#I have no excuse I'm sorry lol

[soosoosoup]

snowzone

[autiacorart]

i was asked to give connor this and here we are

[rainofthetwilight]

just saw someone call arin selfish gn everyone

[rox-of-iu]

ayoo guess who finally sat down and caught up with cultivate B)

is me. so you know what that means.

spoiler warning for cultivate ch 30-37

there was actually.... more things i wanted to draw but I already did so many I had to physically restrain myself hfsjkkdh anyway yes can you tell i love this fic very much

yet once again. cultivate by the wonderful @neonghostcat

[thelilylav]

Y'know what? Fuck it (gives u guys a list of poc artists to listen to cause the white ppl on the music side of tumblr have been embarassing me)

List is under the cut, and warning bc I made it very long

Rock:

Los Abuelos De La Nada

Gesu No Kiwami Otobe

Chuck Berry

Ben E. King

Los Prisoneros

Ahmed Fakroun (ok this one's french art rock but in my book it still counts)

Burnout Syndromes (been fucking w them since I got into Haikyuu lmao)

Infinity Song (their hater song genuinely gets me every time LMAO)

People in the Box

N.E.R.D (my god if u don't know them.. idk dude my brother has been obsessed w them for forever so i just was not getting away regardless lol)

Punk/Punk Rock (& other punk subgenres):

Nova Twins (u must listen to them it's just the way it's gotta be guys)

Rina Sawayama (her hatred of Matty Healy is so attractive. i cannot believe i found her two years ago cause i still remember i would not shut up when i first heard her music it was so good)

BABYMETAL (the way their band name just straight up screams at people gets me every time lmaooo)

Indie:

The Younger Lovers

Mashrou Leila

Stella Jang

Shak SYrn (Jenni is on repeat in my room at any given moment)

Steve Lacy (if u listen to more than just Bad Habit u will find an actuall amazing discography)

Jenny Nuo (i have been OBSESSED w her music since like 2021 ish and it is a crime she hasn't blown up more imo)

Nujabes

Hemlocke Springs (oooo i hate that she does not get more love!!! synth pop and alt indie is such a fun niche like!!!)

Lyn Lapid (in my head she's huge but i have recently learned that artists i think r super popular may be unknown to an entire genre of ppl soo)

Megagonefree (found them on ig and omg!! PLS go check them out genuinely)

boa (i am once again shaming u if u don't know them)

Wallice

JAZZ (in all caps bc I fucking LOVE jazz no it's not dead go listen to jazz rn motherfuckers):

Idris Muhammad

Esperanza Spalding

Joanna Wang (ok she does pop and folk music too but idk she felt most appropriate here)

SAMARA JOY (put. some. respect. on. her. name. i would actually go to war for her i am not kidding. also this is in all caps bc MY MOM GOT TO SEE HER LIVE??? AND SHE DIDN'T EVEN KNOW WHO SHE WAS PLS I WAS SO MAD OMGGG but i've been promised tickets next time so we're good)

Sade (my og one and only)

Funk:

Fadoul

George Clinton (i mean he's just a classic yknow)

Parliament (Give Up the Funk can make me dance like no other i swear)

Stevie Wonder (i mean.. like if we're on the topic of classics anyway then...)

Michael Jackson/The Jackson 5 (moreso his earlier stuff if my memory isn't lying to me.. look it's been a second since i listened to mj IM SORRY i am a busy person ok TT)

R&B:

Valerie June

Maxine Nightingale (if u don't listen to her... how do u have fun? actual question i put her on every time i need to feel happy atp)

Boney. M (technically they're reggae but they also count as R&B so idk.. i'm just putting them here if anyone wants me to move them later i will)

Amahla (Ca Suffit was so good and got me to check out the rest of her music, YOU SHOULD TOO!!)

Mary J Blige (not to judge but like... if u don't know THE queen then idk how to help you tbh)

SZA (wouldn't be a list without her in it tbh. i'm in love w her not even joking abt that)

Kali Uchis (to this day i cannot believe i saw her live i'm truly never getting a better moment than that omggg i have such a big crush on her anyway)

Aupinard (if ever u need to just vibe, this is the man u go to.)

Wejdene (TU PARLES AVEC UNE ANISSA MA MOI J'APPELLE WEJDENE- she's been my day 1 since i was like thirteen i can't even lie)

Annisse (just found out she only has like ~500 listeners on spotify??? apparently i'm one of them tho lmao so yeah go get that number up guys i love her too much for this disrespect)

Sister Sledge

Cheryl Lynn

Reggae:

Daddy Yankee (he's an honourable mention cause i couldn't not lmao)

Skindred (they're a reggae/metal fusion band and i will shut up abt them when i'm dead bc Nobody rewired my brain chemistry!!)

Manu Chao

Toquinho (i was so convinced this man was bossa nova but apparently he is reggae and i need to do some music theory review)

Folk:

Sushi Soucy (oh the things I Deserve to Bleed had me going thru in 2020/2021)

Miriam Makeba (Pata Pata should be enough to get anyone listening to her, just saying)

Lead Belly (do urself a favour and do some research on this man, i'm not kidding even if u don't like folk music u should know abt him- ESPECIALLY if u like Nirvana that'll make sense later trust)

Pop:

Corinne Bailey Rae (she has so much good music that gets ignored bc of Put Your Records On so.. yeah go listen to Black Rainbows she's only gotten better as time goes on lol)

Dru (he is for any person who likes ke$ha. i'm so serious he is early 2000s in a bottle and i love his music ur rlly missing out if u ignore him)

Monique Hasbun (found her recently! she's a Palestinian, Mexican and Salvadorian artist who plays around with Latin pop and does a lot of fusion music. she's dope go listen to her fr)

Mohammad Assaf (he made the Palestine song that's been going around ig a lot, but his other stuff is great as well. he's another Palestinian artist, so once again, go check him out!!)

Pinkpanthress (i LOVE her she's so much fun to just vibe to and idk how anyone couldn't have heard of her atp but then again this is the sight that didn't know who drake was so... sigh. go listen to her if u don't already!!)

Aliyah's Interlude (BROOO if u haven't heard of her actually go listen rn i'm so serious she is so good i can'ttttt ok bye)

Veondre (had a collab w Aliyah on It Girl and is gonna be releasing her own music very soon! she's trans too so go give her some love)

Shalco (wasn't sure whether to put him here or in hip hop, but his stuff is very very good either way)

Ado (she's j-pop but it's a form of pop so into the pop category she goes)

Moon (she's got two songs out rn, Moonlight and Seoul City Drift, and both r going on loop in my head at all times)

Jay Chou (call me a basic bitch idc he's good ok)

Atarashii Gakko! (i wouldn't say they're j-pop, but google did, so i'm just going w it lol)

flowerovlove (just trust me on this one)

El Tio Gamboin (Los Gatitos is such a cute song)

Grace Chang (see note for Jay Chou)

King Gnu (for all my j-pop lovers... come get ur man)

Salsa:

Lalo Rodriguez (included this genre specifically so i could mention him)

Adalberto Santiago

Roberto Roena (he's a classic i can't lie)

Hector Lavoe (i think he might be the most popular one in this genre lol)

City Pop (this is its own genre bc i literally did a presentation in high school abt it and i'll be damned if i don't flex my knowledge now):

Mariya Takeuchi

Miki Matsubara (my QUEEN my everything my-)

Anri

Taeko Onuki (one of my most listened to artists last yr for a Reason)

Kaoru Akimoto

Kingo Hamada

Jun Togawa

Bossa Nova:

Joao Gilberto (ooo he gets me every time i fucking love this man)

Elizeth Cardoso

Johnny Alf (forgot this man the first time around my bad BUT he's called the father of bossa nova for a reason so)

Hip Hop:

Flyana Boss (they're sooooo good i actually can't gush enough i have never felt so girlypop listening to music before go listen to them!! found the duo through ig so yeah if u want go follow them on there too to show support)

Lil Uzi Vert (for any emo lovers, go check out his song Werewolf with Bring Me the Horizon it is SO GOOD)

Samyra (she's slowly curing my body dysmorphia lol)

Yame (there's an accent on the e but idk how to do that on tumblr. anyway my ass loves french rap and before him i was stuck with klub des loosers so he saved my faith in the genre i can't even lie)

Lay Bankz (u cannot be chronically online and not have heard Ick yet, but i'm repping her regardless bc SHE'S SO GOOD)

A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie (HEAR ME OUT-)

Kaliii (Area Codes was one of my most listened to songs last year... as it should be tbh)

Miguel (he does R&B too i just first listened to him bc of his collab w J.Cole sooo)

Tyler the Creator (putting him on here just to brag abt getting to see him in concert lmao)

XXXTentacion (he has been mourned and talked abt an insane amount, but he deserves it i'm not even gonna joke on this one. his artistry is insane and he deserves some love if u haven't listened to him yet)

Kendrick Lamar (i mean i've been reblogging stuff abt him enough. Mr. Morale was actually the album that made me start Listening listening to him and i'm honestly glad it was bc that album is still my favourite to this day if i'm being totally honest)

Renaissauce (criminally and i do mean CRIMINALLY underrated)

[iwritenarrativesandstuff]

I think we are in need of more appreciation for Akutagawa's fluffy hair from the manga that is tragically not that fluffy in the anime...

Floof! (+ bonus sskk because I can. also his hair is extra fluffy here)

[andy-clutterbuck]

4x02 | Infected

[red-flagging]

💛 seb/lewis :-)

(kiss fic prompts!)

a little epilogue to rabbits are chasing :)

Lewis's flight lands at 8:02PM, which means that by 7:31PM, Seb is parked outside the airport arrivals door, drumming his fingers against the steering wheel and scanning the sky for approaching planes.

It's quite silly, getting here so early, but it's not as if there's much left to do at home. There's roast vegetables waiting in the oven, the cauliflower steaks that he started marinating earlier this morning chilling in the fridge. Mina and Ellie are safely ensconced in their duck coop with the heater turned on for the night. The sheets on the guest bed are freshly washed.

The car parked behind him starts up. Its headlights illuminate Seb's cabin. For a moment, he catches a glimpse of himself, harried and too-bright, in the rearview mirror. He scrubs his hands down his face. Christ. Get it together, Sebastian. He is a full 39 years old. Far too old to be getting the same jitters that he did the first time he invited a girl over at age 17, agonizing about what album to have playing when they came back to his room. Lewis is far too old for Seb to be doing all this. Lewis might not even be gay.

His phone buzzes. Seb nearly jumps out of his seat.

Lewis

just landed

getting my luggage now

hows it so freaking cold here

The inside of the car is already fogging up. When he'd asked Lewis to send dates he could come visit and Lewis had said just so you know the next few months are kind of crazy for me, Seb had expected late fall, maybe the holidays. Not the middle of slush season, when all the roads up the mountain have a 50/50 chance of being so muddy that they're undriveable.

Sebastian

I'm outside, in the blue Infiniti :)

He glances back up at himself in the mirror. The scab from where a wood chip caught the corner of his eyebrow while he was sanding the new planter box is almost healed over. His hair looks as good as it's ever going to. If Lewis asks whether he's been using conditioner, he's fucked.

It shouldn't feel like this. Seb beat Lewis to Senna's record, and Lewis still laughed at all his jokes the next season. Lewis watched Seb DNF twice in five races and still said in the media pen that he was waiting for the day Seb would be back up on the podium with him. When they inevitably auction off Lewis's Le Mans racesuit, it'll have to be with Seb's snot all over the front of it, because Lewis let Seb sob all over him and then laughed as he wiped sweat off of Seb's cheek with the sleeve. After all that – the fact that he's about to be in Seb's house for the next week shouldn't make Seb feel like he's standing in front of Lewis naked, without even the promise of a fast car or a good competition to distract Lewis from looking right at him.

His phone buzzes again.

Lewis

outside i think

Seb peers through the windscreen. Lewis – or rather, the blurry figure lugging a giant suitcase behind him that he assumes is Lewis – waves at him from the sidewalk. Seb flashes his lights at him twice.

The back door opens and Lewis's head, along with a burst of cold night air, pops in. "Hey," he says, a little breathlessly. "I don't think this is going to fit in the back."

It does, eventually, but not without a fight that involves Seb having to climb into the trunk alongside Lewis's suitcase and physically wrestle it into place while Lewis shoves from behind. They're both out of breath by the time they finally climb back in the front and slam the doors shut.

"You know, there are beds at the farm," Seb points out. "You didn't have to pack your own."

Lewis shakes his head, tugging off his gloves. His coat collar is turned up around his neck. He's wearing an an ear warmer headband, held in place by two butterfly pins. Every other bit of uncovered skin is pink, even with the heat in the car up at full blast. Lewis shoves his fingers in front of the vents and sighs with relief, closing his eyes. "Ugh, thank God," he says. He sounds exhausted. "Listen, you're lucky I fit everything into one." It sounds far less like a joke than Seb would hope. The fact that the fondness in Seb's chest still manages to outweigh the exasperation is probably a sign that Seb's beyond salvation.

"Next time I'll bring a trailer so you can fit your bathtub and toilet, too," he says, reaching for the keys. The engine purrs to life as he flicks the lights back on, then leans forward to scrub the worst of the fog off the windscreen. The thermometer on the dash says it's still 3 degrees outside. They might still be able to make it back before the slush freezes over. "Okay," he says, sitting back down and twisting around to reach for his seatbelt. "Ready to go?"

Lewis doesn't say anything. When Seb looks over, he's staring out the front window, playing with one of his rings.

"Lewis?" Seb asks.

Lewis's head jerks around. "Hm?" he says. "Oh. Yeah." He doesn't move to put on his seatbelt.

Seb frowns. Kills the engine so he can properly turn in his seat. "Lewis," he says. "Is everything –"

Lewis leans across the console and kisses him.

It's barely half a second. Seb still hasn't moved by the time Lewis sits back down on his side of the car.

"Uh," Lewis says, after a second. He clears his throat. "Sorry. I just – Shit. Sorry. The whole way over, all I could think about was – I had to get it over with before I chickened out."

He's fiddling with his rings again, but his eyes stay fixed on Seb's. His jaw is set. He still looks half-ready to bolt through the door behind him, out into the night.

"Well, you don't have to make it sound like taking your medicine, Christ," Seb says hoarsely, and drags Lewis back across the console to kiss him properly.

Lewis's lips are still cold. When Seb opens his mouth, Lewis sighs, pressing in closer with a soft sound that makes Seb want to go twenty years back in time and kick himself for not figuring out how to make Lewis make that noise sooner. His hands settle on Seb's wrists, holding him in place. Seb slides his own hands up, cradling the back of Lewis's head, to return the favor.

When he finally pulls away just far enough to catch his breath, Lewis follows him, close enough that their noses bump. His eyes are wide. This close up, Seb can see the dark circles under them more clearly.

He closes his eyes. Lewis is still there when he opens them.

"How long have you been awake?" he asks.

Lewis blinks. "What," he says. "Are you talking about."

"Sleep deprivation," Seb says. His heart is pounding hard enough that he feels it in his throat. "People start to get delirious when they're tired enough –"

"I was awake for 24 hours and I didn't kiss you at the end," Lewis interrupts, his eyes sharp and bright. "I'm not making the same mistake twice."

Seb opens his mouth and nothing comes out. He tries again. Still nothing.

"Fuck," he says, closing his eyes. "Okay. Okay." He drags himself back upright and reaches for the keys. "We can – tomorrow. But we should – you need to shower. And sleep." Lewis's hand settles on his leg. Seb rests his own on top of it; after a second, he squeezes Lewis's fingers gently. Lewis flips his hand over and laces their fingers together.

"Yeah," Lewis says. His thumb traces over Seb's knuckles. "That – tomorrow sounds good."

The slush crackles under the tires when Seb starts to move. Ahead of them, the headlights carve a path through the darkness. Lewis's hand is a solid, steady weight against his leg. "Okay," Seb says, to himself, to both of them, to no one. Lewis hums softly from his side of the car. He squeezes Seb's knee gently.

Seb closes his eyes for a second. "Okay," he says quietly. "Yeah. Let's go home."

[skyward-floored]

also what happens to Malon after she's arrested????? (does she, perhaps, find smth out about her deceased husband 👀)

- hero-of-the-wolf

@hero-of-the-wolf

...

Malon was tossed into a holding cell without a word, and without so much as the hope of a trial or lawyer or anything of the sort.

She heard a distant laugh as the door was slammed behind her, and exhaled wearily as she sat up, brushing some dried blood from her cheek as she moved. The trip here hadn’t been long, but it had been one unpleasant moment after another, harsh shoves and sneers and glee at her arrest, and even a shock she’d gotten when a guard’s hand had wandered and she’d punched him.

Add that to the bruises she’d gotten from the fight earlier with Warriors, and most of her body ached.

Malon closed her eyes, thinking of her husband’s brother. Warriors had stayed beside her as long as he could after she’d been arrested, a hand on her arm until he'd been called away and had to leave. Despite the fact that they’d had to feign indifference and hatred towards one another the whole time, Malon had found his presence comforting. She’d missed him, and he reminded her of Time, and better days.

She only wished she could have spoken to him more. It didn’t take superpowers for her to see that he was barely holding it together.

“...Hello?”

Malon stilled, and raised her head, looking around the tiny cell.

It was essentially a stone box, small with no windows, a toilet in the corner, and two somewhat-cushioned benches by the walls that Malon supposed were meant to be beds. A girl who must have just been asleep was sitting up on one of them, holding her arm tight to her chest as she looked warily at Malon.

The girl couldn’t have been older than Legend, though her face was worn in a similar way that made Malon’s heart pang. Her blonde hair was messy and was trying to hang in her face, but her indigo eyes were sharp in the artificial light, and watched Malon with a calculating look.

“Are you a super?” she asked bluntly, and Malon blinked, then smiled, easing up to her feet.

“Hello to you too. Yes I am, but with nothing that’ll get us out of here I’m afraid,” she answered, wincing as she walked over and sat on the opposite bench. “Is this room temporary? Or am I going to be here a while?”

“I don’t know. I’ve only been here for about a day,” the girl replied, holding her arm tighter to her chest. “And don’t worry about your powers being useful or not. They’re blocked in here.“

Malon hummed. “That’ll be hard to test, seeing as they’re animal related. But thank you for the warning.”

The girl nodded and messed with her hair, letting silence fall between them. Malon studied her again, trying to figure out if she really was the same age as Legend, and her heart ached at the reminder of her son. She hoped desperately that he and the boys had gotten away— by now they must be close to Sky’s, even if they were being cautious.

All of them except for Twilight.

A deeper pang of worry shot through her as she thought of her other son, and she bit her lip.

Oh Twi, please be okay...

Malon sucked in a slow breath, and gave the girl a gentle smile. “My name is Malon,” she said, in an effort to keep herself distracted from her worries. Being anxious about her family wouldn't make them any safer. “How about you?”

“...Zelda,” the girl said quietly, then shrugged. “Or Zel. Or Zellie. Or Fable.”

“Fable?”

Her mouth quirked up. “I know another Zelda, we did nicknames to make it easier. Somehow that was just what got picked. It’s what I tend to go by, honestly.”

Malon smiled. “I know how that goes. I have two sons named Link, and more Links beside that rarely go by their names. Long story,” she added at Fable’s confused look.

Fable sighed and leaned against the wall. “Well, I’ve got time.”

“I was hoping to use mine to somehow get out of here,” Malon said with a glance around, and Fable closed her eyes.

“You’re welcome to try, but I’ve had no luck. I’ve gotten food once while I’ve been here, and they threatened to shock me if I tried anything with the door open. Not that I could with this,” she huffed, gesturing to the arm she had cradled to her chest.

Malon looked closer, and realized that the arm was swollen and bruised, the skin an unpleasant mix of purples and bluish-greens.

“Are you okay?” Malon asked worriedly, and Fable shrugged one shoulder.

“It’s just a broken arm. It got hurt in the fight before they arrested me, and nobody’s done anything for it,” she said in a pointed voice at the doorway.

The door stayed silent.

Malon frowned, and carefully stood and approached Fable, sitting down beside her. “...May I?”

Fable hesitated, then slowly held out her arm, the limb shaking a bit. Malon took it with a gentle hand, and studied it, feeling cautiously along the skin. Fable winced, but Malon made sure to be careful, and after a couple minutes, was fairly sure that the break was near the middle of her forearm.

“It doesn’t seem like it’s too bad,” Malon said, gently releasing her arm. “It’s swollen, so maybe that’s why, but I couldn’t feel the actual break. It’ll set easily if it is one, but we should probably figure out a way to get a sling for you.”

Fable wrinkled her eyebrows at Malon like she couldn’t quite figure her out, but she nodded. And she didn’t try to stop Malon when she pulled off the apron she still had on (she wondered briefly what had ever happened to the bacon she’d been cooking), and worked on tying it around into a suitable sling.

“So... what happened to you?” Fable asked after a minute of Malon fiddling with fabric. “If you don't mind me asking. You said you're a super, but you're not even in uniform. What did you do to get thrown in here?”

“Me? Oh me and my family have been doing a lot under ol’ Dark’s nose for a while now, and everything finally caught up to us,” Malon sighed, figuring a true explanation would take too long. Wind and Four alone would probably make Fable think she was crazy. “They came after us at home after we tried to help somebody. My family that was at the house made it away, but my one son was on duty... I don’t know where he is.”

Malon breathed out a sigh she told herself wasn’t shaky, and cleared her throat.

“How about you? What did a nice girl like you do to get arrested?”

Fable blinked, and looked down at Malon's attempts to secure the sling, not speaking for a moment.

“I fought back,” she said after a long minute of silence. “I just— I just hit my limit. I couldn’t take it anymore, what they’re doing, how they treat us...”

Fable’s voice wobbled.

“My... father died. And I know it wasn’t by natural causes, I found proof, but I couldn’t do anything with it. It was an official who’d had him killed, and I knew I had to keep acting like everything was fine like I didn’t know and I just... I snapped. It didn’t end well. Obviously.”

She swallowed thickly, and Malon, finished with the sling, gave her a gentle look.

“I’m sorry hon, that must’ve been awful,” Malon said softly, and Fable pulled her legs up to her chest.

“I've definitely had better days. At least I got to toss a few people into the harbor,” she murmured, then swallowed and looked away. “Do you... think your family is okay?”

“I hope so,” Malon replied softly. “Twi... Twilight— he’s my oldest— he’s tough, and his powers enhance his senses, so he should be okay. My youngest can turn invisible, and he has somewhere safe to go, and friends with him. I’m worried about them all, but... I trust their skills. I think they’ll be okay.” They'd better be okay.

I don't think I can lose anybody else.

Malon took a deep breath, and looked over at Fable, giving her a smile.

“And I’m not planning on sitting around here and waiting for them to rescue me,” she said firmly, and squeezed Fable’s shoulder. "Or see what sort of sentence or punishment either of us is going to get. I'm gonna to do my best to escape. You wanna work together and bust out of here?"

Fable looked at her in surprise, and hesitated, eyes scanning across her face.

Then her eyes hardened with determination.

“Yes. I don't want to stick around and see what they're going to do to us either. I'm in," she said with a deep breath, and Malon took her uninjured hand in hers, and shook it.

"In that case, we'd better get to work," she smiled, and Fable returned it. "What can you do, hon?"

And as Fable explained her powers, already looking less pale and defeated then she had when Malon had first been tossed in, Malon felt the hope that had started to dim in her heart flicker back to life.

[topnotchquark]

I am new to motogp, but what the fuck is the deal with Uccio and the rosquez drama in 2015.

My brother in Christ are u stupid? Why don't you tell Vale to put all his stamina and mental games on f.ing Lorenze, the actual threat to the 10th? You could scheme the divorce in 2016 or sth you stupid Ipad stand!

Oh my god! An opportunity to analyse Uccio! Persona non grata and public enemy number 1 on motogpblr (btw, are there any Uccio shooters on Tumblr? My inbox is a safe space, I wanna hear your side of the story).

There is no way for me to know for a fact why Uccio ended up being the first domino to fall that led to Sepang 2015 but I did look around to see if I could find a bit more about the relationship between Vale and Uccio.

These two go all the way back to the crib, literally. Uccio mentioned in an interview that Tavullia is a small town and they were only a few months apart in age so they ended up at the only day care in the town together.

Uccio has been called a bumbling fool and a freeloader and what not (look at this post openly roasting him for being Vale's Lackey) and despite my dislike of him I won't do the same (for once lol). Vale shot to stardom at a young age doing the death sport that required him to travel extensively. What better way to feel grounded than to have your childhood friend near you at all times (the fact that Vale didn't leave Tavullia for flashier places like Monaco or wtv has been reiterated in so much writing about him, and Uccio has said the same). There is definitely an element of familiarity and comfort that both Vale and Uccio seek from each other. Uccio mentioned that they would come back from a weekend of racing, put down their suitcases and immediately get on the phone with each other, which, teenage bestie-ism is such a force lol it could power cities if harnessed.

Anyway, back to racing. The consensus is that Vale didn't have the best rivals in Biaggi and Gibernau, they were inconsistent and susceptible to mind games. Vale enjoyed the initial years of his career as an untouchable, peerless talent. And then..... the winds changed direction :)

Vale was 36 in 2015, most pro athletes are considered done and dusted at that age. He had been putting his body through years of premier class motorcycle racing. Add to that how bad the Ducati years had been and just, so much life had happened. I don't want to talk about Sic's death, but that too and while racing at that. Vale had already started working on the academy (Franky was signed in 2013 afaik). Vale had moved on from the glittering, ebullient, darling of every circuit personality. Imo choosing to be a mentor and doing that well is among the most impressive things Vale has done but when you mentally cross the rubicon to accept your youth is decidedly over, it changes things. For starters, it's a real question of whether you've already chosen to hang your boots. What I'm trying to say is, a lot was at stake in 2015 for Vale. The kind of, calm and bemused, quietly malicious as and when required public persona that Vale has honed over the years needs the solid bedrock of consistent winning to seem graceful. It wasn't just a championship at this point, it was a question of pride and cementing your legacy and being the architect of how the world perceives you when the odds have been stacked against you for a while.

Back to Uccio. He simply didn't trust or like Marc. Or anyone who was on the racetrack at the same time as Vale (he didn't even spare sweet nothings for Viñales). I have no concrete theory for said distrust short of just saying Uccio is a bit of a slimy character (this interview of Uccio when he's doing his best impersonation of henchman from an old Hollywood western). Uccio wasn't even happy when Marc made the infamous visit to the ranch in winter of 2014. Guess the whole "Marc is helping Jorge win" thing was Uccio's attempt at reminding Vale of his ruthless nature that he thought Vale was finding hard to tap into (Vale did say Marc was an updated model of him). A friend once said that a lot of time public facing figures aren't as cruel or rancid in their interpretation of the world as much as the followers of said people. So Uccio started talking shit and given the circumstances of 2015, it made an impact.

Ultimately the odds were stacked high and Vale made a mistake. I suppose Vale knows a thing or two about how pressure can make someone succumb to errors :)

So that's my take on the whole deal. Uccio, croney par excellence, used Vale's desperate title bid in 2015 to purge some of his misplaced blood lust. He made Marc his target because according to him the young ones on the grid were nothing but a nuisance. Vale fucked up and let it drive his paranoia and made a big fucking mistake.

[viiinz]

everyday I think about him (Ippolit Terentyev)

[red-moon-at-night]

Hey this MV sure has a LOT of split second graphics huh

A very short MV but maybe, just maybe, I'll forgive the milgram team with the love letter to graphic design (you know, because that's mikoto's job) and sheer volume of semi-decipherable and semi-indecipherable text/iconography/colour choices...

Do with the following images what you will:

[penofwildfire]

Y'know I'm pretty sure obsessively thinking about a lego cartoon all day every day for over a decade to the point that it's a key part of your entire personality and one of the first things people know about you is just. Not a very allistic thing to do. Y'know? You understand me?

[mad-hunts]

the concept of barton having this inside joke with mister freeze where every other time he sees him, he goes ' hey, go on!! DO THE THING ' to him. and it seems victor immediately knows what he's talking about, because he just begrudgingly shoots his freeze ray at something (which causes barton to whistle and hype him up and stuff JSJSJ) is SO funny to me for no reason 💀 like he would put someone who's trying to just save his wife on a pedestal. and he would also say hi to him every time he passes by like victor is the bees-knees or something, but then proceed to say 'fuck off' right after to joker or something LMAOO

[the-lesbian-of-too-many-fandoms]

Phoenixes have to burn before they rise part 1: the prologue

(trigger warning for depictions of violence)

15 seconds after the incident

I'm looking at a live feed of the end of the world.

The static of a long abandoned earpiece echos in my ears.

I watch as governments fall in real time.

I watch as escaping agents are shot out of the sky.

I watch as the scolding remains of the agency gets searched by zor operatives.

I watch in horror as they drag people out of the ruins and shoot them in the head.

All I can do is watch and look down at my finger, an inch away from the button that would have stopped it all.

In one split second we lost.

In one split second I failed.

One split second...

cost the world.

@agent-toast @whatifijustmashedwordstogether @aaperturetestsubject @sml8180 @dawnphoenixrises @ghostlystarwanderer @vallianttreedreamland @featherrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr @kitkatyes @eodasks

[tracingpapier]

little doodle i did on my downtime ^_^

universe where i just delete the love triangle in the first 50 issues. bye bozo