#its been like 4 years but we finally know what he was thinking during that scene

[asexual-levia-tan]

TSL quiz:

the cerberus-ing:

and then:

[ren-is-real]

Inanimate Insanity dash simulator (pre ep 16) (i will do more of this if this goes well probably)

🪁 inanimateinsanityfan Follow

does anyone ever get so tired they start seeing spiders lol

💼 su1tcas3 Follow

me when i lay down and hallucinate the horrors lmfao

🪁 inanimateinsanityfan Follow

what

💼 su1tcas3 Follow

Oh so this is not a safe place suddenly

2,369 notes

🪁 inanimateinsanityfan Follow

as an unbiased outsider im cheering for them both ^^ im so excited for the finale!!!!!!!!!!!

#idk what i'll do when this ends tbh #like damn. #we'll cross that bridge when we get to it!!

19 notes

💡 brightestlight Follow

any couple can be gay if they are bisexual and their genders are weird enough

🪁 inanimateinsanityfan Follow

why did you post this directly after talking to me and test tube

🪁 inanimateinsanityfan Follow

lightbulb why did y

11 notes

🎤 mic-row-phoen Follow

when you want to ask someone about something but the trek is IMPOSSIBLE and you will DIE (hes downstairs setting up a party im just scared)

🍊 orange-got-juiced Follow

i am not giving you the aux to play green day at the party

🎤 mic-row-phoen Follow

:(

🍊 orange-got-juiced Follow

ok. two songs

19 notes

🎀 rain-bowz Follow

when a fake girl tryna act like me but im the only one there is

⚙️ rowbotted Follow

REAL!!!!!

🎀 rain-bowz Follow

who are you.

📄pageperrr Follow

hey didnt you die. or something

23 notes

🌮absolutleynot-taco Follow

hey anyone know where pickle is haha. anyone know his room number or amything lol like it would justs be fun to know,,, hagaha,,,, yeagh

0 notes

🏆awinners-trophy Follow

imagine using a run down website that hasnt been relevant in YEARS. you all need to get off and go touch some grass or something jfc

🔪sharpest-tool-inthe-shed Follow

you're literally using it?

🏆awinners-trophy Follow

kill yourself

#you used to be cool man

19 notes

🎈coldairballoon Follow

i drew some vent art about old stuff.. im better now!! im just letting off some steam haha

🏆awinners-trophy Follow

this is so cringe

🎈coldairballoon Follow

you're cringe.

🍊 orange-got-juiced Follow

trophy just ran to the bathroom sobbing

27 notes

🌽 official-meeple-ceo Follow

greetings tumbler! i an steve cobs, C.E.O of the meeple company. i am looking to get in contact with a mephone! specifically mephone 4. (model 4s) any help is greatly appreciated!

🖌️ brushedpaint Follow

go back to twitter vro 💀

817 notes

⚾ thegrandslammer Follow

trying a healthier outlook on life!! i'll tell yall how it goes!!

⚾ thegrandslammer Follow

failed

⚾ thegrandslammer Follow

failed

⚾ thegrandslammer Follow

failed

8,270 notes

🪁 inanimateinsanityfan Follow

i miss egg :( i wonder where the other one the aliens mentioned went. i hope it found a parent that loves it as much as i loved egg. i mean i wasnt the best parent but uh you get what i mean

🌽 official-meeple-ceo Follow

😜

🪁 inanimateinsanityfan Follow

???????

🪁 inanimateinsanityfan Follow

??????????what??????????

#why is steve cobs on tumblr get off

15 notes

🕯 innerflamed Follow

i need a boyfriend except he's not a boyfriend and is just some weird british guy i drag around with me everywhere

1,393 notes

🍀fourleafluck Follow

diversity win!! corrupt capitalist CEO of multimillion dollar company steve cobs is bisexual!

🌽 official-meeple-ceo Follow

who informed you of this.

🍀fourleafluck Follow

I WAS??? JOKING??????

#GUYS??? #STEVE COBS GAY ICON??? #HOLY SHIT #IM SCREAMING ITS HIS OFFICIAL ACCOUNT ITS NOT A GIMMIC #meeple

23,105 notes

💡 brightestlight Follow

as a member of the lgbt we do not accept steve cobs

💡 brightestlight Follow

even when he changes the meeple logo to a rainbow during pride month we dont accept him

21 notes

☯ ringinginthenewyear Follow

☯ ringinginthenewyear Follow

just to clarify yang posted this not me -yin

57 notes

🥒 pickledposting Follow

steve cobs being bi and accidentally admitting to it on tumblr was not on my 2024 bingo card ???????

🌽 official-meeple-ceo Follow

you'll be first.

🥒 pickledposting Follow

what

29 notes

[j4gm]

SPOILERS!!! REFERENCES AND EASTER EGGS IN F&C ep. 2: SIMON PETRIKOV

Let me know if I missed anything!

First of all the title sequence is fucking cool. I don't want to speculate about the various things we see in it, like the apartment getting blown up or the Fern tree growing into its 1000+ version, because I'm sure the show will get round to all that!

The first scene was an awesome reintroduction to the post-apocalypse, showing us the dynamic between Simon and Marcy. The button popping off Marcy's dungarees was a reference to young Marcy's first appearance, Memory of a Memory, when she removed one of the buttons herself to fix Hambo's eye.

Simon was show playing a live set at Dirt Beer Guy's tavern in Obsidian. It seems they've gotten to know each other quite well over the past twelve years. Dirt Beer Guy asks Simon if he's read his new book draft, about a character called Joe Milkshake who was first mentioned in the episode Root Beer Guy.

Despite the fact we saw Jake in the trailers, Finn and T.V. pretty much confirm in this scene that Jake is dead, and has presumably been dead since before Obsidian. I guess Bronwyn wasn't the only Jake descendant who Finn took on as an apprentice, but T.V. doesn't seem all that into it. The Finn and Jake we saw in the trailer are likely from an alternate universe that we have yet to see.

Finn uses his weed whacker to cut through these bushes. A nice way of showing he's fully recovered from his Fern guilt. The focus here is very much on Simon's problems instead of Finn's.

Finn parts with Simon to go and visit Huntress Wizard. The nature of their relationship remains ambiguous and I expect it to stay that way.

Simon has the Island Lady from The Party's Over Isla de Señorita in his phone. I guess they reconnected after he became Simon again. He also has Abracadaniel. I always liked Ice King's friendship with Abracadaniel and the rest of the Order of Giuseppe so I hope they're still friends!

Cute Bubbline scene. Back in the episode Bonnibel Bubblegum, Mr. Creampuff suggested he and PB get matching tattoos. Now she's (trying to) do the same with the girl she's chosen rather than some guy who was chosen for her! Also Marceline is using the same phone she's been seen with in a few previous episodes, including Go With Me and Be Sweet.

I think the flying human city is called Up-Ton.

Choose Goose! He keeps coming back! And he's evil now! People were joking about him being the antagonist of Fionna and Cake after that weird post-credits scene in Wizard City and the fact he was in hell in Together Again. I wasn't expecting that to actually come true. Glob knows why he's hanging out in a cage in Simon's house.

The pattern of GOLB's eyes is reflected in Simon's glasses during the ritual. He is doing the same dance that Betty was doing to summon GOLB in the finale.

Among the objects in Simon's GOLB shrine are the Farmworld Enchiridion, the flying carpet that Simon stole from Ash and was later frequently used by Betty, the crocodile clips that Betty used for her magic rituals, two effigies of GOLB, and what looks to be the shell of the snail who was seen throughout the original series.

In this credits sequence, Fionna and cake are dreaming about the mask being worn by the bear than Finn slew, and a butterfly with a smiley face on it. Perhaps symbolising Finn?

Tune in next week for episodes 3 and 4!

[bratzkoo]

barely yours | mingyu pt. 4

Author: bratzkoo | navi Pairing: rockstar! mingyu x reader Word Count: 1.5k Genre: fluff, angst, smut-ish Rating: NC-17 Possible Warnings: written in third person.

Summary: you flirt, you fuck, but when you hint that you want to be more he dismissed it as if you’re joking… and when you decide to ignore him he comes back with flowers at your doorstep.

taglist (hit me up if you wanna be added): ​​@ca-clover, @junniesoleilkth , @gaslysainz , @darkerrdaze , @mansaaay , @childish-fear , @lixisoul99 , @cherrylovescheol , @yuyu1024 , @tacolombe , @black-swan-blog27 , @tulipndtale , @xuimhao , @cookiearmy

requests are open, but you can just say hi! | masterlist

The pulsing beat of HHT's latest single, "Shadow," reverberated through the stadium, drowning out the deafening roar of 50,000 fans. As the final chords faded away, Mingyu raised his guitar triumphantly, his chest heaving with exertion and adrenaline. The crowd's cheers reached a fever pitch as confetti rained down from above.

"Thank you, London!" Seungcheol's voice boomed through the speakers. "You've been an amazing audience! We are HHT, and we love you!"

As they took their final bow, Mingyu's eyes swept across the sea of light sticks and banners. Five years ago, he could never have imagined this level of success. HHT had gone from rising stars in the K-pop scene to a global phenomenon, selling out stadiums across the world and topping international charts.

The irony of their latest hit being named "Shadow" wasn't lost on Mingyu. The song, with its haunting melody and lyrics about chasing after something just out of reach, had resonated deeply with him during the writing process. Now, as he stood on stage, he couldn't help but think about the shadows in his own life – the lingering feelings and unresolved emotions that he'd never quite been able to shake.

Backstage, as the euphoria of the performance began to fade, Mingyu found himself in a familiar state of restlessness. He scrolled through his phone, barely registering the congratulatory messages and social media notifications.

"Looking for something specific?" Vernon's voice startled him. The younger man was grinning knowingly, a towel draped around his neck.

Mingyu locked his phone quickly, perhaps a bit too quickly. "Just checking the time. We have that afterparty, right?"

Vernon's grin widened. "Uh-huh. And it has nothing to do with a certain collection launch happening in Paris tonight?"

Mingyu felt heat rise to his cheeks. Was he that transparent? "I don't know what you're talking about," he mumbled, but he knew it was useless. Vernon had always been too perceptive for his own good.

"Sure, sure," Vernon chuckled, clapping Mingyu on the shoulder. "Just remember, we have a flight to catch tomorrow afternoon. Try not to stay up all night stalking social media, okay?"

As Vernon walked away, Mingyu sighed and unlocked his phone again. This time, he didn't pretend as he navigated to Instagram and searched for a familiar name: @YN_Beauty.

The latest post showed an elegantly decorated venue, champagne flutes and flowers artfully arranged around sleek packaging of skincare products. The caption read: "Tonight's the night! Can't wait to share our new 'Solène' collection with all of you. ✨ #YNBeauty #SolèneLaunch"

Mingyu's heart skipped a beat, then began racing. "Solène." The name hit him like a physical blow, memories flooding back of a night long ago, of whispered confessions and intimate moments.

He remembered tracing the delicate script on Y/N's hip, the tattoo hidden from the world but shared with him in a moment of vulnerability. "Solène," she had explained, her voice soft in the darkness of her bedroom. "It means 'sun' in French. A reminder to always seek the light, even in the darkest times."

Now, seeing that name splashed across Y/N's beauty campaign, Mingyu felt a complex mix of emotions. Pride at her success, nostalgia for their shared past, and an ache for what they had lost.

His thumb hovered over the like button, trembling slightly. After a moment's hesitation, he tapped it, watching the heart turn red. It was the first time he'd interacted with Y/N's social media in years.

Four years. It had been four years since he'd last seen Y/N in person. Four years since she'd left her position as HHT's manager to pursue her own dreams. They'd kept in touch at first – casual texts, the occasional phone call. But as both of their careers skyrocketed, those communications had become less and less frequent, until they'd stopped altogether.

Now, Y/N was a celebrity in her own right. Her beauty and skincare lines had taken the world by storm, and she had become a fixture at fashion weeks and high-profile events. She was a regular on magazine covers, her face gracing billboards in major cities around the globe. The girl who had once managed their schedules and scolded them for being late to practice was now a sophisticated socialite, moving in circles that sometimes felt worlds away from the music industry.

But "Solène"? What did it mean that she had chosen that name, so personal and intimate, for her new collection? Was it just a coincidence, or was Y/N sending a message? To him? To the world? Mingyu's mind raced with possibilities, each more unlikely than the last.

He found himself opening their old text thread, scrolling up to see their last exchange. It was from over a year ago – a simple "Happy Birthday" from him, and a "Thanks! Hope you're doing well" from her. How had they let things get so distant?

Mingyu's finger hovered over the keyboard. Should he message her? Congratulate her on the launch? Ask about the name?

"Mingyu! Car's waiting!" Wonwoo's voice snapped him out of his reverie.

Shaking off his tumultuous thoughts, Mingyu plastered on his best idol smile and made his way to the exit. He had an afterparty to attend, fans to meet, an image to maintain. But even as he posed for selfies and signed autographs, his mind remained fixed on a glittering event happening across the Channel, where a woman he'd never quite gotten over was celebrating a triumph that echoed with their shared past.

Meanwhile, in Paris, Y/N was in her element. The launch party for her newest skincare collection, "Solène," was in full swing. The who's who of the fashion and beauty world mingled in the opulent venue, the air filled with the delicate scent of her latest creations – a complex blend of fragrances that reminded her of late-night conversations and stolen moments backstage.

"Y/N, darling, this is absolutely divine," gushed a famous actress, sampling one of the new serums. "And the name! So intriguing. Is there a story behind it?"

Y/N's smile faltered for just a moment before she regained her composure. "Every product tells a story," she replied smoothly. "This one's about finding light in unexpected places."

As she made her rounds, shaking hands and accepting congratulations, Y/N couldn't help but feel a sense of surreality. How had the girl who once spent her days wrangling a bunch of rowdy K-pop idols become... this? A successful entrepreneur, a name brand, a socialite with an invitation to every A-list event?

Shaking off his tumultuous thoughts, Mingyu plastered on his best idol smile and made his way to the exit. He had an afterparty to attend, fans to meet, an image to maintain. But even as he posed for selfies and signed autographs, his mind remained fixed on a glittering event happening across the Channel, where a woman he'd never quite gotten over was celebrating a triumph that echoed with their shared past.

She excused herself for a moment, stepping out onto a balcony for a breath of fresh air. The Parisian night sparkled before her, the Eiffel Tower illuminated in the distance. Y/N closed her eyes, letting the cool breeze caress her face.

In moments like these, when the whirlwind of her life slowed for just a second, she often found her thoughts drifting to a certain tall, handsome guitarist. She wondered what Mingyu was doing right now. Was he on stage somewhere, sending thousands of fans into a frenzy with his soulful voice and killer riffs? Was he in the studio, crafting the next hit that would top charts worldwide?

Y/N pulled out her phone, giving in to the urge she'd been fighting all night. She opened Twitter, quickly finding HHT's official account. Their latest post showed the band on stage in London, confetti raining down as they took their final bow. Her eyes were drawn immediately to Mingyu, his face alight with the joy of performance.

A familiar ache bloomed in her chest. They'd promised to stay friends, to support each other as they grew. But somewhere along the way, daily texts had become weekly, then monthly, then... nothing. Their lives had taken them in different directions, their paths diverging more with each passing year.

"There you are!" Her assistant's voice startled Y/N out of her thoughts. "The CEO of Sephora wants to discuss potential exclusive distribution deals. Are you ready to go back in?"

Y/N took a deep breath, schooling her features into a polite smile. "Of course. Lead the way."

As she re-entered the party, slipping back into her role as the poised, successful businesswoman, Y/N couldn't quite shake thoughts of Mingyu from her mind. She absently touched her hip, where the "Solène" tattoo still rested, hidden beneath layers of designer fabric. She had worked hard for this life, this success. She should be happy, fulfilled.

So why did that one little word, now emblazoned on products around the world, make her feel more vulnerable than she had in years?

Little did Y/N know, halfway across Europe, Mingyu was asking himself the same question. As both of them went through the motions of their glamorous but separate lives, neither could shake the feeling that maybe, just maybe, it was time to bridge the gap that had grown between them.

But fate, it seemed, wasn't done with Mingyu and Y/N just yet.

[kindaasrikal]

The hate Misako receives is way to strong you guys need to relax with my girl 😭

Like whats with everyone hating Wu and Misako for making mistakes but then looking at Garmadon like ‘omg he’s the best parent! Best character! He didn’t mean to do it!’ Like please if you’re gonna hate the first two for their reasonable mistakes then you gotta hate Garmadon for his too.

Misako was just made into a single mum and had her family ripping to parts in a matter of seconds, we have no idea if Garmadon was banished before or after her pregnancy and personally i believe either way it would make sense why she would make such a mistake as leaving Lloyd.

‘But she could’ve left Lloyd with Wu!’ Thats a bad idea on its own because (and presuming that Morro left just a few years ago, so Misako and Garmadon know of him and what happened)

1) i doubt Wu would be prepared to look after a child after Morro having such a large effect on him (so Misako wouldn’t bring it up with him)

2) Misako AND Wu were grieving the loss of Garmadon, WU DID NOT MEAN TO SEND GARMADON-WHO WAS TRYING TO KILL HIM- TO THE UNDERWORLD.

3) Misako knows what effect the green ninja prophecy can have on a child after Morro, and whilst she definitely doesn’t blame Wu for what happened to Morro (its no ones and everyones fault), she can’t let the possibility of that happen to her baby.

and 4) she can’t have him hate Wu or Garmadon. Wu obviously visited Lloyd during his time in Darkleys cause both of them knew of each other and were familiar enough for Wu to casually scold him and Lloyd to insult Wu. Misako did not want her boy to hate either man and left him at a school that could guarantee that Garmadon is never hated either at such a young age.

Misako did leave and that was a bad choice on her part, but if the writers could manage it better you could have seen a great story based on a single mother in a difficult situation, and the mistakes she made throughout that. Like guys she spent ten years dedicating her LIFE to trying to find a solution to the final battle and the green ninja thing, she spent years thinking of Garmadon and LLOYD, SPECIFICALLY LLOYD, constantly. Misako is a mother who made a mistake, but is a mother who wholeheartedly loves Lloyd more than anything and anyone else.

She could’ve sent letters to Lloyd, but Garmadon could’ve visited Lloyd using the whole shadow powers thing. They both could’ve done so much more to be apart of Lloyd’s life but didn’t. Wu portrays a parent who was inexperienced with Morro, Misako and Garmadon portray parents who were inexperienced, unsure, in difficult positions, and could not handle the situation they were in appropriately. They all are people guys, adults are not all powerful and do not know what to do in the right moments, they are confused and they can be overwhelmed and they can make mistakes, and in this situation a lot of the mistakes had a negative affect on Lloyd, but even Lloyd understands that their situation was not a fair one.

I understand that they messed up big time, I’m not going to downplay that, but genuinely i think the reason everyone is STILL so mad at her specifically is because how poorly she was handled. They introduced her and then immediately victimised her despite the fact they could’ve pointed a view of a guilty mother who doesn’t know HOW to mother. They could’ve shown the actual closure Lloyd needed because I think we all need it too.

THEY DIDNT HANDLE MISAKO’S CHARACTER AND STORY RIGHT AND RUINED A CHARACTER THAT COULDVE BEEN SOOOOO GOOD BFFHDYDG

[jmdbjk]

Dear diary: day 613 on the couch...

Not really. It's only been 7 days. See what I did there? Actually, it has been exactly 7 days.

I'm about done with this covid crap but still at home out of "Abundance Of Caution."

And because I am a little stir-crazy/cabin-feverish, having seen everything on the internet twice and three times already and shit and having nothing left to do, I started rewatching Are You Sure?. Of course I did.

And as my now recovered brain would do when its not laying like a pile of grey jelly suffering from covid cooties, it is speeding through all the thoughts that are thotting up there. Damn it and them.

One in particular... that great pic of Tae and Manager-nim with JK photobombing in the background, supposedly taken in Hawaii, is the biggest thot thought of all. Not for the same reasons that others are celebrating the pic for. Redrum.

This one that Tae said he forgot about.

Tae posts pics of he and JK which supposedly was taken when he was in Hawaii and was apparently going skydiving and invited JK to come do it with him...very early 2023 by the look of JK's hair. So you're telling me Taehyung went skydiving... SUPPOSEDLY literally jumped out of an airplane from way up in the sky in Hawaii... yet in Jeju in late September of same year, he acted like he was too scared to jump onto a sandbag from a stationary platform 30 feet in the air in a controlled environment with a safety harness on... (side-eye).

Or did Tae chicken out at the last minute in Hawaii and not actually jump out of a plane? Will we ever know? Did JK fly all the way there to hold his hand and he still chickened out? It kind of looks like JK is having to convince Tae in the above pic. Don't back out on me now bruh, I flew 9 hours to do this shit, I'm doing it with or without you.

Pretty sure JK went through with it because during an interview last year, he said he's been skydiving, right? So if he did, SURELY someone caught that on camera? Will we EVER see it?

And if Tae DID jump out of that airplane too... please explain exactly WHO is doing the fan-service in Are You Sure?

In other news, I heard the cult was mad at JK because guess what? They finally actually watched original content (episode 4) thinking they'd see more of what they thought they saw in Ep. 3 and therefore hijack the show. Wrong. Original content is kryptonite to the cult. Surprised they didn't all melt into the ground like the wicked witch when they watched it.

I haven't seen anyone mention all the secret hand signs or codes that supposedly pass between Tae and JK. Duh. Because there is no such thing as secret hand signs and secret codes.

Except this one which isn't secret at all:

FYI, I think the pool moment when JK reminded JM the pool was transparent, I think Jimin was gonna yank JK's pants down. I think its one of their silly kinks when they are down to their skivvies. Which they were. Those two... I swear... can't take them anywhere.

And lastly, no excuse now for JK to not do that CK underwear ad... maybe he's already done it and it'll hit us when we least expect. The thoughts are thotting.

My brain would welcome any perfectly logical explanations to any of this.

[venusacrossthestars]

right person wrong time? wrong person, a fine time.

Pairing- Charles Leclerc x fem!reader

WC- 2.2k

warnings- angst, Charles is an ass, swearing(?) italics represent flashbacks

f1 masterlist

Its been a year, 3 months, 2 weeks, and 4 days since Charles broke your heart. Its been a year, 3 months, 2 weeks, and 4 days since you last saw him. Its been a year, 3 months, 2 weeks, and 4 days since he said, ‘its not you, its me.’ Its been a year, 3 months, 2 weeks, and 4 days and yet you can’t fall asleep without thinking what could have been. 

All the traveling and distance was considered to be a curse during your relationship, now you were considering it a blessing. Monaco wasn’t a large country by any means, its own popularity along with its neighboring countries came from  tourist, travelers, and summer home owners. Meaning it was the perfect place to blend in with the hundreds of passing faces. Here you were hoping to go unrecognized. 

The first two weeks of your five week vacation were going swimmingly. You and a couple friends rented out a villa. You all swam, ate good food, shopped, sun tanned, everything you could imagine of a great vacation. 

It was a Tuesday morning and you and your friends were sitting out on the patio at some brunch cafe that was quickly becoming your favorite spot in Monaco when your luck of being incognito had run out. 

“Y/N?” you hear a familiar voice call out, and judging by the reactions of your friends you know exactly who it is.

Turning around in your seat to look up at the caller, you are greeted with the unfortunate sight of your ex-boyfriend. 

“Charles?” 

“Wow, its really you,” he seems surprised. 

“Yup, in the flesh,” you chuckle out uncomfortably. You shoot a look ‘help what do I do’ at your friends. 

“What are you doing here?” 

“On vacation, trying to enjoy the slow season before the fall.” 

“Oh that’s nice.” 

“Yeah.” Neither of you say a word after that. Your friends attention split between you and your ex.

After a moment of silence it seems that Charles finally gets the memo that you would like to get back to brunch, “I’ll leave you be, hopefully I’ll see you around.” 

You don’t reply, why would you lie and say you hoped to see him too? After the way things ended you were seriously hoping to never see Charles Leclerc ever again. 

The past few weeks had been rocky, you knew that. Charles had been having a few couple of weeks. A DNF at his home race, a poor performing car, pressure from the fans. You understood it all to be frustrating. Your work hadn’t been easy either. Someone had split their coffee on your silk piece for your show, you had to spend a full 36 hours having to re-sew the entire thing by hand in order to make the deadline. 

All you wanted right now was to curl up in your boyfriends arms, watch crappy tv and eat even crappier food. But it didn’t seem like any of that was going to be happening with the ominous ‘we need to talk’ text you got from Charles around lunch time.

When you entered the apartment it felt cold, empty, and overall unwelcoming. All the lights were off expect for the ones in the kitchen and sitting at the island was Charles with his head in his hands.

“Babe,” you began as you walked closer, “is everything ok? Your text gave me a bit of a start.” 

Charles doesn't respond and you move to rest your hand on his shoulder, he flinches at the contact as if he is repulsed by your touch. 

“I want to break-up,” Charles states out of the blue. 

Time stops, you swear it. The clock that hangs on the wall doesn’t move nor make a sound, the dripping faucet doesn’t let a drop of water fall, the quiet humming of the air conditioner is absent. All is still, except your rapidly beating heart. 

“What?” you croak out. 

“Its not you, its me.” Charles simply states, back still turned to you. 

“I find that hard to believe when you won’t even look me in the eyes.” You scoff, you can’t believe what you’re hearing. 

Charles shoots out of his chair and faces you. His hands flying up in the air. “I want to break up!” 

A “why?” escapes you  pathetically.  

“Its not you, its me.” he repeats. “The distance, me traveling for my job, you traveling for yours. It’s all too much. I’m not, I can’t do a relationship right now. It’s all too much.” 

“Charles,we talked about this just say the words and I’ll drop it all for you. You know this.” You tell him, referring to your conversation from a few weeks back that how you would take less responsibilities at your job if he wanted you too. 

“I can’t- I can’t do that to you.” 

“Oh but you’ll throw a two year relationship away,” now your angry. He throws this at you out of the blue. No hints, no major changes in his behaviors, nothing. 

“Y/N-” he beings but you are quick to cut him off.

“No, I deserve an explanation as to why this all of the sudden ‘this’ isn’t working.” 

“Y/N” he tries again. 

“It was all fine, yeah we had a few bad weeks but we have a gap week coming and maybe if we just try and relax we can-” 

“Maybe its because I don’t love you!” Charles now interrupts you. “Maybe its because I never loved you.” 

“Well now you are just being mean,” you weren’t going to cry. Why would you? It wasn’t like the man you have given your all too for the past two year was breaking your heart or anything? If you weren’t going to cry then what was running down your cheeks. 

“It’s the truth.” 

“You’re an ass. Typically Charles behavior. Run when things go though or don’t go your way. Too high and mighty.” 

“You don’t know what its like to be me, you wouldn’t understand.” 

“Then explain it to me! I have begged and begged you to let me in and all you do is push me away.” 

“It’s not that simple.” 

“Then you’re right. Its not me, its you. Its always you.” 

“Get out.” 

“What so now your mad that I agree with you?” 

“Get out,” Charles says again. 

“Gladly.” 

Two days have passed since you saw Charles at brunch and as much as you wanted to say it was nothing, you couldn’t. Seeing Charles brought up memories that you didn’t necessarily want to think about while on vacation. 

Today everyone was off doing their own thing, so you had the great idea to wander along the beach. Well it was a great idea until you heard your name being called, once again by no one other than Charles. 

Stopping in your tracks you turn to face the man who claimed he never loved you. 

“Are you following me?” 

Charles looks take aback by the question, “no?” 

You hum and continue walking, Charles follows. 

“I wasn’t kidding when I say it was nice to see you the other day. Its been a while, hasn’t it.” 

“Yup.” Exactly-1 year, 3 months, 2 weeks, and now 6 days,  you think to yourself. 

“So how have you been, anything new?”

“Been good, headlining my own show. Collaborations, sketching up new designs, same old same old.” 

“I saw. Congrats.” 

“Thanks,” you curtly reply. “Anything new with you?” Ever since the break-up you avoided looking at anything Formula 1 related. You can tell by his reaction that he didn’t know that. 

“Well, car is good this year. Still a little early to tell but I’ve got a good feeling about this year.” 

“That’s nice.” 

“Can we talk?” 

“Is that not what we’re doing?” 

“Well, I guess. I mean I want to apologize.” 

This stops you, you really didn’t want to have this conversation right now. You really never wanted to have this conversation ever. You turn now fully facing Charles, squinting at him. 

“I’m sorry for that night. I didn’t mean what I told you. You didn’t deserve any of what I said.” 

“I didn’t.” 

“That’s all you have to say?” 

“And that’s all you have to offer as an apology, after all this time?” 

“Well I’m not perfect.” 

You scoff, “see that, that right there is how I know you aren’t sorry.” 

“I am. I still love you. I was an ass. I was stressed. It was all too much. I truly wasn’t in the mindset to be in a relationship. I wanted to be a good boyfriend.” 

“You wanted to be a good boyfriend?” You chuckle, “if you wanted to be a good boyfriend you would’ve told me what was going on.” 

“You could’ve been a better girlfriend.” 

Typical Charles, is all you can think to yourself. You are now seething, emotions that have been pushed down and down, now surfacing. 

“I was willing to work it out,” you point at your chest, “all of the problems I was willing to work through for you.  I was willing to ignore the hurtful words because I loved you. I would’ve left everything behind. All of it. If it meant being with you. So don’t tell me I could have been a ‘better girlfriend’, unbelievable.” 

“Right person, wrong time.” Charles said quietly. 

You actually laugh at his statement. Was he high? At the beginning you might’ve thought that too. You loved him so deeply that you were willing to over look his flaws. But that night, that faithful night when he ripped your heart out and ran it over with his Ferrari you realized that someone who loved you would never do what he did to you. 

“No Charles, you were the wrong person at a fine time. The right person would try to work out their problems. The right person would listen to their girlfriends concerns. The right person wouldn’t tell the person they love, that they simply never loved them. The right person wouldn’t ask another woman to marry him not even a year later. And yet you stand here claiming to still love me. You wanted to be a good boyfriend, how about you focus on being a good fiance.” 

A look of hurt flashed over Charles face and for a moment you almost felt bad for him. But he hadn’t felt bad when he broke your heart. He hadn’t felt bad when he said that he couldn’t do a relationship and travel. He held no remorse for you when not even a month later he was seen with another woman hanging off his arms. And you know for a fact that he held no remorse when 7 months later he was asking her to be his wife. 

Yes, Charles the same man who told you that he wasn’t ready for a relationship was engaged to another woman. The same woman he was seen with not even a full month after he broke your heart. At first you thought he was cheating on you, who wouldn’t jump to that conclusion. But as much as you hated Charles he did surprisingly had morals. He might’ve met her when with you but you knew, mostly due to his hectic schedule, that he wasn’t cheating on you. 

“Speaking of which, how is the wedding planning going. Its been how long since the two of you got engaged?” You ask. You know how long its been. You know you’re being petty. You know asking about the engagement is a low blow. You should be the bigger person but there is something about the way he is looking at you that fills you with rage and sadness. 

“That’s none of your business.” Charles crosses his arms over his chest defensively. 

“Well I would say this has been nice but lets not kid each other. Charles I do wish you the best with everything, but please, don’t ever talk to me again.” 

You are quick to turn away, you don’t want to hear another word from him. This vacation was meant to be peaceful. You were meant to blend in and have fun. The last thing in the world you were expecting was to run into your ex. 

The once beautiful country of Monaco had now been tainted by the unpleasant memories of a time past. And you knew that no matter how much you loved the atmosphere, the people, the culture that you would never be able to wash the memory of Charles away. Charles Leclerc has officially ruined Monaco for you. 

That night after you recounted the story to your friends over a crappy bottle of tequila, you went to bed and did something you haven’t done for a year, 3 months, 2 weeks, and 6 days, you googled ‘Charles Leclerc’ and the first thing that that popped up might’ve been a surprise to everyone, but not you. “Charles Leclerc and long-time fiancée mutually call off engagement”. 

And for the first time in a year, 3 months, 2 weeks, and 6 days you fell asleep not thinking of Charles Leclerc and what might’ve been.

taglist- crossed out names mean I could not tag you

@arieslost @astrostar24 @aneverythingwriter @maryseesthings @boiohboii @lexiestarkey @scaramou @anedpev @simplyscorpio @the-untamed-soul @stupendousrebeldreamer @lyana344 @moonlightem @itsbwokenln4 @a-daydreamers-day @barcelono @naturallyspontaneous @bunbun9396 @meredithmeiz @clowngirlsstuff @jordy-jor5 @charlesleclerx @loveyatopluto @lewisroscoelove @graciearnold1 @saiteliites @oliveswiftly @lover122 @dear-fifi @onecojg @martaaairwin1994-blog @bigchrisevansmarvelsoul @sittingalonereads @fuckmylifedudee @hanniesdawn @leonie-swift @havaneselover08 @homosexualjohnwayne @bjralph @naaanasworld @dannyramirezwife @mileeen-aa @futuristicherobailifflamp @boherahpsody

[bazoonga-bazinga]

watching tua s4 knowing fully how its going to disappoint me rn and something that keeps bothering me is just how awful it is that they dont show what happens during the 6 year time skip.

like in season 2 we get to see an abridged version of how everyone got to where they are. this allowed for me as viewer to at least undertsand the reasoning behind the siblings' actions and conflicts. but in season 4 there is just none of that.

instead we only get to see the after of the timeskip. Whatever bits we do hear abt the time in between are extremly limited because they are things that are told to us from biased/flawed/one-sided perspectives. I as a viewer do not get a clear idea of why any of the 8 charcters of the main cast change the way they do becuase i am never shown how this change ocurred. its more i am told things and have to accept because of the 6 year gap.

lila and diego's strained marriage is actually i think the only they showed without telling to an extent. but it still would have also been nice to see thier struggles transitioning to suburbia and would also aid me to better understand why neither of them tried to find an adequate balance in the 6 years. also like why is diego working as a delivery driver? in my mind it makes more sense for him to be a mediocre private investgator or something like that? idk just some more context behind the tension and thier decsions (especially lila dear god dont even get me started) would have been wonderful

viktor's journey to Canada and his distancing from the others sounded interesting and i would have loved to see that on screen. he clearly is unable to form long lasting intamate relationships and showing his life in the time gap would have been a great way to show his journey of accepting the loss of sissy.

allison was definitely hit hard by the lack of explanation. i understand the scheduling issues with raymond's actor but it truly was a heavy blow to season 3 allison actions when they just said he left with no other explanation. most of her conflicts in season 3 were motivated by the loss of claire and raymond and you are telling me she just lost 50% of that a year afterwards? and like this doesnt get mentioned until episode 3??

i actually enjoyed klaus's shift to a risk averse person and it did make sense to me after losing his immortality to become more aware of not only his but his loved ones mortality. the biggest glaring issue is the one everyone has talked about: the lack of dave. i think if they had shown klaus trying to find info on dave and/or even visiting his grave in the timeskip it would been fine with me that he wouldn't mention dave that much. but the dog tags being on screen and him not saying anything is actually inasne??? also it sounds like there was definitely more to his sobriety than what they have told sad that we didnt get to see that storyline....

everyone has said thier piece on how luther just mentioning sloane and then no other explanation is actually awful. like a simple flashback fo luther searching and finding sloane living a different life would have been better than them giving us nothing💀

ben i actually have nothing to say...it would have been silly to see the crypto scam ig. also an explanation of why they even showed the other ben the post credit of the s3 finale i think is warranted. like even a mention of yeah there is probably another ben who belongs to this universe walking around would have been okay ig

five oh where to even begin.... first of all how tf does a person who isnt even in thier 20s even get a gig at the cia. i know they said some bullahit abt five being a part of a relative young group/recruit (cant remember the exact wording) but like a person who is younger than 19 getting a job at the cia is a bit much. also i actually refuse to belive that five wouldn't have figured out his boss was part of the keepers there is just no way. after the handler and reggie i refuse to belive that five would lose his suspicion towards authority figures. i think the only authority figure he has ever listened to was the founder version of himself and even that took time. like if you want me to believe that bs then show me how five turned his brain into mush in the 6 year time skip. either that or show how me his loneliness in those six year because from what i have right now five worked at the cia and that is it nothing else. like from what i have been told by the show nothing else happended to him besides working. which if thier implication is that he was only working and drifted apart from his siblings that message was not clear enough to me as viewer and would have been alot clearer if i was shown such as thing.

[batboyblog]

Interesting thing to consider regarding our situation from Magdi Jacobs. She’s been fairly levelheaded so far about all this. The Pandemic really did change us all and how we perceive things.

The constant stressful vigilance we all needed during the pandemic is still in effect from that era, and that’s why there’s such a disconnect between what we see and feel as true:

https://x.com/magi_jay/status/1812531377184653581?s=46&t=9ilK5pqP73XDblTtTbb4Qg

I don't disagree with her, and I know for a fact she also agrees with what I have to say here:

Covid is part of it, maybe it is its own thing, maybe it super charged something that had been happening in slow-mo before

but I think algorithmic social media is breaking all our brains and Covid locked SO many of us inside with it for a year and a half or so where our only "human" contact was through social media and that was NOT helpful

There's lots of studies about social media and anxiety and depression, we know algorithms intentionally put stories/posts that upset you into your feed, we know that social media causes negative polarization.

speaking just of my own experience on twitter over the last two weeks it really challenges your sense of reality, twitter very quickly forms a group think about a current event and it becomes overwhelming, also it destroys any sense of time and prospective, so nothing is allowed to just be bad it has to be THE WORST THING EVER! and from the debate and now Trump's fist pump after getting shot at everything is NOW! the election is not 4 months away with all the events that will take over the news, people are voting just this second and only based on this news story rn! AAHHHH!!! !

by its short form nature twitter makes it feel as if people are having a conversation with you, but your ability to reply and question their statements is limited and I think that makes for extreme anxiety if the group think challenges your understanding of events/reality. So Joe Biden had a bad debate night, sounded bad, looked bad, he was a sick, jet lagged, overworked, old man and looked and sounded like all of that. Oh well, but the group think quickly shifted to "this is the worst thing ever, he clearly has dementia!" and you were bombarded by that over and over, in more and more shrill and condescending tones. And it became very stress inducing because people were seeing something you didn't see and insisting "don't believe your eyes and ears! believe my hot takes!" and you felt like you were losing your mind.

This is one current event but this happens on social media all the time, twitter is bad, TikTok is worse.

I also think for "younger" (under 40?) people raised on reality TV, and more so instagram, Facebook, now TikTok picture and video based social media there's a, life as reality TV show quality, an unspoken performance and need to make our lives seem perfect for an unseen (and not real) audience, and also to be seen as having the right views, but living in quick sand where liking or using anything could become a problem at any point and having to keep up endlessly. I also think this is intensely anxiety producing and also just debilitating, I don't think you can DO anything good in the world with that mindset

final thought: I've said for awhile I think why you see so many people declaring the economy is bad, regularly saying its historically, Great Depression levels bad, when it is in fact really good, as near to full employment as we've ever had lots of great economic indicators is left over Covid trauma.

We all went through a scary, sad, upsetting time in our lives. But because we ALL did if nothing happened to you particularly, you didn't get hospitalized, don't have long Covid, no one you're close with died and you couldn't be there for them, it might feel like "nothing" happened. So people are reaching for a "logical" reason for that edgy, sad, nervous, upset, unhappy feeling they can't get rid of. Normally that comes from economic anxiety, fear of not having enough money, or losing a job etc. So many people are reporting that they think the national economy is terrible while saying they think they themselves are doing well, that their local or state economy (that they see an interact with) is doing good, while the nation is doing bad, somehow. People are spending like they're doing well as well, never had it so good, never felt so bad.

I suspect its because we're all still dealing with Covid feelings, and thanks to social media, the death of common spaces, political radicalization, we never really came together and drew a line under Covid, it just kinda sputtered out and we slowly went back to our lives like nothing happened.

[fatuismooches]

Dw hahahaha I'm still alive just dying over ( why did I chose to study a PHD 😭 ) But im on a break from school so except so a lot more brainrot from me lmao, also sorry if this is jumbly kinda just put my words out there hahaha

I know we always talk about fragile reader during the illness but what about after? Fragile reader was plauged with this illness for hundreds of years so they deffinently adapted. Like typically when walking then would shuffle their feet a lot cause it took less energy so sometime they shuffle their feet and don't even realize. They didnt have the ability to do tasks such a pouring liquids into cups so whenever they're about to pour themselves a glass of water then to do collect themselves because what if their illness comes back? What if there dreaming and they'll suddenly drop everything. All of Zandik's work is reverted. So often times segments will just find reader staring intensely at a simple task. And of course they'll go comfort reader. Whilst they wish they could do it they know how much reader wants their autonomy back after such a restrictive few centuries.

But let not ignore the segments and Prime cause they've picked up a few habits also. They've gotten used to treating reader as fragile as glass so whenever they fall or trip post illness they freak out. It would require some comfort from reader to bring them back to earth and remember that reader is no longer ill. But you KNOW that they're pulling out every healing treatment they've got. They're all evil and sadistic doctors but for you they'll be good. <4

But regarding Zandik himself... Well he was so excited to finally have cured his lover that he completely forgot about the effects you'd suffer after. So when a few segments report of you not being completely free of your curse he's immediately trying to figure out how he can help you. He decides that the best thing to do is to be there for you. It typically is unusual to see the Doctor away from his work but now it's the norm for Il Doctors to be with his lover.

- Jellofish Anon

After being sick for so long, one would think you'd be ecstatic to finally be cured, to be free of the illness that plagued your body and life so much. And well, they were right, but the happiness still came with its anxieties. Change was never an easy thing, even when it was the good type. After dealing with this for so many years, you were bound to still be nervous about doing certain things. To not have the confidence in yourself to carry out the task. You worry that you'll mess up or fail and waste your time trying to do so and just end up making more of a problem for yourself and others. Even though you know that's illogical now, it's hard to get out of a mindset you've been stuck with for so long. Of course, your inner conflict doesn't go unnoticed by your lovers, and each segment would provide their own kind of comfort based on who they are, whether gruffly or soothingly, to give you the courage to take back your life.

You can't exactly blame Dottore and the segments for being overbearing, after all, they've witnessed your weak state for numerous centuries, and they've seen you hit your lowest many times too. They can't help but worry about their darling too. It's endearing at first but you have to hold them and help them realize that was the past you, the new you is someone different thanks to them. You can be strong and safe and independent without them now, even if it sort of makes them crazy knowing the situations you put yourself in now. Still, they observe you very much even when you least expect it.

Of course, the cure is not without its drawbacks - you still have to deal with the lingering effects of your illness sometimes. Which definitely aren't as bad as before, but they still serve to remind you of your old life. But you know that regardless of what the future may bring, you'll always have Dottore by your side to ease whatever pains you have.

(Dottore post-illness would be such a cutie. It's such a rewarding feeling, to see the one he loves no longer burdened and free to pursue what they want just like he does. He would sit and listen to all the stories you have for him each day, all the exciting things you can do now, the days of pain in the past. Of course, the segments would be extremely excited to finally have a worthy assistant - you - but there's only one of you after all. Unfortunately, they have to share, and bear the painful curse of having you to themselves once nearly every two weeks.)

(I've been planning to make this a full fic for like a year...)

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Forevermore

Happily Ever After, here we are. This is part 20 of 20... The End.

Tale of the Cursed Raven: Part 1 I Part 2I Part 3 I Part 4 I Part 5 I Part 6 I Part 7 I Part 8 | Part 9 I Part 10 I Part 11 I Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19

The Mostro Lounge after hours is a shadow of itself in the daytime. With the lights turned down and the area empty, it transforms from a classy jazz bar to a lonely cavern, twisting with strange shapes. The sea overlooks it, coloring the lounge a lonely deep blue.

A cackling laugh rings out.

“Ahahahahah!! Jade got stood up,” Floyd sputters, pounding a fist on a table. He has a glass of juice in hand, has been chugging shot after shot of it to power his giggles. "What a loser!!"

“Floyd, you’re being so rude,” Azul sighs—though he is fighting a smirk. “Perhaps Jade is simply not as desirable as he might believe he is. We cannot fault him for that."

Jade, sandwiched between his twin and his dorm leader, wears a tight smile. "I am glad to see you two are being so very supportive of me during my time of emotional crisis," he says sardonically. “Where would I be without you?”

His biting comment doesn't stop Floyd from downing another glass of juice, from letting loose another round of laughter.

"She finally got her back at ’cha ya after you pushed her around for so long," Floyd teases. But he’s not on her side—no, not with that malicious jeer on his face. He knows his brother too well. “Oh, she is so dead.”

“I’m don’t want to be held liable for whatever stunt you decide to pull next,” Azul adds, quick with the reminder, “so be reasonable with your revenge, will you?

“I make no promises,” Jade says lightly. “I am very hurt by the what transpired. There’s no telling how far I may be driven to act on account of a broken heart.”

“Broken heart!!” Floyd gasps. In all his 17 years, he has never heard his twin make a claim more ridiculous. “Jade? Hahahahah!! More like hurt pride."

"More tea?" Azul offers, readying a pot. "To fill your cup and your 'broken heart'."

"My, you're so cruel to poor little me. Shikushiku, I'm being bullied so," Jade laments, rubbing at fake tears. "... But yes, more tea would be lovely. I could make do with a warm drink after being hung out to dry in that cold, bitter night."

"It's spring. It's not that cold," Floyd jabs.

"Oh, let him be a drama queen and air it all out." The tea is poured and slid to Jade. "Better that he do this now than during work hours."

Knock, knock, knock!

"... Now who could that be?" Azul wonders. He raises his voice so that it reaches outside. "The Mostro Lounge is closed for the day. If you wish to dine at our establishment, please consider coming back tomorrow afternoon..."

The knocking persists, louder and faster.

Azul opens his mouth to reiterate his message--but Floyd gets up and stomps over, yanking the door open.

"Didn't 'cha hear Azul the first time?" the eel growls. "He said to scram, or-- Oh." He abruptly stops. The anger he wears slowly morphs into a sly grin. "Oooooooh."

"Floyd? Who is it?" Azul demands. Then he, too, stops. "... Jade, I think you have a visitor."

He peers up from the rim of his teacup.

There, peeking out from between Floyd and Azul, is a small girl in pigtails and a feathered shawl. A very, very familiar girl.

Jade sets his drink down and rises to his feet. "Miss Raven?"

His dorm leader glances at Floyd, seizing him by the arm. "Dear me! It seems I've forgotten to run some payroll calculations! I'll need your assistance with that, Floyd. Come, to my office."

"Eeeeh? But I wanna stick around and wa--"

"My office," Azul presses. His grip is a powerful vice on Floyd. "NOW."

The octopus drags his subordinate off. They disappear down a corridor, but Jade knows they’re lingering behind the wall, ears pressed to it. He tuts and shakes his head. At them, at the raven that has found its way to him.

“… Welcome to the Mostro Lounge,” Jade recites, bending onto a bow. He speaks as though reading from a script. “Bar or booth, and how big is your party?”

“Hello,” Raven replies curtly. “Booth is fine. It’s just me today.”

He smirks. “Just you?”

“Well—” she falters. “Technically two, but the other person in my party is already seated.”

“Two it is then.” Jade indicates the table he sits at, and the seat beside him.

Raven carefully slides into it, but keeps about a person’s worth of distance from him. He remains where he is, respecting that boundary.

“Ordinarily, we would require a filled out punch card for a private consultation,” Jade attempts at a joke. It’s as dry as a cracker.

“For Azul-san, yes.” She folds her arms. “But you’re the one I wanted to see, not him.”

“Oya?” There is a thread of delight in his voice.

“Look." Raven hesitates, but she forces herself to swallow her pride. "I will speak plainly. You... have wronged me in the past. Lied to me, manipulated me, all for your own gain. In short, you're awful. Terrible. Absolutely THE WORST."

He does not disagree, does not profess guilt. Only smiles patiently.

A breath. "However, I have made missteps as well. I realize that you have attempted to approach me to make amends, yet I never paid any mind to them. I was so fixated on my own hurt, I shut myself off from the world and refused to listen to the calls that came from beyond my tower.

"I built up those walls. I locked the exit and threw out the key. I tamed a dragon to guard my tower. It felt safer to keep that distance than to push against it."

She produces an envelope and lays it on the table. Pale blue, ripped open. To My Dearest Raven scrawled on it.

Jade's eyes glimmer with recognition.

"There's still too many things that need to be said. I don't think there's enough time to get through them. At this point, I fear even an apology would not be sufficient. So..." Raven clears her throat and sticks out her hand--the bandaged one. "Let’s turn a new page and start over.”

Jade's brows scrunch together. "Miss Raven, surely you do not intend to..."

"Hello! My name is... Raven Crowley," she loudly announces. Her introduction bounces off the glass wall, fills the empty chairs and crevices of the lounge. "I am a first-year student in Class 1-A. I look forward to working with you!"

Jade stares at her, stunned at her aplomb. A moment skips by, then he chuckles, slipping his hand into hers and shaking.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Raven. I am Jade Leech, second year in Class 2-E," he greets. "I also serve as the vice dorm leader of Octavinelle. Please do let me know if you are ever in need of any assistance. I would be more than happy to help you."

His hand, she notices, is far larger than hers. He could easily crush her poor fingers—but his touch is gentle, as if he is handling a glass slipper for a princess.

Her heart pounds.

She can’t do this, not again.

“I’m glad we were able to sort this out. Thank you for your understanding.” Raven grants him a papery smile. “Please give Azul-san and Floyd-san my regards, since they appear to be predisposed at the moment.”

She begins to retract her hand, and suddenly his grip hardens, assuming a strength she didn’t realize he is capable of. Pain lances through her nerves. Raven laughs anxiously.

“Erm… You can let go now?”

“I think not,” Jade insists. He has a predator's smile, the sharp ends of his teeth showing. "Is there anything else you wish to say to me, Miss Raven?"

"Th-That was all I wanted to say..."

"That is all? Have you anything to say for standing me up the other night?"

"N-No, I never intended for that to happen...! Something unexpected came up, so I couldn't make it as planned," Raven sputters, cheeks turning pink with shame.

"I was horribly hurt when you never appeared." Jade frowns, sorrow causing his voice to tremble. "You toyed with my feelings so cruelly. I can find it in myself to forgive you, should you look me in the eye and provide an apology."

"O-Okay, if that's what it takes to make you feel better and set things right..."

With great effort, she forces herself to stare at him. At Jade Leech. He's still every bit as handsome as he was before. A straight nose, wistful lips, clever cat-like eyes that slant up--not matching.

A beautiful liar.

A flurry of complicated feelings swarms her.

She visibly shakes.

"What is wrong, Miss Raven? You are looking at me with such a fearful gaze. Yes, the very same fearful gaze from our very first meeting."

His left eye--golden--shines eerily. When he talks it is low and hypnotic. Raven cannot find it in herself to tear away from them.

“Don’t be afraid. I want to help you.

"Shock the Heart.” 

“Eh…”

The light drains from her eyes.

Jade’s voice turns stern as he brings his face close to hers. “I will ask you a question, and you will answer honestly. Miss Raven, what exactly are your feelings towards me? Please state them very clearly and with your entire chest.”

Magic forces itself like a fisted arm down her throat. A harsh grip on her tongue, dredging up all the words she so often buries deep down. Her entire mouth feels like it is on fire.

“I-I…!”

Three words, eight letters.

They tumble so effortlessly from her.

The world stands still. It’s as though it, too, is in disbelief, freezing in its rotation to gasp.

No light. No sparkles. No poof.

But now she almost wants to go poof.

Raven goes from pink to scarlet. She covers her mouth with both hands and curls into a ball in the booth.

"Whoa, she said it--Black Pearly really, really said it," Floyd cries, poking his head out from his hiding place. “About time!!”

“F-Floyd…!” Azul hisses, appearing shortly after him. He pushes his glasses up. “T-To be clear, we were not eavesdropping! Not at all!! We just happened to finish our task and were returning to check up on you two.”

“Tsk, tsk… How naughty of you to interrupt this intimate moment between myself and Miss Raven.” Jade sounds disappointed, but he is grinning from ear to ear. “Fufufu, thank you for satisfying my curiosity.”

“Y-You…!!” Her voice revs up, squeaky as a dog’s chew toy. “You CHEATED!! You made me say something I wasn’t yet ready for…!”

“Oya?” He does not look the least bit apologetic about it. “What does it matter if I used less than conventional methods to arrive at the answer? In the end, the same results were achieved much more efficiently. And, on top of that…”

He reaches out and prods the tip of her nose.

“… I was able to see this charming reaction.”

“AHHHHHHHH, don’t remind me…!” Raven hides her burning face in her knees.

“Fufufufu. How adorable.”

Azul coughs stiffly, reminding them of his presence. “I think you fail to see the benefit of this move, Raven-san. It’s very benevolent of him.”

“What benefit?! Th-There is NOTHING beneficial about this situation unless you count Jade getting a sick kick out of this!!”

“My, that’s rather unkind of you to say. Amusing as it is, no. There is a real, tangible boon for you.” Azul taps at his temples. “Jade’s unique magic. Because he has used it on you once, he can no longer do so in the future.”

Her flaring temper cools for a few flickering seconds.

“Oh…”

He’s right.

Jade’s lip curls. “There. Isn’t that a weight off of your shoulders? Consider this my gift to you—reassurance that I will not be able to use Shock the Heart to pry other information out of you. As for what other underhanded tactics I may use… Fufu, well, I’m certain you can rely on your own best judgment to determine the truths and the lies.”

Raven glares at him. “You really are the worst.”

“Why, thank you.”

She angrily buries herself back in her knees. Jade looms over her, stroking her head and quietly fussing.

“Soooo…” Floyd scratches the back of his head. “Does this mean you guys’re gonna be a thing now? Like… a couple? You gonna make good-good eyes and make out now?”

“No way,” comes Raven’s muffled reply.

“Whaaat? But you basically confessed already. Quit bein’ stubborn.”

“I-It’s not stubbornness. I don’t feel like I’m… r-ready for that kind of a commitment!” Raven draws nervous circles on the booth cushions. “I’m still a newborn chick when it comes to m-matters of the heart… It’s embarrassing!!”

She takes a deep breath, then whispers, “B-Besides, I’m working on myself so I can be someone worthy of a love like that…”

“Bo~ring!” Floyd pouts, then turns to his twin with a much brighter tone. “Ne, ne, Jade~ Are you and Black Pearly gonna be together?”

“Don’t ask him just because you didn’t like my answer!!”

“Raven-san is correct,” Azul points out. “A couple it is not unless those involved mutually agree to the arrangement. Jade may say yes, but Raven-san may say no… thus annulling the terms.”

“Oh dear, what a predicament we find ourselves in.” Jade sighs, and he almost sounds tired. “There’s no helping it, I suppose. We must respect Miss Raven’s wishes. That is fine. As I said in my letter, a little black birdie once told me that I can be very patient. However, until the time comes when you feel you are ready to be fully embraced…”

She locks up.

Warm breath caresses her ear.

“How does this part go again?” Jade muses. “Ah, yes... And they lived happily ever after… The end.”

His mouth gently presses to her forehead. Soft, sweet, and smelling of the sea and the sky.

“W-What… a-awawawawah…” Raven goes from red to burgundy. Her ability to form sentences spirals downward.

“Oya, you’re quite flustered~”

“Wooow, they’re bein’ so mushy, Azul.” Floyd openly grimaces. “It’s kinda… gross.”

"Indeed, they are—and in front of onlookers.” Their dorm leader shrugs. “Shameless as it is, I do so love a happy ending.”

And it will remain as such, forevermore.

[cherryrainn]

OMG HIII!! I see you write for KISS now. I lit hit the jackpot with your page omgg..

My request is Ace Frehley x Reader who is Pauls younger sister? Like Paul is super overprotective of her and yeah do as you wish with that.

SECRET .

; pairing ; ace frehley x reader

; note ; i'm so happy i love these all 4 of these sillies so much i love you anon

; warnings ; none

paul’s overprotective nature kicked in as he introduced you to the band – his closest friends.

ace, with his signature grin, was the first to speak up.

"hey there, little sis. paul's been keepin' you a secret," he said, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

paul shot ace a warning look. "ace, this is y/n. my sister. and she’s off limits, got it? and that goes for both of you too." he said looking over at gene and peter.

ace raised his hands in mock surrender. "alright, alright. sister is off-limits, i hear you loud and clear."

after that, surprisingly, they respected his wishes. and from that day forward, the band welcomed you like an honorary member.

as the years rolled by, your friendship with the band, especially ace, got a lot deeper, and the once-clear lines of "off-limits" became a really blurry mix. late-night parties turned into lingering glances, and inside jokes became a secret language only the two of you understood.

one day, during a rehearsal break, you found yourself sitting next to ace. he leaned in, a sly grin playing on his lips. "y'know, y/n, if i didn't know any better, i'd say you're flirting with me."

you shot back with a playful smirk. "flirting? me? never. must be your imagination."

ace chuckled, his eyes lingering on yours. "imagination, huh? well, it's either that or you're developin' a serious crush on the spaceman."

you nudged him playfully. "please, ace, i think you've been spending too much time with those guitars. they're warping your sense of reality."

he leaned in closer, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "or maybe," he whispered, "reality’s finally catching up with the both of us."

a sudden throat-clearing sound broke the intimate moment. both you and ace turned to find gene and peter standing behind you, wearing knowing smirks.

"well, well, well," gene said, a wicked grin on his face. "looks like the lovebirds are finally figuring it out."

peter joined in, chuckling. "about time. we've been placing bets on when you two would stop dancin' around each other."

you shot ace a look of disbelief, and he just shrugged, a sheepish grin playing on his lips. "guess the secret's out, huh?"

gene raised an eyebrow. "oh, please. we've known for ages. paul, on the other hand, is a bit slow on the uptake."

peter nodded in agreement. "he's been clueless about the whole thing. you might wanna break the news to him, ace."

ace scratched his head, looking a bit guilty. "yeah, about that..."

gene and peter erupted into a chorus of exaggerated groans and mock complaints. "oh, great. just what we needed," gene lamented, rolling his eyes dramatically.

peter chimed in with a mock whine. "seriously, we're gonna need a whole new set of rules for this. 'off-limits' my ass."

you exchanged amused glances with ace as the duo continued their exaggerated complaints, their reactions more akin to little boys than seasoned rockstars.

ace raised his hands in mock surrender. "alright, alright, settle down. it's not like we planned this."

gene shot ace a deadpan look. "not planned? with those looks you've been giving each other, it's like a soap opera around here."

peter added, "next thing ya know, we'll be playin' at weddings instead a' concerts."

as the banter reached its peak, the door creaked open, and in walked paul, looking as stern as ever. the room fell silent as everyone turned their attention to him.

for a moment, paul just stood there, a confused expression on his face, scanning the room with a raised eyebrow. gene opened his mouth to say something, but before a single word escaped, peter delivered a swift punch to his arm, shutting him up instantly.

paul walked around the couch slowly, eyeing each of you with a piercing gaze, but still pretty confused. the tension in the room was palpable as he approached, his eyes locking onto ace and you.

without a word, paul continued to stare for what felt like an eternity. the room was filled with an awkward silence as paul made his way towards the door behind you guys.

as he exited and closed the door, the silence exploded into something else. gene and peter immediately started throwing hurling insults at each other.

"what the fuck, paul's gonna kill us!"

"did you see the look on his face?"

"fuck you!"

"what!?"

ace shot a glare at the duo. "you couldn't keep it together for two minutes, could you?" he grumbled.

peter shot back, "well, maybe if someone knew how t' control his fuckin' hormones!"

gene chimed in, "yeah, ace, keep it in your pants."

ace shot back, "at least i have hormones. there's no sign of any in your pants!" ace laughed, and peter joined in

"you guys are unbelievable," you sighed, shaking your head at the absurdity of the situation. "paul doesn't even know what's going on, and you're acting like a bunch of teenagers caught doing something they shouldn't."

gene scoffed. "you think he won't find out? he's got a sixth sense for these things."

"no he doesn-"

ace cut you off. "well, if he didn't know before, he sure as hell knows now. thanks, guys."

peter rolled his eyes. "was bound to happen sooner or later."

as time went on, your relationship with ace continued to progress. you managed to keep it a secret from paul, and surprisingly, peter and gene were respectful of your privacy.

one evening, as you and ace snuck from the band's after-party to have a moment on the rooftop, peter casually approached, pretending to be absorbed in his drumsticks.

peter smirked, glancing up from the sticks. "enjoyin' the view up here?"

ace chuckled, throwing an arm around your shoulder. "yeah, it's not bad."

peter raised an eyebrow, his eyes flickering between the two of you. "so, how long has this been goin' on anyway? like when'd you guys become official?"

you shot him a skeptical look. "you knew about us actually getting together?"

peter grinned. "of course, we fuckin' knew. we're not blind, y'know."

ace added with a smirk, "apparently, gene n' peter are still runnin' a betting pool on when paul would finally catch on."

you rolled your eyes. "figures."

peter leaned against the rooftop railing, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "you guys betta' be careful. if paul finds out, he might lecture ace on the dos and don'ts of dating his sister."

ace laughed. "i can handle paul. besides, he's still clueless. we've been.. discreet."

gene appeared out of nowhere, joining the conversation with a smirk. "discreet, my ass."

gene's comment was met with a collective eye roll from both you and ace. "yeah, yeah, laugh it up." ace retorted, waving him off.

peter added, "he's just jealous he's not parta' the love story."

the rooftop banter with gene and peter had lightened the mood, and the two troublemakers left you and ace alone under the night sky. as they vanished from sight, ace turned to you with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"well, that was interesting," he said, a playful grin on his face.

you laughed, shaking your head. "yup. those two are something else."

ace leaned in, his lips close to your ear. "you know what would be even more interesting?"

you raised an eyebrow, a smirk playing on your lips. "enlighten me."

without another word, ace closed the gap between you, his lips meeting yours in a soft, lingering kiss. the world around you seemed to fade as the rooftop became an intimate space just for the two of you.

when you pulled away, the grin on ace's face told you everything you needed to know. "now, that was interesting," he said.

you chuckled, your fingers tracing the contours of his face. "very interesting."

the tender moment between you and ace was abruptly interrupted by the sound of a slamming door. both of you turned to see paul standing there, a furious expression etched on his face. the atmosphere shifted from sweet to tense in an instant.

"paul," ace began, attempting to defuse the situation, but paul held up a hand, cutting him off.

"don't.," paul seethed. "you thought i wouldn't find out?"

ace glanced at you briefly, then back at paul. "did gene and peter tell you?"

"what!?" paul's eyes widened in disbelief. "gene and peter knew? and they didn't tell me? what?"

you couldn't help but interject, frustration creeping into your voice. "why are you so mad? i'm an adult, and i can do whatever i want. it's not hurting me or anyone."

paul's anger seemed to waver as he looked at you, realizing the truth in your words. he took a deep breath and sighed, the tension in the palpable.

"i can't believe they knew and didn't say anything," paul muttered, his initial fury giving way to a sense of betrayal.

ace put a hand on paul's shoulder. "look, it wasn't their secret to share. we wanted to tell you when the time was right."

paul turned to ace, a mix of frustration and curiosity in his eyes. "so, when did this happen? how long have you two been… you know?"

ace grinned, sensing a change in paul's tone. "well, it's been a while, but we were tryna figure out the best way t' tell ya."

paul's expression softened. "you two? really?"

you nodded, a small smile forming. "yeah. he's been my best friend for so long, and we just realized that we care about each other in a different way."

paul's initial frustration gave way to a subtle grin. "ace, you sneaky son of a bitch. of all the people, it had to be you."

ace chuckled. "yeah, well, you know me."

paul laughed, shaking his head. "can't believe I didn't see this coming."

you playfully nudged paul. "surprise! now, are you okay with this?"

paul looked at both of you, a genuine smile on his face. "honestly, i'm sorta relieved. at least it's ace. i'd rather have my best friend dating my sister than some random guy. just promise me you'll take care of her, okay?"

ace gave him a mock salute. "you got it."

paul clapped ace on the shoulder. "alright, okay. now, go be happy or whatever."

[fourthwingfanclub]

Violets Second Signet **Spoiler Warning**

Ok, after a long time thinking about this, and reading Iron Flame 4 times I think I am ready to theorize my idea for Violets second signet.

Let's start by summarizing what we know.

I have seen that some people have speculated that her signet is Distance wielder because she asked Xaden if that was his. While I don't think that was just brought up without a purpose, I don't think that would be her signet. (I think Aaric might end up being that).

I also think Violet's signet is going to be something that either we have never seen before, or very rare. This power comes from Andarna, she's a special breed of Dragon that has been basically extinct for 650 years.

Signets are based on the rider, and what they need most at their core. Violet needs information, Facts.

It is also mentioned many times that Violet has a mind of a scribe and the heart of a rider. I think this is important, more important than we know yet.

I think Violet can process events and information in slow motion. I think she can see everything around her happening, giving her time to process and record the events within her mind. While this doesn't seem significant, to Violet its everything. There are a few events that's stood out to me that made me think this.

First, when she reviews what Aiofe wrote and admits she missed some things. Also, Jesinia mentions that stories can change depending on who is transcribing them. Violet is mad about the amount of information that has been forgotten or changed due to scribes hiding the Venin from Navarre. She would want to recount everything correctly.

“Absolutely.” I nod, then take the notebook and skim Aoife’s neat handwriting. It’s amazingly accurate, with little details I’d missed, like the two infantry cadets who’d offered to be the healers’ aides because that’s their job for the squad. They have designated roles for each mission. I set it down on top of the book I’m returning to sign. “This is incredible.” “Glad to hear it’s accurate.” She glances over her shoulder, as if checking to see if we’re alone, which we are. “The tricky thing is to capture the truth and not just an interpretation. Stories can change depending on who tells them.”

Yarros, Rebecca. Iron Flame (The Empyrean Book 2) (p. 224). Entangled Publishing, LLC. Kindle Edition.

Second, the way some of the events and wording were portrayed made me suspicious that these were written a specific way. They were very detailed catching events that were happening in seconds or described as happening in slow motion. I think we see some clues to this being her signet once we get to Part 2 of the book and Andarna is awake and Channeling. We know Violets first signet showed up right after she started channeling with Tairn (that first kiss with Xaden), so it would make sense that she could have been showing signs of her second signet without realizing it. I don't think she was fully able to wield until the final battle though. My reasoning for this is if she was, even if she was unaware, Tairn would have sensed her pulling power from another source and wielding. If he did during the battle, we won't know that until the 3rd book since we don't get much info on events once battle has ended.

Examples of her signet showing up prior to final battle as follows...

Time slows to sluggish heartbeats as I watch him reach for the ground.

Yarros, Rebecca. Iron Flame (The Empyrean Book 2) (p. 567). Entangled Publishing, LLC. Kindle Edition.

Everything somehow slows and yet happens at once.

Yarros, Rebecca. Iron Flame (The Empyrean Book 2) (p. 597). Entangled Publishing, LLC. Kindle Edition.

Time slows to heartbeats, my breath freezing in my heated chest. Then the wyvern crosses the invisible barrier, and my heart stops beating altogether as its wings flap once. Twice.

Yarros, Rebecca. Iron Flame (The Empyrean Book 2) (p. 745). Entangled Publishing, LLC. Kindle Edition.

During the battle, two events really stood out - when Violet was waiting for the Venin to come upon them and worried about her friends. She says they have 10 seconds maybe. It is then described in detail all the events taking place a second at a time. Shes following this dagger being repaired while simultaneously aware of everything and everyone around her. She is able to gather copious amounts of information in a short, small amount of time.

One. Ridoc waves his hands at my right, holding a dagger that’s been snapped in two. Shit, if his only remaining blade is broken—I blink when the pieces disappear. He wasn’t waving at me. Two. Snapping my head to the left, I find the pieces already in Rhiannon’s hands as Feirge dives to where Sliseag hovers beneath. Three. Feirge flies alongside Sliseag, and Rhiannon tosses the pieces. Four. To Sawyer’s credit, he catches them. Five. Sgaeyl rises to take Feirge’s place, and I lock eyes with Xaden only long enough to see that he’s unharmed. Blood both drips from Sgaeyl’s mouth and runs in rain-driven rivulets down the side of Xaden’s face, but I instinctively know it’s not his and focus on the imminent threat. Six. Breathe. I have to breathe through the firestorm in my chest or I’ll burn out. It’s not that I don’t recognize the signs: the trembling, the heat, the fatigue. It’s just that they don’t matter. Everyone I love is on this field. Seven. They’re almost on us, and I look down at the ward chamber, where Marbh stands watch with a Blue Clubtail I don’t recognize and a vague shape I hope is Andarna, and when a flash of sunlight reflects on the dagger in Sawyer’s hand, it disappears again, Feirge already on the move. Eight. “Dajalair is frustrated by the unflyable conditions,” Tairn relays as Feirge rises alongside Aotrom. Nine. “Tell them they’re more efficient guarding the courtyard and incoming wounded than struggling with waterlogged wings,” I note. “They’d be a liability up here right now, not an asset.” The dagger changes hands, and Ridoc is once again armed. I grin at how seamlessly we work as a team, then face the coming tidal wave. Ten. “You’re beginning to think—” Tairn starts. “Like Brennan?” I suggest as the wyvern enter our airspace. “Like Tairn,” Sgaeyl answers,

Yarros, Rebecca. Iron Flame (The Empyrean Book 2) (pp. 827-828). Entangled Publishing, LLC. Kindle Edition.

The last scene that made me think this was when Sawyer and Aotrom was being attacked by multiple wyverns. Violet is able to assess the situation, gather the information, which gave her the opportunity to save her friends. I think this speaks directly to the battle at Resson, her world had been so turned upside down with the realization that everything she knew was false she was unable to fully piece together the information she did know about how wyvern is made from Venin, she feels responsible for Liam.

We’re almost there, but everything happens so fucking fast that it’s as if the rest of the world slows down. In one heartbeat, the closest wyvern opens its jaws. In the second, it blasts green fire across Sliseag and Sawyer dives backward out of the seat, narrowly avoiding being burned to death and rolling down Sliseag’s spine with a smoking boot. In the third, it completes its assault, snapping at Sliseag’s exposed side. Sawyer kicks at the gaping jaws to save his dragon from the bite, but in the next, he takes it himself, his leg disappearing between the wyvern’s massive teeth.

Yarros, Rebecca. Iron Flame (The Empyrean Book 2) (p. 833). Entangled Publishing, LLC. Kindle Edition.

With that I leave you with this blurb from Xaden

“You have to find your center again, Violet. I can’t do it for you.” He holds my gaze, letting his words sink in, before adding, “You are a creature of logic and facts, and everything you know got turned upside down and shaken. You’ll never know how truly sorry I am for that. But you can’t just sit there and hope. You want it to change, then you have to figure it out, just like Gauntlet. You’re the only one who can.”

Yarros, Rebecca. Iron Flame (The Empyrean Book 2) (p. 663). Entangled Publishing, LLC. Kindle Edition.

[thecarnivorousmuffinmeta]

Do you think the Statue of Secrecy in the Harry Potter books should be broken?

I mean, that's an interesting question, and not one I'm sure I (or anyone else for that matter) is qualified to answer. It's sort of like asking "should a large and fundamental part of a culture change". It can change, and there'd be fallout from that, and the result would be something entirely different.

What I will say is the statute of secrecy, at least as we see it in Britain, sets up a potentially dangerous state of affairs for a civilization and especially one that is insistent on remaining ignorant of its neighbors.

There's a technical term for this that I'm completely forgetting at the moment but the idea is that if you have an extremely small civilization, in which there is also extreme isolation, then that civilization's technology not only tends not to progress but also regresses. This is a matter of population and knowledge being lost (you don't necessarily have 1-1 replacement for skills and techniques to retain what the civilization knows) and difficulty in innovating for similar reasons.

Now, wizarding Britain isn't quite this, and that's because we have Half-bloods and Muggle-borns. The population is ridiculously small, with Harry's class in Hogwarts being around ~30 total and no matter how JKR tries to convince me there's thousands at Hogwarts we only seem to see 100s if we're being generous, and the "pure" wizarding families being even smaller (~30 families many of which have died out). But we also get a few Muggle-borns every year and we get Half-bloods from magical people marrying Muggles either directly or those who came from Muggles two generations or less ago. We see technology transferred in from the Muggle world and accepted at large in the train for the Hogwarts Express, the Knight Bus, cameras, and radios.

There is technological transfer as well as some diversity in genetics.

The problem comes in that the wizarding world by isolating itself is incredibly vulnerable to diseases (dragon pox is noted as basically having wiped out Harry's grandparent's generation) and conflict (Voldemort's responsible for the ending of several cornerstone family lines). One bad famine, war, and epidemic could end the wizarding world the way it is now.

As it is, they may already be at a breaking point and not realize it, if enough of the families died out. (The Weasleys can't supply 3/4 of the population and you have to have someone there already to teach Muggle-borns magic in the first place).

There's also the issue that by isolating themselves so strictly the wizards have no idea how Muggles work or the state of the Muggle world. Arthur is painted as the best we see and he's offensively bad, it's a common gag how little he understands about the Muggle world as a Pureblood wizard. While people like Hermione and Harry are better, they also stopped their Muggle schooling at 11 and both spend as much time in the wizarding world as they can even during the few times they're sent back to the Muggle world. This is especially dangerous as Harry and Hermione think they understand the Muggle world extremely well, and while they're better than Ron, they're not the same as someone who is a Muggle, especially after they become adult wizards and have no reason to interact with the Muggle world anymore.

So we get a superficial understanding of Muggle technology (they know certain things exist, especially obvious physical devices, but their solution to making them work is to enchant them to float and they think they've got it) and basically 0 understanding of anything else.

We do see some crossover in that the Prime Minister has a direct line to the Minister of Magic, but we also see that it's a "you don't call us, we'll call you" type relationship in that the Prime Minister has been trying for ages to figure out what the fuck is going on when Fudge and Scrigemore finally show up and go "Oh, yeah, there's a changeover and we have a terrorist back who's going to fuck your shit up. Sorry". It's very clearly a position meant to shut the Muggles up and have their aid when the wizarding world needs something from them, not the other way around, which is bad relations (seen in canon, the PM was not a fan) and also makes it clear that the wizards don't care what the Muggles do or what they're up to so long as they do it off their lawn.

And that means... well, things could get spicy without the wizarding world having any means of warning.

Not to mention, of course, that it's barely being kept in place. We have canonical villages of obliviated people who act a little funny in the head because the wizards didn't want to move/wanted to feel progressive by living with Muggles. We have Harry alone causing a number of incidents such as flying a car over half the country with the obliviators then having to obliviate said half of the country. We have Muggle-borns popping up with the Ministry seeming to have no means of keeping track of them without the Hogwarts letter. We have a complete lack of understanding of recent Muggle technology (guys, a very small percentage of people actually understand how computers work, how information is stored, how it's replicated across the web, don't tell me that someone with a primary education up to age 11 understands all the nuance of computers. You may get one or two, but it's not going to be many and they're probably not going to have Ministry jobs because they're going to probably be Muggle-born and maybe, maybe, Half-blood).

So, basically, I think the statute of secrecy is unsustainable. They're rolling dice keeping it in place and one of those days they're going to roll for something that will not allow it to hold.

Does that mean it should be torn down?

Again, that's that "should" thing we got into at first, things would change, it'd get very messy and very ugly, but it's a change and not something I can really ascribe morality to one way or another. It just is.

[thetruthwilloutsworld]

If anyone knows a thing or two about sex scenes, it’s Sam Heughan. Over the past decade, the 43-year-old Scottish star of Outlander, the cult-hit historical drama, has filmed hours of notoriously raunchy footage in his role as Jamie Fraser, the dashing 18th-­century Highland rebel, with his wife, Claire – a time-traveller from the 20th century, played by ­Caitríona Balfe.

Yet two years ago, Heughan, as one of the executive producers (with Balfe), introduced an intimacy co-ordinator to choreograph such scenes, which had been criticised by many as excessively violent.

“The industry’s completely changed since Outlander started,” Heughan says, sitting in a Soho bar on a visit to London from his home outside Glasgow. “Not just our show but also shows like Game of Thrones were very graphic, with no room for the imagination, in a way that’s quite jarring now. As young, keen actors, we were just expected to get naked and go at it. Caitríona and I formed a bond and trusted each other, but there were times when we were pushed too far.” He was especially troubled by a scene involving full-frontal nudity in ­season one, when Jamie was tortured and raped by his rival, Black Jack Randall (Tobias Menzies). “That really didn’t sit well.”

Everything changed following the MeToo scandal, leading ­Heughan to employ Vanessa Coffey to choreograph the sex scenes. “So now everyone knows what the boundaries are, like in a football or rugby match. It’s been so helpful and freeing, and it was because I didn’t want younger actors to go through what we’d gone through. Now, the scenes are sexually charged, but not gratuitous.”

Despite his heartthrob status, Heughan – who’s 6ft 2in, with the strapping physique his role necess­i­tates – is modest and thoughtful company. He also had Coffey enlisted to co-ordinate his latest pro­ject, Channel 4’s erotic thriller The Couple Next Door, filmed during the short break between Outlander’s seasons nine and 10, in which he plays Danny, a policeman living in a Leeds suburb in an open marriage with Becka (Jessica De Gouw).

“We didn’t want to make a salacious or seedy show about swingers,” Heughan says. “It’s about the psychology behind it – what is it to be in an open relationship where two characters love each other so much that they can invite people into that relationship? I think it’s possibly the greatest form of romance to allow your partner this, if it’s the itch they need to scratch. My character struggles with it.

The couple’s (initially) strait-laced neighbours are played by Alfred Enoch and Eleanor Tom­linson, who in 2019 finished five seasons as Demelza in Poldark. With Outlander about to start ­filming its final season, she and Heughan compared notes on moving on from a huge, long-running costume drama.

“It’s emotional. For me, the prospect’s hugely bittersweet. It feels like getting out of an institution. Outlander’s like a family, it literally defines who I am.” After all, Heughan has created an empire of Outlander spin-offs, including books, television travelogues and his spirits brand, The Sassenach – named after Jamie’s nickname for the English Claire – not to mention his charity, My Peak Challenge, which has raised nearly £5 million to fund a variety of causes, including ­hunger relief and blood-cancer research. “I’m ready for new challenges, but also nervous about what it’s like in the real world,” he says.

Still, he felt now was the right time to wrap. “Outlander could have finished after the ninth season, but, personally, I felt we hadn’t quite got there. So now we have the problem of pushing the writers to do something that’s hopefully satisfying for the audience, but also exciting.” So Heughan doesn’t yet know how Outlander ends? “No idea, and it’s really tough because Diana [Gabaldon, the author on whose novels the series is based] has written so many books.”

The show has a vast international fanbase; VisitScotland has cited a 67 per cent rise in visits to the show’s locations, such as Culloden and Inverness. “I do feel like I’m an unofficial ambassador for Scotland, and sometimes I don’t think the show is given enough credit for what it’s done for Scottish tourism,” Heughan says. “I think the numbers are even bigger than they say, because reams of Americans are just making their own itineraries. Doune Castle’s numbers are up 800 per cent, it’s been completely renovated as a result.”

The show has also transformed the local film industry. “For 10 years, we’ve been employing ­people at over 200 Scottish locations, we’ve started an intern scheme, we’ve built a studio with five sound stages where there was nothing before. So it’s going to leave a legacy.”

The son of an artist single mother (his father walked out when he was a baby), Heughan spent his early childhood in the Borders, his teens in Edinburgh, before studying at Glasgow’s Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, where his mentor was third-year student James McAvoy.

Having worked in London and Los Angeles, Heughan fell back in love with Scotland when he was cast in Outlander. Initially against independence, filming the first ­season in the run-up to the 2016 ­referendum transformed him into a vocal advocate. “Scottish politics right now is a bit of a mess, which is a shame, but maybe they’ll find a new rallying cry. We’re a great wee country with amazing resources, most of which are controlled by the British. Similar small European countries have great identities.”

Initially, Heughan is hesitant to discuss the issue, aware taking either side will provoke a social-media backlash, but then he decides: “Why can’t actors have opi­n­ions? The problem is you have to come down on one side, there is no room for deb­ate. Everything has be­come so aggressive and then social-media algo­rithms mean you only get to see one side of the argument.”

He had his fingers burnt when last month he signed an open letter from Artists for Palestine UK, alongside the likes of Tilda Swinton and Steve Coogan, which accused the Government of “aiding and abetting” Israeli war crimes, but failed to condemn Hamas’s terrorism. The following day, Heughan rescinded, saying he hadn’t “fully understood” what he was signing.

“I was maybe naively calling for peace, which is what we all want, but, unfortunately, that situation is so complex, I can’t understand it all,” he says now. “As an actor, you have a platform, but if you put your thoughts out there, you upset ­people, but you’re also damned if you don’t say anything.”

Heughan’s taking time to navigate a potential post-Outlander career path. “I’m a workaholic, but I have to be discerning. Whatever I do next, I have to feel really passionate about.” Possible plans include directing and exploring a different side to Scotland than misty heather and bagpipes. “I think that underbelly you see in [Ian Rankin’s] Rebus and Irvine Welsh is very interesting, there are still pockets that are very hard and gritty.”

Back in 2005, he auditioned for James Bond in Casino Royale – the role that eventually went to Daniel Craig. Now, there’s a new vacancy. “I’ll throw my hat in the ring,” he says, grinning. “I’d be a brilliant Bond, I’m good at action and I’d bring a lot of ­emotional intelligence.”

There might even be space for a personal life. Heughan’s mystified by “facts” he reads about his private life online. “There’s so much ­nonsense that’s completely false – apparently, I have a daughter. News to me!” he says, flushing. The truth, he says, is that Outlander leaves no time for relationships.

“It’s insane hours and takes over everything. Caitríona’s carved out a beautiful family for herself that she protects very well, but I’ve seen how hard it is for her to do that. I want a cat, but I’m too scared even for that, how would I look after it? One day, maybe,” Heughan says, dreamily.

Posting again as some people had difficulty opening the previous link.

[dwreader]

Father Knows Best Part 1

Why is Lestat almost always in full dress at home while Louis is in casual loungewear? There are multiple scenes especially in the second half of the season where it looks like Lestat just got home from work (even though he's a jobless Ken) while Louis has been lounging at home all day. Lestat does go out to hunt so its possible he feels the need to dress up although the full 3 piece suit is certainly not necessary but even when Louis is gaslit into hunting again he is still never seen in a full waistcoat and tie like Lestat. After episode 4, Louis is mostly seen in shirtsleeves, sweaters and loose blouses. The only times he wears a full suit and tie are when he meets Grace for the last time and when meeting with an authority like Tom.

But I think Lestat's choice to maintain his wardrobe even at home is about projecting authority and control more than practicality.. like he really doesn't need to be dressing up to kill victims but he is always without question dressed like the man of the house, even when playing chess in the living room. The patriach cannot uphold his authority unless he dresses the part.

Looking at his oufits progression during his 6 years of begging, he first ventures to the house in full suit and tie but is soundly rejected by Louis. Then he appears on the street in casual sports wear appearing to be conversing with Louis and Claudia on a more equal basis but he is once again rebuffed but this time by Claudia while Louis stays silent. When he makes his final case to be let back in the house, he is dressed more casually than we've ever seen him before as a gesture to Louis and Claudia that he's willing to be on a level with them... except not really, cause the minute he's let back in, he's immediately back to dressing like father knows best. You do not question the authority of a man dressed like that even when he pretends to go along with the new paradigm of the "lambs herding the beauceron" but we all know that's a lie that he never intended to honor and what gives it away from the start is the moment he comes home from "killing" Antoinette seemingly obeying the rules dressed like THIS.

This a Beauceron and his little lambs are the ones dressed in soft pjs. He is herding them no matter what "rules" they agree to in that house.