#pls come back anon

[slimybeth69]

Hiiiiiiiiiiiiii you are so sassy and funny and I was wondering what your big 3 was for astro lol sorry INVASIVE but curious :D

not invasive at all!

I had to find out because I constantly forget so here they are but here we go-

My sun sign is Cancer, my Moon sign is also Cancer and my rising sign is Virgo....

Tell me what this means!!!!!

[lxnarphase]

Slutty Sukuna anon here. Fratboy!Sukuna would most definitely watch the way girls grind up on his fratbros during parties and would try the same with you cause he's that fucking desperate. You start giggling cause he looks fucking stupid and he shoots you a glare then pulls you upstairs so that he can show you what those hips really do. The night ends with him riding you like a professional whore and you're like "I didn't know you've done this kinda stuff before" and he trys to deny it but hes throwing it back better than any pornstar you've seen and now you know what he means when he says his ass is better at twerking in the bedroom LMAOOOOOO I CAN'T HE'S SUCH A THOT

SUKUNA AS THE BOTTOM OH YM GOD

Yes YES YESSSS I think I talked about sukuna twerking before and idc what anyways he can TWERK OKAY. HE KNOWS A LIL BIT HE GOT A FAT ASS AND STRONG HIPS HE BETTER KNOW HOW TO USE IT

but him on top of you, riding you like a professional whore…he can’t even keep a smile or smirk or grin or ANYTHING bc he’s so embarrassed with the way you look up at him with those soft and cute eyes that look like they’re in love because you ARE, YOU HAVE THEE SUKUNA, KING OF THE FRAT, RIDING YOUR COCK SO GOOD YOU CANT STAY WUIET NO MATTER HOW MANY TIME HE SCOLDS YOU FOR BEING TOO LOUD !!!

[httpiastri]

Can we talk about paul and his bare backk pleaaase

i fear that i have watched this video too many times to be considered sane….. (me? insane for him?? never)

like obvs we've gotten paul muscular back content before but i swear to godddd this did something special to me…. idk if you know but back muscles (esp upper back) are actually my favorite thing and the fact that he looks like this is just so 🫠🫠 the way they move and contract when he moves? i cant? anD WHY ARE HIS LATS SO BIG LIKEEE I WAS THINKING THEYRE ALRIGHT BUT THEN THE END OF THE VID COMES AND I SEE THE FULL LENGTH WND STRENGTH OF THEM AND I JUST ?? HOW?!?!? 😓😓😓 buttt how is it fair that i cant feel his muscles under my hands? why am i not allowed to draw along the lines with my fingers? press a few fleeting kisses on them maybe???

[elliesglock]

What interview? Someone send the link 😭 https://www.tumblr.com/elliesglock/774037729063387136/the-tension-in-that-media-day-was-crazy-i-dont

[suusoh]

would be funny, if Nina had a gf, and due to Johan's tendency to see him and nina as the same, he'd drop by casually, disguised or not, while nina is away. What's wrong? Nina is him and he's Nina! There's no complications with kissing him! You're basically kissing his sister! (Eaten ask)

your brain anon...........like EXACTLY. exactly. God this is sooo hot and weird which is johan's brand. He is karl marxing the fuck out of his sister's girlfriend. What do you mean "meet my girlfriend"? You mean meet OUR girlfriend. right? (tw: nonconsensual kissing, yandere)

Could you imagine bidding your girlfriend, Nina, goodbye after she spent the whole evening at your place? You whine and beg her to stay longer, clinging onto her, but she rolls her eyes playfully and insists she has to go.

She gives you a loving parting kiss on your lips, then plants even more– on your nose, cheeks, and finally your forehead– before she reluctantly pulls away. Any more, she jests, and she won’t be able to leave.

"You know I hate leaving you like this," she laughs softly. "But don't worry, I'll make up for today once my exams are over. Okay?"

She gives you one last final kiss before finally leaving, waving at you as she walks down the street.

You sigh and close the door, already missing her.

You really love Nina, but sometimes it feels like she doesn’t have much time for you. You understand she has her exams, a part-time job, and aikido training, which doesn’t really leave much left for you. Still, you can’t help but feel a bit greedy, wishing she’d at least dedicate a part of her to you. You're her girlfriend, after all.

You sigh one last time. No use.

She’s already spread too thin, and you know if you tell her your concern, she’ll worry and try to double her efforts to make time for you. No way in hell are you going to give her any more stress in her life. Although today was just half a day together, you're grateful. Even if it left you unbelievably craving, aching for more…

You hear a soft knock on your door. Is it Nina? Did she forget something? Oh, your prayers have been answered. You just wanted one more second with her. You open the door immediately, an excited smile on your face.

"What did you forget this ti-"

"Missing me already?"

You freeze, standing dumbfounded. In front of you is not, in fact, your girlfriend, but a tall, blonde man smiling softly at you.

"I'm… I'm sorry. I don't— Do I know you?" you ask, trying to stay cool. He must have the wrong house to ask something like that so proudly. You’ve never met him before.

His smile doesn’t falter at your question. He continues looking at you, his eye contact unwavering.

"You do." he answers, calmly leaving no explanation, still smiling softly.

You’re getting nervous. He keeps staring and smiling at you. You try to get a good look at him. Is he a mutual friend? An old classmate? A person you pissed off once? You’re at a blank. Though… the more you look at him, the more you notice how similar he looks to… to your… what the hell.

Why does he... look... a bit like Nina?

No. You chalk it off. He just has blonde hair and blue eyes, and the fact you’re missing your girlfriend terribly doesn’t help. But even then, their facial features strike a matching resemblance. It’s a bit uncanny.

You let out a nervous laugh and smile sheepishly at him. "Look, I’m really racking my brain here. Have we met before? I’m really sorry if I can’t recall…"

You give him his cue to introduce himself, to remind you who he is, to be offended at you forgetting—anything! He’s just standing there, staring down with that same smile. Your eyes dart around, seeing if this is a prank. A small uneasy pit forms in your stomach.

A beat passes by. You still wait for his reply.

You can't help but start feeling creeped out. Stupid. Always ask who’s there before opening the door. Just ask him what he wants with you and get it out of the way.

"Hey uh, I-"

He kisses you, his lips softly crashing against yours, hands gently cradling the back of your neck. He’s not forceful, but his hold is steady. You squirm and try to break free, but he quickly shushes you and holds you closer, entrapping your lips in another long kiss.

You think of quickly think of biting him, but he gently pulls away right before you can go through with the thought. His hands come up to tenderly cup your face, his thumb softly brushing against your cheek as he looks at you.

Your vision begins to blur from your tears, your legs wobbling from the fear of the situation.

"I don't know you!" you practically scream out. Your desperation kicks in as you continue to panic. "P-Please. please. please. I'm sorry. I don't know you. I don't… I don't… please… I-."

You cry softly, pleading with him. He just continues cradling your face in his hands, looking at you with that godawful eerie smile. He leans back in, slowly murmuring,

"Shh…"

He continues peppering kisses all over your wet cheeks. "You do know me," he whispers, kissing your nose. "And you know I need to make it up to you," he says, kissing your forehead. He hums softly and leaves another final chaste kiss on your lips.

"And you know I hate leaving you like this."

[causenessus]

i'm cooking up suna ideas on the bus

[umem1ya]

"I adore you // love you too baby" YOU COOKED SO GOOD ACTUALLY, love the characterization details in ur works!!

HEY ANON LOL DO YOU WANT ME TO CRY??? DO YOU WANT TO SEE ME CRYING MY EYES OUT?!?!

but hm hi. 🤚 hello thank you for speaking about that hello hiiii 🤚 can I talk for a second about it pls 🤚

about endo never truly learning the idea of being lowkey about anything. about him being intense in every aspect of his life, about loving and being infatuated so deeply by everything he even dares to care about.

about how being in a secret relationship would hold him back so much. and he'd be pissed about it but he would understand it so well because he doesn't want to give up on fighting and also he doesn't want to give up on you. so it's whatever, he will try it. for the sake of having fun without hurting what you have, he will try it.

I wrote that part specifically by the idea of his s/o being aware of who the relationship is with. you gotta know that he adores the ground you walk, that he's obsessed with being around you, just like he's with other things, and that just means he loves you. its kinda fucked up. but when he says those stuff you can only hear "I love you" and honestly, takes a while to get used to it, but what else can you ask?

it's about the idea of helping him through it too, you know? constant reminder that when the infatuation is gone, there's still love. when the fights aren't fun or when shit happens, things get messy, there's still your love. :)

[enchanthings-a]

Hi ♡

I was wondering if it was okay to ask for some twilight dividers for a fanfic? I’d totally credit you as well (idk if that’s necessary but I’d do it anyway lol) thank you if that’s possible and sorry if it isn’t

‧₊˚ ✩°｡⋆♡ ⋆˙⟡♡ ⋆˙⟡♡⋆｡°✩˚₊‧

hi! sure, here are some twilight dividers! I've made some that are more straightforward, with the icons from the books, and some that are more inspired by. I would also really appreciate it if you would credit me when using. hope these help!

◦˚~ TWILIGHT DIVIDERS ~˚◦

Info: these were all created by me. please reblog/like if use!

[princeblue]

Husband Femya asker here , Femya is so the man in the relationship, she wears the pants (literally), Muichiro is the wife, Muichiro is so malewife but in the way that Femya asks him to make dinner and he accidentally burns the water on the stove because he forgot about it but he tried and Femya is proud of him for trying

Anon ur so fucking big brain, muichirou may be the most failhousewife there is but gawt dawum if he doesn’t try for his beautiful husbandwife who brings him home origami paper from town and kisses his cheek (they have to renovate the kitchen because he blew it up trying to make toast)

[adamprrishcycle]

okay, sorry to keep bothering you, still on my trb reread and I get to the point where adam and blue are sitting in monmouth alone and blue tells him not to kiss her because she’s young and sensible and ronan comes in and sits down with them and asks blue if she wants to hold the bird in his hands

she asks ronan what the birds name is and:

“adam answered witheringly, ‘chainsaw’” because it’s a dumb name and he’s annoyed he’s just been cockblocked

and then it made me think of adam tracking down and bringing chainsaw back to ronan’s body during greywaren because he knew how devastated ronan would be if she was lost and now i’m like

the circles 😭

You’re not bothering me at all! I live to discuss anything trc related. Also you’re made me reeeeally want to reread trb 😵‍💫

You know what, I’d never looked at that scene like that before, but that’s so funny. I don’t care what anyone says, the raven cycle is a rom com TO ME

also THE IMPORTANCE of Adam and his interactions with Ronan’s dream things is never gonna be something I can be normal about

[specific-dreamer]

plzzz expand on ur peril from pauls pov

i wanted to answer this as soon as i saw it but i had to practice self control and finish my exam but trust ur now my favorite anon <333

under the break actually bc boy am i yappin

they met the first time in 7th grade and paul, was already a little off kilter from the rest of the boys in his grade, he had yet to start being interested girls but his dad says it’s nothing to worry about that it’ll come in time. but then he meets darry and it’s like something clicked. paul doesn’t get it at first but there’s something in him that’s desperate for darry’s attention. despite his best efforts they’re acquaintances at best but the first time darry says hi to him in passing paul as the largest grin on his face for the rest of the day

the start of their friendship is in 8th grade when they’re at football tryouts. funnily enough they didn’t become friends over football but over late math homework. during their 15 minute break, paul had been struggling and on the verge of ripping his hair out and darry came over took one look at the assignment and said it was easy as hell. if it had been anyone else paul would’ve fought them right then and there, but it was darry. and instead his cheeks reddened and his stomach started doing the same flips it always does when he’s embarrassed himself. against his better judgment he asks darry for help if he’s so smart and somehow they blow through the hw with 5 minutes of their break to spare.

it’s in 9th grade when paul realizes people don’t usually get so giddy at the thought of their best friend. he realizes this when darry offhandedly asks if he wants to go to their schools winter formal together since neither of them had dates. it’s the quickness of which he says yes that paul thinks to himself that maybe something isn’t right. that maybe there's a reason he hadnt already asked a girl out to the formal. he pushes the thought away just as quickly though because it’s their last yr of middle school and they need to get ready for their high school football team tryouts

everything clicks for paul in 10th grade. it’s their first year of high school and paul just got the keys to his car and his dad asks where he was gonna go first. the expected answer (the answer paul gives) would be to pick up beverly and go to the drive in. instead the first thing he thinks of is picking up darry so he could see the excited gleam in his eyes (a look paul just simply adores and wouldn't mind seeing for the rest of his life) and then the two would go for what would be the start of many joyrides. that’s when it clicks for paul. the other guys his age all had girls to pick up when they first got their cars. they were all excited to take their girls to the drive in or even to the top of some hill for privacy. their girl was always their first thought. but paul’s was of darry. paul's first thought was always of darry. paul is in tenth grade when he realizes he has a crush on his best friend (he does not go driving the same day he gets his keys, instead he goes in his room and sobs)

(he sobs at the realization that it’s not normal to get so excited at your best friends laugh. it’s not normal to be 16 and have yet to bring a girl home as more than a friend. it’s not normal that his favorite part of the week is when he and darry have sleepovers and get to bare their souls to each other from the comfort of paul’s locked bedroom door. it’s not normal for his stomach to do flips when darry grabs the wrong shirt the morning after their sleepovers. its not normal for him to hope darry doesnt realize it the wrong shirt, so he can darry his clothes more often. it’s not normal for his palms to get a little sweaty when darry sits too close. its not normal for his chest to get tight whenever darry leans over to whisper something. it’s not entirely normal for paul to immediately look for darry’s approval after he scores a goal or to immediately look for darry in a crowded room. it’s not normal that they hug more often than the other guys he knows. it’s not normal that almost every waking thought he has is of darry and when he'll see him next.)

it’s in eleventh grade that paul realizes he’s in love with darry. that he probably has been this whole time. the feeling clicks when they’re on one of their joyrides to just outside of tulsa. paul realizes he’s in an absolute, pure, and wholesome kind of love (like the kind of love that’s mentioned in all of darry’s favorite songs) when darry’s standing in the passenger seat and the wind ruffles his hair. he realizes he’s in love when he can’t take his eyes off of darry because the sun beaming just behind darry kind of looks like a halo and that must mean darry’s an angel. and paul can’t think of anything truer because darry could very well be an angel. he’s beautiful and handsome and kind and amazing and just overall perfect, a kind of perfect that's rare in tulsa, just like an angel would be. paul can’t seem to tear his eyes away from darry until the car swerves and darry nearly falls (paul makes a point to hold darry’s ankle whenever he stands up from then on).

paul’s in 12th grade and just 1 hour away from graduating when he gets his heart broken.

[ellzilla]

I am so sorry for posting old art but I find it so funny that I used to draw RLJ in mainly orange and made him bake a lot back in the 2018 ask blog days, considering what I'm doing with his character now.

I wonder if that part subconsciously stayed with me into the rewrite and manifested into malewife baker Jack Grossman or if it's just a coincidence lmao.

[chasedeys]

my unpopular opinion apparently is top joe

noooo don't worry i get you 😭 holding your hands very tenderly and saying i get uuuuuuuuuu, and i am. so thrilled. that u get me. would u like to get married. jk jk i plan to die alone <3 ANYWAYS because you mentioned top joe and im quiet literally in the process of writing top joe i will share my writing in this ask <3

it's the joeteemarr fic under the cut btw lmaoooo when will this fic be done oh my god

you know what's hilarious is that. this is the sex part (every part of this fic is the sex part oh my god its supposed to be pwp tf happened). but this is just straight up YAPPING. the hell. BUT ANYWAY THEY DO HAVE SEX OKAY 😭 there is actual top joe action joe actually DOES fuck tee 😭 i just haven't written it yet....and like. i haven't really proof read anything so if there's any mistake in these screenshots look away i beggggg and like this part was written a mix of the exact night before and immediately after my shit exam so you can imagine the amount of cortisol in my body as i typed this shit out. might possibly have blacked out when i typed it actually wow.

i have written fucking 5.4k of this fic oh my godddd what the ever living hell.............and it's nowhere near finished. i have no idea how long it's going to be. it's literally supposed to be just pwp. porn without fucking plot. 3 parts. one of joe sucking tees dick. two of tee fucking ja'marr. and three of joe fucking tee. three because tee had three touchdowns for joe. why the hell is there 5k and counting. it's not going to be double digits but like. why the fuck is it 5k already. it's literally just smut but all of the sudden there was FEELINGS jesus. im blaming. the narrative. the fucking narrative 😭.

feel free to ask all abt it btwww like idk give me a random word and if there actually is the word and i'll give you the paragraph lmaooo this is mostly bc i don't know when i'll be able to finish it 😭 my schedule is getting shit packed fuckkk my life. or just ask me random shit about it i'll share a random part of it anyway i have no concept of self restraint <3 literally just ask me to share the title or the cover that i have already edited for some reason and i will happily 😭😭

[the-original-skipps]

IM SO GLAD IM NOT THE ONLY ONE THAT THOUGHT SUO WAS A RICH KID

Like wdym he drinks all kind of tea? Wdym he wears silk?? Like he’s def rich and he can buy tea cakes from all over the world. He’s definitely rich.

Now think abt bf!Suo who spoils you, telling you to spend his money however you want as he slide his credit card into your hands like a smooth fucker and watch you drag him around into different stores to buy whatever you want and him watching you try on the different outfits. And he’s observant too, he’ll probably buy you whatever you laid your eyes on for more than a second which can probably get annoying since you’ll have gifts on your doorsteps everyday or if you live together, gifts all around the house for you to find…everyday

Like he’s the type to refuse to let you pay for the bill and if you try to fight for it…good luck to you. Speaking of dates, he would typically take you to fancy tea shops of all kind, from traditional Japanese ones to high end afternoon tea shops because he’s bougie like that

Yes I’ve thought about this and yes I’ve ranted this to other people, do I care? No. :D

- 🪷

I’m so sorry for the late reply I swear my ask box sometimes

AHHH I SEE WE SHARE THE SAME VISION tea ain’t cheap I see green tea in the super market and I’m like damn he gotta be rich rich for sure he even called sakura’s apartment a bachelor’s place like boy you must be living hella good to say that hahahaha

NOW SUO AS A BOYFRIEND PLUS HES RICH?!! I swear dude has a black card in his wallet shopping trips consists of him paying for everything I MEAN EVERYTHING oh you like that dior bag LEMME JUST GET FOR YOU PLUS HES A GENTLEMAN SO HE CARRIES ALL YOUR BAGS stop this poor man before everything you own is from suo lol

GOSH HES BOUGIE AS HELL FOR SURE I MEAN JUST LOOK AT HIM OH GOSH NOW IMAGINE WHEN HE GETS HIS DRIVERS LICENSE HE TAKIN YOU OUT IN THAT LIMITED EDITION BLACK PORCHE OR DUCATI?!! AHHHHH I CAN GO ON AND ON

SHARE WITH ME MORE OF YOUR IDEAS I LOVE EM

[batsplat]

hiii your weekly sete ask:

wow his 2005 season was really Cursed affggghjk. like what do you mean he’s 7th with 7 retirements (more than that years top 4 combined) but also is the only guy aside from valentino in top 7 to not finish lower than 5th place…..

valentino was the curse really worth it being runner up to capirossi and melandri TWICE and in a row (joking)

haha... yeah... 'retirement' in motegi... definitely wasn't so eager to seal the title at honda's home race that he made an ill-advised overtake attempt on melandri and cleared them both out... two completely unrelated dnf's... haha...

anyway!! yeah!! valentino would make that trade with you all things considered - always got on well with capirossi, with melandri admittedly you have the whole drama of melandri thinking valentino switched up towards him... but tbf you do have to say valentino was impressively dogged at keeping melandri's first win at bay for as long as possible. the six races valentino doesn't win that year are estoril (very wet, kinda just settled for second), laguna (unfamiliar with the track and would never be one he really liked, finished behind the two americans who knew the track well), motegi (crazy how we'll just never know how that dnf happened... oh well let's move on), sepang (a bridgestone-dominated weekend, sealed the title there though), turkey (hampered by a poor start) and valencia (my god is he mid there, also he tried to smash himself up before the race which I swear he does like. repeatedly at that specific circuit. guess he knows he has the off season to recover)

the way the curse shakes out is that for the rest of sete and valentino's careers, whenever they both finish a race valentino is ahead. not a single exception! not one! but the thing is, right, sete's actual finishing position of seventh in the championship in 2005 is extra cruel because it... just is not representative of how competitive he was that season? this is where it becomes useful I have my 'curse tally' notes... 2004 we've already covered, 2006 is more depressing than fun (how is your luck so bad your ambulance crashes into a bus fifty metres before the hospital entrance), but 2005? oh yeah that sete season is fucked. do you know who won the best qualifier award that year?

narrator: he did not win his home race on sunday

you can also read the qualifying prowess from the average grid positions, and it's not even particularly close. sete averages 2.82 for the season, ahead of valentino at 4.12 and hayden at 4.29. he bags five pole positions, exactly as many as valentino. his average finishing position when he actually makes the chequered flag is 3.6, the third best that year behind vale's 1.44 and melandri's 3.5. unsurprisingly, 2005 is the only season this century where the strongest qualifier does not win a single race. that just isn't a thing that happens!! it shouldn't happen!! this is not a man who was suddenly slow. he also hadn't been particularly crash-prone in his previous honda seasons... one dnf in 2003, two in 2004... and seven in 2005. a nightmare

which raises the question... okay, not winning races is one thing, but what the fuck happened to sete? if you're not just slow all of a sudden, how are you suddenly dipping from p2 to p7 in the championship standings? so. *cracks knuckles* *gets out notes* let's go one by one and tally up exactly how sete's season went wrong (parentheses used to indicate grid positions, e.g. 'g2', and finishing positions, e.g. 'p2')

jerez (g2/p2): after a feisty start, sete leads the entire race up until three laps to the end - when valentino executes his overtake and looks all set for the win. but valentino makes a mistake on the final lap that lets sete back past, and he's frantic in his attempts to correct the error... it looks like sete might have this one won, until valentino steals it from him at the last corner, barging him aside with one foot off its peg. (more on the final lap here.) valentino's victory, immediately controversial, is followed by various post-race theatrics as the spanish crowd voice their displeasure and valentino rubs it in their faces. on the way to the podium, valentino breaks the fourth wall to mock sete for clutching at his shoulder - which he is then forced to walk back in estoril as it turns out sete had actually been injured (clips here). more on this, from broadbent's 'ring of fire':

(details of the gresini/zerbi dispute included below the cut)

estoril (g2/dnf): an increasingly wet race - conditions in which sete has always been excellent in (first 500cc race was won in the wet too). sete's shoulder is still injured from the jerez collision and he'd crashed that weekend already, but he leads comfortably at the start... it's always tricky to be in the front in those conditions and he ends up crashing out of the lead in lap 16 out of 24. would valentino have been so comfortable settling for the podium if sete had still been in the race?

shanghai (g1/p4): another wet race, this time at a new circuit. perhaps sete's confidence was dented by estoril, or perhaps he just wasn't quick enough in the conditions. he doesn't get the ideal start from pole, though he briefly runs ahead of valentino - before vale overtakes him and disappears into the distance. for most of the race, sete runs second, until eventually wildcard jacque overtakes him. with a few laps to go, sete's suddenly losing speed... it looks like he's dealing with some kind of mechanical issue and he's shaking his head down the straight. on the very last lap, his teammate melandri overtakes him for the final podium position. after the race, sete said he had already felt on the warm-up lap that something was wrong with his tyre, and that it was all he could do to minimise the damage and coax the vibrating tyre to the end

le mans (g4/p2): sete had won the two previous races at this track, beating valentino on the final lap in 2003 and extending his championship lead in 2004. this year, both sete and valentino get quite a poor start, and exit the first few corners seventh and sixth respectively. valentino starts his charge to the front before sete does - and sete's progress stalls for a bit when he makes an absolute hash of one of the chicanes. eventually, valentino is on the rear tyre of his teammate edwards, but takes his sweet time overtaking him.... sete hunts them both down, firing in lap records as he muscles his way to third, and valentino is quickly informed of just who is catching him. valentino overtakes edwards, but edwards quickly gets him back - which opens the door for sete, who slips past for second. the three once again converge and valentino eventually manages to get sete back. edwards runs it a little wide and valentino squeezes past, with sete able to take advantage of the open door to get through too. they quickly gap edwards and as sete stalks valentino, the commentators hype up the prospect of revenge, of 'payback time'... valentino takes a new circuit record on the final lap to hold sete off. he extends his hand for sete long enough that sete eventually acquiesces - in doing so affording valentino a courtesy his rival had not extended to him at sepang the year before

mugello (g2/dnf): this time last year, the first public cracks of the valentino/sete relationship were just starting to show. but a fight for victory between the two of them was not to be this time round. sete keeps p2 off the line; after some opening lap scrapping that includes a valentino overtake, sete is still in p2. then his teammate melandri rudely forces him wide while overtaking, so that sete briefly drops back to fourth - before muscling his way past capirossi and into third. he tussles a bit with biaggi... but ends up crashing on lap five. it already feels like curtains on any championship aspirations

catalunya (g1/p2): before the weekend, valentino says he believes melandri and biaggi, not sete, will be his main championship rivals. sete starts on pole, with valentino likewise on the front row. valentino gets a somewhat poor start... by the end of the first lap he's back in the mix at the front. the first few laps are frantic, with melandri leading most of them and making his teammate's life, uh, unpleasant - but eventually both valentino and sete make their way back and break away from the field. soon after, sete gets past valentino and leads the race. for a while, it looks like he's breaking away from valentino just a little... eventually, it becomes obvious valentino has just been biding his time. with three laps to go, vale eases past down the main straight into the braking zone of turn one, and immediately proceeds to destroy sete's circuit record on dying tyres. he wins the race fairly comfortably from there

assen (g2/p5): juan martinez, sete's crew chief, is taken ill on thursday with a migraine. he recovers to come back to the box on saturday, but unsurprisingly the team is on the back foot as a result. (remember, martinez used to work for valentino, and he is someone valentino explicitly blamed for what happened at qatar 2004.) sete starts reasonably well from the front row, second early on behind his teammate melandri before eventually falling behind hayden. meanwhile, valentino has gotten a typically atrocious start and gave himself a bit of work to do. sete eventually makes his way back past hayden - but unfortunately lets valentino through too. at the end of the seventh lap, valentino gets past sete at his beloved final chicane. after that, valentino goes on to win the race while sete languishes in fifth

laguna seca (g13/p5): sete executes a strong comeback ride, besides losing a duel to biaggi which I suppose is a new low. but the main thing I have to bring in at this juncture is one of my favourite sete's moments. this is from broadbent's 'ring of fire' again, in the context of the re-introduction of laguna to the calendar and the discussions around that. just remember that valentino has been tormenting sete for like, over half a year, and sete has not lashed out at valentino once publicly. but here... he finally snaps - and takes it out on the real enemy: marco melandri

quick friendly reminder that melandri was sete's teammate that year

donington (g2/dnf): the race is held in truly appalling conditions. sete - who, remember, was a known wet weather specialist - takes the lead early on. he crashes on the third lap, one of ten riders not to finish the race. after wobbling about in the front-running pack for most of the race, valentino eventually takes the lead before pulling comfortably clear. he mimes playing the violin while crossing the line; this was interpreted by some as mockery of his less fortunate rivals, which valentino refuted

before the race, valentino took another opportunity to twist in the knife:

"when I see gibernau I always want to arrive in front of him" uh huh

sachsenring (g2/p2): valentino had quite a few problems with his bike that weekend, with a tricky build-up to the race. initially, hayden gets the holeshot, as valentino starts piling up the pressure and sete gets stuck in traffic. but the race is red flagged - and while hayden again gets the holeshot at the restart, valentino quickly disposes of him and sete soon does likewise. sete swiftly overtakes valentino ("'take that', said sete gibernau, 'I mean business'" says one of the commentators) and leads from there, with valentino in hot pursuit. for a few laps, valentino ends up behind hayden - and once he gets past him again, he's seven tenths down on sete with six laps to go. valentino closes in and on the very last lap, sete goes wide into the first corner, letting valentino through

always thinking of the suggestion valentino was intending to overtake sete at exactly the same place he had been overtaken in 2003 (from here):

brno (g1/dnf): despite the summer break in between (where sete reportedly did a lot of training), this might as well have been a direct continuation of the previous race. sete leads out front as valentino determinedly muscles his way into second place so as to not let sete escape. on the very first lap, valentino overtakes sete - in a section of the track where sete was planning to overtake capirossi if capirossi got the holeshot (more on how forthcoming sete was being to the commentariat here and here, icl when I replied to those asks I didn't remember quite how bad it was). on the third lap, the two exchange a few overtakes, and then it's sete in front. valentino makes a mistake to give sete a bit of breathing room and almost let the pack swallow him up, but he escapes again to get on sete's tail. around halfway through, valentino takes the lead - and then, with just over four laps ago, valentino deliberately slows down and practically invites sete to go past, before slotting back in behind him. valentino takes the lead at the final chicane of the penultimate lap, setting the stage for a final lap showdown, except sete is beginning to lose touch... and then he slows down. sete has run out of fuel

japan (g7/dnf): all eyes on valentino - who starts from eleventh for his first matchpoint race - as he starts making his way through the pack. on the first lap, valentino's already made his way past sete for sixth. tragically, all footage of the race after this point was erased so we will simply never know what valentino got up to after this point in time, but sete reportedly crashed on lap eleven. "gibernau's wretched season continues, when will it end for sete gibernau... it's almost a year now since valentino rossi put that witch's curse on him at qatar and said he would never win another race, you've got to wonder..."

sepang (g2/dnf): as the riders storm down to turn one, sete and hayden make contact and barely keep their bikes upright - sete is knocked down to sixth. valentino ends up right behind him on the first lap once again, but gets stuck behind him for a little longer as sete works his way past hayden... before sete and nakano go down when the former attempts to overtake the latter on lap two. "sete gibernau's appalling season continues...." - sete begins to walk off before sinking to his knees in despair

qatar (g2/p5): back to the place where it all started. sete deploys some feisty riding to keep that second place off the line against both valentino and hayden. he takes the lead from capirossi on the third lap and valentino takes advantage to immediately force his way into second - ready to exert pressure on his enemy. but sete builds up a healthy advantage as his teammate melandri increasingly puts pressure on valentino. melandri and valentino exchange overtakes as sete's advantage ebbs and flows, eight tenths at one point while his two rivals tussle. could this really be the "resurgence of sete gibernau"? with six laps to go, valentino shows his front wheel to sete, but it gives melandri the opportunity to get past. as valentino attempts to return the favour, melandri cuts off his nose and causes valentino to almost run into the back of him - payback for motegi, which makes valentino run wide and almost fall back into the clutches of hayden. it looks like it will be a fight between the two gresini riders for the win as valentino is 1.2s back, but he quickly claws his way back into contention and is helped by the gresini duo scrapping. and when melandri has another go at sete, sete runs on into the gravel... "the man who has cracked once again is sete gibernau" "and I'm sure both marco melandri and rossi are smiling under their visors" from the commentary team - valentino snatches the win once again, with sete finishing a disconsolate fifth

phillip island (g3/p5): so much for another front row start, with sete getting battered around to fifth through the first few corners and quickly being pushed down to sixth by his teammate. from there, it's an unspectacular ride to fifth, as valentino claims another victory

turkey (g1/p4): another start from pole, but melandri gets the jump on him from the start. sete puts pressure on melandri and eventually gets back past to take the lead...... and then goes wide and runs it into the gravel. he recovers from sixth to a painful fourth. "you can just imagine valentino rossi grinning, can't you, behind his visor, when he saw that happen"

valencia (g1/dnf): once again, sete starts from pole.... surely, surely he has to win one of these? valentino starts from fifteenth on the grid, which you'd have to say is as good a chance as you're going to get to catch a break from the man. sete is shuffled down to third on the opening lap but is right on the tail of melandri and hayden, setting the field's fastest lap on lap two. on lap four, sete slows down... "and the spaniard's wretched season could end in the only possible way, another disappointment at his home round and yet more misery for movistar" - an engine failure. his teammate escapes out front while sete works through his grief on the side of the track

so, having assessed the evidence in an appropriately scientific manner... well, yes. sete was kinda fucked. you have plenty of bad luck, you have races where he's simply not fast enough, you have races where valentino forces the issue and beats him in a straight fight, and then you have quite a few races where sete makes a clear 'unforced' error. it's not even necessarily the crashes that are most painful - with sachsenring, qatar and turkey standing out as real low points, times when he feasibly could have had valentino (as well as his teammate, who he also dislikes) beat. his wet weather dnf's will also have been a bitter pill to swallow, as well as valentino's lovely habit of snatching circuit records as he pulls clear from sete right at the end of races. and all the while, valentino is happy to taunt him with his failures, reminding sete again and again of how he is no longer the challenger he once was. all the while, the narrative of the curse gathered momentum, ever more likely to make its way back to sete. with every failure, the pressure grew. there's got to be at least ten races where sete on pace could have been in victory contention, five races where he bags pole, fourteen front row starts... not a single actual win. and that's how you put together a curse, kids

here's the gresini/zerbi dispute:

Movistar Honda team manager Fausto Gresini sent an open letter to the media on Thursday night in response to a private letter sent by FIM President Francesco Zerbi to MotoGP riders Valentino Rossi and Sete Gibernau following last weekend's clash during the Jerez race. Mr Zerbi´s letter had invited the riders to reflect upon the incident, and to remain as positive examples for all MotoGP fans - asking them to fight fairly and without will of revenge. The FIM President also wrote that he didn't see any infringement to the rules, but stressed that this kind of situation shouldn't be repeated. The comments made by Gresini were: "I fully agree with President Zerbi about the fact that sportsmanship is the most important thing. There's no room for bitter feelings between two great riders, but in the meantime, I'm still perplex." "In this letter, Sete and Valentino are treated equally as if Sete had some responsibility in the facts, and I can't agree with that. I believe there is a contradiction when the FIM president writes 'there isn't anything to reproach you for from a legal point of view', and then warns that what happened in Jerez must not occur again." "It means that we're still far from a situation where all have equal rights, in a sport as dangerous as ours," concluded the Italian manager. [here is the presidents response]: Dear Mr Gresini, I should not respond personally to your open letter given to the press, but through the intermediary of my lawyers; however, considering that I subscribe to the rules of courtesy and that I believe private life is a right that no-one can deny, I am not going to enter into a controversy - an easy one given the ridiculous arguments in your letter. The only thing that I want to stress and which, as a man, mortifies me is that I am mistaken in my judgement of men. And that I say on an individual level far more than on an institutional level. With much bitterness, Francesco Zerbi FIM President NB: I am sending this letter to the press because your employee, by violating all principles of education, more so than of law, did not hesitate to betray the confidence that had been granted to him.

like "with much bitterness" why is everyone in this sport so dramatic. what was everyone on this year

[httpiastri]

I think Dino is wearing a mario costume for this year's prema party. It's just sad that he doesn't have his Luigi there with him 😔

…….maybe i'm stupid but i dont think i saw a single pic of dino from the party? 😭 so if he really was mario…… thats heartbreaking