#karl messier

[chuulyssa]

Ooh can I request Poe with scenario 1 7 and 10? Mwahhh x

↷ A/N ─ finally some poe content on my page <3

★ PROMPT ─ 1, 7, 10

!! FT. ─ poe

─ wearing his clothes

You stood up to you full-length in front of the mirror, observing yourself. Poe's white shirt and black vest hugged your body, the sleeves a bit too long for you as you struggled to keep your hands from drowning in the fabric. Over the outfit, you put on his black cape fastened together by a chain clasp. His white ribbon was tied carefully around your neck, and you had ruffled your hair to match his style. You smiled softly at your reflection.

You skipped over to Poe's study room and knocked twice on the door. Hearing an exhausted "Come in", you opened the door, only to be met with the sight of your boyfriend's head on the table, facing the door, papers sprawled across in front of him.

On seeing you, however, his face brightened up - literally. He turned a dull shade of red when he saw the clothes you were wearing and stood up.

"You're... wearing... You look..." he started, but you interrupted him.

"Amazing, of course!"

"Something is missing though," he said quietly, and you frowned, wondering if you should've worn his tailcoat as well.

Poe smiled a little before placing Karl on your head. Then, he backed away to have a good look at you.

"Perfect," he murmured.

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─ reading to him

Poe was kneeling on the ground with his head on your lap as you sat on his chair in the study room. His face was flushed, and as you read out more lines from his latest book, he buried his face into your thighs.

"Don't..." he mumbled. "It's embarrassing."

"No, I think it's wonderful," you said. "Your writing is lovely."

"It's okay when I'm writing it, but hearing you read it out, I feel like it could've been better."

You paused and looked at his squirming figure. Behind him, Karl gave him an annoyed look and scooted away. You sighed and tugged at his hair to make him look at you.

"It couldn't be any better than this," you said. "You're the best writer I've ever heard of. And I'm not saying this just for the sake of saying it, if that's what you're thinking."

"Really?"

"Yup," you said. "Now, where was I?"

From then on, Poe enthusiastically listened to you and explained words and phrases you didn't quite get. He was a great listener and would curl up against you as you read his writings to him, always seeking your approval.

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─ waking up before you

Poe opened his eyes grudgingly as the morning rays hit his face. He huffed and turned on the bed to see your figure tangled into the blankets. He let out a silent laugh before internally slapping himself for almost waking you up, even when you didn't show any signs of having heard him.

Poe sat upright, his usually messy hair even messier. He stretched around silently in order to not wake you up. He then pushed a few strands of your hair away from your sleeping face. You mumbled against the touch and he panicked. He stayed that way for a few seconds, unsure of whether it was safe to move again.

He then brought his hands towards your body and shifted you slightly on the bed so you could occupy the entire bed. Poe smiled when you got into a starfish position, and draped the blanket around you. He kissed the top of your head before tiptoeing out of the room, the image of your peaceful face still on his mind as he got to work.

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© chuulyssa 2024 - do not copy, plagiarize or repost my works on any platforms. do not translate.

[treasureplcnet]

Hello! I adore your Bodies fanart. I was imagining Karl in 1890 and how much havoc he would wreak. Also Henry and Karl would get along very well, I think, and Karl would be a *terrible* matchmaker for Henry and Alfred... I'd love to see your take on any of this, if anything comes to you 😍

HELLO OMG THANK YOU FOR THE EXCUSE TO JUST DROP HOT TAKES INTO THE BODIES NETFLIX TAG <3 all these drawings are very scrappy and i lost the plot and this became more like sharing all my hcs but still :')

now that you have brought it to me i really do think henry and karl would be unstoppable, i think they'd constantly have a fun, back-and-forth banter !!! i also can see karl dropping multiple not-so-subtle hints, and all of the detectives being quite supportive. gently too, considering the period-typical homophobia. i do think sometime along the lovelorn pining looks, he gets tired of seeing them orbit each other without anything happening, and this exchange occurs:

more doodles and crying under the cut :)

i will die on the "karl weissman bisexuality" hill. HE TOLD ME IN A DREAM!!!! it's just a little messier for him because he really likes women and will not figure it out ever. charlotte hillinghead TO ME also has the exact opposite problem where she is very much in love with her husband and doesn't have any incentive (or freedom considering the time period) to explore her sexuality. the way she accepted hillinghead's feelings for henry, and was less rejecting and more devastated over thinking he didn't love her or polly, just read queer to me somehow. an acceptance because she's like that too, yk? (maybe a bit of a reach but i don't get to choose who my mind designates as being bi)

i like to think that charlotte-karl experience a spider-verse mindmeld "YOU'RE LIKE ME" moment over being bisexual but they're not quite sure why they're feeling that way because they have no idea they're bi. if you are me you will understand perfectly

and i am a henry/alfred/charlotte poly truther as well (please see above discord ranting from my dms with a friend lol)

on more notes of just giving whichever character i want the bisexuality card, hasan is bi to me too. i think hillinghead and her bond a little over that shared religious guilt, of having their respective institutions be homophobic, and the feeling for so much of their life that they're different, so there must be something wrong. it helps her empathise with him and they quickly become closer because of it :) possibly also introducing him to queer lit, and maybe some non fiction lgbt history books

and one last final doodle because i think alfred as the only detective with an active love life where he's pursuing someone would make the others pretend like they can be adults but they want to know SO BAD and they also give advice once in a while because they're rooting for alfred :) they're all pretty good at hiding how badly they're invested in this (think iris 'casually' asking hillinghead how it's going and the other two perk up in the background) like i refuse to believe any of them are totally immune to the equivalent of office-gossip

this was so so long LOL i hope any of that is coherent !!!!! a lot of it ofc is my own projection bc i am bi, but it's real to me <3

[sirhyst]

Edgar Allan Poe SFW alphabet (x gn!reader)

ALL CREDITS GO TO @the-coldest-goodbye FOR PROMPT LIST !!!!!

CW: Depressed Poe, slight angst to comfort

Note: there are a few of these left that I want to write for so 🤲 next post will be a seperate headcanon post though.

————————————————————————-

R = Remember (What is their favorite moment in your relationship?)

His favourite moment was when you came to visit him when he fell into a depression.

Poe wanted to write something, anything, but the crushing shame of loosing to Ranpo practically had him in a chokehold. Karl had to bite his feet to get him to get out of bed some days.

You weren’t close with Poe, but you knew him enough to come visit him without Ranpo with you. When you arrived at his mansion, the door was unlocked (which was normal for Poe), but his house was a little messier than usual. It was completely silent, save the sound of scurrying towards you. You looked down to see a frantic Karl, chirping while pulling on your leg.

“Follow you?” You asked the authors companion. Karl looked at you in disappointment as you should’ve understood what he was trying to say without asking. You made your way up the flights of stairs towards, what you assumed was, Poe’s room. You were worried for Poe, because you could tell his mood was deteriorating and in your short period of knowing him. Plus you hadn’t heard from him in awhile.

You knocked on the door quietly, only to be met with silence.

“Edgar, I’m coming in,” Poe heard you loud and clear—and even in his current state he still had butterflies in his stomach at the way you said his name.

He felt the bed dip slightly and slightly adjusted his comforter to look at you. Karl jumped on the bed and curled up beside his friend. Just from the little you saw of his figure, you could tell he had not been taking care of himself.

“I’m here if you want to talk, would you like me to order some food?” You asked, the concern in your voice was evident.

You weren’t the best at comforting others, but sometimes all someone wants is to know someone is there, not necessarily having to say anything. You saw his head move slowly from under the thick comforter and patted his shoulder.

Although you didn’t say much while you were there, Edgar was eternally grateful that someone came to check on him—and the fact that it was you, of all people, made him smile a bit for the first time in weeks.

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MY MAN 😭😭😭 for @midwoodbender 🤲 thank you for introducing me to Poe chatbot ✊

[halftheway]

open arms promo post, also known as Read My Fics, Boy:

this is an ongoing series following the development of quackity’s ever evolving polycule, both together and individually to their guaranteed happy ending (with a lil pain along the way<3)

some general notes about this au: it’s generally canon-compliant up to early 2021, and it starts to diverge from there because quackity didn’t start torturing dream. that’s really the major difference that isn’t explicitly stated, the rest can be picked up by reading!

now that that’s out of the way, let’s go through the series fic by fic.

we start with it’s not a leap of faith if you don’t trust the jump (redux) (T, 7.5k), commonly referred to as just ‘leap of faith’. here, quackity meets charlie and his world begins to change. just as he starts to fall in love, wilbur is revived and quackity has to decide if he’s ready to let himself be vulnerable again after being ghosted by his fiances. (now new and improved for the two year anniversary, featuring charlie+wilbur pov!)

next comes like you were never gone (M, 22k). remember those fiances? they un-ghost in this fic: karl’s time traveling has taken its toll on his memory, and when he forgets quackity entirely, sapnap sets out to ask for his help. quackity is caught between his past and current relationships, unsure of his future with either. things only get messier when karl disappears again, and quackity decides to take sapnap to las nevadas to meet wilbur and charlie. jealousy, insecurity, and miscommunication ensue, but everything works out in the end.

the third main fic in the series (out of 5 planned!) is walk towards love (WIP! M, currently 34k), the wedding fic! nothing ever comes easy for this group, though, and wedding planning gets sidelined as problems begin to bubble up: quackity’s past trauma, karl’s memory loss, and sapnap’s long-held wish of his best friend attending his wedding (along with wilbur’s fluctuating mental health and charlie’s struggle to adapt to human life). through sheer stubbornness and dedication to their love, once again, the polycule gets their happy ending.

now for the bonus tracks! these are a collection of extra scenes that add a variety of things to the main series, and range from silly to heartbreaking. feauturing domestic fluff, multiple povs, and some offscreen scenes that didn't fit in the main fics

i share everything from memes to character tidbits to wips here under the tag #las nevadas polycule!

[keefechambers]

so I don't have many other trg blogs to follow and my partner is not caught up lol so can I get your thoughts on the season??

Like how did you feel about the new characters?

Fave moment or episode? (Or least if you wanna go there too :p)

Favorite outfit or quote? Or maybe character arc?

How did you feel the stakes were compared to previous seasons? I kinda missed the crime element personally but it did seem to be more personal relationship stakes

AHh! Okay, I loved this season! I am inclined to slightly agree with you that I did miss the heavier crime element. Seasons 1 and 2 were very slick and self-contained in that way and I really enjoyed it, and I hope more of that comes into season 4. BUT I loved that it focused on Deepening the Lore of the family (since Danny has said he wants this to be a sprawling multi-generational epic) and the relationships. I love that the show isn't afraid to let characters actually end up somewhere different than they started.

Favorite new character? REDEEMER obviously!!! (Only halfway kidding)

Spoilers below~

I really really loved the Montgomerys. They really give a lot of insight into Eli's psychology (the same way Baby Billy does for Aimee-Leigh) that I think was necessary. We got glimpses of it last season with Junior and Glendon, but friends and bosses are different than baby sisters. I like that his relationship with May-May mirrored the difficulties that Jesse, Judy and Kelvin have with each other. I don't think it's a secret that Karl was my favorite new addition and I hope he sticks around, even if he's just a small part of continuing seasons as needed. I am a sucker for very large, very sweet men. I loved that Peter was a villain who wasn't, compared to season 1 and 2 where the bad guys were just outright, unrepentantly evil.

I liked the themes of taking accountability and forgiveness and that sometimes people aren't beyond saving a lot this season. May-May having to own up to her part in Peter's downfall, Peter getting away from the militia and realizing he'd become such a different person... I love that the militia fell apart the way it did because I research rightwing extremists and honestly, the petty in-fighting and the grudges and the stupid priorities are true to life.

I also hope we see more of the Simkins as like, ongoing nemeses because they were a very funny mirror to the Gemstones.

My favorite episode was probably episode 6! The fight scene between BJ and Stephen was really really well done and hilarious and the balance of earnest drama and funny jokes that don't undercut the emotional hits was just, top form. I'm ALWAYS a fan of the Interludes, though.

Favorite MOMENT, tho. Like obviously The Kiss is a big one. Top Tier. But really ahhh, I'm a suck for the Interlude bit where Jesse picks up and spins Amber. I love a pick-up and spin. But also Gideon and the Redeemer???

Favorite outfit is definitely Keefe's fire-dance fit, or his finale fit with the cropped sweater. Oh, and there's this peach suit that Martin wears in the episode where Peter disrupts church lunch that is FIRE. Martin might be, fashion-wise, my favorite after Keefe and BJ.

"It's Kelvin's friend, Chief" lives rent-free in my head, but it's quickly being replaced by "DID YOU FUCK DUSTY DANIELS?!"

Character arc wise, I think I gotta give it to Judy. Like. It was sincerely romantic and beautiful to see her go from this insecure high schooler who was terrified that no one would ever love her to an adult woman who is...terrified that she's driven away the person who loves her most it was just GORGEOUS and so well-written and well-acted. Like... I love her. I love her so much. Edi Patterson call me.

I really loved it overall. I think the plot was bigger and messier but I don't think that was a negative so much as a way to set up future seasons and for that, it wholly succeeded.

[palin-tropos]

1, 12, 13?

the character everyone gets wrong

You'd think I'd answer a controversial character but my literal ass must try to think of how to fit in the *everyone* claim. Like I think a chunk but not all of the fandom gets Kim wrong for a variety of reasons (I pointed this out in my "please analyze him in chronological order and in context" post). I also think that it's funny how "there is only one pre-canon Harry" was so hegemonic in fandom as the foundational analysis despite being coded into the game to not really be true.

But my answer to the most widespread fandom incorrectness would have to be Kras Mazov. The empty Ao3 tag is proof. Like Dolores Dei has a couple of pages at least but not Mazov even though both are distant mysterious historical figures. The overwhelming majority clearly see him as simply a Karl Marx expy and therefore untouchable with humanizing or complicating headcanons because he's less fictional than the other characters. I'll save you Mr. Mazov. I'll blorbofy you.

12. the unpopular character that you actually like and why more people should like them

I mean, see above? Mazov is not exactly unpopular just not seen as a "real character" so much. Like yeah I get it that it feels more... delicate? You poke a leftist idea with a stick once and then you trigger the infighting thunderdome. But every political ideology is fraught as hell, again, it's not like playing around with Dolores Dei is any less fraught you know?

I also am more amused and fascinated by Measurehead and Gary than I should be, although it should be obvious that it's like staring at some really hideous bugs under a microscope. I don't think anyone should *like* them but also I would do more with them than other people would. That one art of Deep Lore Measurehead is the only time I felt seen. And Gary... I'm fucking sorry it's so funny to me that he's embarrassed by the fact he delivers gluten-free vegan topping pies. Unparalleled levels of pathetic. I find enjoyment there.

Joyce Messier is also a character who people feel ideologically obliged to hate but like she fucking rules actually. I don't want her in charge of my society lmao but she's iconic. A friend suggested the idea of her having a non-affair with Harry to piss off her husband, like a platonic sugar relationship. Although they would probably enjoy antagonistically flirting. Kim would have no idea it's fake and is miserably jealous like listening to sad speedfreak music alone in his room while the rain streaks down his window kind of jealous.

13. worst blorboficiation

It's got to be Jean. I get why people would blorbofy him but it's the part where certain portrayals have more sympathy for him than for Harry particularly in post-game, that I just don't get. Unless you're playing the worst Harry you can, which again ties into the false assumption—that sounds like really deep analysis but still is kind of an exaggeration of canon IMO—that all of Harry's possible choices exist so equally simultaneously in his soul that even if he didn't do the most fucked up things he's still 'the kind of person who would do them' and therefore he must have abused Jean and the way Jean treats him in the latter half of the game is therefore sympathetic and not, like, uncalled for and shocking. I guess I would accept Jeangst more if people accepted the multiplicity of Harry.

[magicalmyu]

OK HEAR ME OUT einstein is actually loosing fluff ?? i thought at first it was plain inconsistency, let's be honest her hair is painful to draw. but after looking closely i noticed that in the few panels showing her younger, she actually has her hair drawn very similar to the VN ? they are messier and less slicked back ? like the stigmas arts (the band ones), the AE band fic poster, that one panel about space race etc,,, i actually made a scale comparison, her hair gets less messy with years aaa

so i decided to take this panel + the ae vn art that the outfits in this panel were based on, and imo i think the hair is still kinda inconsistent (but then again the vn art is rlly inconsistent with the rest of honkaiverse, i did a comparison too and the only one in the lab 42 trio who was accurate to the game was joyce)

even in the vn her hair seems to be really inconsistent (first actually seems a lot closer to her in the mangas

theres also the issue with her hairclip - her vn design has a hairclip with a little e on is, her game model has the clip but no e, her game chibi of the same exact design has the e, and she just doesnt have the clip at all in the manga

stigmas do have the clip with the e, and theyre a lot closer to the vn - probably because the vn + stigmas are the oldest designs of her, vn came out in 2017 according to the wiki

ae band seems to be closer to the game model! especially the tufts of straight hair over the left side of her face

so tl;dr einstein's hair is a mystery and may never be solved, along with whatever the hell is going on with welt joyce and karl gustav

[leafatlaw]

back on my dsmp anaylsis again apparenly but, dsmp as a MUSICAL.

imagine s1 is bright catchy songs, very hamilton/six. or until pogtopia that is. wilbur sings It was never meant to be reprise, and its absoulty haunting, the s1 finale is a combination of all the past songs, with the main cast all singing until it casades into a bravo, then cut to dream singing a finale line.

s2 is more more sombre, reprises everywhere, along with more like phantom of the ppera sytle songs. A cut to tubbo singing stressed in a lmanbrg cabnit meeting, to tommy singing all alone in exile, clingduo unknowlingly singing a duet of loniness. s2 ends with the manburg anthem like the jan 6th stream actually did.

s3 gets messier, big ensemble songs. into the woods, individual songs that meet up accidentaly. dream dreams humming can be heard no matter the song. Las Nevadas is Chicago style songs, and Karls song are all jukebox musical style songs. (The egg plot is just little shop of horrors-)

Tommy stops singing after dream escapes prison.

It all ends with a, the guy who didnt like musicals ending, the audience horried but unable to do anything.

[erin-bo-berin]

I think m did cheat on joe bc when m was in romania filming watcher back in the beginning of 2021 joe was in atl filming st. I believe this is when they could finally go back to working so they were together for so long during quarantine and now they went their separate ways. I remember seeing that m posted pics on her ig about her time in romania and some of content were like cryptic posts of her and her friend smoking a blunt with karl. at the time she had posted more pics to indicate that something deeper happened bc I remember there was a pic that looked like she was about to make out with her friend while high but they have now been deleted so these pics are the only ones up

https://www.instagram.com/p/CNUIYOoscTl/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

https://www.instagram.com/p/CNbsMzxMYef/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

I think she did something unforgivable especially if the pics she posted seemed like she was getting close to karl and her friend to the point they might have had a threesome while high 💀

and if I'm not mistaken, shortly after that joe deleted his ig and m wasn't spotted on the carpet with him at the free guy premiere 👀 and during the "break" they had she was hanging a little too much with karl

https://www.instagram.com/p/CUeLa1kr3wb/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

This just gets messier and messier 😬

[byneddiedingo]

Kay Francis and William Powell in Ladies' Man (Lothar Mendes, 1931)

Cast: William Powell, Kay Francis, Carole Lombard, Olive Tell, Gilbert Emery, Martin Burton, John Holland, Frank Atkinson, Maude Turner Gordon. Screenplay: Herman J. Mankiewicz, based on a novel by Rupert Hughes. Cinematography: Victor Milner. Costume design: Travis Banton. Music: Karl Hajos, Herman Hand, John Leipold.

With his receding hairline, big nose, and dubious chin, William Powell has always seemed to me an unlikely leading man, but he made quite a go of it teaming with actresses like Myrna Loy, Kay Francis, and Carole Lombard. But even Powell felt he was miscast as Jamie Darricott, the handsome gigolo of Ladies' Man who dines and wines the society matron Mrs. Fendley (Olive Tell), taking her, fashionably late, to the opera -- she muses that she's always wondered if Tosca really has a first act. He's performing a necessary service: Her banker husband, Horace (Gilbert Emery), is more devoted to making money than to being married, so even he tolerates Darricott's services -- at least for a while. Trouble starts when Rachel Fendley (Lombard), their daughter, takes a fancy to Darricott. Up to that point, Ladies' Man has been a passable sophisticated comedy of manners, but then Darricott meets Norma Page (Francis) and they fall in love. For a while the film turns into a romantic comedy tinged with farce, as Rachel tries to get Darricott away from Norma. And then it gets serious: Horace Fendley decides that he can't tolerate Darricott's involvement with both his wife and his daughter, and he threatens Darricott's life. This muddle of tones and genres is only made messier by miscasting, which extends beyond Powell's unsuitability for the role. Lombard tries at first to be suave and icy, affecting that hoity-toity mid-Atlantic accent actors used to resort to when playing uppercrust roles. Fortunately, she's allowed to loosen up in a scene when she gets drunk and confronts Norma and Darricott at a nightclub. It's not a good drunk scene, but at least it's closer to the free and funny Lombard we cherish. Francis comes across better in a thankless role: She has to pretend to be put off by Darricott's being a gigolo, but then be swept off her feet by him overnight. In short, it's a movie that a lot of top talent, including screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz's, isn't strong enough to save.

[maggicktouched]

"Karl, might I have my own moment alone with the King?" Desmond asked after a moment of deliberating silence. Immediately the Bear's eyes sharpened, and Desmond feigned disinterest. He'd never have admitted it, but Karl was not a man he ever wished to genuinely offend. If they ever crossed blades, he was certain he wouldn't win. "Please."

Karl's eyes narrowed, and for a moment his jaw clenched, but then he relaxed and hoisted himself to his feet. "I am waiting outside."

He watched the hulking man stoop to exit the door. When it clicked closed, he turned back to Robb.

"The situation is more complex than he might have explained to you." Desmond's expression didn't change, but his finger rubbed a small circle on the hilt of his sword in nervous habit. "Or perhaps---messier is a better word to describe it.'

'Twenty-eight years ago Oskar Beck, the former king of the Wolf Clan, married Elea Tandy, who was to inherit the Fox Clan when her mother chose to step down. The two clans had famously hated one another for years, but had been forced to reach tentative peace during the War of the Twin Flowers. The marriage alliance was forged to strengthen that peace. Something Oskar was passionate about. They had two children. The firstborn took his father's clan and was named the Wolf Prince, and the second took her mother's, though due to---complications---she was barred from ever ruling the Fox Clan. They didn't manage to have any more children before Oskar's passing, and Elea focused on ruling rather than remarrying. I suppose she assumed she also had more time, but five years later both her son and her mother called for her execution for an unforgivable crime." Desmond paused and pinched the bridge of his nose. "This left the Fox Clan back in the hands of Linnea Tandy once more, but without an heir to the throne. Her granddaughter cannot rule the clan, but she can produce an heir... the only problem is Beck's been running away since the day her father died, and no matter how many times they bring her back, she weasels her way out into the wilderness again.'

'A few years ago Beck reappeared out of the blue. Karl said she showed up on his doorstep half dead and claimed she was contented to stay until she heard the news of the Gateways between our lands and this one being collapsed and the people here being left to die. She made a deal with her grandmother and her brother alike: save you and your people, provide them a place where they could thrive, and treat them with dignity and respect, and she would return to the Fox Clan, marry, produce heirs, and never flee from her family again." He bit the inside of his cheek. To him, it sounded like a dirty deal, and Beck was an old friend. He'd tried to talk her out of it, and she'd refused.

Desmond shook his head and sighed. "The Foxes are desperate. If the sacred connection to the First Witches is broken and a direct heir of the bloodline is not on the throne, the clan's magic will die. If their magic dies, they will undoubtedly follow. Fenris is equally desperate for Beck to return, perhaps because she's the only person left in the world that he actually cares for, or perhaps because if the Foxes fall, war will be at his doorstep. And Karl? Well Karl likely is doing this out of goodness and mercy, but he's old and wants peace for his family and his people; a war in the neighboring territories would bring hardship. So the deal was struck and signed in blood. It cannot be broken. Something was asked for, but the price will be paid for by someone else... Someone who once did me a great favor. A friend I care for, who---apparently---cannot stop loving a man she can't have. I hope you don't let that go to waste... I'll give you time to speak to your advisors."

The Seal Prince gave a small bow, rolled his shoulders and strode out the door Karl had disappeared through. He had done all he could.

His best interest. The words might have made him laugh in other circumstances. It had been a very long time since Robb had taken action in his best interest. If he had had his own interests in mind, he would not have married Roslin Frey. He would not have spent his youth at war. And he certainly would not be here, waiting for the end of the world, watching snow gather on the windows each morning as Winter crept ever closer. And yet it was also true, perhaps, that he had grown too fond of his sword, too familiar with the weight of steel in his hand, the handle too worn. Some days, he worried that if he ever took it off his belt, he would simply fall over, unused to the weight of his own body without the additions of chain mail and weaponry.

"Surprised, not startled," he said. But his hand fell away from his belt and, thus, away from his sword. "In these lands, people do not generally appear without use of horse--or dragon, I suppose." Though even that addition was new. There had not been dragons in Westeros for hundreds of years, and suddenly there were three. "I assume such things are normal where you come from?"

Robb watched as Beck's image disappeared from the map. He hated that, even after all this time, he felt the longing like an arrow through his chest: a physical, aching desire that time had not removed, no matter how much he had hoped it would. But there was little time to focus on that now. There was never enough time for things like love and longing. For as long as Robb could remember, life had been a game of survival. First to win the war. Now to win at the end of the world.

His eyes scanned the map. He understood, on the surface, what he was being told and shown--that there was land, empty and uninhabited, a land far from the Night King and his terrors. It was not the understanding that troubled Robb; it was the believing. He had fought for years for his kingdom's soveirnty, for the freedom of the North, and the right to rule their own lands. So many had died to defend that claim and hold this territory--and now another was to be given to them, handed out as easily as excess flour from the grainery in spring?

There was a saying Robb had been told long ago: not to look a gift horse in the mouth. But there was also a famous tale of a gifted horse that brought tragedy and ruin to the receiver when it was revealed that an invading army lurked within its bowels. "Why?" Robb asked. "Why would you offer us this? You do not know me or my people. You would offer strangers--not just from a different land but a different world than your own--to occupy a territory you have fought over for seventy years. You ask for no fealty, gold, or goods. It is not a fair exchange. It is a mercy."

Hearing his own words, Robb was reminded, suddenly, of another moment, long ago, in which he'd treated with guests. It was the very first time he had sat in his father's seat and acted as Lord of Winterfell. His guest had been Tyrion Lannister that day, and he had come to offer aid to Robb's brother: a horse and a blueprint by which to build a saddle that would allow a cripple to ride. Why? Robb had asked him then to. Why do you want to help him? Is this some sort of trick? If there had been a trick, it had never revealed itself. Perhaps the problem was him: that he did not know how to accept aid, even when offered freely.

Robb bent over the map, tracing a finger over the borders that had been drawn there as if by magic--and, he thought, it probably had been. Territory. Resources. Building materials. Time to rebuild. It had all been taken care of by the Bears, the Foxes, and the Wolves. How strange it was to hear that title--Wolf King--spoken about another. Beck had been quite sparse in her descriptions of her family. He knew that she had a family, knew that things were complicated, but he knew little else. He knew that she had volunteered to rescue his sisters without asking anything in return. He knew that she was kind, and brave, and generous--and perhaps, so were her people.

He took a deep breath and straightened up. This was no time to be proud. "I apologize if I see weary of aid. I am not ungrateful, nor unaware of the magnitude of your undoubtedly generous offer. You must understand that the last time I negotiated safe passage under an agreement of peace, a great number of my people were butchered during their supper. We were unarmed, for we believed we were dining with friends. But," Robb amended, "You are not them, and if I allow my kingdom to be one of secrecy and suspicion, we might as well let the Night King take us, for it is no way to live. As you have said, the offer is generous. It is more than generous. But I cannot make the decision alone. I must speak with my council, and I will give you answer within the hour."

[theultimatefan]

Higashioka, Showalter, Nimmo, Sörenstam to be honored at 43rd Annual Thurman Munson Awards Dinner Feb. 7

The 43rd annual Thurman Munson Awards Dinner will benefit AHRC New York City Foundation on Tuesday night, February 7th at Pier Sixty at Chelsea Piers (23rd Street at West Side Highway) in New York City, and the honorees have been announced today: New York Yankees catcher and ’21 Roberto Clemente Award nominee Kyle Higashioka; New York Mets centerfielder Brandon Nimmo; New York Mets manager and four-time Manager of the Year Buck Showalter; and LPGA champion & World Golf Hall of Famer Annika Sörenstam will all receive Thurman Munson Awards in the “Class of 2023.”

The “Thurmans” are presented to individuals for on-field excellence, community outreach, and betterment of their sport. The AHRC NYC benefit has helped to keep the memory of the legendary Yankees catcher and captain Thurman Munson alive since his untimely passing 43 years ago, while raising more than $19 million for children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities to lead richer, more productive lives.

Thurman's widow Diana Munson is an honorary chair who has supported AHRC NYC and its fund-raising efforts through the Thurman Munson Awards for four decades, and will be in attendance.

For media inquiries contact John Cirillo/Cirillo World by email at johnnycigarpr@aol.com or text 914-260-7436.

For tickets call 212-249-6188 or email jennifer.kunin@gala-office.com. Tickets may be purchased online at www.ahrcnycfoundation.org/munson2023

The co-Masters of Ceremonies will be FOX 5 lead sports anchor and Sports Extra host Tina Cervasio and Michael Kay, the Voice of the Yankees on YES Network and host of the Michael Kay Show on ESPN NY Radio.

Special guests for the evening will include previous Thurman Award honorees: Radio Hall of Famer and WFAN Yankees analyst Suzyn Waldman (previous Media Hero recipient), Football Giants Super Bowl champions Harry Carson, Chris Canty and Karl Nelson; as well as Thurman's teammate and two-time Yankees World Series Champion Roy White, Giants Super Bowl champ Howard Cross, YES Network personality Nancy Newman, former women’s featherweight boxing champion Heather Hardy, popular New York Radio/TV personality Sweeny Murti, WFAN Radio golf and tennis reporter Ann Liguori, and former Mets pitcher Nelson Figueroa with others to be announced.

The list of previous Thurman Munson Award recipients reads like a “Who’s Who” of sports stars for the ages including: Muhammad Ali, Arthur Ashe, Yogi Berra, Mariano Rivera, Jorge Posada, Joe Torre, Bernie Williams, Tom Seaver, Mike Piazza, Gary Carter, David Wright, Willis Reed, Patrick Ewing, Julius Erving, Jim Brown, Harry Carson, Aly Raisman, Nancy Lieberman, Theresa Weatherspoon, and Mark Messier, just to name a few.

Kyle Higashioka was a seventh-round selection by the Yankees in the 2008 MLB Draft. After battling a series of injuries early in his minor league career, Kyle made his major league debut for the Yankees in 2018 when Gary Sánchez was sidelined. After starting his major league career 0-for-22, the longest hitless streak to start a Yankee career of any position player ever, he had his first major league hit, a home run, on July 1 against the Boston Red Sox. His next two hits, on July 3 and July 4 against the Atlanta Braves, were also circuit blasts, making him the ninth MLB player since 1920 to have three home runs as his first three hits. On September 16, 2020, Higashioka hit three home runs in a game against the Toronto Blue Jays to became the 24th Yankee to hit three HR in a game. On May 19, 2021, Higashioka caught Corey Kluber's no-hitter against the Texas Rangers, the first Yankees to catch a no-hitter since Joe Girardi caught David Cone's perfect game in 1999.

Higashioka was the Yankees 2021 nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award which embodies representing the game of baseball through extraordinary character and community involvement, both on and off the field. In 2006, MLB opened its first Urban Youth Academy in Compton, CA. Among the athletes who attended the inaugural camp was Higashioka. He grew up roughly 25 miles away in Huntington Beach, looking for any and every opportunity to achieve his goal of playing professional baseball. He never forgot the impact the MLB Youth Academy had on him and the trajectory of his career. He spent numerous offseasons volunteering his time to support the social reach of the program. The academy focuses on Inner City youth, and assists after-school programs, preparing kids for any type of life, whether it's professional baseball or getting in the workforce. Kyle has embraced the causes of the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, which ensures complete post-secondary educational support and additional educational opportunities for eligible surviving children of fallen Special Operations Personnel and children of all Medal of Honor Recipients; and provides immediate financial assistance to severely wounded, ill, and injured Special Operations Personnel.

Four-time Manager of the Year Buck Showalter, in his first season at the helm of the Mets last season, led the team to a 101-win campaign en route to the best skipper trophy. During a 30-year managerial career, Showalter has amassed 1,652 victories managing the Yankees, Diamondbacks, Rangers, Orioles, and Mets. Like Thurman, Showalter was drafted by the Bronx Bombers, and is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League Hall of Fame. (Thurman led the Chatham A's to their first league title with a .420 batting average, while Showalter, playing for the Hyannis Mets, won the league batting title with a .434 average). Showalter was an All-American and set the Mississippi State record for batting average in a season by hitting .459 during the 1977 season.

Showalter participated in the Amazin’ Mets Foundation’s second annual Homeruns & Highballs fundraiser last July, the team’s largest fundraising event of the season. AMF is committed to providing needed services and opportunities to children, families and underserved groups in neighborhoods and communities to inspire change and make a lasting impact on and off the field. On the 21st anniversary of 9/11, Showalter and the team paid tribute to the first responders during the game against the Marlins. While managing Baltimore, Buck supported the LUNGevity Foundation, a charity inspired by the Orioles late public relations director Monica Pence Barlow.

The homegrown smiling, starting centerfielder Brandon Nimmo was a first round pick by New York in the 2011 MLB draft, and made his big league debut for the Mets in 2016. The seven-year veteran enjoyed his finest season last year, recording 159 hits, 30 doubles, and 64 RBI with 580 at bats in 151 games, all career highs. His 16 home runs fell one short of equaling his lifetime best of 17 circuit blasts. During the off season, the Cheyanne, Wyoming native signed a nine-year contract with the Mets. Nimmo played for Team Italy in the World Baseball Classic in 2017.

During the off season, Nimmo dressed as an elf at the Mets annual holiday party. Last season, Nimmo held a special sandlot baseball game for local Little Leaguers at Flushing’s Hinton Park on July 8 with two dozen Little Leaguers taking part. Following a pre-game pep talk, Nimmo spent much of the game pitching to the kids, playing the outfield, and giving players fist bumps when they made a good play. Nimmo has also taken part in the fundraiser Call of Duty: Warzone Charity Royale to support veterans with teammate Pete Alonso. Nimmo was named the Mets recipient of the 2022 Heart and Hustle Award, awarded to players who demonstrate a passion for the game of baseball and best embodies the values, spirit and traditions of the game, by the MLB Players Alumni Association.

Annika Sörenstam is the most celebrated and winningest female professional golfer in history as a three-time Women’s U.S. Open champion, three-time PGA champion and member of the World Golf Hall of Fame. In 2003, she achieved a career Grand Slam, winning at least once in her career each of the four tournaments recognized as major championships. She tops the LPGA’s all-time money list with earnings in excess of $22 million. In all, the native of Sweden has captured 72 official LPGA tournaments and has been named Player of the Year a record eight times.

Annika created the ANNIKA Foundation (www.annikafoundation.org) to provide opportunities in women’s golf at the junior, collegiate and professional levels while teaching young people the importance of living a healthy, active lifestyle through fitness and nutrition. It annually conducts six major golf events for aspiring junior girls throughout the world. And with the support of the Haskins Commission, the Foundation created the ANNIKA Award presented by Stifel, which is given annually to the best collegiate female golfer. Since 2014, the Foundation has also annually hosted the ANNIKA Intercollegiate presented by 3M, a college tournament featuring 12 top Division I schools. Each year, the Foundation also conducts several “Share My Passion” grass roots clinics designed to introduce kids to the game.

[kazetokinouta-a]

Carl’s appreciation post ~ he deserves love too 

[itz-burd]

I would hate to see my boy like that.

Looks wise I imagine this iteration astolfo would have a bit heavier armor? Maybe some wood still left from his time a tree growing out. The hair is probably duller and messier. We wouldn’t be totally edgy but you could tell something isn’t right with him. Perhaps this could be seen as a more down to earth/historical astolfo, the One that more remembers his time serving under Karl der Große himself than the legend of Charlemagne? Maybe he’d have a helmet similar to the one we see him wear in this flashback sequence from there apocrypha manga?

Personality wise he’d HATE being a berserker, and he’d tell you. that odd knack he has for pointing out people’s issues would definetly be used to full affect, the difference being it’s done maliciously here. I don’t think he would hate it enough to kill his master on sight, he’s still a loyal and honest paladin deep down, but he’d snap at you and make snide remarks underneath a weathering facade of optimism. But he’d also never leave you alone. He would hate being alone with his thoughts so much more now that he actually has thoughts to have. He would pester you for his next set of orders constantly, bother you with questions, mess with things around the house. Like the ‘stolf we know he wouldn’t be able to sit still for too long, but he would be a lot more panicky about it, doing as much as he can to distract himself. Maybe he’d spend the long hours at night gazing at the moon, longing to drop off his wits for good this time.

During combat, I imagine he would be immensely clever, maybe not a brilliant tactical mind but he would be able to notice little things during battle. Habits the opponent falls into during the fight would be exploited. This is an astolfo who can plan ahead and predict his opponents movements to an alarming accuracy. After all, most of his legends revolve around him using his speed and wits in tandem. Not to mention he’s able to use Casseur de Logistille at full power 24/7 now to he’s be essentially immune to magecraft. Perhaps he would also have his horse “Rabicano” which, according to Wikipedia, “is made of hurricane and flame, feeds on air and it treads so lightly that it doesn't leave footprints in the sand, and when it runs at full speed it can run faster than an arrow.

Berserker Astolfo but it’s just Astolfo with all their sanity back. The reason why they register as a berserker is because they’re desperate to get rid of their reason again and only the insane would find misery in sanity.

[clambuoyance]

[DSMP roleplay series / Tales from the SMP] Wanderers in which Quackity returns from his lone wandering and bumps into Karl, who’s done a lot of wandering of his own kind….

[panydas]

quackity was building las nevadas for el rapids but he was gone for so long, and even when karl, sapnap, and george thought karl had told him to join them in kinoko kingdom he never showed. they thought he just left them. and karl didn't remember that he hadn't, in fact, told him about kinoko kingdom. so the first time quackity hears about it, he feels like they abandoned him purposefully. that they never told him because they didn't want him there. and they'll never know it was all a misunderstanding.