#and it only applies for the US and maybe the UK?

[nekrotiize]

It's a controversial take because everyone's stupid but I'm never going to stop calling fandom + shipping culture homophobic. Fandoms are consistently extremely homophobic, and shipping culture is consistently even more homophobic.

Yes, the way fandoms center men so religiously is obviously misogynistic. The only people who deny that are themselves misogynists. But the aggressive centering of men and the resultant fixation on male/male dynamics lends to this slimy coating of homophobia that nobody talks about. The misogyny is an issue, clearly. But gay men are, to most people in fandom, toys. We are sex objects to coo over. It's intensely voyeuristic. Every god damn interaction is scrutinized to hell and back, and the second a man shows any kind of emotional connection with another man, it gets pounced on, and he gets thrown into a mill that flattens him down to one of three deeply heterosexual yaoi tropes that are fandom's only way of processing the existence of gay men.

It doesn't even matter what that man is. A disconcerting amount of time, people will start fawning over the idea of literal rapists being gay with zero critical thought applied. As if gay men being painted as and assumed to be sexual predators isn't a method that's been historically used to literally legally murder us. (What the fuck do people think "Gay Panic" means, even?)

Gay men aren't given the ability to be human beings in fandom. We're not afforded nuance. We're accessories, we are constantly objectified, and no one ever takes the time to consider that we have cultures, and that we are real human beings. We keep getting shoved into the most heterosexual boxes physically possible for the easy digestibility of people who do not want to see us as human beings. Semes- sorry, I mean Tops are the taller, older, more masculine, capable men of the relationship. Ukes- oops, sorry again, I mean Bottoms are the smaller, younger, more feminine, and totally useless women of the relationship. It's painfully yaoi. Gay men in fandom are never given the opportunity to be regular men, because people are too busy turning everything into homophobic, misogynistic fetish porn of our existence to be normal for five seconds.

There's something comedic about how many people in fandom want to say they're progressive, accepting. Safe. How fandom is welcoming of everyone. Look, we've made all this representation! And every time, gay men are sex objects, the women are scapegoated to hell and back, the headcanoned trans men are always skinny white softboys not a single day over 21 maximum, lesbianism is maybe acknowledged 0.5% of the time and largely for brownie points, bisexuals are across the board made out to be overtly horny and often sexually aggressive, fans of color are harassed out of the community left and right, anyone on the aro/ace spectrums is called a freak and a killjoy for not participating in shipping, characters on the aro/ace spectrums are heavily included in shipping content with the excuse of "aros/aces can date/have sex like normal people, too!" with zero regard for what our love looks like, and there isn't a single accepted trans woman headcanon to be seen.

Fandoms are circuses full of dirty little liars with cotton stuffed in their ears and Shipping Culture is a disease.

And if you criticize either of them, the most annoying white liberals you've ever seen will start clutching their pearls because how dare you criticize something that's free?! Don't you know a lack of price point immediately negates any criticism?! Just laughable.

[therealplaguedoctor]

Incantato?

Kimi antonelli x fem!reader

Summary/prolong (idek anymore)- Where kimi was so star struck that he could only talk in Italian...you know Italian.

Warnings/content- fem reader, 2nd person (you/your), tried to not use y/n used maybe once or twice, lmk if I missed anything

Non serious warnings: the time line might be a little fucked but uhhh idc, reader isn't described as any nationality but is hinted at being American (not explicitly mentioned), author is a dumbass and pretends she knows shit(she doesnt), American spelling, I never spell check, Idk what a kilometer is,

A/n- sooo I've been wanting to write a kimi A. fic FOREVERRRR as hes definitely one of if not my favorite driver, so ye! Also thanks again to anon for giving me the fic name and giving me the context it is used in I'm also apologizing for my Google translated Italian.... and another side note Ik I didn't use 'incantato' in it's technically correct context it still wanted to do my original dialog so oops?

──⭒─⭑─⭒────⭒─⭑─⭒──

You've known ollie for a long time. So long in fact you can't even remember when. You've two whenever you've been together had been inseparable which made it all the harder when you couldn't see eachother due to his Karting but alas your friend ship survived and you two, not having talked in person for a very long time, are still really good friends.

"Please come on we haven't seen eachother in forever it would be nice to hang out!" Ollie partially begged on the phone. He was trying to get you to come to the Great Britain Grand Prix more commonly referred to as Silverstone.

"I don't know Ollie..." You said I mean with travel expenses you really didn't want to..

"Pleaseeeee? I'll cover all the travel" he said trying his hardest to get you to agree

Welp there goes your only excuse "fine.." you said giving in

"Thank you you're the best" you could hear the smile in his voice as he talked. The conversation continued touching random topics before you declared it to late and said your good byes.

──⭒─⭑─⭒────⭒─⭑─⭒──

You finally touched down in the UK. You grabbed your bags and made your way to the exit. Ollie while wanting to pick you up from the airport was pulled into a meeting to go over his times so he was super apologetic. You of course told him it was fine and that you can just get an Uber to your hotel. That of course is what you did.

Arriving at your hotel you checked in and threw all your stuffs in your room. Jet lagged from the flight you decide just to take a shower and head to bed as it was late anyways due to flight delays.

You peeled the airport clothes off of you throwing them on the bathroom floor before stepping into the warm water falling from the shower head. The hotel actually had decent water pressure.

Stepping out of the shower you wrapped yourself in the towel smoothly applying your hair products. You pat your hair dry opting to let it air dry the rest of the way. You quickly got dressed in some comfortable pj's. Sitting in the hotel chair as you grabbed your phone to text Ollie,

You: just letting you know I'm in the hotel and gonna head to bed

Ollie: okay

Ollie: ill pick you up tomorrow

Ollie: sorry again about not bing able to pick you up :(((

You: Ollie it's fine!!!

You: you were busy it's okay!!!

Ollie: okay

Ollie: I still feel bad :((

You: don't.

You: problem solved

Ollie: :D

You: good night Ollie

Ollie: night!

──⭒─⭑─⭒────⭒─⭑─⭒──

Your alarm blared again in your ear. Annoyed you shut it off glancing at the time. Begrudgingly you got up and slowly got dressed and got ready looking in the mirror you fixed your hair. As you finished your phone rang, picking it up you looked at the caller ID: Ollie, you answered

"Hey what's up?" You asked

"Hey goodmorning" he said "I'm pulling up to your hotel now if your ready?"

You grabbed your bag and stuffed your wallet in it "yeah I'm ready I'm heading down now" you said "just got finished"

"Alright see you soon" he said happily as he hung up.

You shut the door to your hotel room behind you it clicking shut and checked to make sure it's locked. Satisfied you went over and took the hotel down.

Exiting the elevator you immediately spotted the tall brit.

"Ollie!" You called

He looked your direction looking for the voice. Almost instantly spotting you a smile spread crossed his face. "Ahh there you are" he said.

"Hey ollie" you smiled walking up to him

"Hey" he said "let's go before we get swarmed" he said with his poor disguise: sunglasses

"You mean you get swarmed" you said as you made your way to the exit "Mr hot shot formula one driver" you joked

He chuckled "well how does it feel to be the best friend of the hotshot f1 driver" He asked pretending to be an interviewer.

You smiled letting out a small laugh as he opened the door to the car

"Ever so the gentleman Mr bear" you smiled

"If my mom found out I didn't behave like this she would kill me" Ollie joked before he got in the car shutting the door and starting it up "I swear youre her favorite child" he joked

──⭒─⭑─⭒────⭒─⭑─⭒──

Arriving at the paddock you both got out of the car smoothing out our clothes after shutting the door Ollie handed you a pass.

"There you are" he smiled "it's a ferrari pass cause you know me being reserve and all" he said "I wish you would come to one of my prema races though" he pouted

"Firstly: thanks" you said "and secondly you know my classes over lap with your races plus I wouldn't be able to properly hang out with you if it was an actual race weekend"

"Okay good point" he smiled as you both made your way to the entrance, "oh I know you know but there gonna be a bunch of cameras just ignore them and there'll be a bunch of fans so I'm gonna stop and sign some things"

You nodded as he scanned his pass letting him inside you quickly did the same.

Ollie quickly went to the side taking some pictures with fans and signing some items you stood off to the side waiting for him to finish as he waved good bye to the fans he walked towards the wall of camerasbefore following the path and flow of people, you were quick to follow him.

"Hey man slow down I'm not as tall as you" you complained

"Sorry mate" he chuckled "i just want to introduce you to my friend he's probably in the Mercedes hospitality..." Ollie trailed off as he looked around. As he looked around he took off in a direction. At his sudden take off you followed him quickly weaving through the people.

Finally you caught up to him, he was talking to another guy, a cute guy, dressed in Mercedes gear with curly Brown hair.

"Ah there you are" Ollie smiled wrapping his arm around your shoulder. "Kimi this is my friend, y/n I've told you about her" Ollie smiled looking over at Kimi.

He stood there almost speechless for a moment before shaking his you could only assume to organize his thoughts, he then turned partially to ollie talking in a hushed tone that you could still hear "Ollie, non mi avevi detto che era bellissima, (Ollie you didn't tell me she was beautiful)"

Ollie chuckled, he picked up on a bit of Italian he wasn't to keen on speaking but he knew what was being said, "dude chill she's like a sister"

"Lo so, lo so, ma sono solo...(I know I know but I'm just...)" he trailed off as he looked up at you, you wouldn't describe it as staring more like enamored

"..incantato? (..enchanted?)" You asked as you watched kimi's face heat up he became so red in just a few seconds

"Io uhhh- umm scusa- cioè dovrei scusarmi- Uhh non voglio sembrare inquietante- (I uhhh- umm sorry- I mean i should apologize- Uhh I don't want to come off as creepy-)" Kimi stumbled over word after word trying to apologize to you.

You just smiled "non preoccuparti, penso che sia stato carino, proprio come te (don't worry I think it was cute, just like you)"

Smooth real smooth.

His face became somehow every more red. Ollie spoke up "I feel like I'm interrupting something..." he said looking between you two

"No don't worry Ollie not interrupting anything" you smiled "right Kimi?" You asked the Italian who is still trying to gather his thoughts

"Oh sí, non interrompo nulla...(oh yeah, not interrupting anything...)" kimi said

──⭒─⭑─⭒────⭒─⭑─⭒──

You were just sitting in a semi secluded area in the paddock. Ollie had disappeared long ago probably chatting with kimi. Or that's what you thought before the Italian appeared in front of you.

"Hey um Y/n" he said shyly avoiding eye contact at seemingly all costs.

"What's up kimi?" You asked

"I just wanted to apologize for earlier, I didn't know you knew Italian and that's not an excuse I just shouldn't have said that and-" kimi started rambling

"Kimi" you said snapping him out of his own thoughts

He finally looked at you "yeah..?" He asked

"Have a seat" you said motioning to the seat across from you. He obliged sitting down quietly.

"I wanna say again-" kimi started again

"Kimi" you cut him off "it's fine" you smiled "I never said I was uncomfortable with it in fact I said that it was cute" his face started to heat up again

"I uhh umm" he cleared his throat embarrassed and blushing

"So wanna go for a date?" You asked nonchalantly

Kimi nearly falls out of his chair "I uh what!?" He asked

"Oh sorry did I read the room wrong-" you started

"No no, no!" He said quickly trying to recompose himself "I meant, yes i would love to go on a date with you" he smiled

"Great give me your phone" you said, he quickly handed it over you punched in your number creating the contact and handing it back to him.

"Okay there you are" you smiled as you got up "well it was great meeting you kimi but I do have to go give me a call or text me so we can schedule our date" you smiled before leaving.

Kimi was kinda stunned, frozen he didn't know what to do or say. Before he heard a familiar voice behind him:

"Oh she's gonna eat you alive" Ollie teased

Kimi almost jumped out of his skin "FUC- wha- how long have you been standing there?!" He asked

"Long enough." Ollie chuckled "yeah you probably won't last the date with her" he joked making kimi huff in annoyance, Ollie just smiled before resting a hand on kimis shoulder leaning to his ear "but if you hurt her I will not hesitate to shunt you into the wall next race."

"Noted...." kimi nodded

──⭒─⭑─⭒────⭒─⭑─⭒──

A/N- So I have an idea for a part 2 (I've already started writing it) but idk if I'll finish it or post it but if you want to see it lmk!! But this fic has been in the works for a while and it kinda skipped ahead of 3 other fics which one of them is for a driver I've probably have writen too much for (Logan sargeant) but are we surprised? No the answer is no. But yeah so potential part 2 coming but it'll be more funny also side note i don't like this rn I might want to redo it later or I'll read it later and be like oh this was actually good or smthing idk anyways have a good day :)

──⭒─⭑─⭒────⭒─⭑─⭒──

[slytherinshua]

SWORN TO EACH OTHER

genre. fluff. suggestive. takes place after s2 finale but there are minimal spoilers (a little referencing to what uk & yeong do after the finale tho) ++ uk & yeong cameo <3. warnings. making out (like a lot). and yul mysteriously loses one of his robes. a lot of marriage talk and how yul and reader are not married (yet). not proofread. pairing. yul x fem!reader. wc. 1.5k. request. no. a/n. i swear i didn't mean to write another yul fic and esp not another fic with a makeout scene WHOOPS! but the hanbok in aos always got me like so focused like.......... also yes i did research the exact set of hanbok yul was wearing in the finale episode cause i am dedicated to my details!!

Your lover, Seo Yul, never seemed to stop surprising you. Whether it was a new spell, a random piece of knowledge, or something he remembered about you that even you had forgotten about yourself; his ability to care and give far surpassed any other man. Yul was always willing to take a risk— to break the rules just slightly when it came to you. It was the effect you had on him, making his heart ache whenever you were away and his brain thoughtless whenever you were involved. You drove him crazy and he loved every second of it.

Maybe that was how he didn’t protest at all when a simple peck on the lips that was supposed to be discreet turned into a slightly longer kiss. He didn’t pull away when you threaded your hands in his hair to bring him closer to you, nor did he budge when you slipped your tongue past his lips, deepening the kiss to something neither of you had ever dared to try before. You weren’t even engaged yet (though you both knew that you would get married as soon as the opportunity arose). 

You were situated in an empty room in Jeongjingak, both aware that you Uk and Yeong were supposed to arrive at any time, not knowing when their boat might arrive back in Songrim. The room was a bit chilly as the weather was getting cooler, but Yul’s lips burned through any chill that could touch your body. He had you pressed up against a bookshelf, the same spell books that he had studied in his youth used as a rest against your back as he impatiently kissed you, exhausting his breath and any sensible thoughts left in his head. The only thing on his mind was you and, more precisely, your lips. 

How soft they were, how they moulded so perfectly against his. How did you do it? What expensive balm or ointment did you apply to get him so thoroughly addicted to the taste? If there was a way for him to be able to kiss you like this whenever, he would do it in an instant. 

He supposed that the most obvious answer would be to marry you first. And he had half a mind to propose to you right now and find a ring maker the same afternoon without sending word back to Seoho Fortress. He needn’t bother with his father’s approval when he already knew that nothing would sway his mind when it came to you. You were the only woman he would ever consider marrying, and you knew it too by the way he was kissing you. Yul would never give any other woman a chance to get this close to him, not even if she was the prettiest lady in all of Daeho.

The entire time that you had been lost in the kiss— familiarising yourself with another one of life’s pleasures that you had the enjoyment of experiencing for the first time with the first and last man you would give your heart to— you had been feeling the fabric of Yul’s hanbok. It was a light seafoam green with a soft lavender collar on the outer garment. With your wandering hands, and the style of the set (forgoing any ties for the collar or waist), the fabric easily started to slide off of his shoulders. 

Yul could feel what you were doing and the fact that he was about to lose a layer of clothing. You were so sure that he was going to finally tell you to stop when he pulled away from your lips at long last. But, to your surprise, he didn’t. He made eye contact, his eyes shiny with a hint of mischief hidden in them.

“Do you need help, my love?” He asked softly. You were shocked that he seemed so composed, and not even a little bit out of breath, unlike you. You gathered that it had something to do with his breathing technique. 

You nodded, a bit dazed, but still eager to be any closer to Yul as you could. Admittedly, you had some idea of what he was hiding under the elegant sets of hanbok. You hadn’t exactly been slick when hugging him. But you had never actually seen his chest, and just the thought of it had your face heating up and butterflies swarming in your stomach. 

The outer garment slipped off of Yul in seconds, and he tossed it aside on one of the chairs before grasping your waist to pull you closer again. He simply needed your lips on his again as quickly as possible. He had never felt this impatient in his life.

With your lips back on his and his skin just that little bit closer to your fingertips, you were both more than content. All thoughts flew out the window, much like before, until the sudden sound of footsteps made you jerk away from your lover. Yul didn’t register the reason for your unexpected action until he finally saw Uk’s familiar head of short black hair in the doorway. 

Right. Jeongjingak was a public space, and now that Uk and Yeong were back from their months of hunting down Jinyowon relics, they were overdue for a reunion. Yul had been excited to see his friend originally, but now he felt a twinge of disappointment, realising that Uk was the only thing keeping him from tasting your lips again for the next few hours.

“You’re back!” Yul heard you say as you gave a sweet smile to Uk, and his wife, Yeong, who was right behind him. 

“Yes, it was quite the adventure, wasn’t it?” Uk grinned, turning to his wife for her consensus. She smiled at first, but as she turned back to you and Yul, her gaze twisted to one of confusion and then astonishment. 

“Are you two lovers?” She asked quickly, causing your stomach to drop and Yul to turn his head, stunned by her suggestion. No one in Daeho knew you as anyone more than Yul’s close friend, and most of his rumoured lovers had been women of… more prestigious lineage. 

Uk narrowed his eyes at his best friend, taking in his rumpled hair, flushed face, and finally, his missing outer robe. His head shot back to his wife’s, a knowing look shared between the two before Uk let a sly smile grace his face.

“Yul, you never cease to surprise me. Here? In Jeongjingak? I didn’t know it was such a popular spot.” His smile grew as Yul’s face reddened, practically drowning in embarrassment from being caught in such a scandalous act. That too, with someone he wasn’t even engaged to yet. No one had any suspicion of you two before, and now he was sure that the news would spread rapidly to every corner of the country. And eventually Seoho Fortress too.

“I always thought their energy matched.” Yeong spoke up again, “Yul’s was so calm and yet powerful. No wonder Y/n’s daring personality was just enough to kindle its full potential. They will be a great match.” She gazed at you proudly, giving you a silent nod of approval at your anxious look.

In the time that the few words had been exchanged amongst the older couple, Yul had managed to slip his garment back on, hoping he was subtle enough with it. He was entirely flustered still. Everything from the intensity of the kiss to being caught so suddenly was enough to make his brain short circuit. His image as the cool-headed eldest son of the Seo family was crumbling beneath him, and there was nothing he could do to stop it now that Uk had caught him. 

“Yes… We are… engaged.” Yul stuttered, choosing the last word suddenly as a final attempt to make the situation look even slightly better. Your eyes widened in shock when you heard it, even wondering suddenly if you had forgotten when Yul had ever asked you to be his officially. He had never uttered a word of it to you— the last that you knew was that he would have to send a very carefully worded letter to his father and wait anxiously for approval.

Uk nodded approvingly, “I always wondered when you would. You are the last to do it, you know.” He teased, but was quickly shut down with a slap from his wife.

“Yul is doing far better than you! You proposed to nearly 20 other girls before getting married. And you are younger than him!” Yeong didn’t hold back, and you smiled at the sight. They had been through so much, you were glad that they were finally allowed to be happy together; experiencing a fulfilling marriage after years of hardships. 

You looked forward to the day that you would be able to seen with Yul like that. The day people would always expect to see you two side by side, when they would ask you about the other and how you were doing together, because you would forever be united from that moment, sworn to each other until death dared to tear you apart. You had never longed for something as much in your life, nor had you ever felt so deeply in love as you did with the man who stood next to you. Though Yul hadn’t yet asked you, you were already his, and there was nothing that could possibly change that fact.

↳ k-drama taglist (bolded could not be tagged): @eternalgyu,, @wolfmoonmusic,, @cha3w0n-hearts,, @tempobaekh,, @candewlsy,,

@cosmicwintr,, @blossominghunnie,, @parkjennykim,, @seunghancore,, @emmylksblog,,

@bananabubble

[clownakai]

Hi! Check this out

I was thinking abt the wizard of the ripples and remembered that Shuuichi (22) made a comment about having to get used to right-hand traffic even though he'd supposedly already been living in the states for quite a while since Mary said she let him go there to study and he got citizenship as well.

In the UK you can apparently apply for a provisional driver's license at age 15, but you can't actually start physically driving until you're 17.

Shuuichi is still 15 by the time they leave the UK, which means he wouldn't have been legally allowed to drive yet (then again, I don't know much about Britain. Maybe over there you don't need to have passed at least the theory test, which can take a months-long wait to even find a spot to attempt, in order to be allowed to drive with an instructor/family member).

Anyway <3 This can only mean that Shuuichi drove illegally back in the UK <3 Which is why he says he needs to "get used to" right-side driving <3

In my heart he used to drive Shuukichi to school, and if anyone tried to ask him if he was even legal he'd speed away <3

Alternatively this is because Shuukichi kept getting kidnapped and Mary bought Shuuichi a car so he could keep up with the kidnappers and get his brother back on his own (average Akai family member reaction)

[cripplecharacters]

Hello! I was researching face paralysis and I've read that in some cases (for example, Moebius syndrome), people are unable to move their eyelids, which means being unable to squint, or even fully close their eyes. I've been wondering how does that affect eyesight? As far as I'm aware, blinking (or just closing your eyes in general) is very important to keep your eyes moisturized and clean. How do paralyzed people deal with it? Do they manually moisturize their eyes every few minutes (or less often? I'm not sure, perhaps eyedrops are more effective than quick blinks and can keep your eyes moisturized for longer periods of time?) Do their eyes become more sensitive and end up needing extra protection? Or maybe they don't manage it at all (because it's ineffective, tiresome, etc) and just eventually become blind due to eye dryness and damage? I've been trying to find answers to this question, but I only found reddit posts about hypothetical situations like "what if you suddenly stopped blinking?!!".

Hello! Interesting question.

Some people do have issues blinking due to facial paralysis, though even in Möbius syndrome not everyone does. There are also some differences between voluntary eye closure and involuntary blinking reflex in facial palsy; some people can do both, some cannot do either, and some can only do one but not the other. In some kinds of paralysis the muscles can actually spasm involuntarily, and for some people it involves the eyelids. I have a problem with that on the effected side of my face, I have very poor voluntary eyelid control, but my eyelid there will sometimes half-blink for me in addition to the regular blink reflex.

The most common solution for the completely absent blink reflex I know of is applying eye drops, and otherwise protecting the eyes from the sun via hats or sunglasses. There are also some devices that help with dryness, such as punctal plugs, or special tapes to close the eyelids for sleeping purposes. For more solutions, you can check out Facial Palsy UK's page on dry eyes.

How often someone might need to use their eye drops will depend on both their personal needs and what kind of drops they're using, but the most common frequency I've seen is a few times a day. Environmental factors are also a thing here (and apply the same way as they do for everyone else, wind = gets drier faster).

If someone is unable to moisturize their eyes in any way, the cornea will eventually get damaged (in Möbius syndrome it's often corneal ulcers), which leads to sight loss over time. It can also be painful (if the person can feel pain in the eyes). For people with milder blinking issues, the symptoms could be limited to irritation with no vision changes.

In general, legal blindness due to facial paralysis is absolutely possible but uncommon. Based on this PDF from Mobius Syndrome Foundation, most people with MS won't reach legal blindness (and MS is, if I had to guess, the type of facial paralysis with the highest % of that). Of course, it's important to take into account that this statistic was made in the US and it can look very differently for people in other parts of the world who might have much less access to healthcare.

Thanks for the ask,

mod Sasza

[dunmeshistash]

Firstly, thanks for being the source of lots of dunmeshi stuff!!

Secondly, to the anon that was rage baiting about white supremacy and Laios and how it's a global thing, pls understand that yes there are prejudice and racists everywhere in every country in the world

but

white people of the US extreme racism and the KKK is one that basically invented the phrase 'white supremacy'

And the UK is your next example?

Maybe look furrrrrther

Sooo.....uhh...dr stash being 'pls look at the world with a wider lens' still applies, anon

I didn't mean "there's only racism in the US" or "The racism outside the US is less bad" what I mean was "The way racism happens in other countries isn't the same as how it happens in the US" because they chose to look at Laios' racism with US lenses, which as far as I understand is going thru some real bad white supremacy right now and has a history of that with groups like the KKK like you mentioned.

In other places racism still happens and its still bad just different so you shouldn't assume every racist person would be a white supremacist (especially considering Laios isn't even american and came from a small village)

White supremacy is just so specific.

[cameronspecial]

Before The Last Petal Falls (Part 8)

Pairing: Rafe Cameron x Reader

Warnings: Drug Use, Drinking, Driving While Impaired and Overdose.

Pronouns: She/Her

Word Count: 2.1K

Summary: An argument with Wards sends Rafe to the hospital and this brings Y/N to a sudden realization.

A/N: This does deal with a serious subject matter and if you are suffering from an addiction, please know that you are not alone and that there are many ways that you can seek help. If I got anything wrong or forgot a warning, please let me know.

Masterlist

Rafe wakes up the next morning with the worst hangover of his life and he groans at the realization of what happened last night. He carefully makes his way to his bathroom to freshen up. The sound of him moving the debris around with his foot is the only thing that can be heard in his room. After finishing up in the bathroom, he decides to get something to eat and drink to hopefully help cure his hangover. However, the mention of his name coming from his dad’s office stops him in his tracks.

“I can’t believe you would say those things to Rafe, Ward. You know that wasn’t true,” Rose criticizes her husband with a disapproving look. Ward rounds the corner of his desk, sitting on the edge and bringing her between his legs, “I did what I had to do Rose. With her back in town, Rafe needs to be reminded of where he belongs and I will keep reminding him of where he is needed. Just like I did when he was applying for university.” Rafe’s eyebrows knit in confusion. Rose lets out a sigh. 

“Did you really have to do that? I think he really did want to go to the UK.”

“No, he only wanted to be there because that’s where she was going. If I hadn’t deleted his acceptance emails and sent him fake rejection letters, he would’ve followed her across the world to only realize he made a mistake.”

Ward’s confession causes Rafe to see red. He opens the partially closed door and barges into the room, “You had no right to do that! I wanted the choice to choose and I would’ve chosen England even if Y/N wasn’t going because it would get me away from you.” Ward’s shocked look on his face indicates he wasn’t planning on Rafe what he had done. “No, you wouldn’t have, Rafe. You never talked about that possibility before you started dating Y/N.”

“How many times do I have to tell you that you never gave me a choice? You had my life planned for me without giving me a chance to think about what I wanted. When I started dating Y/N, she made me realize that travelling abroad was an option that I never considered but found interesting. You know, if you had given me the chance, my plan was to go to England to make some foreign connections to, maybe, expand the business there. But, no, you don’t think I was smart enough to think of anything intelligent for the company.” 

At the end of his rant, Rafe just shakes his head and leaves the room. He takes his keys out of his pocket with the plans of heading to Barry’s. 

——

Rafe enters the trailer without knocking, earning a surprise look from the resident of the house. “Country club, you can’t just barge in like that. What if I had a lady over?” Barry complains, getting up from his couch. Rafe ignores him, rifling through Barry’s stuff, “Where’s your coke? I need more.” Barry just gives him an apologetic look. 

“Sorry, country club. I’m afraid I’m fresh out.”

“No, you’re not. I see powder under your nose. You wouldn’t finish all of your stash.” 

“Okay, you caught my lie. But I’m cutting you off. You’re good for business, but as your ‘friend’, I am worried about you.”

“Worried about me, my ass. If you aren’t going to give it to me, then I’ll just go to someone else. I’m tired of people thinking they know what’s best for me.”

——

Rafe has been going from party to party looking for someone who would give him the drugs he needed, but he couldn’t find a single dealer anywhere. The lack of drugs didn’t stop him from drinking any alcohol he found. It was only at the last party late into the night that he found someone. “You got coke?” Rafe questions in more of an authoritative tone than an inquisitive one. The tall blonde looks over at him, “You got cash?” He pulls out a thousand, not caring if he is overpaying, all he cares about is the substance that will make him forget the pain. She doesn’t say a thing as he hands it over and gives him several small baggies of white powder. 

He exits the party, hopping into his car. Rafe forms the lines of the powder into several rows on the dashboard. He begins to snort his normal amount of cocaine. As he finishes the final line, he shifts the car out of the park and heads over to the beach. The hour-long drive to his normal beach from the Cut side of the island is worth the quiet sounds of the waves. Rafe sits by himself on the sand and that is when he starts to notice how suddenly feels colder than the warmer summer night should be making him. His hands are clammy for some unknown reason. The next thing he notices is the manner in which his body begins to feel a little limp. He lifts his hand and it falls down as if he has no bones. Finally, his slow breathing is the last thing to catch his attention before his eyelids close to bring him to sleep. 

——

Mason has been driving around the whole of the island trying to pin Rafe down. Find My Friend had been left on for both of them and when Wheezie called informing Mason of the argument she overheard, he hopped in his car and began his chase. Rafe never stayed in one place for too long, so seeing him stay at the beach for longer than thirty minutes, Mason feels like his prayers were answered. The first thing Mason sees as he checks Rafe’s car is the residue from the drug on the dashboard. Worry floods his system, realizing that Rafe has been driving while intoxicated.

Mason runs to the beach and his whole body is filled with apprehension upon witnessing Rafe’s lying on the beach. He runs towards Rafe, pulling out his phone to call 911. After informing the dispatcher of where he is and what happened, he checks for breath that is not there  and begins CPR. Once Rafe starts breathing again, Mason lays Rafe on his side to protect him from choking on his vomit. Hearing the siren from the paramedics helps relieve some of Mason's stress. 

——

When Y/N got the call early in the morning, she didn’t care what state she was in, she took her mom’s car and sped to the hospital. Her normally cautious driving style is thrown out the window as she speeds through yellow lights and stop signs. She hastily parks the car and runs to the hospital room number Mason told her. Seeing Rafe in the hospital bed almost brings Y/N to her knees. Instead, she buries her head into her brother’s chest and lets her emotions release itself. After a few minutes of crying in Mason’s hug, she looks up at him. “How is he?” she whispers, casting a glance at the sleeping figure. 

“He’s stable. Doc says he should make a full recovery. She thinks the coke he snorted was laced with fentanyl.”

“Are you okay? It must have been hard to see him like that.”

Now, it is Mason’s turn to unleash his emotions. He leans forward and places his head into the crook of her neck. She feels his tears leak onto her skin. “He wasn’t breathing. His lips were turning blue. I thought we were going to lose him,” he cries to her. 

“I know, I know. I wish I could’ve been there for you.”

“I don’t. I don’t want you to ever have to see him like that. It would break you.”

“You’re right. I just wish someone was there with you. Has his family seen him yet?”

“They have, but they are in the cafeteria for some breakfast while he is asleep.”

“Right, makes sense. You should probably get something to eat too. I’ll stay with him. I promise.”

Mason nods his head and places a gentle kiss on her forehead before he goes to eat. Y/N sits down on the chair beside the bed, taking his hand into hers and resting her head against his thigh. She lets herself release a few more tears she has been keeping in because of the thought of losing him. She lifts her head up, placing a kiss on the back of his hand. “I really wish you would have talked to someone about how you’ve been feeling instead of turning towards drugs. If you would’ve come to me, I wouldn’t have turned you away. I would’ve tried to help you. I promise,” she whispers to him. “If you want me, I promise that I’ll help you get sober because I can’t see you like this again.” She takes her phone out to cancel her flight. There is no way she is going to leave with him in the position he is in. Y/N doesn’t remember falling asleep with her head on his bed. 

Rafe groggily wakes up without an understanding of where he is or what happened, but when he sees Y/N, relief spreads over him and he places his hand softly on top of her head. He runs his fingers through her hair. He can’t believe she is here for him. He doesn’t remember why he is here, yet he is thankful that she is. He can’t stop the pull of sleep calling him back. 

——

The entrance of a nurse wakes Y/N from her slumber. “Hi, sweetie. I’m just here to give back his personal belongings,” the older lady informs her, handing Y/N the large Ziploc bag of Rafe’s possessions. The nurse leaves the room and Y/N takes the time to open the bag. She finds the normal things, like his wallet, his keys, the clothes he was wearing and his phone, but one thing sticks out to her. A gold chain with a circular pendant hanging from it. She takes the necklace into her hand and flips over the charm to see a familiar-looking rose imprinted on it. She can’t believe he actually kept the necklace she gave him. He must have been wearing it if it was in the bag with his stuff. How long has he kept it with him, she wonders. A feeling of warmth spreads through her body. 

This whole time she thought that he hated her, that any love he had for her went out the window when she broke his heart in his dorm room five years ago. Sure everyone keeps telling her that she is the only person he could ever love, but she didn’t exactly believe them because of how he treated her. However, seeing this symbol of their relationship changes everything for her. If he held onto this, then a small part of him must have been holding onto her. This causes her to feel strange in some way she can’t understand. Hope she didn’t know she was holding onto her flourishes through her. She doesn’t know what this means for them, but she does know what she needs to do. 

Y/N gets up from her seat, placing a kiss on his cheek. “We are going to figure this out, Cameron. I know we can,” she mumbles against his cheek. She places the necklace around her neck and brings the pendant up to her lips.

——

Cole opens the door with a smile on his face that drops once he sees the serious look on her face. “Is everything alright?” he asks, moving out of the way so that she can enter the hotel room. She just looks at him with a sad look. “Rafe is in the hospital. He overdosed,” she croaks out, letting herself be wrapped into his hug. He kisses her forehead. 

“I’m so sorry. Is there anything I can do to help you?”

“Yes, but not in the way that you expect. Cole, I’m sorry to say this but I think we should take a pause on our relationship. I’m not asking for a break-up, but I just need some time to figure things out at the moment. This might be strange to you, but I need to help him recover. I know he is going to need me.”

“No, I understand. You and Rafe have a special connection and I know how important that will be in helping him get sober. Take all the time you need. Come back to me when you are ready. I’ll be waiting.” 

Y/N looks up at him with wonder in her eyes, “I don’t deserve how understanding you are. Thank you. I promise that I’ll come back once I have him settled.” She knows what she said isn’t technically a lie, but a small part of her thinks it might not be the entire truth. 

Taglist: @sublimepenguinpeach-blog @gillybear17 @f4ll-for-you @winterrrnight @maggiecc @magicwithaknife @loves0phelia @jiarapamuk @blisslove @baby19sthings @thelomlisrafecameron

[jalluzas-ferney]

Soooo….I made some nationality headcannons! At first I was a liiittle bit unsure if to do so cuz then again.. they live in ninjago…. And im pretty sure countries like argentina or Morocco don’t quite exist in the ninjago universe LMAO. Butttttt. Already seen others make headcannons, so hell, why not? I uses they apply to some irl au or what if they lived in our world uk? And what different countries would I see them coming from and etc.

I can imagine that the EM might have travelled all over the world, either to go into hiding, or missions, or escape conflict, etc. Or maybe simply that’s where they came from! So yeah that’s my little explanation that is mostly for myself cuz im a little bit too literal sometimes lol.

When thinking about nationality I always think a lot about where they grew up and what nationality they grew up with and would later on identify with the most. It’s a complicated concept when your parents are from a different nationality and theyre immigrants in a different country- so you grow up in this country, surrounded by this culture and people, but your. Also. Raised by your parents who also have your family living in this completely different country- where you also find home and relate to the people considering how you look, the language you speak with your parents- or the specific culture and environment your parents grew up wiooith, impacting your home life and the way your raised. Perhaps you lived in both places, or travel a lot to your parents homeland. Perhaps you live in one of your parents countries but the other. Not. but you still identify with one of your parents nationality because of the rest of your family from that side and the culture your take in from them. So it’s always very personal! So for Kai and Nya, I imagined that ray was Argentinian and Maya Filipino. And perhaps - because I want to project onto my faves- they were born and grew up in Argentina. But have always also identified a lot with their mothers homeland, since not only does their race impact the way they might feel more different and set apart from kids there, maya loves talking about her childhood in the Philippines and is always talking over the phone with their aunts and cousins, meaning Kai and Nya def were taught some Tagalog, tho theyre not incredibly fluid with it. In their early teens they probably travelled to the Philippines, (took ray and maya some time to settle down and get enough money to travel, as well as find time) and met their whole family, and the place they reside in, habit that would turn quite common as they would continue to travel other times the following years.

For Lloyd, I really wanted to make him Asian -Brazilian. It just felt right. So imagined that my queen (don’t you judge her >:() Misako would be Brazilian, meanwhile Garmadon,Japanese. i imagine that Misako adores traveling, so she met Garmadon on her trip to Japan, and decided to stay there for a WHILE because of the brothers. During her time there, she had Lloyd. Since her family heard of her new baby, she travelled back to Brazil with a two y/o Lloyd to have her family meet the him and catch up overall. but as the serpentine wars rose In japan (ill hc it happened in japan let me know what u think of that) Misako was told to wait in Brazil. Misako didn’t really like that though, and while she dreaded having to leave her son, she was sure shed come back soon after helping out the Brothers in the battle against the serpentine. So Lloyd was left to live with his aunties and grandparents in Brazil. Of course, after Misako found out about the whole Green Ninja thing and all that crap, she pulled the same stunt as in the series and ✨ vanished ✨. But then Garmadon came and fucking took him like divorced parents sometimes do uk? So then he spent some other of his childhood years growing up in, ya guessed it, Japan. This is how Lloyd identifies both with being a Brazilian and Japanese. As for the rest, I just envision that they lived in their respective countries their whole lives till they were recruited!

[dramallamas]

Because you cannot pry British Juwon from my hands here are some Juwon headcanons based on his time in England and a bit about how it affects his life in Korea. Featuring Kwon Hyeok obviously.

Language Headcanons:

He is bilingual and is fully fluent in both English and Korean.

He learnt French in school but has forgotten most of it.

It actually got to a point where he would forget words in Korean and ask Hyeok what they were. So he would write down words he forgot and memorise them.

He still sometimes, tho very very rarely, forgets words. He has a note in his phone of them.

He spoke Korean with Hyeok but whenever either of them went out, they spoke English.

Hyeok was fluent but has not maintained the same level as Juwon since moving back to Korea.

Juwon mumbles in English to himself when thinking hard and believing he’s alone. However, people have caught him do this from time to time.

His English voice is a tiny bit deeper than his Korean one but not many people notice it (DS does tho 👀).

He speaks English pretty articulately, and has more of a southern accent.

He says scone like phone and not like gone.

Dongsik adores when Juwon speaks English and has actually picked up a couple words himself.

Unconsciously swears in English… including in rated E moments.

When he’s stressed/upset and gets the opportunity to just explode (obviously after he’s bottled it) he talks in a mush of both languages.

Other Headcanons:

Juwon went to a private school in England and Hyeok taught him extra at home.

He did not have a lot of friends but had one or two that he liked tolerated.

Definitely got picked on by other kids for being quiet or weird. That was until he full on punched a kid and got in deep shit for it, but nobody picked on him again so Juwon called it a win.

He though british/western food was mostly bland but there was a certain elegance and comfort in its simplicity.

Did not go out often, and flat out refused to go to clubs.

He did apply for UK universities and did a year or two before going to the Korean Police Uni.

Did get into a good uni, like Russell group uni (maybe Oxford?), and yet didn’t get accommodation and simply got his own place instead (his hate of sharing things and richness coming into play). He also learnt to cook there.

His father never visited but did send money to the two of them, though Hyeok also got a job out there.

He does not have the best spice tolerance due to western food being… not that spicy.

He has an English name, but doesn’t like to use it unless he has to. He much prefers Juwon.

Has been asked out by a variety of people but turned everyone down as politely as possible (unless they were pushy then he got annoyed and was very bitchy about it). He has never been interested in anyone.

Has read every single sherlock holmes book in English and still has copies in his Seoul apartment.

The only jobs he had in England were from mandatory work experience. 

Despite not really being social, he did get to know a book store worker when he went to purchase something out of the classics section.

Yes he read classics and older literature, you’re gonna tell me he didn’t? But his guilty pleasure was fantasy books. He definitely read mostly in English (more accessible) but did pick up the odd Korean book too.

His notes for cases in korea are a mash of Korean and English, mostly just writing in whatever language flows out first. There’s not a lot of time to get them down and nobody else is gonna see them so he doesn’t care about it.

Feel free to drop your own thoughts and opinions and reminder that these are MY HEADCANONS and may not fully align with yours :)

[the-moon-will-mourn]

now i haven't finished the dream thieves yet (i'm like,,, 7 chapters away from finishing) and i think this may contain spoilers???? but i'm not too sure yet. i'm basically gonna word vomit. i'm sorry for not using any quotes, i wish i could but i only have the ebook version and a very limited storage space on my phone where i can only have ~two books downloaded

like a normal person, i enjoy listening to video essays, see what creators want to explain to their audience and leave with a certain view, try to come to my own arguments about certain points in the videos, see if i can apply some points to other aspects of my life etc etc. (this was the type of shi that helped me with my eng lit essays rip i miss alevels) and like a normal british citizen i looked up stuff about classism in the uk. in the end, i found a video essay about classism in general and how the ultra rich try to mimic being poor to get away from their hard issues that comes with being rich (which, frankly, is probably a lot less compared to someone who is working class).

recently, i was talking to my friend about specifics in the book about certain characters and i remember we went onto the convo of making music playlists for the characters. they said "it's gonna be hard for adam [...] cuz his whole thing is about being unknowable" and it always struck me with how unknowable he truly is when reading his character because his character is intrinsically linked to his working class background. (context: i'm a middle class child of immigrants who built themselves in the uk)

it's very clear the kind of social commentary stiefvater wanted to make using adam's character with how isolating and alienating it can be coming from a working class background trying to assimilate yourself into a society of those protected and privileged enough to not have any problems with accessing opportunities. how class is a huge obstacle between interpersonal relationships and feeling safe enough to be vulnerable with your issues with being working class. how difference in class can cause one-sided shame because of the meritocratic society we're living in. how, no matter how much money you earn or how many connections you can make, your attachment to your working class identity can be enough reason to aim for something supernaturally larger than yourself.

it's evident that other characters overlook adam's social class because he's a "self-made man" (or smth) and mainly because he's their friend: adam. however, when we get a chapter in his pov, class is a driving factor in how he interacts and views everyone. we can see the privilege gansey and ronan have for being able to not even consider class as an intimidating aspect about themselves to a normal person, but it's everything to adam in the sense that he feels like his earned money doesn't give him access to a similar respect.

now that i truly think about it, it was a good idea for adam not to join them in monmouth manufacturing because it just feels like they're... mocking him in an indirect way? they have the ability to choose to live in a nice place and instead chose to live in a random, run-down building because it seemed aesthetic. adam was forced to live in a rundown trailer because that's all they could have afforded. i know gansey had good intentions for wanting adam to join them, but everything that he likes as an aesthetic (monmouth manufacturing, the run-down camaro, eating mint leaves instead of gum) can seem like he's flaunting the fact he can choose that lifestyle without any consequences.

back to the point of the meritocratic society (which we usually assume in books that take place in a similar world as our own) creating shame because of their class: the assumption that because someone has worked hard to earn what they have gives them a right to be proud. but this is the opposite for adam as he fights with the fact that he could have maybe be seen as even more equal to gansey if he had just been born with wealth.

we can frame it as, maybe, despite gansey's desire to appear working class, it only broadens the distance between him and adam. it only worsens adam's difficult relationship with his class shame despite probably wanting to be more relatable or even laid-back.

when reading the second book after his sacrifice, i was confused as to why adam was so un-adam-like. i mean, in the first book i didn't really understand him because of his huge insistance that his class makes him inherently inferior to everyone he surrounds himself with and i don't see class as an issue myself.

however, his sacrifice basically was watering the seed of ambition that was planted when he decided to aim for aglionby. it becamse clearer to me how much this opportunity to be superior, even if it's supernatural and terrifying, is important for him understanding in what he thinks he lacks. by those thoughts of what he lacks, he thought that this chance to be cabeswater's channel could be a way to compensate for his inferior social class. or something.

anyways, thank you for coming to my ted talk. this is not proofread, and my sister keeps nagging at me to shower. also i simp for gansey do not think this is me trying mischaracterising him i'm just trying to understand the theme of class in this series and having gansey as a figure to compare to is literally integral.

[bonefall]

the "strange place" could be a private wildlife collector? i know the buying and selling of wild animals as pets can be pretty bad in the uk (or at least it is w/ birds of prey? that's abt what i know)

OH that's a good idea, that's going to be one of my top choices for if I DO end up needing to change the "twoleg den" in the upcoming super edition. Private wildlife collectors are a HUGE problem because the laws on simply owning exotic animals (as long as they're not covered by the Dangerous Wild Animals Act) are suuuuper lax in the UK, and the Zoo Licensing Act only applies if you accept general admission.

(and even then, specifically, you can take admission a limited amount of times a year. James Wellington's Animal Welfare Nightmare Extravaganza, beloved winter tradition, £25 each, kiddies of edible height get in free)

Birds in particular are a huuuge issue because there's big oversights in the laws surrounding the keeping of birds of prey. You don't actually need a license to own any birds except ostriches and cassowaries, or one of the five destructive invasive birds. Your pet eagle just needs to be registered so they know you didn't snatch it from the wild. Licenses will only apply if you're breeding, selling, or using it for falconry.

Maybe I could even tie this hypothetical antagonist guy to Sharptooth/One Eye/The God of Summer's previous human incarnation, on some off-chance the series ends up using this villain again. That could be kinda neat.

[nagichi-boop]

Vent about disability and driving (mostly about narcolepsy & driving):

For the longest time, I didn’t have the desire to drive because I was terrified at the idea. And when I realised I also related to the symptoms of narcolepsy and saw that it makes driving potentially dangerous, I hung onto that as my reasons for not wanting to drive — I used it as an excuse of sorts, despite not being confirmed to have it. (ADHD applies to this too.)

But recently I decided that I wanted to learn to drive. I watched videos that were educational about driving, I looked into cars and found the specific kind of car I would want, I calculated how much it would all cost and set up a budget. I was so freaking excited, even though I was also still nervous. The idea of being able to go where I wanted when I wanted was appealing. To have my own little space in my car and to decorate it to suit me. To stop being a burden on others for transport and getting places on my own.

But then the topic of my health came back up. I had a tilt table test this week that was positive for POTS, and without even prompting it, two people in my family separately asked whether it would impact my driving in any way. The answer was no — my POTS very rarely (if ever) makes me pass out, so that’s not an issue. But then it got me thinking about the issue of health and its effects on driving. In the UK, conditions like ADHD are ones you have to report to the DVLA (Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency), but only if it impacts your driving. But for a condition like narcolepsy, you are told to stop driving immediately and report it to them. You’re not permanently banned from driving — your doctor can clear you — but it’s one of the few conditions I’ve seen listed on their website that requires you to report it and stop driving.

Suddenly my dreams of owning a cute pink car, listening to my own music and having such freedom was crushed. I felt so upset and still am because of how much more my health impacts me than I thought. If it was just about the driving, so be it. But it feels like so many people already disapprove of me not working and not driving. I just wanted to claw back this one thing to prove that maybe I could have an ounce of independence and competence. But no. Now I have to keep dealing with people who think I’m lazy and unwilling to try to be better because my stupid health makes me utterly useless.

And I can’t even definitively say I have narcolepsy, so I can’t even say to people “I have a health condition that makes it dangerous for me to drive” because I am not diagnosed. Instead it would be something like “I might have a condition that makes it dangerous to drive, so I’m not bothering to drive in case I have this very rare condition.” Maybe I don’t even have it, but I’ve seen so much advice to not risk it until you’re potentially diagnosed an in treatment because being tired is as bad as being drunk, and I even though I often invalidate how tired I am, it could be super dangerous. I could potentially hurt or kill someone if I really do have narcolepsy.

I just feel so useless and pathetic. So many people my age drive. They work. They go out with friends. They’re dating. And me? I can’t do anything. I have to rely on other people for mental and physical support because my mind and body don’t work properly. I just…I wanted to be able to do something that felt like a step towards autonomy and independence, even if it was as simple as being able to drive. And it hurts that I also know that no one irl will understand this. They’d just say “well maybe you can try X” or “you don’t even know if you have X.” I told my mum I was planning to hold off for a bit while I get answers from the sleep doc, and she told me that I won’t be a dangerous driver and to just do it.

I just…why. Why is this my life.

[houseofbrat]

Another day, another media outlet trying to convince everyone that Kate has the power to grant royal warrants.

Kate Middleton is set to break from decades of tradition and bestow her first set of royal warrants for the first time ever, it has been confirmed. As reigning monarch, King Charles decides which members of the royal family are permitted to hand out royal warrants, signifying their own personal use of a specific brand. When the Princess of Wales announces her decisions, it will mark the first time in over 70 years that a royal bearing the title Princess of Wales has had the opportunity to grant the honour – an opportunity that was not bestowed upon Princess Diana.

Because outside of the royal media circles, there are NO signs that UK businesses are putting in applications to become grantees for Kate's royal warrants.

How do we know?

Just check The Royal Warrant Holders Association website.

In 2024 HM The King and HM The Queen granted their first two sets of Royal Warrants of Appointment of the new reign. The grants were made as part of a review of all companies that held Royal Warrants at the time of the passing of Queen Elizabeth II.  New Royal Warrants will be granted in 2025 to other companies with an established and ongoing trading relationship with the Royal Household as part of the usual cycle of reviews and applications. 

Doesn't list The Prince OR Princess of Wales there.

The application section also does not mention The Prince or Princess of Wales.

Companies can apply for a Royal Warrant of Appointment if they have supplied the Households of HM The King or HM The Queen with goods or services for at least five years out of the past seven years.

Again, no mention of The Prince OR Princess of Wales.

Applications do not even open until mid-May.

Applications are open from mid-May until the end of June.   Application forms and instructions are available from the Association upon request during this period only. Each application is scrutinised by the Royal Household Warrants Committee, which makes its recommendation to the Grantor.

All this hype about Kate issuing royal warrants soon is just that.

HYPE!

These stories about Kate are just pr cover to hide that she's not doing anything right now and has no plans to do anything in the near future.

She's probably still up at Anmer Hall right now, spending her nights away from William & the kids. Or maybe she's staying with her parents. Or in a different property in Windsor Great Park. Or back at Adelaide Cottage while William is sleeping on the couch somewhere else.

But she is NOT in the process of picking and choosing which companies are going to receive her royal warrants.

But Will & Kate fans are doing an excellent job proving that, once again, they are CHUMPS because they believe every word of these pr lies concocted by the KP comms chief, Lee Thompson.

[meenawrites]

So.. I finished Alchemy of Souls

Guys, the amount of tears I just shed in front of my entire family in the last episode of part 2 is crazy.

They were just sitting there like, you good? It's fiction as I'm sobbing my eyes out.

Anyway.

I have many thoughts. So many. And I lowkey want to make a separate post for each of them.

But for now I do want to leave some of my impressions about the finale: (spoilers ahead obviously)

I thought it was pretty well done. I expected to be a bit more shocked about the whole Jin Buyeon is Jin Seol-ran plotline but it honestly made sense to me and I feel like it was actually foreshadowed pretty well for the most part, even in season 1.

Also they definitely got me good with the deaths of Park Jin, Maidservant Kim, and Jin Hogyeong (if that's how you spell her name). Like that's when I started crying tbh. (I could care less about Mama Jin tbh, she sucks, but that deserves its own post). And I'm glad that them actually being alive didn't feel like a cop out to me. They established early on that Jin Seol-ran knew what would happen and used that to their advantage so it was believable and didn't feel like a Deus Ex Machina move for them to be saved. Well, maybe one of them should have died (cough–Mama Jin–cough). But it's fine.

I do feel like the last two episodes were kind of rushed though. I don't know if they had budgeting constraints or if Netflix didn't give them more than ten episodes, but I think that they should have had at least 12. Two more episodes would have allowed for more expansion on the climax and allowed them to up the drama more, which I think would have done well for the series over all, and would have been a better payoff.

I think the time could have been used well to flesh out some of the side characters arcs more. I feel like Danggu and Jin Choyeon were kind of pushed off to the side this season, and especially in the latter half, but I would have liked to see more of them and their relationships not only with each other but with Jang Uk and Naksu/Jin Buyeon.

For all intents and purposes, Naksu/Jin Buyeon lived as Jin Choyeon's sister for three years, and we can see that despite everything that happened three years prior, Choyeon did treat her as her sister even knowing the soul was Naksu's and cared about her. I think that could've and should've been expanded upon, her choosing to care about Naksu/Jin Buyeon or how that came to be. Also, after Naksu regained her memory AND found out Jin Mu had been for sure controlling her at the end of Part 1, I would have loved to see the conversation between her and Choyeon about what she did, an apology and an explanation that she would never have done that if she were sane of mind. What I said about Choyeon applies to Naksu as well because she lived three years as Choyeon's sister, and we can tell she cares about her, so I would have loved to see more of her feelings towards her, especially upon remembering all that had transpired in part 1.

When it comes to Danggu, I mean, he's one of Uk's best friends, and he was left out of the loop a lot when it came to anything Naksu-related. I would have liked him to find out or for Uk to tell him at some point and see how he makes peace with that. Because Danggu and Mudeok were friends in part 1 and he supported her (erroneously) in her supposed romance with Seo Yul. But then she killed his fiance's father and tried to attack him. I can't imagine the sense of betrayal he felt, but also finding out that it wasn't her fault and how he could come to terms with that would have been great to see. I also think his whole experience/trauma from part 1 was kind of glossed over. Like his main thing this season was his broken heart after Choyeon didn't end up marrying him, and I think that was making his feelings a bit too one-dimensional there. They do talk about how he feels slightly uncomfortable/doesn't know what to do with Jang Uk at the beginning of the show, but once Seo Yul comes back, that's kind of forgotten about and the three of them just start hanging out again no problem. I would've like to see a bit more about him struggling with becoming Leader of Songrim as well and how he adapted to that amidst his heartbreak for both his love and his friend who he doesn't even know how to act around anymore, and even towards Naksu/Mudeok who kind of ruined his future and that of his best friend but also being intuitive enough (because he is and he has one of the best hearts we've seen in the show) to realize that there's more to the story than her just going on a murder spree.

I've seen some talk about people saying they didn't like the actress for season 2 as much as season 1 (forgive me, I forgot their names), but I think both brought something good to the table.

Season 1 actress for Mudeok was really good. Her facial expressions were spot on and her chemistry with Lee Jaewook and the other cast members was really good. I think she definitely had great stage presence and made the show popular in the first place. I just don't agree that season 2 actress was worse.

I think season 2 actress definitely put in the work and embodied who Naksu/Jin Buyeon was for the majority of the series. There were times where she made expressions that perfectly resembled/echoed Naksu/Mudeok's that really got me like yes they are the same person even if she doesn't remember. She may have been cuter than we were used to with out sharp-tongued and emotion-resistant Mudeok, but I think Naksu needed that. As Mudeok and before then she didn't have the luxury to be more emotional and girly, it's only now in this body that she does, and I'm glad she had the opportunity to express that side of herself that had never seen the light of day.

We did get a glimpse of that side of her at the end of part 1 where she's playing around with makeup and what might make her look pretty, and it really spoke to all that she had missed out on and had to give up in order to survive. So yeah despite all the angst, I'm glad Naksu/Jin Buyeon had that opportunity through season 2 actress who played it really well while keeping in line with the essence of Naksu/Mudeok.

This whole thing about Naksu being the shadow to Jang Uk's light and if light exists then it needs a shadow broke my heart you guys, it was so perfect. And the fact that they were each other's light and shadow at different points but were also wholly necessary to each other in that was beautiful. I want to talk more about this in a separate post, so I'll table this metaphor for now.

Shout out to Crown Prince Go Won, a great character this whole season in terms of both comedic relief and massive character growth. So good.

Uk's arc was fantastic too but again want to save that for a full post.

Those are my out of order first thoughts about part 2, but I have SO MUCH MORE to discuss, so I will come back for sure. I just needed to scream to the world for a bit (virtually of course).

Question though for all of you more knowledgeable in the k-drama world: is there going to be a season 3?

[tomdayaqna]

Lol, celebrities.. they are just like us when it comes to bureaucracy. The government don't care that you're Spider-Man, you gotta come in in person. Wonder what they were doing at the embassy, maybe their visas need renawal.

Definitely based on him being with Harry and Jack (who's holding a passport in the photo) and them going to the embassy in person

UK citizens don't generally need to apply for a visa to go the US if you're staying for up to 90 days (you just apply for an ESTA which is done online). So the only reason to go to the embassy to get a visa would be if you're gonna be staying longer and/or you're going for employment/studying/you're a journalist or for permanent residence lol

[motsimages]

I am stuck with this here and the longer I look, the more questions I have. I will make this post here because OP is quite young and it is a silly post after all.

First, it assumes that "your country" now is the same as it was when "great-great grandparents" and the same as "farther back than that". When the reality of most countries is that they've been changing borders.

I am not going further than the 19th Century (great-grandparents time) because things get really interesting before that, amongst other things because Nationalism was a big thing then and it's when governments really tried to make a statement about This Is My Country and when many colonies gained independence. Before the 19th Century, the world as we know it now was completely different and the further back into the past you go, the stranger it gets.

Without leaving Europe, which is what I know better, Germany and Italy had what is called "the unification" in the second half of the 19th Century, which means that before that they weren't what they are now. In recent years, Germany also had the Federal Republic of Germany, which was technically another country which disappeard in 1987. And Yugoslavia became separate countries in 1992. So Yugoslav born singer Zdravko Colic is now Bosnian-Serbian. How would he answer to this? He didn't move. His country changed around him. And he is old, but think of all the 30-35 year-old people who were born in a different country. All the people who never left their native city and who have children born in a different country.

Africa has the before and after Western colonisation to thank for borders and countries and to also complicate this reply. Again, just in the 20th Century, because of colonies, some countries were what is now France, Portugal, UK or Spain. Maybe the status wasn't the same as being born in Europe, but still, a different country.

I don't know how Asia has been in this regard but I bet similar things apply with colonisation between them and then Europeans. Even America (understood as the whole continent, North and South, not just the US) was changing borders up until the 19th Century.

If you go to before the 16th Century, which is when Western colonisation really began to change the shape of the world, it gets even more fun. This would be between" "farther back but I do know when" and "too far back to remember". Without getting into colonies, Spain as a country was formed in the 16th Century. Before Christopher Columbus (and even during his lifetime), it was two separate kingdoms united by the mariage of the king and queen who agreed to send Columbus to America. And that was more or less the looks of everywhere around the time.

And now we reach the difference between "too far back to remember" and "indigenous". Polynesian people remember when they went to certain places, when they reached mainland here and there for thousands of years. Europeans do not. Polynesians are indigenous and Europeans aren't. However, even Europe has indigenous people (because of all the mess with countries and borders).

Many people can actually answer to both of these. The poll assumes that, unless you are indigenous, you are an inmigrant, except indigenous people also travel and migrate and non-indigenous people also stay in the same place. Indigenous is a thing completely unrelated to migration.

There is also the succint assumption (bias, if you will) that people only migrate willingly. Sure, it can be a choice you make for the sake of your family, for a job, for safety and whatnot (how "willingly" that is, it's up to the person), but there is a moment in history when many people were migrated forcibly, so to say, as they were kidnapped and made into slaves.

In short... it's one of those post that feels a bit too white US.