#how much does a financial advisor make

[financial-advice]

What Does a Financial Advisor Do?

A financial advisor is a professional who helps individuals and businesses manage their financial affairs. Financial advisors offer a variety of services, including:

Developing a financial plan: A financial advisor can help you develop a financial plan that outlines your financial goals and the steps you need to take to achieve them. This may include creating a budget, setting financial goals, and identifying investment opportunities.

Providing investment advice: A financial advisor can help you choose investments that align with your financial goals and risk tolerance. This may include stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and other investment vehicles.

Managing assets: A financial Planner can help you manage your assets, including reviewing and rebalancing your investment portfolio. They can also help you make informed decisions about buying and selling investments.

Advising on insurance and retirement planning: A financial advisor can help you choose the right insurance coverage for your needs and assist with retirement planning, including setting up a retirement savings plan and choosing the right investments for your retirement.

Providing tax planning advice: A financial advisor can help you understand the tax implications of your financial decisions and provide guidance on tax-saving strategies.

Financial advisors may work with individuals or businesses, and they may specialise in specific areas such as retirement planning, estate planning, or investment management. It’s important to choose a financial advisor who is a good fit for your needs and who has the necessary skills and experience to help you achieve your financial goals.

[o-sachi]

Hope They Caught Us ‧₊˚ ⋅ Blue Lock Chars. (Request)

ଳ oh no, the paparazzi has revealed your relationship; what's going to happen now?ଳ characters; isagi yoichi, bachira meguru, nagi seishiro, reo mikage, michael kaiser, sae itoshi, rin itoshi, barou shoei, chigiri hyoma, shidou ryusei ଳ tags; pro player characters, gn reader, sfw

ᯓ Isagi Yoichi

Isagi wasn't really concerned about being "found out" in the first place. He mostly kept a low profile with you for your own privacy and safety.

If you're just starting out, he'd probably dodge questions about his love life. But after a couple of months, he'd gladly reveal it in a press con.

Being one of the top strikers, it became an unspoken rule in media to not be that "trashy" tabloid to mess around with Isagi's private life.

In a way, everyone respected the low profile he wanted for the two of you.

He'd probably be more open with sharing photos of the two of you once you're married. Maybe he'd even post occasional updates about your family.

ᯓ Bachira Meguru

He does the job of the paparazzi for them. Tabloids have no use in tailing him in public because he posts about you on his socials as much as he can.

Seriously. When he needs to promote an upcoming match, he'll use a picture of you wearing his jersey and slap on the caption his management asked him to.

It probably becomes a meme—how obsessed he can be with you. Oddly enough, it earns him even more fans.

When you get married... he will never shut up. Seeing his social media, you'd forget that he was a football player in the first place.

It's a different story if he had kids though. He'd be super pumped to share them and all their milestones, but he's responsible enough to know that they need to remain private for their safety.

ᯓ Nagi Seishirou

His management initially told him to keep a low profile with anyone that he dates. Being a famous footballer meant that he had to protect his reputation at all costs. Romantic relationships could be a slippery slope, so they wanted to safeguard his image as best they can.

He shrugs it off and promises that he will do that. Butttttt, not long after the two of you started dating, the paps already got to him. Suffice to say that his management was not happy.

The two of you were caught out in public getting some food. They could've argued that you were going as friends, but the way Nagi lazily wrapped his arms around your waist (force of habit) told people otherwise.

When the news blew up that he was dating someone—he shrugged it off. Again. His publicist trains him excessively to prepare for the upcoming press con, knowing that Nagi will most definitely slip up again.

The poor guy tries so hard to lie in front of the media, but it was too obvious. It was almost hilarious how he kept mixing up his answers. In the end, the management relented and allowed him to reveal your relationship without mincing words.

ᯓ Reo Mikage

Similar to Nagi's case, everyone tells him to keep the relationship a secret—his management, his parents, his financial advisors, and even a few of his friends.

It was a tougher situation for him because not only is he famous, but he's also disgustingly rich. That only posed more danger for you and especially for him.

There were plenty of close calls when the paparazzi would camp near his house and his usual haunts. But somehow... all the stories and articles get shut down quickly. Reo has his managing team (and some of his parents' connections) to thank for that.

So, people now have a slight idea that Reo might be dating someone. But that's about it. They have no idea about who the person is nor how serious the relationship is. When a photo or two goes under the radar and somehow makes its way on to the internet, people always assume it's edited or taken out of context.

The devil works hard, but Reo Mikage's management team works harder.

ᯓ Michael Kaiser

He's the type of celebrity that the paparazzi always gets ahold of. It's practically impossible for him to get away, so he gave up and accepted his fate. When he was still single—he didn't give a shit about them as long as they kept their distance and turned off the flash of their cameras.

But when you came into the picture... he became so so mean to the paparazzi. Even if they kept their distance from the two of you, he'd always throw a scarf over your head or hand you his sunglasses, so that you didn't have to deal with your face being plastered all over the internet.

He would definitely throw a middle finger or two if one of the paps tells you to smile for them or something. An article about Kaiser—with the now infamous picture of him—would be uploaded the next morning. But, honestly? Who gives a shit?

Grows to hate the paps with a burning passion. He literally can't have a calm day without them on his tail. And best believe that he'll express this disdain on every press con and interview possible.

Fans eventually come to his rescue and throw hate on every tabloid that keeps on hounding him and his precious significant other.

ᯓ Sae Itoshi

Sae is the only one safe from the prying eyes of the public. if he wants to keep you and your relationship private—then private it shall be. It's not that he's embarrassed of you, but he thinks that other people have absolutely no say in your relationship. What' between the two of you, stays there.

He rarely posts on social media. If he does, it's going to be a promotional pub for his next match or appearance. Not a single post about his personal life will be there, especially a post about you.

The paparazzi almost never catches him. Even if they do, it's always just him by himself doing mundane things. Eventually, the paps figured it was useless to track him down and decided to hound a different celebrity (his brother lol).

He secretly loves to mess with the internet by posting the most cryptic shit ever. It has everyone coming up with conspiracy theories, but none of them seem to stick (there's always gonna be that one "debunker" after all). When he randomly sees people debating and fighting on the internet about his posts—it makes him giggle a bit inside.

He'll probably only reveal bits of his personal life once he's retired. Maybe he'll tell people he was married and was with you for a long time now. For a star as big as him, the paps won't let him go even if he retires, but at that point, he could hardly care.

ᯓ Rin Itoshi

He hated the thought of having the public know about your relationship because 1) it will compromise your safety, 2) it will mean that a bunch of random extras would be talking about the two of you, and 3) his business is his alone. Rin's just an incredibly private person all around.

So smug at first because the paparazzi was exclusively going after his brother—being a huge pain in the ass. His smugness was quickly wiped away once the paps started hounding him instead. He definitely cursed his brother in his mind for "being so boring that even the tabloids got sick of him."

He would release a statement in which he tells the public to back off and that it's none of their concern if he was dating anyone. Although, it completely backfires because who mentions that out of the blue? Everyone knew he was reverse-psychology-ing them.

Of course, he was pissed about how his statement blew up in the wrong direction. You, on the other hand, found it quite amusing. To relieve his stress, you suggested to go out of the country with him for a while and enjoy a nice vacation.

As fate would have it, that was when the two of you were caught red-handed—being all over each other at a beach in Cancun. Rin was... not impressed when the pictures spread all over the internet. But you were there to cheer him up again! (He still won't give them the satisfaction of admitting to your relationship though).

ᯓ Barou Shoei

Barou's strict with himself and with you. His management team doesn't have to fret over him because they know he has it all under control. He reminds you constantly and teaches you how to be careful under the public eye. He's super sweet and considerate for that !

He asks you if your prefer the privacy or if you'd like to make your relationship public (He cares too much about what you think). If you prefer privacy, then he'd do anything and everything in his power to keep your existence under wraps. If you wanna go public, then he's making a statement tomorrow.

However, you do decide that you want people to know about your relationship; it felt more real that way. He takes note of it and does it in the flashiest way possible: inviting you down on the field to celebrate with him after a win.

The paps have an absolute field day with that moment. So many HD pictures of different angles of that celebration filled the internet for a month or so. Everyone thought it was quite cute.

You still kept a low profile after that. People knew about your relationship, but your safety was still his number one priority.

ᯓ Chigiri Hyoma

Chigiri could give two shits about the paparazzi. Let them follow if they want; it makes them look sad and pathetic shouting for his and your attention after all.

Don't get him wrong though—he's still concerned about your safety, so he does everything else in the background to make sure no one can do anything nasty to you even if your relationship is plastered all over the internet.

There wasn't any need for statement or confirmation from him. There were always paparazzi waiting for you when you go out to dinner with him. He'll still gladly hold your hand and whisper some reassurance into your ear.

HE IS THE TYPE TO RESPOND TO HATE COMMENTS ONLINE. And it's too funny. Chigiri has the best comebacks and one-liners to the haters which has fans rolling on the floor laughing. "That's why Chigiri is the goat," one netizen says.

You two eventually become a power couple that's referenced quite often in media. How cute.

ᯓ Shidou Ryusei

He was involved in an incident once wherein he calmly approached one of the paps, took the camera from him, snapped a photo of the guy right in his face, and said, "Doesn't feel good to be photographed without your permission huh?"

Safe to say that after that—the paps didn't want to do anything to him. I mean, he's already a menace on the football field (which is a regulated place, by the way), so what more if he was out in public without any restraint?

People knew about your relationship anyway. He wasn't shy about it and both of you were like YOLO—having fun over safety any day was your motto. (Thankfully, management was kind enough to make sure both of you were still safe though).

He's the type to overshare on the internet. It's to the point that sometimes you have to whack him over the head and ask him to delete a post because it revealed too much about his life.

Shidou shitposts on the internet way too often. So much so that people started calling his posts "Shidouposts" (affectionately). He also loved sharing memes about himself or about the two of you.

ε( ε ˙³˙)ɜ ｡° ⚬ ｡ likes and reblogs are appreciated

pls do not translate/copy/reupload my work on other platforms.

o-sachi © 2024

[bleach-your-panties]

ᰔℊℯ𝓉𝓉𝒾𝓃' 𝒾𝓉 𝓅ℴ𝓅𝓅𝒾𝓃' with ONYANKOPON on a balcony.

for my 1500+ 𝒻ℴ𝓁𝓁ℴ𝓌ℯ𝓇 ℯ𝓋ℯ𝓃𝓉. requested by @prettybraat.

ᰔhere you go baby, happy black history month!❤️💚💛

ᰔcw: modern au! fem, black reader. balcony sex, exhibitionism, panty-ripping, backshots, hair-pulling, scratching.

ᰔdividers by @/benkeibear.

ᰔwc: 2.2k

💗💗🍡°taglist: @enchantedforest-network @bakugosbratx @chifuyuskoneko @honeybleed @hoesluvshanti @chrollohearttags @darkstarlight82 @blkkizzat @bey0nseh @kokonoiscoconut (if anyone wants to be added to taglist, please fill out linked google form, thx!)

When your boyfriend, Onyankopon, or ‘Ony’ for short, texted you with a simple ‘get ready’ you immediately hopped up to pack an overnight bag.

Ony works as a financial consultant for one of the biggest banks in Atlanta, as well as a personal finance advisor, so he’s never short on dough and absolutely does not mind spending his hard-earned money on his baby girl.

You haven’t seen him in a while due to it being tax season and him working overtime at the bank, so you knew that when you saw him, you were definitely getting your back blown out.

As you were deciding which pairs of sexy panties you wanted to bring, your phone began to ring. 

“Hello?”

“Hey, baby.” Your man’s smooth, baritone voice filtered its way from the phone speaker and into your ear making you clench your thighs together.

“Hey, pooh. Are you off of work already? I’m still getting my stuff together.”

Onyankopon laughed once he heard you rummaging around in your room; who knows what all you were throwing in that gold and black sequin Victoria’s Secret duffle bag you loved so much.

“I’m about to FaceTime you, baby. I want to show you something.”

When he said that, you stopped packing and focused all of your attention on the phone - Ony chuckled because he knew how nosy you were.

The request to FaceTime immediately came through and you accepted it.

“ONYANKOPON!!”

He just chuckled deeply, “Not the government.” 

On your screen currently sat the finest version of your man that you had ever seen.

Now, Ony had always been fine; let's make that abundantly clear…

Smooth, flawless dark-brown skin, toned muscular body, tattoos up and down his arms and back (that were usually hidden by his business suits), straight white teeth, and don’t forget the inches that he was packing - eight and a half, to be exact.

Long, thick, and hard.

…but Ony with a fade and dreads pulled back in a half-up half-down ponytail? 

Oh, he must've been trying to call in for the next week or so.

“You went quiet on me, bae. Do you like it?’’ You were snapped out of your nasty little reverie.

“Do I like it? Babe, you look so fucking mouthwatering right now. I don’t know if I’m going to be able to make the drive all the way to yours.”

Flirting sensually, you leaned your upper body into the camera and let your breasts spill out of your tank top for your man’s viewing pleasure.

You didn’t miss how Ony raised an eyebrow and bit down on his lower lip, pausing before he continued,

“To mine? Oh, we’re not going to mine, baby girl. I made a reservation for us at the Waldorf Astoria in Buckhead.” 

Leaning back out of the camera frame, you made your perfectly arched eyebrows jump while bringing a hand to your mouth to chew on the tip of one of your baby blue stiletto nails.

“You did, babe? That’s so sweet of you, I can’t-”

Before you could finish your sentence, you heard a loud car horn honk from outside.

“Ony!! I didn’t know you were damn near almost here; why didn’t you say something, boy?!”

Tossing the phone onto the bed, you hurriedly gathered the rest of your things and shoved them into the bag before zipping it up. Your slides were on the side of your bed, so you slipped your matching pedicured toes into them and grabbed your keys off your nightstand.

“Hey, who you think you raising yo voice at, huh? Be good for me and come on outside, baby.”

—-

After climbing into the passenger seat of Ony’s navy blue BMW X5, he shut the door behind you and returned to the driver’s side.

You watched him carefully with slightly lidded eyes as he put his hand on the back of your headrest and backed out of the driveway.

Ony could feel you burning a hole in the side of his head, which made him bite his bottom lip again and send you a furtive glance while he drove through Atlanta traffic.

“What’s up, mama? Why you keep on staring at me?”

He knew good and damn well why you were staring at him.

You knew that he knew, because of the little smirk that formed at the corner of his plump lips as he held onto your thigh with his right hand and drove with his left hand holding the middle of the steering wheel.

The ride was leisurely, as all you had to do was sit there and look pretty, one leg propped up over the other as you scrolled through your TikTok feed. 

Ony moved his hand from your thigh to your foot, slipping your slide off and rubbing the sole of your foot.

“Oh! Babe…”

He just let out a soft hum of acknowledgment before turning into the parking lot of Seasons 52. 

Since Ony had made a reservation, you didn't have to wait long before a waitress came out to direct you both to your table.

This isn’t your first time coming here, but you still marvel at how everything on the menu constantly shifts and changes, yet always manages to always taste so delicious.

The salmon that you ordered was roasted to perfection; the potatoes just melted in your mouth and the green beans had just the right amount of crunch. 

Dinner conversation was fruitful, full of talks about your plans for university and Ony of the new investments that he was planning to make.

He held your free hand in his and rubbed his thumb over your knuckles while he sipped his wine and listened to you talk. 

His cocoa-brown eyes shined with love and admiration for you as you excitedly spilled about all of the classes that you’d be taking during the upcoming semester.

After you finished your dinner, Ony called for the waitress so he could pay then the two of you left with him guiding you by the small of your back to his car.

—-

Once you checked into your suite, Ony was on you like white on rice.

His large hands gripped you up, fondling your voluptuous ass cheeks while he repeatedly slotted his lips over yours in hot kisses filled with longing and need.

The cold links of his watch against your exposed lower back made a shiver race down your spine as you slowly lowered yourself to your knees in front of him. 

Ony looked down at you, meeting your big, brown doe eyes; immediately his dick began to harden in his slacks.

“Nuh uh, we don’t have time for that right now, baby. I have another plan for yo sexy ass.” 

He swatted away the hand that reached for his belt buckle and pulled you up by your bicep.

The suite Ony booked was almost as big as your entire damn apartment: two bedrooms, a spacious living area, a kitchenette (that was too big to be considered a kitchenette), and two bathrooms, both fitted with walk-in showers and whirlpool tubs.

Your nails clawed at the pressed cotton of his white dress shirt as he backed both of you up into the nearest bedroom. The motion-sensor lamps clicked on as soon as you stepped over the threshold, bathing both of you in a sensual, amber glow.

The curtain to the in-suite balcony was pulled back revealing the beautiful Buckhead cityscape below you, along with a navy sky full of bright, twinkling stars.

Ony began unbuttoning his shirt, tugging it free from where it was tucked into his pants as he finally allowed you to grab his belt and begin unbuckling it.

“Somebody’s impatient..” He chuckled as you yanked it from the loops and threw it across the room.

Once he was shirtless and you were down to your panties, he scooped you up and carried you over to the window.

“Wait, Onyankopon, what do you think you’re doing??”

He didn’t answer, but instead unlocked the glass door leading out to the balcony and stepped outside with you clinging to him.

The slightly cool breeze from the evening air whipped against your naked skin and made you press yourself further into Ony, who cradled your chin and brought your mouth back to his to give you another breathtaking kiss.

“I remember you saying that you wanted to try some different things, so here’s your opportunity, baby. Now turn around and grab that rail for me.”

His big hand went to the fly of his pants for him to unzip them and tug them down. He pulled a condom out of his pocket and began sliding it over his hard dick.

Just as you were about to do as you were told, you could hear faint chatter from below: a couple of floors below, there was a group of men and women seated at a round table out on their balcony, having drinks.

“Ony, there’s people out here - what if they see me?” Bashfully, your hands flew to cover your naked breasts. 

As you were leaning down to look at the other guests, Ony rubbed his dick between your ass cheeks, bumping it against your clit. A soft moan left your lips and your eyes almost closed before you remembered what you were supposed to be doing.

“They won’t see you, baby. They might hear you, though.” 

You heard that damn smirk in his voice, but soon you forgot all about anyone hearing once Ony grabbed your panties with one finger and ripped the flimsy material off of you, flinging it aside.

“Oh, babe!”

A loud moan was pulled from you as your boyfriend pushed the head of his dick into your opening. Your hands flew forward and you took a tight hold of the balcony’s railing as Ony started pounding you swiftly from the back.

The sounds of your ass colliding with his hips were loud throughout the silent night, so if those people were just really listening they’d easily be able to tell what the two of you were doing.

One tiny hand with those baby blue nails fell free from the rail and grabbed at Ony’s veiny forearm for leverage; his thrusts had your entire body quivering already. 

Soon enough, long scratches began to cover his arm as you tried your best to hold onto him.

You looked up at him and could feel him grow harder inside of you from the visual: fat ass bouncing back on him, braids shaking free from your bun, and your mascara beginning to run.

“Hm, what?” He licked his lips again but didn’t slow his pace as he just looked back into your misty eyes. “What is it, baby? Too much for ya?”

“Ony, I’m…” You trailed off as he suddenly picked you up underneath your thighs, his forearms resting in the creases of your knees.

“I didn’t tell you to let go of that damn rail.”

“ONYANKOPON!”

“And you were worried about somebody hearing you.” He laughed and bent you in half, still jackhammering away as you bumped and jostled against his body, 

Your upper half is now bent over the railing as the wind picks up and whips your hair across your face.

“Onyankopon, I’m going to fall!” 

“I won’t let you fucking fall, girl. Got too many muscles to let you fall.”

He grunted and locked his arms around your thighs, heavy balls slapping against your ass with loud, wet smacks.

“Hold the fucking rail, and hold that nut, too. I’m almost there. Gunna cum for you, baby; just hold still for me.”

Ony grabbed your hair up into a ponytail to pull it out of your face and also to yank your head back so he could whisper in your ear.

“You see that shit, baby? See those city lights beaming so fucking bright for you as I fuck your tight little pussy open?”

“Ohh, oh God! Yes, baby, I see them! Fuck, I see them!”

“You cumming?”

“YES! Yes, I’m cumming, oh my God! I’m cumming, baby!”

“Let it go then, baby. Go ahead and cum for ‘The Great One’*”

After that, you were done.

Your release washed over you like a wave; luckily Onyankopon was holding onto you or you might’ve actually flipped head-first over that balcony.

You both moaned each others’ names as your orgasm triggered his, bodies bathed in the pale moonlight of the night, surrounded by nothing but the stars and your love for one another.

—-

After that first round on the balcony, Onyankopon took you back into the room and the two of you went at it in nearly every area of the large presidential suite.

He even took you again in the shower before he washed you both off, wrapped you in a towel, and brought you over to the bed, wrapping you up in the covers.

“I love you, Y/N…my shining star..” Was the last thing you heard before you drifted off into dreamland, nothing but sweet thoughts of your handsome man on your mind.

—--

a/n: *Onyankopon means ’God’ in the Ghanian language and ‘The Great One’ in Ashanti mythology, referring to the Sky God.

get it poppin! 💄event ©bleach-your-panties 2024. do NOT steal, copy, repost, alter, or upload my works onto other sites. comments appreciated. reblogs always welcome.

[r0-boat]

What if Larry had a housewife S/O who made really nice bento-style lunches for him??

Larry with the housewife that makes him lunch.

Sfw larry headcannons

Larry x fem!reader.

The fastest way to his heart, not going to lie. The first time you made him lunch, he was a little surprised that you went through all the trouble to make him something, but honestly, he doesn't mind. It beats starving until going to the Eatery. Especially because today had been extra hard on him, he would want nothing more than to see what you've made.

With the Box sitting in front of him do you remember is vaguely that you told him that you weren't the best cook Larry wasn't exactly a picky eater but he did wonder what kind of food you packed in this box maybe simple sandwiches? Bento boxes are a hot thing in Johto and Sinnoh, So perhaps a meal from those regions? Larry couldn't hardly wait anymore neither can his stomach just thinking about the kind of food you pack for him was making him hungry. Has he opened the box his mouth open slightly blinking twice not the best cook of his ass... this look like it took hours to make!

That rice with seaweed has a Starly's face on it?? With sandwiches with juicy chicken breaded that looked like it was cooked to perfection nice and golden brown with Crispy lettuce and melted the bun was toasted. With would you look at that not only you recreated his favorite meal to order at the Eatery but by the smell it looked like it had some kind of filling... boy he can't eat this he just feel bad ruining such artwork no matter how hungry he was.

"Oh Shit." He heard a familiar voice as Rika just so happened to pass by stealing a glance at her coworkers lunch. Stopping dead in her tracks before pulling up a chair to bother him during his lunch. Larry was one of the most disinteresting normal routinely person she knew. If something changed about Larry's everyday life even if it was minor. Something must have happened, and Rika was ready to know every single juicy detail she might have missed. And it didn't stop at just her soon enough she called Hassle over as soon as her brain clicked that Larry might have a special someone, then Geeta seeing her co-workers gathered around their financial advisor wanted to know what was up, when Rika whispered the news the Top Champion had to cover her mouth to hide her big smile. Then Poppy who was with Geeta was already asking a million questions about this Secret love interest.

Poor Larry who just wanted to he does lunch already felt a migraine coming... why was everybody so interested in what he was doing outside of work? He just saw Hassel get up to grab a tissue to wipe his tears?? As his coworkers watched as Larry opens up another half of the Box a note slips out from the bento.

When he opens the note Rika leaned over his shoulder to read. It was just a small piece of paper telling him to have a good day and that you loved him and to please enjoy all the hard work she made only for him. Larry closed the paper almost as soon as he opened it a slight blush appearing on his face which was the most emotion Rita has ever seen him with. The receptionist smirked "Oh? How sweet~ Gonna bring her here one day and have us meet her, yeah?"

After the crowd of his gawking finally left him alone too enjoy his lunch. He let out a sigh as he thoroughly enjoys every bite of your delicious cooking with a small smile. Larry was truly in love not only taking time out of your day to prepare something like this for him but how talented you were at cooking. Regrettably, he hadn't taken a photo of the cute neatly packed bento box before he started digging in, which he'll make sure not to forget in the future.

When he returns home from work, the first thing he does is thank you for the food and kisses you. (If he hasn't done that already)

Larry does hope you continue making delicious lunches for him though he would never Force you or tell you especially because you put so much love and work into each box you make for him.

If Larry was a good cook he would make dinner for you but he'll just stick to taking you out to places that you like has proper thank you then whatever Bland, tasteless food he makes.

[ravenadottir]

islanders' data and anecdotes if they were honest:

SEASON 1

❝ main character ❞ she's the only one that makes any sense

❝ allegra ❞ 24, swansea, cocktail entrepreneur, the public loves to hate her

❝ erikah ❞ 20, norwich, jobbing actor, she changes, every guy will be the love of her life until a new guy comes around

❝ jen ❞ 22, london, fashion blogger, the equivalent of a piece of paper until she couples up with someone for clout

❝ talia ❞ 23, watford, music journalist, she's the only one everyone agrees is the best person here

❝ jake wilson ❞ 29, preston, chef, chicken shit that waits way too long to say something

❝ mason❞ 24, romford, musician and underwear model, if "this could've been an email" was a person

❝ miles ❞ 22, glasgow, carpenter, not interesting enough to remember. also tattoo

❝ tim ❞ 23, truro, dj, alright, we'll allow it

❝ jasper ❞ 26, kingston, financial advisor, straight to the bin

❝ levi ❞ 26, manchester, professional water polo player, sock balls

❝ rohan ❞ 23, wolverhampton, psychology student, he joined the villa and that's pretty close to the circus. also, see "injustice"

❝ cherry❞ 20, suffolk, west end performer, try hard

❝ reese taylor ❞ 22, birmingham, newsagent by day, professional wrestler at weekends, revolting lack of personality

❝ sammi ❞ 22, london, graphic designer and artist, the definition of 'wasted potential"

❝ lucy ❞ 25, bristol, “adventurer”, *snake sounds*

❝ returning miles ❞ 22, glasgow, carpenter, we still don't care

❝ returning jasper ❞ 22, kingston, financial advisor, at least we found out he has a pet snake

SEASON 2

❝ hope ❞ 26, london, brand ambassador, '‘voted “most likely to be the center of the drama because she puts herself there"

❝ lottie ❞ 24, melbourne, makeup artist, i have one personality trait and that's all you're gonna get

❝ main character ❞ she should change her name to 'girl #5'

❝ hannah ❞ 21, st. albans, social media assistant, she went home really soon because she was so shy, we're sure that's not gonna bite anyone in the face

❝ marisol ❞ 24, portsmouth, law student, talks too much/says nothing at all

❝ gary rennell ❞ 23, chatham, crane operator, SLUT

❝ noah ❞ 25, romford, librarian, QUIET SLUT

❝ rocco ❞ 21, belfast, owns a “cocktails and cronuts” food truck, LYING SLUT

❝ ibrahim ❞ 22, birmingham, gold player, SHY SLUT

❝ bobby mckenzie ❞ 24/26, glasgow, hospital caterer, does impressions and bakes some stuff

❝ priya ❞ 29, manchester, estate agent, should've noticed she's bi during the fucking season

❝ henrik ❞ 23, isle of wight, climbing and wilderness survival instructor, shiny and dumb/smooth brain/nothing behind those eyes

❝ lucas koh ❞ 27, oxford, physiotherapist, yes

❝ chelsea ❞ 23, buckinghamshire, interior decorator, there's pink and there's champagne

❝ jakub zabinski ❞ 25, rochdale, personal trainer and fitness model, real life mutant ninja turtle but like white

❝ elijah ❞ 26, watford, hairdresser and model, he's there and then he's not

❝ felix ❞ 21, rotherham, nightclub promoter, annoying little cousin that grows up to be the annoying little virgin at the club

❝ kassam ❞ 26, new castle, techno dj, if you blink you might miss him

❝ graham ❞ 23, devon, commercial fisherman, ginger thanos

❝ arjun ❞ 24, norwich, dog groomer and influencer, "where's my hug?" kind of guy

❝ carl ❞ 29, dublin, tech entrepreneur, he's almost learning how not to sound like a robot

❝ shannon ❞ 24, dublin, professional poker player, "you'll forgive how annoying she can be because of her body"tactics, players, poker analogies all the time"

❝ blake ❞ 22, kensington, if you blink you won't miss her because she's so goddamn annoying

❝ elisa ❞ 22, london, social media influencer, the human form of a gear shift because of all the blame she shifts

❝ jo ❞ 23, cheshire, bmx racer, was here for only three days and it was still too long

❝ returning henrik ❞ 23, isle of wight, climbing and wilderness survival instructor, absolutely not the same person and it gets worse

❝ returning lucas ❞ 27, oxford, still a physiotherapist, "toxic fucks"

❝ returning hannah ❞ now 22, st. albans, she resented lottie so much she became her

[darkmagyk]

So, Legally Blonde is a super fun movie, but man...something about the framing has always frustrated me.

Elle Wood's got a 4.0 at an extremely competitive school. She got a 179 on her SAT. She is the president of a major Sorority. That means she probably handles tens of thousands, at least, dollars of fundraising a year, plus all the other administration. It is a giant organizational and and financial operation and she's in charge of it. And to get to be president, she probably held at least two other offices the previous two years that she was also very successful in.

She's beautiful, smart, rich, and white. What about her isn't going to be absolutely Harvard material. I understand why her parents and Warren don't think it's a good fit. But her advisor? The admissions people (the rich, white, genius from a top tier school is their diversity pick?) The people who she's meeting in that scene after she gets there, when they are comparing backgrounds? The work she's done with Delta Nu is 100% on par with the other people.

It doesn't feel real, it feels like the movie has to keep making people discredit her, mostly arbitrarily, so it can say "yeah, she likes fashion, but also, she works hard." "Yeah, she likes fashion, but she knows random facts about fashion and hair care that allow her to bamboozle people on the witness stand."

The movie seem to just...want to minimize all her accomplishments until she decides to get into Harvard. They dismiss her 4.0. They dismiss her sorority as a silly group of friends, not a major administrative endeavor.

Ironically, the sequel actually does a much better job at showing how Elle's background made her a formidable player beyond knowing random facts about haircare. It understands that sororities are basically giant networking events, and Elle uses that, and all those social skills she picked up doing her administratively heavy job, to get shit done in Washington. She uses her Delta Nu connections to find political allies and to swell up ground support. She uses her social connections to learn how the world works from unusual sources. It shows that she was actually built for the world she's inhabiting, once she learns the rules. And the world also...invites her in. She says to a connection "I want to get on your staff" and then she just...does it. She has to learn the ropes once there (again, something she does via her networking and organizational skills), but all that history isn't a waste of time.

I just...I really wish I could watch that movie and not think about how it doesn't know what the fuck its talking about.

[skz-rin]

『📜』 ── Her family

Mother -`♡´-

╰ birth name — Bae Gyu-mi (최광민)

╰ other name — Grace Bae

╰ birthdate — February 22, 1964

╰ birthplace — Gangnam, south korea

╰ hometown — Gangnam, south korea

╰ race — Asian

╰ ethnicity — Korean

╰ nationality — Korean

╰ mbti — ENTJ

╰ occupation — Financial Advisor

╰ contact name — Boss lady 👑❤️ / chér ❤️❤️

⸝⸝ about ↴

Rin has always been very close to her mom ever since she was a child always wanting to match outfits with her and do the things that she did. Grace is the one how thought Rin how to sing and is the reason that Rin is so passionate about wanting to debut as an idol.

Grace as a parent is a bit stoic and considerably rigid about certain rules that she has set always wanting to make sure her kids are independent and can make work on their own. She has always had certain expectations from her kids but never implies them to the point of hurting the kids. Although she is definitely the stricter parent it's just because she wants to make sure her kids are able to stand on their own in the world without any support. She is overall a more calm and rational person.

Father -`♡´-

╰ birth name — Bao Weizhong (鮑 伟忠)

╰ other name — Daniel Bao

╰ birthdate — August 4, 1970

╰ birthplace — Hefei, China

╰ hometown —Hefei, China

╰ race — Asian

╰ ethnicity — Chinese

╰ nationality — Chinese

╰ mbti — INFP

╰ occupation — owner of his own company

╰ contact name — 爸爸 🥺♥️ / 小鸣鸟

╰ about ↴

Rin's father is probably the most supportive man known to mankind. He has always supported whatever dreams she may have had always playing into her whims and fantasies regardless of however silly they may be. He was and still is her biggest hypeman.

As a parent Weizhong has always tried to introduce his kids to new adventures and make as many memories as possible. He loves to live in the moment often taking his kids on spontaneous trips. He does try to pass down his values through trips or stories. He hopes to make sure that his kids are aware that he will always be there to support them and that they shouldn't be afraid to make mistakes.He is in general a sweet and carefree sort of person.

Brother -`♡´-

╰ birth name — Bao Longyu (鮑 隆雨)

╰ other name — Julien Bao

╰ birthdate — N/A

╰ birthday celebration - April 14, 1999

╰ birthplace — Shanghai, China (assumed)

╰ hometown — Shanghai, China / New york city, New york

╰ race — Asian

╰ ethnicity — Chinese (assumed)

╰ nationality — Ameican

╰ mbti — ISTJ

╰ occupation — Chief operations officer at their dad's company

╰ contact name — ogre 🧌🤢 / shrimp 🦐

╰ about ↴

Rin's brother has always been the biggest constant in her life, the first time that she was away from him was when she moved to Korea to be an idol. He is the calm to her chaos, her voice of reason ever since she was young always making sure she didn't take any rash decisions.

Rin's parents adopted him on a family trip to china when Rin was barely a year old after doing some medical tests and such it was found that Longyu was two years old which made him a year older to Rin. Longyu has always been a calm person preferring to stay quietly at home and read books and talk with his mom rather than go out but he'd often go and hangout with Rin's friends to 'chaperone' and make sure she stays safe. He is a very collected and level-headed person with Rin being the only one who can actually test his limits.

Pets -`♡´-

China

From L -> R

name — XueXue

╰ about ↴

Her name is just the chinese word for snow repeated twice to make it sound very cutesy

Xuexue is a pure white persian cat

XueXue is one of the more recent adoptions to the family. Rin's dad bought her home from the shelter after she refused to even be looked at by someone else often hissing at people wanting to adopt her.

XueXue is a princess to put it simply she is very much spoilt and she adores it. She has her own closet and picks her own accesories of the day!!!

2. name — Spiky

╰ about ↴

His name is pretty self explanatory. He has spikes so he's named spiky

Spiky is an African Pygmy hedgehog.

Spiky was found on the roadside under heavy rain one time when Rin's dad was on his way home from work so he picked the little hedgehog up and decided to care for him.

Spiky is a solitary animal preferring to spend time in hos cage or walk alone in the garden although he loves bath time and has shown to get extremely excited during that time playing around in the water even accepting pets and cuddles

3. name — Xun

╰ about ↴

His name means 'dusk' in chinese referring to his mix of dark and light fur

Xun is a pekingese dog which is a breed native to china

Xun along with his mother and siblings was rescued by Rin's father from a breeder. Xun's mother sadly passed away from the extensive stress of the breeding corporation. Rin's father decided to adopt Xun after all of his siblings had been adopted by various people.

Xun has a constant case of the zoomies always running around and wanting to play and have fun, constantly barking to draw attention. running up and down the stairs even occasionally tripping people or breaking artifacts. But it's all okay cause he's a cutie.

NewYork

From L -> R

name — Ttang

╰ about ↴

His name is basically the ending of korean word 'seoltang' and 'satang' meaning sugar and candy respectively.

Ttang is a toy poodle

Ttang was the first pet that Rin got as a child, she got him as her 6th birthday present and was ecstatic

Ttang is a very quiet and low energy dog preferring to cuddle up with someone rather than play around

2. name — Coco & Cece

╰ about ↴

Rin tells people that they were named after coco chanel and celine dion but really coco was named after chocolate and cece was named after cece from shake it up...

coco and cece are two chinchillas. Rin adopted them in the year 2013 from a friend who was moving to Australia since they're illegal in Australia.

coco is the one with darker fur while cece has lighter fur

personality wise the two differ greatly coco is pretty playful and loves interacting with the other pets or people who come and go into the house where as cece has a specific list who are allowed to touch her.

3. name — Thirio

╰ about ↴

His name means 'beast' in greek. He was named by Rin's brother who was obssesed with dinosaurs and wanted to give him a dinosaur-ish name.

Thirio is a leopard gecko

Thirio was adopted from a pet shelter only sometime after coco and cece were adopted since he was the closest Longyu could get to a real life dinosaur.

very much unlike the meaning of his name Thirio is a very silly guy and loves to make funny faces. The only beastly thing he does is eat the way he eats.

[branwendaughterofllyr]

Hi! I think A Poison Tree is one of the best fics in the fandom (in most of the fandoms actually).

In a peaceful solution who do you think would be the better between Rhaenyra and Aegon? Even if it’s a bit like picking between the plague or cholera. Like Rhaenyra has some training, but keeps making dumbass decisions (three of Harwin’s mini me’s? Really? Three?!). Aegon is, well he is Aegon but his development in F&B is basically squaring up when not a single person excepted it from him. His hand were rated R for everyone trying to stand in his way.

Then I saw that you said that you were going to change Helaegon from romantic to a more tragic siatuon, which it definitely is (according to a HOTD book they were already married at Driftmark). I was wondering how (if you want to say obvi) you are going to handle Jaehaerys and Jaehaera. I love GRRM but having a thirteen year old give birth to twins in medieval times and be fine is by far the most unrealistic thing in his books. I mean, I guess it’s possible but she really must have had 35 guardian angels standing by.

These asks are going to get me killed! I will try to answer this question as seriously as I can, and hope I avoid the firing squad.

It’s hard to say how either Rhaenyra or Aegon would do as peacetime rulers, because neither of them got the chance to do so.

Both of them seemed able to listen to advice for the most part, with Aegon taking advice from Alicent and Helaena with the peace offer initially, and Rhaenyta listening to Corlys and her other council members over Daemon when it came to the inheritance issue she dealt with, but Rhaenyra seems to have had poorer luck with selecting her advisors (Daemon) and Aegon eventually stops listening to his, so it seems moot enough in the end. One thing in Aegon's favour is he seemed more willing to step up one of the key requirements of kingship, in the sense that he was willing to go to battle and put his life on the line, something that was absolutely was expected of kings, both historically and in world (See Daeron II being mocked for being a soft unmartial man, same for Aenys and Aerys I, and compare with the positive support for Daemon B's martial capabilities, as well as the praise that Daeron I garnered for being a warrior but kind of a shit ruler. Daeron II actually lucked out in that his sons Baelor and Maekar were both capable soldiers, and he was able to use them as his proxies in war. Rhaenyra has this option in her sons, mainly Jace, but opts not use it out of a not too unreasonable fear of losing them but it is a necessary risk that does actually matter in terms of public perception.) I will give book!Rhaenyra some grace, and mention that during the early days of the Dance she had suffered a brutal miscarriage and was likely unable to physically mount her dragon, much less ride Syrax to battle, but as the war draws on, there are really times when she should have acted as a dragonrider and she didn't. Both Rhaenyra and Aegon seem prone to rash decisions, which I think should be noted, but also that Green leadership really did collapse when Aegon was out of commission, as Criston and Aemond really did fumble the rest of the war hard. Idk, it's hard to say with all the extenuating circumstances.

I'd also say that Aegon had the benefit of Tyland as his master of coin, who was very financially savy, while Rhaenyta had Bartimos Celtigar who was... less so, so I think that also colours their reigns.

I think something that is not mentioned enough that Aegon chose to spare Aegon III, when he absolutely did not have to do that, even when Alicent and others were urging him to kill the kid. He did decide to cut one of his ears off in the end when Cregan and the remaining black armies were at his gate, but honestly? the smarter political move would have just been to kill Aegon III the moment he had him, and elimate the black faction heirs entirely. In some ways, this decision may have ultimately doomed him, so it's worth noting that he did draw the line at child murder. Sorry if I seem cagey about this question, I genuinely have complcated feelings and don't want to draw any ire from either side lmao.

In a desperate attempt to marry book and show timelines, I think I have Helaena getting married and having the twins at 16. Still incredibly dangerous mind you, and I will depict it as such, but slightly better. The poor twins were pretty much screwed from the start.

[og2lit]

LA Task - S.C.

•What is your full name? Santana Isaiah Cross

• Where and when were you born? Chicago, Illinois. 4/10/02

• Who are/were your parents? (Know their names, occupations, personalities, etc.)

Skylar Cross; Gym owner and physical therapist. She's loving, nurturing, passionate, loves hard. A go getter and great business mindset. Financial advisor to her son to protect his assets before he turns pro. Makes 🔥 cakes from scratch.

Cairo Jennings; Recently retired pro sports athlete currently works as a reoccurring analyst with ESPN. Stoic, old school mentality, provider, gym rat. Stubborn and headstrong, manipulative, controlling.

• Do you have any siblings? What are/were they like?

Only child, that he knows

• Where do you live now, and with whom? Describe the place and the person/people.

UCLA campus apartments, by himself. Open space, hypebeast, got some color, tv mounted, surround sound.

• What is your occupation?

Student full time, brand ambassador

• Write a full physical description of yourself. You might want to consider factors such as: height, weight, race, hair and eye color, style of dress, and any tattoos, scars, or distinguishing marks.

6'2, semi muscular, brown skin, tattoos all over his torso and legs, african american, street casual, locs at his shoulder.

• To which social class do you belong?

Middle upper class for now

• Do you have any allergies, diseases, or other physical weaknesses?

Nope

• Are you right- or left-handed?

Right

• What does your voice sound like?

Raspy, Midwest accent, husky

• What words and/or phrases do you use very frequently?

"Mane, Folk, Gang"

• What do you have in your pockets?

Tictac, phone, wallet

• Do you have any quirks, strange mannerisms, annoying habits, or other defining characteristics?

No

PART 2: GROWING UP

•How would you describe your childhood in general?

He had a solid childhood. With the child support hush money his mom received every month from her former lover it was enough to cover the mortgage so the rest of Skylar's money went to the small bills and splurging on her son.

• What is your earliest memory?

5 years old, running in the backyard with a little car. His father Cairo comes out to the backyard with Skylar and hands Santana a mini basketball before leaving. It was the only time he saw his father face to face.

• How much schooling have you had?

He's in college.

• Did you enjoy school?

Enjoys what it offers and how he can capitalize.

• Where did you learn most of your skills and other abilities?

Copying his favorite players moves until he perfected it and created his own. Kobe Bryant and Jamal Crawford.

• While growing up, did you have any role models? If so, describe them.

His mother, she taught him everything.

• While growing up, how did you get along with the other members of your family?

Had cousins that he got from his mother's friends and two blood cousins that he stays in contact with to this day. They used to get in trouble all the time running the streets.

• As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

A firefighter

• As a child, what were your favorite activities?

Playing monster trucks and doctor

• As a child, what kinds of personality traits did you display?

Lots of energy, couldn't stay still, OCD

• As a child, were you popular? Who were your friends, and what were they like?

Since he played ball in middle school he was known by a lot of people in the state area.

• When and with whom was your first kiss?

13, Courtney Wright in the closet.

• Are you a virgin? If not, when and with whom did you lose your virginity?

No, 17 Tamia Blake

PART 3: PAST INFLUENCES

•What do you consider the most important event of your life so far?

Overhearing a phone call of his parents fighting over him.

• Who has had the most influence on you?

His mother and Kobe Bryant

• What do you consider your greatest achievement?

Getting his first NIL deal before he graduated high school.

• What is your greatest regret?

Not retiring his mouth when he had the opportunity to do so.

• What is the most evil thing you have ever done?

Cheated on someone

• Do you have a criminal record of any kind?

No

• When was the time you were the most frightened?

Almost got his car stolen in Chicago when he turned 18

• What is the most embarrassing thing ever to happen to you?

Getting my beans caught in my zipper at school

• If you could change one thing from your past, what would it be, and why?

Cairo Jennings

• What is your best memory?

Back to back state championships in high school

• What is your worst memory?

Finding out his mother has breast cancer

[corviids]

Does Luke ever teaches the children to be economical savvy? To deal with the merchants that want to scam him because they think he's a pretty little lord wife but instead he's the financial advice of aemond?

lucemond want all their children to be smart so you can bet luke teaches his kids everything he knows. luke much prefers a life with low stress and comfort but being married to someone like aemond makes that impossible. luke’s secret is that he just has a good head on his shoulders. he’s not rash and knows how to control his temper. it makes him very good as an advisor because without added pressure he can think clearly and rationally (two things his husband falls flat on). he’s pretty and people doubt him so he can be very deceiving.

[tornrose24]

Sorry for the wait for more of those TGAMM Aladdin AU ideas. I saw how long it took between the first and last post. I got very busy, especially with working on a certain fan fic. Here is part 2. (Part one is here in case you forgot).

-So as said before, Molly wants to pass herself off as a rich princess so that she can provide for her kingdom AND be able to see Ollie again. However, Libby (who is passing herself off as a handmaiden) forms the entire background and backstory of a made-up kingdom so that Molly’s lie isn’t exposed that easily. The main problem is ensuring Molly is convincing enough to sell the story since she’s not a good liar. Somewhere there is a montage where Molly is being taught how to lie and struggles with it (likely a certain fake magician is an unwitting test subject, much to her displeasure).

–Elsewhere Jinx is angry about the loss of the lamp and is looking for other methods. Ollie shows suspicion, which makes her further eager to hurry up. Except there’s a big commotion that disrupts her and it’s coming outside…

–There’s a huge procession leading up to the Chen’s palace. Singing is optional (I’m not sure Scratch would be keen on singing in this case, but the “Physique, weak at my knees” line would need to be omitted if that happens since that’s not appropriate to sing regarding a young teenage girl. If you want to imagine him dressing in drag, you are free to do so).

-So they enter the palace. Molly barely manages to be convincing as she tells Reuben and Esther that she wishes to provide some financial aid for the kingdom. However she is completely thrown off when they assume that she is here for their son’s hand in marriage. Molly tries to backpedal and say that’s not why she was here.

-But of course, Scratch (who is posing as her advisor and disguised as a human, as you might recall) makes things worse by saying that she’s trying to figure out if OLLIE is good enough to be married to her. Libby has to do quick damage control before both Molly and Scratch anger the sultan and his wife by asking if they should stay for the night since it’s the festival today (this plot point comes from the 2019 film). Reuben and Esther manage to agree since they are desperate for someone by this point.

-June sees right through the BS. She can tell there’s something off about this princess, unlike the others who came before her. What kind of princess wouldn’t know that her brother was available for marriage? Also wow that advisor is kind of a jerk and doesn’t seem to have any problems speaking so casually with the princess in public.

–Ollie is just not comfortable with the whole thing. He feels like this princess is trying to sell herself off and doesn’t actually care about providing financial aid.

-Jinx watches all this and she finds the princess to be oddly familiar-looking.

-The night of the festival arrives. There’s dancing and food (guess who goes for the latter and terrifies the onlookers?) A lot of people are showing great interest in Molly and want to know about her kingdom, but she wants to talk about theirs and how she could help them. Thankfully Libby is still guiding her a few times. She is able to win everyone over with her joy and eagerness. Even Reuben and Esther are starting to be impressed.

-Eventually, Molly just wants to party with her friends. She even gets Scratch to dance with her and he is starting to have fun with her. She is happy that she got him to open up a bit more.

–The latter does not escape Ollie. He is not used to seeing a princess treat her subjects as equals like that, and it’s oddly refreshing. June voices her concerns to Ollie that Molly might not be who she claims to be, and advises him to be cautious.

-Libby found a way to sneak in the magic carpet and offers it to Molly, because she is a bit of a shipper and knows what can set the mood.

–Scratch finds out and isn’t impressed. He thinks it would be neat if Molly did manage to get herself a prince, but he’s starting to worry that maybe he’s getting her too deep into things. Also, he doesn’t like how Jinx has been constantly looking at Molly.

-Molly eventually tries to approach Ollie. June gets in her way at first, but the girl realizes Molly has at least been sincere in wanting to aid the kingdom, so she lets her meet up with her brother. June intends on learning more about the girl, because maybe this could be someone Ollie might want to be with someday, compared to the usual girls.

-Ollie tries to explain to the princess that he is NOT interested in marrying so soon. He already has a lot to shoulder before he’s old enough to take the throne, and finding a wife this soon is the last thing on his mind. Molly admits that’s not what she wants either, and that most kids should be thinking of boyfriends and girlfriends instead of future husbands or wives. She also tells him that he truly could be a great ruler if he was free to rule as he wished.

–Somewhere around this time, Molly accidentally reveals something that gives away her identity. Likely a phrase or key word. Ollie catches it as Molly offers him the experience of a lifetime–riding a magic carpet–and to just get to be a teenager for one night and not think about huge burdens.

-Cue the ‘Whole New World’ montage where its two kids going on a carpet ride, exploring the lands beyond the city, and falling in innocent young love.

-As Molly and Ollie stare out at the city, Ollie’s suspicions grow. He is able to trick Molly into revealing that she’s the girl he met that one time.

–In a panic, Molly (as expected) lies and claims that she is a real princess who was in disguise since she doesn’t want to admit the truth or give away who made her a princess. A part of Ollie isn’t convinced, but he goes with it.

-Scratch finds out that Molly lied and is not impressed, even if he appreciates that she was trying to keep him a secret. In fact, he’s getting a bit concerned.

-Ok, so the drowning scene would be a combination of the original and 2019 films. Jinx has Molly captured, chained up, and taken to a body of water. Libby is the one who catches this and takes the lamp and carpet to follow after them because she is scared that things will go south.

–Jinx accuses Molly of not being who she is and that she has the lamp. Molly lies (partly because she does NOT want Scratch to end up in this woman’s possession, and she’s gotten an idea of what her fate would of been, had she brought the lamp to her.)

-The drowning scene plays out how you’d expect. Molly ends up in the water, but gets the lamp and activates it. Scratch panics and has to get her to make her second wish to be saved and he gets her out of there before she drowns. She is relieved to be saved and he is upset because he almost lost her and he’s grown attached to this girl. In fact she is the first human he’s ever cared about to this extent.

-Scratch enters ‘Papa Wolf’ mode as he returns to the palace with Molly in human form and demands the attention of June and Ollie because he knows someone tried to kill Molly and they need to bring that person to justice. He is mad as hell and terrifies the siblings a bit, but Molly calms him down and tells him who was responsible, which leads to everyone to make a plan.

-June had done some research beforehand and realized that Molly’s kingdom is entirely made up. However, she sets aside confronting Molly about it since she finds it odd someone would go out of their way to drown her.

-The next day, Jinx is shocked that Molly is alive. The girl has told Reuben and Esther what happened, and they confront Jinx and want to know what is going on. In a desperate move, Jinx tries to hypnotize the couple into believing her lies… and at this point I realize that I didn’t think of giving her the staff. Let’s just say that she has one, and Molly can figure it out and breaks it.

Of course, even though Jinx ends up getting arrested, she not only escapes, but she realizes that Molly does have the lamp. Not only that, she is able to correctly guess who Scratch is. The fact that their seems to be a genuine friendship between the two doesn’t escape her notice.

–Reuben and Esther are thankful to Molly and say that they are in debt to her. They say that they would gladly be happy to have her as their son’s future wife. Molly tells them that she doesn’t think she is ready to marry Ollie, and wants to respect what he wants. The couple is still insistent, and Molly tells them that she would genuinely need time to think about that, because all she wanted was to help the kingdom. However they are still insistent and in her panic, she runs away.

–She is too overwhelmed. Even if she likes Ollie, she knows that she is not ready for that future right now, not to mention the lies she told that could get her in trouble.

-While Molly and Scratch are alone, he snarkily wonders if Molly is going to take back her promise to free him and use her last wish on herself. To his shock, Molly does NOT want to go back on her word. However, she needs to figure out what to do about the situation she is trapped in, without resorting to that. She tries to reassure Scratch that she will free him like ehe promised…

-“Whoah, I didn’t ever say I wanted to be free, Moll. Do you have any idea what that would mean for me?”

–And so, Scratch gets defensive when Molly tries to figure out why he would suddenly be so against the wish when he has made it clear that he HATES the position he is stuck in. He explodes on her and tells her that being reduced to a powerless, pathetic mortal who can easily die without any magic to protect him like her and everyone else is the scariest thing he can imagine. Molly counters that while that could happen, living out your life, no matter how short, is better than being trapped, alone, and forced to answer to another if you don’t want that.

–Scratch gives up and locks himself back in the lamp. A frustrated Molly leaves the palace.

–Molly returns home to her family who are relieved, and she tells them everything. She tearfully admits that she doesn’t want to have to keep living a lie for the sake of everyone and she doesn’t want to abandon her family or get married so young. She also deeply regrets pushing Scratch and wishes that she could help him be happy.

–Pete and Sharon tell her that it is better to be yourself. They don’t want to see her suffer and to be honest they aren’t ready to give her up yet, even if it was to a prince. They also tell her to give the situation with Scratch time and maybe the two could talk things over. If he wanted to, he could even stay with them (Though he has to get his own food).

–Molly smiles and tells them she will do that and mention that offer. Besides, she could gift him the carpet if he wants to see the world. However, she must be honest with the royal family first–this is one problem she needs to solve on her own.

–As Molly heads toward the palace someone bumps into her on the streets. Confused, Molly continues on, but fails to realize Jinx was in disguise and took the lamp.

–A wickedly delighted Jinx summons Scratch out of the lamp in private. He is deeply confused at first and is about to grumble to Molly until he realizes who awakened him. He then realizes that things are about to go south, but unfortunately, he can’t do anything about it.

To be continued in part 3.

[ratsoh-writes]

Skelly has been flagged for a tax audit (boring adult crisis that looks into spending records possibly leading to fines or legal action of anything is found) how do they react?

Skeletons: Sails, Weasel, Lens, Red, Harpy, Willow, Captain, Cash, Lush, Papyrus

Sails: audit away my dudes~ his record is squeaky clean. Sails only buys all his dog treats and blunts from perfectly legal sources, and his job is squeaky clean as well. They’ll be disappointed in him sure, but they won’t have anything on him lol

Weasel: the IRS is coming for him!!! He’s crying, sobbing, running to his dear older brother to save him. Sir slaps weasel a few times and tells him to get ahold of himself. His official job title is a waiter remember, and it’s a very exclusive restaurant so it makes sense that he’s paid more. Now shut up and quit acting suspicious

Lens: his finances are already closely watched considering he’s in protective services, so he just shrugs and moves on. Lens couldn’t hide anything even if he wanted to

Red: well sh*t. He’s not scared of the IRS, he’s scared of edge finding the papers and seeing just how much red spends on cat toys. Sorry that baby bones (his cat) is adorable! He deserves it all and reds bills are paid! So what’s the problem huh?

Harpy: she may or may not have some bribes she’ll need to cover up. There’s a reason all the high end places picked her wine to sell so easily. Oh well, she can just label those as “gifts” and nobody will care. What are they gonna do? Arrest a winery for operating as a winery?

Willow: audit away. Although he does hire someone to comb through the bakery’s asserts before hand just in case. Oak and willow handle the money together, but occasionally things might fall through when they get absent minded.

Captain: ugh! He hates the yearly audit. It’s such a waste of time. Captain feels lazy and just has his resident mage Dallas confund (aka confuse) the auditor into labeling everything as fine.

Cash: he LOVES audit days. So does mal~ somehow with cashs trickery and skills in money and taxes, by the end the auditor finds out that the government actually owes them both more in tax returns. Suck it

Lush: with how much property and businesses he owns, he can’t reasonably handle all of it and keep up with his other work on his own. So lush hires a few guys to handle the audit for him. He has some favorite financial advisors for this job. They’ve never failed him before and they wouldn’t dare today

Papyrus: oh the auditors love visiting him, cause papyrus treats the ordeal like they’re on tour and lets them check out the escape rooms too! Even if he does have an issue with his finances, he’s just so nice that they just give a verbal warning and a wink as they scratch it off lol.

[devilmayfamily]

Imagine Meeting DMC 2 Dante

So, I finally got around to playing DMC 2 and Dante is so much more stoic in that game than he is in any of the others. He doesn't talk much and is just a very serious lad compared to the other games where he is the wacky woohoo pizza man.

Capcom trying to make him this way didn't hit too much and I'm sure the rest of the fandom can agree from what I've seen from other reviews.

This isn't where this post is getting at tho.

Seeing Dante more like Vergil in this game had me thinking.

What if this is the Dante you met?

Imagine having baby Nero, walking around Redgrave, and seeing the white-haired man. He's in red so you know it's not the man you met a few years back but maybe he's at least related. It couldn't hurt to check, right?

So you walk up to him and he doesn't say anything but he does notice Nero. And Dante immediately thinks that the boy is his. And he's confused and a little scared. He wasn't made to be a father, especially not with the life he lives.

So he tries to let you down easily and leave the situation as soon as possible. He tries until you say, "I watched you go the first time, I can't let you go again. Please, even if you aren't him, I need someone related to him. Nero needs his family and I'm the only one."

And Dante realizes you are Vergil's mate and this was Vergil's offspring, Dante's kin. And a protectiveness washes over him and he instantly feels the need to protect you, the boy, and kick Vergil's ass the next time he sees him, no matter the man's condition.

So with a few words, Dante takes you back to the DMC building and gives you one of the upstairs spare rooms, and helps you take care of Nero. He tells you about Vergil and their family and in turn, you tell Dante about how you and Vergil met and about his new nephew.

He helps you raise the boy as he becomes the moody, sarcastic hotheaded teen we see in DMC 4. And at some point Nero does ask about his father and you both tell him and he still hates Vergil just as much as he does in DMC 5.

And seeing Dante become this light-hearted, wacky man over the years kind of helps soothe you and you could see yourself living the rest of your life helping Dante with his business, even if it's just as his financial advisor.

And when Dante and Nero go on their mission in DMC 5 and Dante finds out it's his brother behind all this, that battle at the top of the Qliphoth is much more heated and Vergil can tell this is something more than just getting back at his brother for opening a portal to hell and trying to become the ruler.

So when they're walking through hell, Vergil has to ask. "I know there is more to this than our old rivalry."

Dante hums. "Yeah, it is."

"Enlighten me then brother." "Nero, he's yours." "I thought we established that already?"

Dante chuckles. "Yeah but not about his mother."

Vergil looks at his brother curiously. "Is she alive?" "Very much so. She's been staying with me since we were 30. She came to me on the streets, begging me to stay thinking I was you. She's quite the woman, Vergil, I can't believe you let her go."

Vergil hums, nodding.

You will always be grateful for Dante letting you in and helping you out. And Dante will always feel like he's in debt to you even if it should be the other way around. Because you are his family, and he will do anything and everything to make sure you never end up like the lost woman who came begging for his love and approval all those years ago.

[readingloveswounds]

Hi! How many conference presentations per semester/year do you think is good? It's hard to know if I'm doing enough or if I'm falling behind in that respect (I'm in the humanities btw).

Here's what I've done personally:

3rd year: 1 (spring, largely grad students) 4th year: 1 (summer, grad student-led, largely grad students) 5th year: 3 (2 fall - Big Boys, 1 winter - Big Boy) and perhaps foolishly considering a 4th in spring.

It's EXTREMELY worth noting that I was invited to the fall conferences this year and though I'm dying, they're massively important opportunities for me.

I am definitely not the biggest conference goer by any means. For me, since I jumped straight to a PhD from a BA, I was absolutely NOT ready to present my 1st or 2nd years, while some of my cohort-mates with MAs did go to conferences our second year. This really depends on the person!

I probably haven't published or presented "enough," but my advisor has been satisfied with what I've done, so take that as you will.

Tl;dr: Consider the impact of the conferences you attend and don't make yourself overwhelmed re: writing or finances. For me, shooting for 1/semester is what feels reasonable right now, though I am open to apply to more if I feel capable of it.

It's kind of hard to say if there's one specific number to shoot for, but here are some considerations that I've personally taken:

A minimum of one conference a year from third year on seems reasonable as a hittable target, shooting for two if possible. This allows you to get out there but won't put you under extreme pressure, financially or academically. (This is probably not "enough", but it's a start, and 1 > 0)

1 a semester seems like a sweet spot personally especially if you have other responsibilities. Doing 2 conferences in 1 semester while teaching and trying to finish my dissertation has been a lot for me and even that 1 conference my third year was overwhelming, as I was teaching, taking classes, and writing my prospectus at the same time as my first ever conference paper.

The stakes of the conferences are really important to consider. I am feeling somewhat overwhelmed by two international conferences for which I have to present in my second language. I was not all that stressed about the graduate-led conference this summer. I should be more stressed about my January conference, which is a big name in the US, but after two in French, I can handle a big boy in English (I think - stay tuned for panicked December-posting).

From all this, it's good to look at the big name conferences in your discipline (for me, it would be MLA, RSA, etc) and prioritize those if you feel ready. If you don't feel ready, then graduate-led or graduate-heavy (like NeMLA for me) conferences are a good place to start. It's not that academics further along in their careers aren't friendly, it's just less pressure for me personally.

I do think it's good to attend plenty of conferences, but if we think about this in CV terms, you want to show that you can work at a certain level. For example, my French conferences show I have a high-level command on the language (+ academic connections in France) and my big boy conference shows that my session leader thinks my topic/abilities are good enough for such a panel.

This does NOT mean I think smaller conferences aren't worth it - I personally love them, since you get to know a smaller group well and make closer connections. It's just that if you want to do a smaller number of conferences, it can be good to target ones that will 'look good' on a CV.

Something that I always forget about - do you already have a paper written that you can tweak or harvest for presentation? Presenting on my dissertation material has been LIFE CHANGING - I don't have to spend hours and hours on research because I've already done it! Wild! Freeing! I even feel like an expert! This is something to really think about when looking at calls for papers and will make your life SO much easier.

Affordability!!!!! Do not bankrupt yourself over presenting at conferences!!! I have used department funding, funding from the graduate school, and funding from the French conference organizers where I can. I know there is huge pressure to attend as many conferences as possible, but your budget is important too. With the option of presenting virtually at some conferences, you can defray some costs, but I do think that this is something to strongly consider.

[prvtocol]

seven deadly sins headcanons ᠂ ⚘ ˚ @badtrigger / @b3ast0fburd3n / @mutatiio (conflating these into one post, hope that's okay~ thank you all for sending them! & behind a read more for length :)

gluttony 

2. a feast of all your muse's favorite foods is laid out in front of them. what's on the menu?

The overabundance of cuisine in one spread would lose its appeal fast. She eats small portions and simply. However, one might find some Provencal cuisine such as bouillabaisse, basil soup, niçoise salad (she does like her soups and salads) because it transports her to the place she wishes to be (retired and in the south of France). 

7. what are your muse's go-to beverages? 

English black tea and sparkling or still water.

9. does your muse drink many sugary drinks, like soda or juice?

She wouldn’t oppose a glass of freshly squeezed juice during a tropical holiday or a nutrition-packed smoothie or green juice (with kale) if she was feeling under the weather. But sugary drinks like soda aren’t something she reaches for/has on hand.

11. your muse addicted to caffeine? if so, what is their preferred caffeinated beverage? 

To an extent, yes. While tea gives her a lower caffeine intake than coffee, she is drinking several cups a day. She feels its lack when unable to consume it.

12. does your muse have a sweet tooth? 

No sweet tooth. She rarely eats sugared treats, pastries, or biscuits, even if an expired and unopened package of the latter can be found in her pantry. It’s a cultural habit to have some biscuits on hand.

greed 

what does your muse collect, if anything? 

Besides stamps on her passport, Brianne is a minimalist meaning she’s not moved to collect and accumulate objects. Some verse exceptions are in Far Cry New Dawn, she collects plant clippings and seeds to grow (her little shack has a section of jars).

5. how much money does your muse keep in their checking account at any given time? if your muse keeps cash, how much do they usually have in their wallet? does your muse carry coins around? what is the limit on their credit card, if they have one? do they have multiple credit cards? 

[Admittedly this is vague bc her verses complicate things] but coming from old money, Brianne had a hefty savings account created before birth, and portions of that money were continuously invested in CDs to safely accrue over time. She also has trust funds from both sides of her family. For her Modern/Far Cry verse, it’s likely her base salary as a new financial advisor is around (just using USD here) $200k a year working for her family’s firm, not including bonuses and commissions. From what I gather, these can be in the millions. She owns a $3 million dollar home in Hampstead. Her two credit cards are both at the uppermost limit, and she has two business credit cards for client expenses. She rarely carries coins or cash on her person, but for her Far Cry verse, she brings some Rupiahs and US dollars to Rook (starting at around $300) in case she needs to make a transaction.

7. is your muse prone to shopping sprees? if so, what do they usually indulge in buying?

As stated above, her minimalist tendencies mean she’s not big on shopping (which ironically is a trait diametrically opposed to her mother). However, when she goes shopping, her wealth bracket affords her indulgences in the luxury brand department. That $600 cardigan isn't a big deal. 

9. would your muse throw others under the bus/step on others if it meant they could find more success/make more money?

Only in her Cyberpunk 2077 verse does this apply, as it's necessitated by the corpo cutthroat world. Still, her tactics are more benign overall. In her other verses, she's hardly moved by money and she prefers her success to be honest in obtaining. She's not a vindictive person and rather help her fellow coworkers than sabotage them.

10. would your muse steal anything? 

It would depend on if the situation requires her to steal, as in she has no choice, is threatened, it’s a life or death situation for her or her loved one. Otherwise, stealing never crosses her mind. 

wrath 

2. how does your muse handle anger? do they have anger issues? how do they manage or vent their anger?

A passive person, Brianne’s anger gets subsumed behind a pleasant facade (which arguably can be stretched thin). She’ll stew in her disgruntlement, maybe quietly tut about it, but better to keep calm and carry on the performance. Venting later to someone close to her, where she can share her exasperation and not be automatically judged, is usually her best cure. 

4. how many hours of sleep does your muse get? do they feel rested after, or are they still tired?

Brianne is a light sleeper and overthinker which means poor sleep maintenance. Add in jet lag for her Modern/Far Cry verse and she’s powering through her overbooked days on 5 to 7 (hopeful) hours of sleep. She's usually in between tired and rested. 

5. what, if anything, provokes your muse to violence?

She would be a protective mother. If her children were in danger or threatened, or if she needed to protect her partner because he could not protect himself, then she would do what was needed. Otherwise, she is not a person capable of violence in a physical or emotional sense. 

6. does your muse believe that violence can solve some problems? or are they more a "violence is never the answer" type? somewhere in-between?

Violence is not an answer she accepts but she knows that’s unrealistic. For her Avatar verse, she politically opposes the war, but she does not have a solution to stop the insurgency. It’s not her sector one could say, and she's aware of her lack of knowledge even if she will continue to raise her concerns.

8. was your muse a bully? or were they bullied themselves?

No. Her childhood/schooling didn’t have any of that.

pride 

does your muse believe they are the best at everything, even if that belief is unwarranted?

She’s just as aware of her incompetencies, her weaknesses, her anxiety (especially in verses where she is confronted with situations outside of her normal office setting). If job-specific, she leans more on her competencies. She does believe she deserves to be director/she's proven that she is the best for the job. 

3. does your muse accept responsibility for their actions when they have done something wrong?

It's fair to say that Brianne is a very mature adult and takes responsibility. And with responsibility, she tries to make things right even when the best option might be to leave things be. 

4. is your muse comfortable with apologizing to others?

In a way, her ability to be vulnerable, admit she was wrong, accept the consequences again reflects her maturity. 

6. has your muse every blown off preparing for something because they were confident they could complete the task without preparation? if so, what was the situation?

Unlikely, but some of her work duties might be repetitive enough that she can hop from one meeting to the next with only a quick review of notes. More likely she's scheduled in prep time so it happens.

8. does your muse look down on others they perceive as being "not as good" at things as they are?

Within a work hierarchy, where she is often in a position of power and thus has authority over subordinates, she perceives “not as good” in terms of performance. Not comparatively necessarily, but she performs audits with a critical eye to suggest improvements. Outside of work/office settings (like the ones that often come up so often in my rps), she's confronted more with her inabilities and insecurities. She is not made for the great outdoors, for instance.

sloth 

on what day(s) does your muse feel most lazy? at a specific time of day, or all day?

Sundays she might linger in bed a little longer, and take her tea and sit in the greenroom in her loungewear well into the morning hours. Very indulgent. 

2. is your muse prone to procrastination?

She’s more of a get it done first, relax later lady. Sadly, she has so much to do she rarely gets to the relaxing part (even if checking off things on her to-do list is relaxing to her enough).

3. what chores/responsibilities does your muse avoid doing at all costs?

Health checkups, avoiding the doctors more than she should. It might be more the need to call off work to go, which is easier said than done for someone with her schedule.

5. once your muse gets started doing something important, do they drag their feet, take many breaks, and ultimately prolong the task? or do they work as quickly as possible, at the sacrifice of a quality job? or do they work efficiently without sacrificing quality?

Making Brianne high up in a corp's hierarchy is not based on nepotism alone; she is a hard worker, task-oriented, organized, and a go-getter. i.e. she works efficiently without sacrificing quality.

envy 

does your muse get jealous easily, or does it take a lot for them to feel it?

In terms of work, no. If she were in a relationship, if her partner made her feel insecure, she would feel jealousy tug on her heartstrings. If the relationship is built on trust as it should be, it would be less of an issue. 

2. what kinds of things does your muse get jealous about?

When Brianne sees happy families with small children she feels that tinge of jealousy for something she wishes to have but wasn’t meant to be.

3. does your muse compare themselves to others often? if so, how does it affect them?

It’s hard for Brianne not to compare herself to others her age, especially coworkers she knows, who are married and have children. It’s about feeling the lack of what she thought she’d have by now.

lust 

2. what is your muse's sexuality? if asexual, are they sex favorable, sex indifferent, or sex repulsed? 

Gray-ace, straight, and in between sex indifferent and sex repulsed. She’s a prude and a virgin so sex and its vagrant discussion make her uncomfortable. Her idea of “sex as good” is more the romantic intimacy option where sex is involved, but there’s more to it than that. 

3. is your muse vanilla, or are they kinky? if kinky, what are their top three kinks, and why do they like them? if vanilla, what position(s) does your muse have sex in? 

Very vanilla. Surely those three positions she knows about would be fine.

8. how does your muse feel about one-night-stands?

The thought of allowing a complete stranger access to her body is terrifying and something she could never consider doing.

9. what was your muse's first time having sex like? who was it with, why did they choose that person, where did it take place, how old were they, and what happened? 

It’s canon that Brianne is a virgin into her 30s and 40s so there’s no standardized first time (i.e. it’s verse and main ship specific).

[mariacallous]

What was seen as an outlandish idea two years ago—that frozen Russian assets could be used to pay for war-torn Ukraine’s reconstruction—is edging closer to becoming reality, in what could become a landmark precedent in international law.

Financial institutions in the United States and Europe hold about $300 billion worth of Russian state assets that were frozen at the start of the war and which, if seized, could go a long way toward paying for the damage wrought by the invasion. The World Bank last year estimated the cost of that damage to be over $400 billion, and it has only grown since.

In the early days of the war, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen dismissed the idea of seizing Russian assets as not “legally permissible.” But the notion has seen momentum recently, in part due to Russia’s continued assault on Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure and in part due to growing concerns over the near-term future of U.S. and Western aid for Kyiv.

Last week, the U.S. Senate advanced legislation that would authorize the seizure of frozen Russian state funds, following a similar measure earlier in the House of Representatives. The Biden administration has backed the bill after carefully examining the legal ramifications. 

Canada already has such a law in the works. The European Union has agreed in principle to the idea of seizing at least the interest earned from frozen Russian assets for Ukraine’s reconstruction. The G-7 will further discuss using Russian money to rebuild Ukraine at a meeting next month. And a gaggle of foreign-policy luminaries made the case for such a move just last week.

“We should be prepared to do some innovative thinking about how we use these resources to help Ukraine,” British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, this month.

Such a move would be unprecedented in its scope, and it presents a complex set of legal challenges that critics fear could undermine the principle of state sovereign immunity and even erode confidence in Western financial institutions and currencies. 

But the fight over the move from freeze to seize is important not just for the future of Ukraine and the calculus of Russian President Vladimir Putin today. Leading scholars of international law argue that confiscation would set a positive precedent while failing to do so would constrain future efforts. “Whichever decision is made, it will become a defining precedent whenever future aggression is confronted—and a decisive factor in the frequency with which such aggression again threatens civilization,” Harvard University’s Laurence Tribe and colleagues wrote in a seminal paper last fall.

Similar appropriations of state assets have happened before, most notably the United Nations-sanctioned U.S. seizure of billions of dollars of Iraqi funds that were earmarked for reparations for Kuwait in the wake of the 1990 invasion. The United States did something similar, on a much smaller scale, with a portion of frozen Afghan central bank funds after the Taliban took over Kabul in 2021.

But the potential seizure of hundreds of billions of dollars—roughly half the total assets of the Russian Central Bank at the outbreak of war—would be a significant change in how countries respond to aggressor states, with the ability to reshape international law with an eye to future conflicts.

“I don’t see a legal obstacle. There’s clearly a moral imperative. And any economic risk can be mitigated by countries doing this together,” said Harold Hongju Koh, a former State Department legal advisor in the Obama administration and professor at Yale Law School, who is advising Ukraine in its cases before the International Court of Justice at The Hague. “If everyone does it together, it creates a new precedent.

“Every single attack, and every bit of damage, was exacerbated by Putin’s lack of restraint, so you want to create a system where there’s a deterrent—if there’s a future dictator who understands that every such decision adds to the amount of money they’re going to have to pay back, they might decide differently.”

Russian officials are gearing up for a fight in the event the country’s assets are seized, threatening legal action in courts in Europe and the United States. Putin already signed a decree in December seizing the Russian assets of a number of European companies, including those of the Danish beer company Carlsberg and the French yogurt manufacturer Danone. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has warned that Moscow has a list of Western assets, reportedly nearly as large as the frozen Russian funds in the West, that could be seized in retaliation. A spokesperson for the Russian foreign ministry dismissed the potential move as “21st-century piracy” this month. 

But even though momentum for asset confiscation is building, it’s not a done deal by any means. The United States holds only a small portion of the frozen Russian assets—with estimates of between $40 billion and $60 billion or so. The vast majority are held in Europe, especially in Belgium’s Euroclear financial clearing house, but the EU and most member states are lukewarm about the idea of moving to outright seizure of Russian funds, fearing retaliation by Moscow. Proponents of the asset seizure agree that the move would be much more effective if done collectively, rather than by one or two countries, both in terms of the dollar amounts involved but also in collectively defending against any potential retaliation.

Debate around the seizure of Russian sovereign assets has mirrored that of many pivotal decisions taken by Ukraine’s Western partners during the course of the war—including decisions to send tanks and offensive weapons to the Ukrainian military. In a pattern that has played out many times before, Washington and London have come around on the question before cajoling an anxious Europe to join forces. 

Meanwhile, Ukraine worries about not just the cost of future reconstruction but also the continued flow of Western, especially U.S., financial and military aid due to Republican obstructionism in the U.S. Congress.

“We need to get to the moment where we can reconstruct the country, and unless we have the money to defend ourselves, we might not get to the point where we can reconstruct ourselves,” said Illia Chernohorenko, a former official at the Ukrainian Justice Ministry and former advisor to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. His parents were bombed out of their apartment during the first month of the war and have been refugees ever since. Chernohorenko is now getting another doctorate in international law at the University of Oxford, researching issues such as moving from asset freeze to asset seizure.

But before Ukraine can get its hands on that money needed for rebuilding, questions remain about the legality of such a seizure. The United States already has the authority, under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, to confiscate state funds; the new legislation currently before Congress is just meant to clarify that authority and specifically earmark its use for Ukraine’s reconstruction. Other countries, such as the United Kingdom, would need to pass new legislation to be able to move from freezing assets to seizing them.

One of the main objections to the plan, from both Moscow and some Western legal experts, is that such asset confiscation could violate Russia’s sovereign immunity. Seizing assets of individuals and private companies, such as those on designated sanctions lists, presents few legal issues. But seizing funds belonging to a sovereign state’s central bank could, critics say, run afoul of the idea that states are essentially immune from legal remedies and would itself be a violation of international law.

Proponents dismiss those concerns. For starters, they say, sovereign immunity only applies to states facing judicial action by other nations, not executive or legislative remedies. More to the point, they say, Russia, by its illegal invasion of Ukraine and widespread and well-documented commission of war crimes, has essentially forfeited its right to be treated as a sovereign, the same way sovereign immunity is waived when state corporations engage in business fraud.

“You can’t act like a private murderer and say, ‘I should be defended like a sovereign actor,’” Koh said.

Others have argued that the line, such as it was, was crossed when the funds were frozen at the outset of the war. That’s one reason why many are sanguine about concerns of capital flight away from the Western financial system.

“What are you talking about, ‘the sanctity of sovereign funds’? We’ve crossed that line, let’s not kid ourselves,” said Daniel Fried, a former U.S. ambassador to Poland. “The Chinese saw what we did, the Saudis saw what we did, and they didn’t pull their money out of our banks.”

Another big issue is the so-called doctrine of countermeasures. In theory, a state that suffers a violation of international law—such as an illegal invasion—has the right to redress that wrong, even if that means temporarily violating international law itself. What’s more, if the aggressor state has violated universal norms, such as the U.N. Charter, all states have the right to resort to countermeasures. That’s the basic rationale that proponents point to for the move from collective asset freezes to outright seizures.

The tricky part is that countermeasures are meant to be reversible. If Western countries do move to seize Russian funds and distribute them to Ukraine, the measure would clearly not be reversible. Critics say that’s one reason the move could be counterproductive: With the funds disposed of, Russia would have little incentive to end its war in Ukraine. 

But proponents of confiscation dismiss that concern as well, principally by arguing that any such distribution of funds to Ukraine can be seen essentially as a down payment by Russia on the war reparations that it would be legally obliged to pay in any event but likely never will voluntarily. Since the war damage already far exceeds the $300 billion or so in Western hands, giving the money to Ukraine is for all intents and purposes reversible because Russia would have been on the hook for that and more at some time in the future anyway.

There are also practical considerations. The Russian funds are held in many different countries, in many different forms—securities, government bonds, and so on. That could complicate efforts to turn Russia’s frozen riches into usable funds for Ukraine. And unlike in 1991, when the United Nations organized a compensation fund for Kuwait, the Russian veto in the U.N. Security Council means there’s no chance of a similar entity being created this time around. 

That means the United States, if it goes ahead, and any other countries that join would have to establish some sort of ad hoc fund to administer monies for Ukraine; for the disbursement of $3.5 billion of Afghan reserves, the United States created a commission in Switzerland. Current legislation under consideration on Capitol Hill—the REPO Act—would, if passed, create a Ukraine Support Fund for reconstruction and humanitarian assistance. 

The lingering legal questions, fears over Russian retaliation, and concerns that asset seizure could undermine global confidence in widely used currencies such as the U.S. dollar, British pound, or the euro are just some reasons that Europe is moving more cautiously on this issue. The latest proposal, which could be finalized next month, involves taking only the proceeds of frozen Russian assets—interest accrues to about $3 billion a year—and using that for Ukraine. Proponents of outright confiscation say the EU compromise measure is too small to make a dent in Ukraine’s huge reconstruction bill and also faces the same potential legal challenges as more vigorous actions.

As Russia’s war on Ukraine, the biggest challenge to the international order since World War II, staggers into its third year, it’s becoming clear that Moscow’s actions are reshaping more than frontiers and front lines: They are potentially laying the groundwork for a seismic change in international law. Sovereign impunity, after this, might be a thing of the past.

“They started a war, and they’re going to hide behind law? No, thank you,” Fried said.