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cameronspecial · 1 year ago

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Before The Last Petal Falls (Part 2)

Pairing: Rafe Cameron x Reader

Warnings: N/A

Pronouns: She/Her

Word Count: 2.5K

Summary: It's always a funny thing to be invited to your ex-boyfriend's engagement party. It's an even funnier thing when it seems all his family members have something to say to you.

Masterlist

“How about Lace Place?” Lacey asks, flashing her hands in an ark to imitate the arch of the sign she is imagining. Y/N gives her a funny look at the words, “Babe, that sounds like you sell drugs. If you name your restaurant that, you’ll be attracting the wrong type of clientele. Although, if a stoner accidentally walks in, maybe you’ll get some business from the munchies.” Lacey cringes at the realization and nods. “Hey, you think I could sell some cookies at your bookstore? Maybe, it can help drum up some business,” Lacey suggests.

“I don’t see why it would be an issue. Let me just read up on the regulations on it just in case we need a special license or something, but it’s such a cute idea. I can get one of those rollie carts and call it the Cookie Cart. Ooh, maybe I can give a free bookmark with each purchase of a cookie.”

“That’s a great idea. Then I could offer the same thing when someone buys a certain thing at the restaurant. Like, get a ten percent coupon for the bookstore. How do you feel about being a dinner special?”

“Ahh, I love this idea. We are just two business girlies supporting each other. Soon, well, be girl bosses dominating the world.”

“Uhh, excuse me. Last time I checked, you were already a girl boss, who dominates the world. I mean In The Shadows has been in The New York Times Best Sellers for fifty-two weeks, now. You went on an international book tour for your debut book and you are writing the much-anticipated sequel as we speak. You made it, girl.”

“Okay, okay. Don’t discount your achievements though. You literally worked at a Michelin-star restaurant and graduated top of your class at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. Now, you are opening your own restaurant at twenty-three.”

The girls laugh at the little spiel they went on about being proud of their achievement and return to the paperwork they were going through for each of their respective businesses. In the five years since graduating high school, Y/N graduated from Oxford at twenty-one, but not before signing a deal with a major publisher for her book. A year later, her book is on the best sellers list and she is whisked away all over the world to promote it. She does recognize that her success may in part have to do with her mother and considered writing under a pseudonym, but decides against it when she realizes it wouldn’t really do anything. Using a fake name would mean she wouldn’t be able to make an in-person appearance out of concern for being recognized. It’s not exactly like her face has been hidden from her mother’s social media page. She really wants to have those moments to connect physically with her fans.

On the other hand, Lacey had gone to culinary school at Le Cordon Bleu, and then quickly got a job at the Michelin-star restaurant. She decided to quit her job there so that she could open up her own restaurant.

——

Y/N has no clue where she is going. Mason had just told her to get dressed nicely and to get in the car. She couldn’t get a question out, so she followed his instructions and got changed. She put on tan-coloured pants and a light pink balloon-sleeved satin blouse. She wore a black belt with a gold buckle and golden jewellery to pull the outfit together. Y/N sulked as she walked to Mason’s car. Her pestering as to where they were going went unanswered. When she sees where he stops the car, she wants to literally jump out of the car and run home. “Why did you bring me here, Mace?”

“It’s their engagement party today. I wasn’t planning on bringing you, but Blythe called and she literally begged me to bring you today. She knows how much you meant to Rafe and wants to get to know you more. She hopes, maybe even, that you guys can make up.”

Y/N gives Mason a questioning look, “She wants her fiancé to get along again with his ex-girlfriend?” Mason nods and gently moves to bring his sister inside. “Blythe is a sweet girl and she really loves Rafe. She feels secu-.” Realizing that what he was about to say may have made his sister feel bad, he quickly switches to a different path. “Blythe is really friendly. She makes it her mission to help mend broken relationships. Rafe told me that she got two girls who were best friends when they were younger to make up after they got into a two-year fight over a boy. Can you just go in? You don’t have to talk to anyone and I literally brought you a book.” Y/N isn’t too excited about going to her ex-boyfriend’s engagement party, but she does as her brother asks.

The twins enter Tannyhill together and are immediately given each a hug from the excited bride-to-be. “Ahh, and in comes the best man. You are only a tiny bit late, Mace. Y/N, I’m so glad you decided to come. I just know you and Rafe will make up in a jiffy.” Y/N gives an awkward smile, “Yeah, I totally chose to be here voluntarily.” Mason discretely elbows his sister in the stomach with a smile on his face. Play nice, the action signified. Blythe doesn’t seem to sense the sarcasm in Y/N’s words and turns towards Mason. “We are going to take the wedding party pictures now. Come on,” Blythe orders, taking Mason’s hand and dragging him away. “Rafe, say hello to Y/N.”

Y/N hadn’t noticed that Rafe had been standing at the main entrance too. Blythe has a way of holding everyone’s attention in a room. He had been standing there quietly observing the greetings. He quickly murmurs a hello then goes off after Blythe before Y/N can return it. She isn’t sure what to do and seeing as the only people she knows at the party are groomsmen, she goes upstairs to read on the balcony. She knows she probably shouldn’t be up there, but the balcony was guest free and she really didn’t want to explain who she was to anyone else.

The broken silence from the front yard causes her to look up from the book. She silently watches as it appears the party is being moved outside. Rafe’s arm is wrapped around Blythe’s waist as she makes a speech thanking everyone for being there. Once she is done talking, Rafe follows her around whilst she talks from guest to guest. Rafe and the older lady listen to something Blythe says and they both laugh their heads off. This is why Y/N had to break up with Rafe. She could never be the social butterfly that matched his need to be around people. She could never fake pleasant conversations with people she doesn’t know. She would never want any of the traditional things associated with a wedding. And Rafe deserves all of that. Watching Blythe be all of those things for him cements the idea into Y/N’s mind that she did the right thing for him. He was able to move on and thrive with someone much more like him. With someone who didn’t hold him back.

“Why does it not surprise me that you are up here?” A voice breaks the silence. Y/N turns to see a much older Wheezie at the door of the balcony. “OMG, Wheez. Look how big you’ve gotten. You are such a dignified young woman. Are you driving yet?” Wheezie moves herself to go sit beside Y/N, “Thank you, but I only seem to have gotten bigger because you haven’t seen me in five years. And I am driving. Rafe and Sarah are too scared to be in a car with me though. Blythe lets me drive her but I think only because she wants brownie points with me.”

“It’s still nice of her though. Do you like her?”

“Yeah, but you would let me drive you because you believe in my driving. Not because you want me to like you. You bribed me with cookies for that. She does it because she wants me to like her. She’s nice, though. But you know, she doesn’t make Rafe’s eyes twinkle as much as you do.”

“Louisa, you can’t keep comparing me to her. She’s the one marrying your brother.”

“And you are the one who still has a tighter hold on his heart even if he won’t admit it. You know I’m still angry at you for breaking up with him in the first place. But I missed you too much to be mad at you right now.”

“You gotta stop saying that. And I know you are mad. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have iced you guys out like that. I’m back now though and you can tell me all about your high school experience.”

“Yeah, yeah. We can talk about that later. Right now, I want you to sign my book.”

“You read my book?”

“Of course I did. You tell the best stories. You know Damian is an interesting character.”

“He is, isn’t he? Don’t you just love a good demon love interest?”

“Yeah, that’s totally why I find him interesting…”

Y/N doesn’t comment on Wheezie’s crypticness and follows the girl to her bedroom where the book sits. She signs the book and is dragged back downstairs to the party by the younger girl. Wheezie promises to come back and darts off to who knows where. Y/N is left alone in the kitchen she once used to make dessert cookies for her first date with Rafe. She resorts back to reading her book on the kitchen island. The sound of someone entering the kitchen causes her to look up from her book. Rafe is at the entryway staring at her with a scowl. “Where did you run off to, Y/L/N?”

“I was upstairs on the balcony, reading.”

“You know, typically guests aren’t allowed upstairs during a party.”

“Wheezie didn’t seem to have a problem with it.”

“Yeah, well, she worships the ground you walk on so she isn’t exactly a non-biased host.”

They stare each other down for a few seconds in silence before Y/N decides to break it.

“You told me you wanted to get married at twenty-five.”

“And you told me that you wanted to be with me forever. I guess we are both pretty good at changing our life plan without telling the other.”

“Haha, such a good retort. You really thought that would hurt me, Rafe?” Her words are only half true. The reminder of the choice she made stings a lot if she were to be honest, but she wasn’t about to admit that. Rafe just shakes his head and pushes past her to get to the fridge. He gets a drink out of it, “Whatever, I don’t have time to deal with this.” On his way out of the kitchen, he accidentally brushes her arm with his elbow and the scent of sea breeze and pool overwhelms her. The fact that he still smells the same after all these years causes her breath to hitch and tears to start to swell in her eyes. Rafe wants to pretend like he doesn’t see it. He wants to pretend like he doesn’t care, so he does. Now, she is left alone in the kitchen, wondering where the hell Wheezie went.

Y/N goes in search of the younger girl, but it seems to be like playing a game of Where’s Waldo with the amount of other people in the house. Somehow, Y/N always seems to find herself in the same room as Rafe and it doesn’t go unnoticed by her that every time he spots her, he moves to another room. He’s avoiding her and she obviously understands why he would. Eventually, she gives up on finding Wheezie, but she soon regrets staying in the now-empty backyard. Because Ward Cameron is quick to make his presence known to the girl. “I didn’t think I’d be seeing you here.” Y/N looks at Ward with critical eyes, it’s not every day she sees the human embodiment of her insecurities in person. Her hands go to hold her locket and plays with it between her fingers.

“I’m not here out of my free will. The bride wanted me here and what the bride wants, she gets.”

“Ahh, yes. Blythe,” Ward begins, they both look at Rafe and Blythe through the window. “Isn’t she a much better fit for him? She went to UNC with him. She moved to the OBX for him. Look at everything she sacrificed for him.” Y/N watches as Blythe and Rafe interact with the guests of the party. She can’t listen to Ward’s insistent belittling of her, so she does what Rafe would argue she does best and runs away from Tannyhill. She runs as fast as she can back home without a care for her tired limbs. Once safely in the sanctuary of her room, she slams her back against her door and starts crying. She doesn’t know why she is; she’s over Rafe. She let him go, but something about Ward poking holes at all of her insecurities brought back some complicated feelings she always seems to want to repress.

——

Rafe had seen Ward talking to Y/N through the glass and he watched confused as she ran off after something his father said. He had no idea what Ward said but he was sure as hell going to find out. The engagement party has finally come to an end. Rose and Blythe went out to do some wedding shopping, while Sarah and Wheezie went to go do sister things, leaving Rafe the perfect opportunity to interrogate Ward. “What did you say to my ex-girlfriend?” Ward turns toward his son in his desk chair, “Nothing she hasn’t already heard before. What does it matter? As far as I know, you didn’t want anything to do with her.” Rafe shakes his head at his dad’s callousness. “Really, Dad? Even after we’ve been broken up for five years, you still find a way to torment her,” Rafe argues.

Ward gives a questioning tilt of his head towards his father, “She broke up with you. How could you still care for you?” “She may have made the decision to break up with me and I will always be angry at her for that. But I’m not oblivious enough to think you were a harmless observer in Y/N and mine’s relationship,” Rafe begins. “I know you probably said some things to her that set our break up into motion. I want to make something clear, Dad. Even if we are broken up, I don’t want you to get your claws into Y/N’s head ever again. She doesn’t deserve it no matter how much she hurt me.” Rafe finishes his threat and gets up from the chair he sits upon. He storms out of Ward’s office without another word.

Taglist: @sublimepenguinpeach-blog @gillybear17 @f4ll-for-you @winterrrnight @maggiecc

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t-lane-writes · 1 month ago

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Guess the Character Tag

Rules: make a list of clues about a character and get your followers to guess who it is

Wasn't tagged (stole the game from @mk-writes-stuff ...), but I kind of want to get back into tag games.

This character…

Is an engineer and their specialty is antimatter

Has a four years old kid

Was involved romantically with another character years before the story starts

Is plotting violent uprising with several other characters

Likes to dance and sometimes sings when things are quiet

Tagging: @void-botanist, @did-i-do-this-write, @echo-bleu, @drippingmoon, @eternalwritingstudent, @sunset-a-story, @revenantlore and anyone else who wants to join!

#black wings #writeblr #tag game #writeblr tag games

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sour-heart-treats · 1 year ago

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walnut going a *little* too far in her pursuit for roguefort (sarcasm in the little, if it wasnt obvious)

Though exhaustion racked her body, Walnut would keep her little legs carrying her higher and higher. Up flight after flight of stairs, the junior detective would chase the phantom thief however far she needed to. Though her legs burned and her hair was a mess with sweat and rushing wind, she'd continue pushing her body to its absolute limits. It's only at the top of the building, slamming the door open with so much force that her wrist hurt, that she'd be face to face with the thief that had caused her so much turmoil.

Taking slow steps towards the phantom that towered over her, Walnut was met with not the egotistical smirk that she was typically shown... but rather, the criminal looked down at her with... concern. No, it was pity. Something she did not need. With a small growl, the little one would hold out her magnifying glass as if it were a meaningful weapon.

"It's over, Phantom Bleu!" She'd shout out between pants, trying to catch her breath as Roguefort would do little more than stare at her. It made Wal feel weak... or was that the lack of sleep and skipped snack times? "Give up! Just- give it up already! Whatever you stole this time!! Give it back!"

Even if there was nowhere to run, nowhere to escape, Roguefort would simply back away. Nothing sudden, simply turning away and walking towards the edge of the rooftop. It's impossible to tell what in the world they were thinking, but Walnut was not having any of it. She'd run up and grab their cape, pulling on it with all the strength of an angry puppy while she was dragged to the end of the roof. "Are you even- are you listening to me!? Hey!! I've caught you!!" The lack of meaningful attention was more than frustrating. Absolutely infuriating.

Gazing across the city skyline, Rogue would hold the shoulder of their cape to make sure it wasn't dragged off by the junior trying to pull it off of them. "When was the last time you cared for yourself?" They asked lightly, as if the one they were inquiring about wasn't trying to tear off their disguise. They would only receive a huff from the investigator, prompting a guilty hum. "It seems that commissioner has kept less track of you than I thought. With such sunken eyes... a gemstone without its sheen... it looks sad, doesn't it?"

"Stop saying weird things and let me catch you!!" Walnut would snip, though would be only met with the phantom setting a hand on her hat. It didn't matter that Almond wasn't 'keeping track' of her, she didn't need it! She didn't need to be treated like something so small! She'd try to keep her headgear from being taken off, clamoring to keep a hold of it, but her strength certainly wasn't helped by how much her limbs felt like melted jelly... maybe all that running did a number on her- more than the skipped lunches and the notebooks full of tracking clues.

Roguefort would sigh, letting Walnut keep the hat in her hands as they simply set a hand on the top of the little one's head and murmured some spell beneath the moonlight. All the struggling would slow, eyes drooping as the little investigator would slump over, using Rogue's cape now as a blanket to lay on. "...and I had not even stolen yet on this night." They'd mumble, looking down at the slumbering young one with a soft gaze. "I suppose if your other relatives are too busy to care for you in your most obsessive state... perhaps a break from my antics is in order."

#walnut cookie #roguefort cookie #angst drabbles #implied neglect warning #cookie run #ask to tag #crob #cookie run ovenbreak

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emyn-arnens · 8 months ago

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20 Questions for Writers

@hobbitwrangler @grey-gazania @runawaymun @echo-bleu tagged me to do this, so I guess I really should do it! I did this one recently on my main for all the fandoms I've written for, so I'll keep this limited to Tolkien fics here.

1. How many works do you have on AO3? 82.

2. What’s your total AO3 word count? 128,198.

3. What fandoms do you write for? Currently mostly Tolkien, with the occasional dash of Timeless and Narnia.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

As the Hare Flees Before the Wolf (T, Celegorm & Eöl, 1.8k): Curufin is not the only son of Fëanor Eöl meets upon the plains of Himlad. Or, Eöl meets Celegorm while pursuing Aredhel and Maeglin, and things go very badly for him.

Here at Journey's End (G, Frodo & Legolas, 1.6k): They stay for those they love.

West, West Away (G, Sam & Thranduil, 3.6k): Sam meets an unlikely kindred spirit on the journey West.

and I will love with urgency, but not with haste (T, Aegnor/Andreth, 3.1k): A summer evening spent in a glade near the shores of the Aeluin.

with death on his brow like a crown (G, Aegnor & Finrod, ~600 words): Five times Finrod foresees Aegnor’s death, and one time he foresees his own.

5. Do you respond to comments? Yep! It may take a while depending on spoons, but I almost always do. The only exceptions are for comments that make no sense to me or demand me to write more for a pairing.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? There's a lot of contenders for this, but let's go with Like a Wave That Should Engulf the World (G, Faramir/Éowyn, ~700 words), in which Faramir foresees Éowyn's coming death.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? For Charity (Boromir, Faramir, Éomer, Lothíriel, and Éowyn, 2k), for sure. Two thousand words of pure ridiculousness.

8. Do you get hate on fics? Not since ye olde days of posting on FFN.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? Very rarely and very vanilla, with emotions and metaphor taking precedence over mechanics.

10. Do you write crossovers? Nope. Not much into reading or writing them.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? Hope not!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? Nope.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? Nope.

14. What’s your all-time favorite ship? *looks at header, url, and blog title* I don't think I even need to say.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? For the sake of answering the question, my Glorfinwyn AU, but only because I'm not sure I have the skills to pull it off, and my perfectionism is a raging beast. But I do really want to finish it, even if it's three years from now because I'm the slowest writer I know.

16. What are your writing strengths? Characterization and description/scenery, although I've been struggling with the latter lately. Dialogue has finally been getting easier, though.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? Plot, body language, and describing emotions.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? I'll sprinkle in some individual words/pet names (all shamelessly ripped from RealElvish.net) here and there that should be guessable from context clues. I don't do full sentences very often both because I feel it isn't necessary most of the time (sorry JRRT), and because I know people don't enjoy having to scroll to the notes for translations. But I will admit to having a weakness for Elves lapsing into their native tongues during uh. heated moments with their partners.

19. First fandom you wrote for? LOTR, years ago. And here I am back again!

20. Favorite fic you’ve written? This is so hard, but Over Seas of Starlight (G, Frodo & Gandalf, 3.6k) is near and dear to my heart. Sailing West, my beloved.

Tagging @sotwk @afaramir @halfelven @curufiin if you haven't done this already!

#tag games

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bluescluesposting · 1 year ago

Note

In English, it's Blue's Clues.

In Spanish, it's Las pistas de Blue.

In Japanese, it's ブルーズ・クルーズ.

In Swedish, it's Blås gåta

And in French, it's Sacre Bleu's Clues.

Nice! And I love that French title!

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fabseg-creator · 2 years ago

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New info update about the Opposite Universe (O.U.).

I present to you the Butterfly Miraculous holder from the O.U..

There are clues about her real identity. I let you guess.

I purpose a "Villain" name for the Butterfly girl.

#miraculous ladybug #miraculous au #opposite universe #opposite au #miraculous inversed personas #butterfly #argusia #lycène bleue #my art #wip update

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9kylian · 1 year ago

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that video of les bleus watching the rugby wc is so funny bc u see everyone being stressed and then there’s kylian who looks like he has no clue what’s going on and when france actually wins his reaction is so delayed 😭😭😭 and antoine next to him waving the small french flag was so funny too

Kyky knows nothing but fb 👻 i love them so much just look at them

#ask #edf #french nt

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feelinbleu · 10 months ago

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I played a VN about gay transmasc cowboys and then immediately asked the artist to draw my sona in that style So now I'm a cowboy. Yeehaw

Art by Coldoggo in the style of Lookouts!!

#cowboy #furry art #art commission #bleu the shark #bleu's clues #self post tag #I'd feel weird putting lgbt tags on this cause it's just a cowboy post

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amoeba-shaped-rock · 1 year ago

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Royalty Playwright?

some elaboration:

A. Fleur-de-lis

One notable thing about Playwright’s design is that he has a lot of ribbons in his person – in his hair, collar, shirt, bag, and scripts. You can attribute it to the aesthetic the artist wants to give him, but upon closer look, some of the ribbons on his person resembles the Gaul Empire’s emblem, which is in turn based on the symbol fleur-de-lis. Fleur-de-lis is used on a lot of things but it is often associated with French royalty and their saints.

Might be a stretch Idk

B. Blue accent

Another notable part of his design is the blue accent on his quill and ribbons. This is obviously meant to contrast Blood Diamond’s red accents in order to highlight their differences, but it’s interesting that blue is also the colour used to represent France. From Wikipedia on Bleu de France:

Bleu de France (Blue of France) is a colour traditionally used to represent France. Blue has been used in the heraldry of the French monarchy since at least the 12th century, with the golden fleurs-de-lis of the kings always set on a blue (heraldic "azure") background.

C. Haemophillia

From Writer’s Tongue - The playwright penned his creations with a quill and his own blood

From “Painful Happiness” - Oripathy is spreading among the troupe members. Some collapsed, some broke out crying, some were overjoyed, and some turned their attention to writing.

It is assumed that the playwright is infected with oripathy despite no obvious crystallisation, and his blood contains originium that works as a medium for his arts. Mixing anything else with his blood to use as ink for his scripts probably will not work. But, using whole blood as ink comes with a few problems:

the blood will congeal and clog a pen

solution: use a dip pen or quill, or use anti coagulant of some sort.

analysis: we see him use a quill in the CGs

2. the written blood on the paper does not stick after it congealed

solution: use anti coagulant

analysis: depends on how long does his arts take to work, it may or may not matter--- but bc he is writing an ending for himself, I think he needs the blood to stick for a while. does he use an anticoagulant after all?

3. assuming he does not use anticoagulant, the blood would start clotting very very soon after he starts writing. I doubt he can write very long without having to constantly puncture himself

solution: use anticoagulant

analysis: he covers a lot of skin so it’s hard to know if he really punctured himself all the time, and he does seem dedicated to his arts, but if he really does this, he probably would be on his deathbed by now, dying from blood loss.

but, considering that his arts might not work if it’s “impure” and mixed with any other foreign components not from his body, it seems unlikely that he would use anticoagulant. Except if he has haemophillia, a condition where blood doesn’t clot properly in the body. It’s not the perfect answer to all of the above solutions but it makes it more possible. This also means that he is constantly at risk of bleeding to death whenever he punctures himself to draw blood ink, but Tragodia probably has a remedy to that. Turning back time on his body or something, bc Tragodia seems to have time powers (the time and space in the castle is jumbled up)

And you know who else were famous for having Haemophilia? That's right, the European Royalty.

Extras:

One of his attack animations had his signature- I tried to read it to find out his real name and I think it might be Raül? I’m bad at reading cursive, but Raoul is also a character in Phantom of the Opera so it seems fitting.

There’s also a French Monarch called Raoul (Rudolf, called Raoul in modern French) so that was interesting.

Tl;dr I’m not saying there are a lot of clues pointing towards The Playwright being Gaulish royalty but there are a lot of clues pointing towards The Playwright being Gaulish royalty- or maybe I’m just high on copium.

#arknights #playwright #crimson troupe #troupe lore musings #crack theory

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theemporium · 1 year ago

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this may be sooooo niche but my guilty pleasure is watching the masked singer and I was just imagining hockey!steve immediately recognizing all the clues that reader is one of the performers bc he notices all these little facts about them but everyone is like “dude chill” but he’s like!!!! guys no seriously she loves rabbits and bleu cheese.. she’s clearly in the clam outfit..

babe this might be the most random crossover ever😭😭😭like he would know but I cackled

#cece answers #hockey!steve #steve.thots #was the clam costume random or??😭#I just have so many questions

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papillon82fluttersby · 1 year ago

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Famous Five Art Nostalgia #10 – Part 1

Introductory post

Masterpost

🍂🥾🎒 Five on a Hike Together – Le Club des Cinq en randonnée

Original publication date: 1951 (UK), 1958 (France)

(Original cover art by Simone Baudouin, 1958)

This book is the last one illustrated by Simone Baudouin whom I quite like as an illustrator, despite her unfortunate habit of switching Dick and Julian’s hair colour. On a personal note, my opinion of this book changed drastically over time: it started as one of my least favourites in the series – as I recall, I used to be a bit spooked by the, well, spooky atmosphere of the tolling bells in the stormy night, the gloomy feel of the abandoned house, and the somewhat scary illustration of Maggie and Dirty Dick that you will see below; but upon further re-readings and as I grew up, this book actually turned into one of my top favourites – I love how the action is tightly packed over five days, with each event leading smoothly to the next, and how the Five get to show their ingenuity figuring out the mystery, outsmarting and showing better sense than the adults. And I just generally enjoy a good "treasure hunt" trope with clues to decipher!

~~~~~~

Plot summary (adapted from Wikipedia):

Siblings Julian and Dick Kirrin have been given a four-day weekend from their boarding school, coinciding with the mid-term break of their sister Anne and cousin George, so they arrange to go hiking together.

(George and Anne join the boys for their planned hike)

Julian plans to spend their first night at a bed-and-breakfast called Blue Pond Farm [la ferme de l’Etang-Bleu]. On the way, George's dog, Timmy, injures his leg when being pulled out of a rabbit burrow. Consequently, Julian and George go to the residence of Mr Gaston [M. Gaston], a local expert on animals, while Dick and Anne head for Blue Pond Farm. Mr Gaston treats Timmy's injured leg and Mrs Gaston then insists Julian and George stay for a meal, after which they walk to Blue Pond Farm.

(Anne tries to retrieve Timmy who got a bit too enthusiastic chasing a rabbit down its burrow)

Dick and Anne have taken a wrong turn and are confused by ringing bells. They head towards a light, where they encounter an elderly deaf woman. Assuming they have reached Blue Pond Farm, Dick and Anne go in but the woman, Mrs Taggart [Mme Tagard], tells them to leave because her son would not accept them. She eventually agrees to let Anne sleep in a loft, whilst Dick makes do with sleeping in a barn. During the night, Dick is awakened by a voice calling his name. He is given a cryptic message, "Two Trees. Gloomy Water. Saucy Jane. And Maggie knows too". He is also given a piece of paper.

(Dick receives a bewildering message at night!)

The next morning, Mrs Taggart’s son is back and chases Dick away. He and Anne get directions to Blue Pond Farm.

(Dick and Anne clean up in a stream after their horrible night at the Taggarts’)

Reunited with Julian and George for breakfast, Dick and Anne tell the story of the bells and the message. Julian says the bells signalled an escape from a local prison, and the escaped prisoner meant to meet “Dirty Dick” Taggart [Mick-qui-pique*] at the barn.

(The Five study the strange piece of paper Dick was handed the previous night) [Note: Anne is so fashionable in this book, I love her outfit!)

The children report the incident to a village policeman, but he accuses them of lying and informs them the escapee has been caught. Julian decides they should hike to a ruined house called Two-Trees [les Deux-Chênes], located at Gloomy Water (les Eaux-Dormantes], a marshy lake higher on the moors.

(The Five get hold of additional camping gear for their unexpected detour to Two-Trees)

(The children enjoy some enchanting sights on their hiking trip!)

That night, Julian deduces that Dick's message is instructions to find stolen goods from a robbery by a prisoner called Nailer [Hortillon] and that the loot is hidden in a boat called the Saucy Jane [la Belle-Berthe].

The following day, Maggie and Dirty Dick come to Gloomy Water to search for the loot and are annoyed to see the children there.

(Unwanted visitors 😡)

The Five paddle into the lake on a raft but do not find anything. They conclude that “Tall Stone” [Haute-Pierre], one of the clues written on the paper given to Dick, is a landmark that will help guide them to the location of the Saucy Jane.

(Julian spots the “Tall Stone” landmark)

The next morning, they locate the Saucy Jane at the bottom of the lake, at which point Maggie and Dirty Dick appear in a boat but row back to shore after Julian says the children will be returning to school tomorrow. Julian dives to the bottom of the lake and finds a bag of loot, but cannot remove it. The Five return on the raft near midnight, and Julian and Dick dive to the boat to haul up the loot, which is jewellery stolen from the Queen of Fallonia.

(A nightly dive to retrieve the treasure)

(Unwrapping the treasure!)

After recovering the jewels, the Five evade Maggie and Dick and walk to the village of Reebles [Poncret] to call Mr Gaston, who then drives them to a police station, where the children hand over the jewels and tell their story. Maggie and Dirty Dick, stuck in the marshland, are arrested. The police promise to drive the children back to their schools by a 3pm deadline.

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*A note on Dirty Dick’s French alias: “Mick-qui-pique” sounds really weird and lame as a nickname, even for a bandit’s name from the 1950s. Honestly, even Mick is a weird shortening for Michel (our boy Dick), I have never heard it used anywhere else. I can only assume that the original translator wanted a shorter form similar to the English version. It does sound more energetic than the full form Michel.

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Cover art through the ages:

(Disclaimer: This is not an exhaustive list; sometimes the dates are difficult to pinpoint; and I have purposefully not included editions that re-used similar cover art, with differences only in layout and font style.)

(Fishing for treasure! Original cover art by Simone Baudouin, Hachette, 1958)

(An autumnal ambiance brought to us by, I assume, Jeanne Hives, Hachette, 1969)

(On the raft with Jean Sidobre, Hachette, 1981)

(On the raft with Umberto Nonna, Edito Service, 1981 – the kids look like they’re rowing on a turbulent river rather than a placid lake here. This looks like fun, wooh!)

(On the raft with Yves Beaujard, Hachette, 1988)

(On the raft with Paul Gillon, France Loisirs, 1995 – under a moonlit sky for a change!)

(On the raft with Frédéric Rébéna, Hachette, 2010 – the life jackets are back! 😂😂)

(Everyone is soaked and miserable – except for Dick who’s apparently enjoying himself and smiling like a loon… 🤪 Auren, Hachette, 2019)

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Thanks for reading and see you next time!

#papillon82 reads #famous five art nostalgia #famous five #le club des cinq #illustrations #simone baudouin #enid blyton #please note how Baudouin and Gillon are the most generous among the illustrators regarding the size of the raft :D

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