#if you click where it says link in bio you can read the interview on Merc's website!

[racingliners]

mercedesamgf1 25 seasons of Mr Safety Car 😎 Celebrating two and a half decades of @.berndmaylaender in one of @.f1’s most important roles 💪

Head to our link in bio for the full chat 📲🔗

[love-belle]

you got me thinking nonsense !!!

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ in which heartbreak led to her real love and she'd be damned if she didn't make sure everyone knows that.

or

for when they're everything to you. ˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚

social media au // charles leclerc x fem!reader

prequel - light as a feather ⋆·˚ ༘ *

warnings - language

author's note - posting this i simply couldn't resist!!! i'll try my HARDEST to post carlos' version of shout out to my ex tonight but if not then tomorrow fs <3 thank u so much for reading, i love u <3

taglist - @marsdreamworld @eviethetheatrefreak @22yuki @incoherenciass @bb-swift @willowpains @lordperceval-16 (tagging all those who asked for part ii <3)

≡;- ꒰ °instagram ꒱

liked by pierregasly, f1updates, exwagsclub and 79,726 others

paddock.club y/n y/l/n and charles leclerc spark dating rumours as they were seen out on a "date", which were further confirmed as the couple shared a kiss. for weeks, y/l/n and leclerc have been having coy and not-so-platonic interactions on social media and fans have speculated that these two are more just friends. this news comes after y/n's break up with a fellow driver of charles and while neither y/n or her ex have commented on this, it's clear that they didn't have a clean break up as there were rumours of cheating surrounding the ex. for more details, click on the link in our bio.

tagged charles_leclerc yourusername

589 comments

username LMFAOAOOA THE WAY LANDO ISN'T EVEN MENTIONED HERE

username "the ex" ur so right he's not worth mentioning 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

username olivia was talking abt lando when she sang "some weird second string loser who's not worth mentioning"

*liked by oliviarodrigo*

username my true parents fr ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

username she looks sooo happy with him im so happy for her

username love how none of yes are surprised like we all saw this coming

username the way l*ndo isn't even mentioned ONCE like that's what u get for cheating babes!!!!!!!!!

username CHARLES AND Y/N FUCK YEA

username she genuinely looks so much happier with charles like this is the type of relationship she deserved ❤️

username IM ❤️ SO ❤️ HAPPY ❤️ FOR ❤️ THEM ❤️

username no bc there was no way they thought that they'd be able to convince us that they weren't together

username istg i see one person comment some out of pocket shit im SWINGING

username l*ndo's crying rn like i can Feel it

username no bc HOW'D he pull 😭😭😭😭😭

-> username fr like u put him near y/n he starts malfunctioning

-> username no bc that one interview where he forgot his own team's name js bc y/n walked past him is LIVING proof

username i know the driver's gc is WILDIN rn

username see now idk who to be jealous of

-> username the only correct answer is both

username no bc IMAGINE THE SONGS SHE'LL WRITE ABOUT HIM!!!!!!

username pretty people (y/n and charles) ruining it for the ugly people (me) by getting together

username oh so he got GAME

username everyone bffr y/n was probably the one who took the initiative

username guys stop with all the l*ndo slander comments i can't like them all

username charles leclerc i will never forgive u for taking my wife

username im sooooOOOOooo normal about this. ha fucking ha.

≡;- ꒰ °instagram ꒱

liked by charles_leclerc, lewishamilton, carmenmmundt and 2,792,712 others

yourusername nonsense is now yours!!! i wrote this song on my very close friend's bedroom's floor and i can officially say that this is the most unhinged song i have ever written :) i love u all sooo much i could cry <3 (charles_leclerc be my personal photographer pls ❤️)

15,628 comments

username HELLO?????? PLEASE IM CRYING WHAT IS THIS SONG AND WHY IS IT MAKING ME CRY AND HORNY

username IM TALKIN OPPOSITE OF SOFT?????? Y/N?????????

username nah she's unhinged

username "on my very close friend's bedroom's floor" BABE WE KNOW

username how quickly can u take ur clothes off pop quiz 🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔

-> username oh she's wild for adding this

username IN LOVE WITH THE OUTRO

username PLEASE touch some grass and meditate

georgerussell63 wish i never heard it but cool beats x

-> yourusername i too wish u never heard it but thank u russell george x

username i know sebastian texted her after this

*liked by yourusername*

username okayyyy so at least he's winning off the track

-> username OH UR SO WRONG FOR THIS

username at least my girl's getting some good dick y'all leave her alone

username im a changed woman after hearing this song

username u gotta keep up with me!!!!! i got some young energy!!!!!!! i caught the l-o-v-e!!!! why do u do this to me!!!!!!!

username i know charles is blasting the SHIT out of this sin anthem (encouraging)

-> username PLEASE NOT SIN ANTHEM

lilymhe when will you write a song like this about me :/

-> yourusername if u would like i can show u????

-> lilymhe i'm On my way!

-> alex_albon STOP I'M STILL HERE

-> yourusername alex look away

-> charles_leclerc i'm

-> yourusername u too babe look AWAY

-> username BABE

-> username DID SHE JS CONFIRM IT FR FR

username said u like my eyes????? AND u like to make them roll??????

-> username if someone said that to me i would be AT the altar in most white dress ever

username charles won at life fr

username WHY IS NO ONE TALKING ABT HOW GOOD SHE LOOKS IN THESE PHOTOS

-> username my heart stopped she's so barbie coded

charles_leclerc nice song

-> yourusername thank u

charles_leclerc any particular muse behind this?

-> yourusername js this cool guy i've been seeing

-> charles_leclerc "cool" huh? 😏😏😏😏🤪🤪🤪🤪🤗🤗🤗🤗🫡🫡🫡🫡🥶🥶🥶🥶😩😩😩😩🤧🤧🤧🤧☺️☺️☺️☺️😘😘😘😘🥰🥰🥰🥰😚😚😚😚

-> yourusername yes charles u are cool

-> username MY GOD SOMEONE TAKE AWAY THIS MAN'S PHONE

-> username y/n be honest does he blush and giggle when u call him a pet name????

-> yourusername what do u think

-> username I KNEW IT OMG

charles_leclerc if the person in front of the camera is you, i will gladly be behind the camera for the rest of my life.

-> yourusername the most romantic thing u have ever said to me

-> charles_leclerc that's not true

-> yourusername u called me a chameleon yesterday

-> charles_leclerc because you wear a different shade of eye colour everyday

-> yourusername eye shadow* baby

-> charles_leclerc okay :D

-> username WHO IS THIS MAN

-> username nah he's GONE for her

≡;- ꒰ twitter ꒱

≡;- ꒰ °instagram ꒱

liked by yourusername, carlossainz55, arthur_leclerc and 1,538,976 others

charles_leclerc she wrote a song for me and while it wasn't the most romantic one, the sentiment is still appreciated. y/n, i adore you completely, even if you spend more time with my mom than you do with me. mon cœur ❤️ ( my heart )

tagged yourusername

12,629 comments

username im

username js gonna leave yeah (ABSHDHDJSJJSSJ)

username what do u MEAN charles is in love and what do u MEAN that it's not with me (i love them both sm)

username okayyyy she wrote how much she loves u and ur little thing that's the MOST romantic thing ever

-> username nah bestie given the way she wrote the song im not it's *little*

*liked by yourusername*

-> username GIRL PLEASE WHY ARE U LURKING

username i love them both so much

carlossainz55 you two make me nauseous but it's been a long time coming 🤍 happy for you both !!

-> charles_leclerc thank you for your approval <3

-> carlossainz55 had to make sure you'd treat her better 🤷

-> username "treat her better" is speaking VOLUMES

-> username i love carlos so much ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

username y/n being the grid's favourite is my aesthetic 🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗

username I LOVE THEM SOOO MUCH THEY'RE MY PARENTS LIKE AJSJSKSKSJKSKKS

username "mon cœur" can u hear me SCREAMING 💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔

username they genuinely deserve all the happy things in life like im SO fr

username ferrari better get their shit in order bc i know that if they fuck up again y/n is fr gonna destroy them and idk if that's gonna be by words or by a song or she's straight up gonna fist fight them

*liked by yourusername, charles_leclerc and carlossainz55*

danielricciardo at least she writes you songs, she writes me threatening messages

-> yourusername U CALLED ME THAT MCDONALD'S CLOWN

-> charles_leclerc i'm not gonna intervene

-> danielricciardo BECAUSE YOU LOOKED LIKE ONE

-> yourusername THAT'S JS CHARLES NOT ME

-> charles_leclerc i am going to intervene

username im so ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ about them

username i just fell to the floor what the fuck

username IM SOOOOOOOOO *cries*

lewishamilton 🫶🏼

*liked by charles_leclerc*

username i KNOW lando is pulling at his hair rn

username THAT NOTE OH MY GOD

username pls god when will it be me

username im so 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔

yourusername wdym "u said u like my eyes and u like to make em roll" is not romantic

-> charles_leclerc the most romantic thing i have ever heard in my eye

-> yourusername ❤️

yourusername i love ur mom

-> charles_leclerc i know

-> leclerc_pascale mon ange 😘

-> yourusername MAMA LECLERC ❤️❤️❤️

-> charles_leclerc and i'm right here...

yourusername cannot wait to write songs for u my entire life

-> charles_leclerc cannot wait to compose piano pieces for you 😘

-> username IM SCREAMING

-> username WHAT DO U MEAN HE COMPOSES PIANO PIECES FOR HER 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

username they're so

username i would give anything to have a love like that 😭😭😭😭😭

username im crying.

≡;- ꒰ °instagram ꒱

liked by charles_leclerc, lorenzotl, lilymhe and 2,975,327 others

yourusername looking at u got me thinking nonsense!!!!!!!!!!! also special thanks to landonorris bc if not for him i wouldn't have met the love of my life so thanks dude even if ur a prepubescent piece of shit

tagged charles_leclerc

18,629 comments

username IM HOWLING WHAT THE FUCK

username THE TAG THE CAPTION

username prepubescent piece of shit will forever be engraved in my brain ❤️

username LMFAOAOAOAO

username y/n y/m/n y/l/n u will always be famous

username IM CRYINF WHAT THEBFUCK

lewishamilton both of you 💕

-> yourusername we love u lewis <3

username she will never let l*ndo live in peace and i love her sm for that

username i just cackled out loud why is she so funny

username SHE'S SOOOO UNSERIOUS

username i js know charles is MADLY in love with her bc HOW can u not be

username she's so unhinged. i love her.

username screaming

lilymhe i thought we were something

-> yourusername babygirl u own my heart and 4ever will

-> alex_albon wow.

-> charles_leclerc oh my god

username they're so adorable 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

username THEM

username no bc charles deffo manifested this shit like imagine having a crush on someone for YEARS and then they date ur friend but the friend cheats on them and u end up together like woahh wildddd

-> username and then they write a song about u

-> username AND THEN THEY WRITE A SONG ABOUT U

oscarpiastri a scream just erupted from *his* driver's room

*liked by yourusername*

-> username target audience reached 🫡

username stop with the l*ndo hate comments i seriously CANNOT like them all

username i would do anything to go to a driver's meeting ANYTHING

maxverstappen1 nice caption

-> yourusername thank u :) an angry dutch proof read this

username max proof reading this caption is sooo funny like omg

-> username they're truly destroying his peace and i respect them so much

username i truly cannot wait for the next race

username NO BC DID SOMEONE SEE THAT CLIP WHERE NONSENSE PLAYED IN THE PADDOCK WHILE LANDO WAS THERE AND HE LOOKED SO 😒😒😒😒😒😒

-> username LMFAOAOAOA THAT WAS HIGHLIGHT OF MY DAY

-> username truly a cinematic piece ❤️

charles_leclerc was the first photo necessary

-> yourusername absolutely like look at my man ❤️

charles_leclerc looking at YOU got ME thinking nonsense

-> yourusername stop im blushing

charles_leclerc i thought we'd be nice

-> yourusername no YOU'D be nice i'd be mean

-> charles_leclerc okay amour ( my love )

charles_leclerc i love you ❤️

-> yourusername i caught the l-o-v-e

-> yourusername i love you more ❤️

username IM SOOOOOO 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

username charles and y/n ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

username me when.

[eredhes]

Hey!

I majored in anth at a p awesome school for it (had a so fun class where we hands on used paleo to neo lithic techniques- from making stone tools to processing hides) but there wasn't much available for prehistoric art (+ I was a major switch from microbiology so bio anth, epidemiology and forensics stuff, made more sense with my course history). Been out of school for almost 10 years now and unfortunately doing nothing even remotely related, but I'm wanting to learn more about prehistoric art of all sorts. With search engines being overrun with AI misinfo I'm not really sure where to start other than Wikipedia. Do you have any favorite resources you'd be up for recommending?

Thanks a ton! Happy holidays, and may the new year be kind.

Hello! I should preface this with saying I am just someone with a general interest and not remotely an expert haha! Getting to do hands on stuff sounds really fun!

A lot of my reading has been restricted to Upper Palaeolithic Europe, and cave art at that, so I can't really recommend anything outside of that.

I've been concerned also with avoiding misinformation - there was a painting I saw a while ago where it was obvious the level of research involved was typing "Lascaux" into pinterest and just using whatever results came up (the art used was from Cueva de los Caballos and Mesolithic) and it's been driving me nuts. I've been sticking to books for information, almost everything I've read has been through Internet Archive, and majority are over 30 years old so could be outdated, can contradict each other, and should be noted are can be very racist.

Putting the list of everything under a read more as it's quite long, I hope there's something useful in amongst all of this! Happy holidays, I hope you have a good new year!

Books and other resources I've found useful in no particular order:

The Cave of Lascaux: The Final Photographs by Mario Ruspoli (1987) [Is on Internet Archive but currently unavailable, the German version is still up.] When Lascaux was closed to the public Mario Ruspoli was hired by the French govenment to document the entire cave on film and wrote this book afterwards. Even though it's focus is Lascaux I found it a good introduction to the topic of cave art. I have tried to find the footage online with little success so if anyone knows... do tell. This book brings you through the cave and gives a good idea of the layout and where paintings/engravings are in relation to each other. I would love if there was something like this for other caves but I'm not aware of anything 🤔

Lascaux Virtual Tour [Link here] The video isn't toally clear but it gives a good sense of the layout, and you can click the little 'i' icon to see clearer photos and get more details.

Images of the Ice Age by Paul Bahn and Jean Vertut (1988) [Internet Archive Link] This book is also a good starting point! There's also Journey Through the Ice Age which is the same book.

Cambridge Illustrated History of Cave Art by Paul Bahn (1998) [Internet Archive Link] I haven't gotten around to reading this yet but it appears to be a broader scope and not restricted to Europe.

Palaeolithic Cave Art by Peter J. Ucko and Andrée Rosenfeld (1967) The main appeal of this bok is that it goes through the different possible reasons for cave art. I had to buy a physical copy as I couldn't find it online.

Kindred: Neanderthal Life, Love, Death and Art by Rebecca Wragg Sykes (2020) [Aeon article link "Sheanderthal: Not all Neanderthals were ‘cavemen’: half were women. What can archaeologists tell us about how they lived?] Not solely focused on art but she does talk about what the neanderthals made including a large circular structure in Bruniquel Cave - there is footage of the cave in the recent netflix documentary Secrets of the Neanderthals (not great, at one point the narrator says neanderthals lived in the neolithic lmfao but the interviews with experts are interesting).

Don's Maps [Link here] Really great website. Some books will mention a painting/engraving/sculpture but no image, so my first place to check is Don's Maps as everything he includes is either from a book which will be referenced or from his own visits to caves.

The Neanderthal Museum Digital Archive [Link here] Despite the name is not exclusively Neanderthal, lots of photos of cave art in the Wendel Collection (including a photo of the one known instance of a saiga antelope in cave art that I hadn't been able to find a photo of before!).

There's also the Archaeology Podcast Network and sites like Academia.edu but I don't have any specific recommendations at present.

[ms-demeanor]

Since you're on the anti-vax debunking train, have you looking into "Dr." Pam Popper at all? I'm trying to do research on her bc her rhetoric has totally twisted the perceptions of someone I love, but I'm not finding much. I can't even tell if she's an actual doctor or not, just that she calls herself one.

JUST FOR SHITS AND GIGGLES I’m going to show y’all the basic way I do fact checking on things like this

Step One: who is this person and what are their claims

This is Pam Popper, she is claiming to be a naturopath and a doctor. This interview claims that she is a PhD and an ND.

Step Two: Investigating those claims

ND, or Naturopathic Doctor, is not a protected term the same way that MD is a protected term in most places.

By searching “Requirements for Naturopathic doctors in Ohio” I found that the state of Ohio, where Pam Popper practices, does not license naturopaths.

There is a voluntary professional organization of naturopaths in Ohio that requires members to have a 4-year degree and to pass state medical exams. It has 38 members listed and Pam Popper is not one of them.

Well, that’s that for Naturopath. So far as her state’s professional organization is concerned, she isn’t one, and the state doesn’t license them.

So what about PhD? You can have a PhD in lots of things, we call Dr. Phil “Doctor” for his PhD in English, it’s a gimme - let’s find out what’s up with Dr. Popper’s PhD.

It’s surprisingly hard to find out what’s up with her from the expected sources. Most people with PhDs won’t shut up about where they got them from (with good reason! Shit’s hard!) and will ABSOLUTELY put the name of the institution that granted their degree in their about page. Hell, most doctors display their diplomas in their offices. It’s totally standard doctor flex.

But everywhere you read about her she REALLY wants you to know that she taught part of an online certification course (you do not have to be a professor, trained educator, or expert of any kind to be hired to teach a certification course) and she was totally in Forks over Knives you guys.

So okay, you search “Pam Popper education” and you get a ton of results that are copy/pastes of her bio from her website, but one is SLIGHTLY different and says that she "[got] a Master’s degree and PhD in nutrition in her late 30’s.” That’s good to know! Very good to know! According to IMDB (and you can trust that, because she REALLY wants you to know she was in Forks over Knives) Popper was born in 1956, which means she’s 65. Okay. So, let’s *generously* assume that late thirties means 40, so she got her degree in 1996. Keep that number in mind.

Duck Duck Go isn’t turning up a TON of what I’m looking for, so I switch over to google and google sucks but it DOES make good suggestions sometimes, because that’s how I find this:

A 2001 article in which Popper is interviewed about the regulations impacting health food stores where she told the journalist where she got her degree.

Okay, so what’s the Clayton College of Natural Health?

Well, first of all, it’s shut down. So that’s a good sign. Still got that number 1996 in your head?

It’s important. It’s important because there’s a pretty significant difference between a correspondence school and online learning. Correspondence schools may have you turn in papers, they may have you take tests, they may have you make a phone call to the professor, but they were not proctored and there was essentially no way to guarantee that the student turning in the course work was the student doing the course work. Which is COMPLETELY aside from the fact that many correspondence schools granted degrees for just returning a completed worksheet.

Okay, so with that in mind, here’s what Clayton College offered for their online classes in 2001:

And here’s what the school’s website looked like in 1997:

And just for further shits and giggles here’s the reading list for the course on pediatric nutrition:

What is the ABSOLUTE LATEST that Dr. Popper could have gotten her degree from this institution if she got it in her late thirties? 1996. Credible, reliable distance education was not really available in the mid nineties. Dr. Popper paid for a diploma from a notorious quack diploma mill that was shut down by the state of Alabama because it couldn’t pass muster for accreditation even in the 2010s. The “school’s” writing lab was a recommendation to buy Strunk & White and a link to the writing labs for two real schools.

And now that I’ve shown THAT here are two sources that the alt-med community will claim are biased against them: A huffpo writeup of why the school shut down and the quackwatch profile of CCNH.

The Wikipedia page on it is pretty succinct:

The Clayton College of Natural Health is a giant piece of shit and it’s no wonder Popper doesn’t want to show you her diploma, she has NONE of the qualifications that you should expect from a doctor.

Step Three: Analysis and Synthesis

I am a skeptical cynic, so this is enough information for me. Popper’s first claim about herself is that she’s a Doctor and a Naturopath. Neither of those things are true, so there’s a pretty decent chance that the rest of the things she claims aren’t true either. She used to discuss going to an unaccredited quack school but has stopped talking about it since the school got shut down, and she’s not part of the professional organization for her profession in her state. She doesn’t have any kind of medical background and is a tremendously unreliable source for medical information.

If I were speaking to someone who is more into alt-med and woo stuff I would point out that Ohio DOES have an organization of practicing naturopaths that Popper is unqualified to join and she received her diploma from a ‘school’ that was actively adversarial to the idea of requiring board certification for naturopaths and that she now runs a very similar bullshit correspondence school.

Look at what great things you can learn in just eight weeks for seven hundred dollars plus registration fees plus application fees plus certification fees:

haha, oh shit dudes, I clicked to view the “application” to Pam Popper’s school and got this:

This is clearly an up-to-date, on-the-level institution. Also it costs a hundred dollars to submit an application and they want you to do it by mail.

Wait, I’m supposed to be analyzing and synthesizing here.

My analysis: Popper is full of shit

What you should take away from this conversation: People who don’t want to tell you where they got their degrees or what their degrees are in are extremely suspicious; people who tell you that they got their degrees at Clayton College of Natural Health don’t have real degrees; most people don’t understand the difference between naturopath (unprotected term in many places that may or may not require passing boards), osteopath (DO; someone who passes boards and is a doctor), MD (someone who passes boards and is a doctor), nutritionist (unprotected term, in many places anyone can claim to be a nutritionist with no qualifications), and dietician (protected term, this person had to get a degree in food) and we as a society don’t do a good job of explaining that.

[let-me-write-shit]

Hiiii! I absolutely love your writing. Could you do an imagine based off of your pregnancy one shot? Since H is incredibly private, would the couple be able to hide her pregnancy from the public and then announce it similar to like Kylie Jenner’s video diary of the whole experience? Thanks!!

A/N: Ok I was OBSESSED with this request, but for some reason I found it very difficult to write, so I’m so sorry if it’s shit. Hope you like it <3

Word Count: 2,698

Requests are OPEN! If you have a request for a blurb, oneshot, imagine, whatever, Send me a message HERE!!!

To add yourself to my Taglist, click HERE

CLICK HERE TO READ OTHER COMPLETED STORIES

Friendly reminder to please like and/or reblog. It helps more than you think :)

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

Is Forever Enough?

From the moment Harry found out he and Y/N were expecting their first child, he knew he wanted to document everything. He had been in the habit of capturing moments throughout their relationship, mainly of big events, but from this moment on, he wanted to capture it all. Little clips of every doctor’s appointment, every craving his wife had, every heartbeat, and every little kick. He wanted video documentation of the life growing inside his wife’s belly and everything that happened during that time. They had waited so long for this moment, and now that it was finally here, he wanted to make sure they would never forget a single second of it. From telling their closest friends and family members, designing the nursery, their tiny baby shower, attended by the select few that were lucky enough to know their secret.

At first, keeping silent was a way to protect themselves in case Y/N’s pregnancy didn’t stick like their fertility doctor had warned them was a possibility. It took them nearly two years to conceive, and the thought of going through a miscarriage in front of millions of watchful eyes was terrifying. But by the time they became aware that they weren’t going to miscarry, they had gone so long without announcing it that there wasn’t a point to do it. Why ruin something that was so well hidden?

The decision not to announce their pregnancy to the public wasn’t a hard decision to make. Harry was private, anyway, and everyone knew that. He was rarely on social media and didn’t talk about his private life to many people, and those who he did talk to were very loyal and trusting. They just wanted to enjoy being pregnant without the prying eyes of strangers and it was fairly easy keeping it under wraps considering how private they were, to begin with.

The timing of Y/N’s pregnancy helped, too. The early part of her pregnancy was during the summer, so they could enjoy tropical holidays together without worrying about being seen because she simply wasn’t showing yet. But, towards the end, it got harder to conceal, like during award season in the fall when an oversized shirt or puffy dress couldn’t conceal the roundness of her bump and plumpness of her cheeks and lips. It was the first award season she hadn’t accompanied Harry to in years and people began to get suspicious.

That’s when the rumors of her possible pregnancy started. Of course, no one could prove anything. But that, along with the lack of sightings of Y/N was enough proof for some. Luckily, nothing more came of it other than whispers. Harry had stopped doing interviews when he first got wind of the rumors, so no one could catch him off guard in uncomfortable positions or having to lie to protect his wife, and he began to focus his attention back on his music, halting his pursuance of on-screen work for the time being until after their baby boy’s arrival. Instead, he was the man behind the camera.

For the most part.

There were times when certain family members or friends would pick up their camera and film some things for them, capturing little intimate moments of the parents-to-be. They even enlisted the help of Harry’s on-tour photographer, Helene Pambrun, to help film the birth of their baby. Though she focused mainly on photography, her knowledge of videography and style of filming fit exactly with what the couple wanted, and Helene was all too honored to be a part of the day.

And although the birth of their child was, albeit, a bit traumatic, they couldn’t have asked for a sweeter baby boy. Born on a frigid Friday evening on March eighteenth after twenty hours of active labor and an onslaught of chaos, Paxton Robin Styles was born, tiny, healthy, and beautiful, surrounded by family that already loved him so dearly.

The hospital staff was wonderful in keeping their attendance private, no one having a clue that they were even there. No news articles or whispers were heard of their newest addition to which they were grateful to be allowed to enjoy their first week home, getting acclimated to being new parents. They had fallen in love with him.

“Y/N!” Harry exclaimed, bouncing into the nursery on a Monday afternoon as his wife fed their son, his phone in hand, and a bright smile on his face.

Y/N looked up, surprised and slightly offended, “Don’t ever call me by my name again,” she joked, stroking their son’s cheek.

Harry laughed, “Sorry, love. But, look! It’s here!”

He held his phone in front of her face, playing the edited version of their pregnancy and birth journey in video form one of Harry’s editor friends kindly put together for them after the birth of their son. The five minute and fifty-one-second video filled with shortened clips of the last nearly ten months of their lives in becoming first-time parents. They watched it together, occasionally glancing down at their baby that had fallen asleep while eating in Y/N’s arms, in awe that this was their life.

Tears were streaming down both of their faces, and Y/N giggled, wiping her husband’s cheek with her free hand. He was an emotional being, she knew that, but she had no idea what the effect of fatherhood would be on her Harry. She couldn’t have picked a better partner to raise a child with.

“I think we should post it,” Harry said, causing Y/N’s eyes to go wide.

“Post it? Like...social media?”

Harry nodded, “Well, we can’t keep him a secret forever. People are already starting to talk. I’d rather announce it on our own terms than on someone else’s. We can still stay as private as possible, I’ve already talked to Jeffrey and my publicist about it. I just...he makes me so proud and I feel like I need to show people that.”

Y/N smiles sweetly at her husband, taking his hand that rested on the arm to the nursing chair and pulling it up to her lips, kissing it gently. “Okay. We can post it.”

Later that evening, the internet was in an uproar and their phones were blowing up like crazy, for on both of their Instagrams they posted a grey-scale picture of a name tag sticker that read “Hello, I’m: P”, captioned ‘link in bio’, where they were directed to a youtube link posted under Harry’s account.

As soon as the video began, Harry’s soft voice was heard, singing his version of ‘Lullaby’ by the Dixie Chicks in the background as unseen footage of their wedding a few years prior had fizzled into view, video of their first dance as husband and wife played while the tail end of a speech made by Harry’s mom, Anne, was heard over everything else.

“We are so incredibly grateful to have Y/N now an official part of our family and I wish you both years of love, health, and happiness….and giving me tons and tons of grandchildren,” earning laughter from the attendees, “I love you both to pieces. Congratulations.”

The video slowly changed to little snippets. Y/N running towards the beach, holding her hat tight on her head with one hand while the other was holding onto Harry’s hand that was at the bottom of the screen as the breeze whipped at Y/N’s hair and sarong, cut to a clip of the camera propped on the beach overlooking the two of them sitting in the sand, looking out into the ocean, Y/N’s head falling on Harry’s shoulder and him kissing the top of her head as the sun set.

Next was a scene during one of Harry’s tour where someone filmed Y/N at the front of the stage in a VIP area beside a few of their friends, dancing and singing along with Harry who stood in front of her, smiling and singing at her.

The next images were upsetting. When they first started trying, they recorded videos of themselves awaiting the results of their tests, hoping to capture the moment they found out on film. One after another, the video showed negative test upon negative test, wanting to document the struggle they faced in fertility, one of the main reasons they decided to post this video. If it helped just one person who struggled with infertility and gave them a bit of hope, they needed to show it.

They showed clips of Harry holding an emotional Y/N in his arms, her eyes filled with tears and a quivering lip as he kissed her forehead and stroked her hair. Until the next clip showed. A shaky still of a screen that read ‘Pregnant’ that panned up to show a reflection of Harry and his wife in the mirror, Y/N pulling the test up to her face with a smile while Harry looked down at his wife in pride, softly touching her flat belly.

Clips of an ultrasound showed, Y/N stomach looking more bloated than anything as the doctor slid the wand around on her belly, Harry filming while squeezing his wife’s hand. His voice could barely be heard over the music of the video as he cooed, “Is that it, right there? So little…”

They included a few announcements they made to family members. How they told Anne while on an end of summer family vacation with a little jewelry box that opened up to two little birds and an egg in a birds nest with a note that said ‘A little birdy told me you are going to be a Nana.’ making Anne burst into tears, hugging them. And when they told Y/N’s best friend by giving her an orange and saying, “That’s how big our baby is right now,” which caused confusion before the screaming.

Y/N had filmed mirror clips of her growing belly in the floor-length mirror that stood in the corner of their room and had gotten clips of Harry laying beside her bump, his hands rubbing her stomach, clasped on either side as he sang, or talked, or read stories.

“I can’t wait to meet you,” he could be heard saying before kissing the top of her bump, looking up and past the camera to his wife, smiling lovingly.

There were images of Christmas, Gemma having caught an intimate moment between the two of them, Y/N sat in between Harry’s legs on the floor, mugs of hot chocolate in her hands and still in their Christmas Pajamas, Harry’s cheek pressed against hers as he held up a blue Gucci baby suit in front of them, smiling and gushing about how small it was.

The couple’s silhouette could be seen in the dark light sky as they stood in the middle of the field, illuminated by the New Years’ fireworks that went off in the distance, Y/N’s belly pressed against Harry’s stomach as they kissed intimately amongst their friends.

A small baby shower inside one of their London country homes was next, littered with a few familiar faces along with some that were likely family members. Harry still sang in the background as the two of them opened gifts, smiling and laughing with each other, genuine happiness and love could be seen on everyone’s faces and a few people popped onto the screen to say a few words for the unborn baby.

“You have wonderful parents,” Y/N’s parents grinned, her mom getting teary-eyed. “I can’t wait to see the person you become.”

Anne’s bright, shining smile was next, “You’re going to do amazing things. You are so loved.”

“Hi, my sweet nephew! It’s Auntie Gemma,” she grinned, waving at the camera, “I can’t wait to meet you and snuggle you! I hope you grow up to be just as kind and loving as your parents. We are so lucky to have you in our lives.”

Harry and Y/N were seen in the background, Y/N eating a slice of cake while Harry casually kissed her cheek before stealing a bite of her food, earning a smile from his pregnant wife

Video panned over their newly renovated nursery, mostly designed to be gender-neutral with little hints of outer space; moon lights, a solar system mobile hanging above the cot, with a star blanket draped over the nursing chair. Harry moved the camera to Y/N who was hanging some onesies in the nursery closet, smiling and waving at the camera.

Next, they were laying in bed. It was dark and, but a glow from a nightstand shone and Y/N’s belly was visible, round and very pregnant, a few freckles near her navel, and the faintest linea nigra could be seen running from her belly button down towards the bottom of her belly. Their voices were barely audible over the music still sung by Harry. A little ripple on her belly cast from left to right and then her belly distorted a little as their baby boy kicked and pressed against the center of her bump, making the couple laugh and Harry’s hand appeared, softly rubbing where his son’s foot would be.

It changed. They were in a hospital now, Y/N in a grey and white spotted hospital gown. The camera was propped on a table filming Y/N  who sat on the edge of her bed, moving her hips from side to side as she breathed heavily, moaning, while Harry kneeled on the floor in front of her, his hands on her hips and squeezing to relieve some pressure. They were talking to each other, concern, and empathy clear on Harry’s face.

In the next clip, Y/N was laying back in her hospital bed, sucking on gas and air. Harry was filming this time, and his Anne could be seen this time, sitting on Y/N’s other side holding her daughter-in-law’s free hand. Y/N put the gas and air down, gave a thumbs-up, and smiled, “We’re having a baby today!” as her mother-in-law smiled brightly.

The footage faded to black before it flashed to Y/N looking at someone just out of view as the disembodied voice said, “Whenever you feel the urge to push, let us know. You’ll be meeting your son soon.”

It faded to black again, Harry’s singing more evident in these moments, louder, as the footage flashed back into focus. The camera was, once again, being propped up on a table. At Y/N’s head on either side stood Anne who was still holding her daughter-in-law’s hand, while Harry stood, back to the camera, mostly blocking the view of his wife as one hand stroked her hair and the other held her hand. The doctors could be heard saying, “Deep breath” before Y/N took a deep breath in, bringing her legs to her chest with the help of a few nurses that could hardly be seen, bearing down and pushing as the nurses counted and Harry said, “Great job, love. Keep going. You’re so strong.”

The screen went black. A doctor’s voice was heard saying, “One more big push.” Y/N could be heard taking a deep breath, and a little exasperated yelp before gasping from both Harry and Anne followed by the beautiful, gurgling cry of their baby. Harry’s sweet singing voice in the background of the video got louder and finally, the video came back into view of a little name card on the bassinet that read:

Name: P, Styles.

DOB: March 18th

Weight: 6 lbs 12 oz

Height: 20 inches

Time: 8:39 PM

The camera panned down to the top of a blue baby cap with a white embroidered ‘P’ in the center, moving as their son wiggled in his bassinet, the hushed reassuring whispers of his parents heard just behind the camera as little lip-smacking and coos could be heard from the baby.

The screen went blank as the song started to end and white words appeared on the screen.

“Welcome to the world, Baby P. We love you to the ends of the earth.

Love,

Mummy and Daddy”

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

Taglist:

@odetostep​ , @thurhomish​

[ayuuria]

Yashahime Translation: Prince Animage May 2021 Issue (Part 2)

Please do not repost this translation without my consent! This includes screenshots of any type and amount. If you wish to share this translation, simply link to this post.

For more information regarding the use of my translations, click here.

Due to the amount of content in the magazine, I have decided to the split the translation into three parts:

Part 1: Elder Son’s Resolve! Interview with Director Satou Teruo

Part 2: We Won’t Give Up On the Future! Father-Daughter Round-Table Talk with Narita Ken, Matsumoto Sara, and Komatsu Mikako

Part 3: The Strength to Overcome Destiny. Interview with Director Satou Teruo

Intertwining Fates

The curtains on the Yashahimes’ story briefly closed with the shocking scene of “Setsuna’s death”. With Towa and the others at its center, the complexly intertwined fates of various people continue into the second chapter (season).

The fire that tore Towa and Setsuna apart, the Dream Butterfly that stole Setsuna’s slumber, the sleeping Rin, and the Rainbow Pearls that possess demonic power; all these things that became key to the story were connected to Kirinmaru’s elder sister, Zero.

Zero previously heard the Shikon Jewel’s prophecy: “An existence that is neither demon nor human and can cross through time will destroy Kirinmaru.” Thinking that it refers to Towa, Setsuna, Moroha, and Inuyasha, Zero tried to eliminate them in order to protect her younger brother. However, that was just an ostensible reason. Behind her actions lurked a feeling of jealousy towards the half-demons and quarter-demon that carried the Dog General’s blood. It seems her unrealized love for the Dog General was the motivation behind her twisted emotions and actions.

Zero’s behavior rouses Kirinmaru’s anger and she disappears from his sight. However, the story does not end with just this issue being settled. As part of the “Rite of Courage and Cowardice”, Towa and the others end up having to fight Kirinmaru and unbelievably, Setsuna loses her life during the battle.

There is a heap of other issues such as Rin who still continues to sleep even now and the Grim Comet that has appeared in the modern era. It is now an anxious wait for the broadcasting to see how future mysteries will be unraveled in the second chapter (season).

Character Bios

Zero Kirinmaru’s elder sister. She was in love with the Dog General. Being that she was the one who created the Rainbow Pearls, she went to go look for the scattered pearls after her breakdown with Kirinmaru.

Kirinmaru The beast king of the eastern lands. Irritated by his elder sister, Zero’s, misconduct towards Sesshōmaru, they part ways as brother and sister as a result. He battles the three (Towa, Setsuna, Moroha) and kills Setsuna.

Sesshōmaru The son of the beast king who once stood on the same level as Kirinmaru, the Dog General, and Towa and Setsuna’s father. It seems he is searching for a child named Akuru but the reason why is unknown.

Higurashi Towa She treasures her younger twin sister, Setsuna, above all else. As she grieves over Setsuna’s death, she receives a broken Tenseiga from her father, Sesshōmaru… …?

Setsuna A half-demon whose sleep and memories were stolen by the Dream Butterfly. She loses her life while battling Kirinmaru but just before drawing her last breath, she calls Towa “Towa-neechan”.

Moroha Towa and Setsuna’s cousin. Despite being enraged by Setsuna’s death, when she turned into Beniyasha, she was able to maintain her (sound) mind and not get overwhelmed by the rampage of her demonic blood.

The Offense and Defense Concerning Half-Demons

Zero has attempted to eliminate the half-demons that carry the Dog General’s blood by doing things such as spurring Kirinmaru to kill Inuyasha or burning the forest that Towa and Setsuna were hiding in. Sesshōmaru was always by her side. Though he does not say much, Sesshōmaru may have seen through Zero’s intentions early and acted one step ahead.

Rin and Zero’s Connection

Zero can connect to others via “fate” and control them as she pleases. Those whose fates are connected to Zero will die alongside her should she lose her life. It seems Zero herself connected her fate to Rin and used that to keep Sesshōmaru in check. The details on how Rin and Zero’s fates were intertwined is of interest.

That Which Sesshōmaru Searches For

Sesshōmaru is someone who never appeared on the story’s center stage for long. During that time, he was searching for a child named Akuru. It seems that the pinwheel Akuru holds is somehow connected to the giant “Windmill of Time”. After Akuru appeared before Sesshōmaru, the Windmill of Time that had not moved for so long moved again but what does that mean… …?

Setsuna’s Seal

Zero wants Kirinmaru to exterminate Towa and the others but Kirinmaru, preferring to fight fair and square, realizes the difference in strength between him and the girls and decides to hold off battling them until they have grown (in strength). It is there that Zero forcefully releases the seal placed on Setsuna’s demon blood so that Kirinmaru will fight Towa and the others seriously.

A Broken Tenseiga

The Tenseiga that Sesshōmaru carries is a sword of healing that was created from the fang of the Dog General and is known as “the sword that saves the lives of the weak”. Sesshōmaru resurrects the dead Zero with Tenseiga but that enrages Zero and she breaks the blade. Will the broken Tenseiga be able to revive Setsuna who has lost her life?

Famous Quote Pick Up!

The role of Sesshōmaru, Narita Ken “Anymore will sadden Rin”

“Personally, the monologue in episode 24 “Anymore will sadden Rin…” struck me. Even though Sesshōmaru doesn’t show kindness, periodically he will suddenly say something like this. On top of that, he doesn’t even put a lot of emotion into it and it just comes out nonchalantly. I think that‘s what’s good about him.” (Narita)

The role of Higurashi Towa, Matsumoto Sara “We’re not alone now.”

“(the line) At the end of episode 16 “We’re not alone now.” I felt was just like Towa. She says that to Moroha but of course Setsuna is among those she’s thinking of. Towa came to the feudal era for Setsuna’s sake she has always held the feeling of “It’s okay because Setsuna is here” at her core. The strength of her unwaveringness really shows when the three of them are backed into a corner.” (Matsumoto)

The role of Setsuna, Komatsu Mikako “You can always change the way you live”

“The phrase in episode 16 “You can always change the way you live” left an impression on me. Even though Setsuna is a half-demon, she’s quite farsighted (philosophically) for a 14-year-old. I think her environment up until now and the blood that flows within her makes her that way. Having passed episode 20 which depicted Setsuna’s past, I once again feel how powerful this phrase is.” (Komatsu)

We Won’t Give Up on the Future! Father-Daughter Cast Round Table Discussion

Role of Higurashi Towa: Matsumoto Sara Role of Setsuna: Komatsu Mikako Role of Sesshōmaru: Narita Ken

Demanding “A Sense of Smell” From Playing Sesshōmaru

— Since this is after the recording of episode 23 today (the day of the interview), thank you all for your hard work!

Matsumoto: Thank you! You see, today is actually the first time I recorded with Narita-san for “Hanyō no Yashahime”. It’s like “we finally meet” kind of feeling and I’m very happy!

Narita: Finally, it was our first father-daughter meeting! I look forward to doing this interview together.

Komatsu: Likewise, I look forward to working with you as well. Narita-san went straight into recording episode 24 (the final episode) right after recording episode 23. The last episode is next week for us, but we read the script and it was completely shocking… …!

— The final episode had an ending that really made you wonder about the future. Having traversed through the story up to this point, what is everyone’s state of mind right now?

Matsumoto: After episode 20, going into the final stage, the vigor of the story increased. For viewers, I think their theories up to now were all overturned at one point. We also started recording not knowing what was going to happen in the future, so we progressed through recording while talking about “What’s going to happen next?” every time. It was a continuation of surprises. Just when I thought we finally got to interact with our father in episode 23, this time, something like that happens to Setsuna… … I was shocked like “To think they would end it like this!” and I immediately started thinking about how the second chapter (season) would connect from here. My current thought is that as I look forward to the second chapter (season), I want to rewatch season 1 one more time before the broadcasting (for season 2) begins.

Komatsu: Back when I didn’t know what was going to happen, when I asked the staff “How is season 1 going to end and what’s going to happen in season 2?”, they told me “Most of the questions that the viewers have will be answered in season 1. Around the last episode of season 1, you might be able to record with everyone in the Higurashi family again.” That’s why in my (mind), I had my hopes up like “I wonder if in the final episode, the whole Kirinmaru situation and Rin’s sleep would all be resolved and Setsuna and the others go to the modern era again, and in season 2 the three Yashahimes would start a happy school life?”

Everyone: (laughs)

Komatsu: And then it went in a completely different direction! Just when I thought the story was connecting in a line, there’s suddenly more questions. There’s still many unanswered mysteries and in the second chapter (season), what will happen (in regards to the those mysteries) … while having that anticipation, as Setsuna, I want her to be revived as soon as possible. In the Inuyasha world, you get pushed down many times, no matter what, and those intense developments where you fight as you climb back up are a distinct characteristic. Hence, I look forward to those intense developments in the second chapter (season)!

Narita: I don’t like calculating future developments and then think “I’ll do this part like this” so I go into the recordings without knowing the upcoming story or the movement of the characters as much as possible. Besides, it feels more fun to go into it without knowing the story. As such, all I use is my sense of smell. In this work, it feels like I’m using my sense of smell 1,000 times more than usual. That’s just how much concentration is needed, and I feel that this work is very stimulating in more ways than one.

— It seems that Sesshōmaru himself moves knowing what Kirinmaru and Zero are after but Narita-san, you were acting without knowing the upcoming development I see.

Narita: That’s right. Sound director Nagura Yasushi-san asked me “Would you like me to give you something that explains how things will turn out?” but I purposely declined. If I found out, it felt as though unnecessary emotions would come out of my voice. When I act, I aim for the middle between “Lines written in the script as is” and “my own considerations” like “It probably goes like this right?”.

Komatsu: Even though I think Sesshōmaru probably knows everything, his lines have various components mixed into them, so I always get a sense of “I wonder?”.  That’s why as a fan, I love speculating that marginal aspect.

Matsumoto: I’m the same way. (His lines) always leave room for pondering.

Komatsu: He doesn’t speak much to begin with, but I think it’s just like father to not say everything within those few words. Watching Narita-san record in person today, I was moved by how Sesshōmaru’s nuances were expressed with such finesse.

Narita: As expected, you two are “Inuyasha” fans (laughs). But it really is difficult. He won’t say things with words after all. Although, he would just become a boring man if he said everything. I think he himself knows everything, but suppresses giving out the answer and just highlights it a little bit… that kind of moderation is important. I’m always conscious of this when I act but it’s tough after all. I only have a few lines so I have this feeling of “If I mess these words up, when is the next time (I speak)?”. That’s why I act with this feeling of “I’m going to put everything into these words” every time.

— Narita-san, how did you feel when you first heard about the “Hanyō no Yashahime” project?

Narita: I never thought they would revive “Inuyasha” in this form. If they were going to do it, I thought naturally Inuyasha would be the center of the story. The setting of Sesshōmaru’s children being the main characters never crossed my mind. I thought something like that would be impossible and I wondered about a lot of things like “Then who’s the mother?”.  Rin (being the mother) was unexpected.

— It was unexpected?

Narita: I didn’t think he would ever touch upon that. I wanted to shake Sesshōmaru’s shoulders like “This isn’t like you~!” (laughs).

Komatsu: Love sprouted!

Narita: How do I put it, love is something far off to Sesshōmaru… I even think he had kids because he probably had some kind of objective.

— In other words, not because he wanted to create a family?

Narita: That might be true for Inuyasha, but for Sesshōmaru, I think there was an experimental aspect to it like “What sort of chemical reaction would happen in my heart if I had kids”. After all, I don’t think it’s necessary for him to be a dad.

Komatsu: Sesshōmaru certainly does seem like he would have that kind of desire to “want to know”.

— Then how did you feel when you saw the girls?

Narita: “Ah, so this is what they’re like” is what I thought. I thought they were brave, healthy looking kids. When color was added to the characters, I felt there were aspects similar to Sesshōmaru. But you know, the shock that he had daughters really is big. It was like “Will the Sesshōmaru up until now fall apart?” “I don’t want him to start ogling”. It was a little complicated there. It's just that it’s true that in the story of “Inuyasha”, he gradually showed his affection for Rin. In that case, something close to that may also bud for his daughters and that too may become a new appeal for him.

Reenacting Sesshōmaru’s Solitude for the Final Recording

— It’s been 20 years since the time of “Inuyasha” but Narita-san, do you remember the time you met Sesshōmaru?

Narita: I did not get the role of Sesshōmaru through auditioning. It seems there were actual auditions, but they couldn’t come to a decision, so they had Takahashi Rumiko-sensei, the author of the original work, listen to the voice samples of various candidates. It was there that Rumiko-sensei picked me is how the story goes. Until then, I did not have many appearances in anime works, so I think there are many young people who recognize me for my role as Sesshōmaru. I also felt that things changed after I played Sesshōmaru. That’s why to me, his existence is very big.

— His looks are androgynous but his voice is deep, so in the beginning, there may have been people who felt an element of surprise from that.

Narita: When I first saw his character appearance, I remember thinking he was woman dressed in a furisode. That’s why during the first test, I used a higher pitched voice. Like the pretty boy voice so to speak.  Then, the sound director at the time, Tsuruoka Yōta-san told me “Please make it deeper”. I lowered my voice while thinking “What?” yet he still said “Deeper” … That’s why it was very hard in the beginning. It was to the point that I thought “I can’t keep going like this!”.  That’s why I raised my voice just a little bit at time so that it wasn’t noticeable. Otherwise, I felt that I couldn’t express (things). When I did that, it gradually became easier.

Matsumoto: So that’s how it was.

Narita: Although, there was a trigger behind that. At one point, I received a letter from someone who was a fan of the work and it seemed that the Sesshōmaru that person imagined was a certain voice actor who was very popular at the time. When I read that, I thought “Whaaat!” (laughs). But if that’s the case, I thought “It’s fine if I do this more freely” and my shoulders relaxed instantly, and I felt better.

—  As in acting in a way that only you can?

Narita: Yes, that’s why I’m grateful for that letter. It’s thanks to that that I was able to reach a turning point after all.

Komatsu: Meaning you broke through that “Sesshōmaru has to be like this” kind of (mentality). When I first heard Sesshōmaru’s voice in the animation, I was able to grasp that “This is what Sesshōmaru’s scariness was”. To begin with, his beauty and contrasting calmness pierced through me and I had this scary image of him from when I read the manga. However, the moment that became a voice, I really felt that it made it convincing. That’s why from the start in my mind, I couldn’t imagine anyone else for Sesshōmaru other than Narita-san. It’s the complete opposite of Inuyasha’s high tone and he’s calm. He felt like a true greater demon. His rank is much higher than Inuyasha’s and I could feel that sense of him being beyond anyone’s power.

Narita: Afterall, his father (the Dog General) was Ōtsuka Akio-san and his mother is Sakakibara Yoshiko-san. The parents were amazing, weren’t they?

Matsumoto: For sure, the whole family is strong… …!

Narita: But Sesshōmaru’s strength is that he doesn’t flinch even before such parents. Like he has his own world. I thought I really should (act) that part without wavering.

— How did it feel playing Sesshōmaru again for the first time in a while in “Hanyō no Yashahime”?

Narita: It’s been 20 years since “Inuyasha” and 10 years since “Inuyasha the Final Act” so that amount of time is pretty hefty. I thought I could do it instantly but when I tried, it felt off. I was bewildered like “I did this originally so why?”.  I started acting while doing my utmost to recall the feelings from back then, but it didn’t go well immediately and even I was surprised. The stronger the emotional attachment, the closer to myself I got and I thought “This is a human”. I kept comparing and adjusting many times like “Gotta change it back, gotta change it back”.

— So there’s a certain feeling when playing a demon.

Narita: That’s when I thought I probably focused a lot more back during “Inuyasha”. The onsite studio for “Inuyasha” had a peaceful atmosphere and I felt that I couldn’t let myself get caught up in the atmosphere. Stubbornly, I strongly made myself think “I am solitary”. Until I stood in front of the microphone, I would create Sesshōmaru inside myself and carry on as such until the end. That may have been what I was missing. That’s why at the recording of the final episode today, I purposely told the girls “I want you out”.

— In other words?

Narita: Just as I said earlier, I recorded episode 23 with the girls but I recorded the final episode alone. During that time, the girls waited for me (until the interview started) and they could’ve stayed in the booth but I purposely wanted to do it alone. It probably wouldn’t have changed much whether there was someone inside or not but how to put it, I wanted to get closer to the me back then, even just a little.

— I see.

Matsumoto: There’s certainly emphasis on recording with a small number of people right now, so it might be a difficult environment to face your role in. It’s pretty much you get to the studio, immediately voice the scenes you appear in, and then immediately go home when you’re done. Even as a newbie, I can feel it throwing off my rhythm somehow.

— So even bout scenes get (cut up) into small pieces then.

Matsumoto: I think if we had recorded with everyone together from the top, we could’ve created time for each of us to focus on our roles while feeling the flow of the story. I think there’s definitely something that can be built with everyone onsite. However, there’s difficulty from not having time to build that.

Komatsu: When you can feel the flow of the whole thing onsite, the feeling changes a little from when you’re reading the script at home. There are times where you realize things for the first time. But right now, we’re only doing our corresponding scenes, so things come up that we just can’t grasp. There is merit in just doing your turn in a short time, but it feels completely different from doing it with everyone.

— So there’s a challenge that comes from the Corona crisis.

Komatsu: The staff have shown consideration for us by making it possible for us to interact with each other as much as possible, so I’m grateful. While taking in consideration counter measures against spreading the virus, they adjusted it so that those voicing scenes with character conversations can record in the same booth together. Thanks to that, the cast of the three Yashahime were basically able to record together.

Narita: They were limiting it to around 3, 4 people at most. I recorded with Kirinmaru (Yoshimasa Hosoya-san) and Zero (Sakamoto Maaya-san) many times. Then there was Jaken-chan (Chō-san). Jaken was the same old Jaken and he made me think that I had to do my best without losing. I didn’t (record) together with my younger brother (Inuyasha played by Yamaguchi Kappei-san). Not that I want to meet him or anything.

Matsumoto: It’s Lord Sesshōmaru! (laughs)

Komatsu: Thank you! (laughs)

Narita: (laughs) Also, I was able to record together with Rin (Noto Mamiko-san) in episode 1. It felt as though Noto-san had matured a little bit. Her growth as a woman came through a little in her acting, which I thought was wonderful.

Matsumoto: Us daughters haven’t recorded with Noto-san but I just happened to be able to watch the recording for episode 15, so that’s when I greeted her. When I told her “I’m your daughter; thank you for giving birth to me” Noto-san was like “Oh my god~! My daughter~!”. But we had to maintain social distancing so we were both like “I can’t hug youuuu~!” (laughs).

Komatsu: I’m so jealous. I can picture that situation (laughs)

Concern about Setsuna’s life and Towa and Riku’s relationship

— In regard to Rin, it was revealed in episode 23 and 24 that her “fate” is connected to Zero. Matsumoto-san and Komatsu-san, as daughters, what do you think?

Komatsu: I thought “what a cruel fate”. While the feeling of wanting to hurry and meet mother face to face grows stronger, currently the only way to prolong Rin’s life is to keep her asleep, and it’s there that Setsuna’s Dream Butterfly is involved. All that is linked to Zero.

Matsumoto: It’s a negative chain where in order to get Setsuna’s sleep back, you have to kill Zero but doing so would also kill Rin. Towa wants Setsuna to be able to sleep but she still doesn’t know about that connection. She tried to sever that in the final episode, but the result was…

Komatsu:  Setsuna, who was never able to sleep, was finally able to sleep via death. It was such an ironic plot twist… …!

Matsumoto: Seriously, I thought “You’d write this kind of script!?”! (laughs) In the opening for cour 2, there’s a scene where Rin catches a falling Setsuna but I want them to hurry and do this scene in the main story.

Narita: Setsuna will be in season 2, right? We won’t be able to sleep in Setsuna’s place because we’re so curious.

Komatsu: I have faith that she’ll appear… … For that reason, I look forward to Towa’s efforts.

Matsumoto: I’ll do my best! At the end of the final episode, Sesshōmaru takes out a broken Tenseiga and says “Shall you try, Towa…”. That was the first time father said my name. Earlier, I watched Narita-san record from outside the booth and that was truly unforgettable. Seriously, I think it was a scene that entrusted a lot of things (to Towa) so I want to carve that voice into my heart and take on the recording for the final episode.

— In regard to Towa, her relationship with Riku is also of interest.

Matsumoto: You’re right. The scene where she told Riku “I like you!” really surprised me!

Komatsu: Love made up a large portion within the story of “Inuyasha” but “Hanyō no Yashahime” doesn’t have a love component to that level. It was a scene where you saw a small sign of that.

Matsumoto: For the line “I like you”, Nagura-san directed me before the recording “It is absolutely not fawning. Please don’t go in the LOVE (romantic) direction.” I think it was a refreshing emotion and that she liked Riku as a person type feeling. I was also told “It’s okay to show happiness when Towa sees Riku like ‘Oh it’s Riku’”. Even though she doesn’t think it’s (romantic) love, it seems she’s always had this perception of “Riku’s not a bad person” and I think what burst out from that was “I like you”. The fact that Riku hugged her was something that lingered with her into the next episode, and it was very memorable.

Narita: Riku… … he can’t be overlooked in many ways (laughs). This won’t do, I can’t let him live. I guess I should cut him down in a single stroke!

Matsumoto: Fatheeeeer!! (laughs)

Komatsu: Like “I won’t forgive anyone who make a move on my daughter” (laughs)

— Riku’s wellbeing will be something to pay attention to in season 2 (laughs). Lastly please give a message to our readers who are looking forward to the second chapter (season).

Komatsu: First off, there’s what’s going to happen to Setsuna. I’m sure Towa, who’s been entrusted with things, will revive her in the second chapter (season)… … Personally, I want to see father-daughter interaction and a reunion scene with mother. I also haven’t given up on my dream of an exciting modern era school life! Just once is fine but I want an episode where everyone goes to the modern era, wears a school uniform, and takes Kirin-sensei’s class. Having it end as “it was all just a dream” is fine too (laughs). I believe there are issues as well like Inuyasha and Kagome being trapped in the black pearl, so I hope everything is included in the second chapter (season)!

Narita: Indeed, when I think about what all is going to happen, I can’t help but be curious. Coming to episode 23, I recorded with the girls for the first time but how are things going to be between (Sesshōmaru) and the girls going forward? I’m also curious about the relationships with Inuyasha and Kirinmaru. I’m just like the viewers in that I want to enjoy each episode one at a time. I’m truly happy to have encountered this work. I would be happy if everyone continued supporting us.

Matsumoto: In terms of hopes, I want Setsuna to be revived immediately at the beginning of the second chapter (season)… … Even if that doesn’t happen, I want Setsuna to be revived as soon as possible. I think there will be new encounters getting there. At the end of season 1, there was a character named Akuru that appeared along with the keyword “Windmill of Time”. I’m excited to see how those will connect into the second chapter (season). Another thing I’m curious about is the promise that was made to Mei, “We’ll come back for sure”.

Komatsu: Oh yeah

Matsumoto: I do feel that I want to see a scene where Towa says “I’m home” to the Higurashi family… … but right now I don’t want to go back to the modern era! Need to revive Setsuna and clean up everything before that! Riku, Zero, and Kirinmaru might show some new movement in the second chapter (season). Please look forward to it without missing the details!

Q. Who did you think was Towa and Setsuna’s mother?

Narita: I thought it was Jaken (laughs).

Matsumoto: The Mama Jaken theory! (laughs)

Komatsu: Even among the fans, there was the Mama Jaken theory in the beginning (laughs).

Narita: Well, Jaken stays close to Sesshōmaru the most and knows him best. If love was going to sprout, it would’ve been from Jaken. Plus, he’s a full demon.

Matsumoto: Master Jaken really looks at Lord Sesshōmaru after all.

Komatsu: In actuality, Master Jaken was both the educator and caretaker, so his position was like a wet nurse.

Narita: He might’ve been breast feeding them periodically. Demons seem like they can do anything (laughs).

Komatsu: I think Master Jaken guessed what Lord Sesshōmaru was feeling and thought “What is my role…”.

Narita: He probably can’t be by Sesshōmaru’s side if he doesn’t have that kind of anticipation (laughs)

[jamaiskookie]

i would like more soundcloud rapper yoongi x idol y/n please it’s so cute

v-live alert! -myg

pairing: idol! y/n x soundcloud rapper! yoongi

wc; 2.9k

a/n: lots of you asked, and so you shall receive. ps, i wrote this really rushed but i kinda love it. lmk what you think, love you guys <3

[V LIVE] Surprise LIVE! 

the v-live notification. or, more accurately, the sound of war. alternatively, you dance around your studio on a livestream and yoongi has a mental breakdown. 

masterlist  PREV

“i miss you too!“ you say, replying to one of the first comments that pop up on the live.

you probably should’ve showered before going live... and you probably should’ve changed out of sweats. 

whatever.

it’s not like your fans haven’t seen this before.

half of your pre-debut pictures are just downright disgusting. 

the number of viewers on the top of your phone begins to climb up to the thousands, increasing every half a second. 

it always amazes you how many people show up to your lives. sometimes you wonder if your fans genuinely have nothing better to do. how do they always show up so fast?

the comments begin to flood with greetings and exclamations of ‘oh my god i’m so early!11!1’ and the multicoloured heart pop up on your screen, building up an impressive stream of likes. 

“where am i?“ you read through the comments and look around, as if you forgot where you were. “in the studio.“ you grin when the comments flood with questions asking if dreamcloud is getting new music.

you can’t answer, of course, but it’s fun to see. you squint at your phone, which is propped on an elaborate setup that you spent the past twenty minutes preparing. 

(three books on one eyeshadow palette and a selfie stick gingerly placed on a small stool)

((you pray to every deity out there that it won’t fall))

“i was just bored,“ you shrug, speaking to the screen. “so i decided to come on here and talk to you guys. how have you been?“ you ask. 

hundreds of comments answer. 

“i’m alright“

“i’m good!“

most of them contain some form of sappy declaration like ‘my day is much better now that you’re here!’ it makes you smile. how cute. 

the v-live notification. 

or, more accurately, the sound of war. 

that cursed, terrible ding! haunts yoongi’s darkest and most terrifying nightmares. the sheer amount of panic that rushes through his veins when he hears that godforsaken noise, god. 

the number of lives he’s missed- yoongi can’t even bear to think about it. 

so maybe it was a blessing in disguise that yoongi put his phone on do not disturb so he didn’t have to hear that disgusting sound. instead, he found out the news via a gorilla’s screech.

“Y/N’S LIVE RIGHT NOW STARTED FOURTY SECONDS AGO HURRY UP YOONGI GET YOUR ASS UP AND STOP STUDYI-“ jimin yells from his room down the hall. 

yoongi almost falls out of his chair scrambling to get to his phone. it’s not like he was really studying anyways- more like using his pencils to tap out a cool-sounding beat on his desk out of boredom. 

watching your live > passing his music theory class.

priorities. 

with shaky hands, he grabs at his phone, slumping onto the floor and he sees the familiar blue icon with the notification popped up on the screen. 

[V LIVE] Surprise LIVE! Y/N: let’s chat <3

an unnatural squeak that slightly resembles the sound a mouse slips out of yoongi’s mouth.

even when he was a baby starrie and was glued to his phone at all times, he’s never been this early to a live. he unlocks his phone, cursing his momentary clumsiness. he clicks into the live, smiling when your beaming face blasts up on his screen. 

you haven’t gone live in so long- it’s nice to see your face again. 

“- how have you been?“ 

“good.“ yoongi types out in the comment box, mumbling the words as he’s typing. “way better now that you’re live.“ sometimes yoongi cringes at himself when he types these things. i mean, who could possibly guess that min yoongi, resident scary-emo-couldslapyouintheface bad boy socially un-responsible simped over a k-pop idol?

he can already see his reputation go down the drain. 

he also wonders what it says about himself that he’s a 20-something college student who’s life practically revolves around you, an idol who’s just about a year younger than him.

but dreamcloud is a part of his identity now. he identifies as a starrie no matter what. you know how the old saying goes-

once you stan, you can’t unstan. or something like that, he’s honestly not sure. 

you tuck your head onto your hand, diligently trying to keep up with all the comment. with a gasp, you nod at something. “oh, you’re right, user yoonalova98!” - that’s another thing special about you. whenever you read out comments, you also read out the username of whoever wrote it. 

you explained in one interview- that it’s cooler to give credit and talk to your fans as if you’re just chatting as friend. saying the username feels like you’re saying their names. 

what kind of lucky fan would get their comment read aloud by Y/N?

ugh. 

yoongi blinks when he remembers that technically, he’s sort of part of this group of elite, recognised fans. 

his twitter stan account got almost five thousand more followers after Y/N replied to his selca. the post itself has tons and tons of likes and retweets. 

insane, that Y/N- Y/N herself- knows of his existence. Y/N- the love of his life, has seen his FACE. she commented three HEART emojis below a selfie that he took. 

if he thinks about it too much, he’ll start feeling faint again.  

“our anniversary is coming up soon! i can’t believe it’s been three years already. time does pass by when you’re having fun.“ you say. yoongi thinks that it’s rather ironic that you would forget your anniversary, when yoongi’s had a calendar countdown to January 14th since the beginning of september. 

“ahh,“ you say, leaning in closer to the screen. “from user lialiarach, ‘did you watch jisoo unnie’s acting debut’ - i did! we all watched it and cheered her on during the premiere!“ 

jisoo’s new drama is good. it’s a fantasy-horror blend, and he, jimin, namjoon and jin finished all 16 episodes in two days when streaming hit Netflix. 

your head tilts and you smile. “song recommendations?” you wonder aloud, and yoongi scrambles to get a pen and notepad out. you don’t do ‘y/n’s listening parties’ as much anymore, but your taste in music is impeccable and he collects all the songs in a playlist. 

it’s called ‘wedding tunes’ (jimin named it, not him, yoongi swears) 

everytime he tries to change it back, it somehow switches back to wedding tunes the next day. 

it’s disturbing how good jimin is at this kind of stuff. hopefully yoongi won’t have to bail him out of jail one day. 

“okay!“ you say, pulling your laptop open. you hum as you scroll through some page that yoongi can’t see- and he anxiously waits for the first song to be played with twitchy hands and a strong grip on his pen. 

the first bar plays out and yoongi’s already in love.

“this is,“ you say over the music, double checking just to make sure. “don’t need your love by NCT...“ you squint. god knows there are too many NCT members. “dream! NCT dream featuring HRVY.“ 

“NCT dream...“ yoongi mumbles to himself, writing the song down on the notepad. 

“you know,“ you say over the music, spinning in your chair and nodding to the beat. “i’ve only met the NCT guys a couple times at music shows and such but they’re all so nice. i can’t remember all their names, but i’m decently familiar with their faces. how do they even have 23 members? how does it all work??“ 

you dance around the studio, singing along nonsensical lyrics that don’t make sense but sort of fit the rhythm of the song (??) 

“don’t need your loo-ooove-!!! dum dum duhhhh duhros noya!!!” yoongi stifles a laugh. there’s a reason why you constantly forget lyrics on stage. 

which is quite ironic, actually, because half the time you’re forgetting the lyrics to a song you wrote yourself. 

afterwards, you play all the hidden gems- and yoongi’s proud to say he’s familiar with quite a few of them. 

airplane by j-hope (a youtube star turned successful rapper-vocalist-dancer)

sweet night by v (the internet’s resident eye-candy)

and then you continue to scroll through your laptop, biting your lip and murmuring quietly to yourself. you glance once back at your phone screen. 

okay, listen.

yoongi knows that he’s delusional, okay?

but everytime you look straight in the screen it’s almost like you’re looking directly at the camera it’s almost like you’re staring into his soul. which makes zero sense, but it still makes his heart skip a beat.

let him dream, please

“what am i scrolling through?“ you say, reciting a question from the chat. “soundcloud, user chachachae.“ 

soundcloud? 

oh.

that’s pretty cool.

he didn’t know you had a soundcloud account!

you usually post all your covers and random shorts to instagram or another one of your personal blogs. 

for a moment, yoongi indulges himself by wondering if you’d ever listened to his music. his soundcloud account is linked in his twitter bio, after all... 

but he shakes those thoughts away as fast as they came. he doesn’t need to entertain himself with such silly thoughts. 

“ooh, this one’s good!“ you say, clicking onto something. 

still with you by JAYKAY (pffftt haihdkahjd) starts playing and you lean back, humming along. yoongi knows this one too!! now he’s 3 for 3!! he and you do share a similar taste in music, so maybe it does make sense. 

even though you’re actually main vocalist and lead dancer, you do listen to a lot of rap music. but the music you make is nothing like the old school hip hop tracks that yoongi is partial to. 

the music you make- how can he explain it? 

sweet like honey with a little bit of tang. 

like barbecue honey!!!!

ok that was a bad analogy. 

all of his favourite dreamcloud tracks are written by you- cloud nine, up in the sky, are u still here, quicksand- the list goes on and on and on. 

it’s like listening to your voice solves anything he goes against. bad day? dreamcloud. something to celebrate? blast your debut song. in need of a party song? easy fix. he gets aux cord rights? (granted, this doesn’t happen very often, since seokjin insists that his music taste is superior to his friends.) but anyways, y/n can fix it. 

listening to your voice feels comforting. it invokes something in him that he honestly cannot explain with words. you’re his inspiration. not just in music- but in life. he admires how you’re able to smile through anything, how you take responsibility for your own actions. 

he admires your kind heart, which offers generosity and forgiveness to even the most underserving people. 

he admires your passion, for music, for your members, for the smallest things. he admires how you’ll love everyone and anyone. 

even though he’s never really met you, he feels like he knows you. he wishes he could, anyways. he wants to thank the person who’s gotten him through such bad days. 

yoongi curses himself again for being so delusional. 

he keeps telling himself that he can’t get so attached. then he’ll end up like one of those creepy fans who are convinced their idols actually like them. 

blech.

“okay, next song!“ you exclaim cheerfully. “i really like this one, guys. he’s this soundcloud star. he makes really cool music.“ yoongi readies his pen. if this person really is a soundcloud star, then there’s a high chance yoongi knows of him. a smaller chance that he actually knows the guy personally; either online or from real life. 

you press the space bar almost obnoxiously, like you’re about to reveal something grand. you look into the camera, and you lock eyes with yoongi- through that cursed, horrible screen. 

the first note plays and yoongi thinks that it sounds... oddly familiar, actually. for a moment, he sighs in disappointment. this one doesn’t sound as great as the previous few songs. almost like it’s incomplete, imperfect. something about it bugs him at the very bottom of his gut. 

jimin figures it out before he does. 

“AHHHHHHHHH YOONGI!!! OH MY GOD-!!!! YOONGI ARE YOU SEEING THIS? YOONGI!! HYUNG!“ yoongi grumbles, wondering what the hell jimin is screeching about now. 

“oh, for fuck’s sake,“ he mumbles. the difference between him and jimin is the way they express their emotions. while yoongi bottles it all up, choosing to deal with things alone and slump around, jimin has no other choice but to scream things out. it’s a wonder they’re such good friends, really. “what is it now?“ yoongi mutters to himself. 

“yeah yeah, a gentle breeze- “ and then it hits him. all at once. 

“holy fucking shit.“ he whispers to himself, slumping down on the floor. he can barely hear what you say next.

“this song is called people by agust d. he goes by the name suga on social media-!“ yoongi falls down, gasping for air. “i’m a fan,“ you remark casually. “mr. suga producer-nim!! i’m your fan! please continue to make good music!“ you chuckle. “what am i doing right now? he probably isn’t even watching.“ you stare innocently at the phone camera, as if you don’t even know that you’re changing someone’s life right now. 

out of his peripheral vision, he can see jimin rushing into the room, crouching next to him and placing a hand on his back, murmuring something yoongi can’t hear through the sound of his sobs. 

huh. when did he even start crying?

“he makes rap and really cool hip hop music. you guys should give him a listen. his lyrics are really meaningful, too.“ you nod along, reciting the lyrics word for word- even though you really can’t rap. 

“what kind of person am I? am I a good person? or a bad person? many of ways to judge just a person. everyone will live on, everyone will love, everyone will fade away“ you headbang along to the beat. 

yoongi slides down the wall inch by inch. he wonders if he’ll faint or vomit first.

other people seem to make fun of people like him- people who find solace in idols, in music. that’s partially why he doesn’t like disclosing the fact that he’s a diehard fan of an idol girl group. 

but in hindsight, that’s so stupid. who gives two fucks about his interests? hell, yoongi’s been depressed half his life. and if a group of girls who sing songs and perform make him feel better, what’s so wrong with that?

 jimin’s voice is a little clearer now, and so is yours. you’re singing along to the lyrics- the lyrics that he wrote. the lyrics that he spent hours agonising over, wondering whether his shortcomings and anxiety in his life were worth posting on the internet for his measly following to see. 

wondering if the music he made had any impact at all, if one day he might see his dream come true, to see his music being played in public. wondering if anyone might hear his songs and think that it helped them get over a bad day. just like you have for him. 

yoongi’s sobs wrack through his body, tears flowing freely on his face. he’s crying hard. ugly crying, like a baby throwing a temper tantrum. his cries echo through the room. if he could see himself right now...

well, he doesn’t want to think about it. he’s sure it’s not a pretty view. 

jimin looks over him, smiling proudly. his eyes are glassy, and he tucks yoongi’s head in his chest, putting his arms around him and embracing him. 

yoongi’s shoulders shake. if it was any other day, he would usher jimin out the room. he hates it when people see him being vulnerable. even his own family hasn’t seen him cry that much. 

but right now, he can’t bring himself to do anything but cry. other people may ask why this is such a big deal, why someone emotionally constipated like min yoongi would cry like this for such a small matter. 

this, he doesn’t know how to explain either. 

all he can think about is how much it means to him. that someone he admires so much is now, in turn, saying his music- no, his life- is good. nothing much else. but just knowing that you’ve listened to his work, that you know of his alter ego’s name...

his crying sounds grow larger. 

jimin pets at his hair. “shh,” he murmurs. “it’s okay.” jimin’s voice also grows a little shaky. he tears up, but continues to comfort the crying boy in his arms. “you did it, hyung. it’s okay. you made it. you did it. why are you crying? this is good news! this is so great! i’m proud of you, we’re all so proud of you.” 

yoongi tries to speak; it doesn’t go very well. but when he tries again, he manages to choke something out. 

“i did it.“ he says, before burying his face back into jimin’s hug. the two boys sit on the ground, crying together. an hour passes, then two. 

slowly, yoongi drifts off to bed on the ground, the melody of his own song blended with sound of your voice echoing in his head. 

my ordinary became your special, my special became your ordinary. so what? what if you just brush by? what if you get hurt? sometimes you might get hurt again, sometimes you might shed tears. so what? so what if you live like that? 

~ people by agust d

tags; @jksbbyfacebunny @extremeobsessions101​​ @dwcljh​ @stonyiscanon​ @bishuthot​ @s0seo​ @cecedrake2217​ 

[cutie1365]

Winchester Part 1/4

Pairing: Sherlock x Winchester!Reader

Word Count: 2.7k

Warnings: Violence, language, blood

Request from imboredsueme, and I think their account is deactivated now :( I swear this request is from like over 3 years ago and I’m just the worst. I finally got some good inspiration for this story and I really like it so far. Not sure how many more parts there will be of this, it’s gonna be a mini series so we’ll see as I write the next few parts.

Any and all feedback is welcome and greatly appreciated :)

Masterlist in bio. Link to join taglist is at the bottom of my masterlist.

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Sherlock liked you from the moment he met you, and that didn’t happen often... maybe ever.

“Any witnesses?” Sherlock turned to Lestrade and asked as they approached the crime scene.

“Yeah one, one of my guys is talking to her now.” He lifted his finger in the direction of the woman down the road with her hands in her coat pockets. She almost looked... bored? She had just witnessed a murder, shouldn’t she look more... distraught? Emotional? He clearly didn’t know who he was dealing with.

Sherlock was accustomed to useless witnesses, none of them really noticed what’s important.

American. He noted her accent as they got closer, the officer talking to her nodded and left, flipping his notebook shut.

“We’ve just got a few more questions for you Ms. Winchester.” The Detective Inspector said, but Sherlock was too focused on her. No signs of shock, no crying, no emotions, much unlike any other female witnesses to gruesome murders he’d seen. Interesting.

“What did you see?” Sherlock asked, squinting his eyes to examine her.

“This guy,” you pointed to one of the white cloth covered bodies as you spoke, “shot this guy in the face, then blew his brains out. Seems pretty open and shut to me.” You shrugged.

“So it would seem...” Sherlock turned to Lestrade with an annoyed look as if to say why the hell was I brought in then?

“That is, unless you take into account the sniper from two buildings over.” You pointed over your shoulder.

“What?” Both Sherlock and Lestrade turned back to you, surprise evident in their voice.

“Sure, this guy was pointing a gun at him, but it was as if the shot came from behind him, it scared him. When the other guy dropped, he panicked and stuck the gun in his mouth... seems odd.” You spoke calmly.

“Why do you believe it’s a sniper?” Sherlock asked suspiciously.

“I’ll let you analyze the entrance wound and ballistics report, but I guarantee that that bullet didn’t come from this man’s gun.” You said, confidently.

Sherlock strutted over to the body, not wanting to believe you on your word alone. He pulled the sheet back and sure enough the entrance wound was higher on the forehead near the hairline, with the exit wound down near the base of his head where it meets his neck. A man standing a few feet in front of him wouldn’t be able to get that kind of angle. He silently moved towards the other body, and slipping a glove on his hand, picked up the gun lying on the ground. He opened the revolver, and to his surprise, only one bullet was missing. It would have taken two, one to shoot the man and one for himself. Lestrade watched him intently, waiting for him to speak. He looked up at you, he couldn’t read you... you were different, useful.

“She’s right.” Sherlock muttered, and Lestrade’s eyes went wide.

He moved to stand in front of you, he looked taller than on TV where you’d seen him in the news.

“Winchester, was it?” He asked.

“Y/N.” You smirked, placing your hand in front of you for him to shake, which he did.

“Come with me.” He said, beginning to walk down the street, and you followed him.

You followed him that day, and you’d do it again, everyday. You’d follow him into hell itself and do it with a smile.

He took you along on one case, and that was all it took. He liked having you around, you were insightful and helpful, not to mention unphased in the face of death. One case enough for him to realize you were going to be trouble. Good trouble or bad trouble, of that he wasn’t sure yet, but the thought of you always brought a smirk to his lips.

The more time Sherlock spent around you, the more it became clear: you had secrets. He liked that, he couldn’t read everything about you. He was quite sure he’d never met a woman like you before, and likely never would again. Someone who challenged him intellectually, made him laugh (a rare sight, admittedly), and made him feel alive.

They say your past has a way of coming back to bite you in the ass... and your past had fangs. Literally.

Sometimes all it takes is one second, one tiny moment to bring you back to where you were, to what you’d thought you left behind. You can’t go home, but maybe home can come to you.

You didn’t realize it until it was too late... but everything you’d come to hold dear was going to be tested and threatened like never before.

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

It seemed like a simple case, a simple stabbing, it should have been cut and dry but something was bugging both of you about it. Something was off.

The murder weapon wasn’t recovered, and it wasn’t just a simple knife. Truthfully neither of you knew what the man was stabbed with, and it was going to drive you crazy.

You and Sherlock sat in his bedroom, well... based on the amount of time you spent in it, you could almost call it ‘your’ bedroom. Sherlock paced in front of you as you sat with your back against the headboard, the pictures of the crime scene spread on the bed before you.

“Arrow?” Sherlock suggested.

“Mm, too thin.” You glanced at the picture, shaking your head.

“Harpoon?” You tilted your head, eyes dancing across the pictures.

“Cut’s too clean for that.” He shook his head.

You’d been at this for hours now, naming every pointy, knife-like object you could think of to find the murder weapon. The wound was so odd. It was almost squared on the front entrance wound, but thin and a quarter of the diameter on the back where it had run him through.

“We need a fresh perspective on this.” You said, running your fingers through your hair, quickly pulling it up into a messy bun as you moved to get off the bed, “You go check out his girlfriend’s place again, and I’ll go check the bookshop he worked at, there’s gotta be something we’re missing.”

Sherlock tossed you your coat as he slipped his own on and you both made your way out of the flat, going in opposite directions.

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

The bookstore was only a couple blocks away from Baker Street, so you were there in no time. You decided to look around the shop for a few minutes before approaching the manager. You flitted through the different sections of the store, the same shelves the recently departed victim would pass each day.

You stopped as your eyes caught something in the Science Fiction section - Supernatural by Carver Edlund. You picked it up with a smirk, of course they’d made it international, you shook your head.

“Can I help you find something?” The manager comes around the corner and asks you with a smile.

“Oh, no,” You smiled, placing the book back on the shelf, “I’m actually here to ask you a few questions about Ben Whitman.”

Her face turned into a sort of sad smile.

“Of course, how can I help?” She said somberly.

As you interviewed the manager your eye caught something outside the window. Her back is to the front door, as the manager goes on about Ben’s punctuality you see two large men move like they were going to come into the store. They caught you talking to the manager and suddenly diverted course around the side of the building.

“Has anyone ever come in looking for Ben, or asked about him?” You pulled your attention back to the manager.

“Not before you lot.” She smiled.

You thanked the manager for her time and helpful information, although she didn’t give you anything you didn’t already know. As you left the store, you turned down the same side alley you’d seen the men disappear in. You heard voices coming from all the way back behind the bookshop.

You peaked your head around the corner, seeing the two men standing, talking to each other. You knew something felt wrong about them, but weren’t sure what it was until you saw their eyes turn black.

Your breath caught in your throat, that was the last thing you expected to see today. You thought you had successfully stayed out of sight until your foot shifted on the gravel as you tried to take a step back.

Immediately, their eyes went back to normal as they whipped their heads in your direction.

“What are you looking at?” The shorter one asked aggressively, they both stepped toward you. You stepped away from the wall, there was no point hiding now, they knew you were there.

Suddenly, everything clicked, and you were overcome with a wave of confidence.

“I don’t think Crowley would be pleased to hear about a couple of demons going rogue. You killed the bookstore clerk with a stolen angel blade didn’t you.” You spoke bravely, although in hindsight, it might have been stupidity and not bravery that guided your actions.

“Who the hell are you?” The taller one asked, with venom in his voice.

“Oh Lucifer, you’re that little Winchester bitch aren’t you,” His mouth morphed into a sadistic smile as they realized, “You’re far from home.”

“No big brothers here to fight your battles.” The other pulled out an angel blade as they began to stalk towards you.

“Fuck.” You muttered, putting your fists up as they attacked you.

You fought back, but took a few hits. You were able to disarm the one with the blade. You were pretty sure you broke his arm when he came towards you. Unfortunately you hadn’t realized the blade had sliced your side as you took a hit to the face from the other demon. Running on pure adrenaline, your fist rammed into his face, blood coming from his nose. The demon with the broken arm muttered something you couldn’t hear to his partner, before they both left their vessels. Your ears were still ringing as you felt the blood begin to drip from your brow bone.

You knew you couldn’t make it all the way back to your flat like this to get cleaned up. You held your side to slow the bleeding. Baker Street was just around the corner. You could use the back streets to get to Sherlock’s flat and not scare too many bystanders on the street.

You knew Sherlock wouldn’t be in, he’d gone to investigate the girlfriends house with John and that was on the other side of London.

The adrenaline began to wear off as you hobbled up the stairs of 221B, thanking god Mrs. Hudson hadn’t greeted you at the door. You hurried into the bathroom and began pulling out the alcohol and suture kit from the cabinet.

You cleaned the wound on your brow quickly before slapping a butterfly bandage over it for the time being. As you looked at yourself in the mirror you saw the dried blood on your face; and the bruises were already littering your arms and abdomen when you slipped off your shirt.

You sat on the edge of the tub as you began to clean the laceration on your side. You started to stitch it up, holding some extra gauze in your mouth. You were so focused on what you were doing you didn’t hear the door opening.

“What the hell Y/N.” Sherlock’s voice made you jump and drop the gauze from your mouth.

“Um, o this. This is nothing.” You tried to smile, but he wasn’t having it.

“Y/N! This is not nothing. John!” He called out through the door into the flat.

John came around the corner and his eyes went wide as they landed on you. He quickly took the suture kit from you and helped to stitch up the remaining open laceration. You hissed slightly as he poured alcohol over it once more before covering the wound with sterile bandages.

The three of you sat in silence, Sherlock no doubt running a million scenarios in his mind, as you concentrated on not passing out. When John finished, you stood in front of the mirror, wiping the rest of the dried blood off of your face before slipping your shirt back on and turning towards the two men who hadn’t said a word.

“So I guess I have a little explaining to do.” You admitted.

“You think?” Sherlock retorted in a protective tone.

You sighed as you made your way into the living room, the two men in tow.

“You might want to sit down.” You motioned towards the couch, you know what you had to do. You’d kept your past a secret for as long as you could, but now it was time to come clean. Now it meant life or death.

Sherlock and John hesitantly sat before you on the couch as you stood in front of the coffee table.

“I solved the case.” You said after a moment, unsure of where to begin.

“You solved the case?” Sherlock asked slowly, in disbelief.

“I know who killed Ben and with what, but I don’t know why.” You admitted.

“Well who did it?” Sherlock asked, impatiently, still not believing you.

“Um so, the problem is we’re not going to be able to find them.” You danced around the real answer, knowing what their reaction would be.

“Why not?” John asked, with furrowed brows.

“Because they’re never going to look the same, one day to the next.” You tried to explain without sounding crazy, but you knew that wasn’t really an option anymore.

“Care to elaborate?” Sherlock raised a brow.

“They’ll be in different bodies.” You spoke quickly, knowing how it sounded.

“John did you check her for a head injury?” Sherlock turned to John and asked, completely ignoring what you were saying.

“Yeah you’re probably concussed.” John nodded.

“I’m not concussed,” You yelled, but thinking back to the beating you took today it was likely, “Ok, maybe I am but that doesn’t mean I’m not telling the truth.”

“They’ll be in different bodies? That doesn’t make any sense Y/N.” Sherlock shook his head, not entertaining these fantasies.

“I know, I’m trying to word this in a way that doesn’t freak you out. The murder was done with a special kind of blade, it’s about this long with a wide almost square blade that comes to a point.” You moved your hands as you tried to describe the angel blade.

“That would match the autopsy report.” John nodded to Sherlock, as if to say maybe she’s not all that crazy.

“Ok, there’s no delicate way to put this,” you clapped your hands together, knowing there was no point delaying the inevitable anymore, “They were demons.”

Sherlock immediately laughed and stood up.

“Why don’t you go lay down Y/N, you’re obviously not feeling well.” Sherlock moved towards you with a patronizing tone.

“I’m not done. Sit down,” You ordered, seriously, “There were two demons, I saw them and they recognized me, so they’ll be back.”

“Why would these “demons” recognize you?” Sherlock asked with air quotes, clearly not taking you seriously.

“Because it’s like my family business. My brothers and I hunted things like this, but I got out of that life.” You shook your head, desperately trying to make them understand.

“And when you say ‘things’?” John asked slowly.

“Ghosts, demons, wendigos, shape shifters, vampires, werewolves.” You listed off quickly, shrugging.

“We might need to order an MRI.” Sherlock turned to John and spoke as if you weren’t there.

“Sherlock would you shut up for five minutes? I know you don’t believe me. And I know you won’t until you see it for yourself but I’m being serious here. Ok? Lives are at risk. There’s two rogue demons running around London and this can’t be the first murder they’ve committed. And now that they know I’m here, there’ll be more.” You spoke so seriously that Sherlock stayed quiet. He didn’t believe you, but he believed that you believed what you were saying was true. Did he still want you to be psychologically checked out? Yes. But for the time being he kept his mouth shut.

“So what do we do?” John asked.

“We call in the big guns.”

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

Please let me know what you think! And since I’m still writing the next few parts let me know if there’s anything in particular you’d like to see happen :)

Taglist in reblog.

[duchessofostergotlands]

I know this is more of a problem with Instagram but I find it annoying when people put ‘link in bio’ in the caption of a post without mentioning/ being kind of vague about where the link brings you, so when they inevitably replace/ remove the link you’re not sure what link they’re referring to.

Like Kensington royal today, they had the link to Kate‘s interview with Harriet Nayiga up for approx. 7 hours and now they’ve changed it to their yt account.

I’m not 100% sure I understand. To me the post with Harriet said to view the article click the link in our bio so at the time of posting that was what the link lead to. That doesn’t seem vague? And usually an Instagram account would say in the bio bit “click below to see x” which I think they normally do. So that all seems quite straightforward to me. Not sure if I’m getting what you mean!! But I do entirely agree about the interview not being up there long enough. I managed to read it before they changed it and it was a good piece, really interesting to learn about Harriet’s work and get to hear from a voice we don’t normally hear. Kate has also not done a huge amount for Nursing Now really - and it’s finished now I think - so it was a good thing to highlight. It seems like they wanted to launch the Youtube so it could host these video calls but I'm not sure why they couldn't have launched the Youtube the day before as the engagement that day didn't have anything in the bio. Or at the very least they could have used a LinkTree, where you can basically set up a list of all the links you have for people and then share the link to that list rather than going direct to the external link. I don’t think LinkTree is perfect - I’m not in that world so I don’t know but I think I’ve read it’s not the best - but something like that might have been nice because as you say now it’s just gone from their profile. That's an Instagram thing in general which bothers me

[rachelthompsonauthor]

What is social proof? It’s a marketing concept that we are all inadvertently, unknowingly contributing to every time we click on, retweet, like, reply or comment, and share any kind of social media, article, or blog post on the net. Technically, social proof, as defined by Sprout Social is:

The concept that people will follow the actions of the masses. The idea is that since so many other people behave in a certain way, it must be the correct behavior.

Social Proof and Me

As an author, social media is a hugely important part of my author platform, as it is for any writer or blogger. This is how we connect with readers now, even before the pandemic. Virtual, online events are now the norm. Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube Live video discussions are the new book signings. Twitter chats are weekly on any number of topics; I have two of my own, in fact, #SexAbuseChat every Tuesday at 6 pm pst/9 pm est and #BookMarketingChat every Wednesday at 6 pm pst/9 pm est.

All important for visibility, branding, and most importantly, connection.

However…there’s a limit. I reached my limit over the course of this past year. It didn’t come all at once. It came, little by little, reaching a peak this past month or so.

Why? How? Me, the so-called social media expert?

Access. Like many people, I have issues with the incredible level of access Facebook gives people once we friend them without our consent. PMs (private messages) are automatic, now with the ability for people to call, voice, and video message us, with no option to shut these options to OFF unless we unfriend the person (we can, however, mute a specific conversation). Technically, we do give them consent in the legal mumbo jumbo we all agreed to when we joined back in the 2010s.

I am not okay with this. And Facebook doesn’t care. Nobody cares. You’re probably thinking, “Geez, Karen. Shut up, already. Stop your whining, white lady.” I get it. I do. First-world problems.

I counter with: I hear you. It’s also part of my business. A huge part. Here’s why:

As someone who manages over 70+ various social media accounts as part of my BadRedhead Media business, plus my own accounts as well, Facebook requires I have a personal account in order to manage all those other Pages. I do understand why, particularly with all the ridiculousness of the past four years with the abundance of fake accounts, fake news, and such.

As a survivor of sexual abuse and stalking, this is ultra-concerning to me. So, what happened this past month or so? Suffice it to say, one person repeatedly tried calling me. I never pick up Facebook calls, especially if I don’t know you. Another left me a few voice messages saying they were offended by something.

Yet another left me another message in ALL SHOUTY CAPS that she didn’t find what I posted inspirational enough and she expected better from someone who is “supposedly on the side of authors.”

Oh, and there is the one lady who started replying on ALL my posts to the kind people who did comment that she didn’t think I replied often enough or to her satisfaction.

Well. I’ve been criticized before. You should read some of my 1-star reviews. There’s plenty!

But, for whatever reason, this struck a chord. I got up in my feels. I cried. I talked with one of them and we worked it out because we like and respect each other’s work in the mental health space. The others I blocked. It’s darn frustrating to donate hours of my time each week to helping writers solely because I want to, only to be told it’s not enough. Like, seriously? Fuck off.

My blood raged. My heart sank. Understandable, right?

But what really made me angry is that I put myself in that position by being available. I accepted that ‘it is what it is.’ This is what the social media platforms have given us, so that’s what I have to work within.

I’m too available. It’s too easy to leave me shitty messages. This is why people hire people like me – to handle this crap for them! So they don’t have to read these ridiculous criticisms from judgy people who apparently have nothing better to do or are having a bad day.

And I get bad days. It’s a damn pandemic. We’re all struggling. Where’s the damn compassion for one another?

I have a dislike/hate relationship with Facebook anyway, since about ten or so years ago when I discovered that a past love had died by suicide by going to his personal profile and seeing, “RIP dude,” messages there. We had spoken early that day. It still haunts me.

So…what to do? I’m claiming my time. I’m not posting to my personal Facebook profile right now. I’m ignoring it. I am checking my Pages and of course, my client Pages. When I feel like I can face it again, I will cull my ‘friends’ down from *checks real quick* 4385 people to maybe, I don’t know, the few hundred in my groups, many of whom I do know and treasure.

Social Proof and You

If you’re a writer, social proof matters. This is the world we live in. Publishing is not only writing.

You need to be ‘findable,’ not only on Google, but also on each individual social platform, so your readers can learn more about you and hopefully, buy your books. If you go the traditional route, publishers and agents want to know how many followers you have (easily upped by buying fake followers or likes from Fiverr or wherever). I suggest not doing that, because:

1) fake followers don’t buy books 

2) it’s usually pretty obvious when you have fake followers because they’re all foreign names, have questionable bios, and no tweets

3) do you really want to start your publishing career with a lie? 

They also want to know what you post, how often, and what your branding is. If you’re an indie author, honestly, the same applies. Social proof is about connection, building relationships, and authenticity. I’ve believed that since I started my business and writing career way back in 2011, and I stand by it now. Start slow, grow slow. It’s not a race.

I’m the furthest thing you’ll even find from a conspiracy theorist – I don’t believe in chemtrails, pizza parlor cabals, or that the earth is flat. However, I am a realist. Watch The Social Dilemma sometime. These huge tech companies share our data without our knowledge or consent (Cambridge Analytics, anyone?). Younger generations are so used to this, they don’t really care – ask them.

(My kids think having a chip implanted in their hands with all their data is a fabulous idea. “So much easier than having to talk and repeat everything over and over. Just scan me and be done with it,” says my daughter Anya (21). “Agree,” grunts my son, Lukas (15). Buy stuff, go to the doctor, whatever. Scan and go. Talk with any GenZ kid, you’ll likely get a similar answer. They’ve been tracked since birth everywhere. They don’t know life without a computer, tablet, or phone in their hands.)

Know that whatever we do, it’s all part of each platforms’ AI, and they share data, which is why that darling pair of shoes you just saw on Amazon is now showing up on Google, Facebook, Twitter, and every website you visit going forward. It’s all about the money, and they all get a piece of that affiliate link.

Every bit of every click is recorded, even when you’re watching videos on YouTube, or a subscription service like Netflix, or perusing goods on Amazon. It’s all connected. I’m not shocked or surprised by any of this, are you?

It’s Not Personal

What people say to us and about us is ultimately incredibly revealing about them. We know this, at an intellectual, psychological, and emotional level. Still, when people say mean things, it hurts. We’re human.

Does it matter in the overall scope of our lives? Who can say. It matters at that moment. It can matter when it comes to overall visibility when you’re marketing your book(s) or trying to get that book contract or interview. Only you can say if it matters to you.

Already a longtime fan of THE FOUR AGREEMENTS by Don Miguel Ruiz, I took a moment to reorient myself with this one agreement: Don’t take anything personally. I also stumbled across an excellent short and entertaining TEDTalk by Frederick Imbo. His main message to stop taking things personally is two-fold;

It’s not about me. Look at the other person’s intention and

It IS about me. Give yourself some empathy. Speak up. Ask questions. Pay attention to how you feel and be vulnerable with your needs.

I’m glad I was able to, inadvertently, employ point #2 and work out some issues with one of the people by telling him what he said made me cry. He apologized. I apologized. We talked it through and we’re still friends.

Ultimately, social media is what we contribute to it. What we make it. How much we allow of it into our lives. Social proof is going along with the tide. I’ve been in this space since 2008. Being connected to others is a big part of the work I do to help and support not only other writers, but also other childhood sexual abuse survivors. However, I’ve reached that point. I knew it was coming.

I’m not shutting my doors. I’m just adding a screen. With a strong lock.

***

Read more about Rachel’s experiences in the award-winning book, Broken Pieces.

She goes into more detail about living with PTSD and realizing the effects of how being a survivor affected her life in

Broken Places, available in print everywhere!

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The post What Is Social Proof and Does It Matter, Really? appeared first on Rachel Thompson.

via Rachel Thompson

[angelic-holland]

First Instagram

Summary: Tom visits you in New York before heading back to London, and you two go public.

Warnings: fluffly fluff fluff, feelings, smut (a wee bit)

Word Count: 1.8k

A/N: I know I said these would be blurbs but apparently I don’t know how to write short things, peep the rest of the series in my masterlist (linked in bio). Enjoy!

“Missed you,” Tom says, face nuzzling into your neck in the doorway of your apartment, bag forgotten on the floor. 

“Missed you too, how are you? How was California?” You ask, pulling him into your apartment.

“It was so great, had a really good time on the talk shows and interviews and such. I know you gotta catch up on the movies but I think you’ll like this one,” he says, detaching his arms from your waist for a second to grab his bag and close the door behind him. 

“You know, I watched Spiderman Homecoming, the other day,” you say as Tom’s arms wrap back around your waist. You squeal as he lifts you up, kissing you as your arms steady yourself on his shoulders. 

You missed Tom, you missed his voice, you heard it often on FaceTime and through calls but something about having him here, in person, was almost like a sensory overload. 

His warmth, his scent, his voice. His everything. 

“Wanna see your tattoo!” Tom all but shouts against your lips, his eyes lighting up like a kid on Christmas as he sets you down and you take his hand in yours, guiding him to your bedroom and tugging down your shorts nonchalantly as you sit on the bed. 

His eyes grow impossibly wider and his lips turn up into a smile, his tongue between his teeth as he kneels on the ground. 

You sit up with your arms resting behind you, shivering as his hands rest on your knees, spreading your thighs further. 

It wasn’t sexual, sure, it’s been a solid three weeks or so since you’ve seen him and you couldn’t wait to ride him until you couldn’t anymore, but there was an innocent twinkle in his eyes as they roam up your thigh to the small Spiderman face resting on the outer edge of your upper thigh. 

“Can I touch it?” He asks, big brown eyes looking up at you, gentle fingers gliding around it.

“It’s still healing, you can touch it the next time you see me sport.”

“Sport?” He laughs, cheek resting against your thigh. 

“I’ve been, ahh,” you gasp as his lips trail up your leg, leaving soft kisses in his wake, “I read the Great Gatsby, sport.”

“Isn’t that what Gatsby calls Nick?” He asks, and you don’t even realize his lips are inches away from your red lace panties until you look down at him.

“Yeah, Nick has a huge gay crush on him.”

“That’s not in the movie.”

“What? Tobey McGuire does a pretty good job at it if you ask me,” you say, voice softer now as his hands rest on your hips, fiddling with the band of your underwear under your Tattoo Dice T-shirt. 

“I guess the book might be different,” he sighs.

“You could listen to the audiobook of it,” you suggest, knowing he doesn’t like reading.

“Maybe I’ll give it a try, sport.”

You collapse, literally onto the bed in a fit of giggles, which pulls Tom to laugh against you, the vibrations against you making you moan. 

“What’s so funny?” He asks as he climbs onto your bed, wincing as it squeaks underneath both of your weights. 

“No, just, funny, having a casual conversation while you’re sitting like that between my legs.”

“I quite enjoy being between your legs,” he smirks, nose nudging your hair out of the way so he can kiss your neck.

After a few heated rounds filled with passionate kisses, miss you, miss you more���s, and several orgasms, you collapse on top of Tom, his fingers drawing patterns on your sweaty back as you both catch your breath.

“Harry wants us to go to the Coney Island place with him tonight.”

“It’ll be packed.”

“Yeah,” he sighs, lips ghosting along yours.

“And people will know who you are.”

“Mhm,” He mumbles against your lips, tongue gently meeting your own.

You kiss lazily for a few minutes as you think.

You could go with them, get noticed with Tom, everyone would know you’re a couple. They’ve already seen pictures of you leaving the club that fateful night, but nothing was ever confirmed, nothing was ever brought up again really. But as you kissed, eyes peeking open and looking at the beautiful man underneath you, feeling his strong arm around your waist, his cool fingers against your back, you thought, what the hell? 

You pull away from his lips, “let’s do it.”

“Yeah? We can tell people we’re boyfriend and girlfriend?” He asks, voice rising in excitement.

“Yeah dork, we can tell people you’re my boyfriend, now let’s shower and get ready, I wanna meet your brother.”

***

“So this is the very special girl Tom talks about, nice to meet you,” Harry grins as the two of you get into the car. You insisted the subway would be easier but Tom said Harry hated the feeling of the New York City subway.

“Well you’re not living until you’ve been shoved up against a million people in the subway,” you laugh but agree, this was much nicer. 

“Ever been to Coney Island?” You ask and Harry shakes his head.

“It’s on my bucket list to try the hotdogs there, What’re they called?” Harry asks, camera hanging out the window.

“Nathan’s? They’re the best,” you sigh, head resting against the window on your side, Tom’s hand resting on your thigh, drawing smiley faces into your thigh around the Spiderman.

“Harry I expect like a million photos of tonight, gotta find one worthy of Instagram,” you say, and the brothers laugh.

“Don’t worry, I document like everything, you’ll get plenty of teeth rotting cute pictures of the two of you,” Harry teases and you all laugh.

On your way in to get tickets for rides, a few people recognized Tom and you happily stood back and watched as he took pictures with the fans, talking to them animatedly about the movie.

“This happen a lot?” You ask Harry as he takes pictures of the sunset. 

“All the time,” he laughs.

The rest of the night is much of the same, you’re grateful nobody’s decided to mob you.

Harry practically drools over the hot dog.

You and Tom go on the Cyclone, an old wooden roller coaster, Harry hangs back to take some pictures of the nightlife.

As you are strapped into your seat your hand grips his arm tightly.

“I’m not scared,” you say straight away. 

You were.

“Oh good, because I’m a little scared,” Tom laughs, hand covering your own.

You glance at him and he’s got a frightened little smile on his face and he might actually be scared. 

“Alright, we can be scared together,” you laugh as the coaster starts to move. 

And you grip his arm right and you’re both screaming and laughing the entire way. You glance over once during the ride as you go up one of the larger peaks, the sun was setting but it shone across Tom’s face, illuminating his slight tan and the few freckles that dotted his cheeks. He looked beautiful, and you wanted to shout it from the rooftops for the whole world to hear. 

“You’re beautiful,” you whisper as the coaster pauses at the top. 

“Huh?” He asks, eyebrow quirked as he looks at you.

“I said,” you start before the coaster tips and you’re falling, fast and hard, heart thudding against your chest, dropping down the jump and screaming, Tom’s screams a comfort to your ears. 

As you race along the track back to where you started your grip doesn’t lessen, you’re still falling. Thud thud thud, goes your heart.

Oh.

“You’re beautiful,” you say, wriggling your eyebrows as you unfasten the restraints from the ride.

“Why thank you, darling, shall we go find Harry?”

You nod, and he helps you up, hand clasping in your own, swinging between you as you walk out of the ride area.

***

Tom and you are playing at one of those carnival games, where you toss the darts and if you pop a balloon, you win a prize. He at first tried to insist that he could win it for you, that huge stupid teddy bear on the top shelf. 

After a few tries he let you play with him and you joke that you’ll win in one go. You don’t. 

“Alright, you guys tried your best, how about pick anything from the bottom shelf?” The man running the booth says, gesturing to the small teddy bears and trinkets.

“Whatcha think princess? You want the teddy bear?” Tom asks, hands wrapping around your waist and chin resting on your shoulder as you look over the prizes you could get.

“I think so,” you nod, and the man grabs one for you, handing it to you.

You hold it tight to your chest, “what’s his name?”

“Hmm, why don’t we name him sport?” He laughs and you gasp.

“It’s perfect!”

“Can we go check out the water?” Harry asks.

“My feet hurt from walking everywhere,” you grumble, hoping to call it a night.

“Here, your chariot awaits,” Tom says, turning around and holding his hands out.

“What you want to do? Give me a piggyback ride?”

“Hop up princess,” he says and you grip your new teddy bear tighter in one hand as you jump, his hands catching your thighs with ease as you grip his shoulders.

“I’m not killing you am I?” You huff as he starts to walk.

“Nope,” he assures you, thumb rubbing your thigh as he walks with Harry down to the water.

“Wait wait wait!” Harry shouts, running in front of you.

“What is it?” Tom asks, coming to a halt.

“This is a really cute picture, now act natural,” he says as he clicks away.

“Wait! We need one with sport!” You say, pulling the light yellow teddy bear out and sitting it on Tom’s shoulder as your head rests on his.

“Look over there!” He says and his hand moves from under your thigh to point at something, causing you to slip and let out a small scream, his hand scrambling back to catch you. 

Harry erupts into a fit of laughter, hunched over, pointing at the photo he just got.

Tomholland2013: pretty great night visiting my girl, sorry for almost dropping you sport

Attached was a teddy bear emoji. Tom’s caption made you laugh through your sleepy haze on the way back to your apartment.

He had chosen the picture Harry caught of your mouth wide open in a scream, his eyes wide in horror as he readjusts his grip on your leg, your newly won teddy bear dangling from one hand as the other clutches his shoulder when he almost dropped you. There were a few other photos Harry snagged, of you walking hand in hand, of his chin resting on your shoulder as you picked out the teddy bear, but this one by far was the funniest and the most memorable. 

“Should I tag you?” Tom asks, cheek resting on your shoulder as his hand hovered over the tag button.

“Sure,” you figure what harm could tagging you do? You were already in a million photos taken by what seemed like every person at Coney Island. 

“Done,” he says, posting the photo and turning his phone off. Your eyes watch as his fingers trace along your palm, along each crease, up to your fingers, dancing along them before finally intertwining with yours.  

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Falling fast. 

[doomedandstoned]

Bands: Here’s What To Include When Selling

~Bacon's Blog~

Photograph by Randy J Byrd

So lately we’ve had a theme of sales. Well one of the biggest mistakes bands make when it comes to sales is not telling people enough about their product. This isn’t just not posting about it enough, but not getting into the nitty gritty of what it is and what it represents. I want to unpack this a little bit in this article.

We’re going to dig into some of the pertinent musical details you might have forgotten to share, critical details about the physical product itself, and then the most important: buying details. When potential customers feel confident about these things, they are much much more likely to buy your record.

3. Musical Details To Push

So there are a few crucial points that I think are important to remember. First and foremost, make sure that people are very aware of your core genre and influences. If you claim to have no genre or influences, you’re an arrogant asshole. People want an idea of what your music is going to sound like before they press play.

Just be sure to talk about this stuff regularly in interviews, post about it on your page, and include it in your ads. It can be as simple as saying, "Prepare for a hearty dose of Slayer-inspired thrash!" and going from there. You want to give people an understanding of what it is you’re trying to sell and why. Make sure to explain the impact this has for the listener!

2. Product Details To Push

Are you doing jewel cases? Vinyl? Cassettes? What type of material are your shirts printed on? Do any of the physical formats have bonus tracks? It’s amazing how often people forget to include stuff like this. They are important for fans who like to buy physical product, they want to make sure they aren’t getting crap.

One of the easiest ways to do this is to make a little video just going over all the features of your products and showing them to the fans. This way, people will know exactly what they are in for and not feel like they have to "wait and see" when they get it from UPS.

1. Sales Details to Push

Where do people buy the goddamn album? This is another huge one bands forget. People will assume that fans will know to go to Bandcamp or your Etsy or your Bigcartel or whatever. They don’t know – you have to push them there. If you don’t keep pushing them, they aren’t going to end up getting there!

Make sure that you are fully communicating this by pinning a post with these details and making the optimal buying location the link in your Instagram bio. If people have even the smallest excuse not to, then they will not buy. Don’t give them an excuse.

So these ideas may seem simple, but I guarantee you that they will help to sell more records and move the needle for your band. So often sales is just a question of removing excuses. So why not do your best to do just that?

Matt Bacon (IG: mattbacon666) with Dropout Media is a consultant, A&R man, and journalist specializing in the world of heavy metal. You can read other articles in the series by clicking the "Bacon's Blog" hashtag below. Matt can also be heard on the Dumb & Dumbest podcast, which he co-hosts with Curtis Dewar of Dewar PR.

[boogiewrites]

Reports & Repertoire 15

Characters: Eddie Brock x Venom x Candace Miller (OFC)

Word Count:  4700+

Summary:  Eddie and Candy both start to deal with the reality and the downsides to their success and the symbiote. Candy battles herself on feeling like she’s out of touch and not helping enough. She has to share some bad news with Eddie, but she follows it up with good news.

Warnings/Tags: Fluff. Minimal angst. Everyday life for these two. Language. Mentions of violence.

Click on my icon then go to Mobile Masterlist in my bio for my other works and chapters. (Had to do this since Tumblr killed links, sorry.)

Having finished a two-part episode for her show, Candy found herself with the rare few days off. Since she'd been so engrossed in her current project, new stories had been slipping her grasp as she'd been ignoring the acts of violence and focusing on her investigations for the shady business practices of the newly rich tech guys. The only thing more problematic than their umbrella companies was the even shadier nightlife patterns in the neighborhoods where the poor mixed with new gentrification.

 She was currently trying to catch up on messages and emails from her sources and friends in the mission and tenderloin, trying to see what areas looked like they could use some help.

She spent her night reading and researching, not a terrible use of her time as it was one of her favorite past times, but she would've rather been spending this night off with Eddie. He was currently finishing up a job and would be flying out on a red-eye back home. So she was spending her evening getting together all the violent crimes stats she could to pass them on to him.

They'd formed a relationship much like his and Venom's, where it was mutually beneficial and based on a strong foundation of killing people that deserved it. She gathered the information, as she was known to be excellent at and passed it on to Eddie. Sending him patterned locations of the worst sort of violent crimes. She focused mainly on ones that were committed against women and children on her own personal bias but she couldn't find it in herself to care.

As was their schedule, Candy would normally be wrapping up with her crew and having a drink at some bar near where they were shooting and Eddie would be out with the information she gave him and hunting. She could tell it made Eddie feel better about what he was doing, grateful for her help as he was good at intimidation and being a bit of a cowboy when it came to his work, but she was more precise and worked faster within legal means. Since his time was spent traveling and being slower at the writing bit, she took it upon herself to do the bad guy round up and let he and Venom handle the things that the law wouldn't. Eddie felt he had a purpose, even found himself thinking of himself as some sort of vigilante justice character head, a man for the people again. He'd wanted to be some sort of superhero growing up, do some sort of good in the world, and he was surprised and found contentment that he could help, actually make a difference as he saw it. He could interview all the serial killers or heartless CEO's he wanted but nothing felt as proactive as eating a pedophile whole.

So on this Friday night, Candy sits at home alone, watching true crime documentaries and folding laundry. Not exciting but a necessary action she'd been neglecting. Eddie is encapsulated inside his symbiote as he rips and tears through a gang in an abandoned warehouse. Eating his fill, swallowing men whole and leaving nothing to be found. They both go to bed alone, but share a goodnight text before falling asleep, both exhausted but fulfilled.

That next morning Candy decides it's been too long since she'd been to the shelter and volunteered. She gets up early and dressing down, being used to overthinking her outfits since being more in the public eye. She didn't want to be all over social media in people's selfies looking like she wasn't doing as well as she was. But it felt good to get back into her old trainers, holey jeans and an old habitat for humanity t-shirt that was faded from time and washings.

She's greeted more enthusiastically than usual. Some of the younger volunteers asking for pictures with her, but she was volunteering and it didn't matter what she looked like. To be honest, the skin care routine the makeup artist with the studio had suggested along with sending her for facials had left her feeling more confident without makeup than she ever had. It was comforting and problematic in its own ways, knowing that having money and access to these sorts of things was what made so-called celebrities look so good. But as she learned, rubbing elbows with people from all walks, everyone had their own ugliness deep down that no amount of gold fleck, young blood, or endangered snail facials could erase.

The people at the shelter treated her the same and it's what she wanted.  A little break to be treated like just another face and be around humans who didn't deny their struggles but rather wanted to share. She'd take this over a gala any day. She gladly took the shit talking from her old friends, jokingly asking for an autograph and she got to roll her eyes and laugh about the insanity of her importance.

As she settles into a far table, shifts changing and people moving in and out, she stays back, observing and having a soda. She sees an almost unrecognizable version of a woman who had given her information shuffle in. The woman sees Candy and begins to hobble towards her on sight.

"Who did it?" Candy says rising immediately and taking her by the hand, sitting her down before joining her on a couch.

The woman smiles, patting Candy's cheek. "I'm glad you're back." she says with a sigh.

Candy learns in her absence that violence has been rising again. The cops being mad and not patrolling as often due to her expose', unreported crime had been on the rise.  The usual drugs and fighting were always there, but groups of people not from the area were starting to come in looking for trouble. Candy takes out her notebook and gets all the information she can. Descriptions, locations, dates, times, and injuries for her notes. It felt good to be back in her place of origin and getting to be around people she knew. She'd been so invested in going higher up, taking down bigger people, interviewing strangers for their silhouetted, voice distorted words. Getting to help someone with no other motive than helping, no cameras, no paycheck involved felt right and she felt grounded. Candy told her friend she would do what she could, try to pass the information on to someone who could help. She just couldn't disclose that the person who could help would be eating the abusers.

She takes a shower, scrubbing away the dirt of helping clean the shelter, thinking about how she felt responsible for the uptick in problems. She wanted to do something to correct it. Something besides point Venom in the direction and have him attack. SHE wanted to do something. As she's brainstorming, hair piled on top of her head messily, chewing on the end of a pen, Eddie's voice startles her out of her train of thought.

"Thought we were keepin' work out of our days off?" he scolds playfully, hanging up his coat as she moves and closes her laptop that was sitting in her lap on the couch.

"I went to the shelter this morning to do some work." she takes a big stretch, lifting her arms over her head and groaning. "I've been distracted by it all afternoon." she yawns.

"You interested in some other kinds of distractions?" Eddie smiles and moves in to kiss her.

"Maybe." she chuckles against his lips.

"Maybe?" his voice goes high pitched and cracks. "Ya gonna have to do better than that Candy." he teases, face moving to her neck.

She laughs and hums happily as he moves her back to the couch as he snuggles down between her legs, nuzzling into her neck and giving her pecks to her face and chest. "Of course I am. But have you eaten yet?"

"What are you my mother?" he laughs, raising up to look down at her.

"Has he eaten today Venom?" you ask with a scolding tone.

"We have not." he says, a little blob of a head appearing over Eddie's shoulder.

"How do you think you're gonna fuck me well enough for me to keep you around if you aren't fueled up?" she laughs, kissing his cheek and wiggling out from under him and into the floor as he watches with his mouth open with fake disbelief.

"You hearin' this?" he asks Venom, flopping to his side and watching her. "The way she talks to us?" he says, watching her move to the kitchen.

"She has a point, Eddie." Venom says, looking at him, knowing she wasn't serious, but also seeing the facts in what she was saying.

"I can't win with both of you on the same side." he groans, getting up from the couch.

"Get in here and eat baby boy." she chirps and moves to take the leftovers out of the fridge.

"We not goin' out?" he asks, ruffling his hair with his hand.

"We are, but I have to get ready and you're going to get cranky if we go out on an empty stomach."

"This is true." Venom says. "You get very grumpy and I have to work harder to keep you stable. Eat."

"Geez you two. Fine." he says taking the cold container of pasta and shoving a fork full into his mouth.

"Good boys." she says kissing his sauce-stained cheek. "There are pills in the cabinet for you Venom. I'm gonna go get ready." she calls out.

"Yesssss." she hears him hiss, already stretching across the room as she walks towards her bedroom.

---------- Candy looks lovely, a dress and curled hair with boots as she and Eddie walk side by side down the street after a movie. They're on their way to dinner, wanting something quick to eat while they get a bigger order to go and then go home and be able to snuggle up. Being in public together was something that they both wanted but neither liked doing. They couldn't be affectionate as they didn't want anyone to know they were a couple and Candy was starting to get quite annoyed by it. When she'd heard "Oh my God are you two together? You're so cute!" after taking pictures with people who recognized them for the 8th time that night, she let out a frustrated sigh.

"What's wrong babe?" Eddie asks quietly, handing her her helmet.

"I'm just..." she rolls her eyes and sighs. "Just not in a great mood." she mumbles, taking her place behind him on the bike. "Let's just go home baby. I don't want to have to stop myself from holding your hand anymore. I'm tired." she wraps her arms around him, and feels Venom lace between her fingers. "Yeah, I 'm tired of hiding too." she sighs against Eddie's back.

Eddie can tell she's distracted and frustrated when she keeps chewing on her bottom lip while they watch a movie.

"You can just tell me what's wrong ya know?" he says out of nowhere and her eyes blink fast, coming back online.

"Just having a weird day." she sighs, nuzzling her face into his chest.

"That could mean a lotta things." he states with a sweet tone.

"I'm trying not to think about work. But I found out crime has spiked in the tenderloin because the cops are being pissy and not patrolling as much, possibly because of me and the expose' we did. Then some of the women I know have been assaulted and no ones helping. I got that info and I'm gonna pass it on to you so you guys can handle it. But I'm just frustrated because I want to help. Not hand everything off to you two."

"You are helpin'." Eddie states obviously.

"How? You two are going out and doing everything." she says with an attitude and Eddie knows she's only mad at herself.

"You're giving us the information. I couldn't know all this stuff if it wasn't for you. And I'd rather be out there than you. I worry about you when you're out there doin' filed work ya know."

"I know. But that's where I want to be. I miss doing things without cameras. Getting my hands dirty. I just want to feel like I'm anonymous and can get in there and work on the ground floor again. I've been in so many skyrise apartments and fucking overdone offices lately to interview assholes I'm afraid I'm going to lose touch."

"Oh now that's not true." Eddie says, rubbing her arm. "You're only one woman babe. You can't do everything. You know how many people you've helped since doin' the show? More than you ever coulda reached before."

"Yeah." she grumbles. "Doesn't mean I don't miss it though."

'She could come with us.' Venom says in Eddie's head.

"Absolutely not." Eddie answers out loud.

"Huh?" Candy looks up at him.

"Talkin' to Venom." he mutters.

"What's he saying?" she asks curiously.

"No, don't-" Eddie begins before being interrupted.

"You should come with us. We can protect you."

"Really?" her eyes flash brightly.

"No, no. I don't want her involved in this." Eddie says.

"Look at her. She wants to. She is unhappy." Venom coos.

"You can't just go givin' her what she wants just cause she's unhappy. She'll be a lot more unhappy and so will we if she's dead."

"That's what I do to you." she pouts. "And couldn't you guys protect me?" she says with a higher pitched voice.

"We could. We do not have to do anything dangerous." he says aloud. 'Take her out with us, we do not have to hunt. Let her feel useful. It is important to her.' he says to Eddie in his head.

"Yeah, we can just check out some places or something. Or you could be my bodyguard's, I could be bait."

"No bait." they both answer and she sighs.

"Fine." she frowns.

"You should think of other ways to be helpful though. Comin' with us isn't something you should get used to. It makes me nervous." Eddie shakes hs head, his brow low.

"But is that a yes?" she smiles.

"Okay. We'll take you out. But we aren't going to go looking for trouble, alright?" he says with raised brows, trying to show her he was serious.

"Deal." she says with a smile, snuggling back into him.

'Awwww. See? Look how happy she is.' Venom says quietly in Eddie's head, reaching a tendril out to lovingly pet on Candy's hip. She takes it and holds it as it forms into a hand.

Eddie nods and sighs, giving her a kiss on the head, thinking about how he really didn't want her to get hurt because of him.

------ "Any other ideas in miscellaneous?" Candy's producer asks the room full of the Report's crew.

"Have you seen this crazy shit?" one of her interns says, tossing a printed out photo across the table to her. "Somebody got a picture of this crazy looking thing. It's blurry as shit and dark but it's been exposed and brighten. What the hell is that thing?" he says with a look of amusement.

Candy takes the picture and tries to not show her fear. Someone had gotten a picture of Venom, crawling up the side of building. It was dark and blurry, but she knew her alien boyfriend when she saw him. "What's uh... what is this?"

"The cryptozoology boards are lit the fuck up over it. Calling some San Francisco crawler. The OP said they saw it lurking around rooftops and they got this shot. Apparently, the thing is fuckin' HUGE and fast."

"You sure it's not just photoshopped?" she says convincingly enough.

"It's damn good photoshop if it is." he shrugs.

"Where'd you find this?" she asks, putting the paper back down on the table.

"On the San Francisco boards. Some monster hunters were flipping their shit over it. Trying to come up with theories about it. Saw it down in the mission apparently. Tying it in with the spike in missing persons from there possibly. "

"Yeah most of those people are a bit... imaginative." she says with heavy condescending in her voice.

"I thought it's something you might be able to have fun with. No one's really talking about it yet. Thought you might want in on the ground floor." he shrugs, putting the picture back in his folder.

"I do news. People, places, events. I don't do cryptozoology crap like that. What am I going to do go stand in a dark alley and wait?" she says sarcastically and a murmur of chuckles and agreement come from the others. "That sort've thing is below us. Cool to talk about on some monster board but I don't want to cover things that are possibly fake and only speculation. Thanks for thinking outside the box though." she shrugs and tries to pull back not make the kid feel bad. It wasn't his fault her boyfriend's powers had been possibly exposed.

"And any other new ideas?" her producers asks again, she'd been waiting to share something when there was a lull in the talking.

"Yeah." Candy nods, tapping her pen on her notepad, trying to shed the worry and focus. "I thought maybe we should try to connect with the city more. Give back, give some good PR for us and the network. I think this show would be a great place to do something like that."

"What do you mean?" she's asked.

"Do spotlights on places that help people out. Show us donating money and time and we can give out information on their causes and tell people how to donate to them. It'll be a story by focusing on a particular struggle on the ground level, the people that don't normally get any credit. It'll be easy, fast and cheap to shoot. The money saved can go towards a donation."

"That's... a great PR idea." she responds, scribbling down on her notepad. "I think this would be a good way to balance out the budget. Get more social media involvement, show that we are a part of the community like you said." she nods in thought.

"It would also give us more downtime to work on bigger things and not give us 7 day work weeks." Candy offers.

"Also that. A day or two of shooting, a press release, quick press conference. Some talking heads and narration." she nods. "Would be a hell of a lot easier on logistics."

"My thoughts exactly." she smiles proudly.

"Alright. Well, I have another meeting coming up, so anything else?"

"Yeah one more thing but, I'd like to speak to you privately if that's okay."

A murmur of yes's from the crew around her who are already packing up their things.

"Fine with me." she says, putting away her things, Candy moves to sit on the table top next to her.

"Is it bad news?" she asks first.

"No." she laughs and shakes her head. "But I needed you to run something by the higher-ups or, HR or whoever needs to be told about this." she shrugs.

"Oh God did someone harass you? Shit."

"No! No." she moves her hands back and forth with another friendly smile. "I've just been seeing someone and I'd like to be able to go public with it."

"Oh!" she says with a big nod and the clear sign of relief in her shoulders. "Who's the lucky guy?" she asks with a much more perky disposition.

"Eddie Brock." she says with a nervous chuckle.

"Ahhhh." She nods. "I see why you're asking now. Wasn't in your contract to have to ask these sorts of things."

"Yeah, I know. People see us out and we have to be careful not to get too close and everything. And we're pretty serious, so I'd like to be able to go out on a date with my boyfriend ya know? But since we're both employees and this used to be his show..." she frowns.

"No, I get it. I do. It was smart of you to have me check first. I appreciate it."

"So just...text me or email me when you know something? I'd love to be able to have a real date night and not pretend like we're just friends when people ask us for selfies and tell us how cute we are together." she smiles and walks towards the door.

"If I have time I'll swing by and ask today. I don't think they'll have a problem with it, since you two have your own successful things going on now but I'll let you know when I know, kay?"

"Thank you. I mean it." she says sincerely with a wave goodbye.

----------

It's date night and Candy has both good and bad news on her mind. She's sitting across from Eddie who is eating cheese fries and rather messily. She sighs for what could've been the hundredth time that night.

'Ask her what is wrong?' Venom suggests

"Mmmph?" Eddie makes a sound, but Candy just thinks he's enthusiastic about his fries as she chomps away at her fried pickles. Something Eddie made fun of her for, telling her he didn't know he was dating a hillbilly. She took it in stride and told him to shut his city ass up.

'Something is wrong. Stop stuffing your face with this artery-clogging food and pay attention.' he snaps at him.

Eddie wipes the cheese from his face, taking a moment to look her over, her eyes were far away but her mouth was set in a pleasant smile. "Somethin' wrong?" he asks, pushing the fries away.

"Maybe."

"Well can you maybe tell us?" he says playfully.

"There are pictures of you." her lips move to a straight line and she meets his eyes. She hadn't wanted to ruin the night with this but she obviously wasn't hiding anything from them.

"Pictures?" he says with the push back of his chin, his eyebrows lowering in question.

"Of Venom." she says quietly.

Eddie's eyes go wide. "What?"

"In the meeting this week for brainstorming one of the interns found a, albeit really poor quality, photo of you crawling up the side of a building in the mission. " she says with no inflection, clearly she'd been dreading sharing this news.

"Oh." he says with wide eyes that darted around the table.

"Yeah. You're gonna have to figure something out. Maybe lay low for a bit. The crypto people have ahold of it and have already linking it to disappearances in the area."

"Whatta ya mean linked?"

"With their theories."

"So nothing concrete?" the relief in his voice is obvious.

"It's a blurry picture of a humanoid creature...so it's all theories." she shakes her head. "No one in the meeting seemed to take it seriously and I shot it down as internet fodder that wasn't worthy of our time. BUT the missing people have been noticed. Which means you need to switch up your locations or try to make it on chocolate and pills for a bit until the interest passes."

"He's not happy about that." Eddie frowns.

"About which part?"

"The chocolate and pills part."

"Of course." she rolls her eyes. "He should be more concerned about being seen and found out. That's a whole world of trouble that none of us want. We have a nice little set up between the three of us. We don't need outside involvement to come for our careers or our personal lives." she whispers, her face more sad than annoyed now.

"She's got a point, man. You need to keep your priorities in line here. We've done it before we can do it again." he shakes his head.

"I'll even order more pills. Get some chocolate wholesale or something. I won't let you waste away. You know that." she reaches out and takes his hand in hers and the affectionate touch in public surprises them both. She'd been scolding them so long for trying to touch her when they were out that this was a more meaningful touch than what it would seem on the surface.

"We're a team alright? I'll do everything I can to keep the noise down from my end. I'll keep you both running as best as I can. And you can lay low for me okay? We'll just spend Friday nights together when we can instead of you out hunting."

"That's something we can both agree one." he smiles and rubs his thumb across the back of her hand. "More time together would be nice." his soft smiles warms her, makes her feel like everything will be okay.

"It would." she squeezes his hand and looks down at it. "And I've got some other news. Some good news." she says with a tilt of her head. "I'd just been so worried about ruining the night with mentioning the pictures that it just..." she motions to her head. "Took over my brain. So... sorry. Ive not meant to be distant."

"S'okay." he squeezes her hand back, surprised she's still holding it. "You got good news though? Let's focus on the good news." he suggests.

"We can do that." she nods and gives him a warm smile back that makes Venom purr. "You done with those fries babe?" she laughs. "I'll tell you the good news on the way." she offers with a hum of happiness.

"Yeah, wait." he says, taking his finger and getting the rest of the cheese after stuffing the remaining fries in his mouth. "Ready." he mumbles out with stuffed cheeks and she cant help but laugh at him.

"C'mon you slopapotamus." she snorts.

She holds his hand on the way to the movie theatre as they walk together. He doesn't dare mention it because it's making them both giddy with pride. They were getting to show she was theirs and that was extremely important to Venom and Eddie just wanted to be able to show her he liked her through touch. They get to the line and she's recognized.

"Oh my god can I get a selfie?" the girl says excitedly.

"Of course." Candy says, leaning in and smiling.

"Holy shit you're Eddie Brock, right?" the girl asks. Looking up at him.

"That'd be me." he says with a charming smile.

"Can I get a picture with you too?" she asks with wide eyed.

"Yeah." he says politely.

"Oh my god wait. Are you two like on a date or something I totally just interrupted. Shit, I'm sorry." she says her face flushing with embarrassment.

"Yeah we were but it's fine." Candy laughs, moving and putting her arm around Eddie's back and he tries to hide how much Venom is freaking out in his head and how equally shocked he was on the inside. "Have a good night." she says sweetly, moving up in the line.

"What?" Eddie's eyes dart around. "What was that?" his voice breaks.

"The good news." she says, moving to put her arms around him under his jacket.

"Oh?" his high pitched voice of shock makes her sigh at his bewildered, adorable face.

"I asked if we could go public about our relationship." she says quietly, her chin tilting up towards him.

"And they said yes?" he says with excited eyes.

"They did." she purrs back.

"Oh shit." he lets out a giggle, wrapping his arms around her. "They did?"

"Uh huh." she nods. "So are you gonna give your girlfriend a kiss or what Eddie?" she teases.

"Of fuckin' course I am." he mutters, already leaning against her lips.

"You think we can even get a bit saucy and holds hands during the movie? Might even let you put your arm around me." she winks and laughs.

"If you don't mind my butter fingers from the popcorn." he laughs.

"You know I never mind your fingers when they're slippery Eddie." she coos and gives him a suggestive look as she pulls away, tugging at his hand.

"Oh!" he giggles again and follows behind her like a happy puppy to the ticket stand.

@hardygal69 @marvelgirl7 @emerald-bijou @negansdirtygirl22 @brianaisasongbird @vale0413 @izzy-the-ginger @chortletortoise @onomatopoetic-aesthetic @anrm1 @jademox @nightcraver @venomous-possibiities @tinastarkandco @chipster-21 @ugly-crying-over-bucky-barnes @queenof-wakanda

[womenofcolor15]

BRITISH VOGUE TAKEOVER: Lupita Nyong’o Isn’t Moved By Coins, She’d Rather Make Social & Cultural Impact Through Work

Lupita Nyong'o is British Vogue’s February 2020 cover star. Peep her cover and spread, plus what she said about changing the culture inside...

            View this post on Instagram

                  Introducing #LupitaNyongo as #BritishVogue’s February 2020 cover star. Her Hollywood debut won her an Oscar. Her first book is a number-one bestseller. She can even rap. For Lupita Nyong’o, as she tells @OEMarks in the new issue, a supercharged career means being able to choose the stories that need to be told. Click the link in bio for @Edward_Enninful’s editor’s letter, and see the Oscar-winning actor in colourful splendour in the February 2020 issue, on newsstands Friday 3 January. @LupitaNyongo wearing @LouisVuitton by @NicolasGhesquiere. Photographed by #StevenMeisel, styled by @Edward_Enninful and concept by @NicolasGhesquiere, with hair by @VernonFrancois, make-up by @PatMcGrathReal, nails by @JinSoonChoi and set design by @MaryHoward_SetDesign.

A post shared by British Vogue (@britishvogue) on Dec 30, 2019 at 8:54am PST

  Lupita Nyong'o doesn't just talk a good talk, she backs it up.

The US star is British VOGUE's February 2020 cover star where she opens up about making cultural and societal changes with career, along with being a number-one bestselling author, rapping, producing and directing.

          View this post on Instagram

                  “No matter how much American TV I’d ingested, nothing could prepare me for the truth,” says #LupitaNyongo about the culture shock of moving from Africa to America to study. The actor talks to @OEMarks about transitioning from drama school student to Oscar winner and how giving herself “permission to take things slow” was key to her supercharged success. Read the full interview in the February 2020 issue, on newsstands Friday 3 January. @LupitaNyongo photographed by #StevenMeisel, styled by @Edward_Enninful and concept by @NicolasGhesquiere, with hair by @VernonFrancois, make-up by @PatMcGrathReal, nails by @JinSoonChoi and set design by @MaryHoward_SetDesign.

A post shared by British Vogue (@britishvogue) on Dec 30, 2019 at 9:13am PST

  The Kenyan beauty is strategic when accepting roles. And the best part about it is that, she isn't concerned with how much money she'll make from a role. She's an actress who's looking to change the game and leave her mark on the world with the roles she decide to portray and the stories she wants the world to see/hear.

          View this post on Instagram

                  “I don’t get fulfilment from the number of zeros attached to a project. What I’m seduced by is the potential to shift a narrative.” Pushing cultural change is something #LupitaNyongo has always done in her career, and 2019 was no different. In the past 12 months she’s published her first children’s book, ‘Sulwe’, fronted a documentary about the astounding true story of the Agoji, Benin’s female army and starred in ‘Us’, one of the most critically acclaimed films of the past year. Next up? Taking on an adaptation of @Chimamanda_Adichie’s ‘Americanah’. Read the full interview in the February 2020 issue, on newsstands Friday 3 January. @LupitaNyongo photographed by #StevenMeisel, styled by @Edward_Enninful and concept by @NicolasGhesquiere, with hair by @VernonFrancois, make-up by @PatMcGrathReal, nails by @JinSoonChoi and set design by @MaryHoward_SetDesign.

A post shared by British Vogue (@britishvogue) on Dec 30, 2019 at 9:29am PST

  “I don’t get fulfillment from the number of zeros attached to a project,” she tells the magazine. “What I’m seduced by is the potential to shift a narrative. That is very seductive to me, having social and cultural impact.”

That's evident in her movies 12 Years a Slave and US, two movies who made an impact on the culture. She won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her first film (12 Years a Slave) and Jordan Peele's horror film US was one of the biggest live-action original films to hit the box office since Avatar.

While creating content that will shift the narrative, it comes with a price.

“Filming is so time-consuming. And intense,” she explains. “With Black Panther, a lot of us were single. On Little Monsters, nobody was single. Everyone, when they’re done with their day’s work, wants to go home to their families, which makes a whole lot of sense. When you don’t have that it’s very isolating.”

The 36-year-old actress is all for speaking up...but only for causes that she's really passionate about. No, she's not the celeb just sharing memes about causes that she comes across on social media.

"I speak up for the things I can personally vouch for,” she says. “There’s a lot going on in this world, a lot of causes that are noble. But I feel most useful when I have a personal connection. And the conviction to say something.”

Loves it. You can read more from her interview here. You can also read the full interview in the February issue of British Vogue, which hits newsstands on January 3rd.

  Photo: Denis Makarenko/Shuttershock.com

[Read More ...] source http://theybf.com/2019/12/31/british-vogue-takeover-lupita-nyong%E2%80%99o-isn%E2%80%99t-moved-by-coins-she%E2%80%99s-rather-make-social-cultu

[cindylouwho-2]

RECENT NEWS & STUDIES, late April 2019

Welcome to my latest summary of recent news & studies including search, analytics, content marketing, social media & ecommerce! This covers articles I came across from April 9th to May 2, although some may be older than that. 

I am really interested in hearing what you think of this new format - please leave a comment below, or convo, Tweet or email me through my website. Let’s make this as useful as possible! 

TOP NEWS & ARTICLES 

US Amazon sellers were told via email that they will have to pay taxes on some Amazon fees, as Etsy has been doing with sellers in the EU and in Quebec. 

The Instagram look may be dropping out of favour; apparently, reality is in. “Instagram museums and walls were built to allow normal people to take influencer-quality photographs—but they worked so well, those types of photos became common enough that they don’t resonate like they used to. “#unfiltered 

In case you missed it, my review of Etsy’s Spring & Summer Trends Guide, including all of the keyword data (which you do need to check out, as they reveal some interesting search info). 

ETSY NEWS

Etsy published a new census/survey of sellers in its 6 core countries, and also did a summary (if you don’t want to read the whole thing). “More than nine out of ten Etsy sellers (91%) are the sole owner of their businesses.”... “The majority (82%) of Etsy sellers would like to grow their business, but more than three out of five would not want to grow so big that they would have to hire more help.”

The bugs & errors with financial statements and records continue; Etsy botched the VAT statements yet again, even overwriting them all the way back to 2016. No word on whether any sellers have notified EU authorities on this yet. 

New seller handbook article covers advertising; not much new or gripping, but it does discuss general ad approaches, not just Etsy’s. 

There is also a new free shipping tool, in case you didn’t realize that Etsy wants more sellers to offer free shipping more often. “When we talk to shoppers during research, many say things like “I want to feel like I’m getting a deal!” and “I would love to see free shipping across the board, even if it meant increased prices.” Offering free shipping can be a great way to give customers like these the shopping experience they are looking for.”

CEO Josh Silverman participated in The Wall Street Journal’s “In the Elevator” interview series [video link]. Every 90 seconds, an engagement ring or wedding ring sells on Etsy. He also talks about free & fast shipping not always being a reasonable expectation when shopping on Etsy, unlike Amazon. 

Speaking of free shipping, a limited number of US customers will be getting it from Etsy, with Etsy reimbursing sellers for the costs. Non-US sellers and buyers get nothing. 

Etsy’s 2019 1st quarter results will be available May 8.

SEO: GOOGLE & OTHER SEARCH ENGINES 

Rand Fishkin released Part 5 of his Learn SEO in 1 Hour series: technical SEO [video & written transcript]. This is the one most of you can skip or just skim over, as it does talk a lot about coding.Some tips are important to everyone, however, like page linking/site structure (for websites), and having https set up. 

Part 6 covers link building, in 10 minutes. Remember, if you are going to put effort into getting links, do it for your website & not your Etsy shop or other marketplace page. If you are creating traffic, make sure you own it. 

Don’t forget looking beyond Google for your search engine traffic; this podcast [with written transcript] breaks down an approach to several of the biggest ones beyond Google. Spoiler: they only recommend worrying about the biggest, Bing, if you have around 1000 unique search visitors to your website per day. 

How to get keyword ideas from the Google search results: there’s a lot more available now, beyond the search bar suggestions. 

Google is asking local businesses if they would pay for their Google My Business listings. This possibility raises concerns about the impact on organic rankings. 

More SEO tips for Amazon, including discussion of the various factors involved.

If pages on your website aren’t indexed by Google, there are some steps you can take to fix them. (For websites only, not Etsy shops)

Advanced/semi-advanced content: Great tips on using bookmarklets in Chrome to get SEO things done quickly. (A lot of these involve tools that work best in the paid version, so I suspect most of us will not have much use for this, yet.)

Possible Google algorithm update last week. (I am seeing changes)

CONTENT MARKETING & SOCIAL MEDIA (includes blogging & emails) 

Looking for new hashtags for your social media accounts? Try: https://www.tagshitter.com  (apologies for the name; that’s what they call it. It’s good, too! Just like its regular keyword research partner, http://keywordshitter.com/ ) 

Email subject lines [infographic] are crucial to top interaction with your newsletter etc. Includes Dos & Don’ts, plus the shockingly low open rates in most industries. 

Selling through social media directly is a great way to avoid people losing interest as they keep clicking. Note that this seems to work best with items under $50, though, which they suggest solutions to in the next part of the article.  

Despite all the scandals and negative media coverage, US social media use hasn’t really changed in the past few years. “A 2018 Center survey found that some Facebook users had recently taken steps to moderate their use of the site – such as deleting the Facebook app from their phone or taking a break from the platform for some time. But despite these findings and amid some high profile controversies, Facebook users as a whole are just as active on the site today as they were a year ago.”

Facebook scandal watch:  FB’s “stock price jumped after it said it expects to incur a fine of up to $5 billion from the Federal Trade Commission. And that’s all you really need to know about whether the historically large penalty matters to the company.”

Also:

they admitted to asking for your email password then importing all of your contacts. “...Facebook disclosed to Business Insider that 1.5 million people's contacts were collected this way and fed into Facebook's systems, where they were used to improve Facebook's ad targeting, build Facebook's web of social connections, and recommend friends to add.”

The Canadian Privacy Commissioner is taking FB to court over breaches of Canadian privacy law. 

But hey, it’s all fine, because they beat earnings expectations in the first quarter. 

70% of YouTube videos watched are recommended by its algorithm. “ The recommendations are fueled by the artificial-intelligence arm, Google Brain, of YouTube’s parent company. The machine-learning models help identify videos that aren’t exactly what you just watched, but similar enough that you might like them.“

Does directing people to the link in your Instagram bio really work? Testing says that it probably doesn’t work for most accounts, and more importantly, that Instagram may be limiting the algorithm visibility of posts that direct visitors to the link in your bio. 

Twitter has now limited the number of accounts you can follow in 1 day, to 400 down from 1000; this is intended to cut back on spammers. 

US Twitter users are better educated & better off than the average American.(Good article for target market considerations)

ONLINE ADVERTISING (SEARCH ENGINES, SOCIAL MEDIA, & OTHERS) 

Amazon is reducing/removing the ads for its own products, possibly due to increased complaints of unfair competition. “Amazon is now the third-largest digital advertising platform, behind Google and Facebook”, and could grow 50% this year alone, based on projections. 

Facebook retargeting tips. And everything you need to know about the Facebook pixel for tracking your ad performance. 

STATS, DATA, OTHER TRACKING 

Some Google Analytics tips for websites - almost beginner level! 

The Google Search Console delays are nearly all fixed. 

Stats programs all give you different numbers, and that isn’t likely to improve. (This piece is semi-advanced; don’t bother with it if you aren’t a stats geek.)

ECOMMERCE NEWS, IDEAS, TRENDS 

eBay’s Spring Marketplace Updates include several back end changes and a fee increase for sellers who run afoul of eBay’s seller performance standards. 

Amazon sellers can buy so-called “black hat” services to beat its algorithms. These include tips from Amazon employees who are making money by reporting on Amazon’s inner workings. Amazon “also said it takes action against sellers who pay for internal information; penalties include terminating their selling accounts, deleting reviews, withholding funds, and taking legal action.” No doubt the company already has closed some of the loopholes discussed in the article.

Amazon also fires warehouse workers by algorithm, based on productivity. 

GoDaddy launches an ecommerce sharing tool that lets you list across multiple websites including your standalone. Current marketplace options include Etsy, Amazon, eBay, Jet & Walmart. They bought Sellbrite as part of this move. Quite a few different entities are releasing this type of service, so shop around if it is something you are interested in. 

eBay released their 1st quarter 2019 results on April 23. Total sales were down 4% from 2018 (they were close to even when currency fluctuations were accounted for), but eBay’s own income from seller fees was up. “eBay reduced their marketing by a significant amount where their cash was being used to effectively subsidise the sales of high value items. Put simply, eBay have been buying sales and now they’ve stopped and this has seen a reduction in high ticket items being sold in comparison to sales of lower value items.” Easter being later this year may have slowed ecommerce growth overall in the quarter. 

...but Amazon reported record revenue, up 16.9% over 2018. Despite that, analysts note that growth is slowing, & that Amazon’s own projections for the second quarter are lower than many predicted. “Amazon’s CFO Brian Olsavsky said during the call with analysts that part of the lower guidance is due to an $800 million investment in making free one-day delivery shipping the default for Prime members.” - if you thought buyers wanted stuff yesterday already, wait til this becomes the norm ... I mean, Walmart & Target stocks fell after the announcement. Walmart is already hinting at offering the same. 

You can return your Amazon purchases at Kohl’s in the US, starting everywhere in July. Ease of returns is going to be a bigger battleground in the next few years, as retailers continue to increase free & speedy shipping options. 

BUSINESS & CONSUMER STUDIES, STATS & REPORTS; SOCIOLOGY & PSYCHOLOGY, CUSTOMER SERVICE

Generation Z will be making 40% of US retail purchases by next year; they are going to change a lot about selling. “ Fair trade products, ethical business practices, and a strong mission statement have never been more essential. Vend reports, “Research has shown that this particular generation cares about various environmental issues (76% are concerned about humanity’s impact on the planet) as well as social causes such as racial, gender, and income inequality.” [Gen Z come after millennials, and are currently more numerous than millennials or boomers.] 

Millennials & Gen Z are big gift card buyers in the US - over 1/3 buy a card every 3 months. 

Brick & mortar stores & malls are using your phone location data (location analytics) to make marketing and product decisions. “Every company interviewed for this story said it chooses not to use information that could identify individuals. But for the most part they’re on an honor system because rules governing data remain relatively lax.” This surprised me: “To glean details, including an individual’s age, income, ethnicity, education level, number of children and more, firms connect the phone’s evening location with U.S. Census data”

MISCELLANEOUS 

US copyright law: the USSC rules that your copyright registration must be finished/approved before you can sue an infringer in federal court.  

If you hate Gmail’s current layout, you will love this Chrome extension. 

And if you use Google Sheets fairly often, you will likely learn something useful from these tips. 

Google’s parent company, Alphabet, missed industry revenue expectations in the first quarter of 2019. 

[helloworlddemo1122-yahoopar-blog]

Johnny Depp's 7 Biggest 'Rolling Stone' Revelations: From Depression to How Much He Really Spends on Wine

Johnny Depp is opening up in a big way in a candid new interview with  Rolling Stone magazine, in which the 55-year-old actor addresses his highly publicized legal battles over his finances and reports of his extravagant spending.

Writer Stephen Rodrick was invited to spend time with Depp at his rented mansion in London, England, where the conversation also turned to his complicated relationships with close family and friends, as well as a serious struggle with depression due to problems both in his personal and financial lives.

Here's a look at the biggest revelations from Depp's interview:

Multimillion-dollar lawsuits, a haze of booze and hash, a marriage gone very wrong and a lifestyle he can’t afford. In our exclusive new feature, we take you inside the trials of Johnny Depp. "I kept trying to figure out what I'd done to deserve this," he says. "I'd tried being kind to everyone, helping everyone, being truthful to everyone." Click the link in our bio to read the full story. Illustration by Matt Mahurin (@mattmahurin)

A post shared by Rolling Stone (@rollingstone) on Jun 21, 2018 at 5:02am PDT

1. Depp is very much open about his drinking and smoking

Rodrick describes entering Depp's rented mansion and feeling his presence immediately.

“He is here in the stogie-size joint left by the sink in the guest bathroom. He is here in the never-ending reservoir of wine that is poured into goblets," he observes.

During their first meeting, Rodrick writes that "Depp sits at the head of the table and motions towards some rolling papers and two equal piles of tobacco and hash, and asks if I mind. I don't. He pauses for a second. 'Well, let's drink some wine first.' This goes on for 72 hours."

Depp also isn't shy about his history of using drugs. Later in the interview, when talking about one of his idols, writer Hunter S. Thompson, he regrets quaaludes no longer being around and recalls the bootleg quaaludes he used to take.

"They're made with just a little bit of arsenic or strychnine, so the high was far more immediate," he explains. 

Depp then recalls once asking a Florida bouncer to punch him while on quaaludes for no reason.

"You either wanted to smile and just be happy with your pals, or f**k, or fight," he says of being under the influence.

2. He has complicated relationships with his family

Depp talks extensively about his late mother, Betty Sue, in the interview, who died in 2016 after a long battle with cancer. The actor reveals the first thing he bought when he started making money was a small horse farm for his mom in Kentucky, where she was born.

"My mom was born in a f**king holler in eastern Kentucky," he says. "Her poor f**king a** was on phenobarbital at 12."

Though he clearly loved his mother, he also claims they moved 40 times growing up and that she would sometimes give him "irrational beatings."

"Maybe it's an ashtray coming your way. Maybe you're gonna get clunked with the phone," he says. "It was a ghost house -- no one talked. I don't think there was ever a way that I thought about people, especially women, other than 'I can fix them.'"

"Betty Sue, I worshiped her," he continues, before adding, "She could be a real b***h on wheels."

At her 2016 funeral, Depp recalls saying, "My mom was maybe the meanest human being I have ever met in my life."

As for his other siblings, Depp -- who's the youngest of four -- tells the magazine that one of his sisters and her husband and son moved to his mother's farm in Kentucky and were hired to manage the property, but their spending allegedly became out of control. After his mother died, the family still lives there.

"Their thinking is that I'm going to take care of them forever and that the farm is now theirs," he says. "I didn't make that promise."

The magazine also notes that Depp's close relationship with his sister, Christi, who was once a constant in his life and managed his day-to-day affairs, became strained when she was opposed to his 2015 marriage to Amber Heard. 

"Depp’s last constant connection with the real world was severed," Rodrick writes.

3. He actually spent more than $30,000 a month on wine

Depp's former business associates filed a countersuit against the actor last February, after the actor filed a lawsuit in mid-January against The Management Group (TMG) and its associates for allegedly defrauding him and mismanaging his money. Among Depp's alleged extravagant expenses they claimed they warned him about was spending $30,000 a month on wines flown to him from around the globe.

Depp proudly admits the number is actually higher.

“It’s insulting to say I spent $30,000 on wine,” Depp says. “Because it was far more."

Depp also addressed the claim that he paid a sound engineer so he could feed him lines through an earpiece while filming, explaining that it was actually sounds that were fed to him, which he says allowed him to be a better actor.

“I’ve got bagpipes, a baby crying and bombs going off,” Depp shares of the sounds. “It creates a truth. Some of my biggest heroes were in silent film. It had to be behind the eyes. And my feeling is, that if there’s no truth behind the eyes, doesn’t matter what the f**king words are.” 

As for the allegation that he spent $3 million to blast Thompson’s ashes out of a specially-made cannon?

"By the way, it was not $3 million to blast Hunter out of the f**king sky," he says. "It was $5 million."

And it appears that Depp's lawsuit against TMG isn't going to be resolved anytime soon.

"I have never, ever been in my life the bully kid," he notes. "I never went out of my way to hurt anybody. When I was a little kid, what I was taught was never start a f**king fight, but if somebody f**king tags you or starts invading your f**king world, finish the f**king fight. To my mom's exact words, 'lay them out with a f**king brick.'"

4. He became depressed over his financial issues and personal life

Depp says that after his divorce from Heard and his lawsuit, he became severly depressed. 

"I was as low as I believe I could have gotten,” he says. “The next step was, ‘You’re going to arrive somewhere with your eyes open and you’re going to leave with your eyes closed.’ I couldn’t take the pain every day.”

He says he then went on tour with his band, The Hollywood Vampires, and started writing a memoir on an old manual typewriter, like Thompson. 

“I poured myself a vodka in the morning and started writing until the tears filled my eyes and I couldn’t see the pages anymore,” he tearfully says. “I kept trying to figure out what I’d done to deserve this. I tried being kind to everyone, helping everyone, being truthful to everyone.” 

“The truth is most important to me," he adds. "And all this still happened.” 

5. He was extremely close to Tom Petty

Depp reveals he had a close friendship with the late Tom Petty, who died in January of an accidental drug overdose.

The actor says they used to frequently speak on the phone, and has clearly been hit hard by his death. 

“We’d call each other and ask, ‘Hey, you still smoking [nicotine]?’ Depp recalls. “Tom would go, ‘Yeah, I’m still smoking.’ And I’d feel better: ‘Well, if Tom is still smoking, I’m OK.’” 

“I loved him,” he continues after a pause, shedding tears.

Later, he also laments the deaths of Thompson and Marlon Brando, and the loneliness he now feels.

"Marlon and Hunter. I needed my guys," he says.

6. He supported Penelope Cruz while they filmed Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

Cruz reveals to the magazine she told Depp that she was pregnant right before shooting 2011's Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides and contemplated dropping out. She says Depp opposed. 

“He protected me every day, and by the end, I was six months pregnant,” Cruz says. “I’ll never forget that.” 

"I imagine Johnny doing a version of Jack Sparrow at 70, or 80,” Cruz also muses, referencing his iconic Pirates character. “It will be as charming and as great.”

7. He has plenty of thoughts on Harvey Weinstein

Depp recalls his interaction with the disgraced movie mogul, calling him an "a**hole" and a "bully" when he worked with him and director Jim Jarmusch on 1995's Dead Man. 

“Have you seen his wife? It’s not a wide range," he also comments. "It’s not like he went, ‘I must go to the Poconos to find some hairy-backed b***h.’”

Still, he recalls a more tender side to Weinstein, when he witnessed him picking up his daughter from school.

"The image that took my breath away was Harvey Weinstein, a goliath Shrek thing, bending down to put on his daughter's raincoat," he shares.

Earlier this month, some fans became concerned about Depp after photos of him in Russia were shared on social  media, in which they commented that he looked "thin." However, an insider told ET that Depp, who is currently on tour with The Hollywood Vampires, is doing fine.

“Johnny is healthy and is enjoying his time on the road with his band,” the source said.

ET spoke to Depp last May, when he gushed about his 19-year-old daughter, model Lily-Rose Depp. Watch below:

RELATED CONTENT:

Johnny Depp Is 'Healthy' Despite Fans' Recent Health Concerns

Johnny Depp Sued by Ex-Bodyguards for Unsafe Working Conditions and Unpaid Wages

Amber Heard Opens Up About Living 'Truthfully' Following Divorce From Johnny Depp