#INDIANA HAS DONE MANY TERRIBLE THINGS | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

obislittleone · 1 year ago

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Temple of the Forbidden Eye (3)

Indiana Jones x OC

Series Summary: The relationship between student and teacher is strictly professional, or at least it should be. He’s never met his match in archeological intelligence, and if he ever does, it might drive him to do something stupid.

A/n: since indy came out this weekend, here’s a veeeery long chapter to suffice your indy needs

Warnings: oh boy… bullying, good ol’ fashioned misogyny, mentions of past abuse, mentions of blood and bruises (not explicitly), like.. one swear word.

(Co-written by the lovely @theatrelove3000 you guys should go give her a follow)

The late night work became a regular occurrence, along with her occupying the guest room for those nights. She was always gone when Dr. Jones woke up. It concerned him at first, but he figured she just didn't want to be a burden, not that she ever was. The more time he spent around her, the more it became obvious to him that she tried her best to take up as little space as she possibly could.

Since her presence in his home became a regular event, he started keeping food stocked. He made it very clear that he did it for her benefit and she was welcome to anything he has. This led to her making dinner for the both of them often while they worked. He would bring whatever they had been working on with him and set it up on the breakfast counter connected to the rest of his kitchen. She would read between steps or they'd talk about whatever the work was. He came to enjoy these times, even if it was only subconsciously.

Of course, spending as much time with him as she was, it was bound to come back around to bite her. The rumors started relatively quickly. She was able to handle rumors; they'd unfortunately been a major part of her life growing up, and mostly just drew attention from those stupid enough to believe them. That didn't mean she enjoyed the staring, though. She much preferred when she was more or less invisible to her peers and professors. She knew they looked before, that was fine. They were surprised to see a woman in their fancy, expensive classes, let alone one who wears trousers. She didn't mind those looks. Those looks at least were respectful enough to look away when she caught them. Those looks were only because they were shocked to have seen something of her nature…

Now, it's different. Now, they don't look away when she sees them looking. Instead, they throw daggers with their eyes and whisper to each other as she passes. She has had things like this happen before but never for her own decisions. It is different when one makes the choice to continue doing the thing everyone is gossiping about. It made everything more… obvious to her.

Scarlet was many things; traits that she knew she had and traits that people who she entrusted told her she had. Paranoid was not on the list of said traits. She had never had a reason to be paranoid. Perhaps she did now. Jealousy can make a person do terrible things, especially when the person believes they are more entitled to whatever the object of their envy has. Boys don’t like when they are shown up by girls who are supposedly smarter than they are. Little rich boys hate it more than anything else in the world.

The twenty-some year old college goers who sat in front of and across her in Professor Jones’ class, only looking behind or to the side of them when he called on her for every question he asked the students. She was smart, but they all had reason to believe he was favoring her over one thing. Her good looks and time available after school. Everyone had heard about their little arrangement, with her as his ‘apprentice’ though she had never done any work in the field. It all seemed too suspicious for a young girl to be residing at her Professor’s home every other day. Her test scores didn’t lie, but the boys in the class did not exactly have access to those. They only saw what was right in front of their eyes, and it looked to them like a scandal. Teacher’s pet, the favorite of them all. She had what they couldn’t have. They couldn’t possibly look at their own merit and decide that it was the real reason for their lacking, so they insisted it must be the fact that she was getting special attention.

There were two boys in particular, that were especially miffed about her enhanced situation. They had discussed it with one another and took it upon themselves to be the voice of reason, deciding it would be best if she were brought down a few pegs. Just enough to be sure that she wouldn’t feel as high and mighty anymore.

They waited by the glass case of school awards in the hallway closest to Professor Jones’ classroom, pretending to be in full conversation whilst their colleagues walked by. Some of them entered the class, completely unaware of what the foolish boys planned to do.

Down the hall came Scarlet Ledger, accompanied by none other than Henry Jones. No other heads were turned as they walked, however, for it was a rather busy time of day, and the students were more focussed on getting to their next class, rather than who they saw in the way of their destination. Last night, they had gone over a series of notes from an old friend of his, who was unable to finish an expedition on an artifact he’d spent years preparing to find. Having received the journals and maps from the retired associate was like being handed the answers to a test. It was all there, and all he had to do now was go out and find it. She had been helping him to figure out the little details, and now the discussion was if she would be joining him or not on this wild endeavor. He, of course, claimed it was too dangerous for a first timer to be brought along on such an elaborate journey.

“You should start with something more local, like I did,” he turned to her, trying to convey that he did not think her unable, but only inexperienced in the field thus far to take on something so big.

“It’s not like I’m going alone,” she replied with a small laugh. He made it sound like she would be single handedly making the trek to the treasure. It was a silly notion to think that he was so worried, when he himself was running point on the entire thing. “Not to overestimate you Professor Jones, but I believe you have the ability to defend me if the need should arise. Not that I think it will, I’ll only be assisting you when needed, hence the title of ‘Apprentice.’”

His chuckle was combated by the shake of his head. He knew that eventually he would be giving in to her, because she had this trait of arguing, and just plainly talking her way into something she hadn’t been a part of before. It was often infuriating, but he never walked away from a challenge, even one he knew there was no chance of winning.

“We’ll talk more after school,” he said, temporarily ending the conversation and walking ahead of her to his classroom. She stopped in her tracks, smiling like a ten year old school girl that was about to be on summer vacation.

He curved his steps, stepping into the doorway and out of her vision. She usually lingered in the hallway for a few moments, as to avoid the stares when she walked in precisely after he did. It sounded ridiculous that she would even make such efforts, but she made the decision consciously, and it often worked.

She kicked her heels over the ground and clutched her books tightly to her chest, wandering about for a few seconds more. She took steps towards the door, but collided with two young men, and had to back away quickly.

“I’m so sorry,” she looked to the floor, where one of the boy’s papers had been dropped. She knelt quickly and grabbed them before the breezy open hallway could send them fluttering about. She stood back up to face them with a smile, handing the shorter boy his papers back. “You’ll have to excuse me, I’m afraid I’m a bit clumsier than usual.”

They didn’t say anything, just stood there and stared at her. Strange boys, she thought. She attempted to simply nod and pass around them, but the taller one blocked her way, making himself like a brick wall between her and her favorite class.

“Pardon me,” she said sweetly, trying once more to walk around him but failing to do so when the other boy decided to also stand in her way. She was peeved, but wouldn't show it on her face. “Gentlemen, I am very sorry for bumping into you, but I really need to get to my class.”

“Hear that, Jim? She really needs to get to her class,” the taller boy said tauntingly. She furrowed her brow, misunderstanding why they could possibly have the need to bother her at this precise moment. She recognized them, they sat in front and across from her. Shouldn’t they also be running along to be seated in time?

“I think Professor Jones can do without his pet for a few minutes,” the other one spoke with a humorless chuckle. It was clear to her now that they had meant to hold her up, and probably to start a scuffle. These boys were obviously clued into the rumors and false gossip that spread through the halls, but actually having the balls to instigate a fight over it was a rarity.

“Please, if you could just let me pass,” she tried once more to barrel through the small gap between them, but they shoved her back, and she tumbled to the side a little from the force. She readjusted her grip on her books, trying to compose her posture once more. This all seemed so juvenile, like they would be the school bullies on an elementary school playground.

“No, I don’t think I will,” one laughed, taking a step closer to her with crossed arms, the other followed. It was beginning to make her feel uneasy, and her usually confident stature was caving in upon being forced into a corner.

As uneasy as the boys made her, she still tried her best to talk her way out. “Honestly, gentlemen. What are we, children? We all have a class to attend. I doubt you want to be late and risk missing important material.”

“I’ll take my chances,” the taller one said as he took a step closer.

Henry was nothing if not observant, and furthermore, he was intricately observant. When the pair of boys walked into his class three minutes late, along with the fact that his best student was still missing from the crowd, he was able to deduce that something happened in the short time he was separated from her, and it involved the two of them. He didn’t know how, but he was quite sure. It was also notable that the two young men were the ones that sat closest to her in the room. She didn’t have a deskmate, for obvious reasons, so the fact that they were in the near vicinity also made him think that they were involved somehow. She was never late, and she was never one to ditch a class of any kind, much less her favorite.

“Looking for someone?” one of the students asked, clearly referencing the teacher’s pet. It was funny, or at least the rest of the class thought so, breaking into small fits of quiet giggles that filled the classroom. Henry was far from amused, and did not even hesitate to ask about his prized student.

“Has anyone seen Miss Ledger?”

The question reverberated against the walls of the room, and made everyone quiet down. There was a hand that had been raised in the very back, it was the boy who had come in late, and sat directly across from Scarlett on most days. After being pointed at, the boy wore a proud look on his face, the expression was enough to send adrenaline coursing through Henry’s veins.

“I saw her in the hallway only a minute ago. She seemed to be going mad, something about needing to get home so she could find more trousers,” he said, his comedic tone indicating it may have been partially a joke. The classroom again erupted into muffled laughter, but the look on their professor’s face made them straighten up very quickly.

He wasn’t exactly worried over her, per se, but now very paranoid as to what really occurred in that hallway when he had left her there. She wouldn’t just miss a class for the reason of finding a new pair of trousers. She was his most dedicated student, and would walk through hell or high water to be in her seat by the time attendance was taken. It all just seemed too suspicious for his liking, and as annoyed as he was, he heaved a sigh, continuing his class.

“Everyone, pay attention,” he began, droning on all the notes he had prepared with Scarlet the evening before.

She did not leave his mind the entirety of his lesson, which made sense, given half the time he read from the papers, it was her perfect handwriting that was scrawled over the small lines. He was thankful for the release of the bell ringing through everyone’s ears when the hour was over. He only had two classes in the day, and once they were done, he was free to either sit in the Professor’s lounge, or go home. He’d much prefer to go home, considering the circumstances he’d been met with on this particular day. Avoiding the multitudes of female students as he left his office, he nearly ran to his car in the lot, trying his best not to seem like he was in a hurry. The rumors had been heard by his ears, too, and he didn’t want to give anyone fuel for the fire.

He got home fairly quickly, which was all well and good, but the thing was that he didn’t have the slightest clue of what to do with himself once he’d entered his front door. It seemed ridiculous for him to be acting this way, as he wasn’t even sure of what had happened, but he assumed it was nothing good. He tried to calm himself by sitting on the couch in his office, reading over some of the things they’d started marking out for the expedition. He had maybe distracted himself for an hour before his doorbell rang out.

He jumped from his seat, scattering the papers and taking large steps towards the door. He wasn’t sure what he was expecting to see when he opened the door, but the lovely image of Scarlet Ledger wearing a skirt was not on the list. She had made it more than clear in the time they spent together that she had a distaste for skirts because of some not very fond memories in her youth, and yet here she stood in a fitted tweed skirt that started high on her waist and fell just under her knees. Her sweater was the same cream one that she had been in earlier, but the skirt was not even close to her favorite chocolate brown trousers.

Pants are more comfortable, she always said, and they leave no room for impish schoolboys to mess around and flip them over your head when your back is turned.

His furrowed brows were uncontrollable, and it made her feel even worse about the situation than she already had. His eyes that scanned her up and down about three times more were not because of his dislike, but because of his shock. Truly, this was the last thing he ever thought he’d see her wear.

“Sorry I’m late,” she said, a cheerful smile as if nothing had happened that day. “May I come in?”

He shook his head to get rid of the nasty feeling, giving her a tight lip smile that was unconvincing next to the one he always gave her when she first arrived.

“I already started marking out the route on the map,” he said while stepping aside to let her in. Feeling the hem of her skirt brushing against his leg felt so strange, and he wasn’t sure if she was ever going to fess up to the reason why she was wearing it in the first place, but he wouldn’t bother her about it, yet.

“You were supposed to wait for me,” she sighed out, slightly disappointed that he hadn’t paid attention to her words from last night. It had been one of the things she was most excited about. The location had been found, but it was the journey to said location that would hold all the fun that was finding such an artifact.

“I didn’t think you were coming.”

At this she stopped, turning around and nervously looking him over. It didn’t seem like he knew anything, but she had to be sure.

“I always come after school,” she murmured, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“Well sure, but when you didn’t show up to class, I had my doubts that you’d show up here,” he was nonchalant, but something inside him was irritated. That way she was so perfectly calm, much less while wearing a skirt. She didn’t seem to have any problem in the facts of her absence, and acted as though it never happened at all. “Speaking of which, I’d like to know why you missed my class?”

She stood awkwardly with her hands folded behind her back. She seemed very stiff, and he figured it must be the effects of her wearing the skirt. She seemed far less confident, boreline uncomfortable, which never happened in his presence. He’d made it clear what he thinks of her, and she’d never felt the need to mask her personality, nor her spunky attitude.

“Oh? Yes, I’m sorry to have worried you,” she paused, straightening up slightly before looking him in the eye as she lied to his face. “I was lingering in the hallway, and felt a bit nauseous, so I decided to stand outside for a minute. Unfortunately, there was a bump in the doorstep that I hadn’t seen before… I fell down and scuffed up my trousers, so I went home to change before walking here.”

The look of utter ‘this is horseshit’ on his face when she finished speaking was so evident, she had to look away in order to prevent herself from faltering. Truth be told, the thing he found most amusing was just how rehearsed the story had sounded. It was so well gone over in her head, and he could hear it in the evened spaces of her words.

“Is that the story you’re sticking with?” he tilted his head with an unconvinced expression.

She stopped for a second to think about her response, because clearly he wasn’t buying into any of this. She knew he wouldn’t, but the truth was far more embarrassing and she’d rather not have to retell the events of which she fell into this afternoon.

“It’s the one I have decided on, yes," she turns back to walk towards his office, choosing not to elaborate further. She decided that her response was good enough, and continued as if she wasn’t being incredibly vague and unconvincing.

He would get to the bottom of it, but if she was this defensive over what had happened, he would need to let her become comfortable again. She looked so out of place in a home she had resided in more than her own.

As they got started, he neglected to mention anything about the incident. He joined in the act of pretending all was well, but it didn’t settle her like he thought it might. As the night went on, she perhaps got even more tense than she was when she had arrived.

He watched her as she sat, decidedly uncomfortable in her attire. Her posture was not nearly as good as it normally was. Even when she is half asleep, she sits straight as an arrow, as if a string had been pulled through the entirety of her spine and was holding her up. Her shoulders were always back. It was so natural for her, that normally he would have thought a slumped and curved position was not possible.

Looking at her now, the best way he could describe her stature would be curled. She was curled in on herself. As though she was hiding, or protecting herself from something. It almost appeared that she was trying to shrink in on her already small form.

“Are you ready to talk about it now, or should I wait a little longer and make you a cup of tea?” Professor Jones tries his best to make his voice light and teasing, but the smile he has that often makes her grin back doesn’t even cause a twitch of her lips. Strange. She barely even glanced at him.

“Talk about what?” She just opens the file in front of her and starts to flip through it. She was clearly going to try and sweep it under the rug. He decided to let it go for now, hoping the work will distract them both enough to get back to normal. That is, until she shifts slightly and her skirt rides up her leg. Even through her stockings, he can see the bruise blossoming. Her knee was also partially skinned, the dried red that would become slightly scared was evident.

“Alright, I’m sorry,” he closed his book and tossed it aside, uncaring where it landed for the moment. “I was going to let it go, but now I can’t. What actually happened? And don't give me the ‘I tripped’ story again. You don’t get bruises on your lower thigh from tripping on a doorstep.”

Her face froze, and she shifted her skirt down to cover her knees again. It was too late to make up another story on the spot, not one convincing enough anyway. The best one she had come up with was the one he’d seen through the entire time. She sighed out and dropped her eyes to her hands. Her pride kept her from admitting what happened, because in her mind, nothing was more embarrassing than being treated the way she was for such unjustifiable reasons. She trusted her Professor, and he made her feel safe, but this was different. It concerned him.

Neither one of them had spoken about the circulating rumors, just let them hang in the air and ignored the stares from people as they walked by. Confronting the gossip meant that things might change, and she didn’t want them to. She was perfectly fine with the after school arrangement, the late nights that were ever so productive.

“There were two boys in the hallway that blocked me from getting to class,” she began, still looking down, and missing as his fist clenched against his palm. He knew those boys were up to no good, he’d been able to tell just by the way they walked in. “They shoved me into a corner and tried to get me to admit to… something. I denied it and they got upset, so they grabbed me by my pockets and tossed me to the ground. My trousers had gotten completely torn, and my leg was scuffed up, too.”

She rushed out the last of the words, and had to slowly even her breath so she wouldn’t cry. She’d cried her entire walk home, and decided after she changed that she wouldn’t cry over it again. It wasn’t like her to be so offended, but the things they said hurt more than the bruises and scrapes. She’d try and avoid telling him if she could, but of course, his curiosities were ever present.

“What did they try to get you to admit? You haven’t killed anyone, have you?” He said, his humor entering the scene even in this moment which was serious. She huffed a small laugh, feeling a bit better as she prepared herself for this next step. She needed to choose her words carefully, because what she said now would determine how things would go for the next several months.

“Professor, I think you may have been hearing rumors at school lately, ones concerning you and I,” she said slowly, watching for his reaction and eventually receiving a nod from him. Of course he’d heard the rumors, everyone had. She was surprised that the entire University faculty and staff hadn’t heard by now. “My classmates are convinced that because of such things that I am receiving special treatment.”

“You are receiving special treatment,” he reasoned, but she shook her head, and he gestured for her to continue.

“Not for doing the things they think I am,” she let out, the first tear escaping her eye, marking out a path on her cheek and dropping down to bleed a small stain onto her shirt. After that, more started following, and she couldn’t hold the choked sounds out of her voice any longer, either. “I have been called a lot of things in my life, most I can take, but for boys who claim to be gentlemen to corner me in a hallway and accuse me of prostituting myself for grades before throwing me down and calling me a whore is probably one of the worst feelings I’ve ever felt in my life.”

She instinctively did what she’d always done as a child. She sought comfort from outer warmth, from being touched. She wrapped her arms around herself and brought her knees to her chest, laying her chin atop her arms and closing her eyes tightly. She hated that she was breaking down here, in one of the only places she could seek comfort in, but thinking back to her horrible experience, and thinking that there could be plenty more ahead waiting for her was suffocating. She couldn’t help how pathetic she looked or sounded, though she’d like to bet she’ll regret it later.

She heard shifting in the room, and felt a dip in the couch beside her. She looked up to meet his eyes, and he placed a hand on her shoulder, using the other to take his glasses off and set them on the table. She had seen him without them before, as he usually discarded them when he grew tired, but she’d never been so close up to really see what he looked like without them. He looked younger, boyishly handsome.

“I’m sorry,” he was so soft spoken, and his eyes held so much compassion. He was a man in this field. He’d never had to deal with anything of this sort in his life, so he could never understand how devastating it must be to commit yourself to your studies and be treated like there was some ulterior motive, simply because of gender. He would never know how it feels to be called such things or be bullied over stupid jealousies. “I’ll make sure they get what they’re owed, alright?”

Immediately she turned to him with wide teary eyes, shaking her head rapidly. “No, please. If you involve yourself, It will only look worse.”

“I can’t just let it go. This is far more serious than you seem to be grasping-"

"Professor, I understand perfectly fine!"

"No, Scarlet, you clearly don't. What they did was wrong, no matter what reason they had," he pushes past the fact that he just called her by her first name. In every closeness they had by now achieved, that had been a line which wasn’t crossed until this moment.

His assertive tone made her straighten up her spine, and she forced onto her face a look of indifference. She knew he was only trying to help, but she would not let this get out of hand. She already earned a bad reputation on account of nothing but good natured studying and commitment to her field, and she would at some point have to draw the line as to where she stood in all of this.

“Professor Jones, I must insist that you do not say anything to the young men in your class. As much as I appreciate your willingness to help my case, I think it would be a bad idea to let you defend me, now.”

He seemed peeved, but not completely annoyed. Curious as he was to her reasoning, he felt it ridiculous to neglect his attempts. Why would she push away someone who was trying to help her?

“And why is that?”

She had to take a deep inhale in order to look him in the eye when she spoke her next words.

“Because they expect you to,” she was trying to convey the unspoken words to him as appropriately as possible, but of course, Henry was never as lady-like.

“Because they think we’re sleeping together.”

Well, bingo. He’d hit it right on the nose, and she had to duck her head to hide her flushed cheeks from his stone gaze. “Yes, that would be why.”

He sat back in his seat, looking at other objects in the room, and hoping they would help him to think about a solution. He couldn’t help but feel like this was a rather out of his hands situation. The students of his class had made up their minds about her, but maybe he could change that. Perhaps, he could expose the boys for their actions without calling on them directly.

“But we aren’t sleeping together.”

“No. We are not.” She tries hard to keep her voice level, though he can hear the slight catch in it. She’s still trying to hold back tears.

Henry sighs, running a hand through his hair. “Look,” he starts, “it’s one thing to be accused of something you aren’t doing when it’s only rumors. They crossed a line when they approached you physically, and there has to be a way to address it.”

Again, she looked scared, or at least rather uncomfortable with his suggestion. He hadn’t been finished though, and held up his hand to allow room to continue.

“I have a friend in the office who owes me a favor. He might be able to address them without anyone else knowing about it, or that you ever told me anything.”

This, she decided, was a solution worth trying for. Her subtle nod made him quirk a small smile from the corner of his mouth. He nodded once too, and squeezed her shoulder as he leaned further back into the couch. She had begun relaxing immediately after that, and he felt he’d done something right in all this.

She was only to be his student, but he could not deny he wanted to protect her from such things as these. He’s not always the kindest hearted person in the world, but he felt that perhaps he may have done the same for another girl in his class, as it was simply the right thing to do. He wasn’t so sure, though, that he would be so gentle and tender around her like he was now with Scarlett. He tread so delicately, because God help him, he cared so much about how she reacted to things. His attachment to what was only supposed to be his student had far surpassed what should be considered normal.

Never before had he ever had a ‘teacher’s pet’ or a ‘professor’s lackey’, but it was plain as day to anyone, now. Scarlett Ledger was his favorite student.

“Thank you,” she started smiling at him, now knowing that her reputation would not be further damaged, and her assaulters would receive punishment. There was also another reason. “For helping me.”

“It’s no problem. What they did is not acceptable from anyone in my class, their actions will have consequences.”

They settled it there, and continued on with the work being done. Papers littered the floor an hour later as they worked, and though the hour was late, there was still so much to be done before the expedition took place. The question of her going still hung in the balance, and she had hoped that with all the work and time she had devoted, and perhaps a bit of Henry’s guilt from this situation being caused, he would allow her to join him.

He had been sat on the floor by now, handing papers and notes he’d written down to her where she sat on the couch, but as he went over some journal entries of the dear friend of his that handed this adventure over to him, he neglected to realize that the soft shuffle of papers behind him, along with the quiet sound of a pencil moving had ceased. When he finished with the journal entry, he had marked the lines he had wanted her to see and was about to hand it over… but when he turned around, Scarlett had fallen into a restful sleep. Her head laid on the arm of the couch, and her arms wrapped around herself to keep warm without a blanket.

He knew that in the groove he fell into that he wouldn’t be able to sleep for several more hours, but he didn’t want to just leave her on the couch in his office as he ruffled about his work when there was a perfectly comfortable and warm bed in his spare room. Normally, he would wake her, have her walk to the room herself and ready for the night… but she had gone through a hard day, and this was the first time since this morning that he had truly seen her relaxed. It would be just cruel to make her leave her state of slumber when he was very capable of just transporting her himself.

He sighed and stood up, careful when he lifted her from the couch, and trying his best not to crash into anything or trip over the items on the floor when he moved between rooms. Thankfully, he made it safely into the spare room with little to no obstacles, and set her on the bed as gently as he could. He rid her of the shoes she wore before tucking her in beneath the sheets and duvet that used to remain untouched until her nighttime stays. She turned her head on the pillow, her brow furrowing a small bit when she faced him. He hoped she hadn’t woken up, otherwise he just spent meticulous time in carrying her all for nothing. She took in a deep breath before releasing it, and her face returned to normal. Her expression was bliss, and he found himself staring for longer than he would care to admit.

Standing here, a thought entered and left his mind in a fleeting manner. It simply came, and went… but caused him to think more. The thought in question? She’s so beautiful. It would bury him, that thought. He begged his mind to never think it again, but on that tangent, a whole new slew of thoughts along those lines began to pile in his head like dug up dirt.

He needed to leave the room, that would help.

“You’re gonna get me in some real trouble, kid.”

He walked out and back to his office, continuing to study his work, but finding that he retained no information on the account of his racing thoughts yet again. He sat back and raked a hand through his hair and down over his face before leaning forward to try and perhaps balance out all these intrusive thoughts with things he found annoying. He started with just a few things he often found to be peeving or invasive: She nags at him about the temperature he keeps his home, finding it too difficult to focus if she’s cold. She is constantly telling him how bad his handwriting is, hoping he will make an effort to write more legibly for her own sake. She reorganizes his work often, and it bothers him that he can’t find anything afterwards without her help. She raided his kitchen the first day she arrived, and mocked his eating habits while doing so… but in all fairness, she did make dinner and stop the work to allow time to eat. She had also been the one to help him arrange lessons when he was falling behind from other work. She was there to talk with him when he’d been stressed about the day from the events that occured. She was-

It was right then that he realized how truly and downright domestic their relationship had become. It washed over him in the most uncomfortable way, and clung to him like wet clothes on your back. He tossed the paper in his other hand to the floor and tried his best to make sense of any of it… but whenever he thought he was getting close to an answer it returned to bite him in the ass through a new slew of questions.

This type of thinking was dangerous. They had crossed so many lines that should never have been crossed without even realizing. He hadn’t wanted to believe there would ever be any weight to the rumors at the University, but sitting here alone in this room, having just tucked Scarlett into bed one room over, he suddenly felt completely and totally wrecked.

Tags:

@justanothersadperson93 @sparklytoaster @silverose365

#indiana jones x oc #indiana jones x reader #indiana jones #henry jones #harrison ford #the dial of destiny #disneyland #temple of the forbidden eye #Indiana jones adventure

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variousqueerthings · 1 year ago

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@fabiansociety going over her so I focus

could we fix river song? the central idea isn't… terrible… but there are just so many extra hats hung on her that don't need to be there. just cutting the amy and rory connection would improve things tremendously. if she needs to be tied to a previous companion, make her romana's daughter or something

yeah yeah 100% (I didn't get into that in these posts because already soooo much, but I Hate that she's their daughter as a part of the narrative). I really like the idea of her and the Doctor meeting out of order, I think it's fun (it's something someone like, say, Jack, also experiences), I like her as a future archeologist… starting there. I think also a problem is that so much hinges on Stuff Happening In The Future That We Swear Will Be Interesting/Tragic/Better Than Anything Before, but in the end she really is just like a lot of other characters, someone who went on some adventures with the Doctor and was affected by these adventures

so yeah, start there: simplify her history (she can still have some mystery, like you say, Romana's daughter perhaps, although I think her appearance should have been a bit different than it was if so, but to be fair I don't think M*ffat had much of a clue who she was when he wrote her back then)

and speaking of that! have a plan from the beginning writer! know who this character is and where she comes from! so that you can write with that in mind! not invent shit as you go along for a character that's being revealed to us non-chronologically! gimme some proper Beats!

strip away like. several things. focus on one or two to begin with, that give us her skills and character. Archeologist in Indiana Jones style, I like that. she had a bit of that in s4, double down on it, on why this interests her (yes, in the show it's... related to getting the Doctor's attention, don't make it about the Doctor!)

which also speaking of: Don't Make Everything She Does In The Story Be About The Doctor! in this iteration her whole existence is due to an elaborate (stupidly written) plot to entrap and kill the Doctor, because that's definitely the only way it could be done??? her birth, her upbringing, her interests, her motivations, her death are all because of the Doctor. she literally waits around in a prison in canon and breaks out of it, just when she's spending time with the Doctor

also since I said "Indiana Jones style archeologist" obviously (who knew this had to be said) don't make that a sexual fantasy roleplay type thing. she's ALMOST only ever competent in the show at the same time as doing it "sexily," because it's a competence kink onscreen, rather than a character being competent. so like. she's performing for the Doctor and/or the camera gaze, which is... male... almost like a Male Gaze or something (someone should coin that)

but yeah in summary, simplify her, take her out of the Doctor's sphere, make her less performative and focus on her interests and perspectives (this is why I imagine she works better in the audio dramas on the whole btw, because it's Alex Kingston doing River Song adventures)

and also... let her be ordinary. there's no room to breathe with her, it's like she's a plastic bag that's just Jam Packed with stuff until it's fit to burst, because only someone That Extraordinary is "worthy" of the Doctor (returning to point 4). she can just be A Person who's cool and competent who has a future/history with the Doctor, like many people do

I'm aware this wasn't quite how you asked the question, I'm sort of spinning around the Stuff a little bit, but yeah. River Song call me I can save you from M*ffat's writing

#im watching nu!who #im watching eleven who #im not tagging this because i dont want to rain on peoples parade #doctor who meta

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maximuswolf · 3 months ago

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Microsoft Buying Activision Blizzard Was The Worst Thing To Happen In Gaming This Generation

Microsoft Buying Activision Blizzard Was The Worst Thing To Happen In Gaming This Generation Hey everyone, I just wanted to share my opinion on a matter that comes up again and again these days. In these last couple of days, Microsoft and Xbox are at the center of discussion yet again due to the Indiana Jones game's PS5 release announcement and a Crash 5 cancelation documentary on YouTube. I'm not sure if I am allowed to share links here but just write "Crash 5 Cancelled" and there will be a 1+ hour documentary about Toys for Bob, Crash 5, Crash 4, Crash Team Rumble and more.While I do believe that something had to be done about Activision Blizzard due to terrible, inhumane management; Microsoft owning them is making things a lot worse. I want to quickly say that yes, I am a PS owner and a somewhat hardcore fan. I'm saying this because people will look at my profile and look at me as a "paid Sony employer" or something.But no. Competition is a great thing and PlayStation shouldn't be allowed to be the only big console in the market.(I know Nintendo is also very big but they operate on their own space) Xbox forced PlayStation's hand on multiple things like Crossplay, Backwards Compatibility and Subscription Services. While PlayStation forced Xbox to work on their first party titles and find different ways to pull customers towards their console like Game Pass, Play Anywhere or Smart Delivery.It's clear to everyone I think that Xbox is forced to put their games on other consoles these days due to the Activision Blizzard acquisition costing them a lot and the current Xbox player base not being enough to get enough returns from that investment. It probably has nothing to do with Phil Spencer, Sarah Bond or anyone else at Xbox but of course the reality of the world is that they are the faces of that division and they will get the hate for these moves not made by them.TLDR, I wish Microsoft never bought Activision Blizzard. Bethesda was a good investment along with all the previous smaller teams they got. It has brought nothing but layoffs, developers suffering while working on games they don't want to work like Call of Duty or Overwatch, full studio closures like Tango(at least they got saved) or Arkane Austin and many IP's stuck in limbo like Crash, Spyro, Tony Hawk and more just to put more character and weapon skins into Call of Duty. It's just, incredibly sad. Submitted August 25, 2024 at 09:04AM by kayrakaanonline https://ift.tt/u8L37QR via /r/gaming

#reddit

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shitty-check-please-aus · 2 years ago

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one of the few things Indiana government has done well was to listen to feedback about how terrible the Bureau of Motor Vehicles was to deal with, completely overhaul the entire system, and ultimately create a very fast, easy, and efficient BMV

one of the many things Illinois government has done poorly is to not do any of those things

#I need to actually get my IL license bc my IN one is expiring on my birthday #and I want to get a Real ID so I don't have to bring my passport for domestic flights #but the IL system is just truly hellish #I need to make an advance appointment #but it won't let me make an advance appointment on a day I have off & at a facility within 100 miles of Chicago #like. what the fuck am I supposed to do #IN spoiled me in this one way

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1jet2unknown · 4 years ago

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Harringrove Feedback Fest – entry-drug fanfictions & favorite artists

I‘m so happy @gothyringwald is organizing this feedback fest as I think there are so so so many talented creators in the Harringrove Fandom and, with me still being kind of new to the party, I‘m sure I will be able to find so many more creators to connect with & obsess over.

Let me start off with some of the fanfictions that I had stumbled over last year and that actually got me into the fandom. Most of them are rather long, lot of them pretty angsty and all of them are mature/explicit. Warning: They‘re all amazing!

Under the Covers by ToAStranger [M | 59k]

Steve is (maybe) a little bit still in love with Nancy Wheeler and (maybe) trying to figure himself out-- between the night terrors and the babysitting and the general weirdness that is Hawkins, Indiana-- before he graduates.

Billy Hargrove fits in there somewhere (probably).

dried up, half full - by lymricks [E | 60k]

Implied/Referenced Child Abuse | the POV switches now! | Billy fights the monsters too!

Steve’s been coming out here searching for a monster in the woods. He’s finally found one.

“What do you want, Hargrove?”

Don't Tell Me There's No Hope At All/ Together We Stand, Divided We Fall by Straight_Outta_Hobbiton [M | 59k]

Billy's used to being afraid of his father, and he knows he's not the only one scared. But it's one thing to know your stepmother gets smacked around every once in a while and another thing completely to find her body on the bathroom floor.

He's a mess, Max is even more of a mess, and Joyce Byers is a queen among mothers, she really is.

Damned If I Do You by ThirdActLove [M | 55k]

The first time Billy’s dad called him a faggot, Billy didn’t really know what he meant.

Billy Hargrove Needs A Nap – by lilpeas [E | 74.3k]

It’s one thing to be a light sleeper in this shitty town that won’t shut up at night, but it’s another thing entirely to fall asleep on Steve Harrington’s shoulder during last period English.

Pain, Will You Return It? by Anonymous [E | 32.9k]

When Billy gets beaten to a literal pulp by his dad, the police get involved. Billy has to come to terms with what he has done to those around him.

He doesn't want to be like his dad.

Especially when he sees Steve Harrington. When he sees Steve, he wants to be good.

Three is Better (than One) by ToAStranger [E | 4k]

"This little bitch is tonight's toy," Billy says, walking over, hooking a finger through the loop at the front of Steve's collar and pulling until Steve's stumbling up onto his feet; he smacks a hand onto Steve's ass and laughs as Steve yelps and staggers forward a step. "Her pussy is already nice and ready for you."

meet with monsters by lymricks [E | 13.4k]

Implied/Referenced Child Abuse | Billy fights the monsters too! | Protective Parent Jim "Chief" Hopper

Harrington stops. Billy watches all the blood drain out of Harrington’s face and there wasn’t much color there to start with. Harrington lifts the bat again, tries to get to his feet, lands back on his ass. “Billy,” he says again, but it’s desperate now, not relieved. “Billy, behind you!”

Four times Hopper doesn't arrest Billy and one time he does.

what a wicked game you played (to make me feel this way) by brawls (brawlite), ToAStranger [E | 119k]

Billy knew Steve Harrington would ruin him. Steve knew Billy Hargrove was nothing but trouble.

They never expected it to end up like this.

I also feel the need to point out some of the incredibly talented artists the Harringrove fandom has:

@wrecked-fuse – whose fanart was actually the trigger for my harringrove obsession. The artstyle, the amazing colorations (&incredible lighting) and the broad range of expressions & sceneries just made me instantly fall in love!!

@zayacv – whose AU short comics are so intriguing and hot that I reread a lot of them several times by now! You are looking for some steaming hot NSFW with great angles and the most lickable thighs in the fandom? Then zayac is the artist for you!

@ihni – whose doodles are just so damn funny! I had some really shitty days over the past few months but the creativity and joy of ihni‘s harringrove doodles really kept me sane & positive!

@pastenaga - whose Harringrove comic „Bad News“ broke my heart in the most beautiful way – over and over again! Seriously… if you haven‘t read this comic yet and you enjoy some angst & family feel: This is what you‘re looking for!!

@juu-riin – who is not just creating amazingly funny doodles but also increadibly pretty artwork. It‘s really the full package you get with this amazing artist!

@opaldraws / trashycatarcade – who has such an amazing take on Billy & Steve‘s relationship. There is so many cute artworks that really show new & adorable angles of the boys. Just so much creativity!

@wastingtime-justart – whose sketchy artstyle is just so damn pretty and makes especially Billy looks just so sensual! I‘m just in love with the strong strokes, the amazing anatomy and the way especially Billy‘s mouth and hair always look so pretty!

@gravegroves – who draws one of the most sensual Billy‘s I‘ve ever encountered. He just looks so damn BEAUTIFUL in all the pieces…

@avalonlights - whose clean arstyle & coloration I absolutely love. Whenever I look at their art, I wish it was an actual cartoon that I could watch!

@swankystuckup1 – whose soft artstyle & coloration skills I absolutely adore! And their art is so lively, with a wide range of expressions and moods just perfectly put to paper. Seriously check them out!

@ichigata – whose paintery artstyle is mesmerizing and especially I love the way she draws Billy!

@darkmystwraith – who draws Billys locks perfectly! You like seeing our kings (& especially Billy) topless looking hot as hell? Then this artist is for you!

...

There would be so so many more to name… but this post is already long enough as it is. So I‘ll leave you with a big THANK YOU to all you amazing people in this wonderful fandom and am excited to check out everyone‘s else Feedback Fest entries to find even more amazing people.

#harringrove #harringrove event #harringrove feedback fest #fic rec #artist rec #fanfiction recommendation #fanart recommendation #how amazing are all of these people #amazing fanart #amazing fanfiction #stranger things #stranger things fandom #artist support #creator support

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mostlymaudlin · 3 years ago

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tag game

so many ppl have tagged me in this alas i am terrible at managing my notifications without stressing myself out im so sorry LMAO anyway @palimpsessed tagged me most recently thx pal and also everyone else i appreciate u thank u for thinking abt me 💕

Three ships:

snowbaz (ol reliable, my ride or die, i love you bitch i ain’t never gonna stop loving you bitch)

andreil (shiny new toy consuming my brain and rotting it out)

aaaaaaand then everything else is kinda tied for third unless it vacillates up in a random grip of obsession (steve/bucky, zimbits, *cough* l**** s******** cough)

First ship:

the first ship i lost my mind to online was harry styles n louis tomlinson ok it’s part of me i know people don’t like it i get it but listen it wasn’t weird like it is now when the ship got under my skin. i promise there was a time when everyone was just vibing. im so defensive abt this sorry 😂 in late middle school/early high school tho I was obsessed w maximum ride (max/fang) and then hunger games (everlark) but it was just me n pals in person

Last Movie:

im watching Indiana Jones w @snowybank and @tea-brigade ! I just watched temple of doom for the first time the other night it was terrible but I always enjoy a good movie w pals

Currently reading:

im rereading the foxhole court again lmao

Currently watching:

never rly been a tv person! i guess currently i am watching hockey that’s the only thing i regularly watch

Currently consuming:

this is probably abt food but i don’t care abt that shit i am currently consuming everything andreil that I can get my hands on

Currently craving:

MORE! ANDREIL!!! 🤩

Favorite color:

Burgundy or coral

Last song I listened to:

Sweet, savory, or spicy?

maybe spicy…. or sweet idk. i think the meds im on make me kind of food ambivalent idrk

Working on:

nothing consistently 😂 supposedly i will be doing something for EGF but ive had to reevaluate bc i am just not writing a snowbaz multi chap rn :( might come back to it later but the andreil brain rot is too severe and also my personal life is in shambles so i don’t have that focus LOL. but i have an unholy amount of little wips i have been playing with i will get something done for bazs bday bc I love that slut

can’t remember who has done this yet so I’ll tag the besties @tea-brigade @seducing-a-vampire @urban-sith @snowybank

#Spotify

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megafrost4 · 3 years ago

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The Mortis Arc

takes deep breath

WHY WAS THIS NEVER ADDRESSED AGAIN??? THERE'S A LOT OF REALLY COOL ARCS LIKE THIS ONE THAT LEAVES MUCH FOOD FOR THOUGHT, BUT WE ARE LEFT STARVING

Episode 15: Overlords

Balance is found in the one who faces his guilt

REX!

Anakin is supposed to meet him! But they are not here 🤔

Some weird diamond floating in the sky…ok 😳

Para-Para-Paradise, Para-Para-Paradise 🙌 🙌 🙌

Obi-Wan: Hello…😏😏😏😏😏😏😏😏😏

Anakin: excuse who are we taking to? 😒

"The Father of course"

Ahsoka: of course 😒

Daughter: IT IS FORBIDDEN FOR YOU TO TOUCH ME 🤬

Anakin: so-rry 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Obi-Wan: and if this is a trap

Anakin: then I’m not gonna wait around to find out! 🤣🤣🤣

Brother: is it true that he is the Chosen One HE'S SO CREEPY 😳

What is about to happen shall occur whether you like it or not 😳

Ahsoka: what in the universe was that 😱

Father: welcome, my friend

The way the camera zooms around 👏👏👏👏👏

QUI GON!😱: Obi-Wan have you trained the Chosen One as I have asked?

I am here because you are here? 🤨🤨🤨🤨🤨🤨🤨🤨

TWIN SUNS MUSIC PLAYING 😭🙌

“Are you happy child?😳 Your master, does he treat you well? 😳I am your future, your potential. There is a wildness to you, young one, seeds of the darkness inside you😳…there are many contradictions in you, and in him. Be warned, you may never see his future if you remain here. Leave this planet” future Ahsoka is...interesting 😳

Anakin: the Chosen one is a myth? 😒

Father: Is it? I would like to know 🤔

Ahsoka: what about Master Skywalker?

Obi-Wan: Anakin will not be easy to deceive 😏😏😏😏😏

Ahsoka is being held by the Brother

Obi-Wan is held by the Sister

Father: which one will you choose to save? You must now release the guilt

Obi-Wan: save Ahsoka! 😭

Anakin: Let. Them. Go. 😳😳😳😳😳😳😳

Obi-Wan: the planet is the Force. Use it 😱

Anakin: you will let them go!😳😳😳😳😳😳😳😳😳😳😳😳😳 THE FORCE!!!!!! EPIC OPERA MUSIC

Anakin: DOWN! ON. YOUR. KNEES.! 😱😱😱😱😱😱😱😱😱😱😱He takes them out of their forms

Ahsoka: do not trust him

Anakin: you think? 😒

Father: The Chosen One must remain to keep balance

FILONIIIIIIIIII 🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬

Episode 16: Altar of Mortis

He who surrenders hope, surrenders life

Anakin! Meet…Anakin 😳🤣

Son: We. Will. DESTROY THE SITH…and the Jedi

Obi-Wan: if you’re done napping, I could use some help here 😏

Obi-Wan: I didn’t think you saw it 😏

Anakin: it was a giant TOWER of course I saw it! 🤬

THE SON BIT HER AND 0_0

Obi-Wan: Anakin, always on the move…

The Son has chosen the Dark Side???? The Father doesn’t want him to…but…🤨🤨🤨🤨🤨🤨🤨

Sister: I cannot interfere with the ways of the Force 😒

Sister: he who wields the blade will be able to control my brother

Obi-Wan…like Indiana Jones lol 🤣🤣🤣

Ahsoka: are you…proud of me, Master?😳😳😳😳😳😳😳😳😳

Anakin: what? Of course, Snips, I’m always proud of you 😭

Ahsoka: he said, if you don’t join him, he’ll kill me laughs😳😳

Ahsoka fighting Obi-Wan and Anakin! 😭😭😭😭😭😭

Anakin: can you help her? You must help her! Yes there is, there is always hope!😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

Through Anakin, the Daughter brought Ahsoka to life

The Father said the Sith has grown more powerful, prolonging their war...

FILONIIIIIIIII LUCAS

Episode 17: Ghosts of Mortis

He who seeks to control fate shall never find peace

Father: both our destinies are clouded

Qui-Gon: do you believe you are the Chosen One? I believe you can bring balance to the Force, that you will face your demons and save the universe😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

Obi-Wan: just do as I say

Ahsoka: you’re the boss

THE SON SHOWS ANAKIN THE FUTURE!

Son: know yourself, know what you will become

AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

I WILL NOT LOOK! 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

YOU WERE MY BROTHER ANANKIN😱😱😱😱😱😱😱😱

I HATE YOU! 😱😱😱😱😱😱😱😱😱😱😱

NOOOOOOOOOOOOO deep breathing 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

THAT SCENE WAS SO JARRING I CAN'T

Anakin: I will do such terrible things 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

Son: yes, but it doesn’t have to be that way…the choice is yours to make 😒

Son: join me and we can destroy this emperor

IMPERIAL MARCH PLAYS AS ANAKIN BOARDS THE SHIP

Father: nothing is set in stone

Anakin: but I will cause so much pain 😭😭😭😭😭😭

Father: what you have seen must be forgotten 😒

Father just erased that time…”We shall never know” 😒

Son: please don’t die 😭

Father: I always knew there was good in you 😭

Father: you are the Chosen One. You have brought balance to this world stay on this path and you will do it again for the galaxy. But beware your HEART dies 😳😳😳😳😳😳😳😳😳

Rex! “you were off the scopes for a moment"

Anakin: a moment? We were gone for a long time 🤔

FILONIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

#ao3 #star wars #the clone wars #anakin skywalker #ahsoka tano #obi wan kenobi #mortis #father #son #daughter #the force #balance in the force

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creekfiend · 2 months ago

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indiana has done many terrible things such as , make my boyfriend be there,

#😡😡😡😡😡😡

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mdccanon · 2 years ago

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So I’m confused. Are you saying you shouldn’t watch/read problematic things, or things that were made by problematic people? I’ve watched many movies that can be deemed as flawed - Indiana Jones and the Avengers movies directed by Whedon come to mind. I absolutely adore WandaVision, even though it has been said to be racist and ableist. And people I know love the new Top Gun movie because of nostalgia, even though it stars Tom Cruise, who is… flawed. Should I condemn them and myself.

I'm saying those are two different conversations and I'm asking which you'd like to have... I was also wondering if an actual example can be used... I see you are providing some, now.

"You shouldn’t watch media with “bad” content because otherwise you’re supporting it’s creator" is a statement that the creator is the problem, but not actually saying the content is a problem.

So I also asked if the problematic creator created problematic content. In many ways, that usually IS the case. But your statement didn't explicitly say that, so I was asking. You KNOW the creator of Avengers, so you are criticizing the creator -- but then you DON'T KNOW the creator of WandaVision so you are criticizing the content. See what I mean?

So, that's the relationship between content and creator.

The next thing I see that you are saying is that you don't want financially support bad people. lol. Tom Cruise has done something in his personal life that you don't like, therefore you don't want to support his career. --- Please keep in mind that Tom Cruise was already paid his millions for Top Gun before it came out. Your money is actually supporting your local movie theater and the distributor of Top Gun. In fact, PLEASE watch movies within the first 2 weeks of their release, because that's when most of the profit goes to your local movie theater. Wanna stick producers where it hurts? Only watch movies for the first two weeks. -- That is a personal choice for you to make.

My personal decision: I posted non-stop about the Amber Heard case because I have REALLY hated that case for the last 5 years. So... Will I see Aquaman 2? ... ... Actually, I never saw Aquaman 1, but that's because I gave up on the DCEU. LOL. I'll likely still watch a movie with her in it, the same thing with watching old Woody Allen movies... and there are THOUSANDS of terrible things that HUNDREDS of actors, directors, and producers have done over the last 100 years of TV and movies. I'm not choosing what media to enjoy by combing through the biographies of everyone on the billing. I am far more interested in seeing people be arrested and prosecuted for their crimes. Amber Heard was prosecuted for her crimes, so why should I let her live rent-free in my mind?

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pascalsky · 4 years ago

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Ooh would you mind transcribing the bonus episode for those of us who can’t listen? Like literally can’t listen, not because we won’t pay haha

Ok here’s what I transcribed for the bonus episode...I did not transcribe some of the dialogue between Zetty and Indy that I felt wasn’t that important. Also Indy’s got a little doggy crush on Pedro it seems lol So here you go...sorry if there are any typos!

Zetty: So, you’ve been on so many big movies and television shows. What’s it like being on those sets? Like do you just have beautiful assistants that feed you grapes and fan you all day at the palm fronds?

Pedro: Um I don’t insist on the grapes but the palm fronds are a must, um I think you both know what I’m talking about…how good it feels.

Indy: It’s amazing.

Zetty: Life of a celebrity is just mind boggling.

Pedro: You just wouldn’t believe it.

Zetty: What’s like the weirdest thing that anybody has ever done to you on set or in real life? Like I’m sure people like Indiana are super nervous when they are around you. Have you ever had anybody like faint or anything in front of you?

Pedro: You know weirdly people faint in front of me on a daily basis. It isn’t exclusive to a set experience; it happens in life. Maybe it’s my smell. I’m not sure.

Zetty: You do smell really good, we can totally smell you through the microphone. It’s amazing.

Indy: I’m a little dizzy just smelling you myself. So Mr. Just Pedro, you’ve played so many types of characters before. Good guys. Bad guys. Which ones do you prefer?

Pedro: Uh I like the bad guys.

Indy: Why’s that?

Pedro: It’s just so much more fun being baaaad.

Zetty: Don’t I know it.

Pedro: It’s not the same when doggies are bad. It’s different.

Zetty: Did you ever think that you were gonna play a bad guy? Like did you always go ‘Oh I am always...I’m gonna be the bad guy’? Or did you ever think about it or did you just accidently fall into playing bad – well you played good guys too but have you played more bad guys than you have good guys overall in your career?

Pedro: That is a good question. I think I would have to do the math on that, um it might be balancing out.

Indy: You’re more kind of like the middle road kind of guy.

Pedro: Yeah. I guess the bad guys neutralize the good guys and at the end of the day I am just somewhere in the middle. Indy: If you had to choose another profession other than acting what would you do and why?

Pedro: Hmm I’d like to find a way to help people and be of service, maybe in counseling or teaching. That kind of thing.

Zetty: You come from a family of Doctors, do you think you could ever be a doctor if you weren’t an actor?

Pedro: I don’t think I’m smart enough to be a doctor.

Indy/Zetty: Oh come on!

Pedro: It would take a lot of studying you know…

Indy: You’re a pretty sharp tool in the shed you know. You’re not one of the dull ones.

Pedro: Well there’s different kind of smarts I guess you know. I don’t know if I would have the stamina to go through all of that medical school.

Indy: Isn’t like being a doctor kind of what the ultimate aspects of that?

Pedro: Well you can also be a counselor or you can be a teacher. You can save dogs.

Zetty: Yeah! Have you ever had a dog and if so what kind of dog have you had?

Pedro: I have had a dog, I guess I kind of had a dog for most of my life. My first dog was a German shepherd named Rocky and then there was a Labrador named Amarillo and in my adult life I had a dog named Gretta and she was a pit bull mixed and her brown was so dark it looked purple.

Zetty: You didn’t dye her hair?

Pedro: I didn’t.

Zetty: And out of those dogs that you had, which one was your favorite?

Indy: What an awful question! How is he supposed to answer that?! Mr. Just Pedro, please don’t answer that. We know that’s a terrible question to ask.

Pedro: I have to say I loved all of them and it would be literally impossible to choose...but Gretta was my favorite.

Indy: How do you feel about you know being with a black dog, I mean half of a black dog?

Pedro: I loved my black dog and she I guess wasn’t technically black but she was very very very dark brown, almost like a dark roast coffee and she shined like a seal. She was the most beautiful thing. She stopped you know she turned heads; other dogs were jealous. Did you guys meet her? You guys never met Gretta.

Zetty: No, we weren’t around I don’t think. But did you get her at the pound? Or how did you find her?

Pedro: I did, I got her from a shelter.

Indy/Zetty: Yay! Way to go rescue!

Pedro: That’s right!

Zetty: If you could be any kind of dog what would you be?

Pedro: What kind of dog would I wanna be or what kind of dog would I be?

Zetty: Answer both of them.

Pedro: Um I don’t wanna choose what kind because the only thing that would matter is that I had a good sense of smell and I could run fast. I guess I would like to be mixed!

Zetty: So you’re like a big dog guy right? Oh but you had a little dog before?

Pedro: I did have a little dog.

Zetty: Have you ever had a cat?

Pedro: I am allergic to cats unfortunately.

Indy: That’s why you are a god! Zetty: I can smell you were a badass but now you just confirmed it! Pedro: Well I like cats but can’t live with them that’s all.

Zetty: Ok just don’t be ridiculous, you don’t have to be politically correct and say you like cats. No one in their right mind has ever liked cats.

Pedro: What is your problem with cats?

Zetty/Indy: They practice witchcraft!

Pedro: I don’t think that’s true [laughs]

Zetty: What is your favorite smell?

Pedro: My favorite smell would be dirty dogs!

Zetty: Oh really? That’s amazing. Like you mean from the streets of New York City?

Pedro: Any kind of dog smell. Smell of a dog, you know what I’m talking about! Don’t make me get specific.

Indy: Mr. Just Pedro, would you rather be a ghost or a clone?

Pedro: Be a ghost or a clone? I would like to be a ghost.

Indy: We have been in a very deep debate on whether or not the rainbow bridge exists –

Zetty: He doesn’t care.

Pedro: I do care, what do you guys think?

Zetty: Well I think it’s all bullshit…I believe personally that when the light goes out, that’s it. Darkness. Blackness. It’s over.

Indy: Pay no attention to Zetty’s bleakness. As for me, it’s too deep of a question to ask when I am sooo deep into you right now. If you wanna leave your personal phone number with me, I would be happy to call you back directly with my answer.

Pedro: Oh my gosh, I love that.

Zetty: Ok careful, this bitch is gonna call you and then she’ll just start sleeping so she’s a complete snore.

Pedro: [laughs]

Indy: If you can eat one thing right now, what would you eat?

Pedro: PIZZA!

Indy: Straight cheese or do you get toppings?

Pedro: Sometimes I’m a real basic bitch and I like pepperoni only or you can just put anything on it, anything as long as there’s cheese and tomato sauce.

Zetty: But not pineapples?

Pedro: Uh I don’t love the pineapple pizzas. I don’t love them but I respect them.

Indy: Yeah, it’s a good stance on the pineapple debate.

Pedro: Who doesn’t like pizza?

#pedro pascal

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wilhelmina-murray-harker · 3 years ago

Text

I have many, strong feelings about time zones.

First of all, it must be established and accepted that time is bullshit. We made it up, and the way we made it means it doesn’t work the same way all the time and that’s stupid. It should be better.

Second, we need to talk about daylight savings vs standard time. Both are dumb. Like, I get why they came about but they’re terrible. Especially since they aren’t globally done, so the time difference between two different places varies with the seasons and that’s just wrong.

Third, we need to consult the sun when talking time zones. If we’re going to be basing our times of off when we have the sun, we better consider when we have the sun. Otherwise, it’s bullshit. Every 15° of longitude, solar noon (when the sun is at its highest point in the sky) occurs one hour later or earlier, depending on where you are.

Now, to the heart of the matter. Because time zones were originally created (in the US) to make train travel easier, they were designed by idiots who didn’t care about things being Correct. Other idiots have taken the first idiots’ ideas and run with them.

This has led to time zones being not at all similar to local times. For example, Indiana. Indiana’s local noon is roughly 3 pm. Not noon (12 pm). As a resident of that state, this has irked me for years.

It gets even worse if you look at China or Greenland. Despite being significantly wider than 15° of longitude, the entire country is one time zone. So if you live on the western edge of China and want to take a day trip to Pakistan, it’s a THREE HOUR TIME DIFFERENCE. DESPITE BEING DIRECT NEIGHBORS.

And don’t even get me STARTED on the countries that are just choosing their time zones willy nilly! Tell me, Argentina, Chile, what the FUCK were you thinking when you chose a time zone that you are nowhere near?! Nothing, because you weren’t thinking!

To avoid all this bullshit, time zones should be based on longitude. It makes everything much easier, and puts us in solar harmony. While yes, some noons still won’t match up with solar noon, they would be significantly closer, so I say it’s worth it.

Here’s a map of global time zones. The top of each section is based off longitude, so you can see where each local noon is. I hope it enrages you as much as it does me

#rant #time zones #time zone problems #no i am not sane

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vintagedolan · 4 years ago

Text

mixtape | track six

| masterlist | faceclaims | playlist | visual by @brockhsmpton

“Okay so let me get this straight. You have a boyfriend. Your boyfriend is famous. You’re flying to LA with said boyfriend. And you’re staying at his house? Cause he’s 20 and has a fucking house.”

“Uh yeah, that pretty much covers it.”

“Jesus, I move across the country and then you decide to start getting interesting.”

Indy flipped her grilled cheese over in the skillet, and then flipped off the camera, getting an eye roll from Charlie that she felt through the facetime call.

“You gonna be okay on the plane?”

“Don’t wanna talk about it,” she grumbled, trying to push the nagging thoughts from her mind.

“Indiana. You’ve gotta tell him before you get on that plane. If you can even get on the plane that is.”

“I said I don’t want to talk about it. Just drop it, okay?”

Her list of distractions was dwindling as she finished all the work that had been piled on her before fall break, which was really only a long four day weekend. All she had left was an exam that afternoon, and then it would be time to go.

Grayson had insisted that they take Beks advice, take a trip out of the city to somewhere other than Jersey. It had been an interesting conversation to say the least.

“That sounds fun but I can’t.”

“Why not?”

She hesitated. Her usual excuse for getting out of things that made her anxious was simple. School. Too much homework, upcoming exam, blah blah blah. Usually that just earned her an eye roll, maybe an off hand ‘nerd’ comment too, but then the subject would be dropped.

Grayson wouldn’t be swayed that easily; and, she didn’t even have her default option. She scrambled for ideas with her thoughts running wild until he reached across the couch and laid his hand on top of hers.

“Hey, where’d you go?”

“I was thinking about airports.” It wasn’t a lie, but that was only partially the culprit of the knot in her stomach.

“It’s a straight flight to LA, super easy. I’ve done it way too many times, I know my way around.”

She chewed her lip and he squeezed her hand.

“C’mon, you’ll love it. LA is shitty sometimes but it’s amazing too. And you can meet Eden finally, she’s always asking about you. And Adele too. And I can show you the house, the pod studio. We can go surfing if you want. I’ll take you to Monty’s.”

“Gray. I can’t afford it.”

“Like I was gonna make you pay for it,” he laughed, but she stayed still beside him, unable to find the same amusement.

“I don’t want you to spend money on me like that.”

“Money doesn’t mean much to me. Doesn’t mean anything to me really,” he shrugged - she couldn’t imagine what that must feel like. It felt a bit hypocritical, for her to be acting like she struggled with money while she sat in her nice Chelsea apartment. But that money hadn’t come from her own pockets - it came with the price tag of guilt and the threat of it being taken away if her dad felt like it, which kept her and her ever shrinking savings account on edge. Money didn’t seem to be a real concept in the Dolan family however, and she tried to remind herself of that while Gray toyed with her fingers.

He switched to other tactics of persuasion when the silence stretched a bit too long, moving closer and nuzzling into her neck, pressing little kisses to her skin in between murmurs of “please Dee” and “c’mon baby”.

She conceded, gently tugging on his hair to get him to come back to her.

“Fine. But I’m paying you back one day. When I can.”

Grayson knew that wouldn’t be for years, and he liked the idea of her and him that far in the future, so he just nodded and kissed her again.

Charlie stayed on the line while Indy ate and then moved on to finish her packing, throwing in too many outfits for just four days and four nights, but she wasn’t sure what California called for. It took her a good five minutes of digging to find her bathing suits that she hadn’t drug out since the summer, but she eventually added them to the bag as the final touch and got everything ready. Charlie convinced her to take a few pieces of skimpier clothing in case the ‘vibes were right’, which had Indy blushing bright red and eventually making an excuse to get off the phone before she had to get into her sex life any further with her sister.

Her breathing settled for a moment when her phone buzzed, a message from ‘gray 💚 ’.

Plane snacks?

Also does coffee make you shit your pants

Cause I’ll get you some for the ride to the airport if it won’t hurt your tummy on the plane

Leave it to him to put a smile on her face even as her stomach continued to turn. She tried to convince herself it was her exam that had her so worked up, but she knew better.

if 4 years as a barista gave me anything it was immunity in that department

so yes to the coffee pls :)

and just get me whatever you’re getting for snacks please

Gotcha, I’ll swing by and get your bag

Good luck on your exam! Not that you need it

I’ll be waiting outside in the ugly ass truck 💜 I love you

see you soon, I love you too

With that she packed up the last few things, leaving her bag in plain sight before she left for class. She was able to clear her mind enough on her walk, getting herself into ‘school mode’ before she got to the building. The exam went easily, as she expected that it would - it was nice to have subjects like medical terminology that were so cut and dry sometimes. Either you know it, or you don’t, as Nicole used to say. No point in guessing.

Indy didn’t like having to guess.

Which was why she had the airport map pulled up on her phone while she stood on the sidewalk, leaned up against the building as she tried to plan out the best way to get to the terminal that they needed. She’d already done this - three times, actually - but it made her feel better anyways.

She heard the rumble of the engine first, but it only held her ears for a moment. Because then, it was a giggle, and a squeal, and a whispered voice saying “no, that’s them, that has to be them! Who the fuck else would have a truck like that?”

Indiana’s stomach tightened even more somehow at the realization of what was happening. Charlie’s voice rang in her ears - your boyfriend is famous.

They’d never talked about what to do in a situation like this, but she’d seen enough stories about celebrities who hid their relationships to know that ‘undisclosed’ was the default setting. Suddenly very thankful that she’d decided to go with a hoodie that morning, she pulled the fabric up over her hair and dropped her head, keeping her eyes trained upward to watch what Grayson was doing.

She watched the girls go up to the cab and ask for a photo, which Grayson seemed to happily oblige to, though he didn’t get out of the car. He noticed her a moment later and his smile faltered at the realization that she’d been waiting on him. The girls asked him to give their love to Ethan and then went on their way. Indy held back for a few moments, waiting until they were out of sight before she hurried forward and got into the passenger seat.

“You must have finished that exam quick, I figured I’d be waiting on you,” Gray teased, but his voice was a bit tight.

“It was pretty easy, you either know it or you don’t.”

“Right. Well, I wouldn’t have known any of it,” he laughed, eyes still scanning the street - whether for cars or people, she couldn’t tell. “You ready to go?”

No. “Sure.”

The pair had felt the peace of comfortable silence enough in their relationship so far to know when it was absent, and there wasn’t a trace of it to be found. Indy was too caught up in her own mind to react to Grayson’s attempts to engage her, from the hand on her bouncing thigh to the looks he snuck, eyes darting from the busy road for a moment. She kept her coffee in both her hands - drinking it was counterproductive in terms of her nerves most likely, but the warmth of it was comforting enough for her to justify it. Grayson’s mouth got drier with every exit they passed, and he kept his cool until they got to the pay to park lot at the airport and he shifted the truck into park.

“We don’t have to go you know.”

The dejection in his voice was finally enough to pull Indiana out of her own little world. Her eyes came back into focus as she turned to him.

“Gray-”

“If it’s about the money, I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I just really wanted to show you LA, cause it’s a big part of me, and I didn’t want you to be stressed about the price of tickets.”

“It’s not the money.”

“Then what is it? Because you’re pissed about something, obviously, and I’d like to be let in on the secret if you don’t mind.”

She shrunk under his harsh tone, unsure of whether she should even say anything. She hated when she got like this, and hated even more that she didn’t even have a hope of control over it, despite it being herself, her own mind causing the issues.

“Planes.”

“What?”

“It’s not you, it’s planes. Airports. Flying in general. I just�� I don’t like it.”

“Oh. Well, I mean, I’ve been on plenty of planes, and nothing bad has ever happened while I was on there.” There was an airiness to his tone, as if it was as simple as his own testimony fixing the entire situation.

“That… doesn’t help.” She didn’t even like the thought of him being on a plane, much less the both of them. She practically flinched at the sound of one flying over them.

Grayson’s wheels were turning, slower than he wanted them to as he scrambled for an idea, anything that could make her feel better at the realization that his words had only made it worse.

“Can I have a redo on that?”

She looked up at him - at his sheepish smile and the blush on his cheeks, and the next breath she took in was a tad easier.

“Sure.”

“I’m sorry you’re feeling anxious, what can I do to help?”

His tone was so flat that they just looked at each other and then busted out laughing. Indiana couldn’t remember the last time someone had made her laugh when she felt so terribly. It was almost foreign to her - she felt like she shouldn’t be doing it somehow.

“Sorry, that was - fuck that was formal,” he laughed, rolling his eyes. “What I meant was, whatever you need, I’ll do. You just have to tell me.”

“Uh… not going.”

His hand moved to the gear shift, ready to put it in reverse and leave. She placed hers on top of his, holding on when he moved away.

“Kidding.”

“No you aren’t.”

“Okay, maybe I’m a little serious. But I want to. I want to go, it’s just hard. Having someone with me that I trust helps though.”

His chest swelled a bit at the realization that he was considered one of those people - it was one of the best honors he could imagine being given by somebody that he cared about, probably because it wasn’t something that he gave out easily. He pulled her hand up to his mouth and pressed a kiss to the soft skin.

“I’ll be with you then. You can hold onto me the whole time.”

“You sure about that?”

He frowned immediately at that, reaching his hand over to her thigh, running a thumb over the material of her leggings. “What do you mean?”

“Well, I mean you’re probably gonna have more fans coming up to you and stuff. I figured you didn’t want them like… knowing about me.”

“I never said that,” he countered, squeezing a bit. “I mean if you don’t want to, that’s okay, but I’m okay with it if you are.”

There was a sincerity to his gaze that conveyed what he hadn’t said - an almost plea for her to be okay with it. And so she was, at least enough for her to give him a nod and a quick kiss before stepping out of the truck.

He got to her bags before she could, and he was grateful that he’d only brought a duffle. He managed both bags with one hand and grabbed onto hers with the other as they started through the parking lot.

And he didn’t let go a single time, apart from the security scans and her going to pee after they made it through, in which he waited outside the bathroom for her with his arms crossed. Ethan met up with them at the terminal, buzzing with excitement at the prospect of getting to see Eden for the first time in a month. He was staying an extra week to get some quality time with her, and he was a constant stream of excitement. Grayson kept his attention on Indy though, trying to read her for any signs that things were getting worse. He kept a hand on her bouncing leg, running a thumb back and forth constantly, leaning over and pressing a kiss to her temple every so often.

“I’m gonna go check something really quick, I’ll be right back. Ethan, stay with her okay?”

Ethan didn’t question it. He slid over to replace his brother for a moment as he headed up to the desk at the gate. Despite his bubbly charm, Ethan had a calmer nature to him than Grayson did, no matter how hard he tried to exude the same level headedness. It came effortlessly to his twin it seemed.

“Gingerale helps calm me down on planes. Don’t know why but it does,” he mumbled, scooting a bit closer so his arm was pressed up along hers on the small bars between their seats.

He didn’t seem to need a response, and Indy was grateful. She leaned against him a bit more as a silent thank you that he seemed to accept, and they stayed that way until Grayson returned, switching out places again, wrapping his arm around her shoulder immediately.

“I upgraded us to first class.”

“What? Why!?” She spoke for the first time since the car, surprised that her voice still sounded stable.

“You’ll see. C’mon, we’re about to board. You still sure you want to do this?”

She couldn’t give him an answer, but she stood up anyways and held onto his arm as they scanned their tickets and moved down the jet bridge. He pressed kisses to her blonde hair, ducking down a few times to check on her as they made their way down and got settled into their seats, Ethan settling into the row beside her.

Indy kept her lip tucked underneath her top teeth, looking around at anything to distract her from where she was as her mind raced, so fast she couldn’t even pinpoint what was making her the most anxious.

“Focus on me. I’m right here,” Grayson hummed, reaching over to turn her face towards his for a moment. “You’re okay. We’re okay.”

“Yeah.” There wasn’t an ounce of conviction in her voice. She felt like she was going to cry, and she tucked her hood up over her ears, trying to drown out anything that sounded remotely like an airplane. Her lungs weren’t working how she wanted them to, and she sucked in breath after breath, none of them deep enough to relieve the tightness in her chest.

“Here. Try this.”

Long fingers tucked into her hood, moving her hair back from her ear so he could slip one of his headphones in. It fit snugly, and he scrambled to his phone, pulling up his Cudi playlist and scrolling through until he found what he wanted. The familiar intro of Teleport 2 Me, Jamie started to play as the final passengers boarded onto the rather large plane. How had everyone gotten on so fast? It seemed her mind was running away from her, making time move faster, bringing on the inevitable.

“This song makes me think about you, you know. I know Jamie is your middle name but still.”

She barely registered his words as a few tears snuck out of the corner of her eyes. Even her lips were shaking as she tried to breathe, curling in on herself with her knees pulled to her chest. The flight attendant was nice enough to not ask to see her seatbelt, sensing that she was better left undisturbed.

The guilt started to eat Grayson alive as he watched her struggle, running a hand over her back and leaning over to hold onto her, looking to his brother for support. Ethan’s eyes were wide with concern but he was just as helpless, not even being able to reach a comforting hand across the aisle because of the flight attendants passing by. It only got worse as they began to move - Grayson couldn’t tell if she was shaking harder or if it was just the movement of the plane.

The only good sign he got was her reaching her hand out in search of his. When he laced his fingers with hers she squeezed so hard he knew his bones were moving in a way they weren’t meant to, but he didn’t dare pull away. Not when he was the cause of her being in so much distress. It put a pit in his stomach, a mixture of the urge to apologize over and over and the wish that he could somehow climb inside her mind and soothe her, make her believe that she would be alright.

So, he did the next best thing he could think of. As soon as they had taken off, which felt like it took hours, he reached to her waist and unclipped her seatbelt.

“Come here.”

It took a moment for her to process, but once she understood Indy didn’t hesitate to climb over into his lap, curling up so small that she fit comfortably there in the wide first class seat, head tucked into the nook of his neck as he wrapped her up in his arms.

“You’re okay, I’m right here. I’ve got you.”

“I’m sorry, fuck I’m sorry,” she squeaked. If anyone else in first class heard it, they elected to ignore it. “It’s not usually this bad.”

“Shhhh, don’t. Just close your eyes. We’ll be there before you know it, okay?”

She reached a hand up to his neck, tucking it in against his skin under his sweatshirt as an anchor before she closed her eyes. She wrestled with her mind, trying to override with a focus on what she was physically feeling - his warm skin under her fingertips, the roughness of his beard against her forehead, the change of the song in her headphone. Her other ear was pressed against his chest and she tried to listen for his heartbeat, getting sidetracked when his hand moved her hoodie up barely so he could get underneath to her skin. One finger began to trace.

I-M-S-O-R-R-Y

She shook her head, tilting up to press her nose against him. It was her that should be apologizing, she thought. She hadn’t warned him properly of what to expect. That being said, it was true that she hadn’t had such a bad experience in a while - it only clicked then that it probably had to do with the fact that Grayson was on the plane too. If it crashed and she died, so would he, and the thought of it made her want to hurl. Instead, she clung to him tighter, forming letters by his collarbone with her fingertip.

N-O-T-Y-O-U-R-F-A-U-L-T

He pressed a kiss to her forehead, leaving his lips there for a moment before he shifted and rested his cheek on top of her head.

S-T-I-L-L-S-O-R-R-Y

She nuzzled closer to him.

I-L-O-V-E-Y-O-U

Against her hip, she felt four gentle squeezes, a silent I love you too as they continued through the sky.

--------------------------

“Jesus. It’s hot. Like, hot hot.”

“Ethan. It’s Cali. Of course it’s fucking hot.”

“Yeah, but it’s not natural for it to be this hot in fucking October. Anywhere.”

Indy listened to their bickering quietly, catching her breath a little more with each mile she put between her and the airport. It was just her leg bouncing now as she sipped on her gingerale - it had appeared on her tray table at some point in the flight and she hadn’t been able to stomach it until she made it out of the airport and into Ethan’s tesla, which was driven by Adele, a sweet woman with a kind smile and soft voice.

Grayson sat in the backseat with her, still on alert for any sign that she was anxious, hand resting on her thigh. But he breathed easier as he watched her body finally begin to accept that she was on the ground, and by the time they pulled up to the gate she was almost back to her normal self.

She enjoyed the feeling of her feet on the hard concrete of the driveway when she got out of the car, feeling a bit like a celebrity when the door swung open over her head. Grayson grabbed the bags and was immediately at her side, taking her hand and leading her up to the door. It wasn’t the first time that Indy had seen the inside of the house - she’d gotten glimpses of it on a few vlogs that they’d watched with Bekah one night. But there was a warmth to the space that didn’t quite read on camera, a familiarity that she realized was traces of Grayson everywhere, from the Cudi vinyls on the shelf to the wood based furniture that he’d definitely had a hand in making.

“I’m going to get Eden, I’ll be back in… I don’t know how long,” Ethan winked, immediately grabbing his keys and heading back out to the still warm Tesla, leaving his bag off the side of the kitchen.

“You up for a tour?”

If she was honest, her body was entirely exhausted, and her mind wasn’t far behind. But she perked up for his sake and nodded, taking his hand as he started to guide her through the house. He stopped in each room, showing off little details he’d helped pick out, from the colorful couch in the sunken room off the kitchen to the floating desk in Ethan’s room that he’d helped him install. The podcast studio was the most eclectic of any of them, with a massive wooden table that almost seemed carved around the blue light in the middle - not to mention the hot pink wall of the entrance, which was cut off by a wild jungle wallpaper wall that stretched from one end of the house to the other. Grayson spoke a mile a minute, explaining every step, every change they had made to the house since they’d bought it. Indy’s mind struggled to keep up, to visualize what he was saying, describing rooms she’d never seen.

“Ethan got the master this time around, so my room is a little smaller, but it’s cooler anyways.”

He guided her into a dark room on the right side of the hallway. It was somehow calmer than the rest of the house, and it practically zapped the rest of the energy out of her as soon as she passed the threshold. He showed her the green bathroom, the fancy toilet he’d picked out, his massive and meticulously organized closet. But when she flopped down onto the bed, she knew she was done for.

Grayson smiled when she hummed against the comforter - the first true sign of relaxation she’d shown since he’d picked her up from campus that morning.

“You tired bubs?”

“No,” she lied.

“You wanna take a nap?”

“No.”

“Your eyes are closed.”

“I’m resting, I just need like… 30 seconds.”

“You can sleep.”

“You were gonna show me the backyard though.”

She felt the bed dip down slightly, and then his lips were on her temple.

“The backyard will be there when you wake up. Besides, I need to get some work done anyways, and you’ve had a shitshow of a morning. Sleep, and maybe we can go get dinner with E squared later if you’re up for it, and I’ll take you to the beach.”

“E squared?” She muttered, only half motivated to stay awake for the answer.

“Ethan and Eden. They’ll be back over in a few hours I’m sure, he’s saving us from having to listen to their reunion fuck through the walls.”

“How considerate.” Her voice was muffled in the pillow, and it made Grayson smile. He moved to his closet, opening the extra drawer he used to store his blankets and pulling one out for her.

She vaguely felt the weight of the fabric being laid over her, and a gentle hum that sounded like ‘I love you’ before her body finally gave in and succumbed to sleep.

As soon as he knew she was out, Grayson got to work on all the things that he’d neglected in the last month. He made quick work of a full email inbox, a few calls that he stepped out of the room for, a Wakeheart campaign approval that he forwarded to Ethan - something about being back in LA lit the fire under him that always seemed to simmer out in the cool Jersey air. It took less thought, less intention to go into his kitchen, use his preset on the coffee machine with his favorite mug under it. Jersey was home, but LA was home, and he never realized how much he loved it until he was away for a while. His phone buzzed, loud against the counter - a text from Ethan running across his screensaver of the only picture he’d taken with Indy so far. He made a mental note to take more over the next few days before he opened the message.

Be there in 10, make sure everyone has pants on

He liked the message and stood up slowly, closing his laptop before heading back towards his room. He paused in the doorway, unable to help himself as he looked in.

Indiana was sprawled out across his bed, one of her legs escaping from under the covers. The pillow was tucked under her head, held by one arm while the other reached out to the empty side of the bed, hand splayed out on the fabric. With his phone already in his hand he couldn’t help but to snap a quick picture of her, a sweet memory that he knew he’d want to keep. He felt a little guilty having to wake her up from what seemed like such a peaceful nap, but he also knew she’d be made if he didn’t give her a chance to freshen up before Eden got there. So he leaned over and pressed a kiss to her temple, rubbing along her back until her eyes blinked opened.

“Time to get up sleepyhead,” he teased, keeping his hand on her hip as she rolled over and stretched out in the most adorable way.

“Hmmmm, c’mere,” she grinned, reaching up for him and pulling his lips down to hers. The little cat nap seemed to be the recovery her body needed, a reset that allowed her mind to focus on other things, like how good Grayson looked in the fresh t-shirt that he’d changed into while she was out. He indulged her, moving a knee onto the bed so he could get above her and get behind the kiss.

“Ethan’s gonna be here in 10,” he murmured, but his lips still moved against hers, his relief palpable that she seemed to be doing better.

“Then we have 9.”

“Eden’s coming too.”

She pulled back with wide eyes, and before he could say another word she was rolling out from underneath him. It took her two whole rolls to get to the other side of the bed, which was almost as endearing to Grayson as the way she scurried to her bag in the closet, immediately pulling out clothes like her life depended on it.

“Baby, it’s just Eden.”

“No, it’s Ethan’s girlfriend Eden. Which means she’s not just Eden, it means she’s very important.”

“Important? You act like this is a job interview or something.”

“It’s a girlfriend interview, which is worse.”

“A what?” He struggled to stay focused on her answer as she pulled her leggings off and wiggled into a pair of high waisted black jean shorts as she spoke.

“When you have a woman in your life, a good woman, who isn’t your girlfriend, they go into protective mode. It’s a maternal thing I think, but it doesn’t matter who it is, they keep an eye out for you. And the biggest threat that those women can see for their guy friend is a new girlfriend. It doesn’t mean she’s gonna hate me, but she’s definitely gonna want to vet me at the least. And I bet it’s worse because I’ll be around Ethan so much so she’ll want to be extra careful. Plus, she doesn’t know me from adam, and...hey. Hey. Are you listening to me?”

At some point in the middle of her explanation she’d taken her shirt off, and Grayson’s mind had gone a bit fuzzy at the sight of her bra - dark purple, with a peek of lace under the cups.

“Yeah, yeah sorry. Eden’s nice though, she’s sweet, there’s nothing to be scared of.”

She turned to him with a frustrated frown that he kissed away when he closed the distance between them, hands moving to hold her bare hips. Her skin was soft and still had a trace of warmth from sleep, and it made him hold on and rub his thumbs against her for a moment, trying to process that she was actually there with him.

“If you say so.”

“I do say so, and besides, her opinion of you isn’t going to change my opinion of you.” He kissed her forehead quickly and let go so she could get ready. She pulled a tank top on and headed into the bathroom, freshening up until the moment that she heard the front door open, signally Ethan and Eden’s arrival.

“Do I look okay?”

“Perfect as always,” he beamed, taking her hand and leading her back out towards the kitchen.

“Grayson!”

Eden came running around the island and barrelled into Grayson like she hadn’t seen him in years. He caught her with a smile, a laugh and a ‘hey evil’, an inside joke that Indy wasn’t let in on. She didn’t have time to dwell on it though, because she was immediately wrapped up in tan arms, her vision obscured by a curtain of wavy black hair.

“Hi! I’m Eden, it’s nice to meet you.”

“Hey, Indiana, nice to meet you too!”

The hug was as awkward as any first hug she’d ever had, but the smile on the boy’s faces made it worth it when Indy pulled back. Ethan was glowing in the way you only glow after you get laid for the first time in a long time, and he’d apparently worked up an appetite, because they didn’t spend more than five minutes in the house before they were headed out to Monty’s. Indy still tried to open the Tesla door like a normal one, barely stepping back in time when it lifted up above her head. To her surprise, Eden jumped into the backseat beside her, forcing Grayson up to the passenger seat next to Ethan.

“So, you’re in school right? To be a nurse?”

“A doctor actually, but yeah, I graduate in a little over a month with my Bachelor’s,” Indy explained, preparing herself for the questions she was sure to get, being careful to be truthful in her answers without accidentally saying something that would make Eden hate her. Ethan’s girlfriend had a sweet face, peppered in freckles that almost looked faded in her warm toned skin. Her eyes sat large on her face, making her look a bit like a doe. But her outfit told a different story - everything about it spoke confidence and bad bitch energy in a way that Indiana was only used to seeing on LA model’s instagrams. It hit her quickly that it was very much possible that Eden might actually be an LA model, and the thought made her mouth run dry.

“What do you do?”

“I’m a graphic designer.”

“Oh really? That’s amazing! What kind of work do you do?”

Eden launched into her career, from how she got there to what major brands she’d worked for - some of which shocked Indy. Grayson reached back behind his seat a few minutes into the drive, holding onto her leg and running his thumb along her skin as he balanced listening to his brother and listening to the girls. The energy settled in the cab, and Indy breathed out a sigh of relief at the realization that, for now at least, she’d passed the test.

It didn’t stop the questions though. A constant stream of information grabs, from her favorite things about New York to her family. Grayson squeezed tight when Eden mentioned her mom, throwing Ethan an unjustified look of annoyance. Indiana didn’t mind, though she didn’t love the look of pity that came over Eden’s face when she let her know that she had passed. But it moved on quickly, on to questions of her apartment, her college, her friends.

The only pause came when the Tesla rolled to a stop outside of Monty’s, which was packed with a long line outside. Eden let out a small sigh, reaching down for her purse.

“Usual, guys?”

They both nodded, a bit of unspoken tension growing in the air.

“Indiana, you wanna come with? The boys can just circle around.”

“I uh… yeah, yeah sure.” Indy went along with it, stepping out of the car quickly, trying to look back at Grayson through the window for some explanation, but they were so tinted that she couldn’t even guess what his facial expression was. Eden linked their arms quickly, leading her down the sidewalk and to the back of the line as if nothing had happened. Indy watched Ethan pull away quickly, and swore she could see a very concerned Grayson through the windshield.

“It makes it easier if they don’t have to get out. Too many people, and with a line this long the paps would show up.”

Two brunette girls in front of them turned around, interest piqued.

“Paps? For who?”

“No one, mind your damn business,” Eden said, waiting until they turned around to melt back into her usual friendly demeanor.

“I didn’t even think about that. About like, getting recognized I guess. But it happened in New York for the first time this morning, on campus.”

“LA is the worst for it. People see you take a picture with someone and then ask for one even if they don’t know who they are. Well, most people our age know who they are actually, but still. It’s not as bad in other places, just the occasional person. Et-” she cut herself off, knowing the girls were still eavesdropping. “He loves meeting fans but it gets to be a lot sometimes. So I try to help him out when I can. They’ll never ask for it, but they never turn it down either.”

Indy swallowed hard. She said it so casually, as if it was totally normal for the two of them to be standing there while their boyfriends drove around just so they didn’t get mobbed. She felt like a million pairs of eyes were on her as they inched forward in line every few moments. Eden just looked at her nails, picking at her cuticles.

“Does it ever get… normal? Them being recognized?”

“You learn to ignore it. And they don’t go out as much as you think. We’ll go out to show you around because you’ve never been here, but most of the time they’re home bodies. They kinda had to be, coming out here so young.”

“I can’t imagine coming out here at 15,” Indy mumbled, shaking her head.

“They’ve been through a lot. But then again so have you. So has everyone, at the end of the day.”

She was taken aback by the sudden depth of the conversation, but it didn’t last long, because soon they were close enough to the menu that Indy was asking questions. The Tesla circled again while they waited on the food, which came in little brown boxes stuffed into a bag. The girls waited on the curb for Ethan to pull back around, climbing in as inconspicuously as they could, getting settled into the backseat again.

“Got the goods?”

“You know it,” she grinned. Grayson reached back for Indiana again - he’d missed her in the few minutes that they were gone, and he didn’t realize he’d been anxious until it faded when she was back with him.

“We’re going to the secret beach, it’ll be like 10 minutes, so don’t eat all my fries.”

“I bought us all an extra to share.”

“Atta’ girl,” Ethan said, pressing on the gas a bit harder.

The secret beach, it turned out, was just a less populated one. But it was peaceful, washed pink by the beginnings of a sunset over the ocean. Grayson couldn’t tell if he was more overwhelmed by the colors in the sky or the feeling of finally having his own girl with him, someone’s hand to hold as he moved down the sand beside his brother and Eden. It had been almost a year of him being a third wheel, and he couldn’t stop looking over at Indy, his girl, who was there with him.

Her eyes were on the ocean. Sure, she’d seen the atlantic ocean plenty of times, but the pacific was different. It seemed bigger somehow, bluer, and it took her breath away. Food forgotten, she tugged on Grayson’s hand, only pausing to kick off her shoes before she was running down towards the water, laughing when the froth of the waves tickled her toes. Grayson’s shoes were soaked, but he didn’t care as he followed her down the coastline, laughing and yelling, picking her up around the waist and spinning her around, stopping to kiss her hard as the waves crashed. Ethan took a video on Grayson’s phone, a proud smile on his face as he watched his brother light up. Eden rested her head on his shoulder, remembering the days where that was the two of them, when everything was brand new and on fire.

The duo’s burgers were cold by the time they made it back up the beach, and Ethan had already started in on Grayson’s fries, much to his dismay. But they settled in the sand and ate their food, falling back into the group conversation between bites and swallows.

“So, you’ve been in LA for what, 5 hours now? Are you sold yet?” Ethan picked up another fry from the extra container, dropping it into his mouth.

“It’s gonna take a lot more to sell me on anywhere this far west,” she laughed, crumpling up the paper that her burger was wrapped in and tossing it into the box.

“Has Grayson made you a Jersey girl already?” Eden teased.

“It’s grown on me for sure, but nowhere compares to New York.”

Grayson chewed his last fry a bit slower.

“Yeah? Ethan took me into the city once when we were visiting Jersey but I don’t know much about it if I’m honest. I grew up in Texas.”

“The city is special once you get to know it. There’s so many different people, different cultures, new places to go. And it’s got all the best hospitals, which just makes me work harder because I want to work in one some day. Plus it uh… it’s just always been home to me. I can’t imagine living anywhere else really.”

Grayson’s stomach tightened, suddenly very full of food and smaller than when he’d started eating. They’d never really discussed living situations. He racked his brain, tried to remember if he ever mentioned that he was only staying in Jersey until the tiny homes were done. Surely she realized that he was going to come back to LA. He couldn’t tell if he’d subconsciously thought that she would want to move with him, or if he just assumed that they would handle the distance. But his mind was instantly filled with the image of Indy curled in on herself in a first class seat, and he resisted the urge to get up and walk it off as the guilt returned. The sun seemed to set faster, turning the beach indigo as everyone got up and headed back for the car.

Ethan took an extra moment to fold up the picnic blanket they’d brought, letting the girls get just out of earshot.

“Don’t do that.”

“What?”

“Don’t go all doomsday on this shit and shoot yourself in the foot. Cross the distance bridge when you get to it. You all haven’t been together a month yet, if you start talking moving across the country she’s gonna freak. Give it time.”

Most of the time, Grayson despised Ethan’s big brother persona - 20 minutes wasn’t a flex when it came to maturity in his book. But in certain moments, he was grateful for his level head. It helped him breathe a little easier as he headed back to the car, happy to see that Eden had shifted to the front seat. He took the back, a bit annoyed at the space between their seats - another perk of his Porsche, no doubt. But he settled for resting a hand on Indy’s thigh and leaning over for the occasional kiss as they found their way home.

Each couple bid their goodnights despite the early hour, a silent understanding of the do not disturb courtesy to be followed. Indy and Gray bumped hips as they brushed their teeth in the same sink, toothpaste filled smiles shining at each other in the mirror. They fell into each other like they’d done it a million times, even though they could still count on two hands the amount of times they’d had each other like this. It didn’t matter that they were in a new place. Grayson felt the same above her, beside her, behind her as they worked each other up and eased each other down. Their voices echoed off the walls the same, the attempt to stay quiet still there as they tried to give the other couple the same respect that they were no doubt trying to give them.

The travel caught up with Indy first - she was much less versed in time changes after all, and she fell asleep right after her quick shower, curled up in Grayson’s arms, his nose full of her vanilla shampoo and his mind racing, running laps around two words. New York.

He felt like he heard more about the city in his next few days than he did when he was actually there. They facetimed Bekah the next morning, glad to see that she’d made it out of surgery successfully, and that all was smooth sailing so far. She was ecstatic that her two friends we’re getting a break, and she excitedly showed them the new view of the city she had since her recovery room was on the other side of the hospital.

Indy wore a New York sweatshirt that evening when they went back to the secret beach, and she fell asleep with it on on the couch at home, leaned back against Grayson’s chest. He carried her to bed and kissed her forehead, but his eyes focused on the letters, which seemed to be staring at him in the dark.

They ordered pizza for lunch the next day, after an anxiety filled morning of Eden and Indy in a follow car behind the two of them longboarding with their friends. Eden asked about what made NYC pizza so much better, and it seemed like Indy could have talked for hours about crust and sauce, seasoning and ratios.

By the third day, it was consuming his every thought, and despite Ethan’s advice to let it play out, he knew he had to talk to her, or at least try to.

Indy was none the wiser. The LA sun had warmed her skin and her mind, leaving little lines of its presence on both. By the second day the house felt less like a hotel and more like a home, and she understood why the boys loved it so much. Eden became more than an acquaintance; she was easy to love, and the interview seemed to have stopped for the most part. But a part of her still itched for her New York apartment, the bustle of the city, the familiarity of campus and Jets and the blocks that she walked down.

She thought she’d hidden it well, but she learned she was mistaken on the last night they spent in LA.

“You’re ready to leave, aren’t you?”

Indy perked up from where she had settled on his chest. It was routine now, for her to rest against him and trace patterns on his skin before they dozed off.

“Hmm?”

“You’re tracing N-Y-C on my chest. You want to go home.”

“Home sounds nice, the plane ride doesn’t though,” she laughed a bit. Laughing was good. Calm, and put together. “Guess it’s just my subconscious.”

Grayson sighed against her, running his fingers over her back as he looked up at the ceiling.

“I didn’t realize you were so attached.”

“To what?”

“To the city.”

“Oh. Well, yeah. I mean, it’s home.”

“Home can be multiple places. LA is home, Jersey is home, hell, even Australia is home for me in a way.”

Indy’s neck got tired from craning up at him, so she shifted up to sit with her legs criss cross as he lounged back against the pillows.

“Well, I’ve never really had to make anywhere else home. New York has everything I need I guess.”

“You’ve never wanted to try somewhere else?”

Indy sighed, finally understanding.

“Gray, baby, it’s not like I hate it here. I know it’s important to you, and it should be. I’m just saying that New York is… well, it’s New York. It’s important to me, it’s where I’ve planned out my future.”

He sat up further, propping up on his elbow, resting a hand on her knee.

“What does that mean though? ‘New York is New York’. I mean, it’s a cool city, I’ll give you that, but it’s not just that, right?”

It took a moment for Indy to find her words. She’d never really tried to explain it to anyone, but if anyone would get it, it was him.

“It’s my mom.”

Grayson’s face fell immediately, and he opened his mouth, but she kept talking before he could.

“I know she’s not there. She’s wherever she is, I guess. But she breathed New York Grayson. That’s the last place that I knew her while she was still her, and the last place that she knew me. My memories of her live in that city, and when I’m not there I feel like I’m even farther away from her. And I already feel like I’m forgetting little things, because it’s been 4 years now, and I can’t even tell what I can’t remember, and it’s scary.”

Her breath caught in her throat a bit at the realization of what she was saying, what she was admitting. She’d never spoken any of it, not even to Charlie.

“Leaving would feel like moving on and leaving her behind, and I can’t do that. I can’t.”

Her face fell into her hands, and when Grayson’s arms moved around her and pulled her close, she let him.

He held her there until her tears stopped, rocking her barely back and forth until the wave had passed. He thought of Sean, of where he was, and what he would say. And he did his best to take on the heart of his father, to be like the man he so admired - selfless, and good, and strong for others no matter what it cost him. He pressed a kiss to her hair before he spoke.

“No one is asking you to leave. I promise, I’ll never ask you to leave. I promise.”

#SURPRISE HEHE #mixtape #wowza I did not expect to finish this tonight #well #~this morning~ i suppose #please let me know what you think!!!#love you guys!#grayson dolan imagine #grayson dolan fanfic #grayson dolan fanfiction

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allthefilmsiveseenforfree · 4 years ago

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What Lies Beneath

So my wife is incredibly supportive of my movie-watching goals. She helped me set up my blog and my Patreon, she was my very first patron, and she watches at least half the movies with me. As my patron, she has the right to request one movie per calendar year for me to review just for her. But sometimes she tries to skirt the rules by insinuating, nay, cajoling nonstop in her goal for me to watch a movie she wants me to see without it counting as her “official” selection. And because I love her, I (sometimes) allow it. Such was the case with What Lies Beneath, a twisty psychological haunted house thriller that stars two middle-aged, serious actors (Harrison Ford and Michelle Pfeiffer), and that I shockingly wasn’t lining up at the megaplex for when I was 13. What did my preteen self miss? Well...

A fucking GREAT movie is what I missed. I won’t sugarcoat it - this was a huge surprise in the best way. I won’t spoil the ending at all, because this is one film I think you really need to watch unfold for the first time without knowing exactly what’s going on. Basically, Claire and Norman Spencer are new empty-nesters, and in their gorgeous Vermont home all to themselves, strange things start happening. Is it something to do with the mysterious new neighbors? Or maybe some past traumas that are dug up over the course of the movie? Could their house be actually haunted by some malevolent spirit? All of these are distinct, and delicious, possibilities, and it’s a hell of a lot of fun figuring out what exactly is going on.

Some thoughts:

A VERY GOOD DOG at the very beginning! I was so concerned for the dog at a few points in the film, but the dog (Cooper) is absolutely fine and remains happy and carefree all the way to the end of the film.

I have always had a thing for Harrison Ford, and that is not diminishing at all as I watch him shirtless in bed while writing a paper about science. Unf.

Very into the way this exposition is handled - Claire (Pfeiffer) missing her daughter and finding the Julliard tank top in her dresser, then looking through photo albums where we see the daughter wearing it, then see Claire studying at Julliard, then see HER wearing the tank top, plus some articles about Norman’s father dying and photos from a car accident in which I think her first husband died. It’s all tiny pieces of exposition, just little bits of information that you, the viewer, have to put together and remember, and I love that.

Don’t love Norman (Ford) gaslighting her about what to do about the neighbors. If you mind your own business and never reach out when people sound like they need help, that’s how people get hurt. Makes me think he has something to hide or maybe some kind of connection to the neighbors?

Loving the Rear Window vibes of spying on the neighbors, thinking you’ve witnessed a murder, complete with binocular surveillance.

There’s a lot of wind in this movie. Wind is basically like another character.

The layering of dialogue - Norman and his friend are talking about a colleague who got fired for stalking an intern, and Claire and her old friend are catching up. The two conversations are overlapping, and I think they’re both important but we’re so wrapped up in Claire and her friend that that stalking conversation gets buried. This is really well-thought-out character development and building of backstory and motivation. I haven’t watched a movie this skillfully thought out in quite awhile.

I hate the way Norman diminishes her. Like he’s charming and he’s Harrison Ford, but he kind of implies that she’s hysterical or silly for the things she’s been experiencing, and laughs at her expense.

She didn’t say goodbye after playing with the Ouija board. ROOKIE MISTAKE, everything that happens afterward is clearly a result of poor Ouija etiquette.

Oh interesting, so she was in a terrible car accident a year ago, which is part of why everyone is worried about her mental state and fragility. We don’t discover this until HALFWAY THROUGH THE FILM. This is storytelling like prestige television does it, and it’s so unusual to see in a film now that it keeps bowling me over.

Their water bill is gonna be sky high after this. These completely full tubs? The rates are astronomical.

Oh no things have escalated so quickly - I feel like I’m trying to outsmart the twist at every turn and I can’t quite grasp it, which is good because I actually think this is an incredibly plotted movie that’s so purposefully and carefully crafted. I can’t help but feel that we are missing so much now, because we just don’t get mid-level budget domestic dramas with A-list actors like this anymore. I think their era might have completely passed, and that’s a damn shame because the nuance and care here makes this such a delightful and surprising ride to take.

A huge part of that is Ford and Pfeiffer just absolutely nailing how they play every single scene. Their chemistry is great, and watching them play off each other, you can sense all the layers of their relationship, all the past traumas and the lies and the reconciliations.

He says “I know you’re going through something I don’t understand and I’ve tried to be there for you” but like...have you, Norman? You’re always working, you shut her down every time she wants to talk.

The brilliance here is that you don’t know if something supernatural is actually going on or if there’s a rational explanation, and I’m so here for the ambiguity. We simply don’t get enough ambiguity (that’s purposeful) in mainstream Hollywood films anymore. It’s all in the indies, which are great, don’t get me wrong! But I want more audiences to see how it could be done.

I know I just keep going on about it but every new scene reveals a detail that feeds into the overarching mystery in such a natural way. For example, this NICE callback to the key, which I had totally forgotten about. This honestly is a fantastic slow burn of a film, really well done.

I’m so enjoying Harrison Ford using his charm and his looks and his general Harrison Ford-ness to play a not very nice guy. He’s not a lovable rogue like Han Solo or a stubborn adventurer with a heart of gold like Indiana Jones, he’s just a guy who thinks he deserves to have what he wants at any cost. He’s worked hard, he’s a “good guy” and he thinks that he’s entitled to have things go his way just because.

Holy shit the symmetry with the first scene of the film to the big climax - that’s just some damn good writing, that is.

I’m so pleased that there’s no music at all during this final sequence - the score had been a bit overbearing at times, but this eerie silence with just the water running is, frankly, terrifying.

One slight critique - the movie has almost as many endings as Lord of the Rings. You think it’s done, and then there’s another whole section that you think is gonna be the last, and then everything’s underwater again and it’s STILL NOT DONE. But in a good way, I didn’t get nearly as pissed as I do at the end of LOTR.

Holy fucking shit, Clark Gregg wrote this?????? Agent Coulson Clark Gregg?? This is my absolute favorite bit of movie trivia I’ve learned all year.

Did I Cry? No.

I am never going to stop talking about this movie. Wife was right, and I will say it loudly and publicly - I am so glad she cajoled me into watching this film. If you haven’t seen it, watch it immediately. It’s smart, it’s well-paced, it keeps you guessing, and it boils over into an absolutely bonkers climax in the best way. I will be thinking about this for aaaages and missing the way movies outside of the “Disney/Pixar/Marvel vs. teeny independent Spirit Award winner” machine used to get made.

If you liked this review, please consider reblogging or subscribing to my Patreon! For as low as $1, you can access bonus content and movie reviews, or even request that I review any movie of your choice.

#121in2021 #what lies beneath #what lies beneath review #harrison ford #michelle pfeiffer #clark gregg #movie reviews #film reviews

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strangertheory · 4 years ago

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i’m sure this has been talked about somewhere but regarding the will has DID/created the upside down theories, what are people speculating the source of his powers to be? like was he experimented on at a young age, or did they come from lonnie/joyce, or what? this has probably been covered but i’m not sure where to find it

I can share with you the two hypothetical interpretations that I myself have considered for the source of characters’ powers in the Stranger Things universe. I don’t want to speak for any other fans that are discussing the possibility that Stranger Things is about a DID System because we all have our own unique thoughts on the way it might play out within the series, and I have yet to speak to a fan that is entirely enthusiastic about the second layer of hypotheticals that I’ve personally considered regarding where characters’ powers come from.

To me: Stranger Things is like an onion. This story has so many possible layers. And as we peel back the layers of what is going on in the story there are new possibilities revealed at every single layer.

I’m going to tell you about the two different layers that I’ve considered regarding where characters’ powers come from and how those powers manifest themselves within the story.

▪️ ▫️ ▪️ ▫️ ▪️ ▫️ ▪️ ▫️ ▪️

My “first layer” theory regarding where characters’ powers come from in Stranger Things is that they might be like the X-Men or the espers in Akira and have genetic mutations or evolutionary predispositions to developing their abilities. Agent Connie Frasier appears to be seeking to identify intelligent children in the Hawkins area when she asks Mr. Clarke if he has any students at Hawkins Middle that would be interested in an Indiana AV Club program. It’s implied that the Lab seeks out precocious children for their work because they believe there is a correlation between intelligence and psychic ability. Stranger Things basically offers us the “first layer” explanation that the events of the story are inspired by the historic experiments (and abuses) done by MKUltra on human subjects in the United States in its efforts to unlock the potential of the human mind and potentially control that power and wield it against perceived domestic and international threats. Within this “first layer” theory we can speculate that perhaps children with latent psychic abilities are more likely to learn to control their powers at an early age when they are pressured to do so under extreme circumstances. For El these extreme circumstances could be the abuse that she experienced at the Lab, assuming that she was there her entire life. For Will these extreme circumstances could be Lonnie’s abuse during his early childhood, or extreme circumstances that Will experienced elsewhere (perhaps also at a medical facility or at the Lab.) A person’s instinctive need to have control over their powers while responding to a threat (or after attempting to use those powers very intently and with deep focus within a perfectly calibrated lab environment?) could account for those powers being recognized, used, and trained.

Within the DID Theory the question of which circumstances were the origin-point of El’s powers becomes more vague. Was El created as an alter within the DID System while Will was being abused by Lonnie? Is the Lab and El’s backstory actually a distorted trauma memory that has been fictionalized by the DID System as a defense mechanism? Does the Lab exist as an explanation that the mind subconsciously invented in order to explain to itself the terrible things that happened in a way that it was willing to face and cope with? Or, perhaps, was there a point in time that El emerged from Will’s mind into the real-world and then imprisoned by the lab and experimented on by Dr. Brenner? Do El’s memories of the Lab and Dr. Brenner reflect memories that she experienced as an alter in a DID System while she was still sharing the same body as Will, and Will’s consciousness was dissociating and depersonalizing a traumatic experience that would have otherwise been his own? Or are El’s experiences at the Lab completely separate from Will’s own story?

Before I leap to my “second layer” theory, I’d like to comment that I strongly suspect that we will find out precisely how El and Will’s stories intersect in season 4. I believe that we will find out the way in which Will and El are connected to both Dr. Brenner and the Lab and each other. I look forward to seeing how the writers peel back that layer of the Stranger Things onion. I think it’ll be a huge plot twist and most fans will not see it coming.

Now. My “second layer” hypothetical regarding the way that characters’ powers may (or may not) work in Stranger Things is based on the circumstances that are often faced by alters in a DID System that are called "fictive alters.”

Fictive alters have a fictionalized sense of who they are that is not grounded in the rules that exist in our “real” world. Fictive alters may have superpowers. Sometimes they might be based on a character from a movie or a book or a song that the child was familiar with. The fictional aspects of their identities will be often very real and accessible to them when they are conscious within the internal worlds of the mind and inside the DID System. However, whenever a fictive alter is “fronting” (meaning: when they are conscious of the outside “real” world) then that fictive alter will no longer have superpowers: they will only have whatever abilities that they have learned as an ordinary human person in our world. Within the mind they have their superpowers, and in the real world when they are conscious they will not have superpowers because they are in an ordinary human body with the limitations of an ordinary human body.

Now: why am I summarizing information about fictives? Because one possible hypothetical scenario that I could see being the case with Stranger Things is that it is a story-within-a-story. Perhaps the story that we are watching, which has each of its episodes named as a “chapter,” is being written by a character within the Stranger Things universe. Perhaps this character is telling the story of “what happened.” Maybe what we see in Stranger Things is an imaginative representation of the experiences of alters in a DID System that is explained from their perspectives or explained by a friend retelling their story.

And if this is the case, then I propose a “second layer” hypothetical: perhaps there are no “real” superpowers within the Stranger Things universe at all, and the supernatural events of the series are either taking place within an internal world exclusively or some of the supernatural aspects of the series are supernatural because the character that is writing the story of “what happened” is embellishing the events with their own imagination as they write it. This could mean that although certain characters do have powers within the DID System, their powers only manifest when they are interacting inside internal worlds that exist exclusively within their mind. Or, as another possibility: perhaps their “powers” are merely imaginative explanations that the writer who is sharing “what happened” is granting these characters in order to explain circumstances that they artistically prefer to represent in a more fantastical way. (Ex. My mom threw a plate at me. vs My mom threw a plate at me with her mind.)

Am I effectively saying “many events in the show might simply be taking place within the mind of certain characters?” Yes. Sort of. Am I saying that all events in the show might only take place within the mind of certain characters? No. And even if they did: the “realness” of the story is still, to me, intact. Even if these events are taking place within internal worlds of a DID System the events that we are seeing in the story are based on real memories and experiences that the characters experienced at some point in the “real” world. In this “second layer” theory, I am proposing that characters’ real experiences and memories are being transformed into a creative and fantastical re-telling of “what happened.” This might be part of the mind’s way of coping with traumatic experiences.

I know that many of you reading this are probably thinking “No, no! That’s way too meta for my taste. We need more grounding in the story than creatively-embellished memories alone!” And I completely understand and respect that reaction. It would be quite a dramatic departure from what we currently understand as “true” in the series: even more than if we interpret the story as being about a DID System whose alters (and internal worlds) have supernaturally escaped the mind and become flesh and blood in our real world because characters have the ability to bring them to life.

Even when I do consider the more extreme “none of the powers are real” hypothetical I still think that many characters that we’ve grown to love would be introjects (or NPCs) based on figures that the DID System knows in their “real world.” I argue that those relationships would still have emotional weight and importance and meaning because they are based on real experiences and real feelings: but they might not manifest quite how we expect them to in future plot twists.

I understand if most fans visiting my blog prefer to take the “first layer” interpretation of the DID theory: that there are real psychic powers in the Stranger Things universe and that through supernatural means the alters from the DID System have escaped the mind and have become “real.”

But I wanted to address the “second layer” interpretation that I have considered because if we imagine that all the alters share not only one mind but also one body just like those who have DID in real life: how does that impact our interpretation of each of the events in the series when we re-watch it? To me, the incredible way that certain scenes in the series are transformed by this “second layer” theory’s lens make it worth contemplating this second layer as a possibility whether or not it’s actually what’s going on in the show. Many scenes in Stranger Things take on added depth if you watch them with this concept in mind. I think some scenes become much more powerful within the “nobody has 'real’ powers” interpretation, whether it’s what the creators of Stranger Things had in mind when writing the series or not.

Keep in mind that I entertain multiple hypotheticals at any given time, and sometimes my thoughts regarding what is happening in Stranger Things might appear to contradict each other. I like considering multiple possibilities all at once. I am not devoted to my interpretation that there are no “real” powers. I am equally charmed by the idea that there are real powers and that the alters have escaped the mind into the “real” world in Stranger Things.

Thank you for Asking!

#stranger things #stranger things theory #stranger thing theories #the did theory

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thathawaiianchick · 5 years ago

Text

my wolfstar fic recc

29 of my favs, plus 2 comics :)

sorted from shortest to longest, series at the bottom

i like long fics, i like raising Harry AUs, i like Lay Low at Lupin’s fics, i like marauder era “we’re 70′s trash fics”, i like angst, but i also love “everybody lives”, kind of a mix of everything but seriously a lot of raising Harry AUs because it fills a need i guess

some super popular, some relative unknowns i think

all fics that characterize wolfstar for me :)

JKR has disappointed me supremely, but fan works will hold my love forever

part 2 because i forgot some

STANDALONES

1. A Day Like Any Other by dustmouth

(a comic, not really a fic, just hosted on AO3)

The one where Sirius keeps receiving unwanted mail, Remus drinks a lot of tea, Peter's out on a hot date, and James is offering unwanted make overs.

(Or the answer to the question of exactly how many cursed letters can you flush down the loo).

2. To Keep a Star by dustmouth

(a comic, not really a fic, just hosted on AO3)

Daily life in the Intergalactic Postal Service. Or the one where Sirius is a postal star and Remus lives on a spaceship.

3. in your bedroom, during the war by lupinely

There’s the bed, there’s the room, and there’s Remus. This, at least, Sirius knows for sure. (4Kish)

4. Home We’ll Go by appalachian_fireflies

"I can't, I don't know how," Remus stuttered as Molly dropped the infant into his arms, who immediately ceased crying and stared up at him with wide eyes.

"Nonsense," Molly said. "Be a dear and keep him from falling while I feed Ginny."

"Ba!" Ron giggled, and slapped Remus in the face.

Molly is the emergency contact for the Order when those listed can no longer be reached. Remus' life finds a different path. (10K)

5. A Store of Happiness by coyotesuspect

Harry spends the summer after his third year living with Sirius and Professor Lupin. (10K)

6. In The Bed by bigblackdog

Left to his own devices the summer after the prank, Sirius crafts an unusual gift to mend his relationship with Remus. (11K)

7. Vigil Strange I Kept by whitmans_kiss

Remus' lycanthropy has caused his body to seriously deteriorate over the years due to the constant stress of the transformations, and by his fifty-sixth birthday, it's certain that he won't live to finish out the year. However, a cure has recently been discovered - but what if the cure is just as bad as the disease? (11K)

8. Elucidation Practice by montparnasse

Christmas, 1978. Remus, wrestling with the mighty problems of gift-giving on a budget, contemplates life, love, London in winter, and falling off the edge of the world with Sirius Black. (21K)

9. On a Windswept Cliff by starfishstar

On the cliff top where the fearsome Lord Black once stalked, an outcast man meets a big black dog, and things are not as they seem.

Or: The Remus/Sirius gothic romance AU. (21K)

10. Lethe and Mnemosyne by montparnasse

Winter '79. Looking to get out from under the black-hole overhang of wartime, Sirius and Remus take off to play house on the Cornish moors. It goes downhill from there. (26K)

11. Purity by FelisA

Sirius resurrection fic. (27K) 12. Common Woodbrown by imochan

Look well into thyself; there is a source of strength which will always spring up if thou wilt always look there. In 1985, Remus Lupin realizes that Sirius Black is innocent. Now, he just has to prove it. (36K)

13. Wilde and Whimsy by chasing bluefish, obsob

In a world where Dumbledore defeated Voldemort during the first war, the wizarding community is picking up the pieces and getting back to their lives. Remus Lupin becomes a person of interest in a murder at the bookshop where he works and Sirius Black and James Potter, aurors, are sent to investigate. As they navigate the crime itself, Remus and Sirius realize that there is something to their instant chemistry. But they need to keep their newfound attraction under wraps while trying to find the killer and stop them from claiming more victims. (36K)

14. Paper Wings by Krislaughs

(not hosted on ao3)

What if Sirius Black sent a final message from Azkaban? Enter the home of the last Marauder in the days following Voldemort’s downfall. Lost and alone, Remus asks a question of the void, a question whose answer will send him around the world. Meeting puppies, Kneazles, dementors, and nomads, Remus learns more about himself and his friends than he ever thought possible. Learn the secrets of the Marauder’s map and the world’s best chocolate, how various Death Eaters occupied themselves after the fall of their lord, and why you should never leave Remembralls lying around.

15. Uncreated Night by earlybloomingparentheses

Remus can drift through whole worlds in his own mind. Sirius lives in his body, electric, ablaze. In 1979 and 1996 and 1978 and 1981 and in many other years and many different places, they search for the bridges between them and the spaces they can share. Time after time, they fight their way back together, head and heart, mind and body.

And in 1998, Remus stands before the veil, wondering if he should finally stop thinking, and just act. (41.5K)

16. Lemon Chiffon Yellow by Spklvr

An unplanned night between Remus and Tonks ends up changing their lives forever. (42K)

17. The Weather Inside by earlybloomingparentheses

Sirius rides a flying motorbike, and snogs strangers in pubs, and strikes moody poses Remus finds irritatingly attractive. But for Remus, who drinks milky tea and wears flannel pyjamas, there's a chasm cracked right down the fault line between wanting and doing.

How he wants, though. How he wants. (43K)

18. the dogfather by hollimichele

“I’m not a reverse werewolf either,” says the man. “I’m your godfather.” (47K)

19. Domestic Creatures by veeagainst

Growing up is hard to do -- but the journey is better if you take someone with you. (53K)

20. Leave the Children Behind by montparnasse

Bravery, sometimes, is the ending just as much as the beginning. Remus, Sirius, and a series of choices.

Or, a love story—backwards and forwards. (54K)

21. A Series of Sketches Done in Black Ink by mustntgetmy

Non-magic AU. Sirius had always imagined the aftermath of falling in love would mean lightness, and an escape from all the horrors of his childhood. But the past never leaves, and even love can't stop bad memories from resurfacing.

An almost year in the life of Sirius and Remus's first year as a couple replete with art and tangled sheets, and containing the following: filled sketchbook pages from people lost and people found, terrible biscuits from an excellent therapist, mismatched music records, expensive hot chocolate, a lost brother, photographs (some invasive and some invoking terrible memories), a reckoning with the past, a promise of the future, and yet another ridiculously over the top Halloween party. (57K)

22. Alt Ed by NachoDiablo

“Remus? Who the bloody hell is Remus?” James is scrambling to straighten his chair as McGonagall glares at him from the head table.

Mary smiles innocently. “Oh, just a new friend that Lily met over the holidays. He’s homeschooled, just moved into her neighborhood it seems. She says he’s very clever. And I hear he’s quite fit, as well.”

AU where Remus and Lily become friends outside of Hogwarts, setting James and Sirius on a quest to learn more about this mysterious newcomer. (61K)

23. Indiana Lupin and the Search for the Conqueror by nekarose

Remus Lupin is an undercover archaeologist for the British Museum and is sent to Greenland to investigate a Roman shipwreck. In Greenland he meets Sirius Black, makes a real discovery and soon enough the two of them are racing through the world in search of the remains of the Library of Alexandria with Remus’ arch-enemy right at their heels. (66K)

24. Le Mot Vagabond by ironicallyinternational

(It all starts with Peter Pettigrew dying twice.

First, Peter kills Wormtail (discreetly), and then Sirius kills him (less discreetly).

Losing a friend is never easy, even amidst the ravages of war, but losing the last of your childhood alongside him is far worse.)

War is a complicated, messy thing. The Marauders have their fucked up shit to deal with, but they also have each other, and that counts for a lot. (151K)

SERIES:

25. The Hole in the Ground by sostrata

(5 works) A series of fics about Sirius and Remus raising Harry in their home, The Hole in the Ground. (18k)

26. Holding Out by bigblackbog

(works 2)

On Halloween, 1981 Sirius and Remus abscond with Harry despite their recently rocky relationship. (36K)

27. Maddest House by busaikko

(6 works)

old as hell. Another wolfstar raising Harry fic (55K)

28. Lycanthropic Studies by Eiiri

(3 works)

After the Battle of Hogwarts, Remus recognizes something familiar in Draco Malfoy and offers him sanctuary. With nowhere else to turn--his parents in prison, his home a crime scene--Draco reluctantly accepts and becomes a tolerated, if not welcome, member of his schoolyard rivals' and wartime adversaries' family of choice. As pages of the lunar calendar turn and the summer wears on,Draco and the others begin to see each other in a different light. (139K)

29. Stealing Harryverse by copperbadge

(works 12)

On a dark night long ago, Sirius Black took a wrong turn and never found Peter Pettigrew. Instead of Azkaban, Sirius settled down in Little Whinging to keep an eye on his godson, and hired Remus Lupin to run his bookshop for him. Then one day when Harry was eight, Sirius found out how the Dursleys treated him, and stole him away.

Stealing Harry is an alternate universe version of Harry Potter's life before his time at Hogwarts. It is the story of Harry's family: Sirius and Remus, Ted and Andromeda, Nymphadora, Neville Longbottom, and even Severus Snape, all banded together against a newly powerful Peter Pettigrew who is still searching for a way to resurrect Voldemort.

Laocoon's Children follows Harry through his time at Hogwarts as he develops a very different group of friends: Hufflepuff Draco Malfoy, Ravenclaw Padma Patil, and Gryffindor Neville Longbottom, strange companions for a Harry who was sorted into Slytherin -- the house of his beloved Professor Snape.

This universe ends in Harry's third year, and is partially incomplete. As it is not likely to be finished, the last story in the series is a group of notes I made on where the story would have gone and how it would have ended. (443.3K)

30. All the Young Dudes by MsKingBean89

(4 works)

LONG fic charting the marauders' time at Hogwarts (and beyond) from Remus' PoV - diversion from canon in that Remus's father died and he was raised in a children's home, and is a bit rough around the edges. Otherwise canon-compliant. 1971 - 1995 (557K)

31. Crow Rides A Pale Horse by tb_ll57

(4 works)

The note pinned to his collar read 'Harry J Potter - please accept'. The Dursleys had left him with nothing else but a pillow sack with half a sleeve of McVities biscuits, a mealy apple, and ten pounds. (618K)

#hp #harry potter #wolfstar #remus lupin #sirius black #killing sirius was not punk rock jk rowling #nor was killing off remus #this is the barest reason to want to kick jkr #reference for myself #i dont have all of these bookmarked on ao3 even if they're some of my favs #raising harry #fic rec #this only took me an hour to make i can't believe i've been procrastinating this #lolol yes i can #i can believe

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