#HERE YOU GO MY MECS

[shojizbae]

Yeehaw!

Spencer Reid x reader

Warnings: This is spicy! Use of alcohol, behind drunk/drunk sex, Oral fem! receiving, cowgirl position

Everyone could tell with just one look at you that you were Southern. That being said, anytime there was a case in the South, everyone knew to take a step back and let you lead. This time, there was a string of murders in Aiken, South Carolina, and the team knew that you were all over it.

"Weren't you from a Carolina?" Derek chuckles as we board the jet.

"Yeah, I spent most of my time on Camp Lejeune with my daddy, then I went south for college in Charleston."

"So that means Hotch has been demoted for this." Emily snickers

"No, I just know the South, and I'll get a little gun-happy when I'm back home. It wouldn't be no different had we gone to Chicago, Derek."

"Wow, mama's go home heat today." We settle on the jet, and Hotch and Rossi debrief us. I take a nap as we head south, and unfortunately, the power of the state takes me over. I march up to the sheriff and flash my credentials.

"So, how's it happen?" The sheriff speaks in an accent so thick it makes grits look like juice. I glance at the team, and they seem to sigh in relief when they realize I can understand him. Tirelessly, we worked the case for 73 hours. We met at a fresh crime scene every morning. The unsub seemed to be in a frenzy. He was dangerous and mixed with a high concentration of amphetamine addiction in this area. It was likely he had no clue he was killing.

But, due to the trace amounts of meth, we knew that he was unstable and would trip up eventually. We got some sleep after the fourth body, and there was a trip up in the morning. A fifth, but he had left some of his powdered sugar at the crime scene.

I put a glove on and lifted the little baggie, showing it off to Reid.

"Hey, Spencer, check this out."

"Hey, I've been clean for years," He mopes

"Aw, I'm sorry, sugar," A detective approaches me with an evidence bag. "Here, swab it and run this through CODIS." Spencer and I kept sweeping the crime scene for any molecule of evidence. Nothing all that exciting. The killer left the knife in her this time. Indicative of the fact that they were out of control. I squat next to the body and ghost my fingers over the entrance wound.

"Hey Spencer," He perks up like a gopher, "If you were going to kill someone and you were going to stab them to death, how'd you do it?"

"Are you sure that's an appropriate question?"

"I'm just curious."

"I'd probably use something with a curved blade. It would do the most damage and be the hardest to remove." His eyes go kind of dead, as he explains. An awkward air hangs between the two of us as we survey the wound.

"Damn, Spence, that's messed up."

"You asked." He sasses

Not later that evening, a woman called to suspect a strange man was in her house. We move in immediately and find a man pacing in circles in the bathroom. He's violent and angry, and his nose is bleeding. He tried to swing a knife at Morgan, but I grabbed him by the wrist and slammed his head into the wall. I use my hips to push him forward and cuff him while Emily helps the woman safely out of her house.

I march him to the car while he screams that I'm a bastard whore. Finally, I shoved him into the police car and muttered a good riddance. I even patted my hands like a baker getting flour off.

"I need a drink." I put my hands on my hips

"I could use something to cool off, too. This southern heat can be beat." Derek wipes his brow

"Hotch you think we have the leeway to spend the night here?" Emily asks

"That's all up to JJ, anything pressing enough that we need to get back to Quantico?"

"Well, nothing too scary that we couldn't cut loose after working for six days straight." She smiles at the team

Hours later, we showered, ate a full meal at a steakhouse, and put on the nicest clothes in our go-bags. The team was shocked to discover I had a cowboy hat in my bag. We moseyed our way to the bar, a small dive bar with a pool table. A mechanical bull is in the center of the room, and my eyes light up at the memories. Rossie buys us a pitcher of beer, and we all unwind from the stressful week.

As we knock 'em back slowly and let college stories fly, the team starts to forget what we had seen. Rossi tells us some funny stories about going to college during the summer of love, and Reid accidentally brags about going to Cal Tech.

"Well, what about you? Didn't you go to school nearby?" Emily says as she refills her glass.

"Uh yeah, in Charleston, South Carolina." I clarify

"So you must have spent most of your nights like this." Derek motions around the bar, playing honky-tonk music. Pool balls clack around us, and there's a thin layer of dirt around the edge of the bar.

"Well, most nights I spent in my dorm or the library. Every other Saturday, my roommate and neighbors would go to a dive named Fat Daddy's. We would make bets with the alcoholic dads about being able to ride the bull, and if we stayed on longer than they said so, they'd buy us all a drink. I didn't pay for my own liquor for three semesters." The team stood in shock. Hotch's jaw was agape and Rossi just nodded his chin in acknowledgement.

"Well, now, baby girl, I have to see you in action." Derek almost commands

"No, I ain't dressed right. And ain't nobody betted me."

"I bet you won't last seven seconds on the mechanical bull," Spencer interjects "If you do, I'll buy you that coconut margarita that you've been eyeing."

"Alrght, there's my bet." I march up to the bartender "I'm'onna ride that bull." I point at it and he looks me hat to boot.

"Alright," The bartender seems disinterested. He hits a button, and lights around the bull flash like a carnival. I draw the attention of the whole bar as a pre-recorded announcer calls me a brave challenger.

Big men with fat beer bellies gather around, and I readjust my top. If I play my cards right, I might get more than a coconut margarita out of this. I'm not wearing anything too special—just one of my combat scoop-neck tees and low-rise daisy dukes. The bartender offers his hand, and I use it to mount the big plastic bull.

"You ready, little girl?" He asks

"Yes sir." I grip onto the handle at the 'bull's nape and a bell rings. Slowly the bull starts lurching forward and back while exciting music bounces around the bar.

one Mississippi

The bull speeds up

'ride it, cowgirl!" Derek yells from the edge of the bull enclosure

two Mississippi

It starts going sideways

three Mississippi

I fake with my appearance that I'm struggling and readjust my grip

four Mississippi

I use my hips to grind with the rhythm of the bull as men whoop and cheer

five Mississippi, six Mississippi

My heart starts to thump against my ribs

Seven Mississippi, I win.

The team cheers for me. I keep going, getting bold enough to grind more dramatically. I hear more whoops and hollers as I lift my arms and squee. Someone yells, and another man whistles. I hold onto my hat as the bull speeds up, and I feel my shirt lift.

'Yeehaw!' I hear, and the bar just erupts. I feel so full of life, and I jump up on the bull, riding it like a surfboard. I drop down and sit backward on the bull. I twist around and ride the bull until the bartender slows it down.

"You done broke our record. 39 seconds on the highest speed." The bar screams in glee, and the team closes in on me, handing out high fives. Reid hangs behind the group, and I see him ask Derek a question

"Did you know that (Y/n) has a stomach tattoo?"

"Wow (Y/n), that was incredible." Emily looks starstruck

"I told you I didn't pay for a drink for 18 months." I give JJ a hug, and Reid emerges from the crowd

"I guess I owe you a drink." He smiles, and I fidget with the hem of my shirt

"One coconut margarita, please, sir." He leads me to the bar, where the bartender makes one for me. I hold the glass up to his face, and Reid takes the first sip.

"No, that's fine," He pushes the glass from his cheek

"C'mon, you paid for it."

"Listen, you know that coercion isn't a great thing to do. Most serial killers are more coercive than a skeezy lawyer."

"Aw, you're using my metaphors." I coo and step closer to his chest

"When did you become so flirty?" he braces me on the hip

"All that shaking around must have got the beer movin' in me." I giggle and sip on my glass. "I saw you askin' Derek 'bout my tattoo. y' wanna see it?" I start to roll up my shirt

"No, no, that's fine," He holds my wrist to stop me. "Why don't we get you some water."

"No, this is yummy." I smile and down the cup. He grimaces at the action and tries to walk me over to our table

"Hey, Spencer, you wanna know why I'm so good at riding that thing?" I halt to play with the button of his shirt, and he stops, too.

"Uh sure," He swallows

"Ever the curious doctor," I slur. I'm good with the bull because I love riding," I whisper drunkenly in his ear. He swallows hard and tries to shimmy us back to our table. His hands shake as he grips my tricep.

"Why're you so nervous?" I ask the side of his jaw. My voice swings up an octave, but I snort as I survey the team.

"The liquor got to her quick. I'm gonna get her back to the hotel."

"Oooh, why don't you take me someplace fancy," I tease

"Well, make sure you use protection." Derek snorts as he lifts a brown bottle to his lips

"Aw, you ain't gotta worry. I've got an IUD." Spencer soothes my sentence with a pat on my shoulder, and I slide a hand down his back

"That won't be a problem. I'm just going to ensure she has water, Advil, and comfortable clothes." He jumps away as I make an attempt to grab his butt.

"You sure you don't want either of us to take her?" JJ offers and points between Emily and herself. I rest my head on his chest. I can feel his heart pounding against my temple.

"You gonna take good care of me, Doctor?" I smile up at his concerned face

"I'm not that kind of doctor." He scolds. He helps seatbelt me into one of two FBI SUVs. Slowly and carefully, he drives me to the highway motel we were placed in, and he marches me into my room.

"Alright, are you sober enough to shower?" He sits me on the bed, and the mattress shrieks beneath me

"Yeah, so long as you help me get my shirt off."

"No, I won't be doing that," He finds a glass and fills it with water. He digs in my go-bag and finds the bottle of Advil. He drops two in his hand and gives them to me as well as the cup. "Drink this," he tucks some hair behind his ears.

"My feet hurt," I whine and put the pills in my mouth.

"Well, you're wearing those ridiculous boots," He stressfully tucks some hair behind his ears

"They ain't ridiculous." Stick out a foot and twist it to see the whole design, "Maybe a little flashy." I tuck my foot in and look up at him. "Will you calm down if you held me out of these sugar?"

"Yeah, sure." He kneels down and tugs each of my boots off, and lines them up with the rest of my shoes.

"Aww, you're so caring. C'mere sugar." Reluctantly, he finds me on the mattress, and I pat it next to me. He's hesitant, but he sits, and I lean against him. "Hey, Spencer?"

"Yes, (Y/n)?"

"You wanna ask about my tattoo?"

"No,"

"Really, because you keep glancing down at my stomach. I may be a drunk one, but I am a profiler. What about it? Gets you going so much?"

"What?" He scoffs in shock "It doesn't 'get me going'." I hold onto his arm

"Really? Because I'm pushin' my tits against you, and you're still lookin' at my stomach."

"I uh I'm not." He's distracted enough that I can swing my legs across his lap "(Y/n), this is really inappropriate conduct for coworkers."

"I ain't on the clock," I slowly drag my shirt up to reveal the design. Two big blossoms of overlapping lavender and olive flowers. Any protests he tries to make are halted as he studies the image.

"These ones, "I guide his apprehensive hand as hi pointer finger traces my stomach "Are olive blossoms, they stand for peace. and these are lavenders."

"They mean feminity and grace." He clears his throat

"I've got more," I whisper playfully

"C-can I see them?" He swallows. I cross my arms at the hem of my shirt and pull it off, lifting the hem of my bralette.

"There's some text under my boobs."

"te amo para siempre." He reads without an accent, so it sounds stilted. "Did you get that for a boyfriend?"

"No, it's something my grandpa used to tell me." he runs his thumb over the cursive, "And on my collarbones." I guide his wrist to my right clavicle.

"'An eye for an eye,' I guided him across my chest, and he traced like he was reading braille.' leaves the whole world blind.' He connected his eyes with mine. His pupils were real big.

"Aw gee, I just realized I'm a little underdressed."

"Of course," he shifts around to encourage me to get off

"Uh uh, it could be you're just overdressed," I hold onto the knot in his tie

"No (Y/n),"

"You know, darling, your mouth is saying no, but your body is saying yes." I slide my hips forward and feel him suppress a shudder. I direct his head to look at me with blown-wide puppy dog eyes. "Maybe we should tell your mouth to let your body take over." I sink my lips against him, and he melts into me. Our lips smack as he pulls away

"(y/n), no, this isn't professional," he tries to disable my arms as I slide his tie knot apart

"Well, that's good. If I were professional, you get a hotel in a local jail for soliciting a prostitute." I get the knot loose and free his neck, making headway on the buttons. He shiftsbutI kiss his complaints away. Soon, sounds of complaint turn to moans as he succumbs to his body.

"Hey, Spencer," I pull away briefly and chew on my lip at the view. His hair is fluffed, and the top half of his shirt is flipped open. "I've got one more tattoo, and I think you'd really like it."

"I would?" he pushes his hair back "Why." I give him a peck as I reach for the button on my shorts. He grabs my hand and undoes the button himself. I guide his hand to the zipper, and he tugs it down. Instead of shimmying out of the shorts, I hook his finger in the elastic of my underwear. He pulls it down just enough to read the black text that slowly faded to show green.

"C6H12O6?"

"Yeah, you remember what that means?"

"It's the chemical formula for sugar." He snaps the underwear back into place, and I jump at the sensation, "Why?"

"Because I'm so sweet." I dive back in and kiss him. Heated aggressively like he's got the last cup of water on his tongue. He reaches into my hair to steady me, and with his second hand, he grabs my hip. I continue to unbutton his shirt until he shores it off into the distance.

"Well, look how handsome you are," I watch him blush, but I run my hands up his chest and over his collarbones. He blushes but guides my hand to his belt buckle. I love the sound a belt buckle makes. Before I can get his pants off him, Spencer surprises me. He picks us up and twists us, so my back slaps against the squeaky mattress.

He slithers down my body, kissing down the various tattoos. Gently, he slides his fingers into the waistband of my jeans. He slides them down and separates each of my knees. Almost entranced he licks up the gray cotton panties I wore.

"Spencer!' I moan in shock

"Please, this is my favorite part." He pulls the underwear off and tosses it to the side. I don't protest any further. It's rare to find a guy willing to go down on me, much less one that initiates. He wraps his arms around my thighs and places my knees at his shoulders. He wastes no time diving in.

With every man I've slept with, I've never felt someone go down on me with such fervor and skill. I'm taken down. He clings onto my clit with desperation. He drops my right leg so that he can trace gentle circles around my pussy.

"Spenc- Uh"

"Sh-sh -shh, just relax." He soothes me and rubs my inner thigh. I try to look down at him, but as he continues his ministrations, I lose my strength and flop my head back. Slowly, he sinks his pointer finger in, and I take a sharp inhale.

"Spe-EUUh!" His skill is shocking as he slowly moves his finger in and out. Once I was acclimated, he pulled out and put both his pointer and middle in. I do my best to suppress it for the comfort of the surrounding guests.

"Don't hide from me." He comes up and looks my face over

"There's other people around, Spencer."

"Then let them hear." He places a kiss on my forehead and sinks down to continue devouring me. I don't hold back as much as I'm embarrassed. He starts a 'come hither' motion and I roll my hips up into his face. He braces a hand on my hip.

"Sit still." He commands

Steadily, I felt a climax rising in me. I felt the muscles in my stomach clenching and tensing. I feel like yellow waves of pleasure ripple through my body.

"SPE—Spencerr, I'm gonna!" I desperately reached around and threaded my fingers into his hair. With my other hand, I felt around for the disheveled comforter. I balled my hands into a fist around what I held: his hair and the blanket. I climaxed faster than I had expected. Accidentally, I locked Spencer in with my legs. Desperate to keep the pleasure close to me.

It took me a moment to catch my breath. When I came to, I released my legs, and he resurfaced, wiping his mouth as he checked on me.

"How are you doing? Was that any good?"

"Good?" I gaped, and I saw him crumble a little in insecurity. Spencer, that was the best head I've ever had." He chuckled boyishly as I held his pants so he lay on top of me.

"Spencer?" I ask slowly

"Yeah," He kisses me on the side of the mouth

"I'm gonna fuck you now,"

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," I sit him up and unzip his pants and pull them down. His legs are ridiculously long, and it feels like an eternity to get him naked. I geek at his boxers. His cock is jumping against the fabric, and there is a small precum stain. I rub over the fabric, and he keens into my touch.

"Aww, so you're all talk," I tease

"S-shut up, you were just writhing under me." He leans back on his arms. The veins in his forearms are bulging, and I can see his stomach shift as he shifts under my pawing.

"Yeah, and now you will be."

I slide my fingers under the elastic, and he lifts his hips to help me free him. Gently, I stroke him, and he gulps back and moans. I mount him, letting Spencer guide himself into me. I sigh as I feel him slide in, and his hands gravitate to my hips.

"Woah," he grunts. It's probably the strangest reaction I've gotten, but I appreciate being such a stunner.

"How are you doing, Reid?"

"I-I'm sublime. How are you?" I shift my hips in contemplation, feeling my eyes pool in the back of my head.

"Oh, I'm doing-g just-" My sentence cuts itself off as the head of his dick kisses a sweet spot inside me. "Can you just give me a little boost?" He holds each of my hips and drags me across my lap.

"Oh fuck," I sigh, and I pick my hips up. We fall into a sensual rhythm as the world disappears around us. "Spencer, that feels so..." My forehead collapses against his collarbone. There's something about his dick that itches a scratch I didn't know I was feeling. Similarly, he mews below me.

"(Y/n)," he groans out below me "Don't stop." and I don't. Instead, I pick up the pace. I brace myself on his shoulders and slam my hips back and forth until my thighs burn. And when the sensation becomes overwhelming I keep fighting.

"Oh my- uh," He groans beneath me "(Y/n), (Y/n), I'm gonna cum." He sounds desperate. "(Y/n) you have to get off." He whimpers

"No, I'm gonna cum too. I won't-" I keep my hips galloping against his thighs, "PLEase- fuck, I'm gonna." I feel his cock twitch inside me, and warmth spreads through my thighs.

"Uh, nice and deep." I halt myself for a second," Spencer I gotta keep going."

"M'kay." I ride with such speed that I'm scared the legs on the bed will snap. Finally, I feel the point of no return—like watching a slow vase fall over, knowing you're too far away to stop it. I came. My knees buckled, and I fell chest-first onto Reid.

"Are you okay?" He holds my back steady and gently rubs my spine, and I catch my breath.

"Yeah, I'm okay." I sit myself up, and Spencer tucks some frizzy hair behind my ear. "Probably some of the sex I've had in... ever." His face lights up. I use his shoulder to stand up, and I feel it slide down my thigh.

"I'm gonna need a shower, but there's always room for two." I smile and trot off to the ensuite. It's not long before Spencer is chasing me behind the vinyl curtain to wet his hair and press a kiss to the back of my shoulder.

[endereies]

LEERING AND STEERING - MS

Warnings - Racer!Matt x Starter!Reader, illegal street racing, suggestive language, harassment, small fight Summary - Matt can't stand when someone harasses you Word count - 3.4k Author's notes - Ride or Die is back! lets go! I wasn't going to post this for a while HOWEVER my project that im working is slightly delayed so consider this a filler. Ive had this idea on my mind for ages bc lets be real, we love when Matt protects a girl (even if they arent together). As always, no copying or inspiration without permission, pretty typical stuff! happy reading MWAH love you angels.

The night was still young, the sun having just dipped below the horizon, leaving behind a dusky glow in the sky. You sat on the hood of a stranger's car, your legs crossed delicately. After all, they had to earn that view. The man who owned the car let his arm slip from around your waist as he turned to speak with someone you almost would have pegged as a driver—if not for the way he carried himself. Tyler had always been full of personality, more comfortable managing races than behind the wheel of one. When he wasn’t handling the chaos of the tracks, you could find him tinkering in the garage, a coffee always within reach.

"Yo, Ty! When's this race starting? I’ve got thirty large riding on this shit," His voice cut through the crowd’s growing impatience. Before Tyler could answer, the group around him grew restless, murmurs turning into shouts after the ten-minute delay. Without missing a beat, Tyler paced back to the trio of cars lined up, arms wide as he gestured toward an empty patch of black asphalt. "You got a fourth, brother? If not, you're gonna be waiting a while."

Tyler tilted his head, staring pointedly at the empty space. You slid off the hood of the car, moving toward a small group of girls who were already making deals with the racers.

The night air was cool but not unbearable, and you were grateful for it, especially as last-minute changes to the race list left you and a few others leaning against a crumbling wall. The girl next to you was someone you’d crossed paths with a few times, friendly enough to share the end of a joint.

"What’s taking these assholes so long?" You exhaled the smoke from your drag, swirling around you as you spoke, not caring where it went.

"Don’t get your panties in a twist, darlin’. They’re switching racers. Logan got into a fight again." She rolled her eyes, shifting her weight against the bricks.

"Ace?" You asked, knowing exactly who she meant. Logan was infamous around these parts—his name often echoed even when you weren’t at the track. He’d racked up win after win, and his car was a beast, modified to the max. Nitrous oxide flowed through his veins as much as it did through the car’s engine, boosting the horsepower to insane levels. Once he pulled ahead, there was no catching him. His reputation was built on his car's brutal power, and while everyone hated him, no one could deny the raw violence of his ride.

"Yeah, that guy. Apparently, he tried to sabotage the race. Might get disqualified. I saw the whole thing go down - shame you missed how he got clipped." The girl gave a half-hearted shrug.

You let out a scoff, rolling your eyes at the scene unfolding in front of you. Instead of dwelling on the drama, you reached into your pocket, pulling out a candy wrapper. The heat from your body had already begun to melt the surface, making it sticky and pliable. It was the one constant you always carried with you - your staple. 

"So, what’s the deal? Is this race happening or what?" You slipped the candy into your mouth, sucking on it as you adjusted yourself against the wall.

"Depends on if they find a fourth," the girl replied, eyeing the crowd. "Ty ain’t having it otherwise." Without a fourth car, the night’s events would lose their spark, and everyone knew it.

You rolled the candy around in your mouth, your eyes scanning the growing crowd. The usual characters were here - racer types, mechanics, thrill-seekers, and the occasional rogue who thought they could muscle their way in. The streetlights overhead flickered, casting long shadows across the scene, making it all feel surreal.

"You think they’ll find someone?" you asked, turning back to the girl, who was now tapping her fingers on the wall beside her, clearly losing interest in the drama unfolding.

"Hard to say. Someone always pulls through last minute." She took another drag of the joint, her eyes narrowing as she watched the scene ahead. "But Logan? He’s causing more trouble than usual tonight. Word is he’s pissed about something—guess you don’t get to be that good without making a few enemies along the way." Your fingers idly tracing the outline of the candy wrapper in your pocket. 

"Come on, someone’s got to step up," you muttered your words carefully,  more to yourself than anyone else.

The girl next to you snorted. "They’ll find someone. They always do. But it’s not the cars that make the race interesting, you know." She gave you a glance, a smirk playing on her lips. "It’s the people who drive them."

Before you could even attempt a response, an engine roared over the speech. Heads turned and faced a sleek Nissan R34 Skyline steadily working through the bundle of people. Smoke hissed from the side of the car, hushing everyone to a whisper. The ride was coated in a shade of blue that almost glowed in the moon light. 

Before you could even attempt a response, the roar of an engine roared over the murmur of voices. Heads snapped toward the sound, and there, cutting through the crowd was a sleek Nissan GT-R34 Skyline. The car moved with agility, its headlights slicing strong, drawing every eye in its path. The low growl of the engine reverberated in your chest in a rumble that made the air hum.

Smoke hissed from the side of the car as it came to a halt, the scent of burning rubber mixing with the sharpness of gasoline. A moment of silence swept through the crowd, all attention fixed on the vehicle before them. The Skyline was a masterpiece - its body sculpted to perfection with clean, aggressive lines that hinted at the power hidden beneath. The car was coated in a shade of azure that almost seemed to glow under the moonlight, the metallic paint catching every bit of ambient lights of the street. The contours of the car were sharp, slick, and purposeful - designed not just for looks, but for speed.

As it sat there, engine still rumbling softly, you couldn’t help but admire how the moonlight kissed its curves, highlighting the finely-tuned details that spoke to its performance. The signature wide-body stance, the aggressive front grille, the sleek carbon fibre hood—it was clear this was a machine built for dominance, not for show. And yet, it was a beauty to behold, every inch of it screaming power, precision, and reputation.

A familiar stature left the vehicle, slamming the door with the same cocky smile you’d grown used to. Ty met him halfway, studying the man in front before peeking a grin. “Can’t stay away from a race? Should’ve known your ass woulda showed up ‘ere.”

Matt lifted his face up, flickering between the line of cars and crowds of people. Some had returned back after hearing the engine. “Heard you guys needed a fourth. Lucky you, huh?” He leered towards the others before nodding his head to you. 

You quickly took pride in a strut towards Matt, winking at the guy who easily let you slip earlier. The way he snarled at you made you sway your hips just that little bit further as you met Matt’s side. 

“Angel, you gon’ start for us, hm?” While his gaze was mostly on you, a few other girls had grabbed his attention - that had to change.

“I always do, don’t I,” You traced a finger up his chest to flick his chin. “You know what you get if you win.” His gaze snapped to you - your body to be precise. The candy in your mouth egged him on. The shade of blue that began to coat your lips was too precise to his vehicle for his dick not to jump. “You know it, I’ll treat you good, yeah?”

“Enough you two, we have a race to host.” Tyler’s hands basically pried the two of you apart, pushing you towards the centre of the track and Matt to his car. He raised his voice to grab attention of all four drivers. “Right, y’know what’s at stake here. Thirty hundred each delivered to the winner. First to the end of the block and back here takes the pot. Understood?” None of the drivers spoke up - too busy trying to stare holes into their opponents’ tires. 

You simply gave a nod to Ty, acknowledging it was up to you to start the race. Your arm raises to mimic the wave of a flag before yelling out to the racers. “Three!”

The engine’s revved, sparks and fire shooting out of the exhausts, forcing the crowd to step back. Tyler just chuckled at the sight, new comers not knowing anything almost screaming at the fire.

“Two!” Matt’s eyes glanced over his new line of competition. Idling in his vehicle just inches away was the man who had been holding you moments ago, his fingers still fresh with the memory of your touch. Matt couldn’t help but think how foolish the guy was. Letting you slip away was a mistake and thinking he ever truly had you was even more ridiculous. Matt felt your eyes on him before he had even looked up, the pull of your gaze attracting him. When he finally allowed his eyes to flicker toward you, he was pleased to find you already watching him, a knowing look in your eyes that matched the satisfaction creeping across his face. His gaze lingered on your features, the softness of your lips, the light in your eyes and the tinge of blue on your tongue that he could practically taste himself.

“One!” Your hand struck down, practically hitting your hip which was already angled in a taunt. The cars strived forwards with a push. The wind that stemmed from the movement blew your hair as if it were a stormy day and you couldn’t hold back your cheer from adrenaline. The tires screeched loudly as they tried to grip to the asphalt. Everyone’s cars leered forwards, engines deepening with every violent shift in gears – the number slowly increasing.

The exhausts began to glow a powder blue, sparking every chance it got. Behind the four drivers, crowds of people yelled, hollering at the cars as they sped off. You stood there in the centre, laughing next to Ty.

60…70…80. The numbers rose rapidly, each car its own blur of light. Against the roar of engines, Matt’s thoughts began whirring. Turns and directions in this track were familiar after driving it in races the previous week but familiarity never meant he stopped thinking about his discourse. His eyes steady on the racers. One barely closing in behind and the other two in their own private match ahead.

Ignoring the obvious desire of winning, the red car before him spoke out to him. He wasn’t an idiot, he saw the way the owner of the car had stared primarily at your chest and when you were with Matt, the threat was clear. He glare was heavy but meaningless. He never had a claim on you, just some company before the real show arrived. So, he became an easy target. Although, Matt couldn’t dismiss the obvious. His car was modified, thousands going into the nitrous as well and a streamline finish that made for a serious contender. Built for speed, it became obvious as he reached first place instantly. He couldn’t let himself be carried away, not when the vehicle behind him was tailing so closely that he could give him a bump forwards if they accelerated.

The first turn was simple, a weak bend that spun into much shorter stretch of free road. With the view blocked by Matt’s own car, the blur of pink came to a halt as it spun into the sides of the turn. He could see the amount of money on that car disappear in a second due to pure arrogance, the though of their anger made him chuckle. “Pathetic.”

Drifting was made easier with his car model, stable and strong. Unlike the two other cars that seemed to chew up the road as they struggled to maintain their control, Matt’s car was solid, grounded. Some cars are designed for specific purposes and modifications can either enhance their one skill or balance them out. Their choice was clear. They shared the same one. In a long straight stretch, that would prove to be a worthy race, however with the upcoming turns one flick of the wheel could cost them.

He could feel the subtle weight shift in the rear of the car as he flirted with the edge of the limits of traction. The straightaways weren’t just about raw speed – they were about timing, about knowing when to release the nitrous to maximize your momentum without sending the car into a spin. Matt’s hand rested lightly on the button, ready for the right moment.

The red car wasn’t close enough to challenge just yet, but the other two were still fighting for position ahead. One of them, the one Matt pegged as the more reckless driver, was already taking chances, pushing the limits of his car on the straights. It wouldn't take long before his miscalculations came back to haunt him.

Matt adjusted the steering as they approached the next series of curves. This was the part of the track where precision would separate the winners from the losers. The turns were tight, and the asphalt was worn – perfect for drifting, but dangerous if you pushed it too hard. He was already preparing for the shift in weight, ready to rotate the car smoothly through the first tight curve. As the radius of the turn tightened, Matt eased off the throttle, downshifting to third gear with a quick, practiced motion.

Originally, the red car was a main execution on Matt’s mind and yet now it morphed into the finish line. It began to wobble through the turns, the rear tires losing their grip which sent it into a tailspin. This was the moment. Matt grinned wide, a quick flick of his right hand as he engaged the nitrous oxide system. A surge of power shot through the car, the engine roaring as the extra horsepower slammed Matt back into the seat. The car’s body leaned forward, the suspension compressing as the wheels dug into the asphalt, gripping the road as though nothing could stop it.

Matt steadily coaxed his vehicle into a victory, before drifting to halt, turned 180 degrees. He watched with a smirk plastered on his face – staring right at the crimson car and expression on the owner.

The crowd finally brought his gaze away from the car, the cheers bringing an honest smile to his face. Tyler rushed to his side, leaning on the side of the car while Matt got out.

“Hell yeah, how do you always make it look so easy out there, you’re such a cash grab these days.” Tyler spoke lowly, slinging his arm around his shoulders and pulling him close to slap hard cash into his palm.

Now it was your turn to make an appearance. Lollipop remnants crackled in your mouth with a sharp bite on the stick. By now, your mouth tasted sweeter than his victory.  Yet before you could speak up alongside him, a hand gripped tighter to your wrist than a steering wheel.

“Where are you off to, little lady, hm?” The voice was familiar and once you attempted to yank yourself back, you looked up. You were met with the face of man you were with prior to Matt’s arrival – his face closer than any pleasant conversion. There was no question in his eyes, just the quiet expectation to remain compliant.

His grip made your pulse race, and you couldn’t ignore the unease creeping up your spine. The sugary sweetness of the lollipop in your mouth now felt like an aftertaste that didn’t belong.

You glared up at him, your voice steady but edged with a warning. “Let go.”

His lips curled into a tight smirk, his breath too close to your face. "Don’t act like you weren’t enjoying it earlier, why don’t we continue that?"

Your heart hammered in your chest. This was a rarity in itself, especially in this setting. "I’m not interested. Let go of me." His actions made it clear that he didn’t have the thought of obeying you. Yet before he could respond, a voice cut through the tension, loud enough to turn heads. “You heard her, right?”

Matt stood just a few steps away now, his stance wide and relaxed, but the intensity in his eyes was unmistakable. He wasn’t smiling anymore. The stare he held wasn’t a way to size him up, it was a threat, one he usually never has to make.

The man holding you didn’t look away. Instead, he shot Matt a glance that was full of disdain. "Not only does pretty boy wanna steal my race, he wants to steal my girl too."

Matt’s eyes narrowed. He took a slow step forward, his hands relaxed at his sides but his posture still radiating a quiet threat. "Is that what this is about? The fact I won. Don’t take that out on the girl, I’m sorry she doesn’t want to fuck you.”

The guy’s grip didn’t loosen, but his jaw twitched, irritation building behind his eyes. “You think you can begin playing hero?”

“Only when you play beggar.” Matt replied, his voice low but with a dangerous edge that made the air feel heavier.

The crowd had fallen into an uneasy silence, watching the unfolding standoff. You could hear the faint buzz of the engines as you clenched your teeth, the taste of sugar turning bitter in the tense air.

The guy’s grip faltered, just for a moment, his eyes flicking from Matt to you. Then with a scoff, he shoved you back. Hard.

You stumbled, barely managing to stay upright, your breath catching as your back hit the metal of the car behind you. The crowd murmured in the background, but you didn’t have time to focus on them. Your pulse was racing now, but you straightened, refusing to show weakness.

Matt moved quickly, his movements fluid and precise as he closed the distance between them in a flash. He grabbed the guy by the collar and slammed him against the nearest car, the sound sharp in the air. “Stupid mistake,” Matt muttered softly and before the guy could react, Matt swung at him, landing a solid punch to his nose. The sound of the punch echoed through the street, the force behind it enough to send the guy stumbling back. “Didn’t think you’d be fucking stupid enough to start something you couldn’t finish.”

Blood dripped from the man’s nose, groaning as he touched it to assess the damages. He scoffed once more, attempting to stand tall. Matt wasn’t blind to his quickly clenched fist and grabbed it before he could lunge. His fist slammed back into the car door, his own scrapping roughly on metal.

Everything was silent for too long, your palm soothing where the man grabbed you, Matt’s gaze heavy on who was standing opposite him, and the once cocky attitude dissipating from the man. When he looked away from Matt, he let go, retreating backwards to meet your side.

“Everybody! Don’t y’all got another race to see?” Tyler’s voice echoed, nodding to you before steering the crowd away. Mutters bounced through the crowd, some throwing insults to the pair of them. Even Tyler got a few comments merely for breaking it up.

“You okay?” The adrenaline was starting to fade, but there was still a lingering tension that clung to your skin. You glanced down at your palm where the man had gripped you, the burn of his fingers still fresh, but nothing that couldn’t be shaken off.

“Yeah,” you replied, your voice steady despite what just occurred. “I’m fine.” He gave you a small smile, a brief flicker of relief passing through his eyes before he glanced around at the now-chattering crowd. It was clear the spectacle had stirred something in them, but Matt was already moving past it. “Good. Let’s get out of here before I have to deal with another idiot. I don’t trust guys like that to take the hint.”

[mercury2venus]

CHAPTER 4

The Morning After

(Keep in mind y’all lol this all takes place in the year 2000

and flashbacks will be in the late 90s )

I stood in front of the large window looking out onto the city, I could hear a rerun of Martin playing on the tv at low volume

I laughed. “ Shit I would’ve killed that bird too Gina “

I turned as I heard Kyle saunter into the room, in nothing but low hanging grey sweats. My eyes traveled down to his waistline.

Quickly he was in front of me.

“What are you thinking about hm ?” He asked.

I held back my smile.

“You.”

Kyle pulled me close.

“Glad to know I’m on your mind the way you’re on mine Mecca.” He mumbled, deliciously close to my ear

He began kissing my neck slowly. Licking and sucking on that certain sweet spot and I felt his hands roam my body as I let out a soft moan.

Kyle has the kind of hands that can mold and shape anything to his will, and he knew that.

“Ky baby I need to rest, I’m still sore.” I said to him almost in a whisper

“Then let me give you a massage “ he replied

“Just a massage ?”

“Just a massage darling.” He smiled softly

It wasn’t just a massage y’all.

“Kyleeee I really do have to go, I have a few articles I need to proof read and I need to do my laundry.” I whined

Kyle let out a sigh and unwrapped his arms from my waist

“Fine, but this weekend, you’re mine. How do you feel about Paris ?” He asked

I blinked hard…. Paris ?

Kyle laughed, “you don’t have to answer right now beautiful,

I’ll ask again this weekend.” he gave me his signature boyish grin and a forehead kiss.

Maybe I can stay a little longer. I thought to myself

But hmph, gotta go be an adult.

Kyle had a car drive me home only after I insisted because that fool was going to drive me home himself !

I’m still setting boundaries and taking things step by step, and I appreciate his understanding. It’s heartwarming to see his patience and I can’t lie…it turns me on a bit.

As I entered my home I forgot I didn’t update Monica on anything..

“Mecca, girl is that you ? Yo you gotta call sometimes, I was worried sick ! “

Speak of the damn devil.

“I’m fine Mo’ I was with Kyle that’s all.” I laughed.

“ I’m glad you finally seeing him again ! Girlfriend you were out here just uptight as hell !” She joked.

I smiled softly to myself thinking of him. “Yea yea yea, I know. I think I’m gonna give him a chance girl he’s almost like a dream. “

Monica started shaking her head “ Damn he got you grinning like the Cheshire Cat Mec !”

I tried to cover my face but it was useless. She was right.

“So loverboy drop you off himself ?— I can’t believe you gave that nigga the address !” Monica at this point was having a field day.

I shook my head no. “ nah he had a driver bring me and I didn’t give him our address girl come on. “ I let out a laugh then quickly realized she wasn’t laughing with me in fact Monica looked confused.

“ What wassup ? “ I asked her.

“ Then how does he know where you live ? “

Oh Shit.

Just a filler chapter, next one gets juicy.

[kokorose]

Sweet Home-CL16

Charles Leclerc x KoreanActress!reader

Faceclaim: Go Minsi

Part of my Korean Entertainment x driver series! Oscar is next btw!!

Google translate: French and Korean

Pics: Pinterest

YnLnnnn posted

Liked by sooyaaa_, jennierubyjane, kikacgomes, scuderiaferrari, charlesleclerc16 and 637,728 others

YnLnnnn: Monaco 🇲🇨

Thank you scuderiaferrari for inviting me!

See all 15,728 comments

sooyaaa_: 예쁜 (pretty)

User: you’re so pretty!!!

User: Charles in the likes?!?!

User: Yn was at Monaco?!?

kikacgomes: It was nice meeting you 🩷

YnLnnn: it was nice meeting you too 💕

User: She met Kika?!

User: what’re Kika and Charles doing here??

charlesleclerc16 posted to their story

Seen by PierreGasly, LandoNorris, YnLnnn, ArthurLeclerc, and 323,739 others

charlesleclerc16: homemade post-race meal.

Replies:

YnLnnn: ❤️

PierreGasly: 😯

User: !!!

User: Charles?!

User: How’d that man get homemade Korean food in Monaco?!?

YnLnnn posted

Liked by kikacgomes, PierreGasly, charlesleclerc16, sooyaaa_, and 567,728 others

YnLnnn: 🇬🇧🇬🇧💋💋

See all 267,728 Comments:

User: YNNNN?!?

User: WHO’S HAND IS THAT?!

kikacgomes: 🫦can I take you out baby girl🫦

YnLnnn: 😩😩 time and place baby!

PierreGasly: ummm excuse me?? That’s my girlfriend?

YnLnnn: not anymore

PierreGasly: so you’re just gonna steal my girlfriend? How would HE feel about that??

YnLnnn: He’s telling me to keep it up 😜

User: what is going on?? Who’s “he”???

User: PIERRE?!

User: Charles in the likes??

charlesleclerc16 posted

Liked by YnLnnn, PierreGasly, ArthurLeclerc, CarlosSainzJr55, LandoNorris, and 1,738,728 others

charlesleclerc16: Headed to Spa with a little snack!

See all 536,738 comments

LandoNorris: Which one’s the snack??

charlesleclerc16: 🖕🏻🖕🏻

PierreGasly:🤬🤮

User: CHARLES WHOS’S THAT??

User: Charles soft launching??

CarlosSainzJr55: it’ll be nice to gossip with her again!

YnLnnn posted to her story

Seen by charlesleclerc16, kikacgomez, lilymhe, sooyaaa, and 226,478 others

YnLnnn: 🛩️

Replies:

charlesleclerc16: happy you’re coming with me Mon cherié.

YnLnnn: I’ll always want to be with you 자기야 (baby)

kikacgomes: we should have a double date when you guys get here!

YnLnnn: omg yes!!!

kikacgomes: ok I’ll let P know! 💋💋

PierreGasly posted

Liked by charlesleclerc16, YnLnnn, kikacgomes, AlexAlbon, GeorgeRussell, and 892,829 others

PierreGasly: Date night

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kikacgomes: Pierre…

PierreGasly: oops

YnLnnn: secrets out I guess. 🤦🏻‍♀️

charlesleclerc16: Mec…(dude)

User: WTF?!?

User: WHAT DO YIU MEAN DATE NIGTF PIERREE?!?

User: Not Pierre hard launching Yn and Charles!

YnLnnn posted

Liked by charlesleclerc16, PierreGasly, LilymHe, kikacgomes, carmenmmundt, sooyaaa_ and 1,278,728 others

YnLnnn: At least now everyone will know you’re mine.

Tagged: charlesleclerc16

See all 346,467 comments

charlesleclerc16: 🥰🥰

PierreGasly: again I’m sorry!

YnLnnn: 🥱

User: Damn…

kikacgomes: uhhh… can you grab me like that??🥵

YnLnnn: just let me hop on a plane baby 😜

LilymHe: can I join as well?

Carmenmmundt: me too

AlexAlbon: GeorgeRussell she’s stealing our girlfriends as well???

GeorgeRussell: idek mate?

User: holy shit

charlesleclerc16 posted

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charlesleclerc16: Mon amour

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YnLnnn: 😘😘😘😘😘😘

ArthurLeclerc: Tell her welcome to the family!!

DanielRicciardo: you guys are too cute!

Leclerc.Pascale: Beau(beautiful)

User: so cute!!!

User: awww

YnLnnn posted

Liked by charlesleclerc16, kikacgomes, PierreGasly, LilymHe, carmenmmundt, and 968,588 others

YnLnnn: celebrated Charlie’s bday with some friends! Happy birthday love! I love you so much!

Tagged: charlesleclerc16, kikacgomes, PierreGasly

Comments are limited on this post:

charlesleclerc16: Thank you for an amazing night cherié. Je t’aime mon amour! ❤️

YnLnnn: 🥰❤️

kikacgomes: Happy Birthday Charles!

PierreGasly: Happy Birthday Mon ami

Hope you all enjoyed and I’ll see you in Oscar’s story next! Xx

[hikaruchen]

Reading this blog and procrastinating what I should’ve been doing at the moment, but it’s super helpful if you want to know more about the Anglo-Saxon and Viking material culture but don’t want to be bored to hell. All articles are done by an archaeologist specializing in mortuary archaeology, and he has already written several ones about burials and pagan practices during that time through the lens of The Last Kingdom. I’ve linked one of his posts before on ao3 when discussing about the historical accuracy of Alfred’s tomb effigy in the show under the pic Prayer from the Pagan, but didn’t really had the time to check others out. I just did it and find his other articles are actually super interesting to read as well.

For instance, back when I post this pic in January I said the colour palette was inspired by the Alfred jewel, but I completely forgot that it actually appeared in the show (2x04) where Alfred handed it to Æthelwold and said “Take this. It is a symbol of my kingship. Bear it with authority.”, which might be partially true but is hilarious if you give it another thought.

Because, why, in God’s name, would Alfred hand an ARTEFACT version of the piece he commissioned himself to his nephew? As Prof. Williams already stated (in this post), the Alfred jewel has long been assumed to be the handle part of a pointer stick for following words when reading a book, and if you look at the artefact itself it is quite clear that there’s a part that’s been missing as well. The reason why scholars think it has something to do with Alfred is because:

1) It’s written. The text on the frame literally says that “ÆLFRED MEC HEHT GEWYRCAN”, which means “Alfred ordered me made”. The more detailed explanation below (with the help of beloved wikitionary since I don’t understand Old English at all)

ÆLFRED (subject) Alfred, obviously MEC (object) me; accusative of iċ (I), but in the West Saxon dialect it’s actually an uncommon version of iċ’s accusative and is more often seen in the Anglian dialect. The frequently-used version for West Saxons is mē HEHT (verb) ordered; third-singular past tense for hātan (to call; to order etc.), often followed with infinitive verbs, cognate with heißen in German GEWYRCAN (verb) to make; I honestly don’t know if “to make” and “to be made” is just the same word in OE help And since the word order in OE is random as hell thanks to the case system (much like German which I eventually gave up learning because I don’t have a brain big enough for that. IT MAKES NO SENSE TO A NATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKER THANK YOU), it is eventually translated into “Alfred ordered me to be made”.

2) It was discovered in Somerset and has been dated to the late 9th century, and we all know what Somerset meant to Alfred

3) Alfred did say he would send a copy of his translation of Gregory the Great’s Pastoral Care to every episcopal see in his kingdom in the preface to it, with the book accompanied “an æstel of 50 mancuses”. Mancus was a term to denote a gold coin or a unit for coins worth about a month’s wage for a skilled worker, such as a craftsman or a soldier. Whatever that æstel is it must be worth hell LOTS of money

But honestly while I do think this interpretation sounds very much plausible I’m thinking about other possibilities as well - how many Alfreds exactly existed during his time? We know that Æthel in OE means noble, so people bearing this prefix in their names were usually royal members or at least aristocrats, but what about Alfred? Was Alfred a popular name? Or was it unique enough that he could just go by this name without mentioning his title at all? Imagine if it were an Æthelred who made this, who the hell would know which one of these it was referring to, Æthelred the King, Æthelred the Ealdorman, Æthelred Ealhswith’s father, or even Æthelred the fucking Archbishop??? And yeah, I know Alfred was the king ™ here and there isn’t really much space left on the frame after all, but surely it wouldn’t cost a bone to add a cyning behind his name, right?

Sadly, as it was in the pre-Domesday-Book era, I can’t find the statistics of Anglo-Saxon names at that time (but keep in mind that there were at least 19 Alfreds worthy enough to be mentioned in Domesday Book even after the conquest. I don’t know if this says anything at all but I do want to mention it) What I’m trying to say is while it is highly highly highly likely (and I do believe and want to believe in this theory!), we cannot be one hundred percent certain that this jewel was really from the Alfred we’re talking about. And even if it was, it apparently wouldn’t be carried around by Alfred like THAT. Because that would be like, “Bear this with authority! Even though the symbol of my kingship is broken!”, said Alfred to a king wannabe. Lol.

The other thing I want to mention is this post about the show’s use of Fuller brooch, the one Alfred wore in S2 when he was in his war gear.

First of all, it is indeed dated to late 9th century and is assumed by scholars to be made by metalworkers of Alfred’s court. Everything is fine except I don’t think you would want to wear jewelry that luxurious to war…but then there’s this thing:

MEET GIANT FULLERS!

Well, can’t blame them since I am basically doing the same thing with my drawings (i.e. using patterns on jewelry and illustrations from manuscripts for embroidery design). But it’s worth noting that designs that are suitable for one art form doesn’t mean they can be applied to another well, and that’s why I claim my art is inspired by Anglo-Saxon art but NOT historical accurate for the Anglo-Saxon period. The reason I still do this and think it is understandable for TLK crew to do so is because we simply don’t have that many resources to reference from when it comes to this time period, and fabrics and wooden buildings are just extremely hard to preserve by nature. Instead of screwing up the design on your own, it just has more fun to add real historical elements into your work. Look at those easter eggs!

Ok, that’s it. I hope you enjoy my long rant and have a good read from Prof. Williams’s works!

[horizon-verizon]

Honestly as a neutral party I would prefer Jaehaera living to Daenaera being introduced. Jaehaera is an innocent, mentally disabled child and her death is needlessly cruel. Her death is the least plot relevant of all of the child deaths that have happened in the dance and it's reasonable for people to want that changed since it comes off as pointlessly cruel. Killing Alicent or even just focusing on her imprisonment more is enough to show that the greens have paid for their betrayal. At least Daenaera can still be introduced and do something else in the narrative even if she doesn't marry Aegon.

I've already explained why Jaehaera's death was plot relevant HERE and HERE.

A)

Daenaera's entire narrative purpose was to marry Aegon and have his children to propagate the Targ line AND to become part of Aegon's mental rehabilitation from the effects of the civil war and watching his own mother get eaten burned/alive by a dragon. This is also reason why she's a fan fav in the first place; it's seen as a noble undertaking to some and a way for the Targs to move away from the greens finally. What other narrative use would you have her have?!

We can't bring up how after the War of the Roses the two fighting houses (Yorks and Lancasters) were successfully brought together in marriage to justify Jaehaera marrying and having a family with Aegon. Because:

Elizabeth of York wasn't disabled like Jaehaera

neither her nor Henry Tudor were little kids when they married

this is a fictional tale that, while modeled after some real events and people, is using them as springboards for a specific, purposefully created "message" unique to the author's

and imagine what it would being pregnant several times really be like for a very mentally incapacitated and traumatized girl like her?!!

Much less the other traumatized boy who's to be her husband? What the consummation and all the...impregnating times looked like?! Then, imagine what the family life would have been like, with these parents unable to ever connect thus the resentment is worse and their kids seeing that?

This doesn't justify Unwin Peake murdering Jaehaera, but no she never should have been married off to Aegon or anyone in the first place and that was not Unwin's doing but a larger group's--Aegon's council/patriarchal feudalism. This is what GRRM's trying to tell you, stop resisting it.

B)

I can believe that it is the way she died and the other context of so much violence men and adults perform against women and girls in this world is what really offends people enough for them to say that somehow, this a narratively irrelevant death. Because they're just that horrified.

The feelings are valid. But the action to erase the significance of the death is not valid. You definitely can wish for a much less violent one, like a poisoning that puts her to sleep or something. The death is supposed to be tragic and make you feel that it wasn't deserved, was horrible, etc. Because it was all those things.

And to say such an untrue thing as "not narratively relevant" also leads me to suspect that some people don't like Jaehaera's death either bc they just:

wanted the greens to win in some way bc they favor them and their cause (my second linked post)

you--knowing that Daenaera will likely be black in the show IF they ever get to the Maiden's Ball--go so hard for Jaehaera bc she at least is a white girl in the universe of HotD

want excessively centrist politics to sway the story at the expense of actual understanding of why we should change and upend the status quo entirely (here the feudal entrapment of girls and women); deny a reality, discourage learning to the oppressive status quo can prevail [on this trend of neutrality]...the truth is the villains/antagonists were always the greens

AND/OR, are avoidant of facing ugly, sordid truths of oppression because they are close to it in real life and haven't found ways of separating that from collective understanding of oppressive systems -> coping mechanism

Look anon, Alicent's imprisonment doesn't make up for mass death. Because it's not even just about Alicent as the individual, the grandmother, the mother, etc. It's the effect of her actions on a population. Jaehaera was one of many girls Otto AND Alicent endangered (another being Halaena). Though her actions became something much bigger than her & things went out of her control, that doesn't stop them from being hers AND having affected thousands of lives. Her main aim was to accrue power through her kids and grandkids--who she chose to risk by usurping Rhaenyra and beginning the war--the consequence is she loses said kids and grandkids through other's similar ambition. Again, bc even though those kids were noble and were supposed to be relatively safe, because they are all technically heirs or adults around them can use them accrue power (whether by killing them or through marriages or whatever), they were also targets. We could say similar for Rhaenyra's children, as what happens to her youngest 2; all of them in one way or another die because they were or could be used. however, they AND the greens' kids were all safer if the greens had not usurped Rhaenyra.

The greens were the aggressors and transgressors. The ones who started this war and looked for something out of it. They tried to act worse against Rhaenrya before/during the war AND the whole of Westeros before/during/after, thus they get the worse punishment and lose more than she did.

The entire point is that the greens lose everything, because they went after "everything". They lose everything, including their kids bc they relentlessly and hypocritically ran to obtain more power for themselves by attempting to exclude a woman from the position she never would have had without the will of a man.

They went on the basis that a girl/woman should not rule or become an heir before any direct male relatives...so Jaehaera was cut out of the line of succession by her own side of the family, thus she was also less prioritized, thus she was made into a baby factory for Aegon III. She became their last chance to get their blood to at least be part of the future line, but even that's dashed by a man who had similar ambitions as Otto and Alicent.

In trying to go against the king's word/an actual law, the greens also made it much more justified for someone to not care much for Aegon II's claim or authority...bc if you can so easily flout a king's word, why should you care about the guy you're trying to make king?! And using people who themselves are willing to be so dishonest creates a higher likelihood that they'd betray you, as similar to Ulf and Hugh betraying Rhaenyra. (And somehow, Rhaenyra is the only naive one when she expects people to follow through with their oaths 🙄)

Have you ever thought, anon, about those other girls who were maimed or terrorized into not appearing before Aegon III in the Maiden's Ball? Sure, most of them weren't disabled (Priscella Hogg was, I think), but what happens to Jaehaera is because she was girl in the way of a man's ambitions and not because she was disabled. What about all those Tumbleton folk, Bitterbridge refugees (the raped septas and girls as young as 8!), and riverland peasants--most of them children! Undoubtedly, you will have disabled children in those populations, anon. Why is Jaehaera's death so much more valuable than these mass deaths of also children? Remember that Alicent raised her kids to easier justify committing these atrocities. Maelor and Jaehaerys' deaths also reflect these events. Jaehaera's death was markedly different in meaning from theirs (to open up space for another girls who's being used) because she was female. In the first linked post, I talk about why and how people used Jaehaera's marriage to Aegon and how that reflects on her death being unique from her brothers' because of her gender.

GRRM comments, through Jaehaera and these girls and Rhaenyra what one pattern of F&B has: being female is dangerous because it is to be more of an object or property in lieu of self-concerned ambitious men to the point where the most vulnerable and those who cannot practice some of the same sort of agency can experience gruesome consequences--sometimes to become terrors themselves in their attempts to gain denied agency or defend themselves.

[kykloss]

babe wake up new extra niche tkdb headcanon just dropped! since i'm the only french person i know of on here, i decided to make the most of it by rubbing it in people's face every chance i get (i'm lonely af).

Tokyo Debunker ghouls as french rap songs pt. 1

Starting with frostheim and vagastrom

(i have to break it up in multiple posts bc of tumblr limitations, bear with me)

disclaimer: this hc is not intended to be a deep dive on the characters. i chose most of the songs based on vibes only and what i enjoy listening. i also included lyrics translations to the best of my abilities and there might be some mistakes, i was fighting for my life here ok

frostheim❄️

Jin: Cigarette - Kaaris ft. SCH

"t'es mort, t'es mort comme le mec sur mon paquet de cigarettes"(you're dead, you're dead like the guy on my pack of cigarettes)

"Je suis le prince et je suis le roi, et toi tu bois dans mon rince-doigts" (i am the prince and i am the king, and you, you drink from my finger bowl)

sounds like Jin alright. it reeks of rich kid arrogance energy, mixed with his particular brand of painfully obvious aggressivity-as-a-defense-mechanism. nothing to add these lyrics are spot on.

Tohma: Bolo Yeung - Osirus Jack, Alpha Wann

"Course à la maille, tôt l'matin, toute la night, j'vais chercher l'flouze à la nage" (race for the maille*, early in the morning, all night long, i'll go pick the cash up by swimming)

*french slang for "money"

"J'pense à ma merde, pas à celles des autres, j'ai les connexions, j'ai l'réseau" (i think about my shit, not about other people's, i have connexions, i have the network)

" S/o à Bolo, Van Damme, j'suis dans l'ombre comme un marionnettiste" (S/o to Bolo, Van Damme, i'm in the shadows like a puppeteer)

tohma was by far the hardest one to figure out on this list. i could not for the life of me figure this dude out 💀

then i stopped looking because it was frustrating and realized the best pick was right under my nose while listening to my own rap playlist?

i'm glad i found this because i originally wanted something similar to alpha wann's style as it felt close to tohma's vibe (i can only describe it as "calculated elegance"? ).

Lucas: Côte Ouest - 47ter

"J'prends l'mauvais côté d'la vie et j'lui casse les côtes, t'inquiète, on ira vivre un jour sur la côte ouest" (I take the wrong side of life and I break its ribs, don't worry one day we'll live on west coast)

"Tu crois qu'on n'aura pas de billets sur le compte, mais dans deux ans, j'fais des milli', qu'est-c'que tu racontes ?" (You think we won't have money in the account, but in two years I make millions, what are you talking about?)

lucas just feels like a optimistic summer tune to me.

let's be real, probably because he's as stubborn as a mule and borderline delusional at times.

to me he seems like that guy who will keep going, even if the situation is hopeless and he might be heading straight into the wall. it can be both a good and a bad thing i guess?

Kaito: Mamie - PLK

"Mamie m'a récupéré chez elle avant (chez elle avant), que tout parte en couille, elle m'a sauvé à temps (piou, piou, piou)" (Grandma took me in before (took me in before), everything went to shit, she saved me on time (piou, piou, piou)"

"Ah, je lui dois tellement d'choses, c'est délicat (oh, oh, oh), c'que j'lui ai fait subir, elle le mérite pas (oh, oh, oh)" (Ah, I owe her so many things, it's delicate, what I put her through, she doesn't deserve it (oh, oh, oh))

we don't know much about kaito's family but since it's heavily implied that he was raised by his grandma, he gets the love letter PLK wrote to his own. did not expect to go soft on this dork but i kinda relate to this specific theme of his backstory so...

vagastrom⚡

Alan: Je danse le MIA - IAM

"J'entends encore le rire des filles, qui assistaient au ballet des Renault 12 sur le parking" (I still hear the girls' laughter, watching the R12 ballet in the parking lot)

"Comme les voitures c'était le défi, KUX 73 JM 120, mon petit" (Like the cars, it was a challenge, KUX 73 JM 120*, kiddo)

*old af car radio setup

"Du grand voyou à la plus grosse mauviette, la main sur le volant avec la moquette, pare-soleil Pioneer sur le pare-brise arrière" (From the big thug to the biggest wimp, hand on the wheel with the carpet, Pioneer sun visor on the rear windshield)

warning alan yap incoming in 3, 2, 1...

oh, alan, alan, alan... amour de ma vie, soleil de mes nuits*. This was a hard one because i find parts of him in almost everything i listen to (i have issues).

*love of my life, sun of my nights. (ok kykloss stfu and die)

i settled on 90s old school rap. we all know homeboy is allergic to modern tech (what the hell are youtube/streaming services) and isn't up-to-date on new/trendy artists.

what better pick for him than this iconic, kinda himbo-esque Marseille-style tune about 80s nostalgia by the 1st popular group of the french hip-hop scene then?

IAM and their songs will always have a special spot in my heart. my dad was a fan of them before i was even born and they were the sountrack of my formative years. so i just love the idea of alan blasting this in his car tbh.

(it's also my way to make it up to him for my heavy angst hurt no comfort fr rap alan playlist i keep private cuz boy it's depressing 💀)

Leo: Tabasco - ICO

"Tellement chaud ta meuf m'appelle Tabasco" (So hot your girl calls me Tabasco)

"Merde, j'savais pas qu'elle ronflait, j'lui mets des claques pour la réveiller" (Shit, I didn't know she snored, i smack her to wake her up)

"Réveille-toi, va m'faire des tartines au Nutella. Mets-moi des chaussettes, c'est quoi ces pieds ? On dirait tu fais du 43. C'est plus des pieds, c'est des canapés" (Wake up, go make me Nutella toasts. Put your socks on, what are those feet? It looks like you're a size 10. These aren't feet, they're boats)

yeah i chose this one for leo based only on that 1st line, sue me ;) edgelord vibe with funny lyrics, reminds me of this lil bitch (affectionate) <3.

i didn't know this song existed until i stumbled into it on some random rap playlist, looking for something that screamed "leo". i almost pissed myself laughing at that impromptu feet roast line and thought: "yeah. this is the one".

Sho: Les yeux d'un rider - A2h

"La rue m'saoule, la rue m'crame, la rue schlingue, la rue, j'l'aime quand même" (the street pisses me off, the street wears me out, the street stinks, the street, i love it anyway)

"J'ai ridé tous ces recoins, ouais, même en pleine tempête" (i rode all these corners, yeah, even in the middle of the storm)

this song is just really sho-coded to me. when i listen to it i picture him driving around the city on his motorcycle, having his main character moment, hair in the wind and all (wear a helmet you idiot).

laid back song for a pretty chill, hedonistic dude.

if you read any of this, thank you for indulging me. i spent a ridiculous amount of time working on it for a mid result ;) (not me being lowkey nervous to post this). will post the next part once i'm done!

p.s. : dropping a lil bonus tonight. stay tuned

Coming next: jabberwock, sinostra and hotarubi

Bisous <3

[wumblr]

Hi, I'm new here. Sorry if you've already answered this question; I'm new here. I saw your post about the Biden-Harris nuclear plan. I've long-since been loosely optimistic about nuclear as a petrol alternative, but knew that more reactors in the imperial world intrinsically means more bombs as well. Reading through articles here is starting to confirm some suspicions. Have you talked already about serviceable energy alternatives, or is the solution basically to just dismantle capitalism, or?

the IEEFA PDF on the most recent (third) reblog is pretty clear that renewables (wind, solar, and batteries) are the viable/cost effective mid-term strategy. these are not without their own problems (land use, resource consumption, and again batteries) but they are a better option than nuclear. it also points out that full-scale nuclear is more cost efficient than SMRs which i can't dispute, and i wouldn't theoretically have a problem with it if it weren't for the capitalism. you don't gain anything by scaling them down, and IEEFA makes the excellent point that privatized off-grid SMRs do not maintain a consistent baseload supply in the way that full-size on-grid reactors do

waste handling is a sticky problem but it's exacerbated by profiteering and corruption (unfortunately not magically solved by a revolution, either). more reactors only inevitably means more bombs in a war empire, but eliminating capitalism doesn't magically resolve all geopolitical strictures nor does it necessarily equate to eliminating war. i think it would be foolish to build them now and kick the can down the road about seizing power from capital ("you're handing the climate change machine a new 50 year megawatt generator," i keep saying). my main axe to grind is that nobody is taking any of it seriously. that's rude to somebody's kids and i'm still mad it's been done to us. if you want new reactors, know the deal with the devil you're signing, so that you will know when they slack off on their end of the bargain and start doing ohio nuclear bribery incidents and progressively abdicating decommissioning responsibilities for san onofre by reselling it over and over. saying this has made a shocking number of people very angry at me, i assume because their worldview rests on the existence of a magical solution. well, there isn't one. sorry

i'm a degrowth communist. i don't want new reactors. so, i think we should start asking where we can reclaim parts of the energy budget from industry instead of building out more capacity, but, lol. not so long as the democratic party exists, i'm afraid. they sure have been "ironclad" about that! there may be capability to persuade the political establishment toward degrowth but i'm not optimistic, since they love parading around a 0.01% solution for a 100% problem (like carbon capture). because it allows the illusion to continue

(you would think the most energy intensive sector of industry would be computing, for the amount of time we spend talking about energy consumption for crypto, ai, and datacenters, right? well, it's chemicals. i just found that out while fact checking the post. paper also still consumes more than computing, apparently. (third of the top three is "oil/coal products" which is a bit nebulous and i would have to dig into the report the EIA is referencing, MECS 2018, to figure out what's going on there. surely some of that is going back into energy production, right? so, energy production is one of the largest energy consumers? i guess that tracks, but i haven't dug. i assume it also refers to other products.) i think this was in the post but i also love to say "It's Lawrence Livermore National Library Energy Flow Sankey Diagram Sunday!" and point out that 67% of energy in the US is lost to waste heat, labeled rejected energy in the diagram. obviously that runs up against laws of thermodynamics but surely we could be doing better than that)

that was all about energy. you asked about bombs. unfortunately i have to tell you we are likely not going to live to see disarmament. maybe if we stop building reactors, disarmament will become inevitable, at best, in a hundred years. maybe if we seize power from capital it could be administrated more quickly. but, for the foreseeable future, mutually assured destruction is the only thing preventing them from being detonated. thank god for the rosenbergs

[ii-meeple-confessions]

I HAVE RETURNED WITH MORE HOMESTUCK x MEEPLERS PROPAGANDA!!! This one will hopefully be shorter (i lied it's like the same length)

Steve Cobs: Gonna be a bit evil with this one and say Witch of Time (“b-but Witch is a female only class 🥺” SHUT UP IDFC CLASSES BEING GENDERED IS DUMB) The reason this is so evil is because the Active counterpart to the Heir (which is what MP4 was) Reason: Witches do not like wasting time at all, and would rather use their time/resources to further their goals. They want to bring changes they think are positive to the world around them, Cobs literally made the Me products for what he thought was gonna benefit the whole world and if that doesn’t fit idk what does. For the Time part, Cobs did have an obsession with making time go faster, hell he made a song called “The Future Is So Yesterday”, he wanted MP4’s show to be over so he could snag MP4 and use him for… whatever he was gonna do BESIDES continue I.I we weren’t really told in canon, maybe go to war with the Shimmers to get more eggs..? Idk we’ll probably never know. As a Witch of Time, Cobs (if god tiered) would gain the ability to speed up/slow down time for himself which was the oPPOSITE OF WHAT MP4 WAS DOING BC HE WAS DOING IT FOR OTHERS AND NOT EXCLUSIVELY HIMSELF I'M SO GOOD AT PARREALS CHAT. His chumhandle would probably be something like ‘technologicallyAdvancing’

Toilet: Maid of Doom (again breaking gendered classes LMAO). Reason: Okay so, Maids usually break out of the norm and seem really weird/unnatural to others. Toilet can literally fly, has no limbs, talks funny/pos and is a bit of an airhead/pos, also he is the only non MP4 made person who has an object name but that might be unrelated in canon. Maids bottle up emotions until they reach a breaking point where it all spews out. Toilet tried to KILL MePad because he was getting treated better than him from MP4. For the Doom portion, Doom players suffer a shit-ton really early, usually experiencing a lot of pain. On the up-side Doom players overcome their suffering first over all other aspects. Toilet seemed REALLY civil with MP4 in s2 ep18 (to me at least) even though MP4 was HORRIBLE to him. Putting it all together, a Maid of Doom would make Doom for themselves, trying to come out stronger than before. Toilet tried to kill MePad yak yak I already said this. ALSO FOR THE FUNNI’S, Doom players are usually related to technology, and one of the two(?) Doom characters in HS canon has a shit-ton of wires if I remember correctly. (love you Sollux Captor your so real) Toilets chumhandle would be something like ‘geneticAssistant’ (he and MePad have matching chumhandles awwwww)

Mecintosh: Okay this was hard because of us not having a lot of him in canon but I’m gonna say Seer of Void and I think I can pull it off here's the Reason: Seers are the class of sight, observing their surroundings A LOT. Mec was stuck in a closet for a shit-ton of time, It would be hard for him to NOT know what’s going on in there. Seers also have a bad habit of splitting the world into black and white/good and bad. This might be a stretch but he seemed to think of Suitcase's teammates as very one-note and flat with their intentions with her(?) For the Void part of his classpect, uhhhh, Void players are mysterious and secretive, and we don't know shit about Mec, also Void players are pretty apathetic and indecisive, which fits Mec!! These together, a Seer of Void would know basically nothing, besides peoples secrets, (so Mec knowing about 3GS’ past and what he was made to do, maybe??? If you squint at it?????) His chumhandle can be something along the lines of ‘closetsComputer’

BOOM I’m so good at this B) Mecintosh was so much of a stretch tho omg. I literally don’t know if I can do anymore Meeplers because the rest just,,,,, don't have personalities (THANKS COBS/s)

Could probably make the contestants tho,,,,,, SEND ASKS/hj

-👾🏠 person

YAY YAY YAY YAY YAY!!! Reading this ask whilst couped up all cozy in my bed like i’m about to read a book this will be spectacular

COBS BEING THE COUNTERPART TO MEPHONE ALREADY I’M GOING OUUHG. Ohhh him being a witch is so fitting…. It’s so fitting… AND HIS FOCUS ON MAKING TIME GO FASTER. OUHHRHFFHHF HIM BEING ABLE TO SLOW DOWN OR SPEED UP TIME BEING THE OPPOSITE OF MEPHONES ABILITY URHGHGH WHEN I GET YOU!!!! WHEN I GET YOU!!!!!!! RIFUFHHHH I love this so much already

OH toilets is so fitting too orugh… I love how you use him trying to kill mepad in episode 8 to tie into all of this that is so so NEAT!!! ORUGH… also the part about them usually having wires is so funny to me too… fitting even down to the little details like that hehehe!!! AND MEPAD AND TOILET HAVING MATCHING USERNAMES OURHG… I LOVE THEM…. sorry I didn’t have much to say to this part but it is fitting and it is awesome… I love these so much…

Ouhh… ouhhh mec’s is fitting too ouhh… Ignoring the fact that his appearance in episode 8 was suitcase hallucinating GOD that fits super well. Even when thinking about that him being a seer still makes sense cause. Yknow. He’s probably seen a TON of stuff go down in the closet considering how LONG he’s probably been in there… AND HIM BEING VOID URHG I LOVE THAT. I LOVE THAT A LOT… Also as someone who’s rotated the closet meeplers in my head way more than any normal person should I would like to believe he’d know a lot about 3gs’ past… maybe they told stories to eachother!!! I’d go on but then i’d just be yapping about storageclosetduo so i’ll spare you from that

BUT GOD THESE ARE SO ACCURATE. I LOVE THESE ORUGH… I may or may not send an ask about your thoughts on the contestants.. I just love reading these

[gavroche-le-moineau]

La mort de Gavroche / Gavroche’s death

Oh it's here, the chapter that breaks my heart to pieces every time. If you haven't heard it before I highly encourage listening to the Original French Concept Album version of Gavroche's death. In my opinion, it is by far the saddest and most impactful version. Below you'll find my translation of the lyrics with annotations. The PDF can be found here: La Mort de Gavroche translation

Gavroche Cette fois, Javert, t’arrêteras plus personne La mort t’a coffré à perpétuité J’espère qu’là-haut, on s’ra pas dans l’même cachot Sur terre déjà, on n’était pas du même combat¹

Gavroche This time, Javert, you’ll no longer be arresting anyone Death has locked you up for good I hope up there, we won’t be in the same dungeon On earth already, we weren’t in the same fight¹

NOTES 1. “du même combat” literally means “of the same fight” but I believe this is using “même combat!” which is an expression of solidarity meaning “we’re on the same side.” I kept the translation in the lyrics more literal since “to be in the same fight” in English can also convey the idea of solidarity.

Courfeyrac Sacré Gavroche, t’as toujours l’mot pour rire² C’est pas la parlotte³ qui te f’ra guérir Marius Ah les salauds, ils ont tiré sur un enfant Ils ont, sans savoir, abattu le printemps Quel dieu cruel s’abreuve du sang des innocents Et combien faudra-t-il pleurer d’combattants?

Courfeyrac Blasted Gavroche, you always have something funny to say² It’s not the gift of the gab³ that will heal you Marius Ah the bastards, they’ve shot at a kid They have, without knowing, shot down spring What cruel god drinks the blood of innocents And how many fighters will we have to cry over?

NOTES 2. “avoir le mot pour rire” is an expression that literally means “always have the word for laughing / a laugh” and is translated as “to make jokes, be funny.”

3. “la parlotte” means “chitchat, chatter, chinwag, talking shop, etc.” I decided to translate it as “the gift of the gab” because that felt like a more appropriate term given the previous line which implies that Gavroche is good at always making jokes.

Gavroche Notre drapeau était par terre Rouge de honte et bleu sali Moi, j’ai bondi blanc⁴ de colère “Allons, enfants de la patrie”⁵

Gavroche Our flag was on the ground Red with shame and dirtied blue Me, I leapt up, white⁴ with anger “Allons, enfants de la patrie”⁵

NOTES 4. “Rouge de honte … blanc de colère” This sequence uses expressions that incorporate the colors of the French flag (blue, white, red). “Rouge de honte” means “red with shame,” as in “blushing with shame” or a “flush of shame” but can also simply be translated as “ashamed.” I haven’t been able to figure out if “bleu sali” is an expression or is simply referring to the dirtied blue of the flag on the ground. “Blanc de colère” is, as in English, “white with anger.”

5. “Allons, enfants de la patrie!” is a reference to the first line of the Marseillaise, the national anthem of France. It means “Let’s go, children of the fatherland/motherland!”

Un mec m’a vu, qui m’a crié : “Qui vive!”⁶ J’ai dit : "Révolution française" Ça lui a pas plu ma franchise M’a mis un pruneau⁷ dans la fraise⁸ C’est comme ça, on gagne pas à chaque fois

A guy saw me, shouted at me “Who lives?”⁶ I said : “The French revolution” That didn’t please him, my frankness, Put a slug⁷ in my face⁸ It’s like that, you don’t win every time

NOTES 6. “Qui vive!” is an expression that literally means “who lives?” but is translated as “who goes there?” Just like the English expression, it has same the context of someone on watch or in a military environment asking an unknown person to identify themselves. However, I chose to keep the literal translation in the lyrics because it ties the pun in the response together. The response is “Révolution française (the French Revolution),” because a common refrain is “Vive la revolution française!” literally, “Live the French revolution!”

7. “pruneau” is argot (slang). The word “pruneau” means “prune” but it was used as slang for a bullet.

8. “fraise” is another argot word. This time the word for “strawberry” means “face / mug.”

Donnez, donnez⁹, ma casquette aux copains C’est tout c’que j’ai et j’en n’ai plus besoin Je suis tombé par terre, C’est la faute à Voltaire¹⁰ Le nez dans le ruisseau, C’est la faute à...

Give, give⁹, my cap to my friends It’s all I have, and I don’t need it anymore I fell to the ground It’s the fault of Voltaire¹⁰ Nose in the gutter, It’s the fault of…

NOTES 9. “Donnez, donnez” is a callback to the refrain used in Gavroche’s introductory song on the Original Concept Album (the equivalent of Look Down).

10. “C’est la faute à Voltaire” – I would have preferred to translate these lines as “It’s Voltaire’s/Rousseau’s fault” but I kept the French wording of “It’s the fault of Voltaire/Rousseau” so that the final line cuts off in the same manner.

As usual, corrections and commentaries are welcome!

[itsaash]

unsatisfyingly satisfying part 2: shivers

Set sometime in the future when our beloved Coops are married and on vacation in Banff :))) prompt and cover art credit to @noots-fic-fests, character credit of Coops to @lumosinlove And shout out to @girlwithcurls96 for helping me and reassuring me about this whole story, and who is the type of friend when you say, "what kind of tattoos should this character have?" comes through with the perfect pinterest board of style inspo to create the OCs of my dreams

“You got the camera baby?” Remus called as he shut the trunk of the white rental car.

“Ouais, et j'ai les collations là.” 

Remus smiled as he translated in his head. Being in Banff National Park, or Parc national Banff as Sirius exclusively called it, with signs and boards and everything in French as well as English, had set Sirius into a firmly French state of mind. Remus was absolutely not complaining, the melodic sounds scratched his brain just right, even if he couldn’t replicate them. He just beeped the car, pocketed the keys, patted his pocket to feel his phone, and caught up to Sirius and took his hand as they walked across the parking lot. 

It was early in the morning, the gondola would be just starting up. They planned their visits to touristy places for the least busy time of day. A good half hour had been spent signing autographs at the Calgary airport when they arrived a few days ago. Canadians knew their hockey players, especially ones who would certainly be on the next Canadian Olympic hockey team. Neither of them minded , per se, but also if they could blend in, well they’d rather prefer that option. 

Typical outdoorsy MEC outfits like every other tourist were their outfits, with a pretty generic blue ball cap for Sirius, and Remus had chosen a fashionable flat brim hat after Sirius had gone silent and staring when Remus had tried it on in the store.  While any claim they had to disguise was low, their main hope was that most of the people who rode a gondola on a Thursday morning wouldn’t also be hockey fans. Banff had been great so far, busy streets of tourists to blend into while eating elephant ears, a hike yesterday to lakes the most fucking amazing color of turquoise where everyone nodded their head and said hello as they passed on the trail, and today they were heading up the gondola. It was a warm July day and Remus knew heat would start to gather soon, but it felt so fresh here in the mountains, always a breeze, really it was nearly idyllic. Even here, in a busy parking lot, dozens of cars already and pavement for hundreds of meters, it still somehow felt rustic. That was the influence of the towering rough mountains he supposed. They were everywhere here, he had never been in the mountains like this. He squeezed Sirius’ hand as they walked, his head turning to take it all in. 

“The view doesn’t get old, eh,” Sirius laughed as he took in Remus’ wide eyes. 

“Literally never. There’s just mountains everywhere .”

“And here we go, up another one,” Sirius said. 

“Can’t wait,” Remus said, squeezing Sirius’ hand with excitement again, taking in the grey of Sirius’ eyes and comparing it to the grey of the mountains. The mountains were undeniably majestic, but that blue grey gaze was still his overall first place favourite.

Remus scanned the tickets on his phone for the agent with the usual “bonjour, hello” passed between them and joined the small line of people waiting to board the gondolas. They wound through the roped off area, back and forth across the loading area as the line moved, reading the information placards as they went. Remus challenged himself to read the French versions and asked Sirius for help with some words, just to hear him say them, to see Sirius’ eyes smile when he heard Remus say the words back as best he could. They passed the time in the line quickly like this, passing words in French back and forth to each other quietly, almost like bubbles of love being traded between them, like emotional kisses, like whatever the sounds are that are in my mouth, they always mean I love you. 

Remus vaguely knew from the corners of his attention that the people who worked for the Park were working with the line, fitting groups together into gondolas in the most space efficient way, calling for single riders to come join groups of 3, putting two couples together, keeping kids with their parents. There was a large family ahead of them and Sirius and Remus had been half-hearing conversations about snacks and who would sit by who and where’s my water bottle and dad, what if we see a bear ?? So when the attendant called, ‘next group of two? Un groupe de deux?’ looks travelled down the family and passed like dominos to Sirius and Remus. 

“On est deux,” Sirius said, knowing everyone who worked for the Park spoke at least some French, and he was loving using it at every opportunity.

“Allez, on y va,” the attendant said, waving them over. Sirius and Remus kept their hands clasped as they snuck past the big family, Remus murmured an, “ope, sorry,” as they made their way to the front of the line. They boarded the open gondola, sitting down on one side together as the doors slid closed and the gondola started moving.

Remus was just starting to look out the floor to ceiling window, seeing the expanse of nature below them, all around them once they were past the loading area of the building, when he heard,

“Sirius Black?? ”

Oh shit. They were on a gondola with a fan. Well, hopefully a fan, god, imagine if it was someone who wanted to lecture them for the whole 8 minute ride. Sirius would give them his stony cold game face, and inevitably the person would back down, but it would be so awkward.

But Sirius hadn’t said anything. He was just staring, mouth slightly open. Time passed in frozen silence, enough time that Remus darted his eyes back and forth, from Sirius’ frozen form, to the two girls sitting across from them. One had a ball cap on with a dark ponytail floating out the back of it and her tank top showed clearly well developed biceps and deltoids, hiking shorts and shoes. She  was nearly as slack jawed as Sirius. The other girl was much more fashionable, in pants that were somehow loose but still fitted, and a cropped shirt (sports bra? what did Remus know about women’s fashion), clean white runners, long curly blond hair pulled into a messy half bun. It was still Banff and hiking appropriate except everything about her outfit and hair seemed to be on purpose in a way that none of the rest of them could claim. She seemed to be trying to read the situation as much as Remus was, and after long seconds she was the one to break the silence. 

“Rebecca? You know him?” 

The other girl, Rebecca? Almost literally shook herself out of her surprise and laughed, a smile coming over her face. 

“Oh my god, what are the fucking chances? Yeah, well, I mean, Sirius and I, well, yeah, we’ve met.”

Remus felt his eyebrows raise at her faltering tone and he looked to Sirius who didn’t seem ready to say words of any language yet. So Remus spoke first. 

“Oh, well hello. I’m Remus. It’s nice to meet you,” and he put his hand out to Rebecca to shake. She smiled more, her eyes taking him in and she took his hand. 

“Hi Remus, I’m Rebecca. Nice to meet you. This is my girlfriend Claire,” she said, gesturing at the well dressed girl. “We’re just touring the area, on vacation, I guess you must be too. It is the offseason I guess? I can’t believe we’re on the same gondola as you, what even is this.”

Remus felt himself relax, girlfriend, ok so they weren’t in for an 8 minute lecture. That was something at least. He turned to Claire and shook her hand too. His eyes travelled up and down her tattooed arms, all thin lines and curling shapes. He especially noticed a beautiful one of a star surrounded by a circle on the inside of her elbow, but the whole thing was made of flowers and vines in light colours.

“Nice to meet you too Claire. Are y’all hockey fans then?” he asked, glancing repeatedly at Sirius, who was still seemingly frozen. He pressed his palm against Sirius’ thigh, hoping to ground him with touch. Feeling more than a little bit like he needed that too.

Claire laughed, a high, bright sound. 

“No, I can’t say I am. Is that how you know him, sweetheart?” Claire asked her girlfriend. 

“I, um, well yeah, kind of. We met at a media weekend where they were doing stories on a bunch of athletes for a magazine,” Rebecca explained, her gaze bounced between Sirius, Remus, her girlfriend, back to Sirius.

Remus nodded. Well that made sense. What didn’t make sense was that Sirius hadn’t said a single fucking word. He turned toward him, angling his body towards his husband so he could mouth as much as say, ‘ça va, baby?’ 

Sirius started bobbing his head. Remus saw him take two purposeful breaths, close his eyes for a long moment, and then open them again with his media smile on.

“Désolé, sorry, sorry Rebeccca. You just surprised me,” he took off his hat, ran his hands through his hair and replaced the hat. “Wow, yeah, it’s good to see you. Like you said, what are the chances?” 

“What media thing was it that you did?” Remus asked lightly, hoping to soften whatever the fuck this atmosphere was. 

“That one in New York that Pots and I went to? During your third season with the team, I think?” Sirius said. He looked deep into Remus’ eyes and took and squeezed his hand. Remus didn’t know why Sirius needed comfort, but he clearly did. So he scooted as close to Sirius as he could on the bench, held his hand, and tried to send comfort like osmosis. It seemed Sirius may have received the offering because he seemed to relax a degree or two. 

“Rebecca was on the olympic rugby team that got a medal at that olympics a few years ago,” Sirius supplied, gesturing to her. “Or maybe you still play?”

“Yeah, I do actually!” she replied. “I’m not a starter anymore, but I still have one more Olympics in me. The team has been doing so awesome, it’s been such an sweet ride.”

“Oh wow, that's amazing!” Remus said, meaning it, and hoping to take the conversation in safer territory. “Are you on a break from training right now? Being a tourist for a bit?”

“Yeah! It’s so beautiful out here. And it’s nice to have time to take in the sights. We travel for matches all the time, but it’s never very long in one place. We played a match near here last season, and it was so beautiful I knew I needed to bring Claire back here.” She smiled at her girlfriend and took her hand. 

“So you’re a hockey player?” Claire asked Sirius. He smiled a small smile and nodded, maybe started to say more while gripping Remus’ hand, but Claire continued, “that’s nice, but you two obviously slept together, right?” she said, gesturing between Rebecca and Sirius.

Rebecca just laughed, Sirius’ mouth dropped open, and Remus startled like he’d been shocked.

“That’s what this weird vibe is?!” he asked Sirius, half laughing, half horrified. “Oh my god, well, I get it now.”

Sirius dropped his head into both his hands, shaking his head, and then his shoulders were shaking, until his whole body was quivering with laughter. 

“Mon dieu, sorry, Rebecca… Re, I’m sorry.” Laughter bubbled out of him.  “I don’t know why I locked up, I got thrown back in time there for a minute, in my head. I’m ok now, sorry. Rebecca, it really is good to see you, I just was so surprised.”

Remus just shook his head. He’d be pretty shocked in the same situation too. The air already felt clearer, Sirius’ laughter had dissipated most of the awkwardness. 

“So you’re bi too then?” Rebecca asked. “Or pan maybe? I saw you two in the news of course, oh god I didn’t mean to bring that up, I just mean, obviously you’re married now! Congratulations,” she seemed to force herself to stop talking and Remus laughed. 

“Yeah, we got married last summer, it was amazing.”

Sirius smiled at him, the smile they always had when they thought about the lake house and their friends and family and the perfect haze of happy memories that surrounded that day. Sirius took a deep breath and turned to Rebecca.

“Yeah! But, um, no. Uh, I’m actually gay. That’s probably why I froze up there for a minute. But if you’re queer too that makes me feel a lot better, I think I panicked for a second that there would be flirting? Sorry, sorry.” he said, looking back and forth between both Rebecca and Claire.

Claire laughed, “Oh there could still be flirting, I’m afraid. You’re just her type in guys. I’m gay too, but my sweetheart here had a later in life bi awakening, much to my benefit.” She got closer and closer to Rebecca’s neck as she said this, and ended with a soft kiss to her jaw. Rebecca smiled a soft smile at her girlfriend, but then turned to Sirius, more serious. 

“Wow, so, um, that night must have been hard for you then? I feel like I should apologise. I think I kissed you first that night.”

Sirius shrugged his shoulders like his shirt was too tight, and Remus studied his reaction, taking his hand in both of his now, and drew circles in Sirius’ palm with his thumb. Sirius rubbed the back of his head with his other hand before answering. 

“No, please don’t apologise. You couldn’t know, I didn’t know. Well I knew, but I didn’t know . It’s not like you were the only girl I was with. I thought I just had to meet the right girl. And actually you helped with that, because you were so amazing. Beautiful, and fun to be around, and athletic and funny. And it was still… fine.” Rebecca laughed and faked hitting her heart with her fist like a stab. “No, I don’t mean it was bad! It was fine! Shit I keep saying fine… it was…” Sirius trailed off, looking to Remus, clearly now developing an aversion to the word fine. 

“Sirius, Sirius, it’s ok. I get it. The comphet comes for us all, doesn’t it?” Rebecca said. She started off half laughing, but her voice was full of authenticity by the end of her sentence. 

Remus kept running his thumb over Sirius’ palm in soothing circles, and Claire lifted her arm up to trace the edge of the window, and then put it around Rebecca’s shoulders, hugging her close. 

In the moment of silence that followed, the gondola slowly swung to stop. They all looked around, looking down at the magnificent view really for the first time since they got on the thing. 

“Huh, they must be stopping it to help someone on or off, I guess,” Remus said. A shiver had come over him as they swung to a stop, but it passed. The others nodded in acknowledgment as they swayed gently. 

“You were my last,” Sirius said into the silence. “My last time with … with a woman.” Remus raised his eyebrows at Sirius. “Well, I kissed other girls after that, only in public, but I knew after that night with you that I wanted to be with guys. Even if I didn’t let myself actually do that for a long time yet, at least I knew.” He paused. “Sorry,” he said again.

Rebecca laughed. “Honestly Black, it really is ok, stop apologising. I’m a little surprised, for sure, because for me it was really good. Like, really good. Like I-never-found-a-guy-as-good-again good, despite giving it an honest try. Had to fully just move onto women, good. So I might be questioning my perception of reality a little bit over here, but you don’t have anything to apologise for.” 

Remus was processing, hardly believing the turn this gondola ride had taken, but had to smile at that.

“He is pretty good, isn’t he?” Remus said, gazing up at Sirius with mischief in his eyes. “From our very first time, he knew what he was doing. Fuckin knocked my socks off,” Remus laughed. Rebecca joined him and Sirius buried his head in his hands again.

“Right?! His hands –”

“God, tell me about it. And his back?”

“Divine,” Rebecca sighed, tone half teasing and half serious. “And just his size, you know, when he’s on top, fully covering you?”

Remus faked a swoon, back of his hand to his forehead. “It’s amazing. Might be my favourite place in the world to be.” Sirius sat up and smacked Remus’ shoulder. “Re! Stop it,” he laughed.

“Did you get to experience his mouth?” Remus asked, leaning forwards to Rebecca. “Or how his eyes get so intense it’s like they glow?”

“Remus!”

Rebecca sighed dramatically. “I didn’t experience his mouth unfortunately. And I think he must be the only man in history to have turned down a blow job! It was mostly hands and some lovely dirty talk and … well, you know.”

“Oh the French dirty talk,'' Remus fawned, fanning himself with his hand, smiling evilly at Sirius. “It’s so hot.”

Rebecca faked a dramatic gasp. “Is this why you wanted me on my hands and knees??” she asked, gesturing dramatically to Remus. “So you could pretend I was him!?” The words might be accusatory, but the tone was pure glee. “Did you know him then?” she asked Remus. 

Sirius moaned into his hands and ground out what might have sounded like kill me now. 

“I just knew him as the hockey obsessed, tough as nails, never an emotion to be seen hockey captain back then. And I saw him make out with multiple girls at bars after that, so he clearly wasn’t ready for me yet back then,” Remus teased. 

Claire and Rebecca both nodded. “We all have to make our journeys of self discovery in our own time, don’t we,” Claire said. 

“That we do,” Remus said, letting the last of his laughter bubble out of him. They all took in a minute of happy silence, admiring the view. Even Sirius cautiously poked an eye out of the safety of his hands and looked past Remus to see towering snow capped mountains which they were almost eye level with up this high, this ground was really quite far away. Deep green trees transitioned into bright green grass in places, the buildings of the town looked like dots from here, and the fluffy white clouds seemed much closer than he had ever experienced before. 

The peace of the mountains seemed to sweep into the softly swinging gondola and Rebecca turned back to Sirius, still snuggled into Claire’s side. 

“I am sorry though, that society or whatever made you think you had to sleep with me. I’m sorry if I played a part in that,” she said. 

Sirius wasn’t frozen like the snow tipped mountains now, he tried to let his words flow like the breeze instead.

“I appreciate that, Rebecca, I do. But I could’ve said no, and I knew that. I went upstairs with you because I thought I should want to, but I was so deep in the shoulds, that in a roundabout way I did want to. And I’m honestly so glad you thought it was good, that’s like all I cared about.” “I never would’ve known you weren’t into it Sirius, really, it was good.” Sirius rolled his head on his neck, looking sheepish but happy. 

“It’s not that I didn’t think it was good. It did feel good, you’re amazing. I just was also really busy, in my mind. My thoughts were just going in bad circles with pressure and doing the right thing and what you might tell your friends and what I’d tell my teammates … so of course it was harder for me to just enjoy it. But like I said, you were the last time I did that, so I’m also really thankful for that, and for you. If you couldn’t be the right one, I knew there was no point in trying anymore.” He switched his gaze to Remus and his grin turned dopey, “until this one told me he was gay, and that I’d be worth it.”

Remus squeezed his hand. “You are worth it. Every day.” 

“If I may,” Claire said, “it sounds to me like you’re both right. You’re right, my love, to feel a bit weird about learning the guy you slept with doesn’t actually like sleeping with women. But it’s also ok that you still enjoyed it, because you’re always allowed to have your own version of a situation, based solely on your own experience of it. And he was actively trying to have you enjoy it, for different reasons than you thought. There’s no way you could have known his every inner thought.” Rebecca smiled and rested her head on her girlfriend’s shoulder. 

“And you Sirius,” she continued, “it could be interpreted as misleading to have gone upstairs with her, but Rebecca and I, as women who love women, know the strength and seeping nature of comphet, as I’m sure you do too, as a man in a traditional masculine field. It gets into your bones and bosses you around and ties your thoughts up in knots. I’m really glad you freed yourself from expectations to let yourself live. I can tell the two of you are really good together,” she smiled. 

Remus nodded his head along with her and kept drawing calming circles with his thumb around Sirius’ palm. 

“Merci, Claire,” Sirius smiled, “and for what it’s worth, Rebecca, I’m sorry for putting you in that situation.”

“Forgiven, Sirius Black. And thank you for ruining me for other men, so that I could find this goddess,” she leaned up to kiss Claire on the lips, deep and sensual. Sirius thought that looked like a really great idea, and leaned in to Remus. 

“Ça va bien, baby?” Remus repeated, their lips close, breathing each other in and out. He had been pressed up against Sirius’ side this whole conversation, clutching his hand. And now they blocked out the mountains, the uncomfortable seat, the shining sun, and only focused in on each other. 

“Oui. Je vais bien. Etonné. But … also good. Glad to have you, like always.”

“I’ll never be anywhere else, mon mari,” Remus murmured as he leaned in to kiss Sirius. Lost in their kiss, they didn’t notice that Rebecca and Claire were watching them with soft smiles on their faces, Rebecca’s head still against Claire’s shoulder. Claire twirled her hand around and then threaded her fingers through Rebecca’s ponytail, smiling. 

The gondola started moving again, startling Sirius and Remus apart with a smile. They squeezed each other’s hands with a shiver, they both had goosebumps from a brief chill. They all rode the last few minutes how they all had thought their whole ride would go. They pointed out the tallest trees, saw shapes in the clouds, basked in the chance to be so high up and see the world from such a different perspective. Funny how that makes a difference for so many things. 

They all saw the loading area approach, and stayed quiet while they slowed to a stop and the doors opened. They filed out into the visitors center. When they rounded the corner and were away from most other people, Rebecca folded herself into Sirius for a hug, squeezing him, her cheek pressed into his chest. He rested the side of his head against her and held her for a long moment. 

“Despite the shock, it really was good to see you, Sirius. And super good to get to clear the air with you about our night together. I, selfishly, hope you don’t regret it, but it’s ok if you do. I’m still happy to know you. Maybe you can actually text me back now that there’s no big secret swirling over you, eh?” she swatted him in the stomach at the last, and he dodged with an oof and a laugh. 

“Rebecca, honestly, I’m really glad to have run into you like this. Sorry if I was weird. I don’t regret it, how can I, when it was a stop on the path to me finding my husband?”

Rebecca turned and gave Remus a hug too. “Sorry for having your husband before you,” she teased. Remus huffed a laugh, and hugged her back. 

“Good to meet you Rebecca. I’ll forgive you, I suppose .” he joked. “Since I’m the one he’s going home with, I can’t complain.”

“Nope, you have absolutely nothing to complain about, I would know,” Rebecca teased as she took Claire’s hand again. “And I have this goddess now anyways. Bye, guys, take care!” she said as they started to turn away down the boardwalk.

“Enjoy your vacation!” Claire said with a wave, and Remus and Sirius waved as well, standing with their arms around each other’s backs. When they were a good way down the boardwalk Sirius turned and collapsed into Remus’ arms. They stood there amidst the beauty of the mountains. Tourists walked past and around them, taking pictures. They stood long enough for clouds to form and reform shapes, until Sirius could huff out a laugh. “What the actual fuck are the chances.”

“Of you stepping into a 6 foot square enclosed space with the last woman you had sex with? Really, really, really low I’d imagine. Even if we changed the odds to include all the women in general who have seen you naked, the number still has to be…” Remus trailed off as Sirius stood up and pushed him away, grumbling and laughing. 

“Stop teasing me, mon loup, this was traumatising ,” Sirius pouted. 

“Oh baby, I know, I know, come here,” Remus laughed, and gathered Sirius in tight for one more hug. “Let’s look around? And then we can walk down? So we don’t accidentally get trapped with the next least likely person in the fucking world? I can’t quite imagine who that could be at this point, but we’re probably safer on a hiking trail.”

“Let’s get trapped with your college boyfriend, and I’ll make comments about your mouth, tabarnak , that was embarrassing,” Sirius laughed under his breath as he turned to take in the view. 

“I was trying to cut the tension!”

“I’ll cut your tension,” Sirius muttered back.

“Can’t wait, baby,” Remus said with a suggestive eyebrow waggle. Sirius rolled his eyes, and then they did enjoy the view, thoroughly. And they took the hiking trail back down the mountain. 

[femsolid]

Hi it’s the same anon here. I didn’t know that part about the school children which speaks to how uninformed I was. And since you mentioned it although I try to get news from both sides. Looking back these last months my news feed has been looking more conservative. I think I was too tired to do my own research and just took things at face value. Anyways I have reflected on what you said and will try to do better. I shouldn’t have spoken so reckless about other people. I didn’t mean to come off that way but your right wether or not I was paying attention the more I consumed that media subconsciously it was getting in. The avoid part was because I’ve been struggling with conflict resolution. Like instead of saying no I’ve been just been avoiding them. I’ve been having a hard time standing up for myself and setting boundaries and because of that I’ve been frustrated because I feel like they’re not picking up on my non verbal language. Which is stupid on my part because no one can read my mind. Either way your right I shouldn’t have projected my personal problems as general problems that all separatists go through. Thanks for answering my ask so quickly. I will change my watch history. Have a nice evening

Men don't need to read your mind to know when they're bothering you. The general harassment that women face for the crime of simply going out is a problem. But it doesn't stop nor start with a certain ethnicity. I take offence to your racism, not to the way you handle conflicts in your life. I hope you can take some distance and remember the real power imbalances at play. Would you leave your family, your studies, your country, your home, your pets, to go beg the streets in winter, in a country that perceives you like vermin? And if you were, would you be a problem? And would you be THE problem that deserves nationwide attention, on all news channels, the massive issue that should be talked about at every election? You?

Les chaines d'information françaises sont extrêmement racistes. Elles invitent des racistes qui déversent des mensonges continuellement et sans gêne et elles ne parlent que de ces sujets. Ce qui te donne l'impression que ces sujets sont plus communs qu'ils ne sont les réellement. Jamais tu verras un débat sur les mecs bien blancs, bien français, qui abusent de leurs filles tous les jours. Jamais tu verras un reportage sur les mecs blancs qui instrumentalisent la justice pour voler les enfants de leurs mères. Ni sur tous les managers blancs qui harcèlent sexuellement leurs collègues et subordonnées. Ni sur les docteurs et infirmiers bien blancs qui sont des serial violeurs. Et bien sûr tous les blancs qui s'adonnent au catcalling, aussi, eh oui.

Tu verras pas non plus de reportage sur la pauvreté qui met en cause les riches, puisque les riches possèdent les plateaux de télé. A la place tu verras des reportages et "débats" sur les gens au RSA, les roms qui mendient, les immigrés qui sont des assistés, les musulmans qui sont des terroristent et viennent violer "nos" femmes.

C'est de la propagande. Dès que tu t'informes avec des sources différentes, que tu regardes des choses plus variées, que tu lis, que tu t'interesses, que tu bosses avec des gens éduqués et qui viennent de partout, tu te rends compte que c'est pas l'ethnicité le problème.

Je me suis débarassée de ma télé y'a des années et, bizarrement, plus de "problème d'immigration" dans ma vie.

[chuckchuck228]

SO AN AU

I think I’m going to to tell everything that I have for now! (I pray to god that it’s not cringe)

1) Do you remember when I tell that Jobs smocked weed? So Cobs was doing the same thing! Because of that he had huge problems with his parents.At the same time he meet Ballpoint pen who is really.... depressed?... I mean he super unsocial and  just.... don’t like anything. He used to criticize everything. (spoiler:it’s just to get some attention that he clearly didn’t get :c) But despite this Cobs still tries to be friend with him! About what BP really unhappy 

text of photo: “all my problems because of you! Because of you! BECAUSE OF YOU“

2) After some time BP has enough of Steve and he lashes out at him screaming that it’s his fault that BP have a lot of problems and “I didn’t even wanted to know you at the first place!”

text of photo:”because of you....“

BP is clearly not okey!! And Steve surprisingly not an asshole and still stick around Ballpoint trying to help him feel better

text of photo: 

“Cobs: can I stay at your place tonight?

Ballpoint: God, its deluges of rain! Come on in!

C: Thanks

BP: And what is in the jacket?

C: oh, it’s Mec. I didn’t finished it“

3) Now 2 years skip. BP is now much better but now Steve have problems. Remember problems with parents because of weed? Well even if Cobs stopped smoking it his parents don’t believe him and think that he spending all his money on drugs when he spending it on a lot of thing to make Mecintosh. After another fight he is kicked out of the house with only Mec and his jacket. he is wuicly trying to get to the BPs house to have some place to stay.

Aaaaaand he stays here! Of course he somehow get’s his stuff from his home but he lives with Ballpoint now where he finishes Mecintosh (without an AI for now)

Thats all. Thanks for your attention!

[l3m0ngal5]

Dapple idea spider Benny au Sterling asks Benny how exactly is Zack died

It was weird the more people who knew Benny's secrets Seem to make beings spider mec Easy But nothing could make this part easier Here's pause made the blonde Guy in front of him Apologise " Don't worry It makes sense your curious After the bug bit into my battery I made this suit and test it out Zack enjoyed it , It meant the they had to go home pretty late They were in danger and I was too busy joking around.I got there but I was too late to save him.I was able to grab her but I lost" Champagne seem to appear from nowhere to hug benny Sterling smiled slightly " I'm guessing if he was here.He would thank you for being the hero he wanted And I bet he'd forgive you" Benny wipes The part of his tears That wont on his boyfriend's jacket " Thanks Silver"

[milarqui]

Scarlet Lady: Ikari Gozen

Directory | Desperada

Everybody sighed in relief as classes for the day finally ended, and everyone stretched out as they put their stuff back into their backpacks and bags.

And, of course, the talk of the day was the 'Friendship Day' the city was organizing on the weekend, for people to enjoy time with their friends at cafes, shops, and other entertainment options.

“Hey, mec, got plans for 'Friendship Day'?” Nino asked Adrien, who gave a strange smile.

“Actually, I'm the 'Hidden Celebrity' for KIDZ+'s hunt,” he admitted, and Nino gave a jerk of surprise.

“Whoa!” That meant he'd likely be stuck somewhere while waiting for the contest to end.

“I don't mind!” Adrien added, still smiling. “I like meeting fans!”

Behind his back, his friends began to think.

Adrien's the prize?

Then a terrible idea came to mind.

What if the winner is a crazy fan?! Or a creepy old person?!

The mere idea that their friend could be in danger made them sweat in horror. And they all reached the same conclusion.

One of us has to win the game!

----

Ondine smiled as she read the message she had just received.

“Kagami, did you get Marinette's message about the KIDZ+ Buddy Game?”

“Yes,” her friend declared, as she pressed on her smartphone's screen. “And now it's deleted.”

“Wuh–?! Why?!” Ondine asked, shocked.

“My mother goes through my phone,” Kagami said, as if it were normal, and Ondine felt angry on her best (female) friend's behalf. “So I delete messages and don't save any contacts.”

“Huh? How are you able to text me without my number?” she asked again, and Kagami gave a small, bright smile.

“I've memorized it. And Marinette's. And Adrien's and Alya's and Kim's and --”

“Wow!” She doubted she could memorize more than her family's and Kim's numbers, and here Kagami was doing that with everyone she knew!

----

“Okay, Buddies!” Aurore announced as the countdown began. “When Adrien pushes this button, you'll get your first riddle!”

“This will lead you to your buddy!” Mireille continued, holding the large tablet with the image of a button. “From there you'll solve more riddles that'll lead you to Adrien!”

“I'll be waiting for the winners!” Adrien said, as the studio began the final countdown.

“3, 2, 1, GO!”

And Adrien pressed the button.

----

“'I'm the highest heart of the city',” Alya read, grinning. “Ah, the Sacre-Cœur! See ya!”

----

“'Where animals live next to dinosaurs,'” Rose read, smiling as she came with the solution. “Oh, the zoo by the paleontology museum! Fun!”

----

“'Once home of royalty, now home of art',” Alix read, smirking and pumping a fist. Seriously, the clue was aimed at what was pretty much her home! “The Louvre! Easy!”

----

“'With one turn of a handle I can raise the level'?” Marinette read, grimacing at the apparent nonsense she had been sent. “What's with this difficulty spike?!”

----

Kagami jumped back as her mother's bokken came too close to her face, before she could try to deflect it.

“Too slow! Remember the story of Tomoe Gozen!” her mother screamed. “A female samurai when warrior women were rare and scorned!”

Kagami took off her mask as her mother stepped back, marking the end of the bout.

“As elusive as the wind! As powerful as the flood! As swift as lightning!”

Ugh, this story again, she thought. Her mother wasn't much of a talker, but she loved to tell the tale of Tomoe Gozen. No matter how many times she had said it, she would always do so at least once more. Also, a deeper part of Kagami pondered her mother's hypocrisy in telling her to be like a woman who had gone after the expectations of society while stifling her opportunities to have a normal life.

DING!

Oops, she forgot to turn off her smartphone's warnings.

“What was that.”

And that was why she shouldn't have forgot.

“Um...”

Great, now she had to see how to get away with it.

----

She hadn't got away with it.

“It's for a game, Okaa-san,” she said.

“You don't have permission to play a 'game',” her mother declared, as if that were the end of the discussion.

“Adrien is participating,” Kagami pointed out. Not that it seemed to sway her.

“Hmph,” Tomoe Tsurugi growled. “Then Gabriel is more foolish than I thought, being so permissive.”

Given how much of a... alright, control freak Gabriel Agreste was, that said more about her mother than about the man.

“Regardless, this and that have nothing to do with each other. I forbid you to play.”

That did it. Every time she had wanted to do something for herself, to have what other people would consider normal, she had to hide, escape, lie. Because heaven forbid that Tomoe Tsurugi's daughter was more than a doll for her to play with when she wanted and kept in a box the rest of the time.

Today, she would do it again.

I'm gonna play even harder now! Kagami furiously thought, while her mother remained unaware of what was going to happen.

“Tatsu, to the Grand Palais,” Tomoe ordered. Unbeknownst to the woman, Kagami had recorded her voice. Hopefully, she'd be able to find where she had to go first and have the car lead her there.

----

As pairs of teenagers checked their phones and run around Paris to follow the clues of the Friendship Challenge, a certain someone was looking at them and discarding them.

“Too dumb looking. Too unfashionable. Too ridiculous!” Chloé Bourgeois said aloud, pointing at the different pairs, while Ondine and her friend Freddy looked at her with confusion and a bit of irritation.

“Chloé, what are you doing?” Tikki whispered from the bag.

“I'm looking for a smart-looking pair of 'buddies', duh,” she said. “That way I don't have to do the dirty work of finding Adrien! I'm so smart!”

Tikki raised an eyebrow.

“Why didn't you just sign up to play?” she pointed out.

“My application was denied for some reason,” Chloé pouted, and Tikki rolled her eyes. Right, the prohibition from the bowler hat competition...

----

It had taken a while for her to realize the meeting point was Canal Saint-Martin: one turn of a handle, and the water level would change for the connection between the Seine and the Canal de l'Ourcq. A different turn, and it became drained, which happened at least once per decade, as needed.

The best, though, what who she found at the point.

“Kagami's my buddy, yay!” she cheered, and Kagami replied with a smile.

“I'm glad too.”

Immediately, Marinette moved on to hook an arm around Kagami's and the two began to make their way out, and towards their next target.

“Between the two of us we'll win for sure!” Marinette happily declared.

“Un,” Kagami agreed. “So, the second riddle...”

Marinette pressed the button to declare that she had met her buddy, and got the riddle.

“'To get closer to your goal, you must explore further and deeper',” she read out loud.

“Hm. Further down the banks of the Seine, which is deeper than this canal,” Kagami suggested.

Behind them, out of sight, a girl they both despised was stalking her.

“Target acquired!” Chloé said. As she followed them, Tikki stuck her head out of her hideaway in Chloé's hair.

“Gawd, Chloé, leave Marinette and Kagami alone!” the Kwami chastised her.

“True, they're not smart enough to win,” Chloé answered, demonstrating, for the n-th time, her inability to understand such simple concepts as 'common decency'. “But, like, they might! And that's not fair! Adrihoney already plays with Dupain-Cheng at school and not me! And then he plays with Tsurugi after school and makes no time for me! The only way to make it fair is to make sure they lose!”

“Nooo!” Tikki complained. Once more, she wondered: what had she done to deserve this?! She had saved Joan from the fire, dammit!

----

“Why'd they only give us one pole?” Marinette pondered as she cast the line. She hadn't done this much, but she thought she could do it.

“So... do you prefer to be called by your whole name or a nickname?” Kagami suddenly asked as she looked away.

“Huh? What brought this on?” Marinette asked in a low voice, but she supposed there was nothing to lose in answering. “I don't really have a nickname. Though Alya calls me 'M' sometimes.”

“I see,” Kagami said, uncertain. Marinette, knowing what she did about her buddy, was certain she wasn't sure of how to continue, so she did it for her.

“What about you?”

“No one's ever given me one before,” the fencer admitted, which made Marinette a bit sad on the inside.

“Alya will for sure!” she tried to cheer her up. “Hope you like being 'K'.”

After a couple of seconds of silence, Kagami replied.

“... can I workshop that?”

Marinette smiled widely.

“Is 'Gami' good?”

“Not bad. I'd call you 'Mari-chan', but...”

“Yeah, not in French,” Marinette replied, laughing. It would certainly be awkward to be called 'husband' by her buddy!

----

“What are they doing?” Chloé asked, mystified as she saw the two girls talking.

“Being friends?” Tikki replied, dripping so much sarcasm that she could have probably filled a barrel with it.

----

Chloé had found a box, and was trying to get away with it.

“Hey, look, that's the box!”

Chloé threw the box away and ran.

----

Chloé had moved the box under one table.

“Marinette, I have found the box. It's strange that it was put under this table, though,” Kagami said.

Chloé bit her nails in anger.

----

Chloé had found another box, and quickly went to throw it out of the building.

“This is the box we were meant to find!”

“Good. We're getting closer to our goal!”

Chloé twitched as she realized she had actually helped those two!

Tikki just snickered.

----

“Last step: Trust Challenge. Take a selfie in front of a monument using each other's phone,” Kagami said, as she handed Marinette her phone, “then regroup and take a selfie together. Only then will you get Adrien's location.”

“We're so close!” Marinette replied as she passed her phone to Kagami. Since they were at the Place de la Concorde, there were plenty of monuments to take a selfie with!

“We'll meet back here and win!”

With cellphones exchanged, the two girls rushed to find different monuments to certify the first half of the challenge, and Pollen came out of the bag.

“You did it, My Queen!” the Kwami cheered.

“Almost! Teaming up with Kagami has been a total dream~!”

“DUPAIN-CHENG!”

“AHHH, CHLOÉ! MY NIGHTMARE!”

Great, even now Chloé was out to ruin her life.

“C-Chloé, wha–?!” Marinette asked, but Chloé interrupted.

“You finally got the last clue, right?” the major irritant asked, pointing at Kagami's phone in her hand. Before she could react, Chloé stole it off her hand and began to laugh. “Now I'm going to meet with myyy Adrien!”

“Hey!” she finally reacted, and began to run after her.

Only for a very furious Kagami to intercept the eyesore.

“EEP!”

----

In his lair underneath the Agreste Mansion, Hawkmoth perked up.

“Hm?”

Another potential Akuma?

----

“GIVE IT BACK!” Kagami shouted as she tackled Chloé, but found herself with an ugly sandal on her face.

“NO!” Chloé shrieked as she was tackled from behind by Marinette, grabbing her by the neck. “OH!”

“CHLOÉ!” Marinette shouted as well, grappling with her life's personal demon, when the phone began to ring.

And Chloé picked up.

“Hello~?”

“KAGAMI!” Tomoe Tsurugi's voice shouted from the other side, causing Kagami to let go in shock, allowing Chloé to escape. “WHERE ARE YOU?! YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE AT HOME!”

“Ohoho! Little Kagami snuck out to play a game?” Chloé laughed, as she ran just ahead of Marinette and Kagami.

“Why are you so fast?!” Marinette complained, which was understandable, given that Chloé was wearing sandals while she and Kagami wore shoes that were better for running, and yet Chloé was staying out of reach.

“SCANDALOUS!” Chloé shrieked, as if she were an American schoolgirl called Ashley.

“GAME?! BUT I FORBADE HER!”

“Uh, I know? That's why I'm telling on her?”

The distraction from that was enough for Marinette to finally tackle Chloé and recover the phone, but the damage had been done already. Still, she had to try to fix it!

“Mme., don't worry, Kagami's with a friend, staying safe–”

“Kagami doesn't have friends!”

Marinette gave the phone a weird look, as she grabbed Chloé's face when she tried to steal the phone again. Either Mme. Tsurugi was willfully ignorant of Kagami's life, or she was another Gabriel Agreste.

Then again, Gabriel Agreste was willfully ignorant of Adrien's life as well...

“Wha–? That's not true,” Marinette replied, but then Kagami gently picked the phone and started to talk.

“Actually, Okaa-san, I do have friends! Lots of friends! Wonderful friends!” she said, her expression turning thunderous as she kept talking. “Friends I chose myself because I'm DONE with you CONTROLLING MY LIFE –!”

“With pleasure, Hawkmoth.”

“UGHHHHHH!”

Heaven's sake, one couldn't even berate their parent for being a control freak without them being akumatized.

----

It was only moments later that the Akuma, a large metal statue-like golem with the same colors as the Tsurugi's car, showed up at the Place de la Concorde.

“Kagami! You disobeyed me!” Yeah, this was Kagami's mother. “You'll never go out again!”

But, as she made to grab her daughter, Kagami dodged – and the red hand grabbed Chloé.

“Wha–hey!”

“Tsk! Missed,” the Akuma said with a gravely voice, but clearly it didn't care who she had grabbed – and opened its mouth wide.

“Ooooooom–”

“EEEEEEE! EW! EW! EW! EW!”

And Chloé disappeared down the gullet of the Akuma.

Kagami and Marinette looked at each other, a bit disgusted about what they had witnessed and also a bit scared at what was going on.

“You won't get away from me, Kagami!”

Yeah, it was time to run.

----

“ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE BLUETOOTH, THIS IS SO LAME!” Chloé yelled from the (surprisingly) comfortable seat in the 'stomach' of the Akuma.

Tikki rolled her eyes at the priorities of her wielder.

Not to mention you can't transform here without giving away your identity, she thought.

----

Adrien checked his friends' photos on the phone as he waited for the end of the contest. Aurore and Mireille had been updating him on how people were doing (in general – they couldn't tell him who was where), and he knew that the contest would end soon. If he was lucky, it would be at least one of his friends that won. If he was very lucky...

“AKUMA ALERT, AKUMA ALERT,” the loudspeakers announced, and he quickly turned off his cellphone to put it in his pocket. “WE ASK ALL VISITORS TO KINDLY EVACUATE THE PALACE VERY CALMLY.”

“Claws Out,” Adrien said as soon as he was somewhere out of camera sight, transforming into his superhero alter ego.

“REPEAT, PLEASE EVACUATE THE PALACE CALMLY.”

That was what he was doing, evacuating as he calmly whistled on his way out.

He hoped that the Gorilla would evacuate instead of just searching for him...

----

Marigold had been lucky when Kagami suggested splitting up, to divide the Akuma's attention: it had allowed her to sneak away to transform, and then she had tracked Kagami again, so she could protect her.

“I see you two made a new friend for Friendship Day, Honeybee!”

She turned to see Chat Noir, smiling at them both, and Marigold was thankful for the levity, even if it was not the time.

“More like she's jealous of Kagami's friendships!” she replied. “She captured a civilian trying to get her!”

That left Chat Noir worried: civilians being taken hostage by the Akumas was not fun, because you had to be careful when you fought them.

“Would Venom work on an Akuma that big?” Chat Noir asked, worried.

“Probably,” she replied, remembering how it worked on Animan when he turned into a dinosaur, “but then we wouldn't be able to get the hostage out until Scarlet Lady gets here.”

“Hm...”

Given Scarlet's penchant for not showing until the eleventh hour, it was better if they found a way to save the hostage.

“We'll probably need some help,” Chat Noir suggested. “One of us should go and one should stay with Kagami–”

The girl promptly hugged Marigold's arm, leaving both heroes bemused.

“Uh, guess I'll get help then,” Chat Noir said, stunned.

----

Adrien entered the parlor as quick as he could, not forgetting to take his shoes off.

“Hello, Master,” he greeted.

“Adrien! You got away from the competition,” Master Fu noted as he drank from his teacup.

“Heh, yeah,” Adrien agreed. “Anyway Scar's her typical no show.”

“Ah,” Master Fu said, quickly opening the Miraculous Box, having expected this to happen. “Adrien Agreste, pick an ally you can trust, blah, blah, blah, greater good, you've heard it all before.”

Adrien gave a small snort as he checked the options. The Fox and Turtle were out, so was the Snake, and the Mouse – he held hope that Marinette might be able to pick it again at some point – but then he saw one that he realized would be a good fit.

“Wind, water, lightning, perfect!” he exclaimed, picking up the Dragon. Then he looked closer. “Is this too obvious for her?”

Plagg just shrugged.

----

Marigold jumped on top of the chimney while carrying Kagami in her arms, and kept rushing – Ikari Gozen was getting closer, and she needed to buy time until the reinforcemens arrived.

“We just gotta hang in there until Chat Noir gets back (or the off chance Scarlet Lady shows up)!”

Then, she looked down at Kagami... who was smiling a bit too much for someone who was being the target of an Akuma.

“No rush,” the Japanese girl said.

… was that a blush?

----

Chat Noir gracefully landed next to his partners for the day, box secure in his hand, and gave a short bow to them.

“Ladies~” he greeted.

“Chat Noir!” Marigold greeted back. “Have you got something for our friend?”

“You bet!”

“Huh?” Kagami said, clearly confused.

It was time to undo that confusion.

“Kagami Tsurugi, this is the Dragon Miraculous,” he said as he offered the box with the choker. “With it, you'll help me and Marigold save your mother. When we're done, you'll return the Miraculous to me. Can we trust you?”

“Yes,” Kagami replied, gently picking the box from his hand. “I am grateful you recognize me as the perfect candidate.”

“Um...” he mumbled, not quite believing the fact that Kagami was preening. And Marigold seemed to be about to burst out laughing.

----

As she opened the box, she covered her eyes in reflex from the burst of light in front of her.

“Ah–!”

“Greetings, young lady, and good day to you,” a voice that sounded old and wise said. “Fear not, I am Longg, the Dragon Kwami.”

As she looked up, she saw a creature floating in front of her. About the size of her hand, mostly red and black with eight horns around his head, golden eyes, two long whiskers, two spikes on its (her? The voice did sound female) back, and a long tail. It (she?) looked like a dragon of Chinese mythology.

But, still...

“A what?” The term was unfamiliar.

“A kwa-mi,” the creature – Longg – repeated. “Allow me to tell you the many feats that a magic being like myself will help you accomplish by saying 'Longg, Bring the Storm'.”

She picked the choker and carefully put it aoround her neck, feeling it a bit constraining, but then it suddenly fit her just fine. This was magical, right?

“Using the element of your choosing – wind, water, or lightning – you can defeat Ikari Gozen with panache–”

“Uhuh,” she interrupted. She had realized that she could be a superhero like Marigold (and Chat Noir). And also the fact that she could finally get back a bit at her mother without fearing reprisal. So, perhaps one might forgive her for being a tad too enthusiastic about it all. “Longg, Bring the Storm!”

“Wait, I'm not doooo–” Longg said, before he was absorbed into the choker.

Her clothes transformed into a red jumpsuit with black accents, with the most impressive part being the dragon tail image on her torso. She could feel the horns that were now growing on the back of her head, and the half-mask covering everything from her cheeks up, save for her nose. And, as she moved, she felt the sheathe on her lower back, with the pommel in perfect reach of her left hand.

She smiled.

“Looking good!” Chat Noir said, smiling.

“What do we call you?” Marigold asked, and she thought on it. It was the same conversation she had with Marinette earlier, but now it was important. She was a dragon. A dragon's name had to evoke power.

Well, if the kwami's name sounded like the word for dragon in Chinese... why couldn't she do the same?

“Let's go with Ryūko,” she said. And, somehow, it felt like the name just fit her.

----

Happy that Kagami (or, rather, Ryūko) was good and fit with her new circumstances, Marigold decided to check at the other side of the wall, to see if she could find either the Akuma or some idea of how to deal with it.

“Still no sign of Scar,” Chat Noir commented.

“'Scar'?” Ryūko asked, shocked. “You call your leader Scar?”

“Gross, Scar's not the leader. She's a mascot at best.”

There was no one on the street, thankfully, but then a sign caught her attention. A cosmetics shop, one she had gone to a couple of times, was having a sale on bath bombs.

Ryūko should be able to do something with water, right?

That was it!

“Guys, I have a plan!” she announced. “I need you to distract Ikari Gozen!”

“HEHEHEH!”

Turning to her left, she saw Ryūko sporting a very unusual face, the kind that came out in slasher movies. A bit like her own, too.

“Eager, aren't you?”

----

Ryūko quickly ran towards Ikari Gozen, with her sword at the ready, followed by Chat Noir, while Marigold went to get the supplies they would need to succeed.

Then she was there, next to the Akuma, and she attacked, using all the skills she had learned in the art of fighting, but Ikari Gozen, in spite of her size, was agile enough to parry and attempt to counter, which was no easy feat: her mother's akumatization was clearly not impeding her own skills.

But it was enough to keep her distracted from Marigold, and she knew it. But, still, she had questions to make.

“You push Kagami to be strong willed yet shelter her from having friends?” she asked, laying bare her mother's hypocrisy.

“You know nothing! She doesn't need friends!” Ikari Gozen shouted as she slashed the air. “Friends only betray you, abandon you! Like mine did when I went blind!

She gasped. Given how her mother behaved, she had supposed she simply didn't want to have friends... but to learn that she had been left behind?

“STOP HAVING YOUR SOAP OPERA MOMENT AND GET ME OUT!”

Oh, right, the hostage. As irritating as Bourgeois was, they still had to rescue her.

“Ryūko! Now!”

Perfect! Now it was time to trick the Akuma! She jumped up and prepared her sword for a slash.

“You should have faith in your daughter to have her choices!” she shouted, and as expected, Ikari Gozen grabbed her.

“I've had enough of your opinions!” the Akuma shouted, and she closed her eyes. This was not going to be pretty. “OOOOOOOOM–”

And down the gullet she went... into something that resembled her mother's town car. Well, at least she knew what had happened.

“Hahaha!” Bourgeois laughed. “What a loser, getting caught–”

As if to mock the other girl for her hypocrisy, the box Marigold had procured entered and fell on top of Bourgeois' head.

“OW!”

“Heh,” she chuckled as she moved to grab the box.

“Bath bombs?” Bourgeois asked as she saw the box's contents.

“You're going to want to hold your breath,” Ryūko warned.

“What–?”

“Water Dragon!”

“Hey, wai–!”

This was not going to be pretty either.

----

Suddenly, Chat Noir and Marigold saw water and soap suds coming out from the seams that formed Ikari Gozen's armor, and Ikari Gozen's face twisted to a form that looked like something had really not sat well in her stomach.

“Ugh, urgh,” she mumbled, “I'm going to–”

The two averted their eyes just in time.

“BLARGH!”

Yikes. Even if they knew it was just Ryūko in water form with the result of the bath bombs, it was still disgusting.

“WAAAAAH! I HATE YOU, PUKE-KO!”

Well, at least Chloé was out of there. Marigold felt sorrier for Ryūko, who had had to share space with her, but she paid no mind as her classmate ran out of the way. With the Akuma incapacitated by her stomach's sudden rebellion, she summoned her power.

“Venom!”

One touch, and the Akuma was finally paralyzed.

But the fight wasn't done yet.

“We can't release her without the Ladybug,” Chat Noir said, and Ryūko growled in annoyance.

“Where is Scarlet Lady?!”

Someone landed next to them, and they saw it was the devil in red with black polka dots. She was drenched in water and smelling like bath bombs. She had likely been in the bath or something when the call got out.

“Worry not, my poor, lost sidekicks, I have arrived–”

He would rather save himself all the irritation of hearing Scar speaking, and quickly jumped to push her ahead, while the angered Dragon Heroine pulled from her arm.

“Hurry up, we need the Cure!” he shouted.

“HEY!” Scar shouted.

Nobody cared.

----

One Miraculous Cure later, Ryūko approached her mother, who was recovering now from her akumatization, and holding onto the car she had fused with.

“What happened to me? Where's Kagami?” she asked, and Ryūko smiled a bit. While the woman didn't show it much... perhaps she did love her daughter? She put her arms over the one holding her cane.

“Your daughter is safe, Madame. She'll be here soon,” she told her, and her mother nodded in quiet thanks. She turned towards her heroes, who were holding a fist in the air, with a space left for her.

She smiled wider. She had seen the duo doing this after defeating Akumas... and they were willing to allow her to join them. She held her fist next to theirs.

“BIEN JOUÉ!” they shouted in unison.

“Rest assured, everyone, I got Chloé Bourgeois to safety~”

“Who are you?” Tomoe Tsurugi asked, showing that, much like the rest of the world, nobody cared about Scarlet Lady.

----

With everything fixed and back into place, Ryūko followed Chat Noir to a secluded place, where she undid the transformation and took off the choker.

“Excellent work!” Chat Noir praised her, and she nodded.

“Well, you gave me the Miraculous with a sword,” Kagami replied. “It was practically made for me.”

Longg floated around before stopping, giving her back to Kagami.

“Such rudeness to cut me off when I'm speaking!” the Dragon Kwami declared. “There's wisdom in patience, you know! Youths these days.”

“M–My apologies,” Kagami said, bowing respectfully to the divine being. “Please forgive me, Kami-sama.”

Longg perked up, and quickly turned around to begin patting Kagami in the head, which she took with a smile.

“There is also wisdom in admitting fault, so this Dragon God will forgive you,” Longg replied.

Chat Noir just rolled his eyes.

----

The car was exactly where it had reappeared after the fight, and Kagami knew that it was because her mother was waiting for her. And, as she approached, she saw her, sitting in her usual place, looking as stern as always.

“Okaa-san, I'm sorry I wasn't truthful. But I'm not sorry for making friends,” she said.

“Friends can be disappointing–”

“I know,” she interrupted. “Maybe these friendships won't last forever. But I know I won't regret making the choices I did. Because you taught me to never second guess myself.”

“'GAMI!!”

Before she could react, her buddy had jumped on her back, put legs around her waist, and hugged her like a koala hugging an eucaliptus.

“M–Marinette!” she shouted in shock.

“I'm so glad you're safe!” Marinette replied, before she turned to look at the car. “Oh, hello, Madame!”

She heard her mother sigh.

“Be home by dinner,” Tomoe Tsurugi said, and the car door gently closed before the car drove away towards her home.

----

In the time they had spent dealing with the Akuma, the two of them got a message warning that the contest had ended. Kagami received a message, and semi-dragged Marinette to meet two of her school friends.

“Hey guys!” Ondine greeted with a wave and a smile. Next to her was a girl with two large ribbon-infused hairbuns, heart-shaped earrings and plaster over her nose. “This is Freddy!”

“Hey,” the other girl said, and Marinette saluted with a smile.

“I'm glad you avoided the Akuma,” Kagami said, and their phones vibrated.

“Looks like we lost,” Freddy said, seeing Adrien in the photo accompanied by the two winners, Aurore, Mireille, and his bodyguard (who was giving Aurore bunny ears).

“Oh, that's Alya!” Marinette said, happily. The other winner was a boy she didn't know, but he appeared to be nice, so she considered that a success. “Mission: stop a total weirdo creep from meeting Adrien,”

“ACCOMPLISHED!” she said along with Kagami.

“You guys know the game has an age limite, right?” Freddy pointed out.

“EH?”

----

That night, Paris' two heroes went on their usual night patrols, and they were now sitting in one of their favorite spots, which had a great view of the Eiffel Tower.

And now, their discussion had turned to their newest temporary partner.

“The Dragon's powers are really cool!” Chat Noir said.

“Yeah! Can you believe you can use three powers before the timer starts?!” Marigold replied.

“I call hax! How is that fair?! Imagine three shots of Venom!”

“Or three times the Cataclysm.” Marigold leaned back. “Well, technically the Ladybug has two powers – Lucky Charm and the Miracle Cure. It's just easy to forget since one leads into the other.”

Silence fell around them, as they considered the implications.

“You think maybe we have multiple powers?” Chat Noir asked.

“Maybe we should ask Master Fu...”

----

Crocoduel

@zoe-oneesama:

* Tomoe Tsurugi: You must be like the woman who ignored society's rules and her father's demands to become an independent warrior!

* Also Tomoe Tsurugi: How dare you ignore society's rules and MY demands and attempt to become an independent person!

Seriously, hypocrisy knows no bounds.

That's 466 pages, 186142 words, 1003366 characters

[chemoelectric]

Originally posted to Facebook, and unaltered from that text:

----------

The 2022 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded for what is commonly regarded as "confirmation of quantum physics" but this is muddleheaded nonsense. What it actually was awarded for is what is considered by physicists proof that no mathematics except quantum mechanics can derive the correlation coefficient of the following experiment. You have to have a clear head to see that this is the actual claim, but it assuredly and inarguably is.

Here is the experiment, and I will derive its correlation without using quantum mechanics. I am not sure anyone knew how to do this before I did, and it took me about 20 years to find.

A light source emits two photons left and right, randomly with one polarized vertically and the other horizontally. Each photon goes through a polarizing beam splitter, whose two output channels +1 and -1 are finished by photodetectors. The left PBS has angle a', the right PBS has angle b'.

There is a law of physics called the Law of Malus, where the accent is on the u in Malus. When applied to a horizontal photon in a polarizing beam splitter with angle a', it says the photon will go through the +1 channel with probability cos² a', the -1 channel with probability sin² a'. Similarly if the angle is b'. If the photon is vertical, the cos and sin are reversed. (I am leaving out all other possible angles. The full Law also accounts for them.)

This is not the traditional statement of the Law of Malus, but is what we want. When you are using quantum mechanics, the rules are written funky and probably are not called the Law of Malus, but are an obfuscated way of saying what we just said.

By a lot of tedious but routine probability theory that I will skip here, but which you can find for instance in my "How to Entangle Craytons" at https://crudfactory.com, you get that the probability of +1 detection on both sides is the same as the probability of -1 detection on both sides, and equals (1/2) sin² a' cos² b' + (1/2) cos² a' sin² b'. The probability of of +1 detection on only one side is (1/2) sin² a' sin² b' + (1/2) cos² a' cos² b'. Call the probabilities in obvious ways P++, P--, P+-, P-+. Then I can get the correlation as follows:

corr = (+1)(+1)(P++) + (-1)(-1)(P--) + (+1)(-1)(P+-) + (-1)(+1)(P-+)

= -cos 2a' cos 2b'

where I have used a double angle identity you can find in the Handbook of Mathematical Sciences, etc.

Here is where I do something that has evaded the mental capacities of Nobel Prize winning physicists.

Let it be noted that we already know that the supposedly "quantum" correlation for an experiment with PBS angles a and b is -cos 2(a - b). One thing I have never seen physicists point out about this expression, despite the bleeding obviousness once pointed out, is its invariance under in-unison rotation of the angles a and b. What this means is that you can ALWAYS rotate the problem so that one of the angles is zero, without changing the result.

This is simple mathematics. But physicists are not taught actual mathematics. They are taught a kind of pseudo-mathematics not based on theorems, proofs, or thorough reasoning.

Let us set b' = 0 and let a' = a - b, for any PBS angles a and b. In other words, we simply rotate the problem by -b to convert it to an already-solved problem for a' = anything, b' = 0. We have thus derived the correlation, without using quantum mechanics:

corr = -cos 2(a - b)

The 2022 Nobel Prize in Physics is a load of hogwash. There is no such thing as "particle entanglement", there is no such thing as "quantum non-locality", there is no "confirmation of quantum physics", and there is no such thing as a "quantum" computer.

But I have more general proofs of the matter than that, which do not even require mathematical expressions.

What I have done here is show with that Einstein was wrong that statistical mechanics was what underlay the type of experiment described. It is actually just ordinary pinball-like mechanics! Einstein never wavered in believing there was no distinct "quantum" physics, and was ostracized for it. But he was right.

But I have gone beyond that and come up with meta-mathematical arguments that are of different kind entirely. Those are for a separate rage.

A late postscript:

This derivation may be a little confusing, because why does b' have to be set to zero? Clauser inequalities treat b' as nonzero, but obviously, from the derivation above, this is wrong.

Here is an explanation—

If you do NOT set b' to zero, how can you distinguish which particle each angle apples to? You cannot. You are actually solving the wrong problem.

This is what Clauser inequalities do—they solve the wrong problem.

With b' set to zero and symmetry of cos, we solve the right problem.

Really it would be better to note the difficulty at the beginning and set b' to zero right away. Going through the motions above, however, helps illustrate where physicists err by NOT setting b' to zero, when they try to derive "classical" solutions and get incorrect results.

(That their results were incorrect should have been obvious, because any result different from that of quantum mechanics MUST have been derived incorrectly. All math methods must reach the same conclusion, or math is inconsistent. But that is for another rage.)