#holmes being accepting and loving his husband

[lidera-aro]

ACD johnlock harry potter au where watson is actually a wizard, tells holmes after they get married in secret-because same sex marriage is normal in magical Britain. Cmon, with all that blood purity thing, there surely was some pureblood who would rather marry the same gender instead of a muggle-but instead of holmes claiming it ridiculous and hating it, he is absolutely FASCINATED about it.

He studies diagon ally. He wonders and questions watson-cus I hc that he also went through healer training for wixens-if their anatomy is any different. He runs experiments-under watson’s supervision, of course-on potions.

Give me john watson being afraid of getting rejected by someone as logical as holmes, and so, SO relieved and full of love when he is accepted. When he is still seen as his husband, partner, instead of something weird.

Give me sherlock holmes who is just so fascinated about his husband’s new side he never knew about, and it doesn’t change anything about the man he loves. He tells him how he brings new colorful adventures to his previous monotone life.

Give me holmes and watson, the victorian husbands who would accept and love each other no matter what.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

The Adventures of Mary Darling

I'm on a 20+ city book tour for my new novel PICKS AND SHOVELS. Catch me in PITTSBURGH on May 15 at WHITE WHALE BOOKS, and in PDX on Jun 20 at BARNES AND NOBLE with BUNNIE HUANG. More tour dates (London, Manchester) here.

Science fiction great Pat Murphy has written some classics – including books that were viciously suppressed by the heirs of JRR Tolkien! – but with The Adventures of Mary Darling, she's outdone even her own impressive self:

https://tachyonpublications.com/product/the-adventures-of-mary-darling/

The titular Mary Darling here is the mother of Wendy, John and and Michael Darling, the three children who are taken by Peter Pan to Neverland in JM Barrie's 1902 book The Little White Bird, which later became Peter Pan. If you recall your Barrie, you'll remember that it ends with the revelation that Wendy, John and Michael weren't the first Darlings to go to Neverland: when Mary Darling was a girl, she, too, made the journey.

Murphy's novel opens with Mary Darling and her husband George coming home from a dinner party to discover their three children missing, the window open, and their nanny, a dog called Nana, barking frantically in the yard. John is frightened, but Mary is practically petrified, inconsolable and rigid with fear.

Soon, Mary's beloved uncle, John Watson, is summoned to the house, along with his famous roommate, the detective Sherlock Holmes. With Holmes on the case, surely the children will be found?

Of course not. Holmes is incapable of understanding where the Darling children have gone, because to do so would be to admit the existence of the irrational and fantastic, and, more importantly, to accept the testimony of women, lower-class people, and pirates. Holmes has all the confidence of the greatest detective alive, which means he is of no help at all.

Neither is George Darling, who, as a kind of act of penance for letting his children be stolen away, takes to Nana's doghouse, and insists that he will not emerge from it until the children are returned. He takes his meals in the doghouse, and is carried in it to and from the taxis that bring him to work and home again.

Only Mary can rescue her children. John Watson discovers her consorting with Sam, a one-legged Pacific Islander who is a known fence and the finest rat-leather glovemaker in London, these being much prized by London's worst criminal gangs. Horrified that Mary is keeping such ill company, Watson confronts her and Sam (and Sam's parrot, who screeches nonstop piratical nonsense), only to be told that Mary knows what she is doing, and that she is determined to see her children home safe.

Mary, meanwhile, is boning up on her swordplay and self-defense (taught by a Suffragist swordmaster in a room above an Aerated Bread Company tearoom, these being the only public place in Victorian London where a respectable woman can enjoy herself without a male escort). She's acquiring nautical maps. She's going to Neverland.

What follows is a very rough guide to fairyland. It's a story that recovers the dark asides from Barrie's original Pan stories, which were soaked with blood, cruelty and death. The mermaids want to laugh as you drown. The fairies hate you and want you to die. And Peter Pan doesn't care how many starveling, poorly trained Lost Boys die in his sorties against pirates, because he knows where there are plenty more Lost Boys to be found in the alienated nurseries of Victorian London, an ocean away.

More importantly, it's a story that revolves around the women in Barrie's world, who are otherwise confined to the edges and shadows of the action. In Barrie's Pan, Wendy is a "mother," Tiger Lily is a "princess," and Mary is a barely-there adult whose main role is to smile wistfully at the memory of when she was a girl and got to serve as Peter's "mother."

And Holmes? Apart from one love interest and a stalwart housekeeper, Holmes has very little time or regard for women. This is so central to the Holmes cannon that the Arthur Conan Doyle estate actually sued over Netflix's Enola Holmes movie, arguing that Enola displayed basic respect for women, a feature that doesn't appear until the very end of the Holmes canon, and – the estate argued – those final stories were still in copyright:

https://www.cbr.com/why-enola-holmes-has-nice-version-sherlock/

Murphy's woman's-eye-view of Peter Pan, Neverland and the Lost Boys dilates the narrow aperture through which Peter Pan plays out, revealing a great deal of exciting, fun, frightening stuff that was always off in the wings. She gives flesh and substance to characters like Tiger Lily, by giving her the semi-fictionalized identity of one of the many American First Nations people who toured Europe and Africa, putting on Wild West shows that won eternal fame and cultural currency for the "American Indian," even as the USA was seeking to exterminate them and their memory.

Likewise, Murphy's pirates are grounded in the reality of pirate ships: democratic, anarchic, and far more fun than Robert Louis Stevenson would have you believe. While Murphy's pirates are about a century too late (as are Barrie's), they are in other regards pretty rigorous, which makes them extraordinarily great literary figures.

If you read David Graeber's posthumous Pirate Enlightenment, you'll know about the Zana-Malata of Madagascar, the descendants of anarchist pirates and matriarchal Malagasy women, who pranked and hoaxed British merchant sailors for generations, deliberately creating a mythology of south seas pirate kings:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/01/24/zana-malata/#libertalia

This hybrid culture of bold, fierce matriarchal Malagasy women and their anarchist pirate husbands play a central role in the book's resolution, and Murphy's pirate utopia is so well drawn and homely that I found myself wanting to move there.

This is a profoundly political book, but it's such a romp, too! Murphy has a real flair for this kind of thing. Back in 1999, she published the brilliant There and Back Again, an all-female retelling of The Hobbit (in spaaaaace!) that was widely celebrated…right up to the moment that Christopher Tolkien used baseless copyright threats to get the book withdrawn from sale:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/There_and_Back_Again_(novel)

Billionaire failsons of long-dead writers notwithstanding, you can still read There and Back Again by borrowing a copy of the book from the Internet Archive's Open Library:

https://openlibrary.org/works/OL15436385W/There_and_back_again

Murphy's mashup of Holmes, Pan, South Seas pirate anarchists, and other salutary and exciting personages, milieux, furniture and tropes of the Victorian adventure story is an unmissable triumph, a romp, a delight.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2025/05/06/nevereverland/#lesser-ormond-street

[aphroditelovesu]

Hai, do you take request for Enola Holmes? If so could you do a headcannon for Yandere husband Sherlock holmes x Young Duchess Of Somerset who is a very wealthy, prestigious, powerful and Influential woman in England?

(Both in headcannon and Boi, please)

❝ 🔍 — lady l: I hope you like it, anon! I certainly enjoyed writing it and here is the link to his bot :) have fun and forgive me for any mistakes! ❤️

❝tw: stalking, mention of kidnapping and death and unhealthy relationships.

❝🔍pairing: yandere!sherlock holmes x female!reader.

Sherlock Holmes never planned to get married, too focused on his work to even think about the possibility of getting a wife and having children. He always kept that thought in mind for a long time, until the day he met you, the Duchess of Somerset.

During an investigation, Sherlock had to go to a ton society ball to get clues and with the money and fame he had, it wasn't difficult. He just didn't expect to find you there, so beautiful and surrounded by flatterers. Holmes did not expect to be taken away the way he was by your smile.

You changed his way of thinking very quickly, leaving him intrigued and a little curious. Who were you, anyway? And why don't you get out of his thoughts? Endless, unanswered questions were all Holmes had.

Sherlock did extensive research about you and your family. You came from a noble and powerful family, very rich and prestigious and there were many benefits to marrying you. Several young nobles had their eyes on you as your title and powers were very tempting. This made him furious.

They were all leeches who only wanted you for the power and riches that came with it. They could never appreciate you the way he would, they couldn't worship the ground you walk on the same way he would. They would never be as good to you as he would be.

Sherlock wasn't sure why he felt this way about you, but he knew he couldn't allow you to marry one of those unworthy fellows. He had to have you, it was a need, a desire that dominated him completely. You would be his, he would be sure of that.

He was quick to pursue you and court you. Being the excellent detective that he was, Sherlock quickly discovered all of your interests and places you used to go to and he consequently started appearing in those places and talking to you. He knew he shouldn't seem crazy, so Sherlock was kind and showed an obvious interest in you.

It didn't take long for him to become in love with you, even with the dark and unhealthy feelings taking over his mind, Sherlock still remained the same with you. You also fell in love with him gradually, he was handsome, kind and not a brainless sycophant. He was everything you could want in a husband, so when, one autumn afternoon, he asked you to marry him, you happily said yes. Holmes smiled at this, everything was going the way he planned.

Fortunately for your family's life, they had no problem accepting Sherlock into the family. He was a good suitor and had good fame and fortune, so he was good to marry you, the Duchess of Somerset. Sherlock was happy about that, satisfied with the fact that he wouldn't have to convince your family in less orthodox ways.

Life with him was good and Sherlock was a good husband by the standards of the time. He was faithful to you and loved you deeply. You never thought a husband could love his wife as much as he did, but Sherlock was one of a kind. He made you feel loved every day, every little bit of you was adored by him. He loved the ground you walked on and did everything he could to make you happy.

He spoiled you endlessly, anything you wanted he would buy for you. Even if it wasn't necessary due to your status, Sherlock still loved giving you gifts. Your wardrobe grew a lot after your wedding and there were many times when you only wore a dress once out of the many you received.

Sherlock was very protective and slightly possessive over you, but he won't let you down. He will vent his jealousy and fury in other ways, he could never think of upsetting you with that. But his overprotection could be suffocating, as he made a point of personally taking care of his safety and he was constantly attached to you. It was part of the job, he would tell you.

He would teach you self defense if you didn't know. He knows it's dangerous, but Sherlock wants you to know how to defend yourself in case he can't protect you. Especially when you were pregnant, he wouldn't take any risks.

Being the Duchess of Somerset and having so much power and influence wouldn't stop Sherlock from pursuing you. He might have some problems with that, since due to your heritage he could never kidnap you because he would be discovered, but he would deal with it. After all, you are his and he is yours. And when he became your husband, he swore to himself that he would never stop loving you and he would never let you go.

You are united until death, at the end of it all.

[emmahasadhd]

Well since yall have brought my attention back to my post, I may as well add another, and probably cooler reference. In the end, when Holmes arrives and Kitty basically comes to save the day, the background music is shortened orchetral part of the finale of Don Giovanni, which shows Giovanni's downfall and death, as he is being dragged into Hell to be punished for his sins.

(I still love the first one mentioned more as the aria is one of my favorites from Don Giovanni)

Also I would've just reblogged, but it won't let me add the clip lol

And also almost full story explained below

Just to clarify the basic storyline of DG. The opera starts with Giovanni trying to seduce donna Anna. Well lets just say that does not go according to the plan and results in Giovanni killing Commendatore, Anna's father. Anna and her fiancé swear to have their revenge on Giovanni and not to mary until the former is achieved. Giovanni tries to seduce another woman later in the story, also while being pursued by donna Elvira one of his many former mistresses, who hopes he will come back to her. Giovanni doesn't want to, since he just wants to vontinue with his not really a boyfriend material lifestyle.

(Also reffering to the beginning, everywhere is said "seduce" I would think it is not about seducing as he is just trying to escape from her fucking house while she wants to unmask him. And I won't believe she is just "so much into him that she doesn't want him to leave". But yeah, that on your own interpretation I guess, since many stage productions put it simply like this. In my mind she just stopped her assailant and she hates his guts for everything he has done)

So the ending comes like this. Giovanni and his servant Leporello are at the cemetery. Giovanni sees the late Commendatore's statue and invites him over to dine with him. To his surprise and terror, the statue actually shows up and offers him a handshake. Giovanni accepting the handshake and refusing to repent dies, being dragged to Hell. Anna and her fiancé eventually get married, Zerlina and her husband are happy together and Elvira decides to join a convent.

The subplot with Zerlina, the woman Giovanni wants to seduce and Elvira I will leave out to simplify the story, as well as some other things. But if you are interested, look it up, youtube has many excelent recordings of the whole production.

(I would reccomend an older one though, since it usually portrays the opera set in the original time period and doesn't include conceptional and contemporary direction and scenic elements, therefore makes it a good starting point for opera newbies. Nothing against contemporarily produced performances, but if you want to get familiar with the source material and don't want to pre-read everything, those can make it harder to grasp what is actually going on.)

[lisbeth-kk]

Easter Egg Prompts (2025) Day 7

Sherlock can't believe he's being ambushed. In his own home. By his daughter of all people!

Moons

“You have got to be kidding me!” Sherlock exclaims.

“Language, Sherlock,” Mrs Hudson scolds him. “There is a child present.”

“I’ve heard worse, Nana,” Rosie reassures her.

“What did I miss?” John asks a bit breathlessly, having run from the tube station due to the foul weather.

“Nothing,” his husband murmurs.

John chuckles, clearly looking forward to the disclosure.

“I just need to change out of these,” he says and indicates his soaked trousers and socks.

“Not even a kiss,” the detective mutters under his breath.

“I heard that. Soon, my love,” John shouts from their bedroom.

“Nothing wrong with his hearing, then,” their landlady remarks.

Rosie giggles, and goes back to her school assignment, which is the source of her Papa’s outburst.

Find out which other moons can be found in our solar system. Choose one or two and write 50-100 words about it.

Luckily for Sherlock, he gets his hello kiss before John inquires about what’s got him into a strop. When Rosie tells him, he’s unable to do anything but guffaw, much to his husband’s displeasure.

***

“You should show this to my brother. He is an aficionado of the Bard. It will most likely surprise him that Uranus’ moons are named after characters from his plays.”

“In some ways, I can picture it, but I guess he never attends the Globe,” John remarks thoughtfully.

“Certainly not. The seats are too uncomfortable for his derriere, the offered cushions notwithstanding,” Sherlock smirks. “He prefers ordinary theatres to that old thing.”

“So, why did you choose those two moons?” John asks his daughter, pointing at her assignment.

“Isn’t it obvious?” she asks, utterly nonplussed.

Sherlock takes a closer look, and spots it immediately, but he lets Rosie explain it to her Daddy instead of gloating, which he would’ve done a decade ago.

“Alright, then. Oberon was discovered in 1787 by William Herschel. His son, John, named it. Does this make it more understandable?”

“No need to be cheeky, young lady,” John says sternly, which has nothing to do with embarrassment for not seeing the obvious, but rather the tone Rosie uses.

“Sorry,” she mumbles, aware that she’s reached a limit.

“Apology accepted. What about Miranda?”

Rosie lights up when she realises that he’s truly interested in her findings and reasons.

“It’s a rather lovely name for an ugly extra-terrestrial body,” she begins. “Those who have seen it, describe the surface akin to a moth-eaten coat, or the Frankenstein monster’s patched together skin.”

“I see,” John replies, rising an eyebrow at his husband.

“Fitting for a Watson-Holmes, don’t you think?” Sherlock remarks innocently.

John hums in agreement, and peace is once again restored.

***

It’s Greg who picks Rosie up after her class’s visit to the Royal Observatory. Her classmates are well accustomed to all sorts of vehicles collecting her, and the DI’s badge doesn’t even get a second look.

“Hi, Ro. Hard crowd to impress,” he says dryly, gesturing toward her friends.

“Hi. They’re secretly incredibly jealous and curious, but they think of themselves as too cool to approach you. I bet they’ll interrogate me on Monday,” she replies with a shrug.

Greg chuckles and turns the car around.

“Just let me know if you want some advice about techniques to feign ignorance.”

“Thank, but no need for that. Papa’s way ahead of you.”

“I bet he is. Hardly surprising,” he retorts. “Did you have a good time?”

“Mostly. The astronomers were a highlight. And getting to look through the telescope was quite interesting.”

“I sense a ‘but’ in there,” her uncle prompts.

“Yeah,” she sighs. “Boys.”

Lestrade’s hackles rise and he’s instantly alert.

“What about them?” he asks seriously.

Rosie laughs and tells him it’s nothing inapt.

“It’s just…I mean…they are so childish! We read parts of our assignment out loud, right. When it was my turn…”

She sighs heavily before she continues.

“I was the only one who had chosen Uranus’ moons. The rest…well, I guess you can deducehow it played out after that.”

“Oh, I definitely can,” Greg tells her, and tries to keep up his strict façade, but fails spectacularly when Rosie starts to giggle. 

Even Mycroft finds it amusing when Rosie retells the story half an hour later.

***

Two weeks after Easter, Rosie is surrounded by her uncles and her parents in the Barbican Theatre, witnessing a stunning performance of Hamlet. 

John had thought she would be bored by the old-fashioned language, but in the interim, her eyes sparkle with excitement. 

“Did you know?” she asks Mycroft.

He doesn’t need her to elaborate, of course.

“Yes. I thought you would find that particular – “

“I did! I do!” she interrupts enthusiastically.

She turns to her parents, who both look a bit flabbergasted.

“He could be your twin,” John whispers.

“Indeed,” Sherlock agrees. “Quite extraordinary.”

A loud snore from Greg Lestrade makes them all pause. Sherlock looks a bit affronted, John and Rosie chuckle, while Mycroft sighs in that condescending way of his.

“I reckon my husband gets enough of your theatrics at work to burden himself watching your lookalike in his spare time, brother mine,” he retorts haughtily.

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

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[the-secretary-of-baker-street]

The Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name

As aforementioned, a large component of this entire theory rests on Watson’s definitive claim that he and Holmes left London in 1895, a time when many homosexual (or any form of same-sex) couples came under scrutiny. Suddenly, two men of intimate associations who were deemed acceptable before were observed under a microscope, for signs that they may perhaps be more than merely friends.

Bachelor John Watson had always been aware of this: it was why, eight years earlier, he published A Study in Scarlet, in order to assay any rumours that he and Holmes were on a level of intimacy only reserved for husband and wife. He had invented a wife, a beard, to emphasise that doctor and detective were business partners, nothing more.

But, whereas before, clients might have overlooked the fact that two bachelors were living together without any sign one was engaged, they may have felt compelled to question these circumstances. After all, they had witnessed the rather public case and destruction of Oscar Wilde in the Wilde trials, the first being on the 26th April. Therefore, it’s no wonder that one man might decide to prey on the residents of Baker Street, no one other than the Master Blackmailer himself: Charles Augustus Milverton.

Before, I theorised that Holmes may have received a similar threat of his relationship with Watson being exposed, and I believe for certain that in 1895, this danger arose again. Whether it was Milverton both times, I am unsure, though I do feel that Holmes might have felt more under attack in 1895 due to the legitimacy of Wilde’s defamation. So, if he was to be approached by a blackmailer intimidating him now, he would recognise that he might have to take further measures than telling (or, Watson telling) the public that he is unable to love at all.

Note: the Wilde trials was borne out of Oscar Wilde claiming libel against the Marquess of Queensberry, who was unhappy with Wilde’s relationship with his son John Douglas and tried to ruin the first performance of The Importance of Being Earnest. This was unsuccessful, as the prosecution began to turn towards Wilde due to evidence against him arising. During the trials, it is often cited that the famed author and playwright was prosecuted due to sexual encounters with minors, male minors to be specific, but the actual charges were there to protect young people against predatory adults. Whether the jury were in that mindset (children must be protected from adults) or were opposing Wilde for being a homosexual is not to be debated here, but what we can recognise is the effect the trials had on homosexuality in England. Again, same-sex couples were observed under scrutiny and no longer received the same ‘pity’ they might have had in a trial. So, regardless of whether we should perceive Wilde as prejudiced for being gay, or justly apprehended for being predatorial, we understand that England was now emphasising its homophobia, which is why Holmes and Watson might have become targets by their very co-workers (Scotland Yard and the police force).

Therefore, when Wilde was prosecuted on the 25th May, Charles Augustus Milverton made a visit to Baker Street. The story that Watson told us later on, that of Lady Eva Blackwell defending her reputation, is all fabricated. Or, there may have been some truth to it, as Watson slowly becomes accustomed to stealing elements from other cases to build one somewhat coherent and more ‘entertaining’ narrative.

Milverton arrived at Baker Street, after Holmes warned Watson that he was ‘the worst man in London’, and described him with a bitterness he didn’t even show for Moriarty. What evidence Milverton had against Holmes and Watson, I can not say, unless Watson was a little too explicit in his ‘diary entries’ or one of the couple took a risk when writing a letter- perhaps the missing page that Watson references in the counterfeit Hound of the Baskervilles was indeed a real letter which had been lost. Whatever Milverton had against them, it was enough to scare Holmes and Watson. They, like so many other couples, fled London, ending up in Hampshire, where they were consulted by Violet Hunter on the case of The Copper Beeches, then they moved on to Surrey and aided another Violet, Miss Smith, in The Solitary Cyclist.

Now, although Violet was a popular name in this era, it can easily be supposed that only Miss Smith was christened so, and Miss Hunter had a different name entirely (other cases include Violets too, in particular The Illustrious Client, but more on that in a moment). In a startlingly accurate case write-up, Watson describes that the case of The Solitary Cyclist occurred on the 23rd April 1895- three days before the Wilde trials began. He writes that Holmes was busy with another case at that time, so we can suppose that Miss Violet Smith did indeed ask for help at Baker Street on that exact date, and received it when Holmes and Watson were taking a trip outside of London. Watson was accurate here as this case gave Holmes and himself a reason to leave London, and wrote it up not long after, so he knew he needed to be more precise in the dates and names. Whereas in the case of Violet Hunter, as the case occurred not long before and was written up later on, it can be supposed that Watson decided to use the same name, in another example of slight clumsiness on his part and forgetting to write down a lady’s first name.

Then, in June of that year, The Three Students case occurs, though again is not published until much later. Watson was telling the truth when he stated he and Holmes were out of London, and was rightly secretive as to the reason why. However, as he and Holmes were attempting to remain under the radar, many cases ‘happened’ upon them, rather than clients visiting them in Baker Street. So far, they felt that they had escaped Milverton’s pressure, but of course safety measures were in place.

At the start of the following year, 1896 Holmes solved the case of The Missing Three-Quarter, since they were approached by Mr Cyril Overton in Cambridge. A few other smaller cases, which we are never to hear about, may have been solved, all outside of London. Watson was not yet ready to publish any cases, concerned about drawing too much attention to themselves.

Around the end of this year, Holmes and Watson return to London, although Watson decides he should stay at a hotel for a little while. But, he is called to action when Holmes sends him a note, writing that they had a client. This is no ordinary client, however; in a case where Holmes actually does little in the way of investigation, moreso bears witness to another’s story, the detective meets The Veiled Lodger. Now, this case is particularly interesting as nearly all the events happened prior to Watson’s narrative. Instead, Mrs Ronder describes the ill-fated attempt to murder her husband.

I don’t mean to imply that Watson invented this story from his imagination. Yet, I do believe that when he tells a story and the contents within are usually connected. In The Veiled Lodger, a woman, scarred physically and mentally by her past, decides to expose her history and plans to commit suicide afterwards. In this time, Holmes, another lodger known for his elusiveness, is under threat of being exposed; perhaps Watson found this case particularly relevant. But, it may have been too on the nose for a now more inquisitive audience, so the publication was saved for later on. 

In 1897, Watson correctly dated the events of The Abbey Grange that Winter. Additionally, this was Watson’s reintroduction to the literary world after his hiatus when Holmes came back, and began to publish cases. He was beginning to comb through the backlog of previous cases, not wanting to tell the public too much of what he and Holmes were doing in the present, but referring to cases before their hiatus. So, Silver Blaze and The Reigate Squires are published. 

And here, we come to a case that has truly puzzled me, due to it being a strange instance of the entire story told by a third person: The Mazarin Stone. I debated whether I should believe this story at all, given that neither Holmes or Watson told it, and how different it is from the other cases. Perhaps it should be taken as gospel, given there is no opportunity for a biased narrator to intrude- but where did it come from at all? Again, this links back to the second halves of both A Study in Scarlet and The Valley of Fear, and the entirety of His Last Bow, all of which have mysterious and omniscient narrators. 

I have thought long and hard on what to do with these ‘problem narratives’: am I to suppose that another person picked up the pen, and decided to pick off from where Watson left off? Or was it indeed still Watson, stretching his writer’s legs and taking an opportunity to write from another perspective? If we are to believe the former, then who is this mysterious writer? I believe that this theory poses too many complications and questions to take seriously. Instead, I think that Watson, hoping to write a tale which might appear more credible, decided to ‘remove [his] own insignificant personality’ and write in the third person. The evidence I have for that can be found later on, specifically when I focus on The Valley of Fear, a story I find particularly illuminating.

At the moment, we may suppose that here, in 1897, events somewhat similar to those ascribed to The Mazarin Stone occurred.

Finally, on the 19th May 1897, Wilde was released from prison, only to immediately vacate England. Although London is not entirely free from the discriminatory claws which suffocate it, perhaps it became slightly easier to breathe for Victorian couples. Which is why, in the following year, Watson published The Veiled Lodger: Mrs Ronder did not succumb to her temptation of death, instead, she decided to live. 

[rknchan]

okay it has been bothering me for a while. i don't want to side with bad faith heteronormative interpretations of 'a scandal in bohemia' but i feel like youre taking watson's descriptions of holmes in this story too literally

"It was not that he felt any emotion akin to love for Irene Adler. All emotions, and that one particularly, were abhorrent to his cold, precise but admirably balanced mind. He was, I take it, the most perfect reasoning and observing machine that the world has seen, but as a lover he would have placed himself in a false position."

why take this at face value?

i thought we established that:

watson is an unreliable narrator

he's a hardcore romantic whose idea of love is "i fell in love 30 seconds after seeing mary and married her in 4 days". he probably doesn't think anything lesser than this is real love anyway lol. he's an outlier who should not be counted

he idolizes holmes, and that includes seeing him as a cold and distant thinking machine above all emotion including love. but we know this just isn't true.

“You’re not hurt, Watson? For God’s sake, say that you are not hurt!”

It was worth a wound—it was worth many wounds—to know the depth of loyalty and love which lay behind that cold mask. The clear, hard eyes were dimmed for a moment, and the firm lips were shaking. For the one and only time I caught a glimpse of a great heart as well as of a great brain. All my years of humble but single-minded service culminated in that moment of revelation."

only in the later cases he finally recognizes that THERE IS "loyalty and love behind that cold mask", there IS "a great heart"

4. holmes himself is lowkey tsundere. in early cases he can't admit himself that he is more than an emotionless thinker

"I fear that it may be the last investigation in which I shall have the chance of studying your methods. Miss Morstan has done me the honour to accept me as a husband in prospective."

He gave a most dismal groan. "I feared as much," said he. "I really cannot congratulate you."

I was a little hurt. "Have you any reason to be dissatisfied with my choice?" I asked.

"Not at all. I think she is one of the most charming young ladies I ever met and might have been most useful in such work as we have been doing. She had a decided genius that way witness the way in which she preserved that Agra plan from ali the other papers of her father. But love is an emotional thing, and whatever is emotional is opposed to that true cold reason which I place above all things. I should never marry myself, lest I bias my judgment."

he doesn't in plain text admit that he would miss his friend and doesn't want to be deserted for a wife. he instead tries to distance himself talking about emotions being opposed to his cold reason

so why couldn't he be pining for the woman who beat him and changed his worldview, while also respecting her intelligence and her choices?

i'm not saying this interpretation is correct. not saying holmes must be attracted to women. seeing him as aroace has a huge lot of evidence. seeing him as attracted to men and/or having romantic chemistry with watson is also valid. i don't want to erase anyone

i just mean that watson's unreliable narration and these characters' personalities leave room for different interpretations

and if theses 1-4 can be used to support holmes/watson pairing, then they can be used to support holmes having one sided feelings for irene either

[nightflower-stuff]

🌈 The Dragon Prince (Crossover AU + OCs) 🧝‍♀️

• 1st slide:

- Moonshadow Elven Assassins 🌕

- I really love these 4 of them but still I missed them 😭🤲❣️

• 2nd slide:

- Tarzan & Runaan interaction ⭐

- Runaan did sounds like a British (VA by Jonathan Holmes). Tarzan gonna accept him that he hearing his friend sounded like a British 👀❤️

• 3rd & 4th slide:

- Tiadrin & Lain (Rayla's biological parents)

- Tiadrin is the top & male wife alongside with her bottom boyfriend Lain gonna be the girl boss. I made them as headcanon. I'm sure that Lain start male pregnant or Tiadrin will be pregnant in their future ⭐

- In the party night at gala. They are invited. 💝

• 5th slide:

- Monarchy Friends 👑

- Here are the royalty trios of 5 different human kingdoms. They're reunited in EP 9 in Season 7🤲❣️. But what happened to Del Bar & Neolandia 🧐

• 6th slide:

- Terry (Terrestrius) ��

- I really love this guy is very amazing! Claudia broke up with Poor Terrestrius 😭. Terry & other Terry such as son of Tarzan & Jane are the same name. He loves interact with his new friends instead of Claudia 🤲❣️. Maybe he gonna react to "Lizard in a hat". 🤗

- For Terrestrius haters, Don't ever near him or threaten him if the fans killed you 😎

• 7th & 8th slide:

- Runaan being overprotective 🤗

- Runaan watching his birth daughter Loreleia with Princess Valindra if he's proud of her except Rayla loves Callum but her adoptive dad overprotective 🤣. He better stay away from Callum & Steve

- Steve was scared & he's talk to his husband, Miko (Jade Dragon Emperor). Miko is furious & Helia let his friend calm down 👀. He's approach his old friend very furious 😎

• Last slide:

- Elijaal 🌙

- I drew them in my art style. Since they're very incredible 😎.

- Art request/suggestions & Fanart gift for @impossiblearbiterhologram

[bluebellofbakerstreet]

A-Z Sherlock Fan Fiction Tropes Bingo

Many thanks to @swissmissing for creating this bingo card! Because I'm like that, I decided to go for a blackout bingo! And because, even as I was typing these, I kept thinking of more wonderful fics that would fit the brief, I hope to fill in my bingo card again. Writers are amazing and deserve to be lauded, and I have left off so many amazing fics and authors. Besides, we all need fic recs. 💙

AU/Amnesia The Murder of Emory J Amat by chriscalledmesweetie. Sherlock and John in 1920's AgathaChristieLand. It's a WIP but is currently updating weekly. (52k, T)

BDSM/Bodyswap - Certain Skills by NoStraightLine. John expressly told Sherlock that if he stole his gun again he’d get the fucking he was asking for. Sherlock “Boundaries Are Boring” Holmes stole John’s gun. (3k, E)

Crossover/Crack - Repo Men by Anyawen. In which Mrs Turner's married ones are James Bond and Q. Q is kidnapped; everybody is a BAMF. (7k, G)

Domestic/Disability A Building of Bridges by pengke. Alternate first meeting. No one would ever send Sherlock in to defuse a stand-off; but on one unlikely day, that’s exactly what happened. “Congratulations, Lestrade,” he called out sarcastically. “You’re traumatizing a war veteran.” (11k, G)

Established Relationship/Enemies to Lovers - Interview by bluebellofbakerstreet. In which the boys are in an 80's punk band, and are being interviewed by Rolling Stone. (2k, G)

Future/Fluff 50. Be You - No one Else Can by KittenKin. John's had a bad day and Sherlock doesn't know how to help. They both feel better at the end, and you will, too. (1k, G)

Gen/Genderswap - The Art of Communication by stillwaters01. Lestrade is receiving odd texts from Sherlock; he reads between the lines and brings help. (2k, T)

Historical/Humor - Acceptable Behavior by bbcatemysoul. Sherlock isn't really sure why John wants to shag him, but he's certain that if he's careful to behave properly about it, John can be persuaded to keep doing it. (3k, M)

Illness/imprisonment -  Radioactive Trees in a Red Forest by Maribor_Petrichor. Harrowing account of John's battle with mental health issues and addiction after - you know - everything. (280k, E)

Jealousy/Jilted - Hungry by LipstickDaddy. John can't figure out why Sherlock is being so nice to that new guy working with the yard. (7k, G)

Kids/Kink - The Alchemy of Sea Glass by reveling_in_mayhem. Salt and air and sand surrounded their little party of three. Crashing waves, gull cries, and the exhilarated exclamations of an excited three-year-old served as the soundtrack to a day filled with blue skies and bright sunshine. (22k, E)

Long/Love Triangle The Edinburgh Problem by snorklepie. “A nice holiday, just a bit more...murdery. ” John said drily. “Yes! The best kind of holiday!” Sherlock beamed. “So we won’t get bored!” (152k, E)

Magical Realism/Major Character Death Left by LifeonMars. John Watson is left-handed. He’s tried not to let it affect his life, but as any Lefty knows, that’s almost impossible. (45k, M)

NSFW/Next Gen. Warzone by abundantlyqueer. Three smutty stories that pick up where the first two episodes left off. (13k, E)

Omegaverse/Only One Bed - Scars Don't Lie by CumberCurlyGirl. The prospect of going undercover as husbands to a couples retreat is just too enticing to refuse. (33k, M)

Parenthood/Platonic The Man With the Cartier Frames by JRow. Sherlock's top priority is The Work, just as it's always been ... in between trips to Putney to help with Rosie, collecting Rosie from school, and preparing for Rosie's sleepover at Baker Street. (32k, T)

Queer/Quest Dance With Me by TotallySilverGirl. Sherlock's queer quest for johnlock requires dancing, and some help from Sally Donovan. (28k, E)

Retirement/Road Trip - The Winter Garden by Callie4180. As Sherlock nears the end of his career, he's given the gift of a cottage in Sussex. The honey from the beehives out back is amazing. Almost...magical. (31k, T)

Soulmates/Slow Burn Soul Mate by Mottlemoth. Mystrade. The words appeared on Mycroft's arm aged fourteen. He's now lived with the unfortunate words all his life, not certain that he even wishes to meet his soul mate if that's how the man talks. (4k, T)

Teen AU/Time Travel - The Curious Adventure of the Drs Watson by ShinySherlock. What if ACD Watson and BBC Watson switched places? (40k, M)

Undercover/Unrequited - Last Call at the Homesick Pub by Chryse. During the hiatus, Sherlock is both undercover and suffering from unrequited love. (3k, T)

Vampires/Villain POV - Nine Tenths of the Law by bendingsignpost. John knows what's his - of course he'll kill for it. (Modern vampire AU) (18k, M)

Whump/Werewolves When Your Belly’s in the Trench by Morgan_Stuart. The next time that door opens, John Watson will kill the person on the other side. (4k, T)

Xenomorphism/Xmas - Ghost Stories by SwissMiss. Sherlock's parents think he and John are a couple. They might be onto something. (22k, M)

Zombies/Zoomorphism - Aim for the Head by Breath4Soul. Sometimes you don't really find yourself until everything has ended.A fic about finding love, healing, and purpose after everything has gone to hell. Still a WIP, but worth it. (44k, M)

[amypihcs]

Dear friends in Doyle and ACD Johnlock.

A brief list of post-hiatus Johnlock moments that will prove how much married these two are and that OF COURSE Watson went back to live with Holmes. Let's say sharing rooms... once they stay in Watson's room, once in Holmes'.

yes, this post will be even more unhinged then my usual, be warned and forgive me if you can.

Let's begin with Empty House, alright? Holmes comes back from death and Watson, saint that he is reacts with

Grabbing him and most likely hugging him.

Agreeing to go on an adventure with him at moment's notice.

Saving Holmes' life. And most likely kissing him after a brandy back home.

Enter the golden pince-nez.

Passing the evening just doing their things and reading together! Maybe snuggled one near the other? Cuddling a little bit?

next one, next one! We have Three students. They're away together outside London to 'escape circumstances' in 1895. Yeah. Watson is being worried for Holmes but they're together. And at least in being together they can tease each other

And clearly get a laugh out of it, since Watson isn't writing this with any bitterness. And then, of course, Holmes is Holmes.

Bursting into Watson's ahem, THEIR room, maybe greeting him with a kiss, And asking him to skip breakfast or at least to postpone it for a while! And of course Watson answers with a yes.

ENTER solitary cyclist. They are simply very married, Holmes even APOLOGIZES to Watson.

And they have a danger-case date in the country! Watson likes it.

Of course the evening the case is solved they hug and cuddle once they're back at baker street. Holmes is feeling down because he made a blunder, Watson because he can't run as fast as Holmes. Cuddling MIGHT indeed make them feel better. Kissing each other, showing their love to the other.

Now enter Black Peter! It starts with proud and exasperated husband Watson, of course. Who is totally unruffled by yeah, y'know, Holmes entering the room with an harpoon in his hands.

Well, ALMOST. Totally unruffled. He's surprised. That he is. He's already living there again toh. That much is clear. But then, once accepted the case they go on the palce itself, well

Mr. I hate the countryside goes with his husband to take a walk in the woods. Because WATSON likes it. And because in the woods there are corners secluded enough to allow them a little kissy here and there! Then a nice ambush and we'll see the solution of the case At breakfast!

Holmes is grumpy and Watson notices. Watson MUST have taken Holmes in his lap once back to baker street. Cat-Detective Husband loves it!

Holmes HATED this case. Poor darling.

Oh! And Watson saves him again as they arrest the murderer

And then off to Norway, time for a good vacation!

Time to have some Quality Time between husbands! They so love each other!

This said, the statement in today's letter was quite obvious.

After he reports the teasing at breakfast, i'd say even an UNNECESSARY statement.

We knew, Watson. We had got it PERFECTLY WELL that you and your husband were living together again. And probably fucking each other silly against the most various surfaces of baker street, other then in your beds.

Congratulations! Congratulations to the happy couple, keep solving misteries together, detective husbands!

[tiger-moran]

ALSO

(this is following on from my The Valley of Fear posts earlier. I probably should have posted this yesterday since it's primarily about a female character but I didn't think about this again until today so never mind).

Ivy Douglas. Listen, she is great and I love her and she is such an underused character who's barely been portrayed in anything ever and that really sucks, and she unlike various other female canonical characters barely gets acknowledged in the fandom even, and that also really sucks. I have actually talked about her in my Moriarty and Moran essay because she is kind of linked to them and I think she's such an intriguing character and it's such a shame Valley is such an underused story that has barely been adapted ever because Ivy Douglas deceives both Holmes and Watson, i.e. the 'great detective' and the guy who supposedly has all this worldly experience of women. For a while they're practically doing the polite Victorian equivalent of calling her a Heartless Bitch who either doesn't care her husband is dead or actually murdered him herself probably because she's screwing another man. But she does deceive them and also she loves her husband! She has not betrayed him! And she also seems to know and accept he also still loves his first (deceased) wife, and that (deceased) wife, Ettie, is the one who gets to be a bigger character in the overall story and does overshadow Ivy, and John Douglas is even still wearing his wedding ring from his marriage to Ettie but all of that's completely all right with Ivy! Instead of being this Heartless Bitch who wants her husband dead or being petty and jealous over him still loving his first wife so much she genuinely loves him and wants to save him.

Also it's not because of Ivy that the truth is revealed, it's Cecil Barker who gives a lot of it away. So why could she not have deceived Holmes and Watson again and been partly responsibly for successfully saving her husband? And she wouldn't even need to lie much this time unless Holmes went and followed it up and talked to her face to face sometime because all she does this time is send a telegram saying "Jack has been lost overboard in gale off St. Helena. No one knows how accident occurred."

She doesn't say he's dead or even believed dead. She could well be deceiving them again while actually stating almost the complete truth if Jack/John Douglas has faked his death again. He has disappeared overboard because he never got back onto that particular ship again (but he could have been picked up by another boat); 'Jack' has been lost because he'd change to a different name again. The only part where she would have to lie is to say no one knows how it occurred but even then it would only be a tiny handful of people who did know the truth.

Meanwhile it bothers me that in the story Holmes exposes the truth about John Douglas and then seems to put no real effort in trying to help him. Sure you can argue that he did so off the record but he doesn't do it in the text, all he does in the text is write a letter to Ivy saying "Get him out of England at any cost. There are forces here which may be more dangerous than those he has escaped. There is no safety for your husband in England" and then appears to just consider that enough. He just seemed to leave them to it after throwing them into the shit, so to speak. I don't think Moriarty's 'taunting' note to Holmes is really a threat, I think he is both mocking and admonishing Holmes for putting John Douglas in danger again by, in essence, 'doing the right thing' and following the law and exposing that the dead person was someone else.

And I don't feel like there's much reason for Ivy (or her husband) to have any real confidence in Holmes to help them anyway when his detective work is pretty much the whole reason why the guy was in danger again. And I definitely think if Ivy is clever and composed enough to not only deceive Holmes (and Watson and the police) but also to get through a very horrible incident with such composure, she'd be smart and strong-willed enough to stand up to Moriarty herself, not to destroy him somehow but to find him and employ him herself to help her fake her husband's death again but successfully this time. I totally see Moriarty doing this either purely as a job, for the money, or, more likely, because it entertains him and he finds it really amusing that Holmes is supposed to be the 'good guy' and he 'did the right thing' but then all he really did was put Douglas in danger again meanwhile Moriarty, the 'villain' is the one helping him. So many people do seem to ignore this whole thing in The Valley of Fear with Moriarty and him even sending Holmes a note, even though this idea of Moriarty being obsessed with Holmes somehow is such a common thing in the fandom. But this could fit so well as to what happens to Douglas and why Moriarty does send that note, and Ivy Douglas seems to me the kind of character who could pull this off and be the catalyst for why that happens.

[stargazer-sims]

More random stuff...

When Stephen first met Ginger, way back when she was teaching in the UK and first started coaching Sebastian, he didn't know that she came from a wealthy family. He learned that Ginger's husband Liam was on his way to potentially becoming a self-made millionaire, but he also quickly realized that the marriage was doomed to failure because Liam was more interested in getting rich than he was in taking care of Ginger. Stephen was baffled as to why they'd even gotten married in the first place, and could only conclude it was because Liam wanted arm candy and because a talented and successful wife would lend him some credibility and give him something to brag about.

Fast forward a couple of years, and Ginger & Liam's marriage indeed ends in divorce. Sebastian and Sofia are tired of boarding school in the UK and want to come home. They've practically become bilingual in the time they were away, and they've had an international experience, so Stephen agrees. Sebastian begs his coach to come too, and since Ginger no longer has any reason to stay in the UK, she decides to go to Japan and continue to be Sebastian's coach.

Stephen offers to let Ginger live in their guest house, which Sebastian is thrilled about. He adores her, and it's great to have his coach and "bonus mom" close.

As time goes on, Stephen and Ginger get to know each other. She starts spending more and more time with the family at the main house. Eventually, they're comfortable enough with each other that Stephen decides to invite Ginger as his "plus one" to a high-powered business event.

Ginger accepts without so much as batting an eyelash. If there's one thing she knows, it's how to behave around rich and powerful people. She spent the first 14 years of her life learning etiquette and the complexity and nuance of navigating upper class society. She even managed to teach Liam a thing or two about it during their marriage. Meanwhile, Stephen is floored that this woman he assumed was from a lower middle-class background doesn't need any coaching and slips seamlessly into his world. To say he's impressed is the understatement of the decade.

It's during the event that he inadvertently learns who Ginger really is. She introduces herself to someone at the party as Vivienne Holmes, and asks them if they've heard of her father, Ian Holmes, CEO of Holmes Security. Stephen makes a mighty effort to keep his jaw from falling open, because he had no idea. The company founded by Ginger's great-grandfather is a multinational organization, and they have security contracts with many companies worldwide, including the two major ones headquartered in Mt. Komorebi; Okamoto Electronics, and his own family's company, Gnome Sports Equipment.

It's a long time before Stephen has the courage to ask Ginger why she never told him about her family. She explained that she's always had a distant relationship with her parents, and although she still loved them and was still in contact with them, she had no interest in trying to force a closer bond. She preferred to live her own life, and she had her "found family" back in Canada to rely on; her found parents, Stan and Milena Kovac, and her found brother, Nikolai.

She confessed that part of her enjoyed the glamorous upper-class lifestyle, but to her, people would always be more important than wealth. She wouldn't turn down being rich, but if she had to choose between money and happiness, she'd always choose happiness and being with the people she cares about.

Looking back on it, Stephen realized that was the moment he fell irrevocably in love with her. She was perfect, as far as he was concerned; genuine, sincere and down-to-earth, neither greedy nor overwhelmed by the idea of wealth, and comfortable in his world.

[mariana-oconnor]

Thor Bridge pt 3

Back to the Gold King again.

But first we have to go and see the young governess who he claims thinks she can fix him.

I had expected from all that we had heard to see a beautiful woman, but I can never forget the effect which Miss Dunbar produced upon me. It was no wonder that even the masterful millionaire had found in her something more powerful than himself—something which could control and guide him.

Watson, rein it in, she's been a victim of sexual harassment from her employer and she's now in jail for allegedly murdering his wife. There is a time and a place for your horniness, now is not it. But, I suppose, at least you are consistent.

"After seeing you, I am prepared to accept Mr. Gibson's statement both as to the influence which you had over him and as to the innocence of your relations with him."

I really hope that this is because of an indent on the little finger of her left hand and a shiny patch on the inside of her elbow, because if this is just because she's pretty, Holmes, then I am disappoint.

"I would not wish to wrong her, but she loved so vividly in a physical sense that she could hardly understand the mental, and even spiritual, tie which held her husband to me, or imagine that it was only my desire to influence his power to good ends which kept me under his roof."

Oh boy, she's really believing the nonsense, huh? Sure, you have a mental and spiritual bond. I'm sure his intentions are entirely chaste. Yup, yuhuh.

"I can see now that I was wrong. Nothing could justify me in remaining where I was a cause of unhappiness, and yet it is certain that the unhappiness would have remained even if I had left the house.”

Which means the only thing gained by you staying was your own unhappiness. So that was pointless. But yes, you should absolutely have left and not tried to use your married employer's crush on you to manipulate his actions. Like, I get that you were trying to do something good, and I understand you're a victim in all of this, but that was still a bad idea.

"I saw no reason for such secrecy, but I did as she asked, accepting the appointment. She asked me to destroy her note and I burned it in the schoolroom grate."

Oh boy. Always keep the receipts. You were being framed so hard.

"Never did I realize till that moment how this poor creature hated me. She was like a mad woman—indeed, I think she was a mad woman, subtly mad with the deep power of deception which insane people may have. How else could she have met me with unconcern every day and yet had so raging a hatred of me in her heart?"

Yeah, little weird that the person we have been repeatedly assured was incredibly emotional and open about her emotions somehow managed to smother them to that extent on a daily basis until this point. Almost like there was some catalyst for her outburst (or this is a lie).

“Mr. Gibson is a very strong, self-contained man. I do not think that he would ever show his emotions on the surface. But I, who knew him so well, could see that he was deeply concerned.”

The more you talk about him, the more I think you were taken in by him. You're being very nice about the man...

“It could only have been at meal-time, or else at the hours when I would be in the schoolroom with the children.”

So... almost any time of day then?

It was as well for him that I did so, for he took little care for his own safety when his mind was once absorbed by a problem, so that more than once my revolver had been a good friend in need. I reminded him of the fact.

I mean, you killed a dog that one time. But usually he sort of... hits people himself? This feels like revisionist history. Holmes once bent a poker back to being straight.

“Do you know, Watson,” said he, “I believe your revolver is going to have a very intimate connection with the mystery which we are investigating.” “My dear Holmes, you are joking.”

Is Holmes about to throw Watson's revolver into a river?

“It all depends upon the behaviour of Dr. Watson's revolver,” said my friend. “Here it is. Now, officer, can you give me ten yards of string?” The village shop provided a ball of stout twine.

Well Watson's revolver is definitely going to be thrown somewhere.

Watson, why do you trust him with your things?

At the words he raised the pistol to his head, and then let go his grip. In an instant it had been whisked away by the weight of the stone, had struck with a sharp crack against the parapet, and had vanished over the side into the water.

🤣😂🤣

Bye bye, revolver!

You will also find beside it the revolver, string and weight with which this vindictive woman attempted to disguise her own crime and to fasten a charge of murder upon an innocent victim.

So the wife committed suicide to frame the governess for her death because she was jealous about her abusive husband? That's... utterly nonsensical of her.

Should have killed the governess and framed the husband (I mean, no, she shouldn't have, but it would have been a better plan).

Oh god. Oh no. Oh fuck me no. This is going to end with Miss Dunbar marrying the Gold King in order to fix him, isn't it? Isn't it?

I hate everything about that.

No doubt she blamed this innocent lady for all those harsh dealings and unkind words with which her husband tried to repel her too demonstrative affection. Her first resolution was to end her own life. Her second was to do it in such a way as to involve her victim in a fate which was worse far than any sudden death could be.

So the guy abuses his possibly already mentally ill wife to a point where she considers suicide the only way out? And she blames the other woman completely and not her husband. And Miss Dunbar isn't exactly blameless, using the guy's crush on her to her own ends, however altruistic they may be.

Just a whole lot of nope.

"Well, Watson, we have helped a remarkable woman, and also a formidable man. Should they in the future join their forces, as seems not unlikely, the financial world may find that Mr. Neil Gibson has learned something in that schoolroom of sorrow where our earthly lessons are taught.”

Just no. Just no... That poor woman. And yeah, what she did sucked. But what the actual fuck. Fuck everyone, honestly. None of this ended well. I hate it all.

Happily ever after because the love of a good (~British~) woman will change him and make everything from now on sunflowers and daisy chains. And no thought to the children who lost their mother or the fact that abusive partners can't just be 'fixed' and he's absolutely going to abuse his next partner when she doesn't live up to his standards. They're just going to be in this horrific manipulative relationship and the children are going to be trapped with them.

No thank you. This is not what I ordered.

But I did appreciate Watson's revolver taking a bath. Nice moment of comedy in amongst all the nonsense.

[cupids-arrow-matchmaking-boss]

Savvy's Extended Family

Meet the two families that surround Savvy's daily life in Cupid's Arrow.

Savvy's 'Blood' Family

Papa Metcalf - former Navy officer and head of Metcalf Mafia; old callsign was "Gaboon", which is a slight homage to his father

Mama Metcalf - runs the best restaurant/diner in town and where both of Savvy's families like to congregate

Curtis Everett - adopted child by the Metcalfs when he was 3; closest to Savvy and acts her Consigliere

Edgar - adopted child by the Metcalfs during infancy after car accident that almost claimed him, Curtis, and Mace while actually claiming his mother

James Mace - former foster who aged out with the Metcalfs; considers them family though he's content with not being formally adopted; works at NASA as engineer

Nick Gant - former foster who also aged out with the Metcalfs; considers them family like Mace; tends to travel and showcase his many tricks and illusions to get by

Cassie Holmes - current foster who came to the Metcalfs thanks to Nick; really enjoys fortune telling and playing at being clairevoyant; has a favored tarot deck that she uses

Natasha "Phoenix" Trace - former foster; closest girlfriend of Savvy and only one of the Metcalf kids to follow dear old 'Dad' into the Navy where she's currently a lieutenant and also a fighter pilot

Frank Adler - Savvy's future husband/current love interest; works boat repair after Papa Metcalf taught him all he needed to know; spends most of his days taking care of Mary the way his sister would've wanted; takes him longer than it should to realize that Cupid's Arrow is a mafia-owned town and Savvy is its leader

Mary Adler - Savvy's future niece; mathematic genius; adores her extended family thanks to Savvy; doesn't realize how loved and adored she is by everyone in Cupid's Arrow; her best friends are Jake's niece and Sam's nephews; Friday's are spent with Roberta and Saturday's are with Savvy

Savvy's Mafia Family

Jake Jensen - resident hacker and enforcer when necessary; came to Cupid's Arrow after Savvy saw his talent in her law firm's IT department; still works for the firm when he's not doing work for the mafia; also moved his sister and niece so they could be close to him; only Savvy gets away with calling Jake 'JJ'

Colin Shea - resident sleuth and newer member of this 'family'; Savvy discovered him when he was spying on one of her clients and decided his skills could be useful; nickname is Casanova; works most often with Jake

Steve Rogers - retired Army vet who ended up in Cupid's Arrow because of Sam; takes over one of Papa Metcalf's businesses (local car garage); one of Savvy's most trusted bodyguards

Bucky Barnes - followed Steve to Cupid's Arrow after being medically discharged from the Army; works alongside Steve at the garage; one of Savvy's most trusted bodyguards

Sam Wilson - met Savvy and her dad via the VA; accepted invite to visit Cupid's Arrow and never left; moved his sister and nephews to keep them close; runs the town's largest marina; another enforcer when necessary for the 'family'

[cleverhottubmiracle]

Each year, the grand finale of awards season comes with the Academy Awards. As the most prestigious awards show in film, the Oscars draws the biggest stars, and in many cases, their famous partners. Throughout the shows history, many iconic couples have graced the red carpet, from Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston to Leonardo DiCaprio and Gisele Bündchen. More recently, the show has served as a date night for celebrity couples like Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman, Halle Berry and Van Hunt, and Matthew McConaughey and Camila Alves. It's also been the site of some infamous PDA, including sweet smooches on the red carpet and passionate embraces following big wins. And who could forget the speeches? One of the more endearing family shout-outs in the show's history comes from McConaughey, who thanked his wife, Camila Alves, and kids while accepting the Oscar for Best Actor in 2014, saying, "the courage and significance you give me every day I go out the door is unparalleled. You are the four people in my life that I want to make the most proud of me. Thank you." This year, at the 2025 Oscars, all eyes were on stars like Selena Gomez, Ariana Grande, and Timothée Chalamet and their famous plus-ones, each of whom looked loved up in the audience. Stars across the board delivered acceptance speeches that elicited both laughter and tears. From Zoe Saldaña shouting out her husband's hair to Kieran Culkin reminding his wife of just how many kids he wants, here are all the cute couple moments you may have missed. Timothée Chalamet and Kylie Jenner Kevin Winter/Getty Images Best Actor nominee Timothée Chalamet walked the red carpet with his mom, but inside, he was joined by his girlfriend Kylie Jenner. They took their seats and shared a kiss just before the show began. Jenner previously joined Chalamet for the Golden Globes, where she played the part of proud partner, snapping photos of Chalamet on a digital camera. Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco John Shearer/97th Oscars/Getty Images Emilia Pérez star Selena Gomez was joined by fiancé Benny Blanco. Gomez wore a Ralph Lauren gown featuring 16,000 glass drops and crystals, and accessorized with her marquise engagement ring. Zoe Saldaña and Marc Perego Saldaña Kevin Mazur/Getty Images Supporting actress nominee Zoe Saldaña brought husband Marc Perego Saldaña as her date. When accepting the award, Zoe thanked Marc, saying, "To my husband with that beautiful hair: The biggest honor of my life is being your partner. You hung the moon in our beautiful, perfect sons, Cy, Bowie, and Zen—they fill our skies every night with stars." Adrian Brody and Georgina Chapman Frazer Harrison/Getty Images Best Actor nominee Adrian Brody walked the carpet alongside designer Georgina Chapman, who he's been linked to since 2019. Kieran Culkin and Jazz Charton Arturo Holmes/Getty Images Kieran Culkin brought his wife Jazz Charton to the 2025 Academy Awards, where he took home the award for Best Supporting Actor. In his acceptance speech, he reminded Charton of her promise to have more kids if he ever won an Oscar, saying, "Let's get cracking." Jeff Goldblum and Emilie Livingston Chelsea Guglielmino/Getty Images Wicked star Jeff Goldblum and his wife Emilie Livingston are red-carpet regulars, and the Academy Awards was no exception. They walked the carpet hand in hand, where the Goldblum told a reporter, "Take care of this queen....That’s my main mission in life. She is a queen in real life." Margaret Qualley and Jack Antonoff Michael Buckner/Getty Images As stars filtered into the auditorium, Jack Antonoff joined wife Margaret Qualley, who starred in The Substance alongside Demi Moore. It's been a busy awards season for the couple, with Qualley having been nominated for a Golden Globe and a Critics Choice Awards, and Antonoff having received five Grammy nominations. Miles Teller and Keleigh Sperry Teller Mike Coppola/Getty Images Presenter Miles Teller joined his wife, Keleigh Sperry Teller, on the red carpet, where he planted a kiss on her head. Miley Cyrus and Maxx Morando Mike Coppola/Getty Images Miley Cyrus and boyfriend Maxx Morando posed on the red carpet. Cyrus presented the award for Best Sound Editing. Emma Stone and Dave McCary Mike Coppola/Getty Images Last year's Best Actress winner, Emma Stone, walked the carpet with her husband, comedian and writer Dave McCary. Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell Mike Coppola/Getty Images Longtime couple Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell are no strangers to the Oscars, where they first presented together in 1989. Hawn channeled an Oscar statue with her glowing golden gown, while Russell kept it classic with a black tux. Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos Frazer Harrison/Getty Images Husband and wife duo Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos stunned on the red carpet , with Rippa wearing a flowing tangerine gown and Consuelos donning a black tux. The pair, who cohost LIVE with Kelly and Mark, will host an after-Oscars special. Brandi Carlile and Catherine Shepherd Savion Washington/Getty Images Brandi Carlile and Catherine Shepherd coordinated in black and white ensembles with bow details and pops of red. The pair have been married since 2012. Amy Poehler and Joel Lovell Monica Schipper/Getty Images Actress Amy Poehler walked the carpet beside former New York Times editor Joel Lovell. The couple were first linked in late 2024. Conan O'Brien and Liza Powel O'Brien Gilbert Flores/Getty Images Host Conan O'Brien walked the carpet in a classic tux with his wife, Liza Powel O'Brien, who opted for an icy blue boat neck gown. Emma Wall and Jeremy Strong Monica Schipper/Getty Images Filmmaker Emma Wall and her husband, actor Jeremy Strong, arrived in coordinating beige 'fits. Strong is nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his role in The Apprentice. Ryan Michelle Bathe and Sterling K. Brown Mike Coppola/Getty Images College sweethearts Ryan Michelle Bathe and Sterling K. Brown had a date night at the 2025 Oscars, where Bathe stunned in a glimmering golden gown. Brown looked sharp as well in a cream colored jacket and black bowtie. Trent and Victoria Warmerdam Kevin Winter/Getty Images Trent and Victoria Warmerdam took home the Oscar for Best Live Action Short Film for I Am Not a Robot. In accepting the award, Warmerdam thanked Trent, and even snuck in a reference to Kieran Culkin's acceptance speech earlier in the night. She said, "To my producer and partner in life, Trent, I'm not having your babies because of this statue. But, I remember on set, we were shooting in winter, and I was walking backwards...and then I felt your hand on my back, because that's you, you always have my back. And we level-headed Dutch people don't say this often, but I love you." Cue the tears. Source link