#all these big ideas for developing my fashion sense/hair/makeup

[radioregine]

also my vision board for '21 is really only now coming to fruition in '24 and it's so interesting to think abt

[foxydivaxx]

Sanji: Chronicles Of King Nasty Chapter 2

Was listening to some Madonna songs and those songs fit Sanji in this verse because Sanji is a very unapologetic person xD. Song used: Human Nature. The bombshells get worse. Trigger warning: Mentions of abuse and sexual acts

Was listening to some Madonna songs and those songs fit Sanji in this verse because Sanji is a very unapologetic person xD. Song used: Human Nature

Ezreal was flipping through the channels on TV. The rehabilitation center that he checked into was surprisingly accommodating to him. Most rehab centers usually function in a strict manner, similar to a mental asylum. Not this one. Some of the strictness was there but they were also a bit lax and actually gave them some privileges, like watching the TV. 

Watching TV is not often a good idea though as sometimes he comes across some news stories poking fun at him and his failed career. Other times, he manages to catch up on the latest gossip happening in the entertainment industry. Normally stuff like that should not excite him. But yet, some stories do. Like for example, the hype surrounding KDA who are currently the hottest girl band on the planet. He has watched their videos and their songs are good. He also likes Pentakill as well. All these artists inspire him to want to come back to the industry. However, he has yet to figure out how to make that comeback yet. 

It was then that he stopped on a music channel and funny enough, they played what appeared to be Sanji's latest music video. Ezreal naturally sits up and pays attention here because this is his idol we are talking about.

Express yourself don't repress yourself Express yourself don't repress yourself

Sanji was dressed in a leather catsuit and was seated on a chair surrounded by his dancers. The catsuit is a nod to his early popstar days as Sanji was not Sanji without some form of leather. Ezreal observed that he had dyed his hair black and that he was wearing his signature round glasses which were black. An obvious reference to his character Black Cat from the movie Black Ops Squad.

As expected, Sanji's sex appeal is on display here with some BDSM themes inserted.

And I'm not sorry (I'm not sorry) It's human nature (it's human nature) And I'm not sorry (I'm not sorry) I'm not your bitch, don't hang your shit on me (it's human nature)

This is why Sanji was his idol. The guy gives zero fucks about what people truly think about him. Controversial yes? But talented? Hell yes. That rebellious spirit of his is the reason the majority of the LGBTQ community loves him.

The sheer audacity is enough to encourage anyone to want to think big. He did not completely allow the media and the public to get to him. Sure, that level of hate and scrutiny should have ended his career.

Yet there he was, showing them that he was going nowhere. Without realizing it, Ezreal began to take some notes. If he was going to make a comeback soon, he needed to change his image a bit.

But first, back to the book. He picks up the book and begins to read through the next chapter.

The next couple of years were peaceful for the most part which was a a good thing for all of us now that I think about it. Mother resumed work again and kept on pumping out music much to our collective delight.

It was during this time that our respective fashion sense began to develop. All of us, yes the boys included, would sneak off into Mum's room and raid her wardrobe and mess around in her clothes and makeup. Now you know where my flair for dramatics began.

I blame my mother for that one because that woman is one dramatic performer. Like have you seen that woman bring the house down on stage? Runs in the family I guess.

Ezreal chuckled at that little anecdote. It was nice to learn more about Sanji and his family, especially the younger years as that often plays a role in how people often turn out to be as adults. Reminds him of the days he would mess around with his own mother's stuff.

Another thing that runs in this household, at least the boys, is actually perverted behavior. Anytime we see someone hot, heart eyes everyone, just like a certain pirate cook.

Gets to the point that we all start fighting over who gets first dibs for the date. Those arguments get really heated and Mother loses her shit over our behavior and kicks our sorry asses.

Ezreal laughed so hard at that one. His One Piece character is a parody of his real-life persona so it is funny that he acknowledges that here. It is even more hilarious that the brothers are as bad as he is in that department.

Now in regards to my perverted nature in general, this is where things get really messy. One day as I was walking home from school, I ended up losing my way ike the little idiot I was back then. Then suddenly, a black SUV pulled up close to where I was and out came two hefty men who just grabbed me and dragged me into the car.

Father was in that car with the most evil smirk on his face. I struggled to break free but alas, what can an 11-year-old do? Puberty had not yet hit.

The old fart was staring at me with the most unreadable look on his face. I could not even speak at all. I just froze, fearing for my life. The next thing I knew, the man came closer and began to unzip my pants.

I screamed and tried to run but these men held onto me. That bastard began to suck me off right there and the next thing I knew, he began to fuck me in that SUV.....

Ezreal gasps in horror. He himself had a similar situation except his happened in school no thanks to a bully. No wonder Sanji was that messed up. There have been stories about his sex life over the years and this more or less confirms some of those horrific stories about him. Plus Sanji was 11 by that point too?! Shit!!

After hours of torture at the hands of this bastard, he dumped me off on the streets of our home. There I was lying down helplessly, in tears, completely violated.

My siblings soon found me and my brothers were able to put two and two together about what happened and told Mum. Mother was horrified and immediately filed a restraining order against Dad. I was put into therapy but it could only do so much as I never felt the same way since that day.

School was torture for me as I would try and chase girls, just like my character, yet there I was also fantasizing about boys as well. The old bastard seriously fucked up my mind. It certainly did not help that a lot of guys in school suddenly started getting attracted to me. Like I would be walking down the hallway and they would all be staring at my ass, some even going as far as to grope my ass.

I was not being sexy or anything, yet they gave me attention. I was a confused boy as the whole concept of sexuality was foreign to me. For years, I battled with my sexuality. I thought that I was going insane. But in reality, it almost felt like maybe this was who I was meant to be.

One particular day, I was in the bathroom and I noticed this Hispanic guy looking me up and down as I washed my hands. "Whatcha staring at?" I remember asking.

"You silly because you are the finest specimen I have ever seen," he replied. I laughed because that was the weirdest pickup line ever. He then came closer to me and began to rub my crotch. On a good day, I would have said no but deep down I wanted a release. So I let him give me a blowjob. That guy became my first lover. This was the beginning of my playboy lifestyle and I was only 13 by this point.

Ezreal pauses there and sighs. This chapter was quite heavy for him to read. For starters, it is shocking to hear what Sanji went through. On the other hand, this has forced him to start questioning himself, especially in regards to his own sexuality.

He had also asked similar questions about himself and whether he was crazy for showing interest in men. He appreciates Sanji's honesty about this.

A couple of hours later, he was about to head to his room when he saw a news coverage. "Breaking News: Judge Vinsmoke loses a variety of gigs and sponsorship after his son Sanji's shocking sexual abuse allegations come to light, causing a massive uproar."

"What a terrible man." says one of the nurses. "I hope he rots in hell for what he did to his son!!" says another nurse. It is great to see Sanji finally get justice and vindication for all the hell he and his family went through. He goes back to read more and boy was he horrified by the next things that he read:

I began to engage in a variety of wild sexual behavior. I would invite a variety of guys in school to the bathroom stalls or somewhere outside and they would fuck me on the spot. A couple of girls threw themselves at me as well and boy was I a bad boy back then. This was the birth of one of my stage personas King Nasty. I was going out of control without realizing it and my brothers and Reiju noticed and tried to stop me.

The truth is that I was desperate for love. I wanted attention and affection. Now you know why I became famous. I thought all that excess would cure my pain and the trauma that continued to eat me away. I was losing my mind. Plus I hung out with the wrong people. That is the warning I would give to every kid out there: mind the company you keep. 

I proved to be a little rebellious and ignored them. I was in my little world and became a hard-drinking party boy. I entered clubs at a young age at the time and engaged in all manners of reckless behaviour and also began to indulge in excessive drug use and started smoking by that time. I began to inhale a lot of cocaine at that point. I also worked briefly at a strip club for like 3 months. Plus I did a nude photoshoot at the time for money. That will come back to haunt me years later.

Ezreal's jaw drops. This is the first time he would hear about the nude photos. He was very young at the time when that happened. Sanji would have been 13-14 when Aogiri debuted so that is huge.

Around that same time, I signed a contract with Deevee Records and released my debut single Get Back which got zero attention and led to me getting kicked out of the label soon after. One of their producers Max discovered me at one of the clubs I was hanging at and offered me a record deal on the spot after hearing me sing.

I hated that song yet the label forced me to sing it. Cringey lyrics and even worse low budget video. 

He knew about Sanji's early debut as they showed a photo of that video. He looked different from the Sanji everyone knows and loves. He had black hair at the time meaning that he dyed his hair back to his natural blonde hair. Ah and a special fact. I met a certain special someone during this time. Who am I referring to? None other than my beloved current husband, Zoro or Marimo as I love to affectionately call him.

His eyes widened in shock. "WHAT!" So he knew Zoro for that long. It means that the so-called affair between him and Zoro began a long time.

Yes, Marimo and I actually go way back. You see, Zoro had started his musical career then as a member of Gear V whom I happened to be a huge fan of.  One easily forgets that Zoro was once one of the biggest musical stars at the time. The fact that Sanji calls him Marimo shows just how much he loves him.

I met Zoro at the recording studio one day. I noticed the way he kept staring at me and I gotta say, the feeling was mutual. Marimo was so handsome, so fucking sexy. I have a weakness for bad boys, similar to my mother. The fact that I remained attracted to him years after shows how much I loved him. Yes, I have always been in love with him and he with me.

"Aww."

We both recorded songs together which I never got to release. Still, I managed to get my hands on the demos and re-recorded after Aogiri debuted and I launched my solo debut. We even shot a music video for one of those songs years later which happened to be my debut solo single.  Yes that trash mess from the early days does not count ass a proper debut in my book.

Ezreal falls over laughing. This was how he felt about his own debut as well.

Zoro and I hit it off right away the moment we met and we even had a brief sexual encounter. We were friends with benefits at the time before becoming full fledged lovers. More on that later.

There. That was the confirmation about their relationship.

During this time, I met a pretty lady named Charlotte Pudding. Yes, that infamous Pudding. I fell in love with her, thinking she was the cure to my problem. The truth is far more complex than that. You see, Charlotte knew the family I was from and intended to use that to her advantage. I did not notice as I was extremely high at that point in my life. 

She took advantage of that and had sex with me at the strip club. Unbeknownst to me, she had someone secretly film our sexual encounter. What made me to finally break up with her was that that same night immediately after having sex with her and taking her virginity, she was also having sex with my then-so-called best friend Fred in my presence. I quit my job at the strip joint and broke off contact with her. She tried to beg me but I was not having it.

I got checked into rehab and came out sober for a while. It was during this time that an ad for a TV show named Popstars: The Rivals was advertised on TV. Mother encouraged me to audition. At first I was hesitant because of what had just happened but after some nagging from Reiju, I finally agreed and signed up for the show. Little did I know that my life was going to completely change from here on out...

"Damn!!" says Ezreal. That is yet another big bombshell. Around the time Ezreal debuted, Sanji was embroiled in a massive sex tape scandal at the time. Now Sanji has not only confirmed that one but has also given some clear context about what happened. It is disgusting to think that so many people took advantage of him. Just like Ezreal and his own addiction problems. The folks he hung around with at the time did that to him too.

"If Sanji and I ever meet again, we would have a lot to talk about."

[spacegirlapollo]

Right Here, Right Now [Shouta Aizawa Smut]

Title: Right Here, Right Now 

Genre: Fluff, Smut 

Words: 3,379 

Notes: It’s a little long sorry sksk. But if you wanna skip to the juicy bits, scroll down to the “Part Two” Line break. Enjoy! Also Going to be trying to do a Sinful Saturday series where I post Smut on Sundays. Right now it’s mainly Aizawa but will be other characters as im feeling it. Send a request if you want ! 

---------------------  Part One ------------------------

Out of everyone you knew, your husband, AIzawa Shouta, had the quietest footsteps you never heard. He developed the frightening skill, from his undercover hero work, years before he’d even become a teacher at U.A.

You took it as a sign of your strong relationship however that sometimes you could sense his presence, even if you couldn't hear him. You always enjoyed the surprised look on his face when you turned to see him whenever he was silently catwalking into a room.

And now was one of those times, there were no signs to say that he’d entered your shared bathroom, except that you knew he had.

You looked up from the countertop full of your makeup products to see him, looking at the slight mess you’d made of the sink area. Your mouth fell open when you saw the state that he was in.

“Shouta!” You exclaimed in genuine horror. “ What the fuck are you wearing?”

You hadn’t meant for the last part to come out. And even though Aizawa was fully aware of your tendency to have a sailor mouth, you still hadn’t meant to say it. But you were appalled at the solid black dress pants, horizontally striped dress shirt, and dark navy blue jacket that he was wearing. The more you looked at him the more you noticed that nothing he was wearing was matching.

His eyebrow twitched a bit, but he gave you an otherwise blank look. You sighed, closing the eyeliner bottle in your hand and placing it on the sink.

You had suspected, when you were younger and first began dating, that Aizawa lacked some fashion sense. He’d mostly stuck to black anytime he went outside so matching wasn't really a problem. It wasn’t until you begam spending the night with him, that you’d seen him put together outfits that made absolutely no sense. You’d always found it funny to see what he would toss on.

It had been decided, mostly by you, that for big events you’d pick out the clothes. And it had been years of this going smoothly. You suspected that since you dressed him so sharply, he’d gotten compliments, and that was why he continued to let you dress him up.

And before you’d gone into the bathroom to fix your makeup, you’d laid out his outfit for the night on the bed.

There was a teacher’s appreciation night at U.A and you were going as his plus one. This had been your 5th time going together, and each year was more fancy than the last.

Shouta was crossing his arms over his chest, still not having said a word.

“Babe.” You said carefully as to not burst out into laughter. “ What happened to what I put on the bed?”

He uncrossed his arms and scratched the back of his head looking slightly uncomfortable. Now you were confused. He never had any issues before with what you’d picked out. In fact, if you had forgotten to pick an outfit he’d gently remind you.  You thought back to what you’d put on the bed, a simple black suit was what you had gone with since you were wearing a black dress. There was no way he wouldn't have liked it.

“It’s…. Too small.” He said finally, embarrassment tinting his cheeks.

“To small?” You were confused. You’d bought it only 8 months ago. You did a quick glance over, he hadn’t put on any weight where you could see.

“In the arms.. And thighs.” He said, he looking like he wished he could sink into the floor.

“Oh.” You said blinking. “ OHH!” you said again louder when you finally understood. Honeslty you felt a little dumb. He’d gotten buffer. You could even see in what he was wearing now that the arms were a little too tight and you could almost see the outline of his muscles as if it was a fitted jacket.

This time you couldn’t help the laugh that came out, which only got louder as he gave you a glare.

“I-I’m sorry baby. I don't mean to laugh” You said in between laughs.

“Yeah you do.” He mused out but he didn't seem upset.

You came closer and squeezed on his upper arms, which barely had any room, left in them, and were so… solid.

You couldn't deny that he had gotten thicker over the year, you just hadn’t thought about it when you bought the suit.

“Hmm… Maybe I do.” You said cheekily smiling up at him. He gave you a small smile back in spite of himself.

“Okay.” You said stepping back a bit and looking him up and down. “ Take all of that off. I’m going to use my quirk.

At this he looked surprised, an eyebrow raised. “Are you sure? You always get a  headache when you use it too much.”

You shook your head.” This won't be so bad. I already have an idea of what I’m going to make.”

He gave you another skeptical look before he unbuttoned the jacket to start taking it off.

You bit your lip a little as he focused on unbuttoning the dress shirt and sliding it off his frame.

He’d definitely gotten bigger, you weren't sure if it was deliberate, but you did not mind in the least. His hair fell over his face as he bent over to pull his pants off and move the pile of clothes out of the way.

You paused for a minute to take in your husband and all his glory as he stood in only his boxers and socks.

“Do you not like it?” He said quietly, shattering your ungodly thoughts.

You blinked. “ Huh?” You asked looking up at his unreadable face.

“That I’m bigger. Do you not like it?” He asked again.

You felt like someone had smacked you. Your husband, THE Aizawa Shouta was feeling a  little insecure. Because he kept his cards so close to the chest, it hadn't even crossed your mind that he would ever experience that feeling. And the fact that he was being vulnerable, right now in front of you made your love for him multiply.

You opened your mouth before you could even think to maybe censor yourself.

“Honestly Shouta, you look so fucking hot, I’m actually debating about skipping the event and jumping your bones.”

You covered your mouth a bit in shock, that you’d actually said that. There was a moment of silence where you were now the one wishing to sink into the floor. Then he came forward till he was almost pressed against you, a smirk on his face. Any trace of unreadable insecurity gone. You were glad, although a little embarrassed.

He moved your hand from your face and tucked a finger underneath your chin tilting your head up. You didn't get a chance to think as he pressed his soft lips against yours in a slow intoxicating kiss that left you fiending for more. Almost as if he sensed your sudden want he pulled away smiling down at you.

“Maybe we should go to the event first. Then we can talk about what happens when we get back home.”

You pouted. “ Fine. But you’re such a tease.”

He chuckled at this and took a step back expectantly. You took a deep breath and put your hands around his lower neck focusing on activating your quirk.

You had the quirk of Matter ideation. When you focused hard enough, you could make your ideas into reality by manipulating the matter that you touch with your hands. You could even make living things if you concentrate hard enough. But the bigger or more complicated a thing was the more energy it took from you and you were often left with a piercing headache that functioned like a hangover that usually kicked in an hour or two after you created something.

You breathed out, moving your hands down his bare and exposed chest. Your eyes were closed as you imagined the final product moving your hands down from his neck all the way down to his toes.

You could feel the matter pushing and blending together and taking on different shapes and colors, and molding around his skin.

When you were finished you opened your eyes and your mouth fell open. It looked better than you expected.

It was a deep and dark green suit that you had created that fit him, wonderfully, perfectly even. You turned to reach into the bathroom cabinet pulling out a hair tie.

Standing on your tiptoes, your faces once again close, you pulled his soft and freshly washed hair back and pinned it up into a half bun. You could feel his eyes on you as you did this meeting his for a moment and smiling.

“There.” You said after a moment, taking a step back to look at him. You put your hand to your chin as if you were thinking and nodded.

“Yeah that's hot.”

Shouta ignored you, turning to face the mirror, but you could see the slight tint of pink on his cheeks.

You watched him look at himself in the large mirror and eyebrow raised.

“What do you think?”

“I like the color.” He said in the most monotone voice possible but you just about rocketed off into space. You leaned up on his shoulder and kissed his cheek before turning back to your makeup mess, trying to locate your eyeliner.

“We have like half an hour left to get ready, so I have to finish doing my makeup. It's a disaster right now.”

-----

Half an hour later, Shouta was sitting in the dining room, looking over student essays when he heard the bathroom door opening upstairs. He keeps grading until he hears the clack of your heels coming down the stairs. Dropping his pencil and standing up he makes his way into the living room where he is stopped in his tracks.

You were coming down the stairs holding the rail with one hand concentrating on walking with your high heel.

Feeling a bit uneasy, he moved close to the stairs and just as he predicted your right foot slipped sending you flying forward. With one easy movement he caught you in his arms, a smile gracing his face when you looked up at him appreciatively.

“You look beautiful.” He said setting you straight and tucking your hair behind your ear.

To make sure you matched, you created yourself a green dress that complimented his suit.

“Thank you.” You said smiling. You were buzzing and ready to go.

“Ready?” He asked taking a deep breath as if he was steeling himself. Social events were never his thing but he went cause he knew you enjoyed them, and to appease his various co-workers.

“Yep” You slid your hand in his and headed towards the door.

------------------ PART TWO ------------------

It was two hours into the party and suddenly you were wishing you had headed your husbands warning. You were at U.A with Aizawa for a teacher’s appreciation event, and after having used your quirk to make you and your husband clothes, you were experiencing the side effects of your quirk.

You gripped the stem of your wine glass a little harder as your head started to throb. You felt like your brain was going to split into two at any second. Your quirk was like a muscle, if you didnt use it for a while, you had to build it back up again. You couldn't remember the last time you’d used your quirk, so making your dress and your husband’s suit was too much for your body at the moment.

The music inside the school gym was blasting and everyone was huddled around talking loud to hear each other. Shouta had gotten pulled away to take teacher photos in the corner of the gym. You could see him now, deadpanning into the camera. It would have brought a smile to your face if you didn't feel like you were about to puke from the pain.

Without taking a glance around you took a large gulp of your wine, finishing it off in a not so classy way. You knew you would pay with another hangover later, but maybe the alcohol would temporarily help you out.

Ten minutes later, and quite a few drinks later, you were sitting with your head down on top of a table, wishing that you could turn back time and stop yourself from making the dress. You still would have looked nice in the dress you had already picked out.

You wanted to go find some of the teachers and chat and have a good time, but you felt like if you opened your mouth, it would be a cry. You weren't sure how long you had been sitting alone, when a hand was placed on your back. You jumped up, feeling your head sloshing a bit as the alcohol you’d ingested started to catch up with you.

It was Shouta, looking down at you concern over his face. He crouched down close to you so that he didn't have to shout so loud.

“What’s wrong?” He asked. You looked at him and realized he still had on fake prop glasses that someone had probably put on him. You smiled and pulled them off his face to plalce them on the table.

“You were right.” You pouted. “ My head is about to split open.” You said. Understanding hit his face, but he made no move to shame you, the concern still there. Damn you loved this man.

“But never fear!” You said and he raised an eyebrow.

“ I downed many a cup of alcohol. And I am already feeling better.” You said grabbing his face and laughing. Maybe you were already a little tipsy. You tended to get giggly when you drink.

He grabbed your hands  and brought them back to your lap amused. “ Your headache is just going to be worse later.”

You leaned forward more, a mischievous look clear as day on your face. “ Exactly, later.”

Before he could say anything else you connected your lips, returning the soft but intoxicating kiss he’d given you earlier. You considered it payback. When he pressed back to take over the kiss you pulled away a smirl playing on your lips.

“After the party… remember?” You said.

He cleared his throat returning back to normal public Aizawa within a moment.

“Right.”

You smiled wickedly.

“Right.” You said back. You stood up. “ Let’s go bug Toshi!!” You said in a sing song voice.

---

Aizawa was vaguely aware of the conversation that was happening around him. But his eyes were focused past the the group of teachers he was standing around and onto you. You were dancing with Toshinori chatting away happily. He knew you had a soft spot for the old man and you had rescued him from an awkward conversation asking Toshinonri to dance, leaving Aizawa open to being brought into various conversations that he did not care about.

You looked cute as you chatted with All Might, spinning under his arm as the music changed. His mind wandered onto the kiss you had given him shortly before. He knew you were definitely a little drunk, as you typically did not engage in PDA for his sake. It had caught him off guard, in only the way you could. You smelled heavenly and looked so beautiful with your hair pinned up and your dress.

He couldn't think of anything he’d like more at that moment than seeing your hair wild over the pillows, screaming out his name. It was like he could feel your hands ghosting up chest and digging into his back.

Snapping back into reality, he didn't have to look down to feel how tight his pants had become.

Shit.

“Excuse me.” He said in the middle of someone talking before dipping out of the conversation and cutting across the gym to the dance floor.

Toshinori saw you first, giving him a bright smile as he stopped dancing with you.

---

You looked up at Toshi pouting trying to figure out why you’d stopped . You were having a great time dancing with him. He was surprisingly good at leading, and he was telling you about his golden day stories.

You noticed he was looking at someone behind you so you turned, to see your husband standing there a strange look on his face. Your eyes traveled down and a smirk graced your face.

“Can I cut in?” He asked Toshi who nodded and let go of your hands at once.

“Of course.” he said, either not seeing his coworkers hard-on or doing a great job of pretending not to. “ I think i’m going to help myself to some more juice.” Leaning down he kissed you on the forehead quickly before heading away.  

No sooner was Shouta grabbing your hand and almost dragging you in the directions of the parking lot. You felt a wave of wanton lust flow over you as you reached the car.

You slipped into the car barely waiting until the door was closed before you climbed over the passenger seat and into Shouta’s lap.

He gave a surprised grunt as you kissed him deep, your tounges swirling together. You were fumbling with his belt when he grabbed your hands.

“Were in the parking lot Y/N” He said a bit breathily.

You tapped the dark window next to you. “They’re tinted, remember?”

You leaned forward your face and chest leaning over him close. “ You wanna wait?” You asked placing a hand over his clothed cock, gripping it softly.

When he didn’t answer you began to stroke it excruciatingly slow. “ Hm?”

You leaned over and left searing butterfly kisses up his neck, until you reached his ear where you said softly. “ Don’t you wanna fuck me Shouta?”

You were being a big brat. But you didn’t care your brain was clouded in want.

“Fuck Y/N.” He almost growled out gripping your face with both of his hand and bringing you in for another head swirling kiss. You felt his hands skirting up your dress till they found your lacy underwear.

You heard the tear of fabric before you even felt him ripping your underwear, and tossing them into the backseat. With your free hand you pulled his hard cock out of his pants. His hands moved to your waist with a vice like grip lining you up perfectly with him.

You broke your kiss to moan as he finally filled you up with one hard push.

--

Aizawa head was swirling with thoughts of you. If anything you looked more beautiful on top of him. Your carefully placed hair pins had slipped and your wild curly hair was falling past your shoulders. You were the only person in the world he’d be vulnerable with the only person he’d let touch him. And you felt so good, too good.

He didn't waste any time lifting you up again, chasing that feeling of being completely connected to you.

The way your face shifted into pleasure as he stroked again into you, made him want to cum in your right then in there, but he would pace himself.

--

After letting you get adjusted the pace he sent was relentless. His thick cock was pounding up into you and you couldn't even think for how good it felt. Neither of you were going to last long like this.

“Oh baby.” You cried out your hands flat on his chest and curling into fist pulling at his clothing. “ Oh baby don’t stop.”

You were on fire in pleasure, the sound of your moans and wetness slamming together filling the car. You head flew back, mouth agape as you began to cum around his throbbing manhood.

“Shouta!” You cried out tightening around him sending him over the edge and gushing into you.

You brought your head down to kiss him again as you both rode out your orgasim. Your thigh spasming softly under his touch.

“Mmm. I love you.” he said between kisses. And you smiled against his lips.

“I love you too Shouta.” You said.

[seravph]

Hi, I didn't really know who to reach out for this question, but do you have any tips on how to find your own unique fashion style? I'm not really looking to hop on popular clothing trends on social media e.g. eboy/girl or cottagecore, so I'm not exactly sure where to start! I come to consult you because I've seen some of your posts and you look very well versed in fashion and you seem to know your own personal style. My wardrobe is very outdated and I would like to update it to reflect the truest expression of myself. Thank you 😊 You don't have to answer this if you don't feel like doing so btw 😅

EEEE more fashion asks i love these thank you!!!! warning this got a lil (very) long so its under the cut :^)

so first and foremost the most important part about curating your own style is to learn more about your body and what flatters/doesnt flatter it. it's learning some basic fashion 'rules' pertaining to proportions, cuts, etc. there are plenty of resources on this if you dont know where to start (kibbe body test, video, video) but keep in mind this step has nothing to do with your weight!!!! i could talk wayyy more about this but at the end of the day, some clothing is just more flattering for specific body shapes - that doesnt mean you cant wear something that isnt perfectly flattering, but knowing your body and knowing what flatters it will make you understand your own style and help guide the pieces you buy. fashion 'rules' arent necessarily meant to be followed, but just understood so that 'breaking' them is a conscious choice. (it also really helped with my insecurities???? like this step is basically recognizing that its not your body thats unflattering, its the clothing, if that makes sense???)

also remember that every 'style' works for every body type. i.e if you want to be a 60s vibe but youre too curvy for shift dresses, there are plenty of clothes in a similar style that would look great on you <3 basically, if you dont like the way a piece looks on you, you can still achieve the same vibe with a different article of clothing thats more flattering. but also umm.... you can just wear the unflattering thing if you want LOL if it makes you happy... then it becomes your own controlled decision <3 live love laugh follow your heart

okay. now that you have that out of the way. there are a million ways to develop a sense of style, and no particular order in which i recommend them. what i love doing is creating pinterest boards for the spring/summer or fall/winter seasons and just filling them with pieces i would wear in a perfect world. i dont mean like cottagecore aesthetic boards, just boards full of runway looks and clothing pngs that i like. i also love making little outfits for characters which can influence my own style. everyone thinks of their style differently; i think of my own outfits as little vignettes with narratives behind them, but other people are more concerned with just wearing things they think are pretty, other people view it as an expression of art or their identity, and other people just want to feel comfortable!!! its all up to you and what youre drawn to!!

one thing that tan france mentioned once was to go online window shopping by going onto the website for a brand you like (regardless of whether its affordable or realistic!) and just adding things to your cart that youre interested in. dont worry about how expensive they are or anything, and when youre done, remove all the items you like the least. and then keep reviewing and removing until you have just a handful of really nice items you really like, and keep doing this with other brands until you can identify common threads between the pieces you like. you dont have to buy them!! in fact maybe its better if you dont!!! and the websites dont have to be like zara or h&m ... go on balmain or chanel if you want, play pretend and have fun!!

re: the last bullet point, i think a big turn off for people in terms of fashion is the idea that you need to wear something palatable and 'appropriate.' its like looking at a runway and thinking "its nice, but i would never wear that in real life." but honestly????? in a perfect world i would be wearing full gowns to the supermarket!!!! if your ideal style is imaginative but unattainable, your style in practice will be a microcosm of it. basically... dream big... dont be afraid to 'overdress' if its what you like!! one of the best pieces of advice i ever got was from my aunt, who offered to by me a plastic tiara. i asked her when i was ever going to wear it irl, and she just looked at me and said "??? you can wear it whenever you want to!!" so true!!! wear a tutu to mcdonalds. wear a bedazzled tux to prom. who cares

accessories, nail polish, hair, jewelry, perfume and makeup goes a long way in developing style. i dont wear a ton of makeup, but just putting some color on my cheeks achieves a kind of sunkissed lovestruck vibe that i strive for. i paint my nails red because i think its chic or bright colors so they contrast with a toned down outfit. even wearing no accessories is an accessory in itself. accessorizing (or specifically not accessorizing) is like adding texture to an outfit imo

anything that advises you about 'absolutely necessary essentials everyone needs' is entirely wrong. there is no one size fits all; i.e everyone says you need one good pair of denim jeans, but i havent worn jeans in two years!!! an essential for ME is a pair of neutral wool shorts, but an essential for another person could be a thick knit sweater or for another person, a flannel. the idea that everyone needs a 'little black dress' or a 'basic white t shirt' is preposterous. YOUR essentials depend entirely on YOUR style. a pair of denim jeans is useless if you hate wearing jeans!!!!

as for my personal style, im mostly influenced by movies, books, songs, characters, feelings, colors, high fashion, and costumes. ultimately, you should worry less about what you want to be and worry more about what you already like. every piece i have kind of plays into some narrative ive constructed, or otherwise theyre all special to me :) if you want to update your wardrobe, dont feel the need to over consume fast fashion (or any fashion for that matter) to do so. if you take it slow and buy pieces you really love, every item will have a story and you'll begin to develop a more stable internal style and they'll last longer :)

let me know if you have questions or want me to talk more about any of this because i really love answering these kinds of questions!!!!!! especially the body type thing because thats such an important but long winded thing i couldnt really fit it all LOL

some more videos + resources about style and fashion i think are interesting:

deep dive into kibbe body types

pinterest aesthetics, fatphobia, and white washing

lies about clothes to unlearn in your twenties

studio ghibli: how clothing shapes identity

breakfast at tiffanys style analysis: the reinvention of onself with fashion

will the millennial aesthetic ever end?

go viral, post #spon, get canceled: how social media transformed fashion in the 2010s

analyzing the "is it a cute outfit or is she just skinny?" meme

[yuukei-yikes]

Headcanon roulette! What jobs do you think the kagepro cast would have?

(CRACKS KNUCKLES) LISTEN I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT HEADCANON ROULETTE IS BUT IF YOU CAME LOOKING FOR A SHORT ANSWER I AM VERY SORRY i am going to give you so many headcanons youre gonna pass out i am going to tell you my headcanons and WHY i have them and i'll also be angry at jin for saying bullshit about their jobs. it's gonna be a good time SO. MY JOB HEADCANONS FOR THE KAGEPRO CHARACTERS: shintaro: jin says he'd be a teacher and to this i say (rolls newspaper and hits him in the head). WHAT THE HELL MAN!!! shintaro loves music bro i GUESS he could be a music teacher but EH i don't see him like the sort of person who'd enjoy being in a classroom so my headcanon is the obvious: song writer/composer. obviously. bro seriously why a teacher?? this guy's SISTER work(ed)s in the music industry, momo would absolutely use her contacts to help shintaro build a career out of music! and if shintaro's music are the kagepro songs we know then they'd have success lol and yes this is meta but he canonically wrote tomei answer SO... COME ON. writing songs inspired on the events? bro. bro. bro. b ayano: whatever she does i think she'd 100% wanna work with children. if anyone wants to be a teacher it'd absolutely be her! i like to think she becomes a social worker/kindergarten teacher? just anything she chooses to do would be around children tbh. kido: everyone always makes a big deal out of her cooking so i like to think she goes to cooking school!! so a chef!  i know jin said kido would have an orphanage but. 1) wh. why kido. ayano is right there?? ayano makes more sense to me than kido idk 2) why specifically the OWNER of an orphanage that's just weird kjrfksdhgds i GUESS it's not as ridiculous as jin's take on kano's job (i'll get to that next) but still... it's gonna be a nah from me kano: listen. listen. my job hc for kano is VERY headcanon based so i don't have any Canon(tm) content to support it but i assure you it makes more sense than jin's bullshit take on how he'd be a P*LICE OFF*CER. LIKE. EXCUSE YOU SIR WASH YOUR MOUTH YES KANO IS A DICKHEAD BUT HE WOULDNT GET TO THAT POINT!! SO my take is... hairdresser. WHY?? GLAD I PRETEND YOU ASK: again it's very hc based but i'm just gonna say kido hates talking to strangers bc she's #invisible and seto hates crowded places + when they move by themselves with mary i got the feeling they sheltered themselves from the world SOOO what if from then on kano has always done their hair for them im JUST SAYING... I THINK IT'D BE SWEET AND COOL AND FUN AND ALSO HE SEEMS LIKE THE TYPE. come on kido's green hair?? kano's doing. please. it'd be epic momo: she quits being an idol BUT momo adores 1) being silly 2) making people happy. what would she do? my most cursed but also my best take: fuckign....YOUTUBER.... she'd be her own boss and she'd make videos of whatever the HELL she feels like doing. trying to make art. destroying her hair. doing drag makeup. just whatever dude like everyone would know her as that one youtube girl who used to be a massively popular singer but now films herself bleaching her hair 5 times in one night and it'd WORK seto & mary: ok for once what jin said makes sense to me but i don't think he even said it, it just showed up in saiyuki's comic where they have a flower shop together. like i agree with that, they would! but maybe after a while seto would go work/maybe open a shelter of his own leaving the flower shop for mary haruka & takane: ANOTHER two that i'm not mad about what jin thinks (thankfully can you imagine how fucking mad i'd be if he said bullshit about my faves' jobs lol) i mean haruka has his whole thing of how he wants to be an artist and apparently takane is a streamer which i'm not mad at. i'll extend on them: i think both would be freelancers, haruka with art and takane  aside from her streams she'd like coding! like after being ene she for SURE knows some shit and she's super into videogames so she'd absolutely get into developing games and stuff. good for haruka and takane, their regular life is a quarantine hiyori: i don't have much to say about her but fashion designer/model would work for her i think. she's like that hibiya: HIBIYA HONESTLY I JUST... CANT THINK ANYTHING FOR HIM i think jin said he'd be an archeologist which i mean ok?? but ayaka was an archeologist and idk it seems weird he'd also be one with no connection to her at all for some reason but im not completely mad at the idea since i do think hibiya would have something that everyone considers to be INCREDIBLY BORING as a job. i want it to be a running gag that no one KNOWS what hibiya does for work and he's super offended about it but no matter how many times he repeats himself no one ever remembers what he does anyway those are my headcanons subscribe and comment click the bell to get notifications everytime i upload a new video i'll see you in the next one

[harry-meepmeep-dresden]

Hobbit Tricks

Hello everyone. I submitted a microfiction to a fan fiction contest. Thank you @studiocitypsychic​ for helping me edit this! You’re amazing! I hope everyone enjoys it:  Buildings didn’t blaze with fire. Frogs weren’t raining down upon the city. Sidhe queens stayed clear of duking it out tonight. I intended to keep it that way.

If the fate of the world isn’t hanging in the balance, I’d typically spend this day of the year curled up enjoying my comfortable recliner, a cup of cocoa in one hand, book in the other, fireplace burning brightly in the background as I reveled in being the Grinch of Halloween. This holiday is all well and good when you’re not me.

Who am I? I’m the only wizard in the Chicago phone book, Harry Dresden. To say this day’s my least favorite is putting it mildly. This year I couldn’t just attempt to ignore it. No more fireplace, basement apartment, or staying in. I’m a dad, and there are certain responsibilities a single parent needs to live up to. It might not be saving Earth from becoming an undead paradise, but it’s still important. Tonight I’d be escorting two Hobbits and an ax-wielding Foo dog on an epic adventure to claim unspeakably valuable treasure…

Candy.

Father mode engaged as I let my baby girl help me get my fake bushy white eyebrows glued on. Maggie insisted they were absolutely necessary with the wig and beard. My beautiful little girl dressed up as Frodo. She had little makeup freckles on her cheeks, the elven cloak, and the iconic clothing made from what I guessed might be a pattern based on the movies, with lots of grays, greens, and browns. On top of that they’d picked out boots a few sizes too big and decorated them to look like Hobbit feet.

Scratching my jaw a little I determined I would not disappoint her by complaining about my costume she and Charity Carpenter made. Maggie and the Carpenters spent weeks on these outfits. No matter how itchy fake facial hair and wigs could be, not a single negative word would come out of my mouth about it. Anyway, I rarely get to dress up like one of my favorite fictional wizards, and this made both Maggie and me happy. Mouse wore a helmet, fake plastic ax, and that big goofy doggy grin of his. He couldn’t help it as he noticed how much Maggie enjoyed all of this.

Hope or another one of the Carpenter kids normally lead the trick-or-treating. They’d instead volunteered to help with Father Forthill’s trunk-or-treat at the church this year. Maggie and Hank demanded an old-fashioned door-to-door experience instead. I couldn’t lie about the fact that taking Maggie trick-or-treating made my heart grow three sizes.

We picked up Hank, and he brought out a map the Carpenter kids developed over years of experience of the best houses to get candy from. And with that, Sam, Frodo, Gandalf, and Gimli were off on an adventure. Now and then I’d whisper a spell, and Maggie’s plastic version of Sting would glow with a pale blue light. It delighted her and the surrounding kids. One house gave the kids full-sized candy bars as the adults complimented the costumes.

“Dad! Look!” she hurried over to show me. The large boots decorated to resemble Hobbit feet made running or walking tricky. She still half-waddled impressively fast. I whistled and smiled as she held up the candy bar.

“Seems the costumes impressed them. You did an amazing job, kiddo. I mean, these costumes couldn’t be more perfect. Starting to dig the beard. Maybe I should keep this look, huh?” I stroked the fake beard and tried impersonating that knowing stare into the distance Sir Ian McKellen used in the movies.

She giggled, hurrying off towards the next house, Mouse and Hank right by her side and me just behind. No way would those kids leave my sight. Her eyes lit up each time she said ‘trick or treat’. Every few houses she brought her bag over to show off the bounty of the adventure. It made painful memories wash away little by little. Soon we ran out of houses on the map. We were all loaded into the car as Hank checked his watch. I half expected him to jokingly call the watch ‘my precious’.

“Hey, Harry, isn’t there anywhere else you can take us? It’s still super early,” he pleaded as they buckled up.

“That’s all the places on the map, kiddo,” I replied, thinking about how fast we got through it, and blaming it on the kids’ energy and excitement.

“Nowhere else, dad?” I might not have seen it since I kept an eye on the road, but my dad senses felt the pout Maggie had while asking that.

“Alright, fine. Off to Helm’s Deep,” I grinned, changing direction to head to Murph’s house.

When we got there Murphy wasn’t home. There were no signs of foul play from what I could see. She might be at a party. I didn’t expect that with her injuries, but I’m not her keeper. I had really wanted to see her tonight, and couldn’t help the slight ache in my chest. Oh well, on to try Waldo’s place.

I gave a few quick knocks on Butters’ door when we arrived before waiting for an answer. No answer. He might be busy with knight business or his job. He enjoyed working late. Billy and Georgia were the next destination. They also weren’t home.

Before going to Thomas’ apartment, I called him. No answer. He and Justine were likely at a White Court party or busy with other activities. I’d rather not chance interrupting them with two kids in tow.

Back in the car, I noticed that Maggie and Hank were being remarkably quiet. Maybe they were bored. I tried to think about where else we might go. The church was a good option since they had set up games for the kids.

“Hey, sorry, it’s a bust. We’ll head to the church and see what they’re up-”

“No!” the two kids blurted out, interrupting me.“I mean, uh, I think I’d rather head home and you and Maggie could stay over and watch a scary movie or something?” Hank asked.

I turned to glance at the two of them and noticed Maggie change her attention to Mouse, away from Hank’s watch. The way they kept hovering over it, they reminded me of the Hobbits and the One Ring. Hopefully Maggie wouldn’t attempt biting off Hank’s entire hand to get it.

“Uh-huh… You two are up to something,” I said and narrowed my eyes.

“We don’t want the adventure to end just yet. We haven’t even been to Mordor,” Hank chimed with a half smile.

I needed to keep them safe from watching anything nightmare inducing or Charity’d mince me up and bake me into meat pies Sweeny Todd style. Out of the many monsters I’ve fought, I’d rather face them over her. Soon we parked in front of the Carpenters’ home. A shiver ran up my spine from the eeriness of Michael’s house with all the lights off. I thought at least one of the Carpenters would be home. Before I could ask Hank anything both the Hobbits rushed out trailed by the furry Gimli.

“Hey!” I shouted, not wanting to lose sight of them.

Why were they running off knowing how dangerous tonight of all nights could be? Might just be heading to the backyard to play, but it was still Halloween. Even knowing literal angels protected Michael’s property, my chest felt tight with worry when I couldn’t see the kids.

Once I entered the backyard, a bunch of lights blinded me.

“SURPRISE!” voices echoed in the night.

My eyes adjusted and I saw everyone and all the decorations they set up. The Carpenter family arranged themselves behind the table everyone had gathered around. I noticed Butters hanging out with the wolf pack to one side of the table. Murphy sat up in a chair with her crutches close by. Thomas and Justine were even there, wearing modest clothing and standing next to Murphy. The large cake on the table featured a t-rex picture on top, probably Butters’ idea. Next to it were plates and forks. A cooler filled with different soda sat next to the table. To top everything else off, the Monster Mash played in the background.

I felt Maggie hug my leg. Bending down, I picked her up and wrapped her into an even bigger hug. She kissed my cheek and wrapped her arms around my neck as I held her close. Everyone had planned this together. They set me up. Michael brought out an old Polaroid camera to take pictures. Wizards don’t photograph well on most modern equipment.

“You sneaky little hobbitses,” I tried to say in my best Gollum impression before sniffling as the fake beard tickled my nose. “You tricked me.”

That smile she gave me made me feel… Well, let’s just say if it were sunny out I could have used magic to catch daylight in a handkerchief.

“Happy birthday, dad.”

[chuuguins]

spare facts about ur small town oc's ? 🤲

ahhh ok!!!! thank uuuuu!!!!

archie fairchild

comically clumsy. he’s injured himself more times than he can count, often in ridiculous ways. he always has a good laugh about it. he’s broken more bones than all of his friends.

all of his siblings are named after comic book characters as well! his sister is named pepper and his brother is named banner (his parents thought bruce was to dull as a name). the family has two cats named betty and veronica as well.

archie loves to draw, but he’s not very good at it. it’s just something he does for fun. it’s why he started doodling on people’s takeaway cups.

despite his parents (and his name) archie doesn’t read comic books. or watch riverdale. any jokes or references just go over his head.

a social butterfly! even if he doesn’t have plans that day, archie will walk around town or go to the beach and catch up with whoever he runs into. he likes to keep busy and have company.

developed a smoking habit due to his inability to say no to people. at high school parties he would accept cigarettes whenever they were offered and now it’s just a thing. rosa and pepper probably both tell him off for it.

his front tooth is chipped and he can’t remember how it happened.

ash kang

ash is a pretty skilled athlete, but he never had much interest in it. especially team sports. he hates team sports.

when it comes to tattoos, he has no impulse control. now that he’s back in town he is a regular customer at renegade ink. some of his tattoos don’t even make sense or are just plain ridiculous.

he absolutely loves music. it’s one of the few things that gets him genuinely excited and fired up. he is always going to gigs both in town and out of town.

may or may not have a different date for every day of the week.

a major smooth talker. very good with his words. ash was actually pressured into joining the debate team when he was still in school and made sure they never lost.

he kept almost no contact with his parents when he left town. just a couple of texts to let them know he was okay. his father is still very angry with him for this, while his mother just wants to move past it.

always looking for a fight. physical or otherwise.

bee hwang

has definitely rejected a boy and flat out told him it was because he isn’t as pretty as tamaki from ouran high school host club.

ever since she was fifteen, bee has been saving for her dream trip to japan. she used to put away part of her allowance and now she puts away part of her weekly paycheck from working at the arcade.

sailor moon and fruits basket are the shows that really got her into anime.

bee founded a town anime club in her second year of high school. they meet once or twice a week and host events such as cosplay contests, anime screenings and game nights.

she is a big vocaloid fan.

an avid dating sim player. huniepop is the game that helped her realise she was bi. she has one hundred percent cosplayed tiffany, kyu and momo but nobody had any idea who she was.

her style is definitely eccentric. she tries all sorts of different things and loves experimenting with fashion and makeup. of course her go to is j-fashion though. like...of course it is.

bee’s top five anime: fruists basket, ouran high school host club, madoka magica, clannad and anohana. but she struggles to choose honestly.

gracie lee

gracie has a tattoo of a black rose on her hip bone that she got without her parents knowledge or permission.

her best friend is named grace and the two of them used to deliberately confuse people by pretending they called them the wrong name. “rude! i’m not gracie, i’m GRACE!”

one day after a fight with her parents, gracie impulsively chopped her long hair to shoulder length. once she was done she burst into tears and called daniel in hysterics.

gracie loves taking pictures. she takes photos of everything because she never wants to forget the little things.

though she doesn’t really know what she wants to do with her life, she thinks she might be happiest if she did something with music. singing is the thing that makes her happiest.

she’s always playing with daniel’s hair.

she cannot resist pretty dresses, glittery things and mint choc chip ice cream.

wasn’t allowed to read harry potter as a child and her first ever true rebellion was reading the books behind her parents backs (LOOK I AM JUST PROJECTING WITH THIS ONE!)

her favourite character is ginny and the movie portrayal makes her incredibly angry. like she will rant for days.

isla cheong

definitely has a bit of a shopping addiction. she is always driving out of town to go shopping because living somewhere without a sephora upsets her.

she only got into kpop because of the dancing aspect. now she’s pretty into it but she’s not a fan of boy groups.

isla knows she’s pretty and uses it to her advantage. she definitely uses guys to get what she wants and casts them aside once she’s bored.

she’s pretty generous with her money because she knows she has a lot of it. loves treating her friends to food and surprise gifts. 

summer is her absolute favourite season. 

let her give you a makeover! she loves makeovers! she wants to be responsible for that full on movie transformation shit!

isla always begs to do her friends makeup for special occasions or dance performances.

when she first moved to crescent bay from new york she absolutely hated it (think confessions of a teenage drama queen) but she has grown really fond of it. she visits new york whenever she can though.

she is an incredibly picky eater and is very particular with her food. you might catch her eating cake at 3am though because she has a sweet tooth.

there are way more but my head is empty!!

[thewhiterabbit42]

WIP Tournament

Week 2 - Roommates vs Sex Pollen

Roommates [Gabriel x reader]: You start a new chapter of your life far from home where you don’t know anyone, including the person you’re sharing an apartment with.  It isn’t long before you start to notice strange things lurking in the shadows and about him.  Is your roommate really as great as he seems?  Or is there something he’s hiding?  

Sex Pollen [Debriel x OFC]: Not your average sex pollen fic.   

Below the cut are 300-500 ~800-1200 words from the beginning of each WIP and tags that currently apply to the story as a whole.  Choose which one you want to see continued by:

Sending an Ask (anon’s allowed)

Leaving a comment on this post or in the body/tags of reblogs

Voting is open until 6/14.  Thanks in advance to everyone who does!

Roommates

Section warning: a swear, maybe?

General story tags:  long fic, canon divergent, normal reader, nurse!reader, dark fic, stalking, more tags to come as story develops

You wake up to what can only be described as sheer deliciousness; a smorgasbord of smells that remind you of the big breakfasts your mom used to make on Sundays when you were younger.  It fills you with an aching warmth that’s bittersweet. You’re so far away from your family, from everything you’ve ever known, and as much as you miss them and everything familiar, a reminder of it all fills you with comfort.  

You have a feeling that’s exactly why your place smells like a brunch buffet.  

Everyone was against you moving away, let alone moving in with a stranger.  A man no less, and every piece of advice you received had nothing to do with starting a new life, but protecting yourself in your own apartment, like he was guaranteed to be some monster.  

Yet, Gabriel has been nothing but a godsend.  

He’s the one you call when you get held over at work (which is far more nights than it isn’t), when there’s no way you’ll make it home without falling asleep at the wheel.  

He’s the one who handled everything so you could just get some sleep when the hospital messed up your parking sticker, your car got towed, and you walked out to find it gone after a twenty-four hour shift.  

He’s even walked you home from the bar at two in the morning when you were worried about someone following, you even though he had to be to work in four hours.

He’s kind.  Funny.  He listens, better than some of your friends you’ve known for years.  He runs a little hot and cold sometimes, but it’s easy to tell when he’s in a mood, and he usually keeps to himself when he’s that way.  Mostly though, he’s thoughtful, so much so you almost don’t know what to do with him.

It doesn’t surprise you he’s noticed that Sundays are the hardest for you, or that he wants to do do something about it.  What does, is you have no recollection of ever telling him why.  

You give yourself a once over in the mirror and make a face.  He’s certainly seen you worse, but it’s not lost on how you handsome he is, and how self-conscious you feel when you look washed out with some of yesterday’s makeup still shadowing your eyes.  

You’re thankful you each have your own bathroom attached to your rooms so he has no idea what you really look like when you first wake up.  You do a quick wash of your face and what you can with your hair, which usually means throwing it up and hoping it looks more fashionably messy than hobo chic.  

What you find when you’re finally ready to emerge throws you for a loop.  

If he were your boyfriend, you would be walking into a scene straight out of the movies.  He’s got your red checkered apron on, (the one with the rooster on the front your brother gave you for being such a dick about how to cook a pie, because his always turn out doughy in the center and you refuse to eat them until he learns how to actually make one), and to top it all off, your roommate is humming happily to himself as he samples something from the stove.  

The spread already laid out on the kitchen table is out of this world.  There’s a little bit of everything from pancakes to fresh fruit, bacon, sausage, eggs, waffles, and what you suspect is a bowl of fresh, homemade whip cream.  

You let out a low whistle of appreciation.  “Somebody’s been busy.”  

He turns, giving you a dazzling smile.  “Morning, Sleeping Beauty. I didn’t expect you up for at least another hour.”

It is a little early for you considering you’re coming off back to back fifteen hour shifts, but if this were a fairy tale, you could honestly say true love’s kiss had nothing on a breakfast like this.  There’s hashbrowns on the stove you didn’t even see, and what looks like a raspberry sauce simmering away.  

The smell fully hits you now that you’re right there, and you’re pretty sure it’s amazing enough to wake the dead.

“Pull up a chair.  Let me get you some coffee,” he offers, gesturing to your normal spot at the table.  

“I can get it my–”

He cuts you off, wooden spoon leveled at you in warning.  “Sit.  You’ve been on your feet all weekend.”

You hesitate.  You normally fight him on these things, but there’s a persistent ache that has yet to leave after an unruly old woman with dementia accused you of being the harlot who stole her husband right before trying to use her cane to take you out at the knees.  Literally.

He moves toward the coffee pot, gesturing at your chair once again.  “I mean it.  You spend most Fridays and Saturdays helping people, while the rest of the world is out partying.  Let someone return the favor.”  

You’re not certain you deserve that much credit for being an ER nurse, but it’s nice to acknowledged.

You smile, shyness driving your silence as you finally take a seat.  

You don’t have to remind him how you take your coffee.  He knows, just as he’s absorbed what seems like a hundred other little things about you.  

You can’t help but feel guilty.  You don’t know much about him beyond he’s a janitor at a local college, his room looks like several decades vomited all over it at the same time, and he must roll out of bed looking perfect because never once have you caught him looking less than amazing.

It’s not that you haven’t tried.  He just manages to maintain that air if mystery by talking his way out of everything.

“What are we going to do with all this food?”  You wonder.  You rarely see him eat unless you’re both sitting down to a meal together, and there’s more than enough there to last you for over a week.  

“Figured I’d just take whatever we didn’t want to the homeless camp across town,” he says, setting a full mug down in front you.

Everyone told you that you’d get murdered in your sleep, and yet here you were, having breakfast with a freaking saint.  

He must catch the way you shake your head, his brow quirking up.  “What.”

Incredulity overtakes your features as you begin to fill the plate in front of you.  "You’re unreal, you know that?“

His eyes crinkle in the corner with a mixture of confusion and amusement.  “What are you on about?”  

As if he doesn’t know.  

His hands land on his hips as he waits for your answer.

Someone like him has to know, right?

“You’re like, I dunno, an actual angel?”

A bark of laughter escapes his lips.  “Oh, honey, angels are boring.  Who wants to be one of those?”  

His hand lands on the back of your chair as he leans over your shoulder, stealing a piece of fruit off your plate as if to prove a point.  Something warm and sweet with a hint of spice undercuts the aroma of the food surrounding you.  It’s him, and the rest of your senses begin to prickle with awareness with how close he is.

Just as suddenly as he’s there, he straightens up, popping his bounty in his mouth. “Besides, if you really knew me, that is the last thing you’d call me.”

Sex Pollen 

Section warning: threats of violence

General story tags: multi-chapter fic / potential series, canon divergent, dark fic, non con, dub con, smut, all the sex (oral, anal, vaginal), more to come as story develops 

  She presses her face against cold concrete, leaning closer to inspect the brightly glowing spellwork in front of her.  The color shifts the closer she is to it, morphing into a warm golden glow that casts shadows across her face and brightens the abandoned warehouse.   

Interesting.

Every field has their experts, and even though there’s technically no career path for this, she is the one hunters and scholars alike will call when they encounter anything unusual or ancient.  It’s a point of pride, knowing all her hard work speaks for itself.

What she’s looking at, however, rivals anything she’s seen, save Enochian.  There’s an immense power here, layers upon layers of it, woven together so finely she can’t tease it apart on sight alone.  It makes Rowena’s spells look like child’s play, and has to predate most civilizations she’s aware of, which likely means two things.

One, whoever laid this trap knew what they were doing.

Two, they likely know a hell of a lot more than she does.  

She stares, entranced as the light flickers, shifting hues once more.  She absorbs every detail about it, wracking her brain to recognize the ancient language that fades in and out of sight.

“The craftsmanship on this is exquisite,” she marvels, the intricacy of it nearly breathtaking.  

“I’ve got something exquisite for you right here.”

The remark pulls her out of her reverie, her head tilting up as a familiar set of boots moves into the side of her vision.  

“Why don’t you come a little closer and I’ll show you…”

She knows she should move, but she doesn’t, opting to inch her hand closer to the edge instead.  The raw energy prickles across her skin sharply, and she almost snatches it back.  It feels angry, like there’s a thousand tiny hornets trying to sting her, but can’t quite get close enough to fully do it.

“Nessa.”

She can tell Sam doesn’t like her being that close, and she doesn’t blame him.  She knows she has a tendency to push it, but she’s also well aware of how seconds can mean everything in situations like this.   

She inhales, bolstering her resolve, fingers stretching out a little further, knowing if she could just get past the edge of it she might –

There’s a sudden movement in front of her a split second before Sam grabs beneath her arms, hauling her away from the circle and his brother who’s now crouched inches from where she lay.

The spell work cuts back to a deep red, and the smile Dean wears looks that much more menacing.

“What’s the matter, Sammy?  Afraid she’ll have fun for once?”  There’s a burst of sanguine in the darks of his eyes that matches the rhythm of the light flickering at his feet.  "Or are you just trying to keep her to yourself?“

It’s a strange remark to make.  She and Sam are friendly, perhaps even friends, but anyone with eyes and half a brain could see her relationship with that Winchester is the epitome of platonic.  

Dean clucks his tongue.  “It’s not nice to hold out on me, Sammy.  We’re family.”

Sam helps her to her feet, and they angle their body away from Dean, trying to ignore him.  

“I just needed a few more seconds,” she mutters.  She tries not to sound irritable, but she can’t shake the feeling if she had the chance to touch it, she’d have that much more information to work with.  

The look on his face suggests he is highly unimpressed by that statement.   “It’s always a few more seconds with you.”  

He has her there, but he’s usually not the huffy one when it comes to her lack of self-preservation.  She imagines someone has to be, though, considering the usual suspects aren’t themselves enough to care about these things… possibly anything.   

“I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to get that close again.”

She recognizes what he’s saying is sound advice.  She also proceeds to stuff it into the part of her brain that also knows her life would be so much easier if she just did stuff like keep a running grocery list as things ran out or found a nice, normal man to settle down with.  

“Yeah, yeah,” she mutters, eyes drifting back to the circle as Dean smoothly stands up.  The movement is graceful as it is intimidating, the sheer confidence pouring off him sending a shiver down her spine.  

“I mean it.”  Sam rarely snaps, and the severity beneath his words has her refocusing on him.   

Ness can see it in his face that he’s nervous, really nervous, and she doesn’t blame him.  Not only is this Dean intense, but whatever they’re dealing with is strong enough to also overpower an archangel.

“C'mon, Sammikins, we’ll take real good care of her,” Gabriel slinks out from behind Dean, drifting back into view, and his stare rakes over her in ways she can feel before devouring Sam.  "Or you, if you prefer.“

“He’s all yours,” Dean passes, eyes never straying from her.  

“Hear that?  You’re all mine, big boy.”

Gabriel winks.  

Sam makes a face.  

She simply wonders what kind of hunger it is that’s overtaken their consciousness.   

By the way Dean licks his lips, continuing to stare like Ness might be the last tasty morsel in existence, she might have an idea.

Which leads to a completely different one.

"Walk up to the circle ”

Sam stares at her.  Hard.  Likely trying to decide if she really said what he thinks she did, or if there’s possibly something crazy in his ear.  "Excuse me?“

“What’sa matter, Sammy?  Scared?” Dean taunts.  “You should be.  I may not have a hammer this time, but who’s to say I need a weapon to bash your head in.”  

Well that answers that question.

Sam comes to the same conclusion a moment later.   “That’s… not just a lust spell, is it.”  

“That’s a hard no,” she drawls

Roommates or Sex Pollen?  Send an ask and let me know!

[crownees]

[ cis female, she/her ].  did odette fumero just walk by?  the 32 / 519 year old level d vampire is known for their meticulous, fearless and finicky, conceited behavior.  that explains why they resemble ana de armas.  doesn’t faux fur coats, giant hoop earrings and malicious grins remind you of them?

rel, back at it again with another intro!  this is the second of my three babes, ODETTE, and she’s my queer queen!  again, it’s best to reach me on discord  @lesbee1619.  thank you in advance for reading and like this post if one of the wanted connections interests you, or if you have an idea of your own for a connect / plot!  

⋆  ◦  * CHARACTER  ——  background.

⋆  As a human, Odette lived in Cuba on the cusp of colonization.  As a vampire, she lived at the bottom of a strict hierarchy that very closely resembled the blood purity ideology of the human world she suffered in.  When the war came in the 1600s, she quickly struck her allegiances, made her pledges to the ones she saw would lift her from the gutter and has rode the wave sense.  What was left her humanity died when she did; Odette had no qualms for slaughter, not after seeing what colonizers had done to her people, to people like her.  She reveled in the revenge, the cruelty for cruelty’s sake.  Now, she stands at the top of the pack even as a low-based vampire.  A level d.  Neither pure nor whole in any sense of the word.  A goddess of the new age. 

⋆  Ever since, Odette’s made sure to choose her loyalties carefully.  Risk is exciting, especially for her, but her safety is never something she’ll question.  She’ll do anything for those that do for her.  Over the years, she’s cultivated a close-knit group of fellows who she knows will have her back when it counts.  In a world where everything’s changing, from technology to style to music to people, she keeps the ones who matter close.  They’re her buffer for when things fall apart ------and, seeing how the empires have crumbled in the past, she’s certain it’ll happen at some point in the distant future.

⋆  ◦  * ZODIAC SIGN  ——  gemini.

❝ Expressive and quick-witted, Gemini represents two different personalities in one and you will never be sure which one you will face. They are sociable, communicative and ready for fun, with a tendency to suddenly get serious, thoughtful and restless. They are fascinated with the world itself, extremely curious, with a constant feeling that there is not enough time to experience everything they want to see. ❞ ( x )

personality quirks: gentle, curious, affectionate, versatile, inconsistent, nervous, indecisive, sociable, fickle

⋆  ◦  * PERSONALITY TYPE  ——  estp.

❝ In the workplace, school, home, or any other social gathering, it’s pretty easy to spot ESTPs. Spirited and spontaneous, fun-loving and even slightly crass, people with the ESTP personality type are go-getter types who take on life head-on and love being active and engaged. ESTPs work hard and play hard, and they expect everyone else to adopt this same mentality while around them. Networking and making new friends comes naturally to ESTPs because of their outgoing nature and drive to be successful. These qualities make it easy for ESTPs to get along with just about anyone, as long as they are not deemed to be lazy, flaky, liars, or complainers. ❞  ( x )

personality quirks: sociable, enthusiastic, excitable, blunt, defiant, rational, perceptive, insensitive, impatient

⋆  ◦  * CHARACTER ALIGNMENT  —— chaotic neutral.

❝ A chaotic neutral character follows his whims. He is an individualist first and last. He values his own liberty but doesn't strive to protect others' freedom. He avoids authority, resents restrictions, and challenges traditions. A chaotic neutral character does not intentionally disrupt organizations as part of a campaign of anarchy. To do so, he would have to be motivated either by good (and a desire to liberate others) or evil (and a desire to make those different from himself suffer). A chaotic neutral character may be unpredictable, but his behavior is not totally random. He is not as likely to jump off a bridge as to cross it. ❞  ( x )

personality quirks: chaotic, indulgent, greedy, anarchic, disorderly, unreliable, selfish, free

⋆  ◦  * CHARACTER  ——  miscellaneous.

Occupation: Shop owner of the Wicked Wench, a high-brand vintage shop

Hobbies: trying new makeup looks, wasting time at music stores, singing at bars, hustling bar games, flipping through fashion magazines, netflix binges, smoking on the beach, judging people, watching candles burn, learning b-boy dance routines, riding shotgun with the windows down, dancing till dawn, dying her hair

Vices: vanity, lust, a damn good pair of shoes, JNCO jeans, Britney Spears

Personal style: Bralettes. Leather pants. Pleather skirts. Crop tops. Platform shoes. Pattern tops. Chunky sweaters. Sweater paws. Big earrings. Chokers. Stacks of string necklaces. Bangles. Neon lipstick. Hair clip-ins. Reeboks.  Faux fur coats.  Slip dresses.

Other: 5′6  ;   slim, athletic  ;   pink hair  ;   ears pierced and several miniature tattoos  ;   pansexual  ;   homoromantic

⋆  ◦  * WANTED  ——  connections.

⋆ feelings towards other creatures:  odette is jealous of higher ranking vampires, so she takes any opportunity to lord over her closeness with nathaniel at any occasion.  she doesn’t like to be reminded of her weaker status, and can become downright violent when provoked about it.  she appreciates witches --- partially because they saved her ass in the war hundreds of years ago --- and thinks angels are pretty, but sad.  she’s terrified of sirens, and has a healthy respect for werewolves  ( not that she’d ever admit it, but she thinks the shapeshifting is totally cool ).  she despises demons and special humans, and doesn’t respect any human that  a) doesn’t fawn over her beauty and awesomeness  or  b) immediately offer their necks for her when she walks through.  she hates hunters worst of all, and spent the better half of the past few centuries hunting them to extinction.  odette has no opinion of immortals and is amused by familiars of witches she likes. 

⋆ connections:  a sire ; an intense, old flame ; a ride or die fem friendship ; someone she’s incredibly annoyed by, so she’s snapped their neck more than a few times ; a preferred bloodbag she dotes on ; a witch she purchases enchanted weapons and jewelry from ; a rival within the vampire ranks ; a nemesis who senses her sensitivity towards her ranking ; a shopping / brunch / party friend group ; a friend with benefits that’s kept lowkey af ; past friendships that’ve soured ; a former best friend who grew tired of her antics ; humans related to people she’s drained ; a doppelganger - style kind of thing of someone important from when she was a human  ( could’ve been a human best friend, lover, neighbor, enemy or w/ever ) ; someone she has a crush on that she can never have

** i’m equally interested in these suggestions being in-game or established plots & connections.  development bb!!  & don’t forget to check out my wanted tag  <3

[leobelgrave]

LEONIDAS BELGRAVE [CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT QUESTIONNAIRE]

BASICS - 1. Height?

Leo is 6′0.

2. Eye color?

Blue/Gray.

3. Do they need glasses?

No.

4. Scars and birthmark?

They have a star-shaped scar on the back of their neck, due to them being incidentally stabbed with a screwdriver by their older brother. They also have a small, round birthmark on the right side of their rib cage, which they affectionately refer to as Pascal, the third nipple.

5. Tattoos and piercings?

They have a poke tattoo of the Aries constellation on their left shoulder blade, which they have no memory of getting.

6. Right or left handed?

Left!

7. Any disabilities? Physical or mental.

Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)

8. Do they have any allergies?

Not that they’re aware of.

9. Favorite color?

Doesn’t have one. Prefers warmer colors, though.

10. Typical outfits?

As eccentric as possible. Sometimes, when they feel more modest they’ll opt for baja hoodies, shawls, mismatched socks. But they also aren’t too shy to wear something more revealing. Sometimes skirts, sometimes slacks, one time literally nothing at all. The colors are always vibrant and eye catching regardless of what they are wearing though.

11. Do they wear any makeup?

Sometimes, though usually only when going out. They like to keep it simple, with a bit of mascara, eyeliner, and gloss. Their nails are always painted, though.

12. What weapon do they use, if any?

They always carry a mace around in their bag, but never once have they used it. Why a mace, you may be wondering? Because it is just as chaotic as they are.

PERSONALITY - 13. Are they more optimistic or pessimistic?

Optimistic.

14. Are they introverted or extroverted?

Extroverted. It’s nearly impossible for them to meet a stranger.

15. What are their pet peeves?

Boring conversation, people who act indifferent about everything, people who get offended easily, using eating utensils when you could use your hands, slow walkers, people who don’t wipe their mouths when they’re eating.

16. What bad habits do they have?

Oh boy. They chew on their cheek, they pull on loose threads, they fidget, they’d bite their nails if polish wasn’t so damn expensive. They are willing to take anything for a temporary escape: usually alcohol and halfling weed but... they are open to other options. They also tend to switch topics quickly and usually focus on having their own reply ready instead of focusing on what the other person is saying.

17. Do they have any phobias?

Getting old. Not physically, but spiritually. In a sense, they’re afraid there’ll be a day where they wake up and realize everything they thought they’d achieve is behind them and they no longer have anything to look forward to or be excited about. Also, sailing. They get seasick easily and there’s too much about the ocean that remains unknown. No thanks.

18. How do they display affection?

They’re super physical. They hold hands a lot, and poke people, and kiss their cheeks, and lay in their laps, and would probably permanently attach themselves to someone if they could swing it. They’re all about affection. It’s intimacy, true, genuine vulnerability, that they can’t really get comfortable with. All the physical attention usually does a good job as a deterrent, though.

19. How competitive are they?

They are ridiculously competitive, even when they don’t mean to be. If they see someone else walking toward the exit at the same time as them, they consciously walk faster and when they beat the other person, who is likely completely unaware there was a race, Leo thinks to themselves, ha, I won!

20. If they could change one thing about themselves, what would it be?

Bigger butt. Next question.

21. Do they have any obscure hobbies or routines?

They are really good at knitting and crocheting. A good percentage of their wardrobe is home crafted. They also collect rocks and crystals so that they can make jewelry out of them. They always considered themselves artistic, but their drawing and painting abilities were abhorrent, and their singing voice was... well, not great either. So they found their expression through clothing, which is why they make such weird and bold fashion choices.

BACKSTORY - 22. What are the names and ages of their close family members? Parents, siblings, etc.

His parents, Percival and Herron, are each 59. His brother Tiberius is 34, his sister Elexus is 31, and his brother Maximus is 23.

23. Is their family alive and are they still in contact with them?

Yes, and no. To Leo’s knowledge, they have not spoken in about seven years. They have no memory of this, but they only left home about 11 months ago.

24. Where are they from? City, nation?

They were born in Crowmire, Hegaehend. They grew up there, but ultimately moved to Khaggon in their early twenties.

25. Did they have a childhood best friend?

Leo has never had many close friends, as they tend to hold others at a distance for fear of rejection and of any other sort of downfall that would dampen their spirits. They’re open to the idea, but also no one has bothered to try and break down the walls thus far so in a way, they feel they’ve been right to build them up in the first place.

26. Have they had any pets?

They would love one, but they’re way too irresponsible. There is a stray cat that often hangs out on their windowsill. Leo calls it Blue because it is actually red, and sometimes they feed it scraps.

27. Did they grow up rich or poor? What were their living conditions like?

They grew up pretty comfortable. Their father owned several profitable businesses in Crowmire, so they were lucky to afford a house big enough to fit four children comfortably, and Leo never had to worry about going to bed hungry. All the siblings were meant to stick around and take over the businesses as their own. To Leo’s knowledge, they are the only one who left.

28. What is their educational background?

They went to school full-term, but genuinely did not apply themselves. For instance, when their mother demanded Leo take language courses, they took Draconic and Sylvan. Once they felt they’d learned everything they needed to learn, they sort of tuned it out and waited for it to be over. As a result, Leo isn’t very smart in terms of academic knowledge, but they feel they more than make up for it with street smarts and life experience. (However, they do not in fact make up for it.)

29. As a child, what did they want to be when they grew up?

A performer of some sort. They used to put on dramatic performances with their family where they’d write scripts and force each of them to play characters. Leo, of course, was always the lead. And yes, it was silly, but they actually weren’t a half bad actor. Oh well.

30. What advice would they give to their younger self?

They’d say, “If Mom ever tells you she is good at cutting hair, disagree and politely decline. And the way you’re feeling right now: overlooked, misunderstood, confused- that um... that gets better. You end up liking yourself, so, uh, you know. Might as well start right away. Oh, and when you’re at that one bar with the dog that pees on that dwarf lady, don’t smoke what she sells you. Seriously. Still don’t know where my pants went that night and those were some expensive pants.”

31. Growing up, were they ever bullied or were they the bully?

When they were younger, back before they really discovered themselves, they were bullied quite a bit. But as they grew to enjoy themselves and realized how cool they were for someone so young, they started to genuinely not care, and also they developed really good debate skills so when someone tried to belittle them, Leo usually ended up coming out with the upper hand.

32. Who do they look up to/who is their role model?

There really isn’t anyone they’d consider a role model. They are not at all like the people who raised them and there weren’t many outside influences who ever bothered to try. That might be a large reason Leo is so aimless most of the time: they don’t know which direction they want to go in yet.

PRESENT - 33. Do they currently have a place of residence?

They have an efficiency apartment that they pretty much just use to shower and, sometimes, to sleep.

34. What is their most treasured possession?

Their Reliquary! They keep it in their closet under their sewing supplies but anytime they’re going on a long trip they bring it with them.

35. What is their drink of choice?

Alcoholic. They don’t care if it is the cheapest ale or the most expensive spirit one can find. If it gets them drunk, it’s good.

36. Which king/queen are they loyal to, if any?

If they had to choose one, probably Kaylynn just because she’s the only one who isn’t currently dealing with a war. They actually don’t mind the idea of moving to Anari some day, and would seriously consider it if it didn’t mean such a long sea voyage.

37. Have they ever killed anyone?

They aren’t sure, but they hope not.

38. What was their last promise and did they keep it?

They promised their landlord that they would have the rent, and they did! Two days late, but, still. 

LOVE - 39. What was their first kiss like, if they’ve had one?

They were thirteen and had to kiss a boy named Oliver at a slumber party. As far as they recall, it was not terrible. It must not have been too bad, because they kissed again several times after.

40. Are they in a relationship/have a love interest?

No. Single and terrified of intimacy, unfortunately.

41. Have they ever been in love?

They don’t think of love as some sacred thing that is rare to find; Leo has loved lots of people and lots of things and experiences and memories. Have they ever been in love? No. But if you asked them, they’d lie and say it was all the same.

42. Have they ever had their heart broken?

Absolutely. One of the reasons Leo is so guarded from everyone is because they care so easily. And they trust unwavering. And they’re devastated when things don’t pan out the way they expected them to.

SPIRITUALITY - 43. Do they follow a god, if so who?

Yes: Tymora. There was a while where Beshaba was actively trying to get them to start following her instead, but Leo doesn’t remember this. Not that it matters, they ultimately stuck with Tymora anyway.

44. What do they think happens to them after death?

They don’t know. They keep their options open, but if gods exist and magic exists then it’s perfectly reasonable to believe that there is something waiting when the journey is done.

45. What is their spirit animal?

Fox. Chaotic and sly and pretty and full of mischief.

[illegiblewords]

GOBLINS, ORCS, AND OTHER “UGLY” FANTASY RACES

This has been at the back of my mind for a while. Disclaimer: This is my own personal opinion. No one is obligated to agree, and I actually would like to invite anyone who disagrees to reach out if there’s a point I misunderstood or missed outright. I can debate like no tomorrow but if a good case is presented to me I’m totally willing to accept the better argument.

Anyway, I’ve seen a lot of fans (especially in Critical Role fandom) pushing for ugly goblins. Like the title says, often the rules get applied to other “evil” races too, such as orcs. I think there might be two motives behind this, one being that people are trying to deny any existence or validity to beauty standards in real life by actively going in the opposite direction. This approach is reactionary as opposed to being motivated by inspiration. The other reason, I think, is because a lot of the people advocating “ugly goblins” or “ugly orcs” or any “ugly” fantasy group recognize that those races historically have been shown to be ugly and they want to maintain that visual even if those races have more sympathetic characters. It’s a way of not defining goodness by beauty. This is a valid point, but I personally think it misses the bigger picture that defining a stereotyped “evil” race specifically by human ugliness standards is kind of sketchy and unneeded to begin with.

In my experience, I also do not think any of the advocates of ugly fantasy races are embracing the tone or aesthetics of horror. Horror would differ from simply trying to make those races ugly because there’s room for horror to be evoked by those races being predatory, with our negative reaction coming from those visual cues. The reason I think people are not taking this approach is because frankly, often when sympathetic characters from “ugly fantasy races” are shown now it is in carefully defanged forms of ugliness. Soft edges, pastel hues, big eyes, exaggerated emoting. There is no contrast happening between a sincerely horrifying or frightening appearance and a kind personality. I think this is partly because people are afraid of the concept that anyone or anything can look horrific, or that a horrific appearance exists. Nevermind that the personality being a contradiction of that aesthetic would have a more powerful point and create more dramatic tension for the character. Also nevermind these are not real creatures.

Horror is not the only route though, and of course there is nothing wrong with pastels. But we should be thinking about how and why we get there.

IMO there is worth in aesthetics. Beauty standards are real, and so are ugly standards. Both vary depending on what culture they exist in, and to me the way beauty and ugly concepts shift between societies is fascinating. There is actual, structured reasoning behind these things. Environment has a TON to do with it. Among other stuff, beauty standards develop out of rare and sometimes even inconvenient features because inconvenience denotes luxury for the person who can afford such inconvenience without consequences. It’s part of why long, flowy fabrics, heels, and dresses get fashionable in western femininity.  It’s why foot-binding was done in China even when people were trying desperately to end the practice. It’s why French men historically would wear finery and delicate white hose and crazy-ass wigs and makeup. You think those guys were going to run out and work a farm, looking like that?

I could go on about how the point of beauty standards is not to fit them perfectly, but to use them in order to evoke a specific tone successfully across a broad range of body types and people. But that would be a tangent from hell.

On goblins and orcs, I think it’s a mistake to design those races in a way that is reactionary, defining them by human concepts of ugliness. I don’t think these races should be depending on what humans think at all. Orcs as commonly described are known to have tusks and coarse hair, bigger bones, taller bodies, broad faces with frequently upturned noses. They should have their own standards of beauty and ugliness according to what what is rare and inconvenient for them.

Personally, I’m a big fan of orcs doing shit with tusk carving. Stuff like that would prob hurt like hell and leave the tusks far more fragile, which is risky if you are on the front lines. But say you’re a medic, or a magic-user, or any orc that perhaps shouldn’t be on the front lines. You get an intricately detailed aesthetic that proves you don’t need to worry about your tusks breaking. You can also have stuff like smaller, comparatively lighter frames being prized because if an orc is more delicate and still manages to be a fantastic fighter, that orc has to be a true badass. Long, well-kept hair is a potential risk in battle, and if it’s being formed into intricate styles the idea that it’s going to stay in place for that is ridiculous. But it shows the orc who has exciting hair does not have to worry about that being damaged. It’s already canon that scarring is a big part of orcish culture too, so ritual scarring (which could carry risk of blood loss and creates patches of skin that feel nothing) probably is a big part of things too. There’s a big difference between ritual and battle scars though, and DEFINITELY a big difference from scars obtained as a slave or victim of violence. So on, so forth.

With goblins, big ears probably developed to help them keep track of predators and prey both. They have sharp teeth and claws and from what I can tell often bigger eyes. These things developed specifically to help in both attack and defense. Goblins are also small, and they need to be fast and stealthy to avoid being endangered in battle. So out of all this, probably goblin beauty standards born from inconvenience would involve decorated nails, less prominent teeth, smaller ears, possibly more light-sensitive eyes. Red or pink irises like those that occur in albinism can also cause issues with vision such as needing glasses, so a red or pink eyed goblin doesn’t need to see as well as a goblin who’s constantly in danger. For goblins of high status that are considered especially beautiful, they probably wear jewelry that clinks and clatters like little bells or something and they probably have some kind of footwear or clothing that would slow them down in a fight.

Note, inconvenience is very different from medical hazard. People in general have something in our hind brains (so to speak) that recoils instinctively from illness because it could get us killed. It’s part of why people reacted so badly to lepers and part of why we get upset by zombies today. Not all ugly standards are defined by whether we read a body as “sick” on some level (like I said, predatory can count too) but I suspect that has a lot to do with it.

For both orcs and goblins, the ones seen on the front lines in the thick of battle can’t necessarily afford the extra time and inconvenience of trying to maintain beauty. But those orcs and goblins shouldn’t define their entire race, and frankly if some of those individuals were seen outside battle context they might take pains to try and get closer to their own respective beauty standards too.

There are a lot of ways this stuff can be interpreted, but I guess my main point is I don’t think we should be actively trying to make goblins, or orcs, or any fantasy race “ugly”. IMO they should be weird and kind of alien, but in a way that makes sense. Super subjective of course.

Again, feel free to let me know if you disagree or if I missed something! The goal here is not to put anyone down for their approach or interpretation. If anything, I really hope this encourages people to play with ideas and see what they can come up with! There’s so much cool possibility to be inspired by!

[dichenlachmandaily]

Future Shock

In Altered Carbon, Dichen Lachman harnesses her passion to brave a dystopian world.

Dichen Lachman sits behind the front desk in the Palm Springs Art Museum lobby, her eyes loosely shut as a makeup artist dusts gold pigment across her lids. She’s wearing Ugg boots; her hair is tousled. Despite the 6 a.m. call time, she declines a coffee and instead reaches for an old-fashioned doughnut hole. Lachman (whose first name is pronounced Dee-chen) is poised but low-key, nowhere near the fiery intimidator she portrays in her latest project, the Netflix original series Altered Carbon.

The museum is closed today, quiet save for crew chatter and the clang of gown-draped hangers on the stylist’s rolling rack; art hulks off the walls in the shadows of unlit corridors. Following months of stunt work, emotionally taxing scenes, and 16-hour days on set, the stillness is welcome. Lachman spent the summer in Vancouver, British Columbia, where Altered Carbon filmed its first season. Between network events and promotional appearances from São Paulo to Seoul, she’s savoring the post-production time off at home, just being Mom. Mathilda turns 3 in May, and her favorite things are scribbling, Sia music videos, and the family dog, Whisky. Deep love for family is an attribute the 36-year-old actress shares with her character, Rei. Perhaps the only trait they share, she says — that, and a fondness for action.

When it comes to that devotion, Lachman refers to a full-body, teeth-gritting sensation, a compulsion to hug tightly, to fuse, to be together forever. Rei takes the sentiment to an extreme, but Lachman relates. “That whole idea that I’ll just eat it,” she says, in her soft Australian drawl, which she dropped for the role. “Like I say to my daughter sometimes, ‘I just want to eat you up, I love you so much.’ ”

When we catch up by phone after the museum shoot, a few weeks before Altered Carbon’s premiere, she delves deeper into the idea of eating one’s feelings and shares a story about her four-legged childhood friend, a Jack Russell terrier named Singhi.

“When I was leaving Adelaide to pursue acting in Sydney, I found two of her little furs on my jacket,” she recalls. “I didn’t want to throw them away because I felt like that was throwing my dog away. I didn’t want to keep them because I thought I would lose them. So I swallowed the two little dog furs. I imagined they’d be absorbed into my body and we’d kind of be a part of each other.”

“When I was leaving Adelaide to pursue acting in Sydney, I found two of her little furs on my jacket. I didn’t want to throw them away because I felt like that was throwing my dog away.” Dichen Lachman

Lachman had shrugged off the role of Reileen Kawahara when she didn’t hear back from casting for four months. It was an uneventful lead-up. She received sides, sans any contextual clues to the plot, and submitted a self-taped video audition.

Then she got the call.

“What is this?” She’d actually forgotten. “There’s no callback? Do they want to see me again?”

“No,” Lachman’s agent told her. “They just want you to do the role.”

“I subsequently found out Laeta was a fan of Dollhouse [2009–2010] and The 100 [2014], so she was familiar with my work,” the actress says. “This is the biggest show I’ve ever been a part of … I just feel lucky to have been a part of it and humbled watching everyone’s work on the show.” The 10-episode, multimillion-dollar series, which became available for streaming Feb. 2, is one of Netflix’s highest-budgeted undertakings yet.

An adaptation of the 2002 cyberpunk novel by Richard Morgan, the first in his Takeshi Kovacs trilogy, Altered Carbon stars Joel Kinnaman as Kovacs (pronounced Ko-vach), a body-swapping soldier summoned to solve a murder in the year 2384. Human consciousness has been digitized and can be “sleeved” into new bodies, establishing a world in which the rich live forever and reprobates evanesce in the dark, debauched underbelly of society.

“It’s woven in such an intricate fashion, you can’t really say the show is just one thing,” Lachman explains. “It’s a love story. It’s a murder mystery. It’s action packed. There are all of these philosophical ideas, too. You walk away thinking, If I could live forever, would I even want to?”

Lachman portrays Kovacs’ sister, first appearing in episode one as a figment from his past; she gets her big reveal midway through the season. (At the risk of leaking a spoiler, let’s just say Lachman’s grand entrance is badass, evidential of the months pre-production she spent training in Japanese combat.)

Along with Kinnaman, the cast includes James Purefoy as a “re-sleeved” murder victim in search of his own killer; Martha Higareda as a well-meaning cop intent on closing the case; Renée Elise Goldsberry as Quellcrist, a futuristic Robin Hood hell-bent on quelling elitism; Will Yun Lee as Kovacs’ “birth sleeve”; Ato Essandoh as Kovacs’ gun-slinging ally; and Chris Conner as the personified consciousness of a hotel where Kovacs resides. These characters are complicated and not always who they appear to be. The plot is layered with flashbacks, visions, and alternate virtual-reality dimensions. Timelines seem to intertwine, leading the viewer through a supremely satisfying plot twist to a finale that may very well render all of us worthless until the second season finally airs. According to Kalogridis, “the biggest success is that the whole thing actually makes sense

“We lived with my uncle 
and my aunts, my grandfather, and my cousins in a tiny 
little apartment. So I had a really …” she pauses, 
“colorful childhood, almost 
of another era.”

Lachman was born in 1982 in Nepal. At that time, more than 90 percent of the country’s population of 15.7 million worked in agriculture, fielding rice, sugarcane, and oilseeds. Fewer than one in 10 owned a telephone. There was no FM radio. No television stations. Terrain continues to hinder development, but modern-day residents can tune in to Altered Carbon — Netflix extended its streaming services around the globe in 2016.

“I was there until I was about 7,” Lachman recalls. “I think we had Superman, Supergirl, and Police Academy, but no real TV to speak of.” Those VHS tapes were her immersion into science fiction. “We shared electricity with India at the time, so three or maybe four nights out of the week we didn’t even have electricity; mostly it was candlelight. We lived with my uncle and my aunts, my grandfather, and my cousins in a tiny little apartment. So I had a really …” she pauses, “colorful childhood, almost of another era.”

Lachman’s father, a Sydney native, was trekking through the Annapurna region of the Himalayas when he met his would-be wife, originally from Tibet, who was working at her family’s restaurant, a backpacker/tourist destination. “He told a friend, ‘I’m gonna marry that woman,’ ” Lachman recounts of her parents’ meeting. He did. The family moved to Australia when Dichen reached school age. “I remember taking my cousin to school [in Nepal]; it was in a hut, and they were still writing on slate with chalk. My father thought I’d have more opportunities if we were in Australia, so we moved to Adelaide.”

She was 23, living on her own in Sydney and dabbling in low-budget films — not long after the dog-fur incident — when she landed the role of Katya Kinski on Australia’s long-running soap opera Neighbours, a veritable breeding ground for Aussie exports. (Margot Robbie, Chris and Liam Hemsworth, and Russell Crowe are all alums.) A leading role in Joss Whedon’s sci-fi series Dollhouse brought Lachman to California in 2008.

Here, she met husband Maximilian Osinski, who is also an actor in the sci-fi/superhero sphere. Both have appeared in Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. on ABC, albeit in different seasons, and worked together on TNT’s end-of-days drama The Last Ship. Most recently Lachman portrayed alien ringmaster Roulette in Supergirl’s second season. Then Netflix came calling.

“It’s so refreshing because all of the women are such intricate, complex characters,” Lachman says. “They get to be beautiful and fierce, and they hit back. I think this is largely due to Laeta really wanting to show us off like that, to give us more than just a one-note character.”

As Kalogridis puts it, fierce women are the backbone of the show; they promote an underlying message of “owning your body and owning your power.”

Kalogridis has a stellar team, from set decorators and fight choreographers to visual effects artists and cinematographers, whose credits read like a best-of sci-fi list: Guardians of the Galaxy, Captain America: Civil War, War for the Planet of the Apes, Wonder Woman, The Martian. “This was definitely a labor of love for a lot of people,” she shares. “It’s not a movie, but it’s not necessarily what you associate with TV. It’s sort of occupying an interesting in-between space.”

“We were world-building,” adds costume designer Ann Foley, who joined the Altered Carbon team after four years with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., during which time she dressed Lachman. “That was one of the things that really drew me to this project — helping Laeta build and develop this world. One of the challenges when you’re doing anything futuristic is trying to keep it grounded and relatable so people don’t get distracted by the costumes. You don’t want to pull anybody out of the story.”

Foley orchestrates a visual crescendo through the season in ensembles that define each character and provide covert signals to the viewer. Lachman’s commanding wardrobe evolves alongside Rei’s tumultuous story arc; androgynous Samurai- and Sōhei-inspired combat gear metamorphoses into regal, sinewy shapes. Threading together her range of looks is one choice color. “You see so much green in the world where Reileen and Kovacs grew up,” says Foley, referring to scenes filmed in Vancouver’s verdant forest near Widgeon Falls. “You’ll see there will always be an element of that color in her costume, because that helps to inform who the character is.”

In Episode nine, Rei sits with Kovacs and tries to express the intrinsic bond she has always felt with him — a full-body, teeth-gritting sensation, a compulsion to hug tightly, to fuse, to be together forever. Despite hundreds of years of separation, in this world where one’s consciousness can live forever, occupying different bodies, Reileen has never stopped loving her brother. They are family, and family comes first.

“Remember what Mom used to say?” Reileen asks Kovacs as they sit at a small table in a seedy Moroccan-style hookah lounge. She chooses each word slowly and carefully. “ ‘I love you so much, I could eat you up.’ When you were arrested, they put me in an orphanage. All I had left of you was one of your old shirts … They ripped that shirt out of my hands — I can still feel it tearing, the threads still in my fingers. I knew they were going to take those too. So I swallowed them. Just to have something, anything, left of you.”

That passion is the characteristic Kalogridis saw in Lachman and the reason she sought her out for the role. “She brings a real depth and age to a character,” Kalogridis says. “I absolutely believe her version of a woman in her late teens/early 20s and a woman who is 255, 260 … Dichen’s just a very old and interesting soul. She is the warrior goddess.” Lachman has ventured a long way from Kathmandu, from Adelaide, and from Sydney, but as with all of us, the sum of her past experiences defines the person she is today.

“There’s a moment,” Lachman says, “where [my character] discovers Takeshi in the yukuza warehouse, and they just start killing everyone around them. She looks at him and smiles. There was all this action happening around us, and I had to try to cover my laughter because I kept thinking, I can’t believe I’m doing this. Who am I?! I’m originally from a Third World country, then a sleepy little town in Australia, and I’m running around like Rambo on this set with hundreds of stunt guys and people shooting guns at each other …

“This is what I dreamed about.”

[yasminc-photo]

Graded Unit - Travelling Through Time Shoots

Idea

I’ve decided to divide my graded unit concept into 5 shoots relating to travel through the decades. I’d like to achieve shots for the 1940s, 1960s, 1980s, 2000s and 2020s. These shoots will all carry different themes, such as togetherness, love, isolation, war, rebellion etc. It’s a big project but I'm very excited for the final results and testing myself as a photographer to see what I'm able to produce.

1940s Shoot

For this shoot I wanted to capture a two models acting as a couple during WW2. The male soldier would’ve returned via train, and I wanted to encompass metaphorical meaning behind the image being the mental journey it takes for a man to return from war transitioning back into being a civilian. The literal message of the shoot would be showing how hard it is to physically be away from a loved one.

I would like the models to be in romantic, intimate poses with hugging, holding hands and physical contact. Costume wise the male model would wear a sort of long overcoat with a uniform underneath. The female model would wear a 40s style casual dress. The style of photographs would be black and white, using the rule of thirds to focus on the models. The location for the shoot would ideally be Summerlee Heritage Museum to make use of older train models and transport, however my backup for this would be to shoot in or outside of Glasgow Central.

1960s Shoot

The idea for this shoot is to showcase the fashion and culture of the 60s. I feel this is an important shoot to show the drastic change between the lifestyle of the black and white 40s with the technicolour 60s, focused on the development in fashion, music, movements and culture in general. 

The model would be female, wearing colourful clothing showing off the new freedom in fashion and expression. I would like my model in somewhat eccentric poses showing movement. Editing would be high contrast, grainy and colourful. The location would be outside a Edinburgh train station as that’s where the model is located or using the museum of transport as a backup.

1980s Shoot

For the 80s shoot, I wanted to focus on the rise in punk fashion and influence, with themes of rebellion and anarchy. However, I thought its important to note that despite punks, trad goths, anarchists etc. being looked down on by society and seen as destructive, there comes a strong sense of community within these genres. The togetherness and wholesomeness of punk communities and friends during the 80s is something I'd like to capture in a candid style, keeping the ruggedness of the graffiti, clothing and attitude within the images.

This shoot would be ideal with two models, to interact with each other to create a candid photo. The clothing, hair and makeup would all be inspired by 80s punk style. I would really like to use framing and low angles to create an unconventional photograph to match the style. The location would be the Glasgow Subway.

2000s Shoot

The 2000s shoot was an idea I wanted to reserve for the teenage angst/emo phase that had an iron grip on young people of that time. I think the biggest inspiration for this type of fashion and moody attitude is Avril Lavigne, so I thought a emo style shoot on abandoned train tracks couldn’t really be more angsty if it tried. The message behind this one would be the beginning of really acknowledging mental health and suffering, wanting to run away from everyone including your own thoughts. 

For this shoot it would be one model, dressed in casual black/dark clothing. Hair would be styled to mask the models face a little bit to link to the idea of not wanting to be seen/found. I’d like to incorporate leading lines with the tracks, low angles and moody atmosphere. The location would ideally be in Bogside where I used maps to locate abandoned train track routes.

2020s Shoot

For the final shoot, I wanted to focus on the changes that the COVID-19 pandemic has created, largely affecting travel. In an age where travel for work or leisure is seen as a necessity, the pandemic hit a lot of people hard. I believe this had a psychological affect on many where in 2020, once we began to physically isolate from each other, we started to feel mentally isolated from the rest of society. 

The shoot will portray this idea with a singular model being present on a train or at a station wearing a face covering. I would like to use lots of negative space around the subject to portray the theme of physical and mental isolation. I’d like to use a phone as a prop to amplify the isolated theme, also tying into 24/7 technology stimulation being a main factor of life in the 2020s. 

[thefilmsnob]

Glen Coco’s Top 10 Films of 2020

This has been the weirdest damn year for film--and basically everything else--we’ve ever witnessed. Theatres closed, re-opened, then closed again; dozens of films were postponed, and no one knew where to watch the ones that weren’t. I didn’t see nearly as many films as I usually do and, even so, the selection was relatively underwhelming. Nevertheless, there were still some good pictures released, so, as always, I’m sharing my top ten films of 2020 plus a bonus track...there’s always a bonus track.

#10b. (Bonus Track) Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

Director: Jason Woliner

Starring: Sacha Baron Cohen, Maria Bakalova

On the surface, Sacha Baron Cohen’s characters may seem utterly absurd and childish--and maybe they are--but, the genius behind them is their ability to reveal the ignorance of the people he encounters and make you question where the true absurdity lies. Cohen accomplishes this yet again, even if this sequel isn’t quite as fresh as its 2006 predecessor. Yet, in the United States of 2020, ravaged as much by asinine politicians, disgraceful racism and dangerous conspiracy theories as by the actual Covid pandemic, Borat is an entirely welcome presence. He makes all the right people look as wrong as they should, especially former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani who’s caught red-handed in a compromising position opposite a very young girl, thus exacerbating his epic fall from grace while reaffirming Cohen’s brilliance.

#10. Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Director: George C. Wolfe

Starring: Viola Davis, Chadwick Boseman

Despite my initial ambivalence, this movie has lingered in my mind for months and that’s always a good sign. Set almost entirely in one location, a 1920s Chicago recording studio, and focusing heavily on a group of musicians shooting the breeze in its basement while their demanding singer talks business with the big wigs upstairs, seemingly nothing much happens and, yet, everything happens; dreams are envisioned, pain is recalled, ideas are shared and, of course, music is made. Those elements are enhanced by the film’s stellar technical features from the production design, to the costumes to the hair & makeup. Yet, it’s the performers who steal the show, which is expected from Viola Davis but a pleasant surprise from Chadwick Boseman who, sadly, gives his final performance. The late actor saved his best for last playing a young trumpeter whose ambitions are constantly hindered by his inability to let go of his tragic past.

#9. The Way Back

Director: Gavin O’Connor

Starring: Ben Affleck

For those of you with the misconception that Ben Affleck is a bad actor, you might want to watch The Way Back in which he plays a former high school basketball star and current alcoholic who’s dealing with the death of his child and separation from his wife when he’s asked to coach his former team. Sure, this covers familiar ground, but it does so better than similar films, finessing the more predictable aspects, adding some welcome touches and treating the subject matter with the respect and seriousness it deserves. The basketball takes a backseat to the character drama here, so the film’s quality relies heavily on the performance of Affleck which might be his best to date; he makes his character’s inebriation so convincing you can practically smell the beer on his breath. And you hope to God he gets the help he so desperately needs.

Full Review: https://thefilmsnob.tumblr.com/post/613090953214001152/the-way-back-12-out-of-5

#8. News of the World

Director: Paul Greengrass

Starring: Tom Hanks, Helena Zengel

This is a film we need right now for several reasons, not least of which being we get to spend two hours with ‘America’s Dad’ Tom Hanks, a decent, honourable man playing another decent, honourable man in 1870 who encounters a strange young girl on the road near an overturned wagon and promises to return her to her remaining family. With Hanks’s character Jefferson Kidd traveling from town to town reading the newspaper for its citizens, this is also a timely film, stressing the importance of a free and fair press as opposed to the propaganda that saturated the Trump administration and his favourite news outlet. An unusually--yet refreshingly--straightforward and old-fashioned Western for 2020, its highlights include a climactic exchange between adult and child, made so effectively tender with such minimal effort by Hanks, as well as a meticulously crafted chase and shootout sequence at the halfway point, directed with optimal tension and clarity by the great Paul Greengrass.

#7. Nomadland

Director: Chloe Zhao

Starring: Frances McDormand

It’s about time we start including Frances McDormand in lists of greatest actors. In Nomadland, in which she plays a wanderer of sorts who’s lost her husband to cancer and her company town to a poor economy, her performance transcends labels like ‘realistic’ or ‘natural’ and arrives at a place that doesn’t feel like performance at all. She blends in seamlessly with a cast of real nomads playing themselves, living out of vans in the western US, as unconstrained by societal norms as the film itself is by conventional story arcs. We want to see this minimalist lifestyle, which includes seasonal Amazon warehouse gigs and long nights in a freezing cold van, as depressing or unfulfilling, but writer/director/producer/editor (Jesus!) Chloe Zhao dares us to admire both the freedom and sense of community formed among this nomadic subculture. Cinematographer Joshua James Richards also plays with our expectations, bathing the screen in soothing blues and purples, transforming the unremarkable landscape into a thing of beauty.

#6. Da 5 Bloods

Director: Spike Lee

Starring: Delroy Lindo, Clarke Peters, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Norm Lewis

In Da 5 Bloods, writer/director Spike Lee deviates from his usual urban American setting to explore the tropical forests of Vietnam, but his focus remains fixed on the African American experience, their plight and search for justice. His subjects are a group of Vietnam War vets who reunite in present day Ho Chin Minh City to retrieve a cache of gold bars left behind some 50 years prior, originally part of a political transaction, as we see in appropriately grainy 4:3 full screen flashbacks. The reason for this mission is more righteous than a simple payday, but Lee refuses to paint these complex characters with the same brush--there’s even a MAGA in the bunch!--nor does he oversimplify the film’s profound issues. A genre-defying work, Da 5 Bloods is a character study, social commentary, war picture and action/adventure flick all rolled into one with some truly shocking developments and one of the finest casts of the year. How Delroy Lindo was denied an Oscar nomination for his volatile performance is beyond me.

#5. Promising Young Woman

Director: Emerald Fennell

Starring: Carey Mulligan, Bo Burnham, Alison Brie

In one of the most unique films of the year, Carey Mulligan delivers a brave, bold and beautiful performance as Cassie, a woman with a tragic past who spends her weekends at the club pretending to be blackout drunk, only to shame and humiliate the sleazy men who try to take advantage. Writer/director Emerald Fennell does a masterful job at peeling back the layers of this dark revenge tale ever so gradually to reveal Cassie’s true motives while rebuking, not just society’s abhorrent offenders, but those enablers and silent bystanders who try to hide behind a flimsy shroud of innocence. Benefiting from one of the sharpest screenplays of the year and a fitting score, Promising Young Woman never ceases to ramp up the tension, a strategy that culminates in a shocking final sequence which is at once disturbing and satisfying. It’ll all leave you guessing until the final, brilliant shot.

#4. The Invisible Man

Director: Leigh Whannell

Starring: Elisabeth Moss, Aldis Hodge, Storm Reid

Originally conceived as part of the ill-fated ‘Dark Universe’--Universal Pictures’ planned movie franchise featuring its classic monsters--and starring Johnny Depp, The Invisible Man was drastically retooled and produced as a stand-alone film with a modernized story. And like so many horror projects of the last decade, it’s refreshingly inspired and well-crafted with a deeper purpose than merely spooking its audience, though it succeeds at that as well. Writer/director Leigh Whannell uses this movie and the fearless performance of the great Elisabeth Moss to examine abusive partners and their persistent hold on their lovers-turned-victims long after the relationship has collapsed. Moss is stunning as usual, portraying an already traumatized woman trying desperately to convince everyone she’s not going crazy as well, even though that’s exactly how it looks. Equally impressive is the restraint by the filmmakers who use the ‘invisible’ effects sparingly yet strategically, creatively and, ultimately, very effectively, making every scare plausible and entirely earned.

#3. Sound of Metal

Director: Darius Marder

Starring: Riz Ahmed, Olivia Cooke, Paul Raci

In a world in which people are complaining about losing their freedom because they have to wear a simple mask to save lives, it’s good to see a film that shows what real loss looks like. If you can’t imagine being a heavy metal drummer who suddenly goes deaf, writer/director Darius Marder spells it out for you in big, bold, sorrow-inducing letters. He’s aided by Riz Ahmed giving possibly the best performance of the year as a man who, on the surface, tries desperately to hold on to his life and passion while, deep down, he knows that’s impossible. Sound of Metal is a tender and heartbreaking yet hopeful story, but what’s even more effective than the film’s dramatic presentation is its remarkable sound design. At times, characters sign to each other amidst ambient noise. Other times, the sound is muffled as if we’re putting our ears up to a wall and hearing a fraction of the dialogue from the other side. And, less frequently, when Ruben’s condition is at its worst, we hear nothing at all. Just complete and terrifying silence…which speaks volumes.

Full Review: https://thefilmsnob.tumblr.com/post/647329085467574272/sound-of-metal-out-of-5

#2. The Trial of the Chicago 7

Director: Aaron Sorkin

Starring: Mark Rylance, Eddie Redmayne, Sacha Baron Cohen, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Jeremy Strong, John Carroll Lynch, Frank Langella, Michael Keaton, etc, etc, etc...

Aaron Sorkin could write about two accountants conducting a routine audit and make it absolutely absorbing. So, imagine what he does with a courtroom drama about the volatile situation surrounding the 1968 Democratic National Convention and the group of anti-Vietnam War protestors accused of inciting riots at the event. Now an accomplished director too, Sorkin organizes all the moving pieces involved with style and grace while deploying his famously kinetic dialogue. With those lines coming from the mouths of his stellar cast, it’s hard not to hang on their every word and be invested completely in their struggle. I could listen to Mark Rylance’s showstopping line-reading of the simple phrase, “No, he doesn’t!”, all day and never get tired of it. Among its many achievements, The Trial of the Chicago 7 deftly navigates heavy topics like police brutality, unpopular wars and a corrupt justice system, showing just how little things have changed in the last 50 years.

#1. Palm Springs

Director: Max Barbakow

Starring: Cristin Milioti, Andy Samberg, J.K. Simmons

Anyone who knows me may be surprised by this pick, but here we are. Nothing makes sense these days. We’re all as confused and anxious about life as Sarah and Nyles are at a wedding in Palm Springs. Despite what the title suggests, the film doesn’t follow a group of horny teens getting up to shenanigans in the famous resort town, but if I describe the actual plot in depth, I may spoil the fun. I will say these characters seem to be reliving the same events over and over again. What’s so impressive about this film is that, although it repeats itself, it never feels repetitive. The twists and turns, the absurd hilarity blended with bracing poignancy, ensure our unwavering focus on this briskly paced little gem. Yet, it’s the irresistible chemistry between the two leads, played by the equally irresistible Cristin Milioti and Andy Samberg, that forms the glue that holds it all together, whether they’re pulling off childish pranks, discussing their unusual sex lives or debating the very meaning of life. I’m telling you, this movie has everything: comedy, drama, romance, science-fiction (?!), J.K. Simmons, several weddings, an inflatable pizza slice, dinosaurs, a crossbow and colourful beer cans and summer wear that seem destined to become iconic.

[queenforanight]

Jessica Over The Years

This blog is coming up to 8 years old in February (I think?) next year. It’s not exactly a significant milestone and I only spent about 4 years actually working hard on my pictures and content, but I wanted to take a quick look back at Jessica during the past 8+ years.

As I’m sure some of you are aware, I started crossdressing long before I started the blog (another 8 years extra I think), however I didn’t start doing makeup or using wigs until shortly before the blog went live. I guess you could say I had a bit of experience, but mostly I was still a newbie to all things feminine.

2010: In The Beginning

Did I really wear that dress with those boots? AND RIPPED TIGHTS?! Eurgh...

Meet Jessica long before she even knew she was Jessica. This picture was taken a few months before I started the blog and long before I developed any kind of fashion sense or skill with makeup. I don’t think I even bothered putting foundation on...

I guess this is how a lot of us start out though. We’ll throw on a dress (that was borrowed), some feminine shoes (also borrowed), maybe some jewellery (definitely borrowed), try our hand at makeup (guess what? Borrowed) and finish it all of with a wig (NOT BORROWED! It’s actually my natural hair at the time). Some of us might get lucky and look good first time...

Or you could be like me where you look a total mess and don’t realise it until you look back 8 years on.

So what’s so important about this picture? It’s something I always look back on to remind myself of how far I’ve come.

To this day I’m still riddled with doubt and voices telling me “you’re shit at this” that I can do better. I can definitely do better, but it’s good to know that I’ve improved over the last 8 years. I’ve also put on a bit of weight but OH WELL.

2010-2012: Finding My Balance (in heels)

Who needs a dodgy wig when you’re own hair looks shit enough as it is?

Yep, still no wig. I always convinced myself that my hair was long enough to not need one (ignore the fact that it took several hours and a the heat of a volcano to get straight....), but eventually I decided that I was never going to look feminine with my own hair. Not because it doesn’t actually look feminine, but because I’m so used to seeing my hair like that anyway.

At least here I can say that everything I’m wearing in this picture is 100% mine (maybe not the hairclips...). I still wouldn’t say this is the height of fashion (please don’t look at the heels, I was poor and needed something pretty), but it’s good to see that within just a year or so I had already developed some kind of fashion conscience.

This was also when I started becoming more confident about people knowing about Jess (she still wasn’t called Jess though...). I had already told my housemates, my partner, and a few others, but I was getting more comfortable about telling complete strangers or close friends who had no real reason to know.

2012 - 2014: Gurl You Dead Or Something?

I joke, but in reality Jess was nearly dead...

This was a really hard time for me for so many reasons. I finished university in 2012 and moved back home to my parents. Pretty much everyone who knew about Jess lived nowhere near me and I no longer had the freedom to dress up whenever I wanted.

All my dresses and makeup were thrown into a box and hidden away; I rarely updated the blog because I had no new content, and for a long time I wondered whether or not I would ever see Jess again.

And that’s when Moon came along.

I actually met Moon in 2009. She was on the same course as me at uni and she was also my housemates girlfriend, and she also knew about my crossdressing hobby. After uni we still kept in touch, however after her and my previous housemate split up we drifted apart a bit.

I don’t remember whether I messaged her or vice versa, but we decided to have another dress up night. Something where we could reconnect, dress up like old times and just be bitches in general.

This is also why it’s so important to have a gal pal when it comes to dressing up. If Moon hadn’t re-entered my life, I honestly don’t know whether Jess would still be a thing. Moon not only gave me the confidence to keep the blog going, but she was also a constant source of inspiration and made me want to improve my makeup and fashion skills further and further.

This part does have a happy ending too. After just one night of dresses, wine, and the usual stupid shit we always ended up doing (there’s a video of me somewhere wearing an Alice in Wonderland outfit while singing ‘I’m a Little Teapot’. It will never reach the light of day...), we reconnected and have been great friends to this day. In two years time, I’m happy to say she’s going to be a Groom’s Maid at my wedding!

2015: Jess Is Finally Jess!

I gained a sense in fashion as well as a few stone in weight. AND MY HAIR STILL LOOKS SHIT!

Fast forward one year and I finally decide to give myself a name! I wanted to pick a name that I liked, but also wasn’t shared by any of my close friends. Eventually I narrowed my choices down to Jessica and Blaise, and decided to go with both!

It felt like a really insignificant detail at the time, but by giving myself a name I had actually committed to treating to crossdressing as more than just a hobby, it was a lifestyle.

By the end of this year I had reached over 1,000 followers on the blog, created an Instagram account and had come out to all my friends. Considering the year before I was thinking about packing it all in, this felt like a huge step.

This was also when I started to come into my own. After 5 years of trying so many different dresses and outfits, I had finally found a style that I enjoyed and could work with. All I needed now was time to practice and a bit of money to actually buy the clothes/wigs I wanted (the wig I’m wearing in that picture was binned after that night... I don’t think I need to explain why).

2016: Time To Make It Big

NEW WIG! NICE HAIR! FINALLY! Only took me 6 bloody years.

2016 was an extremely strange year for me. I think I had about 3 different jobs within the year, brought a house with my (now) fiance, and had my close friends asking about Jess. All this meant that I didn’t have too much time to spend on being Jess, but at least the option was still there for me.

However, there were 2 odd things that stood out more than anything else to me.

First of all, I somehow hit 10,000 followers at the end of the year. The year before I was gobsmacked when I hit 1,000, and I genuinely thought it would take another few years before I even reaching 2K. 

Reaching 10,000 followers made it feel like everything was worth working on, regardless of how much effort I had to put into it. It also felt like I had stopped being a learner and started being a teacher of crossdressing. I found myself asking less questions from others while answering more to people who were just like me 6 years prior.

The second weird thing was making a deal with JustFab. I already used their services for clothes and heels, however one day after tagging them in a post I was approached with a minor advertising deal.

I doubt I can legally go into what the deal was, and to be honest it wasn’t as good as it sounds, but it was such a shock to realise that I was being asked by large brands to help advertise their wares into a new market. I would never consider myself a model, but if I’ve ever felt like one, it was during that moment.

2017: Jess Goes Public

OK this specific picture was taken in my back garden, but you get the idea...

My friends had known about Jess for just over a year at this point; most of them had met her at private parties and a common questions I was asked was ‘Are we going to see Jess soon?’ I was finally in a position where I could be Jess freely without worrying about restrictions on privacy or judgement.

I could have just left it at that and stayed in my comfort zone, but I didn’t come this far by playing it safe and I wasn’t going to stop there. I decided that Jess needed to experience the world outside of her house.

The first experience was Kinky Boots, and later on in the year DragWorld UK. I’ve already written about both these experiences (and you’ve already probably read them) so I won’t bore you with the details. Suffice it to say that Jessica was met with great reception and I now wonder why I hadn’t done it sooner.

I’ve spoken to hundreds of people while out as Jess, and so far I’ve still only met one who disagreed with what I was doing. I even bumped into people who follow my blog and recognised me! Goes to show that you don’t know you’re famous(ish) until you know you’re famous(ish).

On top of that, a long term project that I had always dreamed about finally became a reality: Gender Mag. 

The magazine is still running after 3 months, which I’m taking as a good sign. It doesn’t have any near as many subscribers as I was hoping for, but we’re stable for the time being. Hopefully with a bit more hard-work, some more placement advertising, and a better platform to work off of, it might become the success I dreamed it would be for the past few years.

You Can Shut Up Now Jess

I know I know, I have a habit of making extremely long posts detailing every little thing, but I only do it to show the changes and improvements you wouldn’t normally see. A picture tells 1,000 words but 1,000 words tells a story.

I won’t go into the usual ‘why this is so important here are some bullet points blah blah blah’; you’re all smart enough to figure it out for yourselves (I’ve not exactly been subtle about it anyway...).

However, I will say one thing. I get a lot of messages from gurls saying that regardless of how much they work on their makeup they still think they look the same. 

When scrolling through this post did you notice a difference in skill from one picture to the next? Probably not. But if you look at just the first picture from 2010 and the most recent from 2017, you’ll notice a huge difference (I’m gonna put this below so you don’t have go all the way back to the top).

This kind of work doesn’t happen over night. Some people might be able to manage it months but I’ve found that it usually takes years, and even after those years you’ll always find something you could improve on. You may not notice it because the differences are so gradual, but if you looked back 8 years into the past, you’re bound to see a big change.

I’m actually going to shut up now...

- Jessica Blaise x x

[aion-rsa]

How Christopher Plummer Became One of the Best Villains in Star Trek Movie History

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Christopher Plummer appeared in over 200 films during a storied career spanning seven decades. Though he first found fame as Captain von Trapp in The Sound of Music, that ultimately provided a springboard to an eclectic career that surprised and delighted in equal measure. Plummer was an accomplished theatre performer with an uncanny knack for stealing the show in minor yet memorable roles; a magnetic presence you simply couldn’t take your eyes off. 

Everyone has a favourite Plummer performance whether it be as Rudyard Kipling in John Huston’s The Man Who Would Be King or his recent turn in Rian Johnson’s inventive murder mystery Knives Out. Yet for Star Trek fans, the late, great Oscar winner will always be remembered as General Chang from Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, an iconic villain and one arguably responsible for rescuing the entire franchise. 

Bringing Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country to the Screen

After the critical and commercial disappointment of Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, the Enterprise was on red alert, with cast and crew aware another misstep could spell the end for their big screen adventures. A prequel, tentatively titled “Star Trek: The Academy Years”, was discussed yet ultimately jettisoned following objections from fans, core cast members, and Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry himself. Discussions were also held over a potential crossover that would see Captain Kirk meet Jean-Luc Picard though that idea was also shelved to return to at a later date. 

Ultimately, it was Leonard Nimoy and writer and director Nicholas Meyer who hit upon the idea of using the film as an allegory for the fall of communism with the Klingons cast firmly in the role of Soviet Russia. The film would begin with a Chernobyl-like intergalactic event on the Klingon home planet and their attempts to broker a peace deal with the Federation.  It was Meyer who hit upon the idea for a plot that would see Captain Kirk and Doctor McCoy framed for the assassination of the Klingon High Chancellor. 

Casting Christopher Plummer as Chang

Widely credited with resurrecting the fortunes of the franchise as director of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and co-writer on Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, Meyer only ever had one man in mind for the role of the erudite Klingon general with the penchant for quoting William Shakespeare. 

“I had always been a fanatic Christopher Plummer fan,” Meyer told StarTrek.com. “I had acquired a CD of him performing excerpts from Henry V to the accompaniment of the musical score that William Walton wrote for the Olivier movie of Henry V. I used to just listen to it over and over and over again. And Chang came out of that recording.” 

An avid Shakespeare fan, Meyer had seen Plummer in several productions through the years. It was an experience that shaped much of what went into the script for Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country – right down to the film’s subtitle which is a direct quote from Hamlet. 

Meyer began writing his script with the idea of Plummer as Chang – and he was not about to accept any alternatives. 

“I said to Mary Jo Slater, who was our casting director, ‘You have to get him [Plummer] for this, because I can’t make the movie otherwise. There’s no other actor who can do this.’” 

Even so, Plummer took some convincing according to Leonard Nimoy. 

“I had to get on the phone with him several times… he had turned us down,” Nimoy revealed in an interview included on the Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country Blu-ray release;  

“He was certainly a great choice… but we were turned down. There’s a certain kind of very good actor who’s concerned about taking on this makeup and this persona of a bad guy in a Star Trek movie…He wanted to find some way to say ‘OK, I think I can take this on,’ and make it worthwhile.” 

Despite being a fan of the original TV series, Plummer was hesitant to take the role of a Klingon on account of the heavy make-up effects he would be required to wear. 

“I didn’t want to look like every other Klingon,” Plummer later explained to William Shatner in the 2011 documentary The Captains. “We ran into great difficulty because … they said it was traditional to have all of this [the usual Klingon headpiece].” 

Plummer elaborated further in another interview for the film’s DVD release: “I found a lot of the headgear that some of them wore rather phoney. I could see where the stitches were, so I decided I’d be a little different” 

Eventually a compromise was reached. 

“Finally, Nicholas [Meyer], who wrote that very witty, tongue in cheek script, he stood up for me,” Plummer explained in The Captains. “The director stood up for me and I got my way — I didn’t have the long hair.” 

Donning an eyepatch that hinted at his eventful past as a great Klingon warrior, Plummer threw himself into the role of Chang with gusto, seeing it as a chance for the “upright, glamorous leading man to play a villain.” 

It was much more than that though. 

The Shakespeare Influences

Shatner and Plummer had a friendly rivalry that dated all the way back to the 1950s, when Shatner was Plummer’s understudy during a production of Henry V at Stratford Shakespeare Festival. 

When illness prevented Plummer from appearing one night, Shatner took his place and found a way to upstage him. 

“He didn’t do what I did at all,” Plummer recalled during an interview on George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight. “Where I stood up to make a speech, he sat down. He did the opposite of everything I did. And I knew that son of a bitch was going to be a star.” 

The role of Chang offered a rare opportunity to share the screen with his friend and rival and it was one that Plummer relished, imbuing his performance with a sense of theatricality largely lacking in the Star Trek universe up until that point. It wasn’t a case of Plummer trying to upstage Shatner either; his grandiose performance elevated that of his co-star, bringing an extra dimension to the role of Kirk and his prejudice against the Klingon race. 

The film’s clever use of Shakespeare quotes – designed to highlight humanity’s gravitation towards conflict – might also have fallen flat were it not for Plummer’s delivery and ability to make them a believable part of his devious warmongering character’s persona. 

It’s not all about the famous bard though – one of Plummer’s most memorable scenes comes during Kirk and McCoy’s trial on the Klingon home planet of Qo’noS. Plummer delivers a devastating disdainful cross-examination of Kirk that ends with the memorable line: “Don’t wait for the translation, answer me now!” It’s an exchange that wouldn’t have looked out of place in the kind of courtroom dramas commonplace in the 1990s, with Plummer at his grandstanding, dramatic best. 

Even Chang’s final words in the film of “to be, or not to be” – the kind of line that might have sounded cliched coming from anyone else – were imbued with a sense of fatalistic gravitas that only enhanced Plummer’s performance and the character in Star Trek folklore. 

It also served to underline the importance of Plummer’s performance. While the concept developed by Meyer and Nimoy helped enliven the flagging franchise, Plummer undoubtedly elevated the material.  He delivered the franchise’s most compelling villain since Khan Noonien Singh. 

Audiences and critics evidently agreed, with Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country garnering positive reviews and improved box office returns to help return the Enterprise to its former glories. It’s a further testament to Plummer’s performance that Chang lived on beyond the film in several Star Trek comic books and the game Star Trek: Klingon Academy – a game he happily reprised the role for. 

Plummer later reflected on the experience in his own inimitable fashion during his interview for The Captains.  

“I had the most marvelous time,” he said. “I was only jealous of David Warner (Chancellor Gorkon), who had the best line in the whole show, and I wished to hell General Chang could have said it, but it was David who said it.” 

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The line in question?  “You don’t know Shakespeare until you’ve heard it in the original Klingon.”

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