#Prosper Business Credit

[licorishh]

Replayed Modern Warfare 3 2011 on Veteran tonight and goooooooood night. Blood Brothers never gets any easier to watch no matter how many times you've done it and the ending really never misses huh

I apologize for the amount of yapping in the tags I reread it all on mobile and started giggling because it went on for so long but eh. Blessed are those who won't shut the freak up and all that

[tiyawnyana]

God… how can you write so excellent!!! I’m fascinated by your talent. Your blog gives me lifeeeeee.

Can I make a request? For the past week I’ve been infatuated with the idea of: Caitlyn seeing that someone is trying to hit on Vi, sending her flowers, letters or giving her compliments. And she’s soo jealous! How would they resolve that on the bed?? (Or couch, or office, or…. Anywhere really!! Omgg)

Love youuu, please never stop writing! Sending you a hug from Colombia 🫂

Thank you for this request!! I had sososo much fun writing this ♡♡♡ sending hugs and smooches for this amazing request

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A/N: requests are still open, gradually getting through them! Also- Gert didn't die in this! I will not let that baddie die!

Characters: Caitlyn Kiramman x Violet (Vi)

Warnings: relationship, jealousy, dubious consent, slightly aggressive smut, fingering, slight oral (fem receiving), surprise at the end

Men and Children DNI

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Pink Flowers

It started with the clean up of Piltover and Zaun.

Vi had volunteered her time and efforts despite her broken arm.

Caitlyn remembers it clearly- she had only stepped away for a moment to speak with some of the various enforcers, giving instructions and directing help around to families needing it in the lower streets of Zaun.

She had turned to Vi, her lone eye wandering aimlessly for shaggy pink hair when it catches her- a fellow Zaunite conversing with Vi with a flush to her cheeks.

Caitlyn remembered this girl.. Gina? Geri? She had volunteered to fight for the battle as a Zaunite initially, strutting in with blue dyed dreads and spikes along the shoulders of her jacket. She had been stabbed in battle, but due to Vi's efforts, survived.

Caitlyn stands there for a moment, the feeling of slight frustration bubbling up when the girl cups Vi's bicep almost too friendly- then she's advancing, walking back over to her girlfriend and cupping her elbow fondly.

The girl, named Gert, had merely smiled- a strained one on her lips as she eyes Caitlyns face before nodding a bye to Vi, leaving to continue helping along the streets.

"Hey, Cupcake," Vi had said so soft, a tired look in her gaze before a frown etches onto her lips,"You alright?"

Caitlyn had nodded, smiling down at her just as soft before pressing a kiss to her temple.

Then came the food.

Vi had always had a soft spot for that butcher, the one she had gone to right after Caitlyn got her out of Stillwater.

Gert had found Vi down by the docks in Zaun, working on some deal with the fishermen to start working with Piltover in order to secure some allyship.

The girl had insisted, bringing Vi to the butchers stall. Vi had lit up, glad to see the giant fish-man was not giving up business, even moving up to the bridges to sell to Zaun and Piltover.

Caitlyn had already been up there, conversing with Counselor Shoola and Counselor Sevika (despite the awkwardness in that interaction) about various trades and businesses that could very well prosper with Zaun becoming it's own nation alongside Piltover.

She had seen a glimpse of pink with her good eye, looking for the source and finding Vi conversing with Gert, mouth full of that fish she oh so loved as they sat at the stall.

Caitlyn had clenched her jaw when she spotted Gert place her hand over Vi's, seemingly insisting on paying for her meal.

She had to give Vi some form of credit; she had definitely pulled her hand back kindly, despite the awkwardness.

That didn't stop Gert, though.

The girl didn't seem to know or even wrap her head around the fact that Vi was a taken woman. Very happily, so.

But Vi didn't seem to understand either that she was actually being flirted with.

She only saw it as friendly, and granted, being without her friends growing up due to imprisonment or their unfortunate deaths will undoubtedly put a stunt to what one deems proper friendship.

Vi thought she'd made a friend.

Caitlyn had to sympathize with that.

Until there was various gifts left at the Kiramman residence over the period of a few weeks.

Vi would most often find them first, showing the random things; food from that butcher again, a new shirt crafted by a childhood vendor Vi had mentioned one time, something found down at the burnt remains down at The Last Drop.

There was even a pair of boxing gloves left at the door once Vi's cast and sling was taken off, finally cleared that her arm was better.

Caitlyn chalked it all up as purely friendship in order to not seem jealous or aggressive over who Vi talked to.

But then there was Gert.

Knocking at the door.

Her father had answered the door, confusion in his face. He was only now accepting the fact that Vi was a permanence in his home, in his daughters life- now another Zaunite is at the door?

Caitlyn had been walking past, paperwork in hand when the sight of blue hair standing outside had her doing a double take.

"Gert?" She had spoken smoothly, approaching. She nodded to her father, taking over.

Gert smiles a strained smile at her once again,"Hey- uh, is Vi here?"

Caitlyn hesitates for a brief moment before sighing, leaning against the door frame.

"She should be in the garden to the left," she points in the direction,"She likes to relax out there.."

Her eye narrows slightly before Gert nods, thanking her and walking off to the side while pulling something from behind her back to be out of view from Caitlyns eye.

She frowns at that, shutting the door as she starts to wander over to the window overlooking the garden.

Gert approaches with a soft grin, speaking to Vi as she sits up from being sprawled out against the fresh grass.

Caitlyn places down her papers, narrowing her gaze as Gert pulls something from behind her back, having hidden it again before approaching Vi.

It's a worn stuffed bunny- and flowers. Obviously from a shop down the road in Piltover but Vi is shocked.

The bunny is what catches her attention more than the flowers, hands tentatively moving to grasp the toy. She thumbs over it softly, a small pout forming on her lips.

She's saying something, that Caitlyn can't make out despite her efforts in eavesdropping.

Gert steps closer and Caitlyns grip on the shelf beneath the window tightens, watching as she sits down next to Vi and presents the flowers.

Caitlyn ends up leaving the window but instead brings out three cups of tea, sugar and milk on the side.

Vi hears her, turning with a soft endearing smile.

"Hey, Cupcake," she muses, watching as she brings the tray to the small garden table.

"Hello," she smiles back, grabbing her tea,"Two sugars and milk," she grins at her girlfriend.

"You're too good to me," Vi says with a grin, taking the cup with a soft 'thank you'.

Caitlyn looks over to Gert, attempting to be friendly,"I didn't know what you like in your tea, so I brought options," she presents the tray.

Gert manages a surprised but genuine smile, taking the cup and taking an experimental sip before masking a slight grimace,"Sugar, if possible."

Caitlyn nods, dropping two cubes of sugar into her cup then moving to sit on the garden chair before her eye catches on the bunny, propped up in Vi's lap,"What's that?"

Vi finishes her sip of her drink, placing down the cup to lift the toy,"It's my childhood stuffed animal- I told Gert about it a few weeks back since The Last Drop had burned down and we were cleaning up the remains," she grins down at the stuffed animal.

Gert is grinning at her, a new fondness in her gaze,"It looked like the fire didn't reach the basement- I ended up cleaning out some debris down there and found it in this old room on one of the bunks."

Caitlyn gazes at Vi who doesn't pull her gaze from the toy.

She almost looks small, sitting criss cross in her garden while thumbing at poorly done stitching on the plush bunny.

"That's.. incredibly kind of you, Gert," Caitlyn murmurs with a genuine softness in her voice.

The girl regards her with a soft nod, acknowledging her words but not responding.

Caitlyn spots the flowers again, off to the side as Vi had put her full attention to the toy, and her jaw clenches.

"And the flowers?" She questions, raising her brow.

Vi looks confused, looking over before directing her gaze to Gert with confusion.

"Oh! Um-" Gert smiles sheepishly, lifting them. They're pink, various tones but mostly matching the pink of Vi's hair,"Just- uh.. saw them in passing, reminded me of your hair-"

She presents them with a low blush on her cheeks.

Vi tentatively takes them, curious but otherwise thankful.

"You've got a vase for them, right, Cupcake?" She looks up at Caitlyn.

Gert masks a small frown- but it doesn't escape Caitlyns lone eye.

"Yes," she nods, a strained smile on her lips as she offers to take the flowers,"We should have a spare in the laundry room, could you grab it? I'll trim the stems."

Vi nods, standing before placing the plush into Caitlyns lap and cupping the side of her neck softly before walking off back into the house.

Gert remains seated for a moment before silently standing, moving to leave.

Caitlyn overlooks the flowers, a sinister twist of jealously brewing in her belly,"These are incredibly thoughtful of you, Gert," she speaks smoothly, lone eye roving over to her,"They'll look lovely by our engagement pictures."

Gerts eyes widen but she only manages another strained smile and a nod before leaving with a wave.

Caitlyn feels bad. She never liked to outright lie to someone- but to be fair, she was planning to propose anyways. In time.

Pleased, she wanders back inside, carefully setting the plush bunny on the counter in the kitchen as she carefully unravels the wrapping on the flowers, trimming the stems.

A vase is placed on the counter beside her and toned arms wrap around her waist.

Vi sighs, kissing over her shirt covered shoulders,"You guys have a fuck ton of vases," she snickers against her back as her hands trace various designs over her skin.

"My mother always liked commissioning fancy ones," Caitlyn muses fondly, sinking into her warmth.

"Really? Actually- no, that makes sense," she kisses her shoulder blade.

Caitlyn snickers softly, shaking her head in fondness.

It all comes to a head when the Counsel decide to hold a festival on the bridges once the streets of Zaun have been cleaned.

As a celebration, flea markets are set up, Zaunites and Pilties roaming about and setting up shop in hopes to secure more friendships and allyships.

Caitlyn is proud, thoroughly happy at the efforts instilled in the festival. Music echoes along the bridges, free samples of Zaun cuisines and Piltie dishes handed out.

Children run about, intermingling with no care of where each of them was born.

Caitlyn finds herself hoping her mother, somewhere, saw the progress in these festivities.

She wanders around, Vi at her side as they meet new faces and introducing the other to familiar faces.

Caitlyn even tries Vi's favorite food- the meat from that butcher all that time ago. She's surprised to say it's delicious, and Vi grins almost cockily.

The night goes on, sun sinking beneath the horizon and lanterns are lit.

Caitlyn and Vi end up leaning against one of the rails to prepare to watch the fireworks show.

"Hey- I'll be right back, gonna grab a drink," Vi murmurs and she cups Caitlyns lower back with a kiss to her shoulder,"Want one?"

Caitlyn smiles softly, nodding as she reaches out to cup her hip before releasing her, watching as she weaves through the crowds.

She looks back over the rails toward the sky, overlooking some of the twinkling stars before someone calls her name.

Ximena Talis waves to her, a tired but soft fondness in her gaze.

They converse for a little, Ximena pulling her into a lingering hug as they talk of fond memories.

Caitlyn finds herself distracted momentarily after a while, looking around the crowds for Vi.

Vi got caught up talking to Sevika.

Having decided to bury the hatchet, she thanks the older woman for protecting her sister as long as she did.

She ends up walking off only to be side tracked by Gert.

"Hey! Haven't seen you in a bit," Vi nods with a genuine smile.

Gert smiles back,"Yeah, sorry- been busy down at this new bar I just got hired at. I'm a waitress," she grins sheepishly.

"That's great! Seems a little normalcy is finally returning to the Lanes," Vi grins back.

"Yeah, thank Janna," Gert sags in relief before laughing softly,"They even let me play my music on the weekends-"

"Oh, shit," Vi knocks her elbow against hers,"That's awesome! I remember you saying you play some instruments- I'm happy for you!"

Gert blushes warmly, nodding in response before eyeing the extra cup she holds.

"For Caitlyn?" She hums.

"Huh- Oh, yeah," she grins with a soft blush.

"Already bossing her fiancee around, huh?" Gert teases with a masked smile.

Vi does a double take at that, obvious confusion on her face,"Fiancee?"

Gert scrunches her brows,"Yeah- aren't you engaged? Caitlyn said-"

Vi chuckles softly, a warmer blush to her cheeks,"Fuck if I know, probably-"

Gert stops in her movement, peering over at her in surprise. Vi stops too, looking over at her. She raises a brow in question.

The other woman hesitates, opening her mouth to say something but unable to speak it properly.

"You okay?" Vi asks earnestly.

Gert steps closer, hand carefully reaching out to cup Vi's forearm and pulling her closer-

Caitlyn spots pink approaching, excusing herself from the conversation with Ximena as she weaves through the crowd.

She doesn't anticipate to see Gert pulling Vi closer and pressing a kiss to her cheek.

Vi tugs back, eyes wide.

She spills the drinks in her shock, having barely avoided Gert pressing a kiss to her mouth.

Caitlyn is suddenly there, throwing a scathing look at Gert before gripping Vi's elbow and dragging her off through the crowd.

"Hey- slow down, Cupcake," Vi speaks softly, nearly stumbling as she catches up with Caitlyns long strides.

Caitlyn turns back to narrow her gaze as Vi sheepishly looks back at her.

She turns around, continuing the treck back to the Kiramman residence.

The streets of Piltover are nearly empty, the occasional elder remaining in their homes in defiance of the festival.

"I didn't- I didn't know she'd try to kiss me," Vi stumbles over her words.

Caitlyn doesn't respond, instead tugging her past the gates, up the steps and quickly shutting the door behind them.

They're alone. Her father was at the festival and intended to help clean up- he'd be gone well into the night.

Caitlyn turns around, her palm cupping that back of her neck as she attempts to calm her anger.

"I'm sorry, Cupcake- I had no idea," Vi murmurs, taking a step closer.

"I know you didn't, Violet," she responds, eye moving back up to look at her but her gaze catches on those stupid pink flowers.

Only slightly wilting, even after a few weeks. Curse Caitlyn to be a perfectionist.

She grits her teeth, suddenly surging forward and gripping Vi by the back of her neck and tugging her into a kiss.

It's hot, tongue invading her mouth and teeth biting at her lower lip.

Vi moans in surprise, eyes wide for a moment before sinking in to the kiss. Her hands grip Caitlyns hips, tugging her closer.

But Caitlyn doesn't let her control this.

She pulls back, pushing Violet backwards towards the dresser that holds those stupid flowers until her back knocks into it.

The vase wobbles, then settles.

"Easy, Cupcake," Violet tries to reason, but is sooner dragged into another kiss as Caitlyn unbuttons her shirt, tossing it to the side.

"Mm-" Violet hums against against her, hands moving to grab her hips but they're slapped away.

Violet disconnects in surprise,"Hey- whats-"

Caitlyn doesn't give her time to gather her words, instead unbuckling her belt and throwing it to the side.

"She's been flirting with you for weeks," Caitlyn mutters angrily, taking off her own shirt.

Vi watches, always mesmerized by the sight of her girlfriends body.

"I- I didn't know-"

"I know you didn't," Caitlyn seethes,"But she knew-"

Her hand is gripping at Vi's hip, leaning down to press wet, biting kisses along her neck and shoulders.

"She knows," Vi sighs softly, eyes fluttering over the onslaught of kisses and marks,"We're together-"

"She doesn't care, Violet," Caitlyn mutters against her throat.

"Surely that's not-"

"She tried to kiss you!"

She bites hard enough to leave a sting over Vi's shoulder, but not to leave a mark.

Violet chokes on a moan, weight slumping back against the dresser.

The vase wobbles again.

Vi huffs, gripping at the front of the dresser as Caitlyn sucks marks over her chest.

She blinks up at the fancy ceiling, heaving for breath before peering down at her.

"Did you tell her we were engaged?"

Caitlyn freezes for a moment, eyes wide before she grunts, tugging off her undershirt finally and sealing her lips over one of Vi's breasts.

She holds her against the dresser, sucking over her hardening nipples.

Vi's back bends backwards and she can faintly feel the petals brushing against her tattoo. She moans breathlessly, one hand releasing from the dresser to grip at Caitlyns shoulder.

"Cupcake-" she pleas,"C'mon, talk to me-"

She moans loudly when Caitlyn sneaks her free hand down into the front of Vi's pants and underwear, long fingers expertly spreading her folds and grinding against her clit.

"Oh- fuck, Cait-" Vi cries out, cheeks now rosy as her face scrunches up in a pleasure filled grimace.

Caitlyn sucks over her other nipple, teeth scraping against the hardened flesh.

She huffs against her, fingers curling and grinding in circular motions. She then steals a glance at Vi, taking delight in the red flush in her cheeks.

She hastily grips Vi's pants at the waist, tugging them down with her free hand, managing to get it over Vi's round ass before grunting as she tugs her other hand free and yanks down her pants completely.

"Shit-" Vi pants, gazing down at Caitlyn as she tugs them down nearly aggressively.

She's surprised to realize she finds this aggression extremely hot coming from Caitlyn.

Her shoes are yanked off, tossed elsewhere and pants soon to follow.

Caitlyn is quick to stand, pushing Vi roughly against the dresser with a biting kiss once more.

Vi whines and pants into her, yelping as she clings to her shoulders once Caitlyn lifts one of her thighs.

Ultimately, Caitlyn just lifts Vi onto the dresser. They both jump when there's a clash of glass breaking.

Those pink flowers lay on the floor, scattered around with water and the glass of the vase.

"Fuck- Cait," Vi pants, bringing her gaze back to her girlfriend.

Caitlyn initially feels guilty. They were a gift- did she do this on purpose? She doesn't even know. She's leaning towards yes judging by the sick twist of satisfaction in her belly.

She ignores it, instead turning her attention back to Vi as she spreads her thighs to admire the moisture at her core.

With a satisfied huff, she presses forward, slotting her lips to Vi's as she quickly darts her fingers back down, spreading her open and thumbing at her clit.

Vi huffs, pants, moans against her lips, cling to the dresser, her shoulders- anything for stability. She kisses back sloppily now, whining as Caitlyn bites her lower lip.

She's never seen her like this. She can't get enough of it.

Caitlyns thumb rubs in a circular motion, free hand gripping over her hip to keep her still. Soon enough she relents, despite Vi's groan is disapproval, and prods at her hole with two fingers before pressing in, in, all the way to her knuckles and twisting her hand to press her palm right against her clit.

"Oh- oh fuck-" Vi moans, disconnecting from her as she slumps against the wall. The dresser shakes beneath her but she doesn't care- can't take her eyes off of her girlfriend.

Caitlyn fucks her fingers into Vi faster gradually, quirking them up and searching until-

"Shit! Cait- Cupcake-" Vi barks out a surprised moan, eyes lidded as she watches her.

Caitlyn can't stop the shiver rolling down her spine. Why does she always look at her like that? Like she- hung up the stars in the sky?

She chases Vi's lips, never having enough of her taste on her tongue, pressing her tongue against the seam of her lips until she's granted entry.

She speeds up her fingers, pressing a third one in and relishing in the whiney moan she swallows.

Caitlyn finally pulls back, grinding her palm into Vi's clit with a satisfied smirk,"Cum for me, Violet," she murmurs softly, but her tone is nothing but commanding.

Vi shivers. That flush across her cheeks has traveled down to her chest and Caitlyn wishes she could lick it up.

"I'm- fuck, almost-" Vi moans, a pleasured grimace on her features.

Caitlyn decides she needs a taste.

She ducks down, moving her palm as she quickly licks over Vi's twitching clit.

"Ghk- oh- fuckfuckfuck," Vi clings to her shoulders, head turning up toward the ceiling as she cries out.

Caitlyn sucks over her clit, quirking the pads of her fingers up and grinding into that spot that makes Vi's walls spasm.

The resounding moan is surely enough to echo upstairs as Vi cries out, finding her release on Caitlyns fingers and tongue.

The sound of harsh panting and soft whines is the only thing heard in the entryway of the Kiramman residence.

Vi remains slumped against the wall, sweat cooling around her temples. Her hair sticks to her neck, eyes fluttering as she comes back from her high.

She winces, hands pushing at Caitlyns shoulders as she prolonges the pleasure, sucking over her sensitive clit and fingers still burrowed into her heat.

"Cait- too much," she pants softly.

Finally, she pulls back, slowly standing up to admire her work.

There's a slight sheen of sweat across Vi's body, her chest heaving with that blush slowly fading.

Vi still manages to give her a cocky smirk, to which she rolls her eye.

Later that evening, after Caitlyn finally simmered out from her anger and jealousy- she insisted on bathing Vi. Gently carding her soapy fingers through her hair, pressing soft kisses to her moist temple before murmuring apologies as she towel dries Vi's hair and body.

They're curled up in bed, Vi wrapped around Caitlyn with a satisfied hum. It's silent for a bit, and they both think the other has fallen asleep.

The faint sound of fireworks down at the bridges slowly simmers out.

"Sorry we missed the fireworks," Caitlyn murmurs, brushing her fingers through Vi's hair.

"Don't apologize, Cupcake," she grins as she presses a kiss to her neck,"Always plenty more times."

Caitlyn nods before grimacing,"I'm sorry- I know you told me not to apologize before but-" she slowly sits up, guilt gnawing at her,"I don't- I don't know what came over me-"

Vi suddenly stands up, crossing the room and ruffling about in the dresser saved for her things. It's not full- not even close, but the sentiment remains. She finds what she was looking for and comes back to crawl into bed beside her.

She fiddles with it, not knowing what to say until she just presents what is a small box, deep blue with small pink accents swirling about in intricate designs.

"I- uh.." she clears her throat,"Had these commissioned a little while ago- I was waiting for a better time but, figured I'd catch up and make it official-"

Her cheeks are warm, gaze averting as she opens the box to reveal two rings.

Upon first inspection, they're silver and not extravagant. As Cait lifts the box, second inspection shows intricate designs on the inside of the bands.

She squints her eye, spotting faint words, 'dirt beneath your nails' and her gaze flicks back up to Vi's.

She's speechless for a moment but ultimately takes the rings out, slipping one over her ring finger and gently grasping Vi's hand to slip the other over her finger.

They share a soft breathless laugh.

"About time," Caitlyn murmurs teasingly.

"Hey- I'm just catching up since we were engaged before this-" she sticks her tongue out before pressing a soft kiss to her lips.

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A/N: thank you again for this request!! Loved this sososo much! Also no hate to Gert! Can't blame her for wanting Vi!

[miazetomer]

Heartless | Rafe Cameron x pogue(ish)!fem!reader (Part XI)

Warnings: 18+ MDNI, angst, fluff, smut, alcohol use, drug use, takes place during season four, the usual

Summary: You were back on Kildare after two years. You were able to finish your business degree at UNC Chapel Hill in just two years after earning enough college credits in high school. But, you came back as a force to be reckoned with. You had your own very successful development company which just so happened to be Cameron Development’s newest competition. Two years later and you’re still finding ways to get under Rafe’s skin.

a/n: y’all im so sad this is the second to last part of this series :( seriously i just want to say thank you to you all for enjoying this series, well i hope you enjoyed it. i honestly have never loved a series more in my LIFE and i can’t wait for you all to see what i have next in my rafe cameron collection AND I JUST WANT EVERYONE TO KNOW I LOVE SOFIA IN OBX AND I HOPE HER AND RAFE LIVE A PROSPEROUS LIFE

prev next

♡♡♡

You paced in front of Mark’s office, tapping your phone against your hand.

“You can come inside.” Mark called from his office.

You took a deep breath and opened the door to his office, walking inside.

“What’s up?” Mark asked, typing away on his computer.

“Um, there’s this gala coming up for business owners and entrepreneurs and investors and stuff like that.” You said, pacing around his office as you spoke with your hands. “And I was thinking it would look good if maybe we went together.”

You had no idea why you were so nervous, you were never nervous. You think it was because of the fight you two had. This was the first time in your life you were possibly facing rejection and that terrified you.

“I agree.” Mark nodded, making you stop in your tracks. You turned and faced him. “Oh, thank God you stopped I was worried you would burn a hole in the carpet. But, yes, I agree. I think it would look good for marketing. And for investors to see us together, to talk to us, together.”

“So, it’s decided then.” You said with a small smile before leaving his office.

♡♡♡

You walked off your family’s private jet in Charleston with Mark, Lily, and your glam team following close behind.

“Did you really need to pack so much for two days?” Mark asked, lugging your suitcase behind him.

“Would you stop complaining? It’s not that heavy.” You said, turning around to look at him.

“Would you like to carry it?”

“Isn’t it supposed to be your job as a man to carry my luggage?”

“Maybe if I was your boyfriend.” Mark mumbled, following behind you.

“Yeah, no way in hell is that happening again.” You scoffed.

♡♡♡

Your assistant quickly checked you into the hotel and you went up to your room.

“You can just leave my bag there.” You told Mark as you dropped your purse on the couch. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“See you tomorrow.” Mark said before leaving.

Your suite was a good size. It had two bedrooms, one for you and one for Lily, a glam room, two bathrooms, and of course the living area complete with a mini bar.

“Lily, do you want to grab dinner?” You asked, turning on your heel to look at her.

“Y-you want to get dinner with me?”

“Of course, silly.” You said with a smile.

“Sure Ms. Thornton.”

“Lily, we aren’t at work you can drop the formalities.” You laughed.

♡♡♡

You sat in the glam room of your hotel room, surrounded by your glam team. Your hair was in rollers, you were getting your makeup done, and your dress hung on a hook behind you. You read emails on your phone as you sipped on your latte through a straw.

“Do you ever stop working?” Mark asked, leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed.

“No.” You responded flatly, looking at him through the mirror.

“You need to get a life.” Mark chuckled.

“Me? You’re the one who needs to get a life. You know my assistant, Lily, she’s single, you should ask her out.”

“Why would I ask your assistant out?”

“She’s cute, your age, her dad is the CEO of a Fortune 500 company.”

“Which one?”

“McKesson.”

“Her dad is Brian Tyler?” Mark asked, his eyes going wide. “What is she doing working as your assistant?”

“She wanted to do something with her time other than spending her dad’s money.”

“I’ll be right back.”

“Where are you going?”

“To ask Lily out.” Mark said, before leaving.

♡♡♡

You sighed as you waited for Mark to finish getting ready, checking the time on your phone repeatedly.

“Mark, hurry up!” You shouted as you stood in the middle of his room.

“Sorry.” He said, walking out of the bathroom, adjusting his tie.

“God, took you long enough. We have to go, the driver’s downstairs.” You walked out of the room, Mark following closely behind, and made your way to the elevator.

As you rode the elevator, it stopped just one floor below you. You sighed and moved next to Mark to make room in the elevator. You didn’t do much to hide the disgust on your face when Rafe and Sofia entered.

“Y/n, how nice of you to bring a charity case.” Rafe smirked.

“Rafe, how thoughtful of you to bring an extra bartender so the bar staff doesn’t get overwhelmed. That’s what you did at the club, right Sofia? Before you started living off of Rafe’s inheritance.” You shot back, causing Mark to smirk.

“If I remember correctly, y/n, you worked there for a summer as a cart girl.” Sofia said, holding her head high.

“Oh, Sweetie, I worked there to flirt with the frat boys that came through, you worked there to pay your bills. We are not the same.” You watched as the smile dissipated from Sofia’s face. You leaned in to Sofia’s ear and whispered. “Speak to me like that again and I tell Rafe everything.”

You leaned back and smirked as Sofia’s face flushed red.

“Oh, Mark, I forgot to introduce you to Rafe. Mark this is Rafe Cameron, owner of Cameron Development. Rafe, this is Mark, my business partner.”

“I would say it’s nice to meet you, but you did just call me a charity case.” Mark said, shaking Rafe’s hand when he extended it.

“Nothing personal.” Rafe muttered, shoving his hand in his pocket.

“I don’t know, seemed kind of personal. You must be the ex-boyfriend.”

“Seems we have that in common.” Rafe chuckled.

♡♡♡

“I can’t believe you let her talk to me like that.” Sofia huffed on the car ride to the venue.

“You tried playing with the big dogs and you got bit, deal with it.” Rafe snapped back.

“I deserve to be respected, Rafe.” Sofia said, earning a chuckle from Rafe.

“You deserve to be respected? You’ve done nothing to earn her respect. Respect is earned, not given.”

“I don’t understand why you constantly stick up for her. I guarantee she doesn’t stick up for you like this.”

“I stick up for her because she’s been my friend my entire life. You’ve been in my life, what, five minutes and you think you trump her?”

“Who was here for you when your father died? Who made sure you became a better man?”

“She was there for me when my dad died. Those flowers that came from a fake address were from her. I just never reached out to her because I was giving her the distance she asked for. And I became a better man for her. God, Sofia, when are you gonna wake up and realize it’s always been her.”

“Then why are you here with me tonight instead of her?”

“Because, you were the second best choice.”

♡♡♡

You and Mark quickly found your table before you excused yourself to make your way to the bar.

“Rosé, please.” You sighed, leaning against the bar.

Rafe came and stood next to you at the bar, placing his order.

“You just had to say something in the elevator, didn’t you?” You asked, turning towards Rafe.

“You know I’ve always had a hard time keeping my mouth shut.” Rafe smirked, causing you to chuckle. “Besides, I know you would’ve said something if I didn’t.”

“Mmm, I don’t know how true that is.” You said, taking a sip of your Rosé.

“You and I both know you’ve been holding that bartender bullshit in your canister for a while now.”

“Oh, Rafe Cameron, you know me so well.” You mocked, pretending to swoon.

“I do, and that’s how I know you won’t have a good time tonight with Mark over there.” Rafe said, pointing over to where Mark was sitting.

“Why is Mark talking to Sofia at our table?” You asked, glaring in their direction.

“Oh, funny thing, they put us at the same table.” Rafe chuckled, taking a drink from his whiskey.

“Oh, fantastic.” You muttered, finishing your wine.

♡♡♡

“Not having a good time?” Rafe asked as you found yourself standing at the bar again.

“I’m just having the best night of my life talking to all these people who don’t take a woman owning a business seriously.” You said, sarcasm dripping off of every single word.

“Where’s Mark?”

“Talking to potential investors. I decided it would be best if I let him do the talking tonight. Where’s your girlfriend?”

“I sent her back to the hotel room.”

“What? Why?”

“Because, she’s not who I wanted to be here with tonight.”

♡♡♡

You had pulled Rafe into a dark hallway, away from everyone, away from the party. You paced in front of him as he leaned back against the wall, his hands in his pockets, watching you carefully.

You were thinking out everything you wanted to say. You knew this wasn’t the best place to do this, but you were a couple glasses of wine deep, and wine always got you in your feelings. You wanted to make a big speech, you wanted to tell Rafe everything you had been holding back, but all that came to your head was ‘I love you, Rafe Cameron. I love you, Rafe Cameron.’

You sighed and tossed your hair out of your face, turning towards Rafe. You decided you would just word vomit whatever you were thinking at Rafe.

“Okay, I know whatever I’m about to say is gonna be all over the place and some parts probably won’t make sense, but I need you to stick with me.” You started, as you fidgeted with your fingers. “Look, for the last two years I have tried suppressing every feeling I had for you; love, anger, happiness. And I mean really, really suppressing it, like shoving it so deep down and locking it away for what I hoped would be ever. But, the more I tried to suppress it, the more I thought about you and the more I realized you were, honestly, probably the love of my life. And that was half the reason why I broke up with Mark, because I knew he would never be you, I mean he could never be you. And I-I knew coming back would be so incredibly hard. That’s why I avoided you at the club and parties and anywhere else I saw you, because every time I saw you my stomach did this thing where it felt like I was going down on a roller coaster, you know what I mean?” Rafe nodded and you continued. “I tried telling myself there was no way I could be in love with a man who has hurt so many people I love, including himself. But, then I realized I was in love with him, with you. And I know you aren’t the same person anymore Rafe and I am so proud of you for that. Now, I want to say I’m sorry. I’m sorry for leaving you and disappearing when you probably needed me the most. I found out I tend to do this thing where I run away from problems instead of facing them head on, and I’m really trying to work on that. I mean I did it to Mark-”

Rafe stepped forward and grabbed your face gently. He leaned down and closed the space between the two of you, capturing your lips with his. At first you stood there, shocked, but then you closed your eyes and started kissing him back, wrapping your arms around his neck, essentially deepening the kiss.

“Sorry, baby, you started rambling.” Rafe said, pulling away from you. You took your hands off Rafe’s neck and put them on the collar of his jacket, pulling on him as you crashed your lips against his.

It felt like every bad feeling you bad about coming home was starting to melt away and all that was left was the one feeling you had been avoiding most, love.

Your lips worked in perfect tandem with Rafe’s, almost like you were made for each other.

“Hotel room?” Was all you said before Rafe took your hand and started pulling you outside the venue, as he texted his driver he was ready to be picked up.

As soon as you got outside, Rafe’s driver was pulling up. The two of you rushed to the car as soon as your eyes locked on it.

You couldn’t even keep your hands off him in the car as you straddled him and placed kisses along his neck, grinding your hips against his. Rafe tilted his head to the side to allow you more access to his neck as his hands quickly found residence on your ass, squeezing lightly.

When you reached the hotel, you quickly pulled a hundred dollar bill out of your clutch and gave it to the driver before climbing out of the car, and rushing inside the hotel, with Rafe following closely behind.

“You look really good tonight.” Rafe said as you waited for the elevator.

“Thanks, I got the dress at some boutique on Kildare.” You responded with a smile. Your dress really was gorgeous. It was a delicate, pretty, yellow, silk, strapless dress with an open back. The only portion of your back that was covered was your ass and your legs. Rafe was always a sucker for backless dresses and you knew it.

“Does nothing for your ass though.” Rafe joked, leaning back a little as he peered down at your ass. You gasped and slapped his arm with your clutch, trying to hide your smile.

As soon as you got in the elevator, Rafe had you pressed up against the wall, his hands gripping onto your hips as he placed delicate kisses along your neck, nipping at the one spot just below your ear, earning a quiet moan from you.

Once the elevator doors opened to your floor, you were practically running down the hallway with Rafe following, not having to do much to keep up with you. You fiddled through your clutch looking for the key to your suite as Rafe stood behind you, his hands on your hips, kissing your neck. Eventually, you found the key and opened the door, pulling Rafe inside quickly.

“We have to be quiet, Lily is sleeping.” You whispered as you walked to your room.

“Who the fuck’s Lily?” Rafe asked, whispering.

“Lily, my assistant.” You said, turning around to face Rafe. “You’ve met her multiple times.”

“Sorry, baby.” Rafe replied, shrugging as you scoffed, turning back around.

You opened the door to the room you were sleeping in, closing it once Rafe stepped through the threshold. He quickly threw his phone on the bed and you threw your clutch on the empty chair. Rafe’s hands were back on your hips the instant you turned around to face him, his lips crashing down onto yours. Rafe guided you towards the bed as you pulled his tie off and pushed his jacket to the floor. Once the back of your knees hit the bed, you laid down and grabbed the collar of Rafe’s shirt, pulling him down over you. He quickly found his place in between your legs, kissing you more hungrily now, as he pushed your dress up to your hips. You made quick work of his shirt, pushing it off his shoulders as Rafe removed one hand from your hip and brought it down to where the heat was pooling between your legs.

“You’re not wearing any underwear.” He groaned against your lips.

“I knew where I’d end up tonight.” You smirked, only for it to be replaced by a moan when Rafe slipped two fingers inside your dripping cunt.

“All this, just for me?” Rafe asked when he removed his fingers from you and inspected them closely.

“Don’t flatter yourself, some of it was for Mark.” You taunted. You were trying to piss Rafe off, he always was a better fuck when he was pissed off.

“Do you always have to be so fucking irritating?” Rafe muttered, standing up at the edge of the bed. You watched him carefully as he took off his belt, then his pants, then his boxers. You groaned at the sight of him, oh how you missed him.

“Only for you.” You said, gasping when Rafe slid himself into you. Your back arched off the bed as Rafe started slamming himself into you, his balls hitting your ass every time your hips connected. Your pussy clenched around Rafe, egging him on. You had forgotten just how big he was until you could feel him stretching you out. You wrapped your legs around Rafe’s waist, keeping him close to you. Pornographic moans were the only sound leaving your lips.

“Who else fucks you this good, hmm?” Rafe smirked down at the sight of you, practically falling apart for him.

“N-no one else baby, just you.” You managed to get out, as you screwed your eyes shut, arching your back off the bed. You were close, Rafe could tell. He moved one hand and started rubbing harsh circles on your clit. Even after all this time, Rafe knew your body like the back of his hand. It didn’t take much longer after that, you were cumming all over his cock, clenching around him so tightly, you worried you were going to break it. Rafe’s thrusts slowed, guiding you through your high.

“Think you got a couple more in you, baby?” Rafe asked, pulling out of you, and you just nodded. You slipped off your dress and Rafe groaned at the sight of you, everything he has ever wanted was right in front of him. You turned over and got on your forearms and knees, arching your back, you knew it was Rafe’s favorite position, it made him feel more in control.

Rafe’s hands made their way to your ass, squeezing softly, slowly spreading your ass cheeks apart and taking a mental picture of the moment. Rafe wasn’t sure when this would happen again, so he wanted to savor every second. He got down on his knees and placed a delicate kiss to your clit before he ran his tongue through your folds. You arched your back more, wanting more contact with Rafe’s tongue, but Rafe sat back and started running his finger through your folds, occasionally dipping one finger into your entrance, never leaving it in for long. You turned your head around to look at Rafe and you rolled your eyes at the sight.

“Are you gonna keep fucking around, Cameron, or am I gonna have to do this mys-” You started but was soon cut off by Rafe slipping two fingers inside of you and attaching his lips to your clit, your back arching in response. Rafe quickly picked up the pace on his fingers, curling them inside you to touch that one spot that only he has ever been able to reach. You moved your hips to meet Rafe’s fingers, pulling him deeper. You opened your eyes when you felt Rafe’s phone vibrate against the bed, you turned your head to look over your shoulder, just to make sure Rafe wasn’t looking and sure enough he was face deep in your pussy, blissfully unaware of the outside world. When you checked Rafe’s phone and saw he received a text from Sofia, you smirked to yourself. You clicked on the notification and unlocked his phone, reading the ‘where are you?’ text from Sofia. Quickly, you took a picture of Rafe and sent it to her along with a ‘sorry, he’s busy eating dinner,’ text. You turned off his phone and shoved it under a pillow.

You clenched around Rafe’s fingers, the stimulation quickly becoming too much. His name fell from your lips like prayer as you squirted all over his fingers.

You moved further up the bed and turned around to face Rafe. You grabbed his hand and pulled him down on the bed, moving quickly to straddle him before he could make his next move.

You took Rafe’s cock in your hand and positioned yourself over it. Slowly, you lowered yourself over it, earning a groan from Rafe as his hands shot to your hips, pulling you down the rest of the way. Your mouth gaped open at the feeling of Rafe’s cock stretching you out.

“So, fucking tight baby.” He groaned out, tilting his head back as the grip on your hips tightened. You slowly started moving your hips, allowing yourself to adjust to Rafe. But, once the pain subsided and the pleasure took over, you moved faster, your boobs bouncing against your chest. Rafe went to sit up but you pushed him back down, digging your nails into his chest as you rode him. Rafe’s hips met your own as your own movement started to become sloppier the closer you got your end. Your head tilted back as you let Rafe take over. It wasn’t long before you could feel Rafe’s cock twitching inside you, his thrusts becoming sloppier as he came deep inside you, you following closely behind. You collapsed against Rafe’s chest, feeling both of your liquids dripping down your thighs.

♡♡♡

Your eyes fluttered open in the morning at the sound of someone knocking on your door. You groaned and pulled your pillow over your head, not wanting to get up.

“Ms. Thornton.” You heard Lily call out from the other side. “You have to get up, it’s almost time to leave.”

You opened your eyes and checked the time on your phone, jumping out of bed once you realized the time.

“Sorry, sorry. I’m up.” You told Lily, before you walked over to Rafe, shaking him so he would wake up. “Rafe get the fuck up.”

“What time is it?” He groaned, running his hands over his face.

“It’s time to wake the fuck up.” You said, running around the room to collect your things as you threw them into your suitcase. Rafe slowly got out of the bed and started pulling his pants on.

“Well, good morning to you, too.” He muttered, buttoning his pants.

“Time to do the walk of shame, baby.” You patted his chest as you walked past him to pick your dress up off the floor.

“Where’s my phone?” He asked, pulling his suit jacket on over his unbuttoned shirt.

“Oh, here.” You said, grabbing his phone from under the pillow and handing it to him. You continued moving around the room, trying to grab all your things as he checked his phone.

“I have like a thousand texts from Sofia.” He muttered to himself. “Did you-Did you send her something?”

You stopped what you were doing and squeezed your eyes shut. You needed to come up with something and you needed to do it fast.

“I just…did the hard part for you.” You said with a small smile as you walked past him. Rafe grabbed your elbow and pulled you back towards him.

“You do realize I have to be in a confined space with her, thirty thousand feet in the air in like two hours right?” Rafe asked, pinching the bridge of his nose with his other hand.

“You do realize Sofia’s not completely incompetent right? She would’ve pieced two and two together when you never went back to your room. Maybe she even realized what was going to happen when you sent her back to your room last night.”

“I could’ve at least had a conversation with her.”

“Look, it could go two ways: she could give you the silent treatment, move out of Tannyhill, and never speak to you again or she could yell at you the whole way back to Kildare, move out of Tannyhill, and never speak to you again. I mean it’s not like you’re gonna be flying commercial where everyone can hear you. You’re gonna be on your own plane with just the two of you, a couple flight attendants, and the pilots. So, if she tries to kill you there will at least be witnesses.”

“This isn’t how I wanted to end things with her. I wanted to let her down easy.”

“I’m sorry, but I’m pretty sure I did make things easy for you.” You scoffed, pulling your arm away from Rafe so you could make your way to the bathroom. You took a second before you sighed and turned around. “I’m…sorry. You’re right. What I did was immature and wrong.”

Rafe raked his eyes over you, like he was sizing you up. “What game are you playing, y/n?”

“I’m not playing a game, Rafe.” You scoffed, turning back around to put all your skincare away.

“Bullshit, you’re always playing a game. You never apologize.”

“It’s called maturing, Rafe. I’m trying to take a step in the right direction. No more games, no more fighting, less parties, focusing more on OBX Development.” You sighed and zipped up your skincare bag. Your eyes met Rafe’s in the mirror as you attempted to hide the smirk forming on your face and you turned around to face him. “I’m being serious. Me sending Sofia that picture last night was just my last bit of fun before my frontal lobe develops.”

“Fine.” Rafe sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Did you really mean what you said about no fighting?”

“Ehh.” You said, rocking your head back and forth. You smiled over at Rafe and walked over to him, wrapping your arms around his neck before placing a small kiss on his lips. “I’ll see you back on Kildare, baby.”

♡♡♡

“How was your night?” Mark asked as the two of you sat on your plane. He was reading Business Insider and you were reading emails on your laptop.

“Everything went exactly to plan.” You muttered, smirking to yourself. “How was your night?

“Actually, it went really well. I think I even got us some new clients.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, they’re interested in building on Kildare, actually.”

“Oh, that’s perfect.”

♡♡♡

“So, are you and Rafe like getting back together?” Sarah asked after you told her and Kie all about your night with Rafe.

“I don’t know, maybe.” You smiled, wrapping your arms around your knees.

“Just be careful, y/n.” Kie sighed. “Rafe doesn’t exactly have the best track record.”

“I know, I just think he’s…different now.”

“Wasn’t it just a couple of days ago you were yelling at him for knocking JJ off his bike?” Kie pointed out.

“Okay, I know that it sounds bad, but seriously I think he’s different. Maybe he just needs to hangout with us for you guys to see he has changed.”

“You want Rafe to hangout with us?” Sarah asked, her eyebrows raising in surprise.

“Come on, I think it can be fun. We invite him to Poguelandia, we have a bonfire, a couple of drinks, a couple of joints. It’ll be a good time.”

“If you think so.” Sarah sighed.

♡♡♡

Rafe stood around with the boys as they tended the fire and you pulled Sarah aside.

“I have a surprise for you.” You smiled, hiding the surprise behind your back.

“Okay.” She said, hesitantly.

“I was talking to Rafe and I may have convinced him to finally give you your inheritance.” You pulled the paperwork out from behind your back and handed it to her.

“Are you serious?” Sarah asked with a big smile, looking down at the paperwork.

“I told Rafe he should be the one to give it to you, but he said he was too nervous. Don’t tell him I told you that, though.”

“Thank you y/n, seriously.” Sarah hugged you tightly.

“Are the guys getting along?” You asked Kie when she came over.

“Well, besides the fact that they’re fighting over how the fire should be handled, I’d say they’re getting along.” Kie nodded.

“Guys, I think we’re finally getting everything we wanted.” You smiled, looking towards the boys.

♡♡♡

taglist: @sabrina-carpenter-stan-account

[mysticalserenity-tarot]

*ੈ✩‧₊˚General messages for the collective for the year 2025*ੈ✩‧₊˚

[vision boards not mine, credits to the respective owners]

My Paid Readings Services. My Kofi (for further guidance or if you enjoyed this reading and want to tip me, not manadatory!)

Let's dive in!

Disclaimer: This is a collective reading I picked up on multiple energies, so please only take what resonates and leave the rest.

(7 of Cups Rx, Knight of Wands, The Hierophant, 2 of Swords, The Magician Rx, Strength, 3 of Cups, 8 of Pentacles, 6 of Wands, King of Pentacles.)

✨ I keep hearing 'regaining your power.' You are about to enter your boss b*tch era! I sense a powerful dark feminine energy at work (no matter the gender) some of you may have even consciously manifested this change. Transformation is the main theme for most of you in 2025.

✨ "Finally, it's my time" - I sense feelings of joy and relief. Your hard work will pay off, and you may wonder if the Universe/your guides see how hard you've been working. Rest assured, they do, and there will be rewards for your efforts. The cards I drew emphasize triumph, and you, my dear, are the star!"

✨ You may face a difficult decision or choice, which could be related to your career, love life, or some other aspect of your life. Even though it may feel challenging, you'll ultimately find peace with your decision. For some of you, it's about letting go of something or someone, and I can feel the weight in your stomach already. But please don't worry, everything will be alright. Just remember: it's not your fault.

✨ Some of you will find the strength to break free from toxic and karmic situations. You will let go of people who have manipulated you and hindered your personal growth, especially.

✨ I see you meeting new people and an upcoming connection with your soul tribe, and it may be at work or in a situation where you collaborate with them, leading to newfound opportunities and abundance in your life.

✨ 2025 will be your King of Pentacles year: expect abundance, financial security, and success in your endeavors. Patience and hard work will be the keys to unlocking your destiny. I foresee your business expanding, and your efforts will be acknowledged and respected.

✨ With the 2 of Cups appearing frequently, I sense a strong possibility of unions with a future spouse or a twin flame/karmic partner entering your life, all of which are meant to serve your highest good. They may also be wise guides or teachers, and you will learn a lot from each other both consciously and unconsciously.

✨ You are going to prioritize yourselves and develop a stronger connection with your higher selves and spirit guides. Your psychic abilities may awaken or become even more acute. This newfound awareness will open up a world of growth, insight, and intuition in your life.

✨ Many of you are currently seeking employment, and I see you obtaining a job in 2025 that may not be exactly what you'd ideally prefer to do. However, this job will serve as a stepping stone, opening doors for you to ultimately reach your dreams and aspirations.

✨ One of your big manifestations will come to fruition in the 3D (physical world) in 2025, and I sense that it could be something related to the collective message I've shared.

✨ The dominant colors of your 2025 will be red and yellow, representing power, determination, vitality, and strength, as well as passion and positivity, intellect, and enlightenment. I foresee healing taking place in your root and solar plexus chakras, where your personal power originates. The number theme for 2025 will be the number 8, representing accomplishment, power, success, and overall abundance. Confirmation.

Here are some affirmations for a special 2025 for everyone:

🌠 "2025 is going to be my year." 🌠 "I am attracting prosperity and abundance into my life." 🌠 "I am surrounding myself with positive and supportive people." 🌠 "I am taking care of my physical, mental, and emotional health." 🌠 "I am letting go of the past and embracing the future with optimism and excitement." 🌠 "I am grateful for all the blessings and joy that will come to me in the new year."

_______________________________________

ANY LIKE/REBLOG/COMMENT IS APPRECIATED, ALSO IF YOU LET ME KNOW IF IT RESONATED.

PLEASE DO NOT REPOST MY WORK.

ALWAYS THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR EACH ONE OF YOU'S SUPPORT, I'M GRATEFUL 🤗🤍~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Please note that I used AI language bot to help improve grammar and spelling in my readings, as English is not my first language. However, the interpretations and insights provided in my readings are all my work, based on my intuition and the cards' symbolism.

Disclaimer: Tarot readings are for entertainment purposes only and are not meant to predict or dictate your future. The cards provide insights and guidance, but the ultimate power of choice lies with you.

[scuttlingcrab]

Fiendish Rewards

Summary: Raphael appears at Withers' party, hoping to finally collect the Crown of Karsus from Tav. However, an unexpected turn of events causes Raphael to re-think his plans.

Notes: Featuring growing tensions and light angst. I always wondered what would happen when Raphael wore the Crown for the first time. This might be a wee bit too long but I initially intended this to be another submission for @dmagedgoods Raphael romance collection.

Link to my other work in the Devil's Archive.

(Image via raphael-ancunin)

Raphael knew he was intruding. He had no business attending Withers' party, yet he arrived fashionably late all the same. He would never show his face, grace the companions with his presence, merely to exchange pleasantries. As tempting as their tadpole-free souls were, the simple minded mortals had no meaning to him now that the Elder Brain was defeated. That evening Raphael’s only desire was to collect the Crown of Karsus. And perhaps, converse with that little mouse, if time allowed. 

Thus, the Devil did what he knew best: lurked from the shadows of the wings and listened for his cue. 

Raphael had abided for over a millennium after he lost the Crown to Mephistopheles, lashing out with such violent anger in the first century that he nearly eradicated an entire plane. That initial taste of defeat never left his memory; the bitterness, that rotting feeling he felt deep within his core still haunted him. It was his first introduction to failure and the last. 

He eventually learned how to forge that frothing hatred for his father, his revulsion at the cursed cards he had been dealt with, into a far more superior weapon: knowledge, his greatest strength. Raphael researched, manipulated, and opened up the recesses of his mind to devour the ins-and-outs of the Hells. He painstakingly plotted, weaving his schemes into the very fabric of fate itself, planting the seeds of prosperity for what he hoped would eventually gain him a win.

Despite all Raphael had endured since the collapse of Netheril, the last 6 months had been the most excruciating. Waiting. Watching. Hoping. There was no longer an Archdevil in his path, but a mere mortal. His hunger for power grew rampant as he watched Tav continue to elude him, to harbour the final piece of his victory as she tried to reclaim what was left of her old life. That selfish creature. 

To Tav’s credit, she had been quite remarkable on the battlefield, showcasing her strength and resolve as she smited enemies and climbed through the carnage to her destiny. She left a sea of corpses in her wake, the mortal rubble alone was unlike anything Raphael had ever seen. Out of all the calamities he had been fortunate enough to craft and witness, being a spectator during the fight against the Netherbrain would forever be a highlight.

When the Crown fell into the River Chionthar, Raphael eagerly watched as Tav spent weeks fishing it out, taking her precious time as she retrieved each broken piece of his future. He restlessly stormed the halls of his domain, cursing the woman for attempting such an arduous task alone. He could have aided her, sent in Korrilla as a last resort, but he refused. He would not give Tav the satisfaction, she would have to work just a little more to complete her end of the bargain. Besides, there was something endearing about watching Tav work so diligently, the determination in those eyes reminded Raphael of himself.

The little mouse was Raphael’s greatest investment and he’d be damned if she failed him now, or if he let his sudden affinity for her overtake his true purpose. Raphael’s ambitions for the Crown had somehow intertwined with his infatuation for the woman, and he was just as much to blame.

He had let this farce go on for long enough. Raphael would not stoop so low in his final moments before he rose to glory. Once Tav crowned him, these foolish emotions would cease and he would continue with his grand plan. He was a Devil and he would not let these cursed mortal emotions falter his intentions any longer; he would never allow anything, anyone, to destroy his work. Raphael’s blood, sweat, and tears would not be in vain. 

Cheering suddenly came from the camp as Tav and her companions raised their chalices in celebration. Withers' speech had finally ended, much to Raphael’s delight. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could’ve listened to the monotonous dribble. The monologue was indeed rousing, but Raphael could’ve done better, if given the opportunity. 

One by one, the group of heroes slowly disbanded, until only Tav remained. She made her way around the camp, stopping by each empty tent. It was as if the little mouse was paying her respects, bidding farewell to the ghosts of her past.

When Tav was done she wandered to the lakefront and sat down on a mossy rock, staring into the sparkling evening sky. The light in her own eyes vanished, leaving a dark cloud looming above her. 

Raphael took that as his signal. He quietly removed himself from the cover of the treeline and began his entrance, approaching Tav with a swagger. 

“If it isn’t the hero of Baldur’s Gate. My, how far we’ve come! It feels like only yesterday you fell from the skies, tadpole and all, and began your little adventure; slowly scurrying your way to triumph.”

Tav smiled at the sound of Raphael’s voice, turning to greet him. They locked eyes, her expression brightening. That look pierced through Raphael’s defences with such ease, a slight chill crawling up from the base of his spine. He stopped in his tracks, quickly recovering by placing a hand on his hip. It had been too long since they were alone, when he had last gazed into those cursed eyes. Careful now. 

“Raphael, always the poet.”

“The little mouse is no longer, but now a ferocious lion. Congratulations are in order.”

Raphael gifted Tav with his most flourishing bow, hoping the gesture would distract from his earlier misstep.  

“Now do tell, how does it feel to be the victor? To have saved the world? Is it as the bards have sung?” Raphael rose, taking another step towards Tav. 

Tav merely shrugged, her lips quickly returning to a frown. 

“Dunno.”

“I would have thought a hero to be more eloquent.”

“I'm still waiting for that ‘ah-ha!’ moment, but if we’re being honest tonight, I’m not really sure what it means to be a hero.”

“You will come to understand eventually. It’s the very nature of your existence.”

Tav remained silent, pulling her eyes away from Raphael. She stared down at her hands, studying her scarred palms.

“May I?” Raphael inquired, gesturing towards the available space on the rock. 

Tav nodded and Raphael sat himself beside her, intentionally leaving a minimal amount of space between them.

“You have something that belongs to me.”

“There it is,” Tav said, through a faint laugh, “You know, I was expecting you to come sooner.”

“I’ve often found the best persuasions are the ones that aren't forced.”

Tav looked up at Raphael, her eyes moving over every inch of his guise, stopping briefly near his lips. He was close now, so close. To the Crown. To his objectives. And to that damned woman.  

“May I see the Crown, please?”

Tav smiled, moving towards Raphael. For a split second, Raphael expected a kiss. It was only natural for mortals to attempt such a distraction in times of distress. Infuriating as it was, he wouldn’t have been opposed to such a notion. Tav instead reached down for her backpack lying in the sand, placing it on her lap. 

She pulled open the straps and yanked out the Crown, handling it as if it was but a petty trinket. Raphael suppressed a sigh, he would not let the significance of this moment be soiled due to the mortal’s lack of formality. 

“I managed to reforge it, to the best of my abilities, thanks to the Annals of Karsus. Though I haven't tried it on yet to see if it worked.”

“A wise choice.” 

Tav held the Crown out towards Raphael, but he raised his hand. With a flick of his wrist, the Crown floated out of Tav’s grasp, slowly moving towards him. It was just as beautiful as he remembered, if not more so. It glistened under the moonlight, calling to him. Soon. Very soon. He let the Crown hover, spinning delicately, for a few more seconds.

“Do you need me to remind you of our terms? The deal was that you are to crown me. I would’ve come to you long ago if I could simply put it on myself.”

“Gods. Really, Raphael?” 

“Truly.” Raphael donned his notorious smirk in response.

“Fine, are we to do this here then?”

“I couldn't think of a more fitting location.” 

Raphael rose, walking towards the middle of the lakefront. He snapped his fingers, and a luscious red silk pillow appeared. He shifted it slightly in the sand and bent a knee, preparing himself for the crowning. 

“Come, it is time.” 

Tav stood intending to grab the Crown, but before she could reach it, Raphael beckoned it towards him. Tav quickly followed, positioning herself above Raphael. He raised his head to gaze at the magnificent sight in front of him. The moonlight framed Tav perfectly, she was silhouetted against the dark sky, glowing. The Crown and the little mouse, side-by-side, as it was always destined to be. 

Raphael took a deep breath, closing his eyes. He absorbed the scents and sounds around him; earthy tones, a hint of wetness, mixed with the fresh woodland air. Faint chirping from various insects called out to him, the leaves rustled slightly against the warm summer wind. His heartbeat intensified, growing more rapid, adding an extra drum beat to the night’s symphony. 

“Let’s get on with it then.” Tav spoke. 

Raphael opened his eyes and watched Tav grab the Crown, lowering it on top of his head. 

When the Crown touched his forehead, it reformed itself to accommodate his size, shrinking to provide a snugger fit. It hissed into place and then in an instant, everything changed. 

Pain, pleasure, fear, anger, confusion; every possible emotion tore through his very being. He was ripped in two, three, four… millions of tiny little pieces. His head throbbed with information, so many secrets, so much… he saw and felt everything, what could’ve been, what might come to pass… it was too much. Too much! Too fast! 

He fell forwards, his hands digging, ripping through sand. He was alone, always alone, darkness surrounded him. No. There was light, light flooded in from the top of his skull, projecting into every possible direction. He was the light. He was the dark. He was all-encompassing. 

Raphael screamed, his voice echoing into the abyss around him. He had never read about such a reaction, in all his years of researching, how could he have missed… could it be because… NO. He will tame this. He will persist. He will… 

The sand beneath Raphael turned to liquid as the newfound power continued to surge through his limbs, burning his veins. He tore at his own flesh and bones to rid himself of the agony, but it wouldn’t come to an end. 

“Raphael!” He heard a voice shout, such a familiar tune. But who? He couldn’t quite place it.

Raphael erupted, his devilish wings tearing through the skin in his back. There were flames all around him, growing hotter, thicker. His chest melted, his ears ached from the thunderous explosions. Whispers, whispers everywhere. He heard so many, and the cries, the screams. Would they never cease? 

Something tore at his head, pulling the Crown away from him. The Crown. NO! He cannot lose it again. Raphael raised his hands attempting to fight back, but he was grasping at nothing. It was over as fast as it had begun. There was now silence. 

Raphael’s vision cleared. He was on his back, looking up at the stars. Tav stood over him, holding the Crown in her hands. She eyed him with concern, tears flooding down her cheeks. He raised his own hands, his claws trembling. Raphael tried to think but his mind was vacant, every thought achingly bounced back. His skin burned, bones ached. There were deep lacerations all over his body, his own hands were covered in blood. He gasped, looking at Tav’s body but found no abrasions. He let out a disgruntled sigh. If he had harmed her in his rage, in those brief seconds of failure… would he ever forgive himself? 

Tav threw the Crown aside and helped Raphael to his feet. His eyes followed the artefact as it landed on top of the sand, taunting him still. How?

As if reading Raphael’s mind, Withers' voice cut through the silence as he appeared before them.

“Thou hast succeeded but are not yet ready. Take care that thou are not too hasty, thine pursuits will lead to plights.” There was a long pause as Withers continued staring at Raphael, looking straight through him. He met Withers’ expressionless gaze, waiting for him to continue. “The pattern has been woven and all circumstances interlaced are as fate decided.” 

Raphael never imagined the consequences of his premature investiture. He was always going to reforge the Crown himself, in his own image. How could he possibly trust a mortal to handle such a relic successfully? But in the heat of the moment, and in the fine print of the very deal he crafted, he had opened himself up to carelessness, becoming the very thing he despised.

His eyes darted to Tav, searching the woman for any excuse against his actions but he could only look at her with veneration. He would not blame her for everything. His vanity, eagerness… his obsession for the Crown and that cursed woman nearly brought him to his untimely demise. Let this be a lesson to Raphael to heed his own warnings. The Devil would need to cool his heels in preparation for the battles looming ahead.

Raphael turned to face Withers, but the curious being had vanished. Instead he hummed thoughtfully, looking at Tav. 

She stood next to him, her body trembling. Tav's eyes were fixed on Raphael, still full of worry but there was something else present, another emotion he thought he’d never see from a mortal again.

Tav’s expression sent a sudden stabbing pain through his chest as a wave of nostalgia washed over him. There was another mortal who had once looked at him with the same kindness and understanding. He had buried it deep within his subconscious, but it was rising back to the surface, like a blooming flower. He would NOT allow himself anymore turmoil this evening.

“I owe you my thanks.” Raphael whispered, his voice on the verge of cracking.

“Raphael, I don’t understand, you were nea…” 

“If you value your life, you will hold your tongue. There will be no talk of this moment again. Ever. Have I made myself clear?”

Tav’s eyes widened at his sudden change of tone, but she nodded nonetheless. 

“I must return to my House of Hope. For healing and reflection. There is work yet to be done, as you have borne witness to this evening.” Raphael snapped his fingers, a raging portal materialised behind him. “You may join me, if you so wish.”

Raphael extended his arm, welcoming her acceptance. 

“Would you consider our deal completed then?” Tav asked, apprehensively. 

“You have upheld your end of the agreement, exceptionally well, might I add, bar this evening's hiccup. Now please, let me show you my appreciation.” 

A dash of colour appeared on Tav’s cheeks as she wiped away the remaining tears. She grabbed her backpack, placing the Crown inside. She swiftly reached for Raphael’s hand, squeezing it tightly. Raphael nodded in acknowledgment and led Tav through the portal. 

Indeed, their deal was complete, but Raphael wasn’t done with Tav yet. She would continue to prove a valuable ally and more in the months to come.

[thoughtfulchaos773]

Magic Trick, The Prayer Card, Mikey's message

This is from a reblog on @brokenwinebox post and it was quite genius to say Carmy is holding all the cards.

The show has given us a card trick since 3x01.

This is the beginning of the trick. Chekov's gun. Telling viewers to remember your card.

Then here's the legerdemain: this same prayer card appears in Carmy's Jacket pocket when it should have been Marcus's mom's prayer card.

Carmy looks surprised at the card, flips it, and takes it in for this long moment.

The sleight of hand is that the different prayer cards appear in his jacket pocket—Mikey's card is the one that he needs the most for reflection and guidance.

This could be the card performing a magic trick of its own. Or Mikey. When this card appears, is it Mikey's spirit? Maybe Carmy did not process his grief, and it represents that. It could also represent finding purpose for those who lost their way.

Maybe a serendipitous moment and a magic trick(universe—god—Mikey) caused that Card to land in his pocket. I told someone before on here that this show has spiritual themes.

A prayer card also appears on Richie's mirror, showing that he has yet to process grief about Miky's death and has lost along the way. But later in the episode, he finds his purpose.

The other time the prayer card appears- 2x01, and it appears with the Let It RIp note- with lyrics saying candles at the altar penny in your shoe- that means prosperity in marriage.

Credit to @yannaryartside for noting this, the let it Rip note has become a string to connect Sydney to Mikey, and it started with Carmy texting Sydney before reading the note and asking her if it's okay to have it at the expo station.

Mikey is telling him good luck- go live your life! And Carmy was feeling lucky that day in 2x01. He made a business deal with Jimmy. They can continue building the bear; he wants to ask Sydney out the next moment. Something Mikey would want him to do, but Carmy, being Carmy, is pulling fake lint off his jacket, waiting for the chance. (he often plays it cool with Sydney- you should come moment he acts distracted looking at something while he asks- keep it casual, Carmy)

Sidebar: It's definitely Mikey sending a message to Carmy because in the next episode, Carmy remembers Mikey and says the taste of Chicago was really fun, and Sydney's head pops into the room at the perfect moment.

I think if Mikey is an angel, he's pointing at Sydney, and Carmy hasn't opened his eyes to see she's the one- she's the person Mikey sent. (Open up your eyes! like the song Murder for One says in 3x09 as Carmy reads the prayer card)

When Carmy takes time to read the prayer card, he puts it down. He has lost his way, and the card appears when he needs it most. As he is lost on whether he should say sorry to Claire- he's lost on how he can make it up to Sydney and tell her how he feels. He needs help with Sydney being his muse. As with @vacationship post- Are we surprised one of Sydney's hair scrunchie magically appears in his apartment when he makes a sauce based on another one of Sydney's hair accessories earlier in the episode?

Note the lyrics to the song as Carmy reads the prayer card and walks away.

There's a bird that nests inside you. Sleeping underneath your skin. When you open up your wings to speak. I wish you'd let me in. All your life is such a shame, shame, shame. All your love is just a dream, dream, dream

This is Mikey talking to Carmy in those lyrics. He's telling him to let him in- to guide him. Don't waste your life because right now it's such a shame how you're wasting it. Don't let love be a dream. Love. Don't waste the moment.

This could be the answer and guidance Carmy is searching for but has yet to see. Mikey pointed him in that direction when he inspired him enough to make his original blood orange Hamachi dish. He followed his instinct, and that led him to Sydney. If the card is about finding one's way and the card is next to Sydney's hair scrunchie, it's Mikey giving him the answer—the magic trick. It's Mikey showing Carmy his purpose.

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Bramhall

* * * *

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

November 14, 2024

Heather Cox Richardson

Nov 14, 2024

Two snapshots today illustrate the difference between the economic—and therefore the societal—visions of the Biden-Harris administration and of the incoming Trump administration.

The Biden-Harris administration today released numbers revealing that over the past four years, their policies have kick-started a boom in the creation of small businesses across the country. Since the administration took office, entrepreneurs have filed more than 20 million applications for new businesses, the most of any presidential term in history. This averages to more than 440,000 applications a month, a rate more than 90% faster than averages before the pandemic. Black business ownership has doubled, and Hispanic business ownership is up by 40% since before the pandemic. 

The administration encouraged that growth with targeted loans, tax credits, federal contracts, and support services. Small businesses are major job creators and employ about 47% of all private sector employees. 

President Joe Biden rejected the “neoliberalism” of the previous 40 years that had moved about $50 trillion dollars from the bottom 90% of Americans to the top 1%. Those embracing that theory maintain that the government should let markets operate without regulation, concentrating wealth among a few people who will invest it more efficiently than they can if the government intervenes with regulations or taxes that hamper the ability of investors to amass wealth. 

Biden and Harris returned the U.S. to the model that both parties had embraced until 1981: the idea that the government should regulate business, provide a basic social safety net, promote infrastructure, and protect civil rights. That system had reduced extremes of wealth in the U.S. after the Great Depression and given most Americans a path to prosperity. 

Biden’s policies worked, enabling the U.S. to recover from the pandemic more quickly than any other country with a modern economy, sending unemployment to historic lows, and raising wages faster than inflation for the bottom 80% of Americans. 

It has also had social effects, most notably today with the announcement from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that the U.S. is seeing a historic drop in deaths from the street drug fentanyl. From June 2023 to June 2024, deaths dropped by roughly 14.5%, translating into more than 16,000 lives saved. Experts say the drop is due to better addiction healthcare, the widespread availability of the opioid reversal drug naloxone, and lower potency of street fentanyl. 

If the record of the extraordinary growth of small businesses in the past four years is one snapshot, the other is a social media post from yesterday, in which former pharmaceutical executive Vivek Ramaswamy noted that the government spends $516 billion a year on “programs which Congress has allowed to expire.” “We can & should save hundreds of billions each year by defunding government programs that Congress no longer authorizes,” he wrote. 

Bobby Kogan, who worked in President Joe Biden’s Office of Management and Budget and on the Senate Budget Committee, explained that Congress often authorizes spending as “temporary” in order “to encourage Congress to revisit it to update various parts of the bill, such as eligibility, benefits, etc.” But Congress can still fund the programs in appropriations bills. 

Kogan noted that the largest program currently operating under expired authorization is veterans’ medical care. 

Trump and his advisors embrace the neoliberalism Biden rejected. Rather than invest in the economy to create opportunities for middle-class Americans and those just starting out, they want to slash the existing government to free up more capital for investors. 

Trump has tapped the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, who invested at least $132 million in cash in Trump’s campaign as well as the in-kind gift of the support of X, and former pharmaceutical executive Vivek Ramaswamy to run a “Department of Government Efficiency,” or DOGE, named for Musk’s favorite cryptocurrency.  

According to the Washington Post’s Jeff Stein, Elizabeth Dwoskin, Cat Zakrzewski, and Jacob Bogage, people around Musk say the group is intended to “apply slash-and-burn business ideologies to the U.S. government.” Musk has vowed to slash “at least” $2 trillion from the federal budget and has warned it will create “hardship.”  

That the people embracing this plan see a world in which a few elites run things showed in today’s social media post by the “DOGE.” The post called for “super high-IQ small-government revolutionaries willing to work 80+ hours per week on unglamorous cost-cutting. If that’s you, DM this account…. Elon & Vivek will review the top 1% of applicants.” 

Such cuts would be enormously unpopular, and in the Washington Post yesterday, Stein, Dwoskin, Zakrzewski, and Bogage reported that Trump’s aides are exploring ways to enact dramatic cuts to the government without congressional approval. Key among those is simply refusing to release the money Congress appropriates for programs Musk and Trump want to cut. This is known as “impoundment,” and Congress made it illegal in 1974 after President Richard Nixon tried to shape the government to his wishes by refusing to fund congressional programs he opposed. 

Trump tried to do this quietly in 2019 by refusing to release the money Congress had appropriated for Ukraine to fund its fight against Russian incursions until Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky smeared Biden. When the threat came to light, the House of Representatives impeached Trump. Although the Senate ultimately acquitted Trump, according to Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) all the Republican senators agreed he had done as the House charged. 

Now Trump’s team apparently hopes that a pliant Supreme Court will declare the 1974 Impoundment Control Act unconstitutional, permitting Trump—or Vice President J.D. Vance, should Trump not be able to fulfill his term—to shape the government without consulting Congress.

Because of the 2024 presidential election, Trump will soon be able to return the country to the neoliberal vision of the 40 years before Biden, supercharging it with the help of unelected billionaire Elon Musk, who recently claimed the title of being the “George Soros of the right,” a reference to the liberal philanthropist who has been the bogeyman of right-wing pundits. 

But it’s not at all clear that Americans actually want that supercharged neoliberalism. As vote counts are continuing, it has become clear that Trump’s victory was slim indeed. New numbers from Nate Silver suggest he will not clear 50% of voters.

At the same time, a new study out today from Data for Progress showed that people who paid “a great deal” of attention to political news voted for Vice President Kamala Harris +6, while those who paid “none at all” went +19 for Trump. 

Many of those voters got their information from social media or right-wing websites, but one of those today underwent a historic change. The satirical news outlet The Onion bought right-wing radio host and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’s InfoWars at auction. Jones’s property was up for sale because juries found him guilty of defamation and awarded his victims about $1.5 billion in damages. After the 2012 shooting at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut that killed 26 students and teachers, Jones insisted the event was a hoax designed to provide an excuse for gun safety regulations. He and his supporters harassed the victims’ families for years.

Jones appeared to be trying to keep control of InfoWars by having a company associated with him buy it up under the terms of the bankruptcy and restore it to him. But Sandy Hook families worked with The Onion to keep it from returning to Jones’s hands. Jones is screaming that the sale that took it away from him was a conspiracy. The company associated with him, First United American Companies, is already protesting the sale in court. 

Jones rose to prominence in 1993, when he dropped out of community college to start a talk radio show that warned the government was making war on Americans. His shtick echoed the anti-communist grifters of the post–World War II years that promised small donors that their contributions could stop the creeping communism in the United States. Jones became popular enough that he went on to found InfoWars, which made him rich from the sale of nutritional supplements. The theme of InfoWars was that “There’s a war on for your mind!” and that only people like him could deliver the truth.

But his lies cost him a billion dollars, and now, noting that “InfoWars has shown an unswerving commitment to manufacturing anger and radicalizing the most vulnerable members of society,”  The Onion has bought his website, which it plans to relaunch in January as a parody of Jones and a site that promotes gun safety legislation. But the chief executive officer of The Onion, Ben Collins, told Kim Bellware of the Washington Post: “It’s not just [Jones], it’s the people on Instagram trying to get you to drink raw milk; it’s the [multilevel marketing] people trying to get you to join a scam…. Those people have outsize impact in our completely bifurcated and balkanized media environment.”

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

[mariacallous]

2024 was disastrous for Chinese President Xi Jinping. For all of his rhetoric about “the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation,” his regime faced staggering setbacks. Military purges intended to root out corruption instead revealed systemic turmoil that continues to undermine readiness. Economic growth cratered as unemployment, bankruptcies, and capital outflows soared. Meanwhile, key partners in Moscow and Damascus stumbled or fell, undermining Beijing’s geostrategic ambitions. Together, these and other crises have revealed a China that looks increasingly fragile, not formidable.

If 2024 shattered illusions of China’s unyielding ascent, 2025 promises to lay bare the vulnerabilities that Xi can no longer conceal.

Facing mounting problems at home and soon an emboldened U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington, Xi is nevertheless not banking on dramatic shifts or bold reforms. Instead, he is pursuing a policy of perseverance: muddling through economic stagnation, avoiding outright confrontation with Washington, doubling down on ideological discipline, and fomenting chaos abroad to distract adversaries and buy time to stabilize his precarious position.

Yet Xi’s approach carries significant risk. While his willingness to endure hardship may fortify his grip on power today, it threatens to unravel his aspirations for China’s national revival tomorrow.

Contrary to Xi’s carefully constructed image of competence, China’s domestic dilemmas remain profound. A shrinking population, a weakening currency, and dwindling foreign investment have exposed cracks in Xi’s economic stewardship. They also undermine the Communist Party’s bargain with the Chinese people: prosperity in exchange for compliance. China’s crisis of confidence risks spiraling into a vicious cycle as weak growth deters investment, shrinks spending, deepens deflation, and raises unemployment—all of which drag growth even lower. Xi’s reliance on meager supply-side stimulus has delivered fleeting sugar highs, with modest spending upticks and short-lived credit expansions. But ballooning debt, bad real estate bets, and a stock market that has been flat for a decade leave Xi with few levers to reignite growth.

Worse still, Xi’s campaign to root out perceived weaknesses within the party, military, and private sector has compounded his conundrum. Purges of senior officials such as People’s Liberation Army Navy Adm. Miao Hua—a key enforcer of Xi’s ideological conformity accused of “serious violations of discipline”—as well as former Defense Minister Li Shangfu underscore rot within the ranks. The reported detention of more than 80 business executives in 2024 alone has stifled innovation and fueled fears of arbitrary state intervention. While these actions may consolidate loyalty and enforce control, they also deepen distrust and erode the competence that Xi needs to navigate mounting pressures.

These widening woes have only steeled Xi’s resolve. He routinely invokes Western “encirclement” and “containment,” blaming the United States for thwarting China’s rise. But he uses this narrative to justify ever-expanding repression at home, including constructing more than 200 party-run, extrajudicial detention facilities to enforce discipline and root out dissent. In Xi’s view, China’s domestic struggles ultimately stem from weak ideological discipline and insufficient loyalty to his vision. Put differently, in Xi’s mind, China isn’t broken; it’s disobedient. His solution? A stronger dose of the same medicine: tighter party control, intensified repression, and an unrelenting drive to cement his legacy as the architect of China’s historical destiny.

Amid internal challenges, Xi is turning to chaos abroad to reshape the international order in China’s favor. By offering diplomatic cover and economic support for Russia’s war in Ukraine and tacit backing for Middle Eastern disruptors such as Iran, Xi is fueling crises that distract, divide, and drain Western resources. For Xi, chaos is not merely a tactic; it’s a form of strategic currency, undermining Western cohesion while bolstering his narrative of Chinese resilience and strength. His calculation is stark: If China’s ascent is faltering, the international architecture sustaining its rivals must falter, too. Seen in this light, disorder abroad is Xi’s lifeline—a calculated gambit to obscure his inability to deliver progress at home or globally.

Yet 2025 will test Xi like never before. Intensifying scrutiny from Washington—including new semiconductor investigations, advanced technology export controls, and expanded tariffs—is set to collide with rising domestic unrest, including labor strikes and online dissent. At the same time, an emerging anti-authoritarian alignment—marked by enhanced trans-Atlantic coordination on China and the new U.S.-Japan-South Korea trilateral framework—will intensify the strain. These converging forces will challenge Xi in ways he can neither control nor predict, exposing the fragility of his centralized power and testing the limits of his carefully constructed narrative of inevitability.

Xi’s biggest X factor will be Trump, whose return promises unpredictability. In his first term, Trump waited 15 months to impose tariffs on Chinese goods. This time, tariffs are expected to hit immediately and intensely, targeting the very lifeblood of China’s faltering economy: exports. These tariffs won’t just come faster; they’ll cut deeper, with proposed rates reaching as high as 60 percent on critical sectors such as technology, consumer goods, and industrial equipment. Unlike sanctions, which Xi has worked to mitigate and take years to fully materialize, tariffs take effect overnight, leaving Beijing with little time to react and forcing Chinese manufacturers to absorb crushing losses.

Trump’s tariff threats translate into tremendous peril for Xi. China’s reliance on the United States—its largest trading partner—sustains millions of manufacturing jobs, but a rapid tariff escalation could devastate small and medium enterprises, triggering factory closures and layoffs. Vulnerable sectors such as electronics and textiles could face severe disruption, and even the electric vehicle industry—one of China’s few bright spots—is grappling with domestic oversaturation and budding Western trade barriers. Meanwhile, bipartisan support in Washington for outbound investment screening threatens to choke off critical U.S. capital flows, stalling Beijing’s technological ambitions and broader economic goals.

All told, these measures could deliver a knockout blow to China’s economy, which is almost certainly growing below Beijing’s official target of 5 percent. Tellingly, the party has threatened to fire economists if they warn of economic freefall or express “inappropriate” views—a hallmark authoritarian move to suppress inconvenient truths. Xi has made boosting domestic consumption his top priority for 2025, but this rests on shaky ground, too. If Xi trusts anything even less than markets, it’s the Chinese masses, who have shown no appetite to spend their way out of his economic quagmire. Investors share this skepticism: China’s 10-year bond yield has plunged to record lows, signaling doubts about the country’s trajectory.

Meanwhile, Xi’s reliance on global chaos to sustain his position reveals a glaring paradox: The instability he is fueling in order to distract the West could backfire if and when those crises stabilize. In 2025, the winding down of major conflicts—whether through Trump’s promised dealmaking over Ukraine or Israeli action against Iran’s last remaining proxies—could put the global spotlight back on China. For Xi, this is a nightmare scenario. The West’s fragmented focus has helped mask his vulnerabilities, but resolving these crises could empower the West to confront him head-on.

Xi’s choice is stark: hunker down by embracing a survival strategy or risk further instability by overreaching. Both paths will test his capacity for long-term endurance. Confronted by Trump’s aggressive posturing, Xi is unlikely to pursue outright economic warfare, at least initially, because he recognizes that an escalation would hurt China more than its adversaries. Instead, Xi may adopt calibrated, symbolic responses—like the recently announced rare-earth restrictions—to project strength while preserving room for negotiations. Xi may also leverage retaliatory tariffs or regulatory crackdowns on U.S. firms operating in China to signal defiance without provoking a full-scale confrontation.

Domestically, Xi’s task is how to redefine success. If political stability and ideological discipline now take primacy over economic growth, Xi will have to reframe hardship as proof positive of China’s resilience and moral superiority over the West. If national rejuvenation now takes decades longer than planned, Xi will likely cast the delays as necessary steps in achieving the “Chinese Dream.” Whether the Chinese people will embrace this new narrative—or tire of a perpetually deferred future—remains an open question.

On the global stage, Xi’s reliance on instability poses its own perils. Rather than treading water, Xi may escalate tensions elsewhere—perhaps in the South China Sea, testing U.S. resolve through confrontation with the Philippines. Yet as much as a chaos-driven strategy intends to distract adversaries and sidestep direct confrontation, it invites miscalculation. More specifically, Xi risks exposing Beijing to the vulnerabilities that have undermined other authoritarian regimes—from Russian President Vladimir Putin’s disastrous gamble of invading Ukraine to Hamas’s ill-fated Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel that invited overwhelming retaliation.

Of course, the irony of Xi’s leadership is that a seemingly transformational figure obsessed with progress cannot embrace change. Under his rule, China has become a power both disruptive and constrained, where every effort to tighten control risks tarnishing Beijing’s global standing and undermining the credibility of its great-power ascent. But muddling through isn’t leading, and for someone whose legitimacy hinges on delivering national prestige, mere survival risks falling dangerously short of his own lofty ambitions. Ultimately, whether 2025 becomes a turning point or simply another terrible, horrible, no good year will depend on Xi’s ability to overcome the greatest challenge of all: himself.

[esoteric-chaos]

Disability-Friendly Prosperity Magic

So let's face it, those who are disabled have a hard time with money in general, either from being unable to work or not having a steady, strong source of income. Sometimes we can monetize our hobbies, admittedly at a limited capacity (some less or more than others).

From our relationship with money, money mindsets, and income streams, it's hard. That's not to shame anyone, either. Some overspend to cope, while others are incredibly frugal.

In this post, I will review some resources, tips, and tricks for the struggling disabled witch.

The Mundane Before Magical

Step one is to make a budget and track your expenses. I'm serious. Sit down, look at where your money is going, and decide on a budget that you can realistically stick to. I use the 50/30/20 rule as a budget, which is 50% Needs, 30% Wants, and 20% Savings. However, I recently switched wants and savings around so I can save for a trip.

Now I do not want you to worry about a big fancy budget method. I don't want you to overthink it. Here is a resource (Canada, but it can be used in the USA) to start one. Focus on your needs like housing, utilities, basic clothing, food, etc. Then go into wants and entertainment, and finally, savings. I suggest you put any debt payoff into the needs category if you have any debt. You do not want a blow to your credit report.

Now do you have any financial goals? Going back to school? Debt payoff? A trip? Even a big medical trip coming up? Here is a resource (Canada, but it can be used in the USA) that can help you create a goal and a plan to pay this off.

Savings, please, your SAVINGS. It is vital to have an emergency fund. Job loss? Death? Vet bills? Children? Dentist? You better believe that piles up. It is recommended if you are single to have at least 3 months of income saved up, with a child and single at least 6 months. Married on two incomes, the same amount. Married with one income, it is recommended without children at least 6 months saved up and with children 9 months. It is vital you have the means to take care of yourself if an emergency strikes. It is never recommended that money be stopped from being put into these accounts.

If you are in debt, look at your debt relief options. Sometimes there are services out there that can advocate for you regarding debt. They will help you develop a plan, understand the relief options, sign documents with you, and develop a credit rebuilding program. These services are out there; even if they are paid, they can help you pay off some of your debt, especially credit card debt.

Educate yourself on investing, basic investing, and financial literacy, in stock markets and everything beyond. Know what kind of accounts you can hold and what could help you in your situation.

Need help applying for disability? Here's a resource for the USA (a lot can also be used for Canada).

The Magical

Upkeep a prosperity altar. Work with the spirit of money like you would any other spirit. Honour it, talk to it, venerate it. Money loves to be valued, moved, not wasted, and used in charity. Most importantly, money takes time. Money takes time to grow and build a relationship with.

This is the most important thing I've learned about money. It wants to be worked with. It's sitting there. It wants to help and aid you in ways that you need.

Work with this altar on Thursdays, incorporating the spirit of Jupiter. Jupiter rules over finances. Long steady finances, not quick finances. Jupiter rules over business, legal and all things finances. Jupiter is a slower-moving planet.

You can also incorporate the spirit of Mercury on Wednesdays along with your Jupiter workings. Mercury is a fast-moving planet, a planet for fast-moving money. However, you must build a long, steady form of finances over quick, easy cash (but sometimes you do need it right now).

You can create a money bowl and work with it on this altar, a Jupiter cashbox (I will make a future post on this), or a manifestation mirror box filled with petitions, sigils and your investment/banking information.

Fill your altar with greens and gold, imagery for wealth and abundance, pocket change, and anything else that symbolizes wealth.

Do not forget to leave offerings for your money altar. A simple glass of water can do but try to do more if you can.

Road opener workings or petition with an offering for the cross-road spirits who can unblock blockages in your way.

Final Take Away

I know this might not help everyone, but I sincerely hope this helps somebody. Financial literacy was not taught to everyone, nor were proper budgeting tips. I wanted to share what I've learned over the years as I believe it is vital information for some of the information I have collected.

Blessings

[southeastasianists]

Singapore’s prosperity has long set it apart from many other former British colonies. There is another difference, too: Singapore has clung to honouring its former colonial ruler — and it wants to keep doing so.

Special accolade has gone to Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, who is considered to have founded modern Singapore in the early 1800s. For decades, Singapore’s textbooks credited Raffles with transforming the island from a “sleepy fishing village” into a thriving seaport. He has been the central character in a larger official narrative that says imperial Britain had set up Singapore for success as an independent nation.

Dedications to Raffles dot the landscape of Singapore. A business district, schools and dozens of other buildings bear his name. Two 2.5-metre likenesses of the man loom large in downtown Singapore.

But a new statue of Raffles, installed in a park in May, has revived a debate about the legacy of colonialism in Singapore. On one side is the broader establishment, which has held up British colonial rule positively. On the other are those who want a closer inspection of the empire that Raffles represented and the racial inequity he left behind, even as Singapore became wealthy.

This divide has surfaced before, perhaps most prominently a few years ago when Singapore celebrated the bicentennial of Raffles’ arrival on the island. Now, the new statue has set off a fresh debate, with critics pointing out that other countries have for years been taking down monuments to historical figures associated with slavery or imperialism, or both.

“The thing about Raffles is that, unfortunately I think, it has been delivered as a hagiography rather than just history,” said Alfian Sa’at, a playwright who wants to see the Raffles statues destroyed. “It’s so strange — the idea that one would defend colonial practice. It goes against the grain on what’s happening in many parts of the world.”

The new statue of Raffles stands next to one of his friend Nathaniel Wallich, a Danish botanist, at Fort Canning Park. Tan Kee Wee, an economist who pooled $330,000 with his siblings to commission the statues, said he wanted to commemorate the pair’s role in founding Singapore’s first botanic gardens, which were his frequent childhood haunt. He donated the sculptures in his parents’ name to the National Parks Board.

Opponents have also criticised the government for allowing the statue to go up at the park because it was the site of the tomb of precolonial Malay kings. The parks board said it considered historical relevance in the installation of the sculptures.

Questions about the statue have even been raised in Singapore’s parliament. In June, Desmond Lee, the minister for national development, responded to one by saying that Singapore did not glorify its colonial history. At the same time, Lee added, “We need not be afraid of the past.”

The plaque for the Raffles statue explains how Singapore’s first botanic gardens “cultivated plants of economic importance, particularly spices”. That, critics said, was a euphemism for their actual purpose: cash crops for the British Empire.

Tan defended the legacy of British colonialists in Singapore, saying they “didn’t come and kill Singaporeans”.

He added: “Singapore was treated well by the British. So why all this bitterness?”

Far from benign

But colonial Britain was far from benign. For instance, it treated nonwhite residents of Singapore as second-class citizens. Raffles created a town plan for Singapore that segregated people into different racial enclaves. And he did not interact with the locals, said Kwa Chong Guan, a historian.

“He was very much a corporate company man, just concerned with what he assumed to be the English East India Co’s interests,” Kwa said.

Raffles landed in Singapore in 1819 as Britain was looking to compete with the Dutch in the Malacca Strait, a crucial waterway to China. At the time, Singapore was under the sway of the kingdom of Johor in present-day Malaysia. Raffles exploited a succession dispute in Johor to secure a treaty that allowed the East India Company to set up a trading post in Singapore.

Within a handful of years, Singapore was officially a British territory. Convict labour, largely from the Indian subcontinent, was crucial to its economic development. So, too, were Chinese immigrants, which included wealthy traders and poor labourers.

Singapore achieved self-governance in 1959, then briefly joined Malaysia before becoming an independent republic in 1965. It has since built one of the world’s most open economies and among its busiest ports, as well as a bustling regional financial hub.

In recent years, the government has acknowledged, in small ways, the need to expand the narrative of Singapore’s founding beyond Raffles. Its textbooks now reflect that the island was a thriving centre of regional trade for hundreds of years before Raffles arrived.

In 2019, officials cast the commemoration of Raffles’ arrival as also a celebration of others who built Singapore. A Raffles statue was painted over as if to disappear into the backdrop. Placed next to it, though only for the duration of the event, were four other sculptures of early settlers, including that of Sang Nila Utama, a Malay prince who founded what was called Singapura in 1299.

To some historians and intellectuals, such gestures are merely symbolic and ignore the reckoning Singapore needs to have with its colonial past. British rule introduced racist stereotypes about nonwhites, such as that of the “lazy” Malay, an Indigenous group in Singapore, that has had a lasting effect on public attitudes. Colonialism led to racial divisions that, in many ways, persist to this day in the city-state that is now dominated by ethnic Chinese.

“If you only focus on one man and the so-called benevolent aspect of colonialism, and you don’t try to associate or think about the negative part too much, isn’t that a kind of blindness, or deliberate amnesia?” said Sai Siew Min, an independent historian. (Story continues below)

Role of race

Race relations played a role in Raffles’ ascension in Singaporean lore. Soon after Singapore became independent, the governing People’s Action Party — which remains in power decades later — decided to officially declare Raffles the founder of Singapore. Years later, S Rajaratnam, who was then the foreign minister, said that anointing a Malay, Chinese or Indian as its founder would have been fraught.

“So we put up an Englishman — a neutral, so there will be no dissension,” Rajaratnam said.

The decision was also meant to indicate that Singapore remained open to the West and free markets.

In a 1983 speech, Rajaratnam acknowledged that Raffles’ attitude toward the “nonwhite races was that without British overlordship the natives would not amount to much”.

Critics of the Raffles statues also argue that his legacy should reflect his time on the island of Java. Although Raffles outlawed slavery in Singapore, he allowed trading of slaves in Java, including children as young as 13, according to Tim Hannigan, who wrote a book about Raffles.

The new statues of Raffles and Wallich were created by Andrew Lacey, a British artist. The sculptures evoke the two men as apparitions — symbolism that Lacey said represented the world’s evolution away from the West.

Lacey said he had “wrangled” with the public reaction toward his sculptures and he had no qualms if Singaporeans wanted to take them down, destroy them or replace their heads with the Malay gardeners who were instrumental in creating the botanic gardens.

“I was cognisant of the complexities of making any dead white male,” he said of Raffles. “I wasn’t cognisant of the degree of complexity around him.”

[dumbbitchenergy17]

Clan of Three (BOBF) - Chapter 4

Chapter Four: In the Name of Honor

Plot: A Mandalorian, an infant with a history of the jedi, and a teenager with similar powers with a slowly discovering lineage. With the child off with the Jedi, the close-knit pair continues their travels through the galaxy.

Word Count: 8.9K

Pairing: Father Figure!Din Djarin x Platonic!Teen!Reader

Warnings: fighting/violence, injuries, angst, slight ptsd, some wholesome moments, father-daughter moments

------

Returning quickly back to Mos Espa hearing an attack happened on the Sanctuary, reaching the exploded building the sandstone blacken by the explosion. Entering the building you see Boba, Fennec, and the two Mods; Drash and Skad.

“That was fast. Were you able to hire any foot soldiers?” Fennec asks and Din says, “I think so…Cobb Vanth is raising a garrison for us.”

“What price did you negotiate?” Fennec questions waiting for the price but he shakes his head, “Free.”

“Free?” Din nods, “He’s been holding off the spice trade single-handedly. I told him we could shut it down.”

“That’s not free. That’s most of Jabba the Hutt’s business.” Fennec protests with Cobb’s demand.

“That’s what the town wants,” Din replies and Fennec goes to retort but Boba cuts her off.

“I agree to their terms.” Fennec comes over to her boss trying to reason with him, “There’s a lot of credits to be made from that orange powder.”

“In the long run, it is better for us as well. Mos Espa can become a prosperous city under our protection. Spice is killing our people. Let Marshal Vanth and the people of Mos Pelgo…” Boba says.

“Freetown is its name now.” You pipe in and Boba nods, “Let the people of Freetown know they have my word.”

“You can tell Cobb Vanth himself when he arrives here with the reinforcements.” Din says and Boba is only worried he will not, “You are confident he will come?”

“I am.” He vouches and the bounty hunter nods, “Well if he does not, we are doomed. Our skill is no match for the Syndicate numbers. We must buy time until they arrive. We’ll lockdown at the palace.”

“It’s a bad idea.” Skad says and Fennec looks over at the bionic man, “Is that so?” 

“It is.” He says and the assassin leans against a wall looking at the man, “And where do you propose we wait for reinforcements?”

“Here.” He says gesturing to the ruins you were in. “Here? In these ruins? Nonsense. The palace offers greater protection.” Boba says shaking his head and Drash steps forward.

“If you want to abandon Mos Espa and hide in your fortress, go ahead. We’re staying. The people who live here need our protection.” She says that the two young adults' decisions are final. You had to respect it, this was their home and they were fighting for it. Fett is silent looking at them before he nods, “We’ll stay.”

You set up camp in the ruins of the Sanctuary and when dawn arrived the plan was put into action with only Fennec, Boba, Din, yourself, and the majordomo that was apparently their hostage/informant.

“As we wait for the reinforcements to arrive with Cobb Vanth from Freetown, our forces are quietly patrolling the streets of the old city. The Pyke Syndicate has not yet arrived in numbers, but the minute they do, we will see them before they see us. The truce you negotiated with the other families of Mos Espa will ensure that they will remain neutral and allow us to gain the upper hand by surprising the arriving soldiers,” Fennec explains the plan as you sit on a piece of rubble listening in, “The Gamorrean guards are posted in the Klatooinian territory at the starport and will alert us if any of the Pyke Syndicate forces arrive. Krrsantan is in Trandoshan territory, keeping tabs on the streets of the municipality in front of City Hall. Drash and Skad are with the other Mods keeping an eye on the Worker’s District and the Aqualish Quarter. As you can see, all our flanks are covered. Nobody is sneaking up on us. When the people of Freetown arrive, we will have the forces required to pivot our strength to whatever region the Pykes choose to attack from.”

“For now?” You ask resting your hands on your crossed legs and Fennec looks over at you, “We wait.”

“Lord Fett?” Boba’s 8D8 droid enters the sanctuary, “There is someone here to see you.” You all stand up surprised someone had arrived at your positions.

“I thought you said nobody could sneak up on us.” Boba says to Fennec as you all draw your weapons and Din puts you behind him as the three of you hid outside behind the pillars while Boba steps out into the open and you hear him speak, “I thought I smelled something. If you’re looking for a job, you’re late.”

“I’ve already got a job. I’m here to negotiate on behalf of the Pyke Syndicate.” A gravelly but distinctive voice calls out and Boba scoffs, “I don’t negotiate with gutless murderers.”

“If that’s not the Quacta calling the Stifling slimy.” The man retorts for the hypocrisy from Boba. “Clear out. And tell your bosses we know they’re outnumbered.” Boba warns him and you hear the man chuckle and you tighten your grip on your blaster.

“I wouldn’t be counting on the people of Freetown to be coming anytime soon. I paid Marshal Vanth a visit. You should’ve never left him without his armor,” The air is silent as your blaster falls from your hands. No, you just saw him he couldn’t be. The guilt that crashed into you made you physically ill, no he was still there and safe. Cobb was…

“Without training, you are a danger to yourself and others. People will die because of your actions if you continue down this path.”

“You bastard!” Your body reacts running past Din and you get right around to see the man with blue skin and completely red eyes. His hand moves to the blaster on his waist and Boba grasps his own. Hands snatch your shoulders and you’re pulled behind the pillar as Din’s hand covers your mouth muffling your screams that turn to cries his other wrapped around your waist to stop you from running. Fennec has her rifle aimed out to cover you both as Din tries calming your breakdown.

“Shush you’re alright. You have to be quiet.” He whispers in your ear as he holds your back against his chest as you flail in his grasp as your tears and cries are quieted by his hand. His heart breaks hearing your cries it was cruel you had just seen the man who had helped raise you only to find out he was killed in cold blood.

“Before you get any ideas, I’ve got backshooters too. Let the spice move through Mos Espa, and all this can be avoided.” The man calls out as your struggle stops as you slump back to Din’s body tears streaming down your face.

“No.” Boba says and Bane looks at him his hands resting on his waist, “What do you propose then?”

“I will only negotiate with the head of the Pyke Syndicate.” Boba says and Bane grins ready for the killing blow, “You mean the one that massacred your Tusken family and blamed it on a speed bike gang?” Boba is frozen by the memories of the ones that taught him the ways of Tusken, he had thought it was the speed bike gang.. “You know it’s true.”

Boba’s hand moves his finger resting on the trigger and Fennec appears from behind the pillar her rifle ready as she calls out to him, “Boba.”

“Let’s do this right here, right now.” Bane taunts him as anger runs through his veins. He could do it right now.

“Not now. You pick when.” Fennec reminds him but he shakes his head, “He killed Vanth. The reinforcements aren’t coming.”

“We fight on our terms, not theirs.” She says trying to convince him but anger had taken over him as they were clearly at the disadvantage, the Mandalorian behind the pillar was busy calming the grieving girl and he was blinded by the idea of killing Bane.

“I can take him.” He says his voice rough, “You’re emotional.”

“I can take him.” He grits out and Fennec moves to stand right beside him.

“We need to adjust. You’ll have your moment.” She reminds him. Understanding where he was coming from but it wasn’t the time. The anger clears his vision just enough to listen to her reasoning and his finger leaves the trigger.

“Tell your client negotiations are terminated.” He says turning and Bane calls out to him making him look back. “You’re going soft in your old age.”

Looking at the other bounty hunter the man that knew his father that knew him before he responds, “We all do.”

You’re pulled inside the sanctuary Boba and Fennec following afterward as the majordomo starts speaking, “That was an impressive display of restraint. Exemplary stratagem. If I may be so bold as to offer additional counsel-”

“I wonder how much he would pay for the Twi’lek.” Boba says and that shuts him up, “Understood. Many pardons. I should never have interjected.”

You shove Din off you moving towards the back of the room the guilt and sorrow in your chest turn into something ugly. It was burning in your veins the anger you had felt on that cruiser, the rage that fueled your body. Your knees hit the floor and your hand grabs the saber resting on your belt. The small pearl resting inside the kyber crystal chamber is the first gift you’ve ever got from him. He raised you…protected you..and he was gone. You clutch the blade to your chest mourning over the loss of the man you once saw as a father. Those ugly thoughts whisper in your ears, he would be alive if you were there to protect him, you got him involved with the Pykes and now he’s dead, Freetown blames you for his death, you killed their Marshal…their protector. The fear and anger bleed through your body unaware of it seeping into the weapon in your hands.

Din looks over at where you sit on the ground staring off completely shutting out the world. Your droid stands beside you but you don’t even notice it. He didn’t know what to say or do, he wasn’t good at going through loss. He moved on when someone died having connections was not safe for a man who is constantly put in danger. But you were just a child…you wore your heart on your sleeve and he was forced to watch you lose yourself with the man’s death.

Boba and Fennec are silent, the other man going through his own form of mourning with the truth of the Tuskens’ death. Silence fills the destroyed sanctuary before Drash’s voice comes in through the comms, “Come in, boss. Come in. Something feels strange over here.”

“Have the Pykes arrived?” Boba asks, “Not yet, but something feels off.” The woman responds and suddenly there’s blaster fire

“The locals are attacking! I thought we had a treaty.” Drash shouts over blaster fire and Boba frowns at the news,

“So did I.”

“They laid a trap!” Drash yells out before the comms go mute as Boba yells trying to get in touch with the Wookie, “Santo! Santo, come in!”

“It’s a coordinated attack. We’ll have to gather our people.” Boba says looking at Fennec and Din who listens in keeping an eye though on the girl in the back.

“There’s no way to overcome their advantage. We need to take out command and control.” Fennec shakes her head and Boba curses.

“Does the Pyke Syndicate still operate out of Mos Eisley?” Boba asks Shaiz’ majordomo who tries not to reveal the full information.

“Oh, it’s difficult to say for certain that…” Three blasters are pointed at him and he corrects himself, “Mos Eisley? Yes, now that I think of it, indeed they do. More specifically, the Desert Survey Office.”

Boba turns to the assassin, “Can you do that? Can you get there in time?” She shrugs, “Worth a shot.” She quickly departs taking a speeder and zooming through the streets.

“They’re here,” Din calls out and Boba joins him looking through the broken window as the Syndicate forces begin to move in surrounding the whole front of the building.

“It was just a matter of time. Is Cad Bane with them?” He asks trying to spot him but Din shakes his head, “Don’t see him. Any news on the others?”

Boba looks defeated, “Would be a miracle if any survived. All three gotras of Mos Espa turned on us.” He says and Din nods,

“It was the smart move.”

“It was. I suppose you’ll be heading out.” Boba asks seeing the very imminent failure.

“I’m not.” He refuses but Boba gives him the chance, “You should.”

“It’s against the Creed. I gave you my word. I’m with you until we both fall.” Din says and Boba looks at him, “You really buy into that bantha fodder?” He asks and the Mandalorian nods

“I do.” Fett chuckles checking the cartridge of his blaster, “Good.”

“The way I see it, we have two choices. We wait until they get into position and launch a siege on their terms.” Din says and Fett looks at him, “Or?”

“We rush out there, catch them unaware,” Din gives a quick but shoddy plan, “Then we can escape to your ship at the palace.” Fett shakes his head hearing the end of the plan.

“I can’t abandon Mos Espa. These people are counting on me.” He explains and Din nods pulling out his blaster, “Okay, then. We’ll both die in the name of honor.”

“You sure you wanna stay?” He says he was giving him the chance to leave, especially with the girl he was protective of.

“This is the way.”

“If I may offer an alternative?” The majordomo cuts in and the two bounty hunters look at him silently, “Shall I continue?...I’ll continue. You may not know this about me, in fact, how could you, except perhaps what vestiges remain of my accent, but… I was educated on Coruscant. Not that that makes me better in any way.”

“Get to it.” Fett cuts him off and he nods sharply getting back on track,

“Yeah, uh… I attended finishing academy. My parents were not wealthy by any means. I specialized in Civic Council Negotiations. Now, if you would feel confident empowering me to negotiate on your behalf, I’m fairly certain we would be granted passage off world with, at worst, some theatrical, symbolic, groveling gestures and an exchange of funds.”

Fett is silent before nodding, “Very well. Give me your tablet. I will write out my statement and what I am willing to pay.” Taking the majordomo’s tablet and starts writing as he smiles, “I shall go as your emissary. I have no compunction whatsoever genuflecting or even groveling if needs be, which would save you from any potential bruising of ego, so to speak.”

Fett returns the table before gesturing outside, “Now go before I change my mind.”

“Yes. Excellent.”

Din looks over to where his adopted daughter rests panic runs through his veins finding you and your droid missing. “Kid?!” He shouts but it’s too late to try finding you as their plan was already in action

“Salutations! Salutations! I am unarmed but for this tablet bearing the terms of surrender. I wish to present to whomever spokesperson is empowered to deliberate an acceptable outcome in the eyes of the Oba Diah high council.” The majordomo calls out with open arms to the armed men outside the Sanctuary. The commander of the group steps forward looking at him,

“Read it to me, tail-head.” He spats and the majordomo points to his head laughing at the joke, “Oh, because of the enchanting sobriquet, and one of which I never tire. Yes. Someday I hope to see the fabled Obsidian Cliffs of Oba Diah with my own eyes.”

“Read it.”

“Agreed. Let us dispense with the pleasantries,” Clearing his throat he looks at the written surrender, “I, Boba Fett, speaking as Daimyo of the Tatooine territories formerly held by Jabba the Hutt, do present the following offer,” His voice trails off having read ahead quickly growing silent, “Perhaps we should discuss what you’d be willing to…”

“Read it.” The man repeats growing tired.

“…following offer. Nothing. Uh…You will leave this planet and your spice trade. If you refuse these terms…,” Clearing his throat fear taking over his body as he’s forced to keep reading, “…the arid sands of Tatooine will once again flourish with flowered fields fertilized with the bodies of your dead.”

The Pyke commander lifts his blaster at the majordomo as he holds his hands up, “His words.”

Before the majordomo can be executed, Fett and Din soar in on their jetpacks gunning down the Syndicate soldiers. Though they are fired back the beskar armor protects them and with their weapons and the surprise strike the two are able to take down many of the Syndicate soldiers on their own. Firing his whistling birds Din takes down several Pykes and Boba sends an attack with his flamethrower. Bolts hit the two of them striking them back as they grow too much as they are knocking them down.

“They just keep coming.” Boba groans firing at as many soldiers as he cans but when one falls down another appears.

A few soldiers draw closer to the two of them as they try taking them down when they suddenly are pulled into the air dropping their blasters and clutching their throats. The soldiers and the two bounty hunters look around for who was doing this when a loud crack fills the air as their necks all snap in sync their bodies hitting the ground.

A screech fills the air and they all look over as fear strikes through them, even the bounty hunters seeing their ally. Din felt his throat close up and he was back on the cruiser, frozen watching you beat the life out of Moff Gideon. The rage in your eyes as your fist pounded caving in the man’s face the blood coating your body. What frightened him was seeing the weapon in your hand but it crackled in the air the plasma blade wild and chaotic reflecting your emotions. It was the color no longer orange but a blood red, a color all knew that referred to the opposite of the Jedi.

The color of the Sith.

“Is that a Jedi?” One of the Syndicate soldiers calls out the confusion in their tone. Unsure if the red-lightsaber wielder was their enemy or their ally. A snap fills the air as their neck turns a full 180 and they drop dead. You drop your hand the other clutching the saber your anger and hate bleeding into the weapon as it grows more powerful but also more unstable.

“Where is Cad Bane.” You growl out as blaster fire aims right at you. Dodging or reflecting the bullets back at them as they try to fight back but your rage is flooding through your veins. The blood pumping in your ears as you decapitate a soldier turning the blade around to stab another that tries to get the jump on you from behind. Din and Fett watch in awe but also in slight horror as your fluid movement with the weapon massacres their enemies. You arch the blade up slamming it down on one as they are split in half. The shades and hues of different blood coat your hands and parts of your body.

Grabbing one by the neck after cutting his hands off you pull him into the air, “Where. Is. Cad Bane.” You hiss as he screams in pain and you dig your saber deep into his chest silencing him.

The roar of a speeder and blaster fire comes from behind unaware reinforcements arrive. “The people of Freetown,” Boba calls out firing out as they move towards the armorer vehicle filled with people firing at the Pykes. Din wants to pull you away from the fight as you are in the middle of it but is unable to move beside the speeder seeing Taanti,

“I’m sorry about the Marshal.” Din gives his condolences as the Weequay fires out at the soldiers,

“They gunned him down in cold blood.” He hisses and Din feels his heartbreak trying to think about how you were feeling.

“You didn’t have to come here.” He says and Taanti shakes his head, “Yes, we did. This planet deserves better. I don’t know how she’s dealing with it.” And they two see you slash your blade through another man not getting a second to breathe as you block blaster fire to kill another man. This is what he feared, he had seen your old self start to come back but it was crushed so quickly. The bloodlust and anger in your eyes, when the punches stopped being held back the attack not to defend yourself but to make them hurt. For them to feel the suffering that you felt. Blood soaked the sands as you tear through their defenses, but it was the moment he saw you hesitate to take in much-needed air he saw you go down.

“Kid!” Din yells running straight into the chaos, as the others give him cover, and the arrival of the mods pulled the soldiers' focus away from you. He sees your hand grabbing your leg your saber held in the other, you swing at him still blinded but he’s able to block it with the beskar. Your arm drops seeing it’s Din as he pulls you up to stand trying to take most of your weight off pulling you to safety and your free hand blocks blaster fire with your saber. Once around the safety of the Freetown armored speeder, your back is against the speeder as Din kneels in front of you. Your thigh was bleeding from a bolt striking you there, he rips part of your cloak and ties it above the wound to stop you from bleeding out. You go to move but Din pushes you back down the fighting still going on around you.

“I have to get Cad! I have to kill him! For Cobb-” “You’re done!” Din yells pushing you back down as you try to get back up again. Your gaze is fierce as you stare down Din and he holds you against the speeder. “You’re done, kid…” He says his voice weak.

“They’re falling back!” Someone yells out and you struggle to stand as Din helps you up an arm around your waist to keep you up. You could see the Pykes retreating away as the people around you cheer and celebrate.

“Freetown!” “Yeah!”

“I wouldn’t celebrate yet. We got problems,” Din says as you see coming around the corner two very large spider-like droids, “We got real problems.”

Blasters and even Fett’s missiles are useless with their powerful deflector shields as they turn and take aim at the vehicle. “Run! We’ll distract them.” Din helps you run away as the attack hits the speeder and it explodes in a ball of fire. The people of Freetown, the Mods, and Krrsantan start to flee down the streets of Mos Espa as the three of you stay back.

“Go get out of here!” Din yells and you shake your head pulling out your saber the red blade appearing with a crackle and roar,

“I’m not leaving you!” You shout back quickly dodging a bolt from hitting you as it collides. Rolling as the sand kicks up in the air from the powerful attack you hiss in pain looking at your leg and seeing the blood soaking through your pant leg. Din and Boba attack the droids their blasters making no dent and Din pulls out the Darksaber trying to pierce through their shields but it doesn’t go through.

“I can’t get through.” Din yells out as you keep moving backward avoiding the droids' attacks, “These two will destroy the whole city!” Fett shouts and Din tackles you when another attack is aimed at you. He helps you up as you keep running well yours is a half-sprint half-hobble

“Our energy weapons can’t get through, and our kinetic weapons have too much velocity,” Din says

“Can you protect the others?” Fett asks and Din nods, “I can distract them for a spell. Why?”

“Watch out!” Fett yells as you both dodge a bolt heading to the two of you, you grunt from the strain in your leg.

“We need reinforcements.” You wheeze out your arm wrapped around Din’s shoulder the other holding your saber.

“From where? You’ve run out of friends.” Din says aiming the comment at Fett.

“Protect the others.” He says before blasting off into the air leaving the two of you against the giant droids. Din fires at them and is able to get the attention of one as you both take off in the streets. You’re pulled forward by Din a clear trail of blood following behind you both as the droid fires upon you. Turning the corner you see a cart driven by a rickshaw droid heading toward you and a woman waving at the two of you.

“Mando! Ha! We found you! I got a surprise for you.” Peli calls out to you two as Din waves his hand forward,

“Turn around!” He yells over the sound of the droid getting closer and how far away you were. “What?”

“Turn around!” “Can’t hear you!”

“Turn around!” You both scream as the droid turns around the corner and Peli screams out as the cart quickly turns around. Din with the help of Peli helps you onto the back as he jumps on as well as the droid drives down the street.

“Can this thing go any faster? Go faster, you bucket of bolts!” Peli yells at the rickshaw droid as it speeds up and you have to clutch onto the back of the seat to hold on. Din fires back at the Scorpenek as it chases after you all, his focus was torn in two defeating the droid and making sure you were okay. Your hand was a death grip on the back of the seat the other deflected bolts from the droid. You were bloody and sickly-looking he could see your blood staining your pants from your injury.

“Hey, Mando! Look who’s here.” Peli calls out and you both look as she pulls a blanket off revealing the child you both look away only to whip back in shock.

“What? Hey, what are you doing here?” Din leans forward looking at Grogu in shock, “Buddy? How..” The small child jumps into Din’s arms and he pulls him into a hug,

“Oh! Okay, little guy. I’m happy to see you too. I didn’t know when I’d see you again. It’s okay. Yeah. I missed you too, buddy,” Din chuckles at the coo Grogu releases and you smile stroking his ears and he giggles, “But, uh… we’re in a bit of a bind here right now. You be careful. You keep your head down. You stay hidden until the fight’s over. Hey, that’s the shirt. You got the shirt.” He brings Grogu back to his seat and peeks inside his cloak spotting the beskar shirt hidden underneath.

“Save your tender moment. We’ve got a Scorpenek droid chasing us.” Peli shouts out as she fires her blaster past you.

“What is he doing here?” You ask and Peli shrugs, “The Force works in mysterious ways.”

The Scorpenek droid fires at you missing you all but it manages to shoot off the head of the rickshaw droid. It shakes before exploding as the cart flips from the momentum as you all are sent into the air. You see Din grab Grogu right as you crash into the ground groaning in pain as you turn to see the Scorpenek droid right upon you as you deflect its blaster fire. You come to stand but fall back down your hand presses against your thigh pulling back and seeing it stained red. Din yells out to you as the droid aims right at you but before it could fire a terrifying roar that makes you cover your ears distracted. Looking up seeing a rancor jump over several buildings dodging the fire from the droid. You’ve only heard the stories of the creatures hearing the legend that Jabba the Hutt had a rancor and those that disobeyed him would be fed to it.

The rancor appears before you and you see Boba Fett on top riding the beast as it manages to damage its shielding. You see Din appear behind the droid and use the darksaber to break inside the deflector shields. Climbing on top of the droid as it tries shaking him off and he slices off one of the gun turrets but is knocked off. It raises its leg to crush Din when you throw your saber it spins cutting off the leg and it returns back into your hand. The droid collapse gave Fett’s rancor time to finish tearing it apart and destroying the tech. Din grabs you pulling you into his arms as he embraces you and the child. His breath is shaky as he holds the two of you feeling like a part of him is whole again. He wasn’t sure how the child had gotten here but was thankful for the higher beings out there.

The attack of the second Scorpenek droid ends the touching moment as Din stands helping you up holding Grogu in his arms, “Keep ’em on their heels. They’re on the run.”

“Come on, let’s get the Pykes.” You say moving forward your saber ready as you join the battle against the remaining Pyke soldiers and the final droid. The rancor beats the droid into buildings and it fires at it but its hide absorbs the attack. It rips apart the turrets stopping the droid from firing it tries stabbing the rancor with its legs but the creature destroys it. With a roar, it destroys the droid before going after Pykes. You deflect blaster bolts from hitting you or your allies as you shove your hand out and it shoves back a few Pykes into stands of fruits or walls. A fresh breath of air fills your body and you sense the presence. Your head turns off in a direction and the anger that had been left distracted by others had felt it too. You could do it. Get your revenge..for Cobb. Your saber drops slightly as the blaster fire flies past you, you can reach out tapping into the force that surrounds you. Feeling the grains of sand, the smell of the blasters, the drip of sweat mixed with blood falling from your body, the muffled sounds of gunfire and shouting.

Then you find him as the world around you returns and you stare at his presence.

“Bane…”

Cad Bane fights against the Rancor firing his blaster at it before he scares it off from the fire in his vambraces. The creature roars throwing Fett off his back and flees into the streets of Mos Espa. Fett rises staring at the other bounty hunter across the street just the two of them.

“Clear out and take your hoodlum gang with you,” Fett calls out to the man.

“I’ve known you a long time, Boba. One thing I can’t figure. What’s your angle?” He admits and Fett shakes his head, “This is my city. These are my people. I will not abandon them.”

“Like the Tuskens.” Bane tries to goad Fett but he remains firm and doesn’t let the anger take over, “Don’t toy with me. I’m not a little boy any longer, and you are an old man.”

“I’m still faster than you.” Bane retorts.

“That may be, but I have armor.” He agrees but he had the advantage of the beskar armor that protected him.

“Let’s find out.”

The two stand still before whipping out their blaster, Bane hits Fett knocking him down his blaster flying from his hand. Looking down at him Bane stalks toward him, “Now’s about the time you jet off to your bacta tank.”

“This is my city!” Fett yells sitting up flames emitting from his vambraces as Bane dodges rolling out of the way and firing at him again knocking him back down.

“You gave it a shot. You tried to go straight. But you’ve got your father’s blood pumping through your veins. You’re a killer.” Kicking him back away from his weapon, Bane kicks his weapon away, “This isn’t the first time I beat you out on a job.” He slams his foot onto Fett’s wrist as he groans in pain pinning him down to his knee and digging into his chest as he shoves the blaster between the gaps of armor.

“There’s no shame in it,” Bane says ripping the helmet off Boba revealing his face as he glares at the man. Rising to stand still pinned he slowly raises his blaster, “Consider this my final lesson. Look out for yourself. Anything else is weakness.”

“Bane!” A voice calls out and the bounty hunt looks forward and Boba looks upside down trying to see who it was. On the end of the street is a girl covered in blood though not her own. She stands tall though Bane notices the weight she shifts off the injured leg. “You and I have business.” Your hand pulls the saber off your belt a screech fills the air as the red blade appears and you see Bane grin.

“A jedi?” He says and you raise it pointing it at him,

“You’re going to die for what you did.” You spat and he laughs only making you tighten your grip on the weapon.

“I think you’ve wandered off little lady..best get back to your Mandalorian.” He says and your glare is piercing.

“I’m exactly where I need to be.” You hiss and Bane steps away from Fett not before delivering a swift kick to his side making him groan.

“You know I’ve met your grandfather before,” Bane calls out and you bring your other hand to stabilize your grip on the saber, “I know who you are, you look just like Kenobi…but your anger is just like Skywalker.” He hisses the names to remember his enemies during the time of the Clone Wars.

“The Marshal died a painful death because of me…his screams filled Freetown.” He says and your vision goes red. You race towards him as he fires at you though you deflect them sending them back to him. Throwing your saber it spins toward him but he dodges the attack sending flames your way. Rolling underneath the attack grabbing your saber mid-air a beam of plasma clips your hair the loudness causing a ringing in your ear. Closing the distance you raise your saber to strike him down when he kicks you in the stomach you fall back and he fires right at your saber hitting the open chamber of the saber.

The plasma completely destroys the saber as the power cells become unstable and explode. You’re thrown back hitting the ground the wind ripped from your lungs as the destroyed saber rest before you. You were certain you blacked out when you hit the ground, your ears ringing as you gasp for air. Scratches from the shrapnel of the hilt decorate your face and hands. Shakily trying to push yourself up a kick to your face and you spit out blood before a foot digs into your chest pinning you back into the sand, Bane stands above you and you see the blaster raised and aimed at you when he’s attacked by Boba Fett. You force yourself to roll to your side pushing yourself up on shaky hands and catching Fett impale Bane with his gaderffii stick. 

Blood pours from your face and nose as you drag yourself and rest on the sands the destroyed saber and the crystal shattered in pieces. Tears and blood blind you as your fingers shake trying to collect the pieces of the krayt pearl until the fragments rest in your palms. The gift you treasured for years, using it for your saber, destroyed by you…by your anger. Your head drops as you cry over the broken weapon mourning over losing one of the only things you could call yours.

Following the battle, Din realized you went missing before he received a call through his comm from Boba, that he had you. Arriving with Grogu in his arms and Peli and the others they found Boba Fett standing over the body of Cad Bane a grim look on his face. Din’s focus was instantly drawn to the girl keeled over in the sands. Rushing to her his movements slow down hearing the cries come from the girl and coming around to face her sees the destroyed saber resting in front of her as you clutch something in your hands to your chest. Slowly kneeling down and placing the child down beside his hands hover out in front of him.

“Kid..” He whispers making you look at him and his heart cracks. Cuts litter your face as blood a now steady trickle from your nose and your mouth. Your eyes were red fresh tears wet your waterline and lashes. Your bloody hands pull away from your chest opening it up and revealing the shattered pearl, “Oh kid..” He pulls you into his chest as you crumble crying into his chest. Din holds your head to him the other stroking your back.

“It’s…it’s my fault…I would get people hurt,” Your voice hoarse as he tries wiping the blood from your face, “People were…going to die…because of me.”

“No..no none of this is your fault okay…it’s not your fault cyar’ika.” He says holding your face between his hands as tears fill your vision.

“Din..” You fall back into his chest as he holds you to him. The small child looks on with a sad expression before coming between you two and you pull back as it brings his small hand over yours. His fingers barely cover a single finger and he closes his eyes focusing. You can feel the immense force coming off him as he pulls back then looks up at you and you understand the look in his wide eyes. You look at your hand at the pieces of the pearl it was dull lacking its shine and hue.

Closing your eyes you squeeze the portions of the pearl tightly in your fist pouring all your energy into it, turning the fear and anger that first harmed the crystal into love and peace. Thinking of all your positive memories, being on the Razor Crest with the child and Din, on Sorgan seeing trees and so much green for the first time, reuniting the Frog family with its children, coming home to Tatooine, and seeing Cobb. The memories you had with him, your first time meeting, he teaches you how to defend yourself, the times he took care of you when you were sick or soothed your fears when you had a nightmare, his horrid jokes as you worked on your speeder together, your fifteen birthday and actually celebrating it since your parents died, him gifting you the Krayt Pearl. Tears of sadness as the memories of Cobb fuel you to heal the crystal. Din watches you focus your eyes closed as you clutch the destroyed pearl between your hands. A weight is lifted off your shoulders and you open your eyes slowly opening your palm tears spring from your eyes seeing the intact crystal as it shimmers in the light. You look at the pearl a wide grin covers your features as he looks at the item resting in your hands. He would always remain amazed by the things you or the child could do just earlier seeing Grogu put the fierce rancor to sleep. You smile looking up at Din when all the energy in your body is drained as your vision goes black. Din was able to catch you the second your eyes rolled back, he panicked for a second seeing you collapse in front of him bringing his fingers to your pulse sighing in relief feeling your heartbeat. The pearl barely rests in your unconscious hands, the act of healing must have drained all your energy just like it had for the child who looks at the two of you.

“Come on kid,” Din says to Grogu as he grabs the pearl and the remaining pieces of your saber putting it in his satchel, his own gift still with him. Scooping you up into his arms he holds your unconscious body looking down at the small child beside his feet and then at the one in his arms. He felt at peace knowing the two of you were back with him, he would protect you two and make sure you never shed a single tear again. He swears on it.

You felt weightless a calming sensation surrounds you but the urge to wake up draws you away from the dreamless sleep you are in. Your eyes blink open and you notice you submerge in some cold liquid and a breathing device is in your mouth. Taking in a breath of air from the device as you try thinking back on how you got to hear everything in a blur. Suddenly the liquid drains as the capsule opens and you sit up pulling the apparatus from your mouth and taking in a shaky inhale suddenly aware you were soaking wet only in the new pair of clothes as they stick to your skin.

“Princess Kenobi-Kryze you are awake, your bacta session has fully healed your wounds.” A protocol droid rolls in as it hands you a robe that you quickly wrap around yourself. Being the cold water now out in the air your body shakes slightly as you try to warm yourself up. “I will notify Lord Fett and your party that you have awoken.” The droid doesn’t give you much time to answer especially the title as you sit there looking around the room, it was pretty empty besides the bacta tank and some other items which you assumed were Fett’s. You bring your hand to your face not feeling any cuts or scaring on your face. Looking at your leg pulling up the pants to see your thigh. Your fingers run along the smooth skin, the blaster wound not even leaving a mark

“Kid.” You turn seeing Din standing in the doorway the small green infant in his arms. He crosses the room before you’re even out of the machine his free arm wrapping around your head and pressing you to his chest. You can feel the shaky exhale he releases as he holds you to him Grogu grabs a finger with his small hands and you smile stroking his ears. He pulls back looking over you not a single scratch was left, the bacta completely healing your injuries.

“Come on kid, they're gonna need this tank.” He helps you to stand as he keeps a hand on your shoulder. You don’t get to ask when Drash and Skad bring in a man and the air leaves your system as they move past you quickly to place him inside.

“Cobb..” You whisper looking at the man as he’s placed inside the tank and they quickly close it up, it filling with bacta. “But they said…”

“He was able to get some help but the bacta will quicken the process,” Drash says as she looks at the man with understanding in her eyes and it hits you.

“You modified him..” Drash nods as you pull from Din’s arms stepping towards the tank and seeing the man resting peacefully in the healing bacta. Your hands rest against the glass wishing he could reach out and take yours. Resting your forehead against the tank whispering into it, “Please be alright.”

“Come on kid..” Din calls out as you stand up swiping the stray tear that threatens to fall and you pull returning to the Mandalorian as he wraps his arm around your shoulder, “Let’s get you dressed.” He says leading you like a child to another room as the droid comes over your clothes in its arms. Thanking the droid you head behind the privacy screen getting dressed grateful to be back in your clothes. Your fingers run along the clean fabric as you pull your pants up your legs surprised to see the sewing put in to fix your pants.

Returning around the screen Din still waiting there with the child in his arms as you holster your blaster and knife. It was like instinct to grab your belt to fix your saber but your hand comes empty. The pain from losing your saber is too fresh as a frown takes over your features.

“Hey kid,” Din calls out and you look at the man trying to hide the sad look on your face to no avail. He waves his hand for you to follow him. Leaving the tower as you move through Boba Fett’s palace until you reach the throne room and laying in the middle as a rug and a singular item wrapped in a cloth tied with a cord.

“What is this?” You look at the man as he leads you toward the rug placing the child down as it moves to the cloth sitting across from it.

“A gift.” He says taking you by the shoulders to make you sit on the rug in front of the object wrapped in cloth. Din moves back standing to the side and you look up at him as he gestures to you and then to the cloth, “Go on.” You give him a suspicious look before turning to the cloth and glancing at the child who is also looking in interest. Undoing the cord with care and putting it to the side you slowly undo the cloth, your breath gets caught in your throat when you see the item. The saber is in perfect recreation as it rests in separate pieces including the inner works. The only difference that you did notice was the metal of the hilts it had a slight marbling effect something you’ve never seen before. Grabbing a part of the hilt the cold metal presses against your skin, and you feel the weight of it but it was light at the same time.

“Is this beskar?” You look at Din as he nods at the shocked expression on your face. “But I thought beskar wasn’t meant to be weapons.” You ask as he moves towards you crouching down.

“It’s not, it’s technically considered taboo to Mandalorians, but like the child, you deserved armor as foundlings,” He points at the hilt resting in your hand, “This is your armor. To protect you as a Jedi…and a Mandalorian.” Din reaches into his satchel pulling out the krayt pearl and you perk up as he passes it to you and you accept it with such delicacy. The intact pearl shimmers in the light and has a faint warm glow that is brighter in the healed cracks. You look at the disassembled saber and the crystal in your palm slowly placing it back down onto the cloth as Din steps back. Taking a deep breath feeling your heartbeat loud and strong as it slows down with your breathing. Your hands rest on your knees as your palms face upward as your drift shut. Focusing on your breathing as the doors open as the Force rushes over you wrapping around your body like a blanket. It’s comforting and welcoming like an embrace protecting you as the small objects shake gently and then rise into the air. You can feel the sunlight through the sandstone, the texture of the handmade rug underneath you, hear the inhales from the child in front of you and the modulated breathes from the Mandalorian, tasting the crisp air, and the smell of fresh linens that wraps your body.

Din watches in amazement as the pieces of the weapon move throughout the air stopping in their desired places and the weapon forms before him. Working outwards on both ends towards the middle, the power cells are covered through wiring and the beskar hilt. The weapon of the Jedi imbue with the Force as it comes towards the middle the final piece of the puzzle being the krayt pearl is it slots itself in the open chamber but protected by the metal of his ancestors.

You open your eyes as the weapon rests before you. Reaching out towards it you feel the sudden weight of the beskar but in your hands, it lightens in your grasp. Your eyes trace the details of the saber as your finger rest on the button and you activate it. A screech fills the air as the plasma emits from the hilt. A gorgeous orange like the sunset on Tatooine bathes you in the color light. The healed crystal purifies it of the color of the Sith.

The blade retreats back into the hilt and you look at the saber resting in your hand but also the weapon on his belt, the whispers faintly coming from it calling you. Din follows your gaze seeing the Darksaber resting on his hilt before he pulls it off his belt holding it out to you. “I am not the owner of this weapon thus it should not be in my possession.” He explains that you froze it was fear that stopped you. The weapon that had cut through your flesh, in the possession of the man that slaughtered your people, was yours by right, your claim to the blade but also to the throne of a destroyed planet. But while no throne rests or no armor of your ancestors adorns your skin this weapon was yours to lead and rule the hidden Mandalorians scattered across the galaxy.

“Ibic cuyir te ara.” The whisper of the voice as a hand is ghost-like on your shoulder, and you feel the presence of the person before it fades as you take the weapon in your grasp feeling the weight of it as you attach it to your belt beside your saber. You felt the conflict in yourself as you hold the weapon meant for true rulers not orphans from Tatooine. Din could see the fear in yourself with this weapon and the responsibility it means to yourself. You look up at Din who is looking at you though you can’t tell what his expression is underneath the beskar.

“You can stay here, with Cobb have a home here on Tatooine. I won’t stop you.” Din says the fear of seeing you hurt again is too great for him to deal with. If he knew you were here and safe he could deal with his exile without fear. You look away to the child holding onto your pant leg. Bending down pulling the child into your arms you step forward and Din holds his breath ready for you to agree and leave his life. Your hand reaches out grabbing his holding onto the leather glove as his finger wraps around yours instinctively his thumb rubbing the back of your hand.

“I’m not leaving you,” You say looking at the man you see as a father figure, the man who protects and loves you, the man who would tear a part of the galaxy to see you safe with him, your buir, “I’ll follow you anywhere you go.” You promise him as he looks down at you.

He was at a loss for words, the girl he had originally meant to be a quarry, their relationship rocky and hesitant, but with time you had slowly broken down his walls and created a space in his heart, he would do anything to see you smile or to hear your laughter, put down his own life to make sure you and the child were safe, to allow you to be a kid…his kid, his ad. Din looks down at you before nodding,

“Okay.”

Din prepares the N-1 with the coordinates of the planet they were meant to travel sending the navigation to link with your X-Wing. From behind him, Grogu taps the dome with the small ball from the Razor Crest in his hands.

“No.”

A series of more taps as Din speaks again to the child in the pod seat built into the N-1.

“Uh-uh.”

More taps follow as Din grows more annoyed by the persistence of the child.

“No.”

A chuckle follows his comms as he looks over seeing you in your X-Wing watching the display, “Come on he’s not gonna stop until you do it.” You say as the child bangs on the glass more frantically. R4 produces his own response as you make a sound of agreement.

“Don’t need the opinion of the droid here.”

More banging comes from the glass making Din glance back at the child.

“All right. But this is the last time.” He says flipping the switch you watch the ship accelerate rapidly and you hear Gorgu’s squeals from the comms as it jumps to lightspeed. R4 beeps at you as you chuckle adjusting your grip on the joystick and punching in the coordinates,

“I know R4,”

Flipping the switch as the 5th engine roars ready and your finger hovers over the button to release the energy and jumps to hyperspace. To explore the galaxy as one adventure ends and another begins,

“This is where the fun begins.”

A/N: There is Clan of Three: Book of Boba Fett! Another part of this fantastic series is done! You are fucking incredible people and season three's first chapter is coming out next Wednesday!

[jessiarts]

Ok, so you guys know by now that I post art, what you may not know is that I also write a little- though I've not posted a whole lot of it here (because I hardly ever finish writing anything 😅)

Anyway I wanted to share some fantasy writing ideas (tips?) with you all- specifically in the oh-so-popular revolution genre.

Like anyone, I also enjoy watching the trope of the Good Guys overthrowing the Tyrannical/Dystopian Government. It's an exciting story, with a satisfying ending! There's a dramatic revolution and The Evil King gets overthrown and the people rejoice. They're stories of hope and resistance, and of standing up for what's right.

However, I do wish more stories would explore the other ways a revolution can happen. I feel like we're sleeping on some really compelling and interesting storylines here!

But before we get into those, let's break down some history and the reason most "Overthrow the Tyrant" movies usually end right after our heroes win and we only get a brief glance of how the sun is shining down upon all the people again before the credits roll. (besides the fact that the Bad Guy is dead the story is over lol) The first thing you'll want to know is that, historically, the violent, dramatic, revolutions typically aren't as successful or sustainable as the movies make them seem. In fact, movies have the unfortunate side effect of giving many rose-colored glasses to what revolution looks like. Hence the reason the movie usually ends right after our heroes win the "glorious battle," because to write what often happens after (historically) would probably put a bit of a downer on the story... Anyway, the afterward usually looks like:

Dramatic overthrow often leads to more oppressive systems:

The leader(s) of said dramatic revolution will often gain all the power for themselves- and that rarely ends well as they are often grossly under-prepared and under-qualified for everything that needs to be done to run not only a stable political system, but a stable society in general.

No one knows who's in charge, and this leads to chaos. Typically said leaders (and followers) of such revolutions have (usually well-meaning) ideas and visions of freedom and prosperity- but no plans on how to make that happen safely- or at all. This can lead to in-fighting from within the new regime as the new government fights over who should be in power- which typically results in further corruption of systems. (i.e: economic, judicial, the military, etc.)

To use the French Revolution as an example, seeing as people love to reference it so much lately, the revolutionaries succeeded in overthrowing the French Monarchy, but the new government they replaced it with only brought about more violence, fear, paranoia, corruption of systems, famine, and the death of tens of thousands of innocent people.

The violence typically does not stop with "Those in Power."

Again, we saw this in the French Revolution. After the beheading of King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette came what is known as the "Reign of Terror." To sum up, the revolutionaries' anger didn't end- killing the monarchy wasn't enough. They also came for the priests, anyone with wealth, and anyone else they considered to have "Elite" status. (This included, but was not limited to: People who owned a business, Librarians, Educators, Those who even just had an education and/or could read, writers/artists/musicians) They also went after pretty much anyone else who opposed, or was even rumored to have opposed, the New Republic.

Also, more often than not the most vulnerable (the elderly, the disabled, young children/single mothers, etc) get left out in the gutter as they often depended on the previous systems (i.e: healthcare, food, sanitation, and many others) to survive, even flawed they were under the previous regime. When the systems then further under-perform, or even disappear, because the new leaders are busy figuring everything out, discovering all the intricacies of various systems they weren't prepared for, and/or appointing those under-qualified to run them which often leads to further corruption of said systems, many innocent people do just… die.

The new regime fails and society collapses:

Due to this instability, these new regimes become vulnerable to collapse or external threats, leaving them short lived with a trail of tragedy in their wake.

To once again use the French Revolution as an example, while the New Republic was struggling Napoleon Bonaparte ravaged Italy, Egypt, and other countries. When he returned to Paris, he and other leaders staged a coup. (And, despite him being a fierce Tyrant, many in France still considered him a hero- if that tells you anything about how the New Republic was going)

* * *

(I know that was a lot- I really did try to make it shorter 😅) Now, none of this is to discourage you from writing another Dramatic "Overthrow the King" type of Revolution story! I'm not trying to say any of these stories are dumb or invalid just because they may or may not 100% adhere to our historical reality! They very much do have a place in literature and education- they appeal to hope and standing up for what's right, and that is SO important! But I do encourage you to keep the above points in mind when writing yours! It could make for a infinitely compelling story!) Moving on to that point- if you want to try writing a different kind of revolution or rebellion story, historically the more successful and sustainable ones happen gradually. Again, I know the "glorious overthrow of the evil tyrant" is a very interesting and exciting story- but don't underestimate the drama of a gradual revolution! Sometimes the biggest causes of change happen when no one is looking!

This can look like a combination of the following:

Revolutionaries working from inside the current political systems to make them better.

Yes, these unfortunately do usually take longer than a giant dramatic overthrow of The Evil King, but in the end the result is usually better for those who rely on essential systems (again, like food and healthcare) because the systems improve over time, instead of disappearing completely with nothing to replace it, leaving those dependent in the gutter with nowhere else to turn to. (i.e: those who need medicine won't suddenly find themselves cut off with no way to access what they need to survive.)

I thought this was actually touched on pretty well in Carnival Row- especially in season 2- even if we didn't get to see a whole lot of it (we were so robbed of a third season! 😭)

Picture maybe a young woman who's worked her way into the system finding ways to make the changes she wants to see- and part of the reason it works is because she's able to get the rest of the kingdom to believe and put public pressure on her colleagues and others in charge to make the changes. Or even a man who's basically been handed his position due to circumstances of his birth, coming to see the injustices and, because he knows the ins and outs like the back of his hand, finding ways to manipulate his selfish elder colleagues into doing the right thing.

Everyday, ordinary, people helping each other and getting involved in their own communities.

Townspeople coming together and finding ways to support each other. This can look like the townspeople collectively boycotting certain greedy merchants until they lower the prices of their goods, and trading goods and knowledge among themselves so as to become less dependent on said less-honorable merchants. Maybe they form community gardens and/or collaborate directly with the farmers. They all help to grow the food and feed each other for free, and teach each other how to preserve the food for the oncoming winter- creating a plentiful food bank.

This can also look like things where the people in your story know the laws are corrupt, and they choose not to help their government punish those arrested for BS crimes, or for crimes one might consider justified, like those committed in self-defense on behalf of oneself or others. (IRL I believe we call this "jury nullification"- but you can find something else to call it in your story!) That might look like, I don't know, one of your characters having murdered the owner of the town apothecary for hoarding all the life saving potions (which he didn't even make) for himself and forcing the citizens to fork over their homes in payment if they want even one vial because they don't want grandma to die- and the rest of the town pulling an "I'm Spartacus" moment so that character won't be arrested for the crime because they all know the Apothecary Owner was wrong and was hurting the community.

People watching out for each other, especially for those most at risk of being victimized by a tyrannical government. Let's say a Mad King wants to gather up a certain group of people and force them into work houses. The subjects of said kingdom might decide they won't stand for that, and either help hide them until they can escape, and/or warn them when they see the carriages of the royal guard coming to seize and take said people away. (Remember Anne Frank and her family? Or the Underground Railroad? Kinda like that.) Or, say the citizens are pressured to rat out their neighbors- told to report any "foreigners" to the constable so they could be arrested and sent away. However, everyone instead decides to waste the King's time by reporting the King's Royal Advisor to the constable as a "foreigner" instead, causing the king to give up on that endeavor.

My favorite though might have to be where the characters manage to help reform the oppressive regime through collective tiny acts of weaponized incompetence- probably because this trope is so versatile! (And also funny!)

Picture a man (for some reason Detective Benoit Blanc comes to mind lol) who accepts a position in the royal court as one of the king's courtiers or advisers or assistants. Only he hates the king and everything he stands for- so he just starts making really dumb mistakes- on purpose.

He passes along instructions from the king ever so slightly wrong- or in a deliberately confusing way, so that when the task gets done incorrectly- Oops! The game of telephone has struck again! The cook must have just misunderstood him- they provided Boysenberrys for beggars outside the palace, instead of the Poisoned Sherry the king had requested!

Or he's meant to pass along a letter to the kingdom's best weapon maker, but it never makes it to it's destination. Maybe he accidentally set it down on the wrong pile of papers and it's now been thrown away! Or perhaps it got lost in the mail! Don't worry- tomorrow he'll definitely make sure to get that order in for the new weapons for the king's guards. (Only wouldn't you know it, the best weapon maker in the kingdom left yesterday to visit family three countries over! Oh darn- if only Medieval Benoit Blanc had remembered to pass that message along to the king last week!)

He's got such a charming personality that the King never punishes him for all his faults (at least never harshly)- believing that there's just been a string of bad luck going about. After all, Medieval Benoit Blanc always feels sooo bad that he's practically drawn to tears whenever he realizes one of these shortcomings might have been his fault! Especially that time when the king instructed him to go to the library and tell them to get rid of any copies of scrolls that contained history of the old king- and Medieval Benoit Blanc mistakenly told the librarian that the king requested they give copies away to the public...

Or, picture a woman who's taken on a job as a guard in the prison of a corrupt Queen who throws anyone with red hair into prison, forcing them to perform labor for their "crimes." Our hero knows this isn't right, and decides to take matters into her own hands.

One day a prisoner is set to be executed- but darn, she can't find the paperwork anywhere to tell her which one! Looks like execution is delayed until we can get this sorted!

The next day one of the older prisoners fails to meet her quota of hats knitted. The guard knows the punishment is meant to be a beating- but oh shoot, her club just got snapped in the door. It's useless now. Guess this prisoner gets off easy today!

Then another night a door is left open... must have been that fiddly lock again- this castle is so old, after all! But gosh, that allowed about 15 prisoners to escape into the night right under their noses! The guards are so understaffed, you know- Any of them was bound to doze off during their watch eventually!

Maybe she also has friends among the guards, who begin to quietly follow her lead, also uneased by the Queen's decline into corruption. Oops- a key has gone missing- Oh no! Another prisoner has escaped! Oops- someone forgot to sweep up the horse dung- Oh no! The meanest guard slipped on one pile and fell face first into another, bigger, pile- and is going to be leaving for the day! Oh no- there was a terrible accident near the torch barrels! No one knows what happened, but that one guard who was In Charge of Torturing seems to have accidentally set himself ablaze and will no longer be with us!

In these cases we'd see multiple characters working in various systems subtly weaponizing their weaponized incompetence, of course. It really helps to build a web of overlapping story lines of all these characters failing spectacularly. Bonus points if you add peeks at how the Bad Leader is just pulling out their hair because nothing is going right no matter what they do- there's always something falling apart somewhere!

Or, you could take the funny route, where a guy genuinely is trying his best at his new job- but he just can't seem to get it right no matter how hard he tries! Becomes a folk hero by the end of the story completely on accident. Picture Mr. Bean getting a job aboard the Death Star. Or Mr. Bean getting a job inside The Capitol of Panem. Or Mr. Bean getting a job... literally anywhere.

Paperwork is getting lost or destroyed.

Machines are breaking down because maintenance was forgotten, or done incorrectly.

Computers are rendered useless because he tripped with his coffee- and someone forgot to make backups of the information stored on them.

Servers get unplugged because he tripped on the cord- and they stay down for hours because it never occurred to him to check that everything was still plugged in.

Other workers quit because they just can't deal with his shenanigans anymore.

They would fire him, but they're short staffed so they just can't get rid of him! Also he's somehow the only one who knows how this one specific thing works and it'd cost too much to train someone else.

Somehow he winds up getting promoted- and things only get worse.

Again, I'm not saying the type of revolution stories we're most used to are bad or anything- but I do believe we're missing out on some really interesting storylines by adhering mostly to the model of "Evil King took over years ago with little to no opposition, and ruled everyone with fear until a Group of Special People decided "No More!" and stormed the castle with an Epic Battle, dethroned the king, and now everyone can Rejoice!"

I know there must be more stories that explore other types of revolution or rebellion, but we just don't really see that much of it in the mainstream, and when we do it's not really the main focus, usually written to be more of a b-plot to the Big Boss Battle- and honestly I think we're missing out. (To a point it also almost feels like propaganda- like we're being taught that there's absolutely no way anyone can oppose or fight back against tyranny and win, without "the chosen one" organizing and fighting a big boss battle for everyone.)

I want to see more stories where everyday people are making it hard for Tyrants to even get into power by saying no, and absolutely refusing to comply in advance. I want to see stories where the heroes make the regimes of Evil Tyrants crumble from within simply by making it hard for them to get literally anything done. I want to see stories where the our heroes manipulate their old cronie colleagues into passing laws that help the people of the kingdom by any means necessary, even if that means beating them at their own games and choking them with their own metaphorical red tape. (Again, if I'm remembering it correctly, I feel Carnival Row actually did a nice job of showing this happening as a decent part of the plot)

I want to see Mr. Bean get a job building the second Death Star- and watch it never get built because he keeps losing the building plans, and fucking up the material orders, and losing the keys to the heavy machinery, and accidentally ejecting the assembly droids out the airlock.

Anyway, I know this was all really long. Sorry about that- I got a little carried away thinking about all the different characters and the possibilities for the parts they may play in a rebellion story 😅

I'm going to try to post more of my writings here sometime- let me know if you guys want anymore story ideas along this kind of genre. Maybe someday I'll even turn one of the above ideas into a drabble if anyone is interested lol

[sepdet]

Candidates' Different Views on Labor Day

Their contrasting social media posts, with bonus federal law violation and (I think?) AI generated fake workers from Trump, are illuminating:

Contrast that with Trump and Musk joking about firing striking workers a few weeks ago:

Under Biden, Harris chaired Biden's pro-labor task force assigned to "promote [Biden's] policy for worker power, worker organizing, and collective bargaining." Here is the plan they created with specific proposals.

As I've noted, my intro to Harris was at a 2017 rally for the ACA organized by SEIU Local 721. As VP, she's done a lot of union outreach, like this speech celebrating collective bargaining to honor the Culinary Workers Union in Las Vegas.

---

Meanwhile, Trump's Labor Day email to his followers is a shill for illegal merch:

US Public Law 94-344, the Federal Flag Code: "Out of respect for the US flag, never

place anything on the flag, including letters, insignia, or designs of any kind. [...]

Use the flag for advertising or promotional purposes."

The Flag Code was a big deal in the 80s, Trump's favorite decade. Congress passed a law with a big fine and/or jail time for knowingly violating it. The Supreme Court rightly struck down those penalties as a violation of free speech, but the code remains.

Trump followed this email with Labor Day posts on his social media platform:

Happy Labor Day to all of our American Workers who represent the Shining Example of Hard Work and Ingenuity. Under Comrade Kamala Harris, all Americans are suffering during this Holiday weekend - High Gas Prices, Transportation Costs are up, and Grocery Prices are through the roof. We can’t keep living under this weak and failed “Leadership.”….

Workers an afterthought. Every time he calls Kamala "Comrade," I remember Russian news btoadcasts calling him "Comrade Trump."

….In my First Term, we achieved Major Successes to protect American Workers by negotiating Free and Fair Trade Deals, passing the USMCA (U.S./Mexico/Canada), and giving Businesses and their Workers the tools to thrive. We also invested heavily in Education and Job Training programs for those who wish to expand upon their abilities, and be successful in an Industry that they love. We were an Economic Powerhouse, all because of the American Worker! But Kamala and Biden have undone all of that. When I return to the White House, we will continue upon our Successes by creating an Environment that ensures ALL Workers, and Businesses, have the opportunity to prosper and achieve their American Dream. We will, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!

Dismantling Obama's trade deals and putting in his own which raised tarriffs and prices and killed supply chains, making shit up, and taking credit for Biden's job training programs, par for the course. Labor Day? All about ME ME ME.

Someone on the Trump campaign realized that he probably needed a picture of himself with workers, since Kamala had posted one shaking hands with them.

However, there's something off about this image posted to his social media site at 5PM:

The suit and tie are so unnaturally smooth, I did a reverse image search to see if it was a real photo. Zero Results. What are the chances? Any photo like this should already be on the web. And there's what look to be AI artifacts (Eg guy on left missing half of vest, fragments of orange stripes).

TL;DR: I don't think he found a group of workers or cosplayers to loom in front of; I think he's embraced the AI generated crowds he falsely accused Harris of using.

[alicepao13]

Hudson and Rex S05E11 - Working for the Weekend - Part A

Because of course they would.

Black letters in quotes: Actual show quotes.

Green letters in quotes: What I come up with my twisted brain.

To be fair, this is a crime show. Everyone knows that you can't just send a couple to have a weekend of bliss on a crime show. It just doesn't happen. But for the love of god, could they not have one scene where they didn't have anything to worry about?

Pretty.

I remember there were BTS photos from where they filmed this.

Rex enjoying the fresh air and the open car.

Bask in the quiet and calm, it won't last long.

Oh, please. He's probably still subconsciously trying to compete with your vacation with Michael in Fogo.

Also, sidenote. Charlie's house? It's not exactly shabby. So I don't know what we're talking about regarding taste. That house is frugal for a bachelor.

"To get us a case. No way I'm staying in the same room with you two lovebirds for the entire weekend."

I want it on record that the body was found at minute 1:30. They didn't even have two minutes of peace.

Everyone's heard of us. Kinda makes undercover work impossible, right? Well, the show disagrees with me.

There's a lot of tourist bashing and tourism-oriented business bashing but in my experience, if your small town is not good at producing anything, it will either lose most of its folks, especially young folks, who will move to another more prosperous town, or it will turn to tourism and real estate. And yes, the prices will rise and some people may have to relocate. But a town that doesn't produce anything can't survive.

Wow. So, what exactly would happen if they caught an actual murder? There's no one there but Jesse.

They told us they don't need our help, what more do you want?

That shirt doesn't exactly scream sexy times.

I hate your guts. Both of them.

Okay, I get it. It's a team effort and the two of them are getting all the credit.

Are you two sure you're not just avoiding all the free time that you'd have with each other without any of the usual distractions?

me when I see this: I could spend hours on that bench. also me, when there's an almost identical spot near the sea in the northern suburbs: Ew, never. (Okay, maybe one day, but this looks quiet and Greeks don't know the meaning of the word. So I'd need like, noise cancelling headphones to enjoy the view.)

Well, at least someone's enjoying their time off.

What are you talking about, man.

Well, I don't think they can anymore.

Hm, whose fault is that?

That's one of Charlie's shirts again, isn't it?

Oh my god, stop talking about the case.

Self-cockblock. Those are rare.

Okay, fine, I see some prioritizing. Fuck first, solve case second.

To be continued in Part B.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Charlotte Clymer at Charlotte's Web Thoughts (10.15.2024):

This morning, the Harris-Walz campaign announced an extensive economic plan for rural communities. It’s a deeply impressive vision for working class families in these parts of the country. Given that much—perhaps, most—of political media will not adequately report on this and inform voters of what Vice President Harris plans to do for Rural America, I’m gonna take the rare step of publishing her plan, in full, as a blog post. I’m doing this because Lord knows we’re all more likely to see an intellectually dishonest column in The New York Times about Vice President Harris ignoring rural voters than we are to see significant reporting and analysis on her proposed policies for rural voters.

[...]

Vice President Harris and Governor Walz believe in rural communities and understand that supporting locally led solutions is key to rural prosperity. Their administration will make it a priority to equip the nearly 50 million rural Americans with the tools and resources they need not just to get by, but get ahead. Today, Vice President Harris and Governor Walz are announcing a plan for rural America. The key elements will:

Increase access to affordable and high-quality health care in rural communities—by adding 10,000 health care professionals, expanding telemedicine, cutting the number of ambulance deserts in half.

Support the sandwich generation to care for elders at home, lowering the cost of childcare and increasing the number of providers, and expanding the Child Tax Credit to provide tax cuts up to $6,000 for families with newborns.

Lower the costs of buying a home, starting and expanding a business, and raising a family—by sparking the construction of 3 million new housing units, providing up to $25,000 in down payment assistance for first-time homebuyers, increasing the small business tax deduction for startup expenses 10-fold to $50,000.

Invest in the future of American agriculture by boosting access to credit, land, and markets, building new markets and streams of income for small- and mid-sized farmers and producers, and supporting the rise of the next generation of American farmers and ranchers.

Donald Trump will turn back the hard-earned progress that rural communities are making. As President, he tried to repeal the Affordable Care Act and vows to terminate it if reelected, stripping protections from people with pre-existing conditions and devastating rural hospitals and care services. He will ban abortion nationwide, threaten access to contraception and IVF, and force states to monitor women’s pregnancies and report women’s miscarriages and abortions to the federal government.

Want a candidate who has real plans to help Rural Americans instead of bluster and grievances? The Kamala Harris and Tim Walz ticket have lots of great plans to help rural folk.