#not just because of his concern for Jamie but because he's essentially a father himself

[toxicroyjamie]

psst psst psst i just listened to thumbs by lucy dacus again for the first time in a while and shit man that song is allll royjamie

here are just some of the lyrics i offer as proof:

you hung up the phone and I asked you what was wrong / your dad has come to town, he’d like to meet / I said you don’t have to see him / but for whatever reason you can’t tell him no

…

i would kill him if you let me / I would kill him quick and easy

…

i wanna take your face between my hands and say / you two are connected by a pure coincidence / bound to him by blood, but baby, it's all relative / you’ve been in his fist ever since you were a kid / but you don't owe him shit even if he said you did

oh my God :( yeah. Yeah.....

[feastonkings]

michael cimino / he/him ——— no way is that SEBASTIAN ‘BASH’ PRESCOTT .. they’re a 24-year-old HUMAN notoriously known for being IRRESPONSIBLE & ENTITLED but there are some people who have seen them being EXTROVERTED & AMUSING. if you ask me, they remind me a lot of setting five+ alarms and ignoring them all, crude words falling from privileged lips, spontaneous yacht trips, fake ids, waking up not remembering the night before, but that could just be because they’re considered the SILVER SPOON TROUBLEMAKER around town. just keep an eye on them & see if their true colors shine through..

GENERAL.

full name: sebastian francisco prescott nicknames: bash, zebby, baz classification: human gender / pronouns: cis man, he/him age / birthday: 24, august 18th orientations: homosexual, homoromantic occupation: trust fund baby, unemployed status: single family: mark prescott (father), miranda prescott (mother), ethan green (step-father) strengths: extroverted, amusing, charming, rich, flirtatious weaknesses: irresponsible, entitled, reckless, indulgent, lazy character inspo: alexis rose (schitt's creek), logan huntzberger (gilmore girls), tom haverford (parks and recreation), barney stinson (how i met your mother), sean parker (social network), vincent chase (entourage), ferris bueller (ferris bueller's day off), jamie tartt (ted lasso), mercutio (romeo and juliet), roman roy (succession), jesper fahey (shadow and bone)

BIOGRAPHY.

tw: fire

bash doesn't know if mark or ethan is his real father because all three of his parents have been together since before he was born. it's perhaps what made him constantly want attention because he got so much from them

however, being a child associated with the big three, there were plenty of times he didn't see his parents and spent more time with nannies, the cleaners, or the cook. he was more than happy to soak up the attention from anywhere

in fact when his parents considered bringing in another child to keep him company or at the very least, wear out some of his constant energy; bash threw a tantrum for the record books. it lasted long enough that his parents chose to revisit the idea later and then scrapped it altogether later.

in school, despite being a nuisance and general disturbance, bash was popular and made a name for himself for the parties he threw, the elaborate pranks he’d pull, and famously getting away with almost everything. the only time he got in any serious trouble was in middle school when what was supposed to be a small prank and a little vandalism ended up starting a fire and taking out two classrooms. he ended up having to spend the rest of the eight grade in boarding school but was able to come back for his freshman year of high school.

much to the surprise of everyone, bash graduated high school and as a reward his parents got him a penthouse apartment on the upper side of the city. even though they would’ve liked him to go to college, it wasn’t expected and bash had no intention of attending more school. he didn’t plan on working either unless he had to, which each of his parents take turns having him shadow them on occasion but it’s not necessary for him to jump the gun into a career when he’s essentially set for life. along with eventually inheriting a board member seat in the distant future and that would be future bash’s problem

these days bash spends most of his time partying, being promiscuous, and generally being a menace to upper class society. in every sense of the word, he’s a spoiled and entitled rich kid and there’s no saying if or when he’ll ever grow up. eventually it was all bound to catch up to him or his parents could cut him off, but for now that’s not his concern.

HEADCANONS.

bash often throws parties in different places, including his parents mansion and his own penthouse

he doesn’t like to sleep alone, so if he’s not bringing someone to bed (or joining someone else) with him he will often stay with friends, to be in the house with someone else at the very least, if not cuddling up with a homie for a solid platonic cuddle session

though he doesn’t show it, he’s insecure about a lot of things, including his future.

more to come

[reachermori]

I continue to break my tumblr hiatus for this show because I'm so annoyed with this stupidity and feel the need to put my thoughts into words.

Apologies for the rant. It's a little all over the place, but I tried to put it in a coherent order. It mostly focuses on hating James and on how I think Ted and Jamie's relationship and arcs were wasted, especially in relation to one another.

If the ending scene is indeed Ted's dream, I think it's even worse in regards to Jamie and Beard. Essentially Ted's "happy" versions of them have them close to their abusers, who have done nothing to deserve it.

The idea that Ted's happy ending for Jamie is him reconnecting with his father, who seems proud of him, is pure projection. That's what Ted wants for himself, but he's also inserting his own good relationship with his father. (Which, if we were getting more episodes I might be okay with as it would be interesting to explore.)

The first two seasons really built up Jamie and Ted to have a good relationship, or at least be important to one another, and I still think they could have had a really powerful impact on one another.

While Jamie has grown a lot and that had a lot to do with Ted's influence, I think he could have had that talk with Ted instead of Roy about how having a positive male influence is important to his continued growth. Ted however, could have learned through Jamie and his struggles with his father's toxicity that it's okay to let go.

I have always been happy with the idea of the show ending with Ted returning to Kansas, because I thought it was important for Ted to learn that it's okay to leave and move on. Ted's biggest internal conflict is his inability to quit things, and I really wanted him to accept that quitting isn't inherently bad. Maybe even have an arc with Henry in a toxic situation that he's sticking with because he knows his dad never quits anything to reinforce to Ted how problematic that mindset is, and decide that it's okay to quit Richmond to be with Henry where he clearly wants to be. (Also I disagree with the idea that Ted has nothing in Kansas besides Henry. I doubt Ted Lasso of all people has no one. He built a community in Richmond in only three years. He'd been in Kansas the entirety of his life up until then, there's no way he has no one. Also, even if he didn't, his relationship with his son is more important and I don't fault him for prioritizing that)

This is where I think Jamie could have helped Ted's arc. They could have had parallel journeys in deciding their father's actions do not have to define them, and I think Jamie could have reached this point first and be the one to impart wisdom on Ted for once. You could even keep the "forgiveness" talk Ted gave to Jamie, and then have Jamie come back after the game and say something that conveys "fuck forgiveness, he doesn't deserve that. But I do need to let go of the pain or I'll just hold myself back from growing. Because I'm done letting him have any influence on who I am."

Instead of getting anything with any nuance or something different than every other abuse plot in any show ever, we just had the ghost of Ted all season. He was barely in this season! Especially with relation to the players. We only had one scene of Ted and Jamie talking as people (instead of talking about football strategies or Zava when the coaches just assumed Jamie was jealous instead of concerned about the team dynamics) and connecting, and it was for Ted to tell Jamie about the importance of forgiveness.

Sorry but abuse isn't something you should just forgive, especially since James isn't making amends. He's getting sober, and we don't know if it was his choice, it could have been court mandated for all we know. Also I said this in my previous post, but addiction doesn't just make you abusive, and it especially doesn't make you facilitate your child being sexually assaulted. So I don't see any world where just getting clean makes James worthy of forgiveness. More importantly is that Ted and Jamie don't know that James is even in rehab when they have this conversation!

It's bad enough that we had to deal with the cliche "forgive him for you" perspective, but now we know it either leads to reconciliation, or at least Ted hopes/thinks it should. I'm not sure which is worse, but Ted thinking they should reconcile when he lacks a lot of knowledge about the depth of abuse Jamie endured is just insane.

I really wonder if Ted knowing about Amsterdam would have changed how he handled everything, since that is - in my opinion - the worst thing we know James has done to Jamie canonically. (Or if he knew about him trying to murder Beard...) Though knowing this show and how this season was written, if there was any discussion about this they would mess it up even more. Like I can just imagine a tangent about how many sex workers are disadvantaged, and how they may not have had a choice either, and diminishing Jamie's trauma AGAIN!

However it shouldn't matter what he knows, it's not like Ted is ignorant to the abuse, he's witnessed it twice. The first time he just walked away, something else I wish the show addressed at any point. Ted only saw what James was willing to do in public, and doesn't seem to have ever considered it being worse in private or when Jamie was younger. Bringing up the first Man City match would have been a good way for Jamie and Ted to fully open up to one another and relate to each other regarding their trauma and how they've let it hold them back.

For a show that emphasizes the relationship between father and sons, they really decided to abandon all the father figure relationships they had, especially Ted with Jamie & Nate.

I actually think it works with Nate, since it's clear Nate and his father's biggest problem was that they just could never be on the same wavelength, and while they can't fix the past, they can now create the bond they always should have had. His father actually acknowledged his wrong doings and apologized, and that level of accountability is missing from James' "redemption". Also Nate's father had a good relationship with his wife and daughter, so it makes it more obvious that his and Nate's issues are due to a disconnect and not out of malice. James never had a single good character trait until they decided to redeem him out of nowhere in the last two episodes. If we at least had Jamie say something like "my dad was great before drinking" it would have at least made the rehab stuff seem a little more like redemption. But we only have Jamie and his mother talking about how James has always been like this, and will never change.

Just changing a few things to make Ted and Jamie's relationship pay off in this season for both of them, would have done a world of good.

Anyways this has been a little all over so I'll leave it here, but suffice to say, I disliked the finale...

[cristinablackthornkingson]

Shadowhunters Short Story #47, Herongraystairs. What if Jem had never been addicted to Yin Fen?

It is a cool October morning in 1887 and Tessa Herondale-Carstairs has found herself wide awake again due to the feeling of little feet kicking inside of her. She is currently 7 months pregnant with her, Will and Jem’s second child, a daughter they plan to name Lucie Ella. They have a 1 year old son named James William, after both of his fathers. 

Tessa had fallen in love with both Jem and Will the moment she met them and they had fallen in love with her, though little did she know they already loved each other too. During the battle with Mortmain, after Tessa transformed into Ithuriel, Jem had run to her side to aid her, but the Heavenly Fire was still burning through her, when he touched her, it burned him too and burned off his parabatia rune as well as Will’s, breaking their bond. Tessa had expected them to be devastated, until a few weeks later she walked into the music room and found them kissing. After that the three of them sat down together and talked about how they all felt about each other, in the end they realized no one had to choose anyone and that all three of them could be together.

In early 1886, much to everyone’s surprise, Tessa found out she was pregnant. She, Jem and Will were thrilled beyond words but also extremely nervous that something would go wrong. Throughout the pregnancy Will and Jem were extremely protective of Tessa, hardly letting her lift a finger and they were constantly at her beck and call. Throughout the pregnancy they did not know if the baby was Will or Jem’s, but they did not care because any baby born to the three of them would have two fathers, no matter their DNA. 

After a rough pregnancy filled with pain and sickness, Tessa gave birth to a healthy baby boy. It was almost immediately clear that Will is his biological father, even at moments old he looked just like him, with a few wisps of thick, curling black hair, Will’s bone structure, mouth and eye shape along with Tessa’s pallor and nose shape. Tessa was afraid at first, that Jem would be disappointed that they baby was not his, but he has always loved James just as Will does, he loves snuggling him and playing his violin for him, while Will loves to read him stories and tell him about everything he and Jem had gotten up to when they were younger.

Approximately 9 months ago, Tessa began to feel ill and achy and felt a lot of the symptoms she had felt while pregnant with James. She didn’t dare get her hopes at first, for the last year she had convinced herself that James was a miracle baby and that Tessa would not be able to fall pregnant again. However after a check up from The Silent Brothers, it was confirmed that Tessa was pregnant with a healthy baby girl. Once again all three of them were utterly thrilled and James was so excited to be a big brother, he loves feeling his sister kick and is forever asking Cecily to tell him stories about his daddy as a big brother, and vowing to be just as good as his daddy. 

Right now, Tessa is just weeks from her due date and having a lot of trouble sleeping due to the baby constantly kicking. She has been awake the past 2 hours and knows it is worthless trying to get back to sleep. With a sigh Tessa grabs her book off the bedside table and heaves herself from the bed, quietly padding across the hall to Will’s office where she can sit and read for a few hours without waking Will and Jem by switching on the lamp. It is odd to have light at the flick of a switch, but much better than trying to fumble around in the dark for a witchight or a match to light a candle with. 

After Tessa has been reading for approximately half an hour, she hears rapid footsteps approaching the office and seconds later the door swings open to reveal Jamie, his golden eyes wide with excitement for the new day, his thick black hair tangled and one of the legs of his pajama bottoms has rolled half way up his leg.

“Good morning my baby.” Tessa brightly says, setting her book down and holding her arms out for her son. Jamie dashes across the room to his mama and flings himself into her arms. His favorite way to start the day is by cuddling with his mama for an hour or two, he loves the way she holds him, strokes his hair, kisses his cheek and tells him how much she loves him. 

“Ucie.” Jamie softly says, placing a hand on Tessa’s bump and beaming up at her in delight. Having only turned 1 recently, James cannot pronounce his sister’s full name yet, so he calls her ‘Ucie’ which Tessa, Will and Jem find extremely sweet and endearing. Jamie is so excited to meet his sister and be a big brother, he’s always been so jealous that his cousin Anna has a little brother and his cousin Thomas has two big sisters, now he’s finally getting a sister and he could not be more happy. 

“Lucie’s been awake all night, I think she missed you.” Tessa softly tells her son, pushing his tangled hair back from his eyes. 

“Ove oo Ucie!” Jamie says, resting his head on his mother’s bump, pouting when he doesn’t feel her kick.

“Oh don’t be sad Jamie, she must have fallen asleep at last, shall we see if we can wake her up?” Tessa gently asks her son, pushing her top up and resting one hand on the side of her swollen stomach. “Come on now little one, you’ve been awake all night and now your brother wants to say hello.” She coos. Jamie furrows his brow at his mother when Lucie still doesn’t kick, then leans forward and pokes her stomach which immediately gets a reaction from Lucie. James’ face lights up and he laughs in delight.

“Mama she kick!” Jamie exclaims in a tone of delight. Tessa laughs lightly and says

“So she did, you must have woken her up.” 

“What a beautiful sight to wake up to.” comes a familiar voice, from the doorway. Tessa turns to see Will standing in the doorway, his hair ruffled from sleep, a smile playing on his lips. 

“Jem still asleep?” Tessa asks.

“Of course, you know him he could sleep through the apocalypse.” Will says in an amused tone, catching Jamie up in his arms when he runs at him. “Good morning Caraid, how are you this morning?” Will softly asks. 

“Good! I wake Ucie up!” James happily exclaims. 

“Did you now? Speaking of your sister, how is Miss Lucie doing in there?” Will softly asks, making his way to Tessa’s side and placing his hand on her bump. 

“Energetic as usual, even more so now she’s heard you and Jamie, this little girl is going to be an amazing Shadowhunter one day, if these kicks are anything to go by.” Tessa lightly says, holding Will’s hand over the spot where Lucie is kicking. 

“I guarantee the minute she hears Jem she’ll calm down, the man is so calm he can even relax an unborn baby.” Will says in an amused tone. Lucie always kicks up a fuss every time she hears Will and Jamie, but when Jem speaks to her she is totally calm and relaxed. When Jamie was a baby he had been the same, he was always hyper and wide awake around Will, but with Jem he was so relaxed and calm, it was amazing. 

“I’ll have to get him to have words with her, she’s not letting me sleep very much.” Tessa lightly says, rubbing at her heavy eyes. 

“Is she only this active at night?” Will asks, lifting his eyes from the bump to look at Tessa, who nods. 

“Yes, during the day she’s quiet calm.”

“Then you should get some sleep during the day when she isn’t so active, Jem and I can easily handle Jamie, you need your rest.” Will softly says. Tessa smiles at him and says

“I suppose but I like being up and spending time with my three boys.” 

“We love spending time with you too but you know how important it is for you to get enough rest.” Will says in a tone of concern. It worries him greatly that Tessa isn’t getting much sleep at night, Brother Enoch made it very clear that it is essential for Tessa to get as much rest as possible, especially in these last few weeks.

“I do but I feel guilty when I go back to bed during the day.” 

“You have absolutely no reason to feel guilty, you are carrying and growing our child, that is hard work and bound to wear you out, feeling guilty over needing to rest is as silly as feeling guilty over needing to eat.” Tessa hears Jem say. She turns to see him walking into the room with Church in his arms and a look of concern on his face.

“Papa!” Jamie squeals, wriggling in Will’s grip until he lets him down. He darts over to Jem, wrapping his arms tightly around his waist.

“Good morning sweet boy, I missed you so much.” Jem says in a tone of joy, scooping Jamie into his arms and kissing his cheek.

''Miss Oo too, love Oo papa.'' Jamie sofly says, snuggling into Jem. Jem beams and kisses his son's forehead.

''I love you too Jamie, shall we go have breakfast?'' Jem says. Jamie nods enthuastically and says

''Mama and daddy come too?'' Will and Tessa smile at their son and Tessa says

''Of course, I think Lucie is hungry too, judging by these kicks.''

When the three of them arrive downstairs they find they are the only ones up for breakfast, there is no sign of Charlotte, Henry, Charles and Matthew or Gabriel, Cecily, Anna and Christopher.

Halfway through breakfast Tessa begins to feel a famillar aching cramping pain in her lower stomach, she immediately knows that the pains are contractions but doenst want to say anything to Jem or Will incase she frightens Jamie.

When Ruby -The Institue Maid- arrives to clean up after breakfast she notices Tessa wincing and clutching her stomach.

''M'am are you alright?'' Ruby asks in a tone of concern, which immediately catches Jem and Will's attention.

''Tess are you alright, is it time?'' Jem calmly asks. Tessa winces as another pain hits her and weakly nods.

''Yes, yes I think so.'' she weakly says.

''I will take Jamie to my sister, Jem you help Tessa up to the infirmary.'' Will orders. Jem nods and begins to help Tessa out of her chair, while WIll takes Jamie to find Ceciily and Gabriel.

Tessa's labor is long and painful, she wishes more than anything that she could have Jem and Will by her side, they were there when this baby was concieved they should be here when she is born. But Tessa feels far too weak and tired to fight with the midwife and settles for having, Cecily, Charlotte and Sophie by her side. while Jem, Will, Gideon, Henry and Gabriel wait outside along with Jamie.

After six long and painful hours, Tessa gives birth to a healthy baby girl.

''Oh, Sophie can you bring Will and Jem in now?" Tessa asks in a breathless tone, wanting her husbands to meet their daughter immediately.

''Of course, Gideon and I will keep an eye on Jamie until we leave and Cecily and Gabriel and Charotte and Herny are practically fighting over who gets to look after him tonight, so you dont need to worry about that.'' Sophie lightly says, rising from her seat and making her way out of the infirmary.

A few minutes later, just as the midwife places Lucie in Tessa's arms, Will and Jem walk into the infirmary, immediately making their way to their wife's side.

All three of them gaze down at their daughter in awe, she is absolutely perfect, she looks so much like Tessa it would be almost impossible to tell who her father is, if it weren't for her blue eyes, identical to Will's.

''Lucie, sweet girl you look just like your mama and daddy you lucky little thing, you are so perfect.'' Jem queitly says, softly running his hand over Lucie's chestnut brown hair.

''I cannot believe she's finally here.'' Will queitly says.

''I cannot believe we have two children under two, I still cannot believe I was pregnant again when Jamie was only eight months old.'' Tessa lightly says, rembering how shocked she had been when at Jamie's eight month check up, Brother Enoch had told her she was pregnant again.

''At least we know we can concieve and quite easily, unlike poor Charlotte and Henry who tried for Mathew for years.'' Jem quietly says. He feels awful that he, Tessa and Will seem to have absoluetley no trouble concieving and had two children in 18 months while Charlotte and Henry struggled greatly to have a second child.

''Right as usual James.'' Will says, leaning in to kiss Jem on the cheek.

Just then, Lucie begins to fuss annd whine in Tessa's arms, her little fists clenched and her face turning bright red.

''And so it begins.'' Will jokingly says.

''Let me try and settle her, she always calmed down for me when you were pregnant.'' Jem says, holding his arms out for the baby.

The instant Lucie is placed in Jem's arm she calms down, her cries die down to whimpers before ceasing altogether and she snuggles closely into Jem, reaching a hand out of her blankets and grabbing onto Jem's shirt. Jem's heart swells with love and joy, just as it did when he held Jamie for the first time. He can still hardly believe he has two beauitful and healthy children.

''I think you're showing a bit of favouritism Miss Lucie, but I cannot blame you, your papa is rather wonderful.'' Will coos, leaning over to stroke his daughter's cheek softly.

Jem chuckles and kisses his daughter's forehead. He then looks between Lucie, Will and Tessa, his beautiful family.

''I love all four of you so much, I could not possibly ask for a more perfect family.'' Jem says in a tight tone, trying to hold back his tears of joy.

_________________________________________

It has now been two weeks since Lucie was born, and James is absoltuely in love with his sister, he loves cuddling her and showing her his favouriet books, though he's not too happy that his sister mostly sleeps all day and is too small to play with him just yet.

Right now Lucie is having her afteronon nap in the living room in her bassinet where Tessa, Jem or Will can hear her better if she starts to cry.

Just as Tessa sits down next door to read her book, she hears Lucie begin to fuss and whine. With a sigh Tessa closes her book and makes her way into the living room. When she arrives in the living room she doesn't know wheather to be anry or amused at the sight in front of her. Jamie is standing over his sister's bassinet, lightly poking her.

''James what are you doing?'' Tessa asks in a stern tone, making her way over to the bassinet and lifting Lucie into her arms and holding her against her shoulder.

''Want play wif her mama, but she not wake up so I poke her, when she in your tummy I poke her and she wake up!'' James explains, looking up at his mother with innocent golden eyes.

''Sweetheart when she was in my tummy she was protected by a sack of water, so when you poked my tummy it didnt hurt her, but it will hurt her now, you need to let her sleep okay?'' Tessa softly explains.

''Okay, oove oo mama.'' James softly says, leaning into her. Tessa places one hand on Jamie's back and softly says

''I love you too baby.''

That evening, a few hours before James' bedtime, Tessa, Jem, Will, Jamie and Lucie all head up to Tessa, Will and Jem's room and get into bed. For the first whiile Jem plays his violon for them, which soothes and relaxes both Jamie and Lucie. Right now, Jamie is curled up in Will's lap listening to him read, Tessa is nursing Lucie and Jem is simply watching his family with a huge smile on his face.

''Our family is just perfect now Lucie is here, dont you agree?'' Jem queitly says to Tessa, putting an arm around her and their daughter.

''Yes absolutely, it feels complete, I do not want anymore children, these two are more than enough.'' Tessa quietly says, looking from Jamie to Lucie.

''Me neither and neither does Will, we were talking about it earlier today, everything is perfect as it is.'' Jem softly says. Tessa smiles and nods in agreement.

''I love you.'' She softly says, tilting her head up to look Jem in the eyes. He grins and leans his forehad agaisnt hers.

''I love you too, you and Will and our babies have given me the perfect life and I could not love you all more.'' he says, before leaning down to kiss her. Tessa closes her eyes and while she enjoys the kiss she also revels in the delight of the weight of her beautiful new baby in her arms, the heat of Will next to her, the sound of her baby boy's giggles and the feeling of Jem's kiss. When she got off the boat from America all those years ago, she could never have imagined a life like this, but it is perfect and she could not be happier.

[whiskynottea]

Dear, Whisky, I haven't read the books and I don't understand why everybody is so excited for Bree to meet Jamie. Is he a good father like Frank was? I mean he wasn't there when she needed him, Frank was. Please, don't tell Jamie beats her like he beat Claire, I can't take that 😔

Dear Nonnie,

I don’t think you need to read the books to be excited about Bree meeting Jamie for the first time. Why wouldn’t someone be thrilled for that moment? Why aren’t you excited?

Jamie was a great father to Bree – to the extend he could. First of all, he sacrificed the most important thing in his life for her – he sent Claire back. Bree is essentially the reason Claire accepted to travel through the stones and back to her own time, because if she wasn’t pregnant, she would stay and fight in the battle of Culloden. Jamie tried to die that day, because he lost them. In the books, Jamie prayed for Claire and Bree every single day. When Claire went back to him, Jamie came to know Bree through the stories Claire shared with him, and he kept Bree’s pictures on him all the time. One of the reasons they stayed in the colonies is because he wanted a chance to make Bree’s country better. To sum up, Jamie loves Bree, even though he has never met her. He would be there for Bree, if he could, so I think it’s not fair to say “he wasn’t there when she needed him.” And he is there for her when she goes back to find him and Claire.

The moment Jamie and Bree finally meet is a moment of great impact (even though, personally, I would divert from the book concerning a few details of the meeting).

As for “the strapping” Jamie has done it once, before he realized what it meant to Claire. For him, it was the way husbands disciplined their wives, and he says so. He is a man raised in the 18th century, and this was considered normal back then. As he says in ABOSAA, it is a man’s responsibility to “Draw up lines, and fight other folk who come over them.” He believed that he ought to do it, he even told her that he would never punish her if it was only himself she put in danger, and he never did it again. Jamie is a bloody man, as Claire says, but he is not that kind of man. In season 3 he even stopped Ian from taking the strap on young Ian when they returned at Lallybroch. So I don’t know why you would ever think that 20-something years later from the incident with Claire, Jamie would thrash his daughter whom he has just met.

Now, about Frank. Frank was an amazing father to Bree. She admired him, respected him, looked up to him. She wanted to become a historian because of him. Bree always remembers him with love, even though she knows that his marriage to Claire wasn’t a happy one. And Frank really, really loved Bree and always did what was best for her (he even prepared her in case she ended up in the past).

But that doesn’t take away Jamie’s love for his daughter and the prospect of a beautiful relationship between them. That’s the good thing with love! Loving someone doesn’t mean that you have to love another person less! And to have this family reunited is a beautiful moment in Drums and it’s expected that everyone will look forward to watching it on screen.

Take care! 

[truthbeetoldmedia]

Good Trouble 1x13 “Vitamin C” Review

In its first season, Good Trouble has provided endless drama and laughs while re-introducing characters from the hit Freeform drama The Fosters in an entirely new chapter of their lives. While it was a giant risk to throw them into a loft with people the viewers have never met before, and rely on just two original characters to pull it all together, it paid off. Big time. In the final episode of the first season, we see new relationships between said characters blossom, old ones fall apart, and some are left hanging. Because after all, what is a good season finale without a few cliff-hangers?

At the end of Episode 12, three major plot twists occured. First, the head of HR at Speckulate, Angela, gave Mariana a list of all the male employees at the company and their salaries. Second, Malika had a mysterious family emergency, one that caused her to uncharacteristically skip out on the Black Lives Matter protest she helped organize. And third, Dennis took his ex-wife’s malicious words to heart and appeared to be on the metaphorical and literal edge.

Thankfully, light is shed on each of these situations fairly quickly in the finale. We discover that Malika’s mother has had an aneurysm and is essentially brain-dead. This causes yet another rift between Malika and her brother, who refuses to take her off of life support. Malika meanwhile knows that it’s time for them to let her go.

At Speckulate, Mariana questions Angela’s motives and decides to confront her. Angela confides in her, telling her that when she was first hired years ago, the same optimistic thought went through her mind about the engineering culture shifting. However, nothing came of it. She wants to help the cause, but knows that if she is outed for her involvement, she’ll lose her job and probably never find another one, making her unable to care for her child. This was a heartwarming moment of female solidarity, thankfully not a rarity in this show.

Back at the loft, Dennis is still missing. Davia seems to be the only one worried about him, and has called every jail and hospital in the area to no avail. Her mind is soon taken off of her friend’s disappearance, though, when her student whom she and Malika suspect is homeless shows up at the front door. Though this storyline seemed random at first, it serves as the motivation Davia needs going into the second season to make the right decision regarding her future. She’s been considering leaving LA to go back home and live with her boyfriend, who up until this point, has been making the empty promise of leaving his wife. However, despite her lack of confidence, she’s a great teacher. Her students need her.

The chaos in the Coterie continues as Sumi is about to get married on the rooftop. The whole event has been orchestrated by resident pushover Alice, who must keep up the facade that she’s straight and definitely not dating Joey, I mean, Joanna, when her parents stop by with a congratulatory present for Sumi. Alice manages to get them out of the Coterie without suspecting she’s in a relationship with Joey, or that Sumi is the bride marrying another woman. However, she’s left with more weight on her shoulders than before.

At the courthouse, Callie continues to question if Judge Wilson has ethical motives as he withholds personal information belonging to one of the police officers accused of wrongly shooting and killing a black boy, Jamal Thompson. Callie and Jamie conspire that he’s made a deal with the LAPD following his own son’s arrest, allowing his son’s charges to be dropped in exchange for biased favoring in the court.

Because Callie has no proof of this, she considers rummaging through Judge Wilson’s desk drawers and finding the private files for herself. However, she decides against it, the clerk beating out the social justice warrior in her.

Also facing an internal conflict is Mariana, who isn’t sure whether she should take the opportunity she’s been given by the CEO himself, Evan, to create an app and recruit women and people of color to help her, or publicly release the company’s salaries. Her greatest concern is inciting positive change, and Callie reminds her that she can convince herself of anything, she’ll know what the right decision is by listening to her gut. At first, Mariana does just that, telling herself and her sister that the app is the best decision. She soon realizes though that she’s being too safe, and that posting the salaries is the right move.

Though Callie and Mariana aren’t biological siblings, it’s very clear at this point that they were both raised to act with the greater good in mind. Without Stef and Lena acting as major characters in the series, moments like this one are nice callbacks to them and the morality they’ve instilled in their children.

While they’re talking, Callie mysteriously (or not so mysteriously?) receives an envelope that was left for her earlier, full of the personal information she almost stole out of Judge Wilson’s desk drawer. Regardless of who delivered the envelope, it’s in her hands now (though she struggles with what to do with it). Within the envelope is a document stating that the Chief of Police in the city said it’s cheaper for the city to let victims of police shootings die, a detail that if revealed to the public, could help Jamal’s family win the case.

We see Callie argue with herself, unsure of whether or not to give the files to Jamal’s attorney. She doesn’t get a chance to make a decision, as she’s interrupted by a newly single Gael. He confesses to Callie that he broke up with Bryan because she’s the one he loves, and questions her relationship with Jamie. Callie says nothing in response, but seems a bit shaken.

Davia, meanwhile, finally meets the father of her student, who reveals that the two are in fact homeless. He begs Davia not to tell anyone, and also tells her that she’s his daughter’s favorite teacher. Without her, he says, she would hate going to school. Davia  makes learning fun. This one small moment seems to cause a lightbulb to go off in Davia’s head, that she should stay in LA and continue teaching, but also that’s she’s worthy. For too much of the season, she’s struggled with her own self-worth, and while countless characters have tried to steer her away from actions rooted in self-loathing, like staying with a man who isn’t entirely committed to her and wants her to give up her professional dreams for him, it turns out she just needed to hear that her students needed her.

The next day, Mariana arrives at work and overhears coworkers talking about Evan’s interest in another employee and how she ended up being fired. She confronts Raj, who she yelled at days prior for warning her about Evan’s possible motives. Raj only wants what’s best for her, and seems not to have any questionable motives himself.

Knowing Raj will always have her back, Mariana attempts to convince the members of Byte Club that publishing the salaries is the right move. While Casey opts out, fearing that all the work she’s put in over the years will have been for nothing, the other women decide to back Mariana up.

It goes about as well as any of them expect, when Josh demands the perpetrator come forward. However, things take a turn when he blames Angela for not bringing the wage gap issue to his attention (obviously bullshit) and fires her. Mariana immediately stands up, taking the blame for hacking into the system and getting the salaries. Soon, a wave of people standing in solidarity (including Raj) washes over the room, forcing Josh to rethink firing Angela. Several women also call out Josh for trying to kiss them, flipping the script.

And though Evan tries to keep her from leaving, Mariana decides that she should say goodbye to Speckulate and move on with her career, maybe even create her app on her own. Unfortunately, Evan tells her that if she leaves, she can’t take the app with her. It belongs to him now.

Back at the loft, Meera reveals to Alice that Sumi has called off the wedding. When Sumi finally returns, Alice must tell her that she doesn’t love her back, even if she isn’t with Meera anymore. She does remind her friend though that she shouldn’t marry someone she isn’t sure about.

And in her own moment of bravery, Alice comes out to her parents via FaceTime, who reveal they knew all along that she was gay. They’ve suspected she was in love with Sumi, and tell Alice that they just want grandkids. With so many cross-cultural coming outs gone wrong, it was nice to see Alice face her fears and come out the other side better than okay. This moment left me hopeful that maybe she’ll be able to get Joey back, who wasn’t impressed with her closeted behavior, and have a happy, authentic relationship in Season 2.

As the Jamal Thompson trial continues, the files have been released to his attorney. This leaves the courtroom a bit shaken, and ultimately causes Judge Wilson to call a recess for the time being. It looks like it’s Callie versus Judge Wilson now, though he doesn’t know (yet) that she’s working against him. This will definitely get interesting next season.

Having made a professional decision, Callie is still unsure of what to do in her personal life. This episode included a great choreographed dream sequences which showcases Callie dancing with several partners, all of whom play important roles in her life currently: Judge Wilson, Malika, Gael and Jamie. They seem to be pulling her in every which way, and although cheesy, this play on conscious thoughts bleeding into the unconscious in the form of a dream portrays to us viewers just how torn Callie is in her life currently. As a young woman, she’s understandably lost and questioning herself more often than not. This allows Callie to be extremely relatable to young viewers (even if they aren’t clerks secretly meddling with a case or in the middle of a love triangle).

Despite my dislike for Gael and Callie’s relationship and his portrayal as a bisexual man who’s unable to commit to one partner, I can’t deny that she’ll probably end up with him next season. This isn’t to say that their relationship will last, but I’m definitely seeing more chemistry between them than between her and Jamie. I love her and Jamie together, I really do, but this is one battle I’m prepared to lose.

Across town, Davia finally finds Dennis checked into a hospital after nearly committing suicide. He tells her that her voice had been running through his head, telling him not to be an idiot, and the two share a sweet moment together. Davia doesn’t tell the others back at the Coterie where Dennis really is, lying instead and saying he’s on a road trip and didn’t have service for a while. During a rooftop hangout, she also reveals to her friends that she’s decided to stay in LA, despite her boyfriend coming by and telling her he broke up with his wife, finally.

And while Callie is still unsure who she wants to be with, Mariana has made some moves in the love department. In a moment I’ve been waiting for all season, she kissed Raj on top of the Coterie roof, finally bringing their adorably supportive friendship to the next level. It’s clear that Raj has a lot of respect for Mariana, and really just wants what’s best for her. Though he inappropriately tried to kiss her earlier in the season during a work project, his redemption arc has been steady. Raj has proved that he’s not some slimy dude, like the rest of the guys at Speckulate, but he has genuinely innocent intentions. He respects Mariana as an engineer, but he also has feelings for her.

I can’t wait to see their feelings explored in Season 2, and hopefully see Callie choose a suitor as well. I’m also totally rooting for Davia and Dennis, because ever since their duet on the rooftop, I refuse to believe these two are platonic.  

And so, the first season of Good Trouble is over. Starting as a The Fosters’ spinoff, this show has caught the attention of many as a show that can stand on its own. Though Callie and Mariana are familiar faces, and there are occasional cameos from Adams-Foster family members, the show is about so much more. The Coterie members come from all walks of life and each serve a purpose to each other and to the audience, to educate us on the lives of people we may not interact with every day. Issues of intersectionality, sexual harassment, biphobia, police brutality, racism, and mental health have all been discussed in just 13 episodes, making it clear that Good Trouble isn’t just here to be entertaining.

Going into Season 2, I’m so excited to see some character dynamics grow and change, but also to learn more about their experiences and see them be their true, authentic selves. Character creation is where this show really shines, and I’m confident it will continue to do that in seasons to come through the reinvention and evolution of everyone in Callie and Mariana’s lives.

Some stray thoughts on the season:

I wish we got to see more of Jazmin. Having a trans voice amongst the sea of characters was so, so, important, not to mention a trans woman of color. I hope we’ll see her return in Season 2.

Irrelevant to the plot, but Mariana’s outfits were consistently on point. I’m sure no one is surprised, though.

As much as I want to love Gael, I really haven’t been able to get there yet. I feel like he’s been shrouded in his identity as a bisexual man and his seemingly subsequent inability to commit, which is frustrating to watch. I know he’s more than that, and more than anything, I wish his story had been handled differently (Say it with me: Bisxuals are not noncomittal by nature!)

Season 2 of Good Trouble airs on Tuesday, June 18th at 8/7c on Freeform.

Jessica’s episode rating: 🐝🐝🐝🐝

[the-zodiacs-written-in-the-stars]

Chapter 9: James Saint John

Jamie was tired. To the bone tired, not just didn't sleep well tired. Being a superhero was more exhausting than cartoons had made it look. Especially when one had to keep up appearance for the private, secret identity. But Ally, Andy and Jessie could absolutely under no circumstances be pulled into whatever this mess was. Jamie had always been the big brother, protecting his little sister – and now he was also a father. Ally and Andy would only worry about him.

“You look sad”, hummed Leo and nudged Jamie's face.

Honestly, the over-sized kitten was absolutely adorable. Jamie smiled faintly and wrapped an arm around the lion cub, pulling him closer. Leo started purring and pawing at the pillow, rolling over to bare his soft, light-red belly. Whenever Leo was not actively on fire, he was very cuddly.

“It's just... stressful”, sighed Jamie absentmindedly. “And now, with the new guys popping up... Aquarius, Taurus, Sagittarius, Cancer... They've been all over the news lately.”

“And you're worried”, noted Leo, ears twitching adorably.

Jamie smiled faintly and traced the Leo-symbol on the lion's forehead, causing Leo to bump his head up into the caress. “I just... When Libra first showed up, I thought we could trust her... and it nearly cost me my life. I can not be that careless again, Leo.”

“You're right”, agreed Leo worried.

“But... why can't we? I mean, why would one of you turn their back on the rest?”, asked Jamie. “I just... I can't figure it out. Why would they turn evil.”

Leo made a curious noise as he rolled over to look Jamie in the eyes. “It's not that they're evil. It... the whole thing isn't black and white, Jamie. Who knows who got to them first before we did? It's about territory, about control. It... It's complicated.”

“What territory?”, asked Jamie confused. “California?”

“Bigger”, chuckled Leo, nosing Jamie's cheek. “We're aliens, Jamie. The planets aside from Earth do have a bit more going on. Territories all over the stars and moons.”

“Magic in the stars”, whispered Jamie with a note of longing in his voice. “But why Earth?”

“Earth is... wanted. It's neutral territory, it's a primitive planet – no offense. But you don't have galactic travels, you don't have magic. You're... a baby-planet and while most agree that Earth needs to be kept out of the loop until it's ready to venture out into the galaxy themselves, some planets think that it means the primitive planet should be claimed and used as a... colony, essentially. But other planets, mine included, think that Earth needs to be protected, given the chance to grow on its own. The Zodiacs, we're kind of... a protective force, sent to protect Earth from alien threats and meant to cover the tracks so humans don't learn the truth. Hence the tales of gods and goddesses.”

Leo crawled on top of Jamie, sprawling out on his chest and pawing at him so Jamie would continue cuddling him. “We twelve are meant to protect the Earth, but sometimes... things fall apart. We've been doing it for so long. Sometimes... I don't know what's going through Libra's head.”

“Libra's your friend?”, asked Jamie gently, scratching Leo behind his ear.

Leo closed his eyes and purred as he leaned into the touch. “Of course. We've been comrades for so many millennia now... We've been on so many missions together. I... I really don't wanna fight him. Or any of the others. And I really hate the tension of not knowing who I can trust...”

Sighing, Jamie wrapped his arms around Leo and hugged the lion-cub close.

~*~

“I'm going to the store. Anyone need anything that's not on the shopping list yet?”

Jamie raised both eyebrows as he poked his head into the living room. Ally and Andy were playing Mario Kart and accusing each other of cheating, while Jessie was... dead? Judging by the uncomfortable angle in which she was sprawled out on the couch, not moving. Which wasn't entirely unusual after a long shift. Being the loving brother he was, he threw a pillow at her.

“Urgh. What?”, grunted Jessie, clutching the pillow.

“Store. You need anything?”, asked Jamie and rolled his eyes.

“Yogurt?”, asked Jessie slowly. “Yeah. Yogurt.”

“Candy”, called Andy out. “And chocolate.”

“I'm good. Unlike other people, I put what I need on the shopping list”, grunted Ally.

Andy huffed and mimicked Ally, earning himself a gentle jab in the ribs. Rolling his eyes fondly, Jamie grabbed his dark-red leather-jacket and left the apartment. Babs was working and Jamie felt like doing something very, very normal again for a change. Somehow lately his life had been far too hectic. So doing their weekly shopping sounded like a nice change of pace. There was a nice deli just around the corner. He would just go there, get everything from their list and--

“Ah!”

...Never mind. Heaving a sigh, Jamie turned toward the source of the screams. People were running down the streets and, not really surprisingly, there stood the Hydra. A mighty beast with dark-red scales and five heads, roaring. The first time Jamie had seen her, he had been in awe, had been thrown back to his childhood and Disney's Hercules. Now, after having been battling it for two months, it grew a little stale if he was being honest.

“Leo”, whispered Jamie. “We're gonna take a little detour, okay?”

The red pearl on his necklace glowed in response. Walking around the corner into a back-alley, Jamie transformed. He straightened the hood of his costume before charging sword-first at the monster. Well. Monster. At its core, it was an alien fused with a human, so Jamie had to be careful.

“Come on, big H, we've already danced this routine. Why don't we just cut it short and you quit?”

“Le—eo”, hissed one of the heads.

“Little lion snack”, snarled another head.

“Actually, I'm the big lion. Leo Major. Not Leo Minor. There's a difference. Let me show you.”

With that, he charged ahead and aimed for the Hydra's heart. Only that Jamie, as a fire-user, was a horrible match-up for the water-spewing Hydra. The sword glowed as it singed the Hydra's skin. The beast snarled and swatted at Jamie. With Babs at his side, he'd have someone to have his back, but instead... instead Jamie took the claws to the back. In the end, he wasn't a well-trained Chosen One. He was just a dumb kid from Dublin who'd only been training for two months.

“Wo—oah. Watch out, Leo!”, called a blue-clad guy – one of the new... heroes – out.

That was the last thing Jamie saw and heard before he hit his head and went out.

~*~

Jamie's head was fuzzy when he woke up. The ceiling he stared up at was not his own. Frowning, he turned a little. It was a bedroom, but not a bedroom he had ever been in before. Bedroom however was good, because if the bad guys had captured him, he'd probably be tied-up in some dungeon or something. The walls were a warm yellow, while the bed-sheets were dark-blue. It looked nice, expensive and also very cleaned-up.

“You're awake. He's awake. Mattie! He's awake!”

Frown deepening, Jamie looked at the very excited Mike Maguire in the doorway. Like a happy puppy, only missing the wagging tail. Jamie shook his head. Wait. Why was he in Mike and Matt's... bedroom? Was that where he was? But the last thing Jamie remembered was a fight... He had been in his superhero-get-up, fighting the Hydra. With wide eyes did Jamie frantically touch his face, to make sure he was wearing his mask. He was. Confusing steadily raising, he looked down at himself. He was wearing his costume. So what was he doing in their bedroom?

“Hello, Leo. Mister Leo?”, tried Mike. “Uhm. You're probably confused. We found you, in an alley. Unconscious. Since none of your partners were around, we... we couldn't just let you lay there. I'm Mike, Michael Maguire, I'm a cop – so I'm one of the good guys too. And this here is my fiance. Matteo di Girasole. Look, he's awake.”

“I... I can see that, amore”, chuckled Matt fondly, kissing Mike's cheek before he turned toward Jamie. “Hello. We don't mean you any harm. We just found you and couldn't leave you laying there. We called a friend of ours, a doctor. Who... Wait just a second...”

Matt left the room again and Jamie used that opportunity to sit up some. He groaned at the ache in his... body. Narrowing it down further seemed not possible at this moment. Instantly, Mike was at his side with concerned eyes. It was kind of odd, seeing them like this. They were behaving so differently from how he was used to. Then again, they didn't know it was him.

“You okay? I mean, of course not, you got slapped around by a giant lizard”, grunted Mike. “But, uh, what hurts exactly? Just, wait a moment, my fiance is getting the doctor.”

“You like saying that”, accused Jamie softly. “Fiance.”

“Uh. Yeah”, admitted Mike with a slight blush. “Is it that obvious? It's only been not even half a year and I dunno, I really like the sound of it, I guess.”

“It's... cute. You love him a lot, huh?”, asked Jamie fondly.

“Ye—eah”, sighed Mike, a content smile on his lips. “I just... never met anyone like him.”

“World-famous billionaires are rare”, agreed Jamie dryly.

“I didn't even know he was a billionaire until we were dating for like a month and the first paparazzi attacked”, grumbled Mike with a frown. “Cheeky little shit just... pretended to run his father's old business. Sports-equipment being 'a family business' and all...”

“Mh. I think I read about that in a magazine before. From rags to riches stories do sell”, hummed Jamie. “Worked in his dad's small shop and then started developing his own equipment.”

“Basically, yeah”, confirmed Mike with a small smile. “He's really hard-working, you know. He sets his goals and... and then he's reaching that goal. It's kinda insane.”

Jamie smiled at himself at that. Mike really was very in love with Matt. It was... cute. At times a tiny bit obnoxious, but overall Jamie wished someone would love him the way Mike loved Matt.

“Ah. My... patient is awake. Not something I say usually.”

Looking up, Jamie saw a tall, broad-shouldered, dark-skinned man approach. He ran a hand over his bald head as he approached Jamie while scowling at Mike rather pointedly.

“Uhm, that is a bit... concerning for a doctor”, grunted Jamie.

“I'm the ME. My patients are normally dead”, countered the doctor. “And I usually don't make house-calls. You'd think, married to a billionaire, you could just call a private doctor.”

“I could”, agreed Matt. “But I don't trust a stranger. You, I trust, Doc.”

“I do not make house-calls”, repeated the doctor very slowly and pointedly. “Now get outta here so I can check on my patient. Both of you, get lost.”

With small protests did Mike and Matt leave the room and close the door. Jamie stared wearily.

“Hello. I am Doctor Charles Jones. You have a mild concussion and... at the very least bruised ribs, but I can't be entirely sure. You should go and visit a hospital, out of costume.”

“Yeah. Right. Should do”, nodded Jamie awkwardly. “Thank you, for... helping me.”

“Here”, sighed Doctor Jones and got a card out of his pocket.

“Your... business card...?”, asked Jamie curiously after a look at the small paper. “But didn't you just say you don't do house-calls and glared those two down like there is no tomorrow?”

Charles huffed at that and shook his head. “Can't have the knucklehead call me outta bed at every sniff of his boyfriend. Maguire, he's a good kid, but he's fussy when it comes to Matt. And I got better things to do than that. They can afford their private doctor. You however... if you get hurt on a mission and require a doctor, you can call me.”

“I can? You don't... even know me”, grunted Jamie surprised as he was being examined.

“True, true”, hummed Charles, gently running his fingers over Jamie's ribs. “Yeah, I don't think anything is broken there. See, I don't know you, but... I'm fairly certain you don't know my wife, Laureen, and yet you saved her life the other week, when a giant snake attacked the grocery store she was shopping in. She... would have died if you hadn't saved her. Many, many people would have died and gotten seriously hurt if not for you and Scorpio. You do something that... no one else can. And while I can't do that, I can offer you help if you need it.”

“...Th... Thank you”, whispered Jamie, blinking as he pocketed the card.

Somehow, he had never really considered it. Not like that. He knew what he and Babs were doing was the right thing, but he had never quite considered just how they affected people. The families of those they saved, people who were not alive only thanks to them.

“Thank you. For saving my wife”, countered Doctor Jones with a soft smile.

With that, he left the room. Moments later and Mike and Matt returned. Matt was better at schooling his features, but Mike still looked like he had a billion questions burning on his mind.

“What exactly happened after I got knocked out...? The Hydra...?”, asked Jamie slowly.

“Oh. Cancer and Sagittarius totally took care of that!”, declared Mike with a broad grin.

“Mh”, grunted Jamie with a deep, thoughtful frown. “They did, huh...?”

“Yeah! I mean, they're heroes too, right?”, asked Mike, with one of his very charming one hundred watt smiles. “They're like you, aren't they? I mean, aren't they part of your... team?”

For a second, Jamie just stared at Mike. He loved that blindingly optimistic, happy smile. It was so... carefree and Jamie found that absolutely captivating. He knew carefree people. But Mike? He was a whole new class of carefree and it was infectious.

“They're not part of my team”, grunted Jamie and shook his head. “Scorpio is my team. They... I don't know who they are. But they're not part of us.”

“Why... not?”, asked Matt cautiously. “I'm sorry, you have no reason to share this with us, you don't even know us. But the thing is, to all of Los Angeles, you and Scorpio are the great heroes and those two, they seem like you? So how come they're not with you?”

Jamie shrugged and averted his eyes. “Scorpio I trust. But those two, I don't know. They just appeared, together with the two women.”

“So you could like... get to know them? The more heroes on a team, the more effective, right?”, asked Mike curiously. “I'm a cop. I have my partner – my Scorpio, I guess. But the two of us can't just... do everything alone. We often need our squad to help out. Wouldn't a squad be more effective for fighting supervillains too? A superhero team?”

It made Jamie smile a little, before he shook his head. “One could say I have trust issues.”

“Why?”, asked Matt warmly.

The better question was, why did Jamie trust them? Talking to Mike and Matt like this was... easy. Somehow, the mask helped. Them not knowing that he was James Saint John. When he was Jamie, he found it hard to have an honest conversation with Mike and Matt, even though he trusted them. Maybe his crush was in the way? And more than that, he still didn't understand why he had come to trust them. But like this, behind his secret identity, he could actually open up to the men he trusted.

“Scorpio is trusting. Very trusting. We ran into another supposed hero before and she betrayed us. At this point, we can't know who is actually good and who isn't. Being a Zodiac isn't a guarantee for them to be good, even if they fought against the Hydra”, replied Jamie with a sigh.

“You... You should rest some more”, offered Matt gently. “You can stay until you feel good enough to leave, but please don't push yourself now to make things worse. You're safe here.”

Jamie bit his tongue to keep from saying that he knew that. If this weren't Mike and Matt, Jamie would have been out the window the very moment he had woken up. Because yes, he did have trust-issues. Even before Libra had betrayed them. The thought of Libra still made Jamie frown. The goal was to take the gem away from the woman and find someone trustworthy to carry Libra. Or at least that was the goal Jamie had set himself. The way Leo had told him, it wasn't the Zodiac himself who was evil. It was the human influence. So they had to get Libra the Zodiac away from the human host, to give to someone worthy of being a hero. Jamie's eyes wandered to look at the retreating forms of Mike and Matt. Would perhaps one of them...? Shaking his head, Jamie leaned back again. Just a little more rest before he would leave.

“I like your chosen mates”, stated a perky, curious voice.

Blinking, Jamie saw how Leo materialized from his marble. “They're not... mine, Leo. And really, how did you allow for me to just be taken away by random people?”

“No—ot random”, huffed the red lion and shook himself. “They're your humans. I wanted to go and get Scorpio really quickly. But then they showed up and I knew you would be safe with them and they brought you here and got a human doctor to make sure you're alright.”

Jamie sighed and reached out to pat Leo between the ears as he closed his eyes. Just a little more rest and then he would be on his way back home. It wasn't a good idea to stay too long, it might tempt him into saying things he wasn't supposed to say. Not even necessarily his secret identity, but more so the fact that he knew things about Matt and Mike – things the friendly neighborhood superhero was not supposed to know about them.

“They really are good people”, whispered Jamie lowly, with the smallest smile. “I mean... they took a total stranger home to patch him up. Sure, I'm a hero, but still... they endangered themselves by doing so. Hydra could have followed them.”

“Yes”, purred Leo, pawing at the blanket. “Good humans. You picked well.”

“Speaking of picking well”, drawled Jamie reluctantly. “I had a thought.”

“Mh?”, grunted Leo, rolling onto his side so Jamie would scratch his belly.

“Libra. You say Libra isn't a bad guy, that either their human is... a bad seed, or the bad guys got to them first and got into the human's head”, started Jamie, staring up at the ceiling.

“Ye—es”, nodded Leo as he waited for Jamie to get to the point.

“Say, theoretically, if we can get to them and get the gem from her, can we give Libra to a more responsible human, an ally?”, asked Jamie. “I mean, how deep is the bond between a human and their Zodiac companion? Could you theoretically rebond to someone else?”

“Yes. We can always only bond with one human at a time – so not grand our powers to multiple humans at the same moment. But... we can cut the bond and once we're unbound, we can find a different human to bond with”, confirmed Leo with a thoughtful frown. “But the thing is, we can only bond with a human who was born under our star-sign.”

“Okay. So, just have to find a Libra to bond with the Libra”, hummed Jamie. “I wonder when Mike and Matt's birthdays are...”

Leo huffed at that and shook himself. “You are a strange human. You can't court your chosen mates but you could ask them out to become superheroes with you...?”

“I trust them”, shrugged Jamie with a frown. “There... aren't many people I trust. Ally and Andy are kids, they're not being dragged into this. Babs already is in this and... Jessie... I can't do that to her. She's my baby-sister. I'm supposed to protect her, not put her in danger.”

“I think your sister can handle way more than you give her credit for”, stated Leo.

“Just because she can handle a lot doesn't mean she should have to handle it”, countered Jamie and raised both eyebrows. “She's already been through enough, losing our mom and home and... and it's enough. We fought hard to make this life for ourselves.”

Leo hummed at that, not commenting but looking at Jamie softly. Jamie sighed and rolled onto his side as much as his ribs allowed it, closing his eyes to nap. Not Jessie, for the past years he had done everything in his powers to shield her. He'd find a way to solve this without involving her.

Read here on AO3!

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[wazafam]

Jamie's character on The Sinner is a pretty complex one. While it isn't uncommon to see a character go through an incredible journey through the slow progression of a multi-episode series, Jamie's was quite the downfall.

Matt Bomer played the character, which already ranks among his top-five roles, beautifully and convincingly. And the story was compelling and thought-provoking. But there's no denying that there are inconsistencies in the story and with the character himself.

RELATED: The Sinner: 10 Scenes That Were Hard To Watch, Ranked 

This isn't to say that season three of The Sinner was not fabulous. Nonetheless, a few things might have made viewers scratch their heads.

10 Surprised And Angry When Nick Showed Up At His House

It's understandable why Jamie would have called Nick: feeling lost and alone, like his life had no meaning once again, so he turned to the one person he knows made him feel alive before. However, why did he get so angry when Nick showed up at his home?

Yes, he wanted to keep that part of his life a secret. But he did call Nick, after all, who he knew was unhinged and volatile. What did he expect him to do? Jamie was smarter than that.

9 Leela Never Noticed Anything Off With Him

While the loved ones of deadly serial killers often say they never suspected that anything was wrong with the person, many do recall odd things about their behavior. That even happens in the fictional world: consider other TV characters like Dexter Morgan from Dexter and Joe Goldberg from You and their families and friends. Indeed, Leela did just that when she revealed to Harry that after Jamie found out she had cheated, he simply asked her what he did wrong.

Leela can't be blamed for not recognizing that there was something off with Jamie. Nonetheless, it seems strange that Jamie would have become a caricature of a person for 15 years, never once saying or doing anything that would make Leela question his sanity.

8 No One Investigated Blood On Him In College Dorm

His old college roommate, as well as the photo, revealed what happened back in the day when his roommate put in a request to be transferred. Jamie came home and was sitting on the floor, blindly staring into space with blood on him.

RELATED: The Sinner: 10 Worst Things The Characters Have Done, Ranked 

Not only did his roommate witness this, but he also had photographic evidence. Yet the only thing that concerned the school was that his roommate asked to be moved? Why didn't anyone ever question him or investigate how he got blood on him and whose blood it was?

7 Only Started Killing Now

Serial killers do tend to start slowly, potentially with animals, then one kill until they move on to uncontrollable murder. But Jamie was in his 30s, possibly pushing 40. And he only now began to explore murder?

It's possible Jamie was not really a killer at heart, but a lost soul who was easily manipulated by the coaxing of Nick. Either way, he went from a man who simply daydreamed about harming people to one who inflicted violent deaths on two people and even put a gun to a child's head.

6 Still Loved His Wife

If Jamie was supposed to be heartless, he would not have the capacity to have true love or feelings for someone. Viewers even saw how he contemplated harming his own child. Yet he seemed to truly, genuinely love Leela.

He even returned to the house, and they shared a tender moment through the glass sliding doors. Not only were his actions towards Leela inconsistent, but hers toward him as well. Sure, there must have been a lot of conflicting emotions flying around.

5 Had A Strong Bond With Emma

Another strange relationship was between Jamie and Emma. Not only did he appear to have a genuine affection for this young student, and truly care about her, but he often spoke to her as if she were like him.

RELATED: The Sinner: The 10 Saddest Things About Harry 

What about her made Jamie feel like they had a connection? This was never explored, which left a big hole in the plot where the entire purpose of Emma wasn't clear. It might have been to further humanize Jamie and imply that he was not a psychopath, but just highly impressionable.

4 The Game

The game Jamie and Nick played, which was essentially a popular kids game from the '80s and '90s based on an origami paper fortune-teller didn't make much sense in the end.

Jamie brutally killed the police chief and threatened to kill Eli, Sonya, and Harry's daughter, based on chance using his game. But what reason did he have to put their names in the game in the first place? Is revenge a viable reason? If so, that means the element of chance is only added after he had already made a non-randomized choice.

3 Not Much Known About His Past

When trying to figure out what might have happened to Jamie in his life to cause him to become this way, Harry and Sonya went through a box of photos Leela provided to them. One story that came up was that he was bullied by a young boy when they were kids.

A picture surfaces that might have been of that boy, but nothing ever comes of the story, nor is anything else revealed about Jamie's past aside from the fact that he was sort of raised by his father following the death of his mother.

2 Didn’t Want To Die

The biggest inconsistency, which was the whole point of the season, was that, after spending so much time talking about how no one should fear death because it's all random and everyone dies, once faced with death himself, Jamie went into a major panic.

Not only did he beg Harry for help, declaring that he did not want to die, but he reached out for comfort from Harry, who he asked to hold his hand. After all of his talk and experiments and believing Nick, in his final moments, Jamie might have realized that death should be feared and life lived after all.

1 The Relationship With Harry

The whole dynamic between Jamie and Harry made little sense, in some respects. Yes, the pair was oddly drawn to one another as though they each understood what the other was going through. Jamie could see Harry's inner turmoil while Harry had come across killers and personalities like Jamie's hundreds of times before.

But the whole idea of Harry visiting the house, helping him garden, following him around one night, and going out to party to keep an eye on him just seemed strange.

NEXT: The 15 Most Bingeworthy Anthology TV Series, Ranked 

The Sinner: 10 Plot and Character Inconsistencies That Make No Sense About Jamie from https://ift.tt/3f8sPsr

[billyagogo]

A survivor. A funeral director. A marriage divided. How Americans' COVID experiences shape their votes

New Post has been published on https://newsprofixpro.com/moxie/2020/11/03/a-survivor-a-funeral-director-a-marriage-divided-how-americans-covid-experiences-shape-their-votes/

A survivor. A funeral director. A marriage divided. How Americans' COVID experiences shape their votes

In Wisconsin, a funeral home director who has watched the COVID-19 pandemic rip through her community can only blame President Trump.

In Texas, little can change one woman’s loyalty to the president — not even her own struggle for breath as she lay in a hospital bed.

In New Mexico, an underemployed firearms instructor plans to cast his vote as a rebuke to Democrats he says were overzealous in closing businesses.

In Arizona, a Joe Biden voter found political detente with his Republican wife as the lingering effects of infection continue to cause them pain.

In Michigan, a school bus driver won over by the president before the pandemic deepened her devotion and took up arms to protest shutdowns.

Even before the coronavirus sunk in its teeth, the United States was deeply polarized. Facts mattered less than feelings and political parties acted like tribes.

The virus — a shared, microscopic enemy that demanded a unified response — offered the nation a chance to come together. But from face masks to shutdowns, the pandemic quickly became the main thing Americans were fighting over.

As the death toll grew so did anxieties about who would win the presidency.

Election day arrives as the virus surges like never before, with an average of more than 80,000 new cases reported each day last week — well over previous spikes and up more than 44% from two weeks earlier.

Once concentrated in urban centers like New York and later in Sun Belt states, the virus is now ravaging the rural Midwest and Rocky Mountain states.

Field hospitals have been pitched in parking lots from Texas to Wisconsin. In the past week, hospitalizations reached new highs in 18 different states.

Treatment is improving and infections are increasingly concentrated in younger people with high odds of survival, but experts predict a significant rise in the U.S. death toll, which now tops 230,000.

The surge poses a dilemma for officials trying to balance health concerns with economic ones as the public grows wary of more forced shutdowns.

Polls suggest that most voters have made up their minds — and record numbers have already cast their ballots.

All of the issues that divided America before coronavirus have been eclipsed.

This is the pandemic election. And these are the stories of five voters.

The funeral home director The first call came in late March.

A 70-year-old had died shortly after being taken off a ventilator. Michelle Pitts sent a hearse to pick up his body from the hospital.

Michelle Pitts, owner of New Pitts Mortuary, stands outside her Milwaukee funeral home.

(Kurtis Lee / Los Angeles Times)

There would be no funeral, just a burial at the cemetery attended by three relatives. The family was too worried about contagion.

Pitts was left with the feeling that “this virus was going to be bad.”

The calls kept coming, at all hours. Pitts could only watch as the coronavirus spread through the neighborhood. As owner of the New Pitts Mortuary, she has been serving the predominantly Black northside of Milwaukee since the 1990s.

The disproportionate toll the virus was taking on Black people was obvious to her. The two dozen victims her funeral home has handled included bus drivers, nurses and grocery clerks — essential workers who didn’t have the luxury of sheltering in place.

“If you live in this community, you know someone who has either contracted the virus, or died,” she said. “It’s an American tragedy plain and simple.”

As the months wore on, Pitts couldn’t stop thinking about the ages of the deceased. Early 50s. Mid-40s. Late 30s.

She herself was 60.

Pitts remembered the expression of the parent standing over the oak casket of a beloved son, who days earlier was taken off a ventilator. She recalled the woman whose husband died before he could line up a life insurance policy to help take care of the couple’s two young children should something happen to him.

How are they doing now, she wondered?

To sustain herself, she often recited her favorite scripture, a section of Psalm 23: “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.”

In late October, she filled out her ballot.

There was never any doubt that she would vote for Biden. In her view Trump had only responded to the pandemic with callousness.

She deposited the ballot in a nearby drop box.

“I felt like a weight was kind of lifted off my shoulders,” she said. “As if it was my time to be heard.”

— Kurtis Lee

The survivor It had become her evening ritual: Order dinner from Doordash, mix a cocktail, draw a bath and pretend she was swimming in her complex’s off-limits pool.

“It just became very lonely,” said Jaime Vollmar, 35.

Meanwhile, her hours as an operating room technician at two plastic surgery clinics were severely cut.

It all seemed overblown to Vollmar. She knew friends who had contracted the coronavirus, but nobody who died from it.

Then, in early October, Vollmar and her boyfriend decided to take a risk and get together for dinner with another couple. The woman hosting began to feel ill that night, and within days called to tell Vollmar she and her husband had tested positive for the virus.

Vollmar also tested positive.

After two weeks of feeling “like death” at home, Vollmar was admitted to United Memorial Medical Center in Houston. During sleepless nights, she struggled to breathe as she watched a monitor showing her blood oxygen level drop.

She began to wonder: “Am I actually going to survive this?”

Her second priority was making it to the polls to vote in person.

She had supported Trump in 2016 and appreciated all he had done on immigration, the economy, even the pandemic.

“He did a great job. He’s human,” she said, adding that her bout with the virus “gives me more appreciation for him.”

Jamie Vollmar was admitted to United Memorial Medical Center in Houston after contracting COVID-19.

(Molly Hennessy-Fiske / Los Angeles Times)

Vollmar was released from the hospital Friday. At the polls, she plans to “be a dork” about safety and wear a mask, keep a distance of six feet and encourage others to take more precautions.

Looking back, Vollmar believes that she might have contracted the virus when she tasted the dinner host’s new vaping flavor — watermelon strawberry bubblegum.

“It was a heavenly flavor,” she said from her hospital bed. “But not worth all this.”

— Molly Hennessy-Fiske

The expectant father Marcos Sanchez was irked.

Driving by the local hardware store in the early days of the pandemic, he’d see lines of hundreds of people waiting to get in.

Yet Sanchez, a 35-year-old firearms instructor in Española, a small city tucked in the mountains of northern New Mexico, wasn’t allowed to work after an order from the state’s Democratic governor closed all businesses except those deemed essential.

Sanchez, who had been steadily growing his business for two years, had no income for three months straight.

“It’s frustrating because they’re raking in money and I’m struggling,” he said.

The way Sanchez sees it, the pandemic was an act of God. The shutdowns were an act of man.

Under current restrictions, he can work again, but must limit his shooting and self-defense classes to a quarter of normal capacity. With a second child on the way, he’s now contemplating whether his business can continue.

“I’m not blind or ignorant to the damage that the virus has done, but I see the damage it’s done economically and that leads to a whole lot of other problems,” he said.

Rio Arriba County, where Sanchez lives, went for Hillary Clinton in 2016 — 64% versus 24% for Trump. But Sanchez plans to vote for Trump, like he did four years ago.

His decision is largely based on his opposition to firearm restrictions and his religious beliefs, particularly his objection to abortion. But the pandemic has also played a role.

Trump is not a perfect candidate, he said. He thinks no candidate ever is. But most important for him are the kinds of policies a person will enact once they are in office, and Trump has opposed widespread economic shutdowns in the face of the virus.

“You have to ask what’s worse,” he said. “The virus or the constant anxiety we’ve been putting ourselves in?”

— Kate Linthicum

The activist Bill Whitmire had to leave for a doctor’s appointment, but his keys were nowhere to be found.

It’d been months since he felt clear-headed. Lapses in memory and reasoning — so uncharacteristic for a 56-year-old who prided himself on being organized — had become the norm.

He chalked it up to the coronavirus, which he believes he contracted back in January, before testing was available in the United States.

His wife, Ann, came down with the virus in June. She still faces bouts of nausea, body aches and feeling like she has no energy.

The pandemic brought the couple closer together — and not just in their shared suffering.

She is Republican and he is a Democrat, which seemed like less of an issue when they got married back in the 1980s than it did in 2016, when she voted for Trump and he went for Clinton.

“Sometimes we have to agree to disagree,” he said.

Whitmire kept an open mind about Trump in the beginning but grew increasingly disenchanted with him — especially after the pandemic struck.

As a former high school biology teacher, Whitmire was appalled by White House news conferences, in which Trump repeatedly contradicted his own health experts.

“He acts like he’s cured the virus: ‘We’ve rounded the corner, it’ll be over soon, live your life,’” Whitmire said. “Yeah, right.”

For the most part, Whitmire and his wife avoided conversations about Trump and kept focus on their common values of compassion and helping the less fortunate. But it was clear that Ann was losing faith in the president too.

Whenever her husband would turn on a presidential news conference, she would leave the room in disgust.

Anger and grief turned Whitmire into an activist. He joined Marked by COVID, a support group for people who have lost relatives or suffered other effects of the virus. On Friday at the Arizona state Capitol in Phoenix, he lit candles honoring victims and listened as a woman who survived — but lost her sister — sang a haunting rendition of “Amazing Grace.”

“I will never forget it,” he said.

Ann, still ailing, did not attend.

When they they both filled out their ballots in mid-October, he enthusiastically marked his for Biden.

She made him promise not to tell anyone who got her vote, only that it was not Trump.

— Richard Read

The militia member Michelle Gregoire stood guard outside Karl Manke’s Barber & Beauty Shop with a 9mm semiautomatic pistol and a flag emblazoned “Don’t tread on me.”

Manke had no intention of following state orders to close this past May as coronavirus infections were climbing. Gregoire and dozens of other members of a militia known as the Michigan Home Guard were there to keep out the authorities.

She had long been disillusioned with both major parties. But Trump’s outsider status and unusual political style had appeal.

She reluctantly voted from him in 2016, the same year she made a failed bid for a seat in the Michigan state house as a libertarian.

“I was scared when he took office,” said Gregoire, now 29.

That changed when she got a $16-per-hour job as a school bus driver, plus a bigger tax refund. She and her husband were saving to ditch their rental in Battle Creek to buy a house big enough for them and their three children.

Gregoire was growing more political. She decided to run for a state house seat again — this time as a Republican.

Last November, she joined the militia, which claims to have at least 1,000 members and says on its website that it is preparing “for tyranny, social discord, natural disasters or anything else that may arise.”

The pandemic only fortified her faith in Trump, whose downplaying of the virus reflected her own experience.

“I don’t social distance, I don’t wear a mask,” she explained. “If anybody has COVID, I should have COVID… Nobody around me has tested positive.”

Gregoire lost badly in the August primary for the house seat. She is still jobless, saying that she has not been allowed to return to driving school buses because she is facing charges of trespassing and resisting arrest stemming from her militia’s occupation of the state Capitol in Lansing for a week in May.

But she paid off mounting credit card bills using the $2,400 her family received in checks as part of the federal stimulus package, each accompanied by a letter signed by Trump.

She was planning to vote in-person because it feels more “patriotic.”

— Jaweed Kaleem

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[kitten1618x]

GoT Afterthoughts 7x03 The Queen's Justice (Jonsa Edition) SPOILERS

I’m sorry for the delay, but ffs this is LONG! Well ...now we know that this week's episode title was def. referring to Cersei, let's get to it. 

We begin this week with foreboding music -Jon and Davos riding the crashing waves onto the shores of Dragonstone -which I still highly prefer the exterior to the interior -though, I suppose it fits the "mood". Little bit of banter between the boys, and after a friendly introduction and a smiling face, Missandei asks for their weapons. A skeptical and non-to-pleased looking Jon obeys, then turns to watch warily while the Dothraki take their rowboat as well. Okay Gendry, you can row up at any time now ...we may need you as the getaway boat. 

So they proceed up the long winding staircase (which has more steps than Dany does titles) and not even a full 3 minutes into the episode, Sansa is already brought up in conversation. I'm dead serious - 02:30 minute mark on the dot. I actually only know this, because at this particular moment, I paused the DVR to grab a snack -but I like how in what is supposed to be such a J/D-centric episode (er-meh-gerd they're finally meeting!!!), Sansa takes precedence. Good call D&D ...I see what you did there. 

Now about that conversation -is it odd that Tyrion would bring up Sansa in passing conversation with Jon? No, not at all -she is a connection that they both share, but ....

T: Sansa, I hear she's alive and well? 

J: She is. 

T: Does she miss me terribly? (clearly he's attempting a bit of a joke here). 

J: *silence as he stares down at Tyrion like he damn well better explain himself*

T: *looks over his shoulder, to see that Jon is not amused, quickly explains* A sham marriage, never consummated. 

J: I didn't ask. 

T: Well it was, it wasn't. Anyway, she's much smarter than she lets on.

J: She's starting to let on. 

T: Good. 

So, what exactly was the point of this conversation? If Tyrion just wanted to know if Sansa was well, and the narrative wanted to establish how clever Sansa is, they could have done that without all that "missing me and marriage sham and unconsummated" banter in between. We as an audience already know all of these things, so how does that little nugget of information help in furthering the narrative? To put it quite simply -it doesn't. Again ..I see you D&D, I see exactly what you did there. 

A bit more banter between the boys -Tyrion's ironic statement about Starks not faring well in the South, as to which Jon replies that he's not a Stark (shut up baby, yes you fucking are!) and BOOM! Cue: Drogon swooping down over the crowd, and Jon and Davos hitting the deck like a bunch of dropped wet rocks. You will NEVER convince me that was coincidence. Dany is in full control of her Dragons now, and that was a total (cheap) intimidation tactic. 

PS: Jon is wearing leggings! Show me tha booty! 

Cut to Varys and Melisandre perched high above on a cliff and watching the welcoming committee march up the guests. Varys prods her on why she won't greet them considering she spoke so highly of Jon Snow. She replies with how she's "brought fire and ice together and she's done her part" -I believe this is a deliberate misdirection from the writers. We already know that Jon is fire and ice on his own -the characters do not, and you know the dark ship is going wild over this line right now, but don't any of you pay it any mind. It's like a magicians trick -slight of hand ..look over there, while we do this over here. 

Varys still has a healthy skepticism of this religion and these priestesses -and I'm still 1100000% with him. Melisandre is going back to Volantis (spelled right??) it seems -but will return to die -just like Varys. Ohhhh prophetic. And damn but these red witches get under his skin! Why???? I must know!

Poor Jonny-boy walking into the throne room looks nervous AS HELL, with the Mad Kings daughter perched on that wiggy-ass throne, and half of Dany's face is bathed in shadows, and she's once again cloaked in all black -shadows, darkness = symbolism at its finest folks. Hiding ones face half in shadow is a popular trope to emphasize that someone has a "sinister side" , and wearing all black is also a trope - "evil wears black." 

Now, for arguments sake (and because I like to play devils advocate -the Nights Watch also wear all black, and Jon did too -however, Dany's wardrobe went from bright white (innocence and purity) to black upon coming to Westeros.  

So as Missandei rambles off all 101 of Dany's titles (like I swear they do this purposely to annoy us at this point), Davos shoots back with "This is Jon Snow and he's King of the North". (See this juxtaposition they just shoved RIGHT IN OUR FACES???). LMAO -by the way, I just fucking adore Davos! He is a damn precious dewdrop, and I will fight you if you say otherwise! 

D: You are here to bend the knee?

J: I am not. 

Who else screeched with glee here? Huh? Huh? 

Bend the knee. Bend the knee. BEND THE KNEE. 

I'm not going to rehash this entire exchange, but a few important things that stuck out to me: 

Jon's primary focus is "us", "we" -he's concerned about saving people.   

Dany's primary focus is "Me, me, me!!"  

 It is interesting how she asked that the father's sins not be passed onto the daughter -reminiscent of Jon's own words regarding the Karstark and Umber children. I wonder if this is a sort of foreshadowing that by not being more wary of Dany's Targ temper, it just may bite him in the ass later.   

 Also Dany is a hypocrite. "Don't blame me for my ancestors -blah blah blah, but bend the knee because of my ancestors." Sigh.   

I'm insanely curious why Jon didn't want Davos to tell them he'd been resurrected -or why Melisandre left that little tidbit out too??? 

 Jon is now essentially Dany's prisoner.  

Dany's narcissism is growing by the day. I can't believe people don't understand what GRRM (D&D) are deliberately doing with her character! This is an actual quote: "Do you know what kept me standing all those years in exile? Faith. Not in any god, not in myths, and legends. In myself. Daenerys Targaryen. The world hadn’t seen a dragon in centuries, until my children were born. The Dothraki hadn’t crossed the sea, any sea. They did for me. I was born to rule the Seven Kingdoms. And I will."  

Varys delivers the news that Dany's  fleet is gone, and then Theon is fished from the sea by his people. And let me slip in here that if you're one of the people bashing Theon for jumping overboard because he so clearly suffers from PTSD -you're a shit, and you need to stop. That's not something that just suddenly disappears ...he will struggle with that for whatever is left of his life. He's gonna rescue Yara ...I just know it. 

Now we're in Kings Landing and Euron is parading Yara and the Sand Snakes through the city. Like, I'm so torn, because I hate this dude, but I also kinda love him? His teasing of Jamie is PRICELESS, if not highly inappropriate. It's also pretty clear to me that Cersei has no intent on marrying him. In typical Cersei fashion, she'll keep him at arms length while she uses him, and then dispose of him when he wears out his usefulness -clever girl that she is. 

And now we're in the dungeon where the Sand Snakes are chained -after a bit of tormenting them, she takes Tyene the same way they took her daughter -with a kiss of death. As a mother, I truly feel for Cersei here as she talks about Mrycella -for both of these mothers actually. Say what you will about Cersei, but Lena is a fucking GODDESS! She owns this role so well. Like, I can't stand Cersei, and yet, I literally cheer for her sometimes. One thing is for certain -people better stop underestimating her ruthlessness. And my God, the Sand Snakes -magnificent acting with no dialogue!

After a romantic romp with her dear brother (and damn, Jamie has a sweet ass), she boldly allows the servant to see them together -she's queen now, and apparently has no more fucks to give. It's time for the Lannister's to pay their debts, and she's off to meet with a rep. of the Iron Bank. Using the sharp negotiation skills she inherited from Tywin, and the same "foreign invader/mad Kings daughter" approach that she used to sway the Lords, it appears she gets what she wants and the Iron Bank will extend her the credit she needs - "gold wins wars." 

We jump back to Dragonstone, where our brooding prisoner/hero is staring forlornly at the sea. He's a Northern fool who didn't listen (to Sansa). Tyrion tries to appeal to Jon's good side, and talks up Dany a bit, while simultaneously trying to help him. He's looking to strike an alliance -"use each other to further your own needs approach", and after a somewhat comical conversation with Dany (thank God because we need a bit of levity surrounding her scenes) -he urges her to let Jon mine the dragon glass. I think Tyrion does truly believe Jon is telling the truth. The knife in the heart comment comes up again -and again, I wonder why Jon didn't want them to know about his resurrection -but clearly, it's important because it was brought up again. 

Now Jon approaches Dany who's gazing off towards the sea and watching her Dragons soaring in the distance. Sounds kinda romantic, right? Well not really, as during most of this conversation they stood facing opposite directions, barely making eye contact -save for a few moments. Shipping goggles are fully affixed here, but compare this to the way Jon and Sansa are always staring into each other's eyes (usually in softly lit rooms). Just sayin'. 

Jon comments on Dany's Dragons, and she tells them that she named them for her brothers -Viserys and Rhaegar. This made me smile. And what I find so amusing about this, is just a few nights ago, I had a Nonny send me an ask referring to the general audience possibly forgetting that Rhaegar (Jon's daddy dearest) was Dany's brother --well, there you have it, Nonny, the narrative just delivered your reminder. Heh heh heh. ;)   I don't think that Dany believes Jon about the WW/NK yet (and really, we can't fault her) but he is getting his dragon glass, and in the meantime, it keeps Jon hanging around -more time to woo him to their side. 

And we head North to Winterfell (finally) to see that the Sass QitN is pretty freaking good at this ruling stuff. Like really, did we ever have any doubts? She's preparing for the enemy coming from both sides, because she's clever as hell (and I'm so proud of her!!!). Can't-take-a-hint Lord Creepyfinger is at it again -whispering in her ear with his creepy-creep-ness, and our girl once again, deliciously puts him in his place. Look, this constant talk of Cersei with Sansa, and the fact that she's lived and learned from her -plus this emphasis on how well she's taken up the helm at "ruling" and caring for her people, all while Tyrion, Jon and LF are all saying how smart she is ...I'm really starting to get the feeling that Sansa is THAT queen. Ya know -the one from Cersei's prophecy ...  

"You'll be queen, for a time. Then comes another, younger, more beautiful, to cast you down and take all you hold dear." 

I usually try not to get tin foilish in my recaps, but this is the Jonsa edition after all, so bear with me. Sansa has literally learned from the master of ruthlessness, and I truly believe all this emphasis on that this season, is setting up the fact that Sansa will be the only one clever enough to see through Cersei's scheming, won't underestimate her, and in fact, be the one to bring her down. Sansa, if not indirectly, could be linked to all of Cersei's children's deaths (all she holds dear): 

She was betrothed to Joffrey, who after he cruelly tortured her for a time, discarded her for Margaery. Being the clever old bird that she was, Olenna got Sansa to open up about Joffrey's cruelty, which ultimately led to his death.  

Thrusting Sansa into a marriage with Tyrion who then were both accused by Cersei of murdering Joffrey. Sansa escapes due to LF's scheming, leading to Tyrion's trial by combat with Oberyn as his champion. When he is killed by the Mountain, Ellaria exacts revenge on the Lannisters by killing Mrycella.   

Due to Joffrey's death, Tommon becomes king, and takes his brothers widow for a wife -the same family responsible for Joffrey's death -who only murdered him because Sansa confirmed his cruelness. Tommon falls hopelessly in love with Margaery, and upon her death, commits suicide.   

It's also important to note, that Cersei is technically the one to blame for the deaths of all of her children, although she will never see it that way. While I was studying up on this prophecy, I also stumbled onto this from one of the book wiki sites:

When will I marry the prince?

Cersei is talking about Prince Rhaegar, whom Tywin Lannister intended to offer her to for marriage. Maggy tells Cersei that she will never marry the prince, but will marry the king. This foreshadows King Aerys refusing Tywin’s offer, Robert’s Rebellion, and Cersei eventually marrying Robert Baratheon after he is crowned king.

I just find highly coincidental that Cersei was almost wed to a Targaryen prince (and Jon Snow's father, to boot), and if we're all correct in our assumptions that Jonsa is in fact endgame (it is, by the way) then Sansa will take that from her, too. Which also strangely ties Sansa to -going from in the beginning of the story, wanting the prince who was actually a bastard, to getting the bastard who is actually a prince. Just sayin' ....

Okay, back to the show. 

Bran has arrived at Winterfell! I repeat BRAN HAS ARRIVED AT WINTERFELL!! And we are treated to yet another beautiful Stark reunion -minus "the nuzzle" -I repeat MINUS THE NUZZLE!! 

They are catching up in the Godswood, and the first thing out of Sansa's mouth (when she's in what she perceives is a safe space, and she's allowed to be vulnerable) is "I wish Jon were here". Ship them or not, there's a reason that they both mentioned each other in this episode -if only to remind us (the general audience) that they are, indeed, on each other's minds. 

Bran is quite emotionless, and I guess I get it. He needs to disconnect and emerge himself completely in this whole 3-eyed Raven deal, because the NK is coming, and he doesn't have much time to hone his powers. In light of their reunion, the writers chose to have him bring up the horrors Sansa suffered at the hands of Ramsey Bolton -to prove his power. I've seen some speculate that this was in fact Bran seeing a future Sansa wedding, and this very well may be, as he admitted himself that it all comes to him in bits. Part of me REALLY wants to believe that, but I think this had more to do with choosing something that would shake Sansa enough to know that what he says is true (cuz come on, he does seem a bit eccentric and cray, peeps). Or maybe it's both? Take it for what you will. 

Jorah has been successfully cured of his greyscale, and he is off to find his Dragon queen -and just ffs, I ship them so hard !!! They (Jorah/Sam) will meet again -although, I hope it's not on different sides of the battlefield. *cough* Targbowl. 

Sam doesn't get rewarded, but you can def. see that the Archmaester IS proud of him. Oh my heart! 

And we're back to Dany's war room. Two allies are down, her armada is gone. She wants to take her Dragons and go burn Euron's fleet -oh, I'm so shocked! But, her wise council talks her out of it, and Tyrion narrates the scene of Casterly rock being taken, while quoting his bro, Bron (like -I can't wait for these two to reunite). The siege is successful .....or is it? Well, NO -because Cersei is a BOSS! 

Euron has effectively taken out the rest of Dany's ships, and trapped GW and the remaining Unsullied at Casterly Rock (which by the way, is gorgeous, and it's about time we see it) -with limited supplies, and no one to come to their aid, they will likely die. 

So where is the rest of the Lannister army? Capturing High Garden, of course (and now Cersei will have their riches, as well). The battle scenes are skipped, and we see Jamie seek out Lady Olenna, who admits to being outsmarted. She warns Jamie that Cersei will be the death of him, and calls Joffrey a cunt (lmao, I love her), before swigging down the poison Jamie offers her. And right before the credits roll, she SAVAGELY admits to Jamie that she was behind Joffrey's murder, and she wants Cersei to know that. Daaaaaammmmmnnn!

And that concludes my Afterthoughts  ...see you next week. 

Oh, and Jonsa is endgame -spread the word. 

[bennguintweets]

One Shot: Brother Bear

Requested by anon: “could you do a one-shot with dusty being protective of riley plus proud tyler and jamie??”

It was Friday night, and the Benn-Seguin family was enjoying a family dinner together before the kids headed out to their friends’ houses for sleepovers. Jamie made the family favorite dish, lasagna, wanting to send them off with full stomachs for the night.

“What are you and Amber doing tonight?” Jamie asked his daughter before taking another bite of his food.

“We’re going to see a movie.” Riley said, keeping her eyes cast down towards her plate. She had a guilty conscience, because she knew going to a movie was not on the agenda for tonight’s sleepover. The girls were planning on attending their very first high school party. Now that their freshman year was over, they felt like the big kids on campus, and in order to fit in and start the upcoming school year off right, it was essential that they at least made an appearance at this party.  

“Nice, what movie?” Jamie asked in between bites.

“That new rom-com that just came out.” Riley lied quickly before stuffing her mouth with lasagna, trying to make her papa quit asking her questions.

“Dusty, are you and Jason going out anywhere tonight, or just staying in?”

“We’re just hanging out at his house. We’ll probably swim and play video games.” Dusty replied to his father. It wasn’t a complete lie; they would probably play video games and swim at some point. But, he was fibbing about the staying in part. He too was planning on going out tonight.

“Are you guys all packed and ready to go?” Tyler asked the kids before taking his last bite of dinner.

“Yeah.” Both kids responded in unison.

“Anyone want any more?” Jamie asked while bringing his and Tyler’s plates to the sink.

“No, thank you.” Riley said while shaking her head, as she had a food baby protruding out of her stomach.

“No thanks, I’m stuffed.” Dusty said while following him with his and Riley’s plates.  

“Alright, you two have fun, and behave.” Jamie said while he and Tyler walked the kids to the front door.

“Will do.” Dusty said, making sure to grab his overnight bag from the floor.

“Call us if you need anything.” Tyler reminded them.

“Okay, love you.” Dusty said before hugging both of his dads.

“Love you too. Drive safe.” Tyler smiled and watched his kids walked to Dusty’s car.

—————————————————————————

“Ri-ley.” Amber hiccuped while sloppily slinging her arm around Riley’s shoulders. “Try this, it’s soooo good.” She said, holding the red solo cup up to Riley’s mouth.

“I’m good, Amber. Thank you though. You might want to slow down a bit.” Riley said while gently taking the drink from her friend’s hand. Riley was fine sipping a little alcohol, but she knew better than to get drunk. Amber definitely loved the party scene a whole lot more than she does, so Riley didn’t mind sacrificing her fun to look after her friend. She and Amber were pretty much bipolar opposites, but that’s what made their friendship work.  

“Hey. Where’d my drink go?” Amber slurred while looking around the floor.

“I have it, Amber.” Riley couldn’t help but laugh at how weird her friend was acting.

“Oh. Thanks, Briley. I can always count on you, you know that?” She smiled while bopping Riley’s nose.

“My name’s Briley now, huh?” Riley chuckled and grunted when Amber leaned half of her body weight on her.

“Woah, woah. She gone already?” Peyton asked while helping his girlfriend handle her drunken friend.

“Thank god you’re here.” Riley sighed in relief. “I was starting to get worried.”

“Sorry, my dad was peppering me with questions before I left.”

“Don’t apologize. I’m glad you’re here.” Riley smiled and pecked a kiss on his lips.

“Awwww, you two are so cute.” Amber giggled and hiccuped.

“Alright, let’s get her home.” Peyton chuckled. “I think she’s had enough for one night.”

“I’m gonna go throw her drink away. Be right back.” Riley said before weaving her way through the crowd to find a trashcan. All of a sudden she felt a firm grip on her arm, stopping her from going any further. When she snapped her head back to see who the culprit was, she gasped when a very unexpected face was looking down at her.

“Dusty!? What are you doing here?”

“I was about to ask you the same thing.” Dusty said in a no nonsense tone. “What’s in your hand?”

“Huh?” Riley asked confused and looked to where he was pointing. She had forgotten she was on her way to throw out her friend’s drink. “Oh! This is Amber’s.”

“Bullshit. Give it to me, now.” Dusty said seriously.

“I’m serious, Dusty. I didn’t drink tonight.” Riley frowned, starting to get annoyed by her brother’s accusation. “But that shouldn’t even matter. You’re here too, and I highly doubt you went the night without drinking. So don’t get onto me like you’re all innocent.”

“I didn’t drink, Riley. I’m helping DD.” Dusty said matter-of-factly. “And even if you didn’t drink, you shouldn’t be carrying this around.” He said, immediately taking the drink from her hands and tossing it in the trash.

“Why are you being such a jerk?” Riley snapped.

“Because I care about you. You are way too young to be at these parties. You could get seriously hurt, Riley. You need to go home.”

“No.” Riley frowned and crossed her arms over her chest defiantly. She knew she was on her way back to Amber’s house anyways, but she wanted to challenge her brother. There was no way she was letting him win this battle.

“Riley. Get your ass home before I call dads. I’m not playing.”

“No! I’m sick and tired of you bossing me around! I’m not a baby, I can take care of myself!” Riley yelled over the music, causing a few bystanders to stare at the bickering siblings.

“Fine, have it your way.” Dusty said, taking ahold of her arm, and forcefully pulling her through the crowd.  

“Dusty! Let go! You’re making a scene!” Riley whined, trying to pull back with all her weight.

“I don’t give two shits!” Dusty spat while dragging her out to his car. “Get in.” He demanded.

“You’re such a dick!” Riley yelled before getting in the passenger seat, and slamming the door shut.

“Whatever.” Dusty sighed and rolled his eyes.

—————————————————————————

Tyler gasped and jumped off of Jamie when he heard the front door open and slam close.

“What are you guys doing back here?” Tyler asked while getting up off the couch, trying to act innocent just in case the kids didn’t see what he and Jamie were up to seconds before they walked in. He was very thankful they both still had all their clothes on.  

“What happened?” Jamie asked worriedly when he saw Riley was crying.

“Dusty, that’s what happened!” Riley shouted while storming up the stairs to her room, leaving Tyler and Jamie very confused and very concerned.

Dusty sighed, feeling guilty for upsetting his sister. He never liked it when they fought, but he knew he would do the same exact thing if he had the chance to live it over again. He wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he had let his little sister walk away and then something happened to her. He knew he had done the right thing, but was he too harsh? Was he really a horrible brother like Riley seemed to think? He couldn’t stop thinking about what had just transpired from what was supposed to be a fun night. When he felt both of his dads staring at him, he knew they were waiting for an explanation. Dusty let out an exhausted sigh and stuffed his hands in his pockets.

“Jason and I went out to a party tonight, and I found Riley there.” Dusty finally said. “I took her home as soon as I saw her, and now she hates me for ruining her night.”

Tyler and Jamie stayed quiet, probably trying to process what Dusty had just shared with them. So Dusty decided to take the opportunity to keep going to hopefully lighten whatever punishment that was about to come his way.

“Neither of us drank though, I promise. I was DD, and Riley was watching Amber. Peyton showed up and helped get Amber home, so she’s okay. I’m really sorry I lied to you guys. I just didn’t want you to worry about me driving everyone around.” Dusty hung his head ashamed of himself. He hated when he felt his dads were disappointed in him.

“Come here, bubby.” Tyler hummed and pulled his son into his arms for a much needed hug. Dusty sighed in relief and relaxed in his dad’s arms. “I’m proud of you.”

“You are?” Dusty asked confused. “Why?”

“You brought your sister home.” Tyler smiled. “And I know she probably said some not so nice things to you because of it, but you know she loves you with all her heart. Let her calm down for the night and then you two can talk in the morning. Okay?”

“Okay.” Dusty nodded.

“Papa and I will talk to her tonight. You go get some sleep.” Tyler hummed and kissed Dusty’s head before letting him go from the hug. Dusty nodded before turning his attention to his father.

“Pops, I’m really sorry.” Dusty said. He knew lying was one of Jamie’s biggest no-nos. It was pretty much an automatic ticket to getting yourself grounded in the Benn-Seguin household.

“You know I don’t tolerate lying.” Jamie said, raising a stern eyebrow at his son. 

“I know.” Dusty frowned and hung his head.

“But, I will let this one go because of what you did for Riley tonight.” Jamie said, causing Dusty’s jaw to nearly drop to the floor. He was pleasantly surprised by his father’s reaction. Dusty couldn’t even remember a time Jamie let him off the hook. However, he knew to not do it again, because being let off twice just wasn’t going to happen.

“I know you could’ve easily let her go, and gone your own way to save yourself from getting in trouble. But you brought her home. I’m really proud of you for that.”

“Thanks, pops.” Dusty smiled and hugged him tight.

“Next time, be honest please. I don’t want you two risking your safety like that ever again.”

“I will, I promise.” Dusty nodded his head quickly.

“Alright, go on up and get some sleep.” Jamie hummed and patted his back softly.

“Kay, night.” Dusty hummed before making his way upstairs.

“Good night.” Tyler and Jamie said. They made sure they heard his bedroom door click before looking at each other.

“Why can’t we have one solid night of alone time?” Jamie chuckled and shook his head.

“Because we’re dads.” Tyler smiled and wrapped his arms around Jamie’s waist. “We gave that up when we decided to have kids.”

“We need to get out more.” Jamie hummed and pecked Tyler’s lips.

Tyler chuckled softly and rested his head on Jamie’s shoulder. “You could say that again.”

[idemandoolong]

When You Can Handle The Lies, Backstabbing, and Unfair Treatment, Then You're Allowed To Be Famous

Most of us have fantasized about what it’d be like to be rich and famous. The paparazzi, the photoshoots, the money, the power, the adoring fans…but what we don’t seem to think about is what famous people tell us ALL THE TIME:

Being famous is unfair, AND it’s every person for himself/herself.

Now, most celebrities don’t flat out say this, but they’ll say it in roundabout ways or with cute little slogans like “Ain’t no friends in the game.”

We romanticize this and think it’s cool and trendy, but that shit would destroy 99% of us. The majority of us can’t handle the negative aspects of fame, and I’m not talking about the rumors and loss of privacy. I’m talking about how you’re essentially forfeiting loyalty and trust–which are things we regular folks take very seriously.

Allow me to explain.

In 2007, during Cycle 9 of “America’s Next Top Model,” Ebony Morgan was in the bottom two with Ambreal Williams. Ambreal was sent home, but Ebony opted to go home instead, thus allowing Ambreal to stay.

Now, five years later, during Cycle 18, Eboni Davis and Alisha White were in the bottom two. Eboni was eliminated, but Alisha opted to forfeit. Same situation, right? Well Eboni was told she’s still going home.

You may explain this away by saying “Well maybe the rules changed.” But THAT’S why you can’t handle fame, silly rabbit. You just don’t get it:

There are no rules in Hollywood.

You’re so used to rules and laws and consistency, but in the fame game, that doesn’t exist. It is solely up to Tyra Banks (and the producers) to decide whom to eliminate. It doesn’t matter if all of America says you’re the best. It doesn’t matter if the “judges” are being hypocrites. Nothing matters. You don’t matter. They don’t care about you, and that’s something most of us can’t deal with.

In fact, the winners of “Top Model” have come out and said they’re not taken seriously in the modeling world, so it’s hard for them to book jobs and gigs. And it’s not like Tyra Banks is using her name to get them jobs. She doesn’t give a damn. Their usefulness is over as far as she’s concerned. Boom. Bye. On to the next wannabe model.

I’ll give you another example.

Janet Hubert portrayed Vivian Banks on “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” from 1990-1993. She once told a story how Countess Vaughn (Moesha, The Parkers, Hollywood Divas) once auditioned for a role on “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” and was given the part. Now, before taping a show, the actors and actresses sit around and do what’s called a table read.

They literally sit at a table together and read the script aloud while the writers and executives and producers are there taking notes to decide what they want to change.

Anyway, Countess is there reading her lines and everyone is laughing. They love her. She’s perfect for the role and she’s excited about taping her episode. She goes home…and they never call her back. She doesn’t know what happened. Some time later, she runs into Janet and asks what happened. Janet explained that Will Smith was afraid she’d upstage him, so he had her dropped.

Nobody fought for Countess. When she got dropped, they just went on with their lives. Nobody even tried to contact her and say “Hey, look…this is what’s happening…”

Now before you say Janet is making up lies and is bitter, Countess alludes to this very story in an episode of Hollywood Divas:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04cTELr5Fxc

We regular folks aren’t used to be being treated like that. Imagine if you got a job and were told on your way home from the interview, “Actually we want somebody of a different race.” You’d sue, and win. But you can’t do that in Hollywood.

You can get fired from a movie for being too young (Stuart Townsend from “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring”).

You can get fired and have your scenes re-done by a replacement (Chloe Grace Moretz in “Bolt”).

You can spend months recording all your lines AS THE MAIN CHARACTER and get fired because the gender of the character changes (Holly Hunter in “Chicken Little”).

It doesn’t even matter. As I said, in Hollywood, you don’t matter. Very few people actually give a damn about you. Now take this a step further and imagine being a person of color in Hollywood. Those three people I just mentioned are all white. If they’ll do that to white folks, imagine what people of color endure.

Even your bandmates who you’ve grown up and were your best friends for ten years will leave you in the dust at the drop of a hat. Remember what happened to Destiny’s Child?

If you don’t, long story short, best friends Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, LaTavia Roberson and LeToya Luckett formed a band known as Destiny’s Child. After two platinum-selling albums, one day in early 2000, their music video “Say My Name” premiered with two new members, Farrah Franklin and Michelle Williams in the band, lip-synching over LaTavia’s and LeToya’s vocals.

There was no announcement. No press conference. No nothing. Just boom. LaTavia and LeToya didn’t even know they had been fired until, like everyone else, the video premiered. After a whole bunch of back and forth and “he said, she said,” it later came out LaTavia and LeToya were having disagreements with their manager, Mathew Knowles, the father of Beyoncé. He was the group’s manager AND the manager of the four singers individually.

LaTavia and LeToya fired Mathew as their personal managers due to financial reasons and for the way he was allegedly mistreating them. He responded by hiring two new singers and the show went on until Farrah Franklin quit due to Mathew’s alleged mistreatment five months later. Destiny’s Child told the public for years that Farrah couldn’t “handle” being famous, but the truth is she asked too many questions like why was Solange Knowles (Beyoncé’s younger sister) getting a cut out of the band’s paycheck as a backup dancer when she not once danced….until after Farrah quit. She also didn’t like that she, Michelle, and Kelly had to go to tanning salons to appear darker so Beyoncé would be the lighter one, she became sick overseas and nobody seemed to care, Mathew would literally yell at her and verbally abuse her….she couldn’t take it anymore so she left.

How would you feel if you quit a job due to unfair treatment, but everyone was told it was because you “couldn’t handle” the job?

Still think you could handle it?

Ok, big shot. Try this on for size.

Karan Ashley portrayed Aisha Campbell on “Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers” from 1993-1995. It’s a bit complicated, but the creator of the show was making millions of dollars from the success of the show, and the actors weren’t paid very much. Keep in mind, “Power Rangers” was one of the most successful shows in the US, and the actors’ likenesses for toys, video games, and all sorts of merchandise was being used…and they didn’t get a dime for it. In fact, Walter Emmanuel Jones portrayed Zack Taylor from 1993-1994 in 81 episodes, and lived with roommates the entire time. That’s how little he was paid.

When 20th Century Fox approached “Power Rangers” to make a movie, the actors were severely lowballed with how much they’d get paid. He, along with co-stars Thuy Trang and Austin St. John asked for more, they were rejected, so they quit. Karan Ashley, Steve Cardenas, and Johnny Yong Bosch (who is half-Korean and was told by producers to use his mother’s maiden name of Yong in his name to seem more Asian…because, I guess, nobody can tell you’re Asian unless your mother says so) were immediately hired as replacements and filmed the movie.

Anyway, in 1995, Karan Ashley wants to be let go from the show. Not only do they film for about 16hrs per day, but again, the pay is low. She’s told her character will be given a ten-episode story that will have her leave the series.

So the actors go on a much needed two-week break after 61 episodes, and when they return, Karan is told “Oh, we don’t need you anymore. You can go.” Just like that. No ten-episode story. No going-away party. No nothing. Boom. Gone. Bye. And the show just went on without her.

I could go on and on with similar stories.

Mo’Nique’s show being cancelled despite being the top-rated show on BET at the time of its cancellation.

Cree Summer being fired from playing Meg on “Family Guy” as she’s on her way to work.

John Amos and Esther Rolle being fired from “Good Times” after complaining the JJ Evans character was stereotypical, but the press being told they were envious of the character’s success.

Jamie Lynn Spears getting pregnant at 16 years old, so all the actors lose their jobs on “Zoey 101.”  

But I’m telling you these stories to say being famous is simply not fair.

You get fired from jobs for reasons that aren’t your fault. Promises are routinely broken. Your friends and co-workers don’t stick up for you. There’s no consistency. People say one thing and do another all the time. You’re lied to all the time. And nobody cares because it’s done to them, too.

Think of all the times you were treated unfairly or lied on or lied to or did a whole bunch of work for nothing…now imagine that happening pretty much every single day.

That, ladies and gents, is what it’s like to be famous.

[hard-satin]

Lunatic (8)

Masterlist

I took my mom into the kitchen and sat her down. There was no easy way to tell my mom that over the last month my friends and I have been running around Beacon Hill essentially fighting for our lives so I just came out with it.

  “Scott was bitten in the woods and turned into a werewolf. All the animal attacks in town are actually vengeful killings by an evil alpha werewolf. He’s the one who cornered us in the school tonight.” I let the words spill out of me. I cringed as I finished explaining. The truth made it sound like I was on drugs, there was no way she would believe me.

  “I knew something like this would happen if we stayed in this town.” My mom said holding her head in her hands.

  “Wait, what? You beleive me?” I asked concerned she was losing it too.

  “Unfortunately, I have every reason to.” She said her eyes glowing gold as she looked back up at me.

  “You’re a werewolf? How? I mean why am I not one too?” I was trying not to freak out.

  “You got that from your father. Not every offspring of a werewolf becomes as werewolf. I thought it would be better for you if you didn’t know and had a normal life. Fat lot of good that did me.” She told me as the glow faded from her eyes.

  “Did dad know?” I asked.

  “Yes, he had proof. That’s why we put up with him for so long before I got rid of him.” My mom admitted.

  “Got rid of him? Wait did you kill him?” I asked.

  “Yes.” She answered looking away from me again.

  “You bitch!” She winced at my words.

  “I wanted to kill that sad excuse for a man.” I told her, she looked back up realising I wasn’t really mad at her. This wasn’t going to be easy but we could figure this out.

 -

  Scott and Stiles were beyond pissed when I told them I had told my mom, but they changed their tune quickly when I explained what she was.

  “Okay, I forgive you. Now let's go.” Stiles instructed guiding us to his jeep.

  “Where are we going?” Scott asked as we packed into the car.

  “You’ll see.” Stiles told us as he hopped into the driver's seat. Scott and I shared a look but realised there was no getting out of whatever Stiles had planned. I slid back in my seat, letting Stiles take us away.

  Stiles parked at a campground and led us across the parking lot.

  “Where are we going?” Scott asked.

  “You’ll see.” Stiles assured us leading us further into the woods.

  “I really can’t be out here. My mom’s still freaked about what happened at the school the other night.” Scott told Stiles.

  “Yeah well your mom’s not the sheriff. Okay, there’s no comparison trust me.” Stiles said not slowing at all.

  “Can you at least tell me what we’re doing out here?” Scott begged.

  “Yes, when your best friend gets dumped…” Stiles started to explain.

  “I didn’t get dumped. We’re taking a break.” Scott corrected, cutting Stiles off. Stiles and I shared a knowing look before turning to Scott with looks of sympathy.

  “Fine. When your best friends girlfriend tell him they’re taking a break, you get your best friend drunk.” Stiles said holding up a bottle of whiskey. I reached for it enthusiastically.

  “Scott gets the first hit.” Stiles said pulling the bottle away from me and handing it to Scoot. Scott did take the first hit, but Stiles and I took almost all of the others.

 -

“Look on the bright side. So much has happened for us since you got bitten. You made first line, we’re suddenly popular, Stiles and I haven’t fought once. Really Allison leaving is just sort of the bad to balance out the good.” I told Scott giggling as I handed the bottle to Stiles.

“I thought the evil alpha was the bad to balance out the good.” Scott grumbled.

 “You know she’s just one girl. There are so many other girls in the sea.” Stiles told Scott starting to slur his words now that over half the bottle was gone.

  “It’s fish in the sea.” Scott grumbled.

  “Fish? Why are you talking about fish?” I asked giggling.

  “Yeah, I’m talking about girls.I love girls. I love em. Especially ones with strawberry blonde hair, green eyes, five foot three.” Stiles started to drift off topic.

  “Like Lydia?” Scott asked.

  “Yeah, exactly. Hey, how did you know I was talking about… about… What was I talking about?” Stiles asked a stupid grin crossing his face. I laughed at him collapsing onto the ground using his side as a head rest. I looked up as Scott noticing his sour expression.

  “Hey you’re not happy. Take a drink.” I instructed him holding up the bottle.

  “I don’t want anymore.” Scott grumbled turning me down.

  “You’re not drunk?” Stiles asked.

  “I’m not anything.” Scott said sullenly.

  “Maybe it’s like a werewolf thing.” I suggested taking another pull from the bottle, a dribble of whiskey trailing down my cheek and landing on Stiles shirt.

  “Hey.” Stiles groaned pulling at his shirt. I ignored him, not moving.

  “Maybe it’s like not needing your inhaler anymore. Maybe you can’t get drunk, as a wolf.” I said, thinking out loud. I went to take another sip as I started to hiccup. A stream of giggles leaving my lips at the sound. I only protested a little when Scott took the bottle away from me.

  “Am I drunk?” Stiles asked looking confused. I looked up at his face and another string of giggles left me.

  “You’re both wasted.” Scott informed us.

  “Yeah!” Stiles and I cheered high fiving each other before turning our hands to Scoot. He just signed and turned away.

  “Come on man, I know it hurts, I know it feels bad.” Stiles tried.

  “No you don’t.” I reminded him of his lack of relationship knowledge.

  “I do know this. As much as being broken up hurts, being alone is way worse.” Stiles said before bursting into laughter. I soon followed suit.

  “That didn’t make any sense.” I giggled into his side.

  “No, haha. I’m gonna have another drink.” Stiles said reaching for the bottle.

  Before he could grab it, or Scott could keep him from grabbing it. Some guy came out of nowhere and snatched the bottle off the ground.

  “The fuck man?” I asked sitting up. I got dizzy sitting up so fast i tipped back into Stiles. The both of us went sprawling back onto the ground.

  “Look at the little bitches getting their drink on.” The man said, his friend sneering at us behind his back.

  “Give it back.” Scott said threateningly.

  “What’s that little man?” The older kid asked looking at Scott.

  “I think he wants a drink.” His friend laughed from behind him.

  “I want the bottle.” Scott said a growl creeping into his voice.

  “Scott maybe we should just go.” Stiles said trying to deescalate the situation.

  “You brought me here to get me drunk. I’m not drunk yet.” Scott said. I shared a worried look with Stiles, but in our states we wouldn’t be much help to anyone. The two dicks laughed at Scott as he stood.

  “Give me the bottle.” Scott said stopping in front of them. They just shock their heads.

  “Give me the bottle of Jack.” Scott said growling, I watched as his craws appeared.

  “Scott.” Stiles said seeing it to.

  The man gave Scott the bottle back. Scott took it and threw it against a tree. I winced at the sound of breaking glass. Stiles quickly helped me to my feet. We leaned against each other as we chased after Scott on unsteady feet.

  “Okay please tell me that was because of the break up.” Stiles said as soon as we were out of earshot of those goons.

  “Or because tomorrow's the full moon.” I said hopefully. Scott didn’t answer either of us.

  Scott opened up the door for us. We both tried to crawl in at once, eventually collapsing into a tangle of limbs on the passenger seat. We wiggled around before realising there was really no way we would make our situation comfortable. I rested my head on his chest as he rolled down the window so I could stretch out my legs. Soon enough the alcohol and the comforting rhythm of Stiles heart lulled me to sleep.

 -

  When Stiles pulled into the school parking lot the next morning the first thing we saw was the sheriff's squad car.

  “He’d be in the office.” I told Stiles as we walked inside. We raced to the office. I sat down after I saw the sheriff talking to the school administrators. Stiles paced as we waited for them to come out. When the sheriff saw us he excused himself to come over.

  “Don’t you two have a test to get to?” He asked crossing his arms.

  “What’s going on? Did you find Derek yet?” Stiles asked ignoring him.

  “I’m working on it. You two go take your test.” Sheriff told us trying to get rid of us.

  “Dad you have to listen to me this is really important.” Stiles started to explain. I looked at Stiles with wide eyes wondering if he was going to come clean in the middle of the hallway.

  “Promise me you’ll be careful tonight. Especially tonight.” Stiles insisted.

  “I will.” Sheriff promised.

  “Seriously Sheriff, you’ve never dealt with anything like this before.” I tried to convince him.

  “I know Jamie. That’s why I brought in people who have. State detectives.” The Sheriff said pointing them out to us.

  “Go take your test.” The Sheriff told us. I knew the two added State detectives would be no help. I could tell Stiles did too, but I dragged him off before he could argue anymore.

 -

  We made it to class and sat in the back. Scott came in soon after, sitting behind Allison. Harris handed out the tests. Ten minutes later I had finished. I brought my test up, on my way back to my seat I saw Scott starting to freak out. I nudged Stiles as I took my seat beside him. We watched as Scott got up and ran out of the room. Stiles and I were up chasing after him.

  “Mr. McCall!” Harris yelled as Scott ran out.

  “Mr. Stilinski!” Harris yelled as Stiles followed him out.

  “The only person allowed to leave is Jamie. You two haven’t finished your tests yet.” Harris tried to call them back but we were already gone. Scott was nowhere to be seen. Stiles walked over to the backpack on the ground. I pulled out my phone and pressed Scotts speed dial. Stiles and I looked at each other before following the sound of Scott's ring tone. We followed it into the boy's locker room. The shower was running and Scott was standing underneath it.

  “What’s happening Scott, are you changing?” Stiles asked.

  “Panic attack.” I whispered in Stiles ears as Scott turned to us.

  “I can’t breath.” Scott panted under the spray.

  “Here use this.” Stiles pulled out Scott's inhaler and tossed it to him.

  “Good move.” I told Stiles as Scott took a puff of the inhaler and calmed down.

  “I was having an asthma attack?” Scott asked confused.

  “Nope a panic attack.” I told him sliding to the floor in relief.

  “But thinking you were having a asthma attack actually stopped the panic attack. Irony.” Stiles explained.

  “How did you know how to do that?” Scott asked looking between us.

  “Stiles started getting them after his mom died.” I told him as Stiles slid down next to me.

  “Not fun hun?” Stiles asked.

  “I looked at Allison and it was like someone hit me in the ribs with a hammer.” Scott said.

  “Yeah it’s called heartbreak.” I told him.

  “There’s about two billion songs written about it.” Stiles added.

  “I can’t stop thinking about her.” Scott complained.

  “You could think about this. You’re a werewolf and her Dad’s a werewolf hunter so it was bound to become an issue.” Stiles said trying to lighten the mood and failing.

  “Dude you got dumped, it’s supposed to suck.” I told him.

  “No, that’s not it. It’s like I could feel everything in the room, everyone's emotions.” Scott said trying to explain it.

  “It’s got to be the full moon.” Stiles told him.

  “That’s why we’ll lock you in your room later just like we planned.” I tried to reassure him.

  “I think we need to do a lot more than lock me in my room.” Scott said.

 -

  Coach came and got me when all the boys on the team were decent. I walked into the locker room and sat on the bench next to Stiles.

  “Alright everybody, due to the recent pinkeye epidemic, thank you Greenburg, the following players have made first line on a probationary basis.” Coach said. Stiles looked at me hopefully, I gave him a thumbs up.

  “Rodriguez, Taylor, and crap I can’t even read my own writing. What is that an S?” Coach asked looking down at the paper in his hands. Stiles hand squeezed my knee as we waited in anticipation.

  “No that’s definitely a B.” Coach said. Stiles face fell.

  “Alright. Rodriguez, Taylor and Bilinski.” Coach said. Stiles jumped up and cheered as I clapped for him.

  “Bilinski! Shut up!” Coach yelled at him. Stiles stopped cheering and sat down next to me but the goofy smile on his face never left. I clapped him on the back.

  “Stiles…” Scott started to say.

  “It’s Biles call me Biles or I swear to god I’ll kill you.” Stiles said cutting him off.

  “Another thing, effective immediately we’re switching to cocaptians. Congratulations McCall.” Coach told him. I smiled as I congratulated Scott before turning to Jackson and sending him a smug smile.

  “Dude can you believe this? You’re captain I’m first freaking line.” Stiles said still celebrating the giant win as we walked out of the locker room.

  “Who cares? It’s just a stupid title. I could practically smell the jealousy in there.” Scott said morosely.

  “Wait you can smell jealousy?” Stiles asked.

  “Yeah, it’s like the full moon turned everything up to ten.” Scott said.

  “Can you pick up on other stuff, like I don’t know desire?” Stiles asked. I looked up at him in confusion before noticing Lydia standing down the hallway.

  “Desire?” Scott asked confused.

  “Yeah, like sexual desire.” Stiles clarified.

  “Sexual desire?” Scott still wasn’t following, I rolled my eyes at my two moronic friends before pushing past them to go out to the field.

 -

  Stiles joined me on the field a couple minutes later. Scott wasn’t with him.

  “Scott’s talking to Lydia for you?” I asked.

  “Yeah how’d you know?” Stiles asked looking at me.

  “Best friends our whole lives remember. I know you two morons better than anyone.” I laughed at him.

  “Scott, hey. What happened?” Stiles asked Scott as he came over to join us on the bench.

  “What?” Scott asked sitting down.

  “What do you mean what? Did you ask her? Did she say anything. Did she say she liked me?” Stiles asked eagerly.

  “Yeah. She likes you. In fact, she’s totally into you.” Scott said as he strapped on his pads. Something was wrong. There was no way Lydia liked Stiles and Scott was acting weird. I didn’t like it. We hit the field for shooting lines. Scott got knocked flat on his ass. When Stiles stepped up to take his turn Scott shoved him back. I caught him before he fell. Watching with him as Scott knocked the defenders down before totally cheap shotting Danny. The team ran over to where Danny was lying on the ground. Stiles and I ran over to Scott who was panting on the side.

  “Dude what the hell?” I asked him.

  “What? He’s twice the size of me.” Scott tried to justify.

  “Yeah, but everybody loves Danny, now everyone’s going to hate you.” Stiles pointed out. I just glared at Scott before leaving him to his mood. I walked back over to check on Danny. Lydia ran up, her lipstick was smudged. I looked between her and Scott whose lips looked glossier than usual.

  “Shit.” I cursed under my breath putting the pieces together. I looked over to make sure Stiles hadn’t noticed. I jumped as I realised he was beside me. His face said it all.

 -

  Stiles and I raced home to pick up supplies for tonight as soon as practice ended. Stiles stopped by the pet store on the way over. I didn’t ask. I was sure whatever Stiles was cooking up, Scott more than deserved.

  We showed up a couple minutes later Stiles opening the door with his copy of Scott's house key. We all had keys made of each other's houses basically as soon as we found out Scott was a werewolf.

  “Scott?” Melissa called walking into the entryway.

  “Nope, just us.” Stiles said waving at her.

  “Key.” She said noticing the key in Stiles hands.

  “Yeah, we had some made.” I told her.

  “That doesn’t surprise me. Scares me, but doesn’t surprise me.” She said as Stiles dropped the duffle bag full of chains on the floor.

  “What is that?” Melissa asked. Stiles opened and closed his mouth trying to come up with an explanation.

  “School project.” I said jumping in.

  “Guys he’s okay right?” Melissa asked looking concerned.

  “What Scott? Yeah he’s great.” Stiles told her.

  “He just doesn’t talk to me. Not like he used to.” She admitted sparking sympathy within me for the woman who had looked after me when I was young.

  “He’s just had a bit of a rough week.” I tried to assure her.

  “Yeah. Well alright. You guys be careful tonight.” She told us fishing her keys out of her bag.

  “You too.” I smiled at her.

  “Full moon tonight.” She told us.

  “What?” Stiles and I asked together.

  “Full moon. You should see how the ER gets. It brings out all the nutjobs.” She told us. I took a deep breath, she didn’t know anything.

  “You know it’s actually where they came up with the word lunatic.” She told us before leaving for the hospital. I shared a worried look with Stiles before running upstairs to Scott's room.

  “Oh my god!” Stiles yelled as he flipped on the lights and noticed Scott sitting in his chair.

  “Dude, what the hell. Why are you sitting here in the dark like some kind of supervillain? Your mom said you weren’t home yet.” I told him unzipping the duffle bag that Stiles had dropped.

  “I came in through the window.” Scott answered darkly.

  “Okay, let me show you what we bought.” Stiles said crouching down next to me.

  “I’m fine. I think I’m just going to lock the door and go to bed early tonight.” Scott said glaring at us.

  “Are your sure because you’ve got this kind of serial killer look going on in your eyes.” Stiles said.

  “I’m fine. You two should go now.” Scott said a hint of a growl in his voice.

  “Alright we’ll go. Let me at least show you what we bought.” Stiles said ushering Scott over. I caught on to Stiles plan. I scooted back as Scott crouched down pressing myself against Stiles slipping the handcuffs that he had brought out of his jacket pocket.

  “You think I’m going to let you put these on and chain me up like a dog?” Scott said picking up the chains from the bag.

  “Actually I won’t be locking you up at all.” Stiles told him, a second later I lunged at Scott snapping the handcuffs around his right wrist and the radiator. I scrambled back as Stiles pulled me to my feet.

  “What the hell are you doing.” Scott yelled pulling at his restraints.

  “Protecting you from yourself.” I said.

  “And giving you some payback, for making out with Lydia.” Stiles told him.

  I sat down on Scott's bed as Stiles went back down stairs. He reappeared a couple minutes later with some water and a doggy dish. He filled it up and gave it to Scott, before turning back around and walking into the hallway.

  “I’m gonna kill you! I’m gonna kill both of you!” Scott yelled looking at Stiles retreating back before turning to me. I flipped him off.

  “You kissed her Scott! You kissed Lydia. That’s the one girl. You know I’ve been thinking it’s probably just the full moon. Tomorrow he’ll be back to normal and he won’t even remember what an unbelievable piece of crap friend you’ve been!” Stiles turned and yelled at him. I placed my hand on his shoulder trying to calm him down.

  “She kissed me.” Scott taunted.

  “What?” Stiles gasped. I pulled him into the hallway.

  “She kissed me, and she would have done a lot more. You should have seen the way she had her hands all over me. She would have done anything I wanted. Anything!” Scott screamed after us as Stiles slid down the wall in despair.

  Hours later Stiles and I were still sitting in the hallway. His back pressed against the wall, my head in his lap as we listened to our friend moan in pain as he pulled on his restraints.

  “Guys please let me out. It’s the full moon I swear.” Scott begged us again. I rolled over looking up at Stiles pained expression.

  “Please guys, it’s starting to hurt. It’s not just the full moon. It’s Allison breaking up with me. It’s killing me. I feel completely hopeless. Just please let me out.” Scott begged.

  “I can’t.” Stiles said swallowing hard. I sat up and wiped a tear from his cheek with his thumb. I rest my forehead against his slamming my eyes shut as Scott started screaming. I covered Stiles ears with my hands as he did the same for me.

  Suddenly the screaming stopped. I pulled away from Stiles.

  “Scott are you okay?” I asked. There was no answer.

  “Scott?” Stiles called out standing up and pulling me to my feet. We walked into the empty room Stiles handcuffs on the floor and the window open wide.

  “Oh fuck me.” I groaned. Scott had escaped.

 -

  Stiles and I ran to the jeep as fast as we could. We didn’t know where he would go so we ended up driving down the roads of the town until we saw flashing police lights. The sheriff was nowhere in sight. Stiles slammed on the breaks and we jumped out running around the scene looking for his dad.

  “Dad!” Stiles yelled checking every person in a police uniform.

  “Noah!” I called looking around before Stiles ran back to me a broken look on his face.

  “Stiles? Jamie? What are you two doing here?” Sheriff Stilinski asked.

  “Oh thank god.” Stiles and I said launching into Noah's arms.

[tabloidtoc]

Globe, April 26

You can buy a copy of this issue for your very own at my eBay store: https://www.ebay.com/str/bradentonbooks

Cover: Sex Monsters' Jail Hell -- Ghislaine Maxwell, Harvey Weinstein, Bill Cosby, Jeffrey Epstein

Page 2: Up Close & Personal -- Rob Lowe at a Santa Barbara beach, Cher during an outing in L.A., Pierce Brosnan hits the links in Hawaii

Page 3: Dolph Lundgren sips from a tiny espresso cup in Beverly Hills, Jennifer Garner has her hands full

Page 4: Russell Crowe is in a panic to peel 100 pounds so he won't look like a hippo waddling down the aisle when he weds svelte lover Britney Theriot -- the 5-foot-11 former Gladiator hunk now weighs 300 pounds after packing on weight to play loathed, sex-harassing jumbo Roger Ailes on TV's The Loudest Voice and he's lost 30 or 40 pounds since filming stopped, but he's still pretty big but the 58-year-old wants to lose a small mountain of flab before popping the question to the blond 30-year-old Louisiana real estate agent -- Russell is crazy in love with Britney and dead set on making her his next bride and she loves him just the way he is, but he's been ready to get back into fighting shape and now is the perfect time to ditch those bad diet habits -- Russell and Britney started dating over a year ago and have been loading on the PDA during tennis dates, where his bulging belly pops out from his T-shirt, and he's been ring shopping with plans to propose this summer, if not sooner, and has already launched a new fitness regime to shed 100 pounds and he definitely wants to be down to 200 pounds for the wedding, so he can walk to the altar looking his absolute best

Page 5: Kelly Clarkson has a lot weighing her down, like a demanding career and an increasingly ugly divorce, and now pals are urging her to kick back at a fat farm, whittle her waistline and shed some stress -- Kelly bragged about dropping 37 pounds last summer, but she's gained it all back and then some and now crushes the scales at 200 pounds -- the logical solution is for Kelly to check into a health and fitness farm to recharge and she can go and immerse herself in a healthy routine that will replenish her mind and her body, and fitness will be a large part of it to get her started on a healthier lifestyle -- Kelly's concerned pals may even plot an intervention if she won't listen to reason because she needs to focus on her own well-being, clear her mind and get away from this poison she's got going on with estranged husband Brandon Blackstock

Page 6: Real Housewife of Salt Lake City Jen Shah did what a girl had to do after her recent arrest by the feds for scamming folks out of a staggering $5 million: the unrepentant diva popped into a beauty salon for a quick refresh -- the 47-year-old visited her fave stylist Endo to get her hair silk-pressed before she pleaded not guilty at a Manhattan arraignment -- she and co-defendant Stuart Smith are accused of leaving a trail of hundreds of victims, many of them elderly, across the nation in long-running telemarketing tax preparation and website development schemes and many of the victims didn't even own computers and although New York City lawmen say the alleged fraud has been going on nearly a decade, Bravo did a thorough vetting of her that turned up no red flags when they first cast her for the Salt Lake City installment of the franchise, which will return for a second season -- Shah portrays herself as a wealthy and successful businessperson on TV, but at the virtual arraignment, her lawyer revealed much of her opulent image is bogus, claiming she doesn't own her $4 million home featured on TV and revealed she doesn't have any real property, but on TV the wife of Utah Utes coach Sharrieff Shah boasts about spending $50,000 a month and living in her mountaintop Shah Chalet -- she is free on a $1 million personal recognizance bond, but was given two weeks to raise $250,000 cash to secure her bail note and Jen and Smith face up to three decades behind bars if convicted

Page 7: Britney Spears' fight to make her own life decisions just took a bizarre twist, as her dad Jamie Spears wants her to pay millions in legal fees so he can continue controlling her money -- Jamie has filed legal papers in the struggle over his daughter's conservatorship, asking the court to make Britney foot the $3 million bill and she essentially would be paying her own father's lawyers to fight her in court

* Professional prankster Bam Margera blames his suicidal tendencies on piles of pills prescribed to him in rehab after he was booted from Jackass 4 -- he said he went to rehab for Adderall and alcohol as a condition for returning to work and emerged from the facility with a laundry list of mood-altering drugs -- he added this is what the doctors says he needs, and then it led to suicidal tendencies on all 18 medications he was on

Page 8: Ferociously feuding brothers Prince William and Prince Harry called a truce long enough to agree on a final design for a sculpture of their beloved dead mother Princess Diana -- the image of Diana is being created by sculptor Ian Rank-Boardley and set for unveiling on July 1, which would have been her 60th birthday and the memorial will have been signed off by William and Harry, meaning the clashing princes, who no longer talk, have agreed to the sculptor's plan and at least they didn't carry their feud into their mom's memorial -- the boys have agreed on the memorial but it's scary to think of the potential fireworks when Harry shows up for the unveiling this summer, without his pregnant wife Meghan Markle, if he does return to Britain

* Prince Albert of Monaco is blasting Prince Harry for his explosive CBS TV interview trashing Britain's royal family as racist and claiming their cruelty made his wife Meghan Markle suicidal -- Albert slammed Harry for airing his family troubles in public, saying he thinks that this type of public display of dissatisfaction, these types of conversations should be held within the intimate quarters of the family and it doesn't really have to be laid out in the public sphere like that -- he added that it did bother him and he can understand where they are coming from in a certain way, but he thinks it wasn't the appropriate forum to be able to have these kind of discussions

Page 9: Larry King's widow, Shawn, is battling with his namesake son over the late newscaster's $50 million fortune, and their ferocious legal war has tied up all the dough -- according to legal papers, creditors and kinfolk haven't seen a dime more than three months after his death as 59-year-old Larry King Jr. feuds with his 61-year-old stepmom Shawn, the talk show host's eighth wife, who was deliberately cut out of his will, but is demanding she be named executor, but meanwhile Larry Jr.'s legal eagles insist he should be in charge of the fortune so he can settle unpaid bills with the private medical staff that cared for Larry in his finals days, along with housekeepers and other workers but Shawn claims she is the rightful executor and the 2019 handwritten will is invalid -- King was divorcing Shawn when he died at the time of King's passing, Shawn was reportedly getting on well with Larry Jr. and was willing to come to an agreement with him over the estate but with these filings it looks like that's all over now and Larry Jr. maintains he has the final, legal will -- the 2019 will was signed by Larry and witnesses at his hospital bed and omitted Shawn and named his and Shawn's two sons Chance and Cannon, Larry Jr. and now-deceased children children Chaia and Andy as his heirs, however Shawn's lawyers insist an earlier 2015 estate document is still valid and the 2019 will violates two separate agreements between Shawn and Larry, and therefore has no legal effect whatsoever -- the fight could get drawn out for years

Page 10: Vain Vladimir Putin doesn't just rig his presidential elections, the pipsqueak dictator has even stooped so low as to have himself voted Russia's Sexiest Man, but the poll was rigged because no one wants to insult the leader who regularly fixes presidential elections so he gets more than 70 percent of the vote, and recently strong-armed the nation's lawmakers to allow him to run for president until 2036 and the pollsters would also not want to shade a man who's notorious for having his political rivals poisoned -- Putin is famous for trying to project a macho, he-man image and he poses for pictures bare-chested while taking part in rugged outdoor adventures, and the truth is he's suffering the "little man complex" by trying to show how big and strong he is physically when in reality he's the runt of Russia at five-foot-six, but it's really pathetic when he's so insecure that he has to rig a sexiest man poll

Page 11: Fears of a new spree of death and disaster triggered by the ghoulish Curse of the Pharaohs are spreading in Egypt after 22 mummies of ancient royalty were moved to a new museum -- Egyptian officials had no qualms making a big splash by parading the 3000-year-old corpses linked to Pharaoh Ramesses II on wheeled, golden barges along Cairo's streets to a new museum amid gun salutes and fireworks, but many are already blaming recent calamities, like the collapse of a building in the city and the costly blockage of the Suez canal by a grounded cargo ship, on disturbing the corpses of 18 kings and four queens -- the original curse follows the deaths after Pharaoh Tutankhamun's tomb was opened in 1923

Page 12: Celebrity Buzz -- Sebastian Stan flashes his buff bod in Beverly Hills by wiping his nose with his shirt (picture), no more Armie Hammer for projects with A-list superstars like Julia Roberts (he's been replaced by Dan Stevens in Gaslit) and Jennifer Lopez (he was replaced by Josh Duhamel in Shotgun Wedding), Kate McKinnon dropped out of the dramatic lead role in a series ironically called The Drop Out about real-life convicted scammer Elizabeth Holmes and she's been replaced by Amanda Seyfried, Paris Jackson claims she's book smart thanks to her superstar dad Michael Jackson who made her read books as a child

Page 13: Maisie Williams wears a see-through top while shooting the punk-rock series Pistols (picture), Calvin Klein eating in L.A. (picture), Lisa Vanderpump makes sure her dog quenches its thirst while she takes a call in West Hollywood (picture), ousted RHONY star Dorinda Medley is debuting a tell-all memoir this summer called Make It Nice

Page 14: Colin Firth wasn't the first choice to star in The Staircase based on the story of novelist Michael Peterson who was accused of killing his wife; Harrison Ford was, Michael Learned who played matriarch Olivia Walton on The Waltons is taking on a whole other kind of role as the grandma of Jeffrey Dahmer in Monster: The Jeffery Dahmer Story

* Fashion Verdict -- Greta Gerwig 3/10, Mindy Kaling 9/10, Dianna Agron 4/10, Zazie Beetz 2/10

Page 16: Cover Story -- shameless monsters' prison pity parties -- pervert Jeffrey Epstein's accused madam Ghislaine Maxwell is insisting she's being kept behind bars because she's a woman, movie monster Harvey Weinstein had no qualms forcing gals to have sex but now he's whining like a two-year-old that his trial was unfair and is demanding a new one

Page 17: Caged creep Bill Cosby shamelessly insists his sex predator trial was rigged as he desperately tries to overturn his 2018 conviction for drugging and sexually assaulting a woman more than 17 years ago, billionaire pedophile Jeffrey Epstein negotiated a sweetheart deal in 2008 for sex trafficking kids by pleading guilty to two felony prostitution charges in return for a slap-on-the-wrist 18-month sentence

Page 19: 10 Things You Don't Know About Dominic Purcell

* Former boy bander Lance Bass is ready to break open America's biggest gay nightclub -- Lance has signed the lease on a huge West Hollywood space in a district commonly known as Boystown and it is across the street from a restaurant where the NSYNC alum is a partner and a website announced the California venue will open later this year as the biggest gay nightclub in the U.S.A.

* Jada Pinkett Smith and her daughter Willow Smith have something in common: they've both been sexually attracted to women -- the duo dropped the bombshell during their online Red Table Talk show, when Jada, the wife of Will Smith, said she's swooned a lot over ladies in the past and Willow piped up she's had her fair share of swooning as well

Page 20: True Crime

Page 23: The Wheel of Fortune fandom revolted after a nitpicky rule prevented a contestant from winning big bucks -- David Pederson correctly answered Soul, Flounder, Cod and Catfish, but host Pat Sajak nixed it because of the word "and," which is not allowed under the game's crossword puzzle format and the next contestant correctly solved the puzzle, triggering an avalanche of complaints

* Dumped by wife Kim Kardashian, desperate Kanye West is plotting to steal Jennifer Lopez -- the 43-year-old rapper has secretly lusted after 51-year-old J.Lo for years, even during his seven-year marriage to Kim and now with his marriage on the rocks and Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer over, Kanye is ready to pounce because he wants the world to see he's still a big catch for the right high-profile girl and dating Jennifer would check all the boxes, especially as he's had a serious crush on her that goes way back -- while the pairing seems like a long shot, Kanye is already bragging about their secret connection and he and Jennifer have rubbed shoulders at numerous events in the past and share a string of mutual friends and Kanye thinks of Jennifer as a classy version of Kim

Page 24: Special Report: Me Too Movement Clobbers Boys' Club -- $5.5 million down the drain as careers go up in flames -- rich and powerful men suffered stinging setbacks sparked by the Me Too Movement, losing an estimated $5.5 billion and seeing their careers crater after being accused of forcing their twisted sexual cravings on helpless girls and women -- New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is caught in the middle of the latest brouhaha over bad behavior, celebrity chef Mario Batali was riding high before four female accusers took him down for sexual misconduct in 2017

Page 25: Fashion mogul Peter Nygard is charged with forcing girls as young as 14 into sex or pimping them to pals after luring them with promises of a fashion career at his $900 million company, movie director Brett Ratner is making a comeback after being clobbered with claims of sexual harassment and misconduct by six women including actress Olivia Munn in 2017, Guess fashion co-founder Paul Marciano was smacked with sexual assault and misconduct accusations in 2017 and made a $500,000 settlement with five women, conservative newsman Bill O'Reilly left FOX News' top-rated The O'Reilly Factor in 2017 after leaked reports revealed the network secretly settled five sexual harassment lawsuits on his behalf and one was for a whopping $32 million

Page 27: SNL comic Pete Davidson has finally moved out of his mom's basement at age 27 -- the string-bean Romeo romanced a host of hotties, like Cazzie David, Margaret Qualley, Kate Beckinsale, Kaia Gerber and Ariana Grande, while crashing in the basement of the $1.3 million Staten Island home he shared with his mother Amy -- he previously described his boy cave, saying he has a basement that's his that's like an apartment, so he lives underneath her -- the move is probably applauded by his current girlfriend Phoebe Dynevor, the star of Bridgerton

* Superstar quarterback Aaron Rodgers isn't just thrilled to be a trial host on Jeopardy!, he's already looking to score the late Alex Trebek's gig full-time -- the Green Bay Packers QB has been a longtime fan of the quiz show and displayed the smarts he gained at academic powerhouse Cal-Berkeley by winning the 2015 Celebrity Jeopardy! by beating out Shark Tank's Kevin O'Leary and U.S. Senator Mark Kelly -- behind the scenes, Aaron says to pretty much anybody who will listen that he really wants the permanent job and he's confident the audience will love him and the contestants on the show will respond to him and the buzz word inside Sony Studios is the 37-year-old passer is more in the running than people think and his main competition is Mike Richards, the show's producer, who's determined to transition into the host role but Sony will have the final say but when it comes to having a famous name, and one associated with sportsmanship, Aaron has the edge and his team is campaigning hard to get the job on a permanent basis -- Sony bigwigs are expected to name a permanent host in August -- meanwhile, Aaron and his fiancee Shailene Woodley spend nights watching Jeopardy! and other quiz shows and they've both watched game shows since they were kids, which makes them kind of perfect for each other and Aaron has Shailene's full support and she's hoping he gets the full-time gig too, so she can hang out backstage

Page 28: Health Report

Page 30: Daryl Hannah's marriage to Neil Young has hit a rocky patch, because she's still mooning over ex-lover John F. Kennedy Jr. more than two decades after his death -- Daryl's obsession over the dashing son of President John F. Kennedy has been a thorn in Neil's side for some time and it's been the elephant in the room from the beginning and Neil's had just about all he can take but Daryl's still mourning John's passing and confides that he was the one that got away and she has scrapbooks of her time with him and often spends hours poring over them, remembering the good times they had and she mentions every birthday, every anniversary and never hesitates to tell their friends what a charming man he was -- sometimes Neil feels like there are three people in this marriage and he is close to giving Daryl an ultimatum to end her obsession with the past or get gone -- Daryl and John began seeing each other in 1988 when she was still with Jackson Browne and John was hooked up with girlfriend Christina Haag and in 1992, John flew to Daryl's rescue after her ugly split with Browne but four months after his mom Jackie Kennedy Onassis died in 1994, JFK Jr. dumped Daryl because she was too self-absorbed -- JFK Jr. died in a plane crash with wife Carolyn Bessette and her sister Lauren in 1999 -- Daryl wed Neil in 2018 after dating for four years and Daryl insists she loves her life with Neil and they have so much in common, but not a week goes by that she doesn't think of John and what a great guy he was, but she should learn to stifle it if she wants to keep her husband happy

Page 32: Grey's Anatomy has made star Ellen Pompeo filthy rich, but the TV doc wants more -- Ellen, who's played Dr. Meredith Gray since 2005, is angling for another fat payday to stay with the hospital drama, even though ratings are plunging and if she's to sign for two more years, Ellen wants a raise from her current $20 million to $25 million per year and her team isn't budging as they negotiate with Disney/ABC and it's going down to the wire because to renew the show and bring back all the actors, they really need Ellen's deal to be done and it's been a very drawn-out negotiation with everybody threatening to walk if they don't get what they want and Ellen is a tough negotiator and that's what made her TV's highest-paid actress -- Grey's Anatomy's ratings have dropped to their lowest point ever during the current 17th season and producers don't think they'll bounce back without Ellen because Ellen's generated a lot of press for the series this year and was an industry leader in helping TV dramas get back to work amid COVID-19 and besides that, she was instrumental in luring former cast members like T.R. Knight and Patrick Dempsey back for guest appearances and it's hard to put a price tag on that, but Ellen is willing to commit to two or three more years if they meet her price -- the bosses have a shot at getting to the 20-season mark if they show Ellen the money

Page 36: L.A. Sheriff Alex Villanueva's refusal to reveal the cause of Tiger Woods' crippling car crash has triggered outrage and cries of a new cover-up -- almost immediately after Tiger blew a curve and drove his SUV straight off a California highway, Villanueva ruled the incident was an accident, without any drug tests for the golf legend, who is a recovering addict, then the lawman declared he knows why Tiger crashed, but won't reveal it, saying there's some privacy issues on releasing information on the investigation and he'll only do a full release on all the information regarding the accident if Tiger waives the privacy and he also added he still considers the wreck purely an accident, saying you either have an accident or you have a deliberate act and this was an accident

Page 38: Mixed martial arts fans are used to brutality and blood, but even they were left trying to hold down their dinners when middleweight fighter Khetag Pliev's finger was ripped off as he battled in the cage -- Pliev shockingly lost his left ring finger while struggling with Devin Goodale at the Cage Fury Fighting Championships in Philadelphia -- Pliev said in the second round, he caught his glove with one hand and held it and he felt his finger snap and he kept pulling his glove and his finger snapped and they kept fighting and when the second round was finished, he saw his bone was out in the open and he wanted to keep fighting, but the doctor saw and stopped the fight -- at that point, a huge search was launched for the missing digit and it was found in Khetag's glove -- his opponent was awarded a TKO, and Khetag went to the hospital where the finger was reattached -- Khetag says he still intends to contest the decision, claiming his opponent illegally grabbed and held onto his glove

Page 40: Straight Talk -- Lori Loughlin's daughter is getting slammed for her selfish attitude, because even after her guilty, fat-cat parents were thrown in the slammer in the college admissions bribery scandal, she still just doesn't get it -- spoiled Olivia Jade Giannulli has been whining on social media about having a hard time over being publicly shamed after her rich ma and pa agreed to fork over $500,000 in bribes to a fixer to get her and sister Isabella Rose into the University of Southern California as crew team recruits

Page 44: Lily Allen lied about having a hip replacement to avoid fessing up about getting liposuction to reduce her caboose and she admitted to the fib on Instagram saying she had lipo on her bum many years ago but when her boyfriend at the time asked about her scars, she said she was so embarrassed so she said it was from a hip replacement

* William Shatner confesses to smoking pot, saying there was a time that he smoked weed when he'd go to a party but he hasn't done it in quite a while and he doesn't know why, because he's all for it -- he does use CBD oil spray from cannabis plants, saying it's magical the way it makes his aches and pains vanish

Page 45: Priscilla Presley is still feuding with daughter Lisa Marie Presley over her romance with Michael Jackson, 27 years after Lisa Marie wed the King of Pop behind her mom's back -- furious Priscilla believes Michael began grooming Lisa Marie when she was 16 because he had a twisted obsession with her father Elvis -- a decade after the three met for dinner, Michael secretly whisked 26-year-old Lisa Marie off to the Dominican Republic for a quickie wedding in 1994, just 20 days after her divorce from first husband Danny Keough -- the bizarre courtship began in 1984 when Michael called out of the blue and invited Priscilla and Lisa Marie to dinner and Priscilla thought it was strange that a 25-year-old man was interested in a 16-year-old girl and she felt her daughter was being manipulated -- four years later, Lisa Marie tied the knot with musician Keough in a secret Scientology ceremony, also not telling her disapproving mom and Lisa didn't want trouble on her big day, so she decided not to invite her mother, but just hours before the ceremony she had a change of heart and invited her and Priscilla was not happy, but she rushed over and she warned her daughter never to do anything like that to her again -- six years later, Lisa Marie divorced Danny and Michael moved in, whisking her to the altar without her mom knowing and Priscilla recalls someone came in and said Lisa Marie got married to Michael Jackson and she said that Lisa Marie wouldn't do that to her, but sure enough it was on the news -- at the time, Michael was battling drugs and charges he molested a 13-year-old boy and Lisa Marie divorced him less than two years later, but her mom was deeply wounded and it broke her heart

* Sharon Stone is flying blind in Hollywood after her agent dropped her, and she may quit acting for good -- Sharon reveals she's been let go by her talent agent, saying she's really hard to cast and there aren't roles for people her age and she's somewhat difficult and she claims she may not find a new agent and her career is over

[safehavenavengersrp-blog]

June/July Sit Rep

After stepping out of a noisy club, Steve fell into conversation with Carol Danvers, Aeron Pike, and Gamora. Carol flew her and Steve to her apartment above the Statue of Liberty, they’ve talked about him taking on more paperwork and responsibilities to relieve more of Carol’s duties. Aeron led Steve to her favorite bar where they’ve had a conversation about being a hero. He plans to walk her back to her apartment to make sure she makes it back safely. Steve has also had a conversation with Carol where she was trying to get drunk at a bar and he has convinced her to go with him to get ice cream. He’s hoping she’ll let off steam that way. Gamora and Steve have taken a walk to Central Park and are talking about their different backgrounds and how it shaped them. She also went to see Hank McCoy to discuss Peter's absence. She's also gone up onto a roof top because Uatu was staring at her.

Both Steve and Ellie have met up with Bruce at the park, Steve divulged his latest disappearance to Bruce while attempting to ease Bruce’s mind about being followed by Ross’s men. Ellie confessed her long time admiration of Bruce because they “both contain monsters.”

Hank McCoy introduced himself to Ellie after she finished her monthly “release” in one of SHIELD’s containment cells. He’s offered to help figure out the source of her and her father’s powers. Ellie also met Dr. Stephen Strange in the park after he appeared to her in astral form after she was poorly attempting to stitch up her leg after an injury. The meeting hasn’t been going well but they are discussing plans to bring Ellie to meet a friend of Stephen’s who will be discreet as she helps stitch Ellie up. Ellie has also had a heart to heart with Jami in the park.

Ellie put herself in a pickle with Alec Kiernan by asking to sketch him for a school project. He is trying to get to know her and she is hesitant to tell him more. She also met Grant Ward while attempting to locate a missing ball from her father’s office that had been converted into the conference room Grant was waiting in.

Aeron continues to work on her sobriety as well as begin her steps to becoming a X-men, stepping down from her job at Stark Industries, to return to Horace’s shop where she begins to take on a larger role in her mentor’s business. Aeron regularly meets with Hank for accountability meetings, where with much struggle, she begins to open up and gain a confidence in the blue man. As the crime in the city escalates, Aeron finds herself spending more of her evenings protecting a perimeter around her home and work. Her encounters with crime brings her toe to toe with legends like Captain America, who has some apprehensions to Aeron’s aggressive nature. As well as lesser known souls like Alec, who Aeron has grown to mistrust after their encounter. Aeron is at the crossroads, will she learn to overcome her addiction and past to take on her hero status or will she falter and lean back unto her old ways.  Beast, accompanied by the rookie X-Man, Aeron AKA Animus, recently received intelligence from SHIELD regarding Hydra activity. They flew to Mexico to infiltrate and investigate the potential of Hydra experimenting with mutant growth hormone. Dr. McCoy was also reunited with his old friend and comrade, Bruce Banner. He reaffirmed Banner’s commitment to their clandestine organization known as the Illuminati.  Helmut Zemo had an unwelcome visitor in his office in the form of Uatu the Watcher who revealed that he was there to watch the Baron because he was important to coming events, a line which stroked Zemo’s ego.

Pietro Maximoff ran into the sinister Daken, who introduced himself as a fan. Jessica Jones has decided to go visit the Avenger and Agent Ward has been assigned Jami Newhardt as a partner to keep an eye on him.  Jack Romulus and Mar-Vell are living in Tyler’s old house, where Mar is trying to help Jack gain a more finite control over his powers than he had before, trying to wean him off of the mysterious elixir Thanos has been giving him to control it. Jack accidentally met the young SHIELD agent Jami Newhardt, who he found to be surprisingly nice for a SHIELD agent. At present Mar has begun to see cause for serious concern for all inhabitants of Earth (and perhaps beyond) and he intends to go out and start trying to warn people as best he can, within the confines of his personal ethical code. Jack knows that Thanos has some sort of strange plan he wants to enact, since they share a strong mental connection, but Thanos has managed to keep it hidden from him so far and Jack isn’t really inclined to pick at it yet. He is working on improving his mastery of his powers through Mar-Vell’s methods, although he resents the whole Karate Kid vibe they have going a little bit, and he’s also looking to see where he can fit in now that they’ve essentially come to a new world…

A new world where everything feels just slightly  different than it did before. Neither Jack nor Mar is convinced that this is exactly the same one they left, which is quite puzzling for Mar, with his enhanced cosmic awareness.