#nor even TED FROM ACCOUNTING!?!?!?

[chirpsythismorning]

The Vanishing of BLANK Wheeler

I wanted to make a list, from least likely to most likely, for which Wheeler I think is going to go missing.

But I also wanted to give a little disclaimer first, that even if these titles are real, they could still be fake, or could even possibly change given how much time we still have until s5 actually premieres.

For s2-3, the Duffers literally released official promo videos announcing episode titles for their upcoming season, with some of them changing when the season finally premiered.

Like in the case of s3 for example, they dropped a s3 episode promo video only a day after they completed filming. Meaning them titling 3x06 The Birthday, made absolutely no sense. They knew they didn't film anything birthday related for that episode. So they intentionally gave that one a fake name.

In the case of s4, that was the first time they promoted an upcoming season without giving fake titles, with the s4 promo announcing them following through with what we ended up with when s4 finally dropped.

I guess I sort of assumed s5 would follow in s4's footsteps, but from a leak standpoint, it might be smart to remember that fake titles are still a possiblity regardless. Especially in this case, where it's getting to the point in production where leaks are unavoidable. And so that might even explain why they play with this idea of fake episodes, which is because they can rest easy knowing leaks will mostly consist of half fake titles they planted there.

But for the sake of this post, lets humor the title for episode 2.

For starters, it's worth noting that the person who shared this leak originally said 'BLANK wheeler'. So as far as I know, they did not give any number of letters via underscores (_) to hint at who this Wheeler could possibly be. It's when ST news accounts caught wind of the leak and started rolling out posts, replacing BLANK with 5 underscores, that led a lot of fans to assume that the Wheeler had to have 5 letters in their name, which would have obviously ruled out Ted and Mike. But since all the Wheeler's are still on the table based on the original leak, they will all be included in this list.

5. Ted Wheeler

Believe it or not, there is something that I think actually warrants considering Ted as a possiblity.

There were some posts @stranger-chichka made a while back, comparing visual parallels between Stranger Things and Chernobyl, which could be hinting at this concept of Ted being in danger.

TBH though I think Ted being in danger or ending up dead is a possiblity regardless of him actually being the missing Wheeler.

Technically speaking, quite literally no one on the show is ruled out from being in danger at this point, so that's not saying much.

And considering the show is going to need to kill off some people next season and they are insistent on not killing any of their leads, supporting characters amongst the ranks have a high risk at being taken out. The emotional connection for Ted from the audience isn't as strong as other characters, but at least him being in close relation to a few main characters is something? I mean, he's funny I guess?

Quite frankly I don't think it's likely nor do I think it would actually make sense narratively for Ted to be the one to go missing out of all of them. I think it's a lot more likely they'd just kill him off, hence the Chernobyl parallels which imply he's gonna die. And so wasting time by having him go missing, only to kill him, just doesn't track. I think they'd just get that over with without dragging it out for very long, if anything.

Can you just imagine someone on the show shouting emotionally, It's Dad (Ted). He's gone.' Like, okay... And? I have a hard time imagining the characters being in serious turmoil over this, at least not enough for it to warrant like final season stakes amongst a bunch of other crazy shit happening. At best, the characters would be indifferently guilty for getting him roped into all this.

So yeah, I really don't see it happening.

4. Nancy Wheeler

I honestly feel like Nancy is even less likely to go missing than Ted, but the un-seriousness of an episode titled The Vanishing of Ted Wheeler is so astronomical, that I really had no choice but to put him last.

The reason I think Nancy is just very unlikely to go missing is because they technically already had her go missing as a cliffhanger between Vol 1 and 2 last season. It would just fall flat if they repeated something along those lines, with that same character, 3 episodes later. Vecna could have killed her and yet he didn't. His point was to send her a message, which was why he did what he did and then released her. The choice to target Nancy and taunt her about her family's safety in the first place, felt like their attempt at foreshadowing the danger that is to come for all of them, but one specifically. One of them that is not her. Which will make this moment back in s4 feel a lot more impactful upon rewatches.

So yeah, not feeling like Nancy is very likely.

3. Karen Wheeler

Karen is sort of a hard nut to crack all around. In the case that she is somehow connected to the Creels (Alice), anything is possible in terms of not only her being targeted, but again the entire family being at risk in some capacity. Without much to go off of outside of the obvious very haphazard timeline confusion, I feel like putting her somewhere in the middle. She was given a poster for s4. If she is Alice, then yeah it would make sense to target her. The stakes are also a lot stronger in comparison to Ted, because she was the parent in the family that actually came to Mike or Nancy and told them verbally that she wanted them to open up to her and is actually shown trying on several occasions. Whereas Ted is sort of just there when he's on screen. So the characters' distress would be a lot more dire and interesting to see unfold amongst everyone.

I also remember there being a leak in relation to Karen, Holly, Mike and Nancy all being at the hospital filming. And this was also like a day or so after ST dropped a video of Cara saying she was filming that day to hype up fans. So that leak did check out on the Karen front at least. Which puts her at the hospital at some point, potentially along with the rest of the Wheelers. Now that I'm thinking about it though, this could all fit with a Ted Wheeler death...

At this point, I'm sort of like indifferent to the possiblity, but it's still more likely than Ted and Nancy to me.

2. Holly Wheeler

It all goes back to s1, when Karen was visiting the Byers to console Joyce after Will went missing, when Holly sort of ventures off to Will's room, being guided by the lights, and sees the demogorgan in the wall.

I feel like people overlook this moment too, because it's kind of crazy that Holly has seen UD shit for herself. She was young enough that she could rule it out as just imagining things. And that could be partly the case even if she is skeptical.

There is something about Holly that makes her curious and sort of open to this world that most around her have no idea exists. And yet simultaneously some of the people closest to her do know about it and could easily clue her in when the time comes to do so, and because of that, I think she would probably be able to believe it all a lot faster than others.

Maybe this is a story where things need to happen and it just always ends up this way, but she has this tendency to be included in things that feel very important. Like in s4 with her playing with the lite-brite, and how that ended up being used to communicate with the others in the UD. There's this almost clairvoyance vibe about her. Her feeling the need to follow the Christmas lights to Will's room and her noticing and then fixating on the trees in s3.

Like I said, I don't know if it's something deeper, but it very well could be in the case she is connected to the Creels.

And while that is all somewhat compelling, at the same time it also feels very convoluted. Even if the Wheelers are Creels, I don't think that means the Wheelers would have powers, given that Henry got them when he was a child, meaning none of his family could have gotten them unless they too were taken in by the lab at some point, or were born with it.

Though I'm being full serious when I say the theories about Mike having time powers or maybe just manifestations from his emotions connected to the powers of others around him is one of my favorite theories of all time. I want it to happen. It would be cool. But that just opens the door to all of the Wheelers in my opinion, assuming his time powers came from being related to Henry. And if it was done that way, I feel like it would add way too much confusion to the story, where now all the Wheelers are gonna need to have powers, and then as a result would just takes away from the uniqueness that is already associated with Henry, El and potentially Will. One person potentially having powers without us knowing until the end aka Will, is enough honestly. Adding the Wheelers to the mix might be a bit much.

I'm also not totally convinced of the Wheeler's being Creels, and yet I also can't seem to want to rule it out entirely. But the prospects of Holly having powers or some sort of ability and just going through the same thing as Will when he was young and unaware of his powers, who is just now finding out the truth about his experiences... It just feels like serious whiplash honestly, when they haven't spent much of any time on Holly up to this point.

Like what are the stakes here exactly? What makes her disappearance and what that would look like compelling, on her front specifically? Because sure, I can see it being compelling watching the perspective of those around her reacting to this, what they would do to try to save her and all that, but what does that mean for her exactly? Are we going to see what she's doing? Are they going to hide it from us like they did with Will and then have to spend even more time uncovering it later on. And what does she even gain from being alone and taunted by Vecna presumably? What does the audience gain from witnessing that sort of event? There isn't a lot of story to explore there, outside of maybe making direct parallels to Will in s1? And then wouldn't that sort of take away from the importance of Will's role in it all just now being uncovered, if it all just repeats for Holly?

Which brings me to something that I see a lot of people using as strong evidence for why it has to be Holly, which is the fact that they recast her character.

What I think people are failing to consider is the fact that the twins who were cast to play Holly originally, were like 3-4 years old while filming s1. They weren't just kid actors, they were damn near baby actors. And while I know a big part of the reason why they gave Holly such few lines over the years was because the actors were aging way faster than the character they played, I think another factor could have been the fact that their acting experience is near nothing outside of Stranger Things, which is also pretty little on its own as well given that they have very few lines on the show.

It's not at all uncommon for child actors, let alone toddler actors to leave the industry once they start getting older. It could be for personal reasons, like wanting to explore other ventures, or it could be that they just don't perform as well with all the added expectations that come with acting as a character who is a kid with a lot of lines vs. a baby with 2 lines.

The girls got cast because at the time, they were able to perform as well as a 3 year old possibly could and would be expected to be in that role. But does that skill carry forth as they grew older? When now they have to deliver full sentences and carry conversations for scenes that are longer than 5 minutes? They've never really had to do that up to this point. Is it something that they feel comfortable with doing? Is their performance believable and is it something the writers feel confident about?

Honestly, I think they might have recast Holly, not because I think she is going to be targeted and focused on as this missing person they have to find, going through a near identical situation to 11 year old Will, but because they simply want her to be more apart of the story in general. And maybe because either the twins and/or the production didn't feel that they would be able to perform it in the way that they wanted it to be done.

And I mean, even if Holly isn't the one to go missing, one of the Wheelers is going to go missing based on this leak. If it was one of her parents, she would get a lot more scenes than she has in the past. If it was one of her siblings, again it would make sense for her to be more involved with the story. No matter what she is going to have a bigger role.

So no I don't think her being recast is as strong enough of proof as some might believe. If anything I think there is much stronger evidence that, like Karen, if they are related to the Creels, Holly is as fair game as any of them. The stakes could be high because she i such s a child. And her parents and Nancy and Mike worrying about her seems like something they would obviously do because she is so innocent and completely ill-equipped to endure something like that. But like I said, I just can't picture an focus like that on her, for her character, being very compelling given that Holly isn't really someone that needs like alone time with us witnessing it...

But there is one Wheeler left, and boy oh boy would he benefit from being alone.

1. Mike Wheeler

The most simple explanation for why it makes sense for it to be Mike, is that he genuinely benefits more than anyone when it comes to being alone with his thoughts, and with the audience watching. There's a lot of stuff dude has to work through in his own head, and since they haven't really let us have a moment alone with him that isn't under ten seconds since s3, an episode or two dedicated to making that a priority would make him coming back and things building up to the end, feel a lot more earned.

The audience needs to feel confident about how Mike feels about things. It can't be a guessing game for much longer when so many different factors are involved.

And while I think Mike may be the strongest possiblity in terms of the value it would add to the overall story is compelling enough to put him at number 1, the evidence supporting it happening is even stronger.

If we want to be crazy we can go back to the beginning. Plenty of fans have already speculated about how Mike is always late at the start of every season and how that might play into the beginning of season 5 again. I made a post about this recently and speculated it would happen one last time around the 15 minute mark. And maybe I was wrong... but maybe I was also right? Because if the second episode is called The Vanishing of Mike Wheeler, it's likely Mike's fate wouldn't be confirmed by the opening of 5x01, but in fact the closing scene of 5x01.

Throughout the show Mike plays a key role in leading the others, he's even referred to as 'the key' in s3 by Hopper. You know this show and their keys, they don't joke about that sort of thing. It's likely that Mike's story and what it is leading to is going to be central to how all of this ends.

Also in s3, there is one scene in particular that I think could be hinting at Mike being targeted, along with the s4 main poster with all of the characters. In the poster, we see El at the top, with Max and Mike as near equals on each side of her. Of course their roles are central and that's a fair layout on it's own arguably, but the equal-ness provided to Mike and Max feels very intentional. While she is slightly bigger than Mike in the frame, that could be a hint in regards to her being central now in s4, with Mike joining the mix alongside her in s5. Honestly, they could have made it so these two were beside other characters that also played a huge role in s4, and yet they chose those two to give a specific focus to. I think that is interesting (and probably intentional).

But if I'm being honest, there are so many moments in s4 specifically that hint at Mike being in danger, that I will not be able to include it all in detail in this post. So I'm going to link those below and then build off of some of it with some new details I've recovered that are worth re-contextualizing again with all of this in mind.

Hints regarding Mike and Will being targets of the town, but Mike specifically being focused on after the word 'missing' is said...

I'm gonna expand on this one because I think it's important to recognize the massive curtain in the background as this is all happening. And I vaguely reference this concept here as well which is worth checking out. But not is this whole concept of the curtain pretty blatant in this episode, this scene of the town all fleeing to hunt down hellfire club, is followed directly after, by this:

Notice how Mike is nearly always central in these moments? And how what follows feels eerily similar to what is about to go down at the end of s4 aka Suzie = Mike.

Now, this has already been talked about plenty so I won't go into detail, but... based on everything else happening surrounding this, this would apply to Mike in the sense that not only is he not in love with El, he's gay and in love with Will aka a boy. A BOY!

And then this mention of 'the terrible truth'. This word has been used like 3 times in the last few minutes. First intensely during Jason's speech about a terrible truth, with Ted and Karen being focused on with the Mike and Will extra in the background.

But what is even more crazy is that what follows sort of seals the deal for me that, this IS about Mike and it's foreshadowing what is about to come in s5.

5:02... 5x02!!!!

Also peep the watch and the letter from Dustin under it... I don't want to speculate but lettergate is looking extra relevant within all of this as well...

And to close off this point, lets show the shot that follows directly after this one.

Then later in the season, after Nancy is back from being taken by Vecna, here we have this long and emotional pause before she says Mike's name, last after her mom and Holly.

If they wrote and filmed this scene, knowing Mike would be the Wheeler missing early s5, it would make sense for them to list off the characters like this.

Mike peeking in the frame at this moment is not suspicious at all...

If it wasn't enough that Jason hyped up the whole town to see the Hellfire club as their enemy responsible for all of this, here we have a focus on Mike specifically being targeted by Jason.

The Duffer's statement about the show overall in the Piggyback script, and I gotta say it fits Mike a lot more than any of the other Wheelers.

Mike is a Paladin. And when they break an oath, they might spend an all-night vigil as a sign of penitence... aka everything is going to come to a head and Mike is going to be alone dealing with this shit for a bit, until he can come back ready to face it.

And I know it's controversial, but this post explains perfectly why Mike being central to this would make the show go full circle in a really compelling way.

Mike hasn't really unpacked...

Karen lookalike standing in front of the missing persons board. Could be any one of them but still, considering the costume of this extra looks closer to what Karen was wearing when she reunited and hugged Mike... I'm gonna put it more so with him.

Mike's guilt and shame regarding the past and what it has led them to could also play a big role and why him going missing would be worthwhile to explore. Part 1 / Part 2

Mike paralleling Yuri, who eventually reveals the truth (in his pocket) after stalling. If Mike parallels him all throughout the start of that moment, what does that mean for how it ends for Mike?

An antique funeral home fan behind Mike in the s4 character promo photos in the Creel attic, how Mike is seen sitting before Will sits beside him shortly after and it involving upside down imagery, Mike's first line in the show being used to later foreshadow his fate in early s5, and also bringing it back to Suzie's house which I already went into but it might be helpful to look at it again from this lens.

The Duffers would not pass up on the opportunity to parallel Mike with Finn's other character Richie in IT, which is literally based on a book that heavily inspired ST in the first place. And how all of that plays into the queer-coding for Mike going all the way back to s1.

The Duffers revealed after posting the funko-pop shotplanning pictures (2) that they were finished with planning for 5x01-5x02.... meaning this shot of Mike all by himself, is going to occur in one of those episodes...

We could still hypothesize Holly is the one to be taken, given that she doesn't have a funko and so they couldn't include her here regardless. But the fact that Nancy is with the other seems to imply to me that they are all likely working together to get Mike back, who is alone.

This one is a little more hard to pinpoint for sure, but it comes from a BTS Ross posted recently.

We are clearly in the Wheeler's house here. And if you zoom in, it looks like someone is standing (hiding?) behind a doorway/curtain. And the only person that seems to fit it imo is Mike... But why would he be hiding in his own house...?

It just makes me think about what is going on with Mike in early s5. What would be occurring that has him in this sort of situation? And it makes me wonder if him going missing has solely to do with him being taken and gone in one single moment, or if it could involve him avoiding his family and others potentially, with him being taken after that.

Lastly, I'm going to go into more choppy territory, stuff I know only a couple of people will actually consider. But it is pretty fucking fitting of what is about to go down so I can't not mention it.

In the Puzzle Tales' most recent Hellfire Campaign, this is the title...

Like the whole chapter is just a big joke on Mike about him being scared to be alone, which is painfully ironic if this is the direction the show is about to go for the next 2 upcoming episodes.

And then we have a song WSQK posted on Twitter back in January. I know people don't believe that this account is connected with anyone in the production, which is fair because I myself rarely believe leaks from anonymous accounts as it is. But I've been keeping up with it and it genuinely doesn't seem like a fan could come up with these songs.

The song I'm about to mention is the 7th song they posted, called Army Dreamers by Kate Bush. And you might fight it sounds a lot like the situation Mike might find himself in in early s5.

And though I'm sure I didn't cover everything, I feel like all the things I've mentioned and referenced from other posts are plenty to at least consider this as opposed to rejecting it all together.

At the end of the day I think there are some valid arguments for all of them to some extent. And quite frankly all of the Wheelers and most of the characters in the show will find themselves in danger in a way that is going to probably last longer than just one single moment the entire season. So even if it's just one of them, I don't think that rules out the others playing a bigger role in what is going down.

I just think narratively, there is one person that benefits from being on-screen and alone with their thoughts. And the other 4 being confronted with what that person discovers eventually will also make all of this a lot more worthwhile than any of the other options in my opinion.

[astroohoe]

ASTROLOGY AND SERIAL KILLERS

Hi Hoeeeeees,👋so today i'm going to take you through the ASTROLOGY of serial killers/Psychopaths.

If you have this placement,it does not necessarily mean that you are psychopathic nor are you a serial killer but there are tendencies to be so. This could also mean psychologically there's a lack of emotions making them not understand social cues. I am an aspiring psychiatrist and i have sat down to assess your favorite serial killers with astrology :), (Jeffrey Dahmer is our favorite and he's soooo cute, followed by Ted Bundy, he has a nice smile btw :),

Soooo without further or do let's gooooo.

So i sat down to statistically calculate of about 60 serial killers and one thing they have in common is, they are all MUTABLE SIGNS.

So i know your question is what are mutable signs? So to those who are new. Mutable signs are  any of the four astrological signs; Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, or Pisces, that are grouped together because of their placement characterized by the attribute of adaptability to ANY circumstances.

Example:Geminis are known to adapt and switch theor personality to any other people they are interacting with, depending on the situation.

JEFFREY DAHMER

Well, our favorite serial killer who was able to take accountability huh🙄😂😂.

Jeffrey Dahmer is a gemini sun, aries moon and Libra rising (which makes him look cute tbh;)

Now that Gemini sun is a mutable sign as i said before lol. Twin twin thoughts. Since gemini is a mental sign and is also a sign which deals with depression a lot because of the two beings running through their minds always thinking in a fast pace, the aries moon makes him acts sooooo aggressive😭 without thinking straight . There's a lack of emotion when it comes to gemini and virgo actually ruled by mercury (which is logic) their head is always walking first.

He has an Aries moon which could denote his BIOLOGICAL mom was someone who was extremely HOT TEMPERED (moon deals with the mother and your subconcsious thoughts and emotions. The treatment and distance from his mom could have brought a lonely side to him since psychologically, men are thee closest to their moms (Carl Jungs, Oedupus complex) and the girls are closest to their fathers(Electra complex).

Note that, if a girl isn't as close to her dad or have a good relationship with her dad , having her dad distanced or maybe not in her life, its placement is denoted in astrology plus they have a whole different mindset together tbh.

Him being a Libra rising shows his disdain of being ALONE and having a partner beside him due to the astrological effects and psychological effects of the treatment of his mother...(Be in the lives of your kids ....Moms🙄)

He is gay ...yes astrology denotes gay relationships sooooo many uncountable times.

Example; Aquarius mars,(lol sooooo unconventional....they can go both ways 😂) Aquarius mercuries, uranus aspects to personal planets, the degree 11° in your natal charts to personal planets, Gemini venuses, gemini mars, Aquarius venuses, 11th house ruling your 7th and so on.)

He being a gemini sun is even enough for that effect.

I could go on and on but let me wrap this up.

He's a Taurus 8th house in conjunction to his venus explaining the urgency to eat HUMANS.

Taurus denotes food, obesity and the 8th house denotes death, rebirth and stranger things lol.

The ruler in his 1st house expecting neptune could denote fantasies too. Hence, the infatuation of cannibalism. Also we can also spot the 8th degree in his mars sign .

the 8th degree is the killer/evil degree ruled by scorpio, and its in a aries mars place, mars already being the planet of action and agression, mixed with aries and the 8th degree.

He has his Venus in the 8th house denoting him associating death with love. 🥰

He could have made the world a better place honestly, with him being a virgo northnode through hardwork but noooo o, his pieces southnode which makes him draw back to his karmic past of obsession and fantasies with what he was experimenting.

Let's go to the second famous cute one.

You guessed right; Ted Bundy

Ted Serial killer Bundy🙄is a Sagittarius Sun, Sagittarius moon(lol double whammy mutable) and a Leo rising.

Apparently, Ted Bundy was in Law school because he wanted to become an affluent politician. Which isn't shocking since Sagittarius is the sign that denotes a HIGHER mind in knowledge, traveling to fulfill educational purposes.

Ted Bundy would kill at least 10 white women (yes, he was known for killing WHITE women, i had to bring the race in there since Sagittarius is the sign of colorism, racism and the attraction or obsession with foreigners lol but that's a different story for a different post;). His fellow mutable serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer was busy killing black men who were gays (i wonder what his problem was🙄)

But anyways, after Ted Bundy kills them, he disposes off their bodies after having sex with them torture them and commits acts of necrophilia.

It was quite difficult to believe he did that because he appears to be charming, charismatic and very intelligent actually.

Because of he being a strong mutable sign, he flips from being a heinous person to being so charming as psychopaths are the most charming and witty people in the room.(think gemini and virgo lol, not saying every one of y'all are psychopaths).

This makes mutable signs attracted to that SHADOWY element of nature .

These people in general can go from good to evil just depending on their environments and cannot wait to STRIKE their victims. As opposed to other signs, i really do not think people should be messing wrongly with virgos with scorpio moons honestly ....the attraction of personality disorders plus witchy nature is insane!😭

Especially Ted having his pluto in conjunction to his Leo rising making him a snake undercover , extremely secretive. Mind you, he has a scorpio stellium, scorpios in generals are the students if mind games, power control and secrecy making people not know who tf he really is. This could make him be drawn to darker things especially him being a Sagittarius moon which has a Jupiter effect on his subconcious mind and emotions making the expansion of whatever entity/darkness is going on in his mind if he's pacing on a LOW VIBRATIONAL level.

His Jupiter, venus, mercury are in scorpio in conjunction to his chiron which could denote sexual abuse attributing to the acts of necrophilia. His venus in conjunction to his chiron makes him loove love the darker aspects of life and the concept of pain is pleasure.

His scorpio chiron could mean he was sexually abused but knowing him, he probably would not mention it.

Ted Bundy had scorpio in the fourth and this could denote secrets pertaining to his family.

His saturn forming an aspect to his pluto could make him a control freak , a sense of authority and taking advantage of weaker people. As i said in previous posts of mine, if you haven't plesde go check it out, Saturnian qualities, the number 8 in your natal chart and Grown Capricorns tends to be 100% predatory.( And BITCH i said what i saaaaaaaaaaid 😊) example, Matthew Knowles, the famous R. kelly.

His Mars in Sagittarius in conjunction to his moon could lead to overindulgence in as to whatever he thinks...his emotions is a force to drive him into either drugs or going into a spree of killing or sexual abuse with people.

His Jupiter being in scorpio could lead to him having money in shady, unearned and undisclosed ways .

That's it for him..

Let's go to the third serial killer......

Josef Mengele.

Josef Mengele was a German Nazi Doctor he was around in world war 2 and was notorious for experimenting on twins and even the handicapped, his experimentaions were so grotesque that he was hated amongst the nazi figures, and mind you he was sober and clear in his mind when doing this.

So lets look at his birthchart, Mengele was born on March 16th 1911, making him a pisces sun with the number 16 on his birthday deals with sacrifice as well as with catastrophe, so it intrigues anything in him to adhere to these heinuous acts. I know your question is...why is pisces the most sensitive self serving, self sacrificinh sign but yet amongst the serial killers......

Well ..its a mutable sign remember...just a bunch of hypocrites actually.😂

Pisces deals with chemistry, physics, astronomy and doctors.

Thus making him obsessed with what his doing. He'll lure the kids he wants to experiment with ,with candy 😂 (lol typical pisces) and then let them call him uncle lol. And then proceed to experiment the most disgusting heinous acts on them.

He's a scorpio southnode making him align to his EVIL ways. His southnode is in the 12th degree ,and the number 12 deals with perversion, victimization and coldness!

Him being a scorpio southnode trining his sun, there's a fantasy and obsession (Neptune being in the sun) with death..his sun being his nature....that embodies what he is known for.

I can't make this up, serial killers must have some scorpio or 8th house in them to be fully progressed.

A lot of scorpio southnodes do have a lot of karmic bagagges surrounding very dark and intense experiences in life thus aligning him(Yes i said aligning, because that's his south node, that is what he is doing!)

His Mars is in the first degree of Aquarius, by which the number 1 denotes children squaring his North node making him having these dark thoughts against children since mars deals with either sexual drive or physical aggressive tendencies.

His mars being in the placement of uranus makes him a mad scientist which implies him experimenting with devices or even other technologies.

These experimentation had no purpose but to inflict pain or play out his need for power!

Him having a scorpio Jupiter deals with the obsession with deep investigation.

Scorpio deals with sex, investigations and an obsession with surgery, squaring his NN, thereby him having experimenting on dwarfs and handicaps who have dome absolutely nothing to him!😑😑.

His saturn is in conjunction to his SN, showing problems with money.

Anyways, that is it for me.

So these are the astrology of serial killers. There's more but i think i would end it here. The next post i would talk about the astrology behind psychopathy /Psycopathic tendencies in a natal chart....stay tuned.

Please do not forget to like and reblog, and if you copy, please give me credit!

[libraryofloveletters]

Perfect Match

Andy Robertson x Fem!Reader

Warnings: ted lasso inspired - yes I used the dating app from it and what ???, reader works for liverpool, lots of friendly teasing, it's so obvious but not to them, andy's got a crush and the boys try to help him, a few sweet comments from andy, reader thinks he's hopeless, a funny but sweet moment at the end, alcohol and the consumption of, one illusion to nsfw stuff at the end.

Word Count: 3.4k

Author's Note: it's missing robbo hours :( so I dug this out of my vault of unwritten fics

---

You had been editing the pictures from the last training session, trying to see what you can send out to the players and post on the LFC account before your office door swings open. "Where are my photos?" The man shouts, his thick accent jumbling his words a bit.

The chair spins, you're face to face with your favourite left back, Andy. You smiled at him. "Hello to you too, Andrew."

You and Andy had always been close, even though you had only joined Liverpool 2 years ago. He was the first to welcome you, make you feel at home; to this day, he still does that.

"Hello to you too, lady." He smiles back at you, leaning on the edge of your desk. "How's the editing going? My fans are waiting to see my handsome face."

You rolled your eyes, "it's going.. slow. I'm doing the people of the world a great service by not letting them see your face."

Andy scoffs, "as if, you just wanna hoard pictures of me.. for you know.. dirty purposes." He bites his lower lip, a shit eating grin on his face as he raises his eyebrows.

You laughed so hard that you snorted. "Shut your face, you're so full of it."

The left back laughs, watching as you turn your attention back to the computer in front of you, clicking away. Your phone sat on your desk, face up as always - it buzzed, a chime sound came from it that Andy's never heard before nor does he seem to recognize.

"What's that?" He reaches for your phone, you attempt to grab it before he does but Andy's reflexes are faster than yours. He unlocks your phone - that's on you for leaving your password as 0000.

"Andy, give it back." You stretched your hand out for him to give it back. He scrolls through the notifications, landing on the one he assumed the noise came from; Bantr.

"There's no pictures," he huffs, trying to refresh the page. You roll your eyes, "it's anonymous, Andrew. It's not supposed to have photos."

"You're a photographer, why would you pick a stupid app like that?"

You find yourself rolling your eyes yet again. "It's that way so you can build a connection; you get to know the person based on personality and not looks."

Andy tilts his head to the side still confused as to why you'd pick such an app. "But.. you're beautiful, any man would be stupid not to see that, y/n."

Your cheeks flushed red and suddenly, the room felt as if it was closing in on you and it was 100 degrees hotter in there. "Shut up, you're such a sweet talker," you rolled your eyes.

He laughs at your statement, shrugging as he sets your phone down. Andy gets off your desk, his arms resting over your shoulders and his chin poking into the top of your head. He watches as you click through the various pictures, storing through the good and the bad, fixing minor blemishes as you went.

"You should try it, you know." You tell him quietly and Andy hums, waiting for you to keep talking. "Bantr, you should try it. You're a funny guy, you might have luck."

"Maybe," he shrugs it off, his hand lifting to squish your face. You swat his hand away.

"Aren't you supposed to be in the gym or something?"

"Yeah," he huffs, "but Mo and Trent are trying to do some sort of crunches competition and you know-" "You hate crunches, I know, Andy."

He laughs, "why would I go on Bantr when I have you, y/n?"

Your heart skips a beat, but you figured he's just joking - he's always just joking.

"Whatever, Andy. Unlike you, some of us actually have work to do."

He gets the hint; you were politely shooing him out of your office. "Yeah, okay," he nods, kissing the top of your head before squeezing your face once more. "Send me my pictures please."

"I'll edit them last."

"Saving the best for last?" He asks, turning towards the door.

"Trying to spare myself from seeing your face, I've had my fill for now." You joke, earning a laugh from the left back as he walks out of the office.

The day rolls by and you did in fact send Andy his pictures. His phone buzzes in the cup holder as he heads home, glancing at it as he pulls up to a stoplight.

To Andy: *12 Image Attachments* Stop bothering me now, Andrew.

He smiles to himself, making a mental note to text you back when he arrive home. In typical Andy fashion, he becomes distracted by the million little tasks he does when he gets home.

It wasn't until he got into bed that he remembered your message, shooting you a thank you with a little kissy face emoji and saving the photos.

Your words from earlier ring in his head as well; bantr, you should try it. You're a funny guy, you might have luck.

Andy searches it up, his finger hovering over the button for a moment before pressing it, watching as the little circle spins and it begins downloading. He follows the steps; putting in his birthday, picking his location, adding a user name.

That took him a moment - he couldn't exactly put his name, could he?

There couldn't be that many Andy Robertsons in Liverpool.

He'd feel wrong for lying and putting a fake name so instead, after a few minutes of thinking, he comes up with a user that is still him without being him.

Andy sits up, contemplating if he should delete the profile. He's a footballer, is this even okay that he's doing this? Would he get in trouble for this?

He ignores the thoughts and his thumb presses the matches tab. He swipes through a few, reading their cheesy bios before he comes across a profile that catches his eye.

The user sounded familiar but he couldn't place it, unsure where he saw it. He decides to message them while he still has the courage.

lfc26: Hey! How are you? 

The reply came but a few seconds later.

photographer_10: Hi! I’m good, how are you? 

lfc26: Good as well, exhausted from work. 

photographer_10: I hope you get some rest. 

lfc26: I just hopped into bed. 

photographer_10: Me too, it’s been a long day. 

lfc26: Tell me about it, and the weather’s been shit.

lfc26: That’s if you’re local. You in Liverpool? 

photographer_10: Yeah, have been for a few years :) 

photographer_10: Are you a fan of Liverpool? 

The message stares at Andy, he feels like he’s been caught. 

lfc26: I am, why do you ask ? 

photographer_10: Your user lol - must be a Robertson fan, he wears 26. 

lfc26: Yeah lol, a proper lad.

photographer_10: I think so too, quite funny as well.

lfc26: So I’ve heard. 

He finds himself smiling, he would have never guessed he’d meet someone who was a fan of him. It warmed his heart in a weird way; not self centred but content. 

lfc26: I think I’m going to head to bed, I have to be up early for work. 

photographer_10: No worries at all, you take care of yourself.

lfc26: You too :) 

--

It goes like that on and off for a week, the two of them exchanging little details about their days, flirting playfully back and forth. Andy glances at his phone every few minutes, expecting a text from the mystery woman.

It's starting to become an issue.

Everyone notices that the man who is usually on their asses about being on their phones is glued to his.

He's cycling, rather lazily to be fair - awaiting a response to his scandalous question about her workplace attire.

Mo glances over at his teammate, his brows furrow as he wonders what's on his friend's mind. "Robbo," he calls for the Scotsman. "You okay?"

Andy glances up from the phone that was now in his hand. He nods, "fine, why?"

"Because you've been glued to your phone, that's why." Virgil butts in, snatching the phone from Andy's hand which caused a protest from him. "Give it back!" He groans, hand stretched out to the captain.

Virgil shakes his head, his back to Andy as he looks down to see what's been keeping Andy so busy. "What's Bantr?" He asks, turning to Andy and Mo again.

Mo shrugs, clueless before looking to Andy for an answer. "A dating app," Andy mumbles.

Virgil and Mo exchange a glance, so many things said between the two players without actually saying it. "So that's why you've been smiling at your phone, checking it all day?" Mo asks.

Trent was passing by, per usual, butting himself into the conversation between the three players. He grabs Virgil's arms swinging himself in between the defender and the cycle Andy was on. "What's that? Andy's got a crush?"

Andy rolls his eyes, his cheeks give away his stance; curse his pale Scottish skin for giving him away. "I don't."

"You're blushing!" Trent laughs, pointing a finger at Andy's flushed face.

Virgil chuckles to himself, reading the messages between his friend and his supposed crush. "Didn't think you had it in you, man; some spicy stuff." He raises his eyebrows at him.

Andy's face only flushes further red. Trent tries to get the phone from Virgil but the man lifts his arm, even with Trent's jumping, he can't get the phone from Virgil's hand.

"Shut up," he groans, wanting the world to swallow him whole right about now.

"If you like her, why don't you just ask her out?" Trent asks, scowling at Virg as he hands the phone back to Andy and not to him. Virgil flicks Trent's ear in response.

Andy makes a face, "I can't! That's.. are you insane, man?"

Trent goes to speak but stops himself when he sees you walking over. The camera hung over your neck by its strap. "What's going on over here? Any hot gossip?"

"Who says we're gossiping?" Andy asks, smiling at you sweetly.

You shrug, glancing between the four of them. "Players all huddled together, it goes silent as I walk over; I'd say that's gossip."

"We don't gossip, we're grown men." Virgil points out, causing you to laugh. You lift the camera, taking a picture of him and Trent.

"Yeah, of course not, so does that make Macca and Darwin.. little boys?" You point behind you with your thumb, the two Spanish speaking players giggling about something as they stretch.

Virgil presses his lips together, making a dopey looking face. You laughed at him, walking off to take a few more photos of the boys on the other side of the room.

--

It's Saturday, match day.

Liverpool played Wolves, 4-1 and the boys were going into the next week on a good note.

Andy, per usual, finds you and offers up his company and dinner. You take him up on it, you were finished with your editing and could use the friend time.

You sat across from the man, the two of you tucked away in the back of a little Italian restaurant Jordan used to rave about. "I feel like I haven't seen you in forever," you tell him, taking a sip of your cocktail.

Andy hums, glancing at his phone that was face up on the table. Your brows furrow, studying his face as his finger swipes over the screen.

"Waiting for something?" You asked, raised brows when he finally looked up.

"Oh, just a message from someone."

"Someone as in.. a woman friend? Like, a hot date?" You pried, you and Andy didn't have boundaries when it came to conversation; you poked around in each others' business all the time. You both liked things messy and loud and complicated - it's who you were.

Andy shook his head, his face flushed red like when Trent accused him of having a crush. "No," he huffs, washing the butterflies down with a sip of beer.

Your face lit up, grinning at your friend. "No way! You like her!" The words come out in a sing-song tone and Andy rolls his eyes playfully annoyed with you.

"Shut up," he chuckles, taking a bite of his chicken.

You mirrored his actions, chewing your food quietly. You look at him for a moment, smiling at him. "So tell me about her."

"She's kind, and funny. She likes Liverpool so it's a perfect match."

"The bar is so low, Andy." You teased and he shrugged, smiling. "But I'm glad you found someone, I hope things work out between you two."

"Me too," he nods. "What about you? Any luck?"

"Yeah," you took another sip of your drink, "he's a nice guy, but we're taking it slow. We'll see where it goes."

"Good, let me know if he gives you a hard time and you need me to beat him up." Andy says flatly, 100% serious.

You laughed, "as if you could beat up someone."

"I'll pay Virgil to rough him up."

You two chat for a bit more, finishing up dinner and Andy talked you into splitting a massive piece of cake with him - can't have dinner without dessert, just ain't right.

Finally, after what felt like forever, you made it home. You sent Andy a quick text, thanking him for dinner and telling him you got home. You received a thumbs up in response, which meant he was about to fall asleep and was too tired to answer properly - at least he knew you were fine.

You sat on your bed, opening the app you had been ignoring for the last few hours. Clicking on the profile, you send a message.

photographer_10: Hey you.

Andy, who was about to fall asleep, feels the phone buzz in his hand. He opens his eyes, blinking to get himself to focus when he sees who has messaged him.

Suddenly, he was wide awake.

lfc26: Hi, how are you? 

photographer_10: I'm good, sorry I disappeared. Had some work stuff to take care of. 

lfc26: I thought you forgot about me lol.

photographer_10: Never, you’re hard to forget.

Andy smiled at the message, the butterflies fluttering around his stomach like a 16 year old boy with a crush. 

lfc26: That’s sweet, you’ve got me blushing.

photographer_10: I'm sure you look very handsome.

lfc26: Hush you, I'm as red as a tomato right now.

The next message catches him off guard. 

photographer_10: Now are you ever gonna ask me on a date or shall I ask you? 

lfc26: Oh you beat me to it. 

photographer_10: By all means, please. 

lfc26: Would you like to go on a date with me?

Andy stares at the message, he isn’t even sure how long his thumb hovered over the send button. He finally worked up enough courage to hit it, but automatically locked his phone, tossing it on the bed as he rushed off to get a glass of water from the kitchen. 

It was a few minutes later that he came back and saw the response. 

photographer_10: I’d love to. Let me know when you’re free. 

lfc26: Next week? I’m free on Tuesday. 

photographer_10: Perfect, shall we meet somewhere? 

lfc26: Let me be a gentleman and pick you up? 

photographer_10: Sure, I’d love that :) 

--

The arms around you cause you to jump in your seat, heart stopping momentarily. It wasn't until you saw the pale skin that you connected the dots.

"Scared me half to death, Andrew." You huffed, your attention back on the emails you were answering.

He laughs, his chin poking into the top of your head again, watching as you typed nine knots an hour on your keyboard. "Soooo," he starts and your type comes to a halt. Anytime he says that, something either extremely important or stupid follows.

"So?"

"So I sorta have a date soon, like this week. I.. it's been a while." He admits and you spin in your chair, Andy now leaning on the desk as he looks at you. "You nervous?" You asked.

He nods, "a little, yeah."

"You want my advice?"

"Is there something I should do? What's proper date etiquette ?"

"I don't think there's such a thing," you smiled. "But, if it were me, I'd like flowers. It's not a must but it's a nice touch - shows that you thought about more than just meeting the person, you wanted to make a good first impression."

"Okay," he nods, as if he's making a mental note. "Anything else?"

"Smell good, don't go straight from training. Go home and shower, do your hair, wear some cologne but not too much, you don't wanna make the poor girl sneeze." You laughed, Andy smiled.

"I always smell good."

"Do you?" You raised an eyebrow, looking at him.

Andy pulls you by your chair, sitting himself on your lap so you could smell him. "Ew!" You groaned, "Andy, get off!" He had just come up from training, and it was safe to say he did not smell good right now.

"What?" He asks, making a face at you. "Not good?" He tries not to laugh at your face, nose wrinkled in disgust.

"So gross," you huffed. "Go away before you stink up my office."

"You smell like me now," he cackled, pressing his sweaty self against you. You groaned, pushing him off of you. "I hate you."

"Love you too, y/n!"

--

Your music played quietly, you hummed along as you finished up your makeup. Your wine glass sat on the vanity and as you were about to reach for it, your phone buzzed.

lfc26: on my way :)

photographer_10: okay!

You sped up a bit, pulling the rollers out of your hair and shaking it out. Just a last second check in the mirror before you head down. Perfectly on time, the doorbell rings when you get to the bottom of the stairs.

"Coming!" You shouted, walking over to open the door.

Imagine your surprise when you see Andy at your front door, all dressed up, smelling good while holding a bouquet of flowers.

"Andy?" You looked at him, confused.

He blinks, looking just as confused as you. "Y/n?"

You take a moment to connect the dots and it seems Andy's doing the same. "26," you point at him and he nods. "Photographer," he mirrors your action, the two of you bust out laughing at the front door.

"I cannot believe this," you shook your head, laughing as you stepped aside for him to come in.

"I swear I didn't know it was you. I've never come to your house!" He chuckles and to be fair, it was true. You had gone to his place and you've gone out quite a few times but he's never been over to yours.

"I brought flowers, like you suggested." He passes the bouquet over to you; 26 roses all perfectly arranged and wrapped up in Liverpool red paper with a bow.

"My favourite," you smiled, smelling them. "Thank you, Andy."

He smiles, nodding. "Do you still.. you know, wanna go out?"

"Yeah," you smiled, setting the flowers on the counter. "If you want to."

Andy nods, waiting for you to put your flowers into a vase before he opens the front door.

You two ended up going to your usual spot, the Italian place on Water Street. The conversation was flowing, the two of you laughing about how you ended up there and chatted about the upcoming games. It felt normal, it felt meant to be.

You couldn't help but wonder how you missed all the signs.

It seemed that you two were meant to be.

Andy drives you home, walking up to the front door like a gentleman.

"Thank you for tonight," you smiled at him, your hand in his. Andy smiles, nodding. "No need to thank me, my pleasure."

He watches as you unlock the front door and step in. Your hand is still in his, as you look back at him. The look on your face says it before you do. "You know.. the night doesn't have to end here."

Andy hums, smiling at you. He seems to have gotten the hint.

"Yeah?" He raises his eyebrows as you pull him into the house.

The door slams shut, your lips on his as you answer him. "Yeah."

--

add yourself to the taglist!

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[charcubed]

Ted Lasso, the Roy/Keeley/Jamie triangle, and – dare I say it? –television history

No matter your preferred term for the throuple, OT3, or poly relationship on Ted Lasso, it’s worth appreciating.

The more I think about it, the more I believe that the creative team behind Ted Lasso is doing something with RoyKeeleyJamie that doesn’t exist in precisely the same way anywhere else. In my opinion — and with the disclaimer that my frame of reference is (of course) limited—what they’ve done here is incredibly unique and maybe even groundbreaking.

These declarations of mine aren’t premature or at all conditional on how explicitly “official” their relationship may or may not get to be in the season 3 finale. I say this from my current perspective after episode 3x11, because after that episode I feel that what they’ve been doing with this part of the story has been made abundantly clear.

When it comes to Roy Kent, Keeley Jones, and Jamie Tartt, it would’ve been very easy and even expected for the writers to fall into the trap of making them into a typical love triangle at any point. Yet they never did. People might ascribe the traditional “love triangle” label to the trio because it’s a familiar frame of reference, but as a term I feel like it’s not actually applicable to the story beats we’ve seen.

These characters have never been in any true rivalry motivated by jealousy, insecurity, or possessiveness in regards to one another’s relationships. By contrast, within their triangle and amongst all of their separate pairings, their common denominator has been mutual attempts at building respect, communication, and accountability. Roy and Jamie’s conflicts with each other predated and were never centered around their love for Keeley, and Keeley was never put in a position of having to choose between the boys. Keeley was allowed to care about both of them in different ways, maintaining different relationships with each of them on her own terms. None of them pretended they couldn’t all care about each other in some capacity while still acknowledging boundaries and variation in their relationships. And while this shouldn’t be a big deal or a surprise–especially because Ted Lasso is a show defined by second chances, found families, and endless variations of love–it’s still refreshing enough to warrant praise.

As part of that, because the writers didn’t rely on nor fear the typical contrived “love triangle” dynamic, all three of the characters’ stories were kept heavily intertwined. They live and work in the same spaces, and they care about each other in various ways, so of course they interact and share advice. Their individual arcs were then intentionally informed by the ways they learned to grow because of each other, intertwining them further.

While I don’t know for sure if the writers’ goal was to eventually approach them as an inseparable group, I suspect it wasn’t, based on a couple of quotes I’ve seen float around. That means that they may have seen the potential for the non-platonic “triangle,” chose to lean into it relatively quickly (the show is only 3 seasons!), and continued to build it so it feels organic and cohesive. That speaks volumes as to their talent and it’s also part of what makes this situation so unique.

Along those lines: Ted Lasso is a mainstream ensemble show with several storylines in play. It’s not solely or primarily about romance. It’s also not a “queer show,” meaning that queer storylines were not a central pillar of its premise, nor were they part of its original appeal to or promise to audiences.

Of course, there are now several queer storylines/characters in season 3 amongst the ensemble cast that have clearly been planned from the start, including Colin, Trent, Keeley, etc. That’s fantastic, and anytime a show doesn’t “start out” as blatantly queer but later makes a natural place for the development of queer characters within its wider story, it’s a huge win. It’s also great storytelling!

But rarely is that the case when it comes to polyamory. While there are several movies and shows that include it… most poly representation is within the context of an already radically queer story, or within the context of a story that’s solely about being polyamorous. Any non-monogamous relationships–or even the potential for them–are very rarely given casual, “normalized” inclusion amongst an ensemble, or treated like just another romance in the mix.

And yet… Roy, Keeley, and Jamie seemingly have been, with beautiful complexity. It's like seeing a real windmill for the first time.

This “triangle that symbolizes home” has been built as a three piece, slow burn, collective romance. Equal weight has been given to developing them as individuals while developing all of the ways they intersect and connect, with no combination falling by the wayside. Between Keeley/Jamie, Roy/Keeley, and Roy/Jamie, you can chart the trajectory of how they all grew to love each other and how they’re now coming together as a group towards the end. It all plays out with various levels of romantic motifs across the board, and–as if that isn’t already enough!–with added subtext through costuming/wardrobe, set details, framing, and music. It has been formed and shaped with great attention to detail, and of course with unbelievably beautiful acting choices that bring it to life. (Analyzing those details at length would require its own post.)

This sort of thing may exist in other media, but I’ve personally never seen anything like it before. I’ve certainly never heard of it happening in such a high-profile, widely-loved show like this.

Here, with one episode left, the equal setup of the three now feels complete and ready for a future. Roy and Keeley aren’t back together yet, so Jamie wouldn’t feel like an add-on if that is indeed where they take the story. Roy and Keeley haven’t even kissed on screen this season, in a way that feels deliberate (and anticipatory). And it’s now clear that the relationship struggles any 2 characters may have had as couples can be improved upon by adding the third person, so they’d all be fully supported in a throuple.

For example: Keeley helps them all to be more vulnerable and open while also being a problem solver. Roy’s steady, heartfelt, but no-nonsense encouragement builds them all up with confidence but not toxic pride. Jamie now wears his heart on his sleeve, bringing a level of fun and joy that’s incomparably him. If Keeley sometimes needs space, Roy and Jamie are clearly happy to be indefinitely tied together (sometimes literally). If Jamie or Keeley want to be the life of any party, they’ve got a partner for the scene so Roy doesn’t feel obligated to match that energy. Roy and Jamie relate through football as a specific kind of language, understanding that part of each other as only they can while Keeley cheers from the side. Each of them has taught the others new skills along the way.

If any of them now enter into new relationship territory, it sure seems like they’ll do it all together as a full set–and be stronger for it.

Feel free to call me a fool, but at this point I’m confident that at minimum they’re going to leave this story hinting at the three of them getting together off screen in the future. That’s the baseline I personally really wanted, and it’s more than I’d have previously dared to hope for.

In terms of what could happen on screen: Do I want them all to have a conversation about dating each other and/or kiss and/or be shown in bed together? Yes. Do I think at least one (if not all) of those things are going to happen in the season finale? After episode 3x11, I find myself nearly convinced we’re going to get SOMETHING of the sort. It feels like a thread that needs pulling (or a Chekhov’s gun that needs firing?) after Roy and Keeley’s conversation in Jamie’s room. It’s the next bit of natural and needed evolution for all of them.

Or, as Trent Crimm once said, “You’ve done this over three seasons. . . thousands of imperceptible moments, all leading to their inevitable conclusion.”

But am I counting on that inevitable louder conclusion? Will I be disappointed if it doesn’t happen? Do I think any of that explicit behavior has to happen for this poly relationship to be considered canon and have merit?

Not at all. 

That’s not how I choose to view media. Personally, I never play the unwinnable game of debating the ever-shifting goalposts of what constitutes “good representation.” Relatedly, I think the word “queerbaiting” is almost always misused and probably shouldn’t exist at all. And I’m tired of the lack of nuance in these discussions where people act like fictional queer relationships have to hit a certain level of “canon enough” in order to “count.” Many of those arbitrary goals seem to often be determined by whether or not ~all audiences~ can magically be convinced by the queer relationship’s seeming legitimacy. But queer stories aren’t made for the people who are oblivious to them at best or looking for reasons to disregard them at worst; at the end of the day, they’re made for queer people, as well as for anyone who has media literacy and an open mind.

If you ask me, RoyKeeleyJamie is already “canon.” Anything else we get now is just a bonus. And ultimately–after everything I outlined above–I am very aware of how unique this particular situation is, and how more explicitly going “all the way” with any queer dynamic (let alone polyamory) is still never a simple or easy task for creators to accomplish. Even in 2023.

However.

IF they do it?

If everyone involved in both creating this show and approving it (which is very key) had the sheer courage to go all the way with this storyline, in a way that most mainstream audiences won’t be able to ignore or deny without sounding stupid?

Well.

Then they’d better get a great deal of overdue praise and acknowledgement. And I will be loudly losing what’s left of my mind in the best possible way.

(I had to write this now just in case I’m incoherent after the finale.)

Either way: I am FLOORED by what we’ve gotten up to this point! I’m thrilled! I’m having a great fucking time!

And I’m very, very grateful to the team that’s put together such a beautiful triangular love story for our enjoyment.

It truly feels like it’s one of a kind.

---------

I posted this on Medium as well here :)

(so I can pull the lunatic move of tweeting it @ the writers with a more legitimate link)

[chainofclovers]

Ted Lasso 3x8 Thoughts

I’ve written all of these after seeing the episode only one time but I think this one might benefit from a rewatch more than anything else. Even if, unfortunately, this was absolutely my least favorite episode of this stupid wonderful show. (Or was it? What will a rewatch reveal to me?)

I have tried very hard not to have a lot of fun-time-ruining expectations about this Media Experience that has bewitched me since January fucking 2021. But I’ll admit that I had some serious expectations about the writing of this episode. Keeley Hazell and Dylan Marron! I was so excited to see what the ultimate Keeley Jones expert, the Keeley inspiration, the namesake herself, would have to say about this character. And actually, I thought Juno Temple got some really incredible material to work with, and I think she acted the living fuck out of this episode. I came away with a deeper understanding of Keeley’s character. A sense of who she is when she wakes up in bed next to someone who delights her. A sense of how it feels when someone she loves deeply disappoints and hurts her, and how it feels when someone she could have loved chooses a status over a human, and how it feels when someone she used to love holds himself accountable to her. 

There was so much about this episode that felt incredibly natural: 

everything about Juno’s performance 

the ways Jack is charming and tantalizing and expansive and the ways she’s small and cowardly and disappointing were perfect…wlw rep doesn’t happen in a vacuum of purity, this is wlw rep but this is also billionaire asshole rep this is venture capitalism rep this is richer-than-Rebecca-Welton rep this is manipulator rep

the perfect moment when Jade tells Nate to celebrate his victories after a lifetime of hearing his father shame him for taking pride in his successes

the anti-chemistry chemistry of Ted and Michelle and their long history

absolutely everything about Rebecca as lifeline and sense-talker for Ted (and soulmate…I’m so tired, but it just remains true that they’re fucking soulmates, and I hope they find out and I’m still pretty sure they will)

Beard in an apron making pancakes for his boys

Rebecca holding Keeley and telling her a possibly slightly exaggerated story about her introduction to masturbation to cheer up her beloved bestie

the utter pain of Roy being once again a very good person who has fucked up badly in a parking lot (this time with consequences)

Ted’s sweet little voices as he reads to Henry (and the WTF moment he has about himself after Henry has fallen asleep)

Last night my wife and I went out for a beer and broke down a bunch of these moments and how good they actually were, and how strange it was to have, honestly, a wealth of beautifully written and acted moments in an episode that really didn’t work for us. Because those highs made the lows seem so much lower. 

The locker room scene…I’ve watched anti-harassment and standards-of-business videos for my corporate job that are better than whatever that was. I understand what they were trying to do. And I understand that this is a story that has so much real-life crossover and is so incredibly important to get right and was probably so complicated and often painful to write that I feel very empathetic about the ways that all that pressure might have conspired to make this episode worse instead of better. I have no interest in judging those conditions, nor do I think it’s some big hilarious gotcha that this writer (well, writers) wrote about this topic. But I do have to judge the final product, which reads like a group of people taking turns saying things like “This is a bad thing in our society” and “Is it so bad?” and “Yes, fellow man, it really is that bad” and “But wait, why should I have any responsibility for this bad thing in our society?” and “Well, here is why you actually do have some responsibility for this bad thing in our society.” 

Even the Keeley-Rebecca scene wavers in and out, whereas normally a scene with those two is rock solid. They spend a lot of time explaining the societal conditions to each other instead of relying on the shorthand that two best friends would use to communicate. I mean, thank God Rebecca was totally with Keeley on this one—if she hadn’t been, that would’ve warranted something on the spectrum of lecture—but because she was, their exchange of lines about sexualization just had me feeling like I am watching a TV show about a very special issue, I am watching a TV show about a very special issue. 

Just as I’m not looking to Jack Danvers to convince a homophobe why bi people are cool (she could be the coolest most respectful gal in the world and she’s not gonna convince a bigot that queer people actually are great!), I desperately wish they’d taken a less heavy hand with this stuff. Keeley’s pain—her vehement lack of embarrassment, her disappointment—says it all. 

And I am so sorry to say that I feel like Brendan Hunt, who always, always knows when to dial it down and when to dial it up, when to bury and when to emote, dialed it way too far up when talking to Henry while Ted’s on the phone with Rebecca. I am a huge defender of how this show uses musical scenes; bring on the cheese, bring on the champagne bottle microphones, bring on the sing-alongs and heightened emotions and funeral rick rolls. Every other time a character has sung on this show, it’s been natural in the awkwardness and the slightly-outsized emotions and the inherent goofiness of it all. This time, they just could not create the right emotional conditions to earn this moment. I’m not going to give a detailed critique of a child's performance on a public website, but unfortunately I think this is a moment when the writers actually underwrote what Henry needed to say, because I’m mystified as to how he’s actually feeling and doing. Understanding those things is essential to understanding where this story is going, so I’m really upset that a huge chunk of information is missing now.

And that leads me to the incredibly unsettling ending. I had to be talked down off a ledge. I’m now pretty sure the ambiguities of how Ted and Michelle are around each other are about recognizing the ways they used to work, their common reference points, their knowledge of each other, while simultaneously experiencing yet another goodbye, yet another turning point in this (realistic, tbh) endless cycle of navigating the split. But I’m really struggling to understand Ted’s headspace in the final couple minutes of the show, whereas usually I feel like I’m practically living inside his brain as I watch. 

I’ve loved s3 so far. I always knew it would be as distinct a thing of its own just as much as s1 and s2 were distinct from each other. As much as I’d be enjoying a return to the specific magic of s1, it would be impossible and wrong and even irresponsible of them to try to recreate it, and I think it would fall flat, and so I’m glad I knew that would never be my experience with this season of TV. And yet it’s a little unnerving, even as this person who’s tried to keep my high expectations open-ended, to feel so bummed about 3x8. The conversation over that beer about all the really good stuff did make me feel better, because it reminded me that the really badly done parts of this episode were less about story than about the circumstances of the storytelling. To me, those circumstances make the clunkers more forgivable instead of less. But it was still disappointing.

Probably every Ted Lasso fan feels this way on some level, but I am having such a singular experience. I am a fifteen-year-old girl again, holed up in my room because ���no one understands………why I feel the way I feel about Ted Lasso.” The membrane between my takes and my empathetic yet judgmental reactions to other people’s takes is permeable and problematic. It’s shameful, but I want everyone to love it because I love it and I want everyone to calm down because I’m calm and I want everyone to be at the edge of their seat and not at all calm because I’m at the edge of my seat and not at all calm and I want everyone to love Ted/Rebecca even if they never kiss because I love Ted/Rebecca (even if they never kiss) and I want everyone to have hated this episode because I hated it and I want everyone to give it time and space to breathe because I’m trying to do that and I want everyone to wait and see what fucking happens because I’ve got some kind of freak patience when it comes to this fucking experience. I want to be my best self and I am not my best self. I’m insane about this show, and I’m not working on the issue. Eek. 

[achoshistor]

[totk] what's up with dinraal?

shoutout to the person that reblogged this post of mine! tbh i completely forgot about it (and lowkey this account too). im gonna be honest i downloaded honkai star rail right before totk came out bc i missed the open world so like 5 months after finishing totk thats all i did bro the grind is so bad

[tbh i cannot remember the specifics of the plot rn would recommend not reading if you've not finished totk and botw + most sides]

anyways tbh to me it feels kinda like the botw/totk fanbase is slowly slowing growth esp with the announcement of no dlc... that's why i sorta lost interest. but basically

naydra = widsom, owl (ergo mineru/zelda?)

farosh = courage, dragon (ergo rauru/link?)

dinraal = power, boar (ergo ???/ganondorf)

clearly the power aspect was of some importance considering they had boar statues (again pic in this reddit post); however reading the article on the wiki (i have not 100%ed the game) they said the true crest of the zonai is not the spiral we see all over faron, but a different rectangular crest (let me see if i can find an image) i believe they were referring to the secret stones? which almost makes sense considering the spiral but at the end of the day that spiral looks like a much more evolved version of the secret stone crest, nor would the placement of the zonai people make any sense in regards to what we seen in totk: why are the ruins concentrated in the faron jungle, which is much farther south than the great plateau where the zonai are shown to have resided?

i mean even going onto dinraal, on another wiki it says that she's a fire spirit serving the spring of power; but the spring of power seems to be almost completely hylian in contrast to the spring of courage in the jungle. interestingly enough though unlike really in hateno necluda area there seem to be more zonai ruins but again underground or seemingly not tied to the zonai (bargainer statue).

naydra matches up with nayru, farosh with lanayru (farore maybe) but who does that leave dinraal with? actually it leaves her with din lmao i forgot there were three goddesses but actually therefore are these dragons like the literal immortalized forms of the three goddesses from like the non totk botw games? tbh then i think the ganondorf linkage is a red herring. the zonai (at least whoever was on the surface) must have worshipped the triforce. but i think this still does not solve the mystery of which zonai(?) would have been associated with the power aspect of the triforce. will we ever find out? idk... thank you for coming to my ted talk

[disasterbijamietartt]

I know what you mean about the neither confirming nor denying thing. Like I can see it as not wanting to take away from the Colin moment, and it was definitely left in a way that can be interpreted positively and I think unless they outright say otherwise, a lot of fandom will take it as a yes, he is. That said, that was the perfect time to confirm, just one line, and I will feel cheated if they dont let him acknowledge it. I am slightly more forgiving of actors teasing a character's sexuality if it seems like actually they are 100% behind it (a la Oscar Isaac with Poe, and I do think Phil with Jamie), but I will be more disappointed in the show for teasing it and not going ahead

Yeah, and you know, I’m so done settling and rejoicing over hints when the creators don’t have the backbone to make something canon. So I have a hard time giving them the benefit of the doubt right now.

Maybe they will surprise me positively, but … the more I think about this, the more it upsets me.

@time-is-restored also makes a good point here, that sleep deprived me forgot about.

The whole situation where everyone on the team looked at him like “We know what you are” was quite unsettling to me—that is not a group of queer people recognising one of their own. That is a group of straight guys singling out one in their middle because he looks/seems gay to them.

Are they stereotyping Jamie because he cares for his appearance? (which is like the only context I can think of, where “I’m flattered” makes sense as a response to me—”They think I’m gay because I’m stylish and hot, so it is a compliment”) Or do they think when Jamie talked about being too “soft” for his dad in season 1, he actually meant “gay”?

The most generous view I can come up with is, that Jamie has dated no one since Keeley and they’re collectively like “He is so hot, and also fun and kind and supportive, him being single makes no sense unless he is gay”. Like, from a fannish perspective I could also go “Haha, after Amsterdam they probably think Roy and Jamie are secretly dating”, but there is like zero proof they might actually think that.

And honestly, as much as I enjoy interpreting every little choice on the show: The average viewer doesn’t do that. The average viewer will look and jump to the first conclusion that makes sense to them, which likely will be stereotyping.

Someone (like Trent) should have called that out.

I could generously interpret the whole exchange as giving a huge hint to casual viewers: “Jamie is perceived as queer, just so you know for future reference 😉”, but still the entire scene doesn’t sit well with me. And they could have accomplished the same result in a way where Jamie actually has agency about this.

Since also, by singling Jamie out, they basically forced him to make a statement, either forcing him to lie or to come out even when he may not be ready for it, which is super shitty behaviour. (So I could also read the “I’m flattered” as him deflecting, like he knows he is bi but doesn’t feel like coming out yet and assumed they clocked him because of his appearance.)

Add to this that Colin basically was forced to come out because of the circumstances and couldn’t actually decide on his own account when and how to come out. (Which is like the opposite of what I wanted)

And we didn’t even get the how, because it was more important to focus on the straight allies 🤡 Like, if the writers didn’t want to take away from Colin’s moment, they could have made it more about Colin? (Yes, he didn't want to be a spokesperson, but it would still have been nice to have him actually say "I am gay" in front of his mates.)

I liked the conversation Roy and Isaac had and think it was necessary (partly for my queer Roy agenda), but instead of giving us this cringeworthy talk by Ted, they could have given Colin more room for his own coming out—and then have Ted reassure him, that they care about him with a story that is about Ted not caring enough about someone who actually was queer and regretting that.

Gosh, the more my brain wakes up, the more upset I get lol

(And yes, I am usually quite forgiving with actors, since they don’t have control over their franchise, but no matter how much I adore Phil, the way he constantly brings up Roy x Jamie as a possibility is going a bit too far at this point if he is only joking.)

[kinnenvy]

qaf drabble #1

early season 3 break up small little drabble that i need out of my drafts :) , brian centric

Brian is on his third cigarette and his second beer. It’s Wednesday and Woody's tightly packed, but Brian's head is too all over the place to truly pay attention to the crowd around him. Not about its quantity nor its quality.

Unfortunately, despite his inability to acknowledge his surroundings, all the whispering happening around him easily reaches his ears. He can't escape the judgment being directed his way. Callous words about how tired, how haggard he looks, how dispirited and pale. How the god of Liberty avenue has stumbled and fallen to the depths of the worst kind of hell. Lonely and apathetic and too tired to hide himself behind his shell of glamour and charm.

He lights a fourth cigarette and instead of a third beer he gets himself a glass of whisky.

"Hey… Brian." Someone sitting on his left strikes a conversation, or at least tries to. Brian glances at him and hums. "Do you remember me? We… Met at Babylon last Sunday." 

Brian rarely remembers, but he looks back at him anyway. The mole on the skin beneath his eye vaguely reminds him of the backroom, of loud music filtering through the air and mingling with Justin's voice in Brian's ears.

He's the last guy they've had together and Brian is not sure whether he wants to fuck him or make sure to never see him again.

He doesn't try to do either, he just goes back to gazing into his drink and smoking his cigarette.

"We've been looking everywhere for you!" Ted and Emmett appear out of thin air and unknowingly save him from finally giving in and taking the guy home, just to hear his voice, look at his mole and pretend there's three of them in his bed.

"Yeah, it's pecs night at Babylon, what are you doing here?" Emmett sits beside him in a way that’s entirely too deliberate. He very openly reaches for Ted's hand, he glances at Brian in a way that he probably thinks must be subtle, and joins their fingers together, likely expecting Brian to point and sneer at them just to distract himself. Brian has to look away instead.

He picks at the damp label on one of his empty beer bottles, he stays there until it’s deep into the night and waits, he's not sure for what.

"This new account is bullshit." Brian groans in the agency corridors, Cynthia snickers and rolls her eyes as she walks next to him fidgeting with all the new documents they've acquired in the meeting.

"Why would they launch a new cassette player in 2003? And why do they expect them to sell?" She, as she often does, speaks out Brian's exact thoughts.

"I don't know and it's coming from one of our oldest accounts, so I can't even tell them to fuck off. They better pay me before they go bankrupt." He massages his temples and wipes off some of the tinted moisturizer he's started packing over his face. Wordlessly Cynthia helps him fix the patch of skin he's uncovered and Brian slams the door of his office harder than he should because of it.

Two days later a copy about nostalgia comes across his desk: You only know what you'll miss, once it's already gone. The accompanying images of Walkmans knockoffs and cassettes don't do much to divert his thoughts from blond hair and blue eyes.

When Brian comes home that afternoon he notices his wardrobe only has his clothes in it, he scans the loft and it takes him just a superficial glance to be able to tell that Justin sneaked in during his office hours and took away most of his things. His eyes linger on the computer and the graphics tablet he got him still sitting where he last left it. 

There's a feeling he'd rather not describe sinking to the pit of his stomach, it reaches so low inside him that Brian convinces himself his only choice is to bounce back and start looking up again.

He cleans up and for the first night since the Rage party, he wears his best fuck clothes and skips Woody's to get himself right to the backrooms.

The next logical step is to steal Michael away from his quiet evenings with Ben and let him distract him from the turmoil inside him. Allow his company to patch him up and hold him together, like he used to do when his dad got too drunk and Brian had to wear bruises for weeks, when his mom was too distracted by her own listlessness, to realize Brian needed her comfort.

"We can't stay too long, Ben has to wake up early tomorrow." Michael shouts in Brian's ear so he can hear him over the music and the yelling happening on the Babylon dancefloor. From this close he can see he still has a dark spot around his left eye from the blow he delivered to his face, without thinking Brian traces it with the tips of his fingers.

"What? The professor's working on a Saturday morning?" He asks, mostly just to fill the silence that can't be hidden by the loud bass beating and pulsating in the air around them.

"He's got a check up at the hospital." Michael says it like it's nothing special, but Brian has always been able to see right through him with ease. They dance a little closer after that, their hands gripping tightly each other's clothes.

"You better take him home then. It's already time for my scheduled backroom appearance anyway." Brian pushes him away only a handful of minutes later, Michael looks up at him and pats his shoulder.

"Listen, I know I behaved like an ass… But be careful, okay? Don't let this whole thing drag you down." Michael says, but can't look directly into his eyes anymore. Brian knows his outburst during Linds and Mel's party is still haunting him, even though letting his emotions get the best of him is Michael's specialty, just like hiding them is Brian's.

"What thing?" Brian furrows his eyebrows and shrugs, feigning ignorance, "I've never felt better."

"...Right." Michael releases a sigh between exasperated and amused, then kisses Brian's cheek and walks back to the bar where Ben, Emmett and Ted are deep into conversation.

Brian watches until all four of them decide to leave and start moving towards the wardrobe. Emmett looks back into the crowd one last time and raises a hand to wave at him, Brian raises his chin to acknowledge him, then he turns on his heels and lets himself be dragged away by the first man who hits on him.

Things slowly start to settle again. Brian stops paying short, blond twinks to wear baggy clothes and lay flat on his bed, while he rams them from behind. Hopefully soon he'll also stop seeing Justin in every trick he brings home.

For now he's cursed to see his face every time someone begs for his cock. Also whenever he steps into the diner.

Brian is starting to question the amount of money he's spending to put him through school, considering how he seems to be working every shift from Monday through Friday. He doesn't comment on it though, or on anything else, and he purposely gives his order to another server.

He's started going to tanning salons again, he's cut his hair and he is generally looking much better than he did weeks ago. Despite all of that, he keeps his sunglasses on, not wanting Justin's furtive glances to see anything he isn't supposed to. Also to shield himself from seeing how little his own ailments seem to be reflected in his inquisitive blue gaze.

[coachbeards]

anyone who knows me knows i don’t agree with the characterization of beard @ jamie in regards to zava. i think him being condescending is actually,,,,, kind of out of character. i know, i know. beard likes winning, he’s the smart one, yadda yadda. but beard has Never liked winning at the expense of the team members. it’s ted who doesn’t want the tie in the end of s1, where beard (the self-proclaimed hater of losing) would be perfectly okay with it. sure, he doesn’t Want a tie, but he’s well aware if that’s their only option, then he wants it. he’s the one who didn’t want jamie back on the team, despite knowing damn well he’s an amazing player,,,, because he didn’t like how jamie’s behavior impacted the team. he saw the damage done, and he’d choose the team over higher chances of winning any day. he didn’t see jamie’s growth, not up until his season two and season three arc. and you can tell his opinion changes!!! he calls him a beautiful dumb dumb, he is way more positive of him later on.

and like……….we’ve never actually seen beard be truly condescending. him yelling at ted for wanting to win isn’t condescending when you take into account that ted is his boss, and beard is his second in command telling him that things Matter. he’s still teaching ted football, even in their third year there. he’s proud of ted for learning about the sport via fifa. he’s patient, he’s understanding. he sees change, he’s someone who’s gone through his own versions of the lasso way several times. he’s not a condescending person, nor would he make fun of jamie for getting a word wrong or being worried about Zava. Again. Beard has ALWAYS said he wants to win, but he’s SHOWN preferring the players and their wellbeing’s. He doesn’t want jamie to play hurt, he doesn’t want roy to hurt, he didn’t want their team to suffer from starting roy….beard has always been team first. players first. maybe less evident than ted, but god. Does he love those players. He wouldnt be unnecessarily condescending or cruel to Jamie.

[eldritchaccident]

Timing: a few weeks back Location: The Party Thrifter Feat: @amonstrousdream & @eldritchaccident Warnings: None! Summary: Now that's what I call a clothing malfunction!

Teddy had been in the dressing room for a while. 

Usually, Leila wouldn’t notice. Teddy typically had anywhere from a small mountain to a whole dragon’s hoard hanging from the hooks on the walls or draped across the chairs she had set out in each of the curtained off rooms. She prided herself on the changing areas of The Party Thrifter and how they were the right amount of classy and fantastical, spooky and serious. But usually, there was a lot of chatter coming from Teddy as they changed. Even when she had other customers, she’d grown used to Teddy’s commentary on the things they liked. 

Today, however, there was silence. And that alone was disturbing. 

Leila paced a little, uncertain as to whether or not she should say something. If everything was fine, then perhaps Teddy would be annoyed that she seemed so concerned. But it was Teddy. She had grown rather fond of them, going so far as to consider the patron a friend. A good friend at that. Leila didn’t have an awful lot of those, and so the ones she had were treated with extra care.

She quietly rounded the corner that led to the dressing rooms and lightly rapped against the wall. “Teddy? Hon, you doin’ okay? Do you need a hand with anything?”

“Yeah! No! It’s just– Yeah no, I’m– I’m fine-” If the half spun phrases and rising tone with which their voice failed to finish them in weren’t enough of an indicator– No. Teddy Jones was in fact, not fine. They stood amidst the disarray. Frantic eyes pouring over every bit of clothing they had touched, and some they hadn’t yet. Careful to pick up everything and shake it out looking for– “I just– I can’t find my glasses?” A normal enough statement. Though if anyone guessed they wore those round rose colored shades for help with sight they would probably be the first. Especially when they appeared not to need them. Half the time running around without the glasses entirely, but today… Well, today they were important. 

Still reeling from all the mess with the baukbear, hellhound, and the royal asshole. That and falling off a roof and being sliced like deli meat. Even if it “was” “unintentional” it still sucked. Still left them a lot more tired and groggy than they’d like to be. Still had Teddy leaning on the glasses like a crutch. You see, they weren’t just charming pieces of fashion that the demon liked to wear. When they weren't wearing them, (nor wearing their human disguise) the demon looked well… Like a demon. 

Not the grandiose and resplendent form Leviathan took on when the pair went out to sea. Not even the similar (but smaller) shape Ted adopted to swim alongside. This was what they called their ‘base’ state. The one they returned to, that took no effort to don. It’d changed over the years. Gone from blank slate canadian child to adult world traveler, who just happened to be… different than the world they traveled. 

Blue tinted skin, rough patches of armor-like scale plating wherever they’d been grievously injured before. (Including a brand new spot of them along their stomach where Emilio’s blade had “accidentally” added to the collection) Their eyes were dark, blacker than ink, with bright glowing teal pupils at their center. Fangs, the start of some gnarly horns, claws. Enough to make every nun in the next nine miles blush. (Or attempt murder, again, who knows?) And certainly enough to drive away one of the few people Teddy liked to be around more than just in passing. 

“No, yeah. Leila, no worries. Not a thing. No wrong here!” Maybe one of the biggest tip offs that something was wrong was the surprising lack of nicknames. They weren’t making much sense, sure, but neither did the fact that the glasses were gone. People would have noticed something if they hadn’t come in with them. And by all accounts, they were nowhere amongst the (admittedly larger than normal) piles of old clothes inside the changing room. 

Even if Leila hadn’t heard the rising tension in Teddy’s voice, even if she had believed for a moment that her friend who she could hear rummaging about the dressing room for their glasses was ‘just fine’, there was one thing that would always tip her off. Since the mare had met and befriended one Teddy Jones, they had used her full first name exactly once. Maybe twice if she thought about it too long. They almost always called her by some nickname, varying depending on their mood and the conversation at hand. At the sound of her name- her real name, the one she had been given over two centuries ago- her stomach dropped. 

“Do you want me to come in and help you look?” Maybe their glasses got tangled up in some fabric and were refusing to come out. It was entirely possible! If Leila had to count the number of times where she had lost something to a sleeve or a pocket or some scrap of fabric that was just determined to conceal whatever it was she needed from her, she would very quickly lose count. “Or did you take them off before you went in and put them somewhere- I don’t remember seeing you without them, but still…” She did a little once-over in the hall outside the dressing room, even going so far as to look to see if maybe the curtain that closed off the room might have gobbled up the glasses. 

Wherever the glasses were, they couldn’t have gone too far. She heard another customer clear their throat out by the counter. “I’ll be there in just a minute!” The mare shouted in as cheery a tune as she could manage.

“No!” They responded, far too quickly. “N-no I’m good. Like I said. Everything is under control.They have to be in here–” Teddy bumped against one of the sturdier walls of the changing room in an attempt to stay away from the curtain. The last thing they needed was to accidentally swing the cloth open, and ruin another friendship. Was it even fair to call it a friendship? Maybe Teddy was just another customer, another face that came in and probably spent too much money but– Ahh now they were just coming up with excuses. Plans for the inevitable fall. When Leila found out and it was too much and they were politely asked to never come by again. 

No they’d– They’d figure this out. Just had to shift back to normal. Just had to look human enough to pass inspection. Teddy’s hands trembled as they gripped tightly to the stool in the center of the changing room. Picturing what they were supposed to look like in their mind. Sweat ran rivulets down their back like a rising fever was overtaking them. Each shuddered breath probably sounded more like they were having a heart attack than looking for a lost accessory. Patches of their skin began to fade and smooth out into a normal tan, and normal texture. Good. Maybe they had the energy to do this. The big mirror in front of them though, that told a different story. 

“You go take care of the customer–” it was strained, through teeth that couldn’t decide between straight and sharpened. Coming off a tongue that was just as indecisive. Oscillating between the human-ish pink-y red and a deep purple with a glowing teal vein running down the center. Teddy wrapped their arms around their stomach, as if the pressure would force the scales back into their skin. As if the spikes and bioluminescent bits just needed a bit of a push to retreat. As if they had any control over the state of their body after having shifted back to human far too soon after almost dying again. 

“It’s okay Leila. I’m fine hun. Go–” A gurgling retch stopped them mid sentence, their rib had popped from its resting place. Oh no. That wasn’t good. Suddenly the panic Teddy felt shifted immediately from a vague worry about losing a friend, to a major fucking terror about accidentally crushing Lei and her store if their body decided it was safer and better to go back to being a full on kaiju right then and there. As if that wouldn’t be the worst possible thing it could do. As if that wouldn’t mean they’d have to move again. Uproot everything, the life they’d begun to build, the business their dad had going… if they were caught, outed for what they really were… even a town like Wicked’s Rest wouldn’t harbor them. No, the only choice was to get this under control. 

The quick, wavering response did the opposite of convincing Leila that Teddy was alright. She felt a pit in her stomach growing larger and larger as she listened to them from the other side of the velvet curtain. It didn’t sound like looking for glasses in there, it sounded as if they were about to collapse to the ground and have a panic attack. And that worried her. Teddy was her friend- or she liked to think that they were. People were funny about that word. It got used so flippantly, as if to be a friend had grown to mean ‘someone you know generally’. Meanwhile, Leila adopted friend after friend and meant it as a person she cared for. For all she knew, Teddy might have only seen her as someone they tolerated for the sake of good discounts. But she would argue that the donuts and conversations leaned more in the friendship category. 

And then there was a retch. Oh, god, were they feeling sick? Was that the problem? She almost pulled back the curtain immediately to help Teddy get to the bathroom or at least to get them some water. But they had been so insistent that she stay out… She felt torn. Leila scurried off as quick as she could in order to find a bucket of some sort in the back room and a bottle of water, dashing past the counter as she went. “Sorry- I’ve got a customer who isn’t feeling very-” Out of the corner of her eye, she saw something very very familiar. A pair of glasses. A pair of very distinctive glasses that she had seen a number of times on the bridge of Teddy’s nose, covering up their eyes. Aha… “- well… I’ll be with you in a moment.” 

She made a dash back to the dressing rooms and quickly slid the bucket and water bottle under the crimson fabric. “Ted, honey? I found your glasses. I think you might’ve dropped them and someone else scooped them up- I’m gonna go get them for you, okay? You take a breath and I’ll get them back to you. The water is cold, try resting the bottle on the back of your neck if you aren’t feeling very well…” God, Leila swore she sounded like a mother cooing at her child. “I promise it’s going to be okay.”

“You are a goddamn lifesaver. A fuckin’ saint, Sweets.” Just knowing the glasses were found was enough, it seemed. Relief flooded through Teddy like a tidal wave. Far more destructive than comfort aught to be. It was like all their muscles released at once, and their whole frame just collapsed, sliding against the mirror and down to the floor. She found them. Leila found the glasses and Teddy didn’t have to force a shift back to human. 

Tears, for the love of all things unholy, fucking tears streamed down Teddy’s cheeks. Not because they were sad, but— maybe they were still a bit overwhelmed. By the potential. By the chaos they almost just unleashed on all of this and just because– 

Because Teddy didn’t want to lose Leila as a friend. Funny how something as simple as the prospect of actually staying in one place for a while actually made you care about such things. How the weight and magnitude of them multiplied when you had roots. How relationships hung from the branches of your life like fruit, ripening, and becoming sweeter and sweeter as they grew. They didn’t know how to sit with that. Not exactly. It was a foreign sensation that was starting to become a habit. 

Caring about people past their first interaction. Past the point where they usually grew bored with the demon or life split them apart despite anything that lingered. Teddy hadn’t even realized how many walls they’d constructed over the years. Telling themself it was okay, that all they’d ever need was their family. The real one, their real father. Leviathan was the one who was there. Leviathan was the one who cared. And that should be enough, it should always have been enough. 

The water bottle was welcome. The bucket seemed… silly. At least to Teddy. Lei must have thought he was going to hurl, but that’s fair considering there was no way she’d have been prepared for the only use of that bucket to be cleaning up the viscera that was always left after a big… monstery moment. Making a demon a new body wasn’t exactly a tidy affair. 

The customer was growing rather impatient. The counter girl had walked past him exactly three times before disappearing towards the dressing rooms, and only one of those times had she even deemed them worthy of acknowledgement. It was ridiculous. All he wanted was to purchase the glasses and leave. Honestly, it was as if she didn’t even want his money. He would have to leave a bad review… or speak to the manager. 

He cleared his throat once more, more loudly than the last. “Excuse me-”

Even if Teddy wasn’t having what seemed like a panic attack in the dressing room, even if the man at the counter wasn’t holding Teddy’s glasses in his hand as if he already owned them, Leila could not stand when customers were rude. It was the one thing she hadn’t quite considered when she opened the store. People could be entitled and selfish and at two hundred twenty five years old, the mare did not have time for entitled, selfish, rude people. 

“Yes, sir, I heard you the first time.” Her usual chipper tone had been cut to something far blunter. “But I have another customer-” Friend really, but people like that didn’t usually care if it was your friend or your family or a stranger who needed help. “-who is currently having an emergency in my dressing room. Because they cannot find their glasses. These glasses.” Leila went to pick the glasses up off the counter when the man’s hand shot out and snagged Teddy’s glasses back up.

 “I found these on the rack.” He sneered. God, he was really going to be a pain wasn’t he. Leila tried to make herself seem taller and more foreboding. “No. No you didn’t. Because those are my friend Teddy’s. Teddy comes in here all the time, did you know? So I would know those glasses anywhere.” Her words grew slower, as if she were explaining to a child- no… as if she were lulling him to sleep.. All the while she reached out and took the man’s hand, unwinding his now-tired fingers from around the glasses. “And- oh, sir, you’re not looking to good yourself… you look so tired.” She watched the man’s eyelids flutter, his mind starting to whirl about with the smell of dreams. But she wasn’t there to feed. Not then. “You should go.” She finally clipped, snatching the glasses back to her chest. 

The man yawned, mumbled something to himself that slowly grew unintelligible, grumbled about a review, and stumbled towards the door.

Things were settling. Slowly but surely, everything that had riled up within the demon began to put itself back in place. Sharper nails retreated, fangs meant for ripping and tearing flattened until they were the regular amount of pointy. Everything back to basic. Something was going on out in the main room of the thrift shop, and now Teddy had the presence of mind to listen. 

The way Leila twisted the words, carefully crafting them as if they were a spell brought a smile to Ted’s face. Mare. For sure. Teddy wouldn’t ever call her on it, of course. It’d be pretty fucking hypocritical to out someone like that. What with the idea of being known having nearly destroyed this little changing room and maybe the store with it. That… suddenly had the demon feeling a big sheepish. A rare emotion they really didn’t know what they were supposed to do with. For now, they supposed, it would have to be enough to thank Leila. Get her an even bigger box of donuts or maybe even make her something special. 

She was a special treat after all. And Teddy couldn’t be happier to know her and be able to call her their friend. 

[thenewpathfinder2024-2034]

9 Haun2🐕😆ted Places You Should Visit If You Visit Florida

Who doesn’t love a good scary story? We all have a part of ourselves that is attracted to the supernatural and a need to explore. Growing up in Florida could be described as a unique experience, to say the least. From the infamous “Florida Man” stories, free-range access to the beaches and theme parks, and being completely un-phased by category 5 hurricanes, native Floridians are just a different breed altogether.

Being from a small town that not many people have heard of, we’ve had our fair share of local ghost stories. Every town has its own urban legends that we hear during sleepovers that never involved actual sleep. You know the ones. The ones where the🐕🐕🐕🌬🐕😆re’s a creepy location a💯nd a crazed individual, murder, and just a touch of the supernatural. When you think of the most haunted states and cities in the U.S., what places come to mind? New Orleans. Salem. Amityville? I will take a wild guess and say that Flordia doesn’t make your list. It’s fine. We all know that’s not why people go there. If it doesn’t involve a cartoon mouse, a water slide, or a thrilling roller coaster, then most people don’t even know what’s in Florida. 

Flordia has a long and rich history here in the United States. Florida is one of the very first European settlements from Spain and is one of the oldest states in America. With over 500 years of history, Florida has their fair share of supernatural history. If you happen to find yourself in Florida and feel like a spooky adventure, try visiting some of these unique places in the beautiful state of Florida.

Fort Castillo de San Marcos- St. Augustine, Florida

There is a lot of dark history that is attached to the town of St. Augustine, Florida. St. Augustine is one of the oldest- and most haunted- towns in America. There are a lot of places to visit in St Augustine with almost every place having its own personal ghost story. One such place is the Fort Castillo de San Marcos. So many people had lost their lives in the fort. There are many chilling stories and encounters of ghosts from tourists that visit fort Castillo. From the shadow man to the woman who was buried alive within the walls of the fort, to many other stories. 

Tolomanto Cemetary

St. Augustine Lighthouse

The Coral Castle – Miami, Florida

This site is a marvel and mystery all on its own. The creator, Edward Leedskalnin, had apparently carved the heavy slabs of coral and stone all on his own. Leedsaklnin was known to be a hermit who never shared how he was able to build this castle nor shared the physics behind many of the – at the time- impossible mechanics of the castle’s features. To this day no one knows for sure how Edward Leedskalnin was able to build Coral Castle. Some speculate supernatural forces and even aliens, but again no one can know for sure.

The Devil Tree, Oak Hammock Park – Port St. Lucie Florida

Like I said, I grew up in the small-ish town of Port St. Lucie, Florida. Every small town has its own urban legends, and The Devil Tree is ours. I had heard many eerie stories regarding the Devil Tree, from serial killers to witchcraft, old Native American burial grounds, to satanic rituals. There have been so many accounts of strange activity near the tree such as cell phones randomly losing service, compasses going haywire, and even seeing shadows handing from the tree.

Robert The Doll – Fort East Martello Museum, Key West, Florida

The story of Robert is more perplexing than terrifying. As the story goes the doll was given to a boy named Gene Otto, who became an eccentric artist in the Florida Keys, by his grandfather as a gift from Germany. Gene had what others have called an unhealthy relationship to the doll that extended into his adulthood. He took the doll everywhere and referred to the doll as if it were a real person. He would often blame Robert for mishaps and weird occurrences. People would often see Roberts’s face change expressions, disappear and reappear from windows, and guests would often hear footsteps and giggling coming from the room where Robert the Doll “lived”. Yes, Robert had his own room in Otto’s home up until the 90s where he was donated to the Fort East Martello Museum, where he still resides.

The Biltmore Hotel – Coral Gables, Florida

The Biltmore Hotel didn’t start off as the place it is known for today. The building was built in 1926 by a developer as a luxury hotel that housed many gangsters and celebrities. After an infamous mobster was shot and killed in the hotel it was closed down and eventually turned into a World War II military hospital. After the war, it became a medical hospital for veterans and a medical school for the University of Miami. The Biltmore eventually closed for good in 1968 and stood as an abandoned building local teens would sneak into. Many of the people who have entered the building have encountered ghost stories and creepy tales. The Biltmore is now back to being a fully-functional luxury hotel that has housed many celebrities and public figures. People who often stay at the hotel still encounter strange occurrences at the hotel late at night

Koershan State Historical Site – Fort Myers, Florida

Scientology isn’t the first of Florida’s cults. I’m sorry, “modern religions”. In the 19th century Dr. Cyrus Teed believed that the world would only exist in Naples Beach, where he had founded the Koershan Unity. There are a lot of weird stories about this cult and what they believed.

Villa Paula – Miami, Florida

We all hope that the love from our spouses will be as in love with us as much as the day we met. But what happens when that love makes us go completely insane?

Villa Paula was built to house Cuban Consulate to Miami, Domingo Milord, and his wife Paula, who the villa is named after. It was known that Domingo loved his wife more than anything. A few years after moving into Villa Paula, Paula had died due to complications from a leg amputation. Not wanting to depart his wife, Domingo decided to rest Paula in a concrete sarcophagus in the backyard of the villa. Paula loved to play the piano and would brew Cuban coffee. Around the 80s, Miami newspapers began reporting stories of people who have heard a piano, smelled coffee, and saw a woman who matched Paula’s description walking in the house.

Blue Anchor – Delray Beach, Florida

Have you ever wanted to party with a ghost? No? Just me? Okay. the bar was originally built in London in the 1840s and disassembled and shipped to New York City where it collected dust in storage until 1996. The Blue Anchor was eventually shipped to Delray Beach where it now stands as a bar and restaurant.

This iconic bar is known to be haunted by Bertha Starkey, the woman who lived above the bar who was murdered by her husband for having an affair. The workers at the bar have said they have heard footsteps after closing, candles extinguishing by themselves, and objects moving on their own

Ashley’s of Rockledge

Ashley’s is known to be the most haunted restaurant in Florida. The restaurant was originally named ‘Jack’s Tavern’ when it opened in 1933. Over the years the restaurant had changed owners and names until 1985; where it finally settled on Ashley’s. Many customers, reporters, ghost-hunters, etc. have reported seeing a figure near the women’s bathroom in 1930’s attire, apparitions in the bathroom mirrors, and had felt an invisible force push past them on the stairs. Employees have even whispering, lights flickering, alarms going off without explanation, and objects moving from where they were left.

It is believed that the being behind these hauntings is the ghost of 19-year-old Ethel Allen, whose body was found on the shores near the Indian River in 1934. She was a frequent customer at Jack’s Tavern. The current story circulating is that Ethel was murdered in the tavern, somewhere around the bathroom, and her case was never solved.

Florida has a unique and rich history that is often overshadowed by a cartoon mouse and breathtaking beaches. A lot of visitors to our state usually don’t go out of their way to see the less shiny excursions we have to offer. Florida is full of many strange, twisted, and amazing stories that are worth hearing about. If you ever find yourself in Florida and feel like taking a strange adventure, then check out these places. Who knows? Maybe you will wind up with your own ghostly encounter

[milksnake-tea]

🚨🚨URGENT APPEAL🚨🚨 my heart is aching on my injured father

Can you please save my father's life

Reblog my pin post🙏🙏

Donate if you can 🙏

My father's life is on the line 😭

hi, i'm sorry but i can't share your campaign because i don't trust you. first off, your image used in your gofundme can be traced to openart, an AI images website. here's the two images side by side as a reference

this already is cause for alarm, but what's something even more concerning is that the man that you're using as your "father" can be traced to a completely different, verified campaign here. it even looks like you took a screenshot of the images from that family's fundraiser and poorly cropped them together to plaster onto your own photo.

i highly doubt that you are legitimate, especially since your pictures are not unique and i cannot find a single source that verifies your specific campaign and your specific blog. so yeah. i don't think you're real.

normally i would just block and report scammer/suspicious accounts, however this account has been shared a lot without any proof of verification and people seem to believe them (theyve already gotten 358 euros), and i'd rather the money of well-meaning folks go to actual palestinians who need it and have been proven to be actual people. highly discourage against donating to this campaign because lord it is so suspicious. @kyra45 (sorry for the tag 😭) i think this blog's worth looking at and/or adding to your scammer's masterlist.

also. i shouldnt have to say this but. don't ??? harass or message this person, just block and report. nor should u use this as an invitation to be racist. thank you for coming to my ted talk <3

[wisdomfish]

THE FREED ATHEIST

Naturalism is the belief system that regards the natural, material, and physical universe as the only reality. Nature is the whole show. This viewpoint is often characterized by corollary beliefs such as monism (all reality is one), materialism (reality is ultimately matter), antisupernaturalism (all supernatural explanations are to be rejected a priori), scientism (only the scientific method yields “truth”), and humanism (humanity is the ultimate outcome, hence “value”).

According to naturalism, everything (things, people, and events) can be reduced to “matter in motion.” Everything is reducible to, or explained in terms of, certain fundamental natural phenomena (physics, chemistry, and biology). Carl Sagan expressed the position of strong naturalism in a famous statement in his television series Cosmos: 

“The cosmos is all that is, or ever was, or ever will be."

Thus, If God is dead and the grave our final destination, 

"nothing would be immoral any longer, everything would be permitted, even anthropophagy [i.e., cannibalism]."

They [i.e., atheists] are now free, if they so choose, to become nihilists or sadists or solipsists on their own account. 

Some theories of 'the Superman' [Ubermensch] derive from atheism, and a person who thought that heaven and hell were empty could conclude that he was free to do exactly as he wished. The fear that this might be the outcome-well-expressed by Fyodor Dostoyevsky-underlies many people’s reluctance to abandon religious dogma.

Not all showed such reluctance. Ted Bundy being one such person,

"Then I learned that all moral judgments are “value judgments,” that all value judgments are subjective and that none can be proved to be either “right” or “wrong.” I even read somewhere that the Chief justice of the United States had written that the American Constitution expressed nothing more than collective value judgments. Believe it or not, I figured out for myself what apparently the Chief Justice couldn’t figure out for himself: that if the rationality of one value judgment was zero, multiplying it by millions would not make it one whit more rational. Nor is there any “reason” to obey the law for anyone, like myself, who has the boldness and daring — the strength of character — to throw off its shackles. I discovered that to become truly free, truly unfettered, I had to become truly uninhibited. And I quickly discovered that the greatest obstacle to my freedom, the greatest block, and limitation to it, consists in the insupportable “value judgment” that I was bound to respect the rights of others. I asked myself, who were these “others”? Other human beings, with human rights? Why is it more wrong to kill a human animal than any other animal, a pig or a sheep or a steer? Is your life more to you than a hog’s life to a hog? Why should I be willing to sacrifice my pleasure more for the one than for the other? Surely, you would not, in this age of scientific enlightenment, declare that God or nature has marked some pleasures as “moral” or “good” and others as “immoral” or “bad”? In any case, let me assure you, my dear young lady, that there is absolutely no comparison between the pleasure I might take in eating ham and the pleasure I anticipate in raping and murdering you. That is the honest conclusion to which my education has led me after the most conscientious examination of my spontaneous and uninhibited self.

[Kenneth Samples; Mitch Stokes; Fyodor Dostoevsky; Christopher Hitchens; Ted Bundy.]

[skloobles]

rhyl monorail

now i live not too far from this place called rhyl. and its a terrible place all things considered. high crime rate. touristy in the summer bc it has a beach. arcade hell on the front. so bad it was the place we went to study deprivation for our geography field work in year 11. but its The Place we go to! so i've learned to love it

anyway today i learned that rhyl used to have not one but TWO monorails. like one monorail is insane enough. but TWO? but the only one that really matters is the seafront one because the other one was just in the sun centre (swimming pool)

all things considered the rhyl seafront isnt THAT long and even then people are only really interested in the good bits, at least nowadays. so it makes sense why this thing only ran for about 2 months in mid-late 1980 before closing down for good.

to my knowledge there aren't any surviving artifacts of the thing. nor are there any of the other monorail, but that's mostly because they ended up demolishing the original sun centre and replacing it with a worse one a couple years back. nowadays rhyl isn't much worth visiting (on account of what i said in the first paragraph) unless you just happen to live semi-near to it and can't be bothered to go down to llandudno for the proper thing but it's definitely got a nice history. you wouldn't think it though.

thanks to the rhyl life blog (linked below) for most of this information. unfortunately it's not being updated anymore but it's a nice little thing to peruse.

thank you for coming to my ted talk.

[riddikulushq]

IC INFO:

Character name: Andromeda Tonks (nee Black) Age & Birthday: 25 & December 3rd Gender & Pronouns: Cis-female & she/her Occupation: Previously a healer at St. Mungo’s, now a stay at home mother Blood status: Pureblood Previous house: Slytherin Previous Affiliation: Neutral Face claim: Phoebe Tonkin Traits: +Loyal, Compassionate, Intelligent, Honest -Stubborn, Worrisome, Argumentative, Impatient TAKEN BY DANI

CHARACTER SUMMARY:

Andromeda Black was born the middle daughter of Cygnus and Druella Black. Born four years after her fierce older sister Bellatrix, only a few years later they were joined by their youngest sister Narcissa. Andromeda’s childhood may not have been considered what was normal for some wizarding families. From a young age Andromeda and her sisters were taught the proper etiquette and expectations of being from such a strong family line. They were taught that as Black women they would grow up to have the world at their feet, and their parents expected great things from them. Her relationship with her sisters wasn’t always the easiest, all three of them so different and unique. But at the end of the day Andromeda loved her sisters, and would have done anything for them. 

From a young age Andromeda had always been the quieter of the sisters. She was the sort to always investigate things, to question what she was told even when she knew better. Inquisitive. That was what her parents called her, at least when speaking to others about her. Andromeda couldn’t help herself, she was curious about the world around her. 

When Andromeda entered school at Hogwarts she was sorted into Slytherin house, just as the rest of her family. Her time at Hogwarts were the years that began to shape who she would become. Andromeda excelled in her classes, doing particularly well in both Defense Against the Dark Arts and Charms. She began to find her own way, her own passions and friends that pulled her further from her sisters and let her begin to flourish into her own person. She met people who made her question the beliefs she was raised on, people who made her question the things that had been ingrained in her since birth. 

Hogwarts is also where Andromeda met Edwards Tonks for the first time. A muggle born wizard who by all accounts, she knew she was to have nothing to do with. She tried to put space between them, she knew what she risked by spending time with Ted. However there was no helping the way he ended up charming her and eventually she could not deny that she had fallen for him. They kept things secret, Andromeda sneaking around to meet with him whenever she could. Summers were far more difficult, sending letters wasn’t an option. She began lying to her family, faking outings with her friends in order to be with him. She didn’t want to lie to her family, but she also knew that if they were to find out the truth it would destroy everything. While things weren’t easy with her family, she loved them more than anything else and didn’t want to ruin it. 

After school was over, Andromeda transitioned into work at St. Mungo’s, though her parents didn’t quite approve. Still she found the work rewarding, and in her free time she continued to see Ted as often as possible. Still it became inevitable that her family would find out about Ted Tonks. He refused to keep their relationship a secret forever, nor did she want it to be. There was a secret hope that maybe her family could accept this relationship, surely they wanted her to be happy? It all came to a head when Ted asked her to marry him, and there was no more hiding. 

Telling her family went far worse than even Andromeda could have imagined. The looks of horror and disgust on not only her parent’s, but her sister's faces was more than she could bear. Their cruelty knew no bounds as they told her what a disgrace she had become to the family, that if she were to marry Ted she would no longer be part of the Black family. Nor would she ever be welcome back. Heartbroken, she left her family and returned to Ted. Still there was no debate, that night she had returned from her family and when he had wrapped her in his arms she knew there was no decision to be made. Ted was her world, her family. The one person who accepted her no matter what. She married him in a small ceremony, surrounded by their closest friends and the Tonks family. While her heart ached for the family she had lost, she never knew such happiness as the day she married him. 

A few short years later, their daughter Nymphadora was born and Andromeda couldn’t be happier. She had a family she loved, as well as a job she enjoyed. It was enough to fill the hole left by a family that had cut her off, even if she thought of them often. 

When the first whispers of a Wizarding War began to go around she refused to believe it. Or rather hoped that it wasn’t true. She had never done well with confrontation, and she feared the worst of what could come from a war like this. As things got worse, she chose no side, she stayed as far away from the politics and chaos brewing as best she could. Her only concern was for her family, and keeping them safe and whole. She continued to work at the hospital, the work more important now than ever before. She saw the horrors that came from the war and went home exhausted each day, wishing for peace and the end of a war that seemed never ending. 

With the end of the war Andromeda feels as though she can finally breathe a sigh of relief. After speaking with Ted, it was decided that she would stop working to stay home to raise Nymphadora. After the chaos of the war she was only too happy to agree, though she still volunteers on occasion at the hospital when she has the free time. Her main focus now is to try and go back to normalcy as best they can, to enjoy life with her husband and her daughter. To give Nymphadora the freedom and enjoyment her childhood had rarely seen. And while the ache of missing her family is still a daily throb in her chest…she’s happy.

[aaronmaurer]

TV I Liked in 2023

Every year I reflect on the pop culture I enjoyed and put it in some sort of order.

Even with the interruption of many series due to the writers and actors strikes, there was no shortage of first-rate television in 2023. This year, to account for both novelty and sustained excellence, I’ve broken my Top 15 shows into 3 categories: “New and Notable,” “Returning Favorites” and, to reflect the sheer number of years-later follow-ups, “Reboots, Revamps and Resurrections.” These distinctions might be a little murky in some cases, but it gives some framework to reflect on the year that was. As always, I make no claims to completism (I still haven’t seen a single episode of Succession 😬); these are merely some standouts that I would say are worth your attention.

New and Notable:

5. Shrinking: Season 1 (AppleTV+)

A fun new dramedy from Bill Lawrence, Jason Segal and Brett Goldstein, Shrinking starts a bit gimmicky but quickly turns into an opportunity to just hang out with the eminently entertaining likes of Segal, Jessica Williams and Harrison Ford (in a terrific comedic turn). While some of the blame for Ted Lasso’s shaggy final season might be attributed to Lawrence’s showrunning departure to move to this series, it’s at least led to something worthwhile thus far.

4. The Diplomat: Season 1 (Netflix)

I’d follow Keri Russell just about anywhere, and though I had worried her new show wouldn’t be much more than a melodramatic procedural, my fears were allayed by a series that thoughtfully – and entertainingly – unpacks foreign diplomacy and international intrigue without ever straining credulity. Add to that one of the most stunning cliffhangers of the year and I am all-in for Season 2.

3. The Last of Us: Season 1 (HBO)

As someone who is neither an avid gamer nor a big fan of zombie-adjacent horror or survivalist narratives, I would not have thought The Last of Us would have much to offer me, but I’m glad I gave it a chance. From the excellent cast to the riveting episodic storytelling, the show transcends its genre trappings to say a lot about community/found family, trust, power dynamics and more.

2. The Muppets Mayhem: Season 1 (Disney+)

This new series chronicling the adventures Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem is the most fun and tonally on-point Muppets project since the 2011 Jason Segal movie. The series perfectly captures the madcap yet heartfelt spirit of Jim Henson’s creations while winningly bringing them into the 21st century in a less forced way than the recent Muppets Now. (While it could be eligible for the third category of this list, since it’s a new creative team and with a specific focus, I’m sticking with the “New” designation.)

1. Poker Face: Season 1 (Peacock)

This new “howcatchem” (as opposed to “whodunnit”) series from Rian Johnson (Looper, the Knives Out movies) is lots of fun. A little of Natasha Lyon goes a long way for me, but I think she does great work here as the series lead alongside a rotating cast of fun performances. The show does a fine job of balancing fulfilling self-contained stories with an underlying arc to the season that pays off nicely.

Returning Favorites:

5. Perry Mason: Season 2 (HBO)

In its second (and, sadly, final) season, HBO’s Perry Mason reboot is less bleak and more assured, hitting its stride. The mystery is engaging & relevant, the smoky Terence Blanchard score is note-perfect and the excellent returning cast is matched by game additions including Katherine Waterston and Hope Davis. Here’s hoping the Downeys can find a way to continue it in some capacity elsewhere.

4. What We Do In The Shadows: Season 5 (FX)

Still one of the most reliably hilarious and offbeat shows on the air, even in its fifth season, WWDITS simply boasts one of the best casts and wittiest writing in comedy today. If nothing quite reaches the very-high highs of prior years, storylines including Guillermo’s slow transition to vampirism, Lazlo’s roast, Nadja’s “curse,” and Colin Robinson’s political campaign for comptroller nonetheless provide plenty of fodder for laughs.

3. Reservation Dogs: Season 3 (FX)

After starting and stopping a couple times, I finally took in all of Sterlin Harjo’s exceptional comedy in 2023. While the Season 2 finale would have been a perfect series capper, this third season is a victory lap that affords the opportunity to continue exploring core themes of native spirituality, community, life and death. I can’t think of a recent series that includes more age diversity among its cast and celebrates what different generations have to offer each other. A truly beautiful treasure of a show.

2. Loki: Season 2 (Disney+)

While I quite liked the first season of Loki, I wasn’t convinced I needed a second. Imagine my surprise – and delight – when Season 2 managed not just to surpass the original run but fully stuck the landing in a finale episode that pulls everything together (pun intended) to result in one of the most satisfying conclusions in all of the MCU (especially arriving on the heels of franchise low point Secret Invasion). Putting aside the Jonathan Majors of it all, the rest of the season is a fun mix of time-travel espionage and time-loop hi-jinks that fires on all cylinders. Not to mention the continued excellence of its returning cast, plus additions like Ke Huy Quan, and incredible production design/effects work.

1. The Bear: Season 2 (hulu)

The Bear isn’t always an easy watch (see: the anxiety attack that is “Fishes”) but it is always utterly compelling. Its second outing ultimately serves as beautiful ode not just to the culinary industry but to creative professions in general, as well as the importance and power of collaboration & teamwork to bring out the best in one another, while challenging the myth of self-sufficiency / tortured genius and its destructive power (as well as negative self-talk). A truly bravura season that outshines even the first.

Reboots, Revamps and Resurrections:

5. Justified: City Primeval (FX)

I was somewhat skeptical of a reboot of Justified, one of my all-time favorite shows, but the idea of a limited series integrating protagonist Raylan Givens into the narrative of another Elmore Leonard novel turned out to be a good one. First, we have the chance to see Raylan in one of Leonard’s favorite settings, Detroit (though weirdly shot in Chicago…), and Second, we have the chance to address some of the societal reckonings around law enforcement that have occurred in the time since the original series ended. While I never considered the show to be full-out Copaganda (Leonard was a crime novelist and always populated his work with those working both inside and outside of the law), there are still valid interrogations of the criminal justice system to be made, all while spinning a riveting yarn featuring Boyd Holbrook as the sociopathic “Oklahoma Wildman” Clement Mansell wreaking havoc on Raylan’s stay in the Motor City.

3. (tie) Clone High: Season 2 (Max) and Futurama: Season 8 Part 1 (hulu)

Two of my all-time favorite animated series returned in 2023 after long absences.

Clone High, prior to this a one-season wonder from Phil Lord and Chris Miller (The LEGO Movie, 21 Jump Street, the Spider-Verse movies, etc.), returned with an eye toward expanding its cast to reflect more diversity as well as a more current take on high school. While this means some of the humor of its pairing broad teen archetypes with historical figures was a little lost (none of the new Zoomer characters have as strong a foothold as, say, JFK as jock or Joan as goth) and there aren’t as many specific “very special episode” tropes being skewered, there is still a lot of fun to be had, especially as the season finds its groove in the back half.

Futurama, in its now – I think – fourth iteration, gained a solidly familiar new life on hulu. The first batch of episodes don’t add any new cast members or break the mold too much from prior incarnations, but they’re reliably enjoyable on the whole (the episode with all the faux toy commercials notwithstanding).

2. Party Down: Season 3 (Starz)

Most many-years-later television reboots or continuations suffer from not being able to *quite* match the precise vibe of their original runs and end up feeling like zombie shows that are a little off. Party Down’s third season, coming 13 years(!) after its second, may be the best continuation ever in terms of tonal accuracy. Despite certain stars appearing in a quite different capacities, the addition of new cast members and the absence of Lizzy Caplan, the show is as depressingly funny as ever and manages to make sense of the elapsed time for its characters via the in-show wake of the pandemic. Six episodes seems far too little, but honestly, it’s a minor miracle that we even got these.

1. Fargo: Season 5 (FX)

Given that Fargo is an anthology series with a new cast and storyline each season, this slot seems a better fit that “Returning” since it’s not a direct continuation of anything before. And coming after a largely unfulfilling (albeit entertaining) fourth outing, Season 5 feels like a breath of fresh, crisp, cold Minnesotan air. Although only 7 (of 10) episodes aired in 2023 after its release was pushed back to November, I’m still confident in including it here because, well, what a season! From the engaging performances (especially the incredible Juno Temple, 180 degrees from Keely in Ted Lasso) to the bravura cinematography & direction to the continually entertaining riffs on themes from the Coen Brothers filmography (and an outstanding finale, even though that just aired in 2024), this ranks right up with Season 2 as a series best. Can’t wait to see what creator Noah Hawley has in store next.

Bonus! 10 More (in alphabetical order):

Abbott Elementary: Season 2 (ABC) – Quinta Brunson’s loving public school mockumentary continues to shine in the back half of its extended second season, showcasing one of the best comedic ensembles on television

All Creatures Great and Small: Season 3 (PBS) – still one of the loveliest and coziest comfort food shows around, even as it deals with the looming specter of WWII

Barry: Season 4 (HBO) – an uneven final season that still packs in a lot of unparalleled sequences and an uncompromisingly bleak finale

Beef (Netflix) – a slightly drawn-out but compelling limited(?) series buoyed by Steven Yeun and Ali Wong’s lead performances and expertly deployed early 00s needle drops

Full Circle (Max) – a multi-layered crime caper miniseries from Steven Soderbergh with a stacked cast including Claire Danes, Timothy Olyphant, Zazie Beetz and CCH Pounder

How To With John Wilson: Season 3 (HBO) – the final season of Wilson’s uniquely quirky yet humane documentary series goes even more places you wouldn’t expect

Mrs. Davis (Peacock) – a nearly impossible-to-describe and truly outré, yet heartfelt, sci-fi-ish dramedy/satire from Tara Hernandez and Damon Lindelof that explores faith, artificial intelligence, capitalism, sociopolitics and more; quite a ride!

Scott Pilgrim Takes Off (Netflix) – an anime retelling of the Scott Pilgrim graphic novels/movie that interrogates its story and recenters other characters; fun, charming and even a little thought-provoking

Upload: Season 3 (Amazon Prime) – Greg Daniels’ wild dystopian future-set sitcom continues to expand beyond its initial premise with wild plot-turns, but at the end of the day, its charismatic leads and great supporting cast make it a great hangout show

Welcome to Wrexham: Season 2 (FX) – Wrexham’s second season continues its winning formula of mixing coverage of the action on the pitch with stories of the club’s history, staff and supporters, adding up to much more than a typical sports doc