#like kid philip is still in there somewhere

[yourbustedkneecaps]

guys please where’s my extremely-traumatized-but-just-thinks-this-shit-is-normal philip/belos? where’s my philip who has abandonment issues? where’s my philip who doesn’t know he’s terrified of loving someone like caleb again until it happens? where’s my chronic pain philip who doesn’t know everyone else just,,, doesn’t hurt all the time? where’s my philip having nightmares about the most insignificant things over and over again because it’s a trigger for him? where’s my exhausted, overworked, sick philip who never lets anyone take care of him but himself because that’s too much like having caleb back? where’s my philip that sleeps in the dirt cuz that’s the only way he feels comfortable anymore? my philip who blanks out when he eats palismen or kills another golden guard cuz he never quite recovered from murdering his brother? philip who likes flowers and knows how to garden BI foods? who knows how to sew a little? who doodles in the margins of his personal papers? who was fascinated enough with magic that he made scrolls and the BI’s first ever internet? who came up with crow phones? who struggles killing living things but can poke at dead stuff all day without thinking of his misdeeds with that dagger?

where’s my philip with all the human shit part of him that helped sculpt history? where’s he at?

[atimeofyourlife]

a fic idea that keeps bouncing around my head that may or may not get written.

Philip has a health scare, maybe a heart attack, and it seems touch and go for a bit, so Buck and Maddie fly out to Hershey to help out and just to spend time together as a family. Chim wanting to go, but is unable to because the 118 couldn't spare 2 firefighters on such short notice.

While Buck and Maddie are in Hershey, the idea of Philip and Margaret moving out west gets thrown around, maybe not LA, but somewhere much closer to their kids. So they're close enough to spend more time with their grandchildren while they still can, and so it'll be so much easier to pull together if something goes wrong, like other health scares or accidents at work. Maybe Buck mentions taking some time off work to help them pack up and move.

Maddie mentions these conversations to Chimney over the phone, and a plan forms in his mind. It'll be a chance for him to flex his matchmaking skills and this time he won't even have to lie and say someone died. Just a little bending of the truth.

He calls Tommy and informs him of Philip's health scare. That Buck was talking about being closer to their parents in case of other health scares, that he'd be going back to Pennsylvania. He mentions that he's about to leave for the airport to pick up Buck and Maddie after their flight back.

When Buck gets back to his apartment, he finds Tommy outside his door, begging him not to move away from LA.

[angstyhikka]

We decided to do the most terrible thing possible to Collie - puberty >:^)

The boy becomes stronger. He loses control over his magic, his body constantly morphs and strives to become BIGGER. And the funny thing is that neither the kid nor Philip know what is happening to him, and those who know (Archi and Colibri from TandemAU) do not tell. Archi thus takes revenge on Collie for abandoning their family, and Tandem-Colli, to whom his Archi told everything about puberty long before it began, decided that this was not his problem

The only one who tries to help Collie and give at least a rough idea of ​​puberty is Luz. She has no idea how puberty works for the archivists, but she shares with Collie her knowledge of how it works for humans. It doesn't help much, but Collie now at least knows the name of his "disease"

But the problems don't end there... Collie is horny. And he is very, very ashamed of it. He wants to fuse souls with someone. And due to the fact that the only person close to him is Philip, he begins to think that he is in love with him. And Philip, like a typical anime protagonist, doesn’t understand shit and thinks that Collie is just hungry. THEY HAD A MOMENT when Collie, during their another fight, almost swallowed Philip’s head, and this, as we remember, is the language of love and sympathy for Archi (and probably all archivists, I think). And then Collie quickly came to his senses, pulled back and hovered for a minute, after which he ran away without saying anything. What did Philip do? Philip, our dearest autistic creature, didn’t understand a damn thing and ignored what happened. EVERYONE. Literally EVERYONE NOTICED, only Philip didn’t notice

All this Collier's ignorance about what is happening to him, his inability to put energy somewhere and confusion in feelings lead to the fact that he turns into Collistrophe - the final boss of the anarchist story. He becomes completely uncontrollable, his desires get the better of him, and Armageddon begins on the Boiling Islands. And if previously the residents of BI still somehow put up with what was happening, then THIS case crossed all possible lines. There is no night - it is always day, and no one can sleep no matter how hard they try. Noise, fun and games 24/7!

How will Luz, Hunter and Philip get out of this situation and calm Collie down? WE DON'T KNOW :))) But we'll figure it out

[lisbeth-kk]

Sherlock fandom

It is in the Details

He had always been meticulous, even as a child. It was his brother who taught him to observe and to keep an eye out for tiny details. 

“The more subtle, the more elegant people will find you. Whether it is your attire or your movements. That way, they will not question your ulterior motives,” Mycroft told him.

Sherlock considered this, and when Mycroft bought him the Belstaff and had added the red buttonhole, he understood. It added an eye-catching sophistication to the garment. The fact that it was one of a kind, made it even more special.

Before he attended his first official crime scene, Sherlock Holmes, the world’s only consulting detective, used a fair amount of his inheritance on expensive hair products, had a bespoke cologne made, purchased Italian leather shoes, and spent an agonising hour at one of Savile Row’s tailors to have his measurements taken.

“Only blue and black suits. A dozen white shirts. Two of the aubergine ones over there. Two of that shade of blue. No ties.”

The tailor didn’t even bat an eyelid when Sherlock made his order and insisted that everything should be tightly fitted.

“I need to breathe, but that’s about it.”

“Of course,” the tailor replied.

***

“Who are you, and what have you done with that high as a kite kid who turned up and solved a crime for me last year?” Greg Lestrade asked when Sherlock strode towards him.

“Gone. I’m clean as of last month. Just what you commanded, detective inspector,” Sherlock drawled. “Now, where are the bodies?”

Sally Donovan and Philip Anderson weren’t as easily dazzled by his newly invented persona, but Sherlock saw them as irrelevant, so he didn't care about being offended by their snarky comments.

***

“Just look at you,” Mrs Hudson cooed when Sherlock knocked on her door.

Her favourite colour is still purple. Recently been to the hairdresser. Didn’t get that cat after all.

“Hello, Mrs Hudson. Lovely to see you again. Are you still renting out the upstairs flat?”

“I take it you are interested,” the elderly woman said and winked. “Don’t you think it’s a bit big for just you. A flatmate would be nice. What do you say?”

“Who would tolerate living with me?” Sherlock answered with a grimace.

“Oh, come now, Sherlock. Deep down you’re as fluffy as a plushie,” she stated.

Sherlock rolled his eyes and went upstairs to take a proper look at 221B.

It was cluttered, but the atmosphere was cosy, even though it hadn’t been inhabited for several months. 

It feels like a proper home, but do I want to share it with another man? I’ve never lived with other people than my family before. None of my peers tolerated me for more than a few minutes at a time. I find it hard to believe that somewhere out in the London streets, a man walks around willing to share this flat with a pompous and infuriating git as myself. It would be nothing short of a miracle if that was the case.

***

“Sherlock, meet an old friend of mine, John Watson,” Mike called out when he walked into the lab.

Sherlock narrowed his eyes at the fair-haired man. To Sherlock’s astonishment this John Watson offered to let him borrow his phone when Sherlock asked Mike for his, even though he knew it was safely tucked into his coat pocket.

“Afghanistan or Iraq?”

The awe in the man’s eyes, made Sherlock look away quickly to hide his own confusion. No one had ever gazed at him like that.

“Who said anything about a flatmate?” John asked when he’d gathered himself after Sherlock’s rapid deductions about his career, family, and wound.

“Mike did,” Sherlock explained and put on his coat and scarf with deliberate movements.

Don’t think I haven’t noticed the way you look at my hands and neck, John Watson.

***

“Will you be needing the upstairs bedroom?” Mrs Hudson asked when she followed him and John into 221B the next day.

John blushed but didn’t answer, which was quite promising.

“We’ll let you know,” Sherlock mumbled.

“We have all sort around here,” she assured them before she went down to her own flat.

John placed his cane by the red chair and wandered around to look at all the eccentricities the flat had to offer. The more he walked around, the less he limped, much to Sherlock’s satisfaction.

“Yes, I think this will do just fine,” John said and made himself comfortable in the upholstery chair.

***

“How did you get glitter in your hair?” John asked two days before Christmas later that year.

“I went to Liberty’s to buy some decorations for our tree,” Sherlock said.

“What happened to the Grinch I moved in with in February?”

“He fell in love with an ex-army doctor with a psychosomatic limp,” Sherlock quipped.

“Did he, now,” John murmured and circled his arms around Sherlock’s waist.

Sherlock hummed and bent down to kiss John softly.

“Noticed anything else?” he asked innocently and a bit breathless when they parted.

“I did actually. You’ve been to your tailor,” John said with a broad smile.

“Tell me,” Sherlock purred and sucked John’s bottom lip into his mouth.

“Just spotted some small things. Your shirt isn’t tucked into your trousers in its usually way, one button is only half buttoned, and your left trouser leg has a – “

Sherlock interrupted John’s deductions with a passionate kiss. He looked down into the blue eyes and it felt like he was drowning in a sea of adoration.

“You are a marvel, John Watson,” he whispered.

“Just paying attention to the details that are out of order,” John shrugged, a bit embarrassed by such praise.

“A shame you only catch such details when it comes to me and not at crime scenes.”

John slapped Sherlock’s arse, called him a brat, and went to make tea, while Sherlock decorated the tree.

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

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[pineapplehazard]

Still very angry at Eddie, Chris makes a wish to the universe that Eddie wouldn't be his dad

The Universe : so you want different parents?

Christopher : i just don't want Dad

Then he wakes up in an alternative universe where he isn't Eddie Diaz's son....

But Buck and Shannon's son somehow

In this universe :

Unfortunately Shannon is still dead i this universe, but at least Buck doesn't seem to have had a weird thing with her doppelganger

Shannon and Buck never were in a serious relationship, they just slept together during like a holiday thing they both went to, and decided to have the baby and coparents. Since none of them have a good job yet, they rely a lot on the Buckley's money to take care of Chris, which is why they agree to have Margaret and Philip in Chris's life (otherwise Buck didn't want to impose them to his kid)

Shannon still leaves when Chris is like 3, and Buck and him move to LA to be closer to her, and Buck becomes a Firefighter in the 118, where Chim, Hen, Bobby and Eddie already work

Buck having a kid somehow pushes Maddie to leave Doug sooner, and the end of their story is approximately the same, except it happened before she met Chimney

Chimney and Maddie do end up together but their story is really different, and so much so that Jee-Yun and baby Han n°2 don't exist

Also Eddie is like openly gay in this universe

Once Chris realizes he's in another universe, he immediately regrets his wish, and misses Eddie. He knows he needs help to find his way back home, so he goes to Hen and Chimney about it.

Hen seems to not really believe him, while Chimney (after discovering he has a daughter in the real verse) is absolutely on board to help him

I could imagine somewhere in the story, Chris and Eddie having a talk where Eddie tells him about his childhood and his parents (the way Buck would talk about his parents to Chris in the real verse) which might help Chris understand his father a little bit more

Then thanks to Chim and maybe the rest of the 118 fam, Chris finds a way to take back his vow and go back to his world.

Now he sees his father differently, and his relationship with Buck too

And there's like a conclusion to make probably but I have no idea rn

[houseofbrat]

Personally, I don't know how the W&C look at themselves in the mirror every day. Those pics of the Duke of Kent--at 90!!!--doing what they SHOULD be doing on the heels of the announcement of C&C's North American tour really hit me hard. For heaven's sake, William, put on a frigging tux and attend BAFTA, you lazy bugger. Alert. You're their patron and I don't think it ridiculous to take ONE NIGHT out of your life to acknowledge that. Also, I am convinced that the KP coms team reads this blog because the pushback on their own stupidity regarding Catherine's wardrobe was swift. Nothing like saying, hey, she's been the icon for the British fashion industry for the last ten years, but we don't like the shade she's getting for trotting around with ridiculously expensive handbags, so she's going to take her 3000-pound handbag and go home (and put it on the shelf with the rest of her stupidly-expensive handbags). So there! Two days later... Oops, we didn't really mean that!

It wouldn't be so bad if the marry band of apologists for Will & Kate's lazy, ingratiating behavior weren't making excuses for them left and right.

The "past royal presidents" were Anne, Philip, and Dickie Mountbatten. All three have or had significant royal careers. Philip used to travel a lot for the WWF, accompanying QEII, and other things. Anne still travels for Save the Children and for the Foreign Office. Dickie Mountbatten had retired from the military when he became president of what is now BAFTA, but he also was president of the United World Colleges organization, which is where Leonor attended.

What is William doing with all his free time? Oh, yes. Vacation! He was on vacation five weeks ago, so it's time for another week off!

In the Caribbean!

Yeah, LCC has a really long tweet and only what's shown above is relevant. Will & Kate & kids are heading to Mustique for half-term, according to Lady Colin Campbell.

Yeah, the irony of critiquing Meghan for heading up to Vancouver & back from California when the Waleses are heading to Mustique, which is part of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines!

It's about a nine-hour trip one way to Mustique. Who really is the big spender on a carbon footprint when it only takes three hours to fly from Los Angeles, CA, to Vancouver, BC?

Am I really supposed to believe that Will & Kate & kids are flying commercial all the way to Mustique and back? It's three times the length of flying from from LA to Vancouver. We know they fly private, regardless of whether it's Pippa's husband's jet or their own rented jet.

But hey, we're not going to get proof of life by Will or Kate until they come back and do an engagement somewhere. After they've spent a week "restoring" themselves in the Caribbean.

Somehow Kate is going to keep wearing her funeral wear when she comes back and does ONE engagement per week. If she can work harder, it might be two. Maybe. I'm not going to hold my breath.

I can't wait to see how long Kate can go without a handbag at her engagements. Will she have a handbag next time even if it's a "recycle," or will she go without to avoid more discussion of how many she has? It's going to be interesting either way. The fact that she has not appeared with a new one in the last couple of weeks means KP knows the heat is on. In these times of economic turmoil, it's not a good look to be known as The UK's Marie Antoinette! If she didn't want to be known as that, then she would have to work more. But therein lies the problem, the Rich Party Girl aversion to work.

Or BIG BLUE. She wore BIG BLUE when she visited a prison back in September 2023, but she couldn't wear it this week? Why? I'm really back to Kate had to wear that ring for the past thirteen years due to her husband's mommy issues, and she's not wearing it much in the future anymore because she wants to do her jewelry her way.

Still no announcement that Kate or William is going to be issuing royal warrants anytime soon. No announcement of an application period opening up for them this spring yet.

I am so not surprised.

[favcharacterpoll]

ROUND 5 MATCH 16: LINK VS. NICO

Link from BotW/TotK faces Nico di Angelo from the Riordanverse. Who do you like more?

Link Propaganda:

"i love this guy"

"I love him so much, okay? He's the only person capable of wielding the Master Sword, bears the Triforce of Courage, and was chosen by the goddess Hylia to protect Hyrule"

"Pretty boy"

"ok so link is like the best character ever imo cause have you seen what he looks like in totk he's so gender and ahhh and he's really cool and I love him so so much <333 and oot link is really cool and he's my whole childhood, and I love skyward sword and wind waker link cause they're so expressive, and I love twilight princess wolf link I just love all versions of link so much<3 only exception is the version from the philips cdi games he's so goofy" (focus on the totk part of this one)

"link is THE Gender Envy icon pretty boy pretty boy with sword!!"

Nico Propaganda:

"autism"

"YOU KNOW WHAT. if autism isn't enough to compel you to VOTE NICO then i will write this.

ok so he's gay & european (like the legally blonde song) and also a goth. we love our goths here on tumblr right?!

first i need to provide you a visual. please imagine a small italian boy. now imagine that small italian boy going through a time machine hotel casino in vegas, some wack crazy traumatic incidents, becoming an alt/emo kid and being so fucking powerful that even gods show a little more respect to him than others...

nico has gone through literal hell TWICE !! one time it was VOLUNTARY !! and all the while he was probably experiencing said hell in its most terrifying form. this shows us his mental resilience and selflessness are incredibly strong traits of his and that maybe he should stop being a reckless bitch but whatever !!!!!!

tumblrinas listen up... nico was the first canon lgbt+ character created by rick riordan in the chb chronicles (i am not counting all the other gods, goddesses, minor deities and other figures of greco-roman myth). he was the trailblazer. his story didn't end in tragedy, but he found friendship and love and family, which in this age of upsetting "bury your gays" media is still quite hopeful to read!!

nico has a sunshine bf who would literally walk through hell with him!! i'm not kidding. this actually happened. i'm sure he's definitely cheering from the sidelines somewhere... please do not let will solace down!!

did i mention nico's the son of hades, god of the underworld?? this means his powers include, but are not limited to, being able to communicate with spirits via mcdonalds happy meals, wielding a sword that rends souls asunder, turning people into ghosts, re-animating skeletons, shadow traveling and being able to read other people's death auras.

these powers and his terrifyingly grumpy personality (in earlier books) have created a reputation famous among the demigods and deities. also he literally summons an entire skeleton army and rises from the fucking underworld with his father, stepmother and step-grandmother (all gods) (how does this work) in tow, inspiring FEAR and PANIC among the enemy lines.

and if that's not enough, he's friends with lizard people, his signature items of clothing are a BIG AVIATOR JACKET + SKULL RING = VERY GOOD CHARACTER DESIGN and his hair canonically smells like rain on stone. just so you know

VOTE NICO VOTE NICO VOTE NICO !!!!!!!!!!!"

[immortalmint]

Grim Math: How Many Grimwalkers Did Philip Wittebane Make?

We may never know the exact number of Grimwalkers Philip / Belos made of his brother Caleb, but we can use in-show evidence and math to get us close! From the Grimwalker recipe in Belos’s lab, we know a (singular) bone of ortet is required. Ortet refers to the original mother-plant that clonal offspring plants descend from, usually by grafting or by rooting a cutting of the mother-plant. This ensures the offspring plants are genetically identical to the parent, to propagate favorable traits like disease resistance or fruit quality that might be lost through classic breeding. But The Owl House bends the meaning of ortet to include animal tissue. ‘Planting’ a bone of the deceased, along with other critical ingredients and spells, grows a clone of that person. Philip used this method to create his doomed Golden Guard servants, whom he went on to murder in various ways.

How many doomed Golden Guards did Belos manipulate? Let’s look at a few different ways to quantify the horror!

Assuming the bone of ortet must be used whole and is consumed in the Grimwalker making process (i.e. it cannot be recovered after the Grimwalker’s death), there is a natural limit to how many Grimwalker attempts Philip could make. An adult human skeleton has approximately 206 bones. Interestingly, some people have a little more or less bones due to genetic diversity in the number of ribs, vertebrae, and digits (ex: the six-fingered man in The Princess Bride). Since we have no evidence Caleb had extra fingers, we’ll work with 206 as our maximum number of theoretical Grimwalkers. But by Hunter’s time, had Belos converted Caleb’s entire skeleton into Grimwalkers?

Time to do some subtraction!

Before meeting the Collector in 1660-1670, Philip had acquired Caleb’s skeleton, as seen in the wrapped parcels of bones sitting in his lab. Philip has also collected any information he can find about making Grimwalkers. Note that the Grimwalker recipe posted here is incomplete, with Xs and exclamation points indicating Philip hasn’t gotten it just right yet. We also see a degraded hand sticking out of the floor, finger tagged with the number “4.” It’s reasonable to conclude Philip has consumed 4 bones in failed Grimwalker attempts at this point. We’re down to 202 possible Grims when the Collector gives Philip the missing pieces of the recipe.

Art note: Caleb’s full ribcage is represented with just 8 bones here (4 on each side), far thicker than real ribs, so it is clear the viewer is looking at a ribcage. This is artistic shorthand, since it is difficult to depict all 24 ribs (12 on each side) of the typical human body in a cartoon.

Next, let’s take a look at Belos’s present-day lab from For The Future. There is a torso-sized ribcage and spinal cord still unused. Using the artistic shorthand from before, this is a stand-in for all 24 ribs. We’re down from 202 to 178 Grimwalker opportunities.

The spinal column is made up of 26 bones on average (24 vertebra plus the sacrum and the coccyx (tail bone)). If we assume Caleb was old enough at time of death that the normal spinal bone fusions that occur in adults were complete (vertebra number drops from 33 in kids to 26 somewhere between teenager and young adult), we can proceed with 26 as our spine estimate. The ribcage below appears to be missing the curved tail bone, so we’ll assume the sacrum and coccyx were used or lost along the way. Subtracting the unused 24 vertebra, we’re down to 154 Grimwalker opportunities.

But before we leave Belos’s lab, recall that he had one (just one!) Grimwalker left in reserve whose body he attempted to possess. Unfortunately for Belos, “No. It’s not ready!” The body was unearthed too early to be viable, so 153 max Grimwalker opportunities remain.

But do 153 unaccounted for bones really mean Belos made that many living (however temporarily) Grimwalkers? It is unclear if all bones in the human body are large enough to provide sufficient material to grow a Grimwalker. Perhaps the bones of the hands and feet are too little to use alone, requiring 2-3 at a time. The hands contain 27 bones each (54 for both) and the feet contain 26 bones each (52 for both), meaning most bones in the body (by count) are small in size. We also don’t know if Philip was able to retrieve Caleb’s complete skeleton. Evelyn chased him off after the murder, so presumably Philip had to return later to dig up his brother’s corpse. Graverobbing has its risks, and Philip may have had to settle for a less-than-whole skeleton.

We need to look at evidence for the minimum number of Grimwalkers Belos created. The best place to start is with screenshots of the Grimwalker pit, because if we see their bodies in the show, there are at least that many Grimwalkers.

The Grimwalker pit is a circular chamber that can be divided into 4 quadrants. Going clockwise around the circle: the first quadrant (Q1) contains the stairs leading down from Belos’s main lab, the second quadrant (Q2) has a dark pathway leading to Belos’s Grimwalker lab, the third quadrant (Q3) has a large mound of bodies where the Collector’s disk fell, and the fourth quadrant (Q4) has a dark pathway leading to Belos’s secret ground-level entrance into the skull (this is behind the camera in the 2nd image).

Oriented? Great! Let’s count bodies!

I’m using skulls as the most reliable bone to count, as there is only 1 skull per Grimwalker and it is a nice round feature that is hard to mistake for other bones. There is also less ambiguity in the skull art than there is with masks, since it is unclear if a broken mask piece came from a mask we’ve already counted, or is a separate mask that should be added in. If a mask has a curved structure inside it, I count it as a skull. If I can’t see a round line in addition to the mask, I don’t count it as a skull (possible fallen/empty mask).

Looking at the pile of bones between the stairs (Q1) and Grim lab (Q2), we have 11 skulls in the main pile, and 3 skulls in a smaller pile closer to Q2 (14 total count):

Looking at the pile on the other side of the stairs (Q1 to Q4), we have 9 skulls (23 total count):

There is another angle of Kikimora standing, which appears to have overlap with skull #8 above, so we’ll skip it to avoid double-counts. The skulls at the base of the pillar jutting to the right near the Grim lab (Q2) haven’t been accounted for yet, and neither have the skulls that were previously in shadow and closer to the secret entrance (Q4). We have 8 more skulls to add in (31 total count):

Turning toward the largest mound (Q3), we have 24 skulls (55 total count):

Now there’s some skull stragglers to pick up. The Collector’s disk is blocking the background during King’s Tide, but when we see the same location again in For the Future, the disk is gone. One more skull was hiding behind it (56 total count):

Okay, this next image of a higher angle shot of the large mound (Q3) is harder, because we need to avoid double-counting the skulls from the wide, ground-level shot of the mound (Q3). I’ve marked multiple reference skulls with “#p” to indicate which skull it corresponds to in the wide ground-level view. Ex: skull under cracked-in-half mask #6 from image above is labeled as 6p below. The one hidden skull from behind the Collector’s disk is labeled 1*. There’s another hidden skull from behind the skinny bone-spur holding up the disk (#3 below) and the ambiguous round “rock” behind some ribs between skulls 16p, 17p, and 18p above is clearly skull-colored (#4) from this angle. Overall, I count 7 more skulls not previously seen in the other shot (63 total count):

There are likely to be more skulls out of view behind pillars, beneath masks, or too far under other bones to see, but if we’re only going with “confirmed” skulls, 63 is the minimum number of Grimwalkers Belos created. We have a range of 63 to 153 possible Grimwalkers supported by the art of the show, and our knowledge of human anatomy.

What else can this tell us about the Grimwalkers? Well, we can get an idea of how long the average Grimwalker lived with these estimates. Philip met the Collector sometime between 1660 and 1670, and made his last Grimwalker, Hunter, before the year 2020. This gives us a range of 350 to 360 years in which Belos was making viable (lived after being unearthed) Grimwalkers. For the maximum average Grimwalker lifespan, we’ll use the max year estimate of 360 and divide it by the minimum Grimwalker estimate of 63. That gives us an average lifespan of 5.7 years. Not much, is it?

But it gets worse the more Grimwalkers Belos made in that time. For the minimum average Grimwalker lifespan, we’ll use the min year estimate of 350 and divide it by the maximum Grimwalker estimate of 153. That gives us an average lifespan of only 2.3 years. Just 2.3 years…

I’ll leave you now with a quote from Hollow Mind, after Belos attempted to kill Hunter in his subconscious:

“I was really expecting him to last longer than the others.”

[starishome]

My one and only friend…

Madeline had never had any friends, even when surrounded by people, she had never felt like she belonged anywhere.

The girls at school hated her and when the teachers forced her to join in she never understood what they were talking about. Not to mention the boys, always bothering her and saying very uncomfortable things about her and her body.

Being a rich girl didn't help her at all because she was always alone, her father was never home, her older brother already had his own occupations, and her mother... her mother was long gone.

Madeline was alone…

Until now…

~

“I don’t know why you do so much shopping if you live alone” Philip complained as he grabbed a basket of fruit from the counter “Although well, you are rich, obviously you have to waste the money somewhere”

Madeline finally had a friend and that was Philip. Both went on adventures to find a way to return the human to his home on “earth”, although most of the time they spent it doing mundane things like this, buying groceries at the market.

The witch looked at the hunter and a small smile appeared on her face…

Lately she feels happier than usual when she is with him, she gets anxious when he calls her and asks if they can see each other, was this how it felt to be friends with someone?

Was it normal to feel dizzy when he got too close? No, it wasn't dizzy, it was something else. Her heart raced when he smiled at her, when he caressed her head and when he squeezed her hand whenever she felt overwhelmed…

Both teenagers walked to Madeline's house. Philip left the baskets in the kitchen and Madeline gave him a small cake that had finally finished cooling.

“So, I'm off,” the human said as he patted Madeline's head. “I still have to finish the potions.”

“Don't worry, t-thank you so much for joining me shopping,” Madeline replied with a smile.

“Madeline are you a-” a voice spoke from behind the teens.

“Alder… nice to see you” the human forced a smile.

“Hello… Wittebane…” Alder replied with disdain.

Alder looked at his sister and then at the human and immediately scrunched up his face, although the feeling was mutual because the human did the same. There was silence for a few seconds, both men looking at each other, simply telling each other that neither wanted the other's presence there.

“Well… Mady” said the human caressing the witch’s cheek “I’ll call you later” Philip smiled and looked at Madeline sweetly.

This made the witch’s heart race, why did she feel so weird? There it was again, that strange feeling in her stomach, now she felt nervous, what was that warmth in her chest? Is this what it felt like to have friends?

Nothing mattered now, She wanted to be like this forever, just looking at the sky that was inside Philip eyes, she wanted him to caress her forever... she wanted that-

“Okay that’s enough!” Alder raised his voice and pulled Madeline back away from Philip “Go away… please”

Philip simply rolled his eyes, turned around and walked away, leaving the Blight mansion.

Alder watched him go with a frown and even felt a tick in his eye. For Titan he definitely hated that kid, he called him “Alder” as if they were equals, how rude, although he hated more that his little sister was friends with that jerk.

“Hey” the witch called “What’s that smile on your face?” Alder asked his sister, clenching his fists and grimacing.

“How does it feel… how does it feel to have friends Alder?”

“What…?”

“When are you going to meet your friends… does your stomach hurt? Well it doesn’t hurt, but… it feels strange?” Madeline questioned.

“Uh…”

“Oh! And do you feel like your heart is beating faster? Sometimes we hold hands and I… I can hear my heartbeat and not only that!”

Her ears turned red

“Madeline…”

“I like it when Philip grabs my cheeks, he says they are very soft and pretty and it makes me feel very very good!”

Her cheeks turned red

“Madeline”

“Also I… I… I want Philip to dance with me like last time! It felt good when he grabbed my waist and I put my hands on his shoulders, also! Also! His voice is getting deeper and deeper, more masculine and I-!”

“Madeline!” Alder exclaimed “I understand… I understand”

The witch, embarrassed, looked away from her brother, she didn't understand, she didn't know what was happening, maybe she shouldn't feel that way, maybe she should, everything was so confusing and she just wanted the confusion to end. Maybe she had been keeping those things in until she exploded.

“I never felt this way about a friend…” Alder confessed and looked at the witch “however… I did feel this way before I married Nyaara…”

“Oh… it’s okay… I guess…”

Alder looked at his little sister, that lost look, he knew there was a conflict with herself, although in a certain way he understood why it happened. After all, Madeline had never had friends, she didn’t talk to anyone and she was always alone.

Now he felt guilty, his little sister was so alone, that’s why she could never identify how she felt, maybe if he had been there… he always made the excuse that they were 10 years apart, but those were just that… excuses.

“How about we go out to eat today?” Alder asked, this caught the witch’s attention and he smiled “We can go to your favorite restaurant, I’ll pay”

Madeline’s eyes lit up and she nodded happily, she ran to her room laughing.

~

“Of all the people…” he got upset “it had to be that stupid human…”

~

Tag: @enchantedchocolatebars

[tornrose24]

GREETINGS, NERDS! IT'S YOUR BOY, BILL CIPHER! I HAVE POSSESSED THE BODY OF TORNROSE24 FOR THIS POST IN REGARDS TO MY ROLE IN THAT DISNEY CHANNEL THEMED RESIDENT EVIL VILLAGE AU!

So you likely saw those drawings of that Resident Evil Village Au (hilarious, I know) and are wondering ‘but I want to know more about Bill. Why is his human form some old dude that wouldn’t be useable for a Tumblr sexyman contest? WHERE’S MORE INFORMATION ABOUT BILL AND HOW DID HE TAKE OVER THE PINES?! AND HOW IS HE COMPARABLE TO EVELINE WHEN HE IS FAR SUPERIOR?!’ Well worry not, nerds, for I shall tell you MY side of things:

MY TIME IN THE VILLAGE:

-See, I grew up in that dumb village. The so called ‘Father Belos’ implanted a cadou at me at a young age. I was a massive success, of course, and he decided to make me part of his so-called ‘family.’ As for my real, biological family? Well… the less you know the better. Other than that their remains are somewhere in the surrounding woods.

–FYI, his REAL name is Philip and his big goal is trying to get his big bro back. He already tried the cloning gig and it didn’t work. And he thought he could use MY body to get Caleb back?! Ha! Fat chance, dingus!

-So I was given power and prestige for a time. I had my own lab where I inserted cadou into SEVERAL people and got a few henchmen out of the deal. Meanwhile, I had fun screwing with everyone’s minds and visiting them in their dreams thanks to some good old mental astral projection and what not. (And helping to get rid of anyone unwanted…. Fun times!)

-Those four other lords? They’re losers. I can’t believe they are meant to be my ‘siblings’ as ‘Father’ puts it.

-Oh, but I’ve visited their minds and know their fears! One has nightmares about losing her hunky husband and baby girl. One has nightmares about ‘what could have been,’ being alone, and having guilt issues. One is worried she’ll lose control of her mutation and kill everyone. The other… eh, just typical ‘always rejected by my family’ and weirdly about platypuses for some reason. (That’s the one I go to the most when I want to be amused).

-Ah yes, their heirs… my ‘nieces.’ My personal favorite is Meteora–what an adorable little hellspawn! She tried biting me several times and it’s a ticklish kind of painful! Also she’s already making the best demonic faces and crawling up walls! I hope for the best for her!

–I decided to be funny and visit the girls’ nightmares. Metora is a baby, so there’s not much in her little brain, besides worrying about getting separated from her parents. The others though? One is worried about causing pain to her family and friends and blames herself for it. Another is afraid that Belos is going to find out about ‘the big plan’ (which I won’t spoil, of course). The last one just wants a normal life.

-So I wasn’t too keen on being an underling and tried to take over the village with MY underlings. Unfortunately, the other lords managed to turn on me, my henchmen were dead, and **** brains decided to punish me. He couldn’t kill me himself, so he injected something that would make me age faster than that decaying apple you refused to eat as a kid, instead of aging slowly like the others. (Oh, I wonder if Belos told the two losers who adopted the girls who got injected with cadou that they might age slowly like they will? They will be so PISSED considering those girls still have their biological families around. I think it’s HILARIOUS! Or I don’t know, maybe they aren’t aging slowly. Getting a cadou is the dumbest lottery scam ever.)

–And how did ‘Daddy’ get rid of me? Well Fordsy was visiting the village and I managed to sweet-talk him into taking me home with him. Belos was all too glad to be rid of me.

–What? Was there anything between me and Ford? MIND YOUR DAMN BUSINESS! I’m not telling you anything!

MY TIME WITH THE PINES–

-What a dumbass! Ford took me to his house while his family was there! So I quickly got most of them under my control with the exception of his brother and great-nephew. (Eh, it was easy–I just used a little infection on them). Stan managed to get Dipper away, but little did he know that I infected the boy with something.

–See, as much as I enjoyed having my own ‘family’ I needed to ditch my rapidly aging husk and get a new one. Dipper was initially my best candidate, but I had the others trick several young men and boys into getting to the house so I can infect them and get my new body. Unfortunately, all the bastards died–they weren’t compatible. Meanwhile, I was using my favorite projection as a disguise–a certain triangle form that you all love and want to kiss (you disgusting freaks! I know you love me, but I don’t want EVERYONE’S SALIVA all over me at the same time! One at a time, please!)

–So Dipper realized what was happening to him and–wanting to get his family back–snuck onto the grounds. It was around this time that Heart-Cheeks and her friend, Beauty Mark were tricked into coming to the Pines residence. (I think they were on a summer vacation). I had the Pines snatch Beauty Mark away and they helped me infect him while I left Heart-Cheeks at their mercy.

–Speaking of which, would Mabel count as my ‘daughter?’ I’m sure my nieces would have loved her. Especially that really preppy-happy one.

-Knowing my time was short, I sped up the infection in Dipper and I did it a little too fast because he was starting to crystalize while trying to help Heart-Cheeks. I had better success with Beauty Mark.

–Unfortunately that ASSHOLE Stan eventually came to save his family and teamed up with Heart-Cheeks. Also, Dipper managed to make a serum that Heart-Cheeks used against me and cut off my ability to create illusions and get in people’s head. I. WAS. PISSED!

–Well, the joke’s on her. I left that infection in Beauty Mark, but changed it up a bit. Let’s just say that if Belos knew what it was that I put into the boy, he would immediately get the kid and use him for his ultimate scheme.

-Unfortunately, I DIED. Calcified into dust when Heart-Cheeks smashed me to bits, with some help from some military-looking people. And yes–Stan dealt the final blow. Asshole.

-And I’m now stuck in the Megamycete’s consciousness/realm/whatever you want to call it thanks to the connection some of us share with it. The only way I can have any fun is to give those losers nightmares. Last I heard, the Pines family was freed from my control, Dipper's body went back to normal, and all my victims managed to escape... WHAT KIND OF–?! I wanted violence and trauma, damnit!

-Ah well. Heart-Cheeks will have to deal with Belos and my four ‘siblings’ soon enough.

–Well, looks like my connection is failing and I’ll lose control of this idiot’s body soon. Hope you had fun reading this, because I’m thinking of possessing YOU next. Also, tell your Mom I said hi–I hope you took that DNA test like my canon self suggested.

[jurakan]

Fun facts about the Crusades?

Today You Learned about Frederick Barbarossa.

I wasn't planning to use his profile pic from Wikipedia, but I just thought it looked kind of funny.

Born in 1122, Friederich I, nicknamed 'Barbarossa' because of his red beard, was the Holy Roman Emperor. This dude has a reputation as a badass. See, the Holy Roman Empire (not the same as the Roman Empire you probably think of) wasn't quite as awesome as it had been in the past, so Friedrich wanted to fix that. Upon ascension to the throne, he solidified his power base, did international politicking like a pro, made friends with the Pope (though his relationship with the Papacy later turned sour), and proceeded to wage several major campaigns in northern Italy to re-establish Holy Roman presence there.

He grabbed the relics of the Three Magi and put them in Cologne, Germany, where they're kept to this day. He worked hard to get Charlemagne canonized--which kind of happened, by an antipope though, so it doesn't actually count for us Catholics. He built a friendly rapport with the Byzantines. And then he built tons of family connections by getting kids hitched to Italian nobles.

Also! Fun fact: while he later put a tax on the Jewish population of his kingdom, he also passed laws protecting them, and punishing anyone who would preach against or harm them. Which in this point of history is mind-blowing.

Dude didn't have a spotless record, but he was a certified badass and experienced statesman.

And then the Third Crusade happened.

After a sermon pitching another Crusade, Freddy Barbarossa asked an assembly if he should take the Cross. The crowd overwhelmingly cheered for it, and so he did, making preparations to go East and free the Holy Land. And this Crusade was going to be AWESOME, right? Three Kings on Crusade: Frederick Barbarossa, Philip II of France, and... some guy from some island people hardly cared about.

[That last one's an exaggeration, but I'm doing it for dramatic effect so stick with me.]

Philip and the other guy decided to sail. Friederich went over land, with an army a hundred thousand strong, with tens of thousands of knights. This was THE SHIZ, man, he was going all out. They had some opposition on the way, because some kingdoms don't like it when you march an army through them! But they pushed through, and this was going to be the Most Awesomest Crusade Evah. Saladin was quaking in his boots.

So, uh... yeah, he stopped somewhere on the way there, and uh... drowned.

Goshdarnit, Friederich.

There are conflicting accounts as to how that happened. Some say he went swimming across the river and drowned in unexpectedly strong currents. One account says he got thrown from his horse and drowned because he was in his armor. Some (including some Saracens) declared it was God's punishment.

Regardless of exactly what happened, we still had a dead Holy Roman Emperor. A lot of his army just packed up and went home. Philip of France saw that the biggest guns for this operation were gone, and decided he's also turn around. Without Frederick Barbarossa, it was going to be a bust.

And so that third guy, that nobody from a backwater? He decided not to go home. He decided, "Screw it! Frederick's dead, and the French are leaving! I'll do this Crusade on my own!" And he did; it made his career (and arguably bankrupted his country). For his role in the Third Crusade, Richard, the last guy standing, was later known as "King Richard the Lion-Hearted".

[Okay, so England wasn't exactly a backwater no one cared about, but it wasn't considered as important as France or the Holy Roman Empire. Richard helped make them more noticeable on the medieval world stage.]

For whatever reason, some people decided that it was difficult to believe that Frederick got himself killed so lamely. So there's a popular German legend that came up in the Middle Ages claiming that he's not dead, he's just sleeping under a mountain somewhere, and will pop back up when he's needed.

Of course, given German history, you can probably guess what unsavory sorts co-opted this story, or the imagery of Frederick as the great warrior king, while also forgetting that he put up historic protections for the Jewish people. The Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union was titled "Operation Barbarossa" after this guy.

Nazis suck and they lie about history. What else is new?

Putting the 'fun' back in 'Fun Fact', Barbarossa's death is also a major Plot Point in the novel Baudolino by (the notably anti-fascist) Umberto Eco, where it's turned into a bit of a mystery. Also there's a lot of weird stuff in that book, and Barbarossa's death is maybe the least weird thing going on.

Hope this was an enlightening Fun Fact for you!

[stabknives]

iiiiii wanna hear more about charlie philips emphasis on philips cos i’m a certified Trevhead and i wanna hear the family drama SPILL THE T BABEY

Hi thank you for asking so much I'm crazy about her and them and I love you. Don't look outside your window

TWs: i dunno abuse and creepiness and rape mentions. Why follow my blog if you can't handle this. GET A HOBBY.

I should probably buckle down and find names for Charlie's parents bc when they briefly get mentioned it's gonna be annoyingggg if I don't have names for them. Anyway I have a LOT of thoughts about Charlemagne's childhood i just never post about it bc it saddens me.

I do insist that Charlie had, out of all her family, the best relationship with her uncle Trevor. It's why I keep them separated now that she's an adult, bc Trevor needs to go through the events of GTA without ever improving and Charlie needs to go through the events of her game also without ever improving.

If either one of thm was there for the other, well. Trevor would've probably just fucking killed Christopher like I literally do not see him meeting this stupid fascist asshole and not going um I need to kill you. Or at the very least rape the attitude out. Leave my niece alone? She's literally mentally ill and a minor.

It's hard to say if Charlie ever met Mikey but I think she'd find him so so taxing. I had a brief little blurb somewhere about Trevor teaching Charlie how to hotwire a car + and offering to teach her to drive. Even though she was like. Eight. And there was a friend with trevor that was like NOT WHILE IM IN THE CAR YOU'RE NOT and the implication was that it was Michael but that makes the timeline crazy so. I dunno if it's cannon that he was the friend there. Same as me not knowing whether or not Charlie could've reasonably been there to try comforting Trevor when Michael dies.

Big thing with Trevor for those not in the know is his like. He wants his people not to be scared of him but he refuses to stop acting like an actual real ogre constantly all the time. He's a literal fucking humanoid natural disaster and he'll kill someone for practically no reason at all (he's definitely got HIS reasons, his own internal logic, but. To a layman. They are shit lol). But he's also secretly very lonely. Sad! And deserved.

Charlie can't be scared of Trevor because genuine Trevor is the only person in Charlie's blood family that like... Gave a shit lmao. Would like actively play with her and teach her things (weird crime things but. Still.) and give her attention. And she's also just kind of cut from the same cloth she likes to be loud she likes to break things she probably squealed in delight whenever he would break the furniture or whatever.

Does that mean that Trevor was a GOOD uncle in the traditional sense? Um. Probably better than you'd think, given the fact that Michael trusted him to be around the kids and Michael really does care for his children. Even if. He's a shitty asshole, and a terrible, emotionally abusive father. Still. Trevor is Trevor.

But it would probably be hard for Trevor to like. Give up a connection like that. A kid who hypes him up and actually enjoys his flaws and thinks he's cool and special and says I love you uncle Trevor I wish I could live with you and not Pa ect ect... Would Trevor's home be the safest place for a child? No. Would there be food in the house? Yes but it might be people. Although it's not like Charlie hasn't had to make do before.

So you can see the dilemma, right. To avoid woobification they must never be permitted to meet once Charlie is an adult bc Trevor would be like WHY HANG AROUND WITH A BUNCH OF NUTSACKS. YOU'LL MAKE PLENTY OF MONEY WORKING WITH YOUR OL UNCLE T. CMON, KIDDO. PHILIPS AND PHILIPS INDUSTRIES LETS GO. And Charlie would be like ok! Yay ❤️

I thiiiiink Trevor is the youngest child, Ryan is the middle child, and (pulls a name out of a hat) Henry the eldest. Henry is Charlie's father, and he moved out first. I think Trevor killed Ryan when they were still teenagers, and that's actually when Henry and Trevor first like? Even actually really met? I think Henry moved out before Trevor was even older thn cribs and cradles... So he came to his brother's funeral to laugh at his mother's grief and met Trevor, and they kept in contact for mutual crime job benefits. Trevor likely hated him immensely but. Y'know. Trevor and family <3 plus the half price on whores is nice. Henry is a pimp btw.

What else. Trevor probably cucked his brother sometimes. [Pulls another name from the hat] Brandy, Charlie's mother, was a hairstylist, so Charlie would cut Trevor's hair whenever it got too long for him. This likely wasn't wise since Charlie was a toddler. Why give him a pair of sheers for gardening to cut hair. Whatever. That disheveled look suits T fine I suppose. Sometimes when Trevor gets mad and growls Charlie also growls so she feels included + so Trevor doesn't have to try to find words. Trevor may or may not have given Charlie opiates to help him calm down from crazy night terrors whenever he slept over at his uncles place. Charlie has dyslexia so on homemade birthday cards she would often spell Trevors name as Uncle Torver which Trev found extremely funny.

Something something Trevor would buy Charlie's sex tapes years later when he missed his niece if he could but let's not get into all that

[deathsmallcaps]

Okay so in the ‘You Look Lonely’ part from Blade Runner 2049, I always thought ‘you look like a good Joe’ meant that somewhere in the hive mind Joi probably existed as, a little bit of K’s Joi (KJ) still lived and recognized him as Joe. That some corner of that AI was aware enough to love someone*.

But I found a funny parody meme earlier and I was listening to the soundtrack** and because I needed to go to bed early I of course started obsessing over something. So I looked up some videos from scenes I wanted to rewatch and so on. You know, wiki-diving and other sleep destroying activities. Eventually, I felt the need to rewatch the whole ‘You look lonely scene’ after reading the Joi article twice and seeing no acknowledgement that my interpretation of the ad’s actions representing KJ’s love.

And yeah. I rewatched it twice, and with my new/renewed lore, it seemed less and less likely that my interpretation was canon? So yeah I looked it up and most people came to the opposite, and I now think more accurate, conclusion: that Ad Joi narratively served to show Joe that he wasn’t the special one here. That all her clients (?) were Joes, and that she was merely making him happy by agreeing with his dreams of being a non-replicant, a born human.

But also I find the name Joe in this context very interesting.

Joe is similar to John, which is slang for a person (though the term is usually for men) who solicits sex from a sex worker.

Then there’s Average Joe, meaning regular guy. K wants to be regular, just human, etc. And he’s never going to get that.

Joe is close to Joi in sound and spelling. Was there a male Joi? Is K perhaps the male Joi? She exists to live similarly to a Housewife trope, being cute and making a man happy. He exists as a 50s husband, tough and providing and ultimately achieving only contentment from his “wife’s” performance of comforting and acceptable behavior? Was KJ freed from that marriage, that dynamic, when she died***? Was K freed when she died to live more authentically. And of course the ‘wife’ had to die to free the action hero lol.

I’m sad to find out canon. But I’m curious if others also interpreted K and his Joi’s relationship this way. Idk. I was the kind of kid who watched Birdman (I was 12 I think) and it didn’t even occur to me that he did not fly. Of course he flew****.

In any case, I watched Blade Runner 2049 without seeing the original ***** so I bet that affects my interpretation. I’ve read/listened to other Philip K. Dick works by now and I’m sure I’d enjoy Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep. He has good stuff.

Anyway, it’s time for ME to count sheep. Yall can decide if they’re electric or not :)

Footnotes under readmore

*be it platonic and devoted or romantic, KJ certainly had me hoping (perhaps convinced? I loved the movie but never rewatched it fully because I think it was best on a big screen. And because sometimes rewatching something affects your enjoyment of it. Kind of like what happened here lmao.) that she was real and loved K.

**I love it. It’s kind of my go to for when I don’t know what to listen to and don’t feel like singing. Which covers most emotions from content to unhappy. When I’m happy I sing or occasionally listen to more joyous soundtracks, and when I’m really sad

***Now I’m thinking about the Ballad of Lucy Jordan by Marianne Faithfull. Excellent song I discovered from the Thelma and Louise movie (superb movie. You must see it)

**** It’s important to me that he flew.

***** Stepdad insisted we all go and I love the movies and didn’t really know there was a Blade Runner. I found out pretty much after the movie ended and I was excited and my stepdad was like “You know that was a sequel right?”. Anyway I will watch Blade Runner one day, but that ain’t today.

[canirove]

The Princess & the Football Player | Chapter 28

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Masterlist

"Good morning, sweetheart."

"Hi."

"I've brought you some breakfast" my mum says, leaving a tray with food on the bedside table and sitting on the bed.

"I'm not hungry."

"You must eat something."

"I'm not hungry" I repeat.

"Eleanor, please. I'm sure he wouldn't like to see you getting sick."

"Why did you have to mention him?" I say, covering my head with the duvet and starting to cry.

"I'm sorry. I just... Drink the juice at least. You will dihydrate if you keep crying like that."

"I don't care!"

"Eleanor..."

"Leave me alone!"

"I'm your mother, I'm not going anywhere." 

And so far, she hasn't. Since the moment she found me crying on the floor after Declan left, she has been by my side. She has spent the whole night with me, taking care of me, comforting me. When she left to pick up my breakfast, it probably is the longest she has been gone for.

"Eleanor... Ellie..." she says after taking a deep breath. "Do you know why at first I opposed to you dating Declan?"

"Because you are a snob with a stick up your ass."

"No, Eleanor" she sighs. "I opposed to it because I knew this would happen. Because I knew he'll end up breaking your heart, and I didn't want to see you suffer like this."

"Because he isn't like us."

"Exactly."

"See? You are a snob!"

"I am not a snob. But I better than anyone know how it feels to fall in love with a royal when you aren't part of that world. What it entails, all the sacrifices you must make, how much you must fight. And it isn't easy, Eleanor. You don't know how many times I had my phone on my hand ready to call your dad and tell him it was over, that I couldn't deal with the press, with everything I had to learn if I wanted to be queen one day. It was so tough. Not just for me, but for everyone around me."

"But you never did it. You never gave up like he has done."

"Because unlike Declan, I had nothing to lose. If things between Philip and I hadn't worked out, if we had broken up... Yes, we both would be heartbroken. Especially me. But that was it. I had my studies and I could start again. Maybe not in England, but definitely somewhere else. Declan doesn't have that luxury."

"What do you mean?" I ask, uncovering my head.

"He has his career. His dream. Everything he and his family have worked for since he was a kid. They've sacrificed many things for it, and he couldn't lose that."

"So instead, he chose to lose me."

"Yes. But not because you weren't worth it, because he doesn't love you, or because it was the easier choice. He did it because he knows it is something that can be fixed."

"What?"

"When I found out you were seeing someone who wasn't Charles, I thought it was just something fleeting. Then I noticed how happy you were, that you actually had feelings for whoever that boy was. And despite suspecting that he probably was one of Mason's friends and that you had met him through Roberta, I said to myself… well, maybe it will work out. Just look at her, at how she is glowing. Then you told us who he was and I knew it was a mistake, that you would end up hurting each other. But you both still kept fighting. And then, again, I thought… maybe I'm wrong. Maybe they'll work through this, maybe the fact that he has had to deal with huge pressure before at such a young age will help them."

"But you were wrong."

"Yes and no. I was wrong because he clearly hasn't been able to deal with everything that has happened since the press found out about you two and with everything else going on on the pitch. But Eleanor... The way you and Declan love each other... You don't get to see that every day. It is true love. Right now you probably feel like the world is ending, like it is over. But it isn't. This just wasn't your moment to be together. You'll have a second chance, I'm sure of it."

"What... What do you mean?"

"I..." she says, taking a deep breath. "I think that one day, both of you will be strong enough to fight against anything and everything, and you will be ready to get back together. I don't know when that will happen, but..."

"It isn't a goodbye, it's a see you soon" I say, remembering what Declan said before he left.

"That's it, yes."

"If one day that happens... If we get back together… Will you support us? Will you be by our side?"

"I will. I promise you I will" she says, caressing my cheek.

"It would have been easier if you had told me all this before, you know? Everyone kept telling me that you were just trying to protect me, but if you had explained it to me..."

"I know. I just… I didn't know how to do it, so I took the harsh way. But I love you, Eleanor. You know I do, don't you?"

"I do" I say, sitting up.

"I'm sorry I didn't do things right. That I hurt you so much. Both you and Declan."

"It's ok" I whisper.

"I know things are gonna be very difficult. That right now you are heartbroken and feel like nothing makes sense anymore. But I'm here for you, and I will help you with everything. Now and always" she says, taking my hand on hers. 

"Thank you, mum" I cry.

"Oh, come here" she says, hugging me.

"I love you."

"I love you too, Eleanor."

[castieltrash1]

on the 1st day of rothmas, castieltrash1 gave to me... holiday decorating with the tim roth characters! (more below the cut xoxo)

⋆ freddy “mr. orange” newandyke (reservoir dogs)

freddy’s place has never really been cohesive, to say the least. you’ve noticed none of his dishes or cutlery match and most of the time his bedsheets and pillowcases are different patterns or colors. besides his blue walls, retro comic book posters, and that stained glass cross by his front door, he doesn’t really ‘decorate.’ as long as his work stuff is easily accessible, everything else just kind of fits wherever. he prefers spending his free time on renovations -- clanky bathroom pipes or a loose kitchen cabinet hinge are more important to him.

that being said, freddy is a traditional christmas decorator. as early december rolls around, he lugs his fake tree out of storage, hangs a wreath on the door, and strings up some lights. most of his ornaments are plain glass bulbs, but he’s collected a few keepsakes over the years! in all honesty, he’s secretly excited to settle down with you and make a home out of someplace (preferably not his messy apartment.) it’s not in the cards just yet, but he knows someday you two -- and maybe some pets or kids if you feel so inclined -- will have a cozier domestic setup where christmas feels less like an obligation and more like a celebration.

“step back and tell me if this shit is straight,” freddy says, jerking his chin up to the string of lights he’s hanging above the door. you hesitate for a moment, not wanting to put the ladder he’s balanced precariously on out of reach in case he falls; a scenario that seems completely likely considering he’s got a nail gun in one hand and a half-smoked cigarette propped between his lips.

you slowly inch backward and… “oh. they’re- uh…” one end is about three inches higher than the other, give or take. “no, they’re good. perfect.”

freddy snorts, a flicker of ash falling to the ground. “i’m a cop, remember? i know when you’re lying.”

⋆ cal lightman (lie to me)

cal has always been your average low-effort christmas decorator. half of his presents are wrapped in a brown paper bag, for christ’s sake. towards the end of his marriage with zoe and shortly following their separation, he put a lot of effort into holidays for emily’s sake, but now that she’s grown, his co-parenting relationship has mellowed, and he’s got you in his life, there’s a lot less pressure for the holidays to be perfect!

he is absolutely going to keep cutting corners, though. why would he wobble on a ladder outside in the cold to hang up lights he’ll have to take down in a month anyway when he can just use those projectors that shine colors all over the house? and sure, he likes ornaments, especially the cheesy hand-made ones emily made in elementary school, but he’s content throwing some tinsel and popcorn strings on a lit-up tree and calling it a day. speaking of trees, they’re one of the few splurges he’s willing to spend his time and money on. he likes the smell and look of real ones, sue him!

“did you even measure the door beforehand?” you ask, barely able to see the top of cal’s head over the massive tree in the way. he’s got one end, you’ve got the other, and emily has disappeared somewhere in the middle of the prickly pine needles.

“it’ll fit!” cal yells back, just as emily crawls out from under the mass of branches, sweat and melting snow glimmering on her forehead. she takes one look at the way you’re straining to pull the top through the front doorway and laughs under her breath, shaking her head.

“twenty bucks says we have to bring it in through the backyard.”

⋆ philip chaney (captives)

when you meet philip, he’s been moved to a short-term facility, so the rules are more lax. it’s still prison so traditional decorating is out of the question, but you two make it work. he doesn’t want to draw unwarranted attention from inmates or cos whose radars he’d rather not be on, so philip sticks to his favorite and the safest way of sprucing up his cell: photographs. bring him pictures of you, your decorations, and your tree during visits and he’ll tape them to his wall or the underside of the top bunk to admire before bed.

on his days out -- after his classes are over and he’s got an hour to blow before the bus arrives --philip loves walking around to see all the christmas lights. it’s freezing, but he never seems to notice, too busy pointing out his favorite decorated buildings and houses. his old contracting and electrical wiring jobs make him a pain in the ass, though, since he never stops scrutinizing the shoddily hung lights or clear fire hazards.

philip flicks the ash of his cigarette, eyes narrowing at the bundle of cords tucked on the side of a building you two always pass; now covered in flashing red, white, and green. your fingertips are freezing off and you can’t tell the smoke of philip’s exhales from your breaths of white air.

“philip.”

“what?” he looks back at you, pointy teeth curling into a knowing grin when you glare. he keeps walking, leading you somewhere warmer, but doesn’t let up. “they’ve got three fuckin’ cords plugged into one bloody outlet.”

⋆ ted the bellhop (four rooms)

ted is kind of like a retail worker -- christmas decorations and music send a chill up his spine. thoughts of working new year’s eve at the mon signor make him lightheaded and the last thing he wants is to bring that home with him. unfortunately, he also gets sad if you two don’t decorate, so it’s a lose-lose situation. he’ll eventually decide that the bellhop’s room remain decoration-free for his sanity, but at home, he needs a little holiday cheer.

don’t let him try any handmade or crafty type decorations. if there’s one thing ted’s bound to do it’s burn himself, start a fire, rip something, trip over something else, electrocute himself, fall off a ladder, and end the night slamming his fists against the floor yelling “why, god, why?!” make it simple and save yourself the headache. give this man some plastic ornaments, battery-powered fairy lights, and a few garlands and he’s set.

as the first few notes of “jingle bells” fill the room, ted’s neck snaps toward your cd player, the color draining from his face. “turn that off. please. now.” you watch in slight amusement as the candy cane in his fist cracks under the pressure of his whitened knuckles.

as you skip the classic tune, ted lets out a comedic sigh of relief, wiping a bead of sweat from his forehead. “i heard that fifty-seven times last shift, you know!”

⋆ joshua shapira (little odessa)

besides the fact he doesn’t celebrate, joshua isn’t a big decorator to begin with. most of it is out of necessity -- wherever he’s holed up has to stay discreet for safety reasons. the last thing he needs is bright flashing lights pointing potential threats in the right direction. if you two live together or are settling down, he’ll let you decorate inside, regardless of which holiday you celebrate. he’ll tease you, but, as long as it makes you happy and isn’t too overboard, he doesn’t mind.

the few hanukkah pieces he has are heirlooms his mom secretly gave him after he left home. after her passing, they became even more important to him. he keeps them safe all year long and makes sure they -- the menorah, especially -- are proudly displayed by the front door window. he doesn’t have the best memories from home, but lighting the candles has always been one of them.

after reciting the respective blessings, joshua takes the shamash and begins lighting the menorah. you watch as the flames spark, slowly moving from the left to the right with each candle. the reflection flickers in his eyes even after he finishes and steps back, pulling you close.

“it’s beautiful,” you softly murmur, resting your head on his shoulder.

he nods, pressing a kiss to your forehead. “yeah… it is.”

⋆ guildenstern (rosencrantz and guildenstern are dead)

medieval yule decorations are all about the foliage. guildenstern might not be able to differentiate between most plants and flowers, but he knows a good branch of holly when he sees it. he prefers the celebrations, music, and food more, so he won’t go all out, but he still enjoys being festive. also a big fan of mistletoe for its symbolic protection and the excuse it gives him to kiss you.

if you two spend yule at or near elsinore, you’ll be treated to the castle’s extravagant decorations. the great hall is especially beautiful this time of year with the roaring fire, bright greenery, and intricately embroidered tablecloths made of fine fabric. the church would also likely have trees donned with paper flowers and apples to celebrate!

guildenstern sidles up to you in the great hall, biting into a crisp red apple. the sharp crunch cuts through the music playing and you shoot him a glare. “pray tell, where did thou find that?” the banquet had a variety of feasts, but there wasn’t an identical fruit in sight. the only place you’d seen one was those decorating the church’s oaks and surely guildenstern would never-

“upon a tree outside,” he replies, grinning between chews. “there are more to be found, should thou desire one.”

⋆ david (resurrection)

david doesn’t like celebrations of any kind unless he’s the focal point. he won’t make that obvious at first, of course, but you’ll slowly realize his attitude shifts whenever you bring up the holidays. the more decorations you put up, the more kindnesses he asks of you. it’s a simple trick that gets your brain to associate festivities with sacrifice and discomfort.

if he’s feeling kind or wants to reward you for his own benefit, he’ll let you have a few decorations. it’s important you realize that it’s a privilege bestowed by him, so you’ll be more thankful for it. most of the time, you’ll be responsible for putting the decorations up and taking them down, but he might surprise you in the morning with a few lights or tinsel hung just to hear you praise him.

it’s a simple strand of lights above the door, but it’s the most decorative thing you’ve seen this christmas season. your eyes practically water at how warm and cozy it feels, and david rests his hand on your shoulder, squeezing it softly.

his lips curl into a smirk as he watches the colors dance on your face. “aren’t you grateful, dearest? i did this just for you.”

⋆ colin (meantime)

while colin’s family does decorate for christmas, it’s never been too exciting for him. they can’t afford anything new, so he’s seen the same lights, figurines, and garlands used every year since (and before) he was born. most of the houses near his are the same, too. in the past, he’d cut festive pictures out of magazines, the newspaper, and advertisements on food boxes from the grocery store, but mark teased him relentlessly for it.

visiting you gives colin an excuse to admire your decorations as long as he wants. if you two aren’t together yet, he’ll find a way -- mostly with coxy’s goading -- to offer to help you hang lights or some other mundane task that lets him spend more time with you. he’s quiet during the whole process, but you notice he’s extremely careful, making sure everything is set up exactly how you want it.

“oh, wow!” you stare up at the string of lights dangling from your roof trim with an excited laugh, one that turns into a fearful gasp as you watch colin wobble on the ladder at the sound of your voice. “oh shit.” you quickly grip the metal to steady it, peering up at your flustered friend. “are you okay?”

“i-i…” colin’s face is bright red and you’re not sure how much of it is from the cold. “… didn’t hear you… come out.”

“sorry,” you wince, biting back a frown. you’d gone inside to make some snacks and hadn’t thought twice about making your presence known. “the lights look great, though!” this time, the darkening of his cheeks is an obvious result of your praise, and you nod toward the front door, hoping to get him back inside. “hungry?”

⋆ gerbino de ratta (virgin territory)

safe to say, you won’t be doing a lot of decorating with a plague spread further than you could ever travel. any celebrations you have will be limited to those in gerbino’s closest circles, mainly his men, so it doesn’t matter all that much anyway. at most, he’ll “buy” you some nice gold and pretty candles but everything must remain inside lest it be stolen (again.)

“this is beautiful,” you say, mesmerized by the pristine candleholder gerbino’s brought home. he’s even found a tall beeswax candle to pair with it; already smelling sweet despite not being lit. “where did you get this?”

gerbino’s smirk falters. “never mind that, love,” he quickly replies, guiding you toward the mantel that holds all the other trinkets he’s gifted you. “let’s light it, yes?”

⋆ oswaldo mobray (the hateful eight)

your dearest “english pete” is a big fan of the holidays and all the celebrations that come with it. since you two and the rest of the domingre gang are often on the move, most of your “decorations” are on various stagecoaches and horse reins/saddles. pete, in particular, is a big fan of wreaths and holly but he also sniffles and sneezes with the foliage so close to his sleeping quarters.

pete also loves decorating you. he’ll spend whatever he gets from different heists on soft silks and velvets that you can wear through the cold season. some of it is embroidered, and some are pristine heirlooms stolen from richer folk. you usually manage a good collection by the time the near year rolls around!

“hm… hm… yes, yes, like this,” pete mumbles under his breath, a white puff of air in the cold wind. he fiddles with the new red velvet cape he’s found you, fingers adjusting and readjusting the fabric through his thick leather gloves.

he steps back and you grin, teeth near chattering. “well?”

“quite dashing, if i do say so myself, love.”

✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ:

12 days of rothmas masterlist

[rreskk]

TREVOR PHILIPS: “He was the smartest, toughest, weirdest kid in Canada.”

HEADCANONS: Teenage Trevor Philips

~Basically lived at the arcades trying to compete against other players all of his summer breaks.

~His hockey team used him as a weapon during games. They always relied on Trevor to DEMOLISH the opposing players. And when I mean demolish... He gets brutal. Blood, sweat, tears...

~Got kicked out of the team obviously...

~Played bass in his free time. Was talented but quit when he found interest in planes and pilots.

~Never attended classes but when he did, he was surprisingly intelligent. (Was a master in physics, maths, physical education, and social sciences).

~Was adored by all female teachers (due to his charisma and attachments to them).

~His full-time job was scaring school councillors into cancelling his "therapy" sessions.

~Lone wolf. He used to make friends but he was always moving schools.

~With that... He's known as "that transferred kid" who intimidates everyone.

~Probably had a few... Close scandals with female teachers as well...

~After school hours, he was always graffitiing on the school walls.

~He's a head teachers worst fear...

~Was a leather jacket teenager (bonus if he wore fingerless gloves as well).

~Trevor mostly spent his time getting high on a random field instead of attending school. His mother was barely at home and his brother (Ryan - Still alive during this era) would also be flunking his lessons, just somewhere else.

~He had one school fight and it ended with death. The kid threatened him and... Well... Trevor made him choke on the schools choco milk in front of everyone in the cafeteria. He was sent to juvenile hall (like Michael) but many times... (For reasons surrounding drugs and aggression).

~Dropped out when he was 16.