#a-lady-in-waiting-story-post

[a-ladyman-in-waiting]

A Lady in Waiting (1)

[A story in the works]

I don’t know about you, but I think that some, if not all of us, want to be someone else. 

Especially in the realm of fantasy, where anyone could be as powerful as they could be.

But in this case, we just got to know the fellow before their transformation.

Otherwise, she’ll have no context.

Or us in that sense.

A Lady in Waiting

Chapter 1

“What a day.”

“I really want to buy something to eat”

“But I already ate, so why do I feel like buying snacks?”

“I traveled through whole crowds to get a limited edition Bakugan. That was the whole reason why I came here all this way for nothin, was to buy a special toy.”

The complainer over here is Brendon Rivera.

A college student, aged 22.

He often complained about stuff that happened to him.

Like the time he dropped a card onto a puddle of water.

[NOOOOO]

Or the time that he has to help out at work despite having no classes over the weekend.

[maaaaaaannnnnn]

Or the time that two buses passed by him.

[you absolute {beep-beep}, pieces of {beep}, {beep-beep}, I swear to lord I will {beep} {beep} {beeeeeep}.]

I’ll give him a pass for that. The bus system is a total mess.

Anyways, Brendon is walking around town moping about losing a toy that he didn’t need.

Until…he noticed a sign.

“Huh. That wasn’t there before.”

He takes a moment to read the sign.

Garage sale today. From 4/7 to 4/12.

Over on Gallon Road.

“Huh. A garage sale. Wonder if they have anything.”

This is where it began…ok maybe not.

It took Brendon five minutes to get there, mainly because he took his time walking.

But when he reached Gallon Road, he noticed a bunch of boxes, a couch, a few TVs, tables with several shirts, old big toys, shiny objects and oddly shaped objects.

“Huh.”

When he got closer, he saw a collection of toy cars, remote control cars, gold chain necklaces, even more shirts of different colors.

He also found lamps, vases, plates, a dark green couch with a patch of worn out red, a brown coat rack behind a pile of boxes and paintings.

“Oh dang.”

Then one object in particular caught his attention.

Two necklaces.

A pearl necklace fit for a lady.

And a necklace with a strange looking design, holding an egg-shaped white gem surrounded by six red gems.

Brendon found himself drawn to the large pearl.

He was bending over to get a closer look.

He developed an urge to buy them.

So he looked up and said,

“How much for these two?”

An elderly woman came over and told him,

“$120.34”

“Oh.”

[I mean…I was going to blow $250 on a limited edition Bakugan…]

“Ok”

[Welp, at least mom might like the pearl necklace.]

Brendon handed over 6 $20 bills, a quarter, and a dime, where he received a penny in return.

[I still have some money left over…but I better save it]

“Thanks!” Said Brendon.

“No problem!” The elderly woman chimed.

Brendon walked away with two pretty necklaces. An action that would change his life forever.

Now it begins.

It was a relatively uneventful evening at home.

After Brendon showed his mother the two necklaces, she was awestruck by the fancy necklaces and thanked him for the pearl necklace. Brendon put away his necklace to try on later because he has a lot that he should be doing.

Brendon helped with his sister’s homeworks (reluctantly I might add).

The family ate their dinner, took showers, and generally went to bed. However, Brendon decided to stay up a bit longer to check up on his necklace.

“Ok, let’s take a closer look.”

He picked up his necklace and studied it.

“Hmmm…oh dang…the white egg pearl is pretty big.”

“Like almost bigger than my thumb…”

“The shape of the gold looks like a fire fighter sign. There are 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 rubies.”

“They’re also egg shaped.”

“It’s pretty heavy for a necklace, so I probably shouldn’t run with this.”

Brendon put on the necklace and looked into the mirror.

“Hmmmm….”

“Mmm…”

“I guess it’s nice.”

“…mmmm”

“I uh…”

“Umm”

Brendon doesn’t have any idea of what he bought.

Seriously, he has no fashion sense.

“I’ll keep it on for now. I might have an idea later on”

“Such as a plan for pumpkin spice latte.”

“Like how much pumpkin sauce should you use to keep it sweet but not too sweet.”

“There’s a coffee shop down the road, but it’s pretty expensive. But they do have croissants and pan dulce.”

“Man I could go for some pan dulce, maybe I can get some when I come back or such.”

“But I really don’t want to bump into Renaldo.”

“He’s rude.”

“Like the time that he sprayed me with water and I then slipped and fell from trying to catch him.”

“Or the time that he bumped me while I was dribbling the ball. Making me fall down.”

“Or the time that he put gum in my hair and I got in trouble for punching him.”

“Just unfair.”

That was years ago, Brendon.

“Like I’m just still mad over this.”

“Like I just don’t like him.”

“I hate him, honestly.”

“I hate his little goofy face.”

“I hate how he gets attention from everyone.”

“I hate how he gets away with shit.”

“I just don’t. Want. To. See. Him.”

He covers his mouth. And looks around.

“Oh shoot. I must’ve been pretty loud.”

“Sorry guys.”

He walks into the kitchen and looks at himself in the mirror.

“I honestly don’t like how I look like. I mean I’m messy. I stink. I’m generally the face of gross things…I wish I looked pretty. Like a dragon lady, with sexy clothes, a long tail, beautiful wings, and a voice that everyone goes ’Mama Mia’…”

Brendon snickers to himself.

“hehehe”

Then he takes a deep breath.

“Besides, I’m always the “quiet one.” Like I have stuff I want to say as well. Like for example, I like leotards….shit no…anything except for what I draw.”

“Never mind, I’ll probably just never mention that at all.”

“I sound like a pervert.”

“Ignore the part about the dragon lady stuff…”

Brendon sighs.

Then he went to the kitchen to clean the table to make space to draw his character.

He set the sketchbook down, opened up to a blank page and picked up his pencil.

He then put on his headphones to listen to his playlist of random songs that he liked.

“Ok, time to draw Madeline.”

Brendon proceeded to draw his character.

He drew the figure (body), he drew an overall leotard shape, he marked where the gloves and thigh highs would end, then he hurriedly drew a tail with fins.

Brendon stopped for a moment…

He started thinking…

Then he made quick shapes for wings, then sketched the fingers, the horns, the hair…

Along the way, he made a few mistakes.

Then he erased them.

Then he drew them again, made a mistake and erased.

This was how he usually draws…

He sketches the long skirt. Gotta have cover, I suppose.

He sketches the top part…

A…boob window…and a choker…

Oh boy.

The gloves…they’re baggy around the shoulders and tight around the wrist…

And he gave her a…rose…on the waist…

And…oh my…he’s drawing a vine pattern around the skirt…

how…complicated…

Anyways, Brendon’s eyes began to grow heavy. He stood up from his seat and began to yawn and stretch.

His piece remains as a sketch…

Smudges, furry lines, an overly simple face on top of a detailed body.

A front facing figure, hands that may not remain the same, multiple fabric folds.

Need I go on?

“Alright, that’s enough…” Brendon muttered.

He packed up his sketchbook.

Packed it into his backpack.

Brushed his teeth and tongue.

He hates the taste.

Then he went to bed.

OK…Now it begins.

[flovoid]

When an apple falls off a tree

[twoastricts]

Decided to adopt the head canon that Wyrms like to hoard trinkets. I have many thoughts and ideas about it, and reasons for adopting it.

Each wyrm, and being with the mind of a wyrm, (I.E. just the vessels and Hornet) enjoy hoarding one specific trinket. A holdover instinct from the days when they didn't have minds, as wyrms are true omnivores, able to eat anything, so instead of hunting instincts they had hoarding instincts.

Each wyrm's hoard was heavily guarded. They would never let anyone take from it without their permission, and were known for hiding them in little nooks and crannies.

Wyrms liked to encourage this instinct, especially in their kits. If a wyrm didn't collect and add to their hoard, it might be a sign of depression, anxiety, unhealthily high stress levels, low self esteem and hole slu of other mental health issues, sometimes also being signs of physical sickness.

While most wyrm instincts get covered up by their minds, different minds let through different instincts. Some wyrms struggle with borrowing instincts, other struggle with instincts revolving around mating and breeding. Wyrm with a capital W struggles with nesting instincts. That being said, the hoarding instinct is the only instinct, besides the instincts revolving around how their tails show their emotions, that every wyrm seems to have no matter what. There is a hereditary syndrome in which the instinct seems to not be there, but that doesn't stop wyrms with it from hoarding, as hoarding had become a part of wyrm culture, but they did struggle with figuring out what they wanted to hoard since it didn't come to them naturally. Sometimes the object that a wyrm hoarded would change, normally after some sort of trauma but it sometimes just happened. The literature of wyrm society nearly always mentioned what the protagonist hoarded, and having that change by the end of the story was a common trope. That being said, any time a wyrm that had this instinct tried to suppress the instinct, it rarely worked, unless it was supposed since kithood, then it might be hard to reobtain said instinct.

[mirrortouchedsea]

sunsets are best viewed with friends you barely talk to

hi kuroshu nation so. i kinda went insane after the original shu unbloomed cg dropped. and wrote 1.7k words about it. and then the kuro cg dropped this morning and i'm even more insane so i'm posting everything now and yeah. enjoy.

Shu disembarked the bike, Kiryu’s arms still wrapped tightly around him. The simple touch reminded Shu of their childhood, though often the roles were reversed, weren’t they? Shu, a scared, fragile child would come to Kiryu in tears while his bullies chased him. It felt…weird, but not wrong to have Kiryu behind him, complaining about his motion sickness as they biked to the top of a mountain. 

We’re here, Kiryu, you can let go now. Shu’s voice was gentle, a tone used so infrequently he almost thought he’d lost it. Ugh, since when could you bike like that, Kiryu, no, Ryukun grumbled. Shu was five, six, seven again, the two of them running off on their own after school as they so often did. It’s been a while since we’ve had time alone like this, hasn’t it, Ryukun. Shu drops the old nickname casually here, where nobody can hear them. You’re always so busy when you’re back from France, Icchan, and anyway what did you want to show me? 

Shu grabbed Ryukun’s hand tentatively, still unsure what was and wasn’t okay (Ryukun didn’t pull away, let their fingers be intertwined so Shu could drag him along). The sun was setting already and he didn’t want to miss the moment. Shu, someone who always knew what to say, didn’t have the words for what he really wanted to ask. The oranges and pinks from the sky sang their melody to the Earth as the two of them ran like children to the edge of a grassy hillside. 

It’s a beautiful sunset, Icchan, but what are you--Shu cut him off, a finger to Ryukun’s lips. Just watch, you’ll understand. Their breathing evened out, and the air was calm, but after what could have been seconds, minutes, the sounds of nature took over, a gentle moth flying out of a bush towards the streetlight, the crickets playing their songs, a small plot of wildflowers humming with bees. It wasn’t much, but nature’s music, the orange glow of the sunset, everything was just right. Ryukun, I’m…Shu couldn’t find the words, his head a mess of everything he wanted to say. Thank you for everything, I’m sorry I was such a jerk about your mom when we were kids, I miss the time we spent together, I wish we talked more, I still hate you for what you did to Kanata, I understand why you did it, These feelings are too complicated, Are you…happy, with how things are? 

You don’t have to say anything, Icchan, we can just enjoy the sunset if you want. Yes, that sounds nice. The two of them settle in on the grass, awkwardly sitting apart, hands next to each other in the grass, the silence palpable. Shu wanted to say something, anything, why did he drag Ryukun up here again? He should say something. Ryukun-- Icchan--. The two of them looked at each other before breaking out in laughs. Being with Ryukun, even like this, was so…freeing. No expectations or pretenses to be had, they’ve seen each other at their worst, their cringiest, their childish selves. 

No, there was something I wanted to talk about, Kiry--Ryukun (why is he correcting himself to that childish nickname again?), are you happy? What do you mean by that? I mean, are you happy with your life so far, everything you’ve done, do you have any regrets? Sure, there’s plenty of things to regret, but there’s no use crying over spilled milk, y’know, as much as I’d like to change the past, I have to accept that I can’t. Yes, of course I understand that but, have you ever wondered what would have happened if we never lost contact? All the damn time Icchan, but like I said, no use crying over spilled milk, we had our ways and we’re lucky we’ve found each other again. Shu lifted his hand, shaking, unsure if he should reach out. 

Ryukun, can you promise me something? Shu is six years old, shaking after a particularly bad incident with his bullies. Of course, Icchan, we’re friends aren’t we? Mhm, I know, but…promise me we’ll always be friends? Ryukun laughs and pulls Shu into a hug, his warmth overwhelming and yet comforting. Yeah, Icchan, we’ll be friends forever. 

Shu dropped his hand back to the grass, pinky brushing Ryukun’s own. I do wonder how things would have looked if we had been together for middle school as well. I’m sure I’d have still gotten in plenty of trouble beating up your bullies. That’s not a bad thing, you know, most people would say it’s something honorable. Do you? Do I think it’s honorable? Yeah. Well, you always had good intentions. That’s not answering the question, Icchan. I know, but it is honorable, though I’m unsure if I deserved it, after… Listen, I know we were on opposite sides back then, but you need to stop being so harsh on yourself. Says you, I’ve heard what you’ve said about yourself from back then through the grapevine. Ah, ‘course you have. 

I know that I say I hate Tenshouin, but I needed someone to wake me up as it were, if things had kept going as they had, I’m afraid I might have run Nito into the ground. Ha, yeah you would have, y’know we used to communicate in signs because of you? Yes, I’ve been made aware of that, and I feel nothing but shame for my actions that led to that. Nito forgives you, you know. Yes, I’m also aware of that, though I don’t deserve it. Well then I don’t deserve forgiveness from Shinkai for the Battle of the Sea God. No…Kanata forgives you for that as well. 

We’re talking in circles now, Icchan. Yes, but I’ve been beating around the bush. Shu shifted and turned to Ryukun, his face young in the deep orange of the setting sun. God why was this so hard, it's not like Shu hadn’t been thinking about exactly what he wanted to say all day, no not at all. His heart was beating fast, rib cage tingling with nervousness. He sighed. Ryukun, no I should address you by your proper name. I think I like Ryukun just fine, Icchan. Fine, Ryukun, do you remember when we were kids and hiding beneath the slide on the playground that one day. There were a lot of days like that, I don’t remember you liking to play with the other kids. Nonsense, they just…well regardless, do you remember the day under the slide when we were talking about what we wanted to be when we grew up, you know, jobs, family, the stuff kids talk about. Yeah, I remember that you wanted to be a fashion designer with your clothes shown all over the world, and look at you now. Yes yes, and you just wanted to live a quiet life and look where we both are, but after that, when we talked about getting married and having kids. I seem to remember you were appalled at the idea of having kids of your own, Icchan. And you wanted a little girl just like your sister so you could spoil her and protect her. What’s your point Icchan, we were kids and didn’t know any better. I’m getting to that part, just…well I suppose when we were kids, the idea of two boys uhm… Ryukun chuckled and shifted to look Shu, Icchan, in the eyes. Icchan, we did kiss under the slide that day, remember? It was just a peck on the lips, nothing more! Well, yeah, but kids don’t really understand the weight of that and…

Icchan, are you trying to say you want to kiss me? Shu’s face felt as if it was on fire. Well, frankly, yes he was trying to say that, just not that directly. The thought had periodically come back to him as he went through middle and high school, whenever his mind wandered just a little too much at night, and now that they were graduated and living in the real world, well the thought only became stronger. It was really causing issues for his work if he was being honest and if he could just satisfy the urge, surely the thought would leave him alone and he could get back to working in peace. Ryukun laughed, not at Shu, but rather at the roundabout way that Shu had gone about asking, bringing him up to this secluded spot like teenagers in love, just to lose courage halfway through. 

Icchan. Ryukun’s hand gently guided Shu’s face to look at his own, Shu tried to keep his eyes downcast. Hey, Icchan, look at me. Shu glanced up, taking in the sight of his childhood best friend, with hair like the autumn leaves, sun mostly set at that point, but the stars danced around Ryukun’s head like a crown. Do you want to kiss me? Yes, Ryukun. Shu’s voice was barely above a whisper. Ryukun closed his eyes, Icchan did the same, leaning in, breath hitched. Ryukun’s lips were soft, gentle, a hand still on Icchan’s cheek, and for a moment they were children under the slide again and playing pretend but this time…it was different. The moment lasted forever. It wasn’t long enough. Icchan pulled away, breaths shallow though the kiss was just a peck on the lips like it was when they were kids. Ryukun leaned his forehead on Icchan’s, eyes still closed. 

Can we do that again. Ryukun’s voice is soft, delicate, the opposite of the normal Ryukun. And all of this was just for Shu in that moment. Yes. Icchan moved in that time, the two of them stayed like that in the sunset, kissing over and over and over until the sun had fully set. 

We should go back, everyone’ll be worried about us. Yes, we should go back before it gets any darker. Ryukun stood up first, offering a hand to Icchan before putting his helmet back on. The two climbed back on the bike, taking in the view of the stars over the city one last time before Shu kicked off and they began their descent back to ES. 

--- 

The thoughts did not get better after that. 

[elibean]

also we are at the halfway point and like, nothing substantial has happened

[snek-of-eden]

do you ever see a hole in the grass, overrun with plants, leaves, life, and see an unfilled grave? a life that despite what nature prepares, kept on living? do you ever see a tree tagged for research thst will become a single line in a table when its story could fill all the pages of a book? sometimes i want to be the owner of the grave, someone who defies the odds and leaves a hollow to become a story. i want to be the tree that has so many tales to tell, but i fear being overlooked and ignored, used only for useful information others can gain from me. we should live to help others as they help us but not let our stories be told without taking one from the other

[necrotic-nephilim]

do you ship helena bertinelli with anyone? if yes, then which characters and why? what's your favorite helena ship? do you have any helena rarepairs? (i know you've talked about helena/steph and you're so right about it, it's a very interesting ship)

!!!! i have so many ships for my best girl ever yes oh my god thank you for asking.

my top pairing is probably Vic Sage/the Question. Vic is the basic answer, but man. i love them so much. no couple has matched each other's freak like that have. Justice League Unlimited is a great adaptation of Helena in general, but it also did a great adaptation of Helena and Vic's relationship. how he just dedicates himself to helping her with no expected return, but also wants to make sure she doesn't go too far in a hunt for vengeance that never ends for her. i think a lot of characters often want to change Helena or expect things out of her for their own needs, like the Batfam and the BoP. but Vic is one of the few people who just wants her to be better for her own good. when he tries to stop her from killing it's not because of his morals, it's because he doesn't want this crusade to consume her. and i just. man i think about them a lot. Helena rlly likes weird little men who give themselves wholly to her.

Zinda Blake/Lady Blackhawk is also a top ship for me. tbh i just like Zinda. but i do love how Helena and Zinda interact, being the more rough and tumble members of the BoP. they're both outsiders, in different ways. Helena is an outsider of the Batfam and Zinda is literally from a different time and an outsider to the current world. their friendship is so genuine and i think if Babs and Dinah can have. whatever homoerotic nonsense going on during BoP, then Zinda and Helena deserve some homoerotic nonsense too. as a treat.

if we're willing to count New-52 Helena, then i enjoy Helena/Dick/Tiger. i think Helena and Dick being a past relationship is really important in pre-Flashpoint for Helena's development, though i don't ship them as a serious couple beyond a fling. but in the New-52, i think this throuple be fun. Helena and Tiger respect each other as two very driven, no-nonsense agents and then well. they both clearly have some kind of thing for Dick. so it's fun finding the balance of how they could all work together romantically.

and ofc. it's a crime to mention Helena ships and not mention Renee Montoya/the Question. every time they interact it's really fucking gay. it's so gay that Kate Kane, Renee's own ex, assumed Helena and Renee were gay. i cannot be convinced against this ship. i genuinely think this ship should be canon. i mean. DC did tease us with this moment from an alternate universe and it's lived rent for me since. fucking criminal for us to only get one panel of what we could have if DC let Helena be a fruit in the main universe. being in love with Helena Bertinelli should be a right of passage for the Question mantle, i personally believe. if you asked me like. genuinely who i want to see Helena date in the current comics, Renee is my top pick. (i would say Vic but he's fucking dead and the New-52 butchered him so rip my mans-)

lois lane (2019) #10

besides those ships, just about every ship for Helena probably falls into the category of rarepair. like you said i've talked about my love for Helena/Steph before bc god. i think it should be a thing more people ship. once i finish the fic i'm writing about them i will convince others to like it.

i also think Helena/Cass could be fun. in a *lot* of ways Helena and Cass are narrative parallels to each other. Helena was a victim of her family being murdered at about the same age Cass was forced to be a murderer. Helena grows up to believe in lethal justice because of this, and Cass grows up to be staunchly against it. Cass' Batgirl suit was made *by* Helena. they both want to be protectors of the most vulnerable people. they balance each other out in a lot of ways and i think they should kiss about it.

also probably a rarepair, i think Helena/Lady Shiva is fun. their fight during Birds of Prey (2010) had... questionable moments for Helena's characterization, but i do love so much that Helena knocks Shiva off her feet and gains a deep respect from Shiva. like. Shiva gives her a nickname and shows her admiration. i would like to see fanfic where Shiva continues to be weirdly admirable of Helena and bothering her non-stop. they could be a fun fucked up toxic yuri moment. this is just. so gay to me.

birds of prey (2010) #6

my most rare Helena pair would probably be Helena Wayne, actually. but specifically Helena Wayne of JSA (2022). ever since, for some reason, it was made canon that the current Helena Wayne was named after Helena Bertinelli and took the name Huntress to honor her i *cannot* stop thinking about them meeting. because in-universe it makes *no* fucking sense for Bruce to name his kid after *Helena Bertinelli*, someone he's regularly at odds with and doesn't like. it's clearly an awkward explanation to try to make the whole two Huntress situation make sense. (it's almost as bad as Helena Wayne in the New-52 using Helena Bertinelli as an alias.) but because it's such an odd choice, i do think it could be fun for Helena Wayne, when she's back in time to see Bruce, to find Helena Bertinelli to get to know the woman she was named after and Helena Bertinelli just being. baffled by the idea of *Batman* naming his kid after her. it could be a fun fucked up moment.

my other super rarepair is Kara Zor-L/Power Girl. they had like. one meaningful interaction of JSA Classified and it's been PLAGUING me. something about when Power Girl doesn't remember her past and she's seeking a friend, she instinctively goes to find Huntress? but it's wrong bc this isn't *her* Huntress and neither of them understand why Power Girl would seek Helena out? god it's so good. i'm always a big fan of ships where one person in the ship is *so* obviously using the other person as a replacement for someone they lost and they both know it. it's such a doomed angsty thing where you could play with Helena actually really liking Kara, but knowing that she's just a replacement for Kara's Helena Wayne. good fucked up shit man.

and lastly: i really ship her with Dawn Granger/Dove. there's no canon basis for this, they didn't have a ton of interactions even when they were both on the BoP. but there's a very kind innocence to Dawn that contrasts Helena's violence really well. and i do love a ship with a corruption kink vibe to it. let Helena corrupt Dawn. i could write such fucked up porn about these two.

[anxiously-sidequesting]

I will never ever forget what my dad said to me years ago in middle school when I was sad that my irl friend at the time wasn't playing wizard101 with me and he immediately said "well that's probably because she has a life." God still hasn't lifted me back up from that

[pumaskulls]

More references!

[carolinanadeau]

In Praise of Sally Ann Howes

As I've made it one of the purposes of my blog to share photos and songs and general positivity about the wonderful English actress Sally Ann Howes, I thought I'd make a post to talk in much more detail about all the great things about her and why I adore her so much!

This classy English beauty possessed a highly expressive face and eyes, an astonishingly powerful soprano, a great sense of humor, and the world's most charming laugh. One thing I cannot stop saying about Sally Ann is that she did not and does not get nearly enough credit and recognition for her immense talent and prolific career, and it's precisely for that reason that I'm here to do my part in giving it to her!

This overlong rambling post is a combination of biographical information and my personal fawning over her performances... whatever I felt I most wanted to put out there in the world and what I'd like people less familiar with her to know.

Click on Keep Reading and I'll take you on a journey!

As she preferred to work on the stage and didn't really pursue a film career, the catalog of Sally Ann's work that can still be viewed today is unfortunately small - though you can find almost all of her early films on the internet if you look hard! In her early film days, mostly made before she was able to pursue her true passion of musical theatre, her extraordinary singing talents weren't utilized by the producers at all.

However, we were fortunately blessed with exactly one musical film role from her, and it's an iconic one: the aptly-named role of Truly Scrumptious in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968), the golden-haired, golden-hearted candy heiress who falls in love with and eventually marries Dick van Dyke's character Caractacus Potts after joining him and his children on a madcap adventure. She's a sweet, intelligent ingenue with hidden depths and one of my favorite sorts of character arcs - the uptight, lonely woman who becomes more and more warm and open as she discovers newfound freedom and joy in life and falls in love.

There is something about Sally Ann that just glows in every scene of Chitty, and it's not only that bright blonde hair! The way she widens her eyes sometimes, the way she raises her eyebrows, her gentle and soft presence in the happiest scenes, and the particular airy lilt she has to her speaking voice are all so distinctive and appealing, and I can't take my eyes off her. And her smile! When I say she glows it's barely even a metaphor, the woman just emits light. 

(Funnily enough, I started to realize that many of the laudatory quotes I've found about her also refer to her in this way, like this quote from a 1965 TV Guide article, from playwright Sidney Kingsley: "She's luminous as an actress. I mean that literally. In Brigadoon she really lit up the stage.")

For me, I'm weak for any actress who can do the defrosted-ice-queen trope so incredibly well. Truly starts out as closed-off and prim, and nearly reverts to that state when she and Caractacus have a Big Misunderstanding near the end, but in the scenes where she's happy and carefree, the warmth just radiates off of her.

She also has the most adorable chemistry with Dick van Dyke in an annoyances-to-friends-to-lovers relationship that absolutely shaped my young brain. Whenever Sally Ann and Dick glance at each other, whether with irritation and frustration early in the film or with warmth and affection later on, their chemistry is obvious and natural, and there's so much expressed in each one of those glances. One has no difficulty believing that these characters are going to be very happily married.

(Here's a cute on-set interview where she talks about, among other things, how easily she and van Dyke clicked.)

While I acknowledge that the character of Caractacus Potts was absolutely originally planned to be an actual Englishman, Dick van Dyke played him with an American accent, and to me they will always be an adorable English-American couple. It's a whole part of the charm of this pairing to me!

Sally Ann also had a great relationship with child actors Adrian Hall and Heather Ripley who played Jeremy and Jemima Potts, and did her best to help make them more comfortable and happy during the many very long days on set. Having been a child film star herself, she knew a great deal about how difficult and alienating it could be. The genuine affection the three of them shared is obvious in their scenes together, especially in the extremely adorable "Truly Scrumptious" number, and it really makes the developing mother-child relationship between the characters so believable.

The beach scene, where so much of the relationship between Truly and Caractacus and the Potts children is developed, is incredibly cute and heartwarming, and a lot of that rides on Sally Ann's performance and how her previously prim-and-proper character shows herself to be warm and loving, once she (literally) lets her hair down. We've already seen how happy the Potts family is together; now we see how Truly fits in perfectly and makes them all even happier.

Look at her! Literally glowing!

(One thing I should mention: I think both the plot and the love story of CCBB are greatly improved if one just treats the "dream sequence" as real events, which was possibly the original intention anyway, so just note that is always the perspective I'm coming from here. It's the only way to make some things make sense and for the characters and their relationships to fully develop.)

"Lovely, Lonely Man" is Truly's big solo moment, and was probably the least comprehensible part of the movie to me as a kid (lol), but is now indisputably one of the very best parts to me as an adult. It's an exquisitely beautiful love song, especially the bridge, and I somehow love it more and more every time I rewatch it. Sally Ann's dreamy, graceful movements and the way the whole scene is shot make her look like a princess, and the slow build of the song is masterfully done. She has this distinctive crisp way of articulating her words while singing, especially the closing consonants like N and M, that I just love to listen to. The string section and the building countermelodies are so beautiful it makes me want to weep. Everyone involved in creating this scene and song deserved an award, I'm being so serious. While it's not the highest of soprano songs and doesn't fully show off Sally Ann's astonishing range, she shows an incredible amount of vocal control here through the many diminuendos and crescendos, and she's mesmerizing to watch and listen to. One of her "glowiest" scenes, for sure!

While I've seen people call this song irrelevant to the plot, I strongly disagree - the romance is part of the plot, of course, and while I didn't fully understand the meaning as a kid, this song establishes how much Truly's outlook on life and hopes for the future have already changed since meeting Caractacus, and how much happier she is with the poor Potts family than she's ever been in her life of luxury. Plus, now we know for certain that she's head over heels for Caractacus, but he doesn't know... increasing the dramatic irony of the pining and yearning to follow!

In the reprise of "Hushabye Mountain", which was sung in a much earlier scene by Dick van Dyke alone, Caractacus loses the will to continue the song because he's overwhelmed with emotion thinking of his children being held captive. Truly comes in to aid him with the final verse - another pivotal moment in the developing romance - and Sally Ann's singing here is nothing short of breathtaking.

And of course, I can't neglect to mention the "Doll on a Music Box" number, where Sally Ann, who was not a trained dancer and in fact considered herself to be "appalling" at it, performs an incredibly precise, incredibly impressive clockwork song-and-dance number while on a spinning turntable! She practiced it so well that she managed to successfully complete the shot in a single take, prompting the stage full of extras to burst into applause.

This is another important character moment for Truly, though it's disguised in a diegetic performance: though it's another thing that went over my head as a child who only got to see the movie once, the lyrics about being trapped up on a music box and longing to be freed by love pretty clearly symbolize how trapped the real Truly's high-society life makes her feel, and how she yearns to break free from class restrictions and live happily-ever-after with Caractacus, as it's only with him and his family that she really feels free.

Then there's that incredibly warm romantic look that Truly and Caractacus share at the end of the song when she silently acknowledges the love confession he's just made while singing in counterpoint with her, though they're still in a dangerous situation and can't give themselves away by appearing too human and breaking their disguises... sadly this vital moment is cut off on all the Youtube videos of the scene I can find, because none of the people who clipped it understand that that's the whole point of it all, apparently. But here's a gif!

The character of Truly doesn't exist at all in the original (quite different) book by James Bond author Ian Fleming - surprising, I know, given her name! - and, honestly, the fact that Truly and the romantic subplot of this movie exist are why it had such a strong impact on me as a child, and very much why I fell in love with it again as an adult. Even though the score is wonderful anyway and the story is charming and magical, I can confidently say that I would not have become as completely enchanted or had such a strong desire to revisit it again and again if there'd been no Truly and no love story. The fact that Sally Ann's performance makes Truly so loveable is, obviously, a pretty crucial factor there.

Sally Ann's delivery of "Well, Mr. Potts... now you'll have to marry me!" after Caractacus kisses Truly... that slide from prim mock-outrage to the playful, warm, you-can-hear-the-smile-in her-voice conclusion is flawless. Not even exaggerating when I say that this was the moment that made me into a hopeless romantic as a 9-year-old child. Sure, this wasn't the first movie I'd seen where two people fall in love and live happily ever after, but I distinctly remember that this was the first romance story that had me in a giggling, kicking-my-feet, "I ship it so hard" state of mind. And after revisiting it as an adult for the first time last year, I have confirmed that yes, child me already had great taste in fictional romances!

Oh, I could say so much about the difference in her body language between the two scenes where Caractacus carries Truly out of her car that's become stuck in a pond. The first time, Truly is affronted and extremely embarrassed by the situation, holding herself so stiffly and awkwardly to avoid an accidental embrace that she causes him to nearly lose his balance and drop her. The second time, when they're in love and they know it, she snuggles right up into his arms without hesitation and it's the cutest thing ever. Sally Ann was 5'6" but looks so tiny in that scene!

(And that kiss! Maybe I'm getting off-topic here in terms of strictly focusing on Sally Ann's contributions, because Dick van Dyke deserves tons of credit for making this kiss so good... but wow, the kiss. Several times I have called it "the Most Kiss they could have gotten away with in a children's movie." Again, giggling, kicking my feet etc.)

While Truly's costumes and hairstyling are rarely historically accurate (the film is set around 1910), the stylized nature of her fashion is iconic and memorable in itself. Sally Ann also completely pulls off playing a fresh-faced ingenue who is 12+ years younger than her actual age - and I do wonder if the aging-down of Sally Ann is at least part of the reason why Truly wears her hair loose throughout most of the movie! Either way, it works perfectly and I was shocked when I first learned how much older she was than her character. (If you watch her in The Admirable Crichton, where she is also in Edwardian costume and was closer to Truly's actual age, she really doesn't look all that much different. If anything, I think she looks even more glowingly beautiful in Chitty!)

Also, as for Truly wearing her hair down... it may just have been an intentionally anachronistic stylistic choice, but in-story, I think it actually contributes to her character by showing a willingness to flout convention and pursue whatever will make her happy instead of what's expected of her, which happens to be a key theme of her character arc.

Another thing that led me to adore Sally Ann as a person as I learned more about her over the last year: in the 1960s, she appeared as a panelist in quite a few episodes of the game show To Tell the Truth (as well as a few episodes of Password), and these can be found on Youtube. I really adore how her personality shines through - she's unfailingly bubbly, witty, self-deprecating, and a bit quirky. Just listening to her speak is a delight and she has one of the best laughs I've ever heard. Here is one of my favorite little moments that I clipped. 

By all accounts, she was a delightful person to know and work with, witty and clever, very professional, and very serious about her craft. She also always maintained a great affection for and pride in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and her role as Truly, which is always a wonderful thing to know about an actor in a beloved role.

Another bonus: here is a super charming interview with her after a backstage disaster at What Makes Sammy Run? on Broadway.

She was also, along with Twiggy and Diahann Carroll (as Julia Baker), one of the first three celebrities to have her likeness made into a Barbie doll.

Two of her earlier films I recommend are the comedies Fools Rush In (1949) and The Admirable Crichton (1957), if you can find them (hint-hint, you can.) You may also be able to find the 1966 TV movie of her reprising her Tony-nominated role of Fiona in Brigadoon with Robert Goulet, and although I feel like the oddly close-up way the film was shot kinda does a disservice to the actors at times, it's still amazing to be able to see and hear her in a role she performed on Broadway.

Richard Rodgers once called Sally Ann "the greatest singer who ever sang on the American musical stage." Now, I don't quote this to claim this superlative as some kind of objective fact. If you know anything about me, I am very, very strongly opposed to pitting women against each other and all the Golden Age sopranos are absolute queens who deserve crowns, no matter how much mainstream success or present-day name-recognition they have/had. I just think it's phenomenal that she received such high praise from a man who worked with many of the best musical theatre singers who ever lived... and to think, many people today have never even heard her voice. Without her performance as Truly Scrumptious, it's possible almost nobody would in the future! I am so glad that Sally Ann's lasting legacy was ensured by such a beloved film role.

Sadly for us, many of the theatrical roles which she originated (and thus, for which cast albums featuring her exist) were in shows that either flopped quickly or at least did not enter the theatrical canon, so she never achieved the level of mainstream recognition she clearly deserves. But Sally Ann also played such legendary and challenging roles as Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady, Fiona MacLaren in Brigadoon (for which she received a Tony nomination), Maria Rainer von Trapp in The Sound of Music, Anna Leonowens in The King and I, and, much later, Desiree Armfeldt in A Little Night Music. She received great acclaim for all of these performances and, judging by what we know of her process on My Fair Lady, was excellent at making roles distinctly her own and never merely imitating another performer.

Even in her iconic original role of Truly Scrumptious, you don't get to hear the true full power of Sally Ann's extraordinary soprano. For that, I highly recommend listening to "Another Time, Another Place" from Kwamina (1961), and "Something to Live For" from What Makes Sammy Run? (1964). I'm always sad that we don't have any recordings of her in her "fiery" star turn as Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady, but you can at least hear her do a Cockney accent, be silly, and sing "With a Little Bit of Luck" with Bing Crosby here!

If it weren't for the enduring success of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, few people might have even heard of Sally Ann Howes today, and that would be a terrible loss. I cannot overstate that I am so grateful that we all know who she is because she played this role and we get to see her give this radiant performance of a character that's all her own. Maybe this sounds strange, but I think the fact that this was Sally Ann's only musical film role (and the ONLY role most people will ever see her in) makes it even more precious, and makes everything she brings to the character that much more distinctive and unique and special.

Both for all of the talent and charm she brings to the role itself, and everything else that I and many other fans have been able to learn of so much of her otherwise-obscure work because of it, the world is incredibly lucky to have the lovely Sally Ann Howes immortalized as our Truly Scrumptious, and I wouldn't have it any other way 💖

[butcharyastark]

also like.... are we gonna talk about the elephant in the room in this show at any time. r we gonna talk abt the very many casual mentions of background slavery. like it's been 2 seasons, is the fact eleanor's family owns slaves gonna be discussed at all, or maybe how flint offscreen took the kidnapped africans back to nassau to be sold, are we gonna get any actual pov from mr. scott or the other lady or any other enslaved/formerly enslaved character on this in the story w smth so big. like im glad its not being swept under the rug like other shows like this do but normalizing it and ignoring it is bad too if thats what theyre gonna do. like cheers we know the majority of the cast are morally reprehensible people anyway but you set the mature period drama pirate show on a colonized island in the 1700s, theres no way you cant discuss the land theft and the transatlantic slave trade bro.

[fallingbyjuleecruise]

i apparently today i logged on just to complain about amc's 2018 horror period piece The Terror lmao

[just-watch-and-calculate]

ooh writing that is related to time loops but not conventional time loop narrative is interesting. the idea I have now is a bit of a different direction in terms of the underlying concept though

TW/CW: death (mentioned in the 2nd person, implied ending) (also a slight warning: the following is fiction written in the second person and is about being disoriented in spacetime, and about the existential dread from that; also I don't know how much other people get out of this without some rather specific physics knowledge)

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

The rest of your life is ahead of you.

You get ready to end the day by waking up into the comforting embrace of sleep. This is the end of the day, right? Mind already— or still?— groggy, you are not sure. Faint recollections of today make themselves known in your mind. Recollections of one of the two ends of your life. Just whether it is the celebrated or grieved one you are not sure right now. At least you are headed away from it, right?

Thinking about that, you realize that you might be moving away from the moment you will(?) end he day by waking up. You are awake enough to notice that the phrasing of that sounds… off, somehow. The sun is still a bit away from setting— or is it rising right now? By definition the night ends with the sun rising and starts with it setting, so that is no help in figuring out which way is future and which way is past.

You remember somewhat how today went goes. And you remember a bit less clearly how tomorrow yesterday the closest day one night from now goes. That is a sign that the future is that way, right? That we know little enough about that temporal direction to think we have free will there.

But you know better than to think you truly have free will, don't you? You know that when you learn about it you are shocked. And you know that at some other point in time you are not shocked about it, at that point in time you accept that the universe is deterministic.¹

But will that be in the future, or has that been in the past? You hope that that is your future, because you remember enough to know that one direction is much longer than the other. Something goes went will go goes wrong today.

You realize that you should not have such clear memories of both past and future. Maybe that is why today has been— will be?— so confusing. You do know that it does make sense for it to be possible though: the direction of time is surprisingly ambiguous unless entropy is involved, so those memories do little to help.

Entropy! You remember: you can find out what direction is generally regarded as the future quite easily. You grab an ice cube. As you hold it you remember that you have(?) let it go right as your hand hurts slightly from the cold. It slides across the floor towards/away from you. Your hand is wet and cold from it. You know enough about entropy to know that the cube melted from holding it.

Which means that today is still mostly ahead of you. And then… nothing. Not the faintest recollection.

You feel cold panic. You are clinging on to the irrational, desperate hope that somehow you can change this. But you know that you can't. Shattered, disjointed recollections of today are burnt into you memory so much deeper than anything else.

Has some attempt to go back just reinforced fate instead? But that isn't how causality works. It shouldn't be. You hope you are not doomed already. You know you are.

Maybe— maybe your colleagues can help you. They've been working on this kind of thing for some distance time (but it's a lot less in time than what that length would be in space, isn't it?). Your research group is working with small controlled systems to better understand what time is. Most that you remember coming of that research so far only has potential for some parlor tricks, but that can change, even on such a short notice, right? (Hah! 'Short' notice, as if we all already know that time and space are not that different.)

There it is again, that irrational thought that somehow the universe doesn't work as you know it does. That things you know cannot be changed, things you know you cannot change, could be changed.

You stand at the bus stop. Why would you have to wait there if you know the bus has arrived early at its destination will be late at the bus stop?

You are on the bus. You just look out of the window disinterestedly, watching the world go by, letting distance pass like time. Is the bus driving forwards or backwards? Are you headed towards your end or away from it? In any case, part of what has you so disinterested in the bus ride is that you know it is uneventful. You have already ridden here from one of the stops you got on/off the bus at and remember that part of the drive. You also remember the other part from/to the other stop you will get on/off the bus at.

You arrive at the laboratory. "Good morning!" you respond. "Morning!" is the answer you receive from the only other person currently at the lab. You can't shake the feeling you should've responded with 'bye'.

You look at the current setup: two almost identical experiments that can run simultaneously — except one of them has opposite charges and is mirrored. And most important of all, one of them starts as the other ends — one of them is backwards. And you truly do not know which one that is anymore. (Anymore? Or will you just come to learn it later?)

It looks different from the other times you see it. "Hey, could you check my calculations? Something's not adding up, I've found a configuration where I don't know where some of the energy comes from" your colleague asks. "It's just, trying to figure it out has kept me up all night. I'd really appreciate a second pair of eyes on this."

You consider what she says: 'all night', not 'all day'. That clears up how she perceives time. It does not fix how you do though.

You remember what is written on the piece of paper she hands you as you first read it. And she is right, it should all add up, it just somehow doesn't. It is as if the Formulas just 'know' that something will be there to fix things. And if not, who knows what would happen. You would rather not know. With a sigh you say "Whatever is wrong with that calculation, I can't spot it either."

"It's alright, I already modified our setup to test this. Want to give it a try?" she responds. Not waiting for your answer in her eagerness to learn she fiddles with the controls of the experiment.

You run between her and the experimental setup. You suddenly know where the extra energy is: with you, somehow. The setup is currently powering up/down. You have to do something or you really will risk finding out how the universe deals with mathematical inconsistencies.

She calls your name, voice full of worry. You are in the experiment room. The setup is powered. You know what fate lurks here. You want to leave this room so badly.

It is too late. Your path through spacetime is not exactly subject to causality — it kind of is causality. Your path through spacetime is not something you have carved out. It just is. And here it leads you. And one of its ends is here.

You want just one more day.

The last, or perhaps the first thing you know is just how wrong you still were about how time works.

_____ ¹ I'm too much of a nerd to completely gloss over quantum randomness possibly not being deterministic, but for the purposes of this story it can be ignored.

I love time loop stories. Really, I do.

But I'd love to see a story about what happens after you emerge from the time loop.

When, after months or years of repetition, you have to learn how to live with a choice you can't redo tomorrow.

When you meet someone new for the first time and have to figure out how to navigate this brand new conversation.

When you reach for the same day's clothes and realize that you can't wear them because they got dirty. Your laundry, your dishes, your body, your teeth, all the tasks that reset with the loop are suddenly stacking up and you need to set aside time to do them.

When you reach that first weekend and your schedule radically shifts and you don't know what to do with yourself, which is terrifying but also exhilarating in ways you can't explain.

When you casually drop facts learned from those books you spent a dozen loops reading, and you realize you retained something worth keeping.

How your memory gets weirdly good all of a sudden, despite not having all that repetition to fall back on, because suddenly every experience is fresh and new.

And when the seasons change, and your hair grows long enough that you want to cut it, and when you realize it's shocking because you didn't think you'd ever see something as incredible as the passage of time.

[5sospenguinqueen]

No Boys Club | Dad! Lando Norris x Reader

Summary: Lando Norris has a very public freak out when his daughter comes home with flowers from a boy.

Warnings: fluff, pregnancy, overprotective dad behaviour 

Requested: yes by anon. i made them about 5 instead of 3 because the pictures i found are a bit older

F1 Masterlist

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landonorris just posted

liked by danielricciardo, alex_albon and others 

landonorris someone tell this little lady to stop growing up

189,856 comments 

carlossainz55 wait, what happened to the little baby you used to swing around the paddock? who allowed this to happen?

→ landonorris don’t get me started. i keep telling y/n to figure out how to make it stop 

georgerussell63 still have no idea how you ended up with such a cute, calm kid

→ its_yn that was all me

→ landonorris hey, i contributed 

→ maxfewtrell for like two seconds liked by its_yn

→ landonorris you take that back! 

user1 i love how every pic of little norris with y/n is really cute and serene but any time we see her with just lando, it’s chaos 

→ user2 she matches each parent’s energy perfectly 

maxverstappen1 i might need you to teach me how to do hair bows 

→ landonorris bring P over, we’ll have a hair afternoon

→ user3 i love girl dad lando so much 

→ its_yn me too 

oscarpiastri were the hair bows y/n’s choice?

→ its_yn nope. lando made a whole drawer just for her hair bows, and he picks them out the night before so i have to plan her outfits around them 

→ mclaren guess who’s telling the design team to start making hair bows asap 

its_yn posted a new story

alex_albon replied you didn’t put a bow in her hair today? → lando is going to freak → its_yn he’s too busy freaking out about his little girl getting flowers off a boy  → alex_albon i know 😂 he was in the middle of the paddock having a fit  → i’m sure you’ll see gifs of it later on twitter 

alexandrasaintmleux replied of course they were orange flowers  → its_yn setting me up for a lifetime of orange → alexandrasaintmleux at least little norris’ new boyfriend has taste  → its_yn reacted with “😂”

charles_leclerc replied has lando seen this yet? → never mind. i’ve just heard a high-pitched screech come from the mclaren garage  → i’d like to thank you for sabotaging lando in this way, so ferrari can get ahead in the constructors  → its_yn forza ferrari sempre → just don’t publicly thank me 

landonorris posted a new story

carlossainz55 replied why are you threatening children  → landonorris because they’re trying to take my baby away from me → carlossainz55 how you managed to get a woman pregnant, i will never know 

maxverstappen1 replied do you want me to help you beat up a child?  → landonorris thank you. you’re the only one understanding my crash out  → maxverstappen1 i don’t think that’s the defence you think it is 

its_yn replied baby, you can not attack a child → landonorris why not → its_yn well, for one, you’re on the other side of the world → landonorris hence why i’m learning how to teleport!  → i thought we understood each other → its_yn i thought i understood how insane you are → but every day you show me new levels of crazy 

its_yn just posted

liked by lilymhe, carlossainz55 and others 

its_yn when dad’s away 

76,334 comments 

landonorris wtaf, babe

landonorris when i told you to take care of my girls, that meant keeping the both of you away from the male species 

landonorris can’t believe this is what you do when i go away for a race 

landonorris this is why i didn’t want to go 

landonorris gonna throw myself in front of max’s car

→ maxverstappen1 i’m not cleaning you off my visor  

user4 i can’t tell if it’s the style but yn’s top seems to stick out a bit 👀

→ user5 ugh. don't be one of those people

mclaren we’ve seen enough. little norris can have lando’s seat next year 

→ its_yn so i can listen to him whine about that? no thanks 

charles_leclerc i hear the italian anthem calling me

→ its_yn shhhh. we had a deal 

landonorris i’m actually going to end it all

→ its_yn i gave you a baby. what more do you want 

→ landonorris for my baby to never look at another man

→ its_yn i’m leaving you 

→ landonorris i’d like to see you try. you won’t run very far 

maxfewtrell it’s nice to see she didn’t inherit her father’s talent. she smoked me

→ landonorris is my suffering a joke to you? have i not been punished enough?

→ maxfewtrell yes

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requests open

tag list

@peachiicherries @rosecentury  @c-losur3 @heavy-vettel @evie-119 @raizelchrysanderoctavius @lilorose25 @sillyfreakfanparty @justaf1girl @piastri-fvx

[luveline]

Shy!reader and post prison Spence - the first time he calls her a pet name? I love that your Spencers always use “honey” or “dove” or “love” and we know she’d be a mess.

P.S. completely agree with how much I love the gentleness of your characters. The way you write Spencer in love is literally my favorite

ty for requesting <3 fem

“Are you sure it’s okay?” 

Spencer holds a hanging strap. You hold your own, core tense with the movement of the train. “I think I would’ve mentioned it before you got on the train if it weren’t.” 

You nod, glancing around the traincar at the other passengers. There's a stout lady wearing a large fluffy sweater, turquoise with two white kittens at her chest nuzzling one another in knit. A man with three bags of groceries sits just beside her. Further down, a teenage girl listens to music through leaking headphones, her phone reflecting blue light on her cheeks. 

“But are you sure I won’t be an imposition?” 

“You aren’t usually. I guess we won’t know until we get there.” 

“Maybe I should just find a hotel for the night.” 

“Y/N, I’m kidding. You’re not an imposition, it won’t be a problem. There’s enough room at my apartment for you to stay however long you want. Between all the books, that is.” 

It’s just not something you pictured asking him for. Your kitchen flooded in your apartment and the landlord had to put you up in a hotel until he could get someone in to make sure the stove wasn’t about to explode or catch light. But the idea of a hotel is rough torture —somewhere unfamiliar, living out of a suitcase, surrounded by people you don’t know without a door that locks properly. Spencer caught you sweating over it at your desk, pulling the story from you in reluctant drags with a hand on your shoulder. 

It’ll be okay, he said, you can just stay with me. 

Which is relieving and somehow a new can of worms to deal with. At least at a hotel there was no chance of seeing Spencer in a towel. Spencer seeing you in a towel, in your pyjamas, without your formal office protections. 

The worst part is the excitement. 

Terrified he’ll see it on your face, you stare at your shoes next to his. Spencer… Everyone told you he was a dork. When you joined the team in his absence, not once did you get the impression that the man who’d be coming back was like this. You feel like he’d been infantilised. Which isn’t to say he isn’t a dork, he is, he tells you the strangest things, facts or statistics to accompany each topic of the day, and he has all the manners and chivalry of someone who knows what it’s like to be as painfully shy as you are. But he isn’t shy. 

Autistic, he’d confided once. Probably. I’m better at dealing with it now. 

“You okay?” he asks. 

“Nervous.” 

“I know.” He grasps your arm as the train screeches on tracks, turning a tight bend. You’re grateful, but immediately flushed with heat. 

“I don’t want to embarrass myself.” 

“You couldn’t. I think I know you too well already.”

“You’ve known me for less time than the rest of the team, but you were the first person to offer me a place to stay.” You clench the rickety handle of your suitcase. “Thank you.” 

“That’s okay, angel.” He says it simply and softly, like you really are an angel. Something breathless to wait with. 

Angel, you think, heart skipping a beat, pulse slow and then suddenly ramped. 

His arm slips behind your back. “I don’t want you to stay in a hotel if it’s going to scare you. Besides, it’ll be fun. Like a sleepover.” He laughs. And you, despite your flush, heat sinking across your chest like a bruise, manage to laugh back. “I’ve never had one before.” 

“What?” 

“Never had a sleepover. I didn’t have any friends in school, and I haven’t had a girlfriend stay the night before.”

You look up at him with wide eyes, expecting a retraction. Not that you’re my girlfriend, not that you’re anything like that at all. 

He smiles at you. “Should we get takeout?”

“What were you thinking?” 

“There’s an Indian restaurant between the station and my apartment? We can stop in. Or we can order something to come. Or I can cook, if you want home cooked.” 

“No, it’s fine, you don’t have to cook–”

His lips turn to a quizzical pout. “I don’t mind.”

You want him to call you angel again. You want him to take you home, make you dinner, and you want to sleepover. Like a girlfriend, you want to wake up in his bed. 

“Sorry,” you breathe, “I think I’m just tired.” 

“Are you sure?” You nod. “Alright. I was worried you didn’t like the pet name, but your pupils dilated when I said it–”

You can’t escape him. One hand in the hanging strap above, the over on your suitcase handle, you have no choice but to stand there with his arm around you to keep you from falling, face so hot with it that you’re sure you’d be feverish to the touch. “It’s fine,” you say, too afraid to look at his face that you end up staring at the nice shape of his throat, his black and purple tie. “Call me what you want. Um, I think we should get Indian.” 

“Good choice, angel.” 

[a-ladyman-in-waiting]

A Ladyman in Waiting (2)

Chapter 2

A story in the works

When we last left off, a fellow named Brendon had led an uneventful life.

bOrING

Let’s change that shall we?

Chapter 2

I…I woke up to a terrifying void…

Pitch black everywhere…

I tried blinking my eyes and nothing changed.

I tried again and still nothing changed.

I sat up immediately expecting to wake up, only to be met with a bright light.

“ACK!!” I yelped, flinching with my eyes shut.

My eyes are so sensitive to light that I needed prescription shades (aka sunglasses) to walk around outside. I can’t handle regular sunlight.

It took me a while to readjust my eyes before I opened them again.

And once I did, I saw…grass…glowing blue grass.

I think it was blue, blue-green.

I was looking down at the grass and then as I looked up, I saw a colosseum, like right ahead of me.

‘I could get there within like five minutes.’

I stared at it for moments and the only words that came out of my mouth were, “Holy damn.”

I got up and trekked across the glowing fields, heading straight for the humongous ruins.

“No way, it’s a real colosseum. I’ve always wanted to see one. I’ve only seen pictures of these.”

As I got closer, I began to see more features of the ruins, such as the piles of stone

around the building, the empty rooms that were shrouded in darkness, and the fact the entrance was on the left.

I walked over the piles of stone to get to the entrance…and when I peeked inside…I saw a dragon.

I instinctively hid behind the wall.

‘Holy shit’, I thought to myself, ‘That’s a real dragon. No way.’

I peeked again…there it was.

It was lying down in the middle of the whole ruin, illuminated by some kind of yellow-ish light? Or was it a natural light?

‘Seriously, the grass was blue-green, how is it shining in natural light?’ I thought to myself.

Excuse me

“HOLY JESUS SHIT.” I blurted out. “Sorry Lord.”

Oh…you must be religious.

“Not that religious! I’m NOT a preacher.” I retorted.

Hmm…would you like to come in?

“Sure.” I answer.

I walked into the colosseum, the dragon, who was pearly white with black eyes, held their head high.

Suddenly, my stomach was infested with butterflies, I kept my head forward while my eyes darted around trying hard not to ogle at them. I swear that I could feel their eyes on me.

‘Last time I checked, they had a fe-’

I suddenly trip on a crack on the ground.

‘MMMMMMMmmmmm’ I screamed internally.

I spent the last 6 seconds shuffling up to the dragon…god I’m such a nervous wreck.

Are you alright?

“No…” I muttered.

Well, if it’s alright, may we see each other eye to eye?

“…sure…” I muttered again.

‘ realized that I had been staring away from the dragon…

‘Aaaayyynooo….’ I internally moaned in regret.

‘Ok…just a peek…’ I thought to myself.

I took a deep breath before I turned around to faaaacee…

‘Ther-they’re…they’re gorgeous…’

‘I feel like shriveling up…I embarrassed myself in front of a gorgeous dragon…’

Well, that’s a first.

‘Yea…it iiiii…wait hold on…I…I…I can’t believe I’m drawing blanks at a time like this…’

It’s alright, you can do this.

‘I-I-I…have met…a pearly white dragon…who can…read my mind?’

Correct.

I began to internally groan/scream while holding my head…I really messed up…

Would you like a moment?

“...yes…” I squeaked.

The embarrassment lingered on for moments before I was able to collect myself and ask about them.

“Ok..I’m ready…” I said, trying to keep my tone of voice from going too loud or quiet.

Splendid.

The dragon sat up in a regal pose while keeping their gaze onto me.

I am the Dragon of Dreams, a guardian of the ethereal, I’m one of many who can grant your one wish.

“Holy damn…” I said.

Holy damn indeed. Now I have a rule for what you ask of me…

“Ok, what rule is it?” I asked.

Be honest, if your wish does align with your heart, then you must forfeit that wish…you only get one chance.

“Ok…gotcha…” I uttered.

‘Oh shit. Oh shit. Oh shit. I know exactly what I want to wish for…but I really think that she’ll decline…even worse be offended.’

‘Wait…she can read my mind…so basically whatever I’m feeling and thinking must match with what I choose to say.’

‘Oh lord. Oh lord…’

‘Let me take a deep breath…I think…I think…I’m gonna do it…If she didn’t mind me making a fool out of myself…then I can try…NO.’

‘I’m gonna blurt it out…ok…here goes something’

“I wish TO BE A SEXY DRAGON GIRL WITH A SEXY OUTFIT…”

The dragon looked at me…

Astonished…

That’s…an unique wish…

I honestly feel like shriveling up.

You wish to become a hybrid…with one of our own and yourself?

“Say what?” I asked with butterflies filling my stomach.

Yes, a hybrid species with an illustrious human body. You gave me an answer where you didn’t fight your true feelings.

“Oh! Yes. A sexy dragon lady with sexy clothes…just like the one in my drawings…” I voiced with embarrassment.

At least you have an idea of your appearance.

“Hah…”

Let us continue,

“Ok”

For this grandiose wish, you’ll need to harbor a Dream Dragon Soul, one of my own more or less.

“Oh dear lord.” I groaned.

Indeed. No mere mortal can withstand their power alone.

So we must establish your limits:

“Ok, so what are they?”

One, you must stay within the light of the moon until you can survive the breath of the sun.

“So I become a complete night owl…oh shit.”

Hmph, most people assume they’ll become vampires. We are not unholy beings.

Two, your pendant harbors two souls, a dragon soul and yours, removing the pendant will kill you.

“Oh Shit. Oh Fuck.”

I understand your worries, many of my own had theirs ripped out.

“Oh God.”

Three, your main abilities are tied to your personality and will awaken from your habits. However, to learn a new spell or skill…you must practice.

“Gotcha.”

The dragon flinched at the comment.

“Sorry...wait...why did you—”

Moving on,

“Oh o-“

Third, your powers are rooted in your personality.

“Ohh…Kay…How do I unlock them?”

They’ll awaken through your habits.

“…huh…”

‘Wait…how do they activate using my habits, I mean, I repeat myself. But what can repeating myself really do for me?’

I try to rationalize it…only to end up confusing my brain.

To end up thinking about nothing.

Like my brain was wiped clean.

While I was in the middle of undergoing a brain malfunction, the dragon began to monologue.

Oh dear, that’s…a new case…could…they be…they can’t be…maybe…

I have met many people throughout my life…

but I fear that he may not survive…

“…”

I remain speechless…I honestly have no words.

I apologize for this…

“Wait…what do you mean by—“

I woke up…

To a starry night…

On top of a cloud.

End chapter.