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bookgeekgrrl · 2 months

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My media this week (28 Jul-3 Aug 2024)

📚 STUFF I READ 📚

🥰 Limited Release (rageprufrock) - 63K, modern XMFC AU - established cherik, FBI agent Erik, Charles being Charles, everyone hunting for domestic terrorist Shaw - really excellent fic, I really dug these versions of them

😊 Damn your love, Damn your lies (purpleweekend) - 66K, modern steddie, eddie's a rockstar who falls for bartender steve (who has no idea who he is) - the central conflict is 100% eddie not telling steve who he is - I was on the fence about this bc eddie doesn't just omit info he actively constructs a double life (which is usually my hard line) BUT the writing was solid enough that I wanted to see how it played out & overall i think the author succeeded - we're in Eddie's POV so we know WHY he's doing these actively dumbass things and he does grovel an appropriate amount for forgiveness - still YMMV on this topic

😊 Fer-de-Lance (Nero Wolfe #1) (Rex Stout, author; Michael Prichard, narrator) - looking for some kind of comfort read, decided to start NW again. Once again reminded of the wonderful '30s slang phrase 'Lovin' babe!' (as an expression of astonishment) which I really wish would be reanimated

🥰 Second Best (Nejinee) - 51K, buddie omegaverse - "Eddie has convinced himself that helping Buck through his heat was perfectly normal behaviour between friends. It didn’t mean anything." surprise! Eddie is WRONG. LOL. Enjoyable.

😍 ain't really quaint (quietnight, silentwalrus,) - aka Farm Hell (44K) this was my 4th? reread of this, this one for stucky bookclub. Still absolutely hilarious. Such a great mashup of MCU/comics into an absolutely fascinating & solid alternate timeline. Incredible characterizations, fantastic art and legit some of the funniest lines ever written in this fandom.

🥰 Smash & Grab (RELIC #1) (Maz Maddox, author; Kirt Graves, narrator) - pink punk dino shifter (utahraptor) + buttoned up paleontologist + menace from ruthless dino collector = silly fun adventure romance road trip. What a fun romp, the book equivalent of Romancing The Stone or Lost City or a National Treasure movie. Absolutely absurd but extremely enjoyable

😍 Not Easily Conquered series (dropdeaddream, WhatAreFears) - FINALLY reading this absolute classic in this fandom. And I absolutely get why! Even though I knew it had prose that knocked your socks off, I was not prepared. Womb to tomb, sweetheart. It's hell to love a fighter. So far I've read the first two stories: A Long Winter (35K) which is Steve's alt timeline life and The Thirteen Letters (35K) which is Bucky during the war, writing the letters

💖💖 +29K of shorter fic 💖💖

📺 STUFF I WATCHED 📺

Taskmaster - s13, e3-8

Um, Actually - s9, e12

Smartypants - s1, e8

Monét's Slumber Party - s1, e2

Adventuring Academy - "Reunion with the Cast of Escape from the Bloodkeep" (s1, e13-14)

D20: Never Stop Blowing Up - "Meet the Santangelos" (s22, e6)

D20: Adventuring Party - "The Penthouse Suite" (s17, e6)

🎧 PODCASTS 🎧

You're Dead to Me - Minoan Civilisation

The Sporkful - When Celery Was More Expensive Than Caviar

Re: Dracula - July 29: Another Tragedy

The Atlas Obscura Podcast - Road Trip Week: Where to Go

WikiHole - Gossip (with Joel Kim Booster, Beth Stelling and Jake Cornell)

Wait Wait… Don't Tell Me! - Outtakes: What office tradition is on the way out?

Re: Dracula - July 30: Last Night

Pop Culture Happy Hour - We're talking songs of the (Brat) summer

⭐ Today, Explained - Is your refrigerator running?

Short Wave - The Curious Case Of The Supermassive Black Hole

Vibe Check - Things Are Getting Weird

Pop Culture Happy Hour - Time Bandits maps contemporary vibes over a cult classic

Switched on Pop - Why Chappell Roan is the sound of 2024

Re: Dracula - August 1: That's What it Be

Death, Sex & Money - Olympic Legend Greg Louganis on Outliving and Outperforming Expectations

99% Invisible - The Art of the Olympics

⭐ Decoder Ring - Standing Up for Sitting Down

Films To Be Buried With - Chiwetel Ejiofor

Twenty Thousand Hertz+ - The Sound of Apple

Re: Dracula - August 2: One More Gone

Dear Prudence - My Friend Told Our Friend Group That My Boyfriend Sexually Assaulted Me. He Didn’t. Help!

Dear Prudence - Prudie Plus: Is There A Polite Way To Not Invite My Friends’ Transphobic Husbands To My Wedding? Help!

Welcome to Night Vale - Detours

Welcome to Night Vale - Bonus Episode: Hey There Cecil

You're Dead to Me - Robert Bruce

Re: Dracula - August 3: I Know the Secret Now

🎶 MUSIC 🎶

"A Bar Song (Tipsy)" [Shaboozey] Radio • Familiar

"Victoria's Secret" [Jax] Radio • Familiar

The Aquabats

Chappell Roan

Presenting The Offspring

Pop-Punk Party-Starters

Energy Supermix

My Mix #2 (White Zombie, Iron Maiden, Dio)

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shsl-heck · 2 years

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Pale Live Read Part 3. Stolen Away

After like 10 days I’m finally posting this! The arc was great I just got distracted and didn’t start reading it until a couple days ago, then it turned out I had a lot of thoughts. Once again warning for heavy Pact spoilers since my thoughts are heavily influenced by reading it before this.

Greg isn't in their class anymore and no one seems to remember him. So presumably the choir severed his connections to everyone not at the ritual location. Very Urr adjacent feeling. This is definitely something I can see being listed alongside Corvidae as an Other people assumed was a demon at first. I'm 99% sure it's not though. It seems to lack the ambient corrupting effect they have.

The fact that Lucy used to blame herself for all the problems in her life but now chooses to get angry and do something about it is interesting to me. I'd argue that it's honestly healthier to get mad like that than to wallow in self loathing like Avery does. Lucy is giving off very much an "if there can be no victory then I will fight forever", or even an "I had to try" vibe if we want to tie it into a certain other web serial.

Verona's dad continues to be the worst. Acting like that because your daughter forgot and didn't get you a birthday gift is just beyond my comprehension. Like I get he's got his own issues but Jesus christ, he needs to put on a brave face and do what has to be done for his daughter's sake. This is like peak parentification.

On a much lighter note I love these girls' friendship. It's so nice to read a Wildbow story where the central characters like each other and aren't constantly destroying every relationship in their life.

They used to do a similar fake nation project at my school in geography class. Not really relevant to anything but I thought that was neat.

I really like Reagan. Hopefully she doesn't get killed or worse by the Choir, and I doubt she's Innocent anymore, so it might be interesting (and not too karmically costly) for the girls to send her in the direction of the magic school Miss mentioned. She'd make a good practitioner I think.

Okay now Lucy is distrusting Verona because she's talking to Miss on her own. This is closer to the Wildbow protags I'm used to lol.

They're going to see the faerie! I'm sure this will end well for them. In all seriousness though, after The Girl in the Checkered Scarf's interlude from Pact I'm a bit nervous about long term consequences. If anyone can weasel out of the oath at the awakening ceremony it's probably a faerie.

Just noticed the name of this arc which makes going to see Faeries even more ominous.

I know I just talked about them being dangerous but Marcica and Guilherme are delightful. The exiled faerie of Jacob's Bell were obviously a little menacing, but the two in Kennet have a great little Odd Couple dynamic going on here that makes them seem less threatening. That just makes them more dangerous though.

Marcica is being more generous than I'm comfortable with. The gifts are uh, of varying quality levels but it's still a lot. Verona's is especially worrying given she already wants to become something other than human.

Alpeana lives with the two fae? I desperately need a version of Pale that's just a sitcom about these three being roommates.

Marcica's interaction with Avery here, teaching her to use glamor, is actually a very nice moment. Her sharing her thoughts on gender and expression while basically doing Avery's makeup really feels very intimate. We know there's a trick here, but I can't fault Avery for falling for it. The way Marcica advises her to just go with what happens and work with instead of against the glamor also explains why her court loses the least to Winter. Presumably immortality is less miserable if you're willing to play along and just accept things.

I don't know if I like what Avery is doing with Pam here. She's like 12 so I get that these things have not occurred to her but it's a little creepy, and the kind of thing that could come with long term consequences. Pamela already has a bunch of self esteem issues and I can easily see her questioning the "why" here as time goes on.

Lucy maintaining her appearance out of spite feels like something that could easily become super self destructive. I also feel the need to point out that it's not actually that different from if she went the route Avery is and blamed herself. In that case it would be her fault she was ranked last, and so she has to try harder to be likable and attractive. Instead she decides to say fuck them (which I again think is a good idea), but she still ends up trying to improve her appearance to prove them wrong. It's the same end result, just different justifications! I don't think Lucy has let go of who she used to be as much as she likes to think she has.

Her family dynamic is really interesting too. Aunt Heather gets introduced and I actually like her a lot. Of the three girls she seems to have the best home life but that says more about how bad their situations are than anything about Lucy's. I really want this to work out but I'm not optimistic about the chances. I'm even less optimistic about whatever went down with this Paul guy. Presumably he's the reason Lucy's mom was so devastated that one night.

Okay I know they saw a classmate maybe die, and John pulled a gun on them but so far these girls have had it pretty easy when it comes to dealing with the practice. Because of that I think it's easy for Avery and Verona to not realize the risks they're taking, or that this relative safety won't always be guaranteed. Lucy seems to understand a little better in terms of the harm the Faerie might do to Pamela, but doesn't seem to put together that one of them pretending to be Kell would also turn Avery saying "you won't see this face around here again" into a lie. Right now the Others of Kennet can't hurt them directly, but none of them, not even Lucy seem to realize what they're messing with, or that the training wheels are still on. Just compare their uses of glamor to Blake's. Verona turned into a mink and snuggled, and Avery had a weird pseudo date. Blake broke into the house of a rival family in order to stop a ritual targeting him and barely managed to get out by disguising himself as a child and working around the no lying rule in clever ways after he stopped them by calling 911 instead of using Practice. Both of these are very early in the story and really demonstrate how disconnected the girls are from the very real danger Others and Practitioners can bring.

That was a long tangent but uh suffice it to say that Lucy is right about Avery and Verona needing to think more. Lucy may honestly be underselling it a little by accident (not that that would be her fault).

Lucy is absolutely not over blaming herself after seeing this conversation with Paul. It's heart wrenching to see her like this, and even worse when you realize how long she's had to hold onto all of this. The worst part though is that seemingly all of what she said was true, or true enough for the spirits at least. I sincerely hope Paul gets hit hard by that curse.

Ms Hardy is weird. Maybe this is a cultural thing but her not wanting to talk privately with Avery because that would be crossing a personal boundary is more than a little ridiculous. Like you as a middle school teacher are there to help your students learn and grow during one of the most complicated times in their lives, and a student privately asking you for advice about something is in no way a violation of your professional ethics. If you personally don't feel comfortable engaging with kids one on one when they have issues then you should have a different job. Honestly, bringing up the possibility of having another teacher, or even worse, other students (especially when you already know their home life is not great and they have a history of being ignored and emotionally neglected) is far more of a potential violation of the trust put in you. I've just gotten more fired up as I wrote this section so honestly I'd like to formally say fuck Ms Harding. Is this a common opinion? Or am I going to start disc horse by saying this?

Sheridan and Avery's conversation was nice. It really captured a certain type of small town ennui, and the odd sorts of relationships between siblings who have a decently significant age gap.

And the trend of humans being awful continues with yet another appearance by Verona's dad. Him just knocking three times to summon her, and especially when he started talking about his anniversary and Verona's mom not wanting to have sex or even get a massage is so sad, but in the way that triggers your disgust reaction when you see it, which is something that happens a lot in real life but not in fiction. Misery is frequently gross and ugly, and that's not necessarily any kind of failing of the immiserated (though it is in this specific case). I feel the need to clarify bc this is tumblr which notably has excellent reading comprehension as a user base.

Very funny to see Verona ask Avery about what she wants her life to look like in twenty years. It makes me think back to Pact when Rose said "I don't think anyone is pretending Blake is long for this world" to which Blake's only objection was "I'm pretending!" Like these two stories and sets of protagonists are so different, and so are their situations. I hope the girls manage to make it out if this and live full happy lives without losing too much in the process, but my impression of the Otherverse from both Pact and Pactdice is that there's not a great chance it happens.

Return of the queen! Alpeana is back again! Someone asked on the last post who my favorite Other in the story was and my response was tentatively Alpeana, but I can now more confidently say that her, Marcica, and Guilherme are all up there as current favorites.

The Ruins are neat! As someone with a love of decomposers I can't help but enjoy learning they break down things like Echoes similarly to how the Abyss broke down more physical things. It does make me wonder if there was some sort of argument about Blake though. He existed as a physical person, but he was also a vestige. I feel like it would make sense for him to go to either so I'm curious how it worked out. We do see it raining in the Ruins and the part of the Abyss Blake landed in was The Drains. Those are both watery in theming, maybe the Drains is the part of the abyss closest to the Abyss. Runoff from the Drains falls down into the Ruins as rain or something like that? It would even make sense if we assume that once the Abyss was finished grinding down the person Blake that the spirit/vestige-y bits would go down the drain into the Ruins so it can be fully decomposed.

I love Lucy shooting the eye here and the detail that it would likely sting or blind one of the spying practitioner's eyes. It's a very cool moment and oddly enough, almost the exact same thing happens in a surprisingly excellent middle grade book called The Candy Shop Wars, which is about a group of kids recruited by an elderly candy making witch who's super shady to be her minions. I wonder if Wildbow read it and this is a reference, or just a fun little coincidence.

Collette is probably going to be hurting for a while. This eye stealing Other seems pretty nasty, and I imagine that eyes and more broadly Sight is pretty important for an augur. That's of course assuming Guilherme doesn't do something worse which is a possibility. I'd much rather have to deal with even a bounced back eye monster than a Faerie.

Cherry is kind of cute. I'd say she needs more confidence but encouraging a goblin to be confident seems liable to end poorly for all involved..

Munch's honesty about targeting bad people not actually making goblins "good" is refreshing in its honesty. I love the faerie in this and Miss is great but it always feels like they're the ones pulling the strings. Also, the goblin queen he mentions here is the same one from Maggie's interlude right? Like it's the blood and darkness one for sure.

These goblins having to adhere to pg 13 language is incredible and I love it.

So the Carmine Beast was there when John killed Yalda, which I don't think we knew, and it actually helped pick its own potential successor which is interesting. Did the Carmine Beast know all the way back then that it would be dying soon? ("Soon" relative to the timescale Others work on at least). Does Yalda's death indirectly lead to the Carmine Beast being gone? Like my understanding is that Black Dogs like her cause lots of sickness and curses to the people who are responsible for hurting them. If John killed Yalda on the orders of the Carmine and other judges would part of the curse transfer to them? I don't think she would be strong enough for her curse to actually like kill the Carmine Beast, but it could have weakened them and made it easier for someone else to do it.

It seems like somehow Edith knew that the Carmine was gone before Munch came to tell her. How? We haven't seen a lot of her and Matthew since the beginning of arc 1, which makes me suspicious that Wildbow might be keeping them in the background for now only to reveal that they played some big role in the death of the Carmine Beast later on. Those two (especially Matthew) do seem to be the ones with the most knowledge of the Practice… (Other than maybe Miss who I don't believe was knowingly involved)

Verona laughing and giving the goblins the finger after they tell her she needs to be rude when saying goodbye to them is just such a fun moment. Seeing characters interact almost casually with Others is strangely heartwarming. (Even if that interaction is flipping off goblins)

I feel like I get Verona a lot more now. Hearing her talk about the existential dread of going to highschool and college just so you can get a job you hate and take on massive debt, and (if you get lucky) stumble into a strained relationship that's likely to end in disaster.

Lucy has an affinity for slasher movies! She also has rules about them being fair. At first I thought "oh if she likes these kinds of movies maybe she'll try working with bogeymen", which would fit with her being the one who likes curses and more violent magic. As she kept watching though we got our explanation of her very Hammurabi-adjacent system of fairness. When I think back, yeah she's interested in curses and such,but generally it's been to punish them for something specific. Maybe she and Paige should hang out and Lucy could become a law mage meting out punishment to those who transgress.

I'm really invested in Lucy's family dynamic at this point. I want it to all work out for them. Everyone involved is trying their best to keep it together and take care of each other, but it's hard! It shouldn't have to be hard, but it is, and for reasons mostly out of this family's direct control.

We're discussing familiars again. This time in the context of Avery bringing one to the trails with her. She brings up my bestie Alpeana, but I don't think she'll actually pick the mare to be her familiar. I do kind of hope one of the other girls does though. No matter what, I think we're getting close to the first Essentials ritual and it's going to be one of the girls (probably Avery) taking a familiar.

Miss is Lost. Neat. I don't feel like I know enough about that to say anything insightful yet, but I'm interested in hearing more about her time wandering the Paths. She made it through the Forest Ribbon Trail by instinct alone which is incredible, and she's constantly avoiding being slotted into a ritual or something by the universe. We already knew Miss was knowledgeable and I assumed she had a decent amount of skill using whatever abilities she has, but this makes her seem like she's on a whole other level compared to most Others we've seen in Kennet and Jacob's Bell.

Snowdrop is a delight. I love this angry possum. She hates Avery so much and it's a lot of fun. She's also giving lots of seemingly bad advice. Is the trail different than usual somehow? Like can the Belanger's mess up the ritual somehow? Or did the girls just screw up?

The basket being hidden like that is a real dick move by the trail. Also, I don't know what's going on here! The giant babydoll head or whatever is freaky, and it doesn't seem to be talking. I'm not sure if that's a blessing or curse in this situation. Tattoo guy and the lady holding the opossum are both kind of weird too, then there's just a guy. Tbf though him just being some guy probably makes him the weirdest one in this context.

Changed my mind, the opossum lady is the creepiest Lost here right now. She asked "don't you want a boon companion who can't lie?" So that's seemingly confirmation that Snowdrop can lie, which we could kind of assume already but still.

Holy shit the cat skull was even meaner than the basket. This trail fucking hates her. Doing the opposite of what Snowdrop says seems to be working though. Is that the possum trick? Not just being able to lie, but always giving the worst advice possible?

The doll head is Nicolette! All of a sudden everything has gone wrong. Snowdrop has been snatched by the Belangers, and Avery somehow messed up negotiations. I'm beginning to think picking an old wolf was a mistake. A younger one might have been faster, but it being less cunning seems more important.

The comic is ominous, but I'm not totally sure what's going on in it. The branch with no ribbon is gone. Is the wolf trying to keep Avery from finding the detour?

Nicolette interlude! It seems obvious in retrospect but I didn't see it coming.

The Belanger Circle seems like a real boys' club, which I think was a smart decision on Wildbow's part. It instantly makes me a lot more sympathetic towards Nicolette. Like I'm now completely on her side when a paragraph ago she was the trio's first real enemy.

Is the whole church Alexander's demesne? That's impressive if so. Even a large room invites quite a few challenges based on everything we saw in Pact. It doesn't quite fit with the vibe I'm getting though. So far Alexander reminds me more of Duncan Behaim. That's to say he doesn't seem like a particularly good practitioner, more like the kind of person who's powerful chiefly because of the clout the Belanger name gives him, or the amount of people he has dirt on. He feels like every rich failson I've ever seen.

Chase comes from a practitioner family other than the Belanger Circle which is interesting. Fits with my idea that Alexander relies on relationships with other practitioners for influence. Chase's motive for picking Nicolette is really gross, but also Wildbow be normal about fat people challenge.

So the eye thief Other was a collector. Interesting. It didn't seem to have anything other than the necklace on it so I wouldn't have guessed that was the case. It certainly did a number on Nicolette even without items.

Nicolette's parents are officially joining the ranks of Verona's father, Carol Dallon, Heartbreaker, and most of the Thorburn line as "just the worst parents a kid could ask for".

The Hallow in her head is scary! It could cause a lot of problems down the road if she ever slips up even a little.

Fuck this Belanger Circle nonsense. I think Nicolette should be allowed to beat them all up. The way they talk to her is so skeevy it just makes my skin crawl. Alexander is the worst one though. He's doing the thing where he acts nice and protective but we also know that he wants the exact same thing Seth, Tanner, and Chase do. Maybe even worse depending on who he'd marry her off to if not himself. This makes the Duchamp Coven feel feminist.

I need Seth to get his shit wrecked. I need all of the Belanger Circle to get broken and brought low. Someone get Pauz in here. I know that would be giving demon's ground but I think it would be satisfying enough that it's worth it. In the meantime though at least the Omens she set on him will cause some problems.

No wonder Nicolette seems so well disciplined for a relatively new Practitioner. She had to strictly set rituals for herself to claw back sanity from the spirits in her Hallow before she even knew things like that actually existed. She's had to struggle for every scrap of power she has and it shows.

Miss is managing to stay out of sight of the augurs which is a big relief. Also very funny that the animal masks are throwing the Belanger's off like this. I wonder if that was why the Kennet Others had them do their awakening ritual like that in the first place.

Alexander was the one who got Charles forsworn apparently, which also means Alexander supports the private prison industry. Yet another reason this guy is cringe.

I know I've been taking Nicolette's side a lot in this interlude but like come on. They warned you to back off! You tried to mess with them and now you've been seriously messed up by the nettlewisp. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes. I only wish this didn't give Alexander more points on her.

Even though Alexander was friends with Charles he doesn't seem to know much about Kennet and the truth of its "patron".

Now the Belangers have Snowdrop and are trying to interrogate her, but they don't understand her gimmick. I think I know how this is going to turn out and I'm very eager to see it, especially now that Alexander has left.

"You'll stay put and won't touch anything and be good?" "Yes. Absolutely." I love this God damn possum. She's skyrocketed past Alpeana, Marcica, and Guilherme to become my favorite Other in the story so far.

Holy shit. Snowdrop just destroyed Nicolette's whole life if she can't catch her and fix the destruction. On the one hand go Snowdrop, but on the other I'm absolutely terrified of what this could mean for Nicolette.

Looking at the comments apparently a lot of people hated Nicolette? This is weird to me, but I'm also a big fan of Rose in Pact so I shouldn't be too surprised to find out my thoughts on a character like this are more positive than a lot of readers'.

I loved this arc. So much happened in it, (especially towards the end) that I almost forgot some of the earlier chapters were part of the same arc, but that’s not a bad thing. It only makes it hard for me to summarize my thoughts here at the end. Lots of cool character building going on here as always. Avery, Lucy, and Verona are all great, and it’ll be interesting to see how they rank compared to Blake and Taylor by the end of this. Uhh, it was nice to meet more of the Others around town since we hadn’t got to see much of them, and I’m curious to see how the girls react to now having to deal with the Hungry Choir and the Belangers at the same time. That’s about it for my thoughts, but I do notice these seem to be getting longer so I may switch to doing one of these for each half of an arc. Let me know what you think of that though.

#pale wildbow #pale web serial #pale live read #pact spoilers #I'm absolutely in love with this story so far #but bring Louise back!#I want to see more of her

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laf-outloud · 2 years

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I love how Tom has this air of menace. But Greg is an absolute sweetheart. That is some impressive acting.

I know, right? I'm supposed to be suspicious of Tom but every time I see bts footage of Greg, I just want to excuse anything bad Tom's ever done because surely such a nice guy can't play such a creepy character. LOL!

#ask box #greg hovanessian #tom davidson #greg hovanessian appreciation #walker: independence #WIndy bts

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butterflybuckethat · 2 years

Text

Wildflower

Notes: Gregory Bridgerton x Reader - I made a 🌾moodboard🌾 lol

Request: gregory pls

🦋 Masterlist 🦋

You pulled open the mahogany double doors of Gregory Bridgerton’s wardrobe as he argued with his mother downstairs. Violet chastised him for overworking her maids with all the tears and stains he returned home with in his white chemises. She wanted him to look presentable this evening for dinner, we were having guests apparently. It was a simple enough request but Greg always found the need to argue back. You were typically amused by these interactions but, when it came to Violet, you preferred he just do what she asked so you took the initiative upon yourself. You paid careful attention to the hems as that was where they were most often torn. You could still hear them exchanging words when you found the right one and were going to rush it down to them when a number of letters, with your name on them, scattered onto the floor.

“Gregory,” you spat, desperately holding back tears you would only allow to spill once you were alone, clutching the crumpled stack of letters “how could you?” You and Gregory had always been close, him being the Bridgerton closest to your age. Your families frequently summered together. You both resided in England, of course, but you mother felt as thought you could benefit from the camaraderie siblings afford, even for just the summer, as you were an only child.

You fit in well, slotting right in as Gregory’s twin menace. You ran amuck, the two of you, arm in arm-picking on the Bridgerton siblings and, if they weren’t available, your parents. Though this was the perfect dynamic for you both, it didn’t always mesh with the larger English society. You were always a little too loud, a little too sun-kissed, with muddy hems and bare feet. Gregory was your best friend, your other half, and you could forgive him anything, except this. This was unforgivable.

A few months ago, you and Francesca had join a little salon of sorts. The women who comprised it were mostly older, treating the gathering as an escape from their familial responsibilities, and politics were seldom spoken about but it was, nonetheless, incredible. They would exchange baubles and gossip as if it were air, playing cards and complaining about their husbands. Sometimes they would give you and Francesca instruction on how to attract a husband, teaching you how to handle a fan, drop your handkerchief, and take a turn about the room. You took to the advice slower than Francesca. A wicked streak ran deep in you both but she was something you definitely weren’t: malleable. She took to instruction like a fish to water, all while maintaining her wit and precocious air, and you were stuck in the mud.

Your carriage was late one evening. Francesca had offered to drop you off but you were certain it was just around the corner. The salon was in relatively low attendance so the two of you spent the majority of the evening speaking with that nights host, Lady Francis Eve. She was a rather eccentric woman, well adorned and always the first to know all the secrets of the ton. Lady Francis was widowed early in her life and produced no offspring, though she did have a truly incredible number of nephews. You were standing in her foyer, apologizing every so often for the tardiness of you ride, when she tapped her chin and said, “my nephew Peter would simply adore you.”

Three weeks later you received a letter addressed from Viscount Peter Bough containing only two lines: I sincerely hope you are the Lady Y/FN Y/LN my beloved aunt speaks so fondly of. If not, please disregard. You indulged of course, scribbling a little something in return, and so began a months long correspondence.

“Gregory,” you said again, weaker this time. It had been over a fortnight since you had last received a letter but you did send three. Your were left in something of a lurch. You had yet to meet Lord Bough in person, and he had hinted at perhaps coming to London, “with a ring” Eloise had joked. You thought that perhaps he had fallen ill, or his home had caught fire, or was killed in the ricochet of a duel.

“Please,” Gregory whispered, his large eyes wet. You felt a pang in your chest but steeled yourself, snatching the letters out of his hands and storming off into the gardens.

Though the Bridgertons keep their lawns and gardens well-manicured, but you preferred the tall grasses by the creek. That sliver sat between the Bridgerton property and the next, left completely untouched. You lied down, uncharacteristically uncaring of the wildflowers you crushed beneath you, and hid from the world. You couldn’t open the letters, not yet. You had always shared everything with Gregory and he must have hidden the letters for a reason. You stared at the sun until your eyes hurt and all you could see was purple.

“Y/N,” Gregory cast a shadow across your face, barefoot and collar untucked. He sat next to you, twiddling blades of grass between his long fingers. “My mother wanted me to tell you to get out of the sun.” You looked up at him, deadpan. “She didn’t, actually,” he coughed.

“You must be kidding.”

“You haven’t opened them,” he pointed at the stack of white envelopes scattered beside you.

“I don’t yet know why you hid them.” You still trusted him. How could you not? He was the one who snuck you sweets from the kitchen when you were kids, stood in front of you when the governess would chastise your muddy smock, kept you from feeling completely alone when you were ignored at luncheons and balls.

“Do you detest me?”

“I haven’t decided yet.” You knew why you were upset. It wasn’t so much the violation of your property and privacy, but because you felt as if this were your shot. Never had any man in the ton shown you any genuine affection or interest, at least not one you would ever consider marrying, and you did want to marry. Lord Peter Bough was interested. This was the first time you had hope that you weren’t going to die an old maid. Only Greg knew of your guilty pleasure of trading the most ridiculous novels with the maids.

You sat in silence as the sun set, letters burning between you both. But you could feel him sticking little purple flowers in your hair, across the crown of your head and tucked into the loosened tresses from that morning. “You should read them,” Gregory said.

“Why?” you turned to face him, “what do they say?”

“I never read them.”

“Then why did you take them?”

“It’s been a month,” he shrugged. You waited for him to continue, building the silence until it forced him to speak, “Eloise...” he cleared his throat, “she made that comment,” he did it again, “about the ring.”

“Greg-”

“I haven’t seen you-”

“You have.”

“Not really, not like before.” He stuck his hands in his pockets, “you’re in your room, writing.”

“That’s how Eloise-”

“Found a husband!” he finished for you. You were going to say ‘spent her summers.’ Your cheeks burned red. What you were too embarrassed to admit, even to Gregory, was that you were hoping that you would. Eloise was also wild and outspoken but she, unlike you, had the cushion of good breeding. Not that you weren’t well bred, but not in any way that was comparable to the Bridgerton name.

“I am a woman, Greg. It is my prerogative to be married.” This might be the closest you would ever get to admitting your desire. It was embarrassing, craving romance to such a degree.

“Not you.” Your eyes burned and watered as you stood, so quickly you were likely to fall back down again. Gregory grabbed your wrist before you could run off, “wait.” You yanked your arm but he held tight. “I didn’t mean-”

“How-” you choked. It was as if a dam had broken, all the whispers and disapproving glances from the mamas, scoffs from your peers, disappointed looks from your own mother, just confirmed by the one person you trusted most. “How-” you sobbed. He moved to wrap his arms around you but you pushed him back, hard enough that he stumbled. “Why would you say that to me?” All that fear and pain was replaced by rage. Why not you? What made you less worthy of love than anyone else?

“That’s not-”

“I am deserving of love, Gregory.” You dug your finger into his chest, “is that so hard to believe? That a man would be interested in me? I am funny and kind and well-read...for the most part.” You lost steam pretty quickly. It was always like that, large bursts of emotion that fell just as quickly as they came. Gregory’s face broke, as if he were seeing you for the first time in years. He stepped toward you, snaking his arm around your waist and his hand on you cheek.

“You are deserving of more love than any one man can offer.” He pulled you close enough that you could feel the warmth of his skin seep into yours. “Certainly more than little Petey Bough can offer.”

It was dark and you could barely see one another but you knew what he looked like. The only lights were the distant one of the house and the yellow and green flickers of the fireflies that surrounded you. Your hear beat so loud you could hear it in your ears as you tentatively placed your hands on his chest. You could feel it steadily rise and fall.

“There is not a moment I do not think of you,” Gregory pushed a loose strand of your hair behind your ear. “I took the letters-” he took a breath. “I took the letters because if Peter had any sense in the world he would ask you to marry him the moment her stepped foot in London,” he paused again, “and I don’t think I would be able to stomach it.”

You wanted to kiss him. You wanted to kiss him more than you wanted anything in your entire life. But he was all you had and you weren’t sure if you were ready to let go of life as it was.

“Greg?” Violet shouted from the house. You could make a life with Greg, you knew that, if that’s what he wanted. And you did want love, so so badly, but part of you was terrified, wondering if a future as an unwed maid would really be so bad.

“Master Gregory,” the deep voice of Smathers the butler startled you both.

“Smathers!” Gregory had jumped nearly two feet into the air, “make some noise next time, I beg of you.”

“My apologies, sir. Dinner is awaiting your presence.” You walked ahead, not waiting for the two men to catch up.

#Gregory Bridgerton #gregory bridgerton ff #gregory bridgerton imagine #gregory bridgerton x reader #gregory bridgerton x you #Bridgerton #bridgerton ff #bridgerton imagine #bridgerton fanfiction #Wildflower

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peacockwinchester · 3 years

Text

Gregory, being a menace:

Michael, chasing him around: Wait up, Evan!

Greg, confused: I'm Gregory?

Misha, grimacing, bc he knows who Evan was:

Sebastian, frantically rescheduling his dad's therapy appointments:

Mike: Gregory... Sorry... Dunno what that was lol

#random misha brain things #misha speaksa #ocs #peacock's characters #fnaf #fnaf security breach #michael afton

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starhallows · 2 years

Note

girl ROTB is my comfort fic!! You have no idea how much I love thinking about Greg’s crush on Kate and raspberry macarons and their night in the greenhouse looking at the stars and always getting caught by Ben and tactile Anthony (which is now show canon I guess). I know you said engagement is low on your latest chapter but I think that’s because people feel awk commenting on sex scenes lol. I know I do. I loved it!! Thank you so much for sharing it 💛

Your comfort fic??????? 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺

A kiss to the heavens for everything Benedict has to put up with in ROTB. Honestly, no wonder he visits the greenhouse in Aubrey Hall almost every day when they are there... with everything going on he needs the... erm... inspiration and tranquility the greenery has to offer.

I'm so happy I was here for the birth of "Gregory has a crush on Kate" fanon, because I was able to add it into the story quite early. I love playing with it, and if you think that Gregory isn't going to be an absolute menace about it now that they are married in ROTB, you are wrong.

And tactile Anthony!! I grin every time someone writes him that way now, because it was a no-brainer for me when I started writing this fic.

Thank you, so so much for sending this in. All this ROTB love makes me sit down and write it again 🥰🥰

#rotb asks

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folklauerate · 2 years

Note

So i started reading Miles to Go because i’m a huge Grucy fan and i saw Lucy in the tags, is she gonna appear?

Btw I loved it, i’m really curious to see how Miles and Arshi scheme will develop and how everyone in the families will take it

Hello anon! First of all, thanks for reading that fic. It's wormed it's way into my heart quite firmly; I love my lil menaces Miles and Arshi.

My plan is to have cameos from all the first gen Bridgerton siblings and their families! Greg and Lucy will def be making a couple of appearances in the fic, do not worry :) they've got plenty of kids and Miles looooves to spoil his nieces and nephews with attention!

As for their scheme-it'll develop about as well as you would expect lol. They're both idiots. They're both kinda down bad right from the get go. It's going to go terribly.

#miles the rake #miles and arshi #miles bridgerton #arshi lele #lucy abernathy #greg bridgerton #grucy

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ntshastark · 2 years

Text

KATHONY SUPREMACY

Bridgerton Season 2 liveblog: Part 1 (eps 1-3)

(SPOILERS!!)

ok siena is on the recap, so they haven’t entirely forgotten her (if this is good or bad news remains to be seen)

Episode 1

AYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

🥺

SLDKIFJBNSKLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

anthony/simon friendship crumbs!!

GREG IS SO BIG AND STANDING IN FOR COLIN AS BENEDICT’S PARTNER IN TEASING ANTHONY I’M GONNA CRY

oh god this makeup... she looks 30 (which is claudia’s age but yk)

lmao penelope did save her in the end

“KARMA IS A BITCH, FUCKER”

THE PALL MALL AND THE CLOCK IN THE OPENING

ugh i hate that they only show it on the first episode, it’s so fucking gorgeous

bitch you seemed to think so when you were pretending to be her

NICOLA’S REAL ACCENT!!!!!!!!!!

GREGORY MY TEENY TINY BABY BOY, DANCING WITH HIS OLDER SISTER

me, in the middle of a mental breakdown:

jesus christ, he’s a menace to society

lmaooo

“Lady Julia - a romantic

Miss Quinn - an exceptional writer”

SHE’S HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THE LOVE OF MY LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BITCH SAME

omg i LOVED this new first meeting of theirs. daphmon’s i was so bummed they changed, even if they kept the punch scene for later on, but THIS???? CHEFS KISS

IT’S PERFECT, IT’S PERFECT, IT’S PERFECT, THEY’VE ABSOLUTELY NAILED KATHONY THIS IS THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE

HE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THE REAL STAR OF THE SHOW HAS ARRIVED

unfortunately, i am under the obligation to retract every single good thing i’ve ever sair about lady danbury

EDWINA IS THE CUTEST LITTLE THING, I WANNA SQUEEZE HER

AND KATE LOVES HER SO FUCKING MUCH

lmaoooo

lol of course she would

HE’S SUCH A DICK, I LOVE HIM

AND I WONDER WHO HE TAKES IT FROM

wait, so the sheffield is still there???? 👀

ooo so it’s mary’s surname now

MARY I SEE YOU

.......

are they heavier on the historical references this season or do i just know more about georgian times than back when s1 came out???

(though lord byron is quite difficult to miss lmao)

THE FIRST LOOK SCENE WHERE SHE DRAGGED HIM WHITHIN AN INCH OF HIS LIFE

SUCH A LITTLE SHIT

ooo this kate vs lady danbury dynamic is gonna be interesting

MAY I PROPOSE A COMMON SOLUTION?????????????

THEM

Them <3

CAN YOU BELIEVE HIM

i mean, technically there is no right side up to a map, there’s just the conventionally agreed-upon (by europeans) one

but go on

oooo the plot thickens

SHOTS FIRED

they’re gonna ban this show in england i swear

PENELOISE SUPREMACY

THEY’RE IN LOVE YOUR HONOUR

i really don’t think this was such an official thing

aw, i thought we were gonna have colin introducing them specifically to laugh at anthony's expense like in the book :/

but that would require them to give show!colin some personality, so i guess it’s out of the question

Episode 2

see you guys in a few episodes for the “you’re giving up on your dreams??” “no, dad, i’m giving up on yours” moment

can edwina’s real love interest please show up already????

also, when are anthony’s dirty dreams about kate going to start

someone on twitter mentioned the possibility of at least one of daphne’s former suitors being among the crowd and i haven’t stopped thinking about it since

sweet sweet karma

new reaction picture

this is the second incest joke re: eloise this season lmao

OH MY GOD I’D FORGOTTEN FRANCESCA WAS HERE

oh that’s the dude!!

(and i know he’s gonna hang around kate, but i’ve seen some theories about him ending up with edwina, so i’m 👀 even though ik her future husband in the book is called bagwell)

oh so it’s like that uh

well, here’s for jealous!anthony at least

!!!!!!!!!!!!! THEY LOOK SO FANCY!!!!!!!!!

👀👀👀

oh nvm she’s just playing matchmaker

???? did he pay the guy off or something????

THEY

I LOVE KATE SO MUCH I LOVE ANTHONY SO MUCH I LOVE THIS SERIES SO MUCH THIS IS SO GOOD SO PERFECT I’M GONNA WATCH THIS SCENE 300 MORE TIMES I CAN FEEL IT IN MY BONES THIS IS THE NEW CLOIS DUNK TANK

I’M ALREADY REWATCHING IT

KATE WHISTLING

“SHOULD WE SEPARATE THEM?”

WHATEVER THE FUCK WAS GOING ON HERE

IT’S PERFECT, I ABSOLUTELY ADORE IT

OH MY GOD THEY PULLED A BONUS TAMING OF THE SHREW

(which, fun fact, is very likely the story that started my obsession with enemies-to-lovers)

listen if edwina actually develops feelings for anthony i’m having cvd’s head on a spike

it’s been 1 (one) scene and i’m already shipping eloise and the printing dude way more than i ever did her and phillip oops

GOOD FOR THEM!!!

i’m so intrigued by this featherington cousin and whatever it his plot is actually going to be

ALL THE TEASING IN THE FENCING SCENE, I LOVE ABC SO MUCH

LOOK AT THIS TRIO FUTURE OF SISTERS-IN-LAW

dude.

HE’S COURTING CRESSIDA???????????????????

i’m on the floor

?????? is anthony writing poetry now?????? am i having a stroke??????

HE JUST WROTE DOWN WHAT BENEDICT SAID OH MY GOD

what the fuck is going on oh my god

oh so we’re literally just ignoring season 1 then??? fine by me tbh

imagine this scene without the music and the zooms jesus christ the second-hand embarrassment i feel for him right now

also, imagine the reaction of everyone who was there a few weeks later when they find out he married the sister

god they’re really having edwina be interested in him i am going to commit murder

YOU HAVE????? THE DUDE LITERALLY SHOWED UP TO A TALENT SHOW SAYING “UH, I’M LIKE. RESPONSIBLE AND STUFF”

you literally hated your husband but ok

anyway, where is anthony’s dream

Episode 3

oh no it’s crying time

oh my god, not only was anthony there in this version, it was just the two of them

ON VIOLET’S ARMS

I’M FUCKING SOBBING

wait but

the episode title

no one was wearing a bonnet

is the bee sting on kate happening here too???????? so not only will all of aubrey hall (pall mall, whatever replaces the cressida/penelope scene, the library, the bee) be a single episode, but this is also my hope of seeing the dream and the under the table scenes???????????

THEY’RE ALREADY AT AUBREY HALL???????????????

ok, the sharmas arrived early, there’s still hope for the dream scene, can’t imagine how the table scene can still happen tho, which sucks bc it was my fav scene besides the pall mall :/ can’t believe they expanded maria/siena’s role so much and then cut out her only actual scene in the books

WAIT AND NEWTON IS THERE TOO, AND I’D FORGOTTEN THE FALLING ON WATER SCENE THAT WAS ON THE TRAILER, IS THAT GONNA HAPPEN AT AUBREY HALL THEN??????

oh my god they’re gonna have prudence marry the cousin

guess nigel won’t get a spot in the featherington family tree then

SHE’S HERE HE’S HERE THEY’RE HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! MY BABY AND HER BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

francesca liking babies.........

not show!eloise being terrible with kids lmao i can’t wait to see her with oliver and amanda

I MISSED DAPHNE SO MUCH

DAMN YOU REGÉ-JEAN PAGE FOR ALL THE SCENES YOU’RE DEPRIVING ME OF

bitch by the end of her stay she’ll be your fucking fiancée

oh i’m sure she is

are they just gonna be throwing these flashbacks at me with no warning like a surprise punch in the gut????

THEM

yeah, she could never be a bridgerton

ELOISE IS GONNA PLAY, I SUDDENLY DON’T CARE ABOUT SIMON ANYMORE

i’m happy to inform they kept anthony having no choice but the pink mallet, but took out the annoyingly ahistorical observations about it being a girl’s colour, a nice choice that pleases everyone

BENEDICT ALUNO DE ARTES DA FEDERAL É CANON

MATCHMAKING COLIN IS HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

that’s literally just simone and jonny lmao

the emotional rollercoaster this episode is putting me through cannot be healthy

the way people have to say “the americas” in english bc the us has appropriated the continent’s name just fills me with spite

i mean, kind of

it’s certainly not for their personalities so

god i’m gonna barf

the whole point of the book was that edwina and anthony were never interested in one another, why do they keep pushing this

EDWINA ESPECIFICALLY WANTED A HUSBAND WHO SHARED HER PASSION FOR READING, LITERALLY WHAT IS THIS MESS

THIS IS LITERALLY THE OPPOSITE OF WHAT THEIR DYNAMIC WAS SUPPOSED TO BE

WHAT IS THIS SHOW’S INSISTENCE TO PAIR ANTHONY UP WITH EVERY SINGLE WOMAN HE HAS ANY INTERACTION WHEN THE WHOLE FUCKING POINT OF HIS STORY IS THAT THE ONLY PERSON HE’S EVER REALLY HAD FEELINGS FOR WAS KATE

THANK YOU

THEY’RE GONNA FUCKING TAKE POSY AWAY FROM ME SOPHIE AREN’T THEY

OH MY GOD IS COLIN ON OPIUM

ARE THEY GETTING HIGH ON THE FUCKING NURSERY

OH MY GOD BENEDICT IS HAVING AN OVERDOSE

SHONDA RHIMES IS GONNA STRAIGHT UP MURDER A BRIDGERTON SIBLING RIGHT BEFORE THEIR STARRING SEASON

excuse me while i sob on the floor

they’re literally pretending season 1 never happened i-

GOOD NEWS: BENEDICT DID NOT OD

BAD NEWS: HE IS HIGH AT DINNER

daphne seems to be the only one who knows what’s up with kathony, thank the fucking stars for her

LITERALLY WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON

I ALMOST HAD A FUCKING HEART ATTACK

THE SHARMA SISTERS OWN MY HEART

AND FUCK ANTHONY BRIDGERTON, ALL MY HOMIES HATE ANTHONY BRIDGERTON

benedict is literally everyone i went to art school with

OOOOOOOO INTERESTING

she’s not wearing a bonnet........... dare i hope................

OH MY GOD THEY CHANGED IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT

I SHOULD BE UPSET BUT I’M NOT???????????? i mean, i’d be more upset if they’d gotten engaged at this point, honestly, and exactly because there’s been almost no romantic tension so far (no dream, no kiss in the office). and i understand that they probably changed it so it wasn’t too similar to season 1 (and one of my biggest complains about tvwlm was that the plot structure was way too similar to td&i, so i do get it)

but also now i’m scared shitless of what they’re gonna do instead, bc i’ve seen some theories on twitter about kate and edwina swapping places at the wedding and i swear i will personally murder someone if this happens

but also also........... this would be the perfect moment for anthony to have a spicy dream about kate.................... (it’s literally on the synopsis of the book ok?? it can’t not happen on the show, i won’t allow it!)

#spoilers #bridgerton spoilers #f: the bridgertons #s: bridgerton #mari liveblogs

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aconitewolfsbane · 5 years

Text

Steven Universe Future Reactions - Bluebird

- “I’m an actor.” Yes. Yes you are. - Kinda TP’d... lol - That’s the spirit. - DundunDUH! - Eww... - Amethyst, you jerk. - The bathroom is apparently the designated room for awkward conversations. I’m... not sure how that came about. - Hey, Greg! - Such a menace. She must be stopped. - Pearl is so done with his BS right now. - Classic prank! - New painting! Steven and his REAL mums. Nice! - Why would she need to stretch? Gem bodies aren’t real, so they don’t even have muscles. So they can’t pull one. So... WHY?! - Poor Amethyst. - That’s not a good scream... - They thought they were being so subtle... - Oof, poor Greg. Dangling only by his hair like that... That’s gotta hurt. - Also, what’s with the Greg hate this season?! He’s a good bloke, leave Greg along, Rebecca! - WHOA! - Steven’s so strong, he can cradle his own father like a child. - *crawls to his discarded hair* “Oh, my baby...” LMTO! - They’re not even listening... - Called him. - Ooh, nice blade. I want Pearl to fight her. Ooh! Or Connie! Connie would wreck the bitch. - ALEXANDRITE! - That was quick. Bluebird got curb-stomped in like, two seconds flat. - They are so done. - Bubble the bitch. - Burial at sea for his hair. That is such a Greg thing to do. - Also, that probably gonna wash up somewhere and start a murder investigation or something...

TL;DR: Never invite anybody who might have a problem with you to your house, you fucking dumbass; When your child tells you that someone is trying to kill him, maybe you should believe him? Especially when he has a history of people trying to kill him...; Pranks are an excellent way to wear down you enemies. Bonus points if they are as bizarre as possible; After a haircut, give it a Viking funeral. You don’t have to, but it’s cooler.

#stevenuniversefuture #1st reactions #bluebird #OPaconitewolfsbane

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bostonpoetryslam · 6 years

Quote

On Plenty of Fish, a 62-year old man in Istanbul asks for your hand in marriage. I could be happy, you think. I could be happy. On OKCupid, Zach messages you asking for pictures of your feet. Close-ups, he writes. None of that from-across-the-room bullshit. You swipe left on Greg. He’s wearing hats in all his pictures; you assume he’s balding and insecure. A few days later, Greg shows up again. You swipe left. Soon after, he shows up yet again, and, again, you swipe left. The fourth time, you notice as his face begins to change in the pictures, becomes distorted, his smile twists into a menacing grimace. Greg will not be ignored. Adam is covered in tattoos, did a five-year stint in prison for manslaughter, texts you every night at 11:01PM saying: send me a pic lol. You’re in love with him.

Bertha Isabel Crombet, “Dating App Gothic,” published in NDR

#bertha isabel crombet #poetry #ndr #dating #dating apps

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drawbauchery · 7 years

Text

I meant to funny, but then I serious-ed. Anyways, here’s a sequel that nobody asked for.

You are concerned.

Well, no, that’s not quite right. You are Peridot. But you’re feeling concerned.

It began a while back. You had been going through the barn looking for something new to make meepmorp. It was then that you found the radio.

It never seemed like much. After finding a place to plug it in, you had even had fun listening to the music that spilled out of it. Your barn mate, a Lapis Lazuli, had even listened to the music with you. After hearing some songs enough, you both would sing along with the radio.

Then you found that station.

What you didn’t know before is that Lapis Lazulis have a certain harmonic resonance. When a certain type of music plays, a Lapis Lazuli has a reaction that appears to affect her consciousness and, to a lesser extent, her physical projection.

That is literally the only reason you can think of for why she acts the way she does.

It seemed harmless at first. Sure, you were shocked that she would steal the radio at first, but she seemed to be over it after that.

Then it happened again.

And again.

You tried to hide the music machine, but she found it every time. You tried burying it, but it was always dug up.

A few days ago you finally decided to cut the power cord. An extreme measure, but one that had to be done. She was addicted to the music. You thought that she would go back to her normal demeanor after a few days without music.

It seemed to work. Lapis was back to her old self again. It was finally over.

You awoke today missing your tablet.

You can’t let this go. You can’t let her destabilize herself like this. You have to put an end to this.

You grab a hammer from your collection of tools and run outside. She’ll be where she always goes, so you run to the silo. As you round it, you see exactly what you expected.

Your barn mate is off to the side, making her strange motions. Her eyes lol off to different sides of her head while her tongue pokes out between her lips. You don’t understand why she continues to do this to herself.

Off to the side is the offending machine now. Your tablet is propped up on a stump, a tinny music playing out of the back. You steadily make your way over to it.

You raise the hammer, thinking your apologies to the companionable machine, but stop when you hear a voice behind you.

“Peridot? What are you doing?”

You turn your head to look at the source of the voice. Standing there is no longer the Lapis making those weird movements, but your Lapis. Your arms crossed, eyebrow raised, head tilted, obviously confused Lapis.

You look back at your tablet. The music continues to play out of the back of it. But that’s impossible.

The entire point of a harmonic resonance means that as long as the music is playing, the effect remains. But here Lapis is, acting as if nothing is happening. It doesn’t make sense.

Unless you were wrong about the resonance the whole time.

You quickly turn your body to face your friend, hiding the hammer behind your back. You’re actually quite happy that you don’t have to destroy your tablet. It would have been a difficult loss, even if it was to save your friend.

Her brow arches higher and you remember that she asked you a question.

Okay, play it cool Peridot. You’ve conducted an interrogation before. You can work around these questions.

“Nothing. What are you doing out here?”

Brilliant. Grade A question dodging.

Her face doesn’t change, but she answers your question all the same, “I came out here to have a little fun.” She looks behind you, you assume at the tablet, and then her eyes flit back to yours. “Sorry about taking your tablet, but the cord for the radio wasn’t attached.”

Your mouth gapes open. Fun? She called looking foolish like that fun?

Granted, you’ve seen Amethyst and Steven do some odd things themselves. They were never things that she really thought to do, but the other two seemed to enjoy themselves. But that was Amethyst and Steven.

“That’s fun? How is looking foolish like that fun?”

Lapis frowns. Dang, you went off and offended her again. You’re really trying to work on that, but it just happens sometimes.

“It’s not about looking foolish.” She starts closing the space between the two of you, her height giving her a slightly menacing edge over you. She reaches out, and you flinch back a bit expecting… you’re not sure.

She’s never hit you or yelled at you. Hell, you’ve enjoyed her company ever since she moved into the barn with you. However, when you’re a small Peridot with a large imagination, a larger gem with powers like Lapis has can be quite intimidating. You wish you still had your limb enhancers.

She grasps the hand at your side with a firm, yet gentle, hold and brings it towards her. “It’s about… just not thinking and letting your body move. It’s about letting go of everything for a little while.”

You look down as you think on that. Lapis has been through a lot. Maybe just letting everything go for a while could be good for her. Maybe you were hasty in your earlier conclusions.

She breaks you out of your thoughts when she says, “Maybe you should try it.” You look back into her face to find a smirk. Her eyes are half-lidded, and you can see the glint behind them.

“Ohhhh, no.” You back away a step, holding your hand out in front of you. “You can do what you want, but I’m not getting involved in this one.”

She shrugs. “Suit yourself, then.” Her smirk doesn’t change as she turns away from you and goes back to where you first found her. You merely stand there as she relaxes and goes back into her movements.

After a minute of watching the blue gem, you pull the hammer from behind your back and look at it. You were about to break something because you had the wrong idea about it. She did look like she was enjoying her time. Maybe you owed it to her to try it out.

And so, you dropped the hammer and walked over near where she was moving around. You try to relax your body and let your mind go. After a little while, you let your body just move with the music.

And you both give it the ol’ razzle dazzle.

Bonus: Actual Resonance

A chime sounded as you appear on top of the pad. You raise the soda cup in your hand and take a sip of what little is left in it as you step off the warp pad and into the small field leading to the barn Greg was letting the gems use. The barn that is now home to a couple of gems that you consider friends.

You are Amethyst, and you’re here to spend some quality time with some good friends.

The first place you look is the barn, but you don’t get a response when you call out. You try looking around inside, but see no trace of either of the gems. Guess you’ll have to look elsewhere.

You pop the empty soda cup into your mouth as you start for the next likely place they’ll be. While you focus on the interesting flavor, the silo starts to come into view. When you come close enough though, you think you hear something.

Some strange… music.

The closer you get, the more it seems to ring in your head. The drums and horns seem to run through your arms. You can practically feel the rhythm pounding in your gem.

You think about stopping, but at the same time you don’t want to. It’s like the music has a hold over you.

As your eyes slacken and roll around, you remember what this is. It’s been so long since this last happened that you’d forgotten all about it. You give a little smile as your tongue sticks out between your lips.

This was going to be fun.

And so, the music overwhelmed you.

And you gave it the razzle dazzle.

(pretend-im-not-there )

peridazzle, lapis razzledazzuli, and

amehowthefuckdidigetherewhatthefuckisgoingonthyst

#pretend-im-not-there #submission #fics #pretty sure everyone asked for a sequel to this #hell i needed it

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