#but my moms selective hating aside i do wish i could show her characters i like

[todayisafridaynight]

Is that character gay? *points at Mine*

Allegedly.

[whitewolfofwinterfell]

hey, shannen! regarding your last post about skins (effy/cook): it's really interesting to hear other opinions. Personally, I liked that that specific pair didn't end up together; I always thought their relationship was too dysfunctional and damaging to make a good fit! But I have to admit, I didn't watch all of the fire/ice etc episodes and maybe it's been too long to remember s3/s4 correctly haha;) just love to hear your take on it if you find some time! best wishes :)

Hey there, anon!

I couldn’t have recieved this ask at a better time, because I literally just finished re-watching seasons 3 and 4 of Skins yesterday! 

Thanks for sending this ask, I always love to discuss these topics and I’ve never really had the opportunity to discuss Cook and Effy in-depth before. Strap yourself in, because this is pretty lengthy, but hopefully you’ll enjoy reading my take on it. :)

Cook and Effy are a very complicated ship for me, because part of me thinks they’re very toxic and that practically they could never work as a couple. However, the other part of me thinks that they were only portrayed that way on the surface, and that in actuality, there is no basis for thinking that. Cook and Effy absolutely could’ve worked together if the show had given them that opportunity.

Personally, I don’t think it was their relationship that was dysfunctional or damaging, but Cook and Effy themselves. As people, Cook and Effy were both deeply damaged people by the time they met in season 3. Having known Effy from seasons 1 and 2, we know that she suffered from some form of Selective Mutism and that she generally had a lot of emotional difficulties in regards to opening up to and connecting to others. Nothing describes that as well as her line in season 2 when she said, “Sometimes I think I was born backwards, you know, came out my mum the wrong way. I hear words go past me backwards. The people I should love I hate, and the people I hate–” In seasons 1 and 2 Effy was around 14-15 years old and she was already demonstrating reckless and self-destructive behaviours - regularly taking drugs, having sex with people she barely knew and generally entering into dangerous situations (e.g. Spencer in 1x08) with no regard for her safety or well-being. Also, at the end of season 1, she suffered the trauma of seeing Tony get hit by the bus, which we know hugely impacted her because she made reference to it in season 4.

As for Cook, although we never physically get to see his past in the same way we do with Effy, we know enough to know that his childhood was far from happy and that it deeply affected him. His mother was a neglectful and unstable alcoholic who was known for having sex with men for money and his father abandoned him when he was a young child (we also know he was a complete asshole from his appearance in the season 3 finale). He had an uncle, who was a bigoted drug dealer who not only supplied him with drugs but encouraged him to partake in it. Everything we know about Cook’s family suggests that he was neglected and it’s very likely that he raised himself for the most part, which explains why emotionally he was closed off, afraid to connect to others and incapable of maintaining healthy relationships (this was particularly clear with his friendships with Freddie and JJ).

So, to summarise, Cook and Effy are two people that both struggled (for different reasons) with emotionally connecting to people and that were terrified of opening themselves up to love because they didn’t want to get hurt. Their relationship for the majority of season 3 (up until 3x08) was a manifestation of that inability to forge connections and/or fear of it. It was a shallow relationship built almost exclusively on sex, and although some may perceive it as unhealthy, it wasn’t. It was a mutual understanding between two people whose reasons for being together were the same - they were using each other.

For Effy, her sexual relationship with Cook was all about avoiding and repressing her feelings for Freddie. We know this because Effy said in 4x05 that she knew from the very first time she saw Freddie he was the closest she would ever get to being close and in 3x07 Cook revealed whilst under the influence of “truth” pills that Effy was having sex with him because she couldn’t stand the fact that she loved Freddie.

With Cook, his reasons for entering into a sexual relationship with Effy were simply because he was attracted to her (which we know from the first moment he saw her) and that was what Cook did and was used to doing - he had casual sex with lots of girls. Cook’s perception of sex was a clear indicator of the complex emotional issues he had. His obsession with having sex was a result of him desperate craving intimacy whilst simultaneously being afraid of it. He had sex to attempt to have that intimacy with another person, but then labelled it as casual and meaningless to invalidate that intimacy and close himself off to it.

When looking at it like this, it might seem ridiculous that I then claim that their relationship wasn’t damaging, because it certainly wasn’t what constitutes a healthy relationship, but by the same token, it wasn’t bad either. From the first time they had sex, there was a mutual understanding between Cook and Effy that their relationship was just no-strings attached sex. There was no manipulation or coercion, it was all consensual and mutual. As their relationship continued, it became complicated because feelings got involved and both of them were hurt by each other, but it was the kind of hurt all relationships experience and nothing particularly awful. In season 3, Effy was hurt when she found out Cook was sleeping with Pandora but she knew that she and Cook weren’t exclusive and that they could both sleep with whoever they wanted. Effy’s reaction to that was much more about Pandora’s betrayal, as her best friend, than Cook’s. And Cook was hurt continuously by Effy’s feelings for Freddie and her relationship with him. Besides that, there was nothing that happened between Cook and Effy that constitutes damaging. In fact, I’d argue that Effy’s relationship with Freddie was much more damaging to her than her relationship with Cook was. What I’m trying to say is that Cook and Effy’s relationship was exactly what a friends-with-benefits or casual-sex-buddy relationship looks like, and therefore not dysfunctional. Even when their relationship developed beyond the casual type due to Cook falling in love with Effy, it was still what any non-reciprocated relationship is. Cook was heartbroken, he attempted to express his love for her on occasions and she made it clear that she didn’t return his feelings in a respectful but firm way (excluding 4x07 when she rudely told him to piss off after he told her he loved her, which always really bugged me because it felt so OOC).

Regarding your comment about Cook and Effy not being a great fit, I’ve actually always felt the opposite. Although they’re very similar (x) and the popular saying is that opposites attract, I think Cook and Effy worked together really well. I don’t think we got to see just how well they could’ve worked, because they were never truly together and most of their relationship was about the triangle with Freddie/Effy. Effy said in 4x07 that Cook was never good for her, but I never understood that because there’s absolutely nothing to support that claim. If you look close enough, you can see how good they were together. The two of them actually spent a lot of time together, although we never see it on-screen, it’s spoken about or hinted at. For example, in 3x08 Cook turned up at Effy’s house and was on a first name basis with her mom and had brought groceries to cook for her, suggesting he spent a lot of time at her house (and not always in her bedroom since he knows her mom) and also that they did do other things other than just have sex. Cook also knew that Effy’s favourite film was E.T. which means they either watched it together or Effy told him. At the end of season 3 they spent a significant amount of time (we can assume weeks, maybe even months) on the run together, only in the company of each other. My point is, they clearly got on well and knew each other too. Whenever Cook and Effy had scenes that weren’t the melodramatic angsty type that Skins is well known for, they were light and natural together (x). Throughout the whole of the season 3 finale (which is a very Ceffy centric episode), they worked. If you take the Freddie/love triangle drama out of the equation, they were affectionate towards each other, they had fun, Effy was supportive and protective over Cook when it came to his dad and Cook was making plans for his future with Effy (to get a job and a boat). Putting aside their individual issues (which I mentioned above), when Cook and Effy were together they were good together. Even if they were just having sex, that was okay, because it was what they both wanted. They knew how to have fun and be in a moment together, and that was what drew them together from the beginning, because they could lose themselves in a moment and forget about everything else. Also, for all their similarities, Cook didn’t have the same depressive tendencies as Effy and was able to keep her on an even keel more so than anybody else (this is particularly obvious in comparison to Freddie, who I felt fed Effy’s depression). That’s why I find it so strange that there’s this perception that Cook was wrong or bad for her, because firstly, Cook never actually did anything to warrant him being “bad” for her. He drank too much, did drugs too much, partied too much but so did Effy, so did Freddie, so did every character on the show (excluding JJ). Cook never did anything to push Effy to a dark place, he never did anything to hurt her or harm her in anyway. Everything they did together was what Effy was doing before she met Cook and what she did with everybody else. In fact, I sincerely believe that Cook was capable of helping Effy and reaching her emotionally more than anybody else. In 4x07 when Effy was in a fragile mental state, she trusted Cook (despite not knowing him because of some hypnosis bullshit her psychopathic therapist did to her) and later in on the episode Cook was the one that brought her back.

As for Cook and Effy ending up together, I believe 100% that they should’ve been together, even if they hadn’t stayed together. If I had been in charge of the show, I would’ve completely scrapped the Freddie/Effy relationship and pursued a Cook/Effy romance from the beginning. From my perspective, it made complete sense that these two damaged people that were unable to emotionally connect would strike up a causal sexual relationship and eventually come to fall in love. Obviously, it wouldn’t have been a straightforward road for them or a particularly happy relationship, but it would’ve been very interesting to watch their ups and downs. Cook loved Effy completely, she was the first and only girl he had ever loved, and that was significant for his character and to have her return that love would’ve led to development for both of them. Skins as a show is all about young love and it’s realistic in its portrayal of that. All of the Skins relationships have their problems and none of them last (because the reality is a lot of young relationships don’t last as their lives go in different directions), so I couldn’t see Cook and Effy’s relationship lasting and them staying together, even if they had been together in seasons 3 and 4. Season 7, however, is a completely different story.

I’m a huge Skins fan and have been since I was a young teenager, but I strongly dislike season 7 and the choices that were made. In my opinion, to bring Effy and Cook back for the final season and not have them interact was criminal. Regardless of Effy’s romantic relationship with Freddie, Effy and Cook were strongly connected and fans would have loved to have seen them reunite. Since you didn’t watch season 7, you won’t be aware of how Cook and Effy developed, so I’ll briefly summarise. In season 7, Cook and Effy had both hugely mellowed in comparison to how they were in seasons 3 and 4, whilst keeping their core personalities. In season 7, Cook and Effy as a couple would’ve just worked. It was a chance to explore their unfulfilled potential and finally make the most of Kaya and Jack’s chemistry whilst remaining respectful to the Freddie/Effy relationship. If I could’ve written season 7 I would have had Cook be on the run (like he was in Rise) and Effy pursuing him because she’s seeking answers about Freddie’s disappearance. I would’ve had the two reunite and have Cook fall to pieces, because it’s Effy - the only girl he’s ever loved - and she brings to the surface everything he’s been keeping bottled up. But I would have him suppress those emotions and react angrily to her having found him, telling her she was stupid for looking for him and that she should’ve let it go. I’d have Effy respond angrily telling him that she couldn’t let it go and that since he and Freddie have gone everything’s gone to shit. Eventually, Cook would tell her the truth about what happened with Freddie and the therapist, and then in their grief-stricken and heightened emotional state they sleep together. Afterwards, Effy is conflicted because on the one hand she’s still grieving for Freddie but on the other, her feelings for Cook are resurfacing and the fact that Cook loves Freddie and is grieving him too means that they’re connected in a unique way. I would then have Cook get angry at Effy (again, because let’s face it, this is Cook lol), tell her to leave and go back to her life and forget about him like she should’ve done the first time, that he deserves to be punished and on the run for the rest of his life for what he did. Then Effy defends his actions saying Freddie’s death was her fault, she was the one that brought the doctor into their life and when Cook killed him he was only defending himself. I would’ve had Effy choose to stay with Cook and live with him on the run because she feels she has nothing at home to go back for. At that point, they wouldn’t be together, but the implication would clearly be there. It wouldn’t be a happy ending and it would be open ended, but I think it would’ve worked perfectly. Not only would it have provided the fans (and Cook and Effy) with closure for Freddie’s death, but would’ve explored that potential of Cook and Effy and ended on a semi-positive note.

One final thing I wanted to talk about, is that despite the fact that I think Cook and Effy were a good fit and definitely weren’t dysfunctional, shipping Cook and Effy isn’t about happy endings or them being ‘good’ for each other or even ending up together. The appeal of the ship (for me, at least) is the messiness and realness of it. When two people have such complex and unresolved issues as Cook and Effy, it’s impossible to be in a healthy, happy, functioning relationship, because they’re not those things themselves. However, Cook and Effy show what love can be when it’s not neat or simple or easily defined. They also show that you can love another person with your whole heart despite feeling broken inside. Plus, Cook and Effy had such a palpable chemistry, history and connection that it’s difficult for me not to ship them and root for them to be together, even if only temporarily.

[jayshq]

Under the read more you will find the verses for all my characters, as my verses page is currently broken.

(DAN, CHUCK, & STEVE DON’T HAVE VERSES UP YET, BUT THEY WILL BE ADDED)

ALEC:

☆  𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒹𝑒𝓈𝒸𝑒𝓃𝓉 𝒾𝓃𝓉𝑜 𝒽𝑒𝓁𝓁 𝒾𝓈 𝑒𝒶𝓈𝓎 | main : Alec Lightwood currently works as a Shadowhunter at the Institute in New York. (BOOK BASED)

☆  𝒷𝑜𝓇𝓃 𝓁𝑒𝒶𝒹𝑒𝓇 | show  : Alec Lightwood is Head of the New York Institute. (SHOW BASED)

☆ 𝓉𝑜𝓅 𝒹𝑜𝑔 | alpha : Alec is a shadowhunter and alpha in a world controlled by status. (used for all a/b/o threads)

☆  𝓉𝑜 𝓁𝒾𝓋𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝓁𝒾𝒻𝑒 | inverted : set in the “world inverted” universe from season 1, episode 10.

☆  𝒷𝑒𝒻𝑜𝓇𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒻𝒾𝓇𝑒 𝒽𝑒𝒶𝒹𝑒𝒹 𝑔𝒾𝓇𝓁 | pre series : set before the events of the show and books.

☆  𝓉𝑜 𝒷𝑒 𝓃𝑜𝓇𝓂𝒶𝓁 | mundane : Alexander is currently studying law at NYU. He wants to be in law enforcement.

☆ 𝓇𝓊𝓃𝓈 𝓌𝒾𝓉𝒽 𝓌𝑜𝓁𝓋𝑒𝓈 | tw : Alec grew up at Idris, never moving to the Institute. After a nasty werewolf encounter he turned. His mother couldn’t stand to look at him properly after that and he eventually decided to leave. Having nowhere to go, he followed this strange pulling in his gut and found himself in Beacon Hills. (omega)

CLARY:

☆ 𝓁𝒾𝓉𝓉𝓁𝑒 𝑔𝒾𝓇𝓁 𝓌𝒽𝑜 𝓈𝓉𝑜𝓅𝓅𝑒𝒹 𝒶 𝒷𝒾𝑔 𝓌𝒶𝓇 | main : BOOK COMPLIANT. Clary Fray had her life turned upside down when she was 16, discovering she was a shadowhunter and the only one who could stop this secret world’s greatest threat: her father. This is set during the events of the Mortal War and Dark War. 

☆ 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝒾𝓈 𝓌𝒽𝑜 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝒶𝓇𝑒 | show : SHOW COMPLIANT.  Clary Fray had her life turned upside down when she was 18, discovering she was a shadowhunter and the only one who could stop this secret world’s greatest threat: her father. It seems her brother is also someone she must stop. ( this will be my main default for show canon only muses, but i am primarily book based blog )

☆ 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝓌𝑜𝓇𝓁𝒹 𝒾𝓃𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓉𝑒𝒹 | alternate : Clary Fray is a normal girl, going to university, hanging with friends and spending time with her family. She has an amazing mother, a hilarious father, and a great older big brother. So, why does something feel off? (1x10)

☆ 𝓁𝒾𝑒 𝒹𝑜𝓌𝓃 𝓌𝒾𝓉𝒽 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒹𝑜𝑔𝓈 | team evil : Clary is currently with Sebastian and Jace, who were bonded together by Lilith. She is only there to find out Sebastian’s plan and save Jace. Whether or not she has the fairy ring connecting her to Simon will be decided on a case by case basis. (Jace, Simon, and Johnathan muses ONLY) 

☆ 𝓇𝓊𝓃𝓈 𝓌𝒾𝓉𝒽 𝓌𝑜𝓁𝓋𝑒𝓈 | tw: Alec sent Clary to Beacon Hills when they got wind of some really nasty stuff coming from their area, smelling an awful lot like werewolves. She was told that the McCall pack was not to be trusted and has no reason to believe otherwise. On the note of Theo: they have laws that his crimes do not follow him back from the dead, she doesn’t agree with this, but knows she cannot condemn him for them or show prejudice.

☆ 𝒶𝒹𝒹𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓈𝓊𝓅𝑒𝓇 𝓉𝑜 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓂𝒾𝓍 | mcu/dc : With the Arrow, the Flash, Supergirl, Superman and tons of others appearing the Institute has had to start making plans for aliens and metas. Clary is a representative for the Clave that Alec has put in charge of a lot of the affairs while laws are drawn up. The D.E.O. and A.R.G.U.S. are working with the Clave to keep everyone in line. Clary mostly deals with informing the others of the shadow world and helping when problems with demons arise.

☆ 𝒾𝓂 𝓃𝑜𝓉 𝑜𝓃𝑒 𝑜𝒻 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓂 | rd : Clary Fairchild-Blossom is from Denmark. She was born as the golden daughter of Christopher Blossom, until it was found out she was actually the daughter of his affair to Jocelyn Fairchild when she was ten. The loving family she’d once known cast her aside as a disgrace. She cut herself off from them when she realized how shallow they were. She was sent to Riverdale after her mother’s passing, only to find out her cousin Jason had died.

☆ 𝒻𝒾𝓇𝑒 𝒽𝒶𝒾𝓇 𝓂𝒶𝓉𝒸𝒽𝑒𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝑒 ���𝑒𝒶𝓇𝓉 | spn : Clarissa is an angel who fell in love with a demon and fell to be with him in Hell. She kept her grace and even joined in helping other demons. However, when her love died she left Hell, now both demons and angels hate her. She wants to return home but doesn’t know how to start. She’s currently trying to do good on Earth as penance.

☆ 𝒾𝓂 𝒶 𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓁 𝑔𝒾𝓇𝓁 | ouat : Clary is one of the daughters of Duchess from The Aristocats. She ran away from her family in search of an adventure like the one her mom had always told her about. She eneded up sneaking onto a ship and landing herself on Neverland Island. She didn’t escape until a group opened a portal to Storybrooke. However, when she went through she was transformed from cat to human.

☆ 𝓁𝒾𝓀𝑒 𝒻𝒶𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇 𝓁𝒾𝓀𝑒 𝒹𝒶𝓊𝑔𝒽𝓉𝑒𝓇 | seraphina : Sera was born in her mother’s arms next to her father and older brother. When Jocelyn ran not even a week later her mother lost her just a portal closed. Jocelyn came back for her not even 24 hours later, but Valentine had already staged the fire and left with his two experiments. She grew up along side her brother and is only too happy to whatever is asked of her by her father. She believes Jocelyn to be dead and she has avast interest in their surrogate brother Jace, where as Jonathan seems to dislike him despite never having met him.

MAGNUS:

☆ 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝑒𝓃𝒹𝓊𝓇𝑒 | main :  Magnus Bane, 400+ year old High Warlock of Brooklyn. Fought in both the Mortal War and Dark War. Is happy to help a selective group of friends, and honestly wish the rest would just shut up. (Book Based) 

☆ 𝓉𝑜 𝓁𝒾𝓋𝑒 𝒾𝓈 𝓉𝑜 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒 | show : Magnus Bane is the high warlock of Brooklyn, ward keeper of the New York Institute, club owner, and apparently the shadowhunters on call warlock. (Show Based) 

☆ 𝒾𝓋𝑒 𝒷𝑒𝑒𝓃 𝒹𝑜𝓇𝓂𝒶𝓃𝓉 | inverted : (part 1)Magnus Bane, previous High Warlock of Brooklyn, now does parlor tricks for a living. With the shadow world having been quiet Magnus has resourced to living a mundane life. (part 2) Until a young girl named Clary Fairchild came calling. Now with his magic restored he vows to never lose it again. 

☆ 𝓃𝑜𝓇𝓂𝒶𝓁 𝒾𝓈 𝒷𝑜𝓇𝒾𝓃𝑔 | mundane : Magnus Bane graduated from NYU with perfect grades and a degree in fashion design. He currently works as a “closet assistant” for the Vogue Magazine office in New York. 

☆ 𝓂𝒶𝑔𝒾𝒸 𝒾𝓈 𝓂𝓎 𝓈𝓅𝑒𝒸𝒾𝒶𝓁𝓉𝓎 | hogwarts : Magnus is the potions professor at Hogwarts. He’s a Slytherin/Ravenclaw (partner dependent) alumni, and is also the Head teacher of said house. I also have a younger subplot to this verse where Magnus is still a student. 

☆ 𝓁𝑒𝓉 𝓂𝑒 𝒷𝑒 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝒷𝒶𝒹 𝒷𝑜𝓎 𝓅𝒽𝒶𝓈𝑒 | high school : Magnus Bane grew up in Indonesia, was shipped off to England at 16 by his step-father, moved to New York when he was 18. Magnus’ biological father has been attempting to contact him, but Magnus is trying to avoid it. His biological father has also sent him a large sum of money, and while Magnus had no intention of creating a relationship he’s also not stupid enough to turn his nose up at money. He’s in his last year of high school. He can’t wait to get out and go off to college. He plays up the bad boy act, constantly talking back to teachers, skipping class, showing up to school hungover. He doesn’t care what other’s think, and just wants to be left alone. 

☆ 𝓇𝑜𝓎𝒶𝓁𝓉𝓎 𝒷𝓇𝑒𝑒𝒹𝓈 𝒸𝓇𝓊𝑒𝓁𝓉𝓎 | dark : Magnus decided to abandon the mundane world after he’d been hurt one too many times. He went to Edom, and with dark magic he’d harnessed was able to murder his father, taking his rightful place on the throne. 

☆ 𝒷𝒾𝓅𝓅𝒾𝓉𝓎 𝒷𝑜𝓅𝓅���𝓉𝓎 𝒷𝒾𝓉𝒸𝒽 𝓅𝓁𝑒𝒶𝓈𝑒 | disney : Magnus bane is the son of king Asmodeus or Edom. Edom is a cruel and unjust kingdom. Magnus never intended to take over, so he spent his time learning magic (due to the dark energy within him) and alchemy. He ran away at the young age of 16. Due to Asmodeus’ love of the dark arts Magnus had been made immortal. Asmodeus died many years ago, but Magnus has no interest in playing king to a kingdom full of greed and demonic presence. Instead, he travels the land, aiding those who need it with his magic, for a small price. He is feared by many, due to his ability to wage war with the snap of his fingers, though he’d never found a need to. 

☆ 𝓅𝓊𝓁𝓁𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒶 𝒸𝓇𝒶𝓏𝓎 𝑒𝓎𝑒 | firefly : magnus bane is a name known across many galaxies. he is an enemy of the alliance, and a business man. he deals in secrets and rumors. he knows things that are meant to be unknown and is vastly proud of it. he lives a life of luxury, and enjoys it highly. he is also the man to go to if you need anything the alliance has deemed illegal. the alliance knows what he does but has no proof. 

☆ 𝓈𝒽𝑜𝓋𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝑔𝑜𝒹𝒻𝒶𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇 | mob : Magnus runs his operation out of New York, but it stretches across the East Coast of America. He is well known to anyone in the mob and gang scene, as well as the N.Y.C. P.D., not that they have any evidence of his wrongdoings. Magnus has legitimize businesses in both his club and a lot of real estate. He lives in a mansion with most of the trusted men and women in his operation. He’s leading in the New York scene, both because he never lies and because he is also the only one with access to Santiago approved drugs.

☆ 𝑔𝒾𝓋𝑒𝓃 𝑜𝓃𝓁𝓎 𝑜𝓃𝒸𝑒 | cmbyn : Magnus has been a friend of Mr. Perlman’s for many years, the two having even traveled together for a time. However, he’s never come to stay with them on their summer trips to Italy, until now. Magnus is content to spend his summer enjoying the simpler things in life, instead of the hectic New York fashion world he works in year round. 

☆ 𝒶𝓂𝑜𝓃𝑔 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒹𝓊𝓈𝓉 | marvel : Warlocks have existed for at least as long as written history, but anyone that can feel magic will tell you it’s been part of the world since the dawn if time. They are an extremely rare breed, only a few hundred ever alive at one time. Most hide amongst the mutants, able to pass their abilities off as a mutation. Every warlocks magic is specific to them, and entirely their own. They draw most of their power from the Earth, but they are inherently magical and don’t need any magical focus, magic flows through them.

Due to such a low amount of warlocks, their is an underground network. The Warlock Network. It’s the easiest, fastest, and safest way for warlocks to get in touch with one another. It is commonly used as a market, a way to trade ingredients and information, but it is also how a warlock can send out an alert that they’re in trouble or that someone is gunning for warlocks.

Magnus himself leads a relatively calm life. He’s a fashion designer and wildly popular among the Upper East Side, despite his residing in Brooklyn. He lives off multiple fortunes he’s made over the years and works for fun. He also runs one of the hottest clubs in New York, Pandemonium.  Living in New York meant that there was constantly life threatening occurrences thanks to the different superheroes that inhabited the city. Magnus never bothered to get involved. As long as himself and those he cared about were safe than the guys in tights could handle the rest. That doesn’t mean that Magnus’ status does not afford him certain super friends, however.

note: warlock marks exist but not every warlock has them 

☆ 𝒾𝒻 𝓁𝑜𝑜𝓀𝓈 𝒸𝑜𝓊𝓁𝒹 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁 | thg : Magnus is one of the most sought after designers in the capitol and when it comes to the games he’s given to only the best of the best. Magnus was a victor himself but he refused to be a trainer. He has severe ptsd from the games. He is able to watch the games, but he has nightmares, can’t enter any desert areas (his arena was desert), and certain insect sounds will trigger him. 

☆ 𝓁𝒾𝒻𝑒 𝒻𝒾𝓃𝒹𝓈 𝒶 𝓌𝒶𝓎 | jurassic world : Magnus Bane had never cared about dinosaurs. Sure, he thought they were interesting an he found it sad that so many generations had lived without them, but that was where it ended. Then he met Etta. She was perfect in Magnus’ eyes, and she just happened to be a medic at the Jurassic World theme park. For the first year of the relationship it wasn’t a big deal.

However, when the one of the old herbivore trainer’s retired Etta begged Magnus to apply. Despite not needing a job, due to the family fortune he’d inherited, he did it for her. Magnus had no formal training with animals, let alone prehistoric ones. Yet, he surpassed a lot of the trained applicants and got the job.

Magnus started with some of the herbivore attractions, then moved up to also training some of the younger ones, an eventually it was also added to his duties to help care for the infants. Thanks to all his time spent with Etta Magnus is also an on call medic. He isn’t licensed, but if he’s closer than the on-site medic and it’s urgent he’ll sub in. He’s proven himself multiple times.Etta was diagnosed two years later. They found the cancer in February and she was gone by April.

Magnus closed off. He let friendships slip away and made no effort to make new ones. He refuse to do shows for the visitors, only working with the younger ones and infants. If investors come to the park Magnus will instruct an intern to deal with them. He still does any medic work need of him.

Magnus fell in love with the majestic creatures within only months of working at the park, but Etta’s passing cause him to have an even deeper connection and love for the animals. Magnus is extremely protective of the dinosaurs in his care and if anyone even mentions the park in regards to revenue he will leave the room. 

PARTNER SPECIFIC VERSES 

☆ 𝑔𝑜𝓁𝒹 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓈𝒾𝓁𝓋𝑒𝓇 𝓂𝒶𝓀𝑒 𝒶 𝒻𝒾𝓃𝑒 𝓈𝑒𝓉 | bytheanchor : set in my main verse. Magnus, Alec and Jace are all in a happy and committed poly relationship. I play both Magnus and Alec. 

BEN:

;; before that night | ben: Canon Ben Solo. Teenage Ben is training under his uncle Luke to be a Jedi master, and is proving a talented student. He feels a pull to the dark side, but due to his teachings isn’t sure how to ask for help out of fear. He’s fighting to cling to the light that burns deep inside him and the force, sticking close to those he loves for good measure.

;; my birthright | tfa : Canon Ben Solo, this will follow through the events of The Force Awakens.

;; nothing stand in our way | tlj : Canon Ben Solo, this will follow through the event of The Last Jedi and all the way up to the Palpatine battle in The Rise of Skywalker. THIS IS NOT HIS MAIN VERSE, even though many threads will operate inside it.

;; finish what you started | main : Canon-Divergent Kylo Ren, the only main difference being that while he did give up an amount of his life force to save Rey he didn’t die. He was in the resistance med bay for over a week, but he pulled through. He is unsure if he wishes to stay with the resistance to hunt down what’s left of the First Order, or if he’d prefer to be on his own for the time being. 

;; the conflict in you | light side : after killing Supreme Leader Snoke he accepted Rey’s offer and is now working along side her and the rebel alliance to take down Hux and his army of stromtroopers.

coming soon

POE:

𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓼𝓹𝓪𝓻𝓴 | main : (Canon Compliant) Poe Dameron is one of the most skilled pilots among the resistance. 

𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻𝓮 𝓭𝓮𝓶𝓸𝓽𝓮𝓭 | scoundrel : Poe Dameron is a pilot for hire and very well trusted in criminal circles to get the job done quickly and quietly. 

𝓻𝓮𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓴 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓽𝓮𝓬𝓱𝓷𝓲𝓺𝓾𝓮 | dark : Poe was born to an ex-rebel pilot and First Order prisoner, but was raised by his step-father, a First Order general. He has been learning to use the force since he was ten years old and has been lied to about how the light and dark sides work. 𝓬𝓻𝓪𝔃𝓲𝓮𝓻 𝓼𝓽𝓾𝓷𝓽𝓼 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 | modern : Poe is a retired Afghanistan veteran without a clear path for his future. 

𝓭𝓸𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓪 𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓼𝓸𝓷 | nasa :tba

𝓵𝓮𝓽𝓼 𝓰𝓸 𝓱𝓸𝓶𝓮 | peace : tba

REY:

☆ 𝓹𝓮𝓸𝓹𝓵𝓮 𝓴𝓮𝓮𝓹 𝓽𝓮𝓵𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓶𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝔂 𝓴𝓷𝓸𝔀 𝓶𝓮 | tfa : Canon-Compliant. This verse will follow the events of the Force Awakens.

☆ 𝓼𝓸𝓶𝓮𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓲𝓷𝓼𝓲𝓭𝓮 𝓶𝓮 | tlj : Canon-Compliant. This verse will follow the events of the Last Jedi and through the Rise of Skywalker until the Palpatine battle.

☆ 𝓲𝓶 𝓪𝓯𝓻𝓲𝓪𝓭 𝓷𝓸 𝓸𝓷𝓮 𝓭𝓸𝓮𝓼 | main : Canon-Compliant. This verse is set after the battle with Palpatine. Rey has chosen Skywalker as her surname and is working with the resistance to take down the rest of the First Order.

☆ 𝓽𝓸 𝓽𝓪𝓴𝓮 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓱𝓪𝓷𝓭 | dark : Canon-Divergent. When Ben offers Rey his hand in the Last Jedi she takes it with the hope to restore peace to the galaxy from the dark side.

v. 2: Canon-Divergent. When Palpatine offers Rey the throne, she kills him and ascends it.

☆ 𝓭𝓸𝓷𝓽 𝓰𝓸 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝔀𝓪𝔂 | smuggler : coming soon : coming soon

☆ 𝓵𝓲𝓯𝓮 𝓯𝓲𝓷𝓭𝓼 𝓪 𝔀𝓪𝔂 | jurassic world : coming soon

☆ 𝓪𝓶𝓸𝓷𝓰 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓼𝓽𝓪𝓻�� | nasa : coming soon

[thoughtsofaghost]

Review: The Selection by Kiera Cass

Warning! Before reading any further, I did not like this book and so this is a negative review. If this book is close to your heart, please do not read this. I am well aware that everyone is entitled to their own opinions and I have nothing against anyway who enjoyed this book. 

Now, for those of you who haven't read the book yet, I am dividing this review into two parts, where the first will be free from any spoilers. So here is the spoiler-free basic summary of my review:

The story is about America Singer, the middle child of five, born into a family of artists and musicians, which falls under the caste called Five. The caste you are born in determines the sort of work you can do. There are eight castes and lower caste numbers represent families that are better off, One representing royalty. America's family are in quite a bad caste and barely have enough to get by. The demand for their services is usually low, except for around Christmas time, where they make most of their money. America lives in our world's future version of the USA, which has been renamed Illéa.

The story begins with America receiving a letter about the selection, a process for choosing the bride of Prince Maxon Screave. In this world, princesses are selected to marry princes in the royal family from amongst the common people to promote better relations between the rulers and the public. If she is selected to be his bride, her family will be heavily compensated, which is something they desperately need. Eligible citizens can fill in a form to be part of the process and one woman from each province (there are 35 of them) will be selected to meet the prince and stay at the palace, where he will get to choose which one of them he would like to marry.  America is not keen to join the selection, despite it being a chance to improve the lives of her whole family, as she's in love with her secret boyfriend, Aspen, who is a Six, and wants to marry him. This makes her come across as rather selfish, as she would rather her family continue to struggle than to potentially try to improve all of their lives. Another flaw in this book is how America and her mother act about the selection. They both assume that by America simply entering, she will be one of the 35 selected contestants. Upon first hearing about the selection, America is adamant not to enter, which doesn't add up if she felt that she didn't really have a chance of getting selected in the first place. It is only later on when Aspen convinces her to fill in the form, that she decides that she probably won't get selected anyway, as she doesn't want to be separated from him.

When the 35 women are announced, America ends up as one of the selected. She's given a list of rules she has to follow during her time in the palace, she moves in, and her family is heavily compensated for each week she spends there. At the palace, America meets Prince Maxon and realises that he is not the snob that she was expecting.  In fact, Prince Maxon comes across as a genuinely kind character. They seem to get along very well and America begins to start to feel something for him.

Now, aside from America's attitude to the selection, I also have issues with her name, along with a few others. Multiple times whilst reading this book I was drawn out of the story simply because her name seemed so ridiculous. However, that is just a minor issue and something you will eventually get past.

Another issue is the character of America herself. There are times when the author tries to make America come across as a kind character, where she cares for servants and the common public, but most of the time, America comes across as rather unlikeable. The only redeeming thing about her is her sense of humour. The book also rarely shows the hardships America has gone through being a Five. We're told that her family struggle to get by, but she still gets three meals a day and the most work we ever see America do is cooking and cleaning, which is only in the very first chapter. In contrast, Aspen struggles much more and it comes across both in the story and his character. America comes across as a little too spoilt to be someone who has been through so much hardship.

Other issues are the prince himself and the world building. Maxon comes across as a genuinely nice character. However, for a prince, he can be incredibly ignorant over things such as the caste system, and it just comes across as unrealistic. The palace also has unbelievably bad security, where rebels frequently attack it.

Overall, I do not think I will continue reading this series, as I don't like the main character and the plot of this story is not really my cup of tea. I don't care about America and I'm really not that invested in what happens to her. That being said, this is a very popular book series and if you do feel like you would be willing to give it a try, by all means, do so. Everyone has different tastes in literature and I am not here to dictate what others can and can't read.

And now for the spoilers (and possibly some ranting):

Let's start with America. This character irks me to no end! She has been given the opportunity to join the selection, which could vastly improve not only her life, but also the life of her family, and she doesn't even want to attempt to enter! I understand that she wants to be with Aspen, but her internal conflict just makes it seem as though she doesn't want to join the selection just because she thinks Prince Maxon is a snob. I really wish her thoughts had been written better to show us that she was just so torn between helping her family and being with Aspen. I would have liked her instantly. Instead, I'm already angry with her in the very first chapter! Not to mention that her mother has no doubt that America will become the next princess. I know it's in the title of the book that she will join the selection, but the characters in the story don’t know that. Even when America does decide to enter the selection it is because Aspen convinced her to and not because of her family.

America is also constantly whining through the book (I'll spare you from that) and occasionally comes across as unrelatable. An example is when Aspen calls her gorgeous.

“Please don’t call me gorgeous. First my mom, then May, now you. It’s getting on my nerves.”

I understand that when it comes from your family it can be a bit annoying due to rose tinted glasses, but has any girl ever gotten annoyed at their boyfriend calling them gorgeous? Apparently America does.

The one thing I do like about her though, is her sense of humour.

“Do you think the ability to sleep in counts as a special skill?” I asked Dad, trying to sound torn over the decision.

“Yes, list that. And don’t forget to write that you can eat an entire meal in under five minutes,” he replied. I laughed. It was true; I did tend to inhale my food.

There is an odd scene that happens when America first moves into the palace. She basically has a panic attack and rushes to get outside. The guards try to stop her and this is when she first meets Prince Maxon because plot. I don't know why it annoys me that she meets him in this way, but I would have preferred if she had met him with everyone else the next day like they were supposed to. Also, this is the only time she experiences a panic attack. Convenient. The whole scene is rather embarrassing though. Prince Maxon asks her if she is all right, which brings us this conversation:

“Are you all right, my dear?” he asked me.

“I am not your dear.” I looked up to glare at him. There would be no mistaking the disgust in my tone or eyes.

Not only is 'my dear' an acceptable term to be used by strangers who are simply being polite (consider being called love, duck or flower in the UK) but also she doesn't know this prince AT ALL. All she knows about him is that she must give into all of his requests, and that is NOT a good basis to suddenly decide it's safe to be rude to him. In fact, I think it is the exact opposite! It's lucky the prince isn't like Joffrey from game of thrones or she'd probably be sentenced to death for being rude. I know the author is trying to get across that America is independent and doesn't belong to any man, but 'my dear' is not a term of possession.

Then this happens:

“Excuse me, dear, are you going to keep crying?” he asked, sounding very put out by the thought.

“Don’t call me that! I am no more dear to you than the thirty-four other strangers you have here in your cage.”

which receives this incredibly cringe-worthy response

“That is an unfair statement. You are all dear to me. It is simply a matter of discovering who shall be the dearest.”

I can't! The cringe is too great!

America comments on his use of the word 'shall', as though it is the most sophisticated word in the world. Obviously the prince is educated to speak more formally and how America is so oblivious to this fact is incredibly frustrating. America would be THE WORST princess. She knows nothing about anything! You're a prince but why don't you talk like normal common people? It's not like you had a different education and that you are going to rule a country! I am at least grateful that later on, she apologises for her bad behaviour.

The next thing is that America's character just does not fit in this book. There are multiple times when Maxon asks her why she just doesn't leave since she hates it there so much. The story has basically led her to the point where going home would be logical, but the plot can't have that. America first comes up with the excuse that she wants to help her family, but seeing as she didn't want to join the selection for them in the first place, we know this isn't true. Even the author knows this isn't a good enough excuse because later on, her reason is because she wants to avoid seeing Aspen. I know Aspen hurt her by breaking up with her before she left, but if she truly loved him, she would do everything in her power to fix things. She's had a few days to get over the initial shock and hurt of the breakup. Now she should go back home and fight to get him back. Her just accepting things as they are does not work in her favour.

There are also multiple times when America just comes across as stupid.

Why did Mom have to push me so much? Wasn’t she happy? Didn’t she love Dad? Why wasn’t this good enough for her?

She's wondering why her mother isn't happy with the current life they have where they struggle to feed themselves and it's even mentioned that they had to sacrifice electricity for food before. If they had an opportunity to improve their lives, of course they would take it.  Why is this a hard concept for America to grasp? Then there's the fact that America doesn't understand why the other contestants see her as such a threat after she was friendly and greeted the public. 

I didn’t understand why it was all so important. So the people seemed to like me, so what? They were outranked in here; their little signs and cheers didn’t matter.

She is just so clueless! Good relations with the public = even more of an asset to the royals. It would probably even help with the rebel situation since some of them are the dissatisfied public.

America also doesn't really understand the prince's duty.

“I wonder why. I mean, what’s the point of him being that strong? He does deskwork. It’s weird.”

Crown princes have always been trained as part of the military. I do not know why America thinks all he does is deskwork, unless he really is not military trained, in which case, that's just poor world building.

There are times when America is kind, such as when she took the time to talk to her fans and give them autographs, and she also cares a lot for her maids. It's just that the rest of the time, she's whiny and annoying.

The next major flaw is the world building. There are two main rebel groups: the Northerners and the Southerners. As for their intentions, Maxon doesn't know why they attack the palace.

“The Southerners appear to want us demolished. I don’t know why, but I’m guessing some dissatisfaction or another, tired of living on the fringes of society..."

Any government would try to find out the motives of their enemies. This sort of description of Southerners being so dissatisfied they would kill, is insufficient. It's even worse that they have no idea what the Northerners want. Maxon suspects that they are looking for something, but even that is just a suspicion and he doesn't even know what they are looking for. It's strange that the Northerners have attacked the palace multiple times and the royals still have no clue what they want. They clearly shouldn't be running a country! Also, when the palace is attacked the first time in the book, the guards hold off shooting until the rebels get too close to the main doors. Why didn't the guards just start shooting earlier? I really don't know. I don't understand the palace security at all. It wasn't even as though the rebels were out of range since they were throwing things at the palace. It doesn't matter that this group of rebels do not kill. They were still threatening the palace and some action should have been taken. And why were the rebels just let go? Any sensible person would have captured them and taken them in for questioning! No wonder the royals haven't found out what the rebels want!

Next, consider the knowledge Maxon has about the world around him. He's going to be ruling one day and he attends most of the important meetings. It really doesn't make sense how little he knows about the world outside the palace. He even admits to it.

“But I’m only starting to realize how much I don’t know about my own country. Please.”

He lacks knowledge of how much the lower castes suffer and doesn't know that the Eights in his own kingdom are starving most nights. I guess they never go on tours around the country.

“Good God. When you said you were only here for the food, you weren’t kidding, were you?” he asked, shaking his head.

Also, his mother, the Queen, was a Four, so I don't know how he doesn't know more about the struggling castes. Does the King ignore the Queen on such matters, and does Maxon not talk to his mother? So, since Maxon has suddenly learnt people in his kingdom are struggling to eat, he decides to set up a fund to help feed those that are struggling and it's all thanks to our protagonist, who had to tell him something he should have already known.

The next flaw in the world building is how Illéa was formed.

“When the United States couldn’t repay their massive debt, the Chinese invaded. Unfortunately for them, this didn’t get them any money, as the United States was beyond bankruptcy. However, it did gain them American labor. And when the Chinese took over, what did they rename the United States?”

This is explained so badly. Since China basically owned the US anyway, invading would be a waste of time. Also, the population of China is so large they don't need American labour. Wars cost money, so there has to be a significant benefit for the country invading. Plus, both countries have nuclear weapons so simply going to war would have devastating effects for both countries. The book also implies that none of the other countries came to aid the US. I wonder what the US did to annoy everyone else.

After that, Russia tried and failed to invade.  The man who headed the assault against Russia was called Gregory Illéa and since he was successful, the whole country was named after him... That's not really how naming countries works but ok. Gregory was married into a royal family, thus the reason why I guess formerly US now Illéa is a monarchy. I still don't know why they reinstated the monarchy and a more backwards version than some of today's systems at that. This explanation does not answer all of the questions I have.

My final issue with this book is that I do not like how rape is just randomly thrown in. Perhaps it becomes more significant later on in the series, but in this book it just felt unnecessary. We're told that a rebel raped one of America’s maids, Lucy, during one of their attacks. Since then, Lucy gets seizures whenever the rebels start attacking. America is suitably disgusted that such a horrible thing happened to her and that is the end of that. So, what was the point of that? It really is just, 'The rebels are so terrible! They raped her!' and I know America is supposed to use this as motivation to find a way to stop them, but she has no power and at this point in the story, she doesn't even want to be the princess. All America knowing this information achieves is that she hangs out with her maids more. If you're going to put rape into a book, do it well or just don't add it at all.

Those are all my issues with the book and since I really don't like America and am not bothered to find out what happens to her, I just can't bring myself to read the next book in the series. I found a lot of this book was quite dull and I even considered stopping at some point because I didn't care about what was happening. I like a lot of action in my stories and this one lacked that. Even the climax at the end consisted of them hiding in a basement waiting for the rebels to be defeated. I am giving up on this series but I hope that I enjoy the next book that I read.