#Lady Annalise Harlowe

[the-flightless-dove]

To Depose a Tyrant

It was late when Aylin rode into the courtyard of Dovewood Manor. Traveling from Stormwind was a bit of a gallop, and the groom that moved to take control of her mount murmured a soft greeting to Aylin. 

“Good evening, Alaster. Please make sure that Trigger is given a proper rub down, and walk until he is cooled down. I’m afraid I may have pushed him a little too hard, but it was already after dark when I departed Stormwind. And give him an extra beet feed. He did well.” 

“Yes, m’lady. I’ll see it done,” Alaster replied, patting Trigger’s neck before leading him away. 

Aylin watched the groom head for the stables. She wrapped the thick riding cloak further around herself before heading towards the manor. 

“You may as well show yourself, Derrek. I know you are there,” Aylin spoke candidly as her footsteps fell on the gravel below. Her boots weren’t the only steps she heard, and she couldn’t suppress the soft smile that came to fruition as a result. “The gravel gives you away.” 

“You mustn’t be so careless, m’lady. You should’ve stayed in Stormwind until first light,” Derrek answered, the shadows sloughing from off his shoulders as he fell into step alongside her.  “You were safer there than you are in Dovewood.”

“No,” Aylin casually countered. “I refuse to be kept from my home because Lucius thinks he can take over Embris while I’m not looking. Have you seen anything from him since we last encountered him when he interrupted the tea with Lady Harlowe?” 

“No, I don’t bel—” 

“Lady Gregory!” The butler she had grown up with moved out from the manor house, striding towards her with haste. “M’lady.” “Carson?” Aylin joined him, watching as Derrek melded into the shadows once more from the corner of her eye. “What is it?” 

“M’lady— Your uncle awaits you in the drawing room. He is...” Carson steepled his fingers together. “Most anxious to speak with you. I’ve told him that you hadn’t arrived back from Stormwind, and we weren’t sure when you would arrive, if at all. But I’m afraid he’s insisted.” 

“I’ll deal with him, Carson. And thank you.” Aylin placed a hand on the worried Carson’s arm before slipping past him. Aylin continued to the house at the same pace she held with Derrek. 

As she reached the front door, she pushed the door in. 

Moving through the foyer, she unclasped her cloak which revealed her riding outfit. The heels of her boots clicked on the stone below her as she headed towards the room that held her lord uncle, and, when she reached the door, Aylin drew to a stop.

The breath that she didn’t realize she had been holding finally escaped her lungs. Green eyes stared at the dark stain on the wood door, hand waiting on the handle, before she finally elected to enter the room. 

“Uncle. I heard you wished to see me. I’ve only just arrived from Stormwind.” Aylin spoke evenly, meeting her uncle’s gaze straight on. 

“I know where you’ve been, and whom you’ve been meeting with,” Lucius spat at her. Even from across the room, Aylin could tell he had lost himself to libations again.

She continued to meet his gaze, unyielding as her head tilted slightly. 

“Well, what can I do for you then, Lucius? I’ve had a long ride home, and I’m rather disgusting from mud and swe—” The tumbler shattering against the floor gave her pause, causing the woman’s words to falter on her tongue.

“Damn it, Aylin! After all I have done for you!” Lucius stormed around the sofa he stood in front of to come face-to-face with Aylin, taking her chin firmly in hand.  Aylin remained still, not moving or fighting away from his grip. 

His breath was rife with the putrid stench of the alcohol that flowed through his veins, and it caused her stomach to roil as Aylin fought to not retch before the man.

“... I can’t believe you thought I wouldn’t find out about my own family, Lucius. How you sent them out and murdered them, one by one. Even your own sister,” Aylin growled, voice low and thick with malice. “You were foolish to think I wouldn’t find out. One day, eventually.” 

The truth hung like a death sentence in the air between them, igniting a storm within his eyes. It earned a slow grin, one that parted to usher forth a quiet, hollow chuckle. “The littlest dove finally figured it out.” Lucius raised his hand, his knuckles cracking against the skin of her cheek. “Tell me, my little dove. What finally gave me away?” Lucius stood over her like a starving dog being teased with meat.

“Does it matter? I overheard you plotting.” That earned her a kick to her stomach, which caused her to wheeze out a breath. Her eyes went blurry, welling with tears she willed away. “I heard you talking about how Embris would be fully yours if you could just get rid of me. But you needed a plan. It couldn’t look suspicious.” Another kick. Another harrowing gasp for breath. “Such a clever little dove,” Lucius purred, bending down to grab her by the fist full of hair. “And now we will. I’ll set the manor ablaze. They’ll think you died in your sleep, your lungs covered in smoke. And who would ever think otherwise, hm? They’ve all fallen victim to my praise.” 

Aylin fought against him as he drug her towards the fire. 

“No!” Aylin choked out, struggling away from him finally. “You don’t get to do that to me too!” She rushed to the door, determined to get away from the traitor in the room. “I’m riding to Stormwind to tell them what you’ve done.” 

“No you don’t, little dove,” Lucius snarled, snatching her wrist to spin the woman around. He pinned her against the wall, forcing her to face him as his index and thumb again collected her chin, jerking it skywards so she could bear witness to her would-be killer. “You don’t get to dictate this now. I do. And I am in con-trol.” 

It took all of her strength, all of her courage, all of her vengeance to grab the knife that mirrored one of Lucius’ own. She stole it from the band of her pants and let adrenaline do the rest, holding it horizontally and driving the blade through his ribs while the serrated edge tore through the cartilage. 

She pulled it out, and pushed back in. Again. And again. And again.

Tears sprung forth as she watched realization wash across his sweat-slicked features.

Tears for her family. 

Tears for the uncle she had onced loved. 

Tears for the man she thought she knew who dropped to the floor like a used toy cast aside.

It was done. 

Aylin sobbed openly, staring down as the blood on her hands dripped from the knife to the body at her feet.

“M’lady?!” A feminine voice called out, the door flying open as another entered the room. “M’lady!” It was Anna, her most favorite maid and confidant. 

“Anna. He— H-he attacked. He was out of his mind. I-I-I t-tried to leave an-and h-he grabbed me. He was going to kill me!” Aylin cried to Anna. “I was just trying t-to protect myself… I didn’t m-m-mean to kill him Anna!” 

“It’s alright, my lady, it’s alright.” Anna was gentle, leading Aylin away from her uncle’s corpse. “Just… Just stand here, and let me fetch you something to wipe your hands, my lady.” Anna moved from the room quickly. 

Aylin crossed the threshold of the drawing room, turning her back on the traitor still bleeding out behind her. She headed to the front door, swiftly collecting her riding cloak before escaping out into the yard, her feet moving of their own volition to close the distance to the stables. All of the grooms had retired for the evening, leaving the woman to her own devices.

That was a good thing. A lucky thing.

Aylin collected the tack from the tack room, and began tacking up in the dim light from the torch attached to the wall nearby. The blood on her hands made things slick, but finally the horse was bridled and saddled. She moved to the mounting block and with a tiny hop, swung up and over the horse. A click of her tongue against the roof of her mouth urged the steed to the barn door, and a harsh kick spurred Trigger into a steady gallop. “AYLIN! AYLIN!” She could hear Derrek yell after her. 

But she had a long ride, and no time for answers. 

She was riding to Kestramere, to Lady Harlowe, to freedom.

{ Mentions: @annaliseharlowe​ } 

[silversteel-blacksheep]

A Simple Report

Annalise Harlowe would find a sealed folder delivered to her by the morning.    On the outside, in neat nondescript letters in the lop left corner it read:  ‘Events of Note, 12/09′.     Upon opening the folder a hand written report would be found.    The writing was neat and precise.

Lady Harlowe,

I would like to begin by prefacing this report by stating it is limited to what I personally was present for.    I arrived after the actual attack on Lady Mathews had occurred.   With that limitation stated, what follows, for the benefit of your records, is my account of events.

It was approximately 10 bells when I ran into Lady Mathews outside of the Cathedral.    Upon my arrival there was a guard present, and the Illidari finished some manner of spell before leaping into the air and taking flight.   

At this point, I quickly ran to Lady Mathews to ensure she was alright.    The Illidari had burnt her with fel magics, and from what I understand, also jumped on her back at some point.   I was not present for this.     The guard woman attempted to call for a medic, but none were available, and Lady Mathews insisted upon sitting down to try and recover a bit.    As she did this, I went to search the Cathedral for a mender of some sort.  

I found three individuals inside of the Cathedral, two of whom were locked in a rather close embrace, the third lingered to the side.   I do not know the nature of their relationship.    In any event, one of the two in the embrace works with the Cathedral, and agreed to take a look at Lady Mathews injuries.    I got a distinct feeling my presence was not appreciated by the man the Paladin woman was embracing when I had interrupted.    Yet the woman’s companions seem fine in hindsight.    I just felt guilty about disrupting them.   

Apologies, that may not be relevant.    In any event, the Paladin quickly say to Lady Mathews burns in a rather dazzling and (to me) unsettling display of the Light.     The mending seemed effective, though it did seem to leave Lady Mathews slightly drained.     Her clothing was also burnt, and after taking a moment to collect herself she went in the Cathedral to change.     I waited outside, and she returned.   

We began to speak for a moment, as she sat back down, as I wanted to make sure she had recovered before moving.    It was at this point Lady Greymourn appeared and began to converse casually with us.     Thing were fairly calm.    

An woman than approached with letter.    This was quite some time after the initial attack.   I believe around 11 bells, though possibly 12, I fear my sense of time begins to blur a bit.      However this woman approached, and claimed to have a letter from the Ilidari for Lady Mathews.   She also claimed the she had been threatened into delivering said letter.   Lady Greymourn read it and burnt it and the woman left.    

It was then that a whole line of guards appeared and spoke with Lady Mathews.   And just as they took a step away, the Illidari appeared again.    And she threatened Lady Mathews before she was quickly surrounded by guards, which caused her to float off and challenge to fight them all.   I believe it is somewhere around this point you arrived and witnessed things yourself.    

That is the sequence of events as I recall it.    I do apologize that this report seems rather dry and dull, but I suppose that is the nature of records.    It is probably not my place to editorialize, so I have made an effort to simply stick to providing an accurate description of the relevant events, and various people involved.     If you find this format of a report overly dry, please inform me, and I will strive to add more color to those I write in the future.   

Yours,

Velathriel Silversteel

[ @annaliseharlowe w/ mention of @house-greymourn and @lightsong-legacy]

[annaliseharlowe]

in swift reply ;

          Her father's desk is a marvelous thing. An oaken construct of antiquated elegance, its surface bears a sheen left behind by fresh polish that causes the grain to glitter resplendently when dawn's light strikes it just right. There are no scuff marks, no scratches; unsullied, the piece of furniture is absolute perfection, made all the better by the gold leaf embellishments on its trim.

          Annalise would be a liar if she said that she was not enamored of it.

          A soft smile adorns her lips as a delicate finger runs along the desk's edge. The motion elicits a wave of nostalgia: how many times has she seen him sit here, combing through documents while she plays in the garden? How many times has she tapped on the parlor's window, pleading with him to forgo his work in favor of chasing butterflies at her side?

          She pays a fleeting glance to the pane of glass just past the table, half-expecting to see the smudges of fingerprints across its exterior still. There are none, of course, and Annalise cannot help to wrinkle her nose.

          Focus, Ana, the woman reminds herself. Her hand drifts to the frontmost drawer and she pulls it open to retrieve a sheet of parchment from within, setting it atop the sleek, polished surface. The quill's tip is dipped into the inkwell before she places it against the page and begins to write.

Lady MacLathagain,

It is a pleasure to receive a letter from a woman such as yourself. While I may not recall the legacy that precedes you, I believe I have heard the name in passing conversations between my mother and father in my youth. Good things, I assure you; they do not tend to use the term 'friend' liberally.

This offer of yours is one that does not fall on deaf ears but into eager hands. I presume that I would be all the more receptive to a mutually-beneficial partnership provided our conversation proves to be a profitable one.

I will be in the city this week, too. Should you be willing, we can meet in Old Town before the week ends. There is something I have meant to look into anyway, so why not tackle two birds with one stone?

I look forward to seeing you, Lady Annalise Harlowe

          She shifts the paper away from herself, allowing it time to dry so it can be delivered by mid-afternoon. Once the quill is of no concern and the ink is returned to its proper home, Annalise cradles her chin in hand and looks out the window again.

          Beyond, in the garden, butterflies begin to unfurl their wings.

          + @the-bogwitch​

[house-greymourn]

Enduring the Storm

“S-steady now…let me finish the spell!” Sweat was already dripping from the Ren’dorei’s brow as she mended yet another wounded refugee. It had only been a few days since the reports of a Scourge invasion and yet the sick and dying were already piling up for the few who knew of any mending magick. Trembling fingers curled and flexed as she took deep breaths, stringing together flesh and organ back together. The process of magically sealing a wound was difficult enough, but to do so time, and time, and time again was only to straddle the line of sanity. The Nightblade’s knees started to buckle, reaching forward she’d grab ahold of the edge of the patient’s bed, “S-steady now…” she’d remind herself, forcing her breathing to regulate. In, out, in out - do not stop now Theodora.

The patient’s wound had finally become sealed, it’s inflamation and putrid infection gone - as well as the gaping bite mark that the poor girl had been gifted from a freshly turned ghoul.

“Sleep now…I, I’ve got others to tend to.” The elf would turn to leave the tent, closing the flap behind her. Deep breaths would soon be used to cleanse her mind, as well as remind her lungs of what fresh air was. A subtle gift to herself. The sudden flapping of wings would soon fill the elf’s ears, “Hmm?” Turning to look upwards a crow would’ve landed upon the nearest tent, nodding its head, luring the witch over. A letter was tied to it’s harness, “ My allies and friends, I write to you about the threat that grows greater by the second. The Scourge, cultists, things that cannot even be described have fallen in waves upon Duskwood, devouring each and every body they can get their hands and teeth on. My people have become victims to them already; I cannot recount the number of children now without mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters.

I have allowed Crow’s Nest to serve as a sanctuary for the refugees trying to escape this looming madness, but I am running out of maids and men to assist in tending to them and the battle on the front. I believe, too, that my sister is stranded in the woods somewhere, as the guards who were protecting her on the way here have been found ripped to shreds.

So I implore you, I beg of you, please — if there is anything you can do, anything you can offer, lend it to me now. It will not go without gratitude or repayment when this threat is quashed, and Kestramere is safe again.

Light guide, Lady Annalise Harlowe” “A-auryon is…s-she…she’s missing?” The Nightblade’s chest would begin to tighten, the sudden news of her sister’s death was hard enough, and now…now her niece has gone missing. She’d reach into her satchel, withdrawing a bit of parchment and quickly scribbling a note. “I will find Auryon, leave it to me. Theodora.” She then tied the note onto the harness and sent the bird off to the Head of House Harlowe.

[ibroughtthisonmyselfpixels]

Shall we try the Death Archives thing again?

I think I’ve left it for a sufficient time that we can do this.

Across all known MMBCs, including the abandoned ones, we have 179 contestants who are still alive and competing, 213 who are dead (including one migrating from the first category), 37 with-a-38th-coming who are pending for current projects (ditto the last brackets), and eleven, all mine, who are pending for possible, or probable, future MMBC entries.

The total of confirmed alive and dead is 392; including the current-pending, the total is 429; including the future-pending, it’s 440. Going from the last time I talked about this eight or nine months ago, this is a respective numbers increase of 69 alive and 63 dead, and a complete-total increase of 144.

(McNair contestants are still counted as all alive for this purpose.)

The number of floater deaths - which, for the uninitiated, are deaths of individuals involved in MMBCs that aren’t exactly contestants, such as cohosts or external murderers - has gone up to ten from six. The new ones are Eleanor Voss and Just of Von Aleshire, Seth Diamond of Francis, and Cheyenne Butler of Collins. Without their inclusion, the total dead would be 203.

Discounting the five floater deaths that overlap with this category through their own killings, the number of known murderers across all MMBCs is 23 - a stark leap from the twelve of last time. Of those from completed projects, I believe five of them are still alive: Alice Juster from Hart, Chadrick Waite from Francis, Christiano Verde from Knight, Raina Mukherjee from Von Aleshire, and Tangelo Teahouse from the concluded-but-not-completed Galactic.

There’s a sixth still alive that I explicitly know the identity of... however, that murderer is the one for SoS MM BC, so I’m obviously not gonna tell you who that one is. From now on, when the word “murderers” is used statistically, it will not include this person among them.

Na na na-na na.

Out of all completed MMBCs, Von Aleshire has the most contestant-based survivors, on account of being a double MMBC: Raina, Dominic Windham III, and Aisling Bellamy. (Being a triple, I suspect that Hathorne will either match or exceed this total, but I Could Be Wrong.) As before, Moon-Blackberry and Angelo are the only MMBCs with contestant survivors that are neither winners nor murderers*: indeed, Lyra Maurer remains the only contestant to be eliminated from such a project through the “under -20 relationship” clause.

I’ve honestly lost track of how many of these Sims are supposed to be in Valhalla, and frankly, I am running out of room for them. Ergo, I’ll probably suspend the inclusion of any more of the dead in the active Valhalla StoryProgression circle - with the exception of SoS deaths, of course, plus one or two besides - until Hopelessness and Paranormal are indeed lifted. They are still going to be in Valhalla, don’t get me wrong; they just won’t be interactable in a gameplay sense. I really need to focus on Amelia’s story and that of the existing Valhalla residents right now, so I can be better and improve and be better.

A bewildering SIXTY-FOUR Sims, dead or alive, have names beginning with C, an increase of twenty since last time. Accordingly, C has the highest ratio of murderers to a letter, with five / seven: Caesar Clamato of Camisade, Camille Mist Sparta of Heliotrope, Chadrick, Charlie Fuentes of Chambers, Christiano, and Cheyenne and Cupid Hawthorne as floaters. It also has three winners to it: Cecil Amity of Ferox, Chadrick, and Cordelia Chicory Veil of Collins (who has not yet become Rafferty).

Chadrick Waite is the only Sim currently in the archives to simultaneously straddle the Murderer and Winner categories.

Five of all of the C sims are mine - Carl, Casey-Mae, Castor, Cordelia, Cree.

The letter A ties with C as having the most winners, with three out of its thirty-eight: Aisling, Anemone Shell of Moon-Blackberry, and Annie Kayse of Chambers. It also contains the second most murderers, another three: Amelia Ruth Limerence, Alice, and Asha Malik of Collins.

The letters D, N, P and S each contain two winners; K, L, O, R and V contain one each. N and P also contain two murderers, alongside B and G; E, H, J, M, R, T and V contain one each with floaters.

The B column contains the most ‘pending’ Sims with five, including one of mine; C, E, M, S, and tentatively R have four each. (Tentatively, because one of the Rs, mine, is merely a placeholder name until the MMBC runner I send her to approves of a different one.)

The most common first names in MMBCs, outside of Katherine, are Daisy (Harlow, MacGregor, and Olson), Felicity (Dubose, Harrison and Rose), Poppy (Blaze, Citrus and Reaves), and Scarlet (Caramel Creme, Rancune, and Tides, plus Scarlett Carnelian). The most common surnames, outside of West, are Chanel (Charlotte, Holly, and Shelley), Eklund (Anissa Alea, Mollie, and Racheal), Ivy (Claudia, Esmeralda, and Junpei), and Rose (Baxtor, Candy, and Felicity again). There are of course several names that can be abbreviated into similar ones - five beginning with Alex, for instance - but the above are the most common with that exact spelling.

If we’re going to be technical, the most common surname on the list is a lack of one! Just, Lithodora, Pomona, and Sprite all appear on a solely-first-name basis.

First names that occur two times are Alex on its own, Annalise, Betsy, Callie, Cynthia, Helena, Iris, Joey, Julian, June, Lady, Laurel, Lily, Percy, Scott, Seth (del Bosque and Diamond), and Sylvia.

Last names that occur two times are Arsenic, Butler, del Bosque, Didit, Ebonywood, Flynn, Greenwood, Haynes, Jernigan, Kang, Lust, Maple, McCabe, Rain, Rancune, Romero, Rothschild, Sparks, Stevens, Westwood, Wilcox, Winston, and Zest. The Arsenics, Chanels, del Bosques, Didits, Ebonywoods, Eklunds, Jernigans, Lusts, Rancunes, and Rothschilds are all related to each other to some degree; the Butlers, Flynns, Greenwoods, Haynes, Ivys, Kangs, Maples, McCabes, Rains, Romeros, Roses, Sparks, Stevens, Westwoods, probably Wilcoxes, Winstons, and Zests are not. Confused yet?

The Sim called Independence is still alive.

Faux starvation (guns, cowplants or knives) remains the most frequent death, having appeared thirty-two times across sixteen unique MMBCs - thirty-four if you count Amelia and Laurel. Six are cowplant deaths, fifteen / sixteen are stabbings, one is a decapitation after a botched stabbing, eight involve guns, one is / two are a slit throat... and Edmond’s was Boot to the Head.

Fire appears twenty-four times, across nineteen unique MMBCs. Interestingly, only the Goth MMBC has the death not be caused by the fire directly, but rather specifies that Ladonna died of “smoke inhalation”.

The most common first cause of death in an MMBC is also fire, it having opened nine of them if we count Galactic’s opening double-death gambit as a single instance. The next most common is Blunt Force Trauma, at five times.

Of the known dead murderers, the most common way for them to die is by stabbing or gunshot (this still includes Hortense, despite the differing ghost look).

There have been fifteen double-deaths in MMBCs; only those of Dublin-and-Junior and Alex-and-Dalton have the causes of death differ between the two. Phantom had the most true double-deaths, with two in quick succession: While Hawthorne and Von Aleshire had an equal amount, Cupid and Eleanor Voss were involved in two of the respective double deaths, and they were not contestants, while all of Phantom’s involved contestants. There have still been only two triple deaths in MMBC history.

There are three Sims with unique death causes / ghost colors within the MMBC context: Charlie, Chokecherry, and Whisper. Reef lost his unique color, Mummy’s Curse, to Fae Bricks’ own poisoning.

Blunt Force Trauma and Jellybean now have eighteen deaths between them - though for the latter, Daisy Olson’s death is counted as that despite it either being a starvation or a stabbing. Weird. The next most common deaths are Drowning and Electrocution, at 17 each.

There are currently sixteen completed MMBCs, nine currently still happening as far as I know, three preparing to start, eleven discontinued, and ten that may be happening in the future that I know about / have names for. This is a total of forty-nine* MMBCs at this moment in time.

* = Fifty-one, if you count the two Sims 4-exclusive ones that may or may not still be happening, the one by yoongisims and the one by the one who originally ran Bucket. I don’t know if they’re still happening or will even start or what, so I’m hesitant to count them until there is actually proof of a beginning for either of them.

I’ve entered Sims into thirty of the thirty-nine MMBCs that are currently known about and ‘public’; ten of them are dead. I have three BFTs, two drowning ghosts, a jellybean ghost, two Buried Alive ghosts, a freezing ghost, and a stabbing ghost. I also have a BFT from Chambers, Dub, and a would-be-stabbing from Limerence, Amelia. I don’t know if any of my creations are going to die in SoS yet...

I also have three Sims alive by victory, gorgeous Lyra alive by conventional elimination, five by current circulation, three by their not having started yet, seven (plus Sera’s first iteration) by oblivion, and my eleven pending. That’s nineteen to thirty-one alive to ten dead, depending on how you look at it.

Sera was one of the four mooted Powers contestants to go on to other projects, and of those four, she is the only one to have died. Lichen Hara is still alive in the same project as Sera, Alice Juster was Hart’s killer, and Regina Largo is en route to Baines.

The MMBCs I missed out on entering are Steele, Francis, Mirage (Shipwrecked Passion), Heliotrope, Bucket (Sims 4), and Phantom. Of these six, only Steele and Francis are complete, and the last three all ended prematurely.

I have run two MMBCs in the past, and am in the process of running another one. I also have six projects slated for the future: Roach, Teufel, Jernigan, Pritchett / Celare, Last Chance, and [redacted]. Vidcund has completed four in the past, is running four at once now, and has at least two ‘named’ ones in my archives for the future, though I’m sure he has many more ideas that he hasn’t told you about, and even some she hasn’t even told me. Jack is quickly rising up the ranks of prolific, having run two and about to properly start a third. Eighteen of the known MMBCs - nineteen including Wormwood - have been ‘single attempts at the concept’ so far.

FROM IGNORANCE BLIND A'SPRANG A SONG OF DOOM / BETRAYER OF BLOOD A'HARKENS INTO THE GLOOM / O'RE STONE, O'RE BLOOD THE CHURCH WILL WEEP / AND WITNESS THE BRIDE IN ETERNAL SLEEP.

[tabloidtoc]

In Touch, October 29

Lots of weeklies in the mail today, including this one, which I thought had been lost in the mail

Cover: Melania Trump’s side of the story 

Page 1: Contents 

Page 2: Who Wore It Better? Gigi Hadid vs. Thandie Newton, Julianne Moore vs. Kayli Carter, Kris Jenner vs. Iggy Azalea, Chloe Bridges vs. Chandler Kinney

Page 4: Halloween Hollywood Style 

Page 5: Busy Philipps’ tell-all book, Panic of the Week -- Charlize Theron, Old Pal of the Week -- Liam Neeson, Number of the Week -- Taylor Swift, Makeover of the Week -- Lucy Hale 

Page 6: Crib of the Week -- Bradley Cooper’s Manhattan townhouse, Amber Rose lets her son curse, Keira Knightley disses Kate Middleton 

Page 8: Kim Kardashian trashes her sisters’ style 

Page 9: Man Candy of the Week -- Matthew Parker, Winner of the Week -- Amy Winehouse fans to get a tour with a hologram of the singer, Loser of the Week -- Billy McFarland, Fran Drescher wants to play Cardi B’s mom in a sitcom 

Page 10: Oh Baby -- Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag and son Gunner, Kate Hudson and Danny Fujikawa’s daughter Rani, Celine Dion and Rene Angelil’s twins Eddy and Nelson, Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe’s son Deacon, Will Arnett and Amy Poehler’s son Archie, Michelle Williams and Heath Ledger’s daughter Matilda 

Page 12: Up Close -- American Music Awards -- Cardi B, Tracee Ellis Ross, Camila Cabello, Jennifer Lopez, Taylor Swift 

Page 14: Julia Roberts 

Page 16: John Cena and Shaquille O’Neal

Page 17: Reese Witherspoon, Mario Lopez and son Nico, Chris Pratt

Page 18: Bella Thorne, Drew Scott and wife Linda Phan, Jonathan Bennett 

Page 20: Bradley Cooper and daughter Lea, Beyonce and her parents, Katie Holmes 

Page 22: Chrissy Teigen and John Legend, Tina Fey, Heidi Klum

Page 23: Kelly Osbourne, Jamie Foxx and daughter Annalise 

Page 24: Will Smith, Jessica Simpson, Zendaya and Tom Holland 

Page 26: Jennifer Garner and bodyguard/mystery man 

Page 27: Ryan Gosling and Ellen DeGeneres, Jewel 

Page 28: Melania Trump 

Page 31: Kanye West’s bizarre meeting with Donald Trump 

Page 32: All eyes were on Meghan Markle’s baby bump at Princess Eugenie’s wedding 

Page 36: Ben Affleck’s new life 

Page 38: Secrets from Making a Murderer Part 2

Page 40: Inside Selena Gomez’s breakdown 

Page 41: Bradley Cooper and Irina Shayk fighting over his closeness with Lady Gaga, why Ariana Grande dumped Pete Davidson, blind item, Star Sightings -- Kelly Ripa, Nicky Hilton Rothschild, Ali Fedotowsky-Manno, Lauren Bushnell, Carey Mulligan and Jake Gyllenhaal, Sutton Foster 

Page 42: Channing Tatum falls for Jessie J 

Page 43: Annette Roque kicks Matt Lauer out, it’s over for Joe and Teresa Giudice, Bethenny Frankel had a victory in court over her ex-husband Jason Hoppy

Page 44: Hot Stuff 

Page 46: Inside Maria Menounos’ surrogate journey 

Page 48: Diet and Workout Extremes -- Kourtney Kardashian, Britney Spears, Mark Wahlberg, Ciara, Bella Hadid, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Kim Kardashian 

Page 50: Style -- Bold Fall Boots -- Olivia Culpo, Marion Cotillard, Gigi Hadid, Millie Bobby Brown, Victoria Justice -- Please don’t wear dead animals on your feet 

Page 52: Plaid suits -- Yara Shahidi, Cate Blanchett, Hailey Baldwin, Lucy Hale, Blake Lively, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Nikki Reed, Mila Kunis, Dakota Johnson 

Page 54: Beauty -- Pumpkin-Spice Lips -- Bryce Dallas Howard, Hailee Steinfeld, Jennifer Hudson 

Page 56: Did I Really Do That? Rita Ora, Julianne Hough, Robert Pattinson 

Page 60: What Team Are You On? Terrence Howard 

Page 61: Blast from the Past -- the cast of Shakespeare in Love on its 20th Anniversary 

Page 62: Animal Overload 

Page 64: My Night at Home -- Geoff Stults, Guess Whose Cellphone Case -- Cara Delevingne, Diane Kruger, Nicky Hilton, Olivia Palermo, Blac Chyna, Reese Witherspoon 

Page 66: Double Take -- Winnie Harlow 

Page 68: Horoscope -- Scorpio Emilia Clarke 

Page 70: TV’s Hottest Doctors -- Ryan Eggold, Brian Tee, Manish Dayal, Nicholas Gonzalez, Matt Cohen, Alex Landi, Hill Harper, Matt Czuchry, Colin Donnell, Jesse Williams 

Page 72: Last Laughs

[alchemization]

     From the depths of his mind did the memories resurface, prompted firstly by himself, but followed up on by her. It brought about an end to the smirk that curled the corner of his lips upward, restoring a semblance of natural neutrality to his expression again. The overall demeanor of the gilnean raised apothecary remained resolute in his calm, premeditated stature. Instances of things happening that he hadn’t already thought about were few and far between, but not every situation or conversation was something that he could control. He had grown accustomed to such, yet nonetheless, when her hand found a piece of lint upon his shoulder that he had missed, Silas was no longer certain as to what he controlled, or if he ever did in the first place.

          “To be completely honest, Lady Harlowe; no. You shouldn’t.”

     Once more had the seed of malevolence been planted, and within his lips was the devil revealed in the details, as it blossomed into a kind smile paired with warm, amethyst eyes. “What was it that your father had me do for him? What was the price? Why did he not send for me since?” He inquired, head shifting to adopt a slight cant, tipping forward ever so gently to encourage Annalise to ask those very questions. “You may have the answers, you might not. Either way, they lend a bit of context to whatever trust had been placed in me. You are free to do with that as you please; my lady.”

     A sickeningly sweet tone caused his words to drip as if they were honeycomb drowned in syrup, attracting all that would succumb to such a base level of craving. Just one little taste wouldn’t hurt, surely, though he knew she was both stronger and smarter than that. It is what drew his gaze to settle upon her visage, analytically combing over her details yet again, as if such was at risk of being forgotten.

     “You needn’t trust me completely, to do so would be dangerous.”

     “Then again, danger might be exactly what it is that you seek, to break the mold of the monotonous life thrust upon your shoulders. I can imagine many reasons as to why we could embark on a short journey, just to stretch your legs.”

     Returning the favor, his own hand rose from his side, removing a strand of hair that clung to the fabric of her attire. Into the air was it given, the wind carrying it away to who knows where. Thereafter, he brushed off the location that it was stuck upon, just in case something remained behind. 

                “Does that sound favorable to you? Lady Harlowe.”

                                       ( @annaliseharlowe​ )

👁‍🗨 "Well, considering my reputation of first impressions... And my most famous impression being the one with your father, I am ever the curious cat in this regard. I do wonder though, what did you think of me? Your father's story compared to the real thing." Silas questioned, a devilish smirk upon his lips as he waited with anticipation.

          "If memory serves me correctly," Annalise returns, "I held you in high regard despite the number of vials you broke. There are few brazen enough to deal with my father in close quarters; while he is a saint in all but name when it comes to his children, it is not uncommon for someone to liken him to 'complicated'. And yet, he praised you for your skills and how you carried yourself, and the pleasantries exchanged between you both. Naturally, I elected to follow in his footsteps when it came to the esteemed Mister Castle."

          There's a gradual shift in demeanor as the woman speaks of the Lord Father, her expression becoming wistful while an unanticipated warmth sneaks into her tone. She looks away, eyeing the streets beyond them both, and ruminates on the colorful tale he had regaled her with long ago about a man, a needle, and a pair of abnormally steady hands.

          Never trust a man with steady hands.

          "But time changes everything," the woman exhales after an interlude of silence. Her attention fixates on the Gilnean, studying his countenance as she speaks. "Would it not be remiss of me to cling to the days of old, Mister Castle? Would it not be foolish, too, to put my faith in a man only my father seems to know? Or is he the fool for not knowing you at all?" she questions with a chuckle, leaning forward to brush an iota of lint from off the curve of his shoulder.

          "Suffice to say, I trusted you then. The real question is this: Should I trust you now?"

          + @alchemization