#does she have a surname??? I can't remember

[derangedfujoshi]

*grabs you by the shoulders* hear me out

[melefim]

Swearing in Dead Boy Detectives: Crystal Palace Surname-Von Hoverkraft

Overview:

115 curses total, 12 different words said in 8 episodes.

Episode 1: 2 Fuck, 2 Shit, 1 Ass, 4 God, 3 Jesus, 2 Screw

Episode 2: 6 Shit, 6 God, 1 Jesus

Episode 3: 4 Fuck, 6 Shit, 1 Bitch, 1 Ass, 2 Damn, 2 Hell, 3 God, 1 Jesus

Episode 4: 2 Fuck, 1 Shit, 1 Ass, 2 Hell, 1 God, 1 Jesus

Episode 5: 1 Fuck, 4 Shit, 4 God, 1 Pussy, 1 Dick, 2 Screw

Episode 6: 4 Fuck, 2 Shit, 1 Ass, 2 Hell, 3 God

Episode 7: 2 Fuck, 6 Shit, 1 Ass, 4 God, 1 Jesus, 1 Screw

Episode 8: 5 Fuck, 5 Shit, 2 Bitch, 7 God, 1 Jesus, 1 Prick

Curses Per Episode:

Episode 1: 14

Episode 2: 13

Episode 3: 20

Episode 4: 8

Episode 5: 13

Episode 6: 12

Episode 7: 15

Episode 8: 21

Uses Per Word:

Crystal’s favorite curse words are Shit and God, which she says 32 times each! In third place is Fuck, which she says 20 times.

Shit: 32

God: 32

Fuck: 20

Jesus: 8

Hell: 6

Ass: 5

Screw: 5

Bitch: 3

Damn: 2

Pussy: 1

Dick: 1

Prick: 1

Unique words:

Crystal and the Cat King are the only characters who say Pussy.

Crystal and Charles are the only characters who say Prick.

Crystal, Jenny, and Esther are the only characters who say Screw.

Crystal, the Cat King, and Twitchy Richie are the only characters who say Dick.

Percent of Total:

Crystal swears 115 times throughout the season, which is 35.9% of all cursing in the show.

Rankings:

Who Swears the Most: Crystal is in 1st place, with 116 times.

Most Curses in an Episode: Crystal holds 7 spots on the top 10 ‘Curses per Character per Episode’ list:

Curse Word Variety: Crystal comes in 2nd for swearing variety, with 12 different words used throughout the show.

Individual Words: She holds the top spots for usages of seven different words: Fuck (20), Shit (32), God (32), Jesus (8), Hell (6), Ass (4) and Screw (5). She is also tied for first for her unique word usages of Pussy (with the Cat King), Dick (with the Cat King and Twitchy Richie), and Prick (with Charles) one use of each.

Lines:

Episode 1: Oh my god, why can't I remember?

Episode 1: It's just a stupid fucking name.

Episode 1: Jesus, where did he go?

Episode 1: Oh, Jesus. I'm gonna wait in the bathroom until they leave.

Episode 1: Holy shit, did you take some of my memories? I don't have some screwed-up amnesia, you took them.

Episode 1: God! I just need a second, okay?

Episode 1: So maybe he's our fucking demon now!

Episode 1: God, I just want to take their heads and just crush them together, I am so mad!

Episode 1: Jesus, I am such an idiot.

Episode 1: Oh my god, I never even thought about the fact that they could still be alive.

Episode 1: Which was totally my bad and very screwed up and I should have told you everything.

Episode 1: Holy shit. (Edwin tells her about girl turned into small piece of plastic)

Episode 1: He's still a stalker, still an asshole. But I am going to get my memories back.

Episode 2: Ok, props for the like, Herculean-level effort, but vandalizing my shit isn't getting us anywhere.

Episode 2: Oh, shit. Sorry. (Almost runs into Niko)

Episode 2: Oh my god, holy shit! (Niko collapses)

Episode 2: God, I feel lonely too.

Episode 2: Jesus, you guys are like a dead married couple on acid.

Episode 2: Oh my God! Holy shit, how does today keep getting more disgusting?

Episode 2: God (After Edwin asks 'And were there any graves or decaying bodies near her in the woods?')

Episode 2: Oh my god, Charles back me up.

Episode 2: Oh, shit, uh... (Sees sprite-controlled Niko in butcher shop)

Episode 2: Oh my god, Niko! (Niko starts seizing)

Episode 2: Niko? Holy shit, your hair!

Episode 3: Holy shit, who knew this town was such a Mecca for troubled ghosts?

Episode 3: I just heard some people talking about it in the um, God, it was the… malt shop and it sounded super crazy.

Episode 3: What the actual fuck?

Episode 3: Jesus, I can't watch this again.

Episode 3: Just what the fuck is it?

Episode 3: So ok, if we figure out what sent that piece of shit dad over the edge, we can what? Free the family?

Episode 3: Good luck finding it now, asshole.

Episode 3: Where the hell did he go?

Episode 3: Thank god, there he is.

Episode 3: His dad was bad, Edwin. Royally fucked-up bad.

Episode 3: And if I have to hear that goddamn song one more time, I am gonna lose my shit.

Episode 3: Oh shit, yes.

Episode 3: Oh my god. Son of a bitch owned an electronics store.

Episode 3: Damn it, I know you choose the worst times to show up on purpose.

Episode 3: Go to hell.

Episode 3: I am done wasting my energy on your fuck-boy bullshit.

Episode 3: (Crystal we did it) Holy shit, we actually did.

Episode 4: Sorry, I've just been dealing with some shitty stuff with my ex.

Episode 4: God, it's driving me crazy.

Episode 4: What in the hell was that?

Episode 4: Jesus, she thought about it too, like she definitely knew something and then it was just riddle.

Episode 4: You fucked with my head, I'm gonna fuck with yours.

Episode 4: Niko- thanks for like, saving my ass today.

Episode 4: And I am tired of riddles and spirits and demons and not being any closer to finding out who the hell I am.

Episode 5: Holy shit! (Waking up from nightmare)

Episode 5: Oh god. Cash and condoms. Thanks.

Episode 5: Oh, no it's porn, it's all just porn. Oh my god.

Episode 5: Deep down, guys that make gay jokes are always the biggest pussies.

Episode 5: Because all nice guys give their girlfriends date rape drugs to screw with their future.

Episode 5: You walk around acting like the sun always shines, and then you lost your shit while beating the Night Nurse. Edwin and I are walking on eggshells around you instead of just saying 'what the actual fuck?'

Episode 5: I am really not sorry the world is short two toxic dickheads.

Episode 5: It's a really shitty thing to have in common.

Episode 5: Hey Jenny? Hey, what's with the fl- Holy shit.

Episode 5: No boy is screwing my life up.

Episode 5: I can't keep him out of my head. God, he just keeps coming, I don't… I don't know how to stop him. God, what if I can't?

Episode 6: What the hell? I have to pay my rent. I can't be a homeless person with a heart-shaped gem.

Episode 6: I want to keep this demon the fuck out.

Episode 6: God, I just want to be normal.

Episode 6: God, I feel totally useless.

Episode 6: So no, I didn't read the stupid tree! … Shit.

Episode 6: It's like he's fucking haunting me.

Episode 6: What the hell just happened?

Episode 6: I gave up my powers, OK? I got you out of my fucking head.

Episode 6: You can't get in anymore, asshole.

Episode 6: I am nothing special, So why don't you just leave me the fuck alone?

Episode 6: OK, enough uh, emotional bullshit.

Episode 6: Oh my God, are you guys OK?

Episode 7: Holy shit, you're still alive?

Episode 7: What kind of bullshit is that?

Episode 7: Jesus. You have never been to hell, stop acting like an expert. Look, when I got possessed, when I nearly ran off a cliff, when I screwed up and lost my powers, you both helped me.

Episode 7: God, Edwin is my friend too, whether he likes it or not.

Episode 7: God, if you really won't let me go, then I'll find my own way to Hell.

Episode 7: Fucking bullshit, like I can't help.

Episode 7: God, that's fucking insane.

Episode 7: Holy shit, Jenny. You shouldn't be here!

Episode 7: Just cut this shit!

Episode 7: These are mine, asshole.

Episode 7: Oh, bullshit. A good detective does what he has to in order to close the case.

Episode 7: God, I gotta figure out what I'm going to tell her.

Episode 8: Am I ever wrong about this shit?

Episode 8: My parents won't say shit, they don't even--

Episode 8: Jesus Christ! You guys scared me!

Episode 8: God, it's like being punched in the face and the stomach.

Episode 8: Yeah, well blame my parents. Holy shit!

Episode 8: Mom? Oh my God. Mom is that--

Episode 8: Maybe karma is just a bitch.

Episode 8: Oh, my God. Oh, I'm a fucking awful person. Oh, God, I'm the worst.

Episode 8: God, I was a bad person before him.

Episode 8: Because if you did, God, you'd hate me.

Episode 8: Oh my God, Jenny are you OK?

Episode 8: Shit! (digging Niko out of rubble)

Episode 8: Fuck! (Esther has the boys)

Episode 8: Because whatever fucked-up little thing you have going on with Edwin, you must care about him a little.

Episode 8: She probably put a, like, kill-you-instantly spell or some witchy shit on the door.

Episode 8: I am so sorry he was a colossal prick.

Episode 8: Hubris is a bitch, am I right?

Episode 8: I don't have to give up my new fucked-up life while I'm trying to sort out my old fucked-up life.

Notes:

Not Included:

Crystal flips Edwin off in the malt shop in episode 1.

Updated:

Added in top spots for usages of a couple words I missed.

Added in Twitchy Richie for unique usages of the word dick.

Added in a god I missed in episode 2.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

More Dead Boy Detectives Swearing Posts:

Masterlist

Swearing by Episode

Swearing by Character

Swearing by Word

All Swearing Posts

And if you like lists of things like I do, you can check out my other Dead Boy Detectives ones here!

When Charles’ Shirt Colors Change

George Rextrew’s Edwin comic inspo board

Full soundtrack with timestamps

Moves, Incidents, and Cases Masterlist

First pass at finding where the songs in the score are used- full post with timestamps in progress

[leafington]

(𝙞 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙖) 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙢𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙮, 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙣𝙚𝙭𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙚. - kiyoomi s.

content warning !! - angst to comfort so essentially fluff, blackfem!reader, drinking implied but no intoxication, suggestiveness if you squint, mayhaps ooc but idc i do what i want

This isn't him. No chance in hell. He's supposed to be big, ignorant, and one-track minded Sakusa—MSBY Black Jackal's infamous outside hitter. His identity's been tainted by some girl he managed to wriggle into his life, denting his plans but not quite hindering them.

He used to threaten others with his wrist, messing with little kids by folding his hands. Said person told him to stop it, and he did. He can't remember the last time he crouched down to an 8-year-old and watched them run for their mother because of him. Sakusa had a strict hair routine that wasn't going to change no matter how long his hair got, the same four products he's used since his mother taught him how to take care of his curls. That woman came along and he'd let her share his bathroom, adding one extra product she claimed would make his curls more full which indefinitely worked.

In his first year of highschool, he would've freaked out discovering his future self succumbed to his natural teenage tendencies and fell for what he can only describe as the prettiest girl in the world.

She looked so ethereal barging into their practice one day, approaching Komori and exchanging words regarding whatever required discussion. Days passed of just Sakusa debating putting his pride aside just to talk to a girl. In the long run he didn't, but thankfully lucked out when Komori picked up on his interest and invited them both over.

"'Coincidence' my ass."

To this very moment, he cherished every day spent they together. Hence why he's so pressed that he's missing her, sitting on his hotel bed, finger hovering over the 'My World 🗺️' UI in his contacts. He never changed it.

She plauged his mind with her being. He wants see her again, feel her hands in his hair, scrub the hard-to-reach spots on his back (he can reach them, he just prefers for her to do it), apologize for his ignorance, pride, and one-track mindset; all of it.

Damn it all.

The rowdy bunch kept him busy all day, it's their fault he's waiting for the stupid ring back to either stop or tell him he's reached her voicemail, he hopes it's the latter that way he can flush down that reprehensive feeling of reaching out to her so late. What were they thinking taking him out for drinks?

"Hello?" Sleep and disorientation transmit on his side, regardless, he's grateful to hear her voice again.

"Baby? It's me," He sounds so pathetic, he can only imagine what she thinks of him for pulling such a stunt. "I miss you. So much, baby. You don't even know." It's unfathomable, not even Sakusa knows why he's doing this.

Yes he does. He wants his girl back. "I know it's late, I'm sorry for waking you, I just had to let you know." Sakusa speaks low into the phone, not so much a whisper, but to the point where she won't be disturbed. "Sakusa? The hell? It's like—"

"Kiyo. It's Kiyo to you." He never talked over her, except for this and one other time. He swears it's the last time, shutting up so she can finish. "Two in the morning? I have work." Either his surname or not at all, that's okay, he's determined to fix that. "Just listen to me, 'kay?"

"I never should've blown up at you. I was exhausted, tired, annoyed, I didn't mean anything I said. I should've talked to you, you know I would never voluntarily raise my voice at you, right? I can't keep this up. I wanna see you, I need to see you. Please, love." He's never felt more humiliated like this in his life, begging over the phone for his woman to take him back.

It's quiet, the faint squeak of her fan in the background. An annoyed grunt is detected presumably her sitting up. "Aren't you in Tokyo right now?" She has a point, but that's never stopped Sakusa from getting what he wants. "I'll make the flight, just say the word." He might just be willing to ditch the entire game, he'll do so at her command. "You're delusional. C'mon, you're not flying all the way out here just to see me. You better play tomorrow, I'm serious. I'm not in your way anymore, focus on volleyball."

He's not getting through to her. She's slipping from his fingers with the tight grasp he has on her. "Y/n. I'll say 'Fuck the team.' and blow it all for you. You've never been in my way, ever, so stop thinking like that. I'm sitting here, butt-naked in a towel on expensive ass bedsheets begging you to take me back. I don't know what I have to do, but I'll do it if it means I can be in your arms again, babygirl."

Silence again—meaning the worst or the best from her. She shuffles around a little, and digs through some type of drawer of sorts before finally speaking again.

"You better win."

Sakusa Kiyoomi is a lovesick fool, he admits it. Anything for his woman. And he means anything.

©2024 leafington dont steal please!! :)

[drowning-moonlight]

Ever since I read the Marineford arc in the manga, I've been intrigued by that part of Sengoku's speech in chapter 551 where he says that Ace took on the name Portgas D "two years ago" and I have not seen anyone talk about it.

I have always found the fact that he had only been going by Portgas D for two years to be interesting. Before reading this, I thought Ace had always used his mother's surname. In the same chapter, we learn that Rouge gave him the name Gol D Ace, which was chosen by Roger:

Ace never goes by 'Gol D' as far as I can remember and that's due to the fact that Ace hated his father and didn't want to be associated with him due to the danger being Roger's son put him in. Garp also probably didn't want to go around calling him 'Gol D Ace' in order to protect his identity.

Though Ace hated his father, he did love his mother, as she died protecting him. Thus, he chose to go by her name:

My question is, why did Ace only start going by Rouge's surname two years prior to the main story? When and from who did he learn about the name Portgas D? In the flashbacks of Ace's childhood with Sabo and Luffy, he doesn't go by Portgas D. Why not? I think it's safe to assume that Ace would have gone by his mother's name as soon as he learned about her. However, we don't know when Ace learned about Rouge. Ace does know about Roger though, as some of his earliest childhood flashbacks show him beating up people who say that Roger's child should be killed. So Ace knew in childhood who his father was but doesn't seem to know who his mother was, or at least didn't know her family name.

I think we as a fandom just assume that Garp told Ace about Rouge early on, and maybe he did tell Ace some things, but there's actually no indication that Garp told him about the name Portgas D. So if not from Garp, then who could Ace have feasibly learned that from?

(Now there does seem to be a little inconsistency with the timeline here. Sengoku also implies that Ace formed the Spade Pirates two years prior to the main story but that can't be true because when we first meet Ace in Alabasta, Luffy says that Ace set sail three years prior, when Ace was 17. The brothers made a pact to leave Dawn Island at 17 in honor of Sabo. Ace is 20 in Marineford so he had to have formed the Spades three years before that.

The first Ace Novel seems to take place very soon after Ace sets sail, meaning he's still 17 then. If he left on his birthday, January 1, then he's probably no more than a few days/weeks into being 17. He forms the Spades with Masked Deuce very early on in his time as a pirate, likely still 17. This is probably just a little continuity error. Or I'm looking too deep into something that's not really important lol.)

(And speaking of the first Ace Novel, Ace doesn't ever call himself Portgaz D in that book. I read it a few months ago and skimmed it just now and he only introduces himself to Deuce as simply "Ace" in chapter one. The book is written from Deuce's POV and reads a bit like a memoir, like it was written after the events took place. The only time I remember even seeing the name Portgaz D was in the prose right after they met on Sixis. No one ever refers to him with his surname though, it's always just "Ace" or "Fire Fist" or "Captain/Boss." This leads me to believe he wasn't going by Portgaz D at that point early in his pirate career.

However, in the second Ace Novel, he is referred to as "Portgaz D Ace" right from the prologue, which follows Whitebeard before he even meets Ace. So idk ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ )

Anyway, "two years" prior to the main story had to have been when Ace was already part of the Whitebeard pirates. It's not clear from the manga or Ace Novels exactly how much time passes between Ace forming the Spade pirates and joining Whitebeard. At least a few months but probably not a whole year. I think a little less than a year could be likely. He spent a few months taking the Spades through Paradise, then a little ways through the New World. Then they get captured by Whitebeard and spent another couple of months on board where Ace tried to kill Whitebeard before deciding to join him.

We know it was after Ace joined that he told Whitebeard about Roger being his father. It's not really shown but I think it could be very likely that Ace asked about Roger. I don't know how that conversation could have went because Ace very much still hates Roger after he joined the Whitebeards. If Newgate had told Ace about his friendly rivalry with Roger, it didn't seem to change how Ace felt about Roger.

Maybe this is a reach but I don't think it's outside of the realm of possibility that Ace asked Whitebeard about Rouge as well. A "You knew my father, did you know my mother too?" kind of thing. There's no indication that Whitebeard could have known Rouge or anything about her but I think it could be a possibility. Maybe that's how he learned the name Portgas D and decided to start using it, two years prior to the main story?

Anyone have thoughts on this?

[moviecritc]

a night to remember ⋆ mick schumacher

pairing: mick schumacher x fem!oc (named Dominique)

tropes: one night stand

summary: mick was feeling down in the bar with his friends and dominique came in the best moment to cheer him up, but after that night they found out they were going to work together for all the season.

warnings: insinuations, slutty behaviour from the oc

a/n: english is not my first language, sorry for the mistakes and poor storytelling.

wattpad | letterboxd | masterlist

Mick didn't wanted to be there, not at all.

They were in Sahkir, after the testing of the new season incoming and they didn't went as good as he thought it would be, so he was feeling a bit down. But anyways George dragged him to the bar with him and other fellow drivers.

They were all drinking for fun and vibing to the music because their testing went really well. Mick, on the other hand, have already seen critics of his way of driving and people comparing him to his dad. He hated that, everything he does is compared to what his father's done. Mick loved his father with all his heart, but he's not only his surname.

"Mick!" Lando shouted, already tipsy. "There's a gorgeous blonde that can't take her eyes off you!"

"What?" was the only thing he could articulate. Mick looked around, trying to find that girl probably Lando has invented.

"That girl," he pointed directly at her, making her lift her eyes to him. "She's eyeing you, you see that?"

"Maybe because you're pointing at her so bad it even hurts me," Mick said, rolling his eyes.

"Nah, she was looking at you before. Trust me on this one, bro," Lando insisted. He took a long sip of his drink, finishing it. And after that he ordered another one to the waiter

"I'm not really in the mood, and you should stop drinking," Mick advised, pressing his lips.

Lando let out a long sigh and even rolled his eyes to make it more dramatic.

"Yeah, whatever. She's pretty, and you're pretty too," Lando argued. Mick lost the thread of the conversation, since when Lando thinks he's pretty? "I think you should go and talk to her."

"And I think you should stop thinking,"

"Why are you so boring, man!" Lando said, almost shouting.

"I told you, I'm not in the mood," he remarked, sipping in his drink.

"You know what?" Lando said. Mick thought it was a retorical question, but then he saw Lando truly waiting for him to answer.

"What?" he wondered, with a long face.

"If you're not talking to her, she is talking to you!" Lando said, before getting up.

"Wait, what the fuck?!" Mick tried to grab Lando's shirt, but he was already really close to that girl. "Fuck..."

He gazed out the whole scene; how Lando started talking -bothering- that girl by tapping her in the shoulder and how she looked totally confused about what he was saying. Then, Lando pointed at him and that girl, instead of frowning and giving him a bad look, as Mick thought it would be, she smiled at him softly and wave him shyly.

Lando took her with his arm and walked her to Mick.

"Mick, mate! This is Dominique, isn't she gorgeous? I told her you said that, so you have to agree with me," Lando said very fast, stepping on the words.

"Uh, yeah," he was getting nervous. "I mean, absolutely! You are gorgeous, yes."

Dominique gave him a wide smiled but she quickly began to blushed.

"Well, I'm gonna find George and all this people, so you can have a little bit of peace," Lando said and when he left, he winked ant Mick in the weirdest way possible.

Dominique sat by his side at the bar counter and ordered a cocktail to the waiter. "Thanks," she said, when the waiter returned with her drink. "So..."

She was ready to start a conversation, but Mick interrupted her with a grin.

"I'm really sorry about my friend, he is drunk and I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable," he excused himself, pressing his lips together.

"Oh, no worries! I mean, I was actually eyeing you," Dominique admited.

"You were?" Mick was totally surprised, and maybe a bit excited.

"Yeah! I came here with my friends and I've been telling them all night that you looked really cute from afar, and even cuter this close," she lean a bit into him, brushing their shoulders. Mick couldn't say a word. "Now you have to compliment me back, darling."

"Oh! Yeah, I've said it before, you are stunning," he said, trying so hard to not hesitate.

She laughed. "So, what are you doing in Sahkir? You don't look very local, we're not gonna lie,"

"Neither do you," They both laughed. "I'm working here,"

"Oh, me too!" Dominique said. "Well, sort of. Tomorrow is my first day,"

"Nice," Mick was going to add something, but Dominique quickly took the word

"So... you wanna hook up or something?" she asked, finishing her drink.

Mick almost have forgotten why Dominique was talking to him. She just wanted to hook up, that was her aim since their first interaction. Flirt a bit and then go straight to fucking.

"Okay," he agreed.

She was a beautiful woman and definitely his type, why would he denied it?

Mick felt off the whole time. They didn't have that connection like his other relationships, they were just two strangers fucking. And it hurt him knowing that Dominique only talked to him looking for sex.

Maybe he's just an idiot but for a few seconds he thought they were connecting in some way. Obviously, the next morning she was gone.

🌷🌷🌷

"Girl, I just hooked up with some random guy," Dominique rushed to get out of the hotel where she left Mick sleeping.

The first thing she did was calling her best friend, who was in the other side of the country.

"Dom! We talked about this," her friend said, sighting. "You have to stop turning into a slut everytime you drink."

"Hey, I'm not a slut, I'm slutty. Know the difference," Dominique tried defending herself.

But her friend was totally right, when Dominique gets drunk she doesn't scream or crazy dances, she flirts with every guy that appears in her way. Before Mick she also was watching some of his friends aswell, but it was Mick the one who caught her eye.

She hated that facet of her, going hungover her first day of work is not something to be proud of. She just got hired by Haas to be an engineer in the upcoming season of Formula 1. Dom actually didn't adore the job, she was never a fan of the sport, or any sport in general. But travelling all around the world sounds too good to say no. And also the pay really good.

Her new collegues were the ones who dragged her to the bar that night. "I think I'm gonna kill myself," she said to her friend, still on the phone. "I was awful, awfully awful. I turn into a horny bitch-ass anytime I drink,"

Dominique sighed and she drink a long sip of water, in an attempt to make her headache leave.

"No man peace," her friend said, with a little laugh.

"Oh, shut up. It makes me fell like a horrible person. And the man seemed so sweet and nice,"

"You're not a horrible person," her friend assured. "You're just slutty,"

Dominique rolled her eyes. "Ok, I'm gonna hung up now,"

She took a taxi to get to the circuit where the practics where being held. It was the first time in all her life that she has put a feet in a Formula 1 circuit. One of the workers of Haas show her the whole place, ending the sort-of-tour in the Haas garage.

"And this is Mick, you are going to be his engineer the whole season," he said and right after that he leaves them alone.

They both recognized each other at the very first moment. She could've been drunk as fuck, but Mick has the bluest eyes she has ever seen and she remember them perfectly.

"Wait, you work here?" Mick asked, astonished.

"Yeah... isn't that obvious?" Dominique pressed her lips together, forcing her to not smile.

"Well, you didn't tell me yesterday," he argued.

"I was focusing on your pretty eyes," Dominique admited.

Mick lower his eyes for a moment, hiding his blushed cheeks to get into character again.

"You know, you're not the first person of referred to me as pretty," he said with a smirk.

"You should be proud, pretty boy," She didn't know why they were flirting in that way. "I actually thought you would be mad at me,"

"Yeah? Why?" he questioned, crossing his arms by his chest.

"Well, I wasn't very nice the other night. But it's something that happens to me when I'm drunk, and I also weren't in the mood of talking," she admited.

"Oh, really?" he exaggered. "I didn't even realize."

Dominique looked away because of Mick's sarcasm. "If you're going to start with sex jokes I'm gonna leave," she made the gesture of going away. "I'm sorry, ok? I was a total bitch yesterday..."

Mick didn't say anything.

"Now it's when you deny it and tell me that I'm super cool and gorgeous," Dominique insisted, biting her lips.

"It's okay. Dominique, right?" They both laughed.

"Yes. You were Mick, right?" she didn't leave him time to answer. "I don't know why I asked, I totally remember your name,"

"Ok, now I'm impressed!" Mick said, walking with her to the inside of the garage.

"I told you, I'm a cool person. And I actually thought you were cute," she remarked.

"Really?"

"No,"

They bursted into laughs.

"You're funny," Mick said.

"No, I'm being serious. I don't like you at all," she insisted, still smiling. "Like, if you asked me for a date I probably throw up,"

"Now you're being dramatic. You can't be that level of dramatic with someone you just met," Mick said, frowning in a very cute way for Dom's eyes.

"Try me,"

Mick didn't even think twice. "You wanna go on a date with me?"

"Yes,"

They went silent for a few seconds. "So no vomit?"

"No... sorry for disappointing you, darling," Dominique pressed her lips together.

"Calling me darling without being on a date, how lustful," Mick rolled his eyes.

"Alright, bro," Dominique hit him with her fist in his shoulder. "Don't you think we should get some work done? Let's do some driving and strategic shit,"

Mick blinked a couple of times. "Do you know anything about Formula 1?"

"Not at all,"

"Cool,"

"You see? I'm super cool,"

"I didn't mean you,"

"Shut up, Mick." she said right after. "Or I'll cut your brakes,"

They kept that dynamic for the rest of the day. Dom's insinuations increased practicaly every minute, and Mick adored answering her something three times worse. And at the end of the week the long-awaited date arrived.

Even though they were staying at the same hotel, Mick insisted coming and pick her up.

"Oh, hi," Dominique said with a smirk. She chose a nice light pink dress and he was wearing a linen shirt. "It's nice seeing you with something different than fireproofs and that awful suit."

"You can't say that, Dom. It's bad for the team image," Mick insisted.

She loved that he started calling her Dom instead of the usual Dominique, it made her blushed in the craziest way.

"Darling, we have no team image," Dominique said, smiling.

Mick rolled his eyes dramaticly. All over the week she didn't stop bullying the team. She was right about all the things she says? Absolutely. But if someone except from Mick hears her, she probably will be jobless again.

"Where are you taking me?" Dominique asked, hooking his arm to Mick's.

"I know a nice restaurant in the city, sounds good?"

"Sounds delightful," she smiled softly. "You're paying, right?"

Mick bursted into laughs. "Of fucking course, I'm a gentleman,"

"If you say so,"

"Then we can do fifty/fifty," Mick shrugged his shoulders, pursing his lips.

"Alright, I'll stop. I'm ready to have a nice and relaxing evening," Dom said. "And then we're fucking."

"On the first date? Daring,"

"Deny it," she made a short pause. "Go on, deny it,"

The silence was loud and then Mick looked at her with a devilish smile. Mick drove to the restaurant while Dominique was changing the song every minute. At the restaurant he sat facing the window and they ordered food to share.

They talked and laughed a little bit too loud. The dinner went so good that Dominique was worried, how can a human being be that interesting and that cute?

"Hey," Dominique changed the way of the conversation when they were arriving to the hotel. "We're not going to fuck."

"Really? I thought that was all you wanted. Again,"

Dominique, between laughs said, "No, I'm being serious. I want to do this in the right way,"

"Wait, we're going to have three dates so I can kiss you?" Mick said, wide-opening his eyes.

"No, no. I was hoping you would kiss me like... right now?"

"Cool,"

Mick leaned into her, and she had to stoped him so she could control her laugh and finally their lips interwinted. In that fleeting moment, time seemed to stand still as they lost themselves in each other. She could feel her heart racing, matching the rhythm of his own. Dom entangled her hands in Mick's hair, pushing him closer to her.

Mick put a hand in her back and she took that as a sign to separate their lips.

"Mick, hey," Dominique said, connecting looks with Mick. He was totally blushed. "I'm being serious, I want to take things slowly."

"Okay, I can do that," he nodded, with a soft smile.

"I mean, we are working together so maybe if we go very fast we'll have problems and I don't really want to have problems, because you're very sweet and I like you."

She left out a long breath.

"You like me?" he faked susprise. Dominique rolled her eyes and then she felt how Mick grabbed her hand softly. "I like you too, Dom. Just to be clear,"

"Oh, thank you. How thoughtful,"

Mick laughed. "C'mon, I'll walk you to the door of your room."

[theamityelf]

(Mini THH AU Masterlist)

In the Mini THH AU, the first motive is a little different. Closer to the THH first motive:

Each of the senpais is given an envelope and told that it contains a true thing that happened to someone or something they love during the time they don't remember.

(The kouhais don't get directly targeted for any motive stuff; being physically tiny during a killing game is already a pretty big motive, and they themselves serve as motives to their senpais in different ways.)

Imposter pretty immediately orders the group not to open their envelopes: The envelopes are explicitly designed to make them want to start the killing game. "So long as your envelope is sealed, we'll know that you have no motive to kill anyone." (Meaning, anyone with an open envelope will become a suspect.)

Fuyuhiko of course ignores him and opens his envelope and takes out a photograph of his dead sister, with a caption that reads 'Natsumi Kuzuryu, beaten to death by Sato [surname]'. He freaks out, but someone points out that the photo could be edited/fake, to upset him into murdering someone.

Nagito says, "Why don't you ask Mahiru? I'm sure the Ultimate Photographer would know the difference between an edited and unedited photo."

Fuyuhiko brandishes the photo at Mahiru, demanding to know whether it's fake.

Mahiru knows that the photo isn't edited. But she sees the caption and just generally reads the room enough to know that she can't tell them that, so she says it's fake and makes up a really detailed reason why she can tell it's fake, related to the size of the lens, etc.

Fuyuhiko isn't entirely mollified, but he subsides for the moment, basically storming off. Now everyone's curious what's in their envelope, but Imposter and Mahiru remind everyone that the photos are fake and they can't let Monokuma trick them into killing each other, so they don't open their envelopes. They go back to their cabins.

In his cabin, Nagito checks his envelope. Makoto thinks it's a bad idea, but Nagito brushes off his concerns with a smile.

The photo is just of his house on fire, with a caption matter-of-factly referring to an angry mob. Nagito shrugs, like, "It happens."

Makoto says, "I'm sorry about your house. I hope your family is okay."

Nagito explains that his family is dead and cheerfully brushes off attempts to comfort him about it, but ultimately he and Makoto have a pretty nice conversation. Under normal circumstances, he might want the others to open their envelopes, but Makoto has convinced him not to instigate in that way.

In her cabin, Mahiru opens her envelope.

It shows a picture of her dad, with a caption saying he was killed by Kazuichi. (A lot of the envelopes say the loved ones were killed by Kazuichi, because the machines he made count as his own kills. Though it doesn't explain that much; it just says he killed them.) She knows the photo isn't edited.

Teruteru may or may not open his envelope; if he does, he'll convince himself the contents are a lie. Imposter not only doesn't open his, but he puts it where no one else can find or open it, successfully preventing Junko from implicating him. Mikan doesn't open hers. Gundham maybe doesn't open it at first, but Toko or Syo talk him into it, or Syo just opens it herself and once the seal is broken he may as well look. Nekomaru, Chiaki, Sonia, Akane, and Hajime don't open theirs.

Ibuki doesn't open hers, but Sayaka opens it for her. Once again, a loved one killed by "Kazuichi".

Hiyoko opens hers; same deal.

Peko has to open hers to make sure Fuyuhiko isn't the only one with a motive, and hers is maybe a person she trained with or under. Also killed by Kazuichi.

Kazuichi doesn't open his, but he does notice that some of his classmates are looking at him differently and treating him oddly. They don't admit that they've opened their envelopes, but their hostile or skittish vibes toward him make his nervousness skyrocket, to the point where Chihiro is the one comforting him.

Peko in particular frightens him. Since the person in her envelope was probably yakuza, Fuyuhiko gives her the go-ahead to confront him, demanding an explanation.

Which of course he can't give, and the confrontation is inconclusive on her end and very scary on his. He was probably fearing for his life the whole time.

So, when Mahiru tries to pull him aside one evening, he's already super on edge; he thinks it's Peko coming back to finish him off. Maybe he swings his wrench at her, in what he perceives as self-defense, and she dodges, takes it as a deliberate attack, and impulsively pushes him down the stairs or something of the sort.

(As he's falling, Chihiro flies out of his pocket and then lands on his chest. Possibly injured by the fall, but not dead. Kazuichi is, though. Sorry I keep killing him first, but if it helps, he had a great dynamic with Chihiro before this. Super respectful. They unpacked a lot of their hangups about gender together. It was great.)

Mahiru bursts into tears, shocked and horrified, and that's when Nagito happens across her, dries her tears, and offers his help covering up the crime.

A distraught Mahiru basically just watches dazedly as Nagito puts Makoto in his pocket and zips it up, hides Chihiro someplace safe but out of the way (maybe just taking them back to their terrarium in Kazuichi's cabin, where they have food and water already, and making it so the electric door won't open), and moves the body to where it won't be found until later.

He encourages her to just return to her own cabin and get some rest. And calm her kouhai; Hifumi looks really stressed, and it would be bad if he gave her away.

While he's in Kazuichi's cabin hiding Chihiro away, he also opens Kazuichi's envelope to complicate things and makes various tool sounds so people will think Kazuichi is in there working, to confuse the time of death. And he briefly takes Makoto out of his pocket, to try to calm him down (and also feed him, because they will be missing breakfast; if he went to breakfast and didn't let Makoto out of his pocket, people would notice, and if he did let Makoto out of his pocket, Makoto would tell people what happened).

Plus, not showing up to breakfast would make him a suspect, which is good for the mystery.

"I know you're upset, but you really should eat," Nagito sighs, holding Makoto securely in one hand and a palm full of breadcrumbs in the other. "It's going to be a long day. Hey, it's not too hot in my pocket, is it? I'm not sure how your small body handles my body heat. I'll just wrap an ice cube in a napkin and put it in there with you, okay?"

[selkiewife]

Symbolism in the Alicent and Rhaenyra Confrontation

I can't stop thinking of the potential symbolism of the confrontation between Alicent and Rhaenyra in the Driftmark Episode. The inclusion of the Night King slaying catspaw dagger (which we find out in HOTD is also Aegon's dagger) charged the whole scene with Azor Ahai and Nissa Nissa symbolism for me. I wondered if anyone else felt the same? 

The hidden inscription that Aegon had the pyromancers put on the blade- From my blood come the prince that was promised and his will be the song of ice and fire- was likely intended to mean from his (Aegon's) bloodline. But when Alicent drew Rhaenyra's blood with the dagger it got me wondering whether it could mean the blood that the dagger spills. As if the dagger itself is speaking- from my blood (the blood that I spill) comes the prince that was promised.

And then that made me think about the parallels between two people that are cut by Aegon's dagger in showverse: Rhaenyra and Catelyn. They are both mothers defending their children who are voluntarily sacrificing themselves (if need be) for the greater good (their kids) which is very similar to Nissa Nissa:

"... 'Nissa Nissa,' he said to her, for that was her name, 'bare your breast, and know that I love you best of all that is in this world.' She did this thing, why I cannot say, and Azor Ahai thrust the smoking sword through her living heart. It is said that her cry of anguish and ecstasy left a crack across the face of the moon, but her blood and her soul and her strength and her courage all went into the steel. Such is the tale of the forging of Lightbringer, the Red Sword of Heroes. ~ A Clash of Kings, Davos I

I remember a while ago @st-clements-steps brought up the fact that everyone is always trying to figure out who Azor Ahai is when Nissa Nissa is as equally (if not more) interesting since she is the person who CHOOSES to sacrifice themselves to save the world. She is described as someone who voluntarily presents herself as a sacrifice. I think that a mother defending her child and willing to sacrifice her life for theirs is a really powerful Nissa Nissa image. Nissa Nissa sacrifices herself to save the future of the world. The Mothers (Rhaenyra and Catelyn) putting their bodies between a dagger and their child is a similar symbolic idea. 

Whether it is the blood that flows from the dagger or the bloodline- the fact that it is two mothers whose blood is spilled by the dagger feels significant. Corlys was right when he said "History does not remember blood, it remembers names." And what names are the ones that are remembered? Well, the male ones. The surnames of the noble males are the ones that are passed down. Aegon himself believed that the Prince that was Promised would come from his bloodline. But interestingly, "his line" comes from his sister, Rhaenys the Conquerer, who was rumored to have lovers:

Whilst no one ever questioned Visenya’s fidelity to her brother-husband, Rhaenys surrounded herself with comely young men, and (it was whispered) even entertained some in her bedchambers on the nights when Aegon was with her elder sister. ~ Fire and Blood, Aegon's Conquest

So even though all the Targaryens are related to Aegon, there is a chance that the direct line of rulers is from Rhaenys and whomever she chose as her lover. Which I’d like. It doesn’t make Aegon wrong. It’s still his blood since it is his sister's blood. But I love how it also subverts what he believes as well. And in a way that makes women and bastards more important than true born male heirs. In the world of asoiaf, so much emphasis is put on the importance of trueborn male heirs. And yet, the two charcters most likely to be the Prince that was Promised are Daenerys Targaryen and/or Jon Snow. A woman and a bastard.

And speaking of that, the idea of the Prince that was Promised being a girl or a woman is supported by both the novels and by the show. As Maester Aemon said in the novels:

"No one ever looked for a girl... It was a prince that was promised, not a princess. Rhaegar, I thought … the smoke was from the fire that devoured Summerhall on the day of his birth, the salt from the tears shed for those who died. He shared my belief when he was young, but later he became persuaded that it was his own son who fulfilled the prophecy, for a comet had been seen above King’s Landing on the night Aegon was conceived, and Rhaegar Targaryen was certain the bleeding star had to be a comet. What fools we were, who thought ourselves so wise! The error crept in from the translation. Dragons are neither male nor female, Barth saw the truth of that, but now one and now the other, as changeable as flame. The language misled us all for a thousand years. Daenerys is the one, born amidst salt and smoke. The dragons prove it." ~ A Feast for Crows, Samwell IV

And Missandei explained from the show:

MISSANDEI: Your Grace, forgive me, but your translation is not quite accurate. That noun has no gender in High Valyrian, so the proper translation for that prophecy would be, "The prince or princess who was promised will bring the dawn. ~ GAME OF THRONES, Season 7, Episode 7: "Stormborn"

And then, of course, Arya Stark (an unlikely girl) is the one in the show to slay the Night King.

So it is interesting that in the confrontation between Alicent and Rhaenyra, we have the role of the Azor Ahai being symbolized by Alicent- an incredibly “unlikely” person to symbolize Azor Ahai or The Prince that was Promised. And yet, taking into consideration the idea of “we never looked for a girl,” and considering that it was actually Arya who was the girl that saved the world, it makes a lot of sense. It’s even roughly the same choreography. You have person 1 (Rhaenyra and the Night King) facing person 2 (Luke and Bran) and then person 1 turns around and stops the hand of person 3 (Alicent and Arya) who has unexpectedly showed up with Aegon’s dagger in their hand. Obviously the roles of protection are reversed here (with Rhaenyra protecting Luke against Alicent’s knife instead of Arya’s knife protecting Bran) but it’s still an interesting parallel linking Alicent and Arya as the unlikely wielders of the magical prophetic weapon. Unlikely because they are girls/women (“we never looked for a girl.”) Unlikely because they are not Targaryens. 

But! Are they truly not? Alicent- a mother of Targaryens- could symbolize Dany the mother of Dragons (yes! Dany is the only mother of literal dragons but I’m talking symbolism here.) She is also a Targaryen by marriage. And she was a forced child bride in the show- another parallel to Dany. There have been better posts that you can find explaining the role of Dany as an Azor Ahai figure in the books. But we are talking mostly about the show canon and in the show, Alicent can also be symbolizing and foreshadowing Arya. I originally thought that Arya could also end up having Targaryen blood if the show decided to make the rumored Jace and Sara Snow romance canon but it looks like that is not going to happen. However, Arya's dagger is still "tempered" by her mother's blood, so perhaps mothers' blood is the magic and not necessarily a Targaryen mother's blood. This also supports the idea that the prophesies come true- but not in the way the dreamer/interpreter believes they will. Arya and Rhaenyra are also shown to have a lot of parallels so perhaps there is symbolic link more than a literal blood link between them. Or perhaps Rhaenyra is the Nissa Nissa to Arya's Azor Ahai (and in the books it may still be Daenerys or Jon.) I think Rhaenyra putting herself in harm's way to protect Luke (her bastard) can also foreshadow Lyanna dying to birth Jon Snow.

On the whole, I do think it is really interesting that Rhaenyra and Alicent mirror Nissa Nissa and Azor Ahai in this scene. Especially when you consider the potential homoerotic undertones to their friendship. According to the legend, Azor Ahai and Nissa Nissa did love each other before one killed the other. Though it is a change from the books, I like how the relationship between Alicent and Rhaenyra highlight the asoiaf theme that, as Arya says, "The woman is important too!" Nissa Nissa is important. The dead mothers are important. The unremembered blood of mothers is important. Bastards are important. The relationships between women are important. The unlikely heroes are important.

tagging @targaryenfamilyorgy who wrote this post

[princesssascha]

hey please reply??? Can I change my dob from 1997 to 2001 ?? Can I change my boyfriends surname and caste change & does it change on people’s memory & documents too???

DOB & surname change + success story

DOB CHANGE

I saw a success story once of someone your age saying that she manifested a dob change, it didn't affect people's memories but it did affect her documents. The docs didn't magically change dates but she had to get her new ID with her new real dob.

That doesn't mean it can't affect other people's memories, it just didn't happen in her scenario.

That story was honestly so inspiring because it shows that you really are the creator and although it seems impossible for most people, she persisted and her 3D complied.

Time is a man-made concept to make life a little easier. After all it's easier to say "let's meet this Sunday at 4:30pm" than if we didn't have time measurements. Time itself however does not exist. You make it real.

SURNAME CHANGE

I actually had my mom change her surname after her divorce even tho she didn't want to at first. I never used her previous surname as she only had it for the duration of her marriage and I wasn't used to it, so I really didn't even do it on purpose. She said that she won't go back to her previous surname, but a few months after her divorce she changed it!

I manifested it and I wasn't even aware that I did it until a few months later. I ignored the 3D and persisted that we have the same surname because we're family and again, the 3D complied.

People change surnames all the time, so it's totally possible for your boyfriend to have a different surname.

If your bf doesn't want to change his surname; make him want it.

Hope that answered some of your questions, remember, you are the creator

[yuri-is-online]

I’ve had this thought in my mind for awhile, but I think there’s even more lore(?)/more to Haku & Tohma’s relationship. That’s shown I mean! Hear me out: in the first episode MC is unable to find a ride. All of the cars seem to be ignoring her. The trains were stopped bc of an earthquake. MC uses catsmo. Totally not coincidentally, Haku joins the ride. I’m assuming Tohma was behind both the earthquake (stigma) and the cars ignoring her. A part of me is like, what if Tohma had contacted Haku to intervene? Tohma appearing out of nowhere to bring her back would definitely give away that he’s keeping watch. So Haku, the only other ghoul that she knows/that could show up (Taiga being restricted, Jin never leaving his room), is the go to dude.

All of this then leads me to thinking- what if Haku had gotten the skeleton key from Tohma? The other option would be the Chancellor or a Professor. Either or, there’s some level of trust for him to have it. Unless he stole it LOL.

Also… The campus run-in scene between them both is so interesting?? To me at least haha. I’m torn between: Tohma being unhappy to see Haku because he’s the spy/or the main suspect of it hence calling him a snake (dodge viper). Or the comment stemming from Haku transferring out of Frostheilm thus being a snake in that sense. Or both, it could be both fr.

Sorry for the long ask! I’m just really enticed by whatever’s going on

Long asks are welcome here, be not afraid to ramble if my ask box is open you are free to yap.

So first off, I highly doubt that Haku got the skeleton key from Tohma. Tohma specifically says that he got permission to use the key from the school, something he is able to do due to having a good relationship and reputation with Darkwick's staff. It is not his artifact, nor is it in the care of Frostheim; that makes me think it is an artifact similar to the Fox Robe, something that the school keeps on hand for missions that ghouls can either request use of as needed or they have multiple of, but only if it is deemed necessary by the staff. Professor Moby appears to be the one in charge of artifact permits from Taiga's bond story, and he is also the advisor for Hotarubi, so if he is the one you would get permission from Haku might have an even easier time than Tohma does. Haku is also someone that the Chancellor seems to trust, "Have I ever lied to you?" wouldn't be a convincing argument otherwise.

Their relationship seems tense based off of that campus event, but they seem to have been close at one point. Tohma refers to Haku by his surname Kusanagi, while Haku calls Tohma by his first name. Tohma offers him a smoke, but Haku says he's been trying to quit... they still haven't added the damn affection chats back so I can't see what's up but from what I understand Haku also seems to have transferred dormitories and people see this as him "switching sides." Remember! Tohma wasn't in Frostheim until half a year ago and we don't know when Haku transferred. I'd assume it was around the same time as you typically need special permission to transfer, but the fallout of the Clash seems to have resulted in multiple transfers to help smooth over the balance of power. We know why Tohma went to Frostheim, he wants to use Jin for some reason, so why did Haku go to Hotarubi? And what was his previous house? Was he also in Vagastrom with Tohma and Alan? Or was he somewhere else?

While Tohma could have been behind the earthquake due to his stigma, the cars ignoring her felt more like the result of her curse or the sage's ring than anything he could realistically pull off. I doubt he would ask Haku to go get the MC when he is someone he doesn't refer to by his first name and calls a snake to his face... it's possible of course depending on when he begin to suspect him but we don't know enough about their previous friendship, if one existed at all, to make that call. To me Haku finding the MC suggested one of three things: 1) Darkwick is watching MC due to her history of running away and tasked Haku with doing that, 2) Haku has been watching MC of his own accord for his own purposes or 3) Haku knew MC would try to run away because we are stuck in a timeloop and she did this before. I like option 3 best myself, but anything is possible at this point.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts with me, I worry I'm a bit too sus of Haku for my own good that I neglect to think about all the ways Tohma is too. I should do that a bit more, no one wears a monocle that isn't weird af

[nowoyas]

Koi no Yokan 8: a change of scenery might help (Nishinoya Yuu/Reader)

First - Prev - Next - M.list - Ao3

Summary: Training camp season starts with an overnight weekend trip to Nekoma high school.

Warnings: blanket series warnings, very slight suggestiveness

Words: ~2800

Look, it's not that you don't try to sleep. It's just that—I mean, moving bus, too quiet, you can't exactly lay down or get comfortable, and that's not to mention the scenery out the window. You completely disregard your book two pages in—admittedly because the bus is too dark to read comfortably, something you probably should have expected and planned for, but also because once you start moving, it's the perfect environment to rest your forehead against the glass and watch Japan pass you by.

Like this, bus hoodie on and pulled up, you'll look asleep to anyone actually awake on the bus, which you're pretty sure is just Takeda-sensei and Coach Ukai, speaking to each other in low voices two rows ahead of you.

Like this, it's easy to let your mind wander. First to generic fantasizing, wondering how the book you've set aside will continue and where the plot's going, then, inevitably, to the idea you've been avoiding eye contact with:

How do you know whether your dad comes home tonight?

~

You must have fallen asleep at some point in spite of everything, because you wake up to a gentle hand on your shoulder, shaking you just enough to pull you out of sleep.

"[name]-sannn," a familiar voice sings, uncharacteristically quiet.

"Mmgh," you reply.

"C'mon, we're almost at Nekoma! We're in Tokyo, you gotta wake up!"

You let out a whine of complaint, but it does not sway him, not even when it breaks off into a poorly-timed yawn.

"You're very cute, and I do need you to marry me after that, but you still gotta get up."

You groan, refusing to open your eyes. "Stop makin' fun of me and ask nine hundred sixty-eight more times."

An offended gasp. "You don't remember? It's nine hundred sixty-seven. You were half asleep for the last one."

A single eye opens. You must have missed whatever shuffle went on, because Yachi (who had been in the seat across the aisle from you with Shimizu) is now one row back, Noya perched on the end of the seat to shake you awake. "If I don't remember it, you need proof or it doesn't count."

"Ryu! I proposed to [name]-san when she wouldn't wake up at the rest stop, right?"

"He did," Tanaka's voice confirms from further back in the bus.

Narita pipes up: "Sorry, [surname]-chan, but I can confirm this one."

"See? Nine hundred and sixty-seven to go."

One final groan of complaint as you sit up. "Fine. I'm up." A slow, languid stretch, a move to put your book away and fold your bus hoodie into your bag so you can be presentable for the Tokyo guys. Noya is pulled back a few rows on the bus by a stern Sawamura, allowing Yachi to rejoin you in the designated girls' row as you get yourself together.

The bus erupts in a loud buzz of distinctly athletic excitement as the corner is turned into the Nekoma High School parking lot. Noya and Tanaka are really doing their best to maintain the same club volume as usual without the usual perpetrators, but there's even a decent level of excitement from the others—Shimizu had informed you the other day about Nekoma, about a rekindled rivalry between the schools. It's all beyond you, but again, you never were the athletic type.

The guys hurry off the bus. You, for your part, take your time, let the others file off while you get your bag organized. As you join the others in the parking lot, legs stiff from hours in a bus seat, the usual duo shouts.

"It's the Skytree!" Noya says, pointing at… a transmission tower.

You stifle a laugh. "It's not, but lend me some of that enthusiasm."

Several guys have come out to meet the lot of you—black shirts, red pants. You remember from what Shimizu told you that there's several schools at this camp, but the host school is the one that your club has any previous connections with. Logic follows: this would be guys from Nekoma.

You let Shimizu split your little group off from the guys, follow a few steps behind them as you take in the school. Honestly, nothing looks… that different. Flatter, maybe, and the school is definitely a little nicer than Karasuno.

It's a cry of anguish that snaps you out of your thoughts. You catch up to Shimizu and Yachi, peer around Shimizu curiously to spot the Nekoma guy who's fallen to his knees before them. He's got a Mohawk. Sick.

At the sight of you, he appears to burst into tears, Tanaka laughing over him.

"You got three managers? What the hell, man? Hot one… cute one… pretty one…"

A laugh from behind you. A hand on your shoulder.

"The pretty one's off-limits, though," Noya says smugly. "She'll be marrying me."

You roll your eyes, smile flicking to your lips. "Is that you asking me?"

"Yes!"

"And you're really not giving up?"

"Of course I won't! Who do you take me for?"

"Let's go," Shimizu whispers to you.

You nod to her, brush Noya's hand off your shoulder. "Nine hundred sixty-six. Don't get into trouble this weekend."

Shimizu leads you away. You're off to meet the other managers at the camp, which is sure to involve moving less men to tears than walking through the gates did.

"Tokyo's intense," Yachi whispers as you make some distance between you and Mohawk Guy.

You nod. "Those two weren't kidding about us making them cooler just by being here."

Yachi frowns. "I still really don't know that that's true, but…"

"You got assigned 'the cute one'. Be proud of it, y'know?"

She grips the straps of her backpack, watching her feet as she walks. "I guess."

~

There are four other managers at this camp. You meet them in rapid succession: two third-years at Fukurodani (a small comfort to you as one of two first-years at Karasuno; at least two managers in the same year isn't completely unheard of), a second-year from Ubugawa, and a third-year from Shinzen.¹⁶ In other words, you and Yachi are the youngest ones here. They're all very friendly, at least; Ubugawa's manager (Miyanoshita) leads the three of you to where you'll be sleeping that night to set your bags down, chattering the whole way about the different teams here. You do your best to absorb, do your best not to lose the rundowns she's given you.

Fukurodani has one of the best aces in the country and is considered a top-four team in Japan. Shinzen is really good at combination plays. Nekoma focuses on defense. Ubugawa focuses on heavy serves. Their members have to serve a hundred times at the end of each normal practice.

"How do their arms not rip off serving like that?" Yachi whispers.

"They're a rich kid school," you whisper back, "they just put the arms back on afterward."

"Eep! C-can you imagine?"

"They have to surgically reinforce their joints to play good volleyball. They're all secretly cyborgs. That's why athletes act so weird; they're slowly becoming robots."

Shimizu nods solemnly. "That would explain a lot about our own boys."

"I haven't actually gotten to hear a lot about Karasuno!" Miyanoshita says. "I guess your school is closer tied to Nekoma, but they don't have a manager, so I couldn't ask anyone about it…"

"Ah, Karasuno is more of an offensive team," Shimizu says, launching into a more detailed explanation that you quickly tune out. You're more than happy to let the other girls handle the social angle.

It's like a sleepover. Spend the night sleeping on the floor with a bunch of girls talking about, like, boys or whatever. You've never been on a sleepover and you've never particularly wanted to be.

The gym where the actual training camp is taking place is not only huge, but packed with guys. You took enough time getting your things put down that Karasuno's already warmed up and been given their jerseys, waiting to join the rotation.

The setup is simple enough. Four teams play at once—one versus another—and the team that loses a set has to do a penalty lap of something called 'diving drills' around the gym. Karasuno will jump in the play the winner of whatever set finishes next and join the rotation accordingly.

Intimidated as Yachi is about how intense the other four schools here are, you're just tired already. Maybe you didn't sleep enough on the bus, maybe it's just the weather, but you're tired.

Karasuno lines up to play their first set, you stand in position to observe, and you hope they play well enough to let you stay awake for the day.

~

Alright, so you'd sort of had the impression from the one practice match you've seen and how serious everyone in the volleyball club is that they were, like, reasonably pretty good. Shimizu even told you as much—some of the best offense in the prefecture rings a bell. But then, you're not in Miyagi prefecture, and these are some of the proven best schools in a much larger region.

So you shouldn't be too surprised to watch your boys get their asses handed to them, repeatedly.

Of course, some of this is partially the distinct lack of Kageyama and Hinata, who really do appear to be the core of the team's play style, but even when the two rush in three hours late and trailed by a tall blonde woman who's much less out of breath, it only improves a little bit. They do penalty lap after penalty lap, and you busy yourself with making drinks, passing out towels, and counting how many diving drills it takes for a single boy to do one lap around the gym. As usual, you find yourself picking one player and following him. And as usual, it ends up being Noya.

After a long day of watching your boys lose and growing progressively more frustrated (the comment you overhear from one of the guys on another team is they're just sort of… normal?) you once again pass out drinks, resolved to be a comfort, if nothing else, to the guys after a rather spectacular losing streak.

"Otsukare,"¹⁷ you chirp as Noya takes a bottle from you.

"Marry me," he groans.

You laugh. "That's not how you say thank you, I think."

He shoots you a pitiful look. "I'm starving."

"I promise you'll live. You've just gotta survive the half hour until dinner."

"I can't, [name]-san. I need you to fuel me—"

You flick his forehead gently. "Keep your sweat off me," you tease. "You're all gross."

"But [name]-san—"

"Don't you but me. Drink your water and sit down for a little bit so you can make it to the cafeteria without collapsing."

He groans, sits plaintively on the floor beside you. "We're getting our asses kicked," he complains. "How am I supposed to look cool in front of pretty girls if we're getting our asses kicked?"

"I think maybe if you tried winning instead of looking cool in front of pretty girls, that might work. Shimizu-senpai doesn't respond well to overt attempts to get her attention, anyway."

"It's cute that you think I'm talking about Kiyoko-san."

"Yachi-san gets stressed out if you address her directly, so she's even worse."

He glares heatlessly at you. "You do respond well to overt attempts to get your attention, so I'm gonna keep it up, thanks."

A moment of brief insanity leads you to ruffle his hair, completely ruining the barely-intact spikes. "I appreciate the initiative, Senpai. See you at dinner."

~

That night, you return to the room from the shower, towel draped over your head, and find yourself enthusiastically greeted by Suzumeda (Fukurodani manager #1). "[name]-chan! Glad you could join us!"

"Join you?" You furrow your brow. "…I gotta sleep here."

She laughs, guides you to sit on one of the futons laid out in a circle. At the center is a plate piled with snack cakes, which Otaki—Shinzen's manager—is very deliberately pushing the other Fukurodani manager's hand away from like she's a cat. There's drinks from the vending machine downstairs, too.

"It's Miyanoshita's birthday! We're doing a tiny little celebration."

That would explain the piece of paper someone's taped in a cone shape currently balancing precariously on Miyanoshita's head.

"Oh, you don't have to, like, include me in it, that's—"

"Nonsense! Come on, sit down, we've already gotten enough for everyone. Yacchan said you liked the banana yogurts, so that's what we got you."

Great. More guilt.

"Well, if you're sure… Uh, happy birthday, Miyanoshita-san."

She smiles, clearly embarrassed. "I had no idea they were setting this up."

"Your fault for mentioning your birthday last year!" Otaki cuts in. "Yuki-chan, quit that. You get your snacks after everyone else."

Shirofuku pouts. "But—"

"No buts. I've seen you eat more snack cakes than this in one shot."

You glance helplessly to Yachi. She's more swept up than you are, but she doesn't seem to want an out, so you have no way to get out while using her comfort as an excuse.

So you sit cross-legged on your futon, eat snack cakes, and drink yogurt in a circle, listening to the others talk until it's your turn, where you inevitably make some noncommittal, polite reply so they feel good for having included you.

That night, you lay awake long after the other girls, tired out from an impromptu birthday party, have passed out. The window curtains are drawn shut, but you stare at the windows anyway, hoping to catch a glimpse of the night sky. When you're too frustrated to keep trying, you reach for your phone, pouting.

[name] to Noya at 23:57

[name]: soba?

Noya: [image attached. Image description: Soba the cat wearing a cowboy hat. She appears extremely disgruntled, her lower half blurred from motion as her mouth opens, as though screaming in the arms of whoever (not pictured) is holding her up.]

Noya: Satsuki insists on dressing her up for Halloween every year. She hasn't gotten used to it.

[name]: why are you awake?

Noya: why are you?

[name]: shut up is why

Noya: wanna talk about it?

You pause. Tap out a message. Wipe it and start over.

[name]: it's just hard to sleep away from home I guess

[name]: I expect to see soba's halloween costume in person this year, jsyk

Noya: yes ma'am

Noya: [image attached. Image description: Soba curled up in Noya's arms. She is asleep, a content look on her face. Noya's face is not pictured, but his arms and chest are bare, arms littered with bruises from volleyball.]

…fuck. He really does have nice arms.

You bury your face in your pillow, feeling your cheeks grow hot as the full scope of the picture sets in.

Fuck. Him.

Noya: more soba for your soba needs

[name]: are you thirst trapping me with your cat right now

Noya: what?

Noya: OH MY GOD I FORGOT I'M NOT WEARING A SHIRT IN THAT PICTURE

Noya: I'M SORRY I REALLY DIDN'T THINK ABOUT IT

Noya: IT WAS THE FIRST TIME SHE FELL ASLEEP IN MY ARMS I WOULD BE WAY MORE DELIBERATE WITH A THIRST TRAP I SWEAR

Noya: WILL YOU STILL MARRY ME

[name]: I'll sleep on it. 964.

[name]: and senpai?

Noya: ?

[name]: thanks

If anyone asks, you do not save the photo.

Footnotes

16. I can't actually find any source on what year each of the Fukurodani Group managers are in, save for Suzumeda and Shirofuku from Fukurodani. However, we do get Miyanoshita's age and, uh, what Otaki looks like. Miyanoshita is listed as 17 on the wiki, without an age range, so I've placed her as an early July birthday second year. Otaki from Shinzen does not even have a canonical age, apparently, so I did what I want. She looks kinda older and has responsible vibes, so I've labeled her a third year.

17. お疲れ. Tl. "Good work, thanks for the hard work". This one felt ubiquitous enough to leave untranslated in the original text. It's generally standard both as a greeting to someone in an environment where they would theoretically be working eg. greeting your coworker in the office or, say, talking to someone who you've just watched repeatedly get his ass beat at volleyball during a training camp, and as a farewell after a long day of working.

Tags: @deeplightgarden @idonthaveanameideayet @dusstory @kazunish

[kaylinalexanderbooks]

OC origins

Thanks @drchenquill here and @somethingclevermahogony here!

Rules: talk about the origins of the names and personalities (and maybe even the design?) of a couple of your OCs!

I did Lexi and Maddie here and Ash and Gwen here. Time for... Noelle and Rose!

Noelle

Noelle was not in Draft One at all, but her equivalent first showed up late into Draft Two planning stages. Her name was Heather Collins, and I don't remember how I came up with the name. I never wrote anything with Heather, but she was planned to be the narrator of Book 15 (in Draft Two, twelve year old me thought she'd have a giant series and have a new narrator in each book...) and had telekinesis, which Noelle still has. In Draft Three, I changed her name to Lana Daron. I also don't know where I came up with this name. She had one shout-out but I never showed her--I didn't get the chance to. Her name became Noelle Bishop in Draft Four. I once knew someone named Carissa who had to constantly correct people calling her Clarissa, and she always clarified "no L" when correcting people. No L, Noelle—supposedly a couple people actually called her this as a joke. It was late into Draft Four before I made her real name actually Carissa and her correction being genuinely misheard as Noelle, and the name sticking. Originally it was Lexi but after cutting that scene, I made it Ash in a different flashback and it's much better. Bishop came about because I was watching Fringe. Noelle looked essentially the same: fair skin, light brown hair and eyes, etc., and while she was always tall she used to be more typically tall rather than Alii tall. Her wardrobe was always more or less the same: rather simple. She does more typically have her hair in a low ponytail rather than the original loose design. Personality wise, Noelle has gone through huge changes. She used to be.... chipper. Her personality then shifted slowly but surely until she became someone completely different throughout Draft Four. Her personality was basically given to Issa, and Noelle became more introverted, more loyal to her blood family, more logical, more cold, etc. It's weird to read Draft Four. Her first scene she talks in peppy exclamations and gives hugs. What the fuck. I can't with Draft Four Noelle. But I knew she needed a different personality. Even then, I'm refining, but to give her the plotline I wanted she had to be like this.

Rose

Rose didn't first appear in any way, shape, or form until Draft Four. I joke that she came from the metal detector McGuffin in Drafts 1-3 because she can detect the portal but that's a bit of a joke. In reality, I wanted an extra person to round out the friend group since it was originally similar to my actual middle school friend group (not anymore lol). She looks basically the same: light brown skin, dark wavy brown hair and eyes, glasses, etc. Though always curvy I did make her heavier. She used to wear hoodies but now I give her flannel overshirts. Her personality has changed or developed a lot. The issue is, I have her Trauma and Angst, which means it's repressed. So writing her is hard since hinting at her personality is difficult. But it's more than she had! Now Rose has a lot more to do, which is good for her. For her name, I originally gave her Rosa, but for some reason I felt like Rose fit slightly better. Though for years, I felt like Rose would be her nickname, but she still didn't strike me as a Rosa. In Draft Five, I realized what it was: Rose isn't short for Rosa, it's short for Rosalinda! Her surname was always Hernandez.

This game is so fun!

More Noelle: OC in three, OC in fifteen, Picrew, questionnaire one, questionnaire two, bingo

More Rose: OC in three, questionnaire one, questionnaire two

Tagging @sleepyowlwrites @theeccentricraven @mk-writes-stuff @writernopal @mysticstarlightduck

+ ANYONE ELSE

TSP intro

TSP tag list (ask to be +/-): @thepeculiarbird @illarian-rambling @televisionjester @finchwrites

@nebula--nix @literarynecromancy @honeybewrites @the-golden-comet

[six-improbable-things]

Some examples/name stories under the cut

My dnd characters Odynia and Morana both names (including middle/last if they have them) whose meanings are related to their character/story.

Odynia, who is a Vengeance paladin in a greek-inspired campaign got her name from a greek root word meaning pain/grief, and her middle name Adrasteia being another name for Nemesis, who is her goddess, and her surname (Erinyes) is in reference to the Furies.

Morana's first name means death, plague, and is the name of a slavic goddess of death and winter. Morana is a necromancer who hails from a frozen country. Her surname, Novak, is also slavic in origin and was traditionally given to someone who was new in town. She does happen to be new-ish in town when the game begins.

Meanwhile Rook (dnd) and Fallon (original writing) both accidentally got names that fit their characters/stories.

I picked the name Fallon for my queen OC randomly, and only later did I discover that it means leader.

I can't remember how I chose Rook's name, but I know it had nothing to do with chess, yet chess symbolism ended up becoming a big thing for him recently.

My most recent dnd two-shot character is a mix of "it just sounded nice" and "has a meaning relevant to their character". Her first and middle names (Luca James) were just chosen because they sounded nice. Her surname, Keeley, both sounded nice and also is a bit of a joke because the keel is the lowest part of a ship's hull, and Luca is a pirate.

[winvyre]

OC Questionnaire Tag!!!! (The Winvyre Show ep 1)

Thanks for the tag @paeliae-occasionally !!!! I'm going to have fun with this one ;)

-------

*Lights come up in a studio filled with audience members. The stage is empty aside from a couch and an armchair on either side of a small table. The background is a photo of Winvyre's face and on the table sits two hot chocolates and a plate of cookies.*

*The audience cheers as WINVYRE walks out on stage wearing a purple suit, flashcards in hand, smiling like their photo.*

WINVYRE: Welcome, bitches and benches, to the talk show portion of our program! I'm your host for this and all other segments: Winvyre!

*Audience cheers again.*

WINVYRE: Today we're breaking not one but two characters out of their canon settings to answer some of your questions! Please welcome to the stage the protagonists of my current WIPs... Connor Willard and Valerie No Surname!

*A very confused skinny teenager and a delighted white-haired girl appear sitting on the couch. The boy blinks in the light and shifts uncomfortably in his seat. The girl shields her eyes to pick out faces in the audience.*

WINVYRE: Hello, Connor and Valerie. Don't worry, you're fine, you won't remember any of this when you go back to your worlds.

CONNOR: What?

VALERIE: Where are we?

WINVYRE: You're in a pocket dimension I created just for this scenario. Just like I created you.

CONNOR: You what?

*VALERIE mumbles a similar statement through a mouth full of cookies.*

CONNOR: I have several questions.

WINVYRE: So do I! So let's get started.

CONNOR: Wait-

Do you have any hobbies? If so, what ones?

VALERIE: Ooh! I like to swim and climb trees and play with my stick and hoop and watch the Watchmen spar with their swords and play games!

CONNOR: I like to draw. I also play baseball but I don't really like it.

How good is your sleep schedule?

VALERIE: I go to bed at bedtime and I wake up when the sun rises just like everybody else! Mom sometimes reads to me and Kell. Fran thinks she's too old for bedtime stories.

CONNOR: My bedtime is whenever my mother goes to sleep because waking up due to someone yelling and pounding on your door is NOT fun. Even then I'm an insomniac.

Do you have any siblings? If so, how good is your relationship?

CONNOR: I'm an only child. Not sure if that's for the better or worse.

VALERIE: I have three! We're all adopted. Maurin's the oldest, he's sixteen, Francesca's thirteen, Kell's eleven, and I'm ten! Maurin went missing not that long ago... I miss him... Fran's annoying and acts strangely but Mom says that's just because she's hit puberty. Kell and I play together a lot but sometimes he does this creepy voice and says scary things.

What was the toughest time you had to endure while growing up?

CONNOR: Oh, how do I pick?

VALERIE: When Maurin disappeared. Mom's never cried so much.

What was the worst day of your life?

CONNOR: The day we moved. It was terrible on its own and it marked the beginning of... everything.

VALERIE: [WINVYRE presses a button on their chair to bleep out the spoiler]

What's your worst nightmare?

VALERIE: The hoary. They're scary!

CONNOR: That I'll feel empty forever.

If a monster asked you your worst nightmare, what would you tell it and why?

VALERIE: The hoary can't ask questions; they're mindless killers and they'll rip you apart and devour your flesh and leave you to suffer and rot soaked in your own blood and organs while you slowly die and-

CONNOR: What kind of world do you come from?!

VALERIE: A regular one?

WINVYRE: Her setting is much more fantastical than yours. Don't worry about it.

If a monster asked you your worst nightmare, what would you tell it and why?

CONNOR: The truth. Almost nothing about me is a secret, it's just that no one asks.

What's your relationship with your family like?

CONNOR: Do I have to answer this?

WINVYRE: Yep. This show doesn't stay on the air unless the people are entertained.

CONNOR: I... love my parents. I hate them too. I hate that I can't only hate them. I feel happy when they praise me. I want to get away from them. I like it when they hug me. I hate what I may lose to them. I want to tell them everything. I hope I never forgive them.

VALERIE: Do you want a cookie?

WINVYRE: What's your answer, Valerie?

VALERIE: Uh, good. I love and get along with everyone. Do you dream often? what about?

VALERIE: Riding dragons!

CONNOR: I had a lot of vivid, creative nightmares as a kid. Now the content is more horrific but they never really feel like nightmares anymore.

What is the one thing you would not wish on your greatest adversary?

CONNOR: Any of what I've been through. It really fucks you up.

VALERIE: Nothing! I hope the hoary gets her!

WINVYRE: And that's all for today, bitches and benches! Thank you for tuning in and don't forget to vote for our next topic- (What? No budget? Fine.) Let us know if you ever want another installment of The Winvyre Show!

@sableglass @davycoquette @daily-haley

[halfbakedspuds]

Thanks to @honeybewrites for the tag

OC name origins tag

Rules: I want to know how you came up with your original character’s names and personalities. Are they based on people in your real life? Are they straight from your brain? Are they a mix of several people?

I'll do this for the Tempest Prince characters

Jason Haliday:

Jason's name- like his brother's- is steeped in Greek history and mythos, with Jason being one of the classical heroes of their mythology. Jason Haliday (called something different in that draft) compared himself to mythology Jason with all this supposedly important but seemingly useless stuff he kept having to go after, "Like chasing a goddamn fleece for whatever reason" and purposefully ignorimh the context of the original story. The scene isn't in the current draft, but the comparison led me to change his name to Jason.

His surname, 'Haliday', was originally 'Galloway', but somewhere I learnt that Halliday comes from the old English hæligdag, which is excellent foreshadowing for the book.

Alex Haliday:

Alex was always going to be this character's name, however I changed its long form from Alexandra to Alexander somewhere down the line (God knows why, 'cause I certainly don't remember).

The reason was always because of his involvement with the Allyrian Inquisition as one of their brightest strategic minds and best warriors, making his name a nod towards Alexander of Macedonia.

Michelle Haliday:

Michelle as a character was heavily inspired by my dad- whose name was Michael- and giving her a name similar to his is a sort of tribute.

Lifvinja Ravenscar:

Okay, I know of maybe two people who follow me that might know what I'm on about with this, but I'll try my best to explain.

Growing up, I had the box set of this one old-ass Afrikaans kids show called 'Liewe Heksie' (it's hard to translate without sounding strange, but somewhere along the lines of 'little beloved witch') which was about an... admittedly pathetic but endearing excuse of a witch named Livinia, and followed all the stuff she got up to.

Some part of me thought "Hey, wouldn't it be funny to take this all-powerful, immortal mage who used to be a Norse Viking like a thousand years ago and name her after this one character from a kids show?"

And thus, Livinia got swapped out for its Norse equivalent- Lifvinja- and Archmagos Lifvinja Ravenscar was named.

The surname 'Ravenscar' comes from how marriage works in the Hunter cities, where everyone in the relationship unanimously agrees on two words that they feel allude to something important to them, and those two are put together to create their new surname that's unique to them. In Lifvinja's case, she called her wife 'Hrafn' (Raven) as a joke when they first met and it just stuck, and the pair both had matching burn scars on their forearms from something important to their story that I can't disclose cause ✨spoilers✨.

Helga Ravenscar:

I'll be honest with you, she literally got her name from a newspaper comic called Hagar the Horrible.

We all struggle to figure out character names sometimes, and she was one of those characters.

Isaac Blackwell:

Isaac got his name cause I was playing Dead Space around the time I first created his character.

'Blackwell' is based on 'Blackthorn' from the Shadowhunter books, but it does serve a purpose of sorts to the story. However, ✨spoilers✨

Aten:

Aten is one of several Great Ones that appear in the story (A great one being an extra dimensional entity that is to a god as we are to bacteria) and he got his name from the full name for the Egyptian sun god, Aten-Ra.

I think I was reading Kane Chronicles when I came up with that one, not sure.

The story in universe is that he's a lot more compassionate toward humans than the rest of the 'Pantheon', and came down to the Egyptian old kingdom to help them through a famine. Them not really understanding wtf they were seeing culminated in them naming him after their sun god, and thus he now carries the name 'Aten' with a sort of pride.

Sanmaht:

Imma be perfectly honest here, this one was a keyboard smash with vowels added for pronouncability.

Leyendeach:

I got this from the game Pathfinder: Kingmaker, where the audio file for some early-game cantrips sounded to me like they ended in something that eventually, through many iterations, got turned into 'Leyendeach'

Ralye:

A corruption of R'lyeh, the name of the city where Cthulhu supposedly is in HP Lovecraft's stories; from the phrase "Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl ftagn" (In his house at R'lyeh, dead Cthulhu lays dreaming).

No pressure tag for @orion-lacroix, @oh-no-another-idea, @illarian-rambling, @pb-dot and anyone else who wants in

[strangedreamings]

S2E5 (spoilers abound)

The credits sequence hasn't changed, as far as I can tell.

Driftmark. Corlys limping to the Driftwood Throne. He's weeping over the death of his wife. As far as he knows, he's lost everyone now -- both of his children and his wife. (It's even money whether the writers even remember that Laenor is still alive.)

There's a fucking famine and all the Greens care about is parading Meleys' head through the streets. Guys, reminding the people that dragons CAN BE KILLED probably isn't the wisest thing to do right now. How many of them have lost livestock to feed the dragons' stomachs?

The Targaryen family literally spent YEARS convincing the people of Westeros that being dragonriders made them superior, now you're showing them that a dragon is really just a giant, flying horse. This is going to bite you in the ass so damn hard very soon.

"It's just meat." EXACTLY!

If Rhaenys' body is on that wagon, they need to have the Silent Sisters escort it to Driftmark, it's the only decent thing to do.

Aemond is still so damn pretty.

To be fucking honest, I don't know if that's Rhaenys' corpse or Aegon II's almost-corpse in that box. I wouldn't put it past Cole to have Aegon II transported in a way that no one can see how mangled he is.

So it was Aegon. He must be in a coma to have not made a sound this entire time. As fucked up as he is, he still didn't deserve this.

Alicent, you don't want to see this. And when did you suddenly decide you give a damn about Aegon anyway?

Ugh, they have to cut his armor off him and honestly, he looks like barbecued meat. Aemond's got a lot to answer for but the only person who can accuse him is currently comatose.

The burns make him look like he has greyscale, it's that bad.

I'm not crazy about this Grand Maester but he does seem to know what he's doing.

Oh, his broken legs. Poor guy, he'll never be able to walk properly again, if at all.

Aemond sniffing around, wanting someone, anyone, to name him Prince Regent. Sadly, he's the best option. God knows Alicent and Helaena aren't in the right frame of mind right now to rule.

But really, if the monarch can't rule, it's supposed to be the Hand who fills in. Criston, stop cleaning your sword (are you having a Lady MacBeth moment?) and do your job.

Wait, Sunfyre is dead? I thought Sunfyre is the one that eats Rhaenyra. *side-eyes the writers* What the fuck?

"He who has left us after some marital spat." I really want this guy dead. Can someone just shank him, please? Again, someone calls him Ser Alfred, but what's his surname? I can't look this asshole up without a surname.

Excusing your misogyny isn't going to get you out of this, dude.

"You've seen no more battles than I have." God, I love you, Rhaenyra.

Jace and Baela. Honestly, Baela is the more mature of the two. Jace going behind Rhaenyra's back? To be honest, the Battle of the Gullet can't come soon enough, I'm sick of him. He's too immature, too hotheaded, and he listens to no one. He may be half-Targaryen but he's no prince.

Daemon involving himself in the Blackwood-Bracken feud. This is pointless.

I like Willem but I don't think Daemon can trust him, not when it comes to the Brackens.

The Eyrie. So this is the famous Lady Jeyne Arryn. She's upset that the dragons Rhaenyra sent with Rhaena are hatchlings.

"Will you goad me, child?" Honey, you're barely old enough to be her mother, shush.

I don't like Jeyne. I can understand her rage but I don't know, she's aiming it at the wrong target. Please tell me her offering her sympathy was not how Rhaena found out Rhaenys is dead.

"There is more than one way to fight a war." Let's get the propaganda machine churning! Again, I like Mysaria, but I don't know if Rhaenyra (or anyone) can trust her.

Where are they sending Elinda? This woman needs hazard pay.

Rhaenyra and Baela sharing memories of Rhaenys, this is what this episode needed.

Daemon's dreaming again but is that Aemma, Viserys' first wife?! Did Daemon have an affair with his sister-in-law or is he just straight tripping right now? At this point, we've seen every woman in his life in these dreams except for Rhea, his first wife. Blood on his hands again.

"My favorite son"? Is she supposed to be his mom Alyssa now? Daemon, your head is a fascinating place, I swear. You need to get out of Harrenhal with whatever sanity you have left.

Daemon's chair is as broken as his psyche.

Lord God Almighty, Daemon, you're not the fucking monarch. Saying anything otherwise is treason.

Grand Maester reporting on Aegon's prognosis and Aemond is over there smirking. Boy, you need a better poker face if you want the world to believe you didn't do it.

Alicent is made to see exactly how valuable a woman's voice is in a world ruled by men. Honey, I hate to say it, but you deserve this. Like Larys said, if they're saying Rhaenyra can't rule, then they can't have a female Regent.

Prince Regent Aemond. God help the realm.

"We should make for Tumbleton." Absolutely fucking not! You're not going to a town that's going to see TWO battles.

Cheese's dog following the cart with his body, so sad.

The woman who fucked the man who was supposed to be guarding her grandson is talking about temperance? Fuck you, you hypocrite.

"I did not give you leave to speak my name." Honey, you gave him leave to eat you out, the two kinda go together. :P

Their child's skin is GRAY, this kid is either dead or almost there.

Why are the Freys using a door as a table?

"Dragons cannot be in two places at once." These Freys do realize the Blacks have multiple dragons, right?

Fuck yes, give the Freys Harrenhal, that'll end that House right there and they won't be a problem for future generations.

"Bent knees." Yeah, Jace just woke up the whole fandom.

Secret pacts with the Freys never end well.

Daemon and Alys. I thought she was supposed to be Aemond's lover, not his.

Daemon's plotting to take KL himself. Yeah, keep dreaming. You're never leaving the Riverlands.

"The Blackwoods will be feted in these halls." With what money, Daemon?

Corlys doesn't want to be Hand but he does want to make Baela his heir, but she turns him down. Honestly, Baela should be Hand.

So I found out this guy's name is Ser Alfred Broome, and he becomes a turncloak. Raise your hand if you're at all surprised.

"Not while I live, Your Grace." Liar.

Hour of the wolf, the "blackest part of the night." So, something like four in the morning.

Ser Simon has the thankless task of keeping Daemon on target, poor guy.

Laena's back to remind Daemon that he has two daughters.

I have to love that this thunderstorm is big enough to cover Harrenhal, KL, and Driftmark.

Helaena knows what Aemond did. Is it bad that I still ship them? (Don't @ me, they're Targaryens.)

Alicent, you know you can put Aegon out of his misery, right? I'm sure there are plenty of pillows around. Just saying.

"Mummy." Aww. Go back to sleep, Aegon.

For the uninitiated, Vermithor was the dragon of Jaehaerys I (Viserys I's predecessor) and Silverwing was the dragon of Alysanne, Jaehaerys' sister-wife and queen.

So, they're going with Targ cousins instead of the dragonseed bastards to ride the remaining dragons? Interesting.

They're ending the episode there? Boo. Still no Ser Harrold.

Watching the credits. I love that the two units are named "Fire" and "Blood."

Next week's episode is gonna be gory, calling it now.

[tilly-tilly-2827]

Leave it by Degrees #1

Synopsis: Benedict Bridgerton, an upcoming artist, is on a mission. He must finish his painting for the gallery coming up in several months, but how could he concentrate when the memories of the Lady in Silver still trapped him?

Sophie Beckett, an overworking secretary is also on a mission. She must persuade Benedict Bridgerton to sign a contract with the Gunningworth Foundation, to provide them with a portrait for Penwood Park in exchange for financial support. But how could she concentrate when the flirty artist was the very man with whom she had a one-night stand? Who didn't remember her at all?

Or

The unhinged love story loosely based on Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost that I can't get out of my head.

Post in AO3 from here!

“Come on, Ms. Beckett. Woodson is absolutely besotted with Posy, my dear brother is apparently sleeping with your Kate Sharma, and it seems that it is inevitable for us to hook up! The whole universe, the whole fate from God is just waiting for us to bang!”

Sophie rolled her eyes over his dramatic yet crude remarks, wondering why in the world he wouldn’t just leave her alone. Or why wouldn’t he just sign the damn contract? 

One arm leaning against the door, Benedict Bridgerton gave her one of his crooked smiles, the ones he plastered to his face when he needed a quick lay. It worked, mostly on everyone, male, female, and non-binary, he knew that just one smirk would drop anyone to their knees. However, Sophie Beckett only gave him an exasperated glare, her face ever so slightly looking up from her laptop.  

“Mr. Bridgerton.”

“I thought I told you to call me Benedict.”

Benedict could hear Sophie softly curse under her breath. Ah, the reaction. 

“Mr. Bridgerton, I am here strictly on business, not to have an amazing orgasm with you.” 

“...Who said anything about amazing orgasms?” 

Sophie banged her head on the desk. She knew that her face was on fire, and she could not dare look at Benedict’s face who was surely smirking at her. Such a stupid, stupid girl. 

----------------------------------------------------

“You’re going to stay at THE Soneva Fushi?!”

Although it was a crowded night, Kate Sharma’s bewildered voice echoed through the London pub. When she got a text from her closest friend from uni for a small drink on a Friday night, she wasn’t expecting to hear from her that she was going to stay at one of the most luxurious resorts in the world, knowing that Sophie Beckett wasn’t exactly the wealthiest person she knew. Quite the opposite, she thought to herself, remembering that even in her uni days she was always balancing two or three jobs. 

“It’s work-related,” Sophie sighed, taking another sip of pine. “And I’m probably going to stay only for a night.”

“I don’t understand, Sophs.” Kate’s beautifully shaped eyebrows were knitted with confusion. “Who would go to the Maldives for business? I’ve always assumed that the place was a resort, not a conference room.”

“My client is staying there, apparently.” 

“Who’s your client?”

“...Benedict Bridgerton.”

“Who the hell is that?”

“He’s an artist.” Kate noticed that Sophie’s tired expression softened slightly. “Armintia saw his piece at the Granville Foundation Gala a few months back. Took a great liking to his work, so she wants to have a portrait made for the renovation of Penwood Park. In return, the Gunningworth Foundation will fund his production costs for the next five years.” 

“So like a patron?”

“Exactly.”

“Bridgerton…That surname rings a bell. Any relation to the Audrey Cooperation?”

Always the quickest, Sophie smiled over her glass of pine. Kate had been the brightest student in her year, breezing her way through law school and already beginning her practice at the Danbury Associates.

“He’s the second son of the Bridgerton Family. According to my research, he’s not by any means engaged in the family business, but he does attend the galas and the charity balls every season.”

“Hence the B.”

“Hence the B.”

“I’ve never known that the number two was an artist.”

“Benedict is very good, actually,” There was a small smile on Sophie’s lips. His latest work was submitted to the National Gallery, and the reviews she read in the Art Monthly were nothing but lines and lines of praise. An Uprising Sensation in the British Art World; Benedict Bridgerton, the headlines wrote. She had gone to the exhibition at the national gallery featuring his work, and her soul was captivated by his creation. People Watching; a series of works consisting of multiple portraits, a pregnant mother carrying two small twins in her hands, a couple sharing a donut in the corner of the tube, and a tired man looking at a basketball match on the streets. A small boy reading to his sister at the library. A grandmother dancing to herself in a wheelchair. It was nothing abstract, nothing specifically special about his material, but there was so much warmth in his touch and his gaze, and Sophie could understand why his paintings attracted the hearts of the viewers.   

It would be lovely to see the world as he sees it , Sophie found herself thinking. Maybe her life would be a little bit better if she could find the small happiness in her ordinary life…   

“Hello? Earth to Beckett?” 

Sophie jerked from her train of thought, and she saw that Kate had a worried look on her face. 

“Are you okay, Sophs? Was there something with your dad again?”

“No, no, I’m all right.” Sophie shook her head, taking a cigarette from her bag. She offered one to Kate wordlessly, but she declined. Sophie looked at her with surprise. 

“I’m trying to quit,” Kate replied with a sheepish look. “Eddie’s been complaining about the smell ever since she moved to my flat, and I thought it easier to just quit than to argue.” 

“Mmmm.”

“And you know it’s bad for you, Sophs,”

“Mmmm.”

“It’s going to kill you someday,”

“Mmmm.”

Sophie lit up a cigarette, placed it between her fingers, and inhaled the substance deeply into her lungs. Kate looked at her concerningly as they both stared at the smoke fogging their view.

“Tell me what’s going on or I’ll strangle you to death at his very place, Sophie Beckett,” Kate said softly. “On a normal Friday night, if I said that I was going to quit smoking, you would chirp; Oh, that’s lovely, Kate! It is a terrible vice, I know. Maybe I should stop smoking too. What kind of methods are you trying to cope with the loss? Rather than to tempt me with a puff in front of my eyes. This isn’t you, Sophs.” 

Sophie smiled weakly. It was a good imitation of her voice. 

“I’m sorry Katie Cat.”

“Don’t mind, I knew from the tone of your text that you were in a crappy mood.”

“I’m just weary about the flight.” Sophie mumbled, dropping the cigarette in an ashtray. She knew it was a filthy habit. “It’s ten hours from Heathrow to Velana International.” 

“Why do you have to travel such a distance anyway? It’s not 1817. Can’t you send an email or a phone call? If you want to talk directly, you could just make a Zoom meeting from your flat.” 

Wouldn’t it be so much easier, if she could just do that. 

“Apparently, Benedict Bridgerton is currently in the middle of a cleanse. ”

Kate snorted gin from her nostrils. 

“Come again?”

“Benedict Bridgerton is currently in the middle of a cleanse ,” Sophie repeated her words, but she couldn’t help but break into a grin. “With his brother, actually. No phones, No social media, No contact with any associates except their families.”

“Wait. Did you say no phones, no associates? So, it’s kind of like a digital free holiday?”

“Exactly.”

“Sophie, I know you’re not an idiot, but I don’t think nobody wants to be contacted for business in the middle of a cleanse holiday at the beach in Maldives…”

“I know,” Sophie groaned in her pine, “I’ve been trying to tell her that millions of times.”

“Araminta?” Kate asked wearily. 

“...Araminta.” 　

Although Sophie hardly talked about her family, Kate knew how demanding and threatening her step-mother could be, currently the substitute chairman of the Gunningworth Foundation, the very place Sophie was currently working at. Employed? More like enslaved. Kate had heard Sophie chuckle darkly a few years back. Kate knew quite well that Sophie wasn’t as insistent as to crash a private holiday. She could remember the time Armintia once stampeded into their shared dormitory in uni, half screaming, half strangling Sophie in the neck, accusing Sophie of theft. I can’t believe you took my Versace bag from the closet, you son of a bitch… Kate had heard her shrieks from the hallway, and frantically peeled them apart. In the end, it was Rosemund who had borrowed the bag from her mother’s collection, not Sophie. Kate softly padded Sophie on the back, knowing that she couldn’t refuse the job. 

“But it’s a big case, Sophs.” Kate continued reassuringly. “Several hundred thousand pounds deal with an upcoming artist? I’m surprised that Armitina gave you such a heavy contract matter. I thought Rosemund would love to meet the number two of the Bridgerton family.”

“First she wanted to hand it over to Rosemund, but she had another gala to attend. She already has her marks on Cavender, actually.” Sophie sighed, her fingertips twitching for a smoke. “And Arimintina’s not giving me the case. She gave in to Posy. I’m going there for her assistance.”

“Oh……”

Imagining the rosy-faced cinnamon roll sweetheart in her head and the slightly resigned look on her friend's face, Kate presumed that the whole job was on Sophie’s shoulders.  

“Wishing you the best, Sophs.”

“Yes, yes, thank you, Kate…”

To brighten up the mood, Kate rose from her seat to get another round, along with a plate of fish and chips. As Kate took a big bite into the giant cod fish, Sophie only nibbled a chip from the basket. 

“By the way, Sophs,” She asked, elegantly wiping off the crumbs with her lilac handkerchief, “By brother, do you mean…”

“Yes. It’s THE Anthony Bridgerton.”

Anthony Bridgerton was the epitome of a royal celebrity. After his father’s sudden death, he took the role of the CEO of the Audrey Cooperation at the age of 26, also inheriting the title of a viscount. With a handsome face and overflowing wealth, Anthony Bridgerton was easy prey to gossip and the paparazzi, making scandalous headlines in social media every time he had a dalliance with another celebrity.

“Why would a CEO of one of the biggest companies in the country be in the middle of an island with his bohemian brother? And with zero contact? Shouldn’t he be working his ass off?”

“Kate, haven’t you read Lady Whitsledown?” 

“Why would I read Lady Whistledown?”

Sophie shook head in disbelief, but she couldn’t help but to smile; the absolute indifference her mate showed towards gossip and pop culture was always surprising. But that was one of the things Sophie loved and adored about Kate. She knew what she had to focus on. Sophie took out her mobile from her pocket and opened her Instagram, showing the latest Lady Whistledown post.  

Worldwide Pop Singer Sienna Rosso confirms Breakup with Anthony Bridgerton; He was never serious about Our Relationship, She Comments.  

#What did I tell you? #The A does it again #He may as well be the A, but he’s scoring an F

Sophie had to smile. Lady Whistledown was also one of her guilty pleasures, and she often found herself cracking up over her snarky sarcastic comments. The news was posted with a photo of Anthony Bridgerton in a black Prada suit with a matching ribbon tie. With beautiful hair (a gorgeous sideburn), wild stubble around his chin, and a seemingly ripped body, Sophie had to admit that he was a very attractive man. Standing authoritatively with a puffed chest and a stern look on his face, a sense of determination on his lips, she noticed that she knew someone who often had the same expression on her face.  

“He looks like a fuckboy.” Kate cursed as she took a look at the photo. 

“I thought he was your type, Kate. You know, strong-willed, athletic...”

“Not him.” Kate scowled, shoving Sophie’s mobile in her hands. “I don’t like guys who sleep around.”

Sophie smiled softly.

“Okay、 fine. I don’t want to be in a relationship with a man who sleeps around.”

“Truer words have never been spoken.”Clinking their glasses together, Both Kate and Sophie took another shot. The summer wind felt cool on their flushed faces, and the city lights were glittering before them.

“I wish I had the time and the money to go to a beach resort after a bad breakup,” Kate murmured. 

Sophie softly curled her arms around Kate’s, tilting her head on Kate’s shoulders. It had been only a month since Kate found out that her fiance was sleeping with his coworker, catching them red-handed in their shared flat. Sophie had dropped everything to comfort her, putting a blanket over her as Kate wept over a bucket of chocolate ice cream.

“I don’t want to cry this much for that dick, Sophie! And I don’t want to waste four months working out because of him!” Kate had croaked between angry sobs as Sophie cooked her mother’s Bolognese in her kitchen. 

“ Kate, I know how sad you are. But you’ve been crying for five hours, Kate. You have to eat.” 

“Tom was an arsehole, Kate,” Sophie said quietly. “You deserve so much better than him.”

Kate did not reply but she softly leaned against Sophie's arms. Kate truly appreciated these quiet moments with Sophie, when she knew that she didn’t have to fill the silence with words. It was one of the prominent attributions of Sophie Beckett, she could sense a troubled heart and her presence, her silence alone could soothe a troubled heart. It was one of the few moments Kate could forget about being the responsible, reliable older sister. 

“Sophie,”

“Mmm?” 

“I’m going to swear an oath to this glass of half drunk pine.” Kate suddenly straightened her back, raising her glass to their eye level. “That I’m going to take a break from relationships. For a year from now. No boyfriends. No girlfriends. No romantic relationships whatsoever.” 

“Is that going too far over the edge, Kate…?”  

“I wasted a whole month in misery, Sophs,” Kate replied nonchalantly, “I’m just going to focus on my career and my job for at least a year. Without any mental distractions.”

Sophie didn’t quite know how to respond to Kate’s sudden declaration. She knew how the breakup damaged her soul, but she also knew that her thick beautiful curls and her long eyelashes and her shimmering legs would always attract the eyes of the other, along with her fierce powerful personality.

But it’s Kate , she thought, she knows what she’s doing.   

“I salute to your dedication, Katie Cat,” Sophie grinned, also raising her glass as she gently clinked to hers. “Should I swear an oath as well? As a friend to you in moral support?” 

“No, no. no.” Kate shook her head. “I have to do this on my own. Besides, you’re going to the Maldives! You should seize the opportunity to hook up with some random money! You only live once, Sophs!”

Sophie laughed wholeheartedly, wheezing at her obscene comment. 

“I’m not planning to be some hooker to a group of toffs, Kate.”

“Whatever you say,” Kate replied in a singalong voice as she took another chip, “ But come to think of it, why are you so depressed about this job? Yes, you’re probably invading the privacy of some celebrity, but you’re going to stay at the best hotel resort in the world! A chance to meet the richest and hottest guy in the world! Why be so stressed out about that?”

Probably because I had a one night stand with his little brother? Who happens to be my client?