#I am a businesswoman and my own ceo

[utsdrawingcircle]

I am a good mod of utsdrawingcircle and I have never done anything wrong

-🍆✨

[agendabymooner]

AGENDABYMOONER'S DIRECTORY: CHARACTERS

NOTE: THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR THE 400 FOLLOWERS! Oh my god. As I said, this was just some sort of self-indulgent blog but I am so glad to share my work with you. Thank you all so much for being there and to everyone who likes them so much they were more than willing to engage in my fangirl phase/behaviour/whatever. I am so glad I've entered the F1 realm all those months ago lol!

To remove all of the confusion to my work, here's a character directory 😭 I'm really sorry for that.

Letting you guys know that some of them may be in the same universe but they are not as heavily connected to each other (the only ones who are connected to each other more are The Alessandros and The Hearth Sisters - Trish is only connected in one thing and that's the Rush Wedding Special)

CHARACTER DIRECTORY

THE ALESSANDROS (rushverse)

LORELEI HESTER ALESSANDRO-RICCIARDO: Måneskin bassist. Also known as Lester Allie. Has her own set of fans in F1 as she’s an ambassador for Scuderia Ferrari. Is the middle child of the five kids. Daniel Ricciardo’s other half.

MC from Rush Series and its other extras (9 To 5, Wedding Special, Mrs. Ricciardo Special)

KARA ELEANORA ALESSANDRO: Second oldest sister of Lester. Also known as Nora. A businesswoman. She has a fashion brand. Has two children: Gabriele, 4 and Maris, 2 as of 2024. Divorced before Maris is born. Has been dating George Russell since February.

MC from His Family and Her Lover

JACQUELINA ALESSANDRO: Also divorced and has two sons: Franco, 8 and Andreas, 6. Also known as Lina. Is a model in Italy. She’s quite content being a mother.

NICOLA GRAZIA ALESSANDRO: born in 2000. Known as Cola or Grazie Nichols. An author who works for Tilly’s publishing company as an editor. Recently moved to London and is currently dating Lando Norris.

MC from London Boy and its other parts. 

MATEO ALESSANDRO: The only boy and second to the youngest before Cola. He lives and breathes with his equally unhinged in-law, Daniel Ricciardo.

THE HEARTHS (rushverse)

TILLY MARIE FORD WOLFF: 39 Y/O as of 2024. The eldest Hearth sister. CEO of the Hearth Automotive Groups and the founder of The Wolff Publishing. She was previously a journalist and communications liaison but had abruptly made a change in her career path after purchasing half of the Red Bull Racing. She owns 20% of both Scuderia Ferrari and McLaren Racing, as well. She’s married to the owner and general manager of Mercedes team, Toto Wolff, and has three kids with him: Soren (age 8 as of 2024), Tia (age 5), and Adelmo (age 2). Her company does not fully associate with the FiA as to avoid rumours of bias and corruption within the Formula Racing community. Her net worth increased to 5.5 billion after her company sales skyrocketed. 

Main character from Colour Me Your Colour series and its extra features.

STEVIE MARLENE FORD HAMILTON: 31 Y/O as of 2024. The second to the oldest Hearth sister. Head of Communications in Scuderia Ferrari and a supermodel with little to no time. Owns 10% of the said team with shares purchased under her investment company, The SMF Association. Married to Mercedes Driver Lewis Hamilton and has a daughter named Lottie. Has a net worth of $164.1 million as of 2024.

MC from Thick and Thin fic

SYLVIE EDSON FORD-VERSTAPPEN/HEARTH: 27 as of 2024. Executive Director of Red Bull Racing’s non-profitable kids/charity programs. Also known as the Wild Mustang or simply Blue for doing a donut in her mother's 1985 blue mustang convertible at the age of 10. Could have been F1’s first female driver since Maria Teresa de Filippis had it been for her expulsion in the academy. Known for her slight dislike for Christian Horner. Max Verstappen’s demise. Net worth is currently at $196.1 million.

MC from To Loathe and to Love series and its extra features.

AIMEE YAEL EDMUNSON: 25 as of 2024. Media Communications Officer of McLaren Racing. The half-sister of Tilly, Stevie and Sylvie. The only Hearth sister who doesn’t enjoy being in front of a camera. Works hard alongside Charlotte to keep Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris in line instead of wandering off. Had to leave from the 2024 season early due to her pregnancy. She’s currently dating Charles Leclerc and has two kids with him: a set of twins named Hervé and Jules Leclerc. Net worth is currently sitting at $91.2 million.

MC from Of Long Lines and Names

AMARA LOUISE EDMUNSON: Aimee’s mother. Businesswoman and owner of several businesses all across the globe - including luxury stores such as Harrods and Selfridges. She raised Aimee alongside Blanche and Aimee’s half-sisters. Much like a family, Amara would take the four as a whole when it comes to trips and thinks that Julius Hearth is a sad excuse of a father. Amara is Tilly, Stevie and Sylvie’s second mother.

BLANCHE CHRISTIE FORD (formerly Hearth): the youngest daughter of William Clay Ford Sr. and the mother of the first three sisters. Owns 30% of Ford Motor Company but doesn’t act as an executive chairman. She, much like Amara, is a grandmother to Soren, Tia, Adelmo, Lottie and the Leclerc twins and would rather be a stay at home Nan to them. Amara and Blanche co-parented for the four and spent nights drinking wine whenever the girls were out. Some had assumed that the two were “very good friends” but who were they to judge or assume? 

TRISH ALONSO: Is a professional wrestler who was caught up in the F1 and WWE drama back in 2000s because of a certain Fernando Alonso. Now has kids with the said man. 

MC from Heaven and its other parts.

NOTE that she is not as heavily connected to the Hearths and the Alessandros !!!

THE SAN PEDROS (rushverse) !

MAGDALENA SAINZ: Married to Carlos Sainz. A bit unhinged. 

MC from Ride Home and its other parts.

PALOMA SAN PEDRO: Magda’s cousin who happens to be crushing on a certain Oscar Piastri (or the other way around?)

MC from Jollibee, Madrid and all the Romance Fiasco

NOTE: These lots are in the same universe as The Hearths and The Alessandros but they are NOT heavily connected to them.

VERA COPPOLA RAIKKONEN: Is married to the Iceman, Kimi Raikkonen, all while she had given birth to the loudest versions of him (and not drunk loud)

MC from Stop the World I Wanna Get Off With You

NOT heavily connected to the Hearths and Alessandros despite being in the same universe. 

THE VETTEL SPECIAL

BELINDA HELENA ONG-VETTEL: 34 as of 2024. Also known as Bel Vettel. A billionaire who happened to be a celebrity, artist and a wife to a retired Formula One driver. She is considered a “Crazy Rich Asian” for growing up with money and her endless collection of Hermes bags that she seemed to treat as a fragile canvas. After years of trying and failing, she and Sebastian adopted a son named Kimuel, who was immediately addressed in the grid as Kimi Vettel. Some say that Kimi is a quieter version of Sebastian for his meekness and the sudden switch to cheekiness. 

MC from Crazy Rich Wife and its other parts.

BARBARA ELISANDRA BLANCO: 25 as of 2024. Also known as Barbie. She happened to be 15 when Bel and Seb took her in as their foster child and continued to raise her as their own even after she turned 18. She moved to Switzerland with the Vettels after she was guaranteed a better life and opportunity to become a chef. She’s currently enrolled to study in Cesar Ritz College in Le Bouveret - which is a short drive every day so that she’ll have more chances to babysit Kimi, her two year old toddler adoptive sibling. Everyone thinks that she is dating Mick Schumacher, who would often make a visit to the Vettels home whenever he gets the chance. Mick obviously likes her, but does she?

MC from She’s Everything… And He’s Just Mick and its other parts.

ADA ABBOTT-BUTTON: Jenson Button’s wife who definitely made him work for two years straight for her attention. Is the founder of the organizations Arts for Youth and Arts for Kids 

MC from the Mr. Darcy Type.

CARMELLA AYALA PEREZ: Miss Universe 2018 winner who happens to be married to a certain Sergio Perez and has two kids with him. Ambassador of Arts for Youth and Arts for Kids Mexico and Philippines. 

MC from She’s Beauty, She’s Grace.

THE OTHERS (doesn't have any direct connection)

ALBERTINE PHILIPPA FRANCES SPENCER: Royally rebellious. She was born in 1996, months before her parents got divorced. She’s also married to a certain Mr. Esteban Ocon. 

MC from the Royal Wildcard and its other parts

ENSLEY ZARA SOLEIL: Equally in love with Pierre Gasly despite having to make him work real hard for things.

MC from Newsflash and its other parts.

BORA McKINNON: Lance Stroll’s ex who happens to be a Kpop idol. Would probably get back together with Lance.

MC from Gotta Be You

[queenoftheboard]

a tentative ,  exploratory kiss between friends . haha between friends yes ( cinnabun )

♕ kiss & tell . accepting

Eirene had been occupied taking a call from one of Quinn's many suppliers to notice the threat - besides, very few were bold to attempt anything on such a prominent and rather admired figure of Eastside within the boundaries of the same District. Unlike many other areas of DisCity, the upscale neighborhood of residential and commercial buildings alike had ostensive police force in the streets and alarms in place to discourage and arrest anyone acting outside of the law.

(And yet, Eirene Campbell did precisely that on a daily basis, concealing her Sinner identity and bribing the police to have access to classified police information in relation to the detection mechanisms - what a delightful irony.)

It hadn't been an attack fostered by a Sinner - the weapon used had been a normal one, of military use but nothing that a well-prepared sniper couldn't operate without any enhancements. Cinnabar, however, was no ordinary bodyguard: the few seconds where the light of a long-range weapon locked on Eirene were more than enough for her to immediately tackle her boss to the ground, shielding the Quinn founder with her own body.

Mild chaos ensued then - the blonde's conference call was ended abruptly, a number of men in black scattered in search of the attacker and regular citizens around them screamed and ran in shock. Cinnabar then got Eirene inside one of the company cars which had been waiting for them, and the security specialist urged the driver to go away from there as fast as he could and choosing the most random pathways available.

Cinnabar only seemed to breathe again once she decided they were minimally safe; as her eyes closed and a deep exhale was done, the bodyguard's senses were disturbed by the whirring sound of the tinted window separating their backseat from the driver's position. Eirene favored privacy - those behind the wheel of her cars did not need to hear everything she discussed with business aides, advisers and, of course, Cinnabar.

For someone who had just been under attack, Eirene looked remarkably calm - in fact, the head of the Campbell family appeared to be absolutely delighted. There were signs of scruff over her business attire, some of her hair had slipped out of the arrangement that held it in place before and light scratches over generally flawless skin. An earbud was missing, too - probably left behind at the street they had departed from, and Cinnabar looked disappointed - she never enjoyed losing (or damaging) personal property, after all.

"Cinnabar - are you okay?" Eirene asked with a rather amused tone, knowing that the driver couldn't hear them and that calling her employee by the original name was no issue; the Quinn CEO took the time to smooth the wrinkles out of her clothes and let her tresses loose, knowing it would be impossible to salvage the hairdo from earlier.

"Miss Eirene," Cinnabar's eyes widened at that role reversal, blushing slightly, "I should be the one asking that - are you unharmed?"

"I am only alive thanks to you, my dear. I can protect myself just fine, but I never saw this coming during negotiations with one of our biggest steel suppliers. I knew hiring you would be in my best interest," the businesswoman replied with an easy smile - despite the highly unconcerned look on her features, there was some softness to the words uttered by Eirene. It was no empty flattery - Cinnabar had saved her from some serious danger and she was incredibly grateful for it.

"I am glad to hear it, Miss Eirene," Cinnabar replied, lips moving up sincerely - both in relation to the acknowledgement of a good job and because, maybe, it had been extra special to protect Eirene. The bodyguard then froze - out of all the things to come next, she did not expect the CEO's hands to cup her face and to close the gap between them - intimately so.

"Miss...?"

"You don't remember what happened, do you?" the older woman chuckled lightly, and used the tips of her fingers to trace Cinnabar's visage softly, pushing some of the short hair away in a tender gesture for one who moved in such a calculated manner, "When you pushed me to the ground and out of the sniper's range - we kissed."

Up close, Eirene's differently colored eyes had front row seats to the display of open emotions washing over Cinnabar. It looked as if she was reliving the intense but brief moments of the attack - and, indeed, their lips connected with the briefest touch as the bodyguard frantically struggled to keep her employer safe, but it barely registered amidst the urgency and the alarms blaring in the brunette's mind to have Eirene to safety as soon as possible.

When Cinnabar blushed (again), the Quinn's president and CEO knew that the memory had been retrieved.

The blonde did not offer the security specialist a choice - as if moving to claim a checkmate, Eirene kissed Cinnabar next, but this time on purpose and unhurriedly. At first, the younger woman felt paralyzed within the Cambpell heir's grasp, but the warmth of soft lips and the surprising kindness of the businesswoman's hands as if coaxing Cinnabar to let go and enjoy it eventually worked.

The bodyguard returned it - shyly at first, but following Eirene's prompt when her lips were parted. For one so keen on retaining control, the blonde was remarkably pliable and welcoming - little by little, it deepened; a chance for Cinnabar to taste and sample the flavor of her employer's lipstick, to find the faintest traces of the black coffee from earlier, to swallow a low and quiet moan of appreciation.

It was also Eirene who pulled away first - but just for air, and using a thumb to move over Cinnabar's lower lip, as if wiping the traces of make-up from the bodyguard's face. The brunette looked vaguely dazed - as if still unable to comprehend that physical connection between the two of them. Identifying and responding to a security threat had been like second nature; but receiving affection or whatever Eirene was doing felt like something else, more akin to unexplored and uncharted territory.

"Hm. I wonder if that was inappropriate given our work relationship," the Quinn CEO mused, but her words carried a clear mischievous tone; Eirene knew a line had been crossed and she was not worried at all. "But you are such a dedicated worker, my dear. It felt unfair to leave that to be my first and last kiss to you. So many call me cruel and controlling... But never you."

Eirene peered up at Cinnabar's beautiful and electric blue eyes, the warmest gaze that the blonde had ever been under. In a way - it was addictive to be looked at as if she was not just ruthless, intimidating or untouchable, but also... Good. It hit at some hidden, soft spot of self-worth that the businessman had never nurtured or cared for.

Until Cinnabar.

"You, Cinnabar, deserve better - better than that accidental lip lock, of course," and then, in a show of confidence and almost vulnerability, Eirene's own eyes opened up to reveal a degree of respect and reverence for the figure of her bodyguard, "Better than this one, too. And not only for saving my life either - I thought you should know that."

[yourlocalgayfrogboy]

Okay okay okay. I've been head canoning this for awhile. Really it's a crossover but who cares. Please read this if you enjoy both BNHA and DC. Enjoy and repost if you like this! But don't plajerise my work. If you want to use my work put where you found it and the author/artist. Thank you!

It was a 'regular' evening for the middle child of Bruce Wayne. If you could call it normal. Y/N was a successful businesswoman. She made her own company focusing on cars clothing and housing. She's an entrepreneur. A force to be reckoned with scaring her 4 brothers. Tiny yet very mighty. Watch out boys she'll be coming for you. In a sparkly red dress and five-inch red bottoms. Anyways Y/N is hosting her first fundraiser in Japan as that's where she is taking care of her mother and grandmother. She's invited UA, rich businessmen and women, her family, the top pros, and of course company's that support her.

I was making my rounds saying my thanks and greetings for coming to my first fundraiser. You see I was raising money for my mother's hospital she had to reside for 5 years. Now she's out and I want to do something to give back to the place that helped her get back on her feet. I had introduced myself to some people that I'd never met but I knew I needed to make a good first impression on them because they are so important in the business industry. I was walking and I saw one of the UA students Shoto Todoroki. I'd been dating him for a year. I've known him for a while as my grandmother worked at the mental institution his mother resided at. He was talking to who seemed to be the know number-one hero Endeavor and Natsuo and Fuyumi Todoroki. He was also talking to Deku who he would talk to me about. "Father you should at least consider donating this is a very important event to the host," Shoto said. Endeavor glared at the boy, "I'll use my money however I want and I won't use it for this silly little thing that is just a waste." The nerve of this guy time to work my charm. I slipped past the older siblings. "Hello, I'm the host and founder of this event. I just couldn't help but hear that you think this a 'silly little event' *chuckles* that's quite a gag. However, let me tell you, sir. This isn't silly nor little. I've already managed to raise over 5 million dollars. That's far more than anyone in this room could make in a single day. Unless your last name is Wayne then you probably do make that in a day, maybe even double that. That's not my point though. My point is that if you donate that I'll double that to any organization of your choice. My offer stands till the end of the night." I explained in full detail. It had to work. "You?" I smiled and nodded. "Who are you anyways, how could you double any amount I'd offer?" I smiled and chuckled. "Sir you just talked to the most prestigious person in this room. I'm Y/F/N Wayne. Bruce Wayne's daughter. I'm also CEO of the company Future World Designs." He looked down to my 4' 11" height and paled. "You?" I nodded again. "1,000,000 dollars to UA student alliance." I took out my hand waiting for a handshake. Shoto looked at me and smiled. A real smile. "Oh father before I go and converse with other people I want to introduce you to my girlfriend. Father this is Y/N my girlfriend. Her grandmother was the one to bring us together." I chuckled at the thought, "You gotta admit Sho, my grandmother is probably the most amazingly magical person to ever walk the earth. She's also very scary. Crossing her is like going to hell and being beat up by the devil. A dangerous game if i could have a say." He laughed his angelic laugh and smiled and nodded. "She dragged me to see my mom that one day. Never again am I ever going to underestimate her." I smiled at him and took his hand.

On the other side of the room.

"So Jason, chances of your sister not cutting my dick off if I flirt with her and apologize to her?" Jason looked at Roy and raised an eyebrow. "She won't cut your dick off-" "Okay good. I'm gonna make her mine again." Stupid Roy cut off Jason. He should've listened. Jason ran to his adopted father. "Yo B, we got a Code White." Bruce raised his eyebrow. "Is this a drill?" Jason shook his head in fear. "Okay. I've got a plan. I'll go over to her and intervene Roy. While you start singing the song." The song you ask? Simply, it's a song with a code to relay to some of the JL members that shit is about to go down. "Okay."

So you say you really miss me? (Aah)

Well, that makes me laugh

'Cause you miss the way I let you walk over me

Broke ever bone in my back

I was walking towards Y/N planning to intercept Roy. He was not going to start shit. I'm not letting the lowlife ruin my daughter's fundraiser.

So you wanna reminisce things? Huh (aah)

Well don't come around here with that

If we went through your phony excuses

I bet it won't change the past

My little girl won't get hurt by the one who pushed her off the edge.

Closed for the weekend

Don't you apologize

I know you don't mean it

I quit

Here's to the "no"s

To the "I think you should go"s

To the "leave her ass alone"s

To the "no boy can demand her body, her spirit, her love"

Oh-oh

Here's to the "no"s

To the "walk yourself on home"s

To the "keeping on her clothes"

To the "highs without the lows"

To the "no man can demand her body, her spirit, her love"

Oh-oh. I've had enough

She's not going to get hurt. I reached her and poked her shoulder making her turn around "Daddy! Your here!" I smiled and hugged her. "Of course I am. Anything for my little girl."

So you're claiming you're a martyr? What?

Like, she doesn't have a clue

Too bad she's smarter, be discreetly a started

We're staring right at the proof

"Uhh, daddy? Why's Jason singing I've had enough by Melanie KB?" Sweat dripped down. Shit, she knows. "Uhhh well Jason loves the song and he wants to sing it." "Fair enough. It's Jason we're talking about" wheew

Closes for forever (uh-huh)

I'm done with shutting up

I've learned a lot better

Listen

Here's to the "no"s

To the "I think you should go"s

(I think you should go)

To the "leave her ass alone"s

To the hanging up the phone"s

To the "no man can demand her body, her spirit, her love"

Oh-oh

Here's to the "no"s

Here's to the "walk yourself on home"s

To the "keeping on her clothes"

To the "highs without the lows"

To the "no man can demand her body, her spirt, her love, love, love"

"Wait Roys trying to get back to me? Isn't he? I'm going up there and finishing this. Shoto, can you escort me to the stage please plus it's coming to closing time as well." Shoto nodded his head and escorted me onto the stage. "Roy Harper are you listening to me? Well this aimed at you."

If you're so mature now

Then I think it's time you grow up

Admit you did it

We all know you did it

And yet you still gaslight me up

You are such a flame out

You only drive lefts in the bed

(Your only drive lefts in the bed)

I don't deserve this

And for your next girlfriend

You need to treat her with respect

Here's to my girls

Standing up for what they're worth

Yeah, you know who run the world

I am ready to be heard

No man can demand my body, my spirit, my love ( my body, my spirit, my love)

Oh-oh

And for the boys

Who don't care who they destroy

Told us "no" was not a choice

You cannot silence our voice

No man can demand our bodies, our spirit, our love

Oh-oh, we've had enough

Like and comment for part 2!

[metamagazine]

INTERVIEW

1. You have a strong presence in the Architectural Metaverse market. How did it all begin? When did you decide to invest in this segment? 

Ysa: Arkitektura De Bella started in 2020. I was initially just playing around with interior design when my friends asked me to create a scene in Blender. The first scene I created was a chapel, which I personally used for my wedding. After that, I made some random scenes for an editorial stage. I began investing in it when I joined Vous, creating scenes exclusively for our events, as well as for some of my clients and friends. However, I must add that I don’t feel I have a strong presence in the metaverse market, as I know there are many creators who are more skilled than I am. I make scenes whenever I want; I’m not as active as other creators.

2. You show great versatility when it comes to Scenes in Blender. Where do your inspirations come from? 

Ysa: I love creating realistic scenes, drawing inspiration from a variety of sources. Pinterest is a great resource for me, as it offers a wealth of ideas and styles. I also find inspiration in the architecture around the world, often taking note of buildings and structures in different cities. My goal is to replicate these designs as accurately as possible, though I sometimes add my own unique twist to make them feel more personal. Additionally, I consider the themes of the photoshoots I work on, using them as a foundation for my creative process. This blend of external influences and personal flair allows me to craft scenes that resonate with both my vision and the intended message of each project. Mostly, i get inspired because of the support of my stress maria’s Val and Mari. My dear bff Nadia. And my Alpas family.

3. You’ve signed some accessories on your Patreon. Do you consider investing in more fashion-related items in the future? 

Ysa: Yes, I have created a few bags that are available for free on my Patreon. Additionally, some hair accessories can be found at Buhok.s4, a brand that Mari and I co-own, and these are available on Ko-fi. I’ve also made some jewelry for friends, but I’m still in the process of honing my skills to perfect my designs. My goal is to launch collections on my other account, Bestida Couture, once I feel confident in my craft. I’m excited about the potential to expand my offerings and share my creations with a wider audience.

4. Besides being a businesswoman, you are always tuned in to trends and actively engage in the visual and style fields. How do you align these two sides? 

Ysa: Balancing my roles as a model and a CEO of an architecture firm allows me to merge my passion for aesthetics with my business vision. In modeling, I’ve developed a keen understanding of visual storytelling and how to evoke emotions through imagery. This experience directly informs my architectural work, where I prioritize not just the functionality of a space but its visual impact and how it resonates with people. Being in front of the camera helps me stay attuned to trends in visual culture, which I bring back to my firm. I understand what captures attention and how to present designs in a compelling way. Additionally, my modeling experience helps me communicate effectively with clients, as I can articulate the vision for a project in relatable terms.

Ultimately, these two roles complement each other; my modeling work enhances my eye for design, while my leadership in architecture provides a solid foundation for my creative pursuits. This synergy enables me to create spaces that are not only functional but also visually stunning.

5. As a major opinion leader, there’s a concern about the message your profiles and actions convey. What’s the message behind Ysabella Y Formosa? 

Ysa: The message behind Ysabella Y Formosa is centered around authenticity, empowerment, and inspiration. I aim to create content that resonates with my audience on a personal level, encouraging them to embrace their individuality and pursue their passions. I focus on showcasing not just the glamorous aspects of life but also the challenges and realities that come with it. By sharing my journey, including the ups and downs, I hope to inspire others to be true to themselves and to find beauty in their unique stories.

Additionally, I’m committed to promoting positive values such as self-love, sustainability, and creativity. I believe in spreading kindness like confetti, but also in standing firm against negativity. It’s important to not let anyone tear you down. I encourage my followers to fight for their friends and stand up for what’s right. Whether it’s through fashion, lifestyle tips, or collaborations with brands that align with my values, I strive to communicate a message of inclusivity and empowerment. Ultimately, I want my followers to feel uplifted and motivated when they engage with my content, knowing that they are part of a community that celebrates diversity and authenticity.

6. Leave a message for your fans, friends, and admirers: 

Ysa: Hey everyone! I just wanted to take a moment to express my heartfelt gratitude for your amazing support. You all inspire me to be my best self every day. Remember to stand up for yourself and always love yourself—it’s so important. Let’s continue to uplift each other, embrace our journeys, and celebrate our unique beauty. Here’s to more adventures and positivity together! xoxo

[futuristicpostthing]

Honor Their Life And Legacy

Michelle Lyn Honey Garcia Hubert Joseph Jay barger

Hi my name is Michelle Lyn Honey CEO and president of Hells Angeles Mc, and My own Hells Angeles Mc No Limits and Revolution. I am also Second Lieutenant A-2 intelligence staff officer at the air force Museum, As well as Active Duty, I have Four Purple Heart Ribbons, I am 28 years old and I have an 11 year old Son named Ford, And Daughter named Athena , Much Love loyalty honor and respect is what I live by. From Michelle Honey, Linkedin

We have to remind the swamp that they work for WE THE PEOPLE! That’s the people’s house. Sick and tired of these self serving, self righteous, weak so called leaders! Matt Gaetz is standing up for our rights and our freedom! 🇺🇸

Michelle Lyn is an American businesswoman, skin care, beauty, and makeup content creator, and social media personality. Victoria is making it big on social media platforms through her short form content and extensive makeup tutorials on TikTok and Y

It's pronounced Michelle Royale Lyn Mi-Belle 1111

https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=NnSzlInVJ9M&si=nGa5GABa9oZO8TMv

[eveningstarwiishes]

closed starter for @plastiquefantasique​ location: lucky cat cafe

While Lottie had never actually partaken much in any of the business aspects of her family’s hotel line, there was still a small part of her that liked to consider herself a bit of a businesswoman. Or at least, she liked to hope that one day she maybe would be. Whenever she finally worked up the nerve to start her own clothing line or open a little boutique, or something along those lines. It’d probably be helpful to first decide what exactly it was she wanted to do in the first place. But nothing ever seemed as obvious or easy to Lottie as it did for other people around her. She never had such a clear calling like Tiana did or other business people that she looked up after. Business people like the woman that just so happened to be sitting at a little table in the corner of the cafe. “Oh my dear,” she whispers to herself, holding back a childlike squeal as she takes a deep breath and tries to collect herself. It takes a moment but she finally gets it together enough to make her way over towards the other blonde. “I hope this isn’t too weird, but you’re Barbie, aren’t ya? As in Barbie, CEO and creator of Barbie Cosmetics? I am such a fan, oh my gosh. You don’t even understand you’re like my hero, ma’am.”

[influencermagazineuk]

An Interview on the “Living My Best Life Tour” with Humanitarian and Business Woman, Calynn M. Lawrence

Calynn M. Lawrence Calynn M. Lawrence is a 27-year-old media personality, humanitarian and businesswoman from Chicago, IL. She’s been acknowledged in the press as “a one girl revolution,” “the Queen Midas of creative community service,” and a “Supergirl of small business PR.” You may have seen her on the front pages of The Los Angeles Tribune (2021 and 2023), The Washington Mail (2021, 2022, and 2023), New York Today (2022 and 2023), The Billionaire's Diary (2017 and 2018), Cosmo Press (2023), Yahoo! Finance India (2020) or the tens of other media outlets that she has been featured in. She is the Founder and CEO of the Calynn Communications & Creative corporation. They own the nonprofit initiative The Fresh Faces Project (est. 2014) that has helped over 800 budding starlets, the Chicago Talent TV (est. 2018) web series that has amassed hundreds of thousands of views, and the online publications The World Times, What’s Good Weekly, Millionaire’s in the Making and Icons in the Now. She’s been critically acclaimed for her influential and impactful work in marketing, media and PR with a resume over a decade long filled with community service, a plethora of successful campaigns with industry giants and countless red carpet photo ops. Some of her accolades include holding four RCCI Academy Awards, Woman of the Year, the National Humanitarian Award, and more, as well as being the former Miss World America Nation 2020 and Miss United States Universe Tourism 2021. Today, we had the chance to sit down with Calynn and discuss the latest updates on her “Living My Best Life Tour” and get some intel on her personal and professional life as an inspiring entrepreneur. Calynn M. Lawrence Overall, how is the “Living My Best Life Tour” going for you? What have you been up to? Life is going pretty good for me! I’ve been doing awesome secularly between all of my entrepreneurial ventures and my day job that I’m enjoying. I’ve been doing well academically as I’m about to graduate with a Social Science degree with honors, before finally starting grad school in a couple of months to get my Masters and doctorate. I’ve been doing well mentally and spiritually through my journey of healing and peace that combines therapy, coaching and a conscious self care routine. And, I’ve been doing well in my personal relationships with my loved ones, family and friends. I’m definitely blessed and I praise God for that, as well as my support system that makes all of these accomplishments possible. If 20 year old me could see me right now, she’d vehemently weep tears of joy. What are some highlights of exciting things that you’ve done this past year? I have so many amazing things to be grateful for that’ve happened within the past year that it’s hard to choose between trips, concerts and events! But, if I had to narrow it down to a couple of them, I’d say that attending private premiere screenings for both “Wakanda Forever (2022)” and “Plane (2023)” alongside two of my besties was great. Also, getting the chance to travel to such fun-filled destinations like New Orleans and Las Vegas for the first time in 2022 and enjoy those experiences with loved ones was fantastic. And, lastly I’d say that hosting the annual Fresh Faces Project Awards ceremony and honoring all of our nominees and royal ambassadors free of charge with no sponsorships, ticket sales or entry fees for the 4th year in a row was super fulfilling. You mentioned that you’ve been sharing in all of these special moments with your “loved ones.” Would that include a significant other? Having been so open in the press, on your blog and social media about searching for your life partner, do you have anyone in your life who could possibly be that? I am not currently in a relationship with anyone, while I am openly getting to know people as I meet them online and in person. Since I am looking for a man to settle down with and hopefully be my last relationship, I’m not willing to commit to someone who isn’t on the same page as me about the important things. As you may have seen when I did my case study for my blog, “2 Years on Every Dating App Taught Me This,” I’ve strategically cast my net very far with an almost brazen honesty for what I seek in a husband. And, while I don’t feel my asks are a lot, I think that guy is worth waiting for if that’s what it takes to have my next love be my forever love. Calynn M. Lawrence You certainly have quite a bit to bring to the table in a relationship. A thriving career, a supportive following, a philanthropic persona and a quite literally nationally awarded congeniality. What would you say is the main thing holding you back from finding your “forever love?” Thank you! I think that one thing that counts against me is my very limited time and energy. Because I’m already stretched pretty thin between my more than full time career and full time school, I don’t have the bandwidth to dedicate hours a day to swiping and reaching out on the apps. So, I rely kind of heavily on people coming to me. Since dating apps are a numbers game and the algorithms reward activity, this makes my chances of having my profile seen by new guys much lower than someone who was actively on the apps daily. Granted, I still get quite the traffic to my profiles. At one point, I had over 10,000 people in my Tinder que and over a few thousand in my ques on various others. But, the reality is that none of that matters unless the man has what I’m looking for and I mutually fit what he’s seeking. I’m not a perfect ten, paper thin, Hollywood illusion and never aspire to be, but I know I’m a good woman who’s real, passionate and loyal. The right man will see that one day.  I’d rather just be single and wait for that right guy than to mindlessly “date, hump and dump” any cute guy who pops up in my feed. I’m searching for my future husband to start or expand a family. I’m not entertaining anything or anyone else, and that’s a promise I made to myself that I’ll never break. That’s great to hear. Keep up the great work being an exemplar that smart, pretty, successful women can be single intentionally and not need the validation of a relationship to feel accomplished or complete. When you do find Mr. Right, we'll be ready to share yours and the lucky fellow’s story with our audience! What are some things you have coming up that you’d like to promote to our readers? Thank you so much! That means a lot to me to be recognized as such, and I’ll certainly be shouting it from the rooftops once this left hand has a ring on it by the right man. As far as upcoming projects, you guys can stay tuned to my social media for updates on a few things I’ll be doing this year. A couple of examples would be the scholarship giveaway that The Fresh Faces Project will be doing soon in honor of my graduation, nominations will be opening in a few months for the next Fresh Faces Project Awards ceremony, my firm (Calynn Communications & Creative) will be offering a KILLER sale of press and media coverage this summer and I’ll be blogging some really interesting content this year that I think a lot of people would love including various international events and my POSSIBLE return to television screens near you. Just search “Calynn M. Lawrence” on Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, and Google and you’ll find me. It’s been a true pleasure. To keep up with the adventures of this rising Marketing/PR rockstar, follow her blog www.fashionthunderclap.com Read the full article

[razorblogz]

Nandita Sinha, Myntra CEO – First woman executive hired at this position by e-commerce group

Myntra CEO, Nandita Sinha is all set to become the leading lady of a Walmart-owned online fashion retailer. On November 12, 2021, Myntra appointed her as its new CEO, effective from January 1, 2022. She is a notable businesswoman who holds great expertise in leading businesses apart from driving tech-oriented growth and innovation. Nandita is successfully able to build a strong organization by grooming future leaders with her top-notch people skills.

Nandita Sinha’s Educational Qualifications

Nandita completed her B.Tech from IIT Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi in 2003

She pursued her MBA in marketing and strategy from the Faculty of Management Studies (FMS) Delhi from 2003–2005.

Nandita Sinha’s Professional Career

Nandita worked as a trainee in Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) from April 2004.

By October 2007, she became the sales and customer manager in HUL.

In September 2009, Nandita joined Britannia Industries Limited as a product manager.

In 2012, she co-founded MyBabyCart.com, a Bengaluru-based e-commerce platform that deals in baby and maternity products.

In August 2013, Nandita joined Walmart-owned Flipkart as the associate director of health and beauty.

She became the director of books, FMCG, and auto accessories in July 2014.

In January 2016, Nandita was promoted as the senior director of lifestyle accessories, books, media, and food and nutrition in Flipkart.

She became the CEO of Myntra on November 12, 2021, replacing Amar Nagaram.

Nandita Sinha’s Achievements

Nandita was an active participant in the flagship of Flipkart’s Diwali sale event, ‘Big Billion Days.

She will be reporting to Flipkart Group CEO, Kalyan Krishnamurthy, while in her appointment at Myntra.

Nandita Sinha’s Reaction on the latest appointment

“I am very excited about my new role and look forward to the opportunity of driving Myntra’s vision of democratizing fashion further while working with a very talented team at Myntra.”

[buckysimp101]

Love at First Grade (18+) - 4

Single Dad!Bucky Barnes x Single Mom!Reader; Teacher!Bucky x CEO!Reader

chapter warnings: language?

a/n: I’m a sucker for Tony Stark. He’s always one of my favorite characters to write. So pls enjoy 😂 and please note: I had to write this chapter on my notes app because I am away from my laptop for the weekend but felt the need to post today so all grammatical errors are my own 😭

Series Masterlist

Tony Stark was the bane of your existence. He annoyed you to no end. In a favorite Uncle kind of way. He’s lucky Pepper was such a good person, because a people person Tony was not…to everyone else that is. Because, Tony Stark adored you and Avery. His reputation was similar to yours. Ruthless business executive who would make sure the deal went the exact way he wanted, but behind closed doors he loved his wife, his kid and his close friends. You sometimes considered yourself lucky to be in the latter group, but only sometimes. Tony’s friendship tended to be a love-hate situation.

Keeping up with your reputation was better for you. Safer for you and Avery if the whole world thought you were a stuck up bitch. It meant nobody could smell a weakness and use it against you. Even though you were fairly certain that your divorce only added fuel to the fire, gasoline in the form of Brock Rumlow.

He’d gone to all sorts of trashy magazines after signing the divorce papers and had told them that you were a shrewd businesswoman who had no time for her family and would do whatever she could to make sure L/N Enterprises came out on top. It was the “no time for her family” comment that hurt the worst and you were just so thankful that Avery hadn’t learned how to read at four years old. Brock didn’t stop there, he supplied the paps with rumors that you were cheating on him, with TONY, because of the close work Stark and L/N did together. Your face was plastered across nearly every paparazzi magazine in the grocery stores for a year.

Brock’s fury lessened when he realized he’d be getting some money in the divorce and so the rumors slowed down. But your reputation has already grown into this monster that you had no control over. At that point you figured, if you can’t beat em then you might as well become the person they think you are…in public at least.

“Tony, we’ve been over this before. I’m not going to beg you for your support in my deal with the Odinsons, but you know just as well as I that if we both teamed up together then we’d make the deal of a lifetime,” you stated sharply, looking Tony Stark himself in the eye. Tony quirked an eyebrow at your attitude, knowing that you didn’t normally speak to him like that unless you were in front of other people or if something was bothering you.

“Alright. You’ve got me. It’s a good deal, and I guess Odinson would be a good ally to have. Now. On to the real issue, what is wrong with you today, cupcake?” Tony quipped as he signed the deal you had laid in front of him.

You sighed roughly as the weight of securing Tony’s help and the reality of the morning settled into your bones. Your response got Tony’s attention and his face softened, he knew that look. It was one he saw on his own face almost every day. When the weight of your reputation bares all its weight on your shoulders. “Alright, kid what do you want for lunch? I’m buying and then you can tell me all about what’s got you in this funk,” Tony jested as he pulled up the phone number to the restaurant you normally ordered from after working together.

Pepper and Morgan joined you for lunch, the three year old choosing to sit in your lap. Morgan was a cutie. And she reminded you so much of Avery at that age. Just instead of the shyness Avery exhibited, Morgan definitely acted more like Tony. After eating and playing with Morgan for a little bit the two left, leaving you and Tony across the table from each other.

Before he could even ask you groaned and rubbed your face, “sorry Tony. Just today added so much stress to my plate that I didn’t need. For a second there I was genuinely worried that you wouldn’t help and that the Odinson’s would back out,” you started but were interrupted by Tony, “well technically they still could..”

You cut a sharp glare at him and he held up his hands in mock surrender, so you continued, “and Avery was in a mood today. She didn’t want to go to school, she was scared nobody would like her and she’d make no friends, and you know I hate it when she cries,” Tony offered a sympathetic look because he knew he was the same way over Morgan. One tear and he was buying her an entire toy store.

“And worst of all, her teacher looks like he was sculpted by the gods themselves and was placed in front of me as an obstacle to just fucking CLIMB.”

And that’s where Tony lost it. If he’d been drinking water he would’ve done a spit take at your words. He was laughing so hard you thought he’d fall out of his chair. You waited for his laughter to die down, as he began to wipe his eyes you muttered,,”it’s not that fucking funny, Tony.” Which apparently was the wrong thing to say because he almost completely lost it again.

Tony took a breath to steady himself. “Why is it such a problem that you find Avery’s first grade teacher such a hunk of man that you want to have your nasty dirty way with him, hmm?”

Your eyes narrowed at Tony’s comment which only made his eyebrows raise enthusiastically. Tony enjoyed getting a ride out of you. Before you could even respond he was interrupting to add, “you scared you’re a black widow spider or something and once you fuck him you’ll have to kill him?”

That made you lose it. You laughed so hard you snorted, causing Tony to rejoin with his laughter. You knew that talking to Tony would help you feel better, even if all he did was make fun of the situation and not offer any valuable advice. He was Tony Stark. Not exactly known for his great advice. And definitely not known to be very helpful with “romantic” advice. You had to practically beat him upside the head with one of his machines to get him to realize Virginia “Pepper” Potts was the best thing that would ever happen and he’d be a fool and alone forever if he let her go.

Okay, in all seriousness. What’s got you so wound tight over this man you have met one time, might I add?” Tony questioned semi-seriously causing you to think hard about his query. “Is it because you haven’t really been with anyone since Brock?”

His statement caused you to lift a brow and state flatly, “I’m divorced, Tony. Not fucking celibate. You know that.” Because Tony did know. Tony knew all about how terrified you were to casually date or sleep with someone after your divorce. How you were scared to introduce someone into Avery’s life that could break both your hearts in a minute. That’s why Avery didn’t know. She conveniently spent the night with Pepper, Tony and Morgan when you’d find someone to fill that basic human need. The look on your face must have answered some unanswered question Tony had because you saw his eyes soften before you.

“Okay I know you’re not a nun obviously. But now I’m gonna ask you a serious question…” he started only to be interrupted by you.

“Wow Anthony Edward Stark being serious? Someone call J Jonah Jameson,” you snarked with a teasing smirk at the way Tony glared at you.

“BUT do you think you’re acting weird about this man because he’s already met Avery? And you’re thinking if you did find him attractive and wanted to sink your fangs, I mean teeth, into him then you wouldn’t really be able to distance you or Avery from him?” He finished, his question practically echoing in your mind.

He must have seen in your eyes the way you were processing his sentence and just leaned back in his chair with a short nod. “Well would you look at the time. Someone’s gotta head back to their place and get this Odinson deal all shiny like a new penny so we can talk about the future of machine/human telehealth. Think about what I said will ya, kid? Maybe talk to Wilson or Maximoff about it. I know they’re your “besties” and you know, a little closer to your age,” he said besties with finger quotes and spat the last part of his statement with mock venom, a teasing look coming to his eyes. You smiled lightly at Tony, mouthing a thank you as you stood up to give him a hug and head back to your own building.

“Hey! Make sure to bring Avery over next week! We’re making cheeseburgers,” he winked as you walked out the door.

“You’re always making cheeseburgers,” you yelled back, not even having to turn around to see Tony‘s laugh.

When you got back to your office you finished writing up the Odinson deal so it would be ready to sign at your meeting at the end of the week. Before you knew it, it was time to pick up Avery. On the ride to school Sam decided to joke about your “crush” on Avery’s teacher saying that he was looking forward to seeing the man himself so he could gossip about him with Wanda after your celebratory drinks this upcoming Friday.

“Don’t plan the celebration too early, Sam. Odinson could still back out,” you stated pointedly. Sam knew how you felt about jinxing this deal and he promptly stopped talking about it, but he just rerouted the conversation back to Mr. Barnes. It was mostly him talking and joking and you rolling your eyes but when he pulled up to the school you saw Mr. Barnes next to Avery and a little girl who looked suspiciously like Mr. Barnes.

“That’s him,” you said to Sam, pointing at the first grade teacher.

Sam’s eyes widened, he looked from you to Mr. Barnes and back before saying, “you know, normally I don’t think I’d say this… but that man is a whole damn tree trunk. It makes sense why you wanna climb him.”

You snorted and slapped Sam’s arm before exiting the car and making your way over to your daughter. Mr. Barnes didn’t notice you and for that you were thankful. It gave you the opportunity to appreciate his…assets. The way his brown hair curled slightly at his shoulders, the way his button up seemed a half size too small judging by the way his shoulders stretched against the material, the way his slacks clung to his..

“MOMMY!!” Avery’s voice cried, pulling you out of your appreciative gaze. You could feel your cheeks start to hurt with the smile that graced your face as your daughter barreled towards you and engulfed you in the largest hug she could muster, flinging her little body into your arms. You were about to ask her how her day was when you felt another little one practically tackle your legs in a hug. Big blue eyes looked up at you, eyes that unmistakably belonged to the tall drink of water standing next to you.

You were introduced to Becca, who was no doubt Mr. Barnes’ daughter, and how she and Avery were new best friends and they had a great day together. As the two girls continued chattering with yo about their day you managed to sneak a look at the incoming notification on your watch. You knew it was getting close to dinner with your parents and you’d have to leave soon to prepare for it. Mr. Barnes must have caught what you were doing because he announced it was time for the girls to go. Your heart both grew and broke a little when the girls hugged each other, neither one wanting to leave. Your eyebrow quirked at their friendship, an amused look on your face as you met the twin oceanic pools of Mr. Barnes.

He looked like he was going to say something when an annoying, and obviously fake, breathy voice called out “James….”

You took in the newcomer. Her bottle blond hair that needed to be toned and her low cut shirt that was extremely inappropriate to be wearing to an elementary school. You could practically taste the acidity of the little green monster that was spawning in your brain. Who the fuck is this woman?

Mr. Barnes looked almost sheepish as you made the girls say goodbye and reminded them that they would see each other tomorrow, giving a short nod in Mr. Barnes’ direction. When you and Avery made it back to the car she was telling you and Sam all about her new best friend and how they were going to hang out and play mermaids and princesses. Her little ramblings made you feel like maybe first grade wouldn’t be so bad…especially if you got the opportunity to see James Barnes every day.

taglist (if you’d like to be added just let me know in the comments or you can dm me!):

@youlightmeupfinn

@la-undercover-latina

@jackiehollanderr

@fab-notfat

@asoftie4bucky

@fangirlvoice

@galaxy-dusk

[nobodygetsza]

┆𝖥𝖮𝖱𝖬𝖠𝖳･｡ﾟ — 𝖲𝖾𝗋𝗂𝖾𝗌

┆𝖲𝖴𝖬𝖬𝖠𝖱𝖸･｡ﾟ — 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗈𝗅𝖽 𝗌𝗎𝗉𝗉𝗋𝖾𝗌𝗌𝖾𝖽 𝖿𝖾𝖾𝗅𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖱𝗂𝗈 𝗁𝖺𝖽 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖬𝖾𝗅𝖺𝗇𝗂𝖾 𝖼𝗈𝗆𝖾 𝖻𝖺𝖼𝗄, 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗁𝖾'𝗌 𝖽𝖾𝗍𝖾𝗋𝗆𝗂𝗇𝖾𝖽 𝗍𝗈 𝗀𝖾𝗍 𝗁𝖾𝗋 𝖻𝖺𝖼𝗄 𝗂𝗇 𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗅𝗂𝖿𝖾.

┆𝖶𝖮𝖱𝖣 𝖢𝖮𝖴𝖭𝖳･｡ﾟ— 𝟤,𝟤𝟩𝟧

┆𝖶𝖠𝖱𝖭𝖨𝖭𝖦𝖲･｡ﾟ — 𝖺𝖽𝗎𝗅𝗍 𝗅𝖺𝗇𝗀𝗎𝖺𝗀𝖾.

⇾ 𝖱𝗂𝗈 𝖬𝖺𝗌𝗍𝖾𝗋𝗅𝗂𝗌𝗍 || 𝖲𝖾𝗋𝗂𝖾𝗌 𝖬𝖺𝗌𝗍𝖾𝗋𝗅𝗂𝗌𝗍

⇾ 𝖭𝖾𝗑𝗍

𝖢𝗁𝖺𝗉𝗍𝖾𝗋 𝖨📍: 𝖨 𝖧𝖺𝗏𝖾 𝖠 𝖯𝗋𝗈𝗉𝗈𝗌𝗂𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝖥𝗈𝗋 𝖸𝗈𝗎

📍Rose Apparel Headquarters📍

THE ELEVATOR DINGS as the doors opened on the tenth floor of Rose Apparel Co. CEO Melanie Cameron stepped off with her black Hermès Birkin bag hung on her arm as she walked to the office looking like a boss bitch. Melanie started her business about five years ago. She went from a small business owner to CEO of her own company. Ask Melanie how her business became successful, and her answer is with hard work and determination.

Never in her years of living did she ever expect to have her clothing line and become a successful businesswoman living the luxurious life she deserved. There was one person Melanie had to thank for her success, and that was Rio. If it weren't for him helping her get her LLC, Melanie would not have the successful multi-million dollar company she has today. So it’s safe to say Melanie owes her business and many blessings to Rio. Also, when Melanie pitched the idea of expanding to Rio, she didn’t think he would surprise her with an entire building.

Now Rose Apparel is a clothing line women worldwide would kill to have in their closets. They’d fight each other inside the store to be able to buy an item of clothes. Melanie had vendors from all over the planet contacting her for partnerships. Her job always kept her booked and busy. One thing she also always had time for was to be a mother to her five-year-old Avani.

Walking into the central area of her corporate headquarters, many employees greeted her politely. “Good morning, boss lady.”

“Morning, everyone.” She smiled, unlocking the door to her executive office.

The light automatically turned on as she headed inside, and she set her purse on the desk. She pulled her chair out and sat in the soft leather sighing in relief. Her grande blended caramel Frappuccino was half empty as she logged into her iMac desktop. First, Melanie began responding to emails from vendors that wanted to do business with her. While responding to a client, a knock echoed throughout her office.

“Ms. Cameron, you have a meeting in twenty minutes.” The voice of Melani’s assistant, Noémi, announced.

“Come in, Noémi,” Melanie replied, peeking around her computer with a smile.

Noémi opened the door, entered the big office carrying files in her hands, and sat them before Melanie.

“Who am I meeting with?” Melanie asked, scanning through the files on her desk.

“A man named Giovanni Santana.” Her assistant Noémi replied, looking down at her pink sticky note.

Upon hearing that name, Melanie stopped and glanced up at her assistant with a smirk. Melanie knew who Noémi was speaking about, as he used that name when the streets were hot, and he needed to stay low.

“Okay, thank you, Noémi.” Melanie smiled, nodding her head. As her assistant left her office, she stopped wanting to say one more thing. “Oh, and Noémi, clear my schedule for the next two hours.”

“Sure thing Ms. Cameron.” Noémi gave her boss a polite grin before exiting her office.

Melanie couldn’t stop the laugh that escaped her mouth as she leaned back in her soft chair. Out of all times, why would he be calling her today? What could he possibly want now?

“Oh, Giovanni, what could you possibly want?” Melanie chuckled, shaking her head, the heel of her shoes tapping against the hardwood floor.

Melanie spoke with her employees for the first fifteen minutes and checked business strategies. She took her sweet time walking to the conference room for the last five minutes. Inside the meeting room, Rio sat next to Mick, swiveling in the white chairs, waiting for the boss lady to make her grand entrance. It’s been almost a year since the pair had last seen each other, and Rio couldn’t wait until he laid his eyes on her beautiful form. The last time Melanie and Rio met, they didn’t do much talking.

All that came out of their mouths were moans and cries of pleasure. Their hands gripped and grabbed at any free skin they could reach. The only other woman he felt whole with was Rhea, but she wasn’t anything like Melanie. Rio loved that Melanie had that nasty side of her which he brought out behind closed doors. He always enjoyed the time he shared with the melanin beauty.

The heels clacking on the hardwood floors made Rio glance up, knowing who they belonged to. His eyes took in Melanie’s body from head to toe loving her appearance. Melanie wore black leather shorts and a bra that pushed her breasts up, making them look mouth-watering with a black leather shirt. In his opinion, Rio thought his former lover looked so good he wanted to send Mick out of the room so he could have some one-on-one time with her bent over the table. Melanie’s body made him want to put another baby in her.

“The queen finally makes her grand entrance.” Melanie heard Rio speak with amusement. “I like what you’ve done with the place. It’s very much you.”

“Well, thank you. It wouldn’t have happened if it was for you.” Melanie replied, sitting at the head of the conference table.

“You’re welcome.” Rio nodded, sending Melanie a sly smirk making her roll her eyes.

“So I take it you didn’t come here for no reason. What do you want? I'm busy.” Melanie questioned, placing her folded hands on top of the table. Rio chuckled at her impatience as he rubbed his bottom lip.

“I need your help,” Rio spoke, eyeing the mother of his daughter from across the table.

Melanie was shocked that Rio was asking her for her help. “Me? Why do you need my help?”

“Three of my associates are having problems getting my money,” Rio replied, rubbing his hands on his denim-clad thighs.

“Sounds like a personal problem to me.” Melanie smiled, cocking her head to the side.

If there was one thing Melanie loved doing to Rio was acting like a smartass. Melanie knew he couldn’t stand it when she did it, but she gave zero fucks. Her former lover would not waltz into her business and ask for help when he hadn’t spoken to his daughter in almost a year. Hell, he even missed her fourth birthday. Their daughter asked about him constantly, and Melanie was starting to run out of answers to tell her.

“Listen, Melanie. I need your help.” Rio sighed, running his hands over his face.

“Why are these associates having trouble getting your money?” Melanie asked, arching a shaped eyebrow curiously.

“They robbed a grocery store where my workers were washing the money,” Rio replied, licking his lips as he stared at his former lover.

Upon hearing that, Melanie burst out laughing. “Who the fuck robs a grocery store?”

“Someone in desperate need of money,” Rio replied, rubbing the growing hair on his chin.

“Fucking exactly.” Melanie laughed, nodding her head. The room fell silent as Melanie stared at the ceiling contemplating if she should help her baby daddy with whatever business he has going on right now. A sigh escaped her nose before speaking, “So if I do decide to help you, how will it benefit our child and me?”

A grin appeared on his face at the mention of his daughter Avani. “More money in your bank account.”

At that sound, Melanie had to consider at least showing up and seeing what he needed her help for. “If I wanted to help you, what would you like me to do?”

“Help them get me my money by a deadline,” Rio replied, leaning his arms on the table.

“What’s the deadline?” Melanie asked, copying Rio’s movements.

“I’m giving them two months to get my money,” Rio answered, rubbing his cheek with his thumb.

“How much?” Melanie questioned, arching an eyebrow in confusion.

“Three hundred thousand.” Melanie’s baby daddy replied, nibbling the inside of his cheek.

“It’s not impossible, but it will be hard.” Melanie sighed, calculating the math in her mind. “Okay, I’ll help you. Give me the address to meet you, and I’ll be there in the morning.”

"Thank you, mama, I appreciate it." Rio praised, standing to his feet. As he got ready to leave, he allowed Mick to exit the room first, but before walking out the door, Rio stopped and turned to his former lover. "Did I ever tell you how sexy you look?"

"Every time you see me, but flattery won't get you anywhere with me," Melanie remarked, cocking her head to the side as she smirked at her ex-lover.

Rio couldn't help but smile at Melanie's words knowing she was lying through her teeth. "I'll text you the address later. See you tomorrow, mama."

Upon hearing that nickname, Melanie's stomach erupted in butterflies. She didn't know how to respond to him. Hell, whenever he called her that, she became weak in the knees. Rio knew how to make her melt into a puddle, whether in public or the bedroom. If you ask Melanie, she might say she has a voice kink but only for Rio.

The hold that man has on her is embarrassing. There were nights they shared when he'd talk her to an orgasm, and she'd come undone at the snap of his fingers. Melanie didn't know how she would last when meeting Rio tomorrow. She might jump his bones and fuck him like she wanted to do when she saw him sitting across from her. With a sigh, Melanie counted to ten before exiting the conference room and returning to her office.

A sigh escaped Melanie's mouth as she made her way to the elevator. Not only did her feet ache, but she felt drained and exhausted. After her ''meeting'' with Rio, she had three more, which were close to four hours long. All Melanie wanted to do was go home, shower, cuddle her baby girl, and sleep. The metal double doors opened, and Melanie stepped on the machine and pressed the button for the garage level.

As she waited, she leaned against the wall when her phone buzzed, signaling an incoming message. Melanie pulled it out of her bag to see a text from Rio.

Satan👿 - 9041 Southside Blvd.

Okay, I'll see you there.

Satan👿- Thank you again, Mel.

Mhmm.

The elevator dinged, allowing the elevator doors to open. Melanie entered the parking garage and saw her driver Shaniyah standing outside the car as she stepped off the machine.

"Long day?" Shaniyah questioned, opening the back passenger door.

"You have no idea." Melanie sighed, climbing inside and fastening her seatbelt.

Melanie leaned against the soft white seats and relaxed as Shaniayh drove her home. Arriving at home Melanie's driver opened the door, letting her out of the vehicle.

"Get some sleep, miss." Shaniyah politely replied, smiling at her boss.

"Trust me. I will." Melanie laughed as she stepped out. "Be here in the morning, please. We're going on a little getaway."

"You got it, Ms. Cameron." Shaniyah nodded, closing the door. She went to the driver's side and drove away.

Melanie unlocked the front door to her eight-bedroom, ten-bathroom, two-story house, and her three years old American Bully, Chapo, trotted over to her wagging his tail. Chapo was gifted to her by Rio when he was eight weeks old as a birthday gift. Rio felt she needed extra protection while living in a big house with their daughter. She scratched behind his ears before entering the living room and seeing her nanny Dominique sitting on the sofa with Avani watching cartoons.

"Hello, Ms. Cameron." Dominique greeted, smiling at the young adult.

"Hey, Dominique. How was she today?" Melanie asked, sitting next to the pair. She smiled at her daughter, hugging her and kissing her cheek.

"Avani was good like always. Not an ounce of trouble." The teen replied, shaking her head.

"That's good. I'll transfer your payment to your account." Melanie said, patting the girl on the shoulder. “Oh, and I’ll pay you for the time being. I’m taking Avani to my mother’s house while I’m out of town.”

"Okay, have a good evening." Dominique smiled, stood up from the sofa, and retrieved her things. “Thank you, Ms. Cameron.”

After her exit, Melanie picked up Avani, carried her to her bedroom, and laid her on the bed. "G'night, mommy."

"Goodnight, baby." Melanie smiled, kissing her daughter's forehead.

As Avani rolled over and went to sleep, Melanie turned on the night light before exiting the toddler's bedroom. Upon entering her sanctuary, she ran herself a nice hot shower. While the water temperature raised, Melanie gathered her routine nighttime essentials before stepping inside the glass enclosure. The water felt so amazing, hitting her slightly sore skin, and all of today's stress rolled away. After standing under the stream of water, Melanie washed and stepped out, wrapping a fluffy white towel around herself.

While she stood in the mirror, Melanie began her nighttime skincare routine because self-care is important. She washed her face, brushed her teeth, and moisturized her body, smelling like shea cocoa butter and vanilla. As Melanie got ready for bed, she made a mental note to pack her and Avani’s things when she got up in the morning. Grabbing her phone, she sent a text to her assistant Noémi.

Cancel any appointments I have for the next two months.

Naomi⭐️ - Yes, boss lady.

Also, you’re off until I return. I’ll double your pay.

Naomi⭐️ - Of course, Ms. Cameron.

Turning off the lamp on her side table, Melanie turned over and went for a much-needed sleep.

[lovelyirony]

Maybe 60 and 46, Pepper / Natasha? (Based off our conversation from the other day :P )

“Dance with me.”/“You look like you could use a hug.” introducing: evil businesswoman pepper and her lovely assistant, natasha 

Pepper didn’t like dealing with other businesses early in the morning. In fact, she usually didn’t. She did her worst in the mornings, and it was clear to see. 

There was a man still lying in his chair when she comes out of the meeting room, and asks for a clean-up crew. 

She hates tech start-ups. 

Her assistant didn’t last. They never did, although this one had shown promise: he was with the company for five months. 

She was sad to see him go, in shock at another mess she had made. 

“Maybe you could stop killing other businesses,” Tony tells her while they’re eating lunch. It’s a nice place, where they’re at. They have a good balsamic vinaigrette.  

“I could, but then where would the company be?” Pepper asks. “They need to know that I like to be impressed. I want success. That’s how you get what you want.” 

Tony makes a face. 

He wants to say something, but he can’t. Not when he signed the company over to her, and she’s improved it, been allowed to make her own choices, bring everything up to her standards. She’s put everyone at her heel, and by god has it been satisfying. 

But she still needs a new assistant. 

- 

Natasha Romanoff is not liking the current assignment. Then again, she doesn’t like a lot of SHIELD’s assignments. 

She likes the company, really. They’re altruistic as hell and like going through the proper channels to get the proper work done. 

But she misses the feeling of getting yourself immersed, getting your hands stained beyond belief. 

An assistant. 

They want her to be a damned assistant for Stark Industries. Investigate the CEO, figure out what kind of dirt they can dig up and get out. 

It’s insufferable. She should be doing high-speed car chases and seducing oil barons to make sure their finances get drained. 

She shouldn’t be asking what kind of creamer goes in coffee and what kind of pens they want to be ordered. 

But here she is for the interview process, and she’s wearing her best office dress, which is still a bit risky for what an office job is, but she pays everyone else no mind. She taps her heel on the floor. 

- 

Pepper hates interviewing candidates. But she has to observe who is going to be working with her, who can handle what they’re going to throw at her. 

There’s a woman in the middle of it: Natalie Rushman. 

She’s been abroad with various companies, used to do some amateur modeling, and is wearing a dress that would probably get her in trouble with HR if Pepper didn’t appreciate it so damn much. 

She’s interesting. 

Her eyes flash when Pepper asks her how comfortable she is in slightly dangerous situations. 

“What, like copy paper being out?” she asks. Pepper laughs. 

“Something a touch more dangerous than that, Miss Rushman.” 

The interview ends. 

Pepper thinks about her through the whole thing.

- 

Natasha is excited. 

Finally a job where she can use her skills. Where she can do what she needs to do, and it will be wonderful. 

Natasha shouldn’t be excited. 

But she can’t help herself as she buys four new pairs of shoes and debates on a skirt that she should bring. 

After all, she will be getting the job if Ms. Potts’ posture gave any indication. 

- 

Miss Rushman starts officially on a Wednesday after two days of training. Usually it would take anywhere from one to two weeks. But she’s scarily efficient and has apparently worked with the same kind of things. 

Pepper finds that she’s the best assistant she’s ever had. She’s already taken notes on what Pepper does throughout the day, knows when she needs to take a break for a headache, and also knows the extremely specific coffee creamer that she uses. 

It would almost terrify her, if she could still get terrified at the mundane details that people could know about you. 

But Miss Rushman makes it seem easy, and so she lets it slide. After all, it’s not like Natalie can just leave. She’s signed four different sets of paperwork that basically say if she so much as breathes wrong, Stark Industries gets her soul for eternity. 

She’ll be trapped. 

Natasha finds that aspect exciting. 

She shouldn’t find the act of Pepper Potts holding a letter-opener to a business associate’s neck hot. 

It shouldn’t be. 

But Pepper got a lovely crimson-red manicure, and she’s smiling so sweetly as she discusses what they agreed upon versus what’s happening. 

It takes Natalie Rushman a moment to process. 

“Miss Potts?” she interrupts. 

Pepper’s head slowly turns. Her strawberry-blonde hair moves smoothly over the letter-opener, over the hand clutched, trying to hold onto a way to live. 

“Yes, Miss Rushman?” 

“I have some paperwork for you to sign. Regarding the new hospital tech installment.” 

“Set them on my right. I’m finishing up some...loose ends.” 

Natalie doesn’t react to the loud noise other than a displeased hum and asking the other members in the room if they want lemon-water. 

It’s refreshing in the afternoon, and she needs to clean the cabinet behind them anyways. 

- 

Pepper gets adjusted to her assistant. And Natalie gets adjusted to her life. 

She’s comfortable with it. It’s easy, to lean on who she had to be. 

It’s a rude wake-up call when she gets lunch with Clint, and he asks how the mission is going. 

“You any closer to taking her down?” 

She blinks for a moment. Pokes at her cake. 

“Nat, come on. You know she can’t keep getting away with this, right?” 

“Why does the world need more businessmen?” Natasha murmurs. 

Clint stares at her. 

“Come on. You told me when I brought you over here that you didn’t want to turn into who they made you into again. Just because it’s easier doesn’t mean it’s worth it.” 

He’s right. 

Of course he is. Clint usually is about this type of thing. 

Pepper Potts is...well. Natasha can admire the dedication she takes with her success. 

But usual bosses don’t really kill the competition. 

Literally. 

- 

Pepper’s noticed a change in Natalie Rushman. 

She doesn’t like it. 

She doesn’t watch for as long, doesn’t talk as easily with her anymore. 

Tony says maybe all of this terrible shit is catching up with her, her conscience finally clueing her in on the situation. 

No, that’s not it. That can’t be it. Not after how she stared at Pepper, not after her smile, not after those nights where they stayed late and both gazed but never said anything. 

Natalie is in the breakroom, staring into a coffee mug that has nothing in it. 

“You look like you could use a hug,” Pepper says dryly, sidling up to her. She takes a step away. 

Hm. 

“I’m fine, just a busy day,” Natalie says. 

God, she’s not even trying to lie. That’s infuriating. 

“Your days are about to get a little bit busier,” she starts in. “I’ve decided to host a little celebration for all of the companies we’ve worked with over this past year. We’re going to have a real ball of a time, and I want you to help plan it. And attend.” 

Natasha looks at her. Really looks at her. 

Shit. 

Pepper’s onto her. She knows something is different, something is off. 

And if Natasha’s to get away, she’s still going to have fun toying with her. She’s going to make life hell. 

The saying goes that if you can’t handle the heat, get the hell out of the kitchen. 

Natasha’s been cooking for a much longer time than Pepper, and she’s known her way around more kitchens than most. 

Bring it. 

- 

Putting together an honest-to-god ball for an eccentric, threatening CEO is fun. It shouldn’t be fun, but it is. 

The caterers are scared into arriving early, the invitations are embossed with actual gold, and the music costs way more than it should. 

Natasha is having so much fun with it that she completely forgets about her dress. 

She’s cursing as she’s tearing through her closet, looking for something that would be remotely appropriate for a ball for a sadistic CEO that she kind of has a crush on.) 

There’s a knock at the door. 

She rips it open, expecting it to be Clint or Maria to make fun of her, but it’s not. 

“Um. Delivery for Miss Rushman?” 

Oh. 

It’s a midnight blue ballgown, long-sleeved. She never would have chosen it for herself. 

The notecard attached said: 

Wear this one. I know you best. -Potts

A shiver runs up her spine. 

She’s not sure for what reason she’ll assign it to. 

But she puts it on, and it fits perfectly. She doesn’t want to think about how much it will cost. 

- 

Pepper, of course, looks like a dream. Or a nightmare. A terrifyingly beautiful nightmare. 

Her dress is burgundy, her lipstick matches. Her hair is loose, not kept in the high ponytail that is customary. 

Her eyes are a brilliant blue. They see right through her. 

“You look gorgeous, Miss Rushman,” she says, looking her up and down. “As to be expected, of course.” 

“Of course,” Natasha murmurs. 

The night will be long. 

They mingle. Natasha dutifully informs Pepper of who the lesser players on the field are, and fetches drinks. 

It’s...odd. 

It feels like something big is going to happen. And maybe it will, maybe it won’t. 

-

“Dance with me,” Pepper asks her. “Please.” 

She’s adding the last part in so that it sounds nice. But it’s a demand all the same. 

Natasha takes her hand, and maybe she should be more reserved about it, but she can’t help it. 

It’s captivating. It’s dangerous. But she accepts all the same. 

“You look beautiful tonight,” Pepper murmurs. “You far outshine every other woman here.” 

“Even you?” Natasha asks. 

Pepper rolls her eyes, but smiles. 

“Obviously, Natasha. Who else would?” 

She doesn’t notice that slip-up. Maybe it’s because she’s blown away at their close proximity, maybe it’s because Miss Potts’ perfume is absolutely intoxicating. But she doesn’t notice. 

They dance and they talk. 

“I’m happy you wore the dress.” 

“It’s not like I had anything like it in my closet,” Natasha says as Pepper smiles. 

“I figured. Not many host balls anymore.” 

“You’re a different sort.” 

“I am, aren’t I? But I think you and I are one and the same.” 

They’re isolated. 

And Natasha realizes it too late. She was a fool. 

“You haven’t quit after a year, after everything we’ve been through. Everything that I put you through. A regular person couldn’t do that, could they?” 

“You’d be surprised at what people can handle,” Natasha says. 

Pepper smiles. 

“You and I both know you’re far from an average person...Romanoff.” 

She tenses. 

“You knew?” 

“It’s a relativity new tidbit of knowledge, but having a tech genius as a colleague is...nice.” 

“What are you going to do to me?” 

“Reveal you,” Pepper says. “You’re a spy. You make your bread and butter off the fact that no one knows you for very long. And me? Well, you can’t kill me. The only thing that could possibly have an effect on me is if you killed the business. Which you don’t have the infrastructure for.” 

“And if I don’t want that? What do I have to do?” Natasha asks. 

Secrecy is her safe spot. It’s the only place where she’s ever been secure. 

“Stay. Leave that Strategic-Homeland-Whatever, and come with me. Stay with me.” 

“I don’t think I can do that,” Natasha says. “Your life and mine are too similar for that.” 

“But think of all we could do together,” she says. She brushes a hair back from Natasha’s cheek. 

It’s unbearable, that feeling. It’s a feeling that Natasha will spend all her life denying that she’ll chase. 

“I can’t.” 

Pepper looks at her. It’s a look that’s chilling. 

“Very well, Miss Romanoff. Then that will be all.” 

Pepper won’t fight her physically. She would lose that way, especially with how well-tailored the dress is on her body. 

But she has other ways of fighting. 

And god help Natasha, she knows she’s doomed. 

The worst part? 

She doesn’t exactly mind. 

[pines-troz]

Weekend With The Warners Chapter Two - Animaniacs & Pinky and The Brain

Summary: When the CEO tasks Pinky and The Brain with the important assignment of watching over the Warners for the weekend, Brain is prepared for any antics that the children have in store. What he didn’t take into account was forming a familial bond with the kids. 

Word Count: 3,017

AO3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27849962/chapters/68388166 

The mice continued on their way through the studio lot, holding hands as they went. As they found themselves alone near the lot entrance, Brain decided to discuss his latest plan with his partner.

“Listen close, Pinky, for I have devised a surefire plan to take over the world. Your ingenious decision of choosing The Iron Giant as our date night movie the other evening has greatly inspired me, Pinky. We will build a giant robot to assert our dominance over humanity!” Brain eagerly declared, choosing to ignore the pacifist message of the beloved animated movie. “I’ve already made calculations for our finances, and we would need exactly five million dollars to buy the necessary parts. Fortunately, I’ve come up with a brilliant way to acquire the funds.” 

Brain pulled Pinky closer as he explained. “We will start a family-friendly crafts tutorial channel on YouTube, teaching children how to make slime among other wholesome DIY-projects. After we grow a substantial following, we’ll shamelessly peddle overpriced merchandise! Once we make a fortune from selling our wares, we will then purchase the necessary materials to construct our mech which we will use to intimidate the Canadian Prime Minister and ascend to power!” 

The Brain began to chuckle evilly, and Pinky joined in with his eager giggling. 

“But first, we must purchase filming equipment from the electronics store and return to the lab!” Brain commanded. 

“Say Brain, how do you spell DIY?” Pinky asked, taking out a pen and notebook. 

Brain blushed furiously upon hearing his boyfriend’s moronic question. “Pinky, you are without a doubt the most imbecilic mouse I’ve ever met. But, by Ptolomey, I am madly in love with you.” 

“Aw Brain!” Pinky cooed, moving his tail into the shape of a heart. 

As the lab mice were about to exit the movie lot, they were stopped by Ralph the security guard. 

“Uh, hold it right there.” The bumbling guard ordered. “The CEO wants me to bring you two to her office by cone, duh-I mean drone!” 

The mice were immediately swooped into a net and carried above by the drone. Ralph had some difficulty controlling the drone, but he managed to fly the rodent actors over to the main office building in the middle of the studio lot. 

“This is utterly mortifying.” Brain commented as he tried to prop himself into a more comfortable position. 

“Oh cheer up, Brain,” Pinky consoled. “Think of it like we’re on a magic carpet ride!” The taller mouse wrapped his arm around Brain, pulling him close as he began to sing. “I can show you the worl-”

But Brain clapped his hand over Pinky’s mouth while wearing an indignant frown. “Don’t.” The smaller mouse spat.

As the drone flew through an open window in the office building, the mice were immediately greeted by the company CEO, Nora Rita Norita. The businesswoman brought out a pair of scissors, cutting through the net. Upon liberation, the mice fell down onto one of the leather chairs facing the front of her desk. 

“Good afternoon, gentlemen. Thank you for taking the time to meet with me.” Ms. Norita addressed. 

“Frankly I would have preferred some prior notification about this emergency meeting, such as an email or a text message, as opposed to being captured in a drone and flown over against my will, but here we are.” Brain soured. 

“Are we in trouble?” Pinky asked worriedly. The taller mouse paced back and forth on the chair as he started to panic. “I swear I didn’t do anything wrong! I’m innocent, I tell you! Innocent! You can’t make me go back to the big house!” 

“No, I can assure you that you’re not in any serious trouble.” The CEO told the buck-toothed mouse.

Pinky was immediately relieved by the news. “Oh thank goodness.” He sighed. “Sorry if I got a little carried away there.” 

“A little?” Brain snapped sardonically. 

“Gentlemen,” Ms. Norita curtly alerted the mice, who gave her their undivided attention. “I’ve called you here because I have an important task for you to complete over the weekend. I have a very important business conference with some very important people in the Warner Brother’s office and I don’t want the Warner children to cause any problems. And since I became aware of your friendly rapport with the Warners, I have decided to give you two the important task of watching over the Warners starting tomorrow afternoon, where you will take care of them outside of the movie studio until Sunday evening.” 

Pinky stood up and cheered. “Oh, we’re going to have so much fun with the little angels over the weekend!”

Brain, on the other hand, was shocked that the CEO would disrupt his regular routine and plans for world domination, one of the few things he had complete control over. 

The CEO confidently smiled, happy that at least one of them was on board. “And to sweeten the offer, I already booked a nearby hotel with five-star accommodations and you can use the company credit card for any additional payments over the weekend that aren’t related to world domination.” She said, showcasing the golden credit card. Pinky’s eyes glistened as he gazed at the card, clearly enamored by how shiny it was. Brain, however, let out a defeated groan since he couldn’t use the card for his own selfish purposes. 

Ms. Norita continued to speak. “I sent you all the information in an email, and-”

“Why are you assigning us to complete this task?” Brain interrupted. 

“Because I noticed how well you and your partner get along with the Warners.” The CEO answered with feigned enthusiasm. “And who can do a better job at watching those troublesome kids than people who could put up with their antics.” 

Brain cringed when she referred to the energetic kids as mere troublemakers. He genuinely enjoyed being around the Warners ever since the original run of Animaniacs. He recalled the days where he and Pinky spared some of their free time to check in on the Warners. From sharing the same table during lunch hour to visiting them in their home in the water tower before sunset, when the mice had to leave for Acme Labs. Even though the kids had a knack for craziness, the Warners were genuinely good kids who craved validation and attention. 

But despite being on good terms with the children, Brain was far too upset that his usual schedule had been suddenly modified by a force outside of his control. He didn’t want another chance to take over the world to skip off into the sunset. 

“But Pinky and I already have plans for the weekend!” Brain argued. “And besides, shouldn’t you recruit a more qualified candidate like Bugs Bunny?”

“He’s busy filming for the Looney Tunes Cartoons and the new Space Jam movie.” Ms. Norita explained. “And what, may I ask, did you have planned for the weekend that’s so important to you?” She asked dryly. 

“We were going to take over the world by making a crafts YouTube channel for the little kiddies!” Pinky answered. 

“I think you can put your little pet project on hold,” Ms. Norita explained to the smaller mouse. “So I suggest you accept the task like the grown-up that you are or I’ll fire you, inform the press it was a matter of ‘creative differences’ and have Edgwin on board as your replacement.” 

The two mice exchanged shocked and horrified glances at the sheer audacity the CEO had for even considering the idea of messing with their brilliant chemistry. 

“Why would you do something so cruel!?” Pinky remarked, but Brain gently took the taller mouse’s hands into his own. 

“Please, ignore my partner’s outburst, for I’m more than happy to cancel my weekend plans!” Brain exclaimed with a nervous chuckle. “After all, we do have the previous child-rearing experience, making us more than qualified for the job!” 

“That’s what I like to hear.” The CEO got up from her desk and walked over to the door, opening it up and gesturing the two mice to make their leave. “Have a fun weekend.” 

Brain grabbed Pinky by the hand and they made their jump from the chair onto the floor. The pudgy mouse tugged his lanky partner as they exited her office. 

Once the mice were gone, Nora Rita Nortita retrieved her cell phone, scrolled through her contacts until she found the name she was looking for. 

Inside the water tower, Wakko and Dot were watching a competitive baking show on Netflix while Yakko was snug in his ball pit bed, watching a shounen anime that Wakko constantly infodumped on his tablet while eating a bag of potato chips. While he initially watched the show so he could better connect with his sibling, the eldest Warner became emotionally invested in the story. As the big fight scene was about to start, he felt his smartphone vibrate in his pocket. The eldest Warner fished out his phone, saw Nora Rita Nortita’s picture on the home screen. He pressed pause on his tablet and quickly answered the call. 

“Yello, Warner residence! Totally responsible young adult Yakko Warner speaking!” He answered, trying to sound as mature as possible. 

“Hi, this is Nora Rita Norita.” The CEO answered. “And I have some rather exciting news to deliver.” 

“Oh?” Yakko replied in a casual tone. 

“As you may know, I will be holding an incredibly important conference this weekend, so I assigned Pinky and The Brain to watch over you and your siblings at a five-star hotel this weekend.” 

“Really!?” Yakko asked with child-like enthusiasm. “Pinky and The Brain are taking us to a fancy hotel this weekend! Oh man, that’s fantastic news!” 

Wakko and Dot paused their show and immediately rushed over to their brother’s bedside upon hearing the words ‘Pinky’, ‘The Brain’ and ‘fancy hotel’. 

“The mice will pick you up tomorrow in front of the water tower at noon, and you better not come back to the studio lot at any point before Sunday evening.” The CEO informed him. 

“You kidding? We rarely get to hang out with those guys, considering how busy they are trying to take over the world. So we intend to cherish every waking second with those two!” Yakko answered. 

“Great,” Norita drawled. “I’m sure the five of you will have a grand old time this weekend. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a power-meeting to attend.” 

Yakko heard the phone click on the other end, but he was too excited by the news to care about the CEO’s rude behavior. “Hey sibs! We’re spending the weekend with Pinky and the Brain!” The eldest Warner proclaimed. Wakko and Dot cheered uproariously, bouncing up and down with excitement. 

“Say, do you two remember during the original run of Animaniacs when those two would usually hang out with us on the studio lot whenever we weren’t filming for the show?” Yakko asked his siblings, feeling rather nostalgic. 

“Like how we’d sit at the same table at the commissary during lunchtime and they’d swing by the water tower?” Wakko reminisced. “Or how Pinky would make us bowls of macaroni and cheese, and Brain would read me my favorite picture books!” He reached into their hat and took out The Very Hungry Caterpillar and If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. 

“Or the times I’d give Pinky makeovers, and how we would pester Brain into taking us to McDonald’s!” Dot added as she eagerly clapped her hands. 

“Ah, those were the days!” Wakko blissfully sighed. 

“And not only do we get to relive those days again, but we’ll be staying at a luxury hotel! It’ll be like having a weekend-long sleepover!” Dot exclaimed. 

“Well sibs, I think it’s best if we start packing!” Yakko declared. The three siblings immediately took out their suitcases and began to pack away their essentials for their weekend vacation. 

Yakko put in a dozen pairs of brown slacks into his brown suitcase. Wakko took the refrigerator and stuffed it into their blue suitcase. Dot placed her finest attire into her purple suitcase. 

As the Warners continued to pack, they fondly remembered the good times during the original run of Animaniacs. While Yakko, Wakko, and Dot were mostly on their own, there were a handful of adults who spent quality time with them. Bugs Bunny, Slappy Squirrel, and Pinky and The Brain were their usual suspects. Bugs and Slappy usually entertained the kids with stories from the golden age of their careers and gave them helpful advice on thriving in the industry. Pinky and The Brain, however, proved to be a rare exception, since they’re genetically-altered lab mice and not technically toons. Regardless of their status, the mice would usually check in on the kids, make friendly conversation and share gossip, and indulge in their interests. But the mice always made sure to leave before the twilight, since they had to return to the lab and develop their schemes for world domination. And, like Bugs and Slappy, the mice never talked down to them and always treated them with kindness and respect. 

The Warners were eager to spend quality time with the mice once again. 

-                     -                       -                         -                       -

By the time evening rolled around, the mice returned to Acme Labs. When they arrived in their humble abode in the green cage, Brain decided to take some time to cope with the drastic change in his routine schedule by engaging in his deep breathing exercise. During his moments of self-reflection, Pinky looked on at his partner with loving eyes, proud that he was applying the techniques he learned from therapy through his own volition. The lanky mouse then put on his frilly green apron and scurried outside the cage to make his world-famous no-bake cheesecake for his roommate. 

Once Brain completed his mindful exercise, he came to the realization that he can make the most out of the weekend. He would receive some fulfillment from seeing Pinky happy. Additionally, spending time with the Warners would guarantee to bring some excitement to his nearly absent social life, and there was also the possibility that some of their antics could be a source of inspiration for potential plans for world domination. Everybody would win in this situation!

The mouse immediately went over to his tablet and began to conduct his research on the hotel and potential activities to do over the weekend. Finally accepting his role as weekend guardian, he was not going to do a sloppy job with the task he was assigned. 

“What common activities do most American families engage in during the weekend?” Brain pondered aloud. “Oh, I know, a trip to the library or an afternoon at the local park,” He muttered as he jotted down his thoughts on notebook paper. Then there were activities that required monetary exchange. Knowing that he would have full access to the company credit card, he was definitely going to have a field day with treating everyone to expensive spending sprees. Trips to the mall if the kids wanted anything in particular. Even splurging on the finest toy clothes that Pinky and himself would love to add to their wardrobes. Brain was also wildly determined to have at least one fancy fine-dining experience over the weekend!

Just as Brain neared completion in devising his plans and contingency plans for the weekend, Pinky arrived, carrying a big plate of cheesecake over to the wooden spool. 

“Oh Brain, I made you your favorite!” Pinky called out whilst flirtatiously fluttering his eyes. 

The pudgy mouse placed his work aside and eagerly rushed over to the makeshift table, where Pinky finished setting two additional plates and silverware. The lanky mouse gave his roommate a generous slice of cheesecake before taking a smaller portion for himself. Taking a fork, Brain scooped a piece of his cheesecake and ate it. The mouse was in a state of euphoria, savoring the scrumptious dessert. After allowing the cheesecake to melt into his mouth, he swallowed the pastry and let out a contented hum. 

“Pinky, your pastries are simply divine!” Brain complimented. 

Pinky blushed at the praise he received. “Aw Brain, I’m just happy that you like my cooking. Zort!” 

Brain took a napkin and wiped away the crumbs from the sides of his mouth. He decided to engage in some amiable small talk. “So Pinky, are you looking forward to our mini-vacation tomorrow?”

“Oh yes! I’m going to have a fun-fun, silly-willy time watching over the kids!” The lanky mouse cheered. But his grin slowly faded into a worrisome frown. “But Brain, while I was preparing the cheesecake, Jerry the Gerbil dropped by and he told me that the scientists were planning a big, month-long separation experiment starting Saturday!” 

“A month-long separation experiment?” Brain repeated with great concern. 

Pinky nodded. “He said that the scientists would take some of the rodents that roomed together and place them in different parts of the lab, where they would write about our emotions and stuff!” 

“That’s terrible news.” Brain remarked. “And what serendipitous timing…” 

“What do you mean, Brain?” Pinky inquired. He was surprised to see his roommate take his hands into his own. 

“Since we’ve been tasked to supervise the Warners over the weekend, we needn’t worry about the experiment.” Brain consoled his roommate as he caressed Pinky’s hands. “We would be outside of the lab during the beginning phase of the experiment and by the time we return, the scientists would have already selected the other poor souls residing in the lab as their test subjects, and we would avoid any emotional trauma that would come from participating in the cruel test in its entirety.” 

“Oh, that’s a relief!” Pinky sighed.

“So there’s no need to dwell on such things, Pinky.” Brain soothed. “Try to divert all of your energy and attention on preparing for our little trip.” 

“Right-o!” Pinky concurred with renewed enthusiasm. The mouse released himself from Brain’s hold and retrieved his floral printed suitcase. 

“Now make sure to pack all your essentials,” Brain commanded. “I have a feeling that we are about to have an unforgettable weekend.” 

AN: Another quick chapter that’s essentially build-up for what’s to come. When it came to writing Brain’s initial refusal to take the job, I felt like having him freak out over not having control over his regular routine is more in-character to him, plus with the added stakes of the CEO threatening to fire him. So he just swallows his pride and tries to make the most out of the situation. 

I also included one of my other headcanons where The Warners had a handful of toon guardians who checked in on them on a regular basis (Pinky and the Brain, Slappy Squirrel, Bugs Bunny) because they’re well aware of how poorly the industry treats people like them and they want to make sure that the kids are okay. 

Jerry the Gerbil was actually a reference to the Pinky and The Brain episode ‘The Family That Poits Together, Narfs Together’. We don’t see him at all, but Brain and Pinky reference him. Plus it seemed like the most logical choice to have Pinky get the news of the experiment from another rodent in the lab. And yes, this plot point will come back into play later in the story. 

And I also wanted to have a scene where Pinky makes cheesecake for Brain, as a nice little nod to Future Brain (which is easily my favorite segment from the reboot) and I love the idea of Pinky baking food for Brain, and it gave me a great excuse to write some domestic bliss between the two!

And I want to give a special thanks to @themurphyzone for beta reading this chapter!

The next chapter will be considerably longer, so it may take a bit to post it up, but it’s full of fluff and fun bonding scenarios. 

Thanks for reading!

[akampana]

How it's going, would you please use no.9 for a Gilgamesh and Artoria drabble, pretty please. Love your art be the way

9. “You never believe me! If I told you right now that I love you, would you even believe me?”

Gilgamesh, Arturia Pendragon

Thank you for the ask! I'm doing better, Thanks for checking in. Hope you like this. >:)

________

No one understood how Arturia managed to slam the glass door without breaking it, but she did, cutting off the beginnings of yet another full-blown argument between her and URUK's CEO. At this point, the entirety of the Chaldea Office knew not to interfere and let the feud run its course.

"If I required your assistance, Gilgamesh, I would have requested it!" the young businesswoman seethed, her manicured fingernails digging into her palms. "What gives you the right to interfere in in my company's affairs?!"

"And let you accept Iskandar's contract?" the CEO shot back, slamming the rejected stack of papers onto his girlfriend's desk. "Preposterous. I have warned you prior about that bumbling buffoon's risk appetite. It's simply not feasible—"

The shorter blonde yanked the object of their argument out from under the older one's clutches. With any luck, Iskandar would still accept it even a little rumpled. All it needed was her signature anyway.

Before Gil could even think about stealing it back, she tucked it into her attache case for her lawyer to review.

"I decide what is and isn't feasible for my business," she argued, slamming the briefcase closed and flicking the locks. Then she spun on her heel, meeting Gilgamesh's fiery eyes with a flame of her own. "I ran the numbers, Gil. Why can't you just believe in me?"

She was so tired of being underestimated at every opportunity. So tired of having to deal with his judgement on every decision she made. But she wasn't the only one who was at her wits' end.

"There lies the problem," Gilgamesh shot back, pinching the bridge of his nose and gripping her desk with his other hand to ground himself. "After all the time I have spent on your side, you still question my faith. It's honestly laughable."

The businessman dragged his hand down his faith, quelling his anger with deep breaths, but like the sea in a storm, he could not find calm.

"It's been a decade since we met, Arturia. I know I was...critical of the manner of which you ran this enterprise but you continue to judge me on that premise every time I offer you advice."

"That's a bold accusation—"

"Is it?" he snapped, crossing the distance between them till he stood in her space. "Every time I approach you for a joint project you have your little Table run all possible scenarios to make sure I am not pulling any schemes. My investments into your ventures are always met with suspicion. Hell, I am unable to even send wine without you assuming it prefaces some ridiculous plot."

"I..." Arturia gaped, the creases between her brows deepening.

"It's the same in our personal life," the man continued, reaching for her hand. "We've been seeing each other for the better part of a year, Arturia, but every time I give any sign of moving forward with our relationship, you question my actions."

Against her better judgement, she stepped back, robbing him of her touch.

"I don't believe—"

"Exactly my point," he spat, staring down at his empty palm. "You don't believe me. You never believe me!"

How many more times would he have to bear rejection? How many more times could he handle his intent being second-guessed? How many more times could he endure being painted as the villain by the one person he'd given his heart?

"...If I told you right now that I love you, would you even believe me?"

Silence.

A hollow chuckle left the man's lips as he reached for the door one last time. He wouldn't be coming back. Not anymore.

[yolocorcega]

I saw YOLOTL CÓRCEGA at a coffee shop in MANHATTAN today. She is a TWENTY-FIVE year old BUSINESSWOMAN who’s been in NYC for [SIX YEARS] now. Every time we run into each other, they are always CULTURED & DEVOTED but I’ve heard people say they can also be STOIC & CALLOUS. THE MAN BY TAYLOR SWIFT reminds me of them every time it comes on the radio. // @villagestart​

TW: mentions of cheating, criminal activities, divorce and family separation below.

hello everybody you know me as g aka the mess behind the bigger mess that is alexander warren and i am here to bring you one of my favorite kids ever, my daughter yolo who, of course, is also a mess because i can’t write happy, easy-going characters. let’s get down to it:

HISTORY

CHEATING AND FAMILY SEPARATION TW: Yolotl was born in Tequila, Jalisco on September 15th 1994, the product of an illicit affair between her father, Gabriel Córcega, an important business owner largely known in Mexico and one of his employees. The impromptu news didn’t sit right with Marcela Del Valle, Gabriel’s wife, who immediately ordered her husband to disappear every trace of his affair before anyone in town found out. What no one expected was for Gabriel to already have a kid with the woman no one knew about two years older than Yolotl.

Gabriel, in dispair, gave the woman some savings he had and helped her disappear from Tequila, not without an agreement whatsoever: he’d get to keep one of the kids and raise her.

When Gabriel returned to the house with Yolo in his arms but no trace of his remaining family, Marcela agreed on playing make-belief and tell the world the little girl was the second child of the marriage. The family never spoke of this again.

She and her “legitimate” older brother grew up surrounded by luxury: anything money could buy was granted to them as the Córcega name grew exponentially during Yolotl’s first years of life, the family went from having a sucessful tequila emporium to become a brand: nightclubs, hotels, soccer teams and more. The Córcega marriage decided the best and safest idea for the two kids was to be homeschooled, since the family traveled a lot due to the various businesses around the world Gabriel possessed.

Being only the two siblings most of the time, since their parent’s schedule was quite busy, Yolotl and her older brother became best friends. He became her hero, taught her everything she knew and more, became the getaway to her biggest passion in life: literature. It was a hobby the Córcega siblings shared.

The day of Yolo’s birthday, the Córcegas woke up with the news that Marcela had left the family and had run away to Europe, asking the rest of the family to forget about her

Upon Yolo’s graduation, the Córcega clan moved to New York and she enrolled in Columbia Business School where she got an MBA in Business Administration. She is working on her PhD in Modern and Contemporary Literature.

While in college, Yolo met someone whom she quickly fell in love with and the couple married not even a year after meeting, against all odds and advices from others. The first few years were perfect,  Yolotl loved her spouse and playing housewife and was perhaps for the very first time in her life truly happy. During this time, Yolo started writing books she decided to publish as a surname, deciding she wanted people to like what she wrote authentically and not because of the Córcega name. On that, she succeeded, she became a renown author under a surname, a secret she keeps to date.

CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES AND DIVORCE TW: However that happiness didn’t last long (nothing ever does, does it?) Her father started having legal and health problems, her world was beginning to crumble which definitely didn’t help the already tense marriage which ended in a divorce after a little less than five years, leaving her heartbroken and on top of that, her father was in serious trouble with a criminal organization back in Mexico after refusing to keep working with them, something Yolo herself wasn’t aware of. Something else she wasn’t aware of: the leader of the organization was the man Marcela ran away with and was now threatening Yolo’s dad, alas he had to hide and

Another truth that was told to her the day her father finally decided to speak candidly before disappearing was the existence of her real family; the brother she had and her real mother’s existance, which left Yolo brokenhearted.

Before parting ways after finally coming clean about all the lies her father had ever told her and disappearing, Gabriel named Yolo the CEO of the Córcega company.

NOW

Yolo owns one of Manhattan’s most renown hotels and a rooftop bars which she tries to manage herself on top of being the co-CEO of Córcega Onterprices (a position she “shares” with her brother) and trying to deal the mess her parents left behind. She’s… a little stressed™

She’s still on the divorce process and she is having a HARD time dealing it, she views divorce as a failure on her part, even though she doesn’t show it

PERSONALITY

okay so think angelica schuyler meets blair waldorf meets klaus baudelaire meets belle meets angela moss meets fuck up.

workaholic. i’m talking 24/7, work, non-stop. *fucking u and answering e-mails on the side* type of workaholic

big nerd, lowkey tho. she has like two personalities, the work-hard, femme fatale she uses with EVERYONE and then the nerd soccer mom she uses only with people she’s REALLY close to

uses sex and every advantage she has to get what she wants so… totes a dom but likes to be a sub from time to time and has all sorts of kinks lbr i mean what?

CULTURED AF

has a bit of an alcohol problem (i sense a pattern in my muses)

she used to have this bitchy reputation before the whole thing with her family went down and used to take advantage of that but she’s really not a bitch unless… yknow… you mess with her or her family or her friends then lmao gl she’ll ruin you, she’s a bit more human now i promise

a true slytherin, lives by the words ‘work hard, play hard’

TL;DR: lowkey a v sad and lonely rich girl who’s dealt with a lot who can act like a bitch but in reality... is only a bitch if she needs to be. v ambitious, workaholic.

POTENTIAL PLOTS: 

older brother: the one person in life she truly trusts in the whol damn universe i mean... probably her best friend ngl (will be a wc on the main)

her husband?: they are in the middle of a divorce, about to finish off their marriage... or are they? guess we’ll never know. he’s been the only person she’s ever truly loved AND I WANNA SEE THAT i’ve never seen her in love i’m sorry

distant family? that could be fun

best friend: every girl needs a best friend they can confide in between champagne glasses and chocolate covered strawberries... she is very loyal to the people she ACTUALLY lets in i promise she’s a great friend

people who work for her: ESPECIALLY AN ASSISTANT OH MY GOD she needs that but ok, she owns a rooftop bar and a hotel so... barkeeps, waiters, chefs, hotel manager... all that jazz. she is also v loyal to the people who work for her ngl she was taught to treat the people who work next to her like family SO

enemies: i know my kid... 90% of the population doesn’t like her so... let’s play into that

fwb, hookups, one-side crushes, exes, friends, neighbors... the sky is the limit!

okay honestly if you read that whole telenovela… i love you and if you read what a mess i’ve created (it’s my true passion in life) and you still wanna plot with her… you’re a goddamn saint and i’m ready to marry you or plot with you so hmu or like this for that. marriage and/or plotting, whatever.

[ladyherenya]

My favourite thing this year has been the Korean drama Crash Landing on You (2019-20).

It has something of a ridiculous title (I’ve ended up calling it Crash Landing or sometimes just Crash). But, to be fair, North and South was already taken.

“I can go to Africa and even Antarctica but not here. It’s a shame that you live here.” “It’s a shame that you live there.” -- episode three

To my great amusement, every month or so, Netflix has sent me an email that’s said: “Don’t forget to finish Crash Landing on You” or “Remember this? Watch it again: Crash Landing on You” or “Rewatch your favourite moments - Watch it again: Crash Landing on You…”

And I’m like: NETFLIX! Seriously, WHAT do you THINK I’M DOING?

I have now watched Crash Landing on You five times.

There are several reasons for this:

I successfully dragged other family members down this particular rabbit hole, and in a pandemic season, when things have been unpredictable (or cancelled), rewatching Crash Landing has been an appealing and comfortably-familiar distraction, as well as the source of many, many long, analytical fandom-y conversations, which has been fun.

I needed to watch it more than once to straighten out all the pieces of the story in my head. With 16 episodes, each over an hour long, it’s one of the longest stories I’ve ever watched. I’ve seen other TV series with more episodes, but nearly all have been much more episodic, rather than telling one continuous story.  

I kept noticing details that I’d previously missed because I’d been focused on the subtitles or that I hadn’t properly understood some cultural nuance. And some things are ambiguous in translation -- in a good way, a fodder-for-discussion way.

I have ALWAYS rewatched (or reread) my favourite stories. And Crash Landing fits right in with those. Someone in my family described it as: “Like Lord of the Rings on steroids!” However, I think it actually has far more in common -- visually and thematically, and also in terms of my willingness to discuss the characters as if they were real people -- with my favourite historical dramas.

In terms of story, Crash Landing is easy enough to summarise: A South Korean businesswoman is paragliding when a freak storm blows her across the border; she’s discovered by a North Korean captain, who hides her and helps her get home.

But I’m going to need more words to explain why I fell in love with it.

It is fascinating and, first time round, tense and unpredictable. It’s funny and very meta -- very aware of the tropes it’s playing with and of parallels and contrasts within the story. It’s visually and aesthetically pleasing, and the soundtrack grew on me.

There are a number of coincidences and a few ridiculous fight scenes, but the emotions are intensely real and so are the consequences. It has camaraderie and found-family and thoughtfully-complicated family relationships. There are characters I love, and characters who surprised me, and so much time given to character development!  It’s romantic. There’s a fake engagement (a favourite trope of mine) and while I’m not a fan of love triangles, I liked how this quadrangle-tangle is handled. And the obstacles to the romance are satisfyingly realistic; characters have sensible reasons for the choices they make.

I love how the story uses flashbacks, particularly the post-credit scenes.

The final episode isn’t perfect, but given that a perfectly happy ending would, realistically,  require the reunification of north and south, I thought it came very close.

Let me elaborate.

Cut for sheer verbosity, rather than spoilers. (I’m not allowing myself to list spoiler-ish examples or dive into analysing my favourite scenes, because then I wouldn’t just be here all night, I’d be here all week).

⬦ Fascinating, tense, unpredictable: I knew almost nothing about life in North Korea, so that was fascinating and made the story harder to predict, as I couldn’t anticipate what options the characters had or what obstacles might arise. And that isn’t the only reason I found it tense -- at different times, different characters are greatly at risk if discovered; there are occasions when characters are in danger of physical violence or are injured; and they have a couple of dilemmas to which there are just not easy solutions (See also: Obstacles for romance).

While I’m on the subject of the setting, although I cannot judge how accurate this portrayal of the north was, it’s portrayal of people as people was incredibly convincing. It’s a society where people have differences in personality and in circumstances. There are orphans begging in the market, people who can afford to stay in fancy hotels -- and a lot of people somewhere in between. In the military village, people have varying attitudes, tastes in clothes, privileges, standards of living, etc. Their lifestyle differs from that in Pyongyang, and also in other parts of the country. Amongst the military, some men are compassionate, some are corrupt and some are not obviously one or the other.

Moreover, it’s clear that corruption and villainy isn’t just in the north. In the south, as in the north, we see a range of humanity -- selfishness, good friends, complicated families, happy marriages, criminal behaviour, and so on.

I’ve read an article or two suggesting that the least realistic aspect is Ri Jeong Hyeok being such a sympathetic and honourable officer. I think it’s interesting that he clearly isn’t a typical captain -- he wanted a different career, he’s spent time studying overseas (in a democratic country), and, perhaps most importantly, his father’s position gives him protection from pressures many others face. He has the privilege of being able to afford to act with integrity, and of encouraging such behaviour in the men he leads.

⬦ Humour and meta: I’ve included these two together, because so much of the story’s self-awareness and intertextuality is humorous. I am very amused by so many things -- the village women’s interactions, Se-ri’s wit and banter, Jeong Hyeok’s facial expressions, the duckling's reactions, the way Ju Meok keeps comparing things to South Korean dramas:

Ju Meok: “I haven’t seen any drama characters that don’t fall in love in that situation. That’s how they all fall in love.”

(Because my knowledge of Korean drama is limited, there are a few cameos and references which I suspect would be amusing if one was in the know. The exception is the taxi driver singing, who was funny even without recognising the actor.)

I love the commentary that comes from all the moments when other characters witness the unfolding romance. Others’ reactions are often memorably hilarious -- some of my favouritest scenes fall into this category. (The customs officer! Jeong Hyeok’s dad!) They introduce humour and self-awareness into these moments, allowing the story to acknowledge “Yeah, we know these two are being ridiculous/sappy/emotional”. These moments reveal people’s attitudes towards displays of affection, particularly in the north, and their different attitudes towards Se-ri and Jeong Hyeok’s relationship.  

And as their relationship changes, Se-ri and Jeong Hyeok’s awareness of being watched and commented upon changes, too.

Which leads me to…

⬦ Contrasts and parallels: So many scenes which echo/parallel earlier scenes. Most obviously, this allows the story to compare and contrast the north and south, but it also shows changes in time, differences between characters, and differences in relationships too. Sometimes all at once!

 It means some plot developments weren’t totally unexpected -- it was Oh, of COURSE, we’re going to now see that character in this situation! or OBVIOUSLY we now have to see what this is like in the south!

But I thought it was really effective storytelling and I so much enjoyed spotting and analysing these moments.

⬦ Yoon Se-ri and Ri Jeong Hyeok: These two are the heart of the story and there are so many things I love about them. Like how, even though Se-ri is dependent upon Jeong Hyeok to hide and help her -- even though they’re initially hesitant about a romantic relationship -- they quickly become very protective of each other. Often to the point of willingly risking their own safety. Often to the point of exasperating the other. It’s great.

 That’s not the only thing they discover they have in common. They share some interests. They’re both highly intelligent, driven, successful leaders (he’s a captain, she’s a CEO) who are very private, lonely people carrying around grief about their family and their past. Neither of them likes to reveal their emotions -- he tries to conceal his by suppressing his facial expressions and avoiding answering questions, while Se-ri hides behind play-acting.  

I like watching Se-ri trying to get to know Jeong Hyeok. She isn’t deterred by his silences (unlike someone else) and she keeps the conversation going even when he doesn’t respond. She watches him closely, and says or does things to provoke a reaction. Poke, poke, poke.

And the time they spend together is really revealing. They share meals, they share a house. They see how the other responds under pressure, but also in various social and domestic situations. They see each other in a range of moods: calm, happy, grumpy, scared, tired, upset, unwell. Crash Landing takes advantage of spending sixteen episodes with these characters. Going through so many different experiences together, they learn a lot about each other -- about each other’s values, tastes and temperament -- and this means the audience gets a deeper, more nuanced understanding of who they are, too.  

Se-ri and Jeong Hyeok are also well-matched in how they show they appreciate each other -- she delights in giving presents, and he is quick to notice things Se-ri might need or like.

And it’s very satisfying when they open up, or when they cry in front of each other, because you know that they don’t do this lightly or easily.

⬦ Obstacles for romance, love triangle quadrangle-tangle: I appreciate that the obstacles in this story are not contrived or fueled by needless misunderstandings.  Se-ri and Jeong Hyeok have really solid, sensible reasons to be hesitant to first recognise, then admit to, and then act upon, a romantic attraction. Even once they realise that getting Se-ri home is going to take longer than they’d hoped and she’s pretending to be Jeong Hyeok’s fiancée, romance between them is still a road that leads nowhere. She isn’t safe staying in the north and he would endanger his family if he defected to the south, and they both accept that. And they’re reticent about sharing vulnerable feelings, and Jeong Hyeok is actually engaged to someone else.

But once they really open up to each other, the narrative conflict revolves around their circumstances, rather than doubts or misunderstandings they have about each other. Because the situations they face are dangerous and difficult, with no obvious or straightforward path to a happy ending, there’s quite enough tension to drive the story forward. They still have a couple of misunderstandings, but I like how they handle those, and I like that they don’t have more of them.

As for the love triangle, it doesn’t have the angst of someone torn between, or even attracted to, two people. Jeong Hyeok’s engagement has been arranged. Having feelings for someone else doesn’t change the foundation of that engagement, nor the pressure to please his family. He doesn’t love or know his fiancée -- not well enough to risk revealing Se-ri’s true identity to her. He’s honest with Se-ri and he makes an effort with Dan.  

(I have a theory that, if he had been in love before, he might be quicker to recognise how some of his behaviour towards Se-ri fosters intimacy and sends her messages he doesn’t intend, but this is all new for him.)

He tries not to mislead or hurt Dan, but she’s hurt nonetheless, and I like that Crash Landing doesn’t gloss over that. It explores why she’s hurt, why she’s so reluctant to let him go and why their relationship never really worked. (Neither of them are good at communicating with each other, and I think she takes some of the things he does for her for granted, rather than recognising them as overtures and as opportunities to get to know him better.)

Dan is not just a romantic rival, nor a narrative complication, but a person whose concerns and desire are taken seriously, and who is given space to grow.

Which leads me to...

⬦ Surprising characters, thoughtfully-complicated family relationships: As mentioned, Crash Landing takes advantage of the amount of character development 16 episodes allows, and not just for its lead couple. I was surprised by how much my opinion of certain characters changed, as I came to understand them better.

The character I was most surprised by was Gu Seung-jun.

Each time I’ve watched this, I’ve liked Dan more. I have a lot of sympathy for her now. I also like her mother, even though she’s embarrassingly over the top, because she cares fiercely about her daughter and about advocating for her.

Se-ri’s dysfunctional family are more nuanced than I expected, too. In particular, I love the attention the story gives to Se-ri’s relationship with her step-mother. I was expecting Se-ri’s father to play a larger role, perhaps because he’s nominally the one with the power and influence, and at first Se-ri’s mother seems so passive. But it was really interesting to understand where she’s coming from, why her relationship with Se-ri is broken and sad. The steps the two of them take towards rebuilding their relationship are believable.

(On a related thought, I appreciate a lot of the choices this makes in addressing these women’s mental health struggles. One or two moments arguably could have been handled better, but on the whole it’s realistically optimistic, with enough detail so that we understand the seriousness -- the impact it’s had on these women’s lives.)

⬦ Camaraderie, found family and the ducklings: Se-ri doesn’t spend as much time with the village women as she does with Jeong Hyeok and his soldiers, and when she does, she’s play-acting, in order to keep her identity a secret. But I like how they nevertheless support her, and how meeting her sparks change their dynamic with each other. They grow closer and become much better at supporting each other. It’s really heartwarming.

We gave many of the characters codenames, so we could discuss them when we were still learning their names. (I was surprised by how long it took me to learn some of the characters’ names.  Because so many were unfamiliar to me, they were harder to remember; I wasn’t always sure, from just reading the subtitles, how all of them were pronounced, and sometimes it was hard to separate the sound of the names from surrounding sentences, especially when, due to honorifics and titles and so on, subtitles don’t always match exactly what is being said.) Jeong Hyeok’s men are “the ducklings”, inspired by something I saw on Tumblr: Gwang Beom is “Handsome Duckling”, Ju Meok is “Drama Duckling” and Chi Su is just the sergeant.) I love how they function as a found-family, especially in contrast to Se-ri’s real family. They’re funny, loyal and caring, and in spite of their different personalities, work well together as a team. I enjoyed seeing the different relationships they have with each other, with Jeong Hyeok and Se-ri, and how some of those relationships change. And they’re so protective they are of Eun Dong!

Man Bok has an interesting arc -- I could have mentioned him under Surprising characters. I really like how he fits into this story, how he’s connected to the mystery Jeong Hyeok is investigating, how he becomes involved with the rest of the characters and has these moments when he plays a significant role. Or gets to be funny. I like the contrast and parallels too -- he’s in a different place in his life to the ducklings, and he gets opportunities to revisit past choices he regrets.

And I’m trying not to write essays about all the characters, and it’s ahhh, I have too many thoughts and feelings about them all!

⬦ Satisfyingly realistic: I like how -- one or two ridiculous fight scenes and an unrealistic paragliding scene aside -- things which happen have believable consequences. Particularly emotionally. We see men cry! A lot! And it always feels like a genuine expression of emotion, not gratuitous or overwrought. (Well, okay, there’s a very minor character who’s a bit over the top but he’s very minor.)

When one of the characters is gravely ill, she looks it, I found it oddly satisfying that she doesn’t have to be pretty all the time.

And I wasn’t sure if this belonged here or under “Visual details” but I love the attention given to Se-ri’s clothes. She cares a lot about fashion and in the north her clothing choices indicate that she cares a lot about her appearance, while making do with a limited wardrobe and still dressing for warmth.  (I’m happy to handwave that she seems to have more clothes than would realistically fit in those shopping bags.) I appreciated the practical streak, and, as winter wore on here, became envious of one of her outfits.

I don’t personally like the style of Se-ri chooses for work, but it’s different it is from what she wore in the north and from what she wears at home -- her power-dressing is like a uniform or a statement of persona she projects in her working life, and not necessarily a reflection of her personal tastes.

⬦ Visual details: I love so many of the visuals. Gorgeous scenery, interesting settings and clever framing for significant scenes. The sky, a place without borders, often becomes a focus and there’s a thematically-relevant flight motif -- paragliders, birds and kites.

I did not start noticing the   product placement until a rewatch, when I stopped to think about how often they went to Subway. The first time, it just seemed like a commentary on south-versus-north, and then I was just baffled-yet-amused by it all. (That sort of thing does not make me want to eat fried chicken...)

⬦ Soundtrack: The first time round, I liked the instrumental score and the presence of piano music actually in the story. As I kept rewatching, the rest of the soundtrack slowly but steadily grew on me, and I found myself liking the songs more and more.  

Now I not only recognise them by name, I can recall most of them well enough to hum them and know which scenes they’re associated with. Which is a lot harder when the lyrics are in a language I don’t speak and so I can’t use them as a prompt for memory.

⬦ Flashbacks: Instead of “previously-on” segments, Crash Landing employs lots of flashbacks whenever it wants to remind the audience of something.

Sometimes, instead of just repeating part of an earlier scene, it takes the opportunity to show the same moment from different angles or from a different character’s perspective,  or to juxtapose it with a different scene or to introduce new information. This was really effective. And when flashbacks were a simple repeat, I was usually happy to revisit important moments in the story (and sometimes, having a different person translating the subtitles meant there was a slightly different perspective on the dialogue).

Then there are the post-credit flashbacks, quite a few of which take places years earlier. I love how they’re puzzle pieces about the characters’ pasts and the connections between them.

⬦ The end:  The first time round, after watching the penultimate episode I was so engrossed in the story and so invested in the characters that I had trouble sleeping and I went around the next day with this tight, anxious feeling, unable to get the story out of my head.

The final episode is an emotional rollercoaster. SO. MANY. FEELINGS. There’s one particular scene which packs a powerful punch -- it’s exceptionally emotional and beautifully filmed. I love it, but I’m  glad we get the aftermath too.

It isn’t a perfect ending, but as I said, I don’t think there was a perfect ending was possible, not one that was both realistic and satisfying. But this comes very close. In the very final scenes, not everything is resolved or explained, and I like how that ambiguity is open to interpretation -- I like that there are some gaps for the viewer to fill in for oneself, however one prefers to imagine the characters’ lives going forward.

I know I could easily write another four thousand words about this story -- there are aspects I haven’t really discussed but this seems like a good place to stop. For now. I really like this story. I expect I’ll watch it all again soon.