that ran down her face. Her eye socket had to be repaired and left a permanent scar, a constant reminder of what Francisco had done to her. It was easy for her to hide the other scars on her body, that one, was out in the open for everyone to see. Her mother told her to not hide what he did, to embrace it. 

“Understand me?” Jake asked and Y/N nodded. He released her chin. 

“Asshole,” Y/N said, before spitting in his face. Jake clenched his jaw, and grabbed her hair, yanking her head back to look up at him. 

“Don’t fucking test me, sweetheart,” Jake seethed, “I won’t hesitate to throw you down on the pew, I don’t give a fuck who your daddy is. Don’t fuck with me, doll.” Y/N trembled and nodded. Jake picked up her body and put her down on the wooden chair, harshly. Her ass still stung a bit from where the curly haired man had thrown her down earlier. 

“If you’re done being a brat, I’d like to introduce you to my right hand men. The one that brought you in here was Rooster, he’s in charge of security. You need to go somewhere, you take it up with him. If he tells you ‘no’ you don’t fucking argue. This is Bob,” Jake said, pointing to the man with the glasses, “He’s intelligence. Don’t try to fucking go somewhere or call someone or do something fucking stupid cause he’ll find out about it and I’ll kill you.”

“And what do you do?” Y/N asked. 

Jake smiled, “I’m the Hangman. I am the reason this whole place ruins and operates. The face of the family and the company.” 

“Bob would’ve made a cuter face,” Y/N said and looked at the man. Bob couldn’t help but chuckle, but Jake quickly shot him a glare. Y/N sent him a wink though, which made his ears turn red. 

Jake crossed his arms over his chest, “I’ve got a couple rules. One, don’t be in my way or anyone else's way. Two, don’t fucking speak to me unless you are spoken too. And three, don’t piss me off. If you follow those three rules. . . I don’t see why this relationship won’t work out great.” 

“Because you’re a fucking psychopathic murderer.” 

“Says the one who’s gotten three men killed in your first two hours of being here,” Jake said. 

Y/N smiled, “You say that?” 

Jake leaned his hands on either side of the chair she was sitting on. She could smell is cologne and see a thin scar by his eyebrow, “I see everything,” He spoke softly, “Go fucking clean yourself off. I don’t want to see your face until tomorrow.” Jake said and turned to walk out of the office, “Actually, I don’t want to see your face at all, unless I fucking ask to see you, which I probably won’t. I don’t want you here any less than you actually want to be here. If I knew you were a part of the expansion gun deal we made, I would’ve never fucking made it.”

Y/N tried to not let his words sting. She had heard worse from her father, but there was something about hearing it from someone else. Y/N turned her head to the side as Jake and the boys left the office with a slam of the door. As soon as the door shut, she let the tears roll down her face. She waited a minute before she got up from the wooden chair and walked out of the office. She was suddenly very aware that she was stark naked in a mobster’s house. 

She moved softly as she walked down the hallway, trying to avoid the eyes of the workers in the house. Y/N looked up and noticed Emile walking towards her with a robe. The older woman smiled softly at her and handed her the robe. Y/N nodded and wrapped it tightly around her body. Emile gently wrapped an arm around the girl’s shoulders, guiding her over to the grand staircase and up to the second floor. 

“Mr. Jacob and the boys went out for the night,” Emile said. She had a heavy french accent that reminded Y/N of some of the older maids back home at her father’s mansion, “I ran a bath and had some of the other guards bring your belongings into your room. Any specific way to put your clothing away?”

Y/N shook her head, “I can get that tomorrow when the rest of my things arrive. Thank you, Emile.” 

“You are very welcome, Miss,” Emile said, nodding her head as they stood outside one of the bedrooms, “The master bedroom,” Emile said, pushing open two wooden doors. Y/N’s jaw dropped at the sight of the bedroom. It was white with red accents that reminded her of the suit that Jake wore. Hanging above a california king bed was a picture of the fucker himself. Y/N scoffed, of course, he had a picture of himself hanging above the bed, “Mr. Jacob doesn’t stay here. He prefers a bed on the third floor with his brothers.” 

“They are all very close?” Y/N asked and Emile nodded. 

“Very close. They all served together in the Navy.” 

Now that was one thing the internet did not tell Y/N. That meant one of two things, they never served long enough to make an impact, or the Navy was trying hard to keep them all a secret. Whatever the reason was, Y/N was going to find out more about it. 

Y/N walked over and ran her hands on the satin bed sheets. They were soft and still smelled like the packaging. The room had an overall cold feeling to it, like no one had ever stayed in the room. Y/N could tell that the paint on the walls wasn’t the original colors. She could see the slight difference in paint colors as the walls met at the ceiling. She ran her hands over the footboard of the bed, humming to herself as she did. 

“Is that tune from ‘Annie’?” Emile asked, and Y/N lifted her head, smiling. 

“It is.” 

When Y/N was little, before she knew most about what her family did for a living, she used to play around like she was the little Orphan Annie first coming to Daddy Warbucks’ house. She used to play the song ‘I Think I’m Gonna Like it Here’ while running up and down the halls with her mother, making the butlers and the maids sing along with her. She did it at every house she moved into, it was one of the good memories she had with her mother. 

Y/N paused and looked at the picture above the bed, and then at Emile, “When will they be back?” 

“Oh, they stay out very late,” Emile answered, “I see them leave at night and stumble around the next morning with hangovers.” She smiled and sighed, “Your bath is waiting for you, dear. Any questions, don’t be scared to ask.” 

“Thank you.” “They aren’t all monsters,” Emile said, “Just a little rough around the edges. You know what they say, ‘only the good die young’.”

@cherrycola27 @seresinsbabe @violyn20 @materialgirl01 @bradleybeachbabe @a-reader-and-a-writer @lt-spork @topnerd03 @3in1shampooconditionerbodywash @bioodforbiood @topguncultleader @ma-fraise @abaker74 @double-j @cm27078 @thedroneranger @khaylin27 @mak-32 @unhinged-btch @wittywhispers @theliterarybeldam @bloosomjoon @chxcxlate-cxxkies @luckyladycreator2 @wellshit6 @harper1666 @phoenix1388 @footprintsinthesxnd @dempy @emma8895eb @bonitanightmxres @love2write2626 @bobbyonboard @some-lovely-day @thenewdaysalreadyhere @cassiemitchellslibrary @ilymoonie @morgensternsblog @hotch-meeeeeuppppp @rintheemolion @tallrock35 @adoringsebstan @xoxabs88xox

TAG LIST IS FULL DO NOT ASK TO BE TAGGED

if you want me to add the playlist link lmk!

[tinas1469]

Zendaya Stole the Show in a Schiaparelli Lobster Skirt

Hang it in the Louvre.

Thanks to the now-settled WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, promo-tour fashion is back on schedule, and who better than the fashion icon whose wardrobe is always bold and never boring to make her return? Ladies and gentlemen, Zendaya.

On Sunday, the actress stepped out promoting Dune at Comic-Con Experience São Paulo in Brazil, donning a monochrome Schiaparelli look from its Spring-Summer 2024 runway show. Presenting Dune: Part Two alongside her co-stars (Timothée Chalamet, Austin Butler, and Florence Pugh), Zendaya went for sea-creature couture: an ivory plunging collared blouse paired with a slinky, ruched cream maxiskirt, which featured a 3-D fabric lobster (spines, antennas, and all). The design detail paid homage to the Italian house’s founder, Elsa Schiaparelli’s, 1937 lobster dress in collaboration with Salvador Dalí. However, Zendaya's longtime stylist, Law Roach, referred to it as a “sandworm” in regard to Dune’s fictional strange creatures.

Beauty-wise, Zendaya styled her chin-grazing bob with a slicked-back wet look and complimented her radiant glow with feathered lashes, rosy cheeks, and glossy lips. Diamond stud earrings and a pair of optic white pointed-toe heels provided the finishing touches to her winter white look.

The only other person who comes second to us for being in love with Zendaya is her boyfriend, Tom Holland. During a new interview with the SAG-AFTRA Foundation, Holland shared why he goes to her for his acting advice.

"Zendaya is probably the most honest with me," he shared. "Which I love, ‘cause you need that."

Last June, he told The Hollywood Reporter that the pair try to keep their love life as private as possible. "Our relationship is something that we are incredibly protective of, and we want to keep as sacred as possible," he said. "We don't think that we owe it to anyone, it's our thing, and it has nothing to do with our careers."

[allthebrazilianpolitics]

De Moraes shows up beside Lula while masses rally in Sao Paulo demanding his impeachment

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva Saturday celebrated Brazil's Independence Day during a ritualistic military parade alongside controversial Supreme Federal Court (STF) Justice Alexandre De Moraes and other high-ranking government officials while supporters of former head of state Jair Bolsonaro staged a mass rally on Paulista Avenue in Sao Paulo in defense of free speech and demanding the magistrate's impeachment for banning X nationwide.

Meanwhile, First Lady Janja da Silva also skipped the official event after being invited to Qatar to celebrate the International Day to Protect Education from Attack in Doha.

Speeches at this year's military parade in Brasilia revolved around Brazil's rotating G20 presidency and November's Summit in Rio de Janeiro, in addition to the rebuilding of the Southern State of Rio Grande do Sul hit by unprecedented rains, among other topics.

Also participating in the festivities were Brazilian athletes who participated at the Paris Olympics last month as well as the vaccination mascot, Zé Gotinha, while in Sao Paulo thousands donning Brazilian national team jerseys and showing pictures of X owner Elon Musk, whom they hailed as the new protector of the country's liberties.

Continue reading.

[samthecookielord]

I’ve been replaying spectre’s call and that brought to mind your layton videos which brought to mind all the many layton aus you’ve made and that train of thought wrapped around to the whole Lukebot thing reminding me of a theory I had when I first play diabolical/pandora’s box

the theory was that Don Paulo replaced Flora with a robot copy as opposed to just disguising himself as her (bc I thought “there’s no way don paulo could shrink his body like that” & I was very wrong), and now that it’s been on my mind for a bit I have a whole short draft about layton noticing weird stuff abt ‘flora’ as the robot tries to pretend she’s not having an existential crisis. It’s been great fun and I’d like to thank you for giving me inspiration to make these british ppl suffer (more than usual)

Yayay yippee🎉 i love robot crisises

[anonprotagging]

ah, I see paulo can't gatekeep girlboss gaslight his way outta this one

whoooooo could have foreseen something like this,,,, if only someone (the entire cast of pasio) had warned himmmmmm (they did)

also everyone's out there fighting team rocket and you're STILL not showing team skull doing anything??? after even in the villain arc they only showed up once (1 time) specifically To fight????? team rocket???????????? goddddddd what are they doing to my tied-for-first favorite team

oh also looker's croagunk getting badly injured and him still helping out by himself is so 😭😭😭 mr. looker don't get hurt 😭😭😭

edit: I know paulo's still a kid and he came around and did the whole "I don't deserve to battle with everyone but can I help 🥺👉👈" thing but I'm still mad at him sdfjfhsjkdhf

edit edit: GUZMA DIDN"T SHOW UP EVEN ONCE IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE FINALE

DON"T USE HIS FACE IF YOU"RE NOT GONNA USE HIM!!!!!!!!

this is literally queerbaiting (it is not) (however, it is baiting me, a queer, with promises of seeing my favorite guy that I'm normal about) (I played all the stupid villain arc segments give me my fuckin. BOY!!!!!!!!)

[habijob]

Did Don Paulo just wait for Descole to stop appearing to be Layton's nemesys, since Descole is Layton's nemesys in the prequel trilogy and Don Paulo is it in the original trilogy.

But like, the reason Don Paulo declared Layton as his nemesys happened before the prequel trilogy.

[smash-or-pass-laytoncharacters]

Hi, for reserch purpouses could u do a who is more smashable Sycamore or descolie and then pit the winner against don paulo

I understand if that isnt your kinda thing so no pressure but this is for very important reserch

Hmmm that is an interesting idea. Perhaps it's something I'll keep on the back burner for when we run out of characters. I was planning on doing tournaments when we run out, but having people submit pairing requests (like who's more smashable, who's more passable) would be pretty fun and a lot less effort. Thank you for the suggestion!

[cruger2984]

THE DESCRIPTION OF SAINT FRANCIS XAVIER The Patron of Foreign Missions Feast Day: December 3

"Many, many people hereabouts are not becoming Christians for one reason only: there is nobody to make them Christians."

He was born Francisco de Jasso y Azpilicueta on April 7, 1506 at Javier, Kingdom of Navarre in northern Spain to an influential noble family. He was the youngest son of Don Juan de Jasso y Atondo, Lord of Idocín, president of the Royal Council of the Kingdom of Navarre, and seneschal of the Castle of Xavier and Doña María de Azpilcueta y Aznárez, sole heiress to the Castle of Xavier. Miguel de Jasso (later Miguel de Javier), his brother, became Lord of Xavier and Idocín at the death of his parents.

In 1512, Ferdinand, King of Aragon and regent of Castile, invaded Navarre, initiating a war that lasted over 18 years. Three years later, Francis's father died when Francis was only nine years old. In 1516, Francis's brothers participated in a failed Navarrese-French attempt to expel the Spanish invaders from the kingdom. The Spanish Governor, Cardinal Cisneros, confiscated the family lands, demolished the outer wall, the gates, and two towers of the family castle, and filled in the moat. In addition, the height of the keep was reduced by half.

In 1525, Francis went to study in Paris at the Collège Sainte-Barbe, University of Paris, where he spent the next eleven years. In the early days he acquired some reputation as an athlete and a high-jumper. Four years later, Francis shared lodgings with his friend Pierre Favre. A new student, Íñigo López de Oñaz y Loyola (later Ignatius of Loyola), came to room with them. At 38, Ignatius was much older than Pierre and Francis, who were both 23 at the time. Ignatius convinced Pierre to become a priest, but was unable to convince Francis, who had aspirations of worldly advancement. At first, Francis regarded the new lodger as a joke and was sarcastic about his efforts to convert students. When Pierre left their lodgings to visit his family and Ignatius was alone with Francis, he was able to slowly break down Francis's resistance. In 1530, Francis received the degree of Master of Arts, and afterwards taught Aristotelian philosophy at Beauvais College, University of Paris.

Francis began his study of theology in 1534 and was ordained on June 24, 1537. In 1539, after long discussions, Ignatius drew up a formula for a new religious order, the Society of Jesus. Ignatius's plan for the order was approved by Pope Paul III in 1540.

Francis was sent as a missionary to India. After a voyage of 13 months, he began preaching in the Portuguese colony of Goa (a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region), defending the natives from injustices and abuses. He was particularly outraged that some masters counted the blows inflicted on the slaves on the beads of their rosaries. Five months later, he preached with such enthusiasm among the Paravas on the Pearl Fishery Coast that most of them asked to be baptized. He also knew how to accept defeat, as when he preached for 12 months among the Brahmans obtaining only one conversion.

In Malacca in December 1547, Francis Xavier met a Japanese man named Anjirō (or Yajirō). had heard of Francis in 1545 and had travelled from Kagoshima to Malacca to meet him. Having been charged with murder, Anjirō had fled Japan. He told Francis extensively about his former life, and the customs and culture of his homeland. Anjirō became the first Japanese Christian and adopted the name 'Paulo de Santa Fé'. He later helped Xavier as a mediator and interpreter for the mission to Japan that now seemed much more possible. Francis returned to Goa to attend to his responsibilities as superior of the mission there in January 1548. The next 15 months were occupied with various journeys and administrative measures. He left Goa on April 15, 1549, stopped at Malacca, and visited Canton. He was accompanied by Anjiro, two other Japanese men, Father Cosme de Torrès and Brother Juan Fernández. He had taken with him presents for the 'King of Japan (the Emperor)' since he was intending to introduce himself as the Apostolic Nuncio.

With Anjirō and three other Jesuits, Xavier reached Japan on July 27, 1549, but he was not permitted to enter any port his ship arrived at until August 15th, when he went ashore at Kagoshima, the principal port of Satsuma Province on the island of Kyūshū. As a representative of the Portuguese king, he was received in a friendly manner. Takahisa Shimazu, the fifttenth head of the Shimazu clan, the son of Tadayoshi and daimyo (feudal lord) of Satsuma, gave a friendly reception to Francis on September 29, 1549, but in the following year he forbade the conversion of his subjects to Christianity under penalty of death; Christians in Kagoshima could not be given any catechism in the following years. Francis was the first Jesuit to go to Japan as a missionary.

He brought with him paintings of the Madonna and the Madonna and Child. These paintings were used to help teach the Japanese about Christianity. There was a huge language barrier as Japanese was unlike other languages the missionaries had previously encountered. For a long time, Francis struggled to learn the language. He was hosted by Anjirō's family until October 1550. He resided in Yamaguchi from October tom December 1550. Shortly before Christmas, he left for Kyoto but failed to meet with the Emperor. He returned to Yamaguchi in March 1551, where the daimyo of the province gave him permission to preach.

Having presented some gifts to them, a music box, a clock and a pair of spectacles. He was allowed to evangelize the people. It was Francis' opinion: 'That among all unbelievers, no finer people will be found than the Japanese.'

During his trip from Japan back to India, a tempest forced him to stop on an island near Guangzhou, Guangdong, China, where he met Diogo Pereira, a rich merchant and an old friend from Cochin. Pereira showed him a letter from Portuguese prisoners in Guangzhou, asking for a Portuguese ambassador to speak to the Chinese Emperor on their behalf. Later during the voyage, he stopped at Malacca on December 27, 1551, and was back in Goa by January 1552. He set sail with Diogo Pereira on the Santa Cruz for China. He planned to introduce himself as Apostolic Nuncio and Pereira as the ambassador of the King of Portugal. But then he realized that he had forgotten his testimonial letters as an Apostolic Nuncio. Back in Malacca, he was confronted by the captain Álvaro de Ataíde da Gama who now had total control over the harbour. The captain refused to recognize his title of Nuncio, asked Pereira to resign from his title of ambassador, named a new crew for the ship, and demanded the gifts for the Chinese Emperor be left in Malacca.

In late August 1552, the Santa Cruz reached the Chinese island of Shangchuan, 14 km away from the southern coast of mainland China, near Taishan, Guangdong, 200 km south-west of what later became Hong Kong. At this time, he was accompanied only by a Jesuit student, Álvaro Ferreira, a Chinese man called António, and a Malabar servant called Christopher. Around mid-November, he sent a letter saying that a man had agreed to take him to the mainland in exchange for a large sum of money. Having sent back Álvaro Ferreira, he remained alone with António. He died from a fever at Shangchuan, Taishan, China, on December 3, 1552, while he was waiting for a boat that would take him to mainland China. He was 46 years old when he died.

Beatified by Pope Paul V on October 25, 1619 and canonized a saint by Pope Gregory XV on March 12, 1622, his body is now in the Basilica of Bom Jesus in Goa, where it was placed in a glass container encased in a silver casket. This casket, constructed by Goan silversmiths between 1636 and 1637, was an exemplary blend of Italian and Indian aesthetic sensibilities.

In 1624, he was made co-patron of Navarre, and he is considered to be one of the greatest missionaries since St. Paul the Apostle. In 1927, Pope Pius XI published the decree 'Apostolicorum in Missionibus' naming Francis Xavier, along with Thérèse of Lisieux, co-patron of all foreign missions.

[lesmond-sycamore]

So…who’s your favorite professor layton villain?

OH GOD. THAT'S SO HARD. I honestly wanted to say clive initially as he was my original meow meow of the series for about 10 years bc that's when I first played uf, BUT THEN I started considering descole bc of the fact he's like. ACTUALLY threatening (I LOVE DON PAULO SO SO MUCH AND I WANT TO REPLAY THE 1ST TRILOGY JUST TO SEE HIM AGAIN BC HE'S VERY SILLY BUT THAT'S ALSO HIS GREATEST FLAW IN THIS FIGHT) and although I love des so so much I just have to say *drum roll* it's anton. I fucking LOVE anton he's just such a great villain and the TWIST of diabolical box is just *chefs kiss* to top it off so finding out he wasn't really a villain after all makes my heart break in two when you get to the part when sophia talks about katia and when he's like "'Grandfather?' Yes, that's right. it has a nice ring to it." like BRO I am ON THE FLOOR SOBBING

ANTON BEST LAYTON VILLAIN FR FR

[quantomeno]

My ranking of the 'And that person is you!' scenes from Professor Layton

Ah, the iconic 'finger point' scene. They are Layton's trademark and it's so much fun when you know it's about to happen. You can feel the tension build.

But these moments are not all equal. Which scene will reign supreme?

Because these scenes involve big revelations and plot twists, this list will be rife with spoilers for both trilogies and the movie.

7. Azran Legacy

Firstly, the audience already knows who it is and no one else in the room could be it even if we didn't know. The other issue is that it's just got no build-up: Layton gives his spiel and then does the point. The room is cramped and there's not much drama or flair. By far the greatest problem though is that this felt like a side story. Bloom himself felt like wasted potential in some respects, but this whole mystery didn't seem all that important in the grand scheme of things. I honestly don't remember it that well and I am pretty sure he only stole a few artefacts that weren't plot relevant. It feels like they just wanted a pointing scene and this was the only logical place to put it.

6. Lost Future/Unwound Future

It is far too short, but the reveal has much more heft than Azran Legacy's. It is somewhat obvious that it's Future Luke once you realise what's happening, because only Don Paulo could be the other option, but the Clive revelation is still a massive twist. I give this scene bonus points because I like Clive's reaction to the accusation too.

5. Eternal Diva

I like this one, but it also feels a bit tacked on. The 'who has the key?' thing feels like it doesn't need deduction because they could just check everyone's pockets (and she's literally just holding it), but what saves it is that it ties into the bigger mystery and the revelation of Janice/Melina's identity. It feels impactful by the end, even if the initial tension feels overblown.

4. Miracle Mask

This one feels a fraction lacking in drama, but it makes up for it with its position/significance in the story. The wind blowing at the pivotal moment adds some nice flair. I would say it's also quite a shocking twist. It is what I would consider the baseline 'finger point' scene because it contains all the key features that make a good one, but I just don't think it has the same sensation of suspense that it needs to rank higher. Its execution is not as great as some.

3. Curious Village

This one lacks the trademark phrase, and it is also obvious who's the 'criminal element', but it makes up for it with the atmosphere of the room: it gives a classic murder mystery vibe, where all the key players have been gathered to learn the truth. It is scenes like this that makes me wish CV was a more traditional murder mystery because it has all the hallmarks of it. I am tempted to put this one below MM, but I feel this one is a touch more elegant and I value that.

2. Spectre's Call/Last Specter

This is one of the few times the game manages to surprise you with the revelation and has actively worked to make it seem like it was someone else. The foreshadowing of Doland, out of focus, standing behind Clarke, and Luke staring at his father, fully believing his own dad has been terrorising the town... and then how the camera pans from Clarke to Doland. It is a cleverly laid out scene and it has a great feeling of drama.

Pandora's Box/Diabolical Box

I could watch this scene on repeat forever. It is gorgeous. It also gives classic murder mystery vibes which I love. The suave coolness of Layton stirring his tea and calmly telling Chelmey he's go thee wrong man: perfect. Everyone's shocked reactions are fun and add to the tension. The pause after Layton's reasoning, and the shots of those involved leaves us with a delectable moment of suspense. Every shot is framed perfectly. And the revelation: it is not really surprising given we see Flora get kidnapped and she just made the comment that gave Layton the proof he needed, but it is still such an outrageous idea that Flora killed Dr Schrader and stole the box. The shots of everyone during the aforementioned pause at least try to create the illusion that it could be someone else. It also resolves one of the earliest mysteries of the game. The cherry on the cake is Luke's reaction (I love him so much). It is moments like this that make me want to put PB as my favourite game, but alas... I love LF too much.

[vivalasimming]

What happened to my Pleasantview? Part 1

So I’ve had my current Pleasantview save for more than a year and a half now, and since I wasn’t really planning on posting about it I barely have any good quality pictures, so I thought it’d be best to share what has happened to my Pleasantview as I do intend to post the current generation and future ones.

So, here it goes:

Lothario lineage: Don did marry Cassandra but their marriage was very very short. They had a very good looking boy, Carl Lothario-Goth. Don went back to his condo after his divorce, taking one third of the Goth fortune with him. Then, when Carl was a child, he randomly died after one of his many bachelor nights with dates. Carl then went on inheriting his father’s condo as well as his commitment issues trait. He had a long time relationship with one of the many girls he met on college, Margaret Paul, and had a girl, Rosalie. After this point, the Lothario name was changed to Lothario-Paul. Rosalie is basically the female version of Don, having lots of men over until she got pregnant by her long time “friend”, and had Selena.

Goth lineage: Currently split between Cassandra’s descendants and Alexander’s descendants. Cassandra’s descendants are the Wallace family while Alexander’s line kept the Goth surname.

Cassandra went on to marry Darren Dreamer (at this point they were known as the Dreamers) and had two children: Kara and Travis. Kara married Brandi’s fourth child (more on this later) and Travis married his high school sweetheart Angelica Wallace. After their marriage he took her last name and inherited Cassandra and Darren’s home after they both died. They had two daughters, Vivian and Maisie. Maisie became the heir and married Pete Broke, Dustin’s youngest child and only son, and now are raising a daughter, Anne.

Alexander took over the Goth manor after Dina was successfully kicked out of it and Cassandra decided to buy another house with Darren in order to distance herself from the Goth brand, so to say. He had trouble finding a suitable woman and ended up going on a very random blind date in which he met police officer Demi Love. They fell in love rather quickly and married. Demi then changed her name to the more Goth-like Demetria and had three children: Matthias, Elizabeth and Gerald. Everything was going well and the family was well on their way to recovering from the hard blow of losing two thirds of their fortune after Dina and Don messing them up, and Alexander had just become Mad Scientist like his father, but then he died after being scared to death by his great grandfather. Matthias went on to marry Adam Broke’s daughter, Gerald moved downtown and Elizabeth became the first Goth female family head. She married Brad and has two children, Beatrice and Isaiah.

The Caliente lineage: Dina managed to seduce Mortimer and married him immediately after Cassandra and Don’s wedding. In order to ensure herself to part of her husband’s fortune, she had a son with him, Paulo. Mortimer died soon after his birth. After this, Cassandra and Dina ended in a lengthy legal battle which ended with Dina taking one third of the Goth’s money as settlement so Cassandra and Alexander wouldn’t lose their iconic house. Then Dina and Paulo moved back in with Nina, but Nina died after being scared to death by Michael Bachelor’s ghost which was interpreted as revenge from Netherworld for destroying the Goth family and basically stealing their fortune. Dina then vowed to make herself independent especially after also losing her friend and lover Don. She then met a new resident called Darnell Morrison, who she genuinely fell in love with and married. After this, she was known as Dina Morrison. She had another child, Omar, learned the value of good work (that fortune needed to be invested somehow) and became quite successful as a lawyer. She also became a good mother to both Paulo and Omar. Omar became the Morrison heir and married Claudia Langerak, Kaylynn’s oldest child. They had two boys, Ryan and Lucien. Omar and Claudia were set to become Pleasantview’s most famous couple after Mortimer and Bella, but Claudia tragically died after being struck by lightning. Omar then lived in grief for a long time just focusing on his architectural career and raising his two boys. After some time and when his sons were teenagers, he met college senior Maggie and married her, and then had two daughters, Gabrielle and Rita. Lucien was named heir of the Morrisons, met and married Gina Cross and had two daughters, Tegan and Veronica. They now live in Pleasantview’s most expensive mansion.

Paulo has lived his whole life as the “second class Goth”, apart from his half-siblings who barely acknowledged his existence. He became a vampire and did become friends with both Elizabeth and Gerald. He has recently married Petra Pleasant (Lilith’s daughter). He also explored with astronomy for a bit, ended up being abducted by aliens which resulted in a daughter, Adelaide. She married some townie called Merle Walsh and has two daughters, Renata and Julia.

The Dreamer lineage: Dirk’s descendants.

Dirk lived with his dad and stepmother for a while, then went to college. Shortly before going to college, he met Sophie Miguel with whom he clicked almost immediately. Sophie followed him to college where their romance blossomed. It was tough for Dirk but he ended up choosing Sophie, breaking both his and Lilith’s hearts. Dirk and Sophie married and had two children, Virgil and Isaac. Dirk died in a fire, just like his mother. Shortly after, Isaac was taken away by the social worker as Sophie was too distraught to look after him. Virgil went on to marry Zahara, Lilith’s daughter, with whom he had three bolts and a very deep love from the beginning. They had a daughter, Joanna, who has recently married Oliver Cormier-Broke (Dustin’s grandson).

[rockhyrax]

Spectacle Radio ep.97 :: 03.02.23 :: Are you tired of reality?

Active Volcano Celia Hollander - Dad & Step-Dad Cockc’ Nell - Carnival in the Night End Titles from Dandy Dust   --Hans Scheirl Shriekback - Evaporation (Manhunter) Edyta Górniak & Piotr Rubik - Autostrada pieklo-niebo (Thieves)  Marta Kubišová - Sněžný muž (Killing the Devil) Wiktor Stribog - Czas Pracy (Poradnik Uśmiechu) It’s What’s Inside that Counts End Titles from Jesus Shows You the Way to the Highway Paulo Herculano - End titles from Sea of Roses Celia Hollander - LOS2 … Gilberto Gil // Quilombo, o El Dorado Negro (Quilombo, 1984) Caetano Veloso // Nine Out of Ten (from his album Transa, 1972) Silverio Pessoa // Luves Verdes (from Vinil Verde, 2004) Maria Bethania // live performance from Bethania Bem de Perto: a Proposito de um Show, 1966 song from Cantos de Trabalho, 1955 Rita Lee // Dias Melhores Virao (Dias Melhores Virao, 1989) Gilberto Gil // music from Quilombo … Bruno Nicolai - Gatti Rossi (Eyeball) Piero Umiliani & Shirley Harmer - You (A Quiet Place to Kill) Ennio Morricone & Don Powell - Cannibal (I Canibali) Carlo Savina & Don Powell - And God Said to Cain Nico Fidenco - I Celebrate Myself (Emmanuelle in America) Franco Micalizzi - Sadness Theme (Stridulum) Bruno Nicolai - Barlington (Eyeball) Del Shannon - Runaway (Wild Reeds)  Carlo Savina - And God Said to Cain Celia Hollander - LOS2 … Oscar Cardozo Ocampo // music from Rebellion In Patagonia, 1974 Ennio Morricone // music from the Silician Clan, 1969 Lav Diaz // Ang Pinagdaanang Buhay (from Diaz's album Impiyerno, 2008) Nema-ye Nazdik // music from Close Up, 1990 Lynne MacDonald // Fate Had Planned It So (from Lenzi's Orgasmo, 1969) The Swingers // One Good Reason (from Starstruck, 1982) Ennio Morricone // music from Red Sonja, 1985

[britishsass]

I would love to hear about your new au!

You sure? It's not Psychonauts related at all. It's specifically based on Portal and Professor Layton.

I'll include a read-more real quick just in case because I don't want to spoil the games in question. If you know the whole plot of Professor Layton and the Unwound Future as well as who the characters are in Portal, then you have enough information for the most basic rundown I can give because it's a messy plot so far and it's mostly my excuse to ramble about ideas.

The quick explanation goes as follows: The professor Layton characters are loosely replaced by Portal characters. For instance, Doug Rattmann is the titular professor, Fact Core (aka Marcel) is Luke, and Cave is Don Paulo. These things have a lot of context behind them, but if you're for some reason reading this despite knowing nothing, this means that Doug is a well-known puzzle (and case) solver, Marcel is his apprentice who's still pretty young, etc. I'll explain most other characters as we go along, if I feel like its important to know.

So, the plot of Unwound Future, which is the main one we're looking at here, is that the professor gets a letter from his apprentice's future self-- specifically ten years in the future. They do as the letter says and end up traveling to that time, only to discover that apparently, the professor has become a crime boss, ruling the city with an iron fist, and everyone views him as a monster. As well, the city has changed quite a bit, with a crime family taking over much of the place. The group has to go stop the professor's future self.

In the game, this turns out to not be exactly true. However, in this au, I wanted to think about if it was the case-- if ten years in the future, the professor was in charge, what could've led to that situation? And, me being me, I wanted to think about it with characters I know far too well. So the portal au from years and years ago came back for this, to be reshaped and reformed.

The first thing I recognized was that Doug wouldn't ever actually betray Marcel or his other friends. While dwelling on why he would end up in that position, I ended up with an easy answer: he's just a puppet monarch. A figurehead, a scapegoat. There's someone else manipulating him, and the easiest way to manipulate him is to threaten his loved ones. So Marcel thinks he's betrayed him, when the whole time, Professor Rattmann is doing the most he can to take down the group from within while avoiding detection. He frees Marcel and co whenever they get caught, unable to let them know it was him. He messes up searches and delays important things. He's doing whatever he can to help, even if it's small.

Meanwhile, Marcel and the others he's gathered together to fight try to figure out how to stop the professor they once cared so much about. They finally reach him, only for Marcel to finally realize the whole story. They take the professor back to their safehouse, and try to make plans knowing he's on their side.

Things still go wrong. They still keep fighting. Stuff happens, they eventually figure out who's really behind it all, and... Well, that's the part we haven't come up with yet. The au for now is a lot of ideas and not much concrete plot structure. The main themes so far are pretty dark, with a lot of emphasis on future Doug's deteriorating mental health, future Marcel's feelings of betrayal, and the whole group fighting to find an answer for a puzzle they never expected to face: how to save everyone.

It's mostly just me and my boyfriend Asher discussing this one for right now-- I'll probably keep pretty mum on the details because of that, but that's the main thing about it. Thanks for asking. I love rambling about weird AUs that I think too much about.

[allthebrazilianpolitics]

Hundreds of thousands rally in São Paulo to support Bolsonaro amid coup investigation

A tourist visiting São Paulo, Brazil on Sunday could be forgiven for thinking that the country was in the midst of a World Cup soccer final. Blue, green and yellow Brazilian national team jerseys donned by thousands of supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro swarmed the city’s metro on their way to a rally in which the former president — who has been barred from holding office for eight years — was the guest of honor.

Organized by evangelical pastor Silas Malafaia, and promoted by Bolsonaro on his social media, the event reportedly drew 750,000 people in support of the right-wing politician. The rally was called amid an investigation into his alleged involvement in plotting a coup ahead of the October 2022 presidential elections in which he lost to Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Riding the metro to Avenida Paulista, São Paulo’s main avenue where the rally was to be held on Sunday, legions of Bolsonaro supporters crowded into the train cars, chanting slogans and singing songs. But unlike a soccer match, their chants weren’t directed at an opposing team, rather at their current president.

“Lula should be machine-gunned in a public square. It’s the least he deserves!” shouted a man who appeared to be in his sixties.

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