#Sara Austin

[greendayauthority]

Formula 1 United States Grand Prix, 21 October 2022

[nerd-chocolate]

The Ballad of Sara Berry au Rewrite!:

So does anyone remember “The Ballad of Sara Berry” au post I did back on Oct 7, 2022? Well surprised I’m rewriting it because I want to and have been listening to the song on repeat a bunch of times. It's really good! And this time I’m not making Sara Berry or at least the person who is bad so like Chloé or Lila since Sara Berry just went insane due to the pressure that her father was putting her and before you ask no I’m not making Lila or Chloé Julie Jenkins since they don’t fit the character. So now that is out of the way let’s begin! @artzychic27 characters are in this au as well.

Characters:

This time, I decided that Marinette will be Sara Berry and Mireille will be Julie Jenkins for the rewrite au. And here is the reason why that is.

For Marinette, I thought about it more and more than realized that it would make sense for her to be Sara Berry. Just like Sara, she can be very obsessed with the things she wants like for example, wanting to date Adrien. Ever since season one, Marinette has shown to be a careful planner and she can (if she wants to) track people's schedules for her benefit and use it to her advantage like in Gigantitan. And Marinette would steal others’ things without a second thought. If it means getting what she wants, check that out in CopyCat and Oni-Chan for that knowledge. Also, Marinette would do anything to take out the competition since in multiple episodes, she is shown doing that even siding with Chloé in one of them also in different circumstances, she probably would kill someone for Adrien. And lastly, Marinette would think prom night was like a fairytale for her since she would want to be the perfect night with her and Adrien dancing under a spotlight while everyone watches her winning prom queen and everyone celebrates that she won. Point is, she would fit the role of Sara Berry including going fucking insane.

As for Mireille, I think before Julie Jenkins lost her leg in that wreck, she was probably in the background most of the time and was forgotten by most of her classmates which are pretty sad if you think about it. You only get noticed by your classmates after something tragic happened to you like losing one of your limbs, poor Julie she deserves better but anyway. Mireille in the canon was in the background and never in the fourth front even after becoming one of the weather girls aside from Aurore. Some of the fandoms don’t acknowledge her except if they want to make her a rival to Marinette like in that one comic. This led me to think that the writers would make her a rival to Mari if they wanted to, which is also pretty tragic when you think about it. But the reason I pick Mireille is that she is really easy to make a rival but not one that isn’t aware of it until well you know but I’ll get to that when I get to the plot section. In other words, I don't have that much to say here for this one. Mireille fits Julie well.

As for the victims of the prom massacre like the post I originally made, they are the narrators of this story and tell the audience what happened. When they’re first introduced they are seen as nothing but spirits with theater masks, ones that are very expressive with a little of how they died like getting cut into pieces or getting poisoned. They are probably wearing fairy tale-themed homecoming clothes like a prince and princess would wear for their coronation since they are getting nominated for homecoming queen and king. I will go in order of how they died, what were their reasons for wanting to be queen and king, and bolding who are the main narrators of this tale.

Mylène Haprèle - She wanted to bring more confidence in herself and thought the queen would be a great opportunity for that and even if she loses, she’ll spend time with Ivan and listen to him when he and the Kitty Section play some music, so bonus!

Rose Lavillant - She thought being homecoming queen would be pretty fun to do and thought having a spotlight dance with Juleka would be so romantic. And even if she doesn’t win, she still dances with Juleka and is going to have the best night ever with her friends.

Nathaniel Kurtzberg - Marc was the one to convince him, he would make an amazing homecoming king and that he would be at Nath’s side no matter if he won or lost. Also, Nath would love to try a crown on for a change.

Jean Duparc - He would show everyone that he can pull wearing a crown, especially people that said he can’t. And he doesn’t care if he is prom queen or king, he is just having a blast tonight.

Ismael Prisk - He wants some gender confidence in himself especially if he wins homecoming king. And he gets pissed off his mom at the end so that makes it even better.

Cosette Bellamy - Zoé convinced them that she would be an amazing homecoming queen and even said that she would be like a knight to them even if Cosette didn't win. Cosette loves the idea of Zoé being its knight and making at least its dad proud of it if it wins.

The last two characters I want to talk about are Adrien and Mrs.Bustier and what their roles are in this au, these roles are important to the story so this will be quick.

Adrien is Marinette’s boyfriend in this au and does break up with her for a reason. His relationship with Mari was okay at first even though there are some issues like how Marinette interrupts him sometimes in conversations and she makes it about her sometimes even if it is completely different but it wasn't a big issue for him to get concerned about. But when Homecoming came around, Marinette became obsessed with it. She expects Adrien to be homecoming king with her but Adrien doesn’t want to be the homecoming king nominee and tries to tell Marinette that but she doesn’t listen to him so he doesn’t say anything. Luka comforts Adrien when Marinette is too busy for him or isn’t using him to help with her campaign and Adrien grows to have feelings for him with each passing day. Luka does as well but doesn’t want to tell Adrien since he doesn’t interfere with his relationship with Marinette and doesn't want to cause Adrien more stress by creating conflict and drama between him and Marinette so he tries to be a good friend to him despite his feelings for Adrien. One day, Adrien took some of Luka’s and Nino’s advice and told Marinette he doesn’t want to be homecoming king and that they could talk about something else for a change but Marinette just gets mad at him and snaps. Marinette told him that he is being selfish and isn’t thinking about what she wanted, and she wishes he was more obedient to her. That makes Adrien realize that his relationship with Marinette isn’t healthy and told her he was breaking up with her but Marinette is too caught up to listen to what he says and thinks they are still dating. Some time passed and it was five more days before homecoming, Luka asked Adrien for his date for homecoming and Adrien said yes! Also, both he and Luka survive, and after some time passes after the homecoming massacre, Luka asks Adrien if he wants his boyfriend and Adrien says yes.

As for Mrs.Bustier, she is Sara’s father but is a teacher to Marinette in this au. She puts a lot of pressure on Marinette to be homecoming queen so she can set a good example to her classmates and if she doesn’t win, her whole family would be disappointed in her and Marinette took that to heart. So she is the same as the canon but her actions have consequences to them.

Now that I got to explain all the characters that I needed to, I finally tell you about the plot and what happens in it! Let’s begin, shall we?

The Plot:

The 1st Act:

Marinette Dupain-Cheng was considered a good role model for the students to strive to be. She was popular, had a supermodel boyfriend, was head of the student council and homecoming committee, and her parents had the best bakery in Paris. Mrs.Bustier says Mari was like a real-life superhero to the whole school and Marinette took that to heart. When Mireille Caquet lost her leg in a wreck, Marinette felt sympathy for her and gave her a sympathetic smile to her when she saw her.

When homecoming nominees were announced, Marinette was static especially when she saw her name on top of the list but was a bit surprised that Mireille’s name was below hers. Marinette heard from a couple of the students that Aurore signed Mireille up to be the homecoming nominee and thought she might win it. Marinette knew that they were only voting for her out of pity so didn’t think much of it at first. When class was over for the day, Mrs.Bustier asked Mari to stay for a bit so they could talk. Mrs.Bustier told Mari that need to be homecoming queen not only because it was Marinette's dream to be one but also to set a good example for her classmates since being homecoming queen is a big deal after all. The last thing Mrs.Bustier told her is she doesn’t want to disappoint her dad and mom, Marinette took those words to heart and after she left, started to get to work immediately on her campaign with the help of the girl squad even if they already wanted to help some of the other nominees but Marinette didn’t hear them and was focused on being homecoming queen.

The 2nd Act:

As weeks go by Marinette tries her hardest to make sure people voted for her by either giving them baked goods, handing out pins, or making a lot of posters, I mean a lot. But Mireille’s numbers were getting much bigger that they surpassed Marinette’s. Marinette was furious and even more determined & desperate to win. She brushes her friends, her boyfriend, the student council, her parents, and everything behind but she keeps imagining Mireille wearing that crown and she hates it. The more votes Mireille, the crazier and angrier Marinette got. She fought with Mylène and Rose a few days ago, when they told her that they were planning to be homecoming queen and wanted to focus on their campaign and thought Mari knew since their names were on the list of homecoming nominees but Marinette didn’t listen, and blew up on them, losing them as friends a long aside Juleka and Alix, with Juleka flipping her the bird for yelling at Rose for reason that isn’t a big deal. The whole thing was caught on camera and was on the internet to see which made people not vote for her and take back their votes.

When Marinette saw Ismael in the hallway, she asked him why he was trying to be the homecoming king. Ismael told her the reason, Marinette didn’t care and said him just wearing a tuxedo would make his mom pissed. Ismael felt offended by that since Mari just assumed he was just doing it to piss his mom and while that is true, he was doing it for other reasons. So he told her off and walked away. Marinette was mad that she couldn’t convince him to stop being homecoming king so her boyfriend could be king.

A few days later, she harassed Cosette about being queen, telling them that they should just quit since they just ended up being a disappointment to their parents either way. Cosette got away from her and told her that it not quitting whether or not Marinette liked it and she could fuck off for its cares. As Cosette walked away from her, Zoé came up to Marinette and slapped or punched her in the face and just glared at her as she walked away from her as well. What Marinette didn’t know was that Simon was filming it and it was uploaded on the internet which made even more people take back their votes for her and made them hate her guts even more.

Lastly, she demanded that Jean and Nath drop out of the competition or else, which Adrien sees and told her off for just trying to make them drop out of the competition. Marinette just glares at him and walks away, Adrien apologizes to the two for having Marinette been acting lately and understands they were mad at her. Jean told him, he doesn’t need to say sorry since he stood up for them, and Nath thanked him and then told him that Mari was acting like a homecoming-obsessed nut job and that Adrien might want to consider his relationship with her, which Adrien thought about for a while now.

Marinette’s parents have been concerned about their daughter lately since they heard what has been happening at school. They try to tell her that she may need to stop being homecoming and cheer up in the process but Marinette doesn’t listen to them since Mrs.Bustier’s words are still lingering in her head, so she tells them that she is dropping out, in reality, isn’t and just brushes them off.

Marinette ends up dumping Alya as a friend when they get into a fight, Alya says that homecoming isn’t everything and it is not going to be important in the long run. Marinette yells at her and tells her if she is not going to support, she could just leave which she points to the trapdoor. Alya, seeing that Marinette isn’t willing to listen, ends up leaving with a look of sadness in her eyes. When Alya left, Marinette looked at the mirror right quickly and upon seeing her reflection felt regret for all things she did so far and tried to text Adrien about what just happened but Adrien could only text that I’m sorry for taking someone else to homecoming and I’m no longer a nominee. Marinette ends up thinking he is taking Mireille (who no longer runs for homecoming queen but Mari doesn’t know that) to homecoming and ends up getting mad with a hint of sadness and throwing her phone against the wall.

Mireille throughout this, never really wanted to be homecoming queen and hated the attention she was getting since she just wanted to be left alone. Her friends see this and ask if she wants to be queen, she struggles at first to tell them at first but ends up telling them the truth. Aurore apologized for the unexpected pressure on Mireille to be homecoming queen since she just wanted to boost her confidence and make her feel better after Mireille lost her leg. Mireille understands where Aurore was coming from and says her comfort would be enough for her. So the two made up and Mireille asked Mr.Damocles if she could drop out of being homecoming queen with the help from Ms.Mendeleiev, which Mr.Damocles ends up helping her with. Mireille ends up helping her friends with their homecoming plans and just getting ready to go to homecoming with Aurore as her date.

The 3rd Act:

The next day at school and the day of the homecoming, Marinette went up to Mrs.Bustier asking for some advice. All Mrs.Bustier said is that why isn’t taking this seriously, there is no future for failures at prom, and she should try harder to be homecoming queen. Marinette just ends up getting mad and running out of school with her collecting some of the other nominee’s posters along the way and just ended up bunking with her. She punched the mirror in anger and stomped on her phone. She cried the moment she snapped and just ended up getting ready with a crazy smile and look in her eye. Marinette looked at the poster of the nominees and realized she needs to take out the competition so she can win. Putting on her homecoming dress, putting on her very messy makeup, getting a duffel bag, and putting the things she needs to ‘talk’ to the other nominees for them to get out of the competition goes to Le Grand Paris where homecoming was held.

When her parents got home, they went up to her room to check on her but as soon as they opened her trapdoor, they saw her room was wrecked. They walked in to see her mirror shattered completely and her phone destroyed. They look around the room then Sabine spots something underneath her daughter’s bed and goes to see what she looks like she saw a ghost. Tom saw the look in her eyes and went to see what she saw. He goes to his wife and checks if she is okay and what she saw. Tom felt horror when he saw the posters of kids that had their eyes crossed off and they all had the same word written on them, saying, traitor. The two cried for a moment before realizing they needed to get to the prom now before it was too late.

When Marinette arrived at the hotel, she went to see Mylène who was near the punch bowl so they ‘talked’ for a bit. She went to say sorry to Myléne for getting mad at her while adding some poison to her drink. Myléne told her that she isn’t ready to forgive yet but appreciated it, Mari said it was fine and walked away from her. Mylène is a bit confused and then goes to drink her punch but then starts to feel bad and coughs up blood. Ivan and some of the other students went to go check up on her, only to find out she died.

While that was happening, Marinette went to the stage to see Rose finishing getting her requirements packed up. While Rose is distracted, Marinette cuts one of the ropes holding one spotlight above Rose’s head which smashes against her head instantly killing her. Marinette left the stage before anyone saw her. Juleka goes up to the stage and cries over her girlfriend’s dead body while Luka comforts her.

While everyone is freaking out about the two unexpected deaths, Marinette stole Reshma, Marc, Zoé, Tomassion, and Aurore's phones to make it easier to find and lure in her other victims as well.

Marinette discovers that Nath is near one of the rooms and goes to find him. Meanwhile, the teachers are evacuating the students, Marc, Zoé, Tomassion, Aurore, and Reshma with the help of Juleka and Ivan go to find the other students that don’t know what is happening. Marc tries to text Nath but can’t find his phone and starts to panic, Aurore calms him down and tells him that it is okay and they find him and the others.

Nath spots Marinette with a hammer and seeing that her dress has some blood on it, realizes that he should run for his life. So he did but Mari jumped on him and before she could bludgeon his brains, he said oh shit before he died of the hammer strike on his head. Marinette texts Jean under the assumption of Austin T that he is in the kitchen and badly hurt. Making Jean believe he needs his help and making it easier for Marinette to find and kill him.

When they got to the place where Nath was, they saw his skull being cracked open by something and someone. Marc is completely heartbroken to see his bountonnière dead on the floor and just holds him close to mourning him. While the others mourn their dead friend and comfort, Marc, and Austin spots a note on the floor and picks it up. He opens it and then immediately has a shock of horror with a mix of disgust on his face. When Zoé asks what's wrong, he tells her and the others that Marinette is the one behind this and who is her next target. Marc and Juleka want revenge for their respective lovers after hearing that. They went to find Marinette and stop her so the rest of their respective S.Os wouldn’t die.

Meanwhile, Jean got to the kitchen to find his boyfriend but couldn’t find him. He realized that someone might have Austin’s phone and went to find him somewhere. But Marinette stops him by slaying him in the stomach with a scalpel, making a huge scar. When Jean collapsed on the floor, she started cutting him, opening and tearing his organs, and marinating them in jars. Ismael, trying to find his friends since he got separated from them by accident, opens the door to find Marinette standing over Jean's corpse. Ismael screams for others to find them and try to get a weapon to attack her with but Marinette knocks him out with chloroform and drags him and gets a chair then heads to the pool.

The others heard Ismael’s scream and followed it to the kitchen where they spotted Jean’s corpse with his belly area open and a look of terror on his face. Austin, seeing his boyfriend’s corpse, sobs and says he should've died instead of Jean. Seeing Austin in a depressed state, Ivan took him to where the rest of the students and staff are currently while the others are still going to find Marinette and stop her.

Meanwhile, Ismael is woken up by Marinette hoarily smiling at him. He tries to get up but he can't, and sees the restraints on his legs, hands, and mouth. Marinette tells him this is what you get for messing with my chances of winning, pushes him into the pool, and uses a remote for the automatic pool cover, leaving him for dead and killing him.

The others agree that splitting up would help them find the others quicker. Marc, Zoé, and Aurore go to find Mireille and Cosette while Juleka and Reshma go to find Ismael. Reshma & Juleka follow the bloody footprints up to the pool and when they get up there, Reshma finds Ismael’s bracelet and knows he must bethere. Juleka realizes that the pool has been covered and picks up a remote to it and uncovers the pool. The two girls look at the pool and see Ismael down there tied up and gagged. Reshma jumps in the pool and swims down to go save Ismael but when she makes it back and puts Ismael on the side of the pool, she tries everything to bring him back but Juleka tells her that he is gone since she checked his pulse and it is no longer moving. Juleka comforts Reshma and tells her that they can still stop Mari from their dead friends. Reshma agreed with her and before leaving they both grabbed weapons to beat up Marinette with.

Mireille and Cosette are hiding in Chloé’s closet from Marinette since she is trying to kill them. Mireille called the police a few minutes ago and she can only hope that comes here very soon. Cosette realizes she needs to fight Marinette so she and Mireille can be saved. So they told Mireille that they were going to fight Mari and they promised to make it back. Mireille knows that they can’t talk it out of it, trust it, and keeps hiding in the closet. Cosette gets a bat or something before heading off to fight Marinette. Mari tries to lure Mireille and Cosette out by using their respective lover’s phones but it doesn’t work. Cosette pulls a sneak attack on Marinette and hits her with a bat and eventually gets themself a knife from Marinette’s bag to get a better advantage and has a good chance of surviving at first. But then Marinette slays its chest halfway open leading to Cosette dropping the knife leaving them powerless. Mireille hears Cosette’s screams of fear and cries before it goes completely silent. Mireille goes to peek at what happens but only for Marinette to knock her out with some chloroform.

The other three made it to Chloé room and opened it to find Mari and hopefully Cosette & Mireille as well. Both Aurore and Marc searched the room but couldn’t find anything. When they go to check on Zoé, only to see her and a torn-up Cosette with her. Go to check up on Zoé, only to see that she is holding her deceased girlfriend's head that says A wannabe on their forehead. And as for Cosette’s body, its arms were torn apart from the body, and her elbows were not attached to it and hands. Their legs were detached from it as well and their feet weren’t attached to it anymore. Lastly, their upper torso was cut apart from the bottom half where the blouse was with the two pieces they were wearing. Aurore felt like throwing up from seeing her friend like this and so did Marc. But Marc saw Marinette’s footprints were leading somewhere else and followed them with Aurore following him as well. Before Zoé follows suit, she says sorry that she couldn’t protect it and be its knight like Cosette expected her to be, before gently putting Cosette’s head on the ground and going to help the others.

The gang met up at the same time and started to plan their attack on their so-called friend. They ended up finding Marinette where the dance was being held up and where the crown was.

Marinette tied up Mireille and covered her mouth before waking her up. Mireille is scared of what is going to happen to her but sees Marinette getting the crown she always wanted. Marinette grabs the scepter and puts the sash on her, doing a little dance before saying she is the queen. What Marinette sees is that everyone is celebrating her coronation and she is smiling while having the dead victims behind her and just bowing to her like she is royalty. While Mari is distracted, Aurore unties Mireille and gets her to safety. Marc, Juleka, Reshma, and Zoé attack her and make sure she doesn’t attack them. With Marc stabbing the side of her body, Reshma holding her hands together, Juleka doing the same thing but with her feet, and Zoé putting her in a headlock so Mari doesn’t try to stop Aurore and Mireille from escaping.

The police arrived and told the kids they got the rest covered. They let go and when Marinette tried to escape, an officer grabbed her before she had the chance and took her crown. Marinette is just kicking and screaming and telling them to let go of her, she is the queen of high school land but Marc told her it is only in her head and flips her off before Marinette was taken away.

The ending:

In the end, Marinette is an asylum for the rest of her life, the whole school especially the S.Os are in therapy to deal with the loss, Mrs. Bustier not only gets slapped by Mrs.Mendeleiev, but gets sued by the parents of the dead kids and Marinette’s parents, and gets fired. While the ghost kids haunt her and Marinette for the rest of their lives and see their loved ones whenever they get the chance.

Some final notes:

I wanted to add what were the dead kids clothes inspired by for the homecoming.

Mylène - Snow White

Rose - Sleeping Beauty

Nathaniel - Rapunzel

Jean - The little mermaid

Ismael - The Frog prince or Cinderella

Cosette - Belle from Beauty & The Beast.

Well that all I want to add before leave. Have a good read everyone and hope you enjoy my rewrite!

[wrestlingfaves]

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[this-is-macy]

Seriously, run don't walk to go see Jeremy in this role before his run ends! I'm so grateful that I got to witness this magic in person! ✨

in case you were wondering....i am not okay

[justwanttolovemyself]

This sounds like a Tegan and Sara song to me. It's my favorite track so far.

[vampirecorleone]

Appreciation For PINK Fashion Throughout Film: Serving Sara (2002) | The Girl Next Door (2004) | The Sweetest Thing (2002) | Romy & Michelle's High School Reunion (1997) | Austin Powers (1997) | Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) | View from the Top (2003) | Pearl (2022) | Scary Movie 2 (2001) | 27 Dresses (2008) | The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) | Niagara (1953) | Coyote Ugly (2000) | Cinderella (1950) | Coming to America (1988) | How to Marry a Millionaire (1953) | Jennifer's Body (2009) | Miss Congeniality (2000) | Funny Face (1957) | The Love Witch (2016) | Ziegfeld Follies (1945) | Nope (2022) | Legally Blonde (2001) | American Horror Story: Freakshow (2014) | Bring it On (2000) | Crossroads (2002) | Clueless (1995) | Marie Antoinette (2006) | The Fly (1986) | The Seven Year Itch (1955)

[onscreenkisses]

K I S S O G R A P H Y : ↳ Tom Cruise

LOSIN' IT (1983) / Shelley Long RISKY BUSINESS (1983) / Rebecca De Mornay ALL THE RIGHT MOVES (1983) / Lea Thompson LEGEND (1984) / Mia Sara TOP GUN (1986) / Kelly McGillis COCKTAIL (1988) / Elizabeth Shue DAYS OF THUNDER (1990) / Nicole Kidman FAR AND AWAY (1992) / Nicole Kidman THE FIRM (1993) / Jeanne Tripplehorn JERRY MAGUIRE (1994) / Renée Zellweger EYES WIDE SHUT (1999) / Nicole Kidman MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE II (2000) / Thandiwe Newton VANILLA SKY (2001) / Penélope Cruz AUSTIN POWERS IN GOLDMEMBER (2002) / Gwyneth Paltrow THE LAST SAMURAI (2003) / Koyuki MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE III (2006) / Michelle Monaghan VALKYRIE (2008) / Carice van Houten KNIGHT AND DAY (2010) / Cameron Diaz MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE — GHOST PROTOCOL (2011) / Paula Patton ROCK OF AGES (2012) / Malin Akerman OBLIVION (2013) / Olga Kurylenko EDGE OF TOMORROW (2014) / Emily Blunt AMERICAN MADE (2017) / Sarah Wright Olsen TOP GUN: MAVERICK (2022) / Jennifer Connelly

requested by anon

[metaphoricgibberish]

(my masterlist got deleted somehow idk?)

hi, hello - my name is sara and i write depraved things about pedro pascal characters. i'm not super into writing one-shots (love reading them tho) so all my stories are in series format. my DMs are always open, i love talking fics, pedro, tlou, narcos, and anything at all regarding men old enough to be my father.

happy reading, i appreciate you all tremendously <3

To the Light [ joel miller ]

"He was such a greedy fuck, when had that happened? What was it about her that had turned him into this… desperate, frenzied, fucking insatiable man that had stooped to the point of planning his entire day around getting a glimpse of her. It wasn’t just one thing, he knew that, rather it was an amalgamation of everything about her, everything he could see, everything he knew, and the large cavern of things he didn’t know, but wanted to so badly it ate away at him, like a virus, like fucking cordyceps, surging through his body and altering his brain chemistry, his ambitions and intent, so that it was just her, his sole focus was just her."

summary: Joel finds a young woman being held hostage by a group of men while he's out on patrol one day. He brings her back to Jackson, where she's given the opportunity to have something resembling a real life, for the first time. The two of them orbit around each other, destined to crash, if both of their reservations don't get in the way.

pairing: joel miller x ofc rating: 18+ mdni word count: 96.8k (completed)

see tags and warnings on ao3

____________

Joel finds the love of his life lost in the woods.

Read on AO3

Fic playlist on Spotify

Read insatiable (a To the Light one-shot) here.

Read hearth (a To the Light one-shot) here.

Dawn [ javier peña ]

"It had been wrong, back then, his feelings for her. He'd known that and that's why he'd never let anything happen between the two of them. But he'd always been weak. That first time he'd seen her after Richie had gone off to fight a war just as brutal and useless and the one he'd been fighting out in Colombia, that first time he'd really seen her— just a glimpse as she left the market, bag hoisted up on her hip, long, wavy hair bouncing behind her, shapely legs visible in that little yellow sundress that hugged her waist just right— he'd been a fucking goner."

summary: Javier Peña returns to his hometown after leaving the DEA. He doesn't want the undeserving praise everyone is trying to push on him, he doesn't really want anything at all, beyond a quiet life on his father's ranch, such a stark contrast to the atrocities he'd witnessed over the ten years away. But there's one familiar face that he can't seem to shake no matter how hard he tries.

pairing: javier peña x ofc rating: 18+ mdni word count: 80.8k (completed) a.n. first chapter of my new Javi fic is up! each chapter will be named after a Lana Del Rey song with a corresponding lyric (idk Javi is Lana coded to me). I hope you enjoy <3

see tags and warnings on ao3

____________

Javier Peña falls for his best friend's little sister.

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Nights Like This One [ joel miller ]

"Joel couldn't resist the tug any longer, finally succumbing to the dull ache at the base of his spine as he turned around and locked eyes with her— bright fucking blue, twinkling animatedly when they met his. Most of the time her eyes looked hollow, devastatingly so, but he'd noticed that when they got into these bickering matches her eyes lightened, and so then how was he ever expected to stop?"

summary: Joel Miller is hired by an elderly woman to fix up her home. However, in the middle of the renovations, she dies and her daughter, Lily, moves from California to Austin to live in her mother's home. Joel continues to work on the house despite the two of them constantly butting heads. Tensions rise and the two are destined to crash whether they like it or not.

(Initially takes place pre-outbreak, story spans through outbreak day, all the way to 2023).

pairing: joel miller x ofc rating: 18+ mdni word count: 142.6k (completed) a.n. hi my friends! a few things: i did change sarah's age because i wanted to, i have creative liberty this is MY FUCKIN STORY!! lol. also i know nothing about construction, so i apologize, watch me make shit up with only google as my guide. please don't hate or be mean to my OC, she's going through some shit and the roles will be reversed later on after outbreak day, so let her be the emotionally unavailable, cold one for now. chapter length will be much shorter than most of my other fics solely because this has so many chapters. i'm writing it more in novel format than fic format, so forgive me. blame my useless, $120k creative writing degree. i hope you enjoy this. i'm having a lot of fun writing it.

see tags and warnings on ao3

____________

Joel Miller finds the love of his life right before the world ends.

Read on AO3

Fic playlist on Spotify

The Human Condition [ therapist!joel miller au ]

"Joel passed his palm over his mouth, his eyes drifting over to the clock on his office wall for perhaps the fifth time in the last thirty minutes. He dreaded his one o'clock appointment, but not for the reasons that he should. He dreaded it because he looked forward to it far more than was appropriate, for reasons that would surely get him fired."

summary: Violet Wood is lost, thinks perhaps she's been lost since the day she was born.

Joel Miller is a psychiatrist who has experienced a tremendous loss of his own.

Neither of them are expecting each other.

pairing: joel miller x ofc rating: 18+ mdni word count: 33.6+ (ongoing series - 6/10 chapters up) warnings: extreme trigger warnings for suicidal behavior/attempts, mental health discussion, EDs, self-harm, depression, anxiety a.n. i have been thinking about this forever, and i'm really excited to start sharing, albeit slowly. hope you all enjoy <3

see more tags and warnings on ao3

____________

The Joel Miller Therapist AU

Read on AO3

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Sanctuary [ javier peña ]

"She glanced over at him, her lips hinting at a smile as his pretty brown eyes locked on hers. She wanted him to tell her something now, not that she had taken him here as a greedy means of give and take, even though that’s all their relationship was. Give and take. Just sex. If she couldn’t know his last name or why he had scars all over his chest, then she wanted to know what he thought was beautiful, what he thought was ugly, what existed in both spaces for him."

summary: Takes place after the third season-- Javier moves to San Francisco to escape what he'd witnessed in Colombia over the past several years. The DEA is desperate to get him down to Mexico to help take down the Guadalajara Cartel, but Javier isn't so sure he wants to continue down that path. His decision only becomes increasingly more difficult when he meets a bartender named Emma, whose commitment issues seem to mirror his own.

pairing: javier peña x ofc rating: 18+ mdni word count: 93k (complete)

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____________

Javier Peña meets his match in the form of a little bartender in San Francisco.

Read on AO3

[alldancersaretalented]

Studio Switch List 2024/25

(also includes late season switches)

Link to "How many studio switches so far?"

??

-> Elite Studio of Dance

Jordyn Hay

-> Gateway Dance Center (new studio!)

B. Bernard C. Butler M. Caryl L. Caver E. Defoe K. Heath I. Lewis C. Nielson A. Peterson S. Peterson A. White

-> Kinetic Dance

Mary Anne Serpas

-> Mather Dance Company

Sally Schulz

-> N10 Dance Studios

Juliette Birchard Jonah Guzman

-> Renner Dance Company

Connell Gocke

-> The Merge (new studio!)

Leila Pitcovich

-> The Moxie Movement (new studio!)

Beeta Barkhordar Harper Fish Bailee Hill Sky White

-> The Union (new studio!)

Veda and little sister Mia Weisz-Marin

-> Tribe Seven

Cate Block

3'N Motion Studio

-> BLA Dance Academy

Molly Weber Margaux Struble Chloe Todman

4th Street Dance Centre

-> Northern Force Dance Company

Hazel Brown Olena Brown

Adage Dance Center

-> K2 Studios

Dylan Kubo Aspen Walton

Adrenaline Dance Company

-> Prodigy Dance Studio

Bellarose Ramos

AE Dance Productions

-> The Company Space

Hazel Kinnick

All American Dance Factor

-> Evolve Dance Complex

Madison Virostek

Allegro Performing Arts Academy

-> Pave School of the Arts

Lily McFarland

AM Dance

-> Studio X

Brooklyn Abrams Alana Cato Asyah Lewis Baileigh McJimson Leiyah Nova

-> The K Project Dance Company

Aubrey Davis Jaden Gonzalez Rosalyn Gutierrez

Amirian Ballet Academy

-> Royal Danish Ballet School

Emma Crawford

Apples Dance Lab

-> Evolve Dance Complex

Payten Butler Sara Wren

Artistic Motion Dance

-> Abstraction Dance Company

Giselle Pilorin

-> Devotion The Movement

Sydney Duke Sunnie Pelant

-> Gateway Dance Center (new studio!)

Zoe Baker GG Mier Katie Rosa Piper Ryder Tatum Ryder

Art Of Technique

-> The Washington School Of Ballet

Kaitlyn Brandely

Augusta West Dance Studio

-> CCJ Conservatory

Zoe Lewis

Avanti Dance Company

-> CAP The Company

Natalie Jahn

-> Mather Dance Company

Hayden Goren Reese Goren

-> N10 Dance Studios

Saige Hibbard

-> West Coast School of the Arts

Eva Graziano

Bay Area Houston Ballet & Theatre

-> Boston Ballet II

Sophia Jones

Bayer Ballet Academy

-> John Cranko Schule

Amelia Chen

Big City Dance Center

-> MDC Bridge Into The Industry

Alex Cyncewicz

Brava Dance

-> Westchester Dance

Emily Pierog

Burbank Dance Academy

-> ABT Junior Co

Manuela De Souza

Cache Valley Civic Ballet

-> Creative Dance Academy

Kate Baldwin Sophia Baldwin

Camarillo Academy of Performing Arts

-> Bobbie's School of Performing Arts

Peyton Root Ryan Root

Canadian Dance Unit

-> Vlad's Dance Company

Quinn Powers

CanDance Studios

-> Club Dance Studio

Preslie Ball

-> Gateway Dance Center (new studio!)

Colette Stutzman

-> The Union (new studio!)

Crystalyn Chesko

Carlsbad Dance Centre

-> Pave San Diego (new studio!)

Ansel Mullick Camille Mullick Evelyn Mullick

Cary Dance Prudctions

-> Renner Dance Company

Marlee Thomas

CC & Co Dance Complex

-> Renner Dance Company

Connell Gocke Olivia Roberson

Centerstage Dance Academy

-> West Florida Dance Company

Ava Starr Rodriguez

Center Stage Dance Company

-> JBP Entertainment

Bianca Lewis

Center Stage Dance Gymnastics

-> The Fenyx Project

Arielle Miles

Center Stage Performing Arts Studio

-> The Moxie Movement (new studio!)

Halston Fisher Oakley Fisher Tatum Fisher

Charliz Balicao Dance Company

-> Larkin Dance Studio

Payton Mueller

Cincinnati Ballet Professional Training

-> Alabama Ballet

Caroline Love Jenna Renfield

City Ballet San Francisco

-> Boston Ballet II

Maddie Austin

CityDance Conservatory

-> Boston Ballet School II

Lucian DeBellis

CJ Dance Crew

-> Club Dance Studio

Madi Cole MaKinley Cole

Club Dance

-> ??

Ashton Wullbrandt

-> Dance Studio C

Gwyneth Woods

-> Elite Dance Pro

Madisyn Rose Amos Kennedy Cicerelli Abby Honstad Jaida Morin Payton Stowe

-> Gateway Dance Center (new studio!)

Tilly Allen Brinley Bennett Brynlee Bulbulian Lainey Bulbulian Makena Cameron Pallas Chiste Olivia Clouse Kensley Colman Charlotte Cook Sophia Dasalla Avery Dunwell Lena Funk Mia Funk Jaycee Grant Kalista Greer Kanon Greer Kaylan Greer Oakley Hill Goldie Hill Birdie Hill Alaina Igleski Kaydence Lawton Arianna Mendez Callie Mendez Harper O'Malley Dannika Ren'ee Quiroz Tatem Robinson Leslie Soto Nicole Soto Tatum Strauss Kate Valentine Aubrey Williams

-> Illusion Dance Company

Madyson Barney

-> Prodigy Dance PAC

Taeya Stosich Tinley Stosich

Complexity Dance Center

-> Vision Dance Alliance

Ava Dowling London Dowling

Concept Pavielle

-> Larkin Dance Studio

Siena Paradeau

Conservatory of Dance Arts

-> The Merge (new studio!)

Ella Andrews Sarah Blady Charlotte Dean Sophie Dean Calli Hollenbeck Lilly May Hartley Murla

Cypress Dance Project (closing!)

-> The Fenyx Project

Ahmya Tovar Jasleen Tovar

-> Tribe Seven

Avery Farris Gracelyn Harris Kyndle McCormick Frankie Miranda Mia Narvaez Tana Nickerson Evelin Peterson Lily Savarese Paislynn Schroeder Gabriella Slay Dalilah Soto Frankie Soto Kayla Tanea Abigail Wade Melody Thiel Rianna Weck Rosalie Wickman

Cypress Elite Dance Studio

-> The Fenyx Project

Charlie Mae

Dance Academy of State College

-> Evolve Dance Complex

Emma Girdany

Dance Arts Centre ATL

-> Dance Lab (new studio!)

Ryn Andersen Tarin Belizaire Izzy Bensinger Nina Kitchen Daniella Lerman Samantha Wilson

Dance Arts Centre

-> Summit Dance Shoppe

Beckett Eberhard Britta Eberhard

Dance Connection 2

-> Club Dance Studio

Claire Pistor

-> Gateway Dance Center (new studio!)

Jaxon Adamson Juliette Ridenour Scarlett Ridenour

Dance Connection Scottsdale

-> The Collective PHX

Madee Richardson

Dance Deluxe

-> Club Dance Studio

Dana Homes

-> Dance Connection 2

Kamryn Arnold

-> Elektro Dance Academy

Sunday Smith

Dance Dimensions PAC

-> The House Dance Complex

Sophia Hasson Victoria Safahi

Dance Enthusiasm

-> Murrieta Dance Project

Liciana Vun

-> Phunk Phenomenon Dance Studio

Landon Indeglia

Dance Exposure 2

-> The Vision Dance Alliance

Morgan Wendt

Dance FX

-> Pave San Diego (new studio!)

Aryanna Lafontaine Cooper

Dance Inc Company

-> MDC Bridge Into The Industry

Lauren Allan

Dance Lab OC

-> Dmitri Kulev Classical Ballet Academy

Maggie Till

Dancemark Studio

-> Pave San Diego (new studio!)

Katie Bishop

Dance Republic

-> Club Dance

Annabelle Greenamyer Scottie Greenamyer Abigail Patton

-> Gateway Dance Center (new studio!)

Kaia Roseland

Dance Studio C

-> Elite Dance Pro -> Dance Connection 2

Charlotte Rathjen

-> Impact Dance

Maizey Miller Savannah Miller

Dance University

-> Impact Dance Academy (new studio!)

Olivia Cherpak Stella Cherpak Chiara Siragusa Mila Steven

Dance Unlimited Miami

-> Stars Dance Studio

Mila Talab

The Dance Zone

Katelyn Miranda

-> The Living Dolls Dance Factory

Olivia Martinez

Dance Unlimited Colorado

-> Gateway Dance Center (new studio!)

Fiona McDonald

Dance Vision

-> Becky Nalevanko's Dance Studio

Aria Telander

DanceDynamicsLV

-> Academy of Nevada Ballet

Naya Fowler

-> The Rock

Brielle Bonas Parker June

Danceology

-> Club Dance

Kelsey Jackman Makayla Jackman

-> DC Dance Factory

Kendall Kolodge

-> Evoke Dance Movement

Vida Lemos

-> Hyphen Conservatory

Haley Bertino

-> North County Academy of Dance

Ella Nani Knight

-> Pave San Diego

Paisley Publico Polly Jo Publico

Dancers Edge

-> Club Dance

Emerson Van Houten

Dancers World Production

-> K2 Studios

Claire Zhang

Dance Vision

-> The Academy

Cece Nguyen

Dansations Competition Team

-> The Vision Dance Alliance

Brady Horne

DC Dance Factory

-> The Vision Dance Alliance

Harper Bowen

Dellos Dance Academy

-> The Academy

Kendall Krajewski

Diverse Elements

-> Dance Connection Scottsdale

Kenna Bonhote

-> Dance Connection 2

Peyton Whited

Divine Dance Center

-> MDC Bridge Into The Industry

Kallie Niday

DMdance Company

-> The Merge (new studio!)

Kinsley Gainer Taylor Jenkins Tyler Jenkins

Dmitri Kulev Classical Ballet Academy

-> ABT Junior Co

Clara Riggs

-> Boston Ballet II

Pavel Kulev

-> Elite Classical Coaching

Summer Lily

-> European School of Ballet

Annabel Kohn

-> San Francisco Ballet School

June Freeman

-> Westside Dance Project

Fiona Poth

DNA Dance Creatives

-> Prodigy Dance PAC

Jackson Ruekert

Drapers Center for Dance Education

-> Gateway Dance Center (new studio!)

Rhauri Samuels

-> The Rock School For Ballet

Samuel Gauss

Dynamic Dance Company

-> Stars Dance Studio

Victoria Crupi

Dynamic Dance Refinery

-> New Level Dance Company

Sophia Hernandez-Gonzalez

Elektro Dance Academy

-> Dance Deluxe

Alexis Gizzo

-> Eternal Dance Company

Madyson Koch

-> LA Dance

Kinsey Joan

-> The Collective PHX

Julianna Aispuro Tenley Anthony

Elevate Dance Academy

-> MDC Bridge Into The Industry

Sidney Sullivan

Elite Classical Coaching

-> Academie Princess Grace

Morgan Ligon

-> Royal Ballet School

Izzy Keesee

Elite Dance PAC

-> Hyphen Conservatory

Lillie Lanier

Elite Dance Pro

-> Club Dance

Peyton De La Cerda Mila Michael Lucia Piedrahita Sophia Schiano River Segerman

-> Rhythm Dance Complex

Gavin Schwarze

-> The Collective PHX

Alexa Schwarze

Elite Feet Artists Company

-> Stars Dance Studio

Norah Hurley

Elise Flagg Academy Of Dance

-> Central PA Youth Ballet

Ella Wilke

Ellison Ballet

-> ABT Junior Co

Victoria Papakalodouka

Encore Dance Arts

-> The Collective PHX

Laila Faith

Eternal Dance Company

-> CanDance Studios

Alaina Martinez

-> Gateway Dance Center

Juniper Wakefield

Evoke Dance Movement

-> Pave San Diego (new studio!)

Eleanor Bullock Lucia Jade Frazier Emmy Claire Khaiden Tayah Klimuck Dylan Schaffer Maya Steinman

Evolve 26

-> MDC Bridge Into The Industry

Blayklee Balthazar

Evolve Dance Complex

-> CCJ Conservatory

Cami Vorhees

-> Power Dance Company

Maya Rogers

Evolution Dance Center

-> North County Academy Of Dance

Presley McGraw

-> Pave San Diego (new studio!)

Casey Archibald Liv Barrelli Karisma Colyan Kirrana Colyan Ava Cucker Elyse Dueler Alli Esposito Avery Fumillari Sofia Galati Joya Garner Sofia Gorman Kendall Hensley Kaylie Koehnen Brianna Lee Isla Marshall Emma MacKay Everly McGraw Ellie Miles Avril Overlock Drew Overlock Danielle Smart Kirra Stradwiser Vivienne Tolentino Lyla Yuceit Brooke Zamoff Shayne Zell

Expressions Dance & Music

-> Tribe Seven

Francesca Casaretto Gabi Woods

Fearless Dance Company

-> K2 Studios

Marilyn Castaneda

Flashdance Studio

-> Houston Ballet Academy

Patricio Lopez

FLEX Dance and Fitness

-> The Southern Strutt

Grace Marvella

Freckled Frog Dance Studio

-> K2 Studios

Vallerina Athena

Fusion Dance Force

-> Blueprint Dance Project

Emily Deal Abigail Monahan Abby Rodriguez

Fusion Studios

-> Mather Dance Company

Brooke Kim Mariana Simoes

Gateway Dance Center (new studio!)

-> Dance Deluxe

Bradley Kawa Breckyn Kawa

Gotta Dance Company AZ

-> The Collective PHX

Avah Gonzalez Gabriella Gonzalez Valencia Gonzalez

Gotta Dance Company CA

-> Stars Dance Studio

Tristan Jones

Greenwich Conservatory of Classical Ballet

-> Dance Town

Cassie Coughlin

-> Mather Dance Company

Lydon Thach

-> The Academy

Lia Turrieta

Hart Academy of Dance

-> The Academy

Lia Turrieta

Hathaway Academy of Ballet

-> somewhere in the Netherlands

Kennedy Kahler

Heart & Sole Performing Arts

-> Gotta Dance Company

Leigha Jessee

Hollywood Ballet School

-> United Ballet Academy

Isobel Lehman

Houston Ballet Academy

-> Boston Ballet

Sam Stampleman

-> Boston Ballet II

Michael Dadlez Layla Porter

Hudson Dance Academy

-> Avanti Dance Company

Melody Garcia

Hyphen Conservatory

-> Mather Dance Company

Makaela McCosar

iBallet Studio

-> Elite Classical Coaching

Aviva Brock

Impact Dance

-> Club Dance Studio

Bostyn Thomas Holland Thomas Presley Thomas

In Motion Dance Project (closing)

-> ??

Mila Bonilla Anniston Clarke Adrienne Diaz Bella Flores Mia Flores Lily Holbrook Isabella Luciano Mali Photnetrakhom Madeline Terry Joey Webber

-> Dance Universe

Ellie ?

-> Marshall Ellis Dance School

Renee Forseth

-> New Dimensions Dance

Annalee Ramb

-> Starz Dance Company

Elissa Loryn Sadie Moore Isabella Peixoto

-> Orlando Ballet School

Sylvie Rock

-> Underground Movement

Lila Blood Kristyeliz Laureano Valerie Santana Izzy Warren

-> Xplosive Dance Academy

Levi Caicco Valeria Luciano Isabella Quartaro Olivia Rock Abigail Torres Adeline Vozza

Innovate Dance Studios

-> Avanti Dance Company

Pressly Loomis

Inspire Dance Complex

-> K2 Studios

Eliana Guzmán Isabela Guzmán Cali Rucker Arrow Yarbrough

Inspired Movement Dance

-> Innovate Dance Studios

Brooke Toro

Intensity Dance Academy

-> Evolve Dance Complex

Lydia Onder Bryn Onder

Intensity Dancer's Studio

-> Dance Town

Nicole Losada

In The Spotlight Dance Studio

-> Summit Dance Shoppe

Quinn Caroline

JBP Entertainment

-> BLA Dance Academy

Ashton Kinsleigh

JDI Dance Company

-> 4PM Dance

Addelyn Muesso

Jean Leigh Academy of Dance

-> Tari's School of Dance

Stella Vince

Joffrey Ballet School Texas

-> MDC Bridge Into The Industry

Ella Waitz

Jump Dance Company

-> Impact Dance Academy (new studio!)

Natalie Boone Reese Gilman Chloe Mullins Claire Sorensen Addison Weimann

Jun Lu Performing Arts

-> Bayer Ballet Academy

Athena Hu

Just off Broadway

-> Club Dance Studio

Kaia Erby

-> Elite Classical Coaching

Sadie Daniels

-> Stars Dance Studio

Zoe Swope

K2 Studios

-> ??

(Jessica Sutton) (Rebecca Sutton)

-> Studio X

Jeanne Garcia Zoey Garcia

-> The Academy

Kynzli Reece

Kaos Dance Elite

-> The Company Space

Taylor Smith

Kat & Co

-> Evolve Dance Complex

Anthony Labritz

Katies Dance Connection

-> Elite Danceworx

Taya Osso

Kick Dance Studio

-> The Vision Dance Alliance

Violet Kolb

Kinetic Dance

-> The Merge (new studio!)

Catherine Owen

Kozmic Edge

-> Q3 Dance Company

Angelina Mendez

LA Dance AZ

-> Dance Connection Scottsdale

Syvon Stokes

Larkin Dance Studio

-> Studio 4

Lola Boisen

-> Concept Pavielle

Grace Sullivan

-> Elite Classical Coaching

Savannah Manzel

Legacy Dance Productions

-> MDC Bridge Into The Industry

Mckenna Gerrits

Legacy Productions Miami

-> Stars Dance Studio

Emily Pina

Lovett Dance Center

-> Hyphen Conservatory

Logan Macy

Major Productions Studio of Dance

-> Impact Dance Academy (new studio!)

Hailey Schneider

Master Ballet Academy

-> Ballet West

Melanie McIntire

-> Club Dance Studio

Hazel Silverman (also continues training at MBA)

-> John Cranko Schule

Gracie Kirkwood Lillian Rossman

-> The Rock School For Ballet

Keagan Pickett

Mather Dance Company

-> OCPAA

Mia Santiago Savy Witeck

-> The Academy

Eliana Weiss

Mekka Dance Project

-> Tribe Seven

Ainsley Scott

Meta Fair Burns Dance

-> Kinetic Dance (new studio!)

Kylie Dalrymple

Miami City Ballet Pre-Pro

-> Boston Ballet II

Olivia Santos

Miami Dancity Studios

-> Stars Dance Studio

Sabrina Lorente

Michelle's Dance Xplosion

-> Nor Cal Dance Arts

Jaxon Albano

Michigan Dance Alliance

-> Artflux Dance Lab

Mattie Mair Millie Morante

Milele Academy, LLC

-> DC Dance Factory

Eisley Beer

MJ's House of Dance

-> Blueprint Dance Project

Kiley Holgerson Ava Azzaretto Caiden Boltz Cassidy Boltz

Monterey Peninsula Ballet Theatre

-> Bayer Ballet Academy

Harper Palmer

Move By Morrelli

-> Artistic Fusion Dance

Lilianna Hales

Murrieta Dance Project

-> K2 Studios

Jaedon Diaz Kloey Diaz

MVP Elite

-> 3'Motion Dance Studio

Mackenzie Mucha Madison Mucha

N10 Dance Studios

-> ??

Ariella Truong

-> 4PM

Jordan Eskenazi

-> Dance Star Academy of Performing Arts

Avery Margarita

-> Premier Youth Dance Academy

Clara Han

-> Project 21

Annie Hu Madison Ng

New Level

-> Stars

Kenny Braga Reese Braga

NJ Center of Dance

-> The Vision Dance Complex

Bella Baldino

No Limits Dance Company

-> CCJ Conservatory

Rylie Sickles

Northern Force Dance Company

-> Larkin Dance Studio

Aria Johnson Sloane Johnson

North Shore Dance Academy

-> Dance Enthusiasm

Juliana Desilets Ellie Fanning Sophie MacKenzie Callie Wilkins Molly Wilkins

OCPAA

-> ??

Sarah Kuy

-> K2 Studios

Amelia Faizi Ella Montano

-> Mather Dance Company

Mila Malone Sierra Yen

-> Nebraska Dance

Sophia SantaMaria

-> Project 21

Reese Arkin Valeria Ochoa

-> Studio X

Jordyn Rockett

On Pointe Dance Studio

-> K2 Studios

Giuliana Bressler

Orlando International School of Dance

-> Starz Dance Company

Layla Jordan

Palm Beach Academy of Dance Arts

-> Dance Universe

Hattie Selene

Panama City Dance Academy

-> Kinetic Dance (new studio!)

Maisie-Rose Burkey

Paula Carr Dance Academy

-> Elektro Dance Academy

Eliza Gee

Pave School of the Arts

-> Evoke Dance Movement

Addyson Paul

-> Innovate Dance Studios

Quinn Briscoe

-> Mather Dance Company

Alexa Rauth Ava Rauth

-> OCPAA

Kennedy Bush

-> Project 21

Stella Fisk Liv Matson

-> The Moxie Movement (new studio!)

Kenzie Arrendondo Talia Ayumi Gemma DeSola Kinsley Dunn Kassidy Dunn Ellie Iwamoto James Iwamoto Harper Fisk Marlowe Fisk Tatum Fisk Kirsten Jeslyn Kailey Longshore Kassidy Luong Sophia Monje Alexa Paul Goli Ranekouhi Rylee Stabeck Isaiah Wang Hadley York

-> South County Dance

Hayden Calder

Perception Dance

-> Premier Dance

Madison Smith

Perfect Pointe Dance

-> Studio X

Danya Chang

Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre School

-> Ballet West Academy

Carina Fulop

Platform Dance

-> Gateway Dance Center (new studio!)

Arielle Michalak

Precision Dance Conservatory

-> Dance Universe

Teagan Sanchez

Premier Youth Dance Company

-> Elite Classical Coaching

Greysen Fowler-Allen

Prestige Dance Institute

-> Renner Dance Company

Kensley Phillips

Profusion Talent

-> Studio X Dance Complex

Dallas Soffel

Project 21

-> ??

Ally Choi Airi Dela Cruz

-> CAP The Company

Dillon Barron

-> CA School of Classical Ballet

Aliya Yen

-> Stars Dance Studio

Leilani Lawlor

-> Westside Dance Project

Makeila Bartlett

Project Performer

-> Pave San Diego

Nora Aminlari

Renner Dance Company

-> Club Dance Studio

Ania Siri Olivia Siri

Republic Edge Dance Company

-> Tribe Seven

Adalynn Delaney Alayna Jeneva Cali Lynch Aubrey Warren

Revolution Dance

-> Dance Zone

Kaylin Gabosch

Rize All

-> Elite Studio of Dance

Carissa Chueng Roxanna Chueng

-> Natiomas Dance Method

Ayla Polendav

-> University Cheer Force

Addelyn Skube

Rockly Mountains Ballet Academy

-> San Francisco Ballet School

Shylee Sagle

Russian Masters Ballet

-> Dmitri Kulev Classical Ballet Academy

Sheridan Stone

San Clemente Dance

-> Variant Movement

Alana Ting

SFLA Dance Complex

-> Dance Enthusiasm

Addison Parker

Skyra Studios

-> Mather

Sienna Morris

Sol Studio SSD (closing!)

-> Pave San Diego (new studio!)

Phoebe Fatula Hayden Goebel Makenna McGrath Lily Parraga Riley Platenberg Gabby Reiss Tiffany Robinson Keira Segal

Soul Studio Dance

-> West Florida Dance Company

Callie Ludtke

South County Dance

-> K2 Studios

Paige Garrett Reese Garrett

-> Mather Dance Company

Gabby Campos

Southland Ballet Academy

-> ABT Junior Co

Alisa Xu

-> Pacific Dance

Natalie Chiang

South Tulsa Dance Co

-> Next Step Dance

Allyn Green

Stage One Dance Studio

-> MDC Bridge Into The Industry

Katie Kim

Starstruck Performing Arts Center

-> Perception Dance

Jacey Erwin Kinley Winn

Steps N Motion Dance

-> K2 Studios

Aspen Roberts

Studio 1 Dance Academy

-> Club Dance

Hadley Taylor

-> The House Dance Complex

Lyla Martin

Studio 4

-> Larkin

Elle Boudewyns Reese Ottney Leah Pribyl Vera Souvannavong

Studio 19 Dance Complex

-> Elite Dance By Damian

Alexis Crystal

-> Evolve Dance Complex

Carina Simone

-> MDC Bridge Into The Industry

Kaitlyn Allen

Studio 702

-> The Rock

Peyton Nowacki Addison Price Hailey Stuck Taylor Stuck

Studio Bleu Dance Center (closing!)

-> ??

Kristin Mitchell

-> Art of Technique

Abigail Daisy Olivia Rosiek Chloé Le Pettigrew Victoria Zhang

-> Cerdafied Dance Studios

Nick Shalin

-> CityDance Conservatory

Kennedy Thompson

-> Dance Academy of Loudoun

Madelyn Cuttin Addie She

-> Enchanted Stage

Lily Mendoza Ellie Myers Mina Oemler

-> Ignite The Light Performing Arts

Zion Landis

-> LM Premier Dance

Grace Wright

-> Mission Dance Project (new studio!)

Lily Carmello Ava Doell Aubrey Franklin Kayleigh Jo Ellie Myers Brianna Norgrove Emily Parinello Brooklyn Smith Stella Tullio Jessica Zhang

-> NOVA Elite Dance Alliance

Nicole Ocean

-> Rise Dance Center

Kennedy Mirabella Maddy Mirabella

-> TDC Dance

Ja Pelle Nayeli Wilder

-> The Dance Lab VA (new studio!)

Leilah Bell Lily Rae Bolno Audrina Brudner Bellatrix Castillo Isabella Plotczyk Ashlan Scheide Mina Terry Gina Zhang

Studio G Dance Company

-> Art In Motion Conservatory of Dance

Madilyn Rexrode

-> Artistic Edge

Devin Dalmolin

Summer's Danceworks

-> The Union (new studio!)

Cienna Fernow Ellah Perry

Summit Dance Shoppe

-> Concept Pavielle

Gabriella Maggitt Carrigan Paylor

-> Larkin Dance Studio

Lucy Mae Dunn

Synergy Academy Utah

-> Center Stage Performing Arts Studio

Corra Blake

Tapio School of Dance and Gymnastics

-> CCJ Conservatory

Landry Leon

TDA Prep

-> Exhibit 3 Dance

Avery Maycunich

Temecula Dance Company

-> K2 Studios

Bailey Dalton

Texas Academy of Dance Arts

-> Tribe Seven

Gatsby Lasala Quinlyn Lasala

The Academy

-> Evoke Dance Movement

Ella Carlson

-> K2 Studios

Laci Stoico

-> Mather Dance Company

Bella Puskar

-> The Next Big Thing Academy

Peyton Barron

-> The Platform Dance Studio

Malia Williams

-> YYC Dance

Kinsley Oykhman

The Art of Classical Ballet

-> Hollywood Ballet School

Kya Massimino

Theatre Arts

-> MDC Bridge Into The Industry

Hallee Francisco

The Ballet Clinic

-> Russian Ballet Academy

Sarina Rosenblum

The Center Stage Dance Studio

-> YLAB

Blakelyn Scifres

The Collective PHX

-> CanDance Studios

Sasha Landreaux

-> Club Dance Studio

Ellie Laird Zoie Laird

-> Elite Dance Pro

Alivya Alfonso

-> Gateway Dance Center (new studio!)

Breckyn Kawa -> Dance Deluxe Bradley Kawa -> Dance Deluxe

-> Russian Ballet Academy

Mila Hiatt

-> The Union (new studio!)

Addy Gaffney

TheCREW

-> Studio X

Kinley Cunningham

The Dance Academy of Puyallup

-> The Company Space

Isabella Scandale

The Dance Centre NJ

-> The Vision Dance Alliance

Savanna Grae

The Dance Complex

-> Larkin Dance Studio

Maddyn Bauermeister Henley Raak

The Dance Institute

-> Stars Dance Studio

Maribel Weishaar

The Dance Scene

-> Studio X

Desi Alcala

The Dance Space

-> Tribe Seven

Penelope Church

The Dance Spot

-> Danceology

Alessandra Escobar-Moeller

-> Mather Dance Company

Kennedy Molino

The Element Dance Center

-> The Academy

Sunnie Stanley

The Living Dolls Factory

-> Legacy Dance Studio

Lilliana Gonzalez

The Movement Complex

-> Stars Dance Studio

Victoria Reich

The NINE Dance Academy

-> Canadian Dance Company

Shaunaughsey Meagher

-> Vlad's Dance Company

Evelyn Rego Ivy Mae Rego

The Platform Dance Studio

-> CCJ Conservatory

Kaydence Mardis

-> Dance Connection 2

Jordyn Castle

-> Gateway Dance Center (new studio!)

Clara Lawless Lily Lawless Stella Lawless Arielle Michalak Charlotte Reese

The Rage Dance Complex

-> Studio 1 Dance Academy

Tennasyn Faith Giselle Miranda

The Rock Center For Dance

-> ABT Junior Co

Crystal Huang

The Southern Strutt

-> CCJ Consevatory

Annsley Huff

The Talent Factory

-> K2 Studios

Ileana Cruz Sienna Legitt Natalie Pan Quinn Pan

The Vision Dance Alliance

-> New Jersey Ballet Company

Kennedy Anderson

The Why Movement

-> Tribe Seven

Grace Gerszewski

Titanium Arts Lab

-> MDC Bridge Into The Industry

Julliana Gould

Trademark Dance Academy

-> The Vision Dance Alliance

Braelynn McKenna

Variant Movement

-> New Level Dance Company

Gabby Terschluse

Way 2 Move - Dance & Movement

-> Dance Town

Alexa Oviedo

West Coast Dance Complex

-> Pave San Diego (new studio!)

Emily Bach

West Coast School of the Arts

-> Hyphen Conservatory

Rebeca Gomez Garza

West Florida Dance Company

-> Stars Dance Studio

Ella Dobler

-> The Southern Strutt

Macey Strickland

WestMet Classical Training

-> Sarasota Ballet School

Madelyn Murphy

Westside Dance Project

-> ??

Diana Kouznetsova Isabella Kouznetsova

-> European School of Ballet

Annabel Kohn

-> Hyphen Conservatory

Esme Chou Olivia Marquez

-> San Francisco Ballet School

Izzy Howard

Woodbury Dance Center

-> Larkin Dance Studio

Kylie Roach

Xtreme Dance Studio

-> The Rock School

Blake Metcalf

YLAB

-> Project 21

Emma Walters (also continuing training at YLAB)

Your Haven Dance Company

-> West Florida Dance Co

Kylee Kay

Youth American Ballet Company

-> Boston Ballet II

Natalie Cardona

[proxylynn]

Every birthday I could find for every visual novel character I play on this blog (and the other game characters too)

[Okay, so this is every character's B-Day that pops up here. If I couldn't find it, it's hidden really deep. To make this clear, I'll post them in by series. If there's any I missed, please, tell me about it so I can add them.]

YourBoyfriend/YourGirlfriend:

Something's Wrong With Sunny Day Jack:

Sunny Day Jack - June 15th, 1958 (Gemini) Ian Duff - March 3rd, 1997 (Pisces) Nicholas “Nick” Herrera - January 18th, 1997 (Capricorn) Shaun Durand-Cofer - October 7th, 1997 (Libra) Barry - ???? ("That’s it. He’s just your manager!")

The Groom of Gallagher Mansion:

Elias Declan Gallagher - April 19th (Aries-Taurus (cusp)) Taylor Anthony Potts - August 24th (Virgo)

DachBo:

Bo - ???? Simoun - ????

Br<3ken Colors:

Ace - ???? Angel - ???? Catherine - ???? Delivery Guy/DG - October 31, Scorpio, Chinese zodiac: Rabbit Diana - ???? Gunther - ???? Janne - ???? Jester - ???? Leevi - ???? (Cancer) Mike - ???? Milla - ???? Mimic/Mic - ???? Pearl - ???? Rasmus - August 13, Leo, Chinese zodiac: Ox Richie - ???? Salvador/Sal - ???? Shadowman - ???? Skye - ???? Stalker (Damon) - January 6, Capricorn, chinese zodiac: Rooster Venni - ????

MalcontentGame:

Malachy Doe/Mal - January 1st "Antichrist" - ???? [There are two more characters but they left the project when things went south, so I won't be including them despite having the info]

JohnDoe:

John Doe - November 35th

FrostBite:

Tate Frost - April 28th Vic - ????

House Hunted:

Maison: ???? (planted in the 60s) Heim: ???? Mayor's Assistant (Ivy) - ????

14 Days With You:

[REDACTED]/Ren - February 14th (Aquarius) Moth - January 2 (Capricorn) Violet Gacia - June 10 (Gemini) Elanor Creston - July 5 (Cancer) Conan O'Rourke - August 27 (Virgo) Jae-Hyun Kim: September 28 (Libra) Leon Davis - November 30 (Sagittarius) Teodore Alvarado - July 29 (Leo) Olivia Dhawan - ????

Angry Boy Pedro and His Friend:

Pedro - ???? (He does not like to remember his birthday or his childhood in general but they plan to tell his birthday in the game)

My Dear Hatchet Man:

Alan Orion - January 14 Stuart Cassidy/Stu - February 6 Erika Vivián Ramos - May 5 James - August 7 Jules - June 22 Claude - November 11 Carver - ???? (doesn't remember his birthday, so he made his birthday December 15) Stitches - April 4th

Lurking for Love:

Jacob Alden: October 26 Austin Lepley - ????

Apples to Ashes:

Douglas Owens - September 20th Xamira Othman - ????

Your Dearest Boyfriend:

Victor A. Anderson - ???? Lizzy - ???? TK - ????

See Thru: Need a Friend?:

[unkown]/Friend - May 10th Z - ???? Carter - ???? Diane - ????

GLASS MIND:

Liu - ???? Dr. Fischer - ???? Nurse Sara Evans - ????

A Double Sided Mirror:

Charlie - April 8th Charles - ???? (possibly Mother's Day) Cameron - ???? Lein - ???? Jeremy - ???? Stella - ???? Jacob - ???? Lucy - ????

[amandapalmer]

THE DRESDEN DOLLS ARE ABOUT TO TOUR a whole set of BRAND NEW UNRELEASED SONGS to THE SOUTH and BEYOND. We are still quietly working on a not-so-quiet new record.

Wish us GODSPEED, and come ready to rage and cry and look like whatever you wanna. Everybody is always welcome in the tent of the punk cabaret.

Most shows are sold out or near sold out, get on it.

March 22: Mohawk, Austin TX **LOW TICKET WARNING**

March 23: Mohawk, Austin TX **SOLD OUT**

March 26&27: The Kessler, Dallas TX **LOW TICKET WARNING**

March 29: The Eastern, Atlanta GA **LOW TICKET WARNING**

March 30: Brooklyn Bowl, Nashville TN **LOW TICKET WARNING**

June 7&8: Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA

June 14: 9:30 Club, Washington, DC **SOLD OUT**

All tickets dresdendolls.com

Photo by Sara Small

[liminalmemories21]

WIP Wednesday

tagged by @paperstorm, @carlos-in-glasses, @orchidscript, @whatsintheboxmh, @lemonlyman-dotcom

@strandnreyes, @iboatedhere, @cold-blooded-jelly-doughnut, @theghostofashton, @chicgeekgirl89,

@reyesstrand, and everyone who tagged me on Sunday when I did not have the brain space to play. Thank you!

Have two snippets in recompense - one Lonestar, one OG 911.

Knave-verse Paris Caper (actually someone throw prompts at me, because I'm stuck on what the con is, and I work better when someone eggs me on)

It is, he supposes, a step up from your run of the mill cocktail party.  Then again, anything being hosted in a 17th C maison particulière where he’s been handed a crystal flute of champagne, and everything he can see has been dusted in gilt, is going to be a step up from your average Austin country club fundraiser. “You take me to the nicest places,” he murmurs to TK, and is really only being a little facetious.  “Are we allowed to walk around?” TK eyes their reflection in the large mirror over the fireplace. “ They encourage it.”  Tucks a hand through Carlos’s arm.  “Come on, let’s mingle and admire.” They wander slowly through the ground floor of the townhouse (mansion?) and then out into the private gardens, hung with paper lanterns.  “So, you’re sure that Drosselmeyer will take the bait?” TK hmms, attention focused on a statue. “I think that’s a Rodin.”  Then gives Carlos his attention when Carlos doesn’t say anything.  “Drosselmeyer?  Oh, yes.  He’s already taken the bait.” Carlos swings around.  “He has? Is he here?” TK gestures towards the house.  “In the salon.  Right now he’s asking what name you gave at the door, and who invited you, and calling a couple of people to ask why you’re slumming it with me.” He sounds smug. The plan is to let TK’s reputation do the work for them.  They don’t really have time to set Carlos up with an entire false identity and let Drosselmeyer find him on his own, so they’re shortcutting the process.  Drosselmeyer sees Carlos with TK, assumes that TK is there for a con, and then tries to con Carlos out from under TK’s nose. TK and Caffrey had both sniffed in disdain, and he’d traded a look with Sara in amusement.  “It’s tacky,” TK had pronounced. “But so is Drosselmeyer, so it’s definitely what he’ll do.”

Buck/Tommy with @cecilyv- working title - no, really the Buckley's are actually shitty people - because @cecilyv just rewatched the Daniel arc and asked nicely - has approximately 8,000 words in it, we have not yet met the Buckleys ... so you know, that's going.

Tommy pulls off into a little park overlooking the city, backs into a spot, parks and jumps out of the truck, Buck trailing behind him. Pops down the tailgate and spreads the blanket he pulls from the cargo hold out. Climbs in and holds his hand out for Buck to follow.  The lights of the city are spread out all around them, blanketing the ground.  He hesitates for a moment, staring at Tommy’s hand. It feels like a moment.  A line.  Which is ridiculous, because he’s not going to be more queer if he climbs up into the bed of the truck and lies down next to Tommy.  Won’t make him less queer if he doesn’t.   It isn’t even really anything new.  It’s a little secluded, but they’re still in public, and Tommy is a gentleman - isn’t going to take this further than Buck is comfortable with.  Buck wishes maybe that Tommy would push - not a lot, just a little, enough to get him over his nerves.  Because he’s not nervous when Tommy is touching him, kissing him.  It’s just that moment before, the inbetween, that makes him nervous. He looks up and can see the patience, and the concern in Tommy’s eyes.  Suddenly doesn’t know what he’s hesitating for.  Takes Tommy’s hand and lets him pull him up, settles down next to Tommy on the truck bed, close enough that he can feel the heat of Tommy’s body bleeding through his jeans.

not sure who's left, but - @alchemistc, @freneticfloetry, @fifthrideroftheapocalypse, @heartstringsduet, and @djdangerlove

[reneerappuk]

Reneé performing at ACL in Austin ✨

Via Sara Diggins

[artzychic27]

Do you want to have any the ballad of marinette dupain-Cheng (the au I created) headcanons?

Marinette’s popularity comes from doing “favors” for other people. By that, I mean love-bombing people, just coming out of nowhere with clothes and pastries and cashing in those favors a little while later

Nathaniel got a lot of support from the Boyz Squad (Even Adrien in private) and Nino and Max worked on an campaign account together

Nino would’ve asked Alya for help with it, but she’s been busy keeping Marinette from going off the deep end

The nominees (Sans Marinette) all posed for a post with the caption, ‘The Monarchy is Queer’

Chloé was actually the first to notice signs that Marinette’s going a little nuts. Though, when she tried to tell people, they looked concerned but then just thought she was being jealous and brushed her off

Simon’s been working behind the scenes, filming the entire Homecoming campaign progress and drama. He’s everywhere, you just gotta look

Cosette upcycled several dresses for its campaign posts and people LOVED them. And Yvette and Johan hate to admit it, but their baby sister looked cute in the dresses

When Tom and Sabine learned about the lies Mme. Bustier had been feeding their daughter about them being disappointed in her if she didn’t win, Sabine put her martial arts to good use

The news of “Mari’s Prom” spread like wildfire. There were podcasts, media circuses, TikTok videos, and of course, a group of freaks who are siding with Marinette and calling her a “feminist hero” because her boyfriend dumped her

Zoé, Marc, Ivan, Juleka, Austin T, Reshma and Mireille have been getting followed everywhere by reporters. It’s gotten so bad that the Legharis, Tomassians and Mayor Bourgeois had bodyguards posted outside their homes

[starfirewildheart]

Chapter 3

Scars and Souvenirs 

Summary: Sy and his lady both retire from the army but not before tragedy befalls Sy. He slowly tries to adjust to life again on their ranch.

Pairing: Sy / OFC

Word count: 2,492

Rating: PTSD episode. No graphic details but be warned. 

Debbie was on her hands and knees trying to pick up all the paper clips she'd managed to knock off the desk when a boom of thunder rang out so loud it shook the windows in the house causing her to yelp and jump smacking her head on the desk. "Fuck!" She rubbed at the knot already forming as she got back to her feet.

Glancing out the window and seeing the dark storm clouds already on top of them and the rain coming down in buckets she texted Sy.

Deb: Be careful on the way home sweetheart. It's already bad out. Let me know when you're leaving. Love you.

Putting a fresh pot of coffee on and getting a couple towels from the linen closet she tossed them on the arm of the couch for when he came in because she knew he'd be soaked to the bone. It'd been forty-five minutes and still no word from Sy and the storm was in full force now. She called his phone a few times and got no answer so she called Sara.

"Hello" Sara managed to make it to the phone on the last ring.

"Is Sy still there? He's not answering his phone."

"Yea he's, um," She couldn't hide the panic in her voice. "Something happened and.."

"What happened?  Is he ok?"

"He started screaming and acting weird. He's huddled in the corner in the laundry room and he starts thrashing and yelling everytime I try to get close."

"How long?" She asked, already gathering stuff she knew she would need.

"About an hour," Sara admitted reluctantly. 

"Unbelievable!" She growled. "I'm on my way."

It took another forty minutes to make what should have been a fifteen minute drive because of the storm. Trees were down over the roads, some streets completely underwater but she finally pulled into the drive and wasted no time running inside. "Where?"

Sara jumped when the door burst open and Debbie came in, dripping wet and tossed a bag on the floor.  Sara pointed the way to the laundry room and watched because Sy wouldn't let anyone approach.

Debbie saw Aika laying on the floor whining and whimpering looking toward the back wall. She got down on her hands and knees crawling into the room slowly, remaining low and unthreatening. She gave the dog a pat before moving forward until she caught Sy's attention. He was sweating and trembling like a leaf. His eyes were searching for something but not seeing anything. He had the thousand yard stare and it broke her heart. It was the same look he had the day she got to him in Germany. 

"Captain Syverson, it's Lieutenant Calaway. We're here sir, you're safe now. May I approach to treat you?" Debbie said.

"Boz, get Boz," he rasped. "The others are dead, all of em," he sobbed.

She moved close enough to touch him. "Boz is being taken care of. Can you tell me what hurts?"

"Everything," his teeth were chattering. 

He'd hit his head on something because it was bleeding sluggishly still. She grabbed a washcloth out of a clean laundry basket pressing it against the wound. "Can you stand? Let's get you to bed and get you treated ok?"

He grunted and curled up tighter, hiding his face from her. "Hey," she lightly scraped her nails over his scalp on instinct. "You're safe sweetheart. No one's gonna hurt you any more."

He caught her scent as she moved around him and pressed his cheek to  her palm. "D..Deb?"

She looked into his eyes finally seeing some recognition. "There's my sweet boy," She smiled. 

He curled around her body, torso in her lap, his head resting on her arm holding on like his life depended on it. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," sobbing. 

"Austin, you have nothing to be sorry for love. Did the loud thunder trigger you?" She kept her voice soft and soothing. He nodded and she rubbed his back still hearing Aika's whimpers. "Aika is worried about you. Can she come and give you some love?"

Sy turned his head so he could see her. "Come girl." 

"Not in your mom's laundry room floor baby," She joked as Aika came over and laid her head on Sy. It worked because Sy looked up at her with a half smile and shook his head. "Oh, you meant Aika."

"Is he ok?" Sara asked from the doorway.

Sy tensed at her voice and trembled again, his senses too overwhelmed to process his mom being there. In his mind he was still in Iraq. "He's starting to calm down a bit. We just need some more time." 

"I'll be in the den if he needs anything." 

The storm was still raging outside and every clap of thunder and flash of lightning made Sy jerk and cringed because it reminded him of bombs and rpgs exploding. She had to get him somewhere else to try and get him back to now. "Do you think you can stand for me?"

Sy's cheeks burned hot and he tried to hide his face again. "I….I had … um..I"

She listened trying to make out what was wrong. It took a few minutes of looking him over the best she could in the position they were in before she saw the dark stain on his cargo pants and realized he'd wet himself. "We'll get you all cleaned up ok? Just me and you. No one else will see."

He looked in her blue eyes and knew she was telling him the truth and not trying to trick him. "Ok."

They stood up and slowly started toward the bathroom. He was leaning heavily on her because he was still reliving his injuries and the anxiety and physical shaking had made his muscles weak. She helped him sit down on the toilet. "I brought you some clothes and your meds but I need to go to the den and grab the bag ok? I'll be right back."

"No!" He grabbed her around the waist and held her. "Don't leave!"

"Ok, OK, Shh," She hugged him with one arm and rubbed his head and shoulders with the other hand. "I'm going to call for your mom to bring me the bag. I gotta be loud for her to hear me though, ok?"

He nodded but didn’t loosen his grip on her. "Sara!"

Sara stepped up to the bathroom door. "What do you need?"

"The bag I brought with me, a bottle of water, a couple of towels and a washcloth please."

Sara quickly gathered the stuff she asked for, stopping just outside the door again. "May I open the door? "

"Slowly, please and try not to make any loud noises," Deb told her.

Sara opened the door and stepped inside getting a closer look at her son for the first time since his episode started. It broke her heart seeing his entire body shaking, sweating through his shirt and clinging to Debbie like he's drowning in the ocean and she's the only life preserver. Tears fill her eyes and she chokes back a sob not wanting to add to his stress. "How can I help?"

"We are going to get him cleaned up and then we are going to join you in the den until this storm passes. When we come in there we are gonna need a pillow from the bed and something sweet to drink. Juice, sweet tea or soda."

Sara nodded, "Food?" 

"Cookies, candy and fruit would be good but if you don't mind, cut them up in bite-sized pieces. It makes it easier for him."

Sara stepped closer to Sy and reached out to touch him while he wasn’t looking and Debbie grabbed her hand before she made contact. "There are a few things to know about being around Sy when he's having PTSD issues. We will go into more details later but for now no loud, sudden movements or sounds. Alway tell him what you're doing before you touch  him so that he knows it's coming." She put her hand under Sy's chin lifting his head and smiled. "Sweetheart, your Ma is going to touch you and talk to you a second before your bath." Sy took a couple of calming breaths, trying to steal himself for the touch.

Sara put her hand on Sy's shoulder and pressed a kiss to the side of his head that wasn't covered in blood. "I love you Austin." She left the room so they could continue.

Deb told Sy everything she was going to do before she did it and with time and patience she got him stripped and in the warm bath and gave him his anxiety and PTSD meds. She scrubbed him clean, treating his head wound, taking care to be soft and comforting. After about fifteen minutes of the warmess of the water and her soothing touch, her voice constantly praising and encouraging him, he started to relax and nodded off. 

Sy shivered as she helped him out of the water, wrapped him in the big fluffy towel and dried him off with another. When she reached up to dry his head he pulled her against him and kissed her. "I'm sorry, sugar. I hate that you have to go through this. I'm just broken and I should have died in that hell hole like everyone else."

"Don't you ever say that again, Austin" she growled. "You Have no reason to apologize." She cupped his face in her hands as she pushed him to sit on ťhe vanity before his legs gave out. "You went through literal hell sweetheart. Your job was about as stressful as they come. You tracked down WMD's and terrorists. You were tortured and tormented and I don't know anyone who wouldn't have trauma from that. Baby you are doing amazing and I'm so proud of you."

He didn't even try to wipe the tears away as he wrapped her in his arms. "I don't deserve you but I'm so damn glad I found you."

She softly rocked him. "I'm damn glad you found me too sweetheart. I never felt complete until you." She kissed him then stepped back a bit. "You're exhausted. Let's get you dressed and you can lay down so you can rest."

Sara stood up when they came into the den. Sy looked so weak and exhausted it scared her. She'd never seen him like this. Apparently she wasn't as good at schooling her expressions as she'd hoped because Sy noticed. "I'll be ok Ma. I just need some time." He gave her a small smile as Deb helped him down on the couch.

There was a position that helped Say when he was having an episode and it was just natural for them to get into it. Deb sat on the end of the sofa, pillow under her arm and Sy's upper body in her lap facing her. Deb pulled their blanket from her bag. It was soft and comforting and smelled like her so it helped. Once he was settled she picked up the glass of sweet tea. "Drink some of this for me?"

He shook his head , "don't want it."

"I know you don't, sweetheart but you need the sugar. Drink, please." She held the glass to his lips and he took a few sips before pushing it away. "Think you can eat a bite for me?"

"No," he turned his head and hid his face in her neck. She couldn't help but smile because he sounded like a petulant child. She cuddled and rocked him softly stroking his head, back and arm. He was so exhausted mentally and physically it wasn't long before he was asleep. 

Sara watched them. She was in awe of how Debbie was able to comfort him and jealous that she couldn't do it herself. "You're good with him." She reluctantly admitted.

"It didn't come easy, not for this anyway.  There were many times of trial and error while he was recovering. We just finally found things that helped ground him."

"I never got that chance," She said bitterly.

Debbie's eyes shot over to Sara when she realized what was going on. "That’s what all this has been about? The way you've treated me and how you've guilted him because he hasn't spent time with you alone? You're jealous?" She was dumbfounded. 

"I didn't get the chance to go to him in Germany and he didn't want me around him for eight months after he was back in the country. The only difference in that time was you. He had you."

Deb counted to ten, twice, trying not to snap. "Or it was the fact that the man was tortured and had to have surgeries to reset his bones and rehab and therapy and months of night terrors, flashbacks and no sleep. We weren't playing house and hiding trying to hurt your feelings. "

"He's my son! His family should take care of him, people who don't push him to get out in the world and be in crowds or work himself to the bone."

"That’s exactly why you aren't the right one to care for him. He has to get back to life. He can't dwell and live in the memories." She stops herself not wanting to wake Sy or say something she'll regret. "Did you ever stop and think that he distanced himself during his recovery because he wanted his relationship with you to stay pure? That he doesn't want to recount what happened to you because he knows it would permanently change your relationship. The disappointment and resentment would be to much"

"I would never be disappointed in him or resent him because of what happened," She growled. 

"You wouldn't  but he does. He blames himself, Sara. He's plagued with guilt, the feeling of failure and worthlessness about himself because of it and he thinks everyone else sees him the same." She sighed, "he wants to be able to visit and talk with you and not have to worry about that baggage, to not feel like that with you."

The words hit her like a bullet and it all started to make sense. How he'd talk to her every day and always check on her. He'd talk about anything except his time in the desert. She'd blamed Debbie because that's where they’d met but in reality he wanted his mother to keep her pride in him and he thought if she knew his trauma she'd lose respect for him. She'd been so busy being jealous of the woman he'd brought home, thinking she'd stolen him, that she didn't see what was right in front of her. She was pulled from her thoughts when Sy woke up screaming.

"Easy baby," Deb said, placing her hand on his chest. "You're safe love, I've got ya."

Aika jumped up on the couch and laid on Sy's legs resting her head on his hip as he drifted back to sleep. It was going to be a long night.

@shellyshellshell

@enchantedbytomandhenry

@mrsevans90

[contemplatingoutlander]

This is a troubling article by UT Austin economist Dan Spears on predictions that world population growth will peak sometime during the 2060s to 2080s, and then will rapidly decline. We all know on some level that human population growth cannot continue at this pace, but the sudden drop that experts predict in the near future is alarming--as are the predicted consequences of a rapid human population decline.

This is a gift 🎁 link that will enable anyone to read the full article, whether or not they subscribe to The New York Times. Here are some excerpts from this interactive article.

The global human population has been climbing for the past two centuries. But what is normal for all of us alive today—growing up while the world is growing rapidly—may be a blip in human history. Children born today will very likely live to see the end of global population growth.A baby born this year will be 60 in the 2080s, when demographers at the U.N. expect the size of humanity to peak. The Wittgenstein Center for Demography and Global Human Capital in Vienna places the peak in the 2070s. The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington puts it in the 2060s. All of the predictions agree on one thing: We peak soon.

And then we shrink. Humanity will not reach a plateau and then stabilize. It will begin an unprecedented decline. Because most demographers look ahead only to 2100, there is no consensus on exactly how quickly populations will fall after that. Over the past 100 years, the global population quadrupled, from two billion to eight billion. As long as life continues as it has — with people choosing smaller family sizes, as is now common in most of the world — then in the 22nd or 23rd century, our decline could be just as steep as our rise.

The article goes on to say:

[...] What would happen as a consequence [of a rapid decline in human population]? Over the past 200 years, humanity’s population growth has gone hand in hand with profound advances in living standards and health: longer lives, healthier children, better education, shorter workweeks and many more improvements. Our period of progress began recently, bringing the discovery of antibiotics, the invention of electric lightbulbs, video calls with Grandma and the possibility of eradicating Guinea worm disease. In this short period, humanity has been large and growing. Economists who study growth and progress don’t think this is a coincidence. Innovations and discoveries are made by people. In a world with fewer people in it, the loss of so much human potential may threaten humanity’s continued path toward better lives.

I encourage you to read the rest of this article. Whether or not one agrees with Dr. Spears's arguments, they are thought provoking.

[edited]

____________________ Sara Chodosh created the graphics in the article, which were used to create the above gifs.