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oopsiedaisiesbaby · 2 months ago

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how are the KMITD boys spending christmas? both in the future as a family and during their first years together🥹

Oooh I haven’t thought about this too much past the one little mention in Ours a Love I Held Tightly, this is fun 😍 I somehow took this too far and not far enough lol

Their first Christmas together, John’s still in HS so they have to spend it apart, Gale and Marge are still keeping up appearances with her family so they have to show face there. Before Christmas they go to a walk through light show in the city together on a date night and accidentally start a tradition of competing to see who can find the most out of pocket light display that they keep up every year after (like someone keeping up Halloween decor but adding Christmas elements). They do sneak away together a couple of days after for Gale’s birthday to stay in a hotel in the city and exchange gifts. John is adamant that he’ll always keep Gale’s birthday and Christmas entirely separate moving forward though (spoiler alert, he succeeds).

When they move away together and it’s John’s first year of college, they haven’t hit their big fight just yet, but things are a little tense by Christmas. John’s still in contact with his family because the money they send him when he asks for it is kind of keeping them afloat and Gale’s dad finds him and starts contacting him again by that point too. There’s tension because John’s family wants him to come home and Gale’s dad is trying to weasel in and Gale’s never spent a Christmas without Marge since he was 16 and they’re still not talking… they finally end up just doing the two of them, no decorations, and nothing Christmasy except that they walk around and look at Christmas lights together with some hot chocolate and things feel okay for the first time in weeks, they see a reindeer with a bikini on it at a frat house that wins the light award that year.

By the next year, Gale has cut off his dad entirely again, John��s gone mostly no contact with his family, and John is determined to make Christmas an experience. It was always so formal and boring with his family. They’re not struggling too bad despite not being supplemented by John’s parents because Curt has moved in and is helping with bills. So, John goes to thrift stores and gets an obscene amount of Christmas decor and decorates the day they get back from Thanksgiving break at the Biddick’s back in Wisconsin. He even gets a fugly little tree and Gale’s never gotten into Christmas because he didn’t celebrate from ages 9-16 and after that it was Marge’s family traditions he had no connection to, but he gets INTENSE about the tree. Curt and John are not allowed to help because they “have no taste.” They walk around and look at Christmas lights together and it’s a tough call on whether their shitty ass lights are the worst or the neighbor with the sexy Santa blow up, sexy Santa wins because Gale doesn’t want to hurt John’s feelings lol

This is the year Gale gets stupidly into baking because he’s started volunteering at an old folks home and his favorite senior mentioned how much she misses decorating sugar cookies. So he perfects his recipe just for her and Curt and John aren’t complaining but the team dietician is. Curt and John start trying to perfect their boozy hot chocolate recipes and they get Gale drunk for the first time because he’s the only one willing to taste their concoctions. They visit the Biddicks for family Christmas with Curt a week before actual Christmas which starts a yearly tradition of that. They get another terrible Charlie Brown Christmas tree, Gale is still stupidly into decorating it and making it perfect. Someone tried to make shrek out of lights and that wins that year.

Things are a bit wild this year because it’s John and Curt’s senior year and they’re both preparing to graduate and get drafted. John proposed that summer, so they’re planning a wedding. John has convinced Gale to start the surrogacy process because “it’ll take forever Gale, we’ll pay off the credit cards when I get drafted” except it goes much quicker than they were expecting and their surrogate is already 2 months pregnant by Christmas. John brings them both back down to earth when Gale gets in a tizzy about perfecting his gingerbread recipe that year for the senior facility to make gingerbread houses and they go look at lights and talk about the traditions they want to start for their kids. There is a twerking snoopy lawn display that wins that year. Curt contemplates his life choices when John drunkenly announces that Gale can’t drink the boozy hot chocolate that year because he’s pregnant and rather than fight it Gale just shrugs.

They’re in NY by this point and it’s stressful. John is drafted to his dream team the Yankees (Curt was drafted elsewhere and they’re devastated) and they’ve got a 3 month old (Maverick), they’re newly married, and Gale is doing his stay at home mom thing and is absolutely thriving by that point while John is kind of struggling because he’s not the best on the team anymore. They still use their shitty thrift store decor but they get a nice tree from a tree farm and Gale insists on being the one to decorate the tree still but he lets John put the star on top this time. Gale has found a children’s home and a senior living facility to volunteer at and creates a red velvet cookie recipe. They walk around with baby Mav to look at lights and John is a little morose but perks up considerably when Gale hands him a thermos of hot chocolate and it is a perfect peppermint mocha boozy hot coco. They’re in the city so the light displays aren’t so elaborate but they do find a Santa riding a dinosaur that begrudgingly gets a win even though it’s not that bad.

John has become fast friends with another player, Brady, and Gale has become besties with his husband Benny, so they were already doing better mentally despite the continued stress. The cherry on the Sunday is that Curt has been drafted to the Yankees so John is reunited with his best friend. Gale has really hit his stride now and is in all kinds of things with baby Mav along for the ride. They start a tradition of buying an ornament for him as a Christmas Eve gift and plan to continue it for all of their future kids. They also decide to try for another baby that Christmas because John is getting more playing time which means more money. Gale makes a pink velvet cookie recipe to take to the children’s home, senior living facility, and library because John wants a girl and he’s being indulgent. They bring Curt, Benny, and Brady along to look at Christmas lights and decide to drive out to the suburbs this time. They all unanimously agree that the Rudolph with the shot gun wins because why does that even exist?

The twins, Bennet and Knightly are a couple of months old, so it’s a bit hectic but at 2, Maverick understands a lot more so John makes a whole production about Santa that year even though Mav doesn’t fully understand (taking bites out of the cookies, leaving a foot print by their fake fireplace… etc). Gale is pressed about it, but he lets Mav decorate the bottom of the tree and just redoes it when he’s down for a nap. They continue the ornament tradition. Curt has started an elicit affair with the team’s head athletic trainer, Ken, and they invite him along to look at lights with them and he and Gale get along like a house fire because he likes to tease John and Curt just as much as Gale does. Also, Gale loves how good he is with the kids. He loves Brady but he acts allergic to them and Benny is just clueless. The display that wins that year is a blinking light show with words, expect the people messed up and it’s all gibberish. Curt and John make everyone (except Gale) ill with their latest boozy hot coco concoction.

John’s really hitting his stride this year so they’re a lot more financially comfortable and contemplate taking a trip but when Gale points out they wouldn’t be able to pull of the Santa stuff, John vetoes it. Gale makes lemon blueberry cookies (on top of all of his other now famous recipes) because someone in his and Marge’s (she moved to NY after her and Lil split) book club said he couldn’t beat hers. Gale once again redecorates after Mav and the one year old twins ‘help’ decorate the tree because he can’t have his tree looking like shit. One of John’s presents to Gale that year is a key to a house (fake one, he’s not buying a house without Gale’s input) and one of Gale’s is a onesie for a little girl because he knows how much John still wants a girl, so they agree to try for another. Ornaments are still a thing for the kids. They look at lights just them that year because Curt and Ken have adopted Olivia and are adjusting to being parents and Brady and Benny dipped to go somewhere tropical with their families. There is a whole beach scene with Santa and Mrs Claus that wins that year and John made a horribly disgusting hot butter rum hot coco that Gale dumps out immediately to John’s chagrin.

They now have 4 kids, 4 and under because Charlie (“Goose”) was born around Thanksgiving. Things are chaotic because they also just moved into their new house. They are thriving in the chaos though. John has to hire someone to help him decorate because it’s their first year with extra extra money in a house they can decorate the outside of since they moved to New York. Gale has started a bake sale/drive thing that the team has to work and donate the money to a charity and Gale perfects his cowboy cookie recipe that year much to the team’s delight. John is ‘yes and’ing’ himself with the Santa bit much to the kids’ delight. Someone has an anti Yankees light display that makes John and by proxy, Maverick, so upset that it wins by default. Gale and Ken do not let anyone try John and Curt’s coco recipe that year because they saw what they put in it and “no jungle juice hot coco is not a funny idea.”

John is a star player by this point, they’re already trying for baby #5, and Christmas is somehow simultaneously a production but not a source of stress in the Egan household. Christmas Eve ornaments are very much still a thing, everyone gets to decorate the tree, but now Gale gets to put the star on top since he doesn’t get to make the tree perfect anymore. The Biddick’s actually come to NY that year and they have family Christmas all together at the Egan house and it becomes a permanent tradition after that rather than everyone packing up to go back to Wisconsin. Gale thinks John has lost his mind with the Santa stuff but the kids love it so he lets it slide. The Yankees cookie drive is a staple of the community despite it only being year 2 and Gale has to have help baking his established recipes if he wants to perfect his chocolate peppermint cookies… he’s a little miffed about having to let other people cook his famous recipes because he knows they won’t be as good but he’s got 4 kids 5 and under, PTA shit, various sports and activities for the kids to worry about, his book club, his volunteer stuff at the library, children’s home, and senior facility, his personal yoga class… etc. and John gently bullies him into slowly giving up some control on running some of it. The winning Christmas light display that year is someone who made it look like the reindeers were having an orgy and everyone’s wondering if they need to cover the kid’s eyes but they’re all just kind of in shock. Gale lets himself get tipsy on John and Curt’s boozy orange hot coco that’s actually pretty good.

They’ve now have 5 kids with Cassiopeia in the mix and this is the year they have the bright idea to surprise their kids with a dog (enter: Waffles the Golden Retriever). Gale finally doesn’t feel pressed anymore about not having the perfect tree because it brings the kids so much joy to decorate it with their shit and special ornaments plus he still gets to do the star. John has gotten insane about the Santa stuff. Footprints by the fireplace, having the kids spread ‘reindeer food’ in the yard, eating the cookies, stomping on the roof in the middle of the night (Gale has to convince Bennet and Knightly to not investigate or they’ll end up with coal lol)… it’s beyond extra but they love seeing how excited the kids are about all of it. Ornaments for Christmas Eve are still in full swing, the Biddick’s still come for family Christmas the week before, Gale still runs the cookie drive and he destroys everyone (it’s not actually a competition but it is in Gale’s mind, he wants to be the #1 WAG) with a pecan cookie recipe he invented. They have to throw away the pot that John and Curt tried to make their boozy hot chocolate in that year because they catch it on fire. The winning light display that year is a house that spelled out “send nudes” in lights, not because it’s more absurd than previous ones but because of the lack of pizazz put into it that could’ve made it truly funny.

I’m gonna stop here but they def keep their traditions going, even when they have another big fight and when things start shifting around as they grow and adapt as a family 🥰

#oopsieanswers #mota #clegan #kmitd #Christmas

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literary-illuminati · 2 years ago

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Book Review 14 - The Best of Nancy Kress, by Nancy Kress

Okay, continuing to work through my backlog on these! And learning the perils of letting it build for a month because my memories of most of the stories in this are already getting a bit vague and scattered.

So, getting the basic details out of the way – my first short story collection of the year, 600 pages of the works of Nancy Kress, curated and selected by the author herself as all her favourites that would fit in one volume. Someone on here (can’t remember who and tumblr search is being its usual unusuable self, unfortunately) recommended Beggars In Spain to me a while back, and this was the only volume my library system had that included it. So, 500-ish pages of other stories as a nice bonus until I got to the end and remembered that that’s the reason I’d gotten the book out in the first place.

The stories run from less than ten pages to a novella, and Kress includes a little half-page afterward following each. Usually either a reflection on the meaning of the story or an anecdote about its writing or reception, and then where and when it was originally published and any awards it won. And there were a lot of awards You can get a lot of short stories nominated for Hugos over 45 years of writing. The little snapshots of a, like, SF/F writer subculture and the relationships therein were all charming, anyway.

The stories themselves were of pretty wildly varying subject matter, though all science fiction of one kind or another. Everything from post-apocalyptic ruins to spaceships studying the galactic core to the drama and intrigue of gene-modding among high class ballerinas twenty minutes from now. The quality varied – it would pretty much have to, for like two dozen stories written across a span of decades – but overall it was really quite good.

Tone was rather more consistent. Some were happier than others, of course, but even the most fantastical and high concept worlds were pretty grimy and compromised and full of petty politics and pettier assholes. Capital H Heroes were pretty thin on the ground, even (especially) among the various protagonists. Kress seems to have a rare love for women who aren’t just, like, spiky, but genuinely flawed and unpleasant to be around (easier to pull off with short stories than novels, I suppose).

Short stories are great for just putting people in situations generally, really – not sure how long you could really draw out ‘feeling awkward and shitty because the guy you’re having an affair with was on a ‘business trip’ to visit you when aliens abducted and/or killed everyone in the city his wife and kids were in. He absolutely blames you for this,’ but it’s sure a hook!

Familial relationships that are, lets go with troubled, are a whole other recurring theme, too. Sororicidal sisters, deadbeat dads, obsessive ex-wives, parents putting their children through experimental gene-therapy to make sure they grow up with the ideal body to vicariously live out their dreams, the whole set. There’s even some dubiously consensual clone incest at one point!

Though honestly the lack of capital-h Heroes goes beyond just morality – thinking about it, most of the short stories are told from the perspective of observers, survivors, sufferers of exotic diseases, journalists poking at a mess from the outside. People whose world is being acted upon by forces far beyond their control, if not beyond their understanding entirely, and either bearing witness or struggling to adapt and get by. The stories where the protagonists had real agency – the scientists exploring the galaxy’s core, the time-travellers taking an alternate Anne Boleyn hostage to prevent the English Civil Wars – are usually the tragedies. There are a lot of those – or, if not tragedies, then at least stories that end badly for almost everyone involved. I’m halfway convinced that short stories are just a more appealing format for properly bleak fiction, really – less investment in characters’ wellbeing, or narrative expectations pushing towards growth or happy endings.

And now, before I focus on discussing Beggars In Spain specifically, some call outs for the short stories that really stuck in my head

The aforementioned gene-moding scandals in New York ballet, partially told through the perspective of the engineered-to-be-as-smart-as-a-5-year-old bespoke guard dog contracted to protect a start ballerina. Nicely understated cyberpunk setting and also felt extremely realistic as the sort of thing we’ll absolutely be having scandals about in fifty years tbh.

A woman discovering that the aliens are here amid the ruins of postwar Earth because they started getting our television broadcasts and decided that the only thing we had worth taking was dogs, but are stuck here until they figure out how to train them to be as good and heroic as they are in the movies.

A disenchanted and nostalgic man in the 80s finding a specific cupboard that goes back to one specific day in 1935 (I think. Pre-war but Roosevelt administration). He uses this exclusively to make his social security cheque go further and buy little presents for his friend with what in the 80s is pocket change. The actual plot involves despairing over how cynical and bleak-minded his granddaughter the artist is, and deciding to go back and a Good Man to introduce her to.

An extremely short one – just a one-scene vignette, really – about a waitress in a vaguely ‘50s diner when one of the aliens whose been in the news so much escapes their minders and wants to try an apple pie.

(There were also, I must admit, a decent number of stories that left me cold or that I just didn’t see the point of including, but, again, pretty much inevitable in any big collection, isn’t it?)

But okay, so! Beggars in Spain! It’s definitely an interesting novella, and given the fact that it’s 30 years old and was by all accounts incredibly successful I do kind of wonder how many common tropes about the whole super-intelligent designer babies conceit I’ve encountered elsewhere first are downstream of it?

Because I mean, ostensibly it’s about children modified in utero to not need to sleep, but practically that cashes out to them all being creative productive polyglot geniuses. Which is certainly the fantasy of never having to sleep with zero downsides, though honestly I’m pretty sure I’d spend at least half the extra time fucking around online. That said, the sense of alienation the protagonist has dealing with a world where almost everyone around her seems to just be wasting a third of their lives laying down is really well done.

It’s the sort of novella that you could probably write a dozen a dozen different essays about, and would probably benefit from being analyzed with less than a month’s distance and quotes on hand, but for all the futurism (and really not the best story in the collection for that, honestly), the thematic throughline that stood out to me is actually just libertarianism? Or not quite the right word, probably, though it is our heroine’s ideology (she is, after all, the favoured daughter of a self-made magnate, amid a social circle of the golden children of the striving upper-middle class). But the specific idea of enlightened selfishness, that the contract is the basis of all society, that no one owes anyone anything, and you are only worth what you can produce to offer up in exchange to others.

It’s where the title comes from, after all – the eponymous beggars with nothing to offer except their need who are entirely superfluous and inconvenient to the lives of the Sleepless ubermensch; what are they owed? The orthodox answer of the movement basically every major character at least ostensibly ascribes to is ‘nothing’.

Not that any of them actually act like individuals interacting solely through mutually beneficial contracts, which I’m fairly sure is in fact the point – the Sleepless invent nationalism before any of them turn thirty, going to great effort to support and look after each other on the basis of Sleepless-solidarity and an assumption that each of them is the future of humanity. And on the other hand, the protagonist’s father is a domineering, overbearing ass of a partner, draining both of his wives’ personality and will to live in turn until they get tired of being bitter social secretaries for him and quit. Equitable, contractual relationships are thin on the ground – and of course the entire climax is the protagonist relying on friends and an estranged sister to rescue an abused child who surely isn’t likely to pay any of them back for the effort anytime soon.

I thought the hypocrisy was neatly done, anyway. Especially since it’s never really confronted – none of the Sleepless ever show the slightest awareness that the lengths they’ll go to for the sake of each other purely on the basis of their shared enhancements seem to contradict the ideology they treat as holy writ.

Overall not exactly my favourite book of the year, but a fair bit better than a lot of what I’ve read so far. So I’ll call it a win. Just for the time capsule effect of reading stories written by the same author across four decades, if nothing else.

#book review #Nancy Kress #the Best of Nancy Kress #sff #short stories

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ogcrazylizard · 5 months ago

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Reminder of what he claims to be but isn't at all. BDSM? "Not for me." That's a lie.

Various moments and examples. Most than likely wanted something from me when I wanted to kill myself and said what he said because he still needed me alive and purely just for that.

Harsh? Yeah. Making this up? I wish I was. The end of the world. In emergency room. Sitting on a chair in the hallway. The push to get me paranoid. Then a constant yelling of "Just kill yourself." Repeatedly told in my head by DJ. As did actually try and find a way to kill myself. There's nothing around. Then I saw the elevator. I could just jump off. Get caught by a nurse. Take the needle out of my arm and walk out of the emergency room. Get home still it hasn't ended. Like I said my mom and dad cold shoulder. I intentionally grab a bottle of pills in front of them and go to the bathroom.

The yelling between the two fucktards. Award to the biggest idiot in history of man goes to Donald Moncur. Felipe has on the spectrum excuse. What's yours?

Shitty connections.

Privileges. Do not worry. Like Pennywise the clown said I sing you the bro hym, bro.

Clowns to much. I don't. Gets way too obsessed. You thought I was being obsessive. Check out DJ. You might miss him since he's on the shorter side.

Narc, narc or narc. Yes

Loyalty to what to who? Only himself.

I am more white supremacist/Nazi than white Donald DJ. Does it upset you a Mexican saw all this and you didn't. Wasted money on useless tech. Useless advice on hired advisors. I really did want to tell you all this but we never got a chance to be alone. When we were I had already gone through years of working for months. So I would forget.

Cop narc, narco, and a narcissist, or a flying monkey. Yes.

Narco stuff I have no idea. Didn't care to help you out there. I've come to accept shit happens.

I die. I die. Whatever. My whole story and my work is out there.

I'm a fucking War Boy X

I live. I die. I live again.

youtube

Do tweakers and gossipers ever stop gossiping?

From what I saw no. Fuck your lives are boring as fuck. No wonder you people are constantly in problems. Only talking about others. There a lot of solutions to your problems in a lot of stories out there.

Go and watch Godzilla Minus One. My movie of the year for 2023. Survivors guilt. Many of you need to stop this bullshit.

"You fucken coward. You were supposed to die. Because of you my children died."

Heavy shit. A change of heart in the Japanese younger generation. Not so much the older generation.

https://youtu.be/r7DqccP1Q_4?si=1-94cYpZ2SeM1IIq

You all failed as parents. No one else's fault. Not the drugs, not the dealer, not the friends, not their partner, not God, not society. You both as parents failed your child. You are leaders. It's always the leaders fault if anything goes wrong. Of course use your fucken head and know when to recognize and realize some things are out your and other people's control. Still not living your happiness starts breeding bad energy not just in you but also the feeling of resentment in your family. That attracts the universe to certain disasters since whatever is in that area is not adapting and changing.

"I rather get wounded by a friend than to get a kiss from the enemy"

https://youtu.be/ymZ0d5j-e3k?si=VJnY7Xb6anca-VUC

[Side note: Kratos powers derives of Dynosis Tragedy. Mimir and Freya here are both partially lying to Kratos. It was just an emotional outburst. To something else. Perhaps just reliving a nightmare.

Kratos did have a hand in his illness but also later in the game their connection grew stronger. When Freya shows up again they both go into a defensive stance.]

Oh yeah back to DJ.

What do you look for in a sexual partner? Can you do the same for the sexual partner.

No.

Most of my dating profile says

"chill guy here. Go with the flow. Enjoy watching and jerking off to porn." Usually a welcome surprise.

He wants someone laid back. He isn't laid. Constantly on guard. Comes and goes quick. Non pushy just means someone who he can easily manipulate.

"Open minded but comfortable with who they are sexually."

That's a bit redundant.

Sucks. That I fit all these things he looks for in a sexual partner.

Feels like he was not attracted to me. Feels super weird just sitting there. Hardly anyone ever talked to me.

Watching the time go by. Into hours. Seeing him on cam4 early on was fun. Then it just fed into my insecurities. Why does he never do any of that with me?

Then it was just me breaking down in the bathroom. Again from the start I knew he was on cam4, seen him many times with other people, knew he enjoyed fucking around. It never hurt back then.

I hate how I have these flashes of memories of what I would do if we were in a relationship. So I write. That's all i can do. Living this fantasy. Because you were my little dreamer.

The right moment was forever long ago. I say that I am gone.

This next part I had already written in my journal.

The End Pearl Jam

We never had dreams. We never made plans. We never promised to be more than friends. For we have come and gone. We, well I've changed as does everything. Whether we notice it or not. I still want to grow old. I have. I have lived well beyond my mortal years in dreams And fantasies. Always finding myself in that well of hopeless nights. Spotless/Shy Prince by Zack Bryan/Lumineers/Lizandro Corazon.

Turn on the TV (The American Dream )

Act like you don't see me (I believe in you)

Tell me everything is okay

(I believe in me I believe in us)

My mother is a saint (Mother always a sinner)

And told me if I wait (Telling me I ain't a saint)

Everything meant to be will stay

Well I'm a believer

Let me walk this road alone

Call me a sinner

Just means I'm a believer

Fuck her prayers only filled me with aggression

I pray this lonely road stays

I aint spotless neither is you

For once in my life

I'm gonna see it through

If you want spotless ill always win

I want love lover I want the lie

All this time and all these lives just for him?!

Praying our Angels would come every hopeless night

Your heart knows deeper seasons than my eyes will ever know

I'm a self destructive land slide if you want to be the hill

(Just remember where i stood)

I aint spotless neither is you

For once In my life I'm gonna see it through

If you want to stay that's fine by me

Everything meant to be is bound to stay

Remember jumping in the pool when we was fully clothed in august

We were soaking choking smoking in my old shitty apartment

Well I'm a believer

Let me walk this road alone

Call me a sinner

Just means I'm a believer

I aint spotless neither is you

For once In my life

I'm going to see it through

If you want spotless, I'll always win

You gave me your love lover you gave me the lie

I was alone you were betting on a winner

I was calling your white lie

You held everyone to their word never to your own words

I can't stop this neither can you

For once in my life I'm down to see it through

If you want spotless I'll always win

You gave me your love lover you gave me the lie

Maybe there is no mistakes.

#marvel #god of war #Godzilla #Youtube

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carlisles-girl · 3 years ago

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reputation (John Bender x FemReader)

a/n: I made a lemon meringue pie on Sunday, but like in the forms of little tarts and they’re so good omfg. kinda corny at the end and ass cuz I kinda gave up, but hope you enjoy lol <3 lmk if y’all want more parts to this cuz I’m kinda down to do so

Rumours spread over the minds of high school students like mist from an ocean on a windy day. Almost every single day there was a new rumour about somebody, majority of the time it was about the popular students talking about the other popular students, and other times it was the popular students talking about the not-so-popular students.

Whatever they said goes, because in the high school world, they were the award-winning celebrities you see on television that, most times, often get their words manipulated by the press. The press in this setting was the other students that progressed the flow of the words spoken about others.

The only way that you really associated yourself with other people than your friends was with others in your class if you needed to borrow a pencil, a teacher for asking questions, and then another - John Bender, your source of weed supply, and surprisingly a friend that leant a shoulder to lean on when you needed it, only if you allowed him to ramble to you afterwards.

Of course you did, and over time beginning at your sophomore year, you and John were on a first-name basis as well as the regular subject of gossip at the mouths of your peers.

At first it started off with the usual whenever someone was seen with John, the usual of: “Oh my god, he’s selling weed again!”

Then it slowly progressed into more romantically infused suggestions such as: “They’re totally dating! Don’t you see his arm around her waist?”

John, of course, was slightly prideful about the attention and took it as almost like a competition to get as many people talking about the two of you as possible. Often times, after school the two of you would sit on the bleachers by the football field and just talk about anything and everything.

This was one of those days, and by the time it was nearing 8pm, with the sun’s golden hue illuminating the both of your faces, and making the smoke from John’s cigarette mimic the look of perfectly painted clouds in a renaissance painting, he brought up the topic.

“Have you heard about what they’re saying?” He asked, flicking the ashes of his cigarette on the makeshift smoke tray made out of the bottom of a broken beer bottle that sat in the middle of you two.

“About us?” You asked back, looking at him, but his gaze was fixated on the slightly burning ash in the tray. Then just a few seconds after your question, he gave a small, quick nod before bringing the cigarette back up to his lips.

“Not since last weeks topic of conversation. Why, what are they saying now?” You were genuinely curious, and slightly worried since John’s body language signified that it must’ve been one of the worser ones he’s heard.

“You sure you wanna hear? It’s pretty shitty.” John said, blowing smoke from the corner of his mouth, then crushing the end of the cigarette in the tray.

“Well, it involves me so yeah, I’d like to hear it.”

John got up from where he was sitting before outstretching his hand towards you, which you took and the both of you stepped down the bleachers and made your way to the grass of the field.

“They’re saying that I got you pregnant.”

You sucked your teeth for a second before shrugging it off, “It’s not the worst thing in the world, it doesn’t bother me that much.”

John looked at you like you had just stabbed someone, eyes wide with his eyebrows furrowed before stopping any movement from him. “What?”

You paused your movements along with him, your hands still holding onto each other. “What?”

“It doesn’t bother you?”

“Not at all. There could be way more shitty things people could say.”

“Yes, but they’re saying that I got you pregnant. If someone, like, your parents, for example, found out about this rumour do you think they would take it very lightly? That someone like me did this to you?”

You looked away for a second, slowly bringing your face back to face him. “But it’s not true.”

“But if it was.”

“But it isn’t, and if it was, I wouldn’t mind.”

John’s face relaxed and he had a small smirk on his face. “You wouldn’t?”

“Right.”

At this point, the two of you began walking again, towards the front of the school, and John still had his little smirk on his face. You looked at him and noticed before smiling back at him.

“What are ya smiling about?” He asked, looking at you after he saw your smile from the corner of his right eye.

“Could ask you the same thing.”

“I asked first.” He then stopped holding your hand, bringing that same hand of his over your shoulders, bringing you in close in a slight side hug.

“Just because you’re smiling.” You said, bringing your right hand up to your right shoulder to place it over his hand. Your left arm being placed around his waist.

“Don’t get all sappy and stuff on me, now.”

#john bender #the breakfast club oneshot #the breakfast club preference #dating john bender #john bender x reader #john bender x reader oneshot #john bender oneshot #john bender imagine #john bender preference

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barb-depression-arc · 2 years ago

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Villain!Aizawa au

First and foremost, he’s absolutely done with the hero society bs

He’s still the protective dad but dilled up to a 1000%

Ends justify the means

Cold, analytical, detached (like not stoic but straight up doesn't emote)

->Not when it comes to children, absolutely has a parental instinct that goes haywire when it comes to kids and his students, after his shitty ass childhood he overcompensates by helping every kid he sees even mildly distressed (But he would be caught dead before addmiting it)

He comes from a wealthy family, quirkist family that was disgusted with his out-of-the-left-field quirk, that has sent him to foster care(which is apparently super shitty in Japan)

He wanted to become a hero out of spite bc people called him a villain when he was a kid (worked out really well for you buddy)

->Shirakumo’s death was the last nail in the coffin of his hero career (it shattered his worldview so much that he didn’t even want to think ab it)

He graduated from UA at the top of his class and with a shiny new hero license that he promptly ignored. Using his knowledge from basically living on the streets he decided to disappear from the radar and go into villainy bc–

He knew he couldn’t bring any change to the hero society as an Underground hero(didn’t even think about teaching, in the canon, it’s Nemuri who dragged him in so here he doesn’t consider it either)

He’s well aware of and hates the rampant inequality and senseless death (of young heros) caused by the greed of the industry that’s why:

He wants to change the way it works, even if he’ll have to get his hands dirty

By the time of the 1A hell class year he successfully took over a big part of the criminal underworld and made it quite orderly and logical (don’t ask me how yet but he built his imperium on loyalty and respect, ppl r just scared shitless of him (the mystery he created around himself) and everyone who joined his cause knows the golden rule “treat people like you want to be treated”. Aizawa awards loyalty and punishes disloyalty(anyone who goes against his rule of conduct)).

Seeing as this wasn’t enough decided to go a step further and start infiltrating the government and the hero commission itself

He started teaching at UA to get the favour of Nedzu, one of the most influential people in the whole of Japan

In this au Aizawa disappeared off the face of the earth after graduation, at which his friendship with Yamada and Kayama was already strained after Shirakumo’s death. When he suddenly joined the teaching staff after 7 years they didn’t recognize him, he was like a different person who once again wasn’t looking for any meaningful connections and this time succeeded at keeping everyone at arm's length.

Aizawa is slightly more put together in this, he learned to weaponize his looks, and he knows how he wants people to perceive him and dresses accordingly. So he doesn’t exactly look like a “homeless hobo in a trashbag” when in his “hero” gear (it’s just a tactical suit, he refused to put any kind of effort into the hero bullshit) but looks competent and threatening.

He nearly always wears his mask (spare capture weapon that acts as protection), the only time you see him without it is when he’s undercover or going to get groceries(he wears sunglasses then, listen at least one of his facial features has to be hidden at any time).

He basically never sleeps, by day a teacher and by night a criminal overlord-*cough*-underground hero.

He is technically the UA traitor, though not the one they are looking for :)

Now onto the fun part;

Students are SUPER curious about him, though he scares most of them

Rarely he gets phone calls during class, he always steps out to answer them(in code ofc, and he answers cause everyone knows to not bother him unless it’s important)

1A was extremely disappointed when the dorms were established and he continued wearing his mask 24/7 (listen the dorms are too fun and have too much potential for me to let them go)

Shinsou and Midoriya have seen his face

Shinsou saw it a few years back when Aizawa scared off his bullies

Midoriya saw it at the USJ when Aizawa used his primary capture weapon to deflect Shigaraki's attack (which fucked up his elbow in canon) and had to use his spare one as the primary one got disintegrated

USJ happens, but it goes differently, it happens a week into the classes(the sports festival happens a round a month after the school year starts). Aizawa is a bit blindsided by it, he knew that some new group of villains was congregating but he honestly didn’t expect them to do anything for a few more weeks.

he was absolutely pissed when he learned that it was about All Might

He doesn’t get smushed into a pie because a)he didn’t get injured by Shiggy so he was able to jump away from the nomu b)his own reinforcements arrive to act as a diversion exactly at that second.

He is so pissed after the whole ordeal, all his focus goes into obliterating the villains who were stupid enough to attack his students

#aizawa shōta #mha aizawa #shouta aizawa #eraserhead #bnha #barbs v!aizawa au #mha fanfiction #?#i don't know what will come out of this #some art for sure >:)#my hero academia aizawa #this is very self indulgent #but it's so much fun so bite me #aizawa shouta #villain aizawa #villain!aizawa

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mshyde · 3 years ago

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why do you feel for riordan the way people feel for rowling? Is he known to be a bigot?

This is mostly a me-thing, I would like to clarify that not everyone who defends Rowling is going to agree with me (or even care about this lol). But I mean exactly that, I feel about Riordan the way "woke" liberal current lit stans feel about JKR.

Why do I feel for Riordan the way people (in particular, TRAs) feel for Rowling? While I find PJO entertaining and regard it with nostalgia wrt being a big series from my childhood, the books don't bring much to the table. Now that Rowling's cancelled, people love to bring down Harry Potter and call it useless, overrated, or even ideologically antiquated. But... what's new and fresh about Percy Jackson? And I find it apt to compare it to Harry Potter, in this case. Now, keep in mind that The Lightning Thief came out in 2005 and HP and the Philosopher's Stone in 1997. Let's do a "blind" recap:

White boy with messy black hair and green eyes who grew up in an abusive environment finds out the truth of his parentage is not what he's been led to believe. He goes on to a magical training place (which will feel like a home to him) where a famous, old, and experienced teacher introduces him to his new power and what it means for him. He has two friends: a goofy/comic relief type of guy, and a girl who is usually described around two characteristics: her great intelligence, and her hair. He doesn't know it yet, but his life is defined by a prophecy that seems to hinge on his death, but against all odds, he lives.

What am I describing? PJO or HP? Well, guess what! It's both. Also, while not exactly the same, your godly parent claiming you and you going to your special cabin based on that is quite similar to the sorting hat placing you in Gryffindor. I know that is quite generic nowadays (mostly because Rowling made the blueprint and everyone else copied off her - Roth with Divergent and the factions, Bardugo with the Grisha Orders, in a way even Collins with the THG Districts, although if her work is far superior to anything else discussed here), but the similarities are glaring, they are there, and they annoy me.

Riordan kills off his women for male angst (Bianca Di Angelo, arguably Zoe Nightshade). He's got an entirely main white cast in which most characters of color are secondary and killed off, or villains, or both (Kelly the empousa, Chris Rodriguez, Zoe Nightshade, Charles Beckendorf, Ethan Nakamura...). All of his characters are straight (with the exception of Nico, who's only revealed to be gay when he's forced to come out seven books after he's introduced, in the sequel series). Literally nothing about PJO is revolutionary, new, or modern. Do NOT come at me talking about Heroes of Olympus, or, god forbid, Trials of Apollo, because if that's how you like your "representation" then I don't want your garbage. Even the Kane Chronicles are... not It (13 year old girl dating a fusion of an immortal god with a 17 year old, anyone?).

Is [Riordan] known to be a bigot? No, but he should. Specifically, because of his racism and his homophobia. His article/essay defending his writing of Piper Mclean and Samirah al-Abbas (characters from later series) should've gone as viral in lit circles as Rowling's "biological sex is real and it matters" did. Instead, in recent years, he's gotten Stonewall awards and all kinds of praise for half-assed, shitty, pathetic, offensive, badly-written "representation".

He's also a lesbophobic piece of shit.

#i stand with jk rowling #anti rick riordan #the only thing i'll give riordan is that by my comparison he made 'harmony' canon #12 year old me hated romione </3 #hyde.txt #i literally hate him the way gendies hate rowling. that's the only way i know how to put it.

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hood-ex · 3 years ago

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This is a fic written for @stxleslyds! The prompt was: a fic with Dick, Roy and Lian spending time together in the Outsiders era. Thanks for the donation, Tati 💙.

Important: This fic takes place a week after the events of Outsiders (2003) #19.

“We could use you here,” Roy says. Even with his voice coming directly through the comm, Dick almost doesn’t hear him say, “I need you here.”

A soft wind blows through Blüdhaven, ruffling through Dick’s sweat-matted hair. What a filthy night it is for a Friday. Thunder rumbling in the distance with hot, humid air filling Dick’s lungs. It’s the kind of air that isn’t natural for a place like the ‘Haven. It’s here for whatever reason, and it’s no better now that the sun has been replaced by pink and purple neon lights flashing across the strip. It’s nights like these that Dick can admit to missing his red tunic and green shorts. It was shit to wear them in the winter but an absolute godsend in the summer.

Dick sighs deeply, moving away from the ledge of the building and away from his view of the herds of drunk people whose laughter echoes between the bars and casinos. There’s a tall HVAC unit in the middle of the building that he walks over to and sits against. The fabric of his suit rubs against it, and he squirms a little at the uncomfortable position. He bears it because this is a conversation that requires a little support.

“Dick.”

“I know,” Dick mutters.

He should be under the streets of Brooklyn the same as all the other Outsiders should be. Considering the circumstances, it’s no surprise that some of them have deserted the ship for the time being. Licking their wounds in private so to speak. Dick’s not proud of it. He tacks it onto his mental bulletin board of shame where it sits up there all torn and ugly like the rest of his deplorable moments.

“I’d feel better if you were here to watch Lian when I step out of the room,” Roy says in Japanese. Dick’s brow furrows. Either Lian is in the same room as Roy and he doesn’t want her to know they’re talking about her or there’s an Outsider nearby that he doesn’t want listening in on his personal issues. “She hasn’t started therapy yet and her separation anxiety is still high.”

“High for both of you,” Dick points out. He thinks back to a few days ago when Roy had called him in a panic because he’d left all of his groceries in the middle of the store after his paranoia got the best of him and had him running back to the base to check on Lian.

“Tell me about it,” Roy laughs dryly. “I feel like I’m going fuckin’ nuts, dude.” The strain in his voice sends a full body shiver down Dick’s spine. “All I can think about is whether she’s okay and if the base is protected enough, and if I can really trust everyone here. You and Kory are the only ones I feel okay leaving her with.”

You shouldn’t trust me like that, Dick thinks bitterly. Lilith and Donna trusted me with their lives and look where they are now.

“Everyone else is… I trust them as teammates. I trust them with my life. But I can’t—"

“Trust them with Lian’s,” Dick says, knowing how much this whole situation has fucked with Roy's ability to trust anyone and everyone. Except him and Kory, apparently. Probably Ollie and the rest of Roy's family too.

He thunks his head against the HVAC unit and stares up at the dark sky. Not a single star up there, he thinks, and something like guilt burns in his chest. You took them all with you, didn’t you, Donna? Put them in your pockets and faded away. “She might not be comfortable with me there,” he says after a moment.

It pains him to think that Lian could be scared of him. Scared of him because he looks similar to one of the blue-eyed, dark-haired kidnappers who murdered her babysitter and then branded her like cattle. That type of trauma association doesn’t go away after a week.

“Kory told Lian you might stop by, and you know what Lian asked her?”

Terrible things flash through Dick’s head. Things like words born of fear or disgust. He hugs his arms around his knees and squeezes them tight.

“No, what did she say?”

“She asked, ‘Is Uncle Nightwing gonna bring Blue’s Clues with him?’”

A smile tugs at the corner of Dick’s lips and his eyes start to sting. He can’t believe that’s the first thing she thought of. It only seems like yesterday that he was watching Blue’s Clues with her in Titans Tower. Sometimes he would pause the show and ask Lian questions about each of the clues just to hear what kind of outlandish answers her kid brain could come up with. Other times the detective in him couldn’t help but steer her towards a logical answer. Roy used to always roll his eyes and tell him to stop trying to turn her into a mini Nightwing.

“That doesn’t mean she’ll be okay seeing me in person and you know it,” Dick reminds him.

Roy’s sigh is soft and muffled in his ear. “We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.”

Dick’s not one to wait around.

“Let’s cross it now.”

“You’re coming over?” Roy asks, and even though he mostly sounds neutral, Dick can hear the disbelief hidden under it all.

If there was an award for the world's most shitty friend, Dick would probably be in the lead to receive it. Here Roy is dealing with the fact that his daughter was abducted and almost trafficked, and what’s Dick been doing for the last few days instead of sticking by his side? Working himself to the bone in Blüdhaven, that’s what. Hiding away from the fact that he almost lost another important person to him. Trying to avoid the crushing weight of failure that clings to him like a second skin.

Pathetic. Some safety net he is.

“Yeah, give me an hour,” Dick says.

The commute from Blüdhaven to Brooklyn isn’t bad at this time of night. Most of the traffic is packed downtown where all the bars are lined up. Dick takes the highway to avoid the worst of it.

The roar of the city dies off once he goes underground. Down here the HQ looms over him in all its steel glory. Dick’s always thought of it like one giant elevator. It’s all hard angles and sleek, silver walls. Hardly a place one would describe as homey, but it was home to a few people nevertheless.

Dick goes inside after getting his eye and hand scanned by the computer. He heads down the hallway, keeping his footsteps light and quiet out of habit. So far there’s no sign of Jade, Indigo, or Rex in any of the rooms he passes. They’re the most likely to be here around this time. From what Kory told him the other day, Grace has been spending most of her time clubbing, and Anissa has been staying with her dad. He hates to admit it but it’s almost a relief that he doesn’t have to worry about running into either of them.

He ends up finding Roy and Lian in the rec room. Lian is sitting on the leather couch in the middle of the room. She must have had a shower not too long ago because her hair is a little damp and she’s wearing a pair of purple pajamas with unicorns on them. A Cinderella blanket is strewn across her lap and a stuffed rabbit sits discarded on the floor by her feet.

Roy looks small squatting in front of her. His pants are the only sign of his Arsenal gear, and it makes Dick feel slightly out of place since he’s still decked out in full mask and suit. It’s the first time Dick’s seen Roy in person since they brought down Tanner’s operations a week ago. He looks how Dick would expect any parent to look after being targeted by a major sex trafficker: stressed and exhausted.

Those tired eyes of his shift to the doorway where Dick stands, and Dick can see the way Roy looks him over from head to toe, assessing Dick’s condition. He can look as hard as he wants, but he won’t find anything. Dick keeps his face blank and unreadable.

“It still hurts,” Lian whimpers, and both Dick and Roy's attention immediately snaps back to her.

She wraps her arms around her stomach and bends over her lap like she’s going to throw up all over the floor. Roy doesn’t move to try and avoid any possible bouts of vomit. Nothing happens as the seconds tick by. No retching or anything. There’s only the sound of Roy’s hand rubbing up and down Lian’s arm.

“Me and your Uncle Nightwing are gonna get you feeling better soon,” Roy assures her in a gentle voice. “And guess what?”

Lian makes a questioning sound in the back of her throat.

The look Roy shoots Dick is somewhere between caution and amusement. “He’s been playing quiet mouse behind you this whole time.”

Dick braces himself as Lian shoots back up like a rocket. “He’s behind me?” she asks, twisting around in her seat. Dick’s heart starts jackrabbiting because what if she’s scared of him? What if he accidentally triggers her PTSD? What if— “Uncle Nightwing!” Lian shrieks.

Relief shudders through him because she sounds happy to see him. Not scared or angry or disgusted like he feared. She’s looking at him like he just told her he brought her a bag of candy, and that revelation is enough to make him take a breath and finally enter the room.

“Hey, kiddo,” Dick says, hurrying over to the couch so that she doesn’t have to get up. “I missed you.”

Lian reaches for his hand and holds on to it. It’s not like the hug Dick usually gets from her and maybe that’s because she doesn’t want anyone touching her back after the incident. Dick will take anything he can get. His much larger hand closes over her own and he swings them back and forth lightly.

“Me too,” Lian says. She squeezes his hand three times. “Why do you still have your gloves on?”

“My hands are cold,” Dick lies. “Why were you bent over like an accordion just a minute ago?”

“Her tummy’s been hurting,” Roy says with a frown.

“It’s because tigers used to try and eat people,” Lian tells him matter-of-factly. Roy looks like he’s about to correct her but she quickly hurries on. “My brain says there’s danger and it makes my tummy stop working.”

A lightbulb goes off in Dick’s head as he realizes that she’s describing anxiety. A simplified explanation of how the digestive system shuts down and sends blood to other parts of the body when there’s danger.

“My tummy does that too,” Dick says after a pause. “I get a lot of anxiety sometimes. Do you want me to show you how I try to make it go away?”

Lian scrunches her nose. “Do we have to take medicine?”

“Nope. All we need to do is sit up straight and breathe. Breathing really deep helps our brains calm down and makes our tummies feel more relaxed,” Dick explains. He sinks down on the plush couch and demonstrates how she should be sitting. “Now move back until you’re sitting like me.”

Lian does as she’s told and scoots back until she’s resting against the back of the couch. Dick only remembers how short she is when he notices how her feet stick out straight in front of her instead of dangling over the edge of the couch.

“Now tell your daddy to get in position.”

“Daddy,” Lian slaps the free cushion beside her, “sit next to me.”

“Magic word?” Roy prompts.

“Please,” Lian pouts.

“That’s better.” Roy’s knees pop when he shifts out of his crouched position. The whole couch rocks when he falls back against it. “What’s the strat here, Wing? We need to close our eyes or what?”

Dick wants to ask him why he’s acting like he’s never done this before but the playful words stick in his mouth like glue.

“We’ll close our eyes in a second. Lian, I want you to watch how your daddy and I take really deep breaths, okay? Then we’re all going to do it together.”

“I can take really big breaths!” Lian insists. She scrambles out of her pose and gets on her knees. Her little fingers wrap around Dick’s bicep as she leans in close to him. “I can take one million breaths as big as an elephant!”

The tired and apathetic part of him tells him to ignore her kid logic and to get back on track. The uncle part of him is another story. It wants him to be fun and helpful. To distract Lian from the worries and fears she has.

In the end, he does what he always does best: puts on a performance.

“Oh yeah?” Dick challenges with a grin that hopefully doesn’t look as strained as it feels. “I can take five billion breaths as big as a planet.”

“Elephants are bigger than planets,” she says.

“I think maybe the elephants are only bigger in your dreams.”

“Yeah, they are,” Lian agrees because she’s a typical kid who will support anything that proves she’s right in some capacity.

Roy looks amused when he puts his hands on Lian’s shoulders and steers her to sit back on her bottom. “Alright little missy, no more talking. We’re gonna do what Uncle Nightwing says now, okay?”

“Okay,” Lian agrees, looking over at Dick expectantly.

Coaching Lian through the exercise is easy. The most important part is making sure she’s taking breaths that are deep enough to make her stomach expand like a balloon. Dick has her place her hands on top of her stomach so he can see them rise when she inhales.

Roy follows along and Dick can tell that he’s taking advantage of the exercises for his own benefit. His face looks peaceful and relaxed as he follows along with Dick’s instructions to suck in a breath on the count of one and exhale up until the count of ten.

“Keep focusing on counting,” Dick tells them while they exhale. “We don’t want any other thoughts in our heads. No bad thoughts or funny thoughts. Only think about counting to ten.”

They run through a few more cycles. Dick’s pleased when he hears both Lian and Roy’s stomachs grumbling as they exhale. It’s a good sign that the deep breaths are massaging their organs and decreasing any kind of stomach pain.

“That’s it,” Dick says. “We’re all done.” He opens his eyes and sees Lian slumped against the back of the couch. Her hands are still resting on her stomach, but she looks languid instead of tense like she was when he first saw her.

“I’m tired now,” Roy says. His movements are slow as molasses when he slides forward to the edge of the couch and bends over to rest his arms on his thighs. He looks at Lian. “How about you, princess? You feeling any better?”

“Mhmm. My tummy doesn’t feel really uh…”

“Tight?” Dick offers.

“Yeah, it’s not so tight anymore.”

Roy pushes a strand of hair behind her ear. “Good. Mine feels a little better too.”

“Can we do Uncle Nightwing’s breathing thing again tomorrow?” she asks through a yawn.

“Sure thing,” Roy nods. His attention shifts to Dick. “Are you gonna still be here to lead us through it?”

This isn’t some kind of test but it feels like one. It feels like if he says no then he’s only proving that he’s a bad friend. That he can’t be relied on. He doesn’t want to give Roy that impression because it’s not true. Roy can rely on him the same way Dick relies on Roy. He hopes showing up here tonight is proof of that.

“That’s the plan,” he says, voice soft.

Roy leans over the couch and squeezes Dick’s knee gently. “You sure?” he asks, and his eyes roam over Dick’s face like he’s trying to find evidence that Dick is lying.

“Yeah, I’m sure.” He pats Roy’s hand reassuringly in the same way Alfred's done for him and Bruce a hundred times. It's only now that he realizes it's a habit he's picked up.

Lian suddenly leans into Dick’s side and presses her weight against his arm. She pats both his and Roy’s hands.

“I’m sure too,” she says, and this time Dick can’t help but smile.

#Dick Grayson #Roy Harper #Lian Harper #tw: mentions of sex trafficking #tw: mentions of past kidnapping and child abuse #my fic #fic commission

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hakasims · 4 years ago

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Luca Marinelli Things That Will Never Be SLMR’ed

I don’t think many people care, but I need consistency and also I love lists, so here’s a list of actually good Luca Marinelli projects that I will never shittily recap and instead highly recommend you to watch (if you haven’t already).

Trust (2018)

It’s not because it’s a TV show. Believe me, if it were bad, I’d take so much pleasure in recapping and making fun of it one crappy episode at a time. But this limited series is actually really good, especially if you don’t care much about historical accuracy and framing rumors as true events (which, to be honest, very few “based on real events” things do). It has gorgeous visuals, stellar acting, excellent character work and poignant writing. Give it a chance. And please, don’t skip the first two episodes just because Luca isn’t in them. Despite giving us Primo Nizzuto, the best character Luca Marinelli has ever played, bar none, this show goes beyond simply having a hot Italian gay in tight pants - although he certainly is big part of the appeal. If anything, no other piece of fiction will make you loathe billionaires as much as this show. Seriously, as someone who was all “Eat the Rich!” before watching it, I was surprised how much hatred my heart was still capable of.

Content warnings: violence, blood, gore, death, nudity, sex, swearing.

Non essere cattivo (2015)

While Primo is Luca’s best role, Cesare doesn’t lag far behind, easily clearing the top 5 as one of the most interesting and nuanced characters Luca has played in his career. If you thought Trainspotting was a good movie, you’ll like this one as it is similar in its masterful mix of comedy and drama as well as the portrayal of hopeless mundanity of the working class in the 1990′s in a country I (and most of you) have never lived in. As a bonus, this movie has some top-notch Gay Longing™ for its two male leads.

Content warnings: drug use, violence, transphobia, blood, death.

Martin Eden (2019)

This one is gonna be short. You don’t need me to tell you how great this movie is: dozens of critics have done so much better than I ever would, and no matter how thirsty I’d try to be for comedic effect, they’ve outdone me while being 100% serious. This movie is gorgeous and poignant: just watch it.

Content warnings: drug use, mild violence, blood, death.

La grande bellezza (2013)

Speaking of award-worthy films, there’s this little Oscar-winner. Like many of its European art-house peers, this one is an audience divider where some people adore it and some think it’s teeth-grindingly boring. My reason for not touching it is simple: Luca only appears for a minute. The specifically Luca part of Shitty Luca Movie Recaps would be one paragraph long, and nobody wants that.

Content warnings: suicide, lots of full-frontal nudity and other stuff I can’t remember.

Fabrizio de André – Principe libero (2018)

And we’re back to conventional films that are good and deserve your attention. Granted, this one is a three-hour two-parter but it’s a biopic about a musician that spans over 20 years of Fabrizio de André’s life, so it makes sense for it to be that long. It falls into some of the trappings of music biopics but then casually avoids others. It’s not Rocketman but it’s definitely not Bohemian Rhapsody, so give it a go.

Content warnings: infidelity, alcoholism, kidnapping.

Il padre d’Italia (2017)

Do I even have to talk about this one? You’ve seen it and you probably love it. If for some reason you haven’t checked it out, do. Just trust me, it’s good.

Content warnings: um, a pregnant lady drinks and smokes? Also nuns.

Ricordi? (2018)

No one’s talking about this one, but we should. It’s good. This movie is less conventional than some of the other entries on this list, but it’s pretty and dream-like and pensive and I enjoy the hell out of its atmosphere. Luca’s character isn’t the most likeable guy in the world, but his co-star Linda Caridi more than makes up for his flaws. (Seriously, she’s so cute and sweet, you guys, I love her.) Please watch it.

Content warnings: nudity, sex, parental abuse, teacher-student relationships.

A bonus point to all of these except Il padre d’Italia and Martin Eden: they feature Luca with long hair who, as we all know, is superior to short-haired Luca. Speaking of bonuses:

La solitudine dei numeri primi (2010)

This one isn’t on the list because I think it’s good and you’ll like it. I personally can’t stand this movie, but I also don’t think it deserves mockery like Slam or Mary of Nazareth. My best friend liked it while I don’t ever want to see it again, so if you’re curious, check it out for yourselves.

Content warnings: nudity, parental abuse, bullying, self-harm, eating disorders, weight gain, weight loss, mental disorders, death.

Literally every other Luca Marinelli movie is fair game. That doesn’t mean I’ll SLMR them all, but it’s possible, especially if you want me to. Let me know what you think!

#luca marinelli #sh*tty luca movie recap #slmr #trust fx #non essere cattivo #martin eden #la grande bellezza #fabrizio de andre principe libero #il padre d'italia #ricordi?#la solitudine dei numeri primi

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athena-is-a-chaotic-lil-shit · 4 years ago

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Feral Fatality

(Part 1)

So this has been in my works for a week now. You see, it was a typical day for me scrolling through Tumblr and visiting some....tags, and then a short drabble inspired me to write about a feral reader totally not because I was craving violence and murder no, which reached more than 4k words on the first draft so here we are! Shitty title, I know. The proofread work went over 7k, and it's not even finished yet. Once I'm done posting this and my main orc fic, I will get into the requests so please be patient!

Pairing: Jason Voorhees x Fem!Reader

Word count: 3k

Warnings: Brief blood and violence at the end of the first part

Contains: Swearing, mentions of neglect and abuse (not graphic)

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Screams slit through the twilight as the frigid autumn wind blew harshly through the trees of Camp Crystal Lake. The rustling of bushes and cracking of twigs echoed as foolish teenagers attempted to escape, running for their lives when they were the ones who dared step foot in the place, tarnishing it with their sins.

Jason Voorhees, the innocent kid who died several years ago; pushed to the lake by his bullies and left to drown for being different and unsightly— all because the counselors were busy with their fucking business—, returned as an undead killing machine right after his mother murdered them and died. His sole purpose: to protect the land and purge the people who had no right to be here, sentencing them to a horrendous death.

One by one, they struck the ground, lifeless, either chopped into pieces, beheaded, or stabbed countless times by his trusty machete.

Limbs...ripped off with his bare hands.

The muffled snapping of branches reached your ears as the vehicle's wheels ran over them, stirring you from your nap. You rubbed your chilled skin under your clothes as you looked out of the window, thumping your forehead on the glass when you leaned forward the moment you saw the scenery. Trees, both ancient and young, their leaves varying in hues of green, orange and red, filled your line of sight. It was still early in autumn, your favorite time of the year, not hot but not too cold either. You watched in awe as the warm-colored leaves cascaded down from the branches and down to the ground, some carried by the wind farther from their origin.

The view did its best to distract you from a couple in session a seat before yours. They always seem to do that all the time, regardless of place or occasion.

This was a week-long getaway after graduation, they said.

Nothing but a white lie.

An excuse for the girls to hook up with their campus crushes, a week of fucking and smoking drugs.

You, however, just got invited —forced— by your "friend" Eloiza, the self-proclaimed hottest girl in the entire school, typical captain of the cheerleading squad; blonde and curvy. Her words were much too sugar-coated that even a deaf person could tell she had ulterior motives.

She only planned to use you as a tool to raise her fame. A stepping stone for her own gain.

That wasn't the only reason though.

Everyone knew who you were, but only by your name. News and rumors alike spread like wildfire through gossipy mouths. Your deeds were known throughout campus.

(Y/N)(L/N), top academic competitor and multiple-award winner, a straight-A student for five years in succession. Some believed you were a genius, the rest called you insane.

You wouldn't call yourself a genius though, you did not possess the obsessive need to acquire eternal knowledge and discover the secrets of the universe as most of them do, to effortlessly solve every problem that comes their way.

If that were the case, then you wouldn't be here in the first place.

You only love learning and indulging in the beauty of Mother Nature, plus a handful of hyper-fixations.

Fine, a buttload of hyper-fixations. And such came in handy in various situations.

You were unrivaled, not one of your peers could come close to your level of wit. Many people wished to have a brain like yours, and just as many hated you for even having one, praised you just as much as slandered your name and judged you.

Despite your reputation, the poor school didn't broadcast it, at least every time. The staff probably got tired of repeating the same phrase over and over again. Which caused more than half of the whole campus to never believe you to be the one behind all of that, laughing at your face when you said your name.

"You? The (Y/N) (L/N)? Ha! As if I'd fall for that! Everyone knows how she looks. You're the absolute opposite!"

"You got to be kidding me."

"You're a joker, aren't you? Is this a prank? If so please stop it, don't pretend like you're her."

Yep, and it goes on and on and on. They were right, you didn't look like someone who would win contests or excel in class.

You constantly wore clothes that hid your form, silent unless spoken to or asked to answer, distant and reserved, you preferred the company of books and nature to the rowdiness and prying hands of humans. A sociopath they deemed you. Quite an extreme word to use when you simply wanted to enjoy the only things that made you happy in this living hell.

You only know a handful of people who approached you first-hand and praised you genuinely, even asking for an autograph, which really surprised you.

Yet, they would never understand you even if you explained, because you can't, words evade you when it comes down to voice out what you feel. Even if you can, no one would care. And even if they did? You doubt it was real. Everyone wants to use you, and they seem to believe you'd let them. You didn't trust anyone. The last time you did only left you sobbing on the dirt.

You wanted to be left alone.

To connect with nature and get as far away as possible from your parents. Parents who kept shouting profanities at each other, the main cause for your depression and anxiety levels to skyrocket, the shaking turning into trembling, 7 hours of sleep to barely a blink.

That's why you agreed to go in the first place.

You hated your household—despised it— a mess of broken shards of bottles and ceramics littered your kitchen floor more often than not. You didn't bother cleaning it up anymore, your mother would just waste away her money on more things to break and throw them at your joke of a father when they fought anyway.

Not only that, you thought...No, you believed if you worked hard to be the best and win countless competitions, your parents would give you recognition and reconcile for your sake, but no, no, no. They didn't care one bit about you or your medals, it was as if you were never even included in their lives at all. Even birthday celebrations ceased to exist in everyone's books after your 13th.

So you gave up.

Down into the void, your wishful thinking went, that they'll become better people over time, that the attention and love you deserve will be given one day. Instead, you wallowed yourself in your studies, besting everyone in everything academic. Oh, but you weren't athletic. Far from it. Damn, you were getting thin and sleep-deprived from being neglected, dark circles under your eyes every time you looked at your reflection. People hating your existence wasn't helping, some teachers even suspected you of cheating.

There's no way in hell you'd let yourself get dragged down to end up like them! You were of legal age now, a fresh graduate from high school, you doubt your parents even knew that since they didn't fucking show up on your graduation day. You were moving out of that shithole of a town. Anywhere is better than where they breathed and spat their poison.

And so here you are. Standing in this breath-taking and mysterious place. Camp Crystal Lake, it is named, secluded, barely touched by modernization as it is hidden between mountains and trees as far as the eye could see. Not to mention its namesake, the lake, you imagined it would mirror the sky, be it day or night. You loved it, you adored the fresh, breathable air that went through you the moment you stepped out of the van.

You also knew about him.

Resolved to never go back to that goddamned house, you took everything you had and needed; the special little trinkets you've collected through the years shoved into a box, the few clothes you had, art materials, and your precious books carefully packed inside a big travel bag, along with your stocked up canned goods, convenience food, snacks, and toiletries.

And other, important things.

You hauled your baggage out of the van and got off, immediately moving to the side and away from everyone.

You got used to people ignoring you that you didn't care anymore.

Why waste your time with them when you can have all of it to yourself?

Eloiza led the group into the larger cabins, the others went straight into the lake for a swim. You even notice some teens disappear into the trees, most likely for a quickie.

In return, you stayed out of their way, fully satisfied being invisible and with your own company as you trudged to a cabin, the one you caught a glimpse of earlier in the van. It was a long way's separated from the rest, closest to the forest and hidden behind a few trees.

You were panting when you finally stopped in front of it, clearly not used to walking long distances and carrying stuff near as heavy as your weight.

Upon closer inspection, you found yourself gaping at its appearance. The wooden walls lost their color as they aged, white and brown mushrooms grew on the ground along with green moss sticking to the beams, and a few vines crawling their way up and on the roof. Despite all of that, the cabin looked sturdy still.

There's this "one with nature" vibe that drew you to it, like a string pulling you closer and inviting you. Ominous most would say, but you almost cried when the rich scent of earth and oxygen filled your lungs as you took one big inhale, sighing in content for once. It was a lot smaller compared to the others, but you didn't care. As long as you were left alone with your stuff you were a-okay.

Perfect.

You turned the knob and peeked inside, letting out a small gasp and opening the door wider to see the whole thing.

Old as it is, it was proper and neat, regardless of the tiny cobwebs on the upper corners. A small, square dining table sat in the middle of the first part of the place, two wooden stools placed underneath. There were cupboards on the wall and a simple sink with an empty space to the side. You went to the next room, doorless and separated with but a wall of thick plywood. It had a single bed in the corner, off-white cotton sheets sitting atop, not a wrinkle in sight. No pillow though. There's a decent-sized closet along with a small table on one side of the bed. One of the windows had a hole in the middle, a ray of sunlight streaming in through the cracks. It was too big for the size of a gunshot, so maybe a rock.

A bit hesitant, your fingers traced the wood, feeling the inconsistent texture. When you went through the back door, your smile reached your ears when trunks of trees and bushes greeted you...

Wait, is that what you think it is?

Stepping closer to the treeline, your jaw dropped when you spotted a thicket of fruit-bearing plants past them, gathered in a tiny clearing.

Blueberries.

Purple little cuties poked out of the green shrubs, sporting a vibrant hue that caught your eye. The sun shone overhead and providing the energy they needed. Blueberries managed to grow in the area despite the trees fencing them.

Tempted and suspicious, you crouched down, inspecting the shrub if it really was a blueberry plant and not a deadly doppelganger. Once you were sure it was, (it would be hilarious if you simply died from nighshade poisoning), you plucked one and brought it to your mouth. It was sweeter than you expected, with a slightly bitter aftertaste. You hummed in delight, wiping the juice with your thumb when it dribbled out, staining your finger and lips.

You didn't want to anger anybody. Hell, coming here was already trespassing, so you didn't push your luck and left it alone, hoping they'd forgive you for picking one. They surely didn't look wild with the way they lined up.

You scanned the rest of the area, eventually going back inside to unpack after your little evaluation.

The sun was a hand's away from setting when you finished. Pride swelled in your chest at the work you did, your things stocked and organized with care inside the cabinets and drawers. You won't have to worry about your food for now as cupboards were filled to the brim with them. You also had a decent amount of money left from your savings account that your parents weren't aware of. Prize money, allowance, and the salary you got from doing online jobs all went into it. The camp was a few miles off the road, and a couple more to the nearest gas station with a convenience store. Very far yes, but it's better than living with the people who made you do this in the first place.

You just hoped you wouldn't die walking.

Everything was worth it, anyways. You were free now, at least that's what you think.

You trudged to the bed, eyeing the cushions, wary and a little scared to touch the sheets that appeared to be cleaned just recently, you didn't even lay a finger on them ever since you got inside. Oh, but your tired muscles were screaming to just flump down and relax.

So you did.

You dumped yourself face first and inhaled. It wasn't smelly nor fragrant, just the simple freshness on the cotton fabric. You felt beat but ain't sleepy, yet, so you reached to the drawer beside the bed and pulled out a book to pass the time as you waited for the sun to go down and give way for the moon. Its spine and pages had creases, worn out and yellow-stained from age and use. It was a horror-mystery novel told through a first-person narrative, a story of a middle-aged detective and her Maine coon in their attempts to solve a murder case of a young European lady named Cassandra Chase.

You dozed off in the middle of chapter 21, the part where Dinnie, the cat, discovers a valuable clue to the crime, a rotten limb in the dried basement well.

—

Jason settled down on the stairs of his porch; shoulders relaxed and hunched as he leisurely sharpened his machete with a small whetstone. Lines of sunlight kissed him through the leaves of trees, the birds in the area chirped on their perches, and the grass swayed, gentle, as a cool wind passed by.

His day be so fine. No troublemakers to deal wi—

The alarm rang, announcing unwelcomed arrival. As if a switch flipped inside, he's already on his feet, making his way swiftly to their location.

A new batch of wretched youngsters, another day ruined. Hunting them down makes his blood thrum in his veins, yes, but they soured his mood, just when he was at peace. He's dead set on slaughtering them in the most gruesome ways possible, only then he could go back and enjoy the serenity the nature around him brings.

He surveyed the area, camouflaging with the wilderness, silent as he watched and counted the soon-to-be corpses, his mother's voice at the back of his mind, guiding him.

They decided to go either to the main cabins, or the lake...even into the trees.

All but one.

Jason already planned to cut down the couple later as they lose themselves in the forest, doing nasty, dirty things to his camp. The killer shifted his attention to you, curious as to why you didn't join the lot. Instead, you walked back down the road. He followed and saw you approach the small cabin, separated from the rest, your eyes widened...

Adoration?

You were quiet— except for the little gasps of awe you let out in between pants—as you looked around and over the place. The ones you came with were rowdy and destructive, a complete opposite. He hid as he observed you from afar, moving around to adjust his vision on you. You smiled every time you looked to the trees, he noticed.

Why were you smiling like that? Why did you pick this cabin? Were you planning on defiling it?

The last question in his mind made his blood boil. He'll kill you first if that was the case. That cabin you chose was special, it was where he and his mother used to stay. He occasionally visits that one to keep it clean and free of dust. If you even think of—

Jason, sweetie...look closer. She does not have such intentions.

His mother's words rang in his head. Even from where he stood, he could see what you did inside. You looked a little hesitant, touching and drawing back your hand before letting your fingers feel the wood as if it was something delicate. Despite the initial...shyness? You proceeded to make it your home, somewhat, dropping the large duffel bags you carried on your front and back, and a similarly large roller case on your left. It was as if you planned to stay for a long time.

Jason hears you take a long breath and sigh as you went out the backdoor. You grinned wider when you saw the nature around you. You stepped forward, straight in his direction...

For a moment he thought you saw him, seeing your jaw drop. You moved closer, and he just froze there, until you crouched down.

Oh, his plants.

He watched you as you gently picked a fruit, your gaze...soft. You brought it to your mouth, some of the juice spilling on the side and you wiped it with your thumb.

Cute.

You went back inside and continued to unpack your things, carefully maneuvering around the cabin.

Maybe he'll spare you if you continue to be good. You didn't do anything dirty, yet. It's only a matter of time before the camp is shrouded in darkness and his hunt will begin.

Let's see what you'll do before that happens.

Jason tracked down the three that went into the forest. He knew the place like the back of his hand, and it was easier to pinpoint them as he heard moans.

What he saw was utmost disgusting, two girls pleasuring a male with their mouths in broad daylight.

Kill them, my boy! Such foul beings need to die! Kill them, kill!

He circled them, steps soundless. Jason gripped his machete and brought it down the guy's neck, embedding the weapon into the bark, the head rolled down, oozing with blood, and fell against the women, drenching them in red. Not a single cry left from their mouths as he sliced both with one swing, blood pouring out of their throats and staining the ground. Jason dragged their bodies and tossed them into a pit he dug beforehand, making quick work in burying them.

A swift end. Now he waits.

#jason voorhees x reader #jason x reader #friday the 13th #blood #violence #slatra #lmao #my writing #fiction #horror #slasher x reader #feral reader #slasher x fem!reader #reader insert #slasher fic #slasher x reader fic #jason voorhees #friday the 13th fic

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hallefms · 4 years ago

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𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐠𝐨’𝐬 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐇𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐄 𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐍 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐮𝐞 , 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐑𝐘𝐀𝐍 𝐃𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐘 ! 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐦𝐚𝐲 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐚𝐬 @𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐭 𝐩𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐦𝐳 𝐚𝐬 𝒖𝒑𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓-𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒈𝒘𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒆𝒏 𝒇𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒔 𝒑𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒛𝒛𝒊 𝒂𝒕 𝒂𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒚. 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐦𝐳 , 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐲-𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐝 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐛𝐚𝐬𝐡 . 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐲𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐢𝐬 𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮’𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 , 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐲𝐨𝐮 . 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐚 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐭 𝟐 𝐚𝐦, 𝐥𝐨𝐮𝐝 𝐥𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐤𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐨𝐤𝐞 𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐮𝐭 . ( 𝐜𝐢𝐬 𝐟𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐞 & 𝐬𝐡𝐞/𝐡𝐞𝐫 ) + ( 𝐦𝐲𝐚, 𝟏𝟗 , 𝐬𝐡𝐞/𝐡𝐞𝐫, 𝐩𝐬𝐭. )

triggers will be tagged and marked accordingly as they come up but here’s what to look out for: alcohol tw, drugs tw, abuse tw, shooting tw, hospital tw, death tw, grief tw

𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐒

𝐅𝐔𝐋𝐋 𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄

halle caroline forten

𝐍𝐈𝐂𝐊𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐒

hal and hals

𝐁𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐇𝐃𝐀𝐘

april 11, 1997

𝐇𝐄𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓

5′5″

𝐀𝐆𝐄

23 years old

𝐆𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑

female

𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐍𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐒

she/her

𝐎𝐂𝐂𝐔𝐏𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍

singer/songwriter

𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐔𝐀𝐆𝐄𝐒

english, italian, french, spanish, and mandarin

𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍

bisexual

𝐅𝐀𝐂𝐄𝐂𝐋𝐀𝐈𝐌

ryan destiny

here’s her current home

𝐁𝐀𝐂𝐊𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘

𝐀𝐋𝐂𝐎𝐇𝐎𝐋 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐃𝐑𝐔𝐆𝐒 𝐓𝐖

halle forten was born in CHICAGO ILLINOIS on an unusually warm day in april

her mother was an ALCOHOLIC and her father was a DRUG ADDICT and although they were both incredibly skilled with their respective crafts...the same could not be said about them being good parents

𝐄𝐍𝐃 𝐀𝐋𝐂𝐎𝐇𝐎𝐋 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐃𝐑𝐔𝐆𝐒 𝐓𝐖

𝐀𝐁𝐔𝐒𝐄 𝐓𝐖

her mother was the more abusive of the two, her constant alcohol use and consequent promise to quit caused her to have intense periods of blacking out and then withdrawing to the point where she’d take it out on her children albeit emotionally, verbally, or worst of all physically. her father on the other hand managed to simply exist in the household, unless he was going on rampages through the house of breaking things it causing physical and/or emotional scars to his children

𝐄𝐍𝐃 𝐀𝐁𝐔𝐒𝐄 𝐓𝐖

halle grew up in the neighborhood of WASHINGTON PARK not exactly known for being the hamptons of chicago so everyday was like trying to navigating a battlefield

thankfully, or maybe sadly? halle wasn’t alone in this fight she was the youngest of five, two sisters, and three brothers, for the most part they were all extremely close, they fought like any other siblings, but knew the evils the awaited them if they drifted apart

despite all this, halle had an extremely close bond to her older brother, she told him EVERYTHING and he trusted her with his life it was obvious to anyone that the two of them were inseparable

although his protectiveness, did manage to get in the way of their relationship at one point, i’m getting ahead of myself, first i have to set the scene with halle’s high school journey

although halle wasn’t necessarily handed golden keys to receive a sound education, she didn’t let that stop her, she was determined to make it out of washington park if was the last thing that she did, and she worked her ass off to make sure that dream would become a reality

and so in turn halle became an HONOR ROLL student, she her homework on time, she aced her tests, and she even helped tutor her peers on the side for extra money, her parents didn’t exactly have the biggest expendable income after all, things went fairly well for her academically

socially, is where halle would stumble a little bit, she wasn’t exactly the friendliest person, and even when you managed to break down her barriers, it was likely you’d be cut off shortly afterwards, she was extremely uncomfortable with being so vulnerable she mostly stuck to just socializing with her siblings and their friends

eventually, she maintained a solid friend group, one where she didn’t feel judged or felt the need to isolate herself, although she’d often do so for periods of time for seemingly no reason, and she CLUNG to them closely, secretly being afraid of being LEFT BEHIND, and although she wasn’t a SUPER AGGRESSIVE person if you ever had the audacity to mess with her friends, you could expect threats from halle, and she WOULD follow through with them

then came the obligatory part of high school where her friends would seek relationships and find some mediocre high school boy who could barely take care of his basic needs, and then SOMEHOW question why halle herself wasn’t in a relationship

and this would continue to be her stance UNTIL he came along, with his stupid smile, goofiness, and eyes that twinkled, to turn her world UPSIDE DOWN

and some despite ALL ODDS in halle’s mind he choose her, the only issue is due to home life, halle was unsure was healthy love looked like, she wasn’t aware that love DIDN’T have to hurt

remember how i told you that the protectiveness of halle’s brother would come in the way of their relationship? here’s where that comes into play. he stepped in when he saw the LENGTHS that halle was going to sustain a relationship, and she told him he had NOTHING to worry about, this lead to a series of arguments that halle would end up winning, but that would cause a GIGANTIC rift in their relationship

𝐒𝐇𝐎𝐎𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆, 𝐇𝐎𝐒𝐏𝐓𝐈𝐀𝐋, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐃𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐇 𝐓𝐖

A WEEK LATER, her brother would be rushed to the hospital in critical condition where he later died, the story goes he was walking home late at night, and he was randomly shot at in the arm and in the chest, halle ran to the hospital desperate for a last minute reconciliation with her brother, he held her hand before taking his last breath, and their parting words to each other where ‘I LOVE YOU’, her brother’s gunman was never identified or arrested

𝐄𝐍𝐃 𝐒𝐇𝐎𝐎𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆, 𝐇𝐎𝐒𝐏𝐓𝐈𝐀𝐋, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐃𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐇 𝐓𝐖

this only CEMENTED the fact that halle NEEDED to get out of washington park, she became more isolated than before, and ended her relationship, she was even more determined than before to excel at school

𝐆𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐅 𝐓𝐖

through her grieving halle found an OUTLET in music, compressing her pain and hurt into song lyrics, and allowing herself FOR ONCE to be vulnerable, she even recorded her FIRST album on her bedroom floor, with a shitty headphone mic, her heartfelt lyrics, and only a vague grasp of music production

𝐄𝐍𝐃 𝐆𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐅 𝐓𝐖

halle eventually GRADUTED as VALDECTORIAN of her class and applied to NEW YORK UNIVERSITY she had the grades and a perfectly curated college essay that guaranteed her acceptance into the school of SCHOOL OF ARTS

the only reason she applied to NEW YORK UNIVERSITY is because she knew that she wouldn’t be able to get DISCOVERED by staying in washington park nor would she be able to FURTHER her education, desperate to finally get her escape one night without telling ANYONE, including her siblings, she booked a flight to NEW YORK CITY and never looked back

college life took her by SURPRISE but she knew this was her CHANCE, she knew she had to keep the same drive that got her OUT of washington park

FINALLY after only a semester in college, and lots of behind the scenes work, she signed a contract with a NOTEABLE music label, and began reworking the album she wrote on her bedroom floor a year or so ago

she released her FIRST studio album and it was a HIT, in all honesty it was an OVERNIGHT SUCCESS, halle’s recognition was something so NEW to her, she had never put herself in the SPOTLIGHT always much preferring the background, but remembering the hardships and trails that she’d faced, she EMBRACED the newfound attention

halle would go on to win an award for BEST NEW ARTIST and in her acceptance speech she shed light on the hardships and struggles she faced and thanked the driving force that got her out of her situation HER BROTHER

SINCE THEN halle has begun working on her SECOND studio album and has started a CHARITY to help children of abusive households, and a separate CHARTIY focusing on helping families who have lost children to neighborhood violence

halle has especially been more social since her high school days, but still carries her AGGRESSIVE streak and will stand up for herself and her beliefs no matter the cost, she’s truly found herself and is able to be vulnerable with others almost to a fault, but that doesn’t mean you will win her trust easily, that is still something you’ll have to fight for, but once you earn it she WILL go to bat for you NO MATTER WHAT

HOWEVER halle is still EXTREMELY UNACCUSTOMED to her fame and often does things that paints her in a less than flattering light

𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐘

𝐙𝐎𝐃𝐈𝐀𝐂

aries sun, gemini moon, gemini rising

𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐍𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓

chaotic good

𝐌𝐁𝐓𝐈

isfp-a

𝐄𝐍𝐍𝐄𝐀𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐌

type 9w8

𝐓𝐄𝐌𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓

sanguine

𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐒𝐄

slytherin

𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐔𝐀𝐆𝐄𝐒

in order: words of affirmation, acts of service, quality time, physical time, and receiving gifts

𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐕𝐄 𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐈𝐓𝐒

adaptable, adventurous, affable, affectionate, ambitious, amusing, attentive, brave, bright, calm, caring, charismatic, charming, committed, courageous, creative, decisive, dependable, determined, diligent, direct, driven, easy-going, efficient, engaging, enthusiastic, extroverted, flirtatious, forthright, frank, fun-loving, funny, gregarious, intelligent, knowledgeable, lively, logical, loyal, mischievous, neat, objective, observant, open-minded, organized, outgoing, passionate, persistent, playful, practical, pragmatic, protective, quick-witted, rational, realistic, reliable, responsible, romantic, self-confident, sociable, strong-willed, and trustworthy

𝐍𝐄𝐆𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐕𝐄 𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐈𝐓𝐒

abrasive, aggressive, aloof, analytical, argumentative, arrogant, assertive, avoidant, belligerent, blunt, bossy, calculating, callous, cautious, competitive, condescending, confrontational, critical, cynical, deceitful, defiant, destructive, detached, discreet, dishonest, dramatic, evasive, explosive, foolhardy, grumpy, guarded, harsh, headstrong, impatient, impulsive, insensitive, intimidating, irrational, judgmental, melancholic, narcissistic, negative, opinionated, outspoken, perfectionist, pretentious, private, quick-tempered, rebellious, reckless, rude, secretive, stubborn, temperamental, thoughtless, unemotional, vain, and violent

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐈𝐍𝐒𝐏𝐎

i’d like to say she’s a weird amalgamation of characters i liked in media i’ve consumed, and although he relates more to some characters than others this is an incomplete list of my influences

p.s. you can click on the names of a charatcer to see a gifset of them that reminds me of halle <3 <3 <3

𝑱𝑨𝑫𝑬 𝑾𝑬𝑺𝑻 ( 𝐕𝐈𝐂𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐎𝐔𝐒 ) , 𝑱𝑶𝑵𝑨𝑻𝑯𝑨𝑵 𝑩𝒀𝑬𝑹𝑺 ( 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒 ) , 𝑴𝑨𝑹𝑪𝑬𝑳𝑰𝑵𝑬 ( 𝐀𝐃𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄 𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄 ) , 𝑺𝑯𝑨𝑮𝑮𝒀 𝑹𝑶𝑮𝑬𝑹𝑺 ( 𝐒𝐂𝐎𝐎𝐁𝐘-𝐃𝐎𝐎 ) , 𝑷𝑯𝑰𝑳𝑳𝑰𝑷 𝑱. 𝑭𝑹𝒀 ( 𝐅𝐔𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐀𝐌𝐀 ) , 𝑴𝑶𝑹𝑫𝑬𝑪𝑨𝑰 ( 𝐑𝐄𝐆𝐔𝐋𝐀𝐑 𝐒𝐇𝐎𝐖 ) , 𝑺𝑶𝑶𝑺 ( 𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐓𝐘 𝐅𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐒 ) , 𝑮𝑾𝑬𝑵 ( 𝐓𝐎𝐓𝐀𝐋 𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐌𝐀 𝐈𝐒𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐃 ) , 𝑱𝑨𝑵𝑬 𝑳𝑨𝑵𝑬 ( 𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐀 ) , 𝑴𝑬𝑹𝑬𝑫𝑰𝑻𝑯 𝑮𝑹𝑬𝒀 ( 𝐆𝐑𝐄𝐘'𝐒 𝐀𝐍𝐀𝐓𝐎𝐌𝐘 ) , 𝑵𝑨𝑻𝑬 𝑨𝑹𝑪𝑯𝑰𝑩𝑨𝑳𝑫 ( 𝐆𝐎𝐒𝐒𝐈𝐏 𝐆𝐈𝐑𝐋 ) , 𝑨𝑵𝑫 𝑻𝑰𝑵𝑲𝑬𝑹𝑩𝑬𝑳𝑳 ( 𝐏𝐄𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐏𝐀𝐍 )

𝐖𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐍𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒

𝑹𝑶𝑴𝑨𝑵𝑻𝑰𝑪

𝑬𝑿𝑬𝑺 𝑶𝑵 𝑮𝑶𝑶𝑫 𝑻𝑬𝑹𝑴𝑺. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑬𝑿𝑬𝑺 𝑶𝑵 𝑩𝑨𝑫 𝑻𝑬𝑹𝑴𝑺. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑭𝑹𝑰𝑬𝑵𝑫𝑺 𝑻𝑶 𝑳𝑶𝑽𝑬𝑹𝑺. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑭𝑹𝑰𝑬𝑵𝑫𝑺 𝑾𝑰𝑻𝑯 𝑩𝑬𝑵𝑬𝑭𝑰𝑻𝑺. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑺𝑲𝑰𝑵𝑵𝒀 𝑳𝑶𝑽𝑬. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑺𝑳𝑶𝑾 𝑩𝑼𝑹𝑵. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑷𝑹 𝑹𝑬𝑳𝑨𝑻𝑰𝑶𝑵𝑺𝑯𝑰𝑷. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑻𝑶𝑿𝑰𝑪 𝑹𝑬𝑳𝑨𝑻𝑰𝑶𝑵𝑺𝑯𝑰𝑷. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑼𝑵𝑹𝑬𝑸𝑼𝑰𝑻𝑬𝑫 𝑳𝑶𝑽𝑬. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑷𝑳𝑨𝑻𝑶𝑵𝑰𝑪

𝑺𝑸𝑼𝑨𝑫. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑹𝑶𝑶𝑴𝑴𝑨𝑻𝑬𝑺. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑮𝑶𝑶𝑫 𝑰𝑵𝑭𝑳𝑼𝑬𝑵𝑪𝑬. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑩𝑨𝑫 𝑰𝑵𝑭𝑳𝑼𝑬𝑵𝑪𝑬. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑩𝑬𝑺𝑻 𝑭𝑹𝑰𝑬𝑵𝑫. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑪𝑯𝑰𝑳𝑫𝑯𝑶𝑶𝑫 𝑭𝑹𝑰𝑬𝑵𝑫. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑵𝑬𝑮𝑨𝑻𝑰𝑽𝑬

𝑭𝑹𝑰𝑬𝑵𝑫𝑺 𝑻𝑼𝑹𝑵𝑬𝑫 𝑬𝑵𝑬𝑴𝑰𝑬𝑺. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑬𝑵𝑬𝑴𝑰𝑬𝑺. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

𝑭𝑹𝑬𝑵𝑬𝑴𝑰𝑬𝑺. 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐓𝐖𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑.

if any of these interest you feel free to message me! i have ideas for all of them that i’m always ready to share! also feel free to mix and match any of the plots above a good influence who has an unrequited crush but is also his roommate? sounds like content to me, a friend with benefits turned best friend turned exes on bad terms we love to see it! and if none of these seem interesting to you fill free to check out halle’s wanted connections page!

#wealthyhq:intro #alcohol tw #drugs tw #abuse tw #shooting tw #hospital tw #death tw #grief tw #i have had her ready since i applied for connor #please love me

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petersasteria · 5 years ago

Text

Anger Issues - Harry Holland

Requested? Nope. I’ve been meaning to write this for so long and decided “fuck it” whether ppl will read it or not lmao what’s important is I finally release some decent content and I like it and that’s important.

Pairing: Harry x Reader

Words: 4,307

Masterlist

* * * *

"Please wait here and the doctor will call you when it's your turn." the assistant tells you before leaving the waiting room. You look around and see two guys there. One of them had his hands in his pockets, his hood up, and his head nodding along to the music going through his earphones. In short, he looks like your average everyday mysterious emo guy from high school. The other guy looks the total opposite. He was like the guy everyone liked, but not exactly popular. He was on his phone, chuckling from time to time. He was wearing a blue sweater and some worn out jeans.

You sit across from them and the two guys look at you. You give them a tight-lipped smile. Emo guys rolled his eyes, but the guy next to him smiles back at you. It wasn't a fake smile either. It was a genuine smile.

'Seems like a nice guy.' you thought to yourself.

The less emo guy puts his phone in his pocket and starts up a conversation, "I've never seen you around here before and we're here every week. What-"

"Can you just shut the fuck up, Thomas? Why do you have to talk all the fucking time?? You're so fucking annoying. Maybe that's why your girlfriend left you for that other guy." emo guy snaps.

You and 'Thomas' look at him. While you were shocked at his mini outburst, 'Thomas' looked like he was used to it, though. "You don't have to speak like that whenever you're annoyed at someone, Harry." Thomas tells him in a soft and comforting voice.

"Wow. Look at you being a big brother for once!" Harry says sarcastically. "And the brother of the year award goes to...Thomas Stanley Holland! Give it up for him everybody!" He claps his hands. At this point, you and Thomas are beginning to feel uncomfortable. Especially you; you've never met these people before.

Thomas looks at you with a sorry expression, "I'm sorry about Harry. Anyway, I assume you heard my name already-"

"Of course she did. She has ears, dipshit." Harry mutters under his breath before taking his phone out of his pocket and scrolling through it.

"You can call me 'Tom'." Tom smiles, ignoring Harry. "What's your name?"

"Y/N." you tell him. Tom nods before looking at Harry then at you. He gets up from his seat and immediately sits next to you. You were a bit... scared. A stranger suddenly sits next to you after his brother shouts at him in anger isn't exactly an ideal way of meeting and getting to know someone.

Tom seems to notice your change of demeanor and chuckles, "I won't do anything, don't worry. It's just nice to see someone else in this place on a Saturday morning. It's usually just me and him and sometimes Sam, our brother, tags along too. But most of the time, just me and him."

You nod and feel yourself getting comfortable with Tom. "So, why are you alone? It's hard seeing a psychiatrist alone for the first time. I mean, it's not Harry's first time here, that's for sure. But if I were in your place, coming here with someone closest to me would make me feel less scared and nervous. Even if they don't go inside the room with you, it's nice to know that there's someone in the waiting room who's waiting for you and who's there for you every step of the way." Tom rambles.

"My parents dropped me off and then they said that they'll come back for me when I text them as soon as I finish here." you tell him truthfully.

"Well, they're shitty parents." Tom crosses his arms, "No offense."

"None taken." you chuckle. "They are shitty parents, though." Tom laughs and shakes his head.

The door opens and the current patient quickly in tears. The patient practically ran, not giving you a chance to see if it were a girl or boy. You look at the direction they came from and see the psychiatrist standing there. You look at the psychiatrist in fear.

You turn to Tom and whisper, "Why the fuck was that patient crying? Is this lady batshit crazy? Does she always make them cry??"

"Of course not." Tom whispers. "All I know about that last patient is that they're always here three times a week. I know, because I've asked before."

"Harry, you can come in now." the psychiatrist smiles at him. Harry rolls his eyes and stands up, getting his backpack (which needed to be washed) from the floor.

"You'll get through this today, Harry! I'm right here." Tom smiles at him, cheering him on as if Harry were to compete at something. Harry looks at him, gives him a fake smile, and the middle finger before entering the room, the 'click' of the door being closed was heard immediately after he went in.

"Now it's just you and me." Tom says. "What do you usually do here when you're alone waiting for Harry?" you ask curiously, obviously bored out of your mind.

"I just go on my phone. Sometimes I bring my homework and do it here. But since I don't have homework at the moment, I'm as free as a bird." Tom answers. "Speaking of phone, let's exchange numbers! It'll be so much fun having a new friend!"

Thomas Stanley Holland was too bubbly for your liking. But you exchanged numbers anyway. Even social media usernames.

After two hours of chatting with Tom, you come to realize that he's genuinely a nice and friendly guy. You really had fun talking to him. Harry emerges from the room with the same mysterious emo look on his face. "Let's go, Thomas."

"Hey champ! How was it?" Tom smiles.

"Are you fucking mocking me?" Harry asks, his temper slightly rising.

Judging by the little time you've known Harry, you've come to conclusion that he's in therapy for his anger issues. You notice that the little things seem to tick him off. The dude's a fucking time bomb.

"Harry, I was just asking nicely. I didn't mean to offend you. Please don't get mad at me." Tom says in that comforting and soft voice.

An outsider would think that they're complete strangers who are fighting, because at this point, it's hard to believe that they're siblings.

"I wouldn't have gotten mad if you just followed me when I said that we should go home. I wouldn't have gotten mad if you didn't open your fucking mouth." Harry said in sort of a Draco Malfoy tone.

Tom looks at you and quietly says, "I'll text you." He stands up and follows his brother on his way out.

"Y/N, it's your turn." the psychiatrist says.

"Welp, here goes nothing." you say to yourself before going in the room and closing the door.

"Hello Y/N. I'm Dr. Joanne Moore. But you can call me Joanne, so that it's less intimidating." Joanne smiles. "Please take a seat and make yourself comfortable."

Joanne motions for you to sit on the couch while she sits across from you on the spinning office chair everyone loves. You do as she says and you let yourself relax as your gaze wanders around the room. The room was neither small nor large and the only light source was the sun shining outside; its rays coming through the window.

"I understand that you're new here. Where are you from?" Joanne asks.

"New York." you reply. Joanne hums and nods, "Why did you move here?"

"My father is English and my mother is American. My mom told my dad that maybe it'd be best to move to a new environment. She's basically sick of New York. Around the time she said that, my dad got offered a new job here with a salary higher than what he was paid back home. Then, the rest is history." you respond. You've been repeating the same response to your neighbors and to everyone you meet, so you completely memorize it like the back of your hand. You can say shit in your sleep.

"I see. Welcome to London." Joanne smiles. You mutter a small 'thank you' before leaning back on the couch.

"Would you like to tell me why you're here?" Joanne asks.

"I thought you'd never ask." you lightly chuckle.

"Y/N, is that you?!" you hear a familiar voice from your left side. You turn your head and see Tom with a smile on his face, "Oh my god, it is you! I didn't know we had the same school. Why didn't you tell me?"

"Um, I didn't think it was necessary?" your answer came out more like a question.

"Of course, it's necessary. We're best friends now!" Tom grins. He looks behind him and says, "Guys, come here!" A group of guys walk in your direction with Harry following behind them.

"Guys, this is Y/N the girl from therapy." Tom introduces. "Y/N, this is the gang: Harrison, Sam, Jacob, and of course you know Harry."

"Hi everyone." you smile politely.

"Hey you don't have an accent too!" Jacob smiles. "I'm from Hawaii. What about you?"

"New York." you smile proudly. You were beginning to feel homesick and talking about New York would make you feel much better.

"That's so awesome! I've been there once. It was family vacation and I had so much fun there! Maybe there was a slight chance we bumped into each other while I was there or something." Jacob tells.

"Are we going to class or are we going to stand here all day while Jacob tells his New York escapade?" a voice from the back startles everyone even though they knew who it belonged to. The five of you look at Harry and mutter apologies to which Harry replied with "whatever" and rolling his eyes before leaving the group.

"My twin has left, lady and gentlemen." Sam says to all of you.

"Wait, he's your twin?" you ask in shock.

"Yup." Sam confirms. "Hard to take in, right?"

You nod in agreement. "Let's go to class. I don't want to be late on my first day." you chuckle nervously.

"You'll be fine! We'll probably have classes with you." Harrison says, calming your nerves a bit. "Good luck if you have a class with Harry, though. He's hard to work with. He kind of wants to do his own thing, but he helps even though he's like that."

Harrison's heads up about Harry made you not want to share a class with him.

Luck wasn't on your side, however. As soon as you enter your first class, which is history, the only empty seat was next to Harry. You take a deep breath before walking to the empty seat next to him.

"Oh great." Harry mumbles. Understanding his issues, you bite back a reply and just take in everything that's happening. Everyone is talking to each other except for you and Harry despite the fact that you know each other. To be fair, you aren't close with him. You're closer with Tom, so you didn't know what Harry liked to talk about.

Just then, the teacher arrives and everyone went to their proper seats. The teacher looked like she was in her mid 30s. She looked nice.

"Before we start, we have a new student from New York." she smiles at you. "Please, introduce yourself to everyone."

Harry turns to you and sees your shocked face. Upon seeing that, he chuckles and shakes his head, "Just get it over with." Hearing Harry being normal sounded so foreign to you, but you took his advice and went on to introduce yourself.

"You don't have to stay here in front. Just stand up and tell us about yourself." the teacher says.

"Okay, um, my name is Y/N Y/L/N and I'm from New York. I just moved here, like, a week ago. So yeah...that's it I guess." you awkwardly say and you sit down.

"Welcome Y/N! I hope you enjoy your stay. My name is Mrs. Smith and I'll be your history teacher." Mrs. Smith says. "Speaking of history, let's get started."

Mrs. Smith began to discuss for the rest of the time. Five minutes before the class ends, Mrs. Smith tells everyone that they'll have a project that'll be done in pairs. You didn't know anyone in class except for Harry and Harrison's warning is at the back of your head. So to say that you didn't know what to do would be an understatement.

"I already have a list of pairs and I'll dictate it." Mrs. Smith says.

'Thank god.' you mutter under your breath.

'Fucking hell.' Harry rolls his eyes.

"Y/N you'll be paired with Harry." Mrs. Smith smiles, before continuing. You look at Harry and he looks at you unimpressed.

"I don't usually allow anyone to work with me, but since you're new and you're practically best friends with my brother, I'll give you a chance. That's as far as I can go with being nice to someone." Harry tells you. You just nod, still kind of intimidated by him. "Also," he says again, "back the fuck off when we're out together. I don't like it when people invade my space." Harry fakes a smile and puts his stuff in his bag. You just stay quiet and do the same.

When Mrs. Smith dismisses the class, Harry immediately left. Of course, you followed. You didn't want to be alone in a room with people you didn't know. You'd much rather be stuck with Tom even though he talks too much and is too bubbly. You'd also prefer if you were stuck with Harry and even though he gets angry all the time and he hardly says anything to you, at least he's someone you know.

As soon as you leave the room, Tom and the rest were there to greet you. "Hey!!!" they all greet cheerfully.

"Oh my god what the fuck did I get myself into?" you ask yourself, putting on a smile for them nonetheless.

"Congrats! You survived your first class in your new school." Jacob says. "Are you ready to go through the rest of the day?"

"As ready as I'll ever be." you respond. It wasn't even at least half of the day and you were already tired. Tom and his friends seem to have a lot of energy and seeing them really energized makes you tired.

Saturday comes around again and you're back at therapy. You walk in the waiting room and see Harry there. Now, it's awkward. Like last week, you sit across from Harry and begin to mind your own business. 'He did say "back the fuck off", right?' you think to yourself.

"Tom has a dentist appointment in case you're wondering." Harry's voice startles you. You look up from your phone and see him already looking at you. "It's just me today. Sam is at his part time job and I don't want to bring my youngest brother, Paddy to this depressing place. I don't want him to end up mentally messed up. He doesn't deserve that."

How the fuck are you going to respond to that?

"Oh, I see." you says, still not sure what to reply. "Thanks for telling me, I guess."

"What'll you do after this?" Harry asks curiously.

"I'll probably just walk around or go sight seeing. My parents are on a business trip and all my siblings have their own lives now, because they're older than me." you tell him truthfully. He nods and says, "I have nothing going on at my place at the moment and I want to get away."

You shrug, "Go ahead, then. No one's stopping you."

Harry just stares at you and it's beginning to freak you out, because you don't know if he's going to burst or not. Finally, after almost a minute of silence and staring at each other Harry speaks up, "Do you have money on you?"

"Excuse me?"

Harry rolls his eyes, "Do you have cash right now? I have some stashed in my backpack right now."

"Um, is that even importa-"

"Just answer the fucking question, Becky." Harry says, clearly starting to get annoyed. "Yeah, I do. Why does it matter?" you gulp.

"Good." Harry says. "We'll talk later after your session. It's my turn now." As if on cue, the door opens and the patient from last week quickly runs past you and Harry. He stands up, grabs his backpack and enters the room.

To say you were confused was an understatement. Why was he suddenly talking to you? You decided to text Tom about it.

To: Tom

Hey man hope the dentist thing is going well for u. Harry just said the weirdest shit and idk what to say or feel. Send help xo

You didn't expect a reply, so you went on Instagram and just scrolled through it until it was your turn.

After your session, you were surprised to see Harry waiting for you. He looks up from his phone, takes out one of his earphones and asks, "Ready to go? I'm starving." You just nod and off you two went.

Both of you end up at a sandwich shop far from the building. You both eat in silence and it's beginning to feel awkward; for you at least. Harry seemed fine.

"Let's leave London." Harry says all of a sudden, making you choke on your sandwich. "Jesus, are you okay?" he asks with no concern, whatsoever. He's more worried about both of you causing a scene.

You finally calm down and nod, "Now I'm okay. Where are we going?"

Harry shrugs, "Anywhere we set our mind to. I haven't been outside of London for years. Maybe we could go somewhere to experience a new environment or whatever."

"...London is my new environment." you explain to him.

"I know, dipshit." Harry rolls his eyes, "but you wanted to go sight seeing, don't you?"

"Yeah, around London not outside London."

"What's wrong with going outside of London?!"

"Why're you pushing for us to go outside of London?!" you rebutt.

"BECAUSE I HATE THIS PLACE!!" Harry yells causing everyone in the shop to look at both of you. You flinch at his words and you didn't know what to say. Harry angrily stands up, kicks the chair, and leaves the shop. All of the customers and employees look at you with pity.

"Poor thing." one customer said.

"Wow, worst boyfriend of the year award goes to that guy." the other said.

You gather yours and Harry's belongings and run out of the shop, hoping you're not too late to catch Harry. After looking left and right, you see him standing not too far away and you approach him.

"Hey," you say softly, "you know what? Let's go outside London." You decided that maybe Harry hasn't been getting what he wanted that's why he's always angry, so you'll give him a chance. You also started using the same tactic as Tom: speaking softly which is quite difficult and tiring, but if Tom can do it, so can you.

Harry looks at you and nods. Without saying a word, he grabs his bag from you and walks to the train station. Not wanting to get lost on your second week in London, you rush to follow him before you lose him in the crowd.

"So where are we?" you ask Harry.

"Dorset." Harry responds. "It's probably my favorite place. I don't know why, but it calms me down. I usually go here alone, but I don't want to be alone at the moment." You nod, you understand the feeling.

You and Harry walk around and he shows you the different spots he likes to stay and relax at and somehow, both of you end up on top of a hill. The view was remarkable. It was different from your view in New York and different from your view in your room back in London. This view gave you peace and you're starting to understand why Harry likes it there so much.

You both sit on the grass and sit in silence. Taking in the smell of the sea while your hair was following in the direction the wind is blowing. "How long do you usually stay here?" you ask Harry almost in a whisper.

"Until it gets dark." Harry responds. "Sometimes I don't go home at all. Not like anyone would care anyway. It's boring back at home to the point where it doesn't feel like home anymore. Back in London I just live in a house with three brothers, a set of parents, and a dog named Tessa. Being with them doesn't feel like home."

You nod, "Is that why you go to therapy?" You knew it wasn't your business to ask, but he's starting open up to you about the things he's feeling.

"I think you already know why I go to therapy. I had an episode at the sandwich shop." Harry laughs bitterly. "Maybe the question should be asking me is how I ended up like this."

"I wasn't always like this, you know. Believe it or not, I was like Tom." Harry admits. You didn't say anything, though. You wanted to, but you figured he needed to let it all out.

"It happened two years ago. Kevin, my best friend, and I were walking home from school. We didn't know the bullies from school followed us, but when we noticed them it was too late. For some reason, I was an easy target. So they took my money and taunted me and all that shit. I was used to it, but Kevin had enough. He punched one of the bullies and soon, they were nearly killing each other. I tried to stop them, but two of them held me back while I watched how the 'leader' of the group punched the life out of Kevin. Maybe someone saw what was happening, because the police came. The 'leader' threw one last punch and pushed Kevin before running. The two guys who held me back pushed me forward and ran away too." Harry tells you, his voice becoming shaky.

"I immediately went to check on Kevin and panicked when I didn't feel a pulse. One of the policemen called an ambulance. Then we arrived at the hospital and he," Harry takes a deep breath, tears falling freely down his cheeks, "he was dead on arrival. I guess he got pushed really hard and his head collided on the concrete with so much force. Lethal damage."

"Ever since then, I never forgave myself. I could've done something; anything. But I was just there, watching as my best friend die right in front me." Harry sniffs. "I can't help, but blame myself. He intervened to save me. If I only knew that saving me would lead to his death, I wouldn't have let him. I would've just gave the bullies what they wanted so they can leave him alone. He was the only one who understood me and he knew my secrets."

"I lived with that guilt every day ever since that happened. I could never forgive myself. My family tried to help me move on, but I couldn't. Every time they helped, I pushed them away. Then I started to get irritated with everything they did, like, why can't they leave me the fuck alone?! My parents decided it would be best for me to go to therapy seeing as I won't let them help me. Tom went with me the first time, because I was irritated with him the most. He kept bugging me. And of course, up to this day he still accompanies me." Harry says, wiping his tears.

"So," Harry chuckles lightly, "that's my story. What's yours?"

You chuckle too, "There's nothing special about it, really. My parents just think that there's something wrong with me, but that's not true. At least I think it's not true." Harry just nods for you to continue.

"I'm the youngest in my family. I have three older siblings and they're all married now. My parents are obviously so happy. In fact, they're so happy that they forget about me...all the time. Every time we have this little family lunch or dinner, my parents always ask about how my siblings are doing and shit like that. I've tried, you know? I've tried to push myself to talk to them, but whenever I do, my parents dismiss me and they tell me they're busy or they tell me to shut up, because one of my siblings are talking and it'd be rude to interrupt. I got tired and I just didn't try anymore." you tell him.

"It sucks, man. I have no one to turn to when things get tough. I have no one to be excited for me whenever I have good news. I feel so alone. I only had three friends back in New York and to be honest with you, they weren't even near the level of becoming my best friends. Sure, we hung out and stuff, but I was always their last choice to hang out with. If everyone else is busy, they call me and my stupid ass would answer immediately. Thank god we moved here. New environment is good." you sigh. "I'm really glad I met you guys, though. Tom talks too much, but he's alright. I now have one best friend; how cool is that!"

Harry laughs lightly, "Well, now you have two."

You look at him and give him a small smile, "Are you sure? I'm no Kevin, but I'll try."

"I don't need a new Kevin. Just be you." Harry says, nudging you slightly. "It's nearly getting dark. Should we head back?"

"Sure." you smile. Both of you stood up and grabbed your things before leaving. From that moment on, something told you that you wouldn't be alone anymore and it felt great to finally have someone by your side.

* * * *

Feedback please?

Tagging my mutuals: @sweetdespairbarnes @myblueleatherbag @fanficparker @tommysparker @lcvelyparkers + @justasmisunderstoodasloki (bc this person is nice to me sksks)

Want to contact me?

#harry holland #harry holland imagines #harry holland one shots #harry holland fanfiction #harry holland fanfic #harry holland fic #harry holland x reader #harry holland x y/n #tom holland #tom holland imagines #harrison osterfield #haz osterfield #sam holland

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emperorofthedark · 5 years ago

Note

In line with the question from the anon about the Pleasants, what do you think the Oldies think about whatever's going on with Mary Sue and her family?

Long and a bit rambly, so under a cut it goes (with my sincere apologies to mobile users, y’all don’t deserve this).

I believe they are deeply disappointed, and hurt. They don’t understand how this child that they loved and cherished and gave everything to - who they thought they did everything right by - could grow up to be so selfish and cruel to her own children. They’ve made a few hesitant attempts to figure out why she’s so resentful of the twins, but one thing Mary-Sue and Daniel both have in common is that they do not take criticism.

Even the mildest critique would infuriate them both, and they would shut it down hard. In their minds, they’re great parents who have sacrificed so much and given so freely and they just cannot understand why their shitty, ungrateful kids have to test them all. the. damn. time.

They also had absolutely no problem whatsoever trotting out the “MY house, MY kids, MY rules” line to silence anyone who dared to disagree with them. Out of fear of losing access to their grandchildren, Herb and Coral kept their mouths shut and just tried to quietly help Angela and Lilith navigate their difficult home life. Herb and Lilith became particularly close, as they shared a lot of interests (I don’t know if TS2 canon actually supports this, but in my head, they’re both into tinkering and old tech and X Files and Strange County, although the accompanying manga, Magical Goth Girl Detective Agency! is a bit out of his comfort zone; he still buys Lilith all the merch and reads her fan fics and leaves loopy old man comments about what a great writer she is, and how if Angela is going to be a sea boat captain, Lilith should be her first mate, because she’s already got the mouth of a sailor) and after Angela, he is her most trusted confidant. Like, he was all jazzed as hell to take her to a “Strange County/Magical Goth Girl Detective Agency” con, but then Lilith got diagnosed with depression and Mary-Sue and Daniel took it personally and wouldn’t let her go. They’re great parents, you know. She has no right to be depressed.

They never liked Daniel. Ever. They knew that he and Mary-Sue were just going to drag each other down. They paid attention to him when he talked, and not in the way that he appreciated - they noticed when his stories changed. When little details didn’t add up. They saw how jealous he was of Mary-Sue and any one else that she paid attention to. They noticed how her social circle got smaller and smaller the longer their relationship lasted. Maybe not even because he’s super controlling, just fucking unbearable to be around. Just so annoying and desperate for attention. One of those people who, no matter what you’ve done or have or are planning, he’s already done it, got it (hell, he’s got 2 of it! He doesn’t care how rare “it” is, he’s got 12 of it!), or is going to do it, and he’ll for damn sure do it better than you can ever dream of.

But again, Mary-Sue is hard-headed and arrogant and doesn’t take criticism. Her parents disliking Daniel and thinking (correctly) that he was a terrible romantic partner only made her more determined to prove everyone else wrong, because she is always right.

So I think they just keep their heads down, and do their best damage control for the twins, as much as they’re able. They take the twins on holidays and summer vacations. They’re there for the twins when Mary-Sue and Daniel use their birthday as an excuse to throw a big party for themselves and their adult friends to admire their wonderful, Pinterest-quality life and decorations. They’re the ones at the school functions and awards/graduation ceremonies because Mary-Sue and Daniel either forgot, showed up so fuckin’ late the whole thing was over by the time they got there, or had more important things to do because “it’s just a piece of paper with your name on it?” They’re the ones who know what movies and books the girls like, what their favorite colors are, what their future ambitions are, who their favorite and least favorite teachers are.

They were the ones who helped Lilith get help for her depression in the first place, although it’s something they’ll always deeply regret, because all it did was embarrass Daniel and Mary-Sue (aka Parents of the Year; you can ask them) and make them even angrier with Lilith.

Anyway. Thank you for the ask, and for inspiring me to expand on the Oldies and their relationship with the twins via all of your (vastly superior and decidedly more functional) stories and interpretations of the premades and their extended families. Coral died, unfortunately, but Herb can thank you specifically for the fact that he’s getting a much bigger story line!

#replies #bayoubashsims #text post #saviorhide #daniel pleasant #mary-sue pleasant #herb oldie #coral oldie #thank you for your patience while i stumble through entire paragraphs #searching in vain for a coherent thought

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letterboxd · 4 years ago

Photo

The Package.

As the bonkers genre thrill-ride Shadow in the Cloud blasts into the new year, writer and director Roseanne Liang unpacks her love of Terminator 2, watching Chloë Grace Moretz’s face for hours, and the life lesson she learned from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’s Cheng Pei-Pei.

Roseanne Liang’s TIFF Midnight Madness winner Shadow in the Cloud landed with a blast of fresh genre energy on VOD platforms on New Year’s Day. It’s A-class action in a B-grade body, cramming plenty into its taut 83 minutes, including: a top-secret package, a freakish gremlin, a hostile bunch of Air Force dudes, outrageous stunts, dogfights and a fake wartime PSA that feels remarkably real.

Throughout, the camera is focused mostly on one face—Chloë Grace Moretz’s, playing British flight officer Maude Garrett—as she tackles all of the above from a claustrophobic ball turret hanging under a B-17 Flying Fortress, on a classified mission over the Pacific Ocean during World War II.

While the film’s tonal swings are confusing to some, schlock enthusiasts and genre lovers on Letterboxd have embraced the film’s intentionally outlandish sensibility, which “makes excellent use of its genre mash to create an unpredictable, guilty pleasure,” says Mirza. Fajar writes that “it felt like the people involved in this project knew how ridiculous it is and gave a hundred and ten percent to make it work. Someday, it will become a cult classic.” Mawbey agrees: “It really goes off the rails in all the best ways during the final third, and the last couple of shots are just perfect.”

Chloë Grace Moretz and her top-secret package in ‘Shadow in the Cloud’.

To most of the world, Liang is a so-called “emerging” director, when in fact, the mother-of-two, born in New Zealand to Chinese parents, has been at this game for the past two decades. She has helmed a documentary and a romantic drama, both based on her own marriage; a 2008 short called Take 3, which preceded Hollywood’s current conversation about representation and harassment; and Do No Harm, the splatter-tastic 2017 short in which her technical chops and fluid feel for action were on full display, and, as recorded in multiple Letterboxd reviews, established her as one to watch.

Do No Harm scored Liang valuable Hollywood representation, whereupon producer Brian Kavanaugh-Jones brought Shadow in the Cloud to her, thinking she might connect with the material. “It did connect with me on a level that is very personal,” Liang tells me. “As a woman of color, as a mother who juggles a lot.” She says Kavanaugh-Jones then went through the process of removing original writer Max Landis from the project. “He felt that Max was not a good fit for this project, or for how we like to run things. We like to be respectful and courteous and kind to each other…”

In several interviews, Liang has said she’s comfortable with film lovers choosing not to watch Shadow in the Cloud based on Landis’s early involvement. What she’s not comfortable with is her own contribution—and that of her cast and crew—being erased. While WGA rules have his name attached firmly to the project, the credit belies the reality: his thin script, reportedly stretched out to 70 pages by using a larger-than-usual font, was expanded and deepened by Liang and her collaborators.

Writer-director Roseanne Liang. / Photo by Dean O’Gorman

That team includes editor Tom Eagles, Oscar nominated for Jojo Rabbit, actor Nick Robinson (the titular Simon in Love, Simon) and Beulah Koale, a star of the Hawaii Five-Oh series. The opening newsreel was created by award-winning New Zealand animation studio Mukpuddy, after a small test audience got weirded out by the sight of a gremlin in a war film, despite well-documented WWI and WWII gremlin mythology. It’s an unnecessary but happy addition. The cartoon style was inspired by Private Snafu, a series of WWII educational cartoons scripted by none other than Dr. Seuss and directed by Looney Tunes legend Chuck Jones.

But the film ultimately hangs on Chloë Grace Moretz, who overcame cabin fever to drive home an adrenaline rush of screen craft, in which the very limits of what’s humanly possible in mid-air are tested (in ways, it must be said, that wouldn’t be questioned if it were Tom Cruise in the role). Liang would often send directions to Moretz’s ball turret via text, while her cast members delivered live dialogue from an off-set shipping container rigged with microphones. “I just never got sick of Chloë’s face and I’ve watched her hundreds, if not thousands of times. You feel her, you are her, she just engages you in a way that a huge fighting scene might not, if it’s not designed well. Giant empty spectacle is less interesting than one person in one spot, sometimes.”

Ambitious and nerdy about film in equal measure, it’s clear there’s much more to come from Liang, and I’m interested in what her most valuable lesson has been so far. Turns out, it’s a great story involving Chinese veteran Cheng Pei-Pei (Come Drink With Me’s Golden Swallow, and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’s Jade Fox), whose film training includes a tradition of remaining on set throughout filming.

Roseanne Liang on the set of ‘Shadow in the Cloud’.

That meant that, during filming of Liang’s My Wedding and Other Secrets, Cheng would stay on set when she wasn’t required. “In New Zealand, trailers are a luxury,” Liang explains. “I said ‘Don’t you want to go to the trailer that we arranged for you?’ ‘No, I just want to sit and watch.’ ‘Why do you want to watch it, you’ve seen it hundreds of times!’ And she said ‘I learn something new every time’. To Pei-Pei, the secret of life is constant education and curiosity and learning. Movies are her work and her craft and her life, and she never gets bored. If I can be like her, that’s the life, right?”

Speaking of which, it’s time we put Liang through our Life in Film interrogation.

What’s the film that made you want to become a filmmaker? Terminator 2: Judgment Day is the movie that is at the top of the mountain that I’m climbing. To me it’s the perfect blend of spectacle, action design, smarts and heart. It poses the theory that if a robot can learn the value of humanity then maybe there’s hope for the ships that are us. That’s perennial, and possibly even more pertinent today. It holds a very special place in my heart, along with Aliens, Mad Max: Fury Road, Die Hard, La Femme Nikita and Léon: The Professional.

What’s your earliest memory of watching a film? I have a cassette tape that my dad made for my grandma in 1981 (he’d send tapes back to his mother in Hong Kong). I was three years old and he had just taken us to see The Empire Strikes Back in the cinema. And he can’t talk to my grandma because I’m just going on and on about R2-D2. I will not shut up about R2-D2 and he’s like, “Yes, yes I’m trying to talk to your grandmother,” and I’m like, “But Dad! Dad! R2-D2!” So it’s actually an archive, but it’s become my memory.

What’s the most romantic film you’ve ever seen? Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. It’s not the sexiest, but it’s the most romantic. That last scene, those last words where she goes “But you’re gonna be like this forever and I’m gonna be like this forever…” and he just goes “okay”. That to me is one of the most romantic scenes I’ve ever seen. It is a perfect movie.

And the scariest? If it’s a horror movie, the most scared I’ve been is The Ring. I was watching it on a VHS and I was lying on a beanbag on the floor and I was paralyzed with fear. I couldn’t move, because I felt that if I moved she’d see me! Also, American Psycho just came to me this year. I caught the twentieth anniversary of that movie, which is a terrifying film, and again, possibly more relevant now than when it was made. The scariest film that’s not a horror is Joker. It scared me how much I liked it. When I came out of the movie, I was like, “I’m scared because I kind of love it, but it’s horrible. It’s so irresponsible. I don’t wanna like this movie but goddamn, I feel it.” Like, I wanted to go on the streets and rage. In a way we’re all the Joker, we’re all the Batman. That duality, that yin and yang, is inside everyone of us. It’s universal.

What is the film that slays you every time, leaving you in a heap of tears? This is a classic one, the opening sequence of Up. The first ten minutes of Up just destroy me every time. I also saw Soul a couple of days ago and I was with the whole family and I, just, if I wasn’t with the whole family I would have been ugly-sobbing. I had a real ache in my throat after the movie because I was trying to stop [myself] from sobbing.

Tell me your favorite coming-of-age film, the film that first gave you ‘teenage feelings’? Pump Up the Volume. Christian Slater! Off the back of Pump Up the Volume, I fancied myself as a prophet and wrote a theater piece called Lemmings. Obviously the main character was a person who could see through the façade, and everyone else was following norms. “No one understands me, I’m a prophet!” So clearly I have this shitty, Joker-style megalomaniac inside of me. It was the worst play, and I don’t know why my teachers agreed for us to do a staging of it!

Christian Slater and Samantha Mathis in ‘Pump Up the Volume’ (1990).

Is there a film that you and your family love to rewatch? We’ve tried to impose our taste on our children, but they’re too young. We showed them The Princess Bride—they didn’t get it. We literally showed our babies Star Wars in their cribs. That’s how obsessive Star Wars fans we were.

Name a director and/or writer that you deeply admire for their use of the artform. I have a slightly weird answer for this. Can I just give love to Every Frame a Painting by Tony Zhou and Taylor Ramos? They are my film school. I was thinking of my love of Edgar Wright, but then I thought of their video essay on Edgar Wright and how to film comedy, and his essay on Jackie Chan and the rhythm of action and then their essay on the Coen Brothers and Shot Reverse Shot. I must have watched that 30 times ahead of the TV show that I’m making now. I started out in editorial and Tony Zhou is an editor and he talks about when to make the cut: it’s an instinct, it’s a feeling, it’s a rhythm. I realized the one thing in common that I could mention about all the films I’ve loved is Every Frame a Painting. It’s their love of movies that comes bubbling out of every single essay that they made that I just wanna shout out at this part of my career.

Were there any crucial films that you turned to in your development for Shadow in the Cloud? Indiana Jones was something that Chloë brought up—she likes the spiffiness and the humor of Indiana Jones. Sarah Connor was our touchstone for the female character. For one-person-in-one-space type stories, I watched Locke quite a lot, to figure out how they shaped tension and story and [kept] us on the edge of our seats when it’s only one person in one space. In terms of superheroes, I came back to Aliens. Not Alien. Aliens. You know, there are two types of people in this world—people who prefer Alien over Aliens, and people who prefer Aliens over Alien. But actually I think I vacillate for different reasons.

Can there be a third type of person, who thinks they’re both great, but Alien³, just, no? Maybe that’s the best group to be in. We don’t need to fight about this, we can love both of them! I was having an argument with James Wan’s company about this, because there’s a rift inside the company of people who prefer Alien over Aliens.

Okay, program a triple feature with your film as one of the three. I don’t know. Ask Ant Timpson!

I’ll ask Ant Timpson. [We did, and he replied: “Well, one has to be the Twilight Zone episode with William Shatner: Nightmare at 20,000 Feet. And then either Life (2017) or Altitude (2010).”]

Thank you Ant! I used to go to his all-nighters as a university student. He is the king of programming things.

Jake Gyllenhaal in ‘Life’ (2017).

It’s strange that we never met at one of his events! Ant would make me dress up in strange outfits and do weird skits between films. (For those who don’t know, Timpson ran the Incredibly Strange Film Festival for many years—now part of the New Zealand International Film Festival—and still runs an annual 24-Hour Movie Marathon.) So what’s a film from those events that sticks in your head as the perfect genre experience with a crowd? It was a movie about a man protecting a woman who was the girlfriend of a mafia boss: A Bittersweet Life. Not only does it have one of the sexiest Korean actors, sorry, not to objectify, but also I actually screenshot a lot of that film for pitch documents. And, do you remember a crazy Japanese movie where someone’s sitting on the floor with a clear umbrella and a woman is lactating milk? Visitor Q by Takashi Miike. I remember just how fucking crazy that was.

Finally, what was the best film you saw in 2020? I haven’t seen Nomadland yet, so keep in mind that I haven’t seen all the films this year. I have three: The Invisible Man, which I thought was just amazing. I thought [writer-director] Leigh Whannell did such a great job. The Half of It by Alice Wu, a quiet movie that I simply just adored. And then the last movie I saw at the cinema was Promising Young Woman. The hype is real.